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 Now is the time. Your gear is all checked, the waivers are all signed, the audience are waiting. They've kept you in a waiting room while the teams ahead of you take their shots -- wouldn't want to spoil the surprise. But as Adam the taskmage applies your voice-amplifying enchantments and leads you up towards the arena floor, you can hear the tail end of the last group's run. "...a real shame, Reg, they were going strong right up until Mary lost her footing there!" "In battle, balance is vital! A warrior on his back is meat for the slaughter!" "You got it Reg, and with their mage down for the count, our buddy Orvane was free to make short work of Mr. Grey and the Masked Lancer." The crowd bursts into laughter; they must be showing a replay. "An impressive showing, though; let's have a big round of applause for Team Three!" The ceiling of the entrance tunnel shakes above you as the crowd cheer. Adam checks his watch. "That's your cue, guys. Good luck out there." He gives Betty a wink. "Knock 'em dead." You emerge from the tunnel into scorching heat. Sand crunches beneath your boots, music booms from the speakers, and above you rises a great structure of stone, hundreds of feet high. "Behold, mortals! DJ Frostbite's latest masterpiece, a place of glory -- and death!" roars the announcer. The crowd chants with him: "The Temple of Ruin!"  The wastes stretching into the distance are an illusion, of course -- through the haze you can see the audience in their stands, hundreds of eyes gazing down on you in judgement and anticipation. "Haha, yes! Wonderful! Now, let's meet our next team!" The spotlights swing down to you, and the audience go quiet -- now is the time for you to make sure they remember you! Make it count! Introduce yourselves to the crowd! Feel free to roll a skill if you want to! Please include your character sheet in your first post!
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Oct 23, 2016 00:16
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| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 09:55 |
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Photine's light display is staggeringly bright -- a bit too bright maybe. The audience grunts and averts their eyes from the glare, their cries of annoyance drowning out her sweet intro speech... but they burst into thunderous applause when the Phoenix Queen emerges in full costume (and dramatically backlit)! What great effects! Looks like it's PQ 1, Photine 0 in the diva competition... Photine, how dare they! They - they think you're just her lighting girl! PQ's popularity increases! Photine's popularity decreases! Photine is now Angry! megane fucked around with this message at 06:02 on Oct 23, 2016 |
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Oct 23, 2016 05:59
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There's a nice shower of applause for Betty's demonstration. You'll be getting a few orders of those little smoke pellets, you're pretty sure! But as you finish your intro, you realize something's not right -- pat your pockets -- curses! You must have left one of your tools back in the locker room! Which one was it, and what are you going to have to do to get along without it? Siroko's grandstanding brings a grunt of disgust from up in the announcer's box.  DJ Frostbite stomps up to the window, and points one meaty finger down at Siroko with a furious snort. "Foolin' around? Pfah! More like 'enjoyin' yer last breath,' girlie!" He crosses his arms and grins, teeth showing through the bars of that impressive grill of his. "We'll see who's laughin' when you've got half a gallon of ol' Orvane's poison runnin' frough yer veins, now won't we?"  That seems to be the signal, and the shaggy figures near the temple entrance spread out to block your approach -- gnolls! Trace the announcer narrates, obviously reading from a pre-prepared description: "Having traveled many days across the burning sands, the adventurers finally stand before the gates of the ancient temple! But the Golden Key will not be theirs without a fight! Can these unlikely heroes overcome the brutal, savage guardians that stand in their path?" The gnolls' leader, a heavily-armored warrior with a long red banner, barks loudly to her followers, and they ready their spears and take up positions at the top of the path. However, it looks like they're hesitating to make the first move: the Phoenix Queen's entrance clearly has them a little unsure of their chances. A pack of gnolls bars the way! What do you do? megane fucked around with this message at 03:53 on Oct 25, 2016 |
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Oct 25, 2016 03:35
