The Troupe visits High Hedge, hoping to gain some arcane insight on their way to Beregost. They seek out the Firewine Bridge Ruins, to follow up on Charleston Nib’s excavation of Kozah’s ancient society. Perhaps some of Thalantyr’s knowledge could help them on their journey.
Midsummer 1368
High Hedge is quiet, but we don’t take any chances. Rose goes straight to Thalantyr before his flesh golems catch wind of us. As expected, he’s less than thrilled to see us.
Rose lays on the charm. With a glare, Thalantyr meets her appeal with a cutting wit and cautiousness that speaks volumes.
Rose: So, you are the powerful wizard people have told me about. I imaging you get all sorts of visitors claiming to seek knowledge but really only seeking magical power?
Thalantyr the Conjurer: Funnily enough, some of them start their speech with exactly that line.
Rose: Touche. I admit I am impressed by your knowledge. But is it wrong for a young person to hope to learn from someone like you?
Thalantyr the Conjurer: See, and that is the second line they say. They want to “learn”, and then they end up stealing my highly powerful artefacts.
And I am not sure which is worse for them: When I catch them, or when I don’t and they get the results they deserve. Fools!
As Rose listens, it’s clear that he sees right through her, yet he keeps speaking, revealing a weary wisdom. He’s no stranger to visitors eager to take magic without understanding the consequences.
Rose: What if I really want to get to know you better? As a person, not because you are a powerful wizard.
Thalantyr the Conjurer: Then I have to answer that I am beyond flattery of this kind. I am not interested in getting to know you better, young adventurer.
Look around! I have flesh golems to keep obtrusive company away. I have my reasons.
I am an elderly man, and not all of my memories are pleasant. I have seen things I hope you cannot even imagine. I am not only powerful but also wise enough to know what abuse of magic can lead to, and I have no intention of tempting anyone to go there.
And tempted they get if near it too long. That is what life has taught me, too.
Rose: I assure you that is not my intention. I want to learn.
Thalantyr the Conjurer: You seem to be eager, that is for certain.
Anyway, I had an apprentice…
He sighs. There’s an intensity in his eyes when he mentions his lost apprentice, an unspoken sorrow that hints at regrets forged over long years.
Thalantyr the Conjurer: …and no wish to spoil another young mind.
Leave me to my reading of the first volume of “Thee olddde magyck”. I am not sure how long it will take me to finish it, with the little time I have to read with all the people barging in lately. Well, maybe that’s not too bad, considering I am unable to locate the second volume, which is a real pity.
A book. A book that Thalantyr can’t find. I know books. And I know the greatest library in Faerûn. If only I could get back in…
He turns away, expecting Rose to leave. But she isn’t quite done yet. She still has some charm in her.
Rose: Rumours talk of a powerful mage that lives out here. If it is you, I would like to speak with you.
Thalantyr the Conjurer: Rumours? Bah! There is no mage here that wishes to speak or be spoken of. Unless, of course, you have magic that you wish to sell.
Rose: Can you make magical items or alter them?
Thalantyr the Conjurer: I would be a bad magician if I weren’t adept at it. However, not each item can be altered or improved.
Rose: Do I have anything you could alter?
He pauses, and then, with a sigh, reluctantly agrees to take a look at our items. Maybe he hopes this transaction will hasten our departure.
Thalantyr the Conjurer: Show me what you have, and I’ll tell you if it can be altered.
Rose digs into the Bag of Holding, producing a cursed sword, an enchanted dagger, and various odds and ends.
Rose: I have a Cursed Berserking Sword. Certainly you can make something from it.
Thalantyr the Conjurer: Why, of course I can! I can remove its curse and make its fury more useful to you. I will need two scrolls of Remove Curse and two scrolls of Horror. As payment, I’ll take only 3000 gold. Should I make this item for you?
We can’t afford it, so Rose and Thalantyr keep looking.
Rose: I have an Enchanted Dagger. Certainly you can make something from it.
Thalantyr the Conjurer: I can make an excellent throwing dagger with it. The dagger will return instantly to your hand after an attack is made. Except for my talent and my magic, only an Oil of Speed, white, is required. As payment, I’ll take only 500 gold. Should I make this item for you?
