A strong wind passes through the chambers, a touch of vertigo, and a shimmer in the air occurs.

The pool's bottom is obscured by the dirt Rod had thrown in, now mud.  The pool is 3 feet deep, The bottom isn't glass, it's cobblestone, but there's probably a thousand crystals set in it. Eristo finds he can submerge his top half and reach the bottom, prying up one of the small quartz crystals takes a couple minutes with breaks for breathing.  After it's removed bubbles start coming up mud swirls slowly into the hole.  Following Eristo's lead Alwyn also pries a crystal up, and Eristo another increasing the rate of drain, though at this point it's like draining a pool with a garden hose.  As Alwyn glances at the crystal he's removed he realizes it's probably worth about a gold piece.  Then Xiamat joins smashing at them with Rod's ten-foot pole.

(Xiamat roll a to-hit vs. a crystal)

19:40, Today: Xiamat rolled 4 using 1d10.  Damage roll (if needed).
19:39, Today: Xiamat rolled 1 using 1d3.  Bonus die.
19:39, Today: Xiamat rolled 12 using 1d20.  To hit.

Xiamat smashes a crystal into bits, and through the floor, it opens a slightly bigger hole than prying them out, and is quicker, but the valuable crystal is destroyed.

“Big hole!  Big, big hole!”  Liking the way this is going, Xiamat attempts to make another.

20:30, Today: Xiamat rolled 1 using 1d3.  Bonus die.
20:30, Today: Xiamat rolled 8 using 1d20.  To hit.
This message was last edited by the player at 01:31, Sat 17 Feb 2018.

Alwyn smiles to himself at the warrior's antics.  Speed is probably important right now, but he's not really the smashing type even under ideal circumstances, so he just continues prying instead.  Every little bit helps...

Seeing what Alwyn is doing, Xiamat does the same, while cheerleading.  “Come on, water.  Let’s go down.  Don’t make us frown.  Come on water... drain away.  No time to play.  We ain’t got all day.”

Rod decides to join you in prying out crystals, not wanting to be left out of treasure recovery.

Xiamat smashes another crystal, almost missing it, then switches to prying.  Rod joins the prying party.

No sound or indication that the clay statues are perusing through the closed door, or up the stairs.

(OOC: skipping ahead, Eristo, is Clyde helping or just keeping watch out?)

After about half an hour Xiamat and Rod have 12 each, and Alwyn and Eristro 13 of the crystals, the floor of the pool creaks and starts sagging around the edges where you've been working.  The pool has drained about 1/3 inch below the lip.

Eristo stops to take a break. Wiping the sweat from his brow, he says, "Keep up the good work, Clyde. Look! Gems! This is why you came along, is it not?"

He wondered, though, what was happening below...

“I hate to sound like pussy, but maybe we take gems and get out of here?  I don’t know about fighting all those guys.”

(OOC: is everyone continuing with the gem harvesting, or is it off to check on the clay soldiers? or leave? something else?)

Eristo is curious what the effect of all this water might be having.

"Clyde, take a peek begind the door and see what it looks like down there, yes?"

In reply to Eristo (msg # 13):

Clyde says "You want me to go downstairs, and peek in on the army?! By myself?!"

Rod shrugs and says "I'll go with, getting tired of dunking myself anyway.  Just remember, open the door for a quick peek and close it again."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:39, Fri 23 Feb 2018.

Clyde grumbles and mopes, but shuffles down the stairs with Rod in tow.

They go down and Clyde opens the door only momentarily, the soldiers having taken their original positions.  Rod notes that water is coming down in dripping streams from the holes above all around the periphery of the sunken field, and the clay soldiers standing in those spots seem to be slightly damaged by the water, while the ones in the middle are untouched.  The soldiers start to move again, as the door is slammed shut.

Clyde returns and reports what he saw "Soldiers still there, looking a little muddy."
This message was last edited by the GM at 00:46, Fri 23 Feb 2018.

Xiamat rushes to join his companions.  Standing next to a pool of water all by yourself can get pretty scary!

Alwyn had noticed the floor sagging as they put more and more little holes in it.  Once everyone has regrouped, he says to the rest of them Do we have any long objects we can use to pry or break the crystals without going into the pool ourselves?  If we keep going the floor might give out, and that would get us the torrent we're looking for.  After a moment of thought he adds Or maybe something really heavy we could put in the pool?

