Chapter Two: A Death in the Family

this post was created very late . . . sorry for the delay

After spending two nights and one full day at Churney-on-the-Green the party sets out for Saragost by way of Hockton Barrow. The Knife, Rumus, Neil, Tilk and Rygorh made the trek. The other party members tarried a bit longer in Churney and back-tracked to check the war rumors from the North.

On the road south of Churney-on-the-Green the group finds a handful of humans under assault by a large band of goblins and an ogre. Without thought for their own lives the heroes rush the bandits in an attempt to save the peasants. It was an unfortunate decision.

Rumus quickly dispatched four of the goblins with a sleep spell. Tilk casts enlarge person on himself and moves to face the ogre. Rygorh, the Knife and Neil approached the battle in a more circumspect manner. Tilk fell to crushing blow from the ogre's great club. Neil and Rygorh faced the ogre while the Knife and Rumus picked off goblins at range.

The ogre's great club was too much for Rygorh. He landed two strikes on the cleric, the second of which crushed his skull . . . brains leaking on the battlefield. Meanwhile, Neil managed to revive Tilk with a cure light wounds spell. Tilk raged and charged the ogre only to fall again. More sleep spells, crossbow bolts and daggers brought low some of the goblins, but nothing could stop the great ogre. The knife's attempt to kill the ogre after he fell to a sleep spell failed.

The heroes decided that discretion was the better part of valor and fled the field with the unconscious Tilk in tow, leaving Rygorh's dead body behind.

After a bit of bickering the group decided that they must recover Rygorh's body and the Sword of Starkweather John. The Knife managed to track the bandits to their lair and sneaked into the place to bring out Rygorh's body and his gear. The group made its way back to Churney-on-the-Green to recover.

The next morning the Knife sets out alone to Saragost while the rest of the group take's Rygorh's body back to the Tump in an effort to revive him. They believe that the mystical stones will return him to life.

The Knife reaches Saragost to find hundreds (thousands?) of refugees waiting to enter the city. He learns that all prospective entrants must have a useful skill, join the military or have fifty gold coins to spend in the city. The Knife manages to sneak into the city via a side gate and eventually makes his way to the City Council. The Council welcomes the Knife to the meeting and readily accepts his news of a Duergar invasion. They further ask that he remain available for further interviews and/or assignments in the near future.

Meanwhile, Tilk, Neil and Rumus head north to the Tump. They pass a great number of refugees fleeing the Duergar army and realize that their efforts to warn the land have been successful. They make it to the Tump where Rygorh is raised from the dead!

Tilk, Neil, Rumus and Rygorh then head south to Saragost. They stop briefly in Hockton Barrow to warn the townspeople there. In Hockton Barrow they witness the quarterly games held in town. After the games they manage to pass their news to Captain Lucie Jabril who assures them that Hockton Barrow will be ready. They then set out for Saragost . . .

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Chapter Two: Interlude (Churney-on-the-Green)

During the time you spend in Churney-on-the-Green, traffic on the nearby road increases significantly. During the day of March 9, which you spend at Churney-on-the-Green, dozens (hundreds?) of people pass through the town or pass by the town on the road to Saragost heading out from the North. Many of the people are from Bronce, Lichgate and Lower Scumsgrove. There is some traffic from other smaller villages and hamlets in the area that you have never visited. There is a steady stream of traffic throughout the day.

During your stay overnight (March 9 - March 10) the population of Churney-on-the-Green increases by some 1,500 people as travelers from the North make camp in and around the town. The people of Churney-on-the-Green seem somewhat put out by this "invasion", but they make do with provisions and such and do their best to see to the comfort of the refugees.

Rumors of a coming war are rampant. You hear about a huge dragon that has destroyed whole villages up north and eaten hundreds of people. There are stories of thousands of orcs, goblins, hobgoblins and ogres on the prowl in the lands to the North. You hear about an evil dwarven army led by a great warrior weilding a massive battle axe. He beheads several enemy warriors at a single blow.

This information assumes that you talk to some of the refugees. No one you speak to has pesonal, first-hand knowledge of any of these events, but speak of them as something they heard from someone else who was there.

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Chronicles of Rygorh: The Merchants' Guild

I was suddenly wide awake as if someone had dumped a bucket of cold water on my head. "What in the name of Blood and Fire could this kind hearted man have done?" I thought to myself. I heard the Elf's voice fill the hall "This man is going nowhere unless you can tell me what he has done!" I was amazed; I never expected such a stance from a man who spends nearly every waking hour with his nose in a book. "Enough is enough," I thought as I stepped up shoulder to shoulder with Rumus. "You heard him: he goes nowhere," I stated loudly. I could hear more doors opening and the hallway filling with our companions. The guardsmen looking around turned and departed. Several members of the the group started discussing going out a window or out a back door and stealing away in the night. "We aren’t going to run anywhere." I looked incredulously at Rumus as he was the speaker, "If we run we will look guilty and we did nothing wrong!" he continued. Once again I found myself standing firmly at Rumus’s side. "We will not run but face what comes," I stated in support. Well it turned out to be a moot point as the building was surrounded by guardsmen; so we dressed, put our armor on and walked downstairs weapons at the ready.

We found the common room full of guardsmen with weapons out and standing in their midst was Vanson Braddock, the very man who knew exactly why we were here. "Sorry, repressive, dirty merchants," I thought as Braddock stated that Celegorm was being arrested for telling the bartender of the impending invasion of the surface world. A flurry of words were exchanged heatedly by the party with Braddock "the sniveling puppet of the Merchants guild." I decided then and at that moment this may be my last minute of life. "I will go down fighting and meet Firinna standing on my feet. Before I fall the sword of Starkweather John will be buried in Braddock's chest!" I thought as I moved to take position just next to Celegorm. Braddock motioned Celegorm to the doorway, and he moved through it with me on his shoulder like glue. Once outside Braddock looked at me and then told the guards to shoot anyone else that comes through the door.

We traveled some distance and found ourselves in a warehouse with plush comfortable surroundings. Sitting behind the desk was a cocky, self-assured son of an ogre bitch who listened to our story dispassionately then requested to see the letter in question. I told him that the Elf had it, so he sent someone to bring the Elf. Soon Rumus and Larien arrived. "Hmm, now we are four if it comes to a fight," I thought. He looked over the letter and said simply, "I will take care of it," handing the letter back to Rumus as he dismissed us like common court jesters. "He will get his," I thought as we walked back to the inn and told our companions what had happened. We returned to our beds and continued to post a watch for what was left of the night.

The next morning we awoke to a huge commotion in the common room. Dressing and heading downstairs we found that Braddock had been crucified on the inn's wall and the bartender whom Celegorm had spokem with was murdered in the night. "I guess that is how he TAKES CARE OF IT! Slimy bastard!" I thought. Several people suggested that we leave town at once. Again it seemed that Rumus and I were in agreement that these people must be notified. He suggested that we go to the center of town, project his voice with magic and declare our news. It was Larien who came up with the best idea: seek out the clergy they would surely know who to speak with. "By Firinna's flaming hair why didn't I think of that?" I checked with the innkeeper to see if there was a temple to Firinna here and he told me yes and where to go. Larien and I set out immediately. It was such a pleasant feeling to step onto ground that had been sanctified and hallowed in Firinna's name. We spoke to the priest in charge and told him of our plight. He snapped at once that he would set up a meeting with the appropriate people and send word to our inn. "Leave it to the followers of the Great Goddess of War, Fire, Chaos, and Trickery to get something done in this town," I thought, satisfied.

