DM:

The bone fit more or less into the hole...and nothing happened.

IC:
Allahan frowned. "I think we're taking it too literally," he said. "The statement appears to be general and of a narrative sense. Perhaps this isn't directly an instruction on how to proceed, but the clue is in it somehow..."

OOC: Trying to drop hints without giving away what this is. This puzzle could be ridiculously difficult, so you can assume that Allahan has excellent insight.

Alethiel looked at the inscription again, then at the cup in the door. It has to be something that fits into that cup, so whatever the key is is, it is probably thimble-shaped. Now, what would be thimble-shaped?

It is about the right size for a skull to fit into it, Alethiel mused. What else have we come across that is that size, round, and portable?

Yeah, seems like the sort of thing a lich would use Okri replied

It might work Lauriel admitted and continued The only skulls I can remember us coming across, is those of the skeletons we fought when we first came to Northkeep… Naja could you get one of them?

I’ll be right back Naja replied and blinking for safety, she teleported to the room where they had fought the skeletons. Arriving there she looked around, both watching for enemies and looking for an intact skull.

DM:

Naja found that, once again, there were no enemies waiting for her, and when the party had come through, they hadn't crushed all the skulls, so there was one intact. She took it and headed back to the party, and when they placed it into the cup, it seemed to fit pretty well, being the right size, but nothing happened.

IC:
"Perhaps not a skull then..." Allahan thought, still looking at the letters, trying to look for patterns or words inside of them. They could spend all day trying to find the right thing to put in there, but if the puzzle simply told them somehow, then solving it would be the best way to get through.

Well Lauriel thought if a skull fits into the hole a head would fit as well. North is considered “up” on a map, so a persons head could be said to be the “north” part of his body…

Seems worth a try Okri thought and promptly moved over to the door, took of his helmet and tried to fit his head into the hole…

If this doesn't work, Alethiel thought, It could still be a skull, but one of the sailors. Perhaps that is what "testing" the north refers to.

[This message has been edited by Beren V (edited 05-28-2009 @ 12:12 PM).]

OOC: Lol, Okri's sticking his head in the door.

DM:

Once again Okri could fit his head in there decently, but nothing happened. It almost got stuck when he was pulling it back out, and Allahan stifled a laugh.

Alethiel was running out of ideas. I am beginning to wonder if we should search this entire labyrinth for anything of approximately the right shape...

Allahan frowned at the door. "Perhaps that would be one way of doing it," he said, "but we don't have that sort of time."

"Mage Shadow-Water?" he asked into the bond. "Do you have any suggestions as to what this might be?"

It was easy to forget that the mage was on the other end of the bond, being its caster, but he was ready to respond when called upon. "Yes, indeed, Allahan," he said so they could all hear. "I think the words are an anagram. If you rearrange the letters appropriately, I think it will give you the answer you seek to get past this door. Given the increasing challenge of the puzzles and their intellectual tendencies, I doubt that the Lich would reduce this third challenge to a guessing-game."

Something clicked in Allahan's head. "Thank you, sir," he thought. "The word 'gate' is definitely in there, but so is 'door', and neither of those necessarily have to be one of the words...."

[This message has been edited by that one Elf (edited 05-29-2009 @ 08:00 PM).]

As is 'portal'. However, the words 'entrance', 'key', and 'way' are all not there. Alethiel thought. She was never any good at this sort of puzzle - too many languages, and this wasn't her first.

OOC: Part of the reason I haven't been thinking in terms of these kinds of word puzzles is that I normally assume that the Common tongue is not English or any real-world language, and that we are reading the characters' speech in translation in any event. Word puzzles are like poetry: they usually don't translate.

DM:

Shadow-Water's voice came through the bond again. "It's reasonable that the puzzle would specify what would allow you to pass," he said. "The word 'strength' is in there, and perhaps it is the strength of something that allows you to pass..." The mage was clearly in thought.

OOC: That's a hint. Feel free to make checks or whatever to slowly figure this out.

Strength, thought Alethiel. Positive energy, perhaps? Strength of positive energy? We could try something from the shrine. Then she thinks again, without saying anything.

There is only one 'r' in that sentence, so 'portal' and 'door' drop out if it is strength. 'Open' does not drop out, though. Do you suppose it could be in there? There is no 'm' - so no 'magic', which is what I would think 'strength' would refer to. And no 'w', so no 'power'. Wait - no, there are two 'r's, in 'lord' and in 'north', so what I said about portal and door are wrong - they could still be in there. I am trying to eliminate letters, so that we can narrow down the possibilities...

