The first five years of Sir Warren Cassaday, Archæologist

Warren Cassaday, Archæologist from Avalon, has been traveling around Théah for the last fifteen years, in
search of Syrneth Ruins. This Codex is the first collection of the items and places he has found.

by TOBIE ABAD

keywords:
Syrneth Artifacts, Explorer’s Society, Invisible College

Explorers Society, 7th Sea and all related marks are © and ™ 2016 John Wick Presents. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be duplicated without express permission from the Author.
The artifacts boggle the mind and question one’s faith. If Theus truly is our creator, then why has a civilization that has n ever
known his love created such marvels that defy all logic and science?
— Agosto Baltasar Carlos Domingo y Esteban, Castillian Alquimista
Who is
Warren Cassaday?
Warren Cassaday was once the premier explorer and
archæologist of Théah. Said to be born in San Gabriel,
Castille, Cassaday’s first discovery was a series of caves
close to the harbor of Los Grandes Bay which turned out
to show signs of intelligence in their design. As the
stories go, it was at a tender age of 17 that Cassaday
invested all his wealth on expeditionary equipment and
explored the caves. The gamble paid off. Cassaday found
a network of subterranean tunnels and chambers that
had never before been explored. Crawling on his hands
and knees, he navigated the passageways and reached a
sheer drop that threatened to end his expedition.
Steeling himself, he pushed himself down the tunnel
one inch at a time and at the bottom, he found a vast
cavern filled with gold coins, ornaments, and the
skeletons of less skilled explorers who died after they fell
down the tunnel. On a single pedestal further within, he
found what would become the very first Syrneth artifact
he would hold in his very hands.
The emotions that flowed through him that day forever
changed him. His journey down the vertical shaft felt
symbolic and appropriate. Records show he even
referred to that moment as a “Second birth.”
CASTILLIAN? OR AVALONIAN?
The truth of the matter is this. Warren Cassaday is Avalonian.
Born in the Highland Marches, the young man who was
destined to become the world’s greatest archæologist had
one major problem stopping him – the lack of funding.
He petitioned to many lords and ladies for financial support,
but sadly found practically everyone preferred to keep their
investments in businesses that were guaranteed to give back
financial returns. It was not until he found a Patron from
Castille that he would find himself in the position to truly
scour the world for the lost Treasures.
The price of this Patronage? That he claim to be Castillian
from that day on. His Patron desired Cassaday’s exploits and
victories to be seen as Castillian triumph. Warren easily
agreed, having no lost love for his own Nation. The Patron
continues to fund his exploits, keeping them just enough to
push through with the adventure but low enough for Warren
to need to ask other Nations or organizations for help.
Who or why the Patron desires Warren to be seen as
Castillain remains a mystery, it seems. One the Patron has no
intentions of explaining anytime soon.
Cassaday had enough gold to launch a new expedition.
And for the next fifteen years, he would find himself
making deals with various Nations and organizations to
feed that newfound appetite for discovery. He would
investigate rumors of Syrneth ruins and would risk both
life and limb to reach the artifacts they may hide within.
He would not be reach his twentieth year of exploring
Théah. While traveling through the great desert in search
for the mythical colossal worms of the Crescent Empire,
a great sand storm arose and separated him from the
rest. By the time the storm cleared, there was no sign of
him nor his camel.
Thought there remains no absolute proof of his passing,
most of his Patrons and friends have considered him
dead. It seemed appropriate that one of the greatest
adventurers and archæologist’s of Théah would find true
immortality in the legends he would leave behind.

Using this Supplement
This supplement is intended to be a trove of ideas.
Detailed inside are possible Syrneth Ruins you can
introduce to your group as well as Artifacts you can
utilize as a McGuffin in your games.
Each entry marks the year in Warren Cassaday’s career
that the artifact was found or encountered, the common
stories about it, Cassaday’s own words on the find, and
the system notes regarding the object. Also included are
suggestions on how to incorporate the artifact as part of
your own adventures.
Year X
Name of Artifact
Location: Where
Cassaday
encountered the
artifact
Quick description on the common knowledge about it.
Cassaday’s entry regarding the artifact.
System notes on the artifact.
Optional Adventures/Ideas on using the
Artifact in your games
Scenario summary
Course of Action: Ideas on what the players might do in
the scenario
Ultimately, bear in mind that you are free to do as you
will with this sourcebook. In your version of Théah,
Warren Cassaday might not even exist, or might actually
be some charlatan pretending to be a great
archæologists. And that’s completely fine too. Use this
as you see fit.
Also included are a host of characters such as:
Warren Cassaday – If you want to set games where he is
still alive
Aisling Cassaday – Warren’s only daughter.
Anaykah – Warren’s wife. Ill and weak. Her current state
of being depends on whether or not you’ve played the
adventure, The Widow’s Secret.
Lara Cassaday – Illegitimate daughter.
Ambrose Cassaday – Father. Spent time in the Crescent
Empire. Lived longer than he should have.
Inspiration
This Adventure draws inspiration from the following
sources:
❖ Les Aventures extraordinaires d’Adèle Blanc-
Sec (Jacques Tardi)
❖ Warren Ellis and John Cassaday’s Planetary
❖ J.J. Abrams, Alex Kurtzman, and Roberto Orci’s
Fringe TV series
❖ Russell T Davies and Steven Moffat era of
Doctor Who
❖ George Lucas and Steven Spielberg’s Indiana
Jones movies
❖ John Rogers’ The Librarians
The [H]
As popularized in other Community Created Adventures, the
use of the [H] reference is meant to give the Game Master a
means to dynamically modify the size of Villains and Brute
Squads for various group sizes. Wherever you see [H], replace
it with the number of Hero characters in the Scene. In some
places [H] will have a multiplier or divider (2[H] or ½[H]) or a
base value (4+[H]).
If your players have a more combat savvy group, such as one
with at least one Duelist, consider doubling the Strength of
one or more Brute Squads, Monsters, or Villains.
Year 0
The Crystal Orb
Location:
Los Grandes Bay,
Castille
The Crystal Orb measures a half a foot in diameter and is
made of a translucent material not unlike glass. The orb’s
surface is not a smooth surface, however. It is not even a
singular layer. Instead it is a delicate chaos of currents
and rivers of what resembles solidified mist that
constantly slowly spins in a spherical shape.
Stories claim that the Crystal Orb once lay in one of a
series of caves in Los Grandes Bay, in Castille. The Orb
was found in the center of a massive room that could
only be accessed after traversing multiple winding
tunnels that were laid with terrible traps. The entire floor
was a tiled location with each tile having a character from
a long dead language. The chambers were said to have
once been the burial tomb of the ancient Syrneth King
Isoganoth whose rule was during the era of Unending
Snow. There are no actual viable documents that
support such an era existed, nor records of such a King
having lived save for a few select tomes that now reside
in the House of Learning in Anatol Ayh.
This is my first discovery. My first find.
The Crystal Orb was balanced on a pedestal of marble in the
center of a chamber filled with the skeletons of those who came
before me. The orb reacted to my touch; its spinning halted and its
surface glazed over like glass when one breathes upon it during the
winter. While holding the Orb, soft hints of frost began to form in
my surroundings. The absorption of heat, however, halted when
the Orb was held by any other means save for the naked hand.
Crossing the tunnels to reach this chamber turned out to be a
simple trick. There were characters on the tiles of the tunnels. I
simply spelt out the full formal name of the Isoganoth King to
reach the end. The King’s name remains listed in the House of
Learning although interestingly, it claims that the King was once
something they called a Marij Min Nar, which roughly translated to
“smokeless flame.” I wonder if the name comes for the fact that
ice, like fire, does burn, despite not having smoke nor flame.
The Crystal Orb as an artifact
If you decide to allow your players to have the Crystal
Orb, it functions as a Signature Item with one or any of
the following effects:
a) gain 4 Bonus Dice to use the Orb to create
creations made of ice. These creations last only
for the Scene and can be shattered
prematurely if the attack has Raises equal to
those rolled by the wielder.
b) The Orb grants its wielder the Monstrous
Quality: Elemental. It grants this without
requiring the wielder to gain Corruption.
The Crystal Orb as an Adventure
The journey to locate the tomb holding the orb is a series of
steep tunnels and underground ravines. Navigating through
these in the dark was just the start of this perilous
adventure.
I. The Right Cave
There are a series of caves in Los Grandes Bay, in Castille.
Many of them are filled with deadly traps of all sorts,
This was the first challenge in locating the Orb’s resting
place.
Traversing the Dark: Wits + Athletics will be required to
navigate the dangerous natural chambers. The [H]
Complications of loose rocks, darkness, and the
possibilities of injury must be overcome. To find the
correct cave, however, the group must spend a total of
[H].
II. Into the Dark
Deep within the depths, deadly traps await their
unsuspecting victims.
Traps : Many of the tunnels have hidden pit traps, sliding
areas, or walls that conceal deadly traps that reset after
an initial attempt to strike their target.
All traps are designed to keep out intruders. The original
builders of the chambers were said to be from the era of
Unending Snow and knowledge of the King Isoganoth’s
tale allows the Heroes to avoid the traps automatically
as they match the trails the king faced in his rise to
power, assuming they remembered the correct stories.
The Crystal Orb as a Weapon
A Villain now uses the Orb to strike terror at their foes. Each
use of the Orb costs the Villain a Danger Point. These uses
can range from practical to useful, allowing the Villain to
lull opponents to sleep from intense cold, to freezing them
in place to capture them. Or launching deadly icicles to
impale them.
Weaponzied Orb: The Orb can grant its wielder the
Monstrous Quality, “Elemental”. This grants the wielder
five dice whenever they declare an action that utilizes
Cold as part of its concept. The artifact can be in the
hands of a minor villain, who claims to have found it
from an expedition.

