1. 🌞 Duel in the Golden Light

Objective: Confront Manus at the summit of the Feywild mountain and secure the First Kiss of the Midday Sun, the radiant essence needed to reforge Summer’s Edge.

Location: Mountain peak in the Feywild, beneath the eternal summer sun.

Narrative Beat: The Blade Remembers

• As the Fey sun reaches its zenith, Skreek feels compelled to draw the shattered hilt of Summer’s Edge.
• The shards begin to glow faintly, and he experiences a vision of Eirik, the blade’s first wielder, receiving the sword from the Queen of the Summer Court.
• The warmth of the sword lingers, foreshadowing its rebirth.
• Manus arrives unaware of the sword’s legacy, taunting Skreek for carrying a broken relic.

Outcome:

“Fall Festival” in Japanese

Tavern run by Hencelle

A beautiful beer garden, nestled among serene Japanese maple trees of red and orange

Chained Library

The Chained Library is an ancient fortress-library built beneath Mount Vesithar, predating all known kingdoms. Guarded by blind celestials and staffed by librarians summoned through dream callings, the Library preserves dangerous knowledge that is too important to destroy and too perilous to freely share. The party traveled here in Session 45 to research how to repair the weakening leyline barrier.

Leadership

• Samaris — Head librarian. An ancient black-skinned tiefling with long horns. Deeply mistrustful of all visitors — she despises the books in her care and dreams of burning the entire collection for the good of the world. Insisted the party be marked by the Eyeless Guardians before granting access. Met in Session 45.
• Vael — Fifth Binder, Chainbearer of the Silent Vault. A tall, ageless figure cloaked in layered grays who speaks with surgical calm. Acts as the Library’s field agent, investigating Hollow Thresholds and the weakening barrier. Met the party at a collapsed Hollow Threshold and eventually escorted them to the Library (Sessions 41–45).
• Alois — The newest librarian, a young human who arrived following a dream calling. Unlike the other staff, Alois isn’t convinced the books are truly evil and secretly browses the Howling Shelves when possible.
• Eyeless Guardians — Blind celestials (CR 7) who patrol the Library. They mark visitors for tracking, allowing the Library to shadow guests after they leave and monitor them for signs of corruption.

Key Locations

• Mount Vesithar — A massive, dormant volcano in the center of the Elven lands, covered in dense enchanted forest. Local legends call it “The Heartroot.” The Library is built beneath it.
• The Ashen Shrine — A circular, half-buried shrine atop a moss-laced plateau near the summit of Mount Vesithar. Four broken plinths mark the cardinal directions, one for each season. A star-shaped platform at its center contains an indentation shaped like a sword’s blade — when Summer’s Edge was placed there, the shrine awakened and descended into the mountain.
• The Hollow Veins — An underground chamber where magma once flowed but now pulses with planar magic. A chasm separates the entrance from the Library’s sealed doors. Crossing requires a soulwrought bridge — formed when each visitor makes a personal vow and sacrifice.
• The Howling Shelves — The Library’s main collection. Dangerous but useful texts chained with adamantium links. Telepathically manipulative books tempt readers with offers of help.
• The Deep Stacks — The lowest level of the Library, containing sentient, malevolent books too dangerous for humanoid contact.

Culture & Identity

• Knowledge preservation above all — the Library never destroys a text, no matter how dangerous
• Strict access control; visitors earn entry through trials, sacrifice, or the Library’s agents
• Librarians are summoned through dream callings rather than recruited
• Samaris sends agents to shadow visitors after they leave, waiting for them to prove their corruption so she can order their assassination
• The Library’s curse: thieves who steal books suffer necrotic rot (DC 16 CON save)

Knowledge Gained

What the party learned during their visit in Session 45:

FINAL RITUAL - TABLE REFERENCE SHEET

RITUAL ADVANCEMENT

[!tip] Weaver chooses Option A or B each turn

Option A: Focus on Ritual (Full Action)

• Advances ritual by 1 phase immediately
• Can use bonus action & reactions
• NO legendary actions this round
• NO multiattack or spells

Option B: Combat Normally

• Use multiattack + spells as normal
• Ritual auto-advances +1 phase every 2 rounds of concentration
• Can use legendary actions

Ritual Progress Track

• Phase 1: Rounds 1-2 (Gathering Power)
• Phase 2: Rounds 3-4 (Portal Forming)
• Phase 3: Rounds 5-6 (Nidhogg Approaches)
• Phase 4: Round 7+ (Breakthrough Imminent)

Disruption

• Weaver incapacitated 1 round = ritual pauses
• Weaver incapacitated 2+ consecutive rounds = ritual regresses 1 phase

LAIR ACTIONS

[!tip] Automatic - Initiative 20 Roll 1d3 each round to determine effect

A minion is a weak foe designed to allow GMs to create dramatic combat encounters with hordes of enemies without overwhelming the characters. In fact, an encounter with minions makes characters feel heroic since they can take on a myriad of foes and live to tell the tale. However, minions still make threatening foes. Killing a minion still requires penetrating their defenses, and characters can’t just shrug off damage from minion attacks. So how do minions make running a horde of enemies quick and easy for the GM?