Elves of Kalak-Nur

By request, a description of the two major Elven cultures of +Kalak Nur . They are mostly far from any of the areas PCs have explored so far. If someone wants to play a PC of the following Elf varieties or a member of the Black Veil (yesterday's blog post), let me know and I'll figure it out.

Elves of East Trepan -

Physical description

Height: adults range from 6 feet to 8 feet tall
Build: noted for being physically imposing; some theorize they unconsciously secrete a musk signaling them as predators.
Teeth: sharp and pointed in the front; thought to be natural as also present in half-elves not raised in their culture
Skin: palest white, with occasional tinges of blue or green. Tattoos to mark life events.
Eyes: solid black with no distinguishable irises or pupils
Hair: roughly half of them have pitch black hair, half pale blonde (but not white). However, they frequently dye it other colors with plant dyes to mark social station, conquests, battles survived, and other life events.
Dress: rough tunics and armor made of hides, with no qualms about using the skin of other humanoids or intelligent creatures.

 

 (Images: top from "30 Days of Night", middle cover of an Elric comic and "Barbarian Barbie" by Kimsokol on DeviantArt, bottom is from "Centurion")

History and Culture: In their original land, the Elves of East Trepan were conquerors who ruled a vast empire from sea to sea. Humans built up a rival empire, culminating in a powerful human king making a pact with higher powers that banished magic and Elves from their world. The Elves suffered much adjusting to their new world, and now they are mostly allied savage tribes who seek to undermine human cultures through duplicity and raids.
Captives of other races who are not eaten are taken to their witches, who drain the person they were and replace it with something...other. Children are turned into Children of Cthon.

(Image) Elven Witches

(image)

The Elves of East Trepan on Kalak-Nur are often hidden in plain sight. Sleeper agents have infiltrated many cities of other races and are working to destabilize them. They hide their ears and wear thick makeup, taking on jobs in trade and government to position themselves most effectively. This life grates on them, and they long for the day they can raid openly and eat the hearts of their enemies.


Location: There are many settled lands of other races between the Known West and East Trepan. The Elves there, however, have found tunnel systems between East and West that others do not know of.

~~@~~

Elves of the Southern Reach 

Physical description
Height: adults range from 4 to 5.5 feet tall
Build: slender and elegant, they move with grace from birth. Some adults train themselves to move more awkwardly and formally as a sign of "maturity"
Other features: pointed ears, and otherwise consistent with "fey elves" of other settings
Dress: layered formal wear consistent with the Antebellum South, US Confederacy, and/or Victoriana

Illustration by Zii on DeviantArt

(photos from the past, yeah)

History and Culture: How the Elves of the Southern Reach ended up on Kalak-Nur is lost to history. Some theorize the ruins of ships full of gears and pipes near their lands were the method, but they do not claim so. They have been here for generations, and have built up their land and culture. While their presence makes the Eastern Kingdoms nervous, there are political truces and trade established. In secret, they work with the Elves of East Trepan to undermine stability and eventually rule once again.
Their culture is one of layer upon layer of formal interactions, social obligations, and superficial pleasantries. Their social hierarchies are rigidly enforced, although those of elven blood may improve their station. Rarely, a non-elf may rise, but it is a distinct anomaly. Non-elves are mostly slaves and indentured servants on their vast plantations.

Magic is rarely overtly practiced, but suffuses their being and colors all interactions with other races and kingdoms. Agreements with the Elves of the Southern Reach and gifts from them are to be feared, as they are enforced by ancient pacts and magical energy. These elves often trick non-elves into making agreements that end up with them as magically dominated Elven slaves. "But wait -" "I didn't mean -" Pleading is of no avail; their magic is strong and brought on by one's own words.
If one receives a gift from them, one must repay it with like value within 24 hours or be under the Elf's sway.

(The Elves of East Trepan are similar to Zak S's White Elves of Nornrik in Vornheim, but I thought I thought of them before I read it. Not sure if I unconsciously nicked it from him or we were just inspired by similar sources. Maybe that's their origin planet? +Kalak Nur  is a world of the marooned.

The Elves of the Southern Reach were directly inspired by +Ian Johnson 's character "The Colonel". It should be noted The Colonel is not a +Kalak Nur native to my knowledge. Maybe they have the same original planet and are offshoots of each other?)

