Fate of Or

From DQWiki
Jump to navigationJump to search

Fate of OR

Adventure for Autumn 819
GM: Michael Parkinson
Night & Location: Thursdays 7-10, chez Smith, Mangere. 21st Mar. Session CANCELLED
        [If people can't make a 7pm start, the only alternative is Fri 7.30-10.30]
Level: Highish. somewhere between (demi)god assisting and mostly irrelevant.
Requires: moderate competency; sufficient, but not excessive, diplomacy; and possibly the potential to think outside the known universe.

Warning: Will be playing simplified opposed combat.

Overview

Party is commissioned by "Isme" of Thebes & Cowland.

She would prefer at least ONE from that party (Seven For Thebes 19 years ago) that superbly assisted her father, Prince Ed, formerly Ed Swellfoot since he was raised by Hobbits who "found" him abandoned as a newborn baby. Aqualina & Caprice are from that turn-of-the-century party.

Nominally the party is searching for someone/thing last seen in the Ellenic States: allegedly known as EPIGRAM, a superficially friendly giant (almost certainly the Greater Titan Epimetheus, aka Afterthought, in disguise).

If you *do* have the right "Epi", you will be asked to:

  1. Deliver an Important Message
  2. And persuade Epimetheus to return with you to your employer (if you have any hopes for a performance bonus)
  3. ... which might mean having to do something for him first, since he is a demigod-like "fixer" (and, allegedly, an amateur literary/theatre/art/Reality critic).

You will be going off-plane and may NOT take an items with you, but your magic should function approximately as expected.
Your employers will be providing some short & long-term magic effects immediately before you depart.

Party

Payment & Consequences

  1. You will each be paid the equivalent of 9000 sp for taking the mission, even if you fail.
  2. Payments, depending on the level your successes, may include: money, trade concessions, property, free training.
  3. Assuming you're reasonably (or excessively!) successful you may expect a choice or two from selected items in the Theban treasury — since you are advised that you're unlikely to retain any loot from where you will be headed.

If nothing has been heard from you by the fortnight before the next Guild Meeting, the Employer will attempt, within reason, to have you all "recalled" back to Alusia ... with good expectations of reasonably complete success, but you may wish to take a Namer, Planar Mage, or other magical means of returning somewhere/somehow to Alusia.

OTHER IMPACT: Presumably there *are* Elvish interests involved, given their trade routes to Thebes and probably some impact to the Plane of Purple.

Scribe Notes

Chapter One - To Thebes ... And Beyond

Our party employer is Isme, the daughter of Prince Ed of Thebes and Cowland in the Ellenic States. Our mission is to check out a portal that goes to an unknown destination, and is configured in a way that it is only transports intelligent, organic beings, and not their possessions. Which means, we're going to arrive at the other end naked. Still, could be worse. Isme also requested those who assisted in a previous mission, nearly 19 years ago, which is how I got involved. Also, for some reason, Guild Security had come to the conclusion I wasn't allowed out with a 'minder', which is why I was accompanied by Starflower. Well, as I said, it could be worse.

Also, in the meeting room were:

  • Caprice – She was also on that previous mission as a gypsy. She's still an illusionist but during those nineteen years she's gained bits off all the thaumaturge colleges as well as master ranks in all five social skills. I was impressed. By a unanimous decision, she was appointed Party Leader.
  • Veor. A female ice and rune mage from somewhere way up north. Had been male until a curse had been made real – all Sir Christopher's fault of course. She's also a dragon troll.
  • Sir Wojer – Air mage and the only male in the party. I bet he thinks he's lucky. More fool him.
  • Starflower – full time mind mage and part time silver dragon. She's the Military Scientist.
  • And I'm Aqualina. I'm a water mage, preferring to be in the water and usually residing in Pasifika

The portal in question was a dark slab that transported anyone who touched it to an unknown plane on a one way trip. We also had to find a giant, in disguise, called Epigram or maybe just 'Epi'.

Elfanburg

To get to the Ellenic States, we took the Slow Portal to Elfenburgh, where we were conducted to the library there. We met up with Duke Aurelius as well as a very radiant elf. Turned out she was a Greater Titan called Tethys. From them, we discovered that Epi was most likely a Greater Titan called Epimethius. The locals are very wary of the mystery portal (understandable) and it was thought that it could lead to the Titan's home plane. An astrology reading was also provided which read

Dream on, dream on, our unbuilt magic towers, Of scenes to come, with glimpses warm and bright Hung in the light of never-ending day.

When this strange life shall vary, Treasure teems; Th' Imagination is a witching fairy For Spirits rising out of Clay.

Until, with fuller Sight, in happy Exaltation lightly Climb to Elysium for Ever Rest, Respite, Know where truth and peace Return or ever stay

We were also offered permanent Rank 9 Greaters, which were eagerly accepted and credentials which allowed us unlimited travel on the airship network.

The Ellenic States

Three days later, via Elven Airship, we arrived at Thebes and were greeted and feted by Prince Ed. Caprice spent time talking with Prince Ed about eligible princes for his daughters.

Next day we took a cloud to Thought to consult with philosophers about the astrology reading. Turned out there was a whole street of them. Also there are a lot of people wearing Mind Cloaks.

Caprice and Veor then went to consult with the Oracle of Delphi, who does prophecy readings by breathing strange vapours and describing the visions she gets. She told them that Epimethius (brilliant idea after the fact) and Prometheus (careful forethought) were responsible for us humans. Personally I think that's a bunch of hooey – everyone knows it was the dragons. She also said that the Hobbits of Purple were in the hidden city of Prometheus, which could mean that there may well be a Purple tie-in to this adventure.

Back to Thebes late afternoon. At the middle of the night, around oh my ghod what time is it o'clock, we were woken up and travelled by runestick to a 'secret location' - about 25 miles from Thebes – where we were shown the portal. This proved to be a very large black, utterly unbearably so black, that you felt like you were about to be dragged into it black, slab, that if you didn't know it was solid looked more like a nothingness void in the ground. It was lying flat on the ground, and was 21 by 35 foot in width and length. It had been buried in the ground until recently.

We were told NOT to touch it, as it would suck us in, while Veor did her divination ritual. Turned out it went to the Plane of Or, was one way, and would outlast Alusia, so virtually indestructable to anything except a very major Power.

Since we had been told we couldn't take anything through with us, Caprice put on illusions of us wearing clothes while we all stripped off all our gear and clothes (which would be kept for us in safekeeping — I even had to use a curse removal to get my Belt of Merform off, something I had done during the Divination) then, on a prearranged signal we all touched the portal simultaneously.

Next thing I remembered, I woke up in a bright place, surrounded by bracken and ferns and being attacked by a bunch of goblins. The rest of the party were only beginning to stir as the goblins (roughly forty) charged in. There wasn't any time to do anything else so I fought like the vicious little Pasifikan warrior 'princess' I can be and managed to kill one outright with a well placed unarmed attack, causing the others around me to have second thoughts and back off.

I snarled at them and prepared to do GBH to the rest when the goblins turned and fled towards a crack in the nearby crater wall. It wasn't me they were scared off though, but the people who were rushing in to help. Elves I thought but they looked a bit odd, as well as a rather large dwarf. Twenty yards from us were ancient Greater Titan sized ruins that looked like they had been smote from on high surrounded by stumps of what had been very large trees. A large crater with a forest in it was nearby and it was into that, the goblins were fleeing into.

That was about all I had a chance to perceive as Veor dropped a blinding Rank 20 Light on all of us. After we all got our Resistances to Light (warn a girl next time you're going to do that – I'm STILL seeing spots) ...


