After their adventures in the goblin cave, the party finally reached Phandlin (where they soon discovered they'd been incorrectly spelling the name the entire time). The city, or rather a small town, sat under the the shadow of a large manor on a hill.
After cashing in the wagon train, doing some brief shopping, and bringing Syndrael to safety, the adventurers headed off to the town in for some shut eye. Ratman, Bentra, and the Ulthar Cat headed off to bed, but Invictus and Brothar stayed in the inn's bar, where they learned that a local gang called the Red Brands was terrorizing the town. Having heard that the gang frequented a tavern down the street, Brothar and Invictus went and woke the rest of the party, saying that they wanted to "start a bar fight."
As they entered the dingy tavern, the adventurers ordered some drinks. The room was crowded, but one particularly rowdy table featured some Red Brand looters in an arm wrestling contest.
In an attempt to try to get some information, the Ulthar Cat loudly shouted "I am the strongest person in this establishment!". The tavern immediately went silent, and all eyes turned to the adventurers. The largest of the Red Brand men walked up to the gnome and demanded the two arm wrestle.
"Sure. Name's the Ulthar Cat. What's yours?"
The gangster was unwilling to divulge any information, and forcibly led the gnome to the table. The two prepared to arm wrestle, but right at the start of the competition, the gnome warlock used his Awakened Mind to speak directly to the bandit: "Oops, I believe you may have exposed yourself!"
Glancing down and taken by surprise, the little gnome managed to actually best the bandit in the competition, slamming the man's fist on the table with his tiny gnomish hands. The Red Brand cried foul, saying the gnome had cheated. However, since no one else had heard the message since it was directly related to the bandit's own mind, he couldn't prove anything, and demanded a retry. Instead, Brothar offered to wrestle the man.
The bandit agreed to the challenge, but instead of arm wrestling he led Brothar outside the tavern and drew his sword. The two dueled, as the heroes and the other bandits looked on. While everyone was distracted, the Ratman picked the pockets of the other bandits.
Brothar got knicked a few times by the large bandit's sword, but eventually managed to hew the thief from hip to shoulder. The other bandits charged the group, but were quickly dispatched of, while Bentra tried to keep one alive. Unfortunately, her attempts at securing a prisoner were unsuccessful and the Red Brand ran away from the tavern, toward the large manor on the hill. In a desperate attempt of capturing him again, Invictus called out for a duel. Unable to resist (despite his injuries) the bandit turned back toward the group, and was quickly captured. He revealed that the bandit camp was at the large manor, and revealed the location of a hidden entrance in the forests below. With that, the party executed him in the streets. The Ulthar Cat and the Ratman both went to their beds as the rest of the party tried to hide the bodies.
In the morning, the party spoke with some townspeople, but learned little new information. Seeing no other option, they decided to bring the assault to the headquarters of the Red Brands, and set out into the secret tunnel that the captured thief had revealed that previous night.
Upon entering the cave underneath the manor, Brothar's mind was quickly flooded with a hissing sound, seeming to emanate from a chasm in the middle of the main chamber. The party pressed forward to a side chamber, when they discovered a room where they could hear some loud discussion, in the goblin language. Sensing an opportunity, the Ulthar Cat used a minor illusion to replicate the voice of Klarrg, the bugbear leader from the goblin cave. Throwing his voice with that impersonation, the gnome asked to be let into the room. The response from inside said for "Klarrg" to open it up himself.
Steeling himself, the Cat responded "How dare you speak to me in that way?"
"What are you talking about, you're just one of us," the voices responded, revealing that the room's inhabitants were not goblins at all, but more bugbears.
"I need help. I was wounded by some adventures who attacked my cave, and I'm the only survivor", the Cat tried.
That worked, and a single Bugbear exited the room, where he saw Bentra at the top of a flight of stairs.
"What are you..." the bugbear started, but still using Klarrg's voice, the Cat spoke as if coming from Bentra.
"They used their filthy warlock magic to turn me into a halfling! You have to help me!" the gnome lied, and it worked. The bugbear came closer to investigate, and was promptly slain by the party waiting at the top of the stairs.
