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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Iron Sky" data-source="post: 4995996" data-attributes="member: 60965">The Far City This adventure is designed for a party of 26th level characters.  It takes place in a city on the borders of the Far Realm, at the bleeding edge of reality.Background The Far City is called by some the Last City, for it is said when one leaves all civilization and all that is known behind and travels to the end of one the worlds, there can be found the Far City, on the border between reality and chaos, astride the boundary with the Far Realm.  It is ruled by the Cosa Nesunna, a race of aberrations that not only pull the strings from behind the scenes in the Far City, but have a massive network of "coscas" (families) that silently pull the strings behind the criminal organizations of all the Planes.The Far City The Far City is massive, both in spread and in the scale of the buildings.  The Cosa Nesunna as a race are all massive in stature so most buildings of the Far City are built to the scale of fifteen foot-tall beings.  The Far City has no unified architecture, except for the the abject lack of unity.  Some buildings are ramshackle collections of stone, or bone, or wood while others are sprawling, labyrinthine structures that weave under, over, or through other structures.  Some are towering obelisks of living flesh while others are massive abominable constructs that roam the city or fly low through the haze of the purple sky.  The winged piranha mark of the Cosa Nesunna is emblazoned all over the city. The sky of the Far City is a gateway to the Far Realm, a swirling purple mist beyond which can be seen the faint glimmer of the ancient stars.  Occasionally, massive and terrible things can be seen just beyond the Barrier Mist, creatures that blot out a hundred stars and reach longingly through the Mist that marks the dividing line between the Far Realm and the Far City. In the center of the city is a massive Pedestal, atop which sits a hundred-foot tall statue of a massive, deformed dragon that blazes with unholy flame, bathing the city in a pale ever-shifting light.  The statue is called the Sleeping Watcher and it is rumored that it is a representation of the god-thing that created the Far City, watching over its realm as it slumbers. The Far City has no day or night, per-se.  Instead, every six hours it has a shift.  During the “day”, the city follows most of the “rules” familiar to those who live on the Material plane.  When it shifts, however, all that changes.  Gravity reverses, sending anything unlucky enough to be caught outside plummeting upwards to the waiting grasp of the Things Beyond the Mist.  The Mist itself weakens slightly, bathing the city in the energies of the Wyrd.  During shifts, fires burn cold and shine no light, the population of the City transforms into creatures from dream and nightmare, stones gleam and mirrors lose their luster, wood melts and wax becomes as strong as steel. Whatever one interacts with seems to suffer the effects of the shift the most.  Left unattended, most  objects are only slightly changed.  When directly interacted with, their reality bends to the point of breaking. The only light during the shift is the pale purple glow of the Mists above. After a shift, everything returns to the way it was before the shift, though anyone killed remains dead, anything destroyed is still destroyed, etc.Tens of thousands of creatures dwell in the city.  Most are aberrations such as illithids, beholders, aboleths, but there are a scattering of all sorts of other creatures that have found their way there – some by accident, some as slaves, others finding their way their after bouts of insanity.  During the “day”, the city is abustle with activity, though much of it is unfathomable or seemingly random to sane beings.  The PCs are as likely to see an illithid selling clothing made of human skin as they are to see a mutated halfling painting bizarre patterns on a chull's shell with glowing paints. There is little water in the city and what there is runs through dirty canals, thronging with deadly piranha, the favorite and symbolic fish of the Cosa Nesunna. The Cosa Nessuna themselves are easily recognizable by their size (most are over 15' tall), their winged piranha tattoos, and by the deference with which even the most horrific monstrosities pay them.  The Cosa Nessuna themselves are otherwise widely varied, borrowing features from all sorts of other aberrations – lack of symmetry, tentacles, eyestalks, lack of eyes or limbs, levitation, etc. Leaving the Far City during the “day” is as simple as casting True Portal or some similar ritual.  