When the party and refugees from Nightstone arrive in Waterdeep, they find an enormous tower floating upon a cloud above the harbor. As panic spreads through the streets of the city, the heroes are dispatched to investigate the mysterious tower and learn whether its inhabitants come in peace.
Player Characters: Adrik, Gregory, Kane, Namyr, Sister Mary, Strong Palm Ian, Tarancha
1.
Murak Ur’gray, the dwarf innkeeper of the Nightstone Inn, was cleaning the cups and getting the tavern ready for the evening when he heard a loud crash outside. When Murak rushed outside to find the source of the noise, he was horrified to see that a large boulder had fallen onto the home of the Xelbrins, an elderly couple that had retired to Nightstone to live out their final years. A moment later, a second boulder fell onto the home of Semille Southwell, a middle aged farmer. Then boulders began to rain down from the dark clouds like hailstones, crushing the houses, farms, gardens, and even the walls of Nandar Keep.
The villagers had gathered in the town square when they learned that Lady Velrosa Nandar was trapped in the debris of the keep. Having no leader to guide them, the villagers turned to Murak who had the loudest voice. Murak organized the evacuation of the village and took the survivors to the nearby caves. Little did they know that the caves were occupied by a tribe of goblins and their ogre lackeys. The villagers were taken prisoner and waited helplessly as the goblins debated how best to cook these plump humans.
On their third day of captivity, shortly after one of their neighbors had been devoured by the goblins and their giant rats, their salvation came when seven adventurers arrived in the cave and defeated their captors.
Yet their joy was short-lived. On returning to Nightstone, they found that the place was overrun by bandits and orcs. The villagers had no choice but to follow the heroes all the way back to Waterdeep. It was a long and difficult trek, but Murak did his best to keep up their hopes and spirits.
On the way, Murak made a request of the adventurers on behalf of the villagers. He ask if they would send a message to the next of kin of the villagers that had perished in Nightstone. It would help ease the heavy hearts of the survivors to know that news of their neighbors’ deaths were delivered to their loved ones. The relatives lived in three different settlements: Goldenfields, a walled farming community just a few days travel from Waterdeep; Triboar, a mercantile trade town on the northern end of the Dessarin River; and Bryn Shander, a distant town in the frozen northern region known as Icewind Dale.
The heroes promised to deliver all three messages, beginning with the nearest settlement, Goldenfields.
However, when the entourage finally arrived in Waterdeep, they found that there was more urgent business to attend to. The people of the city stood in the streets and stared at the sky in awe. High above the harbor of the city, there was a gigantic tower floating upon a billowing white cloud. On top of the tower, there was what appeared to be a gigantic conical wizard’s hat.
The villagers of Nightstone stood aghast. Surely, this tower was the source of their misfortune! What else could have cast those boulders upon their homes? The villagers began to shout:
“That…. That thing destroyed our village! People of Waterdeep, run for your lives! Run before you are crushed by boulders falling from the sky! Where are the mighty defenders of Waterdeep?”
Panic began to sweep through the streets. Although the tower did not approach and no boulders fell from the floating tower, rumors began to spread of the evil deeds of the tower’s mysterious inhabitants.
Tarancha felt a mild headache. It was a sending spell from her boss, Vajra Blackstaff. She wanted Tarancha and her team in her office immediately to solve the latest crisis in Waterdeep.
The Blackstaff had summoned Tarancha for an urgent mission. She wanted the orc barbarian to lead a special team to investigate the mysterious tower that had appeared above the harbor of Waterdeep.
Mister Mo and Old John had left the party for other business, leaving the group was shorthanded. So, the Blackstaff had recruited three new members for this assignment. They were Gregory Fighcliff, a mountain dwarf fighter from the north; Adrik Loderr, a halfling bard from a proud family of paladins; and Namyr, a mysterious warrior who was actually a drow rogue in disguise.
Immediately, there was tension between Tarancha the orc and Gregory the dwarf. Gregory’s people had suffered greatly at the hands of the orc hordes that invaded the dwarven kingdoms of the north in the War of the Silver Marches. Tarancha, too, was in the northern lands during that time, though she spoke little of what she did during those years when all the north was embroiled in war.
Gregory could hardly believe that he had come all the way south to the great city of Waterdeep in search of adventure only to find himself under the command of an orc captain. What was the world coming to? Yet he held his peace and followed the commands that were given. For better or worse, this was his new clan.
2.
The party made their way to the harbor. There they saw that a spiral stairwell made of wispy clouds had formed under the tower, almost as if it was inviting them to climb up. Upon investigating the stairs, the heroes found that it could support their weight. Cautiously, they climbed up the stairs to the top of the cloud.
