After they have freed Troska, told Oliver Ignamino that the attack is over, and woken up Maajid, the group finishes a cursory search of the Inn to ensure that there are no other cultists hidden in the other rooms. Now, we just have to decide what to do. Maybe we can leave the three bystanders upstairs briefly and then find a spot in the common room not too near the captives to decide what to do.
1. Are you going to bring the prisoners upstairs with the bystanders and question them up there while tied up? Are you taking the corpses of Misha and Thug 2 up with you as well? Or are you just leaving them all downstairs?
2. Are you going to physically barricade yourselves up there so no one else can get up?
You can all absolutely finish your Long Rest in shifts. All the while talking to the civilians and prisoners, theres a few of them so i'll list them here:
Xanrym is worried that there is some sort of infernal cult in Orlane. Xanrym says, "Who did Misha really serve? Not Merrika! Before we killed her, Misha said that we would have been useful servants to 'her' and, 'you will have to simply serve as her next meal.' Who did she mean? Probably not a high priest. More like some demon that her cult worships as a god."
Q1. Rest now? Or do more investigation tonight?
Xanrym doesn't want to stumble upon a cult -- or the thing that the worship! -- now, in the middle of the night. He's inclined to rest now, and he'll be ready to investigate more in the morning. Other than windows (do any of the rooms have windows? do all of them have windows?), there appears to be only one way to get to the bedrooms upstairs, and that's the main staircase. He doesn't like being trapped upstairs, but if they're attacked again tonight, it will be easier for one person to hold the stairs while the second person on watch wakes the others. On the ground floor, there are two exits and the stairs to the basement. That might give them an easier exit, but they could also be attacked from multiple directions at once.
With such a small party, Xanrym votes for sleeping upstairs until morning.
Q2: where to rest?
With 2 on watch and 4 sleeping, they could do what Liarin suggested. The ones sleeping can take room 11 with the main door open -- no more privacy tonight! They could put the captives in room 12 or 13. Then the ones on watch could be in the main hall at the door to rooms 12 and 13.
Xanrym also wants to put a table or bench on its side to block the stairs or the hallway from the stairs. If they're holed up in room 11, it would be possible for someone to sneak up the stairs, and then they could have cultists coming at them from both the main hall and the secret tunnel at the same time. Or maybe just let him spread caltrops or ball bearings in a shadowed portion of that hallway. Anything to make it difficult for cultists to approach undetected!
Alternative location: everyone sleeps in room 6 (two exits!), which means that they could put one guard much closer to the stairs. Maybe put the captives in room 14? He's not sure, but he's interested in everyone else's vote.
Q3. Where to put the captives?
Xanrym thinks that the captives should not be in the same room as the ones sleeping. They should either be tied up in the hallway within view of the ones keeping watch, or they should be put in a room with only one exit, like room 13 or room 14. Keep the door open and keep an eye on them, but if the captives try to do anything, it'll be easier to deal with them if they're boxed in to one room.
Q4. Dead / burned bodies?
Xanrym thinks that they should move the bodies out of the common room. He's not sure where, perhaps in the room with only 1 exit that they're not using for the captives. If the party is sleeping upstairs, he doesn't want other villagers seeing the bodies in the morning. He thinks that they should try to keep the events at the Inn quiet for as long as possible. The party doesn't know what's going on in Orlane, and Xanrym says, "I'd like to keep this cult in the dark for a change...at least for a little while. Maybe it'll make them nervous, and they'll be more likely to make a mistake?"
Additionally, when Theldrin casts Detect Magic he senses a source of magic in a chest in the room that leads to the secret doors, which will is the room of Derek Desleigh, leader of the pack of ruffians who you killed in the beginning of this encounter.(room 6). Another source of magic emanates from the body of Misha, (which is either upstairs with you or downstairs in the common room, (room 1).
Ooh! One exception to Xanrym's desire not to investigate more tonight. He's willing to check into these two sources of magic. Perhaps they'll find something that they can use. Or, if not, they may find something that tells them more about the cult.
