Ask for The Masque

**"Ask for The Masque"** is the first episode of *Mountain of Mystery*, airing on January 31st, 2023.

The session was DMed by TanisJr93 and hosted on his channel on Twitch.

## Summary

A Tabaxi woman and her Kenku companion visit a tavern in The Tangles district of Rexxentrum and witness a series of pit-fighting matches. The first match features a Tiefling brawler who defeats a Dragonborn fighter, after which the competitors are healed by a Half-elf woman and a Genasi cleric; the second match features a Tiefling fighter who soundly defeats an Aasimar man; and the third match features a Goliath monk who challenges and defeats the tavern's previous champion.

After the matches are finished, the Tabaxi, Kenku, Genasi, Goliath, Aasimar, and Tiefling woman collect their winnings and share drinks at the bar before being approached by the fight coordinator, who indicates that a benefactor has an offer for them. The group is led to a private room where they meet a masked figure who informs them that a chest has been stolen from his employer; he offers the group 200 gold per person for the retrieval of the chest, as well as a favor from his employer if the group can determine who the thieves work for. The group agrees, then accompanies Kahlan back to The Crow's Nest, where they meet the Kenku chef Jingles and rent rooms of their own from Old Maggie.

Lazarus uses a *potion of watchful rest* while the remainder of the group sleep off their fights, and they gather for breakfast the next morning before heading toward the city gates. On the way, they stop briefly at a shop where Kahlan buys a *potion of healing* for 80 gold, then leave the city and head north into the southern stretch of the Pearlbow Wilderness where Trouble successfully tracks what appear to be faint wheel markings. The party eventually reaches a clearing where they discover a elk, and Trouble speaks with the creature to discover that a group of bandits passed through the clearing and headed northeast a few days before. The elk also warns the group of owlbears in the area, after which Sado spots a pair of glowing golden eyes in the surrounding forest; he strikes the creature with a dart, instigating a brief skirmish that ends with the elk skewering the owlbear with its horns.

Following the elk's directions, the group heads further into the Wilderness, eventually spotting the smoke of campfires before approaching another clearing. Sado successfully disappears into the trees, while the remainder of the group are discovered by the bandits; they claim to be passing through, and the bandits' captain orders them to sit for lunch. The bandits search the party and strip them of their weapons, which one bandit carries to a chest behind one of the tents near the treeline; Sado stealthily approaches, catching the bandit off-guard and silently rendering him unconscious while the captain informs the rest of the group that they are free to go on their way after leaving all of their weapons and money.

Trouble instead approaches the captain, dexterously bypassing a bandit who tries to stop them, and casts *Thunderwave*, injuring the captain and three of the bandits and initiating another brief skirmish during which the Kenku wildshapes into an elk. Two more bandits emerge from tents as Sado rushes into the clearing, hurling the chest of weapons toward the party; Lazarus retrieves his daggers and kills two of the bandits injured by Trouble's *Thunderwave*, while Kahlan retrieves his scimitar and attacks the captain, who deploys a flash-powder bomb and attempts to flee before being skewered by Trouble's horns. Prints slashes one of the bandits to death, after which the final bandit drops his weapons and surrenders.

*continued in session two*
## Notes

* The events of the session occurred on 15-16 Cuersaar 839 PD.
* Alternate titles for the episode include, but are not limited to:
	+ "Can I Non-Lethally Stab Him?"

## Quotes

* "That was an excellent strike, my friend. It's a shame it will be the last one that you make." – Lazarus