We returned to the inn, told our companions and within a couple hours a runner brought word of our meeting. As we entered the temple the two halflings choose to wait outside which I thought was for the best however what surprised me was the chain fighter waited with them. "Hell Firinna would not have minded him entering her Temple," I thought as the priest led us into a hidden corridor.

We traveled some way until we came to a room with a very old man sitting there in charge. We told him of the invasion and pressed upon him how saving lives would be in the best interest of his business. I told him of the man we met and that I suspected him to be responsible for the deaths. I felt a surge of joy as I received the impression that that man would soon be hanging next to Braddock The man gave us each 1,000 gold coins for our information and made me believe that he would evacuate the town. "Blessed Firinna watches over us as her servants made this possible," I thought. We took our leave and traveled back to meet our companions. As soon as we exited the Temple I said, "We can leave now. The town will me evacuated." I noticed Tilk handing money to Knife and Neil and thought, "It would be only right to share all the money we received." Then we went to the inn collected our belongings and departed the appropriately named town of SCUMGROVE.

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Chronicles of Rygorh: Lower Scumsgrove

I surveyed the buildings as we rode closer. The dilapidated buildings were much different from the ones in Bronce. In Bronce you could tell that the buildings were in disrepair because they had no money for upkeep; not so here. Here the dwellings were filthy and falling apart because it seemed that no one cared. The streets were muddy, and as we moved closer into town the stench of dead rotting fish filled my nostrils. We began by milling around town and looking for a decent place to stay. "Yeah, like that was going to happen in this place. Some of the best barns I had seen were more appealing," the thought crossed my mind. I suddenly heard some voices and turned to see Neil speaking to what appeared to be a guardsman. After a brief discussion the guard told Neil not only where a good place to stay was but also where we could go and have a stout drink. "Hmm, maybe the short one does have some value after all," I mused to myself cracking a slight grin.

We soon found the place that the guard referred to, made arrangements for our rooms and stowed our gear. Then we all proceeded to the tavern that the Guardsman spoke of. The place was a loud smoke-filled place of commotion and confusion "Hmm, finally a decent place to get a drink!" In the center of the room was a ring for melee combat, and everyone was betting on the fights shouts of jeers and encouragement filled the room. As I walked up to the bar I noticed Tilk looking on at the fights like a puppy would watch a bone that was just out of reach. "Hmm, I wonder how my friend would fair?" I thought as I surveyed the room. One half-orc attempted to start a fight with me, eyeing my sword. "Like I am foolish enough to brandish such a blade in a corrupt town run by black marketers," once the half-orc went and sat down I turned to see Tilk still drooling and trying to get into the ring. I decided, "Hell, let me get him in there and maybe make some money for myself." Throwing caution to the wind I walked over and yelled over the cheering voices, "I've, got 3 gold coins that says my boy over here will take the biggest and badest guy here!" I got about 10 takers on my bet and Tilk got into the fight with one of the biggest half-orcs I had ever seen.

The orc got the first blow and landed a fierce strike to Tilks big jaw that made him take a step back but he stood firm taking the best this guy could dish out. After that Tilk landed a series of rights and lefts and the orc never got a chance to land another blow before he fell to the floor. I jumped up patting my big friend on the back hollering, "That's my boy!" as I collected my winnings. Turning I noticed my companions speaking to a man and shortly Celegorm motioned for the rest of us to come with him and the man he was speaking to. He turned out to be the captain of the guard and was interested in the stories that Celegorm was telling in the bar. We quickly explained to him about the impending army of Evil Dark Dwarves that was going to invade this Island in the next couple days. He was interested in how we came by this information and how valid it was. Everyone seemed to be satisfied that we did a good job in relaying the immense threat that this town faced so that he could report to the Guild Leaders and get something done. As we left he turned and asked, "Where can I get in touch with guys in case anyone wants to speak to you further about this?" Nobody could see any reason why we shouldn't share this with him so we did then we went back to our rooms to retire for the night.

After making my nightly offering to Firinna I climbed into bed quite pleased with the evening's events. Some time in the middle of the night I woke to shouts in the hallway. Grumbling as I walked to the door "By Firinna's blessed fires when the hell will I get a night of uninterrupted sleep?" Stepping into the hall I could see Celegorm standing in the middle of the hall looking confused, Rumus standing next to him arms crossed, Larien just to the other side of him all staring down towards the other end of the hall. I looked down there to see two Guardsmen saying "this man is under arrest and he will come with us now!"

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Chronicles of Rygorh: Journey to Lower Scumsgrove

Early the following morning we all sat down to discuss our plans and to compare notes on the information we gained the previous night. The farmer and his strangled sheep were of no consequence especially if he is evacuating with the rest of the town. I was more concerned with the information pertaining to the merchant's guild in Lower Scumsgrove and how much power they wielded. I am guessing from the information we gained that they control the town guard and would not think kindly about us disturbing their business with evacuation plans. "Sword and Flame, at least evacuating the city would break their hold on the poor people they exploit."

I was abruptly brought out of my musings as I heard someone at the bar asking about the Starborn. Unfortunately our kind-hearted minstrel also heard this and at once motioned him over to the table. "Damn these people don't know how to keep their flaming mouths shut! Firinna, grant me strength, I need to have a talk with these people about volunteering information! Why is it so hard for them to have some care and restrain themselves?" Seems that no damage was done this time; however, the time will come that being open will ensnare us all eventually. This strange man seated himself and showed us his birthmark and told us his story which was similar to ours. Argo D'morr is how he identified himself, and he has a nasty scar down his face which showed that he was no stranger to a good fight. The only weapon he carried was a long chain, "Hmm, odd choice of weapons, but to each his own, I guess."

We left Lichgate shortly and traveled throughout the rest of the day pretty much uneventful. Well, if you consider all the clamor we make with our armor and certain people who feel they must speak . . .All the Flaming Time . . . uneventful. After finding a decent spot to set up camp, we set a fire and after making my nightly offerings to Firinna I drifted off to sleep.