OOC: Okay, long story short, I lost the answer to my anagram and I can't seem to figure it out again, not having memorized it well enough. I have another one that isn't as good and would change the answer, but forget about it. Eventually, the party will figure out that the answer references 'the strength of earth' or something along those lines and take a loose stone they find in the wall behind them and fit it perfectly into the hole.

DM:

The stone fit perfectly into the cup and with a clunk the party could hear the adamantium door's huge lock slide back. Inside probably wasn't what they were expecting to see--it was a man.

This man was tall human male with long, light hair. He was wearing brilliant white armor that was obviously magical and was adorned with a variety of magic symbols, including those of several good deities. He had a concentrated look on his face and a long golden cloak. There was a shield on his back that kept with the brilliant, white/gold/silver theme, and on his waist were each a longsword and a heavy mace, both as brilliant as the rest of his equipment.

He was also quite frozen in place, and a slight magical aura danced around him as though it were the thing that was keeping him there. ((An appropriate Spellcraft check will determine the spell.))

Also in the room to the right side was a rotted table. Upon it was a golden rod laying on a stone tablet. Magic runes pulsed on the rod, and on the tablet was written an inscription in Common. It read: MAY THE PURE IN HEART TOUCH THIS TO ME AND FREE ME FROM MY SLUMBER.

OOC: The puzzle is indeed too difficult if the DM himself can't figure it out!

IC:

Alethiel read the tablet and looked at the rod. She reached out her hand to the rod, and then slapped her fist against her breast. What is "pure of heart" I wonder?

Allahan frowned at the man, the rod, and the inscription, trying to figure out what it all meant. "This is curious. I can't imagine whoever this is imprisoning himself and leaving out a means to free him," he thought into the bond. "Certainly it makes sense if he wants someone to rescue him, but wouldn't the Lich have simply removed these means if he didn't want us to find this man? This must mean that the inscription bears some weight--perhaps one who is not 'pure in heart' would face some consequence in using this rod?"

DM:

Okri shifts on his feet, suddenly feeling a little bit uneasy, especially when he looks at the rod.

I am absolutely certain that touching the rod without being worthy carries some dire consequence for whomever makes contact with it, Alethiel "said". That much was blatantly obvious from the start. But what does "purity" consist of? Merely good alignment? A specific type of good alignment? Or does it mean something physical as well as spiritual? For example, many Human cultures value virginity very highly, which few Elven societies do, and this man appears to be Human. Would something like that matter? Or does "purity" refer to some blessing, perhaps, in which one is cleansed of the evils within themselves, and even a good person of appropriate alignment would not qualify unless they had also gone through their ceremony?

Lauriel studied the magic aura surrounding the man trying to figure out what spell had caused it (Spellcraft: 14+7=21) He also looked at the symbols at his armor, trying to figure out what gods they represented. (Untrained knowledge (religion): 14+1=15)

DM:

Lauriel didn't have much trouble figuring out that it was a temporal isolation spell causing the effect. It was actually quite interesting--the spell's known effects were to freeze the target in place for an indefinite amount of time, keep them from harm, and keep them from aging. That meant that this man could be untold ages old, but he had been preserved by the spell to maintain his 30-something years of age physically.

Among the symbols on the man's armor were those of every good-aligned god in the pantheon, but it seemed that Pelor was the most featured of them.

IC:
Allahan shrugged. "There are certain spells and effects like detect evil that divine one's moral standards and purity. Perhaps the 'pure in heart' would be considered anyone that is considered good by spells of this kind? Or perhaps with an element of law, though I don't consider that any indication of one's purity of heart."

OOC: Pelor is an Oerthian deity...

IC:

I am certain that the staff requires good alignment. The question is exactly whether it requires lawfulness or some other quality as well, Alethiel communicated. She began looking at the symbols herself, trying to see if she could see Mielekki's on it. If she could, then she could surely pick it up - Alethiel being Mielekki's priestess, after all.

[This message has been edited by Beren V (edited 06-24-2009 @ 08:21 PM).]

OOC: You seem to forget--I tend to use whatever pantheon pops into my head instead of one typical for the campaign setting. You're right, though--I don't know the Forgotten Realms pantheon well enough, but you can assume that I mean the Realms "equivalent" of deities I mention. I guess instead of Pelor I meant... Tyr?

DM:

Yes, since Mielekki is Neutral Good, she is represented.