Children of Cthon, Eye of Cthon (NPC/monsters for D&Dish games)

 "Oh I guess it's obvious, I also like to bite!"*

Cthon was a half-elven general thousands of years ago who preached elven superiority and led crusades against other races. He is the most significant historical figure in the culture of East Trepan.

Children of Cthon were once human children. The elves of East Trepan kidnap human children to use as manual labor. They keep them drugged and in trance states. Those that show a special aptitude for magic and/or cruelty are given to the elven Blood Witches to become something else.

After a ritual during which most of the child's blood is drained and replaced with a special alchemical sludge, the child sleeps for 2 weeks and awakes a Child of Cthon. Part of the sludge is the blood of an elven witch (or witches), who the Child is then forever bonded to and receives commands from.

Their eyes and hair are solid black or white; their skin is white, rubbery, and constantly secreting a clear goo that is unpleasant to the touch. They carry long, curved daggers that are often poisoned. They are known to sneak up on prey, then giggle in a whisper to unnerve them.

Child of Cthon
No. of appearing: 1d6 per Elven Witch present
HD: 2
AC: 5 or 15
Movement: as human child
No. of Attacks: 1 + Special
Damage: 1d4 (bite) or 1d4+2 (dagger); poison causes Sleep or a random effect upon a hit and failed save
Special Abilities: They are completely silent and can hide in shadows as Thieves
Scream: Once per combat they can let loose a Scream, which will cause Fear as the spell and cause anyone failing their save to flee from the Child as fast as possible. The Scream also can communicate one sentence of information to the Child's bonded Witch. Elves and Children of Cthon are immune.

There is a 30% chance the PCs encountered the Child in the past when it was human.

From the film, "Grave Encounters"

If slain by magic, there is a 50% chance their heart will animate and burst forst as an Eye of Cthon. These look like a bundled mass of muscle and tissue with a large elven eye in the middle and 1d6+2 tentacles radiating out from its sides. Eyes of Cthon will not attack elves.

Eye of Cthon
No. of appearing: see above
HD: 1
AC: 4 or 16 (small, fast)
Movement: as a human running
No. of Attacks: 2 or Special
Damage: 1d4/1d4 (tentacles)
Special Abilities: If they land two successful hits on a creature with tentacles in the same round, they are latched to that creature with barbs and auto-hit each round until destroyed. The tentacles will cause damage until the creature or Eye is killed, even if severed.
Eye: Every three rounds, an Eye of Cthon may emit a Ray of Confusion that acts like the Confusion spell to any non-elf that can see it within 15 feet. Children of Cthon are immune to this.

I have a picture in my head of an Eye of Cthon, but can't find anything good online. I may add one later.

*The image at the top shows up on film blogs that talk about vampires from a couple of years ago, but I couldn't find a source or credit.

Nekomata of Hibernia (monster for old school games)

Nekomata appear as small felines of a breed similar to the house cats and strays present in any city. Observant travelers will notice they have two tails. They are encountered in the wild hills of Hibernia, and are feared and respected by the tribes of savages, barbarians, and mystics who reside there.
If threatened, the resemblance to a normal animal will quickly be shed. Similar to human warriors of the Hibernian hill tribes, these cats undergo a Warp Spasm and become large, monstrous beasts when angry. They twist and turn within their skin, foaming at the mouth and growing to a length of 5 feet or more. The final appearance does not necessarily resemble the larger natural cats found elsewhere.

 In addition, they are known to have several unusual powers. While these cats cannot speak in human tongues audibly, they can read human thoughts and will react appropriately if offended thereby. The Nekomata may also enter the dreams of humans, where they may communicate by shaping the images in the dream or by direct thought as if they were speaking the same language. They can also create the illusion of small fires in the minds of the awake, often leading travelers towards or away from things at the Nekomata's whim.
If a body has not been through any burial rituals, a Nekomata may jump over it to animate and command it as a zombie. This undead is essentially mindless, fighting or performing physical tasks as directed by its master. The zombie will stay animate even if contact with the Nekomata is lost, performing the last action as directed until destroyed. If the animated dead is still intact when the fight is over or physical task complete, the Nekomata will usually release it from control and return the creature to a freshly dead state.
There are tales of similar creatures in other realms that can take the forms of humans and breed with them, but the specimens in the hills of Hibernia are not known to do this.

