EN5ider Presents:

Schism
Part One
A 5E-Compatible Adventure for 9th- to 10th-Level Characters
Introduction

Introduction
Wherein the Villains Prove to Be of Two Minds

I n a campaign where the party acts as

law enforcement and spies, we’ve seen

The Obscurati plan to use a mechanical colossus to open an ancient
golden seal and alter a ritual that determined what planets orbited
with the world. Changing those planets will shift the nature of real-
ity. They are mere months from enacting this scheme, but the leader
stake-outs and stings, arrests and interroga- of the conspiracy, Nicodemus the Gnostic, is an idealist. Rather
than deciding the new world order himself, he has invited the pre-
tions, and overseas spying and abduction. But viously compartmentalized Obscurati cells to a grand convocation,
where they will debate what sort of new world they wish to create.
now the party has a chance to infiltrate the

heart of the Obscurati itself, a conspiracy with Background

clever and strict security to prevent any simple The Inside Man.
One key conspirator, Leone Quital, known as the Steelshaper
disguise or lie. It’s time for the party to go since he designed the colossus, is helping coordinate the travel of
a dozen Ob officers. To maintain secrecy, many were told simply to
deep undercover. transit in the Drakran city of Mirsk. From there, Leone arranges
them to take trains to the the Crisillyiri city of Vendricce, then sail
just off coast to the Obscurati palace. (Several other similar transit
points have been set up — by sea, by train, and by teleportation.)
While the party — agents of the Royal Homeland Constabulary —
have several avenues to locate this convocation, security is nigh-im-
penetrable, and any stealth or disguise be it magical or mundane will
be easily thwarted. However they have an ally of sorts on the inside.

FROM THE PEN OF SEAMLESSLY UPDATED TO FIFTH EDITION BY

Ryan Nock Mike Myler

EVOCATIVE COVER ILLUSTRATION BY ABLY PRODUCED AND FACILITATED BY

ShenFei Russ Morrissey

STUNNING CARTOGRAPHIC DISPLAYS BY SPECIAL THANKS TO

James Hazelett to everyone who made Final Fantasy VI, since it has been
Jonathan Roberts pointed out to me that we sure seem to have a lot of similarities
to that game (clearly we need a talking octopus); to the
MASTERFUL INTERIOR ILLUSTRATIONS BY hundreds of gamers who backed the original release of
Megan Porch ZEITGEIST on Kickstarter; and to the over one thousand
Claudio Pozas generous patrons of EN World EN5IDER whose support
Dede Putra has made this Fifth Edition update possible.
Includes art in the public domain
OPEN GAME CONTENT
WITH UNPARALLELED LAYOUT AND GRAPHIC DESIGN BY The game rule information in this article is designated Open
Eric Life-Putnam Game Content. All other material in this article, including maps,
graphic elements, and illustrations (including graphic elements
and illustrations in the public domain), narrative and descriptive
text, character and place names, trade dress, “EN Publishing,”
“EN World,” “EN5IDER,” “ZEITGEIST,” all EN Publishing product
and article titles, and ZEITGEIST, EN World, and EN Publishing
logos, are designated Product Identity.

2 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Introduction

Alexander Grappa, known as the Mindmaker because he Adapting the Adventure.

crafted the intellect of the colossus, has died twice now — both To fit Schism into a more traditional, non-industrial fantasy
times at the hands of Leone Quital — but in each instance has campaign, you can assume Leone Quital is based at a major seaside
managed to transfer his consciousness into another body. Now he quarry and port instead of a railroad hub. He’s still coordinating the
survives in the back of Leone’s mind, faintly aware and able to movements of his fellow conspirators, but his powers involve
take control only when the Steelshaper is asleep. Afraid of alerting levitating and shaping stone instead of steel. Ignore the backstory
his host of his presence, Grappa has waited patiently and magi- involving the colossus, and simply re-cast Alexander Grappa as a
cally divined a way he might drive out Leone and make the body conspirator who got cold feet and managed to stick around magically
his own. in Leone’s mind after the stoneshaper slew him, or perhaps literally
an alternate personality.
Infiltration. The GM can of course give the conspiracy’s convocation any
Depending on their success in Adventure Six, Revelations from the agenda that fits the overarching campaign, or use the event as a
Mouth of a Madman, the party might already know Grappa needs stand-in for any gathering of powerful villain NPCs. Instead of an
help, or they might get an enigmatic plea from him via a letter. ideological purge at the climax, the party might simply ambush the
Either way, if they can track down and capture Leone, Grappa villains when their defenses are down.
asks to be brought to the frozen city of Knütpara, controlled by For GMs who just want some inspiration for their own campaign
frost giants. There, trapped in a glacier, lies a giant lich who could there’s:
rip men’s souls from their bodies. The party must reach the bot- • an international manhunt,
tom of a glacial rift and tear out Leone’s soul so that Grappa can • a gulag in a rift controlled by frost giants,
have a body of his own. Only then will the Mindmaker reveal what • a shipboard escape akin to the end of The Empire Strikes
he knows of the conspiracy’s convocation. Back,
With his aid and the power of the lich, the party can capture • antagonists with a vast array of sympathetic motivations,
other Obscurati officers en route to the convocation, then implant • a highly-guarded villainous palace riddled with demi-planes,
their souls into the officers’ bodies. Though it may sound mad, it’s and
the best way for the party to sneak into the Obscurati palace • a grand setpiece battle with hostages, a chase, and great
undiscovered. amounts of property damage.
During the convocation the party learns the nature of the con-
spiracy’s plans, and can actually take part in the debate over how RHC. Events might make them reconsider the motives of the Ob-
they want to change the world. The meeting lasts two days, during scurati later, though.
which the PCs can try to sway the conspiracy’s plans from within, In the other, the party remains hostile to the conspiracy. They
recruit double agents, or do a bit of eavesdropping to learn the must first escape the island, perhaps stealing the palace’s trea-
conspiracy’s weaknesses. They might also speak with Vitus Sigis- sures and rescuing potential allies. Then in later adventures they
mund, a spy for another nation who was caught trying to sneak in. can try to stop the Obscurati from fulfilling their plans.
Critically, the party needs to observe the palace’s defenses, from its
elite guards and trained basilisks to the spectral Ghost Council A Radical Scheme.
that advises Nicodemus and watches all that occurs on the island. You are welcome to run this adventure in a straightforward
chronological order, but if you’re willing to experiment a bit with
The Schism. the typical RPG narrative, Schism gives you an opportunity for a
As the convocation concludes, each Obscurati officer — including bit more cinematic pacing.
the PCs — can cast a vote for one of the possible new world orders. It might not hurt to ask the players to trust you first. When the
But despite being united in their desire to see a better world, after adventure opens, give the players the Obscurati Officer cards (the
two days of debate the members of the Obscurati have fractured shortened ones without Gestalt information), and have them take
into two opposing factions. One side favors magnaminity, better- on the role of members of the conspiracy arriving at the palace.
ing everyone’s lot while sacrificing their own power, while the After this teaser you jump back an ambiguous period of time to the
other wants to control the world, trusting themselves to personally party being contacted by Alexander Grappa. When the party
solve society’s ills as if they were demi-gods. learns of Grappa’s plan to implant their souls into the bodies of
With no consensus to be reached, Nicodemus invokes his posi- existing Ob members, hopefully players will enjoy the revelation
tion as founder of the conspiracy, and orders a purge of the selfish that they were actually playing themselves undercover in the first
and power-hungry. The palace is sealed and the Ghost Council, a scene.
massive roiling swarm of incorporeal undead, slays those who will If they refuse and come up with another plan, continuity is still
not stand with their leader. Here, the campaign can take two fine. The Ob officers the players controlled can remain NPCs, and
paths. the party can find another way into the palace. That said, the pur-
In one, the party sides with Nicodemus to help them achieve a pose of the teaser is to provide a bit of metagame information that
better world. They can aid in the defeat of the “villainous” faction, normal methods of subterfuge won’t be sufficient. Of course if you
and in adventures hereafter will be tasked to help enact the grand think your players won’t go for it, just put the “teaser” in the cor-
design, which necessarily entails betraying their king and the rect order.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 3

 Introduction

On the Nature of Nicodemus.

Five centuries ago, a monk named William Miller earned the nickname high elf died, including Kasvarina’s daughters. The magical backlash
“Nicodemus the Gnostic” for both his constant questioning of Clergy changed the face of the world, left the Clergy reeling, and caused the
doctrine and his fondness for smoking “leaf of Nicodemus,” a popular near-immediate collapse of Elfaivar.
cash crop from the Yerasol Archipelago. At the ritual’s epicenter, Kasvarina survived, but Nicodemus was
During the holy war known as the Second Victory, the armies of the disintegrated. Only his soul remained, free to wander like an
Clergy battled the high elf nation of Elfaivar. Nicodemus went to war untethered ghost. He learned to inhabit and control the bodies of
as a healer but was distraught with the atrocities he witnessed. After others, and in the relative peace after the war’s end he tried to return
one battle he saved an injured high elf woman named Kasvarina Varal, to his old life, taking up the name William Miller again and writing
who had left behind two daughters in her homeland. Nicodemus some of the most famous treatises on philosophy in history.
helped her return home, but in their travels they resolved not to turn Miller founded Pala, a small nation of thinkers and philosophers on
their backs on the tragedy of the war. Instead, they resolved to bring the border of modern Danor. But soon the Clergy branded Miller a
the conflict to an end. heretic, invaded Pala, and sacked its capital. He was brought to Alais
After much searching, they found their way to the cursed Isle of Primos, the new seat of the Clergy, where he was tortured in an effort
Odiem, where the Clergy keeps its Crypta Hereticarum, the Vault of to compel a confession. After he refused to recant, his captors made a
Heresies. There they spoke with an imprisoned ancient demoness, pyre of his writings and burned him alive upon it.
Ashima-Shimtu, who gave them a ritual that could give physical form After this second death, Miller realized mere reason could not
to a belief. If that physical form was destroyed, those who held faith in reshape the world. He left the name William Miller behind as a martyr
it would perish as well. to peace. Once again taking the name Nicodemus the Gnostic, he
Nicodemus tried to trick the leaders of his faith into using the ritual proposed to Kasvarina a path to reshape the world. Knowing any open
to summon one of their own gods of war, but the Clergy instead invoked effort would result only in the loss of more innocent lives, they formed
the high elf goddess Srasama, who represented maiden, mother, and a secret society, to become known as the Obscurati.
crone. When an army slew the goddess’s avatar, nearly every female In the hundreds of years it took him to gather allies and find a
method to enact his plan, Nicodemus had to allow and endorse many
Nicodemus the Gnostic. Nico- immoral acts. He has surrounded himself with the ghosts of old
demus’s history and motivations are detailed friends—all wise and compassionate people in life—who, due to the
on this page. He seldom reveals his true detachment of disembodied undeath, feel few qualms with causing
ghostly form, preferring to wear the bodies of suffering if it advances their goals. They still believe they act for the
others. Currently he resides in the body of greater good, and indeed their goals are still noble, but Nicodemus can
Andrei von Recklinghausen, whom the PCs no longer claim any sort of ideological purity.
might know as “Mister Mapple,” and he’s Of his many sins, the latest is his theft of a man’s body. Nicodemus
thinking of staying in Andrei’s powerful needed a form he could wear long-term to provide consistent
physical form. leadership to the conspiracy, and his agents found him one. Andrei von
Recklinghausen, whom the party may have met in Adventure Four,
Andrei von Recklinghausen. Dr. Always on Time, has great natural strength and regenerative powers,
Wolfgang von Recklinghausen dabbled in as well as a romantic and noble heart. The Obscurati found him
dark magic two years ago to stitch together protecting a high elf refugee named Isobel, trying to get her to Elfaivar.
and reanimate dead flesh into a new creation, Nicodemus made Andrei a bargain, delivering Isobel safely to her
which he named Andrei. When Andrei destination in exchange for Andrei not resisting Nicodemus’s
realized how his “father” had created him he possession. Though Andrei’s mind still exists, it has not the strength to
lashed out, destroying the doctor’s home and fight for control of his body, and Nicodemus would never let him go
wife before forced to flee when Wolfgang after what he has seen.
nearly killed him. As the convocation gathers, Nicodemus himself is torn. Of the many
He initially desired revenge, but eventually cooled and decided to find factions being argued, he wants to endorse the one with the most
value in his new life. While stowing away on the Avery Coast railroad he idealistic and selfless goals. Kasvarina named the faction Miller’s Pyre
helped free from slavery a high elf woman named Isobel Travers, but in so as a reminder of what happened to Nicodemus the last time he trusted
doing his unique powers came to the attention of the Obscurati. The in people’s nobility. But he thinks the most effective solution is the
Obscurati intercepted Andrei and Isobel as they tried to reach safety, and plan of the Watchmakers, which removes all free will from people.
they abducted him, promising to let her go free if he cooperated. While it would lead to the world he wants, he has deep philosophical
Andrei regenerates wounds like a troll, and has almost unmatched doubts about the plan’s morality.
strength and agility for a human. But as a consequence of the dark magic What he is sure of, though, is that many were drawn to his
used in his creation, he drains the soul of anyone he touches. This makes conspiracy by the dream of being in power. Nicodemus used their
him a perfect vessel for the leader of the conspiracy, Nicodemus the ambition, but now he is ready to purge the Obscurati of their
Gnostic. Andrei believes his will might be strong enough to overcome the selfishness and greed. For two days he will charm them and encourage
mastermind for a while, but he hasn’t seen the right opportunity to make a them to be honest with their beliefs, and then he will cut out those who
break for freedom. do not deserve to shape the world to come.

4 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Introduction

Other Paths. Discouraging Divination.

