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Ep. 184 Hell Divers - Bellum Draconis
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Intro written and produced by Joseph McDade
Music kindly provided by Fesliyan Studios
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Transcript
Empathy and Real Love
00:00:00
Speaker
I feel for you.
00:00:04
Speaker
You deal with things that you don't have to. He doesn't love you. I can tell by his charms.
00:00:14
Speaker
You can feel my real love.
00:00:19
Speaker
Ah, ah.
Introduction to the D&D Podcast
00:00:25
Speaker
Diddly diddly diddly diddly
00:00:30
Speaker
that will be the
00:00:59
Speaker
Hello everyone and welcome to this week's episode of the Fellowship of the Tabletop, Belem Draconis. We are a live play 5e, 2024 dindy podcast on the magical homebrew world of Earth in the kingdom of Dralak. Joining you for this week's rather hot, hot episode, we have Pubey, who plays the rules consultant human cleric Emron.
00:01:15
Speaker
I believe it's classed as 5.5e now, actually. We also have Ian, who plays the tiefling war saroa Nyx Corel. Nope, I play Drago, the barbarian paladin.
00:01:30
Speaker
We've got Ian, he plays the tiefling. We've got Ian, he plays the dragobon, druid, we've got Ian. Hi. we've got ian i My name is Mark and I am playing... yeah I'm playing the Human Blade singer, Seth, Pharah Reaver. And by last, but with no means least, I scroll down through my OneDrive list of rule names for him. and Let's go with... We have the Realm Ruler, the Reaper of Risks, the Reveler in Riddles, the Rectum Rinser, and Piehole Pinscher, Dungeon Master Danny. Bonjour.
00:02:04
Speaker
Speaking of pies... Wait, no. Can we do a Yeah. I don't know. Can you do pies? I don't know. It depends if there are any pies left on the boats from last week's episode to there any pies available for us here back in hell for this episode.
00:02:21
Speaker
Do we do a... Can we recap what the events of... Do you know what you're doing? Do we even recap? Is this me asking Danny or is this part of the big reveal to the start?
00:02:34
Speaker
Will we find out soon if there is a recap? Or won't we?
00:02:42
Speaker
Time will tell. Will is very giggly bear tonight, can I just say. i think he's he's very easy to set off. Yeah.
Hellish Plane and Fortress
00:02:52
Speaker
No, listeners, to find out what happened to the boat group, you'll have to have reverted back to last week's episode as we jump back to where we were a number of episodes ago as we find ourselves back in hell.
00:03:05
Speaker
Specifically, the vile plane. We are it underneath the floating fortress, an immense structure of obsidian black, jagged and severe, its architecture less built and more forced into existence.
00:03:22
Speaker
It does not sit upon the land. It hangs above it, anchored to a colossal a fractured undercrust of rock that floats like a broken continent torn from the world.
00:03:36
Speaker
accompanied also by a cloud of bats that roost underneath. From its four cardinal faces, vast black chains stretch outward, north, east, south, west, each one thicker than a ship's hull, vanishing into the scorched horizon where they bind the fortress to unseen points beyond sight.
00:03:58
Speaker
They do not sag. They do not sway. They hold. And yet beneath this spectacle, the world is wrong.
00:04:10
Speaker
You look upon a vast lake of molten lava, which churns around you at ground level, its surface folding and spitting like a living thing. From its centre there is this roaring column of flame that defies all natural law, all gravitational understanding.
00:04:29
Speaker
Not a waterfall, but a firefall, surging upwards in a continuous torrent of fury. It climbs from the molten basin below and pours directly into the heart of the fortress above, feeding it, fueling it, as though the structure itself drinks from this inferno.
00:04:50
Speaker
The light it casts is violent, this deep orange and hellish gold flickering across the underside of the rock, making them kind of appear to pulse and breathe.
00:05:03
Speaker
Your eyes are drawn further upward as you spy at the top of this fortress, four towering spires that crown the structure. And from the very core of the fortress itself, piercing skyward with terrifying profit precision is a blazing beam of orange, arcanic energy that's tearing into the heavens.
00:05:26
Speaker
It does not disperse. It does not waver. It connects to something unseen above this broken sky.
00:05:37
Speaker
And then, as your thoughts turn to how you're going to ascend
00:05:44
Speaker
That feeling returns, not sight, not sound, but certainty. You are being observed, not by something distant, but by something that already knows you are here.
00:05:59
Speaker
In faint whispers on the wind you hear him. Tolcalon.
00:06:07
Speaker
Now from your covering position as you you s spy this scene from a series of crevices underneath fallen boulders, you notice that one of the bats has broken from this kind of murmuration, if if bats murmurate like swallows and various southern avian creatures, and is behaving entirely different from the rest.
00:06:29
Speaker
And it has this bluish glow to it. and it is beelining towards where you are hidden, 60 feet below this undercrust.
Encounter and Message from Prego
00:06:42
Speaker
Emron, Seth, Drago, what do you do?
00:06:52
Speaker
It looks like a bet is coming down. ah we discovered. Do I kill it? which I kill it it's it's it's it. It could be a threat to us. It could be spying us out.
00:07:04
Speaker
ah kentucky Right. Time to die a little bit. and Pulls that tab. I'm going cast Toll the Dead at it. Wisdom saving throw, please. Okay.
00:07:18
Speaker
Fuck you, Hedwig. Seven. Fail. 2d8. He takes nine points of necrotic damage.
00:07:32
Speaker
It's still standing, just as this creature gets hit. And you see it kind of little shrill in pain. And it just falls flat and limp on the floor, but kind of still fluttering around you a little bit.
00:07:50
Speaker
Did you get it?
00:07:53
Speaker
don't know. Yeah. There was just a quiet... Ow! but coming from it it doesn't sound like a bit but drago you've been here before do bats talk here no have you are you expecting company drago walks over to it no it's not your friend pray pray prego yes freedomham it is oh oh that's calls
00:08:26
Speaker
Yeah, it's your friend Prego. Need to keep your wits about you if you're down here. Why are you about Prego? This is all I could do to speak to you.
00:08:40
Speaker
I thought we were here to rescue him, not kill him. Yeah, well, I thought you were going to conserve your strength. We knew how to get here What's happened? We saw you in the mud. Now you need to get up. but Well, I mean, we we we kind of figured that, but thanks.
00:08:54
Speaker
I cannot hold this for long, but I have some information for you. Okay.
00:09:02
Speaker
This fortress is inhabited.
00:09:07
Speaker
Beware the hellhounds. They will see through your illusions.
00:09:14
Speaker
On the third floor...
00:09:17
Speaker
There are rogue chain devils that are trapped.
00:09:25
Speaker
Surround the fortress, my brother. He has kept a battalion back.
00:09:33
Speaker
Be mindful in your steps.
00:09:39
Speaker
You will find me in the northeastern tower on the fifth floor.
00:09:51
Speaker
I have had word from Karstan.
00:09:55
Speaker
He is here, but some ways away.
00:10:00
Speaker
If you can get me to the Western Room
00:10:09
Speaker
on the second floor, I can pull him here. Is he okay? Yes.
00:10:24
Speaker
The steel nightmare... The curse... Chamber... You'll find the sealed chamber on the first floor, but it is guarded.
00:10:36
Speaker
if your plans have changed... That is where you must go in a hurry.
00:10:46
Speaker
Save me if you can.
00:10:49
Speaker
But I will understand if you cannot.
00:10:55
Speaker
We'll do what we can. We'll come and get you.
00:11:01
Speaker
But just quickly, are are the floors numbered from bottom to top or top to bottom?
00:11:06
Speaker
From bottom to top. Okay. Wait, I'm still confused. Does that mean that the the
Fortress Layout and Strategy
00:11:12
Speaker
the closest one there, and he points up, that is one, two, three, working upwards? or Yes.
00:11:18
Speaker
The lowest level is the first. Right. yeah it's Good to know what ground
00:11:24
Speaker
No, we're on the ground, Drago. This is the ground floor. Yeah, that's one. Where's one? Up there. Look. There are six you need to worry about.
00:11:36
Speaker
Now they're to the very top, yeah? Yes. No, no. And it goes one, two, three, four, up to six. And this is ground. So ground to six.
00:11:47
Speaker
but But you missed. There is four and then five. Don't forget that that before six you you skipped. Yeah, I got you. You were skipping to save time. I get No problem. and Prego, one more question quickly, if I may.
00:12:01
Speaker
and You said if our plans have changed, why? What do you know? you know something we don't?
00:12:11
Speaker
who a Okay. um Have you heard from me? Totally clear. The plan is to go and rescue Prego. And then this bat thing.
00:12:23
Speaker
And then take him to the second floor floor second where he's going to cast an in. And then we go do go to the first floor to do the finish the objective.
00:12:35
Speaker
The third floor, the first floor. The first floor. If you walk past it the first time, we don't go in it. We go up. The sealed chamber. Yeah, that's the last place we go, but it's on the first floor.
