The Vengeful Notes 2026-06-14

Cave Regroup

• The party regroups in a cave shelter after rescuing Kelthyr Kulok.
  • The cave is used because Kelthyr lacks enough magic for Tiny Hut.
  • Before leaving, Kelthyr disables many glyphs of warding.
  • Kelthyr says the aberration fight consumed most of his remaining magic.
• Emily Hazeldine takes enhancer orbs.
  • The orbs may let Kelthyr recharge some spell slots.
  • The charged orbs should last for a while.
• Kelthyr agrees to work with the party.
  • He feels obligated after being rescued.
  • The party has direct experience with the current threats.
• The party discusses Matthew Malthrek.
  • He appears connected to the University geography department.
  • He may be the youngest or last Malthrek child.
  • Whether he is a Reformist remains unknown.
• Marlion is confirmed as one of Kelthyr’s contacts.
  • He is at the University.
  • A half-elf speaker clarifies Crown Prince Marlion is fully human.
  • He is stepfamily rather than a half-sibling.
  • Succession wording remains unresolved.

Dolls and Personal Ties

• The spellcaster carries dolls because her mother gives them away if they are left at home.
  • She hugs a Dorothy Marie Campbell doll.
  • The doll resembles Dorothy, but differently.
  • Angel is another favorite, though she cannot be carried around.
• Angel’s protection is discussed.
  • Her personal guard is Sir Brastok.
  • Angel is described as doll-like and cute, but more than her appearance.
• Angel’s magic is important.
  • She is a bard.
  • Her connection to her instrument makes her unusually effective.
  • An amulet made her power distinguishable.
  • She was given an Amulet of Nondetection.
  • A ring tied to Angel is also important.
• The Reformists were hunting Angel.
  • This increases the party’s hostility toward them.
  • Kelthyr later plans to handle Angel’s danger after the Malthrek matter.
  • Sir Brastok may be constraining or overprotecting her.

Hags and Thralmals

• The party is checking the Thralmal situation.
  • They are trying to contact regional hags.
  • They distinguish the volcanic pool site from the actual Thralmal pools.
  • The Thralmal pools remain protected and politically important.
• The Duchess denies being a hag or hexblood.
  • The hags made a family-linked bargain with her.
  • The bargain involved her fourth child marrying one of theirs.
  • She suspects this may explain why she had no daughters.
• The old bargain remains ambiguous.
  • Celestial Blood broke or disrupted the deal.
  • It is unclear whether the break was intentional.
  • It is unclear whether the hags foresaw the future, shaped it, or both.
• The hags frame promises carefully.
  • Ordinary words are not the binding.
  • The binding is an act, deal, or exchange.
  • Inherited blood-bound obligations may survive even when the original promise-maker cannot keep them.
  • Matthew Malthrek is the boy tied to the inherited promise for protecting the Thralmal pools.

Aberrations and Beholder Lore

• Outside the cave are many aberration corpses.
  • Nothic-like bodies are present.
  • At least one grell is present.
  • Mark avoids the fate of being “wormed,” meaning parasitized.
• A Raibon farm is mentioned.
  • Aberration remains may be fed to plants there.
  • A beholder may be present there.
  • The detail remains uncertain.
• Kelthyr reviews beholder lore from his own sketches.
  • He sketched the monsters from a reference book owned by his elven maternal grandfather.
  • Rays discussed include charm, paralysis, fear, slowing, enervation, telekinesis, sleep, petrification, disintegration, and death.
  • A “confusion ray” appears to be mistaken recall.
• Miya references Bob the Flumph from the earlier grove encounter.
  • Flumphs are described as protectors of the bag.
  • The party increasingly treats strange or absurd claims from Oscar and Minfilia as potentially true.

Feywild and Spring Court

• Emily may explain some monster lore from what she learned in Feywild schools.
  • John jokes about his handwriting.
  • He says he is copying his mistress’s handwriting, likely Miss Tiphanie.
  • Tiphanie recognized magical potential in John despite his lack of typical signs, such as yellow eyes or hair.
  • John typically calls Tiphanie “Mistress” because she is his magic mentor.
• Kelthyr comments on John’s magical training.
  • John is being taught by Tiphanie, also known to many fey as Stephanie.
  • Tiphanie is one of Baba Yaga’s direct daughters.
  • Kelthyr says this could be a great boon or a great curse, depending on perspective.
• Spring Court lore surfaces.
  • Emily is from Flyukishilla, a Feywild city within the Spring Court.
  • Oberon, the Green Lord, is named as a Spring ruler.
  • The group recalls that Oberon abdicated or gave the role to Queen Duarend.
• Queen Duarend is described as a human Archfey and Spring Queen.
  • She made Grandiflora Island, a huge carnival for the Spring Court.
  • She later fell asleep forever, between sleep and death.
  • Queen Duarend, Oberon, and Spring Court succession remain important.

Lime and Spider Travel

• Lime leaves with a staff and identifies herself as a druid.
  • She confirms she is one of the White Witches.
  • She conjures three spiders for low-profile travel.
  • Oscar taught the method because spiders are common and less conspicuous than flight.
• The spiders are named Ashley, Kaylee, and Stacey.
  • Links to Sentimental Island or woodcutter sisters remain uncertain.
  • The spiders keep pace as the party travels.
  • Someone tests their speed and is told to slow down.
• Travel gear is discussed.
  • A magic carpet can prevent the rider from falling.
  • It was found in ruins.
  • The party considers hot pools near Mount Brissimis if seeking the Children of the Crone.
• Lord Boyle appears in an undead-horse thread.
  • Lord Boyle may be Minfilia’s undead horse.
  • He is also tied to the Great Erected One.
  • Oscar and Minfilia may have a recent hag-linked undead arrangement involving bodies, offerings, and an unclear pool of monsters.

