# Mirror of Life Stealing - Game Snippet



## Micah (May 18, 2004)

Not sure I'm ready to do a story hour as of yet. The following is an actual transcript of about 20 minutes of game play. We are toying with the idea of a story hour in the future and I guess - just testing the water with some gametable humor. 

The company is low level right now 2nd and 3rd.

Wren - elven fighter (DM's wife)

Delia - half-elf ranger (with a penchant for ale) 

Phlume - elven sorceror (lives to fireball - eventually anyways - has to be content with magic missle for now)

Kheldon - human druid (character can be annoying at times - actually very well played for a high intellegence low charisma character)

Neveah - human bard (homebrew dancing template)

Gertie - human rogue (a little different than the regular rogue)



~~~~~~~
Transcript:



DM: Actually this room here, each half of the room is kind of a perfect mirror image of the other. And furthermore the walls are covered in all manner, variety, size, and shape of mirrors. Large ones, small ones, round, oval, square, rectangular, fancy, simple, framed, freestanding; they’re all here, all reflecting, well for now. . .

Kheldon: Anyone want to check for magic?

DM: . . .images of Delia looking back from the depths (_of the stairwell_.)

Kheldon: Anyone want to check for magic? That might not be a bad idea here.

Delia: Delia can’t do that. 

Gertie: Gertie can’t do that.

Phlume: Hey! Phlume does a detect magic.

Kheldon: Basically our sorcerers are the sorcerer and the bard.

Neveah to Phlume: Have you decided to do that?

Phlume: That’s alright I don’t actually have that many. . .

Kheldon: He actually doesn’t usually use his zero level spells. . .

DM: So you all in there?

Gertie: We’re all in there. (_moving in tokens_)

Kheldon: . . .so it’s usually better to let him burn them on that type of thing.

DM: Who looks at which walls?

Gertie: He he he heh!

Phlume: I do a detect magic.

DM: Well before that. Because everybody’s in the room

Delia: Delia looks this way. 

Gertie: And Gertie looks at the other wall.

Neveah: Well the rest of us are back in the stairs.

Kheldon: When people get in the normal thing is to scan the room so I’m assuming that most of us look at most of the walls.

DM: Yes, Gertie, make a will save.

Gertie: What happened to my die?

Kheldon: I don’t know – it’s over here. They migrated. You have migratory dice.

Gertie: 14

DM: As you all just stand there – whoooosh – Gertie disappears except all of her items, all of her clothing kind of fall to the floor.

Kheldon: Cool!

Gertie: Not a good thing.

Phlume: Ha!

DM: Uh hu and these little brewer gnomes come out. . .

_Group laughter –_ _DM wasn’t serious on the last remark. Gertie has a history with the brewer gnomes._

DM: . . .and “Hey you want a drink.”

Kheldon: and say Hah! Thought you pulled one over on us last time!

Phlume: Nothing personal, but this is going to be pretty scary when we find her.

_Group Laughter – Gertie is a fifty five year old human rogue- a tad plump. An “information rogue” who is into disguises and carries for her sneak attack weapon a sharpened pair of knitting needles._

DM: Neveah since you are in that area in that general direction I’m going to ask you to make the same will save. You look over at that wall and. . .

Neveah: I look over to see what happened to her and. . . 

DM: . . .amongst those mirrors over there.

Delia: How come I have this feeling. . .

Neveah: 11?

DM: Whoosh, her clothes fall, all her belongings fall, but . . .

Neveah: But I’m 5’7” 140 I’m probably looking pretty buff next to Gertie!

DM: . . . she’s gone.

Gertie: _laughing _Yeah you’re definitely looking better than Gertie! And somehow I just don’t think he’s going to feel the same way about finding your character. _Laughing at Phlume blushing._

Phlume: Uhm this could be interesting. . . . yyyeah!

Kheldon: Well guys?

Delia: The real question is who in the world gets to carry that honkin’ sack of Gertie’s?

DM: Let me go right down the line you too, Kheldon, you kind of glanced there in amazement at the wall and were caught looking at a mirror. . . .

Kheldon ooh let’s see. . . 7!

Phlume: Aww you’re gone!

Gertie: Ooh you’re out of there!

Kheldon: Well I can’t give you any advice as to what I was about to do, so you guys have to decide yourselves now. Ha ha. I’m not going to do it.

Phlume: You know this is great. This is really good. This is awesome. . .