Black whirlwind & Fey Strider

Fortunately the sounds of the party being woken from unconsciousness by the tender nips and scratches of goblins and bobgoblins had drawn the attention of some passing heroes:
"Ah-Kuí" (the Black whirlwind: 5'2", 220 pounds, GTN Dwarf) and
Zong (the Fey Strider: 6'4", 105 pounds, GTN Erelhaine),
both somewhat dressed in black, look like a comedy team. However any band of ruffians rudely making that assumption would be sorely mistaken, if not profoundly dead.

BW & FS arrived "walking" at about 25 or 30 mph. BlacK Whirlwind wields 2 battle-axes ... and immediately charged into the fray; although when the goblins briefly tried to mob him, BW then shifted his grip up the shaft and use each Axe as if chopping parsley with one-handed demi-lunes. The next pulse the goblins fled towards, persuade by the berserker.
Fey Strider, in contrast flicked his thin, fast sword and the goblins near him fled immediately. As a healer, while attended to the party-members still on the ground and washing their wounds FS introducing himself and his absent colleague ... They were members group, lead by Heroes including 'River Song', in rebellion against The very evil Grand Marshal High; their group would be keen to meet us heroes. Zong invited us to visit them when we were done

Shortly the Dwarf returned, Wet, wiping his beard &amp unruly hair with clumps of moss.
Black Whirlwind: "Friggin Gobbo vomit ... Luckily I found a pool of magic water to wash in."
Fey Strider: "You didn't drink any of it?!!" {slowly, under his breath} "...Again".
Black Whirlwind "Course not; I told you it was WATER."

Black Whirlwind then peered at the party, almost as if noticing them for the first time. "I bet you lot are Spirits aren't you. Come and join our Righteous Rebellion before you all (whats the phrase?) ascend the Seven-League Mountain."

Chapter-2

While the elf, Fey Strider, who had an ability of moving WALKING really really fast, ran off to a nearby village, several leagues away, to arrange for sandals, clothes, water-bottles, food, bows & knives. Many of the weapons we asked for, they had no idea what they were, such as my trident and Starflower's tulwar, but they had access to daggers, straight swords and longbows so I guess I'll stick to my dagger/maingauche combo – assuming they had something that can be used as a maingauche.

While we waited we headed for the runes. Starflower tried to DA the Name of the Plane and got 'Here'. I had to stifle a giggle at that. The architecture of the ruins reminded me of Tethys' place on Purple. These ruins looked like they had been hit by falling rocks so I went looking for pieces of the rock. What we found were strange rocks that were magical, with the nature being Density and their Plane of Origin being 'Beyond here', I picked up a piece and discovered that it was much heavier than I expected. The pea sized piece was about as heavy as a normal fist sized piece. These could make interesting sling shot bullets – if I knew how to use one. That's very dense rock. Meanwhile Caprice climbed the stairs and discovered we were on a plateau.

The next place we checked out, with Black Whirlwind, was the magic pool. We were told not to drink from it, as it was magic, but we could use it to wash the goblin residue off us. Caprice told us it was Lethe water and would cause forgetfulness. I came to the conclusion that breathing it may not be a good idea either so I asked about other, non-magical waters I could use. Unfortunately, not around here. I also noticed that Caprice and Black Whirlwind were getting along very well as they spoke about battles and killing. Looks like he's found another 'homicidal maniac' to talk to. They then sparred for a while.

Fey Strider, who DA-ed as Erelaine with no college, returned a bit later on with an assortment of weapons and clothing. I quite liked the filmy stuff which I told the others that reminded me of the current fashions in the aquatic elven court. For some reason, Fey Strider looked rather alarmed when I mentioned the ocean. I later discovered that the sea was considered to be 'dangerous', especially underwater, and no one went near it. That was just making me even more curious.

It would take us four hours to walk to the village of Succour and Fey Strider had brought a guide back with him as well, a lady who introduced herself as Miss Plum. We were to see the head woman Noomu. On the way, a lot of questions were asked, in both directions, and Miss Plum wanted to hear stories of our heroic exploits. Unfortunately, my story of redeeming a Sea Witch caused me to be completely ostracised so I had to be content with listening and being ignored. At one point, I could see the sea and indeed it was acting very strange – nothing like I had seen before. There seemed to be some really strange interactions between the winds and the currents which seemed completely random. Plus the ever present cloud cover over the sea was dappled with a greenish tinge.

What we did discover that the inhabitants of the village were all related in one way or another, a really large extended family. Plus, most mountains had bandits on them.

Upon arrival, we met Noomu, Namer and herbalist. She could tell we had been blessed by the Titans, From what I was hearing the local heroes were interfering with an evil marshal and his cronies. It was also mentioned that they had a healing spring nearby – a volcanic hot spring I suspected. Their riding animals looked more like centaurs except apes instead of humans. Plus the local squire's 'horse' had tentacles instead of arms. I spent most of my time just listening to the others, as it seemed to me (which Caprice agreed with) that mentioning my aquatic heritage would not go down well so I avoided what interactions with the locals as I could. Maybe someone else should add their own notes.

Chapter-3

Apparently my name is lucky although they're calling me 'Aquilina' I can live with that – I've been called worse. It's also the same as the GTN of the non-edible version of bracken commonly known as 'Lucky Heather'.

We stayed a week at this village, learning the customs etc. We were told that this village is 'blessed'. Magic works a bit differently here too. Here, there is no Mind College as such, but it it said that the evil Grand Marshall High is a mind mage – probably demonic in origin. Hmmm ... something to tease Starflower about.

After the week, we travelled to the next village, with Miss Plum aka Jane, posing as her attendants, sharing tall stories on the way. There's no north bump either. We've also got grey/green cloaks that match the perpetual cloud cover above. Starflower's mind powers were feeling fuzzy. It took us four or five days of travel to get there – it's hard to tell with no discernible day or night. Upon arrival we stayed in an inn. Sir Wojer acquired a pipa — musical instrument looking like a Balalaika crossed with a lute.

Next day, on our way to the Meeting of Heroes at a marsh near Seven League Mountain (according to Caprice) some brigands tried to accost us so Caprice replied with a very pointed argument – an arrow. After a very short battle, we ended up with a pack of minions, including a tied-up hobbit. They were surprised there were so many lady heroes in one place and told us that they were dispossessed from their village by some power, and were supposed to be part of an army beating up the rebels.

A couple of days later, found us at the next town, Chealmenge. Most of the wine and grain here left to the front, twenty days ago. Here, we were able to 'trade' our minions into trade goods.

Our journey continued. At one point we passed near a river and I was able to take the opportunity of getting a quick swim which made me feel a lot better. We then crossed the river with a combination of ice floe and mage current. Jane advised us that the next town was best avoided. Apparently there's someone there that we shouldn't meet. The Marshal's folk have taken it over and are fortifying it. So I used a Waters of Vision we saw 5000 troops and a unit of cavalry. There also appeared to be something odd with the breezes around the town so we decided to go around it.

On the way around, we heard sounds of a battle so we used another Waters of Vision to see what was going on. We saw a hero, with a rather ornate jingling staff (with a flared spade-like blade at the end), taking on twenty or so people. So, like the curious adventurers we are, we rode closer. As we approached we heard him lecturing the remaining few on their villainous ways while attacking them with the odd jingling Spade-like glaive (called a "Monk's Spade" apparently). He was 6'4, muscular, and heavily tattooed. Jane got rather enthusiastic and exclaimed "He's a monk! ... and a big one too."

