The Wandering Archipelago (D&D 5e)

[thinkslogically]

Gorock chuckles at Varsk.

Tam groans and finally sits up and stretches through a jaw-cracking yawn.
"All right, all right! I'm up! Whazzamatter?"

((Pretty sure everyone you've met here of relevance has told you their names ))

[Rodgeir]

"We need to go to the old druid that lives near the acid river you were tellin' me about last night. The Elders agreed with that. How quick can you get that ready for us?"

He will give him a hand up.

((Yep, Varsk is just being an ass . Probably would have been much nicer had he gotten a few magic items ))

[thinkslogically]

"Who?"

Gorock and Tam exchange a few words in a language none of you speak and Tam bursts out a peal of laughter.

"Oh, he's not a druid! I can send you through now if you want. Just remember that it's a one-way trip and if you ever find your way back here, I'll be expecting that music you promised me before I send you on anywhere else."

((Good stuff! Carry on then ))

[Rodgeir]

"Wait! Okay, crazy non-druid guy and no. This is on behalf of the Elders. Our deal is separate and I can guarantee you music and it won't involve an ancient evil."

Varsk will glare at both of them while he waits for the team to get their gear together and Tam to do is proper druid-ie magic.

[thinkslogically]

"That's why THIS trip is free! It's still one-way though. Nothing I can do about that except come with you, and I don't want to. Have you got any idea what the acid does to... this?"

He gestures at his entirely nude form and gives Varsk a broad grin.

"Why'd you wake me up if you weren't ready to go?"

[Rodgeir]

Varsk tries not to look at this but when one gestures the eye is drawn...

He closes his eyes and rubs his eyes and seems to be repeating something under his breath before giving a strained smile,

"We're ready. Right?'

He turns to Gwen, Syli and Szartha.

[thinkslogically]

((Your boss's name is Mehriv in this Universe ))

[spiderwrangler]

((The blue dragonborn looks around in surprise, having only just been in an arid desert.))

[Arch Lich Burns]

Gwen gives Tam a smirk when she sees Varsk trying to cover his eyes. "I think our dear friend Varsk wished to see you, sir bard.~", Gwen teases. "I am ready to go."

[Rodgeir]

((Hahaha, damnit. Too many dragonborn bosses to keep track of. Not even gonna edit that since it's all just in Varsk's melon anyhow. Sorry Dlover!))

[WearsHats]

Kal is not well versed in magical potions, but he might recognize spider venom...

► Show Spoiler

Nature: 1D20+3 = [2]+3 = 5

Well, it's definitely liquid, that's for sure.

[Nioca]

"Farewell, Rue! And I'll be back about that tiger!"

With a smile, Syli returns to the others, seemingly rather happy with how the day had turned out. Seeing the others gathered around, she approaches as the others rouse Tam from his rest. "Oh, we're leaving now? Did something happen after I left?"

[Rodgeir]

"Ya, we're leavin'. Still got those folks to save and return."

"What happened while you... did whatever? Well we met up with Elders. They told us a story about the evil dragon that took over the elf lands and turned everything to shit and pain. Then they said that the only way they could beat the dragon was to...?"

This part of the story was bit outside Varsk's understanding,

"build a big tower that mostly turned off magic and that, for whatever, reason killed the dragon."

Varsk shrugs.

"They were sure the dragon didn't do anythin', as it is dead, but its minions could be doing stuff. They want us to go check it out for them and gave us some rocks to get back. No help otherwise.

About right, Mehriv?"

[Theis2]

Merric will look at all the things! He'll try to discern if there are any distinguishing marks that indicates the function of the potions or maybe additional functions on those items that are obvious (like the gloves). He'll put the gloves on if no one indicates they want them back.

Merric int: 1D20+1 = [4]+1 = 5
1D20+1 = [8]+1 = 9
1D20+1 = [3]+1 = 4
1D20+1 = [15]+1 = 16
1D20+1 = [14]+1 = 15
+2 if investigation fits better.

[Dlover]

"Close. The druids didn't build the tower, and it's specifically in the very centre of the archipelago, so it's probably something to do with the movements of the islands. It doesn't turn off magic, either, it blocked most of the energy of the gods from this realm. As the dragons received power directly from their gods, that meant they weren't getting any power anymore, so it's highly likely that the 'evil dragon' died as a result, along with all others, but there's a slim chance it didn't cause complete death."

"Otherwise, I think that was all the important details. Also, here," Mehr hands one of the spare stones to Syli, "In exchange for finding out what we can about the strange happenings we've found, especially if there's influence of Ash'Karoth, the evil dragon, and returning that information to the druids, we have been gifted these stones. Close your hand around it, place the palm of your other hand on the bark of a full-grown tree, and say 'I seek shelter' in any language. That will bring you back to this land. With this, we have a safe sanctuary to return to whenever we need. Now, shall we go?"

[Nioca]

"....wait, they already-? But, why- no, nevermind." Syli shakes her head. "I was hoping they might actually help us more directly, seeing as something very obviously is going on, but... well, at least they've been warned something's happening."

"Gotta be honest here, though; the more we find out about this, the more convinced I am we're getting in way over our heads."