DM: All there is remaining is Kheldon’s robes and his goods and then uh

Phlume: . . . we have no healing. . . but if we do get in a fight _laughs_

Kheldon: Kheldon’s saying – why couldn’t I be fifth level and have wild shape. Get in a fight – it wouldn’t matter.

Phlume: Well it’s, that’s the bizarre thing here. Is that they’ve swiped all the non-fighters. Which is like you guys are down there without. . .

DM: Those of you that remain make an intelligence check.

Delia: Delia got a 19 believe it or not.

Phlume: I have a 5 going.

DM: You’re clueless.

Phlume: But I’m still going to do that detect magic as soon as you let me.

DM: You cast detect magic. 

Phlume: Yeah?

DM: Annnd – I’ll have to write this. . .

Phlume: Uh oh

DM: Here you can read this here ( _hands Plume a note and the DMG. Turns his icon over to indicate that there is just a pile of clothes in the room now._) 

Delia: Delia’s intelligence check was a 19.

DM: You perceive that as people look over towards that wall – the one with the door on it. That they are vanishing except for all their clothes and belongings. . . 

Delia: She sees Kheldon’s pile of robes there.

DM: . . .You’re armed with that knowledge.

Delia: With that knowledge she’d immediately try to get Wren not to look that way. This is going to be really interesting.

DM: Wren, we need you. . . (_away from the table_)

Delia: Don’t look at the wall of mirrors!

Wren: What?

DM: Ha ha Dragons!

Kheldon: There’s two of you left, Delia and Wren.

Delia: Don’t look at the mirrors!

DM: You’re in a room full of mirrors. . .

Wren: OK and I shouldn’t look at them?

DM: Well, make an intelligence check.

Wren: Oh that’s not good. . .

DM: OK you don’t look at the mirrors, you notice that the other four members of the party. . . 

Gertie: are reduced to piles of clothing.

DM: . . .all that’s left of them is their clothing and their belongings. Their physical person has vanished. She says don’t look at the mirrors.

Wren: I keep my eyes down. . .

DM: yep.

Wren: Where am I in the room?

Delia: Right here.

Wren: OK.

DM: Mirrors on all walls.

Wren: OK I keep my eyes down and I feel with my hand to see where I am and I step over, over and back out of the room. Can I do that?

DM: Yeah.

Delia: Cool.

DM: It’s a stairwell so you kind of twist around.

Wren: OK everybody else is where? Oh are you still OK?

Neveah: We’ve vanished.

Wren: (_slightly panicked_) Am I the only one who’s OK?

DM: No Delia’s OK

Wren: Does Delia know what’s going on? Can I shout “Delia look down, don’t look at the mirrors and walk out.”?

Kheldon: She already told you.

DM: Delia’s aware.

Wren: OK, can she get through?

Delia: I don’t know but she’s gonna start. . .

DM: Well the effect is only. . .

Wren: Can’t she walk over the clothes? Can’t she step over them?

Delia: Yeah she’s going to go start digging through Gertie’s stuff and trying to push it all over. And Neveah’s stuff. And Kheldon’s stuff and (_pushing the belongings into the”lee” of the room_) Phlume’s stuff. Well what do you think (_to Wren_)

Phlume: Course I wouldn’t know, would I , I’m not really there.

Wren: Umm, I’m not really sure what we’re going to do? We don’t have any spells and we can’t see anything.

Delia: Delia does take the wineskin from Gertie’s stuff and put it back in her own pack and

Kheldon: She’s not supposed to know that it’s there.

Delia: She just picked it all up.

Wren: She went through it all.

Kheldon: Oh she went through it all?

Wren: Is there anything else you want over there Delia?

Delia: I don’t know. Do you want to come over and look through it all?

Kheldon: Are you going to go through everyone else’s stuff too?

Delia: I just threw it all in the corner, but noticed something in Gertie’s sloshing.

Wren: I think now would just be a good time for us to leave. Go find an inn somewhere.

_Group laughter_
Delia: That sounds like a good idea to me.

Wren: Why are we on this adventure to begin with?

Delia: Uh to get drunk?

Wren: Oh hoho, so should we run away out or just get drunk right here?

Kheldon: I don’t think the two people that got left in the group are the most highly committed to the cause.

Delia: Actually underneath all the bravado, Delia is probably committed. Reluctantly. (_but distracted at the moment_)

Wren: I’m probably not.

Delia: We still have to find out what happened to everyone else. . . . Is anyone else carrying any wine or anything?

Wren: So do we have any thoughts on where they went?

