Part I: Spy Games (Karlene Blackcloud intro)

[Chris1234]

Just before Drusilla departs to rejoin the crowd, Karlane says, "Thank you for those answers. Sorry if there were too many questions. You missed a some though, namely, whether any of the former prisoners need healing? Which, if any, of the Tridents do you believe will revert to rapine or murder if sent away from this place? Are you capable of teaching me a spell? Does Whisper, Lord Altradeaus if you prefer, have a female cousin here in this lair?"

Despite the sympathetic smile, from the studied look Karlane gives her, it's pretty obvious that she's openly gauging the usefulness of Drusilla.

[spike]

'I've tended to their wounds, none require healing' she answered, then says 'Murder? That is only a question a God could rightly answer, and I do not speak on their behalf. Yes, the cousin of the one you call Whisper was taken just yesterday by a treacherous looking man who bore her northeast of here to a nameless tower that is well hidden from plain view'

She teaches you two spells: 2) Zone of Truth (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/zoneOfTruth.htm) and align weapon (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/spells/alignWeapon.htm)

[Chris1234]

"Thank you, Drusilla. Time for you to rest now?" Karlane says, and escorts the woman back to the room that the prisoners have settled in.

The half-vampire goes to seek out Lucien. She asks him, "Of those remaining, there were eight that volunteered for the position. If I stand watch here over the 'cell-portal' would you be able to go and sense which of the eight have the blackest souls? Those most likely to revert into being serial rapists? And then identify them to me?"

When this is done and Lucien is back guarding the cell-room portal, she goes to the spell dinination/engaved room and settles down to learn Identify from her spell book {OOC: for her remaining, unfilled, MU spell slot for the day.} She casts Identify on the star gem, hoping to learn how to re-program it.


======
{OOC: Thanks for the spells - certainly wasn't expecting those. Zone of Truth is clerical spell L2 listed in "Priests' Spell Compendium book 3" so can use that. Align Weapon isn't listed in either "Priests' Spell Compendium book 1" or"Wizards' Spell Compendium book 1". As it's a d20 spell (so 3.0rd, 3.5 or 4th Ed) and bypasses an immunity that doesn't exist in Ist or 2nd Ed. Nearest I can spot is the 3.0 weapon property "Chaotic/Law/Evil/Good" which delivers an additional 2d6 dam against the selected alignment or else the Holy Avenger's property which does +10 dam vs CE. If this is a Cl2 spell, I'd suggest +2d6 dam but only against an alignment opposite to one aspect of the cleric's god, so NG could only do extra dam to evil, but LG could choose from chaotic or evil. Alternative is to give it extra +1 to hit and also just +1d6 dam (rather than +2d6 dam).}

[Chris1234]

Did this one slip through the cracks? Or still working on it?

{OOC: Thanks for the spells - certainly wasn't expecting those. 'Zone of Truth' is clerical spell L2 listed in "Priests' Spell Compendium book 3" so can use that. 'Align Weapon' isn't listed in either "Priests' Spell Compendium book 1" or"Wizards' Spell Compendium book 1". As it's a d20 spell (so 3.0rd, 3.5 or 4th Ed) and bypasses an immunity that doesn't exist in 1st or 2nd Ed. Nearest I can spot is the 3.0 weapon property "Chaotic/Law/Evil/Good" which delivers an additional 2d6 dam against the selected alignment or else the Holy Avenger's property which does +10 dam vs CE. If this is a Cl2 spell, I'd suggest +2d6 dam but only against an alignment opposite to one aspect of the cleric's god, so NG could only do extra dam to evil, but LG could choose from chaotic or evil. Alternative is to give it extra +1 to hit and also just +1d6 dam (rather than +2d6 dam).}

[spike]

+1 and 1d6 vs. CG or CE, since you're LN those would be the two diametrically opposed alignments.

[Chris1234]

Proposed timeline clarification:

In Karlane’s thread:
1. 10pm start to talk to prisoners
2. Kill possessed prisoner
3. Old crone emerges @10.30pm
4. Azonia and Sarancen emerge from sleep
5. Talk to crone (Drusilla, hedge witch, priestess of Johydee)
6. Learn two spells
7. [No reply from Lucien so assuming didn’t find him. ]
In Main thread:
8. Karlane enters bedroom @11.30pm
9. Idrys sleeps, Karlane talks to Erodan, Erodan on watch, before “…While on her watch: Karlene senses something is awry…”, she:

• 9.1. Goes to the divination/engraved room & casts Identify [-8Con] + 15m, ~11.45pm
  9.2. Karlane casts identify on the StarGem, ~12.00 midnight
  9.3. Karlane returns to relieve Erodan

10. Eorodan wakes Idrys, Whispers wakes, Lucien joins the fight against the fungi-monster, Erodan dies.
11. Whisper & Idrys go back to sleep. [Idrys has had 30 mins’ sleep]
12. Karlane on watch, 3hours, wakes Idrys. [Idrys has had 3.5 hours’ sleep, Karlane regains 4Con] ~3.00am
13. Idrys on watch, 3hours, Karlane sleeps 3hours in the divination/engraved room. [Karlane has had 3 hours’ sleep & regains 4Con] ~6.00am
14. Karlane wakes, goes to the divination/engraved room, memorises [30mins] & prays for spells (up to 1.75hours, depending on what time this happened: “…THE LIFT rose up from below and in came a portly woman with kind, shining eyes…”. What time was this? Please confirm

Requests for clarification:
A. Was 1 casting of Identify sufficient for both star gems? (I’d say “no”, but only you know the power of the divination/engraved room)
B. Is the Drusilla (old crone) that Karlane spoke to last night (~11.pm) the same Drusilla (portly woman) that came in the lift maybe 7am this morning?
C. On a similar note, the party had fighters with them (Tranth and Yarick) just before encountering Azonia. Azonia killed Tranth. What happened to Yarick? Sarancen has appeared from somewhere? When/where? Or did his name change from Yarick? (ok with the latter, and wont refer to it, just want to know.)

