Skyreach Castle Horde:

The floor of the cavern was carpeted in gold, silver, copper, and jewels, all sealed under a sheet of ice. Dozens of old humanoid skulls and bones were also frozen in the ice (approximately 67 souls we would guess).

• 514,135 cp,
• 184,335 sp,
• 5,769 gp,
• a frozen chest containing
  • 809 pp and
  • 21 small blue sapphires worth 300 gp each,
• a frozen magical potion (Potion of gaseous form),
• a magical longsword (+1 longsword),
• a magical longbow (+1 longbow),
• a set of magical leather armor (+1 leather armor)
• a set of magical bracers (Bracers of Defense)

Old White Death Dragon Horde:

A total of 9,588 gp worth of coins, art objects, and/or gems, as follows:

• 8,048 gp in coinage:

  • 180 pp
  • 5,100 gp
  • 11,000 sp
  • 4,800 cp

• 10 gp gemstones (×9; worth 90 gp total):

  • Rhodochrosite (opaque light pink)
  • Azurite (opaque mottled deep blue)
  • Moss agate (translucent pink or yellow-white with mossy gray or green markings)
  • Tiger eye (translucent brown with golden center)
  • Turquoise (opaque light blue-green)
  • Eye agate (translucent circles of gray, white brown, blue, or green), ×2
  • Hematite (opaque gray-black)
  • Malachite (opaque striated light and dark green)

• 50 gp gemstones (×5; worth 250 gp total):

  • Bloodstone (opaque dark gray with red flecks)
  • Citrine (transparent pale yellow-brown)
  • Jasper (opaque blue, black, or brown)
  • Moonstone (translucent white with pale blue glow)
  • Onyx (opaque bands of black and white, or pure black or white)

• 100 gp gemstones (×7; worth 700 gp total):

  • Tourmaline (transparent pale green, blue, brown, or red), ×2
  • Jet (opaque deep black)
  • Amber (transparent watery gold to rich gold)
  • Coral (opaque crimson)
  • Spinel (transparent red, red-brown, or deep green)
  • Pearl (opaque lustrous white, yellow, or pink)

• 250 gp jewelry objects (×2; worth 500 gp total):

  • Silver necklace with a gemstone pendant
  • Large gold bracelet

• 7 mundane items:

  • A set of seven candlesticks bearing a god’s holy symbol
  • A drum for use in religious rites, with a foreboding echo to its beat
  • The battle standard of one of the dragon’s ancient foes
  • The skull of a Fiend or Celestial
  • A drum for use in religious rites, with a foreboding echo to its beat
  • Hundreds or thousands of fake coins interspersed with the real treasure
  • A kneeling bench, which anyone addressing the dragon was required to use

• Magic Potions in a wooden chest:

  • Magical Potion (Potion of Force Resistance)
  • Magical Potion (Potion of Hill Giant Strength)
  • Magical Potion (Potion of Cold Resistance)

• Loose Magic Items

  • Magical horseshoes (Horseshoes of a Zephyr)
  • Magical Potion (Potion of Invisibility)
  • Magical Spell Scroll (Dominate Monster)
  • Magical Plate Armor (Armor of Vulnerability)
  • Magical spear (Spear of Backbiting)
  • Magical javelin (Javelin of Lightning)

Scrolls from Maccath’s Scriptorium:

• gaseous form,
• haste,
• protection from energy,
• water breathing,
• Evard’s black tentacles,
• fire shield,
• wall of fire,
• hold monster,
• chain lightning, and
• disintegrate.

Revivifying Maccath

• As soon as the red dragon fell dead, Aegar raced to Maccath to heal her, but found her dead instead.
• Aegar reached for his pouch and pulled out the silver necklace recently obtained from the white dragon’s horde and said a prayer in hopes that the diamond was enough to power the spell.
  • <Nat 20> It was, and upon casting Revivify, Maccath took a breath and opened her startled eyes.
• The party begain to Loot.
• As thanks, Maccath handed over control of the castle: Escarlotta, these are the dragon slayers who freed the castle from the dragons. The castle is theirs now.”

Severin, the Red Dragon Wyrmspeaker

• When Aegar touched the dragon rider, a shock jolted his mind, and the air crackled with malevolent energy.
  
