We started at the top of the order with Loki.  He was in a tight spot.  In an archimage’s lair, surrounded by magical darkness that the Mage could see in but Loki could not.  DG’s first thought was to ignite the “sun” sword in hopes that it might penetrate the darkness.  Brian told him he could “feel” that it was somehow broken.  He then put forth several reasons why he might have a fighting chance of finding the window out again but it boiled down to a contested skill roll.  Loki’s survival versus his perception.  He rolled an 18 and DG rolled a nat 20.  Loki went into all 4s mode and scampered past him and out the window, down the statue with his climb speed.  The Mage went next.  He cast something on Loki which he used an inspiration to save against.  Some sort of paralysis spell.  But since he was still in the darkness, we didn’t know what else he did.  Then everyone else got to go.  Unfortunately, most everyone was in the adjacent hall and without the at will teleportation he had, it was going to take a round or two to get into the main room.  Plus, Kaladin and Patrina were late arriving.

Loki headed towards the exit, hoping that the Mage couldn’t leave the temple? The NPC wizard we promised to take with us was confused and cast Greater Invisibility on himself.  Unfortunately, he stood in a doorway.  Baron Q plowed into him and was forced to stop.  Ezra plowed into him and knocked him over.  Some of us were still exhausted from the ghosts last time and moved at half.  The Mage appeared in the first hallway.  He cast Heat Metal on the sword hilt in hopes of forcing Loki to drop it.  He then cast Chain Lightning on 4 of us.  Ezra and Ireena saved and evaded it.  Loki and Lord Q didn’t save and took all 50.  And then teleported away.  Baron Q dispelled the Heat Metal and turned the corner to head up the last hallway to the exit only to find him up there waiting.  And this was the hallway with the huge steps so it was going to be Athletics rolls and difficult terrain to get up it.  Ezra got up one step.  Loki fired 4 shots and with the Mage’s Shield, missed on all four.  He continued towards the crack in the wall exit the barbarians used. 

At this point, the Mage made his mistake.  He teleported into the midst of us and up cast Banishment.  Loki and Esmeralda missed the save and disappeared.  (Along with the sword, by the way.)  I think around here, he revealed his true form.  A fox headed demi god? Baron Q cast a Mental Prison but he saved.  And the conciliation physic damage all bounced.  But now the melee guys could finally catch up.  Kharn raced up the stairs and with an extra boost of movement from raging, hit him.  Right around here, that NPC wizard decided it was time to make his move and cast Cone of Cold on a bunch of us including the Mage.  And promptly went back invisible.  Then Kaladin went.  He hexed the Mage, then hit him.  All the damage bounced except the one point of necrotic from the hex.  That caused him to miss his concentration and the banished returned.  He then missed his stunning fist save.  Then Ezra hit him with a 2^nd level smite and crit him with another 2^nd level smite doing a ton.

At that point, now bloodied, the Mage teleported across the room as a free action and cast a Fireball?  While stunned? But he had been “breaking the rules” the whole fight.  Stunned, he got hit 3 times by Loki and hit by Esmeralda and finished off by a Disintegrate from Lady P.  Meanwhile the NPC wizard’s Quasit attacked and its master kept fighting.  The Quasit was finished off pretty quickly but we could not target the guy.  He finished off Lady P and Loki with a Fireball.  And once berried, took them out again.  However, that revealed he was in the hallway upstairs.  Esmeralda cast an AOE persistent Cinder Cloud.  He finally dropped after two rounds of that.  As is usually the case, half the players were at death’s door and half were barely touched.  A bunch of things were proposed to do.  Bandaging, short rest, searching his lair in the statue, trying to figure out if the missing part of the sword was in there or elsewhere or needed at all, transferring Ezra’s Cleric scrolls to the NPC Ireena, leaving, staying, and another half dozen things.  But we didn’t seem to be able to do anything but bring up more stuff.  At this point, the chronicler went to bed as he had an early morning the next day.  Perhaps the back up chronicler can add on from there.