"I am not certain but I think the failed well opened the burial mound of Tabor the Magnificent , whoever he was, his corpse was possessed and reanimated by some evil power. I believe that he harmed your son and by defeating him whatever evil spell was on your son was broken. However, it may be prudent to take your son to the Halls to be seen by a priest to be certain."
Ferguson-As you say Ang, but I'm not sure that he is strong enough to walk that far. There is a farm near us that has a wagon, it's about three hours walk from here. Do you feel well enough to make your way there and ask for their help?
"Yes, I will go."
Get directions and the farmer's name. Was he among those that helped with the well?
On the way.
Ferguson tells you that his neighbor's name is Abe-He's an older man, so he wasn't able to help with the well but I'm sure when you tell him what has happened he'll come with his wagon.
You grab something to eat on the way and head out to the nearby farm. After a little less than three hours of quick marching you reach the farm Ferguson described in the late afternoon. There is a small barn and simple house next to a patch of vegetables and field of wheat.
Yell out loud enough to be heard at the barn or house.
"Hello Abe, I'm from the Halls, Ferguson needs your wagon."
You have to call out loudly a few more times until an old woman appears at the door of the house; she looks very familiar-ABE! Abe you old rascal! What are you about now? There is some fine young man here yelling out your name like it's the end of the world or something!
She looks at you for a moment-You look familiar young man, have we met before? If you are looking for Abe I'd wager more than a copper that he's asleep in the barn. Let's go look shall we? She leads you into the barn where sure enough an old man looking like the husband of the couple you met along the road earlier in your adventures is fast asleep in a pile of hay.
Woman-ABE! Wake up you daft old raisin! This young man needs you for something! She looks sidelong at you-Hopefully you don't need any work done, he's near useless in that department.
The man wakes-Whuzzat? Dang it woman quit barking at me like some kind of owlbear with a bad cough! I can hear right enough! He looks at you confusedly for a few moments before-Anj isn't it? What can I do for you boy?
Ang smiles to see that Mildred and Abe were not the occupants of the burned wagon he saw on the road, and he says a silent prayer to Torag for the couple that was.
"Hello Mildred, yes we met on the road a few weeks back. Ferguson's boy took ill and we need a wagon to take him to the Halls for a priest to tend him."
"Abe, it is Ang, and Ferguson's eldest boy is ill, he has need of your wagon to take his boy to be tended by a priest. Can you help?"
Abe-Ferguson is it? That bastard probably worked the poor lad half to death. Bet he made him dig the well all by his lonesome. Bah!
Mildred-Now Abe, Ferguson isn't that bad. Maybe he can come over to our place and get some honest work out of you. The only thing you ever are sick of is WORKING! Now, go get the wagon ready and let's be about it. I'm sure with Ang here guarding us we won't have any trouble getting back to Ferguson's in one piece. I'll go grab some herbs and food. I'm sure the Mrs. over there is worried sick and in no shape to take care of her little ones. Come ON Abe!
Less than an hour later you are being jounced around in the back of a rickety wagon listening to the old couple chirp at one another. You make it back to Ferguson's where Mildred takes charge before you manage to grab a few hours sleep before she rousts you, Abe, and Ferguson to get the boy back to the Halls.
At the Halls the healers take the boy in to tend as Abe and Ferguson are given guest quarters to rest in.
Korim comes to you-You have returned. Did you find the object of your quest? I hear you have found other things besides.
"No Korim, I have not found a liquid most pure, though we have almost completed a well, perhaps the water from the well will turn out to be the sought after liquid."
"Yes, we stumbled upon an old burial sight for Tabor the Magnificent, some malevolent force had animated his corpse. I found some metal that I believe is adamantine there but will need help retrieving it if the Halls are interested in using it to craft arms or armor. More importantly Tabor was wearing a belt with a green gem that radiates significant evil. I took the belt because I think it needs to be destroyed and I believe it is responsible for the boy's sickness. Who at the Halls can help with this?"