Phlume: Oh this is great, this is great.

Wren: We’re so lost.

DM: Ok they were looking in that direction – The wall is full of mirrors. . . 

Delia: Do we go in that direction? Or do we assume they went the other way?

Phlume: Being like unclothed you know and. . .the thing is I’m not cold. . .

Wren: But what are they – they aren’t invisible because they would have their clothes on.

Kheldon: What you’re not cold?

Phlume: I’m not cold. I cast a spell before I disappeared.

Delia: And they’re not inch high, cause they’re not underneath their clothes. . .

Plume: . . . cause I’m a spell caster.

Delia: Umm, between you and me, the thing is, we could probably take on the dungeon.

Wren: I know that but. . .

: We need to find them for healing purposes.

Wren: That’s what I’m more worried about. Where the hell did they go?

Delia: Umm (_pointing to the two doors_) eeni meenie mynie moe?

Wren: I’m afraid if we leave the room we’re going to leave them behind though. Aren’t you?

Delia: Nahhh, Not really.

Wren: Well maybe I should come in the room and do a search for concealed doors, or concealed traps.

Delia: But the thing is we can’t just look up and follow them cause all of our stuff is left here. Including Hoarfrost (_Wren’s magic longsword_).

Wren: Yeah I know, we don’t want that.

Delia: Heads we go this way Tails we go that way?

Wren: I guess we’re going to have to go on, I have no idea where we’re going to go.

Delia: So we back up and. . .

DM: Wait – make another intelligence check as you’re thinking about your options here.

Wren: I got a zero for my intelligence modifier. So. . .

Kheldon: A 3(_Delia_) and an 11(_Wren_)

Wren: _laughing_ Maybe we should drink some of that wine it would clear our heads.

Delia: That sounds like a good idea. You want a taste?

Phlume: Aw this is good. This is great. Here we sit and Delia and Wren making decisions for our group.

Wren: You could all roll new characters. Kheldon’s not that big of a loss.

Neveah: Anyone knowing your real character, listening to you talk is hysterical. I’m just rolling.

Delia: Well Delia’s going for the wineskin before she checks the door.

DM: _showing trapped characters the DMG to explain what is happening to them_

Wren: What about getting transported. They were transporting people out of that room?

Delia: Um Gertie takes a swig of the wineskin before she checks the door.

Kheldon: Gertie does?

Delia: Not Gertie, Delia – I’ll just play Delia (_not looking at the DMG_) It’s not fair to be on both sides here.

Wren: OK let’s just take a deep breath and think about it. Let’s use an intelligence check and figure this out.

Delia: Well your intelligence scored a lot higher than mine last time.

DM: The DM helping out here, he he.

Wren: I scored a 13 this time. I’m getting better I’m getting calmer. . .

Delia: You’re getting better and Delia’s getting drunker.

DM: They disappeared in a room full of mirrors. . .

Phlume: We’re all dead. . .

Wren: What. . .

Delia: Does that mean if they disappeared over here that they’ll be over there?

DM: And you perceived very clearly (_referring to Delia’s 19 intelligence roll_) that whatever was triggering it was on that wall.

Delia: Mirrors being opposites does that mean we should go to the other door?

Wren: Yeah but I don’t think that. . .Do you really think they went through the door?

Delia: Awr I don’t know but I imagine they’re somewhere around here.

DM: Do either of you have knowledge Arcana?

Delia: No

Wren: You know there’s some sort of. . . 

Delia: Knowledge nature is it.

Phlume: Hoh! What are you guys going to do?

Wren: He disappeared when he cast some sort of spell? . . .

Gertie: Well she’s (_Wren_) thinking and Delia’s getting drunk.

DM: When He cast that spell. . .

Wren: Am I close? I wasn’t here so, I don’t know what happened.

DM: He kind of looked over in that direction and something was spotted with that spell. whoosh.

Wren: I know what happened! 
He cast the spell and it bounced off and hit them. What spell did he use?

Phlume groaning and DM laughing: It was detect magic. _Group laughs_

Wren: Hey look my intelligence is at 11 !

Delia: I think this is really reflective of our characters at this moment.

Wren: I got an 11. I don’t put anything into spells. I just fight. So maybe I should just like use Hoarfrost and like I don’t know – go and break a mirror. But then I’d have seven years bad luck.

Delia: Who cares about bad luck? We’re down here in the middle of a dungeon.

