🗓 Session 14 – 🕵️‍♂️💥 When Subtlety Breaks

📅 Date of Session:

2025/12/14

The party escorts Ricio away from the destroyed bar.
The bartender regains consciousness but remains uninvolved, clearly nervous around Ricio.
Ricio departs through the North Gate, returning to the manor.
Harlekk attempts to comfort Ricio; no new information is gained.
As Harlekk turns to leave, Ricio briefly triggers a moment of fear tied to Harlekk’s onyx stone, which Harlekk resists.
Zane confirms none of Ricio’s staff or regulars were present at the bar.

The party arrives at the Emporium of Marvelous Rarities, a well-known high-end magic shop.
While casing the building:
- The structure is mostly single-story with a partial second floor and balcony roughly 16 feet up.
- Voss senses a powerful magical barrier designed to keep things both in and out.
- Nelvax determines the many windows are likely heavily warded.
The Emporium is identified as a selective school for capable “students,” not novices.
Inside, the shop appears meticulously curated, with two patrons browsing and an impatient wizard overseeing the floor.
Harlekk, aided by Guidance, asks after Master Bertio Ranberd, who is currently out on assignment.

The party learns of a magical vault beneath the Emporium, with storage costs up to 5,000 gp per month depending on the item.
When Voss indicates they need to store the contents of the box, the attending wizard touches it and causes it to vanish.
The wizard reveals the box was reported stolen from the Emporium six months ago and refuses to return it without documentation.
As tensions rise, Harlekk forges a royal document claiming the party is acting on behalf of the crown.
Zane reviews and confirms the forgery would plausibly pass scrutiny.
The wizard accepts the document, returns the box, and introduces himself as Wizard Bailguard.
Bailguard explains that only Master Ranberd can authorize opening or emptying the box and offers the party a place to wait.

Nelvax sends his familiar Ember to contact his brother Thomazal.
Thomazal’s note warns:
- The Emporium is heavily trapped, favoring hesitation and careful movement.
- Speed and brute force are punished.
- Ranberd is elusive and appears only when conditions favor him.
- The Tower leaves the Emporium alone because it serves their purposes.
- Trespassers are not punished — patterns are.
Zane identifies the item as a Box of Nullification, an extradimensional container that nullifies all magic inside it.
The party debates how to handle Ranberd and the box.
Nelvax becomes tempted by Harlekk’s gem, failing a Charisma save and unsuccessfully attempting to steal it.

Ranberd arrives outside the Emporium.
The party surrounds him in a non-threatening manner and attempts to talk before he enters.
Voss casts Hold Person — the spell fails.
Zane casts Suggestion — it fails; Ranberd is immune to charm.
Nelvax attempts to grapple, escalating the situation into combat.

Combat Highlights

Ranberd uses Misty Step, rising roughly 50 feet into the air.
Harlekk casts Tasha’s Hideous Laughter, causing Ranberd to fall.
Nelvax restrains and binds Ranberd, gagging him and dragging him out of sight.
Ranberd briefly breaks free of the effect but remains restrained.
Harlekk casts Tasha’s Hideous Laughter again, reinforced with Unsettling Words.
Voss casts Fog Cloud to conceal the party as Ranberd is moved further into isolation.

The Emporium is revealed to function as a quiet containment facility rather than a simple shop.
The Tower’s tolerance of the Emporium becomes clear.
Ranberd proves immune to charm and extremely difficult to control.
The session ends with Ranberd restrained, incapacitated, and laughing.

“It doesn’t punish trespassers — it punishes patterns.” - Thomazal

Lead – The Emporium’s True Function:
The Emporium of Marvelous Rarities operates as a selective school and quiet containment site, tolerated by the Tower.
Lead – The Tower’s Enforcement Style:
The Tower punishes patterns of behavior, not isolated trespass.