At the Ringing Anvil: Chromium, the King's Steel

[written up by Joel, player of Durham of the Ringing Anvil, expanding the scope of the setting--thanks, Joel!]

As the work on Fa Mei's magical khopesh sword is finished (project noted in the middle section here), it seems appropriate for the scribes to make an entry about this metal’s history, properties and where it could be found.

Chromium's first recorded appearance was roughly 250 lunar years ago, In a small city of the Vermilion Mountains, ruled then by Idris, first of his name. Located many leagues west of Cothon and Gadeed. A vein of the ore was found and smelted, producing orange colored ingots. After some experimentation by the King’s smiths it was discovered when forged with steel the metal itself took on a golden sheen and color.

King Idris ordered a sword made for himself and for his guard as protection of the mine fell to the king and his men. It is recorded that the warrior king’s weapon started to take on magical properties, shining light in dark caverns and warding away evil spirits. The popularity of chromium grew due to its ability to take on magical enchantment and the alloy became a status symbol within noble and wealthy circles. Decades passed and it was not uncommon for those of great wealth or social status to have some item forged with chromium, mostly weapons or armor, though not always the case. Many of these items were passed down through family lines, while others were lost in battles with Sro, demons, or in the wars of man. Chromium started to lose its glory after a few generations; rumors swirled that chromium magical items would lose the power they had by the time the grandchildren of the original owner inherited them; others simply state it was no longer the status symbol it once was.

The small city eventually became the great city Idris, one of the ten in the Ten Cities League. Those close to the royal family swear that there is a secret chamber where the sword of Idris the first is kept and that the sword itself speaks providing the wisdom and counsel of the former King. Such rumors aside, it is no secret that the city Idris has some of the best smiths in the known world and developed most of the techniques used for making chromium.

Chromium is almost exclusively forged with steel to give it maximum durability. Often the two metals will be layered on top of one another creating a pattern (damascus), which can be further manipulated to provide more unique patterns. After being forged this new alloy gains some new properties. First and foremost it makes the metal easily enchantable; it also allows the steel to be worked much more easily, removing problems such as shrinkage and porosity during the forging process. Pure chromium is a rare thing to see as it is brittle and likely to break.

Where can chromium be obtained? Idris of course is one such place, it is also said the far northern lands is another. There is unconfirmed rumor that the Fremen have access to chromium as well but most would rather believe that those barbarian tribes traded for it. The metal is more common than the fabled zortrium of legend so it would not surprise anyone if a merchant vessel had some to sell. An adventurer who is brave enough could very well come across some in the lair of a Sro or the tomb of a king.

 

More Magic and Splendor at the Ringing Anvil

 [written up by Joel for his character Durham's institution, the Ringing Anvil--thanks, Joel!]

the legendary warrior-boy sailing Dirac's Sea

Some updates concerning the Ringing Anvil, including the completion of certain wondrous items, as well as Durham's offering of a line of credit for those who wish to do business with him:

Najm's tunic

Najm ibn Toaz the blacksmith at the Ringing Anvil had partnered with Bartholomew Pettibone,

 together with Bart's research and Najm's skill they produced a new way of working zortrium into a weaveable material. Najm used this new technique to make a tunic weaving in gold thread in a decorative knot pattern on the collar and cuffs of a green tunic. The design was inspired by the stories his grandmother told him as a child, of a warrior boy clad in green who saved the world from a great evil. While simple in its design, Najm hopes that its lightweight and durability will impress his judges, so he can claim the title of Mastersmith.

The Guild of Blacksmiths is considering this work as to whether it is indeed a masterwork such that Najm can be entered into the rolls as a Mastersmith.

Durham's belt

Durham has always lacked the great physical strength most fighters are known for. But since Zaynab's partnership with the Ringing Anvil, he has been tempted with making of what Zaynab call's a "belt of giant strength". This project started a while ago, not too long after the technique of woven zortrium came to the Ringing Anvil. Then Durham collected blood of a Dzor by brokering a deal with the Colossian Oracle. Now this "belt of Dzor strength" is complete, a wide belt of woven zortrium that buckles in the back, in front a plate of polished bronze treated black with the face of Dzor in front with three rubies for eyes and the beak of gold.

