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GM Note

Open Plot Threads

Every dangling thread, by urgency — immediate to dormant.

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Behind the Veil — GM material. Spoilers, draft notes, and cosmology that is not yet canon (and may never be). Players of the Enduring Lesser Lights, turn back.

Open Plot Threads

Immediate / Active

The Fall of Grithmaar Deep

Priority: Immediate -- this is the next session

  • Mollthain's Remnant has dissolved into nothing. The cavern collapses, and the party falls into the rising waters that the Remnant's body had been holding back.
  • Sylvie has undergone the Demigod transformation. She absorbed Mollthain's Splendor essence via Damnation and gained two permanent features:
    • Ichor of the Gods: Her advantage die is always a d10 instead of a d6.
    • Weight of Divinity: When she rolls a failure with Fear, she must mark a Stress or give the GM an additional Fear.
  • The Splendor radiance that protected Grithmaar Deep (Rukh-al-Ghrim -- "the light of the rock") is now diminished/contained within Sylvie. The Umbra is flooding in.
  • The underground river that Mollthain's Remnant was physically damming is now rising from below. Grithmaar Deep is flooding.
  • The party must race through the old Drakenn settlement of the Ahl-al-Ghrim, fighting freshly activated undead dwarves, before the whole place goes under.
  • Draz is incapacitated in a lucid ancestral-dream state. The party must carry him.
  • Jamal received a one-time boon: Mending Touch (Splendor domain).
  • See session prep: grithmaar-deep-the-light-goes-out

Rekindle the Sacred Pyre of Drosven's Gate

Priority: Primary quest -- the original mission

  • The party has a Blessed Branch hidden inside Bob the Living Fortress via Phasing Vambraces.
  • Drosven's Gate is overrun with non-humanoid monsters. No townsfolk were visible when the party passed through.
  • The party lacks certainty about the relighting ritual -- they may need a priest or pyre-keeper.
  • Sarru (pyre-keeper) and Savel are captured but Umbra-mutated. Can they be restored? Could Sarru still perform the ritual?

Ygva's God-Binding Plan

Priority: Active -- party is currently working toward this

  • The party agreed to help Ygva recover totems from the eight Veiled Gods.
  • Heyou was specifically tasked with presenting the Askavir Heart at Tlellic's altar.
  • Draz offered his compass (pointing toward Ossa).
  • Jamal reluctantly agreed to confront the creature at Grithmaar Deep (for Mollthain's totem). The Remnant is destroyed; Sylvie absorbed its essence. A physical Totem of Mollthain may be recoverable from the Masjid-al-Sur (temple) in the Drakenn settlement -- if the party finds it before the flood takes it.
  • Ygva is cultivating Sacred Tree seeds. If she fails, the party owes a replacement Blessed Branch.
  • Titans in the World Below are constructing a colossal pyre under Ygva's direction.
  • The binding would fundamentally change the world's divine order. It is unclear whether this leads to salvation or catastrophe.

Character Arcs

Sylvie's Transformation and Origins

  • Heart torn out by Ygva, survived, shifted from Splendor to Dread domain.
  • RESOLVED: Demigod Transformation. Sylvie absorbed Mollthain's Splendor essence and has become something beyond mortal. She now carries two permanent features:
    • Ichor of the Gods: Advantage die is always a d10 instead of a d6.
    • Weight of Divinity: When she rolls a failure with Fear, she must mark a Stress or give the GM an additional Fear.
  • She is now a Dread/Umbra witch carrying a divine Splendor charge -- the tension between these two forces is her defining trait going forward. The Splendor radiance that protected an entire settlement for a century is now inside one person.
  • Her unseen patron sent counsel via dream and granted the Damnation spell. The patron's nature and motives are unknown.
  • The Umbral Raven spoke in a young man's voice, questioned whether her companions held her back, asked who would make the best "patsy," then claimed to be part of her -- before being destroyed.
  • Stoneweaver Origins: Originally from the Stoneheart Peaks. The Sundering blasted the Earth-Heart into the sky. Kaelen and Rhys are presumed dead or on the moon.
  • Sister Moon: She has an unexplained connection to the moon. Lammat god Kreth (False Visions, The Moon) may be related.
  • Where is her heart? Ygva holds it. It may be among offerings for the gods.
  • New question: Does Sylvie's Demigod status change her relationship with Ygva? With Kelun and the divine order? She now carries a piece of a god inside her.

Heyou's True Nature

  • Sigil on his chest indicates specific origins.
  • Kelun sensed a divine connection to him. Ygva could summon his detached leg.
  • A circlet matching his sigil exists among artifacts (tied to Otheidas).
  • Absorbed a portion of the Askavir heart, gaining holy power.
  • Recovered one prosthetic leg from Borek's stash -- marked with the symbol of Brathis (Feral Survival, Loss of Personhood). The significance of this is unexplored.
  • Stonewraiths and the Living Fortress may share origins with him.
  • May be connected to the creation of new beings.

