After a few moments, a voice calls out, "You may enter." Assuming you push the doors open and walk in, you find yourselves in The Great Hall of the keep, half of which lies buried under rubble. Four castle guards, two male and two female, Illuskan, by the look of their features, are standing by a shattered remains of an oak dining table, on which you see the body of a noble woman. The guards seem lost, demoralized, in shock, and at each other’s throats, arguing about what to do.
One of them addresses you. "On behalf of the Lady Velrosa Nandar, the High Steward of Nightstone, I would welcome you to Nandar Keep, but there is no reason for welcome. As you can see, the keep is in ruins, and the lady's life was claimed by the giant's attack. She was buried under rubble and died from her wounds before we could reach her."
Arisa says "Thank you for your welcome, we are deeply saddened by what happened to your beautiful village. I am so sorry to hear of Lady Nandar's death as well. Such a horror. I know this has been hard, but I am sorry I simply must ask some questions- they may be very important. Do you know what the Giants were after? Why would they attack? And how did they throw these stones, they seem to be all over the village?". We also heard from some goblins that some of the villagers may have left to go to a cave, where the goblin leader was alerted that the village was abandoned. Do you know where this cave might be? We are concerned the surviving villagers may be in danger "
Arisa will offer to them to accompany us, as we search around the remains of the keep for anything of use or value.
One of the female guards introduces herself as Alara Winterspell and answers in a solemn, defeated tone.
"Thank you for coming and for your condolences. Yes, this has been a great horror indeed and we are all heartbroken from these tragic events. As you can see, Nightstone was bombarded by rocks that were dropped from a giant castle in the sky. The keep was cut off from the village when a rock tore away part of the bridge. With nowhere to hide, the people in the village lowered the drawbridge and fled north. In the event of an attack, the villagers are supposed to retreat to the keep; with the bridge out, that was no longer an option.
"There are some bat caves which lie north of Nightstone, about a mile away. My guess is that the villagers likely saw that as the best place to hide, although I did not know there were goblins in those caves. Hopefully they are ok. We do know that several guards who were stationed in the village also fled north with the villager, so at least they have some protection among them. "
"Once the villagers had fled, we watched helplessly as four pale-skinned giants descended from the sky, uprooted the Nightstone in the village square, and took it back to their castle. The cloud castle left soon thereafter, drifting eastward. Unfortunately, Lady Nandar was in the great hall when the roof collapsed. She was buried under the rubble and died before anyone could reach her."
"We are lost, and do not know what we can do. If you wish to search the keep for anything that my help you rescue the people of our village, then feel free to do so, although I fear you will not find much beyond the Lady's personal possessions. If you know of any way we can help, the we welcome your guidance."
From this hall, which once served as a throne room and a dining room, you can see two doors in the west wall. Between these doors is a wooden staircase leading up to the second floor.
Arisa says" "We could use strong guards like yourselves to help with the goblins, protect what is left of the village, and to help rescue the villagers. Certainly we would like to search the ruins, perhaps there is something here that may be of use for saving any survivors"- where were your lady's chambers or is there an armory here?.
knowledge History on giants, cloud castles, etc: 16
will start by going through the door on the left in the west well, (0r just search the whole keep) and search: Perception: 16
While the others search the remains of the keep, Zyllith will continue speaking with the guards. "Aye, 'tis right shite lot we find ourselves in tonight. We all mourn tha' Lady's loss. BUT! We cannae jus' sit in these walls an' do nothin'. It'll take all kin 'ere ta make safe tha' town fer them folks of tha' village what need a home ta' return to. Is you lot all tha's left of the local guard? The very least we'll need some ta' keep watch. Thar' be more than gobbies an' giants what might want ta' take advantage of the town's leftovers. Best we secure much as we can while we can."
She speaks confidently still, hoping to inspire the guards as much as she can. Or failing that, at least give them some direction.
Belkas followed the others into the keep, still expecting to be attacked by something or someone. After hearing the guards talk, he relaxed a little.
He said, "My deepest sympathies for your loss. It is a great injury to Nightstone and all the Sword Coast. As the others have stated, we will do all we can to help."
Belkas will help search for useful and interesting objects.
Osmord spends a long moment staring at the dead lady’s feet. Worm who has found perch on his shell gives him a sharp peck on the head accompanied by a Caw!
“You are right of course, it would be taken amiss should we take her toes.”
He looks then to the head guard, “Where might I find a Pearl, or perhaps some books and scrolls... These things will help us.”
Alara continues to respond to your comments and questions. "Yes, as I said, a few of the castle guard went to the caves with the villages, so we're all that's left. I don't know what we can do to protect the town, but we will help as needed. We can keep more goblins and other marauding creatures out by keeping the drawbridge closed. The four of us can man the guard towers and help keep watch."