Lines of credit & Store credit

In order to make their services more accessible to adventures the Ringing Anvil has decided to allow line of credit to players, this credit can be used to make repairs to gear, commission items or engage the services of Audrey the Alchemist or Zaynab the Enchantress. One hundred dinars (100gp) per level is the standard rate the Ringing Anvil is offering, these rates could be negotiated higher, for valued customers and friends of Durham. This credit has no interest, but must be paid off by the end of the year (tax season), otherwise repercussions will be in order.

For example, a level 5 character could be extended 500gp worth of credit to use at the Ringing anvil.

In the same lane as improving relationships with adventures and to build up the inventory of materials, the Ringing Anvil is also offering store credit for any materials brought in and give 5% above value in store credit. These items can be a variety of things: teeth, hide, ore, bone and whatever could possibly be used by the Anvil.

Other improvements

As outlined in “Downtime for fun and profit” Durham has hired a merchant and researcher for the Ringing Anvil.

A reminder that the Ringing Anvil also offers alchemy and has adjusted its prices.

• "Elixirs of Heroic Vigor" 200 gp per unit
  3 elixirs up for sale
• "Yramrag's Perfect Antidote" 250 gp per unit, none currently available but could be commissioned

Magic and Splendor at the Ringing Anvil

[written by Joel, who plays Durham, proprietor of the Ringing Anvil; with certain adjustments and edits by the Scribes]

Durham’s personal time of late has been used to cultivate friendly business relationship with Zaynab the Enchantress, famous for her magical enchantments; she shaped the magic that allows Durham's magic hammer Sunforger to fly and is the creator of the obsidian feshenga that sold at auction. Durham has spent 2000 dinars to add an office for Zaynab and furnish it for her. This friendly partnership allows for the creation of magical items at the Ringing Anvil.

Najm ibn Toaz – Mastersmith?

Another development is Najm ibn Toaz, a blacksmith at the Ringing Anvil. Najm has crafted many fine and splendid items for Durham and others. His most recent work has been a great sword named Slayer by its new owner Lars Ghar-rider. Yet, despite being one of the experts in the Dual Cities in handling the legendary alloy zortrium, he has not officially earned the title of Mastersmith. Due to an old rule in the guild-book one must prove their mastery by crafting an item and presenting it to the guild as a gift. If accepted by the guild, the crafter is bestowed the title of master; otherwise the gift is returned, and no title bestowed.

Some mock this tradition calling it antiquated and an unnecessary tribute to the guild, others respect the extra effort seeing it as a mark of the person's character and craftsmanship.

Opinions of others aside, Najm has set his mind to the task. Durham, his armorer 'Annaz, and the other employees of the Ringing Anvil have given Najm their support, allowing Najm spend up to one thousand Dinars from the Anvil's coffers as well have access to some of the Anvil's stock of zortrium. And so the process of a splendid item begins, a familiar task for Najm--but will it be worthy of earning him a title of Mastersmith?

Splendor and Magic – Zaynab and Enchantment

The commissioning of splendid items is what the Ringing Anvil is all about, and these items are the first step in making one's own personal magical item (like Durham did with Sunforger). Now with the partnership of Zaynab the Enchantress, it is possible to commission magical items from the Ringing Anvil!

The process starts with making a splendid item. For the creation of this, the player-character will need a rare material (defined by the referee), an expert craftsman, and 1000 dinars (gp) OR 50*(base price of the item), whichever is greater. After an appropriate amount of time to craft it, the splendid item is complete, and it has all the normal properties as well as a bonus of some kind. For example if the item was a short sword it would still do 1d6 damage and may also have a +1 bonus to its damage OR +1 to its attack roll (not both), or may yet have some other non-magical property due to the material it's constructed from or its unique design.

A remarkable item is made by upgrading a splendid item. This is done by paying another 1000 dinars, plus 50*(item's base price) to have additional work done on the item. This work can vary from the addition of new materials, the addition of new art and ornamentation, or a significant change in the item's design. Once complete a remarkable item gains another bonus or feature to what it once had.

Improving upon a remarkable item is rare and usually done by mystic and magical means (or advanced technology). The Ringing Anvil is now capable of this process, in the realm of the mystical and magical through the aid of Zaynab the Enchantress, which requires and additional 2000 dinars (flat fee), a plan or idea presented to the Enchantress, and a number of sessions mystically attuning with the item, guided by Zaynab (at least three successful “spiritual exercise” downtime activities for a minor enchantment, or longer as negotiated between Zaynab and the character // the referee and player).

