Journeys through the Radiant Citadel

Yeonido Pronunciations

Gwishin of Dae Won-Ha

The rage of Won-Ha's gwishin has gone unchecked for decades and is focused on the statue of Queen Young-Soo in the Park of the Elders. Throughout the adventure, the characters can obtain relics connected to the memory of Won-Ha. These objects can help the characters establish a connection to Won-Ha's spirit and potentially put the gwishin to rest.

Won-Ha's spirit manifests its power throughout Yeonido in two ways.

Fading Mists

As the fog fades, the guards and other locals menaced by the gargoyles look momentarily perplexed by where they are and any damage that's been done around them, but then stoically go about their business again as if nothing had happened. If asked about the fog, the monsters, or other occurrences within the fog, they react with bewilderment. Locals have had their memories altered as detailed in the "x" section—but the characters aren't affected. Locals don't fixate on the characters' confusing questions or any strangeness affecting anyone nearby, as is local custom (see the "x" section). The detect magic spell reveals that locals—in fact, almost all the creatures in Yeonido—radiate an aura of enchantment magic, an effect of the curse affecting their memories. There is one exception to this.

Kun Ahn-Jun

Magistrate Kun Ahn-Jun (neutral good, human noble) is a rising star in Yeonido's city bureaucracy despite their unassuming presence. They are humble and shy but show their inner strength during crises. Thanks to their ring of mind shielding—a gift from their mother, who was also a magistrate—they have not been affected by Wong-Ha's curse, as the spirit can't telepathically alter Ahn-Jun's memories. Ahn-Jun treasures the ring and usually keeps it invisible—a property of the ring—while wearing it. The magistrate takes little solace in this protection, though, as they don't know what's befallen the city or why, and they fear the strangeness is all in their own mind.

Sole Witness

Ahn-Jun is quietly distraught about the events affecting Yeonido. They can't make sense of what's happening and fear they're suffering visions or worse. If the characters claim to have seen the fog and creatures within it as well, Ahn-Jun is relieved and shares the following details with the party:

• No one else in the city has seen the fog, but it's been rising and falling multiple times every day for weeks.
• The fog used to occur only every now and then, but it has been growing more frequent.
• Ahn-Jun has tried to tell people about it but is always ignored.
• Strange monsters have slain people in the fog. Those who've witnessed the tragedies are shocked anew by the sight of bodies when the fog dissipates. The deaths are always considered accidents or bizarre but isolated incidents.
• If the characters don't already know about the city's customs, Ahn-Jun shares the details in the "x" section and notes that these mores contribute to locals' willingness to overlook the strangeness afflicting the city.

After sharing these details, Ahn-Jun asks the characters to help them uncover what mysterious magic is afflicting Yeonido and can pay each character 250 gp. Ahn-Jun also promises to inform the city's rulers of the characters' service.

Where to Investigate

Once the characters agree to assist Ahn-Jun, the magistrate notes three locations the characters should investigate:

• Construction Site. Located outside the city walls where the Tiger District abuts the nearby forests, this construction site has suffered numerous attacks and unexplained setbacks.
• Park of the Elders. Several attacks have occurred at this royal park in the x.
• Tea Shop. The city's oldest tea shop is located in the x. Two nobles were found wounded and nearly dead outside it only a few days ago.

Ahn-Jun can offer directions to all of these locations. While Ahn-Jun's job prevents them from traveling with the characters, the characters can contact the magistrate by speaking with the guards at the Seat of Dragons, the city's center of government.

What the Overseer Knows

Hwang Jung-Soon (lawful good, human guard) is friendly and speaks evenly, but she's frustrated by her site's setbacks and is protective of her workers. She wants to know what the characters' business is at the potentially dangerous construction site and asks them to leave if they seem to simply be sightseeing. If the characters openly carry weapons, she's hopeful that they've been hired by the magistrates to investigate the recent accidents at the site.

If asked, Jung-Soon doesn't know anything about the fog, strange events, or attacks on the camp. However, characters who succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom (Insight) check sense that she's holding back something in her response. Those who push her by succeeding on a DC 14 Charisma (Persuasion) check get Jung-Soon to share some of the strangeness she's experienced, like finding dents on her weapons or personally suffering inexplicable minor wounds at random—unknown to Jung-Soon, these are the results of defending her work site from creatures appearing amid the fog.