Attempts to use any rituals during a shift are impossible however, as ritual components become corrupted by the effects of the shift.The Sleeping Watcher The leader of the entire Cosa Nesunna is the Wyrd Dragon known as the Sleeping Watcher.  He never leaves the Far City, guarding over it like a jealous god.  His presence, like the Lady of Pain's in Sigil, prevents gods from entering the Far City unless he allows them in willingly, ensuring his dominion over the city. Generations ago, using eldritch powers and pacts with Things Beyond the Stars, he began unraveling the Veils that separate the Planes.  Rifts and Planar Tears became common and the whole of reality began to pull apart at the edges.  The Gods sent their mightiest heroes on great quests to somehow keep the Veils from coming apart.  Their stories have long since passed into legend, the most prominent among them that of Velos Sostenador, a mighty Aspect of Vecna who used his secrets gleaned from his god to find his way the Far City.  There he made a secret deal with the Cosa Nesunna and returned with the Rod of Everhold(see below). While slumbering, the Sleeping Watcher dreams of the Far City, seeing all that transpires but unable to effect it until the next shift.  During the shift, the Sleeping Watcher's statue becomes flesh and the Sleeping Watcher's burning flames go out.   A glowing barrier forms over the Pedestal upon which he sits during the “day”, keeping intruders out.  He becomes as cold as ice, his fire internalized, and he vanishes from sight as he travels about the shifted Far City.  His Wyld Breath burns reality itself, melting and transforming what it strikes into whatever the Sleeping Watcher wills. Mechanically he is a level 30 solo lurker that is invisible even to effects that normally pierce invisibility such as the True Seeing spell.  Only when viewed in the reflection of a mirror can he be seen.  While in statue form he is, for all intents and purposes, indestructible, and anything that comes close to his Pedestal takes massive fire and radiant damage.The Damning of Velos With the Rod of Evergrasp in one hand, anything can be grasped in the other and no mortal or divine power can force the release of the holder's grasp, including his or her grip on the Rod.  Velos returned from the Far City and grasped the Veils themselves in his hand, holding them together with the power of the Rod.  In return, Vecna granted him immortality. Months ago, the Sleeping Watcher managed to lure Velos to the Far City.  Cocky in his immortality, Velos had no fear of the Cosa Nesunna or even the Sleeping Watcher.  He brazenly strode down a narrow street that led to the Sleeping Watcher's Pedestal.  He was there, walking between the narrow, pirhana-filled canals along-side street when the Far City shifted. Along with the usual madness associated with a shift, the Rod of Evergrasp transformed into the Rod of Fumbling.  Velos dropped the Rod and the Sleeping Watcher swooped down, unleashing his burning, reality-searing Wyld Breath, causing the god's legs to melt and meld with the stones of the of the street.   The shifted and now-winged piranhas flew from the canals, stripping the screaming god down to the bone in seconds.There he has remained, the Sleeping Watcher's monstrous capos gorging on and gaining power from the ever-regenerating blood and flesh of the god during the “day”, his flesh constantly eaten away by the flying piranhas of the Alley during the shift.  In his thus-weakened state, Velos is damned to his terrible fate unless the Sleeping Watcher takes pity on him(not likely) or someone rescues him. Once the Far City shifted back after Velos's Damnation, the Sleeping Watcher had the Rod of Evergrasp returned and hidden away atop his Pedestal, a ritual cast over it that hides it from all methods of perception or divination unless he breathes his Wyld Breath upon it.  He then returned to his watching over his city, plotting, and directing the Cosa Nesunna. The denizens of the city have named the narrow street Velos occupies the Alley of the Damned, most creatures ignoring its gruesome sight, the more monstrous and/or depraved creatures gathering to watch the never-ending, grisly god-feast.  Velos's name is largely forgotten and they just call him “the Damned”.Hooks1) Emissaries of the gods most closely followed by/favoring the PCs approach the legendary PCs and directly request their help to find the long-missing Velos and his Rod of Evergrasp.2) The weakening Veils between the Planes have torn holes in the Material Plane and the PCs hear of it (and hopefully decide to do something about it).  