Borders

The Acquaintances With Weapons arrive in Thay.

## Major Plot Points

* Vulveeta, Voloth, Olivia, Dani, Stzu San, and Calypso arrived at Thay’s border, which was surrounded by the Crooked Maw mountain range.
* Queen Maxima appeared as an astral projection. She spoke to the party reaffirming their mission is to kill Emperor Szass Tam for his crimes against Chult, the world, and his own people. She promised the party members that she’d make them the lords/ladies of any stronghold in either country that they’d like. Alternatively, she said they could ask her a royal request. Vulveeta failed at flirting with the queen.
* The characters continued their approach, noticing the fog around their feet getting thicker and thicker. Voloth heard a little girl’s laughter in his ears. Dani stumbled over uneven ground but was caught by a spectral arm. Stu Szan felt an invisible hand wrap around her throat. Olivia heard a man scream in agony and felt disconnected from her god. Vulveeta heard footsteps all around her. Voloth put a warding circle around the party to prevent any kind of possession from happening.
* They then saw a man riding a flaming horse. He was with a squad of zombie soldiers and wizards dressed in red robes. Inside their heads, AWW heard a gravelly voice demand they kneel before Emperor Szass Tam.
* Stzu San and Voloth bent the knee while Dani, Olivia, Vulveeta, and Calypso stood tall. Emperor Szass Tam approached on his steed, encircling them. He said, “So this is who the beggar queen sent to assassinate me? A filthy elf, a pregnant whore, a rejected Victoria’s Secret angel, and a literal fish out of water. At least the other two have some smarts.”
* After hearing Szass Tam already knew why they were there, Stzu San stood up.
* “You’ve come to a country whose culture you do not understand and whose history you do not know to sow chaos by killing its leader.” Szass Tam asked each party member what they truly wanted.
* He offered Vulveeta her parents back, manifesting their spirits
* He asked Stzu San to lead his armies.
* He promised Voloth that he wouldn’t need to bleed for his magic anymore.
* He told Dani there’d be no limit to the magic she could practice.
* He told Calypso he’d help her claim the Oral Coral Kingdom for herself.
* He told Olivia he didn’t know much about her but he was sure they could come to some understanding.
* The party denied Szass Tam’s offerings. Though, Stzu San and Voloth genuinely thought about accepting them. Szass Tam rode off on his horse, leaving his red wizards and zombies to deal with our heroes.
* After killing Szass Tam’s forces, the party attempted to climb the Crooked Maw. Olivia flew up to a plateau about 50 feet up. Dani flew herself and Calypso up. Vulveeta, Stzu San, and Voloth successfully scaled the rock wall.
* During the hike they found a crevice that cut through their path. Olivia climbed down and up it. Vulveeta jumped the chasm with the help of her baby dragon. Dani telekinetically lifted herself over. Stzu San jumped and was caught by Olivia. Voloth jumped over the pit with Calypso in his arms.
* A severe storm came in and forced the party to find shelter. Vulveeta found a small cave with narrow passages that were covered in humanoids tracks. Voloth found another with bear tracks. AWW decided to rest in the bear cave. Luckily, the bear did not return.
* They found a cabin at the summit. Dani detected magic coming from the cabin and dispelled the smoke coming from its chimney. Olivia found and disarmed a tripwire on the path leading to the cabin’s door.
* Rhiannon Nyx flung the door open and aimed an arrow at the party. Olivia successfully talked her down and Rhiannon allowed them inside. The party told Rhiannon stories of their heroism and said they were here to kill Szass Tam. Rhiannon shared that she was the leader of a group called The Covenant. They help slaves escape Thay. Rhiannon is also a Visanti, a racial minority in Thay and the original people of the country. They are persecuted under Szass Tam’s regime. She also shared some key info about the country.
	+ Szass Tam has been emperor for nearly 500 years. He’s a lich, which means he’s a powerful wizard who is immortal as long as his phylactery exists. She’s unsure what or where his phylactery is. He’s based in Thay’s capital called Necropolis.
