Mithral Hall
History
After being built by Gandalug Battlehammer and his kin, Mithral Hall accumulated a long and fascinating history filled with all manner of heroes, villains, victory and defeat.Origin
Although the exact date when Mithral Hall was founded is unknown, it was before 0 DR. The Hall was founded by Gandalug Battlehammer. (It is however reported in Hall of Heroes that Bunko Battlehammer was the founder of Mithral Hall,however this has been contradicted in several other works so is considered an error.) The settlement was originally set up as a mine, due to the rich seams of mithral ore in the mountain. The business quickly grew into a thriving community. The location of Mithral Hall was kept extremely secret, so that other organisations wouldn't try invading. The dwarves used to sell their ore and weapons in Settlestone, using it as a public front for the mine. This way outsiders were not exposed to the secret location of the mine.Shimmergloom's Reign
Towards the end of the 1100s DR, the deepest mines carved out by the dwarves of Mithral Hall broke into a shadowcavern. The cavern was said to be linked to the Plane of Shadows. An immensely powerful shadow dragon named Haerinvureem (known as Shimmergloom) was subsequently released into the mines. A thrilling new adventure on the galactic frontier The dragon, who later became known as Shimmergloom, was aided by hordes of shadow creatures and a whole clan of duergar. The loyal dwarves stood and fought allowing the few not strong enough the opportunity to flee. Among those that escaped was a young Bruenor Battlehammer. The dragon ravaged Mithral Hall slaying thousands of dwarves. Thibbledorf Pwent was one of the few dwarves that fought in the battle and survived, although he was presumed dead for quite some time. Bangor Battlehammer and his father Garumn Battlehammer died in the battle slaying hordes of Duergar. As they died their surrounding area was probably cursed as their bodies and possessions remained untouched centuries later. The 300 or so dwarves that escaped fled to the nearby Settlestone where they waited for news, expecting their kin to emerge victorious and invite them back. The good news never came, and the few dwarves that ventured back into Mithral Hall looking for survivors did not return. What was a settlement of 10,000 was cut down to 300.Searching for Mithral Hall
Ever since leaving his home when he was a young dwarf, Bruenor Battlehammer had wanted to reclaim Mithral Hall and avenge his kin. After spending many years living at the clan's new home in Icewind Dale, the aged and respected Bruenor decided it was time to return to Mithral Hall. Although he had always intended to return the sudden decision to begin the quest in 1356 DR came after he completed the forging of Aegis-fang. Bruenor set off along with Drizzt Do'Urden, Regis, and Wulfgar, who later became known as the Companions of the Hall. The journey to find Mithral Hall was a long one, as even Bruenor had forgotten many of the details of its whereabouts. They eventually tracked it down with the help of rumours, clues and, most significantly, a memory inducing potion. The combination of these aids led them to Settlestone (known at the time as "the Ruins") where they stayed the night. In the morning they set off along a narrow path towards Fourthpeak Mountain. Along the way they ran into some trouble with another group who had been following them. That group consisted of a golem created by Dendybar, his apprentice, Sydney, and Artemis Entreri, an assassin on a mission to track down Regis and the magical ruby he used to charm others. Entreri also had with him Catti-brie, Bruenor's adopted human daughter. After almost a day's hiking they reached Keeper's Dale but didn't know the ancient command code to open the hidden door. They waited until the next day, and used Aegis-Fang's magic to reveal the door.Clearing Out the Hall
Once inside they set about navigating the complicated tunnels. Along the way they encountered the dusty bodies of Bangor and Garumn Battlehammer, Bruenor's father and grand-father. After laying them to rest in a nearby room, and donning Bangor's Armor, Bruenor proclaimed himself the Eighth King of Mithral Hall. A series of minor events occurred in the tunnels before reaching Shimmergloom, who after being disturbed appeared in Garumn's Gorge. Faced with no alternative Bruenor doused himself in oil from a nearby store room, leapt onto Shimmergloom (pouring oil on his scales) and set light to both of them. The brave dwarf and fearsome dragon roared down the natural abyss in a spectacular fireball. In the aftermath Regis was kidnapped and the bridge across the gorge destroyed. Drizzt, Wulfgar and Catti-brie were forced to edge their way around the chasm to reach the eastern exit, where they left assuming Bruenor had been killed in the fireball. In fact Bruenor had miraculously survived the scorching fall thanks to Drizzt's magical sword, Icingdeath. After clambering from the dead dragon's body, he made his way through Mithral Hall. With Shimmergloom dead, all that was left to do was clear out the shadow dragon's vermin. Bruenor slayed vast numbers of duergar as he made his way through the tunnels and rooms. He eventually escaped the complex by climbing up one of the furnace chimney's where he encountered (and was bitten by) a giant spider. Although he managed to kill the spider, its venom quickly made its way through his body, and as he reached the surface and the daylight struck his face, he lost consciousness. He woke up in the care of Alustriel Silverhand who had foreseen his predicament and rushed to his aid.Resettling the Hall
