three times three

so it looks like if i post three times a month for the next three months, this will end up being the fifth year in a row that i've broken my "most posts in a year" record.

sounds like the pressure is on!

boxed

longtime readers will know that my lovely girlfriend elle and i have spent the last 14 years sharing a body, which included a skull upon which one or another of our faces (but not both) can fit. well, the skull is still around even though the body isn't, so we still have to swap off if one of us wants to be a disembodied head instead of just a disemheaded face in a box.

and elle had a sudden lurch of desperation to get out of the box a couple days ago, which of course i was happy to say yes to.

(because i love her. so much!)

which means i'm currently riding that boxcar train along on a grand tour of the closet floor.

it's dark in here!

i mean, the closet's already dark most of the time, but you add on the extra cardboard light-blocking, and whoo, just plain pitch black. but that's totally okay!

if you think about it, we're all boxed in, one way or another. not too many completely free spirits out there unburdened by restrictions or barriers to their movements and interpersonal connections. some people have ritzier boxes than others, and bigger ones, and ones with windows or maybe a cool transparent dome. but each and every one of us is shut away from something.

in the dark about something (or if you're like me, lots of things!)

the thing is, though, even in a box, you're not completely all by yourself. you have your thoughts. you have your memories of other people. daydreams.

songs you can hum!

honestly a good song connects you straight through to whoever wrote it or sang it originally, so just by humming you bring a little bit of someone else into the box with you.

in my case, the box walls are also plenty thin enough for me to hear what's going on outside the box and even outside the closet. i've got plenty of people to talk to around here, and even if i can't see them through the box lid, i see them in my mind's eye. they're vivid. bright! all of them have the most joyous smiles.

so i don't mind being a little more restricted than normal.

my world is huge, even inside a box just bigger than my head.

next time you feel trapped in a box, shut off from someone or something you desire, my advice is, pay attention to what's in the box with you.

most likely, you'll be surprised how free you can be even trapped inside a box.

give it a try!

dragonbane ... secret of the dragon emperor part 10!

we're back! this most recent session was pretty short ... mostly wrapping up that purple flame temple we've been in for a while. take it away, elle!