Soon after, too more bugbears charged up the stairs. One fought Brothar, Bentra, and Invictus on the landing, while the other charged into the cave's main chamber, where the Ulthar Cat and Ratman threw it into the chasm. Unfortunately, it managed to climb out of the chasm and slashed at Bentra, wounding her. Brothar used his healing magics to help the halfling, while the rest of the party continued battle with the large creatures, Invictus striking one down with his moonsword. Once healed, Bentra tried running on a bridge across the cavern, but the bridge collapsed and she fell about twenty feet into the crevasse. By the time she'd managed to climb back up, battered and bruised, the party was finishing off the remaining bugbear.
In the room the bugbears had come from, the party found a terrified goblin, apparently from Klaarg's cave. It became clear that the goblin was willing to divulge information about the Red Brands, so the party took it as a guide. In addition, the group found three red cloaks, similar to the ones the bandits wore. the Ratman, Brothar, and Invictus wore them, in an attempt at disguise.
The goblin led the party to a living quarters of the Red Brands. Attempting a ruse, Brothar and Invictus entered, carrying Bentra as a "prisoner". The bandits, all drunk and playing cards, fell for the trick. Invictus asked to join their card game, and it quickly became apparent that one of the guards was a cheat.
Meanwhile, the Ratman and the Cat crept through the cave tunnels, and discovered another entrance to the living quarters.
Brothar pointed out that one of the guards was cheating, causing dissent among the Red Brands playing. They began to squabble with one another, but eventually the cheater was able to calm the others down. Realizing their plan didn't work, Invictus resorted to plan B and flipped the table over, breating fire on all the guards. From the other side of the room, the gnome and the rogue entered, attacking the surprised guards.
"Come with me," the Ulthar Cat said to the goblin prisoner, motioning toward the battle. He seemed resistant. "Come with me or I'll disintegrate you with an Eldritch Blast," the Cat offered, and the goblin became much more cooperative.
After the party finished off the last of the drunken Red Brands in the living quarters and dumped the bodies into the chasm, they continued through the cave. At one point, they came across a stairway.
"Please don't go down there!" plead the goblin. "That is the home of the Nothic!"
When asked to explain, the goblin revealed that the Nothic was a guardian of sorts for the cave, protecting the wizard who led the Red Brands. Apparently, it was the thing causing the ringing in Brothar's ears.
The Cat kicked a barrel down the stairs toward the Nothic's lair, and heard a hissing voice say "Stop throwing stuff down here!" The cat threw an apple down the stairs too, then.
The group pressed on and found the wizard's quarters, but the man himself was gone. After taking several potions from the room, the party also ovserved some bubbling concoctions. Curious, the Ulthar Cat poured some down the throat of the goblin guide. The burning liquid seared the tissue around the creatures lips and throat, but otherwise seemed to have no effect.
"Remember, I am a merciful god," said the Cat.
The party explored more of the dungeon, defeating a handful of Red Brands along the way. In the crypts, they found some skeletons that briefly followed them, but caused no other trouble. In addition, they helped rescue some women and children who were clearly being held captive, sending them back to the village with the Ratman's minstrels.
Finally, it became clear that there was only one place left to explore: the Nothic's lair.
In the darkness of the lair, the party observed a large glowing eye, attached to some horrifying creature: the Nothic!
"Why have you tossed so much into my pit?" the creature hissed, pointing to the bodies, the barrel, and the apple that party had thrown into the crevasse.
"Sorry about how disrespectful my partner Brothar has been to you," the Ulthar Cat said, pointing at the dwarf. "But I can have my goblin servant stay behind and pick up the bodies." The goblin quivered in terror at being left behind.
"Where is the wizard who dwelled here?" Bentra asked.
"He's gone now," said the Nothic. He fled during the fighting, down that passage. The creature pointed ahead, toward the darkness.
The group knew they had one option: to follow.
While leaving, Brothar called out to the goblin: "What's your name?"
But the party was too far away to hear.
Until next time...
Roles:
Brothar Leadfoot: Philly
Invictus Kreator: Sam
Charile "Ratman": Jake
Bentra Brownbottle: my wife Emily
The Ulthar Cat: me, Thomas!
