Anauroch - The Great Desert - at some other place [Aria, Felgryn, Thor]

[Thistledown]

"This plane is what will help keep us safe." Answered Felgryn.  "Let's just pretend we're Bullete's and keep our heads, well... out of the sand.  As for me, I can burrow just fine on my own though this is faster, but my tremorsense work from here so we'll need to stick to visual reconnaissance..."

[Xanzibard]

(click to show/hide)

hmm, I was of the understanding everything was translucent here, and I'm certain there's no gravity because if there wasn't people would just keep falling, but i don't have my books available at the moment so I can't check. So I guess we'll be head bobbing for now.

"Tracking them shouldn't be an issue as they'll be leaving a giant path in the sand for us to follow. Right now we just need a place to hide until they pass over and get a good ways away."

(click to show/hide)

Actually i'm not sure what's going on as mthor seems to think they've passed over already. I have no complaints if they did though.

[brainpiercing]

(click to show/hide)

ETHEREALNESS

Phase spiders and certain other creatures can exist on the Ethereal Plane. While on the Ethereal Plane, a creature is called ethereal. Unlike incorporeal creatures, ethereal creatures are not present on the Material Plane.

Ethereal creatures are invisible, inaudible, insubstantial, and scentless to creatures on the Material Plane. Even most magical attacks have no effect on them. See invisibility and true seeing reveal ethereal creatures.

An ethereal creature can see and hear into the Material Plane in a 60-foot radius, though material objects still block sight and sound. (An ethereal creature can’t see through a material wall, for instance.) An ethereal creature inside an object on the Material Plane cannot see. Things on the Material Plane, however, look gray, indistinct, and ghostly. An ethereal creature can’t affect the Material Plane, not even magically. An ethereal creature, however, interacts with other ethereal creatures and objects the way material creatures interact with material creatures and objects.

Even if a creature on the Material Plane can see an ethereal creature the ethereal creature is on another plane. Only force effects can affect the ethereal creatures. If, on the other hand, both creatures are ethereal, they can affect each other normally.

A force effect originating on the Material Plane extends onto the Ethereal Plane, so that a wall of force blocks an ethereal creature, and a magic missile can strike one (provided the spellcaster can see the ethereal target). Gaze effects and abjurations also extend from the Material Plane to the Ethereal Plane. None of these effects extend from the Ethereal Plane to the Material Plane.

Ethereal creatures move in any direction (including up or down) at will. They do not need to walk on the ground, and material objects don’t block them (though they can’t see while their eyes are within solid material).

Ghosts have a power called manifestation that allows them to appear on the Material Plane as incorporeal creatures. Still, they are on the Ethereal Plane, and another ethereal creature can interact normally with a manifesting ghost. Ethereal creatures pass through and operate in water as easily as air. Ethereal creatures do not fall or take falling damage.

So we were both partly right - you can move/float as you wish, but can only see 60ft, and opaque objects on the material stay opaque.  Now just hope I don't start giving you random ethereal-plane encouters ...

It's pretty easy to let the demons pass by - you simply wait a while.

One more thing: mthor please check that you can actually controll your bird across planes, because most mental things and communication doesn't work across plane borders. Generally these things are specified, though, so if it doesn't say you can't, well, then apparently you can.

[Xanzibard]

Aria peered around while poking her head out of the 'sand'. "It's really hard to see around here." She commented to herself, "Oi Magnar, could you take a peek on the material occasionally?" she requested, "I'm afraid we might miss their passing otherwise with our limited vision."

[brainpiercing]

As they waited in their strange hiding place the demons drew nearer. To those who cared to go close enough to watch, a truly strange sight revealed itself:
In the mids of the horde, the terrible winged, flaming form of the Balor stood out, his whip dancing between the other demons and keeping them on the move.  Then there were various other kinds, from powerful to weaker fodder. But the most striking forms were some non-demons: Five-headed, winged mutant forms, each with two draconic heads, two goat heads and what seemed to be their original head: There was what used to be a troll, and a sleak dog-like desert predator native to this part of Anauroch. There was also a smaller demon that now had those four extra heads, and wings which his normal brethren did not have. These creatures were marching with the demons without resistance.

[Thistledown]

Felgryn who had been trailing the horde finally caught up with the others after it had passed over them.

"Did anyone else see that?  Several of their captives appear to be Chimerical in nature.  What kind of magic would cause that?  Chimera breed true...but not normally across species lines."

