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BOARDMASTER ([personal profile] boardmaster) wrote in [community profile] pawnstorm2016-05-20 03:32 am

DUNGEON ♛ GISELA TOWERS

GISELA TOWERS
20 MAY (VALLARIA) 2016



High in the skies, the howling winds tangled around the Gisela Towers make it difficult to hear anything. The monolithic structures believed to exist only in legend or harpy memories loom over you. The thick ropes of ivy crawling up the length of each tower is the only sign of life. Every now and then, shadow seems to pass overhead. It might just be a trick of the light.

Instead of the usual suspects, another familiar face comes forward to greet our Heroes: the devil-may-care Lei, captain and commander supreme of the Airy.

Lei
Nervous that your commanders ain’t here? Don’t worry, you’re in good hands. So! Here we are at this… thing. Something something tragic romantic tale about a dragon and a phoenix. Anyway, it’s stupid and you don’t gotta know. Ask one of your commanders later or bribe me with a drink.

Now for something more important—

[ the winds roars loudly, muting lei’s voice. but heroes can watch his hand gestures and actions as he teaches them how to use the grappling hook: aim and shoot the gun. maybe twirl it with a fancy flourish first ]

—did you get that? All right, good! I don’t have enough hooks, so you’re gonna have to share. And take good care of them, I want them back! Now get in there and clear it ASAP! I ain’t got all day to fly you all back home!

Basic info on the dungeon can be found here. Dungeon mechanics can be found here. All OOC questions about the event may be directed to the thread below.


ONE
One does not simply walk into the Gisela Towers. The only way in is up the long and weathered staircase that wraps around the structure. However, the thing is riddled with missing steps, weak stones and slippery condensation from the cloud cover, so you’re going to need a little help. Should you attempt to climb the stairs, they will crumble beneath your feet at best and bury you beneath their rubble at worst.

This is where Lei’s newfangled(?) contraptions will come in handy! The pockmarks and small ledges created by weathering in the first tower’s structure could prove useful. There are, of course, a limited number of grappling hooks available, so you’ll have to partner up if you want your party to get anywhere. Parties of four are given two of these guns, while the poor souls with less party members get one.

Gisela’s gale-force winds will knock you around and make it seem like the towers are close to toppling over. However, as you make your way up you’ll see that the towers are actually far from abandoned.

MONSTER ♟ Ocypete
Weak against
Lightning
Strong against
Wind
Immune to
None
Regarded as abominations of the avian world, ocypetes are BIRDS the size of horses, which would be incredibly advantageous if they had wings.

The offspring of a human and a harpy, ocypetes have HUMAN ARMS that they use to scale surfaces and strong TALONS that can crush rock. They don’t fly, but they do RIDE THE WIND with the use of their long tail feathers, which possess magical wind properties and are nearly twice as long as they are tall. They would look almost elegant if they didn’t have a tendency to flap their arms while gliding.

Legend has it that when the phoenix left the towers, the ocypetes were accidentally left behind because dragons plucked their wing feathers, making them look kind of funny. Now with a few millennia’s worth of abandonment issues on their semi-feathered shoulders, they’ll seek to prevent Heroes from ascending the towers by any means necessary with an odd variation of Airy MARTIAL ARTS.

Their TAILFEATHERS may be acquired as loot.

What will Heroes encounter once they finally make it inside? More broken staircases, more monsters, even stronger winds blowing in from cracks in the walls and the foot of the tower (which is open to the air), and no floor whatsoever. Gisela’s Towers are hollow! The only footing to be found is on small ledges: some similar to those outside the tower, some that look more artificial; and intact sections of the stairs winding around the walls. You’ll need magic or some ingenuity to stay on your toes—literally! If you lose your grip or footing, it’s a several thousand foot drop back to Gresser. The quickest way down… and the deadliest.


