Session 7: Murder in Baldur's Gate Report

General Summary

The party arrived at The Wide in the middle of Portyr’s speech, who was pleading solidarity with the refugees as he was struck with an arrow right before his form exploded into a gory mess of blood and guts, from which arose a cacophony of daemons that immediately tore into the crowd. The warriors tried to intervene but they were too late: Duke Portyr’s form had expired beyond resurrection, and many of the people present at the marketplace were killed by the daemons that arose from his corpse before the fight was over. Zodge arrived moments after the fight was done, and the city alarm bells started to ring across Baldur’s Gate. Zodge pleaded the adventurers to hurry along to Candulhallow's Funeral Arrangements, as the Wide would soon be flooded with Flaming Fist soldiers and officials, a bureaucratic mess that would no doubt also erupt into a bout to ensure the leadership post.
Halted at the Heap Gate as they tried to exit the Upper City, the party “persuaded” both Flaming Fist soldiers and Watch guards to let them pass, as they finally came upon the serene yet gloomy manor that houses the funerary home. They were welcomed by the proprietress, Leylanna Candulhallow, a gaunt and pale moon elf who showed them to a chamber of magical preservation.
The investigation gave rise to the following statements and clues:

• Twelve bodies have been found over the past twenty days, with no set period of time between the findings.
• The bodies have all been found in or near Insight Park, except for the final two. Those were found near Hamhock’s Slaughterhouse.
• All of the victims were killed by a single cut across the throat. They were mutilated and tattooed with symbols of Cult of the Dead Three all over their bodies post-mortem.
• Some of the victims were recognized as refugees from the caravan that the group had traveled to Baldur's Gate with.
• One of the victims was wearing Hellriders' armor when he was found. Two others wore a hellrider symbol around their neck.
• Two of the victims carried a refugee passport, allowing them passage into the city, and a right to housing within Baldur’s Gate in a specified location. The passports were signed by Amrik Vanthampur.
• One of the victim’s clothes was stained with a chemical that is often used in tannery.

With that information, the party closed their investigation of the corpses for now, and made their way again to the Elfsong Tavern for a long debate and deliberation. They were reintroduced with Reya Mantlemorn, who had been captured when she was on her way to investigate Vanthampur manor manor but managed to escape the Seatower’s prison when the city alarm was raised. During their discussion, Fenrir received a letter intended for Airam (and Varron), which stated that their kingpin from The Guild was looking to summon them to the Blushing Mermaid tavern at nightfall, requesting an update regarding their investigation around the theft of the Dragon cult’s riches. The group decided to ignore the summons for now, and made their way to scout the Low Lantern, Amrik Vanthampur’s supposed base of operations.
The Low Lantern, the party found, is a ship that had been converted into a tavern directed at harbor workers, deckhands, sweaty sailors, and the like. There were about twenty patrons crowded on the first deck, with Amrik’s converted office space on the deck below. While Patience, Artena, and Reya scouted the Low Lantern and mingled with the local clientele, Richard, Fenrir, and Airam waited for a sign of trouble on the outside. However, they would soon find themselves in trouble as they were ambushed by a group of Bhaal-worshipping assassins. They joined forces with the Watch soldiers posted outside the tavern to subdue the cultists, and were able to sneak their way into the tavern with their weapons as the soldiers escorted Airam, who had been screaming out in pain and horror, to the nearby Harborside Hospital. What awaits them inside… we will soon find out!

Campaign

Descent into Avernus

Protagonists

Artana Dryl

Fenrir Firecam

Patience

Report Date

13 Nov 2022

Primary Location

The Wide

Secondary Location

Candulhallow's Funeral Arrangements