It was rather obvious that this guy was rather angry at these bandits and was basically bent on a path of exterminating them all, giving them no quarter or mercy. After the battle, he introduced himself as the monk Sagacious Lu, the Flowery Monk, — and has a magical certificate to prove it. These bandits had raided and killed all the monks in a peaceful monastery nearby. When we investigated, the place had been has been ransacked and vandalised. The bodies showed signs of brutally so, as we laid them to rest, I sang a waiata tangi for them. All the valuable stuff, especially the wine, (according to Sir Wojer) was loaded on board the wagon.

I had a strange dream that night and I am still not sure what it means. I remembered speaking to Noomu and she told me that the best place to camp is in the bracken off the road — not the edible bracken, the other kind. Just be careful not to crush any skylarks or peewits (or something similar) then she went on to mention that to reach the Mash (sic!) and when I realised I had misheard her (did she call it the Twin Peak Marsh?) she was explaining that the reason we couldn't Locate it or anyone there (which I couldn't remember). But I knew that the river we crossed by ice-flow earlier today must be the "Clean river" she mentioned and that the Marsh is beyond the more utilitarian "Muddy river" and yet also a branch of it. And then I sort of drifted off, noy listening to her ... but she mentioned my special protection and that she would "miss me most of all" and when I opened my mouth to ask her something important, I woke up. This seemed rather important so I wrote down as much I could remember.

Chapter-4

Seems like the others had odd dreams too – Sir Wojer said he saw Starflower and me falling out of the sky, Starflower said that was Sir Wojer's fault as she was flying up in the air, mapping the area until Sir Wojer flew too close. Veor said she was under a tree with some unusual flowers and got stung by a bee and Caprice asked me if I knew any unusual titans saw an "official" who couldn't cross water and could freeze with a gaze. Sir Wojer then speculated that we were on some sort of 'mirror plane' - similar to one from a recent adventure - something like the Alternate Alusias? The monk then admitted it may have been his fault. Apparently, he had been meditating in a nearby 'special place', The Sleeping Forest, and some of that might have leaked to us.

Veor had spoken to the bandit spirits and they said that they had been hired by someone to obtain some 'Golden Treasure' or something like that. They had tried to get the location of such things from the monks but they weren't saying. Some sort of vow of protection?

We then found honey wine, but no honey, apart from a drop on the ground and some residual in a bucket that the ants were attacking. No bees either but, searching about, some were spotted about a mile and a half away. Over there, it looked like meadow-land with wild flowers, maybe the ones Veor had seen. Could the 'Golden Treasure' be honey? Seemed likely so we walked over there to have a look. The hives were here too, so Sir Wojer spoke to the bees. They were sad because the men that say nice things to them are now missing. Quiet recently (maybe a day or two ago), two airmages then rushed in: the better one cast a spell on his companion (who flew off immediately towards the marsh with a small box). Then the remaining one flew off too, although his box was larger, ark-like: he headed to towards the source of the river ... The large mountain range possibly thousands of leagues away. Apparently the monks fly from here to the marsh too.

Sir Wojer spontaneously decided to fly off – alone – again – and saw a cloud that he believed that should not be there. Meanwhile I was speculating on how this honey would taste on bread so Starflower lashed a sample with Das. Quasi-magical honey – GTN Slightly magical honey. Effect of sentient entity: Nutrition. Seemed safe enough so I tried some. It was delicious – nature of magic: preservation. The honey mead that was made from it was surprisingly potent, much more alcohol in it than in usual honey mead. The honey can also take magic and preserve it as a potion. The yellow flower that provides the honey is a species of marigold so I called them the 'Golden Honey Marigold'.

Up in the air, Sir Wojer had ascended to a height of fifteen miles and the air was still breathable, so he kept going. We couldn't see him at all from the ground but, even up this high, there were high flying birds and it looked like to him that the green parts in the clouds above parts might be plant life – freefloating algae perhaps. Some bits of the cloud were brighter than the others which may mean that they were thinner and less dense. However, from this altitude, he could clearly see the seven league mountain with the marsh next to it, about 250 miles away.

The Flowery Monk told us he is going back to the marsh. He had been sent here by 'Timely Rain' to stop the attack on this monastery. According to Starflower's DA, Flowery Monk is a long lived sentient, with a GTN of Erelaine plus a touch of Titan. Highest rank magical ability 'Righteous Indignation'.

Once Sir Wojer returned, he summoned a cloud to take the non-fliers while the rest of us flew escort. I was making sure I was flying above the cloud so I couldn't see the ground so far, far, below. We ended up about thirty miles short of our destination after roughly twenty hours of flight. Fortunately there was a town near by so we were able to stay at an inn.

In the morning I purified (don't know about the others) but the boost I could feel in my magic told me that we were on the edge of the marsh. A boat was provided for us to cross the marsh, captained by 'White Stripe in the Water'. He's an aquatic hero, and spends much of his time underwater, just like me. So we talked 'shop' for a bit comparing adventures. He told me that the ocean is really chaotic, uncontrollable, and may contain life but the liquid itself is poisonous, which means that it is probably not water. His advice was that it was best to be avoided.

Finally we arrived at the base of the mountain. There looked to be a lot of new looking castles arranged in a row, off from the shore. We were taken in to one of them and gifted our hosts with the honey mead. Quite a few of the gathered folk were interested in the sample of 'heavy rock' I was carrying about. Someone also said that Sir Wojer had 'an air about him' - air mage humour? Discrete enquiries were made but only one or two people reacted to the name 'Eppy'. From one of them we were able to find out that he had been here, and may still be here and it might be possible to get a message to him. It seems he's helping them with a 'skirmish that isn't going too well' as the attackers were pummeled by large, heavy, rocks that 'pierced' through the cloud layer. Must be some really powerful mages in that city.

Chapter-5: The Assault/Seige?/Defeat? at Great Name City

Great-Name is the Prefectural Capital (the Main city, and administrative hub, of this province).

The Town currently has about 80,000 inhabitants and 2,500 resident Soldiers of its own. Also 10,000 to 12,000 (estimates vary) "guest" Soldiers. The wall are 40-to-60 ft high (the top is level all around, it's the ground that varies. There are only 2 Gates at either end. There is no vegetation within 60' of the walls, but there are a series of maze-like 9' grid-like walls (with sharp top-stones) that would prevent scaling ladders and enemy troops reaching the walls quickly or easily.

It is UNKNOWN who exactly who the general & officers sent from the Emperor are (and it is impossible to scry anywhere within 1 mile of the city walls)

The river comes within 200 yards of the city walls, but the town survives on "well-water" ... although there is also a (formerly) secret underground aquaduct from a point several miles upstream that fills subterranean reservoirs for both civilian & military use.

From what I could deduce, from what I was hearing as people talked, Caprice's illusions are making us sort of Eraleine looking. I also compare notes with White Stripe and it looked like instead of me learning new stuff, it was more likely that I will be teaching him stuff. I was a bit surprised when he asked me if I was married, but I told him truthfully I had been there, done that, and I was honestly not sure I wanted to do it again. Meanwhile Caprice was spending time with Lu as we found out more about this city that was being seiged. My opinion, at the beginning, was that the aquaduct seems to be the best option and, after a lot of discussion, the rest of the party came around to my way of thinking.

During this, Starflower and Sir Wojer did an overfly of Great Town. They observed very professional looking guards on patrolling the city, 6 to 12 in each patrol. Over the ten days we spent preparing, I made 80 WoH and 20 WoS while other spells were being potioned and 'honeyed'.

To get us safely down the tunnel to the aquaduct, and past all the traps on the way, I Bound some water so that we could have control of it and travel safely. The shaft itself was only 2ft by 2ft and there were several grates in the way that had to be opened. Many of the grates were magically warded with spells such as TK Rage and Putrify. All told, about 20 wards needed to be removed for safe passage. We didn't bother with all the Liquid Purification wards we encountered nor the last one that was designed to stun anything non-sentient.