GM Elle: Okay, here we are back at the Temple of the Purple Flame. As far as you guys know, there are only three doors in the place that you haven't poked your noses in yet.
MSG: Plus that trapdoor.
Ariel: Which one's closest? I know we just got finished resting, but I don't see why we'd want to waste energy going to the farthest one instead of the closest one. And the trapdoor's all the way up on the first level, so I know it's not the closest.
GM Elle: The closest one is that door to the west of the crossroads area where you found that grimoire and the other treasure. But the low, rusty iron door at the south of the manticore room is literally like, four meters farther away than that one is.
Ariel: Well, number one, four meters extra is four meters extra. And number two, I'm pretty sucky at the metric system still, so I'd just as soon not do the extra work of figuring out exactly how far four extra meters would be.
Hettie: If both you and Fidu are so set against the expenditure of undue energy, why not use that Treasure Hunter ability again and see where it leads you?
Ariel: Ooh! That's a great idea! When I get to the spot where I'd have to turn to head to the west door, I'll spend my willpower points and find out which way to the greatest treasures.
GM Elle: You get a lucky feeling about heading south, toward that rusty iron door.
Ariel: Yes!
Sasha: Let's head that way then, I guess.
GM Elle: When you get there, you see that it's thickly rusted within its frame.
MSG: I'll try my 18 strength on it.
GM Elle: Roll a Strength check with a Bane.
MSG: Wow, that tough, huh? I get a 4 and a 4 ... even one of our feebler characters could get it open with that.
GM Elle: I didn't say success would let you open it. It just lets you roll unarmed damage, which is d6 plus your Strength damage bonus die.
MSG: That's 2d6 for me, then ... I roll 7 points.
GM Elle: It's really stuck. You can barely tell that it shifted at all ... mostly by the fact that there was just a tiny groaning vibration from the hinges.
MSG: Hmm. Dolora thinks about it a second and says, "Wow, that is a monster of a rusty door."
Sasha: You don't really think that's going to work on Quackers, do you? Maybe he's not the smartest duck in the pond, but I think he can tell a door from a monster, and it's not like "monster" is some kind of trigger word for him.
MSG: How about this, then? I'm going to try to use my Performance skill to make a monster-ish sounding growl and throw my voice so it seems to be coming from the door.
Sasha: Now that might work! But you're going to have to roll it.
GM Elle: I'm going to say it's a Performance roll to throw your voice and if you succeed at that, a Bluffing roll to pretend it's a monster making the sound. Both of those will be opposed by Sir Q's Awareness.
MSG: All right ... Performance is a 10. Sash?
Sasha: Still in my great helm, so I have a Bane on Awareness ... oof! Demon!
GM Elle: Welp, maybe MSG doesn't need to make that second roll, then. I'm going to say the Demon means you totally fall for it.
Sasha: Let me at it, then! I'm going to hack right through that rust with my broadsword.
Akane: Seems possibly injurious to a sword ...
GM Elle: Yeah, normally I wouldn't have you roll to hit an inanimate object, but in this case, go ahead and roll. Another Demon will mean you damage your sword.
Sasha: 7 hits. But I only do 11 points.
GM Elle: You gouge away some rust and make a terrible racket, but it's not even close to opening yet.
Sasha: Hit 'er again ... Dragon! With the extra damage die, that's 20 points.
Hettie: Maybe you should use one of those battleaxes we looted after the last fight instead of risking your main weapon.
Sasha: No time! Didn't you hear that monster? 12 is another hit, this time for 11 points.
Akane: Wait! The gamemaster must first declare if the 20 points opened the door!
GM Elle: It didn't. And the 11 doesn't either, but you can tell it's getting pretty loose. The noise is incredible, though, echoing loudly through the whole vaulted hall.
MSG: You're going to wake the manticore up.
Ariel: I know you're joking, but Fidu's still going to look at the manticore just in case.
Sasha: 18 is a miss. Guess my sword glances off the frame or something? Dang, then another 18. But then another Dragon! 14 points!
GM Elle: That busts it open.
Sasha: I yank the door free! What do we see?
GM Elle: Inside is the bottom of a dark pit with raw, roughly-carved stone walls. Scattered across the uneven floor are dozens of skeletons -- some intact, some indistinguishable in the heaps of bones. But you can see that the more intact ones are shifting and moving. From between the loose teeth of their skulls come low, angry hisses and wretched groans. Some turn the black pits of their eye sockets toward you. Everyone make a WIL save to avoid fear.
MSG: Great. Let's see ... okay, a 10 makes it.
Claire: 15 blows it for Filvius.
GM Elle: You're enfeebled by terror and lose 7 willpower points. You also become disheartened if you're not already.
Claire: That cleans me out of WP.
Akane: Zedeja rolls a 3 of fearlessness.
Hettie: 13 for Dilfriida is a failure.
GM Elle: Paralyzed. You can't act on your next turn, and every turn after that you get another WIL roll to break out of it.
Ariel: Whew! 3 for Fidu too.
Sasha: Dragon for Quackers.
GM Elle: Not only are you not stricken with fear, but you don't even see these skeletons as dangerous at all. If anything, they seem miserable and pathetic to you.
Sasha: Well, they're still undead, and that makes them monsters, right? Unless something makes me think different, I think we need to draw initiative so I can get to chopping.
GM Elle: Go for it. Skeletons get a 10.
MSG: 5 for me, but I don't think I'm keen on charging in there.
Ariel: Yeah, I'll be not charging in on 8.
Akane: 6 for Zedeja. 
Claire: If we're doing a combat, I'll draw too ... looks like a 9.
GM Elle: Sash, you get to go first, then.
Sasha: I'm wading in with broadsword swinging! 7 on the first one I get to. 9 points of damage!
GM Elle: You hack loose a limb or shatter some ribs, but the skeleton doesn't seem to even notice much.
MSG: I'm trading this 5 card to Filvius so I can go later in the round and see a little more of what's happening before I commit to an action.
Claire: Thanks! Filvius will use his action to do a round rest and get back ... 5 WP.
Akane: Zedeja trades the 6 to Fidu. Waiting appears sensible.
Ariel: Well I for sure don't want to go next! Can I trade it to somebody else?
GM Elle: Only someone who hasn't already had a turn or waited themselves. That means the skeletons.
Ariel: Um ... then I guess I'll trade with them and be able to dodge if one attacks me.
Sasha: You bunch of chickens.
GM Elle: On their turn the skeletons only whine and grumble and wail. Most of it is just wordless noise of anguish and rage, but you hear some of them saying things despairingly, like, "Destroy this place!" and, "Let us rest ..." and, "Close it! Close the portal!" Zedeja? The 8 card is next.
Akane: I command our duck knight to come out and shut back this door. What can be gained, hacking at bones?
Ariel: Well, there is treasure in there ... I think. That's why we came this direction in the first place.
GM Elle: Fidu can't point that out until his turn, though, which is after Akane finishes hers and Dolora does whatever she intends to do.
MSG: That would be nothing.
Akane: Zedeja's commands are known. It can proceed to the wolfkin's barking about treasure now.
GM Elle: Is Fidu going to go in and look for loot, Aers?
Ariel: Heck, no!
GM Elle: New turn, then.
Sasha: If the bones aren't even getting up to fight back, I don't know if we need to bother with initiative, do we? Sir Quacks will get tired of chopping pointlessly pretty quick.
GM Elle: The skeletons just keep making their mournful and vengeful noises, with the occasional vague plea for you to free them or close off the demon realm.
MSG: I'll ask them how we do that.
GM Elle: They don't seem to be capable of coherent conversation. You get the impression many of them have been here for ages, just suffering the torment of lifeless existence.
MSG: Okay. Well, if another round of chopping by Quackers doesn't make them rise up and attack, I guess I'll try going in and digging around to see if there's anything good in there. Being ready to hightail it back out if need be.
GM Elle: How long are you going to dig around for?
MSG: If I don't get attacked or anything, maybe a stretch?
Ariel: I'll go in and join him after a little bit if he's not getting munched on by skeletons.
Sasha: And if they're in here and nothing's happening in the fighting department, I guess I'll switch to looting too.
GM Elle: MSG, you come across a gemstone. Roll a d6.
MSG: 3.
GM Elle: It's another emerald, worth 10 gold.
MSG: That's something, at least.
GM Elle: And that's pretty much all you find, other than the body of that cultist who fell through the trapdoor. Seems to have broken his neck when he fell. All he's got on him is his hand-axe, a key, and a coil of rope.
Claire: So I guess you're saying this bone pit is right under the trapdoor?
GM Elle: Right. If you look up from in here, you can barely see a thin line of light where the trapdoor is still slightly ajar.
Ariel: Well, I for sure see why the room with the grimoire set off my treasure sense more than this one did. Lame.
Sasha: Yeah, let's get out of here. Somebody grab the key, though. Probably just his housekey or something but you never know.
Hettie: Can we assume that sometime during the stretch, I made my save and broke free of my paralysis?
GM Elle: Yes. So where do you go now?
MSG: Back to that one door at the far west?
Claire: We've been everywhere else, right?
Akane: No debate! That door is our destination. Proceed!
Sasha: Sure, why not? Follow me, everybody.
GM Elle: Just to cut to the chase, you find that the door to the west opens into another spiral staircase going up. At the top, you find a locked door.
MSG: We try the key, obviously. Sash?
Sasha: Hey, I said somebody should grab it. I didn't volunteer to.
Ariel: Noooo! Please tell me we don't have to walk all the way back there! Can we say I took it even though I didn't say so when Quackers said to?
GM Elle: That's fine. You do find that the key opens the door, but the door just leads to that area you already explored on the first level ... the one you entered from the courtyard through the curtain of hanging vines.
MSG: Sounds like we've cleared the whole place out, then.
Claire: Let's go see if Hafarmal has brewed up some antidote for us yet.
Ariel: I think we should go check on our donkey!
Sasha: I'll go with you. If it's still there, we can bring it in to the herb garden with us for peace of mind.
GM Elle: Is everyone else going directly to the garden?
MSG: I am. I want to pick Hafarmal's brain about what those skeletons were saying and about the demon world we went to.
Claire: Ditto for Filvius.
Hettie: I think Dilfriida's still on the discombobulated side from those talking skeletons. The herb garden sounds like it would be a comforting place to calm down.
Akane: Zedeja accompanies the donkey pursuers. They may need guidance.
GM Elle: The garden is much closer, so Filvius, Dolora, and Dilfriida arrive there first. You see Hafarmal at work tending a fire under a metal tripod with a hanging pot. He greets you and asks if the temple is free of those cultists.
MSG: I'll say it is as far as we could tell. But there's a weird demon-world portal in the basement that seems to have an even weirder way of affecting time for anyone who goes through. So who knows? Some of them might be over in the demon world where they could come back at any time.
Sasha: Way to let him know we may not have finished the job we made a deal for, Dolora.
Hettie: I believe you're outside, Sash?
Akane: Yes! Less complaining about unheard discussions, more searching for a donkey!
GM Elle: Hafarmal chuckles a little and says that if they've passed through to the demon world and been there any length of time, it will become less and less likely they'll ever return. He sucks on his pipe and then gestures knowingly around the garden with it. "You can see how even being in the same environs with the portal affects plant life ... and, I suppose, my eyes and who knows what else. Passing though to the demon world would be unwise indeed."
MSG: I'll skip telling him the part where we went through, then, I guess.
Claire: But I definitely let him know about those transformed guys with the axes and the armor fused to their bodies and how they had black eyes like he has.
Hettie: Don't leave out our encounter with the horrifying pit of talking skeletons.
GM Elle: He frowns a bit at both of those revelations.
