High Rollers DnD - High Rollers: Aerois #157 | The Mourning Garden (Part 1)

Episode Date: August 24, 2022

Valla opens a tear into Kellara's Domain allowing the Stormchasers to battle with the Titan of Death! Support the High Rollers and get early access to podcast episodes and Studio updates on our Patreon: www.patreon.com/HighRollers Grab some High Rollers merch: https://freshmerch.fm/collections/high-rollers Music courtesy of Epidemic Sound & TCT Adventures (Solasta: Crown of the Magisters) Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Pickaxe. Welcome back to Aroes. The champions of Aroes have traveled to the continent of Jakesh to seek out the Breachpoint that would allow them access to the Demiplane of Killara, Titan of Aroes given divine power over death. However, reaching the Breachpoint was already a challenge. In jungles swarming with hive-minded, plant-like undead, a tragic company of guardian scouts on the edge of breaking,

and pursued by a shadowy stalker, the party have faced hardship after hardship. Eventually, they reach Nightbloom Hold, once monastery and training grounds for Clara's heroic knights, the Order of the Blackened Rose, the ones protected against undead and those who defiled death, now sadly turned into the antithesis of their origins. Undead living soldiers forced to swiftly kill the

living for some unknown purpose, and leading them the four most powerful champions of Killara, the Knight Commanders. Having already dispatched Cerise Fairwind, Knight, Archer and Scout transformed into a being of pestilence and poisons, the Plague Knight. The party charged forth into the keep, destroying waves of undead and troops, and came up against Lady Elwyn and Ser Lamelies, the War Knight and Famine Knight. As she fought, Nova Vija conducted her own mission and teleported away from the party, providing a guiding light for the champion's airship, the Stormchaser, to rain down arcane blasts upon a colossal corrupted tree within the hole

that seemed to be a key part of their undead power. With the tree destroyed and the knights defeated, the party rushed on, fearing that the strongest knight commander would be able to resurrect the tree and return the other champions to life. And in the Grand Temple itself, they fought Ser Godric Graves, the Death Knight. grand temple itself they fought sir godric graves the death knight one of their toughest battles yet the champions narrowly defeated sir godric and after brief discussions were made they believe they have finally had time to rest and recover before facing the titan of death herself killara's demiplane awaits and my friends that is where we jump back into today. Narrowly indeed.

Narrowly indeed. Two of us on one health, I think two of us down. Well, and a third failed death saving throw that was prevented from with Quill's magic. Yeah. Very, very close. But cool! But we did it! Nova's fine. Nova's chill.

You've done it. it yes Nova in fact was one of the key reasons that Nova and Veeja sorry Nova and Ayla are having oh you should have called your echo thing

Veeja they're literally called Tiangong they already have they already had a name since episode one yeah I know but if not episode zero

yeah but it's been four years yeah four years man Chris, four years, man. Chris Trott! For podcast listeners, if you hear just a gentle breeze, it's because the player is dead. It's the winds of death. The winds of death!

No, the breeze isn't here. It's just to keep the players... You destroyed him. He is gone. Please use the chosen title of Lord Veracitor. Oh, very true, actually. And not Nova's mum's name. I refuse to use that title.

There's two friends in our studio. Yeah, that's it. So, you are currently all in the not quite ruined, but definitely bleak Temple of Calara. All of the furniture, the pews taken out. Not sure where they've gone, but just piles of broken lanterns. The altar that once contained the celestial body that you actually sent back to the celestial realms

through an act of mercy, mercy kill. Max and Valor are now both with you. Valor having transported in and giving the guidance that you should absolutely rest before you do the Enkalara. Which we did. Which you are doing, yes. So you have a long rest, eight hours. You can take a long rest on your count sheets. You can do that now. I did it last time. Confidently.

But it's eight hours. Obviously some of you are going to be sleeping and regaining spells. Elves, you get four hours of light activity to do other things um max will recuperate quite quickly uh so he will certainly have some time um to he'll have like sort of two three hours to do light activity and other things with as well um and yeah this is your opportunity to basically any discussions you guys want to have any plans you want to make um any things that you want to do uh before you go in i will tell you that, yeah, with Valor's kind of like suggestion and everything else, it's not hard for you guys to figure out that you definitely have some time, at least sort of maybe sort of 24 hours before you are in any danger of threats

from the Knights being reborn somewhere else or a Rot Heart, you know, emerging elsewhere and things like that. So you do have some time, not a lot of time, but some time. Cool. So is Valar now preparing to... Yes, Valar is basically conducting a ritual, which when you are ready, she will open the rift, open the breach point and take you through to Clara's demi-plane. But she's ready to go when you are.

It's more you guys need the time to rest and get your energy back, all that stuff. Just as a point of admin, I've reattuned to the teleportation. You did mention, yes, you mentioned that last time. Oh, also we leveled up four times. Nope. Small admin note.

But I will tell you, when you defeat Clara, you will level up. Whoa! I feel like I'm on the edge of leveling up, everybody. You've been edging this whole time. I'm edging hard. It will be a significant milestone for you to defeat the Titan of Death. Damn straight. I mean, not just the Titan, but all the four.

Yeah, the four. Through the jungle. You have all learnt much, and your skills have been expanded, but not quite yet. Lose much. Yeah, exactly. Exactly. Right. So, what do you guys do um the room that we were in that we fought so god rake it the room where it happened yeah yeah um

i don't know why i said that where the altar was the way the celestial was you mentioned before there was a lantern is that still there yeah still, it's still there. It's the only lantern that hasn't been destroyed. And does it look fancy? It looks fancy, if you're asking. It's not a magic item or anything like that. It is made of silver.

It looks precious and sacred. It's inscribed with celestial writings, which if at any point if anybody reads you know it's not a secret to like reveal it they're basically prayers to kalara to guide the dead uh to the light beyond and many other things and it looks to be like it is a a it's set into the altar it's not it can't be removed it's like like it's like clamped into and focused and built into the shaped from the the altar itself. But I mean, with enough force, it could be removed. With enough force, it could be removed.

Can it still? It has a very thin, weak candle, which is what's giving light into it. I was going to ask, can it still be lit? It could be, but you would need to replace the candle in it or something like that. Can we go candle? I mean, yeah, there's actually loads around. This monastery probably has light.

That's true. In fact, there's loads all the way around. Wasn't the discussion when we came in here is like the room is full of candles. Lined with candles, yeah, it's not difficult. If someone say fire hazard, that's this room. The candle, yeah, I mean, you could, you could. If you'd like to figure out more about the lantern,

you can make a religion check. I have plus nine religion, i'd like to do that do you yeah she's nova she's religious i read books okay i think it's less religious more reads books 16 plus 9 yeah 25 this lantern is not intended to be a functional lantern it is a symbolic lantern a lantern normally would have like an oil lamp uh to shine more light. A candle really doesn't give much light. And this one is only set to take a candle. It looks like it is part of a ceremony that a candle is placed in it and then lit as maybe prayers or like some sort of big religious ceremony. And you think that the reason that it's probably been spared is that even with their whatever compelled them to destroy all the other lanterns,

that even with their whatever compelled them to destroy all the other lanterns there was part of either that command or some part of the knights that still remained theirs their own will that couldn't either bring themselves to do it or they weren't instructed to destroy it or they were told to leave this one separately um but it's it's yeah it's more of a symbolic lantern it's not very large um very small um but just beautifully made. A sacred object more than a magical light. I guess while we're waiting, I imagine Max is looking for armor and stuff like that. Can I just light the lantern?

Yeah, yeah, sure. You can go find one of the candles, which it's a fairly tall, it's still got plenty of hours of light left to it, but it's unlit. You kind of pluck that free, maybe having to rip the wax away from the others where it's melted down previously and then you can take it and then place it inside it's not hard to light it even if you know whatever magic or whatever you

use create bonfire creates magical fire uh no yeah you you light the candle and it's very soft No, yeah, you light the candle, and it's a very soft golden yellow. Just barely illuminates the altar that it's placed on, really. Not enough light to do much else. But, yeah, there's a subtleness to it. And the flame seems weak. It seems dim, even for a candle. Even for the big, yeah. As if, yeah, like it's struggling.

