40

Traitor Amongst the Druids
The heroes brought Ten Towns refugees into Kuldahar only to be nearly framed as thieves of the Heartstone Gem, the artifact at the center of the Great Oak that keeps the druidic enclave in a year round springtime. The thief was Eirys, an aasimar member of the Druidic Counsel, who had been responsible for scouting missions in the areas surrounding the enclave. She was the very member who supported the refugees being welcomed into the haven as well, aiming to entrap our heroes and doom the entire community to Eternal Winter. While Eirys was apprehended before she was able to escape with the gem, averting calamity, her motives remained shrouded and the Rime-Kissed Curse on the Heartstone Gem itself had yet to be removed. Archdruid Iselore tasked the party with investigating Yuan-Ti ruins nestled deep within the roots of the Great Oak, a possibly wellspring of magical potency that Eirys may have been abusing.

Kuldahar

#Kulduhar The Great Oak of Kuldahar jutted out of the misty mountaintops of the Spine of the World. As our heroes approached the gates, the temperature pulled back from the biting cold to a pleasant warmth. The snows were visible far overhead and to their backs, but the aura emanating from the Great Oak caused nearly all signs of winter to dissipate within its canopy. The power of Kuldahar's Great Oak lied within the Heartstone Gem, an artifact said to be a seed bestowed by Silvanus himself, which lay at the pedestal within the heart of the tree. Several bands of Ten Towns refugees had already made it to the gates, which were closed to the travelers causing a hubbub. Some talk with the guards led to the party's entrance into the village to negotiate the refugee situation. They were to be led to the Druidic Counsel, who were in session about this very situation.
#Kulduhar On the way to the Counsel Chambers, the party saw the various workshops, taverns, and inns of the druidic enclave. Several worshipers were praying to a statue of Silvanus in the center of the enclave, below which were effigies of the founders of Kuldahar, archdruids long gone. The guards noted that the current archdruid was Iselore, a green haired elf who had seen the village through the past hundred years, including a troubling time when the village was attacked. This attack stemmed from outsiders taking advantage of ancient Yuan-Ti temples underneath the roots of the Great Oak, which existed long before the tree was a sapling. This holy site had been a wellspring of magical potency for eons it seemed.
#Kulduhar The Druidic Counsel sat around a long wooden table, intricate carvings and rootwork ornamentation embellishing the room. Iselore was fielding suggestions from various counsel heads, amongst the two dozen or so individuals in the room. The old elf was hesitant about permitting outsiders inside the enclave, given troubles in the past and simple logistical issues. An aasimar woman named Eirys balked at this, exemplifying the merits of her decades long sanctuary at Kuldahar and championed for the refugees to be accepted into the haven. Iselore had not been outside the walls of Kuldahar in quite some time, Eirys complained. She did not understand the winter. The party decided to bolster this point, describing Auril's Eternal Winter and the recent assault on Ten Towns by the Xardorok Sunblight and his Chardalyn Dragon. The counsel put forth the decision to a vote, which narrowly came in favor of allowing the refugees solace. Iselore, while not pleased, accepted the outcome.
#Kulduhar Oona and Tetro noticed a strange druid eavesdropping at the fringe of the counsel chambers. He startled at the discussion of the Eternal Winter, and bolted into the courtyards, muttering to himself. Following him, they met Keeper, which was more of a title than name for he was the one who tended to the Shrine of the Heartstone Gem. He insisted that something was amiss with the Greak Oak, but that, well, he needed evidence. He seemed to be wary of trusting the counselors and wished the heroes to meet him at the shrine to help investigate.
#Kulduhar The party spent some time around Kuldahar. Crank spent some time at the Root Cellar, a tavern in a defunct airship at the edge, where Eirys thanked the party for their efforts in bringing the Ten Towners into the haven. Azgul and Gadget checked out the laboratory of a gnomish herbalist, Oswald Fiddlebender, whose had a decent stock of potions which they picked through. Fern, Oona, and Tetro went to a wizard's tower, where a masked half-orc mage named Orrick offered to sell them some of his old belongings. When Tetro spotted a Belt of Dwarvenkind, he had to have it, 3000 gold cost be damned.
#Kulduhar Meeting with Keeper at the Shrine of the Heartstone Gem, the oddball druid attested that something was off about the Great Oak. Frosted rime was found along its roots, and he swears the temperature had been a degree lower than normal. And the birds! Of the 2000 birds known to him in Kuldahar, he now only counted 1998! While listening to the quirky man was a labor in its own right, the party did notice some peculiarities. Large bootprints were noted, which didn't belong to the barefoot Keeper nor to Iselore who frequented the shrine recently. Azgul cast identify on the gem itself and revealed a curse on it with imprints of a snowflake pattern.
#battle #Kulduhar As the heroes investigated the Heartstone Gem, an awakened badger appeared at the opening of the Great Oak's trunk. It was a distraction, taking their eyes off a small spider creeping towards the gem on the pedestal. After all, there were cobwebs about inside the Great Oak. Suddenly a fog cloud enveloped the area. A crack was heard and Gadget noted a small owlbear figurine at her feet, now cleft in half with its magic released. The party fought a trio of snowy owlbear in the dark as they heard another critter burrowing out the rear of the trunk. This was a badger. The party rallied and Azgul managed to hold monster as Crank swiftly ran around the rooty perimeter towards the beast. Snow was falling outside and druids began screaming in panic. The team managed to unmask the wild-shaped culprit, a seething Eirys who damned them all.
#Kulduhar Winter would have taken Kuldahar if it were not for the meddling Heroes of the Cairn. With Eirys imprisoned, Iselore thanked the party, bestowing on them a gift of divination, the Blessing of the Great Oak. While calamity had been averted, the Rime-Kissed Curse on the Heartstone Gem remained to be removed. Archdruid Iselore tasked the party with investigating Yuan-Ti ruins nestled deep within the roots of the Great Oak, a possibly wellspring of magical potency that Eirys may have been abusing.

XP

Total XP: 24101

100 ~ Kuldahar EXPLORED

Loot

Blessing of the Great Oak ~ Granted by Iselore ~ Azgul