Korim lets out a throaty rumble-Hmmm....I should probably be the one to look at this 'gem'. Do you have it with you? If so let's go to the sacred Forge.
Go to the sacred forge with Korim and then open the backpack and take the belt out while avoiding the gem.
"Here it is, be careful, I am certain it contains evil."
You feel a little ill as you touch the belt and hand it to Korim. Korim grimaces as he touches it before setting it on the anvil. Speak the truth now Ang, have you touched gem at all?
Ang did not voluntarily touch the gem, did he accidentally touch it at any time?
"No, at least I don't think so, I was very careful handling the belt."
Korim sighs in relief-I hear the ring of truth in your words son. Good...good... He turns back towards the gem-Well demon, it appears that your time on this plane is coming to an end. Enjoy your trip back to the Abyss such as it is.
As Korim speaks the gem shudders, shifts, and shakes. Little green-stone insectoid legs sprout from it and the body of the gem lifts off of the belt, preparing to skitter away, when all of a sudden Korim's massive forge hammer comes crashing down. Their is a high pierced scream that fills the room, but when Korim pulls back his hammer all that remains is a withered old leather belt in poor repair.
It is done. You have done well Ang in bringing this threat back to be ended. Very well.
'Thank Torag, let's check on the boy now, unless there is something else we need to do."
Also show Korim the ivory scroll container to see if he knows how to open it.
Korim eyes the scroll warily-You got this scroll from the same tomb? Well it seems benign enough if you have been handling it. He fusses with it for a few moments before stopping and smiling. Hate to break it out of frustration. Let me wrangle with it for a few days and see what I can make of it.
You and Korim check on Ferguson's boy and he appears to be on the mend. Not well enough to talk with anyone yet I'm afraid Master Korim.-opines the chief healer.
Korim motions for you to follow him-We'll let the boy rest and you and I can tip a pint of stout. I'll let you tell me more about what you have been up to, especially the part about the adamantine. Maybe on the morrow, if you are not too tired, we can do a final fitting of your plate.
Pouring you both a pint and bringing the cask over before sitting down Korim looks at you intently-Well?
"This tastes good, among your other skills, dwarves are superior brewers."
"I have been helping Ferguson with his well for a few days, the first well was pretty much dug by the time I arrived but a large stone prevented it being finished so we tried again in a new location, we are nearly finished with it now, just need to finish rocking the sides."
"The boy told me he wanted to come to the halls and become a warrior, Torag works in strange ways, could it be fate that he is here?"
"The adamantine is in the form of large chains that held a very large skeleton. It is too heavy for me to move myself and some tools will be needed to separate the chains from their base. If you send some brothers back with me, I am sure they can gather it up in a short amount of time and use it to benefit the Halls."
"I will meet you tomorrow, I am ready for the armor."
Can Ang sell the MW Agile breastplate and MW bardiche? Will keep the MW dagger.
Ang has time to make any transactions he like as Ferguson's boy needs at least a few days more to recover.
Abe leaves with his wagon the next day-Have to be back to the farm or Mildred will accuse me of loafing about. I'm taking Ferguson as well. Turns out he's not such a sot after all; even enjoys a drink or three. His boy won't be ready to travel again for a while and we can't all be hanging around waiting on him now can we.
Ferguson-I am in your debt Ang and will do my best to repay you as I can. When my son is ready, bring him home to us. I know his mother will be anxiously counting the days. Don't worry about that well. I'm sure I can convince Abe to help me and Mildred to pitch in about the house until you return.
Describe your actions over the next week before you return with the young lad to Ferguson's.
Will sell the MW agile breastplate and bardiche.
Keeping the CMW pots and MW dagger.
Meet with Korim the next day for armor fitting.
Further discuss with Korim retrieving the adamantine.
Further discuss with Korim the ivory scroll case.
See if Korim can give further clarification on quenching liquid.
See what can be found out about Tabor the Magnificent.
Visit the boy.
Weapons practice.
Use LOH on anyone in need, but assume there are more skilled healers about.
