My players are currently in the Feywild, running my very warped version of the otherwise great adventure, King of the Trollhaunt.

Last time we played, they met this bad boy, who is my own version of the Troll Witch, and we had an awesome battle. My players loved the monster, so I figured it would put it up for sharing. I also included a nasty Fey Goblin that they will run into the next time. So far all the goblins they have met have been minions, so they are starting to view them as wizard-fodder. Oh boy are they in for a surprise.

The Fey Goblin was modelled after the drow lurker of the same level.

Troll Ice Shaman Level 12 Controller
Large natural humanoid XP 700
Initiative +8 Senses Perception +10
HP 124; Bloodied 62
Regeneration 10 (if the troll witch takes acid or fire damage, regeneration does not function until the end of its next turn)
Vulnerable 5 fire
AC 25; Fortitude 25, Reflex 22, Will 24
Speed 7
m Claw (Standard, at-will) Reach 2; +16 vs Armor Class; 1d10+6 damage.
R Freeze the Flesh (Minor, at-will) * Cold
Ranged 10; +16 vs Reflex; the target takes 1d6 point of cold damage, and any time an ally deals damage from a melee attack against the target for the remainder of the encounter, the target takes an additional 1d6 cold damage. Also see Statue of Ice.
R Statue of Ice (Standard, recharge 5, 6) Polymorph, Cold
Ranged 10; If target is an enemy affected by Freeze the Flesh, it takes -2 to saves; +16 vs Fortitude; Target is slowed and takes ongoing 10 cold (save ends). First Failed Save; Target is frozen* and takes ongoing 10 cold damage (save ends). Aftereffect: Target is slowed and ongoing 5 damage.
C Cold Spikes (Standard, encounter)
Close blast 5; targets enemies only; +16 vs Fortitude; 2d8+5 damage, and the target is dazed and slowed (save ends).
Troll Healing Healing
If the troll witch is reduced to 0 hit points by an attack that does not deal acid or fire damage, it rises on its next turn (as a move action) with 10 hit points.
Alignment Chaotic evil Languages Common, Giant
Skills Endurance +16, Insight +10
Str 18 (+10) Dex 15 (+8) Wis 9 (+5)
Con 20 (+11) Int 12 (+7) Cha 18 (+10)
Equipment: Hide, Staff

Fey Goblin Opportunist Level 11 Lurker
Small fey humanoid XP 600
Initiative +13 Senses Perception +11; lowlight vision
HP 83; Bloodied 41
AC 24; Fortitude 20, Reflex 22, Will 19
Speed 6
m Shortsword (standard; at-will) ✦ Weapon
+14 vs. AC; 2d8 + 5 damage
R Hand Crossbow (standard; at-will) ✦Weapon
Ranged 10/20; +14 vs. AC; 3d6 + 5 damage
M Opportune Bastard (immediate reaction when an enemy gets bloodied; recharge 6) * Weapon
+14 vs. AC; 4d8+5 damage. The Fey Goblin Opportunist shifts up to 6 and makes an attack with combat advantage against a enemy who was just bloodied.
M Finish the Weak (standard; encounter, only against bloodied)
+14 vs. AC; 4d10+5 damage
Alignment Evil Languages Common, Goblin
Skills Dungeoneering +11, Intimidate +8, Stealth +15
Str 14 (+7) Dex 19 (+9) Wis 13 (+6)
Con 11 (+5) Int 13 (+6) Cha 12 (+6)
Equipment chainmail, shortsword, hand crossbow, 20 bolts

Jack99

I have realized it is quite boring to recap every single session in a blog, so I won't do that anymore.

Last time we played, the players arrived at Danar Hold (aka KotS) and started to clear it. It went quite well, as the guards, the torture chamber and finally the Chieftain's Lair fell to the onslaught of the players.

I wasn't too happy about the last fight, mostly because I made a mistake. When the goblins started to pour out from behind the curtains, the players retreated back in the corridor, which made them able to control the battle much better. Instead of just throwing the goblins at them, I should have had Balgor and a few goblins use the secret door in his room, to get reinforcement or to get around and attack them from behind.

Also, another thing I learned in that fight. Moderation with the number of different creatures. I had changed quite a few, so I had around 6 different goblins in that fight. That is a lot of different abilities and powers, at least for my still relatively inexperienced 4e brain. I forgot some stuff they could have done, and in general it took a bit too long for my liking (after getting used to quicker combats - it was still lightyears quicker than our 3.5 combats).

Now, for the next time, we will see what happens. The players are after 4 hard encounters on the same day, badly in need of an extended rest. One of them had 0 surges left when they entered the Chieftain's lair, and I doubt he wants to try that again.

However, how will the remaining goblins react? There are still a few left down in the excavation site. But I haven't quite figured out what they will do, with their leader gone. Retreat to level 2? That would mean going through the undead area, not something I imagine a bunch of lowly goblins doing? Flee? That's probably the most realistic. But I guess they could also try to "take" over. Maybe they figure that the players aren't coming back. Or of course, they could reason that the players are wounded and need rest, and go patrolling, using the drakes to sniff them out.

Suggestions (if anyone reads this before monday night) are more than welcome.

Jack99

Tuesday 8th of July (Elar, Muffin, Eric, Brocun, Torn, Torinn, Nadarr)
So the heroes press on, heading north-west, eager to find Danar Hold and see what it is. As they get closer to the area where it is supposed to be, they hear some someones or somethings digging in the stone with picks.

Elar and Muffin scout ahead, and stumble over a clearing in the forest (just where the forest meets the hills) where 4 burly humans are digging in a large hole. A halfling is casually sitting on a rock, surveying them, smoking a pipe.

Elar and Muffin return to the others, and inform them of what they have discovered. It is decided to just march out and see what it is. As they approach, they are spotted by the halfling. He calls them over, saying he has made an amazing discovery, dragon bones. Muffin walks over to the halfling and follows him towards some bones on the ground. However, as they approach the bones, the halfling puts his arm around Muffin, and Muffin is stricken by panic, thinking that the halfling is out to steal his gold (I wonder why Muffin would think that). Either way, Muffin looks away, down on his gold pouch to check if it is there. As he does it, the halfling rewards him with a dagger in the stomach.

Combat is joined, and shortly more combatants arrive, another halfling with a nasty sling and an Ogre with a big cleaver. Also, a fey gnome pops out from behind some boxes in a corner and joins the fray.

The combat is short and bloody, mostly for the others.

Encounter: The Burial Site (874 xp, Gnome Skulk (200 xp), 2*Halfling Slinger (200 xp), Ogre (350 xp), 4*Human Rabble (124 xp)) (0 dead, 0 unconscious)

After the fight, one halfling is still alive, as is the ogre. Brocun decides on his own that the Ogre will be useless for interrogation, and chops off it's head. The halfling is woken up, and asked a few "nice" questions. They learn several interesting things:

* Asprin, the gnome, was the leader of the band.
* He had hired Sigurd (the halfling) and his brother, along with the human workers
* They had been digging here for a week or so, looking for some kind of relic.
* The relic was supposed to go to Danar Hold, to someone up there, who had hired Asprin to do this.
* Danar Hold is located in a canyon with very steep sides, making it very hard to get there, except by the tunnels
* The tunnels are located behind a waterfall a bit to the north east of here (this is also shown on a map they find on the gnome

They also find a Longsword of Lightning +1, as well as a Fireburst Robe +1

After the little chat with the halfling, they have a vote on killing him or not. 4 against 3 to let him live. As he runs for the forest, Eric blasts him in the back, killing him. This prompts a heated debate, and in the end, it is decided to designate a leader to make these calls, instead of voting. Nadarr is voted as leader of the group, with 3 votes. Muffin and Brocun did not get any votes, Torn voted a blank.