Hazard: [H]
(Example: As a child, the king was nearly buried alive by
an avalanche. Later in his life, he escaped execution from
swung axes by rolling away from his captors. As a young
prince, he was always reminded to stay on the right path.
These become clues to avoid the traps.)

Heroes therefore can simply evade the traps using their

Wits, Finesse, or Athletics. Or they can trust their
Scholarship to guide them through.

III. The Cold Death

The Heroes find the Crystal Orb in the center of a
chamber filled with skeletons. The doors of the chamber
slam shut and trap them. The temperature begins to
drop!
Shutting down the Orb: Wits + Scholarship or Resolve +
Weaponry might be the best options, with Scholarship
reflecting figuring out how to shut it down, and
Weaponry figuring out how to shatter the Orb.
Hazard: 6
The Hazard level of the Orb increases each Round (using
Intensify). Every two rounds, the Hazard triggers
Chaotic.
Year 1
Lágrimas de la
Mariah
Location:
Cordillera Valeria,
Castille
The artifact appears as a nondescript piece of glass in the
shape of a teardrop. The glass is clear and well-polished,
showing no details, indentation, nor scratches. The tear is
warm to touch and it is said that if one holds it against
one’s forehead, one can hear voices speaking an old
form of a Castillian dialect within the glass.
It is not the appearance of the artifact, however, that
fascinates the Invisible College and its archæologists.
Rather, it is the claim that the Tear has miraculous
powers if it is used by the faithful. And terrible powers
when used by the cruel.
In the hands of the faithful, the eye is said to grant its
bearer the ability to perceive the innermost thoughts of
those in their vicinity. No lie or act of deception can
mislead the bearer of the tear. Cassaday’s own
adventure with the tear was the documented case of the
“Blue Bloody Death.” Thankfully, no one has opted to
try testing it again in that matter. And hopefully, no one
ever will.
Her face melted away, leaving an azure goop that once were her
eyes, her nose, her lips. The pirate claimed the Tear as her own,
and despite my warnings that it would not be wise for her to do
anything so rash. As she held the glass Tear in her hand, she
stared into it as if she could see and hear something none of us
could do so.
The pirate began screaming at us to shut up. To stop talking. To
stop telling her such painful things. She raised the Tear up past
her head and with a scream plunged it into the space between her
eyes and her nose. The glass plunged deep, vanishing in the torrent
of blood that followed. She howled. She screamed. She fell.
We tried to block out the noise. Her blood curdling screams were
the stuff of nightmares. We had to find a way to stop it. To save
her from what seemed to be a painful demise.
Her blood turned blue. Like blue paint, it began to pour out from
her eyes, her nose her mouth. I begged my Sarmatian companion
to do something. To speak to the spirits he knows and make this
stop. He insisted this was greater than even his Sorcery. The Pirate
fell down, dead. And the Tear emerged, slipping out from under
her skin as if it had done nothing cruel..
I feel like it had judged her. And killed her when it found her
wanting.
There are currently three schools of thought on what
these Tears actually are. In the Invisible College, stories
of these three variants have been collected and shared
with the Explorer’s Society, in hopes of finding
additional facts to support these tales.
The first claim the Tears are stars that have fallen from
the heavens. These crystalline forms are the shattered
fragments of a star that once entered the skies of
Théah and broke into a hundred tiny pieces. Each shard
is said to contain unimaginable power, and to
mistakenly attempt to tap this within human flesh and
bone is to invite such energies to flow out and liquefy
the offending prison.
The second ties in more with the Explorer’s Society.
The claim is that the Tears are remnants of what were
once called Thought Crystals or Tala Isipan by an
ancient people called the Magwayin. These people are
said to have mastered crystalline technology to the
point of creating vast vessels that are powered by the
sun. Their stories speak of impressive castles that
traversed the seas. Some whisper that the Magwayin
were also known by another name, a name which
served as a title or honorific for their incredible
achievements – Syrne.
The last believes the Tears of the Mariah are in fact a
strange relic of faith. It is believed that the Prophet was
not alone in bringing the words of knowledge an
understanding to the world. So too did his mother,
whom some of the faithful refer to as the Mariah, or the
idealized virtuous woman. The Tear, they claim, is a yet
to be understood crystalline element that the Prophets
seeks the faithful to understand, identify, and embrace
as part of the world’s scientific gifts. Its deadly nature,
they claim, is but the natural effect of misusing the
crystal. “Such death is no different from when an
uneducated man of the faith mistakenly swallows a
spoonful of arsenic.”
Lágrimas de las Mariah as an artifact
If you decide to allow your players to have the Tears
function as an artifact, it depends on which of the three
mentioned above will be its true nature.
As Crystals of a Fallen Star
These would therefore be extremely rare but potent
energy sources. Imagine them to be highly radioactive,
which when used with the right machinery can
theoretically allow such devices to function indefinitely.
When placed against human skin, these crystals
generate intense heat that deal 2 Wounds each second.
The “telepathic” abilities are just hearsay stories.
As the Tala Isipan of the Magwayin
The Magwayin may still have some followers or cult
groups that believe in their eventual return. Groups that
choose to approach this idea can even use the
adventure, The Widow’s Secret, to have the group
encounter a still living relic of the Magwayin.
These crystals are indeed material components that
inherently have a powerful psionic resonance, allowing
one to focus and even enhance latent telepathic
abilities.
System wise, you can represent this as allowing any
bearer to have the equivalent of Sorte: Read. The
bearer can look at another person and based on their
surface thoughts, identify the other person’s Arcana.
Each time this is done, however, quietly mark a Tala
Point for that character. Keep track of these Points. If
they ever exceed the character’s Wits, the Telepathic
powers begin to have an addictive quality, causing the
Hero to suffer a constant Pressure to use the Crystal.
Breaking from this addiction can require separation
from the use of the crystal for one whole month for
each Tala Point or the destruction of the crystal.
As a relic of the Prophet’s Mother
The Vaticine Church has long held that the mother of
the First Prophet is human, and thus, is merely a flawed
vessel that contained a perfect soul. This artifact,
however, can become the central element of a story
that explores the Prophet’s Mother as someone more
than just human. Perhaps there was an organization
that claimed to know the truth but the group had been
hunted down to near extinction by the Inquisition to
silence their beliefs forever?
If your group opts to head in this direction, then the
relic can be a non-magical item of extremely important
religious significance, or a powerful relic of divine origin.
If you opt to have the divine power angle in the game,
then the tears are intended to be slipped into the eyes
of the intended vessel – the idealized virtuous woman
who matches the perfection of Mariah. When the
wrong person attempts it, their tears become a thick
bluish sap that covers their face and suffocates them
with their own pride. If it is done by the correct woman,
however, the results can be anything epically
appropriate for your campaign.
Lágrimas de las Mariah as an Adventure
The Heroes have been forced by the Villain to find the
correct Crystal Tears in a chamber filled with various
trinkets and gemstones. Above, their helpless companion is
being held hostage until they return with the artifact.
Identifying the Tears: The relic itself might call out to the
Heroes, sensing the Villainous intent of the enemy
above. Any Hero can spend a single Raise to get a “gut
feel” for the right crystal. The bigger question is
whether or not to surrender it.
Lágrimas de las Mariah as a Conspiracy
The Villain claims to have the Tears and holds the Vaticine
Church hostage as they claim to have the person whom is
intended to replace the current head of the Church. The
Vaticine Church reaches out to the Heroes to ask for their
help to retrieve the crystals. Worse, however, the Inquisition
does not want any proof that supports any school of
thought outside that of what the current Church teaches to
reach anyone’s eyes. And that includes the Heroes.
Escaping the Inquisition: The Inquisition can become a
recurring thorn on the Heroes’ side.

