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Previously on Rime of the Frostmaiden
Starring:
Valravn, level 14 Eladrin Bard of Eloquence
Fray, level 14 Halfling Barbarian of the Beast
Celeste, level 14 Half-orc Sun Soul Monk
Edmond, Level 14 Human Alchemist Artificer
Thimbleweed, level 14 Thri-kreen Swarmkeeper Ranger
Following the battle at the Wellspring, the Marshals make their way north, through a commercial district in Ythryn.
The streets are empty and the buildings ruined and destroyed. The Mythallar sparks and sputters, and a void appears above them, a rip in the sky leading to deep space. A large shark-like creature flies out, flanked by several smaller creatures.
The party has to decide between fight or flight (or hide). Valravn chooses flight — or rather, Lord Marbury does! With his 90 ft. fly speed, Valravn’s frequently summoned pegasus can easily outdistance these extra-planetary flying foes. Cue the Top Gun music!
Note: I’m incorporating Dan Kahn’s excellent Ythryn Expanded Towers of Magic supplement to enhance Chapter 7 of Rime of the Frostmaiden. Now available on Roll20!
The aerial maneuvers draw the attention of the gigantic patrolling chardalyn golem, however. The building-size construct has been blasting audible warnings about curfew and lethal force, before killing anything that moves. The party has been able to avoid it, until now.
The golem fires a radiant blast upward, nearly taking out Lord Marbury, and incinerating several scavvers.
The party goes into full hide mode as the imposing sentry continues its patrol down the street.
With the coast clear, they reach the Hall of Silk (Y14.) at the end of the street, a miraculously intact retail store.
The Hall of Silk sells custom-made robes with some minor illusory effects. And they’re 3D-printed on-site by phase spiders!
The store is bereft of living staff, but a dozen magen still stand guard, like the mannequins displaying the merchandise.
Despite the promise of easy loot, the party hangs back, respectful of the silent guards. They listen as the programmed illusion appears and introduces them to the store, explaining that for (the low low price) of 99 gold, they can step on the pedestal, request a design, and it the robe will be custom made right before their eyes.
Valravn nervously takes the gold out of his pouch and awkwardly holds it while stepping onto the platform. Several spiders descend from the rafters, shimmering and blinking silk spinning out. They surround the elf with legs poised, waiting.
Valravn requests the image of his loyal friend and ally, Lord Marbury, and the spiders go to work, creating a totally bitchin’ holographic image of Lord Marbury flying through the sky, on a perfectly tailored robe.
With their work complete, the spiders return to the ceiling. Valravn drops the money in a broken cash register, and the party leaves.
The DM is impressed — multiple opportunities for combat, and none taken so far!
They approach the nearby Tower of Illusion next (The DM combined the Tower of Illusion, Y22, from Ythryn Expanded Towers of Magic with the Theater, Y17).
The top half of the tower has been destroyed, but the bottom half features a theater. After witnessing an illusory recreation of the devastating fall of Ythryn, a programmed illusion appears of High Illusionist Ajamar.
The ancient wizard explains that his dead man’s switch has activated, and his final wish is for someone to perform his latest play. In return he will provide them with his line of the Rite of the Arcane Octad.
The party explores his nearby quarters, finding the one-page script of the cheesy scene, and some basic costumes — as well as a spell scroll of illusory dragon.
A magical mirror catches their attention. In the reflection they see an extra armoire that’s not in the room. They try different methods, but are unable to reach it, and it clearly doesn’t exist on their side.
Returning to the theater, the party divvies up the roles, with Fray and Vellyne sitting in the audience to witness the, er, magic.
Valravn uses his wand of alteration to cast enhance ability, giving everyone Eagle’s Splendor.
Fray pulls the curtains open, and the scene unfolds!
Thimbleweed the thri-kreen in a wedding dress, trying to marry the imperious Edmond!
Valravn narrating the drama as Celeste appears, interrupting the wedding and professing her love!
The silly scene is full of soapy drama and twists. Edmond successfully casts the spell scroll, summoning the dragon at the perfect moment.
Despite some charming role-playing and advantage rolls, many of the party are not exactly charismatic. When they fail their performance checks, the illusory audience moans and wails and snickers, dealing psychic damage to the performer!
Thankfully, Celeste and Thimbleweed are still resistant to psychic damage after the Wellspring incident.
But they succeed as much as fail, and the spectacle is grand. When the play finishes the audience cheers and claps.
The illusory Ajamar agrees to give them his line of the Rite, their second one this session and the fourth they’ve acquired overall.
Fray remembers to ask about the magic mirror in his room. He offers a cryptic clue:
“My mirror is a doorway whose surface isn’t real, so if there’s no one pushing back then resistance you won’t feel.”
Edmond, always the puzzle-solver, uses his last charm from a purple pear and turns invisible. He pushes on the mirror and steps right through! He moves through the mirror-room and opens the armoire, helping himself to several magical cloaks, including a very nice cloak of displacement, which Thimbleweed attunes to.
With the tower complete, they move to the nearby Tower of Necromancy (following Ythryn Expanded Towers of Magic, the Tower of Necromancy, Y18, is combined with the Observatory, Y15, as the Observatory was combined with the Tower of Divination!).
The Tower of Necromancy has a permanent aura of gentle repose. Inside they find a dozen crawling claws scurrying around a laboratory. A nothic is strapped to a blood-stained chair. Looming over it, is a brain in a jar with a crude face drawn on the glass.
We’ll find out what the heck is happening here next time!
MVPC – Celeste
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