A boggle with an extremely loud and commanding tone.
You found him leading an army of miniature stick monsters against a group of owlbear-riding guards.
He claimed this marked roughly his 280th attempt (but he was confident this one would succeed).
He desperately wanted revenge on the Autumn Queen for an unnamed slight against him.
Johann turned him invisible, but then made him visible in time for him to get caught by the guards. The guard who captured him removed an item from his person, after which all the stick monsters fell lifeless to the ground.
Retrieved The Book of Leaves from behind its magical protections using a strange magic where he opened "rifts" in space through which he could stick his arm.
You left him with the goblins of Finders Keep, but Twig Treefog was sent to retrieve him after Lady Mallory heard his story and, in particular, his name. The Lady seemed to believe him long dead.
A friendly Loxodon who handles the client-facing administration of Kairos.
After a member of The Noble Angels apparently stole some gold from Johann, he refused to let you contact or approach the group. He insisted on protecting members of the guild.
Told you that aptitude tests took place on the first of every arc.
The foul-mouthed leader of the feyborn goblins known as the Finders.
Apparently has some working relationship with Twig Treefog.
Seemed despondent about his broken glider, which Ersatz was attempting to fix. Unclear how the glider was broken in the first place.
Screamed bloody murder when you arrived in Finders Keep and immediately destroyed his teleportation circle.
Twig managed to calm him down and secure you some time to rest and even the Gust Gliders to return to The House Without. It's unclear why Gyp would have gone along with this, but it certainly worked out well for you.
A celebrity half-elf, originally from Witchmill but who now resides in Necine.
His fame comes from his Not Far OffFarcast program, which is shown on the Receiver Panes in taverns across Acaelica.
He is something of a "late night" host, speaking and joking about current events and all manner of pop culture.
Was enamored of Murmus' and Grihymm's armor when first you met him in Witchmill.
Murmus had Janice send him a suit of armor (by way of Cid) that Murmus made at Walcott's Smithy. Castian displayed it on a farcast witnessed by the party in The Iron Oar. He had forgotten Murmus' name, however, and announced that the gift had come from "an adoring and adorable fan."
A feyborn goblin with a ridiculous Schwarzenegger voice.
Invented the Gust Glider and gifted one to each member of the party.
Friend
A most peculiar chap and a huge fan of Johann's (and the party's).
A feyborn who lost his home to the rise of Inibis Valmeia and her inadvertent (but nonetheless violent) corruption of the land the party calls Feycine (which is to say, that which parallels Necine in The Feywild).
His home once used to be a beautiful paradise before it was consumed by an enormous maelstrom centered around an impossibly large, dark pillar that plunges eternally down into darkness and which is seemingly the source of lightning storms.
He led the party into that place after telling them they would need peryton antlers to revive their friends.
Took on a completely different appearance when he entered the Feywild.
Seems extremely well connected and knowledgeable about Necine.
Found the party's story about Sinfarena extremely sad.
Connected the party with Silendi, the Shaman of Lowtide, in the hope of reviving Lorna and Mathilde.
Also led the party into the Cauldron for Perish Day (but vanished without a word sometime before the approach of Inibis Valmeia).
Inibis Valmeia
The extremely attractive, chaotic and powerful tiefling who presides over Necine. It seems that everyone that lives there loves her (or is perhaps afraid to do otherwise).
One of three people in Acaelica to bear the title of volta, denoting them as candidates for the Divine Spark being sought in the so-called Ascension War.
Met you at Perish Day after a certain cartog salesman made an enormous scene and brought her attention your way. Decided to invite you to a party she was hitting at Castian's, where she offered the party a batch of Underdark that saw you become heroes of The Demon War attemping to release The Void Song (though Grihymm declined and instead had an intimate chat with one of the most dangerous people in the universe).
Said that after the amazing performance in the dream, she wouldn't mind making a deal with you to pay for your friends' resurrection. She then proceeded to test you further with froghemoths in Little Acheron, a battle which Castian would farcast (and provide live commentary for).
Young and heavily tattooed elf. Evidently feared and respected in equal measure by visitors to The Tower Shop.
You have been warned not to try lying to her.
Maintains a brash and pitiless facade while operating the shop, though she actually seems kind and even somewhat demur in private.