Okay. And using science brain, would I be like there's something else happening here? I think that that religion check, it's more religious. It's more like this is obviously connected to some part of Kalara. Kalara's will or something. Yeah, like the nature of her will and her duty. It's just barely flickering. As if it was like caught in a strong wind.

Yeah. I'll just sit with that candle for a bit, I think. While everyone else is doing other stuff. It's a very somber moment. I talk to Vala. Hello, Quill. Hi. So I know that you are able to, you know,

pierce a kind of door into her domain, but do you have any indication at all of what is on the other side before you break through? I have the barest of visions. I can see shapes more. It's more... the demiplane itself is a manifestation of Clara's will. So it's more that I have an image of what she holds in her mind as the place of her power, if you can imagine that. Clara sees herself as a caretaker. She was once a goddess of a titan of life and of growth. So in her mind's eye, what I see now is a combination of those things.

It is a mausoleum, but it is also a garden. She calls it the Mourning Garden. Mourning as in to mourn the dead, but the symbology of mourning and dawn and like also comes hand in hand. The Mourning Garden is what I would refer to her as her domain. Yeah, it's just I'm trying to figure out, is this going to be a fight? Is this going to be a trial like the others?

I have a feeling that it will be a little of both I think that you have experience I would go into this expecting a battle like Zephia Where she will be trying to stop you Trying to stop you, stop her But it will not be as simple as Zephia. Zephia was not a complex Titan, not a complex being. Her feelings, her domains were simple. Adventure, glory, the wonderful spirit of adventure, but also of fury and storms. And so the battle against her was much like that.

With Calara, she is far more complicated. She's one of the eldest, she's the eldest of Siaska's daughters, second only to Atelius. Her domain itself, this duty that she's been given is complex, and it is counter to the nature that she once held. She is very powerful. There may be things that you will need to decipher, weaknesses that you need to discover. I can't really say for sure, but I would expect a little of both elements.

Where Valena's challenge was an an aspect of challenge of ourselves almost, this will be a challenge against Calara's nature. I do not think that strength alone will serve you, but I do think you will need to fight and defeat her with battle as well. I'm sorry that I can't be much more help. Well, one thing that to consider though this will be our third Titan that we face together and if you remember in the forge with Valena, even though I had to focus my powers, I had to focus to help her, I was still able to offer you some aid with certain abilities and things that I could manifest. When we fought Zephira I couldn't do that. My entire being was focused on creating my own demi-plane within hers to keep us safe. I think this time I'll be able to do both.

I think as my powers are growing I'll be able to maintain my own domain, my own space, and protect you, but I'll also be able to offer you some of those boons that I did before. Only if I'm not distracted, however. If something happens to me, I may not be able to. But I think I should mostly be able to do that. Okay, so if we require your aid, we just need to call.

Yes, in fact. And mechanically... We can have that. Mechanically, how does that work? mechanically mechanical i'll read these out so that everyone knows but you can have that as a reminder so valor will offer you so valor will provide you with three powers during this encounter um each one can only be used once any character can use it um can use any of them you just need to call out that you want to use it. Some of them have to be used at a certain time.

Some of them can be used anytime. Some of them are sort of like reactions, but the other ones are just whenever you need them, basically. There are three powers. Fates, Reversal. Basically, Valor can reverse ill luck and allow you to reroll an attack roll, saving throw, or ability check, or force an enemy to reroll an attack roll, saving throw, or ability check, or force an enemy to re-roll an attack roll made against you. That re-roll will ignore any advantage or disadvantage either target has.

So if you have a disadvantage on something, you just basically make one roll instead, and you just take that. Again, all of these are once per. You've got a little reminder if you need it. The one that I think made Tom's eyes go, it's called Time's Echo. Yeah, that was it again. One player may immediately take an additional turn

after their turn ends. However, any attacks and spells they cast or do deal half damage, and they restore half the amount of hit points during that turn, that extra turn. They can move, cast other spells, and use other abilities and items as normal. But any hit points you restore through any means,

whether it's through a potion or lay on hands or anything like that, it's half the amount. Any attacks or spells feel half damage during that bonus turn. You have 1.5 turns, basically. Yes. Well, I mean, there may be other elements of this encounter that do not require attack rolls and spells

that may be beneficial for you to use. Okay, okay. The last one is called Spatial Rift, and this is a similar one to the one that she had before. She can create two portals within 90 feet of each other. Each portal has an active face as chosen by yourself. They're big enough for medium creatures to move through, and they act as connected points,

so you can actually channel ranged attacks and spells through them as well. So you could fire a lightning bolt into one, and then it will come out the other side as if they were a connected space. Oh, thinking with Paul's. That was the one thing I wish I'd done with Arcane Gate. It was the one thing we never really did.

Well, it's also Arcane Gate, unfortunately doesn't expressly state that element that they're connected spaces. But in this case, I'm going to clarify that they are. So those are the three powers Valor can do for you. And like I said, you've got a little reminder card there about those mechanics. And they are one per each. Okay.

That's it, once they're gone. Also, Valor cannot be incapacitated to use them. She has to be with you and conscious and able to use her power. Cool. Okay. All right. that's very cool. I mean, outside of what I can do to help you and outside knowing the sort of space we'll be encountering, all I can tell you is to... This will not be a straight fight but a fight i think is inevitable i don't think that i don't think with even even if you were to deliver the most most

moving speech possible i am not sure kalara will listen at this point to see how far she had gone with the knights to see the the evil for lack of a better word, that she's done here, I think that she's too far gone for any sort of rational or logic to reach her. Yeah, Lucius will join in at this point hearing that. The fact that I couldn't even get through to La Melise doing my most potent dominion of mind, and I felt like I really got through to her, even then, it was Clara that stopped it.

She had a great hold on these champions, I feel. Max will probably say at this point, the one exception to that, I feel, is Sir Godric. He did not seem to be as... I don't know, he did not hesitate in the same… he hesitated at one point, is what I meant to say. There was a moment when I'm sure he could have killed Quill, and if Quill had died he would not have been able to save Sentry. Godric didn't take it. He attacked the rest of us instead. I noticed it as a soldier myself,

as somebody who has made that killing strike. He didn't. Out of all of them, I think he was the only one who was not fully compelled, fully transformed under her will. I don't know why, I could be wrong. I just had that sensation. Hmm. He struck me as a man of undying loyalty, much like myself to the Emperor. Could it have been his strength that made him less susceptible to Clark's will, perhaps?

Not so much his strength of body, but strength of will. I think like you and I, Sentry, we have sworn oaths to certain things that we believe in. Yes. I think that Ser Godric was the same. There was some part of whatever honour or oaths or beliefs, truth that he has that stopped him killing Quill. And I can't say it. He certainly didn't hesitate to attack the rest of us

to cause harm, but there was something in that moment. Maybe he sensed something else, I don't know. Maybe. Hmm, I hope we don't have to face that version of him again and that we can give him peace. I certainly hope so. Yeah, well, in terms of fighting, I mean, Aela, your hammer's looking, it's looked better.

And sentries, your lance and armor is the same. Yeah. There is, I've just done a brief, I scouted just outside, just briefly whilst some of you were resting. There is a forge here, as I thought, connected to the barracks. I could, I think I could mend the damage done. I'm certainly, I can't make magical equipment. I can't make your equipment better in any way, but most of the damage is fixable, I think.

My father was a smith and taught me what he knew. Do you need any resources? I think there's plenty here. There's a lot of armor out there on the knights that we felled and the squires and weapons that I can melt down. Enough, I'll reclaim some for my own use. There's at least a suit of armor I think I can fix up to fit me. A few weapons I can probably scavenge, although not ideally my preferred type. But yes, I think I can repair your hammer and the lance and the armor. I may need you with me. Your armor is connected to you, isn't it?

It is, yes. I'll need you to accompany me then as I fix it. Of course, I'd love to watch. But the rest you can bring. Oh, yes, certainly. It's been a while, not since I was a boy, but it's hard to forget. My father made sure that I knew how to look after my weapons and armor, and I've maintained them ever since myself.

