Dragonbane: Alone in Deepfall Breach Session 11- To the Top
Aleric continues up the Mage's tower in search of the calling stones. But more of the Mage's defenses lie in wait between him and his goal!
5. Unknown
As Aleric continues on heading towards the Orrery that Stone-Gaze had warned him of. But before that he knew he would face something unknown. A short spiraling stairwell let him out at an intersection with dispersing hallways. He gave a quick glance to either side, before deciding the likely way forward was straight ahead. A large double door stood in front of him. He slowly pushed the doors open slightly before peeking into the room.
GM Note: Time to find out about the next room that Aleric will
have to pass. This time instead of rolling on the Exploration tables in the
solo Dragonbane handbook, I’m going to roll on the inspiration tables to get
an idea of what awaits Aleric. This table includes 3 d20 rolls for an Action,
Attribute, and thing.
Roll: Inspiration table
Action- 8; Guard
Attribute- 2; Arcane
Thing- 6; Defense
Action- 8; Guard
Attribute- 2; Arcane
Thing- 6; Defense
The mage of
the tower created a magical defense to guard against anyone attempting to
enter his Orrery. This makes sense that though the dangers below could keep
trespassers out, the upper levels would be where the mage would do most of his
work. More serious defenses would be in place to keep anyone from reaching his
sensitive magical studies.
Roll: Awareness(12)- 2; success
Aleric
peers into the room. It seems to be empty, but a sense of foreboding sets
Aleric’s wits on alert. The next room is simply a small unimportant looking
room. A few chairs, left to rot and collect dust since anyone last used them.
A pair of double doors stand at the other end of the room. “Some sort of foyer
for the mage’s more important rooms and studies I’m sure… But why..” As he
begins to ponder why such a room would be needed, he spots the reason. Above
the doorway leading further into the Mage’s quarters is carved a small
intricate rune. Aleric is no mage, but he has been around long enough to see a
few wizards and their strange arcane runes. What Aleric saw here was a similar
rune, suddenly beginning to glow with a faint red light that was ever so
slightly intensifying. Aleric jumped back from the door as a sudden burst of
fire from the rune shot towards the doorway. “Of course… Damned wizards and
their fiery traps. Why must they all be so secretive!?”
Collecting himself, Aleric thought of the best way to get through the trapped room. “Well, can’t use magic myself. Going to have to just chance that I can get through the room quicker than it can kill me…” Aleric spends little time thinking through his options, jumping quickly to the first option that suits his abilities. Running through and bursting through the doors. With some luck, he’ll only receive a small scorching. Steeling his nerves, Aleric moves over towards the doors. The blast has pushed them shut again, so he prepares himself to burst through the doors.
Collecting himself, Aleric thought of the best way to get through the trapped room. “Well, can’t use magic myself. Going to have to just chance that I can get through the room quicker than it can kill me…” Aleric spends little time thinking through his options, jumping quickly to the first option that suits his abilities. Running through and bursting through the doors. With some luck, he’ll only receive a small scorching. Steeling his nerves, Aleric moves over towards the doors. The blast has pushed them shut again, so he prepares himself to burst through the doors.
Oracle: Since these magical
traps have been in disuse and disrepair since the mage’s death, will the
arcane defenses be malfunctioning somehow? (likely) 6; Extreme yes
GM
Note: This makes a lot of sense to me. These defenses have been sitting
inactive for so long, they are really malfunctioning. There are 2 options I
have in mind for the malfunction. Either this will cause them to take longer
to activate again, or the damage will be very slight, only causing a d4 of
fire damage. I’ll make a high/low roll. Greater than 10 on a d20 will be
longer activation, 10 or lower will be only slight damage from the defense
system.
Roll: high/low- 13; The defense system will take some time
to recharge. D4 rounds to recharge- 3 rounds
Entering Rounds:
Round 1
Aleric bursts into the room, charging towards the other door as fast as his legs can carry him. Holding his shield up towards the rune, he doesn't take a chance to see if it begins to glow. Making it to the other door, he quickly tries to open them into the next room. He curses under his breath, realizing that the door is locked.
Round 2
Aleric glances up, surprised that the arcane defense has not reactivated yet. The faint glowing of the rune begins again, but seems to be slow to recharge. Aleric takes the opportunity, attempting to force open the lock
Aleric is rushing, so not taking his time to bash in the door. He’ll have to make 2 successful strength checks at a bane to get them open.
