Summary: The Museum of Orethys - Preamble

Overview

The PCs drew the Donjon card and are imprisoned in the Museum of Orethys, a demiplane created 100 years ago by the wizard Orethys to collect interesting people as living exhibits. Orethys died 60 years ago fighting an exhibit, but the museum persists.

The Museum's Nature

Physical Structure:

Hundreds of floating islands in a cavern, each containing a building/diorama with 1-2 people
Islands organized in "floors" at similar elevations, ~8 feet apart horizontally, ~30 feet between floors
Cavern edges are mist that teleports anyone entering back to their starting point (5th floor)
Each island has its own weather and terrain from its origin

Stasis Effect:

All exhibits (people, buildings, objects) are frozen in time
People repeat the same day endlessly, cannot form new memories, don't recognize visitors
Injuries/death are temporary - everything resets after hours or if attention shifts
Items taken from exhibits vanish 1-2 hours after being set down (unless held)
Supplies regenerate constantly in pantries/shops
PCs also benefit: death teleports them back to starting location, fully restored

Time and Magic:

Time passes at inconsistent rates vs. the multiverse
Arcane/divine magic, gravity, and physics work normally
No flight allowed for PCs (harpies above block climbing up)

Key NPCs

Caretakers (Aarakocra):

Keira - Talkative, frustrated caretaker. Has a magical guidebook listing all exhibits and their locations
Qurak - Calmer companion who moderates Keira
Bound by geas to patrol museum forever; immortal but bored
Hate Orethys but must serve the museum
Will eventually approach PCs to determine if they're guests or exhibits

Diometron:

Another exhibit who refuses to stay on his island, explores constantly
Mentioned by caretakers as similar to the PCs

Starting Situation

Party Formation:

All PCs drew Donjon but arrived separately due to time distortion
DM runs one PC solo briefly, then introduces second PC - both experience Deck Awareness (see hovering cards showing what each drew)
Rest of party spotted on nearby island (~10 feet away)
Must improvise bridge (ropes, ladders) to unite
Start location: 5th floor, near "The Tavern of the South Gate"

Exhibit Assignment:

PCs are supposed to be exhibit "The Deck of Many Things" inside Castle Green
Castle Green's arrival is "delayed" - exhibit doesn't exist yet
This is why they're wandering instead of frozen in stasis

Escape Solution

The Puzzle:

Ask NPCs (hypothetically) about planar travel to avoid triggering their mental blocks
NPCs suggest sending (call for help) and plane shift (travel between planes)
PCs must find someone in museum who can cast sending
Contact a friend outside who will eventually find someone powerful to cast plane shift
Rescue arrives (don't reveal this - let players discover it)

Exploration Constraints:

Can't climb upward (no flight, harpies on 6th floor cut ropes)
Can descend floors via ropes tied to trees/posts
Ropes vanish after ~1 hour if left unattended (return to origin)
Must explore floors 5 down to bottom

Key Destinations

Guest Services (Bottom Floor):

Contains guidebooks that list all exhibits, locations, and inhabitants
Critical for finding spellcasters and locating Diometron
PCs learn about this from Keira

The Harpy Eyrie (6th Floor):

Directly above starting location
Hostile harpies prevent upward travel

DM Notes

Teaching New Players:

Museum's no-death stasis makes it safe for inexperienced players
Use repetition shortcuts: don't roleplay identical conversations/actions multiple times
Emphasize "you have infinite time" to reduce travel/duplication tedium

Pacing:

Let PCs explore 3+ exhibits randomly to discover stasis effects
Introduce caretakers when PCs tire of random exploration OR reach floor 3
Caretakers provide direction: "get a guidebook from guest services"

Atmosphere:

Mix of fascinating people from across multiverse (Orethys chose interesting individuals)
Most are low/zero level (Orethys avoided powerful beings)
Exhibits don't notice other islands unless directly shown
Mental blocks prevent exhibits from processing their imprisonment

Deck Connection:

Unusual that all PCs arrived together at same time
The Deck is binding their fates together, not just punishing them
More is happening than just standard Donjon card effects

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