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[Nebulous]

Adventure #1: Winterhaven

PART TWO



The group heads to Wrafton’s Inn first, and by now dusk has settled cool and purple over the town. Even before the doors open they hear a female minstrel inside, and soon her voice soon washes over them, backed by the pungent smell of ale and cooked sausages.



The singer is a female elf who melodically croons and nods to the newcomers (GM Note: she was singing a song from the Beowulf movie]. A disheveled Halfling sits at her feet strumming a lyre, with a hat extended for coins. Eravin the Eladrin Wizard is immediately attracted to this young minstrel (despite his advanced age), and taking a position at her side, he uses cantrips to call forth fluttering fireflies to augment her performance. (YAY! Non-combat use of magic!!)



Gobbo Goodnest, Helga, Brandis, Ash and Irann all enter the bar area and are greeted by a tall, attractive human woman named Salvanna Wrafton, owner and bartender.



There are a few patrons eating and drinking here, and Salvana immediately recognizes Brandis. She tells him that his father is at the back booth, thoroughly immersed in his cups. Brandis immediately goes to speak with him.

“These are great warriors!” praises Gobbo, clamping a hand to the dwarf’s shoulder. “They slew many dirty ‘bolds along the road this eve. Left not a one standing!”

Mugs are raised in appreciation from the farmers and patrons at the bar, including one from a heavy-set human with a ruddy face.





“Well met then, strangers,” the large man drawls. “It is always good to hear of less trouble on the road. Every little bit helps! My name is Valthrun the Prescient, local “purveyor of knowledge,” or some such audacious title. Who might you be?”



The group asks about the kobold problem first, and find that it has indeed become a serious problem over the last few months. The little bastards are getting braver and braver, going from attacking individual travelers on the trade road to actually infiltrating houses and stealing babies! The Winterhaven Regulars don’t have enough members to patrol the farms outside the walls. Worse, says Salvana Wrafton quietly, Lord Padraig’s own young son Kel has been killed by raiders while out hunting. He is wallowing in grief, and his wife Cynthia Padraig has gone almost mad. She arms herself at all times now, and will not let their youngest daughter out of her sight.

While Helga, Ash and the others are relayed this gossip, Brandis is hearing pretty much the same thing from his father. Lord Ernest Padraig is an emotional mess, but extremely glad to see his oldest son, who has blossomed into a fine warrior just as his father did.



Valthrun the Prescient is a wealth of information, and continues drinking and engaging the newcomers while Salvana keeps their mugs and plates full. Talk eventually turns toward questions about an old keep outside of town.

“Aye, the old keep,” murmurs Valthrun, rubbing his chin. “I know of it.”

“Some say it’s haunted,” whispers Salvanna. “Ghosts. Vampires. Why in Sune’s good name would you want to go there?”

Well, money talks, and the group is being offered good coin to map it out by Merple the Moneylender in Silverymoon. Valthrun says he doesn’t know too much about it, other than it might have been a watchpost for the old kingdom, but that was probably hundreds of years ago. Now, it’s likely just a goblin den or some such foul place. Still, Valthrun is intrigued by their questions; it panders to his love of lost lore, so he immediately volunteers to retreat to his tower and search his library for clues about the old keep. When they see him again, he says, he’ll know much more. [Journal Updated!]

Brandis and his father soon leave, his mother needs to be seen, and the rest of the group steps outside into the cool night air. They hear ringing blows from a hammer and anvil, and soon see a dwarf hunched in the ruddy glow.



The dwarf has an obvious gimp leg, and walks with a limp to dunk the shaft of hot metal in a barrel of water. Helga addresses him, asking if he has anything for sale. Exceptional weapons perhaps? The smithy, Thair Coalstriker is bitter and barely acknowledges her questions, spitting curses as he hammers a sword, pretending he is bashing a goblin’s head into greasy pulp. Helga pushes the issue, and Thair roars in anger, unpleased to have someone reminding him why he can’t be the skilled warrior he always wanted to be. They ask a few more questions about the kobold problem, and a mysterious keep outside of town. Thair knows that the kobolds need to be smashed into pieces, but he can’t say much about the keep. Maybe Valthrun or Lord Padraig knows more. Thair HAS heard the name “IRONTOOTH” mentioned in relation to the kobolds, so that might be a leader. He doesn’t know where the kobolds are lairing though, but he thinks that the Militia Leader Rond Kelfern might have an idea.

They haggle some with Thair, and he buys some kobold swords to smelt down, although he wants nothing to do with the dragonscale shield. It's not born of the earth, like rock or iron.

The night ends with the party deciding that the immediate kobold problem in Winterhaven is their chief concern. Perhaps Lord Padraig needs some “help” with this problem, and Brandis Padraig has nothing but revenge on his mind.

As for Ash the elven rogue, he stands silently in the shadows, biding his time and keeping his dark thoughts to himself. For the others, they might be…disturbing.




[GM Note: As the first official 4e adventure, I thought combat was fast and furious with little to no interpretation problems. Roleplaying was actually easier to do with a group of people already comfortable with it. There were no rules dictating how you should or should not act, and alignment was not an issue. I still don’t quite get the Skill Challenges though]