After defeating the drow intruders, Kane makes the fateful choice to keep the elemental primordial for himself. King Bruenor, unaware of the deception, urges the heroes to pursue the drow and recover the stolen primordial. The heroes go on a quest that takes them on a long journey leading to an ancient forge.
Player Characters: Adrik, Kane, Sister Mary, Strong Palm Ian, Takarov, Tarancha
1.
Enraged by the loss of Maegera the dawn titan from the great forge of Gauntlgrym, King Bruenor Battlehammer resolved to retrieve the primordial at all costs. He asked the heroes if they would ride forth to find the drow whom he believed had stolen Maegera and escaped.
Kane had lied to the king and concealed the iron flask containing the dawn titan. Now, the heroes found themselves in a difficult situation. Even if they came forward truthfully and returned Maegera to the forge, the dwarves of Gauntlgrym would be furious at their deception. A summary execution might be the most merciful fate against such a treasonous act. Kane and perhaps the others might be banished to the Underdark to suffer the terrors in the abyss.
The companions resolved to keep up the deception, but they could not keep Maegera for themselves. Such power did not belong in their hands, and they wished to return the elemental to the forge of Gauntlgrym. Therefore, the adventurers chose a difficult path. They resolved to track down missing drow, then bring the iron flask to King Bruenor claiming to have recovered it.
With a seasoned mercenary named Takarov as their guide, the heroes set forth from Gauntgrym. King Bruenor advised them to travel east to one of the dwarven strongholds. He suspected that whomever had sent the drow might have intended to use Maegera for the same purpose as the dwarves of Gauntlgrym – to light a mighty forge.
King Bruenor knew of only two such forges in the world apart from the one in Gauntlgrym. One was the subterranean forge of the duergar in the dark city of Gracklstugh, located deep in the Underdark. The other was the ancient ruin of a long abandoned forge high in the peaks of the northern mountains, not far from the dwarven strongholds known as Citadel Felbarr and Citadel Adbar.
The drow fled through secret tunnels and passages that connected Gauntlgrym to the other dwarven citadels. Bruenor believed they would return to their masters, either in the Underdark or high in the mountains. Either way, they would pass near to Citadel Felbarr and Adbar, for Gracklstugh was also in the region of the Underdark that laid beneath the dwarven citadels on the surface.
The heroes first decided to travel via Triboar to deliver a message for the people of Nightstone. One of the villagers of Nightstone had perished in the nearby caves, being devoured by giant rats kept by the goblins that had captured the fleeing townsfolk. Morak Ur’gray the innkeeper had asked the heroes to deliver news of the man’s untimely death to his only known relative – his ex-wife who lived in the town of Triboar.
When the Albatross company returned to the base of the mountain, the airship was no longer where they had left it! It was then that they remembered the shaking of the furnace aboard the airship. The fire elemental powering the vessel had reacted violently to the presence of Maegera the elemental primordial. When the party approached, Mister Mo must have taken off to preserve the airship. The Albatross company found that they were without their wings to bear them swiftly across the lands. Now, they were on their own.
They set out across the grasslands, heading toward the Long Road which would lead them more swiftly to Triboar before they headed east. Yet Tarancha judged that the journey to the faraway kingdoms of the dwarves would take several weeks if not an entire month.
Along the way, the party encountered a large band of orc raiders. There were seventeen orcs altogether, and they had in their tow three halfling prisoners. Tarancha recognized the orcs as members of the Iceshield tribe. She let out a ferocious battle cry in defiance of the orcs. The orcs took up the challenge and charged toward the adventurers.
Despite their numbers, the orcs were no match for the heroes of the Albatross company whose strength at arms and arcane power had grown greatly. The ensuing battle was fierce and swift as the raiders were routed and slaughtered nearly to the last orc.
When the fight was over, a lone rider approached from the south. She was a halfling ranger who rode up to the heroes. She had been searching for missing villagers that had fled from Triboar. Much to Ghelryn and Darz’s dismay, the companions learned that Triboar had been raided by a pair of fire giants leading a large band of orcs. The orcs that the heroes had just encountered were a portion of their warband that had broken off after the raid. The defenders of Triboar fought bravely but were forced from flee from the deadly onslaught.
Curiously, when their opposition had been swept away, the fire giants began to dig. When they had pulled an immense piece of black metal from the ground, the giants departed as swiftly as they had appeared. From the description of witnesses, Ghelryn the dwarf smith realized that the item claimed by the giants must be a piece of solid adamantine. But he could not discern its true nature or purpose without having seeing it for himself.
“Whatever those fire giants are up to, it worries me. If they intend to work the piece of adamantine that they found into something useful or deadly, they will surely need a powerful forge in which to labor. Whatever their purpose may be, you heroes have no time to waste!”
Ghelryn offered to deliver the message from Nightstone to its recipient in Triboar. The Long Road would be safer than the grasslands, and Ghelryn and Darz would be joined by their newfound halfling companions.
