Lofty Goals

"Lofty Goals" (C1.S07.4) is a one-shot in the first campaign of The Vanguard.

## Synopsis

Members of the Vanguard guild were summoned to the WildWatch common area by Vine Skiphoof to help in an escort mission of importance. Following the events at Rhekiel's rest, the guild gathered what they could from the dead mage's tower that might help in their struggle against the looming threats they faced. Magical weapons and armor, trinkets of unknown origin and documents hidden away detailing Rhekiel's life and correspondence with the Eldorian people were gathered. Thale Stormstride, Vahorn Aloro, Sergio Faesong and So Schoon introduced themselves as Vine asked that they meet Elena Swiftmark at the Moonstone Mask on the outskirts of Neverwinter. She provided them identification and used Transport via Plants to get them to the Inn.

Upon arrival, they were greeted by Elena who explained that she and another fellow guild member, Wander, had transported the cargo containing the magical items and documents from the guild embassy to the airship Indulgence, piloted by an old guild acquaintance Xhandis Stormwind. Xhandis was found by the ship and explained he was ready to depart. He was arguing with what looked like a man in black and yellow robes with long black hair who was looking for work on the ship. After turning him away, Xhandis greeted the guild members and showed them on board.

After taking a look about the ship, securing things and establishing a watch, they departed south for Waterdeep. A few hours in the air, below deck Thale noticed the lid of one of the barrels open and close. Nothing appeared to be causing the lid to open. Topside, one of the crew members, Pea Davenforth was securing the rigging after a strong gust of wind and asked Elena for help. When she came over, Pea slit her throat sending her toppling to the deck. Immediately Sergio rushed over and cast Wither and Bloom bringing Elena back to life and harming Pea in the process.

Below deck, Thale saw one of the leather-wrapped binders begin to float and then appear along with the same robed man, Ardor Fellen, that was attempting to secure work. Ardor made his way using misty step up to the stern of the ship as another crew member, Pock Reily, held off the group. Down below the engines began to shut down one by one as the ship began to plummet towards the ground. Vahorn tried valiantly to hit the wizard from across the deck as the mage dodged and summoned a dust devil kicking people around. Thale and So Schoon came up from below to enter the fray. Thale struck Pea hard with an axe nearly severing his arm. As Elena got up to run Pea cut her down again, and again Sergio used Wither and Bloom to heal her and finish Pea for good. He then turned into a giant ape to finish the job.

As the third engine cut out, Pock made his way to Ardor. So Schoon transformed into a giant spider webbing them both to the deck. A hooded elf came sprinting from below and, as he ran by the guild members, told them to aim for the Dessarin River. Ardor misty stepped to Pock and the stranger and as they teleported away, the elf looked right at Sergio with knowing violet eyes and winked. Even in the midst of combat, Sergio knew him to be Valas Dyrr, a fellow guild member who had been with him in previous adventures.

Xhandis finally awoke and Vahorn called out for the captain to steer the ship towards the Dessarin as it came crashing down in the river avoiding any serious damage. From the woods came a retired guild member of the WildWatch Evelyn Blackthorn. Knowing Xhandis, she helped secure the cargo in her home and watchtower, Nightstone's Retreat. Evelyn told the group they could use the escape tunnel connected to the tower called the ShadowHand's Run to get back to Waterdeep. So Schoon protested the idea of leaving the cargo behind, but Evelyn convinced the group she was a friend and secured it below ground.

As they made their way back, Thale was keen to spot a pit trap used to hinder those who don't know the tunnel well. Eventually, they emerged in a beautiful underground chapel with purple moss and glowing Star-Indigo flowers. They saw a large stone statue that So Schoon recognized to be St. Sollar, the Twice Martyred and a saint of the faith of Illmater the Crying God. He's the patron saint of Bloodstone Pass. So Schoon took some samples but Vahorn spotted motion in the water. A Fey Crocodile attacked the party. So Schoon cleverly tried to use animal friendship but the beast resisted. Whirlpools began to form and pixies emerged from the moss causing chaos. Thale was incapacitated but So Schoon transformed into a boa constrictor grappling the croc as Vahorn sent arrows into the beast. Sergio transformed into his own yellow spotted croc and finished the fey threat for good. As it died, the moss and flowers also died with it. The group eventually returned back to the guild and let Vine know where the cargo was stored.

That evening all of them had the same dream from a Night Hag which was cryptic but warned them of the impending threat from this group now known to them as the MonoMaterial.

