Curing the Half-Death

While looking for a cure on the Half-Death, adventurers can hear rumors that when there was a schism in the Sun Soul monks, those more focused on healing the ill went to the desert in hopes of saving slaves that had ran from the Yuan-Ti or other settlements. With them they took the cure to the Half-Death, though it is for the original poison and not the evolved one that Elustria uses. It is said that the monks founded a base of operations in a place they named the Sun Tomb, but it was ravaged by a group of Roc and with that the cure was lost.   Talking with Nerri Adaze, the head of the other sect of Sun Soul monks, will reveal a large but focused area of the desert where the tomb was believed to be, though it is not known for sure. She will also inform the party that though many of the monks died, it is said that one escaped and the last time she had heard was actually training a young woman named Gaia. Gaia would now likely be the last of them since the old monk would have died years ago, but their camp was in the area nearby where they should search for the tomb.   On the road to Gaia and the tomb, the party will find themselves faced by several adversities since the desert is not kind. Firstly, if it has been a week since the party was infected, they will begin to feel the effects of the poison hastened by the heat, and if they fail a DC 15 Constitution Saving throw, they will progress to the next stage of the poison (see the article on the Half-Death for specifics). Additionally, random encounters may prove difficult if the party has began to come down with exhaustion due to starvation or dehydration. However, if the party can make it the three days in the desert they will find Gaia's camp.   Walking around Gaia's camp may prove to be fatal if not taken lightly as the Half-Orc has taken the liberty of laying several snares that can be spotted with a DC 15 Investigation check. Being flipped upside down by the snare will also inflict 1d10 damage and set off an alarm spell sending Gaia out to get the trap. Inside the camp they will find a very minimal amount of belongings, with the only thing in excess being books and journals of monastic traditions and arcane studies. She will be polite to anyone who enters the camp but also skeptical, saying that being too trusting is what caused there to only be one monk left in the entire desert.   After examining the party using some alternative methods, she will see that they have been inflicted by the Half-Death and will ask how many others have been poisoned. Gaia will apologize to the party and say that she does not have the cure but that somewhere in the book there would be ingredients to make it. She will say that there is another option, the Vault of Atria. The Vault is in a nearby town and is said to hold a Seeker's Compass, a magically enchanted compass allowing it to be used to find any one person, place, or thing. This would allow the party to find the tomb which would have a medicine box with enough cure in it for her to replicate. She will tell the party that digging through the books and having to try each recipe would take two weeks even with their help but if they were to get the original it would only take a day (not including the time to get into the vault and then find the cure).   If the party chooses to help her, they can hurt as much as they help since they may not be proficient with an alchemists kit. Additionally, being exposed to the heat will risk speeding up the poison to the next phase for each three day period that they are not cured. It should be noted that after the fourth phase, an individual succumbs to the death and will become zombified, unable to be revived. If the party chooses to head to Atria, see the side quest/plot article Vault of Atria for details. The journey there will take half a day and Gaia will supply rations for either course of action the party takes.   Bringing the Seeker's Compass back to Gaia will allow her to picture the cure and the Sun Tomb, allowing the party to see the way they must go to find the tomb. See the Sun Tomb side quest/plot article if the party goes there. Defeating the mummified Sun Soul Head Bryant will give the party the cure to the Half-Death but also reveal to them that Elustria knew they were coming here and that they must act quickly.    Making the cure even with the correct recipe will take some supplies, Gaia will say that she needs the following:  -Blood of a giant -Bone dust of an ogre -Horn of a Minotaur skeleton   If the party entered the Sun Tomb, they would have found the Bone of the Ogre that she would need, but the other two recipes will need to be collected. If the party has a Minotaur or a Goliath, they can give a horn or their blood in order to formulate the cure. This will have effects on the player, giving them a -1 if they gave the blood from a Goliath or having disadvantage on horn attacks. These effects will be removed if the player is healed with cure wounds or lay on hands. Otherwise the effects will wear off after a day, if the player wishes the horn will grow back.   Once Gaia makes the cure she will warn the party that once they take it, it may not allow the poison to fully leave their system but it will reverse any effects. What this means is that they will still be seen as being poisoned to Elustria or one of her officers, additionally if they die they may not be able to be revived and will instead become zombified.