Festivals & Feasts - Lion's Crest
General Summary
The session picked up while the group was eating in The Silver Talons of Justice soup kitchen/base in Whitemane having been invited to dinner by James Jasper Whitehall III. The additional hand in the soup kitchen, "Angie", had been outed by "Mama" as Queen Angelena. After giving her the details on Commander Law and his attempted potential coup the Queen invited the Warden's to work for her. We picked up continuing the conversation with the queen asking for more details about Viridius and what his motives were for Nightwell Hold.
Dinner Guests
We resumed our conversation with Queen Angelena with her asking us about what else happened in Nightwell Hold insinuating that she had gained the broad outline from James but was unclear what happened with Viridius and what his motivations were. Myra, recovering from her thoughts of last session, provided the queen with information about Viridius broadly explaining his motivations. After providing information on Viridius Myra recalled that the queen had sent men off to Nightwell after hearing that Thirsten Thompson VII had taken control of the fort and warned her that Thompson seemed to be backed by the Manten’Liche Army. The queen seemed unconcerned by the army's presence remarking that they knew that they were on thin ice and 'tenuous guests', seemly confident that they would stand down. In discussion of Viridius we talked about how he went out searching for the scroll causing the queen to make a remark about how the scrolls had passed through Lion's Crest before slipping through their borders and heading 'up north'. In discussion of the scrolls, Myra steered the topic back to the scroll that the queen mentioned in Kolis-Tane. The queen mentioned that The Onix Feather Bandit was currently in captivity and that because the crown had minor charges from Lion's crest that they could be prosecuted on they would most likely be tried at Bismuth Abbey but that James had more information. After Myra shot several more knives from her eyes in the direction of James, he mentioned that he was still awaiting replies from his sources but that the thief was captured near the city's edge and that the scroll seemed to mainly be used as a diversion for a theft of an estate, with few casualties being reported. Adama questioned which estate was targeted and Myra revealed that it was the estate of her parents'. The queen found it intriguing that the attack was connected to Myra and questioned why the bandit would have an interest. Myra said that she didn't know why someone would target her family but that there were plenty of potential motives, mentioning that the bandit had targeted them in the past. The queen mentioned that given Myra's connection that may be a good place to partner as she wanted more answers from the kenku and therefore their motivations were aligned. Turning attention back towards the scrolls Myra bluntly asked the queen what she would do with the scrolls if given. The queen gave Myra a look before responding that she would study them and lock them away. When Myra asked if they should be returned to the weave the queen said that she would defer to her advisers on the topic and do what was safest for her people, if that meant restoring them she would do that. In the discussion the queen noted that the scrolls were from an 'age long ago' and were dangerous to the city, and that her primary concern was the threat to them harming her empire. Throughout the conversation Adama tried to bring up the offer to work together which the queen brushed off as needing another meeting later after the festival commenting that we deserved some rest before discussing business. Adama tried to inquire about the location of a teleportation circle within the city, and the queen admitted to having access to one, a gift from The Ay Collective. She said that discussion of our use of the circle could also come with our business discussion in the future. In discussing business, in order to provide full transparency, Myra commented that the Wardens were already working for Thirsten Thompson VII. The queen was very interested in what we were doing and asked if we knew the specifics of what we were escorting. We provided the information we had but mentioned that we did not know the specifics of what we were escorting as we had not met with Thompson's associates yet. In discussing the security we were providing for Thompson's goods, Adama inquired if the queen might know anything about the attacks on the Beholden Crossing. The queen said she was aware of the attacks and had to call in some favors to make sure that the people felt safe coming to Lion's Crest for the Great Harvest Festival that was happening tomorrow. She did not mention who she called in favors from or what the favors were, but when Adama asked if there was anyone we could talk to for more information on the attacks on the beholden crossing she said she could set up a meeting for us with Admiral Atilius Manerver after the festival. Adama then pivoted the conversation to the scroll we had acquired asking if this location was secure. Queen Angelena turned to Mama who said it was. Her majesty then made a remark that anyone who attacked her here would get a rude surprise. Adama divulged that we were actively in possession of one of the scrolls and asked for ideas on what to do with it. Mama indicated that we could leave the scroll with her again, motioning to the statue where the necromancy scroll was previously delivered (it was unclear if it still held the necromancy scroll). Adama made a comment about working for the queen and being on the hunt for them but not wanting to be the only ones looking, to which the queen replied that she already had others working on it and looked at Jimmy. Myra then spoke up saying that we had reason to believe that the Manten’Liche Army was also searching for the scrolls. The queen found this very interesting again and made an off hand remark "at least they brought good