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Our intrepid adventurers gathered at the Boar's Head tavern in the sleepy village of Quercus Grove. The village of Quercus Grove lies on the northern end of a valley just north of the Hullack Forest and roughly south of the Twin Peaks of the Urlspur along the East Way road. Quercus Grove hosts a wine festival every year, when the Monks from a nearby vineyard bring their wines to market. Merchants come from near and far to purchase wine and join in the revelry.
Grubbo the inn keeper in concerned about this years festival. He hires our group of adventurers to investigate rumors of Goblin attacks in the Thunder Gap.
Sure enough, our adventurers are ambushed as they travel along the East Way. They quickly dispatch the Goblins and find more are camped nearby. The goblins trail would seem to lead to a dilapidated keep. The keep has several outbuildings including a small chapel with a graveyard and mausoleum as well as an open stable and large barn. Part of the keep appears collapsed.
The graveyard is haunted by the restless dead! Zombies attack as the adventurers approach. The Mausoleum houses several wights, the once noble inhabitants of the keep.
Well that was the first week of our new campaign. Hopefully our group will have the name for their adventuring company when we play again next week! With some luck maybe they will tell you about their characters!
Hopefully our group will have the name for their adventuring company when we play again next week! With some luck maybe they will tell you about their characters! [/i]
Ok Well in order to make this cool campaign thread my DM created successful, I'll play along...
Quercus Grove. When I came through here I had no intention of spending a week here, much less hunting after some goblin raiders. But alot has changed in a couple years. Since I found her more focus has come into my life. More purpose, more meaning. Anytime I wonder what Im doing, the scar on my side reminds me. Mielikki saved me, not just from Kelemvores wall, but from a life of endless killing...
<Knock>
The rapping on my door means the "others" are ready to go. We'll see what these upstarts can do. I prefer to work alone, but they dont all seem so bad. Still the only campanion I can rely on is Glorium. She may have lost some of her power since the weave collapsed so long ago, but her edge is sharp. Mielikki's enemies be warned, the hunt is on.
- Aroden, Avenger of Mielikki
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Our group of adventurers delved into the ruined fortress...
After carefully scouting the area, the player decide to investigate the barn. They discover a human and a goblin chained together in the barn. The human is Demtry, a cooper from the town of Highmoon in the dales. He was traveling to the monestary to provide his services to the monks and earn a little coin. He was kept by the goblins,who used his skills to make smuggling slaves easier via barrels. The goblin is Jimin'gerin. He was the cook for the tribe and was chained here for feeding the prisoner. Jimin'gerin happily reveals much about the situation, including the human slavers who direct the goblin's activities and that the chief of their tribe is... a dragon!
Aroden the Avenger showed great bravery entering the castle while the rest of the troup argued amongst themselves. Did I hear the cry "Aroden Jenkins" as he lept into the fray? I cannot say for certain. Tauch kept the troop alive with his buffs and healing and prayers to Amaunator and Kaelthas' arcane swordcraft was put to the test. From the shadows lept Blade's crimson daggers, felling many and Cayleena's magic blasted numerous goblins to dust and ashes. They were a force to be reckoned with!
As our heroes crept up the stairs they were nearly out of abilities, yet they confronted the slavers in then keep and were victorious! They captured two of the slave master's lieutenants and dispatched the foul krenshars the slave master kept as pets.
While searching the slave masters quarters they discovered a map and a note. The map was an ancient parchment and crumbled to dust when examined, but the note revealed that this was no simple slave ring and revealed the name of the slain slave master, Ozmet Potts.
Who is Ozmet Potts? How does the dragon Cinereal fit into all this? Who else is invovled in this plot? We will have to wait until next time to find out more...
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The following is a transcript of a letter found in the desk of Ozmet Potts. The identity of the person meant to receive this letter is unknown...
Greetings Master,
Things proceed here according to plan. We continue negotiations with Cinereal. He has provided us with a number of goblins, but seems hesitant to go further. The goblins are aggressive and happy to be working for us. It seems Cinereal has little to keep them busy and slake their lusts. It may be possible to relieve him of the entire tribe if he does not cooperate.
I would assume that you have received our last batch by now? I hope they are meeting your needs adequately. We have seen less traffic on the roads of late, but we should exceed our goal as the wine festival approaches.
I did find something interesting that I would like you to see. I am sure that you already had knowledge of such things, but nevertheless I wanted to make sure that I shared this with you. Be careful with it. It is very delicate.
Your humble servant,
Ozmet Potts
The rescued goblin revealed that Cinereal is a dragon the color of soot.