You need to get a top before you start hammering at the anvil. You say that, but you tend to get very sweaty in the forge. Do you? Oh, for God's sake. You need Aayla and Sentry there, right? We'll be very warm and boring, I imagine, for the rest of you. It'll take me... Looking at your hammer...

Arcanine. Oh, my God. I think it'll take me about two hours for your hammer, two for the lance, and an hour for your armour. OK. Another five hours, unfortunately. That's fine. If you wish to, I can...

If you feel that we have that time, I can devote it to it. This won't exhaust you prior to battle, will it? No, the benefits of being half fire giant is the fire, the forge flames do not tend to affect me so much, and my stamina is quite considerable, I thought you'd like to think. Is that so? Did I say something strange? Not at all. Very good.

Very reassuring. Yes, well, I can get started when you need me to. By all means. I think we should get started right away. All right. Do you want to leave it with me? Take the Howling Tempest? Are you going to come with him, like with Starbreaker in your armor?

Yeah, I can talk to Quill first. Okay, yeah, sure. Well, he'll take Starbreaker off you then, and then he'll also say, when you're ready, come on. Yoink. Ah, yeah. Quill? Yeah?

I know we're trying to preserve our energy for what's to come next, but can you still send messages? I should be able to, yeah. Could you send one to Scaldi? Yeah, if she's willing to receive one, that is. I just want to let her know that, you know, let her know what's coming and make her ready for what's about to happen.

Okay, I mean, do we have any idea of what it would feel like? I mean, once we're on the other side of it. No, I just wanna let her know that, you know, we're here and that we, you know, we're doing this because we care about her. I don't know, I just, I feel like we need to just prepare her for what's about to happen.

Yeah, I mean, yeah. I know how she's, her to khalara is very strong yeah uh i mean hopefully the separation won't feel like emptiness but more of a relief for her um that's what i hope but i can send her a message okay thank you uh 25 words clear skies scaldi? I've got one already prepared. Do that! Um, Scaldi, it's sentry. We're about to see Calara. I don't know what waits. Stay strong. There will be light again.

Good message. Good message. Good message. A few moments pass in silence and then you do hear, you get a faint, weak response from somebody who, if you did not know better, would sound ill, as if afflicted by a sickness, that would say, thank you for letting me know. I hope you can bring her peace. I mean, I repeat that. I think she's... I think she's grateful. Truly. I mean, it didn't sound...

well, to be honest. Okay. But yeah, hopefully we can see her again after this. I hope so. Just reaffirm. Yeah. Well, thank you, Quill. It's okay.

Anything from anyone else? Not really. Okay. Anything from anyone else? Not really. Okay. Just checking in on everyone, making sure we're all like, pepped up, ready to Titan fight once again. Titan fight? Titan fight. Yeah. Are we all tight to fight?

I'm ready to, I'm so tight in fight. Okay, team. Okay. We're depressed. Okay. Try and start. We've had a lot of sadness. The gloom has held over our heads for far too long. But Nova destroyed that tree.

The gloom is dispersing, as is our unhappiness. And Siaska is returning. We're waking her up This is just the eye dust in her eyes The what? Eye dust You know when you get like crusty eyes after sleeping? Sometimes you eat it in the mornings What?

What? Do you? Anyway Okay Nobody does that Lucius, you're weird Clarice just Are you getting enough nutrition? Well, we're living off of rations recently, and I'm... True.

Obviously don't have my chefs anymore. Haven't had those in months. Last good meal was at Gusthaven, you remember that? I remember this. Oh, yeah. Yeah, vividly, yeah. I'll never forget that. Yeah.

You never did that. Okay. I was suggesting forget that. You never did that. Okay. I was suggesting that you propose. Right. No, but you used that and you did a way worse thing. That's not what I thought you meant. Oh, is it something really offensive? Wait.

Did that not get explained to him at the time? I think it did, he's clearly forgotten. Yeah. Luke's just blanked that from his mind. It's the time warp thing when I went to like teenage. Yeah, that's right. Yeah. It's all a bit. Yeah, it's a lifetime's away since then. No, yeah, no memory of like what that actually means, you just remember doing it. It could be perceived as one set of genitals. Well, stop right there. You don't need to say anything else. She's just trying to raise everyone up, you know?

Ready for a big Titan. You were the one I thought was bringing the tone down! Carry on, carry on, carry on. We can do it. We can. Yes, we can. Like we did all the rest, Kallara's another stepping stone to a brighter future, literally. She's our light, and we need to give that light back to her.

And back to Siaska. Exactly. Yes. So no matter what form she takes now, this isn't really her. This is something else, and we need to figure out what has happened, and end it. There'll definitely see something to do with light. And I mean, you can see from the candle,

her will, it's fading, it's going. We need to, she is meant to be hope. So maybe we can reinstall hope in her. You can create a bonfire, right? I can create a bonfire, yeah. That is a form of light. I've never seen you do that. Do you do it at nighttime?

Because I could never see that. Magical light. I mean, I've only ever seen it just sort of flames, but it never really glows. Yeah. It's warm, but it's not bright. Oh, I've seen it when I put dancing lights around it. Yeah, dancing lights, that will, that will happen.

Then I can see, yeah, it's a pretty good bonfire. It doesn't really cast, anyway. Is it like my flame lance? Do you want me to set something on fire? Because I'll do it. Well, that's really bright good bonfire. It doesn't want to be cast. Anyway. Is it like my flame lance? Do you want me to set something on fire? Because I'll do it. Well, that's really bright. It's very bright. Your bonfire is nothing.

Can I create a bonfire while Ayla creates a fire? We compare the two. Which one's brighter? I'll burn everything to the ground. Ayla's fire is the only one that casts any actual light because it's fire. Yeah, no, that's an ethereal, magical fire. It's like paper blowing in the wind i'm taking a stick and i'm putting it in the bonfire

and holding it up sets a light oh you got a rudimentary torch oh the bonfire put the torch in the bonfire it's like a portable one fire in the player's handbook underneath light sources. Yeah. It says something about magical light being a light. Does it? Yes. Sure. That's what 200 of the comments on TikTok said. Right. But it's okay.

That's all they did. TikTok run two. Anyway. Help. Once we solve this Kalara problem, return her back to Siaska. I mean, we're going to need a way out of here. Let's use the tree on the airship.

Fucking travel via plants. I thought we were carrying on. It's your time to do what you wish. How are they connected? You want to make jokes? They're not. You've got a lot of very intense It's all getting rewritten anyway.

I'm going to put a tree in Quill's room. I'm just going to press U. I'm going to set a bonfire outside of Jeremy Crawford's house. Okay. No! That's a... Send it to Jeremy Crawford. That's a live stream threat right there.

Jesus! Well, High Rollers does not endorse the actions of Kim Richards. Oh, they do. And there will be a formal disciplinary hearing. Who's the HR department? Me. No, we don't. Everyone.

You have your finances. I'm treasurer. I'm HR. So who has all the money? Me. That's fine. And I'm using that money to fly over. Nikki's doubling down.

She does actually have all the accounts. I do. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's bubbling down. She does actually have all the accounts. I do, I do. Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's in Barbados. It's not bad. I noticed after my really rousing speech so far, I'm noticing a few little smiles here. I am getting better. It's good. I mean, you're right, the gloom has dissipated.

It's been a long time since the tree was destroyed and it is looking brighter and nicer out there, albeit quite a lot of ash and flames and... But sun and light and warmth, which is something we sorely missed the last few days. Indeed. You know what would cheer me up? If Lucius did that rude gesture, like, more often. Just purely so that we could see other people's reactions to it, you know? What rude gesture?

What? Wasn't rude. That's not rude. Just ask them about proposals and marriage. Who? Valya and Nova? You should do it to Max. Yeah.

Ask Max about proposals. He's working. Oh yeah, I should be a- He doesn't seem like the settling down type. Well, you could ask him. Sounds like he's more like career focused than, you know. Maybe he's just waiting for the right person. Oh yeah, that's true. Yeah. Yeah.

