Journal 3 - The Keepers of the Hoard

(03/28/22)

Reunion

AD224

After months spent going their own way, Ialtóg, Farryn, and Gunter finally find themselves in Phandalin together once more. However, with his work complete training the town guard, Gunter intends to leave once more to visit his family in Longsaddle. Farryn agrees to travel with him, but Ialtóg chooses to remain in Phandalin and work at the Shrine of Luck for Sister Garaele. Before they leave, Ialtóg gives Farryn and Gunter each a gift from his family back in Ankhapur. For Farryn, a knitted wool blanket made by Ialtog’s mother. And for Gunter, a gallon of sweet halfing mead concocted by his father.

Events in Phandalin

AD225 - AD254 (1 month)

One day while working at the Shrine of Luck, Sister Garaele suddenly returns with Daran Edermath and speaks with Ialtóg. Garaele admits to being a member of the Harpers, a Faction that strives to weed out evil and prefers to work from the shadows. They also explain their concern about a group of Dagon cultists that appear to be gaining in power:

Sister Garaele & Daran Edermath

• After Ialtog sighted the Red Wizard, they lost track of him. Months later, her friend and Harper associate Leosin Erlanthar spotted a Red Wizard meeting with a group of dragon cultists.

• Leosin wrote to Garaele, asking her for help investigating the matter. She left for a few months to investigate, and consulted with Leosin Erlanthar before they split up their investigation.

• She discovered that these dragon cultists were reorganizing. They were often seen as incompetent fools before, and thus were never taken seriously. Some Harper and Order of the Gauntlet leaders still do not believe the cult is a major threat.

• Leosin traveled far, and should be meeting Garaele at Phandalin in a few weeks to share their findings. When Gunter and Farryn return, they will plan how to investigate the situation further.

After the conversation, Ialtog contacts Gunter through the Sending spell, letting him know that their help is needed when they return from Longsaddle.

A few weeks later, Gundren comes to the party’s house at night, and is met by Ialtog alone. Gundren hands Ialtog 400 gold, and explains that the mines opened earlier than expected. Ialtog stored the money in the party treasury, to split with Farryn and Gunter when they returned.

Longsaddle Destroyed

AD225 - AD254 (1 month)

Gunter and Farryn traveled for two weeks to Longsaddle, passing through the crossroads town of Triboar on the way. As they approached just outside of Longsaddle and the Grumbleton’s farm, they discovered the Haventree’s ranch in smoldering ruins. Upon seeing this, They rushed to the Grumbleton’s farm, and were relieved to see it unharmed. All of Gunter’s family was somehow spared the destruction of the neighboring farms and ranches. After introductions were made, they learned from Gunter’s family that an army came and raided Longsaddle just a few days before Gunter and Farryn arrived. The family hid inside their home and heard the troops pass by, but none came to bother them. The family didn't come out until morning. Longsaddle was in ruins by then. Gunter and Farryn decided to check in at Longsaddle, to see what they could learn about the attack. 

The town was clearly besieged. Most of the wooden structures were burned to the ground, a few scattered stone structures still stood. The streets were filled with rubble and debris, and there were strange arcing and branching burns scattered along the ground. A mansion still stood in the city, half destroyed. Farryn noticed cracks in the ground, almost as if a small localized earthquake took place in certain parts of the town. After speaking with some townsfolk, they made their way to the mansion, where they met the human Breddick Margasto, the highest ranking Lord’s Alliance representative that was left alive after the attack.

Breddick Margasto, Lord’s Alliance representative tentatively overseeing Longsaddle

• The town was attacked by a huge army, composed of hundreds. There were many humanoids, and many more kobold, as well as drakes. And worst of all, a dragon that spewed lightning from its maw.

• He's unsure of the true total, but Breddick suspect's hundreds of the town’s 1000 citizens were killed in the siege.

• He noticed most of the troops headed south after the siege was complete.

• Food is in short supply in Longsaddle after the raid. Gunter offered for his family to help bring food into the town.

Gunter and Farryn then made their way back to the farm, and met with the Grumbleton’s farmhand— the dwarf Thorin Ungart— on the way there. Gunter’s mother Mary cooked them all a nice family dinner. Farryn agreed to teach Gunter’s eldest sister Alice how to properly use a bow while they were visiting. Over the next few days, they helped out around the farm, and Gunter assisted in bringing food supplies to Longsaddle. They eventually said their goodbyes, and made the journey back to Phandalin.

