Suspended Shiare
This small, multilevel neighbourhood is suspended between Precincts 3 & 4, with a marketplace, a modest tavern and residential buildings. Over the past few weeks, residents have noticed plants and animals becoming sickly, some residents have had trouble sleeping, and some on the outskirts have disappeared in the night.
Demographics
Timothy Petite (the mail boy): delivers mail in more affluent neighbourhoods (primarily the 1st precinct). The Orzhov priest Byron Bay is on his route, and has recently stopped answering the door (and his house thrull also is not answering the door). However a strange floral-suited woman answered the door, and charmed him into leaving.
He is also a neighbour of Enid and Betty Dawson, having observed their behaviour change as Enid took ill, Betty became obsessed with helping her get better, and becoming entangled with some strange women similar to the one at Byron's home. He notes that strange moaning comes from the Dawson apartment, so he is scared to visit Enid.
He is also aware of Colonel Emmet Bregman, having been intimidated by him in the past.
Enid Dawson (the sister): runs a stall with her sister in the suspended village, that sells mostly flowers and exotic animal skins from the Red Wastes. Enid was insecure about her hair loss, which Byron Bay exploited. He regularly peddles preaches his wares in this neighbourhood, and 2 months prior he sold Enid a Vitality Elixir, while convincing her to try and sell this to her peers. She was sensitive to the product and fell extremely ill within a week. She was bed ridden, and her sister became enraged and obsessed with healing her. (This will be detailed in Betty's section). As Enid became mortally ill, Betty returned home with a strange charm that was supposed to help her. This was a Heavy Medicine Corrupted Bone Charm, which made her more resistant to disease, but sapped her lifeforce. This balance resulted in a state between life and death, Though not technically dead Enid is barely alive. Should the Bone Charm be removed, Enid will pass away. If she passes away within her home, she will rise as undead.
Heavy Medicine Corrupted Bone Charm: (no attunement) whoever possesses this charm becomes resistant to disease, gaining +2 and advantage on CON checks and saving throws required to resist disease. Notably, it suppresses the illness, but does not cure it. Strangely, anyone who possesses this charm cannot gain a 6th level of exhaustion
Unfortunately, this charm is crafted by an amateur and so takes a significant toll on the body. At the end of each long rest, roll 1d4. On an odd roll, the possessor gains no benefit from a long rest. The possessor suffers -2 penalty on CON checks and saving throws to resist exhaustion.
Betty Dawson (the neophyte witch): the party encountered a company of witches attempting to murder Byron Bay in a back alley. Betty was the cultist who was attempting to perform the deed, and the first of the witches that the party killed to save Byron.
She helped her sister run their stall in Shiare, and became obsessed with healing her when Byron's miracle elixir made her ill. She was vocal about making him pay for his exploitation, but had to focus on helping her sister first.
There is a Conclave public garden/chapel nearby that fell into disrepair several months ago, which she explored in the hope some artefacts of healing magic remained. She returned delirious and wounded, unable to remember what had happened. She was soon approached by some women in florally embroidered clothes offering help. These women are from a lesser coven of the Sisters of Briarheart, an aspect of the Cult of Yore's faction worshipping the Creeping Necropolis.
The church was once the head quarters for this faction, but a disaster necessitated them shifting to the Undercity. They monitor the site, which is how they became aware of Betty.
She became a neophyte, learning how to fashion a rudimentary bone charm, Heavy Medicine Corrupted Bone Charm. The Sisters helped her kill some of Byron's assistants, which she has bound to her apartment to defend her sister while she is away. These zombies are partially sentient, aware of their suffering but unable to control their bodies. She was supposed to abduct Byron to sacrifice and use his bones to learn the coven's secrets, but died when she became impulsive, attempting to murder him in the alley and getting caught by the party.
This will not be easily forgiven by the sisters.
Colonel Emmet Bregman (the Boros abuser): (Rank 3: Captain) he and 1 of his subordinates recently disappeared while in the area. Emmet is a fairly high ranking member of the Boros, who runs patrols around Sunhome. Despite Shiare being a low risk neighbourhood, Emmet often runs patrols with an uncharacteristically small detail in this neighbourhood (as well as other small neighbourhoods). He is corrupt, with a tendency to violence. His brother Second Lieutenant Daniel Bregman is aware of Emmet's vicious streak and is seeking assistance from outside of the guild. He can't be certain that his brother's disappearance is nefarious, and is concerned that it will be covered up if he pursues it through Boros channels as his brother significantly outranks him.
Emmet has been abducted by the Sisters of Briarheart as his violence has affected women within Shiare and surrounding region, so they have waiting for an opportunity to get him. As he has no connection to green mana, his bones will be used to train neophytes in bone charms and esoteric rituals.
Alternative Name(s)
The Crow's Nest
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