Jung-Soon can also share the following details:

• Her laborers are in constant fear. They think some creature or gang is trying to harm them. No one's seen anything, but accidents and sabotage are common.
• She's frustrated with the city's magistrates, believing they're failing to protect her people.
• Dangerous animals live in the nearby forests, particularly tigers, and she has guards to keep such threats at bay. Regardless, she doesn't think animals are to blame for the danger around the work site.

Talk of sabotage is Jung-Soon and her workers' way of explaining what's happening to them. The strangeness at the work site is a result of the memory-affecting fog and creatures under the control of Wong-Ha's gwishin. If the characters ask to see any damaged equipment or Jung-Soon's scars, they bear what look like claw marks. A character who succeeds on a DC 12 Intelligence (Nature) check thinks the marks are from large feline claws.

Work Site Attack

During the conversation with Jung-Soon, the character who has the highest passive Wisdom (Persuasion) score is the first to notice fog drifting into the work site from the southeast. A round later, the work site is lightly obscured by the fog.

A moment after the fog rises, four tigers (use the saber-toothed tiger stat block) appear from the direction of the forest. These hostile tigers are 12 feet long and have blue-tinged fur. The site's workers and hired guards flee upon seeing the tigers, but Jung-Soon stands her ground. The tigers attack her or any creature that appears to be a greater threat.

Shrine of the Hero

An overgrown path heads into the forest near the construction site. A character might discover it by following a fleeing tiger or by investigating the tree line and succeeding on a DC 14 Wisdom (Perception) check.

The path is made of worn, muddy stones, and it leads 400 feet into the forest. It ends at a rocky pedestal bearing a slab of marble covered in moss and a simple stone lantern. A faint blue flame glows within the lantern.

The Tea Shop

The oldest tea shop in Yeonido was simply called the "Tea Shop" when it was built hundreds of years ago, and so it remains known to this day. The shop is decorated with hundreds of teacups arrayed on shelves; many cups bear the names of famous past patrons, adventurers, nobles, and royals.

The owner, a talkative, neutral human noble named Bi Chin-Hae, greets everyone who enters, offering to prepare them a pot of buckwheat or jujube tea. Chin-Hae grows taciturn if asked about the recent attack near his shop or the troubles in the city, speaking about these events only in vague terms—he doesn't want the area around his shop to be considered dangerous. A character who purchases a pot of tea for 2 sp or who succeeds on a DC 12 Charisma (Persuasion) check can convince Chin-Hae to mention that the two nobles attacked near his shop were named Nah Dae-Shim and Da Ju-Won and that they often play the game of baduk at the nearby baduk hall, a raised courtyard that's the social center of the Phoenix District.

Outside the shop, no evidence of the recent attack remains.

Baduk Hall

The baduk hall is three blocks away from Chin-Hae's tea shop. Characters who have proficiency in Performance know baduk is a game of strategy played on a board using black and white pieces. Additionally, baduk halls are popular gathering places, particularly for old or noble families.

At the baduk hall, dozens of pairs of players concentrate at tables covered in circular, black and white pieces. Hall guards or attendants can easily direct the characters to Dae-Shim and Ju-Won.

Nah Dae-Shim, a dwarf man, and Da Ju-Won, a human woman, are in the middle of an intense game. Both are neutral nobles. They're not unfriendly, but they're not interested in talking at the moment. The pair are happy to talk after their game—but it will take 3 hours to reach its conclusion. A character who succeeds on a DC 16 Charisma (Persuasion) check convinces the nobles to take a break from their game to talk. Alternatively, a character who watches their game and succeeds on a DC 16 Wisdom (Insight) check can point out strategic opportunities in the game to both sides, causing the game to conclude in 10 minutes.

Talking with the Nobles

When they're ready to talk, Dae-Shim and Ju-Won call for rice wine and ask the characters their business. The pair willingly share any of the following details.