Troubling Discoveries

AD255, late-Tarsakh

Soon Farryn and Gunter returned to Phandlin and met with Ialtog, and the party was together once more. Ialtog brought them to Sister Garaele, who explained the situation with the dragon cultists to them all. They agreed to help her, and decided to wait a few days for Leosin Erlanthar to arrive and share what he’s learned. Gunter then quickly stopped at the Townsmaster’s Hall to explain to Sildar Hallwainter what he witnessed in Longsaddle.

They decided to head to the Stonehill Inn to relax after the long journey. There, they met another eladrin by the name of Elindras, who was already familiar with Farryn. Reidoth the druid sent him on Emerald Enclave business to find Farryn and her friends, as he heard of sightings of a blue dragon in the area and was concerned it might be the same one they saw in Thundertree. After discussing their plans already to assist Sister Garaele with the dragon cultists, they decided to head home and rest for the night.

Seek the Keep

AD255, late-Tarsakh

After barely a few hours of sleep, they were awoken in the night by the ringing of the town bell. Gunter knew right away that this meant trouble, so he grabbed his things and rushed out the door, with the others not far behind. Outside of their home, they saw townsfolk panicking and fleeing towards the keep. An army of hundreds had gathered outside Phandalin, and was quickly approaching the town. The group rushed towards the keep, alerting as many townsfolk as they could along the way. They came across a small probe, a group of kobolds and some strangely cloaked individuals, along with a drake. The raiders were chasing down the Dendrar family, Mirna and her two children. The party quickly dispatched the small group, and saved the Dendrars.

They continued making their way to the keep, and met with another raiding party in the middle of attacking the town guard at the base of the hill where the keep stood. They assisted the guards in their battle, then they climbed the hill and entered into the keep; the gates shutting behind them as the last lucky townsfolk made it into the keep. Farryn met with Elindras in the keep, and they took to the walls to defend against any potential attack. Ialtog stayed at the gates to heal any injured guards, ang Gunter spoke with Sildar and Escobert about the current situation.

Meanwhile, the large force of invaders landed in Phandalin, and began pillaging and razing what they could. Just on the outskirts of Phandalin, a winged figure arose from behind the charging army. A large blue dragon appeared, and landed on a house, then fired a beam of lightning at some fleeing townsfolk, eviscerating them instantly. The dragon then took flight once more, and began wreaking havoc on the town of Phandalin.

(04/11/22)

Phandalin in Flames

8 months, 15 days, late-Tarsakh

Farryn recognized the blue dragon as Lennithon, the same dragon that they saw in Thundertree, although Lennithon was somehow now much bigger. While the party discussed with Sildar about their course of action, a young teenage boy was brought to them by a guard. The boy stated that Sister Garaele was holed up in the Townsmaster Hall along with a large group of townsfolk. The boy managed to flee on his own and ran to the keep for safety. They agreed that they must try to save Sister Garaele’s group, so they exited the keep through the old Redbrand hideout in the cellars beneath, and managed to sneak their way to the Townsmaster Hall without incident.

Sanctuary

They saw that the Townsmaster Hall was surrounded by raiders trying to break or burn their way in, with a large group patrolling the road nearby. The party decided to take on the smallest group near the back entrance. One kobold escaped during the fight, and alerted another nearby group of raiders who came to assist. Among this group, there was a bulky draconic humanoid that looked unlike anything dragonborn they had ever seen. It was similar to a dragonborn or half-dragon, but with a tail and wings. When this creature was killed, its body turned to stone and released a petrifying gas that Gunter managed to avoid succumbing to.

During the battle, they made contact with Sister Garaele from inside the building. She gathered the townsfolk inside, and waited for the party to clear an opening. As soon as the opportunity arose, Ialtog led the group of townsfolk towards the secret tunnel into the keep. Gunter and Farryn kept some of the raiders at bay, and managed to escape unseen when the bulk of the attackers came to assist.

Back at the keep, Sister Garaele thanked the party, and offered her healing services to them whenever they should need it. She told Ialtog about the fate of Daran Edermath, who sacrificed himself as a distraction so that Sister Garale and the townsfolk had the time to board themselves up in the Townsmaster Hall. 

On the walls, Escobert pointed out to them a peculiar grouping of the raiders. A blue half-dragon stood along with another humanoid wearing purple robes, accompanied by dozens of guards. These were likely the leaders of this raiding party. Escobert explained that they should try to capture a high ranking officer of the raiders, if the opportunity ever presented itself. A short while after, Sildar spotted the town’s windmill erupt in flames. Worried about the months of food stores that would be destroyed, he asked the party to save the mill from destruction. They agreed, and carefully sped towards the windmill.

