Sensational Slots & More Items! (July 26th, 2024)

- Fixed the game breaking/freezing if you open the achievements panel and view a category, close it, and open the achievements panel again

- Limited time Shark Week related quest line, available via visiting NPC on Amicus Isle (July 24-28)

- Re-running Sensational Slots limited time slot machine related quest line rewarding bonus Prize Tokens (July 26-29)

- Made the prize token popup when you win them on a slot machine prettier

- Added the Holiday Duck Pond to the Holiday Enthusiast's store

- Added new Carousel Top and Carousel Bottom ranch items to the Holiday Enthusiast's store and all the event prior year stores. Note: Due to collision implementation, you'll need to place the bottom first, then the top over it, and then place the carousel critters between them.

- Abbreviated max descriptions for Large and Small Energy Packs so they appear correctly on the "Uh Oh! Low Energy!" pop-up

- Noted year released on pandaclaw transmogrification store item descriptions for the Summer Carnival event

- Renamed first Dog Collar costume item to Spiked Dog Collar

- Store Updates:
- Added Soap and Rainbow Cream ranch items to the Stylist wandering Amicus merchant store
- Added Coiled Whip, Megaphone, Shark Tooth Katana, and Stone Axe to the Pawn Stars wandering Amicus merchant store
- Added Dark Brown Carpet Catalog Page and White Carpet Catalog Page to the Furniture Salesman wandering merchant store
- Add Cell Phone, Battery, Red Radio, and Monkey Wrench to the Mechanic wandering Amicus merchant store
- Added limit of single purchase of Black Bicycle Mount, Blue Bicycle Mount, Pink Bicycle Mount, White Bicycle Mount, Gnasher, Excavator Scoop, Catapult Model, Chainsaw, Steam Light, Security Camera in the Mechanic wandering Amicus merchant store, largely due to association with wandering merchant achievements.
- Added Excavator Scoop, Catapult Model, Chainsaw, Steam Light, Security Camera to the Ranch Store after next purchase from the Mechanic wandering Amicus merchant store
- Added Glass Eye, Melting Clock, and Exercise Ball to the Ye Knavish Burglary Boutique
- Added Fuchsia Branch Coral, Small Coral Rock, Big Coral Rock, Sea Anenome Rock, Small Soft Coral, Big Soft Coral, Bowl Aquarium, Luggage, and Folded Blue Blanket ranch items to the Island Tokens stores
- Added Beach Ball Companion, Red Floor Pillow, Pink Silver Chest, Silver Plate, Model Plane, Package, Folded Red Blanket, and Ruby Sceptre to the Casino Prize Token store
- Added Inflatable Octopus Companion, Royal Floor Pillow, Pink Jeweled Chest, Easy Button, Folded White Blanket, Maverick Aviators, Gold Gladius, and Gilded Shark Tooth Katana to the VIP store
- Added new tiers to the achievements for buying gold and bush buck items from wandering merchants
- Added new tiers to the achievements for buying items from the Casino store for Prize Tokens

"It's nice at least knowing this is me. A form of me at least. I just can't stop thinking about who they were and where they've been. I just hope I'm doing this new form justice."

Getting a second chance at life is usually a rare gift, but what if you have to re-learn who you are every time? Will you make the same decisions, or try something new? Wren was faced with remaking herself again and again, and now uses all of the skills she has gained from coming back to life as a glitched Champion to become a new kind of hero!

I. Wren

Wren woke up in the Mortuary with the Champions and, like them, had no memory of who she was. The talking skull, Morte, gave her a name and from there she journeyed with the Champions on a quest to discover who they were. Along the way, disaster struck twice and Wren was killed - but each time she quickly returned in the form of herself from somewhere else in the Multiverse!

Wren is a glitch Champion where you get to pick her form. Will you choose the Dwarf Monk, focusing on her ability to deal damage? Will you choose the Tabaxi Barbarian, focusing on her ability to protect her allies? Or will you choose the Warforged Sorcerer, where she debuffs her enemies? Whatever form you pick will show up in seat 3 next to Nayeli.

Check out our Champion Spotlight Video embedded below for a quick overview of Wren's abilities, and read on to get all of the details!

II. Wren's Stats

Race: Dwarf / Tabaxi / Warforged	Alignment: Neutral Good
Gender: Female	Pronouns: She/Her
Age: 31	Affiliation: None	Class: Monk / Barbarian / Sorcerer

STR: 14	DEX: 12	CON: 14
INT: 13	WIS: 13	CHA: 13

Role: Support / DPS / Tanking / Debuff

Eligible for Patrons: Mirt, Vajra, Strahd, Zariel, Elminster (until July 31st, 2027)

Seat: 3 (Nayeli)

III. Wren's Abilities

Basic Attack - Wren has three different base attacks depending on her chosen glitch form. Unarmed Strike is her default first attack.

• Unarmed Strike (Dwarf Monk melee attack) - Wren attacks the most damaged enemy for one hit.

• Unarmed Strike (Tabaxi Barbarian melee attack) - Wren attacks the closest enemy for one hit.

• Unarmed Strike (Warforged Sorcerer magic attack) - Wren blasts the enemy with the most health for one hit.

Passive Abilities

• Slightly Glitched - Wren always counts as all her Glitch forms, regardless of the form she has chosen for the current adventure. She can also be used in any Turn of Fortune's Wheel adventure or variant, regardless of any restrictions.

Formation Abilities

• Hero's Call - Wren increases the damage of all Champions in her column (including herself) and the column behind her by 100%.

• Instability - All three of Wren's glitch forms yearn to be utilized. For each area completed, all three forms gain a yearning stack, which generally persists between adventures. Wren's chosen form buffs her Hero's Call by 100% for each yearning stack for her chosen form, stacking additively. Yearning stacks for any glitch form she has specialized in during your current adventure are set to zero at the end of the adventure, or if she is swapped into another party.

• Incarnation's Class - Depending on her chosen Glitch form, Wren gains a unique ability:
  • Monk (DPS): Monk's Tenacity - Wren increases her damage by 1000%.
  • Barbarian (tanking): Barbarian's Resilience - Wren increases her health by 200% and then further increases her health by 75% (multiplicatively) for every 50 areas completed in the current adventure, up to area 600.
  • Sorcerer (debuff): Sorcerer's Flames - Enemies damaged by Wren catch fire and take 100% more damage from subsequent Champion attacks.

• Glitch Trick - Depending on her chosen Glitch form, Wren gains a unique ability:
  • Monk (DPS): Flurry of Blows - When Wren defeats an enemy, her base attack cooldown immediately recharges.
  • Barbarian (tanking): Battle Cry - Wren increases the health of all other Champions by 25% of her max health, and any healing effect on those Champions is increased by 25%.
  • Sorcerer (debuff): Stunning Blast - Wren's base attack Stuns enemies for 5 seconds.

• Experienced Incarnation - Wren increases the effect of Hero's Call by 100% for each Turn of Fortune's Wheel adventure, variant, or patron variant completed, stacking multiplicatively.

Specializations

• Glitch Form: Dwarf Monk (DPS) - Wren remains in her dwarf monk form, unlocks the Astral Self Form ultimate, and focuses on her DPS role. She also gains +4 DEX and +4 WIS.

• Glitch Form: Tabaxi Barbarian (tanking) - Wren takes on the form of a Tabaxi Barbarian. She unlocks the Colossal Rage ultimate, the Battleaxe base attack, gains 20 overwhelm, and focuses on her tanking role. She also gains +4 STR and +4 CON.

• Glitch Form: Warforged Sorcerer (debuff) - Wren takes on the form of a Warforged Sorcerer. She unlocks the Time Stop ultimate, the Fire Bolt base attack, and focuses on her debuff role. She also gains +4 INT and +4 CHA.

Ultimate Ability - Wren has three different ultimate attacks depending on her chosen glitch form.

• Astral Self Form (Dwarf Monk melee ultimate) - Wren manifests her astral form for 15 seconds. For the duration, when she attacks, she deals 1 hit to all nearby enemies (including her initial target) for ultimate damage.

• Colossal Rage (Tabaxi Barbarian melee ultimate) - Wren grows in size for 15 seconds. For the duration, all enemies target her if possible, she takes 50% less damage from all attacks, and her attacks deal ultimate damage.

• Time Stop (Warforged Sorcerer magic ultimate) - All enemies are frozen in time for 15 seconds. Enemies still spawn, but freeze for the rest of the duration when they finish spawning. Heroes deal 400% more damage to frozen enemies.

