Hot, Partially cloudy, Moderate wind
The sun dawns on a new year in Brindol, and the festival of Alcar is in full swing. Bjerg and Bragi barter for bed and board at The Open Road. Skadi, Daren purchase rooms, and Sturla cons a place to sleep out of Dagamar, the innkeep. Bragi performs a comedic poem which is well received, and earns 3sp.
Bjerg inquires about work and he recommends we ask House Gaarn about caravan escorts, and told about The Bear Pit.
Bear pit: great timbered ring, sunken pit. banked seats. Seats 500. There is a sub level that has gates into the pit.
Bjerg, Skadi and Sturla head to the Bear Pit and look for the pit master. We find him and he introduces himself as The Bear of Brindol and he tells us there are no fights he can get us in today, but if we hang around we'll see quite the show. We agree to pay for cheap seats and file up to the nosebleeds. The pit master makes a poor joke and introduces the first fight: A 9 foot tall bear on a chain vs a pack of dogs. The bear is given 2:1 odds. Bjerg bets 1GP and loses it as the dogs are torn to pieces. The floor is open to any fighter who wants to go against the bear for a prize pool of 100GP and they are given 1:5 odds against the bear. Broke Bjerg and Sturla ask to fight the bear together and are granted the opportunity. They charge forward and Bjerg slay it with one expert thrust of a halbard.
50GP ea for Bjerg and Sturla
100XP ea for Bjerg and Sturla
After getting back to The Open Road, Bragi privately scolds Bjerg and then publicly praises Bjerg and Sturla for their feat. Bragi is approached by a prostitute and he kicks Bjerg out so he can sleep her.
Warm, Drizzly, Moderate Wind
In the morning, we ask where we can find the House of Gaarn and sign on to a caravan.
(some stuff happened, i don't remember what)
We bump into Berto, an underclassman fellow of Bragi, and he gives us three rumors. In payment, Bragi agrees to hook him up with the prostitute who he slept with last night. Bragi tells him to meet him at The Open Road in the evening and then heads there and asks Dagamar where he might find a hooker. He points him to The Siren. Bragi heads to The Siren and finds the cheapest prostitute he can and hires her to come to Berto. He arrives with the prostitute and it is still morning, so he runs back to Berto berates and browbeats him for not being there yet.
Warm, Overcast, Moderate Wind
We head out with the caravan and travel 6 miles uneventfully.
Warm, Drizzly, Gentle Winds
We are slowed by the rain and only make it 2 miles.
Balmy, Partially Cloudy, Moderate Wind
We make good time and travel 6 miles.
Hot, Mostly Cloudy, Moderate Wind
We make good time and travel 6 miles. As the day is closing, we see a large herd of 70 wild horses. Daren tries to befriend them but is unsuccessful
Sweltering, Mostly Cloudy, Gentle.
The day passes uneventfully, but is quite slow and we only make it 2 miles. We make camp near some farmers and Bragi entertains them. 19 of them show up and are treated to a recitation of a poem about a popular hero.
Warm, Overcast, Moderate Wind
Late in the morning we pass a caravan traveling the opposite direction. We make 6 miles.
Balmy, Rainy, Still
The rain slows our progress and we make 2 miles. We come across an ancient fountain still functioning.
Hot, Cloudy, Moderate
We encounter some patrols based out of Highfold. We make it 6 miles.
Hot, Mostly Cloudy, Gentle Winds
6 miles. We end the day at the base of the mountains
Warm, Drizzly, Strong Winds
We make it to Highfold late in the evening, and there is a sigh of relief from the caravan at large.
The Thane is short, stocky, has red hair and has skin a bit darker than Northman - Bragi suspects he is Gallffolk (mixed). He greets everyone and introduces himself as Thane Eadric of Highfold. We inquire about lodging and are pointed to The Cross-eyed Ogre, where we meet Bjern who sets us up with rooms for 1sp/night. Bjern makes a comment about apples not owned by the Thane.