	+ Thay is made up of 5 regions called thalmonts. Each thalmont is ruled by a different magister. These magisters are all incredibly loyal to Szass Tam and are somehow immortal in various ways.
	+ The Purple Sands is the closest Thalmont and just on the other side of the mountains. It’s a desert landscape with a small population that live in nomadic tribes and in some smaller cities. It’s ruled by Magister Cleo Patra, a mummy, in Atem, the thalmont’s capital. The Purple Sand’s main contribution is the precious minerals found in the Crooked Maw mountains.
	+ Belladonna Suprema is a vampire and the magister of the Dreadwood thalmont. She’s based in the city of Obsidian and is widely known to be Szass Tam’s best friend. Their main contribution is logging.
	+ Abnegazaor Falzor is a mind flayer lich and the magister of the Manipular Thalmont. The capital is Azura. It’s home to Thay’s farm lands.
	+ Zaldrize Dreamfye is a drow sorceress and the magister of the Wytch Elms. It’s capital is Zelena. This Thalmont is home to Thay’s elves. All non-drow elves are slaves here. Their main contribution is magical research.
	+ Doxus is a dracolich and the magister of the Lazarus Thalmont. The capital is Nightveil.
	+ Necropolis, the capital of Thay and where Szass Tam lives, is in the Lazarus Thalmont.
	+ Szass Tam is served by advisors called the Circle of the Eternal. Each member is an expert in a unique school of magic.
	+ Valindra Shadowmantle has started her own rebellion to become queen of Thay. Many believe she’ll be just as bad as Szass Tam. She wields the Ring of Winter (she stole it from SWW during the Death Curse adventure), which has driven her insane. Rumor has it she’s advised by the Sewn Sisters. Her base of operations is a flying ice castle.
	+ Szass Tam operates with impunity because he blackmails other nations with information gathered by his spies or Thay serves as an off the books partner that provides magical and political secrets.
	+ The wealthy and elite people of Thay remove all of their body hair and are covered in intricate tattoos.
* Rhiannon suggested the party take out each magister to destabilize Szass Tam’s power. She also said AWW would need to identify magister replacements who would be compassionate and just. She then asked the party to takeout a nearby mine that abuses slaves, prevents the Covenant from using much of the nearby cave system, and generates income for Cleo Patra.
* Before leaving, Rhiannon gifted the party with sending stone jewelry that acts as a transmitter and receiver for communication with others wearing the jewelry in the same plane of existence.
* Outside of the mine, the party found two red wizard guards. The party killed one and forced the other to escort them through the mine.
* The red wizard dispelled a magical shadow effect in a tunnel, but it only served as a distraction. The true trap was a tripwire that the party triggered and it sent poison darts shooting from the walls. Olivia used the red wizard as a human shield, killing her.
* The party discovered a chamber filled with floating diamonds. Olivia stole one that could summon a storm sphere when broken. Vulveeta stole one that would allow her to cast scrying when broken. Dani pocketed another after defeating its magical trap. The last diamond inspired Voloth with its magic before becoming a regular diamond again. He pocketed it.
* In another cavern, AWW killed four red wizards and freed the enslaved miners.
* Inside the final chamber was a large magma pool. Voloth threw a grenade into it and Dani safely teleported everyone out of the mine. The explosion caused a volcanic eruption, destroying the mine as the party epically rushed down the mountainside.
* AWW then found a Vistani camp in the Purple Sands where Rhiannon and her father, Lucian, were performing music for some of their tribespeople. Rhiannon told them to visit her grandmother, Madame Eva, the matriarch of their tribe.
* Madame Eva gave AWW a tarot card reading and provided the following prophecies.
	+ To move forward, you must go back to where it all began.
	+ The bloody man with bound hands offers a gift.
	+ A great power awaits you. You must not give in to temptation.
	+ The daughter of death who yearns for life raises the sun.