Category Archives: Missive

Strange Findings Below: Anti-Hood Graffiti in an Ancient Script

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Honored Undersecretariat, Custodian of Hood’s Wisdom,

While I regret deeply that my companions and I had to leave our fair city in haste, I wanted to send you a message both to let you know of our departure, and also to let you know of some unusual markings in the sewer. The message we found was “Death to the God of Death”, which was perhaps only a little out-of-the-usual, but the fact that it was both in an ancient script and also written relatively recently piqued my interest and thought your interest might be piqued as well. Below I have included the specific script as best as I could transcribe it and also a map to the location in the sewers. Unfortunately, the only path I know of get to that location is through a sewer-cover close to our shared “acquaintance”, The Spider. For this reason I have also included the location in the city of the sewer-cover close to the Spider as well as a map from the sewer entrance to the area in the sewer used by the Spider. You are welcome to visit the Spider, or avoid her, as you see fit, but I wanted to provide as much information as you might find useful.

With the blessings of the gods we shall meet soon, and hopefully in our fine city.

May our shared vigilance hold strong against the shadows cast by the Dark Hand. With the highest respect,
XX

Missive to the Collegium Regarding Murder Confession From the Spider

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The Esteemed Nardor Threpp,

Along with Marela, I wanted to send along a detailed description of the confession of The Spider when we encountered her earlier today. She explained to us that Thelindra committed the actual murder, even though The Spider was the intermediary in the situation. Bandesingh sent The Spider and The Snake to Sutheron to prevent the Collegium from learning too much about the crown and hammer, as well as stealing it for their own purposes.

In some unsettling news, it appears that some force brought back The Snake from the other side of The Gate. He as a horrifying sight, spewing creeping shadows from his gaping mouth.

His being was held together with umbramancy, necromancy, and chronomancy.

Yours
Alexis Laelius; Adept of the Collegium

Missive in Response to Lady Alba

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To the noble Lady Sophia Alba of House Veronia

I must admit, the passion in your letter brought a warmth to my heart. There is boldness in your request that I can respect—and that I will answer. But first, a word of caution: treasure hunting requires wisdom, a keen mind, and above all, patience.

I look forward to our next expedition, perhaps the crypt of Drayak, perhaps another crypt or lost temple – yet before we speak of that, I would speak to you of my specific approach to treasure hunting. Imagine you stand before a vast ruin, doors thrown wide and the smell of the ancients washing out. Within, there is untold knowledge—or so the legends say. Most eager explorers would dive deep, pressing onward, lured by the call of gold and glory at the dungeon’s heart. This is what I call “deep-delving exploration,” and it is one of the most certain ways to get oneself hopelessly lost—or worse.

Instead, my method of patience and prudence: “wide-path exploration”. Move carefully from chamber to chamber, mapping each as you go, understanding the layout of the place before delving deeper. Each room, each hall, must be understood before venturing further. In this way, you’ll always have an exit path—a path that can be your salvation if something unexpected and unfortunate happens. Wide-path exploration provides knowledge of the surroundings and provides clues of what lies ahead, so as to not be caught unaware.

We both know of promising treasure hunters who have vanished because they did not have this piece of my experience. I have survived many close calls because I held it dear. Long forgotten mysteries and danger await us, but a true treasure hunter knows the value of every footstep and the wisdom of moving wide before moving deep.

If you wish to learn from me on your passionate path to becoming a treasure hunter, consider this your first lesson.

I look forward to more time together, more exploration, and more lessons. To my great sadness, I am besieged with other obligations in our fair city at present. The murder of poor Master Alaric Trevelian is but the tip of the buried colossus.

