Aster's Ledger

Summary

John talked his way past Geek (the goblin boss in H2) into an audience with Klarg, where Yeemik intercepted him and proposed a deal — kill Klarg, get Sildar. Meanwhile, Beatrix befriended the Cragmaw wolves via Speak with Animals, while John and Chippo snuck up the stream and scouted the snake tunnel. Chippo provoked the giant venomous snake — both he and Beatrix were downed and nearly died. The commotion drew the goblins from Yeemik's area, who killed the snake and hauled Chippo and Beatrix up as prisoners, stabilizing and restraining them alongside Sildar. John returned with Yeemik, who presented the "intruders" — the party now captive.

From there the party negotiated with Yeemik, gambled with the goblins, recruited a friendly goblin warrior, and chose the chimney route to sneak into Klarg's chamber. After a tense infiltration and a skirmish that killed Klarg's honor guard and his wolf Ripper, Klarg broke free from Beatrix's entangle spell. A tense negotiation revealed Klarg was unaware of Yeemik's coup, and the party brokered a truce — they would help Klarg against Yeemik in exchange for information about Gundren.

Key Events

• John talks his way to Klarg — John convinced Geek (the goblin boss in H2) to take him to see Klarg for an audience. The rest of the party hid in the bushes. At the bridge leading to Klarg's area, Yeemik intercepted John instead.
• Yeemik proposes a deal — Yeemik introduced himself and offered to trade Sildar Hallwinter in exchange for killing Klarg. John agreed.
• Beatrix befriends the wolves — Once John, Yeemik, and the goblins passed the wolves, the wolves started howling. This turned out to be Beatrix, who had cast Speak with Animals. The wolves like living with the Cragmaws — they weren't super convinced but eventually became friendly and agreed not to attack.
• Beatrix and Chippo scout the tunnel — John and Chippo snuck up the stream while John was talking with Yeemik. Chippo hid in the tunnel with the giant venomous snake, while John continued forward.
• John returns with Yeemik — John went back with Yeemik, saying he'd "met some folks" on the trail who might be interested in helping. They only found Glomblax, who agreed to help. John was confused about where the rest of the party had gone.
• Chippo triggers the snake — Chippo decided to push further up the tunnel and provoked the giant venomous snake. He got a big hit on it, but the snake quickly downed him. Beatrix rushed to help but missed her shot and was downed as well. Both seemed doomed in the tunnel.
• Goblins investigate, rescue the party — Hearing the commotion, the goblins in Yeemik's area (where Sildar is held, H6) investigated the tunnel. They immediately killed the snake and hauled Beatrix and Chippo up as intruders, stabilizing and restraining them alongside Sildar.
• Yeemik presents the "intruders" — John and Yeemik returned to find the goblins had captured the intruders. Yeemik presented Beatrix and Chippo as his prisoners.
• Party negotiated with Yeemik — Yeemik reiterated his deal: Klarg's head in exchange for information about Gundren Rockseeker's whereabouts. He released the party from restraints but kept Sildar bound, warning them not to betray him.
• John gambled with the goblins — John challenged the goblins to a dice game. Beatrix tried to persuade them to wager a healing potion but failed. John played for cigarettes (offered by John) and won easily (goblins rolled 5/12/8 vs John's 16/17), earning bragging rights.
• Recruited a friendly goblin — John persuaded two goblin warriors to join the party. One agreed ("fuck it, I haven't seen bloodshed in a while"), the other declined. The friendly goblin warned of a hidden chimney path into Klarg's chamber.
• Chimney infiltration — The party chose the chimney over the guarded main path. Beatrix scouted ahead, dropping silently into Klarg's chamber (stealth success) and hiding in a corner. John struggled with the climb (natural 1 on strength, took 5 bludgeoning damage from falling). The party then used a rope (tied by Beatrix) to help the others ascend. Harish/Shoomit made it up with the rope's help, taking extra time due to slippery grease.
• Combat with Klarg's forces — Glomblax made noise on entry, alerting Klarg's honor guard (Iarno) and Ripper the wolf. The party gained a surprise round.
  • Beatrix cast entangle — Klarg restrained.
  • John cast vicious mockery on the honor guard — failed save, 1 damage, disadvantage on next attack. John gained inspiration from his Fate Gambler feature.
  • Honor guard attacked Glomblax with scimitar — 2 damage (halved by rage).
  • Beatrix killed the honor guard in one shot with her pistol (true strike + luck point).
  • Ripper bit the friendly goblin for 3 piercing damage.
  • Klarg broke free from entangle (athletics 20 vs DC 14, used his action).
  • Friendly goblin attacked Ripper, missed.
  • Harish/Shoomit killed Ripper with a musket shot (sneak attack + bardic inspiration).
• Klarg negotiation — With Ripper dead and the honor guard downed, Klarg declared Gundren "has, let's just say, passed on." Insight revealed Klarg was telling the truth "in a very roundabout sense" — ambiguous. The party brokered a truce by revealing Yeemik's coup. Klarg, vain and fearing usurpers, agreed to hear them out.

Post-Session Discussion

• Technical fixes needed (DM notes):
  • Dice plugin not displaying rolls properly
  • Initiative rolling with advantage/disadvantage too automated, preventing manual rolls
  • Token movement through walls and mass token copying needs improvement
• Snake encounter feedback — Players noted the giant venomous snake's stat block is unusually strong for level 1. DM confirmed he'd provided multiple outs to avoid triggering it (only triggered by entering its alcove), and that the session cut was deliberate to allow retreat.
• Plot paths — DM had prepared multiple options: ally with Yeemik, ally with Yeemik then betray Klarg, or other paths. He confirmed the chimney route was the smart play.
• "Playing both sides" — The group joked about the Always Sunny "playing both sides" meme, which Beatrix had used in-character during negotiations.

Unresolved Threads

• Gundren's true fate (Klarg's claim ambiguous — "passed on" in a "roundabout sense")
• Whether to trust Yeemik or Klarg (party has allied with both in some capacity)
• Sildar remains partially captive
• Party planning to turn Yeemik's coup against him with Klarg's help