<aside> 🚨 Content Warning: Spiders, explicit violence (blood and gore).
The rest of the expedition will involve spiders.
</aside>
<aside> 🎲 MOVE: Undertake an Expedition APPROACH: Stay vigilant: Roll +wits (3) RESULT: 6 (3+3) vs. 5 & 10 Weak hit. "You reach a waypoint. Envision the location and mark progress per the rank of your expedition. [B]ut this progress costs you." I choose, "Face a peril at the waypoint: Envision what you encounter."
Mark 1 progress to the Flower Ring Expedition (8 to 16).
ORACLE (5): Ruined Ruined Feature (5): Collapsed or broken structured or terrain ORACLE (5): Ruined Ruined Peril (56): Source of the destruction persists or returns anew
ASK THE ORACLE: Is the source a creature? (50/50) RESULT (74): Yes
I have an excuse to break out the Creatures Oracle. But first, let's envision the destruction.
</aside>
The staircase spiraled downwards. It took Argus several minutes to reach the next room. At the bottom, he arrived in a larger chamber. While the previous one was a typical room, this was more of a cavern, the other side hiding within the dark.
To both sides, he observed signs of what the rest of the chamber contained. Several floors worth of hallways ran across the walls, each propped up by rows of iron pillars. Adorned carvings capstoned the top and bottom of each pillar. A massive gap started not far from where he stood. He peered into the drop off. The floor met the edge of his lantern light. He could make out rows of bronze. Maybe it were also vases, like the one he found not long ago?
He wasn't quite sure about the best direction through the vault, so he stepped onto the closest pillared floor. He assumed a running pace through the chamber, but not long after, he heard a noise.
<aside> 🎲 Who is our first alien creature? Let's find out. ORACLE: Creatures Environment: Interior Scale (12): Small (dog-sized) Form (78): Spider / web-weaver First Look (26): Dead or undead First Look (66): Luminescent Encountered Behavior (86): Tracker Creature Name: Pillar Weaver
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Argus looked above. From the cracks of the ceiling squeezed through a large spider, the size of the hound. Its exoskeleton was glowing a sickly green. A couple of its limbs were severed at the tips, and its shell was exposed in several places, exposing its guts.
Argus moved fast, jumping out of the way. The spider slammed into the ground where he used to be. Its legs drilled into the iron floor, sending metal shavings flying.
Thinking about it, those pipes up there were large enough to fit this spider.
Argus bolted down the passageway as the spider scuttled after. More signs of destruction popped into his vision. Pinholes on the floor, cracks on the ceiling, even a few missing pillars.
Assuming this "pillar weaver" wasn't the only one of its kind down here, Argus hoped on the Forge that the expedition didn't run into these creatures.
<aside> 🎲 MOVE: Face Danger APPROACH: With speed, mobility, or agility, roll +edge (1) RESULT: 7 (6+1) vs. 8 & 9 On a miss, you fail, or a momentary success is undermined by a dire turn of events. Pay the Price. The most obvious negative outcome is that Argus is forced into combat. Unnecessary combat is a dangerous consequence.
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Thebweaver proved too fast. It barreled into Argus's leg and knocked him down. He caught himself from hitting the ground too hard, but the weaver was now upon him. It shrieked and its shell glowed a stronger green.
Argus scrambled onto his feet and drew his sword.
<aside> 🎲 MOVE: Enter the Fray Combat vs. Pillar Weaver. Dangerous rank. APPROACH: Facing off against your foe: Roll +heart (2) RESULT: 4 (2+2) vs. 7 & 9 Miss. Fight begins with you in a bad spot.
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The weaver circled around Argus, preventing him from moving far in any one direction. It jutted out its legs. The stench of decay reeked from its pores.
Argus swung his sword with both arms.
<aside> 🎲 MOVE: Clash APPROACH: close-quarters +iron (2) ADDS: +1 from Blademaster and Clashing in close-quarters with a bladed weapon RESULT: 7 (4+3) vs. 4 & 7 REROLL second die (from Blademaster): 7 vs. 4 & 10. In short, nothing changes. Weak hit. Mark progress (0 to 4 boxes) but you are dealt a counterblow or setback. Stay in a bad spot and Pay the Price.
I was going to Ask the Oracle, "Does Argus suffer harm (likely) or is he knocked over the edge?" But the second choice is cooler. Most obvious negative outcome, for the win!
</aside>
His sword swung toward the floor as the weaver lunged forward, knocking him down again. This time, he tumbled off the edge of the walkway and into the chamber below.