"All sorts of things. It was when some idiot cultists summoned up Yog-Sothoth that this place got so ruined and tainted. Fortunately their sacrifice was only enough for a very temporary summon. They didn't listen to me. Don't know if it still works. Still it is made of inlayed a Adamantine so it still should be fairy intack. I would look it over carefully before I tried summoning anything."
"Adamantine? That's going to make it difficult to destroy then. Perhaps we can turn it towards a positive purpose instead? Let's focus on clearing the area of wisps for now. We can deal with the other forms of 'taint' later on."
That is pretty much it.
"I've pretty much figured out where everything on this island is by extrapolation. I need to get back on the job."
"Will you help us clear this area of wisps in exchange for your freedom? I suspect they are servants of this 'Vordakai'--or perhaps chaotic monsters drawn here by his fell magic. If you can aid us in this task, and swear never to bring harm to Caerulus or its people, then I will do everything in my power to set you free, Vordakai's Death."
"The second one is closer to the truth."
He thinks about it a moment
"So long as none of your people seek immorality."
"There's not much else here. Let's head back home and see what we can do for our new friend." Prior to leaving the tower, Riva tucks the jar away again, so as to prevent their would be 'ally' from easily determining the route to Caerulus.
When you say tuck away you mean in your clothes?
Dismayed that they could not learn more about the magic emanating from this wretched place, and that they had seemingly failed to do anything about the flighty wisps, Riva nevertheless realizes that there are larger responsibilities that need to be taken care of first.
"I'm afraid I can glean little else beyond what Vordakai's Death has already told me, Maermana. We might be able to learn something more back at my library. We've tarried away from our people for too long in any event."
"Any way we can just destroy the whole lot and get some priests to cleanse the area?" Mallichatti says.
Toran nods, I agree, we need to return to our kingdom and continue our efforts from there.
"Wisps are hard to clear out because they about always run and you have trouble seeing them or tracking them down."
"I'd rather not collapse a perfectly good adamantine summoning circle, thank you. I can think of so many uses!" Aer grins, pacing around the chamber, then nodding to Riva.
Ragathiel sighs, but says nothing.
"Yes, let's see if there's anything else we can discover in the library. I'd be happy to help, but studying has never been my strength. Magic just comes naturally..We need to find better ways to combat those annoying wisps! Possibly some magical goggles to see them better."
"Indeed. I see no reason to destroy it unless it proves detrimental to the kingdom. With a little financial backing for the required resources, I may be able to start on those goggles, or something similar, Maermana."
The party turns homeward.
"I have not had enough time to get my acolytes trained up properly for such an undertaking as cleansing this area. I agree we should head home for further research."
You manage to get back without trouble.
Vordakai's Death however does not go quietly and spends the entire trip insisting that you let him out.
Toran spends most of the trip laughing at him/throwing tiny pebbles that ping off of his jar.
"Would you please stop throwing those damnable stones at me!?"
Once at the library, Riva researches Maruts as well as the best method of breaking the binding effect upon Vordakai's Death.
, includes a +3 bonus from library resources
, includes a +3 bonus from library resources
Well the jar is reenforced by a wall of force so the low magic way to break it would be to apply "alot" of damage to the jar. This is made somewhat more difficult if you don't wish to harm Vordakai's Death. Walls of force have 30 hardness and 20 hit point per caster level.
Maruts are a type of Inevitable. Behemoths of onyx and golden armor, maruts shake the ground when they walk, each thunderous step ringing a death knell for those they’ve come to take. Rarely seeming to hurry, a marut’s onslaught is deliberate, purposeful, and relentless. Its quarry may impede it or flee, running for decades or centuries, but from the initial meeting onward, the target must always look over its shoulder with the knowledge that, like death itself, the marut is ever at its heels, slowly but surely approaching, bringing balance through inevitable oblivion. Maruts primarily target those mortal souls who have artificially extended their lifespans beyond what is feasible for their race, such as liches and other powerful magic users. Extraordinary but natural means of cheating death are sometimes also punished, such as the magistrate who murders an entire starving town to save himself, or those who foresee their own deaths via divination magic and are therefore able to avoid them. Although they are capable of speaking eloquently in any language, and frequently gather vast amounts of information from those who are intimidated by their mere presence, maruts rarely engage in conversation or strategic alliances with mortals. Even on the battlefield, the juggernauts prefer to remain silent, knowing that their targets are already aware of their own transgressions and that all mortals secretly harbor dreams of immortality.