Xanrym is willing to help with the investigation (for traps) of the chest. If the chest is locked, they could check Derek's and Misha's bodies for a key. If they can't find the key, Xanrym could try to pick the lock with his thieves' tools.
"emanates from the body of Misha" - Does this mean somewhere on Misha's body? Or her whole body is emanating magic, like someone who is under the influence of a spell, like charm person or disguise self?
Theldrin - Your search reveals little of importance necesarily. You of course see the stairs heading down into the cellar from the kitchen (room 2). You also see a large chest in the corner of Bertram's room (room 5).
Xanrym - For now i'll assume you take everything upstairs with you, bodies and all. You can absolutely help someone check the chest for traps, if someone wants to do that. Reading the rules of Detect Magic again, i think instead of an aura around Misha, instead you would see the ring on her finger glow with the aura instead. They are still bleary eyes and not responding to questions.
Avery after he has redonned his armor and his great sword, is going to find Thug 1. "We're going to have a little conversation, you and I, and you will answer my questions." (Intimidation: 19)
"We've gotta check the basement, I just want backup while I do so."
Xanrym asks, "Can that wait until morning? I'm tired now, and I'm not sure how long our luck will hold. And since both Misha and Sir Grover's men were involved tonight, we don't have a 'safe house' in Orlane. Clearly not this Inn, not the constable, and not the temple. If there's something down in the basement, we should all face it together, but Theldrin and I will be much more useful if we could get some sleep first. And can we even leave these others alone?"
Looking worried, Xanrym explains, "If we trust the wrong people now, it could be a disaster. I think that we can trust Maajid since he came with us and Misha was trying to kill him, but I don't know about Toska and Oliver. Maybe we tie them both up like we did the captives who attacked us? Otherwise, if one or both of them is in league with Misha, they could overwhelm Maajid, free the captives, and attack us from behind."
Xanrym thinks for a moment and says, "It's unclear to me whether there's a powerful force controlling the people of Orlane or whether Misha has a cult of willing followers. That man with the scar -- Derek? -- was staying at the Inn, right? And he seemed to be clear-eyed when he attacked us. Bertram seems a little addled now, but he doesn't seem to be snapping out of it. And how could Bertram not know about the secret passage to the other rooms in his own inn?"
Even if they decide to explore the basement, Xanrym thinks that they should at least gather anything they can use.
Take Misha's magic ring.
Search Misha (did we already do that?) and Derek to see whether we can find a key to the chest in room 6.
Check the chest for traps and open it (key or picking the lock).
Take whatever magic items they find inside the chest.
This post has potentially manipulated dice roll results.
Theldrin will search Misha and take a closer look at the ring to see if he can identify it. As for the chest he is more suspicious, at least for the moment.
Investigation: 23
Arcana: 16
(Okay with checking the basement now or waiting, either way)
Avery - Donavan looks at you in fear, clearly there's some part of him that still has some level of self preservation, because he starts talking. "She will master all of you in time. You can hurt me, but it is hopeless. She will conquer, she is the darkness."
Theldrin - Although the ring is clearly magical, you cannot Identify it without the spell. The ring does have an amber stone in the centre somewhat shaped like a shield.
Xanrym - Misha is, like Donavan and Hulbar, completely without coin. She wields a Club and wears some vestments. But other than the ring she holds nothing of value. If you want to check the chest for traps that would be an Investigation check.
Xanrym - Misha is, like Donavan and Hulbar, completely without coin. She wields a Club and wears some vestments. But other than the ring she holds nothing of value.
What about Derek's body? Since someone said that Derek was in the room with the chest, Xanrym hopes to find its key on his body.
If you want to check the chest for traps that would be an Investigation check.
OK. Xanrym will check the chest for traps, but if he doesn't find one, he'll ask Theldrin to check it too. Investigation14
Derek's pockets, unlike the other's you've searched, is full. He has:
A Shortsword, Leather Armour, 16gp, 18cp, and an iron key that looks like it may fit the chest in room 6.
