Slûûp forever proclaims his life debt and devotion to his Emancipators, the Breakers of Chains, who freed him from his miserable life in bondage to fell powers and delivered Slûûp into his new life as a free, humble servant of Oghma, the Lord of Knowledge. Slûûp hereby vows to record the great deeds of his saviors and binds their tales forever into The Chronicles of the Former Masters.
The Story So Far
What began as a simple escort along the Triboar Trail became something far larger the moment goblins ambushed Gundren Rockseeker’s caravan and killed Gomlee Moonstagg. Following the attackers into Cragmaw Cave, the party rescued Sildar Hallwinter and learned that Gundren had been taken—and with him, a map to the legendary Wave Echo Cave. Someone called the Black Spider wanted the mine badly enough to kill for it.
From there, the road only darkened.
In Phandalin, the party broke the Redbrands’ hold over the town and killed their leader, the traitorous wizard Iarno “Glasstaff” Albrek. Beneath Tresendar Manor they found prisoners, monsters, and letters proving that Iarno had been working for the Black Spider. Victory only led them farther from safety.
They bargained with Agatha the Banshee, destroyed an orc warband at Wyvern Tor, and nearly died fighting the Red Wizard Hamund Kost and his undead at Old Owl Well. Companions vanished without explanation. The Lost Hills swallowed two days inside an impossible illusion, where the party faced ancient trials and something that bore the mark of a long-banished god.
Others joined them: Mo Moonstone, Verna Isalo, Raemund Faeton, and Erynn Haldwynn. Others were lost. In ruined Thundertree, Erynn vanished into black glass. The survivors fought through blights, ash zombies, dragon cultists, and finally the green dragon Ventashlymthor. They drove the dragon from his lair and earned the location of Wave Echo Cave, but Gundren was still missing.
At Cragmaw Castle, the party found him. They also found Sildar’s ancestral blade, Winter’s Oath, slew King Grol, and encountered something wearing the face of a drow woman named Vyerith. When wounded, she changed. The drow had never been a drow at all.
The shapechanger escaped into Neverwinter Wood. The party barely escaped after her.
Pursued by the Bloodsword warband, they carried a dying Gundren through the forest, surviving goblins, wolves, ogres, undead, and worse before staggering back into Phandalin. There, for a few precious days, they were allowed warmth. Food. Drink. Safety.
Then Gundren woke. His brothers were still missing and Wave Echo Cave was waiting.
Beneath the Sword Mountains, the party found a place that had been dead for centuries but had never truly gone quiet. Waves crashed impossibly somewhere beneath the earth. The Weave twisted around them. Ancient corpses walked again. A green-flamed skull hurled fire through forgotten halls while the remains of dwarves, orcs, and goblins rose to continue a war that should have ended generations ago.
Deeper within the mine, they finally found the Black Spider. The drow wizard had spent months manipulating goblins, Redbrands, doppelgangers, and Glasstaff in his attempt to seize the Forge of Spells. He fought. He hid behind darkness. He tried to disappear.
This time, the party did not let him.
Rig put an arrow through his chest and took him alive. Nearby they found Tharden Rockseeker, starved but living—and another thing wearing his brother Nundro’s face. Silver exposed the deception. The false dwarf burned, changed, and died.
The real Nundro had not survived.
The party pressed deeper. They discovered the mine’s original charter, proving the Rockseekers had been its wardens centuries before. They freed a beholderkin from a contract it had obeyed long after everyone who signed it was dead. They destroyed the wraith Mormesk and recovered an ancient history of Delzoun containing a map whose paths led not across the surface, but through the Underdark.
At last, inside the forgotten magical workshop of Wave Echo Cave, they found the thing everyone had been searching for: the Forge of Spells. Still burning. Still alive.
Outside the mine, their captive finally talked. The Black Spider admitted that the Forge had been only part of his ambitions. His dealings with the Red Wizards concerned something greater, and his younger brother, Ravel, was already searching for another relic of the ancient dwarven world: Gauntlgrym.
Rae promised the Black Spider freedom for his cooperation. Rae kept his word, but Tharden Rockseeker made no such promises. Two blows of a hammer served the Rockseeker Clan's justice and ended the Black Spider’s story.
The party returned to Phandalin victorious. Wave Echo Cave belonged to the Rockseekers again. The Forge survived. Tharden came home. For ten days, the party rested, trained, repaired weapons, learned new magic, and tried—briefly—to live like people who were not constantly being hunted.
But the world had not been resting with them.
The map recovered from Wave Echo Cave appears to lead into the Underdark. Ravel searches for Gauntlgrym. The Red Wizards are pursuing something more dangerous than the Forge. Cragmaw Castle has become Bloodshield Keep, and its new masters remember who destroyed the old one.
And to the north, Neverwinter is beginning to stir. The Harper cell there is leaderless after a murder. Abominations are crawling from the Chasm. Mount Hotenow is showing signs of life.
Then Meilu—the party's beloved mule and Gomlee's old friend—begins glowing silver. For one impossible moment, the old mule looks young again. She hears bells. Running water. She remembers Gomlee. And she remembers his unfinished business in Neverwinter.
The party came to Phandalin because Gundren Rockseeker offered them ten gold pieces. Sixty days later, they leave it as heroes.
Their road now turns north, toward New Neverwinter. A city rebuilt over catastrophe, where the Chasm still yawns open and Mount Hotenow has begun to stir. A city full of people willing to live over the ashes of The Ruining.
For most of the party, Neverwinter is a city rife with opportunity. For some, it has even become a home. For one, it's a funeral pyre.
But ruins have a way of keeping what was buried beneath them.
Session 33: Mirtul 15-24 ,1471 (Days 51-60)
S033 full session notes here>>
The party’s return to Phandalin finally gives everyone a chance to stop moving long enough to understand what they actually accomplished. Sildar meets them at the Stonehill Inn, where Gundren and Tharden are recovering together, and receives the full report: the Black Spider is dead, Wave Echo Cave has been reclaimed, the Forge of Spells still functions, and the Rockseekers now possess documents proving their centuries-old stewardship of the mine. Sildar considers the recovery enormously important for both Phandalin and the wider Neverwinter region and begins planning for Lords’ Alliance support, specialists, security, and the slow work of reopening the mine.
Their discoveries also create several new problems. Sildar is deeply disturbed to learn that the Black Spider’s younger brother, Ravel, is searching for Gauntlgrym. Even more immediately useful, he studies the bizarre map hidden inside Mormesk’s book and identifies it as almost certainly depicting the Underdark. Without a recognizable entrance or landmark, however, he cannot determine where. The House of Knowledge in Neverwinter becomes their best lead, and Sildar agrees to prepare a Lords’ Alliance writ for Rae to help gain access.
Rather than immediately charging toward the next crisis, the party remains in Phandalin for a tenday of recovery and training.
Vala deepens her connection to divination and enchantment magic, trades spellwork with Rae, and attunes to the Black Spider’s Spider Staff despite finding its magic distinctly unpleasant. She also begins teaching Mo music theory after he buys himself a lute—and spends most evenings continuing her relationship with Ser Sildar.
Mo spends much of his training outside Phandalin, experimenting with new animal forms, weather magic, and the 3rd-level spells now available to him. Carp periodically spies on his exercises, which Mo rewards by pretending not to notice and occasionally behaving as though he is hunting the boy while transformed. Still frustrated that Wave Echo Cave failed to answer the deeper mystery he has been pursuing, Mo also decides to try something entirely different: he buys a lute. Vala begins teaching him music theory, and despite the difficulty of fitting thick dwarven fingers around the instrument, he earns his first successful step toward proficiency.
Orthanc spends his downtime training his new Extra Attack and increasingly absurd giant abilities, running laps around Phandalin, lifting boulders, and practicing combat at larger sizes. He gets his battered maul repaired, resumes cooking lessons with Toblen, and commissions a properly sized sword for Carp. His greatest accomplishment, however, is attuning to Splitter, the ancient Delzoun executioner’s axe recovered from Wave Echo Cave. The weapon tests him physically, magically, and spiritually before finally accepting him. Splitter reshapes itself for his goliath proportions, grows alongside him when he changes size, and begins adding a new symbol to its haft for its newest bearer.
Verna spends much of the tenday with Halia, beginning formal training with a Poisoner’s Kit and learning how to safely harvest and process dangerous ingredients—including materials that may eventually allow her to manufacture drow poison. Halia also gives her instructions for locating the Network once the party reaches Neverwinter. Verna successfully attunes to the Boots of Striding and Springing, but her relationship with the Gauntlets of Ogre Power proves considerably more hostile: whenever she tries to connect with them, an ogre screams directly into her head. After several failures and increasingly elaborate lifting advice from the entire party, Sildar finally tells her to stop imagining the boulder as a rock and instead picture a goblin she wants to throw into space. This makes immediate sense to Verna, and she finally succeeds.
Rig spends much of the tenday training directly with Sildar, developing the Battle Master techniques she has begun incorporating into her two-weapon fighting style. Her successful training earns her a maneuver taught personally by Sildar: Puncturing Attack. Halia also sends her an extraordinary matched pair of masterwork dueling weapons as thanks for information that proved profitable to the Network, while Sildar gives her Lesser Oils of Sharpness so that her preference for mundane weapons will not leave her helpless against creatures ordinary steel cannot harm.
