3. Isolde's detective files

Isolde's detective files


  • "Things are moving at a speedy pace now, after a bold decision on behalf of Reyhenna, Gom and Cobin Daedalus. At a meeting between these three and leading Kingsguard Thom Tiller, the agreement was to declare martial law (subject to the King's approval) in order to properly root out the Doppelganger menace once more infiltrating City Hall. When trying to rid oneself of a hornet's nest, expect to be stung. The response was far more immediate than we could have anticipated though, for one very unreal reason.

    Thom Tiller, who like the rest of us bled red to prove himself, who like the rest of us removed their cloaks at the private meeting, was not the 'real' Tiller. Something about him chafed at me even then - I snatched the handkerchief onto which he'd bled, suspicious, yet the blood stains there were undoubtedly red. I told myself it was but my old dislike of the man that caused my discomfort, but I was wrong.

    Not long after Tiller and Daedalus walked off to speak to the King, there came the bootstomps of half an army, marching into the Defenders quarters. Kasimir Fisher's irate voice rang out, ordering us to come out and surrender our weapons. He seemed firmly convinced we were plotting treason, and next to him stood Thom Tiller, though moments after we lost the Kingsguard in the throng. But - while we argued and pleaded and tried to reason our way out of this hot mess without bloodshed, the sharper eyes amongst us had spied it: a glimpse of black and red, tucked underneath Tiller's armour.

    Triloquist's cloak.

    But he bled RED... didn't he? Once we'd swayed the crowd to our side and talked Kasimir down into a wholly unwilling, scowl-faced cooperation, I took the handkerchief out of my pocket. Black stains, not red. That could only mean one thing - the Doppelganger wearing Tiller's guise was the Unreal, who had manipulated our perceptions and tailored our memories in real time, til black was red. No wonder he'd stared so, focusing on first Rey, then I, to maintain this choice unreality.

    Word came of "Tiller" heading up to the throne room, towards Thalaman's position. With our delay, I feared the worst, but hope still flared when we learned that Lt Janes and a number of others had hasted up to intercept. But when we finally ascended the stairs, confusion and chaos was written all over the bloodied scene. And Janes lay dead.

    The wild-eyed Cerulean on scene calmed when I managed to get my last Clarity off, but with it came the brutal realization of what they'd done. Janes and his men, and the Ceruleans he'd taken with him... those guarding the King had all seen them as ourselves, poised to strike at the King with malicious intent. Janes had tried and tried to talk them down, but with the Unreal's presence it was all in vain.

    "Tiller" had gone to the King's side and done something to him. He now lay unconscious, and wouldn't wake, while Tiller was nowhere to be seen. But that only meant the Unreal had changed his guise, surely? A disturbing flicker, a sense of things 'shifting' suggested it was still here, somewhere near, and suddenly Aoth and I both saw it - a figure in Cerulean blue that no one else seemed to register, making its way subtly towards the stairs. With our cries, it turned and revealed its true guise. And with it, the dread aura surrounding it engulfed us.

    The 'fight' that followed was entirely of the mind. Though we eventually prevailed, the physical lump of bastard meat had skulked away, head still attached to vile shoulders, the death toll in its wake nearing 35. Amongst them Janes. Unflappable, loyal, full of moxy Janes, who will not return.

    The King, in turn, will not wake and a small mark on his temple is the lingering physical tell of the complex magic set into play, necromancy and enchantment mingled. I was loathe to try dispelling it, and with good cause - even detect magic seemed to cause the slumbering Thalaman discomfort. I suspected a contingency, a trigger of some yet unknown nature and Jonni agrees. A mage of great potency weaved a complex spell sequence, looking set to make a puppet out of Thalaman. It has yet to trigger, but I fear he will stay asleep until something 'is' done.

    In combatting the Unreal, a singular piece of intelligence was gleaned with potential bearing on Thalaman's condition - the name of a necromancer, a lich presumed destroyed. Jonni's at hand to delve into the lore surrounding that particular entity, but it will take some time. Before he began working on Legend Lore, he scried Harlow's position, albeit with great difficulty. The clever, but eternally unlucky Gigantina creator had seen through fake Gabe & Verna, as it turns out, but was bested by the two Doppelgangers combined efforts. The location's somewhere in the Underdark, below the Residential, and he's not alone. The figures shuffling alongside him were hazy, but we suspect they are fellow captives.

    Finally, testing of the metal remains under Richard Gale's house proved not a match to the shipment of black steel. Rather, it was the leftovers of hitherto unsuccessful experiments at creating the same. This leads one to reevaluate the bigger picture, as the Doppelgangers now do not seem to be in possession of the stolen material (likely they intended to take it, but were thwarted). So who did seize the black steel, and why are they simply sitting on it?"


