Vanguard sought to turn the tables on the treacherous Mystic! Via Aperture’s new powers, Vanguard, Nemesis and Doc Monster entered the magical dimension of Mystic, searching for his cache of the Artifacts of Power that would stop the coming of Cthulhu! It looked different than last time. Overwhelming. Disorienting. Utterly unnatural.
Sentinel and Menagerie could detect the energy emanations of the artifacts. They tried their best to navigate Vanguard through these alien, otherworldly territories of mind, space and magic, reaching a strange doorway on a floating island. The artifacts were behind the door. Before the door was a guardian, a 100-foot long sentient abomination of writhing tentacles, eyes, mouths, claws and malice.
Not for the first time, Avatar’s powers held Vanguard’s morale, stopping them from fleeing in terror.
Clone carefully positions himself as close to the center of the group as possible. Should the monster attack, Clone is prepared to split himself into as many duplicates as necessary in order to act as ‘human shields’ for the other members of Vanguard . . . and their guests.
Aperture said, "I don't think there is any way we're going to overpower that thing." Turning to his father,
"Dad, feel like channeling some Nyarlathotep? Maybe we can get past without having to fight. Sentinel could help with special effects. Maybe make us appear as some kind of minions?"
Looking at the monstrosity in the distance, a sick feeling grows in the pit of Slingshot’s stomach. Could that be him? He shakes off the morose thoughts and tries to focus on the situation and also making sure he and his son get out of this one alive.
He thought, We need to get around this thing. The team does seem to want to skirt it and not engage it directly. Its size is something that makes both ideas difficult. We need a diversion. Something to attract its attention while the others run by.
"Guys, we can't just take it on. We can't just run around this thing. We need to keep it occupied, while everyone else is going for it. We will need to keep it at bay. I think that we need to see if maybe Avatar can shine his light? It might repel it enough for us to get through, of maybe hamper it enough for us to do something about a 100 foot monster."
Avatar said stoically, “I’m up for it.”
Sentinel nodded at the thoughts being shared. He summoned his magic power and created a giant solid illusion of a god of the Cthulhu pantheon, one he had seen lovingly illustrated in the journal of Dr. Swastika!
Avatar stood with Sentinel inside the massive energy construct, manifested the power of Apollo and fired white light from the maw of Sentinel’s crimson creation, blinding the many writhing eyes of the black, 100 foot long guardian!
The 100-foot long sentient abomination of writhing tentacles, eyes, mouths, claws and malice screamed! Whether from Sentinel’s cthulhoid creation or the white light of Olympus, the thing shrieked within the minds of everyone around it! [OOC: Everyone take 10 hit points of psionic damage! Cannot be rolled with!]
Simultaneously, its many undulating, bludgeoning pseudopods and slavering jaws attacked Sentinel’s construct! [OOC: …for a combined assault of 43 points of damage!]
As Avatar and Sentinel engaged the horror, Aperture, Clone, Lightning Strike, Menagerie, Nemesis, Doc Monster and Slingshot raced past it, Menagerie in the lead in his stealthy black panther shape. They reached the titanic, closed doors, beyond which lay the energy auras of the artifacts of power.
The otherworldly double doors are a 20 foot tall, golden, coffin-shaped portal, with window-like, triangular recesses that are opaque. Abstract designs are etched into its surface. There are no signs of handles or hinges. Above it smolders a magical flame. Below it is the swampy surface of a floating island in this perplexing, surreal dimension.
The doors radiated a magical power that Menagerie had never encountered before. But it was clear Vanguard had to find a way to open them and now! Sentinel and Clone could not withstand another attack from the writhing chaos that loomed behind them! And being this far from Avatar, dread fear of that insane horror would soon overtake them all!
Actions!
Current Conditions:
Aperture: Hit Points: 25, Power Points: 28, Nanotech: Dimensional Travel Portal (one-shot)
Avatar: Hit Points: 21, Power Points: 38, Manifestation: Apollo
Clone: Hit Points: 7/6, Bodies: 1/1, Power Points: 67/67, Hit Point Pool: 13 (Stats: NYC/Russia) Lightning Strike: Hit Points: 23, Power Points: 75
Menagerie: Hit Points: 16, Power Points: 32, Form: Panther
Sentinel: Hit Points: 7, Power Points: 61, Creation Points: 79, Shields: 79%
Slingshot: Hit Points: 39, Power Points: 92, Invulnerability: 8, Fire damage that can’t be regenerated: 30
Countdown: 10:27pm EST. 49.5 hours until the End of the World.
--------------------------------------------------
Aperture:
Can Aperture use his heightened comprehension to try to figure out how to open the door?
