Our heroes emerged from Avina's Tresendar Manor relatively unscathed, a manor richer and the owners of a broken-down alchemy lab, as the firmly established heroes of Phandalin - as declared immediately by Sildar Hallwinter. Even so, Gundren couldn't have been more anxious to enter Wave Echo Cave. Even the over-ambitious Lo Risten had no objection to offer to this course of action. For too long The Black Spider had been left to his own devious machinations. It was well past time to put that issue to rest.
Entering cautiously by the side channel uncovered through the Rockseekers' relentless searching, the party was aghast to immediately find the corpse of dear Tharden Rockseeker, slain at the entrance and left to rot like so much garbage. Overwhelmed, Gundren was unable to continue, but the infuriated Avina led the party forward in a rare moment of certainty. Never one to let riches fall by the wayside, Count Alistair had no compunction about intruding upon Gundren's grief, if only for a moment, to pull the valuable Boots of Springing and Striding off of Tharden's cold feet.
Into the labyrinthine darkness they moved, finding what seemed to be an endless array of tunnels carved aimlessly into the rock, each leading nowhere. Lacking lantern or darkvision, the party allowed their visually gifted companions, Vilkas and Avina (with her ever-present compaion, Holly Bieche), press onward to find the best path through the murky darkness. Confident, the two of them split up. However, almost immediately afterward, Avina was set upon by an ambushing Ochre Jelly.
Vilkas heard the muffled sounds of battle and called out, but Holly and Avina were already engaged in battle. The fight was short-lived, though, as the beast stood little chance against the stalwart protection of Avina's knight.
Pressing onward, the party found a large, abandoned barracks where they slew three unfortunate ghouls. Then they circled back into the halls and discovered the entrance to the great cavern. Vilkas, despite his frail form, physically hurled a reluctant Count Alistair into the room ahead of the party. The clanging and clamor immediately roused the bloodlust of the seven ghouls wandering within. The fighting was intense, but the ghouls fell before the fury of the adventuring party's blades.
Not wanting to risk further unnecessary engagement, the party retreated back to the murky hallways and set themselves to the careful task of mapping these completely, lest they should miss some important detail along the way. Their caution satisfied, our heroes decided the best path forward was the westernmost one, which led them to a large, empty cavern filled with a serene pool. Within they discovered the aged skeleton of Damien Abier, a long-lost defender of Phandalin who had died clutching his Wand of Magic Missiles during the Orc invasion.
A low stream led them out of this cavern and into a collapsed cavern where three bugbears labored under the supervision of a shadowy figure and a disgraced Iarno Albrek! Our heroes set themselves immediately to the fight. The shadowy figure retreated while the bugbears were all rage and indignation. Typically, Iarno stuck around only long enough to toss a few cheap shots before he fled. Lo Risten would have none of it, though, deducing that the wily traitor had used misty step in an attempt to teleport himself to safety. She acknowledged him as her mortal enemy and unleashed the full futy of the Oathbow upon his hidden form. Her unabated attacks were well rewarded, leaving his fallen corpse to lie next to the trickling stream of Wave Echo Cave.
The party searched the ruin and found the Gauntlets of Ogre Power buried there, so close to being uncovered by the bugbears' efforts. They took from Iarno his cherished glass staff and pressed it into more noble service in the hands of Vilkas.
They had no time to rest, however, as they were painfully aware of the shadowy figure which had slipped away. They peered suspiciously down the hallway where the figure had retreated, finishing their search of the cavern with ruthless efficiency. Then the party was off in pursuit of the one that got away.
First they came upon a locked door which Seraphina easily bypassed. Inside the priests' quarters they found dusty, rotting curtains, a bed and a brazier. On the floor lay a bound dwarf, beaten and badly abused. Avina immediately recognized her lost cousin, Nundro Rockseeker, whose constraints they immediately released, rousing the dwarf. He had been tortured by Nezznar daily for information about the cave, though Nundro knew little more than anyone else stumbling through the ancient depths. The fact that The Black Spider believed otherwise had kept him alive, though, so he was at least grateful for the misunderstanding.
Our heroes had enough of the fiend's malfeasance. It was time to put an end to Nezznar.
To the end of the hall and around a corner, they found themselves in a temple of Dumathoin. Six cracked marble pillars lined the walls of the hall, at the north end of which stood a nine-foot-tall statue of the dwarf god, holding a mighty stone warhammer. Large emeralds gleamed in the statue's eyes.
The dust and debris covering the floor had been swept to one side, and a campsite of sorts was spread in front of the statue. Half a dozen bedrolls and packs arranged neatly around a rough-built fire pit showed the place was being used as a campsite and staging area for the Black Spider's exploration of the cave.
Moving into the room immediately caught the attention of Nezznar, his two bugbear lackeys and a figure standing next to him which looked exactly like Nundro. The adventurers wasted no time in advancing against this motely group of villains when they were suddenly ambushed by four giant spiders which had been hiding amidst the columns. The spiders' web attacks were ineffectual, though, leaving the group to lay into battle with vigor. The party fell to killing the spiders, which they decided in a moment of inspiration should be named Anfrony, Larry, Karen and Ronaldo.
Suddenly Nezznar called out, "Wait! Why are you attacking us? We can work together!"