## Guild Dispatches

The following are messages from the guild members who participated in the mission. They contain valuable information the guild can use to piece together clues.

> *Hey there, General!*
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> Today at Vanguard Camp I got to ride a skyship AND got a bath!
> Me and Vahorn and a dragonborn named Thale with big axes and a another druid named Shoshoon who also likes mushrooms were asked to help with an important mission, escorting some secret thingies to our location in Waterdeep. We got to walk thorough a fantastic Oak Tree from a spell by another nice druid named Vine, I can't wait until I get to do that spell! Anyway, so we popped out at the airship and this very white ranger named Elayna was our contact. She introduced us to a very fancy captain who won his airship in a gambling game that is called "Indulgence".
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> *It's a very nice airship, even though it's sort of crashed now. So we were just laying around keeping an eye in case any wyverns showed up and one of the crew killed Elayna! I brought her back to life, of course, but then they did it again! These two mean guys on the crew and a magic guy took out 3 engines one by one and then (right as I turned into an Ape and was going to kick some behinds) they disappeared. The captain managed to land the boat in the river near waterdeep but only barely.*
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> *But it's ok, because there was a former Vanguard lady named Evelyn nearby and she promised to hide the boxes we were bringing for us (over Shoshoon's objections, she was very insistent I write that down). We still had to report to the guild, which meant we could go over the land or through a tunnel that the rogue group uses. Elayna said she had a very stressful day and would rest there, which makes sense. We decided to go through the tunnel. Thale was very smart and figured out a trap that was set up with moss overtop of it, and Shoshoon got some samples for her collection from it. We got to the end of the tunnel and there was a statue of Illmater, who is a very sad god. We were just admiring the temple when a big crocodile attacked us. Naturally I turned into one too, and Shoshoon turned into a snake. Thale was very brave and kept it chewing on him while me and Shoshoon tried to make it stop attacking us. It didn't want to stop though, and when it died, all the pretty flowers in the temple did too.*
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> *We finally got to the Waterdeep Vanguard, and I assume the end of battle report went ok, because I sort of spaced out (Vahorn is so much better at those anyway) and fell asleep. I was just getting into the Umbrella Dream when I was interrupted by a weird voice. talking all about the M&M's group that the guy we met last mission was worried about. He said they are "Man Material" and magic is going to end if we don't do something. I tried to tell him that we were all doing our best, but he didn't want to answer. Also I think he had a sister. Anyway, I never did get back to the Umbrella Dream. 10 out of 10, Great day at Vanguard Camp!*
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> *PS: This bit is just for you General, so please don't read it aloud. Seriously, it might be gnarly for a lot of people but it's important and you need to know. There was one other guy on the airship. It was our friend Valas who was on the mission last time. He was working for the other people. I don't think he's entirely gone though, because he winked at me and whispered where to crash the ship without dying. It's really not OK that he's helping them, but maybe he's doing it for you? Either way, I wanted to let you know.*
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> *- Sergio Faesong*
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> *We were dispatched to escort certain magical items aboard an airship. Vine “transported” from one part of the realm to another via a tear in the fabric of reality. We met up with another Ranger from the guild that was to help us. We also met up with the Captain of the airship “Indulgence”, which I might also add this guy can sleep through just about anything.*
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> *At some time during the night crew planned a mutiny so to speak and attempted to kill us. They managed to kill our Ranger contact twice, that’s right twice. Luckily, one of our party was able to healer her both time. Then some “Misty Mountain Hop” stepping magic user managed to get from the locked hold to the bridge in a few steps.*
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> *He even managed to get passed Soschoon without being noticed. While the other members of our party were handling the crew I locked my gaze on the magic user and let fly an arrow from my position at the bow. Lucky for him, his Misty Mountain Hop made him able to dodge my arrow before it sunk deeply into his body.*
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> *One of us heard one of the crew hear remark “Where is that Elf?”, and with that one of the engines failed. Soon after that two more engine failed and we began a quick descent to the ground. We were able to dispatch one of the crew members. As we were plummeting down yo the ground a purple flash went by one of us and mentioned that we should aim for the river, we believe that it was a guild member from a previous mission. We are unsure if he is in league with these people or if he was actually helping us. The first mate and the magic user managed to “blink” off the ship as we were plummeting to the ground.*