Save the Mill

At the windmill, they spotted a relatively small group of kobolds and humans half-heartedly setting fires around the mill. Farryn began to fire off arrows while Gunter charged ahead, chasing a lone kobold into the windmill. Inside, an ambush was sprung. Some more strangely cloaked raiders appeared, along with a wood elf archer with an exotic bow, and attacked Gunter. Ialtog rushed inside, with Farryn following closely behind. Then, the blue half-dragon jumped from the balcony above, as a captive family was brought to everyone’s attention. 

The half-dragon challenged Gunter to one-on-one combat to the death, and as a reward the family would be let go, win or lose. Gunter accepted, and the half-dragon ordered no one to interfere, and even offered Gunter a potion of healing so that the fight would be fair. Farryn and the wood elf exchanged shots in a duel of their own, each bringing their own tricks to the fight. But Farryn managed to break through an onslaught of arcane arrows, and slayed the opposing archer, taking her bow as a prize. Meanwhile, Gunter had grappled the half-dragon and begun wailing down upon him. The half dragon exhaled a breath of lightning at Gunter, dealing a massive blow to Gunter’s endurance. After a few more hits, Gunter went down, and the half-dragon prepared to finish his kill. He struck once at the downed Gunter, bringing him within an inch of death. As he began to strike down again, the purple-robed figure entered the windmill and ordered the fighting to stop, calling the half-dragon by his name: Langdregosa. 

The purple-robed female scolded Langdregosa, as he was not supposed to attack the party. She then told Ialtog to heal Gunter back to consciousness. Gunter came to, and although he was confused at how the situation developed, he quickly recognized the purple-robed lady as the one they had met in Thundertree: Frulam.

Frulam, dragon worshiper, and leader of the raiders(?)

• She explains how she was surprised to learn that the adventurers who helped her in Thundertree were also the adventurers causing so many problems for her predecessor.

  • Thanks to the party’s help, Frulam convinced the blue dragon, Lennithon, to join them. This put her in the good graces of their leader.

  • She believed her predecessor was a fool who put too much faith in the Black Spider, and focused too much on the Forge of Spells, which was a futile endeavor since the forge was in an irreparable state anyway.

  • After the Black Spider was killed and her predecessor failed her mission, her predecessor was replaced by Frulam.

• She looked into Ialtog, Farryn, and Gunter’s pasts, revealing what she knew about them:

  • Ialtog Ulchabhan: a far-traveling halfing all the way from the sea of fallen stars, whose family was displaced after Chondalwoods flooded.

  • Farryn Phirie: the daughter of the famed dragonologist Oria Phyirie, whose work Frulam was a big fan of.

  • Gunter Grumbleton: The eldest son of quite a large family. Frulam was aware of the Grumbleton farm, and ordered the raiders to spare the family during the raid of Longsaddle, as a sign of good faith.

As a final payment to her “debt” owed to the adventurers, Frulam would allow them to leave Phandalin and return to their homes, where they would be allowed to live out their days. But if she ever saw them again, she would not hesitate to have them captured and killed. After some discussion, the party decided they would leave the windmill, and take their chances returning to help the town of Phandalin at the keep. As they left, Gunter and Langdregosa made a commitment to a rematch one day.

Calm before the Storm

When they finally returned to the keep, they explained what had happened to Sildar, and finally got a moment's rest in the chaos of the raid. Farryn showed Elindras the bow she looted from the wood elf at the windmill, and he informed her that the bow was made from dragon bone and had magical properties. The rest was short-lived however, as the blue dragon took special notice of the keep, and began to fly at full speed towards it. Farryn and the arbalest guards stood on the walls, preparing to fire a volley at Lennithon, while Gunter took a team up the tower to man the ballista. Ialtog summoned his sanctuary and blessed his comrades for the oncoming battle. The dragon approached the keep in a hail of arrows and bolts, and with his charge lightning breath eviscerated an entire wall’s worth of guards. Ialtog, Farryn, and Gunter steeled themselves for a fight against a terrifying foe…

(04/18/22)

Dragon Assault

8 months, 15 days, late-Tarsakh

Lennithon continued his assault on the keep by striking the guards along the walls with his claws, and chasing down Farryn as she fired on him with her bow. Gunter and his team worked quickly on the ballista on the tower, landing a few crucial hits on the dragon, and Ialtog supported the party with his sanctuary and necrotic magic. Farryn was struck by arcing lightning from the dragon, and she and Ialtog retreated to the inside of the keep for cover. Sister Garaele met them inside, and she assisted by healing their injuries. After a particularly hard blow by the ballista, Lennithon took special notice of Gunter and his team. The dragon flew to the top of the keep, ripping the ballista off its foundation with ease, then doubled back and launched the ballista back at Gunter, who managed to dodge the brunt of the incoming ballista. Gunter then activated his tattoo and landed a hit with his magical fists.