"As I said, you are welcome to peruse the den and library for things you might find useful. There are a number of books in the library. The upstairs hall is mostly decorative, and that's also where the Lady's bed chambers are. I would ask you to please not rifle through her belongings or take any of her valuables."
"Also, I must ask, how did you get here? The bridge is out?"
Exploring the rooms inside the keep, you open the door to the kitchen and find it to be buried under rubble. The room on the other corner consists of two levels. The lower level is the den. It is decorated with overstuffed chairs and bearskin rugs, and the walls are adorned with weapons, shields, and the mounted heads of wild animals. A decorative wooden ladder leads to a 20-foot-high circular balcony with a sculpted wooden railing.
The upper level is a library, and its walls are lined with bookshelves that are stocked with a variety of tomes on philosophy, nature, and poetry.While the contents of this room held would seem to hold great sentimental value to the Nandars, there’s nothing particularly valuable to be found here.
Upstairs, the L-shaped hall is decorated with rich carpets, gilded sconces, and framed paintings of places in Waterdeep. A door at the north end of the hall leads to a stone balcony overlooking the entrance to the keep. Other doors lead to bedchambers, two of which have been destroyed. A wooden staircase in the west wall descends to the main floor. A similar staircase in the south wall climbs to the roof.
Lady Nandar's room is the only one of three bedchambers to survive the cloud giants’ attack. Tapestries and oil lamps are mounted on the walls, and wolfskin rugs cover the wooden floor. The room’s centerpiece is a large bed, its ornate headboard sculpted with images of roses and foxes. Four wardrobes stand against the walls; each contains a season’s worth of women’s clothing, all in the latest fashions of Waterdeep. At the foot of the bed is a wooden chest, and mounted above the door is a longsword.
Upstairs, you also find a stairway leading to the roof. Falling rocks caused sections of the roof to collapse, but what remains of the roof is safe to walk on. A flag waves in the breeze atop a 30-foot-high wooden flagpole that rises from the northeast corner. The flag depicts the stylized head of a golden fox with a rose clenched in its teeth, on a purple background.
Arisa says “thank you- we could use your help watching the drawbridge for goblins. We set up a makeshift bridge to the keep outside using a ladder from the mill. I suggest you crawl across one at a time. We won’t disturb your lady’s things- we only want information or weapons/ things to fuel our magic so we can protect what is left and save the villagers, if we can. We left two goblins tied up in the mill. “
Arisa will ritual detect magic and inspect the weapons and shields, etc , and ensure none of the books are magical. If there are books on history,( particularly Giant history) arcana, medicine, or religion, she might be interested in borrowing them. If not, she will leave the books).
Zyllith smiles at the guards as she explains how they managed to arrive, "Aye, me mates dun managed ta' fashion a rioght crickety rope bridge of sorts, using ladders and rope. Makin' it possible ta' get past tha' gap rioght quick. Now tha' wer' here, best we see 'bout securin' tha' rest of town. We got tha' drawbridge up, but who knows if any gobbies still remain, best to have folk there ta keep watch in case any of 'em try ta sneak up an' lower tha' bridge fer more of their green blokes. Then at some point we need you lot ta' help us clear out tha' town, search all the buildings till wer' sure no more gobbies remain. I reckon from thar' we go about securing tha' walls like. 'Am no good when it comes ta fortifyin' but got real good at finding holes ta' slip through, and I'll tell ya' we still got plenty o' holes in this town."
You detect an enchanted aura on the longsword hanging above the Lady's door. Other than that, none of the books or other items in the keep give off any kind of magic radiance.
To Zyllith, Alara responds, "Very well. We will wait for you to finish your search here, and then we will accompany you back into the village. Are there any buildings you haven't searched het? And perhaps we should make sure that none are hiding in the guard towers. Once the town is clear of goblins, we will take up positions at the main gate."
None of you finds any pearls or scrolls, but the library does contain a wide selection of books on things like nature, philosophy, history of the region, and of the Nanders and other notable people, places and events of the Sword Coast, as well as collections of poems and other prose. Nothing magical or arcane in nature, or about death. However, there are a couple of books about different religions of the region. And unfortunately, nothing about giants.
Osmord finds the library and carefully studies the selection of books alongside Arisa. He skims over the nature and philosophy and ponders for a moment over a couple of the history tomes. Alas much of it seems to be quite local and mundane in nature... nothing to be gleaned here. He plucks out one that seems to give an overview of the region...