MSG: I ask if he has any idea how the portal could be closed. It seems to be messing around with a lot of stuff, and those poor skeletons have apparently been suffering for decades or centuries since they were thrown down in that pit.
GM Elle: Go ahead and make a Persuasion roll, MSG.
MSG: Ehh, Persuasion isn't my thing. I roll a 13, which fails.
Claire: Aren't you a bard?
MSG: Yes, but I'm better at Bluffing and Performance than winning hearts and minds.
Hettie: Dilfriida is disinclined to try her hand at convincing him. She doesn't want anything further to do with those skeletons. Also, her Persuasion is only four. So it appears to be up to you, Claire.
Claire: Hah. I'll roll, but not only is my Persuasion just as bad as yours, I have a Bane from being Disheartened. So ... well, I'll be! That's a 2 and a 4. So I make it.
GM Elle: And what exactly are you trying to persuade him of?
Claire: Same as Dolora, how to close the portal, if he knows.
GM Elle: He grumbles a bit and talks about how useful this enchanted herb garden has been to his work, but eventually he admits that the risk of further endangering life here in the Magna Woods seems more important than selfishly hanging onto the garden for himself. He tells you that a simple Dispel being cast upon the purple flame should put it out and close the gate.
Claire: Well, we did just find a grimoire with Dispel in it. But none of us has learned it yet.
GM Elle: Hafarmal invites you to rest and study here in the garden, then. He points at the pot and says he still has some work to do on the antidote he's been brewing for you.
MSG: Sweet.
Claire: Eww ... dang, I just read the bit about learning spells from the rulebook, and it says you have to use an advancement mark in the school for the spell, study for a shift, and make a skill roll to successfully learn it. And then you can't use it in the same play session.
GM Elle: Well, Hafarmal says he knows Dispel, and if the portal is closing, it might as well be his job to close it. He tells you to relax and enjoy the garden. Meanwhile, Fidu, Sir Q, and Zedeja go out the front gate of the temple and see that the donkey is nowhere to be seen.
Akane: Donkey! No hiding from your masters! Come out at once!
GM Elle: That doesn't seem to get a response.
Ariel: Can I look around for donkey tracks?
GM Elle: Yes. That's a Bushcraft roll.
Ariel: Ooh, I get a 12, which is just what I needed!
GM Elle: You spot some tracks leading off into the woods. Do you follow them?
Ariel: I dunno, should we get everyone else?
Sasha: By the time we do, some monster may have eaten our donkey.
Akane: Also, how far can a donkey have gone?
GM Elle: Well, you did rest an entire shift underground.
Akane: Hmm. Do we have enough sun left for a search?
GM Elle: It's late afternoon or early evening. Probably a couple of hours before it gets fully dark.
Sasha: Let's get a move on, then. Lead the way, Fidu.
Ariel: Okay, I guess ...
GM Elle: Not too far into the woods, you come across what looks like a relatively fresh pile of donkey dung.
Ariel: He must be pretty close, then!
Akane: Donkey! It's punishment for you if you don't heed!
GM Elle: Suddenly, you hear an answer to Zedeja's cries.
Ariel: Um ... a donkey-ish answer?
GM Elle: No -- it's a shrill set of voices coming from the trees above you. "Look! Tasties for us!" "And one has shiny pretty metal!" It's a trio of harpies swooping down to attack you. Time for initiative.
Ariel: 9 for Fidu.
Sasha: 3 for Quackers.
Akane: Zedeja is at 8.
GM Elle: The harpies draw 4, 5, and 7. They're circling in a swarm, and because they're staying airborne, you'll need ranged weapons or a long weapon like a big spear to attack them.
Sasha: Well, my longspear is back in the cart, so I guess I'm shooting my bow at them. 3 is a hit.
GM Elle: They'll use their 7 card to try dodging. And they succeed. On 4, They do an Excrement Attack -- they open their mouths and cloacae and unleash a rain of vomit and offal. All three of you gain a condition of your choice. It could be parried with a shield, but Sir Q is the only one with a shield and he already used his turn.
Ariel: Oh gross. It's going to get all in my fur. That'll be so much work to get out! It makes me Disheartened.
Sasha: I'm already Angry and Exhausted. Guess I'll get Disheartened too.
Akane: So unpleasant! Zedeja is Disheartened also.
GM Elle: On 5 they go again, this time trying to do an Eye Gouge on the knight. Only 5 points, though, so it doesn't get through your armor. However, the attack is supposed to blind you for a stretch and make you act as if in total darkness. I'm going to say they got a claw through your visor and scratched your forehead bad enough you're getting blood in your eyes, giving you a Bane on your attacks even if they didn't do enough damage to lower your hit points. Zedeja, your turn.
Akane: It's a roll of 2 with my sling. Their turns are all expended, so they can't dodge, which means 10 points of damage to one!
Ariel: I'm shooting that one if it's still alive!
GM Elle: It is.
Ariel: Boo. 11.
Sasha: New initiative? I draw the 9.
Akane: 2 for Zedeja.
Ariel: I got 5.
GM Elle: Harpies on 3, 7, and 10.
Akane: A stone to the head of the one I struck before! But -- I just remembered, my damaged sling. It's supposed to have a Bane. Rolling to see if the 10 points must be removed ... no, the die relieves me with a 2. Now, this turn's attack: 5 and Dragon. So sad to waste a Dragon on a Baned roll. Do they dodge?
GM Elle: Using their 10 card. It's a success. On 3, they do a Coordinated Attack on Quackenscrump, trying to rend and tear him and drag him into the air to drop him ... but they only get 3 damage, not enough to penetrate his armor.
Ariel: I'm shooting the hurt one again! Boo, another miss. I can't believe how long this fight is lasting! It's exhausting poor old Fidu, so I'm taking the Exhausted condition and pushing my roll. 7 is a hit!
GM Elle: You did all that work, but the harpy is still going to try to dodge. It succeeds with a 4.
Sasha: Okay, here's my blood-in-the-eyes bow attack: 8 and 2!
GM Elle: You didn't say which one you're shooting at.
Sasha: My pals seem to be handling that hurt one. I'll try a fresh one. 12 points!
GM Elle: That kills it.
Ariel: Good call, Sash!
Sasha: Live dangerously, or are you really living at all?
GM Elle: New initiative. The two remaining harpies get 1 and 2.
Ariel: Boo! Why did they get to draw first this time? I got the 6.
Sasha: 10 for me.
Akane: 4. But at least we have dodging for an option.
GM Elle: Death from Above! They're throwing rocks and tree branches and stuff at you. Everyone's going to take d6 damage unless you dodge or parry.
Ariel: Dodging sounds like a lot of work, and d6 doesn't sound so bad.
Sasha: Bring it.
Akane: Zedeja is too Disheartened to dodge.
GM Elle: 3 points on Quackers, so nothing. Ouch, 6 on Fidu.
Ariel: Yipe!
GM Elle: 5 on Zedeja.
Akane: The aged voice of the Mind squeaks with pain.
GM Elle: Eye Gouge on Fidu for their second attack.
Ariel: Oh gosh, I don't want to be blinded too! I try to dodge. Yuck! 17! Now I'm pushing the roll because I'm Scared! Whew! 9 this time.
Akane: The Baneful sling of Zedeja fires at a harpy of injury. 10 and 7, a hit!
GM Elle: It has only 2 hit points left, so your minimum damage kills it.
Sasha: Woohoo, go Zedj! Quackers takes another bloody-eyes shot at the last one. Oof. One roll is a Demon.
GM Elle: You accidentally hit a random player character or friendly NPC. On a 1 or 2, it's Fidu. On a 3 or 4, it's Zedeja --
Ariel: Wait, why are you picking up a d6 then? Nooo, don't give Quackers a chance to shoot our donkey!
GM Elle: Sorry, but 5 or 6 means the donkey has heard Zedeja calling it and wandered close enough it gets hit. Luckily for it, I roll a 4.
Akane: Unlucky for Zedeja though!
GM Elle: Yep, Sash, roll your damage. 
Sasha: Whoof. 13 points.
Akane: My leather armor stops 1. Wait, it also stopped 3 of dropped harpy rocks because leather is superior against bludgeoning! Oh. But the hit points of Zedeja ... only 12. Even just one 13 point arrow kills her.
GM Elle: Well, it doesn't kill her, but she's down and will have to make death rolls on her turn. New initiative.
Sasha: Sorry about that!
Akane: It's okay. Several chances still for Zedeja to live.
Ariel: Gimme those cards! No harpies picking first this time! What?? 7, ugh.
Sasha: 9 for me.
Akane: 10. At least Zedeja is dying very slowly.
GM Elle: The last harpy is on 2. Luckily, harpies are chicken, and it flies away instead of fighting on its own.
Ariel: Okay, I rush over and try to do Healing on Zedeja. My Healing stinks and I get a Bane, but maybe I'll get lucky. Nope.
Sasha: Same for Quackers, I guess, except that I'm Angry so I get an extra Bane. Three fails.
Akane: First death roll for Akane ... 15 is failure.
GM Elle: I'm not going to make you draw initiative every time, just keep going in order.
Ariel: More First Aid! Come on, Zedeja, breathe! No, so close! 5 and 7 ... but the 7 fails.
Sasha: Dragon and two fails for me.
Akane: 17 again fails for Zedeja against death.
Ariel: I'm getting really worried here! Blah! 19 and Dragon ... I'm going to push the roll and say I'm so worried it's making me Sickly. Fooh, two more failures.
Sasha: One success out of three for me.
Akane: 19. Zedeja must push this roll, she is so Scared. Now, success. Only two more and she is safe!
Ariel: First aid, first aid, first aid -- no.
Sasha: A 3, a 2, and a 9. So close.
Akane: Another success at death rolling, no need for a push.
GM Elle: What do you all think? Is this a good place to end the session?
Ariel: NO! THAT IS SO NOT EVEN FUNNY!
Sasha: I thought it was kind of funny.
Akane: Suspenseful!
Ariel: Just for that, look! I roll a 6 and a 5, which means my First Aid works! You get 2 points back, Zedeja.
Sasha: Whew, that was close!
Akane: Almost a first fatality. Zedeja orders you to learn better Healing at the soonest possibility.
Ariel: Well I am Disheartened, and Scared, and Sickly, and Exhausted, but we are finding this darned donkey and getting it back to the temple!
Sasha: Should we maybe do a stretch rest and let Zedeja get at least a few hit points back?
Akane: Zedeja wonders ... how far to the nest of these harpies? Can a survivor harpy get there and return with a larger swarm in 15 minutes?
Sasha: Good point. Probably we don't want to be sitting around here if that happens.
Ariel: So, do I need to make another Bushcraft roll, or what?
GM Elle: If I'd rolled that six, I was going to let the donkey take that arrow hit, so it's close. A few more minutes of following the tracks you were already after will let you find it. We can say you make it back to the temple before dusk fully seeps out of the sky.
MSG: Wow. You look like crap, Zedeja.
Claire: Actually, they literally all look like crap, remember?
Ariel: My fur is all gunked up with harpy poo.
Sasha: And vomit. Don't forget the vomit.
Hettie: There surely must be a well or something of the sort near this temple where we can get water and wash them off. Hafarmal is boiling something in that pot, isn't he?
GM Elle: Yes, he tells you there's a well over on the north side of the temple. He also casts a Treat Wounds spell on Zedeja ... but it only ends up doing 3 points.
MSG: I'm not saying so out loud, but this guy isn't the world's best healer.
Akane: 3 points exceeds 0 points.
GM Elle: That's a healthy way to look at it. Anyway, if you head over to the well, you're able to wash the worst of the crap and puke away ... enough so the stench won't keep everyone awake at least. Then you can all bed down for the night if you want. Hafarmal assures you it's safe.
Sasha: Yeah, and we can definitely trust a monster-eyes elf.
GM Elle: So I'd say this is a good spot to end the session. Everybody gets the participation mark. Sash, Aers, and Akane get the dangerous opponent mark. I don't think you really explored a new location. I do think everybody hit their weakness at least once. And you convinced Hafarmal to close the portal, so that's solving a problem without using violence. Three marks apiece and four for the harpy-puke trio.
Akane: Zedeja will attempt the learning of Dispel from the grimoire for one of her marks. Success! It will be castable next session.
GM Elle: Good job. What about Filvius, Claire?
Claire: Not wasting the advancement mark trying to learn from the grimoire -- my Languages skill stinks. Good game tonight, though, Elle!
Ariel: As always!
Sasha: Nothing like cleaning harpy yark out of the joints of your plate armor, I always say.
Akane: Nearness of death ... very cathartic.
GM Elle: Well, glad everybody enjoyed it. Next session should be good, since you'll be getting into something new now that the Temple of the Purple Flame is a wrap.
Hettie: I genuinely cannot wait.
MSG: Me either!