Dungeon Master: Toni
That's it for this week, but I'm sure there will be more soon!
May the Force be with you!
After cashing in the wagon train, doing some brief shopping, and bringing Syndrael to safety, the adventurers headed off to the town in for some shut eye. Ratman, Bentra, and the Ulthar Cat headed off to bed, but Invictus and Brothar stayed in the inn's bar, where they learned that a local gang called the Red Brands was terrorizing the town. Having heard that the gang frequented a tavern down the street, Brothar and Invictus went and woke the rest of the party, saying that they wanted to "start a bar fight."
As they entered the dingy tavern, the adventurers ordered some drinks. The room was crowded, but one particularly rowdy table featured some Red Brand looters in an arm wrestling contest.
In an attempt to try to get some information, the Ulthar Cat loudly shouted "I am the strongest person in this establishment!". The tavern immediately went silent, and all eyes turned to the adventurers. The largest of the Red Brand men walked up to the gnome and demanded the two arm wrestle.
"Sure. Name's the Ulthar Cat. What's yours?"
The gangster was unwilling to divulge any information, and forcibly led the gnome to the table. The two prepared to arm wrestle, but right at the start of the competition, the gnome warlock used his Awakened Mind to speak directly to the bandit: "Oops, I believe you may have exposed yourself!"
Glancing down and taken by surprise, the little gnome managed to actually best the bandit in the competition, slamming the man's fist on the table with his tiny gnomish hands. The Red Brand cried foul, saying the gnome had cheated. However, since no one else had heard the message since it was directly related to the bandit's own mind, he couldn't prove anything, and demanded a retry. Instead, Brothar offered to wrestle the man.
The bandit agreed to the challenge, but instead of arm wrestling he led Brothar outside the tavern and drew his sword. The two dueled, as the heroes and the other bandits looked on. While everyone was distracted, the Ratman picked the pockets of the other bandits.
Brothar got knicked a few times by the large bandit's sword, but eventually managed to hew the thief from hip to shoulder. The other bandits charged the group, but were quickly dispatched of, while Bentra tried to keep one alive. Unfortunately, her attempts at securing a prisoner were unsuccessful and the Red Brand ran away from the tavern, toward the large manor on the hill. In a desperate attempt of capturing him again, Invictus called out for a duel. Unable to resist (despite his injuries) the bandit turned back toward the group, and was quickly captured. He revealed that the bandit camp was at the large manor, and revealed the location of a hidden entrance in the forests below. With that, the party executed him in the streets. The Ulthar Cat and the Ratman both went to their beds as the rest of the party tried to hide the bodies.
In the morning, the party spoke with some townspeople, but learned little new information. Seeing no other option, they decided to bring the assault to the headquarters of the Red Brands, and set out into the secret tunnel that the captured thief had revealed that previous night.
Upon entering the cave underneath the manor, Brothar's mind was quickly flooded with a hissing sound, seeming to emanate from a chasm in the middle of the main chamber. The party pressed forward to a side chamber, when they discovered a room where they could hear some loud discussion, in the goblin language. Sensing an opportunity, the Ulthar Cat used a minor illusion to replicate the voice of Klarrg, the bugbear leader from the goblin cave. Throwing his voice with that impersonation, the gnome asked to be let into the room. The response from inside said for "Klarrg" to open it up himself.
Steeling himself, the Cat responded "How dare you speak to me in that way?"
"What are you talking about, you're just one of us," the voices responded, revealing that the room's inhabitants were not goblins at all, but more bugbears.
"I need help. I was wounded by some adventures who attacked my cave, and I'm the only survivor", the Cat tried.
That worked, and a single Bugbear exited the room, where he saw Bentra at the top of a flight of stairs.
"What are you..." the bugbear started, but still using Klarrg's voice, the Cat spoke as if coming from Bentra.
"They used their filthy warlock magic to turn me into a halfling! You have to help me!" the gnome lied, and it worked. The bugbear came closer to investigate, and was promptly slain by the party waiting at the top of the stairs.