Volcanic Pool Site

• The party reaches a volcanic lake or large pond.
  • Its size is compared to the lake at Ines’s childhood home on Raibon Island.
  • It is hot and volcanic but unusually lush.
  • It may be one of the greenest parts of Senera.
  • It is not the Thralmal pools.
• Small blue sprites live around the pools.
  • They appear to feed on steam or moisture.
  • They may return vaporized water to the pools.
  • Their cooling effect may let life thrive around the site.
  • They do not respond clearly to Sylvan or tongues-like communication.
• Geysers at the site are dangerous.
  • They can scald flesh severely.
  • Someone known to a speaker died there.
  • When a geyser erupts near the party, blue sprites catch the heated droplets in shimmering blue globes.
• The lower pool is warm and soothing rather than scalding.
  • The site’s guardians or powers do not entertain the faithless.
  • The source and exact phrasing remain uncertain.
  • The Duchess enters the lower pool and closes her eyes.
  • Three women abruptly appear.

Hag Parley

• The hags challenge Mark Malthrek’s presence.
  • They ask whether celestial blood broke a deal.
  • They ask whether he is poaching.
  • They ask whether he offers another promise he intends to break.
• Lime cuts off the hags.
  • She says the deal was broken by celestial blood, not intentionally by the Duchess or party.
  • She denies receiving new promises from the Duchess.
  • She came to talk, share what was discovered in Senera, and apologize.
• The hags ask which coven Lime owes allegiance to.
  • Lime identifies with the Hags of Hama and the White Witches.
  • The hags call the White Witches “of the Maiden.”
  • They challenge the Maiden, Mother, and Crone framing as a false trichotomy.
• Lime offers an alliance.
  • She avoids making a pact or oath.
  • She asks for help against the Children of the Crone.
  • The hags ask what authority she has to make that offer.

Coven Politics

• The hags test whether Lime speaks for old things or all things.
  • Lime rejects being a sole promise-maker.
  • Her pacts and oaths represent the White Witches behind her.
  • The hags distinguish personal promises from inherited, blood-bound, or factional obligations.
• The hags identify themselves as children of the Mother.
  • These are Faithful hags loyal to Baba Yaga.
  • They have lived for years without the Mother’s embrace.
  • Several sisters act individually.
  • Tiphanie has slain many of them.
  • Some old sisters may have betrayed the Mother by trying to replace her.
• Lime uses private leverage.
  • She references secrets heard in night whispers.
  • A garbled line mentions an awful wish involving an infant.
  • Another hag communed with “him” under a full moon.
  • Lime says she is not exposing the secrets like moonlight, but acting because of warmth.
• The inherited promise remains unresolved.
  • The men brought to the hags are of “her kin.”
  • The relevant promises are not Mark’s or the boy’s own promises.
  • A speaker says the promise is now up to the boy.
  • A hag says he shall get one of their most desirable if he keeps it.
  • Emily objects that there should be no glamours.
  • The response is that desire is a glamour on its own.

Parasites and Green Liquid

• Lime explains the Duchess was corrupted by an implanted aberrant parasite.
  • The parasite hid itself from detection.
  • Lime says the Reformist Church brought the parasite to Senera.
  • Hags from the Children of the Crone are willingly working with the Reformist Church.
  • They know about the aberration.
• Mind flayers are involved.
  • An Elder Brain is possible but unconfirmed.
  • Emily says the current parasites are strange even by mind flayer standards.
  • Normal mind flayer parasites incubate for months to a year.
  • These parasites apparently cannot complete transformation without the Green Liquid.
• Reformist fanatics call drinking the Green Liquid ascension.
  • They believe they are becoming angels.
  • Emily or another speaker has seen many Green Liquid transformations that did not become mind flayers.
  • Some transformed into other aberrations.
• Research from Murkendraw is cited.
  • The Awakened Library is in Marsh View, within Murkendraw.
  • The Alamans apparently cannot enter it.
  • Piercing the veil now could let aberrations into the Feywild.

Moreaux Mushroom and Diplomat

• Paula Abdul is discussed.
  • Paula Abdul is a joke name that stuck to the NPC.
  • She was a Free Theater figure wanted in many places, especially in Apgar.
  • She worked with Reformists, though it remains ambiguous whether she was wholehearted in their ranks.
  • She drank Green Liquid and transformed into a grick rather than a mind flayer.
• The Moreaux mushroom is discussed separately.
  • The mushroom comes from Moreaux Island.
  • Raw consumption can drive a person insane.
  • It makes consumers extremely aggressive and literally bloodthirsty.
  • It can make victims prone to cannibalism.
  • Narmaya allegedly fed it to revelers during an infiltration of the Kincades.
  • The characters joke in-character about the cannibalistic event, where Paula Abdul’s vagina was literally eaten by a cannibal.
  • Anton and Pecorine were in a different part of the operation.
  • They were minimally involved in the mushroom incident itself, but spread the gossip afterward.
• Edmar Pritchett was affected.
  • One higher-level diplomat survived and was returned to Senera.
  • Another higher-level diplomat died.
  • Edmar Pritchett is the surviving diplomat.
  • He may be an illusionist.
  • Hedwig likely helped calm or persuade him.

