The Megadungeon

>>519580
>>519580

Ishmael

HP: 4/7
AC: 2
XP: 50/1000

Stats

Str - 11 (+2)
Dex - 8 (+1)
Con - 7 (+1)
Int - 9 (+1)
Wis - 7 (+1)
Cha - 9/11 (+1)

Skills

Awareness
Decipher
Lore
Survival

Special Abilities

Command: Can command demons, spirits and elementals (you are not aware of this
ability yet)
Lucky: Once per day, turn a miss into a partial success
Tough: +1 Armor
Slayer: +2 Melee Damage

Inventory/Equipment

Lizardman Bone Sword (d6+1)
Throwing Knives (d6-1) (x1/3)
Light Armor (Armor 1)
Gem Necklace (50s)
Purse of Silver (50s)

Occult Items (x2)

>>519583
HP:6/7*

>>519585
Should I be voting for something or are you still writing?

>>519672
See last post: >>513102

Actually I think I'll hit the hay for now. Will start back up first thing in the morning. Have lots of interesting things planned for this quest!

>>519580
Ask if he's the warlock and offer our services. Apologize for trespassing and tell him about the search for our origin.
For future reference you should just repost the most recent update at the start of each new thread to facilitate voting

Bump. Let's get things started. I'll wait for a few more responses then update.

>>519717
Supporting.

>>519717
Supporting

>>520253
>>520263
>>519717
"Are you...are you the warlock everyone's been talking about?"
"I suppose that I am. I didn't realize word had gotten out, but genius can seldom be contained. And I believe I asked you a question." The high voice takes on a dangerous tone.
"Yes. I'm very sorry for trespassing, but I believe my...situation might be of interest to you."
"Your situation."
"Yes."
"And what might that be?"
"I'm not entirely sure. What I do know, is that I'm not human. I was made. Created. I just don't know how or by whom."
"And you thought, I, was the one who created you?"
"It was a possibility, but I figured you at least had some information." The mouse sighs, which is a curious thing to see.
"Normally I'd kill you where you stand and take your organs. But I'm currently in something of a good mood. We'll see if your story checks out, you might have some use." Then the mouse raises his paw. I recoil back, but its too late, invisible arms have grabbed my grabbed my body, rendering me immobile.

The mouse walks through the open doorway. I'm carried by the invisible hands, following right behind him. I cannot budge a single inch from the grip, try as I might.

The hallway continues for about 50' before a fork in the path where the mouse takes a right. Then a chute descends further below into the keep.

I am in a room of dazzling light and space. The ceiling is high and curved the floor is perfectly waxed the walls are of cut stone bricks. All manner of arcane instruments are scattered like toys around the room. A 7' cage hangs in the center of the room, covered by a great black tarp. Below it, intricate runic circles have been etched into the stone.

I am carried to some kind of operating table and shackled and chained.
"Can't have you trying anything now can we?" Says the mouse. Then disappears among his tools.

>I should demand to be released
>I should ask about his...rodent situation
>I should ask about this place
>Write-in

>>520284
>I should ask about this place
Is there a demon in that cage?

>>520284
>I should ask about this place
Ask about that thing that stole our eye and the marking it left in our eye socket

>>520289
>>520293
I try to be casual and nonchalant.
"So what's with the cage? You have a demon in there or something?"
"Demons? What do you know of demons? And no, it's the final ingredient in a very long and costly experiment."
"What kind of ingredient needs a cage?" No response at first.
"Well, I suppose there's no harm in showing you." The tarp moves off by itself, revealing a sleeping lizardman. "I had a different specimen in mind at first, but even the best plans are subject to change. In the end I think this works out for the better. These creatures have excellent endurance, strength and regenerative properties. And not much intelligence to boot, which makes the process almost effortless." The mouse is talking to himself at this point.