Toran grins sheepishly, Sorry, I'm done now.
In the month of Kuthona SootScale goes over to Riva.
He holds up a picture of an absurdly large buckle, made even more absurd by the fact that it’s crafted in the shape of a smiling weasel’s face.
belt of the weasel
"Could you craft this for me I have the monies"
While treating Marshall Sootscale to a grand lunch, Riva listens calmly to his vivid description of the butchered weasel and of the fine magical belt it shall make. Once it is made clear precisely what the Marshall is looking for, Riva's eyes go wide momentarily in surprise.
"Why yes, Marshall, it is within my power to create such an item and I would be quite happy to take up such an endeavor on your behalf. However it will require a substantial sum for me to to be able to acquire the necessary components. Nearly quadruple your weight in gold I should say! However, if you can indeed provide such a grand amount, 5,000gp to be precise, I think I can have it ready for you in approximately one week's time. How does Sunday, Kuthona the 16th sound? You are also welcome to join my daughter, Alla--Tarka, and I for dinner that evening."
Suddenly ashamed at her near-mistake, Riva quickly dismisses herself, whilst trying to cover the hints of her sadness under the guise of a "sudden headache."
"Your right 5000 is too much. I'll make myself a monument or something."
"I'm afraid I must take my leave. I fear I am not feeling quite so well. Nevertheless, please do join us for dinner soon. I fear that Tarka is fast losing touch with her heritage. It would be nice for her to have a kobold role model in her life--and I can think of none better."
"I would love to, but I wouldn't worry about her losing touch with her heritage. She is one of the best trap makers I have ever seen."
A kobold comes to the castle. He brings a letter from Lady GreenGrass.
Some Orges came to me to ask for permission to raid your city. I decided to decline to grant it. The remaining Orges are fleeing the area. It has come to my attention that you are in the process of building an army. I assume in response to the perceived Orge threat. Now that you know that is not a problem you can skip the army. However since you have enough food lying around to feed some idle army I think you can afford to share a little more . Also I think we need to have a better line of communication. The Kobold carrying this message is my ambassador. You are not allowed to punish him. However if you find him unsatisfactory let me know and I'll eat him and send you another one.
-lady Greengrass
Toran takes the letter, reads it quickly, then passes it to Riva in disgust. Fantastic! So now we know that ogres want to raid us, the dragon wants more in tributes, and she not only knows about our army but demands that we stop any actions we've taken towards building it. From what I've heard, we have no chance of defeating this Lady GreenGrass in battle, do we have any option but to obey her demands?
Atfer dismissing the messenger to a far room, Riva turns towards her allies in near rage. "I will not kowtow to a lizard! If she continues to press her, I say we fight, whether it means resorting to open warfare or underhanded assassination. If we continue to give in, her demands will only continue to grow--as surely will she--stymieing the future growth of our kingdom. We are the rulers here, not she! But how did she know of our plans to build an army? We had not discussed it outside of our closed leadership meetings. We may have another spy in our midst. But for now, I believe she is expecting a response."
With that, Riva sits down at a nearby table and begins scribing a letter, which reads as follows:
Lady Greengrass,
We accept your services as protector of our land, and are happy to pay you accordingly. Please continue to inform us of any other external threats that may be encroaching upon our borders. However, we shall continue to police our nation's borders ourselves as we see fit, and will be equipping and training a force for that purpose. So long as you pose no threat to our nation, you need not fear retaliation of any kind. Indeed, if you continue on in your role as guardian of our people, it is the opinion of this nation's leaders that both your people and ours can continue to grow stronger together.
- The Caerulus Leadership
P.S. - Your messenger performed his services admirably.
Riva awaits approval of her fellows before sending the letter.
"We cannot afford to appear weak, or openly hostile. Perhaps this will delay any undo actions from Lady Greengrass while we prepare a plan to deal with her."