Year 2-4
Vermarine Sins
Location:
Dievai Marshes,
Sarmatian
Commonwealth
The necklace is composed of five brooches, each varying
slightly in size. At the center of three of the brooches is a
vibrant emerald inlaid in gold, bronze, and pearl. Only
three of the brooches have an emerald center. The five
brooches are connected by an intricate golden mesh
chain, which somehow clasps into each other
automatically to maintain a standard length around any
person’s neck.
The stories of the necklace first reached the Explorer’s
Society’s archæologists when news reached them
supposedly of a Syrneth artifact that supposedly allowed
its wearer to make deals with the dievai through proxy.
The necklace, it is said, has a brooch for each human
heart that had been sacrificed to the relic. These
brooches supposedly allow the wearer to make major
dealings with the spirits known as the dievai without
tainting their own souls with the bargain.
If the stories are to be believed, five dievai have made
dealings with the previous bearer of the relic, and
anyone who wears the device will have the freedom to
use the promised powers that were established by those
deals. The dievai, however, are “trapped” in this dealing,
having now made bonds with the mummified hearts of
what stand now as effectively immortal Losejas, albeit
one with no freedom or sense of consciousness.
The necklace was last known to be in the hands of a
woman who had used the dievai power to avenge her
fallen family by transforming an entire ATC galleon and
all its crew and cargo into sea foam. But in the years that
passed, she was nearly driven mad by the taunting
voices of the various dievai that followed her around. In
hopes of escaping them, she threw the necklace into the
Dievai Marches and hoped they would be lost in the
muck forever more.
It took me two years to gather the funding necessary to hire
enough men to help scour the marshes for the necklace. When one
of the diggers found a spiral staircase made of glass buried
beneath the mud and grime. The outermost layer, though, was
covered by a glass lens, keeping the much from flooding into the
stairwell. I quickly walked closer and inspected the glass and found
it to be as tough as steel. I could not find any openings or grooves
to slide it open, nor any handles to lift it from the ground. I spent
two weeks trying to find a way to open the door to no avail. We
had gone from careful studying to heavy hammers being slammed
against the glass in our attempts to open the door. None of them
worked.
Flash forward to the third week. Perhaps It was just a stroke of luck
or the stars were in the right place, but when we revisited the portal
to investigate it (as we sorely considered using cannon powder to
try blasting it open) we found it slid open as if it always was.
I had four men accompany me into the pit and down below we
found the necklace resting in a chamber of dried mud. There were
three stumps surrounding the necklace, made of packed dried
mud.
One of the men, Mendoza, a Castillian worked, exclaimed how
they looked like something to sit on. Nothing else inside suggested
any history or whom had dug out the chamber or made the glass
stairs.
I lifted the necklace from the ground and felt a warmth in its
structure. There was the temptation to try wearing it but I held
back. I was commissioned by a man dressed in silver armor. He
said he was given this quest by a woman named Anna and I was
doing a great service in retrieving this necklace. As payment, I was
given a pinned brooch which the knight claimed would be
recognized all over the Commonwealth. That I would always be
seen as a friend of the nation. And so far, It has worked. The ports
of Sarmatia have never charged me for docking. The nobility
welcome my presence to their events without question. Who the
knight was or where the pendant now has gone is a mystery I do
not feel compelled to solve.
Vermarine Sins as an artifact
The Vermarine Sins is a frighteningly powerful Syrneth
relic and its association with the Dievai turns out to be
just circumstantial. The Syrneth device is the pendant
system which was originally designed to house the
souls of those whose bodies had fallen in battle. With
their identities safely stored, the ancient Syrne would
then work their technological magics on repairing the
shattered body.
But given these medical practices have long been lost,
these necklaces have also lost their purpose.
Discovering that the trapped souls could still be used to
make deals with the dievai was a completely
unexpected usage.
As a Dievai power bank
If you opt to have the necklace act as the legends say,
then consider the necklace to have three dievai bound
to the souls in its stones.
Bolotnik is a dievai that appears as an old man with
reeds peering out of his clothes. He has a thing for
butter and loves being given some. He grants the
necklace bearer the Deal of Water.
Zvezda is a dievai whose beauty makes her shine like a
literal star. She grants the bearer the Deal of Fire.
Strzybog is a stout old man whose hair and clothes
constantly flutter against an invisible and unfelt wind.
He grants the Deal of Storms.
If the Valytuvas ever learn of the necklaces’ existence,
they are sure to focus on it as a threat and devote
considerable resources to destroy it and anyone who
has knowledge of its existence. Allowing an object that
allows even non-losejas to have ties with the dievas is
far too dangerous to allow to be out there in the world.
Vermarine Sins as an adventure
The Dievai Marshes are not without their dangers. But
the legends all point to the necklace being somewhere
here. The search for the relic almost seems like it is being
hindered by other spirits that stalk the wetlands of the
Sarmatian Commonwealth.
I. The Long Search
Looking for a long-lost artifact in marshes should take
considerable time and effort. To best represent this, the
search should cost around 2H to 3H to find, barring
magical means. Note, however, that the Dievai and the
Fae folk will refuse to assist in such a search. Both (yes,
even the Fae) are actually vulnerable to being
imprisoned in the necklace and wish to have nothing to
do with its recovery.
A single roll can represent a week of searching.
Complicating the matters are what seem to be predators
of the marshes coming to complicate things. Whenever
appropriate, alligators, snapping turtles, and even swarm
clouds of mosquitoes harass the Heroes. These things
can be forced back easily (with a single Raise) but it
should be clear they seem to be coming out of the muck
more frequently than they should.
Once successful, the Heroes uncover a spiral staircase
made of glass. A glass lens acts as a barrier to keep
anyone from just entering. The barrier is as tough as steel
and seems void of any handholds, handles, or switches.
The riddle behind the lens is a test the Heroes might not
have expected to deal with.
II. The Lens
Craftsmen or skilled investigators can spend H Raises to
note that the polished glass lens is not as clear and
unblemished as most thought. With the correct use of
light and shadow, or by viewing through the lens onto
the glass beneath it during the noonday sun, one would
spot the nearly invisible writing created by the slightly
refracted portions of the lens. The message would read,
“Good things come” in Sarmatia. This, of course,
references the saying, “Good things come to those who
wait” and serves as a reminder to not rely on the dievai
too often.

