Session0026

Episode 0026 - A Conduit of Chaos
Previous | Next

**Setting:**

Taruki Jungle - Ntambu - Death Cap Temple - May 2nd-4th, 211 AW
**Synopsis:**

* After their meeting with the Oubutu council in Ntambu, the party sets out through the Taruki Jungle toward Death Cap Temple in search of the Chaos Core.
* Along the way to Death Cap Temple, the party battles hostile elementals in a thunderstorm, and encounters a pixie peddling magic mushrooms.
* Reaching Death Cap Temple, the party delves inside, discovering that the temple includes trials left behind by Myriostoma to challenge and test the abilities of a conduit of chaos, such as Jack.
* The party overcomes the trials within Death Cap Temple, and retrieves the Chaos Core.

## May 2nd

At the temple of the Oubutu council in Ntambu, Odell spends some time looking through the council's records with their permission, finding that they mostly include documents pertaining to the history of the settlement, and the members of the council. Notably, he finds that Drez is the council's most recent addition, having joined the council about 2 years ago.

As a show of gratitude for the council sharing their records with him, Odell offers the Oubutu a copy of his writings regarding rune magic - particularly the rune of Melora. The council is appreciative of the notes, but nonetheless warns Odell that his party will be regarded with skepticism and mistrust in Ntambu as outsiders.

Meanwhile, the rest of the party spends the remainder of the evening shopping in Ntambu and resting. Rye asks around about Lake Ryne and Nakuloko Island, and any possible clues about Passeri. From various individuals around the settlement, including the Oubutu councilor Atherexl, he learns that Nakuloko Island is regarded as a perilous place, and should be avoided. The specific stories of the island's dangers range widely in their nature - ranging from hauntings, to curses, to fey trickery, to wild jungle beasts - but all agree that no one who goes to the island ever returns. Rye also learns that there is a significant presence of fey creatures and other influence from the Feywild in the Taruki Jungle.

Afterwards, the party reconvenes at the tavern where they're staying for the evening.

During their watch, Rye asks Odell to help him make a holy symbol for Israphel, and explains that he plans to attempt to influence Israphel's domain as a future deity, swaying away from evil and toward good.

Overnight, Pepper has a series of dreams related to the days events, and wakes up in the middle of the night to paint them. One of the paintings depicts XVIII within the laboratory of Dr. Johann Conrad Dippel's former keep holding a vial of crimson-black liquid, accompanied by a vampiric-looking half-elf. He shows this painting to Jack, and tells Jack that XVIII is planning to leave, after having received a letter from Dr. Dippel. Jack recommends that Pepper use the painting to try to convince XVIII not to leave, perhaps by claiming that the painting is an omen or a prophecy.

## May 3rd

In the morning, Rye plays the Psalm of Rest from atop the temple in the center of Ntambu, such that it can be heard by as many people as possible within the settlement. His performance garners a fairly large audience, and he prevents the magical effects from aiding gnolls or yuan-ti, based on concerns regarding Drez and Shriarsiss.

After making their last preparations, the party departs Ntambu in the direction of Death Cap Temple, in pursuit of the Chaos Core.

As the party is traveling, Pepper shows XVIII the painting that he made the previous night of XVIII in Dr. Johann Conrad Dippel's keep. He says that the painting is an omen, and it means that XVIII should not leave by himself. XVIII agrees to tell the rest of the party about the letter that they received from Dr. Dippel, and shows the letter to them, explaining that XV is coming to take them back to Dr. Dippel. The party offers to accompany XVIII when they return to Dr. Dippel, but XVIII expresses concerns that Dr. Dippel may not be comfortable with all the extra people. The party compromises by offering to accompany XVIII for most of the journey to meet with Dr. Dippel, but then letting XVIII speak with Dippel without them, which XVIII says might be agreeable.

Referencing Pepper's painting, XVIII explains that they recognize the vampiric half-elf depicted in the painting as XX, another of Dr. Johann Conrad Dippel's test subjects.

