To help everyone with keeping track of the things going on in the campaign, I’ve pulled together the various “plot hooks” or events that have occurred to date…just in case they’ve been forgotten. It is pretty typically for multiple hooks or “story lines” to develop during our campaigns and to continue to develop even if the player characters are not actively involved. So let’s summarize what’s been going on below the break…in no particular chronological or importance order…based on what the player characters already know (even if the players don’t remember).
- Cult of Orcus: This cult appears to be heavily active in the Winterhaven area, kidnapping villagers, employing the Bloodreavers, enslaving kobolds, and excavating various locations.
- A primary goal of the cult is to break the magical seals keeping a rift to the Shadowfell shut. An individual named Mirtis leads the cult in the Winter haven area.
- Other goals include obtaining the Mirror of Shadows and the Ruby of the Damned…both of which the party currently hold.
- The shopkeeper, Bairwin, was a cult member prior to be executed by the Lord of Winterhaven. Other villagers are also cult members but the identity of all is not known.
- Cyrak is the name of the individual “in charge” of the cult in the Nentir Vale. He is somehow involved with the Mages of Saarun and in the Seven-Pillared Hall.
- Bejik: This dragonborn with some serpentine features employed the party to “fetch” a token of Jheri Tibuercaex, a dragonborn hero of ages past. He subsequently disappeared and no trace has been found.
- The Winter Witch: A powerful fey who has attempted to conquer the Vale over the years. One of her servants, Talavi, obtained a foothold and was achieving some success at this goal until the heroes intervened. It is unlikely that the Winter Witch will have forgotten this.
- Illustrious Order of the Onyx Pearl: A group of arcane types from the south who appear to be seeking remnants of the Slaughtergarde.
- One member of the Order was encountered at Kobold Hall and had a fragment of one of the Gates of Slaughtergarde (fondly referred to the “rock sausage” by the players). He was slain by the heroes.
- Aljuzae was another member of the Order and was leading the excavation at Jheri’s Tomb, leading the gnolls there and those that had attacked Nenlast. She was also slain by the party. Auntie Fiala was gifted Aljuzae’s eyes and apparently has quite a bit of knowledge about her and her goals.
- Shadar-kai: While traveling on the Trade Road, the heroes came across a site of battle where the Black Sand gnolls attacked some bandits who had attacked a caravan. Three of the bandits, one still alive, were shadar-kai. Shaviir, the surviving shadar-kai, provided a little information to the party before wishing to be left to die. Were these the only shadar-kai or might there be more in the Vale? If more, why are they here? The shadar-kai are natives of the Shadowfell and not the Mid Realm.
- Gnolls of the Black Sand: This tribe of gnolls comes from the south and appears to be in the employ of the Onyx Pearl. The heroes have encountered these gnolls multiple times…at and around Kobold Hall, at and around Jheri’s Tomb, and along the Trade Road between Thunderspire Peak and the Five-League House. A large number of this tribe has been slain by the heroes and by Talavi but some may still remain in the Vale.
- In one encounter with the Black Sand gnolls, those that attacked the bandits attacking the caravan (prior entry), the gnolls were holed up some caves. They appeared to be fleeing something as the heroes attacked the location. The party came across various undead gnolls, witherlings, and found some sort of evil magic circle dedicated to Yeenoghu, demon lord of gnolls. But was any of this what the gnolls were fleeing from? If not, what were the gnolls fleeing from?
- Slaughtergarde: From ages past, the Slaughtergarde was a massive fortress created by the demon lord Abraxus in the Abyss. It was transported to the Mid Realm but ultimately destroyed by the forces of good. Segments of the demonic fortress were tossed across the planes with some “landing” in the Mid Realm. The remnants may contain gates to the Abyss that can be opened. The party have already encountered two possible Slaughtergarde locations (one beneath the catacombs of Riverroar and one at Jheri’s Tomb). The Illustrious Order of the Black Pearl is obviously seeking such locations…but why?
- Rage: Not that the player characters actually know her name (the players do), Rage is the tiefling that was with the orcs who had attacked Fallcrest, the orcs encountered at the standing stone whose magics failed and released some sort of demon type creature. Who is she and what is she up to?
- The Standing Stone: Located a couple of days north of Fallcrest, this stone had inscriptions that seemed to be a combination of druidic and arcane runes devoted to some sort of binding. Magic that was clearly weakening when the party first came across the stone and failed the next time they encountered it. Might there be other such stones in the Vale?
- Darklings and Quicklings: Encountered in and around Riverroar, darklings are native to the Shadowfell while Quicklings are fey. They were working together…what is up with that?
- Auntie Fiala: So far, at least, Auntie Fiala, an obviously powerful fey, has been mostly a boon to the heroes. She has aided them, in exchange for gifts of appropriate value, on multiple occasions. There is no doubt that she keeps her own counsel and has her own agenda. I suppose the question is how long will these continue to align with the heroes’ agenda.
- Thunderspire, Seven-Pillared Hall, and the Mages of Saarun: Not really a plot hook (at the moment) but the heroes have visited the Seven-Pillared Hall after encountering and aiding an apprentice of the Mages of Saarun. They also know that Cyrak, the “head” of the Cult of Orcus in the Vale, is involved in some fashion with the Mages. Also, Woodward has a rather keen dislike of a certain ogre enforcer in the employ of the Mages of Saarun.
- The Feydark: Talavi provided the heroes with passage to the Feydark to make their return to Auntie Fiala a much shorter trip. The heroes slew a dragon guarding the entrance to the Feydark who served the lord of that fey realm, Naldartis. They then passed through the Feydark and encountered and killed a “medusa” like creature and various drow/spider/monkey things. Might there be any repercussions from all of this?
