"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
Unable to stop and grab Polly Perrin immediately, without a second thought, chases after her muttering something in hafling about her not making him miss his date with Frank.
Stepping inside the portal, you see a small room, filled with various items. In front of the group is a writing desk, with various books and scrolls scattered about it. There are weapons and suits of armor in one corner. Opposite of the suits of armor is a cube of sorts, with a Tabaxi holding an almiraj in his arms, seemingly frozen inside. Across everything is a layer of dust. "Guys," Polly said in awe. "This is the coolest thing I've ever seen! Where are we?"
"Don't touch anything Polly. We don't know what anything does. Singe where are we? What is half this stuff?" Perrin says, worried that we could end up frozen like the cat and rabbit.
Singe walks over to the desk, "I second everything that Perrin said, if this place is what the men claimed it to be, everything is trapped. Keep your eyes peeled."
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
"One more step," comes a voice from the area of the Tabaxi. "And the cat dies." There's a small movement, and an imp crawls onto the cube. "I do love cat. Dinner and I," it said, pointing at the frozen Tabaxi. "We've had long conversations about this. He agrees with me. You take one more step, and I'll eat him!" The imp looks at everyone curiously. "Okay, maybe not. But one more move and you'll be dead. There are traps everywhere! I've seen them all with my own eyes. I know where they all are! Dinner and I, we've been here a long time. Long, long time. Held against our wills, we've been. Promise to let me out, and I'll tell you all the traps. I'll even tell you how to stop the traps!"
"I don't like this. Imps generally work for devils and demons and are natural liars. I don't sense any deceit though and if this is a wizards place I think it'd be trapped." Perrin says unsure of what to do but has his weapon hand by his shortsword.
Zamar looks at the imp and says, "Why should we trust you? i somehow doubt you have anything other than your own interests at heart here. There is no incentive for us to help you and then just get betrayed. My friends and I would just as soon walk out that door and dismantle the portal, ensuring nobody else would ever come back here."
The imp giggles. "And I can just as easily let them kill you, then leave." He looks around the room, with a grin on his face. "I just thought we could help one another out. But if you don't want to work together..." He shrugs. "If you leave, you don't get any of these goodies. Your choice. I've already spent much time here, and I'll eventually figure out how to have Dinner." He sits, waiting patiently, on the cube.
"How about a show of good faith?" Zamar suggests. "Give us some information that proves you are on the level. If it checks out, we talk. If it doesn't, my religious friend here smites you and we leave without disturbing anything. If you want our help, I'm guessing you can't just walk out that door." As he says this, he walks slowly toward the cube.
Koll and Woe, after re-packing the backpack in the alley, take a stroll along the docks. They keep their eyes peeled for.... well, for someone trying to giving them a secret sign. The docks make up a half-moon in the center of the city. There's a large amount of docks, but they make their way through them as they tour the city.
Woe is trying to speak to Evelyn before they leave, but she cannot see her anywhere (perception check 7). She will also try to spot the ship 'The Memory'. About an hour into the walk, she sees The Memory. It's docked in what appears to be the Warehouse District.
Woe is going close to have another look at the ship. "Look, Koll, this is 'The Memory'. She is a trader's ship. I have met the captain, he seems to be solid and truthful. He would be able to take Polly back. Can we have a quick look around?"
Koll nods at Woe. "Of course!"
But suddenly: "Sir," a man outfitted in rags stumbles up to the two of you from another direction. "Sir, please. Spare a coin?"
Koll takes out a silver piece and gives it to him, all the while looking him over wondering if he's just a beggar or someone else...
As he hands him the silver, the beggar slips Koll a small paper. "The gods bless you, sir..." He stumbles past and asks others in the crowded docks. They ignore him.
Koll moves on a bit with Woe before looking at the paper surreptitiously.
"What did he give you?"
"A note"
Woe can feel the excitement, and she completely forgot all about The Memory for a moment.
The note reads, "Ymezra - Goldenthrone"
Woe looks at Koll. "Do you know what that means? It's probably a location and... a person?.... Or the other way round?"