Item	Bonus/ special ability	Cost
Splendid item	Has one bonus to hit, damage, AC or a non-magical ability*	1000gp OR 50*(base price) & unique materials**
Remarkable item	Has multiple bonuses or a non-magical abilities *	1000gp + 50*(base price), one splendid item & additional work***
Magical item	Has multiple bonuses and gains a magical ability	2000gp, one remarkable item, time† & special component‡

*non-magicial ability: a special property due to the construction or design of the item.

**Unique materials: can be special parts from monsters, a rare metal, etc.

***Additional work: something is added to the item in some meaningful way, perhaps another addition of a different unique material, gem or something changed/added to its design to make it even better than it was before.

†Time: at least three successful downtime activities pursuing “spiritual exercise”, under the guidance of Zaynab the Enchantress

‡Special component: being able to set a magical ability takes time (usually a month's worth) and a component used to bond magical properties to the item.

All costs are subject to negotiation by Durham, as he is the proprietor of the establishment, and some requests may require extra time/labor or extensive use of the Ringing Anvil's resources, and these considerations could affect costs.

Khipu, Codex, Eye, and Mirror

 Continuing the theme of various research done in the course of downtime, the Scribes now note the topics covered in certain texts and artefacts recovered over the past months:

First, more than a few codices were retrieved by the Survivors of the Tel and their comrades from the Sixth House of the Attine-Klackons. While Bartholomew Pettibone looked in particular into the magical writings ("knottings"?), Raoden pursued the more onerous task of magically reading and summarizing two other texts with the help of a mysterious "Bob" personage, as a prelude to his next task of summarizing and organizing the wider collection.

1) The Klackon Spellbook(s)
Looking into the magical writings recovered from the Sixth House, Bart found that what had seemed at first to be one spellbook was actually a spellbook-and-a-half. The works are a combination of typical Klackon khipus--strands of silk knotted in complicated patterns to form words and thoughts--accompanied by elaborate drawings on silk-paper of what seems to be a kind of platform or dais with intricately ornate interior, surrounded by abstruse mathematical formulae.

Bart recognizes in the sketches the "translation platform" he and his companions encountered, and it can be surmised that the wider collection has further notes on the device. But as to the spellbooks and magical-research, the Klackon magic-user developing his or her sorcery was obviously taking "translation" as the inspiration for magic. The first book is complete, and spells may be learned from it normally; the second, in which the principles of teleportation were being worked out, is not quite finished--perhaps the work could be taken up by an enterprising enchanter?

First Principles of Matter Translation, by Itzkatl Xhoa
Drawing on the observations of the "translation platform's" operation, and mathematical-philosophical developments of the underlying formulae that allow it to function, the sorcerer-author turns their mind to replicating such "translations" without recourse to any device other than a thinking and knowing mind, directing the energy of the universe through arcane channels. The "first principles" thus developed allow somewhat limited kinds of "translation"
III. displacement
IV. dimension door

Translation and Farcasting, by Itzkatl Xhoa
Building on the First Principles, this book works out the formulae for "farcasting" matter that has been translated into energy to a distant location, directed by the "coordinates" held in the mind of the spellcaster (rather than in the "mind" of the platform). Unfortunately, this work was left incomplete--probably by the disaster that overtook the Sixth House--and any magic-user wishing to utilize the half-developed sorcery would be advised first to refine the formulae.
V. teleport (incompletely developed; attempting to cast the spell as it is written will no doubt incur interesting results)

2) Experiments Toward the Creation of Ancient Warriors
Amongst the broader collection of Sixth House khipus, one in particular stood out immediately as "of interest" to the Survivors of the Tel. Casting his eyes over the various works with eyes enhanced by the magic of read languages, Raoden saw one strand that claimed to contain Experiments toward the creation of Ancient Warriors--which perhaps also called to mind certain encounters of a different kind in the Necropolis of the Tel.

