[Collective Game] WRATH OF THE RAIN MAKER

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Fri Jun 20, 2014 9:49 pm

Loot. Sweet! Identifying the items will have to wait though. Don't want to risk putting them on and turning into a newt or something. Testing on soldiers is an option, but I don't feel like roleplaying an evil character. I guess I could ask for volunteers and guaranteeing that I'll make it up to them later on, and if necessary resurrect them, explaining that the items could potentially be extremely useful. However, we've got more pressing matters at hand atm.

My suggestions:

Tell HUETZAL to get the men ready to ambush the wolves (e.g. brace spears and whatnot). Then attempt to distract them via Dancing Lights (Humanoid figure) and Ghost Sound to buy some time. Would Glitterdust make it easier to spot the wolves in the tempest? If so, I cast it and tell the men to bombard them with arrows.

I cast enlarge person on myself and HUETZAL, then jump out of the building from a higher floor and re enter the monument once the wolves start entering, giving the men inside flanking bonuses.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Fri Jun 20, 2014 11:01 pm

HUETZAL rallies his soldiers, directing them to heave loads of wrecked furniture onto two of the staircases and stationing a line of spears in front of the one closest to the wolves. As the soldiers prepare, loud howls are audible even through the pounding and crackling noise of the blizzard outside, echoing eerily through the space inside the Grand Monument.

ACATL hops down from where he was conducting the search. "Bad timing, this. I think I've found the way, but sending you through will take at least half a minute. And that's time we don't have. Here, let me help you start proving you have what it takes to save Mictlan." ACATL slices his hand with a ceremonial knife and taps each of your scimitar as he recites a spell. Scarlet fire spreads from the stains until each blade blazes with flame. Meanwhile, you cast a spell of your own and grow to truly enormous proportions. Your tail could wrap around a man twice over. METZLI invokes the blessing of the feathered serpent, and as the holy light washes over them the soldiers seem less intimated by the howling of the wolves outside. More significantly, HUETZAL's feather cloak shivers and morphs into actual wings. He flutters up off of the ground, still calling out little corrections to the spearbearers as he readies his own weapons.

And then, a white-furred face darts into view at the base of the stairs you came up. It's gone a moment later, and 3 spears clatter uselessly against the stone where it was. As the reserve hand new weapons to the frontline, a growling voice barks out orders in... was that Giant?

You grab onto a support beam and begin to slither up to a higher point in the monument's interior. As you ascend, you attempt another spell [CONCENTRATION] and succeed into sending a glowing humanoid figure right out the entrance and into a hail of snowy breath weapons. The winter wolf commander calls out some more orders, and another pokes its head through and blasts your soldiers, spears catching in its fur at best.

ACATL shouts a warning. "There's more wolves sneaking around the other side!" He hurls a ball of flame out the unguarded staircase, and white furred canines bolt up through the explosion, snarling furiously. Moments later, more wolves charge your spear, line, bounding up the stairs side-by-side in good coordination. You are in a good position to see the fight unfolding below you.

Nebuchadnezzar · Post by **Nebuchadnezzar** » Fri Jun 20, 2014 11:28 pm

Slither/spring down to the group's level in the monument and catch 5 others in a Haste before wading in. The warriors could put up their mantlet, opening only the occasional hole for thrown spears/Acatl's fire magic. If the winter wolves get too close the warriors should switch to their macuahuitl . Huetzal harries from above, and Metzli plays support.

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Sat Jun 21, 2014 12:07 am

Seconded.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Sat Jun 21, 2014 11:34 pm

"Surprise, mutts!" You let go from the beam you were coiled around and crash onto the stairs that only ACATL is defending. Tiles crack and split where you impact, but you are only mildly bruised through the natural armor on your lower body. 2 WINTER WOLVES are now caught between you and ACATL, and at least 3 more are visible outside when you throw a quick glimpse over your shoulder. You cast one of your most powerful spells, and you, the priests, and several of the soldiers begin to move with supernatural speed.

Perhaps unfortunately, you just made yourself the focus of almost all the enemy attention. Wolves snap at your tail from behind and below, and one of the monsters going after ACATL wheels about and pounces for your throat. Fortunately, the lingering protective magic on you absorbs the frigid cold of their bites, and you're tall enough enlarged that they have difficulty getting at your skin.

You begin slashing wildly at the monsters that surround you. ACATL steps back and calls up a flash of light to disorient the wolves, and HUETZAL flaps over and pounces upon the the wolf in the lead before it can take down a priest. Together, you manage to dispatch both of the wolves you dropped down and flanked. Things aren't looking too good on the far side of the monument, however. A third of your warriors are down, and METZLI is occupied keeping them from dying outright with his healing magic. Most of the rest are shivering and speckled with ice from winter wolf breath. There are 3 wolves packed close together fighting your soldiers, and maybe more behind them in addition to the 3 outside you are currently blocking.