Thermal Pool Rest

• The hags invite the party into the pool.
  • The stated purpose is bodily recovery and spiritual rest.
  • Entrants must remove clothing and trappings.
  • The party objects and jokes, but the ritual proceeds.
• Lime is encouraged to join.
  • She is modest or uncomfortable.
  • Justin helps fold her school uniform.
  • They enter together.
• The pool restores energy and life.
  • Skin and serenity return.
  • A magical prosthesis no longer burns in the water.
  • The effect may also interact with sight or blindness.
• Mark enters the pool.
  • He is in human form.
  • He is embarrassed by being naked in front of the others.
  • He fears the embarrassment might cause him to transform.
  • He is also embarrassed by lower-body hair from his first transformation.
  • A hag says he will not transform while in the water.
  • He relaxes as Emily rubs his legs and scratches behind his ears.

Emily and Wild Magic

• Emily or Emilia is present near the hags in simple hand-me-down clothing.
  • The hags recognize Justin as Lime’s protector or guardian.
  • Lime chose Justin as her guardian during the Parade of the Spirits.
  • The hags can tell Lime is pregnant and already know.
• Kelthyr asks how she feels about a doll being made in her likeness.
  • Emily says wild magic once made a twin with the same face, memories, and name.
  • The twin had an opposite personality.
  • She privately says she was pregnant when the surge happened.
  • The pregnancy may have transferred to the twin.
• The surge involved candy from an auction.
  • Emily consumed the candy as the wild magic surge happened.
  • The combination may have produced the strange twin and pregnancy-transfer effect.
  • The candy may have been one of the Star Candies, which have effects similar to wild magic surges when consumed.
  • Emily says the candy was from Kalassar.
  • Connections to Sentimental Island and Samarit remain uncertain.
• Emily allows Kelthyr to make a doll.
  • She wants its prosthesis to work.
  • She jokes about coffee, tea, and whipped cream.
  • Fully functional doll prosthetics would be difficult because of runecrafting limits.

Hexbloods and Spirits

• A woman says there were six hexbloods.
  • Two stayed in the Feywild.
  • One abandoned their spirit, though the meaning is unclear.
  • The hags consider whether someone present is one of their creations or a hexblood.
• Emily says she has a hexblood friend named Willow.
  • Willow left for Murkendraw because of a calling.
  • Two hexbloods reportedly work at Wench’s Leg.
  • Most of Emily’s classmates may be hexbloods.
• A mantle at the pool site is discussed.
  • It may be tied to containing spirits at the pool.
  • The hags refuse to take it up because the spirits should remain there.
  • They do not intend to stay.
  • They suggest one of the young ones from another Seneran coven.
• A White Witch name surfaces.
  • Gerta Moon is mentioned.
  • She was a druid with brownish hair and a yellow glow.
  • She was involved in the war.
  • Gerta was the previous Spirit of the Moon before she died.
  • Kelthyr may have mistaken Lime for a younger version of her.

Malthrek Emergency Planning

• The party decides the Malthrek situation must come first.
  • Mark or Matthew Malthrek may be the immediate target.
  • They need a healer capable of Greater Restoration.
  • A celestial ally may also be useful.
  • Emily agrees to go if the party returns to the Malthreks, then must return to Rannek.
• Minfilia is considered useful.
  • She is a cleric and necromancer.
  • The group hesitates because she and her allies have been overworked.
  • Jessica is proposed as fast, strong, and able to disable enemy casters.
  • Katalin Helsinki is mentioned but not selected.
• Potential reinforcements include:
  • Sensodyne.
  • Lord Boyle Eastonton.
  • Miya Campbell.
  • Minfilia.
  • Jessica.
  • Eastonton forces.
• Minfilia acquired many orbs from an unclear portal room or ring raid.

Great Erected One

• Lord Boyle Eastonton is identified and joked about as the Great Erected One.
  • The religion is treated as a real in-world movement, especially among common folk.
  • Boyle endured adversity, conquered it, and led a successful life full of trouble.
  • The phallic tone is relevant because Minfilia and Oscar coined the name after learning that Boyle’s genitalia were unusually large.
• A statue of the Great Erected One exists at Travertine Keep.
  • The Crown Prince sponsored it through a major donation.
  • He may sponsor eight more statues.
  • The movement may be used to spite Divine Masochists broadly.
• Miya Campbell works with the Great Erected One.
  • She may be the first priestess rather than first princess.
  • Someone says they only heard of the Great Erected One that day.
• Aigral is tied to the faith.
  • He is a paladin of the Great Erected One.
  • He became the Giant of Inespell.
  • This may connect to Ines.

Curses and Side Lore

• Justin or another blind speaker discusses his blindness.
  • He used to blame himself.
  • Another speaker clarifies it was a curse.
  • The hags identify the curse as of Infernus.
  • This does not prove a devil directly caused it.
• Possible curse sources include:
  • An invocation of Infernus.
  • An item from Infernus.
  • A primordial Inferno creature.
  • Something stronger than Sensodyne.
• Sensodyne is a devil.
  • Some people, especially those connected to the Feywild, call beings like her Tanar’ri.
  • The relationship between devils, Infernus, and Inferno remains unclear.
  • Such beings are described as creatures the Archfey deliberately keep out of the Feywild.
• Other threads surface.
  • Emily’s twin once used a Hama Wand of Illusion, Endless Illusion, or Unlimited Creation.
  • Kurerans may be gnomes, based on Kalassarian books or magazines.
  • The Princess of Anasai, Karni costume, Principium relics, and cracked coins come up as historical hooks.