  • The following notes are swiftly written, likely a first draft so as not to forget to write the full report in greater detail later:

    "The Kildarn mansion - the planar door, M's former gateway to the Far Realm, is gone and replaced by a mere prop (if an expensive and quite believable copy). The Kildarn patriarch eventually confessed to having sold it off to some would-be Ceruleans who came knocking on his door months back, prior to Cedric's arrival. We've exhausted any goodwill the boy's raise provided, but learned the important part: the door's most likely in our enemies hands and it can open gates to elsewhere than the Far Realm.

    Triloquist's cloak - this fabled item is said to render its wearer undetectable to divination. Not only unscryable then, but more chillingly, immune to the effects of True Seeing. Although as Rey pointed out, Jonni did once manage to break through these immunities to spy Triloquist. If at great and pained effort. Aquisition of this artifact could prompt the Doppelgangers to finally act on the careful and long study already put into either Thalaman or Kasimir. It would be a nightmare to try and draw blood from either of the royals were they to wear it.

    The Unreal - no reports of its usual behavior, perhaps under orders not to sate its bizzarre appetites to avoid detection. While this entity definitely fits the description of a Dread doppelganger, I suspect there's at least one Greater doppelganger hiding in the city aswell. And somewhere 'close' too, for how else could it have picked the guise of a man who doesn't exist out of my head and into such detail as to fool Harlow? My gut points to a certain supposed bard novelist who seems to continually cross my path, though I can't rule out the possibility of fake Gabriel having been the Unreal itself. Finding the real Harlow remains a priority."


  • "While I ~do~ intend to write the summary of the Unreal's escape, unfortunately coupled with The Laughing Man and last but by no means least, the theft of Triloquist's cloak, I'm not done kicking myself over it yet. The last, in all fairness, I couldn't have foreseen (as the Smiling Monkey never informed me that the cloak still existed), yet I should have known to trust my gut instincts. I should've simply used that scroll of Sending, and perhaps this might've been averted. Oh well. For now, the following transcripts from the Ancient Library of Oscura will hopefully arm us better for what's to come.

    ~Isolde~"

    The Faceless Ones, by B. Felks

    Chapter 1: "A doppelganger is an ancient creature, the origin of which is disputed. However, generally speaking, doppelgangers dwell in Faerun, in the Underdark, or, above ground, if they are successful. From this we can surmise that doppelgangers have been at home in Faerun for some time. A doppelganger is a shapechanger, primarily. Either due to acclimation or otherwise, a doppelganger is not an outsider in Faerun. That is unless the doppelganger originates from another plane, which some do. However, those doppelgangers born on Faerun, are not.

    How, then, is a doppelganger born? Typically by assuming the shape of a humanoid - likely a human, specifically - and impregnating or taking the necessary biological material from a human female or male, respectively. This is done by duplicity. Doppelgangers born of the human female, will be human, until maturity, at which point they will learn their true nature. It is not known what happens of doppelgangers born of a doppelganger mother. Presumably they are born as doppelgangers to begin with."

    Chapter 2: "A doppelganger is a reviled creature, unwelcomed and feared. A successful doppelganger is one that replicates a target, and effectively replaces the target, on a permanent basis. Successful doppelgangers go through great lengths at ensuring they completely replace their targets. Typically, this means killing the target. The doppelganger will attempt to prevent ressurection, by hiding the body, or keeping secret the death."

    Chapter 3: "Doppelgangers work exclusively alone. They are solitary creatures, and, once they realize what they are, understand that they cannot work together, not even with other doppelgangers. That is due to the doppelganger's innate envy of others, and jealous guarding of their targets and place in society. More doppelgangers simply means a greater chance of the doppelganger being found out, if one of his kind are caught."

    Doppelgangers, Tactics Against. Written by F. Finkleton

    Introduction: "Doppelgangers are dangerous. They ought to be resisted, opposed, hunted, and killed. The only way to fix a doppelganger problem is by exposing and putting and end to all of them. Doppelgangers reproduce by impregnating our women. Many people don't know that. But it's true. One doppelganger can simultanously create a huge family of the rotten skinchangers by replicating numerous proper husbands. He doesn't even have to replace them! He can just pretend to be their current husbands and do the deed. Doppelgangers spread like weeds, and need to be uprooted and ended.

    Here are the tactics you can use to find and destroy doppelgangers.

    1. Magical detection. True seeing is the only magical way to reveal a doppelganger. It's expensive, but it works. Depending on the brood, you'll either see their true form, a blurry image, or some blurred part, usually their face.