A throwing dagger that magically returns to the hand could be useful in a pinch, so…
Rose: Yes, make it for me.
She hands over one of her Potions of Speed and the gold. Thalantyr’s spells are swift, precise, and when he pours the potion onto the dagger, the liquid is absorbed into the weapon.
Rose takes a look at the improved dagger. Quick work and impressive, though it lacks the punch of a crossbow. We stow it for now; it may come in handy as a backup for Verr’Sza.
It doesn’t hit as hard as a crossbow might, so we return it to the Bag of Holding for now. It could be a good backup weapon for Verr’Sza if he runs out of quarrels. Rose looks in the Bag again.
Rose: Can you do anything with this Mage Robe?
Thalantyr the Conquerer: Yes, if you bring me a Mage Robe of Fire Resistance, a Mage Robe of Cold Resistance, a Mage Robe of Electrical Resistance, a Knave’s Robe, a Traveller’s Robe, and an Adventurer’s Robe, I can make you a very good item. I will also need a Potion of Invulnerability, a Potion of Defense, and 5000 gold as payment for my work. Should I make this item for you?
Again, we can’t afford it, but I really want to see what that robe looks like. This time Edwin, with his typical self-assuredness, produces his bow and inquires about an upgrade.
Edwin: I have Long Bow of Marksmanship. What can you do to improve it?
Thalantyr the Conjurer: Why, of course I can! I know the secret of manufacturing of bows which won’t require ammunition, and I can make it with the Bow of the Snow Storm. It will shoot magic arrows which cause additional cold and electricity damage. I will also need a Wand of Magic Missiles, a Wand of Frost, and a Wand of Lightning. As payment, I’ll take only 5000 gold. Should I make this item for you?
I have a thought at this point, and take off my helmet.
Aegon: Can you do anything with this Helm?
Thalantyr the Conjurer: Let’s look… Yes, if you bring me a Helm of Glory and a Helm of Defense: ‘Gift of Peace’, you’ll get an item which will not disappoint you. I will also need a Potion of Invulnerability, a Scroll of Protection from Fire, a Scroll of Protection from Cold, a Scroll of Protection from Electricity, and 5000 gold as payment for my work. Shall I make this item for you?
There doesn’t seem to be anything else Thalantyr can work with in our collection, but before we leave, I ask him to identify the wand we found on the bandits near Wilderness Lake. He reluctantly agrees, but charges 100 gold for the service. He tells me it is a Wand of Lightning, handy in a fight, yet perhaps even more valuable if we save it to improve Edwin’s Bow of Marksmanship.
Verr’Sza also asks him to identify his crossbow. He tells us it is a weapon known as The Guide, one of a few that survived a now-extinct kingdom.
We say our goodbyes before we leave, but he just waves a hand at us without looking as he opens his copy of Thee olddde magyck. He mentioned a second volume…
Perhaps, if we come across it in our travels, it might be worth bringing back to him.
We leave High Hedge and make our way toward Beregost. It’s still a few hours travel to the town, which means we get accosted again. The road to Beregost is punctuated by a skirmish with another group of gnolls looking for a meal. They turn their halberds toward Rose, yapping excitedly as always.
We kill two of them, but they start to push Cat and Rose back. Perhaps they think if they can get to the rest of us first they may have a chance.
They get close to Verr’Sza, but they are no match for Rose’s Chesley Crusher and Khalid’s aim with his bow.
They’ll never learn that they are no match for us. Their hunger won’t let them.
As we travel toward Beregost I look at Verr’Sza in his cat-like form. In towns, he’ll shift to blend in, yet I sense his reluctance – a preference for his true form, to be unbound. I decide to ask him directly about his shapeshifting.
Aegon: So you can change your shape just like that? You can appear human one moment and look like a rakshasa the next?
Verr’Sza: Yes. If you believe I should appear human, just let me know, but I’m weaker in that state. I can change back to my natural form at will. There’s no limit to that, as every rakshasa can perform that kind of trick. I would rather stay in my real form, but if there’s no other way… just tell me.
If it’s not needed I would rather stay in my wild form though.
We talk about Beregost and agree he should be in human form when we get there. Not everyone in the town will be as open minded as we are about the rakshasa.