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Sun Jun 22, 2014 8:14 pm

If there's any particularly dense 10 ft area of wolves on this or the other side, cast deep slumber defensively. Otherwise full attack targeting a different wolf each time (we've got soldiers and blasty clerics, so I think we should try spreading around the damage as much as possible).

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Mon Jun 23, 2014 6:48 pm

You begin to furiously hack away the wolves that keep bounding up from below to snap at you. The flaming scimitars cut easily through their pale fur, and after a few exchanges your enemies back off. The scorched and bleeding winter wolves don't seem too eager to stay in melee with you now that you've demonstrated how much more dangerous you are in close quarters.

Meanwhile, ACATL hurls another blast of flame over the heads of your soldiers, and HUETZAL pounces after it as soon as the flame clears. The line steadies, and the wolves on that side of the monument soon break as well. Outside, their leader curses at them furiously, and then shouts what sounds like a threat in Giant up at your war party. Then the wolves bound off back into the blizzard. HUETZAL flutters after them for a moment, and then comes back into shelter.

"I think we broke their will to keep fighting. The wolves were more disciplined than the drakes, but they weren't expecting a hardened defensive position. If we're lucky, they won't come back until we escape." METZLI shakes his head. "I've got a bad feeling about this. I've heard of frost drakes in the remote mountains, but there have no reports of those ice wolves anywhere in Mictlan's recorded history. As far as I've read, at least. This doesn't bode well for the future."

You've lost some soldiers, but METZLI managed to save most of the fallen. He's about out of healing. ACATL hurries back to the magic door and does a quick ritual that looks to involve putting more of his blood on the wall, chanting, and some kind of glowing gem. After half a minute, a rectangular chunk of the wall painting disappears into darkness edged in pale green light. "It's ready! But the door can only take one, and you won't be able to return the way you came. If there's anything you need to do or ask about before you leave, hurry! But the sooner you're through, the sooner we can evacuate before more monsters attack."

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 12:35 am

"If you have any more supporting magic spells prepared, drop some on me. I promise to do my best to save Mictlan. Taking the bodies with you may be too risky as the wolves or other creatures may find their scent, so stick to a few tufts of hair or something. Yeah, it's more expensive to revive them that way, but if you guys die too, they won't be coming back either. Whatever happens guys, you've all fought admirably. It's been an honor. Till we meet again, in this life, or the next."

Time to go through the magic portal.

Korgan0 · Post by **Korgan0** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 1:37 am

Agreed.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 2:33 am

The priests cast a last couple of blessings on you, wards against poison, disease, and projectile attacks. Soldiers begin packing up and taking samples in case their comrades can be revived later, conscious of your advice. HUETZAL takes the opportunity to shake your hand. "It's been an honor fighting with you, Hero. You aren't just skilled with a blade, and I think your cunning will be as valuable as any weapon inside Tlaloc's house. Remember, as soon as the ice monsters falter, we'll be ready to bring Mictlan's full strength to bear against them. If you defeat whoever's playing puppetmaster, your reinforcements should be able to take out any enemies you bypass."

Then ACATL waves you up to the pulsing door. "This is a tunnel through a dimensional bleed. The Underworld intermixes with Shadow, and certain laws of magic are blurred. Stay near the path! If you step off, the planar denizens will be able to see you. Stray too far, and you'll probably be shunted into a regular plane. I don't know everything about the door, there might be other dangers but I can't give you any detailed advice." You nod understanding, slither through, and everything goes grey for a moment.

When your sight clears, you find yourself balanced upon a cold black surface that reflects your image almost perfectly. A strip of polished obsidian, about 4 feet wide and floating a foot above the ground, the black mirrored path stretches forward as far as you can see. Around you, the world is grey, washed out... and continually shifting. With each blink of your eyes, everything but the path changes. You think the first flash looked something like a stone temple, but now the scene is something entirely different.

... a procession of shadows, heads bowed as the blurred figures march along a dried-out riverbed

... glittering hordes of silver and jewels in a low vault filled with thick pillars and torches that burn with heatless blue fire

... heaps of sharp-angled rocks, splintered human bones sometimes spilling out of gaps in the cairns

... paintings in a moonlit gallery, each canvas slashed and sagging.

[PERCEPTION] Out of the corner of your eye, you saw a flicker of movement that seemed continuous across scenes between the treasure horde and the cairns. It was some kind of large bird, but it passed out of sight before you could make out much detail. More than a few hundred feet away from the path, your vision blurs incomprehensibly.