Finally we popped out of the shaft and landed on a grid which was filtering the water to the reservoir below, which is churning away as if it is being stirred. The two fish which had travelled with us were here too, stunned – at least until Sir Wojer got to them. A stone capstan hatch in the roof to a room above. Starflower picked up fifty odd minds up there and I really hoped she was scanning the street level. We also discovered that we are in a low mana area as well, although that wasn't totally unexpected.

Finally, without killing anyone, we made our way through the guard post and out into the streets, looking like generic townsfolk. If anything, we seemed to be over dressed. All the guards we observed were male. Through some hypnotism and sleight of hand, we managed to obtain some accommodation and good looks at local IDs that we were later able to use to forge our own sets.

The manor house we were conducted to was inhabited by a couple and their servants. The master was a master scriber while the mistress was high up in the social ladder – and our plan was to use her to find out more about who was in charge as well as helping her further up the ladder.

A soiree was coming up and we managed to obtain invitations for our hosts and ourselves. Of course, on entry, weapons were being confiscated. A huge feast was being laid on, including fresh fruits, which I thought was rather odd considering this place was being sieged. Also here was the General of the Right Wing who was busy preparing the city for tough times ahead. Another entity Daed as very long lived sentient GTN:"Many faceted being" or "Many Valid Names". This was the suspicious counsellor who can't cross running water. Greatest weakness – occasionally thinking of others. Ability to interrupt his current magic – not technically possible. I made a mental bet with myself that he would prove to be some sort of devil.

Chapter 6

The DAs that were tossed about revealed that nearly all the guests were Eraleine although some of them had a tinge of other things, like pixie. I also discovered I needed to be careful with the local wine as it was more potent than I'm used to. There was a general feeling of nervousness, especially after the speech about 'making an example of dissidents and troublemakers'. On offer was a wide selection of delicacies, samples of which ended up in my pocket for later enjoyment. I suspected I wasn't the only one doing that either. There is also a good sampling of delicacies in my pockets. Plus security was tight. Even the servants have some sort of mind protection. We later discovered that was due to a special ritual on the building.

Few more days passed while we got the layout of the city. Contacts were made with various people such as some of the local guards. While we were out collecting information we heard a chorus of horns and drums. When we got there, we discovered that the Imperial guards had dragged some people out of their house a on the spot, just because they "weren't bowing down sufficiently to the 'invaders". Veor discretely spoke to the spirit of the executed man, in order to find out if he knew others who had similar inclinations and the spirit mentioned the name, Lucky Lou, a banker and ceramic trader. Meanwhile Sir Wojer managed to obtain two of the servants for our own use. We later discovered that the General and counsellors had taken over that town house for their own use.

Those three counsellors are counsellors to the General but people were nervous of them cause they don't speak, at least not when observed in public. Mahjong seemed to be the game in town and Sir Wojer intended to get a couple of good sets. I started learning to play it while Sir Wojer and Caprice were playing it and gambling in order to win favour. Discrete enquiries told us that there are a couple of water mages in town, one being one of the counsellors, and there was a plan to flash flood the old open sewer line in case of trouble.

It was decided to go visit Lucky Lou but, as we approached his mansion some of us noticed someone 'floating' or 'flowing' over the roof so Caprice went to investigate, while Starflower and Sir Wojer went to the front door, Veor and I found places to discretely keep watch. Caprice carefully made her way over the roof and discovered this person was having tea in a chamber under the roof with LL. Caprice could read lips and discovered that they were discussing a shipment of valuable 'gifts' to be sent out to the Capital – a nice amount of 'loot' they were saying. From what we were able to find out, this other person may be someone known as 'Flea on a Drum'.

Sir Wojer had made an appointment to see Lucky Lou the following day, so, at that time we headed back there. As we approached, there was a huge ruckus at that end of town which sounded like a full on battle going on. Just then, I heard a sound ahead of us that I instantly recognised as the rumble of an incoming Flash flood. Veor quickly created some ice steps which we used to climb up to get height. I followed Caprice on to the nearest roof as the flood roared by, and we made our way to the source while the others waited for the flood to pass. I estimated that the spell had been cast at Rank 15.

When we got there, we discovered the remains of a pitch battle with many dead. Among those still alive were two of the counsellors., the strange one and the water mage. From what we could tell, it appeared that they, and their guards had been ambushed by the other group. Fighting was still going on but after a Fog Cloud, followed by a rainstorm, the remains of the attackers fled. As the others arrived. the two counsellors went into Lucky Lou's who conducted them into the 'safe room' - some sort of office. We took the opportunity to loot the fallen.

SW - "Should we chop his hands off or do a Compel?" V - "Erm, we're not good enough at that."

Sir Wojer decided to keep the appointment he had made, even though he was late but used the plausible excuse that he waited at a tea house for the fog to clear. He also discussed getting a gift to the counsellors as an 'apology' for their rough treatment. Meanwhile Caprice and I waited outside. I kept a watch after the others left and noted that the counsellors left a bit later on. The counsellors leave a bit later after SW and co do.

The gift had been organised so all we had to do was deliver it. It also gave us a good excuse to get inside. The first thing we noted was a magical aura in the doorway. Turned out to be an area of bound air that was being used as a motion detector.

SW - "Stop talking about honey, I'm getting allergic to the stuff. I think I'm going to break out in hives." A- "Beehives?"

We ended up talking to the General. Because of his schedule he told us that he would be happy to receive invitations in five to ten days. Presumably he's busy before then. Once we returned back to our lodgings Sir Wojer decided to prepare a list of people to be 'thrown under the wagon' - just in case. We had also discovered that the MA of person who bound the air – 18 while the water counsellor had an MA 32. Could the third counsellor be an air mage?

We also think that the Flea is going to heist the shipment before it reaches the town. So do we steal them first before he does or steal them from the Flea afterwards? Caprice had a Locate on the Flea.

Chapter 7

Next morning, Caprice and Sir Wojer seem a bit uneasy. I'm feeling uneasy too about this talk of looting the caravan and murdering quite a few people. While out shopping, I noticed there was a shortage of hobbits on the streets, even to the extent that both hobbit run bakeries are closed – which was rather disappointing. So I asked around at the bakeries that were still open and discovered that there was a rumour that a prominent hobbit is 'no longer about'. Had he just disappeared or had he been 'offed' by the Imperial guard? Whatever it was, it was soon obvious that the hobbits had 'gone to ground' and a lot of people around were feeling uneasy. I then observed Sam Song, the Master Builder hobbit, going to visit the counsellors.

Starflower tried a precog of what would happen if we did nothing, and got a premonition of lightning, storms, falling rocks, and some sort of blue/purple wingless figure, all happening about two hours from now. The cause seemed to be treachery and an attempted assassination. So it was decided to tell the General and counsellors. As our tale was told, the 'weird one[' seems rather anxious about this.

So Veor did a 'soothsayer' reading of chicken entrails and proclaimed that our place would be better than theirs as a bolthole. Of course, there was an ulterior motive. Our plan was, when the storm raged, we TK Rage the lot of them, then use snow simulacrum to simulate our bodies as we fled – at least that's the plan.

Convincing them to relocate took another couple of chickens, but Veor was able to convince them of the necessity and urgency of the relocation. As we gathered, Sam Song also showed up, while we hosted an impromptu party with drinks and snacks. The honey we were having was laced with TK Rage spells.