"How long have you been down here?"
"Long enough." The mouse starts to crawl across my body, inspecting it. His little feet and hands tickle me. He stops when comes to my hands.
"What's this? I don't recognize this script..."
"It's Ciruac. It reads 'seven'." The mouse crawls up to my chest.
"Hmm, strange." He notices my missing eye. "You looked at that silly mosaic didn't you? That imbecile lizard was also afflicted with a curse." He crawls back down my body onto the floor.
"How do I get rid of it?"
"How should I know?"
"Alright. Well, then what about my hands? What am I? How was I made?"
"We'll find out very shortly." There's something wrong with the way he said that...minutes later he crawls back up on my chest with a razor blade between his hands.
"You have no idea how difficult it is to get things done in this body. I will be glad to be rid of it soon."
"What are you doing with that razor blade?"
"I need some blood samples, hold still."
"Wait-ah!" The mouse makes an incision on my chest and draws blood into a vial. Then he scampers off. Minutes pass in silence.
"Hello? Are you still there?" No response. I test my shackles--I won't be breaking out of here anytime soon. "Hello?"
"Well you're quite an interesting specimen. But you'll have to wait. I've been waiting for the fruition of my transformation for a long time."
"What are you talking about? What transformation?" The mouse giggles (another strange thing to witness).
"10 years ago I discovered a ritual for transferring one's soul into another body. Normally such a transfer could only be temporary for the body would soon reject the soul. But, there were exceptions. Demon's for one, could possess a body for as long as they wanted. I wanted to know how." The mouse sighs as he makes adjustments to the etchings on the floor. "Yes, it was quite troublesome to capture the demon and even more so to convince him to impart with his secret. But, with enough 'negotiation' and patience I came to know what I needed to know. That was five years ago. The preparations were perfect. Everything was according to a carefully laid plan. And then--and then a mouse, a little mouse, this mouse ran into the runic circle. "
(1/2)

>>520354
"Go ahead and laugh if you wish. But no matter. At last my preparation are again complete and now meddling mouse will keep me from my immortality." The mouse starts to chant in an ancient language and runes below the cage start to glow in a hellish light.

An invisible choir begins to sing, the candleflames start to wane into the darkness. The high pitched voice becomes deeper and deeper. The chant becomes hypnotic. I don't know how much time passes...

Then as abrupt as stepping into a cold bath, everything stops. Total silence. I try and crane my neck to look at the cage. It's empty.
"Hello?"
"Hahahaha! HAHAHA! It worked! It worked! Ah sweet merciful gods it worked! I feel so...so powerful. I can live on forever...I have cheated death itself! And as for you..." He walks over to me. "We shall find out your secrets in time." He runs a razor-sharp claw down my chest, a thin line of blood follows it. "Fascinating. Human in form, but de--" Uh-oh.

Suddenly my mouth and nose begin to burn and water.
"Oshkuloto! I've come for your soul." The warlock-turned-lizard turns around to face the voice.
"O-omel? How?" He turns back to me, his face wears an ugly grimace of rage and fear.

>I should try to get out of these bonds (roll 2d6+2)
>I should try asking for Omel's help
>I should lie and say I don't know any 'Omel'
>Write-in

>>520379
Also we're going back to the old set of roll rules. Snake-eyes and boxcars are crit fails and successes respectively. All else is averaged.

>>520379
>I should try asking for Omel's help

>>520379
>I should try asking for Omel's help

>>520379

Lie. If the warlock dies we will never fully understand what we are. Ask the warlock to free us so we can help him survive.

>>520426
Might not really be worth it considering the cutting and the imprisonment

Rolled 1, 5 = 6 (2d6)

>>520426

Actually tell him we encountered omel before and lived, but you wont tell how unless released. When he asks how lie and say omel just lost interest in us and continued on, seemingly with a purpose. Warlock will be mad but it would be pointless and unwise for him to kill us at that point.

Roll just in case you need it

>>520383
>>520399
"Omel! Help me with these bonds! Please!" Asking a demon for help a second time, how far I've sunk, but self-pity can come later.
"You! Argh, damn it!" Says Omel. His body betrays him and runs over to my table. The warlock takes this opportunity to grab a few things and run.

"Damn you mortal! I had him! What are you? Why can I not simply kill you?" Says Omel as he unlocks my chains. I sit up and rub my wrists. Omel doesn't wait for you to respond, as soon as you're free, he runs after the warlock.
"That's what I'm trying to find out." I say, but Omel and warlock are long gone.

>I should chase after them too
>I should take a look around
>I should get out of here, this whole journey has been a disaster
>Write-in

>

>>520460
>I should take a look around

Rolled 4, 1 = 5 (2d6)

>>520460
>I should chase after them too

Rolled 3, 2 = 5 (2d6)

>>520460
>I should take a look around
Well we've got some clues at least. The warlock said we're a demon with a human form and we can somehow force demons to obey us. Rolling just in case I need to for some reason.

Rolled 4, 5 = 9 (2d6)

>>520460
>I should take a look around
Rolling just in case.

>>520470
>>520482
>>520551
It's to cut my losses. No sense in running after those two, I'll take what I can from here and hightail it out.

Most of the apparatuses are completely alien to me. I'm actually afraid to even touch them. Instead I go for a set of cabinets and a lockbox next to the table.

The lockbox contains a purse of coins--a mix of electrum and gold. The gold coins are useless but the electrum ones have some silver and therefore some value.

