Thread Recompilation - Places

[LogicsFate]

Tests and Trials

-Takes place at a tower an hour walks away.
---After about an hour and a half of walking, the party has left the city and has entered a small forest just to the north. Along the trail are old wooden signs with warnings scrawled on them: A sign reads- BEWARE OF BEASTS

-In a small clearing in the wood.
-In the middle rests the pointed roof of an old tower, apparently blasted off the top of its coordinating building which stands on the far side of the clearing.
- http://www.enworld.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=21918
-The roof top is upside-down, and embedded in the grass a short distance away.
[sblock= What one might notice]-at first glance, the roof top seemed fresh in the ground. There was no growth of any kind inside the the tower and the earth was freshly churned up from the ground. But after taking more than a cursory examination, one might noticed that the stone on the inside of the tower was almost too clean and even bore marks of a hard scrubbing tool. Here and there he did indeed find bits of moss growing in inaccessible nooks and crannies of the ceiling (which is now like a floor). Also, the absence of cobwebs and other such things normally found on the inside of an old tower were oddly missing. When jumping on the structure, he discovered that it was firmly embedded in the ground, though exactly what that means, he doesn't know. The vines that crawl up the sides of the roof seem to have been cut cleanly off rather than been ripped apart.
-The tower has no openings on the ground level except the door. Obviously the roof has been blown off (it's sitting in the middle of the clearing) so there's a gaping hole up there. Arrow slits can be seen at regular intervals around the top floor (Hard to make out). It's about 35' up with a 45o angle incline out at about 35'. [/sblock]

-http://www.enworld.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=21102
-In the woods one can find talking wolves that duel by drawing starting lines on the ground and then stamping their feet/paws three times, Goblins, strange angry crazed weasels.
-See? I wasn’t kidding about the weasels http://www.enworld.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=19687

-Here's a very quick, not to scale, completely inaccurate map http://www.enworld.org/attachment.php?attachmentid=20990

-this land here is infested with baddies, not just dangerous animals, either. They're real dangerous for normal folk.
-There are other clearings, like this one, only smaller, there are trails and things, but it’s a forest so they're not cobbled roads or anything. But yes, there are creatures out there, natural and unnatural.

In one such clearing that a befriended wolf might lead you too.
[sblock]-First, almost in the exact center of the field is a large boulder with a huge crevice in its side. This crack seems to lead to small dark enclosure within the rock itself, forming a tiny shelter from the elements and probably an effective hiding place, if the rock is viewed from a different angle.

Second, lying about the field is a total of about a dozen wolves, all grey-brown with the black streaks in their fur and the glowing red eyes. A few look the group's way as they enter and some even get to their feet, but the guide wolf barks out a harsh sound and all the wolves calm down again. By the rock in the center, the lead wolf from before, distinguishable by its distinctive black marks and size, sits regally, its eerily colored eyes locked on the group of adventurers as they enter the clearing.

It gives a short howl and the guide leads the group to the central rock. Now the inside of the crevice is viewable, but it is shrouded in total darkness thanks to the angle of the sun. Only with dark vision can see that inside the crack there are a half dozen tiny wolf pups, dozing on each other and walking awkwardly on their still young legs. [/sblock]

A particularly friendly wolf or one that wants something, might go to the bolder, dig a hole and pull out a statue of a wolf. Were someone to hold it, it would allow that person to speak and understand wolf.

Wolf stump speech.
-"This forest has grown here since ancient times, and thanks to our Master, nothing, not even the presence of goblins, can ever taint it. As for myself and my brethren, we have been here as long as our oldest tales recall. Our eldest say that once we were a two-footed race, similar to yourself, but our Master came and allowed us to be closer to Nature by living as one of its own creatures. I can already tell you the answer to your next question. I do not know who our Master is or where He comes from. He simply is, and always has been, and it is He who keeps us and our forest free from the corruption so rampant in the world."

-Master
- It is a tall, skinny elf, with a cape made of autumn leaves and clothes of hide. The elf is clearly an ancient fellow, his long white hair, tangled with leaves and dirt, falls down past his shoulders, and his beard reaches his knees. Though he is hunched over, leaning on a long, thick, gnarled staff, he is at least six feet tall, probably seven at full height. His skin is a tan brown, and his Elvin ears are extremely long. What can be seen of his arms and legs isn’t much; it’s all skin and bones. He radiates a sort of ancient, yet tired, power.

-Lumber camp, several hours to the east.
-In front of the group lies a massive expanse of tree stumps. As far as the eye can see, the once-forest extends. Not too far off, a small semi-permanent settlement has been established. There are a few shoddy wooden houses, but mostly tents, and one very large tent
-Crash Victim

Final notes.
-The party was hired by a wizard to clear out the evil from the woods.
-The party killed some goblins and met the wolves.
-The “Master” gave permission to the wolves to summon him, so that he could speak with the party.
-Master claimed that the evil ones were the wizard and his apprentice.
-The party went back to the tower, killed the wizard, who might have just been a regular old man, and shipped his “apprentice” to orussus.
-The second part of their assignment by the Master was to stop the lumber workers.
-Did the adventurer’s manage to take care of the lumber workers?

 

[LogicsFate]

Dm Credits as recovered from Google Cache

-Very long for only two posts but no info. (Did mention awarding credits for recompiling threads though)

 

[Rae ArdGaoth]

Tests and Trials, addt'l notes by the DM

The many aggressive, semi-intelligent animals of the forest are descendants of animals awoken a long time ago by the Master. They've been had it driven into their heads since birth that they must protect the forest from the destructive, consumptive "Two-Footers" at all costs.

The Master is an ancient and powerful druid. Little is known about him. He is able to cast at least 5th level spells. He had lost some power over time, but during the course of this adventure he was empowered again and made young, through a reincarnation.

[sblock=Mechanics Notes: ]The Master is actually constantly spending XP to keep up various protection spells and to awaken creatures of the forest. Though the awaken spell doesn't say anything about children, I assumed that children of two awakened animals would also be awakened. But family lines die out and new creatures take up residence. At the beginning of Tests and Trials, he was very old (ancient age group) and low level (he could only cast L1 and L2 spells. He was unable to cast awaken at this point.

Every few hundred years, the Master uses a druidic artifact to reincarnate himself, making him young again and restoring his lost power. The stone can only be used once every few hundred years and requires a complicated ritual to activate. The ritual involves speaking in druidic and the participation of awakened animals. The stone itself is massive and buried under the earth. The stone was recently activated (at the end of Tests and Trials, actually) so it is useless for another few hundred years.[/sblock]
The "wizard" and his "apprentice" in this adventure were actually simple peasants who obtained the deed to this land for a pittance, because it was useless thanks to all the crazed creatures. Only the tower clearing was protected from the creatures, for reasons made clear later. The peasants planned on hiring the adventurers to clear the land "as a test of their ability" and then send them on "the real quest", giving the peasants time to sell the land at a greatly increased price and then disappear. Their plan failed, and the party, under orders from the Master, ended up killing the "wizard".

