Return of the Pharaohs
Chapter 11c – The Winter Cottage
Details
Halgrim: The Return
The group can return to Halgrim by whatever method they choose. If they return to the coast of Nidal, their ship is awaiting them offshore at an appointed time and place. They can also opt to teleport back and let the remaining force get back by themselves. Once back in Halgrim, White Estrid will grant them an immediate audience to hear their story.
The group is escorted to the main hall of the white granite building called Estrid’s Palace. A large throng of local dignitaries, business leaders and warrior chiefs are anxiously awaiting the group and a brief murmur as they enter is quickly followed by a raucous roar of applause, fists smashing tabletops and whistles. Before they can reach the front of the hall, where 6 large fur-covered chairs await them, they are loaded with tankards of ale, skewers of sizzling venison. A few of the more boisterous fathers shove their blushing daughters towards the party with a knowing wink and a quick comment “…and she can cook just like yer mudder!”
Estrid is seated on her public throne with the formidable linnorm Boiltongue coiled behind her watching the group approach. She has a slight smirk on her face as she invites the group to be seated. The surviving support group is also seated in honor positions near the front of the hall.
“We warmly welcome back the victors of the Nidal Expedition and are impatient to hear the stories of glory, death and ultimate victory. Please be comfortable, fill your cups and bellies and tell us your tale!”
The group is given the opportunity to tell the story however they want and they find that they’ll have to contend with spontaneous cheers and encouragement. All in all, it ends up a very exciting night for all and anyone drinking the strong ale will need to make a DC18 Fort save or pass out unconscious at some point during the evening.
As the evening winds down and more and more people have either wandered out in search of more drink, or have succumbed to the ale’s effects, Estrid will quietly congratulate them again and invite them to atone and pay their respects to Ymeri at her temple at noon the following day.
Know: Planes DC 20 – Ymeri, Queen of the Inferno, dwells within the Auroric Palace on the Elemental Plane of Fire, and is one of the four powerful beings collectively known as the elemental lords. She is served there by a cult of fiery creatures—efreet, fire mephits, fire elementals, and others. Her followers seek to raise her to divine status, and ultimately gain control over the entire Plane of Fire.
The Temple of Ymeri
On a tall bluff overlooking the coast is a medium-sized A-frame structure that characteristically drops below the level of the ground. Steam and vapor issue from the ground around the Temple of Ymeri and when they enter, the group will feel a startling change in temperature – outside is a brisk 40 degrees but inside it is at least 100 degrees.
- A steep set of earthen stairs drop down to a pair of wide open doors to the A-frame structure. Even though the ground is muddy and sodden throughout most of the town, the stairs descending into the Temple are dry.
- Once in the Temple, three distinct tiers of stairs continue to descend to the main floor. Each tier can accommodate a few dozen worshippers at a time.
- The ‘altar’ of Ymeri is a burnt-looking opening in the floor where a constantly churning vortex of flame licks up from below. It is all but impossible to stand closer than 5’ from the opening without possibly taking damage. The flame and heat even seem to penetrate magical protections. The flame is actually a very powerful illusion with full sensory effects including realistic effects of entering the flames. Permanent Image, DC23 Will save to disbelieve. A permanent Teleportation Circle (conjuration) is embedded within the illusion as well which transports any object ‘entering’ the flames to the Winter Lodge.
When the party arrives at the Temple of Ymeri, they will see that there are about a dozen worshipers throughout the structure and a woman with painted face and arms stands on the far side of the flames. When they get closer, they recognize Estrid under the layers of white, black and red paint. Her eyes appear as hollow sockets, and white lines simulate bones under the skin.
“Come forth heroes of Halgrim and receive the blessing of Ymeri.” Estrid beckons them around the roaring flame.
A group of 6 robed and similarly painted men appears from a door in the back of the Temple and take positions on either side of the party. Curious worshippers edge closer and newly arrived also begin to fill the room. Estrid softly whispers, “go along with this, and do as I say.” She begins a long chant as more and more people begin to fill the small Temple. Finally, in conclusion she clearly intones –
“Ymeri, we beseech you to judge our new allies as worthy of your blessings. Bathe them in your warm embrace as we offer their mortal lives in your name.” Then she whispers, “step into the flames, you will be all right.”
Each person will need to make a DC22 Will save vs. the illusion at this point since they will be directly interacting with the effect. Anyone who hesitates will feel themselves pushed forcibly into the flames by one of the assistants and will stumble forward in a moment of terror.
The Winter Cottage
The party emerges from the oppressive heat of the Temple onto a cold, wintry mountaintop somewhere far from the city. The difference in temperature is jarring and it takes several seconds to take in their new surroundings. They are surrounded by tall conifers, heavily laden with fresh snow and several large drifts creating a bowl of sorts around them. About 50 yards away is a modest A-frame structure partially buried in one of the larger drifts. A thin ribbon of smoke rises from a chimney near the center of the Cottage.
Approaching the party is a huge Winter Wolf, standing nearly 10’ at the shoulder. When she gets about 20 feet away she asks, “Who dares come to this lonely place and what is your intent?”
She will listen to their story, be it truth or fiction – for she already knows of their arrival from Estrid and it simply having some fun with them. She will feign that she does not believe them and is going to have them as a snack instead, but then chuckles in a growling sort of way.
“Fear not, brave ones, for I was informed of your arrival and you may pass to the Winter Cottage that is under my protection.” She may make more small talk, but does not reveal too much information about her nature or their true location.
