The Kistonian Institute of Strange Studies (KISS) was a well funded laboratory that operated from the Kiston Isles, studying the islands, the main land of Kiston, and other supernatural and unexplainable phenomenon in the center of the realm. The main laboratory was built on the orbital island of Ossuary.
About
Towards the end of The War of Many Names, the facilities were decked out with the latest in steel plated walls and highly secure chambers, built to house and explore a variety of experiments, many of which mixed scientific methods with arcane practices.
Employees could not drink on the job, but because the institute was isolated on an island, massive stocks of alcohol were available and stored in mini bars across the institution, to be enjoyed after-hours.
The institute hired at least one cleric to be on premises at all times.
It was said that the beds were VERY comfortable at the institute.
Technology
The institute had a standard issue light artillery weapon given to guards and soldiers on site, but the guns were labeled as "proprietary" and "off limits" to non members of the institute.
Notable Experiments
Operation Deadbolt
A group of militant warforged were sent by the institute into the caves at the heart of The Crystal City. This operation led to the discover of The Kalachakra for the first time since it was placed there centuries ago. It was led by a warforged codenamed Brickhouse, who helped dig through a massive stalagmite to the bottom of the city's deepest caverns.
The cavern that Brickhouse discovered was codenamed "The Keyhole". The Kalachakra down there led to the institute discovering runes of Vecna, which eventually led to the next big experiment.
Summoning the Fated Five
The Summoning of the Fated Five was a project 20 years in the making by Dr. Thomas Tompion. It was the result of research done to figure out if the island of Kiston can be closed again. His hypothesis was after Tiamat escaped at the beginning of The War of Many Names, the island could be re-locked.
One of the last dark magic experiments practiced by the facility was the summoning of what would be described as "The Fated Five". It was described as a "Hail Mary" by the project lead. Five individuals, hand plucked from their lives and delivered on a silver platter by Vecna himself. With no explanation of WHY these five people, the scientists at the institute had to believe that the five were destined to go on a mission that would indeed save the realm.
The summoning itself required a combination of ancient codexes run through incredibly powerful caeruleum powered pylons and generators. The codexes themselves would only function with proper sacrifices, so a number of goats were slaughtered in the process as well. This led to the peculiar sight when the five were summoned: broken pylons, flashes of electricity, and the blood and bodies of slaughtered animals...and possibly people.
The experiment was so catastrophic that reverberations and aftershocks were felt through the entire institute building, and even through the whole island of Ossuary. Other islands also reported a shaking, meaning that the shocks reverberated through the whole of the Kiston continent, leading to an increase in Dragons searching around to find the source of the shock.
Eventually it was determined that The Kalachakra discovered in Operation Deadbolt had 5 remaining spokes, and Vecna delivered 5 people, so it must have been their fate to go to the wheel. The institute, realizing this would be a suicide mission, provided a promise of a lifelong pension to the remaining family (or friends) of the Fated Five, before sending them to the island on a Caeruleam powered plane.