• A mist swirled in the air before the party, and the visage of a man materialized. His cold gaze fixed on the party, and then he smirked darkly.
  • Zoyana immediately recognized him from her memories, as the human in charge when he, Rezmir, and the hooded woman led to the purple mist on that fateful day. Severin
• He addressed the party, his voice exuding authority and menace:
  • “Ah, the meddling little flies that buzz around my grand design. How quaint.” He gestured toward the fallen dragon rider and the slain red dragon. ”I must admit; I did not anticipate such a spectacle. But let’s not pretend your actions mean anything in the grand scheme of things._
  • “You see, I am not here to invite you to dance with dragons or to exchange pleasantries. You have stumbled into the path of an unstoppable force, a force that will bring this world to its knees. And you, my dear adventurers, can be either stepping stones or insignificant obstacles. The choice is yours.
  • “The Cult of the Dragon is destined to triumph. It is our fate written in the very stars above us. Those who oppose us become dust beneath the claws of the mighty, forgotten and lost in the relentless tides of time. Joining us is not a suggestion; it is a matter of survival.
  • “Your so-called victories mean nothing. Rezmir’s death, the dragon’s fall – mere inconveniences. You are gnats, and I am the hand that swats them. You think you have power, but you have yet to glimpse the true depths of what awaits those who pledge allegiance to the true masters of this realm.
  • “Bow before me, and I shall grant you mercy. But dare to defy me, and you will know pain unlike any you can fathom. My reach extends far, and my wrath knows no bounds. You have seen a mere sliver of what the Cult is capable of, but believe me, it is only the beginning.
  • “The world trembles as Tiamat stirs in her prison, yearning to break free and bathe the realm in her glory. As we gather her treasures, the time of reckoning approaches. A new world order, where dragons rule and mortals kneel, is nigh.
  • “Now, you have a choice to make. Join the Cult of the Dragon, embrace your fate as cogs in the grand machine, and perhaps, just perhaps, you may survive this ordeal. Refuse, and your insignificant existence will be snuffed out like a candle in a storm.
  • “Make no mistake – this is not a negotiation. This is your one chance to align yourselves with the inevitable, to serve the true masters of this world. Do not squander it with foolish heroics and false bravado.
  • “When we sent Umphrey and his squad, we did not know that those who murdered Rezmir were also the ones to clear Skyreach of the betrayer Aurathator. That’s a mistake we will not make again.
  • “I shall take my leave now, but know this – I am watching, and I am patient. When next we meet, your loyalty will be tested, and the consequences of your choice will be laid bare. Choose wisely, if you can.”
  • Severin’s form dissipated into the darkness, leaving the party in chilling silence.

Aegar & Pond

• Aegar shared his dream with the party, and the next day cast Create Food and Water to fill a pitcher and walked out into the Lower Courtyard.
• Aegar poured water from his pitcher onto the frosted ground. As it splashed, a puddle began to form, which then rose up into a watery column, taking the pitcher with it.
  • The column rose above his head and wider than his shoulders.
    
• Aegar stepped in and disappeared.
  
• The column fell to the ground, leaving a large pond in its wake.

Grabbing an Egg

• Aegar emerged from the pond with a sheepish look.
• He pulled Pliny aside and wispered in his ear: “Pliny, where’s your bag of holding? I need one.”
  • Pliny: “One what?”
  • Aegar: “A white dragon egg Pliny. For… reasons.”
  • Pliny smirked: “Oh, ‘reasons’. Sure Aegar.” and he handed over one of the white dragon eggs.
• Aegar turned on his heels and made again for the pool, attempting to salvage as much dignity as he could.

–> –>

Frozen Pliny

• While Aegar was still in the pond, it began to bubble, and an opaque white mist began to form. It swirled over to and around Pliny, and Pliny was briefly encased in ice.
• As soon as Pliny began to move, the ice shattered and he was free.

Aegar’s Return

• Aegar stepped out of the pool to the applause of his teammates.

Zoyana’s tree

• As the Sword Coast approached, Zoyana left the castle as a giant eagle and returned with a small redwoodcone, no more than an inch across.
• Following the memory from Aegar’s dream, she dug a small hole beside Aegar’s pond on the far side form the castle gate.
• Over the following days, she cast Plant Growth in the area, enriching the land and envigorating the growth the sapling.

Updating the Council

• The party and Maccath updated the council about the Cult of the Dragon’s activities, and detailed their experience with:
  • Finding Maccath
  • The Draakhorn (as above, though Maccath’s prior musings about the effect on metallic dragons did not come up).
  • What they knew of the Cult’s process in getting loot from across the Sword Coast to Skyreach Castle, Skyreach Castle’s flight to Oyaviggaton, and the murder of Talis, Glazhael, the giants and the others by Aurathator.
  • The epic battle between Aurathator, the Old White Death and the Looting Luters, culminating in the killing shot by Pliny Melvin Pan, Dragonslayer.
  • That Maccath considered the Looting Luters the lords of Skyreach Castle by Right of Conquest.
  • The attack by Umphrey the red dragon rider and his squad of wyvern riding Cultists. (And Pliny the Dragonslayer’s second dragon-killing shot.)
  • Severin’s message.