"Hmm interesting... Sword Coast Adventurers Guide. I will take this one." he slips the book into his shell, the poems and prose he passes over with barely glance.
He grumbles to himself, "No, nothing magical... Discovery is slow. The search continues..." he let free a heavy sigh and turns to Arisa.
"It appears Arisa, that we share an interest... In gods and powers." Osmord gestures toward the religion section and plucks out a generic book about the pantheon of gods.
“Yes- some interesting works here. I might borrow a history of this area“. (In particular any with maps or pictures) and to the others as well as Alara the guard she says: “I found a sword that radiates magic on the wall upstairs- in the Lady’s room. I don’t know if we should attempt to remove it or leave it? I didn’t want to disturb her personal things, but if we could use a sword, perhaps she would not mind?”
Belkas listens to the conversation and adds, "A magical weapon would be handy. I doubt they would deny us, as it will give us a better chance to save their villagers."
Belkas continues to look for, and ask for, studded leather armor.
If anyone asks Zyllith about the magic longsword she responds rather neutral, "Aye, sounds lovely an' all, but it's nae use ta' me. No' my style an' all tha'."
She'll turn back towards the guards as she continues discussing matters of the town, "Sounds good an' all, but I worry 'bout letting things stand fer too long. Might be smart ta' have a couple or more of ye' join me an' at least keep watch at tha' town's drawbridge. We've yet ta search the whole town, I dun' think, so don' wanna leave our arses open cause wer' too busy lookin' at books."
"Books on the gods may be interesting, but nothing beats field experience. If you ask enough times, the gods usually give up and tell you what you need to know. The downside is that they often take longer to do it than you have available." Here Vernon gives Mielikki an upwards glare about the worg.
"As to the sword, I know how to use one, if it isn't too heavy. On the other hand it does very much seem to fall under the 'valuables' we're not supposed to just take."
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After a few moments, a voice calls out, "You may enter." Assuming you push the doors open and walk in, you find yourselves in The Great Hall of the keep, half of which lies buried under rubble. Four castle guards, two male and two female, Illuskan, by the look of their features, are standing by a shattered remains of an oak dining table, on which you see the body of a noble woman. The guards seem lost, demoralized, in shock, and at each other’s throats, arguing about what to do.
One of them addresses you. "On behalf of the Lady Velrosa Nandar, the High Steward of Nightstone, I would welcome you to Nandar Keep, but there is no reason for welcome. As you can see, the keep is in ruins, and the lady's life was claimed by the giant's attack. She was buried under rubble and died from her wounds before we could reach her."
Arisa says "Thank you for your welcome, we are deeply saddened by what happened to your beautiful village. I am so sorry to hear of Lady Nandar's death as well. Such a horror. I know this has been hard, but I am sorry I simply must ask some questions- they may be very important. Do you know what the Giants were after? Why would they attack? And how did they throw these stones, they seem to be all over the village?". We also heard from some goblins that some of the villagers may have left to go to a cave, where the goblin leader was alerted that the village was abandoned. Do you know where this cave might be? We are concerned the surviving villagers may be in danger "
Arisa will offer to them to accompany us, as we search around the remains of the keep for anything of use or value.
One of the female guards introduces herself as Alara Winterspell and answers in a solemn, defeated tone.
"Thank you for coming and for your condolences. Yes, this has been a great horror indeed and we are all heartbroken from these tragic events. As you can see, Nightstone was bombarded by rocks that were dropped from a giant castle in the sky. The keep was cut off from the village when a rock tore away part of the bridge. With nowhere to hide, the people in the village lowered the drawbridge and fled north. In the event of an attack, the villagers are supposed to retreat to the keep; with the bridge out, that was no longer an option.
"There are some bat caves which lie north of Nightstone, about a mile away. My guess is that the villagers likely saw that as the best place to hide, although I did not know there were goblins in those caves. Hopefully they are ok. We do know that several guards who were stationed in the village also fled north with the villager, so at least they have some protection among them. "
"Once the villagers had fled, we watched helplessly as four pale-skinned giants descended from the sky, uprooted the Nightstone in the village square, and took it back to their castle. The cloud castle left soon thereafter, drifting eastward. Unfortunately, Lady Nandar was in the great hall when the roof collapsed. She was buried under the rubble and died before anyone could reach her."
"We are lost, and do not know what we can do. If you wish to search the keep for anything that my help you rescue the people of our village, then feel free to do so, although I fear you will not find much beyond the Lady's personal possessions. If you know of any way we can help, the we welcome your guidance."
From this hall, which once served as a throne room and a dining room, you can see two doors in the west wall. Between these doors is a wooden staircase leading up to the second floor.
