Kora asks "does anybody have a still-living mentor who might be able to Analyze the dweomer on the tainted Tear to give us more information?"

"I just need the right collections of books and I may be able to devise a solution.  And possibly get a better idea of the staff and heart origins."  The elven mage suggested, carefully sliding the burnt tome shut and offering it out.  "In the meanwhile, would anyone else care to have a look at this?  There is a puzzle within that may lead to some other lost relic as well."

Kora digs into his pack and pulls out a wand. "I'm not much of a scholar, but I'm willing to give it a try."

Keliantharas handed the burnt book to Kora and the minotaur flipped through it.

Kora uses the Wand of Comprehend Languages as needed.

PM

"I would love to take a look as well," Tavion said. "Fjona Goldstone from the temple of Shinare might be willing to help us with the artifacts, although I suspect that will result in every merchant knowing about our find."

"Puzzles, to add to curiosities - this is indeed a path of interests.

"By all means, share the puzzle, that we might lend together minds and perspectives to thy task.  Even the simplest of minds as mine might bring a simple insight - or make those of greater intellect feeling supported in feeling of challenges, ho ho!"  The centaur did seem interested more than idly, but also did a poor result in concealing that while he was effortlessly stronger than all assembled... he also felt significantly limited in knowledge compared to the party and their magical powers and insight.

The group gathered around the burned book.

Most of the text was covered in soot and illegible. Parts of pages had been lost to fire. But it seemed to have been written by someone called Irren Bridgeguard. Excerpts from the book:

"My dreams told me of an object that once belonged in the Palace of Quinari in the Kingdom of Silvanesti. An object that now belongs in your hands, as the mystery beings."

It mentioned the city of Kalaman.

"The key that you hold is an ancient one, but not what you first believe. It opens a passage that is not one and leads to the bones of eve. It is something that you cannot hold, but you have to carry well. Paladine and Takhisis think they are something you cannot sell. The eye of lore must join as one to make the passage near. Was formal red, now wilder white and has the shadow dear."

Those three entries seem to be related. Other entries make it seem like a journal.

"Formal Red, then White. Could that be a reference to a particular wizard?" Kora asks.

"It does not sound like a physical object to me: 'It opens a passage that is not one', the key is 'not what you first believe', and 'cannot hold but must carry well', this sounds like a flowery way of talking about a virtue to me." Tavion said as he squinted at the journal.

GM passing a message.

Talrand chewed upon the words, considering, rolling them through his mouth for verbal flavour.

"Agreed.  It doesn't sound a physical object, but the reference within thine book of something found in lost elven city suggests tied to an object.

"Cannot hold but carry well.  Carry well?  _Must_ carry well.  thou could carry water in a bucket, and thou must be careful, or act with integrity, but then one doth beith such.  Must carry well.  Music?  Perhaps a music book?  Do you have any musical books, or musical instruments that you have found?  The elves are known well for the quality of their musical instruments, and beauty of their songs.

"Was this book upon the miscreants here, or previously within thy possession?"

Kora comment brought a nod of agreement from Talrand. "Thy words beareth the ring of verisimilitude.  Ho ho, perhaps a ring of bells!

"The eye of lore - what meaneth such?  Must join as one to open the passage-not-a-passage.  Was red, white, black - that definitely suggests the mage orders.  Must the three orders come together to do something?  Was there a time or place where such occurred?  Or the three moon-gods of magic?  Magical words of power?  No, no.. to do well, not to do a good job - musical instruments again?

"Music magic brought together opens to the bones of eve - bones of eve.  What keeps us tall?  Structure?  No, no.  Graveyards?  Death?  Eve, come before - the past?  Musical magic opening a passage to the past, or to the spirits world?  But why then bones?  That is solid, tied to the world.  Perhaps a passage back through history, or see something tied, lingering on, not fully released?  Was wilder, dear, formal at different times in the past.  Yes, yes, that flows the stream of thought.  Something of past.."  The centaur's hooves clipped and clopped as he wandered about in thought.  From his wandering rumination, there was a suggestion such contemplation was perhaps more common for him in periods of wandering or isolation.