Starflower detected that Sam Song was hiding stuff in his mind, like in a separate compartment, while the third counsellor was 'DA'ed and discovered to be a non-mage. Do the relocation. Surveyor hobbit turns up – he seems to be hiding stuff in his mind. He was also thinking of killing the general but wanted us to stop doing what we're doing so he could do that. He was also suspicious of us when Caprice revealed what we were planning claiming "I'm an assassin, not a mass murderer" So, after lacing one of the guards with TK Rage laced honey to cause even more confusion, we set up an opportunity for him to do that. Which he did by backstabbing the General then chaos erupted as our plan was set in motion.

We had manoeuvred ourselves into a corner each and Caprice triggered the first TK Rage. This sent the General flying past Sir Wojer, who took the attack of opportunity to hack at him as he went past. I then triggered mine, sending the General flying towards Veor, taking more damage on the way. Unfortunately, most of the other occupants of the room resisted the invisible force First TK goes off (Caprice). SW strikes the general as he flies past. Next is mine, and the general flies towards Veor, taking more damage. The water mage, the non-mage, and the hobbit were also sent into the far wall while Sir Wojer went for the weird one, who gestured in reply and the general and non-mage turned into large, wingless dragons, one indigo, the other orange. At the same time he transformed into some sort of demonoid. Ooookay .... that was completely unexpected.

So unexpected, that we used our teleport spells (also laced in honey) to teleport out of the city. Caprice grabbed Sam Song and took him with her. We teleport out, Caprice taking the hobbit. "Come with us if you want to live". The demonoid, was stabbed by both Veor and Sir Wojer on the way out and he popped. At the same time, large rocks started falling from the sky.

As we materialized at the intake to the reservoir, the forces outside took that as the signal to begin sieging the city. We then flew off to link up with the rest of the heroes. The indigo and orange dragons ransacked the town for a couple of hours then flew off in the direction of the capital.

After things died down, we headed back into town and 'have a look around'. What we found were the weird counsellors dagger, as well as a large amount of silver ingots in the wall of their place. The rocks 'DA'ed as 'Dark Star Debris' which had originally come from the dark companion star and had been hanging around for a while before being brought down for destruction. These ones were more concentrated and heavier by volume, than the one I got. Starflower then checked to see if she could turn into a drake. She can, but she sensed more chaos around the place in drake form. This chaos seemed to be an anathema to the plane like the demons she could sense at the bottom of the ocean.

Chapter 7 fore plans.

Shipment o' loot. Options.

  • Intercept before Flea does. Ourselves or allies.
  • Steal from Flea.
  • Assist Flea.
  • Let Flea steal it.
  • Hand Flea to authorities before or after theft.

General & Councilors. Options

  • Assassinate quietly.
  • Assassinate loudly.
  • Leave alone.

Notes.

  • If we are going to aim to fight something, might want to invest or honey (depending on sugar tolerance) standard buffs as low mana, so we have ft left for fighting.

The Rebel forces (on the party's side)

  • JK :     JADE KIRIN, who is the master strategist (has a fan made of hawk feathers, like all the great Military scientists of epic/Legend/Your/whatever) and the Person in Charge.
  • DC :     Master Gongsun, known as Dragon in the Clouds. He previously negated magical advances the Imperial Army's cavalry & infantry where they swiftly moved many leagues surrounded by stormy-dark clouds, winds and lightning.
  • QM  :     Qin Ming, more commonly known as "Fiery thunder-bolt" ... because of his fiery temperament and his thunderously loud voice. (Wolf-tooth mace)
  • LtW :     Lu the Wanderer, who was brought up in this area. A close friends of Black Whirlwind. Youthful, handsome, tall, charming, a master of many instruments — the rebel's go-to hero for and spying missions. His only visible weapon is a hunting crossbow ... or perhaps (depending one's opinion of minstrels) that 4-string, 26-fret Pipa.
  • PH  :     Panther Head, "Trainer of 80,000" — Master of all the martial weapons. There is hope that he may be able to sway some of the officers & troops that he previously trained once they realise the perfidy of the generals leading them (i.e., when/if the rebels get the upper hand)
  • WS :     White Stripe in the Waves (water mage), the ferryman previously met
  • BW :     Black Whirlwind (whom you've met before)
  • The Xie Brothers "Double-headed Serpent" and "Twin-tailed Scorpion". Neither are minstrels, despite their usual attire (Leopard-skin trouser & tiger-skin jacket). They are excellent hunters & out-door survivalists. Zhen is the elder, DhS (double-blades); Bao (the younger,TtS) has a bronze forked-spear.
  • GWB  :     "Golden Wings Brushing Against the Clouds" Airmage, obviously. Tall, muscular; his party-trick is catching missiles in his bare hands.
  • SK :     Striking Hawk (has a "steel" spear & astounding with Flying-daggers). Excellent fighter, adequate airmage, Phenomenally Ugly, but an outstanding accountant ... and skilled at logistics. Described as having "eyes like those of a hawk, a head like a tiger's, arms like an ape's and a waist like a wolf"


We also have access to 2,000 troops (if wee need them) who are highly skilled in Broadsword; long-sword; staff; bow; daggers; paired clubs; paired sticks; dagger; and glaive, They expect to be split up under various of the heroes.

Chapter 8

Apparently some of the loot in the caravan is a 20 times larger than normal pair of rope sandals. Probably titan sized. Starflower executed an Ancient Divination on that sacrificial dagger we retrieved from the weird counsellor. The results were that it was of dragon manufacture and had been smuggled on this plane. Part of it is in the chaos realm which the ocean was part of.

Drakenbane was our next destination. To get there we went up the river, through the swamp and into the desert. Sir Wojer had a chat to the friendly winds but they hadn't seen the Titan for a while, but their last sighting may have been by the river a thousand or so leagues from the city. They described him as a nice person who knew what was said before it was said.

When we finally got there, we noticed that there were lots of activity around the town (Erelhaine, Hobbits, orcs) and some were about as well. While Sir Wojer shaped the cloud into something like an Ellenic temple in an attempt to get Eppy's attention, Caprice was modifying a song about Tethys to be about Eppy.

As we landed we noticed signs of conflict with bodies lying around. We even noticed some humanoids trying, unsuccessfully, to hide in the misty swamp scrub (thanks to Water-breathing, we could see through the mist). The swamp smells too. Anyway, we were conducted inside the walls where some really enjoyable baths, followed by a meal including delicious bacon was had. The wagon of 'loot' had arrived here and we were told it was part of an 'Orcheological expedition' and the contents were supposed to be handed over to some officials. Sir Wojer was able to convince them that we were the ones that the 'artifacts' were to be handed to so we were able to have a look through the stuff which included silver ingots, golden eggs(hollow), a blanket (turned out to actually be a cloak), an amulet, and the giant sandals. The last three items were magical. Checking against the documents told us that a katana is missing. Had Flea stolen it? We were told that this treasure had been found in the mountains in some sort of tomb (or bolt hole?) and dated back to the first Kings. Some bureaucratic nonsense later, we gained possession of the items.

The river originated from a nearby mountain and we could see a very tall waterfall pouring out of a cave quite a way up it. We got to the source and discovered that the 'cave' was actually a room with a jar in the middle from which the water was issuing from. There was also a note from Eppy to Thaddius (the monk that flew to the mountain) that basically said " – not here ... may be back sometime." An amphora of wine was found at the back of the room but I was more interested in the water. It tasted very fresh and, according to divinations, the jar was summoning forth water and purifying it from primordial chaos. An archery target was at the back as well and the marks on it indicated . The source seems to be coming from primordial chaos. Archery target at the back as well ... marks indicated that the archer is rather accurate. While the others did their Divinations, I bound some of the water and laid in it to relax. We must have been at the edge of this plane as, on the other side of the mountains, the land dropped straight down into the chaos.