Nadarr's first rule, is that the next person who goes against the group's or leader's wishes will receive no loot for a while.

After the dispute is resolved, they head north-east to find the small river, which should end (start) at the waterfall. As they approach it, they can hear voices speaking Draconic.. More kobolds!

Encounter: Outside The Kobold Lair (875 xp, 6*Kobold Minions (150), Kobold Skirmisher (150 xp), Kobold Dragonshield (175 xp) 2*Kobold Piker (250) Kobold Verminhandler (150 xp)) (0 dead, 0 unconscious)

Towards the end of the fight, one kobold tries to escape as the verminhandler yells "Warn Irontooth", but Nadarr and Torinn manage to stop him right before the waterfall. Another kobold is kept alive to interrogate about the layout of the tunnels and the strength of the kobolds inside. Unfortunately, he gets to yell before they can silence him, warning the inside. The heroes still try to bluff a bit, yelling (through the waterfall!) that they are coming from Asprin, with a message to Irontooth, but it fails, the kobolds are ready for them, and a long and involving battle is engaged...

Encounter: Inside the Kobold Lair (1825 xp, 11*Kobold Minions (275), 4*Kobold Skirmisher (400 xp), 4*Kobold Dragonshield (500 xp), Kobold War Priest (200 xp) Kobold Wurmpriest (150 xp), Irontooth (300 xp)) (0 dead, 0 unconscious)

After the fight, the tunnels are searched, as well as the different rooms. Some money is found (650 gp), as well as a gem worth 200 gp. The exit from the tunnels, leading to the canyon with Danar Hold is also found.

DM's notes
Okay, so much worry for nothing. The big thing of tonight was of course the Irontooth encounter. For those (if any) who reads this, and do not know the Irontooth encounter, let's just say that it is a very rough encounter, that according to a poll here have caused a TPK in something around 40-50% of all the fights. In other words: N-A-S-T-Y!

First problem was adjusting it. Irontooth is originally a 1250 xp encounter, against a level 1 party. This means that it is effectively a party level +5 encounter. Next up, it is made for 5 people. My group is level 2, and 7 players. So, going by the math, it should have been upgraded to a 2100 xp encounter. That's a lot of monsters.

However, asking around these boards, most if not all suggested that I do not upgrade the encounter that much. Some thought that it was hard enough as is, while some advocated for different degrees of upgrading, up to around 1700 xp combat. I ended up making it a 1825 xp combat, and.. well, let's just say that my players have been in a lot fights that were tougher on them.

Several points though:
They played superbly. For years I have been telling them that they make too many stupid tactical choices, that they too often think too much of themselves. 4e has completely changed that. I don't know if it is because the system demands/encourages it, or because my nagging has finally gotten through to them (probably the former, as I doubt they listen much to my rants), but they have been really good lately, starting during the playtesting, and topping yesterday. Keywords were focused fire, helping each other and great placement/use of terrain.

They rolled like gods. All made crits during that 7 round combat, some made more than one (Irontooth received around 80-90 damage before he got the chance of hitting anyone). Crits from a vicious greataxe is just plain nasty. Also, all saves were made on the first try, except one (and there were a lot)

I was also very impressed by the time it all took. Total fighting clocked in at 3 hours and 15 minutes for all 3 fights. Considering there is 7 players and there were more than 40 monsters in those three fights, I think it was pretty awesome, and if the length of encounters doesn't increase as they level, the game will indeed be perfect for me.

The evening was a bit light on roleplay, but the whole debate and vote on party leadership was very funny. I love when my players argue ingame, they get really nasty, it's fun.

I am not sure how much of KotS will be run as is. I am not quite grokking the fights at this point, as in, I fail to see how to make it good combats for us. Luckily it is not all of it that we will play at first, since we have 2 times left before I head to Crete for a couple of weeks of R&R with the wife and gnome, err I mean daughter, so there will be plenty of time to ponder on how to change them.

Jack99

As mentioned in one of my previous blogs, my players are rapidly approaching the mysterious Danar Hold mentioned on the ancient dwarven tablets that they found in the dwarven crypt during the first session of our campaign.

Danar Hold is (drumroll) nothing other than Keep on the Shadowfell.

Since they have just reached level 2, there will obviously have to be some tweaking when it comes to the encounters (not to mention that I have 6-7 players most of the time, although this is luckily only during the summer. As soon as soccer practice begins, one of our players drops out, as his private life doesn't leave room for both).

Anyway, I was looking at the burial site encounter, and I decided that the party will stumble upon it on their way through the Silent Forest, and find some clue that hints about what goes on in Danar Hold.

So what does go on in Danar Hold, and how does it tie in with Castle Whiterock and the kidnapping of the players in session one?

Mr Jacoby has through a thieves guild called the Dark Finders made contact with the kobolds of the Green Lizard tribe. Together they have set up a slavery "ring", where Jacoby sets up adventurers (by poisoning food that he gives them when they accept their "mission") to be kidnapped by the kobolds. The kobolds drags them to Castle Whiterock, where some other associates of the Dark Finders and Mr Jacoby have set up camp. Those same associates further sells the slaves to the orcs (this might change though) in the deeper levels, who uses them to dig for an artifact that they are looking for.

The kobolds, who are supposed to deliver all prisoners to Castle Whiterock, are also involved with the Orcus Priest who is buying some of their prisoners, since he needs an awful lot of blood for the ritual that opens the rift to the Shadowfell.

Both Danar Hold and Castle Whiterock (both ancient keeps) both holds a portal to a forgotten keep in Qu'orath, although the one in Danar Hold is damaged and doesn't work. However there will be clues that there is a similar portal in Castle Whiterock, and where it leads. Neither the Orcus priest of Danar Hold, nor the Dark Finders at Castle Whiterock have any clue that their are literally sitting on a portal connected to an unexplored area of the new world.

Anyway. Back to the first encounter, at the burial site. The gnome skulk struck me as kinda boring, even though he has a nifty racial ability. So I decided to give him a slightly more old-school feel, by leveling him to level 4, and making him a wizard (illusionist) instead. I guess I could just have used the gnome arcanist from the MM instead, but I had completely forgotten that it was there..

Gnome Wizard (Illusionist) Level 4 Controller
Small fey humanoid XP 175
Initiative +2 Perception +1; low-light vision
HP 38; Bloodied 19
AC 18; Fortitude 15, Reflex 18, Will 16; Speed 5

m Dagger (standard; at-will) Weapon; +6 vs. AC; 1d4+1 damage.

R Illusory Ambush (standard; at-will) Arcane, Illusion, Implement, Psychic; Ranged 10, +8 vs Will, 1d6+6 psychic damage, target takes -2 to attack rolls to the end of your next turn.

R Grasping Shadows (standard, encounter) arcane, illusion, implement, Psychic; Area burst 1 within 10 squares. Target: Each creature in burst; +8 vs Will, 1d8+6 psychic damage, and target is slowed until the end of your next turn. Effect: Any creature that enters the area of the grasping shadows takes 5 damage and is slowed until the end of its next turn.

R Phantom Chasm (standard, daily) arcane, illusion, implement, psychic; Area burst 1 within 20 squares. Target: Each creature in burst; +8 vs Will, 2d6+6 psychic damage, and target is prone and immobilized until the end of it's next turn. Miss: The target is immobilized until the end of it's next turn.

Fade Away (immediate reaction, when the gnome wizard takes damage; encounter) Illusion. The gnome wizard turns invisible until it attacks or until the end of its next turn.

Reactive Stealth If a gnome has cover or concealment when it makes an initiative check at the start of an encounter, it can take a Stealth check to escape notice.

