Campaign Journal #5: Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part IV—and a Murder Mystery!

The Main Cast, our player characters:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

The Supporting Cast, non-player characters:

• Aethert, member of the Pennydelvers
• Ilfa Thurk, a prisoner

See the full cast list at Campaigns in Elsemorn.

Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part IV—and a Murder Mystery!

We rejoin the party as they puzzle their way through the "Proceedings of The Longdays Society". The journal opens:

Proceedings of The Longdays Society

These records may not leave the Rose House. All members here are secret sworn.

The writing is spidery and cryptic, not easy to decipher. They make out some topics on the first pages:

• Myrinul now stable, outer Myrun crumbling, must be watched
• Fall of Forric, Clovenhorn and Dreya besieged
• Earthquakes increasing, research high priority

There are four...signatures? initials? nicknames?...at the end of the first page:

• B
• KF
• RP
• MA

Our heroes return the journal to its hiding place and then backtrack to face the suit of animated armor. They display excellent battle awareness, avoiding telegraphed attacks like seasoned adventurers, until Kodrak deals the final blow.

Behind the armor are a dozen prison cells, all destroyed by the animated armor—which Barclay reasons was magically corrupted. A thirteenth cell is untouched. The party opens the cell, discovering a prisoner named Ilfa Thurk. Thurk's clothes are out of fashion and his mind is broken, after living in the cell for (seemingly) centuries. He repeatedly asks for his freedom and the party eventually says that he can go. Thurk then transforms into a cat-like being—or, more likely, drops his illusion—and teleports away.

The party leaves the dungeon only to face arrest for the murder of the three Cassevallan agents. They have a solid alibi—the gnomish artist Heyzzzel—and after some convincing, they're allowed to help investigate the murders. The evidence suggests that the Cassevallans were ambushed outside town, and the attacker(s) used some unknown desiccant poison.

Needing clarification about his orders, Barclay meets with a member of Whitsleaf. He is asked to continue working with Bartholmew—for now—and also to watch himself. The guild is aware of the murders and everyone is on edge....

Soundtrack:

• Combat with the animated armor: Scouter, Scouter (2011)
• Remainder of the session: Daniel Pemberton, The Dark Crystal Age of Resistance, Vol. 1 (2019)

Campaign Journal #4: Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part III

The Main Cast, our player characters:

• Barclay Stone (he/him), human bard (college of eloquence)
• Kodrak Kukkerlun (he/him), dwarven fighter (battle master)
• Raehendra Tiddlybumpkin (she/her), gnomish ranger (hunter)
• Renn Summerstar (he/him), elven cleric of Lioris (twilight domain)
• Sentie Rancis (they/them), human wizard (school of transmutation)

The Supporting Cast, non-player characters:

• Aethert, member of the Pennydelvers

See the full cast list at Campaigns in Elsemorn.

Thyrre & The Dungeon, Part III

Our heroes find themselves in a roughly circular room, with a suit of animated armor staring them down through a grated door. In time, the armor turns around and continues its designated path.

Kodrak and Sentie explore through another grated door, triggering a trap. The doors around them close and water begins to fill the chamber. The two investigate a statue in the center of the room, believing that it will reset the trap. They each move an arm and the water begins to drain. At the same time, Renn pries open one of the doors, flooding the initial circular room.

The party continues into a smaller room, with a plaque that reads "A golden tail, a golden head, and spellbound so that light does shed." next to a slot. After some trial and error, Barclay slides in Aethert's gold coin enchanted with Continual Flame. The dungeon is now illuminated by previously-disguised lights.

Kodrak explores a fourth room, this one dominated by two large metal tanks and two alcoves with magical stones. The stones resemble the debris from the earlier scorched room, leading the party to believe that the stones are dangerous.

Continuing on, our heroes meet some merfolk, get some ancient coins and give them rations in return.

After that, the party discovers an opulent room with comfortable tables and chairs, bookshelves, a schematic explaining how to use the metal tank room, and a portrait. A metal plaque attached to the frame reads "Earl Nathye Falkor, Lord of the Falconmarch, with family and court". The portrait shows a man (presumably the Earl), seated, wearing a military uniform. Seated at his side is his wife. Standing next to the Earl is a boy, around 8 years old, wearing a uniform typical of an altar boy. Kneeling next to the woman is a young woman, perhaps 16. Both wear ball gowns. In the background are perhaps a dozen others, wearing suits typical of courtiers—they are also painted with less detail. All of the clothing and decorations seem expensive and were likely fashionable for their time, but they now appear outdated and tacky.

Opposite the portrait is a mirror that reveals illusions, but also shows things as they are now? It's not entirely clear how it works. But looking at the portrait in the mirror shows that everyone is a skeleton, except for the boy next to the Earl and one of the courtiers in the back. The mirror also highlights a book on the shelf that, when pulled, opens a maze-like passage.

At the end of the passage is a domed room made from a cavern. The walls are black and set with metal and gems that form constellations. (They are the same constellations in the sky around the Longdays Festival. That is to say, now.) The metal and gem constellations readily reflect the party's lantern light, illuminating the room. Most of the stalactites have been removed, but a strip of them remains, giving a Milky-Way-like effect across the "sky" of the room. In the center of the room is a cottage and beyond it is an iris door/window.

The cottage contains a quaint kitchen and dining room as well as a meeting room with several chairs. On the wall is a window with multiple shades of green glass—like a stained glass window but almost monochromatic. When the iris window is opened, the equinox sun shines through, turning some green glass to red. (This was inspired by the Lycurgus Cup.) These red beams shine on specific spots on the cottage's floor that, when pushed, open a panel in the wall. Inside is the "Proceedings of The Longdays Society". When moving chairs to push the buttons, the party also discovered a silver ring engraved with the letters "M+R".

Soundtrack: Daniel Pemberton, The Dark Crystal Age of Resistance, Vol. 1 (2019)