Jamal and Grithmaar Deep

  • His community was mining until they pierced a boundary and saw a massive sleeping monster deep in the earth. They now only mine horizontally.
  • RESOLVED: Why Grithmaar Deep didn't need a pyre. The Splendor radiance of Mollthain's Remnant (Rukh-al-Ghrim) kept the Umbra at bay. The Drakenn who settled here -- the Ahl-al-Ghrim -- knew this and built their lives around it. That protection is now gone.
  • RESOLVED: Mollthain's Protector is destroyed. It dissolved into nothing; its essence was absorbed by Sylvie. The cavern collapsed.
  • A Horned Iron Figure telepathically told Jamal he was "among those meant to be destroyed" and that it would "finish the job" -- someone or something targeted his people specifically. This is NOT resolved by the Guardian's destruction.
  • The party is now falling through the collapsing cavern into the old Drakenn settlement. Jamal is about to walk through the homes of his ancestors and fight their reanimated dead. This is the emotional climax of his arc -- or the beginning of a deeper one.
  • The name-wall in the Masjid-al-Sur (temple) lists every member of the Ahl-al-Ghrim. Jamal's family name may be among them.

Draz's Hidden Past

  • A binding rune on his arm can cloud memories. Borek revealed it; the party has not investigated further. What memories are suppressed?
  • His compass points toward Ossa (The Wanderer Atop the Peaks). It recently stabilized at "11 o'clock."
  • He entered a lucid ancestral-dream state during the Guardian fight. An Elder spirit counseled him about the risks of aligning with vastly greater beings.
  • He refused Borek's Syndicate recruitment and a translucent purple gem -- consequences unclear.
  • Tamber is privately concerned about Draz's ambitions regarding the Old Gods and has adjusted her teachings against destabilizing ideas.

The Heretic Marks

  • Both Draz (inner bicep) and Jamal (right buttock) bear concealed marks.
  • What organization or faith marks heretics? Who hunts them? What was the heresy?
  • Completely unresolved after 15 sessions -- this is a slow burn.

Faction Threads

Borek and the Syndicate

  • Borek was severely wounded and fled after the party robbed his stash. He knows they infiltrated his quarters.
  • He holds part of Heyou's essence as leverage. The Askavir egg bargain was never completed.
  • The Syndicate's broader goals and reach are unclear.
  • Borek asked about missing families from Drosven's Gate -- implying Syndicate interest in the displaced townsfolk.
  • The tall feline katari with an eye patch among Dolm's Break refugees at Verrow's Span is a suspected Syndicate operative -- completely unexplored.

Kelun and Divine Judgment

  • Kelun split the party and "announced their arrival" to Ygva, then disappeared.
  • He promised consequences for the destruction of the Sacred Tree (sacred to Caranthalis).
  • He views the party as "potentially useful components" -- useful for what?
  • He operates on divine protocols the party doesn't understand.

The Celsian Athenaeum and Tamber

  • Tamber refused to support the return of the Old Gods, citing social stability risks.
  • She is privately wary of Draz's ambitions and has begun adjusting her teachings.
  • She may possess hidden knowledge critical to the campaign's deeper mysteries.
  • Ygva was expelled from the Athenaeum for practicing essence-draining magic.

Goblin Presence in Grithmaar Deep

  • The goblinoids in the Grithmaar Deep tunnels were suffused with Splendor energy from Mollthain's Remnant.
  • A captured goblinoid called Sylvie a "witch who steals lifeblood" and died when Siphon Essence failed on it.
  • With the Remnant destroyed and Grithmaar flooding, the goblinoid presence here may be wiped out or driven to the surface.

World Threads

The Failing Pyres

  • Drosven's Gate pyre extinguished (inciting event).
  • Dolm's Break pyre also extinguished -- thirty refugees fled to Verrow's Span.
  • Ulmira's Step pyre status uncertain, especially with mutated townsfolk (Sarru, Savel) wandering.
  • Is someone or something orchestrating the pyre failures? The emergence at Drosven's Gate suggests possible coordination.

The Emergence at Drosven's Gate

  • The creature surge that erupted from the cracked ground beside the plaza when Drosven's Gate's pyre went out.
  • May mark a permanent weak point in the town's defenses.
  • Even after the pyre is rekindled, whatever the fire held back may pose an ongoing threat.