If the Heroes wait a total of three weeks, the lens slides

open and allows the Heroes passage. The lens is not
indestructible and a total of 3H can be spent to shatter it
by impatient Heroes.

III. The Three Sitters

Inside, the staircase leads to a chamber of packed dried
mud. There are three stumps on the ground, with the
necklace lying on the floor at the center of them.
Anyone who attempts to touch the necklace as this
point fees a warmth.

The stumps, if studied, resemble people in sitting

position. Without study, they simply look like chairs. At
this point, there are no traps. The necklace is free for the
taking. If any new dievai or fae are captured, however,
the captive appears as a new stump appears.

As a Soul Bank
If your campaign approaches the concept of human
souls as real, the necklace can activate unexpectedly
when a fellow Hero dies within its vicinity. The necklace
grows a green glow and captures the dying Hero’s soul.
This causes their body to enter a state of hibernative
statis, proof from harm and decomposition.

Once the body has been repaired of its injuries enough

to stave death, the necklace reactivates and releases the
soul, allowing the person to be revived. Afterwards, it
shatters, having spent its final batteries to save a life.

Year 3
The Copper Man
Location:
Close to the
islands of
Dovunque,
Vodacce
The Copper Man is a seven-foot-tall figure that seemed
to have been hammered into shape with various
fragments of what look like rust-colored iron of an
unfamiliar origin. Investigation of the material shows
there are some notable similarities to dracheneisen, the
rare metal used by monster hunters of Eisen. The figure
is that of a naked man standing with his arms held
loosely on his sides. Careful study reveals round clots of
the metal in certain parts of the sculpture. These
markings dot the figure all over and were cited to
resemble caught droplets or bubbling that was solidified
by the metal cooling in time. The statue is indestructible,
with no missing parts of any sort.
It is said that the statue is one of many and some believe
there is a statue for each Nation on Théah. They do not,
however, appear similar to any other statue artifacts that
have been retrieved in other ruins all over the world.
Some have speculated that the statues are not statues.
Instead, they state that they might actually instead be
the final resting place of long dead monarchs who lie
eternally inside these humanoid-shaped coffins. Others
terrifyingly speculate that these statues are the actual
figures but some strange poison or sorcery has
transmuted their very flesh and bone into metal.
Cassaday shares TWO separate accounts that relate to
these Copper statues.
I figured the statue would be worth something, despite not really
having any patron footing the bill this time. The first sighting was
at Vodacce, as the statue emerged from the treasure that had
been collected from a sunken ship. Inside the net, multiple broken
plates, porcelain cups, and other baubles. The statue was among
the items in the raised net that they planned to spread on the deck
to try and identify any items of value. The captain of the ship
boasted that the find would be worth a good fortune.
I asked permission to inspect the haul but before I could step
closer, the net that held the items suddenly tore open, plunging all
of its contents back into the deep waters. The crew frantically tried
to snag what they could but I found myself focused on the net
itself. I was certain I had seen for a moment the hand of the statue
snag upon the net. And pull.
I remember having nightmares of this moment afflicting me even
during the months I focused on finding other artifacts. Something
about the statue made me wonder why it would only choose to
move that moment, after all those years.
If you opt to approach the Copper Man as indeed a living
being, then consider either of these two possibilities:
One, the Copper man contains the last one who tried to
find and sell the statue for profit. Or two, the Copper
man is a second-skin coffin of a terrible immortal being.
The Copper Man as a trapped man
Once upon a time, a tomb-raider named Markus Igeman
accomplished the unexpected. He uncovered the
location of a sunken vessel close to the islands of
Dovunque. After gathering some men and finding a
suitable ship, Markus sailed to the location and
attempted to retrieve the bounty beneath the seas.
Markus descended into the depths to prepare the next
and much to the horror of the crew, he never resurfaced.
The crew deemed the place cursed and sailed away,
claiming never to have met or heard of the man.
The Last Victim
The Copper Man was crafted as a horrible trap against
tomb raiders. The Syrne anticipated that the later
civilizations would dare tamper with their final resting
places. To protect their tombs, these “Copper Men” were
created. A tomb raider found a Sryneth tomb, but
unfortunately activated the Copper Man trap. The
second-skin rose up and clamped down upon him,
locking him in the prison and as a cruel ironic
punishment, keeping him alive for the last few years. The
man inside the copper is now insane and savage,
desperate to die and overwhelmed with rage. At the first
opportunity to kill, the Copper Man attempts to do so.
Markus Igeman
Eisen – Maddened Tomb-Raider
Strength 6 Influence 1 Rank 7
Advantages Cast Iron Stomach, Quick Reflexes
Copper Skin: The Copper Skin grants Markus the effects
of the Monstrous Quality: Chitinous (Spend a Danger
Point) to negate all Wounds dealt to this by a single
attack).
Virtue: The War (Victorious) Activate the first time you
Wound a Hero to make them take a Dramatic
Wound in addition to the Wounds you normally deal.
Hubris: The Beggar (Envious) Receive a Danger Point
when your Hero covets something and does
something unwise to get it.
Tactics: Stay unmoving as long as needed until you can
get closer to a target. You’ve learned to lie in wait under
the waters, unleashing your anger upon predatory fish
and scavengers. Once combat begins, be relentless and
strike at any target as much as possible.
My second encounter with a Copper Man was much later in that
same year. It was many months after that first haul at sea, and I
had just investigated the possible whereabouts of an interesting
necklace when I paid a visit to Patrizia Sandredengo, Vodacce art
collector and museum curator. Sandredengo wanted me to inspect
an old tome which she had retrieved from a burned down ruin that
they had discovered in La Bucca.
As she lead me through the wide-open hallways of her immense
manor, we passed through a garden where each bush and tree
had been meticulously trimmed to bear the appearance of
woodland creatures. Patrizia laughed, noticing my hesitation and
mistaking to be admiration of the excellent topiary. In truth, what
stopped me was the sight of the Copper Man standing amidst her
garden. Even more curious, when I mentioned the statue’s
remarkable appearance in passing, she glanced back at me
confused, as if she had no idea what I was talking about.
Leading her back to the garden, we found the Copper Man
standing where I had seen it. However, unlike my prior
observances of the said thing, this one was open. Like a cocoon
that had been ruptured open by the nascent butterfly, the Copper
Man’s face, chest, stomach, and limbs have been opened – not
that different in appearance to that of a shelled lobster. Upon
closer inspection, the interlocking pieces could still be swiveled
back into their original closed position, but not lock shut. I
remembered seeing the eyes of the statue staring back at me. But
now looking at its shell, all I saw were the empty holes where the
eyes once peered through.
It was as if someone had left.
The Copper Man as an immortal being
During an era before Théah was even referred to as such,
an ancient people have learned to combine mystic
alchemy with incredible technological development. The
Copper Man was one such creation. The suit was
intended as a means to suspend one’s life from coming
into the throes of death. While the outside appearance
was a plain imagery of a man (or woman). The actual
interior is a macabre sight. Hundreds of fine needle-like
extensions could be seen in the inside. They clearly were
intended to embed upon the wearer’s flesh for some
mysterious purpose.
The players may encounter another such Copper Man,
perhaps one still housing its original resident. Inside, if
the immortal were to even get out, it would be
unintelligible and angry, seeing a world that stands
unfamiliar and… backward. It would violently attack the
Heroes, seeing them as usurpers of a time his people
ruled the world. He would be beyond calming down and
will use the full extent of his abilities to commit violence
upon the Heroes.
Oodh
Sorcerer-King of a lost people
Strength 10 Influence 1 Rank 11
Advantages Beyond Sight, Desperate Effort, God-
Touched (number 4), The Storm Serves Me, Signature
Item: Shattered Blade
Virtue: The Great Cycle (Alive) Activate to reroll any
number of dice when you take a Risk.
Hubris: The Morning Star (Pretentious) Receive a
Danger Point when you refuse to take part in an action
because you feel doing so would be beneath you.
Tactics: Oodh attacks viciously, ignoring other
opponents until the one he has begun to hurt is finally
Helpless on the ground. He screams out a lot of strange
things during the assault such as the words: Mug Wa
Yeen, Shan Ree, Speck Tor.
The Copper Man is damaged and no longer functions as
it used to. It remains an artifact, however, of a time
before Théan history.
The Copper Man as a new discovery
As the Heroes attempt to navigate the confounding
tunnels of the Syrneth Ruin, they come across a massive
doorway that towers almost fifteen feet high. The
double doors are ten feet wide and have neither a door
knob nor a handle. Instead, a panel with movable iron
rods can be seen on the ground, a few feet from the
doorway. Some of the rods have been broken.
Above the doorway, an engraved marking is barely
visible, most of its material eroded by time.
can spend a Raise to declare which animal
sculpture is to be displayed.
When the wrong animal is revealed, the
character triggering that animal must take a
Consequence of [2H] Wounds.
o Fox has a mist released that burns
one’s lungs.
o Elk has an intricate puzzle dance on the
wall which causes painful seizures.
o Horse causes spears to strike from
above and the ground.
o Spider causes a droplet to fall from the
ceiling and if the character catches it, it
burns into their skin like acid.
o Snake has mystical lights glow and
suddenly shoot electricity at the
character.
• Trial and error can reveal Bear is the correct rod
to have raised. The Bear causes a massive bear
statue to rise from the ground, and it “lifts” the
doorway.