When you check for traps, you notice that the chest isn't locked and would open if you were to just lift the lid. However, when you try the key, you hear a click. Opening the chest you see it's boobytrapped with a poison dart mechanism that, when the chest is opened, would shoot at you if you hadn't disabled the trap with the key.
Inside the chest you find a further 73gp, four gemstones (Tiger eye, Azurite, Moss agate, and Blue Quartz) all worth 10gp each, as well as 4 bottles. Two of these have a clear blue liquid, one is smoky and white, the last is completely clear, like water.
"Excellent, nice work..." Theldrin compliments Xanrym on finding and avoiding the trap.
"It feels odd to be taking things from someone's chest at an inn but given that they belonged to the crew that was attempting to do harm to Maajid..." he shrugs. "We will use them to aid our cause, helping save this town."
He will then cast Detect Magic as a ritual again if needed, to check to see if the bottles are the source of the aura he detected coming from the chest.
Derek's pockets, unlike the other's you've searched, is full. He has:
A Shortsword, Leather Armour, 16gp, 18cp, and an iron key that looks like it may fit the chest in room 6.
When you check for traps, you notice that the chest isn't locked and would open if you were to just lift the lid. However, when you try the key, you hear a click. Opening the chest you see it's boobytrapped with a poison dart mechanism that, when the chest is opened, would shoot at you if you hadn't disabled the trap with the key.
Inside the chest you find a further 73gp, four gemstones (Tiger eye, Azurite, Moss agate, and Blue Quartz) all worth 10gp each, as well as 4 bottles. Two of these have a clear blue liquid, one is smoky and white, the last is completely clear, like water.
Xanrym takes the shortsword since he sometimes dual-wields in combat. Two shortswords would be better than a shortsword and a dagger. Besides, Lldryk already has two shortswords, and Avery probably has no use for such a small sword.
Xanrym's glad that he found the key! He has some experience disarming traps, but a poison dart is a dangerous thing to get wrong. He will keep the key for now in case they want to use the chest and need to rearm the trap later.
Xanrym checks to see whether there are any labels on the potion bottles. The poisoned dart trap reminds Xanrym that Dogroot used poisoned blades. Now he's worried that one or more of these potions is actually poison.
Xanrym puts Derek's armor by the chest and puts the coins from Derek's pouch in the chest with the other coins. He's much less concerned about the treasure at the moment than he is about the murderous cult and the uncertainty about whom to trust. He fetches Theldrin (if the wizard isn't with him when he opens the chest) to have him check which items are magical. The chest itself? All four potions? Any of the gems?
(Okay with checking the basement now or waiting, either way)
As stated above, Xanrym thinks that they should either leave it until morning. If Avery and Liarin both vote to explore the basement tonight, then Xanrym will concede and go with them. (He thinks that if they explore the basement, they should all go.) But, in that case, they need to ensure that all possible cultists are tied up securely first.
I might outright tell you all that people will come to this Inn in the morning, so its possible that taking a Long Rest may prevent you from doing a proper search. Just so you know now rather than taking a long rest and locking yourselves out form searching the basement. I'm also not saying that you won't be able to search the Inn if you rest, just that it may be harder.
So your options include: Talk to npcs, try to identify items, rest, and search the cellar.
Avery - Donavan looks at you in fear, clearly there's some part of him that still has some level of self preservation, because he starts talking. "She will master all of you in time. You can hurt me, but it is hopeless. She will conquer, she is the darkness."
Theldrin - Although the ring is clearly magical, you cannot Identify it without the spell. The ring does have an amber stone in the centre somewhat shaped like a shield.
Xanrym - Misha is, like Donavan and Hulbar, completely without coin. She wields a Club and wears some vestments. But other than the ring she holds nothing of value. If you want to check the chest for traps that would be an Investigation check.
