Season 7, Episode 6: "Barrow or Bust" Report

General Summary

After great consideration, the Dream Team decided to return to the fabled lands of Golarion, eager to find the elusive Glasswing and a shepherd's Crook.
The found the Starwatch eating breakfast, alarmed at the sudden return of their spirits after so many months away, belabored with messages about experience and deeds complete, claiming that they had reached Level 9 in the eyes of the System. After coming to terms with the spirits' influence, Vivian decided it was a fine day to check out the Library of the Arcanamirium, and began to pack up the party for a dusty outing.
Meanwhile, Styx and Gerald snuck into the dungeons to pray to the Devil, transferring all of the recent code phrases Isra had obtained from the Hellknights. But rather than responding in code, Asmodeus spoke in Infernal, stating that "all sheep follow the shepherd", and pushed Isra (through Styx) to relay the message.
An eagle ride later, the Starwatch began their now-infamous ritual of digging through the library, hoping their new senses and skills would end this side quest once and for all. While initally unsuccessful, the group eventually found a secret dumb waiter by a set of stairs, which Esmerelda used to descend to unknown floors. After an uncomfortable encounter with the Crypt Keeper and some eerie wasps, she located a metal arch in an abandoned hallway, and walked through before her friends could protest.
Within, she saw a scene very similar to the cliffs in Night, specifically the one that overlooks the ruins of the Rookery, blended together with the scene from "The Howl". After claiming the Glasswing perched on the woman's lips, Ez watched as some calamity tore the Rookery apart, saved at the last second by a pale hand in darkness. As the woman rose to attack Ez, a similar hand intervened, and then pushed Ez from the pocket plane and back into the Arcanimirium.
As the Goblin returned, Vivian found that the Glasswing had appeared in her hand. She consumed the butterfly as per the terms of her quest, and back on the Material Plane Tesin's hands flared with a White Flame.
At last, no one could stop Styx (a.k.a. Isra) from pushing the Starwatch towards the Titan's Fountain, and the secret entrance to the Barrow Garden. While it was not immediately obvious, they soon located a glitch in the overlying system, which transported them to a pocket plane seemingly separate from Absalom. In a forest of autumnal leaves similar to the scene in "The Arrow", the gatekeeper assured Styx that she would come to no harm, and asked her questions about her tribe, patron spirit, and bonded elements (themes the group identified as unique to the culture of the People of the Maelstrom).
Eventually, the monk decided she could stall no longer, and walked the path forward on her own. At the summit, the Centurion fired a calculated arrow, which Styx caught before it could reach her heart. Surprised, the Centurion moved in closer to investigate, and began talking to Isra directly. He seemed surprised that she was "still Isra", and had not returned to being Wynrey. This confusion seemed to draw out Rufus Geldenleaf, who appeared covered in filthy rags and bandages, pestering Isra about her current circumstances, and events back on the Material Plane.
He seemed greatly troubled by her answers, growing increasingly irate throughout the conversation, eventually telling Isra that he would hear no more, but called her "Sarah" instead of her actual name. He cautioned "Ao" (while speaking to the Centurion) about their lack of time, and decided that Isra would be the catalyst for putting things back on track. He pointed her towards the Crook, telling her to bring it to the Shadari Confederacy, and threatened that three people she loved would die if she did not.
Then the Barrow Garden faded away, and the group found themselves surrounded by guards, who had been alerted to their tampering just before the Starwatch had disappeared in broad daylight. Ez distracted them long enough for Aziz to find a way to control the fountain, utilizing his newfound knowledge for the True Name "Pulse", opening the fist and revealing the Crook within. As Styx grabbed the glitchy object, it disappeared from Golarion, and then Gerald called the party back to Starwatch Keep before they could be arrested.
All conversation was cut short as Melody forced a party-wide logout, alarm systems blaring as she strapped Isra's pod closed, and the Crook inside thrummed with eldritch power...

Rewards Granted

Tarot Deck

• No changes.

Loot

• Isra was awarded a Crook by the System.
• Similarly, Tesin was awarded a White Flame.

Created Content

New and updated articles for:

• Mantle of the Shepherd

Notes

I knew that Ez's player would get to the bottom of the shaft in the library (instead of taking the convential route to the same place) to encounter those wasps, but I assumed she would just jump straight down and eat the fall damage. Instead, she tried the normal route before some bad rolls alerted the Crypt Keeper, and leapt down during the escape.
Still. I prepped for that shit.

Campaign

The Centurion's Riddle

Protagonists

Flame in the Night

Tesin Movahesh

Thunder in the Mist

Lockette Endrinmaster 12 2.0

Isra

Report Date

28 Feb 2022

Primary Location

Absalom

Secondary Location

Barrow Garden