Upstream Trouble

"**Upstream Trouble**" is the 72nd session of the Legend of the Leaves campaign.

It took place in the Demonic Eruptions questline of Arc 5: Dead Souls Rising.

## Synopsis

Arriving the night before in Luskan, the Leaves are trying to find a way to Chult. Teleportation, however, is a big taboo in the city of Luskan, so the pary resorts to do a mission for a local wizard who lost his spell focus.

# Story Development

## Part 1

The party rests at The Royal Arms Inn in Luskan and decides in the morning to explore the city of Luskan. A hungover guard by the name of Michael Cerra greets them and explains that teleportation is a taboo in the city and should not be talked about. Darius uses his lay on hands ability to cure the guard from his hangover, who in exchange shares a lead to a potential way to find a wizard near the city who could help them with a teleportation spell.

The Leaves make their way to a nearby farm, only to be greeted by Kalmin Gvizd, the owner of the property, who tells them off. In protest, Malcer and the rest of the party sit down in order to try to create a tension that Kalmin cannot ignore. Lorilon soon joins them. Kalmin, however, walks by them and reports their inquire for teleportation services to the guards in Luskan.

As the party returns to the city, they are intercepted by the guards' captain Leofrick Mornigfall, a half-goliath male. He makes them aware that he despises the rumor about the "other reality" and the whole concept of "those who remember". He also explains to the Leaves that teleportation is not to be talked about in Luskan. However, using thieves cant, he tells Lorilon that they should visit Kalmin at his farm after midnight so he could help them in their quest.

While awaiting their meeting, the party splits and explores the city:

### **Bambara**

Bambara explores the Captain's Court district of Luskan in the hope to be recognized by someone. However, he has a flash of a familiar face from his past while walking the streets. He fails, however, to put his finger on it and creates firework in the sky, resembling a child in a crib.

### Darius

Darius investigates potential travel possibilities at the docks and learns a lot about the power structure in the city; more precisely, about the five High Captains, all former pirate lords and each of which led a faction called a "ship" named after its respective captain:

1. First High Captain **Beniago Kurth**
2. Second High Captain **Barri Baram**
3. Third High Captain **Dagmaer Suljack**
4. Fourth High Captain **Throa Taerl**
5. Fifth High Captain **Hartouchen Rethnor**

He also finds out that a voyage to Chult could take up to 22 days by ship and that their best options are in Waterdeep or one of the Hight Captains in Luskan to take them. For an enormous fee, of course.

### Malcer

Malcer investigate in the old part of Luskan a suspicious 36-foot high statue depicting a wingless dragon. as he studies the monument, he discovers a plaque that reads:

*"Through no rock will thunder hit,*

*through water it won't go."*

### Lorilon

Trying to find answers about the shield he found with the teleportation sequence engraved into it, Lorilon visits Mirabar Shield and meets Rosa Montague, a female aasimar and public official at the *Red Dragon Trading Post.* She tells him that the shield was schedueled to be delivered to Wave Echo Cave in Phandalin.

When Lorilon informs her that Gawin Lore, who was responsible for the delivery of the goods, died at sea, she seemed to mind more the logistics of it all, than anything else. She then tells Lorilon that they should report the incident to the authorities in Luskan to avoid further misunderstandings about their involvements in the accident.

## Part 2

Planning their next steps, the Leaves regroup at the inn with Raijin joining them. While their were discussing their possibilities, Lorilon experiences an acute pain in his eyes that lasts for a few seconds, after which he suddenly sees a pale blue aura emitting from them into the skies above, resembling the crimson line he saw while tracking Kekop.

They figure out that the aura is emitted through their bodies and only grows stronger and more visible if they are together.

At midnight they decide to visit Kalmin Gvizd. He welcomes them into an extradimensional space in his farm house and informs them that he has lost his spell focus, a glass eye taken by a clan in Morgur's Mound, to the east of Luskan. He promises that, if the party returns the focus to him, that he will help them with the teleportation to Chult.

Kalmin proposes that the party takes a low profile disguised as merchants and travel by boat up the River Mirar and make their way south to Morgur's Mound to retrieve the item.

## Part 3

The next morning, the party finds the boat in Luskan and make their way upstream as proposed by Kalmin. On their way they are met by Tarela Gilff, a female dwarf river boat captain, and her crew of six. She arrogantly offers to help them navigate their boat, however the Leaves decline and they move on on their own.

Reaching Blackford Corssing, the party is stopped by the settlement's toll guards. One of them who introduces himself only as Zemit, examines their story and reason for travelling, implying not to let them cross underneath the bridge he guards. After Bambara unsuccessfully tries to bribe him, Darius drops the name **Throa Taerl**, one of the High Captains of Luskan, and deceives him into thinking that the party is on a secret mission to Mirabar.

While traveling underneath the bridge, Raijin spots two homeless humans cutting their veins and bandaging them with cloths soaked in Delirium.

Soon after Blackford Crossing, Raijin successfully manages to traverse the difficult waters of the river's stream and avoids collisions with the sharp riverbed rocks. The then travel past a parked boat, which Bambara recognizes as the one Tarela navigated. Malcer perceives a strange glare from the forest to the south, which he interprets as being reflections from some kind of glass device.

Arrows hit the boat and the party is ambushed by lizardfolk led by a powerful water-bending shaman. Trapped on the water, the party manages, however, to defeat the raiders.

Lorilon and Darius, flying on the back of Darius' pegasus, see scattered remains of dwarves to the south of the river, with their arms and legs with chirurgical precision cut of by what seems like traps. One of the dwarves they manage to rescue, Tarela.

Although Darius heals her wounds, she falls unconscious. While they were laying her down into her boat, they discover a broken spyglass on her person. As Lorilon was examining it, he discovers a fake bottom and retrieves a map of Morgur's Mound before its downfall in it.

Bambara deciphers two sets of words on the map written in dwarfish "*Thunedrbeast"* and the name of his mother "*Calama Glasseye*".

# Featured Characters

## Leaves

* Lorilon Duskwalker
* Darius Lonewalker
* Malcer Lynk Hornraven
* Bambara Grimmgrin
* Raijin Shou Ho

## New

* Michael Cerra
* Kalmin Gvizd
* Leofrick Mornigfall
* Rosa Montague
* Tarela Gilff
* Zemit

## Mentioned

* Kekop
* Gawin Lore
* Calama Glasseye

# Quotes

## Player Characters

* Bambara (namigne Gvizdu preko njive): "Mi hoćemo od tačke A do tačke B, ali bez broda."
* Malcer (kada je sjeo prije svih u čamac): "Hajte, ja spreman."
* Raijin (upravljajući čamac u krivinama): "Ništa... drž'te se za svoje suknje i idemo."
* Bambara (nakon borbe s lizard folkom): "Normalni: 1, Gušteri: 0."

## Non-Player Characters

* Kalmin Gvizd: "Iako ne mogu ni zamisliti tu drugu realnost o kojoj neki pričaju, ne može biti da je gora od ove."
* Zemit: "U povratku, ako vas ko zaustavi, samo kažite moje ime: Zemit."