I wonder who it could be. I wonder, who's good at settling down? Who's very homely amongst all of us? Homely. Who likes home and, you know? I literally left my home. Comfort, luxury. Me too, yeah.

What if we just fight for him? Don't really have one yet. Who knows where I came from. Tournament? Style? My hope. All of us? I mean...

What? Are we all... Sorry? What? Are we having a tournament? Over what? Tournament? For who?

What? What? Century, if you want us to stand down from this fight and you auto-win, that's fine. No, no, no, no. You want to settle down with Max? That's totally cool with me. Everyone okay with that? I'm already spoken already spoken for yeah we've already raised a

hand and raised his wing oh yeah quill wants to fight well i don't want to fight i don't want to fight i don't want to fight i certainly don't want to fight you i'm going to ask who i'll be subtle about it yeah yeah you want me to ask what matt what matt just get some hints can you ask after he gives me my hammer back? I don't know what's happening. I don't know. I just want to know if he's got any interest in a party member, you know?

Or just in anyone. I'm just... You a big fan of matrices, Max? Are you a big fan of high elves, Max? Oh, I see what you're getting at. You a big fan of birds? Max isn't my Oh, I see what you're getting at. You're a fan of birds? Max isn't my type, I'm afraid. He's extremely hot.

Don't get me wrong. I think that's innate. No, no, as in like he's sexy. Oh, okay. He's a sexy man, isn't he? I think we can all agree there, but he's not really my type. Valor's just like,

I'm just gonna pretend I can't hear any of this. Valar, what do you think? You know what, I might just silence the area around myself so I can't hear this conversation. Valar, what do you think this gesture means? You know, I know what that gesture means. She's too young. See, Valar knew it, read it. I have the knowledge.

She's a child. To me, you're our little Pappy that we found in the woods. Yes, I appreciate that that is perhaps how you first met, and it is perhaps strange that I am now an adult. But you have to also realise, because of my magic, I have lived my life as... And I am now this age. I am not...

I don't have the mind of a child. I am an adult. Did, um... Sex. Did... Oh, my... Sex. Did... Oh, my... Did he give you the talk while you were up in the ship? It just is there.

You just have that knowledge? Yes, it's like... You just woke up one morning... I wish I didn't have that awkward talk. I wish I just had it. I have the knowledge and memories and skills of an adult, yes. Well, why see Jaska? Like, what did you think?

That I would be, like, a 12-year-old in a grown woman? No, I've had, like, my whole existence has aged. I mean, to be fair, Lucius is a 12-year-old in a however-year-old body. Yeah, that's fair. I mean, hard to disagree. Fair enough. I have had the benefits of time magic to make me a young woman of 20, I think. I don't even know how old, but 20-something, I think.

That's a tiny baby, okay? That's nothing. Talk to me about a century in. Well, all right. Quill's like three. Yeah. That's true. To be honest, I don't know how I know.

If we go by that logic, then... It's all relative, isn't it? I mean, how old are you, Nova? You're not much. You can't... You must be in your 20s or something. Something like that. I forget what my birth date is. Exactly. then it's all relative isn't it i mean how old are you nova you're not much you're you can't you you you must be in your 20s or something something like that i forget what my birthday is exactly i mean yeah i i don't know either because you must have it written down somewhere i guess you came out

with gestation pod um i don't actually know i don't have any memories the first memories i have are of being really little in the in the temple in in the church where um the church to see aska you sure you told us something about a pod if i did it's like sure that's not the bells of alzheimer's it might but like i said because of this because of the time magic like that memory is now 20 years old you know that it's harder for me to maybe remember that's that's something wait how long was this conversation for you a normal amount of time. Oh, I thought it might have felt like hours or something. No, the last few weeks.

The last few hours have felt like weeks. Oh. To hear what was happening. We were so worried about you. Okay. So time isn't... No, it's not constantly. It was that burst of magic which aged me up.

It gave you knowledge that feels like it's always been there. Yes. Remember how we gave... Fascination. We gave Vala a dagger, right? It's like when I brought you back to your current... Let's not talk about that. I'm just saying.

That was dark. We gave Vala a dagger because, you know, we thought that she could handle... Maybe we should now get her a big sword. Like a really big one. She's got the ability of time. I could make my own sword. Yeah. I feel like she's beyond...

Do that. Mortal weapons. I mean, I could do. I'm not really a fighter. It's always just a thing that comes with age. You grow up, you get a nice weapon. If you would like to give me a nice weapon as a coming of age gift, I will not say no. Quill, I'm going to need some money.

How much? Maybe Max can forge you one. Okay. How much? All of Yeah. All of it. All of it, okay. Azaria has it all. I'm on it. Speaking of which, haven't you got to get your armor?

Oh yeah. Done up by Max. Yes, get the gesture. Maybe slip in a few little, but let me know how it goes. Okay. Okay. Go on, Sentry, you can do it.

I, I, I'm- Just be yourself. I'm confused, I thought the way that, Sandra, you can do it. I... I... Just be yourself. I'm confused. I thought the way that... But... I thought you liked him. I thought you liked him. Well, you suggested fighting everyone for him. Because I fought, and I fought you, and I fought you.

Did you like Max? Quill? No. That's not a no. See? See? He was willing to fight. He didn't put his hand up. That's true. I wasn't willing to fight. Do you want me to ask, do you want me to ask Max, do you?

No. I feel like Sentry's, no. Do some Max making? No, no. Yes, do it. A little Max making? No, don't do it, stop. I've never done Max making before.

He just, he's doing it like, stop, no, come back. Please. What if, how, hold on, this, come back. Please. What if, hold on. We've got to be careful here, because it could picture Quill and Max together. Aw. Okay, that's good. It's not...

No, it's cute. Okay, well. I love love. That's nice. Yeah. You should. Why don't we kill a titan? Oh, yes.

Then we'll talk about that. This is good though, this is positive vibes. Something to look forward to when we get back. Exactly. Sure. Yeah, yeah. That survives for Max. I don't know what headspace you're in right now, Sentry, and I don't know what I just

agreed to. I'm thinking about the future. Okay. Don't look at me like that. Why? Settling. Okay. Okay. Don't look at me like that. Why? Certainly. Okay. Okay.

Specifically yours. Oh, good. Yeah. I want the best for you. Thank you. She's our morale officer. Max is pretty good. He's the best for you. Why for me?

Okay, anyway. Also, can I just... Can we get the hammer? What a turnaround on the century. Max is great. This is like a soldier of the Valkyrian Empire. I respect him.

I know, I know. I have a big respect for him. I remember you first, it was like, oh, you know. It's just, what character arc? Yeah. Development. I love it. Let go of the past.

Yeah. Plan for the future. Plan for the past. Cool. Cool future. I feel like you are making serious character choices for me. Yeah. You've got to stop it.

You've got to stop it. I've learned. She's told you to stop, not send it. She's physically holding a dagger. You've been holding that dagger the entire episode. It's given me an energy today. Oh, and I feel so inferior. There's some other planning of a future going on there.

Let's put this down. Oh, and I feel so inferior. There's some other planning of a future going on there. Yeah! Put this down! Yeah. All right, look, let's get the hammer. I just don't want to swap places. I thought my life was on the line. You're between the two of us, aren't you? Yeah.

Yeah. Smack from this side, dagger from that side. I found the pod reference! Nice, okay. Nice! It was episode nine in 2018. Wow. Jesus.

Remembers being pulled from something, a container by people in robes, cold and darkness. There you go. I don't remember my own childhood, so I'm going to say that now that she's an adult, that memory is difficult to remember. Planted.

Great. Also, a lot has happened since episode 9 yeah that was a while ago you those of you if Century heads outside you find a

you know topless shirtless man you know all sweaty so you just okay talk to him yes

no do it anyway because I mean I won't make decisions it's very entertaining I won't I love how Tom gets himself into these things yeah Gronka Do it anyway. I won't make decisions for you. It's very entertaining. I won't, I won't. I love how Tom gets himself into these things.

Gronka, now Max. Like, it all plays out. Like, it all happens. He toys with it and it's like, oh, oh, shit, okay. We have a steeple in the head. I really feel that, like, so far, all of Tom's character's, like, interests have been, like, really burly, muscular, strong people.

