DnD Campaign 1 Notes - The Mines of Phandelver

Characters

Dwyfol – Gnome Cleric (Dylan Thompson)
K’churlat – Dwarf Priest (Millar Sue)
Klagen – Tiefling Rogue (Sylvain Bechet)
Crow – Tiefling Warlock (Indi Pathirana)

Plot Summary

In part 1, "Goblin Arrows," the adventurers are on the road to the town of Phandalin when they stumble into a goblin ambush. [The party (Crow!) befriend Gobby, the goblin]. They discover that the goblins (who belong to the Cragmaw tribe) have captured their dwarf friend Gundren Rockseeker and his escort, a human warrior named Sildar Hallwinter. The characters must deal with the ambushers and then follow their trail back to the goblins' hideout. They rescue Sildar and learn from him that Gundren and his brothers discovered a famous lost mine. Sildar knows only that Gundren and his map have been taken to somewhere called "Cragmaw Castle."

In part 2, "Phandalin," the characters arrive in Phandalin to find it terrorized by the Redbrands, a gang of miscreants led by a mysterious figure called Glasstaff. A number of interesting NPCs can also be found in Phandalin, laying the hooks for short adventures in part 3. The Redbrands try to run the characters out of town, so the characters return the favor and storm the Redbrand lair [afterwards re-purposed into Klagen’s lair to train new recruits]. In a hidden stronghold beneath an old manor, they find that larno "Glasstaff" Albrek, the leader of the Redbrands, is taking his orders from someone called the Black Spider-and that the Black Spider wants the adventurers out of the picture.

Part 3, "The Spider's Web," provides the characters with several short adventures in the region around Phandalin as they search for more information about the Black Spider and the dwarves' lost mine. The clues the characters picked up in Phandalin can lead them to spy on a mysterious wizard at the ruins of Old Owl Well, seek the advice of a dangerous banshee, oust a band of ores lurking at Wyvern Tor, and investigate the ruins of the town of Thundertree. Several of these leads point to Cragmaw Castle, which is the stronghold of King Grol, leader of the Cragmaw goblins. Crow tries to befriend the owlbear, Dwyfol is recognised by Neidr the dragon in an encounter where the rest of the party runs away. Here the characters discover that the Black Spider is a drow adventurer named Nezznar, and that the Cragmaw goblins work for him (drow are elves who hail from a realm deep underground). More importantly, they recover Gundren Rockseeker's map to the lost mine, or learn the mine's location from one of the other leads they unearth during part 3.

Following the map or the directions to the lost mine brings the characters to part 4, "Wave Echo Cave." That lost underground complex is now overrun by undead and strange monsters. Klagen goes on a different path and has to battle his own Ooze all by himself but joins back up with the party. Dwyfol intimidates bugbears and starts a cult. Gobby is sacrificed and revived as a bugbear. Nezznar the Black Spider is there with his loyal followers, exploring the mines and searching for the legendary Forge of Spells. [He is mocked for being shit at his job]. The adventurers have the opportunity to avenge Gundren Rockseeker, to ensure the prosperity and security of Phandalin by clearing the rich mine of its monsters, and to put an end to the troublemaking of the Black Spider-if they can survive the dangers of the Lost Mine of Phandelver.

Post-Campaign

Epilogue: What Happens In Phandalin … Obviously Spreads To Everywhere Else

Written by Dylan Thompson

The clank of chains was unmistakeable. Certainly couldn’t easily be confused with anything else in the woods nearby.
Crow had prepared Gobby and Lilbiq for what they might see.
Fine, she’d prepared Gobby and herself. Didn’t want Gobby making a scene. Or Lilbiq. Yes, this is still definitely about her minions.
“Here’s the plan,” Crow whispered to the bugbear. The demon already knew.
“What, mom?” Gobby tried to be quiet. Really, he did. He didn’t mean harm. Wasn’t even his fault really that his lowest volume setting was equivalent to a foghorn. The masks rotated. The bodies they were attached to did so as well. Most distressingly, so did the swords the hands attached to the bodies were carrying.
A rustle in the bushes behind Gobby, then he registered a sharp blade attempting to prod him in the ribs. Failing, of course. A second, and a third. By this point, Gobby had essentially fallen into an ivy bush of bandits.
“Gobby, no …” Crow peered into the distance in front of her, calculating the fastest way to disarm the bandits. They weren’t even the prize she was after.
“Ma’am.” One of the masks mumbled.
“What do you want?” Crow yelled the word toward the masked men she had in her sights.
The owlbear in chains roared back, causing the men to move their swords to more aggressive positions.
Crap. She looked around to where the voice had actually come from.
“Take your pick,” one of Gobby’s masked ruffians snarled. “The bugbear or the Owlbear.”