Alignment Unaligned Languages Common, Elven

Skills Arcana +14, Bluff +10 Stealth +9
Str 10 (+2) Dex 11 (+2) Wis 12 (+3)
Con 14 (+4) Int 19 (+7) Cha 16 (+5)
Equipment robes, dagger

After having made the gnome, I must admit I am not too happy about him, but for now, I will keep him to harass the party, while they deal with the other "monsters" at the burial site. But I guess I should really let go of the old ways of "stating up" full NPC's and instead just go the monster route. In this case, I should probably go with the arcanist and modify his powers a bit. Hmmm..

Let's see if we can't whip up another NPC that we will need, by using the monster building blocks instead. I am thinking of Melchin, the guy in charge of the Dark Finders at Castle Whiterock. I am thinking he will be the first solo the party will meet. (Yes, that means there is a monster or two from Keep that will be removed.

Melchin, Level 4 Solo Controller
Medium natural humanoid
Initiative +5; Perception +10
HP 216; AC 21, Fortitude 20, Reflex 18, Will 18; Speed 7;
+5 to saves; Action Points 2

Unarmed Attack (standard; at-will) +9 vs AC, 1d10+4 damage

Monk’s Surge (usable only while bloodied; encounter) Melchin makes a basic attack and heals 54 hps.

Flurry of Blows (standard; at-will) Melchin makes two basic attacks against one or two targets

Stunning Fist (standard; recharge 5, 6) +7 vs Fortitude, 1d10+4 damage and target is stunned (save ends)

Circle Kick (standard; recharge 4, 5, 6) +9 vs AC, 3d10+4 damage. Target is pushed 3 and knocked prone.

Whirling Kick (standard, burst 1, recharge 6) +7 vs AC, 3d6+4 damage

Deflect Arrow (Immediate Interrupt, at-will) Melchin deflects an arrow, bolt, dagger or other ranged weapon that will hit him (I have a bit of trouble formulating this one, but the intend should be clear enough - am a bit uncertain about this one though, as it will only affect the ranger and possibly the rogue, but it will hurt them a lot)

Str 18 Con 14 Dex 15 Int 10 Wis 15 Cha 11

Jack99

I was looking over the rules concerning the creation of NPC's, and I started to wonder if they were balanced. I do like stating out NPC's though, since making them help me focus on how they work and how they affect the world around them, more so than writing up a background or some notes. I guess I am weird that way.

I thought I would give it a whirl. The NPC I had in mind, is the secret leader of an yet undecided thieves guild in Drahar, by far the biggest city in the world that the players know off, which isn't hard, since they only know of three cities..

I was thinking of doing something new (for me at least). In the past, I have mostly used rogues (duh!), wizards, clerics (Mask!) mindflayers, dragons, beholders (wait, or was that something stolen from FR? - can't recall) and even the occasional monk in 3.x, as guildleaders of my thieves' guilds. I looked over the classes, and thought that a Warlord would make a cool new spin on it. He is smart, he is charismatic, he is basically the born leader. Sure, he can't do all the thieving himself, but that's why he is guild leader, not a burglar. And when the [censored] hits the fan (ie, when the players bust through his doors), he can actually stand toe to toe with them, and make his minions (not necessarily literally) better. That should work pretty well. A quick glance over the races, and I decided to make him stand out even more. I would make him a minotaur. This of course would not be known by many outside of the guild, in fact, I think it has possibilities. Maybe rumors circulate that the guild leader of X guild eats babies or something.. Because he literally does so!

Also. Being a major NPC that I plan the players to fight at the end (his or theirs, not the campaign) he should be an elite.

Goth, Elite Level 11 Warlord
Medium Natural Humanoid
Initiative +6, Perception +5
HP 210; Bloodied 105, see also ferocity
Speed 5
AC 28; Fortitude 28; Reflex 23; Will 26
+2 saves, Action Point 1

m Oversized Maul (standard; at-will) *weapon* +17 vs AC; 2d8+10 damage

M Wolf Pack Tactic (standard; at-will) *weapon* +17 vs AC; 2d8+10 damage and one ally adjacent to Goth or his target shifts as a free action before the attack

M Warlord's Strike (standard; encounter) *weapon* +17 vs AC; 4d8+10 damage. Until the end of Goth's next turn, all his allies gets +4 damage against his target.

M Lion's Roar (standard; recharge when bloodied) *weapon* +17 vs AC; 4d8+10 damage. Goth or one ally within 5 squares can spend a healing surge.

M Knock Them Down (standard; daily) *weapon* +17 vs AC; 6d8+10 damage. All allies within 10 squares can move 3 squares and hit someone as a free action. A hit gives no damage, but knocks the target prone.

M Inspiring Reaction (Immediate reaction, encounter) *Healing, Martial* Melee touch. Trigger: Goth or an ally takes damage. Effect: Goth or an ally can spend a healing surge and regain additionally 3 hps.

C Defensive Rally (Standard, daily) *Healing, Martial* Close Burst 5. Each ally in the burst can spend a healing surge and make a saving throw against any single effect. They also get +2 to all defenses until the end of Goth's next turn.

C Inspiring Word (Minor, encounter - special, twice per encounter) *Healing, Martial* Close burst 10. Goth or an ally can spend a healing surge and regain an additional 3d6 hps.

Combat Leader Goth grants +2 initiative to all allies within 10 squares

Ferocity (when reduced to 0 hps) Goth makes a basic melee attack

Alignment Unaligned Languages Common

Skills Diplomacy +13, Intimidate +13

Str 21, Con 17, Dex 12, Int 13, Wis 11, Cha 16

Equipment Large Maul, Chainmail, Handaxes (2)

Okay. Wow. I made him based on the NPC rules in the DMG (p. 187-188) and then applied the Elite Template (p. 185). I chose Lion's Roar to be rechargeable when bloodied, as per the rules of adjusting powers, in relation to the whole "an elite monster counts for two" issue. I did not however give him double attack or an immediate at will, which they (also) suggest. Yet, comparing him to other level 11 elite monsters, he does seem quite a bit stronger. But maybe they are just supposed to be more powerful. You know, feature, not bug.

Then again, I just realised that the poor sucker only has two surges, so he can't really benefit from all the potential healing he has. Still, 2 surges is 104 hps more, not too shabby, and some of his attacks are absolutely devastating.

Maybe I ought to take a look at his powers another day, and switch a few of the healing ones, to something else, so that it doesn't all get wasted..

Jack99

(Continued from the previous blog, due to word-count)

When he gets back, Torn uses his comprehend languages on those as well.

In the year 0, the Empire of Iron was founded by the Stonefist Dynasty. As the empire spread out, conquering more land, mighty dwarven cities were built in the mountains all over the world. Eventually, the Empire of Iron collided with another Empire, the Empire of the Sword, a hobgoblin empire pre-dating the dwarven empire by a couple of hundred years.
After many years of war, the hobgoblin capital of Xi'kir finally fell in 1416, to the might of the dwarves. Since there, there has been more than 800 years of relative peace. The Empire of Iron spawns more than 1500 miles from north to south, with the Stonefists ruling over more than 2 million dwarves and 20 millions from other races.

There is also mention of Kolar the Golden, who appears to be the god of the dwarves, but also god of crafting and wealth. The two statues in the dwarven temple were obviously representations of him, and the mountain with a gold coin his symbol.

Much of this debate happen in the Black Raven Inn, and Zeke announces to the heroes that he knows where Castle Whiterock is, and wishes to make a deal. They are not too happy about this, as they neither trust him, nor the Ancients. However, it could be problematic to find said place, without some help. So they strike a deal with Zeke, promissing him to bring back information about Castle Whiterock, and any non-magical items pertaining to the new world that could prove of interest. In exchange, he gets to read the copies that Muffin made, and he draws up a map that shows where Castle Whiterock.

