Chapter 1-7: Thundertree

General Summary

The party started in The Stonehill Inn in Phandalin. Over breakfast they planned their route to Thundertree before going shopping for supplies in Phandalin. They went to visit Halia Thornton; to deliver Glasstaff's correspondence and to claim the reward she had offered. She was impressed with their work, and advised them that she's put out feelers regarding the location of Cragmaw Castle - hopefully she'll have some info in a couple of days. Looking at the letter from the Black Spider to Iarno, Halia noticed that it mentions Wave Echo Cave. She asked the group, if they find themselves there, if they could return an artifact, or uncover any information about its whereabouts. The artifact in question was a glass sphere, carved with a triangle and set with three rubies. Ramas recognised this description, having stolen an identical item for a mysterious benefactor in Southmarch.
After ensuring they were properly equipped, the party then left town. Travelling a day north, they set up camp in the woods. While out hunting, Miaug rescued a fox from a goblin trapper. That evening, the party dined on venison and berry jus.
The next morning they made their way north to Thundertree. On arrival, they noticed a palpable oppressive atmosphere. Aetilius recognised this as the influence of the Shadowfell - the dark mirror image of Lanath. Ryoko and Ramas investigated a nearby ruined cottage, but the party decided to backtrack an hour to try and rest in a safer place. After setting up camp, and eating rabbit and mushroom salad, the group went to sleep. During Miaug's watch, she noticed a shadow moving in the treeline. She sent her fox to wake up Ryoko and Clootie, then scampered up a tree. She made too much noise climbing through the canopy and alerted the Brown Bear. Ryoko transformed into a bear, but presented herself submissively, inadvertently goading him to attack. Aetilius, woken by the sound, rushed out of his tent banging weapons, successfully driving it off. The rest of the night was uneventful.
The next day the party returned to Thundertree. Investigating the next set of ruins, they were ambushed by a swarm of lamprey like creatures. Taken unawares, the party struggled to fight the creatures, who latched themselves to their prey and drained their life force. Clootie was unusually effective, successfully using the Staff of Defence to protect herself, and on one occasion as a vaulting pole during an attack. She single-handedly killed two of the creatures. Ryoko transformed into a tiger and successfully savaged one of the creatures. Aetilius, Miaug and Ramas managed to kill one each. Miaug's fox was seriously hurt during the encounter, but managed to free itself and hide on the far side of the ruin.