- Jenya requests help finding her friend, Alek Tercival, last of a noble house, who is now a paladin of Iomedae. He told her he had a “cure for Cauldron's ills and he was going to start with the Town Guard”
- Maavu holds an assembly to speak against the taxes and other things
- Rumors include:
- -- half-orcs breaking into people’s homes to collect taxes for those that are holding out
- -- Terseon Skellerang putting in place special security measures against a group of dangerous anarchists who are plotting to overthrow the city government
- —Lord Mayor’s absence from the limelight is seen as an admission of guilt
- Maavu speaks: speech link stating all the troubles that have been had, the taxes, the promises of the city govt that have never turned into reality.
- He then states that Alek Tercival is challenging Terseon for Captaincy of the Town Guard
- Sam did a recap here of a live session that’s pretty good; clarifications: Zarn Kyass, the Blue Duke, is the leader of the half-orc mercenaries. He is a tall blue-haired human; the antique dealer is named Tygot, he was a halfling
- You take boats down the river following the map to, ultimately another ancient ruin
- You fight a lizard man band dedicated to Acerak, the god of assassination (THE Red Mantis) and find the Mantis Blade that Dalamus wields
- You met Nidrama, a deva, and protector of the region who told you some nebulous s~%& here
- You enter the Demonskar
- You fight a ton of intelligent ape men called charau-ka
- There was a lot of whining about the rules
- You fought and killed BAREGARA! You argued multiple times about when to advance and when to rest
- You encounter an imprisoned fire giant at a forge named Dugobras. You find A 7-foot-wide cubic cage of silver and platinum, its bars etched with mystical symbols propped up against a pile of metal scrap where he was working
- Dugobras said "I made this cage and several others like it. This is a failed attempt and a reminder of what comes from allowing my love for the craft to blind me to those wishing to take advantage of my skill. I know what it does, of course, given I made it, but don't know what specific purpose the other 13 are for."
- You eventually freed him and he told you about the cages: “Ah, yes. My soulcages. I was contracted by a strange man, Khyron Bonesworn, and aided by a gnoll priest to build 13 of those. I ultimately made 15 completed ones and 2 destroyed prototypes. That's one there ... the rest I turned over to him. The device extracts the souls of the imprisoned over a course of time, harnessing and transforming that soul into potent necromantic energy. To what purpose, I do not know, but the man who contracted me was the leader of a notorious band of undead adventurer bandits here in the area. He also enlisted the aid of a former Cauldron guard and a halfling wizard to defend the area we were making them. He alluded that his masters were bringing a time of reckoning was coming for Cauldron once the children were found. He intimated that I should leave soon. I don't really care about what he intends to do, but the note about the children seemed a bit too far.”
- You find a secret passage in their lair to three hags who were apparently manipulating Alek into his power grab
- Nowzai finds and communicates with Alakast, ancient weapon of Surobar Spellmason, founder of Cauldron
- You found an ancient demon, the enemy of Surobar Spellmason, the founder of Cauldron, who apparently had him banished in a demiplane behind a crazy mirror portal trap. Nemoris did a good recap here
- Nidrama speaks through Alek before he dies: "There is naught left for you in Cauldron, heroes! To return is to enter your own graves and to bring doom upon all you love! Seek the sign of the Smoking Eye if you wish to save them all!"
- Stuck on the demiplane prison of Nab**********, whatever the f$&# his name was, the party spies a cloaked individual walking toward them
- You meet Kaurophon, self-proclaimed planewalker, who says he is sent by the power of the Smoking Eye to guide you to Occipitus. You’ve been marked by blah blah blah … he eventually betrays you for power in order to take over control of Occipitus, so pretty much everything he tells you is b@!*$*&+ rooted in truth from here on out – I’ll give the details of what was accurate from his discussions with you
- Occipitus was formed millenia ago when a fallen celestial named Adimarchus led a demonic host to attack the Mountain in Heaven. He was repulsed, but at great cost to the angelic host as they were forced to cast part of the Mountain into the Abyss, tearing apart the very fabric of Heaven. That massive chunk of Heaven landed in the Abyss and became Occipitus. Occipitus is dominated by a half-buried skull, the size of a mountain from which perpetual flame spews from its visible eye socket. Surrounding it are parts of Heaven mixed with the original evil forming a strange, living landscape.
