Session 16: Stolen Away - Part 1 Report

General Summary

Recap

1. After losing to the masked man, most of the party awakens in the tavern they were previously waiting in to the smell of heavy incense and herbs.
2. The person waking them is a Red Dwarvish woman named Rayya, who introduces herself as Jhin's contact, and mentions that their friend Wren, appears to be absent.
3. The party checks outside, and finds that the only trace of Wren is her spellbook outside of the building, with a scrawled note left on top of it.
4. The note appears to be addressed to Celrin, and explains that the writer of the letter has kidnapped Wren; offering to let Celrin swap places with her if she can find where they are.
5. After the party reconvenes, Rayya explains that if the party wishes to have the meeting with the Wizard as soon as possible, they will need to be ready to leave by tomorrow afternoon; otherwise they'll have to wait another month for their next opportunity.
6. Deciding to attempt to save Wren in time for the earliest departure, the party begins to follow the lead of a clue left on the scrawled note, telling them to followed the 'blue cloaked courier south of Arilla Castle.'
7. Celrin recognizes where the note is detailing, and leads the party into waiting as they scout the patrol paths of several mail-delivering bus boys. Eventually, one distinctly adorning a blue cowl passes their view, and the party trails after.
8. It's about an hour or two of inconspicuous deliveries before the courier delivers a single letter to a very decrepit, distinct manor house. As the courier moves on, the party goes to check out the front door of this windowless building, and find that the door has been left unlocked. Opening the letter the courier left, all that's within is a small note with 'good job' written on it.
9. Assuming they have the location correct, the party makes their way into the claustrophobic interior, with the door closing behind them.
10. The party encounters various traps, enemies, and challenges in the first half of the manor; including a massive black ceiling-crawling ooze, suits of animated armor, and an empty cramped room, that when broken reveals that it is nested within several other empty cramped rooms.
11. Eventually the nested rooms lead to a painting on the wall in the outermost room, almost taunting the party for a fruitless effort. When investigated however, the painting could be torn through to reveal a secret passageway through the back end of a wall hugging closet, and out into a room of erratically tossed and disheveled furniture.

Notes

In Game Date (dd/mm/yyyy): 15/09/1195