Under Ice

The Acquaintances With Weapons learn what happens to rebels in Thay.

## Major Plot Points

* Vulveeta, Voloth, Fern, Salty Twat, Wet Dick, Neuriel, Bigsby, Kataro, Stzu San, and Calypso woke up in the Visanti camp the following day. Rhiannon brought them brunch and gave them a map of Thay. She also gifted them a camel and a carriage.
* Calypso peaced out to attend the Fyre Festival.
* The group decided to visit the town of Sable first. On their way, they came across a human druid named Karen Pinterblog. She was out of lunabars and AWW decided to let her join the party so she wouldn’t die in the desert.
* A sandstorm raged around the party causing some of the members to hallucinate. Bigsby saw a heckler and took psychic damage. Vulveeta saw the dragon that killed her family and took fire damage. Salty Twat saw the carriage that struck her and took bludgeoning damage. And Neuriel saw his medicinal mentor raised as a zombie who bludgeoned him.
* Karen, recognizing the hallucinogenic effects of the Purple Sand, snapped them out of their craze.
* Continuing on, Vulveeta’s pet baby dragon and Voloth’s owlbear chick became very nervous and scared. The environment became unusually cold. The party heard roars and wings flapping in the clouds.
* Kataro called out to the dragon in draconic and it landed on a self-made ice landing strip. Valindra Shadowmantle was riding on top of it.
* Vulveeta felt a mixture of hate and lust for the woman. Valindra used her magic to force Vulveeta to kiss her Ring of Winter, which the elven warrior’s lips adhered to.
* Unlike Artus Cimber who used the ring’s magic to simply be immortal and tried to resist its dark nature, which drove him insane, Valindra has freely given herself to the ring to access its full potential.
* Bigsby tried to steal the ring from her, but an ice spike grew out of the ground and nearly took his hand. She did find the bard entertaining enough that she created a snowman in his likeness.
* Wet Dick spoke for the party. He pointed out that they share an enemy in Szass Tam as Valindra wants to usurp the throne for herself. The lich woman was impressed the group defeated the Death Curse, but was hesitant to trust them since they serve Queen Maxima.
* The rebel queen explained that Red Wizard deserters served the dragon cult that raised Tiamat a couple years back. When they were defeated, they smuggled pieces of Tiamat (scales, talons, blood) into Thay and hid them. She is now searching for those pieces to empower herself so she can kill Szass Tam.
* Valindra gave the party a sending stone saying she’d be in touch. She then flew away.
* The group questioned whether Valindra is the, “Daughter of death who yearns for life who will raise the sun,” Madame Eva prophesied.
* When AWW arrived in Sable, the citizens were collected in the town square. Bigsby seeing a crowd couldn't resist but to play his music, but Salty Twat quieted him. Karen then went wandering off and Salty Twat grabbed her as well. The druid then turned into a crow to fly over the crown and get a better look.
* Vulveeta, shaken from her encounter with Valindra, drank wine from the party’s infinite jug. Neuriel kept her calm even after being harassed by a red wizard to shut up.
* Voloth took a defensive position in case things turned south. Wet Dick, Fern, and Kataro blended into the crowd and kept quiet.
* Szass Tam took the stage in front of a three-story tall wooden effigy of a knight. The citizens all kneeled. His hand glowed with magical fire and he used magic to make his voice boom across the city. He said, “I’ve ruled Thay for 470 years. I’ve kept you safe for nearly half a millenia. Tonight, we celebrate the defeat of the Silver Order rebels. They rose up 450 years ago and tried to take me away from you - away from Thay. But I, Emperor Szass Tam, burned them to ash.”
* The lich brought his burning hand to the effigy and lit it ablaze. Crow Karen successfully dodged a flying ember. Szass summoned spectral soldiers all in chains who looked burned and defeated. The crowd booed them, throwing rotten food and shit at them.
* Szass continued, “Let this march of shame serve as a reminder of your emperor’s strength and love. And let it serve as a warning to those who would seek to tear me and my children asunder.”
