1. Lore & History
Before the Forgetting, the Court of Shadows was known simply as the Royal Court — the political centre of Avalon, where the six noble houses convened to govern the island. It was a place of immense wealth and equally immense cruelty, where alliances were made in the morning and dissolved in poison by evening. The Avalon Accords, the governing charter of the island, were signed in the Grand Hall. So was the warrant for the last public execution.
When the Forgetting came, the six houses did not unite against it. Each believed it was an opportunity — that if the other five houses forgot their claims, one house alone would survive with its memory intact and inherit everything. House Morvaine, under the direction of its formidable matriarch Lady Morvaine, came closest to succeeding. The Lady's personal archivists recorded everything: bloodlines, debts, alliances, betrayals. She believed documentation was a form of armour.
She was wrong. The Forgetting consumed the Court's records in a single night, leaving only the social structures — the hierarchies, the paranoia, the enmities — without context. The noble houses now continue their intrigues oblivious to the fact that no one remembers what they are fighting over. Corrupt Guards patrol boundaries whose purpose no one recalls. Traitor Nobles scheme against rivals whose offences are now three generations dissolved. The Court is a machine running without a program.
The Court Executioner — formerly Magistrate Vorne, the kingdom's chief judge — was the last to lose his memory. He remembers executing someone important, but not who, or why, or whether the warrant was just. He sits in the execution chamber and passes judgment on anyone who enters.
2. Locations
| Location | Description | Enemies | Encounter Rate | Key Items / NPCs |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Outer Courtyard | A wide cobbled plaza choked with overgrown rose bushes whose thorns are black. Corrupt Guards patrol in pairs, following routes they no longer understand the purpose of. | Corrupt Guard, Shadow Informant | 35% | The Informant (NPC) |
| Market of Whispers | An underground bazaar beneath the Outer Courtyard, accessible via a grate near the east wall. Merchants here deal in information, forged credentials, and tools that are technically illegal but universally used. | None (neutral zone) | 0% | The Shadow Broker (shop), Dark Ink ×3 (ground item) |
| East Wing Library | Three floors of records the scribes are still cataloguing despite having no memory of what the records document. The shelves are perfectly organised. The meaning is gone. | Assassin, Shadow Informant | 40% | Court Archivist (NPC), Dark Ink drops (high rate), Forged Document (locked chest) |
| The Grand Hall | A cavernous ceremonial chamber with a vaulted ceiling and a long table at which empty chairs sit in the same positions they held the night the Accords were signed. Traitor Nobles circle the table endlessly, accusing each other of things they cannot name. | Traitor Noble, Corrupt Guard | 55% | Lady Morvaine (NPC), Accord Fragment (quest item) |
| The Secret Passage | A network of narrow tunnels behind the Hall's panelling. The walls are covered in old chalk markings — evidence of a communication system that predates the current court. Whisper Stones drop frequently here. | Assassin, Shadow Informant | 60% | Whisper Stone (high drop), Poison Vial (ground item), Sealed Chamber Key (rare) |
| Execution Chamber | A low stone room with a raised platform at its centre. The Court Executioner stands motionless on the platform, holding a ledger of names that are all crossed out. He will not speak to those without a Sealed Chamber Key. Boss room: encounter rate 100%. | The Court Executioner (Boss) | 100% | Accord Seal (main quest item) |
3. NPCs
Lady Morvaine
Location: The Grand Hall
Role: Main quest NPC, lore source
Lady Morvaine is the only noble in the Grand Hall who is aware she has forgotten something. She does not know what it is — but she knows the shape of the absence. She will trade information about the Execution Chamber for help recovering what remains of her family's records from the East Wing Library.
Story connection: Morvaine's backstory mirrors the domestic power dynamics explored in The Perfect Marriage — the story of a woman who built her household on control and finds herself holding the architecture after the contents dissolved.
