Pathfinder U2

After the heroes defeated the giants they exited the pavilion to explore the surrounding area. The cages in the cathedral were in fact much more solid than they appeared, for each was an immobile, invisible cubical prison composed of solid walls of force with a decorative metal shell built around it. No practical way to enter or exit these cubes existed. The gold and silver cages were worth 1,000 gp each (500 gp when broken to their precious metal components). Each cage weighs 250 pounds. The inside of one of the birdcages contained a young shivering man wearing little more than a set of chains and a thick leather collar. A pair of clay bowls occupied one corner and a pile of straw sat in another. Nelevetu is a broken shell of a man, and his madness was so profound that he was little more than a toy for the demons. His reaction to the heroes when they freed him was pitiful and disgusting, if not shocking. The heroes used powerful magic to cure him of his madness but could not soothe hi...

This grand cathedral can be called nothing less than opulent. The floor is covered in polished red and white tiles. Thick pillars carved into the likenesses of the same beautiful nude woman with long flowing hair (Sorshen, the Runelord of Lust) circle the room and support a ceiling out of sight. The pillars are made of iron inlaid with ivory, depicting her in various lewd positions. At the cathedral's center stands a pavilion of opaque silk sheets. This huge pavilion is made of sheets of various colors — crimson, lavender, ochre, cobalt blue, and purple. The sides ripple softly, as if a breeze were gently caressing the fabric. The entire structure looks unabashedly glamorous and out of place, yet here and there, splashes of what can only be blood mar its beauty. Near the walls of the cathedral stand several delicate-looking cages, their sides more decorative than practical. They look like human-sized birdcages with flimsy silver bars decorated with delicate golden birds and flowers...

Humanoid: Humanoids usually have two arms, two legs, and one head, or a human-like torso, arms, and a head. Humanoids have few or no supernatural or extraordinary abilities, but most can speak and usually have well-developed societies. They are usually Small or Medium (with the exception of giants). Humanoids breathe, eat, and sleep. Giant:  A giant is a humanoid creature of great strength, usually of at least Large size. Giants have low-light vision.

The heroes defeated the wraiths and found a secret door behind a section of broken mirrors in the far wall. The next chamber is cozy, with empty bookcases lining the walls and a reading table with several matching chairs sat atop a thick rug in its center. A heavy wooden door exits the room through the wall to the south. The next room was once a fine library, but the books held in this large chamber — along with the bookshelves that once held them — have been destroyed by fire and force. The devastation seemed complete — although one book survived somewhere under all of the ruin. To the north, a sizable alcove extends from the room into what may have once been a large reading area, but this too has been ruined. The single intact book amid the destruction is a tome of leadership and influence +2 , but the heroes scorched it during their fight with the denizen of the bedroom, so they will need to repair it before they are able to use it. The next two rooms the heroes entered are empty. T...

Aura moderate illusion and enchantment; CL 10th Slot shoulders; Price 23,000 gp; Weight — Description This intimidating mantle of gold and silver is set with several large gems, which seem to change in cut and type of stone every time it’s viewed. The wearer of this mantle always appears to be clean, uninjured, and calm, granting him a +5 bonus on Diplomacy checks. Also, once per day as a standard action, the wearer can bellow a single word in a thundering, imperious tone. This functions as the spell shout , and the word can be heard by any creature within 200 feet. If this word is one of the five orders detailed by the spell command , in addition to the effects of shout , all creatures within 25 feet must make a DC 16 Will save or be affected as if by the spell command . Those damaged by shout take a –4 penalty on this Will save. Construction Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, disguise self, greater command, shout ; Cost 11,500 gp

Aura moderate illusion; CL 7th Slot hands; Price 18,000 gp; Weight — Description The empty hands are an innocuous looking pair of wellcrafted gloves made of soft, tanned brown leather. As a standard action, the wearer can cause any weapon or item he holds to become invisible for 3 minutes, during which it is clear the wearer is holding something, but it’s not possible to see exactly what it is. The wearer gains a +1 circumstance bonus on attack rolls with an invisible weapon, a +5 circumstance bonus on opposed Bluff checks made to feint in combat or claim to be unarmed, and a +10 circumstance bonus on opposed Sleight of Hand checks made to conceal a weapon or item. This invisibility can be dismissed as a free action. The 3 minutes a held item is invisible need not be consecutive, but must be expended in 1-minute increments. Empty hands grant no bonuses against foes able to see invisible objects, as per spells like see invisibility or true seeing . Empty hands can only affect one ite...