Avery is going to head to the basement, but tells Thug 1, "I will be back, and I want better answers than that. Think really hard about it, because I am NOT in the mood and have a tendency to get a little rough." He will then go with the party, leaving Thug 1 to stew for a bit. He is also hoping the other prisoners heard as he glares at them, "Don't worry, I won't forget about you either."
I might outright tell you all that people will come to this Inn in the morning, so its possible that taking a Long Rest may prevent you from doing a proper search. Just so you know now rather than taking a long rest and locking yourselves out form searching the basement. I'm also not saying that you won't be able to search the Inn if you rest, just that it may be harder.
(Probably best to go ahead and search the basement now then)
Theldrin takes Misha's ring for more study later, then will accompany the others in searching the basement, assuming Xanrym agrees.
Xanrym really wants to make sure that we've settled the prisoners before we all head to the basement. We tied up the captives, but did anyone even search them yet? If Avery and the others want to go downstairs right away, then Xanrym will just say that he'll join them in a few minutes once he's comfortable with how they're leaving the others. Xanrym doesn't want to save Maajid only to have the captives get free and kill Maajid while the party is downstairs! (Remember that Xanrym isn't sure that he trusts Oliver or Toska either.)
Xanrym will ask Lldryk to help him search their bound captives one-by-one, checking to make sure that they don't have hidden weapons or other means of cutting through their restraints. (Investigation12. If Lldryk is able to help, take the better of that roll and15.)
Then Xanrym has an idea. He takes Oliver and Toska aside to explain what's going on: Misha, the priestess at the local temple, appears to have been leading a cult in Orlane. The cultists were attempting to kidnap people to feed to her so-called goddess. He warns them that they're not safe yet, and they may all need to flee the inn suddenly if they're attacked again.
Xanrym tells them that Maajid is under the protection of his friends and him, but they can try to get Oliver and Toska to safety too. He explains that the party may need to buy horses or otherwise pay for safe passage out of Orlane. He asks them to bring him their coin and any other treasures that they have so that he can see what they're working with in case it comes to that. He insists on seeing the coin and counting it himself. Xanrym does not tell them about the treasures that he and Theldrin discovered in Derek's room. (Persuasion or Deception: 10)
Xanrym was thinking about how most the cultists -- other than Derek -- don't seem to have a coin pouch for some reason. He wants to see whether Toska and Oliver have any money. He thinks that it would be suspicious if a traveler staying at an inn is entirely without coin.
Theldrin takes Misha's ring for more study later, then will accompany the others in searching the basement, assuming Xanrym agrees.
While someone probably needs to study the ring or possibly spend time to attune to it, Xanrym asks whether they should try the potions. Or does the party think that the risk of more poison among the cult's possessions is too high?
Theldrin is of the opinion that if one of the bottles were poison it probably wouldn't have a magical aura. And if we have a good chance of quickly identifying them by taking a sip, he would be willing to try that before venturing into the basement.
Theldrin is of the opinion that if one of the bottles were poison it probably wouldn't have a magical aura.
(OOC: 5e has a potion of poison, so it is possible for poison to masquerade as a healing potion. ☠️ I don't know whether the characters know about things like that, but I thought that a bard or a wizard might.)
(Good point. Well Theldrin doesn't know Identify yet so we'd be relying on Liarin's spell or risking tasting each potion. As far as if Theldrin would think of that possibility, will let the DM decide, and am including an Arcana roll here if it's relevant.)
Arcana: 15
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(don't want to mangle the rolls by editing so adding: and Passive Perception 14)
Xanrym is worried that there is some sort of infernal cult in Orlane. Xanrym says, "Who did Misha really serve? Not Merrika! Before we killed her, Misha said that we would have been useful servants to 'her' and, 'you will have to simply serve as her next meal.' Who did she mean? Probably not a high priest. More like some demon that her cult worships as a god."
Q1. Rest now? Or do more investigation tonight?
