Azax wouldn't stop you from offing him if you did so, but he wouldn't vote for it either.  I'll probably just post the tie-up and we can keep moving.  Azax will translate it all for you.  

As for going after the other item - I suspect that is a "wait-and-see" sort of thing.  Until we are there it is hard to know what we want to do, but yeah, if possible Azax would go for it.  But that is a big if.  I ee no reason the two of us can't take on a fortress, right?

               Soledad, furious at the dust swirling everywhere, wanted to see what was happening in front and cast the dancing lights to add a 4 torches to the mix.  (DM Ruling:  You can only cast Dancing Lights on a site that you can see.  You can not see all the way through the dust – so thus the spell can only  be cast at the middle of the crossing.  You can move dancing lights, but if you move them beyond your field of vision they will disappear.)  The torches popped into existence in the middle of the rubble field.  At this point they didn’t help illuminate the naga, but they did make negotiating the dust and rubble easier.

               Thaoran knocked an arrow ready to shoot but had nothing to shoot at.

               Uthal moved forward and was relieved to find Gerdar shouting something about “sneks” and moved on into the rubble.  Gerdar also moved forward.  The tunnel had piles of what had once been the ceiling everywhere making it difficult terrain to cross.  Movement was slow.  The two made it to almost (but not quite) the middle of the crossing and rubble filled area.

               Suddenly from forward in the tunnel a loud booming peal of rolling thunder rolled down the passageway.  The dwarf Gerdar had just enough time to utter another curse about “sneks” before another chunk of the ceiling let loose and came crashing down.  Lit by Soledad’s lights it was obvious that this second collapse was not as bad as the first, but it added more rubble to the floor and more dust to the air.  Some of it also landed on top of Gerdar and Uthal who had moved forward into the crossing.  (-8hp each)  All of you are getting a lungful of dust and are coughing and gasping.  

(The above post is for everyone in the party other than Fenris.  Since none of the rest of the party can see what is happening on the far side of the dust at the moment, he will be getting his information in a personal message.)

Overview

Femris is on the far side of the dust, condition unknown.

Uthal and Gerdar are in the rubble zone.

Soledad and Thaoran are on the far side of the rubble and dust from the Naga and Fenris.

Hornet is MIA.

To be clear - the fortress the orc speaks of is likely the one we are seeking, right?  And there is a mysterious "him" who seems to be in charge of things - above the rank of the orc leaderof the fortress, right?  

To Tom Summorner:

Our DM Wrote:  "And what of this mysterious item the orcs were so closely guarding? It must be something very precious and important to them and 'him'-whoever 'he' is. If Azax and Legion could take it from them, it may deal a blow to the orcs and this mysterious boss of theirs. Would they attempt to steal it along with the princess' antidote?"

I think there seems to be another question as well - is the King (as in the King who just sent us on a mission to save his daughter) also ill?  Is his medicine the "thing?"  If not, or even if it is, this might be another target as well.  It seems to me pretty obvious that we would go after the antidote #1 but get the other as well if possible.  But that depends on what we see when we get there.

Two questions from my side:

1.  Tghe orc told us a general location of the thing but it didn't say where the antidote is.  Do we ask that?  The question here seems to be based on #2 below.  If we let him go do we want to have someone out there that knows we are coming for the antidote?  

2.  What about the orc?  Azax isn't inclined to kill the little thing in cold blood.  And it did tell us a lot of information, including some we can confirm is true.  (Princess stuff)  I'm inclined to let him go.  Perhaps we tie him loosely so we get a head start but so that he isn't trapped long term.  We can take his weapons.  

What do you think?

I would like to post on Saturday - at the latest on Sunday.

Ok, so it was a typo . . . 

Yes, you saw the naga and know it did the lightning bolt and caused the collapse.

It is time to get post in  . . . .it has been a week. 

Elven hearing is the same as humans and others.  The naga isn't really making any particular noise beyond an extremely loud crackling lightning bolt. The rocks were loud falling and still making a little noise in settling.  But overall it is now fairly quiet.  But snakes don't make much noise moving.  So, no, shooting by sound wouldn't be much more than blind shooting.  