Class note: Rogue players can use Eavesdrop to learn Morvaine's private dialogue before initiating conversation, unlocking better negotiation outcomes.
The Shadow Broker
Location: Market of Whispers
Role: Shop, black-market vendor
The Shadow Broker's real name and origin are unknown even to the other inhabitants of the Court. They deal exclusively in the Court of Shadows' speciality items: Poison Vials, Lockpick Sets, Disguise Kits, and Forged Documents. The Broker charges full price to strangers and gives significant discounts to players with the Rogue class or high Stealth attribute.
Rogue bonus: At Honoured reputation with the Court of Shadows faction, Rogues can unlock the Broker's hidden inventory, which includes the Shadow Cloak (armour) and the Vial of Oblivion (rare consumable).
The Informant
Location: Outer Courtyard (moves to Secret Passage after first meeting)
Role: Side quest giver, patrol routes
A young former servant who remembers more than anyone else in the Court — not because they resisted the Forgetting, but because they were never important enough to forget much in the first place. The Informant knows the patrol schedules of every Corrupt Guard in the Outer Courtyard and will share them for a small fee.
Mechanic: Buying the patrol schedules from the Informant reduces Corrupt Guard encounter rate in the Outer Courtyard from 35% to 12% for the rest of the session.
Court Archivist
Location: East Wing Library
Role: Codex unlock, quest hook
The Court Archivist is trying to reconstruct the Court's history from fragmentary evidence — a ledger here, a monogram there. He cannot remember the events but he can deduce them. Trade Dark Ink (dropped by enemies, found in the Library) with him to unlock Court of Shadows lore entries in your Codex. Each entry provides +5% XP on Stealth-related quests.
4. Enemies
| Enemy | Level | HP / MP | Type | Abilities | Drops |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corrupt Guard | 4–5 | 80 / 0 | Common | Basic Attack, Shield Bash, Arrest (attempt to end combat — can be resisted) | Dark Ink (20%), Whisper Stone (10%) |
| Shadow Informant | 5 | 65 / 30 | Common | Basic Attack, Expose Weakness, Evasion | Whisper Stone (30%), Dark Ink (15%), Lockpick (5%) |
| Assassin | 3–4 | 55 / 20 | Common | Stealth Strike (high damage on first hit), Poison Dart, Vanish | Poison Vial (25%), Dark Ink (10%) |
| Traitor Noble | 6–7 | 100 / 50 | Elite | Basic Attack, Accusation (applies Confused status), Bribe (sometimes cancels combat — deals Gold to player) | Dark Ink (40%), Accord Fragment (20%), Disguise Kit (10%) |
| Court Executioner | 10 | 420 / 100 | Boss | Gavel Strike, Sentence (stun 2 rounds), Final Verdict (heavy AoE), Contempt of Court (removes one buff) | Accord Seal (100%), Dark Ink ×5, Shadow Cloak (15%) |
5. Notable Items
| Item | Type | How to Get | Use |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sealed Chamber Key | Key | Rare drop from Assassin (10%); hidden in Secret Passage chest | Required to enter the Execution Chamber and trigger the boss fight |
| Accord Seal | Quest | Guaranteed drop from Court Executioner | Main quest item for Phase 2. Deliver to Vara or your faction contact to advance the story. |
| Accord Fragment | Quest / Codex | 20% drop from Traitor Noble; found in Grand Hall | Piece of the original Avalon Accords. Collect 5 for Lady Morvaine's quest. |
| Dark Ink | Crafting | 20–40% drop from most enemies; abundant in East Wing Library | Crafts Forged Documents and Shadow Scrolls; traded with the Court Archivist for Codex entries |
| Whisper Stone | Crafting | 10–30% drop from Guards and Informants; high rate in Secret Passage | Crafts Eavesdrop Trinkets; used in Labyrinth of Minds portal ritual (Phase 3 transition) |
| Poison Vial | Consumable | 25% drop from Assassin; sold by Shadow Broker (40 AC) | Apply to weapon for +20 poison damage (3 turns) |
| Disguise Kit | Consumable | 10% drop from Traitor Noble; sold by Shadow Broker (60 AC) | Prevents NPC recognition for one dungeon pass — avoids random encounters in the Grand Hall (one use) |
| Forged Document | Consumable | Found in East Wing Library chest (locked); sold by Shadow Broker (100 AC) | Grants access to restricted zones and certain locked NPC dialogue options |
6. Boss: The Court Executioner
The Court Executioner was once Magistrate Vorne, the most feared legal mind in Avalon's history. He sentenced thousands, never once making an error of procedure, and took enormous professional pride in this. After the Forgetting, he lost the context for every verdict he had ever given — but retained the compulsion to give them. He now passes judgment continuously, against anyone who enters his chamber, for crimes he invents on the spot.
