Case 585, 21 Mirtul 1491 DR - White Cove Convoy - Summry

Case 585, 21 Mirtul 1491 DR - White Cove Convoy

After accepting the mission, the party was approached by Marish who offered to pay the party extra for the return of a small brass cube he had been attempting to ship to his colleague Gnurfaris Gobiqrax on the island of Mintarn.

After speaking with Marish, the party boarded ships as part of the White Cove merchant’s guild convoy to Mintarn. Along the way they were attacked by unseen attackers who they later ascertained were drow pirates in submersible uniremes. The party destroyed the submersibles and took some prisoners, notably Ezz'deneth Xilithaan. They interrogated him, gaining some information from him about an island to the north of Mintarn, at which point Vaz executed him.

Once the party arrived at Mintarn they were summoned by the Tyrant of Mintarn, Bloeth Embuirhan. She offered them some additional monetary incentives to stop the pirate attacks.

Vaz had sustained some damage to his armor, so he sought out the blacksmith Saarn Stonehammer who repaired her armor. At the same time, the party met with Ethert Callo at the Cat's Paw who had visited the island of Esmia, which Ezz'deneth had made reference to. Ethert gave the party detailed directions.

The party hired a smiggler named Lurtzog Logaan'dron to ferry them to the island. At the island, which consisted of a single large mountain, they discovered a cove and a huge cavern underneath the mountain. They found several of the missing White Cove ships which were being refitted as warships. There were also a large number of slaves. The party also overheard some drow guards speaking of the priestess Illinaath and of her intense interest in the brass cube Marish had hired the party to recover. The party was able to retrieve the brass cube, and burned the drow warships. They returned to Mintarn and reported the location of the drow base to both Her Tyrancy Embuirhan and Saarn.

Her Tyrancy Embuirhan awarded each member of the party the medal Hero of Mintarn and paid them well for their services.

On the way back to Baldur's Gate the party examined the cube:

> You are all sitting at a table in a quiet corner of the forecastle of the Half Moon on your way back to Mintarn. After some discussion, Saphfrael is able to convince Myrf to let her at least look at the cube. Ipaben excitedly pulls his chair forward to see as Myrf reluctantly pulls the cube from his bag and sets it on the table. It is a very unusual item. It is a disquietingly perfect cube, made of brass or some similar metal. It is engraved on every surface with bizarre geometrical patterns and runes.
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> Being in close proximity to the cube produces wildly different emotions for you. Saphfrael is completely exhilarated by it. She feels her mind racing and expanding, opening itself to new mathematical possibilities and geometrical epiphanes. Ipaben feels an odd kind of ambivalence towards it. He is intellectually fascinated by it, but he also feels it calling to him in a way that makes him distinctly uncomfortable. Korbo and Ma'ahni are absolutely repulsed by it. They feel physically nauseated and can't bring themselves to look at it for long. It almost seems to be mocking or ridiculing them. Myrf and Vaz have no reaction whatsoever to the cube. To them it is a nicely carved hunk of metal and nothing more. Mryf also sees it as a paycheck, and Vaz is decidedly bored with all the hullabaloo in its regard. They are both genuinely surprised at the intense reactions of the other members of the party.
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> Korbo indicates that he could cast an Identify spell and see what information he could gain. Everyone agrees, so he places his hand on the cube and begins the ritual. He is not 10 seconds into it when his eyes roll back into his head and he turns his head and vomits. He flatly refuses to touch the cube from that point on and backs his chair several feet away from the table. Ma'ahni's fur bristles slightly as she hisses under her breath and moves her chair next to Korbo.
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> Ipaben, who has been studying the cube intensely since Myrf first placed it on the table, says that he believes it is actually a puzzle of sorts. He says he can see that the faces of the cube could slide into new positions if properly manipulated. Many of the runes appear to be buttons or switches. The craftsmanship is supernatural and Ipaben is in awe of the elegance and complexity of the device. He can say with certainty that it is neither elvish, nor dwarven, nor gnomish. In fact he has never seen or read about anything like it. He says that unless he is very much mistaken there would be multiple "solutions" to the puzzle or configurations in which it could be placed. Drawing on his expertise as an artificer, Ipaben theorizes that the cube produces some beneficial effect for anyone spending the time to solve it, possibly increasing in potency as more and more complex configurations are discovered.
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> Mryf, always cautious, suggests forcefully that no one else should touch the cube and he returns it to the bag in which he has been keeping it. He stubbornly refuses to allow anyone else to see the cube, saying that it doesn't belong to them anyway. They were hired to return it to Marish, and if anyone wants to know more about it, they should take it up with Marish upon their return to Baldur's Gate.
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Upon returning to Baldur's Gate, Marish informed the party that the small cube was part of a set three called the Zenythri Triplicate. Marish reported that little was known of them, but that he had come across this cube and was in the process of studying them.