VIII. The Witch Towner - Second Trip

[dmw71]

While Sparrow takes precautions to keep and eye on and secure the escape route, Ingroc pours three flasks of regular lamp oil into the pit of slime, attempting to coat as much of the surface as he can. Once the third flask has been emptied, he douses the green sludge below with a flask of Greek oil. "Let's back up," he suggests as be prepares to light a torch, with intentions on tossing it into the pit. Once the group is safely around the bend in the north/south passage, Ingroc lights his torch and tosses it.

Flames erupt!

A steady crackling sound is heard.
Smoke begins to billow out from within the pit and slowly starts to fill the cramped passageway.
Then a putrid, stinging smell which burns your nostrils hits.


Instinctively retreating north a bit, the group keeps their senses peeled for hints of an outcome from their effort. Slowly, the cracking sound begins to fade, and while the smoke does reach the corner of the hallway near the ledge, it never grows strong enough to turn the corner and into the north/south passage you're all standing in.

While the affects of your plan seem to be working, you suspect it may be a considerable amount of time before the area is clear enough to return safely.

[thirdkingdom]

Ingroc the Impavid

"I suppose we must need wait. Am I correct in assuming the main chamber has been thoroughly searched, and looted as befits a band of brave adventurers? And Ciar, I heard that you had explored to the west; what did you find, and is there anything of interest that we can explore whilst we while away the minutes?"

[AleBelly]

"Damn it, that stinks" coughs Sylvan. "Basements. No windows, no life. Terrible places."

He turns to Ingroc. "Ciar explored the east passage with the dwarf, not the west."

[Alethan]

Ciar replies, "We did nothing but a brief survey using dark vision. It was far from a thorough examination and we should definitely go through it more carefully with proper light sources."

[OGRE MAGE]

That sounds better than standing around smelling this putrid stink! I'm with Syl, this is a terrible place to be. Sparrow pulls his shirt up like a makeshift bandanna to cover his nose and mouth from the bad air.

[thirdkingdom]

That sounds better than standing around smelling this putrid stink! I'm with Syl, this is a terrible place to be. Sparrow pulls his shirt up like a makeshift bandanna to cover his nose and mouth from the bad air.

Ingroc the Impavid

"Aha"! exclaims Ingroc, "I support this bold stratagem! I am a man of action, of vim! I have no desire to stand around like washerwomen, or pusillanimous poltroons! Let us be off, then, marching boldly forward in the formation we have all agreed to! Perhaps we should agree to spend no more than an hour advancing westwards, so that by the time we return two hours will have elapsed."

[dmw71]

I don't normally do this, but here is an overview map of the areas explored:

Overview.png (20.99 KiB) Viewed 564 times

The group is currently in the northwest (upper left-hand) corner of the map. Just to the left of the PCs is the torture room, with the secret door, which leads to the long passageway and the slime. The highlighted yellow line is the section of ceiling that has the circular, half-circle bump running its length. On the far left, just south of where the PCs are, the ceiling feature seems to terminate once it reaches the wall, and does the same thing on the opposite end, near where the group first entered this section of the basement. I've also noted all the empty cells that the group as at least roughly inspected.

What does the group want to do to pass the time while the fire burns in the slime pit?[/ooc]

[AleBelly]

Are there any unexplored passages, or do the white/black borders signify walls everywhere?

If they are all walls

"It looks like there's some empty space in between the two hallways. Perhaps there's a secret door in the hallway leading to it? I'll check, but I suspect others are better at this" suggests Sylvan.

If there are unexplored passages to the east

uh..."Let's head east and explore the unknown passages."

[Alethan]

Ready to do something besides stand there, Ciar says, "Look... If some of you want to stay here and wait out the smoke, that's fine. Hand me one of them Everbright torches and I'll check out the other area more thoroughly with anyone else who doesn't want to stay here."

[onlyme]

Fulp will nervously follow Ciar.

[Storm11]

Kassel confirms his desire to continue exploring. He will make a cursory inspection of the cells with light. Anything out of the ordinary showing? Tracks? Cracks in the walls?

[OGRE MAGE]

Sparrow also follows Ciar, handing him his magic torch. He continues to look closely at the floor, walls, and ceiling, hoping he missed a clue or sign the last time they quickly checked over the area.

How long do you think it will take for the fires to burn away completely? He says to nobody in particular.

[thirdkingdom]

Ingroc the Impavid

"I have already expressed a plan to spend no more than two hours exploring in total before returning to examine the slime. To clarify, I am in support of the proposal to move eastward; we should thoroughly examine any unexplored cells or rooms on our way to the area that Ciar and Festus previously espied."

It sounds like y'all didn't thoroughly examine all the cells. We should do this first.

[Alethan]

"Agreed, Ingroc. Two hours should suffice," Ciar agrees.

[Alethan]

Ciar looks at the nearest cell (in the western half of the area) and says, "We might as well start here..."
He takes a closer look at the cell, first checking the door to see if it appears to be in working order and whether or not it might trap him in if it closed.

[AleBelly]

Sylvan observes others searching the cells. "Put yourself in there if you wish. I'm staying in the corridors."

He will search for secret door along the west wall of the east passage.

[onlyme]

Fulp makes sure his lantern in burning and will begin to inspect the walls of the corridor. He use his walking stick to look for any evil centipedes that may be roaming underneath.

[dmw71]

While Ciar begins to inspect the first empty encountered, and before the group splits off into separate search parties, the outline of a not-so-well-hidden secret door is discovered.

Secret Door.png (5.79 KiB) Viewed 571 times

There appears to be a a simple notch in the door, where one would expect a handle to be located, that appears to be able to slide up and down. It is currently in the down position.

[thirdkingdom]

Ingroc the Impavid

"Is there someone in the party adept at listening at doors and discerning the presence of traps?"

[Alethan]

Ciar interrupts what he is doing to examine the door more carefully before engaging the latch...