We’ll come back to that in a bit, don’t worry about it for just now. I suppose I need to practice this story, don’t I? Travelling around and telling it to people only really works if I remember what the story is, I suppose.
You will have heard the first bit, the one about the quests. Saving Phandalin from Redbrands, liberating the town from Goblins – even replacing a bugbear with the soul of a goblin.
This isn’t that story, it’s what happened after. A lot less interesting, if I may say so myself.

We stayed in town exactly long enough to have one drink. Mostly because after that point, Gnerbar got drunk (again), roofied the entire bar (again again); and got everybody chucked out (again again again). Outside, in the cold night air, the squad confronted Gnerbar, not that he noticed.
“Hope you’re happy – I was just beginning to enjoy myself!” Klagen growled at Gnerbar who giggled and fell into an open barrel.
“I think he is – and that’s kind of the problem.” Dwyfol dictated Gnerbar’s emotions for the casual bystander.
“I think what he meant was –” I piped up.
“Ah, the religions doing what they do best – arguing about how other people should be feeling,” Klagen remarked, already weary.
“Guys, could we just --?” Crow attempted to interject, but despite her tall stature she never quite managed to be heard, like a person using a microphone with dodgy sensitivity.
“GOBBY SAYS LISTEN TO MOM,” the aforementioned bugbear blared over the top of all current discussions and saving everyone the trouble of having usable ears. An effective tactic, if you ask me (you didn’t).
They fell silent after that for a while.
“I suppose this is it, then.” Dwyfol.
“Doesn’t have to be?” I tried to keep the team together.
“Yes, it does.” Both Tieflings, in unison, while trying to walk away.
Dwyfol muttered some words and a spectral hand squished the two tieflings together and held them in place.
“Stay.”

As you might imagine, the tieflings didn’t ‘stay’.
Time passed, as tends to happen, and the forests forgot the adventurers. Even the priest-turned-woodworker. Wonder what he’s up to these days?
Where is Dwyfol? For some specific reason, the trees seem especially curious about the cleric. Not some abusive dwarven woodwhacker they keep talking about, whom they never want to hear from again.
Nobody had a very good answer to the trees’ query. So they kept asking, and the question spread through the woods of Phandalin. Surely they’d have heard something by now.

Klagen helped the newest recruit to his organisation bring a small bag of luggage into the Cragmaw Hideout.
They’d only just got to mouth of the cave when; “What’s the plan, boss?” The recruit asked, his words muffled by his mask.
“You only need to wear the mask outside – it’s just so the Black Spider’s affiliates don’t know us.”
“Okay,” the redbrand removed his mask, then asked again; “what’s the plan? Why are we here?” He gestured at the cave, and a small section of the bridge running over the river fell into it.
“We need to set up a headquarters.”
“So we need money, right? I know a guy …”
“You will not rob the smithy again!”
“It was one time …”
“A sustained ambush over a week doesn’t count as ‘just one time’.”
“But I never went home …” the recruit paused, and looked around, just as the breeze picked up. “Sorry, it just seemed like the trees were whispering.”
“What have I told you about staying off drugs while you’re at work …” Klagen shook his head and grabbed the recruit’s bag as one of the other more experienced Redbrands found a switch on the wall.
Klagen heard a ‘hey, what does this do?’ followed by a loud whoosh.
“Oh, hey, boss.” The redbrand that had very much just invented the waterslide found himself unceremoniously dumped at Klagen’s feet.
Klagen shook his head, as he heard an inhumane screech from the woods nearby.

