For a while now, I've been using the LMoP campaign as a framework for a story that I use as a warm-up and palate cleanser for and from my main work. Figured I'd share some of it here for folks interested in reading fantasy stories in smaller, more digestible bites while still scratching that specific D&D fiction itch. So without further ado, here are the introductory stories of our heroes: Rose (Hexblood Wizard), Sonny (Human Fighter), Verne (Wood Elf Ranger), Peri (Tabaxi Cleric) and Viola (Lightfoot Halfling Rogue). I hope you enjoy!
This journey has proven to be a bit more complicated than I thought it would be. Waterdeep ended up being a bust, and while I'm sure the Eltorchul, Wands and Waymoot Magical Academies are all fine schools, I think I've outgrown the classroom at this point. Not to be one of those mages, but I mastered most of their third-year curriculums before I could walk. Perks of being raised by a witch, I suppose.
On the bright side, in talking to headmaster Krothus of the Waymoot school, we learned of an abjurer who lives in Neverwinter. While I've always had better luck with charms and illusions than wards, it doesn't hurt to stay versatile (and besides, it could be helpful to learn some nondetection magic, in case Brunhilde decides to come looking for me.) It took some convincing to get Sonny to come along, and I suppose I can understand wanting to get back to his family, but who in their right mind would choose some smelly old farm over traveling the world? Thankfully, we got him to see reason, and were soon on our way, but not without some unpleasantness on our way out.
We stopped by the bookstore to check out their selection of grimoires, and Verne caught this grubby little halfling girl stealing books! Verne told the shop keeper that we would “see that she faced justice” but when we got outside, rather than turn the little thief over to the proper authorities, Verne offered her a place in our party! Can you believe that? I had always heard that their long lives gave elves wisdom, but now I'm not so sure. What I do know is, for as long as Viola's around, I'll be keeping a close eye on my spellbook.
As for our other party member, I have no complaints! Peri is an adorable little kitty, and a fascinating creature. I hope to learn more about divine magic through talking with them. Though previous attempts have been a bit…unfocused…I'm determined to keep trying. There's not a spell out there I can't crack!
Anyway, diary, it's getting late and I should probably get some sleep. A good witch needs her rest, after all! While things didn't work out in Waterdeep, I'm excited to see what comes from Neverwinter and beyond. Faerün is such a wonderful place, and I can't wait to see it all!
Sorry it's been a while since I last wrote you. We've been on the open road so dang long this is the first chance I've had to get to a post office. Is everything ok at home? I know the plan was for me to be back in time for Daisy's birthday, but it actually looks like I'll be gone a bit longer. Tell her I said sorry, and be sure to give her the bag of candies I'm sending along with the courier. Things kinda took a turn, so I'm actually writing this from the Lionshield Coster in Neverwinter.
I know we said we'd only be going as far as Waterdeep, and we did go there first- actually made it there in less time than we thought thanks to Mr. Verne's guidance. But when we got to the magic shop Rose talked about, she and the owner got to talking about some big-shot abjurer (whatever the heck that is) in Neverwinter, and she insisted that we go to meet him so she could learn his craft. I wanted to say no, honest, but you and pa taught me never to ignore a friend in need. I couldn't just let her and the others go up north by themselves. You always told me about how dangerous the countryside can be- what if they run into monsters?
Speaking of, there's all kindsa crazy critters out here. Clement and Gil would lose their beans if they saw half of it- giant birds with axes for faces, talking frog men, suits of armor that move without anyone in ‘em? Real spooky stuff. So far no gnolls, thankfully. After my run-in with our ‘cellar guest’ I've had my fill of the nasty things.
Anyway, sorry for taking so long to get back. We linked up with this dwarvish fella the other day, and he hired us to move some supplies down to Phandalin, but I promise, once that's done I'll be right back home to help with planting time. This adventuring business is fun and all, but I won't forget where I belong.
I write this journal in the hopes that I can capture the essence of my adventures so that I can relay them when next we meet. While you may find it strange that one could forget the wonders of a journey such as this, you must understand that after nearly three centuries of life, my perspective on what makes an important detail is slightly skewed. And as I am no natural storyteller, it falls to me in the present to record the goings-on so that I may share them accurately in the future.
You'll be pleased to know that I will not be undergoing this journey alone. Through a series of happenstances, I find myself with four young charges, each with stories of their own.
Rose, a witch traveling the world in search of magical secrets. Her appetite for knowledge is as all-consuming as the brightest flame.
Sonny, a warrior from Goldenfields leaving home for the first time. Ardent and steadfast as the earth he used to farm.
Peri, a tabaxi gifted with divine power. Yet despite the responsibility such a gift entails, they are as carefree as a summer breeze.
Viola, a thief who grew up on the streets of Waterdeep. Hers is a turbulent journey, ever-changing as the tides.
Our travels brought us to the city of Neverwinter, where we met a dwarf by the name of Gundren Rockseeker. Gundren claimed that he and his brothers had discovered an opportunity in Phandalin, and that he wished to set up shop there. He hired our party to transport a wagon of provisions along the High Road to the Triboar Trail, heading southeast. Though he wasn't very forthcoming about what this opportunity was, he assured us it was ‘something big’ and offered us ten gold pieces each for safely transporting his supplies to Barthen's Provisions, a trading post in Phandalin. Gundren set out ahead of us on horseback, accompanied by a warrior named Sildar Hallwinter. He claimed that he needed to arrive early to ‘take care of business’ once again refusing to elaborate on what that business was.
After securing the provisions we headed south from Neverwinter along the High Road. In the several days of travel, I got to know more about my young charges. Their names and basic histories, of course, but I find that those only give half the measure of a person. It's in the expressions and subtle behaviors that you truly begin to understand someone- something that I, with my elven senses, am well-equipped to perceive. Like Rose, with her notebook, constantly jotting down or sketching what she sees, ever-curious and delighted by new experiences. Or Sonny's glances across the wagon, ensuring that everyone is still safe, but lingering ever-so-slightly on Rose, with an expression that tragically overlooks Viola, who gazes at him in much the same way. And then of course there's Peri, for whom my sharp eyes and ears are not only useful, but indeed a necessity, as their curiosity has proven to be much less constructive than Rose's (thankfully nothing of value has been destroyed…yet.)
As we make our final push eastward down the Triboar Trail, I end this entry with excitement for what's to come. I eagerly await the moment I am able to share my tale with you, and I pray to Mielikki, mistress of the woods, that your rest is a peaceful one.
The elf told me we'd find treasure on this trip, but so far it's just been long, stupid cart rides and meetings with boring old wizards.
Guess I can't complain too much. Food in my belly and a roof over my head is better than starving in an alley back in Waterdeep. But still, the people I'm traveling with are driving me nuts.
The cat keeps fiddling with things in the cart and breaking them, and the elf does nothing to stop him. When he brought me into this team, I figured he must be in charge, but he doesn't do anything to corral anyone. He just sits there with this far-out look on his face while everything goes to sod around him. If Rockseeker docks our pay for broken goods I'm not giving up my share, that's for sure.
The girl is the worst. Always shooting me these side-eye glances across the cart and clutching her stupid book bag. Why would I want her ratty old books or her bag full of garbage anyway? Besides, what kind of weirdo keeps bundles of charcoal, incense, herbs and flower petals with them on the road? Creepy witch.
Sonny is ok, I guess. He's…nice.
Once we get to Phandalin, we better find some treasure or something, or I might bail on this stupid trip.
Spring along the Sword Coast is a marvelous thing. The breeze blows sweet with the scent of flowers, the air is rich with bird song, and colorful wagons roll down the road, following the promise of wealth and adventure.
On the 15th of Tarsakh, one such wagon trundled down the road bearing a motley crew of adventurers. At the helm was Sonny, a tall blond-haired youth who beckoned the horses on in a gentle tone. Immediately behind him in the wagon was Rose, a girl with magenta robes who thoughtfully twirled her hair while poring over a leather-bound tome. At the back of the wagon were Peri and Viola, a tabaxi and halfling respectively, who were both silently fuming from the argument they'd just had. Meanwhile Verne, a wizened wood elf, sat between the two of them, taking a much-needed rest after mediating said argument.
The party was heading south on the orders of Gundren Rockseeker, a dwarf that they had met in the city of Neverwinter. They were unsure who or what the goods in the wagon were for, as Gundren had been rather secretive when discussing their contract. He simply stated that he and his brothers had found “something big” and offered the party ten gold pieces each for escorting his supplies safely to Barthen's Provisions- a trading post in the rough-and-tumble settlement of Phandalin, a couple days’ travel southeast of Neverwinter. Gundren himself had set out ahead on horseback, along with a warrior escort named Sildar Hallwinter, claiming he needed to arrive early to “take care of business.”
The party had spent the last few days following the High Road south from Neverwinter, and had just recently veered east along the Triboar Trail. So far, they hadn't encountered any trouble, but knew that the countryside could be dangerous, especially for a supply wagon. Bandits and outlaws had been known to lurk along the trail, so they were on the lookout for anything suspicious.
A few hours after they'd made their turn, the party reached a stretch where the woods pressed close to the trail, with a steep embankment and dense thickets on either side. It was there that Sonny spotted two dun-colored lumps lying about fifty feet ahead of the wagon. He called back to Verne, whose elven senses were better equipped to observe the situation. Verne climbed forward, and after a moment informed the group that the two forms were dead horses, and that he planned to go investigate. The elf lighted down to the ground and strode over to the horses, taking care to scan the clearing for any sign of the ones responsible.
Upon closer inspection, Verne found that each of the bodies had several black-feathered arrows sticking out of it. The saddlebags had been looted and nearby on the ground was an empty leather map case. The elf gently picked up the case and turned it over in his hands, finding the emblem of the Rockseeker clan emblazoned on the side. He was about to turn and inform his fellows, when all of a sudden he heard a rustle in the thicket to his left. His muscles tensed and he slowly put his hand up towards the wagon, holding up four fingers and gesturing sharply toward the forest with his head.
In an instant, a twang rang out in the clearing and Verne dropped quickly to the ground, narrowly avoiding two arrows as they whizzed over his head. The elf scrambled to draw his bow as four goblins emerged from the brush, two on each side of the road. The party, seeing their ally in danger, sprang into action.
First was Rose, who stood up and pulled a blue satin bag and a blackthorn wand from her hip. She reached into the bag, pulled out a handful of rose petals and began to recite an incantation as the petals swirled in the air. With a flick of her wrist and a flash of arcane energy, two of the goblins slumped to the ground.