Raibon and Renaldi Threads

• Older Raibon events are recalled.
  • Justin knows some of the story because he was a laundry boy.
  • Hedwig was working as a deckhand.
  • Cotto was also a passenger.
  • Sierre Leveroux, a Sister of Delight, was one of Hedwig’s close friends in Raibon.
• Sierre investigated the Hag of Hama.
  • The hag turned out to be Faith.
  • Sierre is devoted to Father Renaldi.
• Father Renaldi is described as handsome and charismatic.
  • He may be a paladin or priest.
  • He is called the man without fear.
  • His fearlessness may be a mental condition.
• Emily clarifies the danger.
  • Paladins are not the issue by themselves.
  • Holy certainty without fear or doubt is dangerous.
  • The group decides not to pull Renaldi into the current crisis.

University Front

• Crown Prince Marlion, Tiphanie, and allies reach a brief respite at the University or tower.
  • They have been fighting shadowy forces and conjured monsters.
  • The University appears calm.
  • The area around them may be frozen, displaced, or shifted into a same-place-but-different state.
  • Tiphanie thinks this may prevent enemies from locating them.
• Marlion remains functional but wounded.
  • He has been cut for the first time in a long while.
  • His topaz-hilted sword marks him as bearer of the Topaz Sword of Summer.
  • If he loses control, he could endanger everyone.
• John contacts Tiphanie as Mistress.
  • He reports meeting more of her sisters.
  • Three sisters are at the Thralmals or Thralmal Pools.
  • They claim to be of Tiphanie’s coven and of the Faithful.
• Tiphanie casts Sending to Matthew Malthrek.
  • She uses her connection to Matthew’s brother to manifest his face or details.
  • Matthew replies that he is alive, doing homework, and confused.
  • He is at dorms near the geography department.
  • The reply is treated as evidence that it is really him.

Matthew and the Library Plan

• Matthew Malthrek becomes strategically important.
  • An old blood deal with John’s mother was broken by Celestial Blood.
  • John may have made or inherited a personal deal with the Faithful hags.
  • The obligation may have passed to Matthew or another brother.
  • If the Crone faction reaches him first, they may gain power through the deal.
• The working University plan is:
  • Go to the library first.
  • Leave Fina and Cotto there.
  • Go toward the geography department or dorms.
  • Rescue Matthew Malthrek.
• Tiphanie may impersonate Matthew.
  • She may need something of his.
  • Possible components include an owned item, scent, or name.
  • Sources include his dorm room, library card, or a book he used.
  • The plan may involve the real Matthew escaping while Tiphanie serves as a decoy.
• Wards complicate movement.
  • Fina has not been heard from.
  • Sending or other communication may be blocked.
  • A stone, orb, or large orb may block communication or teleportation.
  • The teleportation circle is compromised and dangerous.

Orb and Teleport Logistics

• The party studies orb logistics.
  • Orbs can be placed around a Teleportation Circle to let the party return without repeatedly spending diamonds.
  • The orbs are a Kalassarian invention later adopted by the Reformist Church.
  • Similar orbs may grow naturally in caves around an uncertain place.
• Orbs charge from raw magical energy.
  • They do not charge from ordinary ambient magic.
  • They do not charge from the literal spell effect of a cast spell.
  • They absorb raw energy released around some magical events.
• A Wild Magic charging test succeeds.
  • Miya and other Wild Magic sorcerers make the test possible.
  • Counterspell is prepared as a precaution.
  • The forced surge is tiring.
  • The orb charges from the surrounding raw energy.
  • The surge turns the caster’s skin vivid blue or pastel for a day.
• Follow-up ideas include:
  • Giving Wild Magic sorcerers necklaces or harnesses holding orbs.
  • Using charged orbs for return hops.
  • Retreating to Eastonton and returning later.
  • Reusing the Orb of Repulsion to protect non-casters from magic and magical arrows.

Hideout Regroup

• Teleportation brings allies to a dark rocky hideout.
  • It resembles a sewer-like space.
  • There is a small central fire or brazier.
  • Bookshelves and gathered people suggest an established safehouse.
  • It may have been used to make contraband powder.
• Likely arrivals include:
  • Lord Boyle Eastonton.
  • Miya Campbell.
  • Henson Eastonton.
  • Minfilia.
  • Oscar.
  • Jessica may remain behind.
• Kelthyr and Lime are already present.
  • Kelthyr produces doll-scale furniture from his bag.
  • The furniture grows to full size.
  • Rebecca waits upstairs until the party brings the Duchess and John.
• An unconscious or captured person is nearby.
  • The person is alive and breathing.
  • Emily asks whether they are alive.
  • The party is unsure whether to bring him back to the Malthreks.
  • He may still be an enemy, especially if memory loss is involved.

Malthrek War Prep

• Lime contacts Minfilia with Sending.
  • The party is taking down Malthrek.
  • Dark Archons are coming.
  • They need help.
  • Lime will send the sigil.
• The situation may become open war.
  • Castle Malthrek may involve lesser Malthrek lords.
  • The Phoenix and a Reformist hierarchy from bishop downward are possible.
  • Henson is ordered to accompany the main group.
  • Jessica is told to stay with Ma and Aigral.
• Boyle’s party reports fighting dark archons.
  • The enemies used magic and magical arrows.
  • Boyle was not scratched.
  • His Orb of Repulsion seems to have blocked or dispelled attacks.
• The party discusses sincere oaths.
  • Lime asks whether Boyle has paladins.
  • Sincere devotion may generate divine power even without a conventional divine source.
  • Minfilia rejects any framing of Boyle as non-divine.