Once Mithral Hall was free from the dragon and its minions, it was once again suitable for habitation. Many of the dwarves Of Clan Battlehammer left the Dwarven Valley of Icewind Dale and resettled within the home of their ancestors.Battle of Keeper's Dale
In the year 1358 DR an army of drow, goblins and kobolds led by House Baenre attacked Mithral Hall, from Menzoberranzan. The defending dwarves soon received aid from svirfneblin from Blingdenstone, local barbarians from Settlestone led by Berkthgar the Bold, reinforcements from Nesme, led by Galen Firth and the Knights of Silver and the mysterious Harpells of Longsaddle. At one point the wizard Alustriel even appeared to deter the attackers. After a few days of intense fighting, the evil drow and other races were eventually defeated and driven back to their shadowy homes. King Gandalug's ReturnEdit During the Battle of Keeper's Dale, Bruenor and the other Companions of the Hall freed Gandalug Battlehammer from an powerful spell leaving the ancient dwarf a servant of Baenre. In 1362 DR, Bruenor abdicated his throne to Gandalug, the founder of Mithral Hall, making him the 1st and 9th King of Mithral Hall. The old dwarf died only a few years later, no doubt from old age, as the spell that had held him captive and postponed his aging had worn off. Bruenor, who had taken a few hundred of his dwarves back to Icewind Dale, returned to rule as Tenth King of Mithral Hall in 1370 DR.Obould's Orc Hordes
King Obould Many-arrows launched an attack on Mithral Hall in 1370 DR with a huge army of orcs. The staggering army came from the Spine of the World. Over the next few years the fighting continued and various battles and skirmishes between the dwarves and orcs caused huge amounts of destruction and bloodshed on both sides. In 1372 DR the wizard Alustriel stepped in again to defend Mithral Hall.Treaty of Garumn's Gorge
In 1372 DR, Bruenor Battlehammer and Obould signed a peace treaty which ended the bloody war between the two Kingdoms. As the name suggests the treaty was signed at Garumn's Gorge. The treaty was broken when the reanimated Obould Many-Arrows led his armies across the spine of the world to ten-towns, where they were beaten back with the help of the PlanesWalkers.Dark Times
Dagna, son of Queen Dagnabett, acted as general of Mithral hall during the campaign against the kingdom of Many-Arrows following the attack on ten-towns in 1489 DR. By 1536 DR, the war had raged on for nearly 50 years and Dagna decided to make a last push against the orcs. Leading a combined army of Dwarves, Elves, and humans, he pushed into the spine of the world towards Dark Arrow keep. While the armies were away, Drow assassins under the employ of King Obould XVII snuck into Mithral Hall and Silverymoon and assassinated Queen Dagnabett and Lady Allustriel. The allied armies were simultaneously pushed back into the Silver Marches by the orcs and their Giant allies, as well as a host of Trolls from the Troll moors. The Dwarves retreated into their halls and Dagna became King of Mithral Hall. Over the next 50 years, he would continue to make attempts to eradicate the kingdom of many-arrows, but all would end in failure (which he would blame on the Elves’ increased seclusion). As chaos and lawlessness gripped the land, Dagna began implementing what some would call Draconian measures to maintain order among his people. Rumours of his fragile mental state abounded, as his paranoia sent more and more loyal subjects to the chopping block and relations with the Elves of the Moonwood and Silverymoon remained frigid. Trade with Mithral Hall was much reduced, and the human city of Nesme grew prosperous for it. In 1586 DR, the Savage Seven discovered that one of Dagna's closest advisors was secretly a Duergar follower of the aboleth Illuun. They killed him and presented the evidence to the Delzoun Resurgence led by Soram Battlebellow, who challenged the king with this information. In retaliation, the king ordered Soram executed by the way of the iron burial. Instead, the kings guard turned on king Dagna and took him into custody. Days later, he was executed for crimes against the dwarves of mithral hall. Soram was crowned king. As a token of gratitude, he offered to array the group in fine dwarven armor befitting friends of the hall. He also provided a list of missing dwarves who had acted as the king's bounty hunters and assassins, asking that they kill any of them they found. Under Soram, trade with Silverymoon and the Silver Marches was re-established. The city prospered, and the pride of Mithral Hall returned. The new king even invited the Uthgardt Barbarians to return to settlestone, but they refused citing that they enjoyed their newfound lifestyle.The Maze