- This detailed explanation of the plane and its people is accurate
- Adimarchus disappeared one day, but left behind the Test of the Smoking Eye to determine a worthy successor who would be granted the powers of ruler of the plane. Since there are several areas where extraplanar and evil creatures are unable to progress, Kaurophon manipulated you all into completing the test with the goal of seizing power at the end.
- You head to the Cathedral of Feathers to take the Test of Judgement where you have to choose to slay either a bebilith or an avoral. You choose the bebilith, kill it and pass the test. You’re given a lantern to get to the next test
- There are many fights with demons, devils and the local fauna
- You rescue Tlanextic from the Plane of Cysts
- You encounter Saureya, a fallen angel, and once steward of Adimarchus who helped create the test which balanced evil and good.
- He implied that Adimarchus tortured him and they fell together, along with most of their people and land from Heaven to here. He said he placed a flaw in the test in that the various proctors don’t know who has passed the other portions allowing various entrants to complete any of the tests or none of them to get to the final area. He dreamed of a powerful angel completing the test and taking the land back to Heaven. He tells you the following details about Adimarchus: ” "Ah, Adimarchus, how far you've fallen that no one remembers you."He was a powerful planetar who fell, long ago ... I know not why ... and became ruler of this plane. A demon lord, I guess he became in reality. He wouldn't recognize that, but he was. He found it amusing to keep me as a prisoner ... a kindred spirit, I suppose. Where else are you going to find another angel around here? He decided to torture me repeatedly to alleviate his boredom. Then, several decades ago, on the eve of a great and pointless battle between his horde and that of Graz'zt, a particularly vicious demon lord. Some say Graz'zt has him kidnapped and assassinated. Other say the battle was just a ruse for some other plan of Adimarchus. I don't really know ...”
- The party fights some ruthless contenders for the test, some guardians and a brutally efficient lich
- The final test is one of Sacrifice and ultimately Nowzai gives his life instead of someone else being sacrificed and gains the Smoking Eye (literally) and control of the plane of Occipitus which comes with some interesting powers
- Kaurophon betrays you right prior to this and is slain
- The party returns to the Cauldron area via plane shift
I would recommend Jenya, the cousins Fario and Fellian and perhaps their unseen master, Shensen, Vortimax Weer, and Gryphon Marek from your stories. Sgt Skylar Krewis, as well if he is still alive? I am not certain how you feel about Maavu, but it seems that Redgorge is under siege, so that might not be possible.
- The party returns from Occipitus with Tlanextic having gained some additional powers (in addition to Nowzai’s Smoking Eye). If you’ve forgotten, they were here
- Tlanextic helps you realize that by destroying 2 parts of the test, the way for challengers to take the final test is wide open
- You return to the Lucky Monkey and realize some time has passed since you left Cauldron
- Shensen gives you the state of now: Terseon marshalled the Town Guard and the Blue Duke’s mercenaries and with the Lord Mayor’s consent marched upon Redgorge to oust the Chisel, but the Chisel were reinforced by dwarves from the displaced Splintershield clan
- They came because neither their patriarch nor their apparently rescued clan leader never came home
- The Town Guard and mercs have been laying siege to it ever since, thus creating the flow of refugees into the city of Cauldron
- The Last Laugh seized the opportunity to up their cons and counterfeiting putting more and more folks into poverty
- Nearby villages have been complaining of dragons raining fire from the sky during the days and acid at night, so they’ve fled to the city as well
- Somewhere during the time of the siege, the Lord Mayor went missing
- Lord Vhalantru was voted in by the noble Council as mayor pro temp until the investigation into the Mayor’s disappearance completed
- Word came from the siege that the Blue Duke has taken over; Terseon is either dead, incapacitated or deserted
- The Church of Pharasma is growing their spires, blocking out the sun from the Saranrae temple
- Bishop Shebeleth is holding rally sessions blaming the debauchery of the Cayden Cailen church causing brawls to break out amongst Iomedae acolytes and Cayden’s drunken followers
- Fellian has gone missing
- Something bad is looking for the party looking for the party to pay for their crimes against the “All Father”
- Sam made a connection between the Black Elite kobolds, the warning from Jared, the creature in the collapsed kuo-toan temple and this new threat
