Sariel frowns a bit. It appears this circle is different than the others...

Arcana check: http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2946117/

Sureiya notices nothing out of the ordinary around the circle.

Players
Myn Nthelsyr (George): (H-13) 37/38 HP, Resist 3 All, Concealment, Darkspiral aura 1
Michael Silversteel (Hideyoshi): (H-12) 35/35 HP + 4 Temporary HP, Resist 3 All
"Bernkastel" (Bernkastel): (J-12) 38/38 HP, Resist 3 All
Torinn Tormine (Astaroth): (F-8) 42/44 HP, Light, Resist 3 All, Majestic Halo
Sariel (Liliane): (E-11) 30/30 + 5 Temporary HP, Resist 3 All
Sureiya (Anonkun): (F-4) 40/40 HP + 4 Temporary HP, Resist 3 All
Spirit Companion (Bernkastel): (F-12)
Elemental Spirit (Bernkastel): (H-20) Grants adjacent allies +1 to all defenses
Roth (Sariel): (Passive Mode)
Sunrod (Myn): (G-21) Sunrod
Battle Standard of Healing (Michael): (G-12) Aura 5: You all regain 1 hit point whenever someone in the aura spends a healing surge.

Allies
Thelkra (Ally): (???) -17 HP, Resist 3 All, weakened (save ends)

Enemies
Fell Orc Thaumaturge (Enemy): (???), -71 HP , Cursed (Myn), sanctioned (Torinn, immobilized and takes a -4 penalty to attack rolls
Young Fellflame Dragon (Enemy): (G/H-7/8), -260 HP DEAD

Notes
It costs double move to move on the stairs. Trying to jump or run down them could result in additional checks and/or falling damage.
Enemies that end their turn in the fellflame dragon's aura take 5 fire damage.
Creatures that enter the zone of grasping shadows take 5 psychic damage and are slowed until the end of its next turn.

Myn smiles briefly at the dragon's corpse before walking over to inspect the circle alongside Sariel.

"...Thelkra could still be useful. We should pursue as soon as we've recovered.

Arcana check for circle:http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2946120/

Looking at the confused wizard, Sureiya have no time to lose. So he imitate what Thelkra did.
Use my farbond to get some blood from my off hand, then I slam it on the magical circle.

Myn doesn't recognize anything particularly familiar about the circle.

Sureiya cuts his hand, and places his palm around where Thelkra did, and...
nothing happens

I wonder what that round thing on the floor is.

Retcon before short rest: speak with spirits, arcane knowledge check about circle. http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2946124/

First aid Sureiya's hand, stop bleed etc.

"This is not good, I wonder what went wrong ..."

>>1480
"Well, whatever it is, I hope Thelkra's alright an' caught that caster."

"Even if we don't catch the wizard we need to bring back Thelkra, that's what worries me"

Bernkastel examines the ritual circle, but the spirits can tell her little other than this magic circle requires some sort of arcane ritual to activate. Its purpose is unknown.

As the group takes a breather and Michael begins to examine the thaumaturge's possessions, Thelkra and the thaumaturge reappear in the center of the circle. Thelkra is standing over the thaumaturge, looking a bit singed but otherwise healthy, and the thaumaturge is quite thoroughly thrashed and bloodied.

The thaumaturge's clearly magical staff rolls out of her hands and to the side, and it grasps the talisman tightly in the other. Thelkra places her boot on the center of the caster's chest, pinning her to the ground, and calls out to the rest of you, "Got her. Whatya think? I think we have a few questions for the lass, don't you?"

"What the ... why was my blood was no good for this? Damn it, I will never understand this arcana trash."

>>1484

"A spellcaster that can summon a dragon, but still flees at the first sight of trouble probably won't be very useful."

Myn walks over to the slowly-rolling staff, picking it up.

"Although, I wonder if I can make use of this, somehow...?"

Pick up and examine staff.

As Myn retrieves the staff, he is soon able to identify it is a +1 accurate Staff of Ruin (Adventurer's Vault, pg 106).