How else can the party get into the convocation? Well, Benedict All cell leaders and high-ranking officers of the Obscurati have the
Pemberton — a dragon in human form whose Bond-villain-esque following trait, making attempts to divine location or identities into
plot the party thwarted in Adventure Six, Revelations from the fruitless endeavors.
Mouth of a Madman — has replaced an Ob officer with a mechan- Rites of the Obscurati. The rites of the Obscurati magically
ical duplicant under his control, and the party might try to use one separate a person’s normal identity from their role as an officer of the
of those for each PC if they salvaged any during the last adventure. conspiracy. Magic that attempts to determine the identity of an
They might try the old ploy of letting themselves be captured, or Obscurati cell leader fails outright, as if such a person did not exist.
they might simply stroll in and offer to join the conspiracy, but it Likewise, attempts to determine whether a given person is affiliated
requires a bit of credulity-stretching to think that Nicodemus with the Obscurati fail.
would immediately trust them enough to let them see anything im- Divinations that do not relate to involvement with the conspiracy
portant. can function, but have a chance of yielding useless, innocuous
Clever parties might sneak onto the island in the real world and results. Whenever a character attempts to use magic to divine an
use a Wayfarer’s Lantern of their own to shift into the palace. Obscurati officer’s location, thoughts, status, or the like, that
Reckless parties might try something ridiculous like killing them- character must make a DC 25 spellcasting ability check. On a
selves, putting their bodies into a portable hole, and having failured, the magic reports something deceptive, usually in a way to
Grappa (in Leone’s body) just carry them into the palace, along lessen suspicions.
with some sort of magic item to restore them to life. Such plans Key to the rites is the ring of office: a ring of varying composition
make it harder for the party to witness the Obscurati plotting and which must have inscribed on the inside a three word phrase. The
eventually turning against itself. first two words of that phrase must have the initials O.B. The third
word can be anything, but traditionally the number of letters
determines how many tiers from the top the officer is.
Adventure Overview The protections these rites grant do not function if the officer does
A flash forward puts the players in the shoes of a group of Obscu- not wear their ring of office, nor if the diviner knows the words
rati officers as they arrive at the palace off the coast of Vendricce. inscribed within his ring. That said, some Obscurati officers are
A spy, Vitus Sigismund, is captured after a guard beast sees powerful enough to shield themselves without requiring these rites.
through his disguise, showing the dangers and consequences of
the constables’ mission. hat the Headless used magic to trick Rackus as a cover so he could
An ambiguous length of time earlier, the party has a mission get close to Beshela. During the commotion, Copperhat slips
briefing with their superiors in the RHC, as well as Governor aboard the party’s ship and reveals that Beshela’s “gift” is actually
Roland Stanfield of the city of Flint, who unbeknownst to them is cursed and that its purpose is actually to sink their ship.
an Obscurati cell leader. Stanfield tries to convince the party to Copperhat explains that the fey in the Dreaming are at odds
stick around and deal with Flint issues, rather than pursuing the over whether to continue their alliance with Risur or awaken the
Obscurati, which can eat into how much time they have to com- fey titans and that Beshela seeks to betray them. Beshela departs
plete their mission. Because of the sensitive nature of his position, in anger, and Copperhat breaks the curse on Beshela’s gift, then
Stanfield is one of the few cell leaders who isn’t attending the con- offers a gift of his own. These two fey will play a larger role in Ad-
vocation, but he’s not sure how close the party is to discovering it. venture Nine, The Last Starry Sky, but for now they simply serve
After the meeting with Stanfield, the party’s boss Stover Delft as another way to delay the party’s mission.
loads them on a carriage headed for their ship, intending to send At last, the party sets out for Leone’s last known destination,
them on their next mission as soon as possible. On the way he the capital of Crisillyir, Alais Primos. When they try to make con-
shows them a letter sent by the mindmaker Alexander Grappa, tact with RHC assets in the city, though, they learn that the Ob
written six months after his supposed death. Grappa needs the are eliminating RHC agents in a concerted attempt to stymie the
party to track down the steelshaper Leone Quital, whose body investigation. They meet an unexpected ally: El Extraño, the
Grappa is currently occupying, then take him to the frozen ruined kobold spymaster of Ber, who can lend many spare sets of eyes.
city Knütpara where he can remove Quital’s soul and take full, With the aid of the Beran spies, the party sets up an international
permanent control of his body. In exchange, he offers to sneak the manhunt and visits key sites of interest to track down the
party into a grand convocation of the Obscurati so they can gather steelshaper.
intelligence and perhaps strike from within. After weeks or months, they find Leone Quital traveling in com-
When they reach their ship, though, the party finds a visitor: fort in a mobile suite on a train that runs across Drakr. The party
archfey of the sea Lady Beshela. She fears the king of Risur has can either strike while the train is in motion or wait for it to stop
become a puppet of dangerous forces, and offers them a boon: a at his main base in the northern city of Mirsk. Leone and his allies
magical ship component that will let their vessel teleport across put up a fight, with the steelshaper abusing his powers to hurl lo-
planes. comotives at his attackers, then perhaps decoupling cars and
A commotion erupts on the shore as dockworkers arrive, led by trying to flee by rail, but with luck the party can take him down.
local celebrity Rock Rackus. Rock is excited, believing that he’s With Leone in custody, the party must bring him along to a city
been invited to join their mission. In truth, the bizarre fey Copper- frozen in a glacier. While the steelshaper tries to escape and cause

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 5

Introduction

Consequences of Previous not quite agree with the conspiracy now that he knows all of their
Adventures. plans. During the first night, Macbannin murders two Ob officers,
Depending on the party’s previous actions, a few details may need to trying to sow discord.
be changed. Of course, the player characters are also likely to cause trouble.
First, if the party finished Adventure Six, Revelations from the Their ideal time to strike is after the final vote of the convocation,
Mouth of a Madman and wanted to immediately go looking for but first they’ll be well served by sneaking around, spying on conver-
Leone, the GM might need to adjust the timeline. Remember that as sations, and possibly rescuing Vitus Sigismund, the godhand. One
things stand at the end of Adventure Six, they still need time to key piece of information they should discover is that the Ob are clos-
return to Flint to deliver Tinker, debrief, resupply their ship, and make ing in on Kasvarina Varal, whom the high elves of Elfaivar are
plans with Delft. trying to hide, because they think she can regain control of Borne,
Second, it might be necessary to edit the letter Alexander Grappa the colossus. This plants a seed for events in Adventure Eight.
sends the party, especially if Grappa didn’t end up destroyed by The party might assassinate key NPCs, steal secrets from the
Leone Quital at the end of Adventure Five, Cauldron-Born. If Quital’s palace’s library, or figure out the structure of the Obscurati’s in-
body is somehow unavailable, the GM can substitute (or introduce) ternational cells. They might even be able to find allies among
another important Ob NPC and have Grappa exist as a disembodied those disgruntled Ob officers whose factions lose the vote. But if
mind that has managed to finally possess that person. the party gets this far without revealing themselves, they will be
Third, the party might not find Kvarti Gorbatiy in the frost giant rift unmasked by Pemberton, which kicks off a massive fight as the
in Act Two if he perished in a previous encounter. losing factions flee for their lives.
Fourth, be attentive to small details of various Ob officers the party
may have met in the past. This adventure presumes, for example, that
Kasvarina was rescued and spirited away by Asrabey Varal in Adventure Layout
Adventure Five, and that the four Ob officers who waited at the end The plot of Schism is divided as follows.
of the line in Adventure Four were either killed then or finished off > Teaser: A Gathering of Minds. The players briefly play as
some time later. Consistency is key here—don’t roll back the clock on officers of the conspiracy as they arrive at the convocation
or retcon anything the player characters did or directly witnessed. and witness the apprehension of a spy.
Finally, if the party never helped “Mister Mapple,” Andrei von > Act One: Where in the World is Alexander Grappa? The
Recklinghausen, in Adventure Four, Always on Time, then the high party tries to rescue Alexander Grappa without knowing
elf woman Isobel was likely sold off into slavery, and Andrei was where he is.
picked up by curious Ob researchers. Andrei would have no reason to > Act Two: Applied Eschatology. Grappa needs the party to as-
remember the PCs at all, and thus the GM will have to change the sault a frost giant stronghold in a glacier.
reason for Nicodemus’s departure during the climax: instead of being > Act Three: The Grand Convocation. Under cover as officers
stopped by Andrei’s willpower, he instead flees out a plentitude of of the Obscurati, the party infiltrates the conspiracy.
caution.
Scene Layout.
trouble, they must sneak past the frost giant guards and either de- Each scene begins with its title, keywords, and a one-line sum-
feat or negotiate with the khangitche, Odul Chuvan, to gain access mary of the scene’s intent. Keywords include:
to a giant lich trapped in ice who can rip Leone’s soul from his body, Scene Type: Action, Exploration, Exposition, Puzzle, Social, or
leaving Grappa in control. The mindmaker can then use a spell to Hybrid.
plant the constables’ minds into the bodies of Obscurati officer- Duration: Montage (a few hours or days), Real-time (a few
s — which is easy since Grappa knows who Leone was going to meet. minutes), or Tactical (round-by-round).
At this point the adventure catches up with the prologue. The
party, wearing the bodies of their enemies, arrive at the Obscurati Key Locations.
palace, meet the conspiracy’s leader, and participate in the open- Use this list to keep track of locations the PCs might visit.
ing ceremony of the grand convocation. They learn the broad
parameters of the Obscurati’s plans, and are given a chance to vote Key Locations Page
on which of several proposals the Ob will adopt as its main goal. Flint 13
The event is set to last until the following evening, and includes Trekhom 24
opportunities to speak with other officers, to discuss philosophy, Nalaam 24
and to enter demi-planes via linked portals in paintings so they Mirsk 26
can sample possible ways the new world could be changed. Shawl Mountains Part 2
Complications arise, however. The constables are not the only Knütpara Part 2
ones here who oppose the Obscurati. Benedict Pemberton has re- Alais Primos Part 2
placed an Ob officer with a duplicant, so he will be able to spy and Vendricce Part 2
eventually intervene. Meanwhile the ghost of Reed Macbannin, Mutravir Island Part 2
whom the party previously arrested and who was recruited to the Obscurati Palace Part 2
Ob’s ghost council after he died in custody, has found that he does

6 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Introduction

Flint: Industrial heart of Risur, on the coast of the Avery Sea. Pacing and Leveling.
Home base of the party’s branch of the RHC. The party can com- The party starts this adventure at 11th level and it’s recommended
municate via sending and receive aid via teleportation beacons. that they reach 12th level after the frost giant-controlled city of
Trekhom: Capital of Drakr, covered in rails on the surface and Knütpara, before they enter the Obscurati palace.
riddled with tunnels below ground. A likely place to look for
Leone, but he’s seldom there. Additionally, we provide seven Obscurati officers that the party can
Nalaam: An independent city-state between Drakr and Crisil- pose as during the Convocation, detailed in Player Hand-
lyir, decadent and ruled by mages. An ambush likely strikes the out — Obscurati Covers.
party here.
Mirsk: A hub for rail traffic in northern Drakr, and home to Cover Identities Page
mighty factories where thousands of dwarves toil to craft in- Bruce McDruid, explorer of distant lands 10
dustrial marvels. Leone’s primary base of operations. Gran Guiscard, head of Gorgeous Cell in Beaumont 10
Shawl Mountains: Glacial mountain range, gripped with magi- Ken Don, head librarian of Bibliotech di Alais Primos 10
cal cold but rich with exotic metals like mithral and adamantine, Kiov Hetman, Drakran tower researcher 10
and scattered with meteorites that fell and were trapped in layers of Livia Hatsfield, spy in the palace of the King of Risur 10
ice. Said to be prison of undead titans who once controlled Drakr. Oscan Ligurio, international finance con artist 10
Knütpara: Ancient dwarven city consumed by a glacier, now Xavier Sangria, Malice Lands monster-slayer 10
guarded by frost giants. Site of old dark magic that will let Grappa
take over Leone’s body permanently. Recurring Characters. This adventure gives the party an opportu-
Alais Primos: Capital of Crisillyir, and the best starting point nity to meet several villains and thwart their plans without
for tracking down Leone. actually killing everyone. Leone Quital, who has troubled the
Vendricce: City on the western side of a natural channel be- party twice before, likely dies in this adventure, but other key Ob-
tween Crisillyir and Elfaivar. Wealthy port, heavily garrisoned to scurati figures like Han Jierre and Nicodemus the Gnostic recur
defend against high elf attacks. even into the highest levels. Alexander Grappa has enough mind
Mutravir Island: Location of the Obscurati palace, twenty magic to show back up later at least as a disembodied conscious-
miles off the coast of Vendricce. ness even if he dies.
Obscurati Palace: This palace has sat for over a century, unoc- Incidental NPCs. Various NPCs might only show up for a single
cupied except for a small maintenance staff. It once belonged to a scene, but if the PCs latch on to anyone, you can refer here to re-
hierarch of the Clergy, who before his death decreed that the is- mind yourself who is who. Additionally, see Appendix One:
land was to remain unspoiled, never to be reinhabited. On the Complete Officer Roster for a full list of every Obscurati officer at-
Bleak Gate analogue of this island, the Obscurati use the palace tending the convocation. Most of them aren’t important to the plot,
as their seat of power, using the Clergy’s own piety to keep away but it’s useful in case the players ask, “Who’s in charge of Ob oper-
curious interlopers. ations in Seobriga?” so they can track him down and kill him later.

NPC Roster. NPC Page

Detailed entries on the various NPCs are included throughout the Bert Facie, assistant to Han Jierre Part 2
adventure. Captain Dale, defender of Cauldron Hill Part 2
Captain Matt Massaer, Obscurati skipper 22
NPC Entry Page Emmelsa, go-fer for Leone 22
Alexander Grappa, the mindmaker 30 Gangenwieck, male Ob researcher Part 2
Amielle Latimer, tiefling ghost Part 2 Jacques LeBrayne, Danoran yacht owner 22
Andrei von Recklinghausen 4 Joe Hobner, retired RHC, murdered Part 2
Benedict Pemberton, industrialist Part 2 Lauryn Cyneburg, RHC infiltration specialist Part 2
Catherine Romana, heir of Risur Part 2 Odul Chovan, frost giant khangitche Part 2
Cula Ravjahani, Vekeshi liaison Part 2 Piginni Quital, Leone’s nephew 22
El Extraño, kobold spymaster from Ber 21 Robert the Black, impostor-assassin 21
Erskine Haffkruger, dwarf arborist Part 2 Rock Rackus, docker celebrity Part 2
Han Jierre, sovereign of Danor 9 Thornsenkertz, female Ob researcher Part 2
Kvarti Gorbatiy, dwarven sniper-philosopher Part 2 Unnamed giant lich, feeder upon souls Part 2
Leone Quital, the steelshaper 30
Nicodemus the Gnostic 4
Reed Macbannin, ghost council member 11 Rewards
Stover Delft, Chief Inspector of the RHC 14 The party’s Prestige with the Clergy might increase if they rescue
Vicemi Terio, spectral head of Lantern Cell 11 Vitus, and if it hasn’t reached � with the Obscurati yet, it will. If
Vitus Sigismund, Crisillyiri spy 9 the party manages to crash the Ob’s shindig, they will be target
number one for the conspiracy after this adventure.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 7

Introduction

Character Themes in the Adventure.

Adventure Seven takes the party far afield from Flint, so some Xavier Sangria will be able to teach a martial scientist his
character themes (detailed in the ZEITGEIST Player’s Guide) have Malicious Deflection technique.
fewer obvious connections to the plot and setting. However, several • Skyseers — As usual, Skyseers have intuitive understanding of
narrative threads weave large social trends around the world into the the magic of the Obscurati’s planar plots.
cultural movements of Flint itself. We hope these will pay off when the • Spirit Mediums — A sunken pirate ship and the ghosts of its
party returns to Risur in adventure nine. crew lurk just off the coast of the Obscurati island, and if treated
• Dockers — In addition to having a chance to broker a deal well they can aid the party’s escape.
between the dockers and the fey lord Copperhat the Headless, a • Technologists — The party would be well-served by sabotaging
docker PC can use Panoply connections to get aid from working Leone’s train or the Obscurati’s enchanted lighthouse.
stiffs in multiple countries during the manhunt for Leone. • Vekeshi Mystics — Mystic PCs can learn the fate of Kasvarina
• Eschatologists — Though he may not realize it, an Varal, a leader of both the mystics and the Obscurati. Cula
eschatologist PC will come face to face with agents of the end Ravjahani, Kasvarina’s second, might reveal in casual
of the world. They’re likely best equipped to debate with the conversation that many missions of the mystics were actually
Obscurati. serving the agenda of the Ob.
• Gunsmiths — The party’s philosophizing sniper acquaintance • Yerasol Veterans — Catherine Romana, an Ob officer and a
Kvarti Gorbatiy shows up in the frost giant rift. Risuri politician, is infamous for her poor regard for Yerasol
• Martial Scientists — Whoever places their consciousness in veterans.

