The room is lit by a brazier with coals and fire.  I will allow it as flanking advantage though.

I’ll update tonight.

The Grick goes down under the onslaught from Karea's attack. 

End encounter

Actions:

Faith — one hand pressed against his forearm, where the Grick caught him — listens to see if he can hear what is behind he curtain. 

Perception: 16

Faith, Matheris, Karea and Lena

Lena signals to the others that there might be other issues behind the curtain.  Matheris points to the symbols in the room as being one of his faith.  The god Tymora since he knows it.  He signals to push on into the room ready when they are.  Faith signals 3 figures in there.

Lena signals she and Faith on the left and Karea and Matheris on the right.  She counts down on her fingers 3, 2, 1...Go...

This chamber occupies the northern tower of the castle. A stone altar stands in the middle of the room, covered with bloodstained black cloth. Golden ritual implements—a chalice, a knife, and a censer—are carefully arranged on top of the altar. Two archways to the south are covered with heavy curtains.

This shrine is home to Lhupo and two ordinary goblins that serve as his “acolytes.”  They all wear filthy robes over their armor, but none of them possess divine powers (although Lhupo claims to hear Maglubiyet speaking to him). If the goblins heard the characters fighting the grick in area 8, they hide behind the altar and attempt to surprise the characters. Otherwise, all three goblins are kneeling before the altar, praying to their evil god.

The bloodstained cloth completely covers the stone altar, the sides of which are engraved with images of the same gods reflected in the decor found in area 8.

Oghma (god of knowledge), Mystra (goddess of magic), Lathander (god of dawn), and Tymora (goddess of luck)  Obviously not associated with the Goblins so most likely the prior inhabitants of the castle and most likely humans.

The Goblins trying to hide behind the alter, but to no avail although they do have 1/2 cover.  

Actions:  

Faith’s eyes linger on the marks of Mystara and Tymora, gods in minor aspect in his sect, and Lathander, the holy father of his order. 

He does not recognise the ritual being performed, but the chalice is dented, rusted and bloody, while the knife and censer are similarly wicked in colour and design.

It’s clear that whatever worship is being undertaken it acts only to profane Lathander and his divine allies. 

Without verbal or somatic component, Faith calls on his mage hand and wills the chalice and censor knocked to the ground. He picks up the knife and brings it towards himself. 

Faith examines the knife while the Goblins cower behind the alter.  Rolled Religion with Advantage..

The chalice, knife, and censer are human-made art objects worth 150 gp, 60 gp, and 120 gp, respectively.

Matheris says, "These three are not going to put up much of a fight.  Had they got the drop on us they might have tried.  They've probably soiled their clothes."

Matheris says to the Goblins,  "Anything you want to tell us so we don't kill you where you are?"   

Matheris Persuasion!  16

If Intimidation or Persuasion is 10 or higher see spoiler.

Matheris says, "Get you people and leave.  If you come back, you won't live to leave again.  Now go.."

The Goblins scurry out quickly.

Faith using his mage hand is able to retrieve the item.  While not quite sure he thinks the item is of divination magic.

400 XP for each...Grick and 3 goblins and the rest of the castle. You find Sildar's gear in the storage room and avoid the trap easily out of the Glick room.

The group tells Gundren and Sildar, "You might want to restore this and make it an outpost for the area now and keep bandit and goblins or such from controlling it later on."

In the store room you find a secret panel so well hidden even the prior inhabitants may not have know it was there.

You find a book.

What does the book say? Is Karea capable of reading it, or is it in a language she doesn't speak? 

Sildar and Gundren step out of the room to take stock of things.

Karea examines the book.  Holding it you can feel the magical energies pulse from the book.  After a moment the four of you, slightly disoriented gather your wits.

Matheris says, “What did you do, Karea.”

You find yourself in a different place.

(Does any one have any preference as to chalice or censer or knife. Faith would be happy with any).

Faith looks around, where he finds himself. Shaking off the magical disorientation of the transition, he inspects his surroundings. 

A knock on the door of the room you're in....Matheris says, "I guess I'll open it.  Be ready though."