- Epik learns more about the Bishop pushing virtue over sin and encouraging the people to take to the streets … with weapons. He confronts the Bishop, the Bishop rebukes him
- The party hunts down the creature hunting for them, and after a discussion where you realize Lord Aslaxin told the creature you destroyed its home, you get into a fight
- You discover you are being scryed at the same time, and as the fight kicks off, three assassins teleport in to take advantage
- Jenya is killed … the fight is a bloody mess
- You find a note on the assassins: The mark at the bottom of the page looks like the roman numeral II with the top of the second character moved down to be in line with the middle of the first. (You see this signature again in the Church of Pharasma/Norgorber and now recognize it as Ike Iverson’s)
- The Bishop refuses to raise Jenya
- The party heads to the Church of Pharasma to see if Ike will help raise Jenya
- You also discover no one is being let into House Vhalantru. Half orcs guard the manor
- The Church is closed for rennovations, but you decide to enter any way
- You are attacked upon entrance inadvertently, the priests inside thinking you’ve come in response to the assassination attempt above (totally lucky and random, but that’s how it was)
- You find Todd Vanderboren’s body in stasis in the Temple (he’s a Stormblade)
- The party finds the High Priestess, Embril Astouni’s office and inside finds a hidden panel with a figurine of the aspect of Norgorber known as the Reaper of Reputation and a letter between Embril and a man named Fetor Abradius (loaded to Roll 20 Journal as Letter to Embril)
- Many of the other letters discuss searching for something unnamed but all remains on schedule. The letter discusses an incomplete ritual and that the cages alone won’t complete it. He thinks the answers are in the soul pillars and he will continue to explore them. He complains of the frozen insanity in the depth of Karran Kural
- Nowzai researches Karran Kural: Karran-Kural is something you've come across in your research. You're reminded of it from your recent exploration into Vapraks Voice since it is a specific complex from.the ancient spell weaver empire that dominated this area millennium ago before Earth fall, before Thassilonia. It was an arcane research laboratory related to necromancy and ice and rumors are that the spell weavers research was sealed in with them during the mysterious events that suddenly ended their reign.
- You encounter Ike and a bunch of undead and a bone devil: you catch the end of their conversation: “...won't be pleased that you let them leave with secrets that you should've been protecting. They may never have suspected you if you hadn't sent those assassins after them”
- Ike is obviously a priest of Norgorber
- A great battle ensues
- Dalamus is killed and then reincarnated by methods only he is aware of as a fetchling
- Hanging from the ceiling is a massive silvery-platinum-gray cage that radiates immense evil
- Demodands, natives of Carceri had a hand in its creation. The party moves the cage to the Vault of Splintershield for further study. It is a minor artifact and will require more than an identify spell
- There is also a portal
- Magma mentions the fire giant, Dugobras, has forged a similar broken cage (see the Demonskar Legacy)
- Tlanextic tells Nowzai that he sees a disturbing birthmark on Dalamus’s face: ” I assumed you knew since the priestess has it as well. I thought they perhaps had a bond. The mark is invisible, evil and chaotic but appears not to alter the individual's aura.”
In which the party umasks an evil in the Temple of Iomedae, rescues a friend and delves into a mysterious ice cavern
- The party gets the Cayden Cailen high priest, Asfelkir to raise Jenya
- Epik encounters more Iomedean followers trying to follow the Bishop’s orders to keep an eye on the chaos that the drunken god’s flock will cause
- Jenya reminds the party that Embril Aloustinai is still at large and is a high priestess of Pharasma (or more likely Norgorber)
- Nowzai researches some spells (like analyze dweamor to be used on the cage)
- He researches Karran Kural: Karran-Kural: Driven by alien desires and a great understanding of necromantic magic, a cabal of spell-weaver necromancers built a tomb designed to garner ever more insight into frozen death. In their twisted minds, the forces of cold and death held some mystical connection, the understanding of which promised ever greater arcane power. Deep below the sprawling spell weaver city of old, this insidious laboratory/tomb was where they blended those forces of magic and the undead flesh of various races.
- He visits Vortimax Weer: ” "Bah, this place has always been a kettle ready to boil over. Add a few taxes, this ridiculous siege in Redgorge because of that fool paladin's challenge, and a missing mayer and chaos took over quickly. We went from comfortable frontier town to refugee camp in a couple weeks!
