Windhorn Hamlet: The Story so far

The Diary of Bill Troublefinder

This unassuming journal is really rather special. It is a Journal of Writing, capable of recording the thoughts and words of the user. Long in the possession of the redoubtable Bill Troublefinder esq, it has now been passed to Renik Dacour to continue the chronicles of the Windhorn Hamleteers.

vs. The Sons of Dread

Bill Troublefinder, halfling, cousin to Borbo Pastna (their mothers are sisters), grew up in Windhorn Hamlet. The town's cleric of Wardd recruited the fighting psion to infiltrate the mage-dominated apocalyptic cult known as the Sons of Dread, wherein he played a role in thwarting their plans to detonate the magic-saturated body of Mengor, a not-quite-fully dead mage of old. The detonation would have destroyed a large part of the town, as well as the Sentinel, which keeps the dragons at bay, protecting New Elenna. The question later occurred to Bill to ask whether this threat - real though it were - may have been a diversion, allowing the Sons of Dread time to do something else to further their schemes of power. The suspicion remains, based upon clues he picked up while among them, but he lacks confirmation.

Against the Sahuagin: Rescue of the Sentinel Head Unfortunately, sahuagin, known also as sea devils, managed to steal the head of the Sentinel during a community ritual of renewal. As the adventuring group which he is with prepared to retrieve the head from beneath the sea, dragons, no longer prevented by the magic of the Sentinel, entered into New Elenna, killing some members of the local militia on their way in.

So, with a great black dragon distracted by the local town militia, the troupe slid beneath the waves. Taking some time to grow accustomed to undersea, they met a group of aquatic elves in the company of dolphins (or porpoises?). One of the elves gave them a map to guide them toward the sahuagin. On the way, many schools of fish fled six sharks, which attacked the party. Dealt with, the party left them behind. Next - Troglodytes of K'isst's tribe and crabmen met the party with joy, and took them in to see the paralyzed giant Atomos (also spelled Atomas). Told their coming had been prophesied, the group left with a commitment to do what they could to free Atomos. Traveling 5 miles underwater, they arrived at an island with an ancient temple to the shark god, Sekola. Fought a giant crab on the beach next to two dead humans. Walked on an enchanted red and white stone-lined path (Bill grabbed some of the stones) through an evil forest up to the temple. Inside, the temple, the idol of Sekola. A hammer within, recovered - the 'heart' of Atomos. Further on, found the Sentinel Head! Battles... escape? A powerful ring was taken. Bill swallowed said ring, it came out of his chest, leaving a momentary 3/4" hole. Lost on the island: Borbo; Branze; Galahad.

The party did return, and placed within his chest Atomos' heart. He revived, gave gifts, and disappeared. Onward, back to Windhorn Hamlet, the Sentinel Head was reunited with the base of the Sentinel Statue. But all the townspeople were found dead.

An Unwelcome Guest - the Dark Lord Negotiates

The adventurers' grief was interrupted by the arrival of a gruesome-looking, foul-smelling, cheerful Marteaus -- the Dark Lord. He wanted the Ring of Water (the Water Ring of Ascension) that we found on the island. He promised to restore life to the citizens of Windhorn Hamlet if given the Ring. No one trusted him, and the party resisted. Finally, K'isst attacked, was killed, at the same moment that Bill teleported to the Red Wyrm Inn, trying to take the Ring - but the Ring remained behind, along with the tip of his index finger. Bill, bleeding as he stood atop a table in the Inn, announced Marteaus' desire, and the dire need for help to oppose... Well, other things were going on at the Inn, such as a hill of exploding beans. Some clerics of Marteaus were there, too, and confronted Bill. He did not back down, supported by others at the Inn. A group of adventurers, each wearing gray riding cloaks, agreed to help. Just as they prepared to sit down and talk, Bill felt a strong pull, urging him to yield. He did so, and found himself in a weird teleport, but unusual with twists and turns, and more time than a teleport typically takes.

• Pop*

The Ceremony of Renewal

He landed on the beach on the ceremonial grounds of the Sentinel Statue, and saw his friends there, the thought mentally communicated to him, 'Ware the beach.' The townspeople returned, alive, well, and evidently of a mind that it was the day after the defeat of the Sons of Dread, and not days or weeks later. The dragons have not come. It's just the Day of the Ceremony of Renewal, after all. Bill realized that someone gave Marteaus the Water Ring, and the Dark Lord had, to all appearances, kept his word.

As the villagers prepared for the ceremony, Bill and his companions warned the town leaders that they'd gotten word that Sea Devils - Sahuagin - are about to attack. The militia joined with the adventurers, set up a defensive perimeter - and the sahuagin did attack! Déjà vu, all over again. With the loss of a few members of the militia, the sahuagin were defeated. The ceremony ensued. The people rejoiced. The adventurers sat on the beach as the villagers returned to town for post-ceremony celebrations. Sedar tried to explain why he gave Marteaus the Ring... and eight people were seen in the distance, facing the deep sea, ranging in height from three to six feet... Turned out to be images in white marble of: Brother Branze Bones; Borbo Pastna; Galahad Quivelio; Ahkum the cleric; and the four militiamen killed in this last sahuagin attack. The joined statues face toward the island of the Sahuagin - to serve as sentinels against the sea devils. At last, the tired group returned to Grog's Inn, where they had rooms rented, and where they try to figure out what had happened to the time line.

Pies, a Proposal, and Politics

Paladin Bolderhusk and a rude halfling cleric of sorts (Fipps) showed up in Windhorn Hamlet, sent by the Lord High Mayor of Plateau City. They fed us - pretty much the whole town - with magically distributed pies, and asked us to return with them. We decided to do so.

But, meanwhile, K'isst realized she was in love with Bill. Smitten. She left the group for a while, thinking things over, then engaged in a sort of troglodytic engagement making ritual, and showed up, disrobed, in the middle of town, asking Bill to marry her. Bill somehow had failed to anticipate this, and wasn't quite sure what to do. He took her by the hand, and they walked off (midst chuckles from some townsfolk) to talk things over. No dummy she, K'isst realized Bill wasn't quite ready to assent to the proposal, so she ran off. While that meanwhile went on, the rest of the party took off in carriages for Plateau City. (Bill had told them to go on without them).