The party did successfully expel the loggers from the woods. They returned to the tower clearing, where the Master explained that every 500 years (I think... can't remember the exact number) a ritual took place at the center of the clearing, powered by an artifact stone underneath the tower. The Master was very weak by now and could not gain access to the clearing for some reason (I can't recall why...), so he had the party do it.

At the end, they were witness to the reincarnation of the Master. He arose at full power and told the party he would protect these woods from the corruption of man for many years to come. The party was spared their lives because they fulfilled the Master's tasks, but they are not any more welcome in the forest today than any other "Two-Footer".

-----------------

There is a small problem with this adventure, in that it takes place a mere hour north of Orussus. Maybe 5 miles, max. Such an ancient and powerful force is rather close to that populated area, and yet it's relatively unknown and unexploited. The obvious reason might be the aggressive wild creatures scaring off potential development, though it seems unlikely that some adventurers wouldn't get suspicious and go digging for treasure. Really, though, the only treasure to be found is the artifact rock, and that's only of use to a druid. So adventurers may have ventured in, hacked and slashed a while, found nothing and left, only serving to fuel the creatures' hatred for "Two-Footers". Commoners and developers have no shortage of area nearby to settle in otherwise, so they simply avoid settling in the "haunted forest". Also, I think the protected patch of woods is relatively small.

Dungannon's Devlin was PC in this adventure. He may have something to add. Also, a disclaimer: I can't remember exactly what happened, so the above summarization may not be entirely accurate... But it's something.

 

[LogicsFate]

Thank's Rae!

 

[Rae ArdGaoth]

A Teacher for Laynie: Mystery at the Academy (Part 1, Part 2)

The Story

The adventure begins with Vanitri, a young Freefolk man, Mearran, a catfolk druid, and Laynie, an orphan Vanitri met in another adventure, looking for information about the Academy of the Chromatic Order. As they gather information, an orc barbarian named Hewj Ogr stalks them through the streets. After a drunk old man tells Vanitri of a game called 'croquet' played with many colorful balls and sticks, Vanitri decides to take Laynie to the library. There Vanitri pays the 100gp membership fee. Laynie grabs a book off the shelf, Advanced Studies in Thaumaturgy by Draelik Vryden, which she reads while Vanitri and Mearran check the library's map room. They gather their information, buy supplies, and head out for Medibaria.

They take the road to Fallon first, pass by some adventurers and road wardens on the way, pay a small toll, and stop at an inn just outside of Fallon. Short on money, Vanitri liberates a few coins from a drunken merchant guard and performs tumbling on the streets to pay for the next few days' food. That night, the same merchant wagon is attacked and some people are killed, but the murderers remain at large. Vanitri didn't investigate much, and the next day he, Mearran, and Laynie continued on to Old Medibaria.

Finally reaching it on their 4th day out of Fallon, they stay at an inn. Vanitri tries to make some money tumbling again, but this time he's stopped by a guard, because Vanitri isn't a member of the Acrobats, Jugglers, and Tumblers Guild. After a useless talk with the guild receptionist, Vanitri passes the night at the inn.

The next morning, the trio heads to the Old City to find the Academy. On the way, Laynie drops her ball into the basement of a building. She accidentally stumbles upon a secret passage way into a furnished room which contains a chest. The chest contains an old tome, a fluted rod, an emerald necklace, and a fair bit of gold. Vanitri takes the lot and returns to the surface.

They reach the Academy. A man named Garrick informs them that Laynie is far too young to start her education at the Academy. A woman named Layna takes over and guides the group to start their tour. She gives Vanitri the idea of enrolling in the school himself and bringing Laynie to all his classes. Layna leaves and after signing some forms, the tour proper begins, given by Elektra.

The tour takes them through the gardens and the colossal Academy library. They visit with a teacher and some students, see a few House common rooms, tour through Omega's Otherspace and Daryne's Imaginarium, until Elektra has to meet with Truman, another student. Truman is reluctant to discuss his topic in front of Laynie, so Mearran takes the child to the Academy's main Imaginarium. Truman tells Elektra that Tammy is missing, and that he found a letter with a grim message in the library.

The tour continues to the extravagant Sice dorms, where Laynie makes known her knowledge of advanced medicine when she confuses the word "diary" with "diarrhea". That's the end of Elektra's tour, so she directs the gang to the Academy entrance and hurries off. Vanitri registers for an examination, sells some of the things he found in the Old City to a merchant, and returns the next day to schedule his examination. Mearran decides that teaching Laynie isn't his thing and departs from Old Medibaria.

The next day a professor gives him his 200 page exam, which he has 24 hours to complete with the resources of the Academy Library at his disposal. With Laynie's help, he answers about 20 pages off the top of their heads, and the duo consumes dozens of books in the library to answer the questions. Laynie does most of the work. After 10 hours, they're left with 9, which stump them both. The librarian is bound not to assist them, and they discover that 5 of the remaining questions are topics being researched by labs in the Academy. After reading the preliminary drafts on those projects, Vanitri and Laynie piece together the answers to those questions, leaving only 4, which turn out to be "as yet unanswered mysteries of magical theory". Vanitri turns in the test, and the professor expresses some surprise at his answer to a question on chronomancy.

Day 2 of the exam is Vanitri, all alone in a desk, answering more questions. He barely answers half of the questions before time is up.

The third and final part of the exam has Vanitri pass under three arches and undergo three strange tests. First he takes on the avatar of supposed past life. He becomes a more powerful version of himself, alive at the time when the Medibarian empire is powerful. He chases a dark elf, a nesfylim, and eavesdrops on a conversation with its cruel master. They discuss plans to awaken a powerful dark master. Vanitri makes moves to stop a slaughter of his fellow Freefolk and the theft of the Seer's crystal ball. He goes to the farm house the cruel pair was discussing, sneaks past the guards with a dimension door, and finds a fair maiden covered in mud, unconscious, lying in a bed. A dark elf, a nesfylim, discovers his presence and drops a globe of darkness over the room. Past-Vanitri uses his tremorsense to cut the elf into pieces. He grabs the maiden and dimension doors away, out of the farm house.

The maiden is Lady Elayna Lyrue, a Medibarian princess. Using a combination of her magic, Vanitri's horizon walker abilities, and Eirian's legs, they travel at a truly miraculous speed. They reach the Freefolk caravan just before dusk, and Eirian collapses from exhaustion. Vanitri warns the seer of the coming Nesfylim, and a Medibarian guard arrives in time to protect them. Vanitri and Elayna walk back to tend to Eirian...

