Session 1 - Items
Lockbox
3 Diamonds (worth 100 gp each)
Spell scroll (a few minutes of arcane study reveals it to be the Revivify spell, worth 900 gp)
Gold dust (worth 25 g)
Pearl (worth 100 gp)
Owl feather
Key ring (containing keys to the quarters, helm, hold, and key box)
Red Wizards
2 spellbooks
2 amulets
A map of Chult with several locations marked with X’s
A letter written in a strange script (Infernal)
Halfling Thief
Mysterious, jet-black orb
Casting the Identify spell reveals: The artifact was created by a powerful “custom” spell over a hundred years ago by a powerful caster. It requires attunement, but the attunement has prerequisites that you can’t figure out. Without attuning to it, you can determine that its purpose is necrotic and connected with the connection between the planes of life and death, but it is difficult to determine more than that.
EDIT TO ADD: You know that it is very unusual for the Identify spell to give you so little information. On top of being ancient and powerful, you can determine there must be some kind of curse or other unusual effect upon the orb to make it so resistant to divination magic, not a common or easy task.
General Sailors/ship
100 gp to each loyal crew member
Mundane weapons, shields
2 potions of healing