- Dalamus meets Meerthen and finds out that Fario was captured by the Last Laugh due to some vital information he discovered
- Epik confronts the Bishop at the Temple of Iomedae. The Bishop says some interesting things:
- — "Fool paladin, your church was doomed when Sarcem was murdered. You just didn't know it yet. And as for the truth ... I doubt your fragile spirit could handle that!"
- --”I am Shebeleth Regidin and my time here is complete”
- — "The damage is already done ... just one quick push on my way out the door. The churches will never recover in time before the Cagewrights' terror is unleashed upon Cauldron. You have been little more than gullible pawn I’m afraid."
- The man then casts time stop and summons a tarry demodand for Epik to fight before he flees
- More from Vortimax Weer here
- Shebeleth kills half the clergy with a word and then incites a mob before he leaves
- The party stops the mob and has to decide between rescuing Fario or seeing where the portal goes. They agree splitting up is a bad idea
- They split up
- Nowzai, Epik and Magma head to the Church of Pharasma
- They determine that permanently closing the portal requires people of diametrically opposed alignments but does figure out that they can temporarily shut it down by being on both sides at the same time
- The party moves through and encounters preserved spellweaver corpses, lots of ice, devils, and a golem guarding a pit
- After disposing of the golem, they retreat out and close the portal, returning to meet the others and leaving the pit down unexplored and Fetor or his Soul Pillars undiscovered
- However, since Nowzai teleported out, he realizes he can return when needed
- The other party heads to the Brass Trumpet to rescue Fario
- Sam scouts it invisibly and discovers a hidden room/area
- He finds Fario being tortured by a woman
- The team teleports in and kills the woman, who it turns out was Jil, the Last Laugh agent that has popped up from time to time since the beginning of the adventure
- When Fario wakes he tells you of what he learned following the Mayor’s disappearance which led him to watch House Rhiavadi here
- Sam provides some info on the people seen entering House Rhiavadi: "The one-eyed dwarf sounds like Adrick Garthun, anyone know anything about him? The Kuthite sounds like Kkyron Bonesworn, he's a Nidalese priest exiled from Nidal for his mercenary nature, but still dedicated to the shadowy god. His companion is likely to be Melagorn Thureq, a necromancer who never leaves his side. If I remember correctly he is also the leader of an infamous adventure group known as the Necrocants"
- Dalamus and Fario discuss ways of infiltrating the house, Fario recommends a servant disguise
- The party uses speak with dead on Jil. Her cryptic answers can be found here
- Most of this is pretty recent so just going to hit the couple major points that will help you with the links to other stuff above
- Outside the door to the beholder: The eastern painting depicts a beautiful but horrified blonde woman imprisoned in a metal cage that looks almost as if it were made of iron ribs and adamantine skulls. You recognize the woman as a painting of Celeste, the noble who sent you in search of Zenith Splintershield.
- Dalamus inspects the paintings and finds nothing out of the ordinary, except the painting of Celeste is warm and smooth to the touch, like the flesh of a living creature.
- For Nowzai Your detect magic indicates strong conjuration from the painting. You can see residual signs of the magic. (Knowledge Arcana DC28 to identify the spell) – you succeeded and I never identified the spell for you. It is a binding spell, but a unique variant)
- Orbius chuckles deeply and a voice that sounds similar to something that none of you can quite place issues out, "Fools, you've given me some play things ... assassin, do your job. Seer, time to return to my statuary."
- You encounter the Flamewarders, a mercenary group
- On your way out you note a slightly larger than beholder-sized hole in the shaft just north of the flesh to stone door. It goes northwest into the darkness.
As the group goes over the recent events in detail, Nowzai nods as he is reminded of certain things. His eyes widen as he recalls Celeste... and the lifelike painting of her inside the Vhalantru dungeon. "She and Lord Splintershield were missing when we returned with Zenith. I fear she has been trapped in that painting! I will determine its enchantment as soon as possible."
"This also explains the odd turn of events around Zenith and Lord Vhalantru. For certain that man was this Orbius creature in disguise, or at least its henchman."
