008 - The Temple of the River Goddess - Courtyard

If the players pass anywhere nearby they can't fail to notice this building. Not far from the remains of a major street, it is still surrounded by a low wall and has well-tended lawns, with two running fountains. If they observe the city at night, they might notice it as well, as the building glows a faint blue in the darkness. Despite the obvious potential for loot from the intact building, the scavengers, for whatever reason, don't appear to have noticed it. If the temple is brought to the attention of the scavengers, they will be surprised, but then quickly get distracted and forget about it once again. This effect can be overcome if one of the scavengers is deliberately led (or carried) onto the temple grounds.

The Courtyard

From anywhere outside the low fence, the sounds of activity can be heard from within -- the murmur of voices talking or at prayer, the low sounds of hymns and music, the sounds of pots and pans, or a knife on a chopping block, but once a party member crosses into the courtyard, they can only hear the sounds of the two fountains, all sounds from within the building cease. (Though if a party member has a good nose, they can smell cooking food.)

Circling the building reveals a good amount of firewood set aside, some planters full of herbs, carefully tended, outside the kitchen door, and a small graveyard plot in the back corner. Everything is neat and well tended. Peering in through the windows reveals the various rooms of the temple, with lights lit, but no activity.

The two doors in back are locked, the kitchen door is unlocked, the main entry doors are slightly ajar.

Findings

Easy Perception - In the two fountains, there is a scattering of coins, mostly copper, but the occasional silver as well. (The River goddess does not begrudge anyone taking the coins.) A difficult appraise skill check determines that the coins have a surprising variety of mintages, many coins are from faraway lands, and some of them are hundreds of years old.) If a party member throws a coin into the pool, there may be a special event that occurs in the library (Room 014) later.

Difficult Perception - There is a lectern with a large book in the sanctuary that can be seen through a few of the windows. Every few minutes, a page is turned, as if by an unseen hand.

Easy Religion - The River Goddess is a minor, but fairly popular goddess, especially in communities that have a lot of river-based commerce, such as Tyrandel. Her well-known tenets are pretty generic, including exhortations to be kind to one another, and to respect the river as a shared resource, not polluting it for those downstream.

Medium Religion - Priests of the goddess often speak of the "flow". A standard greeting is "The flow carries us all", and in times of hardship, followers are oft advised in times of trouble that "The flow cannot be reversed."

Very Difficult Religion - There have been rumors that the goddess's faithful have a secret society of some sort in their upper ranks. These rumors have always been unequivocally denied by the authorities of the church, but they surface again every few decades. (More about this in Entry 010)