Each PC gets a stipend of ��,��� gp after they have their Final Word Before We Start
briefing, then are granted a further stipend of ��,��� gp before This module, more than any other in the Zeitgeist Adventure
they head to the Obscurati convocation. Requisitioned materials Path, is highly dependent on proper presentation and tone. If the
can be delivered to the party’s ship via the teleportation beacon. players walk into a gathering of people who are just sitting around
talking, they can become quickly bored. But if you keep the players
List of Magic Items as Treasure. unsure just where they stand, who might be a potential ally, and
Cards for new items are presented at the end of the adventure. We who might suspect their true intentions, conversations can go
encourage you to tweak the physical forms of items to make them from banal to threatening. The party should be certain from the
more appealing to your player characters. moment they arrive at the Convocation that they are in enemy ter-
> Codex of Little People, a gift from El Extraño the kobold ritory, and that any misstep on their part could bring an
spymaster. overwhelming attack down upon them.
> Steelsilk mantle, worn by Leone Quital. Play up how comfortable the Ob officers are with talk about
> Fey portal pad, a ship enhancement offered by the Unseen “acceptable casualties” and “putting down pockets of resistance.”
Court’s archfey Lady Beshela. Casually mention ghosts standing in corners watching the pro-
> Frost giant’s plate, worn by Odul Chuvan the frost giant ceedings, or drifting along staring in through windows whenever
khangitche. the PCs walk past. Reiterate at every opportunity that the party is
> Ghostly entourage, bonded to a bracelet worn by Vicemi stranded in the Bleak Gate — cloudless, windless, starless, and
Terio. filled with the lurking souls of the lingering dead — with limited
> Reason, diplomatic rifle designed by Kvarti Gorbatiy. means to escape should they be discovered.
> The absurdist web, which Copperhat the Headless asks the Even if the PCs decide to join the conspiracy and aid their plans
PCs to keep as a favor to him. for the greater good, they should be under no illusions that these
> Vekeshi blade, possessed by Cula Ravjahani. people are selfless, decent, or even particularly burdened by what
> Artifact, The Humble Hook, worn by Nicodemus the they have done. The best of them have solved their own personal
Gnostic. moral calculus and decided a little evil is worth the good they hope
to achieve. The worst of them truly only care how they can get the
greatest “good” for themselves.

8 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Teaser: A Gathering of Minds
Teaser: A Gathering
of Minds
I n this brief teaser, the players take

on the roles of Obscurati members arriv-

Vitus Sigismund. After the city of
Vendricce was disrupted by fighting
between the constables and the Ob in
Adventure Four, Always on Time, Vitus
ing at the Grand Convocation. investigated, looking for evidence of
demonic influence. He found instead a far
more insidious, man-made plot, one he knew
Arriving at the Obscurati he could not simply fight to submission.
Palace A geneu credeto (literally “spirit of belief,” but more colloquially known
as a “godhand”), Vitus’s flesh and faith are one, and in battle his fists carry
Social. Real-Time. the weight of the combined devotion of tens of millions of adherents to the
The players see through the eyes of Ob agents as a spy is captured. Clergy. He grew up in a monastery, then spent two decades traveling across
Either decide in advance, or offer the players the chance to Lanjyr defeating and capturing evil remnants of the Demonocracy. Now he
choose, which player will play which of the Obscurati officers works alone, not trusting the hierarchy of his church. Alas, he lacked the
listed in Players Handout — Obscurati Officer Cards. Hand out necessary skills at subterfuge to infiltrate the Obscurati on his own.
the personality cards from Part Three of this adventure. Do not Serene yet imposing, Vitus believes everyone has within them the
hand out the full gestalt cards in Part Three yet. potential to transcend mortal frailty and the temptations of sin, and he
If you want to be nice to your players, we encourage you to look humbly strives to be an example of that path. Curiously, he has a great
at the Vile Ritual sidebar (Part Two) and try to match PCs with fondness for board games, which he justifies as being an encouragement
Ob officers in order of lowest Will save to highest. Later on PCs for mental improvement. One of his bracers unfolds into a game board,
will be required to contest willpowers with their hosts. If you’d which can be played with simple stones.
rather set things up for disaster, let them pick whoever they want.
We provide seven Ob officers. If you have fewer than seven play- Han Jierre. Han’s father made sure he
ers, make sure Livia Hatsfield and Oscan Ligurio are assigned traveled and experienced the grand diversity
first. Assign an officer to each player, and then pretend any other of life, both good and bad, so that he would
officers don’t exist. There are quite enough NPCs in this adventure not be complacent with the sheltered
without them. prosperity his family enjoyed. He returned
from his travels still devoted to the
Welcoming Party. supremacy of science and reason, and his
Read or paraphrase the following text. father brought him into the Obscurati,
grooming him to become one of the conspiracy’s three leaders.
Your ship passes close to the scrub-brushed shore, weaving between Today Han is sympathetic to the needs and perspectives of others, but
looming stones that jut from the sea, some of them even higher than has ordered so many foul acts to promote the Ob agenda that he finds little
the vessel’s sails. Hazy clouds and sea spray fade the island into a joy in his own life. He still keeps in touch with the families of those he lived
foggy gray, but somehow the crew navigates to a small pier. with during his youthful travels, to remind himself why he’s pledged himself
The ride inland from the dock is brief and surprising. As you and the to this course.
other passengers look out from your two carriages, the island looks
wholly abandoned, and it’s hardly an auspicious gathering place for tiefling, then lifts off the ground an ornate glass lantern the size of a
a group as powerful as the Obscurati. small pumpkin.
You’ve barely had a chance to meet or speak with the other guests- “My apologies,” says the tiefling. “One drawback of secrecy is that
—some priests from the Clergy, a Danoran, a dwarf from Drakr, even a we have to carry our own luggage.”
half-elf from Risur, plus a few whose nationality you can’t place—but As you exit the two carriages, your drivers hand you each a heavy iron
you all know Leone Quital, the steelshaper, who arranged your travel. amulet on a cord, and once you’ve retrieved your luggage they drive off.
It’s been a convoluted route, but these precautions are necessary. The human with the lamp talks as he reaches into his coat and
The drivers bring you down an overgrown dirt road, along a weed- pulls out a small vial of oil. “Lady, gentlemen, may I introduce Han
choked reflecting pool, and finally pull to a stop just outside a run down Jierre, sovereign of Danor and one of the people you’ve been working
mansion. Cracked and empty windows leer down at you, and even the for, whether you knew it or not.”
plants that have taken over the estate are tattered and bug-chewed. The tiefling gives a slight smile to you, then works his way down
You spot two figures at the front door, and though the entry behind the line of visitors, greeting you each with a handshake or a bow or
them is rotted, they are resplendent. A distinguished old tiefling, a subtle blessed gesture, always appropriate to your culture, always
dressed like a head of state in a black silk suit and golden jewelry, is comfortable and with the practiced ease of a seventeenth-genera-
attended by a human in a loose coat. He whispers something to the tion politician.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 9

Teaser: A Gathering of Minds

Brief Beats. “Leone, an honor to finally shake your hand. Monsignior Dexlano,
You can use a few of these moments now or later in the adventure to Patre Hevny, Bishop Vigilio your grace. Monsignior Don. Oscan,
give each “cover identity” a small moment of roleplay. All of the how’s it going? Monsieur Guiscard, Herr Hetman, Miss Hatsfield,
conversations below are fairly inconsequential, and the only NPC thank you for coming so far. Mister McDruid, Sir Sangria. It’s a plea-
from them who plays a major role in the adventure is Catherine sure to meet you all.” He nods to his assistant. “Bert, if you would?”
Romana, who recognizes Livia Hatsfield. Bert has finished loading the lantern oil, and now he lights it with
• Ken Don. Patre Hevny, one of the other newcomers, thanks a quick strike of a match. A purple glow covers you, and your sur-
Ken Don for the use of his library. He says that his agents roundings are spontaneously transformed. The cracked dusty ground
found what they needed, mentions that the fire temple indeed is now also smooth and swept clean. The façade of the mansion is
was not heretical, and smugly surmises that the church would somehow both decayed and coated with pristine white plaster. And
probably have suppressed the Ancient map of the cosmos his your small gathering has been joined by dimly visible figures on the
agents found. periphery of the light’s radius—armed men.
• Gran Guiscard. As the group passes through a lounge, a half-
dragon bard named Praesidia de Vaca does a double-take and Han Jierre asks everyone to put on their amulets, explaining that
calls out “Mr. Guiscard!” She gushes with fangirl glee at they are currently coterminous to the Bleak Gate, and the amulet
seeing the famous opera star, and she’s gobsmacked that will pull them through to the other side over the course of � min-
Gran is involved in the same conspiracy. She asks if maybe, utes. When their business here is over, they’ll be returned to the
before the gathering is over, the two of them be able to sing real world via the same method. He’d prefer to hold off any
“The Marriage of Achaea and Hibiscus.” questions until they were safely in the other world.
• Kiov Hetman. Ramos Zoltan, a dwarf businessman, is As each person puts on their amulet (including Han and Bert),
“holding court” among the rest of the Drakran delegation, they switch into the Bleak Gate, and can now see a predominately
smoking cigars and drinking frothy ale. He spots Kiov and dark world with a cloudless black sky. Only a small area is illumi-
explains that he’s telling the tale of the time he sent the police nated by lights from the mansion windows and lamps beside the
chief of Trekhom to a gulag after he shot Zoltan’s favorite dog. flower bushes that grow along the reflecting pool. A dozen bookpin
He carries on entertaining his listeners, saying that he gave guards — distinguished by silver pins on their lapels that look like
the chief a dog of his own to keep him company in the gulag, open books — stand just at the edge of the lantern’s light radius.
and that so far it has suffered a broken leg, food poisoning,
burns, and a couple beatings. Zoltan points out that because Intruder Alert!
he could have done all these things to the chief himself, he’s
actually to be commended. The other Drakrans laugh darkly. Han says, “Please pardon us as we perform a bit of security.”
• Oscan Ligurio. Abeira Stackhouse, a halfling from Risur, locks
eyes with Oscan from across the room, his expression a From outside the light radius a massive snake slithers in, at first
thousand yard stare. Oscan notices the halfling make a note in inky black. The moment it gets into an area of bright light its scales
a small book, after which he suddenly laughs and joins in turn a brilliant iridescent in reds, greens, and purples. It grasps the
conversation involving other conspirators. Stackhouse is ground with short, stubby forelimbs, and its eyes glow like pale yel-
wondering who might be an ally to the Voice of Rot, but this low suns. In this light those who have disguised themselves with
event is meant to play on the players’ sense of paranoia. shapechanging or illusions have their true forms revealed.
• Bruce McDruid. While Han is getting the group some drinks The guards start to level their weapons, for one of the newly-
from a lounge bar, a minotaur, Trevio Addaz, comes up and arrived guests looks like someone completely different. Mon-
jovially asks what Bruce does for the organization. If he hears signior Dexlano, one of the Clergy priests, is actually Vitus
the details, he’s interested in whether Bruce would be willing Sigismund, a Clergy godhand trying to infiltrate the conspiracy.
to introduce some of his underlings to the primitive peoples in Dexlano, originally a heavy-set pale priest, now has a second
order to teach them magic. face, that of a muscular, dark-skinned man. As he realizes his dis-
• Xavier Sangria. General Shane Wallisonne, a spy in the guise has been pierced he reaches to tear off his amulet, but the
Danoran army, is bragging about hunting beasts in the Malice serpent — called a shadowlisk — moves first. Its eyes flash with
Lands from atop an Avery Coast Railroad train, making blinding light, and the man’s body starts to blacken and peel away
obviously fictional claims about how splendid his aim is and while his shadow is slowly burned into the manor wall behind him.
how fierce the monsters were, such as a three-headed Give the players a chance to respond in character here. The
elephant with lion claws and tusks that dripped black ichor. other arrivals (the ones not under player control) are panicked
• Livia Hatsfield. As the group goes up the stairs to the second and confused. Bert starts shouting for people to stay away from
floor, they pass by Catherine Romana, a noble from Risur. As the shadowlisk. Han calmly grabs a nearby guard and tells him to
she walks, a house cat follows close on her heels. Romana fetch Vicemi, and the guard runs indoors.
notices Livia and says, “Hm, small world.” She apologizes and If no one interferes, ten seconds later Vitus has been disinte-
has to go somewhere else. grated, leaving behind only a silhouette on the wall. That silhouette
twitches slightly, as if it is somehow still alive. The shadowlisk slith-
ers up to the wall and starts licking the silhouette’s fingers.

10 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Teaser: A Gathering of Minds

Roleplaying Nicodemus. Vicemi Terio. Head of the ghost council,

Nicodemus effortlessly and always displays movie star quality and leader of Lantern Cell, Vicemi cultivates his
charisma, the kind that the most revered award winners and the creepiness. He enjoys unsettling people, and
highest-drawing box-office powerhouses alike seem to don as an consciously crafted his withered appearance. He
aura on cue. Nicodemus is a captivating public speaker, but he is also respects the leaders of the conspiracy— Nico-
privately supremely compelling, so practice the kind of smooth demus, Kasvarina, and Han Jierre—because
speech cadence exhibited by your favorite highly charismatic they are unfazed by his undead proclivities,
celebrity and aim for an even mix of casual charm and gravitas. though he scoffs at the time they waste on pleasantries, etiquette, and
sympathy.
The other Clergy members demand answers, asking why the Vicemi was one of the first members of the ghost council, recruited for
snake just murdered one of their fellow priests. The answer comes his unparalleled intellect and his undying hatred of the Clergy. His main
from the door as four spectral figures glide through. desire is that in the new world the Obscurati create, religion will perish and
reason will reign. Still, he admires creativity because it inspires innovation,
The Archmage and the Ghost Council. and he hopes to survive as a ghost forever so he can watch civilization
Three of the ghosts hang back, while the one in front takes control
of the situation. Vicemi Terio, leader of the ghost council and head Reed Macbannin. Macbannin studied
of Lantern Cell, speaks with a raspy voice that reverberates unnat- all manner of defensive magic, as well as a fair
urally and chills all those who hear it. share of proscribed dark arts, in order to earn the
role of mayor of Cauldron Hill. He protected the
“That man was a spy,” he says. “Your fellow priest was replaced and city from the mountain’s curses for over a
likely died long ago. You should be more careful in keeping your se- decade, but then was tricked into aiding the
crets. But we will find out how you were compromised. Macbannin.” Obscurati, believing he was working on a secret
Risuri military project. After being captured, he was contacted by
One of the three other ghosts walks forward. While Vicemi’s face Nicodemus, who offered to let him join the ghost council. Macbannin,
is withered and decayed, and the other two ghosts’ features are always a shrewd politician, agreed, but he wasn’t surprised to discover he
faded like they don’t remember what they looked like in life, Reed did not really agree with the conspiracy’s goals. He just waits for the right
Macbannin has barely been dead a year, so he still mostly walks time to turn against them.
rather than floats. He stops next to the still-twitching shadow of Despite being dead, Macbannin comes across as high-energy, with a
the intruder, casually shoos the shadowlisk aside, and draws a very rascally sense of humor. Since his previous life’s work was devoted to
solid vial of blood out of his spectral cloak. keeping secrets, none of the Obscurati suspect his disloyalty.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 11

Teaser: A Gathering of Minds

“Really,” Macbannin laughs, “it’d worry me more if we didn’t have any

spies trying to come here.”
With that he coats his hands in blood, then reaches into the wall
and grabs the shadows. He yanks, and Vitus falls to the ground shiv-
ering and burnt, barely alive. The guards swarm him, search him, and
manacle him. Macbannin casts another quick spell to fully hold Vitus
in the Bleak Gate, then pulls off his amulet.
“I’ll take him to the dungeon,” Macbannin says. Then he grins and
winks to the new arrivals. “Welcome to the Obscurati.”

Cigarette Smoking Man

Social. Real-Time.
The players’ temporary characters are welcomed as newcomers to
the cause by mastermind Nicodemus the Gnostic.
As Macbannin and the guards drag Vitus away, Han introduces
the newcomers to Vicemi Terio, and then asks the two remaining
Clergy priests to stay and answer a few questions. He then enters
the mansion and guides the PCs and Leone to the upstairs west
council room. Give the players time to ask questions, take in the
sights, and roleplay a bit if they’re interested, or just go ahead and
get the party to Nicodemus if they’re not really into playing villains.
When this group arrives, most of the rest of the visitors are al-
ready at the palace, and as they pass through the lounges on the
ground floor, they might spot a few smoking cigars, swapping sto-
ries, or simply browsing the numerous bookshelves that are
scattered about. Once they head upstairs and down the west wing’s
second floor hallway, though, the mansion appears nearly empty.
None of the hall lamps are lit, lights are visible from under only a
few doors. But there is a dim red glow at the end of the three hun-
dred foot long hallway.

Meet the Mastermind.

