Nedrick ponders for a moment but then with a smile says...
”Master Dwarf... Please listen to my words before jumping to any conclusions. My companions and I certainly mean no harm to you or your forges. However, we will not be surrendering our weapons.”
Nedrick holds up his hands in a “just wait” fashion.
”You must understand some of us have been slaves and we do not desire to be them again. While I do not believe you mean us harm I know you can never be to careful. I know you understand this concept which is why you want us to disarm.”
Nedrick motions to his party then to the dwarves.
”May we come to a compromise? What if I as a show of good faith allow myself to be bound at the wrist while we are in your mist and remain close to you? We would be silly to try anything for you could strike me down.”
Nedrick pulls out a few coins from his purse.
”However, I would much rather have my hands available to reach into my coin purse. When I hear of a dwarven forge I know there is no better crafters in the realm. I would love a chance to browse your wares and exchange coin. Then we can talk about how you came to this place? What say you, Master Dwarf?”
The dwarf examines Nedrick and the others and says "Aye'. You know it wasn't too long ago that we were slaves under the the fire titan Pharos. Luckily, a small group of us were able to break free from his chains. However, many of our brethren still remain enslaved by him." The dwarf lets out a long sigh "Well, come along then. We will show you to the Forgemaster."
The dwarves behind him split allowing the group to pass into the city.
Mort is surprised by TT's sudden form change and was caught flat footed to her jumping on his back. Mort is able to hold on for a second but, the combined weight is too much and they both fall to the ground. The dwarves look at each other and then yell across the way "Aye'? Are you guys alright?"
Recovering from his fall, mort stands up and pats some dirt away from his already dusty robe.
”these old knees arent what they used to be. sure could use a stiff drink or two...or three.”
mort winks at one of the dwarfs.
”what say after our business with the forgemaster and so on, we meet the brewmaster. ive heard tales far and wide of dwarven crafted ales that will pluck the shoes right off your feet”
The dwarf that was speaking looks at Mort and nods saying "While we don't have a brewmaster, we all enjoy making our own brews. Mine is by far the best here, although it may be too strong and ashy for ya' outsiders. I am sure we can grab a drink after you meet the Forgemaster, while we discuss our trading prospects."
The group walks across the makeshift bride. As they cross, they glance below into the trench to see sharp rocks awaiting them if they were to fall. Moving through the archway, they see the true display of the destruction to the buildings that used to make up this area. Not only is the combustible material vacant, but some of the stone supports have been melted.
The dwarf in front, who was speaking to them across the bridge, lets out dwarvish yell once everyone is inside the walls. Three dwarves turn and face out of the gate, and three others turn and follow the party. They continue on towards the castle, reaching another wall. This one is much shorter than the outer wall, only about 30 feet tall and leads into the castle courtyard. Over this inner wall they can see thick smoke plumes rising and the peaks of a ruined castle. The outside of the castle is adorned with statues of trees and wildlife, some have been half way melted off, while others remain intact, just a bit blackened by the falling ash. Heading into the courtyard, they see a large bellow that is 20 feet tall and 20 feet wide that is being moved up and down by a weird contraption of gears and white smoke. The exit of the bellow goes into the castle in front of them. The windows of the castle glow with red, but the walls remain intact. The faint sound of hammering is now heard, coming from inside the castle.
The dwarf leads them forward to a set of giant metal doors. He turns around and says "Alright, here we are. The heat may be a bit much for ye' but try to endure, the Forgemaster's chamber should be much more tolerable." He then opens the door to a rush of extremely hot air. A large gathering hall lays in front of them that has been repurposed to flow molten metal from a from an old, humanoid shaped, damaged fountain in the center of the room, to the left and right walls. The molten metals move through holes on either side of the walls, where hammering can be heard. There are doors on each wall that would seem to lead to where the hammering is coming from.The dwarf leads them up a set of stairs at the front of the room and they continue on the upper level of the gathering hall to the back where they enter a much smaller room with a stout dwarf and fiery beard is sitting at a metal desk, reading some sort of stone tablet.
The party follows into the room and the three dwarves do as well. They close the door behind them, and the temperature, while still hot, drops to a much more comfortable level. The leading dwarf says "Forgemaster Grommouc! Some outsiders have come to us asking an audience with you and offering to exchange coin for some of our wares. They seem to be far away from home and were once former slaves."
Forgemaster Grommouc sets down the stone tablet, revealing a face that has a large scar stretching from the top of the left cheek , running towards the tip of the nose and ending on his upper lip. He looks at the party and says in an deep voice "Hmm. I doubt we have much to offer you, but we do not get outsiders here much. I will entertain an audience, but it must not be long, the forges need attention. Speak one at a time, let me hear what EACH ONE of you desire."