Bragi and Bjerg recognize Geshla from their old company and invite him to drink with them. Bragi approaches the Thane and offers to recite a poem. The Thane requests a "farty song" which Bragi fails to produce. After providing him with an example, the Thane asks again for a farty song but is refused. Instead, Bragi offers to write a poem about his great flatulence, and the Thane and his advisors agree.
Well into the night of drinking, a man comes in and says "There are fires in the distance". We look and see fires in the distance - miles away, like a prairie fire. The town seems to gather behind the palisade of Highfold and one speculates that it's bandits. Lando, one of the Thane's advisors starts ineffectually telling people to prepare.
We decide to go investigate and help the potential wounded. We inform Landolf, the caravan master that we will not be going on with him and request to be paid. (12.5GP ea, except Geshla). After Bragi gives a speech disparaging the Thane to the town, he tells them that we are going to help. We pack our gear on our horses and head out with haste.
It takes several hours, but we make it to the source of the fire and we find a single caravan wagon which has been ransacked and two dozen caravaneers tortured, beheaded and stacked on the ground. There are handprints left behind - made with the blood of the slain. Bragi cuts out one of the prints from the caravan canvas. There are footprints of at least a dozen of individuals and tracks leading from a hiding place by the road, and tracks away towards the Witchwood forest.
We head back to Highfold, arriving early in the morning. Bragi again address the town, describing the scene and dramatically throwing down the cutout red hand before again disparaging the Thane. We head to the inn and get rooms and sleep.
Sweltering, Overcast, Still
We decide to head out to Drelin's Ferry and at the end of the day catch up with the caravan. We talk to Landolf and convince him to let us rejoin (and)
6 miles
Hot, Overcast, Moderate
4.5 miles (24) - We make it to Irongard Motte, and rest the rest of the day
Sweltering, ?, ?
Bjerg finds Ironwrought Goods, owned by the smith Garmund Ironwrought, and inquires about a masterwork weapon. He says he cannot make a better - he is a master smith, but there is a great smith out in Drelin's Ferry named Borvald Coalhands whom he apprenticed under. He says Borvald would be able to make something superior to my halbard.
Meanwhile, Bragi rumormongers - spreading rumors about Eadric farting and carousing with sheep. He does not get a rumor in return. Most of the party decides to go tell the Thane of Irongard Motte about the caravan attack, and as the approach the gate of the motte, they hear an argument. A priestess named Adaheld seems to be trying to warn them about something. Bragi intercedes on her behalf and gains them both an audience with the Thane.
Geshla describes the attack and the Thane Hunfrid seems to take this seriously and plans some measure to increase security. The priestess jumps in at some point and is laughed off by the Thane. Bragi rebukes the Hunfrid for his blasphemous treatment of the priestess
Grateful for his defense, the priestess take Bragi back to her shrine and shares a rumor: Hjalmar the moneychanger calls himself and his family the Geltlings. The only reason Hunfrid puts up with him is because of how indebted the Thane is to Hjalmar.
Hot, Overcast, Gentle
3 miles (18) We make it to Drellin's Ferry. Before we arrive we witness a gargoyle fly over the caravan, circle, then fly towards the Wyrmsmoke Mountains. Drellin's ferry is primarily populated by Ffolk who look at us with some disdain. We ask where we might find a good inn, and go to the one they said was bad (it was clearly the better one). It is called The Old Boar. It is expensive, but extravagant. At diner, Bragi performs an epic poem in the Ffolk native tongue. For this he is given a rumor:
Sturla and Bjerg head over to the Bent Tankard to look for Borvald. Borla - Borvald's daughter bangs Sturla. Bjerg drinks Borvald's beer till he blacks out.
Bjerg is woken by Sturla who seems horrified by Bjerg's account of his drinking with Borvald. Back at The Old Boar a man introduces himself: Owen - works for Gwenllian, matriarch of Maddyn house. Her daughter has gone missing. Grand-Daughter and Grand-Son went adventuring in the witchwoods and have been missing for a few weeks. Kadfel and Elend. They were seeking some powerful ruin. He explains: "Before the coming of the rothari, the Ffolk worshiped the power of the earth. A group of druids built a temple but it fell to the dark powers of the earth and they were swallowed by it." Their friend Gethen instigated this and went with them. Owen offers a reward of 125GP ea for proof of death and 250 GP ea for bringing them back alive. They are young adults.
