Netherese Portal
Type: Magical portal (planar / interplanar / Netherese-vintage) Region: Far corner of the Rat Queen Chamber, deep in the Tunnels Beneath the Toke Inn Status (latest): Still dormant as of session 032 — the Grey-Robed Order expedition came through and was killed by the Rat Queen before the door closed; the door is closed again and the party did not attempt to open it. First Sighted: Session 031 (referenced earlier in session 029 dream-knowledge from The Raven Queen)
What the Party Knows
- A Netherese-vintage portal in the far corner of the Rat Queen Chamber. Visible. Framed. Dormant — not actively pulling, glowing, or pushing.
- The Primeval Tablet foreshadowed it. The Beast Lord's Psalms describe the chamber as containing "a portal" — the cult knows about it; they have not opened it.
- The portal sits at the bottom of the cave system (at least, the deepest accessible point as of session 031) — below the Black Spire Chamber and deeper than the Maw Chamber.
- It is a true Netherese portal — thousand-plus years old. Per Ubys's session-032 read. The activation must come from the other side — no keys, amulets, power supplies, or torch-stand on this side. The door opens to this chamber, not from it. (At least, not without an unfamiliar key the party does not yet have.)
- The Grey-Robed Order came through it. A trio of expedition-members — 1 Dwarf, 2 Half-Elves — emerged through the portal at some point in the prior month; they were killed by the Rat Queen; they are now three Decomposed bodies on the chamber floor (per session 032). The portal closed (or was closed) behind them.
What the Party Doesn't Yet Know
- Whether the portal is opening to another spot on the Material Plane, to the Shadowfell / Letherna, or to the distant dead world Ubys saw in Raven Queen dream-knowledge in session 029.
- Whether it is dormant by design (sealed, awaiting a key) or dormant by failure (broken, no longer functional).
- Whether killing the Rat Queen cracked the seal that held it dormant.