This is a retelling of the first encounter of the first session of the Palantir quest campaign. The purpose of the scene was to introduce the coming adventure, and give a chance to the player to get into character. This, they did very well.
September 3rd, 15th year of the Fourth Age
Very few people in Gondor have ever set foot on the Seventh level of Minas Tirith. With utmost anxiety, Finbert Brandibuck received an invitation for a supper with select members of the Palantir commission. He had heard of such supper and was anticipating the best meal served outside of Buckland in his lifetime. In the afternoon of the given day, he headed to a fancy tailor on the third level in search for better attires. There were not a lot to offer for a hobbit, but he managed to purchase what he was told to be a very fancy bowtie. "You'll look smart on your date tonight" said the woman in the store, with a disinterested and vacant look as she cashed the few silver celebins.
Finbert arrived late, there were some debates as to whether he should be wearing the special slippers that all visitor are required to wear to protect the marble floor of the reception hall. It was argued, by one of the butler, that hobbits were dispensed from the requirement because they never wear footwear. Finbert just smiled and slipped into the luxurious hall, the cool marble feeling astonishingly smooth under his hardened soles.
He expected hundreds of guests, but there were only a few: first and foremost, the Lord chancellor Carandon was present. He welcomed and introduced him to the company. Other present was the Royal Seer, Tarquillan and his smartly dressed personal scribe Edoras. A dunedain knight was present, his name was Sir Galdor of something something. He was haughty to most other guests, but clearly interested by Finbert's pedigree as a relative of Meriadoc Brandibuck. An older man, a northmen with a good touch of Dunedain was sitting quietly at the table and conversing with other guest, his name was Arnadil: an important captain of the Watch and a fixture in the commission. There was an elderly dwarf, quiet and with a fierce eyes who kept on demanding ale rather than wine. Finally, a woman arrived shortly after and was introduced as Araliniel the Seer. Sir Galdor immediately objected at sharing the table with a commoner. It took much pleasant talk for the Lord Chancellor to put aside the issue and get everyone to enjoy the incoming meal.
And what a meal it was: fine wines, exotic fruits and a spectacular giant bird stuffed with smaller Ithilien-hens which were themselve stuffed with herbs and cheese. By the time that the meal was done, much of the company was slightly inebriated except for the Seer, his scribe and the elderly dwarf who abstained from drinking wine.
"It is time for a talk", declare the Lord Chancellor.
"You may remember the buzz in court about palantirs in the last few months. There was some developments recently and the Royal Seer and I selected you to participate in an expedition to seek new information on the lost Palantir of Arnor.", he continued. The Royal Seer took over:
"The lost Palantir of the North was lost at sea ages ago. It is thought that it slipped under the frozen waters of the Bay of Forochel. The King and I have been investigating some irregular flashes in the Palantir of Orthanc which suggests that a lost Palantir has fallen, probably by accident, almost in the correct alignment. We really think that this should be this Palantir, but we cannot find out more about its location."
The guest agreed that this was an unfortunate situation, but also agreed that it was great news that the Palantir of Arnor could be found again. The Royal Seer proceeded to reveal that very recently, a small bundle of scrolls were found in the Royal Libray of Minas Tirith.
"We found the Diary of an advisor to an old King of Arnor that mention the presence of a section in the Royal Library of Annuminas which contained books and scrolls about the Palantir. Most interestingly, there is the mention of a treatise on shrouding palantirs. The treatise also alledgedly contain a charm that can help reveal information on shrouded palantirs."
Tarquillan proceeded to explain that the Royal Library of Annuminas was lying somewhere underneath the ruined city, and should still be sealed to this day. He presented a large and elaborate key and stated that this was a masterkey for the library. "We don't know much about the library, and very few people have been in Annuminas for centuries". Sir Galdor swiftly reached for the key and brought it to his chest. "I will make this key my own burden". A few grins could be seen around the table, but Galdor held on to the jewel encrusted device.
Captain Arnadil then stood up and solemnly declared that unraveling the secrets of the lost library was a task fitting for the company. "This is going to be a long journey, but a worthwhile quest." The company broke up and agreed to reconvene in two days.
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