- Andok Sur: The ancient City of the Dead, Andok Sur was destroyed centuries ago by the gods. The heroes have encountered at least two locations that may be from or related to Andok Sur:
- Qadir’s Abode: Beneath Choppy’s Cairn (the hill upon which the party was attacked by the “army” of Black Sand gnolls and upon which Choppy became a pin cushion), the heroes found a large cavern with a number of buildings made of bone. D’Votski, an undead, was a rather accommodating host. The heroes used a scroll to activate one of six teleportation circles in one of the buildings. (Stole the scroll? Some money was left as payment, but it wasn’t nearly enough to cover the cost.) They arrived in some “dungeon” beneath the Tower of Waiting, a ruined fortification on a small island in the Nentir River by the Upper Quays of Fallcrest.
- According to D’Votski, his lord, Qadir, wakens every century or so to feed. Might he wake sooner to deal with thieving adventurers who stole one of his scrolls?
- Beneath the Mounds: As the heroes were heading from Nenlast back to Fallcrest (after saving the Vale from a Winter Fey invasion), they happened across a series of burial mounds (after Gandave was magically transformed and transported to the mounds as smoke). Here they encountered another fairly accommodating host, E’Benfa, very similar in appearance and mannerisms to D’Votski. E’Benfa serves his lady, Lady Lanma, who he is attempting to waken. Her slumber can be ended with the sacrifice of enough fey essences (including elves like Gandave). The heroes ended up trading a magical ring that they found in the Feydark for Gandave, a ring that bore the symbol of the Prince of Frost…one of the highest of the Winter Court. E’Benfa was quite satisfied with the exchange. Have the heroes helped quicken the wakening of this Lady Lanma? Who…or perhaps more importantly…what exactly is she? Could anyone/anything possibly associated with the City of Dead be a good thing for the Vale?
- Qadir’s Abode: Beneath Choppy’s Cairn (the hill upon which the party was attacked by the “army” of Black Sand gnolls and upon which Choppy became a pin cushion), the heroes found a large cavern with a number of buildings made of bone. D’Votski, an undead, was a rather accommodating host. The heroes used a scroll to activate one of six teleportation circles in one of the buildings. (Stole the scroll? Some money was left as payment, but it wasn’t nearly enough to cover the cost.) They arrived in some “dungeon” beneath the Tower of Waiting, a ruined fortification on a small island in the Nentir River by the Upper Quays of Fallcrest.
- Grovelthrash: Before heading off for Winterhaven the second time, the heroes were approached in Fallcrest by a self-proclaimed entrepreneur, Owen Lloyd. Owen offered and eventually sold a “treasure map” to the party, a map that supposedly leads to a Slaughtergarde location which holds a magical warhammer called Grovelthrash. The location is beneath some old hunting lodge in the Harken Forest. Owen’s best sales pitch was mention of having purchased this map from a very drunk halfling about six years ago…Mari!
- Mari’s Map: In the Slaughtergarde location beneath the ruins of Riverroar, the heroes found the remains of a halfling. They later learned that here name was Mari Eddyroot, an adventurer with a strong penchant for freely spending her treasure on drink and for knowing things that she should probably shouldn’t.
- One of the things found on Mari’s corpse was a map of the Vale labeled “Mari’s Map” which has nearly twenty locations marked with notes about each on the back of the map. Each location had some comments form Mari as well…almost all about the treasure and ickiness of guardians at each location. A number of the locations include those already visited by the party and some are locations of current interest.
- Brandwick: A minstrel that the party met when they headed to Nenlast from Fallcrest. Brandwick traveled with them until the Five-League House witnessing and promising to immortalize in song:
- The Flame Tower bit south of Thunderspire.
- The visit to the Seven-Pillared Hall.
- The aftermath of the gnolls attacking bandits attacking caravan and what came out of the gnoll caves.
- Brandwick hooked up with the merchants, Chad and Ulric, rescued from the gnoll cave and Fitch, who joined up with the other merchants at Five-League House. The little group was heading off to Hammerfast the last that the party had heard.
- Underdark: Although the party has not really gone into the Underdark to date, they have found what are likely multiple entrances to it:
- Beneath Kobold Hall, the party found a shaft leading deep underground.
- Beyond Qadir’s Abode is an entrance to the Underdark per D’Votski’s information.
- In the gnoll caves near Thunderspire, another shaft leading deep underground was found by the party.
- FREEDOM!: On their return to Fallcrest from Nenlast and on the outskirts of Fallcrest, the party spotted a large stallion galloping towards them. When Woodward or Sulrinn spoke with it, it kept shouting FREEDOM! as it continued to gallop past. A group of four riders were giving chase (poorly). Hmmm…what was that about?
- Bug Food: At the end of our last session, the party came across a bloody mess of a wagon and large drag marks. Following, they found some caves and Gandave entered only to be ambushed by large insect-like creatures of some sort. I’m sure there must be some story behind this; we just haven’t found out yet.
- Bloodreavers: A band of slavers and mercenaries predominantly composed of hobgoblins. The party has primary encountered them working for Mirtis in the Winterhaven area, but they are active elsewhere.
- Five-League House: A fortified inn about a day’s travel from Hammerfast. It was attacked and badly damaged by giants and humanoids fleeing Talavi’s “winter.” The proprietor, Barton, was saved by the heroes and is planning on repairing the inn.
I think that covers most of what is or has been going on in terms of story/plot. Ratlings, if I’ve missed anything that you’d like added, let me know.
