Run Report: Bob W - Salot - Run 2

[Greg Nelson]

Sat 11 AM to 9 PM

Party:

Mordelaine - Rogue from Fairie Kingdom

Tarvellek Desceldros - Paladin from Salot

Misrandir - Druid from Sahra'

Usidore - Wizard from Salot

Half-claw - Barbarian from Alcheringa

Almen - Sorceror from Salot

Jedi - Wizard from Sahra'

Toxic Jedi - Cleric from Sahra'

Mokaro - Fighter from Alcheringa

Weslyn - Ranger from Sahra'

Derrek - Fighter from Sahra'

We went to recharge the Eye of Gargarvarr.  We understood there were two options - Lemuket ("Mostly Harmful") or Salot ("Mostly Wonderful").  

Lemuket is where the artifact is from.  "Mostly Harmful"  A thorougly unpleasant place.

Salot ("Mostly Wonderful") are the mana scientists, they know a lot more with magic than anyone else. (Princecon 41).  Going back to Salot, if wizard of Salot origin, can use old spells/system.

Our assumption is that parties would need to travel to both to get full recharge so we selected the one we (ignorantly) thought would be safer.

The Broomway is not an entirely safe route.  Something approaches us on the path concealed in an illusion of stars.  The stars of the illusion twinkle because it's moving toward us, while the other stars do not.  When unmasked, it is a group of serpentine skeletons.  They attack with piercing damage and also chilling cold damage.  We eventually (3 hours) defeat them.  Afterwards, a number of us are blown over by "ethereal winds."

We could have specified a destination, but we didn't, and wind up at Parkercott Center, Salotian version of Disneyland - since not specified, simply based on origin of person who cast the spell.

It is much less attended than we would expect, but there are people around.  Adventureland - "a vision of a technological world - there is no magic but there are techological things that are equivalent.  If you get hit, you can feel the pain of being hit."

Over 40 great cities in Salot.  Small city is the jewel, more and better control of mana field.  Specialists in shaping magic have eliminated physical and psychological disorders.

Also "under construction" is the tower of transformation, anticipate that Parkercott may have a future competitor.  (Many of these things turn out to be illusions or inaccurate in various ways.)

Network of travel portals. We can choose destination - Usidore got his degree in magic from the University (Poket R Menian Center).  We think they'll be able to help us there.

Unfortunately, it turns out that only Tarvellek, who was an illusion in Salot before becoming immortal, is actually able to use them and drag one person (Mordelain) along.  The rest of us travel by Broomway and get hit again.

Current Salot year is 2142 of the new calendar.  The Salotians among us left in year 2138.

Arrive at university.  Undergrads singing traditional songs for nostalgia week, picking dates for a dance.  Everything seems a bit hollow - more illusions.

Usidore sees one of the professors, professor Willis, that he knows from before.  "Since extra days off announced 3 years ago, everyone spending all their time on the simulation decks and fantasy chairs.  You remember how we defeated Gargravarr - used power of shaping to raise barriers and power of illusion.  He was able to focus in on our dreams, use spirit of discontent.  We misdirected, used gigantic hallucination to trap entire army.  Thought they were fighting when actually standing still.

We increased our knowledge - increased illusion to add smell, touch, to make illusion more synergistic.  Once commercial interest got ahold of it, you can imagine where it went.

People became addicted to fantasy lives they were living.  If you can go into illusion deck and have scruptious meal in company of learned people of your choosing, rather than real meal.  Illusionary boyfriend or girlfriend never has any issues, never needs to work late."

Marvin's Proposition: In a sufficiently advanced illusion, how can one ever determine what is real?

We can create illusionary manna.  Food isn't nourising, relationship isn't nurturing.

Zoe, director at the research center (Center for Advanced Manna Research) would be interested in the Eye.

We visit Xylarthan Center for Illusionary Studies - a new building on campus.

The center itself looks like a farm house, very unassuming.