Xanrym doesn't want to stumble upon a cult -- or the thing that the worship! -- now, in the middle of the night. He's inclined to rest now, and he'll be ready to investigate more in the morning. Other than windows (do any of the rooms have windows? do all of them have windows?), there appears to be only one way to get to the bedrooms upstairs, and that's the main staircase. He doesn't like being trapped upstairs, but if they're attacked again tonight, it will be easier for one person to hold the stairs while the second person on watch wakes the others. On the ground floor, there are two exits and the stairs to the basement. That might give them an easier exit, but they could also be attacked from multiple directions at once.
With such a small party, Xanrym votes for sleeping upstairs until morning.
Q2: where to rest?
With 2 on watch and 4 sleeping, they could do what Liarin suggested. The ones sleeping can take room 11 with the main door open -- no more privacy tonight! They could put the captives in room 12 or 13. Then the ones on watch could be in the main hall at the door to rooms 12 and 13.
Xanrym also wants to put a table or bench on its side to block the stairs or the hallway from the stairs. If they're holed up in room 11, it would be possible for someone to sneak up the stairs, and then they could have cultists coming at them from both the main hall and the secret tunnel at the same time. Or maybe just let him spread caltrops or ball bearings in a shadowed portion of that hallway. Anything to make it difficult for cultists to approach undetected!
Alternative location: everyone sleeps in room 6 (two exits!), which means that they could put one guard much closer to the stairs. Maybe put the captives in room 14? He's not sure, but he's interested in everyone else's vote.
Q3. Where to put the captives?
Xanrym thinks that the captives should not be in the same room as the ones sleeping. They should either be tied up in the hallway within view of the ones keeping watch, or they should be put in a room with only one exit, like room 13 or room 14. Keep the door open and keep an eye on them, but if the captives try to do anything, it'll be easier to deal with them if they're boxed in to one room.
Q4. Dead / burned bodies?
Xanrym thinks that they should move the bodies out of the common room. He's not sure where, perhaps in the room with only 1 exit that they're not using for the captives. If the party is sleeping upstairs, he doesn't want other villagers seeing the bodies in the morning. He thinks that they should try to keep the events at the Inn quiet for as long as possible. The party doesn't know what's going on in Orlane, and Xanrym says, "I'd like to keep this cult in the dark for a change...at least for a little while. Maybe it'll make them nervous, and they'll be more likely to make a mistake?"
Ooh! One exception to Xanrym's desire not to investigate more tonight. He's willing to check into these two sources of magic. Perhaps they'll find something that they can use. Or, if not, they may find something that tells them more about the cult.
Xanrym is willing to help with the investigation (for traps) of the chest. If the chest is locked, they could check Derek's and Misha's bodies for a key. If they can't find the key, Xanrym could try to pick the lock with his thieves' tools.
"emanates from the body of Misha" - Does this mean somewhere on Misha's body? Or her whole body is emanating magic, like someone who is under the influence of a spell, like charm person or disguise self?
Hm...are the prisoner's still looking dazed and bleary-eyed?
Do they respond like "normal" people to questions? Or are they just sitting there, dazed and silent, like they don't even hear our questions?
Theldrin - Your search reveals little of importance necesarily. You of course see the stairs heading down into the cellar from the kitchen (room 2). You also see a large chest in the corner of Bertram's room (room 5).
Xanrym - For now i'll assume you take everything upstairs with you, bodies and all. You can absolutely help someone check the chest for traps, if someone wants to do that. Reading the rules of Detect Magic again, i think instead of an aura around Misha, instead you would see the ring on her finger glow with the aura instead. They are still bleary eyes and not responding to questions.
"We've gotta check the basement, I just want backup while I do so."
Coriana - Company of the Grey Chain
Wagner - Dragon Heist: Bards.
DM - The Old Keep
Avery after he has redonned his armor and his great sword, is going to find Thug 1. "We're going to have a little conversation, you and I, and you will answer my questions." (Intimidation: 19)
Xanrym asks, "Can that wait until morning? I'm tired now, and I'm not sure how long our luck will hold. And since both Misha and Sir Grover's men were involved tonight, we don't have a 'safe house' in Orlane. Clearly not this Inn, not the constable, and not the temple. If there's something down in the basement, we should all face it together, but Theldrin and I will be much more useful if we could get some sleep first. And can we even leave these others alone?"