"It seems the soul cage we captured from Iverson in the Temple of Pharasma is even more important than I imagined. The giant blacksmith said there were thirteen. We have one, meaning twelve more are still at large. These radiate powerful evil, and they must be key to our adversaries' plans -- Shebeleth, that odious charlatan, inferred as such. And who are the Cagewrights?"
To the Striders, Shensen, and other attendees, Nowzai adds, "I think we would appreciate hearing anything else you've learned recently. Do any of our discoveries shed light upon your own struggles?"
As the party gathers their notes and discusses what they know as they await Nemoris, Magma, and Tlanextic to gather things, Gryphon sets up a table full of cured meats, cheeses and pickled vegetables.
He comes down with several carafes of wine and a tray of glasses before he grabs a chair and sits with you all listening intently.
Next to join is the always faithful high priestess of Iomedae, looking exhausted as always having spent the past few hours trying to undo more of the damage that Shebeleth did do the Temple.
She smiles weakly, "How can I help?"
A loud voice hollers down a bit later, "Out of my way fool, we were trouncing dragons in lairs deeper than this before you were out of swaddling clothes!"
A few moments later, the wizened Vortimax Weer appears with Skie Aldersun on his arm. The gnome shopkeeper appears to be keeping the old man from falling flat on his rear as he enters the basement of the Vault.
Fellian emerges from the top, "So this is where you sneaky bastards have been hiding out. Brilliant"!
The once jovial half-elf comes in with his cousin, his recent incarceration still weighing heavily on him physically and mentally.
He says nothing but nods meaningfully at Dalamus and Sam as he enters and sits with a wince.
Rounding out the elven troupe, the Lucky Monkey proprieter slips down the stairs gracefully holding the hatch open for the man behind her. "Be right there, you all! Gryphon! Did you know you have a giant hole in the back of your inn?!"
The some time dwarf, some time human, former Pathfinder and leader of the Striders enters behind her, peeling off a fake mustache and rubbing a way some of the dirt/makeup for his latest disguise.
"Time to take our relationship public, I'm guessing. It is unfortunate that Maavu can't join us."
Nemoris and Magma come down next with Tlanextic. The winged serpent slips in behind the last pulling the lid of the trunk shut with its tail before he flies down the stairs spinning in a quick circle and curling in the corner.
His thoughts broadcast to you all
That is everyone we were able to gather. Ethan and Danyell have since left the city and your friend Malcolm has apparently never returned to Cauldron after he left your party in search of his sister
Ma'puande's eyes get wide at the sound of Vortimaxs voice. 'Boy? You have gotten old! It does my heart good to see that you live' She then straightens and Introduces herself to the assembled group.
'Hello, I am a refuge from a different time and place. That beholder creature ambushed me and turned me to stone back when Vortimax was a young man. I am new to your struggle, but with the spirits help I shall see it through to the end with you.
Epik will spend time catching up with all the party's past allies. He will share his perspective of the recent events and will ask for opinions on what should be done now. "Unless someone has a better idea, I'm still of the opinion that we return to Lord Vhalantru's manor or go to the Rivaldi estate."
Dalamus will spend time bonding with some of those that he has not seen in a while
"Does anyone know of someone that is referred to as the "Three Eyed lady, or perhaps the lord of eyes? Any rumors?"
"The Last Laugh has a leader named the Jester, they have been used as a merc group to help further this cause. It may be easier to squeeze them for information, that chasing our tails like we have been doing. Anyone have any leads or contacts that can get us closer to Jester?
Vortimax looks apoplectic at the sight of Ma'puande. Coughing and choking, he finally stammers out, "My ..my .. lady, it is impossible ...!"
"Yeah, the Last Laugh are a sneaky bunch, but they gotta be part of that gathering I was watching at House Rhiavadi. They made me there. I am certain that wasn't happenstance. As I said before, my captors mentioned the Jester several times and I believe he was instrumental in my capture. Perhaps the Last Laugh was hired as guards. They certainly could do it without being noticeable."
A pained look crosses his face, his injuries still not fully healed, "Unggh ... ah, sorry. Recall that I was chasing the Mayor who was tracing noble geneology. He researched Rhiavadi, wrote something about Vhalantru and then disappeared during his trip to Osibu. That's what led me to watch the Rhiavadi House."
"I recall that they were involved at House Rhiavadi, but I was hoping that we knew a little more, but I am really interested in this Three eyed lady. Has anyone even heard that name before?"