so where in the misty vale will next time take us? hang in there and we'll all see together! thanks for reading!

dragonbane ... secret of the dragon emperor part 9!

picking up right where we left off ...

GM Elle: The great abandoned hall is just as you left it, right down to the huge manticorpse in the middle. So which way are you going? There's the low iron door to the south, rusted over; the half-open iron door to the west, and the iron gate to the northwest, bearing the graven flame embossed in purple.
MSG: I'm thinking we should check out the half-open door and make sure there's nothing beyond it that might sneak up on us.
Claire: Personally, I'm thinking the great big gate with the fancy decorations looks like the ideal place to search for treasure and knowledge.
Ariel: Well, my treasure hunting instincts did bring us down here and did point kinda northeast and northwest from where I was standing at the time, so I'm betting there's treasure down here. But I don't have a clue which exact direction.
Sasha: I'm with the dwarf. We should check that open door for monsters before doing anything else. I'm heading that direction.
Akane: Wait! Zedeja has not been consulted!
GM Elle: It's a pretty brief walk across the dark, vaulted hall. Who's going with Quackenscrump?
MSG: Considering it was my idea, I'll go.
Ariel: I'll go too so they have a light.
Hettie: Dilfriida asks Filvius if he wants to go check that flaming gate. Not open it up just yet, but search and see if we find anything interesting about it. I've got my own lamp.
Claire: Sure, why not? But you guys come back and get us if there's anything interesting behind the open door.
Sasha: "Interesting" means the same thing as "monster" to Quackers, so he says he's pretty sure you'll know if we do.
Hettie: I'll lead the way to the big iron gate with my lamp, then.
Akane: Bah. If that direction is halfling-lit, Zedeja accompanies the other three.
GM Elle: The iron door opens outward, and will have to be pulled further open for you to get a good look through. Otherwise, someone with a lamp could poke one hand through with the light and stick their head in to see what's there.
MSG: I like the idea of pulling it open. Dolora volunteers to do that while Sir Q gets his sword and shield ready and Fidu holds the light.
Ariel: I'll be just a little behind Sir Q.
Sasha: Ready when you are, then.
Akane: Zedeja issues the command: now!
GM Elle: The door is a little stiff, but yields to Dolora's strength. Beyond, there's a two-meter stretch of hallway that opens up into a room that looks about eight meters wide. The far side is only dimly visible at the edge of your lamp's 10-meter glow. Do you enter?
Sasha: Sure. I tell Fidu to stick close behind me so I have light to fight by.
Ariel: Can do.
GM Elle: When you enter the chamber, you find that the corridor continues on the far side, again for about two meters. There, it ends at a narrow door not unlike the one between the spiral staircase and the vaulted hall. The room is wider north-south than east-west, about 12 meters. To the north, you see an iron bracket set into the stone wall, with old, rusty chains hanging from it. They're mostly broken, with only one manacle intact lying on the floor. To the south you see thick vines that appear to have grown through cracks in the wall and ceiling.
Sasha: I'm still waiting for you to describe the monster.
GM Elle: No monster just yet.
Ariel: I'm going to use my Treasure Hunter ability again, then. Which way seems the most treasury?
GM Elle: Something about those vines to the south seems to tickle at your imagination, for some reason.
MSG: Can I see if they're the murdery kind?
GM Elle: Make a Bushcraft roll.
MSG: Nope. 17.
Ariel: I check too ...  made it with a 4.
GM Elle: They just look like normal vines as far as you can tell.
Ariel: I'll go over and look closer then.
GM Elle: Hidden behind them you see what looks like a concealed door.
Ariel: Yes! Treasure, here we come!
Akane: Be careful when opening!
Ariel: Fidu's got his mind set on treasure, so he's going to skimp on the carefulness. I open the door.
Akane: This unruly group!
GM Elle: Inside is a chamber with a low ceiling. Part of the ceiling has collapsed, and the floor is covered with stones and gravel.
MSG: I don't like the looks of the partly collapsed ceiling, but I do want to know what's in there, so Dolora will go in if Fidu is going.
Ariel: You bet I am. Does it look like there's anything buried in the rocks and gravel?
GM Elle: It will take you a stretch to search it. Are Sir Q and Zedeja helping?
Sasha: Our light's in there now, right? So I don't know what else we'd do.
Akane: Zedeja does not search, but oversees the searchers. Look there! Now there! That rock -- possibly a treasure is under it.
GM Elle: Okay, while you four are doing that, Filvius and Dilfriida are at the big iron gate. What's your plan?
Claire: To be honest, I was sort of thinking I'd go ahead and straight-up open it. But I just double-checked my character sheet and realized I still have the Scared condition, so instead I think I'm going to carefully search it and see if there are any secret symbols or buttons or anything.
Hettie: I was most likely going to run if she preemptively rushed to open the gate, but if she's just searching, I'll hold the light and look as closely as I can also.
GM Elle: You can both roll to Spot Hidden.
Claire: Ooh, made it with a 5!
Hettie: A 5 for me as well.
GM Elle: Other than noting that this gate, while made of iron, shows no signs of rust, I'm afraid you don't see anything special. However, during your examination, you think you hear sounds of fighting coming from the other side of the gate.
MSG: Don't do it.
Claire: Don't worry, I'm scared, so I'm not going to open it to find out who's fighting. But I am going to put my ear to the gate and see if I can hear anything.
Hettie: I suppose I will too when I see her doing it.
GM Elle: Both of you can roll Awareness with a Bane because the gate is solid iron.
Claire: Awareness, huh? That's 8 and 18, neither of which gets me there.
Hettie: 6 and 16 for Dilfriida. The 6 would have succeeded, but the 16 doesn't.
GM Elle: All right, back to the other four. The three who are searching should make three Spot Hidden checks ... winner finds something.
MSG: Cool. "Winner" means low roll, right?
Claire: Low roll as long as it's a success, I'm pretty sure.
Ariel: Boo! I roll a Demon for my first roll.
Sasha: I fail with a 15.
GM Elle: The Demon means you sit the rest of the rolls out, Aers.
MSG: 9 for Dolora, also a failure.
Akane: What! This failure of finding is too much for Zedeja. "You underlings can't be trusted to search correctly!" I roll also. Roll is a 19, which causes Zedeja to become Angry and push her roll. Failure again! 16.
MSG: I guess that makes Zedeja the blind leading the blind.
Ariel: You said roll three times, right? My next roll is -- oh wait, I lost those rolls is why you're looking at me like that, isn't it.
Sasha: Quackers' second roll is 17.
Akane: Zedeja's roll number two now has a Bane from Angry. 9 succeeds ... but 16! No! More outrage of unsuccessful! I become Disheartened to push this roll. Finally! 9 and 7!
GM Elle: Dolora still might beat you by rolling under your 7.
MSG: No, I roll a 9.
Akane: Yes!
GM Elle: All right, you get to draw a treasure card from the treasure deck.
Akane: Gemstone! It says to roll d6 ... 3 is an emerald worth 10 gold!
GM Elle: Okay, third roll each.
MSG: 13 fails.
Claire: You guys are the pits at this.
Ariel: I can't believe this is where the best treasure is and we're not seeing any of it!
Sasha: Got something! 2!
Akane: Zedeja's Baned third rolls are a failure and a success, so, nothing.
GM Elle: Pick a card, Sash.
Sasha: Hmm. "Bottle" ... it says a Healing roll reveals the contents.
Akane: Zedeja insists she is best at this.
MSG: Even with your Bane? Oh, yeah, probably. I've got a 6 skill in Healing.
Ariel: Me too.
Sasha: 4 here. I'm fine with Zedeja checking it.
Akane: Rolls are 6 and 11, so it's accomplished.
GM Elle: Looks like it's booze.
MSG: Fancy booze worth selling, I hope.
Ariel: Can I roll Bartering to see if I can figure out what it's worth? Boo, 19 even if you let me.
GM Elle: It was a nice idea, but all you know is that it smells like alcohol. Now, that stretch has passed, so what are Filvius and Dilfriida doing?
Claire: I'm going to hurry back to where our fighting folks are if there's a fight going on on the other side of the gate. Assuming my light source is coming.
Hettie: Indeed I am.
Akane: Good! Two more searchers! You must make rolls for finding things at once!
GM Elle: Three opposed rolls to search, Filvius and Dilfriida.
Claire: 15.
Hettie: Me too.
Akane: The inefficiency of this searching!
Claire: Second roll is a 12, also a failure for me.
Hettie: Demon. Guess I don't get a third roll.
GM Elle: Last shot, Claire.
Claire: 7, and I needed a 6. Okay, heck, I'll get Disheartened to push it. And that was worthless because I roll a 14.
Ariel: Argh. This totally can't be the greatest treasures in the place -- one emerald and a bottle of hooch? I'm spending more WP and using my Treasure Hunger ability again. I mean, "Hunter." But maybe "Hunger" is even better.
GM Elle: All right, then, you find a worn old grimoire under a slab of rock you hadn't checked before, along with one card.
Ariel: Oh boy. d6 copper coins. I roll 3.
Hettie: Looking in the manual, there's literally one thing available for 3 or fewer coppers: a road toll.
Akane: What an offensive card to have in a treasure deck!
GM Elle: I'm going to say I agree. Hand me two more cards, Aers, and I'll tell you which one you get.
Ariel: Sure! Thanks for the break!
GM Elle: You also find a dagger.
MSG: At least that's worth like, 5 silver.
Claire: What I want to know is what's in that grimoire.
Akane: Zedeja the Mind must also know.
GM Elle: It contains the following spells: Fetch, Flick, Dispel, Magic Shield, Ignite, Heat/Chill, Gust of Wind, Fire Blast, Tidal Wave, and Salamander.
MSG: That's a lot of spells.
Claire: Uh-huh. And I notice most of them are Elementalist spells, which means neither one of our mages knows how to use them.
Akane: Some sound General, though. Dispel and Magic Shield, I think. 
GM Elle: Correct. Learning a spell from a grimoire takes a shift and an advancement mark, and you roll against Languages to succeed.
Claire: Oh, great, my Languages skill is dookey.
Akane: It's very feasible for Zedeja, though. 14 in Languages!
GM Elle: Unless the party wants to break for a Shift Rest now, though, there are still several parts of the temple you haven't gotten to.
Claire: Whoops, that's right. I forgot all about telling the group we heard fighting on the other side of the flaming iron gate.
Sasha: What kind of fighting? Any monster sounds?
Hettie: No, I'm afraid it was very generalized combative noise, nothing distinct.
Sasha: Whatever. I'm still heading that direction in case it's monsters.
Akane: Zedeja orders others to follow.
MSG: I don't see why not.
Claire: Great, let's go.
Ariel: I'll bring my light along.
Hettie: Mine as well.
GM Elle: You quickly find yourselves outside the iron gate. Whatever disturbance was happening before, all is once again still in the darkness of the vaulted hall.
MSG: Same door routine as before, Sash and Aers?
Ariel: Fidu's got his lamp ready.
Sasha: Quackers is loaded for monster bear.
MSG: I'll try to pull the gate open, then.
GM Elle: It's heavy ... go ahead and check Strength.
MSG: 9. Easy success.
GM Elle: In that case, you get it open quickly enough that anyone inside won't have time to prepare an ambush, though not so quickly that they'll be taken by surprise. Beyond the gate lies an ornate chamber with murals and lavishly decorated columns along the walls. The rock seems half-molten, semi-organic, like the inside of a fossil monster.
Ariel: Ew.
GM Elle: On a marble altar burns a violet fire. Two tall figures with axes are standing at the altar. The west wall, behind the altar, vibrates like a mirror of water, shimmering and now and then showing the image of some semi-organic city under a purple sky that moves with the observer, projected at skewed angles. Ornaments of bone, like the spinal column of some great beast, frame the view.
Sasha: Let's cut to the part where the figures with axes are monsters.
GM Elle: Both figures are over two meters tall, their elongated bodies covered with iron armor that appears fused to their flesh. A purple aura surrounds each one. They look over at you as the gate creaks wide, showing their eyes to be completely black. One asks in a raspy voice, "Who approaches? Have you too been summoned by Sathmog? To go through the portal and see its sights, as we have?"
MSG: I'll say --
Sasha: "Die, monsters!" I'm charging.
GM Elle: I guess that's initiative, then.
MSG: Great. Can I have the deck? I draw the 6.
Claire: 10 for me.
Ariel: 4.
Sasha: 7, dang it.
Hettie: 8.
Akane: 9. This is very poor initiating for everyone but the wolfkin.
GM Elle: The axe-wielding figures draw the 3. You know what? They're going to trade cards with Sir Quackenscrump.
Sasha: Woohoo! I run straight up at this guy here.
Hettie: You're not going to be able to attack if you move that far, though.
Sasha: No, but I'll scare the crap out of them.
Akane: They do not look very frightenable.
GM Elle: Ariel, you're up next.
Ariel: I guess I'll set my lamp down and use my bow to shoot that one there. 13 misses though.
Sasha: Nice try anyway.
GM Elle: Dolora's next on 6.
MSG: I'll move to here, switch to my shortbow, and shoot. There's another 13. Our luck's not looking so great.
GM Elle: Their turn. First, this guy chops at you with his axe, Sash. He misses with a 19.
MSG: You heard that, right Sash? He rolled and missed. Which means they're not monsters.
Sasha: Nah, that's just how scared I have them.
GM Elle: Second guy moves here and also misses.
Hettie: Dilfriida's joining the shortbow brigade on 8. I move up and fire ... 7 hits. Only 5 points of damage, though.
