The Pod-Caverns of the Sinister Shroom (Game Thread V)

[Jenara]

(Occ: Please roll for me and Jerrad, my New Router arrives on the 11th. , really I love this game, don't want to upset you, really.)

[Breila]

"Let's not waste time trying to lift the portcullis" Babushka says. "Let's run on and see where the tunnel leads. Up to now, everything down here has been interconnected. And if we run into someone, fighting them will help our friends as well."
Not waiting for an answer, Babushka heads down the southern tunnel in a trot. This time, she holds the fungus staff (wether limp or straightened) in her hands to be ready to fight.

[JadedDM]

"Babushka, wait!" Shay hisses as the gnome runs off ahead.

The long tunnel snakes south further, before opening into a small chamber. Babushka skids to a halt just before crashing into the tree.

Waaaaait, a tree? Down here?

Indeed, there is a tree down here, twelve feet tall but very broad and mortared into place and secured with chains. Before Babushka can really analyze the situation, though, the fungus staff snaps solid again, warning her of impending danger. She looks around the chamber, but sees nothing in any direction.

But she does not look up. That's where a large blanket of moss drops from above and completely covers Babushka. This seems no ordinary moss, though. It immediately attaches itself to her skin through some means, holding on tightly!

======================

(OOC: The two parties are still 'synced up' in terms of time.)

Babushka jogs (moves at double movement rate) forward and moves 120 feet this round.
Surprise Roll (1d10): 8, fail. Babushka is not surprised.
Strange Moss drops on Babushka (1d20): 20, critical hit! No damage, but it attaches itself to her.

(OOC: Locky, Shay, Jerrard, Elvenoff, and Thuskar left to go this round! Also, the moss is considered a Large creature; keep that in mind when making damage rolls everyone. And what is Babushka thinking, running into danger blindly like that? That's Locky's job! )

.X.X._.X.X.X.X.
.X.X._.X.X.X.X.X.X.
.X._.B._._._._._._.
.X._._.T._.X.X.X.X.
.X.X._._._.X.X.
.X.X.X.X.X.X.X.

X – Solid rock
T – Tree
B – Babushka/Strange Moss

[Breila]

(ooc:
That's the flip side of the scene you like so much, Shay's rescue at the first mad trees: when friends are in danger, her wisdom sometimes gets switched off.)

Can she breathe? Is she covered like with a blanket or does the moss cling like shrink-foil, following every contour?

[JadedDM]

(OOC: She can breathe, yes. She can even move, although its heavy enough to slow her down some. She can also attack it or try and tear it off, but that will take 1d4 rounds and hurt like hell, like removing a full-body band-aid).

[Breila]

(ooc: ouch!)

Babushka looks up: Is there more moss up at the ceiling, making a trap for the others if they follow her?

[Jenara]

"Babuskha no!" Locky shouts, things were going wrong, she was making choices, Babuskha was running off on her own... It all started when they split up.

Locky runs on as quick as she can, scanning the room as she does so. "Ooo a tree!" She shouts, just as she sees the Moss land on Babs head. "We have to get it off of her!" she shouts, realising that any damage to the mossy stuff might actually hurt Babs. Reaching forwards she grabs at the creature, trying to pull it off her.

[ooc: lets hope not!]

[Breila]

"Locky, keep off! I'm OK, just a bit slowed. We can take care of that later."

If scanning the ceiling reveals there's no more moss, Babushka will move on eastward, keeping as far from the chained tree as possible.

[JadedDM]

Locky rushes forward after the gnome. Shay curses as he struggles to reopen his lantern all of the way and draw his sword. "Now they're both doing it! Branchala bite me, I am a treasure hunter, not a babysitter!"

Shay arrives at the scene to see Babushka struggling under a large and heavy blanket of green moss. Locky grabs hold of it and tries to tear it off of her, but it's stuck fast. It may take a couple of minutes to peel it off. Acting quickly, Shay stabs at it with his sword, making a careful attempt to not hit Babushka in the process. The moss makes no noise when struck, nor does it bleed, but his sword does sink in deep, damaging it.

Babushka herself does not seem overly concerned about the situation. She scans the ceiling and does not see any more of the moss.

==================

Locky jogs (moves at double movement rate) forward and moves 120 feet this round. She then attempts to grab hold of the strange moss and remove it from Babushka. It will take (1d4): 2 rounds to rip it off of her.
Shay walks forward 120 feet, drawing his sword. He attempts to attack the moss. (1d20): 19, hit. (1d8): 7 damage.

(OOC: Now we're just waiting for Jerrard's team. Babushka can move eastward in the next round.)

.X.X._.X.X.X.X.
.X.X.S.X.X.X.X.X.X.
.X._.B.L._._._._._.
.X._._.T._.X.X.X.X.
.X.X._._._.X.X.
.X.X.X.X.X.X.X.