What happened to Crow and Gobby, you ask? Oh yes, I forgot about them, didn’t I? You see, the trees have a mind of their own. A mind that was displeased with the Owlbear that Crow and Gobby were trying to tame. A mind that was completely indifferent to the life of the being that had been released from a castle prison and then made that everyone else’s problem. Crow and Gobby were set on saving it, though, so that caused problems …

Crow looked at the bandits, one at a time. Really took ages with her staring. Straight into their souls.
“You think I have control over the bugbear? I’d pick your captive every time.”
The bandits looked up, confused as to how the tiefling’s voice had managed to fill the fifty foot gap between her and them. Surprise turned to horror as they realised taking their attention off the Owlbear. He barely moved, and the two bandits found themselves being lifted off the ground holding on to the chains they’d used to secure the Owlbear. They only realised their error when the Owlbear roared and they realised their feet were not, in fact, on the ground.
“Lads, heard there was some trouble.” A new bandit just sort of … appeared. As if they’d been stealthing.
“No, we just, I mean, what … wait a minute, who even are you?” Our first bandit friend spoke up defensively, despite the fact he was currently dangling ten feet in the air and completely powerless to stop the supposedly angry owlbear, which wasn’t attacking out of the goodness of its heart. Or just possibly because it knew its teeth wouldn’t reach that far.
“I have an offer for you…” Another new voice, but this time … Klagen.
“Sorry, did we disturb you?” Crow yelled from her position.
“Heard there were still some bandits hanging around, and …” Klagen looked up at the helpless buffoon. “… Found them.”
“And you were gonna deal with them? I can solve my own problems, thank you.”
“Don’t you worry, the owlbear’s all yours; I just want … to give the guys an offer.”
“An offer they can’t refuse?”
“They can refuse if they know someone who can write out a death certificate …”
Klagen brandished his rapier and cut the bandits down, who were briefed on their new duties. The newly recruited bandits were led away by Klagen’s apprentice.
Klagen himself looked up at the massive fanged beast. “Have you named him?”
“He seems to respond to Friend.”
“Ah. Friend …” Klagen murmured, as he patted the Owlbear, which didn’t really seem to notice.
Crow looked over at her friend. “You’re not allowed to teach him the word for murder.”
“What about ‘hide’?” Klagen replied as the Owlbear made a roar that almost seemed like an impersonation.
“Oh, fine … he can know hide …”
“All right, I’ll leave you to your … veterinary clinic …” Klagen said, immediately before entirely disappearing. That man knew how to stealth.

Yeah, I’ve been around a bit. Not, like, romantically or anything. Priest, thank you very much. Not to be confused with clerics who have stronger options on engaging in that sort of conduct (that being ‘yes’). This story had made it’s way through … five towns by this point. I’d only been to two, but I’d gotten drunk and vomited halfway through retelling a fight scene (improved it). Unfortunately that story travelled faster than I did. In order of speed; cleric, sound, light, sick. Or at least that’s how it seemed.

New town, new me. That’s the rule, isn’t it? This one felt different, not even because the tavern was on the outskirts, which should be illegal; but just on an atmosphere level. Almost like the wind had changed direction or something. At least there was still a breeze. Every time I walked past a tree, it got louder. In the taverns, people wanted to hear, but they didn’t want to listen. So they’d hover around the edges, keeping appropriate social distance so a conversation couldn’t start, and they’d ask for sections. Mostly because I’d get sidetracked, so they’d need to rewind the narrative to the last point they’d been paying attention. But that’s not even the worst bit; because then they’d leave; and I’d wake up the following morning with only a hazy recollection of the contents of the story I’d told, and the tavern that had heard it; and I’d walk past groups of strangers on the road at ten in the morning, and hear snippets of conversation like;
“And then the cleric said that the cleric preached about God.”
“Bet they got out of there without a fight. Classic Dwyfol.”
“Kind of, eventually he recruited an army to fight a dragon.”
“Oh, yeah, I remember that bit – I think he died after that. Too arrogant.”
Only at this point would I interrupt. “Wait what? Did you say he died … that’s not what happened at all.”
Instead, the truth was something far worse – he’d gotten married to her.

