Hey guys,

It’s been a busy week, so I’m a little slow to post session notes. JP, you might need to correct my “from memory” notes with the notes you jotted down last Monday. But here’s my summary:

Wrenn, Grabnar, and Grixori ponder the book case filled with chained, iron-bound books. After their experiences with aggressive books, chairs, and dustpans, they are leery about messing with this collection of volumes. While discussing what to do about it, they realize that there is a single un-bound book lying upon the reading stand. It is another Mordenkainen book with a fancy capital “L” emblazoned on it’s spine.

Meanwhile, Lis, DU.EE and Waldo continue contemplating the strange, illusory planetarium. Lis had pointed one of the 5 telescopes at one of the 5 bright stars glowing in the virtual firmament and found that it shone a beam of light directly at the glass orb in the center of the room, causing it to glow with refracted starlight. DU.EE examines the walls, which, when approached, appear as simple, unadorned grey slate. He finds no secret doors or anything noteworthy. However, he does hear thumping and yelling from beyond the west wall.

(I don’t remember the exact sequence or who initiated contact with the bookcase – so I’ll summarize very generally)

The group in the hidden room with the “chained library” decide to examine some of the books, and sure enough… the whole bookcase springs to life and attacks them. It lashes out viciously with heavy iron books at the ends of sturdy chains. Wrenn and Grabnar both take a thumping!

Realizing that their friends are in some kind of trouble, and suspecting that the telescopes and the glass orb might mean something, Lis and DU.EE start aligning more of the telescopes. Waldo takes off at a sprint to get up into the attic to help.

Wrenn, Grixori, and Grabnar, realizing that they are about to get pounded into jelly, wisely (and dexterously) scamper back up the rope into the attic. Meanwhile, the planetarium experiment bears fruit. The combined light beams from all five telescopes sends a beam of light that seems to not just illuminate, but to conjure a door in the west wall. They swing it open, and find themselves face to face with a furious piece of furniture. Looking up, DU.EE notices a pair of feet clambering up into a ragged hole in the ceiling.

A battle ensues. Between flaming arrows, eldritch blasts, and other attacks, the belligerent bookcase is finally smashed to bits. Scorched wood, chains and books tumble to the floor.

Investigating the wreckage, the group discovers many books written in an unrecognizable language, but using draconic characters. A couple of books written in common stand out:

A Treatise on the Ethics of Constructs, and Magic of the Rune

“Magic of the Rune” discusses how truth innately resides in written language. The most pure of words are those expressed in runes… shapes that have deeper meaning than simply codifying spoken phonetic sounds. A rune can carry power beyond words. But those truths can also be turned to acts of falsehood. There are runes of power than can be used to conduct great works of magic, when drawn with precision, care, and proper materials. A ribbon holds the place on a chapter discussing the “Magic Nullifying Rune.” It can be used to overcome some of the most powerful charms, curses, and other magical effects. The rune must be drawn on the item upon which the magic has been cast – using rare materials that must be prepared with great care. This rune in particular must be drawn using mummy brown – a rich brown pigment made from the remains of ancient mummies – mixed with an extract of Black Nocturnumbra – a very rare variety of nightshade. It must be applied with a brush made from the hair of a hellhound’s tail.
 
This book is annotated by Fystandia – describing how this rune can be placed on a book to circumvent the magic protecting it from theft in Candlekeep. Including items held within the Chamber of Lost Lore.

The explorers are all very curious about these arcane components needed for this rune, and wonder what might lie within the destroyed remnants of smashed specimens in other rooms they had encountered. Waldo casts “Detect Magic” and proceeds to lead the group through a quick review of the spaces they had previously visited. He realizes right away that this entire mansion is innately magical. There is a constant ambience of magic throughout. Perusing the specimens left behind in the alchemical lab, Grixori finds some nightshade, but not the rare species noted in “Magic of the Rune.”

Passing through the main corridor of the “ground level” they observe Cumin and Coriander dragging bits of deceased mimic out to the patio and chucking it out into the purple mist. Ferdinand is sitting in the Study engrossed in one of Fystandia’s memoirs.

Before the “detect magic” spell runs out, they decide to investigate an unopened door alongside the damaged decorative armor at the top of the stairs. The find a short corridor and two more doors. Opening the first, they are faced with a Trophy Room. The walls are decorated with the mounted heads of a peryton, a black dragon wyrmling, a stag, a wolf, and a demonic looking dog that they are certain must be a hellhound. Two crossed longswords hang above a fireplace. Waldo detects strong magic present in the swords. Lis approaches them with a pair of lariats and carefully loops them around the pommels. He runs to the door, pulls the ropes, and predictably, the swords spring to life and dart toward him. He pulls in the slack rope and slams the door, pinning the swords tight against the door jamb. Alas, Wrenn had secreted himself behind a reading chair, and although presently undetected by the angry swords, he is trapped in his hiding place.

The group outside the door discuss a great many schemes on how they can keep the swords restrained while extricating Wrenn from his predicament. Grixori takes action and climbs back up into the attic. He pries open the floor, and peers down into the trophy room. The swords strain mightily at their tethers, trying to get at him. Wrenn takes the opportunity to grab a nearby tome bearing a letter “Y” on its spine.

With the swords preoccupied with Grixori, Grabnar throws open the door and grabs each of the two sword handles before they can fly off and do any damage. Unfortunately, one of the wildly struggling swords manages a swipe at Wrenn just as he scrambles for the door. The blade connects, resulting in a grievous wound that leaves the hapless gnome prone and bleeding on the floor.