The HistOracle¶

2022-Mar-19

Sister Garaele’s task: Gather information about a magical artifact, Bowgentle’s spellbook, which disappeared after Sindras died (roughly 200 years ago in the battle of Waterdeep). In Conyberry, there is a banshee named Agatha who rarely appears to travelers but might be helpful. Garaele provides the party with an ornate silver comb encrusted with jewels, which might be useful in negotiations with Agatha. She warns that banshees are a clever form of undead that can become incorporeal and are driven by hate/vengeance.

Taking their leave, the group spends the rest of the afternoon and evening making preparations and taking care of their business.

• Kleb picks up his new silver & black half-plate armor from the smithy. He checks on the Lozenge Gules flyer he left on the town message board and is excited to see two of the tearaways have been taken. He leaves a follow-up message asking people to come find him.
• Rowan heads to the Lionshield Coster to sell some excess gear, including the Black Spider’s staff the party looted from the doppelganger’s corpse. He wanders through the southern end of town, stopping at the Townmaster’s Hall to chat with Sildar. The dwarf mentions that he is serving as Townmaster during the absence (disappearance?) of Harbin Wester, leading our paladin to do some investigation at Wester’s home.
• Rulkorf heads down to the Phandalin river and relaxes with some fishing, letting his mind wander over the Ring of Odd Evening. He snags a northern perch and leisurely prepares it for a snack. The dwarf uses the time to attune to his other new item as well, the Shield of Arrow-Catching.

Reconvening in the town square, Rulkorf shouts to Kleb excitedly that he got the hang of his new shield, and challenges him to throw something at him. Kleb makes two successive terrible throws of nearby bricks, hitting a house and angering its geriatric occupant. The geezer starts yelling at the adventurers, but after another brick (accompanied by threats and insults) narrowly misses him, the old man hobbles over and suplexes the fighter. Overjoyed at this “worthy challenger,” Kleb assumes his stance for fisticuffs. When his punch gets blocked and answered by a flurry of strikes, Kleb discovers the hard way that this man is a warrior monk. The two earn each others’ respect through their fierce battle, and satisfied that he taught the youngin’ a lesson, the man heads inside.

Shocked and awed, the party heads back to the Stonehill Inn to sleep. The next morning at breakfast, a boy brings a letter to the group from “Halia” of the Miner’s Exchange, asking them to visit before they depart. The party makes its way to the Exchange and meets Halia, who apparently learned of their upcoming mission from her friend Garaele. She requests a favor of them: instead of Garaele’s question, ask Agatha, “where is the Tomb of the Nine Gods?”. Her husband, Wexton (bald, glasses, short beard), apparently set off in search of it and never returned. She explains that Agatha can only divine information about things, not living beings. Agreeing to take it under consideration, the party sets out for Conyberry.

After two uneventful days of travel, the group arrives at what seems to be the town of Conyberry and Kleb splits off from the pair so that Agatha doesn’t associate them together. At the center of town, Rowan uses his Divine Sense and is seized by a sudden chill. He confides in Rulkorf about his recent unease with his divine powers. The two take turns shouting out to Agatha, trying to persuade her to meet with them. There is no response to Rulkorf’s invitation, but when Rowan pulls out the comb, they feel the icy presence of Agatha the banshee. The temperature drops further and ambient sounds fall silent as the form of an elven woman materializes. She takes the comb, and Rulkorf repeats Garaele’s question. In response, Agatha utters, “After Sindras perished, the book was taken by Tsernoth to the city of Iriaebor.” Agatha taunts them for their other questions that have yet to be answered, dismisses them, and vanishes into mist. They retreat and Kleb approaches in turn, calling out to the banshee with a sultry greeting. He is repeatedly ignored, but when he mentions her “unfinished business” and alludes to her desire for vengeance, Agatha half-apparates but only to insult him. Finally deterred, Kleb walks back to his companions and a gust of howling, icy wind hurries them back the way they came.