"Shhh!" Neil said quietly as he shook me awake. "Something is out in the trees; the Knife went to check it out." Alert now, I stood and looked around. Tilk was up and looking around weapon in hand. Neil had moved to chain guy and was waking him when we heard the commotion in the trees as Knife must have found them. Scanning the trees I could now see them. "By Firinna's Fire, undead creatures, a mockery of life itself!" They moved from the trees and Tilk charged to meet them before they reached camp. Grasping the small flaming sword of Firinna I wore around my neck, I attempted to call upon her power to destroy these things. "Damn, by Sword and Flame they still are coming for us." Tilk is struck and falls paralized by the creatures foul touch, chain guy is doing surprisingly well swinging his chain around. Several of the creatures turn and run back into the trees. I notice that Neil his holding the symbol of his god, "Hmm, why would Firinna not grant me the might to destroy these beasts?" Grasping Firinna's symbol of strength and power I again attempt to call down her power only to be denied again. "Dammit. Why wont she . . ." Reality dawns on me, the mighty Goddess of War and Fire has graced me with a wondrous sword in which to do her will and I stand in the back like an elf trying to stay safe. "Strong Firinna I will not fail you again and show weakness." I see the rest of the creatures turn back to the woods, knowing that we have but a short time now I must prepare for battle.

I quickly don my armor with some help and move forward prepared to meet them sword in had as they return. I attack the first one within my reach striking him hard with my sword, the thrill of battle coursing through my veins, "Hmm, now that I have your attention!" Another of the creatures obviously sees me and knows that I am filled with Firinna's fire deciding that I am the biggest threat they both come at me. Battling fiercely they manage to strike me a couple times but with Firinna's blessed strength within me their foul touch has no effect. After several vicious blows from my divine blade of power one finally falls "how can these creatures take such punishment and still be standing!" I turn to dispatch the other, and one of my comrades thinking that I was in trouble, came to assist me and this thing now lies in a heap forgotten on the ground . . . "No, how can that be?" As I watch the corpses of these creatures turn to ash and disintegrate into nothingness.

The unanswered question still spinning in my head, we get everyone healed up and decide to move our camp elsewhere. The next morning we continue our journey. "How did that happen? Where did those creatures come from? How could those creatures survive just one strike with my blade? What is in store for us next?" The questions in my head won't go away. So far this entire experience seems to have done nothing to answer any, just as it seems that as an answer may be coming we find only more questions. About midday we come to Lower Scumsgrove. "What a pitiful disgusting hole." I find it hard to believe that anyone could live here.

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NPC Roster

This is a list of NPCs you have met in various places that you may or may not want to keep track of:

Bronce

• Jim Oakenbough (and friends Hal, Jacko and Tom): the party believes Jim and/or his friends killed a tax collector from Saragost. Jim and friends left Bronce on the night that the party returned from the mines with warning of the Duergar attack.
• Davan Gaskell (and deputy Morton Gimbert): the law officers of the village of Bronce. Davan took hobgoblin captives under guard when the PCs returned from the mine.
• Father Tobias Bronson: cleric of Blediwesse who befriended the PCs and allowed them to dig up the floorboards in the decrepit church to recover the sword of Starkweather John.
• Murphy Goodchild: the "headman" of Bronce who befriends the PCs after they rescue two missing children from the mines. Murphy Goodchild and Father Bronson were instrumental in seeing to the evacuation of Bronce.

Lichgate

• Apple Merrywind: halfling ranger Sheriff of Lichgate. She is friendly and a potential ally and/or paramour (for Neil at least). She is leading the evacuation of Lichgate.
• Harry Smith: a member of the Council of Elders in Lichgate who agreed to call the Council to meet after hearing the heroes' tale.
• Brandon Timmons: a member of the Council of Elders who tried to raise some people to fight the Duergar, but the party talked him out of it.

Lower Scumsgrove

• Vanson Braddock: the Captain of the Watch in Lower Scumsgrove. He was murdered by an unknown party after the PCs warned him about the coming Duergar attack.
• Blaine West: a member of the Guild of Merchants who summoned Celegorm and Rumus to him to learn more about the Duergar threat. He is the primary rival of Jerrol Flinn.
• Jerrol Flinn: the senior member of the Guild of Merchants. He paid the party 5,000 Caldrazan gold coins for the information about the Duergar threat.

Churney-on-the-Green

• Cromlin Jass: an ancient elven druid who "leads" the commune of Churney-on-the-Green.
• Angela Colwin: a young human woman (girl?) who gave the heroes each a cure light wounds potion while they were staying at Churney-on-the-Green.
• Micha Varnu: a human cleric of Hernun who cast remove disease on Tilk to cure him of his ghoul fever.

Hockton Barrow

• Captain Lucie Jabril: accomplished archer in charge of the Hockton Barrow militia.

Saragost

• Council of Saragost
  • Grandlord Peregrine Yomah: leader of the council
  • Lady Arigane Zakawe: council member and leader of the Adepts of the Prism wizard college.
  • Count Thaddeus Crastic: council member and master of coin. A fugitive on the run after murdering Sir Jeren.
  • Michael Dunsany: crippled man with a chair of flying. He is a council member, city archivist and leader of the bards of Saragost.
  • Sir Jeren Falconio: military leader and council member. Murdered by Count Crastic and some drow.
• Jaramus Artelmay: Acolyte of Firinna who keeps the shrine in Saragost.
• Sir Talos Greykeep: new Commander of the Guard for Saragost; appointed by Grandlord Yomah after Sir Jeren's death.
• Captain Tabarak Loman: captain of the Elensil, Lady Arigane's ship loaned to the Starborn for their trip to Caldrazaa.

Chalksmere

• Wem, the village idiot who protected the villagers from the Huntsman.
• Garstang, a hunter who brought a curse down on the village by killing the sacred white boar of Wohoon; now transformed into a boar himself by Wohoon.
• Able Johansen, village elder that was friendly with Neil.

Vannondale

• The Colombe Family
  • Lord Padraic Colombe: ruler of Vannondale; very wealthy; old money
  • Lady Martina Colombe: Padraic's wife; from Saragost
  • Gustave Colombe: heir to the Colombe fortune
  • Eustace Colombe: second son of Lord and Lady Colombe; escaped Petrus's capture and helped the heroes a bit
  • Justine Colombe: beautiful but arrogant daughter of the Colombes
  • Candia Colombe: youngest child of the Colombes at age fourteen; very clever and resourceful
• Petrus Carolus: wizard, astronomer, astrologer; held the Colombe's captive while studying the stars using their telescope; seems to know a bit about the Starborn and the Host

Crescent City (and environs)

• Lord Malthus: governor of Crescent City; appointed by the Church but is not himself a cleric. A charming man with an elegantly trimmed beard and a habit of talking to anyone, princes or peasants, as if they were sat in a tavern together and not in a huge office.
• Archbishop Vigilence Derrick: head of the Church of Marius; solemn man with wispy white hair and a nose reminiscent of a vulture's beak. Habitually dresses in white vestments while he is in the Cathedral. In his eyes, Crescent City is a dunghill heaving with maggots, a profanation of the past.
• Father Abstinence Morton: a jovial priest of the Church of Marius who runs a mission in the Hogglepot Marshes tending to the spiritual needs of the heathen swamp elves east of Crescent City.

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Campaign Timeline

March 998 CE

March 3

The original PCs arrive at the Tump and spend a bit of time wandering about, fighting shadow goblins and finding their way to Bronce. They later check out the abandoned gold mine nearby where they discover three new PCs and fight a pair of Duergar.