Yours with great fondness

Alexis Laelius of the Crimson Calling

Adept of the Collegium
Reclaimer of Humanities’ Lost Treasures

Strange Findings Below: A Report on the Halfling in the Depths

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Honored Undersecretariat, Custodian of Hood’s Wisdom,

While pursuing the elusive “Snake” through the underbelly of the city, we crossed paths with a figure from ancient tales—one of the small-folk, or a “hin” as some old tomes call them. This one, who called himself Brin, struck us as peculiar for two reasons. First, though dressed in nothing but rags, he clutched a human-sized skull, marked or decorated. <Alexis includes a physical description of the skull, including the markings. He also includes, in an academic script, the insights he was given from Avv’s insights of the skull>

Secondly, my companion, a devotee of Raiden detected something… unsettling. The halfling, he claimed, was neither alive nor dead, yet bore none of the marks of undeath. He was, somehow, something else—an aberration in defiance of natural order.

As you requested regular reports and of unusual matters, I thought this might be of interest. We could not extract the hin from the sewers, but I confiscated a small sack he carried, filled with odd, seed-like objects that may be worth your inspection.

May our shared vigilance hold strong against the shadows cast by the Dark Hand. With the highest respect,
Alexis Laelius and the Crimson Calling

Shared Security Agreement?

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Rask asks Alexis, “Alexis, if you are going to continue to nurture our connection with Lady Alba, I would like your permission to establish a security sharing agreement with Ser Olvar. I was thinking I would start by offering a short threat assessment based on our recent investigations.”

Rask has another messy draft document in is hands and the he shows to Alexis.

SER OLVAR:

GIVEN THAT ALEXIS MY LEIGE AND YOUR LIEGE HAVE BEGUN NEGOTIATIONS ON CONTINUED ALLIANCE, I AM GRANTED LEAVE TO MAKE THE FIRST OFXXX SHARE THE FoLLOwING INTELLIGENCE SHARED AS IT RELATES TO THE SECURITY OF OUR POTENTIAL SHARED OPERATIONS.

WE HOPE THAT LADY ALBA WILL ALSO GRANT YOU PERMISSION TO SHARE INTELLIGENCE THAT THAT SHE DEEMS APPROPRIATE WITH US AS WELL.

  • INTEL:

THALINDRA OF THE COLLEGIUM KILLED ALERIC TREVAYLEN AND TRIED TO FRAME LADY ALBA. THIS WAS DIRECTED BY “THE SPIDER” AN AGENT OF THE DARK HAND.

HOUSE LASCARIS HAS BEEN COMPROMISED BY THE DARK HAND.

THALINDRA IS NOT No EVIDENcE oF CONNECT TO HOUSE LASCARIS.

?WARDER AND ALTHORIN ARE LIKELY CORRUPTED BY THE DARK HAND OR OTHER FORCES MOVING AGAINST US ?

  • RECONNAISANCE OF SUTHERONI SEWERS HAVE REVEALED THE FOLLOWING:

           DARK HAND AGENTS USE THE SEWERS

           GOBLINS & GIANT LIZARDS INHABIT THE SEWERS – THREAT ASMT: HIGH

           DWARVES WE ENCOUNTERED MAY BE CONNECTED TO MOUNT SUTHERON

           HALFLING  ?

  • THREAT ASSESSMENT – THE DARK HAND – EXTREME THREAT MAXIMUM CAUTION

MOTIVE: SEEKS ANCIENT ITEMS OF POWER

USES POISON, MURDER, EVIL MAGIC, NON-HUMAN ALLIES

KNOWN OPERATIVES: THE SPIDER, THE SNAKE, THRAAN LASCARIS, SHYEENI, VARISIMUS, BANDESING, BRIN

KNOWN ALLIES: VORTIGERN SHADOWBLADE, THALINDRA

  • THREAT ASSESSMENT – HOUSE LASCARIS – HIGH THREAT

MOTIVE – SEEKS ANCIENT ITEMS. GLORY. ALLIED DARK HAND.

KNOWN MEMBERS: LORIANNA LASCARI, THRAAN LASCARI

  • THREAT ASSESSMENT – THALINDRA – MODERATE THREAT

MOTIVE UNKNOWN. COLLEGIUM MEMBER. WILLING TO USE POISON

END REPORT.

