The online D&D 5th edition campaign I am in is on hiatus, so I thought I would post the first few adventure session reports. I started posting reports at session 6 so this gives me 5 extra session reports I can post. I was the Dungeon Master for the first two sessions. Our chosen DM needed a few weeks to prepare so I stepped in and ran a short, starter adventure.
I had written a short adventure that was designed to be an introduction to a Phandelver Campaign. So it takes place on the Sword Coast just north of Neverwinter along the High Road.
The Sleeper Wakes Session 1
The players are caravan guards who are between jobs returning south to Neverwinter. They have worked the High road for more than a year becoming good friends and becoming known to the people of the small villages along the road. This is a good thing because first impressions of this group are important. You almost all of them are a little unusual.
Alcor Renn is a tiefling monk with red skin and red eyes, Mukah is a half-orc barbarian prone to rages, Tyrell Beam Catcher is a dark elf with dark skin and white hair and rounding out the group is Talrek Ironblood a dwarven cleric. They are used to fearful glances as they enter new villages, but the small village of Hruelin’s Post has grown used to them and accepts that they are not a danger.
Traveling from Icewind Dale they reach a favorite Inn, The Llast Post in the late afternoon. Knowing that they can reach Neverwinter with one more day of travel they decide to stop for the night. Just as the four companions are sitting down to a good meal an old woman races in the door. The woman is hysterical and crying out for help. She spots the heroes and immediately rushes to their table asking for help. Widow Demelza’s son Cynric has entered the Sleeper’s Tomb and has not returned!
The heroes calm her down and ask a few questions, it seems her son, who is a clever boy, told her that he had figured out how to enter the Sleeper’s tomb. She forbade him from entering of course but he slipped out after yesterday’s chores, took a lantern, a mirror and grandpa’s sword and set off. When Demelza got up in the morning and found him missing she ran to the Vale of Selune where the tomb entrance is located. There she spotted the missing mirror lying on the ground but no sign of her son.
A few questions to the locals reveal that the Sleeper’s Tomb is in a low valley in Neverwinter forest. It is a doorway flanked by two statues of Selune. The heroes volunteer to find Cynric and return him to Demelza. One of the local farmer, Egerton, volunteers to show them the way to the Vale of Selune.
The heroes are taken to the Vale of Selune by Egerton who points out the valley and then takes his leave. From this vantage point, they can just make out a stone wall at the end of the valley. The sun has set and the moon rises.
 |
| The Vale of Selune |
The heroes approach the entrance with stealth and see two worn statues of Selune. One statue is missing its head. Searching the area Thyrell spots recent tracks going back and forth, an “X” scrawled in the dirt and a mirror lying on the ground. Mukah tries bashing in the stone block that blocks the entrance without success. Talrek notes that Selune is a goddess associated with the moon. After thinking it over for awhile they decide to reflect moonlight onto the entrance. Nothing happens. Finally, Mukah reflects moonlight onto the face of the Statue of Selune and the massive stone block slides slowly to one side. A stair leads down. They see a broken lintel over the door with an inscription. The only part of it can be made out, “disturb the rest of he who sleeps”.
Talrek leads the way down and triggers a switch on the second last step before another stone block. The block slides to one side revealing a small chamber. In that chamber, Cynric lies on the floor apparently sleeping. Another stone blocks further passage into the tomb. This one has the symbol of Selune on it with seven raised starts and two sapphire eyes.
Mukah is unable to wake up Cynric despite giving him a good shake. The stone block behind the heroes starts to slide shut but Thyrell is still on the other side and he steps on the trigger causing it to open again. Working out the trick to the door Thyrell walks back outside and comes back with a heavy rock. Putting it on the step it seems to hold the door open (thus bypassing my cleverly designed gas trap).
Talrek and Alcor realize that the stars on the next door can be pressed in. Nothing happens when they press the various starts. Eventually, Alcor, Talrek, and Thyrell work together to press in all of the starts at once and the stone door opens. There is a brief discussion of what to do with the sleeping boy. Mukah ends the discussion by slinging the boy over his shoulder.
 |
| Finding Cynric |
More steps lead down into a deep, underground chamber. The chamber roof is held up by four stone pillars carved to resemble an open-mouthed worshipper of Selune. On the north wall is a six-foot-tall statue of Selune wearing a stone necklace with 7 sapphires in it.
Thyrell and Talrek decide that clearly, the open mouths are traps. Mukah is instructed to climb up and investigate and he sees copper tubes in the mouths of the statues. Climbing pitons are used to block the copper tubes. The group decides to head west down a passage. They pass a hole in the south wall of the passage and enter a chamber that is clearly a tomb. Six skeletons lie on stone platforms. As they enter the room three of the skeletons rise and attack. It is a quick pitched battle and the skeletons are killed but Thyrell is badly injured. Talrek uses his Cure wounds spell on the dark elf using up all his healing spells.
Finding this chamber is a dead end they come back up the passage and step through the hole in the wall into another chamber. It is a badly damaged tomb. While poking through the rubble two giant centipedes attack. Talrek moves forward and kills one, Thyrell fires wildly and hits Talrek in the back with an arrow nearly killing the dwarven cleric. Mukah kills the second giant centipede.
There is another, more rough-hewn, tunnel entering the chamber from the south. The heroes paused to catch their breath. Mukah again picks up the boy and tosses him over his shoulder. The boy, Cynric, continues to sleep soundly.
No comments:
Post a Comment