[Rodgeir]

"I'm entirely in argeement on all your points Syli. We are not getting paid enough for this and not gettin' paid anythin' to report back."

[WearsHats]

Wasn't thinking. Kal should have assisted Merric.

[thinkslogically]

((He still can Merric can reroll those investigations for advantage if he wants to)).

[Theis2]

Seems these rolls were overall better than before

Investigation Advantage here: 1D20+3 = [5]+3 = 8
1D20+3 = [15]+3 = 18
1D20+3 = [6]+3 = 9
1D20+3 = [18]+3 = 21
1D20+3 = [11]+3 = 14 worse than the 17 from before

[thinkslogically]

Druid Group
Deciding they are more than ready to leave, the group gather their things and say their goodbyes to Gorrock and Tam. Tam says a few words and places his hands on the trunk of the tree he was sleeping under and the bark shimmers just the tiniest bit. To Varsk's eye, nothing seems any different, but the others sense an arcane change in the air around them, as if a great space just opened up in front of them.

"Go on then. Put your hands on the trunk and you'll be off."

One at a time, the group do as they're told and suddenly, everything shifts. Gone is the peaceful, cheerful quiet of the Sanctuary, and the group step back into the baking, sweaty, humidity of the swamp. The unpleasant tang of the acrid fumes from the Blood River sting your eyes and noses, and catches at your throats. You all almost immediately miss having dry feet and the sensation of not sweating through your clothes 24 hours a day.

The dense forest crowds in around you, feeling unnaturally quiet compared to the wild bustle of the Sanctuary. Behind you all stands another large banyan tree, but many of its large limbs have collapsed and fallen to the ground in rotting splinters, and greedy parasitic vines creep up the trunk. Syli is struck by how old and sick this tree appears, especially compared to the vigorous, vibrant trees of the Sanctuary. It feels empty somehow, and the realisation fills her with a sudden pang of sadness.

Gwen by comparison is quick to spot the tell-tale signs of humanity nearby, and quickly discovers an overgrown path leading about 200 m (~650 feet) ahead. There are signs of an overgrown, unkept garden; the sharp tang from an nearby outhouse and the gentle sound of running water. A small hut sits on raised legs. The roof is overgrown with moss, the window shutters are closed and the door seems to bulge just a little out of the doorframe. The house is towing a very fine line between "rustic cute" and "dilapidated", but definitely seems to be swinging more towards the latter. There is a small balcony around the front of the house at the top of a short staircase leading up from the wet ground. There appears to be something, perhaps a person, on the balcony but they are unmoving.

((How would you like to proceed?))

Lizard Group

Kal takes a look at the vial of liquid. It seems thick gloopy, but given that it might be spider venom he decides against giving it a very thorough examination.

Merric sits himself down on the floor and starts rummaging through the pile of items while Kal provides helpful insight as they go.

Slick gloves & apron (8)
These are definitely infused with some kind of magic, but the pair aren't able to easily determine what it might be. Merric gets a bit more of a hint about the gloves properties when he puts them on and suddenly finds himself utterly unable to hold anything in his grip. After dropping the spools of thread four or five times, he takes them off.

Eight pools of fine thread (18)
Kal is a big help here, and almost immediately identifies the thread as natural spider silk, that has somehow been stripped of its stickiness and glue. What's left seems to be a very high-quality product.

Spider shackles [fit on small-size creatures] with key (9)
These are strange. The markings on them seem to certainly be arcane in nature, but book learning really isn't either of your strong suits, and you're not able to get a good read on what the markings mean. Merric thinks one of them might mean "lock", but Kal is quick to point out that that seems redundant on a set of shackles.

Six unmarked potions plus a nearly-empty Demijohn of more pale-blue potion (21):
A quick sniff of the blue potions, and Merric quickly recognises the characteristic aroma of a Potion of Slipperiness. The demi-john contains more of the same. The thick white potions are a bit of a mystery, but it seems that they contain some sort of glue, perhaps derived from the spider silk itself.

Box of rotten spider eggs (17):
Amongst the box of rot and goop and corpses, Merric finds half a dozen unhatched, intact spider eggs. Two are smooth and translucent white and pale blue; four are a pale brown with little blunt spiky bits poking out of them.

----------------------------------------------

[Dlover]

Mehr begins slowly walking toward the building. Once within earshot, he calls out, "Greetings! Are you the one the druids call friend?"

[Rodgeir]

Varsk hangs back to not alarm the resident with the number of strangers coming in. He doesn't try to hide either.

[Nioca]

Syli stares at the dead tree for a few moment more, before turning and following after Mehriv.

[thinkslogically]

Druid Group
The group decide to approach the hut directly, walking up towards the main entrance. When Mehriv judges they are close enough, he calls out a greeting to what appears to be an old dragonborn sitting in a chair on the balcony, with a heavy blanket covering his knees and another wrapped around his shoulders. With a loud snort, he raises his head briefly, before letting it drop into his chest again but he doesn't respond.

A moment later, a young elf comes rushing out of the little hut, looking around for the source of the disturbance. Spotting you approach, he gesticulates angrily at you, as he hurries down the steps.

"Sssh! SSht!! Can't you see he's sleeping? He's in no state for visitors. I'm sorry you've wasted a trip, but you need to leave."