As the dragon flew past Gunter, Farryn took shots at the dragon through a window from inside the keep, gaining its attention. Lennithon charged his lightning breath and let loose a powerful bolt at Farryn. She took massive damage from the bolt, but managed to absorb part of its effects through her magic.

The defenders hammered away at the dragon with a hail of bolts, arrows, and necrotic magic. Lennithon spoke aloud in draconic, then flew away from the keep before landing behind a shield of houses in the distance. 

-unfinished-

• Dragon flies away, does glowing shit for a minute

• Dragon spawns animated breath, Sildar joins the fight

• Animated breath pursues Farryn and Ialtog relentlessly

• Farryn is knocked down then healed by Ialtog, then Ialtog is knocked down

• Gunter does cool axe jump bullshit and saves the day

• Rush Ialtog to Garaele and heal him

• MUCH deliberating of next course of action. Decide to hold the keep

• All bad guys gone by daylight. Dozens of townsfold killed

(06/28/22)

The Smoke Settles

8 months, 16 days, late-Tarsakh

When Farryn, Ialtog, and Gunter all awaken the next morning, they find that all of the raiders have left Phandalin, and much of the townsfolk have left the keep to pick up what they can of their livelihoods. They spoke with Sildar Hallwinter and Escobert the Red, who asked that they find out as much as they can about the raiders, especially where they might be headed next. Farryn’s eladrin friend from the Emerald Enclave—Elindras Riartihr—said that he would help out at Phandalin for a few days, before returning to Thundertree to inform Reidoth of the situation.

In the town, the party ran into Gundren Rockseeker and Halia Thornton, who were in the middle of an energetic conversation.

-unfinished-

• Gundren had a shipment of precious gems, minerals, and materials stolen during the attack. This shipment was meant for Halia Thornton at the Miner's Exchange

• Halia publicly offered to "sponsor" the party's efforts in finding information on the raider's goals. She paid 500gp up front, and will pay 500gp more when they return to her with sufficient information.

• They went back to the Mill in Phandalin to find the elven archer that was slain by Farryn, but her corpse was gone.

• Ialtog cast Speak with Dead on a deceased Kobold. Through their questioning, he learned:

  • The worshippers call themselves the Keepers.

  • The Keepers were heading back to their camp.

• They tracked the raiders 15 miles east in the Sword Mountains

• They ran into a group of resting stragglers. They were quickly dispatched, and the party recruited two scared Kobolds to guide them to the Raider's camp. They also took a bag of stolen treasure that was being kept by the stragglers.

• The kobolds led the party into a trap, where they were ambushed by a group of fanatical worshippers wearing black robes. The fanatics dropped a Boulder on top of them from above. Party killed the fanatics and continued onward

• They came to the Raiders Camp. Gunter went ahead by himself and ran into a guy that was resting on a tree stump, a human named Segrof. Gunter learned from Segrof:

  • There are different mercenary groups within the Keepers.

  • The Ironbloods think very highly of themselves.

  • Segrof was a member of the Crimson Suns, and believed Gunter was as well.

  • The raiders were all dropping their treasure off at the back of the camp, near the "Nursery"

• The party took up fake names and entered the camp, pretending to be a part of the raiders.

• The camp was set inside the crevice of a large horseshoe-shaped plateau. The front of the camp was manned by nearly a hundred kobolds. The rear was manned by more organized troops. Many wagons and carts laid around the camp. Stragglers made their way into the camp throughout the day.

• Ialtog was singled out by a Keeper, demanding that Ialtog return to his work duties tending to the animals, as the Keeper believed Ialtog was part of the "Irregulars".

• Gunter and Farryn went further into the camp. Gunter attempted some espionage with some of the Ironblood mercenaries, but was bullied out of their camp.

(06/27/22)

The Raider Camp

8 months, 16 days, late-Tarsakh

Ialtog went to work tending the raiders' animals, along with other Irregulars and prisoners. Some suspicious Irregulars questioned Ialtog, and kept an untrusting eye on him through their shift.

Meanwhile, Gunter and Farryn stumbled into the Crimson Suns' camp, which was composed exclusively of humans, dwarves, and elves. They were met by a female elf there named Thilva, who questioned them. Segrof then appeared and welcomed Farryn and Gunter to the camp. They had celebratory drinks from a hidden barrel within one of their tents, but were interrupted by a Keeper who was seeking "volunteer Chefs" to prepare food for later. Gunter was dragged into it, while Farryn stayed behind

At the end of Ialtog’s shift, the suspicious Irregulars brought him back towards their camp, where he was to be questioned by their leader. Farryn stayed at the Crimson Suns’ camp, drinking along with them and gathering information.

