Posted on by John Carlson

Further Questions/Comments for Marchmain, Session 80 (10/28/2015)

Further Questions/Comments for Marchmain, Session 80 (10/28/2015)

Use this post for other questions you have for Marchmain. I will answer them here (assuming you don’t provoke him into attacking) and next week we will pick up after the meeting. Some issues to address at the beginning of next session:

– Edan’s thief trainer and Chuq’s monk trainer

– Idony’s desire to speak with the party (conveyed after the meeting)

– News & Rumors picked up during the training period

0 Replies to “Further Questions/Comments for Marchmain, Session 80 (10/28/2015)”

  2. Questions sent in spirit – 

    1. What do the Silver Throne expect Xen Teller to do about the Dragon Emperor?

    2. How do they plan to persuade Xen Teller to help them?

    3. With what force do they plan to use to capitalize on any gains that Xen Teller can give them? How would they transport supposed forces?

    4. How does the lonely Isle excavation help their Xen Teller agenda? Do they really need Xen Teller if they bring the Crystal Tower back into operation?

    5. What can they tell us about the Dragon Emperor’s court/family? 

    6. Have they considered/determined if the Dragon Emperor has another family member/ally that might oppose Xen Teller they way the Dragon Consort did in ancient times?

    7. Tell us the TO&E (Table of Organization & Equipment) for the slaver ring(s) supported by the Empire which they have uncovered – it will help us contribute to the effort, however we choose.

    8. Besides the sphere/prison, how else would they/he like us to help against the Empire?

    9. We want a list of confirmed and suspected Imperial agents operating in the archipelago. Where does the money lead?

    10. Why haven’t they enlisted the MidMark Navy in their efforts? It is the current state of the art is it not?

    11. What aid has MidMark promised to lend against the Empire? After all, the Colonials are also traditional foes of the Empire and are actively and openly working against the Empire and the slavers.

     12. We can show him our letters of credit and support from Peter Thorell commissioning us to investigate the slavers then ask for the same from him on behalf of himself or/and SilverThrone.

     13. Tell us about the other ST board members and their ancient antecedents. Any family legends about the ancient Marchmain?

    14. Would he prefer we search for the sphere first, then deal with the Naga second?

    15. What’s the real story about Heaven’s fall and the defeat of the Empire?

    16. Brice said Xen Teller talked to her, has he talked to Marmain?

    17. Since the clergy considered Brice heretical, is it correct to assume they won’t help the ST board and their efforts to free Xen Teller or unearth the Crystal Tower?

  3. Okay — if we need to justify this, we can say that Chuq conveys his questions to other members of the party who request another audience during the training period with Marchmain. When they are ushered into the meeting room, he eagerly gestures for everyone to sit down. After a bit of small talk about the training experiences of the party members, he takes the group’s questions and patiently answers:

    1. Xen’Teler is a god — the only one known to intercede directly in worldly affairs. The Dragon Emperor may seem immortal, but he is still a creature of flesh that can be killed (as proven by the deaths of other dragons). They expect Xen’Teler to strip the Dragon Emperor of his magical powers and destroy him.

    2. Xen’Teler needs no persuading; it was his teachings recovered by archaeological research and augmented by Brice Hissel’s visions that made clear the threat posed by the Dragon Emperor.

    3. The partial evidence recovered from various ancient ruins suggests that Xen’Teler can instantly convey vast armies anywhere on Meidia (the world). Of course, the manifestation of Xen’Teler is not likely to need much in the way of reinforcements to topple the Dragon Emperor.

    4. Silver Throne is excavated Lonely Island, site of the destroyed Crystal Tower, in search of tools, information, and weapons. It is hoped that the new Khel will become the new holy place of Xen’Teler, but there are also practical (and commercial) benefits for Silver Throne.

    5. Marchmain cannot offer much information about the Dragon Emperor. Silver Throne’s research clearly indicates that the emperor is a single, immortal red dragon (male). Recollections of immigrants (i.e., colonials and exiles) indicate that the emperor’s court travels between several palaces and includes a host of bureaucrats, advisers, and military/police commanders vying for the emperor’s favor.

    6. There is no sign that the Dragon Emperor has any family; his one love died during the Battle of Heaven’s Fall. Those with knowledge of his court know he has taken temporary paramours, but Marchmain doesn’t think these are dragons. His consort was a brilliant strategist and master of ancient dwarven technology/magic.

    7. Marchmain says that the group already seems familiar with most details of the slavery ring, having practically destroyed it. His understanding is that Chief Magistrate Grell used his contacts in the Midmark police and prisons to send a steady stream of native islanders to Rotho Waterman of the Bargemen’s Guild in Vargen. There were also some other minor sources of slaves, like the gnolls and kobolds of Balinwode. Rotho either sold the slaves on to others (like the Patriarch of the Ark Church in Vargen) or directed them to imperial operations (like the mining camp where Em and Aubrey Grotecope wound up). Arden Grell may be continuing in his uncle’s footsteps, using piracy to capture new slaves.

