03 - Shovels Aren't Shields
Waking up in Gnomengarde we decide to head towards the Dwarven excavation site after Peter asked. Sahar joined us bragging about his peaceful nights sleep.
Tivran spotted a large shape on the horizon to the northeast as we travelled, and pointed it out to the rest of us. It's likely the same creature that we spotted as we approached Phandelin.
At about midday we came across the Dwarven settlement.
The canyon's rocky walls rise to a height of eighty feet. At the end of the canyon, a twenty-foot-high wall of black stone has a broken gate carved into it, with one stone door hanging precariously by a hinge and the other door missing. Beyond this open gate, in the shadow of a great mountain to the east, lies a ruined settlement. All is quiet.
Peter and Sahar crept up to either side of the doorway. Not able to see anything Peter cautiously entered the doorway.
As we proceeded through the ruins we were able to spot signs of recent campsites, as well as crushed shards of bones.
Past that a partially collapsed, ten-foot-high wall separated the courtyard from the settlement west of it. Three heaps of rubble were piled high in this area. Hewn from the canyon's back wall, a thirty-foot-high temple facade features steps rising to a stone platform. Cut into the facade is a ten-foot-high open doorway flanked by crumbling, life-sized granite statues of cloaked dwarves. Evil grins could be seen on their weatherworn faces.
Peter spotted a few dwarves having lunch and approached with a friendly greeting.
The Dwarves let out a shout in Dwarvish, to which Debeid responded with... I don't know, something. I should probably learn Dwarvish at some point.
After this Dazlyn Grayshard, one of the Dwarves, apologizes and introduces himself in Common, along with his companion Norbus Ironrune.
After warning them of the dragon we were offered a pair of sending stones for helping with a problem they were having with a jelly, which they had seen in the temple complex to the north.
Inside the temple fascade statues of Abbathor, the master of greed, were set against the walls.
Through the next set of opened doors is a pitch black chamber, wherein were several gelatinous creatures.
Peter had to light a torch to fight back the darkness, as apparently the rest of the parties eyes aren't as accustomed to the dark.
I went ahead and cast dancing lights so that everyone could see, and Debeid proceeded into the now partially lit room, taking cover behind a pillar, before firing on the Jelly. Ethel quickly marked the creature and followed with another arrow.
The wounded Jelly slid forward and attacked at Tivran with a slimy appendage, glancing off of his armor, before Tivran countered with a powerful blow from his Maul.
Sahar finished the wounded one off before advancing on the remaining Jelly. Peter screamed "Help, I'm being repressed" before thwacking the Jelly that attacked him with his shovel.
Tivran laid into the remaining Jelly with his maul, as Ethel entered the chamber and dropped the remaining Jelly.
Moving into the room, illuminated still by Peter's torch and my dancing lights we see four pillars supporting the room, with a bloodstained altar in the back.
After the fight I managed to find a secret door in the rear of the room, revealing a hallway. As I made my way through the hallway another Jelly dropped down from the ceiling ahead of me.
I cast Sacred Flame at the Jelly, before stepping back and allowing Peter to step between the Jelly and myself, who proceeded to yell "Yacht Club", causing his Shovel to extend before thwacking it.
Presumably angry, though with a Jelly it's hard to tell, the slimy thing violently assaulted Peter. Tivran advanced up the hallway and used Lay on Hands to mend some of Peter's wounds. I managed to heal Peter a bit more, but not much unfortunately.
Sahar stepped past Peter and finished the Jelly off with his Quarterstaff.
Ethel found the skeleton of a priest of Abbathor, with a rune inscribed bejeweled holy symbol around it's neck.
In a chamber hidden in the back we came across a statue holding a green gem. Sahar attempted to swap the gem with a stone, but when he did the gem crumbled to dust, as the statue exploded, wounding Sahar and felling Tivran. Luckily we can cure, so we were able to save Tivran from a rather violent end. Guess the God of Greed doesn't appreciate it in others.
Thanking us for taking care of the Jellies we were rewarded with a map of the Sword Coast, and a pair of Sending Stones.
As we started to make our way out of the Dwarven ruins we caught sight of a group of Orcs approaching. Ethel wastes no time in loosing an arrow at the lead Orc, planting it in him.
The Orcs advance, hitting myself and Peter. Another Orc moved up and tossed a javelin into me.
Peter roared after being hit and dropped the Orc that hit him with his Shovel, as Tivran came to my aid and hit the Orc threatening me with a wrathful smite.
Sahar pummeled Orcs while Debeid and Ethel let loose more arrows. Debeid dropped another Orc before screaming back to Norbus that he owed her another beer, before Sahar advanced and dropped the last Orc.
After the battle we decided to go ahead and camp at the Dwarven Ruins before heading back to Phandelin.
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