As the Heroes step into the chamber, they discover a

Dramatic Sequence:
horrifying sight. There are more than a single Copper
The Chamber of Copper Man inside. Instead a whole group of around twenty of
The Heroes attempt to penetrate the door.
them are standing, unmoving, in the room.
Solving the Riddle of the Rods: Wits + Scholarship is the
If you opt to have them as a threat, you can use Copper
easiest Approach, but creative players might opt to use
Man as an Immortal Being above as the direction. More
Wits + Notice to identify the wear and tear of the rods
interestingly, you can describe them as inert empty
that have been used.
Copper Men, then later in the session or story, when
they are brought to the city/patron, some NPC can find
1 Raise: Each Raise gains one of these facts. The players
themselves trapped inside by accident leading to a fight
can solve this Riddle once they have spent a total of [H]
to free him.
Raises or if they eventually declare to have the Bear rod
at the solely raised rod.

• Each of the rods is topped with an animal

sculpture. The following are: Fox, Elk, Bear,
Horse, Spider, and Snake. The rest are too
damaged to be identified.
• The Copper Man figure has an almost
impossible to see symbol etched up of a Mother
in a Circle.
• Sliding a rod down causes grinding noises to
emerge from the walls. Sliding a rod up does
the same. Each rod moved causes a second rod
to move. It seems the trick is to have only one
rod raised while the rest are down.