Rae spends his downtime studying under Sister Garaele, beginning a longer course of training in local and regional history. His first lessons focus on lost settlements and old dangers around Neverwinter, including Leilon and the broken magical constructs surrounding the Tower of Thalivar. He also develops his new cleric abilities and exchanges spellwork with Vala. During his studies, however, Garaele receives grim news: Cymril, leader of the Neverwinter Harper cell, has been murdered. The small organization has been left leaderless and unstable, and Garaele asks Rae to seek out Cymril’s lieutenants at the House of a Thousand Faces once the party reaches Neverwinter.
The most unexpected development comes from Meilu. While Rig brushes her in the stable, the aging mule briefly seems to grow younger: silver light moves through her coat, iridescent traces linger in the air, and the sounds of bells and running water appear from nowhere. Through Mo, Meilu explains that the moment reminded her of Gomlee, her companion of many years. She also remembers that before his death, Gomlee said they still had business in Neverwinter—and admits that something about Silverymoon still seems to call to her.
By the end of ten days, the party has reached Level 5, recovered from Wave Echo Cave, and acquired more power, equipment, and information than they have had at any previous point in their journey.
They also have far more directions to go.
The Harpers need help in Neverwinter. Abominations are pouring from the Chasm. Mount Hotenow is showing renewed activity. An expedition has vanished near Leilon.
And closer to home, Cragmaw Castle has become Bloodshield Keep, where a new goblinoid force is rebuilding—and apparently wants revenge on the people who destroyed the old one.
For perhaps the first time, the problem is no longer finding somewhere to go.
It is deciding which threat they can afford to leave alone.
Session 32: Mirtul 15 ,1471 (Day 51)
S032 full session notes here>>
The party finally leaves Wave Echo Cave, exhausted but victorious, and reunites with Meilu and Baby Wolf Friend outside. Their campsite has apparently been running perfectly well without them: Meilu has even gathered a hidden stash of food. Rig and Mo reward her with a silvery battle braid, Vala debuts a new song called “A New Pact,” Rae contributes an aggressively enthusiastic jig, and Orthanc manages to cook a meal that is officially deemed passable. The Black Spider, meanwhile, spends the night buried up to his neck, hogtied and gagged.
By morning, Verna discovers a less charming souvenir from Wave Echo Cave: Flesh Rot, contracted from the disgusting pool she fell into. Fortunately, the Potion of Vitality cures it before things become truly horrific.
Then the interrogation finally begins.
With Rae questioning him and Vala secretly reading his thoughts, the Black Spider admits that Glasstaff and the goblins were merely tools in his attempt to seize the Forge of Spells and restore his standing among the drow. More troublingly, Vala discovers that his dealings with the Red Wizards concern something more powerful than the Forge. A second probe reveals another major lead: his younger brother Ravel is searching for Gauntlgrym, the legendary lost dwarven capital of Delzoun. The Black Spider also confirms that Nundro Rockseeker was killed and his body dumped into Wave Echo Cave’s contaminated pool.
Rae promises the Black Spider his freedom in exchange for answering their questions—and honors that promise.
Tharden does not.
As the drow walks away, Tharden rises, takes up a hammer, and strikes him from behind.
“You killed me brother.”
A second blow finishes the Black Spider.
By evening, the party returns to Phandalin and reunites Tharden with Gundren. Nundro is gone, but one Rockseeker brother has come home.
And waiting beyond that reunion are new problems: the Red Wizards, Ravel, and the lost city of Gauntlgrym.
Session 31: Mirtul 15 ,1471 (Day 51)
S031 full session notes here>>
Fresh from discovering the ancient mine charter, the party investigates Wave Echo Cave’s old battlefield—only for green magic to raise its centuries-dead soldiers around them. Dwarf, orc, and goblin skeletons close in alongside an enormous skeletal ogre. Rig quickly learns from experience and starts beating the undead with the pommels of her stilettos, while Rae’s Turn Undead sends several fleeing into the tunnels. Verna obliterates the ogre with radiant magic, and Orthanc discovers that sufficiently enthusiastic bludgeoning can make skeletons explode into bone shrapnel.
Behind another set of ruined doors, the party encounters Mormesk, the furious wraith of a mage killed during Wave Echo Cave’s destruction. Vala attempts diplomacy and learns that he has spent centuries guarding his possessions with undead servants. Unfortunately, Mormesk then helpfully gestures toward where those possessions are hidden.
Verna immediately shoots him in the back.
Radiant magic tears through the wraith, and he is destroyed after a very brief fight—though his accumulated centuries of misery explode outward in one final psychic blast. Among his treasures, Vala finds a magically preserved history of ancient Delzoun containing a mysterious hidden map unlike anything she or Mo recognizes. She promptly tells Verna not to tell Halia about it. Verna’s pendant mysteriously grows warm.
The party then returns to the beholderkin Zolakir. Using Mormesk’s belongings as proof that his ancient employers are dead, they convince him his centuries-old contract has finally ended. He politely wishes them a good day and disappears.
At last, they enter the guarded workshop.
There, burning weakly in an ancient brazier, they find what everyone has been searching for:
The Forge of Spells is still alive.
Session 30: Mirtul 14 ,1471 (Day 50)
S030 full session notes here>>
The party finishes off the Black Spider’s remaining bugbears, with Orthanc reducing the enormous bruiser’s already-split skull to what is later described as a “pancake.” Once the fighting ends, they finally get a proper look at the cavern around them: an immense, battle-scarred chamber glittering with mineral deposits like a night sky. Vala realizes the instability in the Weave is dramatically stronger here—the source of Wave Echo Cave’s magical corruption is somewhere nearby.
Rig promptly wanders into an ancient magical workshop and meets Xolorkyr, a beholderkin who has apparently spent centuries enforcing the exact terms of an old contract. Surprisingly polite, he explains that the workshop is restricted and that he ultimately answers to the mine’s warden: a Rockseeker named Thraden “Deep Delver.” Rig compliments his professionalism, promises him a five-star review, and wisely leaves without violating the rules.
Elsewhere, Mo finally discovers the source of the cave’s namesake sound: an enormous geothermal underground lake, where twenty-foot waves repeatedly crash against the cavern walls. The party also survives poisonous fungi, a swarm of Stirges that nearly drains Mo dry, and a Lesser Black Pudding that teaches everyone an important lesson about putting ordinary weapons—or bear paws—into acid.
Among the ancient dead, they uncover a Rockseeker warrior carrying a pristine magical double-bladed axe, further proving the family’s ancient connection to the mine.
Then, hidden behind a magically warded lock, the party finds something potentially even more valuable: Wave Echo Cave’s original charter.
The records establish centuries of Rockseeker stewardship—and name a Rockseeker as the mine’s final Warden.
For the first time, Gundren’s claim to Wave Echo Cave is more than a family story.
They have proof.
Session 29: Mirtul 14 ,1471 (Day 50)
S029 full session notes here>>
With the Black Spider unconscious, gagged, netted, and still being sat on by Rig, the party turns to the excavation site his followers had been working nearby. Verna promptly falls twenty feet into it, but her dignity fares worse than she does. With Orthanc’s help, she uncovers the skeleton of an ancient dwarven miner buried beneath the collapse—and a pair of strange ogre-faced gauntlets still on his hands.
Searching the Black Spider’s quarters reveals a long-abandoned temple to Dumathoin, Keeper of Secrets Under the Mountain, along with maps, treasure, alchemical ingredients, and the Black Spider’s obsidian spider-headed staff, which Vala immediately claims. More importantly, an iron key taken from their prisoner opens a locked chamber containing two battered dwarves bearing Rockseeker heraldry.
Vala, now vindicated in her extreme doppelganger paranoia, insists they test both captives with Rae’s silver rings. The first “Nundro” promptly begins to burn.
After a short fight, the creature is killed and collapses back into its gray, featureless true form. The second dwarf proves genuine: Tharden Rockseeker, starved and beaten but alive. He reveals that he and Nundro were captured weeks ago while waiting for Gundren, and that Nundro suffered what Tharden believes was a fatal wound. The party promises to search for his brother’s body before leaving him safely locked away to recover.
The party then resumes exploring with the unconscious Black Spider strapped to Orthanc.
They quickly stumble into more bugbears.
During the fight, Mo is ambushed from behind and nearly strangled with a garrote. Vala saves him by magically forcing her own recurring terror of watching everyone she loved burn in the fires of The Ruining directly into the bugbear’s mind—an attack she proudly describes as “weaponized trauma dumping.”
Mo can breathe again.
Unfortunately, more bugbears are already approaching from behind them.
Session 28: Mirtul 14 ,1471 (Day 50)
S028 full session notes here>>
The confrontation with the mysterious drow immediately becomes the fight the party suspected it would. As Mo summons a spectral Baby Wolf Friend behind him, the wizard reveals himself as the Black Spider and demands to know who sent them—apparently convinced that his mother, Matron Zorlaran, his cousins, or his brother Ravel must have discovered what he is doing inside Wave Echo Cave.