00:12:47
Speaker
But what if we go in it and clear it first? No? Just... It said it's guarded. hi Sorry, Prager, we're talking like you're not here. um Is there any more information you can give us before your your small bed form falls into disrepair? As long as you don't hurt it again.
00:13:03
Speaker
I can't make any promises. and all of that You said about chained devils. Are they chained up like we can free them, they will join us? That's a a handy dandy army. Or are we talking so dangerous that even on the wild plain, they must be chained up?
00:13:19
Speaker
They are chained devils in form. I have bound them to the third floor. They will not get on. They cannot leave it. I was going to say you said they were rogue. I mean, I suddenly thought, could we release them and then then like attack everybody else in the fortress that wasn't us, maybe? Yeah, I thought the same thing. Are we not to do that?
00:13:38
Speaker
It is an option. But they are no longer allowed to talk around forces, correct?
00:13:46
Speaker
Okay, that that could be useful to us if we needed someone to go and, you know... And they're on the third the third floor, yeah? Yeah, trapped on the Tokolon is not currently there, right? i cannot see my brother.
00:14:01
Speaker
Anyone else curious about the fourth floor? Because we've not mentioned that one. What's there?
00:14:11
Speaker
I fear to go down for the hounds. and it's okay I can see below, at the bottom of this ladder, I can see two of them. What else is on the floor below me, I do not know. Okay.
00:14:27
Speaker
Right. Having never met you properly, are you good in a battle? My magic is almost spent, but I can handle a blade. He's pretty good with a sword. I've seen him.
00:14:39
Speaker
Can't you do that thing with the ah guitar where you are give everyone curses? That was pretty useful. I do not have my things. They were destroyed my capture.
00:14:50
Speaker
Oh, I'm sorry.
00:14:53
Speaker
Okay. we're're Run away.
00:14:58
Speaker
Do you want us to kill you? Or do you... No. don We can carry you along with us. This bat will return in a minute or so. Do we need to kill the bat before it does that? Yes. Do not let it report back to its... and So we do kill we do kill you?
00:15:14
Speaker
Yes. Oh, okay. ah Swing Dengon's deception down. Overkill. Just crit. It's already prone, so you have advantage. ah I might need to roll with that 18 without advantage. Shall we see if I crit? Fuck it. Why not? it It'd be hilarious if you did. 23. That hits.
00:15:33
Speaker
that hits
00:15:37
Speaker
13 points of slashing damage. And you slice this bat in half. good night.
00:15:45
Speaker
Okay. Right. Well, at least we've got an idea of what's on the floors. and Looking up, Danny, the the chains we can see, can we see whether they connect? Like, do they connect just to the what we know is the first floor? Or do they go higher up? Can we bypass certain floors depending on the chains we take?
00:16:02
Speaker
So you make a perception check for me, please. Okay. And are you trying to remain hidden whilst doing this? I'm just looking as we are. there are ah my Pass of a 12, I'll beat that five.
00:16:18
Speaker
So all of the chains seem to go into the undercrust before the structure moves into kind of solid foundations. So everything's moving into the base of the floating rock. Um, From this distance, it looks like there's means to access from where the chains are penetrating the rock.
00:16:35
Speaker
You may also have the option there of climbing higher if you have that in your skill set.
Drago's Flight Plan
00:16:41
Speaker
um The chains are a route up for sure.
00:16:47
Speaker
So the only idea I can see, guys, lads, is um climbing the chain. Listen, it's a friendly term for a bunch of us that are, you know, facing death together.
00:17:04
Speaker
ah What would you like us to call you? Carry on. What's the plan? I think we climb the chains up, unless anyone else got better idea. Yeah, I can fly. but Okay.
00:17:16
Speaker
Can you carry us?
00:17:19
Speaker
Of course I... Can I?
00:17:24
Speaker
What's your strength score? Thousand.
00:17:32
Speaker
You'd have to make two trips, I think. You couldn't carry them both. yeah in your invent in in in your inventory, it says what your carrying capacity is. If that counts as a thing. 10.
00:17:43
Speaker
What? No, that's weight carried. 10 people. Your weight carried is wrong as well, but yeah. If click on the button, it will say carrying capacity, push, drag, lift.
00:17:57
Speaker
Repeat it again slowly. So if you click on where it says weight carried under inventory, you should be able to click on it and it shows up. Oh, my carrying capacity is 270. Okay, that's this be one one person.
00:18:11
Speaker
You got me, absolutely.
00:18:16
Speaker
Yeah, because everyone's carrying 165 pounds worth of gear.
00:18:22
Speaker
Well, you can definitely carry me up. um Carrie, you're not getting on my back. No, no, no. I want to make that clear.
00:18:33
Speaker
Then do we climb through the holes in the bottom of the rock or... It must be our front door. Do we go in through that? It seems like that would be the best place, most guarded, wouldn't it?
00:18:45
Speaker
So maybe he's trying... Is there any other way up? And Seth's going to have a little kind of like, scattered around it. Is there like a really obvious kind of like central, or is this the only way in? If so, it's going to be more guarded. So he's going to be having a look around for any other ways in. Make your perception check, Seth.
00:19:01
Speaker
I can perceive you with a four.
00:19:09
Speaker
What's your passive? my That's a very private question. um You know, it's ten.
00:19:18
Speaker
So aside from the chains, as you're looking in, the most obvious thing that you would equate to a direct route in is stepping into the fire and going up the reverse waterfall slash firefall, as it were, straight through into the core of the structure.
00:19:37
Speaker
That looks like the most direct, but also the most painful.
00:19:44
Speaker
What is the situation surrounding the entirety of this place? If I was to Drago's looking at it going, probably going have to fly up here.
00:19:55
Speaker
Is there any do badders around that I'd have to circumnavigate? As far as you can tell, make a perception check. Or a survival check.
00:20:07
Speaker
you coffee You're cool. Are you looking for people? Are you looking for, it not people, are you looking for foes? yet Bad people. People that would do me harm if I was to fly up. Make a survival check around kind of yeah understanding. Yeah, do badders, like you said, yeah. Yeah, do I think do badders was a good good good good word there, Ian.
00:20:24
Speaker
Do badders is also outdoor clothing brand, probably. That was a a good 11. Yeah.
00:20:38
Speaker
In keeping with the rest of the Vile Plainer, it looks as though most of the forces have left and and broken Eryth. It doesn't look like there are kind of externally any scouts, any guards um from this level.
00:20:56
Speaker
There's certainly no obvious kind of um visible threat. yeah um you're you know You're not entirely convinced of your safety at the same time with that role.
00:21:08
Speaker
I mean, Drago's not been convinced of his safety ever since he's come to this back into this fucking hellhole. I don't see an easier way other than me to fly.
00:21:20
Speaker
gallantly hold you and fly up to the flipff fifth floor. The fifth floor. Fifth floor. Is it easier? I'm just thinking here. Seth is able to keep a lower profile.
00:21:39
Speaker
Is it easier and also has the ability to attack at range? How far does it look up to the castle, Danny? So to the Undercrust, it's about 70 foot above you. And then the castle itself is an additional 70 foot. It's about 140 feet till you get to the kind of top of the spires, the full spires at the top.
00:22:02
Speaker
If you fly me up first, that way if it is I can hold the hold the landing as it were, or wherever we're landing, you go back for Seth. And he Seth can cover us as we fly there just in case.
00:22:15
Speaker
just just And then he can also cover you on the way back down. Whereas if you fly him up, I can't cover you. I don't have anything at range. I mean, yeah, sure. That sounds like a good idea. I won't need the cover, but, you know, fine. okay You first.
00:22:33
Speaker
Are we all in agreement?
00:22:38
Speaker
Yeah, don't see any other good way up.
00:22:42
Speaker
Let's do it.
00:22:46
Speaker
ah Okay, give me a moment. um I've never done this in front of others before.
00:22:53
Speaker
Drag is just going to walk just a little bit away and he's going to close his eyes. Okay, you got this. Do you want us to turn around? Shut up.
00:23:06
Speaker
I almost had it.
00:23:10
Speaker
Okay, they're not here. No one's here. It's just you. You can smell the ash. You just come. And then he's going to ah close his fists together and from his back, ethereal wings will sprout out. Before it does, make a religion check, please.
00:23:32
Speaker
Oh, motherfucker, this ain't nothing to do with him. ah i is doing that is it no is it how Is it a spell you're using? No, it's draconic flight. Okay, ignore that.
00:23:44
Speaker
ah Cool, cool, cool, cool. So once per long rest, you gain temporary flight for 10 minutes or until you retract the wings. No action required or you have the incapacitated condition. During that time, you have fly speed equal to your speed.
00:23:58
Speaker
So yes. You have these wings that sprout out from his back and they're not these beautiful pearlescent crystal sort of beautiful wings. These are ugly as leathery, just shitty wings um that just just sprout from his back.
00:24:15
Speaker
and And he gives him a little as he turns around to spy spy you both.
00:24:25
Speaker
Everyone sort of looks at Seth. Does one wind look bigger than the other? Shut up!
