Steal this Encounter: Wealth, Illuminated

*These are notes for a game I ran at Gamehole Con 11. It was written for 6 Dwellers at Level 8*.

The Abbey at Kells has a new illuminated manuscript. Word is spreading that it is something to behold. Tomorrow, the Coarb of Iona and his retinue arrive to assess it. The Dwellers were hired as security in preparation. The Dwellers likely believe they are to keep the manuscript secure from raiders. Though they would never own up to it, the monks have hired them to protect it from something more sinister.
# Setting
## The Abbey
The abbey consists of a round tower surrounded by a ring wall. The ring wall stands roughly 12 feet high and has a single wooden gate in or out. The tower stands in the center about 100 feet from the wall. Within the walls is a garden, well, and small graveyard.
### The round tower
The round tower is a stone building with 3 stories and a cellar below. It is 24 feet across and has a conical roof. The opening is 10 feet from the ground. A ladder can be pulled up or down as needed for the arrival of friends or foes. There is very little room within the tower. The Dwellers are constantly bumping elbows or knocking things over. Each room has a trapdoor on the floor, a ladder to the room above, and a window.

**The Scriptorium**. The entry to the abbey leads to this floor. Here, Brothers Dermot and Ardal attend to their duties as scribes. They also sleep on the floor here, side-by-side. An investigation of the scribed works will find that roughly every one in three pages has doodles in the margins.

**The Pantry**. Above the Scriptorium is the pantry. A meager collection of foodstuffs are found here. Mrs. McLynn restocks it once a week. Brother Kelly is always here.

**The Library**. The Book of Kells is on display here. It is far from the only artifact in this space. The abbot has acquired quite a collection of written works from around the world and across time. This includes books, runestones, ancient scrolls, and clay tablets. How they got here is anyone's guess, but the Abbot spent all his time examining these works. His recently deceased body lies in his bed.

**The Belfry**. The very top of the tower has a bell. It can be heard far and wide.

**The Cellar**. Some basic tools and barrels of wine are kept below the Scriptorium. An otherworldly spirit, the Toghairm, begins the encounter lurking here.
## Kells
Kells is the nearest town and nearly abandoned. The Celtic Twilight hit this place hard. Once a bustling little town, most of the homes here have been ransacked and partially collapsed.
# Denizens
## Monks
### Abbot Colm
Deceased. The Abbot claimed sole authorship of the illuminated manuscript. Allegedly, he worked on it through nights in secret. In truth, he summoned an otherworldly entity (the Toghairm) and exchanged his soul to have the book until his death. Yesterday, he suffered an untimely accident (a ladder collapsed while he was on it).

Abbot Colm's corpse can be found in the top level. His corpse is animated by brownies, should anyone enter. Speak with Dead will do nothing with Colm's body, for his soul has been reclaimed already.
### Brother Dermot
Brother Dermot tries, rather poorly, to seem happy and collected at all times. He is very concerned with keeping up with appearances and is stressed at all times because of it. He is the only one that knows Abbot Colm is dead. He tries to keep everyone out of the top level because of this. In case anyone does, he has a group of Brownies to _Weekend at Bernie's_ the Abbot's corpse.
**Essence**: 6 **Destiny**: 3
**Social Talents**: *Clever Questioning*, *Emotional Blackmail*, *Stay Calm*
**Skills**: *Read and Write*, *Rites and Rituals*, *Silent Tongue*
**Passive Powers**: *Fox's Tongue*, *Secretive Disposition*, *Vow of Non-violence*
### Brother Ardal
Brother Ardal is the youngest monk. He is a puppy dog of a person -- cheerful and energetic. Though eager to learn, he is slow to retain. He gets the beliefs of Criostai and Druids confused regularly. "Oh right, then," is about all he'll say when corrected. He is desperate to be liked by outsiders, especially those he think seem tough. He will ape any actions he observes that stand opposed to Brother Dermot.
**Essence**: 6 **Destiny**: 2
**Social Talents**: *Gud Coppe*, *Storytelling*
**Skills**: *Lore of Common Folk*, *Read and Write*
**Passive Powers**: *Merry Disposition*, *Nature's Child*
### Brother Kelly
If Brother Kelly has ever stated a coherent thought, it was before anyone else at the abbey was here. Brother Kelly does not speak so much as he barks. Generally single thoughts, most frequently, "DRINK!" and occasionally "GIRLS!" Brother Kelly will not leave the pantry. He spends almost all his time sitting on a wooden chair with his feet up on the only other chair in the room.
**Essence**: 6 **Destiny**: 1
**Social Talents**: *Growl*
**Skills**: *Drinking and Wenching*
**Passive Powers**: *Blunt Disposition*
### Mrs. McLynn
The abbey's groundskeeper. Mrs. McLynn is a widow who keeps busy finding as many opportunities to butt in on everyone else's business. She is a gossip, and will never let someone turn down her cooking. She lives in the "gatehouse" of the abbey (a one-room hovel built against the ringwall).
## Supernatural
### Brownies
These are small folk who can only be seen with The Sight. Brother Dermot has traded them a gallon of milk to animate Brother Dermot. They will scatter if threatened, or in the presence of the Toghairm.
### The Toghairm
This spirit was a half-faerie king from over a millennium ago. He has been communicating with Abbot Colm for some time now, tempting him with gifts that would release him. Eventually, the Toghairm found Colm's weakness: ambition. He created an illuminated manuscript, far beyond the capability of any mortal.
The Toghairm begins in the cellar. Slowly, over the course of the night, he rises from one floor to the next. He is set on reclaiming the manuscript.
For stats, I simply used a Tier IV Huldufolk from _Creatures from Fairy Tale and Myth_.
# Treasure
To the right person (a powerful runecaster, a mystic, or maybe an agent to a faerie queen), the collected works could be worth as much as 4000 skatt. Transporting them is another manner entirely. Between the fragile scrolls and the enormous engraved boulders, it's a wonder how Colm got any of it here in the first place.
### The Book of Kells
In addition to acting as a *Holy Vulgate*, the Book of Kells has the Toghairm as a Trapped Spirit (use the Co-walker maven for its mechanical effects).