Now Vanitri is chasing nymphs through a forest... now he is in a cell, a feeble form of his current self, confronted by a powerful shadow clone. The Vanitri clone tries to make Vanitri worship him, but Vanitri uses magic to beat his inner demons into submission...

Finally, Vanitri appears in a large underground chamber with Elektra and Truman. In the center of the chamber is a large, glowing red gem. Snakes attack, the trio does their best to defeat them. As soon as the snakes are down, a cloaked figure descends upon them. She tells them that she will kill them all except Vanitri, who she will keep as a servant. Removing her hood, she reveals her face...

Vanitri has passed all the tests, and is accepted into the Academy. He applies for some scholarships. He's denied an Omega scholarship, but Daryne is quite impressed by him. Lady Lyrune's mechanical cat curls up in his lap and grants him another scholarship. Then the choosers, some intelligent magical artifacts, award him some more scholarships. Of note, Elayna Valsice's chooser approves Vanitri for 3/4ths of the tuition if he will stay in house Sice. Despite the tempting offers of money, Vanitri chooses House Daryne and arranges (secretly) for him and Laynie to live with Elektra in her dorm.

Elektra, Vanitri, and Truman discuss Vanitri's third dream sequence. Since the other two have schoolwork to do, Vanitri promises to do some research on the Dark Lord in the library. While he's there, he suggests some books for Laynie to read, which she does so reluctantly. Later, Elektra reveals her secret: Using a magical artifact, she has split her essence in half and created a clone. She can reunite with her clone, and she must share spells with her clone, but she can be in two places at once. Vanitri invites Elektra (and her clone) on a date. One accepts, and they enjoy a night of dancing.

The next day, Vanitri is going about smoozing the professors when he hears about Gaark Bruskran's suicide. Vanitri decides to do a little investigating. He breaks into Gaark's room, with Elektra's help he gets a copy of the suicide note, and talks with Headmistress Rayne. They come to no conclusions, and continue on with school. Then Lara Espree disappears, leaving behind a suicide note saying she left to be with Gaark. In the following weeks, several nonhuman staff members begin to disappear. After a brief romantic encounter with Misha, the albino half-elf student in Omega, Vanitri notices that his own roommate is missing as well.

After a mostly unhelpful discussion with Rayne the Daryne headmistress, Elektra and Vanitri decide to find the secret Sice library. Elektra has an incomplete map of the Sice tower which Laynie completes with the help of the miraculous book that she and Vanitri discovered in the Old City. Vanitri successfully breaks into the library using a cloak of invisibility, reads some histories, and is interrupted by the headmistress of Sice. Vanitri leaves and then returns later, to get a map of the Academy catacombs. He brings it to Elektra, who copies the map, and then returns it to the library. On the way out, he bumps into two students who flee, thinking they're about to be abducted.

Finished now with the library, Vanitri, Elektra, and Truman decide to go into the catacombs to find the Dark Lord. After some navigating with the miraculous notebook, they find the chamber with the Philosopher's Stone. They're then attacked by snakes, just like in Vanitri's third trial. Then the Dark Lord appears and the dialogue alters from the trial. The Dark Lord turns out to be the spirit of Elayna Valsice, a beautiful, powerful female wizard possessing little Laynie, her body controlled by the miraculous Notebook in which Elayna stored some of her essence. After some talking, the Dark Lord attacks Truman, whose mother's love reflects the spell back on the Dark Lord. Then suddenly Rayne appears. Rayne and the Dark Lord duke it out for a bit, until two spell stitched monsters appear and take out Rayne. Vanitri helps the Dark Lord destroy the two monsters and she uses their souls to fuel the Philosopher's Stone magic. The Dark Lord's ritual complete, she disappears. Vanitri runs back to the others and collapses into unconsciousness...

And wakes up in the infirmary. He is soon released, meets up with Laynie and Elektra, and discusses the events. All of the abducted students and staff members and even some people from the New City were killed in the ritual, their souls irrecoverable (except for Tammy, who just turned out to be a deadbeat college drop out). At a dinner with the headmaster and the four housemasters, Vanitri tells a modified version of the events that transpired in the dungeon. Later on, he goes to dinner with Lex, and the two become a little closer.

Years pass, and Vanitri earns his Journeyman's degree from the Academy. Laynie's still not old enough to join the Academy, but she's got a fair amount of knowledge about the arcane now. Elektra chooses to stay and study, while Vanitri and Laynie ride off to Orussus together, in search of adventure to pass the time until Laynie comes of age to attempt the Academy application.



The People

Teachers and Administrators:

[smallcaps]Headmaster Umbryn Albion[/smallcaps] is the headmaster of the Academy. Anyone can tell that this man is powerful just by looking at him. He appears a stereotypical old archmage, even with the robe and pointy hat, but he has an aura of power around him that belies his soft grey eyes.

[smallcaps]Professor Dorian Grywald[/smallcaps] teaches at the academy. He's a twenty-something blond-haired man. His robes are an ornate gilded version of the Omega House's robes with a bright red cloak and an emerald circlet. He is friendly and has a jesting manner.

[smallcaps]Daryne Housemistress Rayne Liore[/smallcaps] is a half-elf professor, one of the rare non-human teachers at the Academy. She is quite friendly. She once lived in Orussus, where she managed to get a job as a clerk at the library before reading about the Academy and deciding that she must find it one day and join. They almost turned her away, but she was able to impress a few important people with her previous studies, including the old Housemistress, Adriona Mineria, who sponsored her as a graduate student and selected her as her successor when Rayne became a professor. She is capable of casting 4th level spells.

[smallcaps]Sice Housemistress Kharisa Valpyren[/smallcaps] is a beautiful and sophisticated human woman, though not as effusively friendly as Rayne Liore. She has a large elegantly furnished suite in the Sice tower. She found the dungeons and was present when Vanitri encountered the Dark Lord.

[smallcaps]Omega Housemaster Cedric Bronwen[/smallcaps] is a graying man. He is very interested in magical artifact research. His wife is a young woman named Adrianna.

[smallcaps]Mordrue Housemaster Humboldt Tyndall[/smallcaps] is even older than Headmaster Albion.

[smallcaps]Dean Thrym Grolsen[/smallcaps] is the dean of the Academy Archives.

[smallcaps]Professor Quent Galton[/smallcaps] teaches at the academy. He handed out the admission test to Vanitri.

Professor Mikam Erlis teaches at the Academy, he is in House Omega.

Professor Byllik Namander, Mordrue.

Professor Jarvys Dendril, Mordrue.

Professor Friesa Dralkin, Omega.

Professor Ewan Maldur, Sice.

