Session 73
Opening atmosphere
The Temple of Dannan is quieter than usual. The failed ritual still hangs over the place, but there is a subtle difference: the temple is no longer entirely subdued. There is activity in the inner sanctum. Servants carry food, healers tend to the children, and a few priests are preparing fresh bedding.
For the first time since the party returned from the Sable Mirror, the temple has something resembling hope.
Read aloud
Morning light filters through the high windows of the Temple of Dannan.
Dust floats in the golden beams.
Somewhere beyond the inner sanctum, water runs through the temple gardens, finding its way between ancient stones.
The scent of damp earth and fresh bread hangs in the air.
For a moment, everything seems ordinary.
Then, from somewhere deeper within the temple, a child begins to cry.
Not in fear.
Not in pain.
A short, startled sound.
Followed by silence.
And then the unmistakable sound of a charcoal stick scratching across parchment.
Venrieth's morning report
Venrieth meets the party in the inner sanctum. She is tired but composed, having spent much of the night supervising the children's care.
She explains:
- All the children survived the night.
- None has suffered any obvious physical harm.
- Several experienced nightmares, but their sleep was less disturbed after the temple's protective rites.
- Rowan has asked for the party.
- The children have been drawing again.
She does not immediately mention Zannotah's vision. Instead, she asks him privately whether he remembers what he saw.
Venrieth's dialogue
"The earth has received them, and for this night, it has given them shelter."
"But shelter is not the same as safety."
She looks toward the inner sanctum.
"The children are alive. That is a blessing. It is also a responsibility."
Then she turns to Zannotah.
"You saw something during the escape. I would hear what you remember, if you are willing to speak of it."
If Zannotah describes the giant turning toward him, Venrieth does not dismiss the experience as a dream.
"A vision may be a warning, a memory, or a wound made visible."
"We must learn which before we decide what it means."
Optional roleplay
Allow the players to discuss the failed ritual, the rescued children, and Zannotah's experience.
This is a good moment to let the barbarian describe the vision in his own words. Venrieth should listen carefully and ask questions rather than provide an immediate explanation.
ACT 2 — The Children's Drawings
The party is invited into a quiet room adjoining the inner sanctum. The children are eating breakfast, being looked after by temple attendants.
Rowan is sitting near a low table, drawing with a charcoal stick.
Read aloud
Rowan looks up as you enter.
He seems cleaner than when you found him beneath the warehouse, but he is still pale and tired.
A blanket rests around his shoulders.
On the table before him are several sheets of parchment.
The first shows Danu beneath a black sky.
The second shows a great shadow beyond the city walls.
The third is a mountain.
Its peak is split open.
Black roots crawl from the wound.
At the base of the mountain, a tiny figure stands holding a lantern.
Rowan has drawn the figure three times.
Each time, the lantern is a different colour.
He notices you looking.
"That one's new."
Rowan's explanation
Rowan says that his dreams changed during the night.
Previously, he saw the giant and the army approaching Danu. Now he is seeing other places.
He does not know where they are, but the mountain in his drawing feels important.
What Rowan says
"I don't think it's Danu."
"It's somewhere else."
"But the roots are the same."
If asked what the roots mean:
"They're holding something shut."
If asked what is behind the mountain:
"I don't know."
He hesitates.
"It breathes."
If asked whether the giant is behind it:
"Not the giant."
"Something smaller."
"Something that wants to get out."
The new drawings
There are three significant drawings.
- The Broken Mountain
A mountain with a deep fissure through its centre. Roots emerge from the crack, and a dark shape appears to be breathing beneath the stone.
The first destination: a possible weakening ward.
- The Ashen Forest
A ring of standing stones surrounded by dead trees. Something pale is visible between the trunks.
A second ward location, not yet the immediate destination.
- The Black Ship
A ship approaching a coastal city beneath a sky filled with strange stars.
A distant warning to revisit later.
Investigation
The party can study the drawings.
| Check | Result |
| Investigation DC 13 | The mountain appears in several children's drawings, but from different perspectives. |
| History DC 15 | The shape may correspond to a mountain region known for old mining settlements. |
| Nature DC 14 | The roots are not normal trees; they resemble the living roots beneath the Temple of Dannan. |
| Religion DC 15 | The standing stones and root motifs suggest an ancient warding tradition. |
If the party has no success, Rowan can still identify the mountain as the place he saw.
ACT 3 — The Forgotten Map
Venrieth takes the party to a restricted part of the temple: an old archive beneath the library.
This is not a dungeon. It is a quiet, dusty place where ancient knowledge has been preserved.
Read aloud
Venrieth leads you through a narrow corridor behind the temple library.
The air grows cooler.
The stonework changes.
The newer walls give way to ancient blocks, worn smooth by centuries of hands.
At the end of the corridor stands a door without hinges or a handle.
Venrieth presses her palm against its surface.
The stone opens.
Beyond lies a circular chamber lined with shelves.
Scrolls rest in clay tubes.
Stone tablets lie beneath dust.
At the centre of the room stands a table carved from a single piece of dark granite.
Upon it is a map.
Not of Danu.
Of the land beyond.