GM Elle: It barely gets through his armor. Zedeja?
Akane: It's a sling attack for the Mind. Oh. A Demon.
GM Elle: You break your weapon. That will get you a Bane until it's fixed by an artisan.
Claire: I guess that leaves me. I don't have a ranged weapon, so I'll just move to here and be ready to heal somebody next round or move in and staff them.
GM Elle: New initiative, then.
MSG: Again with the 6.
Claire: 9. I guess that's okay if I'm planning on healing.
Ariel: 4 again!
Sasha: 5 this time.
Hettie: Dilfriida goes on 3.
Akane: Zedeja: 1!
GM Elle: Bad guys are on 8. Zedeja, you're up.
Akane: A Bane with the sling ... I think still it's worth trying. 2 and 10! Hit!
GM Elle: These guys aren't too worried about a sling stone. He doesn't evade.
Akane: Damage ... only 5.
GM Elle: It's going to take you a long time at this rate. Hettie?
Hettie: I'll move to here, switch to my dagger, and Backstab. That's a hit, for 16 points of damage.
GM Elle: That got his attention. Aers?
Ariel: Shortbow again on that same guy! But I miss again.
Sasha: I"m next, right? Lemme show you how this is done. Broadsword on the dude who hasn't been hit yet.
Hettie: But ...
Sasha: Doggone Bane. I rolled a Dragon but also 17. I really need to get un-Exhausted.
MSG: Dolora will switch to her club and move up to strike at the injured guy. I miss with a 16, but I'll push it and become Angry. Oh, come on. 19.
Claire: We're not having much luck with these push rolls.
GM Elle: Their turn. Injured guy attacks Dilfriida, since she seems to be the only one who can hurt them.
Hettie: I'd take that as a compliment, but ...
GM Elle: You're in luck. He misses with a 19. The other guy attacks Quackers. 14 is barely a miss. Claire?
Claire: Guess I'll go in for a staff hit ... hey, got it with a 7! 11 points of damage.
GM Elle: He's looking pretty bad off. New initiative.
MSG: 9 this time.
Claire: Don't worry, I got the 2 so I'll probably trade you.
Ariel: 5 for Fidu.
Sasha: Yaaassss, the 1!
Hettie: Dilfriida is on 8
Akane: 6 this time.
GM Elle: And the axe guys are on 7.
Sasha: Damn it, Bane-blocked again.
Claire: Here's the 2, MSG.
MSG: Thanks. 6 with my greatclub this time, is he dodging?
GM Elle: Tries and fails.
MSG: 14 points, then.
GM Elle: He's down.
MSG: One more to go, guys ...
Ariel: I'll move here and shoot my shortbow again. But I miss.
Akane: Zedeja moves here and tries her Baned sling. It's no good.
GM Elle: Their turn. The one left standing attacks Quackers ... and misses.
Hettie: Dilfriida will move in to backstab him. Hit! 16 points.
Claire: Stepping up to staff the guy ... a hit for 9.
GM Elle: New initiative again.
MSG: 10.
Claire: 8.
Ariel: 9.
Sasha: 7. We're really tearing it up.
Hettie: 2, so that's better at least.
Akane: Zedeja also, on 3.
GM Elle: Cultists on 6.
MSG: You mean "Cultist."
GM Elle: Maybe.
MSG: I don't like the sound of that ...
Hettie: Dilfriida is out of WP, so she does a normal dagger attack. It's a hit if he doesn't dodge.
GM Elle: He does not.
Hettie: Ten points, then. Over to you, Akane.
Akane: Hmm. Probably better for a clubbing dwarf to go before a Baning sling mage. Here is the 3 card, MSG.
MSG: Thanks! Swinging ...  that's a hit with a 2.
GM Elle: Still not dodging.
MSG: Okay ... 18 points, then.
GM Elle: He falls. But now, on the Cultists' turn, you see the purple aura around the fallen bodies flare up, and they both rise, ready to fight on. With a cry of, "Sathmog's glory is beyond death!" this one attacks you, MSG. Hit.
MSG: I'll use my heroic ability to dodge. 4 makes it.
GM Elle: The other one attacks you, Sash. That's a hit if you don't dodge or parry.
Sasha: Bring it. I haven't hit anything this combat, so I'm not giving up my attack on one lousy axe swipe.
GM Elle: 11 points.
Sasha: Also known as 3 points when you're a tank. My turn. Stay down this time, you axe-swipe! What. The. Heck. 19 and 17.
Claire: I'll try my staff again ... noop.
Ariel: Well I'm super tired of missing with this bow, so I'll switch to my dagger and stab at this dude. Woohoo, 10 is a hit! And it wouldn't have been if I'd stuck with the bow. 8 points of damage!
GM Elle: He drops again.
MSG: So much for the glory of Sathmog.
Akane: Seeing the better luck of striking than slinging, Zedeja switches to staff and proceeds here to attack. This time, a hit with 12. Damage of 9.
GM Elle: That one goes down also. This time, they don't seem to get up.
Claire: I'll immediately go check this new altar to see if it has sun-buttons on the sides like the other one did.
Ariel: I'm going to look and see if the bodies have anything to loot.
GM Elle: Just the battleaxes, and no, Claire, no sun buttons.
MSG: I want to take a better look around now that we're not fighting for our lives.
GM Elle: You see that one of the murals portrays demons and demonic priests in pitched battle with dragons, whom they appear to be slaughtering. In the other, dragons are chained to altars, being sacrificed by priests with dark auras and demonic beasts.
MSG: I'll try to Myths & Legends it and see if it rings any bells. 7 is a success.
GM Elle: It would seem that if this temple dates to the time of the Dragon Emperor, the altar room above ground must have been a cover for this one down here, because whoever painted these murals would certainly not have been welcome in the Dragon Emperor's territory.
MSG: Interesting.
Claire: I'm looking at this watery-mirrory thing and thinking about what that cultist said about going through a portal and seeing its sights. 
Ariel: Uh-oh.
Sasha: I'm poking at the bodies and making sure they have plenty of holes in them to guarantee they won't pull that reviving stunt again.
Hettie: I'm searching the altar for any hidden compartments.
GM Elle: Sash, you easily make more holes. Hettie, roll Spot Hidden. Claire, you find that the angles and geometries of this city scene appear entirely wrong -- distorted, and uncomfortable to look at.
Claire: Well, nobody said gaining knowledge would be comfortable. I'll try stepping through it.
Ariel: Oh no!
Sasha: Hey, characters are pretty quick to roll up in this game.
Hettie: My Spot Hidden is a 3.
Akane: Zedeja orders everyone else to not pass through a demonic portal! Except thievery halflings. They can go if they want.
GM Elle: This altar does not seem to have any hidden compartments or activation mechanisms. You also don't see any apparent source for the violet flame. Claire, an oily black maze of semi-organic shapes surrounds you. Violet and purple suns shine in an orange sky, casting their light on towering structures without exterior walls. Too many dimensions, too many angles and corners. A cacophony of voices, too faint to make out what is being said. The pungent smell of blood and decay fills your head. Make a WIL roll, with a Boon. 
Claire: Oh, with a Boon, huh, nice! Of course, I'm Scared, so the Bane from that cancels it out. 18 is a miss, though.
GM Elle: You seem to be lost in the shifting miasma of the maze. Make another roll.
Claire: 2. Made it.
GM Elle: You feel like the mask is providing you some protection from the ghastly strangeness of this place. Suddenly, you round a corner and almost stumble over a small, broken piece of statuary.
Claire: I totally check it out.
GM Elle: It looks like another piece of the broken statue from your map.
Claire: Sweet. I'm taking it.
GM Elle: Make another WIL roll.
Claire: I'm good. 6.
GM Elle: Suddenly, ahead you see a shimmering surface like the reverse of the one you entered through. You can't make out a clear image through it, but the angles and hints of shapes that you see appear comforting and normal after this nightmarish landscape you've been moving through. Write down a note and hand it to me telling me what you do.
Claire: Okay ... here you go.
GM Elle: Hmm. All right. Meanwhile, everyone else sees Filvius step through the portal and disappear. What do you do?
Akane: Mourn. But only briefly, to match our brief association.
MSG: I'll go look closely at the image and see if I can see her in the cityscape.
GM Elle: No. It's too alien and distorted.
Ariel: Oh, dang. I just had a bad idea.
Sasha: What's that?
Ariel: There might be treasure on the other side of that portal. Maybe I should try my Treasure Hunter ability again.
Sasha: Are you sure going into an alien demon dimension searching for treasure doesn't sound like a little too much work for your character to do?
Ariel: Yeah, that's a good point.
Sasha: Holy crap, though -- on the other hand, if it's a demon dimension, maybe there are monsters to fight! Quackers goes in.
Hettie: Oh, this is ...
Akane: Zedeja insists! No more portalling!
GM Elle: Sash, you see the same freakish environment I described to Claire. It's deeply unnerving, and your sensory perceptions are so distorted, you're not even sure you'd recognize a monster if you came across one. Make a WIL roll.
Sasha: Oh, I'd recognize it, all right. And my roll's a Dragon.
GM Elle: As you wander the maze, you find something.
Sasha: Another statue piece?
GM Elle: No, draw a treasure card. 
Sasha: Poison dagger. Great. It says I have to roll evade or cut myself and get poisoned. Whoa-ho, though, another Dragon! Looks like I scoop it up without a problem.
GM Elle: Not only that, but in the process, you see what looks like another portal, this one with the comfortable appearance of your world.
Sasha: I'm trucking for it. If there's no monsters and just a bunch of poisonous shit to trip over, I don't need this place.
GM Elle: You exit through it, and everyone else sees Sir Q emerge from the portal. That is, unless anyone followed him through immediately.
MSG: Definitely not me.
Claire: Wait, Sash didn't even have to write you a note?
GM Elle: Nope. Anyone else go through?
Ariel: I would definitely wait and see if the other folks came back.
Hettie: For once I'm okay minding Zedeja.
Akane: It's unthinkable for one as smart as Zedeja to wander through such a portal of madness.
GM Elle: Quackers is back, then.
MSG: What happened? What did you see? Was Filvius in there?
Sasha: It's some crazy maze shit place. Made my feathers stand on end. I did find this poison dagger, though, if anybody wants it.
Hettie: I'll take it if you're offering.
GM Elle: So what is the group going to do? Still no sign of the elf.
MSG: Damn it. Quackers proved that it's survivable, and apparently there are no monsters or he definitely wouldn't be back yet. The idea of Filvius finding a bunch of other-dimensional knowledge over there and me not is even more aggravating and disheartening than my already Angry and Disheartened conditions. I guess I say I'll go through to try to find him.
Ariel: Okay, well ... I'll go through with you and try my Treasure Hunter ability in the maze, since there's obviously treasure over there.
Akane: So. Only the halfling of burglary obeys Zedeja's wisdom. The exact opposite of what is desired.
GM Elle: You two are really going through?
MSG: Yes, and I think we should hold hands and step through at exactly the same time.
Ariel: Let's do it!
GM Elle: Your plan immediately appears not to have worked. Each of you finds yourself alone in the same twisted maze Sir Q described. 
Ariel: I'll immediately use my ability. Which way to the greatest treasures?
GM Elle: Make a WIL roll to navigate. You too, MSG.
Ariel: That's a 16, but it makes me Angry because I'm pushing it. 3!
GM Elle: Draw 3 treasure cards and pick the one Fidu would think is the greatest one.
MSG: My roll's a 13, which succeeds.
Ariel: Okay, I'm taking this Gold Bracelet card, obviously! It's worth 2d6 x 10 gold coins! I roll 6, so that's 60!
GM Elle: MSG, draw one card.
MSG: Silver coins ... 3d6 x 10, and I roll 11, so 110.
GM Elle: Another WIL roll each, please.
MSG: 11.
Ariel: Dragon!
GM Elle: Wow. I'll let you choose between another treasure card or an extra advancement mark.
Ariel: Always treasure. Boo! This time it's only 1 gold coin.
Sasha: Should have taken the mark.
GM Elle: After only a brief time, Fidu and Dolora both show back up, separately.
MSG: I ask if there's any sign of Filvius yet.
GM Elle: The group has not seen him.
MSG: Damn. Well, do we want to close the gate and just kind of camp out in here and wait to see if he finds his way out?
Ariel: Yes, I could definitely use the rest. That place was exhausting.
Sasha: Works for me.
Hettie: Sure.
Akane: Zedeja agrees this seems sensible. "Dwarf, go use your strength to close the gate!"
GM Elle: Anyone going to stand watch?
MSG: I could definitely use the rest.
Ariel: Me too!
Sasha: Quackers has a couple of conditions, but he's still good to go. You guys get some shuteye.
Hettie: Thank you, noble mallard knight.
Akane: Zedeja also can use rest.
GM Elle: Seems like this was a good choice of place to rest, then, because the shift passes without any disturbance. And toward the end of it, Filvius shows back up.
Sasha: Quackers waves. "Yo, Filv."
Claire: I say, "Wow, you guys didn't waste any time setting camp, did you?"
Sasha: It's been hours, bud.
Claire: Really? Just a couple of minutes for me. And look, I found another piece of that statue.
Sasha: Nice work.
Ariel: When I eventually wake up, I say, "Oh no, our donkey! We left him again, didn't we?"
Hettie: I didn't lead him through the courtyard.
GM Elle: Well, he definitely didn't climb over the gap in the wall with Dolora and Dilfriida.
MSG: Damn it, I'm going to be mad if we have to pull that cart all the way back to Outskirt ourselves.
GM Elle: If you do, I think that's a task for another day. Let's break here for the night. This was a long session, and a ton happened -- I'm just going to say everyone gets all 5 marks for the evening.
MSG: Nice.
Claire: Thanks!
Ariel: Good job gamemastering, Elle!
Sasha: Yeah, super!
Hettie: I'm enjoying this campaign a great deal.
Akane: Dragonbane -- it's a new favorite, I think.
GM Elle: All right. Next time we'll see what the herbalist has been up to while you've been poking around down here.

