Session 431– The Divine Deception

The Story So Far

Ash - An expert in the occult and a skilled monster hunter. Ash uses his talents and budding alchemical expertise to battle what people fear most for a price.

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Ryobi - A monk of the embattled Order of the Warriors of Mameka. Ryobi is given an important mission: retrieve the holy blades containing the souls of his brother knights, which were lost in the recent Rethemi civil war.

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They are joined by Vinzent, a bard with a morbid demeanor and a haunted past.

This is the continuation of Session 429 – The Horn of Tacines.

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5^th of Peonu (Spring) 729TR

After a botched mission, the heroes become outlaws, wanted for mass murder, robbery, and blasphemy. They have escaped to the distant, enigmatic Karejian Islands. The illustrious trio has been hired by Tryfon el Frangatos, a sickly noble, to kill the mighty Aegesir Karkanos and supply him with a sample of his venom.

The legendary Horn of Tacines is believed to be able to summon and weaken the epic Aegesir. Tarcines is a mythic hero who killed the Karanos, and his mausoleum is located just outside the city. This artifact, lost for centuries, was discovered by the noble Vasso el Rematos in an underground chamber when renovating his villa. Vasso has hired the wizard Xenagoras to extract, intact, from a wall of “solidified goo.”

The heroes plan to “acquire” the genuine horn and substitute it with a fake. Their first attempt failed, as they were unable to extract the horn from the wall; however, they managed to escape without being detected.

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Location: City of Perstrona.

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Part 1 – The Botch Up

The next day, the heroes return to the streets outside the Rematos Villa, and Ash creates a potion that will increase his sense of hearing. He hears the wizard Xenagoras arrive to continue Disintegrating the black goo encasing the horn. Around midday, a confrontation occurs, a heated argument between the wizard and the noble Vasso el Rematos. Vasso claims the wizard’s disintegration magic has damaged the horn.

Soon, a priestess from the Mausoleum of Tacines arrives to supervise the excavation. Despite the moral guidance this priestess of Varani offers, the wizard apparently makes a mistake once again, disintegrating another hole in the horn and severely damaging it. Vasso el Rematos is furious and rudely dismisses the wizard. He shouts, “Get me a stone cutter,” to one of his servants. The young man sets about his task, heading to the craftsman section of the city.

Part 2 – The Deaf and Dumb Stone Cutter

The trio rushes across the city ahead of the servant. Seeing a stone cutter workshop, one specializing in small statues, Vincent quickly purchases a handful of his best work, and while distracted, Ash steals some of his tools.

As the servant approaches Ryobi, he “accidentally” trips him and helps him up. Fortunately, Ryobi introduces his friend Ash, a deaf and mute stone cutter, who is just what the craftsman's servant needs. He is impressed with the workmanship he is shown, and more so that the stone cutter is willing to work for a pittance, so he agrees to take them to his master.

Ash, playing the role of the stone cutter, attempts to cut away the solidified black goo under intense observation by Vasso el Rematos and the Varani priestess, Serolan Laena. He is highly successful; the material shatters and peels off the horn like a shell from a boiled egg. Sadly, the horn is too severely damaged, allegedly from the wizard’s incompetence, for Ash to substitute it with the fake at this time. Vasso and the priestess are ecstatic, and the trio is well-paid for their efforts.

Ryobi offers Ash’s services to repair it. Vasso agrees, but this must be under the watchful supervision of a master brass worker and two Varani paladins. The group visits a Brassworker known to Vasso and rents space on his forge. Once again, Ash proves to be a skilled craftsman, patching the horn competently. However, due to the intense scrutiny, he has no opportunity to replace it with a fake. Again, they are well paid and given the honor of accompanying the Priestess to the Mausoleum of Tacines when the horn is to be displayed.

Part 3 – Stealing The Horn

The heroes follow the priestess and holy knights into the well-guarded shrine next to the mausoleum. As a devoted worshiper of the god Agrik, Ryobi hopes that he doesn’t burst into flames entering the temple. Walking past the statue of the crimson-winged lion Mendiz, the heroes spot three secure cases. One displays Tarcine's shield, another spear, and the center one is empty. The horn is placed within, covered with a red cloth, and the cabinet is locked, although Ash and Vinzent spot the presence of a magical warding. The party is invited to the next open mass, where the horn will be presented to the world in 4 days.

The next day, Ash modifies the fake horn, ensuring it matches the original as closely as possible, including imperfections and repairs. Meanwhile, Vinzent and Ryobi camp out near the Mausoleum, noting the comings and goings. Soon, various notables, including city archons, nobles, wealthy merchants, and priests from nearby city-states, arrive for private viewings.

So, the heroes come up with a new plan. Using Vinzent’s magical disguises, Ryobi takes the appearance of a massive, boisterous, bearded priest named Bishop Blessed from the distant Harnic Kingdom of Melderyn, who is on a world tour. Ash appears as an Lady of Paladins knight, and Vinzent as a junior priest and translator.

The Priestess welcomes them, proudly seeking to show off her new holy relic, and is persuaded to allow Bishop Blessed to hold the horn. Vinzent discretely mutters an incantation, and suddenly the priestess loses balance. Ryobi quickly hands the horn to Ash so he gallantly steadies the Priestess. With all the attention in the room focused on the fainting priestess Ash, using his sleight of hand skills, swaps the original with the fake.

The embarrassed Priestess thanks Ryobi and places the counterfeit horn in the case, unaware of the deception that has been perpetrated. The heroes then leave and make their escape.

Created Content

Nothing this week.

Related Reports

City of Perstrona.

Player Characters

Ryobi - Human - L13 Monk

Background - Temple Guard.

Archetypes - Barbarian/Fighter.

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Ash - Human - L13 Thaumaturge

Background - Weaponcrafter.

Archetypes - Alchemist.

NPC Companion

Vinzent - Human - L13 Bard

Background - Cursed.

Archetypes - Blessed/Disciple of Thalia.

Next Session

Session 433 - The Siren.