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Kendra raises her eyebrows in surprise at the sudden question as she isn't expecting it. With Tethys, she understands him for the most part, so she knows what she is working with. She doesn't know Magus at all, but she knows that he is dangerous. "I'm going to need some very compelling reasons to side with you," she finally says.

===
[if combat seemms unavoidable or the others are ready to engage, Grubnick will quietly cast Hold Person on the Prefect alone, giving him a -2 to his save

Haahqae, Tulbas and Gobax (Prefect's Mansion)
Tulbas quietly casts a spell while Tethys and William talk to each other. At the same time, Haahqae swallows some more potion before anyone notices him. Gobax, meanwhile, prepares a spell of his own, just in case.

"We will never surrender to tyranny," William is saying. "This all ends tonight. The slavery, the torture, the unjust imprisonment, the murder. In the name of the Platinum Dragon, we will bring peace back to this city!"

Tethys snorts. "You dare mention that weakling god in my presence? Fools, you've already lost. You never had a chance. Even if you do somehow kill me, then what? Face the entire army? My dragons? Even if you clear the entire city of everyone last one of us, you do realize the emperor will just send a new army, a bigger one, with more dragons, and will just wipe this pathetic city right off the map? Face it. There is no win scenario here. Takhisis has already won this war. Give up, and I'll show you mercy. Don't throw away your lives for a cause you can't possibly win."

===========

Tulbas casts Spectral Hand for 10 rounds.
Haahqae drinks another 1/8 of his Potion of Invisibility. He becomes invisible again.
(OOC: The bed does have a frame with a curtain around it. The ceiling looks like a normal ceiling and is about ten feet above the floor. No torches on the wall, but there is a candle on both of the nightstands on each side of the bed.)

Kendra (Hidden Room, Sewers)
"You mean being on the winning side isn't enough?" asks Magnus. "Fair enough then. Swear your loyalty to me, and I'll let you give this elf a quick death." He chuckles at her reaction. "You aren't quite the actress you think you are. It's clear you care about his well being on some level. I'll let you give him a quick, painless death. Or I can turn him over to the church, where he'll be tortured for days, even weeks before he finally passes. But by that point, his mind will be mush."

From the safety of his invisiblity and hiding spot; Haahqae starts ranting. "You're both crazy."

He turns towards the prefect as best as his position can allow without making himself a target. "You're a total disaster of a prefect. You make it a habit of wrongly accusing random people of things that shouldn't even be against the law, you've set extremely high taxes and just have the money sitting around in vaults unused and you have decimated the population and economy of the city with no recourse or safetynet. The city has suffered greatly under your short rule already, and if things keep on going this way soon there won't be a city, but rather a hollow desolate cluster of buildings."

"You said that if we surrendered you'd kill us with forced labor, then when you learned that one of us worshiped one of the gods that you've been meticulously hunting down for ill intent you changed your proposition to let us live if we surrendered? Are you that scared, or are you lying? Either way you're not making surrendering sound like an attractive option."

Turning towards William he rattles off a different rant "And you're not all that much better. You rush to action without proper planning or backup plans, if you have a plan for what to do after the prefect dies; if you manage to do so you haven't deem ed to share that knowledge with the rest of us and you put your faith in some minor gods that abandoned us centuries ago and haven't given me the time of day to believe that they're back or that they even care about this city beyond a few minor spells that aren't entirely dissimilar to what any decent illusionist or necromancer could accomplish. You say the war is turning against the dragonarmy; but can't bring in help or time your attack to coordinate with outside troops"

And with that said; Haahqae scuttles out from under the bed and quietly incants a little charm that will allow him to to get to safety and maybe find an advantageous position when the fighting begins.

(Actions: move out from under bed to the south and cast spider climb on self)

"...Fine," Kendra says. "But why do you want my loyalty in the first place?"

Following the 'Spectral Hand' Tulbas casts 'Vampiric Touch'.

