Waystation 621 is a modest hostelry high in the mountains with a tiled arch that serves as the entry to a secluded courtyard.

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Aspects

Waystation 621 is one of the few that remains from the time of the Empire, when thousands of Waystations provided safe lodgings for Imperial couriers. 1. The heated bathing pools still function as they did on the day the last Emperor lost his head. 2. The round communal table still binds all who eat together there with a spell of truth and friendship, making it a popular place for local deals and agreements. 3. The tea gardens behind contain the rarest of teas, which are dried and sent along the old imperial roads. But Waystation 621 tea is never so good as when consumed fresh.

History

Tucked high up in the mountains in a strategic pass, Waystation 621 has changed hands many times as the political fortunes of nearby kings and emperors have waxed and waned. For a time, it served the wizard in his high tower above; still later, the god-king of Latush gifted it to his least favorite son; still later it was the hideaway of the notorious robber Coron-ninitat and the Golden Mountain gang. Nevertheless it has remained mostly unchanged since the Imperial Corps of Waybuilders constructed it to exacting standards.

NPCS

The tavern is run by Ninnius Nodar, a reserved dwarf who won the waystation in a long-ago game of cards from an adventurer and has been looking for a way to recover the fabled treasure of the Golden Mountain gang ever since. Or so he says. Most days he just brews tea and talks with the guests at the waystation. He’s extremely competent and has fixed a number of crumbling elements of the station. He’s also a gifted gardener.

His partner, Oblimerx Honto, is more of a free spirit. A creative dwarf who likes nothing better than a new hobby, Oblimerx has tried their hand at ceramics, drum-making, and macrame, among other things. After a stint at gardening to please Ninnius, Oblimerx has recently fastened on spinning and dyeing and can often be found preparing dyes from rare lichens in the area or outside cleaning fleeces. As a result of Oblimerx’s creative fevers and Ninnius’s steady competence, Waystation 621 is both comfortable and prosperous.

Fantastic Items and Resources

• The table of good fellowship, which has the effect of a zone of truth and a calm emotions spell.
• Teas in the back garden. A Waystation 621 tea has a good chance of being magical.
  • Any tea drunk at the table of good fellowship will give the effect of the Bless spell until the next short rest.
  • Roll a d20 on the following table for teas drunk elsewhere. On a 16-20 the tea has a magical effect. Roll on the following table:

d10	Tea effect
1	What works the best? Tea-m work. Taking the Help action may use your bonus action instead of your main action until your next short rest.
2	Eccentrici-tea. Your appearance suddenly becomes very quirky (you describe the form of this quirk). You gain a -1 to your Charisma bonus and a +1 to your Intelligence bonus until your next short rest.
3	Frivoli-tea. You are filled with joy, and are immune to being frightened until your next short rest.
4	Conviviali-tea. You have advantage on Charisma (Persuasion) checks until your next short rest.
5	Ingenui-tea. You have advantage on any checks you make using tools you are proficient with until your next short rest.
6	Perspicaci-tea. You have advantage on any Wisdom (Insight) checks you make until your next short rest.
7	Alacri-tea. Your movement speed increases by 5′ until your next short rest.
8	Intensi-tea. You have advantage on any Charisma (Intimidation) checks you make until your next short rest.
9	Duplici-tea. You have advantage on any Charisma (Deception) checks you make until your next short rest.
10	Celeri-tea. You gain +2 to Initiative checks until your next short rest.

Hooks

d4	Adventure hooks
1	The Emperor’s Lost Message: A group of historians believes that the last Imperial courier who stayed at Waystation 621 carried a crucial, yet undelivered, message from the final Emperor. The adventurers are hired to search the waystation for any hidden compartments or forgotten artifacts that might contain the message.
2	Murder at the Round Table: A local noble or merchant seeks to broker a vital agreement at the communal table of Waystation 621. However, during the negotiations, a key figure is found dead. The adventurers are called in to investigate the murder – but everyone present has their innocence confirmed by the table, and one by one they also are murdered.
3	The Tea Garden Heist: Rare and expensive tea leaves from the gardens of Waystation 621 are set to be transported along the old imperial roads. However, a notorious thief or rival tea merchant plans to hijack the shipment. The adventurers are hired for protection.
4	The Ghost of Coron-ninitat: Rumors swirl that the ghost of the infamous robber Coron-ninitat haunts Waystation 621, always searching for a treasure stolen from Golden Mountain gang and hidden somewhere in the waystation. As unexplained phenomena begin to scare away guests, Ninnius Nodar hires the adventurers to investigate.

Secret

The waystation has an usual feature: a nook where tea ceremonies are performed. If the ceremony is performed correctly with the Emperor’s tea, a rare plant of which but a single bush remains in the garden, the imbibers gain true sight and can see the invisible entrance to the grotto below, where the magic subterranean river flows and nourishes the tea plants above.