wine". Myra mentioned that we were the only ones to successfully obtain Nether Scrolls and that she could confidently assert that based on a theory she had been working on. Myra went on to explain that when we discussed the scrolls with Head Archivist Klara when we were previously in Lion's Crest she mentioned that over using the scrolls and taxing them could cause the weave to deteriorate. If the weave deteriorated too much it could start coming apart. Myra pulled out the Magnetic Mana Shard Cube that was given to the group by Klara and that they had been using this to track the more powerful magic of the scrolls. Myra explained her theory that the sky from the other night (see Strange Skies & Magic Beans) was not normal atmospheric excitement but was instead related to the scrolls. She noted what Geth and Tauris had seen while under Viridius' magic causing her to think about the sky more critically, which is why she noticed the other night there was only 6 colors in the sky and notably that two were absent. Myra then pinged the mana crystal with Necromancy and Transmutation magic and noted that those colors were missing the night before. Notably when Myra cast necromancy everyone felt a sense of unease, like all the hairs stood up on the back of our neck, except Gwen who felt a profound sense of relief (not noted to the others). There was a similar pulse when Myra used transmutation though no one was relieved by this energy pulse. Myra suggested that her current theory was that the sky was actually a representation of the imbalance of Magic and that only Necromancy and Transmutation were missing because they had been dealt with. The queen said that sounded like a great concern and turned and whispered something to the guard who left the room, returning a moment later with Head Archivist Klara and Topp. The queen commented that that theory was well out of her schooling and requested that Myra explain it to Klara. Klara seemed gravely concerned by Myra's theories and expressed wanting to discuss it further. When Myra showed her how the mana cube was reacting to necromancy and transmutation due to the proximity of the scrolls she was concerned by the reaction. Topp thinking that there was something wrong with the mana cube suggested maybe he could fix the cube but Klara slapped his hand away remarking that this was not one of his toys to play with. Klara commented that she thought the strange behavior could be best explained by the plane's connection to magic being undone but that she needed to conduct more research. She requested that we give her some time before visiting her to talk more about our theories. The Queen seemed slightly taken aback by Klara's interest and nonchalance about the deterioration of magic and the threat it posed remarking that we should first remember how dangerous it could be. Raijun cut in to say that maybe the queen needed someone to 'ward the weave' after having made similar comments throughout the night the queen asked why he kept saying that, prompting Raijun to jump onto the table, spilling soup, and perform the Warden's of the weave dance much to the chagrin of Hagren and Myra. Raijun then commented that were were here to support her majesty in whatever way possible as we were loyal to the crown earning him a skeptical look from the queen. The queen said that it seemed we had more to discuss including many potential employment opportunities if we were interested, commenting about how we were already working for Thompson. She suggested meeting again after tomorrow's festival inviting us to take part in the festivities. She noted that the Great Harvest Festival was about establishing a community in her city and took a lot of pride in the celebration, also noting that she had more work to do before the festivities began. She indicated that James and Mama could help us get in touch with her after the celebration and turned to leave. Before going, she asked Mama if she would be bringing her usual to which Mama replied she would be making the queen's favorite. The queen did the Napoleon dynamite fist pump in response and excused herself for the evening taking Klara and her retinue of guards with her. Mama asked where we had landed on placing the scroll in the dragon statue 'for safety'. Adama, Raijun, and Tintreach agreed that the scroll should be stowed while Hagren said he was undecided about it, Myra stayed mostly quiet but mentioned wanting to study it to better understand it, and Gwen remained quiet. Mama, seeing that there was not unanimity, suggested that we think it over for the night as we were safe as long as we were staying in Whitemane and transitioned to checking that we all had enough food. Hagren, Raijun, and Tintreach asked for more food, some of it having been spilled in Raijun's dance, Myra stopped eating earlier after the initial mention of Kolis-Tane and the scroll. Myra asked if Mama had some citrus, hoping to help distract the dog potentially tracking Raijin and was given 3 oranges. Once Mama had ensured everyone was well fed she returned to the main room to continue serving other people in the community room.Aperitifs
With the departing of the queen, Adama turned to Topp inquiring if he might have useful items for us to use on our upcoming adventures. Topp immediately started emptying his pockets providing each member of the group with a new magic item for future use. (Note all items should also be linked to characters on dnd beyond for reference)- Raijun - Received darts with a retractable tip on one side that when pressed leaked a small amount of red liquid. There were two darts in the set and Topp explained these were 'Medical Darts'. They were filled with a healing liquid that would restore some hit points to the target though, due to the force needed to throw them the target would also take some additional damage. Myra asked if once used the darts could be repurposed to deliver other potions or poisons and Topp said that he thought such an adjustment could be made.