    2. Stabbing. Stabbing is great. If your society has lots of doppelgangers, it's time to get stabbing. Different broods bleed different blood. Some bleed black, blue, purple, whatever. You stab'em, it works. Of course sometimes the guards get upset...

    3. Avoid stupid catchphrases. Dopppelgangers can read minds. Did you know that? Because they can. They can read your mind like a book. So if you're thinking of a stupid catchphrase to try and tell your party members apart - don't.

    4. Use mind protections. Like I said, doppelgangers can read minds. So protect your mind! A strong will or even a magical spell can help stop them from reading your thoughts.

    5. Vulnerability varies. If a doppelganger assumes a hardy shape, they'll be hardy. If they assume a weak shape, they'll be weak. This applies to most. Some doppelgangers, for some reason, are the exception ... if you encounter one of these, be careful, they're probably stronger. These stronger ones retain their own damage resistance and other properties from their usual shape, which is taller and more durable than most.

    6. Doppelgangers can't be anything non-humanoid. If you can muster it, animals, druids, rangers, other intelligent lifeforms and the rest can be assured allies.

    7. Have no pity. Some doppelgangers will try to trick you with words. Some say they're different and just want to belong. You may have even heard rumors of friendly or neutral doppelgangers. These are all lies.

    The Ghostly Doubles," by Wyona Wadswin

    Chapter 1: Introduction.

    "Hunters have spilled much ink on the subject of monsters, aberrations, and anomalies. Doppelgangers are no exception. However, most tomes on the subject are based on anecdotes and personal experience. I have met and spoken with several planeswalkers who have encountered doppelgangers outside of Faerun, who behave and govern themselves differently than those who have remained on the Prime.This tome is therefore merely adds to the anecdotal accounts, but it is maintained that this addition is more comprehensive and systematic."

    Chapter 2: Misunderstandings.

    "Doppelgangers are not aberrations. They do not come from Outside the Prime, despite their alien appearance. They are in fact home on the Prime, and any attempt at a banishment spell will reveal that much. Certain doppelgangers, like mortal primes, have become planetouched by certain planes, or now treat those planes as their home. This planetouched element is however no different than any other planetouched primer.

    Doppelgangers do not need to kill to reproduce. This was proven in a controlled experiment, ran by the Arcanist Evers, who captured a doppelganger and collected its biological material. Without approving the experiment, I recant it here: Evers introduced the biological material to an artificial homonculus - female - he had previously created. This resulted in the birth of what appeared to be a human boy. Further analysis revealed the human boy was in fact pure doppelganger, despite the homonculi or fake-human status of the mother. Arcanist Evers refused to inform me what happened to the boy or the captured doppelganger.

    Finally, doppelgangers are not solitary creatures. They are in fact extremely social. It is merely the expression of their social nature that differs, for they crave position within humanoid societies.That much is clear simply by reading the various accounts of doppelgangers attempting to replace others in societies."

    Chapter 3: Types and Powers.

    "All doppelgangers can replicate humanoid appearances. The accuracy and detail with which they succeed depends on how long they observe their targets. The most difficult element to replicate is personality. Tone of voice, tenor, demeanor, and so forth. That, and the memory and relationships, each of which take time and study to replicate effectively.

    Most, if not all, doppelgangers can read minds. This greatly assists in their study of targets. However, it requires that the doppelganger be near the target for the target's mind to be read.

    Certain doppelgangers that are planetouched will replicate elements of the plane that touched them. There are horrific planes, indescribable or otherworldly. Certain doppelgangers have brought these back with them from their planar travels.

    Finally, doppelgangers, like any other primer, are capable of learning skills, including magic and stealth and combat. No one doppelganger will be precisely the same."

    Chapter 4. Pairs and Groups.

    "Some authors proclaim that doppelgangers only work alone. This is incorrect. While it is true that many doppelgangers do work alone, there have been documented instances of groups of doppelgangers working together. Sir Gallavad the Wanderer told me a secret account of a group of doppelgangers operating on the Sword Coast called 'The Unseen,' which was comprised of illusionists, assassins, and thieves . . .

    Gallavad tells me of a secret war, between certain individuals, mages, and hunters, and the Unseen, in the Cities of Waterdeep, and Neverwinter, some fifty years prior to the Year of the Hollow Moon.The Unseen had replaced several nobles, the leaders of two guilds, and allegedly even a Masked Lord, at the time. The truth of this account is unclear, for Gallavad, while knowledegable, is prone to exageration. However, I do trust the broad strokes of his accounts, and they do suggest that doppelgangers have worked in pairs or groups before.

    Certain doppelgangers also allied themselves outside of their kindred race. Though it is understood that they prefer to work with powerful arcanists or psionics, who share ambitions to alter or usurp power or economic structures. Suffice to say: doppelgangers do not only work alone."

