Chapter 1: Death House

[Gregorotto]

Once Upon a Time

Durst Manor, Baoriva

 

The children were safe. She could breathe a sigh of relief.

 

Everything in her gut hurt. She thought of Walter, thought of Lord Durst, of that smile he had given her when Walter was taken from her, the disgust on Lady Durst's face as she began speaking to the other women, the ones from the village, not the other servants: the other servants knew. She had begged them, asked them, but what could they do?

 

The door did not have a lock on it: few rooms in the attic did. Pained, the room was full of white sheets covering what she hoped was furniture. She had only a candlestick and knitting needles, her mind racing on which was better.

 

"Hilde? Hildegard, darling, you've done this family such a service. I think it's time for a raise."

 

She knew the voice, knew the sinister intonation meant one thing. Grabbing for furniture, she found a table and pushed, hard as she could, scraping the floor as she did to press it against the door, which resisted, trying to open into the room. She pushed harder, and then grabbed another piece of furniture, a small chest, and pushed it against the table, trying to lock it in place.

 

"If you hurt the furniture it will come out of your salary, you wretch. We took you in, we clothed your skeletal form: you owe us your trust, your loyalty. Is this how you repay us, Hilde? What was that the day you came to us, you promised us? 'I'll make my dear sweet Mama's soul proud'? If she had a soul, dear, she'd not of died so easily. What will you do in her place, I wonder?"

 

Brunhilde sniffled, shaking her head. "I didn't mean to, m'lady; I didn't mean to! He's just, so persuasive, and I didn't feel I had a choice, but—"

 

Laughter from behind the door, a chorus of feminine giggles, did not keep Brunhilde from hearing the movement behind her. The room had no other doors, the windows were well above the rest of the village of Barovia's building height. Turning, she saw them: the moving sheets, as clear as the daylight in the windows, moving towards her. Three massive shapes, three specters quickly threw themselves upon her, letting her scream out as the laughter grew, the door fighting the table; one of the specters, removing the sheet, revealed himself as one of the dark-skinned newcomers, his skin like polished garnet, moved to the door and quickly moved the table out of the way. In stepped the chorus and the main singer, the Lady Durst.

 

"You really thought you had a chance? That you were anything but predictable, sweet simple Brunhilde? Bless your naive spirit, girl. But come, I am a fair mistress: I will bless you one last time. It is time to meet the true master of Durst Manor."

 

Brunhilde saw her reflection in the chorus of daggers, and screamed.

 

 

15 Elient, Year of the Star Walkers' Return, 1490 DR

Durst Manor, Village of Barovia, Domain of Barovia

Dynaheir bursts through the gates of Durst Manor, then through the double front doors, into the primary foyer and into the main hall, into absolute darkness; behind her come Joliet, come Sulimann, come Shazzar, come Giselle, come finally Altaïr, the children Rose and Thorn staying behind those iron gates and going no further. In fact, Rose shuts them, not locking the gates. "We can't let it out... but we can't leave Walter! Please!" The swirling fog behind them is not unlike that which they passed through into this land, the kind of mist that rest just beyond the darkness in the thick woods. Rose and Thorn look desperate, but determined.

 

Oil lamps hang from the portico ceiling by chains, flanking a set of oaken doors that open into a grand foyer. Hanging on the south wall of the foyer is a shield emblazoned with a coat-of-arms—a stylized golden windmill upon a red field, flanked by framed portraits of stony-faced aristocrats, all stern and sallow-looking, many resembling Rose and Thorn both, all with outrageous facial hair, bun hair, some with weapons, many with books, all with farming instruments.. Mahogany-framed double doors leading from the foyer to the main hall are set with panes of stained glass, the color of red roses and green vines.

 

The room Dynaheir has led everyone into is another matter entirely. A wide hall runs the width of the house, with a black marble fireplace at one end and a sweeping, red marble staircase at the other. Mounted on the wall above the fireplace is a longsword with a windmill cameo worked into the hilt, impressive but meaningless to a Rashemi like Dynaheir. The wood-paneled walls are ornately sculpted with images of vines, flowers, nymphs, and satyrs. The decorative paneling follows the staircase as it circles upward to the second floor, and seemingly beyond. Aside from the stairs, there are five doors: one in the south near the door from the foyer, one across from the foyer and one right beside it, with two doors hidden away in a small alcove near the north side of the room, near the stairs.

 

It is cold, it is lifeless, and it is dusty. But they are here, and they have a job to do: save baby Walter.

 

Rose and Thorn, out of the rain, look on.

Out of Character

 

Welcome to Chapter 1! Normally I'd have you level up, but not today, Satan! But soon; SOON!

 

We'll have a map on this one, showing us as we progress. I've switched where I think Giselle and Sulimann should go based on the fact Giselle and Al have darkvision and I needed someone to see into the room Dynaheir is in: so these spots are not strictly correct, but rather convenient. Also I need to make sure Al has darkvision, because this doesn't reflect his darkvision.

 

The light from outside is not enough to illuminate properly for the humans of the party, so some of you will need a light source. Just FYI.

 

Let's get going!

 

[GreysonWulffe]

  

Shazzar | The Wizard   Ever mindful of his surroundings, Shazzar takes careful note of everything around him, even as he scrambles to keep up with the swiftly-advancing Dynaheir and Joliet so that he can provide them with much-needed light from the arcane fireCantrip: Produce Flame that floats over the tip of his staff. 'Such brave young women,' he observes. 'But to rush headlong into the unknown. Ah, the recklessness of youth.'   Gently, the middle-aged wizard places a hand on the back of the muscular woman's shoulder, meaning to catch her attention without impeding her. "It might be best if we stay together, Dyna," he says softly, as if afraid to attract the attention of the darkness at the edges of his firelight. "This is a place unknown to all of us, and while I doubt neither your skill nor your strength, I think you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by finding safety in our numbers."   Then, he reaches into his pack for an unlit torch and offers it to the barbarian. "But if you do need to rush ahead, you might keep this with you, to light your way."   Looking over his shoulder, he addresses the entirety of the group as he nods toward the shield and the sword on the walls. "If any of you are looking for additional arms, I think the house is offering some."