As the heroes made their ascent, Adrik regaled them with stories that he had read from his favorite childhood book, A Thousand Tales from the Cloudy Sea. It contained many wondrous fables about giants, dragons, and other legendary creatures.
According to one story, giants ordered themselves in a hierarchy called the Ordning which determined a giant’s place in the world. At the top of the hierarchy were the enigmatic storm giants, kings and prophets among giantkind. Below them were the cloud giants, most regal and perhaps the most eccentric. Next came the fire giants, mighty smiths and craftsmen, and then the frost giants, fierce warriors and reavers. Below these, there were the stone giants, dreamers and carvers of great skill. At the bottom of giant society, there were the hill giants, strong of body but also dimwitted and gluttonous, and finally the lesser cousins of giants such as ogres and trolls.
According the Adrik, this was a cloud giant’s tower. The question was whether the owner of this tower was a benevolent cloud giant or a malicious one.
Strong Palm Ian was accustomed to climbing such tall stairways from his training in the mountain monasteries of distant Kara-tur. He easily climbed the steps while the others gasped for breath. With his fleetness of step, he went ahead and scouted the tower first.
Arriving first upon the entrance to the tower, he peered inside the great double doors of the building which were slightly ajar. Inside, everything looked like it was made for a creature several times his own height. Tall bookcases were filled with books that were as tall as a man. On a high table as big as a barn, there were scrolls and parchments as wide as great carpets.
At the far end of the chamber, there sat an elderly giant with his back to the door. His long white beard trailed over his robe glittering with stars. He seemed to be muttering to himself, shifting between several different languages. Occasionally he even spoke briefly in trade common, repeating the same words over and over.
“What a mess… Everything is a mess… What to do…”
By the time Strong Palm Ian returned to his companions to report what he had found, the others had reached the top of the stairs and were catching their breath. Ian sensed that this giant, who clearly looked like a wizard, did not mean to bring harm to the people of Waterdeep. There were no boulders or weapons of any kind that could be seen in the tower or upon the clouds. The party decided to approach the giant and speak to him.
Tarancha, summoning her orcish strength, threw open the enormous doors of the keep. As the doors swung open, the giant swirled around and looked over the heroes’ heads as if expecting a giant visitor.
“Oh, why hello! Who is there? Please, do not be shy. Show yourselves.”
The giant rose and walked to the doorway. He nearly stepped on the heroes before he finally took notice of them.
“Oh my! Apologies, little masters. It has been so long since I have had small folk as guests. Welcome to my home. My name is Zephyros. Now, what brings you all the way to my tower? This is quite a remote place. I am impressed you even found it.”
“Excuse us, sir giant. We wanted to ask you the same question. We couldn’t help but notice your tower as it appeared above the harbor of our city.”
“Harbor? City? What in the All Father’s name are you talking about?”
It was then that the giant looked outside the window and seemed to notice the city of Waterdeep for the first time.
“OH MY!… When did that city get there?”
As the heroes conversed with Zephyros, they learned that he was on a quest of his own. He told them of a terrible event that had caused a great upheaval in the realm of giants. The Ordning, which ordered the society of giantkind, had been shattered! Now, the most powerful giant lords were vying to elevate themselves in society and create a new hierarchy. Chief among the cloud giants was an evil cloud giant noble named Countess Sansuri, whom Zephyros advised the heroes to watch out for.
Zephyros had been wandering the lands in his floating tower, trying to discover the reason for the shattering of the Ordning and find a way to restore it. But he had no luck so far. Now he turned to the heroes and asked if they might assist him in his search for the truth.
While the heroes spoke with Zephyros, Tarancha felt a cold breeze and heard a distant murmur. She would never forget the sound of a dragon’s wings flapping in the high mountain air, for the orcs of the north had fought alongside white dragons in the War of the Silver Marches. Now, she recognized that dreadful sound once more.
“Dragon!” Tarancha roared and pointed outside the door.
A shadow passed over the tower as a huge silver dragon, carrying three dwarven warriors in each of his talons, landed upon the cloud in front of the tower entrance. As the heroes emerged from the tower, the dwarves leapt down before them. In the eyes of the dwarves, the cloud giant in the company of an orc and a tiefling could mean only trouble.
“To battle! Dwarven warriors of the Lord’s Alliance, honor your houses and defend the city from these evildoers! ATTACK!”
3.