To "set the scene", the khipu opens with a description of the dread-warriors of the nomadic Doulii-Klackons, the nomadic war-hosts that laid waste the land in days of old, most memorably as the Immortal Columns fought by Dalan II.:

... And when they marched all together, they covered the face of Ardha, rank upon rank upon rank. And the warriors were the vanguard and the rearguard and the bodyguard of the Shahbanat, and they marched to left and to right. But in the center of the column went the helot-drones who carried the brood and the baggage, and drove with them the proxx and the dlakolel, and too they bore the Mandat where the Shahbanat reclined.

The helots were fed on the dross of the midden, while their Princesses ate the offal of the proxx. And the Shahbanat and her brood and the dores of her pleasure ate the flesh of all beasts of Ardha and Ocean. But the bones and the blood were given to the warriors, and these they mixed in great cauldrons, and thus with the secrets of their warrior-sororities did they make the melas zomos, the "black soup" by which they nourished their strength.

And mighty was that strength! Each one was equal in strength to a Bulrathi or more, and a single rank could stand against an entire Human host, while a lochos of warriors would lay waste a walled city with ease. Nor did they die when struck down, but their bodies were carried back to the taphoi where they lay in rest, and then stepped forth made new with the next rising sun ...

Following that short historical summary, the author continues with a brief report of the discovery of a great underground "life-manufactory" (found by use of the "translation platform" and "... detailed elsewhere ..." according to the text). Within the dome-complexes of the manufactory were discovered various biological creations, among them Klackon-like insectoids.

Beholding this, the natural-philosopher Xixitlatzali and his apprentices and assistants theorized that this--or manufactories of the same sort--must have been used to create the dread warriors of the Doulii, and so they began cataloguing insectoid-type creatures held in great vats within the mysterious domes, and taking samples of such creatures back to their laboratory-workshops in the manor of the Sixth House for extensive experimentation.

The experiments, detailed in this account, consistently failed to produce any drug or agent that could be used to develop "dread-warriors", but did develop at least one especially powerful nerve-toxin that would be extremely dangerous to fellow Klackons or to the aloof and inimical Hlyss, and other insectoid creatures, while being inert to mammalian physiology, among other more venal discoveries.

The last reports concern dissections and experiments into certain egg-like biological structures and pale beetle-like creatures possessed of a paralytic venom in their stingers. ...

3) The Black Book of the New Moon's Shadow, by Tulket ibn al Rahm
Not a Klackon text at all--though accompanied by khipu-strand notes and annotations--this aged codex, held now in a gleaming case made from true-black dlakolel chitin, is a copy of one of the codices composed by the legendary demonologist Tulket ibn al Rahm, whose Clavis Arce Lune earned him both renown and infamy in his day.

The Black Book is a lesser known work of nature similar to the Clavis, being a description of certain of the Demons known to dwell in the shadows of the Fortress Moon, and an explication of how one might attempt to command their allegiance--at the summoner's terrible risk!

• el Iylat -- "the Wearer of Forms"
  This demon can only be summoned when the Fortress Moon hangs above, and always departs as the Moon sets--and thus clearly dwells within. It can appear in any form, though regardless of its appearance it attacks with a stroke of lightning, even when there is no storm. It is known to offer secret knowledge--or lies?--in return for allegiance to itself. Some legends declare that the Iylat is also the Urh min Gothuz, while others maintain that the two djinn are quite different
• el Rulanh -- "the Headless Ghilman"
  The Rulanh is a warrior-demon that can be summoned with certain brooches or magical arrowheads, among other means. It appears as a headless suit of armor that lays waste all before it. Some say it is a kind of ru'un, and no demon at all
• el Kelb el Tindhalas -- "the Crooked Hound"
  A kind of hell hound, the Tindhali Kelb is a demon that seems to exist permanently in a state between the translation of matter and energy. It is a favored demon by assassins, as it can appear anywhere, and rarely leaves a victim alive
• el Notul -- "the Ragged Shadow"
  Superficially similar to the dreaded biridlu mantle-creature that dwells in certain underworlds and smothers its victims, the Notul is a winged shadow that descends on living creatures and attempts to steal the warmth of their breath. It can sometimes be distracted by a fire or other heat source

The Klackon annotations indicate that Xixitlatzali (see above) and his servants encountered the Notul during their investigations of the biological manufactory, and so studied this codex to ready themselves in preparation for encountering other demons; and also that the discussion of the Tindhali Kelb aided Itzkatl Xhoa in drawing out the principles and formulae of translation.