Stat Block Belshazzar "Shazzar" Zidon Male Human Cloistered-Scholar Wizard 1 hp 8/8 ▪ AC 15 (Mage Armor) ▪ Speed 30 ft HD 1d6 ▪ Proficiency +2 ▪ Initiative +2 ▪ Senses Passive Perception 11 STR 10 (+0) ▪ DEX 14 (+2) ▪ CON 14 (+2) ▪ INT 16 (+3) ▪ WIS 12 (+1) ▪ CHA 8 (-1) Saves Intelligence +5, Wisdom +3 Skills Arcana +5, History +5, Insight +3, Investigation +5 Languages Common, Draconic, Elvish, Infernal Features Arcane Recovery♦ Arcane Recovery ♦ You have learned to regain some of your magical energy by studying your spellbook. Once per day, when you finish a short rest, you can choose expended spell slots to recover. The spell slots can have a combined level that is equal to or less than half your wizard level (rounded up), and none of the slots can be 6th level or higher. (1/1 use), Library Access♦ Library Access ♦ Though others must often endure extensive interviews and significant fees to gain access to even the most common archives in your library, you have free and easy access to the majority of the library, though it might also have repositories of lore that are too valuable, magical, or secret to permit anyone immediate access. You have a working knowledge of your cloister's personnel and bureaucracy, and you know how to navigate those connections with some ease. Additionally, you are likely to gain preferential treatment at other libraries across the Realms, as professional courtesy shown to a fellow scholar., Magic Initiate (Druid)♦ Magic Initiate (Druid) ♦ Choose a class: Druid. You learn two cantrips of your choice from that class's spell list: Guidance, Produce Flame In addition, choose one 1st-level spell to learn from that same list: Goodberry. Using this feat, you can cast the spell once at its lowest level, and you must finish a long rest before you can cast it in this way again. Your spellcasting ability for these spells depends on the class you chose: Wisdom for Druid., Ritual Casting♦ Ritual Casting ♦ You can cast a Wizard spell as a ritual if that spell has the ritual tag and you have the spell in your spellbook. You don’t need to have the spell prepared., Spellbook♦ Spellbook ♦ At 1st level, you have a spellbook containing six 1st-level wizard spells of your choice. Your spellbook is the repository of the wizard spells you know, except your cantrips, which are fixed in your mind. The spells that you add to your spellbook as you gain levels reflect the arcane research you conduct on your own, as well as intellectual breakthroughs you have had about the nature of the multiverse. You might find other spells during your adventures. You could discover a spell recorded on a scroll in an evil wizard’s chest, for example, or in a dusty tome in an ancient library. ♦ Copying a Spell into the Book ♦ When you find a wizard spell of 1st level or higher, you can add it to your spellbook if it is of a spell level you can prepare and if you can spare the time to decipher and copy it. Copying that spell into your spellbook involves reproducing the basic form of the spell, then deciphering the unique system of notation used by the wizard who wrote it. You must practice the spell until you understand the sounds or gestures required, then transcribe it into your spellbook using your own notation. For each level of the spell, the process takes 2 hours and costs 50 gp. The cost represents material components you expend as you experiment with the spell to master it, as well as the fine inks you need to record it. Once you have spent this time and money, you can prepare the spell just like your other spells. ♦ Replacing the Book ♦ You can copy a spell from your own spellbook into another book—for example, if you want to make a backup copy of your spellbook. This is just like copying a new spell into your spellbook, but faster and easier, since you understand your own notation and already know how to cast the spell. You need spend only 1 hour and 10 gp for each level of the copied spell. If you lose your spellbook, you can use the same procedure to transcribe the spells that you have prepared into a new spellbook. Filling out the remainder of your spellbook requires you to find new spells to do so, as normal. For this reason, many wizards keep backup spellbooks in a safe place. ♦ The Book’s Appearance ♦ Your spellbook is a unique compilation of spells, with its own decorative flourishes and margin notes. It might be a plain, functional leather volume that you received as a gift from your master, a finely bound gilt-edged tome you found in an ancient library, or even a loose collection of notes scrounged together after you lost your previous spellbook in a mishap. Attacks  ▬ Dagger: Melee | +4 to hit | 1d4+2 piercing damage | finesse, light, thrown 20/40  ▬ Produce Flame: Ranged 30 | +3 to hit | 1d8 fire damage Spellcasting: Wizard | Spell Save DC 13, Spell Attack +5  ▬ Cantrips: Mage HandConjuration Casting Time: 1 action Range: 30 feet Target: A point you choose within range Components: V S Duration: 1 minute A spectral, floating hand appears at a point you choose within range. The hand lasts for the duration or until you dismiss it as an action. The hand vanishes if it is ever more than 30 feet away from you or if you cast this spell again. You can use your action to control the hand. You can use the hand to manipulate an object, open an unlocked door or container, stow or retrieve an item from an open container, or pour the contents out of a vial. You can move the hand up to 30 feet each time you use it. The hand can’t attack, activate magic items, or carry more than 10 pounds. Flavor: "Apókryfo chéri" The spectral hand seems to be made of bluish, wispy smoke. It is in the shape of Shazzar's wife's hand, as he remembers it, complete with the wedding band., Mind SliverEnchantment Casting Time: 1 action Range: 60 feet Components: V Duration: 1 round You drive a disorienting spike of psychic energy into the mind of one creature you can see within range. The target must succeed on an Intelligence saving throw or take 1d6 psychic damage and subtract 1d4 from the next saving throw it makes before the end of your next turn. At Higher Levels: This spell’s damage increases by 1d6 when you reach certain levels: 5th level (2d6), 11th level (3d6), and 17th level (4d6). Flavor: "Spáse to myaló sou", PrestidigitationTransmutation Casting Time: 1 action Range: 10 feet Target: See text Components: V S Duration: Up to 1 hour This spell is a minor magical trick that novice spellcasters use for practice. You create one of the following magical effects within range: ♦ You create an instantaneous, harmless sensory effect, such as a shower of sparks, a puff of wind, faint musical notes, or an odd odor. ♦ You instantaneously light or snuff out a candle, a torch, or a small campfire. ♦ You instantaneously clean or soil an object no larger than 1 cubic foot. ♦ You chill, warm, or flavor up to 1 cubic foot of nonliving material for 1 hour. ♦ You make a color, a small mark, or a symbol appear on an object or a surface for 1 hour. ♦ You create a nonmagical trinket or an illusory image that can fit in your hand and that lasts until the end of your next turn. If you cast this spell multiple times, you can have up to three of its non-instantaneous effects active at a time, and you can dismiss such an effect as an action. Flavor: "Mageía"  ▬ 1st (1/2 slots): Comprehend LanguagesDivination (Ritual) Casting Time: 1 action Range: Self Target: Self Components: V S M (A pinch of soot and salt) Duration: 1 hour For the duration, you understand the literal meaning of any spoken language that you hear. You also understand any written language that you see, but you must be touching the surface on which the words are written. It takes about 1 minute to read one page of text. This spell doesn’t decode secret messages in a text or a glyph, such as an arcane sigil, that isn’t part of a written language. Flavor: "Gnorízei óles tis glósses"®, *Detect MagicDivination (Ritual) Casting Time: 1 action Range: Self Target: Self Components: V S Duration: Concentration, up to 10 minutes For the duration, you sense the presence of magic within 30 feet of you. If you sense magic in this way, you can use your action to see a faint aura around any visible creature or object in the area that bears magic, and you learn its school of magic, if any. The spell can penetrate most barriers, but it is blocked by 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt. Flavor: "Epitrépste mou na do apókryfes ávres" For the duration of the spell, Shazzar's eyes turn into black, obsidian-like orbs that glow faintly with a pale-blue light.