Then began a lengthy ride across New Elenna. Bill met Sunblaze - a quirky & perky elf lass who is both bard and mage. Using his psionic ability to dreamwalk, he transported her to the top of a mile-high cliff, where they met the ascending carriages. In Plateau City, they were met by officials, and escorted to meet the Lord High Mayor, thence to an odd trial before the city Council, ending in acquittal and reward for the party. We next agreed to enter into service to Plateau City under the tutelage of Marcus. But Bill would not oath bind himself. The group finally distributed the various treasures acquired during the campaign against the Sahuagin. Soon after, having acquired magic and materials for disguises, Bill amiably split from the party, promising to see them around at some later time... As Marcus gave Bill & Sedar some deep undercover work to accomplish, the main party prepared to carry out more plans to save the kingdom.

The Sons of Dread and the Scrollmaker

Bill rejoined the party as they explored the pyramid which the Sons of Dread had taken over. Somewhat acquainted with the layout, he served as a guide to the party. They successfully stole away the evil magic scroll maker, learning only later its point of origin! Bill for the first time during his escape used his psionic stomp to cause a half dozen Sons of Dread to fall to the ground, and his new boots of striding and springing to then leap over their heads. Earlier he had cast levitation upon himself, and took advantage of it to remain in the air longer than the leap itself normally would allow. His friends have seen him repeat this tactic successfully since then.

Just outside the secret exit from the pyramid through which Bill led the party, a strange feral gnome with a wolf friend greeted Bill and the rest of the party. Actually, the wolf knocked the halfling down and covered his face with fresh slobber from his tongue, happily greeting the surprised hobbit. The gnome, we learned a bit later, is named Ferrak, and his wolf DarkFang.

When the evil magic scroll maker was returned to Marcus, he summoned Qansis, a bright and beautiful elf. She examined it, requesting that Damocles the cleric stand next to it. Turns out the scroll making device was telepathic, and was leading some of the Sons of Dread toward our location! Qansis declared the one sure way to destroy it was to return it to Ravenloft, from whence it came. Damocles would have to come and assist her. He assented. She somehow teleported Damocles, the infernal scroll maker, and herself - to Ravenloft.

Sunblaze lit in to Marcus, rebuking him and upbraiding him for what she perceived as his self-interested obsession with acquiring items of power for his own perhaps nefarious reasons. Renik and perhaps one or two other members of the party had been suspecting such, as well. But when Marcus revealed that Qansis is his wife, and that it would be perhaps impossible for her to return from Ravenloft, that served to allay the nascent suspicions of those party members. Bill, knowing Marcus a little better, had spoken in his defense shortly before. Now having an inkling of what he had just lost, and what his wife - and Damocles - sacrificed, all seemed convinced that Marcus, though of necessity at times ruthless in his defense of the kingdom, was doing so not for his own selfish power or purpose, but rather as a servant of the kingdom and of the Lord High Mayor Sturdavent.

Marteaus' Ascension; Domi's Downfall

After sleeping through most of the day in a safe house, Marcus showed up again. Time to join in with the throngs attending the Sons' of Dread gathering at the Golden Arena, in order to spy out what they were up to. Nearly - what? - 40,000 people filled the stadium. It took a while to figure it out - but they had come to witness the deification of Marteaus. Marteaus, who had managed to get the Water Ring of Ascension a few months back from the Windhorn Hamleteers. Marteaus, the Punisher of the Gods, created by and now in rebellion against Gargul, god of the dead. With skeletal mein, and arrogant pride, he answered the summons of the Sons of Dread. Bill & company thought to impel some of the crowd to leave, but things were happening too fast. The Soul Forge - a larger and more powerful version of the scroll maker - had power to suck the souls of men, women, elves, dwarves - anyone present - and to transfer that power into Marteaus, the focus of the Dread Invocation. He appeared as a colossus - over 50 feet tall. But the brave and indomitable god of War, Domi appeared to challenge this 'stripling' as he styled Marteaus. But wiley Marteaus, despite Bill's counsel to Domi, managed to deceive his old friend Domi. Domi agreed to wrestle Marteaus - but also agreed somehow to transfer half of his power over to the upstart would-be god. Marteaus failed to keep his word to Domi, however, and continued to draw from the Soul Forge, draining the people in the stadium of their life force. His accumulated power became sufficient to defeat the god who never had been defeated. As they wrestled on, the Windhorn Hamleteers managed at last to break the Soul Forge - but their success came too late. Domi, in his last act at the mortal end of his immortal life, saved a young elfin girl who was falling to her death, and channeled through her a spell of healing never before witnessed in the Wold. Those whom Marteaus had drained of life revived, and all in the stadium were healed fully. Later, it was learned that all around the Wold, people received the Healing of Domi. And all heard Domi's last words. "As long as his children live, a father does not truly die... HAVE COURAGE!"

Marteaus snapped Domi's neck. Silence fell over the arena. The Dark Lord exulted. The two moons turned red.

And Bill encouraged his friends to come with him to save Domi's girl. Marteaus summoned the Cult Gods. Fingers of lightning began to reach out, taking the lives of many for whom Domi had just died. The girl was taken safely to her mother. Bill thinks, and hopes, they managed to escape the ensuing scene of madness and devilish destruction. He has in mind to look them up.

Dalith - raven head, human body, wings of darkness - proclaimed he would eat a gangly man, who clumsily was trying to escape. The party intervened. Against odds, the party managed to defeat the avatar of Dalith - a lesser deity among the Cult Gods. And, by the moment of defeat, the stadium was nearly deserted. Domi's body was gone. Marteaus and the cult gods were gone. Scattered bodies lay about.

Marcus instructed the party to come to a safe house that Ferrak knew about. They did so, and talked, and slept.