Arisa says" "We could use strong guards like yourselves to help with the goblins, protect what is left of the village, and to help rescue the villagers. Certainly we would like to search the ruins, perhaps there is something here that may be of use for saving any survivors"- where were your lady's chambers or is there an armory here?.
knowledge History on giants, cloud castles, etc: 16
will start by going through the door on the left in the west well, (0r just search the whole keep) and search: Perception: 16
While the others search the remains of the keep, Zyllith will continue speaking with the guards. "Aye, 'tis right shite lot we find ourselves in tonight. We all mourn tha' Lady's loss. BUT! We cannae jus' sit in these walls an' do nothin'. It'll take all kin 'ere ta make safe tha' town fer them folks of tha' village what need a home ta' return to. Is you lot all tha's left of the local guard? The very least we'll need some ta' keep watch. Thar' be more than gobbies an' giants what might want ta' take advantage of the town's leftovers. Best we secure much as we can while we can."
She speaks confidently still, hoping to inspire the guards as much as she can. Or failing that, at least give them some direction.
Sylnache Ashrain - 7th Sojourn
To the guards: "Fret not. Mielikki is still active here, though her power may be diminished. I suggest having some faith to give her a boost."
Vernon will then investigate the keep, muttering to Mielikki and Flandal Steelskin for recommendations on where to look.
Investigation check: 9 + 3 = 12
Belkas followed the others into the keep, still expecting to be attacked by something or someone. After hearing the guards talk, he relaxed a little.
He said, "My deepest sympathies for your loss. It is a great injury to Nightstone and all the Sword Coast. As the others have stated, we will do all we can to help."
Belkas will help search for useful and interesting objects.
___
Investigation: 1d20+2, 3
Osmord spends a long moment staring at the dead lady’s feet. Worm who has found perch on his shell gives him a sharp peck on the head accompanied by a Caw!
“You are right of course, it would be taken amiss should we take her toes.”
He looks then to the head guard, “Where might I find a Pearl, or perhaps some books and scrolls... These things will help us.”
DM - Caves of the Kobold Slave Masters
Belkas looks appraisingly at the guards' armor. "If you happened to have some studded leather armor in my size, I would be much obliged."
He then whispers to Osmord, "Yes, toes are definitely not a good thing right now."
Alara continues to respond to your comments and questions. "Yes, as I said, a few of the castle guard went to the caves with the villages, so we're all that's left. I don't know what we can do to protect the town, but we will help as needed. We can keep more goblins and other marauding creatures out by keeping the drawbridge closed. The four of us can man the guard towers and help keep watch."
"As I said, you are welcome to peruse the den and library for things you might find useful. There are a number of books in the library. The upstairs hall is mostly decorative, and that's also where the Lady's bed chambers are. I would ask you to please not rifle through her belongings or take any of her valuables."
"Also, I must ask, how did you get here? The bridge is out?"
Exploring the rooms inside the keep, you open the door to the kitchen and find it to be buried under rubble. The room on the other corner consists of two levels. The lower level is the den. It is decorated with overstuffed chairs and bearskin rugs, and the walls are adorned with weapons, shields, and the mounted heads of wild animals. A decorative wooden ladder leads to a 20-foot-high circular balcony with a sculpted wooden railing.
The upper level is a library, and its walls are lined with bookshelves that are stocked with a variety of tomes on philosophy, nature, and poetry.While the contents of this room held would seem to hold great sentimental value to the Nandars, there’s nothing particularly valuable to be found here.
Upstairs, the L-shaped hall is decorated with rich carpets, gilded sconces, and framed paintings of places in Waterdeep. A door at the north end of the hall leads to a stone balcony overlooking the entrance to the keep. Other doors lead to bedchambers, two of which have been destroyed. A wooden staircase in the west wall descends to the main floor. A similar staircase in the south wall climbs to the roof.
Lady Nandar's room is the only one of three bedchambers to survive the cloud giants’ attack. Tapestries and oil lamps are mounted on the walls, and wolfskin rugs cover the wooden floor. The room’s centerpiece is a large bed, its ornate headboard sculpted with images of roses and foxes. Four wardrobes stand against the walls; each contains a season’s worth of women’s clothing, all in the latest fashions of Waterdeep. At the foot of the bed is a wooden chest, and mounted above the door is a longsword.
Upstairs, you also find a stairway leading to the roof. Falling rocks caused sections of the roof to collapse, but what remains of the roof is safe to walk on. A flag waves in the breeze atop a 30-foot-high wooden flagpole that rises from the northeast corner. The flag depicts the stylized head of a golden fox with a rose clenched in its teeth, on a purple background.
