Session 18 - Shadow Curses

General Summary

  At the Cathedral of Abadar, Jayvielle and Grog searched the bodies with the assistance of Ottman Jalstin, a cleric of Abadar. Ottman pointed out what appeared to be a brand on the back of the cultist's neck - the mark of the Ebon Triad.  With the corpses relieved of their valuables, Jayvielle and Grog turned their attention to the shackled cultists and only survivor of the attack. The Knights of Abadar wanted to take her away, but Jayvielle gave the woman a chance to unburden her soul. She said she didn't expect to survive the attack, but she would have willingly sacrificed herself for the Overgod.   Back on the mean streets of Magnimar, Sheila Heidmarch and her husband Sir Canayven told Kilgor, Kumiko, and Gallious to gather themselves and head back to the Heidmarch Manor. They were going to offer assistance to the Cathedral of Abadar if they needed it. Before they departed, one of the Pathfinders accompanying them cast some sort of spell. Kilgor caught him, and the dwarf waved awkwardly before quickly departing with his companions.   Jayvielle and Grog, along with Ottman, joined the rest of the party. Ottman began providing healing assistance. Kumiko's keen eye caught movement from the assassin that had almost gutted Gallious. The shadows had begun to wrap around her, and a mist seemed to be rising from her body. Suddenly four portals opened and from them crawled swirling masses of blackened ooze with crocodile-shaped heads. The assassin rose to her feet, her eyes now black as the shadows that surrounded her, and the combat began. Sadly, Ottman was separated from the party and killed by one of the ooze demons. Sheila and Sir Canayven returned and offered some healing to the party. Sir Canayven returned Ottman to the Catheral and said he would try to see what he could do for the man. Sheila accompanied the party back to the Manor.   Sheila gave the runecarved key to her awakened giant gorilla companion, Prince Mandali, under strict instruction to keep the key safe. She led the party to her atrium for drinks and some relaxation after a trying evening. Everyone sat down at the great table, surrounded by trees and protected from the elements by glass walls. Sheila told the party that Brodert Quink approached her during the dinner party the other night and told her of the powerful and cursed item that the party had with them. He said he believed it was connected to the Sihedron somehow, and since she was a bit of an expert on the topic perhaps she would be able to help the Saviors of Sandpoint understand exactly what they had. She asked the party for their trust, and that with everything they have done for her and the Pathfinders in a short amount of time, she would repay the favor and aid them however she could.   One of the Pathfinders entered the atrium and began speaking to Sheila. During their conversation, the heroes convened and had a meeting of their own. They decided to trust Sheila with the shard. After the Pathfinder left, Sheila informed the heroes that Ottman was once again among the living and that he asked if the party was all right. Jayvielle produced the shard and asked Sheila if she knew what it was.   When Sheila saw the shard, she was shocked. She said she may know what it was, but in order to be sure, she wanted to attach an ioun stone to the indentation in the shard's face. If the shard reacted as she expected, her hunch would be correct. Sheila produced a scarlet-and-blue sphere ioun stone and placed it in the indentation. As soon as she did so, the ioun stone flashed and fused to the shard. Sheila explained that adding the ioun stone also suppressed the shard's curse and that it would now be safe to handle.   Still in awe, Sheila confessed that the party had produced a piece of the legendary Shattered Star of Xin: specifically, the Shard of Pride. She conveyed a bit of the history of the Shattered Star (see Notes below) and offered to keep the shard to conduct further research. But since the party found the shard, the decision as to what to do with the shard would ultimately be theirs to make. The party told her that someone called "the collector" was looking for the shards, seemed to have money and resources, and could be dangerous. They then gave her the shard.   Sheila confessed that she has a contact in the Order of Magnimar Security (OMS), a spy/intelligence network that walked the thin edge of the law to obtain information and keep the fuse of chaos from being lit in the city. The Chief Intelligencer owed Sheila a favor and may have some background on the auction bidders, and maybe even the Collector themself. Again, any information she discovered would be passed on to the Saviors of Sandpoint.   Sir Canayven and the Pathfinders then joined everyone in the atrium and celebrated late into the night.   The next morning, Sheila told the party that she would be sending them back to Sandpoint with one of her top pathfinders - a dwarf wizard named Anzin. Kilgor recognized him as the one who had cast something at them the night before. The heroes had told Sheila about the Thassalonian ruins beneath Thistletop and the Glassworks factory, so she would send Anzin to investigate the sites and report back to her with everything he found. Anzin used Scrolls of Teleport, as well as his own spells, transporting the party from Magnimar to the front doors of the Rusty Dragon in Sandpoint - a location, Anzin admitted, he was quite familiar with. He pushed the doors open and shouted to Bethana that the first round was on him.

Rewards Granted

• During the first round of drinks, Anzin presented the party with 500gp from Sheila.
• Also...

  DING LEVEL FIVE!

Missions/Quests Completed

• Delivered the Shard of Pride to Sheila Heidmarch for safekeeping and research.

Character(s) interacted with

• Sheila Heidmarch - The new Pathfinder Venture-Captain of Varisia with an active interest in ancient Thassilon, particularly Sihedron lore. Funds the Pathfinder lodge in Magnimar out of her own pocket. Wife of Sir Canayven Heidmarch.
• Sir Canayven Heidmarch - Retired adventurer/Pathfinder along with his Sheila. Currently sits on the Council of Ushers.
• Ottman Jalstin - A cleric of Abadar who often visited Sandpoint with his wife Kaylee Jalstin. He will assist Father Zantus with the occasional sermon but is more interested in the status of the Cathedral, which the Church of Abadar in Magnimar helped finance. Also suspected of having a gambling problem. Not afraid to enter combat when necessary.
• Anzin - Dwarf Wizard, and one of the top Pathfinders in Heidmarch Manor. May have a history in Sandpoint.

Notes

What is the Shattered Star?

  The Shattered Star was a powerful defensive item created well over 10,000 years ago by the founder of the empire of Thassilon, an exiled Azlanti named Xin. At that time, the item was known as the Sihedron—a seven-pointed star made of the seven skymetals infused with powerful magic. When the runelords rebelled against him, this item was broken into seven parts (at least, according to the legends), and the runelords each claimed a shard for their own. In the 10 millennia since Earthfall and the end of Thassilon, the shards have shifted locations, yet they have never been reassembled into the Sihedron.   Over the past several years, Sheila’s become something of an expert on Thassilon—the legacies of this ancient empire and its monuments and magic were the primary reason that the Pathfinders had become interested in Varisia. The story of the Shattered Star was one of the most oft-repeated legends of that time among those who write about ancient Thassilonian artifacts—surpassed only by the Seven Swords of Sin in popularity. Even so, the Shattered Star legend was still relatively obscure, yet Sheila had long hoped to stumble across the location of a shard. Never in a thousand years did she even dare to hope that a shard would simply fall into her lap like it had.