04 - 01/17 : Queenslayer

After a much needed long rest, Sendra met with the party in the Seven Stars to give Yunaleth the confiscated spellbook of Rimbleskimp Rofferton, as well as some leftover magical reagents to help with copying spells. She also suggested that the party ask around about the next mission locations, recommending speaking to the sailors in the docks or the Queen’s Glaive about the island or talking to some of the Frostbrand dwarves about the mines. Starting with the Queen’s Glaive, the party parlayed with Urshar Frostbrand, the dwarven proprietress of the Glaive and an ex-miner. She recommended that the party use drink to encourage the sailors to talk about the island, as it was something none of them were too keen to speak of. Yunaleth announced that she would give free drinks to anyone who told them about the island, but the upfront questioning caused the tavern-goers to steer clear of the party. With that avenue gone, the party decided to try the docks, but spoke with Urshar about the mines first. She had joined the mining company shortly after that mine had been abandoned, but knew that miners had been disappearing without a trace shortly after an earthquake. She also knew that the mine had veins of Red Ruthrophilite, or Red Ruth, a mineral with the unique property of absorbing sound. A little made the holder quieter, but a large vein left the nearby area completely silent.   At the docks, the party decided to try to be a bit more subtle in their interrogation. Chesterfield attempted to bluff the info out of the dockworkers, Draltha put the sailors’ pride into question, and Yunaleth played the role of an uninformed merchant. While Chesterfield’s bluster proved too easy to see through, Draltha and Yunaleth were able to gain some information. They learned that The island was called Scarvosa’s Tomb, and was thought to be cursed. Those that went near it claimed to see the dead moving and heard the screams of the damned. A strong undertow wrecked ships that sailed too close and any scouts sent to investigate the island never returned to their ships. A brief trip to Everlight University also informed the party that Scarvosa was a pirate who was active several decades ago and disappeared without a trace in official records.   With their information gathered, the party visited Vilya to see about getting some potions. Vilya and the large number of myconid sprouts accompanying their elder, whom Vilya refers to as Grandpa Toadstool, greeted the party. Vilya offered the party potions for cheap for saving her life, although she was restricted in how many she could make in short notice. She also agreed to make the party some potions of water breathing for free, though this would take even more time to complete. With that taken care of, the party returned to the Seven Stars to meet with their new temporary teammate, Enslo Branith. They agreed to meet at the mine the next day, then the party enjoyed a night of revelry before turning in for the day.   The party began their investigation of the mines, finding them in relatively stable condition but also finding a concerning number of webs along the walls. While looking into a particularly dense area of webbing, they were attacked by a pair of phase spiders and a phase ettercap. The ambushers were taken care of, and Draltha burned the rest of the webbing in the area, finding the corpses of several dwarven miners and giving them a proper burial.   As the party proceeded, they came across a large chasm in the mines. Yunaleth had a close encounter as the ground near the lip of the chasm gave way, forcing her to misty step to safety to avoid falling into the pit. As she investigated the other side, they found it to be a dead end, but found a tunnel at the bottom of the chasm. The party also found that the chasm was completely silent, realizing that there was a vein of Red Ruthrophilite along the walls of the chasm. Using one of the ladder patches from Chesterfield’s Robe of Useful Items to fill the gap, Yunaleth rejoined the party. Then everyone descended down the chasm with a rope anchored to the remaining minecart track, with Draltha ensuring the party gets to the bottom safely before making her down herself.   During their descent, more phase spiders attacked the party while still in the silent area of the Red Ruthrophilite. They managed to safely descend and finish off the spiders before taking in the area they found themselves in, a large den covered in spider webs and silk-wrapped corpses. As Draltha attempted to set the webs ablaze, a gigantic Phase Spider Queen appeared, attacking the party in her lair. After a few close calls, the party managed to finish her off, finally taking a moment to catch their breath, when one of the cocooned bodies suddenly started to move.