Count Alistair fumbled for a diplomatic answer, but Vilkas would accept no quarter. His only response was a devastating spell cast directly at Nezznar's head. The drow reeled from the blow and then suddenly everything went dark for the adventurers. Blows came fast and furious for a time, as the group tried to catch their bearings. Undaunted by blindness, Count Alistair, Avina and Holly continued their assault, catching the occasional enemy unaware. Lo Risten broke free of the melee and found a perch astride a pillar while Seraphina systematically waylaid and dispatched any who came close.
In the confusion of the moment, somehow Nezznar caught a hit and fell to the floor, dead. All of his scheming and planning; all of his wiles were for naught when faced with the raw fury of our heroes. Vilkas plucked the Spider Staff from the drow's dead hands and shook his head. Seeing his master fall, the doppleganger Vhalak who had formerly disguised himself ineffectually as Nundro, pulled himself away from a pillar he was pretending to be a part of and struck out at Lo Risten. Where his master had failed, Vhalak fared no better. Attempting to strike the bow-wielding fighter proved a fatal error in judgement.
Weary and wounded from many consecutive battles, the adventurers returned to the priests' quarters and erected a hasty barricade so that they could rest. They knew not why Nezznar was tucked away in the back corner of the cave, but the Forge of Spells had yet to be found.
Into the labyrinthine darkness they moved, finding what seemed to be an endless array of tunnels carved aimlessly into the rock, each leading nowhere. Lacking lantern or darkvision, the party allowed their visually gifted companions, Vilkas and Avina (with her ever-present compaion, Holly Bieche), press onward to find the best path through the murky darkness. Confident, the two of them split up. However, almost immediately afterward, Avina was set upon by an ambushing Ochre Jelly.
Pressing onward, the party found a large, abandoned barracks where they slew three unfortunate ghouls. Then they circled back into the halls and discovered the entrance to the great cavern. Vilkas, despite his frail form, physically hurled a reluctant Count Alistair into the room ahead of the party. The clanging and clamor immediately roused the bloodlust of the seven ghouls wandering within. The fighting was intense, but the ghouls fell before the fury of the adventuring party's blades.Not wanting to risk further unnecessary engagement, the party retreated back to the murky hallways and set themselves to the careful task of mapping these completely, lest they should miss some important detail along the way. Their caution satisfied, our heroes decided the best path forward was the westernmost one, which led them to a large, empty cavern filled with a serene pool. Within they discovered the aged skeleton of Damien Abier, a long-lost defender of Phandalin who had died clutching his Wand of Magic Missiles during the Orc invasion.
The party searched the ruin and found the Gauntlets of Ogre Power buried there, so close to being uncovered by the bugbears' efforts. They took from Iarno his cherished glass staff and pressed it into more noble service in the hands of Vilkas.
They had no time to rest, however, as they were painfully aware of the shadowy figure which had slipped away. They peered suspiciously down the hallway where the figure had retreated, finishing their search of the cavern with ruthless efficiency. Then the party was off in pursuit of the one that got away.
First they came upon a locked door which Seraphina easily bypassed. Inside the priests' quarters they found dusty, rotting curtains, a bed and a brazier. On the floor lay a bound dwarf, beaten and badly abused. Avina immediately recognized her lost cousin, Nundro Rockseeker, whose constraints they immediately released, rousing the dwarf. He had been tortured by Nezznar daily for information about the cave, though Nundro knew little more than anyone else stumbling through the ancient depths. The fact that The Black Spider believed otherwise had kept him alive, though, so he was at least grateful for the misunderstanding.
Our heroes had enough of the fiend's malfeasance. It was time to put an end to Nezznar.
To the end of the hall and around a corner, they found themselves in a temple of Dumathoin. Six cracked marble pillars lined the walls of the hall, at the north end of which stood a nine-foot-tall statue of the dwarf god, holding a mighty stone warhammer. Large emeralds gleamed in the statue's eyes.
The dust and debris covering the floor had been swept to one side, and a campsite of sorts was spread in front of the statue. Half a dozen bedrolls and packs arranged neatly around a rough-built fire pit showed the place was being used as a campsite and staging area for the Black Spider's exploration of the cave.Moving into the room immediately caught the attention of Nezznar, his two bugbear lackeys and a figure standing next to him which looked exactly like Nundro. The adventurers wasted no time in advancing against this motely group of villains when they were suddenly ambushed by four giant spiders which had been hiding amidst the columns. The spiders' web attacks were ineffectual, though, leaving the group to lay into battle with vigor. The party fell to killing the spiders, which they decided in a moment of inspiration should be named Anfrony, Larry, Karen and Ronaldo.
Suddenly Nezznar called out, "Wait! Why are you attacking us? We can work together!"
Count Alistair fumbled for a diplomatic answer, but Vilkas would accept no quarter. His only response was a devastating spell cast directly at Nezznar's head. The drow reeled from the blow and then suddenly everything went dark for the adventurers. Blows came fast and furious for a time, as the group tried to catch their bearings. Undaunted by blindness, Count Alistair, Avina and Holly continued their assault, catching the occasional enemy unaware. Lo Risten broke free of the melee and found a perch astride a pillar while Seraphina systematically waylaid and dispatched any who came close.
Weary and wounded from many consecutive battles, the adventurers returned to the priests' quarters and erected a hasty barricade so that they could rest. They knew not why Nezznar was tucked away in the back corner of the cave, but the Forge of Spells had yet to be found.