IF YOUR LIEGE ALOW WE WELCOME ANY INFO YOU HAVE ON THESE TOPICS OR oTHERS THAT YOU DEEM oF IMPORT TO MUTUAL INTEREST. MAPs? BoOOKs W INFO?

RF – THE CRIMESON CAULING

Rask muses as he looks at his work, “Why do you think they chose to frame Lady Alba? And who chose? Was it Thalindra or The Spider?”

The Tangled Web – Crafting the SitRep

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Rask approaches Alexis with a piece of parchment in hand, the parchment has several things written on it, many of them crossed out. Rask’s hand-writing is rough, bur the all caps simple style is readable, where not blotted or marked out.

“I want to send a message to Captain Blackwood, my old CO. Cedric Ironjaw is still alive, Maris Bloodbane is too, if Mavon’s intel is correct… Ironjaw said the Captain still believed in me…

“I’d like to see if I can get him to back off, maybe sow some dissention, and warn him about the corrupting influence of the Dark Hand… I’ve been trying to remember the ciphers, but I don’t have a Code-Book…”

“Anyhow, here’s what I was thinking.” Rask hand the parchment to Alexis.

STAT-REP – CIPHER 3-BLACK – TS/NTN

FROM: SGT. FELMAR TO: CPT BLACKWOOD

GLAD YOU ARE ALIVE. CHAOS-FIRE-CURSE BATTLE RESULTS UNKNOWN.

I HOPE LT. E.N. SGT K.S. & CPL. L.S. ALSO STILL LIVE.

NTN/TS: I AM ON A MISSION FROM RAIDEN THE HIGHEST AUTHORITY

THE DARK HAND HAS CORRUPTED COMPROMISED THE KINGS DOGS.

CPL CI FOUND ME OBSERVING OPS OF WORKING TO INFILRATE SUTHERON SHADOWBLADES LOCAL MOCKERY OF OUR UNIT *sHADowBLADE THAT HAs pROPERTY

VORTIGERN IS CONECTED TO THE DARK HAND IN SUTHERON. sEEkS

NORTHBROOK IS CENTER OF KI-DARK HAND’SG GS DOGS IN SUTHERON

^ DO NOT TRUST ^ WALDER – LIKELY COMPROMISED INFEKTED

DO NOT TRUST ALTHORIN – LIKELY COMPROMISED

I WILL FIND YOU WHEN THIS MISSION ENDS. PRAISE RAIDEN. FOR AEGIR.

“I want to try to let him know that the Dark Hand has corrupted the Raidensblud and to not trust Warder or Allthorin. If we do it right, maybe we can see if he tells them something or not? Maybe get them to focus on Vortigern?”

There are several notes, and a rough cipher, but sections seem to missing.

“Can you help me with the cipher?”

Rask is also clearly asking for permission and help crafting the message as well.

“Wait, what if… ” Rask crosses a bit out and adds a rough edits, “I share that Vortigern has an item the Dark Hand wants? And we ask the Bloodfangs to keep an eye on Vorty’s warehouse? See who rolls up on it? Maybe even we could get Marcellus to raid it with not-us…”

Rask looks at the red uniforms Mavon procured, signature outfits of the of Crimson Calling.

“and signal that we are going to be there to Cap, and if they or the Red Cloaks show up, I’ll know where I stand with my old unit.”

Alexis can tell that Rask means he will know how many of his old friends he might have to kill.

Caution, My Dear Family

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To my dearest family,

My apologies that I have not yet come to see you since my return to the city. Much has been moving fast. My return has stirred old currents, and though our name has been respected for generations, I fear it now draws unwanted attention from enemies I have in our wondrous city. The politics within the Collegium are complicated, and I am in the middle of more of them than I would like. And beware the Lascaris family.

