Recaps

Perly searched the Phantom Forest for Renato, convinced he had been prevented from keeping his promise to contact her, while Kira struggled to explain why she had joined her. A sudden earthquake stopped their conversation, and the mist blanketing the forest began to retreat.

• Marcus stopped Joe and Bagg's argument and ordered the adventurers to make camp by Mirror Lake.
• Perly studied a marked map and told Kira she had traced Renato's last known movements to Brekka Town and the Phantom Forest.
• Perly insisted Renato would never willingly break his promise and admitted she had searched witnesses' minds using the Association's name.
• Perly pressed Kira to explain why she had come, but an earthquake interrupted her before she could answer.
• Perly, Kira, and the adventurers watched the mist retreat and the stars reappear over the Phantom Forest.

Quelyn led the Nightwind Family expedition to capture Renato and claim his artifact, but Aknath and Kalesh turned against her and killed her. Aknath left the Underdark for the Surface, while Kalesh died beside Quelyn and the tent burned around them.

• Quelyn used a ritual and the annulled Magic Contract to locate Renato, then assembled Nightwind warriors for an expedition to seize his artifact.
• An assassin attacked Quelyn in her command tent, but Quelyn immobilized her and learned from her memories that Aknath had led the rebellion.
• Aknath charged the tent, but Quelyn survived his attack with an Invulnerability scroll until poison Kalesh had given her weakened her defenses.
• Aknath killed Quelyn with his Silver Sword, then refused to obey a guard claiming to represent the new matron mother Brichidi and declared he would not return to Samoriel.
• Aknath invited Kalesh to travel with him to the Surface, but Kalesh drank the poisoned Bloodwine and died beside Quelyn.
• Aknath burned the tent and Lolth's altar, then opened a portal and left the Underdark.

Renato woke on Dakoul’s altar among the remains of the ritual’s victims and remembered that the scene was a Descent Ritual meant to give the True God a body. As the flesh-and-bone being embraced him, Renato received Dakoul’s incomprehensible call.

• Renato woke on a blood-covered altar surrounded by dismembered bodies and recognized it as Dakoul’s altar.
• Renato spotted a monstrous being made from fused flesh and bones approaching him.
• Renato remembered that the believers had performed a Descent Ritual to let their True God walk the mortal world.
• Renato collapsed, and the being caught him in a gentle embrace.
• Renato heard Dakoul calling to him through a flood of incomprehensible whispers.

Renato awoke in a Mind Flayer Hive after being unconscious for nearly a month and discovered that his abilities and body had changed. Klauthsura explained that they were in an abandoned colony and revealed a ring that let her take on physical forms; she began offering to tell him what had happened while he was unconscious.

• Renato broke out of a biological pod and found himself in a Mind Flayer Hive, with no sign of negative effects from mind control.
• Renato checked his Adventurer's Guide and discovered increased attributes and hit points, along with the new Aberrant Reconstruction feat.
• Klauthsura emerged through a portal and told Renato that he had been unconscious for eight hundred and ninety-eight natural hours.
• Klauthsura explained that she had brought Renato to the abandoned colony where they had killed the Elder Brain Dragon.
• Klauthsura revealed a ring containing a variant of Polymorph that gave her a physical humanoid form, then offered to recount what had happened during Renato's absence.

Renato told Klauthsura what he remembered about the yochlol’s death spell and the strange dream that followed, blaming the experience on his warlock patron. In the mind flayer colony, he discovered that Mountain’s Embrace had transformed after Balin reforged it with Moradin’s divine power, and Klauthsura urged him to attune to the upgraded armor.

• Klauthsura explained that she had teleported Renato to the abandoned mind flayer colony because the demiplane was collapsing and the colony was safer without an elder brain.
• Klauthsura asked Renato why he had remained unconscious for seventy-two hours, and Renato recalled Sinnaphyx’s Power Word Kill, the Silent Lady’s warmth, and Dakoul’s Blessing absorbing his blood as shadowflame.
• Renato described the strange dream that seized him after he ended Dakoul’s Blessing, but he concealed his identity by attributing it to his warlock patron.
• Renato found Mountain’s Embrace transformed into black, gold-rune armor, and Klauthsura said Balin had infused it with Moradin’s divine power when reforging it.
• Klauthsura explained that she had reintegrated Renato’s deep dragon scalehide arming garment into the armor and invited him to attune to the upgraded suit.

Renato examined Mountain's Embrace and discovered that its new Mind Armor link let him feel surfaces through the plate. While checking his returned belongings, he found a strange metal polyhedron that the [Guide] identified as an artifact.