X – Solid rock
T – Tree
B – Babushka/Strange Moss
L – Locky
S - Shay

[Jerrard]

Jerrard considers the options as he limps out as quickly as he can, his chest was on fire, his body ached, he was quite surprised he was still alive to be frank.

He glances at the open door to the East, looking inside for a brief moment (can he see anything?) "I am injured, quite severely." He announces, looking to the pair, "I we go in there, and follow that creature, I may not make it out again." He halts, summoning the powers of magic he still retains, casting an armored shield around himself. (ie casts Armor)

"No, that thing is not going anywhere, I doubt there is any other way up, and I have his spellbook." He forces a smile through the pain. "Unless you have a better idea?" He asks the Paladin, looking for a response.

(ooc: Is there any similarity between Thurskar and the larger Pod Men? Or any reference in the notes that he can recall? Its a thought that has been on his mind, but he has been too busy to think about it)

[JadedDM]

After Jerrard casts a spell of protection from himself, Elvenoff puts a hand upon his shoulder. "Perhaps I can help with your wounds," he says. Concentrating, energy flows from his body to Jerrard's, healing his wounds somewhat and helping to remove his fatigue.

"The choice is yours," he adds when he's finished. "Although I am loathe to let such evil go unpunished, it may be wiser to regroup with the others and then finish him off. On the other hand, if we let him escape now, he may somehow escape us entirely."

Thuskar stays close but adds nothing, largely because he cannot speak. He just keeps the torch ready, so they can see.

Looking into the next room, but without actually entering, it looks (at first glance) to be some kind of bedroom of sorts.

Meanwhile, in the other group, a complication arises. Yes, another one. While Babushka tries to brush off her friends' attempts to aid her in her haste to find the others, she suddenly feels a great pain all over her skin where the moss is touching her. Shay gasps in surprise as the green moss not only takes on a reddish tint, but it begins to mend the wound the thief gave it.

This moss is drinking the ranger's blood!

===========================

Jerrard casts Armor on himself.
Elvenoff Lays Hands upon Jerrard, restoring 6 HP.
Thuskar does nothing.
Elite Podman 01 is stuck and cannot move.
Elite Podman 02 is stuck and cannot move.
The Sinister Shroom does something (unknown).

Round 10!

Party's Initiative (1d10): 7
Enemy's Initiative (1d10): 3

(Enemy wins!)

The Sinister Shroom does something (unknown).
The Strange Moss drains Babushka's blood to heal itself (1d4): 2 HP.

(Party's turn.)

(OOC: From the notes he read, Thuskar is the Shroom's first attempt at making a human-podman hybrid. The elite podmen they encountered earlier are just specially grown podmen, magically enhanced, so to speak, but still grown from scratch.)

(OOC: Breila, does Babushka still want to head east or do you want to change her actions with this new development?)

[Breila]

Screaming an unprintable gnomish swear word, Babushka tears at the moss. Pain and rage at her own stupidity draw tears into her eyes. "Sorry, but we have to get this off. It's drinking my blood!"

[Jenara]

Realising she was at least a little bit right, Locky attempts to pull the moss off Bab as quickly as she can, a thought appears in her head. "If I get it off, Shay, you should burn it, burn it and kill it."

[JadedDM]

With an audible ripping sound, Locky pulls the moss off of Babushka, tearing off some body hair and a layer of skin off with it, causing the gnome even further pain. Once free, though, the moss starts to move on its own, attempting to latch on to someone else!

Shay stabs at it, but the blanket of moss avoids his blow. "I can try and toss an oil flask at it," he says, "but it's too close, I might hit one of you instead!"

=====================

Locky rips the vampiric moss off of Babushka, dealing (1d6): 5 damage to her in the process.
Shay attacks the Vampiric Moss with his short sword (1d20): 11, miss.

(OOC: Jerrard and his group are left to go this round.)

.X.X._.X.X.X.X.
.X.X.S.X.X.X.X.X.X.
.X._.B.V.L._._._._.
.X._._.T._.X.X.X.X.
.X.X._._._.X.X.
.X.X.X.X.X.X.X.

X – Solid rock
T – Tree
B – Babushka/Strange Moss
L – Locky
S – Shay
V – Vampiric Moss

[Jerrard]

Jerrard pauses in indecision, he would dearly like to rejoin with the others, yet letting the creature go was against his beliefs.

(Assuming his hands allow him too..)
"Thurskar, take this." He says passing him one of his daggers, the other sat in the last cave.. "We pursue, at least into the next room, I cannot allow the creature to escape."

With that he uses a Cantrip to produce a small ball of smoke which he attempts to hurl through the open door (ie he moves within range, can you roll the attack roll please?)

Then he ushers to Elvenoff, "Perhaps you should lead on, Thurskar and I will follow, be ready for anything."

Jerrard enters the room, following The Paladin, still limping. "It has been many years since I fought like that." He adds quietly as they walk in.