In addition, the dwarf smith even offered to carry the mithral spearhead to Triboar and work upon it in his forge, if it had survived the fire giants’ attack. Though his furnace was not nearly as powerful as the forge of Gauntlgrym even when it was burning at its hottest, Ghelryn was a skilled weaponsmith and the Foehammer name was renowned throughout the lands.
Ghelryn did not know that the adventurers who had saved his life were also the ones who possessed Maegera the Dawn Titan. Unaware of the true intentions of the Albatross Company, he bade them make haste to the dwarven lands to fulfill their quest.
2.
Of the two dwarven citadels that King Bruenor had mentioned, Citadel Felbarr was the closer. It was said to be ruled by a king and queen who reigned with great wisdom. But the party still had to travel several weeks to reach the dwarven city. With the recent raid upon Triboar and reports of giant attacks on the rise, the heroes feared that time was not on their side.
Adrik knew of a river boat called the Grand Dame that plied the River Rauvin flowing all the way to the foot of the mountain where Citadel Felbarr was located. He had once worked upon the vessel as an entertainer along with Oren Yogilvy. The Grand Dame was no ordinary vessel but an extravagant gambling hall that catered to aristocrats. To board the ship, the heroes would need to pass themselves off as wealthy patrons or be hired as members of the crew.
Kane disguised himself as an aristocrat while Adrik helped the rest of the party gain passage by joining the crew. Sister Mary worked as the ship’s onboard physician. Tarancha joined the gang of rowers on the lower deck. Takarov convinced the captain of his strength at arms despite his advanced age and became a bouncer. Strong Palm Ian impressed the security officer with his martial prowess and joined the security team. Fortuitously, the head of security was a fellow easterner from Kara-tur named Pow Ming who took a liking to Ian.
With their passage secured, the party traveled upon the Rauvin river for the next ten days. During that time, Adrik’s songs impressed the owner of the vessel, a nobleman named Khaspere Drylund. Lord Khaspere was an extravagant man who considered himself an intrepid explorer and mariner, despite never having sailed any waters beyond the Rauvin River. He had heard both Adrik and Oren Yogilvy’s songs when they had performed on the Grand Dame long ago. He had invited them to return to his service and commanded them to prepare songs worthy of his fabulous vessel and its honored guests when they came back. But now that Oren was gone, Adrik honored his fallen friend by singing the last tragic song that he had written based on the legend of the Giant King Lear. Lord Khaspere was deeply moved and impressed by the song, but during the performance he kept complaining about an oddly persistent headache.
Eventually, the headache grew worse until finally Lord Khaspere asked Sister Mary, whom he referred to as Doctor Mary, to take a look at him. Mary examined the nobleman and could find no physical ailment that afflicted him. But when she reached out with her senses, she detected a strange presence. For a brief moment, a feeling of overpowering dread and horror overcame her as she beheld a vision of a giant tentacle wrapped around Lord Khaspere’s head. Sister Mary thought that the tentacles would reach out and throttle her. As Mary closed her eyes in terror, she caught a glimpse of a pair of feathery wings that wrapped themselves around her protectively. When she opened her eyes again, both the tentacle and the wings had vanished.
Sister Mary told her companions what she had seen. In was clear that some dreadful entity was present within Lord Khaspere’s mind. It was then that Adrik recalled dark whispers he had heard about Lord Khaspere. Rumor had it that the nobleman had secret ties to an underground cult known as the Kraken Society. But the goals and purposes of this cult were unknown.
When the heroes arrived at their destination, they were glad to be off the ship. As the passengers and crew disembarked, Kane cashed in his winnings, a pile of Golden Goose coins that were used as gambling chips aboard the Grand Dame. He kept one Golden Goose coin as a fitting souvenir for the journey of the Albatross Company.
3.
The heroes had arrived near the mighty gates of Citadel Felbarr where they were called to an audience before the King and Queen. The rumors about King Morinn and Queen Tithmel seemed to be true, for they were wise and just rulers who reigned over the dwarven city with benevolence.
The heroes told the dwarven leaders of their quest and their pursuit of drow agents that had fled from Gauntlgrym. The King and Queen were upset by what they had heard. In truth, the previous king of the city, Emerus Warcrown, had gone forth to join Bruenor Battlehammer in his quest to reclaim Gauntlgrym. In the war against the drow who had taken up residence in Gauntlgrym, King Emerus lost his life. The mention of the drow angered the dwarves of Citadel Felbarr who had lost their brave king.
King Morinn and Queen Tithmel told the heroes of an ancient forge high up in the mountains near their city. It was known as Ironslag, and it was rumored to be a ruin left by the ancestors of the mighty giants. For long centuries, it had been abandoned and laid in darkness. But recently, dwarven scouts reported seeing plumes of smoke rising from the hidden chimneys of the forge, not far from a village where peaceful Yakfolk lived. Someone had entered the ruins and lit the furnaces of the forge. The dwarves suspected it to be the work of fire giants from the north.