Roll: Aleric- Strength (18; Bane): 14; success
Aleric shoulders the doors, feeling them begin to give under the slam of his shoulder but they aren’t quite opened.
Round 3
Aleric begins to feel the heat above him as the rune continues to recharge its magical power. He shoulders the door again, hoping to make it through before he becomes roasted wolfkin!
Roll: Aleric- Strength (18; Bane): 19; Failure
Aleric shoulders the door again but this time his footing slips. The power of his shoulder into the door is lost as he regains his footing.
Round 4
Initiative:
Aleric- 1
Arcane Defense- 3
Aleric knows the next blast will be coming any moment. With all strength, he forces his shoulder into the door
Roll: Aleric- Strength (18; Bane): 16; Success!
End Rounds
Round 1
Aleric bursts into the room, charging towards the other door as fast as his legs can carry him. Holding his shield up towards the rune, he doesn't take a chance to see if it begins to glow. Making it to the other door, he quickly tries to open them into the next room. He curses under his breath, realizing that the door is locked.
Round 2
Aleric glances up, surprised that the arcane defense has not reactivated yet. The faint glowing of the rune begins again, but seems to be slow to recharge. Aleric takes the opportunity, attempting to force open the lock
Aleric is rushing, so not taking his time to bash in the door. He’ll have to make 2 successful strength checks at a bane to get them open.
Roll: Aleric- Strength (18; Bane): 14; success
Aleric shoulders the doors, feeling them begin to give under the slam of his shoulder but they aren’t quite opened.
Round 3
Aleric begins to feel the heat above him as the rune continues to recharge its magical power. He shoulders the door again, hoping to make it through before he becomes roasted wolfkin!
Roll: Aleric- Strength (18; Bane): 19; Failure
Aleric shoulders the door again but this time his footing slips. The power of his shoulder into the door is lost as he regains his footing.
Round 4
Initiative:
Aleric- 1
Arcane Defense- 3
Aleric knows the next blast will be coming any moment. With all strength, he forces his shoulder into the door
Roll: Aleric- Strength (18; Bane): 16; Success!
End Rounds
Aleric
puts all of his might into the door, finally feeling it give as he feels
himself falling through the newly opened doorway. He stumbles a few feet into
the next room before he catches himself. Just at that moment, a massive ball
of fire bursts down from the rune. Aleric feels the heat of the explosion, but
is far enough away that he is safe from danger. After the heat dissipates, he
jumps towards the doors, closing them quickly behind him.
Aleric finds he is in a large circular room. At the center is a massive orrery taking up the entirety of the space. This is the source of the cranking sound. Gears at the center of the contraption begin to slowly turn, cranking faster and faster. As they begin to spin, Aleric recognizes the massive circular objects supported by several different metal beams that also begin to move. These representations of the planets (though Aleric does not realize that is what they are) begin to move, orbiting the center of the room. As the gears begin to spin faster and faster, so do the planets orbiting around the room. “Ah, some sort of death trap machine. At least there’s no fire… Yet.”
Aleric stands in a small vestibule-like entryway. Just a few feet in front of him, the planets spin, taking up the majority of the room. They move at such speed that traversing through them will be difficult, and the metal bars that support the objects orbiting the room will certainly hurt if they catch Aleric in a rib or the head. He quickly glances around for some sort of control panel and finds nothing of the sort, at least nothing he can make sense of. With a slight reluctance, he shoulders his shield, preparing to attempt to move through the spinning machine.
6. Maddening Orrery
Aleric takes a moment, leaning his head against the doors and breathing hard as he recovers from the sudden burst of energy to escape the arcane defense system. Just as he is catching his breath, he hears a slowly accelerating cranking sound. His shoulders slump and he curses to himself as he turns to see what new contraption faces him.Aleric finds he is in a large circular room. At the center is a massive orrery taking up the entirety of the space. This is the source of the cranking sound. Gears at the center of the contraption begin to slowly turn, cranking faster and faster. As they begin to spin, Aleric recognizes the massive circular objects supported by several different metal beams that also begin to move. These representations of the planets (though Aleric does not realize that is what they are) begin to move, orbiting the center of the room. As the gears begin to spin faster and faster, so do the planets orbiting around the room. “Ah, some sort of death trap machine. At least there’s no fire… Yet.”