When pressed for more information about his dreams, Pepper explains that he has had such dreams for as long as he can remember, wherein he occasionally dreams of things that he has never seen before, or things that have yet to take place.

Around mid-afternoon, the party approaches a large ravine, with a flimsy rope bridge that traverses across it. They decide to leave their mounts and carts behind, since the bridge is unlikely to support them. They locate a nearby clearing with sufficient cover to keep the mounts hidden, and they leave the mounts behind, along with Odell's homunculus, Laita.

As the party begins crossing the rope bridge over the ravine, the weather conditions suddenly deteriorate rapidly, becoming a powerful thunderstorm. Shortly thereafter, they are attacked by lightning elementals that emerge from the storm, which they manage to defeat.

In the wake of the battle, the storm rapidly fades, and the party gathers a small amount of Material Chaos left behind by the elementals. Malkoth ingests a small amount of the Material Chaos, using it as a drug. Jack warns him about the dangers of using Material Chaos in this way, due to the unpredictable magic effects that it can have.

A short time later, the party arrives at Death Cap Temple. Wounded from the battle with the elementals, they decide to make camp and rest on a nearby hillside overlooking the temple.

As the party is setting up their campsite, Gragnok and Odell scout out the exterior of the temple. They find that the entrance to the temple is magically sealed and overgrown, seemingly unopened for hundreds of years. They also find several torch sconces which have orbs of magical force suspended where their flames would be. The torch sconces and the temple door are both inscribed with writing in a language that neither Gragnok or Odell can read.

Carefully investigating the temple exterior, Odell deduces that the temple is currently being used a sacred place for gnolls, but that it has been taken and repurposed by different cultures many times over many centuries.

Regrouping at the campsite, Gragnok uses his *primeval awareness* to determine that there are a few small groups of humanoids within a few miles of their camp. He sets up a magic alarm, and the party establishes a watch order for the night before retiring.

On their watch, Jack and XVIII discuss XVIII's plans to return to Dr. Johann Conrad Dippel.

Near midnight, a pixie approaches the camp, introducing herself as Stormy Twistyblue, and offering the party magic mushrooms. Despite Rye's warnings that fey creatures shouldn't be trusted, Malkoth agrees to let Blakjak eat one of the magic mushrooms, if he can have one to keep for later, to which Stormy agrees. When Blakjak eats the mushroom, he grows to a much larger size for a short time. When the rest of the party still refuses to partake in the magic mushrooms, Stormy returns to her nearby mushroom patch, but tells the party that they can visit her in the morning if they want more.

## May 4th

In the morning, Rye plays the Psalm of Awakening to aid the party in the day's endeavors. Afterwards, the party visits Stormy Twistyblue at her mushroom patch. Malkoth eats a mushroom, and temporarily loses the ability to speak, his voice replaced by chicken sounds. He also trades Stormy some of his own stash of drugs in exchange for another mushroom to keep. Patches also eats one, and seems to skip through time momentarily. Rye eats a mushroom, and fog begins to pour from his ears and eyes momentarily. He also asks Stormy if she's ever heard of Passeri, but she has not.

After finishing their business with Stormy Twistyblue, the party heads to Death Cap Temple. Frog reads the inscription above the door, which he recognizes as written in undercommon. It reads:

> DEATH CAP TEMPLE. You who would enter, beware. The trials within these halls are intended to test and train the abilities of a conduit of chaos. To enter without a conduit spells certain death.
>
>

Studying the arcane torches in the courtyard, Jack recognizes that they are each inscribed with a primordial glyph representing an element (i.e., fire, water, etc.). At Odell's suggestion, Jack uses his abilities as a conduit to convert the arcane force within the torch sconces into motes of the appropriate elements. When he is finished, the sealed door of the temple opens.

Before heading inside, concerned about the possibility that Drez might be pursuing them, the party sets a magical alarm around the temple. They also leave Blakjak outside to keep watch, and Gragnok and Frog work together to conceal their campsite.