In the vast room at the end of the hallway, a central fireplace roars
warmly, but out the glass windows on the north, south, and west
walls the whole landscape is nearly black. Together it creates the
effect of light disappearing, and darkness encroaching.
A set of luxurious leather chairs are arrayed near the west windows,
and one man sits smoking. His hands are gloved, and a necklace is
visible around his neck, but tucked into his shirt. At first he seems
alone, but as he stands to greet the group, it becomes clear that a
dozen or more ghosts are floating outside the windows, watching.
He says, “Call me Nicodemus. I’m glad you came. Together we’re go-
ing to change the world. Come on. Let’s have a drink and talk.”

Show the players Nicodemus’s portrait, then tell them to get out
their normal character sheets and hand in the officer sheets. The
prologue is over — time to start the adventure.

12 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker
Act One: Find the
Mindmaker
I n this act, the party receives a mission

to track down Leone Quital and take

Check the Postmark.
Delft received Grappa’s letter from a nondescript courier who
brought it in an envelope with no postmark. If the party magically
traces its provenance, they learn all the following steps in the letter’s
him alive. The act begins on the �st of Au- delivery. Delft got the letter from his secretary, who got it from the
courier. The courier had removed it from its original envelope and
tumn, ��� A.O.V. repackaged it after he picked it up from a butcher’s shop in Bosum
Strand. The letter arrived in Bosum Strand via Risuri post, having
been carried on a ship from Trekhom, after being handled by two
Political Meddling different Drakran postmen. The Drakrans received it in a bundle of
mail off a train that came from Mirsk, where it was loaded by another
Exposition/Social. Real-Time. postman; that postman got the mail from the post office, where the
The constables discuss local Flint matters with Governor Stanfield letter had been dropped off by one of Leone Quital’s guards, after
before their departure. Leone himself handed it to him in a thick stack of letters.
The party arrives at a conference room in the fortress of Gover- …Got all that?
nor’s Island in Flint, home and workplace of Governor Roland
Stanfield. A long table splits the conference room in two, and an Meanwhile in the News...
inviting buffet of pastries and coffee cover it. While the party is seeking Grappa, what’s happening everywhere
The party is accompanied by Chief Inspector Stover Delft, who else?
is already polishing off his third donut; and Captain Dale, the • Colossus. Where’s the colossus? Crossing the strait from Ber
head of security on Cauldron Hill, who has encouraged the group to Elfaivar. Curious titan-watchers have been gathering and
to eat their fill while slowly savoring a single donut of his own. spreading rumors concerning all the footprints that have
After the players settle in, Governor Stanfield enters, asks the appeared along the machine’s path. The colossus’s invisible
guards to not let anyone in for the next half hour, then closes the march is accompanied by thunder as it collapses the ground
door. He gets himself coffee and a small plate of fried jackfruit beneath its twenty-yard long feet, so most animals are smart
chips, and winces a bit as he sits down, apologizing for a back in- enough to get out of the way. Certain inquisitive on-lookers
jury that has plagued him for five centuries. He waves it off, and have not fared as well.
with warm enthusiasm says they should get started. • Tensions. Remember the Arripa! This merchant vessel was
sunk just off the coast of Beaumont in Danor. A disagreement
Homeland Security. between a member of the crew and a local police officer
Delft makes it clear from the start that the party’s next mission is spiraled into a desperate attempt to flee the city as Danorans
a classified one, and that he hasn’t even briefed the constables yet, sought an outlet for their anger at Risur. The ship managed to
so he asks why the governor called them here. cast off, only to be fired upon by another vessel. All sixty-three
Stanfield says he was hoping to get the RHC’s aid resolving crewmen died either with their ship or in violence on land. The
some issues here in Flint, since their skills are quite useful. He identities of those responsible are currently unknown.
asks Captain Dale to provide an overview, and requests the party • Here There Still Be Dragons. Soldiers in the Beran army
consider sticking around as long as possible, since the city isn’t report sightings of a dragon in the Bruse’s latest campaign to
quite safe yet. put down gnoll rebels. Adventurers across the continent of
> This is a stalling tactic by Stanfield, but he’s very believable Lanjyr are frothing at the bit, hoping they might at last find a
and should drop no clues that he’s worried about their in- genuine dragon to slay.
vestigation. Instead, present the scene as the governor and • New Technology! Tinker Oddcog’s research continues,
Delft offering two possible different missions. Stanfield possibly under the direction of the player characters. See
doesn’t know what the party is up to, but he hopes to keep Adventure Six for details. Whatever Tinker is experimenting
them busy in town, at least until the convocation is over. If with is probably noteworthy enough to make the news.
the players decide to stay in Flint and resolve some of these • Moving Rivers, Walking Dead. Large trees are spontaneously
issues, none of them are particularly challenging to char- sprouting in massive clumps along the banks of rivers in the
acters of their power level, just very time-consuming. northern reaches of Risur’s Weftlands, then dying almost as
quickly. The trees either divert the river’s flow or collapse and
Briefing Time. create dams and new lakes. Trappers in the area have reported
Captain Dale lists the issues currently facing Flint, and asks the finding long-dead animals, some nearly rotted to the bone,
party for suggestions on how to proceed with each. caught in traps they laid only days earlier.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 13

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

�. Cauldron Hill. Since the colossus broke free, the peak has �. Pemberton Fall-Out. After the party discovered in Adven-
been fluctuating, sometimes coterminous with the Bleak ture Six that industrialist Benedict Pemberton was actually
Gate, sometimes safely in this world. Dale’s men patrol and a dragon with a mild case of “wanting to become a tyrant,”
kill a nightly influx of undead and frightening monsters, but Stanfield has wanted a thorough investigation into his activ-
that’s just a stopgap. Two men have died already. He’s at a ities in Flint. He says he’s worried about duplicants.
loss as to how to fix the problem. Pemberton did manage to rush some of his industrial ma-
Any actual solution would be a large magical endeavor, terial out of the city, and the party could waste weeks
perhaps utilizing the Wayfarer Lantern if the party recov- tracking the paper trail to an island in the Yerasol Archipel-
ered it in Adventure Four, or undertaking a dungeon crawl ago, where he has set up his new base of operations. He’ll
and performing purifying rituals in the ruins of the Obscu- likely get wind before they reach him, and can leave in a
rati facility while creatures threaten them. The monsters hurry, but this can weaken some of his sabotage efforts in
themselves are dangerous to civilians, but not to high-level Adventure Nine, The Last Starry Sky.
constables. Captain Dale finishes up, and Stanfield tries to get some hints on
�. Docker Riots. The police have been brawling more and where the party will be going next, but Delft encourages the ad-
more with dockers and factory workers. The police have venturers to leave, and suggests that they can report back in later.
been on edge since swaths of the city were crushed by the Once the meeting is complete, Delft grabs a few more donuts and
colossus, cracking down on the smallest offenses. Meanwhile asks the PCs to follow him down to a private carriage.
the dockers believe authority figures were involved with the
disaster, and conspiracy theories are flying across the city. Burn After Reading.
There’s no easy way to regain the public’s trust, but PCs The carriage leaves the gates of the fortress, then heads across a
could make small progress. bridge to the mainland en route to the party’s ship. Only then does
�. Shipwrecks. An unusual number of ships have been wreck- Delft explain why he’s been so cagey. He pulls out a letter and
ing on the shoals near The Ayres. There is growing talk hands it over to the party, saying that it arrived just this morning.
among seafaring folk of building a new lighthouse, and Show the players Player’s Handout — Letter from Grappa.
many suspect the sea fey are angry. It’s only a �� minute carriage ride to the party’s ship. Delft en-
This is simultaneously a red herring (since the PCs might courages the party to discuss plans, and says that he hopes they’ll
key in on “lighthouses”), and a tie-in to the next scene, set sail tomorrow morning. He’ll coordinate from here with
when Archfey of the Sea Beshela tries to trick them. She’s agents on the northern side of the Avery Sea. The party’s mission
the one responsible for these sinkings. is to find Leone Quital and take him alive.

Stover Delft. A local Flinter in his early

40s, Delft handles the logistical and political The Lady and the Liar
drudgery so the party can perform their heroics
without too much backlash. Normally rather Social. Real-Time.
easy-going, he gets squinty and condescending Two archfey cause trouble at the party’s docked ship.
when people obstruct important affairs because If the party doesn’t head to their ship now, they get a message
of politics. Delft chews tobacco, and thinks he that a visitor is awaiting them there. Lady Beshela, a powerful fey
looks charming if he grins while sucking on tobacco juices. He walks with (albeit not a member of the Unseen Court) with dominion over
a cane because a mimic tore a chunk out of his leg fifteen years ago. He has the seas along Risur’s northern coast, stands on the deck of the
a habit of poking inanimate objects with the cane before he gets too close ship, and a huge school of fish swarms in the water around it.
to them, and spitting on them when he wants to be extra sure.
Beshela’s Bitterness.
Roland Stanfield. Governor Stanfield Beshela was a long-time friend of Duchess Ethelyn of Shale and
witnessed the fall of the high elf goddess she supported Ethelyn’s coup attempt (see Adventure One, Island
Srasama five hundred years ago and died soon at the Axis of the World). She blames the party for Ethelyn’s de-
thereafter. But he reincarnated, his memories feat. Now, a year and a half later, the fey politics that kept Beshela
vague and jumbled. He found his way back to from enacting her revenge have shifted. The disruption of the Un-
his homeland of Risur, settled in Flint, and seen Court will play out more in Adventure Nine, The Last Starry
eventually became the city’s governor. Sky, but for now she just plans to kill the party.
In the centuries since he has died with In truth, Beshela’s acting slightly against her own interests.
irregular intervals, and with each rebirth he returned to the city he calls She joined with the duchess to help stop a plot they suspected
home. He has constantly striven to improve himself with each life, from a against Risur — a plot being hatched by the Obscurati. Though she
simple warrior, to a humble leader, to an educated renaissance man nimbly now knows more about the conspiracy, she has trouble differenti-
handling the complex challenges of the fastest-growing city in the world. ating between different groups she disagrees with. She thinks the
Stanfield wears a near-constant expression of contented optimism, but still party are allied with the Obscurati, and that they are somehow
occasionally complains of a war wound he took to his back in his first life. fooling King Aodhan into trusting them.

14 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Sinking Feeling. The Voice of Rot’s Plans.

Beshela’s plan is to give the party a gift for their ship: a fey portal The White Serpent is empowered by death, and desires it like normal
pad (details appear in Part Two). This enchanted wooden dais lets creatures crave food and shelter. Nothing could please him more
those who stand on it teleport to another ship, and can even briefly than presiding over the end of the world. But he senses the change
transport the ship into the Bleak Gate or the Dreaming. But the coming as the Obscurati prepare to open the Axis Seal, and he needs
item is cursed, and once the ship is out of sight of land it will trig- the party as eyes. He knows he will have a chance to kill the world,
ger and dissolve portions of the hull, transforming them into but he doesn’t yet know where to go.
seaweed that will drag the rest of the vessel down. Then one of her In Adventure Nine, The Last Starry Sky, the Voice of Rot can
giant squids will ensure the crew all drown. broker aid for the party, and in Adventure Ten, Godmind, he helps
As Beshela talks to the party, she reminds them that she was an them subdue the other fey titans. All the while he acts quite creepy
ally of the duchess, and that the duchess was afraid of a shadowy and ominous. He finally gets his dream in Adventure Twelve, The
force controlling Risur. She says that since they defeated the Grinding Gears of Heaven, when the party ventures to a graveyard of
duchess, they must be stronger than her, making them the best the multiverse, and he follows with the intention of dragging the
weapon against this shadowy force. She brings them a gift. At this world to its destruction. Depending on how much he approves of the
point she waves a hand and magically conjures the portal pad, party, he may offer them immense power if they let him do it
which is five feet in diameter and four inches thick. unimpeded.
Adventurers familiar with Beshela’s history and demeanor may
make a DC �� Intelligence (Nature) check to tell that this magna- Rock the Boat.
nimity is out of character for her, and particularly wise members When Beshela finishes presenting her gift to the party, they hear
of the party that make a DC �� Wisdom (Insight) check sense that a crowd approaching the docks, boisterously singing one of Rock
she’s faking her interest in helping them. Vekeshi Mystic have ad- Rackus’s ribald classics about how he slept with the fey queen.
vantage on each of these checks. A few minutes spent closely Rock himself leads the group, having cajoled a hundred dock
examining the portal pad with a successful DC �� Intelligence workers who were drinking in nearby bars to follow him to the
(Arcana) check discovers the curse. party’s ship. He’s promised them a show, because he thinks he’s
If her plan is found out, she insults the constables, calling them about to set out on a grand adventure.
traitors, servants of shadows and steam, bird-voiced singers, and He calls out to the party when he sees them, then has a bit of a
oafish walruses. She is wary enough of them not to initiate hostil- double take and looks beside him. Choose a PC that Copperhat
ities, and this would be a good time for Rock Rackus and would have been impersonating; Rock thinks that PC asked him
Copperhat to arrive (see below). But if the party attacks her any- to accompany them on their next mission, and he’s surprised to
way she defends herself until she is reduced below half of her hit see the PC no longer next to him.
points. Then she dives into the water and swims away. He introduces the PCs to the crowd and says good things about
It’s possible, though, for the party to get her to stay and talk, if whatever interactions he has had with them, then asks the party
they approach her right. See the section “Epic Rap Battles of what his role is going to be on the coming mission. At some point
History,” below. in the ensuing conversation, voices start shouting from the crowd:
>“Hey, who’s that blue chick on the boat?”
A Tangled Web. >“I heard something about some blue faerie helping out the
While Beshela is trying to get the party killed, another fey is trying duchess! I bet she tried to kill the king!”
to keep them alive, but that doesn’t make him their friend. Cop- >“Wait, she’s the one who sank my ship!”
perhat the Headless is a somewhat infamous fey who acts a mix >“Constables, you’ve got to arrest her!”
of trickster and jester for the Unseen Court, recognized by anyone >“Arrest her? Kill the faerie bitch!”
that makes a DC �� Intelligence (Nature) check. Like actual The rest of the crowd starts to nod along, slowly preparing them-
members of the court, Copperhat has no face, at least none that selves for a riot. Attentive PCs that make a DC �� Wisdom
anyone can see. His namesake hat sits atop a seemingly invisible (Perception) check notice that they couldn’t see anyone actually
head, which is enough to fool most minor fey into thinking he’s shouting those lines, and that every voice had a faint high-pitched
really one of the Unseen. whine accompanying it. If the party doesn’t figure out that some-
In truth he’s just a clever ettercap-like pixie who hides inside one’s causing trouble, eventually the crowd starts to advance, and
his coat and levitates his clothes and hat, controlling his fake body when either the PCs or Beshela react, Copperhat decides to re-
like an oversized puppet. He normally travels between fey enclaves veal himself.
trading knick-knacks and favors, with a particular fondness for He teleports beside Beshela, drapes an arm across her shoulder,
telling stories about the human world. People find him amusing in and says, “Good day to you, Agents of King Kelland.” Then he
small servings, but are quick to suggest new places for him to go turns his invisible “head” and makes a smooch sound at Beshela’s
after a day or so. face. She detaches herself coldly and glares at him.
Copperhat is secretly a minion of the Voice of Rot, the only one Copperhat walks around and changes shape as he talks, occa-
of the fey titans currently awake. The Voice of Rot has long-term sionally standing at a right-angle to gravity on vertical parts of the
plans that involve the party, and he wants them kept safe. ship. He asks if the party is trusting Beshela, then drops crypti-

