Hearts of Gold? Report

General Summary

Our trio began the latest chapter of their adventure by asking Lif   to accompany them to the Vault of Dragons as one of the keys.  Upon doing this they discovered that Lif  was not overly eager and was in fact unsure if he could even leave; revealing to the party that Lif 's circumstances may be a bit more mysterious and tied to the Manor than they had first thought.  Datari quickly piqued Lif 's interest with a promise of further improvements to Lifted Spirits.  A quick test by Lif  confirmed that he was able to leave the Tavern.
  They were then joined by Vorf   (their hired carrier of Bugbear Ears) and Renaer Neverember .  Renaer Neverember had agreed to help convince the guardian Dragon to allow them to leave with the treasure by telling it they were there on his father’s behalf.  Having assembled the keys to the Vault of Dragons our Heroes went to the Old Tower to investigate and infiltrate the Vault.
  Upon arriving at the Old Tower they discovered that it had recently been purchased by a young Noblewoman named Esvele Rosznar .  It was clear from the outset that Esvele Rosznar  knew what the Tower contained and that she was determined to claim her part of the rumoured treasure.  Esvele Rosznar's initial demand of half of all of the trove was quickly batted away by Len’s superior negotiations and she settled on 34% of the total take.
  Esvele Rosznar led the party down into the cellar and opened a locked secret door using thieves tools; immediately revealing she was more than she seemed.
  Two large seeming unassailable Adamantine doors were quickly opened when it was confirmed they had assembled the correct keys.
  Careful and not so careful exploration combined with a quick but stimulating battle with a Black Pudding revealed a puzzle to solve.  With the help (for probably the last time) of the Stone of Golorr our Heroes discovered that revealing a secret never told would open the way.  Even Len was surprised by Datari’s revelation about someone named Niadh.
  The final path was opened and the Party found themselves in the vault and face to face with 500,000 Gold Dragons (Pieces) AND the humanoid form of the Gold Dragon: Barok Clanghammer.  Upon seeing Renaer Neverember Barok Clanghammer believed the lie that they were there on the behest of Dagult Neverember.  The Dragon went so far as to help the adventurers load the Gold into the carts Renaer Neverember had secured.
  Renaer Neverember told the Heroes that the gold was being taken back to his estate for safekeeping (prior to being turned over to the Lords of Waterdeep).  Renaer Neverember then asked to tag along to an audience with Vajra Safahr.  
  Immediately upon entering the inner sanctum of Vajra Safahr  (which was accessible only via Teleportation) Renaer Neverember activated a Mind Blast device that stunned our Heroes and Vajra Safahr .  He then opened a portal via a summoning stone that allowed the sinister Vierasti into the chamber.  Vierasti first attempted to steal the Blackstaff itself, but upon failure (which seemed to be anticipated) brought out a device which seemed to remove some type of essence from the Blackstaff.
  Upon completion of the deed Vierasti laughingly betrayed Renaer Neverember by leaving him trapped with Vajra Safahr and our Adventurers.  Upon realizing his predicament and unable to face the consequences of his actions Renaer Neverember drank a poison and died on the spot.  With quick thinking Datari cast Spare the Dying to stabilize Renaer Neverember and prevent a more permanent death.
  Our heroes are left gasping and betrayed ... what just happened?

Rewards Granted

5000 Gold Pieces for each of our 3 Heroes.