Skadi leads a group to go talk to the abbot about the children. It is met with some hostility, and Bragi antagonizes the abbot at length about the shitty old gods. Thankfully he is bewitched by Skadi and cannot help but talk about what he told
There is a childrens story abotu a druid cult out in the woods dedicated to the dragon below. This is a story. Really, there were druids that built a keep but they discovered blasphemous secrets. The gods opened the earth and swallowed them. It is in Skull Gorge. There is a fallen druid of the same order that is dwelling there. He stole a clipping of the sacred tree and it caused the Abbot's tree to die. The abbot wants the tree back. Maelgyn sought forbidden knowledge and for this he was cast out. The night he left he went out back and put a sword in the sacred tree. This happened 13 years ago. The dungeon is around skull bridge. The gorge was created by dark magic. He gives directions to where he assumes it is.
The abbot leaves in a huff just as another man enters - another brother of the abbey, Murig. He asks to talk to us in a private and leads us around the abbey to an overgrown garden in the center of which is a dead tree. Bragi finds a sword in the tree and immediately pulls it out without any regard for the sanctity of the tree. The hole left behind is at hip level and very suggestive. He ignores Bragi's rudeness and gives us a proposal: Bring him the branch and he will reward us with 500GP ea.
After bed, Daren is woken by a knock and sees a man. He follows him into the woods, into a henge which turns into a staircase down into a place that is filled with corpses.
Balmy, Partly Cloudy, Still Wind
The party heads north following the directions we were given, and Daren experiences déjà vu.
We make it 12 miles, and encounter nothing of significance.
Sturla takes the first watch and late into it he smells wood smoke and something else coming from the north. He decides to do nothing, but tells Bjerg about it at the passing of the watch. Bjerg wakes Bragi and they decide to light a fire at a distance and see if anything comes. Bragi stays by the fire and eventually hears a giant approach. The giant asks for food and introduces himself as PeePaw (which Bragi learns is effectively Grandfather).
We learn that PeePaw discovered burned wagons and dead up north (which he buried) - then he saw the fire and came to investigate. He saw many dead goblins, but no red hands. Geshla takes the final watch.
Warm, Partially Cloudy, Gentle Wind
Halfway through the day Geshla sees a gargoyle flying overhead but it does not spot us. He flies off to the west, towards the Wyrmsmoke mountains.
We make it 12 miles.
Hot, Overcast, Still Wind
We arrive at Skull Gorge and the bridge across it. We see standing stones lining the gorge, leading east and west of the road. The. stones to the east are mostly toppled, so we head to the west and eventually come across ancient dwarven ruins which include some broken stairs. We climb down a rope to get to some stairs and continue down and find a courtyard and a ruined temple. We begin exploring.
We find a kobold named slimo and make him lead us to his King. We get to the king and he gives us a choice: Find a dragon or fight him.
The Kobold King gives us a map and tells us that the dragon's name is Eirwen. We consult the map and find two doors that lead to unsearched areas. One is barred, so we head through the other. We encounter a pit trap and after triggering it, carefully make our way to the other side. We continue on and enter another door to find 7 goblins. After a brief scuffle, the party emerges victorious without a scratch. We search the room and find:
We continue exploring and find a murky room filled with defaced art. Beyond it some way we find a massive room filled with over 50 goblins - most of them unarmed women and whelps. There are 7 armed goblins and 2 hobgoblins. We kill them, but Bragi is brought down and Bjerg gravely injured. As Bragi is our healer, we are unable to save him. Bjerg flies into a rage at the loss of Bragi, slaying any unarmed goblins around him until four more enter. We engage them with bows, killing one before 6 more enter behind us. We continue to throw arrow and stone as they close around us. Everyone kicks into overdrive, high rolling out of their minds, except for Geshla who can't hit shit and dies. After the dust settles, we have killed 17 goblins and 2 hobgoblins and lost Bragi and Geshla. We search the room and find:
We collect the valuables and head out, passing through the kobold's lair. The king demands to see what we took from the goblins and of the treasure, keeps the ceremonial dagger. We leave with the rest of the goods, dig a hole and bury our dead. The wolf takes a watch and the rest of the day goes by without incident.