a depiction of el Rulanh

4) The Eye and the Mirror
The final two items of note in this report were recovered on a quite different expedition, one not into the Tel al Safina, but into Medina al Taht ("the Undercity") beneath the very streets of Cothon itself. From within the vaults of some kind of crypt-shrine and vampire-lair, the company retrieved, among other things, another of the strange orb-like "eye" devices, this one marked with script, as well as a curious plane of greenish zortrium, polished on one side to a reflective mirror-finish, and marked on the other side with a set of strange logograms spiraling in toward a central point. This apparent mirror is scratched and marked along its edges in a way suggesting that it had once been fastened into a frame of some kind, and it was noted by Heijo that it was still touched by traces of magical dweomers.

Raoden, again using his sorcery, was able to read languages on both devices: 

The Kzinti script on the eye, formed of combinations of what appear to be dots, commas, apostrophes, and other such claw-like marks, reads fairly simply:

               So cast now your gaze  |  on the coy kzinret
               And your harem will grow  |  even greater than the Patriarch's

Meanwhile, the logograms on the "mirror" proved far more curious, evocative of some incantation of magic, or of praise to a Demon, or one of the grimmer Heroes. The particular references and kennings are mysterious; furthermore, the outer symbols of the spiraling kennings are clearly arranged in some meaningful pattern, but one which will take some further examination. As to the literal translation:

 Bel Wasat, Bel Phage, Hufrat min al 'Elam, Murtadi al Fuligin, al Da'ira, Kelb al Jahim, Rab al Bayt al Aswad, Nadhir fil 'Ufuq

Or translated to the trade tongue: 

"Lord of the Center, Lord Eater, Pit of the World, Wearer of Fuligin, the Circle, Hound of Hell, Master of the Black House, Warner at the Limes"

On the face, it would appear that this mysterious Bel Wasat or Bel Phage is some kind of Demon, though reflection on the legends of the Heroes would remind one that more than a few such are grim lords who demand dark rites in order to protect mortals from the worse hungers of the demons. Given the vague nature of the titles or kennings, the meaning of the spiraling logograms could be further investigated in two obvious ways (and almost certainly in other ways not immediately to mind for the Scribes!):

1. Research the kennings themselves to understand just what or who it is they refer to, and what connection they bear to various legends, or
2. Investigate the pattern of the outer logograms to divine what revelation is secreted there

A third topic of investigation, perhaps separate from the symbols themselves, would be to attempt to divine just what kind of enchantment the residual dweomers once imbued to the "mirror".

Durham's Log 16: Sunforger

[written by Joel, player of Durham, about a recent expedition into the Necropolis of the Tel, and earning Durham 100 xp per level]

Durham's Hammer

It was many weeks ago when Pako told me he saw my weapon, "Sunforger" float up into my hand during my duel with Long-ear. At first I thought Pako was mistaken; that his eyes had been tricked--but he was most insistent that it happen. Upon further reflection I decided to visit Zaida the enchantress to see if such a connection between the weapon and myself existed.

The enchantress declared that indeed there was some magical connection and that she could strengthen and shape it for a price. So over the course of a month I met with Zaida the enchantress as she performed her magic on me and Sunforger. After our sessions were over an opportunity for adventure happened to come along. Sesel and Bart both wanted to return to the necropolis to compare maps and discover new treasures.

We gathered at the Cothan-under-star and set out through the gate of the mourners. We got to the necropolis with no trouble and we began our exploration. We found many chambers and tombs, one of which was of Itra the swift. Many of the tombs in this room were bordered with fungal imagery. After moving one out of the way we discovered a secret treasure room but it was guarded by mushent, an eight foot tall walking fungal tree. The passage was built low to the ground so we could only crawl in one at a time. I knew this was the moment to put Sunforger's new ability to work.

I took apart a torch, took its oiled cloth and wrapped it around the head of Sunforger, then lit it on fire. I rolled through the narrow passageway and threw Sunforger up in the air hoping for it to land at the top of the mushent. I hit my target but it responded by shaking its limbs deploying spores in the air, I avoided breathing in the spores and rolled out. We waited a few moments but a flaming Sunforger didn't seem to yield the desired effect. So I recalled my hammer back. Sunforger came flying back to my hand from the passage.

