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Keys from the Golden Vault Session 47
Starring
Chéri Powder, level 9 human Illusionist Wizard
Elowen Fernwhisper, level 9 wood elf Circle of the Moon Druid
Stayzie Diamondz, level 9 orc Champion Fighter
Taveen, level 9 aasimar Warrior of Mercy Monk
Varrow, level 9 gnome Thief Rogue/Gloomstalker Ranger
After discovering Arlo and speaking to Tosh, the party finally gets a chance to explores some of the underground chambers that they’d been fighting through, and to short rest.
Varrow discovers a secret door into a private bedroom (C25), and the journal of Jerot, this cult’s leader. Jerot speaks about a Ritual of Confession from beyond the planes, where they funnel a person’s knowledge and secrets directly to The Whispered One.
Apparently Arlo was the first test subject for this ritual, after his crew met their ill-fated end, and he was left completely catatonic. Tosh warns that the first of the Neverwinter captives was recently taken into the nearby ritual chamber.
In the library (C17), they discover several books and spell scrolls. Stayzie finds the latrine (and quickly shuts the door, C22), and Taveen nearly opens the door with the red ‘X’ painted on, before Tosh reminds that there is some kind of angry ghost in there that attacked the cultists (C21).
A timid voice calls out from a locked door leading from the demon’s room (C20). The party discovers another captive, Indrina, inside. She’s a haughty actor and political activist, and she is not happy about her captivity. She’s oblivious to the arcane nature of the cult, and believe this to be entirely political. Stayze gets her to reveal that she’s been spying on Lord Neverember for Bryseis.
Without any further useful information, they send her back to the surface, though not before sending a message to Bryseis that they’ve found two of the captives, and that most of Arlo’s crew has been killed.
Then, it’s time for the ritual chamber.
(This mission is taken from Chapter 1 of Vecna: Eve of Ruin. The alternate dungeon map is from Tessa Presents 56 Maps for Vecna: Eve of Ruin.)
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Varrow sneakily opens the door to scope out the room, seeing a large chamber with two raised galleries on either side of a sunken floor. Suspended above the floor is a cage with a person inside. The east side of the gallery holds half a dozen chanting cultists in black robes, while the west side has the leader standing over a book, surrounded by several one-eyed monstrosities (nothics).
Stayzie embiggens with her potion of growth, while Elowen and Taveen drink potions of pugilism, and Elowen shifts to bear form.
Then they bust through the doors!
Stayze and Elo-bear rush in to attack the nothics, followed closely by Taveen.
Varrow rushes into the middle of the room, and activates his rope of climbing to begin ascending toward the cage. He then whips out his pipes of haunting, frightening many of the nothics and cultists.
Tosh, eager to get his revenge, casts bless on all the melee fighters.
While Jerot (a death cultist) strikes back at Stayzie and unleashes a psychic wail, Chéri casts confusion on the cultists. Only two of them fail the save, but it’s enough to interrupt the ritual, sending waves of necrotic energy rippling throughout the chamber (literally, CON saves for necrotic damage!).
Jerot screams that the ritual cannot be interrupted now, even as Varrow reaches the cage, opens it, and administers a potion of featherfall to its screaming occupant, an elven man.
Meanwhile, the empowered warriors finish off the nothics and turn their attention to Jerot. Taveen especially nails a high-powered critical hit, dealing 40 damage with a single punch thanks to the pugilism potion!
The death cultist cries out as another wave of energy ripples around the room, and his connection to The Whispered One is stretched too thin.
The entire room spins, the ground opens up, and everyone is swallowed by darkness.
The party hurtles through time and space, seeing innumerable black-robed cultists performing similar rituals.
At the center of it all is a skeletal figure, absorbing all of this power.
Each of the party members becomes entangled in a thread as they hurtle past, drawing the creature’s attention. A large skeletal hand looms in and snatches… Tosh! The poor orc screams as his eyes and mouth light up, and his mind is drained.
“Your secrets. My power. My ascension.”
The party continues to fall, as everything fades into darkness.
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