A robed dragonborn clears her throat as she approaches you. “Please forgive the interruption,” she says. “My name is Pelk, and I speak for the Avowed. You are adventurers, are you not?  Ah.....I see you already have the book of Cylinders.  I was sent here by my supervisors to explain things.”

Quote from NycrolB >>

(Does any one have any preference as to chalice or censer or knife. Faith would be happy with any).

Faith looks around, where he finds himself. Shaking off the magical disorientation of the transition, he inspects his surroundings. 

 Matheris is not interested in any of the items.  You can all take one....Lena, Faith and Karea.

Pelk continues on with her information.

"Let's see now....Here come with me she leads you to the Candlekeep entrance.  First there's some rules here you'll have to sign..Sorry..My supervisor had to bring you here in a most unusual way.  One that is not normally allowed."

Candlekeep info...You can peruse the information about Candlekeep but try and save the book information as spoilers.

 OOC - Map added to campaign thread public area.

Pelk continues her information now that everyone has signed.

“Candlekeep has long relied on a community of grippli to the north for fresh seafood. These frogfolk capture and raise giant crabs as livestock in an offshore cluster of pens they have erected just outside their village, then trade the meat and other salvageable parts for items they can use, particularly those made of metal or glass. Candlekeep has long been a steady customer, but over the last several tendays the grippli have become less and less active, and the supply of food has been all but cut off. To make things worse, rumors have arisen about serpent creatures being seen near the Cloakwood and the grippli village.”

Pelk adds, "This news came by way of Mitor Jans, a ship captain who makes a living transporting crab meat to Candlekeep.  Jans, eager for shipments to resume, has volunteered to take adventurers by sea to a trading post where they can meet with the grippli leader-in-exile, if they decide to undertake the quest to help the frogfolk."

"Also the Avowed are willing to pay 500 gp to each character once the threat to the grippli village is neutralized."

Actions:

Recovering from the magic of the transportation, the legalese of the contract, Faith feels like his mind is three steps behind his body. 

As the Dragonborn explains the aid that they need, Faith’s eyes linger on the expressions of his compatriots. He notes the lack of humidity, the change in the smell of this keep compared to the goblins’ hold, the intensity of the sunlight on his face — already he is beginning to sweat. And, of course, Sildar and Gundren are no where to be seen. 

He spins the ring on his finger, not to cast any magic but as a touchstone. Familiar in this unfamiliar place. 

“Where are we,” asks Faith, “in relation to the city of Neverwinter?” 

"1000 miles south of Neverwinter approximately", comments Pelk..."A stong magic is attached to the book and is linked to Candlekeep.  There could be gods at work here too.  The captain is ready for you."

I'll adjust as needed if you are not interested in pursuing this course.

"The book of Cylinders was somehow moved to where you found it that eventually brought you here", adds Pelk.

 The travel to the trading post is uneventful and you get there after about 36 hours of travel...

Make updates to your characters for active spells and such as needed.

Mitor Jans pulls the ship into dock to let you disembark to go meet the Pond Mother.  

As the coastal mist clears, you get your first good look at the grippli trading post. Ramshackle shelters are clustered around a large permanent building. The low rumble of many voices softly croaking can be heard as your ship pulls up to the dock, where grippli bearing weapons are waiting to meet its passengers.

Faith will have to translate for the group in Primordial as the Pond Mother prefers to speak it.

 At the Dock Faith requests an audience with the Pond Mother.  The guards hesitant at first decide to take you to her.  A short walk gets you to her hut and you are escorted to a meeting chamber.

Pond Mother in primordial, "Welcome.  There is some food and refreshment if you like.  I'll get right to it while you enjoy some food and drink. 

A small band of yuan-ti arrived in the area over a month ago, claiming to be followers of a benevolent deity they called the Scaled Mother. They were friendly, the opposite of other yuan-ti that the grippli had encountered and fought with. These yuan-ti expressed interest in excavating and restoring the previous site of the grippli village, a mile from its present location. I saw no reason to refuse them, since their motives were seemingly innocent. But then, two tendays afterward, another group of yuan-ti came on the scene. These yuan-ti attacked the village, killed any frogfolk who tried to resist, and captured the grippli who weren’t able to escape.

