VC Norden Balentiir's page

”Well done indeed, Pathfinders!” Venture-Captain Balentiir says, when you present him with both the newly found piece of the Sky Key and the letter of praise from Itephta. ”I must say, I was unsure how this mission would go; you have thoroughly exceeded my expectations. Now, I must arrange for a ship to transport this relic back to the Grand Lodge. I shall travel with it myself, along with several other agents, but I would welcome any of you that wish to travel with me. You have certainly proven yourselves quite capable, and I should welcome the added security.”

Anyone that wishes to return to Absalom may do so with the Venture-Captain. Otherwise, he will arrange for transport to whatever your next destination is.

That’s it! Well done. I’ll get your chronicle sheets put together and posted soon. Scarab Sage folks, please compose your response as detailed in the spoiler above, as I need that for a reporting condition.

"Monks have to eat. Make monks happy, Talk to them, Trade magic grain bag for relic. Seems easy."

"Indeed. Negotiate as you see fit, but we are hoping that you may be able to convince them to part with the piece of the sky key by means other than outright buying it."

"Always ask before travel. Is it really hot or cold it Tarkata?"

"While the deserts of Osirion are often brutally hot, Tar Kuata is situated high enough into the mountains to be quite pleasant, from what I hear. Perhaps that is why they settled there, so long ago."

"It’s an isolated monastery village in the Barrier Wall Mountains, in a region commonly called the Footprints of Rovagug. It’s also considered the most important Iroran site in all Osirion, so please do approach the place with respect.”

"As for the bag of holding, it contains its own pocket dimension that is quite a bit bigger than the bag itself. I'm afraid that's about as much as I know. Perhaps when you return to Absalom you could enroll in a course on wondrous items at the Arcanimirium."

“They do speak common, or at least some of them do. The monks are austere but polite, and I have already contacted them to let them know representatives are on the way. They’ll be very hospitable, yet earning their respect will no doubt involve proof of your worth. Like most who follow the Iroran faith, the monks of Tar Kuata no doubt value knowledge, discipline, and self-perfection.”

Venture-Captain Norden Balentiir inclines his head in welcome as he opens the door and welcomes everyone into a modest office. “I’m glad you are on time—and with little to spare,” he says as checks outside and then closes the door. “Your ship leaves soon, and I’ve taken care of the details.” He places a neat stack of travel papers on the small desk and sits down.

“I’m pleased that you volunteered to visit the remote monastery of Tar Kuata on the Society’s behalf. As you may already know, the Society seeks pieces of the Sky Key, a strange relic broken into multiple pieces by dwarves long ago. It seems one of the descendants may have found her way to Tar Kuata, and we believe the Ouat monks that also reside there still have a piece of the key. Travel there, meet with them, confirm our intelligence, and barter for the relic as needed. Do aim to be respectful; few Pathfinders have traveled to Tar Kuata, so you’ll need to earn the monks’ goodwill—and perhaps even pave the way for future collaboration.

“To that end, I am sending you with this.” Balentiir lifts a heavy bag and adds it to the desk. “You may be familiar with bags able to hold more than seems possible, and this one is filled with grain. I understand Tar Kuata has had a poor harvest this year, and this should help you get off on the right foot in negotiations. Any questions?”

"Fine, fine, do whatever preparations you need, but don't take long! Who knows what other miscreants are already on their way to loot that pyramid!"

You have time to buy whatever you'd like. Sothis is a big port city, so you can find whatever you're looking for.

"Frankly we have no idea what to expect. Most of the tombs from this era were looted millennia ago, and every pharaoh seems to have had different ideas about what they should take with them to the afterlife, and what they should leave behind to guard themselves. I've prepared a dossier here on the local wildlife you might encounter on the trip to the site, and we've prepared a team of camels to get you there."

This module starts with you standing in front of the pyramid, so no special preparations are needed for the trip.

”Greetings Pathfinders, It seems we have another task at hand in the Osirian desert. A travelling caravan heading north from the village of Safani to the city of Eto was recently blown off course while traversing through the Parched Dunes, due to unusually strong sandstorms. Much of the caravan was destroyed, but one of the survivors, a man by the name of Akenata, claimed to have seen a large pyramid protruding out of the desert. At first many thought that the old man was suffering from heat exhaustion and may have seen a mirage. But then he brought forth a small clay tablet inscribed in Ancient Osiriani. The tablet was a cartouche of the Pharaoh Sekh-pa-Mefer the III, The Pharaoh of Sphinxes.

”If this is indeed true then the sands of time have uncovered one of the few pyramids from the First Age of Osirion. I have conducted research within the Great Library of Tephu and discovered a papyrus scroll which contains references into the pharaoh’s name and found that the pyramid is rumored to be one of the few tombs that the Pharaoh Jetrieti V did not plunder during his reign more than 7,500 years ago.

”Using the directions the caravan guide has given me, I have created a map for you and will be sending your team of Pathfinders to explore this area. Locate the pyramid and explore it depths. Bring back as many artifacts as you can find, as I have no doubt that Akenata has told his story to others and word of the pyramid’s discovery has no doubt spread far and fast.

"Remember you will be traveling in an inhospitable desert environment and very close to the eastern edge of the Footprints of Rovagug, so be vigilant in your travels as all manner of beasts roam those harsh desert sands. Do any of you have questions before you go?"