If they don't the PC's favorite tavern, castle, city, etc. goes spiraling off into a massive rift to the Abyss.3) A powerful friend of the PCs had a member of the Cosa Nesunna approach him or her, directly or indirectly, demanding protection money and has requested the PCs help.Bullet Point Adventure Summary  0) Hooks  1) Finding the Far City  2) Information Gathering on Cosa Nesunna, Velos, and the Sleeping Watcher  3) Retrieving the Rod of Evergrasp1.  Far Out, Man Hook 1 should be used regardless, 2 + 3 just might add more justification for the PCs going there if they are for some reason not listening to the gods.  They will, of course, be rewarded handsomely if they succeed for the fate of the Planes hangs in the balance. As Epic level characters, they should have immense resources at their disposal.  The very existence of the Far City is known to few – even some of the gods don't know of its existence – and, of those few who do know of it, even fewer know how to get there.  The PCs will find themselves in a difficult skill challenge, using their resources however they can to learn of and find the Far City. The finding of the City could be a mini-adventure in itself, perhaps including tracking down elusive Cosa Nesunna agents and trying to find a way around the magic Omert                                                            à – the vow of silence about Cosa Nesunna that all members undertake upon initiation – or tracking down those rare few individuals who have been to the Far City and know how to return.  Failures might draw the attention of powerful Cosa Nesunna hitmen and hired assassins or result in encountering increasingly dangerous planar instability as the Veils pull apart.     Regardless, they will eventually learn that they must travel “as far from any other city as you can go and there is the Far City” and/or that “it is the furthest place from anywhere, right on the furthest edge of reality”.  How they actually achieve this largely up to player ingenuity, perhaps finding a way to fly up to the edge of space, traveling to the depths of the Abyss or impossibly deep into the Elemental Chaos or diving deep into the Astral Sea.  The DM should reward player creativity in achieving the task.     Abberrent creatures can get to the Far City easily, some of the more powerful ones able to walk a thousand steps from anywhere and step into the Far City on their thousandth step.  The PCs might discover this fact and use it in their plan to get to the Far City, carried on the back of a massive aberration or creating a ritual to slip in behind the aberration as it steps to the edge of reality.     It will also involve learning a bit of the City's shifts, forcing the PCs to track down and/or create a ritual that will ward them from the worst of the shift's chaotic effects while they are there – if the PCs don't want to transform back and forth from a jellyfish or a living boot every 6 hours, that is.2.  To Infinity – and Beyond!  Once the PCs find themselves in the Far City, they will likely have a bit of adjusting and information gathering to do.  This will likely be a skill challenge, but again could be a mini-adventure of its own.  They might face random attacks from the city's inhabitants, but if they defeat enough of them, word will spread and the population's attitude will shift to one of indifference to them and they can start gathering information.     As they investigate, they will discover the following rumors:  * There are no real laws in the Far City, except for one unspoken rule: don't cross the Cosa Nesunna.  * The Cosa Nesunna are the power behind criminal organizations across all the Planes and the Far City is their home city.  * All criminal organizations, if not outright run from the shadows by the Cosa Nesunna, at least pay them protection money.  * The Cosa Nesunna can get you almost anything that exists anywhere – for a price.  * Every six hours, the “day” ends and everything shifts in the Far City.  Some things turn to their opposites, others into mutated forms of themselves, still others into something entirely random.  Also, gravity reverses and those who are caught outside during a shift “fall” up to be consumed by the Things Beyond the Mist.  * The Sleeping Watcher is the statue at the heart of the city that provides the burning light of “day”.  Even approaching the base of the Pedestal upon which it sits could sear a red dragon.  * They say that the statue is of the near-god, the Sleeping Watcher, that rules the Far City.  * Some say the Sleeping Watcher dreams of all that goes on during the “day” and during the shift it “takes care of” anything it doesn't like that is happening in the Far City.  * Some say that even if the Sleeping Watcher is killed, it simply returns to the Pedestal in statue form and cannot be truly destroyed.  * During the shift, they say that the Sleeping Watcher's statue dissapears and that the Sleeping Watcher itself can only be seen in the reflection of a mirror.  This is unfortunate since the shift makes all mirrors dull and non-reflective.  * The Damned is some god that didn't follow up on his side of a deal with the Cosa Nesunna and is now a vivid example of what happens to even gods that break their deals with the Family.  * Whatever the Sleeping Watcher took from The Damned, it is said that he magically hid it on the Pedestal near the base of his statue – and no one has any hope of finding it unless the Watcher breathes upon it.  * Anyone who tried to somehow rescue The Damned from the Alley of the Damned would probably face the wrath of not only the Cosa Nesunna, but the Sleeping Watcher himself.  * Also during the shift, a glowing barrier protects the Pedestal.  They say the only way through it is along the Alley of the Damned.  The PCs now face one of two options(barring radical PC creativity, of course):  1) Try to negotiate with the Cosa Nesunna for the Rod of Evergrasp.  2) Try to fight the Sleeping Watcher and/or the Cosa Nesunna.3a) Can't We Just Talk This Over?  The Cosa Nesunna won't negotiate away the Rod of Evergrasp unless Velos's side of his deal is paid as well as a new price for giving it away a second time.  For Velos's debt, they must learn of and tell a secret from each of the gods.  To get the Rod of Evergrasp a second time, they must procure full rights and access to an Astral Diamond mine for the Cosa Nesunna.  At this point, the PCs will likely decide that paying either of the demands will be difficult to impossible and probably decide on plan B (take them out).  If not, they face an epic side-adventure to track down each of the gods and convince them to divulge a secret, then somehow get the rights to an Astral Diamond mine.  If they somehow accomplish all this, then capos of the Cosa Nesunna will gladly hand over the Rod of Evergrasp “to be loaned until it is no longer need and is discarded”.  They will then hand it over in front of the Alley of the Damned, a moment before the Far City shifts.  The Rod of Evergrasp becomes the Rod of Fumbling and will fall from the PCs hands.  The Sleeping Watcher himself will sweep down and swat it down the Alley of the Damned with his tail (since he can't pick it up either without dropping it) and telepathically pronounce “You cast aside the Rod and so our deal is complete.  Cosa Nesunna reclaims the Rod.”  This will probably push the PCs to the brink of violence.  If they don't attack immediately, the following “day” the Cosa Nesunna will present them with a new deal: “bring us a weapon that can slay the even a god and we will give you the Rod”.  If the PCs return to the gods, they will refuse to give Cosa Nesunna such a weapon and suggest the PCs find “an alternate method of dealing with the problem.”  If the PCs attack immediately, they will face an invisible dragon mutating them with its breath weapon and launching hit-and-run attacks through its city.  If they go for the Rod, they will fumble it as soon as they do so, all the while under attack by swarms of massive god-fed flying piranhas that can chew through steel as though it were flesh.  If they run, the Sleeping Watcher will track them through the city and, if they elude him, will face the Cosa Nesunna hunting them during the “day”.3b) I Guess Not  If the PCs spent any time gathering information, they will quickly see they can't take on the Cosa Nesunna directly.  Aside from being a small, well-organized army of giant aberrations, they are also well equipped, being intra-planar arms dealers and all.  Their only real option is to take on the Sleeping Watcher himself during the shift.  First the PCs must contend with the conditions of the shift, especially random attacks from the mutated creatures the population of the Far City become during the shift, attacks from massive flying piranhas every time they go near a canal, and the hazard of reversed gravity.  In order to combat the Sleeping Watcher effectively, they must first craft mirrors that will work during the shift.  There are two real ways of doing this.  Option one is to build a mirror during the “day” that is purposely non-reflective, so when it shifts it will reflect normally.  Option two is two wait until the shift to build a mirror, though the chaotic conditions of the shift will make such a task far, far harder (metal turning into rabbits or wine, tools floating away or transforming into wheels of cheese, etc).  Once they have the mirrors, they must reach the Pedestal so they can get the Rod.  