Orimene stepped off a bubble circle ten years older than she had stepped onto it. She found the side room nobody else found, and in it she found something that shouldn't have been there. She failed the save. The wild magic fired on its own. Then she used Thaumaturgy to buy the party a window, and the session ended with her in the vestry, injured, pressed against Penelope.
Orimene was standing inside one of the three circles when the bubbles began shrinking. She had been around twenty-three years old. When she stepped off after the book closed, she looked approximately thirty-three. Anar, who had not entered any circle, observed the change and noted that her knees would ache when it rained.
Orimene entered the cult space with the rest of the party. She wore a cult robe and participated in the cover. The "Two Steves" bluff at the door handled the entry point; Orimene was inside with the others when the cultist handed out pamphlets.
Orimene rolled a natural 20 on Perception and spotted the unused side door behind stacked boxes. She snuck through it. The room on the other side held body parts in a green-flame pot, a limb pile, and shelves of preserved heads in jars. She failed her Constitution save on a natural 1.
Her Wisdom Insight roll came up 18. It confirmed what she feared. Elra's head was in one of those jars. It turned and looked at her.
Orimene's grief at seeing Elra's head triggered a wild magic surge. The DM ruled this was not from a spell, but from the emotional shock acting on her existing wild magic condition. The D100 came up 42. Inflict Wounds on self. The D10 came up 3. Three damage. Penelope caught up to her. Orimene pressed her face into Penelope's hair.
When Puck and Anar were led downstairs under the priest's Suggestion, Penelope and Orimene needed a way through the ritual room without being seen. Orimene used Thaumaturgy to create a booming voice and threw it across the room as if one of the acolytes had spoken. The DM ruled three minutes of mass confusion. Several cultists drifted upstairs. Three mandatory chanters stayed. That was enough. Penelope and Orimene slipped into the vestry without a roll.
Penelope cast Spike Growth on the statue and Wild Shaped into a brown bear to hold the vestry door. Orimene was in the vestry with her when the session ended: injured, three damage from the wild surge, and the only party member who had seen what was in the side room.
| Scene | Check | Result | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Aging (circle) | — | Aged ~10 years stepping off circle; was ~23, now ~33 |
| 7 | Perception | Nat 20 | Spotted unused side door behind stacked boxes |
| 7 | Constitution save | Nat 1 | Failed; confronted with Elra's head |
| 7 | Wisdom Insight | 18 | Confirmed: Elra's head was in one of the jars |
| 8 | Wild magic surge (D100, emotional shock) | 42 | Inflict Wounds on self |
| 8 | Inflict Wounds damage (D10) | 3 | −3 HP |
| Ability | Scene | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| Thaumaturgy (booming voice) | 10 | Created confusion in ritual room; 3-minute window; cultists drifted upstairs; 3 mandatory chanters stayed |
| Wild Magic Surge (involuntary) | 8 | Triggered by emotional shock; D100=42; Inflict Wounds on self; 3 damage |
The DM established this session that Orimene's existing wild magic condition responds to emotional shock, not only to spells. The surge in Scene 8 was not triggered by spellcasting — it fired from grief alone. This is an active mechanical condition going into Session 4.
| Condition | Details |
|---|---|
| Location | Vestry |
| HP | −3 from Inflict Wounds (wild surge, self) |
| Aging | Approximately 10 years added (permanent status unknown) |
| Wild magic | Active condition; emotional shock confirmed as surge trigger |
| Knowledge | Only party member to have seen Elra's head; Penelope does not know yet |