A little more than a week since you arrived at the Halls, Ferguson's boy is hale enough to return to the farm. The masters have decided that should the boy still desire to train at the Hall on his thirteenth year he may return and begin that journey. In return, to not leave the Fergusons without resource, the Halls will send one of the orphaned lads that will not continue in the ways of the Hammer to work the farm in the boy's stead.
Korim finishes the fitting of the full plate and deems you worthy to wear it-Though you have not yet found the quenching waters for your hammer you have shown that your bravery is not born out of the security of steel, but rather by the strength of your faith and the desire to do that which is right.
Further, Korim commissions a small group of Brothers to return with you to the Ferguson farm. They will fully investigate the tomb and record its place in history. As well, they will cast holy enchantments to secure the place against further evils and cast wards on the entry to ensure it remains sealed. Finally, they will help you to harvest and remove the adamantine which Korim says he will use in the forging of your hammer.
As to the scroll case, Korim and the scholars of the Hall determine that it is a type of puzzle box that must be opened with a specific sequence, otherwise the contents within will be destroyed by some mechanical action. They vow to continue to study it and if they fail to open it, send it to one of the great Dwarven halls for examination and hopefully opening.
You read up on Tabor and find that he was one of the chief warlords of his time and that he did much to drive out the local goblin tribes. There is nothing recorded of him being particularly evil, although there is also nothing recorded of him being particularly good. The centuries between his time and yours could certainly obscure the real truth of who and what he was.
You ask Korim about the quenching fluid-You must use your judgement as to what form it takes. Listen to your heart and your spirit. They should be as reflecting pools for the insight of our Lord. The crafting of your hammer is a sacred vow between you and Torag. The path that your vow reveals will also determine the powers your hammer will have. It is different for each of his paladins, so they say, and we have no experience with the journey of a human as he strives to hear the ring of the true Hammer.
You and the others make the journey back to the Ferguson farm and the young lad is all atwitter about his time in the Halls, telling you about every detail of his stay. Fortunately the journey is brief, and before the innocent glow of his idle chatter begins to drive you mad you arrive at his family farm.
You can see a finished well stem at the top of the rise and the industrious dwarves from the Hall immediately set to work exploring and cataloging the tomb. The Ferguson family greets their returning son joyously, and their tears flow without measure.
It's strange to see the solid farmer with tears of joy running down his face. Ferguson-We are more grateful than words can express Ang. Though we have nothing of value to offer, our home is always open to you and your name will always be in our prayers. Should my son still wish to attend the Halls I will allow it for your sake if nothing else. All the gods of good watch over your path my friend.
To Korim:
"Thank you yet again for the armor and more so for your advice. Some day, maybe I will have gained such wisdom from a lifetime of experiences, and if so I hope that like you I can aid another with what I have learned."
To Ferguson:
"No debt is owed, happy to do what I can. The Halls have agreed to provide training to your son once he reaches 13, should he still desire it. And they will send someone to help you on the farm while he is at the Halls."
"Accompany me to the well, I need to try some of the water. I have never helped build a well before, I wonder if the water will taste different."
Ang tastes the water, closing his eyes as he does so to concentrate his full attention on the experience.
"Is there anything else you need help with? Or do you know of anyone else in the area that needs help?"
Check on the dwarves to see if they need anything.
Ferguson walks with you up to the well and draws you a full bucket for you to drink from-The water has had time to settle and tastes as pure as the old one ever did. That is great news from the Halls. I don't wish to limit my son, but I certainly don't want him to be disappointed if things don't work out like he hopes. I keep telling him that he just has to be realistic about things.
The water tastes sweet and pure. Clearly you have tapped in to a good aquifer source and the farm will be well provided for moving forward. Ferguson-You have provided us with more help that we could ever hope for. A true blessing! I'm sure some of the other nearby farms may need some labor as many of them have been helping me with my well issues, but my family will balance that debt in short order.
The dwarves are hard at work and have you help them lift out the chains, which are quite heavy. Otherwise they set about their investigation of the site and declare it quite free from additional hazard.
