DUNGEON ♛ GISELA PALACE

[boardmaster]

GISELA PALACE
20 NOVEMBER (CHRYSANTH) 2016

A thick fog blankets the Airy when Heroes step aboard to make the journey to the new dungeon. Rather nasty winds makes the Airy sway despite not having ascended into the air and Heroes are herded below deck as soon as possible. Captain Lei is already waiting for the Heroes, looking as rakish and uselessly handsome as always. Accompanying him are a harpy and a familiar face. Wasn’t this man a general on Noir’s side some months ago? Why is he even here? But before anyone attacks, it seems like he’s with the harpy. Either way, Lei has good news and bad news for the Heroes.

The good news is that the Airy will be able to get them quite close to the dungeon despite the tornado warnings and the already turbulent weather. The bad news is that there is no place for the Airy to land because of the massive forest below so Heroes will have to parachute their way down and navigate the rest of the way to the dungeon tree on foot.

	Jiafei the Harpy When Tianya the dragon discovered that his phoenix wife left him, he created holy dragon balls to protect her and sent them after her flames. They’re drawn to heat, so fire and a lot of mana exchange will help you find them. If you collect seven or more, they say something nice might happen! Oh, and don’t worry about Mika. He’s with me. He just loves the story about the dragon and the phoenix. Unlike some captains, he listens to me, too. [ UNSHEATHES HER TALONS ] Isn’t that right, Mika?
	Mika Wazowski Y-YES! I LOVE YOU, BABE!
	Lei [ -_- ] But it’s such a shitty love story… Oi, why’s he here?
	Mika Wazowski Because you’re here, you bastard! I’m not letting you hurt her again!
	Lei She broke up with me!?
	Jiafei the Harpy [ CASTS WIND MAGIC AT THEM BOTH ] Now boys, play nice ♥ We’re doing this for the greater good, after all. And Lei, I’m disappointed that you don’t value your heritage more. And you call yourself Ma Jiang? My nainai told me their story every night! Do you know the story, Heroes? I’ll tell you about it later!
	Lei Hey, I know the story! I just don’t like it. Ain’t I allowed to have some taste? Anyway, I paid a visit to my nainai back in Ma Jiang myself a few weeks ago. I don’t know how, but the dragon you Heroes killed is alive.
	Jiafei the Harpy Yes, I heard. I saw him and the phoenix up in the sky over Xiangqi… Legend says that when those two reunite, you can’t pull them apart that easily. After that incident with the virus at Merilorn Forest, the phoenix’s timing is no coincidence.
	Mika Wazowski I don’t know what she wants, but there’s only one way to find out. Right, babe?
	Lei Actually, them Blanc scouts brought back some artifacts they found near the palace. Had ‘em analyzed over at Gammon, too. Turns out whatever’s inside the dungeon just might be the ticket to finding that cure.
	Jiafei the Harpy So the phoenix wants to help Blanc! That’s wonderful, Lei. I hope we do find the cure soon, if that’s what she wants.
	Lei [ suddenly feels over nine thousand time better ] HAHAHA! I know, right? You heard her, Heroes! GRAB THOSE BALLS!
	Mika Wazowski [ -_- … ]

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 ♙ I HAVE A PEN
Strong winds will tear and nip at you when you make the jump off the Airy and party members should hold hands to minimize the chances of being separated. After nailing the landing, you will find yourself in the midst of the forest. It seems positively harmless aside from strong localized tornadoes which you will have to avoid. After making your way through the thick underbrush and shrubbery, the base of the gigantic tree will come into view. In the background, the remaining ruins of Gisela Towers loom like an unyielding reminder of days now gone.

Looks like the only way to go is up. Exploring the area at the base of the tree will lead to the discovery thick stemmed plants with two large leaves which spin like a slow propeller. Uprooting it off will make the leaves spin faster and Heroes, no matter their height and weight, will be lifted off the ground. Convenient as that may be, the gusts of wind will make the journey up the tree very difficult and Heroes who get caught in the blast will find themselves on a several thousand foot drop back to Gresser.

Careful though! On the tree branches you’ll find...

MONSTER ♟ Papper
Weak against Earth	Strong against Holy, Fire, Wind	Immune to Water
Walking apple trees accompanied by walking pineapples. The apple trees use beehives to STING their enemies and honey to TRAP them. The pineapples have unbelievably tough skin and headbutt their enemies with their RAZOR-SHARP LEAVES. Together, they protect the mother tree. By virtue of their plant-like nature and the phoenix’s enchantments, light (or holy magic) and water are nothing against them. Pappers are musical creatures—their song and dance can entrance and IMMOBILIZE whoever is watching. Their showstopping act also HEALS their fellow pappers, so make the curtains fall before it’s too late! DROPS: Pens, Apples, Pineapples, Seeds, Bee Hives, Honey Comb, Honey

After landing safely on top of the tree, you will find a palace fit for a queen. Two large, birdcage shaped towers stretch towards the sky. They are adorned by many windows in Ma Jiang style, giving off the impression that its residents lived in an illusion of freedom. Balconies high up may have served as a landing area or roosting spots for the phoenix clan. The closer infected Heroes get to the palace, they will regain some of their lost health; the cure must lie within.

As you enter the palace, you feel small within the grandiose walls, and protected from the harsh outside elements. The echo prevalent in nearly any room amplifies the feeling that you are alone, and the loneliness lingers heavy in your mind even in the presence of your party members. And yet you must press on.