Reformist Hierarchy

• Lady Maribel Veyne is en route.
  • She is treated as a true believer.
  • She is later identified as Cupbearer or Bearer of the Cup.
• Castle Malthrek includes multiple Reformist roles.
  • A whip-related title was associated with a nun in the tent.
  • Castle Malthrek has a Bearer of the Sword.
  • The Bearer of the Sword is a bald, short, military-looking man.
  • Torward, likely Sir Aldric Torward, may hold the position.
• Later Duke memories identify more roles.
  • Lady Maribel Veyne is Cupbearer or Bearer of the Cup.
  • Torward is Bearer of the Sword.
  • Fenwick is Bearer of the Whip.
  • Crispin Mallow is Candle Bearer.
  • Dunweather uses Orthodox and Reformist structures to shield each other.
• Emotion bearers are named.
  • Lady Oriana Greymark is likely bearer of fear.
  • Sir Bertram Ashwick is bearer of pain.
  • Tamsin Reed is bearer of sadness.
  • Oren Bell is bearer of joy.

Cipher and Peerage

• The party has recent Duchess cipher material.
  • Tongues cannot solve it because the letters remain magically jumbled.
  • Kelthyr can work with it if he has the decoder item and recent ciphers.
  • Public-facing material may hide the keys.
  • Newspaper text, illustrated issues, calendar cues, models, and times of day may matter.
• The group has an unpublished illustrated issue and prior issues.
  • The issue is handed over after a Great Erected One devotional phrase.
  • The publication may be sacred, semi-sacred, meditative, or cultural.
  • Artwork and model identities remain tangled.
• Seneran peerage law becomes central.
  • Senera appears absolute but has a constitution that entrenches noble power.
  • Dukes and marquesses hold three votes.
  • Earls or counts hold two.
  • Viscounts hold one.
  • Barons mainly break ties.
• A complaint against the royal family can trigger a vote.
  • The Crown Prince may be baiting Reformist-aligned nobles into revealing themselves.
  • The false deaths around the Malthreks strengthen the trap.
  • A possible Dragonheart candidate or faction remains unclear.

Castle Malthrek Planning

• The party expects Castle Malthrek defenses to rise quickly.
  • Stronger wards are likely.
  • More orbs may be deployed.
  • Wild Shape or similar transformation counters are possible.
• The immediate priority is Duke Malthrek.
  • Identify ranked Reformists and allies.
  • Reach the Duke quickly.
  • Remove or suppress his parasite.
  • Use Encode Thoughts with him if possible.
• Henson explains Reformist cells.
  • He knew of the Duchess and had seen her.
  • He did not know her goals.
  • He was assigned to keep the Port Surrey-to-Eastonton route closed while she was present.
  • Cells share information only as needed.
• Orbs and suits are sorted.
  • Eastonton dock recoveries include at least a purple orb and a red enhancer orb.
  • Orb of Repulsion suits provide strong anti-magic protection.
  • They may block incoming healing or the wearer’s own spellcasting.
  • Lime may reserve an orb for the Duchess to pass wards without revealing herself.

Winter Relics and Elven Boons

• The Brooch of Winter is discussed.
  • It is likely the Sapphire Brooch of Winter from the Elven Boons.
  • Hags in Skelwick may have been frozen.
  • They are described as Adapted rather than Faithful.
  • Emily suspects they may have offered themselves to contain the Brooch’s power.
• The Brooch was not meant only to freeze things.
  • Freezing may be one expression of deeper power.
  • It was one of the protections sent to the elves to help them survive the land.
• The Ring of Winter is compared.
  • The Ring of Winter and the Brooch of Winter are both connected to the Winter Court.
  • The Ring of Winter is held by the ruler of the Winter Court.
  • The Brooch of Winter is one of the Elven Boons from the Winter Court.
  • The Ring is associated with the Prince of Frost.
  • Rumors say Titania and Oberon hid it from him.
  • Another rumor says Mab may manipulate him.
  • It may be undetectable, sentient, cold-protective, and age-stopping.
• The Emerald Shield of Spring is reconsidered.
  • It may be the Shield of Oberon.
  • It may protect and nourish the people.
  • This could explain fertility in the Western Lowlands, Malter River Valley, and Rannek.
  • Original elf-human bargain terms are needed.

Oberon and Avatars

• Emily says Oberon has Seneran shrines.
  • Names include Green Man and Green Lord.
  • Green Man is also a Feywild name for him.
  • She speculates that Oberon may have had an avatar in Senera.
  • This comes up because the party considers whether Oren Bell could be connected to Oberon, since Oran is a known alias.
• In that context, avatars are described as created representatives.
  • They are not soul fragments.
  • Archfey may use them where law prevents direct presence.
  • A trapped or slain avatar might have unusual consequences.
• The party reconstructs a possible fey bargain.
  • Elves fleeing the Dragon-Giant War received archfey aid.
  • They may have given protections or items to humans in exchange for land.
  • The legal owner of the boons is unclear.
  • The real transfer may have been protection rather than the shield itself.
• An elven settlement becomes a future lead.
  • John is interested.
  • Fina may be useful if she is an elf.
  • This does not solve the immediate Duke Malthrek crisis.

