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Message: <blockquote data-quote="mythago" data-source="post: 678448" data-attributes="member: 3019">Serpents in GrasmereAn adventure for levels 12-1415 Years Ago:Calistan, eldest son of the Baron of Grasmere, journeyed to the Kingsport  temple of St. Cuthbert. There he took vows as a cleric. In the unheard-of span of three years, he gained his Magistrate's Seal. His only burden was worry for his beloved younger brother: Yrdas, ever as wild and heedless as Calistan had been calm and thoughtful. At last, the Baron had his disobedient son shanghaied by the King's privateers, thinking time as a sailor might make the wild boy into a man.11 Years Ago:    The night of Yrdas's shore leave in Kingsport, he drunkenly decided that he could make good coin pick-pocketing a priest. It was an unfortunate coincidence that the first priest he found in Docksides was his older brother.    Only after Calistan subdued the attacker did he recognize his younger brother. But, as a Magistrate, he could show his brother no special mercy. Thieves could choose between hanging or exile to the Gaol-Isle, where he would live and die with its other inmates. Yrdas chose exile.Tormented by guilt, Calistan sought appointment as of Warden of Gaol-Isle, hoping thus he might help his brother. But the seas around the Isle are guarded by a contemplative kraken who, in his old age, prefers learning and accumulating lore to hunting ships. Ship captains in those waters know they must pay tribute, in the form of items of lore, to pass. The bosun of the ship transporting Yrdas stole and sold the intended tribute (a waterproofed stone shape scroll) back in Kingsport; the ship was torn apart by the insulted kraken. Four Years Ago:    The King was sent a message that the Baron of Grasmere had retired and appointed a steward. One Year Ago:    Concerned by the lack of news from Grasmere, the King sent an armed delegation to investigate. It never returned. Now:The PCs will be sent to Grasmere to find out what is going on. How depends on your group; they may be agents of the King or a friendly church, or just known to be the adventurers to hire when only the best will do. The King or at least a very high-ranked Court official will speak to them. The PCs will be told to secure Grasmere in the King's name, then return to Kingsport.The Story:Thukrasios was once a medusa and a powerful wizard who found the formula to turn himself into a lich. He came to Grasmere because of an item the Baron was rumored to possess: the mirror of surpassing beauty. Anyone gazing into the mirror sees an ideal "reflection": youthful, intelligent, of surpassing beauty or handsomeness. Since it is not a true mirror, it does not reflect gaze attacks.  Thukrasios quickly killed the old Baron and established his rule of terror over Grasmere. Now the reptilian, horribly decayed creature spends hours every day staring at his "reflection." The road into Grasmere is guarded by wild animals that Thukrasios encourages to roam; make encounter checks for ordinary bears, feral dog packs, and so forth. The peasants are too frightened to leave their homes or speak to the PCs.Castle Grasmere is a small stone fortress. The parade grounds are visible from far away. At first, the PCs see a battle; soldiers in formation with spears, archers drawing bows, knights brandishing swords, corpses on the ground, and so forth. But as they draw nearer, they find it is an oddly serene battlefield. Nothing moves. No arrows fly; warriors stand their ground. No ravens wheel overhead. Soon, they will see that the combatants are all statutes; very lifelike statutes, to be sure, but the "battlefield" is simply a huge tableau. This is Thukrasios's collection. He immoblizes his victims, poses them, then uses flesh to stone or his own gaze to prepare them for his grotesque diorama. Saving Grasmere:The lich is unlikely to be caught by surprise, or taken down easily. He has an entire fort for defense, plus 6-8 soldiers who have been charmed so often that they are mindlessly obedient. Thukrasios is a medusa with the lich template and 12 levels of Wizard. Avoiding his eyes helps against his gaze attack, but not against his flesh to stone spell. Unless the PCs are amazingly crafty, he will have time to prepare himself for battle, always using protection from arrows to deflect arrows, a minor globe of invulnerability to stop magic, and a protection from elements against fire. Return to Kingsport:Upon returning triumphant, the players will be ushered into a meeting with the King and Calistan, who has just arrived from Gaol-Isle. If they were expecting the noble young Baron described to them by the King, they are in for a shock. Full of guilt over Yrdas's death, Calistan was vulnerable to the evil he saw daily in Gaol-Isle. In fact, he is so far turned from his old self that he has become a blackguard, ruling Gaol-Isle with no more mercy than Thukrasios showed Grasmere. Rejected by St. Cuthbert, he now draws power from darker beings.The PCs should be rewarded well by the King, and grudgingly by Calistan. The King will hear no ill of him—even though detect evil and Sense Motive will reveal Calistan to be sly, evil, and manipulative of his liege. And the King wants Calistan to take up his father's barony....perhaps the adventurers, some day, need to return to Grasmere.</blockquote>

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