IV. Wren's Epic Equipment

Slot 1: Global DPS	Slot 2: Hero's Call	Slot 3: Instability
Slot 4: Incarnation's Class	Slot 5: Ultimate Attack Damage	Slot 6: Ultimate Attack Cooldown

V. Wren's Achievement and Unlocking Information

Achievement:

• It's a Bird, It's a Plane, It's... - Trigger Wren's Flurry of Blows 10,000 times, have her grow in size 100 times, and have her light 10,000 enemies on fire.

How To Unlock Wren:

Wren is an Evergreen Champion who is unlocked by playing through the Turn of Fortune's Wheel campaign. As you proceed through the campaign you will arrive at the adventure Titan on the Town. When you reach this point, follow these steps:

• Complete the adventure Titan on the Town. This will unlock the first adventure variant Clockwise Through the Great Wheel.
• Complete the adventure variant Clockwise Through the Great Wheel and the second adventure variant will be unlocked, Twice Through the Great Wheel.
• Complete the adventure variant Twice Through the Great Wheel and one of the rewards for completion will be the unlock for Wren.

VI. Conclusion

What is your favorite Wren glitch form? Let us know in one of the many places we hang out:

• The Idle Champions Subreddit or Steam forums.
• The Official Idle Champions Discord.
• Our YouTube Channels: Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms and CNEGames.
• Our social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!

This week, the Turn of Fortune's Wheel campaign continues, and denizens of Sigil invade the Sword Coast in the Planescape Emergence! Fight your way through familiar dreams in Soul's Mirage and help an empyrean face her troubles in Titan on the Town. After that, put your formations to the test with new Adventure Variants!

Read on to learn more about these adventures, and scroll below to find info on the Planescape Emergence and the updates to the Thayan Enclave Shop!

Note: You will need to have completed the previous two Turn of Fortune's Wheel adventures, The Witch and The Wyrmling and Inversion, in order to access these new adventures.

Soul's Mirage

Fight your way through familiar dreams and discover the truth of who Wren was.



The Champions find themselves in a place they do not know fighting foes they do not recognize. Soon, they find themselves back in the Walking Castle - but was it all really just a dream? Before too long they are locked inside another dream and learn of a man named Somnus, who claims to be guiding them through memories they do not remember. But, can Somnus be trusted? And what happens if they die in a dream? Find out in Soul's Mirage!

Variant

Dessert in the Desert - Get lost in the desert, and encounter some interesting dreams from your past.
• You may only use Good Champions.
• Every 5 seconds, a scoop of ice cream hits a random Champion, stunning them for 10 seconds.
• Complete area 850

Titan on the Town

The Champions must hunt down Sylvania's moving gate through a sea of chaotic celebrations.



The Champions arrive in Sylvania - a gate-town full of constant parties and celebrations. They quickly learn that the gate they seek is constantly moving locations within Sylvania, and if they want to find it, they'll need to do something for the people in charge first. They are charged with tracking down an empyrean named Kopoah - who is causing problems at every party she goes to because of a bad day she is having. It is up to the Champions to find Kopoah, help her work through her problems, and bring good spirits back to the celebrations of Sylvania.

Variant

Clockwise Through the Great Wheel - The Champions must hunt down Sylvania's moving gate with heroes of every alignment!
• This variant will not be available for Mirt
• You may only use Neutral Champions and Champions of the alignment(s) specified below.
• For the first 100 areas, you may use Lawful Good champions. Every 100 areas, this restriction changes: Neutral Good for area 101-200, Chaotic Good for area 201-300, and so forth. This restriction is linked to your highest area completed, not your current area.
• Every 100 areas, all Champions in the formation are removed and can't be used for the rest of the adventure.
• Champions can't otherwise be removed from the formation once they've been added.
• Complete area 900

Planescape Emergence

Denizens from Sigil are finding their way onto the material plane and wreaking havoc! Harmonium Peacekeepers are arresting people in the streets, Heralds of Dust are trying to take charge of graveyards, and Cakers are trying to turn anyone and everyone into baked goods!

The Planescape Emergence starts today and runs through Friday, August 2nd at Noon PDT.

New Items Added to the Thayan Enclave!

Two Golden Epics

• Aeon Slot 3 - Bigby's Beneficent Bracelet (20,000 Corrupted Gems)
• Ulkoria Slot 2 - Volo's Guide to the Weave (20,000 Corrupted Gems)

Four Feats

• Valentine - Air Genasi Glitch (10,000 Corrupted Gems)
• Duke Ravengard - Heart of Battle (10,000 Corrupted Gems)
• Umberto - Woken the Hive (10,000 Corrupted Gems)
• Ulkoria - Better Every Day (10,000 Corrupted Gems)

Two Skins

• Tabaxi Glitch Shandie (10,000 Corrupted Gems)
• Secret Agent Maan Hew Maan (10,000 Corrupted Gems)

10x Marvelous Support Pigments (7,000 Corrupted Gems)

8x Modron Component Chests (2,500 Corrupted Gems)

8x Supply Chests (2,500 Corrupted Gems)

Unlimited Planescape Emergence Chests (2,500 Corrupted Gems)

• Contains gear for: Aeon, Duke Ravengard, Hew Maan, Shandie, Ulkoria, Umberto, and Valentine.

We would love to hear about your experiences in the Outlands! Join our community and start a conversation:

• The Idle Champions Subreddit or Steam forums.
• The Official Idle Champions Discord.
• Our YouTube Channels: Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms and CNEGames.
• Our social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!

Summer Carnival Event 2024

The Carnival has returned to town! Get ready to play some games, help some Bushwhackian residents and win carnival tokens which you can exchange for cool prizes at the Carnival Event Vendor!

The Carnival Games

A staple of any summer carnival or fair, are those devilish carnival games. There are four different games which will unlock over the course of the event and they include "Balloon Popper," "Whack-A-Mole," "Baseball Throw," and "Duck Shoot." Don't worry, there's no skill involved with these games, you play them automatically when you interact with them.

- It costs 4 carnival tickets to play each game, and you can whack those tickets out of the bushes, or purchase them from Timmy in the Event area for Bush Bucks (30 Salvaged Tickets for 30 Bush Bucks)

- You receive Carnival Tokens based on how well you do. Now, we're not saying they're rigged in the Carnival's favour or anything, but you'll definitely want to ask your friends to help you rig these games to help you!

To get started, the Balloon Popper game is unlocked! As well, it seems William needs your help to satisfy his sweet-tooth!

A Teleporter to Somewhere...

The Pandaclaw was wandering around here somewhere....build the teleporter and complete all the quests and get your very own!

The Dunk Tank

The dunk tank returns! Can you dunk all 8 helpless Bushwhackian residents? NPCs you haven't dunked yet will have a yellow exclamation mark above their heads, to let you know you still need to send them plunging into the icy waters of the tank! It'll help them all cool off. Plus, the tank is always in need of cleaning, so try to keep up with Katherine's daily Dunk Tank Cleaning quests!

Clowning Around

Peat Bog, Pete the Carney's brother has some tasks for you to help him put on a show!

Testing Your Power

And how are your Power collection skills? Are you strong enough to win all the bonus prizes? There are 7 strength settings to beat, unlocking as the event goes on as Strong-Whacker Sabine continuously tries to increase the difficulty of her Strong-Whacker Strength Machine Game.

A Fortune Told

Baba Pythia's seen the future, and it's of you helping her set up a fortune telling booth at the event!

VIP Rewards!

Active VIP members can claim unique rewards based on their event progress! If you don't have an active membership, you have the entire event to consider becoming one! You can earn and claim these rewards until the end of the event.

New for 2024

This year's update includes:

- new tier 4 and 5 VIP rewards!
- new costume items in the store!
- new ranch items in the store!
- new pet packs!
- new mount packs!
- new 2024 holiday 100% reward!
- new epic pandaclaw skin!
- new challenging quest!

Holiday Trees

If you can complete the event, you'll earn this awesome 100% reward: The Carnival Tree! Collect them all!

A new Pandaclaw Skin!

Once you complete the teleporter quest line and capture a Pandaclaw, Taban the Teleporter Engineer will offer to transmogrify your Pandaclaw companions, changing their appearance, with science! There are now SEVEN Pandaclaw skins to choose from, each yielding a type of pet DNA.

Big Top Blow Out!

A menagerie of circus critters have escaped the big top, and the shady guy wants to know what they were hiding in there! Help him get the details in this challenging new quest.

And more!

And there's some minor fixes and improvements which you can check out on the Release Notes, which are linked at the bottom of the page!