Duke Extraction Plan

• The plan is to remove the Duke’s parasite first.
  • Restoring his memories may complicate the Crown Prince’s political trap.
  • The Duke could identify Reformist-aligned actors.
  • Teleportation is the intended exit.
  • The kitchens remain a fallback rally point.
• The party considers using the Duchess.
  • She may draw the Duke away after dinner or late at night.
  • John recalls the Duke often worked late.
  • The approach may use half-recognition rather than direct confrontation.
• Suggested tactics include:
  • Dinner service.
  • Flowers.
  • Orange scent or flavor.
  • Eye contact.
  • Prayer or service cover.
  • A spring room or garden opening.
• Nymph essence may be part of the charm plan.
  • It may be the same Essence of Nymph used as a wedding boon.
  • The exact timing and use remain uncertain.

Oren Bell and Study Service

• Lime serves tea in the Duke’s study under servant cover.
  • She prepares tea properly.
  • She zests orange peel into the Duke’s tea.
  • She places asters on the Duke’s desk.
  • The Duke takes one and pulls off petals, appearing genuinely sad.
• The study contains:
  • Duke Ellington Malthrek.
  • Baron Highbury.
  • Fagus Malthrek.
  • Oren Bell.
  • A clergy Sister or nun.
  • Lady Maribel Veyne is nearby but likely not in the study.
• Oren Bell draws attention.
  • His name resembles Oran, a known alias connected to Oberon or the Green Lord.
  • Lime senses a deliberately shrouded fey presence.
  • He appears youthful and slender.
  • He may be an elf under glamour.
  • He uses berries and a green bottle that Lime identifies as Feywine or Feywine-making.
• Oren repeatedly offers to hire Lime.
  • He says she has familiar grace and an essence of life in springtime.
  • His interest may threaten her cover.
  • It may also connect to Green Lord threads or the Duke’s buried memories.

Matthew Focus and Room Search

• The hags may help if the party secures the Malthrek boy.
  • Matthew Malthrek is the relevant boy promised to the hags in exchange for protecting the pools.
  • The party needs something personally connected to him.
  • John does not have one of his brother’s items.
• Martha may have a usable trace.
  • Money is rejected as insufficient.
  • A list, order, receipt, menu record, or signature might work.
  • Tax or order records may include handwriting.
• John enters Matthew’s room under disguise.
  • Rebecca and Byzantine accompany him.
  • Mark creates a distraction in dog form by stealing a feather duster.
  • A servant who dislikes dogs is pulled away.
• John retrieves Matthew’s favorite fine-liner pen.
  • The room is large, well kept, and unused.
  • A drafting table, rulers, tools, and art supplies show Matthew’s mapmaking interests.
  • A stylized world map marks Senera far west, eastern lands, and Bastion as a deep purple-black circle.
  • Monster paintings near Bastion resemble aberrations.

Rebecca and Feywild Time

• Rebecca accompanies John during the room search.
  • Byzantine is her teddy bear and is somehow connected to how she casts magic.
  • Rebecca may also treat Byzantine as an advisor persona.
  • Rebecca decides supervision is better than letting the group roam unsupervised.
  • She communicates often by nodding or gestures.
• Rebecca’s situation grows stranger.
  • She appears fully human.
  • She is Fey-touched.
  • She may be marked by or connected to an Archfey.
  • She calls Liana her vessel.
• Liana is a dryad.
  • She is meant to spread the seeds of Wonderland.
  • Rebecca may be displaced from her proper time after time in the Feywild.
  • The strongest direction is that Rebecca may be from the future.
• Rebecca may know Hick.
  • This could reflect future Hick research or revival.
  • Emma and others apparently asked someone to return Rebecca to her own timeline.
  • That person did not do so for unclear reasons.

Duke Garden Contact

• Duke Ellington exits the study alone.
  • He says he needs a walk.
  • Highbury likely stays behind to mourn.
  • The disguised clergy deliberately bump into the Duke rather than avoid him.
• The Duke heads to the garden.
  • He notices the disguised clergy were walking the wrong way.
  • They ask to accompany him for quiet contemplation.
  • He allows it despite wanting solitude.
• In the garden, the Duke grieves.
  • His mind is abuzz.
  • He keeps seeing the Duchess’s face everywhere.
  • He looks at Sister Marie or the disguised Duchess and pulls away.
  • He recalls being the second child rather than the intended heir.
• The Duke speaks of his elder brother.
  • He was taught filial piety and loyalty.
  • His brother was loved, became ill, seemed to recover, and likely died.
  • The Duke contrasts that past with later availability of revival magic.

Ring Intervention

• The party tries to place a Ring of Mind Shielding on the Duke.
  • The first attempt is clumsy.
  • The Duke notices and asks why they are trying to make him wear it.
  • An unseen figure near a bench may be visible only to the Duchess or Emily.
• Essence of the Nymph is used.
  • It hits while the Duke is distracted and emotionally agitated.
  • The Duke becomes romantically fixated.
  • He kisses Duchess or Emily.
  • During the kiss, someone slips the Ring of Mind Shielding onto his finger.
• The ring creates a temporary window.
  • It suppresses the parasite’s control.
  • It does not sever or kill the parasite.
  • The party teleports the group out once the ring is on.
• The Duke recognizes his wife.
  • He realizes she is alive.
  • He is overwhelmed enough to kiss her again rather than listen.
  • He asks about Luke and Mark.
  • He is told Luke is alive and Mark is the dog.

