Session 60

=February 11th, 2021 - Bonecarver's Barbarians=

Gnomish Voyage
The session began where we last left our heroes, outside the Tomb of Diderius with their captive and barely breathing Wyrmspeaker, Varram the White. The party tied up the dwarf and took a well earned night’s sleep - with their usual elven watch routine. In the morning, Alburt drew out a teleportation circle back to Lady Silverhand’s estate in Ironbay. They quickly turned over the dwarf to the guards of the Iron Citadel, where he would receive a thorough interrogation.

With only half their month remaining until the next Lord’s Accord Council, the group chose to immediately make their way to the mountains in search of their second objective. Flying on their wyverns would prove too time consuming, and so they decided to teleportation circle to the furthest northern circle Alburt knew - the Alliance circle in Aramore. Without a further plan for transportation, and relying on their newfound writ of authority from the Accord, the group charged through the portal. While they encountered some initial resistance from the authorities, once a high enough official who verified their writ was met, they found their passage cleared.

This official even arranged for them the use of a local gnomish airship. Local in that the gnomes were currently stopped in Aramore until their next mission, and arranged in that this official paid them for transport of goods to other nearby cities. When the gnomish captain finally arrived and was told of the party's destination, it took some convincing to get him to go along with the plan. In the end, for a sure sum the party did not hear the value of, the gnomes agreed. Then later that afternoon the group found themselves setting sail west around the Deepwood.

The gnomish captain preferred to skirt around the skies of the elvish wood, even at the cost of an extra day's travel. It took a few more days to get around the Deepwood, and up into the mountain ranges. They passed over Khaz Uluhm on their way to the location they were given, one of the highest peaks about a hundred miles southwest of the Khaz. It took another full, cold day to get the airship to the location. There, not only was the weather a constant howling blizzard, magical scrying, or sending, did not work.

At this peak they found a massive glacier, with a central flat area where a small village could just be seen among the swirling snow. The gnomish captain reluctantly landed the airship on the seemingly flat ice outside of the village, and the party disembarked to investigate. The entire gnomish crew stayed on board, below the deck for warmth. The party trudged towards the few fire lights in the small set of closing packed buildings at the center of the ice. As they approached, the sounds of dogs barking was heard and it looked as if the entire village came out to greet them.

Or yell gibberish at them angrily to leave. Cycling through languages, it was only draconic that the village shaman understood. The village chieftain - Bonecarver - knew a few of the words of their master, as the shaman called the language, but not many. Lachlan mostly spoke to the shaman, while the party waited nervously. The village folk slowly spread out around them, encircling the entire party. The wizards, and especially Thia’s dragon, were looked at with anger and fear. Bonecarver was keeping order while his shaman spoke.

Bonecarver's Barbarians
The way the shaman told it, they - the Ice Hunters - were indeed in the service of a powerful white dragon, Old White Death, who treated them harshly at any misstep. And letting powerful adventurers into his lair would bring them misery. The shaman said the village wouldn’t dare let them into the entrance, which was in the town’s large central hall, without first proving themselves. If the shaman arranged for them to challenge and defeat the village's champion, the rest of the people would let them pass. The shaman wanted to help because she had been waiting for true heroes who could free them from the dragon’s terror.

Dwarvish hunting parties have come and gone for many years, with none leaving alive if the dragon was home. The shaman also confirmed the dragon recently brought a wizard, the fire haired lady, recently. This was the human Arcane Alliance wizard who was taken with the Draakhorn, known as Maccath the Crimson for her deep red hair, and the target of their rescue. This entrance beneath the town was for the villagers, and the kobold minions in the lair, to enter and exit. Old White Death used holes in the cliff sides of the glacier to enter.

The party quickly discussed using the airship to enter one of these sides, but instead decided to retreat. They told the shaman they would soon return with more warriors, having the idea to recruit dwarves from the Khaz. If they kept trying to kill this dragon, maybe they would help now. The gnomish airship would hold fifteen more warriors (or more cargo), and so they set off back down the mountain for Khaz Uluhm. It took another day of travel to reach, and they did just before sunset.

After their airship landed near the front gates and they were greeted by dozens of warriors, Rachen showed their writ and told of their hunt for Old White Death. It wasn’t long until they were standing in front of the Khaz’ duke, known only as Duke Firebeard, and being told he would put out the call to his greatest warriors - Lord’s Accord writ or not! They spent the night at the Khaz while dwarves assembled and prepared, and just before dawn they set out with a fully laden airship - fifteen dwarven warriors stronger. Another day of travel back up the snow peaks found them back at the barbarian village atop the glacier.

This time, when they marched towards the village backed by another fifteen grizzled dwarven warriors and Rachen stepped forward to challenge their champion, they found a different audience. The villagers were split between scared and excited, but after Rachen threw down his magical floating shield at the request of the shaman, some cheered. Then Rachen and the barbarian champion were battling one on one in the center of the entire village. The party and the villagers started cheering, and as skilled as Rachen had become, the champion got a few lunges in with his spear.

However, the outcome was all but certain before the battle began, and Rachen easily cut down the barbarian to the point the shaman intervened. The champion had been cut on each limb, was bleeding and badly wounded, but the entire crowd was cheering. Rachen showed perhaps they were the ones who would finally slay Old White Death. Soon after, they were all shown into the main village hall and given a meal before venturing down into the ice caves. They were given some of the only food the villagers were able to keep from the dragon, old goat meat.

Rachen was the hungriest from his short combat, and quickly started eating while the rest of the group questioned the smell from the food. It was indeed spoiled, or poisoned, as Rachen quickly started vomiting. The chieftain appeared to apologize, and instead of accusing any of trying to kill them, the group decided to go immediately down into the caves.

With the dwarves going first, of course.

And that is where the session ended, it was the evening of the two hundred sixtieth day since the raid on Greenest. They had just under a week until the second meeting of the Lord’s Accord Council.

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