Audience with the Archmage
Audience with the Archmage
Read Aloud
Flint opens the carved doors and motions you onto polished dark stone as dust drifts from the ceiling. Suspended lamps sway above sealed case files, while stormlight cuts across the Grand Hall. At the far end, Archmage Cindreth raises his staff and says, “Show me what you found, and tell me why I should trust you with Dawnvale’s future.”
The Scene
NEUTRALAudience and credibility testBase DC 14Stakes The party must earn access and authority before the ritual begins; failure leaves them watched, delayed, and less trusted while a possible traitor remains inside Dawnvale.
30 to 45 minutes
Determine whether the party is competent, honest, and useful before allowing them near the leyline ritual.
The party holds evidence from the Broken Wagon and Silverford Crossing, while Flint’s firsthand respect for disciplined action can support their account.
- Present cultist rune beads, orc fetishes, sealed letters, or another concrete token from the ambush.
- Let Cindreth examine the resonating Ember Pass evidence.
- Ask Flint to confirm the party’s conduct during the Citadel approach.
- Connect the evidence to the Dawnvale leyline rather than claiming the ambush was simple banditry.
- Make one group DC 14 Persuasion or History check while presenting the evidence.
- On a failure, answer Cindreth’s probing question through roleplay or allow one character a DC 13 Insight or Arcana reroll.
- Offer the resonating evidence for examination to gain cautious support.
- Challenge Cindreth respectfully about the ritual’s risk to reveal competence without appearing reckless.
- A concise timeline earns a quiet nod and a follow-up question.
- Bluster or vague claims make Cindreth tap his staff and ask, “Which part did you witness?”
- Refusing examination makes Cindreth close his casebook and summon a monitored escort.
- A precise explanation of the leyline hum earns Cindreth’s cautious interest.
- Flint intervenes if voices rise, saying, “The Hall is not a tavern. Speak plainly.”