Still, I can sense the weight behind his words – it’s his nature to be hidden, in disguise. Masking his true form. I wonder how many others there may be, rakshasa or otherwise, living alongside humans, their true forms hidden in plain sight
It takes us a total of four hours to travel to Beregost. As we approach the town, Verr’Sza switches to his human form. Though his outward form shifts, his wary eyes stay the same—a reminder that whatever disguise he chooses, Verr’Sza’s spirit remains unyielding.
We are tired after travelling in the wilderness for so long, so we go to Feldepost’s Inn and hire some comfortable beds, grateful for a good night’s rest. Perhaps we can wash some of the blood from our clothes as well.
1 Eleasias 1368
We sleep soundly, and early the next morning we pay a visit to the Thunderhammer Smithy. When Taerom sees us he is eager to update us on the contaminated ore we gave him last time we were in town.
He has already crafted some new weapons using the improved ores. He says these shouldn’t be brittle like most of the weapons in the Coast these days.
We open our Bag of Holding to see if there’s anything worth selling to him. He notices that we have some Ankheg shells, and takes an interest in the material.
500 gold isn’t a lot, and Rose seems to know as much.
Rose: I’m not interested in selling it just now, though it would be to you if I do.
Taerom Fuiruim: A shame it is. It could bring quite a bit once finished. How about this? For 4,000 gold I’ll make it into plate for you instead. It’s half my normal rate for working on an exotic, but, as I mentioned, business is slow.
Rose: Though your offer is generous, it is more than I can afford right now.
Taerom Fuiruim: If it be gold you’re short of, you may want to try for the bounty on the cleric Bassilus. I hear it already nears 5,000 gold, so you would have change to spare. Be quick about it though. That shell will rot in a tenday if not cured.
He’s almost disappointed to hear that we already dealt with Bassilus and spent the gold. News doesn’t travel very fast in this town.
Taerom has a another dwarf visitor so Rose says hello.
He gets back to what he was doing, clearly not interested in a real conversation. Rose walks over to say hello to a familiar angry dwarf.
A rather gruff attitude, as usual. I make my presence know.
Braegar: It’s almost completed, just a little polishing up then I can engrave the runes. Come back in a few days when the smithy is closed, and you can watch me.
I accept his invitation. I’ll swing by and visit next time we’re in Beregost.
The half ogres we killed near the Wilderness Lake may have been the same that Bjornin talked about, so we go to the Jovial Juggler to talk to him.
Huh. I guess news does travel fast. Maybe it’s just Taerom who’s out of touch, focusing too much on his smithing.
Bjornin: I feel honoured to know such fine heroes.
Rose: Bjornin, your shield… I cannot possibly take this from you. Don’t you need it yourself?
Bjornin: No protest. Take it. As soon as I have recovered I will get a new one.
I give the shield with pleasure. It is yours now.
Rose reluctantly takes the shield. The shield of a hero. Perhaps she feels like it doesn’t belong to someone like her. She’s a thrill seeker, a charmer, a petty thief. When I met her she was running a con. But I know that she cares, that she can be a hero if she chooses to be. We’ve killed enough bandits and gnolls to be sure of that.
The shield is enchanted, as a paladin’s shield should be. We don’t have any use for it now, so we store it in the Bag of Holding. Out of sight of Bjornin, of course.
It can increase the Armour Class for both Aegon and Jaheira, but it will also reduce their THAC0. Since neither of them get into close combat it’s better that they hit more often with their ranged weapons.
Verr’Sza tells us he is learning a lot after spending time among humans and elves.
His Breath Weapon and Spells saving throws increase by 1. He also gets a bonus of 1 to THAC0, 8 extra Hit Points, and 1 point of Lore.
We find Officer Vai who is still coordinating efforts against the bandits here at the Juggler. Rose shows her the scalps we have collected.
We sell her the 11 scalps we have. She tells us we have given her 41 thus far. A considerable effort toward cleaning up the Sword Coast. She praises our efforts at bringing some peace to the region.
Rested and well-stocked, we set our sights on the Firewine Bridge Ruins. It will be another long journey, but I feel we are prepared for whatever lies ahead.
