Sapphire:Sessions:20150912
Branamin's Notes
Scaled the Wall
A 6' ledge seemed easy enough but not quite having the strength to pull myself up, nor desiring to dirty my clothes I delayed the inevitable and gave myself a magical lift to help myself over. Nobody seemed to notice (but I can hear myself say "magic solutions dilutions the evolutions" ... what? why did I say that? I'm hearing things. It doesn't matter, I'm on the walkway.
Once upon the walkway, I realized we had no plan. It appeared the plan was to wait until these undead servants were in range and then attack them. I guess that works, after all they are heroes and they know what they're doing....
A brief and pulse rising greetings left skeletons tumbling down the hill below. I am impressed with their raw tactics and am eager to learn how they coordinate such strategies so well. They appear to prefer the "bash and zerg method" that I've read about.
You'll Shoot Your Eye Out
Shauna specifically asked me if I could take down a raven. I'm not quite sure why (did I just tell myself it's a familiar or did someone else say it?) , but it could be the familiar of a the wicked necromancer they are tracking. The shot looked easy enough, and I began to focus on drawing mana from around me and focusing it into a single, intensely hot arc of sizzling plasma. My aim was true, like it is most times with sunbolt and a rain of black feathers was my reward.
Confirming my suspicions of this being a familiar, we heard agonizing screams from the tower nearby. The familiars master must have been looking through the bird's eyes. I almost feel sorry for him. He knows we are here now... stealth is no longer an option. I watch as the other more physically capable vault down and blitz the tower.
That Feeling
I clearly heard myself say it, but I didn't remember saying it out loud. Regardless I look at the far building to answer the question "what's that over over?"
For a moment I am not sure where to go or what to do, but then I notice a door open and a small army of undead pouring forth from one of the far buildings.
Barrack and I make our way cautiously towards the stairs while considering if our missile spells can actually hold off this many undead. Why are the others running straight for the tower? Maybe they don't see this army of undead?
It's up to Barrack and I and I think I have an idea...
Rain of Stones
Gaining their attention with a few well aimed sunbolts the mob of undead run towards us, heading for the only way up... a set of stairs. Not seeing any shields and hearing a voice (did it come from the ring or did I think that?) the voice said "sunbolts vs an army? are you going to lose me again?" knowing that sunbolt isn't going to work, I summoned large rocks to fall from the sky at the choke point of the stairs. Originally I had planned to create a dangerous barrier that they must cross and then finish them with sunbolts at our leisure, but the stones worked so well that soon we heard an order coming from their master to break off the attack.
Raising the Roof
On Cue, Barrack blew the roof off of the shack with a well placed fireball aimed into the darkness. The mindless undead followed the new order to chase the rest of our party into the tower, oblivious to the fact that their master was now a burned corpse. Hrm... I though they needed to be controlled. The thought escapes my mind as we run along the walk way trying to intercept and protect the rest of our group from the horde chasing them.
Geronimo
We run to the edge and my bravery of jumping off quickly fades as I see how far a drop it is to the courtyard below. My ring screamed with me, then it laughed. Wait, it's mocking me again! Am I imagining this?
I once again lighten myself slightly to soften the landing in anticipation of the jump. Barrack glides off the roof like he has an invisible ramp. My landing is rough, and I think I twist my ankle, but I'm up and running again to reach the tower before the horde.
Stick Around for a Bit
Barrack distracts the horde with a well placed fireball and they charge us instead of the tower. Giving us enough time to get inside the tower before the horde. Draining energy from the fascinating ring I found, I placed glue strategically in a way that stopped the horde several feet from us. Using this makeshift barrier, Barrack and I pick them off 1 by one out of range of their attacks - but not their stench. How do necromancers deal with the smell? Trying not to show Barrack that I'm about to retch at the smell we take opportunity shots as they get stuck in the glue. I'm really getting the hang of this adventuring stuff. I bet one day people will write stories about me and how I took out hordes of zombies with powerful spells, I bet they'll even say... wait, what just happened?
Friendly Fire
I don't know how it happened, but my sunbolt went off too soon and it hit Barrack. I could hear the sizzle as it arced through him and smell the burned flesh. Do you know what burned Golbin smells like? It's hard to differentiate between that and the stench of the undead horde below. I think I killed him. How will I learn combat fire spells now? I mean, is he ok!?!? Is the ring laughing at me?
Before I can fully apologize Barrack has healed himself and told me to fall back with the others. I'm sure he's not impressed, but I do notice that he's keeping his distance from me now. Some hero I am... That thought is replaced by the appearance of a zombie body sliding down the stairs and the sounds of fighting up from the room above us. I acknowledge Baracks order and we scramble up the stairs into the room with the fighting. What have I gotten myself into?
Golems
As Barrack and I caught up with the others we were relieved to see them easily dispatching, or even ignoring some of the defenders. I started to build a sunbolt immediately while deciding what to do. Anlee and Yassir demolished the zombies easily, being the experienced warriors they are. I was so engrossed in watching them battle I almost didn't recognize the large suits of armor attacking them as golems.
