Destruction of the Red Hand Goblins. Hopefully? Report

General Summary

Patchwall 14, 595 CY

Session: 2024-03-06
Knowing they had at least one more dire wolf to eliminate, the younglings took a small breather and moved into the cave where they saw the wolf. At the back of the cave, a passage led further east, but was covered by a ragged blanket.
Argan and Malakai were the first to pass the blanket, which tinkled with small bells probably sewn into the bottom. Argan couldn't see until he tore down the blanket, letting Delilah's torch illuminate the cave.
Sitting atop the dire wolf was the goblin chieftain. He held a scimitar and a glimmering shield. Delilah and Kaszu blasted the dire wolf from afar, while Tolman riddled it with arrows, using the distraction of allies engaged with the wolf to attack its vital areas. The dire wolf fell quickly, leaving Crichton, Argan and Malakai facing off against the goblin chieftain, as the casters and Tolman targeted the chief, he quickly fell to the combined attacks.
The chieftain had a key to the large chest in his cave, and Kaszu soon went through the chest, pocketing it for distribution later. Going through the wolf rider's den to the west, they gathered the coins from the goblin nests. While his companions explored further, Argan skinned the three dire wolves, gaining two normal pelts and one pristine pelt due to an amazing skinning job.
Finally sensing quiet, Malakai and Delilah started investigating the fungus cave, keeping away from the moldy, yellowish fungi to the south and west. They spied a gate to the north, with a large peg hammered into the wall about five-feet before it.
Investigating the gate, they found two malnourished captives, Jeras was a laborer who was captured while out trying to gather some food for his family, while Elena was a merchant's wife from Urnst, whose caravan was attacked by the goblins. She sadly stated that she was the only survivor, the goblins killed the rest over time.
While still early in the day, just before high-sun, the companions decided to take Jeras and Elena back to Diamond Lake and heal up a bit before continuing. Not spending much time in town, they helped the freed captives get settled and headed back to the abandoned mine office for their own rest. While resting, Kaszu confirmed that the goblin chieftain's shield was magical, and enchanted with a basic shielding rune. Malakai claimed the shield.

Patchwall 15, 595 CY

Rested, the next morning the younglings returned to the Red Hand lair. They began to explore the northern mine galleries right off the main entrance. The wooden debris in the western cave blocked off what looked to be a storage room. Entering the storage room, Argan was swarmed by rats, but the rats caused little damage before being scattered.
This gave Malakai an idea, turning into a rat, he squeezed through the cave-in to spy the other side. Four mine galleries sprouted off a central area. Heading down the first, a spectral blue light began filling the tunnel, so Malaki wriggled back through the cave-in.
Argan and Delilah rested while the rest spent a little over an hour clearing the rubble, the party began exploring the mine tunnels. The blue light resolved itself into a specter, which was dispatched before it had a chance to fully attack.
The other mine tunnels had been played out long ago, and one was unstable. Realizing they had left only one area in the caves unchecked, the began clearing another cave-in to find a grizzly's den behind the rocks. Argan was able to sooth the bear enough that they could all back away, leaving it in peace.
It was almost noon when they returned to the abandoned mine office. In fairly good health and spirits they decided to set out for what Winera had called the Whispering Cairn.

Entering the Whispering Cairn

It took a few hours to trek to the cairn's location and find the blueberry bushes that hid the entrance. Pulling them away, they found a hallway lined with ancient stone, yellowed with age. About sixty-feet in, two alcoves faced each other east to west. The eastern alcove was cleared of anything but dust, while the western alcove had a bedroll, rotted from age. Some of the Diamond Lake residents remembered a story of a teenage girl who disappeared the "go adventuring" about six years back, though there was no sign of anyone near the bedroll.
About another thirty-feet in, two more alcoves branched off. The eastern alcove was collapsed, while the western one had a pedestal with a shattered stone, looking like a third of an oval stone mirror. Kaszu detected a residual conjuration aura on the shattered apparatus, and they younglings concluded it may have one time been a portal of some sort. Gathering some deep black shards from the area, the companions proceeded onward.
Tolman was a bit ahead of the party when he spied large spiders in the eastern portion of the next alcoves, about sixty-feet north. Quickly, he backed up and evaded detection. Telling the rest what he saw, they prepared for combat.

Campaign

It Started in Diamond Lake

Protagonists

Tolman K’hurzz

Malakai Steelbuckle

Delilah Raincloud

Crichton Eogen

Argan Agu-Ulakanu

Chaotic Good Goliath (Outlander)
Ranger 4

36 / 36 HP

STR
18

DEX
14

CON
14

INT
10

WIS
12

CHA
8

Kaszu Billowcase

Chaotic Good Rock Gnome (Guild Artisan / Guild Merchant)
Artificer 3

24 / 24 HP

STR
8

DEX
12

CON
14

INT
17

WIS
14

CHA
10

Report Date

16 Mar 2024