Wren: Well, I’m going to think this through and, can I roll again to think about my plan?

DM: We’ve had enough intelligence checks.

Wren: Oh come on! Well this time I got a 2 so.. .

DM: So what are your plans here then?

Delia: She wants to break the mirrors.

DM: (_sounding surprised_) Oh OK. You’re trying not to look at them obviously.

Wren: Some subliminal hints here if that’s a bad idea or not!

Kheldon: No we’re not going to tell you subliminal hints.

Wren: What do you think? Do you think we should do it?

Phlume: Do you remember Conan the Destroyer, uh nevermind.

DM: I don’t think she probably would.

Wren: I’ve never watched Conan the Destroyer.

Delia: Me either.

Phlume: Geez you’ve never watched Conan the Destroyer!?

Kheldon: I’ve heard they’re sort of pathetic. Conan the Barbarian is supposed to be pretty good.

Wren: Do you want to help me break the mirrors?

Delia: Sure

Phlume: You’ve never seen Conan? Da nan na!

DM: I haven’t seen all of the Conans.

Delia: What do I have for combat. Well I’ve got a battleaxe – (_Guys are all talking about Conan movies at this point_). Delia at Wren’s suggestion takes her great axe and starts breaking mirrors.

Kheldon: Axe? Mace. You got a heavy mace man.

Wren: I would’ve taken my suggestion back, but I guess she’s going for it.

DM: Which side are you starting on?

Delia: She’s looking this way and going “wong wong!”

Wren: Uh oh _as DM rolls dice_

DM: Glass is shattering everywhere. There’s multiple mirrors all over these walls so. . .

Delia: Delia’s having a time here.

DM: and finally kind of right in the middle a nondescript mirror, but you’re not looking at it so, you’re not entirely sure – shatters – and out pops. . . !

Kheldon: By the way this here is probably not the picture you want to make a drawing of. . . ( _group laughter – we have a player who occasionally illustrates interesting game moments_)

Phlume: Whoever made these stinking mirrors here we’re going to get them. Isn’t that what it says?

Kheldon: You haven’t been trapped in there long enough buckwheat.

Phlume: Yeah but it says “all victims currently trapped, usually promptly attack. . . .

DM: . . . out pops. . . . 

Phlume: the possessor of the mirror in revenge for imprisoning them. Well so since we don’t know who that is. . . Let’s get. . . . .

Wren: Oh we did it? Did we do it!?

DM: Yes.

Wren: Oh my gosh yes!! (_high fives Delia_)


----------



## The Shadow (May 18, 2004)

I find the minutely detailed OOC table-talk to be almost mind-numbing, I'm afraid.  The whole scene could have been detailed in a fraction of the space, with only the choice OOC tidbits included.

How do you remember it all so well?  Do you record your sessions or something?


----------



## the Jester (May 18, 2004)

Surprisingly entertaining!  I like it!

So does each player play multiple pcs?


----------



## Micah (May 18, 2004)

Our sessions are recorded - although usually we summarize them in a more traditional story hour format. I did the transcript for this part because I felt it was funny, although I can see where it would get old fast. It certainly isn't something I plan on doing a whole lot as it just takes too much time.

Only one player had dual characters for the evening - that would have been Gertie & Delias player


----------



## RangerWickett (May 19, 2004)

That was fun.  I actually was only half-aware of what a mirror of life-trapping did, so I didn't know if shattering it would kill everyone inside.  Still, I just love the fact that the PCs who were left to deal with the mystery just figured their friends were safe and sound, having teleported somewhere.  I think I'd be a little more panicked.

*grin*


----------



## Micah (May 19, 2004)

RangerWickett said:
			
		

> I think I'd be a little more panicked.
> 
> *grin*



Thanks Ranger Wickett. The fighter, Wren, was a bit panicked. You can hear it in her voice on the recording. Delia was having too much fun with the truth wine. Delia is the only member of the party to have been killed so far. (The party gave up all of their treasure to get her back. She tends to grapple things that she shouldn't - like stone gargoyles.  She's not dumb, but thinking things through isn't her strength.

As for Wren - one of her game quotes "I'm a fighter - I shouldn't have to think" pretty much says it all.

It was fun to watch the rest of the party nervously relying on these two to solve the problem.


----------