Toran nods in satisfaction, This is much of what I was thinking. We obviously can't just let her keep control of our kingdom, and yet we likely cannot defeat her outright without a well-equipped army. It is best to see how she responds to this letter, and if we must attack, we should do so just after she has repelled any threats we may face, for we will likely be far weaker after the battle.
"It is nicely understated. I would add something about how we wouldn't want trouble her with low level threats or waste her time with boring jobs like border patrol."
A Letter returns
”Ah well if you want to waste resources on a weak army thereby stunting the growth of your kingdom feel free. I merely want your kingdom to prosper. After all that benefits all of us."
-Lady Greengrass
"I still think the dragon would walk through an army, but hopefully through our own explorations we can grow powerful enough to take her down. Perhaps we should have mentioned the trolls that the giant mentioned in the south? They seem a more immediate threat."
"Feel free to send your own letter stating as such if you wish. The people have chosen you as our diplomat, and it is primarily your duty to ensure good relations with our 'neighbors.' "
"Though I do not believe an army could stand against her out in the open, not as of yet at least, but with our castle and fortifications to protect our soldiers, I think we could at least drive her away and protect our people in the event that she decides we are too troublesome to keep around."
"And who knows? In time, maybe she will prove to be more ally than menace. Nevertheless, we will take precautions for the sake of Caerulus' citizenry."
At some point after Riva's donation to spur the construction of a bureau, Maermana sends the following letter.
Lady Riva,
I wanted to thank you for your generous assistance after so short an acquaintance. The funds allowed for further construction of a diplomatic meeting area as well as a private library consisting of local maps and tomes of the surrounding areas.
It is my hope to foster positive relations with the nearby nations and cities, possibly using those relations to boost our own economy through trade or simply avoid any unpleasant interactions in the future. It appears that both Pitax and Mivon are near enough in the River Kingdoms to have common interactions with our people. Sometime next month, I would like to send an emissary to each to discuss the future of our relationships.
Brevoy and Galt are also quite close. However, the political situation in Galt is not something I'd send any of my people into..at least not yet. Brevoy..well, I would like to send emissaries both to King Surtova and Restov.
Many thanks,
Maermana Raggindraen[/i]
By the way what are you doing with Vordakai's Death?
Provided we know he's not a threat to us or the citizens of Caerulus, we're going to attempt to free him.
Do you know that? What I am saying if a mouth has gone by since you cam back what are you doing with him that mouth?
It takes about 3 hours of people hammering the jar with mallets, but it eventually breaks open.
"Thank you for adding the cause of justice"
Vordakai's Death immediately starts walking west.
"Well I have to get back on the job. Duty waits for no one."
"You're welcome, Vordakai's Death. Don't forget that you agreed to deal with those monsters brought in by Vordakai's taint as well. Please send word to us when you have dealt with the whole lot of them."
He turns to the south.
"Not sure how I'll send word, but I'll ask if I see anyone going in the right direction"
"Here's some coin. It will incentivize any messenger you happen to come across. If necessary, you may also intone that the leadership of Caerulus will prove grateful for the message's delivery."
Riva gives Vordakai's Death 5gp.
He walks away.
"Do we need to send him alone? Can't we go ourselves and see him complete the task?"
We should be here, making sure that our kingdom can grow and survive. I think we'll need to trust in him to do his job.
"And if it goes ill, we needn't concern ourselves with the public association of an unknown element."
Event
A wealthy Genie, Shaitan named Kani comes to your kingdom. He is impressed by your new settlement and wishes to made a vacation house [Noble Villa] at no cost to you. If you allow it, the building provides its normal benefits to your kingdom.This is the Wealthy Immigrant event.
Upon meeting the wealthy shaitan, Kani, Riva wastes no time in ingratiating herself to his good will. "Welcome to our humble city of Caerulus, my Lord Kani. May you enjoy many a grand vacation within our fair walls," greets Riva, bowing low. "I am Riva Sarjenka of the Sarjenka library, Master of Coin here in Caerulus. If my library and I can be of any service to you during your stay, you only need ask."
"Then I shall make myself a home"
He snaps his fingers.
A troops of various types of earth elementals spring out of the ground and start buildings at incredible speed. In less then an hour there is a towering crystal Villa which make the castle look shabby by comparison.
"I might take you up on that it has a sort of quant rustic charm"