This won’t have to be done by players step by

step. Instead, knowing this is the goal, players
Year 4
The Chronos Pass
Location:
Aragosta, The
Solitary Sail
Northwest from Aragosta, past the Thrandin’s Spires,
there lies a tiny island that is barely thirty feet across.
Alongside the island, a broken mast rises from the water
and a solitary sail hangs from it, blank of any banner and
long bleached from the sun. Few have ever seen this
place, given its absence from maps and charts, but those
who chance upon this tiny needle in the watery haystack
usually stare at the oddity and sail away with a new
strange story to share over pints.
Those who were curious enough to sail towards it,
however, learn quickly the waters surrounding it are
shallow and the risk of running aground is too great. This
pressures more to leave, thankful to have avoided
making things worse.
However, on rare occasions, this realization just spurs the
curious explorer on. And with the use of rowboats, the
would-be seeker would reach the island, and find upon
its surface a wooden door that faces the sky. Attempting
to open the door would lead to laughter as only sand
would be found underneath it. Any attempt to swim into
the shallow waters reveals the dangerous presence of
sea urchins and stinging corals abound. Looking
underwater, however, reveals the mast rises from the
massive coral reef. Perhaps a ship once sunk after
colliding against it and had become overgrown with
corals?
The Solitary Sail.
Everyone shares stories of the false door on the tiny island. And of
the immense coral reef that the island seems attached to and the
mast-like portion that holds the white-bleached sail. I’ve heard of
these same stories, but I knew a bit more than most on where to
look. A shanty sung in Aragosta mentions a pirate who sailed the
stars and navigated the 7 th Sea. The lyrics included the lines, “And
there where she lay, she was red and not white. A slip in a search
and one enter’s just right.” Most took it to be tawdry words that
implied sexual congress. I realized it meant something else.
Studying the coral, I noticed most were pale and dull in color, with
the occasional black ones dotting the reef. There was a growth of
red coral, however, in one particular spot in the deep.
With a gulp of air, I swam below the waters and made my way to
the red splotch of sharpness. There, I hoped I was right and
reached my hand between the deadly growth. To my surprise, the
red coral was soft to touch - like fruit - and retracted from contact
with my skin. In their wake, a doorway became visible.
I had hoped to explore further but a massive moray eel emerged
from the hole. And the only keepsake I had of the encounter was
this metal chained thing that I was hooked on the dagger sharp
teeth of the eel’s extended maw. I yanked it free as I swam back to
the surface, returned to the row boats, and called for the crew to
leave. I –
Come to think of it, I never thought to come back. I wonder why?
The Chrono Pass
The small device is a strange device. Cassaday is not
unfamiliar with clocks and while the device seems to
share a lot of similarities to one, the “clock face” of the
device does not move. A sister clock, identical from the
outside in every way, but locked closed without any
visible means of opening it, is upon the same chain. Also
absent is any dial or knob that could be turned to wind
the watches. At first, the device seemed to be some
broken miniature clock, or perhaps some attempt to
build a chronometer for sea travel, until Cassaday nearly
lost his life when a ship he was on capsized due a deadly
storm. When he awoke in the shores of Numa, he had
the device in his hand and its tiny arrow hands had
moved from the midnight position to the 11th hour. It
would take a few more misadventures and near deaths
before Cassaday understood the emerging pattern: Each
near-death experience he had, the clock moved back a
full hour.
Many years from now at the near end of Cassaday’s
exploring career, the clock face would be down to one
o’clock. Cassady suspects the device had tracked the
instances when he could have died. Or more curiously,
perhaps somehow it had “saved his life on multiple
occasions.” He now distinctly remembers yanking it
from the eel and seeing it at the midnight hour when he
first studied it. Perhaps it also means to warn him that he
is running out of time.
The Solitary Sail as an adventure
The Heroes can, on the behest of Cassaday or any other
similar group, attempt to explore the Solitary Sail once
more. The journey would have the following Hazards
and challenges that must be overcome.
1. Locating the Solitary Sail
As detailed in the story above, finding the island
is the first challenge. The Solitary Sail can be
found by any player character on a ship with the
Ship Backgound: Swallowed by the Triangle, or
by any Hero who spends [H] Raises to uncover
the location of this strange place. Perhaps they
heard about it as a child, or they encounter
someone who drunkenly shares their
encounters with the tiny island. For Game
Masters seeking to introduce this area to their
group, Cassaday himself can task the Heroes to
help out.
2. The Massive Moray Eel
The guarding monster is at least forty feet long,
with a mouth spanning nearly four feet wide. It
has in its throat a secondary set of teeth known
as its pharyngeal jaws. The scale-less thing has a
powerful bite, able to rip apart rowboats and
snap oars. The beast guards the entrance,
striking at anyone who attempts to enter.
Communication and threats do not faze it.
The monster is a natural threat and not some
supernatural entity. It had found the tunnel
many years back and has embraced it as one of
its hunting zones.
Moray Eel
The thing stands in your way to get in!
Opposition: This counts as an [2H] Strength Monster
Squad with the following Qualities: Aquatic, Slippery,
and Venomous.
Aquatic: Inflicts double damage while in water.
Slippery: Spend a Danger Point to escape from being
bound or pinned down.
Venomous: Spend a Danger Point at the beginning of
the Round. When the Monster deals damage, remove
1 Raise from the target.
Objectives: Kill it!
Tactics: The Eel focuses on the closest target but is not
above grappling that target with its maw, then using the
rest of its body to coil others nearby.
1 Consequence: Each Sequence, a Raise must be spent
to avoid Drowning. Also, a second Raise must be spent
to avoid taking extra 2 Wounds from brushing or hitting
the corals.
3. The Underwater Tunnel
Swimming into the cleared tunnel reveals a
strange chamber where the water fails to
completely fill. The room is around ten feet high
can be entered from above by swimming, but
the water line holds near the corner of the
room, allowing the swimmer to then walk out of
the water and into an air pocket. The tunnel
leads to a secondary chamber. In this pocket,
there are tiny hooks on the walls, as well as a
few empty metal crates. One crate still
contains strange Syrneth gloves that stretch
and accommodate almost any sized hands.
They can resist heat and water like modern day
rubber.
A door leads to the Secondary Chamber. The
door has a rotary handle to open, requiring
places to rotate the wheel clockwise to open
and counter clockwise to lock shut.
4. The Secondary Chamber
Reaching the secondary chamber, the Hero
finds himself in a twenty foot by thirty roughly
oblong-chamber. The chamber is filled with
long metal half-tubs each around a foot deep.
Inside the tub, various corals have overgrown
 and taken over the containers. Prying any out
reveals nothing of value underneath them, as if
the corals were the focus of the room. There
are metal spikes on the walls implying
something may have once been hanging on
them but these are now empty from time.
Finally, in one tub, there are no corals. Instead,
there are metal parts scattered about. Further
study might reveal a similarity to clock pieces
and parts, albeit a quite tiny one. This may have
been where the pendant had been created, but
there no longer seem to be any sign of plans or
blueprints on how to build it however.
The Chrono Pass as a Discovery
The Heroes can encounter a secondary Chorno Pass in
their adventures. Perhaps while in a ruin, they spot the
device and opt to pick it up. Be sure to keep track of
which Hero chooses to pick it up. Whoever first held it is
its “owner” regardless of what the players decide later on
who keeps it.
The Chrono Pass as a Problem
That Villain they just can’t defeat? He actually has one.
None of them realized time winding back to favor the
Villain those last few attempts.
But when the Sarmatian Losejas asks for the secret
knowledge to his survival, the dievai spits out name of
the device. When the Fate Witch attempts to discern
what happened, a freak wind always blows her Sorte
deck away before she could make a clear reading.
Destroying the Chrono Pass is the only way to defeat the
Villain. Doing so can require either a unique sacrifice
(such as sacrificing a loved one – and gaining Corruption)
and using the same weapon to shatter the watch. Or by
promising to offer it X years of your potential life. There’s
no way of knowing if it did work, or if your potential
lifespan was indeed shortened, but it makes for an
awesome scene.

From that point on, if any event brings the said character
to Helpless, the Chrono Pass activates
AUTOMATICALLY. It immediately ticks down one hour
from 12 and warps time in whatever most subtle way is
allowed to avoid that injury.

For Example:
Cassaday is the bearer and while walking down the
street, a runaway carriage crashes into him and kills
him. The Chrono Pass triggers. Suddenly, Cassaday is
stopping to pick up a handkerchief he had dropped.
The delay is just enough for the carriage to drive past
him and hit the empty wall at the end of the street.

Another Example:
An assassin takes aim at Cassaday, hoping to silence
him forever before he brings back his findings and
threatens the Vaticine Church. The Assassin takes aim
and…suddenly a bird lands on his pistol and the
Assassin is forced to shoo it away. As he takes aim
again, Cassaday is gone.

A block away, Cassaday simply walked down the

street, unawares of the Chrono Pass ticking down
another hour in his pocket.