Battle erupts against the Black Spider, his frenzied bugbear guards, and an alarming number of giant spiders. Magical Darkness leaves Orthanc briefly fighting blind and deaf, but he still manages to crush two bugbears in a single swing, inaugurating the “Smashburger.” Rig kills a giant spider by climbing onto its body and stomping through its abdomen, while Vala pours Cat’s Eye Potion directly into her eyes and discovers that magical pupil dilation is apparently extremely unpleasant.
The Black Spider repeatedly tries to escape with Darkness, Shield, and finally Invisibility, but Miss Tra can see his ethereal outline. Mo corners him, and Rig lands an arrow straight through his chest before deliberately knocking him unconscious instead of killing him. She binds him in net and rope, stuffs ribbons into his mouth, and sits on him for safekeeping.
Elsewhere, Verna duels a second supposed drow—only for its body to split apart and reveal another doppelganger. It flees in goblin form, but Verna shoots it through the back, finally exposing its gray true form as it dies.
The party survives.
And this time, the Black Spider is alive, bound, and finally theirs to question.
Session 27: Mirtul 14 ,1471 (Day 50)
S027 full session notes here>>
The session opens with Verna staring down the floating, green-flamed skull she discovered in Wave Echo Cave’s ancient forge. As the flameskull screams, centuries-old dwarf and orc corpses begin dragging themselves upright around it. Rae, Orthanc, and the others rush to her aid—except Rig, who is still elsewhere inspecting storage barrels while the distant sounds of violence gradually become harder to ignore.
The flameskull immediately proves dangerous, hurling a Fireball down the corridor and badly scorching Vala, Rae, and Verna. Mo tangles the advancing zombies in magical vines while Orthanc holds the line, growing enormous as he cleaves through the dead. Rae finally lands his first successful Guiding Bolt, nearly obliterating the flameskull, and Verna finishes it with a radiant bolt directly through its eye socket.
The remaining zombies fare little better. Rig coats several in lamp oil, Mo sets his own Entangle ablaze, and the undead repeatedly walk straight into the spreading fire. By the end, Orthanc is bisecting corpses, Rig is stabbing zombies through their ears, and Vala is thanking Rae for “killing them with God.” Afterward, Rae consecrates the flameskull’s remains with holy water, preventing it from reforming.
Following a short rest, the party discovers evidence that at least six creatures have been living nearby—and that someone opened a previously closed door while they rested. Pressing north, they eventually find massive double doors with voices behind them.
When the doors open, two bugbears flank a black-robed drow wizard, who smiles and offers the party a choice: parlay, or do things “the difficult way.”
Mo immediately begins preparing to summon a beast behind him and turn into a bear.
Session 26: Mirtul 14 ,1471 (Day 50)
S026 full session notes here>>
Still exploring the depths of Wave Echo Cave, the party hears guttural goblinoid voices somewhere behind them. Vala proposes “surprise murder,” but Orthanc admits he can really only contribute to the murder part. Verna lets a coin settle the matter, and the party leaves the unknown goblinoids alone, instead following a magical presence Vala detects deeper in the mine. Along the way, she gives Rig a Cat’s Eye Potion in the vain hope that darkvision might encourage her to stop wandering off alone.
Their search leads Verna to the remains of an ancient battle and a nearby barracks, where three ghouls are noisily cracking open centuries-old bones for marrow. The creatures attack, drawing even more undead from the surrounding corridors. The party wisely turns the narrow passages into choke points as increasingly emaciated ghouls pour toward them—including one that was unmistakably drow in life. Rae’s radiant magic proves especially effective, Orthanc pulverizes several with his maul, and Vala discovers that simply hitting something very hard with the Glasstaff can also be surprisingly satisfying. Rig, meanwhile, learns that being struck in the face by a ghoul’s barbed tongue is significantly less enjoyable than books had led her to believe.
Afterward, Vala harvests ghoul tongues for alchemy and the party pushes onward into what appears to have once been Wave Echo Cave’s great hall. The impossible crashing of waves grows louder, while the mine itself becomes warmer and more humid.
Exploring ahead, Verna discovers a massive abandoned blast furnace—and bodies far fresher than the ancient dead surrounding them.
Then she sees the human skull floating above them, wreathed in green flame.
It screams.
The corpses begin to rise.
Session 25: Mirtul 13-14 ,1471 (Days 49-50)
S025 full session notes here>>
Leaving Phandalin behind, the party finally sets out for Wave Echo Cave, following the maps provided by Gundren and Reidoth into the foothills of the Sword Mountains. After leaving Meilu and Baby Wolf Friend safely hidden nearby, they locate a recently excavated opening in the mountainside and make camp before entering at dawn.
Almost immediately, the cave proves wrong in ways Gundren’s stories had only hinted at. The sound of crashing waves echoes impossibly through the mountain, an abandoned dwarven campsite is soaked in blood, and Vala, Verna, and Rae realize the Weave itself feels unstable. Magic here may not behave as expected.
Deeper inside, the party discovers a foul, strangely warm pool littered with pale mussel shells—only for an ochre jelly to seize Vala from behind. The ensuing fight is made considerably less dignified when Rig and Verna both miss their shots and bury arrows in opposite sides of Orthanc’s ass. Despite this, the jelly is destroyed and Orthanc survives his companions.
Investigation of the pool costs Vala one extremely unhappy octopus familiar before revealing an ancient robed skeleton beneath the murky water. Verna eventually dives in herself, emerging soaked, reeking of fish, and clutching a Wand of Magic Missiles, which Rae claims. The dead wizard also yields two platinum rings and a mysterious silver flask containing unidentified enchantment magic.
The session ends at a massive iron-banded stone door. Even Orthanc can barely move it.
Something has barricaded it from the other side.
Session 24: Mirtul 7-11 ,1471 (Days 44-48)
S024 full session notes here>>
After the desperate violence of Cragmaw Castle, the party returns to Phandalin battered, triumphant, and catastrophically hungover. Their first morning back at the Stonehill Inn is slow and ugly: Mo wakes slumped over a table beside Verna and Baby Wolf Friend, several party members look half-dead from drink alone, and Sildar Hallwinter bears his misery with the rigid posture of a man refusing to admit how badly he hurts. Vala eventually appears carrying Mo a drink with the vague air of someone rewarding a survivor of a natural disaster, while the rest of the inn slowly stumbles back to life around them.
Gundren Rockseeker remains unconscious for the first several days of their stay, forcing the party into an uneasy waiting period. Vala, Rig, Qielline Alderleaf, and Sister Garaele take shifts caring for him while Sildar oversees the increasingly tense security of the town. Though Phandalin celebrates the party’s success, there is a growing fear that the Black Spider may retaliate.
During the lull, Rae commissions silver rings for every member of the party, believing the metal may help protect them from doppelgangers after everything they’ve learned. The gesture lands harder than expected—quiet proof that the group has become something real.
Meanwhile, Verna flourishes within Halia Thornton’s orbit. At the Miner’s Exchange, she proves herself both competent and useful to the Zhentarim, sharing information gathered during the party’s travels. Halia rewards her generously with gifts: a finely crafted drow hand crossbow, poison ingredients, and access to further resources. Rig accompanies Verna often, and the two rapidly become fascinated with one another. Their most memorable moment comes when Rig casually places an apple atop her own head, wordlessly inviting Verna to shoot it. Verna nails the shot cleanly with her hand crossbow, splitting the apple without so much as grazing Rig. The stunt is reckless, intimate, and wildly impressive. They talk about mortality while Rig eats her apple.
Rig also takes advantage of Halia’s network to send a message to her mysterious aunt in Neverwinter and arrange transport for the antiques she claimed at Wyvern Tor. Having handled her responsibilities, she spends the next five days sprawled across a porch with an enormous stack of scandalous smut novels borrowed from Halia, becoming increasingly invested in all of them.
Elsewhere, Mo and Vala visit Qielline Alderleaf and reassure her that Reidoth survived Thundertree. Grateful, Qielline shares potion recipes, alchemical ingredients, and gifts Vala a specially made bag for organizing her supplies. Sluup also reports on the books Vala previously entrusted to him, revealing several troubling discoveries hidden in their contents.
Eventually, Sildar gathers the party with long-awaited news: Gundren has awakened. Weak but lucid, he thanks them sincerely for saving his life before pleading for their help once more. He explains that his brothers, Nundro and Tharden, were left behind near Wave Echo Cave months earlier and may still be alive. The party agrees to go. Sildar reluctantly informs them he cannot accompany them this time; he believes Phandalin itself may soon come under threat and intends to stay behind to fortify the town and guard Gundren. Before they depart, Gundren shares everything he knows about Wave Echo Cave and the dangers that may await within.
That final night in Phandalin, Vala turns her attention to the strange sun elf statue recovered from Cragmaw Castle—the one thrumming with divination magic. On impulse, she asks it a deeply specific question: whether Sildar Hallwinter’s honorable restraint toward her would finally break if she appeared at his door wearing nothing but her cloak and let it fall open.
The answer comes back: weal.
So she does exactly that.
What follows is apparently loud enough that the common room downstairs erupts into cheers afterward, Mo shouting, “Fuckin’ finally!” before draining the rest of his ale.