We were all aware that engaging mushent in such close quarters would be a taxing and deadly fight. Surely a better way could be found but I did have one more trick up my sleeve or should I say in my hammer. I tied a rope to the handle of Sunforger. My idea was to use the last of my magical control over my weapon to wrap the rope around the trunk of the monster and pull the mushent through the passage leaving it completely vulnerable to our party's attack. Unfortunately in order to get close enough I would have to brave the creature's spore cloud defenses once more.

I threw Sunforger once, bringing the rope around the trunk, holding my breath. Then I sent Sunforger once again securing the rope, but the weight and effort of throwing Sunforger was too much and I breathed in the spore filled air. My comrades pulled me back through the passage coughing and wheezing. My ever faithful servant Pako handed me a sakkra blood potion and I drank it down. It helped, by the time I had regained my breath the rest of the party had made short work of the mushent.

The rest of my memory is somewhat cloudy from inhaling the spores, so I’ll leave the details to my other comrades as their story to tell, while I drink my ale.

Power in Knowledge ...

Oathring of the Wreccae

One of the items returned from the seabed during the hunt for the Denyan akho was a great silver arm-ring, generally in the possession of Ravna of the Survivors of the Tel. Having identified something of the strange philters retrieved during the same expedition, she turned her attentions to research the ring. First, with the help of Torkol and Gan, inscriptions around the ring were identified as a series of solemn oaths in an old northern tongue, but imbued with a power to bend the will's of men. Armed with this knowledge, Ravna was then able to roust up some old legends of the north from the sailors frequenting the harbor-side taverns. To wit:

One of the grimmer and more famous of the oath-ring cycles involves Scarred-Wala, whose single-minded quest ultimately led to the doom of himself and all his companions. The tales of his early heroism are many--a warrior who inspired awe and respect, and could have been a great king of the Solamnite tribes he walked amongst. But a twist of fate on one of his voyages brought him to a glimpse of the Greyjewel, a weirdstone so wondrous as said to contain a psychic impression of Magician himself.

Knowing he must have it, Wala returned to his tribes and worked in secret to forge an oath-ring of power; and when it was finished, he had six of his finest companions swear great oaths on it, and so bent their minds to his will, and with them as captains, he gathered a great host of Solamnite sea-reivers (wreccae in that tongue) to fall on the great city Sark-on-Solwe, where the Greyjewel was then purported to be, on the famous Street of Gems.

A bloodbath ensued as the city was put to sword and fire, but the Greyjewel was nowhere to be found. Thus began Wala's long doom-quest in seek of it, chasing after every scrap of rumor, squandering the lives of his friends and boon companions until, as it is said, he died alone, crushed by the falling timbers of his rotting ship as dwelt under it on a beach.

But the ring had passed out of the story before then, along with all his companions; and word is that such an one had recently resurfaced somewhere in the East. It certainly could have been on one of the vessels embraced by the Denyan akho, perhaps carried by another would-be hero who perished to the sea ...

------

The Eye of Morwe and the Hamdi Codex
A Happy Coincidence

Two separate research projects came together in an unexpected way as Razo's continued work deciphering the periplus of the ancient Voyager (with the help of Hry-Haya Yehat, of course) suddenly helped shed some light on the strange eye-like orb that Gan was experimenting with, attempting to divine its purpose.

Though the current section is incompletely deciphered (Razo rolled a shaky 8 for research), its description involves Hamdi and his crew befouled by a tempest and run aground on the island of the strange wizard Morwe where he dwelt with his daughter Altayra and their servant Imfawr. A reference to the salvation of one of Hamdi's crewmen, drowned in the storm but returned to life mystically by Altayra's use of "her father's eye" might have gone by unremarked, as a part of an already fantastical story, except that Hry-Haya indicated a tradition among his own people that Altayra had come with Hamdi on the return-voyage, carrying copies of her father's spellbooks, and that she had ventured with an Alkari companion (whose life she had also saved) into the Tel al Safina, and there battled ancient fungal horrors, amongst other adventures.

At talk over wine in the common room later, Gan hears this and suddenly leaps up to go and retrieve the orb--excited by the sudden possibility lit in his mind. He calls for Althalos to go and slaughter a djeja-bird for him, and to bring it hence, and when the bird's body is brought in, its throat slit skillfully by the innkeeper (somewhat perturbed to be slaughtering an egg-laying bird for nothing!), Gan stands over the body, points the orb's iris at it, and presses the stud--and the bird leaps up in a flurry of feathers, cackling mad to be surrounded by people!