Dalamus sits down shaking his head "It seems all of our leads keep pointing us back to House Rhiavadi, but that trail seems to have gone cold now."
"The Lord of Eyes seems like a reference to the beholder, most likely ... eye tyrant, eye lord ... maybe."
"Three-Eyed lady? She hired the assassin per your questions. Are the eye themes tied together with the lord of eyes and your beholder? Didn't your report say that there was a woman with Lord Orbius in your early encounter's in the slave bazaar?"
Meerthen moves to scan your notes again, shuffling papers, "Ah yes, here ...'Danyell saw a humanoid woman and some blob. She called the blob Lord Orbius ...' guess we know that's the beholder now ... 'they took the boy'..."
Jenya looks aghast and starts touching her face and then stares at Dalamus, "What evil mark are you talking about, blessed serpent? I don't see anything."
Tlanextic flies over and gently flicks his tongue at Jenya and Dalamus and then dips a wing, dextrously making a pattern in the same place in the air in front of both of them
It is right there ... I see it, plain as day on both of you. You do not?
The device is a soulcage and it radiates strong abjuration, conjuration and necromancy magic. It is a minor artifact.
The cage is a powerful focus for a ritual to establish a permanant portal between the Materiel Plane and Carceri.
Vortimax sees what Nowzai is doing and pulls out a scroll and aids his apprentice and then shares the information with you all.
The spell indicates this particular soulcage was forged by a fire giant named Dugobras, infused with magic by a cleric named Khyron Bonesworn aided by a priestess named Triel Eldurast, a wizard named Skaven Umbermead, and a priest named Tarkilar. It also reveals the soulcage is related to the Soul Pillars of Karran-Kural and it uncovers a strange quote: An ancient hate stolen from the souls of the dead, the cage is but the key to a greater evil
Dalamus looks up at Tlanextic and over to Jenya "I have no birth mark, nor do I see one on Jenya. Perhaps we have been marked by one of the evil creatures that we have fought. These beasts have foul powers that I am only just able to comprehend."
Dalamus looks over Meerthen, his eyes widening as if true understanding is starting to occur "Meerthen, that is it! She must be the one that is behind all of this, and our best chance of finding her, might be through the beholders." Dalamus quickly starts looking through the notes for any other clues.
Vortimax
'Child, calm yourself. You were a young man, and we had just discovered your mentor dead from a trap in an old Temple. I am glad that you escaped. You have become a powerful Magic-Wielder. You have also trained a fine apprentice. Nowzai, is a kind and resourceful man, his companions are all equally courageous. I have fought beside them for only a short time, but I am very glad to do so. You had a hand in their success, so stop feeling bad about me. I am here, and now we must move forward together to end the black cloud surrounding this city'
Tlanextic
'Who has these marks, O, Strangely Beautiful Snake Creature? We haven't been introduced, but I am Ma'Puande. Normally, snakes scare me alittle, but you fill me with peace. Can I try to help?'
'Its possible that we can remove the marks or at least try minimize the effects. If you'll allow me to cast Protection from Evil on whomever has a mark on them'
Nowzai shares what he learns from the divination. "The cages are the key components to some vile ritual, the result of which is to open a permanent portal to Carceri."
"Carceri, for those of you who do not know, is one of the Outer Planes. Also known as Tarterus, or The Red Prison, it is attuned to evil and chaos. It is the home of demodands, but also frequented by all sorts of lower planar fiends."
"At any rate, it appears our foes mean to use Cauldron as a means to their evil end... to link it to Carceri for whatever foul purpose. I suspect if we can locate the rest of these cages and see them destroyed or neutralized, it will serious impede the ritual."
"The Red Prison," the Strider leader spits with distaste.
"Evidence certainly points to that rationale for the cages, but why? I can only assume two reasons. Imprison someone (or a lot of someones) or to release someone. Neither sounds good for Cauldron."
"That plane sounds pretty awful! By the sounds of it, they are already coming through the portals. Do you have any idea of how many are allowed through the portals, or is it just an open door for as many to pass as they want. If it is the latter, then why do they need 12? No, I think they need 12 for something far more calculated.....Like capturing the 12 most powerful mages or something. Perhaps all the people of power, but that can only be part of the plan. We must find this three eyed woman."