NEKOMATA: AC 6 or 14; HD 3+2 up to 8; MV 150'*; ATTACKS claw/claw/bite - 1st round 1d4/1d4/1d6, Subsequent rounds 1d8/1d8/2d8; SPECIAL raise dead / dream communication / illusion of small fires as above; AL N

*if difficult to translate MV 150', just assume they can move 1.25 times as fast as a human, so slightly faster

ZOMBIES: treat as your standard low-level mindless undead; Zombie from Basic or AD&D 1E works

Dread Haruspectre of the Frozen Hand (an old school D&D joint)

So I'm hanging out with my pal A and our friend M is in town, and these two ladies want me to watch the Woody Allen movie. There are decent actors in it, so I go OK and we get to the theater and it's sold out. Then they talk me into seeing the male stripper movie, and I'm like OK, Soderbergh, and it was way better than it had any right to be (I do not enjoy naked men, which is sad, because men are hella sluts). Plus, afterward I could make M all fluttery by talking in a Matthew McConaughey accent, and while she is coupled up with another dude it was funny and fun to watch her reaction.

All of which is to say, I got home at nearly 2 AM and couldn't sleep, but I wasn't really getting ideas for the things I should be writing. Instead, I kept thinking about this drawing that Zak S posted the other day. 

It would probably be easy to fill several D&D sessions just getting to this encounter, and/or deriving from it.

PROSPECTUS: The big face-person in the drawing is a hologram projected from the platform but more importantly a fortune-teller who reads the entrails of freshly-gutted intelligent creatures who have to have cared about the answers she is seeking. So. One of the PCs has to die to get the answer they want. Another PC has to hold his/her guts in front of the face-person.

Two wrinkles are in the PCs favor. Wrinkle 1: if what they desire was impossible, trying to find the answer by letting her read the fresh entrails makes an answer possible. Wrinkle 2: The big box of shapes below is a quantum-engine thingy that makes a duplicate of whatever's inside, including a person. Make a clone of yourself, but one of you has to die to get what you want.*

All this can be found out by questioning the inhabitants of this cruel moon.

DETAIL: The Haruspectre of the Frozen Hand is encountered by those who, by teleportation mishap or starship crash landing, wind up marooned on this forgotten moon of an abandoned planet. She wishes to leave, but cannot mention this directly. For most, she is the only way off the planet. Those who do escape abandon her here, for the safety of other systems and so there will be a way out if they end up here again.

The Haruspectre of the Frozen Hand (giant face w/legs in the drawing)

-secretly a hologram projected by floating platform; only observed on this platform and voice comes from it and not her face; face only moves to change expression

-weapons (magical or not) and spells pass through her to no effect; damage to platform causes her to disappear for 1day per HP of damage (platform has 50 HP and will regenerate [1hp/day] to full due to nanobots or whatever, as long as 1 HP is still there)

-Haruspex of the Frozen Hand is actually her title, as she is the last of her dread order. She can see the future, and in some ways make the future, by reading the entrails of an intelligent creature. The creature must care greatly about the answer sought, and must die in the process. If there was no answer to the question asked, reality will alter to make an answer possible. 

An example: "How do I get off this damned rock?" If there was previously not a way off, but the ritual gutting and entrails reading happens correctly, there will now be a way. ("Combine the parts from the ship in the valley to the south with the power couplers at the bottom of Bloodfly pond." or "Invoke the demon Gammün and make a deal with it to cross through the Plane of Dream's Regret.")

Drawn by Zak. Zak, if I should remove the drawing for some reason let me know and I will.

*Her platform is often floating above an obscure object with many interlocking planes of metal and glass. There are several shafts and enclosed chambers in it. If the PCs are very successful in questioning the locals, they can find out it is a Quantum Double-Slit Diffraction Drive, a device that will pull in a version of whatever is put in one of its chambers from a slightly different reality, including a living being.

-If a PC is duplicated in this way, the 'new' being has the memories and allegiances of the original PC, but rolls HP from scratch and rolls a D6 for each existing ability score, in order:

1-3: subtract this number from the ability score

4: add 1 to the ability score

5: add 2

6: add 3

(This is an opportunity if a player likes their character but wants to change something subtle and have an in-game reason. Abilities, personality, whatever. Or just a disturbing, wacky mess.)

