2 - Baldur's Gate

 

After their arrival to Baldur's Gate, the main priority of the party was to get inside the city walls. They have learned while waiting in line at the gate that only those who have a written permit issued by the city can enter and leave freely. There are rumors though that such permits can be obtained in an unofficial manner from the right people in the refugee camp.

Nonetheless, Emeryck could convince the guards to let the party enter the city, where they would meet his superior, Flame Zodge, to report what they know of Elturel's disappearance. Zodge would then decide whether or not the PCs can stay within the city.

The Elfsong Tavern

The meeting took place at the Elfsong Tavern, which became the party's de facto base of operations. After hearing their report, the party struck a deal with Zodge, whereby he would issue a permit for the party to travel in and out of BG freely, if they help him investigate a series of recent murders possibly related to the cult of the Dead Three (the evil gods Bane, Bhaal and Myrkul).

Regarding the investigation itself, Zodge provided 2 leads: 1) the bodies were all found in Insight Park bearing ritualistic carvings associated with the Dead Three; 2) an informant of his called Tatiana requested a meeting this evening at the Elfsong Tavern, claiming that she has some information relevant to the murders.

Insight Park

The PCs decided to check out Insight Park first. They met Torimesh, the caretaker druid of the park. He guided the party to the locations where the victims were found, and later the morgue to examine the bodies themselves.

There have been 3 victims discovered so far, all of them common folk, only one of whom could be identified by the documents found on his body. The bodies were found 10, 5, and 2 days ago respectively. The oldest body bared the markings of all three gods, the middle one only of Bane and the newest one only of Bhaal.

The party found traces of an alchemical substance, a mixture of wood ash and lime, on some of the victims and at locations where the bodies were dumped. They recognized the substance as a mixture used to soften up raw hides used by tanners.

They also figured out that the killings are taking place elsewhere, and the bodies are only dumped at the park. Judging from tracks they found and speaking to small animals that live here, they identified two suspects as a large-footed woman and a small man, though the animals also pointed out that the people who dumped the bodies weren't always the same.

The PCs also decided to visit the Drawing Tree, a giant oak at the center of Insight Park. The park is so called because the tree occasionally grants prophetic visions to visitors by conjuring an image on its bark. The tree presented the following image to the party:
A large sword is being held aloft by an angelic figure with feathered wings. The arms of the angel are bound with chains. Below the figure is a large tablet or slab of some kind that is cracking into pieces while being consumed by flames.

Tatiana

The investigation took the best part of the day, so in the evening the group headed back to the Elfsong Tavern to meet Tatiana. The informant had a new lead for the party: she has seen Dead Three cultists entering a tannery not far from the park called the Poisoned Poseidon.

Since the PCs suspect a new murder to be committed soon based on the pattern of the markings on the bodies, they decided to head to the Poisoned Poseidon.

---

The Poisoned Poseidon

The Poisoned Poseidon is a ship that has been washed ashore by a great storm. In the aftermath of the storm the ship sank into the mud of the harbor, and the people living in the area decided to use it as another building instead of the hassle of moving it back into the sea.

Arriving at the tannery, the party found that the main entrance to the place is a staircase leading to the main deck, which itself seemed to have been guarded for the night. Faint light also emanated through the portholes on the side of the ship, indicating some kind of activity inside.

The gnome rogue took it upon himself to scout the ship from the outside, which revealed several things to the team. First, the ship seemed to have at least one lower floor below ground level. Second, they identified 3 separate areas in the middle hold: a shrine at the front, a storage area in the middle, and a sleeping quarters in the back. Finally, they identified 2 potential points of entry: the window of the captains quarters in the back of the ship, and a leak in the front leading to the shrine, which although was boarded up, it seemed to have been done so haphazardly.