Next came Sonny, who pulled hard on the reins and commanded the horses, who had begun to buck in the chaos, to calm down. Impressively, the horses heeded the young warrior and were still, providing him enough time to leap from the wagon and run to Verne’s side, where he planted himself, shield drawn, between his elven ally and the remaining goblins.
With Sonny providing defensive cover, Verne jumped to his feet and quickly fired an arrow, which embedded itself into the chest of one of their assailants, felling it in one shot.
The final goblin, seeing how easily its allies had been dispatched, made the wise decision to retreat and live another day. However, a flash of radiant light from Peri and the slashing of Viola's twin blades cut those notions (and the goblin) to ribbons.
When the dust settled, the party gathered itself and took stock of the situation. On one hand, none of them had been harmed, which was certainly a good thing. But on the other, it appeared that their benefactor and his escort hadn't been so lucky.
“Well that's just great,” Viola whined. “I guess we can forget about getting paid.”
“Who cares about that?” Peri cried. “The Bearded One is in trouble! We have to help him!”
“I'm with Peri,” said Sonny. “We can't just sit on our hands while a friend is in need.”
“‘Friend’ feels like a bit much, considering we met the man three days ago.” Viola mumbled. “But alright, say we do go on a rescue mission. Where do we start? I don't think these guys are feeling very talkative.” She gestured with her toe at the dismembered goblins at her feet.
“Thankfully,” Rose drawled, “not all of us go around butchering intelligent creatures.” She gestured to the two goblins that she had downed which, upon closer inspection, were simply asleep, one of them snoring loudly.
“Ok, princess,” Viola sneered, “the next time someone starts shooting at us, I'll be sure to sing them a lullaby, too.”
Rose rolled her eyes and ignored the comment, instead asking, “I don't suppose any of you have something to tie them up with?”
Sonny eagerly stepped forward, pulling a thick cord of rope from his pack. “I've got it, Rose. Just sit tight and I'll have ‘em hog-tied in no time.”
Viola scoffed and folded her arms. “‘I've got it Rose’.” she mumbled. “I swear, it's like watching a dog beg for scraps.” The halfling turned away, accidentally meeting the silent, knowing gaze of Verne. After a brief moment, the young thief turned her eyes downward.
Once the goblins had been secured, Rose released the enchantment on them and they began to struggle like mad to get free. Verne held up a hand and then said something in the Goblin tongue that made the two stop struggling. He appeared to ask them a question, and the two of them nodded. “Now,” the elf continued, this time in Common, “We have several questions for you, and it would be in your best interest to answer them truthfully. We do not wish to hurt you.”
“Speak for yourself,” Viola snarled. The halfling plucked a dagger from her left boot and tossed it into the ground, mere inches away from where the goblins sat. The goblins began to shake as Verne, unfazed, said, “Well, I suppose most of us do not wish to hurt you.”
With that display of intimidation, the goblins agreed to tell the party everything they knew. Gundren and Sildar had been captured a little over a day ago by a goblin hunting party and taken back to their leader, Klarg. Klarg answered to King Grol, chief of the Cragmaw tribe, who dwelled in Cragmaw Castle, which lie about twenty miles northeast of the Cragmaw hideout in Neverwinter Wood.
According to the goblins, Klarg had received a message from King Grol a few days ago saying that somebody named the Black Spider was paying the Cragmaws to find the dwarf Gundren Rockseeker, capture him, and send him and anything he was carrying back to King Grol. Klarg followed his orders, and had Gundren ambushed and taken along with his personal effects, including a map. Gundren and the map had been delivered to King Grol as instructed, while the dwarf's human companion was being held in the “eating cave.”
“Eating Cave?” Sonny cried. “Y'all eat people?!”
“No!” The goblins cried, disgusted. “Would never eat humans! Probly taste terrible! We eat normal food like fish. Sometimes rabbits!”
“Then why are you keeping Sildar in your ‘eating cave’?” Rose asked.
“That where we have most goblins at a time.” One of the goblins replied. “Many goblin keep watch while they snack.”
“But not on human.” The other goblin snarled and stuck its tongue out at Sonny.
“I-I'm sorry,” Sonny stammered, “I didn't mean-”
Verne held up a silencing hand and gave Sonny a pointed but gentle look. “I apologize for my friend's insult. We are grateful for your help today, and in honor of our agreement, I will see that you are not harmed.” The elf plucked Viola's dagger from the dirt and held it momentarily before him, the goblins eyes growing wide as they stared at the gleaming blade. Then, with one swift motion, Verne cut through the rope and took a step back as the goblins scrambled over one another and fled into the forest.
Viola started to move after them, but Verne caught the young halfling and stopped her with a firm hand on her shoulder. “What're you doing?” She snarled. “They're getting away!”
“Yes, they are.” Verne replied, handing the dagger back to its owner. “As we agreed they'd be able to.”
“As you agreed to.” Viola growled.
“You wish to kill them, then?” Verne asked. “Why would that be?”
“They shot at us with arrows!” Viola cried. “That isn't reason enough for you?”
“As I recall,” the elf replied calmly, “our attackers shot at me. And yet I bear no grudge against them. Why, I wonder, do you?”
“Oh, never mind.” Viola grumbled, thrusting her dagger back in its holster. “With all the time you spent lecturing, they're probably long gone by now. So now what? They told us where Cragmaw Castle is, but not the hideout where they're keeping Hallwinter.”
“That much, I can discern for myself.” The elf said as he strode over to where the goblins had initially broken through the brush. Hidden behind the thicket on the north side of the trail was a path that stretched far into the wood, heading northwest. Verne pointed out several sets of footprints and two deep tracks in the dirt, denoting about a dozen goblins, as well as two human-sized bodies that had been hauled away from the ambush site.
Noting the trail, the party decided to steer the wagon away from the road and tie off the horses while they followed the hidden path on foot. Verne took point, with Viola close behind, Rose in the middle, then Peri and Sonny at the rear.
About ten minutes into their trek, this marching order proved advantageous, as Verne's heightened senses alerted him to the traps that the goblins had set. The first being a snare trap that Viola quickly disabled and pocketed for later use, and the second being a pit trap, which had been cleverly disguised with branches and leaves, but not cleverly enough for a seasoned ranger. Once the party had successfully navigated the trail, they came upon a break in the forest overlooking a rolling hillside and a narrow river. Near the base of the hill, Verne noticed two goblins lazily standing guard on the other side of the river, clearly marking the entrance to the Cragmaw hideout.
With their query in sight, the goal was clear. To infiltrate the goblin hideout, rescue Sildar Hallwinter, and retrieve the goods that had been stolen by the Cragmaws. But for now: it was time to plan.
Lost Mine of Phandelver is the official Starter Kit adventure with a good balance of combat, exploration, and social interaction. It's one of the the most played adventures of all time and a common touchstone for many players. Its best hooks are for characters motivated by personal prospects, uncovering lore, or helping the citizens of Phandalin. It runs levels 1-5. Its main story will likely take a couple months of sessions [or your own best estimate], possibly more, partially dependent on the side quests you pursue. https://100001****/
Obscured by the brush of the forest, Verne observed the scene across the stream and reported his findings to the rest of the party, who stood a few paces back. He could see that the mouth of the cave was fairly large, easily able to fit two people standing abreast, though the stream flowing out of it would make doing so difficult. On either side of the stream were dense briar thickets, which obscured much of the far side from the elf's view, but upon further inspection were revealed to cover a dry path that fed into the cave. Within one briar thicket was a small, hollowed out area that formed a blind from which two goblin sentries stood watch. Wooden planks had been laid to flatten out the briars and provided room for the two goblins to lie hidden and watch the area- something they were thankfully not doing very attentively.
Once the scene had been thoroughly surveilled, the party decided that Verne and Viola, the two stealthiest members of the group, should sneak up and dispatch the sentries so that the others could pass through undetected. Peri, Rose and Sonny watched as their two dexterous companions crossed over to the briar thickets. Verne, ever the seasoned ranger, squatted low and crept slowly along the ground, his green cloak offering ample camouflage against the foliage. Viola, by contrast, darted quickly into position- her light steps and silent approach as natural to her as breathing. The two soon came upon the goblins: Viola immediately next to the blind and Verne some paces back. With a quiet nod of assent the two readied their weapons. They would only have one chance at this- they had to make it count.
Viola struck first, slashing at the nearest goblin with her twin short swords. With the element of surprise on her side, she cut down her foe with ease. Surprised, the other goblin jumped up, possibly to run into the cave to warn his compatriots, but he never got the chance. With a flash of movement and the twang of a bowstring, the goblin soon joined his fallen comrade. With the guards dispatched, Verne waved the rest of the party over, and they reconvened at the mouth of the cave.
Just inside the cave mouth, uneven stone steps led up to a small, dank chamber on the east side of the passage. The cave narrowed to a steep fissure at the far end, where the air was heavy with the stench of animals. Savage snarls and the sounds of rattling chains denoted three wolves that were chained up just inside the opening. Each wolf’s chain led to an iron rod driven into the base of a stalagmite. Upon seeing the party, the wolves lunged, loosening the iron rods that bound them.
Peri scrambled backwards, the young tabaxi shaking from head to toe. “They have d-dogs here?” they stammered, hiding as best they could behind Sonny.
“I’d hardly call them ‘dogs’,” Rose sniffed. “Though I suppose they do share a common ancestor.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Viola chimed in, smirking at the Cleric’s obvious terror. “I think they might make good guard dogs. Maybe we should take them with us?”
“No, no, no!” Peri yowled as they shook their head and covered their ears.
“Viola, cut it out.” Sonny sighed. “Look, the longer we stand here, the more riled they're gonna get. So let’s get a move on already.”
The other three nodded and began to press on into the tunnel, but Verne didn’t move a muscle. “Verne?” Sonny asked. “Everything alright-” the fighter stopped, in shock. Throughout their travels, Verne had been a stoic companion, approaching all situations with measured calm and reason. That was why it was so alarming for Sonny to find a look of abject fury across the elf's face. Suddenly, Verne strode forward into the chamber, ignoring the protests of his traveling companions.