Aleric stands in a small vestibule-like entryway. Just a few feet in front of him, the planets spin, taking up the majority of the room. They move at such speed that traversing through them will be difficult, and the metal bars that support the objects orbiting the room will certainly hurt if they catch Aleric in a rib or the head. He quickly glances around for some sort of control panel and finds nothing of the sort, at least nothing he can make sense of. With a slight reluctance, he shoulders his shield, preparing to attempt to move through the spinning machine.
GM Note: Aleric is going to attempt to move through the Orrery without taking a
steel beam directly to the head. He’s not the most lithe of fighters, but he
will need to attempt Acrobatics checks to make his way to the other side of
the room and through the Orrery. I’m going to have him make 3 checks. For each
check he will progress through the hazard. On a failure he will be hit by the
structures of the Orrery. Each failure will deal 2 d4 bludgeoning damage.
Roll: Aleric- Acrobatics x3 (7): 4 Success; 19 Failure; 11
Failure
Damage (2d4 x2): 8 bludgeoning reduced to 4; 5 bludgeoning reduced to 1
Damage (2d4 x2): 8 bludgeoning reduced to 4; 5 bludgeoning reduced to 1
Aleric attempts to gracefully move through the
spinning orrery. At first his confidence grows as he easily avoids the
spinning planets and beams that support them. Quickly he realizes that closer
to the center of the Orrery he moves the more difficult it is for him to avoid
the spinning beams. Quickly he is caught in the gut with a steel beam. He
scrambles to right himself, but comes face to face with a planet closer to the
center of the contraption. After the blow to the head, he quickly jumps
through the orrery and exits into a vestibule similar to the area he had just
left. He feels at his ribs as soon as the ringing in his ears stops. “Well
that will leave a bruise.” He sighs, turning towards the doors exiting the
room. Just next to the doorway, he sees a lever. Pulling it down he hears a
screech as gears begin to grind against one another behind him. Just as
quickly as the spinning of the orrery had started, it comes to a stop. “At
least getting back won’t be quite so painful.” Rubbing at his stomach he faces
the doors, opening them to continue his journey to the top of the tower.
7. Endless Stair
Aleric enters a large room after leaving the orrery. Oddly at the center of the room is a massive set of spiraling stairs. They go up, exiting the room through a small hole in the ceiling. Aleric looks around and finds nothing else of interest in the room. In fact there is nothing else present at all. No doors beside the one he just entered, no furnishings or windows. “This must be the endless stair. Almost there, and yet this could be the most dangerous part of the journey. I must stay focused on my destination and not become waylaid by the magic of the stairs.” Thinking back to what Stone-Gaze had told him of the stairs before he departed, Aleric pulls out his shield and sword, ready for whatever he might face as he traverses the magically trapped stairway.
GM Note: Similarly to
the last room, Aleric will need to make several checks which will determine
his success in traversing the stairs. I don’t think it's very interesting for
Aleric to become stuck on the stairs for eternity, but his successes and
failures will have different outcomes. Here is what I have worked out!
Aleric will need to make 3 Willpower saves to traverse he stairs
3 successes- Aleric will traverse the stairs with no issue
2 successes- Aleric will have some difficulty. He will have a 2 in 6 chance to face one skeleton on the stair
1 success- Aleric will have moderate difficulty. He will have a 4 in 6 chance to face two skeletons on the stair
0 successes- Aleric will have extreme difficulty. He will face three skeletons as he traverses the stairs.
Aleric will need to make 3 Willpower saves to traverse he stairs
3 successes- Aleric will traverse the stairs with no issue
2 successes- Aleric will have some difficulty. He will have a 2 in 6 chance to face one skeleton on the stair
1 success- Aleric will have moderate difficulty. He will have a 4 in 6 chance to face two skeletons on the stair
0 successes- Aleric will have extreme difficulty. He will face three skeletons as he traverses the stairs.
Roll: Aleric- Willpower x3 (16): 12 success; 6;
success; 12 success
Aleric begins the ascent. From the first steps,
Aleric feels a strange weight on his mind as he moves one step at a time. He
focuses as best he can on his end goal; the Mage’s Study. One step after the
next, he feels as if the stair is pulling him into the drudgery of the climb.