At this moment, Dwyfol and the dragon were sharing a meal in Cragmaw castle. The bugbears had been strategically removed from the Keep, which is where the dragon was … Kept.
“I can’t believe I’ve met you because I’m amazing and you’re amazing and everyone else is a shithead. I know this great bar, let’s go and make it better.”
“Don’t think I’d fit, dear.” The dragon looked up from … the herd of bison that comprised her dinner.
“Oh don’t worry about that, it’s made of wood.”
“You know full well I’d need a nap if I did what you’re suggesting.”
“I do need to introduce you to the bugbears at some point, though. Mostly because they’re thick as pig shit and will probably try to kill you if I don’t.”
The dragon shrugged … I think it’s safe to call it; “I guarantee I would win that exchange. Do you like how the meat is cooked?”
Dwyfol extracted a charred piece of armour from his meal, which he’d been assured used to be a goblin soldier of some sort. “Quite high in iron.”
“Does this live up to my Tinkr profile?”
“I don’t know what I expected when it said a you were a dragon that could cook.”
“You showed up anyway. That was a while ago now.”
“Pretty sure the world thinks I’m dead. Walking off into the woods all alone…”
“People keep talking about a monster in the woods, but I live there and I’ve never seen one.”
The door to the Keep burst open, and I stumbled in on this scene, of a gnome and a dragon peacefully eating quite a lot of violently killed animals.
“I should probably tell you that they all think you’re dead.” The bedraggled intruder was out of breath, and began speaking without an introduction. Oh, perhaps I should say, the speaker was me.
“K’churlat! There’s enough food for … at least one other person!” Dwyfol gestured at the half-finished pile of barbecued goblin, “at least sit down before you talk business!”
“But … but they’re coming …” I was starting to get my breath back, but Dwyfol’s lack of concern was, in itself, concerning.
“We were just talking about this, it’s no big deal.”
“With – with pitchforks and axes …”
“Why both? Terribly inefficient, just use a mace.”
No sooner had the door to the Keep closed after K’churlat than it burst open again.
“Boss! Someone just walked straight – ah.” An unprepared bugbear burst in on the sight of two priests and a dragon inhaling the equivalent of about three families of goblins, and immediately decided his legs weren’t actually strong enough to hold him anymore.
“That’s … that’s a dragon …”
“My wife, excuse you.”
The bugbear crawled out of the room on his hands and knees, as Crow and Gobby barged in the ajar door from the other direction.
“It looks like we’re dealing with a civilian army.”
“We?” Dwyfol was cut off by the cry of the Owlbear.
“Me, Gobby, Lilbiq and Friend.”
“Friend?” The question was, again, answered by the cry of the Owlbear. “Oh.”
“I alerted Klagen as well. He should be coming.” I had recovered enough of my breath for full sentences.
“How exactly?”
“The mob will go past Cragmaw Keep. There’s no way he’ll miss it.”
“And that was your doing, was it?”
“Well, no, but I knew it would happen …” The meat looked tasty, maybe if I ate enough, then the conversation would be over.
From his cave in the ground, Klagen heard about the mob marching on Cragmaw Castle. It was decided by a democratic vote that ignored everyone that wasn’t Klagen, that the new recruit would investigate. Civilian mobs don’t just happen. Normally there’s a specific troublesome priest at the heart of them. Or at least one that it seems like everyone is looking for. Looking for, with added weapons.

We were headed for a showdown whether I wanted to be or not. So the whole team (which by this point had assembled – with Crow and Gobby riding their noble Owlbear steed into the battlefield. I think they were trying to use stealth, but it just sounded like a full drum kit having a stroke. Sadly, the townspeople weren’t deterred by this, and charged, along with the stupid Bugbears that didn’t know any better because they hadn’t mastered the power of thought.