The wolves snapped at the elf, who stood just beyond the length of the chains. Verne held up one of his hands toward the wolves, while the other fished around for something in his pack. He plucked out three packets of trail rations and extended them toward the wolves, who by degrees, stopped their snarling. The rest of the party watched with bated breath as the ranger extended his offering. The largest of the wolves leaned forward, and Verne extended the food closer to her. Apparently satisfied, the wolf began to eat the food from the ranger's hand, and the other two quickly followed. Verne gently stroked behind the ears of the wolves as he set to work delicately undoing the fastenings of their collars.
Once his work was done, Verne slowly stood up and drew another portion of trail rations from his pack. The wolves quickly stepped toward the ranger, but he held up his hand once more and the beasts heeded. Moving slowly, Verne walked back to the others, never taking his eyes off the wolves, who followed at a similar pace. Sonny held out his arm to shield the others behind him, but made no move to draw his weapon. The young fighter simply kept his eyes on Verne, trusting that the elf wouldn’t put them in harm's way. After a tense moment, Verne tossed the trail rations to the mouth of the cave and gestured for the wolves to follow, and without a moment's hesitation, they bounded over to the food, gobbled it up and ran to freedom.
Once the wolves had disappeared into the thicket, Verne turned to his companions and said, “I apologize, friends. Perhaps that was foolish of me, but I could not stand idle while innocent creatures were in need.”
“I’d hardly call those things ‘innocent’.” Peri mumbled.
If Verne had heard the tabaxi’s comment, he made no outward sign of it. He simply gathered his pack and pressed further into the cave, with the others quickly following.
The main passage from the cave mouth climbed steeply upward, the stream plunging and splashing down its west side. As they pressed onward, the light dimmed until the path was completely cloaked in shadow. In the dim light, they could faintly make out a side passage that led west across the other side of the stream, but that passage was just as dark as the one ahead of them.
“I can’t see a lick down that way.” Sonny sighed. “Anybody got a torch?”
Peri perked up and lifted their mace. “Who needs a torch, when you’ve the light of the Dawnfather?” The mace suddenly shone with a bright blue light that illuminated the whole cavern.
“Put that out, dummy!” Viola hissed. “You want all the goblins to know we’re here?”
Peri’s smile fell, but Rose stepped forward. “Don’t yell at him!” she scolded. “At least he’s trying to come up with solutions. Perhaps you’ve forgotten, but humans and halflings can’t see in the dark. What other choice do we have?”
Viola opened her mouth to reply, but Verne stepped between them with both hands raised, “Enough,” he said, “all of you. Viola, I understand that caution is important, but as we are in unfamiliar territory with creatures that can see far better in the dark than we can, it would serve us well to have a light source. That being said, I agree that it would be best to not announce our presence prematurely. Peri, is there a way in which you can dim the light, or put it out as needed, should we hear enemies approach?”
Peri nodded, and as quickly as the light had come on, it was snuffed.
“Excellent.” Verne said. “Here is what I suggest as a compromise. As I have no trouble seeing in darkness, I can scout ahead while Peri follows with the light. Should I find any trouble, I will signal to you to snuff the light and hide. Is that acceptable?”
“No way.” Sonny stated. “I won’t have you put yourself in harm's way like that. What if something happens and we can’t get to you in time to help?”
“Your concern is touching,” Verne smiled, “but I’ll not be far, and I assure you that at the first hint of danger I will rush back to your side. On that you have my word.”
“We trust you, Verne.” Rose said, silencing Sonny with a stern look.
The elf nodded with a smile before striding off into the darkness. The remaining party members grouped tightly together before Peri’s mace lit up once more, illuminating the path forward.
The passage continued up beyond another set of uneven steps ahead, bending eastward as it went. A waterfall sounded out from a larger cavern further down. In the shadows of the ceiling to the north, they could just make out the dim shape of a rickety wooden bridge crossing over the passage ahead. Another passage intersected that one, twenty feet above the floor. The party looked around the cave, searching anxiously for any signs of goblins hiding in the shadows, but thankfully found none. And with no signal from Verne, the party maintained their pace. A few minutes later however, they felt a faint rumble and heard a roar that seemed to be growing louder with each passing second. Verne came sprinting around the bend of the passage shouting for everyone to press tight against the wall before a surge of water came cascading through the cave.
Heeding Verne's warning, Rose, Sonny and Viola managed to grab handholds on the wall to anchor themselves in place and avoid being swept away, but poor Peri hadn't been so lucky. The cleric was caught full force in the chest and with a desperate yowl was sucked under the water. Without a moment's hesitation, Sonny released his hold on the stone and dove after them.
Sonny was by no means a great swimmer. Goldenfields was, after all, a farming town without the luxury of beaches or lakefronts. However, he remembered well the lessons he'd learned on fishing trips to the Dessarin River with his father and brothers, and employed those skills now in his rescue effort. The stream had carried the poor tabaxi nearly to the mouth of the cave, where they scrambled to keep their head above the water, weighed down by waterlogged armor. Sonny quickly waded over, lifted Peri from the water and placed them gently on the dry path beside the stream.
Peri gasped for breath amidst choked sobs, their mace lying uselessly on the ground, having long-since lost its light.
“You alright, pal?” Sonny asked nervously.
“N-no!” Peri cried. “This place is too scary. There's dogs and water and Viola is so mean!” The young tabaxi burst into tears, burying their face in their paws.
Sonny knelt down and placed his hand on the young cleric's shoulder. “Try not to take what Viola says too personal.” He said. “She's got a rough way of speaking, but she means well. Y’know, she’s probably just as scared as you are. I think maybe she just doesn't know how to say it.”
“But why does she always go after me?” Peri whined. “She doesn't yell at you, or Rose or Verne.”
“Well yeah, we weren't the ones who tracked flour all over the cart.” Sonny laughed. “But if you want, I can talk to her about easing up on you. As for the rest of it, think about it this way: you've already faced the wolves and the stream, and you survived. You're a tough'n, Peri, and there's nothing these goblins can throw at you that you can't handle.”
Peri perked up at the fighter's words. “You really think so?”
“Definitely.” Sonny stood up and held out his hand. “Now let's head back to the others, huh? They might need our help.”
Peri took the fighters hand and stood, picking up their mace as they padded down the path. With a quick prayer and a flourish of their paw, the mace took up its light once more, and the two adventurers walked down the passage to rejoin their party.
Once Peri and Sonny returned, Verne gave them each a once over to make sure they weren’t injured, then informed them of the new plan. Given that the flood was likely not a natural occurrence, and instead a defense mechanism triggered by the goblins, they could no longer rely on the element of surprise. And as they had no way of knowing how many goblins resided in the Cragmaw hideout, they would need to remain on high alert. The party drew their weapons and readied themselves for battle as they walked slowly down the passage.
They crept along until they came across another cavern, which was half filled by two pools, one of which was now empty. A narrow waterfall high in the eastern wall fed the pool, which drained into the western end of the chamber to form the stream that flowed out of the cave mouth below. Low fieldstone walls served as dams to hold the water in, and a wide exit stood to the south, while two smaller passages led west. The sound of the waterfall echoed through the cavern, making it difficult to hear. Standing at the center of the cavern were four goblins, all with shortbows at the ready. In a split second, the two parties sprung into action.
Viola moved first, running to the center of the room and drawing both blades with dizzying speed. Her first stroke easily felled one of the goblins, with the second finding its mark in another, but not cutting nearly as deep.
Rose quickly followed, aiming her staff and reciting a word of power before a fire bolt shot forth, badly singing the goblin Viola had previously injured.
Sonny ran forward, interposing himself between Viola and the other two goblins before slashing at one of them with his sword, but missing his target.
The injured goblin, shrieking with fury and pain, leaped back from its assailants before firing a shot at Viola, which embedded itself deep into the rogue’s belly. Viola staggered, but managed to maintain her footing.
Verne, seeing how fraught the situation was, wasted no time in firing off an arrow of his own, easily dispatching the archer that had wounded the young halfling.
Peri, seeing an ally injured, whipped out their holy symbol and uttered a word of divine power. With a pulse of golden light, Viola's wound began to knit itself together, pushing the arrow out and closing with hardly a sign that there had been a wound there at all. The tabaxi then bounded forward, smashing the still-glowing mace into the head of one of the goblins, dropping it instantly.
The last goblin, seeing its allies dispatched so easily, turned and scrambled for the southern exit. Though Sonny and Peri each tried their best to catch the goblin as he escaped, the creature proved too nimble, and quickly disappeared into the shadows beyond.
“Damn!” Viola cursed. She squinted through the darkness, but to no avail. The goblin was simply gone.
“What do we do now?” Peri asked. “Even I can't see where he went.”
“Well,” Verne mused, “we could give chase, but he likely ran in that direction because there were reinforcements there. And we've no guarantee that we'll have numbers on our side.”
“But if that's where the rest of the goblins are,” Sonny offered, “it could be where they're keeping Gundren and Sildar.”
“I don't think so.” Rose replied. “Goblins usually keep their “prizes” in a hoard room, far from the barracks to avoid any temptation of thievery (which, frankly, rarely works.) If that one's plan was to get reinforcements, then we'll likely find our friends that way.”
She pointed down the western path, which led across the rickety bridge they'd seen earlier.
“It appears we have a choice to make.” Verne folded his arms. “And I suggest we make it soon, before someone else decides for us. Do we go down the southern path to follow the goblin, or down the western path to try and find the treasure room?”
“My vote is for the western path.” Rose stated, matter-of-factly.
“I’m inclined to agree with you.” Verne replied.
“And what, we just let the goblin go?” Viola hissed. “Those little bastards shot me!”
“Which is why I’d think you’d want to approach with caution.” Rose drawled. “Or are you in a hurry to be shot again?”
Viola grumbled under her breath, but didn’t answer.
“I dunno about this, Rose,” Sonny interjected. “No disrespect, but we know for sure where the goblin went. This treasure hoard is just a hunch.”
“It’s not just a hunch!” the witch huffed. “I’ve done my research. I know how goblin dens operate, and I guarantee that they have a treasure hoard down that path.”
Sonny raised his hands in defeat. “Alright, I believe you,” he said. “We can head that way and see what we find. I just don’t feel great about going in blind.”
“Then we proceed with caution.” Verne replied, fitting an arrow to his bow. “We stay close together and proceed as a unit. Understood?”
The others nodded and fell into their marching order. Verne took point, with Rose right behind, Peri in the middle followed by Viola and Sonny at the rear. As they walked along the stony path, Viola leaned forward toward Peri.
“Hey.” she whispered. “About earlier. Thanks, y’know?”
Peri beamed. “Of course!” they chirped. “Anything for a frie-”
“Keep your voice down,” Viola hissed. “We’re still in a goblin cave, remember?”
