Session 275 - The Ghost of Saint Amarab
General Summary
5th to 7th of Peonu (Second Month of Spring) 726TR
The Story So far
Silan the Forger falsified an amendment to a Will involving the transfer of a small parcel of wasteland called the Tuzmyr Embankment from a recently deceased lord to his bastard brother. When Silan went to receive payment, he found treachery and was ambushed by Orcs. The heroes saved his life and killed the wizard who backstabbed him.
Silan wants revenge for this betrayal and, on principle, wants to undo the crime for which he has not been paid. The Will in question is due to be read in three days, and he would like the heroes to make the forgery disappear, and he is willing to pay. He knows the location of a magical cloak and will happily pass this on to the heroes as payment.
The Will and the offending amendment are stored at the Church Of St Amarab in the nearby town of Kiban.
This is the continuation of Session 273 - Blood in the Rain.
Location - Town of Kiban in the Kingdom of Kaldor.
Part 1 - The Ghost of St Amarab
The heroes embark on their plan to remove the fraudulent document from the hall of records at the Church of St Amarab. Rycon prays in the crypts overnight while Dryueh and Valeria sneak in through a secret underground passage that is supposedly haunted by a ghost. This is much more hazardous with pit traps and enormous rabid rats. Eventually, the underground passages open into a ruined chamber containing a skeleton in a far corner and a side passage.
Dryueh's sharp eyes spot a fine white powder coating the floor, which he identifies as a poison derived from various cave toxic cave mushrooms. The negative energy from Valeria's Chill Touch destroys the poison, at least in a narrow pathway to the skeleton and the side passage. From the bones, some smoke bombs and oil are salvaged.
However, the Ghost of Saint Armab waits for them in the side passage, guarding a ladder leading up. The party retreats rather than attack, and the ghost does not follow; closer inspection reveals it is a blatant deception, only an old dirty white sheet hanging from a barrel with a piece of skull and a broken helm, surrounded by a deadly poisonous environment.
Part 2 - The Document Libary
The ladder leads into one of the stone caskets in the temple's crypt, in the same room containing the praying Rycon. The casket lid opens only a few inches as it is wrapped in chains secured by a paddle lock. However, Rycon maneuvers the chain so the lock is positioned close enough for Dryueh to pick it. Unwrapping the chain, Dryueh and Valeria exit the crypt and underground chambers. The trio then searches for the temple's hall of records.
The locked door at the scriptorium is close to the temple entrance, which is guarded, so the characters look for an alternative route. Noting a series of internal windows on the second floor, they climb up. Dryueh flicks the latch open, and the characters clamber into the document room, none too soon as they narrowly avoid an unexpected guard patrol. The various locked cabinets are daunting and poorly labeled; nevertheless, the characters find a log book listing all the documents, when they were received, and in which cabinet they are stored.
Dryueh gets to work picking the rather complex lock on the cabinet containing confidential and legal documents while Rycon thumbs through the temple records. He uncovers that correspondence between the Serolan (High Priest) Ceowald Arnkel and the Earl of Kiban have become unusually frequent. Intrigued, Rycon examines the documents and concludes from the terse and overly formal writing style that the Earl has a poor relationship with the Serolan. Apparently, the men got on well until around three years when their relationship soured for some reason. An earlier letter made it clear that the Earl does not appreciate his decisions being questioned. In one case, Rycon discovers that the Earl granted a Lordship of Nynte Manor to Lord Falun. The same man who would be a beneficiary of the amendment to the Will the party plans to steal.
Part 3 - The Earl and the Priest
Dryueh picks the cabinet lock, and the forged Will is found and removed. Dryueh and Valeria escape through the underground passages, and Rycon returns to his prayers.
Serolan Ceowald takes to Rycon's prompting and asks for help. He would like Rycon to investigate the odious Lord Falun and the parcel of wasteland called the Tuzmyr Embankment. Rycon agrees but is unsure how to respond when the High Priest asks his opinion of the Solara Crusade. Rycon decides to answer honestly and is relieved to learn that the Priest agrees that the crusade is a travesty. "An Ecumenical Council is being considered," Serolan Ceowald discloses. "Many among the Kaldorian Clergy are unhappy with the Primate's response to the Crusade and considered declaring it a heresy."
The trip through the mash is eventful. Huge frogs harass the party, and injuries draw the attention of a swarm of blood-sucking flying vermin. However, eventually, the party arrives at a small hut built on stilts and is met by a rough-looking couple.
To be continued.
NPC Interactions
Serolan Ceowald Arnkel, High Priest.
Challenges
5 x Giant Rats and 2 x Traps.
Removed the forged Will from the temple.
2 x Giant Frogs.
6 x Blood Seekers.
Bloodlash Bush.
Rewards
3 x Smoke Sticks and 1 x Vial of Oil.
Created Content
Related Reports
Temple of Larani - Church Of St Amarab.
Order of the Lady of Paladins.
Order of the Spear of Shattered Sorrow.
Player Characters
Valeria - Human - L1 Shadow Sorcerer.
Rycon - Human - L1 Fighter.
Dryueh - 1/2 Elf - Thief Rogue.
Next Session
Rycon
Dryueh
Valeria
The Forgery
The document is an amendment to the will of the recently deceased Lord Wyant of Thadel Manor. This forgery states that the late Lord Wyant's desire is to give a small parcel of land, the Tuzmyr Embankment, to his bastard Brother Lord Falun of Nynte Manor. This land is nothing more than a worthless wasteland unsuitable to be converted to cropland.
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