A murder mystery in Sigil – Alternate Web’s Edge
Following a previous post here that explains the basis of this adventure. Of course, you may use this as standalone too.
https://www.reddit.com/r/VecnaEveofRuin/comments/1tih997/dmgnups_modified_and_expanded_veor/
My players are now alone in the Sanctum of Sigil with almost full access to it and the city too.
After a couple of days of expected exploring and frolicking, two letters arrive at the Sanctum, brought by a person working at a shop with magical pastries owned by Mordenkainen (Mordenkainen’s Magnificent Munchies, idea by mimir.net).
The following letters were made to fit their supposed writer’s style by AI and then cleaned up for inconsistencies and nonsense.
Mordenkainen,
I trust this reaches you before some well-meaning fool decides it ought not.
A curious matter has presented itself. A name has gone missing from the world, though not, it seems, from the world itself. Conversations slide away from it, records refuse to hold it plainly, and most minds—otherwise respectable minds—behave as though the absence were natural.
I would have dismissed this as some fashionable collective delusion, were it not for an item I recently acquired which I believe was meant for your attention. It is an old text, unremarkable to most eyes, yet it insists upon a single subject no one else appears capable of reading correctly. You would recognize the name immediately.
I find myself wondering whether you have noticed the same absence, or whether I am being afforded the rare privilege of singular inconvenience.
If your memory remains your own, I would appreciate the courtesy of confirmation.
—A’kin
And this is the second letter.
Mordenkainen,
You have not yet called at the shop, nor has my previous note disappeared, which I take as a rather poor sign.
I have continued my inquiries, discreetly where possible. The results have been less than encouraging. Certain names produce not ignorance, but discomfort—as though the mind recognizes a wound even when it cannot recall the blade.
That alone would be troubling enough.
Tomorrow, I have arranged to meet a githzerai psychic by the name of Dravax Thorn at the Styx Oarsman. He claims some talent for identifying injuries of memory and the sort of tampering polite company prefers not to discuss. I am not in the habit of trusting such claims, but one works with the tools available.
If you receive this and retain sufficient interest in the continued integrity of reality, I suggest you join us.
Try not to be late. It encourages optimism in the wrong people.
—A’kin
A’kin, the Friendly Fiend is an arcanaloth and owner of a magic shop introduced at Uncaged: Faces of Sigil book, from 2e and very popular in Sigil campaigns ever since. In this case he actually succeeded in locating and acquiring the Eye of Vecna. Knowing better than to use it, he has sealed it in a secret vault under his shop. He was protected by the effects of the Great Occluding and still remembers Vecna, which has actually earned him the attention of a cult cluster hiding in the Undersigil.
The Styx Oarsman is essensially the Sigil hangout for creatures from the hells. You will find enough info to populate this tavern on mimir.net
The PCs arrive to the Oarsman to find it besieged by two squads of Harmonium agents, mostly baring their teeth but not daring to act on their words, not with the bouncer being an actual cambion. The reason, there has been a murder in the Oarsman.
The players may choose to diffuse the situation and they can actually enter with a proper bribe. Tieflings and other demonic races enter freely, of course.
Otherwise, the arrival of Third Mover Special Investgator Harvm Ghex (yep, that’s also a NPC from mimir.net) changes the mood. Ghex is much more subtle, he tells the Hardheads to go away and claims jurisdiction over the case. He then has a talk-and-bribe with the bouncers and enters, while taking the players with him, especially if they mention A’kin.
Inside, they find the githzerai A’kin was supposed to meet, murdered.
- The gith is sitting on a chair with their back to the wall. They have fallen on the table.
- Medicine checks show they bear a puncture wound to the chest, probably dagger or bolt (the size of the table indicated it would be hard to reach them with a dagger from the other side while seated)
- Medicine and Poisoner’s checks indicate the presence of powerful poison. Something akin to dragon bile but also akin to spider venom. Unidentifiable.
- A hard investigation check reveals deep strap marks on the right forearm of the deceased.
