Quote from Guiltysparc >>

(also, i def thought gricks were tougher, elsewise i would have been heeding Drusk's suggestion on rage restraint)

(Grells and grick alphas are tougher.
It also doesn't help that Jorin is stealing all the good rolls from this site. Just got a 3 and a 4 in another campaign.

Keep in mind, the encounter was written for only the cult fanatic and the three underlings. The two gricks were optional, to make it tougher.
I suppose I could have changed what happened so they would act ahead of the party or not allow the party to prepare a plan, but that would have complicated things more than I wanted.)

Jorin unleashes on the grick to retaliate from the tentacle attack. The pieces of grick are scattered across the passageway.

Combat is over.

Seeing Quillary taking notes, Drusk comments: "I think the correct person is wearing that giant strength belt."
To Jorin: "I should end my spell to get closer to the prisoners. Is there anything else you saw, a reason I should keep the Spirit Guardians going?"

"One of the cultists looked to be the son of Old Fargo, though I fear his sins have caught up with him.  His father will have to grieve." he says, and points out the body to Drusk.

Quote from Guiltysparc >>

"One of the cultists looked to be the son of Old Fargo, though I fear his sins have caught up with him.  His father will have to grieve." he says, and points out the body to Drusk.

(Okay, I figured out the situation for Young Fargo.)

Did Young Fargo avoid the worst of the Erupting Earth spell? A save means 0 hp. A fail means dead. DEX save vs. DC 16: 15

Result: Young Fargo is clinging to life, barely avoiding the largest chunks of rock flying at him earlier.
Drusk will try to stabilize him. If the check fails, Drusk will burn a spell slot for Cure Wounds. Medicine check vs. DC 10: 17

(Phew!) Drusk has to work hard, but is just able to stabilize YF without having to use his limited spells.
"He will be unconscious for some time, but he won't die. Maybe this near-death experience will make him listen to his father."

Hildigrim and Quillary would have time to look around while Fargo is being treated.
(Drusk would recruit Jorin for nurse duties. "Hold him down while I set this leg."
I just noticed that Quillary has better Medicine, but she probably ran to the cell to check on the prisoners first.)

There were loose scrolls and parchments on the floor in the western room, that were being used to train the 3 novice cultists in spell casting. With Erupting Earth, they are scattered amongst the rubble. It would take some time to dig them out, without damaging them more.

There is nothing of note on the cult fanatic, Young Fargo, the other 2 cultists, or the 2 gricks.

In the eastern cell are 6 prisoners. They ask to be let out.
DC 15 Thieves' Tools DEX check required to open the cell door. If Hildigrim can wait until after Drusk finishes the medical treatment, then a Guidance can add a d4 to the roll.

The prisoners introduce themselves by name.

• 3 adults and a child are dressed in dirty merchants clothes, and are huddled together: Jalrax, Durz, Seffra, and Ashlan
• A young woman looks underfed, parched, and bruised. She is leaning on the wall, legs wobbly as she is standing: Yaeda Firenni. (You recognize that name as Mayor Kara’s sister.)
• A fighter-type in his mid-twenties has fresh dirt and bruises from a very recent beating, and still has most of his strength: Sir Vecken. (The name should ring a bell.)

Hildigrim walks in, holding one half of his broken arrow. He clicks his tongue at the splintered end and then tosses the useless piece of wood back over his shoulder. That's when he spots the corner of a piece of parchment sticking out from under a big piece of the floor. The halfling is at it in a flash and trying to move the rubble with his tiny arms.

Drusk's touch on his shoulder a little while later finally draws Hildi's attention from the potential knowledge. He looks up at the half-orc who motions to the cell with his chin. The halfling feels the cleric's prayer imbue him with a little extra something as he walks over, once again pulling his thieves' tools from their hidden place and preparing to spring the lock.

DEX + proficiency + guidance: 18

While Hildigrim was waiting for the cleric to be finished tending to Young Fargo, he goes through the ruble, trying to recover the parchments to see if they are still of use. Most were shredded by the rock shrapnel. To his disappointment, most were appropriate for neophytes, and too trivial to be of use.

However... Hildigrim does find a scroll of Counterspell, which he can put into his backpack for now.
(Remember there is a chance of spell failure when trying to read a scroll of higher level than you can use.)

With the blessing of Lliira giving him a confidence boost, Hildigrim is able to open the well-constructed lock on the cell door, without a key.

Jorin will offer what water and food he has on him to the prisoners after helping Drusk with injured Fargo.