The party decided to try and infiltrate the ship through the captains cabin. They did so, and using a distraction, they even managed to lure the guards away from the stairs leading to the middle hold. Using this opportunity, the party scurried down avoiding the guards on the deck. Only when arriving downstairs did they realize that Pock, the gnome rogue has been left behind - he was already searching the captains quarters for 'clues' and didn't notice his companions leaving the room. He did find some kind of correspondence on the desk:

Remigio—
I’m not really surprised to hear that Fahul is complaining about living in a tannery, the fastidious little weasel. I’m pretty sure Vaaz just wanted him out of his hair when he assigned him to you. If he keeps giving you a headache, remind him what the alternative is. I doubt he’ll find the noxious fumes of this sewer we’ve been gifted under the bathhouse any better.
Flennis

Remigio—
Expect more Fists from the Frolicking Nymph within the tenday. And probably a couple of Night Blades. Now that the smuggling of the refugees is now fully established, so the agents should be able to start feeding us targets at a faster clip.
Flennis

Master of Souls,
I hope all things are well. I have heard complaints from one of my Fists, but I assure you that neither I nor the Emissary lend it any credence. The Emissary does suggest, however, that your minions begin dumping the bodies farther afield. He wants us to “spread the terror,” and is also concerned that the park may become a security concern.
Vaaz

After some deliberation, those in the middle hold decided to creep toward the front of the ship to the shrine. They managed to use the cover in the storage area to avoid detection, and to enter the shrine and silently dispatch the cultist praying there. In the meantime Pock also decided to move to the front of the ship from the outside, after a failed attempt at distracting the guards on the deck to be able to follow his friends through the stairs.

Having subdued the cultist in the shrine, Pock could use his crowbar to force a way through the loose boarding. He then proceeded to scout the lower hold as well, and saw a man in a cabin in the back sharpening a razor over a body strewn out on a table. The party concluded that another ritualistic murder is probably taking place, so decided to bust down the door and interrupt it. They did seal off the door of the sleeping quarters beforehand, to slow down potential reinforcements.

Busting down the door, they took the cultists in the cabin by surprise and mowed them down quite quickly. The man with the razor tried to flee through secret doors at the back of the ship, that lead to the sewers of the city. After a brief chase the Warlock managed to take down the fleeing cultist with a spell attack.

To the party's surprise, it seemed that the brief fighting did not attract the attention of the guards on the upper levels. They quickly searched the room, which revealed a piece of paper lying on one of the tables:

SHOHREH NETITIA
Hazel skin. Green eyes. Dark brown hair braided in two tresses.
Residence: Cuiric’s Boarding House
Relation: Great-Grandmother
She lives near the Frolicking Nymph. An abduction squad or observers could be sent from the bathhouse if it would be easier.

The description on the note seemed to match the person lying on the table, whom the party concluded is probably already dead. They thus decided to leave the tannery toward the sewers. The next steps will be interrogating their prisoner, and calling in the Flaming Fists to crack down on the rest of the cultists.

---

Further Investigations

Upon interrogating their prisoner, the party learned that his name is Remigio, and he is the head of operations at the Poisoned Poseidon. Their job was to kidnap targets, kill them in the tannery and then dump the bodies at Insight Park.

Information on the targets were sent to them via letters from their superiors located at the cults headquarters in the sewers beneath the bath-house called the Frolicking Nymph. He doesn't know how the targets were chosen, but clearly who they were mattered. He also didn't know anything about the role of the Shield, nor that of the disappearance of Elturel. He said that the leaders of the cult would know more of these things.

The 3 leaders of the cult, each representing one of the Dead Three are Flennis, Yiginath and Vaaz. Remigio also mentioned that the cult is supported by a powerful family in Baldur's Gate.

Once they finished questioning the prisoner, a contingent of the Flaming Fist arrived and raided the tannery, arresting the remaining cultists. It turned out that the latest murder victim was still alive, though just barely. The next day the players visited her at the hospital to ask her a few questions. It turns out that her great-grandmother was a Hellrider.

