Backflipping Ninjas
We exit the darkness of the drow cathedral to be greeted by the similar darkness of the underground drow city. The matron is defeated, now we must face, um, some other drow. The plot is all kind of bleeding together at this point, a bit like our party after the first round of combat. Getting to our new destination requires descending to a lower pillar of rock, on which another building sits. The pillar and building is only 30' away, as the badger jumps, with an accompanying 50' drop to make it less of a straight long jump. The jump check of 150 seems tricky, but once we work out that the mechanics now work with 5' squares and not feet directly, so that we only need a jump check of 30, I'm quite happy to take a leap at it.
'I'm game', agress Krafft, after taking a peek over the ledge of our position. A charging jump off the top of the altar in the cathedral has got his juices flowing. Of course, I have my magic boots that grant me permanent slow-fall, so that I always land softly from any height. Krafft's just a nutter, albeit an athletic nutter. He takes a run up, launches himself off the ledge, and lands heavily but undamaged on his feet on the lower pillar. Wheee! I drift down gently after him. We look up and back at our three bewildered companions, beckoning them to follow.
'What the hell?', Adran objects, 'can't we just walk around?' Well, yes, there is the path and bridge about 90' to the north that takes you to the same place, with addtional travelling time of about a minute. 'So why on earth are people jumping?!' Some people have no sense of adventure. Krafft and I start a picnic as the slow-coaches catch up, nibbling on some ham sandwiches whilst we wait. I bet jumping doesn't seem so silly now.
The three stragglers reach their intermediate goal, where they then have a more manageable jump down to the ground, after which they can climb the stairs to our position. But just as they approach the ledge, the doors of a nearby builing burst open. Drow ninjas attack!
The ninjas fly out of the building, their keen training and senses causing them to act first, legs kicking, arms punching, shouting chi-focussing screams! 'Kiai!' One of the ninjas backflips in to position before blurring the very light that surrounds him, making his outline indistinct, throwing stars flying from what may be his hands. 'Kiai!' The two other ninjas somersault to positions either side of the first, whereupon they disappear in to blackness, out of which more throwing stars fly, richeting off armour and a couple piercing the flesh of the party. 'Kiai!'
'Huh, ninjas.' Already only a few feet from the ledge, the party chooses to jump down and amble over to my and Krafft's picnic. To their credit, rather than admitting defeat, the ninjas follow us, leaving their aura of blackness behind and opting to fight more conventionally. The five of us deal with the three of them fairly easily, with Krafft chasing one of the ninjas around until the ninja falls over, the others successfully overwhelmed by numbers. Time to finish our picnic before finding out what waits for us inside.