You easily make your way out of the castle, which is eerily silent. You start your march back to Phandalin. Again, you'll need to camp overnight before making it to your destination. We'll break this travel into three parts: the travel through the woods away from Cragmaw Castle, the camp, and the walk along the Triboar Trail and to Phandalin.
Before reaching the Townmaster's Hall, you find Sildar standing before a shrine in the town square, discussing an issue with a young female elf. The conversation ends as you approach and Sildar breaks away to walk with you.
"I see no dwarf with you. Have you found your way to the goblin castle?" He then notices the armor Badger has strapped to his pack. "Is that— that's my armor! You've found it!" He looks around for Gundren. "But then..."
Sildar leads the party towards Townmaster's Hall, taking his sword and armor off of Badger's pack to lighten his load.
"It's a true shame Gundren has died. He was to be a beacon of light for this town. I did fear we were already too late to save him before we even left that gods-forsaken goblin cave. But there are still two more Rockseeker brothers with the same goals. They, too, have gone missing, unfortunately. Gundren had said they'd gone ahead of him to the cave, and now that we have the map, we may be able to find it and them."
You arrive at the hall and Sildar sets his things on the desk. He inspects it and polishes it as you speak.
Sildar moves his armor and various books and ledgers to the floor and unrolls the map. "Wave Echo Cave."
"More than five hundred years ago, clans of dwarves and gnomes made an agreement known as the Phandelver’s Pact, by which they would share the riches from the mine in Wave Echo Cave. In addition to its mineral wealth, the mine contained great magical power. Human spellcasters allied themselves with the dwarves and gnomes to channel and bind that energy into a great forge, where magic items could be crafted. Times were good, and Phandalin prospered as well.
But then disaster struck when orcs swept through the North and laid waste to all in their path. A powerful force of orcs reinforced by evil mercenary wizards attacked Wave Echo Cave to seize its riches and magic treasures. Human wizards fought alongside their dwarf and gnome allies to defend the Forge of Spells, and the ensuing spell battle destroyed much of the cavern. Few survived the cave-ins and tremors, and the location of Wave Echo Cave was lost. For centuries, rumors of buried riches have attracted treasure seekers and opportunists to the area around Phandalin, but no one has ever succeeded in locating the lost mine. That is, until the Rockseeker brothers managed to find the entrance to the cave. They intend to reopen the mines and share its riches with Phandalin and its people."
"Unfortunately for the Rockseekers and Phandalin, this Black Spider character apparently wants Wave Echo Cave all to himself."
He finally noticed Ash's coin purse. "And, in service of this town, I'm willing to pay you 200 gold to go there and return with word of what has happened to the Rockseeker brothers—Nundro and Tharden—and what the status of the mine is. Evidence of the Forge of Spells being left in safe hands will net another 100 gold."
Ash: "Yes, yes. Wave Echo Cave and the Forge of Spells and Fan Elder's Pack. We all know the stories. We've nearly died twice now helping you clear out the Redbrands and the Cragmaws, and now you want us diving into a magic cave of untold danger to retrieve two almost-certainly dead dwarves?"
K: "Ash, you're not one to shy away from danger when there's coin to be had."
Badger clears his throat. "No, Ash is right. We're not here for Phandalin. We're here for Bramble. And killing ourselves to enrich Phandalin does not help our families back home. This sounds too dangerous for us. I'm sorry. Our goals are not the same as yours, Sir Hallwinter."
Ash, quietly: "I mean, I was just trying to raise the price."
K: "Badger, it's a cave of magic. What we find there could help us win more battles that ultimately help us save Bramble."
Badger: "What we find there will be worthless if we die."
A moment passes. Sildar nods. "Yes. That's is the life of the adventurer. It can burn bright and fast and wisp away in smoke. Or, if you're lucky, you help hundreds or thousands or more, and you live to my age. Some say that depends on grit, determination, and luck. Some say that depends on the blessings of a god. Regardless, it takes something special, and I see that something in you, the Quote Unquote Fantastic."
Badger smiles weakly. "You sound like my friend. Actually, his father." He nods at Ash, smiling at him. Then he frowns sadly. "I don't know if I could forgive myself if I let anything happen to my friend's son. Or nephew." He looks to Kristofferson.
