Chapter 3: That Stifling Reek Arises

PureChance · May 1

Alban Lord Stuart - Human Shadow Sorcerer

AC: 14 | HP: 38/38 | Initiative: +4 | Passive Perception: 11 (Darkvision 120ft) | HD: 4/4 | Inspiration 0/1

Concentrating:

For better or worse, their journey continued. "Do devils sleep?" Alban wondered aloud, eyes combing the horizon. "Whichever the answer, I see no other option than to continue our pursuit." By now the entirety of his clothing was coated in a fine grey dust. "If Vadim sleeps, we will finally have chance to gain on him. If he does not, we cannot afford his lead to lengthen. I know not how time passes here, but if we wish to return to anything more than this blasted hellscape we cannot tarry. Nor could we survive doing so." His tongue snaked over chapped lips, thick and heavy in his mouth. "I have seen no trace of water yet, and whilst you are admirably prepared Dalin I presume your supplies are not endless." For now, his body could endure the demands of his desires, but at some point it would fall short and stumble despite his enhanced blood. He prayed that it would not be in hell.

OOC

Stat Block

Imperial (variant) Human Sorcerer 5

Languages Common, Elven

Background Noble Background Feature Position of Privilege

StrSave +0
Athletics +0 11 Dex 18 ConSave +6*
No skills associated. 16 Int 12 Wis 12 Cha 20

Proficiency Bonus +3 Saving Throws Con, Cha

Speed 30

Tools Calligrapher's Tools

Spell Attack Bonus +8 | Spell Save DC 16 | Spell Slots L1 4/4 ; L2 3/3 ; L3 2/2

Sorcery Points 5/5 | ShadowTouched L1 0/1 ; L2 1/1

Actions

Dagger +7 to hit for [1d4+4] piercing damage | Light, Finesse, Thrown 20/60
Light Crossbow +7 to hit for [1d8+4] piercing damage | Loading, Two-handed, 80/320
Mind Sliver DC16 INT Sv for [2d6] psychic damage | V, one creature, 60ft | -1d4 next saving throw
Frostbite DC16 CON Sv for [2d6] cold damage | VS, one creature, 60ft | disadvantage next weapon attack roll
Chill Touch +8 to hit for [2d8] necrotic damage | VS, one creature, 120ft | can't regain hitpoints until the start of your next turn, if undead disadvantage on attacks targeting you

Bonus Actions

Reactions

Shield [Hit by an attack / targeted by Magic Missile]

ariel · May 2

Dalin Ghillison (Barbarian, 5th level)

AC: 14 | HP: (70+5=75)/70 | Rages: 3/3 | Passive Perception: 12

Dalin eyed her companions thoughtfully, focusing on them was helping her ignore the terrible terrain. She was sure there wasn't a single square of flesh on her body that wasn't flooded with sweat. Wet tendrils of damp hair clung to her temples. She pulled a waterskin from her pack and passed it around. "Just a mouthful or two, we gotta make it last."

"Aye, it's getting cooler now, probably good to push on. No good place to stop anyway.

I say though, if we do come across a safe-ish place to rest or if we're still moving when the heat comes back... we stop for proper down time. Won't do no good if we come across Vadim and we can't lift our arms."

She looked to Jozelle. "Alban and I can see... so maybe stay between us if it gets much darker?" She was, after all, a traveller, a caravaneer, and if nothing else, she would help get these people get to where they wanted to go.

Edited May 2 by ariel (see edit history)

Whitleyrr · May 8

The party pressed on, despite the heat, despite their weariness, despite the odd nightfall. But it was not long before their persistence was rewarded. In the distance, at first a speck in the rusted twilight of this infernal plane, then growing into a shape they recognized was a house. Nay, a manse of sorts. It was incongruent with the landscape in strange ways. Dalin saw elements of her old trader’s lounge in it; Alban saw echoes of Vincent’s house; Jozelle thought the architecture was reminiscent of the lordling’s hall where she had danced the night away before slipping Midnight’s Tears into his cup. They all agreed it was a mansion and they all agreed on what it looked like. But the details seemed at once personal and…off, and familiar to all.

The house grew from a slight rise in a hillside, and behind it burned the mountains. Darkness hung like a pall, as dark as this place could get it seemed. The gate to the manse was unguarded, though windows looked down from a second story on the entranceway. Aside from the distant rumble of violent mountains, it was eerily silent.

Naturally, the trail led to the front door.