- Tintreach - Received a 'Lead Lined Flight Suit' - While someone is wearing the suit it allows you a slow, controlled fall for up to 30 second, however if your fall continues more than 30 second the suit becomes uncontrollable and due to the lead properties maintains previous inertia. Maintaining the previous inertia would also cause you to have problems should you try to slow your descent through other magical means.
- Adama - Received a small box with a button on it. When asked what the button did Topp said to push it. Adama obliged, upon activation a humanoid figure erupted from the box. With a flash a dummy vaguely resembling Myra appeared, when closely inspected it was obviously a dummy but for someone who may know the party less well it could fool them. The dummy also says a catchphrase from whichever person was activated, Myra sighed and said "Don't do that", Myra seemed slightly embarrassed that this is what Topp thought of her. Adama asked if he could control which of the dummies came out but Topp insisted it was random. The item is usable once per day and the dummy lasts for a minute.
- Hagren - Received what looked like an ordinary crowbar, initially making him confused and slightly upset as he already ahs a crowbar. Topp went on to explain that this was in fact a 'Reverse Crowbar' and it made mundane objects or doors more difficult to open. If applied to a non-magical door it applied a +10 to the DC to open the door and the door can not be opened by magical means.
- Gwen - A small origami cloth in the shape of a shield - when activated the fabric punches forward and folds out into a ballistic fashion 'quick shield'. It can take 20 damage before it breaks, it costs a reaction to use and it adds 3 to your AC while active. Once it's 20 hit points are expended the shield is broken and needs to be repaired through use of the mending cantrip or materials.
- Myra - A metal sphere with little mouths around the outside - when activated the sphere picks up noises and repeats them back on a slight delay making it nearly impossible to talk. It blocks the verbal component for any spell for 2 rounds once active.
Turning In
Before going to bed for the night Raijun took a bath, cut his hair, and put on the new clothes that Myra had purchased for him so as to seem less conspicuous. During his bath Tintreach snuck into the bathroom and shocked the water prompting Raijun to fall into the very cold bathtub and be spooked that the ninja assassins had found him. After realizing no one was there he ran across the building in a towel back to the common room to demand who had pranked him initially blaming Spryg. Tintreach offered that he saw who did it and pointed the finger at Adama, Raijun bought the claim and shadow stepped back toward the bath thinking of ways to repay the favor. Once clean Myra enchanted the pocket square of the new clothes to smell like oranges and pine wood using magical tinkering so as to disguise Raijun's scent. Later Myra asked for Gwen's help alone sending some messages. She used magical tinkering to change the appearance of the surface of a mirror to show a woman's face. The woman had greyish pale skin though mostly human features, jet black hair, and deep brown eyes. she seemed to be in her mid-thirties and in the image was smiling with soot smudged on the side of her face. Myra said that the woman's name was Sky Soothammer and that she was a friend of Myra's who lived in Kolis-Tane. Myra asked Gwen if she could see if their family was ok given the explosion and if she had enough space to also see how Sky's daughter Rachel was doing. Gwen sent the following message, "Message from Myra. Heard about explosion. Confirm you and Rachel are okay." Sky responded quickly clearly confused about the origin of the message saying that Gwen didn't sound like Myra. She responded that her family was ok and that they had found a new doctor for Rachel. Myra look relieved having heard that her friend was