The cabinets contain some old clothes. There's a set of stockings and an apron still in good condition. The rest are full of holes--which is strange, because the stockings and apron are as much covered with dust as everything else. They shouldn't have been spared the rats' appetite.


Choose two:

- Purse of coins (250s)
- Stockings
- Apron

>>520576
- Purse of coins (250s)
- Stockings

>>520592
This I guess. So those shitty rolls really fucked us over with the loot or something?

>>520595
Not all that glitters, is gold.

>>520592
Supporting.

>>520592
>>520595
>>520637
I brush the dust off of the stockings and take it and the purse of coins. Then I look around the room for an exit.

There are two: the first is a chute leads up the way I came. The second is a passage which leads deeper into the underkeep, the same passage that the warlock and Omel went into.

>Head through the chute
>Head through the passage
>Write-in

>>526178
>Head through the passage

>>526178
>Head through the passage

>>526410
>>526819
I could leave now. And maybe I should. I've almost died several times, lost an eye, and for what? A couple of silver coins and a pair of stockings? I'm no closer to finding the truth my own origins.

No. I can't leave. I have to have some clue. Something. I continue through the passage. It extends for 50' before sharply turning right, then another right, then a small wooden door which opens easily.

I'm in a large room. There's a checkerboard floor with alternating tiles of black and white. Linear grooves are set into the tiles, along their edges and through their diagonals. Stone statues--also of alternating color, black and white like the tiles--stand in a random pattern on the corners of the tiles. They are all identical, depicting a fearsome looking man with boils on one side of his face. It's the same person as depicted on the mosaic.

There are 4 exits to this room. One lies 10' from the door I came in through, the other two lie on the southern and eastern wall (the latter is on the southeastern side, straight across from the door I entered through).

>I should examine the statues
>I should check one of the doors (which?)
>Write-in

>>527215
Shit man, I don't know. Eastern door?

>>527215
>>I should examine the statues

>>527835
It's like you actually want us to lose our other eye

>>527881
Hey, if examining the statues is wrong, then I don't want to be right.

>>527215
>I should examine the statues

So we're done trying to chase the warlock and the demon already? Why?

>>528408
Because they can kill us with a finger flick.

File: Floor.png (31KB, 1030x1000px) Image search: [Google]

31KB, 1030x1000px

>>527835
>>528335
Drawing close to the statues I can see their hideous features in full glory. The statues seem to run on the grooves of the floor. Testing their weight I can see that they are heavy, but not immovable.

I take note of each statue and draw a simple diagram of their positions in the dust. Perhaps it's some kind of trap? Or maybe a puzzle?

>I should experiment by moving the statues around
>I should leave this place

>>528422
Yeah, need more clues, let's move some statues.

>>528422
>I should leave this place

>>528422
Try moving the statues.

>>528430
>>528785
Experimenting with the statues I discover a few things:

1. Only the black statues can be moved, the white ones are immovable.
2. As I suspected, the statues can only move along the grooves on the floor.
3. Each statue has to be moved all the way to the corner of another square. Moving it half-way causes it to snap back into position, when released.

I haven't tried moving any of the statues all the way yet, I'm afraid of what might happen if I do.

>Move a statue (which one?) to another corner (which corner)
>Leave this place (through which door?)

>>528934
Move 3rd statue on top (counting from left to right)
Move it diagonally right/down

>>529121
>>528934
Gonna go to sleep but will try to figure the puzzle tomorrow if we'r still around here.

>>528934
>Leave this place (through which door?)
We're here to find out about our birth with the wizard. Go through the east door

>>528422
We need more clues. Perhaps there is a solution key or hint somwhere to give us an idea of the puzzle objective. For now move on but remember where the puzzle is

>>529201
>>534405
There is not enough information here to atempt anything. And if the mosaic has taught me anything, its that nothing is to be trusted in this place.

I head for the eastern door. The knob turns easily, but the door is jammed. I launch my shoulder against the door and it bursts open into a cavernous hallway. Parts of the ceiling have collapsed, blocking passage.

>I should explore this hallway
>I should try one of the other doors, clearly the wizard didn't go this way
>I should leave this place entirely

>>534565
>I should try one of the other doors, clearly the wizard didn't go this way

>>534565
>I should try one of the other doors, clearly the wizard didn't go this way

Alright sporadic posting is clearly killing this quest, so lets try this:

I will post every morning starting at 8-9AM EST until noon. On weekends we'll do the same, but continue into the afternoon. If I don't bump by 10 AM, assume I am not going to update that day.

We'll see if we can get back the users we had in the beginning, if not, I'll have to scrap the quest and try something else

New thread tomorrow, 8-9AM be there.

New thread: >>539273