Achievements

-- POSSIBLE SPOILER ALERT
There are up to TWENTY FIVE possible achievements that can be picked up during this Summer Carnival event, depending on your game history.

Returning Achievements

Step Right Up - Win a Prize Token gaming at the Carnival!
We have a Winner - Win 8 Prize Tokens at once at the Carnival.
Carnival Ace - Win 8 Prize Tokens at all 4 Carnival Games.
Gotta Try 'Em All! - Play all four games offered at the Carnival!
Big Time Bonus Buyer - Purchase 10 Bonus Prize Packs from the Carnival!
Sweet Tooth - Help William satisfy his Sweet Tooth. Or not.
Nostalgic Whacker - Repair the teleporter and fulfill your duty…
Dunk-a-Thon! - Dunk all eight unique Carnival Event dunk-ees!
Scuba Dunk - Dunk yourself while wearing a hefty diving helmet. (Helmet is found from fishing in the Windy Crest fishing hole.)
Daredevil Darer - Make Peat Bog risk his life for entertainment 5 extra times. Dunking Devs! - Dunk the four developer Carnival Event dunk-ees!

New Achievements

Funhouse Frippery - Purchase all the 2024 Carnival Event items.*

Retired Achievements

We have 13 achievements from previous years, which may be earnable by spending some Bush Bucks, if a player was not present during the initial year:

Carnival Customization - Buy all 6 player items from the 2012 Carnival
Party at My Place - Buy all 6 house items from the 2012 Carnival!
Carnival Collector - Purchase all of the 2013 Carnival event items.
Carnival Connoisseur - Buy all the 2014 Carnival event items.
Carni-Value! - Purchase all the 2015 Carnival Event items.
Carnival Compulsion - Purchase all the 2016 Carnival Event items.
Cashed Carnival - Purchase all the 2017 Carnival Event items.
Prized Prizes - Purchase all the 2018 Carnival Event items.
Prize Proprietor - Purchase all the 2019 Carnival Event items.
Material Menagerie - Purchase all the 2020 Carnival Event items.
Hippodrome Haggler - Purchase all the 2021 Carnival Event items.
Amateur Amphitheater - Purchase all the 2022 Carnival Event items.
Carny Chique - Purchase all the 2023 Carnival Event items.
* The Mini Golf Piece is NOT included in the Funhouse Frippery achievement, and therefore it is not required to purchase it.

Mount Packs

All new chariot mounts are available this weekend, from July 12th to 15th!

The Chariot mount comes free with your first purchase of 100 Bush Bucks or more!

The Circus Chariot and Underworld Chariot are in packs containing 100 Bush Bucks, 10 Pristine Feed Vouchers, and a VIP Voucher! These two mounts leave a sparkling trail when you ride them!

Pet Packs

Three new pets can be picked up July 19th to 22nd in Pet Packs bursting with goodies! Want them all? Grab them all for less in the bundle! From left-to-right they are the Leafy Lion Cub, Circus Teddy, and Circus Turtle!

Get Ready!

Post your carnival schemes on the forums!

The event will run until Friday July 26th at Noon PDT!

Check out the Release Notes here!

Frequently Asked Questions

• When will the last quest unlock?
  All quests will be unlocked by the 10th day of the event.


• Where can I buy Last Year's items?
  There are two vendors. The one in the tent has this year's items. The other is the one with the party hat and will have all previous year items for Bush Bucks.


• What contributes to my 100% progress?
  You need 200 plays of any combo of the games to get 100%. Just whack up tickets to play the games, and turn in quests to get tickets as well.
  


• Why do I want to ask friends for help?
  It helps you rig the game and improve your chances of getting 8 tokens.


• Do I have to do the achievements?
  No. Completing the goals for the achievements is totally optional. You get either a large energy pack or a title for your character from them, no event progress.


• Where can I see all the achievements available and how to get them?
  Either on the holiday dialog, the achievements dialog, or on the blog.


• Where can I see progress on the Dunking Achievement?
  Click on the inventory icon and then click on the Achievements list (gold star). Look for the ones listed above in that list.

Summer Carnival Event (July 12th, 2024)

- Updated Summer Carnival Event
- Added new customization and ranch items
- Added new ribbons and 100% reward
- Added new event mounts in Bush Bucks sale and mount packs, available the first weekend of the event
- Added 3 new pets available the second weekend of the event
- Added new Cerulean Pandaclaw transmogrify for 1 Epic DNA
- Updated tire 4 and 5 VIP event rewards
- Added a new challenging quest

- Renamed the latest "Sports Drinks" ranch item to "Crocorade Sports Drinks" (thanks Flybaby!)

- Fixed a typo in the Fuchsia Fish quest objective text (thanks Croq!)

- Fixed being unable to walk over the Tropical Carpet ranch item (thanks Pixie!)

Celebrations are in full swing in Waterdeep to commemorate the day the city was founded! The Champions have come to the Field of Triumph to join the festivities - but not all is well. Amongst the illusionary shows and magic-powered parades lurk servants of Archduke Zariel! Gather your formations and stop her evil plans before she harvests innocent souls for the Blood War!

Founders' Day 7 has arrived and introduces TWO new Champions! The first is Aeon, the Goliath Bard/Artificer from the creative mind B. Dave Walters. This Support/Debuff Champion is ready to bring her artificer skills to your formations and carve a path with her steel defender, Deuce. Next is Umberto Thornheart, the Human Druid, from the imaginative mind of Gail Simone. This Tanking/Support/Debuff Champion is ready to find clues, unleash some bees, and release the bear on your enemies. You can learn more about Aeon and Umberto Thornheart below. Also, you can choose three of eight previous Champions to unlock over the course of Founders' Day 7!

Also, starting with Founders' Day 7 we are introducing Event Augments to Events 2.0, with two augments that will help boost what you can get out of this event. Learn more about Event Augments later in this blog.

Table of Contents

• Aeon
• Umberto Thornheart
• Flex Champions
• Event Theme: Spies & Detectives
• Event Augments (NEW!)

Aeon

Aeon, a Goliath of exceptional intellect and charm, masterfully intertwines her skills as an Artillerist Artificer and Bard of the College of Whispers. Operating under the guise of a master tinkerer, she is, in truth, a cunning spy and manipulative puppet master.

Aeon is a Support and Debuff Champion who infiltrates the inner circle of one Patron each week to become eligible for all their adventures. She was created by B. Dave Walters, who the Idle Champions community already knows as the DM for many of our Idle Champions Presents livestreams and the creator behind Freely! He is also a published writer for comic books, graphic novels, and screenplays as well as a lead developer on many major TTRPGs. We're thrilled to bring another one of his characters into our formations!

Learn more about Aeon in our Champion Spotlight!

Umberto Thornheart

Umberto Thornheart is the orphaned child of two infamous thieves, and saw his parents executed for their crimes. Rather than live on the streets, he was taken in by the very detective who arrested his parents, and eventually became a detective himself, hoping to protect the innocent and (perhaps) reform the guilty.

Umberto Thornheart is a Tanking, Support, and Debuff Champion who employs his detective prowess to aid his allies. He fights enemies with bees from his Swarmstaff and transforms into a formidable brown bear when situations are dire. His ongoing investigations progressively enhance his abilities, making him an invaluable asset in long adventures. Once unlocked, you can find this Human Druid sharing Seat 7 with Minsc.

Learn more about Umberto Thornheart in our Champion Spotlight!

Flex Champions

Flex Slots allow players to unlock additional Champions and earn chests during events, choosing from a pool of retired Champions associated with the event. This collection of retired Champions includes the Champions from previous years of the event as well as some Champions whose events have been retired. This event's Flex Slot pool includes:

Event Theme: Spies and Detectives

Throughout the event, we release new Packs for the featured & flex Champions everyone is unlocking & gearing up. Continuing with Founders' Day, the skins included in these packs will share a new theme!

For this event we are drawing on our two newest Champions, Aeon and Umberto, for the theme. One is a spy and one is a detective, and they're sharing their skills with this month's Flex Champions. Each Champion has been assigned either the role of Spy or Detective and our art team have decked them out in the appropriate gear to get their new job done!



Starting today you can find the Detective Umberto Thornheart Theme Pack and the Spymaster Aeon Theme Pack in the in-game store. More Spies and Detectives are coming on July 10th and 17th.

Event Augments

Starting with Founders' Day 7 you can find a number of automatically unlocked augments to help boost what you can get out of each event. These augments will change each month, but some will return from time to time.

Boon Enhancements
Description: The power of most event boon buffs is increased by up to eight times.

