| 
  • If you are citizen of an European Union member nation, you may not use this service unless you are at least 16 years old.

  • You already know Dokkio is an AI-powered assistant to organize & manage your digital files & messages. Very soon, Dokkio will support Outlook as well as One Drive. Check it out today!

View
 

Greenlake Notes Page 3

This version was saved 2 years, 4 months ago View current version     Page history
Saved by Gillian
on November 15, 2021 at 10:48:23 am
 

Back to Greenlake, Notes Page 2.

 

Session 17 (Nov 13)

This session began with the PCs having just grabbed loot off the bodies of the ambush party in the alley in Cedarknot. Tension was high, and nobody quite knew why they had been attacked. After grabbing the loot, they all went through the Inn into the Common Room, and briefly debated running upstairs to search the rooms of the bad guys. Thori, on a brief trip upstairs before being charmed and sent away by the wizard, had seen that there were several rooms, and it looked as if they had lived there for a while. In the end, they decided they didn't have time to go upstairs, and so they left, just ahead of the city watch, which was coming down the street.

 

The PCs retreated to their camp near the "Firefly" (their pinnace) and spent a night recovering and healing. The next day, they staked out some main roads out of town, hoping to spot one or both of the surviving bad guys, but did not find them. That night they returned to the Inn and sneaked in, and searched the bad guys' rooms. It was evident that someone had been in the rooms, but probably NOT the watch. They recovered a sheet of paper, as below:

The Tripartate Amulet

 

A drawing of all three amulet parts was found in Drustan’s room, overlooked when he fled the Inn.

 

The first part is a ring carved with an endless rope/spiral pattern. There’s also a groove in one side of this ring, interrupting the pattern. The PCs have this amulet. 

 

The second is a star that fits into the center of the ring, over the five little arms, and locks into place. There is an ornate series of runes engraved on the star, one to each point, and an opaque green gemstone resting in the center. This is the amulet part that Drustan escaped with.

 

The third is a flat disc carved in a stylized humanlike woman’s face with long flowing hair and stars.  it has a post on the back, which can be slid into the groove on the ring-disc. Once the star is placed in the ring, and the post inserted, all three would lock together securely. The PCs have this amulet part.

 

In a different hand/ink, on the edge of the drawing is written:

 

5,000 from Mask 

Which one has them? Wizard? 

 

When flipped over, on the back of the drawing, in yet a third hand, are the following

Wizard - Eric - known to use fire - has not been seen to cast fireball

Cleric of Mikol - Vivian - also fire oriented - throws small flames - spirit weapon

Rogue - may be deceased - loyalty? 

Ranger - Rebexa - parents - cat companion - archer

Fighter - Thor - large weapons - melee - weak will? 

 

The PCs realized that they've been spied on for quite a while, and that the amulet was definitely what the bad guys were after. They left again, and decided to go to Candlekeep, an arcane library not too far from Cedarknot, where they might be able to research the amulet and the markings on it. They also discussed going to Castleton where they could sell some of the magic items they'd picked up from the bad guys (they got quite a haul, there, with a wand of fear, several weapons and armor pieces, two cloaks of resistance, etc...). They did not get the wizard's spellbooks, which ticked Eric off no end. Vivian finally decided to pick up a magic shield, raising her to a very high AC. They did find that the cleric with the group was definitely a follower of Mikar, the trickster moon god (Mikol's evil twin brother). 

 

Travel to Candlekeep was easy, and they paid the entry fee with a map of Kassem's tomb and a description of their adventure there, omitting mention of the amulet pieces. They then recruited a Librarian to help them do basic research, and found out a large number of possibly significant facts:

 The three amulet symbols - 

The spiral rope pattern is a classic one, used by wizards for centuries to represent eternal life. 

The particular variation found on the amulet was popular in the early centuries of the 2nd Miraborian Empire.

Some particular sects of Arcane Wizards believed that the only true form of eternal life that was proper was that which the Gods have determined - the endless cycle of souls from life to death to rebirth, and they used this pattern as their reminder of that cycle.

 

the star and green stone are an ancient version of the holy symbol of Nuthiar, a lesser god of craftsmen.

in ancient times, Nuthiar was once known as the companion of Aragh, and his role was to purify the souls of the newly dead, as they were prepared for rebirth.

the runes on the star are Ancient Miraborian symbols, referencing the destruction of the souls of the unrepentant dead.

Unrepentant Dead is an archaic phrase referring to the Undead, generally the intelligent free-willed sort. In the 2nd Empire, there was a famed warrior named Elcmar who hunted the Unrepentant and slew them. 

 

The face carved on the third amulet piece is done in a very old style of art popular in the early 2nd Empire.

Art such as this was usually used to represent folkloric stories, characters of folk and fairy tales told to children

Many of these stories were tales of adventurers and rogues who carried out impossible deeds, and it was popular to make jewelry that represented them.

this is the face of a 2nd empire heroine, variously called Aine, or Cliodhna - who was famed for stealing the very breath of a living man and selling it to a djinn for a wish.

 

Elcmar: sometimes said to be a priest of Nuthiar, and others a Paladin, he was a famed adventurer in pre-2nd Empire times. 

DC 15: Sometimes Elcmar’s name is grouped with Aine and Luchtaine, sometimes with Cliodhna alone. Sometimes Elcmar and Cliodhna are both portrayed as Nuthiar’s followers.

 

Aine: this woman was a rogue with magical powers of theft. She was a companion of Elcmar and Luchtaine. Sometimes her role is filled by Cliodhna, and sometimes both are present, described as sisters. 

 

Lastly, Vivian was able to remember that Nuthiar is a craftsman god, particularly favored by the Dwarves, especially those of Harothar in the north. Many of the stories about Elcmar and Aine in particular are set in the frozen northern wastes.

 

During their time researching, the PCs also stumbled across a book that contained a command word (Scepter) that seemed to open a set of magical doors in the study room they were using. Where these doors led was unclear, and they decided that it was probably not safe to go through them. They did learn that a wizard named Finuala probably created the doors; she was known for disappearing for long periods of time while at Candlekeep. Five years ago, she left on a journey and has never returned.

 

On the last day of their research at Candlekeep, the PCs returned to their temporary residence, only to discover they had a "guest": the wizard Drustan, the half-elf who had been part of the ambush on them in Cedarknot. He tried to bargain with the PCs for the amulet parts, offering them 5,000 sp for both; the PCs refused his overture, and told him to get lost or they'd see to it that he didn't survive for long. He left abruptly, with a warning that trouble would follow them.

 

On leaving Candlekeep, the PCs went to Castleton; there they visited the House of Ivorr and traded a magical piece of armor and weapon for Boots of Striding and Springing for Thori. At the same time, they asked the House to put out word that they had another, more powerful Great Axe (+1 axiomatic) that they wish to sell or trade. The House agreed (they'll take a commission on the sale) and told them it could take several months before a sale or trade could be arranged.

 

While this trading was going on, Eric disappeared. It is feared that he must have been kidnapped, as he would not wander off on his own. 

 

 

Comments (0)

You don't have permission to comment on this page.