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At Janine's taunting, the gnoll leader grimaces, points at the undead brawler, and then hoists her flag high into the air with an echoing howl! But before her pack can charge, Photine seizes the initiative, searing them all with blazing light! Heaven or Hell! Let's Rock!  Roll20 is set up right here! This round you guys can all go before the enemy due to PQ's bonus; Photine still has her move and role actions left. Next round we'll roll initiative. Post your actions here; once you log in to Roll20 I'll assign your token to you and you can move it around yourself. Feel free to ask questions if I forgot to mention something! megane fucked around with this message at 06:24 on Oct 25, 2016 |
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Oct 25, 2016 06:21
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"Let the battle commence! Victory shall be wrought in blood!" shouts the announcer as the Phoenix Queen and Janine charge up the steps. Quick as a flash, the martial artist shags ahold of the gnolls' leader, and before she can so much as struggle, Janine lands a staggering blow directly to the kidney! The crowd roars, and the armored gnoll slumps into unconsciousness. "Wow, and an impressive one-two-punch opener from Team Four! That Joplin kid sure has guts!" "I'm not sure the gnoll does anymore, though!" Trace and Reggie roar with laughter. Gnoll Leader annihilated! Janine's Death Mark goes off, damaging all the gnolls and Distracting one of the mages.The gnolls are obviously shaken by the loss of their hero, but they grit their fangs and mount a counterattack! The spearmen slip past everyone, moving to flank the Phoenix Queen. Though dizzy from Betty's hex, one digs its teeth deep into PQ's heel, and the other smashes her to the ground with the haft of its spear! Meanwhile, the mages, cowering behind the statues at the top of the stairs, have been charging their spells. Static crackles throughout the arena as they let loose a voltaic barrage of lightning bolts, sending the party sprawling! "Gnoll vengeance!" "Or is it gnoll mercy, Reg?" Spearman A shifts 3, and CRITS with Spear Strike for 6/2 - 1 = 2. Spearman B moves to flank, and hits with Knockdown for 3-1 = 2. PQ is knocked Prone and will grant an Opportunity to this guy if she stands up on her turn! Mage B misses PQ with a Lightning Bolt! The Mages still do 1 damage on a miss, so she gets singed a little. Mage A catches everyone else in a Thunderstorm, but misses Photine. Siroko, Betty, and Janine all get knocked Prone and take Ongoing 2 damage! ...then I rolled initiative and got a 5, so the gnolls go before all of you  Both Spearmen whiff their second round of attacks -- what losers. One Mage zaps PQ for 1 damage and 2 Ongoing (save ends) and the other misses Janine. "Things are looking dire for the Phoenix Queen, folks! Can our heroes pull through?" You guys' turn. Feel free to go in whatever order you like. megane fucked around with this message at 02:59 on Oct 27, 2016 |
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Oct 27, 2016 02:54
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The team repeat their deadly strategy: the Phoenix Queen latches onto one unlucky gnoll, and Photine's dazzling light spray puts an end to him -- in a spectacularly gory fashion. The Phoenix Queen's outfit is drenched in blood! "Yes! The pale one's bloodthirst is strong!" "Ahaha, don't worry folks -- I'm... sure he'll be all right!" Spearman executed with inpunity! Siroko and Janine fail to find purchase, but as Betty's concoction explodes into ghostly flames, the gnollish wizards suddenly find themselves surrounded by fire, and with a furious wight hurtling right towards them! They make the tactical decision to get the hell away. One calls forth a mighty gust of wind, hurling Janine backwards -- and off the edge of the staircase! She hits the desert sand with a thud, swearing bloody vengeance. The other mage tags Siroko with a searing lightning bolt to the arm, and then they both retreat out of the spreading flames. The last remaining warrior is beaten, winded, and threatened on all sides, but he's not giving up yet. With a cruel grin, he dodges nimbly away, barely ducking out from under the Phoenix Queen's grasping fists, and buries his spear into the side of poor Siroko! The crowd gasps. "And the whiz-kid from Portland goes down! What a fight!" Mage A casts Push and gets a 3, pushing Janine off the ledge (she misses her save to hold on). Janine takes 2 damage from falling! Mage B CRITS Siroko from 2 damage and 2 Ongoing (save ends). Siroko takes a Strike for getting bloodied. The last Spearman shifts 2 and hits Siroko for 4! PQ gets an Opportunity and hits him for 3 damage. Siroko is KOed (she's not Taken Out until -5 HP; she's just unconscious). Siroko takes 2 more Strikes for getting KOed for the first time. Oh no! megane fucked around with this message at 18:08 on Oct 27, 2016 |
