Alton, you walk up to the altar. The holes are completely smoothed out and looks like they hold something. You also see a bunch of different things that you previously didn't see, but really have no clue what any of it means. Or do you?

Here's what you see:

- A bunch of elvish scripting engraved into the top of the altar.

- You see 3 small bowls on the ground beside the altar. They are made from gold, iron and black stone which appears to be onyx. These bowls also have elvish engravings and writing all over them.

- There is a small wooden box on top of the altar, with its lid opened up. It contains: 6 eggs, a blood stained dagger, a morter and pestle and a bunch of chicken bones tied together with twine. 

Anyone else want to check things out here or somewhere else?

Landy says "Hey! Whatya find up there?" then she calls out again for her colleague. "Calador!!! Can you hear me!!!??"

“Hey!” Alton calls out. “Someone come take a look at this altar. There’s all weird text or glyphs everywhere that I think is Elvish— I can’t read it. It looks like some sort of ritual was performed up here... Something doesn’t feel right.” He says, his voice getting softer as he continues. 

Alton then will look through his belongings and other stuff on the altar and try to see what would fit in the holes. (Let me know if I need to make a check)

Alton, Landy comes up to you. "Aye, I can read elvish."

She translates the writing. 

- The writing on the altar says "and what lives will die and what dies will be reborn and what is reborn will live and..."

- The writing on the gold bowl says "essence of birth"

- The writing on the iron bowl says "essence of life"

- The writing on the onyx bowl says "essence of death"

Alton, you can see that the smoothed out holes in the altar would seem to hold the 3 bowls which are on the ground. No check needed as the smoothed out holes and the shape of the bowls are an obvious match. 

“Well,” Alton says. “This looks like some sort of horrible ritual. I’m not entirely sure what happened to your dig team, professor, but I know it can’t be good. Where do we go from here?” He asks. 

Alton, the professor sighs.

"We have to be missing something. Hey, Ralf, bring your light over here a sec."

They go into the right side room which was the team's sleeping quarters in the dig site. She roots around in there amongst the treasure box and various bags, and finds a note. It talks about a new secret door the dig team has found, and it is activated by placing the bowls back up on the altar with certain things put into each bowl. The note is dirty and ripped so you can't make out completely. 

Summary:

- There's a secret door by the altar, and it is activated by putting the bowls back on the altar and adding something to each of the bowls.

- There is a small box on the altar with a bunch of stuff in it. 6 eggs, a blood stained dagger, a morter and pestle and a bunch of chicken bones tied together with twine. 

- The writing on the gold bowl says "essence of birth"

- The writing on the iron bowl says "essence of life"

- The writing on the onyx bowl says "essence of death"

The professor can't figure it out. The dig team apparently has used the secret door when Landy was back in Neverwinter. So the bowls would have been used earlier to open the door. 

Got-wolf nudges the eggs towards the birth bowl, dagger to life, bones to death, and gives a canine shrug.

((Hey everyone! Sorry for my inactivity! School is a ***** to me in December.))

Summary of what Ralfaen does: Religion check on the bowls, Investigation check on the areas that we've explored, History on the lore that I know about Havel's Cross.

Religion: 8 + 3

Investigation: 20 + 4

History: 22 + 4

Oh, and Ralf will walk over and holds his staff near to the area that Landy wants him to.

(All good! This bit is almost over... I think!))

Results of Ralf's checks:

- The bowls seem to have elvish origins. Very ancient elvish origins given the elvish scripture. Landy said it's pretty old script. They also don't seem like functioning bowls, but more decorative.

- You investigate all of the rooms. The glaring thing that you see is a secret door that is built into the wall at the front of the altar. It must be controlled by the bowls and holes bored into the altar. 

- The bowls have remnants of things in them from when they were used last. The gold bowl has small egg shells stuck in it, iron bowl has dried blood, and the onyx bowl has some fragments of ground bone. 

- Havel's Cross - that was the lodge that all of the dead people were in, and the goblins. This lodge has been a staple for hunters and travelers coming south from the mountains and is well known for being very warm and hospitable. 

Landy then says "Ya think we gotta put some stuff from that box into the bowls and then put the bowls back in the holes?"

She calls out again for her friend, too. "Calador!! Where are ye? Can you hear me???" 

Got-wolf tries to shush her, but his mouth isn't made for it. 

LOL

"Many discoveries, I have made. Inside these bowls, remnants of components, there are. Used for a spell or ritual, they could be, but what that is, I must look for. A secret door, there is, and near the altar, it lies. To open, the bowls, it needs." 

Ralf will point out the secret door and then inspect the bowls further to see if they are spell/ritual components, and if so, what that spell/ritual would do (Arcana, I would assume. Do you think he could roll with advantage because these bowls seem to have something to do with death?) He would also like to make an check (Investigation?) to see exactly what the writing on the bowls could mean and how to open the door.

((you may have missed this piece, but there is also a box on the altar containing the following items:))

- There is a small box on the altar with a bunch of stuff in it. 6 eggs, a blood stained dagger, a morter and pestle and a bunch of chicken bones tied together with twine. 

((Alton had uncovered that))

- There's a secret door by the altar, and it is activated by putting the bowls back on the altar and adding something to each of the bowls.

- The writing on the gold bowl says "essence of birth"

- The writing on the iron bowl says "essence of life"

- The writing on the onyx bowl says "essence of death"

Landy will take over with this tomorrow if no one can open this door :)

((Could I still try to discern what the ritual would do or how to open the door?))

Your previous investigation rolls basically gave it to you on a silver platter. The way to open the secret door is to put a broken egg into the gold bowl, some blood in the iron bowl and some ground bone into the onyx bowl. Then, the bowls need to be put back up in their holes on the altar, in no particular order. Then bingo, the door will open :)

"Search for these components, should we?" he asks the party. But suddenly, Ralfaen starts coughing and wheezing furiously, falling on his hands and knees! His breath becomes raspy and slow, and his gray skin starts to turn paler than usual. "GEEEAH! KEFF! sshelllll... piiilllss..." He looks like he is suffering from some sort of medical condition!

Alton will put two and two together. He moved each of the components to each bowl and gingerly placed them into the holes. As Ralf begins to cough he will turn to Landy, fear in his eyes. “Can you help him? What’s happening?” He asks.

Alton then faces Ralf and tries to discern what might be the cause of this sudden fit. 

Medicine? 9

(Alton was suspicious of completing the whole bowl thing as it could be the thing turning people into ghouls. For clarification, did Ralf already move the components into place, thus causing the fit?)