The Falling Cay
The Falling Cay
Read aloud
The Long Hoist carries you into Zephyria beneath a canopy of banners, where bells call delegates toward the High-Ring. A Registry notice declares Linden Cay sound, twelve of twelve, but the Unaltered Ledger burns red beside the figure. At noon, the city will read its count aloud, and the cay’s bell is already sounding from far below.
Run the session
Cheat sheet
Objectives
- 1Secure the quiet count from the Quiet Vault, or obtain it from Orrey.
- 2Confront Rennick and Orrey, then decide whether to make the true count public.
- 3Make the public reading before the Council and delegates.
- 4Save Linden Cay’s residents and show them the true integrity reading.
The clock
The Quiet Vault has until noon before the public reading begins. Each failed vault obstacle costs an hour and ticks a four-box alarm. At Linden Cay, the settlement falls 50 feet per round and strikes the gorge in 16 rounds; the gale-shear hits at round 4 and the planted charge at round 8, or round 7 if residents were warned in advance.
Scenes
- 0:00Bells on the Eve
- 1:00The Quiet Vault
- 2:15The Man Behind the Figures
- 3:00The Count at Noon
- 4:00The Cay Falls
Cast
- Registrar Halvard OrreyWitness and compromised official
- Rennick MarrowgateAntagonist and House envoy
- Isolt FenwickAlly
- Sunniva TallowWitness and wildcard
The hook
Set the scene
The Long Hoist gives a final groan as it locks against Zephyria’s lower tether platform. Warm lantern smoke curls through the landing, banners snap in the wind, and bells ripple across the floating city. A Registry clerk checks the party’s letter of passage while Isolt Fenwick approaches through the crowd. Across the square, Rennick Marrowgate watches with a courteous smile. A fresh notice declares Linden Cay sound; beside it, the Ledger shines a warning red.
How Isolt Fenwick asks
Isolt Fenwick meets the party at the Registry after the Long Hoist arrives.
She asks them to retrieve the quiet count before noon and warns that the official figures cannot be trusted. If she is absent, the party can learn of the vault from its own evidence and approach Orrey or the Registry directly.
Rumours
Scenes
about 6 hours0:00
60 min
socialThe table is here
1. Bells on the Eve
The Registry entrance and lantern-lit avenues of Zephyria beneath the High-Ring.
The party reaches Zephyria on the eve of the Anchor Count. The Registry’s letter of passage opens the gates, Isolt offers a path toward the vault, and Rennick tests what the party knows. If they hold at least four Proofs, they can press him for his copy; otherwise, he offers a place at the Houses’ table and keeps it. A brief Lantern Vigil can let the party earn Orrey’s trust by listening without accusation.
NextAs the delegates drift toward the High-Ring and the evening bells fade into the stone, Isolt leads the party down a cool stair toward the Registry’s locked lower floor.
1:00
75 min
exploration
2. The Quiet Vault
The Registry’s lower stair, dial-lock antechamber, and cipher-ledger room beneath the High-Ring.
The party reaches the Quiet Vault through three obstacles: the guarded stair, the nine-dial lock, and the alarm clock. Each can be overcome in more than one way. Each failed obstacle costs an hour and ticks the four-box Vault Alarm. The quiet count reveals that posted figures have been false for twenty-two years and marks three anchors in red. Orrey can appear here, on the stair, or later in the High-Ring.
NextThe cipher pages carry the smell of old lamp oil as the party turns them; above, the noon bell begins its first measured toll.
2:15
45 min
social
3. The Man Behind the Figures
The vault room, the Registry stair, or a quiet edge of the High-Ring as noon approaches.
Run Orrey’s conversation as three beats: establish what he did without reducing the exchange to accusation, learn why he falsified the record, then decide what happens next. A Wisdom (Insight) check can show that he is waiting to be asked plainly. A Charisma (Persuasion) check or use of the quiet count helps answer his explanation. If the party has six or more Proofs and wins two beats, Orrey agrees to read the true count. With one beat, he offers a private correction. With no beat or fewer than six Proofs, he refuses.