The episode is the talk of Cothon-Under-Star for the rest of the week, and certainly makes the rounds to the other taverns that same night ...

------

Bartholomew and Ilasha

It has been just over a week since a group of merchant vessels came in from the east, escorted by Hanseatic ships, with word about the campaign against the pirates among their other wares. One of their number was Captain Ilasha, whose ship carried alongside its break-bulk goods a smaller selection of wares the captain intended to sell separately for her private enrichment.

Among those items was a scroll case and scroll, purported by the captain to be of magical origin, and which immediately caught the eye of Bartholomew Pettibone, newest member of the now-public Survivors of the Tel. Immediately evincing interest, Bartholomew ultimately purchased the scroll from her on the promise of it being arcane, and invited her to supper and ale at the tavern, if she would regale him with just how she came into possession of it.

She agreed, and later that evening the two were seen supping together at Cothon-Under-Star. This is the tale she told, in short:

"Well, Bar-tolmai, know that in my country, which lies to the east, is a river, al Nahr al Tur. It bends around an ancient motte within which lies a mysterious and dangerous underworld, much as I understand the Tel al Safina here to be. That mound--we call it Beit al Nadhir, House of the Doom, and there are riches in its depths, but also ru'un and other such dangers.

"Bayn the White, Karagoth, al عador, and Chhrr Poliorketes are just a few of the names of those who delved seeking glory, and never returned.

"Even I have set foot across that threshold of darkness, as you do now in that Tel. I ... found that my mettle was not equal to the strangenesses within. Better for me the open air, the swell of the sea, and the taste of salt on the air--with the sun shining. I do not envy the dead their place in the dust.

"As to the scroll--as I said, I have worked with wizards before, and I think I can recognize something of their work. I dis-covered it within the Beit--whoever carried it in was not so lucky to carry it out--and though I know not the magic, I know it is of some value!"

... Several days later, convening with his associates before a further adventure, a read magic spell was cast over the scroll, and it was found to hold the formulae for three spells, of strange and intricate nature: seeing other planes, locate gold and gems, and withering.

------

Shining Avin's Sword

Having deciphered the strange script on one of the two eye-like spheres recovered from the seabed on the hunt for the akho, Avin of the Survivors set about attempting to divine its use. Fortuitously, the inscribed verse suggested something about "shining weapons" and so Avin aimed the "iris" of the orb at her sword and pressed the stud opposite. Nothing seemed to change, and frustrated, she set the orb aside and went about other business.

But later, when drawing her sword for a bit of practice to keep in form, it seemed to Avin that the blade "cut" through the air cleaner than it ever had, and fairly sang in her hand as she went through her practice cuts. And indeed, thumbing the edge, the already keen blade seemed somehow finer, though she had not put it to a whetstone for some time.

It seems the orb has somehow caused Avin's sword to strike at +1 to hit! (but not to damage)

Armed with this knowledge, and the fact that the orbs were found as a pair and on the Peregrine Kyni treasure galley, sunk as it came from the east, Avin is able to roust up possibly helpful rumors concerning their identity. There was word that a pair of Eyes were included in the tribute sent from one of the lesser cities to the east, one of those protected by the Decapolis; in the mountains near that city stands a ziggurat or temple said to have once contained a kind of "gate" to the Fortress Moon, and that the pair of Eyes were recovered by a sortie there, and that the use of one made weapons majestic, while the other made men mad. ...

The Identification of Several Items at Cothon-Under-Star

 Amongst the treasures brought forth from the Underworld by the six Survivors of the Tel during their escape, several artefacts seemed above and beyond the quality of any mere sword or art piece. Namely, a sword and a handful of arrowheads, claimed to have come from the tomb of Tammoz the Hunter, while Razo the scholar held to an ornate and delicately engraved silver-and-gold kyni-bird, said to have been found in a tomb of Hamdi the Voyager.

Though the majority of the items "reclaimed" from the Underworld by the Survivors were sold off for gold, so that the sellers could make their lives comfortable in the Mother of Cities, these few were held, and thence turned over to the sages and alchemists of the tavern Cothon-Under-Star (after full payment of confraternity-dues!) to see what might be discovered about their natures and histories ...