TWO
The treacherous and exhausting climb brings you to a more sturdy area that looks a little less like a wrecking ball just passed through and more like some kind of hive. Blocking your way are dozens of sturdy-looking nests suspended like particularly ugly balls of twine from the walls. These are home to the insectoid Aellos. Tearing the nests apart for loot is only a good idea if you want angry swarms after you.

MONSTER ♟ Aello
Weak against
Fire, Lightning
Strong against
None
Immune to
Wind
Aellos resemble large eagles more than the DRAGONFLIES they’re supposed to be. Mature Aellos can fly, but the flightless and fuzzier larvae are just as formidable.

They can HYPNOTIZE with their dozen kaleidoscope-like eyes, rendering targets IMMOBILE but still aware of their surroundings. In order to free them, a fellow Hero must gaze deeply into their eyes for at least 15 seconds.

These monsters are also able to SPIT a gelatin-like substance that will stick Heroes to any and every surface and also each other. FIRE will reduce its stickiness. The larvae use hit-and-run tactics: they hunker down in their nests, peek over the edge and launch gobs of spit. The flying aello like to drop their SPIT BOMBS from above and occasionally also release a POWDER that ruins visibility and makes you sneeze.

Feeling adventurous? Why don’t you give the spit a lick? It’s actually totally EDIBLE, tastes like jello, and is filled with mana. Just be sure to heat it up so you don’t get your mouth stuck shut.

Their GELATIN SPIT and INSECT PARTS may be acquired as loot.

The staircases at this altitude are in better shape than the ones you have—or haven’t—been using. That doesn’t mean they’re any less dangerous. Not only do the Aellos chase you down here; traps are hidden in the steps as well. Some may act like quicksand, trapping an unwary Hero halfway into the stone. Others are enchanted with wind spells that can toss you up in the air, the long way back down to the ground, or blow your skirt upward. There might even be some that provoke the pesky bugs even more!

This floor has flowers and trees creeping their way in from the outside and covering every inch of the place, including treacherous weaknesses in the path. Behind these overgrown plants is a mural depicting a sensual dance between a dragon and a harpy. In order to advance, at least two Heroes will have to mimic the dance painted on the walls to open the door.


THREE
A barrier prevents you from progressing any further. Magic, physical attacks or sheer willpower will do nothing. To dissolve it, you must create a concoction from the random ingredients available on the table and splash it on the barrier. There is no set recipe, so trial and error and a little creativity will be your friends! Along with your trusty party Bishop, of course. (You did bring one, didn’t you?) Those not well-versed in alchemy may end up with potions that explode upon completion, splashing party members standing too close with a variety of strange side effects ranging from mild body horror to a bad case of halitosis. The unfortunate effects seem to differ from Hero to Hero, and they last for a few minutes to a couple of hours.

Once your party crosses the barrier, you will find yourselves outside. The skies are darkening, but you’re still able to discern another tower wrapped in the clouds. A bridge once connected the two structures, but most of it is missing. Use those grappling hooks!

Upon entering the second tower, a marble floor at odds with everything from the last tower will greet you. Lift your head and you’ll find that the rest of the tower is also hollow all the way up; those heights allow room for fountains and waterfalls. It’s a suitable area to replenish mana and rest. Parched throats can be quenched with the sparkling water all around you, but approach any waterfalls and they will start moving in a very unwaterlike way.

MONSTER ♟ Celaeno
Weak against
Lightning
Strong against
Fire, Earth
Immune to
Water
Possessed by pride and cursed by the phoenix’s wrath, these dragons are nothing like the ones you encountered before.

Celaeno resemble huge snakes made of water and possess ENCHANTED SCALES that float through their bodies and render them extremely RESISTANT to both magical and physical attacks. You will have to find WEAK POINTS in their protective aura. Hopefully you have a Knight or Bishop on your team to find those weaknesses as soon as possible! Each dragon’s weak points differ. Fortunately, all Celaenos go down easily once you find that soft spot.