Professor Santhiel Alair, Daryne.

Professor Adrianna Branwen Omega. Cedric's young wife, she fell in love with Cedric for his genius as a graduate student working under him.



Students:

[smallcaps]Garrick Thendrin[/smallcaps] is a red-cloaked enchanter, a graduate student at the Academy. He is very proud of the Academy, even arrogant. He is quite stubborn, and like many Old Medibarians, disdainful towards foreigners. Despite his pride, he is not Highborne. He enjoys learning about history and knows a lot of details about the Medibarian empire. He sometimes serves the Academy in the capacity of welcoming visitors.

[smallcaps]Layna Larinas[/smallcaps] is a green-cloaked Illusion graduate student at the Academy. She is Highborne, but unlike Garrick, she is kind. She has a graduate degree in illusion magic from the Academy but chose to stay on, teaching other students rather than "blasting the heads off of orcs with fireballs".

[smallcaps]Damien Sorvrin[/smallcaps], is an Academy graduate student specializing in Divination.

[smallcaps]Elektra Planter[/smallcaps] is a student at the Academy. She bonded with Vanitri during his studies.

[smallcaps]Truman Kilner[/smallcaps] is a student at the Academy, in house Daryne. He is a dark-haired lad whose face has a bit of a grim set, but he's still fairly handsome, except perhaps for the dark eyepatch over his left eye, covered with a mystic rune. He's half-highborne. He's friends with Elektra. In the dungeons beneath the Academy, his Lesser Eyepatch of Reflection reflected one of the Dark Lord's spells back on her, weakening her and allowing Rayne to save the day.

[smallcaps]Alden Ferrous[/smallcaps] was a student at the academy, in house Daryne. He had red hair. He was Truman's roommate. He was Tammy's brother. Elektra took him to a school dance in the Sice tower once, but it didn't go so well. In the dungeons, in the battle with the Dark Lord, he appeared suddenly and sacrificed himself for Elektra.

Tammy Ferrous was a student at the academy. She had a crush on Truman, and was later discoverd to have administered love potions to him. She's Alden's sister. She disappeared mysteriously, and it was thought that she was abducted by the Dark Lord, but it turns out she just dropped out of school and became a prostitute on the streets of the New City in Old Medibaria.

Misha is an albino dark elf student in Omega. She was infamous at the school because she killed another student in an illegal mage duel. Most students don't believe that it was an accident. She became close to Vanitri one night, but the next day she disappeared. It is presumed that she was killed and her soul was absorbed into the Philosopher's Stone.

Kitty Valdaryne is a student at the academy, in house Daryne. She has a large bosom, and is dating Alden Ferrous. Elektra thinks she's a bimbo. Elektra took Kitty's form as a disguise on her two dates with Vanitri into the New City.

Rowan Aranah is an Enchantment graduate student at the academy, in house Omega. He is handsome and well-muscled with long blond hair and blue eyes that sparkle. He's rather pompous and a lady's man. He was once cursed (not by Bestow Curse) by Elektra Planter and some co-conspirators.

Malak Saferi is a student at the academy, in house Omega. He's quite the enterprising young researcher, and he somehow manages to pull off more A's than B's without studying at all. Studying doesn't help him much.

Solon Valpyren is a student at the Academy, in house Sice. He called Elektra a "lowblood whore". He's not very nice. He's Kharisa Valpyren's son.

Sarya Atropos is a student at the Academy, in house Sice. She's Elektra's friend.

Jyrad is a 1st year student at the academy, in house Mordrue.

Cherise Malbin is a student at the academy, in house Mordrue. She was friends with Gaark and Lara before they were abducted.

Miliana Draenyst is a student at the academy, in house Mordrue. She is Cherise's roommate.

Kelin Jerias is a student at the academy, in house Omega. He was seen working in a lab area.

Gaark Bruskran, 15-year-old male half-orc student of House Daryne, was thought to have committed suicide, but was eventually discovered to have been killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Lara Espree, 23-year-old female half-elf student of House Omega, Gaark's friend. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Anvar Stormhammer, 44-year-old male dwarf student of House Mordrue. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Ellie Valanise is an Omega student. She descends from Anoura Valanise.

Fern Ambrosia is an Omega student.




Staff

Agatha Evangeline is the name of an elderly human priestess and healer who works at the Academy. She is related to the PC Aletheia Evangeline.

Sican Goodbarrel, 52-year-old male halfling janitor. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Baalsh One-Eye, 28-year-old male half-orc groundskeeper. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Nalki Vriialia, 150-year-old female elf gardener. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Vaaran Clanless, 35-year-old male hobgoblin night watchman. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Brormar Anvilforge, 152-year-old male dwarf janitor. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Allie Lightwagon, female halfling janitor. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.

Pyrrha, an acolyte healer. Killed and absorbed by the Philosopher's Stone.



Other

[smallcaps]Laynie[/smallcaps] is a very young orphan girl, discovered near Briarton with a gray render. Laynie is the reason that Vanitri was enrolled in the Academy. She's extraordinairly intelligent, and assisted him on his first entrance test, helping Vanitri tie with the highest grade ever scored on that part of the exam. Even after Vanitri earned his Journeyman's Degree from the Academy, Laynie still wasn't old enough to apply, so she left with Vanitri.



Villains

[smallcaps]Elayna Valsice[/smallcaps], the Dark Lord. When the real Elayna was at the school, she imbued some of her essence in a special notebook, accidentally discovered by Laynie and Vanitri on their way to the school. Laynie was slowly possessed by the Dark Lord, and eventually the Dark Lord had enough control over her to start abducting students for the ritual which would fully materialize her. Though Vanitri intercepted her plans, Elayna Valsice still managed to complete the ritual and disappeared with the book.

 

[Rae ArdGaoth]

A Teacher for Laynie: Mystery at the Academy, Cont'd (Part 1, Part 2)

Places

The Orussian Library

• The library charges an entry fee, either 10gp per day plus more to borrow a book, or 100gp for a lifetime membership along with unlimited free book borrowing (but only one at at time)
• The library has an "Arcane" section.
• The library has a "History" section.
• The library has a map room, which contains several atlases and large maps.

Fallon

• There is a school of magic in Fallon.
• On the road to Fallon there is a road warden toll that charges 1 copper per creature to pass. The funds go to the road wardens protecting the road.
• On the road to Fallon, just outside the city, there is an inn.
• The town of Triesk is just in between Fallon and Old Medibaria, 64 miles from both.

Allimon

• Allimon has a school of magic.