00:24:33
Speaker
So who's going up with you first? Everyone sort of trots towards Drago, right? ah How do you want me? Right. ah I guess...
00:24:49
Speaker
I mean, my armour's pretty tough. You could you could light hold on to my armour because it's quite attached to me. Yeah, let's do that. That sounds better than you kill my shoulders. And Drago will grab you by your armour and just pull you in close.
00:25:03
Speaker
Look at you. Don't get any ideas. And push up into the into the air. So he's got a flying speed of 40 feet. As you begin to make that ascent, then carrying Emron and... Are you going belly to belly or belly to back?
00:25:19
Speaker
i think I think we're going groin to bum. No, it was yeah face to face. I've grabbed him by his shoulder. Oh, ah okay. Put him in close. My head is on the right side of his shoulder so I can see around. Nice.
00:25:39
Speaker
Emron's beard just tickling his scales. You'd feel the that even despite how warm it is here, Emron, Being Drago, being of cold kind of is it cold ancestry, he'd feel the ice of his um his scales and he'd be quite cold for against your skin.
00:26:01
Speaker
Chilly. It's like having air conditioning. That's the first sense of cool coolness you felt in a few hours, Emron.
The Bat Swarm Challenge
00:26:11
Speaker
And as you begin to ascend...
00:26:16
Speaker
You get to within about 20 feet of the bats that are roosting, kind of circling. Are you making any kind of adjustment to your approach, or are just kind of straight vertical up as quick as you can?
00:26:38
Speaker
Drago would... He's never been to this area of hell, right? No, no. You were the other sit-up. He's going straight up. He's going straight up. He's never carried anyone during his flight. This flight thing is still fairly new to him. He just wants to be able to go directly to the fifth floor as as the bird flies, the proverbial bird flies.
00:27:01
Speaker
So when you kind of move in level and line with the bats...
00:27:12
Speaker
sort of two, three dozen break from their rest, hanging upside down from the under crust of this rock and just begin to circle you or quite quickly causing a bit of a cloud around you. um Screech, screech.
00:27:28
Speaker
It's then an attempt to to manipulate them in some way. How close are they, Danny? Like really close. Never contacting Pretended to be a bat. Bats have that accuracy, but they're just swooping by. Every now and again, you kind of feel like the brush of a tip of a wing, but not much.
00:27:43
Speaker
um But go ahead and make an animal handling to check at disadvantage here, Drago, because you can only really really use your head and that's it. Disadvantage. Let's go. Yes, please. ah Well, that's not good.
00:27:55
Speaker
ah The first one was 10.
00:27:59
Speaker
but oh and he got that 91 didn't think it could get worse but it did for an eight
00:28:08
Speaker
so seven on animal handling that's an unfortunate wrong there's something about the gestures you attempt to make and the sounds you make that aggravates the bats a little bit more
00:28:24
Speaker
The preferable thing for them to do next is to attack you. Instead, they do not. Instead, three dozen more bats emerge, resting and roosting further into the, the, the crust of this, this rock.
00:28:39
Speaker
So but there's about 60 bats now beginning to cloud around you. And after a few kind of shrill, barely audible high pitch frequency screeches, all 60 of them, let's say,
00:28:56
Speaker
Take flight due south with precision-like speed. And your infernal attention rating has definitely gone up.
00:29:08
Speaker
Of course it has. Bugger. I got rid of the bats. I screeched at them. Well done, Drago. I was going to to get Gary to cast a spell if we needed it, but well done.
00:29:22
Speaker
Screech, screech is what I did. Just for future reference if you're trying to talk to him. I appreciate it. don't think I've got your cadence for that, but yeah well done. I'm back drag.
00:29:34
Speaker
A few more seconds of flying and you reach, you're like in line with the top of the four um towers that are are spiking out of this structure. um There is a... Are towers downwards or upwards? Upwards towards the sky.
00:29:49
Speaker
I thought we were only going to the Undercroft bit, not the... You said you were going to the top floor. You're going right to the top. Fifth, sorry. but That's where a Prego is, right? The fifth floor. Yes. ja' is not fucking out news guy It's hard to get a sense of exact flooring. So sixth floor is the very top.
00:30:05
Speaker
And that's where the entrance to these towers exists. So one layer down would be the fifth. Yeah. Is any windows or anything? No, and that's what's remarkable about the structure. There is no way to look outside of it at all.
00:30:18
Speaker
Fuck. Fuck! Are there any doors where I can hold the landing while you as you... As you reach the sixth floor, there are four, as I said, these four towers that have flat kind of turrets in them and they have these hatches with ladders on that descend into the the fortress down. There is a tower in each of the kind of corner compass points. So ah Northwest, Northeast, Southwest, Southeast.
00:30:45
Speaker
and You have a choice of four. In the center is this big open, um ah
00:30:53
Speaker
a kind of square hewn through the center of this structure from which that curse is being projected into the sky in a beam of orange light. So where would you like to land on this structure? the closest tower.
00:31:06
Speaker
That would be the southwesterly tower. Okay. Just because Drago's aware of time. And you're basically you're dropping Emron off there, right?
00:31:17
Speaker
Yes. Okay. Okay.
00:31:22
Speaker
Don't make a sound. And if any bats come, screech, screech, motherfucker. And Drago will dive down. Screech, clip, screech, clop.
00:31:33
Speaker
Okay, so you place Lemron on this south-westerly tower and then begin your descent back down to go and pick up Seth. Is there anything you're doing en route? are you beelining? Are you trying to look at more of the tower? are you very much staying on this one side of it?
00:31:51
Speaker
Nah, he's not. he's He's going straight towards Seth. Okay. Imran, you have a sort of 30 seconds or so by yourself here. Is there anything you'd like to do while you are at the highest point you have been on this plane for sure?
00:32:04
Speaker
Is there anybody else on this floor on the level with me? No, so you can kind of see the three other towers that you are equidistant from.
00:32:16
Speaker
And no, there are there and there's no kind of guard here at the top looking out. This does not look like a traditional castle in terms of its way. It's being manned and operated in that you would expect a watch. you know if you if you If you were trying to um force your way into a fortress on Erith, you'd expect that there would be watchmen along these.
00:32:39
Speaker
That's... That is not happening here. It's architecturally built for that, but it is not being operated that way. And is is there ah is there ah is a route for us to be able to stay on this floor and get round to the northeast corner? Or would we have to go down? and You'd have to descend now. So you would either have to you could either try and um take your chances against the kind of sheer architecture itself or descend it through the trap door, but trapdoor through the the the kind of port door on the the ground of your tower.
00:33:09
Speaker
Or continue continue to fly if you want to. If I peer over from where ah where from where I am, do I see any can't twice spy anything more in the middle where the curse is? a Do I see anything moving? There's basically this big, because of the the the beam, it's sheer and opaque. You can't see down it and it's glowing outwards. So you're kind of hit by this wall of energy.
00:33:31
Speaker
and you You can sense maybe 50 feet below you is where it originates from. You can you can you can kind of see the bottom like looking down a well in the dark. There's glimmers of light against stone or objects, or there's something moving down there.
00:33:48
Speaker
But it's definitely kind of a sheer 50-foot drop and this intense, deadly beam of light. Or more arcanic, pure magic rather than light light would be underselling it.
00:34:02
Speaker
Okay, that's fine. I will wait for the others then.
00:34:10
Speaker
And a few seconds later, unless Seth has any other plans, Seth and... ah Drago reappear on the roof. Seth, is there anything you'd be doing, you would like to do once being pulled back ah well, pulled for the first time?
00:34:24
Speaker
No, just in full guard mode, expecting chaos and death and kind of preparing himself as a soldier would. And that's it. Okay. So all three of you now are on the southwesterly top of the turret.
00:34:37
Speaker
What would you like to do? So um do we want to use our potions here? It lasts an hour. might be useful.
00:34:51
Speaker
Yeah, I think that's a good idea now while we've got time.
00:34:56
Speaker
So we've got a portion of heroism each.
00:35:01
Speaker
Emron sort of scoops him out and hands him out. One hour. This will, it's like when I cast Bless on Aerith, this should hopefully give us that advantage and a bit of more um energy.
00:35:17
Speaker
Just in case, this this will help with things like sneaking around as well, yeah? Well, hopefully, you know, we we're going to be blessed by it, so, you know, why not? maybe yeah Maybe you just take it.
00:35:31
Speaker
For now. And like, then we can take it a bit later. So what I'm thinking is if we all were like superpowers for one hour and then all of a sudden it drops and we're all become normal again. the same time. You take all of it at once. Can't we just sup it? for No, you can't. so but i think you have to drink the entirety to get the push. We have got seven of them though.
00:35:50
Speaker
Oh, write this right now. Cheers. Well, I don't know. I don't know how part inventory works, Daddy.