If they can fly, they risk being spotted by the Sleeping Watcher, so they will likely face an inverted scramble, leaping or flying from the underside of the balcony of one building to the window of another then across the ceiling and on the underside of a bridge to another until they reach the Pedestal.  Once they reach the Pedestal, they will find a glimmering, impassable, impenetrable shield of energy around it.  At the end of the Alley of the Damned is the only way through.  Passing through the Alley, they will face attacks by the monstrous flying piranhas mentioned above and the pathetic cries of The Damned.  After they make it through, they must fall, climb, or fly “down” to the top of the Pedestal.  There they will find the Sleeping Watcher waiting for them.  In the course of the following fight, not only do they face a dragon they can only see through the mirrors they hold – a dragon whose breath weapon mutates their limbs into uselessness or fuses their lips or fingers together so they cannot perform magic – fighting him in the reversed gravity of the shift, but they must also try to get him to blast as much of the top of the pedestal as possible so they can locate the Rod.     Every time his Wyld Breath hits the Pedestal, treasures or powerful items veiled by the same ritual as the Rod will be revealed, until finally he uncovers the Rod itself.  If the PCs fall, fly, or are pushed into the barrier around the Pedestal, they take damage and are hurled back from it back towards the Pedestal.  The Sleeping Watcher will also make the fight more difficult by targeting the PC's mirrors with claw or tail attacks to break them.  Once they defeat him, they will have the Rod.  If they wish to travel with it in the city, they will find it difficult, since the Rod falls from hands, slips from packs or wrappings, and, if secured somehow so it cannot be fumbled, causes whoever bears stumbling and trip when walking, drop their packs and weapons, etc.  If they wait until “day”, it becomes the Rod of Evergrasp again.  Since the only way out of the Far City is to use some form of teleportation ritual and rituals fail when cast during a shift, the PCs must wait until “day” to get out.  They then will find the Sleeping Watcher back in statue form atop the Pedestal with the Cosa Nesunna soon mobilizing to take the PCs out.  If they attempt to free Velos, they will likely find the only way is to cut him free from where his lower body melds with the stones of the Alley (he'll regenerate it back later).  They must, of course, fight off another wave of flying piranhas as they do so.  If they flee with Velos, he will eventually be restored and will take up the Rod again and again hold the Veils together.  If not, they must find someone else to take up the task... but that is for another adventure.  Regardless, the gods will reward the players handsomely in (almost) any way the PCs desire and the party will have again performed heroic deeds that will resound in legend.Future Adventures The Sleeping Watcher and Cosa Nesunna are far from destroyed.  They will likely become strong adversaries for the PCs for the remainder of the campaign, launching attacks on the PCs, their allies, and their reputations.  The PCs might track down and destroy the agents of the Cosa Nesunna across the Planes, assault the Far City itself, search for some way to destroy the Sleeping Watcher once-and-for-all, or try to find a permanent solution to the unraveling of the Veils.IngredientsDamned Alley: The street where the god Velos lost the Rod of Fumbling, now endlessly devoured by Flying Piranha as an example to any who would break their word to the Giant Mafia.Non-Reflective Mirror: The only way to effectively see and fight the the Sleeping Watcher.Sleeping Watcher: The leader of the Giant Mafia, a Flaming Dragon, and owner of the Rod of Fumbling.Giant Mafia: A giant plane-spanning criminal organization composed of giant aberrations.Flying Piranhas: The creatures that endlessly devour the god Velos in the Damned Alley.  Also the symbol of the Giant Mafia.Rod of Fumbling: What the Rod of Evergrasp becomes during a Far City shift, it's properties used to the Sleeping Watcher's advantage if the PCs try to negotiate for it.Flaming Dragon: The Sleeping Watcher who, while sleeping, burns with unholy fire bright enough to light the whole of the Far City and whose burning breath weapon can burn the fabric of reality itself.In a Sentence: The Flaming Dragon, called the Sleeping Watcher and leader of the Giant Mafia, “loaned” the Rod of Fumbling to a god who broke the deal and was lured into the Damned Alley where he is now endlessly devoured by Flying Piranhas until the Sleeping Watcher can be defeated with the aid of Non-Reflective Mirrors.</blockquote>

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