The Academy of the Chromatic Order

• The Academy stands among the crumbled ruins of the ancient capital of the Old Empire of Medibaria, the city now called Old Medibaria.
• Medibaria was once a great empire, but it crumbled.
• At least one old man thinks that the Academy is a bunch of deluded elitists.
• The Academy is 550 miles from Orussus on the road through Fallon, 350 miles through wilderness.
• It isn't really near anything else. The mages are stubborn, and even though the New City has moved towards the water over time and built up higher on the debris of what has come before, the Academy is still down among the ruins of the Old City, in an ancient but well-preserved complex with a central stronghold and seven towers.
• The Academy is an eerie place to visit in the night, as strange lights and sounds the area around it after dark, perhaps the remnants of degrading warding magic.
• The Academy is a huge building complex, towering over the rest of the ruins like a fortress among the rubble, and in some ways, it is a fortress. Almost completely intact despite signs of great age, the Academy is composed of a main castle-like complex in the centre and four tall towers topped with spires, each looking like a stereotypical Wizard's Tower that children would read about in storybooks, one on each corner. Strange wisps of glowing coloured light flit about around the building, and there appears to be a large stable and gardens located on the far side of the Academy from the entrance. A wide ancient road, once well-traveled, leads directly to the entrance, a set of huge double doors inlaid with mystic symbols and engraved with bas relief scenes all over. Thick metal rings on the front are apparently used to open the door, but they seem far too large and heavy to be easily opened.
• The entrance is guarded by a silvery metallic form, looking a bit like a suit of armour or a man made of metal. It asks visitors why there are here in Old Medibarian.
• The Academy complex proper is well-furnished and well-lit, with a double sweeping carpeted stairway leading up to a balconied second level and beyond, a wide hallway leading straight ahead, two smaller hallways to each side, and doors along the halls.
• The Office of the Archives is where the Academy's Archivists work to keep the Academy running smoothly, under the careful eye of Dean Thrym Grolsen
• Extensive gardens are behind the main complex.
• The library is colossal, with books on every subject imaginable, but most of them are about magic of all sorts. There are books dating to the height of the Medibarian Empire and beyond.
  • Book: Riana Kenp's Elements of Magic, a primer for beginning students
  • Book: Codex Anathema
  • Book: The Dangers of Undisciplined Magical Research
  • Book: Hale Absalom's Ethics in the Practise of Magic, an advanced text on magical ethics. It covers difficult ethical debates such as privacy vs. use of divinations to prevent crimes, whether evil magic used to saved lives is still evil, and others. Most of them have no answers given in the book.
  • Book: Various conspiracy theory books: "Elayna Lyrue was a dragon", "Sice was actually a cross-dressing disguised elf girl", "There is a secret magic that can only be learned by standing around and letting monsters zap you with their attacks until you either die or learn it", "Bananas are actually sentient beings closely related to the aboleth".
  • Book: Advanced Studies in Eldritch Weaves and Mana Flow
  • Book: Spatial and Physical Transmogrifications and the Fourth Wall
• Past the library is one of the towers. In this tower is the Mordrue commons, accessible only by students of the Mordrue house. The entrance to the commons is actually a mirror, on which a Mordrue student must inscribe a rune with a wand.
• The four towers of the main complex are each dedicated to one of the four founders, and each has a particular style associated with that founder. Each tower also houses the dormitories for each founder's house of students.
• The Imaginarium is a room that uses powerful illusions and a little bit of Shadowstuff to change its form and become all sorts of different things. The beach is a popular choice among students.

• The Academy tuition is 2000gp per year for an average of 10 years, totaling to 20,000gp for an education there. "Highborne" (the Medibarian noble class) receive a 40% out of deference for the money donated to the Academy by the Highborne in the past.
• Official Academy Policy: All items recovered from the ruins of the Old City are automatically owned by the Academy. The finder is not the
  keeper, and the finder is not guaranteed any compensation. It also applies to items found in other locations that are of 'significant historical or
  cultural value'. This usually includes all magic items of Medibarian origin.
• On Scholarships: "There's merit scholarships, memorial scholarships, and several scholarships from organisations. Highborne can try for the most scholarships, and nonhumans qualify for very few...some of the ways they decide the scholarships are...interesting, particularly the memorial scholarships. In theory, the nonhumans have as good a chance as anyone of receiving the scholarships for which they qualify, but when you qualify for more, you're likely to get more in the end, you know?"
• The application process involves a test and filling out forms. The forms have fields for full name, age, height, weight, race, nationality, home city, social rank, title (if applicable), mother's full name and title, father's full name and title, and yearly income.
• Forms are also required to go on a tour of the school. You also sign a liability release if you're harmed, and a nondisclosure agreement if you happen upon any magical discoveries during your tour.
• The application process takes three days. The first day, the applicant has 24 hours and all the written resources of the Academy at their disposal to answer 200 questions on magic. Of the 200, 5 cannot be found in the library, and 5 are trick questions, questions about arcana that have yet be answered by the magical community. The next day, the applicant has 4 hours to complete a difficult, closed book test. The topic matter is difficult, but not very technical, and more focused on logic and problem solving. The third day, the applicant must pass beneath three arches and overcome "what has been", "what is", and "what will be". This final portion is highly variable and different for each applicant. Some applicants have come to harm in this final part of the test, and a few have died.
• There are many scholarships available to prospective Academy undergrads.
  • If all of a student's scholarships exceed the attendance costs, the merit in particular will be depleted if the applicant goes over, but most others will continue to award. So, a very select few students actually make money by attending the Academy.
  • Organizational scholarships: Most of these require a scholar to promise to work with the sponsoring organization for a period of time after he or she graduates from the Academy.
  • Merit-based scholarships: These are based on the outcomes of the application tests. 400 gold per year is supposed to be pretty good.
  • Memorial scholarships: These are scholarships from pools created past Academy philanthropists. In order to better preserve the wishes of the scholarship funders, most memorial scholarships are granted based on the decision of a "chooser", an intelligent magical artifact left by the donor which decides who is worthy of the money.
    • Elayna Valsice Memorial: It apparently can pay upwards of the entire 2000 by itself but has only been successfully awarded once to a Freefolk boy Vanitri Duskrider, since Elayna was fairly recent and the chooser is fairly selective. Many students apply for this just for fun to see if they win the jackpot. Elayna Valsice's Chooser is an emerald sceptre. If it chooses an applicant, it glows brightly, a warm green, before excitedly announcing that it will offer the applicant 1500 gold in scholarship--if the applicant chooses to live in Elayna's house, Sice, that is. Otherwise, the amount is reduced to 500.
    • The Big 4 are the scholarships associated with the four great Houses of the Academy. These are interesting because the choosers hadn't been invented yet when the scholarships were instated, so there are other selection mechanisms in place, one of which requires the recipient to join the namesake house of the school's dormitories. Each of the big four pays out a quarter of the yearly tuition.
      • Headmistress Elayna Daryne Memorial: In memory of the greatest leader of the Academy since the founders themselves. This one focuses on dedication, energy, commitment, and caring for those less fortunate. But above all, Elayna Daryne values imagination and vision.
      • Omega Memorial: The applicant needs to have a past record of research or scholarship of note in the field of magical innovations or artisanship.
      • Mordrue Memorial:
      • Sice Memorial:
    • Jaedyn Limanthra Memorial: For gifted youngsters, in memory of the perspicacious young lad who passed away before his time. No chooser is involved in the selection process. (Secret:
      Spoiler