PureChance · May 8

Alban Lord Stuart - Human Shadow Sorcerer

AC: 14 | HP: 38/38 | Initiative: +4 | Passive Perception: 11 (Darkvision 120ft) | HD: 5/5 | Inspiration 0/1

Exhaustion: 1 | Concentrating:

As they strode on through the incalescent night, the ruddy light that offered no respite, Alban's limbs grew increasingly leaden - each thought and action fighting the stifling pressure around them. Still his demand for satisfaction drove him onward, until at the very edges of his sight he caught a glimpse of some uncanny manse, all at once familiar and strange. "More mind games," he cursed, "though we shall see if they have the taste of our patron or Vadim King's own enchantments. Perhaps they are yet one and the same." He wiped sweat and ash from his brow, leaving grey streaks in a mockery of the Redeemers mark of absolution. Grit had worked its way into his robes and boots alike, scratching incessantly and contributing to his dishevelment. Even within the confines of the grave he had not appeared so undone. "Whatever is within we will see the end of this business soon I believe. Do not forget the strength and sacrifices that bought us to this point. We are not doomed to the past. We cannot be." So he dragged himself forward, resolute in this land of ruination. Gods, Men and Devils be damned, he would have what he deserved.

OOC

Stat Block

Imperial (variant) Human Sorcerer 5

Languages Common, Elven

Background Noble Background Feature Position of Privilege

StrSave +0
Athletics +0 11 Dex 18 ConSave +6*
No skills associated. 16 Int 12 Wis 12 Cha 20

Proficiency Bonus +3 Saving Throws Con, Cha

Speed 30

Tools Calligrapher's Tools

Spell Attack Bonus +8 | Spell Save DC 16 | Spell Slots L1 4/4 ; L2 3/3 ; L3 2/2

Sorcery Points 5/5 | ShadowTouched L1 0/1 ; L2 1/1

Actions

Dagger +7 to hit for [1d4+4] piercing damage | Light, Finesse, Thrown 20/60
Light Crossbow +7 to hit for [1d8+4] piercing damage | Loading, Two-handed, 80/320
Mind Sliver DC16 INT Sv for [2d6] psychic damage | V, one creature, 60ft | -1d4 next saving throw
Frostbite DC16 CON Sv for [2d6] cold damage | VS, one creature, 60ft | disadvantage next weapon attack roll
Chill Touch +8 to hit for [2d8] necrotic damage | VS, one creature, 120ft | can't regain hitpoints until the start of your next turn, if undead disadvantage on attacks targeting you

Bonus Actions

Reactions

Shield [Hit by an attack / targeted by Magic Missile]

Edited May 8 by PureChance (see edit history)

ariel · May 10

Dalin Ghillison (Barbarian, 5th level)

AC: 14 | HP: (70+5=75)/70 | Rages: 3/3 | Passive Perception: 12

The dwarf was distracted, or at least, trying to distract herself. She was studying the ground, the tracks they'd been following. She looked at the house then lifted a hand to damply scrub at her eyes.

"Yah, mind games...

I hate to say it, but doesn't this all feel a bit like heading into that mage's house? What was his name... Krusty? There was something twitchy about that place and I got the same feeling here.

What if this whole thing started with a lie... a hollow promise of reward?" The thoughts were runnning deeper than she wanted them to. Her body was resolute, but her mind was tiring. She shook her head as if she could shake the thoughts loose. She looked up directly at her companions.

"So, what's the plan? Head straight in? Knock on the door? Sneak around the back?" Perhaps if they talked about it a bit, she could summon the courage to actually step forward.

Peacemonger · May 11

Jozelle - Human (Rogue/Monk)

AC: 16 | HP: 39/39 | Initiative: +9 | Passive Perception: 13

Jozelle's posture is as immaculate as ever. Despite the temperature and the long march, she remains focused.

That focus is direct at being very troubled at the sight before them.

"We passed the mage's test by facing our fears, our... regrets. Can we do so again?" She says the last question with uncertainty, unsure if she can face it.

"I... would prefer to go together. There is a time for stealth and swiftness, and a time for... someone to catch us should I fall." The last sentence is a slip, switching from 'catch us' to 'should I fall' enough to give away her own doubts and trepidation.

