The Living Seal
c. 100 ADW
The Liturgy of Binding holds He Who Slumbers, but with the Molokite civilization gone it needs a permanent living anchor. Led by Guildmaster Elrin Veymar, the party descends to the Sealing Chasm, fights off Dreamleechers at the threshold, and sings the Liturgy while the Beast's Dread tempts each of them with their deepest desire. Veyl steps through the arc of light to become the Living Seal, sealing himself into the binding forever as Captain Kaelen's century-long vigil finally ends.
Referenced In
This module is referenced by the following lore entries:
Factions and Organizations
- MolokiteAn ancient elven people—not a metal—known for pale skin, ethereal green veins, large black eyes, and regal bearing. They once traded with the dwarves of the Dwarven Mountains until they sought power from a demigod, attacked mortal races, and were driven underground. There they found a shrine to The Evil One and later worshipped He Who Slumbers, a biomantic horror bred from a tarrasque corpse. Holt was raised among them and led them alongside the Slumber Cult to awaken their god. After Holt's defeat, the few Molokite who survived—including the medicine woman Raphira—helped the guilds re-bind the Beast and rearm the freed Cinder Guard with sunsteel.
Legendary Characters
- Captain KaelenA ghost in ceremonial armor who kept a century-long vigil at the eternal forge flame of the Sunsteel Forge, waiting for someone to relearn the lost rite for forging sunsteel blades. He guides the guilds through the forging sequence and escorts them into the deep as far as the dead are permitted to go. When the Living Seal is restored, his vigil ends and he fades for good.
- Elrin VeymarGuildmaster of Evenfell's Adventurers Guild. A tall, tan-skinned human with greying sandy brown hair. He wears black slacks, a grey open shirt, and a leather vest. Sour, cold, depressed, and often drunk, he is burdened by the city's decline. He hopes new adventurers can restore some spark of life to Evenfell.
- Guildmaster Teyla CoalmakerA proud and energetic dwarf with dark hair, keen dark eyes, and a mechanical monocle. She wears an oil-streaked apron and silver-laced red armor and has a prosthetic robotic arm. She is the Overseer of Kdor's Adventurers Guild and believes in second chances, but not thirds. She likes using mechanical metaphors and is known to be a fast talker. Always has a backup plan.
- VeylA Cinder Guard—an ancient Molokite construct-warrior—who serves as liaison between the guilds and the last of his kind after the Bliss Leeches are cleansed from the survivors. The first to shake off the leeches' stupor and recover his name, he helps track down the lost sunsteel forging rite and, when no one else steps forward, volunteers to become the Living Seal that keeps He Who Slumbers bound.
Legendary Items & Artifacts
- Ring of Mind ShieldingAn uncommon ring found near the Sealing Chasm that shields the wearer's thoughts from being read and grants immunity to magic that would detect lies or emotions. If the wearer dies while attuned to it, the ring can hold their soul until they are restored.
- Sunsteel BladeAn uncommon weapon forged from sunsteel in the divine fire of the Sunsteel Forge, granting a bonus to hit and damage, extra fire damage on a hit, and dim light for 10 feet. The first was forged for Veyl after the guilds relearned the lost Molokite rite; its light also grants advantage against the Dread of He Who Slumbers.
Locations
- Caverns Beneath Kingdom GrandAncient tunnels and caverns below Kingdom Grand that predate mortal civilization. Collapsing passages, Slumber Cultist patrols, and primordial stonework connect the surface to the gate Holt seeks to open.
- Sealing ChasmA broken ring of stone and gold circling a chasm into the deep where He Who Slumbers sleeps. The Liturgy of Binding must be sung here to hold the Beast, but with the old Molokite civilization gone, the Seal requires a living soul to anchor it permanently. Veyl became the Living Seal here after the guilds sang the Liturgy through a rising tide of Dread.
Military Units and Creatures
- Cinder GuardA Molokite elf warrior bound to living stone, once tasked with guarding the seal on He Who Slumbers. Left masterless and leeched into a stupor after the Beast was re-subdued, the Cinder Guard fight in packs and unleash a swarm of cinders, but can be freed and rearmed with sunsteel blades once cured of their Bliss Leeches. Veyl is the first to recover.
- DreamleecherA monstrosity that guards the threshold before the Sealing Chasm, feeding on dreams to inflict Dread and releasing a psychic pulse or an acid-and-fire burst when killed.
- He Who SlumbersAlso called the One Who Sleeps, or simply the Beast by the Molokite who once served it. A primordial horror created by The Evil One from a tarrasque corpse through biomancy, grown stronger with each life sacrificed to its bio-vats—the younger the victim, the greater the offering. The Molokite worship it in the dungeon beyond the Great Dungeon Gate, and Holt believed Lullwater would let him control it upon awakening. After the guilds forced it back into slumber, it could no longer be held by the failing rites of the last Molokite survivors alone, and a living soul had to be bound into the Sealing Chasm to anchor it once more.
- Withered CroneA witch of the coven that stole youth-magic from the Molokite, aged decades into bitterness when He Who Slumbers slept again and the stolen magic failed. Attacks with a fear-inducing wail, a withering touch, and hexbolts.