• Renato inspected Mountain's Embrace and appreciated how Balin's craftsmanship and Moradin's power had transformed it.
• Renato tested the armor's Mind Armor feature and felt the workbench through its plates.
• Klauthsura explained how she had enchanted Renato's dragon-hide arming garment and linked it to Mountain's Embrace.
• Renato checked his Space Ring and noticed his Consort's Mask and Dark Elf Guard Sword were missing.
• Renato emptied the ring, found an unfamiliar metal polyhedron, and saw the [Guide] identify it as an artifact.

Renato learned that Rafada’s gift was the dormant Hellforged Multiverse Wanderer, an artifact that could teleport its bearer after consuming magical equipment. After testing it with Klauthsura, he considered whether charging it could help him return to the Surface, but its operation remained unclear.

• Renato recognized the Hellforged Multiverse Wanderer and recalled its history involving Corellon, Asmodeus, Rafada, and Orcus.
• At Klauthsura’s suggestion, Renato and Klauthsura tested the artifact at the Experimentation Table.
• Klauthsura’s test showed that the artifact consumed a Mithral amulet, supporting Renato’s suspicion that it had absorbed his missing magical equipment.
• Renato realized the artifact needed magical items to recharge and wondered whether a charge could teleport him to the Surface.
• After Identify failed to reveal how the artifact worked, Klauthsura reassured Renato and invited him to have his physical measurements taken and experience life in the Colony.

After Renato’s transformation, Klauthsura took him to a hidden paper archive and invited him to share in the Mind Flayers’ pursuit of knowledge. She also promised to explore humanoid experiences with him, leaving them ready to learn about each other’s worlds.

• Renato examined his changed body and discovered that his strength and physical abilities had greatly increased.
• Klauthsura led Renato through the ruined Hive to a neglected room filled with preserved books and scrolls.
• Renato opened a manual on identifying and countering spellcasters and was captivated by its practical knowledge.
• Klauthsura explained the Colony’s physical knowledge backups and described the Mind Flayers’ dedication to study.
• Klauthsura promised to try cooked food and understand humanoid feelings alongside Renato.

Renato reflected on how survival in Ereel had reshaped his beliefs, but the peaceful routine in Klauthsura’s hive left him uneasy. When Klauthsura offered him a Drow slave whose will had been impaired, Renato rejected the offer, exposing the gulf between human and Mind Flayer values.

• Renato recalled how danger and hardship had taught him that strength mattered more than money, empathy, or hesitation in Ereel.
• He struggled to adjust to the quiet routine of studying magic, observing experiments, and reading with Klauthsura in the empty hive.
• Klauthsura offered Renato a Drow slave to help him relax, but he waved the mindless thrall away.
• Renato told Klauthsura he did not want slaves without free will serving him, and she explained that the hive regarded them as labor providers.
• Renato accepted that Klauthsura’s decisions were rational within Mind Flayer society, but he remained repulsed by gaining obedience through hypnosis.

Renato told Klauthsura that controlling the Drow slave made him uncomfortable because it erased the slave’s will for convenience, unlike mind control used to survive battle. Klauthsura recognized his accumulated grief and unease, sent the slave away, and offered to help him satisfy his physical needs, asking him to teach her about humanoid intimacy.

• Klauthsura noticed Renato’s unrest and pressed him to explain what was troubling him.
• Renato admitted that he objected to the Drow slave being stripped of his will for efficiency, though he accepted mind control in life-or-death battles.
• Klauthsura apologized, moved close to Renato, and sent the Drow slave out of the room.
• Klauthsura suggested Renato satisfy his physical needs and argued that suppressing them could impair a warrior.
• Klauthsura told Renato she sensed his pain over Balin’s disappearance and Tristana’s death, then asked him to teach her about humanoid intimacy.

Renato resolved to restrain his growing attraction to other races and explain his concerns to Klauthsura, but she misread his hesitation and changed back into her towering Dragonborn form. Overwhelmed by her embrace and invitation, Renato agreed to let her help him again, promising himself that he would refuse next time.

• Renato admired Klauthsura's transformed Dragonborn appearance and stroked her horns as she leaned into his touch.
• Renato regretted giving in to his desires and decided to tell Klauthsura he wanted to stop fooling around.
• Klauthsura misunderstood Renato's conflicted expression and used her silver ring to return to her original, towering form.
• Klauthsura embraced Renato and asked if she could help him again.
• Renato agreed to her invitation and told himself that he would firmly refuse next time.

After spending another month in the Underdark, Renato decided to tell Klauthsura that he wanted to leave their peaceful colony and return to the surface. He sent a Mind Flayer to find her so he could explain his resolve.

• Renato reflected on how his intimacy with Klauthsura had become frequent and unrestrained over the past month.
• Renato concluded that the colony's safety and tenderness could not replace sunlight, challenges, or the chance to improve his swordsmanship.
• Renato decided that staying would hold back both his growth and Klauthsura's studies, and resolved to tell her he wanted to leave.
• Renato asked a Mind Flayer to find Klauthsura after she finished her daily reading.