00:35:58
Speaker
You won't have seven. You'll have one each. I would definitely say someone's drunk on the boat. yeah was what It was one each. I mean, there's no potions of healing in that part inventory anymore, so I don't know where they went. Correct. Yeah, we got we got some catching up to do. Someone someone someone screws on the whole ah of the whole ah healing front there. You're not a healer now. Okay, ah give me that potion. This is going to make us feel good.
00:36:28
Speaker
i think i think i think I think if we're here for longer than an hour, think shit's gone down. you not agree? yeah Get in, get out. Get out of hell. We have to just keep... Let's just get this done, okay?
Potion of Heroism
00:36:41
Speaker
Okay, okay. And bottoms up then, and Emron opens the bottle of his blue liquid that steams as if boiling. Cool. Jeez. Bloody hot. And as you all shoot this and and take on those benefits of feeling empowered, emboldened, and as your heads droop back down,
00:37:06
Speaker
Drago, you see a blue light glowing from within Seth's pack or kind of on his body inside his cloak.
00:37:22
Speaker
um Seth? Yeah? What's with the blue light? You know, there's blue lights all over the place. You know, it could be the moon. It could.
00:37:33
Speaker
but Oh, you mean up oh on me? ah He'll move his cloak to to kind of um show and look at what is blue. The portal, the pocket portal created by Alpha that is attached to you.
00:37:50
Speaker
There is this blue gem being pushed through it and a very bloody hand.
00:38:00
Speaker
You just see the fingertips of it as it's holding this gem. I can't cut the hand off. Whose fingertips? Can we tell?
00:38:12
Speaker
that my friend? How well manicured are they? I think it might be... but Are they made of metal? Are they scaly? That be
00:38:25
Speaker
i'm going to look at this and firstly be quite disgusted because seeing this gem come out with some weird metal fingers around the outside of it would be nasty like some kind of mama bear regurgitating poopy something or other ah o what the fuck is happening with that ah He's going to reach, take the blue gem thing. Thank you. And he's going to try and like wiggle his finger against the finger of, who assumes it's alphas. Yeah. um
00:39:01
Speaker
ah Can I pull him through? It's not enough for him to get any, any purchase on, on it. It's like, you know, where you're trying to put your fingers through a fence and you've only got that little bit of space to do it, but the stone is taking most of the available girth in this space. Yeah.
00:39:18
Speaker
As you take it off, the rear end of this that's being held and offered to you, it looks like a regular gemstone at the front. However, there is this kind of magically engraved hexagonal key face as you are being handed an item of significance. The first thing the the first item that has moved through this pocket portal before.
00:39:38
Speaker
Oh, shit. This is what we need, isn't it? That's the key. Well, this is the key. Yep. And where does this go? I assume in the curse to turn it off.
00:39:52
Speaker
The fucking thing that we just flew near. No, no, the thing that's down there and everyone sort of gestures down to the the first floor first floor. Right, okay, okay.
00:40:04
Speaker
Right, let's do this.
The Blue Gem Significance
00:40:07
Speaker
So don't lose that. No. If one dies, you pick it up and you move forwards. Correct. Seth's got it first. And if that person dies, the third person, the third of us, pick it up pick it up and move forwards. Is this key integral to saving Aerith?
00:40:26
Speaker
Yeah, this drops the curse on the Steel Nightmare and allows the pie to go up there. Right. And all in agreement here. One falls. We don't stop.
00:40:37
Speaker
We pick it up and keep going. If one of us falls and is dead, we've got nothing to bring him back anyway. There's no point lingering. I can live with that.
00:40:48
Speaker
Or not. Okay.
00:40:55
Speaker
So do you descend down the the ladder below you? Did the potions work, Danny? Yes. Okay, so we've all got blessed for an hour, and we've got 10 temporary hit points, which I assume replaces our previous temporary hit points.
00:41:08
Speaker
Correct. Yes, so we get it's now 10 rather than the 5 we got from Drago's speech. Oh, great.
00:41:17
Speaker
Okay, so that's going to get in first. don't forget to add that d four Yep. Seth's going to go down the ladder first and we'll be purposely looking at Emron and like over dramatizing like sneaky walking.
00:41:32
Speaker
she's going to drop down the hole. Okay. a little bit and then um we'll start lowering down so from now on unless there's noise seth will has taken point until we rotate maybe with drago at some point um and we'll just assume point man and we'll sneaking another potion take that's fine as uh seth goes forward um drago is just going to close his eyes this is where you will need to put a religion check on my ass okay um And he's going to just tap into that connection he's got with Akiva.
00:42:09
Speaker
Close his eyes. I could do with a ah pulse down here. He's trying to cast a vine sense. Okay. Make a religion check first of all. I can use my D4 with this, can't I? Mm-hmm.
00:42:22
Speaker
Oh, shit. Thing's about to get spicy. Whoa, that was close.
00:42:30
Speaker
It's close to a one.
00:42:35
Speaker
Ah, 19.
00:42:38
Speaker
Your spell succeeds. So as an action, you can detect good and evil until the end of your next turn. You can sense anything affected by the hallow spell or know the location of any celestial fiend undead within 60 feet that is not behind total cover.
00:42:53
Speaker
So anything through the ground you can't see. Yes, but we're going down into the fucking thing. I might get a beat on something. You never know. There's quite a lot of cover but throughout this entire fortress, but I'll say you kind of cast it as you're descending.
00:43:13
Speaker
So you'll learn what's on the fourth floor.
00:43:19
Speaker
um is it is it quantity sorry I'm trying to find that the exact wording myself is it a number of of of you can sense anything affected by the location of any celestial fiend and undead any of them but that's not behind total cover but isn't total cover anything that ah that conceals you completely Danny so basically a wall is total cover yes so I'll kind of treat it as because you're moving on to the same floor
00:43:50
Speaker
And the strength of the ping
00:43:54
Speaker
within 60 feet. Okay. um'm Rule of calling this a little bit, just so it's not entirely wasted. In the immediate space within the floor below yours,
00:44:10
Speaker
there are six fiends that are kind of bouncing back.
00:44:19
Speaker
okay i don't have tell you what kind of fiend because that's not stipulated there, but there are six fiends relatively close below you.
00:44:32
Speaker
I'll communicate that to Seth and Emron. Do I know exactly exactly where they are? No, they're just okay they just and it's near the point that you would enter the fourth floor.
00:44:45
Speaker
Near-ish.
00:44:48
Speaker
Seth, you're leading this this descent, is that right?
Stealth Descent into the Fortress
00:44:51
Speaker
Would you like to make a stealth check or are you proceeding unchecked? I'm stealthing my ass off.
00:44:58
Speaker
Stealth for days. I stealth incarnate, 17. Okay, good to know. So you've all reached the fifth floor and again it's... Oh, Emron?
00:45:12
Speaker
Do you want a stealth roll from all of us if we're all stealthing to follow? Not at this this stage, it's just Seth's first. as you get As you move into the fourth floor, yes, I'll probably call for it.
00:45:22
Speaker
As you descend into this fifth floor, it it the the the kind of octagonal shape of this turret continues as you remain in the kind of narrowest part of these spires. and Again, no no windows to to see out. You are met in a room that has some sconces, however...
00:45:42
Speaker
so that there is an attempt to illuminate this space but below you you can see kind of peering into the chamber below it opens out into more than just this oxagonal space that there is a kind of operable floor below you do you continue a descent a figure in iron sight we probably should have dropped on the tower draga was in but praga was in but never mind there'd be people there and seth's going to almost like headstand to lean his hands on either side of the hole and very slowly push his head through the hole and just kind of do like a 360 around and just take in silently anything that's there and around it and just get quick a quick recce not necessarily like what is there like the size of the room etc but just like are there any foes before we we go any further there any movement make a perception check
00:46:38
Speaker
Not very good at perception with my one eye. But let's go. Okay. Don't forget to add your to It's positive. I'm doing it. I'm just slow. That's going to be a strong 11.
00:46:52
Speaker
strong 11. It's one more than 10. That's true. It's nine off a crit.
00:47:05
Speaker
So you look down and... there is another chamber that looks exactly like yours with a ladder that goes down even further so you're having to descend a much greater distance but then at the base of that ladder you just spy movement of a humanoid-esque figure clanking in metallic chains So to clarify, the direct space below us, there is nothing, but through the gap of that floor, down the ladder, I see something move on the floor below that.
00:47:47
Speaker
Yep. Okay. I communicate in brevity. It's all clear, but the floor below, there is some problem. And then Seth will lower himself.
00:47:59
Speaker
That's the third floor. That's where the chain devils are. Is it worth us going back up and are and over the top instead?
00:48:07
Speaker
Seth will look to Drago. Yeah. Can you fly again?
00:48:13
Speaker
No. did the Did the rooftops look like we could have clambered over it, Danny? It'd be a physical challenge, but you could attempt it. Yeah, let's do that. We go back up across the roof.
00:48:26
Speaker
Okay. Which tower? the The west one? Is that where Prico is? Northeast tower is where he is. We're in the southwest tower. Is this map... Where is the compass on this map, Daniel?
