The Missing Pieces
To whomever this reaches. I have made a terrible mistake. I helped design an abhorrent device and nothing will be the same if they get the chance to use it. There is a way to negate its effects, but I cannot obtain the missing pieces I still need on my own. If you are able to send skilled craftspersons and warriors to secure the missing parts from the long-abandoned Forgeheart Mines, there is a chance I can still finish building the counter-device in time. The Titanists must be stopped.
May the gods grant you speed.
Viv Steelwright
Recap
Luna, Luna, and Tia find themselves meeting Viv Steelwright in her workshop. She is desperate for powerful materials that her ancestors used to mine deep in the Forgeheart Mines in order to create a counter-device to save the world. After some hearty debate about what the end of the world really means, they agree to attempt to run this errand. On their way, they run into a group of cultists, whom Tia cleverly fools into thinking they are all from the same cultist order after an initially strained introduction. At first, it seemed they would part ways in peace, but the group decides that the only good cultist is a dead cultist.
As they begin sniping the cultists, Noxis appears in a flash - soaking wet after having been dumped in the ocean at Luck, then immediately slapped into a questboard to help out. Noxis sees what appears to be the slaughter of helpless innocents and immediately begins freaking out and attempting to stop the party. However, the party is able to handily dispatch all the cultists before they can escape and deescalate Noxis to a begrudging understanding of the situation. Once they all reach the mines, they manage to decipher the key to open the giant stone gates using a clever combination of lip-reading, rune reading, and Alter Self between Tia and both Lunas. Once inside, they find themselves in a large hallway where a magic Silence hangs over the expansive room. Thanks to Tia’s multiple telepathy links, however, this proves to be a manageable problem. A trap is set off by Bristle, the Steel Defender, which deals a load of pyschic damage as a Mind Flayer appears at the far end. After some rightful panic, the group realizes it is only an illusion, but so does some of the floor, which Noxis falls into. It takes some doing but with the help of some Detect Magic and spider-like abilities, they are able to cross the simple pit relatively easily. Finally, they find the chest guarded by a large stone warrior and two mechanical dragons… and there seems to be at least one stalagmite with eyes, which Noxis finds greatly upsetting. Thanks to some solid sharpshooting, forceful blasts, clever positioning, and well-timed magical Shields, the group survives the battle and is able to recover the chest and return it to Viv, where they stay for several days to discuss and record artificer data and history.