The Chrono Pass Effect cannot be given to another

person. Nor can the Hero find a way to restore the lost
hours.
Year 5
The Burning Garden
Location:
North of Breslau,
Vestenmennavenjar
Deep in the heart of the cold icy mountains lies a garden
where the very lilies burn with the warmth of the sun.
Cassaday’s investigations into the garden’s existence
began when he was a child. Skald’s poems spoke of a
garden which never ceased to bloom and the gods
would rest in its warmth. While most poems would be
reverent, boastful, or even obscene, Cassaday noticed
the ones relating to the burning garden were always
nostalgic and sad in nature. This contrast alerted Cassady
to the possibility that the poems were different from the
usual ones, which were used to entertain others during
the long winters.
This lead to Cassaday searching for cartographers who
had worked on the maps for the various mountain
ranges in Vesten. By interviewing them, Cassaday was
able to mark down which mountains had not yet been
fully explored. And from those, narrow down the likely
areas worth investigating. Luckily, he would not have to
simply rely on guesswork. He learned of a second myth
regarding a waterfall that never froze despite the
immense cold and realized the Burning Garden would be
a perfect source for superheated water. Correlating the
information he had gathered from the maps with the
supposed stories regarding the Eternal Waterfall, he
narrowed down the possible locations to four regions.
This is the third region I’ve gone to explore here in
Vestenmennavenjar. Barely into my twenties and I am struggling
to move in this immense cold. How could people live here?
As we progressed towards the mountain peak, the first sign of our
success became apparent. We felt the warm clouds that broke the
punishing cold pass over us a few times. These pockets of comfort
would eventually become the trail we needed to find the Eternal
Waterfalls.
The falls were quite a sight, pouring out of the mountain into a
steaming pool below. The surge of steam was constantly swirling
as the heated water never relented. Tracing the edge of the pool as
we made our way further up the mountain, we soon found the
fabled garden.
It was paradise.
The garden persists due to remarkable plants called Fire
Lilies. Each Fire Lily emits a steady warm field that
allows the plants to bloom and thrive despite the
inhospitable weather. Within the vicinity of each Fire Lily
are a host of various other plants. Many of them are
medicinal or rare. Perhaps even a few are of long extinct
flora.
The Heroes soon quickly discover the Fire Lilies are not
actual plants and removing them from the ground
destroys their ability to provide warmth.
Fire Lily Technology
Developed by the Syrne to tap onto the natural “telluric”
energies in the ground itself, the Fire Lilies are crystalline
engines that have been wrapped with decorate cloth to
appear as flowers. While plugged into the earth, the
crystals draw out the telluric energies and convert them
to a steady heat stream. Oddly, these Lilies will not
function in other locations as their crystal resonances
were keyed in to both the altitude and specific
geographic location by some means. If anyone tries to
touch the flowers, or if anyone is forced against them
while they are active, that person must face a 5 Wound
Consequence for touching the heated side.
Finding the Mountain
Developed by the Syrne to tap onto the natural “telluric”
energies in the ground itself, the Fire Lilies are crystalline
engines.
The Heroes can attempt to find the location as a
Dramatic Sequence, with a total of 2H Raises needed to
find the warm valley despite the ice floes.
Possible threats include wolves, bears, and trolls – all of
which would be quite territorial and aggressive against
any newcomers to their woods.
The Mountain is hard to find as a small community that
discovered the flowers have embraced them as proof
that the Brokkr and Sindri have left them gifts. To these
communities, Brokkr and Sindri are mountain dwarves
who forge gifts for their faithful. These fire lilies, they
claim, are theirs as gifts for their faith, Many of them
have grown suspicious of foreigners and some tend to
strike first before asking.
Osk Reinsdatter
Vesten – Misguided Seidr
Strength 4 Influence 3 Rank 7
Advantages Seidr, Staredown, Valiant Spirit
Virtue: The Witch (Intuitive) Activate to ask the GM one
yes or no question about an NPC..
Hubris: The Glyph (Superstitious) Receive a Danger
Point when you refuse to solve a problem using Sorcery,
an artifact, or some mystical effect that you don’t trust.
Osk comes from a long family of Seidrs. If stories are to
be believed, her grandparents claimed to have had
dreams of Brokkr and Sindri who guided them to the
mountain valley. The great valley was filled with bright
fiery lilies and miraculously, a waterfall continues to flow
despite it being the heart of winter.
If befriended, Osk excitedly shares the stories of how the
two dwarfs once lived in the region and crafted the lilies
as a gift to an unnamed woman. Of course, the woman
was supposedly a Seidr. The woman, supposedly,
spurned their gifts and the lilies were left in the valley in
hopes of one day changing her mind.
Some Castillian Alquimista once remarked that if the
Syrneth technology could be understood, similar devices
could be created to illuminate and possibly even serve as
power sources in other Nations.

Typically, Osk is accompanied by warriors who count as

2H Bodyguard Brute Squads. They believe her words to
carry the weight of the gods and this empowers her
superstitious view upon the world to endanger others in
its wake.
 Astrolabe of the
Silver Road
Location:
South West of
Jack Ketch Cliffs,
La Bucca
When the Silver Road was last used, a ship was able to
sail from the Widow’s Sea to Eastern Rahuri within the
span of a single hour. The ship, whose name had been
lost in time (or intent) sailed out of the waters and
somehow slipped into a world which was “covered in
mercury and silver.” In this other world, time seemed to
move so slow that rain hung like orbs in the air and birds
remained floating in the sky.
Rumors speak of the Silver Road as having been used by
the Numa King of Adamaradon himself and that the
truths he glimpsed in the Silver Road were the things
that lead him to madness.
Another story speaks of scholar who claims to have had
see a device known as the Astrolabe of the Silver Road, a
Syrneth device which when properly installed onto a
ship, allowed it to sail into the Silver Road itself. The
scholar claimed the owner of the ship seemed inhuman,
with an animal mask upon its face. His transcriptions of
the event claim the Captain of the vessel dedicated
prayers to something called the “Joke” or “Jog” and when
the device was activated, one of the first signs it was
functioning was the sight of the sun suddenly exploding
into brilliant colors.
Who would have thought I would find myself on this island? I still
recall the warnings from the Vaticine priests that the place still
reeks of the White Plague.
But to my surprise, La Bucca was quite a pleasant place – so long
as you minded your own business and never got in the way of
others. The Baron, a portly and loud man whom everyone at the
island seemed to recognize, showed me around and kept me safe
from any ruffians who might find interest in us.
I had information from four various sources that a Khemet “solar
ship” once reached the ports of La Bucca during an unexpected
storm. The ship was reportedly airborne when it crashed against
the cliffs, and its ruins were never recovered. We reached the Jack
Ketch Cliffs and saw the skeleton of the ship. And its strange
guardians.
The Astrolabe as an artifact
If you decide to allow your players to have the
Astrolabe, it functions as a unique item with one or
more of the following effects to be present in your
game:
a) Sail into the Silver Road
The Astrolabe, if activated correctly with H
Scholarship Raises, opens a portal for the
entire vessel to slip into the World Between
the Worlds. The vessel remains “wrapped” in a
protective silver aura, which makes everything
appear silvery as well. This power is similar to
the Montaigne Porté power.
All passengers of the ship are safe so long as
they remain on the ship and do not mention
their names. If anyone attempts to go
overboard, they are lost in the World Between
the Worlds and must be rescued somehow.
Ideas on how to rescue them can be found in
the 7th Sea: Nations of Théah, Volume 1 book.
b) Sail by the Strength of Solar winds
When activated, the ship’s sails actually
become solar batteries. Even in the absence of
wind or strong current, a ship empowered by
the Astrolabe can as fast as 7 knots.
c) Protection of the Jok
Upon activation, the ship empowered by the
Astrolabe are suddenly bathed in silver light.
 For a duration of time which only the Jok
themselves would know, no harm, be it
magical or natural, can come upon the vessel.
The Astrolabe as an Adventure
The journey to La Bucca was not without its dangers.
I. Navigating the Pirate Island
Players can attempt to gain entry into La Bucca in
various ways. The island is an open harbor, given its
neutral stance towards all other Théan Nations. There
are, however, dangers on the island that cannot be
ignored.
Without a contact, this could be tricky. Though La Bucca
has welcomed anyone into its shores, many of its
residents are more than anxious to victimize and
“relieve” visitors of their goods. You could use this as an
opportunity for them to face off against Brute Squads.
Or even fight supernatural threats such as ghouls or
spooks.
With a contact, they’re surely to be introduced to the
Baron Maison, also known as the “most recognized face
in La Bucca,” who is said to have connections in every
single Nation on Théan. The right kind of wine, perfume,
or gift is surely to have him feeling cooperatively
generous.
Either way, the challenge should be [H] to get through
this initial hurdle.
II. Jack Ketch Cliffs
The ships’ ruin can be seen embedded nearly four
hundred feet in the air against the Jack Ketch Cliffs.
Some believe a powerful storm hurled the ship against
the Cliffs, despite them being quite far from the sea
itself. Others claim the ship sailed through some magical
means and collided with the cliffs. Regardless, the only
means to get to it barring some form of flight is to scale
the cliffs from above or below. Each have their own
challenges.
The Cliffs themselves present as a Hazard.
Hazard Level: 10
This Hazard is restricted geographically. A Hero can
simply choose not to scale them to be safe.
The Cliffs have the following Elements: Foreboding,
Treacherous and is a Habitat for an expected yet vicious
threat: Fire Spiders!
Use Foreboding to reflect the frightening prospect of
climbing the wall. Treacherous for instances when the
winds howl and the Heroes can slam against the sharp
rocks. Anyone falling to their death should be allowed to
try to grab the rock wall (Consequence H Wounds).
Better a few scratches then a broken spine and shattered
skull, eh? Habitat means the Fire Spiders never have to
suffer the same Hazards of from the Cliffs.
FIRE SPIDERS
Strength: Treat as a Brute Squad of Strength 2 to 5,
depending on the age of the group. Stick to 2, then
slowly go up to 5 each round that passes.
Monstrous Qualities: Ambushing (a Danger Point has
them double Wounds they inflict if they deal their first
attack unseen in a Sequence), and Venomous (Spenda
Danger Point at the beginning of a Round. If the Monster
deals damage that round, remove 1 Raise from its target).
Once the Heroes have reached the ship, the Spiders pull
away as if they sense a greater power. Reaching the
ship is a total of 2H Raises.
III. Inside the ruined ship
The ship’s former Captain is Zoq Nmaan. Once the Lique
Mekwas, or Emperor’s Double in his time, Zoq served
great beings whose names he can no longer recall. His
memory has been fading ever since he escaped the
great silver sea. He watches over the Astrolabe however,
and will not surrender it unless the visitors offer to give
him one last gift to allow him to rest: He misses this
experience he had during his younger years when he
visited the great kings of the Crescent. He misses their
musical battles and would desire to partake in one final
one.
The Heroes must engage in Kavita, the poetry battles
from the Crescent Empire, to claim the prize.
Zoq Nmaan
Khemet Spirit, Unable to move on
Strength 10 Influence 1 Rank 11
Advantages: Griot (gains 1 Bonus Die when you weave a
compliment about your opponent), Hand of Peace
(Unless you start Violence, you apply Pressure on all to
stay calm), Blood of the Sovereigns (Once, during a Risk,
you can spend a Danger Point to add Raises equal to
your Panache).
Virtue: The Glyph (Temperate) Activate to prevent
any magical effect from affecting you.
 Hubris: The Devil (Trusting) Receive a Danger Point
when you accept someone’s lies or lopsided deal.