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 15

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

cally that the Unseen Court is having some disagreements with Beshela, Archfey of the Sea
other archfey. It’s times like this when exciting and stupid things Medium fey, chaotic neutral
happen, like a little long-delayed reciprocation. Armor Class 19 (natural armor)
Copperhat then grabs the portal pad and teleports to the docks, Hit Points 168 (16d8+96)
amid a gaggle of dockers. He drops the dais and kicks it a few Speed 30 ft., swim 60 ft.
times, and then the wood and stone of the docks start to dissolve. STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
23 (+6) 22 (+6) 20 (+5) 15 (+2) 15 (+2) 23 (+6)
Conflict and Complications. Skills Athletics +11, Deception +11, Insight +12, Intimidation +11,
There’s a lot swirling around the PCs, but where things go de- Nature +7, Perception +7, Persuasion +11
pends on how they act. Beshela calls Copperhat a liar and tries to Damage Vulnerabilities fire
get the party to kill him. Copperhat doesn’t particularly want the Damage Resistances acid, cold; bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing
party to fight Beshela, but if they start it and things go badly for from weapons that aren’t cold iron
them, he’ll jump to their aid. Things might simply defuse as Damage Immunities poison
Beshela slinks away. Or the party might try to talk things out. Condition Immunities poisoned
Senses ripplesense, passive Perception 17
Flooded Battle. Languages Elven, Primordial, Sylvan
If attacked, Beshela starts with summon the kraken, flooding the Challenge 14 (11,500 XP)
area and leaving the crowd of dockers quite confused. Then she Corrosive Tempest. When Beshela is first reduced below half of her
uses fey dive to teleport into the crowd and hide, using cup of dust hit points, dark clouds gather overhead and begin spewing forth
on whichever enemy she thinks is most likely to cause her trouble. black rain in a quarter-mile radius centered on her. Any creature that
She’ll use the crowd as cover — occasionally killing dockers — un- ends its turn without some sort of cover from the rain takes 1 point
til she is reduced below half hit points, at which point she’ll dive of acid damage. The clouds move with Beshela and last 5 minutes.
and swim away. A storm cloud of acid rain will follow her, deter- Fey Dive. Beshela can use a bonus action to teleport from one area
ring pursuit. covered in water to another area covered in water within 50 feet, as
long as there is a contiguous path of water between the two spaces.
Lady Beshela. Lady Beshela serves as Innate Spellcasting. Beshela’s innate spellcasting ability is Charisma
steward of the domains of the fey titan She Who (spell save DC 19, +11 to hit with spell attacks). She can innately
Writhes. Though not a member of the Unseen cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
Court, Beshela claims the title Archfey of the Sea At will: control water
and controls the waters along Risur’s north shore. 3/day: conjure animals (aquatic only), conjure elemental (water only)
With armies of sea creatures at her command, the Magic Resistance. Beshela has advantage on saving throws against
beautiful fey is like a queen of her own land, spells and other magical effects.
though there are other threats that lurk deeper than her domain descends. Quick. Beshela has advantage on initiative checks.
Beshela feels she owes a great debt to Risur. Forty years ago, King Ripplesense. Beshela perfectly knows the location of any creature
Aodhan’s sister Ethelyn rescued her from a pirate sorcerer, giving birth to a within half a mile if there is a contiguous path of water between its
long-lasting friendship and miliatary pact. Beshela even aided Ethelyn’s space and hers.
coup attempt against the king. Proud, spiteful Beshela holds a grudge ACTIONS
against those who thwarted her friend’s efforts. Her moods seem mercurial, Multiattack. Besheba attacks twice.
but she is actually a canny charmer, fond of long schemes that depend on Slam. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit:
her enemies being unaware how dangerous she really is. 10 (1d8+6) magical bludgeoning damage and the target is pushed
20 feet away.
Copperhat the Headless. A lesser- Summon the Kraken (1/day). Beshela conjures a massive tidal wave
known fey who acts as a mix of trickster and jester in a quarter-mile-radius centered on herself. All creatures hit by the
for the Unseen Court. Copperhat’s head and face wave must make a DC 19 Strength saving throw or be knocked
are invisible, like those of Unseen Court members, prone and pushed away 20 feet. Water floods the area to a depth of
leading minor fey to think he’s part of the Court. 2 feet making it difficult terrain, though it may flow away quickly
He is always seen wearing his namesake top hat. based on the area.
Copperhat is actually a clever pixie who hides In addition, Beshela summons two kraken tentacles made of
inside a coat and levitates his costume, controlling the whole affair like an seaweed within 50 feet of her. Each tentacle is a Large creature with
oversized puppet. He normally travels between fey enclaves trading knick- Beshela’s AC and save bonuses, and 40 hit points. If a tentacle is
knacks and favors, with a particular fondness for telling stories about the ever completely out of the water, it is destroyed. Once summoned,
“human world.” Most find him amusing in small servings, but before long Beshela can use a bonus action to command one or both to move up
find themselves suggesting far-away new places he might visit instead. to 20 feet through areas covered in water and make an attack.
Copperhat is secretly a minion of the Voice of Rot, the only fey titan Kraken Tentacle. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 15 ft., one
currently awake. The Voice of Rot wants the party kept safe, as his long- target. Hit: 16 (3d6+6) magical bludgeoning damage and the target
term plans that involve them. is grappled (escape DC 19).

16 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Copperhat the Headless Web (Recharge 5–6). Ranged Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, range
Medium fey, chaotic evil 30/60 ft., one creature. Hit: The target is restrained by webbing. As
Armor Class 18 (natural armor) an action, the restrained target can make a DC 17 Strength check,
Hit Points 133 (14d8+70) bursting the webbing on a success. The webbing can also be
Speed 40 ft., climb 40 ft. attacked and destroyed (AC 13; hp 10; vulnerability to fire damage;
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA immunity to bludgeoning, poison, and psychic damage).
15 (+2) 22 (+6) 20 (+5) 19 (+4) 8 (-1) 16 (+3)
Saving Throws WIS +3 Lying Coward.
Skills Acrobatics +10, Athletics +6, Deception +11, Perception +7, In a fight, Copperhat laughs and enjoys the “game” for a bit, until
Performance +7, Sleight of Hand +10, Stealth +10 he’s reduced below half hit points. Then he uses mislead to disap-
Damage Resistances ludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from pear and slip into the crowd.
weapons that aren’t cold iron
Damage Immunities poison Epic Rap Battles of History.
Condition Immunities poisoned Though powerful fey are notoriously recalcitrant, Beshela might
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 17 change her opinion of the party if they make an effort to show they
Languages Common, Dwarvish, Elvish, Primordial, Sylvan are on the same side. Normal negotiation tactics aren’t ideal, and
Challenge 11 (7,200 XP) unless the party gives her a reason to trust them, she won’t even
Giggling Departure (1/day). When Copperhat would be reduced to listen to their defense. It is possible to use reason along with a suc-
0 hit points or killed, he takes no damage from the triggering attack, cessful DC �� Charisma (Persuasion) check to get her to hear
effect, or spell. Copperhat turns invisible and immediately teleports them out, but someone familiar with fey customs can make a DC
away as per dimension door. Observers see his clothing fall to the �� Intelligence (Nature) check to come up with an appropriate
ground in a tattered lump, and his top hat starts to drift downward. tactic: insulting her and challenging her to a boasting contest.
Then a tiny arm reaches up out of the collar of his seemingly empty This forces her, for the sake of pride, to listen to the party’s ver-
coat and grabs the brim of his hat just before it lands. He pulls the sion of events. If none of the PCs think of this, Rock Rackus
hat into his coat, pulling a reverse magician’s trick. Then he — and suggests in his misogynistic way that “the fish bitch don’t know
his hat — are gone, leaving behind only an empty suit and laughter what real heroes look like,” and says he’ll write a song about how
on the air. “little miss squiddy ran away because she knew she’d get chewed up
Innate Spellcasting. Copperhat’s innate spellcasting ability is like calamari.” The party takes a –� penalty to their checks in the
Intelligence (spell save DC 16, +8 to hit with spell attacks). He can boast-off if it wasn’t their idea, though.
innately cast the following spells, requiring no material components:
At will: disguise self, minor illusion Boasting Contest.
3/Day: guiding bolt, major image, mislead There are three rounds, and in each one person from each side has
Magic Resistance. Copperhat has advantage on saving throws an opportunity to speak for a minute or two, and then the other
against spells and other magical effects. side has a chance. Beshela always speaks for herself, but she sug-
Mimicry. Copperhat can mimic animal sounds and humanoid voices. A gests the PCs take turns.
creature that hears the sounds can tell they are imitations with a For her part, Beshela first mocks the party, saying that she has
successful DC 15 Wisdom (Insight) check. sunk a dozen Risuri ships these past � months, but there is noth-
Sneak Attack (1/turn, 7d6). Copperhat deals an extra 24 (7d6) ing they as defenders of Risur have done to stop her. She proceeds
damage when he hits a target with a weapon attack and has to recount the sea beasts she sent to devour the many captains who
advantage on the attack roll, or when the target is within 5 feet of an went down with their ships.
ally of Copperhat’s that isn’t incapacitated and he doesn’t have Next she brags about inspiring the greatest symphony Risur
disadvantage on the attack roll. ever created, when she saved a handsome drowning violinist in the
Quick. Copperhat has advantage on initiative checks. middle of a hurricane, and over � weeks of incessant love-making
Vanish. Copperhat can use a bonus action to invisible. He remains she told him all the secrets of her kingdom. But when she returned
invisible until he takes the Attack action or casts a spell. the man to shore, he remembered nothing of her secrets, and in-
ACTIONS stead wrote the Hurricane Symphony to try to win her back. She
Multiattack. Copperhat attacks three times. let him die famous but alone.
Magic Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +10 to hit, reach Finally, she boasts about saving the lives of Aodhan and Ethe-
5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (1d4+8) magical lyn before they were royalty. They had stolen a steam warship from
piercing damage plus 7 (2d6) poison damage and the target must the Danorans, but they could not outrun the enemy fleet alone. In
succeed on a DC 17 Constitution saving throw. On a failed save, the exchange for a promise of friendship and rights to all the sunken
creature’s Strength score is lowered by 1d4. When reduced to treasure, she awoke the sleeping fey titan She Who Writhes and
Strength 0, it suffocates and dies. The creature recovers all of its lost lured her to destroy the Danorans.
Strength at the end of its next long rest, or once it is targeted by a
greater restoration spell.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 17

Act One: Find the Mindmaker

When Alexander Grappa implants the party’s consciousnesses

into bodies of Obscurati officers, the constables’ original bodies
will be left inert, practically dead. Grappa just plans to use spells
to keep them fresh, but if the party accepts this gift, they’ll be able
to have their bodies on hand during their mission. Copperhat’s
master, the Voice of Rot, prophetically sensed the group’s need,
though he does not know what their mission is.

Parting Ways.
Whether the party takes Copperhat’s web or not, he extends a
hand to Rock Rackus and produces an invitation from the matri-
arch of the Unseen Court. Unless the party really does want Rock
to come with them, Copperhat will take him back to the Dreaming
for some new adventures. They’ll both return in Adventure Nine.
The crowd is happy either way, and Rock gets them to head off
and let the party prepare for their mission, singing a song about
how dockers do all the work, and other guys get to have all the fun.
For the rest of the day dockers keep coming by asking how they
can help. When the party ultimately does set out, their ship has
the finest provisions the dockers can round up for them.

Mechanics. Should You Choose to Accept It.

In each round, let a player boast of the party’s deeds. If they try to Once the trouble with the fey is resolved and they can talk in pri-
tell the true story about their fight against the Obscurati, let them vate, Delft discusses final plans with the party.
make a DC �� Charisma (Intimidation) check to capture the
proper tone to get her attention. Beshela is easily bored though, Mission Briefing.
so if the same character speaks for a second round they have disad- Delft reiterates, the mission is to find Leone Quital, take him
vantage, and add a –� penalty if the same character also speaks in alive, aid Alexander Grappa, and if his bargain is possible, to go
the third round. A particularly good insult against Beshela worked through with it. The ultimate goal is to infiltrate this Obscurati
into the story earns a +� to +� bonus. meeting, at which point the party is free to act at their discretion.
If the party succeeds all three checks, Beshela apologizes for Delft would be fine with them getting out alive and reporting the
disrespecting them, praises their honor and their boasting skills, position of the Ob base, but if they can learn more about their
and offers her aid. She’ll not be of much use in this adventure plans and operational structure, excellent. And if they see a chance
since the party ranges far from Risur waters, but if they have any to capture or kill key members of the group, they should take it.
unusual requests involving ship-wrecks, she’s their fey. And in Ad- The first order of business, though, is to find Leone. Delft pro-
venture Nine her trust will come in quite handy. duces a small folio with information gathered by other RHC
If they succeed two checks, Beshela warily says she may have agents, the military garrison at Cauldron Hill, and the local police.
misjudged them. She announces that they have repaid her gift — a
surprise for a surprise, and so she will leave them in peace. She Leone’s Departure.
doesn’t quite trust them, but she can see that they might be smart On Spring ��, after the colossus broke free, Leone used his
allies to have. steelshaping powers to tear a path for himself out of the facility
If the party fails or gets only one success, Beshela laughs at and close it behind him so no one could follow him. He emerged
them, wishes them foul weather and nets full of hagfish, then de- onto the side of Cauldron Hill, which was undergoing a planar
parts. flux that transported him into the real world.
He made his way to North Shore, where he called upon an Ob-
Aftermath. friendly Danoran named Jacques LeBrayne, who ferried Leone
As long as the party doesn’t drive off Copperhat, he offers to re- on his private yacht to one of the many ships sailing out of Flint
move the curse on the fey portal pad. Then he asks a favor. He has harbor in the chaos. Leone found one, the Cold Vessel, that was
a magic item he wants kept safe, but he doesn’t want to bother carrying Risuri fruit to Crisllyir, and he brokered passage. They
carrying it. He asks if the party will hold onto it for him, and says dropped him off in Alais Primos, the capital, on the ��th of
he won’t mind if they use it in the meanwhile. This is the absurdist Spring. The crew remember him distinctly, particularly that he
web, a variant bag of holding with some quirks. seemed quite disappointed they had no wine on board.
He explains, “You’ll have some dead bodies on your hands in That’s all the information they have for now. Mages have tried di-
the near future, and this will come in handy. Not sure quite what vining Leone’s location, but some magic has blocked their efforts.
you’re up to, but I’ve got a knack. I can always smell a corpse in It’s up to the constables to follow the steelshaper’s trail, starting at
the offing.” the docks in Alais Primos. Unfortunately, the trail is � months cold.