[spike]

Lucien was wandering around doing perimeter checks when you were looking for him, basically going in and out of rooms and wandering around.

Main:

A. Identify was cast on 1 gem.
B.Yes, appearing differently and younger than when you first met her.
Drusilla comes via the lift at 6:45 am

When you first met the two black guards, he gave the name Yarick. When you got to know him better and asked him his name he revealed his real name (Sarancen), and explains it that he doesn't want the imperium to track his whereabouts.

[Chris1234]

Good with this. TY.
Ok, 6.00-6.45am is enough to memorise Charm Person & Identify and cast the latter on the second Star Gem.

Did Karlane receive any additional visions or information while sleeping in the divination/engraved room?

[spike]

No, none.

[Chris1234]

Thx.
So, once a star gem teleport link has been set between two places, does it allow anyone that knows the correct password to use the teleport link?
i.e. they do not have to possess a star gem, correct?
==> If so, they just need to enter a teleport spot and utter the destination word, correct? But to return, they would need the password for that point, correct?
==> Do they need to be familiar with the destination too?

How exactly is a link cancelled? And remade with a new password?

Also, how long does it take to convert a divine spell on a scroll to be part of one's divine spell selection?

[spike]

Correct, they need the required designated password, which is different from the command word used to creating portals. You provide them the word, you can make it up on the fly and it will work, and give different ones to different people. You can also nullify the password at will. Once you established these passwords they are written or erased on the underbelly of the gem.

To return they just need to re-enter the way they came, they don't need to utter the password a second time unless you change it on them.

They don't need to be familiar, only the creator and owner of the gem.

You simply erase the binding (link) that is established by speaking the command word for that binding in reverse, and recreate it whenever. You can simply will any of the bindings to be closed instantaneously without effort.

[Chris1234]

Karlane's attempts to re-programme the Lesser stargem as follows:
Give the portal point in the cell-room a new password.
Cancel the portal point in the wardrobe and try to set up a new one in the hidden passage way that leads to the engraved room. This has a new password.
If that appears successful, she'll test it by going from the portal point in the cell-room to the one in the hidden passage way (that leads to the engraved room.)
If that is confirmed successful, Karlane tries it in reverse, returning to the portal point in the cell-room.
If that is confirmed successful, she cancels the portal point in the cell-room and leaves that vacant, intending to use that to nip back for Death Strike training with spectral assassin.
She then silently (if possible) changes the passwords to Castle Gray, the Salt Bogs & to the Stoink safe-house.

Regaining spells, divination, breakfast & teamtalk:
Karlane then takes a book from the mantelpiece, settles in the engraved room, and prays (15minutes) for 1.Detect Magic and then makes the ritual prayer symbolically sacrificing a book for a secret: short version "What effect does ‘Thyriz?' have exactly over what period?" {OOC1: My notes are a little shaky here - was Thyrix the white milky liquid in seven vials? Or..?}
She then emerges, grabs some rations form the storeroom to nibble on as breakfast, gets the others to make sure everyone gets breakfast, seeks Drusilla for an update on the ex-prisoners' preferred destinations, says to the 'core team', "Have breakfast & get ready to travel. I need half an hour to pray for a spell. Then we have a team talk to sort out the day."
She returns to the engraved room and prays(30 mins) for 2.Detect Traps. {OOC2: Any additional visions, guidance or insights?}

She then returns to the 'core team' for the team talk.

{OOC3: How long would it take Karlane to convert each of the spells on a scroll to be part of her Clerical repertoire (i.e. spells she can pray for): 1.Portal Trace, 2.Winged Mount, 3.Voice (although the latter is probably beyond her at the moment)}

[spike]

1.The book is consumed and devoured by fire, and the question gets answered: Potions of Invulnerability
2. OOC3: 12 hours
3.You have eaten and are now rested

When you're about to leave the engravings room, a shadow crept out of the surrounding darkness. It laughed in a raspy familiar laugh, and you heard him say 'It is I, mi'lady, Erodan. I hath returned to the land of the living in this fell form. I can serve thee as your spy, if you accept my service I shalt prove my usefulness to you and your brother, the assassin. The shadow king of the demi-plane of shadows wishes me to aid you, out of respect for the old pacts made by your ancestors in the Telemvor line. '

[Chris1234]

"Oh my! Well. Yes. I will accept you Erodan, in death as in life. I am sorry that I failed to protect you. Tell me, what do you make of Drusilla?" replies Karlane, rather surprised.
"And will you be able to keep yourself hidden from the others? Known by and and revealed only to me? And yes, I seek to protect against a traitor even though there may be none."

[spike]

The shadow Erodan spoke 'yessss, I can hide as only a shadow can, and mortals may not perceive me save for the like of priests and wizards who are sensitive to the supernatural. As for the woman, Drusilla? She is a servant of the Goddess of spies. She fights for the preservation of the common weal, and has some slight knowledge and power. She was blessed with high intellect, cunning, and the ability to disguise herself. She might be a useful asset, and she speaks wisely when she sayeth thusly that your list of allies grows thin. You, as she reprimands the mage you quarreled with would do excellence by gaining a measure of patience. Surely your impatience will be used against you by your enemies. Now, prepare to depart this place I brought you. A flock of the black imperium's elite assassins draws closer here, accompanied by a mage and priest of no small skill'