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📘 Session 23 – The Ferryman’s Bargain

🎵 Music

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“The EscapeFerryman’s hasBargain” Begun– Varrick Songweave

[Intro]
Oh-oh, the red gate’s rising, Oh-oh, the stars are cold. Oh-oh, the red gate’s rising, And the dark wants what we stole. [Verse 1] Four came back in silver shame, One stood clean and asked their name. Clockwork gods and metal rain, Primus put them on the chain. Cloak and rod and death-charm bright, Fed the helm for one more flight. Through the void with no moonlight, Carceri burned red in sight. [Pre-Chorus] Pay the price, light the spark, Steer the ship into the dark. Hold your nerve, draw your blade, Every debt must now be paid. [Chorus] Red gate rising, red gate calls, Through the stars where silence falls. Sail it fast and sail it true, Mind Flayers waiting, hunting you. Red gate rising, red gate gleams, Past the wrecks and broken dreams. Chain by chain, spark by spark, We ride laughing through the dark. [Verse 2] Asteroids rolled like dragon teeth, One dead ship lay still beneath. No crew stirred and no bell cried, Only purple lamps inside. Rigg went quiet, Q went small, Sneaking through the living wall. Found the book with whispers thin, Then the trap came closing in. [Pre-Chorus] One little imp, one stolen page, One rogue grin, one warlock rage. When Q went dark, the silence broke, High Jinks burned in violet smoke. [Chorus] Red gate rising, red gate calls, Through the stars where silence falls. Sail it fast and sail it true, Mind Flayers waiting, hunting you. Red gate rising, red gate gleams, Past the wrecks and broken dreams. Chain by chain, spark by spark, We ride laughing through the dark. [Verse 3] Dino drove the ship in hard, Tentacles reached through the stars. Rigg came back with book in hand, Straight from death’s own purple land. Then they boarded, steel and spell, Into one tight corridor hell. Valen smiled, raised his flame, Dino learned the wizard game. [Bridge] Fire in the hallway, Fire in the bone, Three squid-faced horrors, Dino not alone. Leydrick called the healing, High Jinks brought the cold, Rigg’s shot rang like thunder, And the Flayer’s luck was sold. [Chorus] Red gate rising, red gate calls, Through the stars where silence falls. Sail it fast and sail it true, Mind Flayers waiting, hunting you. Red gate rising, red gate gleams, Past the wrecks and broken dreams. Chain by chain, spark by spark, We ride laughing through the dark. [Verse 4] One Flayer fled through folded air, Too near death to linger there. Alhoon stood with corpse-cold pride, Moon-Touched steel came in from the side. Dino shook the stun away, Cut the dark and won the day. Smoke rolled out, the ship lay still, But the red gate waited still. [Final Chorus] Red gate rising, red gate calls, Through the stars where silence falls. Q is gone and debts are due, There’s a stolen book to read through. Red gate rising, red gate gleams, Past the wrecks and broken dreams. Chain by chain, spark by spark, We ride laughing through the dark. [Outro] Oh-oh, the red gate’s rising, Oh-oh, the stars are cold. Oh-oh, the red gate’s rising, And the dark wants what we stole.
🖼️ Images

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Rigg

dissolving

the

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Illithid

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nautiloid’s

helm

runes

with

acid]

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The party standing before the chained marble Titan Crius] [Placeholder: The silent ferryman emerging through the silver river fog] [Placeholder: Dino and Rigg bringing down the Frost Giant]

🪐 Campaign Arc

  • Campaign: Spelljammer
  • Session: 2223 – The SilentFerryman’s Nautiloid at the Red PortalBargain
  • Date: 13/06/11 July 2026
  • Dungeon Master: James / Jamie / Sicareus
  • Setting: TheEnemy party’sIllithid spelljammer,nautiloid, the Astral Sea, an asteroid field around a red portal, Othrys and anthe enemySwamps Illithidof nautiloidTreachery in Carceri, the silvery river, and a Frost Giant’s cave
Next Session: 8 August 2026

🎬 Previously On...