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> *We did managed to find the river and land, well careen the ship on the banks. As it would happen, we met yet another guild member, or former member, that would watch our magical items while we informed the guild as to the situation and location of said items via an underground passage. Sometimes we just can’t catch a break, we stumbled upon a crocodiles lair. Another battle with a positive ending with a most unusual dream which I am still trying to process.*
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> *So ends the report and account of Vahorn.*
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> *- Vahorn Aloro*
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> *Transport an Bord eines fliegenden Schiffes. Ladung = Gildengegenstände sortiert. Schiff angegriffen, Frontmotoren beschädigt, Absturz in der Nähe der Drop-off-Stadt. Wir haben uns mit einem ehemaligen Gildenmitglied getroffen und ihm vorerst Fracht anvertraut, während wir uns auf den Weg machen, um den Kontakt*
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> *Translation: transport aboard flying ship. cargo- guild items assorted. ship attacked, front engines damaged crashed near drop off city. met with former guild member and entrusted cargo for time being while we make way to drop off contact. side note strange dream evolving entire guilds destruction will relay dream to companions in morning a restless night indeed.*
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> *- So Schoon*
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> *As instructed, I’ve established a foothold in what you now know as the MonoMaterial. I’ll leave the specifics out but let’s just reason that being a bit of a charlatan at times pays off. I can relay they’re eager for recruits, decentralized, and fanatical from my initial assessment. Even those who possess an innate magical ability are being swept up by the rhetoric at times. Like Kordon, who blew himself up, they refer to them as the penitent. I convinced Ardor, Pock, and Pea of my authenticity by agreeing to help sabotage the voyage from Neverwinter to Waterdeep and shut down the engines using localized anti-magic fields. Shouldn’t cause any long-term damage but Xhandis will be pissed, I’m sure.*
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> *I instructed the guild members on board to find the Dessarin for a smooth touchdown before Ardor teleported us back to one of their operating bases. I’m guessing the building was disposable. It looked in terrible disrepair, abandoned and overgrown. From the looks, it may once have been a dormitory or patient house for a hospital. We were greeted by a larger party ready for combat. I can only assume this was precautionary. They questioned us thoroughly and the group vouched for my identity. I put a lot of work into those contacts – I’m glad they paid dividends. After the interrogation, we rode east on horseback for a little over a day. Upon leaving I guessed from the outskirts of the town that we apparated in Keltar. As we approached our destination, I confirmed that guess since there was no mistaking the city we were riding towards, including its tall red minarets – we were entering Manshaka.*
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> *If there was ever a place to hide your dark dealings, look no further than Manshaka; home to Blood Arenas, slavery and pleasure palaces in spades. Our group entered a ramshackle den where anything out of the ordinary sunk right into the depths of depravity in that Sabban. Ardor handed over the document portfolio to a brute of a Hobgoblin who called for a hulking man in the back. From the cell came a crying woman and her young boy. It would seem Ardor wasn’t doing the job out of kindness or loyalty but rather blackmail. As they left, from the adjoining room you could hear their screams. It would seem the promise of reuniting them was kept. I’m guessing he didn’t read the fine print in the contract he signed.*
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> *Pock seemed unphased by the treatment. As for me, I promised loyalty on the spot feigning my fear. This large one has an ego to match that is easily manipulated. After a few hours, we were down to business, and they hired me to secure some incoming shipments from Chult. What they are, I have no clue. They kept the contents of the shipments very guarded but from the looks, the number of members involved and the detailed planning I overheard – whatever is in the shipment is important and valuable to their plans. The shipment isn’t for some time since it was delayed prioritizing other matters. There is, however, more pressing news. I was able to overhear the importance in the portfolio of gathered material from Rheikel’s that was stolen from the airship.*
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> *It would seem there is a descendant from an Eldorian family being held in Revel’s End. He’s a direct link to one Archmage Aelara. The documents revealed Aelara was killed trying to subdue the creator of this relic Naraxas. The documents mentioned this Archmage and her lineage have something to do with the vault that contains the glaive. They’re planning on breaking this prisoner out. I’m not sure how or when but my guess is that shipment from Chult was delayed for this mission. They seem to think this is priority one and anything they feel this strongly about can’t be good for us. Be back soon. I have a few errands to run here including a debt to collect.*
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> *- Valas Dyrr*
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1. ↑ Be aware that this is told from the player’s perspective of the adventure. Details and happenings may have been presented with some liberties taken to fill in the blanks from poor memory and scribbled notes. Other players should be asked about their views of what happened, and are also welcome to type their stories to share.