The dragon did what she had to – and the cone from her breath weapon did as expected. With a final, guttural battle cry and thump of their chests, the army of radicalised bugbears extended their clenched fists and charged … straight into the fire. None of them made it through.
“Hold back,” Klagen yelled to his bandits, over the sound of burning bugbear. The townspeople also faltered, awestruck at the display of the dragon’s power.
“Stay back.” The dragon roared.
Turns out sexism is a hard disease to cure. The townspeople didn’t listen and began advancing with their pitchforks outstretched. An army of easily a hundred people, Klagen noted. They could have been managed correctly, and might have gotten somewhere.
As the mob of townspeople got to within fifty feet of the dragon, Klagen stopped himself from speaking in the past tense. They weren’t dead yet.
From an equal distance behind him, he hear the distinctive cry of an owlbear. The half of the army that didn’t include a single one of the townspeople turned to look at the newcomers.
“SORRY WE’RE LATE.” Gobby bellowed, using his inside voice.
“Gobby, remember you’re big now.” Crow scolded.
Gobby averted his gaze. “Sorry, mom.”
The arrival of the Crow Crew only prolonged the inevitable, as the townspeople continued their charge.
The dragon looked at Dwyfol who was performing some kind of religious death ritual for the townspeople, that looked shockingly similar to bonking himself on the head with his axe.
The fifty foot cone of fire annihilated the whole gathering of townsfolk, leaving only smoldering lumps of metal where their weapons used to be.
One of the remaining idiots asked a question that perhaps should have been asked earlier.
“Why are so many of you not attacking?”
“She’s pregnant.”
“Wait what! There are two dragons?! We have to …” K’churlat did the only thing a noble man of religion knew how to do, and raised his staff.
“No … she’s … pregnant.” Dwyfol pointed at the dragon … his dragon.
“Oh. Wait, you mean … you – what, wait a minute, how’d you meet?”
“I tried to invade her castle and kill her, and we sort of struck it off from there. And also we matched on Tinkr.”
“Tinkr …? Actually, I’d better not ask.”
“Like a crowded pub, but without the crowd, or the pub …”
“Ah, so just idiots being clever?”
“You’re judging me and that’s literally your whole schtick.”
“So what are we going to do about the dragon pregnant with a gnome’s baby?”
“I … can take it.” I spoke up. “My church will look after it. I really hate them, but at least they’ll do it.”
“Properly?”
“I’m a well adjusted adult, aren’t I?” We aren’t going to talk about irony here. It’s against the law.
“What do we even … do … with a pregnant dragon.”
“Step 1,” Dwyfol spoke up, “we wait.”
Over the next three months, we waited for the dragon to give birth. In that time, Dwyfol played around with an old metal contraption he’d found lying around, and made a robot programmed to think it was a chef. When the day finally came, Dwyfol got caught looking up ‘dragon recipes’ and was forcibly banished from the birth chamber, by threat of fireball.
Babies and bribe money changed hands, and people went their separate ways. And for a while Phandalin was quiet.
Well, about five minutes, until Gobby forgot how big he was and blasted across the whole forest “I WANT TO SEE THE BABY WHERE IS THE BABY.”
There may or may not have been several flocks of displaced birds.
I found myself travelling from town to town, but only telling the story to people who asked. Didn’t want it getting out of control again.
I’ve been told Dwyfol and the dragon lived in Cragmaw Castle preaching to anyone that would listen, and lamenting the ‘perfect’ bugbears that had been lost, and being entirely unaware of the irony of the child they’d given up. In fairness, he wouldn’t have fitted the colour scheme anyway.
Crow, Gobby, and Lilbiq used the Owlbear as transportation, and travelled through the villages surrounding the woods near Phandalin. I don’t believe there’s any gold left in any of them.
Klagen’s business took off and he set about righting his past wrongs (while also charging large amounts of money for this). Seems having a conscience is slightly out of his reach.
And, last and least, Gnerbar stayed in the barrel. He’d hit his head or something – but either way he never woke up and none of the people he routinely chloroformed ever bothered to ask why.

 

Post-Script

1: The Inheritance of Rie (13-12-2020)

The party in Phandelver is reassembled to find Rie, Dwyfol’s daughter that was lost because she ran away – so not being found by choice. She was found by the party and taken into Klagen’s organisation to train to be like him. TL:DR - Rie got captured by goblins and a spider clan and went to WEC where Klagan, K'Churlat, Dwyfol and shivay's character went to rescue her. She didnt like K'Churlat, was neglectd by dwyfol and took a liking to Klagan. Klagan then trained her in the following years after that incident.

2: The Grievance of Rie (04-10-2022)

Kchurlat looked into dragon folklore. Seven dead dragons every seven decades. Kchurlat reassembles the party and meets at Cragmaw castle. Event is currently happening, he’s panicky. They go to a library to find out more. Rie was Klagen’s apprentice so they caught up as well as everyone filling Dwyfol in. Getting to Thunderxxx, they get in a fight and Klagen takes down two guys, and Rie takes two. Goblin Ramsay is gifted gold medallion from Klagen. Klagen also has one. They match. Best friends? Go to the library, meet Renari, the librarian, who is useless. They rest up, reading material that will help.

3: The Acceptance of Rie (11-10-2022)

The party threatens to leave and then is convinced to read the scriptures. Revealed that they made amulets out of dragon essence. One of the brothers responsible turned on the others. Discovered a line, along which the dragons are dying and head back to Phandalin, and get back to the city to find it ransacked by a blue dragon which had been killed. Meet Etorir and discuss motivations. Objectification so Dwyfol v Etorir 1v1 where Dwyfol is beaten while trying to preserve Rie’s honour. Dwyfol is healed and then the rest of the party step in, and the threat is beaten. Neidr and K’churlat show up at the end having seen the fight, but can’t contribute as it’s over. Dwyfol brings up the idea of using magic to bring back the other family members as he is starting to see the point of respecting his family