Tash needs to go to the gym like ripped um she's already ripped yeah maybe i'm also absolutely leading into our lovely team and community as well but yeah i saw this max like hair loose flowing like i saw the fan art well well, not really fan art, someone did, like, the height scale of Max. Oh, yeah. He's big.

And, yeah, I mentioned it, so he would be, Century's about eight feet, isn't she? Yeah. Yeah, he's about sort of, like, seven, like, very high seven, eight feet tall. And he's the first, I just mentioned it, he's high. He's eight foot tall?

Yeah. That's pretty tall. Oh, my God okay since she got the upgrade like at the i feel like it was a resurrection yeah fuck me how many when you enlarge i know you're a large creature i've become 16 feet my guys yeah if a space will permit me to fit in it we don't worry about it too much it becomes big enough well it's also you know while the spell says double in size it's big enough for you to become large and then get the benefits and then it's whatever do you do the classic thing of like not trying to be intimidating and like crouching a little bit around us yeah knees constantly yeah i'm always aware i'm just like yeah i don't want to also your very personality is not an intimidating looming presence whereas unless it needs to be. Unless Starbreaker comes.

I'm good for hugs, kind of. I'm all metal. The pinch points. Yeah, yeah. You want to get skin in that bit. You've got so many feathers caught in them. Soft, squishy vines, though. They kind of help dampen it.

But yeah, Max is half fire dragon. That's why he is the way he is. But yeah, you go outside and he'll kind of be like, oh, yes, I think it's been a few hours, I've managed to fix some things, but Century, let me in while you're here. Of course. And yeah, he'll basically,

what he's been doing is kind of like, he's got found loads of metal and things like that, and just where there's cracks and things that were caused by the damage that Elwynn did, he's basically gonna sort of repair them with either plates that he kind of bolts on and then fuses in place, or he'll fill the gap with like a metal

and then it will cool and seal. We won't do things like damage and stuff like that. He basically repairs your weapons and armor over the course of finals. How close does he get? What do you mean? Decentry's armor. Like he's touching, like he's next to you.

It's like a, you know, there's It's like two soldiers helping each other out of armor is how he sees it. It's definitely how he's acting anyway. Like, just lift up your arm. Insight check! Yeah, sure, if you want to. I've got one. So many sentries there.

I've got one in space. I don't know what Quill can see from everywhere. He's been spying on him. He's just looking at him. He's firing at the door. Is that the arcane eye? I've got the arcane eye looking and all you can see is me sat there just like this. Get your hands off me. But yeah, he will repair that.

He's used supplies found here so it doesn't cost anything. He's just going to take supplies from the barracks and things like that. He's also found himself a suit of armour and he's kind of like cobbled together different pieces so that it can fit his frame. And he's like made some like extra straps. He's like expanded leather and stuff like that to make himself a suit of armour.

And he's found a great axe also. He's got a random great axe. For Sentry's armour, the bits that he's repaired, is it noticeable? Because obviously she's got ceramic looking... Sure. Yeah, can be. If you want to go for the, what was it, kintsugi, the Japanese thing with gold.

This would be filled with other metal, but it's probably a more blackish iron, so it would look like black, kind of, lightness, but filled. Oh, I love that. How much damage did you take? Not massively. It was only minus one, right? It was the total penalty, so it's not a lot. It was just enough, like a couple of cracks, maybe on one shoulder pad, maybe to the side.

Enough to hamper the AC, but not enough to fully render it. Nice. And then it would be the same Starbreaker in the hammer. More things that, like, where the hammer was cracked, when Elwynn grabbed it and stuff like that, he's filled those in. With Starbreaker, it's more like the tip, he's like repaired the tip of the lance. The actual handle had like splinters and fractures.

He's like, you know, stripped that down, polished it, filled it with like a new piece of wood and then he wrapped it and stuff like that. Nice. You're either Tom. Oh dear. I don't know what we thought about though. It's gonna be an innuendo joke.

Go on, tell the class. I wanted to see the moment when he's polishing the spear. It's a lance, hello. Yes, so you guys can not worry about those penalties. Yay! Amazing. I'm too worried about other things. Ayla's gonna, when she takes her hammer back, just pat Max on the shoulder and be like, thank you. Amazing. I'm too worried about other things. Yeah. All right. Aelin's gonna, when she takes her hammer back,

just pat Max on the shoulder and be like, thank you. You're welcome. Lifesaver. May I, I would not normally ask, but as we are going into this battle, do you intend on using the Warnite's mace? You can use it and I'll use my hammer. Well, if you wanted to resume using your weapon, I was going to ask if I may at least borrow it.

It makes sense. It is the spoils of your battle, but I would like to at least, in case there are magic... I did not have a magic weapon. Some creatures are resilient against mundane strikes. It makes sense for you to take this for now at least. Of course. Oh, I would grant it back to you.

It will benefit the battle the most. Thank you. My focus will be on protecting Valor, but if I am able to help, I will. Protect her battery with the magical weapon. Thank you. So he will temporarily take the War Knight's hammer. Okay. Alright. And is that like a two-handed? It's a two-handed maul. For him it counts as a two-handed weapon.

It's still very big. Is it as big as my hammer? Your hammer is a very unique design where it has this huge head. This is like a Sauron's mace. So it's got a smaller head, but it's got still a long shaft. Yeah. Okay. I do it purposely. I know. The way you were looking at me when you said big head, long shaft. Cool. Now that we've got armour, weapons, everything's ready to go, right?

Everyone is ready to go? I think we're just gonna have to go in and be ready for anything. Okay. That's not very helpful, is it? Well, I think we're all knowing that anyway. A little bit of confidence, but not a huge amount. I am wondering whether or not to take this lantern with us. It does seem to have some purpose in the religious ceremonies regarding Kalara, but that said, even though all these lanterns have been taken down, no one took this lantern.

I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing and if we should take it with us. I think we should take it. I mean, if you want to take it, though. Gently. Gently. Careful. There's going to be a gentle way of doing this. If you want to pull this up, it's like ripping steel and stone.

I think that might be why they didn't take it down. Bolted down. I mean, Elwynn could have taken it out if she wanted to. Or just destroyed it where it is. But yes, removing this thing will not be delicate or neat. It will cause damage to the altar, if not the lantern itself. Aela is neither delicate nor neat, so she'll just let go. Yeah, I wonder if it will come across as like we've... Yeah.

Desecrated. Yeah, I'm not particularly religious, but it feels wrong. Let's leave it as is. Yeah. But let's think about the light and how we can give that place a... Bonfire, it's fine.

Maybe there'll be something in her demi-plane. Yeah. All right. What? Bonfire's up, right? Anyway. I quit. It's been nice. She's off course.

It's been real nice. I'm out. Bye. Well, Nova's gone vacant, but I think we're all ready. Mm-hmm. Valor, if you wanna open that gate. If everyone is ready,

and everyone is prepared. I think so. Here we go. Unless anyone wants to talk to Max quickly. Nope. Make any gestures. Valar, if you wanna open that gate. Everyone is ready, everyone is prepared. I think so. Here we go. Unless anyone wants to talk to Max quickly. Nope. Not make any gestures? No. Valar will close her eyes and all seems to go still from it.

When she opens her eyes, they are bright, swirling orbs of violet magic. And as she thrusts her hands forward, held together, palms together, she then splits them apart, and that purple triangular door in space in front of her just opens up, holding her hands, almost with a triangle shape between them. She'll be like, let's go, you first. I'll follow behind.

