Carces

Reposted from the Door OOC thread: New topics are up. If you are going inside the casino, please go to The Palace of Fortune. Please be sure to read the OOC thread, as there is an important message there. If you are staying outside the dome, please go to Under a Crimson Glow. If you're new and looking to enter the adventure or if you need to bow out, please post in the OOC thread of your choice. Have fun everyone!

New topics are up. If you are going inside the casino, please go to The Palace of Fortune. Please be sure to read the OOC thread, as there is an important message there. If you are staying outside the dome, please go to Under a Crimson Glow. If you're new and looking to enter the adventure or if you need to bow out, please post in the OOC thread of your choice. Have fun everyone!

To clarify, the mystical flames are preventing you from escaping the area - not preventing you from enter casino. Things get complicated: There is a new problem that has arisen while you are inside the casino and hotel. The magical drain is more powerful than ever, and is even having an effect on you! Not to worry, though. Heroes have many methods of mentally guarding against constant assaults such as these, and you can act normally even while the drain is in effect. (Feel free to role-play your defenses however you see fit.) However, your mental defenses may not always be effective, and you may be affected if you drop your guard. That happens when: You roll a one on any d20 roll at any time You are fatigued and roll a 1 or a 2 on any d20 roll You are exhausted and you perform a standard action You are stunned You are unconscious If any of these things happen, you'll need to roll a will save. The DC will vary, but will always be higher if you were using a strong attack at the time. Keep in mind that this is something that both you and your character are aware of, and you can always scale back an attack if you're worried about what might happen. And what is it that might happen, should you fail a will save? That's for you to find out, heroes. Rest assured, however, it's not something good! Everyone receives a hero point.

This thread is part of the Mysteries Infinite adventure, continuing after "The Door You Can't Unlock", and is for the heroes who have dared to venture inside the casino. Edit: I apologize to others who wanted to be in this thread, but I need to continue the story. It's unfair to make Lone_Star and trollthumper wait. If you'd still like to be in this thread, please feel free to leave a message here, so we can work out your character's appearance. Anyone else who is interested can similarly post here, and I'll see what I can do. :)

The Luxury is a marvel of modern architecture. A tremendous tower reaching towards the heavens is the first thing to catch your eye as you enter the dome. Adorning the tower is a giant, neon symbol of a royal crown, placed on top of the word "Luxury." In front of you, a marble staircase and ramp encircle a majestic fountain, featuring a noble king outstretching his hand in welcome. The soothing majesty of the building quickly wears off, however, when you notice the blood red reflection in the water of the fountain - the color of the sky and your surroundings. In every direction, flames have encircled and entrapped the building. Oddly enough, you do not feel particularly hot, which would certainly be the case if a towering inferno that could blot out the very sky was this close to you. It is simply more warning that you should best be on your guard. The windows of the towering building seem lifeless - a disconcerting observation, since the number of visitors said to be in the casino numbered in the thousands. There are lights coming from the glass doors at the front, even though the crimson dome would have surely cut off external access to power. Strange things are afoot indeed. Tread carefully, heroes.

This thread is for heroes in the Mysteries Infinite Adventure who opted to stay Outside the casino.

An uncomfortable silence washes over the boardwalk, as the onlooking crowd watches in fear and fascination. While it seems that the tension mounts, even a short silence is a rare opportunity to think, to plan, to reflect, and to rest. Several heroes have made it past the dome to save the people trapped in the casino and to seek the source of the magic. In a wise move, not every hero has ventured forth and some have opted to stay outside the dome to protect Freedom City. The Crimson Dome is a product of extremely powerful magic; it is not simply a barrier to keep trespassers away, but a living thing all of its own. From what you've seen, it is not a friendly thing either. The crimson of the dome shifts and glows as its power builds. Rally, heroes! You may not get another chance...

Yes, but that'll start in a new thread as well. Again, you don't have to stay outside if you don't want to. It's your choice entirely.

I'll push forward with the new, inside-the-casino thread next week, probably starting Monday.

The outside team is fine. I am more concerned about the two inside teams, as one could be larger than the other if I simply assume someone is coming when they're not. Inside people: Have a look at who volunteered to be inside. If there's someone you know or want to RP with, post on here just in case the team is still large enough to split up. Edit: Let's assume there's two teams. Each team will probably go through two different aspects of the hotel. We're going to call the teams Team Hell's Vault and Team Heaven's Throne. Take your pick!

This is to let people know who have not yet joined the thread: I'd like to try and push the thread forward, so as to not have it stall out. As such, I'm asking for team preferences in the ooc thread. Please post there at your earliest convenience. If you have decided that this adventure isn't your thing, this would be the best time to bow out. Feel free to post or send me a message if that's the case. No hard feelings! I know this isn't everyone's thing.

I have a feeling the adventure may be stalling out at this point. Since this might be due to the nature of the puzzle and having too large a number of people in one thread, I'd like to push forward into the split teams If you have some preference as to who you'd like to team up with, please notify me here or message me. Unfortunately, I do not think we can have an IC team-splitting scene at this point. If you're not interested in this adventure anymore, please feel free to notify me as well. No hard feelings if that's the case! I just want to know so that a team does not have too few members. Thanks!