The map of the ward network
The map shows the region surrounding Danu. Ancient lines, carved like roots, connect a series of circular symbols.
Most are faint.
Three are marked with a subtle green glow.
One is dark.
Another has been scratched across.
The mountain from Rowan's drawing corresponds to one of the marked locations.
Venrieth recognises the map as an ancient record of Dannan's warding network.
Venrieth's explanation
"The old priests called these places the Listening Stones."
"They were not temples, and they were not prisons."
"They were places where the earth could hear what moved beyond the boundary."
She traces one of the root-like lines.
"When the boundary was strong, these stones served as anchors."
"When it weakened, they became warnings."
The party can ask why the modern temple knows so little about them.
Venrieth answers:
"Because much was lost."
"Time and Decay, Fires, The destruction of old sanctuaries."
"And, perhaps, because some knowledge was deliberately buried."
What the cult has been doing
Venrieth studies the notes recovered from Warehouse 17.
The cult has been tracking the children's dreams to identify locations where the ward network is becoming unstable.
They are not creating the visions.
They are exploiting them.
The cult's goal appears to be to weaken the anchors and increase the likelihood of the nightmare invasion the children have seen.
Important distinction
Venrieth does not believe the giant is necessarily the master of the cult.
She believes the cult may be interpreting the visions incorrectly—or knowingly encouraging the worst possible outcome.
"Those who desire an ending often mistake their desire for prophecy."
ACT 4 — The First Lead
The map reveals that the mountain ward has a historical connection to a settlement called Greywatch.
Greywatch was once a mining and trading settlement in the foothills of the northern mountains.
It was abandoned decades ago after a series of collapses and unexplained disappearances.
The temple has not heard from anyone there in several months.
Venrieth produces an old travel record.
The record
"Greywatch was established near a deep seam of black stone."
"The miners reported sounds beneath the mountain."
"The old Listening Stone was sealed after the collapse of the eastern mine."
"No further records."
The party can learn:
- Greywatch lies several days from Danu.
- The old mine may be connected to the ward.
- The cult has likely discovered the same location.
- The mountain in the children's drawings may be Greywatch's mountain.
A clue from the rescued children
Before the party leaves, Rowan gives them a small charcoal drawing.
This one is different.
It shows a mountain, but at the bottom is a tiny temple with a tree symbol.
The tree is split down the middle.
On the back, Rowan has written:
"This place is hurt."
Venrieth recognises the symbol.
It is an ancient representation of a root-anchor.
She believes the party should investigate Greywatch before the cult can do further damage.
ACT 5 — The Night Watch
This act provides a contained encounter before the party departs Danu, while also giving Zannotah's vision a consequence.
The party has the remainder of the day to prepare. They can purchase supplies, investigate Greywatch, or speak to the children.
That evening, something happens in the temple.
Read aloud
Night settles over Danu.
The temple is quiet.
The rescued children sleep beneath the protection of Dannan's roots.
For a time, nothing disturbs them.
Then one of the temple bells rings.
Once.
A deep, hollow sound.
Venrieth rises immediately.
The sound did not come from the bell tower.
It came from below.
The disturbed ward
The party is taken to a lower chamber beneath the temple.
There they discover that a small portion of the ancient root network has begun to pulse with black light.
A faint whisper comes from the stone.
Not words.
A distant sound of breathing.
Zannotah may recognise the sensation from his vision.
The roots around the disturbance are not attacking.
They are recoiling.
Encounter: The Root-Touched Intruders
The cult has sent a small group to test the temple's defenses.
This is not a major assault. It is a reconnaissance mission.
Enemies
- 3 Dream-Touched Cultists
- 1 Root-Touched Acolyte
The cultists attempt to reach the disturbed root and place a black-glass shard into a crack in the stone.
The acolyte protects them.
Battlefield
A circular chamber with a central root formation.
- Stone pillars provide half cover.
- The root formation is difficult terrain.
- The chamber contains three ancient Dannan symbols.
- The cultists are attempting to corrupt one of the symbols.
Encounter objective
The party wins by defeating the intruders or removing the shard before the ritual is completed.
If the shard remains in place for three rounds, the root formation briefly opens a vision of the mountain.
Root-Touched Acolyte
Medium humanoid, chaotic evil
Armor Class 14 Hit Points 45 (6d8 + 18) Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
| 12 (+1) | 14 (+2) | 16 (+3) | 10 (+0) | 14 (+2) | 13 (+1) |
Saving Throws Wis +4, Con +5
Skills Religion +2, Perception +4
Damage Resistances Psychic
Senses Darkvision 60 ft., Passive Perception 14
Languages Common
Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Root Communion
The acolyte has advantage on saving throws against being frightened while within 10 feet of a Dannan root formation.
Spellcasting
The acolyte is a 4th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 12, +4 to hit with spell attacks).
Cantrips: Thaumaturgy, Toll the Dead, Thorn Whip
1st level (4 slots): Command, Entangle, Inflict Wounds
2nd level (3 slots): Hold Person, Spiritual Weapon
Actions
Root Staff. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) bludgeoning damage plus 3 (1d6) psychic damage.
