Session 11: Introducing Brucos

General Summary

Completing the Coral Tablet Quest

• A blow struck Dooturr square in the skull, and a raspy voice whispered to him: "Bring the tablet to its rightful owner...we will find you…" as another blow knocked him unconscious. Verin stabilized him, and the Crew frantically took shelter in a nearby alley.
• After some deliberation, and debate on what the attack could have meant, the decision was made to trek on to the SCS Sharn Safe House and hopefully seek refuge. Having been given a location in Lower Menthis Plateau by Dooturr, Verin masterfully led the party through roundabout alleyways and crowded marketplaces to reach the safe house safely.
• The safe house was an extremely run-down tavern called "Weary Bones", but was still fairly crowded for the time of day it was. A hefty warforged manned the bar, and for his imposing stature, he looked rather apprehensive. Two Sharn Watch guards were present in the bar, and watched closely as Dooturr conversed with the bartender in Thieves' Cant.
• The Crew followed the bartender into the kitchen cellar, where there was a hidden trapdoor beneath some crates. Upon descending down the earthy stairs - for the Megaspooks, the second time - you entered into the SCS Sharn Safe House. It was a cold, dimly lit stone space littered with crates and barrels. After disposing of one of the skeleton bodies into one of the divots in the wall, Dooturr went to return the tablet to the leader of this location, known as Starr.
• After some time, Dooturr returned with a gold bar worth 100 galifars for each party member, as well as a skull token that the party could invoke for a favor from the SCS. Additionally, there was some equipment the SCS used for various missions but were available to the party, assuming they left an appropriate amount of gold (see "Rewards Granted" below").
• The party returned to the Loft, and Verin gave a brief tour:
  • The basement was full of old guild records and scattered equipment. Statues, coffins, armor, and old clothes scattered the floor.
  • The main floor contained a newsroom with the Shardcast, a device equipped with a modified version of Programmed Illusion to allow the Sharn Inquisitive to broadcast news stories. There was also a chapel, recreation room, lecture hall, screening room, and large tavern with a posting board for current jobs on behalf of the guild.
  • The second floor included an archery range, a large armory, a blacksmith's shop, and a training area with practice dummies and fitness equipment.
  • The third floor contained the mess hall and a wide array of sleeping quarters.
  • The fourth floor was made up of a library, guild officers, a teleportation circle, and research facility, including rooms dedicated to botany, the Mourning, and the planes of existence.
• While in the mess hall of the third floor, the party remembered the cube they had discovered in Shiksu's Mansion. Each Crew member though as hard as they could about what it could be, but suddenly, Ashpin's posture straightened and his eyes began glowing faintly silver as he recited in a very monotonous and robotic voice exactly what the cube was:
  • It was created in the Abyss, and is enchanted with incredibly strong warding magic to contain a specific item within it.
  • It is designed to be opened in a singular specific way.
  • Someone who spends an hour studying in can make a DC 30 Intelligence (Investigation) check to try and learn the method to open it, but on a failure, the person studying it must make a Wisdom saving throw, taking 12d6 psychic damage on a failure.
  • After reciting this information, Ashpin's voice and temperament returned to normal.

Clearing the To-do List

• The party rested for the night, and set a course of action for the day. The first order of business was to finally interview with the Sharn Inquisitive, which Theobald had wished to aid them with. The party knocked on the door to his tower, and he greeted the still-sleepy Crew with enthusiasm. They expressed their desire to go to the interviews, which Theobald was happy to hear, as he had thought they had almost forgotten.
• Before they set off, however, they asked him to translate the scrolls they had found in the Cogs. The spell took longer than usual to cast, but he managed to translate them: a disturbing prayerbook missing line six to several unfamiliar names, a journal of the goings-on at the dig site, and a specimen report on the creature in the golden machine.
• Afterwards, the party made their way to a glass administrative building in the Copper Arch district of Upper Tavick's Landing. It was a bustling building, and Theobald managed to secure them an interview despite the tardiness.
• The Crew was brought into a separate room with a female gnome named Selmyn Carwyse. She asked for the group's perspective of the events that had been reported on in a previous issue. Selmyn seemed eager to hear the party's story, and was intrigued at the several secrets surrounding their story. She seemed especially excited when Viribus mentioned the bodak that caused much of the damage to the warehouse, as that was not previously known. Additionally, the party leaned on the strategy of using Nayries as a scapegoat.
• Ashpin gave Selmyn the address of Shiksu's Mansion, saying it could potentially be a massive lead for her to follow. Theobald warmly greeted the group, asking how the interview went, and gave Verin a letter from Ellarian, the proprietor of Ellarian's Enchanted Emporium. It gave the description of a creature that could be used to craft a Ring of Spell Storing.
• Ashpin bid Theobald farewell, as he had set course for Zyddrydem - the continent of the mysterious dragons. He wished Ashpin well in his normal cheery tone, but Ashpin could see a glint of worry in his eyes.
• The next destination was the Bureau of Municipal Properties to learn about the development. Once inside, Viribus was directed to one of the desks near the end of the row, where he found a familiar face. The clerk recited to Viribus that "a verifiable death certificate of Shiksu had been presented to the Bureau, and by Statute 34, section 4A, the next of kin mandate is required for reaffirming every 150 years, which the next of kin has failed to do. Therefore, the property is returned under the jurisdiction of the Bureau, and the property will be auctioned unless a down payment of 200 galifars can be made by an interested third party within a week of the mandate’s expiration. Would you, an interested third party, like to make a down payment of 200 galifars before the property is appropriated for auction." Viribus immediately accepted, and signed the contract that designated ownership of the mansion to him.
• The party set course for Philip's house, as several Crew members thought it to be the right thing to do to make amends. However, before they could make it to his house, a blow that Dooturr knew all too well struck N'nchyk upside the head.

