The Ruby Phoenix Tournament day 2

1489
Year of the Warrior Princess

Nightal 1

    Day 2 - dawn comes, and the Emissary’s monks walk from tent to tent with hot tea and bowls of rice porridge sweetened with sticks of sugarcane. New flags fly above the pavilion and the arena is set for the next event. The number of remaining contestants is half the number who began yesterday, but many of those who were eliminated now fill the grandstands, making the crowd seem even more overwhelming. Our party do night fight until later on in the day so they decide to take up the Emissary's test of Archery.  They are given 10 arrows to shoot anyway they would like at 3 targets.  Target 1 is a normal target, target 2 is blurred and target 3 is displaced.  They need to get to 60 points to win the grand prize and decide to shoot solely at target three.  The crowd is excited as the 60 point goal comes down to their remaining arrow.  Riddick shoots, and... Misses due to the displacement!  They crowd groans but then claps for our team as they did a honorable job on the test.

     Exhibition 2: In the early afternoon, our heroes are instructed to go to the bluff known as the Wall of Seven Winds, a 120-foot vertical cliff between New Harbor and the Grand Pavilion where the winds are known to always be particularly strong. As the party approaches, they see the wind whip across the curved, sheer cliff that surrounds the cove, roiling the deep water below into a white-capped froth. Several dozen boats bob on the rough water, their decks crowded with eager spectators focused on the cliff top. The PCs find Marthysan the Righteous standing before a small crowd atop the bluff. Marthysan gives each PC a pair of silk slippers (slippers of spider climbing) and instructs them to put them  on. Their fight is to take place on the side of the Wall of Seven Winds, where they are to face off against Orometsu Yasi, known as the White Warrior, as well as a band of monks to
even the odds. Marthysan explains that if a contestant lands in the water they are automatically disqualified.  There are also two sorcerers on boats below that have been hired to cast feather fall in case a contestant is knocked off the wall.  Orometsu is a stoic woman dressed entirely in white, with polished ivory-toned armor and a helm interwoven with the intricate braids of black hair upon her head; she bows nobly at the PCs before walking over the edge of the cliff, climbing down the wall to a height of 60 feet, and stopping to wait for the PCs to engage her.  A furious fight ensues with the monks trying to trip our party off the wall while our party uses combat manuvers to get in close for some real damage.  The monks suceed early on by tripping Azten who falls for some serious damage at a height of almost 100 feet.  He is surprised when no one casts feather fall on him as he hits the rocks that lie just a few feet under the waves.  Next to go down is one of Orometsu's months courtesy of Seriade's dispel on her slippers!  Orometsu does land some blows but is finally defeated.  Marthysan congratulates the party and then asks the sorcerers why they missed casting feather fall on Azten.  Their reply was they were distracted by a fan of the tournament and missed it when he fell.

    Round 2: immediately after the completion of the PCs’ exhibition round against Orometsu Yasi, the Emissary summons them back to the Grand Pavilion for their official second round match. In the center of the arena stand three towershaped scaffolds constructed of wood and metal. Tangles of rope ladders connect two fighting platforms, one 20 feet above the ground and the other 40 feet above it.  They are allowed one minute to prepare for battle.  They opponent is a beautiful female human oracle named Ganyaveha.

 

Beautiful but deadly

    Ganyaveha rushes around the battle field using her speed from a potion of haste.  She also has a ring of blink which she activates.  The first few rounds finds her getting be best of the party as she sticks Riddick with several shots from her kukri of life stealing critting him and taking off 2 levels!  Landon also gets critted for a negative level.  Eventually targeted dispels from Azten and Seriade as well as solid tactics from Hannibal win the day.  The crowd cheers wildly as our heroes from Faerun live to fight another day.

    As the head back to Yon Loi’s noodle house for some relaxation, they come across a bloodied and bruised local man huddled on the side of the path the door. as the group approaches him, he shies away from them, muttering something about not knowing what he was getting into. Landon and Seriade calm him with a simple assurance that they mean him no harm, at which point he introduces himself as Donguma. He gladly shares his woes with the PCs, detailing his recent run-in with a gang of Golden League enforcers who came to collect a debt from yesterday’s round of competition. When he explained to the thugs that he would have their money once tomorrow’s round was over, they told him he wouldn’t be able to place any more bets and would need to pay them back in blood. After beating him, they took the few pieces of silver he had on him and left him lying in the street. Donguma warns
the PCs not to get involved in betting on the tournament this year, because he and some of his friends think some of the matches have been rigged, and he notes that he is evidence of what a mess a person can get into backing the wrong contestant.  Seriade cast a cure spell on him and most of his bruises go away.  He thanks the party and takes leave of them.

    The noodle house is busting with townsfolk and contestants tonight.  Many tales are spread about strange goings on... word has spread that several contestants have come down with strange maladies from more than just the tainted wine. The PCs overhear reports of several contestants collapsing during their exhibition matches, and even one who lost all muscle control while fighting in the arena on a bed of hot coals. In each case, tournament healers diagnosed the problem as poison, though the specific draughts and methods of delivery seem to vary from case to case. To ward off suspicion and keep business flowing, Yon Loi has hired a local cleric of Qi Zhong, god of healing, magic, and medicine, to inspect all the food in the restaurant before it is served. Finally, PCs learn that an entire team of contestants who were set to compete against the hobgoblin champion Gomwai were found dead this evening along the treacherous, abandoned coast known as the Ridge of Graves. The nagaji warriors, known as the Nagas' Children, were known to utilize debilitating,  ability draining attacks, and were favored to win tomorrow’s bout. Their bodies were identifiable only by magic, as severe acid wounds had distorted their forms beyond recognition. Rumors circulating around the noodle house indicate that the Nagas' Children had boasted of going to take on the dragon Huyanwo, who is believed to lair near the Ridge of Graves. Our heroes take in as much news as they can and decide to make it an early night.  Day 3 awaits tomorrow!