AfterIn placingSession the silver crown on the Choir Master in Arvandor,22, the party fledfollowed Primus’ command toward a humanoid-sized red portal believed to lead into Carceri. An enemy Illithid nautiloid waited among the surrounding asteroids, and High Jinks’ newly summoned imp, Q, was destroyed while scouting its interior. The party boarded the vessel and fought through Valen’sits Teleportationdefenders, Circle,killing several Mind Flayers and two undead Alhoons while one badly wounded Illithid escaped Fizzwick’sby island,plane foughtshifting andaway.

killed

The enemy ship had fallen silent, but the returningred Morkoth,portal andremained returnedopen tonearby. theirSomewhere spelljammer.beyond Theirit brief safety ended when the Marut returned and dragged most of the party back before Primus, leaving Rigg hidden aboard the ship.

Primus confirmed that Corellon had been angered, that rival Illithids were hunting the party over the stolen letters, and that another group was already moving within the wider task. The party’s new command was clear in wording and horrible in content: travel to Carceri, findlay the Red Prison, stopthe surviving Illithids and, according to Primus’ impossible command, the Mindimprisoned Flayers, and releasegod Tharizdun.

🧭 Overview

SessionThe 22party began by securing the captured Illithid nautiloid before committing themselves to the red portal. Rigg swept the vessel for hidden survivors while Valen searched for magical salvage. Their search uncovered two crystals taken from the destroyed Alhoons, each carrying disturbing magic connected to trapped minds or souls. Knowing that the escaped Mind Flayer might return with reinforcements, the party reunited aboardturned their spelljammer,attention thoughto notdisabling inthe equalship. statesOnce Dino and Rigg identified the psychic helm as its critical control point, Rigg poured acid from his Alchemy Jug across its runes and mechanisms, melting away important sections and leaving the vessel unable to pursue them without considerable repair.

After a short rest, the party passed through the red portal and emerged into a cramped, humid cave. Footprints showed that another group had recently travelled ahead of dignity.them. Beyond the cave stretched Othrys, the uppermost layer of Carceri: a seemingly endless mire beneath a red, storm-filled sky. Everyone except Rigg hadfelt returnedan unnatural pull leading deeper into the swamp. The tracks followed the same direction, so the party pressed onward through the region identified by Valen’s Book of Knowledge as the Swamps of Treachery.

The journey brought them within a great magical boundary containing Crius, a thirty-foot-tall Titan seemingly carved from Primus’white metallicmarble domainand coveredchained within a powerful prison circle. Crius revealed that the Illithids had arrived earlier and attempted to control him; those foolish enough to enter his circle had been crushed. He confirmed that Tharizdun was held on one of Carceri’s deeper and more dangerous layers, then directed the party toward a nearby river. A guide found there could carry them down through the prison plane—but Crius warned them neither to drink nor swim in strangeits clockworkwater.

residue,

At whilethe river, a silent ferryman emerged through the fog and demanded the traditional toll of thirteen soul coins. The party had none, but the ferryman recognised that they carried crystals taken from Illithid liches and believed they might be useful. After recoiling at the spoken name of Tharizdun, the ferryman offered another price: kill a dangerous creature that had been murdering his kind, and he would transport the party as far as Cathrys, Carceri’s second layer. Dino sealed the bargain with a handshake, binding both sides to peace aboard the vessel.

The ferryman carried them across the silver water to a grey shoreline and a firelit cave. Inside waited a Frost Giant, maddened or diminished after drinking from the river. Rigg had missedscouted the divinechamber, briefingHigh entirelyJinks stationed her pseudodragon outside to watch the boat and needed to be caught up. The group confirmed their next destination: a red portal somewhere in the Astral Sea, tied to Carceriferryman, and the Red Prison. Before they could travel, the party had to pay the now-familiar magical toll, sacrificing the Cloak of Protection, the Immovable Rod, and Leydrick’s one-use wound-closure amulet to gain enough planar “juice” for the journey.

Afterlaunched a longcoordinated butassault. uneventfulValen trip,opened the red portal came into sight withinwith a densepowerful asteroid field. The portal was only humanoid-sized, making it useless for ship travel, but the more immediate problem was the silent nautiloid waiting nearby. The enemy ship showed no visible movement from a distance, so Rigg volunteered for a stealth infiltration.Fireball, High Jinks sentbattered herthe newly named imp familiar, Q,giant with him,Eldritch usingBlasts, Leydrick’s Dwarven Thrower proved especially effective against the familiar’s invisibilitygiant, and scoutingDino abilityendured the creature’s enormous axe strikes at close range. Rigg repeatedly struck from concealment, eventually smashing the giant to helpone searchknee before Dino delivered the ship.killing Rigg disabled one of the nautiloid’s weapons and found several Illithid living spaces full of psionic devices he could not properly identify.

