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Instruments of Fate (Batman)
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Instruments of Fate (With Pulp)
message 51:
by
Austin
(new)
Jul 18, 2024 06:46AM
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However, I think there's, perhaps, a bit of a misunderstanding about the magic at play here. I kept the DCs low due to the precautions you took and the fact that there's a lot of types of magic, so I wanted ir to be possible to save against for the sake of the story.
1. The piano music was a twinned enchantment spell that fogs the mind. It is designed to fill the whole space. Falling to it makes one more suseptible to the drinks.
2. The drinks employ a different enchantment that creates a feeling of deep loneliness and a need for companionship, hence the reason everyone is paired or tripled up, save for, seeningly, the card player.
3. The piano is also responsible for a Dunamancy spell that messes with your perception of time.
4. The transmutation spell is only on a few of the drinks, and here's a little meta-knowledge: that include's Henry's and the one that was just offered to Anwen.))
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@Henry, As your mind clears, You feel Anwen place the earmuffs over your ears somewhat belatedly now that the music has ended. You see the cardplayer sitting by himself, which strikes you as odd for some reason. However, more pressing is the piano player standing above you on his bench, a piano wire whip in hand.
@Anwen, You vault over the bar counter and head for where you assume the door to be. You see no knob, latch, or keyhole. However, you notice out of the corner of your eye is a big chest under a set of shelves. You saw some magic inside it earlier. You also hear voices behind the drink rack, audible but unintelligible.
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((If it is my turn ill attack if not just take it as flavor that im not forcing you to be God lol. ))
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((I posted again just above you. Mostly flavor text. The key takeaway is to roll Initiative. You need to beat an 11. I also need a constitution save on your turn.))
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As you move to engage with the pianist, you feel the tingling sensation in your body has settled in you feet, as if they have fallen asleep. Your socks feel a bit damp as though you are sweating out spree sort of toxin, but there is no other effect. The merchant behind you, however, is frozen in a casing of stone, a look of confused terror etched on his face. Likewise, companions at the table are statues, forever silently engaged in their discussion. Reason would seem to indicate that this is how this establishment handles rowdy customers. The captain shakes his head and stares for a moment before looking to you for clarification.
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((Rolled a 16 to hit.))
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((22 Initiative. Let me know when I go.))
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@Henry, (Forgive the lack of flavor text. I'm on lunch break.)
The Pianist rolled a 10+4=14 to hit you with his whip.
Next round it's:
Anwen
Henry
Pianist ))
Anwen ran her hands along where she thought the door was, noticing a lack of convenient handle or hinge or lock. She heard the voices and wished she could just meld through but then paused. What would she do even if she could? Anwen glanced back at the paladin and bit her lip. Would be best to investigate this next room either when it was empty or with assistance. I love music but for all that it is worth, I cannot strike worth a thing.Purple bubbles? Anwen blinked and scurried over to the chest. She peeked over the counter one more time to ensure that the paladin was not about to be killed, before looking at the chest. Notes for enchantment, gold to Dunamancy, green for transmutation, what is purple for? She ran her hands along the seem before attempting to open it.
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Henry sees the girl scurrying around behind him. "Hey, find a way out of this?" He asks her trying to see what she is up to while he is fighting.
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@Henry, As you strike the pianist a second time, he glares at you wit vitriolic rage. He uses one hand to wipe blood fro his face and the other to strike at you with his whip. ((17+4=21 to hit, dealing 3 damage)).
The captain moves toward the door and tries to open it. Finding it locked, he throws his shoulder against it. You can hear the wood splinter loudly. The man looks surprised at his good fortune. "Good call!" He yells to you.
@Anwen, You find the seam where the chest opens and attempt to pry it apart but it is locked.
((Is the lock visible? Would I have thieves' tools? Is it the type of lock I could pry with dagger?))
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((What would I roll for that?))
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-12 Gold pieces in a small leather pouch,
-2 wooden shirt buttons
-1 sewing needle
-1 spool of blue thread
-3 loose sheets of parchment coated in vellum and covered in archaic, arcane looking symbols and scribbles in a language you don't recognize
-1 shell shaped brooch pin with a pearl in its center
-1 tiny (Palm sized) stoppered bottle filled with a glowing blue liquid.
(view spoiler)
There is a string with a hang tag around the neck of it. There is some sort of recipe on the tag, but it is in the same language as the papers
"Trying!" Anwen shouted as the chest finally pops open. "Ha ha!" She leaned over the chest, peering inside. Instinctively, Anwen took the gold pouch and put it in her own, already thinking about how many meals she could afford with this before looking over the rest of the items.
Buttons, needle, blue thread. . . sewing kit? Seriously?
What's this? Anwen picked up the paper and tried to figure out what language the scribbles could be but then tried to understand the symbols and realized she didn't understand that either. Drat. So much for making an antidote. I just hope it wears off soon then.