Darkvision:  Darkvision will allow you to see in darkvision but does not allow you to see through obscured areas - so it will not help seeing through dust.  

How long the dust will settle and clear at the moment is an unknown,

Dancing lights is a an intereting idea and may help.  Or it may not be enough.  You won't know until she casts it.  But you can plan for a hoped for outcome.  

Where did he come from?

Why attack the caravan?

Why so close to the city?

What treasure do they have?

Who sent them here?

Who else have they attacked and where?

Were they sent to do anything specific?

Swashbuckler - well, that explains it.  I looked up rogues to be sure I knew what is up but forgot about the subclass - which is one I am not familiar with.  Ok, then.  Attack away.

Dragon Soul - the biggest issue is that each of you can only see about 5-10' right now.  Fenris is aware of where the creature is, but the rest of you are not.  You saw it before the lightning bolt caused the collapse, but since then all you ee is dust.  Technically you don't even kow if Fenris and the creature were burried under rock or not.  You certainly can't see well enough to lasso anything.  But whether it would work or not, John Wayne loves the idea.

For those who care, it is not clear at the moment how long it will take for the dust to clear.  

Fenris - It is more of a "snake like thing" than a "worm like thing" but whatever.   If you approach and make a melee attack and then retreat it will get an attack of opportunity.  You could use cunning action to avoid that, but you are already using it (and thus your bonus action) to hide.  I just want to be clear on the rule implications.

Uthal - Nobody on the parties side of the rock fall (meaning all but Fenris) were hurt by the rocks or covered with anything but dust.  So you quickly find Gerdar right in front of you.  Fenris is on the other side of whatever mess the rock fall made.  I just want to be really clear about any actions people are taking here so that I am not assuming anything.  In front of you the tunnel has some rubble.  You don't know the extent of the blockage because of the dust.  It may be passable or it may not - you will have to find out.  Doing so, or trying to cross, would mean entering the rock fall area.(Assuming passage is possible, of course.)  

If people want to move into the rockfall area to find out how bad it is blocked and if passage is possible please be clear about the following:

1.  What you will do if it is blocked.

2.  What you will do if it is only partially blocked.  

3.  If you move forward into the area are you taking any precautions at all?  If so, what?

4.  How fast are you trying to move?  (linked to #3 above.)  

5.  Anything else you can think of.  

Right now dust fills the air so it is hard to see much.

The group stood around and discussed several options for getting across the risky areas.  All seemed to agree that they wanted to cross but were unsure what to do.  Building some sort of support would be slow.  Shape Water needed water to be present.  There did not seem to be a quick solution. 

               Eventually the newest member of the group, Fenris Kaine, suggested a rope could be nailed into the wall – it wouldn’t prevent a collapse but perhaps it would guide people in the event of dust and disaster.  He handed the piton to Gerdar and the dwarf looked for a safe place to anchor it a little ways back from what appeared to be the weak area.  He was nervous that the sound of the pounding would trigger a collapse, so all stood back.   But aside from a little dust streaming down, nothing happened. 

               With that Fenris took the other end of the rope and carefully and as quietly as possible crossed the area that seemed dangerous.  Step by step he went, with the sound of his heart seeming loud enough to trigger a collapse.  But again, nothing happened.  He reached the other side.  (This is the second X from the left based on the same roll that had you investigate that one earlier.)

               Reaching the other side Fenris moved 15’ further into the tunnel to try and get some distance from the danger zone.  Tying the rope to a second piton he started trying to quietly pound it into the rock wall.   But rock doesn’t pound easily, and the sound of the hammer echoed up and down the tunnel causing everyone to cringe with each swing.  On the fifth swing a little dust trickled from the ceiling. Fenris paused and watched the dust fall.  As he did so he looked back toward the group and saw Gerdar on the far side of the tunnel.   The dwarf’s eves suddenly got big, and he seemed to gesture for Fenris to turn around.  Thaoran was grabbing an arrow.