Gunter was brought to the food tent. He was taken aback by the slop they were serving, and made some improvements to the meal, creating a type of gumbo. The man in charge of the tent was greatly impressed, and brought some of the gumbo to Frulam Mondath herself. Gunter was then ushered to the Leader tent, as Frulam wanted to meet the person responsible for such a wonderful meal. When he entered the tent, he was immediately recognized by Frulam Mondath and Langdregosa Cyanwrath, as well as an unnatural-looking winged Kobold. Gunter backed out of the tent, and was pursued by them.

At the same time, Ialtog escaped from the Irregulars’ camp by jumping off of a small cliff into the kobold area. They chased him into an area of thick brush, where Ialtog hid silently to avoid capture.

Gunter and Farryn fought off the raiders as best they could, and Ialtog showed himself to aid his comrades. But Farryn was momentarily banished by Frulam back to the feywilds, and Gunter and Ialtog were completely surrounded. They threw down their arms and surrendered to the Keepers of the Hoard. Frulam approached the party, wearing an unusual black mask shaped like the head of a dragon, and cast a Zone of Truth around them, aiming to interrogate them before their execution, but the magical zone caused Gunter to admit his love towards Frulam, taking her completely off guard. She was momentarily flustered by this information, but steeled herself for the task at hand. As she prepared to carry out their execution, Frulam was suddenly distracted, and began talking to someone that wasn’t there. She hurried off to have a conversation in private with whoever she was talking to, and ordered that the party be tied up and “kept in the tent with the other prisoner.”

They had all their equipment and gold taken from them, and were thrown into the prisoner’s tent and tied to posts, where there was already a half-elf tied to a post and badly beaten. He introduced himself as Leosin Erlanthar—the Harper agent that Sister Garaele was waiting to hear from back in Phandalin. He had been captured when he returned to Phandalin during the raid. Together, the four of them hatched a plan to escape. Leosin had hidden a small glass shard in his boot, but was unable to reach it while tied up. Gunter used his incredible strength to break the bonds around his wrist, and retrieved the shard from Leosin’s boot. They waited until night, then cut everyone’s bonds as they escaped from the back of the tent, dispatching the two guards that stood watch. Outside, they saw that all of the camps wagons and carts were being loaded up by the Keepers near the hatchery. Farryn quickly and quietly attempted to look for their gear. She was able to examine the wagons closely, but did not see their equipment being loaded into them.

They then climbed up the cliff, with Gunter assisting Leosin. As they reached the top, they noticed the camp below them was suddenly alert, likely noticing that the prisoners had escaped. The party managed to escape captivity unharmed, and hurried their way back to Phandlin, along with Leosin.

(07/11/22)

Phandalin

8 months, 16 days, night time, late-Tarsakh

The party forced their rough march back to Phandalin. Beaten and tired, Farryn began to suffer from exhaustion before they could make it home. Finally back at Phandalin, they delivered Leosin to Sister Garaele so he could rest in her care. They then went to rest themselves after yet another challenging day.

8 months, 17 days, morning, late-Tarsakh

In the morning, Gunter went to speak with Sildar Hallwinter at the Keep about the events of the raid on Phandalin. Gunter tried to push Sildar towards action, but ultimately Sildar believed that the Lord’s Alliance could not be mobilized so easily, and its leaders would require convincing in time. Sildar mentioned that there were talks of a potential gathering in Waterdeep, where the leaders of the Lord’s alliance would formally discuss the raids. However, this gathering would take weeks to organize. Defeated and unsatisfied, Gunter left the Keep to join up with the rest of the group.

They met at  the Shrine of Luck, and spoke with Sister Garaele and Leosin. As Gunter exclaimed his disdain for the inaction of Sildar and the Lord’s Alliance, Leosin explained that he had experienced the same thing when dealing with the Harpers' leadership. Leosin suggested that they do what they can to hinder the Keepers, by starting with the hatchery they saw back at the Raider camp.

Before heading back to the camp, the party stopped at the keep and rearmed themselves with basic reserve equipment. They then went to speak with the master of the Miner's Guild, Halia Thornton, about getting paid for their information. Halia did not think their information was sufficient, but after being pestered and annoyed by Farryn, she relented. Halia paid them 300gp now, and would pay them another 300gp if they returned with the information she sought. The party took the money, and left for the Raider Camp.