They use their long, slender tails like WATER WHIPS to knock down or douse their targets; the force of a tail may equal that of a fire hose at full blast! The only time it sheds its armor is to shapeshift into a WATER PRISON that can trap one or more enemies. Try not to attack it while a Hero is trapped inside; it will hurt your friend as well! Use STATUS EFFECTS to confuse or distract them so the prison loses shape.

Their ENCHANTED SCALES, SMALL GEMS, and DRAGON WATER may be acquired as loot.

Without any stairs in sight, the way up lies in those dragons. After their defeat, their magical scales can be put together to form a boat that can ride the waterfalls upwards to the top floors.


FOUR
The skies continue to change once you reach the top. Black clouds begin to close in, stray bits of land that have broken off from the main island hover nearby, and a sudden torrent of powerful mana may disorient your party. A storm is approaching.

Just as the first chunk of hail falls from the sky, a mighty roar reverberates through the darkness. Something very large lands on the walls of the tower and causes a tremor that whittles chunks from the tower and actually rolls the clouds back; is that the toll of thunder, or just more roaring?

Finally, an impressive three-headed dragon emerges from below. Once it has perched itself on the tower, one head speaks in a rumbling growl.

BOSS ♟ Tianya the Thrice-Scorned
Weak against
Lightning
Strong against
None
Immune to
Wind, Fire
“Did that phoenix send you?! Tell her she cannot return! Not even over my dead body!”

Unsurprisingly, Tianya ─the dragon once wed to the phoenix─ is more than just a legend. He lowers his heads and another loud, guttural cry fills the skies. For now, he remains STATIONARY at the top of the tower. All three heads attempt to SWALLOW a Hero whole if they get too close. Should you go on the offensive, you may be able to chop off at least one head before he’s pissed off enough to move. The fallen head writhes in agony as it moans:

“It hurts… it burns…”

At this point, Tianya takes flight. The strong GUSTS from those wings can launch a Hero right off the tower. Use your grappling hook(s) to play floating island hopscotch: evade devastating dive attacks and run from the MANA BEAMS shot from his mouths.

“You’ll never understand! I never wanted her!”

As you travel from island to island trying to get close enough to deal some real damage, Tianya hides in the CLOUDS to launch ambush attacks. Eventually, a PHOENIX descends from the heavens in a burst of fiery light. However, it’s not the phoenix of legend; it’s actually one of Tianya’s spells, and it will burn away most of your mana if any of its flames make contact. MANA EXCHANGE may be the only way to continue this battle...

Once Tianya is down to one head, he will immediately rise higher into the sky.


“My last words are for her and her alone.”

After Tianya is defeated, the storm clears; Enprise’s twin suns shine once more. That precious DUNGEON CORE floats down, blanketed by a SINGLE LARGE FEATHER, golden and shining in the light.

“It’s warm… She was always warm…”

A SCORNED DRAGON HEART and a MYSTICAL PHOENIX FEATHER may be acquired as loot.

As soon as both core and feather touch the tower, an ominous rumbling and shaking begins. The Gisela Towers are falling apart and it’s now a race to escape before you’re buried under the rubble.

And don’t forget the grappling hook(s); Lei wants them back.


FIVE
All that’s left of the Gisela Towers is rubble. The dungeon has been conquered, the island reclaimed, and the ruins of the old regime can now become the foundations for something new: the site of the harpies’ homecoming after hundreds of years.

LOCATION ♟ Gisela

An ancient sky island that has existed since time immemorial. What enables Gisela to RIDE THE CLOUDS may be an even greater mystery than the mechanisms powering the Airy. The island appears most frequently above Gresser, though its extraordinary altitude makes it DIFFICULT TO LOCATE.

The landscape of Gisela is overgrown with JEWEL-GREEN FORESTS, crisscrossed with gorges and dotted with networks of small caverns. But its crowning glory is the THIN GLEAMING WATERFALLS that flow from its edges and into the sky beyond. The water is embraced by RAINBOWS and condenses into CLOUDS when Gisela is high enough, lending to its unusual weather patterns.

