Chapter 1-16: Wyvern Tor

General Summary

As the party approached the crag, they noticed the light of a campfire outside a cave in the hillside, where a lone orc sat watch. The party decided to approach under cover of darkness, Ramas would use his Disguise Self spell to appear as an orc, and attempt to persuade the group to head back to the Issata Peaks. Ramas jogged into the light of the campfire, and the orcish sentry immediately challenged him. Ramas folded at the first question - "Which clan are you with" and gave the signal to Miaug to attack. Miaug launched an arrow into the orc's throat, silencing his screams in a gurgle of blood. Ryoko then used her thorn whip to tear open the orc's chest and drag him over to Ramas. Ramas then dragged the unconscious orc out of the light of the fire.
The party woke him up and began to interrogate him. They discovered that these orcs were members of the Crimson Fist Horde, and they had travelled far from the mountains in pursuit of a half-elf thief who had stolen an heirloom from the tribe. This was a small, elite group of orcs, under command of Brughor Axe-Biter. The group, concerned that Clootie might grow attached to this orc, then brutally killed him.
Armed with this new knowledge, Ramas decided to try his ploy again. The rest of the group waitedon top of the cliff, while Ramas went into the cave alone. Inside he came across five orcs and an ogre. The orcs immediately challenged him. This time he was able to bluff them into believing he was a simple (literally retarded) messenger sent from the clan to inform them that thief had been caught and to head home. Brughor believed him, but was incredulous that the clan elders would entrust such an important task to such a simpleton. He ordered the orcs to pack up the camp, and told Ramas to lie down and rest in a bed he made. Ramas was concerned, as his illusion spell would wear off in an hour, so he pretended to leave to have a pee. One of the other orcs, older and greying, had been eyeing Ramas with increasing suspicion. As he turned to leave, the grey orc raised his hand and muttered a single word, his eyes flashing silver. Suddenly, a column of silver light appeared over Ramas, and his skin danced with argent flames. As he doubled up in pain, his disguise dissolved. Ramas bolted out the cave entrance, throwing a smoke bomb and scattering ball bearings behind him.
As the orcs moved into position in the cave entrance, the grey orc gestured again, letting out a guttural bark. Suddenly a wall of wind swept towards the cave mouth, driving out the smoke and the ball bearings, and forming a barrier across the entrance. Brughor leapt out of the cave, dancing nimbly between the bearings. Miaug loosed an arrow at his, but he spun on his heels, catching the arrow mid-flight and hurling it back at her. After she ducked out of the way, Aetilius leapt down, driving Talon into Brughor's side. As the blade bit into flesh, a pulse of energy ran down the blade causing the orc to stiffen. Clootie also leapt off the wall, landing on Brughor and performing her Hurricanrana move, throwing him over her head and onto the ground. The ogre roared and dashed out of the cave, but slipped on the bearings and landed on his face. Ryoko, in tiger form, leapt at him, slashing him with her claws. The grey orc moved his beam of moonlight over the druid, burning both her and the ogre, and forcing her back into her Dragonborn form. She retaliated by casting her own beam of moonlight over him, burning him and distracting him, causing is own spells to falter. Ryoko then conjured a flaming scimitar in her hand, and as the ogre tried to regain his feet, she swung it a cleaved his head from his shoulders.
Brughor hit Ramas, knocking him backward fifteen feet. The grey orc raised his hand, and a bolt of lightning arced out, striking Aetilius and Ramas. Aetilius was badly burned, but Ramas dropped to the ground unconscious. Brughor hit Clootie with a flurry of blows, knocking her to the ground. He then grabbed her by the hair, lifting her up, and yelled above the din of the battle, "Enough! Stop of I will kill her!".
After getting the party's attention, he began to plead with them, asking them why they had attacked him and his men. It transpired that this group of orcs had avoided human contact, attempting to keep a low profile as they hunted their quarry. They had likely been spotted by some of the miners, and fearing the worst, the population of Phandalin had put out a bounty on the orcs. Brughor explained that the half-elf thief had stolen an ancient artifact from his clan - a black glass orb set with three rubies - which they had liberated hundreds of years previously from a mine near to Phandalin. The orb had become a totem of leadership among the clan, and a central focus of their shaman's mysticism. The half-elf had stolen it from the cave of the ancients, and had murdered two of the tribe elders during his escape - one of whom was Brughor's father. The group had tracked the thief this far, but his trail now led towards Neverwinter, and the orcs had decided to camp at Wyvern Tor to try and devise a way to approach the city without drawing attention.
The party felt guilty for the wanton slaughter, and explained that they were returning to Neverwinter shortly and they would try to track down the thief. Brughor agreed, his party would head further east in the mountains, and wait for three weeks for the group to return with the orb and the thief. If they didn't return before the three weeks were up, Brughor and his men would head to Neverwinter themselves.
The grey orc, Tulmak, took Ryoko aside. He explained that he was the tribal shaman, and he was Brughor's mentor. He pleaded with her to please find the thief and the artifact - otherwise Brughor would make his way to Neverwinter, and would surely die. He couldn't face that, as Brughor was like a son to him.
Aetilius offered to heal Brughor's wounds, in an effort to apologise to the orcs for killing the sentry and the ogre. The party then decided to camp out further away from the cave, in case an orc decided to ignore Brughor's orders and seek revenge.