Rock Hammer vs Karg - Eleint 13th

H 76/L 56, winds out of the northeast at 10 mph, ½ inch of rain

Patrols Today: B2
Captain Dominic travels from Cholnudon to Rock Hammer
Captain Aito travels from Silverymoon to Rock Hammer
Captain Ensyer travels from Rock Hammer to Cholnudon
Captain Thulver defends Rock Hammer


Kalad wakes the group early this morning, eager to get to the Vents to make sure that the Glorious Defenders did their job by shutting them down to prevent the orcs of King Obould Many-Arrows and his army from entering the Silver Marches.

The Vents were easy to find, being just a few miles from the Monastery and near the entrance the heroes found a campsite and five horses (later claimed by the Lords of Rock Hammer as their own), and tracks leading into the Vents. No doubt, the campsite of the Glorious Defenders.

After a series of twisting and turning passages the group came to the entrance and were witness to six orcs engaged in a heated argument about the corridor behind them.

The heroes made quick work of them despite having a few cinderbombs dropped on them (Kregnok recovered one for later).

The next room proved to be more difficult as a dwarven defense system was already in place; several trigger plates activated crossbow turrets, as well as containing three iron defenders and a construct archer.

Finally the group reached the other end of the darkened hallway and disabled the control panel and managed to catch their breath before entering the next room.

The boiler room is a massive room, filled with a handful of orcs, some fire beetles, and a mysterious shadowy figure trying to investigate one of the control valves to a large pipe.

The heroes used the fire beetles to their advantage and that knocked out a couple of the orc minions. The shadowy figure proved difficult to deal with, but a couple of well-placed shots from the bow of Althalus did it in. Once the room was cleared, the group discovered the beheaded remains of the half-elf warlock from the Glorious Defenders. Kalad informed the group that the control valve had to be turned on in here in order to close the Nexus nearby.

The group came to a three-way intersection and Umberto was leading the group forward to the Nexus when Kalad and Kregnok both paused to peer down the right hallway. Kalad said the Shrine to Moradin was down there and Kregnok insisted the group make sure the area was not defiled by the orcs before they press on.

Of course the orcs were here, and with them was a cave troll that was eating the remains of the three members of the Glorious Defenders. The group entered the fray and started attacking the cave troll, who turned and picked up an orc to wield as a weapon. Kregnok felt the presence of Moradin urging him on to purify this room of the orc defilers. A few rounds later and the cave troll was dropped, only to rise again the next round and scoop up Kregnok as a weapon. Althalus the ranger, dropped the cave troll again and thus saved Kregnok from being used as a blunt instrument. The cave troll rose a third time and in it’s anger of the orc bombardiers, grabbed one to use as a weapon killing it in the process. Its final cinderbomb fell out and exploded on the cave troll, and the next hit on the regenerating beast dropped it for good.

The Nexus was the next and final room for the heroes, and in this massive room was a tall cylinder in the center with a catwalk spirally up around the perimeter of the room. The heroes began their accent to the top while orcs piled into the room from various points, impeding their progress. As the group was about halfway up, the saw two ominous figures appear and head up towards the center. One was a female shadar-kai warlock, the likes this world and time has never seen. The other was an orc of immense size, surly the offspring of orc and ogre parents. But he was recognizable; he is Karg leader of the Broken Tusks tribe that Thar Grim-Rule watched over, and also, one of King Obould Many-Arrow’s sons.

The final boss battle took place at the top of the cylinder next to a control panel. Umberto, bravely, was the first on the seen and despite his tremendous defense, was being whittled down by the combined assaults from the warlock’s psychic damage and the brutal attacks from Karg’s falchion. A few rounds later Kregnok and Grognak arrived, and shortly after that Umberto and Kregnok were dropped. Grognak seized the opportunity and slew both Karg and his mistress.

Kalad rushed over to the control panel and minutes later the entire room started to flood with boiling water. The heroes escape the room by climbing a ladder that led to a trapdoor and back to the surface.

You all stand together in the middle of nowhere, atop of the Nether Mountains. Kalad turns to you and smiles for the first time, “We did it!”

Umberto orders camp to be made as you are all exhausted from the day’s exploits.