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 7:14 am

If Haste has worn off, cast Expeditious Retreat. Then run along the path.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 6:05 pm

[ACROBATICS] The floating obsidian path is too narrow for comfort, and is razor-sharp along the edge. But your sense of balance is enough that you manage to avoid any severe slips even barreling along with magically boosted speed. A mournful howl echoes in the distance as you leave whatever presence closed in on you behind. By the time you need to catch your breath, nothing flickers at the edge of your consciousness, and you've gotten used to the weird dark worlds that swap every time you blink.

Continuing forward, you feel like you might have traveled half a mile. Many of the blessings cast on you have expired. But at last something is coming into sight. You see a great black arch filled with swirling grey stormclouds, perhaps 50 feet wide. Occasionally wisps of fog drift out and rise, joining a dense cumulus mass above the arch that pours down rain and even occasional lightning bolts. You squint your eyes as one such strikes the black road with a painfully bright flash.

[PERCEPTION] The last hundred feet or so before your destination are slippery-slick with water from the continuous rain. Lightning strikes follow no readily-discernible pattern, and you think you saw some big gusts of wind suddenly scatter droplets here and there. This.. might require a different approach than a straightforward run. At least the path seems to widen a little bit as it approaches the arch.

{Listened to background noise from here when I wrote up the post: http://www.noisli.com/ }

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Tue Jun 24, 2014 8:27 pm

See if prestidigitation is enough to keep a portion of the ground dry. If it is, switch to medium humanoid form to take up less space and proceed onwards, keeping ground directly below feet dry.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Wed Jun 25, 2014 1:06 am

You experiment with a few minor magic tricks, summoning spongelike lime green clouds to soak up water from the path and pulling a paper parasol from a hat. Unfortunately, the rain comes down almost as fast as you can scrub, and the parasol quickly soaks up water and falls to pieces in a few rounds.

If the rain and wind could be stopped, then you might be onto something. But as things stand, you would be balanced awkwardly on one leg as you summoned magical sponges to clear your next step. Falling would be a major risk if you got caught in one of the chaotic gusts or lost your balance.

You also try morphing into human form. You certainly weigh less, but if you hunch over that means much less of the wind can get at you and the path is no longer uncomfortably narrow.

Nebuchadnezzar · Post by **Nebuchadnezzar** » Wed Jun 25, 2014 1:40 am

Change shape into Medium Humanoid and crawl the remaining 30m, muttering curses to Tlaloc throughout for allowing this unnatural rain.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Wed Jun 25, 2014 5:53 pm

You get onto your hands and knees and begin to crawl forward through the storm. It's cold, wet, and miserably slippery, but you're fairly stable and don't think you're going to fly off and lose a limb to the path's edge. "Fuck you, Tlaloc, as if this wasn't enough work already." Right on cue, a rippling patch of the storm drifts onto the path right ahead of you.

An enormous humanoid form coalesces out of the tempest. It glares at you with eyes of sizzling electricity and rises a few inches as it draws up both cloudy arms for a crushing downwards strike. Fuck.

[REFLEX, ACROBATICS] There's only one thing to do. You kick off the wet obsidian floor and pull yourself forward as fast as you can. You barely avoid the thunderclap of the elemental's strike by shooting right between its swirling legs. The sonic boom rattles your teeth, but you're a little more concerned by the fact that you can't seem to affect your trajectory much now that you've started moving.

You are trapped on the multiverse's most deadly Slip n Slide, and if you slow down then the 50 foot tall whirlwind chasing you will catch up. It's a good thing you aren't in serpentine form, because you'd probably have lost half your tail to the edge. Shooting forward, you scatter water droplets to either side and anger more of the elementals. But in a few more moments, you pass into the arch.

TEMPLE OF TLALOC (WORSHIP HALL)
[REFLEX]With a woosh of wind, you shoot from between a huge statue's legs, catching air for a few seconds before gravity pulls you down and you hit rough-cut stone. Tumbling end-over-end, you suddenly reach the end of a ledge, drop 10 feet, and claw yourself to a stop before you hit a pool of water. You are bruised, soaked, and the dirt under your fingers complements your abraded skin. But you're alive!

You find yourself in a vast, open hall within a structure made of cut grey stone blocks. A decorative MOAT lines the base of the wall, and a large DAIS rises from the center of the room, with two staircases connecting it to the tiled floor. The walls are painted with scenes of verdant farmland and canals, and 4 big glowing statues rise from the corners of the dais.

There are exits to the NORTH and SOUTH.