Session 23: Mirtul 6-7 ,1471 (Days 42-43)
S023 full session notes here>>
After defeating the Bloodshield search party, the party continues to retreat south through Neverwinter Wood alongside Sildar Hallwinter, Meilu, their newly adopted “Baby Wolf Friend,” and the grievously injured Gundren Rockseeker. Mo establishes dominance over the wolf by demonstrating exactly what happens to goblins who threaten the pack, immediately winning the creature’s loyalty.
The journey back to Phandalin is exhausting but strangely warm. Around campfires, the party settles into a comfortable rhythm: Rae cooks an incredible stew from rabbits hunted by Mo and the wolf, Sildar shares stories from his days in the griffon cavalry, and Verna entertains everyone with an increasingly self-indulgent bedtime story about a beautiful elf adored by literally everyone she meets. Vala enthusiastically agrees that the heroine sounds amazing and compliments Verna’s hair, while Sildar quietly cleans Winter’s Oath with enough intensity to earn merciless commentary from the group and distract Lady Vala entirely.
The road itself remains dangerous. Late in the night, Vala notices ominous tremors beneath the camp, waking Mo and Sildar moments before malformed gricks erupt from the earth carrying swarms of sturges beneath their skin. The battle is frantic and disgusting: Rae nearly dies while grappled by one of the creatures, Verna gets swarmed repeatedly by sturges apparently attracted to “delicious elf blood,” and Vala loudly celebrates Sildar skewering monsters by yelling “Kebab!” across the battlefield. Together, however, the party survives. Mo later theorizes the monsters may have emerged from tunnels connected to the Underdark.
The next day, the group finally reaches Phandalin by dusk. Toblen Stonehill welcomes them as heroes, horrified by Orthanc carrying two unconscious people over his shoulders but ecstatic that Gundren survived. Sister Garaele is summoned immediately, baths are prepared, and the exhausted party is treated to a massive feast at the Stonehill Inn.
What begins as a celebration rapidly devolves into complete drunken chaos. The party drinks deep into the early morning hours, growing louder, sloppier, and more affectionate as the night stretches on. Eventually, Mo and Sildar both pass out at the table mid-drink while Verna simply slides onto the floor beside Baby Wolf Friend and uses the wolf as a pillow. For the first time in weeks, everyone is warm, filthy drunk, and basking in the rare luxury of safety.
Session 22: Mirtul 5 ,1471 (Day 41)
S022 full session notes here>>
After fleeing Cragmaw Castle ahead of the advancing Bloodsword warband, the exhausted party plunged into the foggy Neverwinter Woods with Orthanc hauling both Gundren and the unconscious Rig over his shoulders alongside an absurd amount of stolen gear. Vala remained deeply worried that the escaped doppelganger might infiltrate Phandalin and devised a plan with Mo to track it using Vyerith’s ceremonial dagger and Locate Object if it came close enough.
As the party struggled through the forest, Mo used Speak with Plants to get directions from the local flora, eventually navigating west by interpreting a tree’s comments about moss growth. In return, he magically nourished the exhausted plants, which thickened the undergrowth behind the party to hinder pursuit. Verna and Vala set traps and caltrops while the group staged a brief ambush against pursuing wolves, successfully slowing the Bloodsword scouts before fleeing again.
The retreat only worsened. The party, starving and exhausted, stumbled into pits, ash zombies, and giant spiderwebs while the pursuit closed in behind them. Verna repeatedly suggested increasingly suicidal distraction plans, which alarmed Vala but seemed entirely sincere.
Eventually the group reached an open muddy field and prepared for a desperate nighttime stand. Orthanc acted as obvious bait while the others hid along the treeline. A brutal battle followed against goblins, hobgoblins, wolves, dire wolves, and an ogre conscript. Verna’s deadly accuracy repeatedly turned the tide from her perch in the trees, while Mo transformed into a dire wolf and accidentally befriended one of the enemy wolves, now affectionately dubbed “Baby Wolf Friend.”
Sildar proved terrifying in combat with Winter’s Oath, skewering enemies straight through and earning a new “kebab” tally in Vala’s journal alongside Orthanc’s “hotdog” and “hamburger” kill counts. By the battle’s end, the battered party had survived yet another ambush and finally put distance between themselves and Cragmaw Castle. Their immediate goal became clear: return to Phandalin alive so Gundren could receive proper medical treatment before making the journey to Wave Echo Cave, where Gundren’s brothers—and the growing threat of the Black Spider—still awaited them.
Session 21: Mirtul 5 ,1471 (Day 41)
S021 full session notes here>>
After securing Gundren in the barracks of Cragmaw Castle, the party split to clear the remaining rooms. Verna, Rig, Rae, and Bear Mo stormed a hobgoblin barracks while Vala stayed behind to guard Gundren alongside Sildar and Orthanc. The fighting quickly spiraled into chaos as goblins, traps, and a sneaky assassin wielding magical darkness turned the cramped hallways into a slaughterhouse.
Rig relentlessly hunted the assassin through the dark while Verna carved through goblins with clinical efficiency. Vala enthusiastically kept a running tally of enemies Orthanc “cleaved in twain,” dutifully recording his kills in her journal as he shouted “hotdog” or “hamburger” depending on the direction of the split. After they were found in the Barracks, Sildar and Orthanc charged into battle while Vala stayed to protect Gundren. The fight led the pair to a banquet hall filled with goblins led by an absurdly fat goblin chef who threatened to turn them into stew.
The battle took a painful turn when the goblin chef nearly killed Miss Tra, Vala’s tressym familiar. Vala tearfully dismissed her back to the Beastwilds to recover, revealing to Sildar that Miss Tra had once been her childhood pet before dying when she was still a girl.
After the fighting ended, the party released the imprisoned owlbear, searched the castle, and uncovered Gundren’s map to Wave Echo Cave. They also discussed Rig’s mysterious disappearance; while only seventeen days had passed for the others, Rig insisted that couldn’t be true and refused to speak of it further, insisting that she had descended the well with Persi, who had not returned.
The night’s biggest discovery came when Rig and Verna recovered Sildar’s ancestral blade, Winter’s Oath. After reclaiming it, Sildar demonstrated its power by driving the massive longsword a full foot into solid stone with ease, leaving the party stunned and Vala swooning.
Before the group could settle for the night, another goblin warband arrived at Cragmaw Castle. As the enemy closed in, Rig dragged the corpse of the hobgoblin who had threatened Vala all the way to the front gate as a final act of defiance. Vala joined her there without hesitation, standing beside Rig while the approaching warband gathered outside the castle walls. When it became clear they were about to be overrun, Orthanc scooped both women up and fled into the woods. Rig wriggled in his grasp until Orthanc accidentally knocked her unconscious in his haste to escape.
Session 20: Mirtul 5 ,1471 (Day 41)
S020 full session notes here>>
The party infiltrates Cragmaw Castle through a hidden northern entrance discovered during Mo’s scouting. Using Pass Without a Trace and Rae’s Silence spell, they ambush a group of hobgoblins, though the assault quickly escalates when King Grol’s dire wolf, Snarl, attacks. Rae’s radiant magic devastates the goblins while Mo and the others hold the line.
Vala attempts diplomacy with King Grol regarding Gundren Rockseeker, but Grol reveals himself as grotesque, violent, and predatory. Combat erupts throughout the castle as Rig and Sildar arrive through a southern postern door, reuniting with the party mid-battle. Orthanc also returns unexpectedly, joining the chaos.
Verna discovers Gundren imprisoned alongside a mysterious female drow named Vyerith. Vala rushes to protect Gundren while Vyerith displays unnatural strength and terrifying psychic abilities, badly injuring Vala and frightening Verna. Meanwhile, Rig brutally incapacitates King Grol, eventually pinning and killing him with her stilettos while Mo tears out the bugbear king’s throat in his bear form.
As the fight turns against her, Vyerith reveals herself to be some kind of horrifying skin-walker creature. Her body collapses and reshapes into a goblin form before she escapes through a hidden tunnel, leaving the party shaken and deeply unsettled. Elsewhere in the castle, the party battles a Grick, goblin bodyguards, a goblin witch doctor, and swarms of venomous “Skitterlings.”
After the fighting, Rig and Vala stabilize Gundren, who speaks to Sildar, confirming Wave Echo Cave remains the ultimate goal. The party also encounters the wounded owlbear from the Triboar Trail and, instead of killing it, heals and safely contains it. The session ends with Gundren rescued, King Grol dead, and the terrifying mystery of Vyerith unresolved.
By session’s end, Cragmaw Castle lies bloodied but not broken: King Grol is dead, but his minions may yet live. Gundren has been rescued, but no one is safe, because somewhere beyond the ruined walls, the thing that wore Vyerith’s face has slipped back into the dark.
Session 19: Mirtul 2 - Mirtul 5 ,1471 (Days 38-41)
S019 full session notes here>>
The party, fresh from their time in Thundertree, sets their sights on Cragmaw Castle and the rescue of Gundren Rockseeker. After a night’s rest, they reunite with Meilu and make preparations to travel south along the edge of Neverwinter Wood. Before departing, Vala encodes their plans and the location of Cragmaw Castle into a fragile strand of memory and sends it by summoned falcon to Sildar, Raemund attaching his Lords Alliance Pin. The two pray that it reaches him safely.