3rd Sunday, Early Spring
So, the next day, the heroes head out into the Silent Forest, to find Castle Whiterock. Or not. As it turns out, it was merely a ruse. They plan on heading to Danar Hold. They gamble on the precision of dwarves to be able to find it, 60 miles north-west of Castle Whiterock, which is why they needed to know the location of Castle Whiterock.

3rd Fireday, Early Spring
After a couple of days (on the second night, both moons are full) going through the forest, they are ambushed by five orcs. Luckily for them, Elar spots one of the orcs moments before they are attacked, and they get to keep a more advantegous position than else.

Encounter: An Orc Ambush (1 unconscious, 0 dead)
One of the orcs had a magical axe (+1 viscious) and another had a magical leather armor (+1). Brocun laid claim to the axe, while Erik got the leather. At the same time, it was decided to let Muffin (who meanwhile had learned some magic) hold the Staff of Winter.

3rd Starday, Early Spring
The heroes arrive near Castle Whiterock, which is built on a plateau on the mountainside, around 200' above ground level, with a large lake below it. They immediately turn north-west, lead by Elar.

4th Sunday, Early Spring
After a couple of more days of jungle-trecking, the heroes are attacked at night by a horde of 20 kobolds.

Encounter: Lots of Kobolds (1 unconscious, 0 dead)

4th Airday, Early Spring
We finished with the heroes have just waking up, after their night of fun with kobolds....

DM's notes:
Again a very good night. We had 3 hours of 100% roleplaying - I can't recall when we last had that. Boy I have been missing that.

A couple of iconic NPC's got introduced. Zeke and Leria will play a central role as the plot develops - unless of course my players do something that I totally do not expect. But nothing is set in stone. Zeke has the potential to be an ally in discovering the new world, but he could just as well become a bitter rival, racing the players to discover it secrets. So far, it looks more like a rival than anything else, but only time will tell this.

Leria is just as much a puzzle. See, she has a little secret. She ain't a newcomer. Leria is one of those non-noble tieflings that live in Qu'orath (previous blog post): By accident she discovered some ancient ruins in the mountains in the south part of Qu'orath, and in there, she found a portal to another temple, this one located in the Silent Forest, not far at all from Drahar. Stumbling over the newcomers, she decided to pass herself off as one (which was easy, since 50.000 people had just arrived via the portal. So, for the last year, she has been living amongst the newcomers, trying to figure out how to best take advantage of her knowledge.

For now, she has been "helping" Zeke, in his quest for knowledge, while trying to steer him clear of things that could lead him to find out too much, too soon. Of course, Zeke is much to intelligent to fool so easily, and he has long ago figured out what she is up to, and is now trying to take advantage of that.

Anyway, depending on how things pan out, it should be interesting to see.

Both encounters were short and fun. The orcs were scaled down orcs (level 1 skirmishers, level 2 brutes, and a level 3 Eye of Gruumsh). My players liked the warrior surge abilities of the orcs, and absolutely loved the shock when they got their death attack due to the aura of the Eye.

One thing though. At a point, the wizard kills an orc with a thunderwave, pushing him back. I wasn't quite sure if the orc should still get the attack or not. Since 4e is a yes-game and the wizard used said attack spefically to avoid the death-attack that he at this point had witnessed a couple of times, I ruled that he avoided by using this tactic.

The last enounter was straight out of the MM, a wyrmpriest and 19 minions. It was absolutely hilareous, it reminded me of the old westerns, with the players standing back to back around their campfire, and all the kobolds moving around in circles, coordinating their shifting and moving to swarm as many on the same target as possible. Instead of a flat damage of 4, I used 1d6. Worked quite well, and didn't slow down things noticably. The wizard got to shine with his AE spells, and a sleep spell that took out the wyrmpriest (after which the warlock decided to blow his daily on it, critting for 35 damage). Muffin got to shine as well. He got tired of the kobolds that were running around, so at some point where they were all close by, he cast his new spell (ray of frost - he has mulitclassed into wizard when they dinged to level 2, after the orcs) while activating the Staff of Winter, causing 13 kobolds to be immobilized. Very nice.

As I started out saying, a great night. Lots of roleplay, some inter-party conflict, some fun fights and things worked well for those that tried the odd thing.

Jack99

Tuesday 1st of July (Elar, Muffin, Eric, Brocun, Torn)

2nd Starday, Early Spring
After sleeping at Mac and Irene's, the heroes wake up and head out. They quickly make their way back to Oakhurst, looking for Mr. Jacoby. As they come back to town, however, they find that his small office is closed. A quick inquiry tells them that he seems to have left for Drahar, to handle some business.

Without hesitation, the heroes (+1 draft horse that Muffin borrowed at one of the burned down farms near Willowwood) turn southward again, and head to Drahar. At the gate, they are stopped by some guards, who ask them all sorts of questions of their business there, and inform them of certain rules specific to Drahar, regarding magic, rituals, and residuum.

* All residents of Drahar have and must always carry their Certificate of Citizenship
* If you wish to trade in Drahar, you must own a Certificate of Trade (a different certificate applies to different types of goods - Muffin buys one that enables him to sell animals and one that enables him to sell weapons and armors)
* They are told that damages caused by magic are always fined at double normal rate.
* They are told that rituals that summon non-human creatures are strictly forbidden, as are rituals that rob the target of his or her free will.
* They are told that buying and selling residuum with anyone but an official trader is strictly forbidden. Always ask to see his certificate. Such a certificate is not obtained as easily as most other certificates.


One inside Drahar, the heroes make their way through the different wards, heading to the Trade Ward, to inquire with the Trade Guild about the whereabouts of Mr. Jacoby. As it turns out, the Trade Guildhouse is closed for the night (it is close to sunset when they arrive), and they they crash in the nearest inn, a place called the Lucky Loon (North Ward)

Below are some of the information gathered/heard/observed about Drahar:

Drahar
Population: 52.000 (90% human)
Leadership: The Seven (also called the Council)

The city of Drahar is built across the river Elra, on a hilly area. In the middle of the Elra is an island, so Drahar has 4 distinct areas. The west coast (North Ward, Green Ward, South Ward, Temple Ward, Ghalton Ward and Trade Ward), the island (Night Ward, Noble Ward, The Furnace), The river between the island and the east coast (Oak Ward) and the east coast, which is currently where a new part of the city is being built, to accommodate all the new arrivals.

Outer Wall:Heavily patrolled, at least in the towers. 35' tall. The Outer Wall surrounding the east coast part of town is currently under construction.
Inner Wall: Surrounds the Noble Ward. Always patrolled. around 20' tall. Gates closes at sundown, and unless you are known to the guards (either as a noble or someone working closely for one), you are not getting in.
North Ward: A mix of shops and housing.
South Ward: A mix of shops and housing
Ghalton Ward: The common man's ward, very few shops.
Green Ward: There is no housing or businesses in the Green Ward. It is a natural area, with a little wood, some lakes and parks. The only building is the Arena, called the Drome, an ancient building of unknown purposes, that was here when the people arrived through the portal, 25 years ago.
Trade Ward: This is where all trade with other settlements is done. All warehouses are located here. Trader's Guildhouse (decorated with statues of lions) and House of the Ancients (decorated with statues of dragons) are also located here, large marble buildings that are visible from far away.
Temple Ward: Every temple to good and neutral gods are here. It's clean, safe, and the streets are flanked by thousands of statues of saints and exarchs.
Noble Ward: This is where the rich and the powerful live. Patrolled heavily at all times.
Night Ward: The original poor man's quarter of Drahar, famous by now for Seven Star Point, the place where 7 roads meet. During the day, a marked place. Mr. Jacoby's shop is here, near the Star, right next to the Black Raven Inn (owner Abraxus Hope a tiefling) where you can buy the famous Black Raven Gin.
The Furnace: This is where the better off of the newcomers were placed. An odd collection of stone and wooden buildings.
Oak Ward: Oak Ward, or New Ward, is the newest addition to Drahar. When 30.000 of the late arrivals decided to stay, something had to be done. Some were dumped in what is now the Furnace, while the rest were placed on the opposite river bank, and told to start building. That started, but quickly, an enterprising soul named Amaris, figured out that the laws of the city stated that anyone living on the land within city walls were to pay taxes. Quickly, a veritable building frenzy started, and soon the Elra was covered in wood, a floating city, with nothing but 3 and 4 story buildings and tight narrow passages. Oak was used for the most part, hence the name. The Oak Ward is a maze, and very few patrols enter here. Buildings have started to crop up on the other side of the river bank (east coast), but there you have to pay taxes, so only those who can afford it, consider moving.