18 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

RHC Assets. Cloak and Dagger

The party will be operating outside of Risur, and if they fall afoul
of the local authorities it could be politically awkward, so Delft Social. Real-Time.
suggests a low profile. The party’s contact in Crisillyir is a fake.
The RHC has agents in most major cities around the world, and When the party arrives in Alais Primos, they notice that among
Delft suggest when they reach Alais Primos they track down Joe the many human dockworkers, there are a few orcs or half-orcs,
Hobner, a field agent who “retired” and opened an import busi- since Beran migrant workers aren’t that unusual here. However,
ness, bringing Risuri goods to Crisillyir. Delft worked with Joe any character who makes a DC �� Wisdom (Insight or Percep-
back in the day, and tentatively vouches for him; he doesn’t dis- tion) check spots a single kobold watching them. The kobold isn’t
count the risk that the man might have been replaced by a working, just observing, and if confronted he seems drunk and
doppelganger, mimic, duplicant, or other shapeshifter. claims he’s friends with some of the other dockers. This is one of
the many spies of El Extraño, the kobold spymaster of Ber.
Gear Up.
He suggests they spend a day getting supplies, then leave this Joe’s Hospitality.
evening, because high tide is at midnight. If they need to requisi- The former RHC agent Joe Hobner owns an import business in
tion any gear, constable Lauryn Cyneburg (see Adventure Six) can Alais Primos, or at least he did until a month ago, when the Obscu-
bring whatever they need to the custom teleportation beacon on rati discovered his affiliation via divination, and they sent an
their ship. Of course if they want to stay longer they can, but Delft assassin to take him out and replace him. The killer, who goes by
discourages them from dallying. the name Robert the Black, disposed of Joe’s body and has used
In classic James Bond fashion, Delft has a new gadget for the illusions since then to maintain the façade that Joe is still alive, in
agents before their mission. He hands over a set of communica- hopes of luring in and killing other RHC agents.
tion rings — rings made from interlocking pieces of silver and Joe has a plain office on the ground floor of his fine house,
rusted iron, one ring per party member. These were recently which is just a hundred feet from the nearest canal. If the party
crafted by Harkover Lee, the king’s principal minister and prob- comes to see him, the assassin does his best to play up Joe’s
ably the most powerful mage in the nation. They’re tiny ring gates boisterous personality and go along with whatever the party ex-
between this world and the Bleak Gate, too small for a person to pects of him. When he learns that they’re searching for a guy, he
pass through, but sufficient for magical communication, such as suggests they make themselves comfortable so he can pull out a
sending spells or the whispering wind charms given to the party by map and give them suggestions. Then he offers them drinks: wa-
Gale in Adventure Two. ter, wine, or liqueur.
Delft says he wouldn’t be surprised if the party ends up in the The water tastes oddly of parsnips, due to the hemlock infusion.
Bleak Gate again, and at least with this they’ll be able to send a The wine is poisoned with strychnine and tastes very bitter, while
message home.
Our intention here is to give the party the option — by combin- Flavor of the Place: Alais Primos.
ing these rings and the fey portal pad from Beshela — to escape by Alais Primos sprawls in a verdant valley along the coastline, framed
ship at the end of this adventure. They’ll be able to call their ship, by a semi-circle of cultivated hills and low mountains to the north
which can planeshift into the Bleak Gate and rescue them. The and west. Enzyo Mons rises at the southernmost tip of this mountain
planeshift effect can last for multiple naval rounds, giving the range, and the priests of Crisillyir make monthly treks to hurl objects
players a chance to rescue allies at sea or stop other Ob officers of evil into the volcano’s fiery rift.
from escaping. Make sure before the constables leave Flint that Massive libraries, temples, and sepulchers fill the heart of the city,
they understand what their new gadgets do. some so large they straddle the canals that carry mountain rivers
between the wide-spread city neighborhoods. The city has a trio of
Leave a Light On For Us. harbors each feeding into a different system of canals. Some of the
Assuming they don’t stick around and try to help Governor Stan- most grandiose cathedrals in the world are built on gorgeous tended
field, the party’s ship departs several hours later in the dead of garden islands just off the coast.
night. As they sail out of Flint Harbor they are guided by two Hundreds of small chapels dot the city, and citizens are expected
lighthouses, shining out from either shore. to visit and confess any crimes or sins at least once a week. Many of
Based on Grappa’s letter, the party knows they have to find these chapels possess enchantments to compel honesty, though
Leone before the ��th of Autumn. Unbeknownst to them, even corrupt patriarchs and local priests with Family connections alike
when they do find the Steelshaper, they’ll likely need at least a have been known to remove these “peacekeeping auras.”
week to get to the frozen city of Knütpara and return, then an ex- Firearms and other items of technology seen to be related to the
tra day to capture and soul-bond with a group of Ob officers. So in tieflings of Danor are illegal, subject to confiscation and fines.
truth they have to reach Leone by the ��th of Autumn. Traditional city watchmen are reinforced by clerics capable of
Keep track of the date. The journey to Alais Primos covers summoning spirits of the dead, and like every major Crisillyiri city,
about ��� miles, so the party’s ship takes somewhere between � every church has a bell of solid gold, which can be rung in times of
and � days. crisis to create a teleportation shield across the whole city.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 19

Act One: Find the Mindmaker

New Poisons
Hemlock Infusion (ingested). The fountains in Alais Primos are said When reduced to Dexterity 0 or Constitution 0, the creature suffo-
to all run with holy water—apparently holiness tastes like parsnips. cates and dies. After two successful saving throws, the creature is
Hemlock paralyzes the drinker’s muscles, first causing clumsiness, cured of the poison. The creature recovers all of its lost Dexterity and
then malaise, then difficulty breathing, full paralysis, and finally Constitution at the end of its next long rest, or once it is targeted by a
asphyxiation. greater restoration spell.
A creature subjected to this poison must succeed on a DC 15 Sweet Arsenic (ingested). This dark, nutty liqueur must have some
Constitution saving throw 10 minutes after ingesting it, then again at coffee in it. It’s very quaint. The cup even sits on a saucer with an old
the end of each minute for 6 minutes. On a failed save, the creature’s lace doily. Arsenic disrupts living cells’ ability to use food energy, and
Dexterity score is lowered by 1d6. When reduced to Dexterity 0, the it triggers a cascade of damage throughout the body. Normal arsenic
creature suffocates and dies. After two successful saving throws, the poisoning can take weeks to kill, but this alchemically-strengthened
creature is cured of the poison. The creature recovers 1d4 Dexterity at version acts much more quickly. A sufficiently high dose causes
the end of each long rest, or once each time it is targeted by a greater headaches, confusion, severe diarrhea, vomiting, and a slow coma to
restoration spell. an eventual death.
Strychnine Wine (ingested). Risuri tend to prefer sweet wines, but A creature subjected to this poison must succeed on a DC 15
everyone agrees that Crisillyri make the best. One can only assume the Constitution saving throw 10 minutes after ingesting it, then again at
surprising bitterness of this drink means it’s really high quality. the end of each minute for 6 minutes. On a failed save, the creature’s
Strychnine is a neurotoxin that causes nerves to react to even the Constitution score is lowered by 1d3. When reduced to Constitution
lightest stimuli, leading to nausea, convulsions, frothing at the mouth, 0, the creature suffocates and dies. After two successful saving
spasms that bend the body into an arch, loss of consciousness, and throws, the creature is cured of the poison. The creature recovers all of
finally asphyxiation. its lost Constitution at the end of its next long rest, or once it is
A creature subjected to this poison must succeed on a DC 15 targeted by a greater restoration spell.
Constitution saving throw 10 minutes after ingesting it, then again at
the end of each minute for 6 minutes. On a failed save, the creature’s
Dexterity score is lowered by 1d3 and its Constitution is lowered by 1.

the liqueur’s arsenic content makes it quite sweet. A successful can concoct the proper anti-toxin for one type of poison; crafting
DC �� Intelligence (alchemists’ supplies) check realizes that it takes a minute. The antidote stops the progression of the poison.
something is wrong.
He’ll talk with them for a bit about the city. Then �� minutes Fighting Robert the Black.
later, when the characters first start to suffer from the poison’s The assassin waits at least � minutes before going back out, unless
effects (see below), the assassin excuses himself to use the privy, he hears one of the PCs trying to exit the building, in which case
heads down a hallway, and steps into a bathroom. He bars the he’ll leave by the window, walk along the narrow ledge outside,
sturdy door from the other side (AC ��, �� hit points; DC �� and try to catch them as they step onto the street. He prefers to
Strength check), opens a window in preparation of a quick escape, strike first with his electrocuting dazer, then uses more traditional
then retrieves a special arcanotech weapon from a cabinet. He sneak attacks or a death attack if he can pull it off.
waits with it pointed at the door, and listens for cues to whether If he’s facing more than one enemy who isn’t poisoned, Robert
the party is dying. tries to flee. He knows the routes from his home’s roof to other
buildings, and his familiarity with the city makes it easy for him to
Poison Progression. get away if he can break line of sight for � rounds.
Use the following mechanics for anyone who drinks poison.
Each drink has three doses of poison, and how bad things get Kobold Rescue.
depends wholly on how much each character ingests in the course Agents of El Extraño had been following Robert the Black, and
of �� minutes. A character who merely sips only suffers the effects they have been watching Joe’s home and business ever since the
of one dose. Consuming a partial drink means being subjected to assassin took up residence. They don’t know Joe’s affiliation, but
two doses, and a whole glass means all three doses are in a person’s they figure if the assassin is waiting for someone, they should
system. If the character guzzled and then asked for seconds, dou- wait too.
ble the number of doses. When the party shows up, the kobold spies send a runner to
After �� minutes, each character makes a Constitution saving alert their master, and they prepare for several contingencies. Ba-
throw. For each dose beyond the first he ingested, increase the poi- sically, let the party win or lose, then have a half dozen kobolds
son’s DC by +�. For those who fail, the poison then takes effect, come in. They outnumber and take down Robert if the party
forcing additional saves each minute to fend off damage until the hasn’t yet, tend to any dying PCs, then hurry those who are se-
poison runs its course. Each dose beyond the first increases the verely poisoned out of the building. They load them onto a wagon,
duration by ��%. and the orc driver sets off to a nearby temple, where a Clergy
Magic that neutralizes poison can end the affliction. A DC �� priest performs the proper spells to cleanse the poison. El Extraño
Wisdom (Medicine) or Intelligence (alchemists’ supplies) check will be waiting for them when they awaken.

20 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Robert the Black Wanted Man

Medium humanoid (human), neutral evil
Armor Class 17 (+2 studded leather) Puzzle. Montage.
Hit Points 104 (16d8+32) With the aid of an international spy agency, the party tracks down
Speed 30 ft. Leone Quital.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA When the PCs meet him, El Extraño is sitting, tiny and cross-
10 (+0) 16 (+3) 14 (+2) 13 (+1) 10 (+0) 14 (+2) legged, atop a stack of massive books taller than he is. He has one
Saving Throws DEX +7, INT +5 small book — the Codex of the Little People (see Part Two) — open
Skills Acrobatics +7, Athletics +4, Deception +10, Insight +8, on his lap, and smokes a long dragon-motif pipe in his other hand
Perception +8, Sleight of Hand +7, Stealth +11 as he looks up from his reading and calls each of the PCs by name..
Senses passive Perception 13
Languages Common, Primordial “Yes, I know all of your names! But it is not impressive, because I did
Challenge 11 (7,200 XP) not even need my many loyal eyes for that. I work for the Bruse, yes?
Assassinate. During his first turn, Robert has advantage on attack And he told me your names while we ate dinosaur eggs in his castle.
rolls against any creature that hasn’t taken a turn. Any hit he scores “I became interested in this conspiracy that has caused so much
against a surprised creature is a critical hit. trouble, and I knew if I were them, I would kill your spies, yes. Also,
Evasion. If Robert is subjected to an effect that allows him to make a I knew where your spies were. Do not be impressed even yet! It is not
Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, he instead takes no hard to guess that a former constable would still spy for his country.
damage if he succeeds on the saving throw, and only half damage if My eyes watched his home, and sadly they could not save him from
he fails. his assassin. But then they watched the assassin, and now we have
Innate Spellcasting. Robert’s innate spellcasting ability is Charisma. saved you, yes. This is all yeoman’s work, not impressive.
He can innately cast the following spells, requiring no material “Leone Quital was spotted on the 28th of Spring in the Cathedral
components: of Triegenes at Enzyo Mons. I know what you are thinking, yes! But
At will: disguise self, mage hand do not be impressed that I know you are looking for him. His former
Poison Weapon (4/short rest). Robert uses a bonus action to coat associate, the gnome named Oddcog, cursed the man’s name re-
his weapons with poison. On a successful hit with a poisoned peatedly while he fitted me for my own mechanical battle suit. It was
weapon the target must make a DC 16 Constitution saving throw, natural you would seek the Steelshaper at some point.
taking 24 (7d6) poison damage on a failed save, or half as much “We will work together…by this you may now be impressed. My
damage on a successful one. eyes will follow you, look for threats and targets around you, and
Quick. Robert has advantage on initiative checks. share what they see. If you don’t think you should meet my eyes, they
Sneak Attack (1/turn, 4d6). Robert deals an extra 14 (4d6) will send couriers to share what they see, also so that you don’t get
damage when he hits a target with a weapon attack and has upset and kill them. You should read this book, yes, so you respect
advantage on the attack roll, or when the target is within 5 feet of an the value of little people.”
ally of Robert’s that isn’t incapacitated and he doesn’t have He closes the book in his lap, then tosses it to you. You catch it,
disadvantage on the attack roll. and the kobold vanishes in a puff of smoke. When it clears, he’s
ACTIONS gone, along with the stack of books he was using as a stool.
Multiattack. Robert makes three dagger attacks.
Magical Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +9 to hit, reach 5 El Extraño. The spymasters of Ber are
ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d4+5) piercing damage. always known as El Extraño (The Strange One),
Immediately after hitting or missing the target, a thrown magical and traditionally they adopt bizarre person-
dagger reappears in Robert’s hand. alities so that their true intentions are harder to
Electrocuting Dazer (1/Day). Melee Weapon Attack: +7, reach 5 ft., intuit. Indeed, some say the actual spymaster
one target. Hit: 10 (3d6) lightning damage and the target makes a only works behind the scenes, and that El
DC 16 Constitution saving throw. On a failure, it falls prone and is Extraño is just a mask he hides behind. (The
stunned for 1d4 rounds. rumor’s false, though El Extraño thinks that would have been a great idea.)
REACTIONS The current spymaster is a kobold wizard with uneven eyes, finely-tended
Uncanny Dodge. When an attacker Robert can see hits him with an fleshy whiskers, and exceptional legerdemain skills. He casually mentions
attack, Robert can use his reaction to halve the attack’s damage ridiculous and unlikely events that he participated in, and he’s not above
against him. expending powerful teleportation magic if it will make for a suitably
dramatic exit. He prefers to give directives, or at most offer two options that
Similarly, if Robert runs, the kobolds spring traps to knock him he will pursue, and is no fan of actually discussing things, at least not until
out as he’s leaping between buildings. He breaks both his legs, and someone can actually surprise him. He has a bit of dragon blood in him, and
the kobolds drag him back for interrogation. smokes pipes of cinammon-laced cloves.
If the party makes it out fine on their own, the kobolds cau- El Extraño’s motivation is to do his job excellently, and to maintain the
tiously announce themselves and ask, one group of spies to honor of his title. A contingency will annihilate his body in fire should he
another, if they’d be willing to meet their boss. die, to maintain uncertainty as to his true fate.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 21

Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Leone’s Trail. From here out, the party can use Beran kobolds as advance scouts.
We suggest ways for the party to find Leone, but it’s certainly In effect, they balance out the penalties the party would be getting
possible for them to find clues a different way. You might also do an for trying to find clues in a massive city where they’re not locals.
ad hoc adjustment to the route Leone took if you think a particularly They have enough manpower now to conduct a proper manhunt,
clever idea should yield some result. That said, this is the default and kobold migrant workers are inconspicuous enough that no
story for how Leone got from the Obscurati facility in Flint to his one really questions them.
current mobile train quarters in Mirsk. If it matters, El Extraño is a ��th level kobold wizard focused
On Spring 14, after the colossus escaped, Leone escaped the on illusions and teleportation.
colossus construction facility in the Bleak Gate, used the magical
flux created by the colossus tearing a hole in the mountain to reach Methods of Investigation.
the real world, and made his way to North Shore. There Jacques The goal of this challenge is to give players the feeling of tracking
LeBrayne ferried Leone on his private yacht to the Cold Vessel. The a man down. How much time the GM wants to spend on this is at
ship reached Alais Primos on Spring 20. their discretion. If the party enjoy interrogating folks, let them,
All this information so far has already been sussed out by other but if they’d rather just make a Charisma check, get some clues,
police and RHC investigations. It’s up to the PCs to follow his trail and decide from there where to go next, that works too. By de-
once he reaches Alais Primos. fault, the GM can assume that a good Charisma check represents
Leone debarked and went to a church as is traditional. In this case deploying the kobold eyes well and finding the right person who
it was the Chapel of St. Tromboni, a humble building with pink knows the next clue; then the party can go and talk in person if
plaster walls. Nothing of interest happened there, and he left amidst they want.
a large crowd when a mass let out. We’ve tried to give Leone enough protections to sidestep any
From there he got new threads at Broclofa Apparel, a clothier shop, “instant win” options. It’s fine to use magic to get information, but
and then he rented a room across the street from Glazier Charani, a the party should still have to spend retracing their target’s steps.
shop that sells glasswork and carries a small selection of premium The main beats of the manhunt will probably be searching Alais
wines. Over the following days he traveled little around the city, mostly Primos for clues, visiting Quital vineyard, dealing with an ambush
using a young girl named Emmelsa to fetch him food and books. Leone in Nalaam, and then pinpointing Leone’s train out of all the traffic
has a fondness for Bromago cheese, and he made a special request for in the Drakran rail system.
a pound of it. There are only two shops in the city that carry Bromago.
Eight days later, on Spring 28, a delivery arrived at Glazier Charani Pounding the Cobblestones.
from the Quital Vineyard, owned by Leone’s family. Quital spoke with Mechanically, each day each PC can make a DC �� Charisma
his nephew Piginni Quital, who was running the delivery. He arranged (Persuasion) check or spend their day aiding an ally (granting ad-
for them to rendezvous at Enzyo Mons, a nearby volcano, where he vantage). On a success, he finds a clue, which might narrow the
chucked the damaged head of Grappa’s previous golem body into the area he needs to search, or might point to a person who actually
lava. This was his offering of sorts against any further bad luck. interacted with Leone.
From there he hitched a ride in his nephew’s wagon out of the city If the party finds a specific person to talk to, sometimes these
back to his family lands. He stayed with the family at the next estate people are very reticent to share the information. Getting them to
over, the Cejakreig Vineyard, arriving on Spring 35. share the clue might require a successful DC �� Charisma (Intim-
He had his nephew deliver a letter to Vendricce and leave it in a idation or Persuasion) check. These checks usually take just a few
dead-drop at a public park near the rail station on Spring 44. It was minutes.
picked up by a soldier at the local barracks, who delivered it to For either type of clue, certain associations, knowledge, or
Captain Matt Massaer, one of a handful of captains who ferry actions can gain a bonus to the check — and of course let the play-
people to the Mutravir, the Obscurati palace island. ers try other methods of getting the clue.
On Spring 47, a rider arrived with a near-dead horse at the
Cejakrieg Vineyard, and handed over a package to Leone. This Magic CSI Tricks.
included a dose of needlewire, which Leone injected into the courier Leone’s an officer of the Obscurati, so attempts to magically di-
so he could debrief with Nicodemus and plan their next move. Leone vine his location require a successful DC �� Intelligence (Arcana)
left the next morning and caught an Avery Coast train west to check. Divinations that just poke at the edges of Leone’s activities
Nalaam. There he linked up with a cadre of Obscurati agents, rode aren’t so protected, so a spell that asks “Who did Leone meet with
into Trekhom, and on Spring 50 purchased two entire rail cars and in this building?” or “What path did he take when he left?” would
had them modified to his specifications. work fine.
Ever since then he has taken a semi-regular circuit across Drakr,
which has a web of different rail routes. Every few nights he has his RHC Agents.
two cars transferred between trains. Ever since Summer 68 he has By this point the party’s Prestige with Risur should grant them a
been sending out letters to different Ob officers, coordinating the lot of leeway to call in favors, and the RHC has a few agents and
path they will take to eventually arrive at Mirsk. The plan is for them allies in every major city around the region. Still, the party is op-
all to check into a hotel in Mirsk by Autumn 74, then leave the next erating in foreign territory, so increase the effective level of any
day, taking a train to Nalaam, then on to Sid Minos and Vendricce. favor by �. They can still get help, but it will take longer.

22 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

El Extraño’s kobolds provide the most basic aid by going lots of Skipping Ahead.
places at once. RHC assets, by contrast, are limited in number but The party might find clues out of order. It’s perfectly fine to let them
with greater expertise and resources. jump around, though try to keep the clues natural. In particular, after
We haven’t planned any particular allies for the party to con- talking to El Extraño they’ll likely want to check out Enzyo Mons
tact, but feel free to trot out whatever old spy movie tropes you’d (where they can learn that he arrived and left with a guy on a
like. Perhaps when they need to get the Quital family to cough up wagon), though Leone’s presence there doesn’t actually tell them
info on Leone’s time there, a corrupt priest who reports to the much unless they know from earlier that the wagon was owned by
RHC could threaten to declare an inquisition on the vineyard due Quital Vineyards.
to ‘rumors of demonic activity.’
Enzyo Mons.
Clues to Leone. Three miles from the city center of Alais Primos, a chapel to a minor
These clues form a sort of “trail of breadcrumbs”; we suggest an god of fire and tribulation marks the beginning of a trail up to the
order they can find them, but it’s just a recommendation. peak of Enzyo Mons, an active volcano. Another chapel sits every few
If the party doesn’t succeed the first time they make a Charisma hundred feet over the course of a two mile trail that rises a half a mile
check to look for a clue in a given area, they can keep trying day vertically to the volcano’s rim. There the Clergy have erected a
after day until they find a lead. However if they fail a check during cathedral devoted to Triegenes, the founder of their faith, who they
an interrogation, usually this hardens the resolve of the person claim ascended to godhood upon death.
who knows what they want, so other methods might be necessary. A stained glass window above the cathedral’s rostrum is
Remember, sometimes it’s best for less-skilled PCs to aid those continually back-lit by the glow of the lava in the caldera, and a broad
who are experts, especially since the DCs here are all rather high. balcony behind the cathedral overlooks that pit of fire. Every month
After all they’re looking for a man who tried to lay low, who came priests hold a ceremony where they cast into the volcano any items
through this way months ago, and finding him won’t be easy. believed to be possessed of evil that have been collected by the faith.
> Clue �: DC �� Charisma (Persuasion). Harbor bureaucrats They also cast in offerings of gold and jewels, though they don’t
in Alais Primos check their logs and find out when the Cold throw as far; a tier just beneath the balcony, out of sight of the public,
Vessel arrived and who processed their travel visas. This lets catches these valuables, which are recovered later.
the party know how to narrow their search. (PCs who call in The mountain is not particularly tall in the grand scheme of things,
a favor with The Family gain a +�� bonus to this check, since but its obsidian black face stands out starkly, making the rolling
all the bureaucrats are corrupt.) green hills around it seem even more beautiful by comparison. Due
> Clue �: DC �� Charisma (Persuasion). After asking around to the prayers of the faithful it has not erupted in over 700 years.
to people working the right pier that day, the party learns
Leone asked for where he could get some clothes, and they who makes an offering worth at least �� gp to the volcano
learn where he headed. (Docker PCs gain a +� bonus to this gains a +�� bonus instead.)
check, due to professional courtesy.) It should be a fairly easy matter to locate and travel to the
> Clue �: DC �� Charisma (Persuasion). A lot of asking Quital Vineyard. It’s a three-day ride by horse, or a week on
around finds workers in the district of the clothier shop who foot.
remember Leone inquiring regarding directions to premium > Clue �: DC �� Charisma (Intimidation or Persuasion).
wine shops. (The PCs get a +� bonus to this check if they Leone’s family and friends at the vineyard can be convinced
have made a point about asking after Leone’s fondness for to talk about his time there, and the strange rider who ar-
wine and cheese.) rived on Spring ��. They left the next day to catch a train.
> Clue �: DC �� Charisma (Persuasion). Leone apparently It’s a day’s ride to the nearest train station.
never went into any of those shops, but the party notices a > Clue �: DC �� Charisma (Persuasion). The party locates a
‘lodgers wanted’ posting across the street from Glazier Cha- series of railroad workers at the nearest town along the Av-
rani. (An adventurer proficient with Perception gains a +� ery Coast line who can confirm Leone took a train headed
bonus to this check.) Asking with the landlord verifies Leone west on Spring ��. A worker remembers him getting off in
was there, and that he left on Spring ��. Before he left he Nalaam. If the party wants to take the train to Nalaam, they
said he was ‘going to make an offering to Enzyo,’ referring get there in less than a day. The train workers gossip that
to the volcano. there are over a dozen kobolds stowed away in the cargo
> Clue �. Checking with the shop across the street determines section, but they don’t think it’s worth the effort to try to
that a shipment came in from the Quital Vineyard on the get rid of them.
same day Leone left, though the owner doesn’t recall seeing > Clue �: DC �� Charisma (Persuasion). Rail workers in
Loene. No check required; the party just has to think to ask. Nalaam vaguely remember Leone meeting up with a group
> Clue �: DC �� Charisma (Intimidation or Persuasion). of diverse foreigners on Spring ��, then leaving the follow-
The priests at the Cathedral atop Enzyo Mons recall that a ing day headed for Trekhom. (The PCs get a +� bonus to this
man threw a metal head into the volcano, and that he ar- check if they got on Lord Kulp’s good side in Adventure Four.)
rived and left with a man on a wagon. (An adventurer As the party investigates this clue, they are set upon by a
proficient with Religion gains a +� bonus to this check. One somewhat ineffectual Obscurati ambush. See Outmatched

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 23

Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Flavor of the Place: Manhunt The ambush scene Outmatched is next, then the scene Needle in a
Locations. Needle Factory occurs after the conclusion of the manhunt.
Quital Vineyard and its neighbors thread through rolling hills, often
cultivating boutique fruit trees along the tops of ridges. The family
homes are old, wealthy, and ornate, each blessed by the Clergy. The Outmatched
roads between different estates are dotted with chapels.
Nalaam, an independent city state, sits high in the Penance Peaks Action. Tactical.
on the border of Crisillyir. At this time of year the first snows are The Obscurati have groups watching for surveillance in various
falling, but the city’s archmages have transmuted stones and placed cities, but they’re no match for characters of the party’s level.
them throughout the city to maintain warmth. The towers that This is an opportunity for the party to show off, and for them to
pervade the city architecture all host elaborate designs, showcasing possibly run into trouble without actually being threatened physi-
the supernaturally-strong rock quarried here. cally. You can use this encounter in any spot where you think the
Money is king here. Crime is punished by fine; those who can’t pay party might get noticed, but if they’re being careful not to attract
the fine are required either to work (at surprisingly reasonable rates) attention they’ll still be noticed in Nalaam due to divinations per-
to reimburse those harmed by their actions, or to battle in the city’s formed by the counter-intelligence mages there.
coliseum, earning money based on how well they entertain the The attack likely occurs after the party arrives at the Nalaam
crowds. Most police patrols here include a wizard, taking advantage rail enclave, but feel free to set it anywhere. The challenge to the
of the powerful earth mana that attracted so many magic users. party here isn’t surviving; it’s making sure that after they defeat
Trekhom is low and flat, but exists more underground than above the ambushers they track down their accomplices and make sure
it. Factories and a truly vast railyard dominate the aboveground word of their snooping doesn’t get back to the Ob.
landscape, surrounded by squat buildings and dotted with a few
towers that rise into the smoggy air. Most people live in tunnels, or Enemies.
in homes that extend two or three stories into the bedrock. • Obscurati sniper assassin
Locals don’t care much about outsiders unless they’re buying or • 3 Obscurati counter-spies
building something. Elite police use borderline-evil magic such as
mind control and pain-wracking necromancy to deal with Obscurati Sniper Assassin
lawbreakers, but criminals in exchange feel few compunctions with Medium humanoid (elf), lawful neutral
sucking policemen’s souls or turning their enemies to stone and Armor Class 16 (studded leather)
leaving their severed head next to a smashed pile of rock that had Hit Points 65 (10d8+20)
once been their body. Speed 30 ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
below. Afterward, it’s a one-day train ride to Trekhom. This 10 (+0) 18 (+4) 14 (+2) 14 (+2) 14 (+2) 8 (–1)
time the kobolds buy a ticket, because Drakrans take their Saving Throws DEX +7, CON +5, CHA +2
trains more seriously. Skills Acrobatics +7, Athletics +3, Intimidation +2, Perception +8,
> Clue ��: DC �� Charisma (Persuasion). In Trekhom, Sleight of Hand +7, Stealth +10
workers at the railyard recall Leone purchasing two train Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 18
cars for himself, then bringing in workers to make alter- Languages Common, Dwarvish, Elvish, Primordial
ations to them. Two clues will help them identify those cars. Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)
> Clue ��-A (Trekhom): DC �� Charisma (Intimidation or Fey Ancestry. The sniper has advantage on saving throws against
Persuasion). Railyard bureaucrats can provide details on the being charmed, and magic can’t put them to sleep.
two cars Leone purchased. They both resemble normal pas- Quick. The sniper has advantage on initiative checks.
senger cars, but with a more sturdy carriage to support more Superb Aim. The sniper ignores half cover and three-quarters cover
weight, and several windows on the left side covered over when making a ranged weapon attack, and they don’t have
with steel. (PCs willing to engage in a philosophical debate disadvantage when attacking at long range. When the sniper makes
with the bureaucrats about whether behavior is predestined — their first ranged weapon attack in a turn, they can choose to take a
like trains on a track — earn good will, gaining a +� bonus to -5 penalty to their ranged weapon attack rolls in exchange for a +10
this check. Eschatologist PCs gain a +�� bonus instead.) bonus to ranged weapon damage.
> Clue ��-B (Trekhom): DC �� Charisma (Intimidation or ACTIONS
Persuasion). Engineers or railyard workers recall that every Multiattack. The sniper can fire their rifle once, use a bonus action to
week or two they’ve seen the same pair of train cars, which reload, and fire a second time in the same round.
had special directions to transfer them between trains. They Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, reach 5 ft., one
stood out because there were guards on them. The workers target. Hit: 6 (1d4+4) piercing damage.
vaguely recall that the two cars never seem to be going the Rifle. Ranged Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, range 80/240 ft., one target.
same place twice. (Docker PCs again get a +� bonus here, Hit: 15 (2d10+4) piercing damage.
since the workers appreciate another laborer asking about REACTIONS
their lives.) Fast Reload. The sniper reloads their rifle.

24 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Obscurati Counter-Spy Tactics.

