Session A14 — Thundertree and Cult

Summary

A session of expanding horizons and accumulating problems. On the road out of Phandalin the party re-encounters Halia Thornton in fine form, learn from Flaming Fist soldiers that something unsettling is happening in Neverwinter, and arrive at Saltmarsh — where Othorion, through a combination of curiosity and poor decision-making, boards a pirate flagship alone, gets information he needed, and signs away future trade rights to the Port of Luskan in exchange for it. The rest of the party was buying fish. The session ends in the ruins of Thundertree, where the druid Reidoth recognises Kelvin on sight, tells him who his parents were, grabs his face and delivers a prophecy, and where Kelvin's neglected wildfire spirit erupts from a campfire and brands him across the cheek.

Key Events

Halia Thornton — The Street Outside a Rundown Bar

The session opens with Kelvin spotting Halia Thornton through the window of a rundown bar at the edge of Phandalin, mid-tirade at a pair of red-cloaked figures, knife slamming into the bartop.

Her exact words, before she looked up and saw Kelvin's face in the window:

"These hoopoe-headed cocksuckers have put so much between me and what I want. I swear it will be the end of them. My right hand to the holy book. I will smite them down and you will help me. So help us gods. Or else, I will make sure that those red cloaks stay that way forever."

She saw him. He ran. She followed, flanked him outside, and the rest of the party arrived to find her leaning against a wall, tossing and catching a dagger, arms crossed. When Kelvin tried to apologise for his poor social instincts:

"Now listen here, friend. Some people are good at talking, and some people aren't. Everybody has their place. They just need to remember what that place is. Do you understand?" Then, turning to Kavu after he precisely recalled her mining claim prices unprompted: "You looking for a job, kid? Because I'm surrounded by ignorant cocksuckers, and I would love to fix that."

The job description: "doing exactly what I tell you to do when I tell you to do it, without any question." She added that questions would be a shame given Kelvin's obvious talents — "if he started asking questions, I might have to lop it off, but such is the way of the world."

Mining claim rates confirmed: 1 acre for 300gp, 2 acres for 750gp, 3 acres for 1,500gp. Kavu does not yet have enough money but is actively thinking about it.

The Road to Saltmarsh — Flaming Fist on the High Road

En route, the party overtook a Flaming Fist contingent heading westward. A soldier provided an unsolicited update: Lord Dagult Neverember had called for men-at-arms to gather in Neverwinter for pay, specifically to address "some less-than-favorable cult activity therewithin." Reported symbolage included death-head skulls, a triangle with an eye and a raised hand, and various other insignia. The soldier's assessment: the Flaming Fist had no information from Baldur's Gate or Waterdeep (to which they are not welcome anyway), and considered the problem city-specific.

Roland quietly patted the pocket where the Sealed Neverember Letter lives.

Saltmarsh — Market, Diamonds, and Netherese Coins

The party arrived in Saltmarsh mid-morning. The seaside market sells fish, more fish, and on occasion, additional fish. Roland confirmed this directly with a vendor: "Does anybody sell anything other than fish and fishing equipment here?" Answer: "Not on this side, nah."

Kelvin needed a diamond worth 300gp for resurrection magic. The party crossed the bridge to Zendris Curio Shop — run by a handsome, middle-aged tiefling woman with glowing red eyes. Her greeting when Kelvin stammered his request:

"Like a moth to the flame, another young druid learns to bring people back and needs diamonds. Did the flowers tell you so?" — then, told it was the wind: "Ah, you are a unique one... never has the wind been the cause."

When Haldak Tencloak produced four gold pieces to help cover the shortfall, Zendris seized his wrist and held one of the coins up. "Where did you come across this?" The coins bore images of Ilium and Karsus on them — Netherese mintage. She offered double their worth without hesitation: eight gold pieces for four. Haldak accepted, told her only that they came from "an old friend of mine, but he's long gone now."

The diamond was purchased. Kelvin borrowed the remaining 70gp from Haldak.

Aboard the Limerith's Bane — The Gum-Gum Contract

While the rest of the party browsed the market, Othorion spotted something at the private dock of the Prime Water family manor: a dragon-headed ship he recognised. This was the Limerith's Bane — flagship of Gum-Gum, the Goblin Queen of the Moonshade Isles, a feared pirate all along the Sword Coast, and a regular caller at his uncle's port in Luskan. The masthead is rumoured to be an actual ancient dragon skull.

The ship was not accessible from the public waterfront. Othorion attempted to signal it anyway using a Drow thieves' cant whistle — a specific coded bird-call pattern his cousin uses. It worked. The response from the ship was: "Currently in private business. Better not be wasting time. Name and station."

Othorion identified himself. The ship sent an escort. He was taken aboard.

