To die, to sleep - To sleep, perchance to dream

Warhol will cast pass without trace after retrieving the others and going back to the tower side. Of course he bounces around in the current again like last time.

Stealth rolls for all w the +10

The party swims under and pops up in the tower side. There are no brain dogs immediately visible. You are all still in the water.

Actions?

Is it your intention to fight or try to sneak past this encounter?
If you want to fight, I am happy to create the map. But if you plan on stealth, which is what it sounded like to me, then we don't really need this "room" mapped out on a grid.

Indeed!

Just need everyone else's stealth checks then

Vasyli is at disadvantage for his stealth check due to his armor.

Rolling line 1 : 1d20 + 11 to total : 7, + 11, TOTAL: 18

Sat Nov 12 2022 11:54:06 GMT-0700 (Mountain Standard Time)
Rolling line 1 : 1d20 + 11 to total : 14, + 11, TOTAL: 25

I can live with an 18

PWT is truly amazing spell!

A turtle enters the pond and a giant spider comes out stealthily. It looks at its food… I mean friends… and gestures as though it means them no harm.
Stealth
Result of the throw of dice "1d20 +17" :

5 + 17 = 22

The party sneaks past the guard dog brain creatures. You see a Mindflayer petting them and walking away from the pond. The party passes some large rocks and giant mushrooms that form a natural barrier, blocking the pond and guards from view. You successfully bypassed that fight!

You get a better look at the arcane tower now. The tower sits on the top of a rock island, a finger of stone surrounded by a deep gorge some 100ft wide. Whether it is a natural formation or crafted by magic, you cannot tell. The rock fingertip is at least 300ft in diameter with the tower taking up roughly the center third with 100ft of open space on all sides.

You can see a large brain sitting on top of a flight of stairs leading up to the tower.



It rests there as if on a royal dias in some kind of portable fish bowl with a greenish brine. There are some 50 humanoids around it dressed in the loin clothes of slaves. Some fan the brain with mushroom gills, some children splash in the green liquid, some are giving the brain a sponge bath with the brine. The brain has several long tentacles that caress its passing thralls.

The party spots what looks like the base of a bridge on opposite sides of the gorge. The base is there, but nothing connects them. There is no bridge that you can see. There does appear to be some kind of stone block. Maybe its a control device of some kind? You would need to get closer for any kind of investigation or arcane check.

lets also not forget that it needs to be awake when we kill it...

The arcane tower is designed to be hard to approach unnoticed. Marvin might be able to make it? But probably not the others. Maybe sneaky spider warhol?
You can try

whit10 wrote:lets also not forget that it needs to be awake when we kill it...

The beholder, yes

This is the Elder Brain

oh right, nevermind

Whitey wrote:Is Marvin’s ridicustealth roll still in effect or does he need to re-roll?

If Marvin has an inspiration point to spend, he can keep it active. Otherwise... roll the bones and test your fate!

Marvin glides forward like a shadow.  He watches the movements of the enslaved thralls to move when their heads are turned away, dropping and freezing behind small natural cover if they turn towards him.  Marvin makes it to the stone undetected.




Investigation?
Arcane?

The top diamond shape has smooth worn edges. Marvin determines it might be from a physical rune sliding in and out to activate the bridge mechanism. He hasn't found anything that would fit. Maybe that guard you skipped?

Marvin is enough of a spellcaster to recognize the other runes require magic to activate. An arcana check might tell exactly what spell or spell school needs to be cast to activate the rune and engage the bridge.

Whitey wrote:Arcana:
Mon Nov 14 2022 09:17:14 GMT-0700 (MST)
Rolling line 1 : 1d20 + 1 to total : 11, + 1, TOTAL: 12

errr..... some kind of Conjuration magic, that's about all Marvin can figure

shall we take a chance on Vasyli moving up?  He has a damned good Arcana skill

Is he still Invisible?

At our current distance, do we need hiding places to stay out of sight now? Can Warhol revert to his turtle form without being exposed?