Arisa says “thank you- we could use your help watching the drawbridge for goblins. We set up a makeshift bridge to the keep outside using a ladder from the mill. I suggest you crawl across one at a time. We won’t disturb your lady’s things- we only want information or weapons/ things to fuel our magic so we can protect what is left and save the villagers, if we can. We left two goblins tied up in the mill. “
Arisa will ritual detect magic and inspect the weapons and shields, etc , and ensure none of the books are magical. If there are books on history,( particularly Giant history) arcana, medicine, or religion, she might be interested in borrowing them. If not, she will leave the books).
Zyllith smiles at the guards as she explains how they managed to arrive, "Aye, me mates dun managed ta' fashion a rioght crickety rope bridge of sorts, using ladders and rope. Makin' it possible ta' get past tha' gap rioght quick. Now tha' wer' here, best we see 'bout securin' tha' rest of town. We got tha' drawbridge up, but who knows if any gobbies still remain, best to have folk there ta keep watch in case any of 'em try ta sneak up an' lower tha' bridge fer more of their green blokes. Then at some point we need you lot ta' help us clear out tha' town, search all the buildings till wer' sure no more gobbies remain. I reckon from thar' we go about securing tha' walls like. 'Am no good when it comes ta fortifyin' but got real good at finding holes ta' slip through, and I'll tell ya' we still got plenty o' holes in this town."
Sylnache Ashrain - 7th Sojourn
Osmord is specifically looking for a Pearl to use in identify spells, along with any books or scrolls on magic, death or religion. Investigation 5:
DM - Caves of the Kobold Slave Masters
Arisa
You detect an enchanted aura on the longsword hanging above the Lady's door. Other than that, none of the books or other items in the keep give off any kind of magic radiance.
To Zyllith, Alara responds, "Very well. We will wait for you to finish your search here, and then we will accompany you back into the village. Are there any buildings you haven't searched het? And perhaps we should make sure that none are hiding in the guard towers. Once the town is clear of goblins, we will take up positions at the main gate."
None of you finds any pearls or scrolls, but the library does contain a wide selection of books on things like nature, philosophy, history of the region, and of the Nanders and other notable people, places and events of the Sword Coast, as well as collections of poems and other prose. Nothing magical or arcane in nature, or about death. However, there are a couple of books about different religions of the region. And unfortunately, nothing about giants.
Osmord finds the library and carefully studies the selection of books alongside Arisa. He skims over the nature and philosophy and ponders for a moment over a couple of the history tomes. Alas much of it seems to be quite local and mundane in nature... nothing to be gleaned here. He plucks out one that seems to give an overview of the region...
"Hmm interesting... Sword Coast Adventurers Guide. I will take this one." he slips the book into his shell, the poems and prose he passes over with barely glance.
He grumbles to himself, "No, nothing magical... Discovery is slow. The search continues..." he let free a heavy sigh and turns to Arisa.
"It appears Arisa, that we share an interest... In gods and powers." Osmord gestures toward the religion section and plucks out a generic book about the pantheon of gods.
DM - Caves of the Kobold Slave Masters
“Yes- some interesting works here. I might borrow a history of this area“. (In particular any with maps or pictures) and to the others as well as Alara the guard she says: “I found a sword that radiates magic on the wall upstairs- in the Lady’s room. I don’t know if we should attempt to remove it or leave it? I didn’t want to disturb her personal things, but if we could use a sword, perhaps she would not mind?”
Osmord considers this for a moment, "We should take the sword, and the only question is... do we ask or not?"
DM - Caves of the Kobold Slave Masters
Belkas listens to the conversation and adds, "A magical weapon would be handy. I doubt they would deny us, as it will give us a better chance to save their villagers."
Belkas continues to look for, and ask for, studded leather armor.
If anyone asks Zyllith about the magic longsword she responds rather neutral, "Aye, sounds lovely an' all, but it's nae use ta' me. No' my style an' all tha'."
She'll turn back towards the guards as she continues discussing matters of the town, "Sounds good an' all, but I worry 'bout letting things stand fer too long. Might be smart ta' have a couple or more of ye' join me an' at least keep watch at tha' town's drawbridge. We've yet ta search the whole town, I dun' think, so don' wanna leave our arses open cause wer' too busy lookin' at books."
Sylnache Ashrain - 7th Sojourn
"Books on the gods may be interesting, but nothing beats field experience. If you ask enough times, the gods usually give up and tell you what you need to know. The downside is that they often take longer to do it than you have available." Here Vernon gives Mielikki an upwards glare about the worg.
"As to the sword, I know how to use one, if it isn't too heavy. On the other hand it does very much seem to fall under the 'valuables' we're not supposed to just take."