- The barman claims A’kin arrived first. He also thinks they were seated on the opposite sides when he served the drinks. If the players miss this clue, Ghex might mention that it is strange for A’kin to enter the establishment and choose a seat that has him facing the wall instead of the room. He is after all an overly cautious demon. Which means there was probably a switch-up.
The next place to investigate is A’kin’s shop:
The front part of the shop has many magical objects and baubles, scrolls, contracts, potions. Valuable things are locked in chests. When foreign hands touch the chest a snout appears on the lid warning "I wouldn't do that if I were you, berk." The chests are obviously trapped.
The back of the shop is even more serious. It is protected by a magically locked door with multiple locks (to protect against the “Knock” spell, its important). When someone attempts to open it, the snout appears on the door saying "Its locked, master. Are you sure you are supposed to enter?" Beneath lies half a golden tray embedded in the door.
• The players may enter if they place Akin's letters to Mordenkainen on it. It simply opens without a word.
• If things from the shop are placed, the answer is "That's mine and not yours, cutter."
• If another person's belongings are placed It says "No. Not interested in things that are yours and not mine."
• If money is placed it says "You can buy many wonderful things here. But nothing as wonderful as entrance to a forbidden room."
• If trash or other disgusting things are placed: "Do you often find such antics to open doors for you, berk?"
As soon as they manage to enter the locked office they find the following clues:
• white feathers behind some furniture (Ghex will confirm A'kin has an erinyes assistant)
• a wrist crossbow on top of the main desk. The straps match the marks on the dead gith's arm. The crossbow has clips to hold two bolts on its body (artisan's tools check) but none of the bolts are present.
• specific books are left on the office desk or seem disturbed in their position on the otherwise neat bookcase. These involve different kinds of dragons, a couple of books on mundane poisoncraft and an oppened box with an infernal symbol on it (symbol of the Red Shroud, non identifiable from someone who is no expert on demons). The item is missing from the velvety interior. (A’kin is currently investigating the poison’s origins and is visiting a Red Shroud agent. The players might follow this trail to find him but I have not written anything on that direction yet).
• inside a locked display case lies a book about Vecna (the book A’kin spoke of in his letter). An arcana check reveals the case is trapped by an alarm spell. (A'kin will know if anyone opens the case)
I thought these clues were enough to solve the murder case. My players had a really hard time and eventually did not solve it, so part of the reason I made this post is to see what people think of it.
What follows is the solution of this case so read no further if you would like to think about it first.
A’kin met with the githzerai psion at the Styx Oarsman without knowing the gith was an agent of Vecna. The gith only wanted to confirm that A’kin remembers Vecna and tried to shoot him with a poisoned crossbow bolt from the wrist crossbow strapped on his arm and hidden in his sleeve. A’kin, always suspicious and always ready, reacted by using transpostion and swapping places with the gith (this idea came from an ability given to arcanaloths by Conflux Creatures). The gith took the bolt and died instantly while A’kin stole the crosbow as well as the spare bolt on it and set off to find the poison’s origins. Let me note the origin of the poison is actually Ker’Arach the spiderdragon, hiding in a cult of Venca hideout in the Undersigil instead of the Underdark.
As I said, my players did not even get close to this. I intended to let them simply reach the hypothesis that A’kin swapped places with the gith and Ghex was ready to offer a way to confirm that. Arranging a meeting with Shemeshka the Marauder (the only other permanent resident arcanaloth in Sigil) and subtly forcing her to use that ability.
In the end, my players decided to exclude any magical solutions because “the possibilities are too many”. I had Ghex solve the case, to everyone’s disappointment, including mine.
Before moving to the second part of this adventure, where I explain how the players were supposed to have Shemeshka reveal her abilities and what happens when they try to follow after A’kin who by this point has tracked the cult of Vecna into the Undersigil, I would like to ask for everyone’s opinions on this mystery. I feel like it has enough depth but my players really struggled with it and it could surely be better without becoming too easy.