* Szass Tam snapped his fingers and then every home in Sable burst into flames. He concluded, “The Silver Order wasn’t alone. Your ancestors in this once great city of Sable aided them. And every parent knows that love must be tempered with discipline. Watch as your city burns again for your sins. And may you rest easy tonight knowing your loving emperor was merciful.” He then teleported away with a flourish of his cape.
* Salty Twat, who had moved onto a rooftop, dodged the inferno. The emperor then teleported away.
* Wet Dick led the party to Rusty’s Armory. He noticed the woman who walked in there didn’t participate in shaming the ghostly soldiers. She said she hated Szass Tam for punishing Sable every year for the failed rebellion 450 years ago. She explained the Silver Order rose up to overthrow Szass Tam when he first became a lich, however, they were defeated and now the emperor curses them and Sable. It was rumored Arynvost Scaleholt, the Silver Order leader, was allies with a dragon.
* Wet Dick bought a broken spear for 25 gold from Rusty and Kataro cast mend to fix it.
* AWW went to the Silver Order’s old stronghold, Scaleholt Manor, to see if they could recover anything. They triggered a magical dragon statue that unleashed cold energy onto them. Neuriel then healed the party.
* Kataro detected that the door was enchanted with an arcane lock. He dispelled it and Voloth knocked it down.
* Inside, they found the busts of three handsome men and one sculpture broken on the ground. Voloth’s psychometry revealed Szass Tam knocking the fourth one over. Bigsby decided to destroy the remaining three while Katro repaired the broken one. All of the men looked alike.
* Shadowy wings then flew over the foyer and up the stairs. Voloth, Stzu San, Fern, and Karen gave chase. The others stayed downstairs where they discovered a ruined room that housed a spider dragon. Salty Tat, Wet Dick, Kataro, Vulveeta, Neuriel, and Bigsby were able to kill the beast.
* Voloth, Stzu San, Fern, and Karen listened at a door and heard a dragon masturbating and self flagellating. They skipped it to find a room full of ghost soldiers. They explained Szass Tam won’t give them peace and that the rumors that their leader, Argynvost Scaleholt, allied with a silver dragon were false. He was the dragon. However, he’s stuck between life and death now. Their field commander, Chloe, has been driven insane through an eternity of torment. The two reside in the dragon hall.
* The party reunited and went into the castle’s chapel where they found an altar with bond stone hands painted red. This reminded them of Madame Eva’s other prophecy, “The bloody man with bound hands offers a gift.”
* A cloaked woman prayed before the altar. She was an old, dying elf named Vaelyn. She is the last surviving member of the Silver Order and wanted to die where her wife Chloe was. She explained this is a chapel to Ilmater, the god of sacrifice, perseverance, suffering, and martyrdom and that Chloe wears the amulet of Ilmater. This religion has been outlawed by Szass Tam but an underground network exists.
* She gave Bigsby and Kataro her and Chloe’s old wedding rings. After hearing Vulveeta talk about her dead family, Vaelyn took a bunch more of her suicide pills.
* Inside the dragon hall, the group found Chloe sharpening a sword and the bored/horny dragon. Bigsby presented Chloe with the rings from Vaelyn, which touched her cold, dead heart. Voloth asked her to join them but she couldn’t. She gave him the Ilmater amulet.
	+ The wearer is resistant to necrotic damage
	+ The wearer can cast Greater Restoration once per day
	+ The wearer can transfer their HP to another living creature
* She asked to duel one fighter in honorable combat. Vulveeta volunteered and struck her through the heart with her sword. Chloe was freed and shot off into the stars with Vaelyn.
* The ghost of Argynvost Scaleholt approached the party. He knighted them new members of the Silver Order, naming Vulveeta First Knight. He allowed them free reign of his castle.
* Karen magically summoned a feast and the party celebrated into the night.