The inside the Cottage of very inviting and warm. Food and drink have been provided as well as fresh beds and linens. Comfortable chairs, tables and desks are situated throughout the Cottage. A lower level serves as temporary quarters and a small kitchen upstairs is well provisioned. A firepit in the center of the upper floor is softly glowing with a spit of lamb roasting for their pleasure. On a small table near the entry is a note held down by a small stone with a Kenaz rune engraved on it that looks like an elongated sideways V (the rune represents knowledge or thought). The note is below:
Welcome to one of my most private sanctuaries in all the world, the Winter Cottage. Very few people know of this place, so you are now part of an exclusive circle. Feel free to use this place as long as you wish, however, once you leave the area you will only be able to return by my permission. Freki is a trusted friend and she will show you the way back to Halgrim when you are ready to depart.
You are welcome to study anything within my collection, however I must insist that you do not remove anything from the Cottage.
Best of luck on your investigations and I look forward to seeing you when you are done here.
– Estrid
Inside the Winter Cottage, you find an inviting, quaint mountain retreat. A warm fire burns low in a central pit, food and drink are laid out neatly and comfortable furniture can be found throughout the building. A few rooms have beds that have been furnished with fresh linen. A number of anterooms appear surprisingly organized and full of odd scrolls, books, trinkets, tablets, shields, weapons, pottery, tools and other miscellaneous devices.
If someone casts a detect magic spell, they will find many items that emit a magical aura. Among the collection are the following magic: Manual of Bodily Health +4 (17), Absorbing Shield (17), Greater Mask of Giants (13), Greater Quicken Metamagic Rod (17), Ivory Goats Figurines od Wondrous Power (11), Gem of Seeing (10), Deck of Many Things (20)
Poll the group for the method of how and what they would like to research. Ultimately, the crucial information they need to accomplish their goal would be:
- Location of Xin-Edasseril
- Location of Temple of Desna’s Last Dream
- How many years in the past to travel from the present time
- Any other pertinent information regarding Xin-Edasseril of the past
The group can spend as much time as they wish here and it will be difficult to get Brodert to leave. Anyone who wishes to assist Brodert in finding out more about Edasseril and the Temple of Desna’s Last Dream can help with a Knowledge History, Geography or Linguistics roll. Brodert will be able to piece together some valuable clues in a seven day period, however, for each person who makes a DC24 skill roll, the time is reduced by ½ a day.
The clues that the party will be able to piece together are as follows:
Clue #1 – By studying astro-navigation charts, the location of Xin-Edasseril has been determined to be on the island called Chakikoth Isle in the north eastern portion
Clue #2 – The ancient city was known to be built in a swampy area and an old Pathfinder report mentions ruins that were found in the north east part of the island that contain a petrified forest of mangroves (swamp trees)
Clue #3 – The crystalline Temple of Desna’s Last Dream was located in the direct center of the city of Xin-Eddaseril and only accessible to the Runelord or her invited guests. It was rumored to be made of glass, diamond and magical force and housed a vast collection of gems and treasures that the Runelord of Envy had gathered as well as her personal magical collections.
Clue #4 – There was reportedly an antechamber in the Temple where people who dreamed would have their dreams come to life; for better or worse.
Clue #5 – Before the collapse of the Thassilonian Empire (accounts are vague when exactly), Runelord Belimarius cast a grand spell which reportedly shifted the whole structure into a different dimension. However, she and her guests were known to have come and gone from the missing Temple via a portal somewhere within the city.
Clue #6 – The portal did not lead directly to the Temple, but rather it led to a Dream Plane that provided access to the Temple.
Clue #7 – During the time of the Runelords, the city was prone to flooding and plagues which the priests of Desna had troubling curing
Clue #8 – A later text describes the attempted founding of a city called Melesa about 2000 years ago, using some of the ruined ancient city’s stones, but it was quickly destroyed by a force of giants.
Clue #9 – A small excerpt from the margin notes of a seemingly mundane bill of lading, stuck between the pages of an uninteresting tome as a bookmark contains a very important date (see handout). At the bottom are the words: For RL Belamarius per Tsoltand by 3rd Meku 1511 AZR.
This note indicates a delivery of a specialized herb/reagent to be delivered to Runelord Belimarius on the orders of her assistant, Tsoltand, by the date Meku 3rd, in the year 1511 Azlanti Reckoning. With Brodert’s help, they will find out that the month of Meku equates to Gozran (April) in the modern calendar. The year 1511 AZR is based on the founding of the glorious city of Arcadia, which has been extrapolated by Brodert to be about -6800 AR. For reference, Earthfall was recorded to have occurred in -5293 AR.
Onward to Xin-Eddaseril
Once the party has gleaned as much information as they can from the Winter Cottage, they will need to travel to Chakikoth Isle. If they have their new bodyguards, these locals will be able to easily find experienced sailors to take them to the island. The sailors will tell the group that the island is almost completely surrounded by steep cliffs that would be very difficult to climb but there are a few known beaches on the western shore where they can land and pass through dangerous tunnels that head through the ring of cliffs and allow access inland on foot. The island is about 40 miles wide and 60 long and although not part of the domain of Estrid, some more adventurous sailors go there every so often to seek their fortunes or their deaths. Very few explorers have attempted to gain access to the interior of the island and the lucky few to return told tales of organized groups of giants who prevent anyone from going too far inland and will sometimes even pepper their ships from the cliffs for sport.
The peaks of the steep cliffs are shrouded in perpetual fog and mist, a byproduct of ancient protective wards that still remain today, a legacy of the Runelord’s power. Vision, including darkvision is obscured to 5’ and anyone entering the fog is subject to the effects of a confusion spell, DC20 save, each round.
01-25 Acts normally
26-50 Does nothing but babble incoherently
51-75 Deals 1d8 points of damage + Str modifier to self with item in hand
76-100 Attacks nearest creature (for this purpose, a familiar counts as part of the subject’s self)
The party should probably take the offer to travel by longship to the Isle where they will be dropped off and can return the same way.