Along the road, they encounter Stanton, a starving survivor of Thundertree who has spent decades struggling alone in the forest. Despite aid from the party, he chooses to remain, clinging to hope of finding lost loved ones.
The journey continues with environmental challenges and light combat. Verna and Mosley efficiently dispatch a group of Ash Zombies emerging from the forest. Meanwhile, Rae continues to suffer lingering effects of chlorine inhalation from their fight with the dragon. During camp, Mosley deepens his connection to a transformed magical item (Grew), while he and Vala begin unraveling a mysterious, ancient musical fragment.
At last, they reach Neverwinter Wood. After hiding their cart, they press into the fog-choked forest. The path proves treacherous, but they press on and soon find Cragmaw Castle.
Through careful scouting, Mosley and Verna uncover hidden entrances, guarded spaces, and signs of something dangerous within. The party regroups, plans forming, and prepares to strike.
Session 18: 2 Mirtul, 1471 (Day 38)
S018 full session notes here>>
The party executes their plan to confront the green dragon, Ventashlymthor, at the tower in Thundertree. Disguised as a Thayan and a dragon cultist, Raemund and Vala attempt to parlay while Mosley hides as a rat familiar and Verna takes a distant sniper position. However, the dragon quickly sees through their deception. When negotiations fail, Raemund gives the signal—“Egg”—and Vala opens combat with a Fireball.
The fight is brutal and chaotic. The dragon’s poisonous breath nearly kills Raemund instantly, but Vala revives him as Mosley transforms into a massive bear beneath the dragon, knocking it prone and drawing its focus. The party coordinates effectively: Verna lands repeated ranged sneak attacks, Raemund and Vala deal heavy magical damage, and Orthanc engages in close combat. Despite the dragon’s attempts to flee and briefly reconsider negotiation, the party presses the attack. Though they nearly kill it, Ventashlymthor ultimately escapes through the tower’s roof, vowing revenge.
After the battle, the party loots the dragon’s hoard, recovering gold, silver, goblets, and spell scrolls. They also discover a cursed-looking dwarven axe named “Hew,” radiating dark enchantment.
Returning to Reidoth, they report their success in driving off the dragon and clearing Thundertree of threats. Reidoth identifies Hew as a malevolent duergar weapon that drains life from plants and carries a long, destructive history. At the party’s urging, he performs a cleansing ritual, transforming the axe into a druidic staff named “Grew,” imbued with renewed, natural magic. He gifts it to Mosley and inducts him into the Emerald Enclave.
With Thundertree largely pacified, Reidoth rewards the party by marking the location of Wave Echo Cave on their map, setting the stage for their next major objective.
Session 17: 1 - 2 Mirtul, 1471 (Days 37-38)
S017 full session notes here>>
On their second day in Thundertree, the party resumes exploration before confronting the green dragon. Early on, they battle giant spiders and a swarm, freeing Raemund from repeated restraints and ultimately slaying the creatures. They loot a cocooned elf corpse, gaining gold, a potion, and armor that Verna immediately claims.
After confirming Reidoth is away, the party regroups and plans their approach to the dragon. Vala shares extensive knowledge: green dragons are manipulative, prideful, and unlikely to abandon a lair without incentive. The group considers deception—posing as cultists or Thayans—and establishes a signal for combat if negotiations fail.
Continuing reconnaissance, they clear more blights and ash zombies in quick, coordinated fights, relying heavily on radiant damage. They also recover a valuable emerald necklace belonging to a woman in Phandalin, tying back to earlier quests.
Verna scouts the dragon’s tower, noting its structure: intact walls, partial roof collapse, narrow openings, and signs that spiders once nested there before being wiped out—likely by the dragon. This informs their tactical debate. While luring the dragon outside is considered, the party ultimately decides entering the lair may be safer than facing a flying enemy in open terrain.
A plan forms: Vala and Raemund will approach as negotiators (with Vala disguised as a dragon cultist and Raemund disguised as a Thayan), while Mosley infiltrates as Rae's rat familiar. Verna will remain hidden at range, and Orthanc will be ready to strike. The group fortifies their position, rests, and prepares supplies.
By the next day, after weathering heavy rain, they finalize disguises—shaving Raemund’s head and marking him with convincing Thayan tattoos. With roles assigned and tension high, the party sets out toward the dragon’s tower, ready to attempt a dangerous deception or face a deadly confrontation.
Session 16: Greengrass - 1 Mirtul 1471 (Days 36-37)
S016 full session notes here>>
In Thundertree, the session opens with a shocking event: Erynn’s body begins transforming into black glass, seemingly triggered by her mysterious blade. After briefly speaking to an unseen entity, she is fully encased, shatters, and vanishes—apparently not for the first time. The party processes her disappearance while regrouping, looting nearby ruins, and reuniting with Orthanc, who tracked them down after a troubling vision.
Continuing their exploration, the party battles ash zombies in an abandoned tavern, discovering they are highly vulnerable to radiant damage. After clearing the building, they skirt the dangerous central tower and encounter more plant-based threats—twig blights, needle blights, and a razorvine. Despite taking some damage, they dispatch the creatures efficiently through coordinated attacks and radiant magic, then take a short rest.
Further scouting leads them to additional ruined structures, including a smithy and a fortified house occupied by cultists of the Dragon. Through deception and distraction, the party engages the cultists in conversation while Mo wild shapes into a rat to infiltrate via the chimney. Though his entry is clumsy, it sets up an ambush: Mo transforms into a bear inside while the rest of the party breaches the building.
Combat is swift and brutal. Orthanc smashes through the barricaded door, crushing one cultist instantly, while the rest are overwhelmed by the party’s combined assault. One cultist flees, but the others—including their leader—are killed.
After securing the building, the party gathers supplies, including diamonds likely meant as offerings to the nearby green dragon. They fortify the structure, set magical alarms, repair gear, and take a long rest, preparing for their next move in the increasingly dangerous ruins of Thundertree.
Session 15: 27-Tarsakh - Greengrass, 1471 (Days 32-36)
S015 full session notes here>>
Orthanc, ashamed of his inability to cook for the party, elects to remain in Phandalin to train under Toblen Stonehill, leaving the others to press north toward Thundertree without him. Under harsh winds, fog, snow, and freezing rain, the party pushes along the Triboar Trail and High Road, surviving on sparse foraging and Mo’s Goodberries as supplies dwindle.
Early travel is marked by an ambush turned against its attackers: Verna spots goblins lying in wait, and the party cleverly counters. Vala’s volatile magic and Verna’s alchemical arrow incinerate enemies, while Mo—transformed into a dire wolf—scatters the rest. The skirmish is swift and decisive.
The journey grows darker. In worsening winter conditions, they discover a shallow grave beside the road—two frozen caravanners reaching toward an empty chest. The mystery lingers unresolved. Soon after, Vala and Mo uncover a third man, half-buried in snow and begging for death. At his insistence, Mo ends his suffering. Vala performs solemn rites to Kelemvor, marking the moment as a grim omen on the road to Thundertree.
Exhaustion sets in after a miserable night in snow and fog. Vala completes her attunement to a Netherese Ring of Protection, unsettled by the alien magic within. Mo’s druidcraft foretells strange weather ahead—“Purple Haze”—which soon manifests as an arcane fog blanketing the land.
On Greengrass, the party reaches the ruined town of Thundertree. They locate Reidoth the druid, who reveals the region is corrupted by necromantic energies leaking from a Thayan Dread Ring. Blights infest the ruins, a young green dragon lairs in the old tower, and dragon cultists prowl the streets. Reidoth offers knowledge of Wave Echo Cave in exchange for removing these threats.
Venturing into town, the party’s stealth falters—and corrupted plant monsters surge from the ruins. Fire and steel answer in kind as battle erupts among burning cottages and grasping vines.
Thundertree has teeth—and it has drawn blood.
Session 14: 23-26 Tarsakh, 1471 (Days 28-31)
S014 full session notes here>>
The party emerges from the Lost Hills after completing the Trial, passing through an unseen arcane barrier. Though two days have elapsed, they suffer no hunger or fatigue, and their injuries are revealed to have been illusions. The land itself has changed—what was once early spring is now lush and blooming. The Trial appears to have taken a heavy toll on Erynn, who remains withdrawn and contemplative. Vala honors Tomlin’s agreement by paying Mo, Verna, Erynn, and Raemund 50 gp each.
Traveling west along the Triboar Trail, the party discovers a pile of slain goblins and wolves near Neverwinter Wood, likely killed by caravan guards. After making camp in heavy rain, they collect water and rest before pushing on toward Phandalin. Along the way, Vala gently informs Slûûp that Silverwing’s Talon must be returned to its rightful owners; though saddened, he accepts the loss with grace.
At a crossroads, the party encounters a magical floral shrine to Waukeen blessing the road, then arrives in Phandalin and settles into the Stonehill Inn. They reconnect with locals, including Toblin Stonehill and Carp Alderleaf, who delivers a sealed letter from Halia Thornton requesting a private meeting. At the Miner’s Exchange, Halia pays the party 200 gp for the location of the Many-Arrows hideout and agrees to transport the fallen Orda and Silverwing to Waterdeep with honor. She also warns that splinter factions of the Kingdom of Many-Arrows may be acting independently.