Renato told Klauthsura he wanted to leave the Underdark, and she accepted his decision and began planning a way to get him to the surface. She reassured him that their companionship did not require him to stay, leaving their future cooperation open.

• Renato reconsidered traveling alone and asked Klauthsura to help him return to the surface.
• Klauthsura agreed, explaining that the Underdark and the colony were unsuitable for long-term human habitation.
• Renato worried that leaving would waste Klauthsura's efforts and might feel like betraying her.
• Klauthsura told Renato that she respected his independent choice and wanted to find ways for them to cooperate in the future.
• Klauthsura embraced Renato and promised to help him leave, adding that she would come find him if he chose to return.

Renato and Klauthsura searched the ruined Mind Flayer Hive for magical equipment to charge the Hellforged Multiverse Wanderer after the colony’s missing coordinates left their return-to-the-surface plan stalled. Klauthsura recovered a usable amulet and concluded that the artifact should now have enough charge.

• Klauthsura explained that she could not teleport Renato to the surface without precise coordinates, and she rejected traveling upward through the dangerous Underdark.
• Klauthsura offered to help charge the Hellforged Multiverse Wanderer in exchange for studying its spatial mechanisms and energy source while Renato used it.
• Klauthsura led thralls through the hive ruins to recover abandoned magical equipment, and her experiments showed that duplicate items provided diminishing charge.
• Renato lifted and tossed aside a massive boulder blocking a buried storeroom while hobgoblin slaves watched.
• Klauthsura retrieved a glowing amulet from the debris and said the Hellforged Multiverse Wanderer should have enough charge.

Renato finished charging and attuned the Hellforged Multiverse Wanderer, which revealed that it could randomly teleport him to suitable environments across Ereel. He previewed a harsh desert as the current destination and decided to wait for a safer one with more water.

• Renato sacrificed his damaged Ring of Spider Climbing to finish charging the Hellforged Multiverse Wanderer.
• The artifact vanished in a flash, then reappeared above Renato's palm as it attuned to him and shared its functions.
• Renato learned that the artifact could select a suitable environment and let him preview its general conditions before teleporting.
• Renato previewed a scorching, barren desert with weathered animal bones nearby and chose not to teleport there that day.

Renato and Klauthsura analyzed a glacier shown by the artifact and found evidence of a crafted dragon scale, but Renato rejected it as too dangerous a teleport destination. He decided to keep searching for a place with manageable conditions and fresh signs of a settlement before returning to the surface.

• Klauthsura used psionics to project the artifact's information onto a whiteboard so she and Renato could study a frozen region.
• Klauthsura estimated the glacier's temperatures and wind speeds, while Renato identified a shed scale from a young White Dragon with a smooth, crafted hole.
• Renato inferred that intelligent inhabitants might live in the region, but rejected it because the glaciers could harbor dangerous creatures and hostile settlements.
• Renato and Klauthsura established that a suitable destination needed tolerable natural conditions and at least one recently crafted item among the artifact's findings.
• Renato chose to wait for a safer destination before teleporting back to the surface.

Renato prepared to teleport to a tropical island, and Klauthsura equipped him with provisions and a modified Space Ring. She named the reforged ring Klauthsura's Ring as Renato prepared to depart.

• Renato studied the artifact's visions of a beer barrel, a maintained scimitar, and a burned parchment, then decided to teleport to the island.
• Renato drank his last bottle of Noble Rot Wine while Klauthsura prepared supplies for his journey.
• Klauthsura showed Renato her nutrient-dense energy bars, and he sampled one and found it tolerable.
• Klauthsura packed water and a Seawater Distillation Device, advising Renato to seek a natural water source.
• Klauthsura stored Renato's supplies in a reforged silver Space Ring and named it Klauthsura's Ring.

Renato and Klauthsura said goodbye as he prepared to leave, and she gave him a newly fused magic ring. They parted believing their paths would eventually meet again.

• Renato read the details of Klauthsura's Ring and realized she had fused his Space Ring and Ring of Protection into a stronger item.
• Klauthsura explained how she had improved the ring and returned it to Renato.
• Renato embraced Klauthsura and gave her his Amulet of Adaptation as a parting gift.
• Klauthsura told Renato that they shared a destiny to pursue the world's heights and the universe's ultimate truth.
• Klauthsura kissed Renato goodbye and urged him to go, calling him Thought-Touched.

Barnaby’s mutiny against Captain De Leon left the Hispaniola wrecked and its surviving loyalists barricaded behind a rune-engraved door. As Barnaby’s crew argued over how to break in, he planned to seize the Magic Key and use the ship to rebuild his pirate crew.