Warm, Partly Cloudy, Gentle
We travel all day and arrive at Drelin's Ferry late in the evening. Skadi and Bjerg head to the abbey immediately to seek healing. There we meet Ceorl who offers to help heal Bjergs remaining wounds. There is also a nun there named Adwin, but we don't really interact.
Warm, Overcast, Gentle
Sturla goes to meet Hesta? He finds a filthy hovel. She is unable to provide scrolls of healing, but offers arcane services.
Bjerg stays in bed and Ceorl tends to his wounds and they talk about their respective losses.
Skadi looks for tobacco and moonshine in case we encounter Peepaw.
Sturla buys a donkey, but can't get a saddle. Borga shows up and harasses Sturla and Bjerg.
Warm, Clear, Still
A large white owl takes off in front of us, and we think a person was on it's back. It looked strange - antlers. The person on the back also had horns. The rest of the travel is uneventful and we arrive at Skull Gorge.
Hot, Partly Cloudy, Gentle
We head into the dungeon and head towards the goblin room. Along the way we encounter 10 kobolds require us to come before the king. There are 14 more kobolds in the "throne" room. The king likes that we are continuing to search for the dragon and tells us that the pit trap has been disabled. We continue toward the goblins and encounter 5 more kobolds.
After passing the DNR zone, we encounter two hobgoblins who request to parlay. We cautiously agree and learn that one, Grashnûk, a captain, wants our help to overthrow his king. After discussing it, we agree to help in exchange for information about the location of the dragon. We decide not to extort anything more from them in order to gain favor in case we encounter them in the future. He tells us that in the next room are 14 goblins (1 champion), the King, and 3 allied hobgoblins. He recommends we focus on the champion, king and the witch doctor. He also tells us that he believes the kids are around below. The girl is alive, but the boy is likely dead.
We enter a crowded throne room and begin battle. A long and protracted battle sees all the goblins dead, Grashnûk with them. Unsure of the state of our agreement, Ceorl unleashes a torrent of fire on the remaining hobgoblins. We search the room and find:
"To Vharok, called Chief, of the Skraguk (Rugged Ones) — The Dragon King does not ask twice. You were given one task: take the white wyrm the scaled rats keep in their hole, and send her down the road to the Red Hand. A season has turned. The wyrm is not here. Neither, I note, is your excuse. Hear me, little chief, for I am Skarnâz Stormcaller, and I sing the deaths of those who fail Krul before they are cold. Bring the dragon and you will eat at the warlord's fire, and your name will be spoken in the muster. Fail him, and I will come myself. I will make a song of your unmaking, and I will make it long, and you will live through every verse. The wyrm. Whole. By the next dark moon. — Skarnâz Stormcaller, Wyrmlord, in the name of Krul the Dragon King "
300XP (60XP ea) for killing monsters
270+600+500*2+500 = 2370XP split 5 ways (474XP ea) from GP
270+600=870GP (Cash) -> 174GP ea
We create a false bottom in the treasure chest and hide the ruby and most of the rest of the non-coin treasure. We present it to the kobold king and he is sad that we haven't found anything else and says we can go without taking anything.
We make it outside, hauling hundreds of pounds of coin, and find a man outside. His name Gunnar Gunnarson and is a Paladin of ???. He wants to join us inexplicably, and we invite him in with total trust.