A Day of Darkness

The next morning - if morning it was, as the sun had not risen, as it ought - Marcus told the party via their static-filled coin of communication that a group of paladins - guardians of Domi's now fallen temple - had gone beserk, and, mistaking common citizens for demons, maimed and killed them left and right. The party hurried toward the scene, stopping briefly to buy battle nets from a frightened shopkeeper. Arriving at a building with six or eight paladins trying to get in to kill the 'demons' within, Bill stomped, knocking three down, and ascended into the air above them. Ferrak grappled with a tall paladin, DarkFang nipping at the paladin's heels; Rond, Draax, Arien and Renik used various means to disable the mad holy warriors without slaying them; and Sunblaze, after trying a few different tacks, stepped away, and reappeared in the guise of Domi, mounted on a horse. Meanwhile Bill dropped nets, a water jar, a tanglefoot bag, and a large block of aged cheese on to the demented fighters below. In time, all were subdued. The party freed the barricaded citizens, and put the paladins in the care of someone until they should regain their mental stability.

The following morning -- the sun again showed its face, after not having appeared the previous day following Marteaus' putative ascension. Marcus came by the safe house, and told us some of the happenings in the city.

A Familial Rescue

The party spent the next day cleaning up an area damaged by riots and helping out folks who were injured, and later worked to prevent an elf, lieutenant in the city guard, from carrying out his plan to offer his daughter in sacrifice to Marteaus just prior to sunrise. Frellin's daughter, Shianna - whom Domi had held, and through whom Domi had healed all people, the party managed to save, and returned the now sleeping girl and the dazed Frellin to Kianimar, Shianna's mother.

Working at the Beer & Bath, and getting on with life

The next month was spent working, under aliases, for the Beer & Bath Inn. Bill, aka 'Lake' the halfling, worked diligently, but in his time off took care of quite a bit of additional business, including spending time with Shianna and her parents, working on building up a library for the group, completing his ring of self-sufficiency (+10 autohypnosis skill) and third eye: concentrate (+10 concentration skill) at the Black Genie Center. He also learned more of the lupine tongue from Ferrak and Darkfang, and got to know his friends in more of an everyday context. Then, their employer asked them to deliver a feast and a hot tub to an important client... which turned into a walk through a ghostly park, followed by a hilarious party - a foodfight prefaced with dire foreshadowings of what the two sects of the followers of Caeroldra are heading toward. Besides the hot tub.

Worked the next six months at the B&B, as well as on building a library, buying a few pieces of real estate with his friends, visiting with Frellin, Kianimar, & their daughter Shianna, getting to know his friends better, commissioning a work on herbology by one of the Wold's foremost druidic experts, refining his gear at the Catacombs and the Black Genie Center, visiting the Red Wyrm Inn, being poked and whapped by Valdor and Gareth after tanglefooting them both during a grand invitational melee sponsored by the Storm Dragons, joining in their magic contest, and learning more about the cult gods and such. And of course, working at the Beer & Bath Inn.

K'isst returned! The elvish troglodyte showed up as a customer at the Beer & Bath. Several minutes later, once he had time to scoot elsewhere and change out of his disguise, Bill greeted her. After an awkward moment, they greeted each other joyfully -- only to be interrupted by yet another disturbance fostered by rival priests of Caeroldra - both of whom turned out to be dragons in disguise, and whom A'tath executed with hardly a howdy-do. Introduced a day or two later to Marcus, K'isst officially joined up with the team. It seems it is taking her some time to readjust. Bill perceives she has been away from civilization for some time.

More Investigations

Well, the cult gods seemed bent on messing everything up, and Bill wondered how it would all turn out. Marcus asked the team to dig up some intelligence on a would-be Council member, Baron Balantyne. They turned up clear evidence of the Baron's collusion with the leadership of the cult of Marteaus, and in his provision of funds to lure the poor into following, and often into becoming unwitting blood sacrifices for, the Dark Lord.

When Marcus came over to get the team's report (he disguised as a woman messenger - through which disguise Ferrak's wolf friend Darkfang sniffed), he asked if we've had any unusual dreams lately. Arien relates a recent dream in which a very ragged-looking Damocles reported from Koshe-Marr that he and Qancis, Marcus' wife, had destroyed the evil scroll maker. As Arien put it, Damocles "tells me that the scroll machine that we stole from the Sons of Dread can be used to unmake what it has made, to take back that which is the basis for the Dark Lord's power. He tells me that we must come and find him as he and Qancis are powerless there in that realm of evil. That to stop Marteaus from winning we must find the portal and come and get the machine. Then he begins to fade into the darkness and calls out one last time to come and get the machine or, as he puts it, as sure as bones break Marteaus will prevail."

A gnomish woman showed up - but Marcus did not introduce her, nor, given more than one opportunity, did she introduce herself.

Shortly after, a priest of Gargul, named Hobbes, arrives, to tell Marcus' team that Damocles is dead. "Your friend has been stolen from his destined realm by an evil force, I fear." It seemed, from what he tells us, that both Damocles and Qancis had been rendered undead. Some differences of opinion arise as to the most appropriate thing to do - but all agree we must go to the dread place where the cleric of Alemi and Marcus' wife took the scroll maker. The party took some time to research how to arrive - and, soon after, they located a gateway contained in a metal sculpture of bones which framed the door to a butcher's shop. The sound of breaking bones is required to open the gateway ... and, before all were ready, Arien and Ferrak managed to open said gateway. The party headed through, only to find...

A Gateway to the Scar

... A graveyard, dense with fog. Noises and whisperings can be heard in the distance. Bill, who had disguised himself as Borgo the dwarf just before reaching the butcher's shop, caused himself to fly. Dragging a 20' length of rope below him, so as to maintain some sort of tactile contact with the ground, listened as his friends discussed their surroundings. One of them pulled out a rope, suggesting they hold on so as not to get separated. Bill took a few moments to call on his powers of elfsight, know direction, and know location. Just as they were about to proceed, he communicated to the party via his psicrystal, William, that they are not in Koshe-Marr, but rather in the Scar in the Nightmare Quarter of Plateau City. "And spellcasters are ambushing us on the left and right."

