*Korb sniffs the air and lets out a strange sound. Like a high pitched hiss that seems to carry farther than it should* "I'm calling for an old friend of mine, she is slow tempered and will not attack, do not worry." *Turns to Skatan* "Do not worry, she knows better than to hunt a Druid's companions." *A moment later there is a slight rustle in the nearby bushes, a large sleek form calmly walks out. A Dire Weasel* "This is Mikki, my oldest and truest friend. We will scout a little ways around us to see if we can learn something about what we may encounter, or some trace of the missing cattle."
I'm using the Ranger's tracking ability to try and learn about our surroundings, as well a stealth to stay hidden. Oh and @Skatan , I'm sorry, but I forgot your character's name. I'm really bad with names and I'm wondering if everyone would be okay with either getting nicknames from my character, or posting their name at the top oftheir posts?
You walk down the second path that is filled with lush greenery and vibrant flora. You feel a drowsy, dreamy influence pervading your mind and perception, and your mind is filled with a sense of calmness and tranquillity. The sweet scent of wild flowers hangs heavy in the air, alluring you deeper and closer to the heart of the forest. You try to resist, but find it strangely exhausting to persuade yourself to go back. You find yourself unwilling to return, and as if in a trance, you move on.
The forest starts getting less dense in this region. After moving on for some more time, you reach a clearer patch of land, quite akin to a grassy meadow. The roof of the forest opens up in places, letting in little peeks of the skylight. A small body of crystal clear water has formed near this, on which float lotuses and water lilies. It's a sight, which by itself, is most pleasing to the eyes, but what's more, you see strange little fairies flying about here and there like restless butterflies. They appear to notice your presence, but are indifferent to you.
What do you do?
Hint: This is literally an open world adventure and you have complete freedom of your choices, albeit with the respective consequences. (And obviously, it should respect the Site Rules. ) Think what to do... for it's entirely up to you!
By the way, did you notice that everything is happening inside your mind?
Hint: You are currently enveloped in strong enchantments, which is making normal searching difficult. Try to initiate a conversation and find a way out. This is the Jungle of Dreams.
Vidar's keen senses smell that something is of, it doesn't smell like in any normal wilderness area he has visited. "Let's try conversing with these small fairies and see if they know anything."
Vidar reaches out his hand slowly towards the closest fairy, the one that at least look a tiny, slightly little interested in the group and says: "Hi, there. Can you please help us? We seem to be a bit lost and could really use some guidance."
The fairies (or so what they seem to be) gaze at you and start giggling, as if amused by your words. They flutter around you for some time, keeping a safe distance, perhaps examining the aura of your mind. Finally one of them comes closer and hovers in front of your party, her little glimmering wings blowing sparkling fairy dust at you. She giggles and says in a sweet voice:
"Why don't you answer a riddle first?"
"I can climb trees without a sound. But must still always touch the ground.
Vidar's keen senses smell that something is of, it doesn't smell like in any normal wilderness area he has visited.
This smell is already described in my first description of this path. But there's something special about it. Think of the effect it can have on your mind. And once again, remember the name of the place where you are.
You feel a drowsy, dreamy influence pervading your mind and perception, and your mind is filled with a sense of calmness and tranquillity. The sweet scent of wild flowers hangs heavy in the air, alluring you deeper and closer to the heart of the forest.
Vidar thinks for a moment, looks around at the group, and then a bit hesitantly responds: "A vine."
This all seem to surreal to be real. A brief exchange of thoughts and chirps with his magpie's and they start to thrust their beaks at him, as to try and wake him from a bad dream.
"Hee, hee, hee," giggles the fairy, "You are right, wise dwarf."
Then she continues:
"In this forest is a flowery vine of dreams, That twines around your mind's streams. All that glitters is not gold, So one must be as wise as bold. You must not believe all that you see, For things are often not what they seem to be. You must stop inhaling this fragrance, Only then shall you come out of this trance."
I hope the logic is clear: Wild Flowers --> Sweet Smell --> Contains chemical hallucinogens --> You smell it --> You are day-dreaming!