©®, Find FamiliarConjuration (Ritual) Casting Time: 1 hour Range: 10 feet Target: An unoccupied space within range Components: V S M (10 gp worth of charcoal, incense, and herbs that must be consumed by fire in a brass brazier) Duration: Instantaneous You gain the service of a familiar, a spirit that takes an animal form you choose: bat, cat, crab, frog (toad), hawk, lizard, octopus, owl, poisonous snake, fish (quipper), rat, raven, sea horse, spider, or weasel. Appearing in an unoccupied space within range, the familiar has the statistics of the chosen form, though it is a celestial, fey, or fiend (your choice) instead of a beast. Your familiar acts independently of you, but it always obeys your commands. In combat, it rolls its own initiative and acts on its own turn. A familiar can’t attack, but it can take other actions as normal. When the familiar drops to 0 hit points, it disappears, leaving behind no physical form. It reappears after you cast this spell again While your familiar is within 100 feet of you, you can communicate with it telepathically. Additionally, as an action, you can see through your familiar’s eyes and hear what it hears until the start of your next turn, gaining the benefits of any special senses that the familiar has. During this time, you are deaf and blind with regard to your own senses. As an action, you can temporarily dismiss your familiar. It disappears into a pocket dimension where it awaits your summons. Alternatively, you can dismiss it forever. As an action while it is temporarily dismissed, you can cause it to reappear in any unoccupied space within 30 feet of you. You can’t have more than one familiar at a time. If you cast this spell while you already have a familiar, you instead cause it to adopt a new form. Choose one of the forms from the above list. Your familiar transforms into the chosen creature. Finally, when you cast a spell with a range of touch, your familiar can deliver the spell as if it had cast the spell. Your familiar must be within 100 feet of you, and it must use its reaction to deliver the spell when you cast it. If the spell requires an attack roll, you use your attack modifier for the roll. Flavor: "Akoúste to kálesmá mou, kollitós mou fíle" At the final stage of the spell, the fire turns a brilliant blue, and it is from this blue fire that the familiar explodes out of, extinguishing the fire at the same time.®, *Feather FallTransmutation Casting Time: 1 reaction, which you take when you or a creature within 60 feet of you falls Range: 60 feet Target: Up to five falling creatures within range Components: V M (A small feather or piece of down) Duration: 1 minute Choose up to five falling creatures within range. A falling creature’s rate of descent slows to 60 feet per round until the spell ends. If the creature lands before the spell ends, it takes no falling damage and can land on its feet, and the spell ends for that creature. Flavor: "Sýllipsi" A magic circle that is about 1 foot across appears in the air, over the target's head. It would seem that an invisible energy is emanating from this circle to pull the target up, slowing their descent., *Mage ArmorAbjuration Casting Time: 1 action Range: Touch Target: A willing creature who isn't wearing armor Components: V S M (A piece of cured leather) Duration: 8 hours You touch a willing creature who isn’t wearing armor, and a protective magical force surrounds it until the spell ends. The target’s base AC becomes 13 + its Dexterity modifier. The spell ends if the target dons armor or if you dismiss the spell as an action. Flavor: "Panoplía tou apókryfou" Faintly-glowing pale-blue lines that form a continuous, geometric pattern appear on Shazzar's clothing. Whenever objects impact against him with considerable force, those lines flash mildly., *Magic MissileEvocation Casting Time: 1 action Range: 120 feet Target: A creature of your choice that you can see within range Components: V S Duration: Instantaneous You create three glowing darts of magical force. Each dart hits a creature of your choice that you can see within range. A dart deals 1d4 + 1 force damage to its target. The darts all strike simultaneously, and you can direct them to hit one creature or several. At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the spell creates one more dart for each slot above 1st. Flavor: "Apókryfa véli" Several fist-sized magic circles appear in the air around Shazzar, and darts of bluish energy shoot out of each one toward his targets.   Spellcasting: Magic Initiate (Druid) | Spell Save DC 11, Spell Attack +3  ▬ Cantrips: GuidanceDivination Casting Time: 1 action Range: Touch Target: One willing creature Components: V S Duration: Up to 1 minute You touch one willing creature. Once before the spell ends, the target can roll a d4 and add the number rolled to one ability check of its choice. It can roll the die before or after making the ability check. The spell then ends. Flavor: "Eíthe to Oghma na sas kathodigísei" The target feels a comforting warmth spread throughout their body, radiating Shazzar's hand., Produce FlameConjuration Casting Time: 1 action Range: Self Target: Self or a creature within 30 feet of you Components: V S Duration: 10 minutes A flickering flame appears in your hand. The flame remains there for the duration and harms neither you nor your equipment. The flame sheds bright light in a 10-foot radius and dim light for an additional 10 feet. The spell ends if you dismiss it as an action or if you cast it again. You can also attack with the flame, although doing so ends the spell. When you cast this spell, or as an action on a later turn, you can hurl the flame at a creature within 30 feet of you. Make a ranged spell attack. On a hit, the target takes 1d8 fire damage. At Higher Levels: This spell's damage increases by 1d8 when you reach 5th level (2d8), 11th level (3d8), and 17th level (4d8). Flavor: "Apó to típota, fotiá" The flickering flame is a pale blue in color and takes on a teardrop shape.  ▬ 1st (1/1 use): GoodberryTransmutation Casting Time: 1 action Range: Touch Target: See text Components: V S M (A sprig of mistletoe) Duration: Instantaneous Up to ten berries appear in your hand and are infused with magic for the duration. A creature can use its action to eat one berry. Eating a berry restores 1 hit point, and the berry provides enough nourishment to sustain a creature for one day. The berries lose their potency if they have not been consumed within 24 hours of the casting of this spell. Flavor: "Threptiká moúra" The berries are perfect orbs in shape and have a perfect sheen to them. Equipment Spellbook, staff (arcane focus), scholar's robes, dagger, writing kit, borrowed book (Elminster's Treatise On The Arcane), belt pouch, backpack, bedroll, mess kit, tinderbox, 5 torches, 5 rations, waterskin, 50 ft of hemp rope, 12 gp, 5 sp, 5 cp Narra | The Familiar Owl (Tiny Fey) hp 1/1 ▪ AC 11 (Unarmored) ▪ Speed 5 ft, fly 60 ft. HD 1d4 ▪ Senses Darkvision 120 ft., Passive Perception 13 STR 3 (-4) ▪ DEX 13 (+1) ▪ CON 8 (-1) ▪ INT 2 (-4) ▪ WIS 12 (+1) ▪ CHA 7 (-2) Skills Perception +3, Stealth +3 Features FlybyThe owl doesn't provoke opportunity attacks when it flies out of an enemy's reach., Keen Hearing & SightThe owl has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing and sight.; Deliver Touch SpellsWhen you Cast a Spell with a range of touch, your familiar can deliver the spell as if it had cast the spell. Your familiar must be within 100 feet of you, and it must use its Reaction to deliver the spell when you cast it. If the spell requires an Attack roll, you use your Attack modifier for the roll., Link With MasterWhile your familiar is within 100 feet of you, you can communicate with it telepathically. Additionally, as an Action, you can see through your familiar's eyes and hear what it hears until the start of your next turn, gaining the benefits of any Special Senses that the familiar has. During this time, you are deaf and blind with regard to your own Senses., Pocket DimensionAs an Action, you can temporarily dismiss your familiar. It disappears into a pocket dimension where it awaits your summons. Alternatively, you can dismiss it forever. As an Action while it is temporarily dismissed, you can cause it to reappear in any unoccupied space within 30 feet of you.   OOC From the previous chapter, Shazzar has an active Produce Flame so he effectively has the light of a torch. He will also cast Prestidigitation on any lamp or torch that they encounter to illuminate the area further.   If Dynaheir seems eager to continue charging ahead, Shazzar offers her one of his torches, lighting it with Prestidigitation as well. He will advise her to take it, even if she fights with two-handed weapons - after all, she can just drop the torch right before attacking.