Ambush in Middle Menthis Plateau

• The attacker could not be seen, even after dealing several blows to the party. As they battled, several halflings emerged from the shadows of the alleyways and aided in the assault. One of the more vicious looking halflings spit at the group, calling them filthy traitors.
• All manners of halflings assaulted the party - spellcasters, archers, and brutes alike - but the well-rested party held their own for a long while. N'nchyk sustained himself with the vigor of his fungal form, and aided Ashpin see the invisible with one of his mushrooms. Ashpin focused his energies on the now-visible, yet still incorporeal, creature. Maleakos got stuck in the front lines, retaining the attention of the invisible creature for much of the fight. Viribus joined Ashpin in his effort against the invisible creature, after having dealt with a couple of the halflings. Dooturr slayed the halflings effectively, as they seemed to have the most hatred towards him. Verin cast spell after spell, trying to himself stay alive while also sustaining his teammates.
• The tide of the fight began to turn. More halflings arrived, and their competence seemed beyond what the group had seen up until then. One chewed through whatever damage Verin threw at him, and carved through the party with his shield and spear. The other focused his attentions mainly on Dooturr, though N'nchyk managed to divert him for a brief moment. Spell slots were dwindling, resources were drained, and hit points were at a scarcity.
• Suddenly, each party member heard a sharp, deep voice in their heads. It said, “Brucos duly requests your presence. Please follow me if you value your fleeting life.” Suddenly, one of the halflings that had downed Viribus and Ashpin began to split in two as a gleaming axe shimmered into view. One after the other, the axe strikes split the halfing in two, splattering Ashpin with gruesome bits of flesh and blood. The other was blasted with an incredibly powerful blast of green energy that felled him instantly.
• An immense green demon, flanked by an older human man, shimmered into view, expectantly looking at the party. One by one, the Crew members slowly fell in line with the newly visible green demon and the older man that stood behind him with a varying amount of reluctance.
• The party was led to a skycoach at the edge of the ward. It was of an elegant construction, more so than the one the party had ridden with "Torfe". The skycoach began to ascend quickly, and eventually brushed past even the tallest towers of Sharn. Soon, their destination became clear: the impossibly wealthy district of Skyway. The man spoke, saying to tread carefully around Brucos, and that playing their cards right will see them reaping their rewards.
• The district sat upon magically constructed clouds, and held the wealthiest buildings in the city: extravagant mansions, ornate shops, and rich individuals flocking to and fro. The skycoach was set on a course for the outer edge of the district, to a stone brick temple littered with illuminating blue crystals. It bore no symbols that the party could see as they were led inside, through cold rooms that echoed their footsteps throughout.
• They entered the main chamber, a wide room dominated by a 60-foot-wide chasm. Along the right side was a squat dwarf in battlegear, and in the back of the space was a statue of a winged centaur-like creature with horns growing out of its head and body. Attached to four pillars were massive chains that suspended a platform directly in the center of the chasm. Lying on the platform was an unconscious halfling wearing the torn attire of the Boromar that had interrogated N'nchyk the night of Philip's 50th Anniversary Dinner.
• Standing above the halfling, seemingly taking no notice of the party, was a tall man in a lavish purple tunic inlaid with golden filigree. His white hair was neatly slicked back, and his beard meticulously combed to a point. His narrow eyes were a striking yellowish color, and his mouth was curled into a leer. Somewhere out of sight, the grinding demonic voice proclaimed,

"Behold, Eternal Taskmaster Brucos."

Rewards Granted

• 100 galifar gold bar
• SCS skull token
• False Scabbard
• Rope Jacket
• Sword Cane

Missions/Quests Completed

• Toured the Loft
• Interviewed with the Sharn Inquisitive
• Learned about the development at the Bureau of Municipal Properties
• Translated the scrolls from the Cogs

Character(s) interacted with

• Sir Theobald Evans
• Selmyn Carwyse
• Brucos

Created Content

• T.M. Brucos 

Date begun:
14 Zarantyr, 998 YK
Date ended:
15 Zarantyr, 998 YK
Party level:
4.167

Report Date

19 Feb 2021

Primary Location

Sharn