Within the temple's entrance, the party finds a large foyer leading to a set of double doors, which are engraved with imagery which depicts Myriostoma - the legendary Mycorrhizan conduit - converting a bolt of arcane force into a bolt of fire. Another inscription in undercommon above the doorway reads:

> DISTORTION: The conduit of chaos alters the fundamental structure of arcane force, changing fire to ice, earth to air, light to darkness, sound to silence.
>
>

The party enters the doorway, and finds a large chamber with arcane summoning circles in its corners, and a raised pedestal containing a glowing arcane orb in the center. As soon as the party enters, elemental creatures emerge from the summoning circles, and the orb begins shooting bolts of arcane force at the elementals, which seem unaffected by the bolts. The party battles the elementals, and Jack uses his conduit abilities to convert the bolts of arcane force into different elements in order to strike at the elementals' weaknesses. Using this technique, the party successfully defeats the elementals, causing the summoning circles to fade, and the orb to lose its magic.

After briefly regrouping, the party heads down to the next floor of the temple, where they reach another similar foyer leading to a set of double doors. The doors are engraved with imagery depicting Myriostoma deflecting an attack from a creature made of light, and using it to strike a creature made of darkness. Another inscription in undercommon above the doorway reads:

> EVOCATION: The conduit of chaos cannot create magic; rather, they exploit the magic created by others and bend it to their will.
>
>

When they enter the following chamber, elementals made of light and darkness appear from summoning circles on either side of the room, and attack the party. The party battles the elementals, and Jack uses his conduit abilities to deflect their attacks toward each other, successfully defeating them.

Heading down to the next floor of the temple, the party finds another similar foyer. The doors of this chamber are engraved with imagery which depicts Myriostoma generating a magical shield which deflects arcane force. The inscription above the doorway reads:

> CONSUMPTION: Just as the conduit of chaos can exploit and enhance magic, they can also nullify and dampen it, blunting the weapon that would harm them.
>
>

Heading in to the following chamber, the party discovers a complex maze, which occasionally generates a pulse of arcane force and harms everyone within. Jack quickly navigates the maze by himself, using his conduit abilities to dampen the damage of the arcane pulses until he finds the ends of the maze, which causes the pulses to stop. Afterwards, the rest of the party catches up to him, and they head down to the next level of the temple.

On the next floor, the party finds another similar foyer. The doors of this chamber are engraved with imagery which depicts Myriostoma weakening an elemental nexus of fire, and a nexus of water strengthening by a corresponding amount. The inscription above the doorway reads:

> DISSIPATION: Within this chamber lies the final trial. The conduit of chaos exercises control over the four primordial elements of chaos. These elements stand balanced against their opposites: fire against water, earth against air. As one diminishes, so the other grows.
>
>

The party also discovers that, unlike the previous foyers, this chamber has a raised platform in the center, engraved with imagery of a five-pointed golden star - the holy symbol of the Star Road. Odell deduces that the symbol is imbued with restorative magic, which Jack could release using his conduit abilities. Jack does so, and the party receives a wave of healing energy from the symbol, which then loses its magic.

Entering the final chamber, the party finds that there are four elemental nexuses in the corners of the room: fire, earth, air, and water. From each of theses nexuses, an elemental appears and attacks the party. The party battles the elementals, as Jack works to dissipate the nexuses, finding that weaknening one nexus strengthens its opposing element. Eventually, the party manages to defeat all of the elementals, and dissipate all four nexuses.

When the trial is complete, a platform in the center of the room opens, reveals a statue of Myriostoma which is holding the Chaos Core. An inscripton on a placard on the statue reads:

> This artifact is known as the Chaos Core. It is a sacred relic, usable only by a conduit of chaos. Seek the Fable Bearer in the kingdom of Mycorrhiza. If you have earned the Chaos Core, then destiny has chosen you.
>
>

The party recovers the Chaos Core, as well as a few magic items that were also stored with the statue, and a great amount of Material Chaos that had seemingly accumulated on the chamber over centuries.