The Hatchery pt.1

8 months, 17 days, afternoon, late-Tarsakh

They returned to the camp, which was by this point abandoned and torn down. The wagons have left, all of the kobolds tents have been burned, and the rest have been packed up. There was no sign of anyone else remaining. At the cave entrance to the Hatchery, Ialtog spotted two kobolds that were distracted, toying with a shiny diamond. They quickly and quietly dispatched the kobolds, and entered the cave.

The inside of the caves was a kobold den of traps and mischief. They marched ahead, triggering many traps along the way. First, they fell victim to a set of collapsing stairs, dropping them into a cave full of shriekers and violet fungus, which alerted the rest of the cave. 

Then, they stumbled into a lair full of dozens of hungry stirges. The strange winged kobold waited for them, throwing a fire bomb into the room and stirring up the stirges, but Ialtog’s spirit guardians incinerated them all before a single stirge could cause them harm. As they chased down the winged kobold, they came upon a large trash pit. While peaking over the edge, the floor collapsed beneath Gunter and a trapped log swung at the rest of the party, threatening to knock them into the pit. They all dodged the traps however, and Gunter carefully decided to search the pit, finding a few small gems. While exiting the pit Gunter was attacked by foul smelling-troglodytes, and pelted with rocks from kobolds hiding in murder holes above the pit. He managed to escape as Farryn and Ialtog provided cover from above. 

As the party entered the drake nursery, they were attacked by kobolds. One kobold unlocked the gate to the nursery below, freeing some untrained drakes which attacked indiscriminately. During the battle, Gunter watched one kobold attempt to use a bow that was much too large for it. This bow was Farryn’s dragon-scaled bow, which was taken the night before when the party was captured.  While moving to the next area, Gunter triggered a clever catapult springtrap from the floor beneath him, launching him 20 feet into the air, into a web of giant spiders. This trapped injured Gunter greatly, but the party killed the spiders and lowered Gunter back down safely.

(07/18/22)

The Hatchery pt.2

8 months, 17 days, afternoon, late-Tarsakh

The next room was the kobolds’ barracks, full of dozens of them. While they battled the kobolds, they discovered nearly all of their missing gear shared amongst the little monsters. They took one of the kobolds hostage—named Degs— to lead them through the cave.

They finally caught up with the winged kobold in the dragon shrine. The kobold was accompanied by two berserkers from the Ironblood mercenaries, one of which was the half-orc that taunted him in the raider camp. Ialtog and Gunter fought the berserkers while Farryn chased down the winged kobold into a corner. The kobold used alchemical mixtures to mimic the abilities of a dragon, but it was not enough. After killing the kobold and the berserkers, the party searched the room, finding a locked chest that was likely trapped. 

Degs then lead them into Frulam’s presonal chambers, where they found a map vaguely detailing some of the Keepers’ plans, as well as some loose papers of dragon-themed poetry. The map pointed them towards the town of Triboar, with an arrow continuing south from there along the Long Road. Farryn searched a chest in Frulam’s bedroom, finding a key and a bunch of clothes, both of which she took.

The party then traveled into the final area of the cave. It was dark in the lower area, but Farryn could faintly make out three large egg-shaped objects. Gunter went further to investigate, but was struck by a falling object from the top of the cave. They quickly discovered it was not an object however, but a creature disguised as a normal stalactite. They were then face-to-face with a large creature guarding the cave, with the appearance of a cluster of stalagmites. The creature’s tendrils grappled with all three of them, sometimes bringing them in for a bite, and sometimes dropping them from high above. 

The party barely managed a victory against the creature, and afterwards examined the remainder of the hatchery. There, laid three large dragon eggs, two black, and one blue. After much deliberation, they decided to take the eggs back with them to Phandalin. On their way out Degs tried to fight back against them out of desperation, and was killed by Farryn. They looted the chest in the Dragon Shrine before leaving, and found all of their stolen gold inside, as well as some gems and a ring with the emblem of the Lionshield Coster inscribed on it.

(8/31/23)

Phandalin

8 months, 17 days, evening, late-Tarsakh

Gunter, Ialtog, and Farryn returned to Phandalin with the three dragon eggs. There, they met up with Elindras, who urged the party to let him bring the eggs back to Reidoth and the Emerald Enclave, where they would return the eggs to their natural habitat far away from the Keepers. After some deliberation, the party decided to leave the eggs with Elindras.

They then went to inform Sildar Hallwinter of the Keeper’s plans, as well as Eosin and Sister Garaele. Leosin told them of a close contact he has in the town of Triboar: a human Order of the Gauntlet official named Ontharr Frume. Leosin offered to travel with the party the next morning and meet with Ontharr together.

Lastly, the group sought out Gundren Rockseeker for a loan of gold towards their plans to hunt the Keepers, however Gundren had to decline as his gold was already tied up in returning his mining operations to normal after the attack on the town.