Kristofferson smiles weakly, too. "We've come of our own accord, and with the same hopes and fears as you, Badger. We are not your wards. We are your teammates and friends."
Ash says, "Don't underestimate us, individually or as a team. We can do this, together."
Badger, after a moment: "You are right. All three of you. And I have seen surprising greatness in both of you on our little journey here. While I'm afraid of the possible endings to this, I'm also not ready for this journey to end. Okay. Let's go save these dwarves and their magic mine."
Sildar says, "Excellent! Take the day. Rest here in Phandalin. I need to travel east," he traces a path on the map, "and will see you half way to the cave. We leave at daybreak."
Share what you do with a day in Phandalin. We can play out any encounters with NPCs as you like. At night, you retire at Stonehill Inn, still on Sildar's tab, and you level up to level 4!
Kristofferson breaks away from the party for some alone time. He visits the shrine they found Hallwinter at in the town square. To whom is it a shrine?
Before he leaves, Ash asks K if he has anything he wants sold at the stores in town. He holds up and wiggles the frog statuette he hopes to sell. He gathers whatever items the party wants to sell and heads first to Barthen's Provisions.
K gives Ash the gold items from the castle temple.
Badger gives Ash the two scrolls; he has no use for them. He then heads to Stonehill Inn, where he plans to simply rest and people watch, hoping to make good conversation with whoever he finds.
Kristofferson: the small shrine made of stones is called the Shrine of Luck, and you recognize the symbol of Tymora, the goddess of luck. When Sir Hallwinter joined your group, you had seen the young elf walk towards the modest home adjacent to the shrine.
Ash uses 1 hit die to get back to full health.
Badger uses 2 hit dice and starts to feel much better.
K uses 2 hit dice and starts to feel a little better.
Would you like to do anything else in Cragmaw Castle?
Badger is ready to go back to Phandalin, and recommends they stealth their way out of the castle. Stealth: 8
Kristofferson agrees. Stealth: 16
Ash leads the way. Stealth: 23
You easily make your way out of the castle, which is eerily silent. You start your march back to Phandalin. Again, you'll need to camp overnight before making it to your destination. We'll break this travel into three parts: the travel through the woods away from Cragmaw Castle, the camp, and the walk along the Triboar Trail and to Phandalin.
I'll need 3 Perception checks from each of you.
Ash perception: 3, 6, 16
Kristofferson perception: 18, 5, 3 (nat 1!)
Badger perception: 20, 12, 3
You're able to make it back to Phandalin without incident.
You each achieve a long rest.
You enter town in the late morning.
Badger leads the party to the Townmaster's Hall, hoping to find Sildar Hallwinter.
Before reaching the Townmaster's Hall, you find Sildar standing before a shrine in the town square, discussing an issue with a young female elf. The conversation ends as you approach and Sildar breaks away to walk with you.
"I see no dwarf with you. Have you found your way to the goblin castle?" He then notices the armor Badger has strapped to his pack. "Is that— that's my armor! You've found it!" He looks around for Gundren. "But then..."
Kristofferson: "We found him unconscious and at the mercy of a goblin king. We had no chance to save him, I'm sorry to say."
Ash: "But we did recover your armor, your sword, and what we believe to be Gundren's map."
Badger walks along quietly.
Sildar leads the party towards Townmaster's Hall, taking his sword and armor off of Badger's pack to lighten his load.
"It's a true shame Gundren has died. He was to be a beacon of light for this town. I did fear we were already too late to save him before we even left that gods-forsaken goblin cave. But there are still two more Rockseeker brothers with the same goals. They, too, have gone missing, unfortunately. Gundren had said they'd gone ahead of him to the cave, and now that we have the map, we may be able to find it and them."
You arrive at the hall and Sildar sets his things on the desk. He inspects it and polishes it as you speak.
Kristofferson: "What cave do you speak of?"
Ash hands the map to Sildar. He also pulls out his coin purse as if ready to fill it with fresh coin.
Sildar moves his armor and various books and ledgers to the floor and unrolls the map. "Wave Echo Cave."
"More than five hundred years ago, clans of dwarves and gnomes made an agreement known as the Phandelver’s Pact, by which they would share the riches from the mine in Wave Echo Cave. In addition to its mineral wealth, the mine contained great magical power. Human spellcasters allied themselves with the dwarves and gnomes to channel and bind that energy into a great forge, where magic items could be crafted. Times were good, and Phandalin prospered as well.
