Using the magical conch of teleportation found in the fire giants’ lair, the heroes transport themselves and the prisoners of Ironslag away from the clutches of Duke Zalto. Thereafter, fate brings the Albatross company to the court of the storm giants, where they soon realize that they are embroiled in a conspiracy that is bigger than any of them.
Player Characters: Adrik, Gregory, Kane, Sister Mary, Strong Palm Ian, Tarancha
1.
Having taken Zaltember the fire giant lordling as their hostage, Strong Palm Ian and Gregory led the escaped prisoners out of Ironslag and reunited with the rest of the Albatross outside the fortress. Meriele and her party had fulfilled their quest to find Tarancha the orc barbarian. They bid farewell and good fortune to the others and returned to Waterdeep in great haste to report their findings to the Harpers.
“We now know that the North is in great peril,” said the half drow Meriele. “If the fire giants succeed in rebuilding the Vonindod, it could reignite the ancient war between the giants and dragons. The resulting conflict would bring untold devastation to the Sword Coast. The Harpers must be warned!”
The Albatross Company debated their next move. The fire giants had Kane and the remaining prisoners of Ironslag. There were over a hundred dwarves in the mines who had not been rescued. The Albatross Company could not leave the dwarves and their friends to die at the hands of the fire giants, but they also could not hand over Maegera the Dawn Titan.
Gregory told them of the conch that he had found after escaping from the assembly hall. It was a magic relic that had the power to transport all those who were chosen by its wielder to another predetermined location. Gregory had discerned that the location set for the conch was somewhere in the sea, but he did not know where the precise destination would be. For all he knew, it might be somewhere upon the waves or the bottom of the ocean floor.
But the Albatross company had few other options. They decided to ransom the duke’s son back to him in exchange for Harshnag and Kane’s gear, then use the conch to teleport themselves along with Kane and all the prisoners away from Ironslag.
Gregory gave the conch to Strong Palm Ian, trusting in the half orc’s wisdom, and gave him a rough explanation of how to activate it. The dwarf himself was unsure whether his understanding of this strange artifact were correct. Would this giant relic actually transport everyone to another place? Even if it did, would it deliver them to safety, or do even greater perils await them?
2.
In the assembly hall, Duke Zalto and his wife, the Duchess Brimskarda who wore a shimmering dragonscale dress, were accompanied by four fire giants, three ogres, and the six drow warriors of House Xorlarrin. Cowering beneath them were a hundred dwarf prisoners who were bound together by chains. Kane and a group of dwarves were tied up and dangling above the eye socket of the Vonindod which was filled with molten gold. The other eye socket was filled with an immense ruby. It seemed that having failed to acquire two such crimson gems for the eyes of the Vonindod, the giants were intent on filling the remaining eye socket with the ruby blood of their captives encased in molten gold.
As the Albatross Company entered the hall, Harshnag wrapped his chain around Zaltember’s neck and held him like a dog upon a leash. Tarancha held her axe up to his neck, and the young fire giant whimpered. At the sight of their son held hostage by the adventurers, the Duke’s gloating grin died on his face, and the Duchess wailed in dismay.
“My sweet boy!” cried the duchess.
“What do you small folk want?” Duke Zalto demanded through gritted teeth.
Adrik stepped forward and spoke.
“We want no harm to befall your precious child, my lord. We simply want you to return what is ours. Give us the possessions of our friends Harshnag and Kane. Then we shall return your son safe and sound and we’ll be on our way.”
The Duke marveled that the adventurers would demand only their treasure without asking for the life of their comrade or any of the prisoners. But he attributed it to the greed of the small folk. And he had no time to ponder it further. For the duchess had wrapped her fingers tightly around his neck and was shouting in his ear.
“Don’t just stand there, my fool husband! Give them what they want!”
Duke Zalto, his face turning purple, relented and commanded his minions to bring forth a chest containing Harshnag and Kane’s possessions.
2.
Everyone in the hall was on edge. The giants and ogres kept their hands on their swords and clubs. The drow had their fingers on the hair triggers of their crossbows, the tips of their crossbow bolts dripping with poison. When the chest finally arrived, Harshnag gave the chain to Tarancha and went to inspect its contents.
As the frost giant opened the chest, Zaltember saw his opportunity and struggled mightily against the orc barbarian. However, Tarancha was much stronger than Zaltember had anticipated and kept an iron grip upon the chain. The fire giant lordling was shocked to find that he was powerless against her.
