You roll the die given to you by Tymora and open the second scroll. You are greeted with another small vision, this time of the group investigating the waters around where the Mere once was, looking worn but determined. The dice this time land on a 5 (Weal)
Elandra looks happier at the die roll this time. "So, a simple piece of investigation looks like it is in order." Elandra winks at Tymora, remembering that she was the one who had advocated for this quest in the first. There is something to be said for making your own luck, and no-one does it like the goddess of luck herself.
Never dice with the god of luck, especially when she brings her own dice. Koric stares at Elandra a moment, a faint smile on his lips. And a willing accomplice.
"So be it" he says, "To the mere."
He turns to the assembled gods, his gaze fixing on Mystra before he bows his head, unable to sustain what he sees as impertinence. "Is there more that can be told of this place?"
Jade listens to the vision and she is disappointed. She wants action, not investigation. She would feel better after having taken care of an actual issue before finding this mere. But well, she is part of a group now, and working together is what they have to do. She looks at Tempus to see how he feels about this. She nods to him, hoping he understands where Jade stands in this situation, then looks to Mystra to hear what the answer would be to Koric.
@All (To pick up the pace I am going to just move on and assume you are going to go with that quest given the better omen)
As Koric, Lux, and Elandra express that, given the omens, you should go check out the part of the sea where the Mere of Dead men once was, Tymora smiles, and the dice fly back into her hand.
Mystra stays to you all "I am sorry we cannot be of more help, champions. While our power is great, our ability to interfere in matters of the material realm is minimal. Only by the devotion of his cultists, the idols that fuel his power, and the aid of two powerful elemental realms has Talos been able to exert so much influence and do so much damage. We all have faith that you will be able to rescue the realm, and we will provide you with as much of our power as we can lend and you can handle as you grow more powerful and more able to wield our magic. Lady Tymora and I will stay behind to give you more details and send you on your way."
With Mystra having concluded the meeting and three members of the party wishing to explore the Mare (and Jade reluctantly agreeing), Lathander, Semuanya, Tempus, and Mielikki all begin to depart, wishing their champions good luck on the way out and expressing their full support for the mission. Their four doors slam shut and instantly vanish, and with them gone their thrones turn to dust and float off into the expanses of the Outlands
Lady Tymora then picks up where she left off when the other gods cut her off:
"You must investigate the location of the Mere of Dead Men! It flooded with far more water when Talos's wrath was unleashed on the realm and was absorbed into the ocean as a whole, but the aura of bad luck around it is still there. It doesn't sit well with me that despite such drastic changes to the landscape the power of the place remains the same. Small bands of dwarves that have attempted to settle along the side of the hills facing the area have all met disastrous ends, and the ocean floor there is littered with corpses. Even as cursed with poor omens as that place was, it should not have retained it magical potency after being flooded so completely. What is even stranger is Talos's cultists don't really go near the area, and as far as Mielikki told me neither do the water elementals that rampage throughout the region, despite the coastal parts of oceans being their absolute favorite dwelling place. I'm not sure what's going on there, but anything Talos's cult won't touch is something that could be useful to us"
Mystra then turns to you and says: "When you are ready, I'll send you back to the material plane. The closest can get you is at the very edge of the plains below the Kryptgarden forest, right on the edge of the hills that now border the part of the sea where the Mere once was. From there, you will be on your own to make it across the hills and investigate the area, although you do not need to worry about supplies. Simply focus on making it to the area alive and ensuring we can figure out what is going with the aura of misfortune there. If there is anything else you'd like to ask before I send you off, I will do my best to answer. If not, it is best if you get going soon"
Map of the specific area for reference:
Remember that the water is coming up to right along the hills and around north of the edge of Sword Mountains seen here, and that the water where the Mere used to be is now as deep as the rest of the ocean
Mystra tells you that "the Mere of Dead Men was a marsh full of dangers and haunted by Will-o-Whisps. Many travelers died there after being lured into the area by rumors of ancient, ruined castles full of riches. There were no such rewards to be found, and the dead were often brought back as various forms of undead, their souls trapped. As far as its curse, the Will-o-Whisps and other undead are a curse enough on any marsh, but cultists of the death god Myrkul that used to use the area to conduct necromantic rituals certainly didn't make the haunting any better"
Liri nods. "There is no telling what changes the storms and floods may have brought to an area that was already so dangerous. My guess would be nothing good." She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, holding her new staff with both hands. She exhales and opens her eyes again. "I am ready."