• During a visit to the Tea Shop after dusk about a week ago, Dae-Shim and Ju-Won were both nearly killed.
• They both recall seeing a strange woman lingering near the shop.
• The next thing either of them remembered, they were waking up. Passersby found them near the shop and summoned a priest to aid them.

Neither of the nobles knows who the woman was, and they have no memory of the fog. However, if a character succeeds on a DC 14 Charisma (Persuasion) check, one of the nobles reluctantly reveals they think she was a gwishin. They can provide any of the information in the "x" section earlier in this adventure, but they don't like talking about such things. The nobles don't know why such a spirit might be lurking around the tea shop, but they suspect the proprietor Chin-Hae would know.

Back to the Tea Shop

If the characters return to the Tea Shop and ask Chin-Hae about the spirit seen around his shop, he claims to know nothing about that. If pressed, though, he shares the following information:

• He has seen a spirit that resembles a long-dead but regular customer who was famous in her time: Magistrate Dae Won-Ha.
• He has infrequently glimpsed the spirit near his shop, but also once at the Park of the Elders when he was walking home around midnight.
• Dae Won-Ha was an active magistrate and hero of the people, responsible for many social works.
• She was ultimately overshadowed by the last queen, Young-Soo. Chin-Hae doesn't know what happened to her after that.

As he explains this, he fetches a pair of teacups from a shelf. The cups are a set and bear the names Young-Gi—the uncle of the current queen and brother of Young-Soo—and Won-Ha. As the cup bearing Won-Ha's name is taken down, it glows with a faint blue light and pulses every time the name Won-Ha is spoken within 10 feet of it. It also flickers if brought within 10 feet of the lantern from the Tiger District or the amulet Young-Gi carries.

Chin-Hae allows the characters to borrow the cup if they ask. If the cup is brought before the gwishin of Dae Won-Ha in the Park of the Elders, the spirit might be convinced the people of Yeonido still remember her.

If asked about Young-Gi, the shop owner shares that the elderly noble still occasionally visits the shop, but he is retired and spends much of his time at home. If the characters choose to visit Young-Gi, proceed with the "x" section.

Young-Gi

As the uncle of the current queen, Jin-Mi, and brother of the previous queen, Young-Soo, Young-Gi (neutral, dragonborn noble) is accustomed to wealth and privilege. A life spent enjoying his status has made him charming and personable but also haughty. As he ages, however, he remembers the few true friends he once had and regrets how he treated Dae Won-Ha.

The elderly dragonborn's red scales aren't as lustrous as they once were, and he wears fine silk robes to compensate.

Young-Gi is also a victim of the gwishin's curse, so he doesn't recall the fog or the threats that appear within. But as he knew Dae Won-Ha and personally downplayed her achievements, he knows much about her past. He's not eager to reveal it, though.

[image: Young-gi]

Forgotten Secrets

Young-Gi is calm and charismatic, and he listens intently when the characters speak. Because the elderly dragonborn is secure in his position, he isn't worried about the characters' visit. If they mention Dae Won-Ha, he's surprised and grows reflective. He shares his memories only if the characters present him with the lantern from Dae Won-Ha's forgotten memorial or her teacup, or if a character succeeds on a DC 12 Charisma (Persuasion) check. If convinced to speak about his old friend, he shares the following information:

• Dae Won-Ha was a brilliant magistrate and hero of the people. Much of the prosperity and equality Yeonido now enjoys is due to her work.
• Few remember Won-Ha's efforts, attributing them to Young-Gi's sister, the former queen, Young-Soo.
• Although the people once honored Won-Ha, the magistrate died in relative obscurity.

Conversing with the Gwishin

If the characters speak with Dae Won-Ha's gwishin, she can tell them the information in the "x" section. She's angry that the city she dedicated her life to has forgotten her. She uses her accursed fog to make Yeonido's people suffer but forget why, leaving them with only pain and quiet confusion.

Putting the Gwishin to Rest

Once the characters have learned Dae Won-Ha's story, they can convince her gwishin she hasn't been forgotten in one of two ways.

The Seat of Dragons

In the center of Yeonido stands the Seat of Dragons, the palace that houses the royal family and government. The outer palace walls are a brilliant red, and the drawbridge over the moat is always open to allow citizens to enter. Important ceremonies take place in the castle courtyard, where Queen Jin-Mi can often be seen greeting her people.