Nedrick steps forward and wipes heavy sweat from his brow trying to compose himself. He steps forward and bows.
”Forgemaster Grommouc, my name is Nedrick Larkin from the land of Eastalia on the material plane.”
Nedrick rises and sincerely states, “We are greatly appreciative of your audience and we will be respectful of your time. We are facing a great evil on the material plane. An evil which most recently has kidnapped one of our own’s daughter.”
Nedrick places his hand close to his heart.
”Time is of the essence as we have learned the ones who have taken her plan to perform experiments which may result in her death. Your soldiers shared that you once were slaves of a titan and were able to escape to this plane. Is there anyway you can share with us how to travel the planes so that we may return to our own?”
Nedrick then extends his hands.
”As fate has brought us together I feel that we may require the best weapons in all the realm to face this evil. I would be honored for the opportunity to purchase some of your weapons and use them to continue to free slaves that this group know as the Dark Riders have been taking.”(this is not deception as I am referring to the ship).
I must confess, Forgemaster Grommouc, that while i will follow my companions and see their quest through to completion, what i really seek is knowledge and adventure. Purely through coincidence, weve found ourselves stranded in this strange and exciting world and ive never been more curious. This realm may be the answer to our dilemma, for as mighty and heoric as my friends seem, we are currently too weak to attack the black riders with little hope of surviving. However, during our stay in this realm, if we find a way to strengthen our spirits as well as our bodies, I suspect that we may succeed in keeping all of our fingers and toes in this endeavor.
TT follows her allies into the castle. Turtle follows, but not before looking behind to glance at Mort. Its expression seems to imply saying, "Weakling..."
Inside the forgemaster's room, TT looks up, looks down, looks all around.
There doesn't seem to be any food. TT senses a nagging whisper from her newfound staff or flying friend (something about nature and the balance), but in her current state she is too distracted to concentrate on them.
Rhaucred nods along as Mort speaks, " Before these adventures I too was a seeker of knowledge." He snorts puts his hand to the back of his head and looks down, " I still try my best, but i find my attention now much more consumed by the powers I have come to posess and what they might mean. I have little understanding, much less ability to control them for the most part. I have found that blade and spell alike seem to channel these powers, but I wish for a more suitable blade or rod to channel and control them, and I hope with control comes clarity and understanding." As he speaks of his powers he allows the green eldritch energy to flow from his hand is waves and sparks and his eyes glow along with it.
morts eyes go wide. theres no time to lose. he pulls out 2 illusion cards and throws them in the room
“Monsters!!!!!!!!! RUNNN!!!!”
mort grabs Hunding by the shoulder and sprints out the door in a panic, alerting any dwarfs with his screams to the sudden appearance of monstrous beasts as he makes his way back to the entra.....
mort suddenly snaps out of his day dream fantasizing of hijinks and adventure, realizing that they are still just chatting with the dwarf
(With a pensive expression) Dwarves are renowned in every plain for their marvelous craftsmanship. (Presenting the axe of gorgontha) If you are able to improve upon this weapon or craft me something more powerful I would be greatly interested.
Forgemaster Grommouc listens as the party tells them what they wish and desire. After the last one finishes he brings his hand up and rubs his fiery beard saying "Hmm well let us address the weapons first. The time and money it takes to craft magical weapons is steep. We normally require 500 gold per weapon for crafting." Grommouc examines the Axe of Gorgontha again. "This is an interesting piece. The gems on it seem to enchant the metal, imbuing it with magical strength. The molten ore flowing from this mountain is magical, thus we should be able to enhance the innate properties of the metal and attempt to combine it with the magic from the gems."
Grommouc hands Hunding his axe back, then continues "Now with regards to getting you back to the material plane, we have a rift ring that is able to merge the fabric of planes to open a portal. However, it only works in areas where the planes are closest. We were able to travel here due to the intense fire from this mountain. Fire attracts fire and so using the item here allows us to travel to the Fire Plane. The Fire Titan Pharos used this to collect magical flames from across many planes to add to his collection." a slow smile begins to grow on Grommouc's face "However, he never thought we would be smart enough to steal it, let alone use it to escape his chains."
Grommouc stands up and says a bit louder "HOWEVER..." He then clears his throat, before continuing "We do not allow just anyone access to this item. It is our only means of escape if Pharos finds us. Besides, in order to guarantee a return to the material plane, you would have to use it exactly where you came into this plane. The fabric of the planes would be closest there. This is no doubt a bit of a journey from here, and so I am not sure I can help you at the moment there."
