Aster's Ledger

Summary

Leaving Phandalin's suspicion and inflated prices behind, Beatrix, Shoomit, John, and Glomblax set out for Wave Echo Cave in search of wealth and the Forge of Spells. Shoomit recovered Gundren's wedding ring and an unusually worn Ring of Protection; inside the cave, the party found Tharden Rockseeker dead and Nundro missing, recovered a Cloak of Protection and a pistol, and fought an ochre jelly and three ghouls. Bone's scouting revealed more ghouls approaching, leaving the party only moments to prepare when play resumes. Venomfang's deadline remains tonight, with a meeting arranged at Old Owl Well.

Key Events

A Diamond, an Apology, and Gundren’s Effects

• The opening discussion picked up an offer negotiated with Edvard: a resurrection diamond in exchange for Beatrix's private apology and a favor to be determined later. Beatrix resented apologizing to him and ultimately refused. No diamond changed hands, and Gundren was not resurrected.
• Beatrix admitted that she wanted to bring Gundren back because she felt guilty about his death. Shoomit was more interested in recovering his share of their jewels. Searching Gundren's preserved body, he found the wedding/engagement ring he had been seeking, a gold chain, and a platinum cock ring identified by the DM as a Ring of Protection. Shoomit put the protective ring on; the wedding ring's value was left to be settled.

Phandalin’s Prices Have Teeth

• At Halia Thornton's shop, Beatrix asked for more dynamite. Halia reminded them that the free dynamite had come with a job they had not completed and that the supply problems were still unresolved. She quoted 150 gp per stick. Beatrix refused the price; the visit ended with the party being told to leave.
• The Lionshield Coster had no pistols left: the last had been sold to a Rockseeker brother. Orcs and goblins disrupting the roads were restricting supplies, and the party's reputation added a risk premium. John bought a light crossbow for 30 gp. The shopkeeper said he would hear first if another gun came in, provided the rumors about enslaving people did not prove true.

House-Poor, with a Necromancer in the Kitchen

• Back at the mansion, Beatrix told the goblin caretaker to relax, keep being paid, and guard the house while the party was away. The roof and structure were repaired, but the place still needed cosmetic work; further construction required more money.
• Hamun Kost was making himself at home in the kitchen. He agreed to leave ten zombies in the basement and tell them to protect the party, warning that they would need very specific instructions. At Beatrix's request he theatrically blessed a greasy chicken bone as a tool for speaking with the undead and handed it over. The party did not test its effectiveness.
• Hamun asked whether he could have the other corpse if they only intended to resurrect Gundren. Beatrix gave him a maybe, pending their return. He agreed to keep an eye on the mansion while present but could not promise to stay; Beatrix also permitted him to host parties.
• The party left the wagon and animals behind and set out on foot. Gundren's body and the druid's body were hidden in a locked closet at the mansion, barricaded with bricks, away from the basement zombies.

Venomfang’s Deadline

• Before departure, Venomfang contacted Beatrix to arrange their meeting and reminded her that the deadline was tonight. She proposed Old Owl Well and warned they might be late because they were coming from out of town. He told her not to keep him waiting. They continued toward Wave Echo Cave; the dragon obligation was not resolved.

Another Rockseeker Dead

• Following their map, the party found Wave Echo Cave's concealed entrance. They reviewed what they knew of the lost mine and its Forge of Spells, including the possibility of making powerful magic weapons and the Spider's interest in claiming it.
• At the entrance campsite, Shoomit recognized Tharden Rockseeker, Gundren's brother, dead for about a week. Three bedrolls and a disturbed camp remained, with footsteps leading away. The third brother, Nundro, was missing; his fate was unknown.
• The camp supplied food, rope, tools, and other ordinary equipment. John took rope and salted meat; Shoomit took a pickaxe. A closer search of Tharden revealed a family-heirloom Cloak of Protection, a pistol, and nine bullets. Shoomit gave the cloak to Beatrix and the pistol and ammunition to John. Beatrix spent an uneventful hour attuning to the cloak.