March 4

Return to the mine and explore the area where the Duergar army is preparing to mass. Discover letter indicating invasion will begin in 10 days.

March 5

Set out for Saragost via the only major road on the island of Chilhame. Stop overnight in Lichgate, meet Apple Merrywind and convince the Council of Elders to evacuate the town.

March 6

Meet new PC (Argo) in the morning. Begin travel to Lower Scumsgrove from Lichgate. Rest overnight and fight a ghast and ghouls.

March 7

Arrive in Lower Scumsgrove late in the afternoon. Find a place to stay and pass information about Duergar threat to Vanson Braddock, the Captain of the Watch.

March 8

Early morning "visit" from town guard who "arrest" Celegorm and Rumus and take them to meet Blaine West, a member of the Guild of Merchants. Later learn of murders of people they have talked to about the Duergar, including Vanson Braddock.

Later in the morning meet with unnamed leader of the Guild of Merchants and get paid for information about Duergar threat. The Guild will evacuate the city.

Leave in the late afternoon heading for Churney-on-the-Green. Arrive near midnight.

March 9

Meet Jass Cromlin, the ancient elven druid, who will make plans for Churney-on-the-Green in preparation for Duergar invasion. Discover that Tilk has ghoul fever and decide to stay another night to get healing from resident of Churney-on-the-Green.

March 10

Tilk receives remove disease spell from Micha Varnu, an elven cleric follower of Hernun.

Later that morning some of the party (Niel, Rumus, Rygorh, Tilk and the Knife) sets out for Saragost via Hockton Barrow. Encounter goblins and ogre. Rygorh killed.

Return to Churney-on-the-Green to recover.

March 11

The Knife sets out for Saragost and warns the Council of the coming invasion.

The rest of the group heads to the Tump to have Rygorh raised from the dead.

March 13

Neil, Tilk and Rumus arrive at the Tump. Rygorh raised from the dead.

Neil, Tilk, Rumus and Rygorh see physical evidence of Duergar army on the march.

March 15

Niel, Tilk, Rumus and Rygorh arrive in Hockton Barrow. Warn them of coming invasion.

Later that afternoon the Knife arrives from Saragost to gather up the party, and Casey and Alev return from their trip to warn minor villages and hamlets off the main road.

March 16

The party dispatches the ogre and his goblin cronies that killed Rygorh.

The party travels to Saragost; ambushed by Captain Hugh Severin of the City Watch and several rogues with poisoned weapons; meet the City Council, receive cash reward and commission (Freeman of Saragost).

Attend the mermaid show at the Grand Baronial Hotel that evening.

March 17

The heroes receive their commission in a ceremony at the City Council. They also learn that Hugh Severin and the unnamed rogue have already been tried and sentenced.

Spend the day buying gear and investigating various rumors and locations throughout Saragost.

Dreams and visions while resting overnight.

March 18

Rumus receives a gift from the Midnight Enclave.

Lady Arigane visits the party.

Party sets out for Chalksmere by way of Hockton Barrow. Attacked by a wyvern between Hockton Barrow and Chalksmere. Arrive at Chalksmere early evening. See warning sign; go back down road to rest in farm house.

March 19

Go to Chalksmere. Confront townspeople who are not forthcoming with information. That evening witness townsfolk transformation to boars and see attack by the avatar of Wohoon. Wem, the village idiot, wards the hunter away from the villager/boars.

Later witness the Huntsman cooking and eating one of the villages at the shrine of Wohoon.

March 20

Talk to villagers and town elders. Learn of huntsman, Garstang, who killed great white boar. Piece together that the boar is sacred and the village is cursed.

Confront Garstang. Take him to shrine of Wohoon; present him as offering. Curse lifted . . . sort of.

March 21

Set out for Astercote by way of Hockton Barrow and Saragost.

March 22

Ambushed by five drow early in the day between Hockton Barrow and Saragost.

Rygorh receives a sending from Lady Arigane.

The heroes return to Saragost late in the afternoon where they meet with Lady Arigane again, buy/sell gear, and Rygorh goes to the Temple of Firinna to meet with an evil counterpart to gather information about the goings on in Saragost.

Late in the evening a gnome assassin visits the heroes at the Inn of the Flaming Beard. He sees guards and makes off without making an attempt on his target. He nearly gutted Tilk when Tilk tried to attack him. He then non-chalantly made off on his own.

March 23

Early morning set off for Astercote. Rest during the day until about 2:00 pm. Arrive at Astercote late in the afternoon. Find Astercote is missing! There is a massive crater in the ground over one mile in diameter where Astercote was.

Arrive in Vannondale near dark. Locals won't talk. Meet Eustace Colombe. Get a room for the night after fighting off some harpies.

March 24

Make a foray into the Colombe mansion. Destroy several zombies and kill an ettin. Leave the mansion in mid-morning low on spells after hearing some invisible critters following them about.

Later in the afternoon Petrus Carolus comes to them at the inn. He demands that they leave him be or help him. They agree to help him find an eyepiece for a telescope . . . though they don't mean it.

March 25

Return to Colombe mansion intending to bring low the wizard Petrus. He turns out to be more than they bargained for. Eventually they find the eyepiece and hand it over to Petrus.

Later in the day the heroes return to the Colombe mansion and discuss matters with Petrus. He agrees to leave the mansion and free the Colombes that evening after he finishes his work. The Colombes reward the Starborn generously for "rescuing" them.

March 26

Travel towards Saragost. Camp two hours outside of the city to avoid Rumus's assassin.

March 27

Return to Saragost early in the morning. Meet with Lady Arigane and fill her in on events. See that most of the refugess have been allowed into the city; some have set up a camp in the nearby woods south of the city. Lady Arigane informs the heroes where they can find the Node in Saragost: it is in the sewers underneath the main town square.

The party splits up to cover more ground. Some spend their time in the library at the Hall of Echoes where they learn a bit more about the previous Starborn. Others spend time hunting down information about the burglaries. Finally, spend some fruitless time seeking information at the Temple of Firinna.

Later in the day the heroes venture into the sewers and the find the Node of Saragost. When they open the door some dozen shadows rush out. The heroes manage to slay a handful, but most of them escape into the city. The heroes have found a new place to rest . . . it smells bad, but it offers some protection as it seems only the Starborn can enter.

The Knife scouts about and finds a pick pocket whom he assumes is a member of the Midnight Enclave. He tries to make a friendly contact, but seems to have no success. That evening everyone settles down in the Node to rest excepting the Knife and Casey, who take rooms at the Graybeard Inn in hopes of making more contact with the Midnight Enclave.

Late in the evening the Knife and Tilk go up to the Greybeard Inn in an effort to make contact with the Midnight Enclave. Rumus takes his rest at the Santuary of the Seven Archways. A pair of Yeth Hounds attacks the rest of the party in the Node. They go after Rygorh, pretty much ignoring everyone else.

March 28

Neil, Casey, Rygorh and Alev find a warehouse where the stolen alchemical materials are kept. They meet with Lady Arigane and with Sir Jeren. Sir Jeren is murdered later that day; Count Crastic is suspected.