ok and asked if Gwen had the ability to send one more message to her parents. Gwen said she did and insisted that it wasn't a problem as the image in the mirror shifted. The image showed a human man in his later years, about his mid sixties, with a bald head a grey close cropped beard and deep green eyes that look very similar to Myra's. Myra informed Gwen that this was her father Garrett Stagwood and asked her to send a message to him inquiring if they were ok as well. Gwen asked for her mother's name and Myra told her it was Kythera Gilcaleb. Gwen sent Myra's father the following message, "Message from Myra. Heard about explosion. Please confirm you and Kythera are okay." Myra's father's response also indicated confusion at the sender questioning 'You know my daughter?' He informed Gwen that they were both fine but that Myra's mother had taken 'a bit of a fright', concluding with a request for Myra to write again. Myra was very relieved though still slightly distant as she thanked Gwen for her help. Gwen said it was no problem and asked if they needed to contact Kymil Stagwood . Myra said that she could send him a letter in the morning and that it was not pressing as they now knew that her parents were okay. Myra insisted that if Gwen wanted to contact Kymil she was sure he would appreciate the notification but Gwen blushed and said she was sure Myra's letter would be sufficient. Thanking Gwen again Myra left to retire. While the others went to bed Hagren stayed up slightly later monitoring the soup kitchen. He noticed the kitchen stayed open quite late catering to workers who were just coming off later shifts that may not have food. Many of the patrons payed what they could for the food but clearly not everyone had the means and people only paid what they could afford. "Trenchcoat" ran around shining shoes for people, making the shoes slightly cleaner though not clean, in exchange for money. Later in the night a larger figure wearing a large bear pelt and the musk of a man that reminded Hagren of large animal transport came in, paid for 2 bowls of food and took them to a corner table. The man has brown eyes and matted hair that almost matches the color of the bear pelt he is wearing. Hagren took up two tankards of ale and put them in front of the man who initially doesn't respond. When Hagren made no move to talk the man askes what he was up to, Hagren replied that the man looked thirsty. The man thanks Hagren for the drink but made no motion to drink from the glass. Hagren asked what the man was doing in Lion's Crest and the man said that he came 'for work'. When Hagren inquires what kind of work the man replied that he 'handles beasts and problems' and asks what Hagren does. Hagren sighs and says he's a civil servant also just passing through. When Hagren inquires where the man's from he says 'up north'. Hagen noting that he must have come by ship asks if the man knows anything about the ship attacks recently. He says he doesn't having had no issues on his way to Lion's crest, but speculates that it could be harpies or something bigger. Hagren noted that he was worried about the bigger picture and the man commented that not everyone thinks that way. He mentioned that a lot of people were sick up north and asked if Hagren had heard of it. Hagren lied saying he hadn't and asked how they were sick, the man replied that he didn't know just that they were sick an now they are not and is thankful that what or whoever happened, happened. Hagren shifts the conversation to ask if the man knows anything about the festival tomorrow. He says he doesn't and asks Hagren if he's around long, Hagren replied that he's only in town for a couple of days and that he's heading out again after the festival. The man nods and wishes Hagren a good night before leaving, having never touched his drink.Quotes
- "Magic is magic it is not one of your toys" - Head Archivist Klara to Zachariah Topp about the Mana Cube behaving oddly.