Duke Debrief

• Emily or the Duchess explains the parasites.
  • The Reformist Church planted a parasite in Antoinette.
  • The Duke also has one.
  • The ring is suppressing his parasite.
  • Antoinette lost roughly ten years of memory after removal.
• The Duke struggles with responsibility.
  • He has to accept that his and Antoinette’s actions were manipulated.
  • He develops a headache.
  • Suppressed memories begin returning in fragments.
• Emily casts Calm Emotions while touching his head.
  • The target is the parasite rather than the Duke.
  • A strong Arcana check distinguishes the parasite’s emotional state from the Duke’s.
  • The parasite is calmed enough for the Duke to speak more clearly.
• The Duke agrees to help conditionally.
  • He wants the parasite removed.
  • He wants the full plan.
  • He will maintain the rally or Peerage-facing facade for the night or until tomorrow.
  • He plans to bring his wife to his chambers as cover.

Hidden Route and Cover

• The Duke leads the group back into Castle Malthrek through a hidden route.
  • It may involve a blocked sewer or lead-lined pipe.
  • The lead lining may explain why search or divination failed.
  • It exits through a concealed broom-closet trap door.
• Mark remains in dog form.
  • He is passed off as the Duke’s guard dog.
  • Sister Rachel supports the cover as a wild magic sorcerer.
  • The Duke sends word to Fenwick that everything is fine.
• John retrieves Rebecca.
  • She is asleep or sleepy.
  • He also retrieves Matthew’s pen.
  • The pen is accepted as a personal focus.
• Rebecca’s outfit needs fixing.
  • She is dressed incorrectly in blue with corsages, headdress, and cuffs.
  • Kelthyr or Keltier is called to fix it.

Rachel and Lady Maribel Veyne Risk

• Mark pulls Rachel aside.
  • He drops dog form.
  • He warns that sudden interest in introducing her to Lady Maribel Veyne may be dangerous.
• Lady Maribel Veyne may be the Bearer of the Cup.
  • Mark suspects she may intend to implant Rachel with a parasite.
  • Rachel’s wild magic sorcerer cover explains some irregularities.
  • Her lack of parasite signs or expected piercing may invite scrutiny.
• Father Dunweather treats wild magic as a rare blessing.
  • He suggests Rachel should meet Lady Maribel Veyne.
  • This may be an invitation, test, or trap.
• Oren Bell remains under suspicion.
  • Mark and Rachel debate whether he is an elf.
  • He may be connected to the Green Lord.
  • Possibilities include avatar, namesake, Reformist, infiltrator, or misunderstood figure.
  • Mark smells ward-like traces near the grounds and a gardener closer to the graveyard.

Matthew Extraction

• Kelthyr provides teleportation sigil notes.
  • Destinations include Eastonton, Travertines, the Scarlet, and Thralmals.
  • The Scarlet is a Feywild airship that Hedwig and the others were able to retake, seemingly because the Archfey allowed it.
  • The Thralmals circle is temporary and tied to a charged orb.
• Minfilia and Oscar teleport to Matthew Malthrek.
  • They invoke the Great Erected One.
  • Matthew is found reading Legally Bare.
  • He is startled and asks if they are devils, succubi, or summoning him to another plane.
  • Minfilia introduces herself and Oscar as her soulmate.
• Matthew is told to pack.
  • He is being returned to Antoinette Malthrek nee Thralmal and Ellington Malthrek.
  • He is skeptical and invokes stranger danger.
  • The party says John Malthrek gave them proof.
  • He eventually agrees to leave.
• Matthew appears to be a fan of Legally Bare.
  • He has VIP access, the newest edition, freebies, and items he treats as sacred relics.
  • This may be comedy color or a useful item hook.

Smoke Ambush and Nothic

• The extraction path is unusually quiet.
  • The surroundings are empty.
  • Oscar is told to be ready.
  • Smoke suddenly surrounds the party.
  • It causes coughing and obscures sight.
• A shadowy shape approaches.
  • A line about “that’s not you” or “Dad, it’s not you” is unclear.
  • A voice replies, “It’s me, baby.”
• Detect Evil and Good is cast.
  • Undead are detected nearby.
  • An aberration is detected ahead.
  • Oscar casts Gust to clear the smoke.
  • The shape is revealed as a Nothic.
• The Nothic attacks.
  • It uses claws and Rotting Gaze.
  • A target immune to necrotic damage ignores Rotting Gaze.
  • Blight, Poison Spray, and reactions are used in the fight.
  • The creature is killed by necrotic energy.

Undead Nothic

• The necromancer immediately raises the Nothic as undead.
  • It retains natural abilities.
  • It does not retain spells.
  • The necromancer does not gain its truesight.
• Mental communication reveals Weird Insight.
  • It can reveal a visible creature’s secret within close range.
  • The target must fail a Wisdom save.
  • The necromancer treats the undead Nothic like a prized pet.
• The necromancer takes a hair from a bag.
  • The undead Nothic smells it and reacts favorably.
  • The hair’s source and purpose remain unclear.
  • It may be a lure, reward, polymorph focus, or other component.
• A mapmaker shows sketches.
  • One map of Senera has a one-eyed spoke-like monster along the side.
  • The image resembles the Nothic.
  • The mapmaker says they had seen such creatures only in drawings or in their head.
  • The party wonders whether this suggests dreams, visions, or aberrant influence.