 

֎ ֎ ֎

[Kavonde]

  

DYNAHEIR | HP 15/15 | AC 15 | Initiative +2 | Passive Perception 12

 

Dynaheir nods at Shazzar and takes the offered torch, freeing a hand to hold it by adjusting her greatsword to lean against her shoulder. She moves towards the northern hallway, peeking around the corner while straining her ears for any sounds that might hint at where young Valter can be found.

 

"The children said that the adults are down in the basement, yes?" she asks, not taking her eyes off the hallway. "Do we think that Valter will be with them?"

[emotionaut]

Joliet

---

HP:   12/12

AC:   14

Init:  +3

PP:   13

FeaturesSecond Wind: 1/1
Languages: Common, Paridon Creole

ConditionNormal

Ammo⁍⁍⁍⁍⁍⁍

IC

Joliet pulls what looks like a thick candle from her pack and pops a cap from one end with her thumb. She then strikes the exposed end against the stone of the nearby hearth, which causes a trail of spark and a sudden flare of light from the stick. Given the strangeness of the woman's armaments, it should come as no surprise that her version of a torch is yet another curiosity. But the light it sheds is largely the same as that of Dynaheir's torch, though perhaps a little harder to stare straight into and with a color less orange than red or magenta. "We saw a candle and movement from an upper window, yeah?" she says as she walks over toward the staircase. She raises her odd torch and peers up the steps, while also straining her ears to hear anything above. She hefts her revolver so that its business end points in the same direction as her torch. "And the tykes said little brother's room is upstairs, too, yeah?"

 

Joliet taps Dynaheir on the shoulder and gives her a gentle nudge toward the stairs. She's not about to run ahead of the large woman. Can't take cover like that for granted. But she's making it fairly clear on which direction they ought to be headed.

OOC

Also going to roll Perception.

 

And I took some liberties with Joliet's torch, describing it more like a flare, but functionally it's just a torch. I marked one off her equipment.

Edited January 5, 2023 by emotionaut (see edit history)

[DoNotFearToTread]

Stat Block

HP:   11/11

AC:   15

Init:  -1

PP:   13

Spell Slots: 2/2

Spells: Heroism [D], Sanctuary [D], Command, Cure Wounds, Protection from Good/Evil, Shield of Faith

Conditions:

Into the Den of Evil

Sulimann's teeth grind together as the children stated their boundaries, knowing he has no choice but to accept them. His hopes that they will remain safe within the outer walls of their own home would have to suffice. Turning toward the large entry doors, he follows the others in and watches the scene go from colors to shades of gray as his eyes adapt to the lack of light within. No great concern for one with an ancestry such as his, one of the few positives in truth. The striking of torches causes color to spill across the entryway and he remains middle of the pack, not seeking the front where Dyna has already taken the lead nor the rear where his abilities would find little use.

 

"I have little tolerance for hide and seek." He mutters, peering past Giselle toward the center of the room before stepping through the door and into the larger space of the foyer. A bit of ducking is required but that's become so common for him that he barely registers the need. The magician's call of attention to the weapons bring Sulimann's notice that way and he admires the sword but makes no move to take it. One who readies for battle will certainly find it, and there are plenty among them here who are more able to answer that call than he is. He does grunt a bit of displeasure at the suggestion, however.

 

"This residence is still occupied, even if it is only by those children outside. Borrowing something to defeat this horror is fine but let's not get eager-fingered about things." His concerns run similar on damage to the place but he doesn't feel like belaboring the point. Shazzar seems to have the age and wisdom to control his own magical displays and might find a suggestion otherwise insulting. When you grow up in Thay you learn quickly not to insult a wizard. Easing up a bit past the wizard, he places himself behind Dynaheir and Joliet in the foyer and places a hand on each of their shoulders in an overly gentle fashion, like a giant holding a teacup.

 

"I will follow your lead. Stay close, work together and I have no doubt we will succeed in our efforts." It is more than words, it is a promise and a bond between the two most eager to see this done.

OOC Info

I would like to initiate an Emboldening Bond on Dynaheir and Joliet. The relevant text follows:

 

Emboldening Bond - Starting at 1st level, you can forge an empowering bond among people who are at peace with one another. As an action, you choose a number of willing creatures within 30 feet of you (this can include yourself) equal to your proficiency bonus. You create a magical bond among them for 10 minutes or until you use this feature again. While any bonded creature is within 30 feet of another, the creature can roll a d4 and add the number rolled to an attack roll, an ability check, or a saving throw it makes. Each creature can add the d4 no more than once per turn.

[Lukenary]

    

Giselle the Drowned

---

HP:   11/11  |   AC:   17  |   Init:  +3  |  PP:   11

Features

Divine Sense PHB, pg. 84
As an action, you can detect good and evil. Until the end of your next turn, you can sense anything affected by the hallow spell or know the location of any celestial, fiend, undead within 60 ft. that is not behind total cover. You can use this feature 4 times per long rest. 2/4

 

Lay on Hands PHB, pg. 84
You have a pool of healing power that can restore 5 HP per long rest. As an action, you can touch a creature to restore any number of HP remaining in the pool, or 5 HP to either cure a disease or neutralize a poison affecting the creature. 5/5

Traits

 

Darkvision BR, pg. 39
You can see in darkness (shades of gray) up to 60 ft.