NextOrrey’s answer follows the party up into the High-Ring, where delegates close ranks around the reading dais and the Registrar takes his place.
3:00
60 min
social
4. The Count at Noon
The High-Ring, with the Council on the dais, Houses below, and delegates filling the galleries.
The Registrar reads the posted or true figures, depending on the party’s success and choices. With zero to five Proofs, the Council may hear the accusation but will not act. Six to eight Proofs force a hearing, and Rennick can move to seal the lower tethers. Nine or more let the party name the chain of responsibility and void the Registry’s posted figures. As the reading ends, the bell of Linden Cay sounds from the east galleries.
NextThe east-gallery bell cuts through the chamber’s response; as delegates turn toward the sound, the party sees a tether line shiver beyond the open arches.
4:00
120 min
combat
5. The Cay Falls
Linden Cay’s common, tether-gates, slate-roofed lanes, anchor-stones, and the raider cutter hooked beneath the settlement.
Linden Cay is already falling. Run evacuation first, then rigging, then stabilization, with the combat encounter occurring as attackers target the stones and party. Evacuation requires six successes before three failures at ; rigging requires four successes before two failures at . Use the cay’s Integrity clock and the round-based fall, gale-shear, and charge. Once the fall is halted, a character must read the true integrity to the people harmed by the false notice to gain Proof 12 and awaken the Ledger.
The Falling CayNextAs the last line catches and the stones answer with a deep, gritty groan, the island slows beneath the party while survivors gather around the open Ledger.
Behind it
What people believe
The Registry is preparing Zephyria’s annual Anchor Count, and the party has been invited to deliver evidence before the noon reading.
A break-in beneath the High-Ring may uncover records that challenge the official figures. Meanwhile, the bell from Linden Cay signals a crisis, and the party must decide whether to pursue the truth in the chamber or race to help the people below.
Background
On the eve of Zephyria’s Anchor Count, delegates crowd the Spindle-City while the Registry prepares to announce its figures.
The party arrives carrying the Unaltered Ledger and earlier evidence of falsified counts. Beneath the High-Ring, a second set of books records the true measurements. Far below, Linden Cay’s four anchor-stones are failing despite a public notice that calls the settlement sound.
The stakes
If the party fails to expose the false record, the Council may continue relying on invalid figures.
If the party cannot save Linden Cay, 400 residents face the fall of their home, and the Ledger may stir only in the aftermath of loss. Even a successful rescue cannot repair Zephyria’s broader anchor crisis.
Encounters
2The Falling Cay
Combat and timed rescue
Linden Cay, a residential settlement with stairs, slate roofs, a central common, four anchor-stones, tether-gates, and a raider cutter hooked beneath the island. The gorge lies 800 feet below. Use narrow approaches, exposed ledges, crowded evacuation routes, and anchor-stones as objectives rather than treating the site as an empty battlefield.
Foes
3 Cultist Fanatics
4 Bandit Captains
2 Pebbles, custom creatures from the campaign material
ComplicationThe party must protect evacuees and keep lines secure while the cay descends. At the start of round 4, a gale-shear costs the cay 1 Integrity. At the start of round 8, a planted charge costs it 2 Integrity. The cay falls 50 feet per round and strikes the gorge in 16 rounds. If the party previously warned the residents, begin evacuation with one success, but the charge detonates at round 7.
ScalingFor a smaller or depleted party, use 2 Cultist Fanatics and 2 Bandit Captains, and have only 1 Pebble appear. For a stronger party, add 1 Cultist Fanatic or have the raider cutter bring a second wave after two rounds. Keep the falling-cay clock and anchor Integrity rules central regardless of combat adjustments.
The Quiet Vault Security
Exploration and optional combat
The Registry’s lower stair leads to a landing watched by guards, then a nine-dial iron door and a locked room beneath the High-Ring. The stair is narrow, the antechamber is close and echoing, and the vault contains a lectern and cipher ledger.
Foes
2 Guards
At alarm 2: 1 additional Guard
At alarm 4: 2 Veterans and 6 Guards
ComplicationAt two Vault Alarm boxes, a Registry Guard joins the patrol. At four, iron shutters seal the landing and a security detail of 2 Veterans and 6 Guards arrives. The party can fight, evade, negotiate an extraction, or leave evidence behind. This reinforced response is intended as a threat to escape or bypass, not a required stand-up fight.