A noisy, explosive battle ensued, with fireballs, sound blasts and cones of sound buffeting the party and their opponents. They included clerics, wizards, a sorcerer, an assassin of sorts, a dwarf or two, a couple of half orcs, and others. Though all took damage, several opponents seemed to target 'Borgo' specifically. A cleric soon summoned a terrible and awesome undead spectre. This was no ordinary spectre, and its hand grasped Bill's throat, beginning to drain him of life. Bill, in an act of desperation, managed to escape, yet only to be pursued as both flew through the air. Others tried to help from the ground, and the cleric of Gargul, Hobbes, flew swift into the air in an attempt to confront the ghastly spectre. His weapon passed right through it, causing no harm. Bill flew to the ground where, surrounded by his friends, the abomination took blows from them. At last, the spectre grew in size, larger than a hill giant, and said in a voice very similar to that of Marteaus' voice, 'I have more gods to slay, or I'd stay and play with you all... however, I leave you with a reward for your cleverness, lowly one..! The red glow of the giant spectre's eyes intensified and struck Bill squarely. The halfling lost a second level of power. Laughing maniacally, the super-spectre faded away.

Checking wounds, rendering aid, and cleaning up after the battle, the party discussed what had happened. As they did so, Morphia, a priestess of Gargul (the one who had told us something of the bone gate) arrived upon Hobbes' horse, coming with other clerics of Gargul to render us aid in the battle -- which was already concluded. Hobbes grew suspicious of her, but, for the moment, the rest of the party seemed satisfied with her. The priests escorted the party to the Black Temple (of Gargul), in order to help them out. They managed to restore one of the levels that Bill lost to the spectre, but not more. They kindly healed up the rest of the party members. The priests told him that 'the hand of Marteaus' prevented them from restoring him fully. K'isst and some of the others speculated on what we might next do...

... picking up after a l-o-n-g gap in time (the gap which includes the Year of Ascension end game) ...

Elmo's Rescue

Bill got a letter from Edmond about how Elmo of Windhorn Hamlet has gone missing. Seems there was some trouble, maybe associated with the town's cemetery. Well, here, you can read the letter yourself:

Mr. Bill, I shure hate to disterb you while you are in the big city, but there has been truble here in Windhorn Hamlet. Theres been all sorts of weird goings on at the semitary by my farm. Mostly odd stuff at night. I even herd something tryin the door last nite, but I keep it lokt. I wasn't too terrible worried until this morning though. I went to see Elmo -he has the farm by mine - but he weren't home. It looked like something busted in his place and tore it all up. I'm terrible worried something bad happened to Elmo. I been to the courthouse and there just doin an investigation into Elmo's disaperance. They ain't worried bout the semitary. Say I'm a supersticious coot. I hate to bother you but I don't know who else I can ask. Don't have no kinfolk around. I hope you can come have a look. If you can come, I'll be stayin at the Hearthfire. I ain't staying out here at nite no more. -Edmond

Time to go check it out. He and his friends take horses and carriage from Plateau City (with an exhilarating mile-high sky dive on Bill's part over a cliff along the way) to the hometown.

The Wold According to Renik Dacour

This journal has been passed to me, Renik Dacour, by my good friend Bill Troublefinder, in order that I may continue his account of the adventures of the Windhorn Hamleteers, until such time as he returns.

Arrival in Windhorn

Following an uneventful journey, we arrived in Windhorn Hamlet, and made for the Hearthfire Inn, which must be commended more for the comeliness of its barstaff (the redhead in partcicular) than the quality of its wines. Still, it is a rural hamlet, and one must learn to make sacrifices when away from the city.

We met with the farmer named Edmund, who steered us in the direction of the farms. Certes, there had been mischief afoot. Tracks and a symbol of Marteaus soon led us to the cemetary, where the caretaker Nigel proved to be in league with dark forces. He never got as far as telling us precisely what forces though, because a crossbow bolt through the window silenced him most effectively.

We pursued the bowman, discovering a mauseleum populated by a mummy in the process. Making short work of the loathsome thing thanks to some quick thinking by Bill and mighty blows by Feng, we discovered that beneath the mummy's resting place lay hidden catacombs.

The Demon of Windhorn Hamlet

Bill floated down a ladder to scout, only to be set upon by spectres. It was fortunuate that Feng and his god more more than their equal, blasting them to oblivion. We descended once more, destroyed some zombies, and met with a wizard named Jared who turned out to be Elmo's nephew, and who joined our group. We soon found and freed Elmo, and discovered that an evil wizard follower of Marteaus was responsible, intent upon summoning dark powers to attain lichdom.

Entering his chamber we saw a sight none of us will ever forget. The wizard had succeeded in summoning a gigantic demon, a pit fiend from the depths of hell. It stood 8 feet tall, and we felt the heat radiating from its rich red skin. Black batlike wings spread out behind him, and he gripped a gigantic, fiery greatsword. Flames licked his feet, and venom dripped from his fangs.

The demon raised its blade, preparing to slice Feng in two, but then it paused and looked down. Following its gaze, saw what caught its attention. The open door had swung through the sand and broke the wizard's circle. The vicious denizen of hell winked at Feng, and grinned the most god awful evil smile any of us had ever seen. Then it turned to face the wizard, and it spoke in a gravelly voice that chilled the soul, "You've made two mistakes Elzan. First, I am not a barbazu. I AM BARBAZOU! Second, you drew your stupid circle too close to the door!"

The wizard barely had time to scream as the demon leaped at him, bit off his head, and threw the burning headless corpse across the room. It struck the wall with so great an impact that you heard the bones crunch.

The demon spat out the bloody head and slowly turned toward the doorway. It spoke again, and the sound of the voice sent chills down our spines, "You freed me from my imprisonment. For this I owe you a favor, so I will not kill you today. But when next we meet, you will meet that fool's fate." The demon pointed toward the headless corpse. Then he stared at the paladin in the doorway, "Unless of course you want to fight today..."

Despite Feng's best efforts to get us all killed (Paladins and their morals are one of the greatest dangers to life and limb I know) the demon let us off with a fireball and some harsh language. But it seems he has our card marked: we must be ready to face him should he strike again.