'Dark, cold and fearsome touch,
Nothing you can do will help you much,
Strikes with force of icy knife,
Chilling bones, stealing life.'

Haahqae, Tulbas and Gobax (Prefect's Mansion)
"You literally just joined us a day ago, and you expect me to divulge all of our secrets already?" William asks rhetorically to thin air, trying to determine which direction the voice of Haahqae is coming from.

"Enough of this!" Tethys snaps. Haahqae's words seem to have pissed him off, because he seems to retract his offer of surrender. "Take them all!" He then begins chanting a spell, and soon a bilious cloud of green gas appears just outside the bedroom door, engulfing the party. William, Gobax and Tulbas manage to avoid breathing any in, but Miriam, Pen and Fiona are forced to withdraw, coughing and choking.

William casts his own spell, and a sphere of silence drops on the eastern side of the room, a bit too late to stop Tethys' first spell, but sufficient to stop future ones. Fortunately, Haahqae finishes his own spell beforehand. Tulbas and Gobax each cast spells, as well. The latter's manages to bypass Tethys' magic and spell resistance, and he becomes frozen in place. However, quite a few Baaz still stand between him and the party, to protect him.

Two of the baaz to move forward to attack William, just outside of the cloud, but the cleric easily deflects their attacks without breaking a sweat.

==============

Initiative
Haahqae (1d10+1): 4+1 = 5
Tulbas (1d10+3): 10+3 = 13
Gobax (1d10+5): 4+5 = 9
William (1d10+5): 5+5 = 10
Miriam (1d10+4): 1+4 = 5
Fiona (1d10+7): 8+7 = 15
Pen (1d10+7): 6+7 = 13
Tethys (1d10+2): 2+2 = 4
Baaz 01 (1d10+5): 10+5 = 15
Baaz 02 (1d10+5): 2+5 = 7
Baaz 03 (1d10+5): 9+5 = 14
Baaz 04 (1d10+5): 5+5 = 10
Baaz 05 (1d10+5): 5+5 = 10
Baaz 06 (1d10+5): 9+5 = 14
Baaz 07 (1d10+5): 10+5 = 15
Baaz 08 (1d10+5): 9+5 = 14

Round 1!

Tethys casts Stinking Cloud just outside the entrance of the bedroom for 6 rounds.
----Pen saves vs. poison (1d20): 2, fail. He cannot act for (1d4+1): 4+1 = 5 rounds.
----Fiona saves vs. poison (1d20): 4, fail. She cannot act for (1d4+1): 1+1 = 2 rounds.
----William saves vs. poison (1d20+1): 20+1 = 21, pass. He is unaffected.
----Miriam saves vs. poison (1d20): 8, fail. She cannot act for (1d4+1): 2+1 = 3 rounds.
----Tulbas saves vs. poison (1d20): 16, pass. He is unaffected.
----Gobax saves vs. poison (1d20): 16, pass. He is unaffected.
Haahqae casts Spider Climb on himself for 7 rounds.
Miriam coughs and chokes, and moves 10 feet east, out of the stinking cloud.
Baaz 02 moves 10 feet southwest and slashes his long sword at William against his chain mail (-2 hit) and shield (-1 hit) [TH 19] (1d20-3): 18-3 = 15, miss.
Gobax casts Hold Person on Tethys.
----Tethys resists magic [MR 20%] (1d100): 23, fail.
----Tethys saves vs. spell [+2 for spell resistance, -2 for being only target] (1d20): 7, fail. He is held in place for 10 rounds.
Baaz 04 protects the prefect.
Baaz 05 moves 10 feet southeast and slashes his long sword at William against his chain mail (-2 hit) and shield (-1 hit) [TH 19] (1d20-3): 5-3 = 2, miss.
William casts Silence, centered on the east side of the room for 12 rounds.
Tulbas casts Vampiric Touch for 10 rounds.
Pen coughs and chokes, and moves 5 feet to the west, out of the stinking cloud.
Baaz 03 protects the prefect.
Baaz 06 protects the prefect.
Baaz 08 protects the prefect.
Baaz 01 protects the prefect.
Fiona coughs and chokes, and moves 5 feet to the west, out of the stinking cloud.
(OOC: Actions for Round 2?)