The heroes decided to explore the illusion wing of Runeforge next. This wing is a grand cathedral  decorated with peacock motifs and massive chandeliers  hanging from the ceiling to brightly illuminate it with  hundreds of lights. The first brightly lit corridor the heroes enter is lined with broken floor-to-ceiling mirrors. It was guarded by mummies, which the heroes destroyed. The corridor opens into an immense cathedral of polished ivory flagstones. Mirrored walls, all broken, rise to a height of nearly a hundred feet, where the vaulted ceiling arches majestically. Four immense chandeliers hang from golden chains and brightly illuminate the entire room. At the center of the cathedral is an empty three-step dais of polished wood. This room was guarded by wraiths, which the heroes are currently fighting against. 

After destroying the lich's phylactery, the heroes returned to the Halls of Wrath to find the wrathful components for use in the Runeforge pool: the ashes of items burned in the ceiling of fire. They also determined that the bottles of wine they found in the Ravenous Crypts were the gluttonous components. Unfortunately, the pool did not reach out to enhance any more weapons using any combination of components. The heroes then rested, interrupted by a squad of humans who accused them of being thieves. After defeating them, the heroes continued their rest.

The heroes spent a couple of hours looking for the lich's phylactery in the crypts. In the northwestern corner of the assembly room is a hidden trap door that the heroes discovered — it opens through the roof of the area containing the lich's phylactery , the floor of which is 10 feet below. Aranthor joined the heroes around that time, after he was shunted to the Material Plane from the lich's spell. Phylactery.  This crypt contained three stone sarcophagi, each bearing detailed carvings of hundreds of capering skeletons and dancing corpses. These three sarcophagi were protected by a dangerous trap. When Gryxxa tried to open one of these three stone coffins, the skeletons and corpses carved on the sides of all three suddenly animated and began shrieking in a bloodcurdling manner. Hundreds of little bony arms pointed out into the room, and from their hundreds of outstretched fingers sprang beams of necromantic fury. One of the sarcophagi contained 11 spellbooks. Each of thes...

The lich kept casting spells like fly and mirror image while separated from the heroes. After the heroes joined him past the wall of force, he dismissed it and started casting offensive spells. One of those spells made Aranthor disappear. The remaining of the heroes eventually destroyed him, but they have yet to find his phylactery.

The heroes defeated the omox demon and managed to rest. They then went into the cold chamber with the black energy to shatter one of the crystal pylons. When they destroyed it, it exploded. Once it was destroyed, the black energy vanished. When the rippling curtain of blackness was destroyed, it yawned open for a brief moment allowing a powerful monster to manifest in this chamber. This creature looked like an immense bat made of roiling blackness with two glowing red eyes. The creature was furious and immediately attacked the heroes. This room’s dimensions didn't allow the creature a large amount of mobility. It focused its wrath on Zemurin. The creature fought until destroyed. The heroes then went after the lich, who was again guarded by a devourer. The lich opened the battle by casting finger of death  at Aranthor and more spells on himself. He then sealed himself off from the heroes, giving him time to cast more spells. During this time, he let the devourer keep the heroes busy...

Arkrhyst eventually escaped the heroes when the battle started to turn against him. Exhausted, the heroes tried to rest, but an omox demon interrupted them. They are still fighting this battle.

The heroes managed to slay the troll, but are still fighting the dragon.

The heroes returned to the crypts after recuperating and preparing in Korvosa. There they encountered the white dragon whose hoard they stole, aided by a troll.

The heroes killed the devourer, but the lich cast wall of force to seal himself off from the heroes, giving him time to cast fly , mirror image , and spectral hand . During this time, he moved to the chamber with the portal. When the heroes followed him there, he began casting offensive spells. After he killed Zemurin and blinded Aranthor, the heroes retreated back away from the Crypts and Runeforge, returning to Korvosa to resurrect Zemurin and recuperate.