thanks for reading, everybody!

dragonbane ... secret of the dragon emperor part 8!

we're playing so much dragonbane lately! which is good, because we're like, barely into the first real dungeon of the campaign, and we're already on session 8. whew! here's how it went ...

GM Elle: All right. The party is in the stairwell ... except maybe for Filvius, if he hasn't given up his search of the altar yet.
Claire: Considering I'd be alone here with the possibility of those 5 cultists coming back, I guess I'd regretfully head to the stairway too.
GM Elle: Since the group agreed to proceed cautiously, you should be able to catch up without trouble, then.
MSG: "The group" meaning the mallard.
Sasha: Hey, don't push me or I'll go back into charge mode.
GM Elle: Moving slowly, it takes you two rounds to descend to the bottom of the stairs. There, you see an open doorway into a vast, vaulted hall. The door frame shows signs of having been viciously and recently savaged by something with powerful claws. From the darkness beyond come the sounds of something large growling and padding about -- and the occasional sound of a heavy impact, as though whatever it is is throwing itself against different parts of the structure in rage.
MSG: Okay, so here's my suggestion if we're really going to go in and fight whatever that is. Dolora will blow her horn to give everyone a Boon until her next turn. Then when we draw initiative, she'll wait as long as she can by trading her initiative card with whoever has the last one. Then depending on how things go for the round, I'll either move in and club the thing, or blow my horn again.
Akane: Zedeja approves this plan. She has Stone Skin and Powerful Fists, so you may trade with her if it's necessary.
GM Elle: Ready to draw initiative cards, then?
MSG: After I blow my horn, sure. And I didn't even need that part of my plan, because I got the 10.
Claire: I'm on 3, which I'll probably be trading with someone else, because I sure don't want to go early.
Ariel: 6.
Sasha: 4.
Hettie: 7.
Akane: 9.
GM Elle: The creature gets 1, 2, 2.5, 5, and 8
MSG: Seriously?
Claire: How many turns does it get?
Ariel: What's turn 2.5?
Sasha: I'm hoping it only gets half a turn then.
Hettie: So much for this being a long campaign.
Akane: Be more brave, you cowards!
GM Elle: Yeah, it has a Ferocity of 5, so I had to roll a die for one of its turns, because there are only 10 initiative cards. From between the two columns closest to you, you see this rush snarling from the darkness.