(10/11/23)

Greengrass in Triboar

8 months, 24 days, Greengrass

After 7 days of travel, the party arrives in Triboar in the afternoon. They quickly realized that the town is in the midst of its annual Greengrass festival. Leosin takes the group to meet with Ontharr Frume. Ontharr explains that he and Leosin, as well as a handful of concerned leaders from the Emerald Enclave and other factions, are in the very early stages of organizing against the Keepers. A Grand Council is set to meet in Waterdeep within the next month to discuss the issue of the attacks on Longsaddle, Phandalin, Yartar, and other towns in the surrounding area. The group agrees to continue tracking the cultists in Triboar, but first they decide to try to warn the town’s leader of potential danger. Ontharr points them in the right direction.

Meeting with the Lord Protector

They meet with the Lord Protector of Triboar: a human woman named Darathra Shendrel. Gunter tries his hardest to convince Darathra to cancel the festival and put the town on guard, but Darathra vehemently refuses. Greengrass is an important day economically for the town, and canceling the festival would cause more harm than good. She assured Gunter that their elite patrol force known as The Twelve would be placed on watch around the town’s outskirts. Darathra complained of a group of mercenaries that were bothering her about potentially shady dealings with some cultists. These mercenaries called themselves “Redblades, or something of that order.” Curious, Gunter sought out these mercenaries.

Redbrand Mercenaries 

They found the mercenaries in a local tavern. Gunter was cautiously delighted to learn that these mercenaries were actually the Redbrands that he gave a second chance back in Phandalin, led by Jeshem Zehli. Jeshem rebuilt the “Redbrand Mercenaries” in Triboar, throwing away his life of thuggery for one more noble. Jeshem told Gunter that his mercenaries were hired to protect a shady merchant. This merchant spoke way too much for his own good, and when he let slip that he was wanted by "crazy dragon cultists" and that he was involved with some shady stuff, the Redbrands backed out. Jeshem gave the party the last known location of this merchant. During this conversation with Jeshem, Farryn snuck away and purchased the closest thing to a cake this seedy tavern had: a large sausage log. It was her birthday, and she wanted to celebrate with her friends.

Ex-Cultist Merchant

The party tracked down this merchant to a run-down house in Triboar. Farryn talked her way inside past the merchant's new guards, while Ialtog and Gunter tried to sneak around the back. The merchant, a red tiefling, was caught off guard at the sight of Farryn, and he drew his blade. Farryn tried her best to talk herself out of the situation, but the merchant became more paranoid as they talked. Eventually, Gunter broke through the rear door of the house, and Ialtog misty stepped into the room from outside. Surrounded, the merchant was now willing to talk, for a price in gold. After the party paid the price, the merchant explained his situation:

The merchant, Ammeros, lives and works in Triboar, selling curiosities and artifacts to the highest bidder. He joined the Keepers, only because of the money they paid. When someone offered him more money for an artifact he had acquired for the Keepers, he folded and sold to the highest bidder. The Keepers now want him dead, so he hired guards as protection.

Ammeros gave the party what information he knew of the Keeper’s activities:

• He didn’t know anything about the Keeper's Army, other than that they were never in Triboar. This town was a valuable crossroad, and the Keepers likely didn't want to disrupt their own route. There were other merchant and caravaneer cultists waiting in Triboar to take over the delivery of the wagons.

• He believed that the Keepers were gathering treasure and various magical artifacts to present as gifts to other dragons.

• He met Frulam once. The dragon mask she carries helps her gain influence over dragons.

• He knew that the Keepers have blended their wagons in with the Caravan, and are leaving in the morning along with the other merchants.

Caravan Camp

After speaking with Ammeros, they hunted down these cultist caravans throughout the various caravan camps in Triboar. After Ialtog recognized some of the wagons, he was met with a familiar face from his past: a female lizardfolk Caravan leader named Kroga. Ialtog had traveled with Kroga in a caravan in the past, and he was excited to see Kroga. His excitement soon gave way to suspicion, however. After Ialtog explained to Kroga that they were tracking down a dragon cult, Kroga became noticeably nervous. Just then, a group of shady caravan guards urged Kroga to help them with their preparations. Kroga was less willing to speak with the party at this point, but she told Ialtog if he was looking for caravan work again to seek out one the other wagoneers in this caravan who were looking to hire guards for the journey. She gave them the names of Beyd Sechepol, Losvius Longnose, and Dai Angesstun. They thanked Kroga, and were on their way, although they were now suspicious of her allegiances.