Looking worried, Xanrym explains, "If we trust the wrong people now, it could be a disaster. I think that we can trust Maajid since he came with us and Misha was trying to kill him, but I don't know about Toska and Oliver. Maybe we tie them both up like we did the captives who attacked us? Otherwise, if one or both of them is in league with Misha, they could overwhelm Maajid, free the captives, and attack us from behind."
Xanrym thinks for a moment and says, "It's unclear to me whether there's a powerful force controlling the people of Orlane or whether Misha has a cult of willing followers. That man with the scar -- Derek? -- was staying at the Inn, right? And he seemed to be clear-eyed when he attacked us. Bertram seems a little addled now, but he doesn't seem to be snapping out of it. And how could Bertram not know about the secret passage to the other rooms in his own inn?"
Even if they decide to explore the basement, Xanrym thinks that they should at least gather anything they can use.
Theldrin will search Misha and take a closer look at the ring to see if he can identify it. As for the chest he is more suspicious, at least for the moment.
Investigation: 23
Arcana: 16
(Okay with checking the basement now or waiting, either way)
Avery - Donavan looks at you in fear, clearly there's some part of him that still has some level of self preservation, because he starts talking. "She will master all of you in time. You can hurt me, but it is hopeless. She will conquer, she is the darkness."
Theldrin - Although the ring is clearly magical, you cannot Identify it without the spell. The ring does have an amber stone in the centre somewhat shaped like a shield.
Xanrym - Misha is, like Donavan and Hulbar, completely without coin. She wields a Club and wears some vestments. But other than the ring she holds nothing of value. If you want to check the chest for traps that would be an Investigation check.
What about Derek's body? Since someone said that Derek was in the room with the chest, Xanrym hopes to find its key on his body.
OK. Xanrym will check the chest for traps, but if he doesn't find one, he'll ask Theldrin to check it too. Investigation 14
Derek's pockets, unlike the other's you've searched, is full. He has:
A Shortsword, Leather Armour, 16gp, 18cp, and an iron key that looks like it may fit the chest in room 6.
When you check for traps, you notice that the chest isn't locked and would open if you were to just lift the lid. However, when you try the key, you hear a click. Opening the chest you see it's boobytrapped with a poison dart mechanism that, when the chest is opened, would shoot at you if you hadn't disabled the trap with the key.
Inside the chest you find a further 73gp, four gemstones (Tiger eye, Azurite, Moss agate, and Blue Quartz) all worth 10gp each, as well as 4 bottles. Two of these have a clear blue liquid, one is smoky and white, the last is completely clear, like water.
"Excellent, nice work..." Theldrin compliments Xanrym on finding and avoiding the trap.
"It feels odd to be taking things from someone's chest at an inn but given that they belonged to the crew that was attempting to do harm to Maajid..." he shrugs. "We will use them to aid our cause, helping save this town."
He will then cast Detect Magic as a ritual again if needed, to check to see if the bottles are the source of the aura he detected coming from the chest.
Xanrym takes the shortsword since he sometimes dual-wields in combat. Two shortswords would be better than a shortsword and a dagger. Besides, Lldryk already has two shortswords, and Avery probably has no use for such a small sword.
Xanrym's glad that he found the key! He has some experience disarming traps, but a poison dart is a dangerous thing to get wrong. He will keep the key for now in case they want to use the chest and need to rearm the trap later.
Xanrym checks to see whether there are any labels on the potion bottles. The poisoned dart trap reminds Xanrym that Dogroot used poisoned blades. Now he's worried that one or more of these potions is actually poison.