A common practice for those who have sought out the Haruspectre or are trapped here is to duplicate themselves, then either have the duplicate sacrifice them or subdue and sacrifice their own double. The duplicate knows the situation, and will endeavor to be the one that survives. If neither is killed in 1d6 days after duplication, both will decay and mutate in bizarre ways even if they leave this moon.

The Haruspectre is served by creatures that enjoy dispatching the remains of the dread fortune-telling ritual; several Giant Flies and a Doublegator. (Doublegator stats as Crocodile from MM but additional bite attack from back end.)

She has befriended a telepathic Giant Frog of genius intelligence, but he does not serve her. They play odd forms of strategy and riddle games, sometimes involving creatures of lesser intelligence in their hobby, to their detriment.

This moon is mostly deserts, frozen tundra, mountains, and crashed spaceships. Some of the crashed ships had sufficient resources and population to form small communities around. Most of these groups are friendly enough, although cutthroat about survival. Others have developed bizarre habits in their isolation. The Haruspectre and her companions are left alone until an individual needs help, then there is a lottery among those concerned to see who will have the honor of being the sacrifice.

If the Haruspectre is killed (by destroying the platform), the weird and sometimes savage moon-tribes will seek the death of whoever did it.

EDIT: did a quick grammar edit and moved the picture up to break up the text.

Encounter Type and Nine-headed Monster Tables

Roll 1d4 to determine encounter type or do whatever you want:

1. The thing is enraged/a mindless killer, all heads attack no matter what.
2. The thing is wary of intruders and attacks them based upon triggers (PCs getting near eggs, treasure, mate; PCs mentioning a certain person or concept, etc).
3. Diplomatic encounter; the thing has knowledge or influence the PCs need, but the heads' different personalities fight over whether it should help them; different methods will persuade different heads, some conflicting. (method that convinces one head may anger another)
4. The thing needs something the PCs have (item, knowledge, influence) but looks like something the PCs need to kill; it will defend itself, but stop attacking if the PCs let up. Killing it is Evil and will enrage townsfolk/powerful wizard/the PCs' God.

CHAOS HYDRA - Nine heads - roll** nine times to start, (optionally: twice whenever a head is severed and two grow in place):

1. Bear head in clown makeup; bite attacks as bear & fear effect
2. Mummy head; berates PCs for modern dress/language/behavior while casting spells at them; smells bad
3. Baby dragon head; bite/breath attacks as baby dragon; wants to know where mommy is
4. Adult dragon head; bite/breath as appropriate; wants treasure
5. Sleazy Adult dragon head; wants to gamble with PCs; cheats magically
6. Old Dragon head; wants other heads to shut up so it can sleep
7. Orc chieftain head; just wants respect
8. Snake head; always lies; bite/poison attack
9. Dumb bearded guy; always tell truth, accidentally; one strong arm grows next to this head holding a club weapon
10. Giant fist that punches PCs forever
11. Lion head; will be appeased if PCs convince him he is their leader; roar/bite attacks
12. Wolf head; just wants to be fed -"I don't think you head me correctly. What you heard was: 'Give me A LOT of your food'; what I said was 'Give me ALL of your food.'"
13. Mind-flayer head
14. Neck-Beard; wants to teach PCs new games and play them; all heads will be placated while PCs are playing games with him, but immediately attack if PCs express boredom, try to leave, or try another tactic
15. *Blonde animal or human head with ridiculous pompadour and underbite; Says, "heh heh, heh hehe," a lot and wants to be shown cool stuff like fire; if unimpressed, PCs being eaten by other heads is cool stuff; if fed and shown something REALLY cool, cowl will drop over head and frenzied sounds emerge as this head attacks other heads while creature runs in random pattern
16. Portable hole/vacuum; PC are sucked in 1/rd if fail STR check; stored until end of battle or quest completed inside. Inside is an alternate dimension that is either a tricky trap maze with Cenobite-type demons or a creepy alternate version of the PCs' home town OR BOTH
17. Deer head; antler attack; plant foods makes it happy
18. Demon head; wants to be freed from rest of creature and returned to hell
19. Entire baby with god-like strength and ego
20. Human head with decaying mask and crazy eyes; invokes power of maddening dark forces from beyond understanding that generally put the PCs to sleep

*ALT for 15 or any entries not appropriate to game/setting: head of dead former companion or family member that attempts to convince PCs that they were the ones who should have died; is magically persuasive and induces PCs to suicide

**DOUBLE ALTS to replace any human heads above for extra monsterness or whole table above for simplicity:
1. Cockatrice head - beak strike turns PC to stone
2. Crocodile head
3. Medusa head
4. Frog head with tongue attack
5. Insect head with acid vomit attack
6. Giant snake head; speaks common and wants to be told how pretty it is; bite/poison attacks

"Blood-Tree Tunnels of the Swamp Witch"

First post! I'm excited to begin my gaming blog with collaboration! 