His ledger contains thousands of names, all crossed out. Yours is already in it. He crossed it out before you arrived.
| Stat | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| HP | 420 | No natural regeneration |
| MP | 100 | Used for Sentence (20 MP) and Final Verdict (60 MP) |
| STR | 20 | Very high — physical attacks are dangerous |
| INT | 12 | Below average — magic resistance is low |
| WILL | 18 | High — resistant to Persuade and social skills |
| AGI | 8 | Slow — Rogues with Shadow Step get +1 turn advantage at fight start |
| XP Reward | 620 | Highest XP in Phase 2 |
Phase Behaviour
- Rounds 1–3: Standard Gavel Strike rotation. Uses Contempt of Court to strip your best active buff on round 2.
- Round 4 (Sentence): Attempts to stun the player for 2 rounds (costs 20 MP). High success rate. Having high Willpower reduces stun duration to 1 round. Mentalist players can resist entirely.
- HP below 50% (Final Verdict): The Executioner delivers Final Verdict — a heavy area strike that hits for approximately 80–120 damage. It costs 60 MP, so it can only fire if MP ≥ 60. Deplete his MP with MP-drain skills before he reaches 50% HP to prevent this.
- Round 8+ backup pattern: If Final Verdict was fired or cannot fire (low MP), switches to Gavel Strike every round with no cooldown — two hits per turn at <25% HP.
7. Quests
| Quest | Given By | Objective | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Courtyard Patrol | Auto-start on first entry | Navigate the Outer Courtyard without triggering an Arrest. Buy patrol routes from the Informant or fight through. | 80 XP, access to deeper Court zones |
| The Broker's Request | The Shadow Broker | Retrieve a stolen Forged Document from the East Wing Library (in a locked chest). Return it to the Broker. | 120 XP, 40 Gold, unlock Broker's extended inventory |
| Morvaine's Records | Lady Morvaine | Collect 5 Accord Fragments from Traitor Nobles and the Grand Hall. Return to Morvaine. | 200 XP, 60 Gold, Morvaine's Trust (unlocks her full dialogue tree), +1 Court reputation |
| The Archivist's Index | Court Archivist | Bring 4× Dark Ink to the Archivist. Each batch unlocks one Court of Shadows Codex entry. | +5% XP multiplier per entry (up to 20%), Archivist's Favour +1 |
| Find the Sealed Key | Lady Morvaine (follow-up) | Locate the Sealed Chamber Key from the Secret Passage or Assassin drops. | 100 XP, access to Execution Chamber |
| Phase 2 Finale: The Verdict | Lady Morvaine / auto | Enter the Execution Chamber. Defeat the Court Executioner. Retrieve the Accord Seal. | 620 XP (boss), Phase 2 complete, Morvaine ending dialogue |
⌫ Related Reading
The Court of Shadows draws on the same world as Portal Avalon's betrayal fiction. For companion reading:
- The Perfect Marriage — the story of control, surface perfection, and the cost of maintaining both
- Narcissism and the Gothic Villain — the psychology of the characters who built the Court