Picking up on Jade's disappointment at the eventual direction of the group but armed with the additional information from Mystra, she tries to cheer the genasi up, "It might not be the glorious purge of battle that you wanted Jade, it sound though like there will be some undeath for you to purge and the mountains will be made better for it."
Looking around at the others, Elandra nods her agreement, "I am ready to depart. By the sounds of it I will wish I had my bathing suit."
At the earliest convenient moment, Elandra will draw Liri and Soloth slightly apart from the group, "This gift bag might have a myriad of uses, I wonder though, would you know of a way that we might communicate with the creature that it manifests? It is not a magic I have been able to manage. If either of you two knew of a way then it might allow us some little tricks up our sleeves for later."
Liri nods. "I am unfamiliar with this bag, but if it contains a creature, then I know of some ways in which the Lady of the Forest would allow me to speak with it, sense through its senses or a number of other abilities. I would need time in advance to prepare myself to use such magics though, and they would be limited in how often I could use them"
Jade smiles at Elandra's kind words. "Either way, we're in this together." she picks up the glaive she had dropped and secures both weapons, she then turns to Mystra, "I am ready."
Elandra's smile gets a wry little curl form at the edge of her lips, the mischievous grin bringing a gleeful cast to her face. "That is wonderful Liri. I'm not sure what we will face or when it might come up; if we come across a situation that we can plan ahead of then we might have ourselves an innocuous scout, guard, or something else I haven't yet thought of."
Lux checks his pack and gear then looks at the group of five other souls, looking to each in their eyes as to say I am in your care and I have your back. He closes his eyes and says a prayer to Lanthander and says "It looks like we are ready to depart."
As Jade stands there ready, waiting for the whisk away moment, she turns to Tempus, "Anything else? I don't want to waste this time I have actually being in your presence. It truly is great to be able to lay eyes on you."
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Koric nods, "Aye. Let us see what the Mere has to offer."
He turns to Lux waiting for them to use the next scroll.
Lux casts the spell this time for Mere
D&D since 1984
@Lux
You roll the die given to you by Tymora and open the second scroll. You are greeted with another small vision, this time of the group investigating the waters around where the Mere once was, looking worn but determined. The dice this time land on a 5 (Weal)
Elandra looks happier at the die roll this time. "So, a simple piece of investigation looks like it is in order." Elandra winks at Tymora, remembering that she was the one who had advocated for this quest in the first. There is something to be said for making your own luck, and no-one does it like the goddess of luck herself.
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
Never dice with the god of luck, especially when she brings her own dice. Koric stares at Elandra a moment, a faint smile on his lips. And a willing accomplice.
"So be it" he says, "To the mere."
He turns to the assembled gods, his gaze fixing on Mystra before he bows his head, unable to sustain what he sees as impertinence. "Is there more that can be told of this place?"
Lux shares the vision.
D&D since 1984
“I say we should first go to Mere. “
D&D since 1984
Jade listens to the vision and she is disappointed. She wants action, not investigation. She would feel better after having taken care of an actual issue before finding this mere. But well, she is part of a group now, and working together is what they have to do. She looks at Tempus to see how he feels about this. She nods to him, hoping he understands where Jade stands in this situation, then looks to Mystra to hear what the answer would be to Koric.
@All (To pick up the pace I am going to just move on and assume you are going to go with that quest given the better omen)
As Koric, Lux, and Elandra express that, given the omens, you should go check out the part of the sea where the Mere of Dead men once was, Tymora smiles, and the dice fly back into her hand.
Mystra stays to you all "I am sorry we cannot be of more help, champions. While our power is great, our ability to interfere in matters of the material realm is minimal. Only by the devotion of his cultists, the idols that fuel his power, and the aid of two powerful elemental realms has Talos been able to exert so much influence and do so much damage. We all have faith that you will be able to rescue the realm, and we will provide you with as much of our power as we can lend and you can handle as you grow more powerful and more able to wield our magic. Lady Tymora and I will stay behind to give you more details and send you on your way."