Peri’s ears turned down. “Right, sorry.” The cleric turned back to the front in silence, still elated at having made progress. A sentiment shared by Sonny, whose grin didn’t go unnoticed by Viola.
“What are you looking at, hayseed?” The thief grumbled.
“Nothin’ at all,” the fighter smirked.
Viola’s head snapped back to the front, her face flushed.
The party eventually came to the bridge which, despite its precarious appearance, was fairly easy to cross, even for the heavier members of the group.
Following the passage, they eventually came to a large cave divided by a ten-foot-high escarpment. A steep natural staircase led from the lower portion to the upper ledge. The air was hazy with the smoke of a cooking fire, and pungent from the smell of poorly cured hides and unwashed goblins.
In the lower part of the cave, near the passage entrance, five goblins tended a large pot hanging over the cooking fire. They appeared to be arguing loudly over what ingredients to add to the pot, occasionally lashing out at each other with fists and elbows. Verne stepped closer, hoping to take them by surprise, but before he could loose an arrow, a scratchy voice yelled, “Oi, what’s this then?”
The elf turned to find a particularly fat goblin sidling up to the edge of the escarpment. The other goblins, hearing his cry, looked up from their work to find the party at the entrance of the cave. In a panic, they threw down their cooking implements and scrambled to find weapons. The party braced themselves for battle, before the leader of the goblins called out again. “Now hold on a tic!” he plopped down on the edge of the escarpment, his stubby legs dangling over the edge. “Before ye do anything stupid, tell me: who are ye and why’ve ye come into our home?”
The party looked at each other in surprise. They’d yet to encounter a goblin that didn’t attack first and ask questions later.
“I am Verne, of the Ardeep Forest.” Verne replied, stepping forward. “We come seeking friends of ours. A dwarf and a human. Have you seen them?”
“Name’s Yeemick. And I might’ve seen ‘em.” The goblin sneered. He hopped up, trotted over to the far side of the wall and came back dragging a slumped figure bound in ropes. The goblin grabbed the figure by the hair and lifted its head to reveal the severely beaten face of Sildar Halwinter. “This one of ‘em?”
Sonny stepped forward, but Verne held out his arm. “Yes,” the elf replied. “Sildar is one of the friends we seek. But what of the other?”
“Y’mean the dwarf?” Yeemick stroked his chin in feigned contemplation. “Ah, well that one I’m not so sure about. May have to jog my memory a bit, eh?”
“What do you want?” Viola growled, her hands tense around the blades at her hip.
“I s’ppose what any good goblin wants.” he replied. “A million gold pieces and a castle to keep it in. But lookin’ at you lot, I don’t think you have that spare, eh? So p’raps you help in a diff’rent way.”
“Again,” Viola snarled. “What. Do. You. Want?”
“Ah, touchy, that one is.” the goblin laughed. “Fair enough. I want control of the cave. Strictly speakin’ I’m not the leader of this outfit. That special honor belongs to Klarg- big brutish fella. Runs us into the ground, he does. Sends us out on raids just so we can find a silly little map and a fistful of copper. A waste, if you ask me.”
“So what do you want us to do about it?” Sonny asked.
“Well I don’t have to spell it out for you, do I?” Yeemick asked, annoyed. “I want you to go to the treasure room, cut off his sodding head and deliver it to me. That’s what you adventurer types are all about, right?”
“And if we do this, you’ll let Sildar go?” Verne asked.
“You have my word,” he replied.
“And you’ll tell us where Gundren is, too?” Sonny added.
“If I can remember, of course.” the goblin grinned, flashing a set of mossy green teeth. “Memory ain’t what it used to be in my old age.”
Verne frowned, then said. “I’m afraid we’ll have to decline your offer. In my life, I’ve known goblins to be many things, but ‘trustworthy’ isn’t one of them.”
Yeemick snarled, “Suit yerself then. Get ‘em boys!” And with that rallying cry, the goblins rushed forward, blades drawn.
Quick as a flash, Viola grabbed her swords and slashed out at one of the goblins, who avoided one of her blades, but got caught on the backswing of another.
In retaliation, it lunged forward with a blade of its own, but couldn’t find its mark with the nimble halfling, who dodged effortlessly to the side.
Three more goblins advanced, one swiping ineffectually at Peri, another failing to pierce Sonny’s armor and the third making a beeline for Verne. Ordinarily, an attack such as this would be no problem for the seasoned ranger, but with both hands occupied by his bow, he was unprepared, and let out a cry of pain as the goblin’s scimitar pierced his side.
Peri, seeing this unfold, drew their holy symbol with one paw and their mace in another. With a quick prayer, they mended the wound of their ally while simultaneously smacking their opponent with their mace.
The final of the floor goblins charged at Rose, who easily parried its sword stroke with a swing of her staff, responding in kind with a burst of flame.
Wounded and in close-quarters, Verne dropped his bow, instead opting for the dagger he kept stowed on his side. Moving with speed and precision, the elf pierced the leathers of his goblin assailant, drawing blood.
Hearing the labored breath of his companion, Sonny turned over his shoulder toward Verne, missing his target entirely as he did. “You alright, Verne?” he asked, nervously.
“For all our sakes, my friend,” the elf gasped, “please focus on yourself.”
Yeemick, seeing this, smirked as he knocked an arrow into his shortbow. With a sickening twang, he loosed his shot, which found its mark in Verne’s chest.
There was a moment of tense silence, and time in the cave seemed to slow. The members of the party watched in horror as their beloved friend and mentor fell to his knees.
Viola, with eyes ablaze with fury, lashed out with her blades, effortlessly cutting down the goblin before her.
Sonny, stepping between Verne and the goblins, let loose a war cry as three of them concentrated their attacks on him. He parried two of the strikes and shrugged off the third, before slamming his shield into the face of his attacker.
Peri, whose eyes were clouded with tears, swung their mace feebly toward the laughing faces of the goblin attackers.
And Rose, in a rare moment of shock, stood frozen as the goblin she’d easily parried before took advantage of her shock with a slash of its scimitar. Thankfully for the young witch, she wasn’t one to remain startled for long. In her fury, she drew her wand, and with a flourish of her wrist, let loose three darts of pink light, which each homed in on a goblin, bursting on impact and dispatching them in a flash of arcane energy.
Verne lifted his head. Though the elf clung to life by the fingernails, he was not one to let his allies down. With a shaking breath, he thrust his dagger from underneath Sonny’s arm, finding purchase in the neck of one of the goblins. But the momentum of the strike quashed the elf’s tedious balance, and he pitched forward to the ground.
Yeemick, realizing that the tide was turning, grabbed Sildar, and held him above the edge of the escarpment. “That’s enough!” he yelled, and all in the cavern went still. “Let me make something clear to you lot. I have the power here. Not you. You either do what I say, or the human gets it. Now drop your weapons.”
Rose, Sonny, Peri and Viola all turned to Verne, who staggered to his feet, but nodded, his eyes never leaving the escarpment. The party dropped their weapons and took a step back.
“Thank you for that. Ya bleedin’ idiots.” The goblin cackled as he threw Sildar’s unconscious form off the escarpment and quickly grabbed his shortbow from the ground.
Unfortunately for him, the party was far faster than he had anticipated.
Viola snatched up her short swords, making quick work of the final goblin on the ground.
Peri bounded over to Sildar in an attempt to heal the warrior’s wounds. But upon seeing the battered, broken form of their fallen friend, the tabaxi froze. Tears welled in their eyes once more, as they were faced with the now-familiar fear of death.
Rose snatched her staff and Verne his bow from the ground. They each took a moment to line up their shots before firing off a burst of flame and a single arrow, each finding their mark and dispatching the cretinous villain atop the escarpment.
With the threat of the goblins neutralized for now, attention shifted to Sildar. Peri stooped over his body, desperately choking back sobs as they attempted to patch his wounds. Seeing his friend struggle, Sonny ran over and placed a firm hand on the tabaxi’s shoulder.
“Hey pal,” the fighter said, sternly. “I appreciate the effort, but it doesn’t look like you’re getting very far. Mind if I step in?”
Peri’s eyes widened, but they nodded, shifting to the side to give the warrior space. After a brief once-over, Sonny quickly reset and bound Sildar’s leg, forming a makeshift tourniquet from Sildar’s own clothes. He then used various bandages and supplies across the various packs of the party members to stem the blood flow and cover the wounds. After a few minutes’ work, Sonny was done. And though it was faint, the party could hear Sildar breathing.
When Sonny was done, he stepped back and took a deep breath. He turned to find the rest of the party staring.
“What?” he asked, embarrassed.
“That was impressive, Sonny.” Verne said.
“Where did you learn to do that?” Rose asked. “Can you teach me?”
“Uh, sure.” Sonny replied. “Growing up on the farm we had to deal with lots of injuries- the animals, the workers, my brothers and sisters. I must've fixed dozens of broken legs (though this is my first human one, I guess) and stopping bleeding's no hassle either so long as you know what you're doing.”
“Yeah,” Peri offered. “Good job, Sonny.” The cleric looked at the ground, their ears tucked down in shame. They had stopped crying, but they looked absolutely miserable.
“Perhaps we should take a rest.” Verne suggested. “Once Sildar regains consciousness, we can ask him about Gundren's whereabouts and what to do next.”
Everyone nodded and the party sat down for a much-needed respite.
Sounds super exciting, I like the mix of your characters, there is a lot of potential for interesting dynamics in it. Looking forward to reading more of the story!
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For a while now, I've been using the LMoP campaign as a framework for a story that I use as a warm-up and palate cleanser for and from my main work. Figured I'd share some of it here for folks interested in reading fantasy stories in smaller, more digestible bites while still scratching that specific D&D fiction itch. So without further ado, here are the introductory stories of our heroes: Rose (Hexblood Wizard), Sonny (Human Fighter), Verne (Wood Elf Ranger), Peri (Tabaxi Cleric) and Viola (Lightfoot Halfling Rogue). I hope you enjoy!
LMoP - Chapter 0: The Road to Phandalin (Rose)
15 Tarsakh 1491 DR
Prepared Spells
Disguise Self
Magic Missile
Shield
Sleep
Component Pouch
1/4lb charcoal
5 sticks incense
1 pkg herbs
15 rose petals
Dear Diary,
This journey has proven to be a bit more complicated than I thought it would be. Waterdeep ended up being a bust, and while I'm sure the Eltorchul, Wands and Waymoot Magical Academies are all fine schools, I think I've outgrown the classroom at this point. Not to be one of those mages, but I mastered most of their third-year curriculums before I could walk. Perks of being raised by a witch, I suppose.