Dalamus looks at Ma'punde and then Jenya and back to Ma'paunde "Uhhh...I am not sure what this mark is, or what casting that spell on us will do. You need to forgive me, as magic being used on me directly, tends to make me uneasy. Could be after battling these things and having some nasty things happen to us."
"Tlanextic, what do you think we should do?"
The serpent still seems fixated on Dalamus' face, but then looks to Meerthen with a cold reptilian stare, his horizontal eyelids blinking once.
There is a rumor amongst us who dream of Ocipitus. And it is that Adimarchus didn't just abidicate, but was betrayed and imprisoned, which is why he has been impossible to find. There is only one place to imprison a demon lord ...
Nowzai examines the painting closely, using his variety of divination spells and getting help from Meerthen and Vortimax.
The painting is certainly a vessel to bind a soul. It is powerful and self-repairing, pulling upon necromantic energy and the soul of the trapped to repair even the smallest rip or smudge within a few moments.
A dispel magic won't end the spell. An anti-magic or disjunction effect will be necessary to end it arcanely.
Additionally, if you can destroy the painting before it heals itself, it will also unravel the magic. In this case, you'd have to balance how much you are harming the soul trapped within.
"Adimarchus', that name appears to be following us, or we it. Could our foes be working to set Adimarchus free from its prison in Carceri? It would lend an appropriately dire purpose to their obtuse campaign around Cauldron. What else do we know about the fiend?"
Nowzai brings out the painting of trapped Celeste and explains what he knows. "Her soul is trapped within, like a magic jar. It seems we can free it by destroying the painting, but only with extreme caution. If we are too strong, we could very well lose her soul in the process. Otherwise, we would need a powerful anti-magic or disjunction."
It would suppress it and ultimately free her.
"How hard to come by is this magic to free her? Is it available in Cauldron?"
"I could study a spell called antimagic field, which would create an effect similar to the beholder's central eye, though centered in a close proximity around me."
"Or we can wait and expose the painting to Orbius when we next encounter it."
"It will take me a day to learn the spell, but I prefer the former option."
Nowzai doesn't know anything more about Adimarchus than previously explained.
Does Ma'puande cast true seeing?
Dalamus looks at Now'zai and says "So you think it wise to leave this soul in the painting, than for you to wait a day to memorize this spell? Why do you feel this way, is it because you doubt it will work?
If not, then this person may hold the keys of knowledge that we are looking for."
"Perhaps I misspoke. I would prefer to learn the spell and free Celeste as soon as possible, if the rest of you are willing to give me the time required."
Epik sighs, "Take as much time as you need Nowzai. I suppose I can use the time to check on how the Church of Iomedae is fairing. Jenya, how goes their recovery?"
Ma'puande speaks softly to herself, and smears something over her eye-lids, it smells faintly of Coffee and some other herbs. She begins casting True Seeing, She Chants -'Secrets, hide no more from me. Spirits, show me what is real, and what is false'
Then she looks around the room, focusing on every face she sees...
Dalamus takes a few steps back from the painting....
Ma'puande casts her spell and looks around the room. The first thing she notices is Meerthen looks nothing like he appears. A tall, hale and hearty, half-elf in his prime looks back at you with wide twinkling eyes knowingly.
However, when you look at both Dalamus and Jenya, you do see now why Tlanextic was so insistent. A birthmark, plain as day, and exactly the same is emblazoned on each of their faces. An ugly red arrow pointing upward is intersected by a circle with a dot in the center.
Nowzai peers closely at Dalamus and Jenya, trying to see any sign of what Tlanextic and Ma'puande describe. He shakes his head, but then adds, "What you describe sounds like an unholy sigil known as the Carcerian Sign. It is normally associated with the plane and its native demodands."
"I can only theorize at the marks' significance. The only connection that comes to mind is that both Jenya and Dalamus have recently suffered mortal wounds. But, so have I and I do not have the mark... although this is a mark of its own," he says, pointing to his smoking eye.
*
When the meeting concludes, Nowzai will proceed to Bluecrater Academy to acquire and study the anti-magic field spell. He will use faction influence, if necessary.
"Master Weer, would you care to accompany me? I would greatly appreciate your insight on the situation."
After learning, resting and preparing the spell, once the party is gathered and ready, he will cast it.