Anwen pocketed the paper and picked up the brooch, trying to see if it reminded her of anything before pocketing it, took up the vial and, after examining it, put it away. Maybe I can find someone to translate it. Someone trustworthy. Maybe.
She closed the chest and stood up, moving over to the false wall to see if she could still hear the strangers, watching the paladin to see if he needed help.
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((Rolled a 15+5 to hit and 2+3 damage.))
“Did you find anything useful?” Henry calls out to the girl as he continued to battle pianist. Looking to knock him out rather than kill him.
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((13+4=17 to hit))
@Anwen, On one of the shelves where you think a door should be is a row of seven bottles, more brightly colored than the rest, but made of opaque ceramic rather than translucent glass. A little brass plaque reads:
Two of us are brewed from blight
And always sat to purple’s right.
Three are juice, one burns like flame,
And no two colors taste the same.
Even flasks hold naught but pain,
And shade of sky will leave a stain.
Though tasty are those at each end,
Neither is the winner’s friend.
A puzzle for the keen of mind,
Choose wisely, the way to find.
From left to right:
Bottle 1. Purple bottle.
Bottle 2. Green bottle.
Bottle 3. Sky-blue bottle.
Bottle 4. White bottle.
Bottle 5. Purple bottle.
Bottle 6. Green bottle.
Bottle 7. Red bottle.
((Level 1 spell slots: 2/2))Huh? "I found a riddle!" Anwen called. "And some potions."
Purple, Green, Sky-blue, White, Purple again, Green, Red.
First purple and red are tasty.
Sky-blue will stain. Like clothes?
Green, White, Green, wait two greens? hold naught but pain.
The purples and greens taste different.
The only ones to the right of purple is the second purple's white and sky-blue, which means they are brewed from blight.
But three of these are juices, just juices? and one burns like flame.
Oh, first purple and red are not the answer--'Neither is the winner’s friend.' Good to know.
But one means forward. Eliminating the first purple and red, and the even ones, I am left with sky and second purple. It can't be sky because it stains and is brewed from blight which leaves only the second purple. Anwen picked up bottle number five, running through the logic again and biting her lip. Am I supposed to drink this? "If I am right, the answer to the riddle is number 5," Anwen called out again, holding the bottle before turning around and looking at the paladin and captain.
Wait a second!! Anwen looked down at the bottle and cast Identify, wanting to ensure she wasn't going to poison herself.
Mod
Looking at the bottle in your hand with the spell, you can tell it is a Potion of Healing.
(view spoiler)
Mod
((I feel so smart!! Thank you!))
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((Rolled a nat 20 to hit.))
He saw that the woman opened up a door. “Hey is that the way out?” He asked her.
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The captain, temporarily distracted, turned his attention back to the door and practically side-tackled it. The heavy wood splintered again, nearly broken in half.
Anwen pocketed the potion and turned to the paladin. "Quickly!" she urged, deciding not to answer the question and just have back-up.Anwen ducked into the room herself, seeing if perhaps she could slow the door even farther to allow the paladin time to enter, if he decided too. She looked behind her, hoping she had not just walked into a trap, trying assess the room she was in.
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@Henry, The captain turns to look at you and points at the door, which was one good shove from coming loose from its hinges. "I think the way out's likely to also be the way in. That way probably leads deeper into this, uh...tourist trap." He smirks at the joke. "But yeah. I'm curious. This is probably tangential to why I sent you those summons in the first place." He moved to join Henry behind the counter.
((16. If the door stays open long enough, feel free to go again you two. Nothing really for Anwen to react to.))
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Eve O. Spellman wrote: "((16. If the door stays open long enough, feel free to go again you two. Nothing really for Anwen to react to.))"
((Perception makes sense if your looking for it, but I think it's obvious enough that passive is sufficient. Because of the nature of the mechanism, Survival sems reasonable for determining how you might use it or exploit it.
Would you rather me set up a "puzzle" for you to solve, or tell you how you solve it. I don't want to steal player agency, so I want to be careful how I answer this, at risk of slowing down the pace of the story.))
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@Anwen, You see a cable of twisted wire, like a metal rope, attached somehow to the door opposite where you took the bottle from. It runs to a set of geared pulleys in the wall. Its tail hangs down, tied around a weight. You understand that the door opens by pulling the slack out of the cable and closes by letting it back out on a very short timer.
Anwen stepped back a moment, following the metal rope. She traced the rope with finger before spotting the slack. “Oh. Drat. I’m not—okay. I can try,” Anwen muttered as she hurried forward and grabbed tightly onto the rope, keeping her hands away from the gears, before pulling down as hard as she could. Mechanics was not her thing.
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@Anwen, You see a cable o..."
((actually a 15 if that helps at all.
if I can, I'll enter the room))
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@Anwen, You pull the cable as hard as you can, but it runs across you palm, threatening to burn.
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((I go after Austin right?))