On the bright side, in talking to headmaster Krothus of the Waymoot school, we learned of an abjurer who lives in Neverwinter. While I've always had better luck with charms and illusions than wards, it doesn't hurt to stay versatile (and besides, it could be helpful to learn some nondetection magic, in case Brunhilde decides to come looking for me.) It took some convincing to get Sonny to come along, and I suppose I can understand wanting to get back to his family, but who in their right mind would choose some smelly old farm over traveling the world? Thankfully, we got him to see reason, and were soon on our way, but not without some unpleasantness on our way out.
We stopped by the bookstore to check out their selection of grimoires, and Verne caught this grubby little halfling girl stealing books! Verne told the shop keeper that we would “see that she faced justice” but when we got outside, rather than turn the little thief over to the proper authorities, Verne offered her a place in our party! Can you believe that? I had always heard that their long lives gave elves wisdom, but now I'm not so sure. What I do know is, for as long as Viola's around, I'll be keeping a close eye on my spellbook.
As for our other party member, I have no complaints! Peri is an adorable little kitty, and a fascinating creature. I hope to learn more about divine magic through talking with them. Though previous attempts have been a bit…unfocused…I'm determined to keep trying. There's not a spell out there I can't crack!
Anyway, diary, it's getting late and I should probably get some sleep. A good witch needs her rest, after all! While things didn't work out in Waterdeep, I'm excited to see what comes from Neverwinter and beyond. Faerün is such a wonderful place, and I can't wait to see it all!
Until next time,
Rose
LMoP - Chapter 0: The Road to Phandalin (Sonny)
Hey Ma,
Sorry it's been a while since I last wrote you. We've been on the open road so dang long this is the first chance I've had to get to a post office. Is everything ok at home? I know the plan was for me to be back in time for Daisy's birthday, but it actually looks like I'll be gone a bit longer. Tell her I said sorry, and be sure to give her the bag of candies I'm sending along with the courier. Things kinda took a turn, so I'm actually writing this from the Lionshield Coster in Neverwinter.
I know we said we'd only be going as far as Waterdeep, and we did go there first- actually made it there in less time than we thought thanks to Mr. Verne's guidance. But when we got to the magic shop Rose talked about, she and the owner got to talking about some big-shot abjurer (whatever the heck that is) in Neverwinter, and she insisted that we go to meet him so she could learn his craft. I wanted to say no, honest, but you and pa taught me never to ignore a friend in need. I couldn't just let her and the others go up north by themselves. You always told me about how dangerous the countryside can be- what if they run into monsters?
Speaking of, there's all kindsa crazy critters out here. Clement and Gil would lose their beans if they saw half of it- giant birds with axes for faces, talking frog men, suits of armor that move without anyone in ‘em? Real spooky stuff. So far no gnolls, thankfully. After my run-in with our ‘cellar guest’ I've had my fill of the nasty things.
Anyway, sorry for taking so long to get back. We linked up with this dwarvish fella the other day, and he hired us to move some supplies down to Phandalin, but I promise, once that's done I'll be right back home to help with planting time. This adventuring business is fun and all, but I won't forget where I belong.
Love,
Sonny
LMoP - Chapter 0: The Road to Phandalin (Verne)
My Dearest Anais,
I write this journal in the hopes that I can capture the essence of my adventures so that I can relay them when next we meet. While you may find it strange that one could forget the wonders of a journey such as this, you must understand that after nearly three centuries of life, my perspective on what makes an important detail is slightly skewed. And as I am no natural storyteller, it falls to me in the present to record the goings-on so that I may share them accurately in the future.
You'll be pleased to know that I will not be undergoing this journey alone. Through a series of happenstances, I find myself with four young charges, each with stories of their own.
Rose, a witch traveling the world in search of magical secrets. Her appetite for knowledge is as all-consuming as the brightest flame.
Sonny, a warrior from Goldenfields leaving home for the first time. Ardent and steadfast as the earth he used to farm.
Peri, a tabaxi gifted with divine power. Yet despite the responsibility such a gift entails, they are as carefree as a summer breeze.
Viola, a thief who grew up on the streets of Waterdeep. Hers is a turbulent journey, ever-changing as the tides.
Our travels brought us to the city of Neverwinter, where we met a dwarf by the name of Gundren Rockseeker. Gundren claimed that he and his brothers had discovered an opportunity in Phandalin, and that he wished to set up shop there. He hired our party to transport a wagon of provisions along the High Road to the Triboar Trail, heading southeast. Though he wasn't very forthcoming about what this opportunity was, he assured us it was ‘something big’ and offered us ten gold pieces each for safely transporting his supplies to Barthen's Provisions, a trading post in Phandalin. Gundren set out ahead of us on horseback, accompanied by a warrior named Sildar Hallwinter. He claimed that he needed to arrive early to ‘take care of business’ once again refusing to elaborate on what that business was.
After securing the provisions we headed south from Neverwinter along the High Road. In the several days of travel, I got to know more about my young charges. Their names and basic histories, of course, but I find that those only give half the measure of a person. It's in the expressions and subtle behaviors that you truly begin to understand someone- something that I, with my elven senses, am well-equipped to perceive. Like Rose, with her notebook, constantly jotting down or sketching what she sees, ever-curious and delighted by new experiences. Or Sonny's glances across the wagon, ensuring that everyone is still safe, but lingering ever-so-slightly on Rose, with an expression that tragically overlooks Viola, who gazes at him in much the same way. And then of course there's Peri, for whom my sharp eyes and ears are not only useful, but indeed a necessity, as their curiosity has proven to be much less constructive than Rose's (thankfully nothing of value has been destroyed…yet.)
As we make our final push eastward down the Triboar Trail, I end this entry with excitement for what's to come. I eagerly await the moment I am able to share my tale with you, and I pray to Mielikki, mistress of the woods, that your rest is a peaceful one.
With love everlasting,
Verne
LMoP - Chapter 0: The Road to Phandalin (Peri)
15 Tarsakh
Prayer
“I gratefully thank You, O Morning Lord, for restoring the sun to heavens above.
Abundant is your faithfulness.”
Thanks
Thank you for giving me the chance to spread your teachings.
Thank you for raising the sun each morning to light my path.
Thank you for sending the bird that flew into the cart. It was very tasty.
Blessings
I pray for blessings for my allies, who keep me company on the road.
I pray that the red one can find some new magic spells. She seemed sad when she didn't get any in Waterdeep.
I pray for good health for the yellow one's family. He talks about them a lot.
I pray for guidance for the green one. So he can lead us where we need to go.
And I'll pray for the purple one too, I guess. Even though she's really mean.
Closing
Thank you Lathander, Inspiration’s Dawn, for all you do. For the warmth and light you wash over us. Till the next dawn comes.
Amen.
LMoP - Chapter 0: The Road to Phandalin (Viola)
Currently on the road to Phandalin.
The elf told me we'd find treasure on this trip, but so far it's just been long, stupid cart rides and meetings with boring old wizards.
Guess I can't complain too much. Food in my belly and a roof over my head is better than starving in an alley back in Waterdeep. But still, the people I'm traveling with are driving me nuts.
The cat keeps fiddling with things in the cart and breaking them, and the elf does nothing to stop him. When he brought me into this team, I figured he must be in charge, but he doesn't do anything to corral anyone. He just sits there with this far-out look on his face while everything goes to sod around him. If Rockseeker docks our pay for broken goods I'm not giving up my share, that's for sure.
The girl is the worst. Always shooting me these side-eye glances across the cart and clutching her stupid book bag. Why would I want her ratty old books or her bag full of garbage anyway? Besides, what kind of weirdo keeps bundles of charcoal, incense, herbs and flower petals with them on the road? Creepy witch.
Sonny is ok, I guess. He's…nice.
Once we get to Phandalin, we better find some treasure or something, or I might bail on this stupid trip.
- V
Chapter 1: Goblin Ambush
Spring along the Sword Coast is a marvelous thing. The breeze blows sweet with the scent of flowers, the air is rich with bird song, and colorful wagons roll down the road, following the promise of wealth and adventure.
On the 15th of Tarsakh, one such wagon trundled down the road bearing a motley crew of adventurers. At the helm was Sonny, a tall blond-haired youth who beckoned the horses on in a gentle tone. Immediately behind him in the wagon was Rose, a girl with magenta robes who thoughtfully twirled her hair while poring over a leather-bound tome. At the back of the wagon were Peri and Viola, a tabaxi and halfling respectively, who were both silently fuming from the argument they'd just had. Meanwhile Verne, a wizened wood elf, sat between the two of them, taking a much-needed rest after mediating said argument.
The party was heading south on the orders of Gundren Rockseeker, a dwarf that they had met in the city of Neverwinter. They were unsure who or what the goods in the wagon were for, as Gundren had been rather secretive when discussing their contract. He simply stated that he and his brothers had found “something big” and offered the party ten gold pieces each for escorting his supplies safely to Barthen's Provisions- a trading post in the rough-and-tumble settlement of Phandalin, a couple days’ travel southeast of Neverwinter. Gundren himself had set out ahead on horseback, along with a warrior escort named Sildar Hallwinter, claiming he needed to arrive early to “take care of business.”
The party had spent the last few days following the High Road south from Neverwinter, and had just recently veered east along the Triboar Trail. So far, they hadn't encountered any trouble, but knew that the countryside could be dangerous, especially for a supply wagon. Bandits and outlaws had been known to lurk along the trail, so they were on the lookout for anything suspicious.
A few hours after they'd made their turn, the party reached a stretch where the woods pressed close to the trail, with a steep embankment and dense thickets on either side. It was there that Sonny spotted two dun-colored lumps lying about fifty feet ahead of the wagon. He called back to Verne, whose elven senses were better equipped to observe the situation. Verne climbed forward, and after a moment informed the group that the two forms were dead horses, and that he planned to go investigate. The elf lighted down to the ground and strode over to the horses, taking care to scan the clearing for any sign of the ones responsible.
Upon closer inspection, Verne found that each of the bodies had several black-feathered arrows sticking out of it. The saddlebags had been looted and nearby on the ground was an empty leather map case. The elf gently picked up the case and turned it over in his hands, finding the emblem of the Rockseeker clan emblazoned on the side. He was about to turn and inform his fellows, when all of a sudden he heard a rustle in the thicket to his left. His muscles tensed and he slowly put his hand up towards the wagon, holding up four fingers and gesturing sharply toward the forest with his head.