    8. Marchmain thinks recovering the sphere (he raises an eyebrow when its referred to as a prison) is the most important thing the party can do — especially since your group seems to be the only one with the skills to navigate the dungeons of Xen’Khel. After some thought, he suggests that finding Jardin the Imperial Inquisitor could also be helpful — but stresses that the sphere must by the priority.

    9. Marchmain says the Silver Throne has neutralized many threats/agents already. Right now, they are investigating a few possible enemies: the Harbor Triad (a coalition of guilds) in Vargen, several aristocratic families in Midmark (including that of the navy’s second-in-command), and some high-ranking clerics in the Temple of Merendur.

    10. Silver Throne doesn’t fully trust Midmark’s navy (see last point) — almost every leader is descended from a top commander under Baldric Evenkeel. Many of those families have branches back on the continent with ties to the Dragon Emperor’s court.

    11. No promises — the loyalties of Midmark and other colonials are suspect in Silver Throne’s eyes. Baldric Evenkeel may have freed the islands by his treason, but he and his people never experienced the reality of life under imperial oppression the way dwarves, elves, and native islanders did.

    12. He nods when you show him the letters of credit/introduction and indicates that Peter Thorel is an ally of the Silver Throne Company in Vargen. Peter is currently investigating the Harbor Triad’s possible connections with the imperials and beginning preparations for a possible attack by the so-called ‘Dark King’.

    13. Marchmain is not comfortable discussing details about the other Directors of the Silver Throne Company. He points out that their identities are well-known and that the only secret about them is the true reason for their interest in the ancient dwarven empire. Regarding the other Marchmain, he says that his ancestor died long before the rebellion and was a semi-mythical figure even by that point. Even the stories about him designing the Crystal Tower may be apocryphal.

    14. If that is the choice, Marchmain would like the sphere found first; the Naga is likely an unwitting pawn of the Dragon Emperor (just like the other rebels). He regrets Thorri Carrow’s decision to use the Phoenix Egg on the Three Sisters, but thinks that the only option now is to destroy the remaining Naga.

    15. Records from the rebellion are even spottier than those for other periods in the ancient dwarven empire. However, the basic sequence of events seems to have been the following: 1) The Dragon Emperor’s consort corrupted Xen’Teler, thinking to replace him with a new god, although a small part of Xen’Teler preserved itself in some sort of prison; 2) The rebels sabotaged the Crystal Tower, the conduit connecting Xen’Teler to the world — the destruction of the tower changed the shape of the islands and cutoff the ancient dwarves from any remnant of their god; 3) The Battle of Heaven’s Fall was an offensive launched by the rebels just after the Crystal Tower fell and Xen’Teler seemed to die — taking the ancient dwarves by surprise during a moment of incredible confusion and fear.

    16. Marchmain and the other Directors of the Silver Throne Company have been granted visions of Xen’Teler — he found Brice, in fact, during a tour of the Khels looking for members of the Brotherhood of the World Forge worthy of that same honor.

    17. There is a small faction within the Brotherhood of the World Forge that supports the Silver Throne Company. Unfortunately, the influence of the false Xen’Teler has poisoned the minds of many dwarven clerics.

  4. I don’t know where to start believing stuff. Marchmain is pretty much unabashadly speaking the truth, or ‘A’ truth, that makes it very hard for us to refute him. He’s pressing our buttons, pointing at his efforts against Imperial agents, parallel to our own and even pushing us to find Jardin, as well as denouncing the slavery rings, perhaps one of our biggest focuses in the entire campaign.

    Yet we know from our experiences that Xena’Tel isn’t a very good God, and he freely admits to have been granted visions from Them, and look how that turned out with Brice. It seems as though this Marchmain could be another unwitting pawn, and the incident with Chuq being Xena’Tel interfering to cover thier plans.

    I’d be willing to work with Marchmain and the Silver Throne, but I’m still entirely against helping them release Xena’Tel. If They were the only God to directly interact with the world, then perhaps They aren’t really a God at all, or at least a rogue one. It’s not like the dwarves need Them released, thier clerical powers still work by whatever means it always has, much as the other faiths.

    I know I keep saying Xena’Tel, but we know that is the true name of whatever is within the sphere. IMPRISONED within the sphere. Now whether Xen’Teler is a title as we’ve been led to believe, or just another name, I’d like to keep the distinction. Whatever force, if any, acts as the current Xen’Teler, could merely be a more benevolent fragment of Xena’Tel, or the true dwarven God being allowed to act now the former is gone. Heck, it could even be an entirely newborn entity born merely to keep cosmic balance or via the continued prayers of the dwarven race for the past several thousand years.

    As a note, what happened to our reports of the Silver Throne having thier own slavery ring?

    (Also, an mp3 of the recording is in the Google Drive.)

  5. Just reread the Brothers of the World Forge.DOC. The Wardens of the Rock are analogous to the Order of the Celestial Dragon. They are a religious sect that defend the Khels from invaders (Empire). Either we ask if ST has enlisted/informed the Brothers or we try to connect with one ourselves.

    I have other ideas but my eyes are dilated, reading is too hard..

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