Hororot and the Ice Dragon

As we searched for a way out of the catacombs, we stumbled upon the ghost of a king named Hororot, centuries, perhaps even millenia old. He informed us that he could only be freed from his eternal vigil by the return of his sacred relics, a crown and sword that lay atop a mound of dragon hoard in the Scab Mountains. Being upright citizens, and being in no way motivated by thoughts of heaps of gold and magical loot, we offered to assist him. It was a lengthy journey into danger, but eventually we returned victorious, to recount this tale of our adventures, and to free a spirit too long trapped in this Wold:

"We made contact with a mighty wizard by the name of Woodcock. Within moments we found ourselves in the frozen wastelands of the Scab Mountains, an icy north wind chilling us to the very marrow. We took leave of our guide, and ventured towards the dragon's lair.

But our journey was not to be so simple! We had not gone far before we fell prey to an ambush! A mighty Frost Giant burst from the snow, just as his pack of Winter Wolves fell upon us from the opposite direction! The giant hurled gigantic boulders with a fiendish accuracy, and the wolves cut into our ranks like a hot knife through butter. We fought back desperately, but it seemed that all was lost! First the mighty Feng fell to the giant's gargantuan axe, then I myself was cut down, hanging on to life by the merest thread!

But at the last we prevailed, the wolves despatched and the giant falling victim to twin fireballs from Arien here. Its scarred and smouldering corpse fell lifeless to the snow, and we thanked our Gods for our victory.

But we had little time to celebrate. We had seen a giant encampment, and knew that several of the giants companions were nearby. We had to flee if were to reach our destination alive.

As we travelled under cover of darkness, each of us knew that we had barely survived the giant attack. How then would we fare against the dread might of a White Dragon?"

"Well, we soon found the Dragon's mountain, and after some searching discovered a cave entrance that led down into the icy bowels of the earth. But it was not just the weather that chilled our bones as we descended; the deeper we descended the farther we were from the light, and the closer we drew to winged, talonned death.

Eventualy we reached an icy barrier, which (with some ingenuity on the part of Mr Troublefinder) we bypassed. Below was a sheer drop, a shaft carved into the rock that seemed to fall away into infinity. Our hearts in our mouths, we descended.

We reached the bottom without incident, and immediately realised we had reached our goal: before us lay a vast cavern of ice, shimmering and glowing with an uncanny light. Vast tapered pillars of ice hung from the ceiling and rose from the ground, and all about, encased in glittering ice, lay treasures unimagined by your humble narrator. And believe you me, Hororot King, I can imagine quite a bit.

We moved into the cavernous chamber, every sense alert for danger. Everything seemed as still as the surface of the frozen lake we spied before us. We hunted through that chamber for what seemed like hours, but what in truth was mere minutes. And there we found, encased in ice, your prized blade and crown. And, in another part of the cavern, our new companion Tratain.

We did not have time to celebrate our find. With an earsplitting crash and a roar that sent raw terror coursing through our souls, the lake behind us split assunder. The dragon burst forth, vaster than we could possibly have imagined. An icy chill burst from its horribly fanged maw, sweeping over us, and its terrible claws glinted in the shimmering light of that icy tomb. For a heartbeat, I confess, I thought that all was lost.

And then we struck. Arien hurled blast after blast of fiery doom at the creature. Feng rushed the beast, only to be caught up in those terrible jaws. Hobbes and Rond both suffered telling blows, but we fought back. Bill here tried trick after trick to cause the dragon crippling damage, but was thwarted at every turn.

Then the dragon hurled Feng a full sixty feet across the chamber, and turned to flee! Those not grievously wounded gave chase, and we were able to corner it in the base of the great shaft. We attacked once more, and Arien's fireballs would have put paid to the creature had it not snatched him up, meaning to crush the life from his body.

But it was too late for the beast. As Arien's life slipped away, our new friend Tratain risked his own skin to save a stranger, leaping in close to heal the dying man. Then Bill, Feng and Draax launched a devastating assault (Feng's blows were struck with a force I have never seen equalled). The creature bellowed one final time, then crashed lifeless to the cavern floor. Victory was ours."

Death of a Spymaster

Recuperating in the Hearthfire, we recieved word from our spymaster Marcus of a new mission; a treasure map leading to a shipwreck. However before we embarked upon the journey a great party was held in honour of the 30th birthday of Bill Troublefinder. Many fine gifts were given. The joy of the day was greatly tempered however, as Bill announced his decision to remain behind in Windhorn Hamlet as the party continued on.

We were led on our way by a fallen paladin named Abram, whom we were called upon to save from a savage beating at the hands of a foul Barbazu. The battle was short and brutal, and the beast died.

Our journey continued for a few days, and during that time we became aware we were being watched by magical means. We reached a ettlement of sea elves, and all seemed normal save that Marcus was not there. Our suspicions grew. The next morning we met with Marcus, or rather a doppelganger in his image; the sea elves were mind-controlled into attacking us, and a frenzied battle against them, the sea elf leader and a vile Sea Devil ensued. We came off poorly, but survived.

Resolving to take the battle to the enemy we pushed on to their lair, where it transpired Marcus was being held captive. But we arrived too late. He was butchered in a loathsome ritual of necromantic magic, rising again as an evil spirit. We slew him and his captors in an epic battle, but it was a phyrric victory.

Further, it seemed we had not dealt with our true foe: it seems sea devils, infuriated with our group after the Sentinel Head incident, had plotted our downfall and captured our leader. But there was another, darker force yet behind them. there were hints of a Brother L (who claimed to have already overcome the party once), a being that seemed to be a dragon turtle called The Hidden Master, and a captured library somewhere in the Red Hills.

To the Red Hills

Responding to the death of Marcus, a priestess of Domi named Kirania transported us back to the Temple of Domi in Plateau City to lick our wounds. Kirania revealed the following:

"For some time now our intelligence and military have been hearing bits of information about a mage school somewhere across the northern border in the Red Hills. It apparently is hidden, and caters to hopeful arcanists of the dark races. We know its somewhere along the road due to chasing certain mage-criminals, and having them disappear in the area."