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The stealth mission went bad in the traditional party style: almost successful, then immediately everyone chose violence. Q slipped into a chamber with three figures and helped steal a strange Illithid tome, but was caught or destroyed before escaping. Rigg got the book back to the party and handed it to Valen, while High Jinks, furious over Q’s loss, flew toward the enemy ship in Mind Flayer disguise. Dino drove the party’s nautiloid into position, used its tentacles to retrieve Rigg, then launched himself into the enemy ship. What followed was a brutal corridor battle against Mind Flayers and Alhoons, ending when Dino shook off his stun and carved the final foe apart with two critical strikes.blow. The session ended beforewith the shipgiant could be searched orslain, the redferryman’s portalprice entered.paid, and passage deeper into Carceri now owed to the party.

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Party Members

Character Player Class/Subclass Race Notable Actions
Garrick “Rigg” Dalhart Moose / Ben / Elemunk Rogue (Swashbuckler) Human InfiltratedScouted the enemy nautiloid withand Q,later disabledthe aFrost shipGiant’s weapon,cave; helpedused stealacid from his Alchemy Jug to destroy the Illithid tome,helm’s escapedrunes; throughinspected athe window,ferryman’s latersupply landedof asoul heavycoins Bagwithout O’stealing Nutzone; dealt repeated Sneak Attack thatdamage burstand left the Frost Giant on one enemy’s head apart.knee.
Leydrick Gefinhal Jared / Galindis Cleric (Life Domain) Dwarf SacrificedProvided hishealing one-use death-saving amulet for portal fuel, healed Dino afterduring the fireballFrost incident,Giant later restored 21 HP to the whole party with Mass Healing Word,battle and threwrepeatedly attacked with the Dwarven ThrowerThrower, throughwhose theenchantment packedwas corridor.particularly effective against a giant.
High Jinks Kate / Keitachan Warlock (Great Old One) Tabaxi ConfirmedSummoned a new pseudodragon familiar during the Robeparty’s ofrest; Eyesused asit herto currentwatch look,the sentferryman Qand river while the party entered the cave; struck the Frost Giant repeatedly with Rigg,Eldritch usedBlast Armorfrom oflong Agathys before boarding, flew toward the enemy ship in Mind Flayer disguise after Q was lost, and punished melee attackers with cold and fire retaliation.range.
Dynoth “Dino Roar” Rokos Robb / Baconbuff Artificer (Battle Smith) / Fighter (Psi Warrior) Githyanki PilotedHelped thedetermine party’s spelljammer, retrieved Rigg withthat the nautiloid’s tentacle-teleportpsychic system,helm boardedwas the enemykey shipto first,disabling castthe Heroism,ship; enduredfollowed stunsthe supernatural pull through Othrys; formally accepted the ferryman’s bargain; absorbed several brutal Frost Axe attacks and psychic attacks, then endeddelivered the fightfinal withstrike twoagainst criticalthe sword strikes.giant.
Valen Pyre Justin / Slitzer Wizard (Evoker)Evocation) Human HelpedUsed selectDetect sacrifices,Magic receivedto search the stolennautiloid; Illithidrecovered tomeinformation fromabout Rigg,the castAlhoons’ Causecrystals; Fear,consulted unleashedthe aBook crampedof fourth-levelKnowledge Fireballto thatidentify hit enemiesOthrys and Dinothe alike,Swamps usedof FireTreachery; Shieldnegotiated with Crius and Shield,the andferryman; postponed studyingopened the bookFrost untilGiant afterbattle combat.with Fireball.