Yet the instant when Zaltember made his move was all that was needed to set off the powder keg in the assembly hall. The giants and ogres raised their weapons, and the drow were about to fire their crossbow bolts.
In that moment, Kane spoke an arcane incantation and teleported out of his bonds. He appeared floating in the air and summoned his fiery magic as he shouted at the crowd below.
“Hey! Stay calm everybody!”
All eyes – and weapons – turned toward Kane. As the scene was about to turn into a blood bath, Strong Palm Ian blew into the conch. One of the drow noticed the conch in Ian’s hand and, perhaps recognizing the device, took aim at the half orc. But it was too late, for Ian had blown into the conch. A great booming sound went up in the assembly hall like the noontide of the sea. With a flash of bright light and the scent of the ocean, the Albatross company and all the prisoners of Ironslag were gone, along with one of the drow warriors of House Xorlarrin.
“You will not thwart my plans, smallfolk!” Duke Zalto’s voice echoed through the hall. “I shall rebuild the Vonindod and then I will have our war. And once my armies have crushed the dragons, I will find you and have my revenge!”
3.
When the bright light subsided, the Albatross Company and the newly freed prisoners of Ironslag found themselves in a strange place. It appeared to be another giant castle, but all around them were walls of blue and green covered with moist seaweed.
Beneath their feet was a large circle of runes, a teleportation circle of ancient design. The conch had brought them to this location, and the heroes knew that it was a one-way ticket.
“Where are we? What is this place?” the prisoners wondered.
“Welcome to Maelstrom,” Harshnag replied gruffly. “This is the hold of the storm giants, deep beneath the ocean. Here you will find the court of the storm giant king, Hekaton.”
It was then that Tarancha’s companions noticed the lump of iron ore in her hand.
“Tarancha, what is that?” they asked.
“I took it off that golem in Ironslag. There is some kind of giant rune upon it.”
“I think that is the ‘skold’ rune,” said Adrik. “It means ‘shield’ in the giant language.”
The heroes realized that they had found a piece of giant magic left from the ancient civilization of Ostoria when the giants were far more advanced. The giants of the modern day were a shadow of their mighty ancestors. Yet here in Maelstrom, the heroes had a glimpse of the splendor and grandeur of that bygone civilization at the height of its power, preserved in the depths of the ocean.
Suddenly, Tarancha felt a familiar migraine as she received a sending message from her superior, Vajra Blackstaff. The Blackstaff had received a sending message from Meriele’s party informing her that Tarancha had found Harshnag the frost giant. Now, she had a new mission for the orc captain of the Grey Hands. She asked Tarancha to help find Hekaton, the king of the Storm Giants.
The Blackstaff believed that King Hekaton might be able to help put an end to the threat of the giants across the lands. She had spent weeks trying to locate him through arcane means, which was why she had not been scrying upon Tarancha to check her progress. Yet all her divinations had not availed to find the mysterious storm giant king. She needed Tarancha to contact him before the giants posed an even greater threat to the Sword Coast.
As Tarancha shared her message with her companions, Sister Mary remembered the vision that she had from before her adventure, in which she had seen seven white birds flying toward a storm in the ocean. She looked around at her six companions – Adrik the halfling bard, Gregory the dwarf fighter, Kane the tiefling warlock, Strong Palm Ian the half orc monk, Tarancha the orc barbarian, and Harshnag the frost giant – and knew that they were the white birds from her dream. Now they had arrived in the storm giant citadel of Maelstrom, the storm upon the sea. She knew then that they were caught in the webs of fate, in a tale that was larger than any of them, but what role they would play was yet unclear.
4.
The former prisoners began to murmur and grow nervous, wondering if they had escaped from Duke Zalto only to arrive in the hall of an even more terrible giant. The low grumbling and fearful wailing of hundreds of voices began to fill the hall. Gregory did what he could to keep everyone calm. The dwarves looked to him as their leader since Gregory and his companions had delivered them from the clutches of the fire giants. The remaining refugees, who were a mix of humans, elves, and gnomes, followed the dwarves who made up the greater part of their number and looked anxiously to Gregory to guide them.
Perhaps fortuitously, music began to issue from a spiral stairwell leading to the upper floor. It was a hauntingly beautiful sound unlike anything that the adventurers and refugees had heard before. The music was accompanied by a woman’s deep operatic voice, but one that echoed and reverberated more greatly than was possible for any human singer.