3rd Godsday, Early Spring
The next morning, they went to the Trader's Guild, and got the address of Mr. Jacoby's shop. As it turns out, it is located in the Night Ward, near the Seven Point Star. The heroes make it across town, but it is closed. They decide to wait in the inn next door, called the Black Raven Inn. There they taste the famous Black Raven Gin, served by Abraxus Hope, a tiefling of immense girth. They also have a chat with Leria, a young tiefling female, who apparently is a regular customer of the Black Raven Inn, along with her mysterious friend, who keeps to himself and his corner.

At some point, Brocun leaves the table, to go and see if Mr. Jacoby has arrived. He looks very surprised when he sees Brocun coming in his door, but thanks him for finishing the job, and goes out to the backroom to get the money. But he never comes back. Brocun checks it out, and it looks like Jacoby has fled. Brocun goes back to the inn, and tells the others what have happened. They search the shop, and find some papers that look like as if they have been dropped in a quick get-away. One type of paper is very official looking, with a sigil and such. That type of paper has a column of names, a column of prices (around 1-10 gp), and a column with the buyer's name. Each name appears to have a price and a buyer/payer. Occasionally two names are payed for by the same. The other paper looks much more unofficial, but has no names in the buyer column. Instead the column of names group them in groups of 2 to 5 people, and the prices are much higher, ranging in the 100-200 gp per person.

The heroes think that Mr. Jacoby is part of a slave-operation, where he sends adventurers on bogus missions and has a deal with a tribe of kobolds to capture said adventurers and re-sell/deliver them at this place mentioned by the kobold - Castle Whiterock.

They decide to look for Mr. Jacoby near all gates, and on the east river bank, where the new wall is built. Alas, no luck.

They then decide to stake out the shop, and see if he maybe returns. While they wait, they want to try to figure out what the dwarven runes on the tablets and the copies that Muffin made says. They acquire some residuum (Muffin buys some of Zeke, but forgets to see his certificate, so Torn heads out and finds a certificated seller. Torn casts his first ritual (wuhu), comprehend languages, and reads the tablets. Meanwhile, Muffin has left, after him and Torn (and a few others) came into an argument over peaking in ritual books without permission.

The tablets with dwarven runes talk about a place called Danar Hold (later renamed Keep of Darkness) where a terrible disaster struck.
The keep was originally built for a definitive purpose, to guard over something, maybe in the keep, maybe nearby. However, one night, the leader of the keep, a dwarven paladin named Jeremiah went nuts and killed off most of the other guards, before he was finally neutralized. So horrible was his crime, that his former allies entombed him alive. Shortly after, the keep was deserted (unknown reasons) and the garrison (or rather what was left) was moved 60 miles to the south-east, to another keep, called Castle Whiterock.

Meanwhile, still pissed at the others, Muffin makes a copy of his drawings, and sells them to the Ancients, a guild of historians and explorers that are very interested in anything about the new world.

(continued in the next blog, due to word-count)

Jack99

So, if you have read the others posts in my blog, you will know that my players know very little of the world around them. Having arrived through a portal only 25 years ago, not much has been explored. While my campaign is in no way set in stone, I do want to explore the possibilities in my players discovering another populated country.

My players are very much in control, as in I try my hardest not to rail-road them, but considering how they usually react to things, I think it is a fairly good guess that they eventually will stumble the way the bread-crumbs lead. In this case, towards Qu'orath, through a series of ancient portals, hidden in ancient crypts and dungeons, such as Keep on the Shadowfell (Called Keep of Darkness IMC) and Castle Whiterock (I imagine the portal being on level 3 or so, maybe deeper, although I don't plan on running them through everything).

Anyway. Since they will eventually go explore, I need a country they can explore.

IMC, the war between Bael Turath and the dragonborn empire of Arkhosia only ended 106 years ago, and Bael blew up 103 years ago. This caused a major sundering of the continent, creating many smaller isles, and drowning a large part of the former empire. As if that wasn't enough, the magical explosion that destroyed Bael Turath, somehow ripped a gap in the Feywild, causing fey energies to flow into the world. This caused the forests to grow and spread at an alarming rate, almost swallowing cities and creating huge natural barriers between the civilized areas, between the points of light...

Anyway, so instead of one huge empire with millions of inhabitants, the former empire of the tieflings is mostly destroyed. But, there are however still a few enclaves left, that cling to the ancient decadent ways. One of them is Qu'orath, which lies in the north eastern part of the continent that has seen the arrivals from another world.

These are my random plans for Qu'orath

Qu'orath
269k inhabitants (200k humans, 26k tieflings, 12k halflings, 10k dwarves, 15k dragonborn, 3k elves, 2k half-elves and 1k eladrin)

Qu'orath is still clinging to the ancient ways. The noble houses (families) of Tieflings run the country in all aspects. They own all land, and other races are, while not slaves per say, not worth much more to the tieflings.

* Elves and Eladrin are mostly left to themselves in the forests. A few are hired as teachers or employees
* Halflings have someway kept their status as traders
* Humans work the lands, serve in the private armies, and in general do everything but rule. As slavery is a common punishment, there are a good deal of human slaves.
* Dragonborn are slaves, or dead
* Dwarves are not only free, but also on generally good terms with the tiefling lords.

Maybe it has something to do with the proximity of Ironborg, one of the few dwarven citadels of substantial size.

The ancient ways of the tieflings include many fun sports, most which involve a lot of cruelty. But the all-encompassing "pass-time" in Qu'orath, is something called the Game of Thrones (yeah, another rip-off)

The Game:
There are 31 nobles families, each with a keep/castle/estate and some land. They "play" the Game of Thrones, back and forth, for the (perceived) power over the country, while humans work the surrounding lands and provide crops and food.

It is a game of financial, political, military and arcane power.

15 families count around 350 tieflings each (called lordlings). Each of these families rule over around 4k humans in their area. The family names are: N'tul, N'gir, D'la, K'onth, M'og, S'god, B'lo, N'tur, V'gird, C'al, G'gor, G'ul, G'lin, M'gug, D'du.

9 families count around 750 tieflings (called lords.) Each of these families rule over around 8k humans in their area. Their names are: C'tuar, N'gogon, Z'eglin, O'ba, O'nag, T'tuan, L'rotug, V'andir, W'etu.

5 families count 1k tieflings (the cha-khan - the war council). Each of these families rule over around 15k humans in their area. Their names are: K'elitul, F'aetu, J'andrumo, M'argorgan, H'ordengu

1 family counts 2k tieflings (the Khan). This family rules more than 25k humans. It's name is: T'myaomir

1 family counts 4k tieflings (the Kha-khan). It rules over more than 40k humans. It's name is: R'kakhanimata

All the families are run by wizards and warlocks, or at the very least has a large number of members well versed in the arcane arts.
Secret: Since magical power is paramount in Qu'orath, and since a tiefling breeding with a human always produces a tiefling, there is a longstanding practice of any human female that shows an aptitude for magic to be removed from society, and used to breed more magic apt tieflings.

