Six years ago, I started running a monthly Tyranny of Dragons campaign. Here’s the write up from the first session.
Introducing the Characters
- Crake Crozier, human rogue, charlatan
- “Flotsam” Rosie Fleisch, half-elf warlock, pirate
- Gwastdyn Strakeln, shield dwarf druid, outlander
- Turin Elinast, moon elf bard, entertainer
- Ug St. John Smith, half-orc paladin of Ilmater, acolyte
10th Mirtul, 1490 DR
After travelling for several days across the Greenfields, guarding the wagon of optimistic merchant Samardag the Hoper, the PCs arrive at the town of Greenest at sundown, only to find it under attack from a dragon. Ug rushes into town to investigate; the others follow, leaving Samardag and his wagon at the side of the road.
Ug charges down the main road, closely followed by Gwastdyn; Rosie, Crake and Turin are more cautious and decide to follow the stream to the south into town. The half-orc and the dwarf soon run into a family being chased by four kobolds. It’s too late to save the woman, but the pair kill the kobolds and rescue her husband and three children. Meanwhile, the other group have encountered a second band of kobolds accompanied by an ambush drake. Turin and Crake go unconscious, leaving it to Rosie to stand alone. Fortunately Crake rolls 20 on her death save and comes round, then Gwastyn and Ug arrive to help. The druid heals Turin, Crake stabs the drake through the head, killing it, and the party are able to defeat the remaining kobolds. They hide in a house with the farmer Cuth Swift and his three children and have a short rest. Cuth tells the PCs they need to try and reach the safety of the keep.
Sneaking though the brush by the stream, the PCs lead Cuth and his kids towards the keep, with Ug carrying the body of Linan. Open ground lies between their position and the castle, so Turin uses his disguise kit to make the children look as much like kobolds as he can while the rest of the party and Cuth pretend to be cultists. The group are challenged by a patrol of raiders but manage to bluff their way past to reach safety. The doors of the keep are barred shut behind them as soon as they are inside.
Governor Nighthill is up on the parapet at the top of the keep and fills the party in on what’s been happening. The governor asks the PCs to open up the old tunnel which runs from the cellar to the stream so it can be used as a secret route in and out of the keep. After some persuasion, he gives them a potion of healing to take with them on their mission, and suggests they try and bring back a prisoner to interrogate. The party are taken down to the cellars by the castellan, Escobert the Red, and given the keys to the tunnel doors. The PCs battle two swarms of rats in the tunnel, then open the grate at the other end. They encounter a group of cultists and kobolds by the banks of the stream, defeating them quickly and taking one of the humans prisoner.
The PCs take their prisoner back to the keep where he is interrogated – Escobert and Ug take it in turns punching him until he tells them all he knows. The party learn that he is a member of the Cult of the Dragon, the raiders are in Greenest to collect loot “for the great hoard that will usher in the reign of the Queen of Dragons”, and they are led by a woman called Frulam Mondath. The dragon flying overhead is an ally but not under her command.
By now it is midnight and the governor sends the adventurers to rescue the townsfolk trapped inside the temple of Chauntea which is under attack from three groups of raiders. The PCs sneak through the bushes alongside the stream to reach the church without being detected, then use the smoke from the fire the cultists have started at the back door to provide concealment as they attack with surprise. Crake picks the lock on the door and the party goes inside. After some shouting they manage to calm down the panicking townsfolk with the help of Eadyan Falconmoon, the priest, and get them through the door to safety before the raiders manage to smash down the front door.
Back in the keep, the governor again asks the PCs for help – this time he wants them to stop the attackers burning down the town mill. This time, the party what kind of payment they can expect in exchange for their services. Governor Nighthill is a bit disappointed but gives them a second potion of healing and promises them a reward when the town is saved. Satisfied our heroes head for the mill but when they get there and see that the building isn’t really on fire, they are suspicious. Rosie scouts ahead and spots a pair of cultists lurking on the upper floor. Deciding it’s a trap, the PCs return to the keep as they can see the dragon is now circling around the tower.
The PCs hurry to the roof and make a few ineffective ranged attacks on the great blue dragon as it swoops in to breathe lightning on the defenders. Luckily, the party are unscathed, but several brave town guards are killed instantly. Rosie – who has experience of firing a ballista from her time as a pirate – shoots at the terrible beast, scoring a critical hit! The dragon decides that it’s not worth tangling with the adventurers and maybe getting wounded again. He flies off, leaving Greenest. Relieved, the adventurers go back downstairs for a much-needed short rest.
Richard Green | Game Designer 