Buff	Tier 1	Tier 2	Tier 3	Tier 4
Global DPS	100% > 200%	300% > 900%	500% > 2500%	900% > 7200%
Gold Find	100% > 200%	200% > 600%	300% > 1500%	400% > 3200%
Health	50% > 100%	100% > 300%	200% > 1000%	300% > 2400%
Click Damage	60s > 120s	150s > 450s	300s > 1500s	600s > 4800s
Game Speed	1.25 (no change)	1.75 (no change)	2.25 (no change)	2.75 (no change)

Empowered Rewards
Description: Tier 2 and higher event variants award Corrupted Gems in addition to their normal rewards

You can check out which Augments are active at any time by mousing over the Event Banner.



We hope you enjoy these Event Augments and look forward to what future augment possibilities could be!

To learn more about Events 2.0 check out our Blog Post!

Join our amazing community with any of the links below:

• The Idle Champions Subreddit or Steam forums.
• The Official Idle Champions Discord.
• Our YouTube Channels: Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms and CNEGames.
• Our social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!

Mastery required skill, and skill required patience and training. Whenever she would spend time working on an invention or deceiving folks in the local tavern, she thought of it as praying at the Temple of Knowledge. And she was a frequent attendant.

It's impossible to ignore this grinning goliath with extravagant style. Aeon's performances are dazzling, and her conversations are filled with wit and charm. But her true genius is what she accomplishes behind the scenes, gathering a wealth of knowledge and secrets all while deceiving her patrons with distracting displays!

I. Aeon

Aeon, a Goliath of exceptional intellect and charm, masterfully intertwines her skills as an Artillerist Artificer and Bard of the College of Whispers. Operating under the guise of a master tinkerer, she is, in truth, a cunning spy and manipulative puppet master. Aeon owns the renowned Greenhow, a unique tavern where patrons are served by her intricate automata, while she sells mechanical devices and curios embedded with Sending Stones and other surveillance tools; her ‘gifts’ have managed to make their way into some of the most powerful homes in the North Ward of Waterdeep. Her strategy is brilliantly deceptive; she portrays herself as a flamboyant performer and entertainer, so vivid and engaging that none suspect her of orchestrating a grand network of espionage, controlling events from the shadows.

Aeon is a Support and Debuff Champion who infiltrates the inner circle of one Patron each week to become eligible for all their adventures. She was created by B. Dave Walters, who the Idle Champions community already knows as the DM for many of our Idle Champions Presents livestreams and the creator behind Freely! He is also a published writer for comic books, graphic novels, and screenplays as well as a lead developer on many major TTRPGs. We're thrilled to bring another one of his characters into our formations!

Check out our Champion Spotlight Video embedded below for a quick overview of Aeon's abilities, and read on to get all of the details!

II. Aeon's Stats

Race: Goliath	Alignment: Lawful Evil
Gender: Female	Pronouns: She/Her
Age: 32	Affiliation: None	Class: Artificer/Bard

STR: 10	DEX: 10	CON: 12
INT: 20	WIS: 14	CHA: 18

Role: Support, Debuff

Eligible for Patrons: Mirt, Strahd, Zariel, Elminster (until July 3rd, 2027)

Seat: 10 (Tyril)

III. Aeon's Abilities

Basic Attack

• Cane Wand - Aeon fires an energy bolt from her cane at the closest enemy for one hit.

Passive Abilities

• Network of Espionage - Every week, Aeon targets one Patron for infiltration. Aeon can be used in any Patron adventure or variant for her current Patron target, even if she would not normally be available to be used due to variant or patron restrictions.

Formation Abilities

• Inner Circle - Aeon increases the damage of adjacent Champions by 100% for each Champion in the formation that is eligible for the Patron she is infiltrating this week, stacking multiplicatively.

• Uncover Weakness - Each enemy that Aeon damages gains a Stolen Secrets stack. Enemies with a Stolen Secrets stack take 100% more damage from all sources, stacking multiplicatively up to 5 times.

• Challenge Accepted - Aeon increases the effect of Inner Circle by 100% for each completed Patron challenge for her current Patron target, stacking multiplicatively.

Specializations

First Specialization

• Immediate Infiltration - Increase the effect of Inner Circle by 100% each time Uncover Weakness applies a Stolen Secrets stack, stacking additively up to 10 times per area and resetting when changing areas.

• Play the Long Game - Increase the effect of Inner Circle by 0.1% each time Uncover Weakness applies a Stolen Secrets stack, stacking additively up to 1,000,000 times and persisting until you reset the adventure.

Second Specialization

• Artificer's Arsenal - Cane Wand can now pierce through the targeted enemy, dealing one hit to all enemies in a line. Additionally, it deals 5 seconds of BUD-based damage to all enemies it hits.

• Spy Network - Inner Circle now affects all Champions within two slots of Aeon and its pre-stack effect is increased by 75%.

• Powerful Patronage - Increase the pre-stack effect of Challenge Accepted by 150% while on a Patron variant for the week's chosen Patron.

Ultimate Ability

• Deuce - Aeon's mechanical monkey Deuce fires a barrage at all enemies, dealing one ultimate hit to each one and knocking them back a short distance.

IV. Aeon's Epic Equipment

Slot 1: Global DPS	Slot 2: Inner Circle	Slot 3: Uncover Weakness
Slot 4: Challenge Accepted	Slot 5: Immediate Infiltration and Play the Long Game	Slot 6: Ultimate Attack Cooldown

V. Aeon's Achievement and Adventure Variants

Achievement:

• Scheming Strategist - Gain 10,000 stacks of Stolen Secrets with Aeon's Uncover Weakness ability. (Accumulates over multiple adventures.)

Adventure Variants:

Mechanical Mayhem - Save Waterdeep from the chaos of a Founders' Day gone awry with Aeon!

• Aeon starts in the formation. She can't be moved or removed.
• 1-2 Iron Defenders spawn with each wave. They don't drop gold nor count towards quest progress.
• Only Champions next to Aeon can deal damage.
• Area Goals:
  • Tier 1: Complete Area 75.
  • Tier 2: Complete Area 250.
  • Tier 3: Complete Area 600.
  • Tier 4: Complete Area 1200.

Spy's Strategy - Save Waterdeep from the chaos of a Founders' Day gone awry with Champions that work with a particular Patron.

Aeon starts in the formation. She can't be moved or removed.

You may only use core Champions and/or Champions eligible for Aeon's current Patron.

Area Goals:

• Tier 1: Complete Area 125.
• Tier 2: Complete Area 350.
• Tier 3: Complete Area 800.
• Tier 4: Complete Area 1400.

Discovered Secrets - Save Waterdeep from the chaos of a Founders' Day gone awry with your best debuffers.

• Aeon starts in the formation. She can't be moved or removed.
• Only monsters that have a debuff can take damage.
• Area Goals:
  • Tier 1: Complete Area 175.
  • Tier 2: Complete Area 450.
  • Tier 3: Complete Area 1000.
  • Tier 4: Complete Area 1600.

VI. Conclusion

Has Aeon charmed or manipulated her way into your roster? Tell us what secrets she's found out about your formations:

• The Idle Champions Subreddit or Steam forums.
• The Official Idle Champions Discord.
• Our YouTube Channels: Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms and CNEGames.
• Our social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!

"I have solved more cases than you have years in this world, I have faced more villains than you could dream of, and I am here to find this murderer and stop them before they kill again.”

When tragedy strikes and a mystery unfolds, there's no better investigator on the Sword Coast than Umberto Thornheart. He finds joy in detecting clues, and is an expert at solving even the most dastardly of puzzles!

I. Umberto

Umberto Thornheart is the orphaned child of two infamous thieves, and saw his parents executed for their crimes. Rather than live on the streets, he was taken in by the very detective who arrested his parents, and eventually became a detective himself, hoping to protect the innocent and (perhaps) reform the guilty.

Umberto Thornheart is a Tanking, Support, and Debuff Champion who employs his detective prowess to aid his allies. He was created by award-winning writer Gail Simone, who you may recognize from her work for DC, Marvel, WB, and many more! She has an extensive history crafting thrilling and emotional stories for a variety of comics, and we're thrilled to work with her to create this new Champion!

Check out our Champion Spotlight Video embedded below for a quick overview of Umberto's abilities, and read on to get all of the details!

