Echo Wood TL;DR Update

Okay, it has been a while since I updated progress on the Emerald Spire dungeon delving. I’ll update things as I remember them. We’ve made slow progress (because everyone keeps showing up) and I also don’t really have to fill any missing people in (because everyone keeps showing up). But a few weeks amounts to a lot of delving:

The Tower Ruins: 

– The party successfully cleared the goblin tribe from the ruins and chased the Bugbear leader away. He escaped and will presumably come back to haunt them. Treasure wasn’t too exciting.

-They found a scroll with a weird sigil, written in some kind of flexible glassy ink. Later they found out that this represented the number 4 (or 6, can’t remember which order they got them in).

The Cellars:

-Further into the ruin they fought Undead and Moon Spiders in a trap-heavy level. They encountered a chatty skeleton, but Cyrus wasn’t interested in talking so that turned into fighting right away.

-They picked up some gear, along with another scroll with a glassy, shimmering green sigil. It was a 6 or a 4, one of those, and they knew this because they picked up a small crystal cylinder that allowed them to comprehend the sigils.

-General whispering was heard throughout this level, although those whispering were never observed.

Fort Inevitable Interlude:

-Back to Fort Inevitable, reluctantly. All those rules and taxes bring them down, man.

-They met with Iliara Starcloak so that she could take a look at the scrolls and crystal cylinder. There wasn’t much she could help them with.

-They also met with High Mother Sarisse Dremagne at the temple of Abadar. They tried the time-tested adventurer tactic of trying to set up cheap healing and wheedle services up-front, as tradition demands. They did get a job from her – she believes there is an increase in a haunting presence in the Echo Wood, the image of a crowned skull. Bam has seen the same image in the reflecting pool at the first level of the Thornkeep Dungeon. She promised them a bunch of cash if they can resolve the issue.

Splinterden:

-They walked into a pretty vicious defensive setup, and fought the Ancient and Accepted Order of Splinters to a standstill. At least, they all stood still and parleyed.

-They came to an arrangement with Tarrin Dars, Grandmistress of the Order. They can use the Splinterden for one year, with some rooms off-limits and some rooms turned over for their use.

-Tarrin Dars is a cleric of Norgorber, god of Greed, Secrets, Poison and Murder. Despite this, Cyrus exchanged professional courtesy and they were able to work out a deal.

-She gave them a second green crystal cylinder, which she referred to as a ‘Transport Token’, which fits with how Iliara divined their use.

-This is done on the assumption that they’ll progress further into the Emerald Spire to depose Klarkosh, the power in the upper levels of the dungeon.

-Klarkosh is a Numerian mage of some sort, “one of two” Tarrin Dars knows of in the region.

-The stairs down to the next level are evident, but accompanied by a cloying reek.

-One of Tarrin Dars acolytes was young Adelind Fraston, erstwhile a bored teenager in Thornkeep.

Up Next:

-The party returns to Thornkeep to reunite Adelind with her parents.

-They plan to return to the Door of Seven Stars, now that they know the secret and find out what is beyond. Other than a reflecting pool with a ghost face in it that gives Bam the Heebie-Jeebies.