• Barnaby’s mutinous sailors failed to open the captain’s quarters, and a young sailor blamed him for refusing to use a cannon.
• The young sailor challenged Barnaby’s authority, and other sailors argued that they deserved a say in finding another way inside.
• Barnaby recalled how someone hiding in an apple barrel exposed the mutiny plan, forcing his crew into an early attack on Captain De Leon’s men.
• De Leon returned at dawn and attacked, leaving both sides with heavy casualties while he and four others held out in the captain’s quarters.
• Barnaby resolved to take the Magic Key, punish the sailors who challenged him after returning to White Harbor, and went below to find dry match cord.

De Leon prepared to retake the Hispaniola from mutinous sailors, but a black-armored warrior killed the pirates before he could attack. The warrior asked De Leon where he was and why the pirates had attacked him.

• De Leon recalled his search for the Fountain of Youth and the pirates' attempt to seize the Hispaniola.
• De Leon gathered the four other loyal survivors and planned to exploit the pirates splitting up to open the Magic Door.
• A crash and brief battle sounded on deck, followed by sudden silence.
• De Leon led his companions out of the cabin and found the pirates dead and a black-armored warrior wielding a colossal Black Sword.
• The warrior spoke with a refined North noble's accent and asked De Leon where he was and why the pirates had attacked him.

Renato teleported to a sunlit island and appeared on a battered ship, where he killed the armed sailors who attacked him. As several survivors emerged from belowdecks, he lowered his sword and began asking them for information about his unfamiliar surroundings.

• Renato arrived on a sailing ship after teleporting, and noticed the artifact's teleportation had dispelled magic attached to him.
• Renato found a wrecked deck littered with corpses and faced armed sailors gathered by the captain's cabin.
• Renato killed the sailors with the Silent Lady while their matchlock shots failed to pierce his magical defenses.
• Renato regretted not keeping an attacker alive to question and reflected that his time in the Underdark had changed his instincts.
• Several survivors emerged from belowdecks, and Renato lowered his sword before asking them about the situation.

Renato learned that he had landed aboard Captain Ponce de León’s ship during a pirate mutiny, and that the paladin Lectus was another passenger. After questioning Renato’s arrival, de León offered to help him if he could.

• Renato dispelled Dakoul’s Blessing and learned that Ponce de León captained the ship, where disguised pirates had tried to seize control.
• The remaining pirates surrendered after seeing the slaughter on deck, and de León’s men bound them.
• Renato asked how de León would deal with the pirates and whether Lectus commanded the ship, and de León insisted that he alone was captain.
• Renato recalled that Lectus was a paladin of Tyr and stayed wary despite Lectus showing him no hostility.
• De León asked how Renato had suddenly landed aboard the ship and offered to help if Renato needed it.

Renato concealed his strange journey by telling Captain De Leon he had been displaced by a magical experiment, then accepted the dead navigator’s cabin aboard the Hispaniola. After showing he wanted neither the ship nor its rewards, Renato asked whether the vessel could sail again and where De Leon planned to go.

• Renato invented a story about a runaway Mage Academy experiment that had swept him from his fief to the Storm Sea.
• De Leon gave Renato the late navigator’s cabin and explained that he offered it as a reward for stopping the mutiny.
• Renato declined to dwell on payment, and his vanished gold coins convinced De Leon that he possessed powerful spatial equipment.
• Renato went to the sterncastle railing and asked De Leon whether the Hispaniola could sail again and where he intended to go next.

Renato and the Hispaniola’s crew held a vote to decide the fate of seven captured pirates after one escapee was shot and eaten by sharks. As the prisoners blamed one another, the Adventurer’s Guide opened and showed Renato a new quest.

• Renato learned the Hispaniola was a Magic Ship, and De Leon and his mates pushed it off the shoal after releasing its Magic Anchor.
• A pirate escaped over the side at night, but De Leon shot him, and sharks soon reached the body.
• The crew and two passengers began voting on whether the seven remaining pirates should live or die.
• A disguised noble youth demanded that all the pirates be executed, while Lectus abstained until he could determine their roles in the crimes.
• Barnaby begged Renato for mercy and offered him a ransom, but the Adventurer’s Guide opened and presented Renato with a new quest.

Renato considered the Sea of a Thousand Islands and decided Barnaby’s quest offered too little reward for its risks. De Leon revealed he would spare Barnaby for now because the Hispaniola needed the pirates’ help to sail, while still promising to have him hanged in White Harbor.

• Renato read Barnaby’s quest description and reflected on the Sea of a Thousand Islands as a hub for trade, pirates, and potential quests.
• Renato decided not to take the quest, judging that its reward did not justify the risks of opposing the captain.
• De Leon told Barnaby that mutiny meant death but offered him a chance to reach land, prompting the young nobleman to protest.
• Barnaby realized De Leon needed the pirates to operate the Hispaniola and said they would have to work together until reaching White Harbor.
• De Leon told Barnaby to enjoy his remaining days at sea and vowed that White Harbor’s governor would prepare a noose for him.