Into the Dwarven Ruins

From Ardrana

This was the second attempt by Allegra Brownstoke to penetrate the ancient Dwarven ruins of the UnderWorld in an effort to get the key to her book.

In Hanmer

Gathering the party

The adventure began in Hanmer, where Allegra and several people she had already recruited since her first attempt (which had given her the clue that she was seeking this key) were staying at the Red Dragon Inn. They were caught there due to a plague that was sweeping through the city.

Soon, an adventuring party led by Shimwell Maranthis, who had traveled there to get one of their party, Alysten, resurrected, arrived at the RDI. Allegra overheard them discussing a message they had intercepted from Duke Mirdael Hanaestor to her uncle, Lord Brownstoke, asking him to join in rejecting the White Alliance. Allegra invites them to join her group, and arranges to have Alysten resurrected as part of the bargain. Allegra told the party of an abandoned Dwarven city that had been unearthed by a group of Dwarven miners not long ago, and that she believed that the key was somewhere within. They agreed to set out as soon as the quarantine was lifted.

Waiting out the plague

Three days later, a caravan led by the druid Kizmet arrived with herbs to distribute to the various temples. A minor riot broke out as citizens of the city flocked to the temples to get cured. Meanwhile, Koku, who had lost her horse during a battle with the Duke's guards, attempted to use the riot as cover to steal one. She did so, but upon returning found the RDI's stables locked. She then breaks into the stable, setting off an alarm. She was caught and imprisoned for 30 days.

When Alysten was resurrected, the party discovered that she was now being mentored by a proxy of Laurent named Zin Findel. Zin spent time trying to convince Alysten to once again take up the mantle of wild magic, but Alysten was resistant to the idea. Meanwhile, the party decides that since Allegra's party is seven, they must now be thirteen in order to combine both of Laurent's favored numbers. They are able to recruit a holy warrior named Glenthalos, a psionicist named Tami-Faye Brown, a mage named Mum Bidibus ("Mums" for short), and a priest of Laurent named Chuck.

The mission begins

Once the quarantine for the plague was lifted, the two groups joined forces and set off for Seldann Wood, where Allegra intended to camp in the glade of the druid WoodLock. Before departing, Alysten and Zin decided that Koku was too important to be left behind and planned to break her out, but when they got to the jail they found her already gone. While on the road north, the two attempted to convince Allegra that Koku's presence was vital to the party's success, with some success. Tami-Faye attempts to communicate telepathically with Koku to tell her where to meet the group.

Seldann Wood

The party bypassed the Crossroads to avoid being detained by the Duke, crossing the Old Gnome Road. However, they soon encountered a band of Grazhnakh, and Erawann was killed in combat. The party pressed on to the wood, and found the southern border being tended by a novice druid named Tirin. He brought the party to the glade, where they found that here, too, there were members of the Semmarch Resistance -- WoodLock, RainSong, Rodney, Svenyka, and Josiah GentleSeed.

Representatives of the various parties involved met with WoodLock to discuss their differences, especially in regard to Koku. The druid warned them to maintain balance, then told Alysten of her friend Vel and the misadventures of their friends. The party also met with other members of the Resistance, including Alysten's old friend Vance, Beatrice's friend Klaven, and Gaimon, a friend of Naimos. Gaimon agreed to join the group in case Koku does not return.

Koku did return, and Alysten and Glen attempted to get Koku to understand that she needed to behave herself. Meanwhile, Arista and Beatrice went into Semmarch and returned with Percy, the caretaker of the RDI there. He explains that Koku had somehow been able to escape on her own, and is still a wanted criminal. After consulting Laurent, Zin tells everyone that Koku must remain, because the party now numbers thirteen, and Allegra's numbers seven, both holy numbers. Allegra reluctantly agrees, and the party continued on their way, leaving their animals in Josiah's care.

Entering the mine

The party arrived at the entrance, south of the city, where they met Sleepsor and Hapsor, the miners who had been working here when the city was discovered. Hapsor joined them and, after acquiring supplies, they descended into the mine. There, they met a Svirfneblin druid named Sendorias, who was to be their guide. After crossing an underground lake and making their way through some outer passages, they came upon a door. Hapsor indicated that this was as far as he and his brothers had been. Upon opening it, the party was attacked by a group of duergar, which the party defeated.

The Dwarven city

Next, the party heard what sounded like hobgoblins behind another door. The party discussed what to do while outside, alerting the enemy to their presence, and they opened the door to fire arrows, knocking out Glenthalos. After finishing off the hobgoblins and healing Glen, the party moved on, only to find more duergar. Gillek threw a sack of marbles into the room, causing the duergar to stumble around. Alysten attempted to cast catapult, but it resulted in a wild surge, causing a table behind which the party was hiding to explode. Molbo went into a rage during the combat, and after it was over attacked Gillek by accident. These incidents convinced the party that they needed to split up, with one group being stealthy and serving as scouts for the rest.

At this point, the party descended a set of stairs, and once at the bottom encountered an enchanted room, the doors of which sent each person who passed through to a different place. Duncan, Chuck, George and Mums wound up in a room with a group of troglodytes, and Zin, Paul and Tami-Faye found themselves face to face with a group of grimlocks. Chaos ensued, during which Alysten attempted to get Nevyn to stop causing mischief by casting sleep on him and instead summoning a fireball, killing him. Zin appealed to Laurent, and the group was transported to the home of Hagdor Bent, a priest of Laurent in Sigil. From there, they go to the Red Dragon Inn.

Retreat to Sigil

The party decided to explore the city's marketplace. Allegra led a group looking to create enchanted weapons, and was referred to the Mages' Guild. Gaimon inquired with the Thieves' Guild about hiring someone to help find Allegra's key, while the rest of the party shopped. There, the party met Zahn, a tiefling, who joined the group. While in a weapons shop, Molbo spotted a weapon he really wanted, the Axe of Kostchtchie, but he could not afford it. After learning the cost of various things, the party set out to raise some funds.

Later that day, the party met Sevreen StormWatch of the Finders' Guild of Sigil. Gaimon and Glen went to the guild, and found that the githyanki had also been inquiring about the book. After some negotiation, Sevreen agreed to help find Allegra's key. However, the party also learns that Koku is wanted back in Hanmer. They make a deal to bring her back in return for Nevyn's return from the dead.

However, by now, all the chaos and machinations caught up with the group. Allegra decided that her party would go back to Hanmer and start anew, while Alysten and her party chose to return to Nazivonema to follow up on their previous mission for the Allied Temples. The party was joined by Tolmyr, who was recruited to replace Chuck and bring their numbers back to thirteen. They returned to Bent's house, and were sent to the Astral Plane, where they discovered the color pool they needed to get to Nazivonema.

Cast of characters

The following characters were involved in this mission at one point or another:

Adventure timeline

Previous adventure Current adventure Following adventure
Allied Temple Avoidance Into the Dwarven Ruins
-and-
Island of the Kuo-Toa 		Returning to Return to Ruisti
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