Starflower was able to do her map finding ritual here and located a Titan towards the Seven League Mountain or the marsh. The katana was somewhere beyond the city that had been seiged. So we flew off towards the marsh. Despite Sir Wojer's protests, we followed protocol to land at the beach and walked up the hill from the sand. There was a feast waiting for us and, during that, Timely Rain announced he was stepping down as leader. It turned out he was actually Prometheus. When we showed him the sacrificial dagger, he looked a bit worried. It was suggested we should toss it down the Well of Forgetfulness or give it to the Fates.

The Conclusion

River's farewell speech to the Heroes of the Marsh.

Heroes, brothers, sisters, friends. I am stepping down as your acting leader ... and this time I mean it.

You know that Scholar SONG was once a clerk to a County magistrate. He was honest and chivalrous, and nicknamed "Timely rain" because he was an unexpected blessing to the poor and powerless suffering under corrupt officials that abandoned their oaths, obligations, and the country for personal gain, bribes, and power. He was always true to that after the betrayal by his concubine, beatings by soldiers, being exiled (several times! Usually accompanied by guards that were bribed to ensure he'd have a fatal accident on his journey ... perhaps killed by tigers, brigands, or falling into a ravine or treacherous current). Some of you rescued him in combat or were simply loyal officials or Wardens. And then there were the assassins, poisoners and other snares sent by the evil Grand Marshal or his family or familiars.

Unfortunately, one trap WAS successful and River Song was killed. I could not save him, but I could step in and carry on his mission if only to thwart our corrupt enemies. He was my friend and I am from a land far, far away where many think I am long dead, even those in the City I built for them. [Prometheus briefly flashes his titanic aura]

I did not mean to deceive you, merely our enemies. But it is up to you to continue Timely Rain's legacy. And I can no longer stay: the stranger "Epi", who visited a while back, is my brother and he agreed to be discrete as long as he could. Unfortunately he can't keep a secret, so he also "disappeared". Recently, our niece persuaded some heroes from afar [Prometheus gestures to Caprice & her party] to seek him. So they and I must return to another world.

Unfortunately we may only take ourselves and magic items. So they wish to donate their bullion, exquisite works of art, and other treasures to our cause. However, I think it fairer if those of you with something magical to sell or magic to invest were to trade with them instead. To that end, some of you may wish to learn skills or magic from them (if you can) or teach them magic in exchange. We have plenty of time — although we also need to press our military advantage. Especially as the evil Grand Marshal's underlings (so probably the Marshall's family too!) have clearly been forni consorting with Dragons and other Chaotic beings.

Black Whirlwind, you've forgotten that you are also from their world. You may return with us, if you wish. In the meantime let us all feast and exchange stories. Lu the Wanderer, it is amazing how your account always get better every time you tell them!

What happened next

After the feast (and recovery), Party trades for transportable loot.
The party travels with Prometheus (with optional stops on the way?) to the ruined towers and their trees. On being banished from the plane, you arrive back through the Dark Door (now at the bottom of a shallow reflecting pool, with carp) surrounded by extensive gardens and a moderately tasteful Folly nearby. Clearly Tethys got bored waiting.

You have been on adventure one month.

Loot

NB: There is no tax on items gained before you went through the Dark Door. The Guild security has already been sufficiently bribed PAID!

Dated Credentials from Isme/Elvish Crown

1 each
Each scroll is on silk (which folds or rolls without damaging the indelible script (in Florid Elvish obviously) that names the bearer (with up to two titles, if they have any) as well-beloved righteous supporters of the Crown. The florid elvish essentially says:

  1. You are entitled to (reasonable) support and accommodation from any local Elvish governor and
  2. The Courtesy of the Services. — By tradition, that would in normal circumstance include making room for you and at least one servant and a couple of hundredweight of "necessities" (or other person luggage) on Elvish vessels, including the Airships.
  3. If you are wronged by enemy or unfriendly agents, whilst explicitly (sometimes even implicitly) "attending to wishes of the court" you may expect an Officer to enquire further and conduct remedial action for the wrong on their own initiative.
  4. The right to attend Court (in most, normal circumstances)

ALSO

  1. The right to Petition the Court for Redress (although, given that you must write your petition on the back of you credentials and surrender them, this can be risky in personal matters or feuds with other courtiers).

Feel free to refuse the credentials ... if you can give a convincing pretence to be that modest.


+10 Refreshing Greater From TETHYS

[i.e., equiv to Rank 9; MA 33] that will "refresh" 9 times after Death loss or other removal; it will return 24 hours afterwards if that is both "safe &amp possible" (e.g., not in the same place/situation that destroyed the RG, character is alive, etc) ... otherwise shortly AFTER that.

The RG may be temporarily overridden by a Rank 14+ Greater Enchantment; and whenever that GE ceases your RG will be effective.

From Thebes

  • A permanent Lesser Enchantment, should you need one.
  • Feasting, Drinking, Spy-baiting & other diversions.
  • Other spells upon request [please specify ASAP] before you pass through The Dark Door.

From the Province of the Picts

The rope Sandals (Starflower)

NB: it takes an hour for these virtually indestructible Sandals to resize to a new person (and that is the size they remain when removed). Otherwise, if not used in 10 days, they revert to their "natural" size — as they will also do when the [unknown] command word is spoken.

The Sandals enable the wearer plus up to (Rank in "Ranger") people-sized companions (i.e., hobbit to Human-sized) within 100' to Pass without trace:
Effects: The targets pass over earth and through all but the thickest vegetation without leaving tracks or evidence (other than scent) of their passage unless a member of the group deliberately attacks or damages animals or plants native to that area, whereupon the magic ceases for all targets and may not recommence for at least an hour.
Obviously Targets may fish, bird-hunt, or attack sentients and non-natives without the spell failing. The Effects function in other places where an earth mage may cast —e.g., in trees, or moving through a building anchored the Earth — but not in the air or on a sailing boat (spell is still running, but not effective).

Horses and other mounts or beasts of burden may also be included, but each counts as TWO people (standard "pantomime rules"). If something is being dragged or pushed (e.g. a travois, wheelbarrow, cart, carriage) it is also covered and assumed to be doing no significant damage if the people/animals moving it have been selected as targets by the wearer.
All beings effected either halve their fatigue cost for walking/running or travel 50% further than they would normally in the same time — as the wearer chooses.

True-silver Amulet/Coin (Sir Wojer)

Hanging from what resembles a snake-skin cord (but is plaited medusa skin), the amulet has 2 sides. The effect on the wearer & others depends on which side is outermost. This is random when first put on or the start of a new day, but the wearer my change it ... although it takes 3 hours for the magic to "catch up" to the new facing.

HEADS: shows three female elven faces. One senses that they have power, but one's interpretation varies for no explicable or divinable reason.‡ Between the two in profile (1 amicable, 1 wrathful), the third is face-on and looking quizzical or dubious or ...
‡ Graces? Furies? Funerary Queens? Maids from School? Who knows?

If the wearer already has any sort of Detect Aura Talent:
The wearer gains a bonus (Namer) DA ... at the same rank. The wearer may either ask one extra question with their normal DA, or they may take an extra pulse at least a day later to ask new/follow-up question (roll again). The wearer's DAs are always at NO fatigue cost, regardless of the mana-level. Other than that, there is the usual seasonal restrictions on asking subsequent questions.

Otherwise, if the wearer did not already have a Detect Aura Talent, then they do have one now. Its rank is [half the wearer's current MA].