Undead: Undead are once-living creatures animated by spiritual or supernatural forces. They have darkvision. Undead have immunity to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, morale effects, patterns, and phantasms). They have immunity to bleed, death effects, disease, paralysis, poison, sleep effects, and stunning. Undead are not subject to nonlethal damage, ability drain, or energy drain. They are immune to damage to their physical ability scores, as well as to exhaustion and fatigue effects. They cannot heal damage on their own if they are unintelligent, although they can be healed. Negative energy (such as an inflict spell) can heal undead creatures. They may heal fast regardless of the creature’s intelligence. They have immunity to any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects or is harmless). Undead are not at risk of death from massive damage, but are immediately destroyed when reduced to 0 hit points. They are not affe...

The heroes continued their exploration after resting. Secret Crypt.  The back wall of this niche, as well as the entrance into the Assembly Room itself, was hidden by secret doors. The heroes found the location  of both  hidden doors. Assembly Room.  Lanterns hang from hooks over three large tables scattered throughout this chamber. Two tables are covered with preserved human body parts stitched together with thick thread to partially form a pair of patchwork human corpses. Stools and small steel work trays covered in slender knives, clamps, hooks, saws, screws, needles, and other less identifiable tools surround each of the large tables. This is where the heroes encountered a lich. The lich sat on a stool at a worktable opposite from the entrance, stitching together pieces of one of the patchwork corpses. The lich was not initially looking for a fight. In fact, he was quite curious what had become of the outside world, and when the heroes arrived he bid them answer ...

The heroes continued their exploration. Chamber.  The walls of this room have been plated in iron,  each plate of which bears a single rune — the  upside-down, hooked “U” shape. What appear to  be two ten-foot-tall smooth crystal pylons stand  in the middle of the room. A rippling curtain of  blackness shimmers between these crystals. On  the opposite side of each crystal, strange tendrils  of black energy—reverse lightning crackling in  extreme slow-motion — extend out from the  crystals into spheres of roiling blackness in circular  caverns to the left and right of the entrance. The air  in the room is shockingly cold. A portal is open in this chamber. The portal itself manifests as the curtain of black energy between the two crystal pylons. Abattoir.  The scene in this room is appalling — dozens of brutally savaged human bodies (most of them identical looking) lie sprawled about the place. A good number of the bodies se...

Undead: Undead are once-living creatures animated by spiritual or supernatural forces. They have darkvision. Undead have immunity to all mind-affecting effects (charms, compulsions, morale effects, patterns, and phantasms). They have immunity to bleed, death effects, disease, paralysis, poison, sleep effects, and stunning. Undead are not subject to nonlethal damage, ability drain, or energy drain. They are immune to damage to their physical ability scores, as well as to exhaustion and fatigue effects. They cannot heal damage on their own if they are unintelligent, although they can be healed. Negative energy (such as an inflict spell) can heal undead creatures. They may heal fast regardless of the creature’s intelligence. They have immunity to any effect that requires a Fortitude save (unless the effect also works on objects or is harmless). Undead are not at risk of death from massive damage, but are immediately destroyed when reduced to 0 hit points. They are not affe...

The Crypt of Gluttony is exquisitely crafted. Arches are elaborately carved with stunning artistic patterns.  Ceilings are 10 feet high in corridors, all of which are  adorned with decorative moldings inlaid with silver  angels. Chambers are usually arched or domed to a  height of 20 feet and covered with beautiful frescoes  and mosaics depicting sleeping men and women  tended by cherubim and soothed by angelic singers  and musicians. The floors are covered in smooth,  fitted flagstones with inlaid ceramic tiles in various  decorative patterns. All doors are made of iron. The extent of the Crypts of Gluttony are under the effects of a strong magical aura. All stone surfaces in the crypts are cold to the touch. Crypts.  The ceiling of this circular domed chamber rises to a height of thirty feet. The walls are decorated with ten grinning skulls, each gripping what appear to be bits of flesh in their teeth. A flight of steps leads up via a ...