South, you can see through a wide archway to view a room half-filled by a thick wall of blue-tinted ice. More ice crusts most of the rest, and swirling vortexes of red smoke obscure the walls to either side. [PERCEPTION] You spot 2 doors, though.

North, a set of great stone doors hang slightly ajar. You can make out firelight, another big statue, and more doors.

This great hall doesn't seem to have any people or monsters in it. Perhaps the priests were right about the magic door getting you in undetected.

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Wed Jun 25, 2014 7:46 pm

First, let's dry ourselves with prestidigitation and then switch back to lamia form. Then scan the statues with Detect Magic from as far as possible.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Wed Jun 25, 2014 8:23 pm

You snap your fingers and produce a magic blow-drier, which fixes your sopping wet hair and clothes in a minute or so. Your blouse is still rumpled, but at least you are relatively dry and warm. Then you creep up one side of the dais in lamia form and scan for magic.

[RELIGION] The two larger statues depict Tlaloc and his wife, Chalchiuhtlicue, She of the Jade Skirt. On the southern end of the dais are smaller statues of
Tecciztecatl, the Man in the Moon, and Huixtocihuatl, goddess of saltwater. The former is Tlaloc's son, and the latter his elder sister.

The DAIS is a place of divine power. Each statue emanates potent water magic, which seems to be holding the creeping ice from the south at bay for now. You note that the portal you emerged from is already closed, but it originated from the statue of Huixtocihuatl, who is both partially estranged from the other Rain Teotls and married to Tezcatlipoca. Her priests probably collaborated with the devotees of the Smoking Mirror in setting up this secret tunnel.

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Wed Jun 25, 2014 9:17 pm

Let's investigate the room to the North first.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Thu Jun 26, 2014 6:29 pm

You shove the doors wide as you slither into the room to the North.

TEMPLE OF TLALOC (AHUIZOTL'S FLAME)

This stone chamber is much smaller than the hall you were just in. Roughly square, the walls and floor are made of coppery tiles instead of grey stone blocks. The ambient temperature is dramatically higher than the previous room. You'll probably start sweating if you stay here more than a few minutes.

A statue of a monster stands in the center of the room, surrounded by 4 blazing BRAZIERS of coals. The statue is vaguely canine, but with 3 monkeylike hands on its forepaws and tail. [RELIGION] You recognize it as depicting one of the water-dwelling ahuizotl, which are common servants of the Rain Teotls.

There are low wooden tables in each corner, some of which look to contain money, art objects, and other OFFERINGS to the temple.

The stone doors to the EAST and WEST are both currently closed. Each is engraved with a stylized sunburst. Water is creeping into the room from under western door's edge, but it doesn't amount to more than a puddle at the moment.

Two PRIESTS lie in puddles of blood on the floor. [HEAL] The one next to the braziers is clearly dead, from a combination of severe burns to the forearms and multiple puncture wounds to the torso. The one next to the eastern door might still be breathing, but is definitely unconscious and near death.

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Thu Jun 26, 2014 9:40 pm

Crap... perhaps we shouldn't have swapped out CLW. With a +3 in Wis, and no skill ranks taking 10 won't cut it. Let's try to stabilize anyway and see if we get lucky. If not, would prestidigitating a dose of opium into his body via his nose or something for 1d8 temporary hitpoints stabilize him even if he doesn't wake up?

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Thu Jun 26, 2014 10:49 pm

[HEAL] You do unexpectedly well in your attempt to stop the bleeding and clear the fallen priest's breathing. The man is no longer likely to die without interference, though the temperature in this room might be unhealthy for someone who stays for too long. However, he is still unconscious.

Though you do not know any healing spells, you may have picked up useful items back in the Grand Monument. Is there any treasure you wish to inspect or try using?

Nebuchadnezzar · Post by **Nebuchadnezzar** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 5:04 am

Knowing Piltzintecuhtli as a god associated with healing. the lamia attempts to administer one of the flasks to the unconscious priest. Of the other found magical items (ear-thorns/dice/fan/dagger), I say at a minimum put in the earrings, along with some of the non-magical gold jewelry.

radthemad4 · Post by **radthemad4** » Fri Jun 27, 2014 7:54 pm

Seconded.

Avoraciopoctules · Post by **Avoraciopoctules** » Sat Jun 28, 2014 5:46 am

You pour the potion down the priest's throat. He goes into convulsions, but in a few seconds his wounds have sealed and he regains consciousness.

"Thanks be to Tlaloc! And thank you, Lady. Please, are the monsters still rampaging through our temple? Queta and I tried to enhance the power of the sacred flames here, but the frost imps had almost finished us. "

The priest sits up, and then winces when he sees his counterpart's body. "Too late for her, I see. She must have been so weakened by blood loss that the flames finished her..."