In an instant, a twang rang out in the clearing and Verne dropped quickly to the ground, narrowly avoiding two arrows as they whizzed over his head. The elf scrambled to draw his bow as four goblins emerged from the brush, two on each side of the road. The party, seeing their ally in danger, sprang into action.
First was Rose, who stood up and pulled a blue satin bag and a blackthorn wand from her hip. She reached into the bag, pulled out a handful of rose petals and began to recite an incantation as the petals swirled in the air. With a flick of her wrist and a flash of arcane energy, two of the goblins slumped to the ground.
Next came Sonny, who pulled hard on the reins and commanded the horses, who had begun to buck in the chaos, to calm down. Impressively, the horses heeded the young warrior and were still, providing him enough time to leap from the wagon and run to Verne’s side, where he planted himself, shield drawn, between his elven ally and the remaining goblins.
With Sonny providing defensive cover, Verne jumped to his feet and quickly fired an arrow, which embedded itself into the chest of one of their assailants, felling it in one shot.
The final goblin, seeing how easily its allies had been dispatched, made the wise decision to retreat and live another day. However, a flash of radiant light from Peri and the slashing of Viola's twin blades cut those notions (and the goblin) to ribbons.
When the dust settled, the party gathered itself and took stock of the situation. On one hand, none of them had been harmed, which was certainly a good thing. But on the other, it appeared that their benefactor and his escort hadn't been so lucky.
“Well that's just great,” Viola whined. “I guess we can forget about getting paid.”
“Who cares about that?” Peri cried. “The Bearded One is in trouble! We have to help him!”
“I'm with Peri,” said Sonny. “We can't just sit on our hands while a friend is in need.”
“‘Friend’ feels like a bit much, considering we met the man three days ago.” Viola mumbled. “But alright, say we do go on a rescue mission. Where do we start? I don't think these guys are feeling very talkative.” She gestured with her toe at the dismembered goblins at her feet.
“Thankfully,” Rose drawled, “not all of us go around butchering intelligent creatures.” She gestured to the two goblins that she had downed which, upon closer inspection, were simply asleep, one of them snoring loudly.
“Ok, princess,” Viola sneered, “the next time someone starts shooting at us, I'll be sure to sing them a lullaby, too.”
Rose rolled her eyes and ignored the comment, instead asking, “I don't suppose any of you have something to tie them up with?”
Sonny eagerly stepped forward, pulling a thick cord of rope from his pack. “I've got it, Rose. Just sit tight and I'll have ‘em hog-tied in no time.”
Viola scoffed and folded her arms. “‘I've got it Rose’.” she mumbled. “I swear, it's like watching a dog beg for scraps.” The halfling turned away, accidentally meeting the silent, knowing gaze of Verne. After a brief moment, the young thief turned her eyes downward.
Once the goblins had been secured, Rose released the enchantment on them and they began to struggle like mad to get free. Verne held up a hand and then said something in the Goblin tongue that made the two stop struggling. He appeared to ask them a question, and the two of them nodded. “Now,” the elf continued, this time in Common, “We have several questions for you, and it would be in your best interest to answer them truthfully. We do not wish to hurt you.”
“Speak for yourself,” Viola snarled. The halfling plucked a dagger from her left boot and tossed it into the ground, mere inches away from where the goblins sat. The goblins began to shake as Verne, unfazed, said, “Well, I suppose most of us do not wish to hurt you.”
With that display of intimidation, the goblins agreed to tell the party everything they knew. Gundren and Sildar had been captured a little over a day ago by a goblin hunting party and taken back to their leader, Klarg. Klarg answered to King Grol, chief of the Cragmaw tribe, who dwelled in Cragmaw Castle, which lie about twenty miles northeast of the Cragmaw hideout in Neverwinter Wood.
According to the goblins, Klarg had received a message from King Grol a few days ago saying that somebody named the Black Spider was paying the Cragmaws to find the dwarf Gundren Rockseeker, capture him, and send him and anything he was carrying back to King Grol. Klarg followed his orders, and had Gundren ambushed and taken along with his personal effects, including a map. Gundren and the map had been delivered to King Grol as instructed, while the dwarf's human companion was being held in the “eating cave.”
“Eating Cave?” Sonny cried. “Y'all eat people?!”
“No!” The goblins cried, disgusted. “Would never eat humans! Probly taste terrible! We eat normal food like fish. Sometimes rabbits!”
“Then why are you keeping Sildar in your ‘eating cave’?” Rose asked.
“That where we have most goblins at a time.” One of the goblins replied. “Many goblin keep watch while they snack.”
“But not on human.” The other goblin snarled and stuck its tongue out at Sonny.
“I-I'm sorry,” Sonny stammered, “I didn't mean-”
Verne held up a silencing hand and gave Sonny a pointed but gentle look. “I apologize for my friend's insult. We are grateful for your help today, and in honor of our agreement, I will see that you are not harmed.” The elf plucked Viola's dagger from the dirt and held it momentarily before him, the goblins eyes growing wide as they stared at the gleaming blade. Then, with one swift motion, Verne cut through the rope and took a step back as the goblins scrambled over one another and fled into the forest.
Viola started to move after them, but Verne caught the young halfling and stopped her with a firm hand on her shoulder. “What're you doing?” She snarled. “They're getting away!”
“Yes, they are.” Verne replied, handing the dagger back to its owner. “As we agreed they'd be able to.”
“As you agreed to.” Viola growled.
“You wish to kill them, then?” Verne asked. “Why would that be?”
“They shot at us with arrows!” Viola cried. “That isn't reason enough for you?”
“As I recall,” the elf replied calmly, “our attackers shot at me. And yet I bear no grudge against them. Why, I wonder, do you?”
“Oh, never mind.” Viola grumbled, thrusting her dagger back in its holster. “With all the time you spent lecturing, they're probably long gone by now. So now what? They told us where Cragmaw Castle is, but not the hideout where they're keeping Hallwinter.”
“That much, I can discern for myself.” The elf said as he strode over to where the goblins had initially broken through the brush. Hidden behind the thicket on the north side of the trail was a path that stretched far into the wood, heading northwest. Verne pointed out several sets of footprints and two deep tracks in the dirt, denoting about a dozen goblins, as well as two human-sized bodies that had been hauled away from the ambush site.
Noting the trail, the party decided to steer the wagon away from the road and tie off the horses while they followed the hidden path on foot. Verne took point, with Viola close behind, Rose in the middle, then Peri and Sonny at the rear.
About ten minutes into their trek, this marching order proved advantageous, as Verne's heightened senses alerted him to the traps that the goblins had set. The first being a snare trap that Viola quickly disabled and pocketed for later use, and the second being a pit trap, which had been cleverly disguised with branches and leaves, but not cleverly enough for a seasoned ranger. Once the party had successfully navigated the trail, they came upon a break in the forest overlooking a rolling hillside and a narrow river. Near the base of the hill, Verne noticed two goblins lazily standing guard on the other side of the river, clearly marking the entrance to the Cragmaw hideout.
With their query in sight, the goal was clear. To infiltrate the goblin hideout, rescue Sildar Hallwinter, and retrieve the goods that had been stolen by the Cragmaws. But for now: it was time to plan.
Lost Mine of Phandelver is the official Starter Kit adventure with a good balance of combat, exploration, and social interaction. It's one of the the most played adventures of all time and a common touchstone for many players. Its best hooks are for characters motivated by personal prospects, uncovering lore, or helping the citizens of Phandalin. It runs levels 1-5. Its main story will likely take a couple months of sessions [or your own best estimate], possibly more, partially dependent on the side quests you pursue. https://100001****/
Chapter 2.1: The Cave Mouth
Obscured by the brush of the forest, Verne observed the scene across the stream and reported his findings to the rest of the party, who stood a few paces back. He could see that the mouth of the cave was fairly large, easily able to fit two people standing abreast, though the stream flowing out of it would make doing so difficult. On either side of the stream were dense briar thickets, which obscured much of the far side from the elf's view, but upon further inspection were revealed to cover a dry path that fed into the cave. Within one briar thicket was a small, hollowed out area that formed a blind from which two goblin sentries stood watch. Wooden planks had been laid to flatten out the briars and provided room for the two goblins to lie hidden and watch the area- something they were thankfully not doing very attentively.
Once the scene had been thoroughly surveilled, the party decided that Verne and Viola, the two stealthiest members of the group, should sneak up and dispatch the sentries so that the others could pass through undetected. Peri, Rose and Sonny watched as their two dexterous companions crossed over to the briar thickets. Verne, ever the seasoned ranger, squatted low and crept slowly along the ground, his green cloak offering ample camouflage against the foliage. Viola, by contrast, darted quickly into position- her light steps and silent approach as natural to her as breathing. The two soon came upon the goblins: Viola immediately next to the blind and Verne some paces back. With a quiet nod of assent the two readied their weapons. They would only have one chance at this- they had to make it count.
Viola struck first, slashing at the nearest goblin with her twin short swords. With the element of surprise on her side, she cut down her foe with ease. Surprised, the other goblin jumped up, possibly to run into the cave to warn his compatriots, but he never got the chance. With a flash of movement and the twang of a bowstring, the goblin soon joined his fallen comrade. With the guards dispatched, Verne waved the rest of the party over, and they reconvened at the mouth of the cave.
Why is the green dragon at thundertree so strong
Chapter 2.2: The Kennel
Just inside the cave mouth, uneven stone steps led up to a small, dank chamber on the east side of the passage. The cave narrowed to a steep fissure at the far end, where the air was heavy with the stench of animals. Savage snarls and the sounds of rattling chains denoted three wolves that were chained up just inside the opening. Each wolf’s chain led to an iron rod driven into the base of a stalagmite. Upon seeing the party, the wolves lunged, loosening the iron rods that bound them.
Peri scrambled backwards, the young tabaxi shaking from head to toe. “They have d-dogs here?” they stammered, hiding as best they could behind Sonny.
“I’d hardly call them ‘dogs’,” Rose sniffed. “Though I suppose they do share a common ancestor.”
“Oh, I don’t know,” Viola chimed in, smirking at the Cleric’s obvious terror. “I think they might make good guard dogs. Maybe we should take them with us?”
“No, no, no!” Peri yowled as they shook their head and covered their ears.