- "It is dangerous and we should remember that firstly" - Queen Angelena on the danger of the Nether Scrolls
- "Worry about the bigger picture or get devoured by the darkness" - Hagren to unknown man in Whitemane
The Harvest Festival
The next morning, when the group awakens, the city and hold are already bustling. Jimmy seems to have slept on the couch and Mama is no where to be seen. There are tapestries and colors depicting the different parts of the Archipelago throughout the hold and on tabards in the streets. By the time the majority of the Wardens have awoken Adama has left to run errands, followed shortly by Hagren. As the others eat breakfast, Myra suggests checking out the festival while maybe seeing if any of their remaining errands can be run, but Gwen comments that Raijun should use the time to work on his reading skills. Tintreach makes a comment that he certainly doesn't ened to spend time on that as he can't read but thanks to his dragon heritage he doesn't need to due to his innate magic. This causes Myra and Tintreach to go out exploring, promising to meet up with Gwen and Raijun later in the day. (Note: Adama's and Hagren's sections have been consolidated for ease of reading but took place over two times in the day. The later part is denoted by the "Later" starter.)Adama
Adama, hoping to store up on magical items before departing the city, returned to The Invincible Unicorn to find Fluke talking to another patron. They are a slim but well built human looking person with a shaved head with off white peach fuzz growing from it. They stood with a presence that Adama recognized as someone well versed in fighting and immediately sized up Adama upon entering the store. The wore simple leathers with a fur lined kilt, leather chest piece, and a white hood. When they turned to look at Adama he noticed their eyes were unnaturally golden in color. Adama made an off hand remark about them looking they could handle themselves which they seemed a little taken aback as an opening introduction, they said they weren't sure what Adama meant butdid not want to fight Adama. Fluke also requested that if they were going to fight they leave the store first. Adama pivoted to asking about the festival and what one was supposed to do during it, they said they didn't know as they were not from around here thanked Fluke and headed towards the door. Adama, as they were leaving, tried to get their name introducing himself but they brushed him aside saying maybe next time and left. Adama turned to Fluke and asked who they were but Fluke only said a patron and asked Adama what he was here for. Adama asked about books of levitation but, remembering the price tag, pivoted to items more in his price range. Adama ends up buying:- A scroll of Blur
- A scroll of Hold Person
- The spell supplies needed to copy over his two new spells
Hagren
Hagren, still interested in opening a bank account wanders about the town until he finds a building called Meridian Bank that looks promising but has a sign posted that says it has reduced hours due to the festival. Deciding to come back on a non-bank holiday, once he had collected his more dressy clothes, Hagren decides to wander through the festival. Later Hagen is exploring the festival looking for Kebabs and finds a stall with them roasting on a wagon wheel where there is fire at the bottom and ice at the top. When he eats the Kebab the meat is cooked well but there are vegetables that are almost frozen and ice cream like in nature. He continues on past a stall selling bread but it is mostly too hard to consume normally so he gives it to some gnomes gathered a large cauldron in exchange for some of their soup.Tintreach & Myra
Myra, wanting to see if Etch R Sketch was open, asks if Tintreach would mind exploring the festival down by Nightgate. The two head that way coming upon a square where a poorly produced play is going on. The play is a well known one called "King Uther and the One Eyed Witch" and as they stop to take in an area a merchant calls them over to his Fish and Fruit stand. Tintreach questions if he can cook fish with lightning and decides he would like to find out and purchases, electrocutes, and eats a fish. Myra decides to buy a Durian and a Banana which she opted to eat later. In discussing the festival with the merchant he tells them that the entire city has different kinds of foods per district he highlights:- Rein Hall is known for the Dwarven smoked meat and Mead
- Unity Crown is known for more French and 'fancy' cooking
- Nightgate if you were willing to delve deep enough had the best home town cooking and BBQ
Raijun & Gwen
Gwen and Raijun stayed in Whitemane to do a reading lesson with Raijun quickly testing Gwen's patience but making real progress. Finally, Gwen relents and they go out to enjoy the festival. Not long after the leave the community center a girl runs up to Raijun and asks him to pretend to be her boyfriend. Raijun immediately agrees as a brawler and creepy looking guy walk up to them. The creepy looking guys says "I've been looking all over for you Katrina." Raijun interjects saying he's a day late and dollar short and that she is his girlfriend. Creepy guy claims that Katrina is the love of his life and that Raijun cannot stop their love. Raijun, not one to back down from a challenge, fake proposes to Katrina who accepts warily. The guys don't seem to be backing off but Katrina asks Raijun not to hurt them saying that it's her fault and that she slipped him a love potion. Gwen understanding that the infatuation is magical in nature, casts suggestion on the creepy guy telling him to forget Katrina and go enjoy the festival. Failing to resist Gwen's request he turns to go and Katrina turns to thank them. Raijun inquires about her potion making hoping to introduce her to Myra as a fellow alchemist. Katrina seems particularly nervous when mentioning the potions and agrees but quickly makes an excuse to leave Raijun and Gwen. Before going Raijun glimpses a necklace that is yellow with wavy lines.The Queen's Speech
Around noon all of the lights in the districts change color based on where everyone is:- Nightgate - The lights turn gold, pink, and purple
- Moonyard - The lights turn to fall colors
- Whitemane - The lights turn to silvers and blues
- Rein Hall - The lights turn to blacks, yellows, and earthy tones
Report Date
10 Jan 2021
Lion's Crest
In Game Start Date
One Day Before the Summer Harvest Festival
In Game End Date
The Summer Harvest Festival
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