We head back into the cave and investigate the hidden room behind the goblin king's throne. Inside we find:
We decide to leave it because it is heavy and head to goblintown. We find that the druges and welps have returned, and that in the absence of their king, there is infighting. We clumsely fight them. One goblin kills himself with fire, meaning he did more in the fight than most of us. After clearing out the room we search the bodies and find:
We head into a new room and find more drudges which we dispatch and on their bodies find
We find a dragon. It screams at us and blasts us with an ice cone. After trying to knock it out ineffectually, Bjerg cuts it's head off.
We continue to explore and find a pit trap with a desecated body with a ring in it. We recover the ring.
We find a barrel of Elf Pudding. Ceorl opens it up and finds a blood and guts.
We continue on and fight more goblins. We search them and find:
The door nearby unlocks with the key and we find 3 kobold prisoners suspended above a pit trap, and a gnome named Fimble Twelp Twump. He tells us that there is another way out so we follow it, killing a few more goblins with Fan of Flames. We continue on and manage to get out without kobolds spotting us with Twump.
We set up camp outside and go to sleep.
685XP (114XP ea) for killing monsters
1500+4*125+200+50+500+250+100+200+50+24*1+300+175+50+17 = 3916XP(653XP ea) split 6 ways
1500+200+50+300+17 = 2067 (Cash) -> 344.5GP ea
TODO: Heal, go back to town, scribe the Slumber spell. Bookkeeping - XP and GP totals for this dungeon run.
Nothing eventful. Gunnar and Skadi attend to the wounds of the party on the trip back.
We arrive in town in late in the day and head to the inn to rest and inventory and divide our loot.
We talk to Borvald and he informs us that the banded armor, the Shan Jia Plate, and the goblin king's armor are all magic. (+1AC, -1st). He does not address his previous interactions with Bjerg, like the cowardly dwarf he is.
Bjerg spends the week watching Borvald work. Sturla romances Borga, taking her on a picnic. She shares the rumor previously heard about an elf and a gnome coming through town. She also reveals that she is an orphan adopted by Borvald - as was Garmund. Both were rescued from the wreckage of a caravan attack. Borvald has a soft spot for orphans, which is part of why he has not confronted Bjerg and continues to suffer his attention. Ceorl spend the week scribing "slumber". Skadi spends the week sharpening her blades. Daren spends the week magically compelling a wild wolf to talk to him. Gunner goons.
Sturla picks up his hand axe.
Thwump asks to hire onto the party for a half-share. We are suspicious of him and decide to sell him out to the Maddyn family. We give him a non-committal answer to keep him on the hook and then part of the party heads to talk to Abbot Paden. The abbot is sick in bed and doesn't care about anything other than the tree. He shouts us out after we mention the Maddyns. After exiting, Abbot Cuyl tells us where we can find the Maddyns and reiterates that he thinks we should just destroy the tree if we find it.
We head to the Maddyn house. We have to take drellin's ferry which is operated by Hesk Talow. He charges us a 1sp each to cross. On the other side he tells us where to find the Maddyn house, past a warehouse. We note that there is a grove with standing stones on their property. Owen greets us at the door and asks us the news. We give him the signet ring, and the wails of Gwenllian are confirmation enough that the ring belongs to Kadfel. Owen says Gwenllian is not in a state to deal with Twump, but he would not lose any sleep if he never made it into town again. We thank him and leave.
We head back and tell Twump "You're Hired!" which he gets very excited about. He tries to get as much information about the ruins as much as he can from us but we don't give him any interesting details. We turn in for the night. Sturla follows Twump back to his inn and discusses more in confidence. Sturla gets Twump to reveal that he followed Bjorn Klinkson into the dungeon and that he believes the lost hammer is in that dungeon. He thinks this dungeon might hold the treasure of Agni Goldtooth, the dwarf who stole hammer.
Sturla colludes with Borga to sneak out so that he can talk to the rest of the party. He reveals all that happened. Sturla believes that Twump has had all useful information extracted from him, and that we should not trust him. The party agrees to set out in the morning for the dungeon.
Brisk, Mostly cloudy, still wind
We encounter farmers in the afternoon.