As he walks away, Brandon sees Ailyn, moving towards a quiet corner, motion for him to come to her.
I didn't want to say this in the general meeting, for fear someone may overhear, but I was able to find some information. Changed by the Chelaxian government, most records and books in this country cannot be trusted. However, I found a text about a nobleman's trips to Ushed that had details about these creatures.
From what I can tell, Vampires actually feed off of the blood of the living. They have an strong, unnatural resistance to any weapon that isn't made out of silver or cold iron. They heal fast, move fast, can change into various forms, are resistant to holy energies, and according to this adventure's notes, immune to nearly all kinds of elemental energy.
This Chelaxian was a nobleman and some of the very best guards that money could buy. Yet, they were never able to kill the creatures, merely hold them at bay. In discussing the matter at length with some of the residents in a stop at Revengro, many of them mentioned driving a stake through the vampires heart while asleep, or finding a way to expose it to sunlight.
I'm not sure how much of this is actually accurate, but I do believe the authorities have not changed the records as written. I wouldn't share this with any of the less experienced Shades, as it might cause more harm than good. I wish all of you luck, Brandon.
We're sure there's some traps involved, set by the Pathfinders, though they aren't documented. More importantly, be on your guard! Something has taken over. I'm sure of it. Chelaxian government tried to get in via the Chelaxian Pathfinders. They were killed. Be careful!
We've not been able to find out anything more about the Lodge itself, but we have figured out something of the security...at least, outside of the Lodge itself. The Dotorri keep the place under surveillance through patrols. At midnight, the shift changes, and the guys are slow getting back out there. They seem to think that the dangerous and reputation of the lodge itself deters people from even trying.
If you take the east road, and move in after midnight, you should be able to slip in unseen. Just watch out for shadowbeasts.
Ailyn walks up from the back, coming from a conversation with Arael.
It is I who personally vouched to Janiven on behalf of these men's abilities and talents to protect themselves, and anyone in their charge. I assure you, that you won't find them wanting. As for the next move, well, whenever you all are ready. This will be a dangerous trek, so Janiven agrees that you should take whatever time you need to be properly prepared. The items you brought back from your earlier expedition should also prove useful, so make sure you have them at the ready.
She looks at Aemon. In the meantime, please, relax. You all had quite the trip today.
Read above spoilers... You were asked a question; waiting on answer.
Killian and Taryin:
Ailyn perks up. I hear something. She gets up and looks through a very small hole in the wall. It's our other guest. She opens up the back door.
Taryin, please read the "Killian spoilers" above on this page. Taryin, you now walk into the room. Please give a physical description of yourself. Use Spoiler for "GM and Killian". Thanks.
Ailyn asks Killian to meet her in an abandoned pub, just right before dark. Carefully insuring that none of the dottari saw him, Killian slips in through the back door and takes a seat.
The place looks worn down, and the windows are nighly opaque with build up of dirt and grime. Killian sees Ailyn behind a table. I know I don't even have to ask if you were followed, eh? You've always been too good for that. Killian, your interest and professionalism in helping me ferret out some much needed information about the underbelly of Westcorwn's nobility has been invaluable. Now, I want to uphold my end of the bargain and reveal a little more as to why I asked for your help with some of these things. This is Janiven Key. She's got some questions for you...and depending on your answers, a proposal that I believe you will find very interesting.
...Yes, Brandon, and so few answers. Clearly they were preparing for any number of dark things with this stash. These things could become very useful as you comb Delvehaven.
I wish I knew. What I do know is that three decades or so after Ghaelfin and the remaining Pathfinder sealed the lodge, the House of Thrune finally turned its attention to Delvehaven. Ignoring the call from the Society to let agents from Absalom leaad the charge, they used loyalist Pathfinders whose allegiances were with Cheliax rather than the Society. It was an arrogant folly that resulted in the death of those Pathfinders. Records indicate that the House of Thrune sealed Delvehaven again. The records do not indicate how it was sealed again, but you can most certainly expect traps and wards of the magical variety.
The Party has figured out the secret of the poem without any outside aid. Everyone earns 2 power points. If you have not done so, everyone may look at the spoilers a few posts back.
Great job, guys. Amazing work! We now more about Delvehaven and where the Pathfinders hid their most important magic supplies. I highly recommend you look at the Cove, first. Then you should be better prepared for whatever dangers are there. Keep in mind, that on top of whatever traps the Pathfinders may have had in place to protect their abode, the Chelish government added additional measures, mostly to keep us, the Pathfinders, or anyone else, from entering or exploring the premises.
A tear can be seen in the corner of the Pathfinder's eye, as she slowly removes the lid to the urn. Thank you. I really cannot express my thanks. I'll inform Arael and we'll set up to communicate with her spirit. In the mean time, you should discuss what questions you will want to ask.
Ailyn's tears flow more freely as the two leaders speak, causing her face to turn red. She looks mortified. So... Coriana’s is languishing in a jar in the basement of an Asmodean nunnery? That is no fate I would wish on anyone!”
She pauses for a minute and looks at Tessai. I want those ashes! It sounds you are heading there. Please, bring them back. I promise you 100
platinum if you they can do so.
