Foraging for Theonymphi Report
General Summary
Resting at the camp and eating some grapes, flung by Phil, to rest at bandit camp for three watches and a long rest. Surrounded by bear traps and in a slightly wooded area. Phil uses her Agatha's spoon and is able to conjure ale. Phil drank half on the road to the bandits and is letting the other drink the rest. Tetra takes the first watch with a 9 perception. Tetra cleans her sword of blood, wakes up Phil, and Phil enjoys a quiet break and plays her pan flute to keep herself awake. Wakes up Tyrael and tells him she mastered the A/B chord on flute, wonders how he can do it with a beak, he can't. Blows out candles on his cake with his nostrils. Long rest goes by without issues. Meelo and Tetra wake first and let Tyrael and Phil get their rest. They set the remaining horse free from the camp and make sure that there isn't anything else there that they need or want. There are a few hours left to travel to the fountain. They take the four bear traps with Tetra taking five damage from one while attempting to disarm it.
They reach the fountain and Hunter's Crossing and after fiddling with it for a moment realize that it is filled with quicksilver. Phil convinces Tyrael to reach into the well when Meelo sees a rounded something shining inside it. He pulls out the chakram and realizing he can't use it, gives it to Phil. He manages also to collect a branch from the silverbright bushes and Meelo collects five. They bundle up their goods from the bushes amongst the things they collected from the bandit hideout and head back toward Meletis.
On the way, they pass Krimnos again and see more statues have cropped up. Tetra fearing the worst, has them stop by the town to talk to the mayor who was supposed to send for help, Mayor Delec. They get inside the village and it is weirdly quiet. Too many statues. A few guards are standing at the market like before. She goes to speak to one of them and they learn that there has been another gorgon attack and that the captain and the mayor are missing. The mayor went with his wife to seek help from Meletis and the captain was on his rounds when he went missing. They decide to retrace his steps running a perimeter around the village to see if they can both find the gorgon corpse and apothecary. They find the gorgon corpse and it appears to be the mayor. They also see the guard has been petrified. They hear jingling bells in the forest beyond and think its the cart so they go after it.
They reach the cart and see the apothecary. They try to question them but they aren't very forthcoming with info and Tetra's insight check tells her that they are being off but hard to read. She suggests that Meelo try to identify the potion again or detect magic or something. He agrees but needs a distraction. The apothecary notices him but Tetra plays it off like he's just nuts. Tyrael, encountering the being for the first time, is very suspicious, and casts detect good and evil. Upon doing so sensing undead and just as Meelo finishes his detect magic see necromancy, the apothecary screams out and the illusion vanishes revealed a Return Palamnite.
They fight the creature, with Tetra and Tyrael getting a bit banged up. They are able to defeat it and in the final blow dealt by Tyrael- he flies up and drives his javelin down through the creature's neck, clavicle, through the ribs, and out through the back, impaled on the javelin, using his smiting ability. Normally, his smite's have a great implosion, life-consuming magic to them (as taught and practiced with the Cult of Erebos). This time is different. The implosion is gone and shock wave of energy instead radiates out with the sense of hot wind and dead leaves fall off him to the ground as it dies. They take a look at what the Returned has and looks like.
The Return's mask falls off. Very identity-less. They can have the mask and it also has little shrunken heads tied on strings to him. Returned masks are a hard sell. They take a short sword as well. Meelo identifies the potion as well. Explained how the gorgons were still humans internally. The Returned also had coins on their person, gold, but they look wrong. They are from Odunos, a Returned settlement. Meelo kinda understands that this Returned looks beefy and they tend to worship Phenax or Erebos. Meelo did read about them on the walk back and will detail when they have a second.
In the cart, there are five gold coins, vulture bones, and one Odunos gold coin affixed to a fake tree, which is made out of a branch from the ground, and a coin is hanging from it by a hole punched through it as well. Potentially three potions still out there. The horse is normal but hungry.
As they make they way back toward Krimnos, they see the gorgon body has reverted. They put the body and the statue of the captain on the cart to bring back to the other guard. The guard identifies the once gorgon as the mayor. The mayor's wife is also still unaccounted for. They say they'll keep an eye out and the guard describes her. They return the gold and keys to his house from the mayor to the guard. His wife, Helen, shortish, curly blond, blue eyes, older, will appreciate it. The captain is Antony. Agrees to help them in the area if they need it.
They pass the forest as they return to Meletis, and see the statue-made version of the mayor's wife- Helen. Most of Krimnos's population has been turned to stone.
They give the branches to Theo and they thank them, saying they'll give a discount to them and they can have first dibs on the potions. They pick a few more healing potions and while Meelo isn't super charming, Phil gets hers for free and slips the paid 40 gold into Meelo's pouch without him noticing.
Rewards Granted
chakram, branches for potion (see below), and a Returned mask worth 100 g. See above for cart contents.
Chakram- worth 15 gp, +1 to hit and damage, does 1d4 slashing, Finesse, Light, Thrown (Range 20/60)
Oil of Sharpness
Potion, very rare
This clear, gelatinous oil sparkles with tiny, ultrathin silver shards. The oil can coat one slashing or piercing weapon or up to 5 pieces of slashing or piercing ammunition. Applying the oil takes 1 minute. For 1 hour, the coated item is magical and has a +3 bonus to attack and damage rolls.
She'll be able to make six batches.
Missions/Quests Completed
Brought branches to Theonymphi and they are starting on the potions will take six months. Ridded the world of the Returned posing as an apothecary. Will need to speak to Filippa for more information on them, and better yet visit the library of the academy. Reached level 3.
Report Date
31 Aug 2020
Primary Location
Secondary Location
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