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Oct 27, 2016 18:00
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 Victory!With a devastating flourish from Siroko, the last gnolls go down, and the crowd burst into applause. "A hard-fought battle for our heroes! Let's hear it for Team Four!" The big screen overhead shows some highlights of the fight: Janine's vicious sucker-punch, Siroko's finisher, a suplex from the Phoenix Queen, and the ghostly explosion of Betty's concoction. W-wait, is that it? Photine, they left you out again! What assholes! However, the screen above suddenly switches to a view of DJ Frostbite up in the announcers' booth, chowing down on popcorn and watching a replay of Siroko getting speared. He chuckles, rewinds it, and plays through it again. The audience snigger along with him. "Ooh, that looks painful, girlie, ya sure yer all right?" Frostbite whips out a microphone and steps out onto the landing to point at you. "No shame in admitting ol' Frostbite's dungeons' a bit tough for a little newbie like yerself, Ms. Tuuli!" There are a few boos from the audience, which he laps up with glee. "In fact, here:" He pulls out a healing potion and dangles it over the arena. "How's about I give ya a little help? All ya gotta do is ask!" There's that smug grin again... Meanwhile, the stone gates of the Temple of Ruin slowly grind open, revealing a dimly-lit antechamber dominated by a large, square pool of dark water. Statues of gnoll maidens pouring water from vases keep it full, and the ripples send weird patterns of light across the sandstone ceiling. Very high-production-value stuff. In the center of the pool is a tiny island topped by a heavy, iron-bound chest; other than that, the room seems empty. Siroko is Exhausted. But the gnolls are toast and the way into the temple is clear!
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Oct 29, 2016 23:34
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| # ¿ Apr 27, 2024 09:55 |
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The DJ shrugs expansively. "Have it yer way," he snorts, and then chugs the potion himself and grins. "Ahh, delicious." He makes sure to turn the bottle so that the camera can get a good look at the label on the side. Wonder how much he got paid for that? But there's no time to quip back at him, as Photine sweeps into the temple, heedless of danger and gleaming brightly! ...and there is an ominous click under her heels. Whoops! A section of floor gives way underneath her, and she's sent plummeting inelegantly downwards. The audience gasps, but then their surprise turns to laughter as she lands with a thump one floor down. "Bahaha, the devious pit trap claims yet another foolish victim! Excellent!" Photine, as you dust yourself off, you find yourself in a twisting stone corridor which would probably be pitch black if not for your own illumination. The walls down here are made of sandstone and covered in faux-ancient mosaics: images of what look like famous X-Crawlers from the past, strange beasts, and the NXCA logo (of course). Maybe six feet over your head, the trapdoor hangs open, and you can see your beloved comrades peering down at you. The air has a weird, funky smell to it -- ick! The rest of the team enter the temple safely. Inside the stone walls, the sounds of the crowd are muffled, but you know they're watching you via big screens, magical scrying, and so on. The announcer's voice comes from overhead; there must be a speaker somewhere: "Having fought their way into the accursed halls of the Temple of Ruin, our heroes seek out the object of their quest: the long-lost Chalice of Kings! But their trials are only just beginning..." Dramatic-sounding incidental music rises in the background. If you're not too distracted looming over poor Photine, you'll soon notice that aside from the pool, chest, and trapdoor, this room has two obvious exits, through heavy wooden doors on the side walls. However, both are firmly shut; perhaps there's some locking mechanism? Each one bears an inscription in some presumably-arcane language. Siroko and Photine get an AP each for using their complications! Photine's Winded but otherwise okay; remember that Winded goes away if you get a drink and a few minutes to rest. What do you do?
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Nov 6, 2016 08:37
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