"No idea. We'll have to ask around." Koll replies.
"Let me see if the captain of The Memory is here or in the pub. He might know..."
"Yes Goldenthrone sounds like a tavern...or something."
Woe walks towards The Memory. She'll call out for captain Segred. And she'll eye the ship to see if it has taken any more damage on it's recent voyage.
The ship seems to have beat the storm, as there's no apparent damage. When you call out for the Captain, a man peeks his head over the deck. "Oy!" He calls, "Captain ain't here!"
"That's alright. I'll probably find him at the 'Thundering Lizard' I'd imagine." Woe smiles at the man. "How has your last journey been? Did you arrive here before the storm? And when are you leaving Port Nyanzaru again? I might want to send something with you back to Baldur's Gate..."
"Also, do you know your way around this city? We just arrived and are a bit lost." Woe remembers that the captain was from Chult, she is wondering if his his is crew too.
"Aye he is! Out looking for his Siren." He responds. There's a laugh as another crewman calls out, "Or plugging 'er!" His head pops back over the railing, "We leave in the 'morrow, I believe. And aye, I know a lil bit around here, but I can't leave my post!"
Woe sighs at his words. Looking at his crew, they seem to be from multiple nations. A nice spice-box.
"Have you heard of a location or a person called Goldenthrone?"
Woe also insight checks the crew to find out if she gets the feeling that Polly would be safe (insight check 6)
His hand juts out from behind the railing, pointing at a large golden palace on the Northern side of the city. "Can't miss it!"
She gets the feeling that they seem a little rough around the edges, but they're sailors.
"Thanks, mate. I'll see if I can bring you a bit of rum tomorrow, for your troubles."
"Bring two!" Another voice calls out.
"I'll see what I can do. Don't leave without hearing from me!"
The imp giggles again. "There are exactly..." He begins counting fingers on one hand, pauses, then counts fingers on the other hand. "Four traps in this room." He nods, as emphasis. Meanwhile, Polly has slowly made her way over to Singe. Tugging at his arm, she says, "Singe, look! That book is glowing! Why is it doing that?" She points to a book on the writing desk, and indeed, a rune on the front cover is glowing, slightly.
"I don't really see another way so, Imp. I think you have a deal. We will take you back through the portal but we have a couple of conditions. 1)You go back with us, not before us. 2)The cat-man comes with us, unharmed. 3)If we find out you lied to us and we get hurt I will personally cut you down. Do you understand?" Perrin says with as much seriousness as he can muster.
The imp thinks for a moment. "I have only one counter to your proposal. You have to speak the dismissal phrase. I'll help you with three of the traps, you say the phrase, and I'll help you with the last trap. I agree to everything else." He bounces with excitement.
"I don't know exactly what a dismissal phrase is but if that's what it takes fine. Now get to talking." Perrin lies as he remembers Singe talking about it when he summoned his own familiar. It is a magical phrase that when spoken aloud unbinds a creature to a wizards service.
//Arcane to know what a dismissal phrase it (used DM inspiration): 2d20kh1-1 = 17 -1 = 16//
The imps wings flex and he narrows his eyes at Perrin. Then he gets excited again. "Good, good. First command word is "tasaer." He points in front of the cube as he does so."Second command word is "eisys." He points towards the suits of armor. "Third command word is "jhos." This time he points in Perrin's direction. "And my dismissal phrase is "shi thi, ialor tystalaer eindral." The last command word comes when I'm free, yes, yes?" The imp hopped down from the cube and moved toward the group, sitting himself to the side of the portal. "There are controls of some sort on the cube. You can free Dinner that way."
“Hold on. You just pointed I’m my direction. I want to know exactly where the traps are.” Perrin says trying to get as much information as possible from the Imp.
"What guarantee do I have that you won't kill me? Or leave and destroy the portal, like you've threatened?" The imp flexed his wings again. "I could just as easily set off the traps. But I want out. What good will dying to you do? Why lie if I can't leave? You don't trust me, I don't trust you. What will we do about it?"