That night the heroes stake out the warehouse. They see no activity there.

March 29

The heroes assault the warehouse from the sewers foiling the plot to blow up the city gate. They kill a human alchemist and capture a pair of drow and a pair of duergar. They turn the prisoners over for questioning by the Council.

March 30

The heroes scouted the Barrowghast, a ship in the harbor at Saragost rumored to house the drow commanders of the area. The Starborn discovered that there are drow on board.

March 31

Attacked the drow commanders on board the Barrowghast with near disasterous results. Alev was killed, but later raised from the dead at the Node under Saragost. The party discovered a cache of gems worth a great deal of money as well as the drow captain's diary which outlines the drow plans for Saragost and Chillhame.

April 998 CE

April 1

The heroes prepare for battle. Spell casters prepare scrolls, warriors prepare their weapons and everyone looks for ways to help defend the city.

April 2

During the day the heroes set oil patch "traps" in the field outside of the main gates and prepare for the fight to come. Just before nightfall the army arrives. They attack at dusk. The Starborn make their way to the rear lines during the battle and manage to kill one of the Duergar commanders, but lose Tilk to a giant undead creature . . . a Hruggi. The party flees Saragost on the Elensil after having Tilk raised at the Node beneath Saragost as the Duergar overrun the city.

April 3

Uneventful voyage aboard the Elensil.

April 4

The heroes are joined by two additional Starborn, Dinah Murphy and Lorelei Zandros.

April 5

A pair of Eryines attacks the Elensil and disables it by burning up the sails.

April 6

The Gray Reaver, a Drow operated ship, attacks. The heroes handily manage the situation and seize the enemy ship freeing the enslaved crew.

April 7 - 9

Uneventful sailing to Crescent City.

Timeline continues here.

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Neil: From Lichgate to Churney-on-the-Green

Lichgate turned out to be a very nice place, despite the name. There were many halflings there. Apple Merrywind, the local sheriff, is an interesting lady. Not only is she attractive and single, but she's also apparently skilled in combat and well respected (She's the sheriff). I hope to see her again some day.

"Heakun, does Apple like to travel? Will I ever see her again? Would you watch over her . . . as a favor to me?"

The trip to Lower Scumsgrove was fraught with peril. Undead assaulted us in the middle of the night. Tilk was almost a goner. I think he needs better armor. They carved him up pretty good. Heakun smiled on us though, and we managed to destroy the foul creatures. While we didn't deal massive damage, the Halflings proved very useful in this fight. More weirdness though . . . immediately after the fight, the bodies rapidly decomposed.

"Thanks for your support big guy! Evaporating goblins and decomposing ghouls are bugging me. What's up with that?"

Lower Scumsgrove has a fitting name. It's down by the river, in a swamp, smelly and full of low-lifes. There was nothing nice about this place. If it weren't for the few innocents, who must exist in a town this size, I'd like the Duergar to level the place.

Politics and corruption control the town. Brute force and fear are their tools. There was no lack of bullies. The leaders schemed against each other and killed people, even their own people, for knowing too much.

Even the town guard was a farce. Most of them were unhelpful bullies, who served the merchants and plotted against the mayor. They awoke innocents in the middle of the night, and arrested people for no good reason. Of course we opposed such obvious vileness, but were hopelessly outnumbered. They took the bard and threatened to kill anyone that interfered.

Apparently the puppeteer wanted more information on the Duergar. This mysterious man spoke to nearly half the party that night, then released them (thankfully). Being imprisoned in a town that's about to be wiped out would really suck. Though, I guess the imprisonment thing wouldn't last long.

"Heakun's blessing again . . . keeping his faithful (and companions) out of jail. Thank you, thank you, thank you!!!"

Less than a day after arriving, we were ready to leave. Still concerned about the few innocents here (?), we chose to visit the local clergy and make a public announcement before departing (that day). Rygorh took a small group to the Temple of Firinna and arranged a meeting. The rest of us stayed at the inn to rest and recover spells.

The meeting took place at the Temple of Firinna that afternoon. Were it not for Rygorh, I would not have been comfortable with this. Despite his brutish ways, he seems to be an honest and upstanding guy. From what I know of Firinna, not all of her followers are so upstanding.

Several of us stood watch at the front door, while the more diplomatic people went inside. They were in there a long time. I peeked in several times, but they had apparently moved to a private room. Just when I was becoming truly concerned, they came striding out of the Temple, and with cash. Tilk passed us some money, but wouldn't talk about it. Apparently we were given 300gp apiece as some sort of bribe (perhaps to leave town?). No one will talk about it. I guess cash is a better reason to leave than a dagger in the back, or false arrest/imprisonment.

We quickly gathered our things and departed, traveling late into the night in an attempt to get far from Scumsgrove. Luckily, there's another town five or six hours south of Scumsgrove . . . Churney-on-the-Green.

Churney is opposite Scumsgrove in every way. The town blends in with nature, smells fresh and clean, and the people are polite and helpful. There's no inn, but some guy let us stay at his house. He even fed us, and asked for nothing in return. Now that's hospitality!

"I know these people worship Blediwesse, but extra blessings from you can't hurt. They will soon need it."

The people here are truly a community. Everyone sees to everyone's needs. They live in harmony with each other and with nature. There's not really a government or group of leaders here. The elderly Druid-Elf is the only leader type I could discern. She was cool! She could change into a tree, speak telepathically with her people and she knew about the millennium equinox. She must be very old, and powerful.

We spent a couple of days here. Apparently one of Tilk's wounds got infected. The local Druids are healing him and gave us all potions. This place is magical, yet natural. The homes are "grown" into the trees. The water is clean & refreshing, yet something more. The food is all natural and tasty, but more filling and nourishing than any fruits and vegetables I've ever had.

Life in Churney-on-the-Green is very relaxing and routine, like home. It's getting dull quickly. It was a nice place to visit, but boring. Still, I hope the war doesn't come here. These are good people. We depart today, as soon as the druids are finished with Tilk.

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Chapter Two: Raising the Alarm (Churney-on-the-Green)

The party moves on from Lower Scumsgrove quickly and travels by night to Churney-on-the-Green. They arrive long after dark, nearing midnight, and find a beautiful town that is one with nature. The buildings appear not to have been built so much as grown out of the ground. There is a peaceful sense about the place and the soft, sweet smells of spring flowers and ripe growing things soothes the weary travelers.

Wandering about the place, they look for an inn, only to find a largish house with some light inside. A man answers their knock at the door and after a bit of questioning about who they are and what they are doing he disappears back into the house. He returns a moment later and examines each of the heroes in turn. He seems satisfied and welcomes them into the house. He explains that there is no inn or any sort of public house for travelers here, but offers to let them stay with him. The party gratefully accepts.

The man was eating a stew when the heroes arrived. He offers them each a bit and Neil sets to helping the man go about his chores. After a half hour or so each of the PCs has a small bowl of stew and a mug of cool, crystal clear water. A couple of mouthfuls of stew fills everyone's belly, and the water is refreshing, tasting somehow sweetened. During the late dinner meal the group explains their errand to the man and asks who they should talk to about the Duergar threat. The man explains that there is no "government" in Churney-on-the-Green, but he will see to it that the town is warned of the danger.