When Gregory Fighcliff was born, an elder from his village proclaimed that the child born on that day would become a hero who would save the world. Ever since he was little, Gregory worked hard to help and protect the people around him. In time, he left his mountain village to become a traveling adventurer, giving aid to others with his heroic deeds.
Gregory was not the only dwarf born that day. Three other dwarves were born in nearby villages. Their names were Naalt Splintershield, Augrek Brighthelm, and Worvil Forkbeard. They too learned of the words of the elder. Together with Gregory, these dwarves came to be known as the Children of the Prophet. But they each led lives that were much different from Gregory’s path. Now, Gregory saw another Prophet’s Child before him on the cloud above the harbor of Waterdeep.
Before anyone could speak, Kane the tiefling had stepped forward to meet the newcomers.
“Hail and well met, master dwarves! What brings you to…”
Before he could finish his sentence, Kane was met by a blast of freezing cold breath from the silver dragon’s mouth. As Kane thawed himself out of the ice, one of the dwarves stepped forward and spoke to Gregory. It was the dwarf Naalt Splintershield.
“Gregory? Gregory Fighcliff! What in the name of Moradin’s beard are you doing next to that giant… and that tiefling… and that orc!”
Naalt Splintershield led a force of dwarven warriors from the Lord’s Alliance carried by a silver dragon to the cloud giant’s tower floating above the harbor of Waterdeep. But Naalt did not come as a friend. He was on a mission to defend Waterdeep from the depredations of an evil giant.
Naalt and Gregory were startled to find themselves on the opposite sides of an impending battle. Naalt seemed convinced that fulfilling his oath as a warrior of the Lord’s Alliance was the only way to fulfill his destiny as a Prophet’s Child.
Gregory did not want dwarves spilling each other’s blood upon these clouds. He wanted to avoid a fight and unnecessary bloodshed.
Gregory and the heroes told the dwarves that Zephyros was merely an eccentric wizard who had lost wandered into the sky above Waterdeep. The real cause for concern was a cloud giant noble named Countess Sansuri, whose floating keep might be found elsewhere. Naalt was convinced by the words of a fellow Prophet’s Child. He persuaded his companions that the real threat to Waterdeep had to be located and dealt with. The silver dragon reluctantly bore the dwarves to their next destination.
Zephyros thanked the heroes for dealing with the situation without resorting to violence. Being impressed by their wisdom and heroism, he offered to transport them to a place of their desire if they would help him in his quest to find the truth behind the shattering of the Ordning. The heroes agreed to do what they could, and they asked the giant to take them to the nearby town of Goldenfields. They had a message to deliver on behalf of the villagers of Nightstone.
4.
The Tower of Zephyros began to move away from the harbor of Waterdeep. Tarancha, trusting that the Blackstaff had scried upon her activities and knew that the situation had been resolved, took some much needed rest and slept for the next three days while the tower slowly made its way over the countryside. Her companions each took the time to pray, meditate, sharpen their weapons, or converse with Zephyros.
On the third day, new and unexpected visitors arrived at the tower. Nine riders in black leather suits on nine giant vultures landed upon the cloud. Sister Mary recognized them as cultists serving the Prince of Evil Air. These cultists hailed the master of the tower, ignoring the other visitors, and offered him a small bag as a token of their good intentions. They proclaimed themselves to be servants of the master of the winds and announced their lord’s intentions to return the world to its “primordial state” before the rise of civilization.
Zephyros seemed intrigued by the cultists’ proposal and asked them to elaborate on how the world might be returned to its primordial state and what the resulting terrain would look like. The cultists seemed a little hazy on the details of the plan, and merely asked for the cloud giant’s word that he would lend his aid when the time came.
Privately, Zephyros asked the heroes for their advice. Sister Mary counseled the giant to send the cultists away, for their intentions would only bring destruction and misery to the people of the world. Zephyros grew alarmed and politely asked the cultists to leave. The cultists, flabbergasted and seething with rage at the heroes’ interference, swore an oath of revenge and took to the air on their giant vultures.
Shortly thereafter, the Tower drifted above the hills outside a large farming settlement surrounded by walls and watchtowers. This was Goldenfields, the agricultural community that provided crops for Waterdeep and the surrounding region. It lied at the end of Northfurrow, a trail running between Goldenfields and Waterdeep where farmers took their carts of produce and vegetables to the city markets.
The numerous fields of wheat and barley were guarded by town watchmen standing upon the walls. Awakened trees walked among the fields like mighty shepherds, tending to the plants and watching over the farmers who called Goldenfields their home. The beauty of the farms and the bounty of their harvests were breathtaking for newcomers, and not a few envied the inhabitants who basked in the abundance offered by the land.