TAILS: shows a medusa's head.
The wearer cannot be DA-ed, and anyone getting a successful DA-roll received a point of fatigue damage for each DA-question they ask — and "No Answer" as the response to each question.

Cloak of Discretion (Caprice)

This looks like a simple, well-worn, plain, even crude cloak. However ...
When worn, the possessor plus up to (Rank in "Ranger") people-sized companions (i.e., hobbit to Human-sized)* within 100' will be forgotten by observers the following day
... UNLESS they had done something markedly unusual or remarkable.

This will not erase their presence, or footprints, or any written records, etc, just the memories of any witnesses.
It is possible that a well-ranked Spy may resist this magic [GM interpretation]
*For Horses and other Mounts or Beasts of Burden, the standard "pantomime rules" apply: that is, each count as two companions; although significantly smaller, normally-sized animals (ordinary cats, dogs, birds, perhaps even small children, whatever) are disregarded. Obviously so long as they were not observed doing or being "something markedly unusual or remarkable".


Exchanging Objets D'art & bullion with the Heroes; also gifts

Ridiculously dense metal pellets & grains   4 portions @ 1000 (3 to Aqualina; 1 to Starflower)

Loot. The GTN of this dense, magical, black metal is "Dark Sun Spume" — let's call it Dross for short. It is approximately 10 times the density of Gold. Possibly of use for Masterwork Weapons, or devices, or exceedingly expensive practical jokes. The party accumulated about 2 cups worth that has been split into 4 equal portions of 50 lbs.

An apparently empty purse (Caprice) 6,000

[Gift]This goat-leather purse on a cord is intended to be strung around the neck and (normally) worn under the clothing. It will contains up to 1 cups worth of small items (e.g., coins, gems, sling bullets, etc) and items in the purse may not be located or scryed. The purse has NO weight even when full ... although, should the GM du jour decree so, it may retain it inertia.

Fey Strider Glyphs (all 4 to Veor)   @ 1,000

[Gift] When strapped on someone's leg (people only, not horses, hounds, etc; although the person could carry others if sufficiently strong), the glyph enables that person to walk (sic!) at 24 miles an hour for the next 10 hours. Travelling at that speed, they may perform any actions normally permissible whilst walking. During those 10 hours, they can "drop out" into normal TMR (e.g., for combat) ... and, if unengaged (at the time of their action/initiative), later resume their swift walking.

Tipstaff [not from Here] (Veor)   28,000

This magical Black hardwood staff is bound with Silver. The sculpted head of the staff (the "nob on the end", to use the technical wizardy term) is a horse-head that seems almost alive, and the carved foot is a silver horse-hoof.
When a living sentient is touched by staff, the wielder is aware of the sentient's GTN as well as the highest rank and name of spell currently cast (including queued magic!) on that sentient — and if there are several spells at that rank, the wielder knows the names of all those spells). Hitting the sentient in combat counts as "touching" if the wielder does ANY effective damage. (Functions as an otherwise normal Quarterstaff; no intrinsic plussage, so may take weaponspells)

If the sentient is touched with the Head of the staff (or near enough), the Wielder may instantaneously "purloin" their choice of one of those highest-rank spells at the spell-fatigue cost of 1 Fatigue ... although its duration is halved.

If the sentient is touched with the Foot of the staff (or near enough), the Wielder may chose to receive (their choice of) the appropriate counterspell [College & Gen/Spec Knowledge] used counter the highest ranked spell(s) that the sentient can cast.

Divination of the staff strongly suggest that the Horse-head is intended to represent the Greater Demon Orobos (the Equine prince), but is not linked to him in any divinable way.

Voluntary Skin changes   14 @ 2,500

These are Skin-changed pelts (Witching S-17, Rank 20) confiscated from the EGM's agents.


The magic function normally (e.g., counterspellable) ...
EXCEPT that the wearer can voluntarily "reject" the skin and return to their previous form (& possessions),
AND also, the wearer explicitly may put on several pelts consecutively ... but they may only reject them in reverse order — that is reject the outermost skin before rejecting the next layer.
The EGM strongly recommends, if "pelting in layers", to decide beforehand whether you want to be a centaur that later transforms into a raven or vice versa, etc.

Obviously the skins were intended only to be worn voluntarily, to assist spies/saboteurs to infiltrate a secure area or to exit discretely;
but may be wastefully, boringly used offensively (see spell description).

EACH pelt is a ONE-SHOT item. ONCE it has changed, it cannot be reused. When a worn pelt is dispelled, it vanishes permanently leaving no trace ... just the way Master spies, assassins, agents prefer.

There are 6 local centaur/horse pelts (Caprice has 1 or 2?), 3 frog pelts (Starflower 1), 1 eagle pelt (to Starflower ), 2 raven pelts (Caprice 1; Starflower 1) 2 auspicious stork pelts (not innately auspicious, but few Imperial subjects or brigands would normally consider harming one ... maybe why the Chaos agents were running low on those pelts).

The remainder available on request.

Enchanted Rose (Starflower)   23,000

A permanently preserved dark-violet rose on a titan-metal pin. The rose-scented air in the wearer's megahex [i.e., standard counterspell area] is breathable, un-poisoned, non-sedating, not at all noxious.
Non-standard air-effecting magicks are modified (or not) as the GM du jour whims.
The Titanic magic protecting is obvious in its aura.

If hit by destructive magic, the rose is undamaged/unchanged if the wearer is alive or merely transformed. Magic that kills the wearer normally does not damage the E.R. — and even when the wearer is killed by particular strong magic (e.g. from a Demon) or dragon-fire and the like, the rose still undamaged on a roll of 93% or less

Healing Tea (2 packets @ 20 doses: Caprice 1; Veor 1) @ 15,000

(Wrapped & tied in a waterproof silk pocket)
When a patient ingests a dose, they immediately 2 pts Endurance, 4 pts fatigue, and all external bleeding ceases. Any healer skills performed on the [living] patient entirely within the next 12 hours (e.g., neutralise poison, cure infection, ...) are rolled at advantage — that is, roll twice and apply the more favourable result.

The tea must be consumed within 2 hours of being brewed to be effective, but need not be drunk hot.

Erelhaine Scroll of Healing Sutras (Caprice) 18,000

(with illustrations). The time taken to rank Healer skill is halved and the student's existing EP cost (considering all other discounts/penalties) is reduced by a [further] 10% provided that the student's rank in written Erelhaine is GREATER than the rank of Healer they are seeking. Explicit notes:

  • The Healer student may gain this benefit for several ranks in Healer provided their rank in written Erelhaine at the time sufficiently high.
  • The Scroll may be loaned to the Owner's pupils, sold on, etc, BUT the Scroll may only be used by 1 person at a time.

Pixie-Pin (Aqualina)   3,500

This is a simple, magical silver pin, although the [invisible] blue shield on the pin's head is perceivable with witchsight. It automatically makes the wearer totally immune to Pixies' abilities to disorient people and cause confused thinking ... but it does not prevent the pixies from reading the wearers mind (you'll have to look elsewhere for that). However, should the wearer ever kill a pixie (even accidentally), the item is forever broken and the wearer GTN is automatically changed (Death-Curse, MA 20) to "Nasty, Nasty Killer of Pixies".

Giant-Carp bracer (Aqualina) 3,200

Because this bracer contains the "heart scale" of Giant Carp, you (its wearer) are TOTALLY IMMUNE to being swallowed whole by a Giant Carp or any other large aquatic (Whales, Sharks, Hippos, ... etc)
Unfortunately the bracer doesn't protect you from being eaten in multiple bites.
Nor is it particularly useful as a bracer — but must be strapped onto an arm, although you may wear it under clothing/armour You may breath water for up to 2x[your Rank in Swimming] Hours a day; and the water breathing time need not be all at once, but split sessions are rounded up to the nearest half-hour.