I left a considerable amount of gold from my first adventure, and I urge you to use it wisely. Whether it’s for additional guards or securing our home and shop, take every precaution. Be cautious of those who come asking too many questions or offering deals too good to be true. Brothers and sisters, please keep to familiar paths and avoid attracting curiosity. A harmless question today may grow teeth tomorrow.

While I work to untangle these unseen threads, know that I will do everything in my power to ensure our safety. Until I can speak more plainly, use the gold as you see fit, and stay vigilant. The road ahead is uncertain, but with caution, we will weather it. If you need to communicate, send messages to the Lord of Mithril. My love to you all.

Love in Haste

Alexis Laelius; Adept of the Collegium

Regarding Your Granddaughter, Helvia Minor

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My Esteemed Publius Helvius Laeca,

My greatest apologies for not writing sooner, but with how matters stood between us when last we talked, I feared you would want nothing to do with me.

Regardless if you want to hear from me or not, I felt I must send you news and tidings. I am back in our wondrous city and events are moving fast around me. Hopefully all of them will turn out of the best and our city will be better for it after these trials.

You might have heard, I am a full-member of the Collegium, although I know how you feel about my patron, so I am not sure how happy you are for my admittance. You also might have heard that I was ambushed in the Collegium library by Lorianne of house Lascaris, including with the use of fire.

And this gets me to my first reason for this correspondence. It has been said by some that your dear Helvia Minor has been working with some treasure hunters, and I would ask after her well being, as many in my line of work can be somewhat unpalatable.

I know we both want what is best for her.

The second reason for this letter, is that some of my competitors know that I still have a fondness for yourself, and might attempt to use it against me. They already lured me to the ambush with a letter falsely signed by yourself (a copy has been included to sooth any curiosity you might possess). With how dangerous things are in our fair city currently, I beg that you take extra precautions.

If you need communicate with me, send to me through the Lord of Mithril.

With a nervous heart,
Alexis Laelius, Of the Crimson Calling

<Copy of message addressed to Alexis, that was the lure for the ambush by Lorianne of house Lascaris>

Second Missive- From Hood’s Library

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To Alexis,

Your message reached me in good order, and it is clear that you and your companions stand at the center of a web spun by dangerous and duplicitous forces. The Dark Hand’s schemes, their assassins, and their thirst for relics from ages long past have indeed become a menace to all who would serve the greater balance of life and death. 

The mention of Lorianne of House Lascaris is intriguing. If she is tethered to the Dark Hand by mere sentiment, by loyalty to Thraan, then we may have an opportunity to use this connection to unravel some of their plans. Love, after all, is a weakness that can be exploited, a lever by which great powers can be unseated. I will see to it that my agents quietly gather more information on her movements. As for Thraan Lascaris, he is a skilled and dangerous figure. He seems to have a knack for survival, suggesting that he still carries some amount of Hood’s grace. Perhaps he can be turned to our cause and we can put his fearsome reputation of the blade to better use.

Your suspicions regarding Vortigern are most warranted. His relationship with the Dark Hand is complex, and though he acts as their tool now, I suspect he is not a willing participant in all of their designs. Leverage is a powerful weapon, and the Dark Hand wields it with expertise. Should Vortigern become a liability for them, I would not be surprised if they ensured him a quick journey to the Gate. His destruction of Marcellus Veronis’s family was brutal, but it was the act of a man driven by fear of the shadows chasing him. You may be able to turn this fear to your advantage or use the Dark Hand’s fickle nature to dispose of him quickly.

The Spider and the Dark Hand continue to work through intermediaries, relying on puppets like Vortigern and others to shield themselves from direct confrontation. The relic you carry from the temple is clearly of great importance to them and you should deliver it to the Temple of Hood in all haste so that we may properly protect and study it. You are right to be wary but understand that we of Hood have no love for the Dark Hand, nor for the vermin they employ. If their assassins continue to strike at us in their lust for power, they will face our retribution—a retribution that comes silently and without warning.