    Chapter 5. Miscellaneous.

    Certain doppelgangers are powerful enough to assume a humanoid shape that does not yet exist. These greater doppelgangers do not actually need to replace anyone. Certain doppelgangers invoke a dreadful aura when revealed. These dreadful doppelgangers are capable of imitating humanoids, including personality and emotions, at will, without study.

    However these dreadful doppelgangers themselves were potentially devoid of actual emotion, and sought out increasingly risky or bizzare behaviors and situations to invoke emotions in their targets, upon which they fed. In any event more study is required before we can fully understand the doppelganger."

    'Illicit Enterprises', by Gallavad the Wanderer. The subtitle reads: 'And Other More Legitimate Organizations.'

    Table of contents: (1) The Bloody Knives of Waterdeep; (2) The Agents of the Eye; (3) The Night Parade; (4) The Blackdagger Bandits; (5) The Cult of the Dragon; (6) The Golden Geese; (7) the Lightfingers; (8) the Vipers; (9) Clan Vkriss; (10) The Zhentarim; (11) The Plague-mother's children; (12) The Dark Visage.

    Chapter 12. The Dark Visage (the chapter artwork heading the page is a rendition of a featureless face, with two pale milky white eyes, and two small holes for a nose)

    "The Dark Visage is neither a thieves guild, nor an assassin's guild, nor is it a cabal of occultists, though it may lie somewhere in between all three. It is comprised primarily of shapechanging doppelgangers, who work together to accomplish whatever objective they have been paid for by their clientele, which have, as I believe (though cannot precisely name without risking life and finances) consisted almost exclusively of powerful mages.

    There are, of course, other members, that are not doppelgangers, upon whom the doppelgangers rely upon to acquire information and conduct infiltration, particularly during the beginnings of their new operations. As they, like most doppelgangers, require much information to conduct their affairs - the bolder and riskier the endeavour, the more required. I believe they have been active in the cities of Calimport, Saerloon, Waterdeep, Baldur's Gate, as well as Gontal.

    Their presence within a city was almost always shortly followed by political and economic turmoil, with their members replacing key officials, guild-leaders, and rulers, to the benefit of their original hiror. For instance, and again, I cannot name specific names, without risking my own life and livelihood as well as those of my students and peers, one example task upon which I have it on good authority is true, is their efforts in a certain city, again which cannot be named, wherein a specific mage, again, who cannot be named, was uncovered as a traitor to the then-ruling body of nobles. The mage hired The Dark Visage to discredit, remove, and impersonate his accusers and enemies, until the mage's reputation was restored, and that of his enemies tarnished. The mage thusly retained his favored and privileged position among the ruling elite of that city.

    The exact currency in which the Dark Visage deals is unknown. I expect it is not actually gold, but something stranger and potentially more valuable or vile."

    And finally, as a little treat to those who took the time to plow through all these transcripts, I give you:

    Chapter 6. The Golden Geese

    "I first met members of this company of n'er-do-wells in Brightwater, in fact, as they sought the Fountain of Youth. Since then the organization has grown to include numerous figures, each from the Land of Narfell, to the North, in fact, a location about which certain members boast great pride.

    The Golden Geese are difficult to predict. On the one hand, there are stories of them putting end to nefarious groups and cults. On the other hand - there are far 'more' stories of them absconding, thieving, burglarizing, . . . mugging, sieging, subverting, as well as orchestrating revolts in, numerous cities across Faerun. When asked of their motivation, locals often claim they seek pleasure in the form of luxurious alcohols.

    Their reputation depends entirely upon whom you ask. I will now document the various quotes I have gathered from those I did, indeed, ask.

    Tisiphoebe, from Heptios: "Were it not for them, we may yet have our strength. Their oratory was acceptable."

    Dugnar, the Dwarf: "Terrorists. They invaded our Lord's manor! Stole his weaponry! Let the orcs, into our city, in fact!"

    Gerrin, Farmer, Narfell: "They are insane. One of them was a demon commander. Do not allow them near your home."

    Henricka, Cowled Wizard: "Criminals, with complete disregard of law. They will not care for custom nor place. They will do as they please, with all entailing danger."

    D. Thann, Bard: "I met one who was quite pleasant actually. If you see them, either run or thank the Gods. Depending on the situation."

    As you can see, the Golden Geese have something of a varied reputation. Though, it is the opinion of this humble scholar, whose quest for truth knows no limit, whose admiration of fact, veracity, honesty, candor, rightness . . accuracy, validity, and the earnest accounts of this our dear Faerun, are held highly above all others - that the Golden Geese are relatively harmless and, perhaps even, heroic, particularly when compared to the other organizations in this tome."