Okay. Okay. All right. As Valor's magic pulls you through the breach point, you find yourselves standing at first in an empty void and feel a sudden, brief intense pain as hostile planar energy tries to repel you from it but only for a moment before valor herself steps through and throws her hands out wide as an expanding dome of purple magic bursts out of her and fills

the space as the dome expands through the void, it reveals what you initially to believe, believe to be a slightly overgrown garden, with flowers and vines, bushes, and a few scattered trees. However, you then notice the stone mausoleums on the outskirts of the garden, the gravestones hidden amongst the flower beds and beneath the trees,

as well as iron fences dividing the space, with a small plaza at the centre of it. A statue of a feminine figure, her features worn, stands at the very heart of the plaza. A large, plain-looking iron lantern lays on its side at her feet, with silvery light inside. Bala's magic eventually stops, leaving the mortuary garden a diorama in a glass dome of magic. Beyond such a magical barrier, the dark void softly glimmers as though it was black velvet scattered with tiny diamonds. You sense movement amongst the garden and see ghostly female figures, their faces hidden by draped hoods and veils, dressed in long white funerary robes,

drifting between the graves and mausoleums. Keeping their distance, they seem to almost vanish and reappear at different parts of the garden, heads bowed as though in prayer, before a voice finally calls out to you. Oh lost children, my brothers and sisters, my mother has led you astray. As the voice echoes around you, it's as if the world itself is speaking. as if the world itself is speaking. Kallara speaks softly, as though she can barely hold back tears.

The air ahead of you shimmers like bent glass, and something fades into existence in the space. A floating throne shaped from black onyx and inlaid with the motifs of death, hovers about ten feet off the ground. A woman with bone-white skin and long straight black hair sits in it, painfully thin, and wears a long, tattered black dress that trails off the edge of the floating throne, making her height difficult to judge. A veil covers her eyes, with a mantle of black roses around her neck, behind her head, where shoulders, vines seem to grow out and fall down the throne to the ground below. Oh, we got a mini cloak. I'm sorry, it is nowhere near as painted as I wanted it. I had to rush it today just to give it some colour to stand out.

But it looks cool as fuck. You have come to end me. My heart aches to allow it. To end this hateful task of my suffering. I promised her I would do my duty. Your efforts are pointless. Valena's great work is too late, and I know my sister too well to believe it is not without risk of failure. You cannot beat Hadar. Siaska could not. Valkyrian could not.

You will just be more poor souls to consume its gluttony. You will just be more poor souls to consume its gluttony. Come, dear children, let me take you somewhere you will know bliss and peace before such an end. She almost seems to gesture out as if willing to take you somewhere. I mean, I've seen Killara before when I died. Is this like a totally different person in my eyes or? Somebody looks like a, it looks like Killara if she were dying. Thin, rasping, weakened.

And the person you saw was stronger, more of abled-bodied, armoured. Very different. Same person, very different. So that's your plan, Calara? Take us all beyond the Vale to a peaceful land so that we don't have to embrace Hadar? To give you peace, to give everyone at least... Grace Hadar? To give you peace, to give everyone at least... To give you at least a moment of pure peace and bliss

before it consumes everything. But not everyone, right? Everyone. Not the guardians that you carelessly tossed aside? They do not have souls. I cannot guide them. They are not of Erosian creations. I cannot help them. Well, to me they are. I'm sorry, child. I cannot help them. But I can help you.

Because I want to help all of those on Aroas with a soul to know just a brief moment. If you wanted to help, you would aid us in fighting Hadar. This is cowardice. You've given up. You do not understand. You mortal creatures, your lives, short you cannot understand. I am one of the eldest. I still carry her memories of the dark. To think, for you to think you can win? Misguided children, you have been led astray, whether by the words of others or by your own arrogance to think that you could stand against such a power.

Do not do this. Do not do this. Do not stand in my way. Do not try and stop me. I will make sure that the souls of Arois know joy before their existence is wiped out. What you have done is not joy. Quite the opposite. What you have done is not joy, quite the opposite. A brief pain, to stem the tide of suffering. I take them to a place that one of you at least knows. You felt that joy, that bliss, what it was to be free of pain, of regret, of suffering. Surely all life deserves that before they are before they are nothing. She looks at Quill and she says, It was peaceful, I admit, but there was no joy, there was no passion, no courage, no fight,

there was nothing. It was empty. There was nothing to live for because... You do not know emptiness. You do not know suffering. We've seen Hadar, and yet we stand here before you ready to fight, ready to take him on. Where's yours? Where's your courage? You say that you're

the oldest, then act like it. I see that these convictions are too strong in you. I have committed myself to this path. I have forced a terrible burden on those that follow me. I have done far too much to turn back now. I admire your hope. I can see that you truly think that you truly wish to stop Hadar and save everyone. I will not, I cannot allow you to interfere in this duty. It will spell doom for all. And I will not let everyone go into that endless nothing without the joy I can bring." You see various shadows spread around the mausoleum are suddenly whisked up into a swirling mass around Killara. The various figures that you saw scattered around

the women in the funerary robes, they suddenly rush, and as they do, the wind pulls their robes to reveal no bodies, just the impressions of the skull in the hoods and veils that they once had as they brandish small knives as they rush. A knives as they rush. How many? One, two, three, four. Okay. Oh boy. Finally,

whatever light was allowing you to see Vala's magic, your own light sources, the matrix, whatever it was, bonfires, they vanish, plunging the entire garden into a shroud of darkness. Only, I believe, the matrix gives off a faint amount of dim light. Yep. It's the only light source that you can see. With one exception, a small lantern at the feet of the statue flickers ever so softly. And you feel that darkness begin to claw at you as we are going to roll initiative. Oh, how much light is that matrix giving off?

Is it like 10 feet or? I'll need sentry to check for me in a moment. Oh, boy. Okay. Oh, God. We go huge rolls. Oh, wow. Okay, okay.

Lucius. Five! Lucius. Five. Quill. Natural one, three! Aayla. 22. Senshru. 22, same.

Nova. 20. Okay, well. So we can't see these knife spectral figures or even color it is currently darkness if you have got it anyone with dark vision can see 60 feet oh i do i do have the hawky goggle things you've got two beaks i've got two beaks baby so yeah essentially i'm gonna need before anything else can you just remind me how much light the matrix gives off? I'm trying to find it. I can't seem to find it. If you cannot find it, then I can make a judgement because I think it was,

it's only, it's like 10 feet of dim light. It's not much. That sounds about right. So this is magical darkness then I can see through this? This is non-magical darkness. It's just that any other light sources were suddenly extinguished. Sure. Except the lantern. Except the lantern and the... And even the lantern, like, you can see it in the darkness

because it has this, like, five-foot glow, but it's dim light currently. And Sentry's Matrix is projecting enough light around you. Cool. And to, at the very beginning of the turn, it is Kalara who goes first using her

titanic awareness to always go first in initiatives and she is just going to reach out with a hand as you watch creeping shadows run along the ground and eventually leap up and who was talking kind of shit talking at the most?

Sentry and Lucius. Who was shit talking? I think you'd call her a coward, but... 18 against Lucius. And against Sentry, that is a 25. Yep. Alright, I'm just going to use, to keep, because she's got a lot of stuff, so I'm just going to use her flat. I'm not going to roll damage.

I'm just going to use the averages. Okay. So you both take 12 necrotic damage, and your hit point maximums are reduced by the same amount. Oh. So as in they take 24 damage? No, they take 12 damage, but their hit point maximum comes down, so it can only heal. So there is a way to do it in D&D Beyond where you can mark it temporarily.

Okay. That's going to happen. That's going to happen a lot. Quill's max HP is going to be 1 at some point. She's just going to move herself back. This kind of floating throne that she's sat on just floats backwards. We presume. I can see it, but. And then we go to Aayla. Aayla, at the start of your turn, as you are currently in dim

light, you feel the shadows, the dim light of the shadows and the darkness around you kind of grip onto you. You gain an effect called Shadowbringer. You have one stack of Shadowbringer. You have one stack of Shadowbringer. Oh. Okay. Shadowbringer. I'll keep track of this. One stack.

What does that mean? For now, we don't know. Okay. Can I? While you're thinking, I'm just gonna remind everybody, at any point on your turn, if you want to make a check to try and figure something out, you can do. It's a free action, but you can only do it once per turn. Okay. Can I pull out a torch and light the torch? You absolutely can, yes. That would be an action to do so.

I will rage as my bonus action and take out a torch and light it. Cool, let me just look up exact details on torch. Yep, 20 foot of bright light radius and dim light for an additional 20 feet. Yep. So, Ayla, as you pull out this torch, this massive area of light kind of fills around you and your companions, dim light spreads out further, kind of banishing away the shadows and darkness.