II. Umberto's Stats

Race: Human	Alignment: Lawful Good
Gender: Male	Pronouns: He/Him
Age: 42	Affiliation: None	Class: Druid

STR: 15	DEX: 9	CON: 16
INT: 11	WIS: 17	CHA: 14

Role: Tanking, Support, Debuff

Eligible for Patrons: Mirt, Vajra, Zariel, Elminster (until July 3rd, 2027)

Seat: 7 (Minsc)

III. Umberto's Abilities

Basic Attack

Umberto has two attacks. A magic attack when he is in human form, and a Bear melee attack when he is in his ultimate Bear form.

• Swarmstaff - Umberto magically unleashes a small swarm of angry bees at the nearest foe, dealing 1 hit. If Beehive Barrage is unlocked, this adds one swarming bee to the enemy after Umberto's damage is applied.

• Bear Claw - Umberto moves up to the nearest foe and slashes them, dealing 1 ultimate hit.

Formation Abilities

• Detective's Entourage - Umberto increases the damage of all Champions in the two columns behind him by 100%.

• Beehive Barrage - Every second, Umberto's staff spawns a swarming bee, which buzzes around the staff, up to a maximum of 10 swarming bees. When an enemy attacks Umberto, he unleashes a swarming bee from the staff (if one exists) onto that enemy. When an enemy with one or more swarming bees is hit by any Champion, all their bees stings them, dealing 1 second of BUD-based damage for each bee. A maximum of 5 swarming bees can swarm a single enemy. Bees persist until the enemy is defeated, or until Umberto is removed from the formation.

• Ongoing Investigation - Pick an Investigation to pursue. Umberto gains stacks of Clue, and can start another Investigation after the Investigation concludes. Each Clue stack increases Detective's Entourage by 50%, stacking multiplicatively. Caps at 100 stacks. Once you are capped, additional Investigations are not offered. Clue stacks persist between areas and reset when the adventure ends.
• Rapid Reconnaissance: 2 hour duration, 10 stacks are awarded right away, but all but 1 are removed when the investigation ends (1 total)
• Steadfast Search: 8 hour duration, 1 stack awarded after every 2 hours, plus 2 stacks when the investigation ends (6 total)
• Thorough Inquiry: 24 hour duration, 1 stack awarded after every 3 hours, plus 16 stacks when the investigation ends (24 total)

• Protective Presence - Umberto increases the health of all other Champions by 25% of his max health, and any healing effect on those Champions is increased by 25%.

Specializations

First Specialization

• Law's Alliance - Umberto increases the effect of Detective's Entourage by 125% for each Lawful Champion in the formation, stacking multiplicatively.

• Family of Orphans - Umberto increases the effect of Detective's Entourage by 100% for each unaffiliated Champion in the formation, stacking multiplicatively.

• Call of the Wardens - Umberto increases the effect of Detective's Entourage by 300% for each Ranger or Druid Champion in the formation, stacking multiplicatively.

Second Specialization

• More Bees - Umberto's Beehive Barrage increases the number of swarming bees spawned each second by 400% (to 5/sec), and when an enemy hits Umberto the maximum number of bees (if available) are unleashed. Finally, the damage per bee is increased by 100%.

• More Clues - Umberto increases the maximum number of Ongoing Investigation's Clue stacks by 50%.

• More Damage - Increase the effect of Detective's Entourage by 200%.

Ultimate Ability

• Brown Bear Bash - Umberto transforms into a bear for 15 seconds, resetting the base attack cooldown of all Champions in the formation. For the duration, Umberto's base attack changes to Bear Claw and the attack cooldown of all Champions in the formation is reduced by 2 seconds, causing them to attack more often.

IV. Umberto's Epic Equipment

Slot 1: Global DPS	Slot 2: Increase Health	Slot 3: Detective's Entourage
Slot 4: Ongoing Investigation	Slot 5: Specializations	Slot 6: Ultimate Attack Cooldown

V. Umberto's Achievement and Adventure Variants

Achievement:

• Not The Bees! - Have Umberto unleash 10,000 bees with his Beehive Barrage ability.

Adventure Variants:

Guardian of the Wilds - Save Waterdeep from the chaos of a Founders' Day gone awry with Umberto!

• Umberto starts in the formation. He can't be moved or removed.
• Only Umberto and Champions in the two columns behind him can deal damage.
• Area Goals:
  • Tier 1: Complete Area 75.
  • Tier 2: Complete Area 250.
  • Tier 3: Complete Area 600.
  • Tier 4: Complete Area 1200.

Investigation Time - Save Waterdeep from the chaos of a Founders' Day gone awry with a detailed investigation!

• Umberto starts in the formation. He can't be moved or removed.
• His assistant bees, Sherlock Combs and Dr. Buzz Watson, take up two slots in the formation, and assist Umberto with his investigations.
• Area Goals:
  • Tier 1: Complete Area 125.
  • Tier 2: Complete Area 350.
  • Tier 3: Complete Area 800.
  • Tier 4: Complete Area 1400.

Umberto's Friends - Save Waterdeep from the chaos of a Founders' Day gone awry with Umberto's friends!

• Umberto starts in the formation. He can't be moved or removed.
• You may only use Lawful, Unaffiliated, Druid, and/or Ranger Champions.
• Area Goals:
  • Tier 1: Complete Area 175.
  • Tier 2: Complete Area 450.
  • Tier 3: Complete Area 1000.
  • Tier 4: Complete Area 1600.

VI. Conclusion

How has Umberto helped you solve the mystery of the most difficult formations? Let us know how this detective has helped:

• The Idle Champions Subreddit or Steam forums.
• The Official Idle Champions Discord.
• Our YouTube Channels: Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms and CNEGames.
• Our social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!

The Champions' adventure across the multiverse to stop Emperor Vecna continues! The next piece of the Rod of Seven Parts is lost in the Astral Sea - and with the help of the Wizards Three, the Champions are sent to the floating corpse of a long-dead god. There, the Champions discover a crashed Spelljammer ship and some of the surviving crew. Could this be where the next piece of the Rod is? Time to find out!

Note: You will need to have completed the previous two Vecna: Eve of Ruin adventures, A Tale of Two Vecnas and The Wizards Three, in order to access these new adventures.

Havock's Zenith

Investigate a cult of Vecna in the Neverdeath Graveyard!



The Wizards Three have located the next piece of the Rod of Seven Parts. Far, far away in the Astral Sea floats the corpse of a long-dead god Havock. The Wizards Three are sure the second piece of the rod is located somewhere around it. Using the portal in the Sanctum, the Champions travel to the corpse of Havock and quickly discover the debris of a crashed Spelljammer ship - the Lambent Zenith. Could this ship have the piece of the rod?

Variant

Swords at the Ready - Venture into the Astral Sea supporting your best fighter.
• You may not use Champions with the DPS role unless they have the Fighter class.
• The Book of Tarchamus joins the formation.
• Good Champions next to the Book aren't revived and don't heal when changing areas.
• Complete area 550

The Heart of Havock

Join forces with the Wizards Three and venture into the Underdark!



The Champions trek across the horrifying corpse of Havock, ready to search the other two sections of the Lambent Zenith. Along the way, Blooshi meets a representative of her new patron - Alvina! The prismatic tressym tells her that The Kitten Lord has taken up her patronage, and the group is just THRILLED (not really) that Alvina is with them. Eventually, they meet with the captain of the Lambent Zenith and learn the location of the piece of the Rod of Seven Parts. But, in order to get there, they'll have to face off against the gruesome Hertilod!

Variant

The Messenger of the Kitten Lord - Break the second ward, find the vault, and try not to get distracted by the CUTENESS!
• Alvina joins the formation.
• Champions adjacent to Alvina have their base attack cooldowns doubled due to the distracting cuteness, unless they are Tabaxi.
• 1-2 Wild Dogs spawn with each wave. They don't drop gold nor count towards quest progress.
• Complete area 600

We would love to hear about your experiences in the Astral Sea! Join our community and start a conversation:

• The Idle Champions Subreddit or Steam forums.
• The Official Idle Champions Discord.
• Our YouTube Channels: Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realms and CNEGames.
• Our social media: Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok!

Previously in Peril at the Greenhow:

• Part One
• Part Two

Peril at the Greenhow, Part Three

The city guardsmen and magister had just left when Harlow opened Umberto’s door. Umberto had been sitting at the desk while he gave his statement of events to the guardsmen, eyes still where they were now - on the broken and shattered window frame. The memory played in his head over and over again. The wind catching the hood and revealing the face of his dead sister. Well, possibly dead sister. What stayed in his mind most of all were her eyes. The eyes that had looked to him for protection as a child. But as she stood on that rooftop all she had in them then was hate.