               Spinning around the half-elf saw a creature literally emerging from the wall of the tunnel about 10’ beyond him.  It looked like a massive snake but had a head that was almost human – if humans had a cobra style hood and massive fangs.  But those fangs were not the immediate problem for Fenris.  Instead, the creature seemed to call out and a bolt of lightning flashed from it directly at Fenris.  He slammed into the wall next to him to try and dodge that blast but still felt some of the flash as it went by.  (Save made for ½ damage – 10HP)  The bolt lashed past him and on down the passage.  Had the tunnel been straight it is possible that everyone in the party might have been struck, but as most were down one of the side tunnels only Gerdar was in position to feel the blast.  (Also saved, -10 HP) 

               But the wall of the tunnel was not so lucky and took the full brunt of the blast.  With a loud crack the bolt struck the side of the tunnel with significant force and chunks of rock flew from the point of impact.  With a sudden “CRACK” a portion of the ceiling in the intersection let loose and came crashing to the floor of the tunnel and dust filled the air. 

Overview

The entire group is down the tunnel that goes down from the X.  

Fenris – you are 10’ away from the creature.  Behind you the ceiling has collapsed, and dust fills the air.  That dust is also filling the space you are in and making visibility near you difficult as well.  You can still see the creature as it is large and farther from the collapse, but you are at least partially concealed by dust.

The group – All you see is a wall of dust – and that dust is swirling around you as well.  You can see each other, but not well.  From the amount of rock that came down you don’t think the hallway is blocked but it is impossible to tell for sure.

Gerdar was chosen to be in position to get hit because as the dwarf who had been examining the walls and helping with the pitons it made sense that he would have the forward position.

At the moment the rope bridege proposed by Tann is what is posted so I will go with that later tonight if nothing else gets posted.  

Comments about the posts so far:

1.  Gerdar would note that pounding in a spike makes noise and shakes rock - it is possible that it would provoke a collapse.  Or maybe not.  He is a dwarf and would know this.

2.  The shape water/ice supports would work except the spell specifically says "an area of water that you can see."  So you would have to get water, preumably from the pool room, to whichever X you want to freeze.  Then the spell simply freezes the water.   You would have to somehow get the water into the position you want it to be in - then freeze it there.  

3.  Spider climb (Sorry, didn't see this earlier to respond. I jut missed it.)  It might work.  The problem is that you end up walking on the wall and ceiling.  While I would assume a spider doesn't put as much pressure on a surface as a person walking normally would, there would have to be some pressure and hold.  Given that the ceiling is the weak part that you are worried about that doesn't seem to you like it would be safer.  The walls are stronger but probably no more so than the floor.  So based on your best idea in consultation with the dwarf, spider climb probably doesn't help much.

We need more active posting.  I am even trying to give answers quickly when people put in questions so that they can repost and keep it moving.  It is almost two weeks since my last major post.  I will be posting on Sunday using whatever information I have.  No complaints if you haven't been clear.  

Agreed. Lets move.  They can join whenever.

Dragon Soul - anyone can have ideas on what to do or an opinion on the plans proposed.  Go forward?  Back?  Risk it?  Take some time?

Fenris takes a close look at the weak rock with the help of Gerdar.  (Assuming since he is a dwarf.)  The problem was that it was hard to tell how high the fissures and cracks went.  You might be able to brace it a bit - if you had materials.  Wood is potentially available in the form of doors, tables and such on the other side of the water room.  But even then it is impossible to know the exent to which a collapse could occur. 

So . . . 

It would take an hour at a minimum, maybe two, to brace any one area with an X.  This is due to the fact that you would have to fetch the materials and then somehow build braces - when none of you presumably brought carpentry tools.  So it is slow, but it can be done. 

Doing so would significantly lessen the chance of a collapse but it is impossible to guarantee it without a much longer work time.  Take a full day and you would be confident that it would not collapse.  It is also possible that if a collapse does happen the bracing will make it less severe.  Having a dwarf helps, but it is hard to tell the extent of the problem without taking more time.  