At Townmaster’s Hall, Harbin Wester attempts to evade payment and push a dubious “investment,” but the party forces him to pay the agreed reward. The following day, they meet Sildar Hallwinter, who provides updates on regional politics and trade, and is deeply moved when Vala shares the fate of Orda and Silverwing. Sildar insists Silverwing’s Talon rightfully belongs to Slûûp.
The party also visits Sister Garaele, who rewards them for their aid and grants Vala a Harper pin, and Daran Edermath, who promises to alert the Order of the Gauntlet about Thayan activity. After several days of rest and resupply, the party prepares for their next journey—to Thundertree.
Session 13: 20-23 Tarsakh, 1471 (Days 25-28)
S013 full session notes here>>
After a long day of travel through the Lost Hills, the party makes camp and spends the evening strengthening bonds and clarifying their purpose. Around the fire, they recount past victories and unresolved threads: rewards owed in Phandalin, the escaped necromancer Hamun Kost, the missing Gundren Rockseeker, and the shadowy drow known as the Black Spider. Personal beliefs and tensions emerge—Verna’s brutal pragmatism, Erynn’s carefully veiled past and uncanny blade, and hints of powerful magic among the group. The night is broken by a sudden gnoll ambush, but the party reacts swiftly, destroying the raiders in a coordinated and brutal fight.
The following day, as the party attempts to leave the Lost Hills, they become trapped in a vast illusion. Paths repeat endlessly, the sun behaves unnaturally, and magic saturates the landscape. A satyr named Sappho offers a way out in exchange for something “precious,” but his unsettling bargains are refused. Guided by instinct, magic, and Meilu’s unexpected counsel, the party presses forward toward a weakening of the illusion rather than retreating.
The illusion manifests as a series of trials. First, the party encounters a golden falcon of Lathander, paralyzed by grief over the loss of its god. Raemund’s faith cannot move it, but Erynn’s raw empathy and shared sorrow convince the falcon to stand aside. Next, a stone giant blocks the path, testing Orthanc’s resolve. By meeting strength with strength and shattering the giant’s club, Orthanc earns recognition as true giant-kin and passage forward.
The final trial turns deadly when the hills themselves reveal a gibbering mouther, a harbinger of the long-banished god Moander. Through fire, faith, and coordinated attacks, the party destroys the creature, shattering the illusion at last. They emerge onto the Triboar Trail—victorious, shaken, and unaware that two days have vanished during their escape from the Lost Hills.
Session 12 Part II: 20 Tarsakh 1471 (Day 25)
S012.2 full session notes here>>
Mosely “Mo” Moonstone, Erynn Haldwynn, Verna, and Raemund Faeton meet a distressed Tomlin Helder at an inn in Neverwinter. Tomlin, an elderly former servant of both the Silverton and Everfall noble families, believes Lady Vala Silverton may still be alive despite supposedly perishing in Neverwinter during the Ruining. He hires the group as escorts and investigators, offering 50 GP each to help him uncover who recently reopened a secret door in Everfall Manor. Using a spell scroll and a pocket watch engraved with the image of a young blonde noblewoman, Tomlin teleports the party to the Lost Hills.
They arrive near Old Owl Well and discover a massive pyre containing 40–60 burned corpses—clear evidence of a recent battle. As Tomlin searches the remains, distant voices catch their attention. Tomlin sprints toward them and is unexpectedly reunited with Vala, who embraces him joyfully and recounts how she survived. He introduces Vala as the former High Oracle of Neverwinter, granddaughter and protégé of Edda Everfall, who served generations of Alagondar kings.
Vala introduces her own traveling companions: Orthanc, a goliath barbarian; Meilu, a mysterious mule; and Slûûp, a pious and unusually literate goblin. When Vala looks for the rest of her party, Slûûp reveals that Rig and Persi have vanished under mysterious circumstances—just as Morthos disappeared a week earlier.
Vala and Orthanc intend to return to Phandalin to claim bounties and invite the group to accompany them, promising additional payment from the Silverton estate. The two groups join forces. However, with signs of a Thayan necromancer, unexplained disappearances, and the stench of a zombie bonfire lingering in the air, the now-combined party decides to leave immediately, heading east toward the Triboar Trail.
Session 12 Part I: 19-20 Tarsakh 1471 (Days 24-25)
S012.1 full session notes here>>
At Old Owl Well, Hamund Kost insists the entire party—including the invisible Rig—show themselves for a “civil” parlay, backed by a hostile army of undead. Attempts at deception fail, and when Rig is discovered, Kost ends negotiations. Battle erupts.
Combat breaks out across the ruins. Rig becomes trapped between Kost’s tent and crumbling walls as skeletons and zombies swarm her. Orthanc invokes his giant-kin rage, growing to ten feet tall and cleaving through undead, while Vala follows his strikes with burning Red Chromatic Orbs that melt entire clusters of zombies. Hamund weakens Orthanc with a Ray of Enfeeblement and later poisons him, but Slûûp bravely slips through the fray to repeatedly restore Orthanc, remove his injuries, and bolster the party with divine magic.
Despite wave after wave of undead—rotting zombies, decrepit skeletons, and zombie orcs—pressing in, Rig fights on. Unsure of her companion's survival, Vala pulls a Scroll of Charm Person from her pack. She invokes the spell, and a soft pink aura coils around Hamund.
Charmed, Hamund abruptly shifts from hostility to wounded affection, insisting Vala would never deceive him and that the real problem is her “dangerous friends.” He speaks over the battle to impress her with his magical prowess, ultimately summoning a 30-foot sphere of magical darkness around himself. Moments later, the fighting stops; the undead collapse as their animating force is withdrawn. Hamund has fled. The party earns 100 XP.
After the battle, the group investigates Kost’s camp, uncovering Thayan research notes, alchemical ingredients, a Netherese Floor Tile, and a Netherese Ring of Protection (+1) that Vala begins attuning to. They secure the well, consecrate the undead remains, sabotage the dig site, and rest in Kost’s luxurious bed. On 20 Tarsakh, they awaken well-rested, Orthanc’s injury finally healed.
Session 11: 15-18 Tarsakh 1471 (Days 20-23)
S011 full session notes here>>
After clearing the Many-Arrows hideout at Wyvern Tor, the party rests while Orthanc butchers the ogre Gorg into questionably edible rations. Heavy rain the next morning convinces them to remain at camp. Rig treats Orthanc’s fractured vertebrae and prepares remedies for Persi’s severe case of Gruumsh’s Revenge, while also secretly tagging the best stolen furniture for later “relocation.” Slûûp continues caring for Persi, explaining the illness is miserable but non-lethal.
In a major emotional moment, Slûûp—who rejects the idea of being paid because he still thinks of himself as a slave—learns from the party that he has been free since they rescued him. Vala formally offers him freedom and wages, transforming his posture and confidence. Slûûp reveals he has secretly trained as a cleric of Oghma, showing his holy symbol and demonstrating spells. Using Identify, he reveals the history and power of the magical short sword Silverwing’s Talon, who it turns out was commisioned by Sildar for his then squire; Orda Griggs who Rig and Vala had found dead with a silver griffon at his side.
The group spends another day resting. Slûûp observes a meteor shower and explains the strange frequency of falling star-metal in the nearby hills—knowledge that impresses and unsettles the party. They break camp on the 18th and travel toward Old Owl Well, foraging successfully and making camp just an hour from Hamund Kost. Orthanc attempts to cook ogre meat (with foul results), Vala plays harp for Orthanc, and the party rests.
On the morning of the 19th, they approach Old Owl Well and find undead wandering the grounds. A tense debate follows: Vala and Rig want Hamund dead due to his Thayan ties, while Orthanc is indifferent and Slûûp notes the oddity of a Red Wizard working here. Rig goes invisible and sneaks ahead, but Hamund reveals he has been scrying them and demands the entire party present themselves as negotiations begin.
Session 10: 14 Tarsakh 1471 (Day 19)
S010 full session notes here>>
Following Hamund Kost’s map, the party tracks an orc raiding band to Wyvern Tor, discovering signs of a fortified encampment hidden among cliffs and a cave complex. Attempts at parley with Brughor Axe-Biter, a heavily scarred champion of the Kingdom of Many Arrows, quickly devolve into hostility when the party offers insufficient tribute and challenges his authority.
Combat erupts as the orcs spring an ambush. Persimmon steals and uses a Potion of Invisibility to scale the cliff face, uncovering a concealed archer blind and killing an orc scout. A raging ogre named Gorg smashes through the cave entrance, hurling a tree that gravely injures Orthanc. Despite being battered by Gorg and shield-wall formations of orc blitzers, Orthanc fights on through sheer rage.
The battle turns chaotic: Rig assassinates key orc fighters, Vala supports from cover with magic and inspiration, and Persimmon devastates clustered enemies with acid-infused martial strikes—melting several orcs outright. Orthanc is finally knocked unconscious when Gorg shatters his vertebrae, but Meilu the mule charges into battle, stomping orcs to death as Slûûp secretly channels divine magic to revive Orthanc.
With renewed strength, the party overwhelms the remaining foes. Orthanc brutally kills Gorg, and Vala finishes Brughor with a devastating Chromatic Orb. The orc raiding band is destroyed, earning each party member 325 XP.