I tried to cast a sunbolt at one of them but the armor reflected it. Yassir shouted to go for their joints and then I understood that this must be their weaknesses. I took aim with another sunbolt and expertly delivered a plasma arc to one of the golems that had charged me. I think I held my breath the whole time as it crumpled to the floor. I am not sure how I hit him, while running, and in his throat too. I never practiced anything like that before and was almost sure I was going to miss - I just imagined it as the only way I could of lived and it happened, as if the plasma knew where to arc.
Barrack delivered a fatal blow as well to one of the golems, also aiming for his neck. It's a good thing Anlee and Yassir were there to protect us - those golems were huge and surely would of caused my robes to be soiled with blood, or worse.
As we ran for the stairs to catch up to Shauna and Chaulker I noticed that these golems were likely made from clay. Aren't those pretty easy to make? I need to learn that spell, well, if I ever decide to have guards anyway. Not today.
Thunderclap vs Illusion Trap
The others seemed to be killing everything along the way and Barrack and I follow.
As we enter the 2nd floor I'm surprised to see another small army waiting for us. Anlee and Yassir engage the zombies right in front of me but my immediate attention is the menacing mage controlling his horde.
Ignoring the fear of what appears to be a death trap, I channel my scream and draw energy from the air power stone I found... as much as I can. A shout, like thunder squeezed into a glass bottle jumps from my hand and lands in the middle of the undead. When it strikes it shatters into a thousand thunderstorms at once obliterating several of the skeletons. I Flinch, expecting the explosion to harm me as well, but luckily I was far enough away this time! My ears are ringing from the boom but through the vaporized skeleton bones I notice that necromancer didn't even twitch. We are all going to die is all I can think until i realize .... he is an illusion!
I shout out that he's an illusion and then hear Barrack scream behind me. He followed us up, but a large golem is recovering from a deadly attack on the Goblin. Yassir doesn't see the huge golem behind him so I scream GOLEM and try to buy him a few seconds so he can properly deal with this creation.
I realized the mistake as the Golem charged me instead - this wasn't the plan! He swings at me and barely misses. I'm sure I've soiled my robes this time! Out of desperation and not being able to do anything else I reached out and commanded the golem to stone. For a moment I just stood there unsure if it worked or not, too shocked to run or prepare a spell, but he was motionless. It Worked!
One of us is not Like the Others
Chaukler picked up barrack and bolted up the stairs. I looked back once more at the illusion and the motionless undead horde and quickly followed the rest. Yassir and Anlee followed dropping their current opponents with ease. As I entered the stairwell I noticed that Chaulker seemed to be running with the zombies and not attacking them. It's as if they don't know he's not one of them.
A shout from Barrack to put him down alerts some of the zombies, especially the one in front and he braces for the mob coming up the stairs. Chaulker sidesteps the one at the top of the stairs with ease, but the mob behind him clumsily topple over each other into a pile of zombies.
I run up and cast glue on them then pivot past them while Yassir and Anlee run past me up the stairs.
Wall of Bones
Another landing finds a few more skeletons which Yassir and Anlee ignore as they race to the top. I pick up one and hold it behind me with levitation as a wall of bones.
Skewer me Once, Shame on You. Skewer me Twice, Shame on Me
Barrack, Yassir and Anlee reach the top floor to be confronted by a rank of zombies. Barrack decides stepping into the zombies around the corner is safer than having another sunbolt in his back and clears an opening for me.
Illusions of Grand failure
I mispronounced maximaro dupliclitoris and my spell didn't turn out quite right. I watched as the others quickly dispatched a swarm of undead and their masters. In the heat of the battle the tower wizard escapes through a sickly green portal and with the exception of Barrack we all charge for the portal. On my way out Barrack lent me fatigue then collapsed from exhaustion.
Swimming in a Mana Pool
I remember sensing immense power all around me as I stepped through the gate. I could taste a different sort of magic, then I blacked out.
Divinely healed
When I woke Anlee was getting up and Shauna was crouched beside me. I could feel divine magic flowing around me and noticed that my ankle was no longer hurt and I was no longer the least bit tired.
Though, I am distinctly aware that mana in the area is weaker than before the gate.
Shauna gave me a green bell that appears to be magical and told me to guard it from the tower wizard as he intended to corrupt it. I magelocked it in my pouch. I'm sure to study this later in more detail.
Metal Chariot on Black Rock Roads
We discovered a new magic called technology by experimenting with a metal chariot on the black rock roads. Chaulker deciphered the the way control the metal chariot and all except Shauna got inside. Chaulker followed Shauna as we anxiously trusted the metal chariot.
Oh yeah? Prove it!
We met 4 travellers with technological weapons who needed a demonstration to believe in magic. After a short meeting amongst themselves and explaining "electronics" that powered the mage they agreed to help us find and fight the tower mage and even offered to provide us with some basic supplies.