Debriefing, and the offer of Liara Portyr


The next day the party was greeted by Flame Zodge at the Elfsong Tavern, accompanied by a woman who introduced herself as Liara Portyr. She is a high-ranking officer at the Flaming Fist, and the daughter of Duke Dillard Portyr, a powerful noble in Baldur's Gate.

The two officers congratulated the party for their investigation so far, but noted that until the cult is completely rooted out, the killings are sure to continue. However, it turns out that the bath-house Remigio mentioned is owned by another noble family called the Vanthampurs. Because of this, an official investigation by the Flaming Fist is unlikely to yield many results if indeed the cult is connected to the Vanthampur family.

This is why Liara is here, and where the players enter. She asked the party to continue investigating the cult, and in particular bring evidence that the Vanthampurs are connected to them - which would allow her to continue rounding up the cult through the proper channels. This investigation would need to be done undercover. She offered the support of her family in return for conducting a successful investigation. Some party members decided to negotiate for money instead, and they agreed on a price of 150 gold pieces per person to those who opt for the money instead.

The Frolicking Nymph


Thus the party proceeded to investigate the bath-house. They checked it out during opening hours, but couldn't enter the office, nor could they find any secret doors leading to the sewers below. So Pock left the window of the massage room open, and the party returned during the night.

Pock entered the bath-house, and found guards patrolling inside. Another guard was also stationed outside at the front door. The rest of the party used the oldest trick in the book to create a diversion: posing as drunk idiots wanting to enter. They did make a good job of it though, as eventually all the guards were drawn outside to the gate of the courtyard.

This gave time for Pock to enter the office. He found the following letter inside a drawer of the desk:

My dearest Mortlock,
I wish you well as you take upon this Holy endeavor. Your lieutenants have been briefed and will provide all the help you need. Look for the rose in the glass to open the door that leads below!
Flennis will be relatively easy to manage, but you may have some difficulty with the other two. Yignath is too ambitious. The trick will be keeping him reined in, otherwise he could easily compromise the operation with some other foolhardy endeavor. Vaaz, on the other hand, is simply bull-headed. He’ll strain against the leash unless you pull it. So pull it hard.
You should not return to the manor until the work is done.
Mother

Even with the hint inside the letter, the gnome thief couldn't find the way to open the secret door under the pressure posed by the return of the guards, so he decided to get out while he still could.

Welcome to the Dungeon


The plan B for the party was to investigate the sewers. To this end, they asked Liara to provide a map of the sewers during their original meeting. Using the map they descended into the sewers, and explored the area around the Frolicking Nymph.

The first thing that caught their eye was that the sewers seemed to bypass the bath-house for the most part. But investigating the surrounding area, they found tracks in the sewers, which lead them to a secret door that opened on a flooded corridor.

Pock explored the corridor, and found several crypts, and a locked door. Peeking through the keyhole, there seemed to be a torture chamber on the other side, and a person strewn across the torture rack. The party is currently contemplating whether they should explore the dungeon further, or if they should bring the letter they found back to Portyr.

---


Freeing Gideon Lightward

As the party was deliberating their course of actions, Tarhun took a peek inside the torture chamber, and recognized the man on the torture rack as Gideon Lightward, High Rider of the Hellriders. Thus, the decision was made: they entered the room, untied the knight from the torture rack, and fled the dungeon before anyone could notice.

Lightward told the party that after he and his retinue accompanied the refugees to Baldur's Gate. They then proceeded to investigate the disappearance of Elturel, which lead them to the cult. They were spotted and captured, and then brought to this dungeon. None of his companions are alive anymore.

The party escorted Lightward back to the Elfsong Tavern, and Tarhun gave the High Rider 100 gold pieces to buy new equipment. Since the exploration of the dungeon was cut short, the party felt they still had time to investigate Coles at the Low Lantern.

Familiar Faces

The Low Lantern is a ship converted into a pub down at the docks. Upon entering the main deck, the party was greeted by a familiar face: the (ex-)bandit leader Calderis. She invited the PCs to sit with her, and explained to them that she and Nephyl are investigating Coles together in order to track down and get revenge the cult that murdered her gang.