Had a huge reaction to Johann showing her a box of Threads of the Old Weave. She tried to downplay their significance, but when Johann refused to sell them for a trifle, she set up a meeting with Lady Mallory. You have since learned that meeting personally with the Lady is not something that very many get to do.
She has an undefined relationship with Lady Mallory but seems grateful for her station. She has defended the Lady as misunderstood when the party spoke ill of her.
Loves Chompers & Scorch who seem to love her back. She took care of the young dragons for the party while you were adventuring through The Feywild.
Appears to have at least some level of autonomy within the Tower, in that she coordinated your ride with Cid to Kor Ellin without leave from Lady Mallory to do so.
Owner of the Witchmill Tower and its shop. The town has a city council but mostly the Lady is in charge here.
Elegant and beautiful, though apparently quite old. Ostensibly a powerful wizard who lives alone in her massive Tower but for Janice. It is unclear what Janice represents to Lady Mallory beyond being something of a protege.
Has access to (at the very least) primitive Warforged. Tested you in combat with some and gave Twig another to "pilot" following your trip to the Fey.
Insisted on hearing the full story of Crossbones (with which she was already loosely familiar thanks to Twig). Once your curse became apparent, she insisted you find a way to break it. She ultimately led you to Sinfarena when you chose to visit the The Feywild instead of a "temple of fire" or "tomb of ice."
In order to ensure your return with the information she sought, she placed collars around your necks that she could contract at will to ensure "you were working with her." Promised to remove them upon completion of your quest, which she did exactly as promised.
Claims to be in "the business of information." She was the first to tell you of The Ascension War but claimed to be unable to find any information about the party outside of Vornaar, (whom she treated as something of a known quantity).
When asked, she indicated she was unaligned with anyone in the so-called Ascension War. She seems to be playing all sides for the moment.
Has suggested that she will find you again when she has need of you, but was otherwise happy to let you go your own way.
Contacted during your evening with Inibis Valmeia following Perish Day and asked you to spy on the volta for her. Was willing to let your "name your price" in exchange for this service.
Told Murmus Bigtoe she thought she recognized his family crest on his armor, though she wasn't 100% sure. Said she thought she saw in it a super old book that she had while she was in school as a youth.
Took Murmus to the Witchmill library to find that book, but was not successful.
Asked Murmus to help her investigate her mother Mathilde's disappearance from Kor Ellin.
Spent some time as a charred corpse being carried about in a Bag of Holding but was Resurrected at the cost of 20,000 gold (paid by Inibis herself) by a water genasi cleric in the foyer of a Kairos chapter in Necine.
Is presently staying (with the young dragons) at Castian's mansion
Apparently had a rather friendly relationship with Mayor Zakarias Orlane (as indicated by the journal/planner found in her abandoned home during the strange happenings leading up to The Kor Ellin Massacre).
Was found (among several other captured residents) working to complete some kind of dark ritual on behalf of the Three Undead Librarians who had besieged the town.
Like her daughter, is a charred corpse being carried about in Grihymm's Bag of Holding.
Was willing to revive Lorna and Mathilde using strange magic that involved the antlers of a peryton and "a life to pay for life," which you were instructed by Friend that someone had to die in order for your friends to live.
You remember walking up to her door and knocking on it, and then you remember a voice bidding you enter from within. Then there seems to be a gap, and you simply found yourselves gathered around in her home without really knowing how you got in. Leaving was similarly bizarre.
Everything about her (including her home and the area immediately around it) had a dulling, numbing effect to it. Your emotions and even your very souls seemed dampened in her presence.
Apparently well known in the city (but not particularly well loved). Her patrons are generally understood to be extremely desperate people.
No one can seem to remember how long she's been in Necine. Maybe forever. Maybe it wasn't that long ago after all.
Visibly ancient and soft-spoken. Moves and speaks as slowly as you expect.
Had an odd exchange with a patron, who was failing spectacularly at being subtle. The patron was announcing phrases like "Slept rough last night" to the whole inn and Sheldon seemed unnerved by his behavior in the presence of the party (who had never been in the inn before).
Lives in The House Without with her two "sisters." They are seemingly unable to leave.
Explained that your curse had two components. The first part bound you all to a source and the second part bound you all to one another.
She offered to break each component of the curse separately; the first in exchange for something from all of you, the second in exchange for something from each of you.
