Four would-be adventurers descended a rope into the long-abandoned ruins of Neskusic Temple. Soicfath the Stargazer collected these miscreants from the streets of Villum, where he promised them each a hearty payday if they could recover a magical compass from this collapsed temple.
The High Sea Tomb Raiders
Soicfath found Drogon after hearing rumors of a grounded juvenile Red being sighted in the wild surrounding Villum. Dorgon had been hiding away from overzealous citizens who wanted to convert his skin into armor. Soicfath fed the starving Red Dragon and assured him he could find a pack to take him in.
Twenty years ago, the heavens tore open, releasing fragments of a falling star across Gedan. In a smoldering crater, Concordant priests found young Garrick sleeping soundly. His Eyes sparkled with Nix, evoking the vast night sky. Gerrick’s appearance was considered a mighty portent by the Concordance, who took custody of the elven boy. He grew into a sequestered life where he was taught he was meant for greatness, a greatness that festered into ennui. Gerrick climbed the walls of the Concordant cloister where he was kept. He was discovered by a mad sorcerer who ran the shop where Gerrick was hiding; The sorcerer promised Gerrick an adventure worthy of his promise.
Mellwell awoke from a nightmare in the town square this morning. In her dream, she was running away from ghoulish persuaders in a darkened corridor. She jerked awake to find a wild-eyed old man standing over her. “Come, Melwell, it's off for the temple as we agreed.”
Raised on the evening coast of Borum, Tibur would hunt dolphins from his raft beyond the breakers. Longing to wander, he left his fishing village for the urban sprawl of Villum. He finds himself on this temple floor after responding to a posting promising fame and fortune for those willing to venture beyond the horizon.
Uigi first became aware of himself as was falling a few hundred feet to the paved streets of Villum. His burlap-cased body bounced harmlessly on the city’s paving stones He has a blazing amber eye and an onyx eye fixed into his head, The Poppet has lettering cross-stitched across his body, his back has two arching rows of letters and a row of numbers underneath them. Uigi’s knuckles have “GOODBYE” stitched into them. The Poppet has always been obsessed with artifacts and clockwork contraptions and has even fashioned a clockwork companion he has named Gizmo and has taken to calling his son. Browsing trinkets in an odd sorcerer’s shop, Uigi was offered a lead to a truly unique artifact hidden in the wilds near Villum.
Neskusic Temple
Spiders in the Temple
The crew found they had been lowered into a mostly ruined antechamber; Cots boxes and mining equipment were scattered on the floor. Gerrick searched the debris and found four torches. A pair of hunting spiders were disturbed in the search and attacked the party.
Mellwell and Tibur cornered one of them while Gerrick and Drogon held its partner back on the other side of the room. The cornered spider climbed the wall to the ceiling to escape its predicament. Tibur and Mellwell quickly shot it down, slinging telekinetic projectiles and arrows. The remaining spider bit into Gerrick and caught Drogon’s Fire breath in response, falling at last to a sickle slash from Uigi. Scavenging the debris in the chamber, Tibur and Gerrick each collected two torches.
Soicfath told the party about an expedition that was lost here several decades before. Famous Halfling explorer Magnus Barrelblock left Villum, claiming he found the treasure of a lost religious order.
Searching the Crypt
Climbing through a mostly collapsed corridor, the crew entered a great chamber that served as a crypt for the temple's elders. Heaps of earth were piled along sandstone walls decorated by reliefs of swirling clouds and shining stars that ran the entire perimeter of the room. The 15 ft vaulted ceiling was painted a deep royal blue, As they clambered in, their torchlight flickered against countless flakes of mica and quartz, giving an effect like stars in the night sky.
Searching the sarcophagi that lined the crypt, the crew found the lid had been cracked or smashed open, and anything of value had been plundered. Tibur investigated an alcove on the western wall of the crypt at the end; he found a sturdy and elaborately decorated stone door. The door appeared to have an astrolabe imposed upon it. The ranger stroked the gills on his neck as he puzzled out what seemed to be a mechanism connected to holes in the floor that he assessed as a trap. They decided to leave it be for the moment and continue to explore the ruins.