Nephyl also returned to the pub shortly. It turns out that he tried to earn his way back into Coles' circle of trustees by doing jobs for him. He was just running an errand, delivering a package and a message, during which he managed to learn the location of the cults hideout under the bathhouse. Previously he also managed to find out that Coles, and possibly the cult, are in cahoots with a powerful noble family in town. He learned this by following Coles to the noble district, and seeing him entering one of the manors.

After this, the party told Nephyl and Calderis their side of the story: that they also know of the noble connection, and of the hideout below the bathhouse. What's more they told him that they managed to free Lightward from the clutches of the cult. That's when Nephyls eyes widened: back when he was locked up in a cell below Fort Morninglord, he recognized the High Rider as the leader of the contingent of Hellriders that murdered the garrison.

The party rushed back to the Elfsong Tavern only to find that Gideon Lightward was already gone.


The Portyr Assassination

The next day our heroes decided that it's time to fill in Liara Portyr about what they learned. They went to the Portyr manor in the noble district, where they were directed to the market square, where the Portyr family were holding a charity event, offering food for the refugees from Elturel.

As they arrived to the market square, Duke Dillard Portyr was just climbing up to the base of the Statue of the Beloved Ranger to deliver a speech to the crowd. Mid-way through the speech an arrow struck the chest of the Duke, and a few seconds later a devil erupted from inside him, making the man explode in a fountain of blood and gore.

Half of the party decided to help combat the rampaging devil, while the other half tried to head after the assassins. Unfortunately, following the assassins through the terrified crowd was basically impossible. Thus, after defeating the devil, the party escorted the devastated Liara Portyr back to her manor to decide on next steps. 

Aftermath

Devastation soon turned into rage, as Liara called for a direct assault on the Vanthampurs, who she believed to be the ones pulling the strings behind the scenes. She argued that whatever evidence the party found so far would not stand in court, hence the need for a more "direct" approach.

The players convinced her to quell her anger, and investigate the dungeon below the bathhouse first. To this end they plan to enlist the help of their newfound allies, Calderis and Nephyl. Liara agreed to this course of action, and left the manor, claiming that she has some urgent business to attend to.

---

Dungeon of the Dead Three

After some deliberation and a long rest, the party decided to head down to the dungeon beneath the bathhouse in the hopes that they could gather more evidence against the Vanthampurs. They were accompanied by both Nephyl and Calderis, as well as Liara Portyr and a contingent of Flaming Fist mercenaries.

Soon after entering, the players arrived at a laboratory of sorts, in the middle of which the body of a huge man lay stretched out on a table. Just as they recognized the dead man to be Mortlock Vanthampur, his eyes popped open. At the same time foes descended on the party from all sides: bloated zombies from the left, and cultists of the Dead Three from all sides. It seems that they have prepared an ambush!

The heroes dispatched zombie-Mortlock before it could even rise from the table. As the bloated corpse disintegrated, the flammable gases inside it ignited, engulfing the room in flames. The cultists pressed inward, but the heroes managed to hold the line with the help of their new allies. In the end the cultists' own weapons were turned against them, as the bloated zombies exploded in a chain reaction on the left flank, knocking down most of the attackers.

After tending to their wounded, the party proceeded to search the complex. They found a stash of letters inside the laboratory:

My trusted lieutenants,
Given recent events we need to decide on a plan. Your location is clearly compromised, and I feel it’s no longer safe to use. I understand that it is a Holy Site for you, which is why we should discuss the next steps in person, so please enjoy the hospitality of my manor for the next few days!
Unfortunately your guest has also been freed (mine still enjoys our ‘hospitality’), so I would implore Vaaz to track him down on his way to Candlekeep. We will discuss the plans with the rest of you while he’s gone.
You should also bring over the treasure stolen from the Stelmanes, most importantly the Mask, as that allows us to keep them in check. Our Vault will provide a safe place to store these along with the Shield and the PuzzleBox.
Please act posthaste,
T.V.