“I can’t think of nothin’.  I don’t have any long things that I can live without.  Maybe we’ll have to go in the pool.”

Suddenly, all of the angst overwhelms him.

“You’re tearing me apart, dungeon!”

There isn't anything both heavy enough and that you could move that would do the trick.  Especially nothing that would weigh as much as the water itself.  Rod does some back of the napkin calculations and declares the water weighs about 60 thousand pounds.

There's still enough of the crystals close that you could get to them without getting entirely in the pool but you might get sucked down with the water if it does collapse, or you could go back to smashing them with the pole while remaining out of it.

“Too bad we can’t blow up the bottom of the pool.  Blowing things up takes care of things real fast.”  He rubs his chin, which he tends to do during moments of maximum mental expenditure, such as pondering the true nature of the cosmos or completing an especially challenging bowl movement.  “I guess if we could blow up the pool, we could just blow up the bad guys instead.  Or we could do both, so first they get wet, and only then get dead.”

Alwyn ponders as well, and after a moment says It doesn't look like anything is chasing us.  What if we just rest, let the water drain down slowly, and then go back downstairs and open the door?  We might be more likely to produce a good deluge like that than with this slow picking.

Xiamat gazes at Alwyn in astonishment.  “You smart.  You should be teacher.  Ferk-damn biscuits... you should be teacher of teachers!”

Needless to say, Xiamat concurs with Alwin’s suggestion.
This message was last edited by the player at 19:45, Fri 02 Mar 2018.

You wait about what you think is an hour and the pool has drained 2 more inches.  Only 32.5 left to go before it's completely empty - it will take just a bit more than 16 hours at that rate.  Are there enough rations in the party for a few meals?  You've got plenty of water there.

“Maybe we get more crystals out before water go away?  Me like ‘em... they shine!”

Knock yourself out, says Alwyn as he starts walking toward the door.  He stops suddenly and says No, don't do that.  Just keep taking crystals as long as you want to, and as long as there isn't something more important to do.  He then heads downstairs to see if the room below the pool might be a little fuller than the paltry drainage would suggest.

It’s too late!  Xiamat slaps himself on the temple and falls to the floor unconscious.  He slumps over... it’s entirely possible that he’s dead.

Then he opens one eye half way to gauge your reaction.

Some omnipotent puppet master, viewing this event through unimaginable transdimensional scrying technology, might be amused by the warrior's antics.  But Alwyn just shakes his head and mutters I'm going to die in this place, aren't I as he heads down to check the other room.

Xiamat rises.  "Why no funny this time?"

He follows his companion.

As you quickly open the door, the statues in the pit in the middle of the room, strangely the same size and placed directly below the pool above, are looking a bit more eroded, but start to move.

Alwyn shuts the door, goes back upstairs, and relates what he saw.  I don't know, big guy.  I think we're just going to have to wait it out and let the place flood, unless you have any better ideas in the meantime.

Xiamat looks somewhat insulted.  “Better ideas?  I always have better ideas!  Me idears are born pregnant with better ideas.  I can’t control the sluts!”

"What better ideas?"

Xiamat gawks at him, suddenly confused.  “What are you talking about?”

((I take it that means everyone waits an interminably long time (or a lazy summer's day around the pool) for it to drain and has a couple meals, maybe a nap or two?))

Sounds about right.  What better place for an extended picnic?
This message was last edited by the player at 00:07, Sat 17 Mar 2018.

(Yeah, I think it's come to that)

You slowly watch the water drain, like watching grass grow.  Eventually after a long day of napping and lounging around the pool it has drained to the point of only a few puddles.

Xiamat stands at the edge of the pool and attempts to expand his communicative horizons.  “Any baby mosquitos down there?  If you’re down there, speak up.  I’ll kill you fast.  Unless you try to fool Xiamat by not saying nothin’.  If you do that, Xiamat kill you real fast!”

Among the many things he knows is the proven fact that when the stork delivers mosquito larvae, he always leaves them in stagnant puddles of water.

Alwyn leaves the mosquito inspection to Xiamat.  Once that's done, he carefully leads the way down to check on the flood.