MSG: Yikes.
Claire: Technically I don't see it yet, right? I'm at the back, and we're in a spiral staircase.
GM Elle: Right. Probably only the front three can see it: Sir Q, Dolora, and Dilfriida. And in the instant after you see it, its tail lashes forward to fire a deadly looking spine straight at Sir Q. You could parry it with your shield if you want.
Sasha: I'll take a gamble it doesn't get past my armor.
GM Elle: Luck is with you. Four points of damage.
Sasha: ptink!
GM Elle: For its second turn, it fires a deadly rain of spikes from its tail. The three of you in line of sight can dodge, but not parry.
MSG: I'm using my new Heroic Ability to dodge without losing my turn. I succeed with a 3.
Sasha: Still betting on my armor.
Hettie: I'm dodging. I get a Boon from the bard's music, right? 5 and 7.
GM Elle: Sash, looks like your luck is holding. Only 1 point of damage on the roll. It glares at you warily, and since you're still within the stairwell, it waits to see what you're going to do, trading turns with Quackers.
Sasha: I think you know what I'm doing ... charge! The bard's music has my blood going, and the Boon takes care of my Exhausted Bane, so I hit it with a 12. Is it going to dodge?
GM Elle: Yes, using its 8 initiative card. But it rolls a 16, so you get to damage it anyway.
Sasha: Yes! 13 points!
Claire: I'm on turn 3, but I think I'll trade it to ... Akane.
Akane: Excellence! With her Powerful Fists, Zedeja rushes up and brawls the creature! No, the rolls are poor. 17 and 18.
GM Elle: The creature's turn, then. It now does a crushing charge on Sir Q for 3d6 ... 12 points, and you're knocked down.
Sasha: Still in pretty good shape thanks to my armor.
GM Elle: We'll see about that. On turn 5, the creature does a claw attack on you for 2d8 plus d6 because you're prone.
MSG: Ouch.
GM Elle: oof. 18 points.
Sasha: Minus 8 for my armor ... that's still a big ouch. 
GM Elle: Aers?
Ariel: I guess I'll move up to the doorway, put my lamp down, and shoot it with my bow. Only I'm not very good, so even with the Boon, I miss.
GM Elle: Last turn for the creature. Crushing charge again ... this time on Zedeja. 12 points of damage and you're knocked prone.
Akane: It's good I have Skin of Stone.
GM Elle: Claire, your turn.
Claire: I guess I'll move out here and try to heal Sir Quackenscrump. I have that boon, so I'm going to risk using up 6 WP for maximum power level. Whew! I make it. That's 16 points back, Sash.
Sasha: Awesome! Full power!
GM Elle: MSG? You're up last.
MSG: Well, we've barely done any damage to it, and if I blow my horn again, I won't have much WP left for dodging ... so I guess I'll move up and take a whack at it with my club. An 8 is a hit, doing 13 points.
GM Elle: New initiative.
MSG: 8.
Claire: 7.
Ariel: 2.
Sasha: 3.
Hettie: I'm first for once.
Akane: 5 for Zedeja.
GM Elle: Hettie? You're up.
Hettie: All right, I'll move to here, spend some willpower points, and Backstab. That's a hit ... but only 9 points.
Akane: 9 is superior to 0.
GM Elle: Ariel?
Ariel: I'm going to swap cards with MSG!
MSG: Okay, I'll take another crack at it with my club. 14 hits. Will it dodge?
GM Elle: It's got cards out the ass, so yes.
MSG: Damn.
GM Elle: Sweeping attack! The creature lashes its tail in a wide arc doing 2d6 to Dolora and Dilfriida and knocking you down.
MSG: I'll spend the points to try a dodge. Made it.
GM Elle: 9 points, Hettie.
Hettie: Urk.
GM Elle: Your turn, Sash.
Sasha: Quackers gets to his feet and slashes with his broadsword. Hit, even with my Bane.
GM Elle: It dodges.
Sasha: This thing is really pissing me off.
GM Elle: For turn number 4, it's going to Tail Strike you, Sash. 9 points means some damage gets through, which injects you with a paralyzing poison.
Sasha: 9 on my save.
GM Elle: 10 for the poison, so you get the partial effect. But since you're already exhausted, there's no real effect.
Akane: Turn 5 is Zedeja! She rises and strikes! The roll ... 6!
GM Elle: You look old and weak, so the creature dismisses your unarmed attack instead of dodging.
Akane: For this arrogant choice, it receives 21 points of damage.
GM Elle: Wow. It was not expecting that. And it dies.
MSG: Nice rolling!
Ariel: Definitely!
Akane: I also was expecting a lower number. However, I'm more pleased than the creature to be surprised.
MSG: I'm going to try a Beast Lore roll now to see if I can figure out what this thing was. Nope.
Claire: I'll try too ... and I make it with a 5.
GM Elle: It's a Manticore. You pretty much saw all the attacks it can make other than a formidable bite that it's rumored to have. But this one seems larger than you envisioned from the descriptions you've heard.
Claire: I'll pass that along to everyone. "And by the way, if we meet another one, you don't want it to bite you."
Ariel: I didn't want this one to bite me!
Hettie: I was not especially keen on any of the things it did to any of us.
GM Elle: Well, looking around the room now that it's dead, you find a half-open iron door to the west, a low iron gate to the south that looks rusted shut, and a large iron gate to the northwest that has a relief carving of a flame in its center, painted or stained in purple.
MSG: Well, I don't know about anyone else, but I'm feeling like we might want to go back to that herb garden and see if the herb guy will let us take a rest there.
Claire: I already used up my Stretch Rest, though.
Sasha: Quackers too. And he really doesn't need one at the moment anyway.
Hettie: Dilfriida is wounded enough she votes for that.
Akane: Zedeja is insistent. A rest is required!
MSG: I guess we should head back up, then. I did my Stretch Rest for the day too, now that I think about it. Filvius and Sir Quackenscrump, should the three of us go finish hiding our wagon? I just realized we never did that after Filvius's first attempt failed.
Ariel: Oh, crud! Those cultists ran out of the temple ... what if they saw our stuff and went and looted it?
Sasha: Are you kidding me? The three people who stayed outside didn't already take care of that while we were checking out the garden?
Akane: Our bard said she was going to, after her rest ... but then, a spider.
MSG: Okay, I'm hurrying back to the stairs.
Claire: Me too.
Ariel: The sloth in me doesn't want to hurry, but the merchant in me doesn't want all our tradable goods to get ripped off.
Akane: Beware, though! In the hallway to the vestibule, a trapdoor lurks!
GM Elle: Since a round is only ten seconds, it's only been a minute or two since the cultists ran off, so they may not have that much of a lead on you.
MSG: Especially if they grabbed the cart and are pulling it.
Claire: Right, it will slow them down a lot if they're pulling it by hand instead of -- wait a minute. Did anybody do anything with our donkey?
Ariel: Um ...
Sasha: Last I saw, we left it with the bard, the mage, and the wolfkin.
MSG: Oops. I don't think we even thought about it when we heard the fighting in the courtyard.
Ariel: Well Zedeja was ordering us around and she didn't say we should bring it!
Akane: Oh, suddenly it's no longer, "Why always does Zedeja say do this and do that?" Instead, "Why doesn't Zedeja tell us to bring a donkey?"
GM Elle: Okay, so everyone tell me what you're doing.
MSG: Heading for the front door. When I get to that hall where Zedeja saw the trapdoor, I'll slow down and look carefully for it. I guess since I don't have a light, I'll be sticking close enough to someone who does that I'm able to see.
Claire: Same for Filvius.
Ariel: Fidu has his own light and he's fast, so I'm going to go pretty quick. But I'm paying attention to what Zedeja said too, and remembering where it was that I saw that cult guy fall.
Sasha: I'll stick with Dilfriida and her lamp, assuming she's heading out too.
Hettie: I am indeed.
Akane: Zedeja dislikes following this halfling, so she will try to stay closer to the wolfkin. Near the trapdoor, she will point to it exactly.
GM Elle: Okay, it's about two rounds back up the stairs and then another round to the hallway where the cultist fell. Fidu moves four meters a round faster than the humans, and Filvius moves two meters a round faster. So by the time Fidu reaches the hallway, he's 10 or 12 meters ahead of the main group and about 6 ahead of Filvius. Since an oil lamp has a 10 meter radius, the illumination from your two light sources will overlap except when you're going round and round on the spiral staircase. 
Ariel: Can I see where the trapdoor is?
GM Elle: Yes -- it appears to be slightly ajar, actually, so it's pretty obvious if you know to look at the floor.
Ariel: I'll point it out to everybody anyhow, then peek out into the vestibule through the open door. It's still open, right?
GM Elle: Yes. All you see there is the sunlight streaming in through the northwest archway to the courtyard and the open front gates.
MSG: When I get to the trapdoor, I'm going to pause a second and carefully push down on it with my greatclub to see if it opens up. I'm curious what's down there.
GM Elle: All right, then. Ariel, as you're looking out into the vestibule, Filvius catches up to you and you both hear a grating sound from behind you. Akane, Het, and Sasha, you see Dolora stop and press her greatclub to the floor, causing the trapdoor to drop open. It's hinged on the side nearest the altar room. There seems to be a counterweight of some kind, though, and it starts closing again before you get much more than a glimpse of darkness below.
MSG: No cries for help from the guy who fell in, I take it?
GM Elle: None.
Ariel: If the vestibule is empty and I don't see any of our team falling in the trapdoor, I'm going to the front gate to peek out. Any sign of the black-robed dudes?
GM Elle: No, but your field of view is somewhat restricted if you don't put your head all the way out.
Ariel: I guess I'll risk it! I lean all the way out and look around in every direction I can before anybody shoots at me or conks me on the head.
GM Elle: All you see is your donkey, peacefully grazing on the grass near the steps.
Ariel: Whew, that's a relief!
Sasha: Unless he was replaced by a monster donkey.
Ariel: What about the cart?
GM Elle: You don't see it, but remember, even though Filvius did a bad job covering it with the vines, from this angle the rockfall from the wall is blocking your view of it.
MSG: I guess it will take some puzzling to figure out this trapdoor mechanism, so I'll go ahead and go out front too. Can I make a Bushcraft roll to track those cultists?
GM Elle: Sure.
MSG: I succeed with a four.
GM Elle: You do see a flurry of what look like recent prints disturbing the ground in the direction that leads back to the road.
MSG: Well, hopefully that's the last we see of them.
Ariel: If I head that direction, can I see the cart?
GM Elle: Yes, still where you left it with a bunch of ineffectual vines hanging across it.
MSG: I'll go over and see if I can do any better.
Claire: If we're all in the clear out here, I want to go back in and keep looking at that altar. Anyone want to come?
Sasha: Sure. Might be more monsters lurking in there. Or a monster hiding inside the altar.
Hettie: Dilfriida offers you the lamp she found. "You'll need a light."
Ariel: Oh, I've got a lamp, and if there's treasure under that altar or something, I want to be there. So Fidu will go in too.
Akane: Zedeja requires directions on finding the herbal garden!
Claire: Filvius tells her to just follow Dilfriida. She knows where it is.
Akane: It's a scowl at you for that.
MSG: I tell Zedeja I saw the spot where they climbed through the vine curtain, if she wants to come with me while I conceal our cart.
Akane: Climbing is undesirable to old, frail Zedeja. But more undesirable is following a burglesome halfling. I will go.
GM Elle: Are you really about to split the party three ways?
MSG: Looks like it, unless Difriida wants to come with us instead of going in through the courtyard.
Hettie: I'll risk another giant spider over listening to Zedeja.
GM Elle: Okay, then. Dilfriida, you cross the courtyard without event.
Hettie: I'm going to pick a couple of those giant blueberries along the way to ask the elven gardener about.
Akane: Already, behaviour Zedeja would scold you for. It's good we divided ourselves.
GM Elle: MSG and Akane, you get to the cart without issue. Make your Bushcraft roll to hide it, MSG. Akane, you can make an Acrobatics roll with a Boon to climb up and through the vines, unless you want to wait for Dolora.
MSG: I roll a 4 on my Bushcraft.
Akane: 5 and 17 on my Booned Acrobatics, so: success.
GM Elle: You find the climbing pretty easy, even for someone of your age. Filvius, Quackenscrump, and Fidu, what are you doing in the altar room?
Claire: I want to examine that altar for absolutely any information I might be able to get out of it. Carvings or runes or designs ... anything.
Ariel: I'm just here because they need a light. I'll probably just sit on the edge of the dais and kibblax.
Sasha: Quackers is keeping an eye out for monsters, obviously.
GM Elle: Go ahead and roll your Spot Hidden, Claire.
Claire: Hm. Well, it's actually really bad. I blow it with an 11. Either of you guys want to try?
Ariel: I dunno, that sounds like work. Can I get half your cut of the next treasure we find?
Claire: How about a quarter, and only if we actually learn anything from you looking.
Ariel: Well ... okay, I guess. I roll a 9 and my skill is 11.
GM Elle: As you're examining the sun carved on one side, you see that it looks like it's actually a separate material -- a different kind of stone than the main block. It almost looks like it's a large button that could be pushed in.