Black-Glass Shard (1/Day). The acolyte places or activates a shard in a root formation within 5 feet. Until the end of its next turn, the acolyte has advantage on its next spell attack, and the root formation emits a pulse of dark energy. Each creature within 10 feet must succeed on a DC 12 Constitution saving throw or take 5 (1d10) necrotic damage.
During the encounter
The cultists should not fight to the death if they can escape.
They know the temple is more heavily protected than expected.
One cultist might shout:
"The mountain has begun to breathe!"
Another:
"The Veiled One is listening!"
If the acolyte is captured, it may reveal:
"The first stone has cracked."
"The children have heard it."
"The road is opening."
The acolyte does not know the full identity of the Veiled One.
ACT 6 — The Consequence of Zannotah's Vision
After the encounter, the party can examine the black-glass shard.
It is similar to the vial recovered from the Dream Speaker.
When Zannotah touches it, he experiences a brief echo of the earlier vision.
Read aloud
The shard is cold.
Not cold like winter.
Cold like stone buried beneath the earth.
The moment Zannotah touches it, the temple disappears.
He stands upon the walls of Danu once more.
The sky is black.
The city burns.
The army approaches.
The giant stands beyond the horizon.
But this time, it is not looking at him.
It is looking at something behind him.
Something beneath the city.
Something buried.
Then the giant turns its head.
And for a moment, Zannotah sees a single eye.
Not in the giant's face.
In the earth.
The vision ends.
What this means
This is the first indication that the nightmare entity is not simply approaching from outside.
Something within the world may be acting as a point of contact.
The party should not yet know whether this is:
- The ward network itself.
- A hidden cult sanctuary.
- An ancient object.
- Or something that has been buried beneath Danu for centuries.
Venrieth's interpretation:
"The earth has shown you a door."
"It has not told you what lies beyond it."
ACT 7 — The Decision
The session should end with the party choosing how to proceed.
Venrieth believes the mountain ward is the most immediate lead.
She can provide:
- A map of the route to Greywatch.
- Supplies for the journey.
- A small Dannan ward-token.
- A letter of introduction to a local guide or surviving official, if appropriate.
But she also warns that leaving Danu means leaving the children without the party's protection.
The temple can shelter them.
The question is whether the party can trust that shelter to last.
Venrieth's closing dialogue
"You have rescued those who were taken."
"Now we must learn why they were taken."
She places the map on the table.
"If the mountain's anchor is failing, then the cult will not be far behind."
"And if the children are right, the danger will not remain there."
She looks toward Zannotah.
"You have seen the road."
"Now you must decide whether you will walk it."
FINAL SCENE — THE NEW DRAWING
The party may visit Rowan before leaving.
He is asleep.
A charcoal drawing rests beside his bed.
It depicts the mountain.
The fissure is wider.
The black roots are spreading.
At the bottom of the page, Rowan has drawn four figures.
One is holding a lantern.
One is carrying a sword.
One is kneeling.
One is standing with a great axe.
The four figures are walking toward the mountain.
Behind them, in the far distance, a fifth figure watches.
The drawing is unfinished.
Rowan wakes suddenly.
He looks at the page.
Then at the party.
"I don't think you can stop it."
A pause.
"But I think you can make it different."
End Session
Continuation Arc — The Root Network
This session sets up a series of adventures in which the party investigates and protects the ancient ward network.
The long-term campaign premise is:
The wards are failing. The children can sense the danger. The cult is accelerating the process. The party's choices determine which possible future becomes reality.
The first three destinations
- Greywatch
Next adventure
The Mountain That Breathes
Investigate the damaged Listening Stone, a mining settlement, and a cult excavation beneath the mountain.
- The Ashen Forest
The Stone Circle
A forest ward is failing. The party must investigate a burning woodland and determine whether the cult or something older is responsible.
- The Black Sails
The Coastal Warning
A coastal ward has begun to weaken. A ship arrives carrying an unknown influence connected to the nightmare visions.
The campaign's evolving vision mechanic
At the end of each major adventure, Rowan and the other children produce new drawings. These drawings show how the future has changed.
For example:
- If the party saves Greywatch, the mountain remains intact in later visions.
- If the party fails, the mountain begins to collapse.
- If the party protects the Ashen Forest, the forest may become a refuge for people fleeing the nightmare invasion.
- If the party ignores a ward, the children may begin dreaming of creatures already inside Danu.
The visions should never tell the party exactly what to do. They should give them clues, possibilities, and difficult choices.
DM Guidance
The most important thing to preserve is that the children are not simply quest-givers. They are vulnerable people whose experiences are being exploited by the cult.
Venrieth should remain a source of wisdom, not an exposition machine. She can interpret the evidence, but she should not know the whole truth.
The cult should remain dangerous, but not omnipotent. Its members have theories, goals, and incomplete knowledge. Some may genuinely believe they are preparing the world for a necessary transformation.
And Zannotah's vision should remain personal. The eye in the earth is a seed of mystery. It might become connected to the barbarian's future, to the ward network, or to a completely different threat. For now, it is enough that he has seen something the others have not.
The party has saved the children. Now they must discover what the children have been warning them about.