You all take the statue and the spoils back to the base.
You all did well! Look at the detail. This is definitely the work of someone turned to stone. Shall we use the grave candle to question him now, or wait until you've investigated the other leads?
Finally, you see a Missing Pathfinder List (that's the handout given to Tessai ... handout1.jpg...everyone should have looked at it by now.): This single piece of parchment lists the names, descriptions, and in many cases final fates of several Pathfinders. As you look it over, a smile comes over Ailyn's face.
This is amazing. Listen, When Aroden died and Westcrown fell into chaos, the Pathfinders stationed at Delvehaven locked down the lodge. The majority of the junior members fled Westcrown entirely, but the final fates of five of Delvehaven’s more powerful and important members has long been a mystery. The House of Thrune took a deep interest in the fates of these Pathfinders, for if they could be found, they or their
spirits could be interrogated to learn more about how to access the lower reaches of Delvehaven. So, I believe this letter to Dargentu Vheed catalogs not only the names of all these missing Pathfinders, but also gives clues as to where they may have ultimately ended up.
She looks intrigued; All five of these Pathfinders are listed as “missing” by the Decemvirate back in Absalom, and if you could discover the fate of these five, their names and fates could be etched upon the Wall of Names in Absalom and bring closure to this awkward chapter of the Society’s history. For each Pathfinder whose fate you can secure proof of, I will insure you are handsomely rewarded.
She may be of assistance when you get there. Perhaps seeing the place again would jog her memory. I'm not sure. Let's check the other items for further information.
We're going to find that out right now, but my research indicated that the key to Delvehaven, and the defenses that the government put on the building, lied within the Asmodean Knot. Hopefully, you got the right item.
After the dinner that night, Arael, Janiven and the Pathfinder, Ailyn Ghontasavos, invite the core group and other Shades to stay to discover what was inside the Chelish Crux that the party found.
Ailyn begins as everyone finishes their meal and gets comfortable.
Some of you have asked me in the last few weeks why I feel this item, the Chelish Crux, holds the answers to Delvehaven and, in turn, why the lodge holds important things for this city. Let me share a bit of history with you.
In late 4605 ar, a Pathfinder named Donatalus Bisby returned to Westcrown from a mission to the Mwangi Expanse—a mission previously believed to have been lost. Bisby’s unexpected return brought much celebration, despite the fact that of the dozens who traveled with him to the southern jungles, only he and his chronicler had returned. Word soon spread that Bisby’s journals would revolutionize what was known about certain lost tribes of the Mwangi, and that he brought back with him a potent artifact.
Yet before his journals could be published, Aroden died. Upon Aroden’s death, panic seized Cheliax. Details of what happened in Delvehaven are sparse, but it seems that the majority of the Pathfinders stationed in Westcrown—Bisby included— perished in the riots and mayhem. Worse, his journal and all of Delvehaven’s artifacts were cut off from the Society for over thirty years. In 4674 AR, many years after the House of Thrune seized control of Cheliax, they made a great show of reopening Delvehaven and inviting a select few Pathfinders back to run the lodge—but those choices were not the Grand Lodge’s to make.
The House of Thrune only agreed to Delvehaven’s reopening if Chelish Pathfinders of their choosing were to manage the site, and the Society reluctantly agreed to the conditions. Securing an accurate list of what had and hadn’t survived in Delvehaven’s vaults was a political nightmare—the House of Thrune and their pet Pathfinders reported that nothing of value remained, but they were resistant to letting anyone from outside make their own inventory and exploration of the ruins. To the public, the lodge seemed to be run by the Society, but in truth we have very little idea exactly what was going on in Delvehaven during those years.
The whole situation seemed to be coming to a head, with a full-on clash between the House of Thrune and the Society imminent, but as things worked out, Delvehaven didn’t remain active under Thrune’s control for long.
“In 4676 ar, something happened in Delvehaven that caused the deaths of all the Thrune Pathfinders and its subsequent sealing by the government itself. The House of Thrune has to this date refused to open Delvehaven or allow the Society access to the lodge, and various conflicts with the Aspis Consortium and the House of Thrune in other parts of Cheliax since then have effectively distracted us from Delvehaven’s legacy. General consensus in the Society today is that Thrune looted Delvehaven to the root and that nothing of value remains within.
“But I’m not so sure. Over the past several months, I’ve grown more and more intrigued by the unexplained mysteries of exactly what happened in Delvehaven. Of perhaps more interest to you as Westcrown natives, I’ve learned a bit about the artifact Bisby returned with, an artifact that was in Delvehaven at the time of Aroden’s death and that hasn’t been seen since. Notes on this artifact are vague, alas, but from an initial report sent from Delvehaven just before Aroden’s death, it would appear that the artifact had ties to a dualistic religion of light and shadow.
The fact that it was only a few weeks after the House of Thrune closed up Delvehaven that the shadow beasts first appeared in Westcrown can’t be a coincidence. I suspect that they found this artifact in Delvehaven, but in so doing triggered the lodge’s defenses and caused something. I’m not saying that the source of the shadow beasts is hidden in Delvehaven, or even that the artifact is involved—but in my experience, there are no coincidences.