Ariel: I tell Filvius.
Claire: Heck, then, I push it to find out what happens.
GM Elle: It makes a clicking sound, but that's all.
Claire: What about the suns on the other sides? Are they buttons too? I'll try pushing each one.
GM Elle: They all make a clicking sound when you push them in, then pop back out. You don't notice any other effect.
Claire: I try different patterns. Like, go clockwise around the altar pushing each one, then counter clockwise, then push every other one.
GM Elle: None of that seems to do anything.
Claire: Dang. Okay, they're suns, right? I'll push the one on the east side, then the one on the west side, then east, then west ... and there are four suns in all, so I'll do that four times.
GM Elle: Interesting idea, but no.
Ariel: I'm getting tired just watching you.
Hettie: Has Dilfriida made it into the herb garden yet?
GM Elle: Sure. Hafarmal is still there. He looks up from his gardening and asks where your companions are. "I notice you look wounded. Is everything all right?"
Hettie: I tell him they should be along soon. They're just making sure the cultists kept running after we chased them away.
GM Elle: He looks pleasantly surprised and says that was very quick. He also offers to heal your wounds for you.
Hettie: Dilfriida says, "Wow, terrific, thanks!"
GM Elle: He heals you for 7 points.
Hettie: Exceptional. If I go through with that Stretch Rest, I'll be back to full health.
Akane: By now, has Zedeja arrived?
GM Elle: Not quite. You had farther to walk and then also had to do some climbing.
MSG: If I'm done with hiding the cart, I'll climb too. Easy success with a 5 and a 6.
Claire: Meanwhile, this altar is giving me a headache.
Ariel: Hey! What if it's like those aspirin bottles with the caps you have to push in on both sides to get open? Not that Fidu has ever seen an aspirin bottle, but he's pretty smart, and if he doesn't make any suggestions we may not ever get out of here.
Sasha: That's a pretty good suggestion though.
Ariel: Thanks!
Claire: Can I reach two of them at once if I lean across it? I'll try east and west first.
GM Elle: It's awkward, but you can reach. Doesn't seem to do anything, though.
Claire: Argh. North and south, then.
GM Elle: Nope.
Claire: You two come help me. I obviously can't push all four at once, but maybe that's the trick.
Ariel: If I have to. I guess I get up and walk over there.
Sasha: Sure, Quackers is game.
GM Elle: Eureka! When you do that, the altar makes a grinding sound, and the top of it splits along four lines and slides open and down to reveal a compartment within.
Akane: What game is Eeka?
GM Elle: What? 
Akane: It's punning. Sasha says she is game, then you say she is Eeka, so Eeka must be a game, right? Sorry, English is my extra language, still practicing the punning.
MSG: Actually that was pretty good. I think we just weren't being quick enough.
Ariel: I'm still not being quick enough I guess, because I don't get it yet. Or maybe I wasn't listening as close as I should have. The altar opened up and there's a game in it?
Sasha: Weren't you paying attention at all?
Ariel: Some! But mostly I was roleplaying my character and he's kinda just hanging out.
Claire: Meanwhile, Filvius is very curious to see what's inside this compartment.
Akane: Apologies for inserting chaos ...
GM Elle: Never apologize for being funny, Akane -- even if not everyone gets it. Claire, resting at the bottom of the compartment is a frightful-looking mask of yellowed bone.
Claire: Creepy. Okay, I'm going to pick it up and use my Sense Magic trick on it.
Ariel: Are you sure that's a good idea?
Claire: Is that an Ariel question or a Fidu question.
Ariel: Ariel. Fidu's already put a lot into this whole altar deal. He's just going to kick back and see what happens.
Claire: Okay, well, I don't think it's a great idea, but Filvius is jonesing for knowlege.
GM Elle: You sense that there's definitely magic on it. It seems to have a Protector spell that's been made permanent. You also sense that there may be some drawback to its power.
MSG: Wait, didn't you even have to roll to see if that succeeded?
Claire: It's a magic trick, not a spell.
Akane: Magic trickery is always a success.
Ariel: Hey, where's my always-a-success power!
Sasha: I could use some of that action too.
GM Elle: Well, when you get a new Heroic Ability, pick Magic Talent and somebody can train you in a school of magic. Then you can learn tricks and spells with advancement marks and training.
Ariel: Oh. That sounds like way too much work.
Sasha: Yeah, that's going to cut way down on my monster-killing time.
Claire: Anyway, I put the mask on.
Ariel: That's an even worse idea! Didn't you just hear it's got some kind of drawback?
Claire: In case you haven't noticed, Filvius is leaning pretty hard into the whole FA/FO thing. So what's it do to me?
GM Elle: You don't notice any immediate effect.
Claire: Hmm. I take it back off.
GM Elle: Make a WIL roll.
MSG: Here we go.
Claire: 15. That's a failure -- oh, and I'm still Scared, so I have a Bane. This second roll better not be a Demon ... whew, 3.
GM Elle: The mask refuses to come off.
MSG: Looking at that thing's going to take some getting used to.
Claire: So like, do you mean ever?
GM Elle: You can try again any time you want.
Claire: I try again.
GM Elle: It doesn't come off.
Claire: No roll this time?
GM Elle: No ... although you do know that some magical effects last a stretch and others last a shift or more.
Claire: Great. Guess I'll try after another stretch. Maybe the Protector spell will be worth it. It looks pretty good in the rulebook. Do I know the power level?
GM Elle: Magic items that duplicate spells generally draw WP from the user when activated, so if you activate it, you'll know the power level based on how much WP it takes.
Claire: Well, the book says it lasts a whole shift, so I'll try activating it now.
GM Elle: It takes 4 WP.
Claire: I've only got 3 left right now.
GM Elle: Then it doesn't activate.
Claire: Do I lose my WP from trying?
GM Elle: I'm going to say no.
Claire: Whew.
Sasha: Quackenscrump sees you tugging at the mask and asks what kind of bone-headed stunt you're pulling now.
Claire: I hear what you did there. Filvius says there's apparently some kind of curse on the mask and he can't take it off. But it'll be great for staying safe from magic attacks once I get some of my mental energy back.
Ariel: Oh, wow, don't remind me about needing to get energy back.
Sasha: So are we going to go back to the herb garden now, or what?
Claire: Sure, we can head that direction.
Ariel: I guess if we have to. The grass and plants will probably be more cozy and restful than this gloomy altar room, now that I think about it.
GM Elle: All right. The three of you head for the garden. MSG, Akane, your characters both arrive in the herb garden while all of that is going on. Hafarmal greets you and says he hears you've succeeded in chasing away the cultists.
MSG: Dolora says it was probably more the manticore that chased them away, and then we killed the manticore.
Akane: No, why reveal this? Now he thinks we did nothing to our goal of de-culting his temple, and also we removed the thing that de-culted it! An herbalist of intelligence will conclude, "Possibly the cultists are now free to return!"
Hettie: I assume you're not saying all of that out loud, are you?
Akane: No. But displeasure is written in large letters upon the face of Zedeja. She tells the herbalist to direct her to the most comfortable place to rest in this garden.
GM Elle: He points you toward a soft-looking sward of grass. He also notices your injuries and asks if you'd like to be healed.
Akane: If the rest is not sufficient, Zedeja will consult him, she says.
GM Elle: Okay, whoever is doing their Stretch Rest, then, go ahead and roll to recover HP and WP.
Akane: Such poor rolling of dice! When the rest is over, Akane asks for healing. 
GM Elle: Hafarmal heals you for six points.
MSG: If he's just giving out the healing, I'm down a couple of points. I'll also be picking his brain for knowledge while Dilfriida and the Mind over there are resting.
GM Elle: He actually blows his healing roll and apologizes. But he does show you about the garden and names all the plants for you, describing their different herbal properties.
MSG: I suppose that's something.
Ariel: Hey, I just had a thought, and on the way back to the garden, I want to use my Treasure Hunter ability to sense which direction it is to the greatest treasure!
GM Elle: Where exactly are you going to do this? It needs to be some sort of a crossroads.
Ariel: So, I'm thinking if I stand right next to that trapdoor, and somebody with treasure fell in there at some point, it will point me down. Or if there's no treasure under there, it might point me back into the altar room toward the stairway if there's treasure on the bottom level somewhere, or back out the front door if the place is a bust as far as treasure goes.
Sasha: Damn, way to go Aers. That's a pretty smart tactic.
Hettie: Nicely finessed.
GM Elle: Okay, let me re-read that ability and have a look at the scenario for a second ... hmm. Mm-hmm ... so you seem to feel an almost equal instinctive pull to the northeast and the northwest.
Ariel: Oh, great, what does that mean??? Are there two exactly equal treasures?
Sasha: I haven't read that ability ... could it be there's one that's bigger but farther and one that's smaller but nearer or easier to get to?
GM Elle: It's ambiguously worded ... "At a crossroads of some kind, you can activate this ability to learn the direction of the greatest treasures."
MSG: "Treasures" with an "s" meaning plural?
Claire: Weird that it's "direction" singular but "treasures" plural.
Hettie: Isn't this game translated from Swedish, though? I'm not sure we can put too much stock in the precision of their plurals.
GM Elle: I'm just sticking with what I said. Your sense is that going either northeast or northwest could get you to the greatest treasures."
Ariel: Dang, though, what if there's just one treasure down under this trapdoor, but it's a honking huge one? Only because it's a treasure and not treasureS, my ability doesn't work on it! Meanwhile northeast and northwest there's two treasures, but they're poopy.
GM Elle: Honestly, honey, as long as you're not trying to abuse the ability, I promise I won't give you results that are going to deliberately lead you the wrong way.
Ariel: Okay. Seems like we may still want to check the trapdoor, though.
Sasha: My higher priority is getting the rest of our group and checking the place for any more monsters there might be.
GM Elle: If you don't make any further stops, you arrive back at the garden shortly after Dilfriida and Zedeja have finished their rest.
Hettie: Ah, I remembered something. I wanted to ask Hafarmal about these eyeball-sized blueberries. If he's available, I do so ... I suppose once he's finished giving Dolora her tour of the garden.
MSG: You may have a wait ahead of you, then. I'm going to be asking a lot of questions, to soak up all the knowledge I can about these plants and how otherworldly energy can cause transformations like this in living things.
Claire: Don't worry, Het. I'm pretty sure Dolora will be distracted soon by me showing up with this scary bone mask on. She'll definitely want to try to get some knowledge scoop once she sees it.
Hettie: Dilfriida isn't one to politely wait her turn, though. I imagine as soon as she's feeling rested up, she'll wander over and butt in the moment a long enough breath is taken by whoever's talking ... probably to ask something like, "Hey, mister herbs. Have you seen these giant blueberries? What's the deal with these? Can you eat them?"
MSG: I'm not keen on getting interrupted -- but Dolora also wouldn't particularly differentiate between knowledge about the herbs in the garden and knowledge about the blueberries from the courtyard. It's all part of the same phenomenon, right?
GM Elle: That's exactly what Hafarmal says. "Those blueberries contain enough nourishment to sustain a person an entire day -- just one berry. But I'd caution you to be careful in eating them, as they have an intoxicating effect as well, and you'll be hazy-headed and a bit clumsy for hours afterward.
MSG: Better to eat at the end of the day than for breakfast, then.
Hettie: So it sounds. I'll put some in with my rations
GM Elle: All right, so at some point Hafarmal will want to get back to his work, and if there's any attempt to dissuade him from that, he'll note that he can't brew any antidotes if you won't give him time to tend to his business. What's the group going to do next?
Ariel: I tell everybody the biggest treasure is either northeast or northwest from the hallway with the trapdoor. I think we should go find it!
Sasha: There were at least three ways out of that manticore room, so I say let's head back down there and check some of them out.
Akane: Zedeja insists on this, in fact. No further discussion needed!
GM Elle: Anyone take issue with that?
MSG: Nope.
Claire: Also nope.
Ariel: It was basically my idea, so I'm all for it.
Sasha: Quackers is in.
Hettie: Dilfriida is always interested in treasure, so she can overlook Zedeja's bossiness for now.
Akane: Slowly, this halfling learns wisdom!
GM Elle: All right then, back downstairs you head.

okay, so this was a longish session, and i'm breaking it up here so the post isn't endless. see you next time!