The World Below

  • A dead expanse beneath the surface with abandoned settlements.
  • Titans constructing a colossal pyre for Ygva's plan -- are they willing or compelled?
  • Sylvie's lunar augmentation is stronger here.
  • A barren island city exists in pale light. The party glimpsed it through a luminous hole.

Drosven's Gate Population

  • The settlement was overrun with monsters when the party passed through. No townsfolk visible.
  • Borek asked about missing families from Drosven's Gate.
  • Where did the people go? Dead? Fled? Mutated like Sarru and Savel?

Sarru and Savel

  • Both captured alive, Umbra-mutated, subdued non-lethally.
  • Being transported by the party. Can they be cured?
  • Sarru's knowledge of pyre-keeping may be essential. Savel's connection to a witch and knowledge of titan history are unexplored.

Dormant / Background Threads

Mellon and Yuki

  • Dead ranger and cat companion, now permanent spectral forms after the Sacred Tree explosion.
  • Their role going forward is unclear.

Refugees at Verrow's Span

  • Thirty refugees from Dolm's Break.
  • Long-term fate unresolved.

Amber Reach

  • Large city on the western side of the mountains. Current status unknown.
  • Potential westward expansion of the campaign.

The Stoneheart Peaks and the Moon

  • Site of the Sundering. The Earth-Heart may be on the moon.
  • Kaelen and Rhys (former Stoneweavers) may be alive there.
  • Kreth (god of False Visions, The Moon) may be connected.

Lila and Bufa

Earlier Thread Notes

Active Plot Threads

Primary Quest: Rekindle the Sacred Pyre

Status: In Progress

Objective: Obtain a Blessed Branch to rekindle Drosven's Gate's Sacred Pyre

Progress

  • ☑ Travel to Ulmira's Step
  • ☑ Meet Sarru, the dwarven pyre-keeper
  • ☑ Descend into caverns toward Ygva
  • ☑ Battle goblin engineers and corrupted creatures
  • ☑ Encounter and negotiate with Ygva
  • ☑ Obtain Blessed Branch (Heyou carries one secretly)
  • ☐ Return to Drosven's Gate
  • ☐ Rekindle the Sacred Pyre

Complications

  • Sylvie's transformation and new allegiance to Ygva
  • Party is now involved in Ygva's plan to bind the gods
  • Sacred Tree destroyed by goblin explosion

Ygva's Divine Binding

Status: Active involvement

Objective: Ygva seeks to bind the old gods in the World Below

What Ygva Needs

  • Remnants and totems of the gods
  • God-essences from various sources
  • Sylvie's assistance as a fellow Umbra witch

Party's Role

  • Sylvie accepted Ygva as "sister" and learned summoning
  • Heyou negotiated for artifacts
  • Party possesses Askavir heart with Splendor magic
  • Trading pinecone seeds with Ygva

Open Questions

  • What happens when gods are bound?
  • Where is Sylvie's heart?
  • Can the party trust Ygva?

Jamal's Past: Grithmaar Deep

Status: Background, building toward confrontation

Objective: Confront the creature that destroyed Jamal's village

Known Facts

Connections

The Heretic Marks

Status: Background tension

Characters: Draz, Jamal

Details

  • Draz: Mark on inner bicep
  • Jamal: Mark on right buttock
  • Both conceal their marks
  • Sylvie made Draz a sweater to help hide his

Unknowns

  • What organization or faith marks heretics?
  • Who hunts them?
  • What was their "heresy"?

Heyou's True Nature

Status: Slowly revealing

Character: Heyou

Clues Gathered

  • Sigil on chest indicates specific origins
  • Kelun sensed connection to him
  • Ygva could summon his detached leg
  • Circlet among artifacts matches his sigil
  • Absorbed Askavir heart portion, gained holy power

Potential

  • May be key to creating new beings
  • Connected to stone constructs and divine order
  • Dimmers membership may be incidental to larger purpose

Sylvie's Transformation

Status: Ongoing personal arc

Character: Sylvie

Changes

  • Heart removed by Ygva but survived
  • Shifted from Splendor to Dread domain
  • Gained Umbra witch powers
  • Can communicate telepathically
  • Healing magic replaced by essence siphoning

Goals

  • Understand her new nature
  • Find her heart
  • Return to her origins
  • Navigate relationship with Ygva

Dangling Hooks

The Emergence at Drosven's Gate

  • The creature surge that erupted from the cracked ground when Drosven's Gate's pyre went out
  • What caused the emergence?
  • Is it connected to a larger pattern?

The Dimmers Operations

Refugees from Dolm's Break

  • Arrived at Verrow's Span
  • Tall katari with eye patch among them (suspected ulterior motives)
  • Settlement crisis from Askavir attack

The Living Fortress

Session Prep Notes

Space for upcoming session preparation