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1.6.4 Temple of Njord

brief session summary, overall

Opening Monologue

🐚 Session Opening – The Sunken Pilgrimage

The light of Frigg’s mystral fades behind you, its gentle warmth swallowed by the chill mist rising from the cavern lake. Before you, the waters of Njord’s temple lie still and heavy—black, cold, and stinking of rot. Once this lake was pure, a mirror to the sea above, but now it clings to life like a festering wound. Strands of algae drift like green veins beneath the surface, and the faint shape of the sunken temple glimmers below—silent, drowned, forgotten.

The water nymph’s gift lingers upon you, a cool pressure in your lungs and a strange comfort in the depths. The air feels thinner here, the silence immense. Even the sound of dripping stone echoes like a heartbeat. Somewhere far below, you sense the pull of ancient power—the breath of Njord himself, waiting to be stirred from centuries of stillness.

The lake beckons.
Will you descend into the drowned halls of the Sea-Father…
or let this place remain lost beneath its stagnant tide?

🐚 Temple of Njord: The Sunken Pilgrimage

Theme: Faith drowned by obsession; water turned stagnant.
Tone: Haunting, reverent, and corrupted—echoes of once-holy songs ripple through dark water.

**Room 1

Purpose: Establish tone and test respect for the sea.

  • The PCs descend into the algae-choked lake, guided by the faint glow of blue runes.

  • At the lake’s floor stands a massive stone gate carved with Njord’s waves and trade ships. A current barrier prevents entry.

  • Three broken statues of Njord’s priests float nearby—each missing its holy shell emblem.

Challenge / Puzzle:

  • Replace the three missing shells (hidden in kelp, guarded by undead fishers, or embedded in coral).

  • Restoring them opens the gate and creates a calm current—a sign of Njord’s approval.

  • Failure or brute force triggers an angry tidal surge (Reflex DC 25, 4d8 bludgeoning) and awakens Drowned Sentinels.

**Room 2

Purpose: Test insight and reverence.

  • Inside, the temple corridors are half-flooded, full of air pockets shimmering like mirrors.

  • A massive mural depicts Njord parting storm and calm, his hands balancing waves and trade.

  • A whispering current speaks: “To raise the sea’s favor, still your storms within.”

Puzzle:

  • PCs must bring calm to the chamber—ceasing combat, using Religion checks, or using some other roleplay to “still the water.”

  • Disturbed water mirrors spawn Echoes of Turbulence (elementals) if the party acts violently.

  • Success stills the raging waters leading onwards, they become calm and passable and the waterfall is revealed as a simple underwater stair