Drogon attuned his awareness to the magical energy around him and sensed a powerful presence in a room south of them. Pushing open the door, the raiders found an interconnected mechanism of etched brass rings that resonated with magic. Mellwell examined the etchings and determined the device was an orrery of the planes designed to depict the motion of the planes of existence. Drogon gripped one of the rings and pulled it hard to rotate the orrery; blue energy crackled along the rings as the mechanism built up speed. Images began to flicker in the negative space inside the orrery. The head of a white dragon emerged from a pool of water, the part saw an island ablaze, Giant insects, and a city under the waves. The orrery then slowed to rest, and the images faded away
Is It Cold In Here?
The southeast corner of the Orrey chamber appeared to have collapsed several years ago. This collapse was likely caused by water erosion that also formed the pool in the adjacent room. Drogon was the first to explore this chamber where he looked down into the pool, where he saw the head of a white dragon emerging to the surface. The empty eyes of a long-dead white spun around, revealing the oversized crab that had assumed this decaying skull as its carapace. The Crab let loose an icy cone of freezing breath on the crew as they attempted to enter the chamber. Drogon and Uigi were felled by the blast. Tibur marked the crab as prey and fired his shortbow to lock the crab's attention.
Drogon was able to bring himself back to his senses; Mellwell revived Uigi with a heal spell and reinforced Drogons constitution will another casting. Drogon found a blast of his fiery breath was extremely effective on the crab. Regardless the party was aware they were one hit away from doom. Uigi directed his innovation, Sear, to charge the crab. The small clockwork companion slid under the crap and was engulfed in flame, consuming the crab but leaving the crew to claim victory. The crew took a few minutes to rest and recover.
Backtracking a bit, the party decided to explore the temple's East side. The stone lintel above the door leading into this wing read, “Enter here the path of stars. Let them guide us in the night.”. Uigi led the way into the next chamber, where he set off a dart trap but evaded the projectiles.
Further into the temple along a corridor running East to West, the crew found a slightly ajar, forced open by thick vines and ferns that peek out into the hall. An earthquake collapsed the hall long ago, and the rest of the temple is buried under tons of rubble. Looking into this room, the party saw the faint glimmer of treasure within a tangle of vines and a sickly green mold. Tibur leaned his head in to take a look; when a tendril from within the fungus whipped out at him, narrowly missing his face. Tibur stepped aside to allow Drogon to cleanse the room with his fire breath. Leaving behind smoldering ashes of the mold and a gold-rimmed vase, and two necklaces that Tibur collected.
The Spirit of Adventure
The party rushed through the next room to another door, where Drogon sensed the presence of necromantic magic. Opening the door, the crew encountered a Halfling Apparition.
This chamber served as the study and gathering room of the elders of the order. It holds their repository of star charts and maps and the important tools of their order, including globes, telescopes, astrolabes, and other astronomical apparatuses.
“What brings you to my final resting place?” The spirit asked the party while gesturing grandly to the High Priest's chamber, where he fell.
The crew was able to recognize this ghost as that of Magnus Barrellblock; and told him they came seeking fame as treasure, much like the legendary archeologist Magnus Barrelblock.
“Oh, you have heard of me? How delightful.” The spectre rose higher off the floor “I do know of one more treasure that you would like if your would be willing to share the credit for it’s discovery.”
The party acquiesced to crediting Magnus as the discoverer of the Sky-Vaulted Temple. Magnus motioned to the door on the south wall. “Right through there, my friends.”
Struggling their way back to the exit, the party decided to camp for the night before they made their way back to Villum.
Rewards Granted
776 XP
Astral Compass - Fragment of Astral Alignment, Fragment of Astral Resonance
Astronomical Equipment 25 GP
Dragonskull Hermit Crab Parts 57 GP
Gold rimmed Vase 25 GP
Two amber and jade bead necklaces (15 gp each)
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