Mortlock,
Portyr has emerged from his mansion. The Dark Gods are truly smiling on us: first that fool from Elturel walks right though our doorstep (bringing the Shield and the Puzzlebox no less), and now this… so we must act quickly!
Duke Dillard is giving a simpering speech in support of his misguided Confraternity of Refugee Relief at the Beloved Ranger. If we kill him now, it should disrupt his brat Liara’s attempts to steal the Flaming Fist from us.
I’m enclosing a packet of information for Vaaz, along with a very special weapon which has been prepared just for Portyr. Act quickly, my son!
Mother

Flennis,
Know ye that these missives pass through holy hands directly from the Hidden Lord, which speaks with the True Voice of Gargauth, Once Lord of Avernus and Treasurer of Hell.
When the devils of Avernus brought down Elturel, the Grand Duke of Baldur’s Gate was claimed as a prize for Hell. So too shall we bring Baldur’s Gate to the Fallen One.
Know this to be truth, for I hold here, at Vanthampur Manor, secure within its infernal puzzlebox, Elturel’s pact with the Fallen One; a template for the powerful purpose which we strive to replicate. Lay to rest your doubts.
T.V.

Later on, the party came upon an altar covered in entrails. A wax tablet and a stylus was lying on the side, listing a few lines of prophetic visions:

- When the box is opened in the house of Alaundo, the path forward shall be revealed.
- The traitors won’t hide forever behind the sun.
- The sword can make the fallen rise.
- When the sun blackens the devil legions shall conquer the city of daylight.
- The key to save the Lost City is at the home of the patrons.

Deeper inside the complex, the party found a bunch of treasure chests: one containing an empty box with an inlay in the shape of a mask; another containing a five-pronged crown, each forming a dragon, colored black, blue, red, green and white; and the final one containing coins and gems worth roughly 300 gp.

Finally, they came across a tied-up prisoner, going by the name Shaleen Zoraz, and claiming to be a clerk working at the City Maintenance Department. He claims that he's been abducted and questioned about the fact that he recently gave out a map of the city sewer system underneath the Frolicking Nymph Bathhouse.

---

Vanthampur Manor


After examining the evidence found at the Dungeon of the Dead Three, the party decided that the most promising location to investigate next would be Vanthampur Manor. They deliberated for some time whether or not to recruit allies before they go to the manor, but decided in the end to scout out the place themselves following a short rest.

At the villa, Pock and the sorcerer hopped the fence (with a little help from Tarhun as well), and proceeded to climb the roof, avoiding the guard patrols in the guarden. They located a master bedroom (presumably that of Thalamra) and an office, before checking out the tower in the south-eastern corner.

To their surprise, they found someone locked up inside a cage dangling from the ceiling. The person introduced himself as Falasker Fisk, a scholar from Candlekeep working for a mage called Sylvana Savikas. He claims that they have received an anonymous letter inquiring about how to break Infernal Contracts - Sylvana is an expert on Infernal topics, such as devils, their history, etc... They exchanged a few letters with this unknown 'pen friend' but then the letters abruptly stopped. Soon after, they learned about the disappearance of Elturel, and figured there might be a connection. Thus, they tried to track down the sender of these letters through magical means, which led Fisk to this location. After sniffing around for a few days, he eventually got detected by the Vanthampurs, interrogated and taken prisoner.

After promising Fisk that they would return to free him, the party proceeded to explore the house, peeking in through windows. In one room they saw a gaunt, sickly looking figure in bed, holding a curious box. The person seemed to notice the intruders, but instead of raising an alarm, he gestured for them to come in.

The young man was Thirstwell Vanthampur. He offered a deal to the party: seeing the recent activities of the party, he concluded that it was inevitable that her mothers schemes would be uncovered, which would result in the demise of the Vanthampur family. In an effort to mitigate the damage, he offered to help the party gather evidence against his mother, in return for his immunity and that he can retain some of the family's wealth.

