Ep. 1 - And so it begins...
The late afternoon sun was setting and the sounds of merriment began to fill the Green Dragon Inn & Tavern. The sweet smell of pipe tobacco wafted in lazy clouds and the smell of newly tapped beer kegs massaged the nostrils. Our adventurers sat at the table together discussing the recent business proposition from their old friend, the dwarf Gundren Rockseeker. Gundren was clearly excited and a more than a little secretive about the reasons for the trip, saying only that he had found “something big” and that he’d pay ten gold pieces each for escorting his supplies safely to Barthen’s Provisions, a trading post in Phandalin. He then set out ahead on horse, along with a warrior escort named Sildar Hallwinter, claiming he needed to arrive early to “take care of business.” Escorting one cart from Neverwinter to Phandalin. Seems easy enough.
The party is made up of old friends. There is Tid (Courtney), the half-orc paladin with a short temper and a long memory. Lianala (Linda), the human druid with a strong connection to to sacred spaces and a destiny to protect the common folk. Quildohtar (Lizzie), an elven fighter who enjoys writing her treatise on combat theory, The Tome of Battle. She prefers swordplay to small talk and has the ability to back up her words. Cailee (Abbie), the elf ranger and rugged individualist. The Ron Swanson of the Woods. Rounding out the party is the elf wizard Dinkelburg (Nathan), who has a disdain for those who jab pointy sticks at people and think they are mighty. His weapons are the building blocks of creation - the forces of the universe. Muscle and bone do not impress him.
The party met several of the occupants of the Green Dragon Inn & Tavern. (HT to Matthew Coville, who generated most of what I used in this first adventure!)
Giselle, Owner and Proprietor
Giselle is a tall, thin middle-aged woman with long, pale blonde hair tied up in a bun. She has a quick wit and ready smile. She wears a simple blue gown and linen apron stained with many years of alcoholic residue. The townsfolk may be suspicious of the new adventurers come to town, but Giselle welcomes all with a bright smile, knowing new customers, however they may seem, are an opportunity.
The party is made up of old friends. There is Tid (Courtney), the half-orc paladin with a short temper and a long memory. Lianala (Linda), the human druid with a strong connection to to sacred spaces and a destiny to protect the common folk. Quildohtar (Lizzie), an elven fighter who enjoys writing her treatise on combat theory, The Tome of Battle. She prefers swordplay to small talk and has the ability to back up her words. Cailee (Abbie), the elf ranger and rugged individualist. The Ron Swanson of the Woods. Rounding out the party is the elf wizard Dinkelburg (Nathan), who has a disdain for those who jab pointy sticks at people and think they are mighty. His weapons are the building blocks of creation - the forces of the universe. Muscle and bone do not impress him.
The party met several of the occupants of the Green Dragon Inn & Tavern. (HT to Matthew Coville, who generated most of what I used in this first adventure!)
Giselle, Owner and Proprietor
Giselle is a tall, thin middle-aged woman with long, pale blonde hair tied up in a bun. She has a quick wit and ready smile. She wears a simple blue gown and linen apron stained with many years of alcoholic residue. The townsfolk may be suspicious of the new adventurers come to town, but Giselle welcomes all with a bright smile, knowing new customers, however they may seem, are an opportunity.
Gowan, Cook, Butcher, and Husband to Giselle
Gowan is wider and shorter than his wife, with a leather apron over a large belly. A thin circle of curly black hair rings his bald head. Like his wife, he is jovial and outgoing. Gowan spends most of his time in the kitchen, accessed via a door behind the bar.
Brecca, the serving girl and daughter to Giselle and Gowan
Brecca is a teenage girl, which means she’s basically an adult as far as any of these people are considered. She’s thin, wears a blue dress like her mother and has her father’s curly black hair. She does all the odd jobs around the inn, she takes orders, serves the food, cleans, does a little cooking. While her parents are both open and jovial, she acts like a little tyrant, chastising anyone who spills drinks or slops food or tracks in mud.
While the party was sipping on their beers, a large man wearing a black leather apron over linen shirt and wool pants burst in. He smelled of sulfur and carries a heavy hammer. ‘They took Bess,” he says. ‘They got my girl.’