Go to Zoe the director's office, and there looking at a whiteboard with books and scrolls piled up around her and a cap on her head is a woman whom Usidore never knew well, but thinks it's Zoe.

There is something strange about what she's thinking, but she's thinking real thoughts about.

Dispel magic on Zoe causes her to disappear, along with symbols on her board.  Things are starting to dissolve around her and this area.

We find a building that is real to us but not to our illusory Salotian palladin.  Unlocking the door takes extreme lock-picking skills (would have required magic to unlock) and 3 separate bars on the inside that needed to be opened with magic hand. Arzoomanian's Lemmas - if you find a door barred from the inside, there must be another way out.

Inside we find a 60' deep hole, 10' across which has platonic solids at the bottom.  It has some commonalities with transport portals, but not part of same network.  This one is definitely of very new construction, portal network centuries old.  Rock gnome affinity for rocks says these rocks making up sides aren't even recognizable. One is a rare kind of sandstone from Sahra'.  Some of the stones are not stones at all, but made from the tooth of a giant predatory animal.

Original builder was trying to determine what makes the world special.

There is a relationship between geometry, nature, and the nature of magic.  Each world has its own particular nature, and we were somehow sensing that these platonic solids are tied in with the nature of this world, but not of another world.

We got Letter of introduction to Carfandel.  We approach him, and ask him to look at Eye.  He says he would like to do some research, can he keep it for a couple of days?  Mordelain leaves his familiiar, a weasel, to keep an eye on the research proceedings.

Since the time Salotians left, the technologies used to repel Gargravarr developed into commercial enterprises.  Old fogies talking about lack of productivity, living in the post-reality age.

He found some lore that this metal came from Lemuket, probably can get it charged in Lemuket.  Focus this on your target and it activates.  A name here, says Gargravarr.  Almost imperceptible engraving around aperture.  Have to know more or less what it's used for.  Would have to be doing something like this, pure infusion without knowing the spells and how they're constructed, working on theory of nature of the world, looking into developing a device to enable someone to virtually transport themselves to be in direct contact with that non-physical entity that represents the heart of the world.  Perhaps by performing standard enchantment rituals, when he produces his well of exploration, maybe you can recharge it then.  Probably wouldn't fully charge it, but it would give it one or maybe two charges.  Basic artificing classes, you can probably fake out the ritual needed.

Mr. Anatar provided money for this research.  Made a great deal of his money in the VR explosion.

Wisdom related to icosahedron 

Intellegence related to dodecahedron

Constitution related to cube

Strength can be found in octahedron

Dexterity in tetrahedron

Could something like Eye of Gravargarr focus fundamental energy?

Looks like the well we found can focus fundamental manna energy on

something.  If this is capable, it could take one or two charges even

if we don't know what it could do.  Incredibly complicated process,

open up a doorway to heart of world.

We go back to the well.  We don't have complex process to open the well and draw energy, but we could use residual energy if the well was used before.  There is a strong sense of residual magic - 6mo to 1y ago.  Has been used to do something enormously powerful, but only a small fraction remains.

Usidore casts fundamental Salotian spell.  Faint glow on stones at top

and solids at the bottom.  Sudden pulse of energy, there is a black

area where the floor isn't any more, Usidore falls.  Feels like feet

being pulled down and head pulled up.  Remember that Salotian version

of d-door, if you were stuck at the threshold and not get through,

this is what would happen.  Spell has built-in safeties, this doesn't

seem to.

Something is coming through portal.

Flying up through it is winged octopus and 4 winged brains.

Misrandir casts wall of fire and it is reflected back to center on

himself.  He takes 10 damage on 5d8.  This breaks his concentration

and the spell drops.

"This is your brain.  This is your brain on javelins."

"Great sword on the squid (batman)!"

Eye of Gargarvarr recharged with one charge.

This will force him to disgorge one heart.

If within line or sight and 120 feet, he gets no save.

This will cause him to lose some powers.

It may be valuable to take it to Lemuket to get more charges before using?