TWO ♙ SCOOBY DOO, WHERE ARE YOU
The ceilings are tall, the hallways seemingly endless and a thousand doors await, but you mustn’t lose hope; behind one of these doors lies the sacred objects that can cure the virus. Many of the doors, however, are either illusions or fake ones that teleport you back to the beginning of a hallway. But a bird-like melody seems to play throughout the palace on occasion… Singing the melody makes all the doors vanish save for the one that will lead Heroes onward.

Should you stop singing prematurely, the doors will reappear and the real door’s location will be reset. You have to keep singing until everyone has passed through the real door.

Not to mention there are some sentinels who do not take well to all these musical shenanigans.

MONSTER ♟ Royal Guard
Weak against Dark	Strong against Fire	Immune to Holy
Faithful members of the dragon Tianya’s royal guard tasked to protect the phoenix at all costs. As agile as they are powerful, they like to jump high up in the air and ATTACK FROM ABOVE with their lances! Watch out for their magical DRAGON BALLS. Unlike the ones scattered around the palace, the balls these dragons have DRAIN LIFE out of a target. For some reason, some of them have spiky, yellow hair. These are the strongest of the guards, and their special move involves gathering holy mana in their palms and blasting it like a laser while yelling “KAMI… HAMI… HA!” DROPS: Dragon Lances, Dragon Helmets, Blessed Armor, Feather Badge, Noble Changpao

After searching through several rooms with naught to show for, a solid green copper door with intricate designs of a phoenix and dragon dancing together is the only thing left to pass through. Once you do, a trove of treasure greets you. Jewelry and tomes, suspended in midair as if frozen in time and held up by magic. Golden bowls, silver cups and glass beads have been woven together in elaborate windchimes which tinkle and sway in the strong currents. Push past them and you will be momentarily blinded by a harsh light and once you’ve blinked the tears from your eyes, you discover...

THREE ♙ THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX
A breathtaking meadow sprawls out before your very eyes and the water trickling down the high walls gathers around the edges. Colorful flowers are in full bloom. Lush green bushes are ripe with berries that should not be in season. The garden fills you with a tingling warmth which spreads throughout your body, only increasing with every step you move forward.

Remnants of stone pillars scattered throughout the area only serve to underline the majesty of the garden. The air seems to be filled with fireflies, but upon closer inspection reveal themselves to be flames so hot that they are like sunlight. They dance through the air, flit between the bushes and flowers without setting them alight.

The warmth abruptly vanishes, and the phoenix lifts her head and regards the group of Heroes before her with unwavering eyes.

Phoenix Heroes. So the prophecy has come true… My husband has told me all about you. I am not here to fight you as he did, but… I would like to see your strength for myself.

BOSS ♟ Lianyi the Benevolent
Weak against Dark	Strong against Wind	Immune to Holy, Fire
“My husband was stubborn and unfair, but I... couldn’t bear to know that he could die alone. Before I left, I cast a spell on him—one that would bring him back to life. I hoped that it would help him see the error of his ways and come to find me.” Protecting Lianyi are FLOCKS OF LESSER BIRDS that know FIRE AND HOLY MAGIC. However, their main purpose is to gather in front of her and form MEAT SHIELDS for physical and magical attacks. Once the flocks are defeated, Lianyi gets serious. She casts a variety of FIRE SPELLS with her wings, talons and beak. On occasion, they will be BIRD-SHAPED SPELLS that cry as they HOME IN on the nearest Hero. The most dangerous of her fire magics is her FLAMING AURA that does fire and holy damage as it slowly burns everything in sight. Don’t get too close! “The spell requires the user to give half her life for it to succeed. For him, I would do it a thousand times over.” Stop her before she flies high in the sky! She USES THE SUN’S RAYS TO HEAL. Up in the air, she might also sing her song of loneliness--the same song you heard in the hallways. At a close range, hearing the song will cause Heroes to drop everything and CRY FROM OVERWHELMING SADNESS. MANA EXCHANGE will snap targets out of this crying spell! ”Before he could see it, he already knew me at my best… and loved me at my worst.” Like her husband, her strongest spell is inspired by the love of her life. With her large wings, she SUMMONS WINDS and shapes them in a three-headed dragon’s likeness. The wind dragon then roars, sending TORNADOES in three directions that destroy everything in their paths. ”There are forces in this world that threaten its balance, but I pray you also see that within every darkness, there is light.” There is no defeating Lianyi, as SHE WILL GIVE UP once her mana is nearly depleted. Despite the damage she might have caused the party, the meadow is as pristine as it was before. She acknowledges the Heroes’ power and wishes them well. From the sky above, she fetches the DUNGEON CORE and hands it over. She also advises the Heroes on which items in her palace are the MOST EFFECTIVE INGREDIENTS for the cure. Yes, she heard about that, too! DROPS: Glimmering Phoenix Feather, Beloved Dragon Scale, Star Fragment, Goldfish Fountain Spitter, Red Lantern, Red Peonies, Rose Quartz Amulet

Lianyi My husband left me the sacred dragon balls he created. They can cure any affliction. May they protect your country as well as they have protected me. It was a universal prophecy that spoke of your arrival. The balance of the world is in danger. I fear the fate of all that walk this earth and fly these skies…

As the Phoenix bursts into flames and withers away into ashes, the skies clear. Sunlight drifts in through the windows and in the distance, the speck that is the Airy grows bigger and bigger as it arrives to retrieve the Heroes.

You’ve done it, Heroes. Have a well deserved rest on the Airy.