Xiamat follows as soon as the terrible truth dawns on him: the mosquito larve tricked him.  They were really hiding down here!

The majority of the clay soldiers are now just lumps of clay in a pool, however opposite the room 8 clay soldiers remain out of the water, waiting.  The one still pointing at you as the door opens.

Xiamat bends at the knees and repeatedly chops his crotch while gyrating his pelvis in a vulgar manner.  By doing this, he hopes to sucker the remaining clay golems into advancing.

Alwyn is happy to let Xiamat be the center of attention right now.  He ducks behind the nearest barrier and readies his blade.

The clay soldiers don't take the bait, waiting with only the emotionless stares of statues.

Xiamat makes every obscene gesture he knows, and invents some when he runs out.

The clay solders continue to be unperturbed.

Alwyn looks around for something to throw at them.  Preferably something heavy (but still light enough that he can actually throw it).

Xiamat goes out and fetches some of those miniature figures.  When he returns, he mutilates one of them in front of the clay soldiers while making tormented noises.

Xiamat's antics continue to not impress the clay statues.

There are 70 spears from the now melted clay soldiers, but they're in the bottom of the pool, mixed with the clay slurry.  There's nothing else obviously heavy here except perhaps the glowing pulsing crystal atop the throne or the throne itself.  There may be something heavy in one of the rooms previous (not in the pool room).  In any case the new pool here is 50' across, throwing something heavy that far is not likely, without a catapult.

Xiamat throws a figurine at one of the statues.  He aims for the groin area.

Xiamat - It's a longshot, but go ahead and roll it!

20:35, Today: Xiamat rolled 15 using 1d20.  To hit with figurine.

Xiamat tosses the little figure with good spin and it sticks in the 'armor' of the clay statue though not exactly in the groin.  That seems to finally have gotten their ire, the 7 clay soldiers left move to walk very slowly around the pool toward you (only 10' a round so it's going to take quite awhile to get there.)  The leader remains sitting in the throne pointing.

Xiamat attempts a Mighty Deed of Valor!  With a maniacal roar, he dropkicks the first clay soldier in the chest, knocking the others over like dominoes and causing some of them to tumble into the pool.

Or not...

18:04, Today: Xiamat rolled 2 using 1d3+1.  Deed die.
18:04, Today: Xiamat rolled 2 using 1d20+1.  To hit.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:05, Fri 06 Apr 2018.

Xiamat misses, sliding along the clay slick stopping at the foot of the first warrior on that side.  It raises it's spear to bring it down on Xiamat.

(Opportunity for Alywn, Eristo and co & Rod Krait to do something before the strike comes)

If Xiamat has the soldiers occupied, Alwyn wants to sneak around to the back of the room.  It seems to him that disabling the king might stop the others as well.

The soldiers are coming along both sides of the pool, there's only 5' on each side, 4 on the side with Xiamat, and 3 on the other - and they've only moved a few feet past the beginning of the pool as they seem to be exceedingly slow.  The ones on the other side are turning and going back around toward Xiamat, but it will be some time before they vacate that side and move past the king - about 6 rounds.

You might be able to run down the side and jump/swim around the corner to the king with maybe a round or two to fight him before they're on you.

Eristo will cast a Magic Missile at the arm of the clay soldier menacing Xiamat trying to shatter the arm before he gets hit.

20:55, Today: Eristo rolled 8 using 1d20+3.

The spell flies away from Eristo's brain without effect.

Rod comes up behind Xiamat and throws his awl at the clay soldier Xiamat is lying down in front of exclaiming "Take that!"


09:25, Today: Rod Krait rolled 6 using 1d20 ((6)).

Having lulled the clay warrior into a false sense of security by deliberately missing the drop kick and falling prone, Xiamat cleverly rolls his foe up in a small package (forgetting there is no referee around to count to three)!

17:21, Today: Xiamat rolled 1 using 1d3.  Deed roll.
17:21, Today: Xiamat rolled 6 using 1d20+1.  To hit/pin opponent in small package.
This message was last edited by the player at 22:22, Fri 07 Feb 2020.

Alwyn dives into the central pool and swims as quickly as he can toward the clay king.