ScalingUse the standard Guard and Veteran stat blocks. For a smaller party, keep the four-box alarm but delay reinforcements until the party has a clear chance to retreat. For a stronger party, have a Veteran arrive with the additional Guard at alarm 2. Each failed vault obstacle consumes an hour and ticks the alarm.
Cast
4Registrar Halvard Orrey
Witness and compromised official
WantsTo keep the lie contained until the Renewal, while reckoning with the deaths at Sailmaker’s Reach and the harm caused by the false count.
“The numbers were meant to spare them fear. I know what they cost now.”
Rennick Marrowgate
Antagonist and House envoy
WantsTo protect House Marrowgate’s influence and its quiet-count copy, while avoiding public exposure of the House’s dealings with a Registry clerk.
“A city cannot be governed by figures that bring every frightened soul to the gates.”
Isolt Fenwick
QuestgiverAlly
WantsTo help the party reach the evidence and expose the truth without letting the Registry’s security response endanger the city.
“The Ledger can tell you the figure is false. The people below need you to make it mean something.”
Sunniva Tallow
Witness and wildcard
WantsTo warn visitors about Linden Cay’s worsening condition and protect its residents, even when officials dismiss her concerns.
“That bell has gone flat, and they keep telling us the stone is sound.”
How it ends
Rewards
Items
The party retains the Unaltered Ledger. Upon showing the cay’s true integrity to the people it harmed, it becomes Stirring as a campaign story reward.
If the party saves Linden Cay, its residents offer practical supplies and safe lodging rather than a magic item.
On a win
The party brings the true count into the open and reaches Linden Cay as the settlement begins to fall.
If residents are evacuated and its anchor-stones are restored enough to halt the descent, the party reads the true integrity to the people harmed by the false notice. The Ledger stirs, and the Council can no longer treat the posted figure as an uncontested record. The Compact’s renewal remains ahead, and the broader crisis is not repaired by this victory.
What it leaves open
If it fails
- The party reaches noon with zero to five Proofs, or cannot establish the connection between the false count and its consequences.
- The party may still make a public accusation, but the Council will not act on unsupported claims. The public count proceeds under the posted figures, and the cay’s fall becomes the decisive evidence for those who witness it.
- The party wins no conversational beats with Orrey, or has fewer than six Proofs and cannot persuade him to take responsibility.
- Orrey refuses to read the true figures aloud. He may offer a private correction if the party has won at least one conversational beat, but accepting it ends the public challenge quietly.
- The evacuation, rigging, or stabilization efforts do not succeed before the cay strikes the gorge.
- Linden Cay may be lost, and residents may die or be injured. The party can still read the true integrity to survivors and earn Proof 12, but the Ledger’s awakening comes amid grief and anger.
- The Vault Alarm reaches four boxes and the party leaves before securing the quiet count or other evidence.
- The party escapes with less evidence, and the Registry can claim the records were stolen or incomplete. The cay’s crisis may still expose the false notice, but the broader chain of responsibility remains harder to prove.
Complications (d6)
- 1A Registry guard recognizes the party from an earlier public accusation and insists on escorting them through the building, making covert access to the lower floor harder.
- 2A House delegate offers Rennick a written pledge of support in exchange for the party’s evidence, drawing nearby witnesses into the negotiation.
- 3A clerk reports that the noon reading has been moved forward by an hour, shortening the time available to search the Quiet Vault.
- 4The Ledger glows red beside a public notice for a different district, and a crowd demands an explanation before the party can move on.
- 5A sudden gust rattles the High-Ring’s banners and knocks a lantern from its hook; a falling flame threatens papers and nearby delegates.
- 6A Registry clerk offers to guide the party to the lower stair, but quietly intends to remove the casket and their papers for supposed safekeeping.
Media
0 imagesNo images yet.
Turn The Falling Cay into a sheet
A high-res, share-ready sheet you can post or print.