Though the Seat of Dragons has no magical wards protecting it, gwishin never enter the palace grounds. Some speculate that this is because the Pearl of Mireu—a legendary gift the draconic founder of Yeonido granted to its people—is hidden somewhere in the palace.

Yu-Ik River

The Yu-Ik River flows just outside Yeonido's walls and is an essential part of the city. The riverbank holds a bright community of market stalls, colorful art, traders, peddlers, tinkers, and vendors of food and drink. On official holidays, people gather along the riverbank to tie ribbons on tree branches, play games along the shore, and celebrate with good food. However, these gatherings sometimes turn ugly, with fights breaking out due to muggings and territorial disputes arising among merchants. Cautious vendors often hire guards to protect them from trouble.

Dokkaebi Temple

Not far from the city, this cursed temple sits on a cliff above a majestic waterfall. Foolhardy children dare each other to spend the night within the forbidding temple—a challenge that has sometimes proven fatal. The temple is brilliantly painted with a thousand colors and marked with hundreds of spiritual seals. Although the site is rumored to be filled with treasures, only the most reckless thieves consider breaking in, for countless gwishin rage there each night, their screams echoing for miles.

Structured Society

Yeonido's residents believe in sacrifice for the good of the community. One must work selflessly, listen to one's elders, and act according to one's status for Yeonido to prosper. Structure is the central pillar of society. Class structure and family structure are key components of life within the city. Change is possible, but usually only when it's driven by members of the royal family or the noble clans. Queen Jin-Mi sits at the apex of the social order, followed by the noble elite, the various ranks of government magistrates, and the heads of each familial clan.

Clans and Identity

Clans live in compounds that often hold every member of the family, organized with its own hierarchy and led by a designated elder. But clans extend beyond families, often adopting outsiders who take up permanent residence in the city-state. When people meet, they exchange clan information before personal details, and the few folk in the city who have no clan—whether they were ejected from a clan or never adopted into one—are viewed with sympathy.

When people marry—whether for love or for social or political reasons, both of which are considered equally valid—they must choose which partner's clan they will belong to after the union. In rare cases, a new couple decides to establish their own clan, though they often face judgment from their birth clans.

Rule by Magistrates

The city-state of Yeonido is ruled by the beloved Queen Jin-Mi, a dragonborn said to be descended from the city's founder and first ruler, the dragon Mireu. The bureaucracy surrounding her consists of officials known as magistrates, who govern the city-state and enforce its laws. Those who aspire to become magistrates must undergo the exams—known collectively as the Test of Ascension—that take place each spring. These tests are notoriously difficult, and typically only those wealthy enough to afford time to study and special tutoring pass. Still, many less affluent but dedicated students have used this path to change their social status. Even non-citizens are allowed to take the test if they show proper respect for the process.

[image: Queen Jin-Mi]

Spirit Arbiter

Magistrates called spirit arbiters specialize in bringing an end—peaceful or otherwise—to rogue gwishin. They investigate the appearance of these spirits, soothe them, and then attempt to right the wrongs that hold them in the world. If left with no recourse, spirit arbiters destroy gwishin, but they seek to avoid doing so. These somber magistrates are known for the traditional, broad-brimmed black hat, called a gat, that they each wear as part of their uniform.

Names

Family comes first in Yeonido, and thus an individual's clan name is spoken before their given name. The royal family is an exception—they have no clan name, since it is expected that everyone should know them at first glance.

Given names in Yeonido typically have two syllables. Within each clan, siblings and cousins of the same generation often share one syllable of their name. For example, a couple might have a son named Ji-Min and a daughter named Ji-Yun. The head of the clan chooses each new child's name. The following are examples of common Yeonido names:

• Clan Names. Bae, Chun, Ha, Ju, Seong
• Feminine. Gyung-Won, Hana, Ji-Yun, Su-Min, Yun-Hi
• Masculine. Do-Won, Gang-Min, Habin, Ji-Min, Oh-Seung
• Gender-Neutral. Haneul, Han-Sol, Ji-Su, Si-Won, Yu-Min

Yeonido Adventures