She broke the first bond in exchange for the party's "liberating" The Book of Leaves from the Autumn Queen's private vault in Sunhallow. She claimed to have read it, explaining that it was a book of legends and forgotten truths.
She had zero interest in keeping the book for herself and didn't seem to care what you did with it.
After explaining that she would break all six bonds or none at all, each party member was given a price in exchange for her breaking their curse. Anyone was free to refuse her price, but she warned that your cost would be exacted from someone else if you refused to pay it. All six of you accepted your costs.
Algernon was asked for "a spell."
Murmus was asked for "a friend." When asked playfully whether he'd like to choose which one, he replied that he would pick Sinfarena herself. To his mind, she may yet have been the friend lost… but more likely she was referring to one of his fellow dwarves.
Johann was asked for "a truth."
Grihymm was asked for "a blessing." He has been unable to feel the warmth of the sun since making this deal.
Faewynn was asked for "a trade of arrows."
Vornaar was asked for "a drop of blood."
Taslyn Cordaer
One of the three most powerful people in Acaelica
A drow who lives in (and presides over) the city of Shade far to the west of the continent
Inibis has called him "severe," but little has been revealed of his nature or history so far otherwise.
Was evidently connected in some way to the plot that freed the Void Song during The Demon War, as he was seen ushering the adventurers out of the inverted tower and through a planar gate through which they escaped.
A unique forest of constantly changing geography where nightmares roam after dark.
Considered haunted by many; few venture near to it and fewer enter willfully into it. Even Vornaar stuck to the outer reaches.
Named for the sourceless, eerie lights that appear and move fluidly through the trees at night. Visible from the outside of the forest but seemingly not from within?
According to Khol Nazalk, it is a "nexus" where the barriers between planes constantly shift (particularly in the case of The Feywild).
This resulted in many unique phenomena, including access to an ancient library in the Underdark, stretches of wasteland populated by bulettes and rumbling beneath the earth, and a strange cave that you had to walk backwards in order to exit.
You escaped to this tall, rickety and extremely dangerous-seeming fort by way of teleportation circle from the Private Vault of Autumn Queen after retrieving The Book of Leaves
Twig Treefog had Murmus destroy the fort's circle immediately to make sure you couldn't be followed. This infuriated Bossman Gyp who had immediately recognized Twig (and didn't seem happy to see him regardless).
Twig somehow managed to negotiate a calm from the self-proclaimed leader of the "Finders," of which Crook, Racket & Shyster were evidently part.
You also met Ersatz the inventor, who would provide you with Gust Gliders like the broken one you noticed upon arriving.
As you soared back toward The House Without, you noticed some giant tumbleweeds rolling around below. Some of these exploded in enormous fireballs as they collided with things.
A singularly bizarre landmark in the Amberwood and home to Sinfarena and her two sisters.
Sinfarena is evidently unable to leave its walls.
Looks like an idyllic plantation-style mansion, but strangely cannot be viewed from any angle but head-on. No matter which direction you approach from, you always seem to be staring at its front porch. Walking "around" it is incredibly disorienting.
Twig Treefog navigated you to its doorstep by taking a long series of weird paths, some of which seemed to be ordained by blades of grass he would rip from the dirt and allow the wind to blow. He refused to enter the building himself, preferring to hide while you were in there.
Taking a single step onto the front porch found you instantly transported to a place where nothing else but the house seemed to exist. An infinite void stretched out in all directions, with no sun, moon, or stars to be seen.
Inside, you found a number of rooms that looked like they had recently held themed parties. Some had lit up paper lanterns, most had elaborate looking meals laid out and partially eaten; one even had neon orange pumpkins made of a strange material no one recognized. This same room had cotton strewn about to resemble spiderwebs, among many other ridiculous decorations.
The room where you found Sinfarena (and her sisters) was full of costumed guests who turned out to be illusory. It was decorated with myriad flowers of countless hues and many painted sugar skulls.
Leaving Sinfarena's room back through the curtain you had entered originally found you back on the front porch of the house.
You traveled here after Twig cautioned you to avoid the Lake of Echoes.
You chose this path instead of going through the neighboring Wanderwood, believing it be less likely to cost you time.
Inside, you battled some aggressive feyborn stags who attacked you as a strange creature played eerie, hypnotic music.