"Ah, it does taste different...more sweet and satisfying."
Assuming Ang does not feel this is the quenching liquid?
"Don't worry about it, I am sure the boy will make the most of the opportunity."
"I will be off now to see if any others need assistance, send word if you need anything."
Head to Mildred and Abe's farm.
A few short hours later you arrive at Abe and Mildred's farm. The pastoral scene is quite tranquil, made even more so by the near complete silence surrounding the farm. You check the area and the wagon is missing, along with the cart horse, and you assume that they have gone somewhere on a trip. Probably not that unusual not that you know they are one of the few local families with a wagon.
If its late in the day, go ahead and sleep in the barn.
Don't want to enter their home without permission, but i'm sure they would not begrudge me a night in the barn.
If there is still daylight continue on, will follow wagon tracks if possible, otherwise just continue in the same general direction.
You decide to spend the night in the barn, hoping that maybe you will run into the couple the following day. Ironically, you find several places in the barn that Abe clearly uses to hide from work and sneak a nap.
The next day you are disappointed to find that no one has made it home. You follow the wagon tracks as they leave the farm but lose the trail once the wagon reaches the main road. Did they go right or left? You just can't tell.
Which way will you go and do you have a destination in mind?
Go whichever way takes me further from the Ferguson farm. Does Ang know any destinations in the area? Farms? Towns?
The nearest towns are Dustspawn to the NE (center of goat herding), Umok (a town of primarily gnomes) to the W past the Northern edge of the Aspodell Mountains that is close to the goblin infested Chitterwood, and Saringallow (a trading town along the Conerica river) that is to the NW.
There are four other small villages nearby the Halls. You think you should really figure out what fluid to bring Korim for the final quench of your hammer.
Ang will head back to Ferguson's to obtain the well water, or assuming he filled his waterskin at the well earlier, he will head back to the Halls.
You return to the Halls of Steel with a skin full of Fersuson's well water and report in to Korim-You are back so soon; all is well with the boy and the Ferguson farm?
"All was well with the boy and farm when I departed. I told his father the boy could come back when he was 13 for training and the Hall would send a boy to help him out. The dwarves of the hall are busy at work, they have removed the adamantine and are cataloguing the tomb. I have brought water from the new artesian well to quench the hammer."
Korim-Indeed? Why did you select this well water for the quenching?
“The water is sweet and pure. The well that enables it to flow to the surface was built partly with my own hands and also with the labor of other good men working not for themselves but to help their neighbor.”
Korim smiles-Ho-ho! If I didn't know better I would think you were getting ready to take up the vows of the monk and find enlightenment at the forge.
He pauses before continuing in a more serious vein-Those are wise words indeed Ang, you have learned quite a bit in your travels. As a paladin of Torag your allegiance is to your people, but that poses a difficult question who are your people? You are no dwarf, certainly, and I do not believe you to be truly human. So where does that put your loyalties?
“I serve Torag. And Torag and the dwarves of this Hall have shown me that a people is not necessarily defined by a race. Did you not take me in and treat me like one of your own? And do you not offer to train Ferguson’s boy, a human? I will help and protect those that need it be they dwarves, humans or other.”
Korim-Hmmmm.... There is no blueprint for these hammer strikes; never before have we trained a non-dwarf to be a paladin of Torag. Taking in the Ferguson boy and showing him the forge or how to be a warrior is a far stretch from what Torag has asked us to do with you.
However, you speak true and the design of our god is certainly behind my comprehension. I imagine those chains will be here in a week or so and then we will make your hammer. In the meantime you should study and reflect on your journey thus far. I will speak to you again when the chains arrive.
He waves his hand at you-clearly you are dismissed and just as clearly Korim has much on his mind.
Advance to level 3 and select 3 additional skill point from amongst the following in addition to the points you get for 3d level. None of them become additional class skills.
Knowledge arcana, dungeoneering, engineering, geography, history, local or nobility; disable device; appraise; heal; survival.
