---
type: item
rarity: Uncommon
attunement: No
---

# Cult Cipher

## Description

A small leather-bound journal discovered at the [[Seal Anchor]] hilltop ([[Arc 1 - Heirs of Sundering#Hook 2: The Weeping Sky|Arc 1, Hook 2]]). The pages are filled with script written in Ignan (the language of fire elementals) — the [[The Hand of Ruin|Hand of Ruin]] uses elemental dialects as a code for sensitive communications. The journal contains orders, ritual instructions, and a partial list of seal anchor locations.

## Contents (After Translation)

Requires translation at the [[The Silent College|Spire of Silence]] (3 days, [[Librarian Thessa]]) or by someone fluent in Ignan:

- **Orders from Keeper Valdrek:** *"Commence ritual at the hilltop anchor. Three nights. Blood offerings will draw the Wrath's attention. Do not let the lightning be seen from the town — the druid watches."*
- **Seal Anchor List:** Names three anchors: Eastmarch hilltop, Ironheart Mine, and "the Spire beneath the waves" ([[Sunken Spire]]).
- **Ritual Instructions:** A 3-night blood ritual to weaken a seal anchor. Grants advantage on Arcana checks to disrupt or understand similar rituals encountered later.
- **Contact Schedule:** A cult courier meets the cell leader at the Old Mill every new moon — meaning the party missed the last contact by days. [[Keeper Valdrek|Valdrek]] knows the cell has been compromised.
- **Personal Note:** Written in Common, not Ignan, at the bottom of the last page: *"The Pontiff's messenger came today. The Pontiff is pleased. I should be happy. Why am I terrified?"* — written by the cult mage the party killed. This note is humanizing; the cultists are not faceless monsters.