Dungeons and Dragons Day 12: A New Ally
The morning after the Players arrived in the Dwarven City, they discussed in their lodgings what to do first. Their goal was to understand the political arrangements within the Dwarven City. Deciding to talk to commoners first, the group elected to ask the guards for directions to the slums.
Runeforge:
On the way, the Death Knight was approached by a Blacksmith who claimed he had a special forge made for Rune blades. Intrigued, the Death Knight followed and put a Razerice enchantment on his weapon.
Meanwhile the group waited for the Death Knight to finish and then proceeded to the slums. They found a dirty place that smelled like shit. A goat, once again summoned by the Barbarian/Warlock decided to add some of its own waste. The guards were not happy since they managed to get some of it on their boots. They warned that if the Barbarian/Warlock did not keep control, they would have to instead.
Tavern in the Slums:
Looking for information, the Party entered the closest thing the slums had to a tavern. Rather than a door, the locale was simply a hole in a wall that led to a room. The guards stayed in the back while the party sat at the bar and chatted with the bartender. The Monk elected to get a water, not trusting any drinks prepared in this place.
The party asked him his political allegiances in a roundabout way. The Dwarf admitted that he liked the current system because it meant more people in the slums. Since his bar was only visited by patrons of the slums, this meant more business for him. The Bartender then mentioned Prince Fodrin. He admitted that he seemed nice enough, but that his ideas were far too radical. He also said there were rumors that the Dwarf Prince had slaughtered many innocents and then tried to pin the blame on a Wereboar.
The group decided to leave at that moment and were joined by the Rogue. The bartender, upset over the lack of people buying drinks, warned that “the slums did not forget their dues.” Not sure what this meant, the party continued back out onto the streets.
An Attack:
While trying to get a lay of the land outside, and noticing some of the more interesting elements of the slums, a chorus of children screams got the guards attention. They ran to deal with this threat leaving only a lone scout to watch the party. As it turned out though, the party was in danger as well. A powerful Orc approached from another direction and forced them to fight.
The Orc drew his battle ax and swung, but failed to keep hold of his weapon and dropped it. This allowed the party a few free hits. Next he grabbed a spear and tried to impale the Death Knight. The Orc was probably nicknamed Butterfingers, because he also dropped this weapon. Left with nothing to fight with, he was killed with minimal effort from the party. In fact, the guards quickly returned and finished the deed. The Monk stated his lack of satisfaction.
Wondering what the commotion had been, the group went to where they had heard the children. They found a ruined home with a hole that extended from the floor. Sending the Goat in first, the party found themselves in a cavern below the Dwarven City.
The Cavern:
Worried about what else might lie in wait, the Goat was sent ahead in case of danger. This proved to be smart because the animal set off a Ice Dart Trap. The group found the trigger and in the act of disarming it, they found a hidden switch. When pressed it revealed a hidden room.
Inside, the group found an almost empty room. Runes in Dwarvish filled the walls, but since none knew the language, the best they could do was copy them down and get them translated later. The only other major feature was a rusted helm on an alter. Once the group was certain it was not trapped, they grabbed the item and moved back into the hall.
More Undead:
In the next room, the party fought off a horde of Zombies that were being commanded by a Wight. The Goat did not make it through the battle. The combat was unusual to say the least. Alcohol filled the room and more than one Zombie was roasted. However, afterwards the Death Knight found something odd among what was left behind from the Undead. A sigil that bore a Spider web. Nihilin did not have anything to do with the Drow, or so the group thought. Still, the fact that the Undead still pursued the group was not lost upon them.
The group continued on, unaware that they now had one extra member. A Drow Woman was also in the tunnels and followed after the others. She was in need of allies for a mission of her own. This bunch had potential she decided.
Back in the City:
The party continued into the tunnels and found two differing paths. One way led to a dead end with a ladder. The other continued deeper. The group chose to climb the ladder and once again found themselves back in the Dwarven City. In the hall of the main entrance in fact. The guards were not happy about this fact.
The party told the guards about the tunnels under the city, but not about the Helm they had found or the monsters they had battled. Instead, they went to find a good drink after a morning of exploration. The Drow Woman still followed in the shadows.
A Stalker Revealed:
There was a massive tavern in the Dwarven City filled to the brim with patrons. The Death Knight, deciding to mess with the Rogue for a change, informed him that true Dwarven Women had beards and that the ones missing them were actually men in disguise. He managed to trick the Rogue, who then decided to slip a something into one of the women’s drinks to find out the truth.
A bartender noticed that there were new patrons and came over. First he mentioned a meeting that the new Queen was hosting an event in the very near future. He also said something about assassins. Whether he was being truthful, or just talking to get the party to pay attention to them, they started communicating with the Dwarf. He immediately pointed out that the group was being stalked by a Drow Female.
Forced to introduce herself, the Drow revealed herself as a Bard who was a Pirate. She needed to recruit a new band to find her missing ship on the surface. The Death Knight, amazed to see another Drow that was not trying to kill him, attempted to flirt with the Bard. However, the brand he gained from his time with Rose flared to life and stopped him from succeeding.
A Chance Encounter:
They agreed to let her join and then set out for the meeting with the Queen. This meeting turned out to be something very different indeed. The Queen did not even speak. Instead, one of the other nobles announced that any rumors of there being violence in the slums were simply being spread by the exiled Prince to cause chaos. This Dwarf also said that there was no coming apocalypse. Instead with the new queen, it was the beginning of a new age, not the end of one. The meeting ended there, but there was one final surprise in store for the party.
The Rogue was not amused and yelled protests of “fake news” Strange as it seemed, others joined in. One such Dwarf dressed far nicer than the others and approached the group. He introduced himself as Glafrel and said he wanted to speak to them in his estate. To intrigue them even further, he informed the party that he was allied with Prince Fodrin. They decided to go with him.
Exchanging one set of guards for another, the group spoke to Glafrel. Or all save the Giant who went into the bathroom to try and cause mischief. This backfired spectacularly when it turned out that illusionists in the employ of the Dwarf Noble decided to screw with him instead.
A Good Lead:
Meanwhile, the Dwarf Nobel informed the party that he supported Fodrin. He also informed them that the Queen held no real power and that instead a group of noble families in direct opposition to himself and a second faction of nobles held the real power.
The Death Knight asked about the connection that Fodrin had to Glafrel and the noble pointed out that Gonk was a member of his own house and had taken the blame for the Wereboar attack to protect the Prince. The group wanted to begin to fix this increasingly messy situation, but first they had a few other questions.
First, they showed Glafrel the Runes they had drawn and he informed them that without being in the room himself the message held no meaning. “straight, right, door, door” is what it translated to. Next they asked about the Rusted Helm. The reply they got informed that it was an ancient item, but only the arcane blacksmiths could help them further. Unfortunately, these individuals were all under the employ of the enemy faction. They would need to get Fodrin on the Throne to safely find the answer.
To Hunt Slavers
Wondering what to do next to make this crisis of the Dwarven throne begin to solve itself, Glfrel recommended that the group return to the tunnels and seek out a smuggling lair. There was a massive slave ring kidnapping dwarven children. This could be linked to the nobles that currently ruled the city and might become the thread that led to their undoing. Seeing this as a good lead, the group decided to pursue it.
Its only reached the early afternoon in the Dwarven City, and already the Party is awash in intrigue. What other crazy secrets will they uncover in the next 14 days? After all, none of this may matter by that time if they do not act quickly.