00:48:37
Speaker
ah Or is it is it north facing? The top of the screen is north. yeah and we yeah what's up eastest Okay. All right. Back up. Back up. Okay, we're there.
00:48:51
Speaker
Right. Okay.
00:48:54
Speaker
Let's go. Okay.
00:48:57
Speaker
This is going to take longer than an hour. No, it's not going to take longer an hour. We'll go now. And Seth will spring up the ladder and then um look along the the rooftop. Is there like an apex, like a top yeah that's flat or anything? Yes, you're sat about 15 feet above the apex of the lower roof um that would kind of ah cover the floors that you just avoided entering the third floor. and so it would be 15-foot kind of lower level but it's about a 15 foot leap across to get onto the apex as well and this isn't kind of pristine slate in any sense this is kind of incredibly slippy glossy hewn rock
00:49:47
Speaker
i don't like the sound but how far is it to the other tower ah Well, you can't really see the other tower because it's masked in this kind of well of arcanic energy. But if you were to kind of route around it, it's 60 feet to one of the other towers and then another 60 feet.
00:50:07
Speaker
in a 90 degree kind of tempt rotation from that to get to the tower you're aiming for. You say Northwest Tower? Northeast Tower. Northeast Tower. Oh, Northeast Tower. Okay, okay. But it's 60 feet in front of you to get to the Northwest Tower, or it's 60 feet to the right of you to get to the Southeast Tower.
00:50:27
Speaker
Everyone's to jump over to the other roof. Okay. um I think you can do that in your strength, but could you just make a dexterity saving throw as you attempt to nail the landing, please?
00:50:37
Speaker
Oh, yeah I wasn't going to slam It'll be okay. I've got a bonus my athletics, damn it.
00:50:49
Speaker
Hang on. Let me add my four. Was that Dex already saving throw? Sorry. Yes, please.
00:51:01
Speaker
So that would be 14.
00:51:06
Speaker
ah fourteen
00:51:10
Speaker
you You nimbly and deftly control your landing perfectly, but it is like standing on ice. Very hot ice.
00:51:23
Speaker
Everyone, gesture to the others. Okay, all right. You or me? a You, you've got the shiny thing.
00:51:39
Speaker
And Seth's going to jump. Can everyone get ready for something? What's your strength like what's your string health score, Seth? um My strength score is 12.
00:51:49
Speaker
Or a plus one. You will need... ah
00:51:56
Speaker
but you're going to need it to your Your DC will be slightly higher in order to nail this, so go ahead and make ah a dexterity saving throw.
00:52:06
Speaker
Okay, that is a crit. Oh, shit. 26 plus, just in case, 29. Not
00:52:17
Speaker
like not a good time to crit. Anyway, I'll take it. Like dropping a feather onto a table, you land with very little impact on the the roof below you.
00:52:28
Speaker
they just stuborn I imagine you kind of move up to make space. yeah No pressure, Drummer, because I was ready to catch Shetha. I will turn and mimic the same action and stand kind of ready to kind of grab a limb if anything slips. slips
00:52:49
Speaker
yes
00:52:54
Speaker
Go for it. Are you attempting the same? Yeah. Dexterity save. Dexterity save? Mm-hmm. Oh! Oh! Okay, it's not a good roll.
00:53:10
Speaker
But he's pulled it back. That's a 12. So
00:53:15
Speaker
um so as you go to make that leap, the the leap, the distance is, you have no worry about the distance, it's the landing that you're concerned about, landing kind of controlled and softly.
00:53:30
Speaker
Seth, you can see he's coming in a bit heavy and kind of positioning yourself to make as much support as possible. ah I'll ask you to make a straight athletics check, Seth, to see if you can do anything to kind of dampen the the velocity at which Drago is falling into you.
00:53:48
Speaker
Drago coming in hot. another crit. Just rolled off a crit. it's not because need to add my... Okay, so that's 12 for athletics. Okay. Damn it, I have advantage on athletics, me.
00:54:01
Speaker
Sorry, You could have put yourself in the position to help. well You did for me. Yeah, I did for you. You could just sense in a few seconds before your land you land, you're coming in heavy, you're coming in heavy. And somehow Seth just is able to make an extended reach and cushion some of that speed at which you're coming in at and help you land a bit more firmly and steadily to the point that when you land, there is a small slip from you till you find your feet.
00:54:27
Speaker
but you don't kind of fall prone slash fall to your right into the incredibly intimidating swirling vortex of arcanic energy being pierced into the sky so seth caught you caught helped you there big time know shit drag is gonna clap him on the back good uh good man um good job good job yeah yeah you didn't need me it's all good you know just just in case you know yeah Good job. I was overly careful.
00:54:57
Speaker
Anyway, let's just... Great. Let's keep going.
00:55:03
Speaker
Okay. You take take the lead, Emron. Just take it easy. Nice and slow. Okay. Emron will then keep moving north towards the next tower.
00:55:15
Speaker
And this is now a 15 foot kind of vertical leap up in order to kind of get to the lower kind of targeting of this tower in order to help yourself up. And with your strength score, I think that's achievable for you.
00:55:28
Speaker
ah Well, I mean, well, as a high jump. Yeah. Isn't it? Isn't it only it's only um it's three plus my strength modifier, isn't it? Three plus his strength modifier. Sorry, I thought it started at 10.
00:55:40
Speaker
No. But what i but what i was going to do is Emor was going to put his back to of the wall and like put his put his hand out. And he's going to let Seth allow to push him up. Okay.
00:55:52
Speaker
All right. So here's what I need you to do. Emor, I need to make a straight athletics check as you're attempting to vault Seth ah up 15 feet.
00:56:04
Speaker
Okay. Did that roll twice or not? I could never tell. nurse That's the first one. Let's try the other one.
00:56:14
Speaker
Okay. So it is in total, it's a 19. And
00:56:22
Speaker
and you're able to kind of almost throw Seth at this point. and The benefit of Seth here is that his he's incredibly light and dexterous. Um, And Seth, even with your standard jumping height, you're able to just get a hand on the turret that you need and pull yourself up, which I imagine you now offer your hand back down to help.
00:56:41
Speaker
And I think in the collected and kind of Emron helping up, Seth helping down, there's enough that if Drago, you were going next, you wouldn't need to roll because your jump would do it. I mean, Emron's got rope as well. He could throw it to Seth if we needed i was going to. drop I was going to drop right down if we needed it for you, Emron. Yeah.
00:57:00
Speaker
Use the rope. That would be wise because everyone wouldn't be able to go up otherwise. Yeah. but He'll help Drago up if that's indeed of the route they take. And then he'll hand, again, all wordless, this is soldier to soldier to, to you know, marsh this is a martial group here. They know what they're doing. He's going to hand one end of the rope to Drago and then instantly turn away without having to explain what he's going to do Drop the other end of the rope down, but just enough that it lands without slapping a huge chunk of this 30-foot rope on the ground. lay it down and then just feed back the slack to Drago.
00:57:31
Speaker
And then Emron will give it a test tug and he will then climb up. And you' have you've successfully made it now to the North Westerly Tower. Do you head through this again to now make it to the North Westerly Tower?
00:57:45
Speaker
ah Yeah, Emron just looks the others and sort of gives the head nod towards the next rooftop. Checking for any any concerns at this stage. All right. Same order.
00:57:59
Speaker
Same order. Emron, same order let's start with you. We can we can rush these rolls. You'll all be expected to do a dexterity saving throw. Do you want a dex saving throw? Yep. Yep.
00:58:09
Speaker
Oh, yes.
00:58:14
Speaker
Oh, no, I didn't mean to do that.
00:58:17
Speaker
i got I got a crit and a 21 in total. Perfect landing for you. Absolutely flawless. And then I imagine you allow yourself to help Seth. So Seth goes next. Seth, what did you roll? 21.
00:58:30
Speaker
Even better landing. You're getting used to scaling the rooftops. You've been playing some Assassin's Creed. And Seth, I imagine you help again to soften Drago's help if needed.
00:58:41
Speaker
Drago, your roll? 15. 15. fifteen All most all most most of course words all more improved than the last time you attempted this and and less threat this time. So now it's just about the the vault from Emron to get Seth up into yeah the Northwesterly Tower then.
00:59:02
Speaker
And yeah, Emron's on the same. So advantage. So authentic check again. Yes, please. Yes, please. yeah With advantage.
00:59:15
Speaker
So that is a total 23. Like caber tossing at the Highland games, you're able to just ah vault Seth up even more with even a stronger arm than you did previously.
00:59:32
Speaker
And then Seth would turn hand down, he'd already be reaching back into his pack, pulling out the rope, hand down to Drago. And if he takes it, would literally, the minute his hand comes up, slap the other end of the rope down and it's, we've done this before. yeah We were good before, we're doing it again.
00:59:46
Speaker
Within about 12 seconds there, you've moved from one kind of a position on this fortress to the complete opposite side. And you are now in the north easterly turret, looking down again. That's the pinnacle of our coolness. It's all downhill from here. i said Oh yeah, well we we rolled too many 20s in that to actually... I like to think that you're all just having parkour, parkour.
