Physician, Heal Thyself

Something is wrong with the healing magic in Feodris. The Tower Kingdom has long sought out individuals who can cast healing magic to create healing potions and work in hospitals to cure the sick and injured. But lately, fewer and fewer new recruits can be found and many of the existing magical healers have quit their cushy jobs and refuse to cast any more healing spells. Those who can articulate why they don't want to heal anymore describe a sense of revulsion, a feeling of deep unease and vileness whenever they cast their spells.
The Song of Harmony demands that everyone be given access to healing magic when needed, but the hospitals are struggling to meet demand and they lose more good magically-sensitive individuals every day. Someone needs to look into this and figure out what's going on.

We're Here to Help

The PCs can begin to inquire about this matter as early as the first encounter if they choose to talk to Malonne Perra after the brawl in the Stewed Prune. Or they may encounter the issue in Cliffside when passing Telin's Hand Recovery Center. They may also choose to look into it the first time they cast a healing spell and the issue affects them. The THRC is short-staffed. Everyone the PCs meet when they enter is hurried, harried, and overworked. Eventually the PCs will get directed to Oliver Genberos. Oliver will insist he only has five minutes to spare but will lead the PCs to a small office down a series of winding, identical passageways. When the PCs ask about the issues with the healing spells, Oliver will sigh deeply and seem to wage a short internal battle. Eventually he'll decide it can't hurt and reveal the following information:

• Oliver himself is not a mage, he's more of an administrator, so most of what he knows is secondhand information and reports from the higher-ups at the Healing Hands Corruption Task Force.
• From what he understands, there have always been a small number of mages and clerics who experienced a revolting, unclean feeling when they tapped into healing magic, at least since The Collapse. For decades it was assumed to be an affliction of the individual caster. But the reports have been intensifying over the last few years and even casters who were able to heal others with no adverse side effects are reporting the symptoms.
• In recent months it seems to have gotten worse, and the recovery center has lost nearly a quarter of its staff.
• Oliver claims this would not normally be quite such a problem except that there is a kingdom-wide shortage of pixiepuff mushrooms as well, which has slowed manufacture of healing potions and raised prices beyond what local taxes can bear.
• Requests for aid from Healing Hands have been met with stonewall tactics—up until less than three weeks ago the official stance from the Arcanists Guild and Healing Hands was that there was no problem with magic itself, only inexperienced or burnt-out casters. Recently they did acknowledge (in a slippery sort of way) that they were working with the TSF to investigate "potential anomalies in ley energies."

Oliver is a bit at wit's end, and suggests that if the PCs want to help, they could try to visit Theleluma and talk to the elves there about their pixiepuff shortages. Or if they have any contacts in the TSF or Arcanists Guild, they might see if they can get an audience with the Corruption Task Force and get some leads from there.

Parent Plot

Tower Kingdom

Related Locations

• Telin's Hand Recovery Center