Grommouc turns around and looks out the window behind him. There is a moment of pause, and with a sigh he begins to speak again "That should be the end of it. But we are low on numbers and we need strength. Our escape from Pharos was not a complete success. Our fam..." Grommouc takes a deep breath "Our families were left behind. No doubt Pharos is torturing them, but we could not immediately return. We lacked the numbers... The strength!" Grommouc turns around and faces the group looking at them intently. "We want to go back and rescue them. We have been crafting weapons and armor for our return, but we need more numbers. So I offer a proposal to you. Help us rescue our families from Pharos on the plane of fire, and we will help you return home and be forever in your debt."
Grommouc then looks at Mort and says with a wink "Oh, and did I mention that Pharos has a vault full of wondrous items that he plundered from across the realms?"
"Great Forgemaster. We will no doubt need to discuss this decision among ourselves as I am sure you understand. There is nothing I enjoy more than punishing a torturer and I am sorry to hear of your family. My fear however is that our flimsy weapons and armor with be not match for the plane of fire."
Nedrick takes his rapier and tosses it on the ground.
"The thing will probably melt when I stick it into Pharo's belly! You say that you have been crafting weapons and armor for your return. Would it be possible that we be outfitted with this equipment prior to entering the plane of fire for the vengeance ride? No matter how strong our desire to help I do not feel we would be effective. You say you need more numbers. How many strong are you?"
Grommouc lets out a laugh and says "Of course, of course. Discuss as you wish. Lay your fears to rest though. Listen for just a second..." The room goes quiet, except for the sound of hammers banging below. "Hear that? We can craft what we need for you. Least... in theory."
Eyes wide Rhaucred looks at the rest of the party before his eyes come to rest on TT. He speaks to the rest of them in the huddle in a low voice that hopefully cannot be heard by the dwarves " While I would love to help them and we certainly need any advantage we can get on the dark riders, we struggled to arrive even here. Could we even hope to survive the ambient terrain of the fire realm? It was not meant for beings such as us."
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Nedrick ponders for a moment but then with a smile says...
”Master Dwarf... Please listen to my words before jumping to any conclusions. My companions and I certainly mean no harm to you or your forges. However, we will not be surrendering our weapons.”
Nedrick holds up his hands in a “just wait” fashion.
”You must understand some of us have been slaves and we do not desire to be them again. While I do not believe you mean us harm I know you can never be to careful. I know you understand this concept which is why you want us to disarm.”
Nedrick motions to his party then to the dwarves.
”May we come to a compromise? What if I as a show of good faith allow myself to be bound at the wrist while we are in your mist and remain close to you? We would be silly to try anything for you could strike me down.”
Nedrick pulls out a few coins from his purse.
”However, I would much rather have my hands available to reach into my coin purse. When I hear of a dwarven forge I know there is no better crafters in the realm. I would love a chance to browse your wares and exchange coin. Then we can talk about how you came to this place? What say you, Master Dwarf?”
Deception: 10
Persuasion: 7
The dwarf examines Nedrick and the others and says "Aye'. You know it wasn't too long ago that we were slaves under the the fire titan Pharos. Luckily, a small group of us were able to break free from his chains. However, many of our brethren still remain enslaved by him." The dwarf lets out a long sigh "Well, come along then. We will show you to the Forgemaster."
The dwarves behind him split allowing the group to pass into the city.
TT looks at Nedrick,
then at the dwarves,
then at Nedrick,
then back at the dwarves.
"o.o"
TT turns into a tortoise and jumps on Mort's back!
strength check: 2
hhhhnnnghhh....i...got...you....ms...turttt....lee
Mort is surprised by TT's sudden form change and was caught flat footed to her jumping on his back. Mort is able to hold on for a second but, the combined weight is too much and they both fall to the ground. The dwarves look at each other and then yell across the way "Aye'? Are you guys alright?"
Rhaucred chuckles at TT's sudden silliness. "I think we are quite alright thank you. I think the heat is just getting to our druid."
Recovering from his fall, mort stands up and pats some dirt away from his already dusty robe.
”these old knees arent what they used to be. sure could use a stiff drink or two...or three.”
mort winks at one of the dwarfs.
”what say after our business with the forgemaster and so on, we meet the brewmaster. ive heard tales far and wide of dwarven crafted ales that will pluck the shoes right off your feet”
The dwarf that was speaking looks at Mort and nods saying "While we don't have a brewmaster, we all enjoy making our own brews. Mine is by far the best here, although it may be too strong and ashy for ya' outsiders. I am sure we can grab a drink after you meet the Forgemaster, while we discuss our trading prospects."
