Walking to Rosewater

[Anastasia]

There is no resistance, no reaction. The tower of Khin-Oin rises impossibly high behind the party, like the spine of some great giant made into a tower. The banks of the Styx are busy, yet you appear perfectly. Not a single creature is looking your way, not a single creature even reacts. You see pole-barges that go about, as well as low prowed ships that glide along the black waters. Clusters of silent fiends are about, no words needed when the mind dictates the fate of soul larvae.

All is gray and dark here, the ground cracked and parched, save for right by the Styx, which becomes a foul gray mud. The few trees about are dead and withered, no fruit to be found on them.

[spoiler]

TODO: Armor bonuses.

Antenora
HP: 816+20/816
Negative Conditions:
Aura: Protective 20ft (+4 deflection/+4 resistance vs evil) Courage 10ft (+4 morale vs fear)
Bonuses: Attack+4 (+4 morale), Damage+0 AC+0, Saves+4 (+4 morale), Skills+4 (+14 stealth)(+4 morale), Checks+0
Resources: Holy Fury 37/37 (enc) Divine Retribution 1/1 Smite Evil 12/12 Channel Energy 17/17 Lay On Hands 476/476 Remove Disease 10/10 (week), Spiritual Connection 3/3 Blinding Speed 25/25 Divine Blast 17/17
Spells Used:
SLAs Used:
Spells Active: Mind Blank (CL35), Nondetection (CL35), Epic Mage Armor (CL39), Pass Without Trace (CL34), Mass Camouflage (CL34), Mass Energy Immunityx2 (Acid, Sonic) (CL34)
Notes: Can always inflict nonlethal with attacks, spells, SLAs and abilities.
Smite Notes: +2 damage/paladin level on a charging smite. Each point of favored PA on charge is worth 9 points of damage, post charge multiplier (15 on crit).
Typical Charging Numbers: 34 for base smite damage, 68 for charging smite +2 per per level. So 102 bonus damage baseline. Raw attack plus smite is 1d8+135+2d6+2d6 (+4/+4d6 if fiendbane hits). Doesn't include other factors.
Remember everything triples and x5 on a crit when adding things.

Latha
HP: 756+20/756
Negative Conditions:
Aura: Holy Light 30ft (7d6+7 damage vs evil/round) Protective 20ft (+4 deflection/+4 resistance vs evil)
Bonuses: Attack+4 (+4 morale), Damage+0 AC+0, Saves+4 (+4 morale), Skills+4 (+14 stealth)(+4 morale), Checks+0
Resources: Channel Energy 14/14 Sun Devotion 4/4
Spells Used: Mass Energy Immunityx2
SLAs Used:
Spells Active: Mind Blank (CL35), Nondetection (CL35), Epic Mage Armor (CL39), Pass Without Trace (CL34), Mass Camouflage (CL34), Mass Energy Immunityx2 (Acid, Sonic) (CL34)
Notes: Level + 17 extra damage per hit vs undead during sun devotion.
Channel Energy: Multiply by 1.5 due to empower turning.

Syala
HP: 680+20/680
Negative Conditions:
Aura: Protective 20ft (+4 deflection/+4 resistance vs evil) Divine 10ft (various)
Bonuses: Attack+4 (+4 morale), Damage+0 AC+0, Saves+4 (+4 morale), Skills+4 (+14 stealth)(+4 morale), Checks+0
Resources: Rage 7/7 Divine Blast 14/14 Family Domain 2/2 Wrath Domain 2/2 Add Twin 7/7 (non epic only)
Spells Used:
SLAs Used:
Spells Active: Mind Blank (CL35), Nondetection (CL35), Epic Mage Armor (CL39), Pass Without Trace (CL34), Mass Camouflage (CL34), Mass Energy Immunityx2 (Acid, Sonic) (CL34)
Notes: Automatically converts vile damage to normal damage.

[Ebiris]

They're already hidden under Alicia's invisibility sphere, further abjurations hiding them from all but the most potent of divinations while no bloodhound can track their scent. It's not perfect by any means, blindsense enough to find them should they wander too close to someone with that ability, but it's enough to ensure no pointless encounters here in Hades.

Altering reality further to link their minds together, Alicia's voice is heard in her companions' heads. 'Up and towards the river, make sure to follow my movements closely.' Then she ascends up over the docks and above the Styx, orienting them to fly downstream over the foul waters.

Telepathic bond there, CL 34 via alter reality.