 

Fey Ancestry BR, pg. 39
You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can’t put you to sleep.

Spells

None

 

IC

The place felt... wrong, somehow.  Giselle paused a moment to clear her head, center herself and give thanks to the Morninglord for putting her here.  Clearly, there was something sinister going on, but she was unsure what.  She hoped she could make a difference.

 

She extended her senses, seeking out dark places and attempting to bring them into the light.  There were... snatches.  Take a deep breath.  Flashbacks of the last time she tried to do this...  death.  Ignore this, it's a distraction.  War.  Battle and victory and loss.  I'm here, now, to save these children.  She closed her eyes, trying to put aside the images and focus on the here and now.  It's unclear whether she noticed the tears welling out from underneath them.  Rose and Thorn.

 

She nodded at the gunslinger, Joliet.  "I think if there's a chance we can save a child, we do that first.  Any adults in the basement will have to hold on for just a while longer."

 

She kept a hand on her rapier and smiled at Dynaheir and the others, agreeing with Sulimann.  "You two lead the way, I can take rear-guard.  Shazzar, ensure you keep that light where they can see; the darkness and I are old friends."

OOC

Use Divine Sense:  As an action, you can detect good and evil. Until the end of your next turn, you can sense anything affected by the hallow spell or know the location of any celestial, fiend, undead within 60 ft. that is not behind total cover. You can use this feature 4 times per long rest.

 

[Mamori23]

      Altaïr Abd al-Aziz | HP: 12/12 | AC: 18 | Initiative: -1 | Passive Perception: 11

IC

"I will have to pass on the houses offer of arms...frankly doesn't match my specific taste." Neither did it bode well for his nervers. It was like his sense were alight, tensing at every low moan or creek of wood—nothing was right about this, not the request nor the monster to which haunted the child upstairs. It was silent, and in that quiet Altaïr grew more restless within his skin, like a tug of force will his arms to move till both sword and shield tuck closer towards his person like spring locking into place. It pulled him to get in the thick of the fire, but through sheer years of stubborness the paladin willed himself to remain close by Shazzar. 

There was not much he enjoyed under the service of this new god his father held him, but Helm was good in making one thing out of his fellowers—understanding to elimante a threat. Altaïr only wished he understood which, taking only one glance at the children outside with slight envy they remained safe.  

"Hurry still, I doubt a babe knows much on defending against a monster. I will stick close the aging wizard, if need be something comes out from the darkness behind us I can spot it." 

He's breathing slowed, readying himself beside Shazzar he did an act to which he dreaded—prayer. "There are threats abound, my eyes...allow them to see what should be smitted in your name." He's senses expanded, chilled to the forces abound as he allowed himself open to feel for those wishing to hide. 

He never liked doing this. 

OOC

Using Divine Senses as well.

 

Edited January 5, 2023 by Mamori23 (see edit history)

[Kavonde]

DYNAHEIR | HP 15/15 | AC 15 | Initiative +2 | Passive Perception 12

 

Dyna nods to the others, holding her sword low with one hand while placing the other on the stairs' bannister. "All right, friends. I will lead the way."

 

She begins moving up the stairs at a steady pace, making sure to place her full weight on each step to ensure nothing will break under her companions' feet. She doesn't go out of her way to be loud, but also clearly isn't concerned with being sneaky.

[Gregorotto]

The group all file out of the foyer into the grand hall, its staircase and images revealed by illuminated light from Joliet and Shazzar's implements and spells. With the illumination comes clarity, as Joliet gets a better look at the intricate carvings in the wood: there she spies among the satyrs and nymphs dancing, in the vines are serpents, intimidating snakes that threaten the revelry: or perhaps it's not a revel at all, but fey fleeing from potential pain. Unnerving as the image is, Dynaheir is ready to move on as the group discusses the placement of weaponry, which no one seems to want to take: a wise choice. The warrior leads the way up the stairs to the second floor.

 

Unlit oil lamps are mounted on the walls of this elegant hall, which Shazzar lights with a spell upon his arrival on the floor. Hanging above the mantelpiece is a wood-framed portrait of the Durst family: Lord and Lady Durst with their two smiling children, Rose and Thorn. Cradled in the father’s arms is a swaddled baby, presumably Walter, which the mother regards with a hint of scorn. The portrait is fine, but somewhat time-weathered, dust sitting at its edges.

Standing suits of armor flank wooden doors in the east and west walls, cobwebs hanging from the neck plates. Each suit of armor clutches a spear and has a visored helm shaped like a wolf’s snarling head. The doors are carved with dancing youths, although Joliet's close inspection reveals that the youths aren’t really dancing but fighting off swarms of bats. These are odd details to include in the carvings of the very house itself.

 

Thunder rolls outside, lights flashing below as the foyer doors were left open: the storm intensifies.

 

The red marble staircase that started on the first floor continues its upward spiral. A cold draft can be felt coming down the steps as Dynaheir prepares to ascend them.

Thus far, the divine sense of both divine warriors reaching out with it fails to pick anything up: there is nothing amiss in Durst House.

Out of Character

Didn't want to get too far ahead; also included that there's a Fog of War effect I plan on including, though this is somewhat irrelevant. I won't be showing it in such detail again unless it's on the same floor.

 

Anyway, didn't want to force y'all up the stairs, but feel free to do so; or open a door and await untold horrors!

 

[Lukenary]

   

Giselle the Drowned

---

HP:   11/11  |   AC:   17  |   Init:  +3  |  PP:   11

Features

Divine Sense PHB, pg. 84
As an action, you can detect good and evil. Until the end of your next turn, you can sense anything affected by the hallow spell or know the location of any celestial, fiend, undead within 60 ft. that is not behind total cover. You can use this feature 4 times per long rest. 2/4

 

Lay on Hands PHB, pg. 84
You have a pool of healing power that can restore 5 HP per long rest. As an action, you can touch a creature to restore any number of HP remaining in the pool, or 5 HP to either cure a disease or neutralize a poison affecting the creature. 5/5

Traits

 

Darkvision BR, pg. 39
You can see in darkness (shades of gray) up to 60 ft.

 

Fey Ancestry BR, pg. 39
You have advantage on saving throws against being charmed, and magic can’t put you to sleep.

Spells

None

 

IC

Giselle kept to the back, aware she was taking up the role of party rearguard.  Disappointed that her senses didn't tell her anything was out of the ordinary, she frowned as she peered down the stairwell.  An experienced scout, her eyes automatically noted doors, windows, entrances and exits; anything a potential foe could use to ambush them.  Though, as she considered it, this place seemed as like as not to contain ghosts.  A disturbing thought, as that meant her scanning needed to include exponentially more vulnerabilities.

