Careless Whisper

## About:

DM: Jedcaj

Players:

* Maba N'gashta, orc fighter
* Wraps, warforged fighter
* Beckett d'Medani, khoravar bard/cleric
* Aaron d'Cannith, human artificer

Notable NPCs:

* Ian LaBeau, runaway Wayfinder thief
* The Desperado, plane-hopping cowboy
* Horgun and Jalanatra, leaders of the Gnarl Tribe
* The Seven, drider leader of aranea in the Copse Impenetrable
* Whisper Rock

## Introduction:

While many applicants receive a polite rejection letter for their application, four of you receive a brief message with a lightning rail ticket to Areksul, a village outside of Fairhaven. The message reads.

Thank you for your application. After reviewing your files and experience, you have been chosen for a vital mission. I will divulge more details when the rail line arrives in Fairhaven before heading to Areksul. Please be prompt.

Shensari Damilek Director of Relics and Antiquities, Trustee

## Summary:

Shensari Damilek informs the Wayfinders that an artifact was uncovered from Desolate on a recent expedition. It was dubbed the Thaumaturgy Rod after determining it had minor effects of the Thaumaturgy spell. However, this artifact was stolen by a long-time and trusted member of the Wayfinder Foundation, Ian LaBeau, who ran off towards Areksul and was seen by the town to have fled towards Whisper Woods, people saying he had a look about him that others get when they have visited Whisper Rock.

Upon entering Whisper Woods, the forest seemed darker and more spooky than most forests, with dark, motionless figures watching from throughout the trees. The Woods whispered to them, and communicated to Wraps to allow himself to be brought to where he would be guided just before the centaurs of the Gnarl Tribe did just that.

The Gnarl Tribe treated the Wayfinders as guests, finding they were spoken to by Whisper Rock, a revered stone structure that whispers the future to those who visit it. Horgun and Jalanatra, the leaders of the Tribe, were very interested in this, and allowed the Wayfinders to stay in their camp. There, they helped the centaurs fight off an Owlbear attack, and Maba proved herself a champion against a fierce warrior by taking him down in one strike.

The next morning, the group traveled to Whisper Rock, and the Tribe allowed the Wayfinders to listen to the Rock for their own prophecies of the future, to which they all received whether they wanted it or not.

When least expecting it, the Gnarl Tribe turned on the Wayfinders, claiming this was part of a greater prophecy, and nearly defeated the Wayfinders at the Rock before Ian LaBeau and a group of Aranea attacked the centaurs and allowed them to escape. When they were safe inside the Copse Impenetrable, the thick woods where the aranea live, Ian revealed that he stole the artifact because it was more powerful and more dangerous than initially thought, and he was trying to stop the Wayfinders from blindly selling off another dangerous artifact.

Upon receiving aid from the drider leader known as The Seven, the Wayfinders decided to learn more about the Thaumaturgy Rod. The Rod is an amplifier, making any magic channeled through it more powerful than even the caster could channel themselves. Beckett performed an identify spell on it and found herself receiving visions of its past, much like a legend lore spell would do. However, as she continued to look deeper, she encountered a dark figure that forged the Rod, and it saw her and began attacking her from her vision. After learning about where the forge was, the Wayfinders formulated a plan to return it to Desolate and destroy it in the forge.

Heading back towards Areksul, the Wayfinders were met with The Desperado appearing in the field and inquiring about the Rod. It turns out he was on a similar mission on retrieving and destroying the Rod, and so he agreed to help them, taking them through Irian. While on Irian, the Desperado went to fetch something to help them while the others explored the plane of light and hope, and he returned with a box filled with Irian light to help repel darkness in their travels.

Reaching Desolate, the Wayfinders found an abandoned settlement and were attacked by an Allip which spoke maddening secrets into their heads, causing Aaron to suffer more than the others, before it was vanquished. The Desperado stayed to fight off more Allips that attacked while the rest of the group headed down beneath a temple. There, a demonic slime attacked and confused them while creating a portal to a hellish dimension, though it was defeated before it could drag them into the portal.

At the bottom of the stairs is the darkened well, which contained shadow creatures that were repelled by the Irian light and allowed safe travel to the guardian of the forge. The large demonic skeleton struck down some of the weakened Wayfinders, but they were ultimately triumphant. Traveling through the archway, the Wayfinders found themselves in another place full of prison cells leading to the forge. In one of the cells was an emaciated man from Arcanix. Upon diving into his mind, Beckett determined he was a cultist of a demonic power, just as Ian took the Rod into the forge to try and undo it. Beckett learned from her deep dive that Ian had been previously marked by this entity, and him using the Rod in the forge would ultimately undo a binding for this demonic power, and so the Wayfinders tried to stop him from his attempt. The power grew too much for any of them to undo by physical means, so Beckett cast Dispel Magic through the amplifier Scepter, forcing all the magical power to be completely removed from it.

After reconciling with The Desperado, the Wayfinders traveled through Syrania to find out if this Scepter was still dangerous. It was confirmed to be completely nullified of magical power, and so the Wayfinders decided to return it to the Foundation, completing their mission. Beckett made a deal with The Desperado to repay him for his help, as well as a promise to return to Syrania to meet with a Dominion to learn more about her resurrection, and the Wayfinders set off back to Shensari to complete their mission.