"That's all I can think of, unless we want to see if the cleric girl's got anything else that might be useful. But I'm not sure we could afford Abadaran prices even if she does." She glances at Seelah. "Seelah, save your Lay on Hands for if Select Artigas goes down. As long as he's still got healing, anything else you can fix is recoverable."

Nod.

And if that seems to be everything he will take point into the maze.

Once they're ready to head out, Wenduag shows them where the boats are, and they can make the journey across the lake. They squeeze their way through the narrow doorway, and they're in.

The first room of the maze is lit by several candelabras of Continual Flame. Several statues are positioned on the walls to Blai's left and right, and two sculpted brass goat heads protrude from the wall in front of him, on either side of a door. Accompanying the sculpted goat heads are yellowish banners with red embroidery, depicting the stylized goat head sometimes used as Baphomet's symbol in places where his cultists aren't trying to be mistakeable for Asmodeans.

Blai's intuitive sense of the land thinks that he can get to the ?blocked tunnel? out by going forwards through the door (which feels like — loose rock, somehow?) and a bit to the right.

Oh, they're Baphomet cultists, that makes so much more sense. After Wenduag's description she'd been trying to remember who was supposedly associated with Nocticula. (Is Baphomet associated with Nocticula?)

"How have these torches not been looted," Blai mutters. "Detect Fiendish Presence..." Anything stronger than he'd expect from the symbols alone?

The symbols are not Detectably fiendish. The door isn't thick enough to block the spell, and the other side of the door has a faint fiendish aura, even weaker than that of a dretch.

"Something weakly detects behind that door," he murmurs. "Ready for me to open it?"

Camellia holds up a finger and starts quietly casting Guidance on members of the party, starting with Anevia.

Blai has one from twelve seconds ago but he'll cast a new one.

The various archers prepare themselves to fight what's on the other side.

Once the members of the party (even the mongrels) are Guidance-d, she nods to Blai.

It's going to be anticlimactic if the door is locked. He grabs and pulls.

The door is unlocked.

The room on the other side of the door is long, almost more like a hallway, and in somewhat worse repair than the foyer — several statues appear to have fallen over and smashed into pieces, leaving piles of rubble in the corners and a large pile in the middle.

This person has a glaive and an unholy symbol of Baphomet, and matches the location of the Fiendish Presence that Blai detected earlier. Towards the back of the easily-accessible part of the room are two people with crossbows, one in light armor and one in none. They startle when the door opens.

FUCK HE SHOULD HAVE MADE SURE HIS PARTY WOULD COOPERATE WITH ACCEPTING SURRENDERS

Too late. Cleric first. He advances with his mace at the ready; they're in this for the long haul and he doesn't want to spend spells where it's not obvious this is one of the hardest fights in the dungeon.

Camellia will "helpfully" run after him to assist with the cleric.

Seelah follows after them, somewhat slowed by her armor.

The armor-less crossbow wielder turns out to have magic of her own; she launches a Magic Missile at Blai, since he's in front.

Seems like the melee guys probably have the priest covered, and it'd be annoying to line up a shot. He and the other archers will focus-fire the wizard/sorcerer/whatever she is.

The missile hits him, of course, but he's not particularly slowed down by it. Mace to the center mass.

Owwwwwwww! He is not happy about this at all! Channel, catching him, Seelah and Camellia, and hitting about as hard as a first-circle's can?

She stabs at the tendons of the cleric's legs. "The spirits demand your blood!"

Is she shouting with her literal mouth words about it now - man he really hopes she doesn't circle up too much in this dungeon. Is Seelah still up?

Yep! She's a little distracted by what Camellia just said, though, and her sword skitters off the cleric's armor.

The remaining crossbowman shoots a crossbow bolt past Blai's ear. (The caster is bleeding out on the ground.)