Adrik sensed that the music would not last long. The heroes had to do something before they and the refugees were discovered. The halfling bard made a bold proposal. The Albatross Company would march upstairs and announce their presence. In the court of the storm giants, they would meet King Hekaton and ask for safe passage for the refugees from Ironslag. Harshnag would stay with the refugees to ensure their safety.
The heroes ascended up the spiral stairs and found themselves in a great audience hall with immense seashells that served as large tables. Around several of the tables were seated giant lords of noble attire. A stone giant, frost giant, fire giant, and cloud giant were in attendance, watching a music performance being given by two storm giants upon a high ledge.
The storm giants were the most regal of all the giants in the chamber. Their resemblance to one another suggested that they might be sisters. Perhaps they were princesses, for they were guarded on either side by a cadre of storm giant warriors. One was performing a haunting melody upon a giant crab with large crystals and chutes protruding from its back. She was accompanying the other who sang with a deep, resonant voice. This was the source of the music that the heroes had heard.
Adrik began to sing and accompany the giant performers with his own voice. His sang in perfect harmony with the storm giants and made their music that much more beautiful. The giant lords in the audience assumed that Adrik and his companions were part of the performance. When their song had ended, the lords clapped and applauded all the performers, including Adrik the halfling bard.
Yet the storm giant guards were not amused. They began to approach the adventurers with their spears at the ready. However, the storm giant singer commanded them to stand down. She seemed to have been pleased and impressed by Adrik’s performance.
“I would like to hear what these small folk have to say,” she said. “Aren’t you curious, Nym?”
“You should not be too trusting, Mirran,” said the storm giant woman named Nym. “We don’t know what these small folk may be plotting in their tiny brains.”
“Now, now, princesses. We are just here to meet King Hekaton and ask for safe passage for our refugees downstairs,” Kane blurted out.
“How do you know the name of our King?” Nym asked him coldly.
“And what do you mean by ‘the refugees downstairs’? How many of you are down there?”
“Umm… only two hundred or so.”
“Two hundred! Sister, this could be an invasion! These small folk might be in league with the ones who were involved in our father’s disappearance? They even know his name!”
It was then that the Albatross Company realized that King Hekaton had gone missing. It seemed that even the storm giants, for all their wisdom, could not divine his location. But now it seemed that they also suspected the heroes and their two hundred companions of being involved in the king’s disappearance!
“I assure you, your highness,” Adrik began to plead. “We are no conspirators. In fact, if you allow us to help, we can surely aid you in finding King Hekaton if it so pleases you.”
The giant lords in attendance were at least in agreement on the need to find the king. But Tarancha sensed that something was amiss. Her keen warrior instinct told her that the two storm giant princesses, alone among the lords and ladies of the court, did not want their father to be found. Rather, they brought up the subject only reluctantly to avoid mentioning it too late and arousing suspicion.
“Yes, of course, we must find our lord father. That matter is of the utmost importance. Very well, we shall allow you and your entourage to stay in our two guest chambers for small folk visitors. They are small and modest by our standards, but your people should find them adequate for your use.”
The heroes thanked the princesses and retired downstairs. When they arrived in the lower level, Harshnag was nowhere to be seen. He was a wanted fugitive among giantkind. If he was caught in Maelstrom, he would be tried before their court and almost surely would be executed. Unbeknownst to the giants, he was hiding in a large pool of water on one side of the chamber, breathing through a thin tube that protruded above the surface of the water.
5.
The refugees were divided into two guest chambers. In one chamber were the dwarves, and in the other were the rest of the people. The drow captive that had been brought along from Ironslag was held by the dwarves, who were eager to put him to the axe. The Albatross Company joined the dwarves to interrogate the drow, all save for Sister Mary who remained with the human, elf, and gnome refugees to minister to them and keep them at ease.
“Now tell us,” the heroes began. “Why do you serve Duke Zalto? What do you have to gain from giving him the elemental primordial? Tell us!”
“Or what?” the drow spat back. “My life is already forfeit.”
But the drow smiled slyly and back to speak.
“Ah, what is there to lose from telling you surface dwellers. There is nothing you can do to stop what is coming.”
“What? What is coming?”
“War!” the drow said with a sinister laugh. “War between the giants and dragonkind. When the giants complete the Vonindod, they will have the war that they have long desired. And the North will burn in the strife between the giants and dragons. The elves, men, and dwarves of the north will be crushed by giant feet and burned by dragonfire. The drow have no love for giants, but when the smoke clears and all our enemies are dead, the world will be covered in darkness and we, the dark elves, will reign once more upon the surface. Mwahahaha!”