Down the Rope and into the Jelly

• The group descended the secured rope into a 20-foot-deep collapsed section. Glomblax used Stonecunning to gain Tremorsense, detecting creatures nearby. Shoomit carried a torch because he and John lacked darkvision.
• They found another dead, misshapen goblin with an elongated, faintly glowing head. Beatrix could not identify the source of its alteration; it seemed unnatural and unlike familiar magic, possibly connected to an artifact. The party's joke that such goblins might be invisible while alive remained speculation.
• Choosing the route toward a lone slimy creature rather than the larger group of creatures, they entered low-ceilinged mine passages. Glomblax tried to lure the creature into a larger chamber by throwing a rock while the others readied attacks. Beatrix identified it as an ochre jelly and learned that doors would not contain it: it could squeeze through gaps and climb surfaces.
• Beatrix hit it with Burning Hands and gunfire, Glomblax withdrew, and Shoomit readied his musket. The jelly split into two smaller creatures during the fight. The party learned that hiding did not fool its blindsight and that slashing attacks passed through without harming it, while piercing attacks worked. Glomblax suffered 12 acid damage from an opportunity attack while pulling back.
• John used Vicious Mockery and his newly acquired pistol, Shoomit shot one of the smaller jellies dead, and Beatrix finished the other. Both were destroyed; no pet slime was taken. The party pressed into the narrow passages, hearing the cave's distant, surf-like echoes.

Shoomit, Ghoulbuster

• At a door deeper in the complex, Beatrix heard cracking and gnawing while Glomblax detected three humanoid creatures. Beatrix accidentally opened the door, beginning combat with three ghouls in an old dwarven barracks.
• Beatrix cast Entangle, restraining two ghouls, and recommended fighting from the hallway. Shoomit shot one dead immediately. John supported with Vicious Mockery, Beatrix fired from range, and Glomblax fought at the front. Glomblax took a bite for 6 piercing and 2 necrotic damage when he moved out of reach; later bites missed him.
• Torch placement repeatedly limited John and Shoomit's sight. Shoomit eventually retrieved and repositioned the torch, hid, and shot the final ghoul. He landed the killing shots on all three ghouls, confirmed by the DM: 'Shoomit is on fire.'

Bone Finds the Next Fight

• Searching the barracks revealed deteriorated armor suitable for scrap and roughly 10 gp worth of jewelry. The DM suggested that usable metal could become bullets if they reached a suitable forge. Listening at the southern door revealed nothing; it was not opened after Beatrix clarified her intent.
• Beatrix brought Bone, her dimorphodon-spirit familiar, into play, with the DM allowing the summoning to have been performed earlier. She described animating the spirit from fossilized remains and noted the 10 gp incense cost. She sent Bone ahead to scout while seeing through his eyes.
• Bone spotted more ghouls lumbering toward the group, drawn by their noise. Beatrix recalled him and warned the others. The DM gave the party about thirty seconds to react or get into position before initiative. The session stopped there, before the next combat began.

Inspiration

• Shoomit (Harish / NCHPS) received the session's roleplay inspiration award. The table called out his exchanges about Gundren, the protective ring, and knocking Glomblax over; Glomblax was identified as the previous session's winner. Sam said he would record Harish's win in chat. This award is separate from the table's discussion of unused inspiration already on character sheets.

Numbers & Resources

• John: bought a light crossbow for 30 gp; received Tharden's pistol and nine bullets. He fired it during the jelly fight; the DM noted eight bullets remaining immediately afterward.
• Shoomit: recovered Gundren's wedding ring, gold chain, and special Ring of Protection; took a pickaxe; received this session's roleplay inspiration award. A late ammunition bookkeeping discussion set his remaining supply at 29 bullets.
• Beatrix: received and attuned to the Cloak of Protection; used Burning Hands and Entangle; Bone's summoning carried a 10 gp incense cost.
• Glomblax: recorded hits included 12 acid damage from the jelly and 6 piercing plus 2 necrotic damage from a ghoul. These are damage events, not an assertion of his final HP.
• Barracks: about 10 gp of jewelry and salvageable scrap were found; the transcript does not clearly confirm the jewelry being added to anyone's inventory.
• Not purchased: dynamite at 150 gp per stick; no 500 gp resurrection diamond was obtained. No resurrection took place.

Loose Threads

• Immediate next scene: approaching ghouls in Wave Echo Cave; roughly thirty seconds to prepare before combat.
• Find Nundro Rockseeker and learn what happened to the brothers; Tharden remains dead at the entrance campsite.
• Locate the Forge of Spells and pursue the Spider's interest in the mine.
• Meet Venomfang at Old Owl Well; his deadline is tonight and the demand behind it is still unresolved.
• Obtain a resurrection diamond or another way to restore Gundren. Edvard's apology-and-favor offer was declined this session.
• Resolve the road and supply disruptions, Halia's unfinished job, and the party's poor reputation in Phandalin.
• Return to the mansion, its hidden preserved bodies, Hamun, and the promised zombies; no corpse was handed over to Hamun.
• Investigate the altered goblin corpses and the unfamiliar source of their transformation.