In a gesture of goodwill he provided a bundle of information to the party:

  • Thalamra serves the Lord of Avernus (the 9th layer of Hell), and she wants Baldur's Gate to reach the same fate as Elturel did, presumably in exchange for power granted by the devil she worships.
  • The party might find more details about what exactly happened to Elturel if they find Thavius Kreeg (teh former High Observer of Elturel), who is kept prisoner in the dungeons below the manor. Another prisoner they are holding is Fiona Stelmane, the youngest daughter of the Stelmanes.
  • Kreeg brought his Shield and the PuzzleBox along with him. Thalamra wanted to get her hands on both, but mainly the Shield. The Shield is clearly important to Kreeg, and Thalamra believes that it must have been important to Kreeg for a reason, perhaps somehow responsible for the destruction of Elturel.
  • The party also asked Thirstwell about the Sword (mentioned in the prophecies found in the dungeon below the bathhouse), and the Mask (an item stolen from the Stelmanes). Thirstwell did not have know much about either of these items.
  • As far as written evidence goes, Thirstwell pointed the party to his mothers office on the other side of the balcony, but warned that if anyone enters the room without her mothers signet ring, the suit of armor standing in the corner of the room would animate and attack the intruder.
  • He also gave a quick summary of the layout of the dungeon below the manor: in the middle section there is a shrine to the Lord of Avernus. To cultists quarters, mess hall and kitchen is located to the west and north. The family vault is located in the south, and the cell block is in the south-east.
    The dungeon is linked to the sewers under the house. This section of the sewers is locked off from the rest of the sewer system, but in principle if the party can bypass this than this could be a point of entry. From inside the house, the dungeon can be entered through a secret door in the cellar. Finally, there's an escape route that connects to the stables.
The party is now weighing up their options. On one hand they are more or less aligned on the fact that they would try to put in a word with Liara Portyr for Thirstwell's immunity. On the other hand, the party is still debating the immediate course of actions to take: should they seize the opportunity and collect what evidence they can while they're inside the Manor, or should they leave and talk to Portyr first?

---



Jailbreak

The PCs decided that the opportunity they had to gather evidence now was too good to pass up. They proceeded down to the basement, and opened the secret door leading to the sewers. As a patrol was passing by, the party first decided to try to hide, but the curiosity of the sorcerer got better of him and the patrol noticed the intruders. However, they were dispatched in short order by the heroes, without them getting the chance to call for help.

Exploring the dungeon further, the players found the prison, where they also efficiently got rid of two devils guarding the cells. They freed Fiona Stelmane, and also found a dying Thavius Kreeg, who uttered a few words with his dying breath:
"I only wanted to help... open the puzzlebox... it contains the key to saving Elturel... and the shield... an angel is inside... she will help you..."

Having heard this, the party decided to also break into the Vault to get hold of the shield, and went back to get the puzzlebox from Thirstwell. They also took a porcelain mask in the shape of a dragon head, and a broken ivory dagger with them.

The testimony of Fiona Stelmane proved enough for Liara to mobilise the Flaming Fist, who assaulted Vanthampur Manor and arrested two leaders of the Cult of the Dead Three, along with the members of the Vanthampur family. As a reward for all of their efforts, the party received 300 gp per member from Liara, a further 100 from the Stelmanes for the rescue of their daughter, and another 100 gp for returning the mask, the dagger and the crown to them, which they claim are family heirlooms.

In deliberating where to go next, Falasker Fisk reminded the players that his wizard master specializes in all things concerning Avernus, and that she has managed to open Infernal Puzzleboxes in the past. So the next logical step seems to be to head to Candlekeep and have the box opened. Fisk also found an interesting book, titled "The First Charge of the Hellriders" in the study of Vanthampur Manor. He brought the book with him to donate to the Library of Candlekeep (which is a requirement to gain admittance), but of course anyone is free to read it during the journey...

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Available equipment

4 - Hellturel

1 - Fort Morninglord