 

Head on a swivel, she followed the rest of the party carefully.

OOC

None.

 

[DoNotFearToTread]

Housekeeping! You Want Towel?

Sulimann moves with the others, keeping the middle of the pack as much as the geography of the house allows. The better to utilize his particular talents should the need arise, and his height allows him to still keep a good view of things above the heads of the others. The chain remains wrapped around his arm as he advances, knowing that to brandish it means imminent violence. Something he isn't willing to commit to this early, even against a monstrous creature like the one they seem likely to face. He stops to take note of the armor and the stylized helmets before turning his attention to the portrait. A happy(ish) family living in the lap of luxury(ish). Couldn't get much further from his own upbringing.

 

"Living this way while the rest of the village lurks in hovels. Not surprising the people here have no love for this family." Such injustices are far from uncommon. Perhaps he simply hoped things might be different here. He had agreed, alongside the others, to look into the troubles with this place's prince and this was likely a step in that direction. And it isn't like he could simply walk away from children in danger. Despite knowing all that, though, Sulimann is less and less pleased with being here the further they move into the estate.

 

"No sense in lingering, I suppose."

 

[emotionaut]

Joliet

---

HP:   12/12

AC:   14

Init:  +3

PP:   13

FeaturesSecond Wind: 1/1
Languages: Common, Paridon Creole

ConditionNormal

Ammo⁍⁍⁍⁍⁍⁍

IC

Joliet nods. "Big man has the right of it," she says as she takes a quick glance at the same portrait. "On the bright side, gives us little reason to worry over damage to the finery, yeah? Already tromped in without wipin' my feet, anyhow. Not gonna worry so much if I put a few holes in the walls while huntin' this thing. Just a step toward makin' this lordy manor a bit more equal to the neighbors," she says, grinning at the prospect of wrecking the place in the course of their heroics. People like this ought to be brought down a peg. It's probably that entitled attitude that led them to think they could handle whatever this monster was in the first place. Serves them right.

 

Joliet waggles the business end of her revolver toward the staircase up. This ain't a tour and she knows it. Seconds may make all the difference, so they'd best get a move on to the little one's room.

OOC

n/a

[Kavonde]

 

DYNAHEIR | HP 15/15 | AC 15 | Initiative +2 | Passive Perception 12

 

Dyna doesn't add her thoughts to the team's commentary; instead, after quickly inspecting the area, she begins ascending the next set of circular steps. The stress of marching towards her first real battle is draining her bravado and replacing it with a businesslike determination to simply be about their work. Besides, she's only just begun to grasp the extents to which wealth inequality shapes more urbanized societies. She doesn't see the house as a symbol of bourgeiosie excess, selfishly leeching prosperity from the hard-working proletariat in service of an inherently unjust status quo; she just thinks it's kind of neat. 

Edited January 7, 2023 by Kavonde (see edit history)

[GreysonWulffe]

  

Shazzar | The Wizard   Never one to really compare his lot in life to those of others, Shazzar is not as bothered about this family's ostentatious display of wealth in the face of the poverty faced by the rest of the town. After all, he is yet to see if this wealth has been acquired through unscrupulous means, so he opts to reserve judgment. 'And I can fix the issue with any dirt or filth we bring into the manor through our boots,' he notes silently. 'However, I don't think I'll be able to mend holes in walls as easily.'   Situated just in front of their rear guard, Giselle, he glances at the doors to the west and to the east as they pass by. 'I would've expected us to clear each room as we go,' he thinks. 'For one, I'm not comfortable with advancing into the unknown while leaving more unknowns behind me. Then again, these fellows are the adventuring types - they would certainly know more about moving through this kind of place with a purpose. Best to just keep up, let them do what they're good at.'   And so with his staff in one hand and a ball of fire in the other, the middle-aged wizard marches along with the party.