“That’s still not an answer to my question Imp. You should me where the first two traps were: in front of the cube and the suit of armor but didn’t tell me where a third was you just pointed in the my direction. It’s like giving you instructions to two cities but then saying the third is in Amn. That’s a lot of ground to cover without some more detailed information. So, where is that third trap again?” Perrin says; obviously losing patience and entirely uncomfortable with this situation.
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"For Tymora's sake!" Singe runs through.
Tooltips | Snippet Code | How to Homebrew on D&D Beyond | Subclass Guide | Feature Roadmap
Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
Unable to stop and grab Polly Perrin immediately, without a second thought, chases after her muttering something in hafling about her not making him miss his date with Frank.
Zamar looks at and sighs. Lera looks back and says, "A girl after my own heart!" and races after her.
"These children will be the death of me," moans Zamar, bringing up the rear.
Zamar Zahuv - Level 4 Aasimar Bard in Whispers of Dissent
Golos - Level 1 Halfling Barbarian in Night's Dark Terror
Jerrok Flametongue - Level 6 Human Barbarian in Zendikar - Whispers of the Aeons
R'thr Ka'ri - Level 5 Paladin in The Adventures of Bubbles (every other Wednesday)
Johnathan Moonspeaker - Level 6 Druid in Web of Lies (every other Friday)
DM of Something Wicked This Way Comes - D&D Modernverse (every other Tuesday)
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InsidersStepping inside the portal, you see a small room, filled with various items. In front of the group is a writing desk, with various books and scrolls scattered about it. There are weapons and suits of armor in one corner. Opposite of the suits of armor is a cube of sorts, with a Tabaxi holding an almiraj in his arms, seemingly frozen inside. Across everything is a layer of dust. "Guys," Polly said in awe. "This is the coolest thing I've ever seen! Where are we?"
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
"Don't touch anything Polly. We don't know what anything does. Singe where are we? What is half this stuff?" Perrin says, worried that we could end up frozen like the cat and rabbit.
Singe walks over to the desk, "I second everything that Perrin said, if this place is what the men claimed it to be, everything is trapped. Keep your eyes peeled."
Tooltips | Snippet Code | How to Homebrew on D&D Beyond | Subclass Guide | Feature Roadmap
Astromancer's Homebrew Assembly
"The relevant equation is: Knowledge = power = energy = matter = mass; a good bookshop is just a genteel Black Hole that knows how to read." - Terry Pratchett
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Insiders"One more step," comes a voice from the area of the Tabaxi. "And the cat dies." There's a small movement, and an imp crawls onto the cube. "I do love cat. Dinner and I," it said, pointing at the frozen Tabaxi. "We've had long conversations about this. He agrees with me. You take one more step, and I'll eat him!" The imp looks at everyone curiously. "Okay, maybe not. But one more move and you'll be dead. There are traps everywhere! I've seen them all with my own eyes. I know where they all are! Dinner and I, we've been here a long time. Long, long time. Held against our wills, we've been. Promise to let me out, and I'll tell you all the traps. I'll even tell you how to stop the traps!"
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
"I don't like this. Imps generally work for devils and demons and are natural liars. I don't sense any deceit though and if this is a wizards place I think it'd be trapped." Perrin says unsure of what to do but has his weapon hand by his shortsword.
//Insight on Imp: 1d20+1 = 12+1 = 13//
Zamar looks at the imp and says, "Why should we trust you? i somehow doubt you have anything other than your own interests at heart here. There is no incentive for us to help you and then just get betrayed. My friends and I would just as soon walk out that door and dismantle the portal, ensuring nobody else would ever come back here."
Zamar Zahuv - Level 4 Aasimar Bard in Whispers of Dissent
Golos - Level 1 Halfling Barbarian in Night's Dark Terror
Jerrok Flametongue - Level 6 Human Barbarian in Zendikar - Whispers of the Aeons
R'thr Ka'ri - Level 5 Paladin in The Adventures of Bubbles (every other Wednesday)
Johnathan Moonspeaker - Level 6 Druid in Web of Lies (every other Friday)
DM of Something Wicked This Way Comes - D&D Modernverse (every other Tuesday)
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InsidersThe imp giggles. "And I can just as easily let them kill you, then leave." He looks around the room, with a grin on his face. "I just thought we could help one another out. But if you don't want to work together..." He shrugs. "If you leave, you don't get any of these goodies. Your choice. I've already spent much time here, and I'll eventually figure out how to have Dinner." He sits, waiting patiently, on the cube.