This is Jago the Blacksmith. Being the town’s blacksmith is an important job and Jago could easily take a seat on the town council, if Villane was large enough for such a thing. But Jago is a simple man who wants little more than to work metal and provide for his family. His daughter, Bess, was kidnapped by goblins. How does he know that? His wife Elowen saw it happen, tried to stop them, but was attacked by the goblins and is resting at home.
Knowing that they had two days before the cart they needed to escort to Phandalin would arrive, the party was eager to help find Bess. They followed Jago to his home where Cailee quickly noticed the tracks haphazardly left by the goblins. They took off immediately, stopping to camp in a small clearing in the Boar woods to the North. Lianala and Dinkelburg took turns watching though the night and while they heard the expected noises in the woods, the night passed without incident.
The next morning, they all set out to follow the tracks along a rough path that takes them to the edge of the woods. About 100 yards in the distance, they saw what looked like a small temple on a hill. The woods come near the temple on either side, which the party believed would make it easy to sneak up and surprise the two goblins lazily guarding the door. One of them seemed to be mockingly playing with a doll. The party retreated a small distance back into the woods to decide what route to take.
Unbeknownst to them, a small goblin patrol was passing nearby. The goblins heard the voices and decided to sneak closer for a look, snapping some twigs and alerting the more watchful members of the party. After a brief but intense fight, Dinkelburg and Quildohtar made quick work of the goblin scouts. The party stayed just behind the tree line and snuck up to the left side of the temple doors. The goblins, who assumed that the patrol would alert them to any threats, were not paying attention. They were completely caught off guard by the intense barrage of arrows and daggers that rained down on them from the woods. Tid, in a rare display of empathy, picked up the doll which they assumed belonged to Bess.
The doors had been recently broken down and the party could hear faint chanting coming from deep underground. A series of cut stone stairs led down around 15 feet and a hallway took a sharp right turn. Fearing that the chanting indicated something bad was about to happen to Bess, the party took quick action. Lianala pretended to be a goblin and Tid dressed up in one of the dead goblin's clothes. They took Dinkelburg with them, hoping they could pass themselves off as the goblin patrol bringing a prisoner back to the hideout. The six goblins saw through the guise almost immediately and attacked the three of them. Hearing this, Quildohtar and Cailee leaped into the fray. The goblins put up a surprisingly fierce effort and several of the party took damage, but they were ultimately victorious. The sound of the chanting was louder than before, coming from a long hallway that veered to the left. This is where the first night came to a close.
The next morning, they all set out to follow the tracks along a rough path that takes them to the edge of the woods. About 100 yards in the distance, they saw what looked like a small temple on a hill. The woods come near the temple on either side, which the party believed would make it easy to sneak up and surprise the two goblins lazily guarding the door. One of them seemed to be mockingly playing with a doll. The party retreated a small distance back into the woods to decide what route to take.
Unbeknownst to them, a small goblin patrol was passing nearby. The goblins heard the voices and decided to sneak closer for a look, snapping some twigs and alerting the more watchful members of the party. After a brief but intense fight, Dinkelburg and Quildohtar made quick work of the goblin scouts. The party stayed just behind the tree line and snuck up to the left side of the temple doors. The goblins, who assumed that the patrol would alert them to any threats, were not paying attention. They were completely caught off guard by the intense barrage of arrows and daggers that rained down on them from the woods. Tid, in a rare display of empathy, picked up the doll which they assumed belonged to Bess.
The doors had been recently broken down and the party could hear faint chanting coming from deep underground. A series of cut stone stairs led down around 15 feet and a hallway took a sharp right turn. Fearing that the chanting indicated something bad was about to happen to Bess, the party took quick action. Lianala pretended to be a goblin and Tid dressed up in one of the dead goblin's clothes. They took Dinkelburg with them, hoping they could pass themselves off as the goblin patrol bringing a prisoner back to the hideout. The six goblins saw through the guise almost immediately and attacked the three of them. Hearing this, Quildohtar and Cailee leaped into the fray. The goblins put up a surprisingly fierce effort and several of the party took damage, but they were ultimately victorious. The sound of the chanting was louder than before, coming from a long hallway that veered to the left. This is where the first night came to a close.
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