01:00:11
Speaker
We're all sort of just humming the Assassin's Creed theme to ourselves. Seth's very aware of this potion only having an hour and the minute that he throws the rope down and Drago's tied it off, he's already going to be peering around into that first level of the tower and start working his way down. Again, full quiet mode.
01:00:29
Speaker
Eyesight for Prego, expecting a trap, expecting something to be there to to get him. He hasn't got Shadow Blade yet, but he is expecting combat very soon.
01:00:42
Speaker
And as you enter into this floor,
01:00:50
Speaker
you descend that ladder and you're greeted by a butt naked, beaten, whipped, cut, bruised, bleeding, Prego, the majestic, bound at the feet against the wall in manacles.
01:01:13
Speaker
It looks like at one point he was bound in the arms as well because there's a second set of manacles, but they have been broken. And you look a little bit closer and his wrists look really gnarled and kind of misshapen.
01:01:25
Speaker
And he just has not got the strength yet to to find his feet, but he is wounded significantly. Okay.
01:01:37
Speaker
So the minute, again, this is full soldier, this is war in his mind.
Prego's Rescue and Emotional Scene
01:01:41
Speaker
So he's dying wordlessly. The scimitar is down to his side. He reaches down, he gets some water and hands it to Prego.
01:01:50
Speaker
Or if he doesn't take it, leaves it near him. And then we'll instantly go to work finding and fault finding these manacles to find a weak point. And then we'll use a scimitar and we'll use any of his metal implementation he has to try and gather some kind of momentum to open them up in some way.
01:02:06
Speaker
Okay. Why don't you make a slight hand check?
01:02:10
Speaker
Sleight of hand. I'll take that. That's going to be a plus five. So that's Okay, so that's, yeah, 22. yeah You're able to nimbly just get the right purchase at the right angle that enough of the kind of locking mechanism in the manacle just kind of splits and you're able to release them within a few seconds of jiggery-pokery magic.
01:02:31
Speaker
and Seth will also then just get his like cloak uh his traveling cloak he's kept in his bag a spare one for like sleeping and stuff like that and we'll get that and try and convince prego just to sit on that instead of on the cold floor or not cold for but the the floor and that relieves some the aches that he's down to feel and um and just wait for the others to i'm sure they're already down by then but kind of um see what their next stages are just attend tend to him get him in a state ready to to move probably at pace and probably through combat and he just kind of
01:03:04
Speaker
within seconds has has chugged the water you handed him and is looking slightly more revitalized and ah the ability to move his feet again you just kind of watch him animate and wiggle and his kind of rotates his his ankles and begins to find his strength propping himself against a wall panting quite heavily one one eye is incredibly kind of bruised and swollen over and the other one just makes out if if you hadn't spent so long wanting to kill this man and known his face you'd struggle to actually recognize it was him
01:03:35
Speaker
And eventually as everyone kind of descends into the room, you just see Seth providing some tenderness for someone who has clearly not received any in a very long time.
01:03:47
Speaker
Are there any clothes in the room of Prego's? Nothing. you So Emron will reach into his pack and I'm carrying common clothes. So I can, he'll bundle out a set of clothes. He will also put a potion of healing, one of his in there, and he will pass them towards Prego.
01:04:03
Speaker
And as you do, he he's he's kind of tearing up at seeing you again. And when you're handing him things, he's making a a kind of pointed effort of of making contact with you, of holding your hand as you're doing it, holding your wrist as you're passing these things over, looking incredibly emotional um for for for for how you could perceive that through all the swelling and bruising.
01:04:26
Speaker
Told you we'd come and get you. he begins putting on these clothes that are slightly too big for him in every capacity. you know He just looks like he looks even smaller in these larger clothing. He certainly doesn't carry himself with any of the grace or or presence that he used to.
01:04:43
Speaker
And he just finally was able to utter it a very quiet word, raises a finger to his lips, points down the stairs below and just says, Thank you. you.
01:04:55
Speaker
you for
01:04:59
Speaker
Where do next?
01:05:02
Speaker
Down, get you to the second floor.
01:05:07
Speaker
There's a potion of healing as well, Dan. I think it's the 2d4 plus two, I think, is the one it is. Great. And are you allowing him to drink it? Because he will. Yeah, yeah, I'm him drink it. so i pass it with clothes. Thank you very much.
01:05:18
Speaker
two d four
01:05:27
Speaker
And then as he's kind of scouting around, he just looks at you, Seth, looks at you, Drago, and just says, blade, anything.
01:05:39
Speaker
Do you have any spare?
01:05:44
Speaker
Me? yeah Yeah, I think so. ah No. No.
01:05:50
Speaker
Yeah, I do. have another old scimitar. It's just a regular scimitar. it Picked up a long time ago, i think. The one he didn't throw away.
01:06:01
Speaker
ah It's just a regular scimitar. we'll just kind of hand it over to him. Sorry, it's no skateboard.
01:06:12
Speaker
He smiles at you. He takes it and kind of in know a beautiful flourish, spins the blade around your hand and grips it back in his hand again. Does a few more flourishes just to kind of test the weight and understand it and then holds it firmly at his side.
01:06:31
Speaker
Oh, well, if you're really good, he's going to reach down. I've got a dagger. Have that as well. Do do something cool with that as well. He smiles and takes that and does kind of a couple of flicks between his knuckles and makes the dagger spin and holds it in his hand in a kind of um and more in a a way you'd see in a pirate tavern than in a kind of militaristic one. is that it's more It's more of flourishing and intimidation than than kind of pristine and military in terms of his movements.
01:07:05
Speaker
I knew a guy on Blood Watch back in the day, i i dressed off his name was, and he could do something similar like that. Very impressive until he cut his finger off. Not saying you will, my friend, but very impressive nonetheless.
01:07:17
Speaker
The question is, though, can you kill with it and can you kill fiends? Yes, I can. I am warm to hear you say the word friend again, Seth.
01:07:29
Speaker
Thank you. You know, the enemy of my enemy is my friend.
01:07:37
Speaker
Let's get out of here. And he just nods, unable to speak. Do, uh, how much do you know about your, is it worth going up and over?
01:07:50
Speaker
Are you in the state to jump? I have not been below the third floor. How emaciated danny is Prego looking like? Are we talking, could we Yoda Luke him and kind of backpack him on Emron?
01:08:09
Speaker
He looks stable. He looks he looks um certainly after that potion much better. ah But like, is he super skinny and tiny and...
01:08:20
Speaker
but he's He's wounded. he has not kind of lost a lot of of his mass and and his core strength. These are these are recent wounds. Okay. You know, he was only taken maybe a week ago. Okay, right. Yeah, cool. All right.
01:08:36
Speaker
Let's just go down. i on just we Yeah, yeah. Okay, i'll I'll go first again and ah quickly then. Hang on. There you go. Right.
01:08:48
Speaker
Yes. the nice thing This key, Seth's currently got it. The plan is to get that down to where it needs to be. If we fall, the person behind picks it up, moves forwards.
01:09:05
Speaker
If they fall and so forth, you're now in this group. If we fall, you need to get that key where needs to go.
01:09:16
Speaker
Before nodding, he just turns to Emron for confirmation. Emron nods. We're in this to get this done. Okay.
01:09:29
Speaker
I shall.
01:09:32
Speaker
Okay. Okay, let's go before we all turn into gibbs again. Come on, downstairs. Seth leading in the way? Yeah. Okay, stealth checks for everyone, please. oh shit if I whisper do I get it from everyone
01:09:54
Speaker
that's not right oh that's yours okay I'll take that there's so many dice rolling can't see where mine is should have forgot what i rolled okay
01:10:13
Speaker
ah Seth got... I'm still whispering. Seth got 21. Drago 16. Oh,
01:10:21
Speaker
ah well, what did you do? It's a disadvantage. I got three. No! We need to kill him. And that's with bless. That's with bless. I rolled a 10 and a 3. And obviously the minus one took it to And I rolled one with the bless. So, yeah.
01:10:40
Speaker
Okay. Fuck! We were doing so well. It's fine. Don't know why need to start this point. So, a couple of things happen.
01:10:50
Speaker
Never well than couple of things.
01:10:55
Speaker
ah
01:11:01
Speaker
Seth, I'm going to say that you were first. I'm going to say that Drago was second. going to say Prego was third. And I'm going to say Emron, you were fourth. That's fine. I'm happy. Seth, you kind of descend and take in.
01:11:20
Speaker
this floor, you arrive in a small chamber at the base of the ladder, no more than 10 feet by 10 foot wide. There is an open door to your south and there is an open door to your west.
01:11:32
Speaker
To your west, I'll start.
01:11:39
Speaker
You can see a chamber
01:11:45
Speaker
with no occupants, some kind of demonic apparatus, and then a door, an open door across it, which is leading to the north westerly tower that you would have come down if you'd had chosen to descend the north westerly tower.