“Viola, cut it out.” Sonny sighed. “Look, the longer we stand here, the more riled they're gonna get. So let’s get a move on already.”
The other three nodded and began to press on into the tunnel, but Verne didn’t move a muscle. “Verne?” Sonny asked. “Everything alright-” the fighter stopped, in shock. Throughout their travels, Verne had been a stoic companion, approaching all situations with measured calm and reason. That was why it was so alarming for Sonny to find a look of abject fury across the elf's face. Suddenly, Verne strode forward into the chamber, ignoring the protests of his traveling companions.
The wolves snapped at the elf, who stood just beyond the length of the chains. Verne held up one of his hands toward the wolves, while the other fished around for something in his pack. He plucked out three packets of trail rations and extended them toward the wolves, who by degrees, stopped their snarling. The rest of the party watched with bated breath as the ranger extended his offering. The largest of the wolves leaned forward, and Verne extended the food closer to her. Apparently satisfied, the wolf began to eat the food from the ranger's hand, and the other two quickly followed. Verne gently stroked behind the ears of the wolves as he set to work delicately undoing the fastenings of their collars.
Once his work was done, Verne slowly stood up and drew another portion of trail rations from his pack. The wolves quickly stepped toward the ranger, but he held up his hand once more and the beasts heeded. Moving slowly, Verne walked back to the others, never taking his eyes off the wolves, who followed at a similar pace. Sonny held out his arm to shield the others behind him, but made no move to draw his weapon. The young fighter simply kept his eyes on Verne, trusting that the elf wouldn’t put them in harm's way. After a tense moment, Verne tossed the trail rations to the mouth of the cave and gestured for the wolves to follow, and without a moment's hesitation, they bounded over to the food, gobbled it up and ran to freedom.
Once the wolves had disappeared into the thicket, Verne turned to his companions and said, “I apologize, friends. Perhaps that was foolish of me, but I could not stand idle while innocent creatures were in need.”
“I’d hardly call those things ‘innocent’.” Peri mumbled.
If Verne had heard the tabaxi’s comment, he made no outward sign of it. He simply gathered his pack and pressed further into the cave, with the others quickly following.
Chapter 2.3: Flood!
The main passage from the cave mouth climbed steeply upward, the stream plunging and splashing down its west side. As they pressed onward, the light dimmed until the path was completely cloaked in shadow. In the dim light, they could faintly make out a side passage that led west across the other side of the stream, but that passage was just as dark as the one ahead of them.
“I can’t see a lick down that way.” Sonny sighed. “Anybody got a torch?”
Peri perked up and lifted their mace. “Who needs a torch, when you’ve the light of the Dawnfather?” The mace suddenly shone with a bright blue light that illuminated the whole cavern.
“Put that out, dummy!” Viola hissed. “You want all the goblins to know we’re here?”
Peri’s smile fell, but Rose stepped forward. “Don’t yell at him!” she scolded. “At least he’s trying to come up with solutions. Perhaps you’ve forgotten, but humans and halflings can’t see in the dark. What other choice do we have?”
Viola opened her mouth to reply, but Verne stepped between them with both hands raised, “Enough,” he said, “all of you. Viola, I understand that caution is important, but as we are in unfamiliar territory with creatures that can see far better in the dark than we can, it would serve us well to have a light source. That being said, I agree that it would be best to not announce our presence prematurely. Peri, is there a way in which you can dim the light, or put it out as needed, should we hear enemies approach?”
Peri nodded, and as quickly as the light had come on, it was snuffed.
“Excellent.” Verne said. “Here is what I suggest as a compromise. As I have no trouble seeing in darkness, I can scout ahead while Peri follows with the light. Should I find any trouble, I will signal to you to snuff the light and hide. Is that acceptable?”
“No way.” Sonny stated. “I won’t have you put yourself in harm's way like that. What if something happens and we can’t get to you in time to help?”
“Your concern is touching,” Verne smiled, “but I’ll not be far, and I assure you that at the first hint of danger I will rush back to your side. On that you have my word.”
“We trust you, Verne.” Rose said, silencing Sonny with a stern look.
The elf nodded with a smile before striding off into the darkness. The remaining party members grouped tightly together before Peri’s mace lit up once more, illuminating the path forward.
The passage continued up beyond another set of uneven steps ahead, bending eastward as it went. A waterfall sounded out from a larger cavern further down. In the shadows of the ceiling to the north, they could just make out the dim shape of a rickety wooden bridge crossing over the passage ahead. Another passage intersected that one, twenty feet above the floor. The party looked around the cave, searching anxiously for any signs of goblins hiding in the shadows, but thankfully found none. And with no signal from Verne, the party maintained their pace. A few minutes later however, they felt a faint rumble and heard a roar that seemed to be growing louder with each passing second. Verne came sprinting around the bend of the passage shouting for everyone to press tight against the wall before a surge of water came cascading through the cave.
Heeding Verne's warning, Rose, Sonny and Viola managed to grab handholds on the wall to anchor themselves in place and avoid being swept away, but poor Peri hadn't been so lucky. The cleric was caught full force in the chest and with a desperate yowl was sucked under the water. Without a moment's hesitation, Sonny released his hold on the stone and dove after them.
Sonny was by no means a great swimmer. Goldenfields was, after all, a farming town without the luxury of beaches or lakefronts. However, he remembered well the lessons he'd learned on fishing trips to the Dessarin River with his father and brothers, and employed those skills now in his rescue effort. The stream had carried the poor tabaxi nearly to the mouth of the cave, where they scrambled to keep their head above the water, weighed down by waterlogged armor. Sonny quickly waded over, lifted Peri from the water and placed them gently on the dry path beside the stream.
Peri gasped for breath amidst choked sobs, their mace lying uselessly on the ground, having long-since lost its light.
“You alright, pal?” Sonny asked nervously.
“N-no!” Peri cried. “This place is too scary. There's dogs and water and Viola is so mean!” The young tabaxi burst into tears, burying their face in their paws.
Sonny knelt down and placed his hand on the young cleric's shoulder. “Try not to take what Viola says too personal.” He said. “She's got a rough way of speaking, but she means well. Y’know, she’s probably just as scared as you are. I think maybe she just doesn't know how to say it.”
“But why does she always go after me?” Peri whined. “She doesn't yell at you, or Rose or Verne.”
“Well yeah, we weren't the ones who tracked flour all over the cart.” Sonny laughed. “But if you want, I can talk to her about easing up on you. As for the rest of it, think about it this way: you've already faced the wolves and the stream, and you survived. You're a tough'n, Peri, and there's nothing these goblins can throw at you that you can't handle.”
Peri perked up at the fighter's words. “You really think so?”
“Definitely.” Sonny stood up and held out his hand. “Now let's head back to the others, huh? They might need our help.”
Peri took the fighters hand and stood, picking up their mace as they padded down the path. With a quick prayer and a flourish of their paw, the mace took up its light once more, and the two adventurers walked down the passage to rejoin their party.
Chapter 2.4: Twin Pools Cavern
Once Peri and Sonny returned, Verne gave them each a once over to make sure they weren’t injured, then informed them of the new plan. Given that the flood was likely not a natural occurrence, and instead a defense mechanism triggered by the goblins, they could no longer rely on the element of surprise. And as they had no way of knowing how many goblins resided in the Cragmaw hideout, they would need to remain on high alert. The party drew their weapons and readied themselves for battle as they walked slowly down the passage.
They crept along until they came across another cavern, which was half filled by two pools, one of which was now empty. A narrow waterfall high in the eastern wall fed the pool, which drained into the western end of the chamber to form the stream that flowed out of the cave mouth below. Low fieldstone walls served as dams to hold the water in, and a wide exit stood to the south, while two smaller passages led west. The sound of the waterfall echoed through the cavern, making it difficult to hear. Standing at the center of the cavern were four goblins, all with shortbows at the ready. In a split second, the two parties sprung into action.
Viola moved first, running to the center of the room and drawing both blades with dizzying speed. Her first stroke easily felled one of the goblins, with the second finding its mark in another, but not cutting nearly as deep.
Rose quickly followed, aiming her staff and reciting a word of power before a fire bolt shot forth, badly singing the goblin Viola had previously injured.
Sonny ran forward, interposing himself between Viola and the other two goblins before slashing at one of them with his sword, but missing his target.
The injured goblin, shrieking with fury and pain, leaped back from its assailants before firing a shot at Viola, which embedded itself deep into the rogue’s belly. Viola staggered, but managed to maintain her footing.
Verne, seeing how fraught the situation was, wasted no time in firing off an arrow of his own, easily dispatching the archer that had wounded the young halfling.
Peri, seeing an ally injured, whipped out their holy symbol and uttered a word of divine power. With a pulse of golden light, Viola's wound began to knit itself together, pushing the arrow out and closing with hardly a sign that there had been a wound there at all. The tabaxi then bounded forward, smashing the still-glowing mace into the head of one of the goblins, dropping it instantly.
The last goblin, seeing its allies dispatched so easily, turned and scrambled for the southern exit. Though Sonny and Peri each tried their best to catch the goblin as he escaped, the creature proved too nimble, and quickly disappeared into the shadows beyond.
“Damn!” Viola cursed. She squinted through the darkness, but to no avail. The goblin was simply gone.
“What do we do now?” Peri asked. “Even I can't see where he went.”
“Well,” Verne mused, “we could give chase, but he likely ran in that direction because there were reinforcements there. And we've no guarantee that we'll have numbers on our side.”
“But if that's where the rest of the goblins are,” Sonny offered, “it could be where they're keeping Gundren and Sildar.”
“I don't think so.” Rose replied. “Goblins usually keep their “prizes” in a hoard room, far from the barracks to avoid any temptation of thievery (which, frankly, rarely works.) If that one's plan was to get reinforcements, then we'll likely find our friends that way.”
She pointed down the western path, which led across the rickety bridge they'd seen earlier.
“It appears we have a choice to make.” Verne folded his arms. “And I suggest we make it soon, before someone else decides for us. Do we go down the southern path to follow the goblin, or down the western path to try and find the treasure room?”
“My vote is for the western path.” Rose stated, matter-of-factly.
“I’m inclined to agree with you.” Verne replied.
“And what, we just let the goblin go?” Viola hissed. “Those little bastards shot me!”
“Which is why I’d think you’d want to approach with caution.” Rose drawled. “Or are you in a hurry to be shot again?”
Viola grumbled under her breath, but didn’t answer.