Gum-Gum — one uncovered red eye, rows of razor-sharp teeth, vest pocket — had information about his missing memories. Price: she produced a parchment. It was, as she explained, "a contract... for trade rights. Exclusive trade rights. Through the Port of Luskan... for the Moonshade Pirates. On your ascension to that tradehouse's regency and authority."

The information she gave him first, before the contract: "Find a cleric capable of restoring them to you and you will have your answer. But beware — if that does not solve the issue, your problem is greater than general magics. There are few things in this world or the next that are capable of erasing memories that cannot be undone by a greater restoration."

Then the contract. Othorion tried to assess the terms:

"It is very easy to see that the implication here is that the Moonshade Pirates will be granted exclusive trade rights to nautical trade through the Port of Luskan at the exclusion of any other entity, pirate or legitimate, and it will be valid in the event that you take up the position of postmaster for the Port of Luskan."

The contract was not dated. Gum-Gum's position was blunt: "Boy, you are lucky if I let you leave this ship." Her logic: "If you do not achieve the station, then I lose nothing. If you do, then I gain everything. And all it cost me were a few words and a little blackmail." Then: "You chose to come here. You walked into the Tigress's den. I did not become the Pirate Queen of the Moon Shea by sitting on my ass and doing nothing."

Outside, the other players were realising what was happening. The DM, to the table: "In less than an hour, Thorin almost got himself kidnapped, killed, or worse. Again. All unbeknownst to everybody."

Othorion ran out of counterarguments. He told the table: "I'm going to have to sign in, kick the can down the road." Pen touched paper. "Her smile grows wider and wider and rows of razor sharp teeth gleam in the moonlight. And she looks at you with one uncovered red eye. Well then, this has been a wonderful trade. I wish you the best of luck. May the fortunes favor you. Remember, as Tymora often says, fortune favors the bold. Now get the fuck off of my ship."

He bowed and left. The nobleman at the dock gave him a deeper bow than before and said, under his breath: "Well played." He thought Othorion had negotiated successfully.

On the bridge crossing back to the group, Othorion (an elf) failed a Constitution save against the Shark Fin Bridge's anti-elf property. The DM: "We'll follow that with profuse amounts of vomiting." The cart departed Saltmarsh leaving, per the DM: "the rain dripping off the sides of your cart and the vomit leaking out of the sift holes in the bottom, leaving a trail of filth and disgust as you leave the town."

Othorion told the party only that he had "signed a deal that I might regret depending on how a great many things pan out."

Arrival at Thundertree — The Ruined Town

The party reached the outskirts of the ruins of Thundertree around 1pm. A wooden sign nailed to a post at the entrance read: "Danger! Plant monsters and zombies. Turn back now."

The DM's description: "An old overgrown lane widening between dilapidated buildings choked with vines and brush. In the middle of the settlement rises a steep hill upon which stands a stone tower with a partially collapsed roof and an adjoining cottage. A dirt road hugs the base of the hill and wends its way between old stone houses, many of which are roofless ruins. Other buildings appear intact. The whole place is eerily silent."

A second sign by what once appeared to be a prosperous tavern (faded image of a workhorse holding a flagon of ale) was also visible. Spiderwebs stretched across one of the lanes from building to treeline. One cottage had an intact roof and smoke issuing from its chimney.

Kelvin used Speak with Plants to consult the trees about the two possible approaches. A large oak gave unhelpful advice about "the route less traveled." A more opinionated birch corrected it: "That oak doesn't know what he's talking about. I branch out towards the north. The south pass has too many squirrels this season. Terribly noisy. With all their nut-burying business." On recent visitors: "Oh, only the druid. It's the only person who comes by recently." The party took the north approach.

Reidoth — Parents, Prophecy, and Fire

Approaching the smoking cottage, an aged figure poked his head from the window and shouted them off:

"What? Leave? What are you doing? Go, go away. It's not safe. Go. Get. Get. Are you perchance looking for a death wish?"

Then, fixing on Kelvin: "The woman with the red beard. What is your name?" — "Kelvin." — "I thought it might be. You look just like them."

He let them in out of the rain.

Reidoth told Kelvin his parents' names. Rowan, his father: "a wise sage who guided many druids with his profound understanding of the forest." Eldara, his mother: "an ethereal dryad... known to nurture the flora and fauna around her grove, which lay deep within the Neverwinter Wood." And then: "I recall there was a mysterious wildfire that swept through that grove long ago. It was after that that I never heard from them again. I had assumed that they were both lost, along with their child. It seems something or someone saved you, my boy."