      Jaedyn Limanthra was killed by the Dark Lord Elayna Valsice while she was actually at school
      .)
    • There is a modest scholarship for orphans who who don't have a home.
    • Anoura Valanise Memorial: A famous graduate who adored traveling to distant lands and developed groundbreaking research into translocation magics. Anoura's scholarship Chooser is a magical map that seems to be blank but draws beautiful pictures of different vistas, some visited by the applicant and others by Anoura herself, as it interfaces with the applicant. It later produces a map that details the applicant's entire chain of peregrinations across the lands. If the Chooser seems impressed with the applicant's travels and spirit of wanderlust, it will offer a small scholarship (at least once it was 250 gold per year) which doubles if the applicant chooses Anoura Valanise's house, Omega.
    • Elayna Lyrue Memorial: Granted based on arcane talent, strong leadership skills, and iron determination. It has been given out a decent number of times, though it isn't the easiest to get. Girls usually have the edge up over guys, but only in competitive years where there are two or more strong candidates for the scholarship. Though there is no chooser, the staff have enlisted the aid of an ancient entity that knows more about Elayna Lyrue than any living mortal, a being of such great stature that the scholarship is decided almost entirely based on her personal whims. The Mage Queen's pet kitty Mystara. Apparently, when her feline companion became ill, the Mage Queen created a new mechanical body for her, and it has survived to this day. Recently reactivated in the past century, she is smarter than most cats and able to speak Common, but the Mordrue scholars are upset that she has forgotten or never cared about most things they considered important, though she remembers well the taste of mice back when she was a flesh-and-blood cat. Mystara sometimes selects scholars by curling up in the applicant's lap to get some rest. The lesser of this type of scholarship is 250 gold.

• Mordrue is one of the school's founders. Mordrue House is one of the major groupings of students. Mordrue students tend to be introverts. Mordrue dormitories do not completely separate the boys and girls, but boys and girls may not share suites. The entrance to the Mordrue commons is a mirror.
  • Divination and Enchantment are Mordrue's schools of magic.
• Daryne is one of the school's founders. Daryne House is one of the major groupings of students. The entrance to the Daryne commons is a wall which ripples when touched and allows entry.
  • Daryne commons has its own small Imaginarium.
  • There is a secret library somewhere in the Daryne tower.
  • Illusion and Evocation are Daryne's schools of magic.
• Omega is one of the school's founders. Daryne House is one of the major groupings of students. The entrance to the Omega commons is a strange device made of three spinning rings with a diameter longer than a man is tall, each tilted at a different angle. This dimensional vortex can transport a visitor to a demiplane made of solid clouds. The vortex deposits visitors in a hall with a gided door that leads to the Omega commons, which connects to the various Omega dormitory rooms and facilities. The demiplane was originally created as a research project, it is called 'the Otherspace'. Whenever you exit a door on the other side, you can choose to reenter this space or walk into the normal hallway. The dorms are arranged in branches and clusters, with a large central common area for parties and get togethers. House Colors: Red
  • Enchantment and Conjuration are Omega's schools of magic.
• Sice is one of the school's founders. Sice House is one of the major groupings of students. The entrance to Sice commons is a wall with a rune on it. Sice students get finely furnished single rooms, much nicer than the other dorms.
  • Necromancy and Transmutation are Sice's schools of magic.

• Class Offered: Portals and Planes, taught by Erlis
• Class Offered: Nexuses and Foci, taught by Grywald
• Class Offered: Curses and Malefices Throughout the Ages
• Class Offered: Basic Abjurations
• Class Offered: Force Magic
• Class Offered: Energy Magic and the Six Towers, involves planar diagrams, ley lines, and other arcane concepts, taught by Alair
• Class Offered: Introduction to Medibarian History, taught by Galton
• Class Offered: Versatility and Cantrips, taught by Namander
• Class Offered: Magical Items and Their Use, taught by Dralkin
• Class Offered: The Golden Age of the Medibarian Empire, taught by Dendril
• Class Offered: Cantrips and their Applications, Maldur
• More Classes Offered: 'Secrets of the Ancient Past', 'Mystic Runes', 'Illusion and Misdirection', and 'Charms and Potions', followed by 'Transmutation Arrays', 'Innovative Evocations' (this with Rayne), 'Arcane Nexuses', and 'The Magequeen's Legacy', and finally to get his Journeyman's degree 'Ley Lines and Power Vortexes', 'Enchantment and the Human Mind', 'Divination and Discovery', and 'The Four Founders: Sice'.

• Apparently about twenty years ago, someone calling themself the 'Dark Lord' appeared at the school and began to gather followers from amongst the Highborne. The 'Dark Lord' preached about the superiority of Highborne and their special role in discovering the secrets of the universe and of magic, though other than espousing disdain and perhaps hatred for others, the lord didn't support any particularly troublesome activities until a spy tried to infiltrate and poke around at one of the meetings and was killed for such insolence. At this point, the Dark Lord made an ultimatum to return the Highborne to prominence and restore Medibaria's place in the world back to where it was in the ancient past. It never appears to have been followed through, however. As far as anyone knows, the Dark Lord just vanished and gave up on that goal, so to avoid alarming anyone, it was agreed to store the information in the secret libraries instead of the main one.
• In the Academy rules and bylaws, it says that if anyone is caught trespassing in secret areas (such as the Sice secret Library), they can be killed on sight without consequence.

Old Medibaria (the city)

• Old Medibaria is the capital of the modern day Kingdom of Medibaria.
• Old Medibaria has gates. It's a large town built of ancient stone blocks that have clearly been moved and reused. Once, this place was the capital of an ancient empire, but now it has lost its great influence. Even so, the people here cling to the memory of the Medibarian Empire.
• The town is built aside and a bit above the ruins of a massive older city, apparently moving towards the nearby river, as the coastline has retreated over time.
• Medibarian fashion: Layers of loose linen in browns and whites. Both men and women often wear their lightly-coloured hair long, though the men tend towards lightly-beaded braids and the women sport patterned scarves that help keep their hair spilling down the back in a controlled fashion.
• The innkeeper near the gates' daughter's name is Darina. He also has a wife and at least one other daughter.
• Old Medibaria has an Acrobats, Jugglers, and Tumblers Guild. They are government sanctioned, and allow only registered guild members to perform on the streets, under penalty of fine and/or imprisonment. The guild house a round stone building, it is also by the Musicians Guild on alternating days. The receptionist at the guildhouse is named Trina, she dresses in gaudy performer's clothes and wears a red ribbon in her hair.
• Medibarians are very proud of their heritage and have no small disdain for outlanders.
• The formal Medibarian bow: Hands palm up, then bring them together in front of the chest, fingers up and thumbs inwards, and bow the head slightly.

