Session 24

# November 8th, 2018 - Breaking Bandits

## Grouping with a Frost Giant

The session began right where we last left our heroes, outside the ruined watchtower after defeating three stone giants and a small group of bandits. Thia had cast *spike growth* all around the entrance to the downward stairwell within the tower. The party and Harshnag the frost giant friend of Rachen took a few minutes to regroup as they watched for any bandits trying to escape the growth. They had captured alive who appeared to be the leader of the group that attacked them. Rachen spoke with Harshnag as others in the party questioned this leader.

The bandit tried to negotiate with the party, offering them knowledge of the layout of their underground hideout in exchange for them killing the current gang leader, and leaving himself in charge. Rhogar was having none of that, and before others in the group could stop the warlock he thrust his dagger through the bandit’s heart. Harshnag and Rachen caught up briefly, with Rachen explaining their current mission, and how they have been fighting off fire giants on behalf of Lady Silverhand of Ironbay. At mention of his lady Harshnag began to say how their meeting here was more than fate. Harshnag explained how House Silverhand took him in, and made Ironbay his home.

The frost giant was currently on a trek up into the northern Worldspine mountains to seek the guidance of an oracle said be at an ancient giant shrine known as the Eye of the All-Father. He had never been there, but had been given directions to the path: due west from the northwest corner of the Mistwood. This oracle was said to give answers to giant kind, and Harshnag wanted to know why the All-Father had abandoned their Ordning and left his children in chaos. Harshnag said they shared a common purpose, and Rachen and his fellows should join him in finding answers. Rachen and others in the party convinced Harshnag to first join with them on a detour south to Cresthill.

The group had business in the small city, and were not planning on returning to the region anytime soon. Also, if they planned on travelling with the frost giant high into the Worldspine’s they would need to obtain suitable protective clothing. Cresthill was the perfect place to find that. After this shrine, the group said they also had need to travel to the dwarven hold of Khaz Thorum, in the Worldspine’s in the general region they were to travel. Rachen explained how they had a large adamantine plate recovered from one of the fire giants, and that the dwarves had forges hot enough to melt the metal. Harshnag was not too fond of the idea of visiting a dwarven hold, but agreed to go to Cresthill nonetheless.

First, the party decided to clear out and loot this bandit hideout. Once Thia’s spell expired, Alburt controlled his familiar owl and flew down the spiral staircase. It spiraled downward perhaps a single story and opened into a ten foot wide straight tunnel that ended at a square room. A single torch along a wall in this chamber flickered fire light over the group of six or so humans with weapons looking to be preparing. The owl quickly circled around once, seeing two exit tunnels, no doors, with one of those tunnels having pillars along one wall.

## Breaking Bandits

Alburt reported what he saw, and the group prepared to charge down the stairs and attack. Harshnag clearly could not fit down the staircase, so he guarded the area and would look after their horses. Rachen led the way, pulling out his round metal shield. When they reached the bottom of the stairs, expecting resistance, they instead found the first chamber empty. In one corner was a pile of broken wooden furniture, but otherwise nothing else. Of the two exit tunnels, the one without pillars was longer, and branched off to the left. Down both branches were wooden doors with metal hinges.

The group used climbing pitons and hammered them into the doors and next to the hinges, attempting to bar them closed. They were focused on the other exit tunnel, the one with the three pillars. These pillars had single dragons carved into them, with their open mouths pointing towards the entry chamber. The party was highly suspicious, Alburt’s owl had seen at the end of this tunnel there was a small antechamber with a set of large double wooden doors within. The owl had flown down the tunnel without issue, so Rhogar convinced Lachlan to cast *levitate* on him.

Next, Rufus climbed on the warlock’s shoulders, and the two of them floated down the tunnel without anything occurring. The rest of the party stayed in the entry chamber as Rufus and Rhogar opened the two large wooden doors, which were heavy and made lots of noise. Inside, they were greeted to the sight of a blood stained statue of a women, and a campfire behind it illuminating the large stone chamber with firelight. The light bounced off of the numerous bandits near the walls and behind the statue that began firing crossbow bolts at Rhogar and Rufus. The two retreated back, with Rufus jumping off of Rhogar’s back and running back down the tunnel, waving his arms at the party for help.

As soon as he stepped on the stone plate in front of the first dragon pillar, the one by the antechamber and furthest from the party, he felt and heard the click. Rufus dropped the the floor as from the mouth of the dragon on the pillar behind him a thirty foot long cone of fire erupted down the tunnel. The rest of the party was just outside of the fire as smoke and the noise rushed through the underground space. The halfling was burnt and wounded, but alive. Thia and Rachen came down the tunnel, avoiding the stone plates they feared would trigger more fire, and Alburt followed but stayed back in the tunnel.

Most of the bandits kept firing crossbow bolts as a few of them, including one wearing platemail, attacked with swords. The melee was kept confined to the antechamber, and more of the bandits in the large chamber got closer to get good line of sight. When Alburt thought most were close enough, he focused on a point next to the blood-stained statue in the midst of the bandits and cast a *fireball*. The explosion was loud and reverberated through the walls as flame and smoke billowed out. The very ceiling then began to partially cave in within the large chamber and most of the party dove out of the way of being crushed.

At this commotion, the few party members back near the entry chamber heard doors busting open (the ones they pitoned closed), and some bandits retreating out the entry stairwell. They left them to Harshnag as the group pressed forward, killing the remaining bandits. The party then split up and explored what remained of the now silent lair. From the large chamber with the campfire and statue there was a single exit tunnel that led to a bedroom furnished with a bed, wooden table, drawers, and a large bookshelf. Adorning one wall was a nice looking tapestry, and in front of the bed was a wooden chest.

Rufus and Rhogar looted the chest, finding clothing and in the bottom two sacks of loot. One of coin, and another of gems. They also took some other expensive looking items in the room. Other party members eventually returned here and looted some scrolls and potions from the bookshelf, and took the tapestry. The rest of the party explored the other tunnel from the entry chamber and the two rooms they pitoned shut. One of these was a makeshift barracks, with multiple beds and trunks. All with worthless personal items.

The final chamber looked to be storage chamber that was partially caved in, the few items left here were miscellaneous and not very valuable or easy to carry. Notably however, they had almost no food left. And so the session ended, as the group left this now emptied hideout and made preparations with Harshnag to continue traveling south along the Long Road towards the city of Cresthill. It was now just later in the afternoon of the one hundred and first day since the raid on Greenest.

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