Everyone settles down to sleep on the floor. A watch is set, but most of the watchers drowse off to sleep at some point during their duty.

The next morning the sounds of the man rummaging about in the kitchen awakens the heroes. He is making a morning meal for everyone. Bright sunshine filters into the open windows and a soft spring breeze billows through the house. A mouthful of quite tasty gruel and a mug of cool water fulfills everyone's morning hunger. The man tells them to make themselves comfortable and sets out "to attend to business."

As the morning progresses the party realizes that this is a nature commune in which the many elves and their human friends work together to see to one another's needs. Everyone provides food and water when it is his or her turn to do the gathering. No one disturbs the natural flow of life in the community. No animals are killed; no trees are felled for lumber or firewood. Eveyone makes do with what nature offers them freely.

Some of the group also notices a barren tree just outside of the house where they slept. This tree was not there before. A magical aura reveals a faint transmutation affects the tree.

At exactly noon about two dozen elves and men gather in a semi-cirlce around the entrance to the party's temporary quarters. They seem focused on the tree. They do not speak except in response to direct questions, but their answers tend to be cryptic and non-revealing. Moments later the barren tree twists and transforms into the shape of an ancient elven woman. She wears a wolfskin pelt and soft leather boots. Her cheeks and lips are pierced with wooden darts and feathers adorn her thigh-length gray hair. She stands calmly, regally looking on the gathering of her fellows and the party.

The old elf welcomes the heroes and asks them about their business here. She follows their story closely and asks pointed questions, discerning prehaps more from the tale than the heroes realize. At the conclusion of the tale the elven woman walks slowly about the half-circle touching each of her comrades on the forehead. She returns to her post in the center of the gathering and stands still for many minutes. No one says a word. Then, as a flock of birds reacting to a cracking shot, the townspeople all set to work, moving about the town, making haste that the party had not seen among them yet.

The elf lady explains that the town of Churney-on-the-Green will prepare for the invasion. They will send non-combatants into the trees and some to Saragost to safety, but many of the warriors will stay behind to fight this menace. The party tries to convince her that everyone should flee, but she looks on them with sad wisdom and merely nods. It is clear that she, at least, intends to fight.

Some time is spent speaking with the lady about the legends of the Dark Host and the Starborn. She knows some of the legends, but little more than the heroes. She suggests that each of them may have been brought here from some other place and/or time to act as the force to fight the Host. This cycle repeats throughout time. It is part of nature. While she clearly wishes for the Light to win, she knows that at times it is necessary for the Dark to prevail to preserve the balance of nature. She examines Rygorh's sword and suggests that all of the heroes have some piece of themselves missing that they should seek out. These missing pieces will surely assist them in their coming battles.

The old elf lady takes her leave. Later a young human woman (girl?) arrives and serves lunch to the heroes. She talks non-chalantly of the peace of nature and the wellness of everyone "on the green." She gives to each of the heroes a cure light wounds potion and takes her leave.

The heroes seek aid for Tilk to cure him of his disease. There are people here capable of such cures, but they must wait until the morrow to provide this remedy. The party settles down to stay another night in Churney-on-the-Green. That night another man who they have not met before arrives to see to their dinner. He leaves them alone in the house to spend the night in peace.

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Chapter Two: Raising the Alarm (Lower Scumsgrove) (metagaming)

Wow! Sorry to have pissed you all off so much, but I really didn't think you would react the way you did. It just goes to show you that you really never can predict what players will do.

So, what happened? Well, I forgot that you are all players in a game and that you would react to events in the game from a player perspective as opposed to a personal, how-would-I-handle-this perspective.

For the record, I'm referring to the situation in which the town guard wanted to take Celegorm away by himself. It was a bad move on my part. At best there would have been some role-play situation in which Celegorm was the only PC involved and everyone else had to sit around waiting for the whole thing to wrap up. At worst it would have (should have?) been a total party kill.

So, let me 'splain. I wanted to create a bit of tension and fear by pulling one player character out of the group and taking him aside privately to resolve the matter. While everyone else sat around worrying about what was happening I had hoped that you would role-play among yourselves and generate some genuine fear for your buddy. It didn't work.

I think the main reason it didn't work is that I failed to realize that you all would not "go along" when the authorities told you what to do. The problem mostly boils down to you being players in a game and not real people in a real situation where you are out-numbered and out-gunned. Initially you were in a situation where you could resist: the entire party facing off against two town guards. I then escalated the situation to the point that you could not win, but it didn't seem to matter. Some of you were still prepared to fight to the death. I didn't want that to happen (because I like gaming with you), so I basically told you what to do. I railroaded you again, when I said I wouldn't do that. I'm sorry.

What to do in the future? I'm not sure at this point. There will certainly be situations in which your characters will not be in full control of your destiny. While your characters are the main focus of the story and they are the heroes, they are not all-powerful. They cannot win the day all the time. I guess what I'm trying to say is that you should really think about what you would actually do in a given situation. Don't think about what you would want to do or what you wish you could do, but what you really would do.

I talked about this with Matt and Jeff after the game last night. I used a very similar "real world" example. If two cops showed up at my house last night and said they were arresting me, would any of you had moved to stop it? I doubt that you would have. Now, I'm not saying that you are your characrters, but think about it . . . would anyone really have interfered if the "proper authorities" arrived and wanted to take one of us away, even if they offered no explanation? Probably not. So, why would your characters do it?

I think most of it boils down to "this is a game" and characters will take risks that real people would never take. Granted, your characters fight undead creatures and goblins and such, but you still can't "beat the world." There are always tougher, stronger, and smarter people out there (at least until you get to 10th or 12th level), and you should be prepared to deal with those types sometimes.

I think I also pushed too much role-play and not enough roll-play last night. There was only one combat scene, so you didn't get to use your kewl p0werz very much during the game. I will adjust to make sure there is more opportunity for everyone to throw their weight around in the future. Just don't do it against the organized power of a government (or government-like) entity. The powers-that-be can always call on more resources than a band of low-level adventurers has available, and the party will rarely (if ever) be able to face down the concerted effort of that government.

So, again, I'm sorry about how things turned out. I hope we can all chalk this one up to "Brent's a moron" and move on. If anyone feels like they want to talk more about it, I'm definitely willing to listen. In fact, if any of you has suggestions about what I could do in the future, please let me know.

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Chapter Two: Raising the Alarm (Lower Scumsgrove)

New Arrival

While the party rests up and gathers a bit of information in Lichgate, a new hero arrives by the name of Argo D'morr. He is a strapping man with scars and a birthmark that names him as one born under the Satyr. He introduces himself to the group and claims to be seeking the Starborn. The group welcomes him with open arms and sets to planning the trip into Lower Scumsgrove.