"The second part is more interesting... After the disaster when Domi died, there was a Fixer of Alemi by the name of Lemmran who made it is duty to clean up the shards of the Soul Machine that got scattered. Unfortunately, he went mad sometime thereafter, and evaded our forces to the north. It would be very unfortunate if he was aligned with this school."

And so we set out, guided by Kylean, in pursuit of the unknown. Were Brother L and Lemmran one and the same? Was the Soul Forge being rebuilt? Was this mage school linked in some way to the library? We set off, and on the way met up with a fine fellow named Thelonius and took up the trail of a necromancer who had butchered an innocent camp of halflings for undead servants. Suspecting he might be linked to our quary we pursued, catching him at an inn called the Silver Seagull.

Beneath the Silver Seagull

The Inn proved to be merely a cover for the sinister activities of the Sons of Dread. Battle ensued, and before long the mage, his retinue, a hill giant and a duplicitous bard lay dead by our hand. The staff proved to be merely ensorcelled innocents, who quickly vacated the premises. We were left facing a locked and mysterious door. Bypassing the hurdle we discovered a stairway leading down into the depths of the earth. We had uncovered the secret entrance to the evil mage school of the Sons of Dread.

After some debate as to whether a frontal or crafty approach might prove best (Pantheon spare me from the purity of paladins!) we headed down into the darkness and the unknown.

We came across a chamber containing 4 large skeletons and a series of riddles. After some debate we determined them to be magical in nature, and decided to allow our spellcasters sufficient time to bring the necessary spells to mind. This done we were able to assemble a key which successfully opened the far door, revealing the gigantic metal-encased skeleton of Yharathik, once gladiatorial champion of the Middle Dark. He was about to set us a further magical challenge when Feng, unable to contain his righteous fury at such an unholy abomination, attacked. Battle was joined, and a ferocious battle it was too. The spiked chain of our foe inflicted significant damage before the horror was felled.

It was at that point that I (acting purely from healthy curiosity I assure you, dear reader, and not, as some have since suggested, from base avarice) examined the fallen Monstrosity’s battered iron crown. It was a trap. At once I was teleported away from that place, captured by the foul mages of the Sons of Dread and beaten senseless. The following hours and days are a blur; I remember little more than the endless beatings, questions and finally a period of horror as I was strapped to the very engine we had come to destroy. The Soul Forge drank greedily from my life force.

My companions, not knowing what had befallen me, realised that the Mage School was mobilising against them. The battle had sorely taxed them, and in the face of overwhelming odds it was decided to retreat to the relative safety of the tavern above.

The respite proved short-lived. Upstairs they were ambushed by a Drow assault team, supported by a fire elemental and more undead. Once again the Hamleteers were able to survive the battle, with the timely aid of a feral warrior, Sarigar and his lupine companion. But more enemies were in pursuit. Taking the unconscious drow leader with them (a priestess of some beauty, so I’m told) as well as one of her flunkies they followed their new companion out into the storm-lashed night, and to the safety of his hidden cave.

There a dark bargain was struck. The priestess was freed, on the condition that she would make no move against the Hamleteers for a period of one month. In return she gave us clues about how best to defeat the mad Brother L.

Return to the Dread Caverns

The Hamleteers returned to the Silver Seagull, determined to put an end once and for all to the twisted souls that dwelled beneath. In the kitchen area they discovered a trapdoor that led them once more into those underground tunnels. Before long they ran into the stiffest challenge yet; beside an underground lake the hamleteers were hit with wave after wave of enemies. Sahuagin, dark mages, undead, drow, a flaming devil-creature, a demon comprised entirely of chains, the dragon turtle known as the Hidden Master; the assault seemed endless. And yet, despite seemingly unbeatable odds, the Hamleteers prevailed. Time after time they fought their attackers back. During that battle they discovered my bandaged body on a makeshift funeral pyre, and freed me from my bonds. The tide of the battle had turned, but the cavern itself was now collapsing! We raced for the relative safety of a small chamber, instants before the entire ceiling gave way in an almighty crash of rock and dust.

So there we lay, trapped in the darkness. It was at that point that we discovered, asleep in a crate, a sleeping dwarf. His name, it transpired, was Gaxx, and he was a follower of Wardd. Lucky indeed, to have slept through that great battle and cave-in.

It fell to Arien to teleport us out, over the course of the next several hours. Once again we regrouped and determined that this assault upon our enemy’s stronghold would be the last.

Once more Unto the Dread Caverns

And so we returned once more. Once again our infiltration did not go unmarked. Before long we were attacked by a number of dark mages, and in the ensuing spellcasting inferno Setanos fell to their dread magics. And yet we had little time for grief. We took a moment to honour our fallen comrade, but we had no choice; a greater evil awaited us, and we pressed on. Tratain had spotted hidden door in the ceiling, and it was through here that we discovered the target of our quest; the crystalline structure to which I had been strapped was found and destroyed, despite powerful magical defences.

And then the final stage; the Soul Forge itself, protected by the Mad Fixer himself, Lemmran. It seemed as though his powerful magics might overwhelm us all, but we were able to penetrate his elaborate defenses. Sadly the crazed mage was able to make his escape, but we took control of the Soul Forge and were able to shut it down. Kiriana and her team arrived from Plateau City to perform a mopping up operation, and before we knew it we were back in Plateau City, ready to entreat Gargul for the soul of our fallen comrade.

Search for a Soul

The summoning took place and at once we found ourselves transported to the Lands of Rest, standing before Gargul himself. After sincere entreaties the God of Life and Death (who sported a particularly fine goatee) granted the release of Setanos’ soul. I for one was relieved to be back in the land of the living. Those Gods are a shade too intimidating for my tastes.

The Missing Coin

We discovered from Kiriana that the party’s communication coin had been stolen, along with a number of sensitive documents. The culprit was an ex-member of the organization, a weasel-faced bard called Rhiad Blackwing. We were sent to the Halfling city of Angel Springs to return both the bard and the items. But before we left we recieved a curious letter from an unknown source with the promise of work if we could locate the author within one month. We put this to one side, and concentrated upon the mission at hand.

