Adventure Background
Some 80 years ago, the Temple of Mysteries was a place of
wonders. Three humans—T’Shem, Okala, and Jevira—
founded the temple, dedicating it to the veneration of themselves
as demigods. Today, those who remember the place or
have heard the stories recognize that T’Shem, Okala, and
Jevira were merely powerful spellcasters, but at the time,
their wondrous might convinced at least a small following of
their divinity. It didn’t hurt that the three of them, known
collectively as the Triune, rewarded their worshipers with
great gifts and boons from time to time.
For the most part, however, the Triune were fickle “gods,”
requiring their followers to undergo strange trials and solve
mysterious puzzles. In retrospect, they seemed to be testing
the faithful, but whatever quality or abilities they sought to
find remains unknown.
In fact, besides their predilection for riddles and tests and
their desire for veneration, the only concrete fact known
about the Triune is that approximately 70 years ago, the
Temple of Mysteries was destroyed in a terrible fire. Rumors
circulated as to its cause, and many speculated that the
Triune or their followers had enemies.
All of you are part of an adventuring company that has
worked together for some time. You know each other fairly
well and have developed something of a bond, along with
the common goals of making a name for yourselves and
striking it rich.
While delving through an ancient tome on an unrelated
adventure, you learned that a powerful magic item known as
the strand of tears was kept below the Temple of Mysteries.
This minor relic, created from the tears of a goddess, appears
to be a delicate belt-sized silver strand set with blue and
white teardrop-shaped jewels. It is said that the strand of
tears enhances its wearer’s greatest attribute.
Despite the fact that other references to the strand of tears
exists, no one else seems to know that it was last seen below
the Temple of Mysteries. Although many adventurers are
said to have explored the ruins, no one has spoken of the
strand or, in fact, of having found a subterranean level. You
decided to go to the temple and explore, in the hopes of
finding the fabled strand of tears.
You came to the Temple of Mysteries on a cold, dark day,
finding a burned-out shell of a building along with a number
of smaller outbuildings, all in ruins. Splitting up and
spreading out, you combed the area carefully to find it picked
clean by explorers, adventurers, and scavengers, just as some
stories had said.
Unlike them, however, you knew to look for a secret way
down, eventually finding a hidden trap door that provided
access to a dusty old staircase beneath the temple. Lighting
torches and descending into the darkness, you found a wide
corridor that connected a few rooms. In places, faded frescos
depicted travelers on the road and other simplistic
scenes. You even managed to find a number of elaborately
carved pillars set with a few small gems, easily pried loose
and pocketed.
Then, at the end of the corridor, you came into a large
room with mosaic images along the walls. Ahead of you,
across the center of the chamber, three stone statues stood.
You moved to investigate, but before you could do so, the
statue in the center erupted with a bright flash of light,
and you heard a thunderous slamming of stone behind
you.
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And, that sets up the beginning of the adventure! Please read and understand the above background info. If you have questions or comments please post them in this thread now, and I will respond.
Once everyone is up to speed with character sheet and background, I will send out the personalized story for each character via e-mail.
And then the real fun begins.....
