Session 1: Whispers of the Preserver

General Summary

Captain Sidnee Markesh, an explorer in the employ of Divinity College, has discovered the whereabouts of the lost Shrine of the Preserver. The Shrine is half-sunken in the marshes near the borders of Ard Almiead and Mezzaluna. Markesh’s expedition wasn’t able to penetrate or investigate the Shrine before misfortune befell them. A strange illness weakened the explorers as they traversed the swamps. Markesh and his sick colleagues were captured and nearly devoured by a tribe of bullywugs dwelling near the shrine. While Markesh narrowly escaped the cookpot, most of his trail mates and assistants weren’t so lucky. Those who survived, Markesh excepted, were later hunted and taken or killed by sahuagin slavers (the slavers sell their captives in Freeport). Markesh alone returned—starving, exhausted, diseased, and terrified—to report his discovery.   The Clerics of Divinity College are keen to unearth more lore about the Preserver. The Preserver is a little-known mythological figure whose legend originates from the era of the “toxic apocalypse.” Very little is known about this period of massive, fiery destruction, or about how the world recovered. Stories credit the Preserver with helping repair the global devastation and with repopulating nearly-extinct species. Some even speculate that the Preserver is responsible for introducing new races to Malatoria (e.g., elves, dwarves, and so on). But all mentions of the Preserver are from fragmentary and barely credible ancient sources, or appear in dubious secondary literature. The dearth of verifiable information leads some scholars to refuse to acknowledge the Preserver’s existence. But Tuli Anaximenes, the Colleague representing Divinity College, has ordered another expedition. If there is a Shrine to this “Preserver,” then perhaps dedicated archaeologists, theologians, linguists, and other scholars might piece together an account of the historical transition from fiery disorder to civilized order. This time, though, the Clerics are sending armed adventurers alongside the scholars and archaeologists. Captain Markesh, though hesitant to revisit the horrors of his prior journey, has agreed to lead the expedition.   The expedition "leader" is Pinkus MacEarthy, a professor from Divinity College. He's clearly not the adventuring type, but specializes in post-apocalypse mythology.   Other members of the crew are the Moonday Brothers and Theryn "Soupslinger", the halfling camp cook.   Also included in the expedition are Professor Tybalt Muse  the Human Paladin Tiberius the Honorable, the Dragonborn artificer Gharlos, and Tiefling Wizard Aemon 'Takar.   You will have roughly 72 hours before the expedition is assembled. Think about what your characters might want to do in that time. Larissa is a good sized city trafficking with many different cultures.