(FYI, this was based on the second X from the left based on a random dice roll.  At a glance you think the other areas would be similar but without taking the time to actively investigate each one individually you don't know.)  

You took a long rest inside the caves right before you crossed the water.  Since then it was a short water crossing and a quick walk to the stinky room.  You did spend some time there and then a bit of time slowly going in circles in the other part.  Still, all total, it hasn't even been 2 full hours since you left your long rest.  So no problems on the vision.  

So we have two of us to keep going.  Lets get that last orc!

There are 4 "X" marks for where Gerdar believes the tunnel is dangerous.

The group spent more time in the room then they wanted given the awful odor, but clearly the room had some sacrificial purpose.  But who was sacrificing, to whom and when all seemed to remain a mystery.  Eventually the group decided to move out.  

All that was left were the natural tunnels and eventually it was decided by coin flip that the tunnel at the Y would be the right choice.  Very quickly the tunnel split and then split and then split again.  It seemed that the tunnels circled around in a maze like connection of tunnels.   But it wasn't certain because the group turned back multiple times.  These tunnels were natural and the dwarf Gerdar's natural affinity for stone caused him to several times call the group to a halt before they crossed a portion of the tunnel that appeared unsafe.  The others could not see anything, but the dwarf pointed out cracks and other flaws in the stone.  The ceiling wasn't collapsing, but it appeared to him that it wouldn't take much to make it do so.  

But after several times adjusting their path they would bump up against another questionable patch of tunnel.  Eventually it became obvious that there would be no way forward that did not include crossing a danger zone.  Even more concerning, the elf Hornet twice thought he had seen some form of movement beyond the danger zones.  It was hard to tell what it might have been, in fact he wasn't completely sure he had even seen anything.  But if he had it was . . . perhaps a very large serpent?  Maybe?  Or maybe it was nothing.  

Map Coming.

Oh crud.  I'm away from home and just realized that I left what I needed to do a post at home.  I will get this updated on Sunday evening.  If you have anything to add . . . get it in.

Post coming very shortly - I've tried to answer the questions as they came up, but a bigger action is now needed.  If you are headed down the natural tunnels there are three options.

1.  The split right past the water room.

2.  A "Y" intersection part way to the stinky room.

3.  A "T" intersection right before the stinky room.

All look the same.  All head roughly East - further under the Ridge.  

If I don't get a post I will roll a dice and move you on since it seems like that is the plan.  But you need to do something.

I'm happy to carry on.  Maybe at some point we can pick up another player.  

Gerdar takes a deep breath and closes his eyes, hoping to be able to sense if any fiend, undead or celestials (seems unlikely) are in the area.  With eyes closed and calling on his ancestors he pun lowly in a circle to try and get the best sense of everything that he could.  After finishing he opened his eyes with a sigh, both satisfied and frustrated at the same time.  He found . . . nothing.  The room still smelled horribly, images of demons still leered from the walls and everything gave an impression of evil.  But no fiend had appeared to his senses.  Looking around it wasn't hard to imagine that such had been here previously, but they were not here now.

I've been offering answers as people post - so what is next?  

There were three natural tunnels you could head towards.

The remains vary greatly in age.  Some are animals and there is one that might once have been a wolf, but it is quite old seems to have almost gelled with other nearby corpses.  (Nothing specfici here - just corpses that have been piled and rotting a long time.)  To be sure you would have to seperate several of them out and clean off some of the hide, mold, slime, gunk, ooze and maggots that seem to be covering them.  It is not a nice room.

You can easily approach the dais - it is basically a platform about 3' tall in the center of the room.  Manacles and chain ares still attached as if to hold a person or creature in place.  There are signs of blood on the surface.  Around the base of the dais are glyphs in a language you can not identify and images of many creatures - some animals (including a wolf) you recognize and some not.  A cloer look in the room allows you to notice that the walls seem to have images of demons carved into them.  The carvings are oild enough and grimy enough you didn't notice them when you first entered but once noticed they are hard to ignore.  They are all over the walls.  

You do not detect any secret doors - the room appears to be a dead end in more ways than one.