Stat Block Belshazzar "Shazzar" Zidon Male Human Cloistered-Scholar Wizard 1 hp 8/8 ▪ AC 15 (Mage Armor) ▪ Speed 30 ft HD 1d6 ▪ Proficiency +2 ▪ Initiative +2 ▪ Senses Passive Perception 11 STR 10 (+0) ▪ DEX 14 (+2) ▪ CON 14 (+2) ▪ INT 16 (+3) ▪ WIS 12 (+1) ▪ CHA 8 (-1) Saves Intelligence +5, Wisdom +3 Skills Arcana +5, History +5, Insight +3, Investigation +5 Languages Common, Draconic, Elvish, Infernal Features Arcane Recovery♦ Arcane Recovery ♦ You have learned to regain some of your magical energy by studying your spellbook. Once per day, when you finish a short rest, you can choose expended spell slots to recover. The spell slots can have a combined level that is equal to or less than half your wizard level (rounded up), and none of the slots can be 6th level or higher. (1/1 use), Library Access♦ Library Access ♦ Though others must often endure extensive interviews and significant fees to gain access to even the most common archives in your library, you have free and easy access to the majority of the library, though it might also have repositories of lore that are too valuable, magical, or secret to permit anyone immediate access. You have a working knowledge of your cloister's personnel and bureaucracy, and you know how to navigate those connections with some ease. Additionally, you are likely to gain preferential treatment at other libraries across the Realms, as professional courtesy shown to a fellow scholar., Magic Initiate (Druid)♦ Magic Initiate (Druid) ♦ Choose a class: Druid. You learn two cantrips of your choice from that class's spell list: Guidance, Produce Flame In addition, choose one 1st-level spell to learn from that same list: Goodberry. Using this feat, you can cast the spell once at its lowest level, and you must finish a long rest before you can cast it in this way again. Your spellcasting ability for these spells depends on the class you chose: Wisdom for Druid., Ritual Casting♦ Ritual Casting ♦ You can cast a Wizard spell as a ritual if that spell has the ritual tag and you have the spell in your spellbook. You don’t need to have the spell prepared., Spellbook♦ Spellbook ♦ At 1st level, you have a spellbook containing six 1st-level wizard spells of your choice. Your spellbook is the repository of the wizard spells you know, except your cantrips, which are fixed in your mind. The spells that you add to your spellbook as you gain levels reflect the arcane research you conduct on your own, as well as intellectual breakthroughs you have had about the nature of the multiverse. You might find other spells during your adventures. You could discover a spell recorded on a scroll in an evil wizard’s chest, for example, or in a dusty tome in an ancient library. ♦ Copying a Spell into the Book ♦ When you find a wizard spell of 1st level or higher, you can add it to your spellbook if it is of a spell level you can prepare and if you can spare the time to decipher and copy it. Copying that spell into your spellbook involves reproducing the basic form of the spell, then deciphering the unique system of notation used by the wizard who wrote it. You must practice the spell until you understand the sounds or gestures required, then transcribe it into your spellbook using your own notation. For each level of the spell, the process takes 2 hours and costs 50 gp. The cost represents material components you expend as you experiment with the spell to master it, as well as the fine inks you need to record it. Once you have spent this time and money, you can prepare the spell just like your other spells. ♦ Replacing the Book ♦ You can copy a spell from your own spellbook into another book—for example, if you want to make a backup copy of your spellbook. This is just like copying a new spell into your spellbook, but faster and easier, since you understand your own notation and already know how to cast the spell. You need spend only 1 hour and 10 gp for each level of the copied spell. If you lose your spellbook, you can use the same procedure to transcribe the spells that you have prepared into a new spellbook. Filling out the remainder of your spellbook requires you to find new spells to do so, as normal. For this reason, many wizards keep backup spellbooks in a safe place. ♦ The Book’s Appearance ♦ Your spellbook is a unique compilation of spells, with its own decorative flourishes and margin notes. It might be a plain, functional leather volume that you received as a gift from your master, a finely bound gilt-edged tome you found in an ancient library, or even a loose collection of notes scrounged together after you lost your previous spellbook in a mishap. Attacks  ▬ Dagger: Melee | +4 to hit | 1d4+2 piercing damage | finesse, light, thrown 20/40  ▬ Produce Flame: Ranged 30 | +3 to hit | 1d8 fire damage Spellcasting: Wizard | Spell Save DC 13, Spell Attack +5  ▬ Cantrips: Mage HandConjuration Casting Time: 1 action Range: 30 feet Target: A point you choose within range Components: V S Duration: 1 minute A spectral, floating hand appears at a point you choose within range. The hand lasts for the duration or until you dismiss it as an action. The hand vanishes if it is ever more than 30 feet away from you or if you cast this spell again. You can use your action to control the hand. You can use the hand to manipulate an object, open an unlocked door or container, stow or retrieve an item from an open container, or pour the contents out of a vial. You can move the hand up to 30 feet each time you use it. The hand can’t attack, activate magic items, or carry more than 10 pounds. Flavor: "Apókryfo chéri" The spectral hand seems to be made of bluish, wispy smoke. It is in the shape of Shazzar's wife's hand, as he remembers it, complete with the wedding band., Mind SliverEnchantment Casting Time: 1 action Range: 60 feet Components: V Duration: 1 round You drive a disorienting spike of psychic energy into the mind of one creature you can see within range. The target must succeed on an Intelligence saving throw or take 1d6 psychic damage and subtract 1d4 from the next saving throw it makes before the end of your next turn. At Higher Levels: This spell’s damage increases by 1d6 when you reach certain levels: 5th level (2d6), 11th level (3d6), and 17th level (4d6). Flavor: "Spáse to myaló sou", PrestidigitationTransmutation Casting Time: 1 action Range: 10 feet Target: See text Components: V S Duration: Up to 1 hour This spell is a minor magical trick that novice spellcasters use for practice. You create one of the following magical effects within range: ♦ You create an instantaneous, harmless sensory effect, such as a shower of sparks, a puff of wind, faint musical notes, or an odd odor. ♦ You instantaneously light or snuff out a candle, a torch, or a small campfire. ♦ You instantaneously clean or soil an object no larger than 1 cubic foot. ♦ You chill, warm, or flavor up to 1 cubic foot of nonliving material for 1 hour. ♦ You make a color, a small mark, or a symbol appear on an object or a surface for 1 hour. ♦ You create a nonmagical trinket or an illusory image that can fit in your hand and that lasts until the end of your next turn. If you cast this spell multiple times, you can have up to three of its non-instantaneous effects active at a time, and you can dismiss such an effect as an action. Flavor: "Mageía"  ▬ 1st (1/2 slots): Comprehend LanguagesDivination (Ritual) Casting Time: 1 action Range: Self Target: Self Components: V S M (A pinch of soot and salt) Duration: 1 hour For the duration, you understand the literal meaning of any spoken language that you hear. You also understand any written language that you see, but you must be touching the surface on which the words are written. It takes about 1 minute to read one page of text. This spell doesn’t decode secret messages in a text or a glyph, such as an arcane sigil, that isn’t part of a written language. Flavor: "Gnorízei óles tis glósses"®, *Detect MagicDivination (Ritual) Casting Time: 1 action Range: Self Target: Self Components: V S Duration: Concentration, up to 10 minutes For the duration, you sense the presence of magic within 30 feet of you. If you sense magic in this way, you can use your action to see a faint aura around any visible creature or object in the area that bears magic, and you learn its school of magic, if any. The spell can penetrate most barriers, but it is blocked by 1 foot of stone, 1 inch of common metal, a thin sheet of lead, or 3 feet of wood or dirt. Flavor: "Epitrépste mou na do apókryfes ávres" For the duration of the spell, Shazzar's eyes turn into black, obsidian-like orbs that glow faintly with a pale-blue light.