“Bah! I’m a dwarf, after all! I can’t be bothered by these silly smells! My odor overpowers it, that’s why I bathe rarely! Aye!”
Hek is going to examine the flowers and try to glean some information.
“Tell me, wee fairy girlies, do I smell stronger than these flowers?” I waft my armpits around. “Anyone smell that? Aye?!”
Then, trying to call on the powers of his mind, Hek imagines that he is going to try to conjure up a smell stronger than the flowers around him: a very dwarf-like smell that most dwarves would obviously find pleasant, but which many others might not quite find as pleasant.
The strong odor emanating from Hek's armpits neutralise the hallucinating effect of the flowery fragrance. Suddenly you find that you are in a place no different from the rest of the forest. All what you saw was a powerful illusion, difficult to disbelieve. And what you thought to be fairies, were nothing but some songbirds of the forest.
You now see the strange vine that was causing the problem. Vidar (@Skatan ) recognizes them to be Dream-vine herbs, which emit highly powerful hallucinating fragrances. If it were not for Hek, you could have run into something dangerous.
Having successfully overcome this hallucination, the party gets enough XP points to progress to level 2.
Hint: You can collect some of these Dream-vine herbs. Maybe you can use them later.
Vidar, finally out of this hallucination and now seeing clearly, collects a sample of these vines. Being a self-proclaimed botanist, he also scribbles down the effects of the vines as well as draws a simple picture of it in his big tome of plants and specimens he carriers around in a bag hanging over his shoulder.
Vidar then proceeds to start looking around the area, to see if he can find anything of value; searching for both information and for objects or items of interest. On the way to these forests, the group filled him in on the mission and the background, so Vidar now knowing the quest objectives therefore search based on that.
"Hek, I'm a dwarf like you, but I haven't smelled anything so... pungent since that time I traveled deep into the caverns in the Deepest Depth of Dire Death's region far south and encountered a huge rat-like creature that had been dead for a few weeks; it's tummy swollen and releasing gases, it's flesh rotten and decayed, it's skin bloated and full of moldy fungus. I thank you for this prudent experience and have now also taken notes about dwarves and their respective smells. May I ask from what clan you from so that I can add the note in the correct section of my register?"
Vidar's magpies, who had never been affected by the powerful hallucination and had spent some time giggling over the funny behaviour of the group, now soar around in circles over the group's head, searching for shiny objects or other things of interest. The swoop down and whisper to Vidar if they see anything.
So how does leveling work? I’m not really keeping a character sheet, aside from what I have on the first page.
@mashedtaters Well, nothing specifically happens. You might just take a few more spells (though you would need them only according to the situation). You grow a bit more powerful, that's it. We are levelling up only for the sake of levelling up. No statistical formalities here.
The mind is actually what is playing a greater part in this adventure.
"Hek, I'm a dwarf like you, but I haven't smelled anything so... pungent since that time I traveled deep into the caverns in the Deepest Depth of Dire Death's region far south and encountered a huge rat-like creature that had been dead for a few weeks; it's tummy swollen and releasing gases, it's flesh rotten and decayed, it's skin bloated and full of moldy fungus. I thank you for this prudent experience and have now also taken notes about dwarves and their respective smells. May I ask from what clan you from so that I can add the note in the correct section of my register?"
“Aye, well if you thought that was something, ye should have laid yer nose on ol’ Chief Hekkor Hammerzim after he wrestled with a couple o’ angry giants in the swamps of Ne’erairedout. That’d be enough to make a grown dwarf warrior cry, and ye never want ter see a grown dwarf warrior cry. Makes ye ashamed, scared, and a little giddy all at once...
“As fer me clan, I’m proud fourth in line for the crown of Clan Hammerzim... o’ course that’s just if all the Hammerzims heirs get killed in the giant wars they been having. And then me older brother would have to abdicate, as well... and then...”
