ZEITGEIST Gale's Vekeshi mirror?

[Ambrus]

In the Dying Skyseer, I can't seem to find a description of what the mirror that the Vekeshi Mystic PC is asked to give to Gale actually does. Any help?

 

[MrsMongoose]

This might help:
(find the box: Gale and the Vekeshi, one of the last paragraphs. It's just a one-way communicator really)

https://d1vzi28wh99zvq.cloudfront.net/pdf_previews/96300-sample.pdf

 

[Ambrus]

You mean: “The Unseen Court is watching. Take this mirror, and when you see the face of our enemies within it, bring them down and we shall reward you.”? I saw that, but it doesn't really say anything.

Under what circumstances will it show someone's face within and who are the "enemies" which it's intended to show Gale? I don't understand the purpose or function of this "gift" or how it will impact Gale. The PCs and Gale herself are sure to ask what it is, who these mutual enemies are, how/why Gale should "take them down" and what's to be her reward. I'm surprised the sidebar doesn't answer any of that.

 

[MrsMongoose]

It's not in there as plot by the end of Part 3 I think, so I think it's just a hook if you want to give a Vekeshi character or someone who gets on with Gale better something to do if she asks for help or advice, as she is trying to not be as stabby...

Unseen court sends a picture via the mirror
"Take this enemy down a peg or two however is appropriate, use your discretion" (so it could either be kill, disgrace, pie fling)
Gale does that.

Simple as, it's no big deal unless you make it one by padding plot out (unless I've missed the part where it is written)

You could ignore it as it appears to be a McGuffin to get the Vekeshi character to have a reason to meet up with Gale, and show that the Court backs her, instead of a bunch of Lawful Stupid PCs getting stabby with her and losing a whole part of the first act...

 

[arkwright]

This is either deep lore or a contradiction, but. My understanding is that the Hedgehog Court are using the Vekeshi to do their dirty work (attack fey targets) in exchange for fey backing and power, like using the Dreaming for their initiations. 'The mirror comes from the Unseen Court' is a lie.

It's all in Book 9: The Hedgehog Court has denounced Risur’s industrial revolution, and has stoked tensions and anger among the ‘common’ fey. It has also offered aid to adherents of the traditional druidic faith in the real world, fought proxy battles through contacts in the Vekeshi Mystics, and given favors to saboteurs like the ‘fey terrorist’ Hana Soliogn, known as Gale.

Olazdor, Archfey of the Winds and Hedgehog lord: ...He quietly aided Ekosissigan’s plan to assault Cauldron Hill in Adventure Five, Cauldron-Born, and had hoped to recruit Gale to be both his ally and his queen.

Now, why would the mirror impact Gale? Well, something Book 2 doesn't do a great job setting up is that Gale really likes the fey, and that matters for Book 5: She met with Ekossigan, and he played to her desires of being accepted by the fey, sweeping her up in a narrative of making a grand difference to the world.

This is part of a big issue with the Vekeshi Mystic theme. It is both the 'fey theme' and the 'Elfaivaran Theme', and it doesn't communicate that.

 

[Ambrus]

Oh wow. That’s a deep dive all right!

So if I understand, it’s actually a wooing gift handed down from Olazdor to Ekossigan to the Old Stag to the Mystic PC to Gale; who’s excited to receive it cause she‘s enamored with fey. But the Old Stag was mislead by Ekossigan, and it isn’t actually from the Unseen Court as he and the Mystic PC believe it to be. And what it actually does, as a magic item, is never detailed anywhere and left to the DM to flesh out.

 

[arkwright]

Part wooing, part 'Gale would make an excellent agent to carry out the Hedgehog Court's agenda.'

There's no need for the gift to go through Ekossigan as that was a separate plan. Also by Book 2, Ekossigan is still a lord of the Unseen Court, so he wouldn't involve himself in Hedgehog spying. Olazdor > Old Stag > Mystic PC > Gale.

Could be that the Old Stag was lied to by Olazdor/an intermediary, could be that the Old Stag is a willing servant of the Hedgehog Court and their extreme anti-tech agenda.

I think the idea is that it's not a magic item intended for the PCs, just for Gale, so there's no need to stat it up. All it does as-described is let the Unseen (Hedgehog) Court communicate with Gale and give her targets.

There's not too much mention of what Gale gets up to post-Book 2 (aside from Guy Goodson) so that's for the GM to flesh out.

 

[Ambrus]

Sure, it's intended for Gale and not the PCs, but no DM hands a magic item over to the players and expects them to not try and use it themselves. Besides, if the PCs build a relationship with Gale, it'd be nice for her to later relate how she's been using the mirror.

 

[MrsMongoose]

We never used it; it wasn't that important. (And I was playing the Vekeshi character). We just hung around with Gale herself occasionally: any 'wooing' by Ekossigan happened in NPC-time...