“I dunno about this, Rose,” Sonny interjected. “No disrespect, but we know for sure where the goblin went. This treasure hoard is just a hunch.”
“It’s not just a hunch!” the witch huffed. “I’ve done my research. I know how goblin dens operate, and I guarantee that they have a treasure hoard down that path.”
Sonny raised his hands in defeat. “Alright, I believe you,” he said. “We can head that way and see what we find. I just don’t feel great about going in blind.”
“Then we proceed with caution.” Verne replied, fitting an arrow to his bow. “We stay close together and proceed as a unit. Understood?”
The others nodded and fell into their marching order. Verne took point, with Rose right behind, Peri in the middle followed by Viola and Sonny at the rear. As they walked along the stony path, Viola leaned forward toward Peri.
“Hey.” she whispered. “About earlier. Thanks, y’know?”
Peri beamed. “Of course!” they chirped. “Anything for a frie-”
“Keep your voice down,” Viola hissed. “We’re still in a goblin cave, remember?”
Peri’s ears turned down. “Right, sorry.” The cleric turned back to the front in silence, still elated at having made progress. A sentiment shared by Sonny, whose grin didn’t go unnoticed by Viola.
“What are you looking at, hayseed?” The thief grumbled.
“Nothin’ at all,” the fighter smirked.
Viola’s head snapped back to the front, her face flushed.
Chapter 2.5: Goblin Den
The party eventually came to the bridge which, despite its precarious appearance, was fairly easy to cross, even for the heavier members of the group.
Following the passage, they eventually came to a large cave divided by a ten-foot-high escarpment. A steep natural staircase led from the lower portion to the upper ledge. The air was hazy with the smoke of a cooking fire, and pungent from the smell of poorly cured hides and unwashed goblins.
In the lower part of the cave, near the passage entrance, five goblins tended a large pot hanging over the cooking fire. They appeared to be arguing loudly over what ingredients to add to the pot, occasionally lashing out at each other with fists and elbows. Verne stepped closer, hoping to take them by surprise, but before he could loose an arrow, a scratchy voice yelled, “Oi, what’s this then?”
The elf turned to find a particularly fat goblin sidling up to the edge of the escarpment. The other goblins, hearing his cry, looked up from their work to find the party at the entrance of the cave. In a panic, they threw down their cooking implements and scrambled to find weapons. The party braced themselves for battle, before the leader of the goblins called out again. “Now hold on a tic!” he plopped down on the edge of the escarpment, his stubby legs dangling over the edge. “Before ye do anything stupid, tell me: who are ye and why’ve ye come into our home?”
The party looked at each other in surprise. They’d yet to encounter a goblin that didn’t attack first and ask questions later.
“I am Verne, of the Ardeep Forest.” Verne replied, stepping forward. “We come seeking friends of ours. A dwarf and a human. Have you seen them?”
“Name’s Yeemick. And I might’ve seen ‘em.” The goblin sneered. He hopped up, trotted over to the far side of the wall and came back dragging a slumped figure bound in ropes. The goblin grabbed the figure by the hair and lifted its head to reveal the severely beaten face of Sildar Halwinter. “This one of ‘em?”
Sonny stepped forward, but Verne held out his arm. “Yes,” the elf replied. “Sildar is one of the friends we seek. But what of the other?”
“Y’mean the dwarf?” Yeemick stroked his chin in feigned contemplation. “Ah, well that one I’m not so sure about. May have to jog my memory a bit, eh?”
“What do you want?” Viola growled, her hands tense around the blades at her hip.
“I s’ppose what any good goblin wants.” he replied. “A million gold pieces and a castle to keep it in. But lookin’ at you lot, I don’t think you have that spare, eh? So p’raps you help in a diff’rent way.”
“Again,” Viola snarled. “What. Do. You. Want?”
“Ah, touchy, that one is.” the goblin laughed. “Fair enough. I want control of the cave. Strictly speakin’ I’m not the leader of this outfit. That special honor belongs to Klarg- big brutish fella. Runs us into the ground, he does. Sends us out on raids just so we can find a silly little map and a fistful of copper. A waste, if you ask me.”
“So what do you want us to do about it?” Sonny asked.
“Well I don’t have to spell it out for you, do I?” Yeemick asked, annoyed. “I want you to go to the treasure room, cut off his sodding head and deliver it to me. That’s what you adventurer types are all about, right?”
“And if we do this, you’ll let Sildar go?” Verne asked.
“You have my word,” he replied.
“And you’ll tell us where Gundren is, too?” Sonny added.
“If I can remember, of course.” the goblin grinned, flashing a set of mossy green teeth. “Memory ain’t what it used to be in my old age.”
Verne frowned, then said. “I’m afraid we’ll have to decline your offer. In my life, I’ve known goblins to be many things, but ‘trustworthy’ isn’t one of them.”
Yeemick snarled, “Suit yerself then. Get ‘em boys!” And with that rallying cry, the goblins rushed forward, blades drawn.
Quick as a flash, Viola grabbed her swords and slashed out at one of the goblins, who avoided one of her blades, but got caught on the backswing of another.
In retaliation, it lunged forward with a blade of its own, but couldn’t find its mark with the nimble halfling, who dodged effortlessly to the side.
Three more goblins advanced, one swiping ineffectually at Peri, another failing to pierce Sonny’s armor and the third making a beeline for Verne. Ordinarily, an attack such as this would be no problem for the seasoned ranger, but with both hands occupied by his bow, he was unprepared, and let out a cry of pain as the goblin’s scimitar pierced his side.
Peri, seeing this unfold, drew their holy symbol with one paw and their mace in another. With a quick prayer, they mended the wound of their ally while simultaneously smacking their opponent with their mace.
The final of the floor goblins charged at Rose, who easily parried its sword stroke with a swing of her staff, responding in kind with a burst of flame.
Wounded and in close-quarters, Verne dropped his bow, instead opting for the dagger he kept stowed on his side. Moving with speed and precision, the elf pierced the leathers of his goblin assailant, drawing blood.
Hearing the labored breath of his companion, Sonny turned over his shoulder toward Verne, missing his target entirely as he did. “You alright, Verne?” he asked, nervously.
“For all our sakes, my friend,” the elf gasped, “please focus on yourself.”
Yeemick, seeing this, smirked as he knocked an arrow into his shortbow. With a sickening twang, he loosed his shot, which found its mark in Verne’s chest.
There was a moment of tense silence, and time in the cave seemed to slow. The members of the party watched in horror as their beloved friend and mentor fell to his knees.
Viola, with eyes ablaze with fury, lashed out with her blades, effortlessly cutting down the goblin before her.
Sonny, stepping between Verne and the goblins, let loose a war cry as three of them concentrated their attacks on him. He parried two of the strikes and shrugged off the third, before slamming his shield into the face of his attacker.
Peri, whose eyes were clouded with tears, swung their mace feebly toward the laughing faces of the goblin attackers.
And Rose, in a rare moment of shock, stood frozen as the goblin she’d easily parried before took advantage of her shock with a slash of its scimitar. Thankfully for the young witch, she wasn’t one to remain startled for long. In her fury, she drew her wand, and with a flourish of her wrist, let loose three darts of pink light, which each homed in on a goblin, bursting on impact and dispatching them in a flash of arcane energy.
Verne lifted his head. Though the elf clung to life by the fingernails, he was not one to let his allies down. With a shaking breath, he thrust his dagger from underneath Sonny’s arm, finding purchase in the neck of one of the goblins. But the momentum of the strike quashed the elf’s tedious balance, and he pitched forward to the ground.
Yeemick, realizing that the tide was turning, grabbed Sildar, and held him above the edge of the escarpment. “That’s enough!” he yelled, and all in the cavern went still. “Let me make something clear to you lot. I have the power here. Not you. You either do what I say, or the human gets it. Now drop your weapons.”
Rose, Sonny, Peri and Viola all turned to Verne, who staggered to his feet, but nodded, his eyes never leaving the escarpment. The party dropped their weapons and took a step back.
“Thank you for that. Ya bleedin’ idiots.” The goblin cackled as he threw Sildar’s unconscious form off the escarpment and quickly grabbed his shortbow from the ground.
Unfortunately for him, the party was far faster than he had anticipated.
Viola snatched up her short swords, making quick work of the final goblin on the ground.
Peri bounded over to Sildar in an attempt to heal the warrior’s wounds. But upon seeing the battered, broken form of their fallen friend, the tabaxi froze. Tears welled in their eyes once more, as they were faced with the now-familiar fear of death.
Rose snatched her staff and Verne his bow from the ground. They each took a moment to line up their shots before firing off a burst of flame and a single arrow, each finding their mark and dispatching the cretinous villain atop the escarpment.
With the threat of the goblins neutralized for now, attention shifted to Sildar. Peri stooped over his body, desperately choking back sobs as they attempted to patch his wounds. Seeing his friend struggle, Sonny ran over and placed a firm hand on the tabaxi’s shoulder.
“Hey pal,” the fighter said, sternly. “I appreciate the effort, but it doesn’t look like you’re getting very far. Mind if I step in?”
Peri’s eyes widened, but they nodded, shifting to the side to give the warrior space. After a brief once-over, Sonny quickly reset and bound Sildar’s leg, forming a makeshift tourniquet from Sildar’s own clothes. He then used various bandages and supplies across the various packs of the party members to stem the blood flow and cover the wounds. After a few minutes’ work, Sonny was done. And though it was faint, the party could hear Sildar breathing.
When Sonny was done, he stepped back and took a deep breath. He turned to find the rest of the party staring.
“What?” he asked, embarrassed.
“That was impressive, Sonny.” Verne said.
“Where did you learn to do that?” Rose asked. “Can you teach me?”
“Uh, sure.” Sonny replied. “Growing up on the farm we had to deal with lots of injuries- the animals, the workers, my brothers and sisters. I must've fixed dozens of broken legs (though this is my first human one, I guess) and stopping bleeding's no hassle either so long as you know what you're doing.”
“Yeah,” Peri offered. “Good job, Sonny.” The cleric looked at the ground, their ears tucked down in shame. They had stopped crying, but they looked absolutely miserable.
“Perhaps we should take a rest.” Verne suggested. “Once Sildar regains consciousness, we can ask him about Gundren's whereabouts and what to do next.”
Everyone nodded and the party sat down for a much-needed respite.
Sounds super exciting, I like the mix of your characters, there is a lot of potential for interesting dynamics in it. Looking forward to reading more of the story!