Silverymoon

…Having finally made it to Silverymoon, the Gem of the North, our party split to accomplish their goals:

Setting the timeline of a tenday for everyone else, Pix made his way to the Vault of the Sages to do some research on the Rod of the Seven and the Netherese threat. Reynard stayed with him, keeping him safe (and fed) while he researched. While Pix learned some more about the Rod, he could not uncover the command word needed to find the next fragment. He shared with the party what he learned about the Netherese:

Back in the last days of Netheril, the flying city of Thultanthar was ruled by the powerful wizard Telamont Tanthul, known as Lord Shadow. He is the man who discovered how to travel to other planes of existence and return safely with treasure and magic. One of these places was the Plane of Shadow. While the other people of Netheril eventually welcomed his discovery as a source of slaves and a place to dispose of unwanted things, Lord Shadow saw it as much more than that. He loved the strange realm, its responsiveness to his magic, and the things he could learn from its strange energies. Over time, he developed ways to transport more and more material to and from the Plane of Shadow, and he eventually completed a spell to send his entire city to the Plane of Shadow. Unknown to him, he saved his city from destruction, for the day after his city vanished, magic stopped working in Faerûn, causing all of Netheril’s flying cities to plummet to the ground. When magic was restored on Faerûn, Lord Shadow transported his city back again, but they found nothing but ruins and the dead.

The people of Shade were horrified and cried for vengeance, assuming that their enemies the phaerimms (a bizarre subterranean race of spellcasting monsters) had caused this destruction. Lord Shadow grieved, but he knew that one flying city was no match for the might of the phaerimms, so he vowed that some day his city would return, avenge the Netherese, and recreate the old empire in its former glory. He then transported the city back to the Plane of Shadow, where (due to unforeseen circumstances) it remained for centuries. In the year 1,372 DR, the city once again returned to Faerûn.

Like all of Netheril’s flying cities, City of Shade, as it is commonly called, was made from the severed top of a mountain. At the center of its flat surface is a powerful magic item called a mythallar that allows the city to fly and provides magical power to many of the city’s magic items. The rest of the city is covered in large and small buildings like most large cities, except that very few places exist for housing large animals. Shade has no large roads suitable for wagon traffic, nor does it have any docks, for from the moment of its creation it was meant to be a flying city and never touched the ground. People had trade goods flown or teleported to and from the city by magic. The entire architecture is archaic and carefully maintained by the residents. Residents do not allow radical change, and much of the city’s resources are dedicated to preserving the existing buildings rather than renovating them or building new ones in their place.

The city is home to approximately 25,000 people, who are called the Shadovar. Most of the people of Shade are normal humans just like those that lived in Netheril thousands of years ago. They are mortal and descend from the original inhabitants of the city from centuries before. A few hundred have sacrificed part of their souls to infuse their bodies with Shadowstuff, the energy of the Shadowfell, becoming the beings known as shades. These shades are the leaders of the city and the architects of their plans in the Faerûn. Shades in shadow or darkness are more powerful than normal humans. They can heal from mortal wounds, become invisible, see in absolute darkness, shrug off magical attacks, and live much longer than a human. The highest level of the Shade nobility is Lord Shadow himself and his twelve sons. These thirteen men, all shades, are very old and very powerful.

The Shadovar dress in the style of clothing worn in old Netheril, which is a courtly style emulating that of powerful wizards. They favor dark colors such as black, burgundy, charcoal gray, dark green, and midnight blue. Those who can afford it wear a great deal of jewelry. Their patron deity is Shar, the evil goddess of darkness and unrevealed secrets. The Shadovar feel that Shar, who was worshiped back in ancient Netheril, protected them during their long time in the Plane of Shadow. They also believe that the Shadovar will play some key role in her plans to plunge the world into eternal darkness.

Having not heard back from the message he left with Alvaerelle at the High Palace, Sigismund returned there on the third day. He again sought audience with Taern, the High Mage of Silverymoon, to ensure that his warnings about the threat to the Weave were heard. Rebuffed again, Sig dropped to his knees in the great hall to commune with the Weave until he could get Taern’s attention.

T’Sai spent his days keeping watch over the paladin, though that was probably just his cover to make advances on Alvaerelle. On the third day, the elven sorceress finally conceded to visit T’Sai at the Golden Oak. The two of them proceeded to spend each evening together.

Molish visited each of the major temples in Silverymoon, conferring with their leaders and offering help where he could. He spent majority of his days tending to the Altar of the Dead in the Burial Grounds. Utilizing a newfound level of magic bestowed upon him by his Lord of the Dead, Molish attempted to cure Thaminor of his, uh, affliction… but without success.

Thaminor took the opportunity of visiting a major city to sell the carriage that brought the party from Westhill, and purchase a larger upgrade that would better suit their needs. He also took the time to confer with the Loremaster of Everdusk Hall (Silverymoon’s temple to the Seldarine) to discover a possible cure: a True Resurrection spell.

The morning after spending a tenday in Silverymoon, Sigismund received a knock on the door to his room. A page stood there, delivering a writ summoning him to the High Palace for an audience. Departing at once, the paladin was joined by T’Sai the moment he stepped out of the Golden Oak’s doors. Upon arrival at the High Palace, they were escorted to an audience hall and asked to wait.

From a door on the opposite side entered someone not expected: Eudora. Last seen in Westhill the night that the Shades attacked and sent the party to the Domains of Dread. Stating that she had expected the entire party would be present, the apparent Warder of the Spellguard cast a conjuration that teleported the remaining four members of the party into their room.

Over the course of their conversation, Eudora let on that she knew much of the party’s quest, activities, and history. She bade them to travel to Candlekeep, where they would find the rest of the information they sought on the Rod of the Seven. To aid in their journey, she conjured and presented to them the seven Simul Stones. When Thaminor questioned what they would do with their new stagecoach if they used the Harper Portal Network to travel to Candlekeep and then home, Eudora transmuted their new upgrade into a figurine of wonderous power.

To allow Pix time to visit his parents, the party waited until the next day to depart the city. Leaving Silverymoon’s mythallar behind, the party used the Harper Portal Network to travel to Baldur’s Gate in an instant, rather than a month. Pix grabbed a copy of Volo’s Guide (excerpt), and the party planned on departing for Candlekeep in the morning…