The group walks across the makeshift bride. As they cross, they glance below into the trench to see sharp rocks awaiting them if they were to fall. Moving through the archway, they see the true display of the destruction to the buildings that used to make up this area. Not only is the combustible material vacant, but some of the stone supports have been melted.
The dwarf in front, who was speaking to them across the bridge, lets out dwarvish yell once everyone is inside the walls. Three dwarves turn and face out of the gate, and three others turn and follow the party. They continue on towards the castle, reaching another wall. This one is much shorter than the outer wall, only about 30 feet tall and leads into the castle courtyard. Over this inner wall they can see thick smoke plumes rising and the peaks of a ruined castle. The outside of the castle is adorned with statues of trees and wildlife, some have been half way melted off, while others remain intact, just a bit blackened by the falling ash. Heading into the courtyard, they see a large bellow that is 20 feet tall and 20 feet wide that is being moved up and down by a weird contraption of gears and white smoke. The exit of the bellow goes into the castle in front of them. The windows of the castle glow with red, but the walls remain intact. The faint sound of hammering is now heard, coming from inside the castle.
The dwarf leads them forward to a set of giant metal doors. He turns around and says "Alright, here we are. The heat may be a bit much for ye' but try to endure, the Forgemaster's chamber should be much more tolerable." He then opens the door to a rush of extremely hot air. A large gathering hall lays in front of them that has been repurposed to flow molten metal from a from an old, humanoid shaped, damaged fountain in the center of the room, to the left and right walls. The molten metals move through holes on either side of the walls, where hammering can be heard. There are doors on each wall that would seem to lead to where the hammering is coming from.The dwarf leads them up a set of stairs at the front of the room and they continue on the upper level of the gathering hall to the back where they enter a much smaller room with a stout dwarf and fiery beard is sitting at a metal desk, reading some sort of stone tablet.
The party follows into the room and the three dwarves do as well. They close the door behind them, and the temperature, while still hot, drops to a much more comfortable level. The leading dwarf says "Forgemaster Grommouc! Some outsiders have come to us asking an audience with you and offering to exchange coin for some of our wares. They seem to be far away from home and were once former slaves."
Forgemaster Grommouc sets down the stone tablet, revealing a face that has a large scar stretching from the top of the left cheek , running towards the tip of the nose and ending on his upper lip. He looks at the party and says in an deep voice "Hmm. I doubt we have much to offer you, but we do not get outsiders here much. I will entertain an audience, but it must not be long, the forges need attention. Speak one at a time, let me hear what EACH ONE of you desire."
Nedrick steps forward and wipes heavy sweat from his brow trying to compose himself. He steps forward and bows.
”Forgemaster Grommouc, my name is Nedrick Larkin from the land of Eastalia on the material plane.”
Nedrick rises and sincerely states, “We are greatly appreciative of your audience and we will be respectful of your time. We are facing a great evil on the material plane. An evil which most recently has kidnapped one of our own’s daughter.”
Nedrick places his hand close to his heart.
”Time is of the essence as we have learned the ones who have taken her plan to perform experiments which may result in her death. Your soldiers shared that you once were slaves of a titan and were able to escape to this plane. Is there anyway you can share with us how to travel the planes so that we may return to our own?”
Nedrick then extends his hands.
”As fate has brought us together I feel that we may require the best weapons in all the realm to face this evil. I would be honored for the opportunity to purchase some of your weapons and use them to continue to free slaves that this group know as the Dark Riders have been taking.”(this is not deception as I am referring to the ship).
”Can you help us?”
Rhaucred ooohs and ahhhs at the processes the dwarves are using to work the metal and does his best to remember for record later.
I must confess, Forgemaster Grommouc, that while i will follow my companions and see their quest through to completion, what i really seek is knowledge and adventure. Purely through coincidence, weve found ourselves stranded in this strange and exciting world and ive never been more curious. This realm may be the answer to our dilemma, for as mighty and heoric as my friends seem, we are currently too weak to attack the black riders with little hope of surviving. However, during our stay in this realm, if we find a way to strengthen our spirits as well as our bodies, I suspect that we may succeed in keeping all of our fingers and toes in this endeavor.
TT follows her allies into the castle. Turtle follows, but not before looking behind to glance at Mort. Its expression seems to imply saying, "Weakling..."
Inside the forgemaster's room, TT looks up, looks down, looks all around.
There doesn't seem to be any food. TT senses a nagging whisper from her newfound staff or flying friend (something about nature and the balance), but in her current state she is too distracted to concentrate on them.