Kendra (Hidden Room, Sewers)
"Because you are the prefect's favored bodyguard at the moment," Magnus replies. "Well, aside from Inferno. If the resistance scum does somehow assassinate him, your favor will greatly benefit whoever takes his place. And should the prefect survive, having his favored bodyguard on my side is bound to prove fruitful in the future. Either way, it's a boon for me."

We should fall back out of the fumes! grubnick calls, throwing hid flask (or stones, see below) before stepping back and leaving room for William to get clear of the cloud.
====

Assuming there is space to do so through the door; Grubnick will throw his last trapped fire flask at baaz #7

if not he will throw as many sling stones as possible at the baaz William is fighting

"...Very well," Kendra says. "Give me a few minutes alone with the elf, and then we can be on our way."

Tulbas leaves the cloud area and attacks with his spectral hand the nearest Baaz.

Talking certainly isn't got to get anyone anywhere; so Haahqae shimmies up the bed frame and along the ceiling until he's poised above Tethys; ready to strike when the time is right.

(OoC: Am I allowed to delay my attack until after everyone else has acted? What I want to do is climb up behind Tethys then backstab him with my highest damage weapon; but I want to move before the rest of the baaz can act; and attack after they've all acted).

Haahqae, Tulbas and Gobax (Prefect's Mansion)
As most of the Resistance coughs and hacks, trying to avoid the gas cloud, Gobax manages to toss a flask into the bedroom. It strikes one of the baaz perfectly, breaks and then explodes, petrifying the creature and the one next to it, and nearly killing a third. It also starts a fire, which slowly begins to spread throughout the room.

William attempts another spell, but quickly is overtaken by a cough and is forced to exit the cloud, as well. Tulbas, before he is forced to step out of the cloud, has his spectral hand touch one of the baaz and drains him of all life, discharging his vampiric touch spell. This heals Tulbas fully, and in fact, leaves him feeling better than ever.

Finally, biding his time, Haahqae scours up the bedpost and grabs hold of the ceiling. He tries crawling along it, like a spider. But a spider is weightless, while Haahqae weighs over 80 pounds and is carrying another 40 pounds of gear. He doesn't make it very far before the ceiling, which was not designed to hold that much weight, breaks. He falls and crashes to the floor, his hands and legs still stuck to pieces of plaster. However, this all happens soundlessly, as he is still in William's silence spell. Most of the baaz don't even notice that an invisible person has crashed from the ceiling, except for one, who happened to be looking in that direction when it happened. He mostly seems confused, as he still can't see Haahqae, so from his perspective a large piece of the ceiling just broke off for no apparent reason.

==============

Initiative
Miriam (1d10): 1
Tethys (1d10): 2
Pen (1d10): 6
Baaz 02 (1d10+5): 2+5 = 7
Gobax (1d10+5): 4+3 = 7
Fiona (1d10): 8
William (1d10+3): 5+3 = 8
Baaz 04 (1d10+5): 5+5 = 10
Baaz 05 (1d10+5): 5+5 = 10
Tulbas (1d10+3): 10+3 = 13
Baaz 03 (1d10+5): 9+5 = 14
Baaz 06 (1d10+5): 9+5 = 14
Baaz 08 (1d10+5): 9+5 = 14
Baaz 07 (1d10+5): 10+5 = 15
Baaz 01 (1d10+5): 10+5 = 15
Haahqae (1d10+1): 4+20 = 24

Round 2!