Thelkra grabs the caster by the collar of its robes and lifts it a bit off the ground, before replying to Sureiya, "Sorry, brother. That circle won't be of much use to you unless you're a member of the Dragonsworn clan." She then turns back to the caster. "Scum, you said 'our plans' back there. What did you mean by our? And what's with that thing?" she points to the dragon's corpse, "I don't have much trainin' in that kinda thing, but even I can see it's a shadow beast from the Shadowfell... yet, altered, and weird. What gives?!"

The thaumaturge laughs and spits in Thelkra's face, provoking the thief to slam her into the ground, hard.

"So, what are we going to do her? If she accepts to peacefully get out of here we could let her live."

>>1496
"After the stunt she pulled and the things she already said, I have half a mind to put her out of our misery," Torinn snarls, pointing his blade between the fell orc's eyes and glaring at her with righteous fury burning in his gaze. "But if you want to continue fighting like this, the very least I can do is grant you the warrior's death you seek with such tenacity, and you can die in battle, fighting to your last breath as you choke on your own blood. So do you choose to fight, or will you talk?"
intimidate: 28
check for latest roll, can't make selections from phone

>>1500
[i]While digging through the chest and other items near the wall for any sort of clues, Michael uses the Dragonborn's intimidation to try and convince the orc to talk, remarking,[i]"Ye already saw how we dealed with your little dragon from the Shadowfell or whatever that blasted place was called. You should think things over carefully and tell us what ye know, or my friend 'ere might really do what he says. The same might go for the rest of our group at some point too, and I dunno if I could stop them ALL from doin' unspeakable things to ya."


Diplomacy Roll
http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2946791/

While the good/bad cop is in work, the orc makes an interesting face. Then he walks near of the dragon and using his sword he cuts some dragon scales, with the intention of doing a charm later.

"Speaking of that fell creature," Torinn growls, turning his sword from the fell orc to the felled fellflame dragon, "I'll need this," and points to the dragon's head. He raises his blade, bringing it down in a powerful strike that slices through it's scaly neck and severs it's head from the body.

"We'll be needing proof of what happened here, so I'll be taking this with me," Torinn explains, putting away his shield to grasp the head by it's crest. He hefts it up and carries it with him, once again holding the fell orc at swordpoint, "Have you made up your mind?"

When Torinn hacks at the dragon's head, he finds the skin of the fell beast has turned very brittle, much like thin, refined obsidian. If this dragon was ever a 'living' thing, it clearly was no longer while you were fighting it. The neck crumbles away as Torinn hacks at it, and while Torinn has successfully removed the head, it's unlikely it will retain its shape for very long.

While this is going on, Sariel is staring intently at the ceiling. Anyone who glances up can guess as to why--here, it seems that the veins of the elemental leyline you witnessed earlier have converged, and there is a bulging mass of the 'skin' covering the raging elemental energy above the magic circle. Ripples of lightning and plumes of fire spit from its surface, as if it is barely even contained here.

The fell orc snarls and spits to the side, but does appear to be shaken by the dragonborn's display. She seems to consider the charismatic duo's words for a moment, then says, "It does not matter. Kill me if you will, but the Fell King's vengeance has already been put into motion."

Thelkra pulls the thaumaturge back up and threatens the fell orc's throat with her long knife. "Who in the hell is this 'Fell King?' Some figurehead in the Shadowfell?"

"I wonder how many of the dwarves and humans they'll wipe out before Many-Arrows falls... ah ha ha, what a pleasant thought," the fell orc sneers, and you can tell Thelkra is about to lose her patience.

Meanwhile, Michael rummages through the chest and discovers several items of obvious value. The identity of the magical items can be discerned by holding them for a few moments:

Treasure Found
+1 Luckblade Bastard Sword (Adventurer's Vault, Page 71)
Heroic Belt of Vigor (Player's Handbook, Page 253)
A Ritual Book containing several rituals
A gold-plated clockwork toy in the shape of a cockatrice (250 gp)
A magnificent dragon marionette puppet made from Shou silk (50 gp)
A glass vial containing a large amount of residuum (200 gp worth)

>>1509
After finally rummaging through the chest and seeing what's in it, he shows it's contents to the party, to try and help the mood a little bit more, and to hopefully see if Sariel could gather anything to help them in this situation from the ritual book. He seems interested in the little dragon marionette especially.