You departed this forest by climbing an incomprehensibly large tree and catching a ride on a giant helicopter seed. You flew toward Sunhallow at the center of valley below, bypassing an immense hedge maze surrounding it.
Lorna asked your help traveling here to investigate a situation with her mother, who had been sending strange letters for months before going uncharacteristically silent.
Has a name that sounds like Corellon for some reason, though they also have a temple dedicated to his worship.
The townsfolk were acting very suspiciously when you first met them and Mathilde was nowhere to be found. Her house was unlocked and in no disarray when you arrived, but it seemed as though no one had been there in at least a couple weeks.
It would turn out that the townsfolk had been being enslaved by the Three Undead Librarians you inadvertently released from The Primeval Archive. They were being used for some dark ritual that you were able to interrupt, though the nature of the ritual itself as well as their involvement never became clear. It definitely involve blood in some way.
The townsfolk were freed from their spellbinding once you defeated the librarians. They were celebrating your victory in the house of mayor Zakarias Orlane when Sinfarena claimed her price from Murmus and Algernon, resulting in The Kor Ellin Massacre and the deaths of Lorna, Mathilde and much of the town's already small population.
You fled the scene near immediately after these events, landing soon after in Necine after getting a pickup from Cid.
You visited here originally hoping to find someone who could revive Lorna and Mathilde. However, it quickly became clear that there were no temples to be found in the city.
Located at the center of the positively sea-like Lake Necine.
Cid flew you in and "parked" the Night Rider on a sort of giant, silvery tree whose branches, it turned out, were enormous Immovable Rods.
Home of Perish Day and its creator, Inibis Valmeia, who presides over the city as its undisputed sovereign (despite her apparent lack of governmental involvement).
The weather here is spectacular everyday.
The buildings are all painted solid, vibrant colors of every variety and the city is quite a remarkable sight to behold.
The city is dotted with strange obelisks called Repeaters that evidently cast spells at random in an area around them. You experienced these devices casting a Suggestion spell that caused everyone to be unable to turn left, requiring you to take strange meandering paths as you attempted to navigate the city.
Comprised of several districts with stark differences between them, the city is constructed upon vaguely concentric plateaus such that you climb to higher altitudes as you venture deeper into the city.
The Bluffs district seems to be the most commercial, featuring many casinos and small businesses. This is where you first arrived and acquired a "cartog," which gave Murmus a literal "mental map" of the city. You would learn was in fact the memory of someone who had learned their way around the city previously, and you "paid" for it with the Gem of Ammondale. This is also where you can find The Sober Dwarf inn, where Johann gave a masterful performance that attracted the attention of the mysterious Friend.
The Songs seems to be the arts district, home to bardic colleges and wealthy patrons. Castian lives here, and you
Lowtide seems to be relatively low-income and dingy. It is the most densely packed with housing, though it also features the Little Acheron fighting arena and is home to Silendi, the so-called Shaman of Lowtide.
The Cauldron is the central and most important district, and is built in an enormous (but fairly shallow) crater at the peak of Necine's central plateau. Here you can find The Clockless Tower as well as the home of Inibis herself. The real powers in the city operate out of the Cauldron and its gates are often guarded by groups seeking exorbitant "entrance fees" from those who would visit it.
An ancient library constructed in The Underdark. You accessed it via a kind of "portal" in the Fellgleam. You came here to find a nothic called Roach who could help Lilli work around your curse and learn about your presence in Crossbones.
You found a secret room that seemed to be preserving some artifacts (including a painting of what appeared to be Odac?) and some books including one protected beneath a thick glass shield. This one you left behind once it was clear that it was cursed.
The others you pocketed before reading, but they turned to dust once removed from the secret room--just like the painting of the blue guy that Murmus had strapped to his back.
You also met three skeletons in opulent robes (later identified as librarians) seated around a table. They turned to look at you but made no moves or sounds as you moved past them.
You found and captured Roach with the help of a paralysis poison gifted to you by Lilli. He was in a room that attempted to wreck your mind that Murmus had a rough time escaping.
The librarians were gone from their table on your way out but you saw them exit the library after you. They destroyed the entrance behind them and left you alone as they flew off to the south.
Massive plains of grass that can apparently shred just about anything it comes into contact with.
You saved yourselves a lot of time by traveling through these fields instead of around them. You did this through bargaining with razorsnakes--creatures who could chew through the grass to clear your path.