Jon
--------------------------------------------------
GM:
OOC: Aperture doesn't comprehend the magical arts.
--------------------------------------------------
Sentinel:
The situation seemed bleak, and Kirk saw Vanguard hesitating at the door, and knew this creature would overwhelm them within seconds.
“Avatar, save your strength. Attacking the creature is having little effect other than making it angry and I don’t want to experience any more of that psionic backlash. I’ll try to hold it off to give you and Vanguard another moment to get through the door.
I think our senses are doing their best to interpret this realm for us in as close a way as our minds can process it. The appearance of that door here makes no other sense given the nature of its surroundings. Knowing Mystic’s power set, I think it is our minds means of perceiving a locked door or gateway to yet another adjoining dimension.
And there are various means to get through a door…
‘Slingshot, if we can do it by physical manipulation you are the ultimate pick-lock here with your morphing abilities plus you have magical properties yourself to interact with it… become the skeleton key.
Avatar, if Slingshot can’t get through then with the wisdom of the Zeus and with the bright shining light of Apollo you must be our light through this dense evil darkness for the dark things cannot stand the light.
Before Avatar moved to join the team Kirk said to him alone, ‘John, thanks for your support over the years. Guide them. It’s been an honor.’ As Kirk spoke Avatar saw blood dripping from his left nostril, apparently the damage of the psionic attack affecting him more than the others. Energy emanated from Kirk’s eyes, flares of green and red that John had never had seen before so much so that his natural color was no longer perceivable.
Kirk shouted a final thought, ‘There’s a final way through a door when all else fails, sheer brute force. Break it down,’ hoping an all-out onslaught of power would gain entrance for them if all else fails’.”
Jeff: Action – Kirk will use construct to grapple with and engage the creature. The goal here isn’t to inflict damage and at this point but to keep it occupied. He will morph his construct to mimic the shape, form, and actions of the creature to try to contain it. It is reaches out, he will try to have his construct do the same to counter it. Hopefully seeing a mirror of itself will confuse it and perhaps it will become curious and buy the team time. Conversely if it does try to go after Vanguard hopefully Kirk can match it tentacle for tentacle and protect them. Hopefully since Kirk’s actions are to distract as opposed to damage that gets some pluses in his efforts. As long as he is standing he will use his actions and energies to buy Vanguard time to get through the door, and at this point he isn’t counting on his making it through with them.
Hopefully he will.
Seth
--------------------------------------------------
Slingshot:
That works, Seth.
There's no hinges, locks or anything for me to get at. I'm willing to try and pry my way into that.
Here are a few things that Slingshot is willing to try, in order. I don't want to bash the thing in if there's a chance, I don't want that thing behind us following after us.
1) Touch/push the door to see if it just opens (someone has to try), If the door doesn't open, but I feel it interacting with me, I'll play with that.
2) see if I can find a crack or a seam and see if I can pry them apart or maybe feel if there's a lock on the other side.
3) Hulk Smash!
4) Try to smother the flame
If there's any of this that can be done before the turn is over, so I can provide further instructions, all the better.
Stephane
--------------------------------------------------
Menagerie:
OOC: I am good with the attack. Are some of the faster players willing to delay actions until after Menagerie attacks? I am thinking if I can discern that the door is alive I could hit it with my devitalization ray first so it can't roll with as much damage. If the door isn't alive then the creature instead.
Does anyone like the idea of letting Menagerie lead the attack.
Jeff, as I was ready the story I read the door as being a creature, am I reading too much into something that is obvious it isn't. If I need to I can use Menagerie Int and Mystical knowledge to confirm. I am going to want to use his Intelligence to help pick the right target but I don't want it to be my action. I am thinking it is something that takes movement. Am I correct or off base.
IC: Menagerie consults his knowledge of the ancients {Magic Knowledge and Intelligence) to identify the door and his guardian. "Vanguard, follow my lead. Attack Now!" He casts Essence of Life on his target.
OOC: Jeff, his target is what his Intelligence and Magic Knowledge informs him his Devitalization Ray will have the most impact on. I will use it as a before combat action, hopefully movement.
Let me know if I am way off on any of this.
Thanks
Tom
--------------------------------------------------
Aperture:
IC: A foreign world reflected in Aperture's large silver eyes as he approached the door. With his finger, he reached out to trace some of the etching, looking for something familiar from the occult studies he completed when researching the book he found abandoned in Swastika's lab.
He could hear his team mates behind him, holding off the writhing mass that was the door's apparent protector. He continued to look for some mechanism or latch. lacking that, he leaned against the door, and pushed.
OOC: Worth a try.
Jon
--------------------------------------------------