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Our intrepid band of adventures spent a restless night in the keep with their two prisoners and the liberated slaves. Early the next morning they set out on the road back to town.
The trail winds through a copse of trees. Ahead they can hear the sounds of some sort of angry beast roaring and tearing through the underbrush. Something leaps out of the brush. Its an elf. He examines the party and then hops back into the woods as a massive beasts stumbles out into the trail. It's an owlbear! Our brave band of adventures engage the beast, with Aroden, Kaelthas and Blade leading the charge. While that combat ensues, the elf attacks the wizard Cayleena and frees the prisoners. They make their way into the forest while the party is otherwise occupied with the owlbear.
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The party chases the elf and the escapees through the forest. After a lengthy chase they discover the elf's camp and are attacked by bugbears and (mostly) avoid the pit traps. The elf has a showdown with Aroden, but escapes into the woods.
After unsuccessfully picking the trail back up the party returns to Quercus Grove. They report to the innkeeper Grubbo that they have dealt with the goblin attacks and Grubbo is very happy! Aroden appeals to Grubbo's good nature and gets Bob the Cooper help in getting started in town. Bob is eternally grateful for the parties help and promises to return the favor someday.
Aroden decides to investigate the war wizard who run the town to see if they can trust him with the full story of the happenings at the keep, unfortunately he runs afoul of deputy Pavel before he gathers much info. Pavel puts soem pressure on him and tells the group that they need to get thier adventuring charter squared away and meet with Fodal Marsk, the very wizard Aroden was investigating.
At first Aroden and the party keep the details of thier discoveries a secret, but after a spiritual encounter with the druidess Kara Isi, Aroden reveals teh identity of who they had slain in the keep. This was chilling news to Fodel and he sent them to see an old man by the name of Mivel Mristar...
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When they met Mivel and told him they had slain Ozmet Potts, he told them the story of the Potts he knew, Ozmet's father Azamander Potts. The story began over thirty years before when Mival was still young.
Mival was an page in the service of Lord Galinax of House Bleth, one of the noble houses of Cormyr. Mival was a page for Azamander Potts and over the years the two became close. Azamander was one of Lord Galinfax' closest knights and after many years of tireless service as a page and a squire, the time had come for Mival's dreams to be fulfilled. He was to become a knight.
The oath taking ceremony was to be held in a secret chamber beneath a small chapel near the very same keep that the party had recently explored. The alter in the chapel slid to one side and a narrow stair led to a small cave. Inside the cave unsettling thing grew and Mival was branded by the slimes and molds in the cavern.
Lord Galinfax told Mival that his first duty was to be a great honor and a very important duty indead. He was to ride north to the stone lands and meet with a comrad of his from Nethril reborn and deliver a message. "Soon" Lord Galinfax said, "we will step out of the shadows of Cormyr's current tyrant. Azamander and Lord Galinfax had recognized the nearly boundless ambition in Mivals heart but they failed to see his good heart and he was troubled by these words. As he began to ride out, his course changed and he took teh road to Arabel and turned himself in to the Purple Dragons.
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Although Mival's dreams of knighthood now seemed lost, the Dragons used his knowledge to help round up some of his former companions as the main force of Purple Dragons and War Wizards rode to meet Lord Galinfax on the field of battle.
The Dragons and Lord Galinfax' men met in the rolling land just past the hundred span bridge that crossed the sluggish river and wetlands south of the Falls of Tumbling Stars. Lord Galinfax had not been able to gather his full forces yet, but he was able to supplement his troops with creatures from the elemental chaos and the Abyss.
As Mival's group raced north to reinforce the Purple Dragons, fierce elementals battered the bridge. They made it across just in time and the dragons won the day and Lord Galinfax killed himself rather than submit to the King's justice.
Mival was recognized as a hero and was given a full pension and has lived comfortably, but has always been sad he never got to live his dream of being a knight.
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The party was intrigued by several details in the story. Blade noticed that the brand that Mival carries appears to be an eye in an upside down triangle, although it isn't obvious at first.
The party also wondered why they hadn't seen a chapel at the keep. What had happened to it and where there any further clues in the mysterious chamber beneath the chapel.
Aroden was touched by Mival's sacrifice and appealed to Fodel to see if Mival could be made a Purpel Dragon for his great service to the crown and Fodel agreed.
The Serf's council heard the party's story from Fodel and where most alarmed by the mention of Cinereal. On behalf of the council, Fodel requested that the party eliminate the threat of this dragon and his goblin horde!