<< | Notes | March 11, 2022 >>

Bell comes out of Wild Shape and stares greedily at the seed. Dren tosses it to him. Bell casts Greater Restoration on himself and removes his cursed desire for power. He apologizes to Percy for not being kind to him when he was sad and gives him the Staff of Frost. Percy takes it but pretends to not know what he's talking about. Bell gives the Stone of Good Luck to Gale. Dren gives a bag to everyone. While we are talking, Gale hears something like skittering coming from below. We are attacked by vampire spawn and kill them.

We rest for an hour and go down the stairs of the tower. There is an exit to the 10 foot wide walkway that encircles the keep. We continue downwards. Another entrance to the northwest side. Ground floor: mosaic floor. Another set of stairs in the center of the room, heading downwards. An entrance to a hallway going outwards. Gale goes through with Percy's familiar on his shoulder. A long narrow corridor filled with cobwebs. West: octagonal room, high domed ceiling, frescos on the ceiling. The hall turns south: an outpost, probably for archers, looking over the courtyard. Nellshann says the stairs that go down make her uncomfortable and doesn't want to go down them. We go back up. Percy and Bellrand spot a strange seam in the wall. Bell pushes it and it swings open revealing a cupboard with a ladder going up. Percy's familiar goes up and finds another seam, facing towards the wall courtyard of the castle. Gale goes up. Dirt caked windows, broken bedframes. Staircase descending on the north wall. Wardrobe that looks like a coffin with fey creatures painted on its black door. Two mirrors on the wall. Percy notices no magic on it. Gale opens it. A pale white dress flies out and begins to dance around the room. Looking in the mirror, every so often, a flash of auburn hair, a smiling face that turns to a pained scream. It flashes through visions of different women. When Gale touches it, it crumples to the floor. Gale puts it in a bag. Down the stairs: 20x40 foot room. a door in the south wall. We go through it. Everything coated in dust. A table with an open book, ink and quill. A staircase going down with skeletons in chainmail on either side. A door leading outside. The book is ancient. A message that says "Please register for your own convenience and that of your next of kin." Skeletons assembled with wire framing and hung on pegs. We step outside and Bell uses Transmute Rock to shape a 5 foot hole into the chapel wall. Dim colored lights through broken, boarded stained glass windows. Bats fluttering at the top of the 90 foot high dome. A balcony along the west wall -- two dark shapes slumped in tall chairs. Benches coated in dust and disarray. An alter lit by a shaft of light, carved with angelic figures intertwined with grape vines. A cloaked figure draped over the altar - a corpse in a beautiful fur-lined black cloak with golden thread along the hem and a chainmail suit. A mace on the floor nearby - gnarled black handle. The light falls directly over a silver figurine.

Gale stealths in and takes the mace. The rest of us follow. Dren takes the cloak and the mail. Percy Mage Hands the figurine - a robed monk kneeling, palms stretched out. It is magic but Percy can't tell what kind. He returns to the castle with Dren to Identify it. Bell, Nellshan, and Gale stay to inspect the altar. Old incense. Under their feet something crunches -- a necklace with a red stone in the center, engravings around the stone. In the shape of the sun. They return to the castle with D & P and Gale casts Tiny Hut. Percy Identifies the mace, the necklace, and the statue: the Mace of Terror, the Holy Symbol of Ravenkind, and the Icon of Ravenloft.