In a fit of wonderful birthday insanity Monster Johnson made the map below in inimitable DIYpunk fashion, based on the suggested titles from Jack (Caves of the Swamp Wives) and myself (Blood-tree Tunnels of the Swamp Witch). 

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

My Key for the Blood-Tree Tunnels side:

* = optional flavor text in footnotes

The Tunnels are made from living ROOTS of Blood-trees guided into their current shape. Upon touching the wall, there is a 2 in 3 chance any creature painlessly loses 1 hp per round as the roots absorb blood. On the 3rd consecutive round touching the same spot, the roots will ensnare the creature, requiring significant force to break free. On the 4th consecutive round touching the same spot, the creature loses 1 CON point per round until freed from the roots. At 3 CON the creature is released under the roots' control, with its only desire to put other creatures in the roots. CON points and sanity are regained with food and sleep.

10. This humid, dank cavern is dominated by PUFFBALL MUSHROOMS covered in tiny spines. Interspersed are dead, naked bodies. If disturbed, the mushrooms release a 5 ft cloud of spores in the area (save fails: blindness for 1d4+1 rounds / passes: 1 round of coughing.) There is no path through the mushrooms, but profuse vines hang from the ceiling. The vines break 1 in 6 times they are grabbed, but are otherwise useable for swinging across the mushrooms without disturbing them. Some of these vines may be blood-tree roots. Swinging over the mushrooms takes 3-6 vine swings. If all the mushrooms are destroyed in the left half, a secret path to area 11 can be found. 

11.This room is piled high with mouldering clothing of all types. 3-6 Immature Mothmen use areas 10 and 11 and are immune to both mushroom spores and blood-tree roots. The Mothmen swoop from the ceiling and gain surprise, immediately attacking anyone entering area 11. They will place any creature affected by their Hypnotic Wings against the wall for the roots to feed on. They have coincidentally never encountered the Swamp Witch.

One beautiful JELLY MUSHROOM grows here, which if eaten negates the effects of roots, puffballs, or Hypnotic Wings. *

IMMATURE MOTHMEN: AC 9 or 11; MV (as human, same flying); HD 1 to 4; AL N; ATTACKS: normal spear or: HYPNOTIC WINGS - save or be immobilized, staring at wings. New save when damage is taken, every 3 rounds if damage by ROOTS.

12. A few more Jelly Mushrooms grow here. The northern wall is dominated by a huge, floor-to-ceiling bookshelf. The books are histories, novels, and plays from long-dead societies and folio collections of rare art prints. 1 in 10 chance any book checked is hollowed out, actually containing a tragic gothic romance. There are also several children's books with strong female heroines. There is one comfortable chair, cracked and dirty. Anyone picking up one of the SKULLS interspersed as book-ends is attacked by it; see area 17.

If more than 2 creatures walk between areas 12 and 13 at the same time, the whole floor collapses and everyone on it falls into area 17. This is detectable as a pit trap by trap-detecting types. 6 people can fit, single file, before it collapses. If collapsed, the only passage is by holding onto Blood-tree roots.

13. A boiling kettle of shiny black liquid bubbles over a fire. Any creature looking into, touching, or eating it spends the next hour moping vocally about their choices in life. Affected creatures just want to lean against the wall and cry. A save is allowed for every round they are slapped by another person, with cumulative +1s per round slapped. The effect takes place even on characters who have previously saved. 

 A SHAGGY INK MUSHROOM grows from the wall. Disappearing ink can be milked from it while it is alive or the first round after it is picked.

14. A cluttered laboratory, jammed with shelves piled high with ponderous tomes of magical research, jars and flasks full of noxious powders and liquids, bizarre apparatuses, open flames, and tiny caged humanoids, living and (un)dead, about the size of a thumb. If too much of the equipment is disturbed, disembodied hands attacks from the clutter. The shelf blocking the tunnel at the back cannot be moved without at least 6 rounds of contact with blood-tree roots and at least two creatures of exceptional strength. If the liquids or powders are consumed, they produce random potion effects, or make you feel bloated. Alternatively, any potion consumed causes one to switch places and sizes with a tiny, caged humanoid.