“We’re ready,” Harlow said when Umberto hadn’t addressed him. “We have the Greenhow Tavern surrounded. When the proprietor, Aeon, returns, we’ll move in and arrest her.”

“How are you so confident?” Umberto said, still not looking away from the hole in the wall. “That it is this Aeon person? Especially after I have given a statement saying my assumed-to-be-dead sister made an attempt on my life earlier today?”

“Aeon is an artificer,” Harlow said, a note of annoyance in his tone. “She could be using any number of illusionary devices to make you see that.”

Umberto finally looked to the aumarr. “But why my sister? How would she even know to use that image? This doesn’t add up. You are telling me to bake a cake, but giving me the ingredients of a pie.”

Harlow put on a smile that Umberto could see was starting to crack. “All will be revealed in good time. Trust me.” Umberto opened his mouth to say something, but Harlow put up a hand to stop him. “Once we have her in custody, I'll make everything clear. You have my word, Umberto. None of this would have been possible without your detective skills to put me on the right path!”

Before Umberto could say anything, Harlow turned on his heel and left the room. “Come,” he said from the hall. “I’ll escort you to the tavern!”

Umberto let out a sigh. Something was off. That roaring fire inside him was dwindling now, nearly smothered by the shadow of his sister. After seeing the crime scene things were feeling like they had before six months ago. The world was making sense again as he viewed it from behind the lens of a detective. But Sliver had turned the world back to chaos. Nothing felt right and nothing made sense.

“Are you coming?” Harlow called from down the hall.

“Yes,” Umberto said, getting to his feet. “I was just stuck in the mud for a moment.”

Aeon made her way through the crowded market, being sure to look down next to her every so often to make sure Beaky hadn’t gotten lost or swept away in the sea of people. Deuce sat on her shoulder, playing look out as always, but she seemed to feel the weight of him more than usual. No, it wasn’t that. It was the weight of the deal she had just made. This is really going to set you back, she told herself. It had been a nearly constant thought since leaving Xanathar’s lair.

But not as far back as being dead, she reminded herself.

Yes, this wasn’t the best deal she had ever made. But it wasn’t the end of her time as a spymaster - that was the important part. It was going to be difficult, but Aeon had every confidence in herself that she could come back from this. Hells, if she hadn’t had that confidence in the first place she wouldn’t even be in a position to deal with Xanathar. Or have been in a position to have a murderer after you.

There was a tug on Aeon’s coat as Beaky pulled in closer to her. “Are we nearly there?” A group of halflings passed by and the kenku eyed them. “There’s too many sounds and way too much light.”

Aeon suppressed an eye roll. “It’s not much further now. We’re just-“ She stopped when Deuce tapped her shoulder. The small gold monkey motioned for her to look up, and she followed his gaze, coming to a stop. A small bird flew through the air, its wings flapping in an unnatural way. The sun caught the side of its metallic body, and it glinted for an instant.

This was one of Aeon’s inventions. Not quite a steel defender, but it would follow orders. She used them to get messages out quickly to her agents around the city. It flew with magic, leaving its wings to flap in ways that could be interpreted by the agents.

She counted the flaps in her mind. Once. Thrice. Twice quickly.

“Nine Hells.”

Beaky chirped nervously. “What’s wrong?”

“The Greenhow isn’t safe.” Questions, plans, and actions all ran through her mind. There could be any number of reasons why the Greenhow was compromised, but there were two very likely reasons at that moment. Still, she needed more information. But she also needed…

She looked back down at Beaky. “Change of plans. I’m going to the safe house near Trollskull - do you know the one?” He nodded. “Good. I need you to take a message back to Xanathar and then meet me there.”

Beaky gulped and looked like he might cry.

Harlow looked annoyed. Umberto had been waiting with him on a rooftop overlooking the entrance to the Greenhow tavern for nearly four hours. The sun had well set by then, and Umberto was starting to worry more about the rumbling in his stomach than if this Aeon person would actually show up. It didn’t help that there were some delicious smells from the tavern below. He did his best not to focus on it or try to figure out what ingredients he was smelling.

“Tluning hells, where is she?” Harlow said through gritted teeth. “She must know we’re here.”

That wouldn’t have surprised Umberto. In fact, he had suspected that from the moment Harlow had brought him up to the rooftop. He had pointed out three other buildings that guardsmen were set up on to keep a lookout for her. Not to mention the other out-of-uniform guards spread out through the street, connecting alleyways, and even in the tavern itself. Umberto couldn’t help but consider this sloppy work. It felt rushed.

If this Aeon person were half as skilled as Harlow had made her out to be, she wouldn’t need him to point out the guards.

“Err, perhaps you and I should go into the tavern. Get a change of scenery and keep an eye on things in there.” Plus, Umberto could finally get a bite to eat.

Harlow looked as if he might protest, but then his shoulders sunk, and he nodded. “Maybe that’s a good idea. You all have things under control up here?”

The guardsmen all nodded.

“Good,” he said, then turned and headed for the stairwell door, passing Umberto.

“We should probably disguise ourselves,” Umberto said. “Err, they know what you look like after all.”

Harlow’s hand went for his coat pocket, then stopped. “You’re right. I could wear a hood or something?”

Umberto chuckled, making a note in his head. “I have a disguise kit in my pack downstairs. Come, I will turn you from tulip into a rose.”

All eyes were on Aeon before she even got to the Greenhow. Just as she wanted.

The Waterdhavian guards thought all they needed to do was take off their uniforms to blend in, but Aeon could still see it. She could see it in the way they sat, the way they walked, the way they breathed.

Deception and guile were her skills. They were just pretending like they had them.

She let out a breath as she touched the first step up to the Greenhow alone. She had a plan. Things were in place. But, like so many things had been in her life, it wasn’t a guarantee. She took the next few steps quickly and flung open the doors to her tavern.

“Greetings, ladies, gentlemen, and variations thereof!” She threw her hands up in the air as she walked towards the front of the room and the middle of the bar. Everyone turned in the same instant to look at her. She saw eyes she recognized, others she didn’t, and a few that were there to arrest her. One set in particular fell into the former and the latter.

Hello, Harlow. That disguise won’t work on me. I hope you enjoy the show.

“Step right up! Not only are all rounds on the house tonight, but I’m selling all the juiciest, most life-ruining secrets of Waterdeep for the low, low price of free!” A few people raised their brows. A few others even stood. One old man who had already a few too many walked straight up to the bar and ordered another drink.

“Who wants to know which Masked Lords are having affairs? Or which stores are secretly being robbed by a gang of underground goblins? Or better yet, which one of the undercover guards in here is the easiest to pay off?” She said the last one directly to the disguised Harlow.

To her surprise, this antagonizing worked even faster than she had expected.

“That’s enough,” Harlow yelled as he stood up from the back table. He ripped off the wig and false nose, tossing them to the floor. The other man at Harlow’s table, also disguised, looked at Harlow with a furrowed brow. “I am placing you under arrest to later stand trial for-“

“Why wait,” Aeon said, cutting him off. “Deuce! Bring him in!”

The front doors burst open again, and in walked the magister from earlier that day, Deuce on his shoulders. The little gold monkey battered the bearded man and pulled on his cloak almost as if he were piloting the magister.

Aeon stepped forward and pulled out an empty chair from a table. “I couldn’t help but notice that there weren’t any magisters among your undercover guards outside.” Guards in uniform and weapons drawn filed into the tavern behind the magister. Aeon responded to this by taking a seat. “So I decided to bring one myself. It is customary here in Waterdeep for magisters to pass sentencing in the moment, isn’t that right, Aumarr?”

Harlow stared daggers at Aeon but held up a hand to stop the guards.

Aeon got comfy and put her feet up on the table, crossing them at the ankles. “By all means, proceed with your accusation so the magister can pass judgment.”

Harlow looked down at the other man at his table, who looked back at him expectantly. For a moment, the aumarr didn’t seem to know what to say. He was sweating. And it wasn’t because of the wig.

What was your end goal here, Harlow?

The aumarr straightened up and stepped forward towards the middle of the room. “This woman,” he said, pointing an accusing finger at Aeon. “Is a liar, thief, and manipulator.”

Aeon chuckled. “Tell the room something they don’t already know.”

There were a few laughs from the tables.

“Silence,” Harlow said with a raised voice. “You want me to tell them something they don’t know - how about this? You got yourself in deep with the Xanathar Guild. You… you promised them information but came up short. This infuriated the Xanathar Guild.” He paused. “…and they started making threats! If you didn’t get them what they wanted, something bad was going to happen. But you couldn’t deliver - you were in over your head playing the role of a spymaster in bigger leagues.”