As for the Hammer and Crown you mentioned—treasures of the old world, now held in the hands of the Collegium—these objects will no doubt attract the Dark Hand like moths to flame. The Dark Hand will stop at nothing to claim them. If these relics fall into the wrong hands, those who guard the Gate feel the consequences will be dire, not just for Sutheron, but for the balance between life and death itself. The Collegium is weak and can not properly secure them.  You should reclaim the items and bring them to me at once.

Regarding your encounter with the dwarves, Domdir and Draego, I know little of their kind, save that they are likely agents of something darker than mere greed. These creatures you describe possess powers unusual for their kin, and such power does not come without a price. Whether they are tied to the crypt of Drayak or they are a scouting force of evil non-humans trying to disrupt Sutheron, I would advise caution. Their ability to disappear and alter their form marks them as beings that may have connections to forces even more ancient than the Hand or the Collegium.

As for the scroll of Arcane Lock you seek for the crypt of Drayak, I have already seen to it that one has been applied to this strange location. The Order has no interest in leaving ancient doors unguarded, especially when such powerful entities have set their eyes upon them. It is disappointing you were not able to use your previous allies to do this yourself.  Guarding the Gate is demanding and you must do better if you are to serve the god of Death.

We of Hood watch carefully, Alexis. Know that your struggles have not gone unseen, and we begin to see value in your continued pledge of service and servitude. The enemies you face are not just your own now, and in time, when the darkness closes in, you may find that you are not alone.

May Hood guide your steps and steady your hand in the trials to come. You and the Crimson Calling have chosen well to serve the Gate. May you find comfort in the shadow of the ever-yawning portal until you are blessed by Hood to pass through.

Morel Richter
Undersecretariat of the Librarian of Hood

Missive from Lady Alba:

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To the Honorable Alexis and the Crimson Calling,

I received your missive with considerable interest, and I must admit, the developments regarding House Veronia and the unfortunate death of Master Alaric Trevelian have certainly given me pause. The implications of such a connection are indeed troubling, and I appreciate your diligence in keeping me informed of such matters.

However, while I understand the gravity of these political intrigues and the machinations within the Collegium, I must be forthright in my own priorities. You ask whether I have chosen to pursue the path of the warrior or the Collegium, and yet I feel this question overlooks the path that I have already made abundantly clear: my heart and my ambitions lie in the unearthing of ancient knowledge, the pursuit of mysteries long forgotten. The archaeological site, with all its secrets, remains my primary focus.

It is not the clashing of swords or the weaving of spells that drives me, but rather the promise of discovery—the thrill of uncovering the past and reshaping the present with its revelations. This is where I require your talents. Alexis, you and the Crimson Calling possess the skill, the courage, and the expertise to navigate the dangers that linger beneath the surface. What I want is your cooperation, your guidance, and your protection as we return to the site, which I believe holds the key to knowledge far more significant than petty politics or personal rivalries.

The opportunity awaiting us beneath those ruins is far more valuable than courtly intrigues or even the whims of the Collegium. There are truths buried there that could alter the course of history, and that is the path I have chosen—one of discovery, enlightenment, and a legacy that transcends the fleeting ambitions of men and mages alike.

You offer to teach, and I appreciate your generous spirit. But what I desire is not instruction in arms or arcane arts. What I seek is partnership—your expertise as adventurers, your knowledge of hidden dangers, and your ability to see this endeavor through to its glorious conclusion.

Let us return to what is important. If we can unveil the secrets hidden at the site, we will stand on the precipice of something truly great. Join me, Alexis, and the Crimson Calling, and together we will leave a mark on this world far beyond the concerns of politics and murder investigations.

I eagerly await your decision, though I trust you will see the wisdom in returning to the task that matters most.

Yours in anticipation of great things,

Lady Sophia Alba

Explorer of the Unknown

As for the scroll of Arcane