We need your help, the yuan-ti have been eating our eggs and tormenting the few grippli who remain in the village. Nothing has been heard from the friendly yuan-ti since the larger force of evil ones descended on the village. I fear that either they have been disposed of, or they have been imprisoned in the old temple that lies north of the village. In any event, saving the eggs, or as many of them as possible, is the grippli’s main concern.

 She pauses to give time for the information to take root.  "Will you help us?"

The dialect of Primordial that the Pond folk use burbles and rushes like clear water over smooth rock does in a brook that is filled thickly with melt water: clear, cool, and clean. 

Though he translates what their words mean, he cannot adequately capture their heart break, and the good nature that has allowed deception to thrive on their trust. He will learn from their mistakes. 

“I will help you, but I know little of the Yuan-ti. How many are they, and what are their capabilities? Will we be enough? They sound fearsome folk.”

The Pond Mother nods, "I believe about a dozen good yanti and a dozen bad Yanti counting the Abomination yanti.   You look like seasoned adventurers.  It's a risk but pehaps how you go about it might help your percentages."  She grins.

Solace let's you know it's nearby.

Unless you have any other Questions Mitor can use his ship to get you close to the trading post.  The trading post is about 5 miles south of the grippli village, which is most easily reached by sea. (An overland trip along the marshy coastline is a fool’s route, fraught with obstacles and perils.) Mitor Jans will transport the characters as far as he can, then drop them off just outside the crab maze that borders the community before turning back south.

Columns of stone with platforms built around them, connected by rickety-looking gangways that touch the sea or disappear beneath the frothing waves, are arrayed before you. In the distance you can see the marshy shore. Dark shapes move under the surface, and flashes of red carapace draw the eye. This is not a safe place.

Getting to the village is the characters’ first challenge. Between the characters and the village is a network of cages where the grippli have kept, captured, and bred giant crabs for centuries.

The crab maze is a collection of low-to-the-water walkways, ranging in height from just above the water to being submerged by up to 2 feet. Each main walkway is wide enough for two Medium creatures to walk side by side, while the smaller branching ones are wide enough for only a single person. Interspersed through this web of rickety wood and netting are processing platforms built around the stone columns, each large enough to hold four creatures. Under the water, in open-topped cages made of netting, lurk a great number of giant crabs that haven’t been fed recently. As the characters start to make their way to shore, the water begins to froth as the giant crabs become excited.

Mitor drops you off.

I'll need a Steath check from the Group...

This will be Matheris and Karea rolling for the group with advantage as they help everyone in the group get through the maze.

Matheris says softly.."We can get through the maze to the Breakwater and get a little boat to get to the docks.  If we're quiet, we should be ok.  If we're not too quiet we'll probably  draw some attention from the crabs and Yanti..."

Lena cast Pass without Trace on the group...You cannot fail at this point even on a roll of 1 for Matheris or Karea.  This gets you to the docks.  You time it to get to the docks just after sunset..as the light fades.

The grippli village is set near the sea in a brackish marsh. Rising from the muck are circular, domed mud-brick buildings that the grippli use for homes and storage facilities. The carapaces and claws of giant crabs feature heavily in the architecture.

Docks

Unlike the materials used for the crab maze, the docks are sturdy planks of wood tightly fastened together and treated to make the structure waterproof.

Only a couple of small boats remain tied up at these piers, the others having been used by the grippli who retreated to the trading post.

The yuan-ti have no interest in the small boats that are moored here—meaning that if they remain undamaged, the characters could use them for transport when they decide to leave this place behind.

The small dots are home and storage...The big dot is the Pond Mothers home...Across the river is the brood pools and the northeast of the map is the old village temple.

Actions?:

With the sun setting, Faith clicks his fingers and causes Solace to vanish in a small swirl of vapours. 

By gestures and nods, he hints to the others that he thinks they should aim for the old temple.