Over the course of the last week, myriad tests have been done, and all the works of history in the tavern's old library perused for clues as to the nature of these items. Master Alchemist Aljadd, more concerned with the proper growth of his bacta colonies, passed the project off to his Formularist Kenawi.

Thus Kenawi presents the fruits of his research to the Survivors:

Arrows +1 to hit

The easiest to identify amongst the proffered artefacts, the 6 arrowheads are enchanted with ancient spells to strike true and hard. It was a simple process to titrate reactive agents over the arrowheads until the dweomers revealed themselves in irradiative light in the darkroom; unfortunately, such is their age that the enchantment has been somewhat diluted, and while they might once have pierced deeper, the dweomers now only convey truth of flight (hence +1 to hit).

Fortunately, the alloy from which these arrowheads were smithed is such that it easily withstands extreme use; even if the shafts break, the arrowheads are recoverable, and can be tied to arrows anew, if time is spent recovering them from a corpse or battlefield (minimum 1 turn in-the-dungeon).

سيف نور النرهواس

The sword taken from the tomb of "Tammoz the Hunter" is engraved along its curved blade with runes calling it "the light of Narhavaas". Its hilts include a simple cross guard, while the pommel is a carved representation of a canine lomrel head containing a blue-sapphire gem such that it glitters bluely through the "eyes".

The eyes (and the gem within the pommel) shine forth with a weird blue light when Sesel or Ravna come near. Through experimentation, Sesel is able to bend his will into the sword, and to make the gem retain its shine, and to glow like a torch ...

As an item, the sword is +1 to hit; it shines bright-and-blue when any psionic energy is near; and the stone within the pommel may be "charged" with psionic energy, up to 20 points. So long as it is "charged" it sheds light like a torch (though blue); the points may be used by a psionic wielder as an additional reservoir, OR expended in a 10 point "flash" that has the effect of a light spell on any one opponent (blinds them if they fail a save v. spells).

The poetic history suggests that this sword--if it truly be "the Light"--was never actually wielded by Tammoz, but was laid in his grave by Narhavaas, Prince of Nous, after the Hunt of the Gadhar of Gera'a. For Tammoz had won the heart of Ygrain of the North, and Serenwar of the Healing Hands was jealous; and when Tammoz was fatally wounded by the Gadhar, Serenwar let the healing water trickle between his fingers rather than heal Tammoz while Ygrain and Tammoz's loyal Renyu follower lay beside him mourning. But Narhavaas, who had befriended the Hunter saw the heart of Serenwar and was disgusted, and he gave his sword to Tammoz in death by way of seeking redemption ...

نسّر

Whereas the identification of the sword is fairly straightforward--Kenawi sees its mentions in the histories, observes its proclivities in practice, and thus declares it "the Light of Narhavaas", the Formularist is much more taken by his research regarding the strange engraved bird figure brought forth by the Survivors.

Perhaps he is a fan of legendary Twelve Voyages of Hamdi--which naturally include only the twelve best-known quests and travels of the legendary sea-goer! Or perhaps he is a stickler for "truth"; either way, Kenawi spends an inordinate amount of time reading through old legends in his attempt to properly identify the nature of the odd bird-figure presented him by Razo.

Part of his knowledge-quest, as he reveals to Razo, is to discern between the lines of certain legendary discrepancies. For it is the case that in many legends of Hamdi that the Voyager is served by a living and cunning kyni that spies out many secrets and unknown coasts for the legendary sailor; and yet, in other versions, the same bird is described as "girded in finest feathers of orichalcon and gold," which suggests just such a device as presented now. (And if this truly be Nassr--aye, that's the name of the kyni-bird, living or not!--then surely it knows the locations of such secrets as the Underwater City, the Gilded Fleet of Jamal, or the lair of the King of Sro!)

Regardless of the truth of the artefact being Nassr-itself, it is indeed a magic item; called forth by the command, "'Adi sha'ad!", the bird will open its carefully-gilded wings and take flight to spy out the terrain and any "enemy" forces thereon for its master, and thence return to report such.

It may have further uses (or secret knowledge stores), but Kenawi is unable to access them in the short time of this last week.