Extraordinary potion of Rank-15 Windspeak   5,000

Yes, ordinarily this General Ritual (Q1) is not potionable. And Greater Titan like Prom****** do NOT cheat. But they can bend the rules ... quite significantly.
The base chance of Success is 95% adjusted by the appropriate modifiers [at the time of drinking!] of §18.3 and it potency is NOT determinable until it is drunk (so, possibly may not work, possibly may have multiple effect). (Again, merely "bending", not breaking)

Extraordinary potion of Rank-16 Air Spring (Aqualina) 3,500

Yes, ordinarily this Special Ritual (S1) is not potionable. And Greater Titan like Prom****** do NOT cheat. But they can bend the rules ... quite significantly.
The base chance of Success is 105% adjusted by the appropriate modifiers of §18.3 [at the time of drinking!] and it potency is NOT determinable until it is drunk. (Again, merely "bending", not breaking)

Extraordinary potion of Rank-20 Air Summoning Cloud (Aqualina) 12,000

Yes, ordinarily this Special Ritual (S4) is not potionable. And Greater Titan like Prom****** do NOT cheat. But they can bend the rules ... quite significantly.
The base chance of Success is 110% adjusted by the appropriate modifiers of §18.3 [at the time of drinking!] and it potency is NOT determinable until it is drunk. (Again, merely "bending", not breaking)

Pict Arrows (Caprice) 1,800 sp for the set of 6

These otherwise normal arrows count as magical weapons.
Also any target they hit (inflicting at least 1 point of effective damage) which normally sleeps must make a 4xWP roll or fall into a sound semi-magical sleep ... which is removed by a counter-General E&E counterspell ,or other appropriate magical means, or by rigorously jostling the sleeper awake.
Each arrow has only one charge and is unbreakable until a valid target (eventually!) fails to make their 4xWP roll, whereupon the arrow loses its magical charge and becomes mundane (and breakable).

The Last quarrel you'll ever need (Sir Wojer)   19,000

This magical, all-brass, viciously barbed quarrel, with razor-sharp edges, will probably fit most crossbows — even magical ones. If not, have one custom-made).
After being shot, it reappears back in your crossbow during the "recover from stun" phase of the following pulse.
WARNING: If you are using the belt hook & Foot method of cocking the crossbow, the bolt may fall on your foot.
However, IF you have spent that pulse cranking/levering your crossbow AND your crossbow is adequately light (or you are sufficiently strong/heroic/fast) the quarrel will be ready to release — Snapshot or Aimed & Fired, etc, depending how many actions you take.

The quarrel does 4 bonus points of damage in addition to normal damage, depending on the thrust of the crossbow it can take spells that effect objects (Arrow Flight, cunning Illusions, Light, ...) — but NOTHING that would directly confer damage (weapon spells, fire, ... ) to the target or the area in which it lands Nor does it not retain poison/blade-venom/pitch/etc (don't be so tacky!).

If the bolt had given the victim an Endurance or Grievous wound, the bolt does an additional D-2 damage as it vibrates violently before teleporting.
Also If someone stupidly picks up the bolt after it missed your target, or was attempting to remove it from your target, they take D-2 damage as it buzz/teleports out of their hand/tentacle.

Astrology etc

Reading on "The Dark Door"

Dream on, dream on, our unbuilt magic towers,
Of scenes to come, with glimpses warm and bright
Hung in the light of never-ending day.

When this strange life shall vary, Treasure teems;
Th' Imagination is a witching fairy
For Spirits rising out of Clay.

Until, with fuller Sight, in happy Exaltation lightly
Climb to Elysium for Ever Rest, Respite,
Know where truth and peace Return or ever stay

The other (older?) version of the last verse that Lucidius found was:

Until, with fuller Sight, in happy Exaltation might
Climb to ever Fight, or to forever Rest in Light.
Know truth and peace — to Flee, Return, or ever Stay.

Being a true philosopher, he had no definite reason for the change: Perhaps the prognosticator was trying to change the emphasis? or make a different ending fit? or to hide something or a Name ? — All very unprofessional!
Or perhaps Fate is unravelling? Or changed in the past week or so due to unforeseen or indeterminable events?


Logistics

Watches

A day on OR = 20 hours. (1 year = 1000 days) This potentially gives 8 hours for travel, 2 hours for rituals, 2 hours for meals/teas and 8 hours for sleep as a possible average day?

Travel Magic

Flying is very rare, only done with subtlety. The Sea is regarded with horror & fear and seems very dangerous.

Camping Notes

Camp site can be protected in about 15 minutes by the following.

  • Warding with runes, 60% chance of blocking spell from outside. Protects from some weather.
  • Ground can be warded vs Earth Elemental, they can walk on it but not pass through it.

Enchanted Igloo can be created taking 70-90 minutes. 36' internal diameter.

Buffs

General Buff Notes

Buffs listed in the table don't need to be detailed, other buffs not on the table must be mentioned at the time they are cast.
Y means always on, N/- means never on, 'Sit.' means when the party has time for buffs before a fight.
Weapon Spells which weapon/s it is going on normally should be noted also

  • Herbalist Broth is 5 Ft restored, 3 / day. (Once we have common herbs for it)
  • 1 Spell a day each can be ritually cast on the group to save Ft.
  • Temporary runes on people, Duration 13 days. Body, Healing, Weapon, Mind.
  • Temporary runes on weapons, Duration 13 days. Earth, Water.


Long duration buffs

Magic Rk Effects Dur Aq St Ve SW Ca ? ?
Armour of Ice (V) 20 7 Ft Prot, 2 En Prot, +40% resist vs Fire. 10.5hr (R.) / ** 18hr Sit Sit Sit Sit Sit ? ?
Disguise Illusion (Ca) 20 **37hr Y Y Y Y Y ? ?
Imbue with Spirit (V) 13 +8 to 1/2 stats. Ag for Rabbit, EN/PS? for Totem 17hr (R.) Sit Sit Sit Sit Sit ? ?
Greater Heart Rune (V) 10 Heal 8 En when take En damage. Up to 13 days. Y Y Y Y Y ? ?
Rune of Willow Healing (V) 6 Heal 3ft for 8 Pulses when triggered. Up to 13 days. Y Y Y Y Y ? ?
Water Breathing (Aq) 20(35) Breath Water - See in Fogs 36 Hours Y ? ? ? Y ? ?
Cold Resistance (Aq) 12(27) Seven less cold damage 28 Hours Y ? ? ? ?Y ? ?
Waterproofing (Aq) 8(23) 72 Hours N ? ? ? Y ? ?
Rune Shield 11 +16% def, +2 Ft/En Prot 12hr (R.) / **23hr Y Y Y Y Y ? ?

Short duration buffs

Magic Rk Effects Dur ?? ?? ?? ?? ?? ?? ??
Create Fog (Aq) 8 5000 cu ft of fog, 5ft visibility, WB negates 54 Mins ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Enhance Enchantment (Ca) 15 Add 15 ranks to spell attributes Please add duration to daily buffs ** ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Creating Rune Weapon (Ve) 14 SC +15%, DM +3 (Acid or Cold) Hits insubstantial. 19 Mins ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Enchanting Weapons (Ca) 6 SC +7%, DM +2 2 Mins x [D-5] ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Weapon of Flames (Ca) 6 SC +7%, DM +4/+7 vs undead, cold or water creatures 13 Mins ? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Name (??) ## ???? ? Mins ? ? ? ? ? ? ?