Exploring the caves, the party uncovers the spoils of many raids, dangerous traps, and grim trophies. Behind a hidden stone wall, they find the preserved bodies of a griffon and a gnome of the Waterdeep Griffon Cavalry, hinting at a tragic past. Among the relics recovered are a worn Griffon Cavalry crest, fine perfumes, coin, and a finely crafted gnome-sized short sword—clearly of noble origin.
The party, seeing it's size and knowing Rig would not touch anything magical, they gave it to Sluup to defend himself on the road.
Session 09: 11-13 Tarsakh 1471 (Days 16-18)
S009 full session notes here>>
Travel through the Lost Hills turns harsh as the party awakens during heavy rain to find Morthos mysteriously gone, leaving only a disappearing message. Orthanc wakes from an otherworldly sleep, and the group—low on food—presses on through worsening weather. A thunderstorm rolls in, limiting visibility, just before an ogre and several stirges ambush them. The battle is brutal and chaotic in the mud; Meilu is badly blood-drained, Rig finishes the ogre but struggles to recover her weapons, and Orthanc harvests ogre meat for scarce rations. The party continues onward in the storm.
That evening they fail to establish a campsite and, while searching for better ground, Rig is nearly struck by lightning, forcing them to make a hasty, inadequate camp. By morning (12 Tarsakh), all awaken exhausted. Still battered by relentless rain, they remain in camp, managing only minimal shelter and going hungry. Weather finally improves by evening.
On 13 Tarsakh they resume travel under clearer skies but remain heavily exhausted. They soon spot smoke and smell a powerful stench of rot near the ruined fortifications of the Old Owl Well. Detecting strong necromantic magic, they approach and are confronted by a dozen zombies—halted only by a commanding voice. The speaker reveals himself as Hamund Kost, a tattooed necromancer excavating the site, who invites them to parlay but refuses to leave the ruins.
Kost, intent on his archaeological work, is irritated by their presence but offers a deal: if the party eliminates the orcs at Wyvern Tor—who have been scouting him—and brings back their banner, he will pay 200 gp and they must leave him in peace afterward. Kost also offers trade and magical aid, including help with their exhaustion, though Persi declines.
The party accepts the job and departs toward Wyvern Tor.
Session 08: 10 Tarsakh 1471 (Day 15)
S008 full session notes here>>
On 10 Tarsakh, the party awakens to chaos: Orthanc is mysteriously asleep beside the cart and cannot be roused, while Persi wakes suddenly and convinces the ever-trusting Slûûp that he is the “head master” of the group. With Orthanc unconscious and weighing 700 lbs, the party struggles to load him into the cart until Rig recalls basic engineering and leads them in using a simple lever—finally succeeding with Meilu’s help.
As they prepare to travel, a strange figure approaches with hands raised, flashing arcane sparks. Rig nearly attacks him, but Vala deciphers the sparks as Silent Common. After a tense introduction—and Persi’s repeated pranks—the party meets Morthos, an unusual obsidian-skinned tiefling who claims to be a guide seeking “comrades.” His trustworthiness is tested through Meilu, who accepts a carrot from him, granting him the party’s tentative approval.
The group follows Morthos into the confusing terrain of the Lost Hills. Though he quickly becomes lost, he insists on “reading the cosmos,” while Persi continues to torment Rig with subtle spellcraft. Vala attempts aerial scouting through Miss Tra but finds the magically obscured landscape difficult to read. Eventually, after hours of meandering, Morthos finds the path again, though progress for the day is slowed.
Rig later spots a group following them at a distance. The party makes camp, setting traps and alarms; Rig establishes a decoy fire and consults a mysterious two-faced coin depicting Tymora and Beshaba, hoping to invoke luck.
During the night, while the others sleep, Persi spots goblins and wolves approaching. Their release of wolves triggers Vala’s Alarm spell, and the party swiftly dispatches the ambushers. The night ends safely, and the group completes their long rest.
Session 07: 6-9 Tarsakh 1471 (Days 10-14)
S007 full session notes here>>
Traveling along the rain-soaked Triboar Trail, the Party pushes onward despite worsening weather and dwindling supplies. Orthanc’s druidcraft “forecast” proves redundant as heavy rain already drenches the camp, slowing their wagon to half-speed. During travel, Rig scouts ahead and spots movement—prompting an attack from giant insects. The Party fends them off, rescuing Rig from a grapple and tending to Meilu, who suffers acid burns. The group presses on and later locates a sheltered campsite with Miss Tra’s help.
Working together, they build a makeshift lean-to and Ritual Alarm, gather water, and rest. Rig carves an anatomically accurate heart into the cart, gaining inspiration. However, rations run dangerously low, creating tension and urgency about finding food.
The next day’s worsening downpour keeps them in camp. Vala cleverly constructs a large water-collection system, securing ample water, while Rig and Orthanc attempt to hunt. Orthanc fails, but Rig brings back three small-game rations. Still, the Party remains close to starvation. Around the campfire, Orthanc casually mentions eating goblins, unsettling Slûûp. Vala prays, and Rig calls upon Tymora for better weather.
The rain finally ends on the morning of the 8th—only to reveal an eerie, magical Purple Haze. Vala recognizes it as a harmless wild-magic illusion, though Rig distrusts both the fog and Vala, covering her face as they travel.
Reaching a crossroads, the group investigates routes toward Conyberry and Agatha’s Lair. Vala struggles with unexpected filth—secretly caused by Rig muddying her boots nightly—gaining stress. They venture north into Neverwinter Wood and locate Agatha’s decrepit cottage. Inside, they parley with the vain, fickle banshee, ultimately honoring their Harper mission and trading her silver comb for the long-lost location of Bowgentle’s Spellbook, now in the hands of an Iriaebor archmage named Tsernoth.
The Party safely camps at the lair, successfully stretches rations, and Orthanc hunts a deer, replenishing their stores.
The next day dawns fair. Unsure of their next objective, they let Meilu choose—she turns west, guiding them back toward Phandalin and the edge of the Lost Hills.
Session 06: 1-5 Tarsakh 1471 (Days 6-10)
S006 full session notes here>>
After defeating Iarno “Glasstaff” Albrek and clearing out the Redbrand Hideout, the party rests, gathers two invisibility potions, and returns triumphantly to Phandalin. The townsfolk hail them as heroes, the rescued captives are safe, and Toblen Stonehill offers them free lifelong lodging. Sildar, however, expresses discomfort that Iarno was killed rather than captured, but still pays the party for their work and urges them to follow up with Sister Garaele about Harper business.
At the Shrine of Luck, Sister Garaele tasks the party with negotiating with the sentient banshee Agatha to learn the fate of Bowgentle’s Spellbook. She warns them to avoid the ruined town of Conyberry and offers the use of Harper caches as payment. She also attempts (unsuccessfully) to cure or awaken the mysteriously unconscious Persi, who is later revealed to be poisoned by Drow toxins.
At the Miner’s Exchange, Halia Thornton eagerly buys Iarno’s Redbrand correspondence for 100 gp and flirts her way through negotiations with Rig. She hints that a goblin once kept by the Redbrands might know the location of Cragmaw Castle. The party realizes this refers to Slûûp.
Next, Daran Edermath approaches, thanking them and passing along a quest from the Order of the Gauntlet: investigate necromantic disturbances at the Old Owl Well. He marks their map and warns of dangers along the Lost Hills.
The party trains in town for several days, levels up, and continues to perform “The Ballad of Tresendar Manor,” building their fame. Qelline Alderleaf confirms Persi’s condition is due to potent Drow poison. Once preparations are complete, the party buys a cart, loads Persi and Slûûp, summons Vala’s tressym familiar Miss Tra, and sets off east toward Conyberry to seek Agatha.
On the road, they survive an owlbear attack thanks to Rig’s distractions, Meilu’s bravery, and Vala’s Dissonant Whispers. They find a secure campsite, set magical alarms, and settle in for the night as their journey truly begins.
Session 05: 1 Tarsakh 1471 (Day 6)
S005 full session notes here>>
The party confronts Iarno “Glasstaff” Albrek in his quarters, where he arrogantly proposes a deal: they may take Persi and 200 gp if they allow him to continue transforming the Redbrands into his personal ruling force over Phandalin. He reveals plans to install farmer Gonth as a puppet Townmaster and reshape the town into an oligarchy under his secret control. Sildar, furious at Iarno’s betrayal of the Lords’ Alliance, insists he should be taken alive for trial but admits he might kill him in anger, leaving the decision to the party.
Rig pretends to accept the deal and ambushes him. Iarno turns invisible to escape but runs directly into Orthanc, who severs his arm and kills him. Vala claims his abjuration-charged Glass Staff. The party presses deeper into the hideout, fighting animated skeletons in a crypt and rescuing several prisoners—including Persi, still unconscious despite being physically unharmed.
After surviving a pit trap and recovering potions from Iarno’s belongings, the party discovers a Nothic stalking the prison room. The creature admits to feeding on the captives’ fear and targets the children. Young Gristar bravely charges it but is nearly killed by its Rotting Gaze. The party surrounds and slays the Nothic together. Rig heals Gristar, though not without berating the townsfolk for their helplessness while Orthanc defends their trauma.