The social place of a family depends on number of warriors, wealth, magical power and political flair. As they ascend the ladder, they are allowed to add vowels to their name, just as if they fall down the ladder, they remove vowels.

The Kha-khan lords about all from the capital (Bael Deus), and keeps out of the game (in general)

Around 3-5k tieflings live outside the clan system, in cities.

Worship of The Shadow (Secrets, Night, Deceit, Devils, Drow, Treachery, Tieflings) - other religions are not allowed not conducted in the open.
Secret: Around 10 years ago, The C'al Family embraced a new master, or rather some of the family members did. Since then, the Cult of Yeenoghu has been gaining quite a few followers, in many different familes, and they all seem to be gaining rapidly in power.

In war, the tiefling nobles ride on war elephants, casting their spells from small platforms.

War Elephant Level 10 Elite Brute
Huge natural beast
Initiative +5 Senses Perception +7; lowlight vision

HP 256; Bloodied 128
AC 22; Fortitude 21, Reflex 16, Will 18
Saving Throws +2
Speed 8
Action Points 1

m Gore (standard; at-will)
+13 vs. AC; 1d8 + 7 damage.

M Trample (standard; at-will)
The elephant can move up to its speed and enter enemies spaces. This movement provokes opportunity attacks, and the elephant must end its move in an unoccupied space. When it enters an enemys space, the elephant makes a trample attack: +11 vs. Reflex; 2d6 + 7 damage, and the target is knocked prone.

Alignment Unaligned Languages none
Str 21 (+10) Dex 10 (+5) Wis 14 (+7)
Con 18 (+9) Int 2 (2) Cha 12 (+6)

Jack99

Tuesday 24th of June (Elar, Nadarr, Muffin, Eric, Brocun, Torn, Torinn)
The heroes continue on. By midday, making their way through the Silent Forest, they hit the shore of the Elra. They decided to get to the other shore, and follow the river back towards civilization. By evening, they hear the howling of a wolf. Suddenly they find themselves under attack by some wolves and a Dire wolf. During the fight, a vicious crocodile sneaks up upon Eric, and he is almost dragged into the water, but Elar shows quick thinking, and helps him escape the jaws of death.

Encounter: Wolves And A Watery Surprise (625 xp, 0 dead, 0 unconscious)

2nd Fireday, Early Spring
They spent another night in the forest, and early next day, they emerge a few miles south of Oakhurst. They immediately head home, to bury Rhogar (and Hadarai, to a certain extend). While in town, they take the time to play some Three-Bones, by far the most popular card game in Draegor. Muffin wins the pot. He is actually seen cheating by the new ranger that has joined them, but Torinn says nothing.

2nd Earthday, Early Spring
After the burial ceremony, the heroes turn south to deliver the message to Gadian Greenleaf. Towards late afternoon, they are approaching Willowwood. They notice smoke coming from beyond some apple orchards. The first place to be investigated is a farm which has been burned down. The second place is also a farm, but it is still in the process of burning down, with some shady people still hanging around.

Encounter: Bandits and Brigands (675 xp, 0 dead, 2 unconscious)

The bandits and their mage leader had some goodies on them:
Orb +1
Silver dagger (not magical)

After the battle, the heroes went on to search the first farm some more. There they found a badge and a dagger with Blackkeep's Sigil on. On they went, and found another farm, owned by Mac and Irene. They (Mac and Irene) gave them directions to Greenleaf's house, who lives nearby.

Arriving at Greenleaf's house after the sun has set, they find a locked house with light inside. A strange sound is heard, and quickly the lock is "handled". Inside, they inadvertently break the ritual keeping a demon imprisoned. Soon they find themselves in a battle for their life, against a Evistro Demon.

Encounter: A Surprise Demon (500 xp, 0 dead, 3 unconscious)

Not long after the demon dies, Greenleaf comes home. As it turns out, he says he has never heard of Mr. Jacoby, and when he is still given the scroll, he understands even less. The scroll has the classic Elven poem of Aldar and Evina, the story of an elf that falls in love with a woman, only to have said woman turn out to be a nymph.

Questioning Greenleaf leaves them with no further clues. After a bit of talk, they realize that they now have several options.

* Head home to Oakhurst and try to find Mr. Jacoby, in order to find out about the weird note.
* Head to Castle Whiterock, or at least find out exactly where it is. And find out who or what the kobolds were selling the players to.
* Find someone who can understand the ancient dwarven tablets and inscriptions.
* Investigate the burned down farms near Willowwood, and why Blackkeep would attack them
* Investigate the kobolds in Willowwood.

It was decided to head to Oakhurst and find Mr. Jacoby, and then to find out what was on those dwarven tablets.

DM's notes
Tonight was awesome. During the week, I made a few changes to the logistics of playing. I put out the pizza list on my wiki, and arranged with my players that from now on, you phone in your order with me before 5.30, so that I can order the food to be there at 6 pm sharp. That way we can handled the small things while eating, and move directly to the more demanding stuff already around 6.30, instead of 7.30 or 8, like it has been lately. It worked great, and left us with more time for rollplay and roleplay.

The encounter with the wolves and the croc was good. I sent in the normal wolves at first, and they definitely knew more was coming. But when the dire wolf stepped in on the scene, they thought that was it. So when the croc suddenly grabbed the unsuspecting warlock and tried to drag him out into the river, he panicked a bit Luckily, the ranger reacted quickly and pulled him from the jaws (made it a standard action to do it for someone else, instead of a move when you do it for yourself. Athletics vs the croc's fortitude). For the first time in years, they were great at focusing their firepower on a minimum of creatures at a time. Is it 4e's greater focus on team-work that is teaching them to work better together? Who cares, I am just happy.

The card game was run ad hoc and not very well, but the players had lots of fun. Basically I made everyone roll a d20 to determine how good his cards were over the course of the evening (in retrospect, I should have made it a smaller die, or several small dices). After that, they made 3 skill checks, one bluff, one insight, and one of either bluff/insight or thievery. Each success would give +2 to the original score, while a natural 20 would give +4. However had the highest number at the end would win.

If anyone who reads this has a great way to handle a card game, let me know, because I have a feeling it won't be the last time this group gambles about their hard earned winnings.

The encounter with the bandits was fun as well. Placing a tall (4 feet or so) fence in between the two groups gave a lot of interesting situations. Especially when the mage charmed (see below) Brocum and he hit Nadarr for 14 damage. I added the ability to charm to the 4th level mage from the MM (Charm Person (recharge 5,6) range 10, +7 vs Will. Target is dominated (save ends))

I made the evistro demon an elite, and gave him "Ripping flurry" (imm. reaction when bloodied) make 3 claw attacks against 3 different foes within reach. It worked as intended. Due to the cramped space in the little cabin, players had it surrounded and things looked as if it was going to be an easy fight. But as it got bloodied and they started to become bloodied, suddenly things started to accelerate quickly, since it suddenly had two extra attacks (since it couldn't move, it was converting it's move action to another bite). People started dropping, and while only 3 went down, it was being close to disastrous. A round or two at the most, and the squishy casters would have been alone with it...

Jack99

Tuesday 17th of June (Elar, Hadarai R.I.P, Nadarr, Muffin, Rhogar R.I.P, Eric and Brocun)
2nd Airday, Early Spring
The heroes enter the dwarven crypt, only to find a rather large room with some religious representations of an unknown god (As no-one recognized him, the players assumes that he doesn't exists In there, Rhogar and Hadarai meet their fate, and journey to the Shadowfell, when a combination of undead skeletons and a nasty magical crossbow trap end their adventuring career.

Encounter: The Undead Dwarven Skeletons (800 xp, 2 dead, 4 unconscious)

As the fight was over, the survivors found themselves rather low on juice and it was decided that the wise course of action would be to rest outside, before further exploring the complex.