📍 Key Locations

  • Captured Illithid Nautiloid: The party’senemy spelljammer:vessel Startingconquered pointduring afterSession Primus’22. summons;Its remaining rooms were searched before Rigg haddestroyed remainedimportant aboardrunes whileon the otherscentral returnedpsychic coated in metallic residue.helm.
  • The Red Portal: A humanoid-sized opening among the asteroids that led directly from the Astral Sea route:into Carceri.
Portal Cave: A small, damp cave on the Carceri side of the portal. Numerous recent footprints led from it into the swamp. Othrys: The longuppermost travellayer pathof towardCarceri, theconsisting here of endless marshland beneath a red portal,sky poweredfilled bywith sacrificedunnatural magiclightning items.and distant thunder. AsteroidThe field:Swamps of Treachery: The lethal marshland through which the party followed both the Illithids’ tracks and a supernatural directional pull. Crius’ Prison Circle: A densevast fieldmagical aroundboundary containing the destinationchained portal,marble givingTitan. coverIllithids andwho makingattempted theto approachcontrol cautious.him Redhad portal:been Thecrushed vision-guided destination toward Carceri and the Red Prison. It was only humanoid-sized, so neither nautiloid could pass throughinside it. EnemyThe nautiloidSilvery exterior:River: TheA silentfog-covered Illithidwaterway vesselflowing waitingtoward nearCarceri’s thedeeper portal,layers. initiallyEvery showingswallowed nodrop visiblestrips movement from a distance. Enemy nautiloid living quarters: Rooms searched by Rigg, filled with beds, tables, small artifacts, and psionic devices he could not meaningfully operate. Enemy nautiloid weapon room: Rigg disabled one rope-and-gear weapon system by cuttingaway part of itthe anddrinker’s pullingidentity outor a component.memory. EnemyThe nautiloidFerryman’s corridor:Boat: TheA mainstrange battlefield,vessel wheregoverned Mindby Flayers,a Alhoons,binding partypromise members,that spells, steel, and bad spatial awareness all collided.

🎭 Key Scenes

Rigg and Q: The Book Heist

image.pngInsideneither the silentferryman Illithidnor nautiloid,his Riggpassengers movedwould roomharm byone room,another listeningaboard forit. footsteps and slipping through doors while Q crept ahead unseen.

The livingFrost quartersGiant’s wereCave: fullA offirelit strangechamber psionic tools, useless tobeyond a non-psionicgrey thiefbeach, but clearly part of a Mind Flayer vessel. When Q found crystals, a wand, and a suspicious tome guarded by three figures, the pair pushed their luck. The imp created a distraction, the book was stolen, and Rigg escapedlittered with the prizeremains —of butlarge Q did not make it back.

High Jinkscreatures and Q:occupied The Familiar Lost

image.pngWhen High Jinks realized Q had been caught or destroyed, caution lost the argument. Wearing her Mind Flayer disguise, she launched herself toward the enemy ship across the void. It was not the safest move, but it was exactly the move High Jinks would make: angry, grieving, and suddenly much less interested in leaving the Illithids alone.

Valen and Dino: Fire in the Corridor

image.pngThe battle compressed intoby a brutalriver-corrupted nautiloidFrost corridor,Giant.

with Dino trapped near the front and enemies packed around him. Valen stepped into position and chose the wizard’s oldest answer to clustered problems: Fireball. The explosion tore through Mind Flayers and Alhoons, but the cramped space gave mercy to no one. Dino took the blast along with the enemy, turning the tactic into both a breakthrough and a reminder that friendly fire is still fire.

Leydrick’s Healing Word Through Smoke

image.pngAs the corridor burns and minds break, Leydrick drags the party back from the edge.

Dino and the Alhoon: Two Critical Cuts

image.pngNear the end, the last Alhoon still stood despite spellfire, thrown weapons, freezing backlash, and a corridor full of violence. Dino, fresh from being stunned and absolutely finished with the creature’s existence, surged forward. He leapt over his Steel Defender, struck twice with brutal precision, and cut the enemy down in a final burst of Githyanki fury.