We met with the local constabulary, including a Halfling named Benny who was determined to locate his lost lady love, Ivy. Feng swore to help if he could.

After some considerable detective work we lost track of Rhiad but picked up the trail of a small group of Drow elves who had apparently met with the bard. We followed their party out of the city and deep into the giant-controlled lands of the Scab.

It was only a matter of time before we encountered a Giant patrol, and when we did, disaster struck. In an ill-organized battle poor Gaxx, our lucky purple dwarven companion, was struck down. This led to considerable ill-feeling and recrimination between us, as grief got the better of us.

We continued on our way, passing a Rock Troll guarding a bridge who warned us of a giant encampment ahead, where many races gathered. He proved as good as his word; before long we came upon an enormous fortress in a great clearing in the woods. This was the demesne of King Gorin Stonecrusher of the Flamecrowns, Lord of Bone Castle!

Infiltrating Bone Castle

We spent some time reconnoitring the castle, and discovered that many slaves were being held in an encampment outside the walls. What’s more, the giants had guests; derro, lizardfolk, mindflayers and our party of drow.

We debated how best to proceed, and although some favoured a frontal assault we eventually decided stealth was our only option. We teleported back to Plateau City in order to prepare ourselves, and to attend Gargul’s festival as we had promised. Then it was back into the fray.

We all crept into the fort brilliantly disguised as bugs! I was able to infiltrate the drow wizard’s lodgings, but somehow the mage detected my presence. He proved to be very civil though, suggesting the party come back in through the main gate using his name, Caunas Methar, to grant safe passage. He explained he was the owner of a powerful magical item, a tapestry that used the power of folk tales. What’s more, it turned out our quarry now existed within the tapestry! The only way to get him back was to go in ourselves!

Into the Tapestry

And so it came to pass that the Windhorn Hamleteers walked up to the front gate of the dreaded Bone Castle and announced themselves as honoured guests! Soon we found ourselves in the feasting hall, where the tapestry was revealed. Each participant who entered the tapestry became a human character in an ongoing fairytale. We sent in Feng and Rond, and wagers flew back and forth over who would prove the victor in this curious game.

Over the next several nights the dangerous game continued. Those of us outside of the tapestry plotted as how to best escape with both it and our quarry. In the end we devised a plan to set the various factions at one another’s throats. We broke into the wizard’s quarters, assassinated him, framed the derro for the deed and then hid the tapestry.

Sadly our plan did not entirely succeed. We were unable to set giant against giant, and so found ourselves hopelessly outnumbered when it came down to a fight. We did the only sensible thing and escaped, leaving a group of very angry giants behind.

A Safe Return

We were able to retrieve our companions and Rhiad from the Tapestry, then head back to Plateau City where we handed the item over to Kiriana. There was only one problem; we had been unable to free the slaves. Worse, we had discovered one of those slaves was Ivy, the lost love of the halfling Benny. Feng in particular felt a great desire to right this wrong.

It seemed as though our paymasters had prior knowledge of the Tapestry, and they seemed desperate to get their hands on it. Indeed, we took to wondering if our entire mission had not been an elaborate ploy to get the article into the possession of the temple.

Still, we had done the job we were paid to do, and could relax for the first time in weeks.

Fae King Rising

Part 1: The Templars of the Wild

After some investigation we discovered that the symbol borne by the elf who delivered the enigmatic letter was that of a militant elvish wing of the druidic order, the Templars of the Wild. We visited the Druid Quarter to gather more information, and after overhearing a soothsayer proclaiming the coming of 'the Sleeper' we were ushered into the presence of the Green Man, the Woodwose. This ancient treant gave us information on the location of the Templars, but at a price. We agreed to be his eyes and ears for the next three moons. After being granted a vision of the elven letter writer we set off in search of a landmass to the east, beyond Dragon Bay.

But the night before our departure Draax and Arien, being of elven heritage, were visited by an alarming dream, a dream actively shared by every elf in the Wold! They dreamed of a Sleeper awakening, and spreading the his green influence across the Wold, and of Parnoth falling before the rise of nature unbound. Opinion was divided on whether the dream was a portent of good or ill, but for now the party focused upon the matter at hand: reaching the land to the east.

With Domi's aid Tratain was able to transform us all into a living mist that raced above countless leagues of ocean in mere hours. and so we found ourselves in a new land, wooded, alien and wild. Having braved the woods we came at last upon an elven settlement, home of Harlee, the writer of the letter, and of Irvine, his gnome companion.

But before our many questions could be answered we were ushered to a gathering around a great bonfire, burning with green flame. Within those flames a great meeting of the elves was taking place, discussing the implications of the shared dream. We watched as points were raised and debated by learned sages, seasoned adventurers and great heroes. Now unease crept into the thoughts of some of our band, myself included. For in their arrogance the elves chose to debate whether or not to wake the king without any consultation of the other noble races.

Following this conclave the debate contiued throughout the night, and it became clear how devisive this issue of waking the sleeper was destined to become. One thing was agreed upon by all: that more information was required before the sleeper was awoken. To that end Harlee suggested we seek out a being known as the Lord of the Pixies, an ertwhile contemporary or the Fae King, and we agreed at once, and were assigned two guides. One, a halfling called Jaspar, was lost upon the journey. But the other, a rude, argumentative and downright exasperating dwarf by the name of Monthar proved himself one of the finest and bravest companions it has ever been my privaledge to fight beside, and travels with us still.

Sadly before we left we were told grave news: Parnoth had enslaved the elves of the Emerald Kingdom! Spurred on by this news we sought out the Pixie Lord, and although much of his advice was cryptic and ambiguous, his words did little to ease my growing suspicion that the Fae King was far more of a threat than he seemed.

And then, even as warnings were being given, the eclipse was upon us, and the song of the elves began. And whilst some sang for sleep far more sang for wakefulness, and somewhere the sleeper stirred, and awoke...

