Chapter 01: The Ogre's Cave

[Rolf]

OOC:  forgot to ask, do we still have Blackjack's rope nearby?  Or have both it and the tree it was tied to been swallowed up by the fog?

[Pointyman2000]

He shouts to Portia, "Master Halfling, do you notice if the fog is creeping up the slope? Or is it holding where it is?"

Portia comes running over, "The fog's not natural, and it's already near the mouth of the cave!"

[zhenxiao]

Blackjack, who heard the others' voices talking about the fog, notices Eren standing near. 

grabbing the shield, he scampers back to the cave entrance, and props the shield up against the wall so that the designs face outside the cave entrance.

"pro'lly won't do anything, but seemed like the right thing to do."

[amosias]

Eren's brief glimpse of the craftwork on the shield -- just before Blackjack lugs it to the cave mouth -- suggests that it may have some magical properties infused - though the craftwork suggests that it was made far from these lands (perhaps an heirloom of a Thyatian family originally from the mainland).

Then he turns his attention to the water. The water itself seems magicked or of a magical nature, but the type and extent elude him -- perhaps the source of the water would lend more clues, he thinks.

Nearby, Boris shakes his head at the loss of a good length of rope. The entrance is still visible -- the fog hasn't come any further, with wisps and tendrils dancing about the edges. In theory, one could reach out and pull at it, since the rope trap was near the cave entrance...

Elsewhere in the cave, Hagar thinks he hears voices echoing, but try as he might, he can't quite catch what they're saying.

[maskmanjoe]

Eren nods at Blackjack. "I pray that does provide some protection for us." He looks back into Logbrag's lair. "But this now means we're trapped inside, till we somehow do something about that fog."

After realizing the odd nature of the water, Eren decides to try to detect if anything magical is inside the cave.

[OOC: Eren will do his readied Detect Magic spell. Do I have to roll anything for this? I couldnt find any instructions in the core rules.

[vladsee]

"No one dare step out if you want to live. This mist is unnatural and could claim people's lives." declares Hagar.

"But we should probably be safe as long as we are inside the cave.  Those outside are... probably gone.  We will have to wait it out." he says with resignation.     

[zhenxiao]

Blackjack shrugs as he looks at the shield he just placed at the entrance, then turned to Eren. 

"i'm very curious about the water dripping UP.  Shall we investigate?"

Blackjack goes back into the lair, along with Eren (ooc-I assume he walked back in), and looks for where the drips are coming from.

ooc - I'd also like to take a look at the point the stick/club holding the lantern is wedged into the wall.  Perhaps there is a doorway there.

[Popit]

Presto has been primarily quiet throughout the recent developments.  He is completely flabbergasted with the turn of events.  "It was so simple." he thinks to himself "kill the ogre, collect the bounty then move on.  But now, there is a red mist to think about."

Avoiding the blood on the floor, Presto, too, approaches the odd behaving water and eventually examines the torch to find...anything.

[amosias]

Eren's spell is completed, and -- to Eren's eyes -- the shield has a definite magical cast to it. It is arcane in nature despite the faint echoes of divine magic in the area.

The water is magical as well. It is not enchanted, but its very nature is magical and -- there is no direct translation from the elvish word, but it is similar to -- alien/foul/corrupted.

The bright fire is touched by divine magic.

Logbrag and his blood are not, though he suffers from something magical in nature -- perhaps month-long exposure to the water.

And Presto and Blackjack find an opening behind some of the rugs...

[zhenxiao]

Blackjack looks smugly at Presto.

"well well...what have we here?"

Blackjack takes the torch and shines it through the opening.

[maskmanjoe]

With the spell in effect, Eren trains his eyes around the cave. "This entire area is bathed in magic. Arcane and divine, as well as corrupted."  He looks at Logbrag. "Avoid the water, it is of a tainted nature. It seems whatever has inflicted this creature was because of the foul magic in the water." He looks over Presto Link and Blackjack...

[OOC: Do i see anything magical in the newly discovered opening?]

[ysigne]

Aside from seeing Logbrag's lair for himself, Blackjack's experienced eye notes a large wooden shield hidden beneath the furs -- apparently used by Logbrag uses it to support his back. There are two somewhat new
sacks tossed into a corner. Rusted, broken weapons and moist bric-a-brac are strewn about.

And as Blackjack expertly walks through the chamber avoiding the trickles and drips of cave water, he realizes something odd. The flame is unaffected because all the moisture in the cave is falling upward toward the ceiling.

OOC - While the main point of interest is probably the opening, I want to check the "somewhat new" sacks for any clues.

[Popit]

Presto is too intrigued by the opening behind the rugs that he acknowledges nothing else much less that of Eren or his remark.  Instead, Presto rummages through his pack to ready his candle. 

ooc: if the opening is wide enough for all to enter then Presto would like to take point.

[Rolf]

Casting a final suspicious glance at the fog, and unwilling to venture into the grayness for the sake of a rope, Boris turns again towards the cave entrance.  "With our luck, we'll need that need that rope within an hour.  Mark my words," he grumbled.

Catching everyone else's words, he looks curiously at the shield.

OOC: Does the shield look like it's been used for battle?  Dents, scratches (even tiny ones), etc?  Or if not that, how about wear and tear on the handles/straps on the inside?  Does the shield look like it's been carried about on someone's arm, or does it look like a display piece?  If it looks like it's been used for combat, would anyone mind if I use it in place of my own shield?

[amosias]

Close to the cave's entrance, where the mist seems to be keeping its distance, Boris looks over the shield. It has definitely been used in battle, and fairly recently. Otherwise, despite its battle-worthiness, it's seen little conflict -- perhaps a young Traladaran scion met his premature end nearby and contributed this shield to the ogre's meager treasure trove.

Nearer to the late ogre's bonfire, Gregor pulls upon the  sacks and finds a week’s worth of rancid meat and hard, moldy cheese interspresed with approximately 300 gp in Karameikan royals and krona.

Eren's magic-touched eyes see no overt magic through the opening.

Presto, judging that the entrance can be widened further by pulling aside more furs, readies his candle and gingerly steps past his compatriots into the cavern beyond.