• The Old City from the New City: It's to the east, down and out of the New City, not too long of a journey. Exiting the gates, make your way through a silent ruins whose buildings are missing various pieces due in part to crumbling, but mainly due to looting of the stones to build new structures in the New City. Further along is a portion of the ruins that is reasonably well-preserved, missing very few stones and subject to little of the decay evidenced in the surrounding area. Every so often, soft ethereal sounds seem to echo eldritch whispers from amidst the buildings.
• Near here is a secret passage into one of the abandoned building's basements. A secret door in the wall behind a serpent statue.
• The Academy is in the Old City.

Medibarian Empire Tidbits

• The name Elayna is common among the Highborne, as it was the name of the only Mage Queen of Medibaria, back a long time ago when the Empire was at its strongest. A powerful wizard, Elayna Lyrue briefly interrupted the ruling dynasty of her late husband's family and led Medibaria to great victories and expansion until her mysterious death--many say she was poisoned by foreigners who were frightened of her power and tactical genius and jealous of her beauty and arcane power. After she died, her nephew...
• The Mage Queen's daughter was Princess Elayna Lyrue the Second, Shield of the Azure Dawn, Defender of the Throne, and Grand Duchess of Azrania. She escaped royal life against her mother's wishes and lived out her youth out among the world. She discovered and infiltrated a diabolical Nesfylim plot, but the dark elves captured her with the intention of using her and her magical items in a ritual to summon a dark master. The princess was rescued by an elf of unknown name, a Freefolk, and together they rode faster than the sun and beat the dusk to the Freefolk camp where the last item of the summoning ritual was located. Together, they stopped the efforts of the nesfylim. After the battle, the princess disappeared forever, and is presumed to have been killed in the fighting. The elf of unknown name, through legends about his race against the sun, became known as 'Duskrider' in Freefolk legend.
• Someone calling themself "the Lord of Shadows" claimed to be a descendant of the Mage Queen and led a small uprising of a few noble houses against the established rulers. The rebellion lasted 6 months before it was quelled.
• Some claim that Medibarian surnames that begin with "Val" (such as Valsice or Valdaryne) are hardly related to the suffixed part of the name at all, they just want some of the fame attached to it.
• Genealogy of the Mage Queen's line: Elayna Lyrue the Second is listed, though afterwards they list a ?. Going down, no surprise that the founders of the school are listed--it looks like Sice was technically descended from a remote branch of the Lyrue line, according to all the connections. At the bottom, it seems to have every Highborne there is. For instance, Sice Housemistress Kharisa Valpyren and her son Solon are listed. Kitty Valdaryne is there too, descended from a lesser branch of relatives related to the legendary Headmistress who founded the fourth branch of the Academy. There aren't any current students that are all that closely related to Sice himself, though. The bottom of that line of the tree goes to an Alhaym Valsice and her two children Zarindas and Elayna. Both of them have a ? listed underneath them.
• Sice himself was called a Dark Lord. He performed to some pretty horrific magical experiments, all conducted in the name of the Empire, safety, and peace of mind. Well, most of them. Some of the later ones were based on life extension, one is something called the 'Philosopher's Stone'.
• The Philosopher's Stone: This is a powerful item that can make wishes come true and contains the ability to perform vast magic, end diseases, transmute iron to gold, and perhaps even grant eternal youth. However, those who sought to create the stone gave up when they realised that the key component of the stone was the life and soul of sentient beings. There is even a nice illustrated diagram that seems to have been drawn by Sice himself.

Misc

• Sithinaar'liir is the high elven word for dark elves.

 

[orsal]

• Necromancy and Abjuration? are Sice's schools of magic.

I believe that should be Necromancy and Transmutation.

 

[Wik]

Blacklily Violence

The Player Characters are hired by Cassus Arimae, a minor noble of Orrusus. It seems that the Blacklilies, a thieves guild that makes it's money by raiding ships that pull into the harbour, has branched off into robbery, and stolen the famed Arimae Necklace. Cassus hires the PCs to find it.

The Player Characters follow a trail of false leads, picking up a blacklily tail along the way, before stumbling upon a few Blacklilies in a tavern with no name (but that is known generally as "the ship's wheel", for the fact that it's signpost is nothing more than an engraved ship's rudder). The PCs soon learn that the leader of those who stole the Arimae necklace, a mage named Riffer, is involved in a leadership dispute with the true commander of the Lilies. In addition, they learn that Cassus' younger brother, Vannon, is working as an appraiser and fence for the blacklily organization (and is quite irate at Riffer for robbing his family home!)

Two blacklilies in the tavern eventually get into a fight with the PCs, with one being slain almost instantly by a well-aimed crossbow bolt to the chest. Within a few minutes, a gang of rogues (led by Riffer, intent of eliminating any threats to his power base before his competition can knock him out) surround the Ship's Wheel and attack.

In the end, three blacklilies are knocked unconscious (and summarily captured by the watch), and Riffer is taken captive. Riffer reveals what he knows about the power struggle in the Blacklilies, and leads the PCs to his house, where the necklace is being kept. The PCs eventually decide to bribe a ship's captain to take Riffer with them on a voyage, forcibly exiling the mage from Orussus.

On the way to Cassus' manor, the PCs receive a note from the leader of the Blacklilies (identity still unknown) that thanks them for eliminating the competition (Riffer) and promising them safety from Blacklily Violence - provided that the PCs never cross the 'lilies path again.

The PCs meet Cassus, inform him about his brother, and hand over the Arimae necklace. Cassus quickly rewards them 250 Golden Crowns, and lets them keep the various items that they found in their quest.