01:11:58
Speaker
To your south, however, there is a devil wrapped in chains in another chamber, and then a spiral staircase moving lower into the fortress.
01:12:14
Speaker
You are
01:12:16
Speaker
currently behind the devil as it's facing away from you. There are chains all over the floor and as you descend Seth you kind of have that stealthily knowledge to place your feet away from the things that are going to cause sound.
01:12:31
Speaker
Drago, as you drop in you're kind of reading Seth's language as you descend and you spot that he has seen something and you make a very controlled landing.
01:12:44
Speaker
Prager does the same. And then... Emron gets his drum kit out. Clanky, clank, clank, clank. Just kind of descends.
01:12:55
Speaker
and jumps straight on to a pile of chains that are moving into that chamber. And this devil just turns to you. It is like a human, but where there is flesh, it is just coils and coils and coils of steel chain. The only break of it is in the eye, where these two floating red eyes kind of sit.
01:13:17
Speaker
where its limbs would end, chains continue all around the chamber, creating like a web of metal all around you. You faced one of these before. You faced these the day that Prager was taken as you ah fled from the um ah meeting of the winged watch that ended so abruptly.
Battle with the Chain Devil
01:13:39
Speaker
This creature doesn't scream with any noise, but it opens its mouth and there is a rattle all around the floor as we're going to need to enter initiative, please. Fuck!
01:13:50
Speaker
Oh, shit, yeah. Get in my mouth. Do you roll a d4 on ah a thing? ah Not an initiative. No.
01:14:01
Speaker
Thanks for understanding what a thing was. Appreciate you. 21. 21. Emeron? twenty one ah emron It rolled, but I can't now. All right, well, Seth. 18.
01:14:15
Speaker
Thank you.
01:14:18
Speaker
Everyone, you found your roll yet? No, mine Mine's not appeared in the log, which is really weird. It was just not in our log at all anyway. i so Roll it again. Hang on, let's try again.
01:14:31
Speaker
keep until you get a good one. There you go, now I can see your dice. Oh, there you Right, okay. I got nine. Okay. Fantastic. All right. ah Top of the round, Drago, you're the first to react in this point where all four of you just, sorry, all three of you turn and look at Emeril making this noise and then four eyes all go back to this devil. You are the first to respond. what would you do?
01:14:55
Speaker
Kick the door down and hit him with my sword. Door door is wide open. Door is wide open. There's no door. It's like an open. I'll shut the door, kick it down, hit him with my sword. ah Yeah, I'm going straight in, ah just bowing through.
01:15:09
Speaker
Dengon's Deception unsheathed as I'm running. And he's just going to go with a level plain slice. ah Let's see if I attack. And if I hit, I'm going to put in some fucking smite.
01:15:26
Speaker
Dengon's Deception. He's not going to fucking hit. Oh, he might do. I got D4 that. 15 to hit. That
01:15:35
Speaker
hits. ah that hits Okay, ah I'm going to expend one spell slot to deal Divine Smite. So how do you how do I do this with my resource with Akiva?
01:15:54
Speaker
You need to make a religion check. Okay. 19. the Smite is possible.
01:16:06
Speaker
but does it does it hit Does it hit? Do I feel the Radiant? do i Yes, the Smite is ready. Let's fucking go I'm going to just do it at the first level. so I'm going to deal with the Slashing Damage first, my friend.
01:16:24
Speaker
That is 13 points of Slashing Damage.
01:16:28
Speaker
Thank you. We are going for 9 points of Radiant Damage. Nice. Feeling the momentum post-swing, he's going to carry on in a 360 slice and do it again.
01:16:48
Speaker
For a... That's fucking D4. Let's go. 17 Hits.
01:16:56
Speaker
hits ah He's not going to do... He's going to hold. He's just going to see assess the damage that he's doing on this one. 12 points of slashing damage. Thank you.
01:17:08
Speaker
Am I blocking the door? and Seth can move through you. Allies can move through allies. As long as they can move through, then Drago's happy. How does he look?
01:17:19
Speaker
He's taken 30-ish points of damage. Yeah. So you think. um It's hard to tell. there's This creature is made of chains and two red eyes.
01:17:31
Speaker
Okay. Your blade made contact and you're satisfied with the contact you made. Yeah, Chargo is happy. He's just wandering. He's just... he's just is ah Thousands of battles. He's always assessing how far the enemy is from... Not saying that I'm going to KO him, but I needed to know how my fucking radiant damage did. right, let's go. That's the end of my go. Let's fucking do it.
01:17:51
Speaker
Okay. Thank you very much. ah Next up in the initiative is Seth Ferreri.
01:17:58
Speaker
All right, Seth's going to um not cast Shadow Blade, which sounds very odd, but instead is going to whip out his other blade and cast Booming Blade upon it.
01:18:10
Speaker
he's going to run his hand of the tap along it and it starts to kind of vibrate in this red light slightly. um and then i'm gonna make a regular melee attack against it with my scimitar of wounding that's cool um and it i'm gonna move past and into the space from i know flanking isn't a thing but i can see the stairs basically yep um and that's gonna be a 25 to hit on the first one that hits and that's he's going to take seven points of slashing damage
01:18:45
Speaker
And then he's also going to take a little bit of necrotic damage, hopefully, which is five points of necrotic damage as well. And then go for the second hit if he's still upward. yeah That's going to be a 14 to hit.
01:18:59
Speaker
That misses as you just hit pure chain there, metal against metal. Crack. um And then he's going to kind of, as he made this, it's kind of just taking... Did you add your on that second hit?
01:19:11
Speaker
Oh, I did not. I did not So many rolls. Thank you, Ian. I can't remember what I said. You had 14. 18 now. That hits. Nice. Thank you, Ian. So that's eight points of... ah So that's eight points of necrotic damage and 11 points of slashing damage.
01:19:36
Speaker
What does the Booming Blade do? The Booming Blade is if they move away, and they take... 1d8 of thunder damage ah on top of that. If they move willingly five feet more away, they take 1d8 of thunder damage. And and your scimitar means they can't heal either, doesn't it?
01:19:53
Speaker
Yeah.
01:19:55
Speaker
Okay. Is that the end of your turn? It is. is an ADM.
01:20:02
Speaker
ah Emron, you hear shuffling and scuffling from the chains that you are stood in to your due west as a creature also made of chains has a approached your western flank.
01:20:18
Speaker
You then hear shuffling and scuffling further down in the chamber. Everyone has these as motion similar to the sound of metal rolling in stone. It's kind of heard in stereo down two wings of these chambers.
01:20:34
Speaker
The one that you have been wailing on, however, is going to bite back and it's going to make a multi attack. ah One against you, Drago, and one against you, Seth. The one against you, Seth, is a 17 to hit.
01:20:59
Speaker
That's... Sorry, I couldn't find you. That misses 18 at the moment. and The one against you, Drago. 24 to hit. Yeah, that hits. Okay. You are going to take...
01:21:17
Speaker
Nine points of slashing damage. I feel like that's not all. You have the grappled condition as when this chain hits you, it wraps around your right leg and roots you in place.
01:21:29
Speaker
ah
01:21:40
Speaker
Oh, and you are also restrained. You are grappled and restrained. What does restrained do You can't move and you can't... Attack rolls against, you have advantage and your attack rolls have disadvantage. Fuck that shit. You have disadvantage on distarity saving throws.
01:21:59
Speaker
Your speed is zero. Attack rolls against, you have advantage and your attack rolls have disadvantage. You disadvantage on dex saves. Thank you, Will. Hang on. ah And then...
01:22:11
Speaker
so As you are stood on one of its chains as well, Emron, I need you to make a wisdom saving throw. 21. As you resist becoming frightened, thank you very much.
01:22:26
Speaker
ah It is Prego's turn. And Prego, unsure which way to focus, ah just says in a kind of below a shout...
01:22:39
Speaker
Remember, they are locked on this floor. If we need to evade them, we can. And it's just going to run and help Seth out and charge and put put a scimitar into the back of the the the head of this Chain Devil that has been engaged.
01:22:55
Speaker
And it's going to hit...
01:23:01
Speaker
And it's going to do a light amount of damage to this one. um and it's just going to kind of catch your eye Drago between maneuvers and it's just going to point to you with his off hand and say steal yourself Dragonborn and you receive Bardic inspiration fuck yeah what's that do again double check his rank a bit 1d10 on things isn't it depending on his rank yeah grabbing his
01:23:35
Speaker
Level 20, wasn't he? That's the last time I checked, i think. Level 25, I think. We're into epic levels. We're going going old school.
01:23:46
Speaker
We're technically the brother of a god. Maybe we're into like 40. You're going to to one um ability check, attack, or saving throw. Each turn. Oh, no. Yeah. that One time. Sorry. Yeah. One time.
01:23:59
Speaker
You burn it, don't you? you get that? Ian? Yeah. One D12 to attack, save and throw, ability check. Yeah. One time use. Thank you. Emron, you're up. The door that is leading to the west, can that be shut?
