Ashes of Midas Session 2

## Notes to Keep in Mind

*How many vials are there and where are they?*

* There are 4: 3 are with Hulil, the other is with Irven.

*Details of Ashes of Midas:*

* As an action, a creature can throw a vial of Ashes of Midas up to 20 feet, shattering it on impact and releasing its contents as a cloud of dust. Each creature within 5 feet of the vial when it shatters must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution saving throw or contract Ashes of Midas. If a character has contracted Ashes of Midas, track the number of days that have passed so you can inform the player when their character’s symptoms appear and when they need to make Constitution saving throws.
* It takes **1d4** days for the symptoms to manifest in an infected creature. These symptoms include fatigue, stiffness, and visible gold veins that appear on the creature’s body. The infected creature’s speed is reduced by 5 feet as long as it remains infected. Every 10 days after symptoms appear, an infected creature must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution saving throw, or its speed is reduced by another 5 feet. If a creature’s speed is reduced to 0 as a result of this disease, the creature dies and its body turns into a statue made of gold. A creature can drink the antidote as an action, ending all symptoms and effects of the disease instantly.

## Jolly Dwarf

The Jolly Dwarf is a cozy, two-story inn run by a retired adventurer named Ar'El Bor'tuk (a neutral good, male, human veteran) who works behind the bar. If the characters ask for Irven Al-Sayed, the man points them toward the laughing family.

Irven Al-Sayed, his wife Laila (both neutral good, male Dwendalian human commoners), and their daughters Amira and Honor (the former natural and the latter adopted tiefling) are friendly and invite the characters to join them. Irven and Laila are traveling booksellers. If asked about the vial, Irven explains that they met Hulil Lutan on the road to Cassar'ai Village. She said she was moving and needed to shed some possessions, so she offered him a chance to buy the Kusan relic at a great price. He plans to sell the item for a profit in Al-Khabar. Irven has a book on where he speculates the vial to come from, the theories of Sallah's Vault (this is the same book that Urgoth had).

If the characters tell Irven the truth about the vial, he panics, saying that everyone in his family has touched the object. Laila gives the vial to the characters, handing it to them wrapped up in a cloth. Any character who touches the vial directly must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution saving throw or contract Ashes of Midas.

### Development

Once the characters have the cracked vial, they can report back to Eloro Aldataur. He pays them 100 gp as promised but asks the characters to stay in town. He is quite certain he’ll have need of their services again soon.

The next morning, Eloro comes to the characters with somber news. Irven, Laila, Honor, and Magic are all afflicted with Ashes of Midas. Seeing the gold powder in the vial has allowed Eloro to consult old lore and learn a few things about the disease. (If the characters didn’t learn the name of the affliction from Hulil, Eloro is the source of that name as well.)

Eloro knows that Ashes of Midas is said to have only one cure—a black liquid the Magi of Sallah's Vault stored in ceramic vials. He hopes that the cure might be found in the same place Urgoth found the vials of Ashes of Midas in Eiselcross. The retired ranger asks the characters to travel to the islands of Eiselcross and retrace Urgoth’s path, hoping they can find the cure. He offers the party 200 gp for the task, and reminds them that time is of the essence for Irven and his family—not to mention for any characters infected with Ashes of Midas. If the characters accept, Eloro gives them a day to prepare and tells them to find him at the village docks when they’re ready to set sail.

## Traveling to Eiselcross

When the characters are ready to leave for Eiselcross, Eloro Aldataur provides them with the following information:

* Eloro has arranged passage to Eiselcross for the characters on the *Scheherazade*, a sailing ship owned and operated by the Glassblades.
* The characters will be taken to Syril'in, an Al-Khabar outpost on Shadiyah, Eiselcross’s largest island. Once there, they should talk to a dwarf named Ali El-Ghaffari, who has gone on numerous expeditions into the wilds of Eiselcross with Urgoth Wenth.
* Once the characters have found the cure, they should use whatever they need for themselves, then give the rest to an Magi in Syril'in who goes by the name “the Merchant.” They can tell the Merchant to teleport the cure to Eloro in Cassar'ai Village.

The islands of Eiselcross are sparse for shade and water, and are always prone to sandstorms. Characters who don’t already have desert gear will want to purchase it, or they will be subject to extreme heat or dehydration (see chapter 5 of the Dungeon Master’s Guide).

### NPCs Infected with Ashes of Midas

The characters are in a race against time to cure Irven and his family (and possibly Hulil and Tulgi Lutan, if the characters are feeling merciful toward those two hardened criminals). Irven and his family have at least sixty days before any of them might die, Hulil has at least thirty days, and Tulgi has at least twenty days. You can make saving throws for these NPCs against the disease every ten days, or you can just decide their final fates.

### Voyage of the Scheherazade

It takes the *Scheherazade* nine days to get to Syril'in. This trip could be uneventful, or you could populate the ship with interesting NPCs and have the characters encounter ocean monsters, Revelry pirates, or severe weather. [CONSIDER EVENTS/ENCOUNTERS].

When the ship reaches Syril'in, read:

Morga Delwur (a neutral good Elf woman) has lived in Syril'in for years. She can show the characters around and answer any questions they have about the settlement, [THINK ABOUT THOSE]. She will also tell them about Ali El-Ghaffari, a well-traveled explorer of the Eiselcross, who was known to often travel with Urgoth. He should be back from his latest expedition, and would be found at the eastern side of the camp. She will also tell of the Merchant, a Magi who has lent his magic towards transporting goods to and from Syril'in, who is found in the center of the tent, a makeshift market. Though Morga never adventured with Urgoth Wenth and wasn’t a close friend, she is sad to hear of the dwarf’s passing.