📑 Session Highlights

  • The sessionparty openedconfirmed that the Illithid who escaped Session 22 had not returned to the nautiloid.
Two magical crystals connected to imprisoned minds or souls were recovered from the destroyed Alhoons. Rigg used eight ounces of magically produced acid to melt important runes from the enemy ship’s psychic helm. High Jinks replaced Q with Rigga seeingpseudodragon familiar during the othersparty’s returnshort from Primus covered in strange metallic residue.rest. The party reviewedentered Primus’Carceri commandthrough the red portal and clarifiedfound thattracks left by the nextIllithid majorexpedition. destinationValen’s wasBook Carceri,of specificallyKnowledge identified the Redregion Prisonas tied to Tharizdun. ValenOthrys and the othersSwamps of Treachery. Everyone except Rigg felt a supernatural pull leading deeper into the prison plane. The party encountered Crius, a chained Titan imprisoned within a magical circle. Crius confirmed that the smallIllithids chesthad frompassed through earlier and tried unsuccessfully to control him. Crius warned the Morkothparty hadthat alreadyTharizdun beenwas openedheld previously.on a lower, more dangerous layer of Carceri. EveryoneThe whoferryman haddemanded gonethirteen tosoul Mechanuscoins, feltthen accepted a directionalmonster pullhunt andas receivedan aalternative briefpayment. visionThe offerryman areacted distantwith redfear portal.when the party spoke Tharizdun’s name aloud. The party neededlearned threethat moredrinking magicalthe itemsriver’s water causes a person to fuellose pieces of themselves with every drop. Rigg discovered that the nextferryman longcarried journey.numerous silver soul coins but wisely chose not to steal one. Valen opened the Frost Giant battle with a Fireball that engulfed the cave. Leydrick’s Dwarven Thrower dealt additional damage because the target was a giant. Dino survived the Frost Giant’s heaviest attacks by using Shield and remaining in close combat. Rigg’s final wrench strike forced the Frost Giant to one knee. Dino killed the Frost Giant with his Moon-Touched Longsword. The chosenparty sacrificesearned passage with the ferryman toward Cathrys, the second layer of Carceri.

📸 Key Scenes

Acid on the Throne

Rigg stood before the enemy nautiloid’s psychic helm while its carved runes pulsed faintly in the dead chamber. The device was more than a chair—it was the point through which a pilot imposed their will upon the entire ship. Rigg tipped his Alchemy Jug and poured fresh acid across the controls. The liquid hissed through the runes, eating away symbols and channels until the vessel’s heart was left scarred and useless.

The Titan in the Storm

Valen looked upward as what he had mistaken for a statue drew breath. Crius towered above him, thirty feet of pale marble muscle framed beneath Carceri’s red lightning. Black smears stained the Titan’s hands where earlier Illithid visitors had been crushed. One of Crius’ legs remained bound by a chain, while the vast prison circle beneath him shimmered with ancient divine magic.

The Ferryman’s Hand

Dino stood at the edge of the silver river while the ferryman waited motionless in his narrow boat. Thirteen soul coins were the Cloakstated ofprice, Protection, the Immovable Rod, and Leydrick’s one-use wound-closure amulet.

The anti-scrying rings from Arborea were confirmed to have burned up or snapped after leaving that situation. High Jinks confirmed she now wears the Robe of Eyes, and specifically wanted future images to show it. During the long travel, Rigg asked Dino for lessons in “shooty-shooty-bang-bang,” mostly involving how to hold a firearm sideways with confidence and questionable practicality. Near the red portal,but the party foundcarried none. Instead, the ferryman extended one hand and offered a silentbargain: enemyremove nautiloidthe waitingkiller amonghaunting asteroids.the The portal itself was only humanoid-sized, meaning neither ship could simply fly through it. Riggriver, and Qreceive infiltratedpassage deeper into Carceri. Dino accepted the enemycold shiphand, whilesealing a promise that no one aboard the restboat would harm another.

The Giant Falls

Rigg burst from concealment and drove his wrench into the back of the partyFrost waitedGiant’s aboardskull. theirThe ownblow vessel.

Rigg found Illithid devices and artifacts throughoutforced the livingtowering quarters,creature butdown most appeared to rely on psionics and were not useful to him. Rigg disabledonto one enemy ship weapon by cuttingknee, its workingsaxe and removing a gear or component. Q entered a guarded chamber, located crystals, a wand, and a tome, and helped steal the tome. Q was caught or destroyed during the escape, which pushed High Jinks into a furious, direct boarding attempt. Dino used the party nautiloid’s tentacle system to retrieve Rigg, teleporting him into one of the unlocked cells aboard their ship. High Jinks flewdipping toward the enemycave vesselfloor. inRigg Mindimmediately Flayerslipped disguise,away drivenbefore moreit bycould griefretaliate. and anger over Q than by tactical sanity. Dino launched himselfstepped into the enemyopening shipwith both swords ready and begancut down the fightwounded atgiant, close range. The enemy force included regular Mind Flayers and Alhoons,ending the latter appearing as dried, pale, lich-like Illithid spellcasters. Valen’creature’s Causereign Fear drove one enemy away throughover the corridor.

image.pngriver.