The drow’s hideous laughter was cut short when an axe swung by one of his captors neatly lopped off his head.
6.
A great cheer went up among the dwarves as the head of the dark elf rolled across the floor. In the midst of their celebration, no one heard the sound of a knock upon the door of the other guest chamber.
Two storm giant guards had come to call upon Sister Mary. She was alone in that chamber and had no chance to summon her companions. Nervously and reluctantly, she followed the guards through the hallway leading to the larger chamber where they had first arrived in Maelstrom. There in the hall awaited the four giant lords from the upper level.
“Ah good, the cleric,” the cloud giant count nodded in approval. “How convenient. We shall eliminate her first, then the rest will be easier to deal with..”
Sister Mary hardly had time to scream before she was struck down by the bolts of lightning that erupted from the outstretched palms of the storm giant guards.
It was only then that Sister Mary’s companions sensed something was amiss. Adrik’s keen halfling ears heard the sound of a body collapsing outside. The heroes rushed out of their guest chamber to see what had happened. They found Sister Mary collapsed on the floor, her blackened and smoking body surrounded by hostile giants.
“Good, we can crush them all at once,” laughed the giant lords. “The princesses send their regards.”
The heroes were hard pressed by the giant lords and the storm giant guards. But they were not alone. The stone giant thane who stood beside the pool of water was startled when a cold hand reached out of the pool and grabbed him by the ankle, dragging him into the water.
“It’s Harshnag!” the frost giant jarl, who was standing beside the pool with a large net in her hand, shouted to the remaining giant lords.”
“The kinslayer is in our very midst!”
The giant lords had turned their attention to the pool where Harshnag was grappling with the stone giant thane beneath the surface of the water. But the storm giant guards kept their attention upon the Albatross Company. The heroes had used the distraction caused by Harshnag to revive Sister Mary. But now they were in a difficult situation. The storm giant guards were far more powerful than the fire giants they had faced in Ironslag. Even if they could overcome these guards, they did not want to kill the guards for fear of reprisal against the refugees in their charge.
“Stop!” said a quiet yet commanding voice. All eyes turned to the spiral stairway where a young storm giant woman, dressed in queenly attire, descended the stairs. She was accompanied by a tall, elderly storm giant with a long white beard, dressed from head to toe in plate armor.
“Queen Serissa, this is dangerous,” said the elderly storm giant. “You should not go personally but let the guards handle it.”
“Uncle Uthor, I will not have bloodshed in my court. Everyone, lay down your arms!”
The giant lords and storm giant guards ceased their attack and bowed before the storm giant queen named Serissa. Even Harshnag knelt before her in a deferential gesture.
The Albatross Company was taken to the upper level, beyond the audience hall to the great throne room. There, they beheld the mighty throne upon which the kings and queens of the storm giants had sat for millennia. It was made entirely from the bones and skulls of ancient dragons.
Queen Serissa sat upon the throne and held aloft the scepter of rulership in her hand. On either side of the queen stood the elderly giant named Uncle Uthor, and a storm giant woman who appeared older than Serissa. The Queen referred to her as their “auntie.”
“Now, Auntie and Uncle Uthor. You two are my most trusted advisors. What should be done about these small folk?”
The heroes whispered to Harshnag and asked about the name of the storm giant woman beside the queen.
“That is one of the Queen’s confidants. Her name is Iymrith.”
Iymrith! Weeks ago, when the Albatross Company had first acquired their airship from Mister Mo’s patron in Icewind Dale, a mysterious benefactor named Klauth, the patron had sent along a message warning them about the schemes of a villain named Iymrith. But in the message, Klauth had said that Iymrith was a blue dragon!
Iymrith stepped forward and spoke with a soft voice that was full of certainty.
“It seems that these small folk and their small army invaded our citadel to threaten our Queen in her own court, bringing with them Harshnag, a known slayer of giants and wanted fugitive. How bold of them!”
“That’s a lie!” the heroes began to protest.
“Is it now?” Iymrith said simply. “Then you shall have the chance to prove your innocence. The trial of Harshnag the kinslayer and his small folk allies will commence – immediately!”
Adventure Name
Storm King’s Thunder
Chapter 8. Forge of the Fire Giants
Chapter 10. Hold of the Storm Giants
Session #9
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
Unlocked Item
Ingot of the Skold Rune