Although the island initially seems largely uninhabited apart from the Gisela Towers, there is a SEALED OFF AREA that, when viewed from the air, looks suspiciously like LUSH, TILLED FIELDS. Should you ask Lei about this, he will only give you an unusually stern warning against disturbing it. Looks like you’ve solved the mystery behind the pai tiles.

Now that the menacing Towers have been demolished, a variety of animal life — usually airborne — will begin to appear on the island. Some of them you’ve never seen before! The fall of the Towers also uncovered the existence of HOT SPRINGS below; newspapers speculate wildly about the source, but most agree that it must have something to do with the renewed vows between phoenix and dragon.

The few structures already in place on the island have been speedily converted into BAZAARS manned by Airy harpies. Most specialize in legal alchemical gimmicks, but there’s always another side to these things. Everyone’s here to soak in the breeze, and by that we do mean everyone.

In response to the tourism boom, NEW AEROPORTS have also opened in both Gisela and Gresser to provide reliable transportation between the two locations.
querella: (She goes to terminate)

[personal profile] querella 2016-05-23 04:02 am (UTC)(link)
I'll see what I can sense.

[ The Intoner closed her eyes a moment, letting her thoughts fall into silence as she felt for any traces of mana nearby. Enemies that might be in place. She could feel the thrum of her companions mana, the distance traces of the feathery enemies in the area. Close, yes, something was close. She blinked a few times, pulling herself together once more. Her new class was proving to be worthwhile.

It reminded her of what made her an Intoner. Well, shallow reminders at least.

She wrinkled her nose and continued onward. ]


Assassin, do you sense anything?

[ There could be a small mob nearby, but she couldn't quite tell. Something was above them, a ways above, but something else was near. Their bishop had noticed it, and she had no reason to doubt the girl.

Yet. ]
scythersergeant: (we are having an extremely serious discu)

[personal profile] scythersergeant 2016-05-24 03:13 am (UTC)(link)
Small group, maybe two or three. Eight o' clock, below us.

[She'd been fastening a chain of rubies around one of the handles on the grappling-hook gun, and once she deemed it secure she pointed with the gun downwards and to the side.]

Might be behind the walls right now, but they probably know a way out if they know we're here. That was just now, I could Scan again to see if they've moved-

[A pause to adjust the grip on the gun, making sure it was steady. It's hardly light, but she doesn't seem to struggle with its weight.]

Not sure if it's those birds or something new, but if we've only seen birds so far, chances are it's some of those again.
dualitea: (the moral and the intellectual;)

[personal profile] dualitea 2016-05-24 04:28 pm (UTC)(link)
{ Henry pauses now to focus - his senses are about on par with One's, but by virtue of his innate Servant senses he's able to extend a further reach. ]

Yes, there are ones in that direction. Creatures possibly fliers, or crawlers.

[ There's a bit more of movement from below, now perceptible. Whatever they are, they're bound to come within visible range very soon. ]

Save your sight, Shinoa. Prepare for battle instead, at the rate they're going -
querella: (Blissade / Egregori)

[personal profile] querella 2016-05-25 06:25 am (UTC)(link)
[ A curse nearly slipped past One's lips. They needed to move faster then. To get to the gap as soon as they could. It would give them more room should it really come down to combat. If only it were as easy as moving along the platforms in the land of Mountains and Sands. Although platforming could be such a pain.

With gritted teeth, One pushed the thought from her head just as she removed her fingers from the grooves she'd dug into the ancient stone wall. She slid her palms along the wall as she moved, no longer relying upon it to keep her balance. ]


Move quickly, but do not upset your balance. We should be able to reach the gap before the enemy locates us.
scythersergeant: by aIientooru @ twitter (surprised)

[personal profile] scythersergeant 2016-05-26 03:10 am (UTC)(link)
[Shinoa hisses in reluctance when the call to move faster comes- moving faster for any reason is not a notion she likes- and tries, she really does, to inch forward quicker. But she still trails behind, not knowing if the other two have reached the gap before her or not when muted wingbeats register in her ears.

