Expedition 78: A Wish for my Demands

### Summary

We find the Felwood Nexus, with a crystalline tower that seems to be the cause of the gigantic growth of the wood. Inside is a trapped genie, who we promise to come back and free within four months.

### Detailed Writeup

We head into the Felwood towards the nexus, but we soon realize that none of us have any clue how to locate the nexus, only a vague idea from Marzipan that it's in the middle somewhere. So we change our goal from "find the nexus" to "find some plants and one interesting thing."

We come across a large tunnel, which Bea identifienties as a rabbit burrow. Yezra and Bea go in, but find no rabbits, so we map its location (26, Tolyr) and aim to come back later.

We go further into the forest, where we see that the massive growth is about twice as much as it was at the outskirts of the forest. Tolyr looks for suitable plants to collect for Feng, and finds some moss and a fern that are small enough to take back.

We find another rabbit burrow, and Bea asks the cloak some questions to the cloak, which Yezra insights and learns that she's talking to the cloak and not to herself. Bea enters the burrow, and we find a rabbit.

The rabbit insists that we go away. She tries to ask whether the rabbit would like living on a farm, and a confusing conversation ensues about what a farm is and what DyrRoc is. Yezra persuades Bea to try to persuade the rabbits to come, and she does, with some success, until she lets slip that she's a wolf and the conversation ends. Since Bea can't hurt him on the island, he agrees to come along. We ask it if he'd like to bring some friends, but he says there's no other rabbits, and Bea believes him. A back and forth ensues where the rabbit agrees to come with Yezra if Bea leaves it alone. We then leave and ask it to wait until we come back. Tolyr makes a bad cartography check, and it would be easy to miss the burrow, so we go back for it and it follows us.

We continue deep into the forest. Tolyr finds one last plant, a mint plant. Bea gathers some for her own garden (10 Survival).

We come across a large amber crystalline structure, with a shallow lake of water around it. The trees around it are massively tall.

Suddenly, we are attacked by two dozen ants the size of dogs. Bea gets a stealthy round in first, but is massively overwhelmed by their numbers, and the rabbit is devoured immediately. Yezra thunderwaves, Nexrin uses his breath weapon, although they hit party members. Tolyr turns Bea into a giant ape, which she is disappointed about. We see two more dozen coming across the hills towards us, and Yezra shatters one bunch of them and Tolyr fireballs the other bunch. Bea and Nexrin destroy the massive amount on Bea. Yezra thunderwaves more out of the way.

We are very injured, so we stop for an arcanium orb-fueled prayer of healing, which rejuivinates us.

We then turn our attention back to the crystalline structure. It looks almost as if it has roots, with tendrils spreading out into the earth. With detect magic, Tolyr detects a massive transmutational aura, coming from the structure. Around the structure are dozens of small marble strucutres in ruins. Inside the crystal is a much larger ruined structure. Bea jumps into the water, but it stings and she takes acid damage - and she emerges twice as large as she used to be.

We collect some jars of the water for future testing to see if the enlargement effect works outside of the Felwood. Bea goes in the water again for 1 round, it damages her again but she does not grow any more.

Bea attempts to talk to some large bugs about an entrance to the structure, but learns bugs are not great conversationalists. We then take a sample of the roots, and find that they are hollow inside with a thin layer of dirt at the bottom. We find a root large enough for Annie to fit through, and Tolyr sends her through. She finds the structure beneath the crystal intact within an air pocket, and there is a heavy door that could presumably open wide enough to let party members squeeze through.

We see a balcony about 50 feet up, and Nexrin uses Faerie's Fancy to float over to it and grapple it. He uses a mining pick to crunch through the crystal, and peers into the building. We all follow via a rope Nexrin shoots down. We gather this to be a mage tower, set upon a leyline nexus.

Inside the tower is just a staircase, with remnants of a mural that has been plastered over, and inscribed with magical runes in a dark material that are glowing faintly. Hanging suspended in the center of the tower, by amber crystalline tendrils, is an amber coffin shape. At the tip of the tower is a massive diamond. We move downwards to investigate the coffin - it's a crystalline hollow with a vaguely humanoid figure slumped inside. A coil of runes in crushed emerald twists around the capsule.

The figure inside starts to rise, and its eyes glow, and it murmurs in an unknown language. Yezra puts her hands up in a nonagressive stance, and the figure starts banging against the amber prison. Tolyr tries stonetongue, to no effect.

Tolyr casts comprehend languages, Bea casts speak with animals, while Nexrin notices the entrance is growing smaller - the crystal would seal shut in a day. He easily chips back the crystal.

As Tolyr finishes his spell, he says, "I do not know if you can hear me, but I wish to be free. I can grant you each a wish, if you make this possible."

Bea asks in beast speak, "Are you the Amber Wolf of the West?" There is no response from the figure.

Tolyr minor illusions to try and figure out what the figure is, and it responds, "I am a genie, you know of my power."

Yezra casts zone of truth on the genie, which it fails its save, and it repeats that if it is freed, it will give us three wishes, and then returns to its home. We then ask what happens to the Felwood if we release him, and he replies that he does not know what the magic is being used to do. He suggests that breaking the seal will require dispelling the magic around it and physically breaking the prison.

Tolyr searches, and there are several glyphs of warding trapping the tower - some against anyone breaking the crystal, and some against dispelling magic. Moreover, there are two more glyphs, one of imprisonment, and one of conjuration.

We explain that we do not have the resources right now to free it, but we can come back in the future. It asks us to promise to free it, and when we deliberate amongst ourselves, it threateningly says "I cannot break this material, but I can create it." Tolyr nods in acceptance of the promise, and feels a mystical weight on him.

We leave the tower.

On the way out, we see massive numbers of ants surrounding the tower. Nexrin casts spike growth, killing many ants and scaring off the rest with an intimidating performance. We rush out of the wood, aided by pass without trace.

On the way home, we find two caches of loot. One, a massive (600gp) hunk of amber, pointing to the fact that this area would be mineable for more amber.

Secondly, we find a ring of purple metal inscribed in dwarven, which Tolyr takes carefully.

We return home safely.

When Bea wakes up the next morning, she is normal-sized.