"Yes!" Creature Feature grinned from ear to ear as he shoved in his large, misshapen fist to join Kid Cthulhu's improvised salute. "We've definitely got this! Strangers, Assemble! Yeah!" After the salute, Creature Feature scratched his head. "Uh, now that we have the name out of the way, how do we contact each other? Y'know - in case of more monsters or stuff? I don't have a cellphone..."

At your guys' discretion, we don't necessarily have to come up with a name at the moment. I'm happy to throw names ICly as long as you guys can stand, but we can do that offscreen too. :)

Despite the recent struggle with horrors from beyond and a disconcerting, cryptic message regarding an unknown and dangerous future, Vance shook with excitement. He had spent more time trying to come up with a Superhero name than he had actually testing and practicing with his powers. Helping to come up with a super-team with actual superheroes was a dream come true. He hopped back and forth between his feet, pounding the ground underneath him as he spoke excitedly. "How about Oddities? Since we're so far from the norm... Ooo! We could go with 'The Night Watchmen'! 'Cause it's night, right? And we're... uh... watchin'... stuff. We could be 'Guardian Elite'! I'll betcha even rock bands would love that name! Oh! How about 'Exemplar Extraordinaire? It sounds classy, and-and-and you can shorten it! to 'Exemplordinaire!' Oo! Oo! I got it! 'Strangers!' 'Cause not only are we a new team and are 'Strangers", but we're Strange-er. Get it? It's a pun, see? It's Funny." Creature Feature trailed off, becoming more self-conscious as he babbled.

The crowd will generally follow your instructions as long as it does not cause them obvious harm for the duration of your time outside of the casino. Feel free to have your posts reflect that.

The crowd quiets in astonishment and awe as they listen to Grimalkin. Eventually, they do shuffle farther away from the dome as the police establish a wider perimeter, much to their collective relief. That should certainly buy some time, but it's hard to say how much. There is one other thing, though... ...No. Must have just been your imagination. Concentrate - you need to focus if you're going to save the day!

"Creepy is an understatement. That was as crazy as the mouth-eye guy... uh... 'Just the start?'" Creature Feature looked about, trying to find other signs of the dimensional invaders, but with little success. Even so, he cautiously backed up to where his wriggling tentacles told him a box car was, covering any unforeseen attacks from behind. "So... Team, then? I really don't like the idea of facing more of those guys alone."

Whether it is simply good luck or the immeasurable spirit and fortitude of heroes, the red has not claimed any person's senses... for the moment. In your current states, you still have enough of a sense of direction to leave. While the doorway to this dimension of power proves a formidable obstacle to reaching the casino, it also acts as its own saving grace - the direction to leave this red haze is easily determined. The officer, given even a slight reprieve from the dark effects of the haze's insidious assault, falls into a merciful state of unconsciousness. The crimson eats away at the power of the light, slowly but surely.

I was mainly referring to Beacon's collapsing dome as being easy to see amongst the red. There is a little variation in the red itself, but it tends towards uniformity.

Please note - if you stay in the red haze longer than a round you will need to make another fortitude save. The DC gets higher the longer you stay in, so be careful!

The crowds murmur with concern. No less than three heroes disappeared inside the red haze and had not yet come out - a definite cause for dismay. Suddenly, a member of the crowd shouted angrily above all of the noise. "It's a Publicity Stunt!" Multiple members of the crowd turned towards a particularly irate-looking balding man in his late 40's who was shouting. "I can't believe they'd pull this junk off too! Gettin' police and super heroes in? We've got bleedin' LIVES to get on with! And the casino thinks it cab drum up popularity with a fancy light show? GEEZE." The crowd began to murmur again, but with definitely a mixed tone. There was some uncertainty, a little restlessness, and a definite hint of anger.

Keep in mind, folks, that if you're getting stuck, you can use hero points for inspiration. This will be particularly important when you get inside the casino, as knowledge is power in a magical adventure.

Ouroboros and Nick Cimitiere step into the red haze as the officer gives a similar explanation to Grimalkin as he did to Beacon as to what they know. Other officers try to move back the crowd but to very little effect. For some reason, the crowd is somewhat uncooperative today. Despite the haze's attempt to assault your senses, your magical power is not disrupted and Ouroboros' analytical spell again reveals insight. The second you stepped into the red haze, you are no longer on Earth. You cannot find the casino because the casino is not here - protected from all sides by a doorway to this dimension. The Door you can not unlock is the door that is open. It is not too hard to find variations in the red, and you eventually come to a dome made of bright light - one made by the hero beacon. Unfortunately, it appears that, under the duress of the haze, it is beginning to crack, and will not last long.

The creaking and groaning sounds of a railway graveyard quiet themselves in anticipation. The stars themselves seemed to dim, if only a little, as the deep voice beyond the grave spoke. "When the powers elder gather beneath the sign, it will herald his return. The denizens of the dark had come, for the first Seal is broken." Creature Feature scratched his scaly head. "Uh, Nick? You okay?"