When did Vasyli cast invisibility?

I think a Pass Without Trace was cast, which gives +10 to stealth rolls, but isn't invisible.

If Warhol and Vasyli stay back in the rocks and mushrooms, they are out of sight. Warhol can revert to Tortle form at his current location.

Advancing to the bridge control is basically out in the open. Marvin had a 42 on his stealth check and is small. Also the enslaved thralls seems inattentive to their surrounds and focused on the Elder Brain. Its really more a matter of whether the EB will notice someone else's advance.

Are there any common fauna around?

I thought Vasyli was invisible for the waterfall but if the Pass Without Trace did the trick, then all good.

whit10 wrote:I thought Vasyli was invisible for the waterfall but if the Pass Without Trace did the trick, then all good.

did you cast invisibility?

if so, then he is. mark off the 2nd level spell slot and proceed

I think you talked about to me on the phone but I don't see that it was cast in game, maybe I am just missing it, which is always possible too

navyik wrote:Are there any common fauna around?

around the bridge controls? no
around your current location - sure, lots of mushroom variations that are not magical

That’s flora. Rodents? Vermin?

navyik wrote:That’s flora. Rodents? Vermin?

Don't get technical with me, R2!

Same answer, around the mushrooms sure but none at the bridge control.

The spell is marked off now.

So, is he still invisible?

“Psst,” Warhol whispers very quietly as he re-assumes turtle form. “whadda we care about that bridgeanyway. We can fly, right?”

Yes, Vasyli can fly as well. (whispered) - doh!

navyik wrote:“Psst,” Warhol whispers very quietly as he re-assumes turtle form. “whadda we care about that bridgeanyway. We can fly, right?”

so what IS the plan then?

If you are not going to sneak up, Josh can have his spell back, since I am a nice guy (not really but this is fantasy, right?)

well, if we fly in, someone will have to carry Marvin, yes?

What do we think is better, being sneaky or just going for the throat here?

If Zax were here.... FULL FRONTAL ASSAULT!


today is a good day to die, after all

Whitey wrote:DM, does it seem as if flying over the chasm would go undetected?

I guess that would depend on where you choose to fly over. The steps with the brain + slaves is in close proximity to the bridge controls that you have found. So its likely that activating a magical bridge would be noticed. If you fly over at the same location, you would also likely be noticed.

You could try to move around the outskirts of the tower to an area that doesn't have 50+ observers.


Would a quick overview map be helpful? I was waiting on a combat map since I wasn't sure where\how you were going to engage, but I can see now that maybe a general map might help you plan accordingly.

I am at the office and kinda busy, so it might be later this afternoon

ok, this is super basic, but here it is   (no, you can't have a grid)

Warhol and V are at the star
arrows are the bridge controls, Marvin at outside arrow
brown is rock, more of a circular area around deep black gorge (not square)
blue inner circle is arcane tower
red target is Elder Brain + enslaved thralls

yes, you could move stealthily around the outer perimeter and look for a better place to cross

remember, its about 100ft across the gorge at any point, give or take a bit
roughly 100ft on all sides of the tower

“Flank left? Or fly straight at him? (Don’t worry Marvin, you’ll always have a ride with me). This is our objective we should make sure we do it right.”

"Why not both? Vasyli flies straight at him and Marvin and Warhol flank?"

Vasyli will attach his rope to his waist and keep the rest looped over his shoulder... so that he can possibly lasso the control thing or something else should he be knocked out of the air (or it gets dispelled).

Big V is the bait? Seems like a plan!

Let me know the details of flying speeds, who goes first, how far, etc.

Okay, so we can flank around to where we would have line of sight on the bridge lever but not on the brain and then, barring further developments, begin our crossing. “Does anyone have something they can do to his brine?”

like hands on a clock with the bridge control being 9, assume 12 I just put in the top 6

what arrow are you crossing at?
everyone together or in different groups?