He turned to face the guards and the magister, a confident grin spreading across his face. “What was she to do? The Xanathar Guild is too big for her to contend with. It wasn’t a problem she could just make go away. Unless she set things into motion to weaken them. Even destroy them.” Harlow began to pace in the small area between tables. “The Xanathar Guild has one big rival. The Zhentarim.” Several people shifted at their tables. “If she could make it so the two factions went to war - her problem might be forgotten about. And if the Zhentarim won, her problem would be completely taken care of. And even if they didn’t, the Xanathar Guild would be weakened to the point that she and her agents could swoop in.

“So she planted sending stones in her music box trinkets and made sure they ended up in the hands of Xanathar agents so she could track them. She used them to follow her victims to the opportune place and strike.” Harlow seemed to be enjoying his lie. “The first several would just be to start suspicion. Then, she would start leaving calling cards for the Zhentarim - so the Xanathar Guild would piece it together that all of their murdered agents had been killed by their rival.

“And to really sell it. She used her skills as an artificer to disguise herself with illusions to look like one of the Zhentarim’s most infamous agents. Sliver Thornheart.” Harlow stopped in front of Aeon, looking down at her with a smile like he had already won. “You really thought you could pull all of the strings like a real mastermind. But you’re nothing but a-“

“No,” came a voice from behind him.

Harlow looked as if a arrow had struck him in the back. “What?” He said, turning around to face the speaker.

The man who had been sitting at Harlow’s table took off his own wig and peeled off some fake sideburns. Impressively, the mustache stayed. He stood and let out a sigh.

“I said no.” He looked at Harlow with a hard gaze. “None of that is true.”

Umberto looked to the magister. “Please disregard what you just heard. This woman is not part of the murders.” He paused, looking Aeon over. “She may be guilty of other crimes, but not this one.”

“How dare you,” Harlow said, walking towards him. “You think you can just come here and-“

Umberto put an opened hand in front of Harlow’s face when the aumarr reached him. He looked past Harlow to Aeon. “Can we speak in private? Perhaps in a back room?”

Aeon smiled. “I like you.” She gestured to the door behind the bar. “We can use the storage room.” With that she got up, and made for the bar and Umberto followed, moving past Harlow.

“I’ll not allow this,” Harlow said, sounding more and more like a petulant child. “Guards! Arrest both of them!”

Before the guards could move further into the tavern, over half the people at the tables stood, each drawing hidden weapons. Umberto froze, as did the guards and Harlow.

Aeon smiled at Harlow. “You didn’t really think I came unprepared for a fight, did you? Say hello to these agents of the Xanathar Guild. You know, the guild that you claim has it out for me? They’re under orders to protect me. At all costs.” She looked back at Umberto. “Come on. Let’s talk.”

Umberto couldn’t help but be impressed. This woman was clearly on the wrong side of the law, but he could still admire her complete handle on the situation.

The storage room was more of a storage closet with a staircase in the back leading down into a darkened basement. It was cramped, but Umberto wasn’t planning on pacing or making a show like Harlow had. He was here for information, and there was plenty of room for that.

“Err, thank you for agreeing to talk,” he said as she leaned against the opposing wall, arms crossed.

“Well, you seem to be the only one of the guards that is willing to believe me.”

He shook his head. “I am not part of the city guard.”

“Then why are you here?”

“I am here as a favor to an old friend to help solve the case of these murders. Murders that I am very confident you did not do.”

She cocked her head. “I’m happy to hear that - trust me, I am. But how can you be so sure?”

“Because I believe I already know who the murderer is.” The fire was back, and his mind was beginning to clear once again. “Harlow was correct about the music box, yes?”

Aeon nodded. “I’m not happy that little secret is out, but yes, it’s true.”

“Err, so you heard what happened the night of the murder?”

Aeon smiled. “Hey, Beaky,” she called down the stairs.

An albino kenku emerged from the darkness, his eyes shifting between Aeon and Umberto. He made his way quickly up the stairs and shivered next to Aeon.

“I need you to repeat the murder one more time,” she said to him - softer than Umberto had been expecting.

The kenku nodded. A moment later he opened his beak and began producing sounds of two men talking while walking down a street.

Umberto smiled. “This kenku is able to perfectly recall what he heard on the sending stones.” He looked up at Aeon. “That is very clever.”

Aeon smiled back and tipped her top hat to him.

Umberto listened to the kenku mimicry. As he did, he played the scene out in his mind as he had done in the alleyway earlier that day. Connecting the images he had memorized with the sounds of the murder. It played out nearly exactly as he had deduced, with only a few minor differences. When the name of his sister was said, it came as no surprise - in fact, he hadn’t even realized that he had put Sliver in the place of the killer already.

“Stlarn,” said his sister’s voice, and Umberto smiled.

“Thank you,” he said as the kenku finished. “And you believed the killer would be coming after you? To stop you from revealing this information?”

Aeon nodded. “That would be why my tavern is full of Xanathar agents.”

“Err, a reasonable expectation and,” he paused. “A measured response.”

“So,” Aeon said. “What do we do now?”

“Follow me back out there. I am ready to reveal what happened.”

“Sure,” she said. “Why not? Beaky, you stay here.”

The kenku looked relieved and nodded.

Umberto stepped back out into the tense tavern room. Waterdhavian guards stared down Xanathar agents and Harlow still stood in the center of the room. The aumarr stared at Umberto with hate in his eyes. That made Umberto put on a smile he’d seen Brenton wear so often when Umberto was young. It always came before Brenton said, “Let me teach you a lesson.”

“Aumarr,” Umberto began as he stepped up behind the bar. “You said something that stood out to me earlier today. When talking about the Xanathar Guild and the Zhentarim, you said, ‘ Let the tluining bastards destroy each other, I say.’ This seemed odd to me for an aumarr to say. An aumarr of Waterdeep should want to bring those factions to justice, should they not? No offense to those present in the room.”

Harlow’s eyes narrowed as he looked around at the Xanathar agents. “What’s your point? Both are a stain on this city. Why should I care how they get brought down?”

“You see,” Umberto said, wagging a finger towards Harlow. “That’s the thing. I think you do care. I think you care so much you planned it out. And who could blame you? You’re the son of one of the most celebrated members of the Waterdhavian guard - that’s a lot to live up to. But from what I have heard, you’ve fallen short of those expectations.”

Harlow growled. “Is there a point to this? Or are you just here to insult me?”

Umberto ignored him. “You decided to step things up. Make a name for yourself that isn’t just because of your surname. You needed something big. Something people would remember for generations. You needed to solve one of Waterdeep’s longest running problems. The Xanathar Guild.”

Aeon chuckled behind Umberto, leaning against the back counter. “But I thought they were my problem?”

“That is a good point,” Umberto said with a nod. “The accusations you made about Aeon were very interesting to me. When you started, you sounded unsure of yourself, as if you were coming up with the words as you spoke them. But then, at a certain point, you got onto a roll. The story flowed out of you like you knew it already. It was you that wanted a war between the Xanathar Guild and the Zhentarim. You wanted to weaken the Guild or obliterate them in the process. I wouldn’t even be surprised if you hoped to weaken both factions to the point that you thought you could take both of them down.”

Harlow was as red as an apple now. Fists clenched. Face twisted in a scowl. “And what? I hired your dead sister to do the killing for me?”

Umberto felt that thorny vine twist a little, but he ignored the pain. “That was the funny part for me. You had no idea that I would be here. It just so happened that the only Zhentarim agent of renown you had ever gotten up close to had been my sister. That’s why you looked so shocked when we first met. You were already stumbling through a string of bad luck. First Aeon’s music box, then your father calling in someone to do your job, and then the brother of the person you stole the identity of arrives in their place.”

“None of this is true,” Harlow said.

Umberto ignored him again. “I’ve heard what happened that night in the alleyway now, thanks to Aeon.” He gestured to the goliath and she made a mocking curtsy. “And again, if it were not for the fact that I grew up with Sliver, no one would have suspected it wasn’t her.” Umberto stared down Harlow. “My sister never swore. She found them to be filler words used by people who didn’t have anything to actually say.”

Harlow began to shake. “I did not impersonate your-“

“You must have been so scared when that sending stone fell out of the music box,” Umberto interrupted. “I found it so strange that it was broken and tossed away. But you panicked. You broke it, then realized you couldn’t just leave it, so you put it somewhere you thought no one would ever suspect to look. If you had just left it there it would have been so much easier for you to pin all of this on Aeon. And you realized that. Which is why you started pointing everything you could towards her.”

