After descending into the tavern's main room to a raucous cheer and sampling the vintage of his newly acquired Mug of Plentiful Ale, Krond convinced the smiths to get down to the business of their ill-timed visit.
Her Highness Mariah Kandarian, Queen of the Upper Harrow, First Matriarch of the Harrow, The Keeper of the Secret Passion, and, last but not least, The Duchess of Brembly has decided to call once again for the Hammer & Spoke to participate in the King's Challenge. The challenge calls all Folds of the Guild to present a gift to the Queen. The Fold with the most appreciated gift is bequeathed the title of First Fold with its leader standing as the Second Bellows.
Gorak Stoneblow, the elderly dwarf whose adopted human daughter the party previously rescued from the Blood Cult, currently stands as Second Bellows to Prince Braniff, the Queen's young son. There have been 3 challenges involving the Smith's guild in the last hundred years. Gorak has won them all. But the dwarf's advanced age is slowing him down and his Fold fears he may not have the strength in him to master the other Folds.
To complete the challenge, the Queen has decreed that a Fold must first retrieve a long lost helm from the Hedge Hill Waste. The Fold would then use the metal from the helm to create a gift for the Queen and win the title of First Fold until the next challenge.
To complete the challenge, the Queen has decreed that a Fold must first retrieve a long lost helm from the Hedge Hill Waste. The Fold would then use the metal from the helm to create a gift for the Queen and win the title of First Fold until the next challenge.
To complicate matters, Master Arloc, the prince's advisor and the Queen's closest confidant, has worked behind the scenes to nearly ensure the success of a Fold from the capital city of Harrow's Gate. With his political allies wary of angering Arloc and by extension the Queen, Gorak can not hope to gather enough martial strength to trek into the Waste. Therefore, the smiths of his Fold have approached the party to quest for the helm. In return, the Fold offered a gold reward as well as a membership share in the Fold to Krond.
While scouring the city market for supplies in preparation for their trek to the Wastes, the party nearly ran headlong into a knot of armored strangers with breastplates sporting the sigil of a deity recognized by the paladin as the sworn enemy to his own god. To avoid a confrontation between the paladin and the evil troop, the warlock dragged the paladin back into the safety of the crowd, drawing a smirk from the group's leader.
Realizing several of the newcomers had momentarily mistaken him for someone else, the wizard followed the group to the local magistrate's office, where organizations apply for a license to open a chapter in the city.
The next morning, the party set out for the Waste accompanied by the Fold's caravan. After several days travel, the caravan set up camp outside of Coyote's Rest, a small village on the outskirts of the Waste.
Not long after entering the heavy mist enveloping the Waste, the party tangled with a group of undead Hill warriors and their demon hounds. After defeating the animated corpses, the party took a short break before venturing deeper into the evil land in search of the helm.
While scouring the city market for supplies in preparation for their trek to the Wastes, the party nearly ran headlong into a knot of armored strangers with breastplates sporting the sigil of a deity recognized by the paladin as the sworn enemy to his own god. To avoid a confrontation between the paladin and the evil troop, the warlock dragged the paladin back into the safety of the crowd, drawing a smirk from the group's leader.
Realizing several of the newcomers had momentarily mistaken him for someone else, the wizard followed the group to the local magistrate's office, where organizations apply for a license to open a chapter in the city.
The next morning, the party set out for the Waste accompanied by the Fold's caravan. After several days travel, the caravan set up camp outside of Coyote's Rest, a small village on the outskirts of the Waste.
Not long after entering the heavy mist enveloping the Waste, the party tangled with a group of undead Hill warriors and their demon hounds. After defeating the animated corpses, the party took a short break before venturing deeper into the evil land in search of the helm.