The grass regrows quite swiftly, and your path back was closed to you moments after you walked it.
Home to Marin (called Tyllin, last you checked) and a substantial grung enclave in The Fellgleam.
The largest structure you saw in the forest. While old, it was certainly younger than many of the ruins found more commonly in the region.
Also home to a number of Lizardfolk who were evidently slaves to the grung.
Had an obvious, color-based caste system.
You were mistaken for "Witchmillers" and treated like royalty while you were there. Johann pretended to be a trader who had hired the rest of the party as bodyguards.
You saw a large mosaic of painted stones depicting "Marin the Red" and his conquest of the lizardfolk.
You met with some blue grungs who were beyond amazed with Johann's music and who gifted some poisoned arrows to Faewynn.
You found that Cyrus had a number of magical artifacts he was prepared to trade (though many had sort of a nautical theme that didn't appeal at the time). He did, however, have a box of Threads that he was happy to part with. You downplayed their significance but still offered a [conjured] chunk of gold to pay for them, which Cyrus accepted.
Insisting you'd return with more gold to see a "private collection" of artifacts Cyrus claimed to possess, knowing the gold you had paid with would vanish within an hour.
You told Grisha that the Threads were fashion items in Witchmill and that you'd be back with some other fashionable gifts for her (and more gold for Cyrus). You asked her to find and keep a protective eye on Tyllin before departing.
Some time after Algernon's gold had vanished, you were pursued and attacked by some hideous frog monsters which Vornaar arrived to help you slay.
A city of lights atop a giant, hollowed-out tree made of stone. Presided over by the Autumn Queen and set beneath a perpetual twilight.
One of very few settlements in the Feywild. You traveled here at Sinfarena's behest to retrieve The Book of Leaves from the queen's private vault.
You arrived as a boggle was laying siege to the base of three with a huge army of small monsters made of sticks.
Johann made the boggle invisible, then revoked the spell as the boggle was walking up the spiral path along the tree.
A guard retrieved an item from the boggle as he captured him, causing the stick monsters to fall lifeless. The guards noticed the party next and led you (and the boggle, Anselenicus) to a prison cell.
Murmus smuggled Twig in his beard, but fell on him while walking up the tree, nearly killing the quickling but for Grihymm's swift reaction. He did this purposefully after Twig had invoked Murmus' true name, commanding him to bind himself for the guards after Murmus otherwise refused.
Murmus has an uncanny knowledge of the entire inner layout of the tree, evidently thanks to Sinfarena. This led to the location of the private vault and the knowledge that there was a teleportation circle nearby.
You met a peculiar, sparkly dwarf who ineffectually guarded you within your cell made of light. The Boggle helped to retrieve a text called The Empyreana from the dwarf, which seemed to contain unique and arcane smithing techniques.
Twig snuck out of the cell and retreived a scroll of teleportation circle in order to get the party out and near to their destination.
You survived a heavily trap-laden spiral into a central room containing a series of heavily protected curiosities, one of which was The Book of Leaves.
Anselenicus used his strange "rift-opening" magic to reach past the protections around the Book and got it for the party. You fought some guards on your way out and escaped from the teleportation circle to Finders Keep.
A wealthy, clean and pleasant town constructed around Lady Mallory's tower and within a large (apparently magical) dam. Lots of opal blossom everywhere, lending the town in general a very pink color.
You once tried to sleep in a Tiny Hut here after the town's "nicer" inn proved too stuffy and expensive for your tastes. You were interrupted by guards capable of dispelling the magic, who asked you to stay at The Iron Oar instead.
You met Janice in The Tower Shop and Johann showed her the Threads retrieved from Riverrock. This provoked a huge reaction from the half-elf, who would arrange a meeting for you with Lady Mallory (something that apparently just doesn't happen around here).
You also met Castian, apparently a common visitor to the shop and a kind of celebrity. Murmus would make him a suit of armor after Castian complimented his handiwork, which was later featured in his Not Far Off farcast.
Grihymm visited the local Temple of Pelor and Murmus made friends with the blacksmith Walcott and his wife Lorna.
Johann has played a couple of well-received mini-concerts in the marketplace, including performances of the infamous Battle Hymn of Buhuhbluh (which, oddly, no one seemed to recognize) and the improvised "Anala A Balla Of Joy," the Richard Buttkis classic.
Comments