After entering Mithral Hall from the western entrance in Keeper's Dale, one was faced with a short corridor and then a complex network of twisting tunnels and side rooms. This section on the upper level was known as the Maze. It was a knotted web of tunnels filled with traps and dead ends. Its purpose was to slow down or stop any invaders. Invited guests were instructed to wait in the entry hall to be met by a guide, as attempting to navigate the maze without the requisite knowledge could be fatal.The Undercity
In the centre of the mountain lay the Undercity, the main living quarters for the miners and permanent residents. What was already a large natural cave was carved out further by the town founders. The walls had ledges carved into them like a colosseum, with several small homes carved into each of the giant steps. This town had the capacity to house some 10,000 individuals. In the middle of the chamber, at the lowest level, were the workshops and furnaces where the majority of the forging and labour took place. The glow of the forge lit and warmed the entire Undercity. Towering over the Undercity was a bridge allowing miners to navigate through the city rather than around it.Shops/businesses
Fireforge arms and armor (master smiths, Fireforge clan. +1 arms and armor) Battlerager school (a training place for Dwarf battleragers, also sells spiked armor) Mudin’s trappings (Mudin Longbeard, dwarf (m) leatherworker, +1 armor) Fezzik’s extra-planar trinkets (magic shop, tucked away in a cave and built into the remnants of an airship. Only common items are sold here) The one-horned helm (Dwarven tavern run by Gandallug Bitterbeard) The Durned Elf (tavern frequented by the late Drizzt Do’urden, renamed in his honor after his death. Run by a Halfling named Reginald) Picks and things (general store run by dwarf (f) Aela Silverpick)Garumn's Gorge
Garumn's Gorge was a massive natural cavern within the east side of the mountain. Although unconfirmed, it was almost undoubtedly named after the Sixth King of Mithral Hall, Garumn Battlehammer. The 330m (1000ft) deep cave could only be crossed via a small bridge. This bridge led to the east entrance, and could be used as a great defensive tool. The bridge was also blocked by a portcullis, which was operated from a room on the other side of Mithral Hall. Down one side of the gorge, there was a waterfall known as Bruenor Falls. Bruenor Falls led to a small basin of water at the bottom of the gorge, which in turn trickled out through caves in the mountain into the River Surbrin. During Shimmergloom's reign, the gorge was known as Shimmergloom's Run. A cave at the bottom of the gorge lead to the deep mines east of the Undercity.Halls of Gathering
On the upper levels, on the east side of the complex, were the Halls of Gathering. These huge rooms were used as a meeting and greeting place for visitors and guests. After the fall of Queen Dagnabit, this became a waiting area for inspection of goods and interrogation of visitors.Hall of Dumathoin
Named after the patron of shield dwarves and Keeper of Secrets under the Mountain, Dumathoin, this room was used as storage for the vast wealth and treasures belonging to Mithral Hall and Clan Battlehammer. New visitors were once shown this room on arrival after being seen through the Hall of Gathering, but this fell out of practice as the city cut off ties with other states. Some of the treasures included masterwork weapons, armor, gems, and jewelry.Shimmergloom’s lair
The lair of the shadow dragon Shimmergloom, who drove the Dwarves out of mithral hall in ~1100 DR. He was slain by the Dwarf King Bruenor Battlehammer and the city was reclaimed in 1356 DR.City song
We've dug our holes and hallowed caves, Put goblin foes in shallow graves, This day our work is just begun, In the mines where silver rivers run Beneath the stone the metal gleams, Torches shine on sliver streams, Beyond the eyes of the spying sun, In the mines where silver rivers run The hammers chime on Mithral pure, As dwarven mines in days of yore, A craftsman's work is never done, In the mines where silver rivers run To dwarven gods we sing our praise, Put another orc in a shallow grave, We know our work has just begun, In the land where silver rivers run.Maps
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3. Mithral Hall
Government: Kingdom
Ruler: Soram Battlebellow
Size: city
Population: ~5,000
Economy: Mining, exports of smithing and jewelcrafting works
Races: Mostly Dwarf, with some halflings, gnomes, and humans
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