Session 3

"The Dragon Hatchery"

Above Ground

After a few days of recovery from the rescue, Leosin gathers the party and shares his plan to travel north to Elturel to meet with Ontharr Frume, a paladin of Torm and trusted ally. Before departing, Leosin requests that the group return to the raider camp and uncover any remaining secrets. Once their investigation is complete, he asks them to rendezvous with him in Elturel.

Upon arriving at the raider camp, it is found to be abandoned. On a nearby hill, the party investigates a group of hunters, who claim they supply meat to the cultists but do not pledge loyalty to their cult.

Entering the Cave

With no answers above ground, the party descends into the cave behind the camp. Razc, ever the deceiver, bluffs their way past the cave's entrance guards, posing as a captor escorting prisoners. The ruse lasts only seconds before the party strikes, dispatching the guards with ruthless efficiency. Xenaphia cloaks Maximus in invisibility, and the winged scout glides silently through the tunnels.

Eliminating the Cultists

In a dim chamber, Maximus finds a lone cultist slumped in drunken stupor. The party ends him swiftly; no words, no struggle. Deeper in, Maximus looses an arrow from the shadows, piercing a guard’s neck and igniting a brutal skirmish. Dorn’s pike dances through flesh and armor, leaving a trail of fallen foes.

Without pause, the party storms into the next room. Xenaphia subdues the cultists with a slumbering incantation and the cultists collapse. Razc wakes the first cultist and asked, “Whom do you serve?”. The cultist raised a defiant hand in salute to Tiamat. Razc responded with savage cruelty, biting the fingers off of the cultist's hands before snapping their neck. Maximus woke the second, warning them of Razc’s brutality. Razc grinned, waving the mutilated hands like a puppet. Dorn and Xenaphia took over the interrogation, learning that the adjacent bedchamber belongs to Mondath. A manhole was discovered beneath a rug, its rope ladder descending into blackness. The second cultist was dropped down to gauge its depth. Satisfied, the party pulled up the ladder and sealed the third cultist inside the chest, placing it atop the manhole.

The cave widened into a cavern thick with bats and stirges clinging to the ceiling. The party moved carefully, disturbing nothing. Four kobolds and three caged guard drakes awaited in the next chamber. The kobolds fell swiftly, and the drakes were left imprisoned—dangerous, but contained.

The Shrine to Tiamat

A shrine to Tiamat loomed ahead, guarded by three berserkers and the fearsome Cyanwrath. With a roar, Cyanwrath unleashed a bolt of lightning, searing the party. Umbriel leapt, tackling the half-dragon to the ground. The party struck with vengeance, rendering Cyanwrath unconscious. Gold changed hands, and the berserkers agreed to serve—for now.

The Hatchery