“You have no proof!”

“You’re right,” Umberto said. “I don’t. But you do. When we were on the rooftop, I noticed your hand went for your coat when I mentioned a disguise. When I was applying your wig and nose, I cast a Detect Magic spell and found an aura of transmutation on you. If I had to guess, you have some item that lets you cast True Polymorph.”

The room went still, and all eyes fell on Harlow. It looked as if the man might suddenly explode with rage. Instead, Harlow seemed to gather himself. He stopped shaking, lowered his shoulders, and let out a long breath. After a moment, he looked up and locked eyes with Umberto. “My biggest mistake was missing that crossbow shot.”

Aeon laughed. “You’re biggest mistake was that haircut!”

Harlow pulled a wand out from his coat. Xanathar agents, even some of the undercover guards, moved to stop the man, but he was faster and the spell was instantaneous. Lavender colored smoke flowed from the end of the wand, covering Harlow as he smiled at Umberto. Then, everyone around Harlow was thrown back against the walls of the room as something massive formed in the tavern.

A shape moved in the smoke. A low growl rumbled through the building as a clawed, skeletal hand appeared. The growing glow of firelight cut through the smoke as the skull of a red dragon came into view. Bits of dead muscle and flesh still hung to the bone, and red glowing firelight filled its empty eye sockets.

The guards yelled in fear as the red dracolich that had been Harlow readied to strike.

“Get him, Deuce,” Aeon said as the dracolich began to approach.

The undead creature’s claws dug into and split the boards she had laid by hand years before. It pulled itself forward as if still trying to understand how its body worked.

That’s what you get for choosing something showy, you plinth head.

Deuce leaped from her shoulder, landing on the bar just as Umberto climbed on top of it. It was clear the older man could do magic, but Aeon didn’t know what to expect from him. A moment later, Umberto hunched forward, then threw his arms out with a fearsome roar as he shifted into a large brown bear.

Somehow, she noted, that makes sense.

Xanathar agents and city guard sprung into action, weapons at the ready. They charged the dracolich, for whatever good it would do. Aeon commended them for their effort, but those weapons were going to need a magic touch if they were going to be effective. Especially since the dracolich looked as if it planned to take care of them with a swipe of its wings.

Luckily for them, Deuce had been charging up his energy beam.

There was a flash of white light as Deuce opened his mouth wider than a real monkey would be able to - and an instant later, a blue beam of magical energy streaked towards the dracolich. In the same moment, the bear that was Umberto leaped into the air, crossing the distance between the bar and the undead creature just after the beam struck.

The blast from the beam made the dracolich flinch, its head bobbing for a moment - giving the guards and agents their opportunity to strike. As it shook off the attacks, Umberto’s claws connected with the creature’s skull, slicing deep grooves into the bone. The bear landed on its hind legs with a thud that shook the whole tavern and readied for another swing.

The dracolich that had been Harlow let out an unnatural roar. Somehow, there were bits of Harlow’s voice in the sound. “You’re dead,” came Harlow’s voice. “I’ll kill you all!”

Aeon clocked Umberto’s next attack and gave a quick whistle to Deuce, who instantly understood, as she flipped a switch on her cane. The crystal in the head of the cane began to glow and charge, humming with energy.

The dracolich righted itself, sweeping out its wings and tossing the agents and guards into the opposing walls. As it did, it roared at Umberto, fire forming in the back of its skeletal jaw like a raging inferno.

Umberto responded to this with an uppercut swing of his bear claws. As he swung, Deuce scrambled up the bear’s legs and body, then down his arm, charging another blast. As Umberto struck the lower jaw of the dragon skull, Deuce unleashed another powerful blast - the combined force sending the dracolich’s head up and crashing into the ceiling.

“You’re paying for all of this damage, Harlow,” Aeon said with a grin as the dracolich tried to pull its nose out of the ceiling. She raised her cane and leveled it like a crossbow, eying the sinew and decaying muscle between the dracolich’s ribs. With three quick pulls of the trigger, the cane fired as many bolts of blue, flaming energy. Each bolt found its mark, disintegrating the bits holding together several of the ribs.

Umberto seemed to understand what she was going for. He grabbed onto two of the ribs and began to pull with a roar that Aeon could feel in her chest. Bones snapped and muscle tore - and with another whistle, Deuce scurried around Umberto and onto his shoulder. As the ribs parted, Deuce fired another beam - this one sustaining longer than the others - into the dracolich.

Bone and sinew disintegrated as the beam cut through what had been Harlow. It roared with pain - Harlow’s voice sounding like the most pained part. After a moment, the beam sliced through the dracolich’s spine, severing the creature in half. The lights went out in the skull, and the skeletal form began to collapse.

Before it could hit the floor, or land on Umberto, the image of the dracolich wavered, replaced by the small form of Harlow - who landed on broken boards with a grunt.

“No,” Harlow said with a groan. “No!” He tried to get up, but the end of Umberto’s staff pressed down on his back.

Umberto’s form returned, Deuce still on his shoulder, as Harlow looked up at him. “Guards,” Umberto said. “Take this man away.”

Umberto enjoyed every bite of breakfast the next morning. Aeon had invited him the night before for a free meal and drinks if he wanted them. He had graciously accepted the food but passed on the drink. Alcohol wasn’t something he liked having in the morning. But, after everything he’d been through the day before, he’d given it serious thought.

But, as he swirled the last piece of sausage in the yolk of the perfectly cooked eggs, he knew this was all he needed. Good food did wonders for Umberto’s mind, and he felt as if he could enjoy it just a bit more than he had the day before. Things were different. He was different. No, that wasn’t it. He felt like he had over six months before. And that was a feeling he needed.

Aeon sat down at the table. “How was it?”

Umberto was still chewing the sausage, but smiled and made a warm sound that clearly said, “it was delicious.” When he finished chewing, he added, “like honey from the hive.”

“Good,” Aeon said. “I’ll give your compliments to the Chief. They’re an automaton, but I’ll still tell them.”

Umberto wiped his mouth and mustache with the napkin, then set it over the finished plate. “You certainly cleaned things up quickly.” He gestured to the tavern that looked almost like new. The only hint from the fight with the dracolich were the broken boards of the ceiling.

“Just one of the plus sides of making all of my staff by hand. I get to decide how fast they work.”

They laughed, and Umberto noticed an envelope Aeon was holding.

“So,” Aeon said. “What do you think Harlow’s endgame was with me? Did he really think he could just pin everything on me?”

Umberto nodded. “I believe so. The reason he didn’t have a magister here was probably so he could toss the place and find enough things to make a story. The guards found a magical dagger on him - no doubt the one he used for the murders. He was probably going to plant it somewhere here in the tavern to make a case for a magister to convict you.”

“What a plinth head,” Aeon said with a scoff.

“Indeed.” Umberto eyed the envelope. “Err, may I ask what is in that envelope?”

“Oh,” Aeon said as if she had forgotten she was holding it. “I wanted to thank you. I had a pretty good plan in place last night, but I don’t know if I could have pulled everything off without you. I for sure couldn’t have gotten the guards to let me go without any extra investigation without you. So,” she trailed off as she put the envelope on the table.

Umberto went for it, but Aeon held up a hand. “Before you look at it, I need to tell you. Your sister is alive. Don’t ask me how I know, or how I got this information - because you won’t like either of the answers. In that envelope is the location of where she is being held. Do with it what you will.”

She moved her hand and Umberto found his own moving slower now as he picked up the envelope. The vine began to wilt as a flower of hope began to grow. “You’re sure it is her?”

“As sure as I can be,” she said as she stood. “Just please, don’t go getting yourself killed. You seem like too nice of a guy for that to happen to you.” She paused for a moment. “Before I go. I heard from one of the guards that this was your first case in six months? That you had given this line of work up?”

Umberto nodded, having to force himself to look away from the envelope and up at the goliath. “I… I’m still not sure if I will be picking it up again.”

Aeon gave him a friendly smile. “Well, you should. People like you make being a criminal fun.”

With that, she walked away, Deuce hopping down from the rafters onto her shoulder.

For a moment, Umberto let himself think about getting back to work again, full-time. Taking on cases, solving crimes, bringing criminals to justice - everything. And, to his surprise, there was no fear. No anxiety. No mud around his feet holding him back. Yes, he could do this again. He would do this again. But first…

He picked up the envelope.

“But first, I have something I need to do.”

The End

Umberto Thornheart and Aeon are coming to Idle Champions July 3rd as part of Founders' Day. Keep an eye out for their Champion Spotlights coming later this week!

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