Quickly Aleric recognizes the ploy of the stairwell. “If I give in to the
stairs pull, I’ll be trapped. Keep focused, one step at a time and you’ll be
there before you know Aleric.” His words spark a surge of mental focus as he
continues his climb. Before long, he finds himself stepping onto a landing
with a finely crafted wooden doorway leading into the next room. “Ha! Finally,
I’ve made it!” Aleric laughs to himself, having persevered through the
magically enchanted stairway. With some excitement at finally coming to his
goal, he steps forward to open the door into the mage’s study.
8. Mage’s Study
Aleric opens the door into a lavishly decorated room. Fine tapestries hang on the walls, the furnisher is finely crafted and appears as comfortable as the wolfkin could imagine, and riches and treasures appear to lay about as if only given half a thought from their owner. Quickly his eye is drawn to the fine treasures, including jewels, gold, and finely crafted weapons and armor. He looks upon these treasures with envy and greed beginning to fill his mind. He quickly moves over to the tables eyeing all the fine things that he could take, working out what he might be able to take in his pack back to Stone-Gaze’s chapel.
GM Note: The final test of
the mage’s tower. Aleric’s mental fortitude has held out for the most part,
but this will likely be the most dangerous of tests. Another willpower roll to
see if he falls victim to the Mage’s traps in the study.
Roll:
Aleric- Willpower (16): 15; Success!
Aleric moves to the tables,
almost salivating at the riches strewn carelessly about the room. But a sudden
moment of clarity comes over him. “Dammit man, Only take what I came here for!
This certainly is another trap. Okay, find the calling stones and then be gone
from this place.” With his mental strength winning out against the riches,
Aleric begins searching for his goal, the calling stones which Stone-Gaze sent
him to retrieve.
GM Note: Aleric is not out of the woods yet. He’s
still got the threat of the Troll roaming the tower to contend with. He’s
going to need to find these calling stones. The riches may be there as
distraction, and they may even be illusions for all Aleric knows. But that is
going to make it hard to find these stones. He’ll need a successful Spot
Hidden roll to find the stones before the Troll stumbles upon him in the
Mage’s Study.
Roll: Aleric- Spot Hidden (7): 16; Failure. Threat
increases to 5 / 6
Roll: Aleric- Spot Hidden (7): 3; Success!
Roll: Aleric- Spot Hidden (7): 3; Success!
After
a moment of searching, Aleric almost gives up when his eye catches a pair of
stones surrounded by golden coins, jewels and other riches. Quickly he brushes
aside the treasures and picks up the stones. As he does so, all the riches
filling the room disappear. Aleric is left in an almost barren room. The desks
are covered with papers, not riches. The fine tapestries disappear, leaving
behind unadorned stone walls. Shelves once filled with jewelry displays reveal
books and nothing more. Aleric shakes his head as he takes in the room in its
true form. “Well, I suppose I could have just as easily gone made chasing
after all that gold as being caught up on those stairs for the rest of my
life…” With one last look around, Aleric turns to depart the study.
Aleric retreats through the mages tower with ease, having completed his task. The illusions and tricks seem to be disarmed now that he has overcome the final test in the mage’s study. Things that seemed to be strange and out of the ordinary on his first passing seem mundane. Almost unusually boring. He exits the tower and begins the trek back to the chapel where Stone-Gaze awaits his return.
Aleric retreats through the mages tower with ease, having completed his task. The illusions and tricks seem to be disarmed now that he has overcome the final test in the mage’s study. Things that seemed to be strange and out of the ordinary on his first passing seem mundane. Almost unusually boring. He exits the tower and begins the trek back to the chapel where Stone-Gaze awaits his return.
Advancement rolls (roll above
skill)
Awareness (12): 13; Awareness+2
Evade (13): 2; No advancement
Healing (7): 9; Healing +1
Sneaking (6): 14; Sneaking +1
Spot Hidden (7): 8; Spot Hidden +1
Swords (15): 8; No advancement
Awareness (12): 13; Awareness+2
Evade (13): 2; No advancement
Healing (7): 9; Healing +1
Sneaking (6): 14; Sneaking +1
Spot Hidden (7): 8; Spot Hidden +1
Swords (15): 8; No advancement
Successfully made it to the top of the tower with the calling stones recovered. With advancement for this mission rolled, we'll see what is next in store for Aleric upon his return to Stone-Gaze next time!
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