Library and Grounds Fight

• The party contacts the Prince at the dorms.
  • His group is on the grounds fighting similar aberrations.
  • Four additional aberrations are outside.
  • The Prince and Tiphanie defeat them quickly.
• The Prince is injured.
  • He has facial scarring and arm damage.
  • He still has his sword.
  • A Cure Wounds attempt fails strangely, as if the spell was not cast.
  • The reason remains unresolved.
• Hallow is discussed.
  • The effect appears centered on the caster rather than the ground.
  • The spell normally begins by touching a point, and the caster touched themself.
  • Because of that, the protected area is centered on the caster as they move.
  • It seems to permit selected creatures, including an undead servant.
• Cotto and Fina are in or near the library.
  • The opposition includes a conjurer and an abjurer.
  • The party avoids fire and avoids damaging books, maps, and vellum.
  • Cotto and Fina are moved outside to avoid a fight inside the library.

Necromantic Assets

• A necromantic beacon is raised or projected.
  • It may affect nearby undead within a broad range.
  • The exact range remains uncertain.
  • Nearby dead assets include insects, birds, squirrels, dissected frogs, and other small creatures.
• Undead insects become useful.
  • Dead ants and termites emerge from a tree.
  • Undead termites are led by a surviving undead queen.
  • They had been overwhelming living ants.
  • They are directed toward the conjurer rather than the library itself.
• Other undead scouts or attackers are available.
  • Two squirrels.
  • Dissected frogs.
  • Small nearby dead things sensed by the necromancer.
• Necromantic energy visibly spreads through the caster.
  • A mouth-like feature spits out an undigested decayed palm.
  • The palm moves independently like a crawling hand.
  • A possible pool or Green Liquid connection is mentioned but not confirmed.

Items and Spells

• Major items:
  • Orb of Absorption.
  • Orb of Repulsion.
  • Orb of Repulsion suits.
  • “Ruby” at 03:40:48-03:41:04, including whether it refers to the Ruby Amulet of Fall or another Ruby.
  • Sapphire Brooch of Winter.
  • Topaz Sword of Summer.
  • Ring of Mind Shielding.
  • Amulet of Nondetection.
  • Gem of True Sight.
  • Robe of the Archmagi from Timahel’s maze.
  • Matthew’s fine-liner pen.
• Key spells and magical methods:
  • Tiny Hut.
  • Sending.
  • Teleportation Circle.
  • Encode Thoughts.
  • Greater Restoration.
  • Calm Emotions.
  • Detect Evil and Good.
  • Hallow.
  • Gust.
  • Blight.
  • Poison Spray.
  • Inflict Wounds.
  • Prestidigitation.
  • Mending.
• Special techniques:
  • Wild Magic surge charging for orbs.
  • Feywild prosthetics and runecraft.
  • Grip-pressure control for clockwork arms.
  • Minfilia’s undead spellcaster creation.
  • Parasite memory suppression through the Ring of Mind Shielding.

Factions in Play

• Reformist Church.
  • Uses parasites and Green Liquid.
  • Operates in cells.
  • Includes local bearers of cup, sword, whip, candle, and emotions.
  • Works with Children of the Crone hags.
• Malthrek family and Castle Malthrek.
  • Duke Ellington Malthrek.
  • Duchess Antoinette Malthrek nee Thralmal.
  • John Malthrek.
  • Mark Malthrek.
  • Matthew Malthrek.
  • Luke Malthrek.
• Hag factions.
  • Hags of Hama.
  • White Witches.
  • Faithful hags, or Children of the Mother, loyal to Baba Yaga.
  • Children of the Crone.
• Feywild and court powers.
  • Oberon, Green Lord, or Green Man.
  • Baba Yaga’s direct daughters.
  • Valdas, Queen of Mirrors.
  • Lord Cals.
  • Spring Court succession.
  • Possible Green Lord avatar activity through Oren Bell.

Immediate Priorities

• Secure Matthew Malthrek.
  • Keep him away from Crone-aligned hags.
  • Use his pen or another personal item for related magic if needed.
  • Determine whether the inherited hag promise truly passed to him.
• Keep Duke Malthrek functioning as cover.
  • Maintain the Peerage-facing facade.
  • Remove his parasite safely.
  • Recover or preserve relevant memories.
  • Prevent the parasite network from noticing too early.
• Move against Garward Eastonton.
  • Minfilia wants him stopped permanently or punished severely.
  • Maud Eastonton’s exploitation increases the urgency.
  • Thrantorbury or a similar lead may connect to him.
• Protect allies on other fronts.
  • Tiphanie and Marlion remain active at the University.
  • The Thralmals are under pressure.
  • Angel Rannek may be in danger.
  • The library team must avoid losing books, maps, and vellum.

Unresolved Hooks

• Confirm places and terms:
  • Mount Brissimis.
• Resolve lore questions:
  • The exact mechanics of Matthew’s inherited hag promise.
  • What “Yielding” means and how it relates to spirits, babies, and destructive release.
  • Whether Oren Bell is an elf, fey, avatar, or Reformist bearer under glamour.
  • Why Cure Wounds failed on Marlion.
• Preserve uncertain canon carefully:
  • Valdas, Lord Cals, Queen Duarend, and Aika Miura in Spring succession.
  • The original terms of the elf-human boon bargain.
  • The exact Reformist hierarchy and emotion bearer offices.
  • The source and purpose of the undead Nothic hair.
  • Whether the mapmaker’s drawings imply dreams, visions, or aberrant contact.