Updates and Discussion from the Council:

<Players tasked with taking notes for things like these 😬>

Call for Aid (highlights)

• During the Council of Waterdeep, Declan Winterhound spoke of the draconic incursions in the Misty Forest.
• King Melandrach minimized the concerns, considering the minor Cult nuisances at best.
• Later, during a break, Declan Winterhound and Prince Alagarthas pulled the party aside to reinforce what Declan had shared to the Council.
  • There was definitely more to the attacks in the Misty Forest, though King Melandrach was too proud and trusting of his elves to see it. Minor raids do not include green dragons.
  • They shared that the Emerald Enclave’s agents had been working with the support of Prince Alagarthas to prevent a new round of attacks.
  • With his agents already scattered throughout the Misty Forest, Declan wanted the adventurers to travel to one of the few dragon-raided settlements left standing in the aftermath—a village called Altand.
  • If Declan’s belief that the mysterious master of the green dragon was one of the Cult’s wyrmspeakers is true, the survivors of Altand might know something that would help find him, and experience says that if found, they would need to be dealt with quickly.

Altand

• Altand was primarily a wood elf settlement, blending almost seamlessly into the forest around it.
• The village existed on two levels, with a few structures built on the ground around an ancient monument to an elven ranger.
• Residences and the village temple were built into the upper boughs of the forest. The elves strung rope bridges between these sites and construct circular walkways around the trees.
• Pulley-operated platforms connected the two levels of the village, and provided an excellent defense against the orcs that occasionally entered the forest as an alternative to raiding human settlements along the Trade Way.
  • However, those defenses proved a deathtrap against the flying green dragon, leaving many elves unable to reach the ground quickly enough to escape.
• When the party arrived, they discussed the attack with the villagers and were directed to Galin, the Warden of the district at his residence in the upper boughs of the village.

Survivors’ Tales

• Between the discussion at the Council of Waterdeep and brief discussions upon arrival at Altand, the party gathered:
  • Of the three hundred residents of the village, more than half survived the raid.
    • This was a different outcome than at other raided settlements, where the dragon hunted and killed the elves to the last adult and child.
  • Many of the residents of Altand were on the ground when the attack came.
    • Of the elves in the upper level of the village, many died of the dragon’s poisonous breath while waiting to descend, or fell to their deaths as bridges and walkways collapsed under the weight of panic.
  • Most survivors fled and saw little of what ensued.
    • The dragon swooped down and attacked on the ground first. Nearly half of the village’s victims died during that first assault.
  • Humans in the regalia of the Cult of the Dragon followed the dragon, killing all those they found. The village’s priest stepped out to lead others in fighting the dragon, but the beast swallowed him whole.
  • Some survivors claimed to have seen a cultist riding atop the dragon. Most of those referred to the dragon rider as human, like the other cultists. However, a few people reported that the figure moved with the grace of an elf.
  • With the priest dead, the village’s warden, Galin, had become the leader of Altand. Though he was in the thick of the fight, he survived unscathed, and has been a potent force for rallying the survivors.
    • The folk of the village described him as suffering from the weight of his new leadership role and the deaths of more than a hundred villagers—including his own wife.
  • The attack lasted only a short while, then the dragon unexpectedly retreated.
  • The cultists followed, but as they fled, they took nothing of value from the village.
    • This was a stark contrast to the dragon’s other raids, which were focused on capturing treasure.

Galin, the Warden

• Stepping into a modest dwelling suspended among iron-strong boughs, the party entered a cozy sitting room.
• A slim elf sat at a desk, standing to greet them with a forced smile as a raven perched in a nearby cage cawed hideously.
  • “Welcome to our village. How can I be of service?”
• At first, Galin answers the party’s questions by echoing what the other survivors had shared.
• He claimed to have not seen the dragon rider, dismissing such reports as the result of fear and chaos during the raid. But the party sensed that the elf warden is withholding information.
• Ultimately, the party convinced Galin to come clean and share the truth:
  • He confessed that after seeing his wife killed, he found himself face to face with mask-wearing leader of the raiders in the thick of battle and begged for his life, offering anything in return.
• The leader took the warden up on his offer, agreeing to spare Galin and leave Altand intact in exchange for information on other settlements that would become the targets of the Cult’s next round of raids. They had met several times outside the village since the raid.
• Galin did not know the identity of the mask-wearing leader, or the location of their base. However, from the meeting place, he had watched the dragon flying off on a course due southeast and he had noticed that the leader’s clothes and hair were often wet.

Into the Forest

• The party set off with no fanfair and little planning towards the southeast, on a hunt for the Cult raiders and the green dragon.
• Through two days of fast travel through dense, fog-filled forest, the party saw signs from a group of humanoids traveling to and then from the village. The signs showed the path, but provided little additional detail.