The Grove's Secrets
The Veiled Vanguard sets out to visit Naoki's home, with some tension between the party and Ro'Zaad. After a wet and uncomfortable night in a thunderstorm, they are guided to a druidic grove by Zulkifli, where they learn of the loss of two sacred groves and the environmental destruction threatening their way of life. Zulkifli believes Naoki is the key to investigating the ruinous situation and gives the party a mysterious ointment for their journey. They discuss the fate of the fey and the dark courts before heading to the ruins. Ro'Zaad leads them to a temple with an ancient pedestal, where they discover the key to entering lies in the light of the rising God, Aolnor. As dawn breaks, the path to the temple opens, revealing a golem, similar to Craum, inside
Morning brought news from Naoki's mushroom message that the Vanguard needed to visit his grove. Before leaving Lammuld Wood, the party shopped at Greggle’s General Goods—a sagging, cluttered shop run by a Harengon named Greggle. After Thalia bought a longsword for 15 gold pieces and Valerie bought ointment alongside a trashy romance novel for 11 silver, the party purchased five healing potions for 30 gold each, receiving a sixth potion free which Valerie gave to Emelyne.
Setting off with their captive guide Ro’Zaad and Naoki leading the way, Naoki’s questionable navigation resulted in the unequipped group getting caught in a miserable, soaking thunderstorm by nightfall. On the first watch, Craum offered his cloak to a sullen Ro’Zaad, trying to offer forgiveness and connect with him, though the grumpy rogue refused his overtures. On the second watch, Valerie and Thalia let Emelyne sleep while discussing Valerie’s Changeling identity and Thalia’s past—revealing Thalia had been experimented on to form her dragon bond before escaping the dragon-bannered cult that murdered her parents.
Spotting glowing yellow feline eyes in the dark, Valerie signaled Renatus, who used Misty Step to place a curved blade to the stranger's throat. The man identified himself as Zulkifli, a druid asking why they traveled with a member of his grove. Realizing they were accidentally camped right outside the Quaking Sanctuary, Zulkifli led them inside to safety. Meeting with the grove’s leader, Aspen, the party learned that communication had been lost with two distant groves, including one along the Relamor River in the Wasteland, due to industrial expansion polluting the land and destroying sacred trees. When Zulkifli questioned Naoki's slow growth, Valerie defended him, prompting Zulkifli to entrust Naoki with investigating the missing grove. During their conversation about the Tears of Toumas, Valerie shared that her father was killed and her mother had been in a coma for twenty years. Before departing, Zulkifli gave them a jar of foul-smelling Keoghtom’s Ointment, warned them of the ruins, and described the Weirfell—a dark entity residing in the Feywild's Court of Mist that traded lost knowledge for a steep price.
Leaving the hidden sanctuary with a blessing, the Vanguard followed Ro’Zaad to the southern ruins. Ro’Zaad shared a cryptic riddle: "The path will be revealed in the light of a rising God." Investigating the sealed entrance, Craum's approach caused a pedestal and door to glow with ancient runes, though it remained locked. Deducing the riddle referred to the sun god Aolnor, the party waited through the night until the morning light struck the temple, causing the doors to open and revealing a massive golem within, constructed in a style strikingly similar to Craum.