"And Kalaman.  What beith it known?  Why or for what there?  Something there held?  Or something lost to be recovered?  The miscreants here were recovering items long ago lost in the past..."

Almost forgetting the party, Talrand pulled out his recent book purchase, after all the discussion of the past, and started perusing as he and the others talked out possibilities.

Kora asks "could it be a tune that is carried? Thus the Key is musical in nature? Like the key of C?"

"We did not get an instrument, only the music box we found in Micah" Caitlin said and nodded in Kel's direction, since he was carrying the item.
This message was last edited by the player at 16:32, Tue 28 Nov 2023.

Tavion absorbed Talrand's rapid thoughts, pausing for a moment to organize his response. "'Bones of eve' does suggest a graveyard, and I've read before that the Dragons' Graveyard is near Kalaman. The mention of Paladine and Takhisis, pivotal figures of good and evil in draconic lore, can't be mere coincidence," he mused thoughtfully.

He glanced over the text once more, then said, "The 'eye of lore' could be an old term for what's known today as the Night of the Eye, a celestial event. It takes place once every 18 months, when the moons align fully, they create an 'eye' formation with the wizards' colors—white, red, and black. This seems to align with the text's imagery. However, the descriptors 'formal red' and 'wilder white' puzzle me. 'Wilder' typically refers to rogue wizards, an unusual way to depict Solinari."

Looking up at the night sky, Tavion observed, "With Solinari in its waxing gibbous phase and Lunitari at first quarter, the next Night of the Eye should be about a week away."
This message was last edited by the GM at 15:33, Tue 28 Nov 2023.

As the others continued guessing, Caitlin wondered about the significance of the book and the group of grave robbers. It appeared they were not just raiding tombs for profit but were gathering artifacts for something that could be a ritual in order to gain access to a place through a passage that was none. A magical gate perhaps. "Perhaps we can try to remove the dirt with a cleaning cantrip? Or undo the damage to the pages with a spell of mending?" the woman offered her thoughts. Maybe that would reveal some more hints at what the ritual could be for and if there were more items required to complete it.

The sorceress sighed, she had no formal education in the magic arts, so many clues escaped her. Packing away the skeleton staff and the other items that nobody laid claim to, she got back to her feet eventually and walked back to the chamber. Pulling out her magical torch Caitlin looked at the walls once again.
This message was last edited by the player at 23:02, Tue 28 Nov 2023.

GM passing a message.

Caitlin relaxed as the noise of the banter at the campfire became less disturbing, like the ever-present sounds in the forest. It allowed her to focus on the facts that she had read in the book and the assumptions her companions had spilled forth. Eventually she had had enough time to digest the information and figure out things for herself, and so she returned to the fire.

"I concur with Tavion on Kalamar and the draconic graveyard, although it is roughly 400 miles from here. Which means we would not be able to make it there before the Night of the Eye." the sorceress shared with her companions. "I'm assuming the music box, as it is of Elven make, could have been an item from the Palace of Quinari and it has a wind-up KEY." she added, stressing the last word. "But of course that is merely an assumption" Caitlin remarked, as they were all making educated guesses, but guesses nonetheless.

"Lastly, I would assume that the graverobbers, the spellcaster in particular, might know more about it all. Or he might know nothing, but honestly there are way too many coincidences for our presence to be purely coincidental." she said, shrugging.

The centaur nodded as party observations seemed to become increasingly on point, the shared knowledge and application weaving together tidbits of knowledge into a surprisingly clear insight about activity required.

"Ah, yes, yes - thy points hold great merit, methinks.  A key to an ancient elven music box plays a song that opens a magical gateway at the dragon graveyard.  To what?  For what purpose?  And why centered at a place of passage of such mighty and long-lived, powerful and knowledgeable creatures?  Oh... or is the graveyard at such a place for the very reason of the gateway?  Doth one bringeth the other?"

Talrand chewed mentally upon the deeper streams of meaning behind the nexus of two such imports.  Sensing the answer drifting, he changed strides, and returned to the issue of reaching it in time.