Nine days of intense study, training, and mediation follow your relatively brief meeting with Korim. You feel a renewed flow of strength from Torag and realize that you have taken another step in the path of your service to him.
Finally the chains arrive and Korim sets you to work in the forges. Your first job is to pull the adamantine from the chains and make a few ingots of pure metal. Korim-The work is yours and yours alone. This is a test of your faith in Torag and the power that he has placed in you. If your bond is true, Torag will guide your hands and pull the pure metal from the dross.
Make 3 STR checks and 1 WIS check.
You struggle at the start of the day; your forge muscles had grown somewhat soft with the weeks of disuse. However, by mid-day you find a rhythm and begin to remember some of the small tricks of the art. Korim watches silently the entire time, as do many of the Elders of the Halls.
You find it a bit strange to perform the task in front of an audience and mention it to Korim when you break for your lunch. Korim-Some among us argue that this is when a paladin of Torag truly takes his vows. It is said that each pump of the bellows is a prayer and each smite of the hammer a vow of service. You are doing well; if you can finish this afternoon and feel ready for it tomorrow we can begin on your hammer.
Please roll:
CON
3 STR
CON
You set to work after lunch with much fervor, but by the end of the day the struggle with the metal has sapped your strength. You realize that adamantine is stern not just on the battlefield and know that your hard work now will pay future dividends as you strike at your enemies.
You only wish that you had found more so you could also craft armor from the stuff, but then remember what was held in check by the chains and realize that if there was more you probably would not have survived to see the benefit.
At the end of the day your efforts have produced two fully formed ingots of dark metal speckled with glints of what looks like diamonds. Korim-Well done Ang. Tomorrow you will assist me in the forging of your hammer's head.
Any actions before the next day?
Ang will visit the Temple of Torag to contemplate and pray.
He will also give 150gp of his treasure to the Temple of Torag.
If anyone is in need of healing or removal of sickness, he will use his lay on hands ability.
After dinner you spend your evening at the Forge listening to Brothers work steel. All the supplicants for the day have been tended to and you are far to tired to help them with their work so you spend your time listening and watching.
The steady rhythm of the Brother's work eventually lulls you to sleep where you sit watching and you dream of being chased by storm clouds that repeatedly hurl bolts of lightning at you. As you dream the bolts strike closer and closer leaving your ears ringing with the roar of thunder.
You trip and fall to the ground and as you struggle to get up you see a massive thunderhead forming above you, electricity crackling throughout the dark mass. A flash of lightning springs out towards you and you are awoken by one of the Brothers right before it strikes you. Brother-Return to your room Ang. You will clearly need more peaceful rest to be prepared for tomorrow than you are finding here.
Making your way back to your room you stumple into your cot and fall into a deep dreamless sleep.
The next day you awake refreshed if a little disturbed by your strange dreams at the Forge. You find Korim at breakfast and eat with him quietly. As you both finish, Korim smiles at you-You ready to make a magnificent tribute to our Lord?
It seems my childhood comes back to haunt me in my dreams, but I will stay the path even if it leads into danger.
"I am ready Korim."
Korim leads you to the High Forge where the Masters have been assembled and have apparently been waiting for you. The chamber is filled with haze and scent of incense and the Masters lowly chant the mantra of a working prayer to Torag.
Korim-Some of the ironwood you brought back has been charcoaled. Place that and the remaining wood into the forge fire and work the bellows. When the heat is sufficient we will begin.
Make 3 STR checks
Your excitement and zeal for the forging wear off quickly as your efforts from the previous day take their toll. You struggle to keep bellows working at a regular rhythm but do just enough to bring the forge to a proper temperature.
Korin frowns-You must focus Ang. Torag demands that our last blow carry all the strength of the first. The effort of the forge is training for the effort on the field of battle and a reminder that one must be ever vigilant in driving out evil. Now take up the sledge and act as my striker as I draw out the head of your hammer.
3 more STR checks please
Ang takes up the sledge.