Rhaucred nods along as Mort speaks, " Before these adventures I too was a seeker of knowledge." He snorts puts his hand to the back of his head and looks down, " I still try my best, but i find my attention now much more consumed by the powers I have come to posess and what they might mean. I have little understanding, much less ability to control them for the most part. I have found that blade and spell alike seem to channel these powers, but I wish for a more suitable blade or rod to channel and control them, and I hope with control comes clarity and understanding." As he speaks of his powers he allows the green eldritch energy to flow from his hand is waves and sparks and his eyes glow along with it.
morts eyes go wide. theres no time to lose. he pulls out 2 illusion cards and throws them in the room
“Monsters!!!!!!!!! RUNNN!!!!”
mort grabs Hunding by the shoulder and sprints out the door in a panic, alerting any dwarfs with his screams to the sudden appearance of monstrous beasts as he makes his way back to the entra.....
mort suddenly snaps out of his day dream fantasizing of hijinks and adventure, realizing that they are still just chatting with the dwarf
*hiccup*
(With a pensive expression) Dwarves are renowned in every plain for their marvelous craftsmanship. (Presenting the axe of gorgontha) If you are able to improve upon this weapon or craft me something more powerful I would be greatly interested.
Forgemaster Grommouc listens as the party tells them what they wish and desire. After the last one finishes he brings his hand up and rubs his fiery beard saying "Hmm well let us address the weapons first. The time and money it takes to craft magical weapons is steep. We normally require 500 gold per weapon for crafting." Grommouc examines the Axe of Gorgontha again. "This is an interesting piece. The gems on it seem to enchant the metal, imbuing it with magical strength. The molten ore flowing from this mountain is magical, thus we should be able to enhance the innate properties of the metal and attempt to combine it with the magic from the gems."
Grommouc hands Hunding his axe back, then continues "Now with regards to getting you back to the material plane, we have a rift ring that is able to merge the fabric of planes to open a portal. However, it only works in areas where the planes are closest. We were able to travel here due to the intense fire from this mountain. Fire attracts fire and so using the item here allows us to travel to the Fire Plane. The Fire Titan Pharos used this to collect magical flames from across many planes to add to his collection." a slow smile begins to grow on Grommouc's face "However, he never thought we would be smart enough to steal it, let alone use it to escape his chains."
Grommouc stands up and says a bit louder "HOWEVER..." He then clears his throat, before continuing "We do not allow just anyone access to this item. It is our only means of escape if Pharos finds us. Besides, in order to guarantee a return to the material plane, you would have to use it exactly where you came into this plane. The fabric of the planes would be closest there. This is no doubt a bit of a journey from here, and so I am not sure I can help you at the moment there."
Grommouc turns around and looks out the window behind him. There is a moment of pause, and with a sigh he begins to speak again "That should be the end of it. But we are low on numbers and we need strength. Our escape from Pharos was not a complete success. Our fam..." Grommouc takes a deep breath "Our families were left behind. No doubt Pharos is torturing them, but we could not immediately return. We lacked the numbers... The strength!" Grommouc turns around and faces the group looking at them intently. "We want to go back and rescue them. We have been crafting weapons and armor for our return, but we need more numbers. So I offer a proposal to you. Help us rescue our families from Pharos on the plane of fire, and we will help you return home and be forever in your debt."
Grommouc then looks at Mort and says with a wink "Oh, and did I mention that Pharos has a vault full of wondrous items that he plundered from across the realms?"
Nedrick takes a bow and asks the Forgemaster.
"Great Forgemaster. We will no doubt need to discuss this decision among ourselves as I am sure you understand. There is nothing I enjoy more than punishing a torturer and I am sorry to hear of your family. My fear however is that our flimsy weapons and armor with be not match for the plane of fire."
Nedrick takes his rapier and tosses it on the ground.
"The thing will probably melt when I stick it into Pharo's belly! You say that you have been crafting weapons and armor for your return. Would it be possible that we be outfitted with this equipment prior to entering the plane of fire for the vengeance ride? No matter how strong our desire to help I do not feel we would be effective. You say you need more numbers. How many strong are you?"
Grommouc lets out a laugh and says "Of course, of course. Discuss as you wish. Lay your fears to rest though. Listen for just a second..." The room goes quiet, except for the sound of hammers banging below. "Hear that? We can craft what we need for you. Least... in theory."
Eyes wide Rhaucred looks at the rest of the party before his eyes come to rest on TT. He speaks to the rest of them in the huddle in a low voice that hopefully cannot be heard by the dwarves " While I would love to help them and we certainly need any advantage we can get on the dark riders, we struggled to arrive even here. Could we even hope to survive the ambient terrain of the fire realm? It was not meant for beings such as us."