Many of the heroes seem very suspicious of the people of Lower Scumsgrove. Rygorh in particular voices his opinion that the merchants of Lower Scumsgrove are "low life" black marketeers, and in a moment of prescience says, "If we go in and start raising the alarm they may attempt to have us jailed as disturbers of the peace; we must watch ourselves carefully."

Truer words were never spoken! And truer words have never been heeded less.

On the Road

The party is forced to rest outdoors overnight while traveling from Lichgate to Lower Scumsgrove. They pass many refugees on the road from both Bronce and Lichgate, and much to their pleasure, learn that both places are fully evacuating. During the overnight stay a handful of ghouls led by a ghast attacks the heroes. Things go badly for Tilk as he is paralyzed and diseased by the ghast's attacks, but after a long-fought battle the party prevails with no casualties. The next morning the group makes it way to Lower Scumsgrove, arriving late in the afternoon.

Lower Scumsgrove

The town of Lower Scumsgrove is a pit of misery built on the eastbound river Caulith in the stagnant waters at the head of the river. The stench of decaying vegetation, rotting fish and dumped sewage permeates the entire community as towering buildings lean over one another creating dark alleys even in the bright of day.

The heroes make their way towards the nicer part of town where Neil manages to sway a guardsman to his favor. The guardsman answers some questions about the town and gives Neil directions to The Feathertop Inn which he claims is a nice place to stay at decent prices. He also mentions the Cracked Mug Bar and Fisticuffs as a great place to have a drink.

The party finds the Feathertop Inn and make arrangements to stay the night. They then set out en masse to the Cracked Mug Bar and Fisticuffs. At the bar they find a Fight Club style ring in the middle of the place and dozens of human men and half-orcs drinking beer, bellowing and cursing, cheering the fighters and pinching the bottoms of tavern wenches. Tilk seems most interested in the fighting.

Celegorm makes his way to the bar where he buys beer for several of his comrades and engages the barkeeper in a bit of conversation. After a couple of mugs of beer and some small talk, Celegorm explains the Duergar threat and asks who he can speak to about the situation. The bartender seems none too interestd and somewhat offended. He asks repeatedly to know what the game is and who Celegorm is working for. Seeing this exchange as a lost cause, Celegorm and friends make for the door.

In the meantime, Tilk has managed to get himself into the fighting ring. His opponent lands a wicked blow to Tilk's head to start the match, but thereafter Tilk manages to keep his defenses up and eventually pummels his opponent to the ground. Tilk receives 5 gold pieces for his effort, and Rygorh collects a good deal more from bets he placed on his friend.

The heroes take their leave of the place, only to be stopped by Vanson Braddock and some of the town guard. Vanson explains that he has heard a bit about their business in town, and he wants to know more. The group makes its way to the town hall where Vanson listens intently to the group's story. He asks a few questions, but mainly seems interested in who they are working for and what they are trying to do here. He seems suspicious of them and is looking for ulterior motives. The party is abruptly dismissed, but not before Vanson asks where he can find them later.

Sleep Interrupted

Early in the morning Celegorm stands guard in the hallway at the inn when two town guards approach and demand that he accompany them. Celegorm refuses to go alone and wakes his companions. The two parties exchange heated words and the town guard retreats without Celegorm. They return sometime later with a much larger group led by Vanson Braddock.

The party, sans the Knife who has made his way to the roof of the inn, go down to the common room to find Vanson Braddock and a dozen or so town guards waiting for them. After a great deal of arguing (and some frustration on the part of players and DM alike), Celegorm and Rygorh agree to accompany Vanson. He takes them to a warehouse near the river where they meet an attractive and eloquent man in his early 30's who demands to know their story. He listens with interest and asks to see the letter the party recovered from the Duergar post. While a guard goes back to the inn to retrieve "the elf" and the letter, he has a guard serve out wine, cheese and bread to his "guests".

Rumus and Larien both arrive some time later with a pair of town guards and the Duergar letter. The man looks the letter over, asks a few more questions about the situation and dismisses his "guests" after thanking them.

Murder in Lower Scumsgrove

Later that morning and Rumus and Celegorm rest the other heroes discover that the owner/operator of The Cracked Mug Bar and Fisticuffs has been murdered in his bed. More disturbing is the fact that Vanson Braddock has been crucified in the alley behind the Feathertop Inn. The party prepares for the worst and starts making plans. They discuss leaving town immediately or warning townspeople directly by making a public announcement among other things. They settle on reaching out to one of the local churches for help.

Rygorh and Larien go to the local temple of Firinna where they meet with Father Arik. He accepts thier story and explains that they should take this information to the Guild of Merchants. The heroes describe their experience of the early morning and that they believe they have already met with the Guild. Father Arik tells them that the person they met is Blaine West, who is a member of the Guild, but he is not the ranking member, nor is he particularly friendly with the leadership of the Guild. Rygorh correctly surmises that inter-Guild struggles explain much of what has happened thus far. Father Arik asks the heroes to stay in town until he can arrange a meeting with members of the Guild.

Guild Masters

Around noon Rygorh and Larien receive a message from Father Arik: they are to come to the temple of Firinna at 3:00 pm today, and he will take them to meet with the Guild leaders. The party makes preparations and later heads to the temple.

At the temple the Knife refuses to enter and Neil and Argo decide to keep him company outside while the others go to the meeting.

The heroes follow Father Arik into a warren of passages beneath the temple that twist and turn, going up and down, until they are completely lost underneath the town. They emerge from a tunnel into a very ornate chamber where three men sit placidly at a round ironwood table. A quartet of guard-types stand in the corners of the room.

"P-puh-pleh-please, be s-suh-see-seated," the old man mutters to the group. He sits between two others. All three of them are dressed in finery and appear well off.

The three men listen to the party's story about the Duergar, occassionally, the older man will stutter out some question or comment about the situation. He seems disturbed about the whole affair, but is mostly concerned about how this will affect his profits. A waving of the Duergar letter and further explanation ends when the old man stammers, "Y-yeh-yes, I s-suh-seh-see, that we m-mu-muh must m-m-muh-move on. I will s-suh-seh-see to it!" The heroes asses the old man's intentions and feel that he will, in fact, order the town to evacuate. Before he dismisses them, the old man calls on one of his partners to pay them. Each of the five heroes receives a largish sack that clinks with the familiar sound of coins. They later find that each of them was paid 1,000 Caldrazan gold coins for their efforts. Father Arik leads them back to his temple.

Back at the Feathertop Inn the party gathers they gear and makes haste to leave this foul town behind. They set out at 5:00 pm intending to travel through the night to reach Churney-on-the-Green.

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Chronicles of Rygorh: Return to Bronce

As soon as the Children recognized Jim and his lackeys they ran over to him to my complete dismay. Jim suggested that he and his boys take the children back to town for us, or at least escort us back. "Hmm, yeah, escort my flaming ass! Last thing I need is an escort, especially from the likes of him. All I need is one excuse and my sword will drink his blood, by Firinna." Jim and his boys kind of tried to make a circle around us as we walked back to the village, but I don't think he expected our group to expand to nine while we were down there. I allowed myself to fall to the rear keeping the trash back there within sword reach as we walked.