Hek then launches into a long-winded lecture about his genealogy, as all dwarves are proud of. Those who understand it, however, realize that he’s not quite as close to the crown as he makes himself sound, but he rationalizes it repeatedly by saying, “but I was named after the great Hekkor Hammerzim hisself, so that counts fer somethin’!”
@Rik_Kirtaniya I haven’t really been keeping track of my spells... lol... a cleric that doesn’t even know what he can cast... I take it this isn’t really a problem?
@mashedtaters No problem at all. We can assume that you can so the basic things that a Cleric does, like healing, inspiring courage, turning undead, and things like that. There's no need to keep track of any specific spells. Just enjoy the roleplaying!
Grem takes some of the dream flowers and puts them in his inventory. “These’ll come in handy later. Well done, Hek. I knew your powerful stench would help us in some way!” He looks to the trackers of the group. “Do you see evidence of cows passing through?”
Maggie and Picca return after some time and tell Vidar (@Skatan ) that they had seen something strange in the first path. You had lost your orientation while you were hallucinated, but Korb (@ThacoBell ), with his keen tracking abilities detects the impressions of your footprints that you had left on the grass while coming this way, and fortunately you are able to return to the fork from whence you had started.
Maybe you shouldn't rely that much on dice rolls...
Vidar, having listened patiently on Hek's long-winding tales of his clan, family and geneology, finish his scribbling in the tome, pack it into it's bag that he has hanging over his shoulder and prepares to move on to the next area.
"Grem, first path now or what do you say? My flying friends have informed me that they've seen something interesting and strange down there, but they refuse to tell me exactly what. They like to play games with me sometimes that way, hehe.. but waddaya say, should we head that way next?"
Vidar, having leveled up, casts Snake's swiftness Mass to make the whole group run a little faster for a round, so we can quickly get back to the fork in the road and continue our trek down the next path.
Ops, this spell is CLVL level 3, but I'm gonna leave this anyways. It's all in my mind anyways
You take no more chances and move forward down the first path. The ground is stony here, covered with lichens and mosses (collectable). You see many smooth boulders, rounded down by the forces of weathering. It appears as if Nature has built a Zen garden of her own here, for you soon come upon various diversely shaped rocks and stones larger much larger than you. Your wonder is further increased when you come to a blind end, where a towering wall of rock has grown, impassable by any means.
On closer inspection, however, you find that there is a smoothened rectangular stone plate upon the rock wall. On it are inscribed several signs, which are as follows:
3, 4, __ 5, 12, __ 6, 8, __ 8, 15, __ 7, 24, __
You wonder what they might mean. Just out of curiosity, you go near the wall and swipe your finger over it. An impression is formed following the trail of your finger that soon vanishes again, leaving the wall just as it was. Then, for apparently no reason, you draw the number 5 in the first blank. This time, the impression persists. You realize that this is some kind of barred impediment, and you must enter the proper numbers to make it open up.
Hint 1: This follows a special mathematical logic.
Comments
"I'm calling for an old friend of mine, she is slow tempered and will not attack, do not worry." *Turns to Skatan* "Do not worry, she knows better than to hunt a Druid's companions."
*A moment later there is a slight rustle in the nearby bushes, a large sleek form calmly walks out. A Dire Weasel*
"This is Mikki, my oldest and truest friend. We will scout a little ways around us to see if we can learn something about what we may encounter, or some trace of the missing cattle."
You enter...
The Jungle of Dreams
What do you do?
Yes, Mindscapes...
Vidar reaches out his hand slowly towards the closest fairy, the one that at least look a tiny, slightly little interested in the group and says: "Hi, there. Can you please help us? We seem to be a bit lost and could really use some guidance."
@ThacoBell
"Why don't you answer a riddle first?"
"I can climb trees
without a sound.
But must still always
touch the ground.
What am I?"
Hint: (More will be given later if required.)
This all seem to surreal to be real. A brief exchange of thoughts and chirps with his magpie's and they start to thrust their beaks at him, as to try and wake him from a bad dream.
"Hee, hee, hee," giggles the fairy, "You are right, wise dwarf."