    Dino was repeatedly targeted by tentacles, psychic pressure, and Mind Blast, spending a painful portion of the battle stunned or grappled. Valen cast a fourth-level Fireball in the tight corridor, badly burning multiple enemies and also catching Dino in the blast. Leydrick patched Dino back up afterward and later used Mass Healing Word to restore 21 HP to everyone in range. High Jinks’ Armor of Agathys punished melee attackers with cold damage, and her later retaliation added more punishment through fire. Rigg scored a heavy Bag O’ Nutz Sneak Attack that caused an enemy’s head to burst apart, spraying gore through the corridor.

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      One heavily wounded Mind Flayer chose to Plane Shift away rather than stay and try to eat Dino’s brain. An Alhoon used Negate Spell against Valen’s Cause Fear, but the spell slot or charge was not wasted. The final enemy survived a ridiculous amount of punishment before Dino, freshly free from stun and furious, landed two critical hits and carved it into pieces. The session ended before the party could loot the bodies, search the nautiloid properly, study the stolen tome, or enter the red portal.

      🧵 Ongoing Threads & Plot Hooks

      • The redEscaped portal:Mind Flayer: One Illithid survived the battle aboard the nautiloid and escaped by plane shifting away. Its destination and plans remain unknown.
      The Remaining Illithid Expedition: Crius confirmed that only some of the earlier Illithids were crushed. Others continued deeper into Carceri. Tharizdun: The chained god is held on one of Carceri’s lower layers. Merely speaking his name may attract dangerous attention. Primus’ Mandate: The party hasremains reachedcompelled it,to stop the Mind Flayers and release Tharizdun, despite having no clear understanding of why doing so serves Primus’ greater design. The Alhoon Crystals: The two crystals are connected to trapped minds or souls and were recognised by the ferryman as phylacteries or similarly dangerous Illithid artefacts. Crius: The imprisoned Titan remains chained within Othrys. The party chose not to interfere with his prison, but hashis not yet gone through. It is humanoid-sizedknowledge and appearsimmense tiedpower tomay become important later. The River’s Cost: Drinking the routeriver causes progressive loss of identity or memory. The Frost Giant may have been altered by this effect. The Ferryman’s Promise: With the Frost Giant dead, the ferryman now owes the party transport toward Carceri and the Red Prison.Cathrys. The Red Prison:Portal: TheIt mainis tasknot remainsknown unresolved:how reach Carceri, findlong the prison,portal stopwill remain open, whether the Mindparty Flayers,can andreturn releasethrough Tharizdun.it, or whether the sabotaged enemy nautiloid will eventually be repaired. The stolen Illithid tome: Rigg recovered a book written in Illithid script and carrying a nasty aura. Valen needs about an hour to study it properly. Q’s fate: High Jinks’ imp familiar was lost during the theft. WhetherFamiliar: Q wasremains captured,dead. destroyed,High orJinks recoverablehas wassummoned nota resolvednew duringpseudodragon thefamiliar, session.whose The escaped Mind Flayer: One badly wounded Mind Flayer Plane Shifted away instead of dying. That is almost never free of consequences. The enemy nautiloid: The shipname has not yet been searched after the fight. It may contain clues, supplies, psionic devices, letters, maps, or additional trouble. The other group: Another group appears to be advancing the wider Primus-linked task network. Their motives, route, and current progress remain unclear. Corellon’s wrath: The consequences of crowning the Choir Master and silencing heaven’s music remain unresolved. Magical fuel cost: The party keeps sacrificing useful magic items to move between major planar targets. This is now officially a pattern, not a quirk.established.

      💰 Loot & Discoveries

      Item Finder Description / Status
      CloakMind-Trapping Crystal / Alhoon Phylactery
      Valen and the party One of Protectiontwo Partymagical inventorycrystals Sacrificed.recovered Givenfrom upthe destroyed Alhoons. Its magic is associated with trapping minds or souls. The ferryman immediately recognised the pair as onedangerous ofobjects thetaken threefrom magicalIllithid items needed to power the long journey toward the red portal.liches. ImmovableMind-Trapping RodCrystal / Alhoon Phylactery Party inventory Sacrificed. A useful utility item fed into the planar travel cost. Naturally, the table immediately joked about needing it later. Wound-Closure Amulet / Death-Save Amulet Leydrick Sacrificed. A one-use protective item that could turn a failed death save result into survival. Leydrick volunteered it as the third magical fuel source.

