Part 3: Ill met at first light

[Pulpatoon]

Bürd:

It sounds like a single set of footsteps, walking cautiously but deliberately.

[mb.]

Bürd keeps his eyes forward, but whispers over his shoulder, "one comin', keep yerselves ready lads..."

[KingOfCowards]

Simon raises his torch for better visibility, but will gladly let the warriors be first in line to face whatever is coming.

Five bucks says its Gizzy

[MonkeyWrench]

Marcus continues to lay on the ground unconscious, breathing unsteadily from the spores like the scrub he is.

[Pulpatoon]

Gizzy, the clockwork constable, peers cautiously around the corner. The torchlight gleams on his brass fittings.

[mb.]

Bürd squints and shakes his head, "It kinnae..." He looks over his shoulder, but points at Gizzy with his axe, "Simon lad, am I goin' daft, or is tha... what're y'seein' there lad?"

[KingOfCowards]

The torchlight shakes and flickers as Simon nervously waits for whatever is coming their way, unable to keep a steady hand. After making out the shape in the distance, his body relaxes. With a sigh of relief, he smiles. "My word, it's Gizzy from town. How did you find us here Giz?"

[PyroArrow]

Tokioso 'Gizzy' Gizmoebius [AC: ? HP: 2]:

"My word, it's Gizzy from town. How did you find us here Giz?"

"Oh, wha' a relief, it's jus' you guys, Whew! I foun' you all by followin' the trail of mayhem left behin'."

[Pulpatoon]

Tokioso 'Gizzy' Gizmoebius [AC: ? HP: 2]:

Pyro, Gizz's wearing Leathers, which provide +2, so your AC is 12. No AC benefit for being made out of gears!

[mb.]

Bürd grins broadly, "Gizz, y'couldnae've come at better time lad. We've got a problem, and yer the solution, I think. Y'dinnae breathe like we do, do ye?"

[Pulpatoon]

Guys, we seem to have stalled out, here. Perhaps I should lay out some of the broad options before you?
1. Figure out a way to cross the room and explore it.
2. Go back to the side-tunnel in the passage behind you.
3. Go back to the left-branching tunnel from the entrance, into the smoke, and see what lies past the fungal chamber.
4. Take Marcus back out and recoup.
5. Head back to town.

I might also point out that, if I recall correctly, Marcus still has several of the suspicious goodberries that Simon gave him. And the one he did take didn't turn him into waterfowl, or anything.

Also, Gizzy does need to breathe. He just does it with piston-driven bellows instead of those disgusting pink sponges you fleshy types use. Gizzy's clockwork-ness is pretty much entirely flavor. I don't think there's any mechanical component to it at all.

[PyroArrow]

Tokioso 'Gizzy' Gizmoebius [AC: 12 HP: 2]:

Ok, now that i know how i breath, any of the options that avoid smoke & fungal spores is fine with me, & if Marcus' injuries are sever, perhaps leaving & recouping is a good idea to do first.

[mb.]

Let's just say we've had greetings all 'round and established that the spores would killify Gizz as much as anyone else...

Bürd picks up a rock from the rough tunnel floor,"lads, if we kin hit them spore balloons we kin cut us a path through, aye?" He hefts the rock and throws it into the room, aiming for a spore pod.

[1d20-1] = 3-1 = 2

[Pulpatoon]

Gizzy:

I've bumped your hp up to 5. It would be such a shame if the first spore killed you.

Bürd heaves a rock and hits one of the puffballs.

You are all out of the room, but I assume you're at the mouth of the tunnel, having not heard otherwise. This will reduce damage by -3. Marcus and Bürd are wrapped up enough to protect their skin. to reduce the chance of damage to zero.

Bürd: no damage
Simon [1d4-3] = 4-3 = 1
Marcus: no damage
Jonas [1d4-3] = 1-3 = -2 no damage.
Gizzy [1d4-3] = 1-3 = -2 no damage

A cloud ofspores fills the room, and enough make it your way to send Simon into a painful-sounding coughing fit.

[mb.]

Bürd turns his palms up sheepishly, "Aye, aye, I'm right sorry I am lads. Why don't ye wrap yerselves an' heft a rock with me?"

[KingOfCowards]

As the others ignore a relatively low dose of spores, Simon goes into another coughing fit that lasts an almost comically long time. His friends watch as he pounds his fist on his chest, trying to catch his breath. "I think...cough, cough...I'm having...cough...an allergic reaction to the spores."

He then covers up his mouth and face with his cloak, but keeps his distance all the same, still wheezing from a pair of damaged lungs.

[mb.]

Is it maybe okay to assume we throw a number of rocks and eventually hit enough spore pods to clear a path across the room?

[PyroArrow]

Tokioso 'Gizzy' Gizmoebius [AC: 12 HP: 2]:

Says to the others after coughing from the spores,

"Are you sure that's a good idea to burst more spores right now? Does not any one have a ranged weapon & some oil, maybe shot a flaming one onto some doused fungus?"

"By the way i take it you all know about the smoke coming from the other passage?"

[mb.]

Bürd grins, "Aye lad, we made the fire, burnin' fungus like ye said. T'were quite a party an all." He scratches his beard vigorously, "could be yer right Gizz. Mebbe we go back t'th'other tunnel lads?"

[PyroArrow]

Tokioso 'Gizzy' Gizmoebius [AC: 12 HP: 2/5]:

"There wasa side tunn'l off ta my right on my way here, we could explore that if you guys ha' not already."

"Or are y'all to banged up ta keep going? Should we set up a camp just outside the grove?"