"It seems than this orc will not cooperate, but returning to Baldur's Gate with him could be useful, I wonder if she could handle the interrogators.
Anyways, you just said something interesting, Why are you in the Dragonsworn clan along that fell orc?"

"Don't get the wrong idea, brother," Thelkra replies, her angry gaze remaining fixed on the prone fell orc before it. "The Dragonsworn clan is a dead clan, for the most part. I do come from that bloodline, but it's not as if I hold some allegiance to the clan." Again, the thief leans inward, pressing her blade closer to the thaumaturge. "I WOULD like to know what this scum is doin' usin' the clan's rituals, but I have a feelin' I'm not gonna like the answer, whatever it is."

>>1522
"So what do ya suggest we do now, Thelkra?"

>>1525
"I tell ya what I think we should do! I should kill this bitch, and we'll take whatever she's got on 'er back to Baldur's Gate!" Thelkra spits, drawing back her long knife. "I've heard enough to report back to Cragmaul now, so let's finish this!"

>>1529
"She can't tell us anything if she's dead. Take her in alive and give her to your superiors. Have them coax more information about this plot from her."

He lowers his gaze to the pitiful orc, letting go of the husk of the dragon's head, "I don't believe you deserve the comfort of death for the danger you've brought upon us all. You're coming back as proof of what happened here, since your pet can't pull itself together, and somebody in Baldur's Gate is bound to know how to make you spill your guts."

Diplomacy roll: http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2948985/ (27)

>>1530
>>1529

Having decided the staff would be worth keeping more than the fell orc, Myn shakes his head.

"It may be dangerous to let her remain alive. Even if dead, she may be made to speak with the right magic."

>>1530
>>1533
"I disagree. It's as the Paladin says."

Thelkra wavers for a moment, then slams the thaumaturge back against the ground, hard. The fell orc's head hits the ground with an unpleasant sound, but it seems to be without any major external injuries. Hopefully it's just unconscious.

"Fine. I'll let the stiffs in Baldur's deal with her then," Thelkra says, sounding unsatisfied. "We'd better bind her hands, then, and gag'er. I don't reckon taking away the staff'll be enough to stop her from castin' completely." The half-orc takes out part of what appears to be a spare bandana, and begins tying it off to use as a gag.

Sureiya waits until Thelkra finish the job and then suggest.
"Just to be extra careful, could you check if she still have any kind of weapon or magical artifact with her?"
Sureiya takes a short rest.

Sariel finishes looking up at the converging leylines and explains, "This is definitely where the leyline to the Elemental Chaos is strongest. That's what all that up there is about," she points up at the ceiling. "So then, if it would be much easier to call forth denizens of the Elemental Chaos here, I wonder why the caster went through all the trouble of summoning a dragon from the Shadowfell? It doesn't make much sense. Unless..."

The wizard thinks for a few moments, then says, "Well, the dragon seemed more like an elemental creature than a shadow creature. There may be some books in the Arcanimus that have the answers we need to this riddle, or maybe interrogating the fell orc will help." In any case, she takes the ritual book Michael found and begins flipping through it.

Torinn sits down, watching the ceiling and looking uneasy.

"Is it really safe to leave it like this?"

Take a short rest

>>1543
"I don't think there's anything we can do about it. Sealing a leyline is... well beyond our capabilities," Sariel replies.

"Then let's go back already, it's a long way"

"...a soft axe can't fell trees. It would be prudent to devise a way to make these tools more effective."

Sighing slightly, Myn nods at the half-orc.

"I agree. It would be unwise to dally here more than necessary."

Shrugging at the apparant lack of anything to do about the leyline issue, Michael takes out a rope and starts helping Thelkra tie up the fell orc.

After finishing his rest, Torinn gets up and claims the belt from the spoils.

"If we can't do anything about it, I'd like to find somebody who can, and soon."

One last look at the room later, the shaman is also ready to leave.