Just before dawn, they had their much needed rest interrupted by a scream from Muffin. He was running from fiery skeleton who had surprised him while he snuck inside to see if he could find something valuable.

Encounter: The Blazing Skeleton (200 xp, 0 dead, 0 unconscious)

After finishing their sleep, they went back in, to find some treasure or other interesting things. Total was:

Mosaic of some story involving hobgoblins and dwarves, and a lot of dwarven runes (copied by Muffin)
Stone tables with (again) a lot of dwarven runes on.
200 gp (not New Kings, but instead gold coins with dwarven runes on)
Amulet of Health (+1 fortitude/+1 reflex/+1 will/poison resist 5)
Polash' Staff of Wintery Might (Staff of Winter +1, p 242 PHB)
5 healing potions (10 hp)

After having divided the loot, there was a short debate about leaving or not leaving their comrades for rotting. It was decided to bring the two bodies back to civilization for a proper burial.

Once again, Elra led on. After a few hours, he found some markers that indicates that they were "invading" elven privacy and territory. Elra chose to lead them around the elven territory, in order not to cause any unnecessary issues with the local "wildlife".

The rest of the day went without events, and at night, the heroes made camp.

2nd Waterday, Early Spring
During the night, the hero on guard heard something approaching. It turned out to be an Ogre, who had seen the light from the fire. Although big and strong, a single Ogre proved no match for the five heroes.

Encounter: The Lone Ogre (350 xp, 0 dead, 0 unconscious)

The session ended with the heroes resuming their sleep...

DM's notes
This time we were all there. 7 players and a DM. It was not the best of nights. First of all, the combat against the undead (and the trap) took forever. Also, it proved quite lethal. Especially the blaster trap (level 3 from DMG) was a killer. They couldn't find the control panel, so they tried to destroy the crossbow turrets. They got one down, but by then, all the undead had arrived, and the players made the mistake of focusing on them. The trap kept firing away, and when the last skeleton was down, Muffin was only man standing, the rest of the party either dead or close to death. And Muffin had to seek cover from the trap, since he was at 1 or 2 hp, with no second wind left. The trap (which would only fire on live, conscious creatures) made it very hard for Muffin to get to the others and stabilize them. Nadarr roled a 20 on his death save, stood up, and was promptly hit by the trap, before he could get in cover, and thus he went back to unconscious state. That was quite funny.

The Blazing skeleton from encounter 2 was originally supposed to be a part of the big undead encounter, but as the trap was hurting them a lot, and things were generally going poorly, I opted to wait for it. In hinsight, I should have added a few skeletons to the next encounter, as it was a bit too much of a walk-over.

The Ogre encounter was a test. To see how they would fare against a monster 7 levels above them. I gave it a few more powers (see below), but they still ran over it easily.

Stunning Smash (recharge 5,6) Reach 2; +11 vs. AC; 1d10 + 5 damage. Target is stunned (save ends)

Elbow Smash (minor, recharge 5, 6) +11 vs AC; 1d6+5 damage, target is pushed 2 and knocked prone

It did however have a great feel. I really <3 the endless possibilities there are to give flavorful powers to monsters. 4e monster design is FTW.

Jack99

Introducing the heroes:
Elar (elf ranger)
Hadarai (eladrin wizard) R.I.P
Nadarr (dragonborn warlord)
Muffin (halfling rogue)
Rhogar (dragonborn paladin) R.I.P
Erik (half-elf warlock)
Brocun (human fighter)
Torinn (dragonborn ranger)
Torn (Tiefling wizard)

Tuesday 10th of June, 1st session (Elar, Hadarai, Nadarr, Muffin, Rhogar)
2nd Moonday, Early Spring
As the dire wolves attack the kobold slavers, the party of adventurers see their chance to escape. Muffin, the halfling rogue, uses a fork he had previously stolen from the kobolds, and manages to unlock the manacles. Soon after, he has opened the manacles of his friends, and Hadarai using his magic to ferry the weapons unnoticed back to their owners.

However, just as they get their weapons back, the last dire wolf dies, and they are seen by the two kobolds who stayed out of the fight.

Encounter: The Remaining Kobold (750 xp, 0 dead, 0 unconscious).

The last kobold yielded. The heroes interrogated him, then Rhogar killed him. They did find out a few things:

* He hailed from a tribe situated approximately 2 days of travel to the north.
* He, and the rest of the kobolds were heading east, to something called Castle Whiterock, where they were to be sold to some unspecified humans as slaves.
* Castle Whiterock should be around 3 days of travel to the east.
* It was likewise noted that the gold the kobold leader was carrying was New Kings, golden coins from Drahar and/or Blackkeep and Laketown


After digesting this new information, it was decided to complete their original quest, to deliver the scroll-case to Gadian Greenleaf, near Willowwood.

Led by Elar, they headed west in order to return to more familiar surroundings.

As it got darker and the heroes stopped for a break, they had their diner interrupted by some odd noises. Investigation led the heroes to find what appears to be a very worn old ruin, with dwarven runes on a bell and on a big set of copper double doors, leading underground.

It was noted that the ruins seemed extremely old/worn, which is quite odd, since people only arrived 25 years ago. Several suggestions were debated

* This is not a new world, but Ghalton long in the past/future
* Just as the magical explosion caused some people to arrive 25 years later than the first arrivals, maybe some came much earlier, and built these ruins.

The session ended with the heroes opening the door to the ancient dwarven (?) crypt...

DM notes:
Despite being a 750 xp encounter for only 5 players, it went surpringly easy. A big part of this was the terrain. The battle took place on two sides of a ravine, with a fallen tree being the only way across. Rhogar's positioning on the tree made it very hard for the kobolds to navigate safely, and get to the squishier characters.

It was very refreshing to experience the impact of the new alignments. When Rhogar the paladin of Kord deemed the captured kobold to be a liability if left alive, and then killed him, not a word was mentioned at the table. This had never happened in 2e or 3e.

The encounter with the kobolds took ages. 2½ hour or so. It is clear that most players still haven't wrapped their heads around their new powers and how they work.

The interrogation of the kobold worked great, run as a skill challenge 4/3 - they failed however, which will have little impact, since Rhogar killed the kobold before he could give the false information that would lead them into a trap.

Jack99

You all hail from Oakhurst, a large village that fancies itself a small town.

Five days ago, you were about to embark on a new life, the life of an adventurer. Dragons, undead and unimaginable treasures were all you had in mind, when you signed on to deliver a message for Mr. Jacoby. Your job was to take a scroll-case, and head south towards Willowwood and find Gadian Redleaf, an elven friend of Mr. Jacoby, and deliver it to him. He lives in a secluded cottage on the eastern-most edge of Willowwood, right next to Lake Greenhaven.

Unfortunately, it seems that your careers as adventurers are coming to a short end. Three days ago, during your first night in the wild, one of your fellow guards, and an old acquaintance/friend from Oakhurst, Muffin Pebbles the halfling rogue must have fallen asleep during his night-shift, because you awoke with several spears in your face. Around 20-30 nasty little dog-faced scaly humanoids called kobolds had captured the lot of you. Since then, you have been forced along, tied together with your friends, some of them gagged, deeper into the great forest.

Every night, one of the kobolds called A'kar, a nasty-looking little brute with a scar running from the left ear to his jaw, and ears full of silver earrings, comes over and taunts you in broken Common, while poking you with his barbed spear.


I be A'kar!


"You be nothin'."


"You be eaten zoon!"


"A'kar's god likez fresh flesh."