Play up the Kavita. And see how far the Heroes can go. A
defeated Hero cannot try again, however Zoq is more
than willing to be challenged by a new Hero.

Once all Heroes have been bested, Zoq admits this was
the most fun he has had in ages and he still chooses to
give them the Astrolabe. He warns them, however, that
it will be more dangerous in the hands of man than lost
among the dead. He warns them the Silver Sea is not
empty.

And to never utter their names while within.

The Continuing Ascent of Ava Tremaine

This is the fifth story chronicling the ambitious Ava
Tremaine. Though her humble beginnings started as a
theatre performer of Montaigne, she is poised to
become a Mastermind Villain with more Influence and
Strength than most expect.

Other portions of her story can be found in the following

books:
• The Twisted Mirror
• The Widow’s Secret
• Seven, See
• Red, Red Winter

When is this set in time?

If you desire to use Ava Tremaine as a Villain in your
games, know that her first encounter with Cassaday was
not at this time. Back then, Cassaday had only been
gathering Syrneth artifacts for the last four or so years.
By the time he meets Ava as a performer in Montaigne,
he was well into his career as an archæologist. However,
when they do finally mean many years later, he tells Ava
of the stories of this necklace – perhaps in a lovestruck
moment of wishing she could wear something as
previous and as beautiful as herself. Ava does not forget
this story, and soon, she engages in a scheme to claim
this. It can be said, however, that Ava’s rise to power as a
Villain in many ways is thanks to the Vermarine Sins.
A note from the Author…

The Syrneth Codex is a 7th Sea 2nd edition

supplement which explores the idea of multiple
Syrneth Artifacts out in the world for your Heroes to The Dark Journal talks about Viscera Suckers.
interact with, find, or confront. The Dark Journal – Part 2 talks about Breeders.
The Dark Journal – Part 3 talks about Predators.
While the official books have not given a final say on
what Syrne really is, this supplement takes a lot of
A night with the Imperatrice becomes one night not even the
liberties in its interpretation for the sake of fun. I hope
dead will ever forget. Standalone adventure.
you have as much fun with this as I had writing it.

Special Thanks An artificial island rises from the Widow’s Sea

and reveals its hidden Syrneth ruins. Standalone adventure.
For this book, I would like to thank my creative
hivemind of friends. Dan Waszkiewicz, Ben
Woerner, Alan Bahr, Ryan Schoon, and John Seven tasks are asked of the Heroes to save the life of Losejas
Kennedy. You five are amazing in keeping the who lies in her deathbed. But what if this is just another lie,
created by the Dievai themselves to lure more to their doom?
creative ideas going.

I want to thank John Wick, Mark Diaz Truman,
Miranda Horner, Hannah Shaffer, Brett Zeiler, James
Mendez Hodes, Lenny Balsera, Eloy Lasanta, and
Shoshana Kessock for allowing me opportunities to
write for 7th Sea. And I do hope more opportunities
continue to come.
I also would like to thank Jim Pinto, Aina Ledesma,
James Lo, Brian Baquiran, Che de Leon, Flip Velez,
Urim Hernandez, and Josh Castañeda, for always
being empowering and supportive of my constant
attempts to write more adventures and run more
games. Thank you for being such enabling friends.
Children have gone missing in a small town in the Highland
Marches, is there any hope for the year to end with peace and
goodwill for all?
A 7th Sea Hack for playing young heroes, with over 30 new
Advantages, 3 New Arcana, and 6 New Stories!
Check out the many single sheet supplements covering
everything from Dievai ideas, to Story Starters, Family Foibles
to Unexpected Events and more!
You can find all these at https://www.drivethrurpg.com/

Thank you to my TAG TEAM SUPPORTERS! Rocky,

Mina, Rob Abrazado, Ryan Schoon, Rob Deobald,
Rivehouse Games. My appreciation and love for your
constant support.

Finally, I want to thank Rocky Sunico, I love you. You

are my artifact and I am your treasure. We make each
other wealthier than anyone else in the entire world.

Tobie Abad For more works by Tobie Abad, feel free to check out
TAG Sessions at http://tagsessions.blogspot.com
 Warren Cassaday, Archæologist from Avalon,
has been traveling around Théah for the
last fifteen years, in search of Syrneth
Ruins. This Codex is the first collection of
the items and places he has found.

by TOBIE ABAD

The first five years of Sir Warren keywords:

Syrneth Artifacts, Explorer’s Society, Invisible College
Cassaday, Archæologist