With Mystra having concluded the meeting and three members of the party wishing to explore the Mare (and Jade reluctantly agreeing), Lathander, Semuanya, Tempus, and Mielikki all begin to depart, wishing their champions good luck on the way out and expressing their full support for the mission. Their four doors slam shut and instantly vanish, and with them gone their thrones turn to dust and float off into the expanses of the Outlands
Lady Tymora then picks up where she left off when the other gods cut her off:
"You must investigate the location of the Mere of Dead Men! It flooded with far more water when Talos's wrath was unleashed on the realm and was absorbed into the ocean as a whole, but the aura of bad luck around it is still there. It doesn't sit well with me that despite such drastic changes to the landscape the power of the place remains the same. Small bands of dwarves that have attempted to settle along the side of the hills facing the area have all met disastrous ends, and the ocean floor there is littered with corpses. Even as cursed with poor omens as that place was, it should not have retained it magical potency after being flooded so completely. What is even stranger is Talos's cultists don't really go near the area, and as far as Mielikki told me neither do the water elementals that rampage throughout the region, despite the coastal parts of oceans being their absolute favorite dwelling place. I'm not sure what's going on there, but anything Talos's cult won't touch is something that could be useful to us"
Mystra then turns to you and says:
"When you are ready, I'll send you back to the material plane. The closest can get you is at the very edge of the plains below the Kryptgarden forest, right on the edge of the hills that now border the part of the sea where the Mere once was. From there, you will be on your own to make it across the hills and investigate the area, although you do not need to worry about supplies. Simply focus on making it to the area alive and ensuring we can figure out what is going with the aura of misfortune there. If there is anything else you'd like to ask before I send you off, I will do my best to answer. If not, it is best if you get going soon"
Map of the specific area for reference:
Remember that the water is coming up to right along the hills and around north of the edge of Sword Mountains seen here, and that the water where the Mere used to be is now as deep as the rest of the ocean
@Soloth
Mystra tells you that "the Mere of Dead Men was a marsh full of dangers and haunted by Will-o-Whisps. Many travelers died there after being lured into the area by rumors of ancient, ruined castles full of riches. There were no such rewards to be found, and the dead were often brought back as various forms of undead, their souls trapped. As far as its curse, the Will-o-Whisps and other undead are a curse enough on any marsh, but cultists of the death god Myrkul that used to use the area to conduct necromantic rituals certainly didn't make the haunting any better"
Liri nods. "There is no telling what changes the storms and floods may have brought to an area that was already so dangerous. My guess would be nothing good." She closes her eyes and takes a deep breath, holding her new staff with both hands. She exhales and opens her eyes again. "I am ready."
Picking up on Jade's disappointment at the eventual direction of the group but armed with the additional information from Mystra, she tries to cheer the genasi up, "It might not be the glorious purge of battle that you wanted Jade, it sound though like there will be some undeath for you to purge and the mountains will be made better for it."
Looking around at the others, Elandra nods her agreement, "I am ready to depart. By the sounds of it I will wish I had my bathing suit."
At the earliest convenient moment, Elandra will draw Liri and Soloth slightly apart from the group, "This gift bag might have a myriad of uses, I wonder though, would you know of a way that we might communicate with the creature that it manifests? It is not a magic I have been able to manage. If either of you two knew of a way then it might allow us some little tricks up our sleeves for later."
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
Liri nods. "I am unfamiliar with this bag, but if it contains a creature, then I know of some ways in which the Lady of the Forest would allow me to speak with it, sense through its senses or a number of other abilities. I would need time in advance to prepare myself to use such magics though, and they would be limited in how often I could use them"
Jade smiles at Elandra's kind words. "Either way, we're in this together." she picks up the glaive she had dropped and secures both weapons, she then turns to Mystra, "I am ready."
Elandra's smile gets a wry little curl form at the edge of her lips, the mischievous grin bringing a gleeful cast to her face. "That is wonderful Liri. I'm not sure what we will face or when it might come up; if we come across a situation that we can plan ahead of then we might have ourselves an innocuous scout, guard, or something else I haven't yet thought of."
Bring out your inner chatacter class...
Lux checks his pack and gear then looks at the group of five other souls, looking to each in their eyes as to say I am in your care and I have your back. He closes his eyes and says a prayer to Lanthander and says "It looks like we are ready to depart."
D&D since 1984
As Jade stands there ready, waiting for the whisk away moment, she turns to Tempus, "Anything else? I don't want to waste this time I have actually being in your presence. It truly is great to be able to lay eyes on you."