Chapter 19 - A Gift for Morgesk

General Summary

Travelling up the mountain further, the party came across the crevice between two peaks. Being led by Hilda Snowladen, it took the party half a day to finally reach Duran-Golgen, an ancient Dwarven fortress. There is where Morgesk, an ancient Silver Dragon, was sleeping. The party carefully approached the doors of Duran-Golgen and tried not to disturb him. It would be Hamill's loud mouth, as well as Tequila's sequestering, which would cause Morgesk to awaken and greet the party. Morgesk changed into a humanoid form, to look more presentable to the party.
Morgesk would welcome the Southern Stars and friends to Duran-Golgen, and challenged them to a few games so he could know them better. The first was an archery contest, to which Gilliam represented. He would fail against Morgesk. The second contest was an arm wrestle, and Wulfric offered himself as a challenger. Though Wulfric was strong, Morgesk still overcame him. The next challenge was preforming a magical show, and Slytoff presented himself. Slytoff would win, doing a show presenting doves with trails of fireworks coming from behind them. The final challenge was a game of riddles, to which the party beat. However, the party felt Morgesk lacked one more challenge: a simple sword duel. Riley offered himself as a challenger, but would be beaten. Gilliam, claiming that Morgesk was cheating, challenged Morgesk, and Gilliam would ultimately win.
Once the games were finished, Morgesk offered the party to dine in the great hall of Duran-Golgen. As they ate, the party discussed with Morgesk the happenings of Lysandus, and Morgesk mentioned he kept tabs on the party. Indeed, Morgesk was a prophet of Vanu-Am, but was not fond of her intervention in Lysandus. The party criticized Morgesk for not stepping in to help Lysandus, but he felt the matters of men should not be handled by dragons, to retain human sovereignty. He then questioned the party if they understood Qenlynn Millerstone's ultimate motives, and Slytoff mentioned she wished to turn into a Half-Dragon. In this, Morgesk corrected Slytoff: Qenlynn doesn't want to be a half dragon, she wishes to be a FULL dragon, so she can rule over the people of Lysandus.
However, Morgesk told the party there was hope yet: new Dragonlords could be chosen for the nation, and he believed the Southern Stars were the new heirs. But for this, they would need to prove the title by slaying a true dragon. Morgesk offered Turot, a two-headed white dragon who he considered an invader on his territory. She rested in the forgotten temple, Duran-Vanu. Morgesk assigned the party to slaying her, while he dealt with matters in Kirkwall. With this, the party ate and rested. During the rest, Slytoff Han copied down two spell scrolls: a Scroll of Polymorph (courtesy of Morgesk), and a Scroll of Counterspell.
The next morning, the party departed for the forsaken Duran-Vanu, entering it by the sunset while Hilda set up camp. Along the walls, Riley Woodhame would read forgotten histories in Dwarven:

The King, Nordlieften, claimed the mountain for the Children of Boldur. Escaped from the caves, they faced many monsters. But they would overwhelm. Nordlieften, desperate for his people, approached Time at Urshlon. She granted him Fatebender, a Blade of Fate, to control the destiny of his people.

The abominations of Brigid were slain. Last, a child of Tiamat, Zokron, opposed the Children of Boldur. His fate was bent, and Nordlieften was victorious. At last, the Mountains of Lisanrik belonged to the Children of Boldur, a gift from the Daughter herself.

Entering into the ancient throne room, the party encountered a strange, glowing amphibian with six legs, called a Frost Salamander. The creature had elemental properties. It guarded the ancient Dwarven throne. Slytoff attempted to sit on the throne, but the Frost Salamander attacked the wizard. Riley and Wulfric jumped in to the heat of the fight, while Gilliam was careful to approach. Tequila used his god-given powers to shield Slytoff, and then Wulfric. The salamander breathed a ghastly cold on Riley, and Riley retaliated with his Green Flame Blade. This recharged the Salamander's breath, which then breathed on Wulfric and Tequila (though, because Wulfric wore Boots of the Winter Lands, he resisted much of the damage). It would be Gilliam who vanquished the elemental. Riley would see another writing on the wall of the temple:

Blessed be Boldur, the Creator of All, may his world endure forever. Blessed be Time, the greatest of Boldur’s creation, may she forever favor the Dwarves. Blessed be The Mountain King, may his riches endure forever.

After this, the party entered another room, where they were encountered by black guard drakes, and quickly slew them. There would be more to this dungeon than they knew...

Date (in world)

May 23rd-24th, 5689.

Report Date

13 May 2020

Primary Location

The Dragonscale Mountains

by Antonello Venditti

Morgesk was an ancient silver dragon who made his home in Duran-Golgen, an old Dwarven fortress. He has been a prophet of Vanu-Am for decades, though recently he has challenged her authority.

Player Characters

Riley Woodhame: Riley Woodhame, human fighter and warlock, is a member of the Hearthstars (an organization based on gathering information under Amagus' teachings). His search for power and knowledge led him to find the Lady of the Lake, giving him an inkling of control over his own fate.

"The Amazing" Slytoff Han: Slytoff Han is a magician! A gnome wizard, he seeks to find funding to create a magic show and has traveled around County Ellis to show off his skills for potential audiences.

Wulfric Cisboren: Wulfric is a human fighter, who hails from Obesfeld, and a former housecarl. He appears to be a man of the north, covered in furs. Recently he has been talking more in a Norden accent, and has been behaving more like the Dwarves of North in his fighting style.

Gilliam Wulfstan Maydestone: Gilliam is an aarakocra swashbuckler, as well as an urchin that grew up in the city of Ebenwald. With his skills with the blade, he seeks higher up contracts to fill his pockets.

Tequila "Teq" Cambow: Teq is a cleric of Amagus, devoting his life and services to the god. He was introduced to the party by the local bishop of Silver Town, searching for field experience and for building his faith.