Spoiler: ShowHide

Alicia HP: 704+20/704
Active spells:  Many moments of prescience (CL 34), extended greater anticipate teleportation (CL 35), extended mind blank (CL 35), extended nondetection (CL 35), epic mage armour (CL 39), pass without trace (CL 34), invisibility sphere (CL 34), greater heroism (CL 34), energy immunity (acid) (CL 34), energy immunity (sonic) (CL 34), telepathic bond (CL 34)
Defences: AC 79, CMD 90, spell resistance 49, energy immunity (fire and cold), status immunity (polymorph, petrification, disease, poison, stunning, sleep, paralysis, death effects, disintegration, energy drain, ability damage, ability drain, mind-affecting, and fear), nondetection (DC 49), freedom of movement
Stat buffs/penalties: +10 armour AC, +10 circumstance stealth, +4 morale attack/saves/skills
Perceptions: Arcane sight, perception +55
Sorcerer spell slots: 6/16/16/12/9/9/14/9/4/8/8/7/7/7/4
Duskblade spell slots: 6/23/23/22/11/7/9

[Anastasia]

The party flies in formation, Antenora at one side and Latha at another, while Syala is just below you. No fiend or monster makes any sign that they've noticed you as you begin to fly along.

'Gloom is better than the Abyss, at least,' Antenora sends.

'Pick your poison, I have few fond memories of my times in Hell,' Latha returns. 'This realm is akin to a soul that has given up all hope, dead and gray until it turns black forevermore.'

[Ebiris]

Alicia doesn't really care to debate the individual merits of lower planar aesthetics and stays quiet as she flies along. She's the slowest of them so at least it's easy for the others to fly close without risking any lapses in formation that'd take someone out of the sphere.

[Anastasia]

Okay, Give me a general Perception check that I'll use for this and see if anything happens.

[Ebiris]

[17:57] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+55 perception
[17:57] <Kobot> Ebiris rolled 1d20+55 perception --> [ 1d20=6 ]{61}

[Anastasia]

You fly on some time. Soon enough it's a gray monotony, bland and lifeless, and yet horrors glimpsed in the shadows. None come forth to challenge you as you fly along -until about 25 miles along. It is here a low prowed ship has run aground, barrels and the like scattered about in the mud. Several bodies are scattered about here - all humans. At least one is stirring, trying to rise.

[Ebiris]

'Lets move a little closer and investigate?' Alicia points it out and moves closer, having a look at the scene.

Detect evil and arcane sight up.

[18:20] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+37 arcane sight CL if needed
[18:20] <Kobot> Ebiris rolled 1d20+37 arcane sight CL if needed --> [ 1d20=1 ]{38}

[Anastasia]

There's magic on a few of them - various protective wards as well as planar protections. They also have magical items - the one trying to rise has a green cape that is enchanted to provide protections and enchanted armor as well.

Antenora peers down, 'Adventurers with bad fortune, or a trap?'

'I don't see any evil or signs of anything strong,' Syala says, 'Antenora?'

'They're within normal bounds of intelligence and they're mortals, not spirits.' Antenora reports back. 'My spear has not lit up.'

[Ebiris]

Alicia looks around over the river and the surrounding landscape to see if there's any clues as to what befell them.

[18:42] <@Ebiris> roll 1d20+55+15 perception with divine insight
[18:42] <Kobot> Ebiris rolled 1d20+55+15 perception with divine insight --> [ 1d20=1 ]{71}

I can see for 3 miles as a deity.

[Anastasia]

You can see what happened easily enough. A rend in the hull of the ship, something big tore into it. You can see hints of sharp rocks in the Styx nearby, as well as bits of wood there.

[Ebiris]

'Poor seamanship, they struck a shoal. Were lucky their ship was close to the shore but if they'd sailed further from it nothing probably would have happened,' Alicia thinks. A bit of subtle reality altering stabilises the wounds of everyone here so none are likely to bleed out. Anything nearby that might threaten them while they recover?

[Anastasia]

Not at the moment, no. Unless you count going into the Styx.

'Unfortunate,' Antenora says simply.

'Shall we intervene more than this?" Latha asks, 'It seems wrong to leave them here.'

[Ebiris]

'They're not captives here, they chose to sail and trade in the lower planes of their own will,' Alicia says. 'If they don't have their own means to repair their ship or escape otherwise I have to question how they've survived long enough to encounter us. I won't help them with delivering their cargo, whatever it is.'

She does try to read the surface thoughts of the one man that's conscious to see if that sheds any light on what they're doing here.

DC 27 will on alter reality-ed detect thoughts.

[Anastasia]

> roll 1d20+11
<Kobot> Kotono rolled 1d20+11 --> [ 1d20=16 ]{27}

His will and mind are a blurry mess - blurry enough to defy you, at least on first blush. As you do this he staggers up to his feet, face a mask of blood. A younger man, no older than 20. He fumbles for a metal vial on his belt, the contents swallowed. Once done he exhales and runs a hand down his face, "Fuck," he mutters, "I'm alive!"