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
"How about a show of good faith?" Zamar suggests. "Give us some information that proves you are on the level. If it checks out, we talk. If it doesn't, my religious friend here smites you and we leave without disturbing anything. If you want our help, I'm guessing you can't just walk out that door." As he says this, he walks slowly toward the cube.
Zamar Zahuv - Level 4 Aasimar Bard in Whispers of Dissent
Golos - Level 1 Halfling Barbarian in Night's Dark Terror
Jerrok Flametongue - Level 6 Human Barbarian in Zendikar - Whispers of the Aeons
R'thr Ka'ri - Level 5 Paladin in The Adventures of Bubbles (every other Wednesday)
Johnathan Moonspeaker - Level 6 Druid in Web of Lies (every other Friday)
DM of Something Wicked This Way Comes - D&D Modernverse (every other Tuesday)
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InsidersThe imp giggles again. "There are exactly..." He begins counting fingers on one hand, pauses, then counts fingers on the other hand. "Four traps in this room." He nods, as emphasis. Meanwhile, Polly has slowly made her way over to Singe. Tugging at his arm, she says, "Singe, look! That book is glowing! Why is it doing that?" She points to a book on the writing desk, and indeed, a rune on the front cover is glowing, slightly.
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
"I don't really see another way so, Imp. I think you have a deal. We will take you back through the portal but we have a couple of conditions. 1)You go back with us, not before us. 2)The cat-man comes with us, unharmed. 3)If we find out you lied to us and we get hurt I will personally cut you down. Do you understand?" Perrin says with as much seriousness as he can muster.
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InsidersThe imp thinks for a moment. "I have only one counter to your proposal. You have to speak the dismissal phrase. I'll help you with three of the traps, you say the phrase, and I'll help you with the last trap. I agree to everything else." He bounces with excitement.
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
"I don't know exactly what a dismissal phrase is but if that's what it takes fine. Now get to talking." Perrin lies as he remembers Singe talking about it when he summoned his own familiar. It is a magical phrase that when spoken aloud unbinds a creature to a wizards service.
//Arcane to know what a dismissal phrase it (used DM inspiration): 2d20kh1-1 = 17 -1 = 16//
//Deception: 1d20+2 = 2+2 = 4//
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InsidersThe imps wings flex and he narrows his eyes at Perrin. Then he gets excited again. "Good, good. First command word is "tasaer." He points in front of the cube as he does so."Second command word is "eisys." He points towards the suits of armor. "Third command word is "jhos." This time he points in Perrin's direction. "And my dismissal phrase is "shi thi, ialor tystalaer eindral." The last command word comes when I'm free, yes, yes?" The imp hopped down from the cube and moved toward the group, sitting himself to the side of the portal. "There are controls of some sort on the cube. You can free Dinner that way."
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
“Hold on. You just pointed I’m my direction. I want to know exactly where the traps are.” Perrin says trying to get as much information as possible from the Imp.
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Insiders"What guarantee do I have that you won't kill me? Or leave and destroy the portal, like you've threatened?" The imp flexed his wings again. "I could just as easily set off the traps. But I want out. What good will dying to you do? Why lie if I can't leave? You don't trust me, I don't trust you. What will we do about it?"
A dwarf with a canoe on his back? What could go wrong?
“That’s still not an answer to my question Imp. You should me where the first two traps were: in front of the cube and the suit of armor but didn’t tell me where a third was you just pointed in the my direction. It’s like giving you instructions to two cities but then saying the third is in Amn. That’s a lot of ground to cover without some more detailed information. So, where is that third trap again?” Perrin says; obviously losing patience and entirely uncomfortable with this situation.