Reconvening with Ontharr

Thanks to Ialtog, Farryn, and Gunter, Ontharr and Leosin now had a solid lead on the Keeper’s plans. They urged the group to follow the cultist caravan in the morning and find the gathering point for all this treasure. Before they leave, Ontharr suggests that they enjoy the festival night while they still can. Ontharr mentions that he himself will be taking part in the festival's yearly arm wrestling competition.

Celebration

The group decides to take a break for the night, and enjoy the festivities while celebrating Farryn's birthday. The party stops to eat at a fancy local restaurant, before joining in on the festival…

(11/29/23)

Greengrass in Triboar pt.2

8 months, 24 days, evening, Greengrass

After stopping for a dinner celebration, Gunter, Ialtog, and Farryn split up to look for the three caravan merchants. During her search, Farryn gets distracted by a festival archery game. She successfully completes the sharpshooting challenge, and wins a stuffed owlbear toy. A young girl next to Farryn demanded that her father get the owlbear from Farryn. Annoyed by the bratty girl, Farryn refused to part with the toy at any price, and so the father and daughter left in a huff.

Gunter managed to find the halfling jeweler Losvius Longnose. Losvius explained to Gunter that he was waiting towarch the arm wrestling challenge, as many merchants would be looking to hire the strongest contestants as guards. Needing no more excuse, Gunter excitedly signed up for the competition.

Ialtog searched the crowds for Beyd Sechepol, but he was unfruitful in his hunt. Ialtog decided he would sign up for the arm wrestling competition as well, for fun.

Arm Wrestling Competition 

Before the start of the challenge, Gunter sized up his competition. The only notables were Ontharr Frume, and another very large man. Gunter wished them both luck. The large man was quiet, but cordial, and reciprocated the sportsmanlike gesture.

Gunter and Ialtog easily defeated their opponents in the first round. In the second round Gunter faced off against the large man, who was introduced as Sulesdeg "the Pole". The Pole's unusual streak of bad luck caused him to fold under Gunter's strength. At the same time, Ialtog went arm-to-arm with Ontharr, however Ontharr too was defeated by Ialtog. Finally, Ialtog faced Gunter in the last round. Ialtog put up a strong defense against Gunter, but in the end he could not overcome Gunter's might, and Gunter was crowned as the arm wrestling champion.

Gunter and Ialtog both attracted the attention of parties interested in hiring them as guards, including Beyd, Losvius, and the man with the annoying daughter who they now learned was Dai Angesstun. The party ultimately chose to join Losvius in the caravan. With matters settled, they booked a room at the inn and slept for the night.

• Left next morning

• Encountered Loviatar cultists on the road

• Dai beats horses

• Encounter a merchant being attacked by hobgoblins

(3/12/23)

• Save merchant from goblins

• Dai wants to buy Ialtog's necklace

• Elf tries to steal Ialtog's necklace at night

• Arrived in Westbridge

  • Turned in elf to jail

  • Kroga acting suspiciously

  • Try to get Kroga and her guards drunk

• In the morning, Dai hires Company of the Silver Rose

• Caravan leave Westbridge

• Encounter golden Stag in ruins

(4/01/23)

• A few squirrels attack Farryn

• Spiders attack caravan and steal/kill horses, Company is useless 

• Party hunts spiders to cave and saves remaining horses

• Several swarms of squirrels attack the caravan, along with two owlbears

• They notice the owlbears and spiders focused on one wagon in particular

• Gunter birthday 9th of Mirtul

• Convince animal smuggler to free unicorn. Smugglers agree to separate from caravan (Zhentarim involvement)

• Farryn sees vision of Golden Stag, rewards Farryn with knowledge, then disappears

• Arrive in Red Larch

  • Gunter learns of the local delicacy: crumblecake

  • Farryn sneaks into the kitchen and manages to convince the cook to give her the recipe

  • Farryn and Ialtog get drunk, Ialtog silently breaks into Kroga's room and embarrasses himself

(5/02/23)

• Gunter and Ialtog buy plate armor the next morning

• The caravan leaves for Amphail

• Farryn gets sick next day

• Arrive in Amphail

• Spy on Kroga at night with tiny hut spell

• Next morning, a group of thugs asks around the Caravan, looking for the animal smugglers

• The party points them in the direction of Longsaddle, and the thugs leave

• Arrived in the Waterseep, saw Griffon cavalry

• Caravan separates in the city, party follows Kroga's wagons to the north

• Run into Leosin, who has arranged a meeting for them at the Yawning Portal

• Meeting happens at Yawning Portal

• Group enters into Undermounain

(6/12/23)

• Mummy temple to laser room

(6/20/23)

• Fought mummy lord and won

• Returned to Yawning Portal with treasure

• Slept