Mechanics

Main Hand: Rapier
Off Hand: Torch

Action: -
Bonus Action: -
Move: -
Manipulate: -

HD: 4/4d8

PureChance · May 12

Alban Lord Stuart - Human Shadow Sorcerer

AC: 14 | HP: 38/38 | Initiative: +4 | Passive Perception: 11 (Darkvision 120ft) | HD: 5/5 | Inspiration 0/1

Exhaustion: 1 | Concentrating:

Physically exhausted though he is, stained with dust and ash, Alban's spirit was not cowed. "We are bound in this dark business by experience, magick and blood," he intoned, "drawn by greater fate than some mere trick. I have come to believe this business will be finished together, stand or fall." He would make sure he was standing. "Come, delay only serves to let Vadim - and whatever he has wrought - fester." He drew himself upright, brushed the dust from his robes and exerted his power to make them flare briefly. "You will lead Dalin, with axe and shield. I will stand behind the former, and you will take her left flank Jozelle, to offer the shield bite of its own." Alban knew little other than tricks and deception, finding his way by with honeyed words rather than direct force, but he was outmatched by Vadim King in this. He could only hope their coterie would provide sufficient cover. "This is a land of destruction, let us guide its natural path."

OOC

Stat Block

Imperial (variant) Human Sorcerer 5

Languages Common, Elven

Background Noble Background Feature Position of Privilege

StrSave +0
Athletics +0 11 Dex 18 ConSave +6*
No skills associated. 16 Int 12 Wis 12 Cha 20

Proficiency Bonus +3 Saving Throws Con, Cha

Speed 30

Tools Calligrapher's Tools

Spell Attack Bonus +8 | Spell Save DC 16 | Spell Slots L1 4/4 ; L2 3/3 ; L3 2/2

Sorcery Points 5/5 | ShadowTouched L1 0/1 ; L2 1/1

Actions

Dagger +7 to hit for [1d4+4] piercing damage | Light, Finesse, Thrown 20/60
Light Crossbow +7 to hit for [1d8+4] piercing damage | Loading, Two-handed, 80/320
Mind Sliver DC16 INT Sv for [2d6] psychic damage | V, one creature, 60ft | -1d4 next saving throw
Frostbite DC16 CON Sv for [2d6] cold damage | VS, one creature, 60ft | disadvantage next weapon attack roll
Chill Touch +8 to hit for [2d8] necrotic damage | VS, one creature, 120ft | can't regain hitpoints until the start of your next turn, if undead disadvantage on attacks targeting you

Bonus Actions

Reactions

Shield [Hit by an attack / targeted by Magic Missile]

Whitleyrr · Monday at 11:27 PM

The trinity of companions, overheated, exhausted, bruised and beaten, resolutely marched forward. The trust they placed in skill and steel bolstering their courage if not assuaging their doubt. Courage and doubt often danced together, though, as any veteran would tell you if they were telling the truth. Fear has little to do with right action; one may precede the other, but in the courageous, it is not a determinant of future action.

When Dalin shoved at the door it opened on greased hinges, eerily quiet, and thudded softly against the vestibule wall. The layout of the manse was an open one, with a central outdoor courtyard and two stories of outdoor hallways punctuated by doors surrounding it on all sides. In the center of the courtyard was a fountain, but the pool was dry save for a disturbing red stain in one area, and the fountain itself was broken. It was lined with red and yellow tiles featuring beautiful geometric patterns. Some were broken but most were intact; wealth had once resided here, whatever such may mean in this infernal place of dust and stone and ash. The dust itself was churned up, as if recently a large company had gone from here. Looking around, the courtyard could have held over a hundred, but likely not much more, not comfortably.

The ground floor had three doors in each of the side hallways, and two on the hallway on the opposite side of the fountain. Four stairwells provided access to the upper story in each corner, which layout was the same.

In the back of their minds niggled the thought: this whole thing, this house, this realm, it didn’t…fit. Something here was not right. Or was it them? Was all of this as it should be and they were the ones who made it not right? Anxiety crept in like melting snow in a warm blanket.

Edited Monday at 11:29 PM by Whitleyrr (see edit history)

Peacemonger · Thursday at 02:20 AM

Jozelle - Human (Rogue/Monk)

AC: 16 | HP: 39/39 | Initiative: +9 | Passive Perception: 13

It is everything Jozelle sees in herself. Beautiful on the outside, over a most disturbing truth within. Countless possibilities as to the nature of this place, and none lead to any good omen.

Just like me. This place is wrong.

The last word echoes in her thoughts. She looks to Dalin and Alban. "I cannot drive my blade into what I cannot find. Have you any wisdom to unlock this place, or do we open door by door and pray they are nothing but doors to empty rooms, with a quarry in but one?"