He stretched an arm across, into the dark, covering many future footsteps.
"For short distances, a couple miles' sprint would take but a minute or two.  Longer travel across country - my hooves have managed seventy miles a day... five-six days I have crossed such distance as 400 miles - though mine expectation is an insufficiency to carry all of thee and maintain such a pace.

"Haveth thou within thy masters magics of picking up folk and transporting them great distances?  Or ability to lighten weight?  Shrink size to mice or somesuch? Summon flying steeds as the great eagles of the high mountains?

"Ah... or to locate the spellcaster - we saw him here, so that bringeth something if familiarity?  That is important, is it not?  It is possible he might have such abilities... but if they rode and brought packmounts of supplies, it suggests perhaps the opposite, sadly.

"Or if not that caster, what of the Towers?  Are there aught that we could reach along path to speed us to Kalaman?  I have no understandings of their prices for such, though I suspect dear."

They discussed their current situation, the graverobbers, and the items they had discovered as they were setting up camp. They spent the night and Kora, Caitlin, and Talrand watched over them. The next morning they struck camp and prepared for the day.

Suddenly a Huge serpentine creature approached them on dozens of legs. It was a 40-feet-long blue-gray monstrosity with two large, curving, dangerous-looking horns.

[OOC: https://www.owlbear.rodeo/room...GD5laD/TheEightWords

Despite it being described as 40 feet long, it still only takes up 15 by 15 feet on the battle map and it doesn't look anything like the image I chose for it on Owlbear.

What do you do?]

Caitlin was thankful for the quiet night, giving her the time to calm her thoughts and sort them out. She was startled when the creature appeared and all she could do was engage her protective aura, still wondering if the monstrous centipede was a threat or not. Not wishing to drop her guard the battle sorceress readied her spear for an incoming charge...

ooc: Init 5. Activate Arcane Aegis, new AC22. Ready spear for a charge.
This message was last edited by the player at 09:46, Thu 07 Dec 2023.

Kora casts Divine Power and pulls out the Lance (at least the bonuses from the spell cancel the nonproficiency penalty).
This message was last edited by the player at 16:09, Fri 08 Dec 2023.

Moonflute takes a step back before calling down a pillar of flame upon the threat.

Move: 5ft step as shown
Standard: Cast Flame Strike, just behind the centipede so it doesn't hit the others, (hits for 26hp, 13 of which is fire, 13 of which is divine power, no saving throw)

12:47, Today: Moonflute rolled 26 using 7d6.  Flame Strike damage

Seeing the casters starting to wind up and deliver powerful spells against the creature, Talrand pursed his lips.  He abandoned the plan of staying defensively as Caitlin had wisely anticipated attack...

The creature's horns suggested a powerful being that liked to smash through or trample beneath.  Now, if someone could hold its attention while the rest took it down safely...

Before his thoughts had finished, Talrand was rushing forward, snapping out the flaming whip to curl hungrily around the larger foe, with an eye to pull himself to close the distance.

---

OOC:
Mv: 40 towards beastie
Sw: use the whip
Std: melee touch/grapple/dmg
Free: move into beast's square if grapple successful, to maintain grapple
20:29, Today: Talrand rolled 26,29,13 using 1D20+11,d20+21,d8+9.  Melee Tch Attk/Grapple/Dmg .
Touch26, Grapple 29, dmg13.

Caitlin used her magic and readied her spear.

Kora cast a spell and readied the Dragonlance.

Moonflute moved and cast a spell and a pillar of sparkling fire engulfed the creature.

Talrand moved toward the creature, grappled it with the Hellfire Lash at quite a distance, and the Hellfire Lash pulled him next to the creature.

The creature bit Talrand and as the Hellfire Lash was grappling it, it now also grappled Talrand. Inflicting additional damage to the centaur.

[
Caitlin's AC is now 22.
Kora: Attack +2. Str +6. 8 temporary hp. Dragonlance -4 to attack because of non-proficiency.
Talrand lost 17+11hp. He has 50 hp remaining. He is grappled.

The creature is grappled.
]

[OOC: What do you do?]
This message was last edited by the GM at 16:16, Fri 08 Dec 2023.