**********************
The Blacklilies:
* The Blacklilies are a thief organization that operates mainly out of the docks of Orussus.
* Blacklilies wear a black and grey scarf made out of light materials. It has patterns of black lilies embroidered throughout it.
* From a street vendor that sells musical instruments: "The blacklilies are a group of thieves that specialize in breaking and entering. They can be fairly brutal... especially on their 'ship raids'... that's when they hit a ship that's moored overnight while waiting for an early-morning inspection. They all wear those scarves... I know a couple of the vendors that don't have proper walls - such as myself - will give them a discount on wares... paying 'protection money', I guess. Look, if they hit your ship, you'd be best to just let it pass and moor out of the harbour until the sun comes up next time"
* The blacklilies used to have a fence by the name of Vannon Arimae, who would sell stolen goods to desperate vendors on the northern docks.
* There is a blacklily named Riffer - a mage that wears a pointed hat, is rather vain, and specializes in enchantment magics. He wishes to become the leader of the blacklilies, and leads the "opposition" to the current (unknown) leader.
* There used to be a highly skilled Blacklily Burglar named Carson. USED to be. He's dead now. PCs tend to have a shortening effect on NPC life expectancy, and all that jazz.

Notes on Orussus:
* The lanterns of the city are maintained by several young men who carry long poles, that they use to light the streetlights just before sunset. These lanterns are really only maintained in Merchant's Avenue.
* There is a heavyset woman in Merchant's Avenue that runs a stall that sells cheap (very cheap) jewelry. The woman also knows many of the rumours and goings-on of the city.
* There is a street vendor in Merchant's Avenue named Dhar Rikaa, and he sells low-quality musical instruments. He is an older man, and one that is not above taking a "donation" in exchange for information.
* There is a tavern in Orussus near the docks that used to be called the "Ship's Wheel". Really, it is identified by a single ship's helmswheel from which hangs several painted clay tankards. In the middle of the wheel are the words "BAR" written in common, dwarven, and gnome. The building itself is fairly shabby-looking, with a roof of clay tiles that is covered in various mosses and lichens. The ship's wheel was broken up by the PCs, and now is trying to stay "legit".
* A game that's popular in seedy Orussus bars - Dagger Throwing!
[sblock=dagger throwing rules!]closest throw to the target gets the pot

The board consists of three concentric circles, usually riddled with dagger marks. Each thrower gets three throws, and points are tallied at the end.

OOC: If you want to throw, it's just a ranged attack roll against AC 10. You roll three times - once for each dagger. Points are scored by how close you get to the bullseye -

if you roll 10 or higher, you've hit the board, and score 1 point.
if you roll 13 or higher, you've hit the first concentric circle, and score 2 points.
If you roll 16 or higher, you've hit the second concentric circle, and score 3 points.
If you roll 20 or higher, you've hit a bullseye, and score 5 points.

Highest score wins. [/sblock]

The Arimae Family:
* Vannon Arimae, one of the sons of the family, used to deal with the blacklily thieves, before he was "Sent out of town" by his brother Cassus (for Vannon's own safety).
* Tollen Arimae was the patron of the family. He is the grandfather of both Cassus and Vannon.
* The Arimae manor is located at 902 Merchant's Avenue, near the Sage's guildhall.
* As Cassus says: "My name is Cassus, of the Arimae family. We are nobles of Orussus - not one of the bigger families, mind you - and have enjoyed that title for many years. Almost fifty years ago, my grandfather Tellon fell in love with the woman who would be my grandmother - a beautiful woman by the name of Hellene. Hellene was from nearby Allimon, of the Merris family. And she was rich."
* The Arimae necklace is a very important heirloom to the Arimae family - it is a very well-crafted necklace worth a small fortune. The necklace is made of a platinum and gold alloy, and has three rubies set into the middle, with three tiny emeralds circling each ruby
*

 

[Rystil Arden]

I believe that should be Necromancy and Transmutation.

That is correct. There are other errors as well that I hope to correct (for instance, Truman's line about his mother's love is an elaborate bluff intended to prevent enemies from realising that his Lesser Eyepatch of Reflection can only reflect a single spell), but all in all, that was a heroic effort! Bravo, Rae. However many GM Credits you get for that isn't enough, so tell me which character you prefer and I'll spend one of my credits on that character for you.

 

[Rystil Arden]

More fixes, most are minor:

Schools and Houses--

Daryne: Evocation and Illusion
Mordrue: Divination and Abjuration
Omega: Enchantment and Conjuration
Sice: Transmutation and Necromancy

Elayna Valsice Scholarship--info was correct when originally stated, but now Vanitri Duskrider has received the scholarship (because of Laynie--see The Crux of the Matter for many more fun details).

Academy policy on recovered Medibarian historical artifacts is correct, and it also applies to items found in other locations that are of 'significant historical or cultural value'. This usually includes all magic items of Medibarian origin.

Elayne Lyrue II was saved by an elf of unknown name, not Vanitri Duskrider. That elf of unknown name, through legends about his race against the sun, became known as 'Duskrider' in Freefolk legend. Vanitri thinks that he might have descended from Duskrider (possibly with ELII) some time long long ago.

Laynie--she was found near Briarton, rather than Earling. More specifically, she was found with a gray render near the site of an out-of-synch-with-reality Wizard's Tower, but I ramble.

Kelin's last name is Jerrias. He's an Omega Student

Solon's last name was Valpyren. It never came up, but he is Kharisa Valpyren's son.

Rowan Aranah is an Enchantment Graduate Student (so with Omega). He has some interesting backstory after being cursed (not by Bestow Curse because it's somehow Necromancy now) by Elektra Planter and co-conspirators that was never explored.

Truman, as aforementioned, just has a magic eyepatch that reflects weak spells. EV was not so much weakened as stalled by this tact.

Layna Larinas (Illusion), Garrick Thendrin (Enchantment), and Damien Sorvrin (Divination) are Graduate students at the Academy, not profs. Garrick, at least, is seen not to have the Master's Cloak--he's an advanced Master's student. Garrick and Layna have some sort of tension going on there.

Ellie Valanise is an Omega student. She descends from Anoura Valanise, though this never came up.

Fern Ambrosia is also an Omega student

Erlis's full name is Mikam Erlis. He is an Omega Professor. I could swear he also wrote at least one book seen in some LEW adventure, but I may have misremembered.

Namander is Byllik Namander, Mordrue Prof

Agatha Evangeline is the name of an elderly human priestess and healer who works at the Academy. Yes, Evangeline. The last name never came up.

Pyrrha was an acolyte healer who died.

Dendril is Jarvys Dendril, Mordrue Prof

Dralkin is Friesa Dralkin, Omega Prof

Maldur is Ewan Maldur, Sice Prof

Alair is Santhiel Alair, Daryne Prof

Adrianna Branwen is not just Cedric's young wife, she's also an Omega Prof. It never came up, but she fell in love with Cedric for his genius as a graduate student working under him.

Birrna Jolurrin (Abjuration) is a graduate student in Mordrue

Farquhar Dorman is the Dean of Acquisitions

Juliana Malarn is a Daryne student.

Adventure details--

It was a fluted rod, not a flute that he found in the chest (a nexus, it has shown up in another adventure actually)

I think it's spelled Eirian, but I may just remember wrong.