01:24:17
Speaker
No, they're just archways. There aren't any doors. Okay. That is fine. That is good to know. Yeah.
01:24:30
Speaker
Okay.
01:24:44
Speaker
I'm going to step towards the... Sorry, where did Prego move into the doorway? Or did he move back? Yeah, yeah. He's blocking the doorway now.
01:24:55
Speaker
So I can't i can't attack. you could You'd have to get the other side of Drago, which you could do.
01:25:03
Speaker
Yes, I just want to don leave Prego on um undefended, given he is still quite wounded. Oh.
01:25:11
Speaker
Who's who's a rolling? ah I was because I've got aura of protection. was just testing it out. but You've made a thing of it. I was just prepping myself for returns. Sorry. turns sorry um Okay, I will.
01:25:28
Speaker
so everyone's going to sort of go in the doorway and yeah, let's do this. Can do this?
01:25:49
Speaker
I'm going to in the doorway, ah yeah, I'm going to cast Protection from good from Evil and Good on myself. It's a level one spell. Make a religion check first, please.
01:26:02
Speaker
I will do so. 23 without rolling my blasts. Yeah, it succeeds. Lovely. I am now protected from Fiends.
01:26:15
Speaker
Um... Cool. I'm going stand in the doorway facing that chain devil. And you want to know what it does, Daniel, or not? and I'm pretty sure it's disadvantaged.
01:26:27
Speaker
Yeah. And I can't be possessed or charmed or frightened from them either. Great. For how long? 10 minutes. Awesome. Thank you very much. ah That is the end of my go. All right. Top the round. Drago, you are currently restrained.
01:26:43
Speaker
Yeah, I can attack those just at disadvantages and disadvantage. At disadvantage. And it's an action to break the restraint. It is... Or is that bonus action?
01:26:58
Speaker
ah You need to break the grapple. um It is an action to attempt to break the grapple. Ah, fuck this. Okay, um a feeling the restraint Drago is going to rage.
01:27:12
Speaker
As he enters his rage, that's his bonus action gone. He starts to slice and dice with Dengled's deception. For two hits, that's going to suck balls, but it might turn around with a d4.
01:27:33
Speaker
What the fuck did I just roll? Yeah, the the combat log is not very good, is it? it seems to be missing things. That was 13. That's going to miss. I'm going to use my... I'm going to just burn it. 13 to hit.
01:27:49
Speaker
Miss. Yeah. Second attack. He's getting really pissed off at himself. That's better. 19 before the d4. No hits. is that you Is that a disadvantage? No, that's not a disadvantage.
01:28:02
Speaker
Sorry. That's not a Unless you choose to reckless, then you would make the straight rolls and we could take that. No, I'm going to do the disadvantage. Thank you, Will. ah So with disadvantage, what was my first one?
01:28:18
Speaker
Five. it was The disadvantage roll you've got to take is the five because it was it's lower than the previous roll. Five is... it's
01:28:29
Speaker
14, Hit. 15, 16. Cool. Right. I had some damage dice there that came up. ah I didn't see them. They don't seem to, yeah it doesn't seem to save things at the moment, the combat log.
01:28:45
Speaker
going have to redo the damage dice, sorry. points of slash and damage. Thank you much.
01:28:56
Speaker
That's the end of my go as Drago's chest is ah convulsing with the rage. He's just feeling the anger. Seth Ferry Reaver.
01:29:10
Speaker
I was speed roll this bitch. um I got a 25, make that a 27 for the first hit and a 17 for the second hit. ah Both hit.
01:29:22
Speaker
Nice. So that is going to be
01:29:26
Speaker
17 total points of slashing damage. And then this is again, both heads combined here. 12 points of necrotic damage as he just continues to wail down, like finding those points, aiming for those weaknesses between the chains and just seems to abuse it. and But he's going to be constantly looking behind him, aware that there's a staircase, he doesn't know what's there. He also remembers what Prego said about, we can just leave them, but now seeing, needing to get Drago out as well, and but thinking killing it is probably quicker than trying to just free Drago. and we'll just wail further on him. That's the end of my turn.
01:30:04
Speaker
That second strike hits true and this creature just descends into a pile of chains. The the red lights go nice dark in his eyes and it just falls as a dense pile of chains on the floor.
01:30:18
Speaker
Cool. Kick the chains out of the way, looking directly at Prager over the top and just let's go. All of us, come on. You still have bit? Oh, then, yeah, absolutely. Seth would beeline it for the staircase, and ah the minute he hits the the stairs, the kind of circular stairs heading down, he would shift into stealth mode again, sword out this time, heavy breathing, and will be moving down, eyes aware, and trying to scout ahead and provide the space for Emron, Prego, and Drago.
01:30:47
Speaker
Okay, thank you. Drago, you're no longer restrained. Seth, just prepare a stealth roll then for when we come back to the initiative. and In this test turn... The devils are going to move again and emerging,
01:31:02
Speaker
but getting caught behind an object in the the of sort of far south corner of this chamber that Drago you're in and the set is just kind of headed straight for the the staircase is a chain devil. That's just going to attempt to fling out range of volley of chains over to hit you, Drago.
01:31:21
Speaker
That's not very nice. It's the only thing I can see. ah How does and a 20 do against your armor class?
01:31:35
Speaker
Yep, both. Both.
01:31:48
Speaker
ah You take 14 points of bludgeoning damage. I'm going to half that. And eight points of fire damage. I'm not going to half that.
01:31:59
Speaker
But it's too far away from you to restrain you. and Emron, panning over towards you, the Chain Devil that has entered the room to your west is going to be able to make the distance here ah and is going to unleash two attacks at you.
01:32:18
Speaker
I think it's three. disadvantage.
Retreat and Conclusion
01:32:20
Speaker
Yeah, it's three actually. on the first attack.
01:32:33
Speaker
Nope.
01:32:36
Speaker
And a nine on the second. Nope. Disadvantage. Worked wonders. ah and then it's going to whip up the the chains that you're currently stood on top of and it's going to attempt to yank you from below. Could you make a Dexterity saving throw, please?
01:32:53
Speaker
Yes. sir I can do. ah Aledo is with me. That's a 22.
01:33:12
Speaker
You watch as these chains that you're stood on attempts to kind of coil around your leg and you're just able to nimbly lift yourself out them as you see that they are also kind of beginning to burn and turn into fiery chains. And as you yoink your leg out of the way, without the ability to grasp onto into anything, that chain just kind of breaks into dust and is no more.
01:33:36
Speaker
and then you just see as you're celebrating that kind of nimble dodge, another chain devil emerged down the Western Hall.
01:33:46
Speaker
But that is the end of the devil's turn. Prego's turn. Prego, seeing what Seth did, is just going to pull you, Emron, and is going to kind of take a shove action against you. and Doesn't have much strength. You can choose to fail, or if you contested, it's up to you.
01:34:04
Speaker
I mean, if if he's pulling me backwards, I will accept it because I think that doesn't incur the attack of opportunity because I'm not willingly moving. Is that correct? or Correct. You're being pulled by another and youre you're only nudged five feet out the way. Yeah. And Prego is going to join ah the the rush that Seth has just...
01:34:25
Speaker
ah ah partaken in and heads for the the stairwell to the south understanding the instruction that was given by Drago seconds ago
01:34:37
Speaker
next up it's yourself Emron um I kind of want to uh
01:34:46
Speaker
give Drago a push along but maybe he I know he's next the initiative doesn't matter actually in that case Emron's going to join the others and use 30 feet of his movement to join everyone else with on the stairs and let's keep going Drago top the round it's you your your party have headed down the stairs to the south what do you do you're no longer restrained ah With ah one hand on Dengar's deception, he's going to take his free hand and he's going to hurl Axe of Shadar at the one who just tried to chain him. a bit obscure, so it's a bit harder to hit this one. That's okay. As long as I attempt it, Drago knows. He's been in range enough times to keep his rage fucking active. Sure.
01:35:36
Speaker
He's no longer a disadvantage over, is he? Correct. That's 23 to hit. Nice, that does hit. Let's fucking go.
01:35:53
Speaker
That is... 12 points of the slashing damage and...
01:36:08
Speaker
ah A one point of lightning damage. Excellent. As the axe hits, buries in, and then in a shot of lightning that leaves its residual mark on the devil chain, it appears back in Drago's free hand. And then he uses his full 40 feet of movement to push himself down the stairs.
01:36:28
Speaker
Excellent. And the party now are all descending down to the second floor. And as you descend to the second floor and you leave the the chain devils sprawling and screaming and making a lot of noise behind you, and Seth, you kind of hold everyone mid-stairwell back in an attempt to try and quiet them down. That is where we're going to end this week's episode Fellowship of the Tabletop, Bellum Draconis.
01:36:51
Speaker
or it Good shit. I mean, I felt like i felt like that that went all right, guys. That was that was quite slick. and Don't say that. You're going to make him do it harder. we Speaking of do it harder, hopefully you listen to us next week harder.
01:37:12
Speaker
Farewell. Farewell.