Medium humanoid (human), neutral The fight probably begins with the sniper, set up in a window or on
Armor Class 15 (studded leather) a roof, using a targeted shot to the head of a target who is fairly
Hit Points 72 (16d8) out in the open, with few options for ducking into cover. Then the
Speed 30 ft. counter-spies, waiting �� feet away or so, break from cover and
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA throw their beads of force to keep the party disoriented and immo-
10 (+0) 16 (+3) 10 (+0) 13 (+1) 12 (+1) 14 (+2) bile. The sniper continues to fire at opportune targets, trying to
Saving Throws DEX +6, WIS +4 force enemies into cover as counter-spies advance into melee.
Skills Acrobatics +6, Athletics +3, Deception +8, Insight +7, That’s their plan, at least.
Intimidation +5, Perception +7, Persuasion +8, Sleight of Hand +9,
Stealth +9 Aftermath.
Senses passive Perception 17 If interrogated, the spies reveal that they were sent after the group
Languages Common, Dwarvish because a voyeuristic satyr diviner named Krampus Snow alerted
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP) them. Krampus is waiting for word from the ambush squad so he
Evasion. If the counter-spy is subjected to an effect that allows them can report a success to his superior, Bert Facie (Han Jierre’s spy-
to make a Dexterity saving throw to take only half damage, they master, see the Teaser). If Krampus doesn’t hear from the group
instead take no damage if they succeed on the saving throw, and within �� minutes, he’ll instead use sending to warn that they
only half damage if they fail. might be compromised. The party has that long to track down the
Poison Weapon (4/short rest). The counter-spy uses a bonus action mage, who is staying in a tower suite a quarter mile from the rail
to coat up to two weapons with poison. On a successful hit with a enclave. He puts up no fight, and can verify that Leone came
poisoned weapon the target must make a DC 15 Constitution saving through and is operating somewhere in Drakr.
throw, taking 14 (4d6) poison damage on a failed save, or half as
much damage on a successful one.
Sneak Attack (1/turn, 4d6). The counter-spy deals an extra 14 Needle in a Needle Factory
(4d6) damage when they hit a target with a weapon attack and
have advantage on the attack roll, or when the target is within 5 feet Social. Real-Time.
of an ally of the counter-spy’s that isn’t incapacitated and they don’t The kobold spymaster supplies the party with an obvious clue.
have disadvantage on the attack roll. Once the party knows what cars to look for, pinpointing the
ACTIONS train Leone is on requires just a lot of time watching trains come
Multiattack. The counter-spy attacks twice. and go. The party can rely on El Extraño’s eyes to watch the six
Dagger (6). Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft. or main train depots in Drakr all at once. Unless the party has a par-
range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d4+3) piercing damage. ticularly clever idea, the kobolds probably get the job done much
Bead of Force. The counter-spy throws a bead of force up to 60 feet. faster than the constables would on their own.
The bead explodes on impact and is destroyed. Each creature within Three days after the party finds clue ��, El Extraño contacts the
a 10-foot radius of where the bead landed must succeed on a DC 15 party again. He asks them to meet him in a Trekhom needle
Dexterity saving throw or take 12 (5d4) force damage. A sphere of factory at night after it closes.
transparent force then encloses the area for 1 minute. Any creature Two kobolds with pistols guide the group in, and in the heart of
that failed the save and is completely within the area is trapped the factory El Extraño waits for the group, absent-mindedly
inside this sphere. Creatures that succeeded on the save, or are grinding points on the tips of short pieces of steel wire, then
partially within the area, are pushed away from the center of the punching holes to make the needles’ eyes.
sphere until they are no longer inside it. Only breathable air can pass He says nothing to the group, and responds to questions with
through the sphere’s wall. No attack or other effect can. wordless shrugs or some variant of ‘eh’. If they bother him too
An enclosed creature can use its action to push against the much, he’ll give them a long look, roll his eyes, then stand up and
sphere’s wall, moving the sphere up to half the creature’s walking walk away. But on the table next to him he has left a folded sheet
speed. The sphere can be picked up, and its magic causes it to weigh of paper (Player Handout — Train Schedules). This note should
only 1 pound, regardless of the weight of creatures inside. direct the party to seek out Leone in Mirsk. If they hop the first
REACTIONS train the next morning, they can get to Mirsk half an hour before
Uncanny Dodge. When an attacker the counter-spy can see hits them Leone’s train gets there.
with an attack, the counter-spy can use their reaction to halve the
attack’s damage against them.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 25

Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Mirsk Station Travel Arrangements.

Leone has sent letters to the seven Ob officers he’s responsible for
Exploration. Real-Time. transporting, telling them to wait in different locations by specific
The party decides when to strike as Leone’s train approaches a sta- dates. On those dates he’ll have one of his other operatives give a
tion where the party waits to ambush. pre-determined code phrase, then ask the officer to come with him,
Mirsk is where Leone plans to meet the group of Ob officers alone. They then take some combination of travel methods to reach
he’ll be taking to the convocation, so he checks in regularly to Mirsk. Only Leone knows where to go from there.
make sure nothing catches him by surprise. If the party decides to At every leg of the journey, Ob operatives are on the look-out for
confront Leone at another station, you can use the same map. The people who show up at multiple locations, and they are trained in the
party might instead decide to strike Leone while his train is in mo- proper magic to see through most illusory disguises. Nicodemus is
tion. If so, see the Runaway, Train sidebar. worried about nations or other powers discovering their island
meeting and blockading or bombarding the place, so they’re running
Station Layout. their officers all over the place to make pinpointing the location
Visitors typically enter the station from the north, then purchase nearly impossible.
tickets and wait in the lobby. Doors open out of the south wall When the party does manage to get Grappa in control of Leone’s
onto a series of railroad platforms, each of them ��� feet long. body, they’ll just have to wait in Mirsk for the officers to arrive.
Shot underground tunnels lead to the further south platforms, so Grappa will bring them in one by one, magically disable them, and
that passengers don’t have to jump across the tracks. perform a spell to implant a PC’s consciousness into their body.
A steel-framed glass roof — resembling a half-cylinder laid on its Once that’s all done they’ll travel by train to Vendricce, where they’ll
side — covers the platforms, protecting them from the common board a ship (along with three Crisillyiri Ob officers Leone had
heavy snowfalls. A catwalk is suspended above the incoming nothing to do with) and sail to Mutravir Island.
trains, to allow workers access for repairs and cleaning.
Beyond the platforms, dozens of tracks extend further south, Runaway, Train.
running in parallel and occasionally interweaving or leading to If Leone decides to run, or if the party goes for a dramatic attack
wheelhouses where cars can be swapped out from the train as a while on a moving train (perhaps fearing that Leone might have
whole. Tunnels criss-cross beneath these tracks too, and every few reinforcements waiting in a station), the battle might be constrained
hundred feet one can find mighty cranes that can lift heavy mate- to the long line of rail cars.
rials from car carriages. Normally the train will be moving at between 60 and 100 squares
Even in the dead of night, there are always at least a few dozen per round. If someone falls off (1d6 falling damage per 10 squares of
workers or travelers active in the main station and on the plat- speed), Leone’s cars are close enough to the front of the train that
forms, which is lit by light spells in ornate glass lamps. the character might have a chance to jump back on with a successful
DC 18 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check (3d6 bludgeoning damage on a
Leone’s Cars. failure), climb up, and run back into combat over the course of a
Leone has two cars: a private suite with bedroom, bathroom, minute. The entire train is over 300 squares long.
office, and kitchen; and a security car with lodging for a dozen Leone will try to strand enemies by detaching rear rail cars via
men and two special compartments containing an advanced bleak telekinesis as a bonus action. Detached cars slow down by 2 squares
golem, similar to the one the party faced in Adventure Two, The per round, so the gap will start at 2 squares, then 6 squares, then 12.
Dying Skyseer. When Leone is reduced below half hit points, he tears the train
These cars are distinctive from the outside because several of cars free from the tracks and derails the whole thing. Everyone on
their windows are covered with welded-on sheets of steel. In par- board must make a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw or be knocked
ticular, Leone is very private and was never a big fan of the sun, prone and take 4d6 damage. The sudden collision with the ground
so he has no windows at all in his quarters. ignites the firegems in the fuel car, creating a massive swathe of fire.
At any given time, Leone has four of his guards watching either The locomotive boiler explodes and all creatures in a 30-foot radius
end of his car, with four resting and four ready to activate the around it make a DC 17 Dexterity saving throw, taking 35 (10d6)
golems in case of an attack. fire damage on a failure or half as much on a success.
The derailed train cars actually take about 3 rounds to grind to a
Escape Contingency. halt, but it isn’t really feasible to fight until the train comes to a
When Leone does have to stop for the night, he makes sure that the complete stop. But if you take a moment to think about it, how often
locomotive of his train is facing an open track and has fuel at hand. do you get the chance to derail a train? We hereby grant you GM
He makes sure his car is always right behind the train’s fuel car. In Immunity to bend the rules a bit so Leone can run away and escape
the event of an attack he is prepared to use his steelshaping powers to fight another day.
to decouple any the cars behind his two, leaving just four cars in
the train (locomotive, fuel car, his suite, and the guards’ car). speed by � each round thereafter, to a maximum of ���. If he has
His powers are strong enough to then accelerate the cars. The to move a full train, he can only increase the speed by a feeble �
train would start at speed � on the first round, then increase its per round.

26 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Arrival Timeline.
When Leone’s train arrives at a railyard, first it spends �� minutes
splitting into three parts: the front four cars (locomotive, fuel, and
Leone’s two cars), the middle freight cars, and the rear passenger
cars. A second locomotive attaches to the freight cars and pulls
them off onto a spur. A third locomotive attaches to the passenger
cars and pulls into station, stopping at the north platform. Then
finally the front four cars pull into station, stopping at the south
platform.
For both sections of train at the station, the locomotive and fuel
cars pull through and stop just east of the station platform. You’ll
end up with numerous passenger cars stretching out along the
north platform, and Leone’s two cars at the eastern edge of the
south platform.
Leone and his guards have an opportunity to debark and go Stats for Leone and other Obscurati forces are presented in Ap-
into the station, which they seldom take. However, the train does pendix Two: Obscurati Forces.
loiter here for half an hour so workers can perform basic mainte-
nance, empty the lavatories, and restock its food and water. Reinforcements.
During that time passengers debark and board from the north • Leone Quital
train platform, resulting in a fairly crowded and busy area. • 2 advanced bleak golems
Depending on the time of day and whether the train will con- • 12 Obscurati arcane marksmen
tinue on, either the two trains reconnect and continue onward, or
they move separately to parking areas for the night. If the train is Terrain.
going to stop overnight, Leone’s two cars are usually detached It’s best to make some prop to represent the rail cars, something
from the locomotive and fuel car, then transferred to another you can move across the map, since the train might be in motion.
train. As mentioned about, Leone always makes sure the train is Also, Leone has the ability to rearrange the battlefield.
pointed toward empty track, so he can flee if he needs to.
Tactics.
Attack. Leone is confident and quite bitter, especially if he recognizes the
The party might simply wait for Leone to get off the train (he constables. Unless he’s outright outnumbered, he won’t flee until
won’t). In that case, they’ll likely end up fighting on the platform he’s reduced below half hit points. That said, he tries to keep his
while hundreds of people are present. The benefit to this attack is distance, flying over and behind train cars to try to string his ene-
that Leone won’t have a clear track ahead of him. He can still hop mies out. He relies on a makeshift metal shield to block attacks,
on a train and have it start moving, but a few rounds later he’ll creates a shrapnel vortex to clear out enemies if they’re in a defen-
need to devote a full turn to shoving another train of the rails in sible location, and flings heavy metal objects (or PCs in metal
order to clear the track ahead. armor) as improvised projectiles.
Other parties might wait until Leone’s train is parked for the At the start of the second round of combat, four of Leone’s
night. This would have the fewest witnesses, but Leone would eas- guards emerge from their car and join the fight. Though the un-
ily be able to accelerate the train and flee. Clever parties might dercarriage of cars provide improved cover, the arcane marksmen
block the track, but they’d be best served blocking it with some- can shoot around corners.
thing non-metallic. At the start of the third round, two hatches open on the roof of
Finally, Leone is at his most vulnerable when his cars are being the security car as the bleak golems climb out as heavy reinforce-
transferred between trains, because he’ll have few innocents to use ments. Leone will generally try to stay close enough to the golems
as human shields, and will be far from any open tracks to flee on. that the party can’t just outrun the massive beaters.
At the start of the fourth round, eight more arcane marksmen
Reinforcements. arrive. Some of them might just shoot out of their windows if they
If the party got found out — either by the ambush team in Nalaam, can see the PCs.
or perhaps by Governor Stanfield — Leone will have more guards. When Leone is reduced below half hit points his power flares
Use your judgment to decide what is a likely increase in defense briefly, letting him tear entire trains off the ground and move
that would be right for your group. You might just increase the them. He places some as cover, moving others to hang over PCs so
number of minions if your party is a “run in and shoot” type, or they’ll be crushed if they don’t get out of the way. GMs that want
add more diverse foes if you think your party would enjoy creeping to be really mean should place two cars � squares apart, parallel
through a hostile railyard, taking out enemies here and there until on opposite sides of a PC, then put a third car floating above the
they can corner Leone. gap, ready to fall and crush them.

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 27

Act One: Find the Mindmaker

28 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 29

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

Talking and Fighting. Oops?

Once he recognizes his attackers as those who ruined his operation What if the party accidentally kills Leone?
in Flint, Leone becomes scornful. He challenges them, shouting In this case, Grappa can manage to contact the mind of the
that he was trying to create something that would change the nearest person, imprinting the instructions of how to find the frozen
world, but that small-minded gremlins like them would of course lich giant in the bottom of the rift in Knütpara. There, the party will
be afraid that such a bold creation would of course show the use- be able to bring Leone’s body temporarily back from the dead, at the
lessness of their existence. He blames them for nearly destroying cost of giving over his soul to the lich, after which Grappa will still be
the work of a genius, and accuses them of being the brutish en- able to guide them into the Obscurati palace. We weren’t planning
forcers of a hundred generations of dim-witted superstition, and for Leone to survive this adventure anyway, though his conscious-
that they value the lives of insignificant fools. People like them, he ness will make another appearance in the last third of the campaign.
says, are only useful because he can use their bodies as stepping
stones to previously unwitnessed heights. No Rush.
If the party dallies for months, Grappa eventually grows desperate on
Leone Quital. An aristocrat from Crisillyir, the 60th of Autumn. At night he bolts from Leone’s quarters,
Leone was recruited into the Ob for his unusual, dominates his guards, then makes his way to a mage who can cast
innate ability to manipulate and shape metal sending for him. He sends the party the message: “Lackadaisacal
without having to actually learn or cast spells. idiots! Urgent news. Mindmaker here, my cover blown. Steelshaper
Contacts groomed him and encouraged him to at Mirsk railyard, but moves daily. For Convocation, frigate
acquire skills that the conspiracy would need, Naphaeon in Vendricce. Don’t abandon me.”
but he only gained the leadership’s trust after he Leone manages to wrest control of himself back at dawn,
helped rescue Kasvarina Varal eight years ago during a Risuri raid on immediately contacts the Ob for emergency aid, and is given a magic
Cherage. A cannon bombardment collapsed a factory she was touring, and item to suppress Grappa’s consciousness. When he reaches the
Leone nearly killed himself with exertion to tear apart the crumpled steel Obscurati palace, Nicodemus will remove Grappa for good, and the
and pull her to safety. Ob will be on high alert for intruders. It’s almost certain the party
A few years later he was placed in charge of constructing the colossus, won’t be able to sneak in using Ob officer bodies, but that doesn’t
reporting directly to Roland Stanfield. When it broke free he fled, and mean they can’t try something else.
eventually he was contacted by Nicodemus himself, who knew Leone could
still be of use. Withdrawal.
Though he prefers to appear refined, romantic, and honorable, Leone is Once Leone is reduced below half hit points, he tries to run for a
flamboyant and short-tempered. He sometimes imagines himself a conduc- train that he can flee on. If the party strikes at the platform, that
tor, waving his hands to imagined music as he telekinetically manipulates means heading south, where the freight cars from his train as still
metal. He has a fondness for fine Bromago cheese, and often enjoys the slowly moving and several other trains are parked or slowly run-
wine from his family’s vineyard. ning down their lines. It would be hard to map this chase but the
cluttered and confusing moving environment should make for a
Alexander Grappa. Alexander fought for memorable battleground.
Risur in the Third Yerasol War four decades ago
as a mere foot soldier. After losing too many Aftermath.
friends he devoted himself to learning magic of The PCs should try to take Leone alive. Unless they intentionally
golem-crafting, hoping his homeland could field kill him, or knock him unconsciousness underneath a levitating
an army of automata instead of shedding real rail car or in front of an oncoming train, the party can choose to
soldiers’ blood. But his interest slowly drifted knock him out when they drop him to � hit points. It’s up to them
from golem construction to the crafting of minds for these artificial to decide when to wake him up.
warriors, as well as enchantment magic and other ways to end a conflict If the party place mage cuffs on him he isn’t able to use his
without anyone dying. steelshaping powers without knocking himself back out. He’ll con-
He helped train and educate the colossus, but once he got an inkling of tent himself with just talking to the party, trying to get a gauge of
its actual purpose he rebelled. His first attempt earned him a geas to keep them without revealing anything of his plans. A few hours later
him from talking. His second attempt got him killed, though he managed to though, he drifts off to sleep and Alexander Grappa gains control
transfer his mind to a golem body. His third attempt got that body killed, of Leone’s body, and can talk to the party.
and now is stuck in the body of his murderer, Leone Quital.
Grappa looks on life with casual aplomb, and is a bit of a bumbling Loot.
professor, full of clever ideas and bubbling with enthusiasm, but not The party will likely want to divest Leone of his steelsilk mantle
properly grasping the dangers involved. (detailed in Part Two). e

30 | EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One

 Act One: Find the Mindmaker

EN�ider Presents: Schism, Part One | 31