I guess we're just gonna have to try and not get sucked in by the darkness. Try and light stuff up. Light stuff up. Light stuff up. Probably safe. And I'll keep myself with the group for now, based on the fact that no Lykey Dark. Sure. And they're currently in my area.

Okay. Yeah, for now. End of turn? Yes. Okay. At the end of your turn, Kallara's going to use her legendary action, Scatter the Light. I need Aayla, Quill, and Nova, as I've not hit you guys properly yet. Can you all make charisma saving throws for me? Oh, charisma. Fuck, well I'm going to you guys properly yet. You will make charisma saving throws. Charisma?

Fuck, I might have failed regardless. Son of a bitch. You get plus three, so you get... Oh, yeah, we do. 33. No, I rolled a two. 14. Fail.

Ayla and Quill, you are suddenly transported. Oh no. Bah. Uh, so not really moving. Okay. Oops. I rolled the dice by accident. Um...

Oh, pull towards them. Okay. As you are engulfed, you are pulled through the demi-plane, suddenly as if against your will, as you are teleported 40 feet to unoccupied spaces of Clara's Choice. That's it. Sentry, at the start of your turn, as you are now in only dim light from your matrix, you also gain a stack of shadowbringer okay i can do that i will also try and keep a note of that as well getting scattered the light didn't diminish the torch the torch is still lit currently yes did you drop on the floor is it with you

can i um look at can i see the lantern and see if it's similar to the one in the temple? It looks plainer, like a quite common lantern really. There's no oil lamp inside, it's just a mote of silvery light. It's giving off light. It looks like the statue once held it, and you can see the hand's been broken and it's now laying on the ground on its side. Okay. Cool. Alright. I'll make a note of that. I'm going to stay by the group for now. Just use as much light as I've got. Just try and protect them as much as I can. Okay. So just keeping the 10 feet of dim light from the Matrix, go. Yes, yeah, I'll do that.

Alright. Oh, I also forgot. So now that you've had a turn, this handmaiden next to Ayla is going to activate at the end of Century's turn. And they are basically just going to try and swipe at you with their little sigil, sickle, for a 21 to hit. Yep. Pretty high. 10 necrotic damage. You cannot take reactions until the start of your next turn. You cannot take reactions until the start of your next turn.

Then we go to Nova Vija. At the start of your turn, Nova Vija, you also gain a stack of Shadowbringer as your own Dimlight. We still don't know what that does. Do not. In case... I have a... Once you are affected by something, I'll generally tell you what that effect is. Yeah. But otherwise you've got to try and figure out what it is.

Yeah. Tiangong has dark vision. Okay. And I never really know how this works because originally it was on the weapon. But then I guess because I can manifest like Tiangong, the echo. Yeah, I should say so. Yeah. Well, bonus action. I'll summon Tiangong.

Yeah. Do you want to pass that? Sorry, Troy, can you just pass that to me By intersection, I'll summon Tiangong. Yeah, do you want to pass that? Sorry, try and use pass that to me. Oh, the deck. Do you want to pass it to me? Yeah. Thank you. Yeah, I guess I'll summon a Mermaid.

And then use, like, can I ask Tiangong to guide me towards the lantern? Yeah, I'd say so. You're aware of, even in dark, because currently you're in dim light as well, even if you were to go in darkness, you are aware of where Tiangong themselves is, so you can just follow them, but obviously you wouldn't be able to see anything around them yourselves. My torch should be giving off light there. Yes, yes.

So you should see that area. Yeah, you can see pretty much 40 feet around Ayla, but it's only dim light after, like, 20 feet around Ayla is bright, and then it's 20 feet of dim light around that. So you can see, like, pretty much most of this area now. It's only these, like, far corners you can't really see. Okay. Well, in which case, I think both of us will go towards the lantern anyway. Sure.

So I've got 30 foot of movement. You can move yourself a little bit, just because I can't quite reach. That's like 10. So from there, 5, 10, 15. 20, 25, 30, I think. So you can actually both get right next to it. Yeah, so that's your movement. And then the lantern is lit, isn't it?

But it was just... It has a very faint dim light, yes. And in that kind of similar way to the lantern we saw in the altar, in the cathedral, so kind of more related to Kalara than... Like I said, century, this one is plainer, but there is no mundane light source. There is a moat of what Nova would recognise as starlight. It's like silvery

starlight it's magical but the lantern is very plain um resembles ones that you've seen on emblems of kalara resembles ones that you saw in in the temple um not as fancy but and the statue in front of us of the woman does that look like clara or like you need to make a religion check okay i'd say that's a free action you can do that 13 plus 9 is 20. you actually think it's of us of the woman does that look like Clara or like you need to make a religion check okay I'd say that's a free action you can do that 13 plus 9 is 20. you actually think it's a statue of siesta okay and the gesture it's not so much holding the lantern forward it was passing the lantern on and that lantern has now broken free and fallen down can Can I pick the lantern up? You can, it takes your action. Okay. Oh, there's cards.

These are double-sided. Oh my God, okay. Oh, that is a lot of information. Okay. I'm gonna read it. As Nova, you go to pick this lantern up, it is very heavy, unnaturally heavy for its size. As you pick it up, like you can hold up, you have to hold it in one hand,

so for you, you would basically choose shield or sword you want to keep out. I think I would... I'm going to use my shield actually, because Tiangong can be my sword. Okay, so you dismiss the weapon of Tiangong putting it away, whatever. You still have the echo out, but it basically means you cannot make attacks with Tiangong because putting it away, whatever. You still have the Echo out, but you basically, it means you cannot make attacks with Tiangong because you are holding this lantern. Tiangong, the Echo can make the attacks.

Yes, because you can always choose to make attacks from your Echo's location. So for now, you've got your shield and the lantern out. And yeah, you feel yourself surge with light. The rest of you see that Nova, this lantern, begins giving off 10 feet of light. Oh, okay. Interesting.

Okay. That's why Mark wanted scissors earlier. See it now. Put down some horrors. Yes, so you begin giving off 10 feet of light. I mean, that is your movement and action. I will also tell you, Kim, it currently has zero charges.

So on the thing it says it can hold a certain number, it has zero currently. Oh, I'm very intrigued. Okay. I think, yeah, just probably more RP than anything. Like Tiangong will take a defensive stance. Sure. While Nova's just like looking at this thing like, whoa!

You see Calara just sort of look over in your direction. It won't help you. End of turn? Yeah. Okay, at the end of your turn, one of the banshees is gonna attack Quill. Yeah. Only a 10 to hit.

Oh, wonderful. And then Calara will use her legendary action on Lucius. Can you make a... I need to check. I'm so sorry, there's a lot of stuff going on. That's all right. Do you bear with me? No, you're doing fine.

Lots of legendary actions. There's a bear with you. Can you make a constitution saving throw? In fact, I'm actually not going to do it on Lucius. I'm going to do it on Quill because he's near him and me. Can you make a constitution saving throw, Quill, and reduce it by 1d4? Oh, good. I've got a plus 2 and I'm reducing it. Okay, so 17, probably not a pass anyway, 15.

15. The Banshee, this handmaiden, they're almost making this low droning scream, but it's not high pitched. It's hitting your mind in some way. And you feel yourself, almost all these different emotions and feel yourself being drained of strength and things like that is the cause of the saving throws. As long as you are within a certain radius of these creatures, you have a minus 1d4 to saving throws okay as you the Clara looks over in your way and she whispers and you feel like part of your breath taken away

you take 10 necrotic damage and your hit point maximum is reduced by the same amount oh my god at initiative 20 Initiative 20. Yes. You watch as those of you who can see them, so Sentry and Lucius. Lucius, because of your dark vision, you can just about see it.

Maybe the dim light from Aayla's torch. Quill. You have dark vision, right? I do, yeah. Okay, so you can see just about on the very cusp of it, there are these shrines that look like they are holy shrines to Siaska. You can see a few of them, the statue in the middle and then each of the four corners are all shrines. Something like a glowing piece of light breaks off and forms in front of them.