The king and queen bade the heroes to continue on their quest for King Bruenor, but they urged them to investigate the forge of Ironslag as well. If there were hostile giants in the forge, the heroes must deal with them to ensure they pose no threat to Citadel Felbarr and the rest of the Silver Marches. If the Albatross Company fulfilled this task, the king and queen would bestow a mighty gift upon them.
The day after they had arrived in Citadel Felbarr, the heroes set out for the northern mountains. After several days of hiking, they finally reached the high cliffs overlooking the winding paths, and they could see from afar the tall, snowcapped peaks of the mountains.
It was here that they encountered a lone fire giant among the barren crags. The giant was holding a strange metal rod before him and seemed to be following it wherever it might lead. But he also looked exceedingly bored and tired of whatever task he was performing.
The heroes approached the giant, ready to defend themselves. But as Adrik approached with his bardic kazoo in his one good hand, the giant commanded the tiny halfling to play a song that might alleviate his boredom. Adrik played a curious melody upon his instrument and sent the fire giant into a fit of laughter. Plumes of flame burst forth from the giant’s open mouth as he guffawed loudly.
The heroes had somehow befriended the fire giant. They learned from him that the other fire giants were all seeking pieces of something very important for their leader, a giant lord named Duke Zalto. Trying to discover more about what the giants were after, Strong Palm Ian showed the map he had received in Waterdeep. But when the fire giant saw it, his expression immediately changed as he became stern and grew suspicious.
“Where did you get that map?” the giant demanded to know. “These are giant runes upon the parchment. This map was clearly drawn by a giant, and no self-respecting giant would give such a valuable thing to the lowly smallfolk. Give me that map, for it surely does not belong to you.”
Before Strong Palm Ian had a chance to speak, Kane jumped in and told the giant a bold faced lie.
“Why, sir giant, don’t you recognize one of your own? This is no half-orc standing before you! The reason he has this map is because he himself is a giant, but has was cursed and transformed into this humble creature.”
Incredibly, the fire giant believed Kane’s fantastic tale.
“What a cruel fate! My poor cousin, what have the small folk done to you?”
Strong Palm Ian played along and began to weave a story of his own. He had been looking for the same thing that all the other fire giants were seeking when he encountered a band of drow led by a dark elf named Draac Xorlarrin. These drow were seeking an elemental primordial, but they failed to acquire it, and when Ian had found them, one of their mages had polymorphed him into a lowly half orc.
The fire giant was greatly upset by this report.
“Those traitors will pay for what they did to you and for betraying us. Not only did they fail to bring back the elemental primordial as ordered by Duke Zalto, but they turned against us as well! We must tell the duke at once of this betrayal.”
The fire giant led the heroes by secret passages to the depths of Ironslag. As they passed through the great assembly hall of the forge, the heroes saw something that was both awe inspiring and terrifying. A titanic construct that dwarfed the giants was half assembled and stood among chains and scaffolding in front of an enormous adamantine furnace. However, the furnace was dark while the colossus only had its head and upper torso. Even so, the fire giant still beamed with pride at the sight of it.
“Isn’t it remarkable, cousin? Every time I pass this great hall, the sight of our ancestors’ creation takes my fiery breath away. Despite the setback caused by those treacherous drow, it’s only a matter of time before Duke Zalto acquires the elemental primordial needed to light the adamantine forge of Ironslag. Then we can complete the assembly of our mighty dragon-slaying colossus, the Vonindod! It will lay waste to the wyrms and show the All Father that we, the fire giants, are the most worthy among his children and belong on the top of the Ordning.”
Upon hearing the fire giant’s boasts, Adrik remembered the old songs about the ancient conflict between the dragons and the giants. During the course of their endless wars, the giants had built a mighty dragon-slaying colossus to destroy their hated enemies. In time, the colossus was captured by their foes, but it could not be utterly destroyed. So, the colossus was broken into a thousand pieces which were scattered throughout the continent.
Now the heroes understood what the fire giants had been seraching for in their raids across the countryside, and why the drow, who were in league with these giants, had tried to steal Maegera the Dawn Titan. The fire giants hoped to rebuild the Vonindod and reignite the war against dragonkind in an attempt to elevate themselves in a new hierarchy.
The revelation was following by the awful feeling that they were caught in the webs of fate. In trying to cover up their own deception, they had brought the elemental primordial to the very place where it might yet fulfill its terrible purpose.
When the Albatross Company finally arrived at the great chamber of Duke Zalto, the fire giant lord was sitting upon his throne with his hell hounds at his feet. He was a tall and terrifying figure to look upon, but what startled the heroes even more were the six dark elves that stood before the duke. They were Draac Xorlarrin’s warriors who had fled from Gauntlgrym. Now, it appeared that they had just finished giving their report to the Duke when the party had entered. When the drow saw the company, a dark glint of recognition entered their eyes, and their initial shock gave way to a cold, vengeful fury.
Adventure Name
Storm King’s Thunder
Chapter 3. The Savage Frontier
Session #6
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