The Pixie Lord gave us one final clue: in the distant past the Fae King had been sent to sleep by his wife, Queen Maab of the Valleys of Twilight.

Returning to the druid village we found the Templars preparing for war. They gathered an army of nature to march on Parnoth the Green, and were keen for us to join their effort. But the Hamleteers' destiny lay along a different path. We decided to take our newfound knowledge back to the Platinum Dragons in Plateau City.

When we arrived we headed to their castle and passed on our information to those legendary heroes. Valdor himself tasked us with passing the news of the rise of the Fae King to Queen Maab, and Joe Hand instructed us on how best to reach the otherworldly Valleys of Twilight, part of the lands of the dead.

Part 2: The Quest for Queen Maab

And so we took to the road once more, seeking out the magical gate and its guardian that Joe told us of, situated near Edenmoor. Along the way we encountered a group of mischievous fae called grigs, and pursuaded some of their number to assist us in our quest.

As we entered the canyon we encountered the first guardians, several enormous earth elementals. For a while things looked grim, but we battled through, drawing together as a team to overcome the mighty sod beasts. We took stock and Tratain hit upon the brilliant plan of magicaly disguising ourselves as grigs. Perhaps as fae we could pass through unmolested. This ruse (and some quick thinking by Tratain) got us past a number of potential foes, but the true gate guardians were not so easily fooled. 7 closely spaced oaks blocked our path, and between them dryads of unimaginable beauty.

How my heart soared at the sight of them! That night it took all my willpower to remain focused upon our quest. But they told us we could only pass with a Word or Token from the queen. We did possess a skull, a boon of Gargul given to us by Joe Hand, and that gave Feng an idea . A Boatman of Gargul was summoned, who chalenged us to a test by wit or combat. Combat was chosen, and battle was joined.

But the price was high; though the boatman's champion was defeated Monthor fell with him. The dwarf bravely sacrificed himself that the rest of us might live.

We passed through the portal and entered the valleys of Queen Maab. And there, manifested as a glowing ball of light, was the spirit of Monthor! In his company we traversed a valley of butterflies, and then were transported into the most astonishing of places; the court of Queen Maab. To us it apeared as an immense and cultivated garden, though we were told it looks different each time it is visited.

I am unable to describe Queen Maab herself. Such was he beauty, her presence, her sheer radiant power, that she transcends mere words. Being in her presence is a feeling I shall never forget, an experience I shall ever look back upon with a mixture of joy, awe and sorrow at its passing.

We spoke of our reasons for seeking her, and of what migh be done regarding the Fae King Eberyon. After much deliberation the Queen decided the choice as to his fate must be left to mortals; atone, sleep or die. And in thanks for our efforts she granted us a boon; she returned Monthor's spirit to his body!

Part 3: The Quest for King Eberyon

We took our leave through the many valleys that make up her realm, first travelling through the Valley of Dreams. In this place we could enter the dreaming minds of sleepers in the Wold, and soon we found ourselves within the dreaming mind of Queen Maab!

She confronted the Fae King, only for Eberyon to splitq himself into countless avatars in order to escape her judgement. But the queen was able to show us how to find him, and how to pass judgement upon him when we did. After getting past some long-dead elven servants of the King we left the Valleys and made our way back into the Wold.

That night spent with the dryads (and one dryad in particular) was one of the most magical of my life. Oh, her divine lips! Her magical touch, the things she did with...

There follows an extremely long section which has been blacked out. In the margin is written, in another hand, "Bad enough we had to listen to it all, without having to read about it too!"

Back at Plateau City we visited the Temple of Light. From there we were transported to the Windbourne Hills by the fae-stone, a n artefact recovered from the distant past. We were now hot on the trail of an avatar of the Fae King.

Following a trail of destruction we hunted him and his numerous summoned creatures down, and (with an orcish warsong from our headstrong paladin) engaged. The battle was brutal and swift, with summoned magical animals butchered left and right as we focused our attack on their spellcasting master.

Our numbers and spellcasters proved his undoing. Prevented from casting he was cut down by Arien's disintegration spell. His creatures vanished, and all that remained was the spectre of the Fae King.

Eberyon then pleaded with us for clemency as we prepared to pass judgement. In truth his words merely steeled our resolve and refirmed our contempt for his inability to consider and accept the consequences of his actions. Each of us cast our vote, and the Fae King was gone.

But not before he revealed one final peice of information. In his flight he had been approached by a sage, a specialist in insect lore. This man claimed to be able to protect the king with the use of elven blood. Even now he held elves captive to this nefarious end. Expressing our disgust at Eberyon's involvement, we vowed to save those poor innocents.

Versus the Verminoliger

Following Eberyon's directions we headed for the sage's compound. En route we narrowly avoided his patrols of giant ants and insect-helmeted orcs, and did battle with an invisible, silent giant bee. But we prevailed once more, and attempted to infiltrate the sage's compound by guile.

Our disguise was quickly seen through, and within moments a pitched battle was in progress. Giant insects, summoned creatures and orc underlings rushed at us, but Arien's mighty spells blocked and blasted them. Soon the battlefield was littered with the corpses of our enemies.

We were faced with choice; to enter the gigantic tree around which the ompound was centred, or delve into the subterranean darkness of the ant burrows. Steeling ourselves we decended into the unknown.

Within the tunnels the sage was ready for us. Keeping us off-balance with mind-clouding and charm spells we soon found ourselves in the thrall of our foe. Were it not for the iron wills of Arien and Tratain we would surely have been lost.

Instead the sage saw that his ploy had failed, and collapsed the chamber roof upon us! Buried under tons of rubble we attacked creatures that swam though solid stone as if it were water, and had we not broken free it would have gone ill for us. But break free we did, and now we pressed home our advantage. In the sages' inner sanctum battle was joined once more, and although I was imprisoned in an impenetrable cube of force and my companions suffered grievous wounds, we overcame the enemy. But at the last the sage escaped, fleeing by means of a dimension door spell. Freeing the captive elves we moved to break into his final stronghold; the sages' laboratory.

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Windhorn Hamlet