Okay. Oh. Oh. breaks off and forms in front of them. Okay. Ooh. Ooh. More lanterns or? Ooh. That one's gone. Can you put this one next to that? Yeah.

Oh, no, there's one next to, yeah, next to the statue as well. I've got a bonus one, so if we can find them. If you can put that one next to that, that pillar, please, Tron. I got the one next to the lantern, please, Tron. I got the one next to the statue. Yeah. As you see these pieces of light seem to just appear next to the shrines.

Okay. All right. For reference, by the way, Valor is... I'm not going to put a mini down for her. She's basically where you arrived. Max is going to just use his Royal Ward on Valor, and he's going to remain where he is. Technically, he gains a stack of Shadowbringer.

And then he's just going to ready an action. He's basically just going to use his bonus action to protect Valor, and then he readies an action. If anything comes close, he's going to take a swing at it. Yeah. Lucius, at the start of your turn, you gain one stack of Shadowbringer. Okay. And then you may take your turn.

I'm going to quicken a cantrip. Okay. Dancing Lights. Creates 10 feet of dim light, I believe. Yeah. So four torches, they can't be more than 20 feet apart from each other, so I'm basically going to create a square of 20 feet from each other around... It's one effect, isn't it? Dancing lights. It creates four things.

You can create four sides of torches and it's one spell. They just have to be within 20 feet. So I'm literally going to grid Kalara. I have to use my dancing lights for these moat things. But yes, like we'll put it around as if there's something. It's fine, we'll remember it. It's fine. So around Calara.

Just a square around Calara. A square of dim light. Okay, cool. Yeah. Sure. That's also now blending in with Ayla's torchlight as well. All right, so that was quickened bonus action. There you are.

And then action is straight up Chromatic Orb. At what target? Calara. Okay. Roll to hit. I don't like that at all. I'm gonna do a level four. Okay. 14 plus 12.

The spell impacts the swirling mass of shadows around her. Even at 20, okay. The shadows around on there. Yeah. A supposal. Oh crap. I can't get through to her.

And there was quite a lot of energy behind that one. We need to do something about that. End of turn, Lucius? That's, yeah, that's me. Oh, one of the shadow boys. She flies over, just gonna attack Lucius. Protect Lucius. All right, defend disadvantage on the attack.

Oh, that's done fucking miles. That's only gonna be a 10 to hit Lucius. Oh, it will not hit. Sentry manages to step in the way, just deflect it away with a shield as this just like swipes against it, unable to strike. I like it when Lucius doesn't get hit by things. Remember the days when he did get hit by everything?

Happened all the time, yeah. Still does. I am going to... I need to get away from this thing, but I can't do it with disengage. I will confirm, these are minions. They do not take reactions. Oh. They follow minion rules. Okay, okay.

I want to, yeah, I want to fly to basically the middle of everybody. So I'll do that. Do that here. So just on the edge of Nova's Lantern, and I'm gonna cast. My Lantern. Oh, Nova's Lantern. Nova's Lantern, and I'm going to cast... My Lantern. Oh, Nova's Lantern.

Nova's Lantern, sorry. An 8th level spell, Holy Aura. Oh, nice. What? Divine Light washes out from me and coalesces in a soft radiance in a 30-foot radius around me. Creatures of my choice in that radius, when you cast a spell, shed dim light, only dim light, in a 5-foot radius and have advantage on all saving throws.

And other creatures have disadvantage on attack rolls against them. Hey, level you said? Yeah. Okay. In addition, when a fiend or an undead hits an affected creature with a melee attack, it flashes with a brilliant light and they have to do a constitution save or are blinded. Okay. Pretty cool. Are these things undead?

Maybe. I like it. Anyway, I'm casting that. It's your turn. And everyone is shedding light. And anyone else? In a five foot radius, right? Five foot radius. Dim light.

Dim light, but... When you cast a spell. We can see where everyone is now though. When they cast a spell. I've... no. Oh, it's... When you cast a spell. We can see where everyone is now, though. When they cast a spell. I've... No. Oh, it's just when you cast a spell. When I cast it, everyone gets it. Everybody within that radius gets this thing,

and they have this persistent effect on you. Yeah, for a minute. Okay. Concentration. End of turn. I don't like the way you're looking at me. He's going to die. Oh, yeah, one of those are coming for me.

That makes sense. That is going to be a 13 to hit. No. Oh yeah, one of those are coming for me, that makes sense. That is going to be a 13 to hit? No. Alright, misses. Also... Oh, is it undead? These are undead. Okay, let me see if that happens when they...

They did melee attack you. Oh, but it didn't hit me. Oh, it's when you hit. But it should have had disadvantage, or is that a new... It would have had disadvantage, yeah. Alright. But it should have had disadvantage or is that a new... It would have had disadvantage, yeah. Alright, the very last thing is Clara's going to use her final legendary action to attempt to on Lucius the same thing she did to Corvac. Can you make a con save minus 1d4 please? 23.

I need a plus 3 for me. Oh wait, sorry, was that a on save? Did you do that with advantage? Do I? Yeah. Uh, Kalara is not undead. No, it's, uh, he gets advantage on all saving throws. There you go.

You got a 23 already. I already got a, yeah, that was a nat one. Lol, so it's 23. 23 exact is a failure. Wow! You're fighting high failure. Oh, wow. You're fighting high CR creatures now, folks. 10 necrotic, and your hit point maximum is reduced by the same amount. Cool.

Okay. And that is the end of round one. Okay. All right. Okay. Very cool. Clara will look at Quill, look at Ayla with the bright light, she's eyeing up various things. How long does Holy Aura, is it concentration? Yeah concentration for a minute. Okay. So 10 turns. 10 turns. She will make two creeping shadow attacks, the first one will be at Quill

and then I'm going to decide where the next one goes. So that's still with disadvantage. With disadvantage against all creatures. All creatures disadvantage. That's going to be 21. Son of a bitch. Okay. 12 points of necrotic damage. Your hit point maximum is reduced. Can you make a constitution saving throw?

Take concentration. Yep. Hey, what's your con plus? Con save plus. Because mine was plus 8. Oh good point, mine's plus 2. So I don't think I can pass this. It's a shame you had that minus d4, because with century you would have succeeded.

No, they completely negated it. Yeah, that plus 3 would have tipped me over I guess. Well, I got a 14 on the con save on the attack. Success, yeah. So your concentration remains. Oh, concentration, okay. That was for concentration. Necrotic is when you get hit, you take that damage.

I also got a natural 20 with advantage, so. Okay. Okay, so I didn't do a save against the attack itself. If it hits you, that's it, and you take it and you minus it. Okay. She'll do it to you again, because that with the aura is like a big target that's it yeah it's

gonna be a miss because i rolled a two so she misses you the disadvantage okay um and then she will kind of frown slightly um and then she will attempt to use her bonus action wallow in darkness uh which extinguishes a source of light created by a spell or effect. Oh. Because it is above 6th level, I have to roll. Oh. I probably need to con save my dancing lights. Yes, you do. I failed it, right? Because I took damage.

No, if I'm in DC 10, it's easy for you to pass. You've got high cost. 19. So if she's doing this, is that against the entire spell itself or against a single target?

Well, I mean, it is the spell that creates the light, so it would be against the spell. Okay, and she's rolling. Okay, I'm gonna portent this. Okay, 2A.

2A, I got a portent to a five roll. Okay, is that what you would like to use? He's poker bluffing you, you can tell. Yeah. It fails. Ay! Anyway. Let's play with our minds. He's poker bluffing you, you can tell. Yeah. It fails. Hey! Anyway. It's playing with our minds.

Okay. One of my two, but... That light that you bring here, it's a fading power. Light bringer, hold it off for now and it won't help you. All right. Ayla, you are currently in bright light. You do not gain any more stacks of Shadowbringer. Do I know what that does? No, it's not been on me.

No, not yet. Can I suggest we take a break? I love the energy. Fuck, we've been going for a while. That's a perfect time to take a break. Yes, we'll take a break there. Sorry, I was getting carried away. No, that's cool.

That's going to be it for part one. Thank you very much for joining us. We'll see you very soon. Goodbye. The fight continues.