As Morga leads the characters through Syril'in, she will point out several explorers around the remains of a campfire, having a heated debate. She will explain that they are planning their next expedition. If one wishes to live in the Eiselcross, one must always be exploring. There are several such groups here, in a veritable town of treasure hunters.

Morga and the other explorers in Syril'in know about Ashes of Midas and the disease’s terrible effects. If the characters have any unanswered questions about the disease, the explorers share what they know.

## Syril'in

### The Merchant

Morga Delwur or any other resident of Syril'in can point out the Merchant’s tent to the characters. It is Syril'in’s largest tent.

The pungent scent of incense (and opium) fills this tent, whose luxurious walls are painted with slightly luminescent arcane script, partially obscured by finely sewn tapestries. A few brass lamp burns brightly, one at the center of the floor, around which are set a few plush chairs, a bed, and a large stone chest gilded with jewels, the remaining lamps hanging from the left and right ceiling posts. On one of those chairs sits the Merchant, dressed in fine silks, slightly ruffled, with long black mustache and uneven turban, smoking away at a large opium pipe next to the chair. A sleeping snake is curled in the mans lap.

The Merchant, a human male, is a slightly slimy excuse for a magi, who purchases Kusan relics in Syril'in, making a profit on transportation of goods. The snake is the Merchant's familiar.

The Merchant has been in Syril'in for several decades. He can answer any questions the characters might have about the outpost’s history, the island of Shadiyah, or Ashes of Midas. If the characters want to confirm that the Merchant is able to quickly send the cure for Ashes of Midas to Cassar'ai Village, the man tells them that the stone chest in the tent has the magical capability to teleport objects on command.

In addition to the aid he provides in getting the cure back to Cassar'ai Village, the Merchant offers to purchase any Kusan relics the characters want to sell.

#### Stone Chest

A detect magic spell reveals that the chest radiates an aura of conjuration magic. When an item is placed in the chest, the Merchant can teleport it to secret locations in Al-Khabar or its outpost of Cassar'ai Village, with those locations known only to the authorities of those settlements.

### Ali El-Ghaffari

Morga Delwur or any other resident of Syril'in can point out Ali El-Ghaffari’s tent to the characters. When the characters approach the tent, read:

Ali El-Ghaffari is a young and excitable soul, barely a man, though obviously tough in his physic and bearing, with a large fresh scar visible on his bare-but-for-a-vest chest (given to him by a knife bird (think ostrich/cassowary hybrid)). He enjoys uncovering the secrets of Eiselcross as much as he does uncovering the region’s treasures. He is genuinely interested in the characters’ lives, and asks them lots of questions, particularly regarding any journeys they have planned, after inviting them to sit. If the conversation continues, he will invite them to eat with him.

#### Ali’s Story

Ali is grief-stricken to hear about the demise of his friend Urgoth Wenth. If the characters ask Ali about the gold vials that brought disease to Cassar'ai Village, Ali shares the following information:

* Ali and Urgoth found the gold vials in Sallah's Vault, an Kusan ruin partially submerged in water in a region of Shadiyah where the land itself is submerged in places. Explorers call this region The Lakes. Ali believes the ruin is as well preserved as it is because the structure was reinforced with magic, as were many Kusan buildings that housed hazardous materials or secret projects.
* Sallah's Vault is two hundred miles northwest of Syril'in. Dust mephits are drawn to the magic of something at that location. Ali and Urgoth found the ruin after following one of the creatures.
* Sallah's Vault appears to have been a place of experimentation or development. Ali and Urgoth explored only three of its chambers before being chased away by suits of armor, with no one inside them.
* The explorers didn’t know what the vials contained.
* Ali sold his share of the treasure from Sallah's Vault to the Merchant. Urgoth decided to hang onto his share until he returned home to Cassar'ai Village.

## Into the Wilds

After speaking with Ali, the characters can make whatever preparations they need before heading into the wilds of Eiselcross. If they wish to obtain more supplies before setting out, there is effectively a market in Syril'in, made up of congregated explorers at the camp who are willing to trade goods and equipment.

### Overland Travel

The characters must travel two hundred miles over sand and stone to reach Sallah's Vault, the ruin where Urgoth Wenth found the vials of Ashes of Midas. It’s up to the characters whether they want to move at a fast, medium, or slow pace (see “Movement” in chapter 8 of the Player’s Handbook). If any character has a walking speed of less than 25 feet because of a Ashes of Midas infection, use the Reduced Travel Speeds table to determine how far the party can travel in a day.

##### Reduced Travel Speeds

 5–10 ft.

**[HAVE SOME RANDOM ENCOUNTERS HERE]**

 2
 3
 4
 5
 6

After traveling forty miles, the characters enter The Lakes. This region is known for its large patches of quicksand and water leaking in from the sea. One who is not careful may fall into the quicksand, and open a pond of salt water.

### Finding Sallah's Vault

When the characters have traveled two hundred miles, one character who acts as a scout for the group should make a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check each day. On a failure, the character finds no signs of Sallah's Vault. On a success, the character finds the trail of an dust mephit, which leads to Sallah's Vault after a journey of **1d4** hours. If the check succeeds by 5 or more, the character finds Sallah's Vault directly.