Miriam is still reeling from the stinking cloud.
Tethys is paralyzed.
Pen is still reeling from the stinking cloud.
Baaz 02 slashes his long sword at William against his chain mail (-2 hit) and shield (-1 hit) [TH 19] (1d20-3): 16-3 = 13, miss.
Gobax saves vs. poison (1d20): 11, pass. He throws a fire trapped flask with excellent aim (+2 hit) at Baaz 07 [TH 14] (1d20+2): 20+2 = 22, critical hit! for (4d6): 5,4,5,1 = 15 fire damage. Baaz 07 resists magic [MR 20%] (1d100): 82, fail. Baaz 07 saves vs. spell (1d20): 4, fail. The fire trap goes off and deals (1d4+5): 4+5 = 9 damage. Baaz 07 petrifies. Gobax moves 5 feet to the east, stepping out of the cloud.
----Baaz 08 takes (1d3): 3 splash damage. Baaz 08 resists magic [MR 20%] (1d100): 34, fail. Baaz 08 saves vs. spell (1d20): 5, fail. Baaz 08 takes 9 fire damage. Baaz 08 petrifies.
----Baaz 06 takes (1d3): 1 splash damage. Baaz 06 resists magic [MR 20%] (1d100): 41, fail. Baaz 06 saves vs. spell (1d20): 17, pass; he takes half damage. Baaz 06 takes 5 fire damage. Baaz 06 is near death.
Fiona is still reeling from the stinking cloud.
William saves vs. poison (1d20+1): 7+1 = 8, fail. He cannot act for (1d4+1): 1+1 = 2 rounds. He moves 15 feet to the west, out of the cloud.
Baaz 04 protects the prefect.
Baaz 05 protects the prefect.
Tulbas saves vs. poison (1d20): 20, pass. He attempts to attack Baaz 05 with his spectral hand (+2 hit) [TH 15] (1d20+2): 19+2 = 21, hit with vampiric touch for (2d6): 6,4 = 10 HP. Tulbas is fully healed and gains 3 temporary HP. Baaz 05 is petrified. Tulbas moves 10 feet east, out of the cloud.
Baaz 03 protects the prefect.
Baaz 06 protects the prefect.
Baaz 08 is petrified.
Baaz 07 is petrified.
Baaz 01 protects the prefect.
Haahqae climbs up the bed and attempts to cross the ceiling. However, the ceiling was not designed to hold that much weight, and after 5 feet he crashes back down to the ground, taking (1d6): 1 fall damage. The fall is completely silent, but it happens right in front of Baaz 03 who becomes aware of it.
(OOC: Actions for Round 3?)

Kendra (Hidden Room, Sewers)
"Make it quick," Magnus says. "We are short on time." He steps away, and gestures for the baaz to do the same, but they remain close and keep an eye on her and the elf.

Sadron, who was dropped to his knees, looks up at her. "Will you later tell yourself this wasn't your fault? That you had no choice?" he asks her.

"No," Kendra says softly. "Once all of this is over, if it is ever over, I will eventually face all that I have done," she says. She knows she can't live in denial forever, and eventually all that she has pushed back will come crashing down on her. "But this... this is the most I can do for you now."

[grubnick throws stones at baaz #6 until it dies, then at #2. if one comes out to engage, he'll use mace and shield instead

Well damn; who was the blasted architect who designed this place anyways? And; of course a baaz saw it; his puny brain probably thought it was a local cave cave in or something but maybe I could use that to my advantage. He is quite stupid and not likely to check all the possibilities; and it could be his end.

Haahqae will free himself of the plaster (assuming that it's over 1lb; otherwise I guess it would become invisible as part of his inventory?) and tosses it towards the bed to see if said interested baaz goes to investigate. He'll then press himself up against the north wall and glance up at the ceiling to see what his hole uncovered up there; letting the baaz go past him without touching him; as he remains invisible and silent; then rewards the curious baaz with a rapier in the back.

(So what I want to do is stealthy-swap places with the baaz; backstab him with the rapier (and drop it if he turns to stone) and investigate the hole in the ceiling; is there room above that Haahqae could climb up to?)