In the previous adventure, we’d found a clue to a powerful item that might prove a turning point in the upcoming war. The good guys were in a difficult place: the forces of the transforming wizard Qwindrak on one side, the dark agents of the Witch Queen Kessandria on the other. Both believed we were in league with the other, and both were eager to gain an advantage by taking us out.
But now that the Ring of Return had been traced to a certain lost shrine, guarded by runes and magics, all were racing to grasp the Ring and use it to summon the Fire King from his tomb. That legendary titan would make whichever side commanded him truly formidable. It could not be allowed to fall into either Qwindrak’s or Kessandria’s hands.
Mentor handed a magical scroll to our dwarf, Bashy B. With it, she would be able to see magical doors and decode the ancient runes – but only she could.
We entered the dungeon as quietly as we could, taking on outlying goblin guards and orc patrols until we came to a small room behind which lay a massive cavern. We watched through a crack in the wall as Qwindrak, in dragon form, was assaulted by Kessandria’s forces: a phalanx of Dread Warriors.
(We players took control of the Dread Warriors, one for each of us, and for the next several minutes we found out what it was like to fight under monster rules.) Qwindrak cleared the room of both friend and foe with a massive firestorm, but a second wave of Dread Warriors had their revenge. As they departed, we regained control of our own characters.
We rushed the room, but Qwindrak, now in human form, laughed at us and vanished. Bashy B used her scroll to find a magically sealed chamber that held a rune-covered altar. Using the scroll once more to release the runes, Bashy uncovered the double-jeweled Ring.
Now we only had to find our way out.
We did bump into the remaining Dread Warriors on our way; Bashy tanked them while the rest of us rushed back as swiftly as we could from our explorations. There were some tense moments, but we crawled back to Mentor, victorious.
With the Ring of Return in our hands, our next stop is the Tomb of the Fire King, where we must return him to life. Naturally, our enemies know exactly where we must go. It will take every bit of cunning – and the last of our dwindling supply of health potions – to make it out of that alive.
But that’s for another night.