It was a maddening trip back. Neil was his old self talking to himself and now we had Celegorm singing and several folks had decided to converse in different languages. So, now we had a constant chorus of noise. "Why cant these people be quiet like Tilk?" Larien spent most of the trip talking to the children who were now intent on walking with Jim. The group assumed that Jim and his boys were planning on taking the credit for saving the children and possibly implicating us in their abduction. As we approached the Village, Larien took one of the boy's hands and ran ahead with him as John followed closely. Celegorm was still singing loudly of the battle in the mines and how Jim had nothing to do with saving the children, "Hmm, guess there is some good to his constant singing."

Everyone in the village was ecstatic as we arrived. The hobgoblin prisoners were handed over to the constable and the corpse of the tax collector to the priest. Jim is in the Inn announcing to all that drinks are on him for the night. "Yeah, I bet . . . I'll be the wart on a troll's scrotum before I let him buy me a drink!" I sat in the corner and bought my own drinks and finally had a chance for solitude and peace. Well, kind of, with my companions all standing in the middle of the room milling about and soaking up all the praise. I guess some of it was good someone volunteered to the Elf that the sword was indeed in that flaming church. I arose and told the group that we should turn in for the night, but no one seemed to want to listen. I thought, "Screw ‘em; I need sleep and I haven't spoken to Firinna in way too long". I headed up to my room and prayed for some time before turning in. I am not sure what time it was but sometime in the middle of the night that damn Barbarian started beating on my door with Casey behind him going on about that tax collector's ghost haunting him. I told him to leave me the hells alone and go back to sleep and we would talk about it in the morning "Damn barbarian with overactive imagination," I muttered as I went back to sleep.

The next morning during breakfast everyone was buzzing about going back to that flaming church to retrieve the sword. I decided that I wanted nothing to do with that place; I am a servant of Firinna and will not subject myself to weak sensations in a church of a strange God. After the group left I sat there drinking a couple of beers and meditating on the strength of Firinna. For how long I am not sure but suddenly it was back. "That feeling, from the church! Contentment, the other half of my soul near the door?" Turning I saw only Tilk holding the most beautiful long sword I had ever seen. "I must have that blade; I know now what Firinna has saved me for my whole life. The severed part of my spirit the sword that was meant to be mine my whole life sat in Tilk's unskilled hand."

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The Chronicles of Rygorh: New Arrivals

Tilk busied himself with tying up our two prisoners; Neil and I began searching the corpses as the waters continued to rush out of the chamber. Suddenly three figures bubbled up to the surface of the water; well, two came to the surface but the third went tumbling down the raging torrent. "By Firinna’s blade" I thought "what is going on now?" as I stopped what I was doing and gripped the hilt of my sword ready for any surprises this time. The two strangers standing before us were not hobgoblins or even close to them. In fact, one appeared to be an elven female; hmm a striking woman – for an elf that is. The other appeared to be a human male. Neil became very excited and began muttering anew and speaking really fast introducing himself and asking many questions talking about the Tump and stars and such. "Damn halfling needs to learn that there are times in which you need to KEEP YOUR MOUTH SHUT rather than volunteer information!" The female elf introduced herself as Larien and the Human was Alevonius. About that time Casey returned carrying The Knife as well as an Elf that I didn’t know. Rumus had a small boy clinging to him like a leach (well maybe he will keep that bloody book put away for a while).

Before any formal questioning of these people could begin two heavily armored figures came walking up the passage from the direction in which the water had run off. They immediately attacked the group one struck the human Alevonius before anyone could act, and he dropped to the ground. The other moved across the cavern towards the others, but was cut off by a mighty swing from Tilk! Drawing my blade I ran to the aid of this new human who had already fallen and calling on Firinna’s power. She healed his wounds enough to stop the bleeding, but he won't be seeing anymore of this fight. Once I was satisfied that he would live I rushed to the aid of my new comrades blade in hand. Just as I reached the fight with another bellow from deep in his throat Tilks blade tore through this second assailant nearly splitting him in two.

Brief introductions were made, and we told the newcomers that we needed to get these two boys back to the Village. We set off, stopping briefly to retrieve the corpse of the ghost we had encountered on the upper levels. Once the ghost saw his corpse he seemed satisfied and disappeared as we continued on our way. We spoke as we walked, and it turned out that these people had also been brought here as we were with one exception the voice seemed in trouble and these people had seen a very hideous creature before being dropped into the water. "Firinna come to the lady's aid if you will. She seemed to be soft and unable to defend herself." The female elf named Larien seemed ok, although very inquisitive. The small weak human named Alevonius was a quiet sort keeping to himself much. "I wish more of our group did that." The third new comrade, who obviously cannot swim well, identified himself as Celegorm. Actually he sang it and seemed content to serenade the party all the way up. "Sword and Flame this is going to get old." As we reached the mine opening into to night several members of the group noticed someone watching us from a one of the out buildings. Upon hearing this Tilk yelled at him to come out of hiding. "I really am starting to like the bold fearlessness of this barbarian." The figure stepped out to where we could see him, and it's that flaming low life Jim. He motions to the building and his henchmen also step out. "Hmm, looks like he was planning an ambush; by sword and flame I swear my blade will be clothed in his blood before long."

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Chapter Two: Interlude (Lichgate)

The heroes spend the evening in Lichgate after having warned the village council and the local constable of the coming Duergar threat. The locals have set to action and are working on packing up and heading to Saragost. A few of the younger, unmarried males have set out to warn nearby homesteads and minor villages before heading out for Saragost themselves.

In the meantime the heroes spend the early part of the evening talking with as many locals as they can to gather any information they can about what may be going on in the area:

Gather Information Checks

• Tilk: A sadist called Vanson Braddock runs the city watch in Lower Scumsgrove, the nearest town south of here.
• Neil: Apple Merrywind is unmarried and might settle down if the right halfling came along; she would insist that the people of Lichgate have a good replacement for her before she left town.
• Celegorm: the Council of Elders may need a bit more prodding to ensure that the town evacuates entirely. There is word around town that Elder Timmons has started making the rounds trying to encourage any "brave, hearty souls" to stick around and try to fight the Duergar.
• Alev: Farmer Cobbet, a local who lives on the eastern edge of town, has complained about someone/something strangling his sheep lately.
• Rumus: the Council of Elders are the real movers and shakers in town. While there is little need for "government" in Lichgate, what little must be coordinated among the locals goes through the Council of Elders.
• Larien: The Guild of Merchants in Lower Scumsgrove makes a lot of money by importing illegal goods and contraband that would not be allowed in at Saragost. This has made the guild rich enough to buy off the authorities.
• Rygorh: Lower Scumsgrove, the town to the south, has a mayor named Hodgkiss, but the real power in town is the Guild of Merchants.
• Seebo: Apple Merrywind is a good person to know. She has traveled far and wide throughout Chillhame and knows people on the local constabulary or militia in most towns and villages on the island.
• Casey: the name of the town, Lichgate, has absolutely nothing to do with any undead creature(s) of a similar name.

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