Kelvin said he remembers nothing from before the woods. Reidoth considered. Then he asked about fire. Kelvin rambled. With "a speed and alacrity that surprises you from the old man," Reidoth grabbed both sides of Kelvin's head:

"Calvin, your power, the wildfire within you — don't be afraid of it. It is not just a destructive force, but one that renews and nurtures. Learn to harness it, and you will see that it holds significance beyond what we can see or even imagine."

His face very close: "You are more important than you realize, Kelvin. The fate of not just this forest, but many worlds may hinge upon your mastery of it."

Kelvin was crying. Reidoth: "Why are you crying, boy? I told you to harness the fire, not the water. Stop it. Stop it, boy!" Kelvin: "These are not tears of sadness... these are tears of happiness." The DM: "Someone is starting to feel like he belongs."

Reidoth is a member of the Emerald Enclave — "a widespread group of wilderness survivals [who] preserve the natural order while rooting out troublesome threats." He confirmed he could provide directions to Cragmaw Castle.

He also mentioned, in passing, that a green dragon named Venomfang has taken root in the tower on the hill: "If you walk up the lane to the hill to the north, the green dragon Venomfang has taken root and claims it as his lair. He, along with the various other creatures in this town, prevent it from reclaiming its former glory."

The Wildfire Spirit — Kelvin Branded

With Reidoth's encouragement and Kavu pressing against his side trying to feel the fire within, Kelvin attempted to demonstrate his wildfire by trying to intensify the cottage campfire.

The session ended like this:

"When you try to harness the power of the wildfire within, instead of what you wanted to happen, the following happens. A bird made out of spectral flame roars out of the fire. It swoops around the room in fury, looking for its target, you. It swoops down at you, Kelvin, and it claws at your face. And when it does, you feel a singeing burn on one of your cheeks."

Then: "Your wildfire spirit is angry at you having neglected it for all of these years. A sentry without help from its master is... no way to go about living."

Kelvin was branded. The session ended there. In the closing chat, someone asked the druid's name one more time. The DM confirmed: "Reidoth."

NPCs Encountered

Loot / Discoveries

Party Notes

• Roland: Quiet session; patted the pocket containing the Sealed Neverember Letter when the Flaming Fist mentioned Neverwinter cult activity; confirmed to Zendris that he was looking for something other than fish
• Kavu: Memorised Halia's mining claim prices unprompted (impressed her); contributed 20gp to help Kelvin buy the diamond; pressed against Kelvin's side during the wildfire spirit scene trying to feel the fire
• Kelvin Fairlight: Central character this session — learned his parents' names (Rowan and Eldara), both presumed dead in a mysterious wildfire; used Speak with Plants to consult trees about the approach route; attempted to harness his wildfire and was branded across the cheek by his neglected wildfire spirit; cried happy tears when Reidoth told him about his parents
• Othorion: Boarded the Limerith's Bane alone using a drow thieves' cant whistle; signed away exclusive Luskan port trade rights to Gum-Gum in exchange for information about his memory loss; vomited profusely crossing the Shark Fin Bridge (anti-elf property, failed CON save); told the party only that he "signed a deal that I might regret"
• Haldak Tencloak: Traded four Netherese coins bearing Ilium and Karsus to Zendris for double value; lent Kelvin 70gp toward the diamond purchase; stocked up on practical adventuring supplies

Threads Opened / Advanced

• Othorion's Luskan Contract: Signed exclusive Moonshade Pirates trade rights to the Port of Luskan into existence, contingent on him assuming his "birthright" — the contract is undated and currently dormant. He now has the time to find a way out of it. Gum-Gum is patient.
• Othorion's Memory Loss: Requires a cleric capable of Greater Restoration minimum. If that fails, the erasure was caused by something beyond ordinary magic — very few things in the world can do that.
• Kelvin's Parents: Rowan (druid sage) and Eldara (ethereal dryad of Neverwinter Wood) — both presumed dead in a mysterious wildfire. Something saved Kelvin. The wildfire's origin is unknown.
• Kelvin's Wildfire Spirit: It has been neglected. It is now branded onto his face. He needs to master it. "The fate of not just this forest, but many worlds may hinge upon your mastery of it."
• Cragmaw Castle: Reidoth can provide directions — the primary purpose of the Thundertree visit, still unresolved as of session end.
• Venomfang: Green dragon in the watchtower on the hill; preventing Thundertree's restoration; not yet encountered.
• Neverwinter Cult Activity: Flaming Fist soldiers en route; death-head skulls and triangular eye insignia; Roland patted the Neverember letter. This is not a coincidence.
• Halia Thornton and the Red Cloaks: She was threatening red-cloaked men in a bar with genuine violence. What she wants, and what they've put between her and it, is unresolved.
• Zendris and the Netherese Coins: She paid double without hesitation for coins bearing Ilium and Karsus. She has a story.