Perception check, around the room. http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/2950130/

Encounter Ended

XP Earned: 250 XP per person

Expected XP Total: 3900/3750 XP
Advance to level 4 next Extended Rest

The Loot (From the Entire Dungeon)

Reagents: 960gp in alchemical reagents (Arcana), 360gp in herbs and plants (Nature), 200gp in residuum (Any)

Magical Items:
+1 Luckblade bastard sword (Level 3, 680gp)
+1 accurate Staff of Ruin (Level 3, 680gp)
Heroic Belt of Vigor (Level 2, 530gp)

Treasure: Golden clockwork cockatrice (250gp), silk dragon puppet (50gp)

Once the fell orc is secured, Torinn tosses her over his shoulder, and the group starts to make their way out of the cavern.

Between Thelkra's scouting and the group's earlier passage, the adventurers are able to easily find a safer way back. They retrace their steps through the spider chamber, collecting all ropes and climbing tools used along the way, and Thelkra works together with Bernkastel and Sureiya to create a quick antidote for the mushroom poison, allowing easy passage through the poisonous cavern. Thelkra and Sureiya's climbing tools make ascending the slick tunnel easier than descending would be, and the dwarf stone face gives you well-wishes on your way out.

Once you reach the area where you first encountered the leyline, Thelkra points you along the narrower, northern passage, which eventually leads to an egress from the cavern. You all emerge in a different location than where you entered from, and the climb appears hazardous at first, but Sureiya, Thelkra, and Bernkastel manage to find a safer mountain path, which leads you out of the Troll Hills and back on the trade route within a few hours.

And so the group travels down the main road, once again heading south to Baldur's Gate, this time with Thelkra and a fell orc prisoner in tow. The fell orc woke up sometime while traveling down the mountain path, but struggling against her restraints and Torinn's grip proved futile, and so she has given to simply glaring at whoever attempts eye contact with her.

>>1560

Myn glances at the fell orc, maintaining eye contact as he smiles.

"You seem to be rather incompetent for someone who can make use of such impressive magic. I certainly hope that your Fell King wasn't relying on you for anything important."

>>1564
The thaumaturge glares at the warlock, and mumbles something, but it can't be heard because of the gag.

The orc considers Myn comment is somewhat cruel, even for a fallen enemy, and wonder what is Myn doing with them. But Sureiya doesn't like to judge the others before of time.
"Excuse my rudeness Myn, but I was wondering, What reason brings you to the battlefield? I'm here because I needed to become stronger to protect the people I love. But could you tell me why are you here, if I'm not being too pesky?

>>1568

"We share a common goal, companion. I intend to increase my own strength in order to aid my people, who are under the subjugation of an undying lich."

"We really do, Myn?.
Anyways, we had a long journey, and I think we did well. There's no reason to don't trust each other right now"

>>1569
"Subjugation?" Torinn inquires, giving no consideration to the fell orc's irritation, "What sort of subjugation?"

>>1580
>>1581

"Indeed. Let's continue to support one another from now on."

Myn smiles pleasantly, then turning to view the dragonborn with a more serious expression.

"I come from the land of Thay. The lich Szass Tam has long since overthrown the former ruling members, and now engulfs the countryside with his legions of undead."

>>1584
"Sounds like a real tyrant," Torinn comments, grimacing at the thought of a lich controlling a city. The mental image of fear and sadness in the eyes of every citizen who was more than a rotting husk made perverse puppet made him grind his teeth in anger. He snarled, "I never liked tyrants in storybooks. They always ran their kingdoms into ruin and made the people suffer for their own selfish whims. Greedy and rotten to the core, every last one of them." He pauses to indulge in another half-remembered piece of a story, smiling bitterly, "Their inevitable downfall due to their own callousness and carelessness was always the most cathartic part of the story..."

Realizing he went off on a tangent, Torinn coughs politely, "But I digress. Your people still suffer under his oppression, yes? If nothing else can stop such a... Thing... From holding a kingdom in its bony clutches, then I woul send him to his overdue grave by my own hand and establish a benevolent ruler in his stead."

>>1586

"Your sentiment is highly appreciated, paladin. I shall be relying on your assistance as well."

>>1584
>>1588
Sureiya consider Myn comment was honest, as he slowly realize than maybe not all the arcana users are the same.
"Alright, let's haste the way, I wanna get some rest."