      Robe of Eyes

      image.png

      High Jinks Equipped / confirmed. High Jinks now wears the Robe of Eyes. Future depictions of her should include it unless later changed. Anti-Scrying Rings Party Destroyed / spent. Confirmed to have burned up, cracked, or snapped after the party escaped the Arborea situation.

      Illithid Tome

      image.png

      Q and Rigg; handed to Valen Recovered, not yet studied. A stolen book written in Illithid script, carrying a nasty aura. Valen said it would take about an hour to properly examine. Unknown Wand Seen by Q Seen but not recovered. Q spotted it in the guarded room alongside crystals and the tome. The tome was prioritised. Crystals / Gemsparty SeenThe bysecond Qmatching Seencrystal. butIts notexact recovered.rules, Present in the guarded chamber. Their purposecontents and valuesafe method of examination remain unknown. Damaged Illithid Psionic DevicesNautiloid RiggParty ObservedThe only.captured enemy vessel remained behind near the red portal. Rigg founddestroyed multipleimportant strangecontrol devicesrunes inwith acid, leaving the enemyship living quarters,disabled but they appeared to rely on psionics and could not benecessarily easilybeyond understood or used.repair. Fragment

      Enemyof NautiloidFrost Weapon

      Giant

      image.png

      Helmet RiggValen Disabled.A Riggpiece cut from the giant’s horned helmet as a trophy. The “horn” was part of itsthe mechanismhelmet andrather removedthan athe geargiant’s or component, rendering that weapon useless.body. EnemyFrost NautiloidGiant’s Corpses and Ship ContentsAxe PartyUnclaimed Pending.An enormous Frost Axe far too large for ordinary use. It remained in the cave at the end of the session. Passage to Cathrys Entire party The party’s true reward for killing the Frost Giant. The fightferryman endedhas beforeagreed theto partycarry couldthem searchat bodies,least lootas rooms,far inspectas shipCarceri’s systems,second or determine whether anything else remained aboard.layer.

      Mind-Trapping Crystals

      Cold magic moves within each crystal like a thought searching for a skull. Whatever consciousness, soul or psychic residue lies inside cannot be seen clearly from the surface, but the stones carry the unmistakable wrongness of Illithid immortality. Even the ferryman treated them with caution.

      Fragment of the Frost Giant’s Helmet

      A jagged piece of horn and metal cut from the fallen giant’s helm. It is less a refined trophy than proof that the party survived something built to crush mortals beneath its boots.

      ⏳⚔️ Frost Giant Battle Summary

        Valen: Opened combat with Fireball, dealing 29 fire damage after the giant failed its Dexterity save; later used Fire Bolt. High Jinks: Attacked from range with repeated Eldritch Blasts, including an especially strong opening volley. Leydrick: Used Healing Word and repeatedly threw the Dwarven Thrower, gaining its additional damage against a giant. Rigg: Attacked with the Bag O’ Nutz and Sneak Attack, triggered Strike of the Giants, then moved into melee for a decisive wrench strike before disengaging. Dino: Fought with the Dancing Longsword and Moon-Touched Longsword, used Shield to avoid a potentially devastating pair of axe attacks, and delivered the killing blow. Frost Giant: Used War Cry for temporary resilience and attacked with a Frost Axe dealing heavy slashing and cold damage. Despite its strength, several poor attack rolls prevented it from inflicting the damage it was capable of.

        🔚 Cliffhanger

        • The finalFrost enemyGiant aboardlies thedead visibleinside battleits area was killed by Dino’s double-critical strike.
        At least one wounded Mind Flayer escaped by Plane Shift. Q is missing after the failed familiar escape.cave. The stolencreature Illithidtroubling tomethe is in Valen’s hands butferrymen has not yet been deciphered.removed. The enemy nautiloidparty has notfulfilled yetits beenside looted,of searched,the or fully secured.bargain. The redmysterious portalferryman stillis waitswaiting outside amongwith theHigh asteroids,Jinks’ pseudodragon watching him. Passage toward Cathrys and the partydeeper haslayers notof yetCarceri steppedis throughnow towardavailable. Carceri.The surviving Illithids remain somewhere ahead. Tharizdun’s prison lies still farther below.
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