As you progressed further into the seemingly never-ending forest, you were beginning to lose hope. Then something happened. Just a minute ago, several ferocious-looking wolves the size of small horses leaped out of the trees and attacked the kobolds. Chaos erupted, as the kobolds engaged the creatures on the other side of the ravine you were about to cross. Most of the kobolds ran over the broken tree that was serving as a bridge, in order to help the kobolds fighting for their life against the wolves. Only two stayed behind, guarding you and the mules with your weapons.

As the fight progressed, it was clear that many kobolds were going to die. The two guards who had remained behind, move closer and closer to the action, paying little to no attention to you and your comrades. Muffin, who apparently had stolen a fork of some sort, managed to get out of his manacles, and started to free the rest of you. As soon as the mage was free, he used his magic to transport your weapons back to you, silent and without alerting the two kobolds.

But just as you have your weapons in hand, you hear a shout from the kobolds. Looking up, you see that the wolves are dead, and that your escape has been noticed. Many kobolds are dead, but it still looks like there is around 8-10 left alive, one of them being A'kar. With the fresh blood of the wolves all over him, he looks like he will enjoy fighting you for your freedom.

Initiative!

Jack99

Feron is an advanced empire on the continent of Ghalton. There has been peace for centuries, and trade, art, science and magic has flourished. All the great races live in harmony, working together to improve the realm they inhabit. Or at least that is how it was, up until 31 years ago.

No-one knows quite how things started, but one thing we know for sure is that suddenly, people stopped dieing. Or rather, people stopped passing on to the Shadowfell and into the Astral Dominions of the gods. Instead, they were stuck as ghosts, somewhere in between. Then, whenever a body died, a soul would inhabit that corpse, effectively becoming living again. But the souls that came back were changed. Even the most pious cleric of Bahamut would come back as a raving homicidal lunatic. And while they might be happy with their new existence, there were still millions of souls on the other side of the veil, calling at them, begging them to make them come back. So the killings began.

It was a fight that was doomed to be lost from the start. How do you fight an enemy that can't die. How do you fight an enemy that gets stronger every time anyone dies in pain?

After just 30 years, Feron was no more. Actually, you could say that Ghalton was no more. All that was left of "man", was 300.000 people, huddled up behind the enormous walls of the ancient city of Tar'Eldar. Outside, the Reborn, as they were called, were pressing on, eager to take over the last of the living.

Desperation grew, but it seemed that the 7 arch-mages of Tar'Eldar had had the solution for a while. They had (in secret) been working furiously on opening a rift to another world. 25 years ago, that day finally arrived. Almost 300.000 men and women stood in line, with all that they could carry and some more, while the immensely powerful 7 worked their magic in a ritual like the world had never seen before. They were assisted by every arcane and divine caster still alive and in the city . The rift opened, and people started to pour through. For more than 6 hours, people kept moving through the shimmering portal, into the other world. Suddenly, as thousands of people were passing through the portal, there was an explosion, and the rift closed, trapping all the arch-mages and many powerful warlocks and clerics on Ghalton, along with more than 250.000 other.

What became of them, no one knows. Not a word has come through since then.

The survivors found themselves in the new world, that they named Draegor, meaning A New Beginning in Old Elvish. It was a fresh and fertile world, with a mildly hot climate (subtropical), and no sign of other civilized humanoid races.

The first thing that was done, was to find an appropriate place to start over. After a few days, such a spot was located and rebuilding began.

The first city of Draegor was called Drahar, meaning A New Hope, also in Old Elvish.

As mentioned, the building of Drahar began almost immediately. Everyone was put to work by the Council, no exceptions. With hills, river and forest with a ½ mile, all resources were at hand. At first, most buildings were made of wood, and at the beginning only the Cathedral of Erathis and the Town Hall, along with the walls surrounding the city, were made of stone. But the dwarves mined like never before, in order to provide enough stone for the city, and priority lists were made, to ensure that eventually everyone would have a home made of stone.

However, things were definitely different than in the old world. While it was a great unknown world out there, it was much less scarier than the reborn from back home.

Soon it became obvious that some races just weren't suited for living amongst others, at least not in great numbers. In the Year of the Sundering (Year 3) an age-old Elven-Eladrin conflict blossomed up again, and before the conflict changed to civil war, it was decided that most of the Elves and of the Eladrin should leave Drahar, and find another place to live. They both went into the Silent Forest, although not in the same direction. Since then, both races have settled in, and created their own communities, out in the wilderness of the new world.

After the Elves and the Eladrin left, there was peace and quiet for a while. The people of Drahar worked on their city, getting things to work. Exploration was almost non-existent, as the Council feared what they would find. After all, they had all they needed to survive and prosper, why risk running into a hostile civilization? This is not to say that there weren't any dangers. The Silent Wood proved to be full of monsters, and several skirmishes with monstrous humanoids (mostly kobolds, goblins and also some hobgoblins and orcs) did also happen. But they were few and far between.

In the Year of the Clans (year 10), the Halflings of Drahar finally grew too restless to remain in Drahar. Embracing their ancient ways, they left on good terms, clan by clan, and struck out to explore the world.

The next year, in the Year of the Rock (year 11), the Dwarves of Drahar decided it was time to leave for the mountains, to regain their independence, and work some for themselves instead for the humans. They found a place in the Maruum, the Golden Peaks, and called their new home Magyth, the Golden Mine.

Even though the dwarves and halflings left on good terms, their departure were the catalyst for the greatest crisis so far in the new world. Some people felt that they had abandoned the humans, and eventually, those people started to hate all demi-humans. These people, later named the Purists, were led by John Blackhand, one of the more charismatic members of the Council. Officially, pressure grew on the Council to change the law, so that demi-humans had fewer rights and were punished harder. Especially tieflings and dragonborn seemed to be the target of the Purists, since they believed both races should be relegated to slave status, even though both races had played an instrumental part in holding of the Reborn on Ghalton, and in creating the rift to Draegor. The two races had also payed the highest price, very few were left. Not many had made it. Unofficially, press gang were hunting the streets at night, and woe to any demi-human caught out alone, with no guards around.

Soon enough it became clear that something had to be done, and the Council stripped John Blackhand of his powers, and arrested him, without any hard evidence, other than his rhetorics. His people retaliated by breaking him out, and setting a good part of the city on fire. While the fire raged, John Blackhand and his most trusted allies escaped the city, and went into hiding. He came back, claiming it was the will of the gods that he was not to be imprisoned, and that the fire that had ravaged the city was a sign of their displeasure. He went further, and announced that the city was cursed and tainted by the demi-humans, and that he would set out to find a new, clean place to live, and that any human was more than welcome to come with him. A week later, in the Year of The Black Hand (year 14) more than 3.000 adults left Drahar to follow John Blackhand westward, along the Elra, out to the Sea of Hope.

Over the last 11 years, more people left Drahar, some joining John Blackhand in Blackkeep, while others set out to form their own communities, most notably Laketown, whose inhabitants left because they wished to follow King Azar, and not be subject to some pseudo-democratic council.

Then, slowly, the people of Drahar and Draegor reverted to there fairly peaceful existence. But, as usual, the peace and quiet didn't last. One day, 50.000 other refugees from Ghalton suddenly appeared at the Stones of Arrival. They were amongst those caught in the blast that shattered the ritual. They had no idea what had happened, since for them, no time had passed.

Confused and confounded, the new arrivals parted ways. Most chose to live in Drahar (about 30.000), while some left for Blackkeep and Laketown. Some even opted for making it on their own. This has been very hard on Drahar, from what you have heard. Most of the newcomers live together in two new wards, the Furnace and the Oak Ward, which is the ward build on the Elra. Wood on water. From what you hear, things are very heated, with many gangs fighting for the dominance of these two wards, while the old and new Draharians are trying to build lasting homes for their new co-habitants.

This is how things stand now. It has been 25 years since they arrived, the first generation born here has grown up, and is ready to take on the world.

Jack99