Discovery at Glastonbury Grove

After returning to Edinburgh following the clash at Tycho Moor, Denille received a summons from Prince Tepin Rathmore, the local lord of Edinburgh and paramount lord of all Scotland. Tepin explained that he was aware of Denille's secret research of magical arts. Instead of censuring him for practicing Witchcraft, Tepin revealed that he was looking to appoint a specialist to secretly advise him in magical matters.

At this point Tepin called forth Timothy McGregor and instructed him to engage Denille in a magical duel. The winner would be declared the Wizard of Edinburgh. Denille bested McGregor but not before a botched use of Wild Magic caused the two mages to permanently swap voices.

After dismissing McGregor, Prince Tepin confided in Denille. He explained that he had long understood that real magic was possible. He had known Denille's mentor, Bobo Victrix, and supported his early work many years ago. Tepin believed great discoveries could be made and had to be made before mastery of magic could fall into the power of Britannia's enemies.

At this point Tepin revealed that a war between Britannia and the Golden Empire of the The Phoenix Order was inevitable. In fact, Tepin believed the Phoenix Order was already trying to undermine the Britannian union through fomenting discord between England and Scotland. According to Tepin, the Phoenix had already struck the first blow by massacring the Machinist Clan, secretive technomancers who, according to the prince, had possessed a literal vault of technological secrets unearthed from the days of the Precursors. The Machinists had given Britannia an edge in science, but, with their destruction and the looting of their vault, the "science race" was now lost.

Seeking a new playing field for advantage, Tepin knew that Britannia needed to win the "magic race" if she was to have any chance of victory in the coming war against the Phoenix Order. As Wizard of Edinburgh, Denille would have access to considerable funds and resources in order to further his arcane research. Tepin asked only that the results of such research be put to use in defence of Britannia.

Tepin then asked Denille to undertake an exploratory mission. Secret agents of the Phoenix had been apprehended by Tepin's Britannian Special Service. The Phoenix spies had been found in the vicinity of Somerset County and carrying documents pertaining to a mission to be conducted in the area of Glastonbury Abbey. According to the intercepted Phoenix communique, an ancient treasury of significant arcane secrets lay hidden near the abbey. Tepin dispatched Denille to find the magical cache and secure control of it before the Phoenix Order could complete their mission.

Tepin also sent word of the counter operation to the newly invested Lord Salvor Dorrick, Earl of Lincoln, Chief of the Wargang, and Protector of the Realm. Salvor elected to rendezvous in Somerset with Denille and personally join the effort. The full party consisted of Salvor, Denille, and Denille's kinsman, Simon Lebeau.

While travelling the Devon Road near Glastonbury Abbey, the party was ambushed by a band of Phoenix Mind Blade assassins. After overcoming the threat, the trio made haste for the Abbey and started exploring.

After meeting with the Abbot of the church, an affable man named Father Hugh, the party began questioning some of the church brethren. They learned that Glastonbury Abbey was home to a religious sect known as Arthurians. Their cult believed King Arthur was a reincarnated form of Jesus Christ and that Jesus/Arthur would soon return again to save Britannia once more. To prepare for Arthur's return, the Arthurians would guard the tomb of the king until the time of the general resurrection.

Avoiding the notice of the abbey's brethren, the party started searching the temple. Preliminary research indicated that the Abbey complex housed the burial sites of King Arthur and Joseph of Arimathea. Though a mock up for the tomb of Arthur was uncovered, no genuine tomb was to be found.

The party proceeded to explore the surrounding area, including a nearby grove of apple trees. Within the grove the party encountered the Chalice Well and beyond that discovered a cave hidden amidst a rocky outcropping near the base of Glastonbury Tor. Within the cave they found a man-made antechamber containing a map of Britannia carved into the stone floor. Five areas were denoted on the map with red circles: Tycho Moor, Elgin, Glastonbury, Clava Cairn, and Southhampton.

Glastonbury Grove Map Key / Adventure Summary

1. Antechamber (map room)
2. Crawlspace Tunnel
3. Bottom of the Chalice Well (tentacle guardian encounter, Lady of the Lake!)
4. Deep water cave
5. Key room A (candle trap)
6. Brasden's Trophy Room (weapon and armour collection)
7. Secret Access Chamber
8. Key Room B (Four Heroes statue and heraldry puzzle)
9. Olivoix Showcase (obsidian plate armour)
10. River and Manfred Klinnsman Bowl chamber
11. Meeting Hall (cyborg sentinel encounter)
12. Tombs of Pierre Olivoix and Decker Chamberlain (exit tunnel leading up and out the side of Glastonbury Tor)
13. Chamberlain showcase

The first major discovery of the expedition was unearthed beneath the Abbey's chalice well. The party discovered an underground pool that reacted when Salvor approached. A vision of a woman bearing a sword appeared beneath the surface of the water and an unearthly voice identified Salvor as kin of the Pendragon clan. The voice confirmed that the tomb of Arthur was not located here, but offered the surprising revelation that one of Denille's relatives was buried in this place.

Further investigation of the tunnels revealed the tomb of Pierre Olivoix. The stone slab sealing the tomb was carefully decorated with Pierre's Heraldic Achievements laid upon it in a manner resembling restful repose. The figure bore a conspicuous red pendant necklace and held an impressive-looking sword bearing a distinctive pommel forged in the shape of a number "seven."

Nearby this a similar tomb had been constructed. This second tomb bore the remains of former Lord Protector Decker Chamberlain. The slab of the tomb bore the arms of the man and an inscription: "Hony soyt qui mal pence". A bronze loop was welded to the inscription plate and tied to it the party saw a faded blue cord.

The party recovered evidence from the adjacent chambers indicating that this warren of tunnels and crypts had been used by Fredrick Brasden as a base of operations some 40 years ago. Brasden had been the founder of the legendary band of "Four Heroes," the adventuring brotherhood that had challenged the Tetrarchy of Princes and defeated The Hidden Empire only a generation ago. Notes and plans recovered in the Glastonbury crypt revealed that Fredrick had discovered that the Dispute of Northern Succession was a manufactured crisis fomented by agents of the Hidden Empire. Unable to stop the ensuing war, Fredrick was helpless to prevent the senseless deaths of Lord Chamberlain and Marshall Centsol (OIivoix) at The Battle of Somerset in 957 PCE. After the battle Frederick secretly brought the bodies of Pierre and Decker to this base of operations in Glastonbury Grove. It was here that he started his personal campaign to unmask the Hidden Hand and end the tyranny of the Princes' reign.

Evidently, Brasden had been drawn to Glastonbury by rumours of magic and myth. Though his investigations had yielded nothing of material value (for example, there was no indication that the Lady of the Lake had revealed herself to Frederick), Frederick's notes indicated extensive research and willingness to pursue secrets related to "Telluric Currents" in a place called "Clava Cairn." It appears that Frederick was even more so drawn to stories he had heard out of County Brightmoon about mysterious happenings in the hills of Tycho Moor, and it is likely to assume that he discovered the Brightmoon Biodome and abandoned plans to explore Clava Cairn.

Dates:

September, 997 PCE

Player Characters:

Denille Olivoix
Salvor Dorrick

Plot type

Plot Summary