The party gathers loot with Slûûp’s help, including rare alchemical reagents, gems, scrolls, and a half-finished invisibility potion. Vala also secures Urmon’s Journal and disturbing correspondence between Iarno and the mysterious “Black Spider.” Sildar escorts the freed captives safely back to Phandalin while the party settles in for a well-earned long rest.
Session 04: 1 Tarsakh 1471 (Day 6)
S004 full session notes here>>
The party begins the morning outside Tresendar Manor, where Sildar catches up to them with news: Carp Alderleaf has been tracking their movements, and a note Vala examines suggests the writer is a Waterdhavian noble—likely Iarno Albrek, whom Sildar now suspects is the mysterious “Glasstaff.” Following his advice, the party enters the Redbrand Hideout through its secret entrance.
Inside a vast cavern, they sense an unseen presence and experience sudden intrusive memories. Moving deeper, they ambush several Redbrand ruffians, triggering a fight that spills into a nearby guard barracks housing three bugbears. Rig nets a ruffian, Sildar fights with brutal precision, and Orthanc single-handedly blocks the doorway against all three bugbears until he cuts them down. With the fight won, the party discovers a new captive: Slûûp, a frail, albino goblin who was tortured by the bugbears. Eager to please, he pledges himself to the party and organizes their loot.
While exploring further, Rig and Vala again experience vivid intrusive memories—this time accompanied by telepathic communication from a mysterious “Guardian of Tresendar Manor.” Slûûp scouts ahead and identifies the entity as a Nothic, an aberrant, twisted former spellcaster. The Nothic offers help in exchange for fresh corpses, and the party throws two Redbrand bodies into its crevasse. In return, it warns them of a trap, hidden doors, and the location of Glasstaff’s workshop.
The party follows these clues, discovering a secret staircase and detecting hidden magic they cannot yet access. Returning to the workshop, they find arcane notes and a brewing potion—and a black rat that flees into the adjoining chamber. A voice beyond the door welcomes them in, signaling that Glasstaff is aware of their arrival.
Session 03: 29 Ches - 1 Tarsakh 1471 (Days 4-6)
S003 full session notes here>>
The party’s investigations into Phandalin’s troubles deepen across several tense days. After donating at the Shrine of Luck, Persi meets Sister Garaele, who quietly reveals information about the increasingly violent Redbrands and their mysterious leader “Glasstaff.” Rig observes a secretive exchange between Garaele and Sildar, while Orthanc, Persi, and Vala visit Alderleaf Farm. There, young Carp describes witnessing Redbrands using a hidden entrance beneath Tresendar Manor, and Qelline requests the party check on Reidoth the missing druid in Thundertree.
That evening, the group regathers at Stonehill Inn, hears of a recent Redbrand murder, and agrees to petition Townmaster Harbin Wester. The next morning, Wester proves a fearful coward unwilling to act against the gang. Sildar meets the party privately, revealing quests offered by the Lords’ Alliance: eliminate the Redbrands, locate Cragmaw Castle, and uncover the fate of the missing wizard Iarno Albrek. He also explains the growing orc threat near Wyvern Tor.
After leaving the hall, the party is confronted by Redbrands. A quick street fight ends with four ruffians dead. Persi dumps half a corpse onto the Townmaster’s desk, causing Wester to faint, and Sildar urges discretion. Later, the party questions Grista at the Sleeping Giant tavern, learning the Redbrands hold her son hostage and gather nightly at Tresendar Manor. Hoping to ambush them, the party waits in hiding, but no ruffians return.
Persi scouts the manor alone overnight while the others rest. Before dawn, screams alert the group to the Sleeping Giant — now engulfed in flames. After helping extinguish the fire, they find a blood-streaked note politely stating that Glasstaff has taken Persi and invites the party to meet him at Tresendar Manor. The party immediately moves toward the cellar entrance beneath the ruins.
Session 02: 27-29 Ches 1471 (Days 2-4)
S002 full session notes here>>
The party presses deeper into Cragmaw Cave, discovering a goblin barracks. Persi hides under a cot while Orthanc charges in attempting diplomacy, triggering a chaotic battle where goblins burn in blankets and are cut down. Yeemik, the goblin leader, attempts to bargain with Sildar Hallwinter’s life, but when negotiations collapse, he drops Sildar from a ledge. Persi intercepts Yeemik’s escape and kills him. The party frees Sildar, who reveals the Black Spider ordered both him and Gundren Rockseeker captured, and that Gundren’s map to Wave Echo Cave has been sent away.
Continuing their exploration, the party engages Klarg the bugbear in his den. Persi and Rig are nearly overwhelmed, but Orthanc’s rage and the group’s coordination bring Klarg and his wolf down. They recover Lionshield Coster goods and Klarg’s treasure before resting.
The next morning, they load the recovered goods and travel to Phandalin, settling at the Stonehill Inn. Over breakfast on 29 Ches, Persi steals the egg from Sildar’s meal, and Toblen Stonehill shares concerns about the Redbrands’ growing control over the town. After Toblen leaves, Trilena privately speaks with Vala, revealing that local woodcutter Thel Denrar was murdered by the Redbrands for defending his wife. Though many witnessed it, Townmaster Harbin Wester has done nothing. She asks the party to speak with Wester and help the town.
At Lionshield Coster, Linene Graywind rewards the party for returning stolen goods and mentions orc raids along the Triboar Trail. Barthen’s Provisions provides Gundren’s promised payment and further warnings about Redbrand activity.
Armed with new leads—the missing dwarves, the Black Spider, orc raiders, and the Redbrands’ brutality—the party turns its attention toward confronting the threats surrounding Phandalin.
Session 01: 27 Ches 1471 (Day 2)
S001 full session notes here>>
On the morning of 27 Ches 1471, the party prepares to leave camp. Rig wakes early to find Gomlee already tending the wagon and Paxtor gone. Gomlee introduces her to Fallen Persimmon Branch, a Tabaxi monk who arrived overnight looking for work, and together they ensure it is travel-ready while. Vala pays Orthanc to watch over her as she prays, and the two discuss their relationships with their respective gods. Gomlee mentions Mielikki’s strong presence in his and Meilu’s lives. A scuffle breaks out when Vala tries to magically assist Rig—ending with Rig using the magical asistance she was given to flip Vala into the mud and warn her to never cast magic on Rig again.
By midday, the group encounters two dead horses blocking the Triboar Trail. Before investigating, Gomlee has an intense, almost mystical exchange with Meilu that leaves him suddenly energized. Moments later, goblins ambush him—Gomlee slays two instantly but is critically struck by arrows. Dying, he embraces his warrior’s end, asking to be buried with his gear beneath nearby trees, and urges the party to “find the map.” Orthanc and Vala lay him to rest with reverence. Vala privately reveals that Meilu foretold Gomlee’s death, though he refused to believe her. She quietly retrieves Gomlee’s journal from Meilu’s saddlebags.
Persi finds goblin tracks heading north. The party hides the wagon off the road, assisted—seemingly—by Meilu communicating with the oxen. After testing Meilu for tactical readiness (receiving a warning mule-kick), they camouflage the wagon and follow the trail. Persi easily leads them through the woods while the party avoids two goblin traps.
At dusk, they reach a large cavern entrance. Inside, they confront multiple goblins and wipe them out with brutal efficiency. Discovering captive wolves, Persi and Orthanc feed them goblin meat rather than fight, leaving the animals alive as the party pushes deeper into the unknown.
Session 00: 26 Ches 1471 (Day 1)
S000 full session notes here>>
Orthanc Hellbringer, an enormous tattooed Goliath warrior, arrives at the Wayside Inn on the Triboar Trail seeking work. Inside, he meets a lively mix of caravan guards, merchants, and staff: Backes the barkeep; Cooragh, the no-nonsense half-orc cook and smith; and Martisha Vinetalker, the refined half-moon-elf proprietor. Among the patrons are fellow guards Gomlee Moonstagg, the scarred old wagon-driver; Vala Silverton, a nervous noblewoman in outdated finery; and Paxtor, a boisterous guard with sharp canines and a heavy brogue.
Rig, a half sea-elf rogue already well acquainted with the inn staff, joins the group, and Gomlee outlines their job: escort Gundren Rockseeker’s wagon from the Wayside Inn to Phandalin for 10 gp each, warning of increased goblin activity. Conversation drifts through tales of Phandalin’s history, mining rumors, and Gomlee’s beloved mule Meilu—who later proves telepathic and fiercely protective when Paxtor drunkenly tests her patience.
During dinner, the party bonds over stew, strange table manners, and Orthanc’s bottomless appetite. Vala asks Orthanc to guard her while she performs her nightly devotions; afterward the group discusses gods, omens, and news of goblin movements east of Phandalin.
Inside, Paxtor continues drinking, irritating the staff and party alike. Vala buys Meilu a carrot in apology for Paxtor’s behavior and then, encouraged by Martisha, performs on her lap harp for tips, earning appreciative praise from the proprietor. The inn empties as travelers retire for the night.
Orthanc beds down in the stable with the animals, Gomlee drunkenly returns to sleep in the wagon, and the rest of the party finds their rooms. Vala, still wary of Paxtor, quietly warns Gomlee to protect Meilu before turning in.
The newly formed party spends their first night together at the Wayside Inn, ready to begin their escort mission at dawn.