©®, Find FamiliarConjuration (Ritual) Casting Time: 1 hour Range: 10 feet Target: An unoccupied space within range Components: V S M (10 gp worth of charcoal, incense, and herbs that must be consumed by fire in a brass brazier) Duration: Instantaneous You gain the service of a familiar, a spirit that takes an animal form you choose: bat, cat, crab, frog (toad), hawk, lizard, octopus, owl, poisonous snake, fish (quipper), rat, raven, sea horse, spider, or weasel. Appearing in an unoccupied space within range, the familiar has the statistics of the chosen form, though it is a celestial, fey, or fiend (your choice) instead of a beast. Your familiar acts independently of you, but it always obeys your commands. In combat, it rolls its own initiative and acts on its own turn. A familiar can’t attack, but it can take other actions as normal. When the familiar drops to 0 hit points, it disappears, leaving behind no physical form. It reappears after you cast this spell again While your familiar is within 100 feet of you, you can communicate with it telepathically. Additionally, as an action, you can see through your familiar’s eyes and hear what it hears until the start of your next turn, gaining the benefits of any special senses that the familiar has. During this time, you are deaf and blind with regard to your own senses. As an action, you can temporarily dismiss your familiar. It disappears into a pocket dimension where it awaits your summons. Alternatively, you can dismiss it forever. As an action while it is temporarily dismissed, you can cause it to reappear in any unoccupied space within 30 feet of you. You can’t have more than one familiar at a time. If you cast this spell while you already have a familiar, you instead cause it to adopt a new form. Choose one of the forms from the above list. Your familiar transforms into the chosen creature. Finally, when you cast a spell with a range of touch, your familiar can deliver the spell as if it had cast the spell. Your familiar must be within 100 feet of you, and it must use its reaction to deliver the spell when you cast it. If the spell requires an attack roll, you use your attack modifier for the roll. Flavor: "Akoúste to kálesmá mou, kollitós mou fíle" At the final stage of the spell, the fire turns a brilliant blue, and it is from this blue fire that the familiar explodes out of, extinguishing the fire at the same time.®, *Feather FallTransmutation Casting Time: 1 reaction, which you take when you or a creature within 60 feet of you falls Range: 60 feet Target: Up to five falling creatures within range Components: V M (A small feather or piece of down) Duration: 1 minute Choose up to five falling creatures within range. A falling creature’s rate of descent slows to 60 feet per round until the spell ends. If the creature lands before the spell ends, it takes no falling damage and can land on its feet, and the spell ends for that creature. Flavor: "Sýllipsi" A magic circle that is about 1 foot across appears in the air, over the target's head. It would seem that an invisible energy is emanating from this circle to pull the target up, slowing their descent., *Mage ArmorAbjuration Casting Time: 1 action Range: Touch Target: A willing creature who isn't wearing armor Components: V S M (A piece of cured leather) Duration: 8 hours You touch a willing creature who isn’t wearing armor, and a protective magical force surrounds it until the spell ends. The target’s base AC becomes 13 + its Dexterity modifier. The spell ends if the target dons armor or if you dismiss the spell as an action. Flavor: "Panoplía tou apókryfou" Faintly-glowing pale-blue lines that form a continuous, geometric pattern appear on Shazzar's clothing. Whenever objects impact against him with considerable force, those lines flash mildly., *Magic MissileEvocation Casting Time: 1 action Range: 120 feet Target: A creature of your choice that you can see within range Components: V S Duration: Instantaneous You create three glowing darts of magical force. Each dart hits a creature of your choice that you can see within range. A dart deals 1d4 + 1 force damage to its target. The darts all strike simultaneously, and you can direct them to hit one creature or several. At Higher Levels: When you cast this spell using a spell slot of 2nd level or higher, the spell creates one more dart for each slot above 1st. Flavor: "Apókryfa véli" Several fist-sized magic circles appear in the air around Shazzar, and darts of bluish energy shoot out of each one toward his targets.   Spellcasting: Magic Initiate (Druid) | Spell Save DC 11, Spell Attack +3  ▬ Cantrips: GuidanceDivination Casting Time: 1 action Range: Touch Target: One willing creature Components: V S Duration: Up to 1 minute You touch one willing creature. Once before the spell ends, the target can roll a d4 and add the number rolled to one ability check of its choice. It can roll the die before or after making the ability check. The spell then ends. Flavor: "Eíthe to Oghma na sas kathodigísei" The target feels a comforting warmth spread throughout their body, radiating Shazzar's hand., Produce FlameConjuration Casting Time: 1 action Range: Self Target: Self or a creature within 30 feet of you Components: V S Duration: 10 minutes A flickering flame appears in your hand. The flame remains there for the duration and harms neither you nor your equipment. The flame sheds bright light in a 10-foot radius and dim light for an additional 10 feet. The spell ends if you dismiss it as an action or if you cast it again. You can also attack with the flame, although doing so ends the spell. When you cast this spell, or as an action on a later turn, you can hurl the flame at a creature within 30 feet of you. Make a ranged spell attack. On a hit, the target takes 1d8 fire damage. At Higher Levels: This spell's damage increases by 1d8 when you reach 5th level (2d8), 11th level (3d8), and 17th level (4d8). Flavor: "Apó to típota, fotiá" The flickering flame is a pale blue in color and takes on a teardrop shape.  ▬ 1st (1/1 use): GoodberryTransmutation Casting Time: 1 action Range: Touch Target: See text Components: V S M (A sprig of mistletoe) Duration: Instantaneous Up to ten berries appear in your hand and are infused with magic for the duration. A creature can use its action to eat one berry. Eating a berry restores 1 hit point, and the berry provides enough nourishment to sustain a creature for one day. The berries lose their potency if they have not been consumed within 24 hours of the casting of this spell. Flavor: "Threptiká moúra" The berries are perfect orbs in shape and have a perfect sheen to them. Equipment Spellbook, staff (arcane focus), scholar's robes, dagger, writing kit, borrowed book (Elminster's Treatise On The Arcane), belt pouch, backpack, bedroll, mess kit, tinderbox, 4 torches, 5 rations, waterskin, 50 ft of hemp rope, 12 gp, 5 sp, 5 cp Narra | The Familiar Owl (Tiny Fey) hp 1/1 ▪ AC 11 (Unarmored) ▪ Speed 5 ft, fly 60 ft. HD 1d4 ▪ Senses Darkvision 120 ft., Passive Perception 13 STR 3 (-4) ▪ DEX 13 (+1) ▪ CON 8 (-1) ▪ INT 2 (-4) ▪ WIS 12 (+1) ▪ CHA 7 (-2) Skills Perception +3, Stealth +3 Features FlybyThe owl doesn't provoke opportunity attacks when it flies out of an enemy's reach., Keen Hearing & SightThe owl has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing and sight.; Deliver Touch SpellsWhen you Cast a Spell with a range of touch, your familiar can deliver the spell as if it had cast the spell. Your familiar must be within 100 feet of you, and it must use its Reaction to deliver the spell when you cast it. If the spell requires an Attack roll, you use your Attack modifier for the roll., Link With MasterWhile your familiar is within 100 feet of you, you can communicate with it telepathically. Additionally, as an Action, you can see through your familiar's eyes and hear what it hears until the start of your next turn, gaining the benefits of any Special Senses that the familiar has. During this time, you are deaf and blind with regard to your own Senses., Pocket DimensionAs an Action, you can temporarily dismiss your familiar. It disappears into a pocket dimension where it awaits your summons. Alternatively, you can dismiss it forever. As an Action while it is temporarily dismissed, you can cause it to reappear in any unoccupied space within 30 feet of you.

 

֎ ֎ ֎

[Gregorotto]

Lingering very little as they go, each one has thoughts, some shared to the group, others left to linger in their own heads. Perhaps leaving things unsearched behind them is a dangerous prospect, but leaving the child to wait is perhaps too dangerous to pass up: a life is at stake, so the children outside said. Dynaheir is quick up the stairs, and soon so is everyone else, Giselle bringing up the back.

 

Dynaheir and Joliet lead the way to the third floor's landing. The stairs end here, on this dusty balcony: unlike the previous two floors, this one looks as if it has not been used in many years. A single piece of armor stands here beside a door, black and covered in cobwebs. Oil lamps are mounted on the oak-paneled walls, which are carved with woodland scenes of trees, falling leaves, and tiny critters. Joliet is not sure, but she thinks she sees small figures hanging from the trees. Do her eyes deceive her?

 

Why is it dusty here and not below?

Out of Character

 

 

Didn't want to progress too far.

 

Logically the window where you all saw the candle is in the room to the south.