They are grateful for the food and water, since what they've been given so far was barely palatable.

(Waiting for the decision of who the party wants to talk to, in what order, and about what topics.)

Quillary narrows her eyes at the Mayor’s sister, but addresses Sir Vecken, “You should accompany these others back to town, they will need protection,” she glances at the Mayor’s sister again, “And watching.”

(No pleasantries or questions, she’s all business. Though she is suspicious of the woman and will engage if she says anything.)

(With her Insight, Quillary doesn’t feel like testing these 6 about how and why they are in a cultist cell?
Maybe these are the people so evil that even the cultists don’t want them around… or maybe not.
Do Jorin or Hildigrim have any questions or comments?)

Well, she’s keeping an eye on them, and using her passive Insight (15) to notice if they seem squirrelly. If any of them do (Mayor’s sister) them she’ll look at them more closely (and make an active check). But she’s very into “rescue people, whomp evil,” right now.

(I have forgotten what the deal was with the mayor's sister?)

Jorin will ask the group of prisoners, "How did you find yourselves here?"

The prisoners look confused at what Jorin is asking.
Eventually, one of the adult merchants hesitantly speaks up: "The cultists put us in the cell against our will."

(I figured it would be good to mix some role-play with the dice-rolling.
The modules in the Candlekeep Mysteries tend to be more story-oriented.
If you are just here for the action, then we can skip the NPC talking.
Let me know, and I'll have them run off.)

Quillary addresses the man who just spoke. “You are merchants, yes? Taken on the road? What did the cultists want with you?”

Merchant: "Yes, we were on the Trade Way, going towards Waterdeep when masked thugs took us captive. They took the supplies, but were more concerned about getting the people. We've been here several days, but every day they take someone away and they never return. They took 2 people... a few hours ago (? hard to tell underground)... and the four of us are all that remain from our original group.

"The young lady has been longer than us. She is sometimes taken out, but is thrown back after a short time with fresh bruises. When they give us food and water, sometimes they keep it from her... The young lad just arrived, put here when they recently took the others away."

Quillary turns to the sister. “And you are the Mayor’s sister, yes? Who came to the cultists willingly?”

Full on Insight check: 14

(Sorry about the holiday delay.)

Quillary gazes intensely at Yaeda, alert for any falsehoods.
Yaeda's exhaustion causes her to mistake Quillary's intensity for concern about Yaeda's well-being. She gushes out her tale of woe. (No dishonesty.)

"I did not join a cult... or at least, when I joined I didn't think it was a cult. Lord Viallis seemed strong, passionate, not letting his family tragedy stopping him from trying to improve the life of others. He told us that we could restore this tower, and walk on a path to greater strength.

"After my last visit with my sister, I was certain that she was wrong, and I was going to prove it. I ended up seeing a ceremony that the Lord and his closest aides hid from most of us, where they brutally killed some poor traveler on the altar on the upper level. They were making sacrifices to some horrible... thing that I never heard of. After seeing that murder, I fled, but was caught on the road by one of the gang of thugs that kidnap travelers on the Trade Way. The Lord decided to make an example of me to the others, that "disloyalty" would be punished. They kept me from telling others about what is really going on here.

"I did not think I would live to make amends with Kara (the mayor). Your group has given me hope again. Thank you, and may the gods bless your good works."

Quillary nods, satisfied. “Then you can give us the layout of this place as best you know it. We seek Viallis himself, to cut the head off this operation.”

"The thing that they made sacrifices to, can you describe it?"

To respond to Jorin, the cultists were referring to the thing when killing the sacrifice, but it wasn't actually there.
Viallis was wearing a robe with a crudely stiched design of a creature with a bulbous head, long arms, tentacles for legs, and multifaceted eyes.
The other cultists were chanting about the offering to their great patron and master.

In response to Quillary, Yaeda only has limited information.
She is not an architect, and she was kept out of the temple most of the time, to work on the upper tower and surrounding fields.
She only had a limited time when she snuck into the areas she was forbidden to go (and discovered that she did indeed join a cult).
For the next level up, the (locked) door to the west of the entrance hall is Lord Viallis' room, and the double doors to the south lead to the main temple/altar/sacrifice area.

Quillary perks up at the mention of Viallis’ rooms. “We must not tarry, or they will discover our activity, and our surprise will be lost.” She describes to them how the party came, so they can backtrack out.

If the knight doesn’t offer to help, Quillary is not planning to ask. She is confident the party can handle this.