RQG 201 - A Colourful Encounter

## Content Warnings

Human remains, injury & detailed pain, fatigue. Discussions of: fire, migraines. Mentions of: death (inc. mass death), bats, zombies, rot. SFX: water sounds, continuous humming & droning.

## Summary

The party head further down and reach the council chambers, but a strange weariness settles over Cel and Azu. They find the dead bulb of a planar plant and are accosted by an incorporeal foe as they press on.

## Synopsis

The party start making their way down the staircase that spirals around the water drainage pipe from the large room. The staircase is relatively fancy with red carpeting and wide enough for two people two walk side-by-side. As they walk, Cel and Azu slowly start feeling increasingly weary to the point where the rest of the party can tell that something is obviously going on.

Zolf stops and examines them. He can tell that they're under some kind of environmental magical effect but he cannot identify it. Hamid casts *detect magic* and can tell that there is ambient magic around them but he is only able to determine that it's not wild magic.

Zolf tries some magical healing to no avail, but he can tell it appears to be a mental effect rather than an actual physical drain on the body. With no other option, they press on and reach the bottom after about 10 minutes.

They find a set of ornate double doors and Hamid can hear a faint magical tone from the other side. They carefully open the doors to find a corridor lit by magical braziers. They are at a T junction with an similar set of doors across from them and another set of doors leading off to the left in between them. A purple light is spilling out from the doors on the left and the magical tone seems to be emanating from within.

Skraak scouts ahead. The doors at the end if the corridor lead to a similar staircase to the one they just came down and the doors on the left lead to a large circular chamber with a massive dead plant in the centre. It looks like a council chamber with tiered seating, similar to an amphitheatre, and on the other side of the room are some larger, throne-like seats, behind which are another set of double doors. The plant at the centre seems to be the source of both the purple light and the magical tone. It smells of rotting vegetation and dead bodies are intermingled with the plant matter. There are a few watcher plants scattered across the room and there are signs of people having tried to flee.

The party figures that anything important is likely behind the doors on the other side of the room and start carefully making their way across, skirting along the left side of the dead plant. As they move deeper into the room, they spot two open corridors leading off from the left and right side of the room, both corridors turn in the direction of the doors that they are heading for. Azu and Cel also notice a large amount of scientific and mechanical equipment mixed in with the dead plant in the middle. Everyone also gets a closer look at the plant itself and it looks like it tried to grow very large very quickly but failed and died.

They spot a watcher plant right in front of the doors they are heading for and decide to check down the left corridor for an alternate path. They have to skirt around a few watcher plants but the corridor appears to be heading in the right direction.

As they are moving past, Cel notices a tiny purple glow on a wall. The colour reaches out and causes intense pain where it touches them. It disappears into the wall before materialising beneath them, attacking them again. It looks like an amorphous purple distortion of space that is somewhat reminiscent of the broken portal in Rome. It sinks back into the floor after attacking. Cel flies over to Azu and takes another hit as the colour lashes out at them.

Zolf calls out that it is a trap and that they should just try and get out without fighting it. Azu heals Cel and starts to move down the corridor. Neither Hamid or Skraak are able to figure out what the creature is or how to hurt it. The colour emerges again and goes for Hamid, draining some of his Charisma and Constitiution instead of hurting him.

## Quotes

**Alex**: "Hamid with your 33, there is a very faint magical tone, tone with an ‘n’, emanating from the other side of those double-doors."
**Bryn**: "I cast detect magic again"
**Helen (laughing)**: "I’m just imagining a toe sticking through the crack"
**Ben**: "that’s a wizard’s toe!"
―The party investigate a door

**Lydia**: "Does it look like a migraine?"
**Alex**: "It looks like a purple migraine."
―Alex tries to describe his latest monster.
## Dice rolls & mechanics

* Zolf and Azu regain one use of channels positive energy after Alex does some retroactive calculations on the zombie horde's hit points.
* Everyone makes a Will save: Azu (13, fail), Hamid (29), Zolf (nat 20; 37), Cel (15, fail), Skraak (23)
* Zolf does a Heal check on Azu and Cel to figure out what's going on with them: 26
* Hamid casts *detect magic* and rolls Knowledge (arcana) to figure out what's going on with Azu and Cel: 24
* Zolf uses calming touch on Cel to no effect.
* Zolf uses liberty's blessing on Azu and Cel, allowing them to make another Will save against the effect they're under: Azu(18; fail), Cel (10; fail)
* Hamid periodically recasts *detect magic*.
* Hamid recasts *heroism* on Skraak, giving them +2 on attack rolls, saves, and skill checks for 100 minutes.
* Everyone makes a Perception check: Azu (13), Hamid (33), Zolf (28), Cel (15), Skraak (23)
* Everyone makes a Perception check: Azu (nat 1; 12), Hamid (28), Zolf (26), Cel (20), Skraak (24)
* Everyone makes a Perception check: Azu (28), Hamid (21), Zolf (22), Cel (30), Skraak (21)
* The party retroactively heal themselves before entering the large chamber.

## Combat Breakdown

**Ongoing effects:**

* Skraak: +2 on attack rolls, saves, and skill checks from *heroism*.
* Hamid: +4 AC from *mage armor*.

**Initiative:** Colour, Azu (13), Cel (11), Zolf (11), Skraak (10), Hamid (10)

**Surprise round**

* Colour: The colour touches Cel and they make a Fortitude save of 14. They take 13 damage.

**Round 1**

* Colour: The colour touches Cel again. They make a Fortitude save of 17 and take 16 damage.
* Azu: Holds her action.
* Cel: Flies to Azu, provoking an attack of opportunity from the colour. It hits them and they make a Fortitude save of 11, taking 17 damage. Cel casts *cure light wounds* on themself and heals 7 hit points.
* Zolf: Casts *sanctuary* on himself and moves closer to Cel.
* Azu: Uses lay on hands on Cel, healing them 20 hit points, and moves further down the corridor.
* Skraak: Makes a Knowledge (dungeoneering) check of 20 to figure out what the colour is. They have no idea what the creature is but figures it is incorporeal.
* Hamid: Makes a Knowledge (arcana) check of 21 to figure out how to hurt the colour. He thinks it is immune to a lot of things but does not know what they specifically are. Hamid casts *fly* on himself.

**Round 2**

* Colour: Pokes up between Cel and Hamid. It reaches out for Hamid and he makes a Will save of 13. Hamid takes 4 Charisma drain and 1 Constitution drain.

## Trivia

* The incorporeal creature appears to be a colour out of space.