[Xanzibard]

Aria nodded, "Aye, I've never seen anything like it. It's a bit terrifying to be honest."

[future actions if no one has anything else to say]

Aria waited a while for the demon hoard to get some distance, then opened another portal back to the material plane.

[mthor]

(click to show/hide)

Assuming we start to track the demons again. Do we have any goals besides a vague find out who "mother" is and follow the demon/demon spawn?

As Thor steped throught the portal to the material plane he quickly called forth the bird whos eyes fed directly into his soul. "Fly quickly, dark bird and bring back good news." He murmered quietly before sending it out to track the demons movement from on high.

[brainpiercing]

ooc@mthor

(click to show/hide)

The others don't know about the "mother". Besides, you also have more information that you could divulge.

As they stepped out of the portal the demons were a while away, continuing on their original trajectory. Their trail was a wide swathe of trampled sand, plainly to be seen. Some firey dots were visible in the distance when they crossed the ridge of a dune. Thor's bird had no trouble finding them.

[Thistledown]

Felgryn stood within the Ethereal side of the portal glancing out. 

"Wouldn't it be more prudent to stay and track them from this side of the great veil?"

[mthor]

Aye, it might be more prudent. But I have little experiance in crossing the veil, and in my experiance prudence rarely pays the gambler.

[Xanzibard]

"I understand your concern." nodded Aria, "However, with our limited vision within the ether we wouldn't know we were approaching their lair until we were right on top of it. And I'd rather avoid that situation if at all possible, veil or no."

[Thistledown]

Magnar chimed in.

"Aye, and leastwise in the Anauroch, we're in the desert, easy to see or feel trouble coming.  The ether is far more populated than a desert, and by things drawn towards travelers therein..."

Given the credibility of a ghost on such matters, Felgryn nodded his agreement and stepped back through into the material plane...which was odd considering they were coterminous with each other...stepping back to where you started from.

[mthor]

Thor steped through as well and took a moment to summon forth his bird, sending it in an arc to determin the land around them. The air around him thickened and swirled, partially obscuring his form.

(click to show/hide)

otaix ability to grant 20% conceilment

[brainpiercing]

The bird located the demons without problems. From high up it could also spot - still several tens of miles away - what appeared to be structures in the desert. The demons seemed to be heading there.

[Thistledown]

"What now?  What in Uthgar's name are those?"  the ghost asked.

"Thor, can you send your bird to get a closer look?"  Felgryn added to the strange human.

[Xanzibard]

"Aye, and while you're doing that we may as well start walking in that direction." added Aria, as she mounted her floating saddle and guided it down the wide path the demons had created in the sand.

[Thistledown]

"Not too close now." Felgryn added as he followed along the delightful little pixie-thing.  "Better to let the bird scout from on high before we walk into a trap..."

[mthor]

"Aye, getting a closer look is a better idea then going in half cocked..." Thor muttered.  The bird swooped in for a closer look. Through his link with the bird, Thor counted the enemies. Now that the number was three, Ambush was a significant option. Thor flexed his fist causing the air to swirl and eddy. He was obviously ready for action and holding himself back from simply attempting to destroy that which he deemed evil. 

(click to show/hide)

Sorry guys, This year is kicking my ass. ( And I mean school year not 2012) I still am interested and willing to invest time.

[brainpiercing]

Even for a bird the distance to the structures was a good stretch of flight - they were approximately 40 miles away. The demon troop was marching in a straight line towards them. They seemed pretty carefree, parading their prisoners in front of them, and occasionally applying the whip even to the dominated creatures.

It had to be clear to everyone involved that this was still a very powerful troop of demons. With the three of them, they could probably take on a couple of the intermediate demons. But the leader's aura was crushing even from a distance and viewed via the bird. Their most powerful prisoner was much more powerful than the demons of the kind he used to be, due to this mutation, but the demon leader had snuffed out two of his kind in an instant (as Thor had perceived from hiding), without taking much more than a scratch. This was the awesome power of a Balor, one of the most powerful creatures to roam the abyss, and occasionally walking the prime. As it was, only a supremely organised and executed ambush could have a chance.

[ooc]

(click to show/hide)

Balor's aura: 24
Puppet mutated Vrock's aura: 18
Other demons: 7-15

Ok, I'm willing to say with Magnar around and Aria perfectly using her abilities you might have a chance at springing the balor, but if you for any reason don't manage to one-shot it, and it even gets to act, you'll then be in a huge mess, unless I massively downplay its abilities.