Tarancha, Kane and Adrik headed to a large, two-storey inn called Northfurrow’s End to deliver the message from the villagers of Nightstone to the innkeeper. The rest of the party went to a local temple called Harvesthome Abbey. Strong Palm Ian had received the name of a contact from the monks of his monastery – a woman from Kara-tur named Zi Liang whose family had immigrated to Goldenfields long ago.
5.
Gregory, Namyr, Sister Mary, and Strong Palm Ian entered Harvesthome Abbey. The tall stained glass windows showed images of the sun rising over fields of wheat. This was a temple dedicated to Lathander, the Morninglord, and Chauntea, the goddess of agriculture.
A Kara-turan woman wearing the western robes of a temple acolyte was sweeping the floor. Strong Palm Ian approached her and presented a letter of recommendation from his monastery. The woman greeted her and introduced herself. Indeed, she was Zi Liang, the contact whose name Strong Palm Ian had received.
The half-orc monk told her of all that had transpired in the past several days, from the devastation of Nightstone to the events at the floating tower of the cloud giant Zephyros. Zi Liang listened politely but was clearly amazed by the story that he told. Yet she believed him, for Zi Liang had become a quick judge of people while living in foreign lands, and she knew that a monk such as Strong Palm Ian had little cause to use guile or subtlety.
When Strong Palm Ian’s tale was finished, Zi Liang finally spoke.
“These are grave tiding indeed, Brother Ian. If what you say is true, and these giants are in the midst of an upheaval, then I sense that we are all in great peril. We must renew our vigilance here in Goldenfields, for our farms supply the entire countryside with sustenance. If Goldenfields falls to the depredations of giants, then Waterdeep and the surrounding communities may starve when winter arrives.”
Meanwhile at Northfurrow’s End, Tarancha met the innkeeper, and she was startled to see a man who looked more like a yeti. Miros Xelbrin was covered from head to toe in long white fur. He had once been a carnival attraction before he settled in Goldenfields where he became the proprietor of Northfurrow’s End.
When Miros received news of his parents’ untimely death, he wept in sorrow and briefly left his friend, a halfling named Oren Yogilvy, in charge of the tavern.
Adrik recognized his old friend Oren. They had sung together aboard the Grand Dame, a gambling ship that plied the Dessarin River. Together, their songs had impressed the owner of the vessel, Lord Khaspere Drylund, an ambitious nobleman from the river city of Yartar. Lord Khaspere had invited them to return to the Grand Dame when they had each composed a song that would impress the patrons of his nightly gambling cruise.
Now that Adrik and Oren were reunited by fortune, they were ready to compare their latest works. Oren had composed a tragic ballad about the Giant King Lear, who wrongfully sent his kind and sincere daughter into exile and was subsequently betrayed by his other two daughters who were greedy and heartless.
Despite the high quality of Oren’s ballad, it was clearly no match for Adrik’s bawdy tavern song. Adrik had written a simple song about drinking, and it resonated greatly with the tavern goers. Soon, Northfurrow’s End was filled with people who came from all over Goldenfields to hear Adrik’s song. Even the town guards, who should have been manning the walls, filed into the tavern to hear the halfling’s tune.
Oren congratulated his friend Adrik on crafting a song that gained instant popularity. But suddenly, his expression darkened and Oren rushed outside. Adrik thought that he might have hurt his friend’s feelings, but Tarancha sensed that something was amiss. There was something else had caught Oren’s attention. Quickly, she went outside and followed the halfling entertainer.
A few blocks away, the halfling stopped and whirled around. At first, he was startled by the presence of an orc, but he soon recognized Adrik’s companion.
“AH! You scared me… umm… Lady Tarancha. I suppose you’re wondering what has gotten into me. We halflings always have one ear to the ground. Can you feel it? There is a rumbling coming from beyond the walls.”
Soon, Tarancha could feel it, too. The ground beneath her feet was shaking, as if a multitude of large and heavy feet were stomping across the hillside. As the realization dawned about them, Tarancha and Oren turned to the town and began to shout almost in unison with their mighty voices.
“Giants! Man the walls! Goldenfields is under attack! Giants are coming! ”
Adventure Name
Storm King’s Thunder
Chapter 1. A Great Upheaval
Session #2
Rewards
4 Achievement Points
4 Treasure Points
10 Downtime Days
1 Renown
Level-Up Gold
Level gained: 2nd-4th – 75 gp
Level gained: 5th-10th – 150 gp