Then she continues:
"In this forest is a flowery vine of dreams,
That twines around your mind's streams.
All that glitters is not gold,
So one must be as wise as bold.
You must not believe all that you see,
For things are often not what they seem to be.
You must stop inhaling this fragrance,
Only then shall you come out of this trance."
Wild Flowers --> Sweet Smell --> Contains chemical hallucinogens --> You smell it --> You are day-dreaming!
Hey, hey, now wake up!
Remember what I said?
Hek is going to examine the flowers and try to glean some information.
“Tell me, wee fairy girlies, do I smell stronger than these flowers?” I waft my armpits around. “Anyone smell that? Aye?!”
Then, trying to call on the powers of his mind, Hek imagines that he is going to try to conjure up a smell stronger than the flowers around him: a very dwarf-like smell that most dwarves would obviously find pleasant, but which many others might not quite find as pleasant.
You now see the strange vine that was causing the problem. Vidar (@Skatan ) recognizes them to be Dream-vine herbs, which emit highly powerful hallucinating fragrances. If it were not for Hek, you could have run into something dangerous.
Having successfully overcome this hallucination, the party gets enough XP points to progress to level 2.
Vidar then proceeds to start looking around the area, to see if he can find anything of value; searching for both information and for objects or items of interest. On the way to these forests, the group filled him in on the mission and the background, so Vidar now knowing the quest objectives therefore search based on that.
"Hek, I'm a dwarf like you, but I haven't smelled anything so... pungent since that time I traveled deep into the caverns in the Deepest Depth of Dire Death's region far south and encountered a huge rat-like creature that had been dead for a few weeks; it's tummy swollen and releasing gases, it's flesh rotten and decayed, it's skin bloated and full of moldy fungus. I thank you for this prudent experience and have now also taken notes about dwarves and their respective smells. May I ask from what clan you from so that I can add the note in the correct section of my register?"
Vidar's magpies, who had never been affected by the powerful hallucination and had spent some time giggling over the funny behaviour of the group, now soar around in circles over the group's head, searching for shiny objects or other things of interest. The swoop down and whisper to Vidar if they see anything.
So how does leveling work? I’m not really keeping a character sheet, aside from what I have on the first page.
Hek says, “How about that, boys! That’ll put hair on yer chest! Be glad I didn’t waft out me beard... not sure even I could stand that...”
The mind is actually what is playing a greater part in this adventure.
“As fer me clan, I’m proud fourth in line for the crown of Clan Hammerzim... o’ course that’s just if all the Hammerzims heirs get killed in the giant wars they been having. And then me older brother would have to abdicate, as well... and then...”
Hek then launches into a long-winded lecture about his genealogy, as all dwarves are proud of. Those who understand it, however, realize that he’s not quite as close to the crown as he makes himself sound, but he rationalizes it repeatedly by saying, “but I was named after the great Hekkor Hammerzim hisself, so that counts fer somethin’!”
I haven’t really been keeping track of my spells... lol... a cleric that doesn’t even know what he can cast... I take it this isn’t really a problem?
Maybe you shouldn't rely that much on dice rolls...
"Grem, first path now or what do you say? My flying friends have informed me that they've seen something interesting and strange down there, but they refuse to tell me exactly what. They like to play games with me sometimes that way, hehe.. but waddaya say, should we head that way next?"
On closer inspection, however, you find that there is a smoothened rectangular stone plate upon the rock wall. On it are inscribed several signs, which are as follows:
3, 4, __
5, 12, __
6, 8, __
8, 15, __
7, 24, __
You wonder what they might mean. Just out of curiosity, you go near the wall and swipe your finger over it. An impression is formed following the trail of your finger that soon vanishes again, leaving the wall just as it was. Then, for apparently no reason, you draw the number 5 in the first blank. This time, the impression persists. You realize that this is some kind of barred impediment, and you must enter the proper numbers to make it open up.
Vidar stares at the boulder and the obvious math riddle and sinks into deep thoughts.
@Rik_Kirtaniya