15. LAIR OF THE SWAMP WITCH. One side of this cavern has a four-poster bed, a large, comfy chair, and a dirty, scarred table littered with books and candles. The other side is a mushroom garden, full of yellowish, normal-looking mushrooms. There is a 3 in 4 chance the SWAMP WITCH Albixa (Dusk Hag Revenant) is here. She is lonely, and wishes to engage newcomers in conversation as long as possible. Coincidentally, she is completely unaware of the Mothmen using areas 10 and 11.

If attacked, she will activate EMETIC MUSHROOMS which float over intruders' head on clouds of noxious methane and pour acidic blood on them. *

16. Jelly mushrooms (see area 11) and Puffballs (see area 1)grow here. There is a case full of decaying scrolls and trinkets that falls over toward the Puffballs when first touched. It's door is extremely creaky. There is a pristine magical ring with a red ruby that contains the essence of an evil chaos sorcerer; he cannot cast spells, but can communicate telepathically and will try to convince anyone he contacts that there are vast riches in area 17. He just wants to watch things die. The ring magically returns to the case in 2 hours if removed.

If the case is not in it's original position when the tunnel between 16 and 18 is entered, the tunnel collapses and anyone on it falls into the water in area 18. If more than 10 minutes is spent here, Blood-tree Zombies are released from the walls (see 17)

17. Emetic Mushrooms float up and vomit acidic blood (digested from the roots) on anyone who ventures here, with increasing frequency toward the back tunnel. The ground is littered with old bones, weapons and armor eaten away by acid, and gold pieces. Two hungry kobolds named Bon are trapped in a raised niche in the wall, and will give a magic knife and bracelet to anyone freeing them. They might know where a treasure horde is buried in the swamp above. The floor here is littered with Skeleton Heads, and there are a few Blood-Tree Zombies that want to push people to the walls.

SKELETON HEADS: AC 7 or 13; HD 1; ATTACKS BITE 1D6

BLOOD-TREE ZOMBIES: AC 10; HD 2-4; ATTACKS PUSH, GRAPPLE, PUNCH/BITE 1D3

18. This chamber is flooded with greenish liquid that smells of the acid vomited by the Emetic Mushrooms. Vines hang from the ceiling; they can be used to swing across, but break 2 in 6 times. There is a 50% chance any vine grabbed is a Blood Tree Root. In the water is a Mummified Giant Salamander. He attacks anyone making noise or near the water. He will not attack anyone paralyzed by fear at seeing him, but nudge them toward the root-wall with one of his attacks.

MUMMIFIED GIANT SALAMANDER:  AC 6 or 14; HD 8-16; ATTACKS 3: BITE 1D8 CLAWS 1D4; anyone seeing SAVE VS FEAR (FAIL: paralyzed for 1-4 rounds)

*11. If a party does not attack for a full round and is not interested in their "treasure", the Mothmen immediately stop attacking and attempt to have a pleasant conversation; they are desperately lonely. They will explain that they were sent by their tribe as sacrificial husbands for some Swamp Brides, but lost their map to the Swamp Brides' caves and found these tunnels instead. Their "treasure" is clothing gathered from dead bodies in the swamp and tunnels. This clothing is their food.

*15. She is not hostile, but will be towards anyone who damages her laboratory or garden. She has many items infused with magic power from her experiments. She only cares about areas 12, 14 and 15.

If engaged in conversation, her topics are: her dreams of the future that she misinterprets as ancient history, history she has read about or experienced, her hated sisters who she "exiled" long ago, her beloved salamander, and the herbal medicinal needs of the local town, who consult her on a regular basis. If she is pleased with someone, she will grant them "dreams of wondrous history" - prophetic dreams for 1d6 nights.

*16. There are several empty slots, with a note saying "Borrowed from down the corridor, will return soon." The note is so old it crumbles after being read. If the salamander is mentioned, the ring sorcerer will claim Albixa stole it from him. If the ring is mentioned to Albixa, she will just exclaim, "What a mistake HE was!"

--
I think this works best if the PCs need information only Albixa can tell them, or an item in 17.

Let me know what you think!

(edited to put flavor at bottom, breaking up chunks of text)