Jozelle does not believe them to be just ordinary doors, but she can hope for this place to be far more mundane that it seems. It is a hope she dares not lean too heavily onto.

Mechanics

Main Hand: Rapier
Off Hand: Torch

Action: -
Bonus Action: -
Move: -
Manipulate: -

HD: 4/4d8

ariel · Thursday at 11:45 AM

Dalin Ghillison (Barbarian, 5th level)

AC: 14 | HP: 70/70 | Rages: 3/3 | Passive Perception: 12

"Ach, I have no wisdom when it comes to mind tricks... if that's what this is."

Dalin had entered the manse well enough. Alban's directions had given her feet motion and it wasn't like they could turn around anyway, having come so far. Still, the door had swung open too quietly and the courtyard too small. It was like a puzzle where none of the pieces fit together. What kind of devil army gathers in the front yard of an old mansion?

"It doesn't make sense, but unless Alban has a thought or spell... then door to door, we go." The dwarf clamped her eyes shut and then opened them, as if she could banish the shadows. There was nothing to be read in the churned dust on the ground, so the only thing that stood out was the red stain in the fountain. She approached it slowly, quietly to take a better look.

PureChance · Thursday at 04:13 PM

Alban Lord Stuart - Human Shadow Sorcerer

AC: 14 | HP: 38/38 | Initiative: +4 | Passive Perception: 11 (Darkvision 120ft) | HD: 5/5 | Inspiration 0/1

Exhaustion: 1 | Concentrating:

Uncanny indeed, the odd courtyard they found themselves in. Each piece inspected was unremarkable, but like the whole broken house somehow out of place in these broken wastes. He would say it mirrored his own history, broken since his brother's death, but in truth he had been broken long before that by his father's cruelty. There had never been some glorious past. "I would pray rather we find something than more wretched silence emptiness. These damned plains have enough of that, and I am anxious to be done and gone," Alban muttered, conscious of the portal still behind them. "I have naught but my own understanding to break enchantments and illusions I am afraid," he added reluctantly, "shadows conspire to obscure rather than reveal." He stepped carefully forward, avoiding the cracks within the ochre tiles, sniffing the air. "The mage's old residence perhaps, that he knows of this infernal amulet? It would be a pretty irony," he suggested. His faith in their patron had long since faded, too much information hidden and too little trust extended. The prize offered too sweet and tailored for each unsuspecting victim.

"Vadim King was a being of arrogance and luxury," he mused, "but too tricky to rise to a challenge I would guess. Perhaps we check the master suite first." As an afterthought he whispered, "Keep quiet too, lest we spook him."

OOC

Stat Block

Imperial (variant) Human Sorcerer 5

Languages Common, Elven

Background Noble Background Feature Position of Privilege

StrSave +0
Athletics +0 11 Dex 18 ConSave +6*
No skills associated. 16 Int 12 Wis 12 Cha 20

Proficiency Bonus +3 Saving Throws Con, Cha

Speed 30

Tools Calligrapher's Tools

Spell Attack Bonus +8 | Spell Save DC 16 | Spell Slots L1 4/4 ; L2 3/3 ; L3 2/2

Sorcery Points 5/5 | ShadowTouched L1 0/1 ; L2 1/1

Actions

Dagger +7 to hit for [1d4+4] piercing damage | Light, Finesse, Thrown 20/60
Light Crossbow +7 to hit for [1d8+4] piercing damage | Loading, Two-handed, 80/320
Mind Sliver DC16 INT Sv for [2d6] psychic damage | V, one creature, 60ft | -1d4 next saving throw
Frostbite DC16 CON Sv for [2d6] cold damage | VS, one creature, 60ft | disadvantage next weapon attack roll
Chill Touch +8 to hit for [2d8] necrotic damage | VS, one creature, 120ft | can't regain hitpoints until the start of your next turn, if undead disadvantage on attacks targeting you

Bonus Actions

Reactions

Shield [Hit by an attack / targeted by Magic Missile]

Edited Thursday at 04:28 PM by PureChance (see edit history)

Text_1	Text_2	Text_3	Bold_1	Accent_1	Mood_1
Warm_1	Warm_2	Warm_3	Bold_2	Accent_2	Mood_2
Cool_1	Cool_2	Cool_3	Bold_3	Accent_3	Mood_3
Bright_1	Bright_2	Bright_3	Bold_4	Accent_4	Mood_4

Chapter 3: That Stifling Reek Arises

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