She might not be the best at moving on precarious ledges thousands of feet in the sky, but her senses for a fight are finely honed enough. Shinoa turns herself around, breathing slowly, without sound, forcing her eyes to open and take in the sight of the open air.

The bracelet around the grappling-gun lights up, pendants glowing, as she presses her thumb over it.

In a smooth motion, she lifts the gun at the first feathered blur that comes into view and shoots.

The hook that shoots from the gun is wreathed in flames. Cawing in surprise, the birds disperse to avoid it.

Not waiting for the line to retract all the way, Shinoa starts to scramble to catch up. How are her teammates doing?]


Saw them, they're coming!
dualitea: (by whose partial discovery)

[personal profile] dualitea 2016-05-26 07:59 am (UTC)(link)
[ Henry nods, picking up his pace behind One. There's a moment or two of hyper-focus he can spare, aiming a small wind spell behind him to try and force him against the wall. With luck, he would have reached the gap once One moves to give him footing.

These are birds. Except, not really birds. Birds with human torsos, like harpies but not quite. ]


I'm safe!

[ As soon as he can, he draws his knife from its sheath, gem glowing bright green. He can't afford to lose control now, not when they're in such a delicate situation. Edward would just misstep and send both of them to their deaths. Only Shinoa has a projectile weapon; she should be with them and the two melee Knights in front of her. ]

Try to come close to us. You can shoot from behind.
querella: (Companthem / Abdiel)

[personal profile] querella 2016-05-26 09:39 am (UTC)(link)
[ With each step she took, One noticed the ledge widening, and the wall weakening. A strong wind tore past her, coming from the gap in the wall ahead. It was cold, pushing her hair from her face and roughly shoving at her jacket and woolen capelet. The wall felt as though it might crumble a little at the edges, and so she carefully eased her hands away from it. It only took another three careful steps before she found herself out in the open. The landing was wide, just enough to give them all some space. A good three paces worth, if she judged correctly. ]

We'll have enough room to fight these beasts off without getting in each others way.

[ Sliding her hand to the middle of her back, she began to unstrap her weapon. The leather straps gave way after a moment of fiddling. The chain connecting her chakram to the cuff jingled with the movements. The moment her chakram came free, she drew the weapon forward.

Her weapon was always meant to be a distance weapon, but as things were now, she would need to limit herself. To limit what length she might throw the circular weapon. Even though they had decent floor space and there would be plenty of space between them, she did not want to chance stepping anywhere where the floor may crumble away. Or do harm to the other knight and bishop. ]


Shinoa, when you feel the ledge widen, do not lean on the wall. It is not as stable as it appears.

[ It is the only warning she offered, turning on her heel to make sure none of the birds might be planing to sneak up on them from the other side of their perch. These birdlike creatures were large and very strange. They were like nothing she had ever seen before. She lifted her gaze, looking over the exterior of the tower, the floor they stood on. There were gouge marks in the stone, some old and some new. It was easy to see that they had used this place as a landing or perch from time to time. ]

I will do my best to keep them from attacking us from behind.
Edited (html fail) 2016-06-03 17:49 (UTC)
scythersergeant: (OH SHIT)

[personal profile] scythersergeant 2016-06-05 05:00 am (UTC)(link)
[Shinoa closes the last few steps, throwing herself into their midst with a gasp. In the distance, are heavy wingbeats and angered calls; the ocypetes regrouping.]

I'm hereee...

[She doesn't look too good. The stability of this new ledge isn't much better from the last; that's just disappointing. As the birds come into view again, swooping in with their arms in a stance, Shinoa takes aim again. And fires.

She nails one in the chest, causing it to plunge. Another dives for the team.