Xanrym puts Derek's armor by the chest and puts the coins from Derek's pouch in the chest with the other coins. He's much less concerned about the treasure at the moment than he is about the murderous cult and the uncertainty about whom to trust. He fetches Theldrin (if the wizard isn't with him when he opens the chest) to have him check which items are magical. The chest itself? All four potions? Any of the gems?
As stated above, Xanrym thinks that they should either leave it until morning. If Avery and Liarin both vote to explore the basement tonight, then Xanrym will concede and go with them. (He thinks that if they explore the basement, they should all go.) But, in that case, they need to ensure that all possible cultists are tied up securely first.
The four potions are magical.
I might outright tell you all that people will come to this Inn in the morning, so its possible that taking a Long Rest may prevent you from doing a proper search. Just so you know now rather than taking a long rest and locking yourselves out form searching the basement. I'm also not saying that you won't be able to search the Inn if you rest, just that it may be harder.
So your options include: Talk to npcs, try to identify items, rest, and search the cellar.
Avery is going to head to the basement, but tells Thug 1, "I will be back, and I want better answers than that. Think really hard about it, because I am NOT in the mood and have a tendency to get a little rough." He will then go with the party, leaving Thug 1 to stew for a bit. He is also hoping the other prisoners heard as he glares at them, "Don't worry, I won't forget about you either."
(Probably best to go ahead and search the basement now then)
Theldrin takes Misha's ring for more study later, then will accompany the others in searching the basement, assuming Xanrym agrees.
Xanrym really wants to make sure that we've settled the prisoners before we all head to the basement. We tied up the captives, but did anyone even search them yet? If Avery and the others want to go downstairs right away, then Xanrym will just say that he'll join them in a few minutes once he's comfortable with how they're leaving the others. Xanrym doesn't want to save Maajid only to have the captives get free and kill Maajid while the party is downstairs! (Remember that Xanrym isn't sure that he trusts Oliver or Toska either.)
Xanrym will ask Lldryk to help him search their bound captives one-by-one, checking to make sure that they don't have hidden weapons or other means of cutting through their restraints. (Investigation 12. If Lldryk is able to help, take the better of that roll and15.)
Then Xanrym has an idea. He takes Oliver and Toska aside to explain what's going on: Misha, the priestess at the local temple, appears to have been leading a cult in Orlane. The cultists were attempting to kidnap people to feed to her so-called goddess. He warns them that they're not safe yet, and they may all need to flee the inn suddenly if they're attacked again.
Xanrym tells them that Maajid is under the protection of his friends and him, but they can try to get Oliver and Toska to safety too. He explains that the party may need to buy horses or otherwise pay for safe passage out of Orlane. He asks them to bring him their coin and any other treasures that they have so that he can see what they're working with in case it comes to that. He insists on seeing the coin and counting it himself. Xanrym does not tell them about the treasures that he and Theldrin discovered in Derek's room. (Persuasion or Deception: 10)
Xanrym was thinking about how most the cultists -- other than Derek -- don't seem to have a coin pouch for some reason. He wants to see whether Toska and Oliver have any money. He thinks that it would be suspicious if a traveler staying at an inn is entirely without coin.
While someone probably needs to study the ring or possibly spend time to attune to it, Xanrym asks whether they should try the potions. Or does the party think that the risk of more poison among the cult's possessions is too high?
(OOC: After a long rest, maybe Liarin could check them with Detect Poison and Disease.)
Theldrin is of the opinion that if one of the bottles were poison it probably wouldn't have a magical aura. And if we have a good chance of quickly identifying them by taking a sip, he would be willing to try that before venturing into the basement.
(OOC: 5e has a potion of poison, so it is possible for poison to masquerade as a healing potion. ☠️ I don't know whether the characters know about things like that, but I thought that a bard or a wizard might.)
Updated to add Xanrym's Arcana 9
(Good point. Well Theldrin doesn't know Identify yet so we'd be relying on Liarin's spell or risking tasting each potion. As far as if Theldrin would think of that possibility, will let the DM decide, and am including an Arcana roll here if it's relevant.)
Arcana: 15