Soon after, too more bugbears charged up the stairs. One fought Brothar, Bentra, and Invictus on the landing, while the other charged into the cave's main chamber, where the Ulthar Cat and Ratman threw it into the chasm. Unfortunately, it managed to climb out of the chasm and slashed at Bentra, wounding her. Brothar used his healing magics to help the halfling, while the rest of the party continued battle with the large creatures, Invictus striking one down with his moonsword. Once healed, Bentra tried running on a bridge across the cavern, but the bridge collapsed and she fell about twenty feet into the crevasse. By the time she'd managed to climb back up, battered and bruised, the party was finishing off the remaining bugbear.
In the room the bugbears had come from, the party found a terrified goblin, apparently from Klaarg's cave. It became clear that the goblin was willing to divulge information about the Red Brands, so the party took it as a guide. In addition, the group found three red cloaks, similar to the ones the bandits wore. the Ratman, Brothar, and Invictus wore them, in an attempt at disguise.
The goblin led the party to a living quarters of the Red Brands. Attempting a ruse, Brothar and Invictus entered, carrying Bentra as a "prisoner". The bandits, all drunk and playing cards, fell for the trick. Invictus asked to join their card game, and it quickly became apparent that one of the guards was a cheat.
Meanwhile, the Ratman and the Cat crept through the cave tunnels, and discovered another entrance to the living quarters.
Brothar pointed out that one of the guards was cheating, causing dissent among the Red Brands playing. They began to squabble with one another, but eventually the cheater was able to calm the others down. Realizing their plan didn't work, Invictus resorted to plan B and flipped the table over, breating fire on all the guards. From the other side of the room, the gnome and the rogue entered, attacking the surprised guards.
"Come with me," the Ulthar Cat said to the goblin prisoner, motioning toward the battle. He seemed resistant. "Come with me or I'll disintegrate you with an Eldritch Blast," the Cat offered, and the goblin became much more cooperative.
After the party finished off the last of the drunken Red Brands in the living quarters and dumped the bodies into the chasm, they continued through the cave. At one point, they came across a stairway.
"Please don't go down there!" plead the goblin. "That is the home of the Nothic!"
When asked to explain, the goblin revealed that the Nothic was a guardian of sorts for the cave, protecting the wizard who led the Red Brands. Apparently, it was the thing causing the ringing in Brothar's ears.
The Cat kicked a barrel down the stairs toward the Nothic's lair, and heard a hissing voice say "Stop throwing stuff down here!" The cat threw an apple down the stairs too, then.
The group pressed on and found the wizard's quarters, but the man himself was gone. After taking several potions from the room, the party also ovserved some bubbling concoctions. Curious, the Ulthar Cat poured some down the throat of the goblin guide. The burning liquid seared the tissue around the creatures lips and throat, but otherwise seemed to have no effect.
"Remember, I am a merciful god," said the Cat.
The party explored more of the dungeon, defeating a handful of Red Brands along the way. In the crypts, they found some skeletons that briefly followed them, but caused no other trouble. In addition, they helped rescue some women and children who were clearly being held captive, sending them back to the village with the Ratman's minstrels.
Finally, it became clear that there was only one place left to explore: the Nothic's lair.
In the darkness of the lair, the party observed a large glowing eye, attached to some horrifying creature: the Nothic!
"Why have you tossed so much into my pit?" the creature hissed, pointing to the bodies, the barrel, and the apple that party had thrown into the crevasse.
"Sorry about how disrespectful my partner Brothar has been to you," the Ulthar Cat said, pointing at the dwarf. "But I can have my goblin servant stay behind and pick up the bodies." The goblin quivered in terror at being left behind.
"Where is the wizard who dwelled here?" Bentra asked.
"He's gone now," said the Nothic. He fled during the fighting, down that passage. The creature pointed ahead, toward the darkness.
The group knew they had one option: to follow.
While leaving, Brothar called out to the goblin: "What's your name?"
But the party was too far away to hear.
Until next time...
Roles:
Brothar Leadfoot: Philly
Invictus Kreator: Sam
Charile "Ratman": Jake
Bentra Brownbottle: my wife Emily
The Ulthar Cat: me, Thomas!
Dungeon Master: Toni
That's it for this week, but I'm sure there will be more soon!
May the Force be with you!
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