OOC:
As Beren has already said, Pelor is not a deity of Toril… Lathander is the Faerûn deity that comes closest to resemble Pelor in Faerûn although Chauntea also could be used. Tyr is not really a good example as Pelor is neutral good while Tyr is lawful good. (of course if you mysterious man is a paladin Tyr is would work well)
So who is it going to be?

OOC: You're right, let's go with Lathander. By the way, he's not a Paladin. Better wake him up.

I recognize Mielekki's symbol on the staff Alethiel noted to the others. I am Her priestess, so I assume that means it would be safe for me to handle the staff. If something horrible happens to me when I touch it, well, so you know.

Then, setting her bow in her other hand, Alethiel reached out to pick up the staff.

DM:

Alethiel felt no repulsion as she reached for the rod, and she was able to pick it up without incident.

Picking up the staff and noticing no obvious ill affects, Alethiel walked over in front of the armored man, and gently touched the staff to the temporal stasis aura in front of his body. Then, she stepped back, still holding the staff in her left hand.

DM:

The rod's brightness suddenly darkened until it was black when the druidess touched it to the stranger, then crumbled to dust in Alethiel's hand. For a moment, nothing seemed to happen, but then the party noticed that the stasis field surrounding the man was dimming as well. Then, in mere seconds, it ended, and the man blinked.

The first thing he did was stretch and crack his neck. He sighed deeply, then shook his head and looked around him at the adventurers before him. "May the gods bless the ones who have brought me back to the living!" he said, and he bowed to the adventurers. "Tell me, greatest of friends, what is the year, and what is the state of this noble fortress?"

DM Note:

The year is 1372.

Having more or less expected such a question Lauriel was quick to answer ”The year is 1372 and I am afraid that the fortress is partly destroyed, submerged under water and in the hands of an evil lich”

DM:

The man raised his eyebrows. "1372? It's been much longer than I had expected..." he said, more to himself than to the party. Then he brought his attention back to his rescuers. "Well, please forgive my manners. I am Calavel, high champion of the United Divinities Church of Northkeep. When the fortress came under attack, many of its inhabitants were trapped inside as it began to sink. I was one of a few that had a way of preserving myself--I had prepared temporal stasis and I had a rod that would cancel it, so I warded it against evil and cast the spell on myself, hoping that someone like you would come along and find me eventually.

"What you say about a Lich is troubling--there's no doubt that this was another man's way of avoiding death by suffocation," he mused. "However, I've slain many undead before. If you'll allow me to accompany you, I'd be very happy to deal with this problem for you."

It's clear to the party that this man is tremendously powerful--his very aura exudes strength and vitality. His voice is strong, his stature tall and his form muscular. His eyes seem to shine with an inner light, and his skin practically glows with divine energy. His voice carries a righteous weight, as though reflecting a mind as strong as adamantium and a heart of gold. His gaze is so intense that it's hard to meet his eye, even for the strong of will.

Allahan is apparently fascinated by Calavel, awed beyond speech.

Now that the man was “alive” again it really became obvious how incredible powerful he was. Lauriel was impressed, but he had met other really powerful people (Elminster and The Simbul, Witch-Queen of Aglarond) so he wasn’t completely in awe.
“I am Lauriel, and this is Alethiel, Okri, Allahan and Naja.” Lauriel said indicating the party members as he spoke their names “We will be honored to have you accompanying us. We have been able to deal with the lich’s undead minions so far, but I fear that we wouldn’t have much of a chance against the lich himself. This is why we were searching this level of the fortress, we were hoping to find something that could help us defeat the lich… It would seems that we have found it now…”

Okri was in awe and wasn’t really able to say anything at the moment…

DM:

Calavel bowed. "Then it will be my pleasure to see this matter concluded," he said, then started walking towards the door, the party close behind. It quickly became apparent that one of the doors with the puzzles had been attached to some sort of alarm, because as the party entered the hallway, they found it filled with zombies. Calavel gestured for the party to stay back in the hallway and walked towards the horde calmly.

The undead shambled forward to meet him, but as they neared him, as soon as they got within about 15 feet, they were utterly destroyed as though assaulted by a tremendous amount of positive energy. The fight, if it could be called that, lasted about twelve seconds, and Calavel hadn't needed to cast a spell or even draw a weapon.

He turned back to the party. "Now, which way did you say this Lich was? Or did you?"

"We have not found the lich itself, although we know it is on a lower level. As for evidence, this place is crawling with the walking dead, not just that room," Alethiel said grimly as she walked out behind the man.

Temporal stasis? That is a nineth-tier spell! she thought, meanwhile. Obviously, this man was far more powerful than anyone she had encountered in a long time. Would it be possible that he could turn even the lich itself?