But then disaster struck when orcs swept through the North and laid waste to all in their path. A powerful force of orcs reinforced by evil mercenary wizards attacked Wave Echo Cave to seize its riches and magic treasures. Human wizards fought alongside their dwarf and gnome allies to defend the Forge of Spells, and the ensuing spell battle destroyed much of the cavern. Few survived the cave-ins and tremors, and the location of Wave Echo Cave was lost. For centuries, rumors of buried riches have attracted treasure seekers and opportunists to the area around Phandalin, but no one has ever succeeded in locating the lost mine. That is, until the Rockseeker brothers managed to find the entrance to the cave. They intend to reopen the mines and share its riches with Phandalin and its people."
"Unfortunately for the Rockseekers and Phandalin, this Black Spider character apparently wants Wave Echo Cave all to himself."
He finally noticed Ash's coin purse. "And, in service of this town, I'm willing to pay you 200 gold to go there and return with word of what has happened to the Rockseeker brothers—Nundro and Tharden—and what the status of the mine is. Evidence of the Forge of Spells being left in safe hands will net another 100 gold."
Ash: "Yes, yes. Wave Echo Cave and the Forge of Spells and Fan Elder's Pack. We all know the stories. We've nearly died twice now helping you clear out the Redbrands and the Cragmaws, and now you want us diving into a magic cave of untold danger to retrieve two almost-certainly dead dwarves?"
K: "Ash, you're not one to shy away from danger when there's coin to be had."
Badger clears his throat. "No, Ash is right. We're not here for Phandalin. We're here for Bramble. And killing ourselves to enrich Phandalin does not help our families back home. This sounds too dangerous for us. I'm sorry. Our goals are not the same as yours, Sir Hallwinter."
Ash, quietly: "I mean, I was just trying to raise the price."
K: "Badger, it's a cave of magic. What we find there could help us win more battles that ultimately help us save Bramble."
Badger: "What we find there will be worthless if we die."
A moment passes. Sildar nods. "Yes. That's is the life of the adventurer. It can burn bright and fast and wisp away in smoke. Or, if you're lucky, you help hundreds or thousands or more, and you live to my age. Some say that depends on grit, determination, and luck. Some say that depends on the blessings of a god. Regardless, it takes something special, and I see that something in you, the Quote Unquote Fantastic."
Badger smiles weakly. "You sound like my friend. Actually, his father." He nods at Ash, smiling at him. Then he frowns sadly. "I don't know if I could forgive myself if I let anything happen to my friend's son. Or nephew." He looks to Kristofferson.
Kristofferson smiles weakly, too. "We've come of our own accord, and with the same hopes and fears as you, Badger. We are not your wards. We are your teammates and friends."
Ash says, "Don't underestimate us, individually or as a team. We can do this, together."
Badger, after a moment: "You are right. All three of you. And I have seen surprising greatness in both of you on our little journey here. While I'm afraid of the possible endings to this, I'm also not ready for this journey to end. Okay. Let's go save these dwarves and their magic mine."
Sildar says, "Excellent! Take the day. Rest here in Phandalin. I need to travel east," he traces a path on the map, "and will see you half way to the cave. We leave at daybreak."
Share what you do with a day in Phandalin. We can play out any encounters with NPCs as you like. At night, you retire at Stonehill Inn, still on Sildar's tab, and you level up to level 4!
Kristofferson breaks away from the party for some alone time. He visits the shrine they found Hallwinter at in the town square. To whom is it a shrine?
Before he leaves, Ash asks K if he has anything he wants sold at the stores in town. He holds up and wiggles the frog statuette he hopes to sell. He gathers whatever items the party wants to sell and heads first to Barthen's Provisions.
K gives Ash the gold items from the castle temple.
Badger gives Ash the two scrolls; he has no use for them. He then heads to Stonehill Inn, where he plans to simply rest and people watch, hoping to make good conversation with whoever he finds.
We'll play these out in order.
Kristofferson: the small shrine made of stones is called the Shrine of Luck, and you recognize the symbol of Tymora, the goddess of luck. When Sir Hallwinter joined your group, you had seen the young elf walk towards the modest home adjacent to the shrine.
Kristofferson knocks on the door and steps back, waiting patiently.