Category: The Drow’s Bane

Naismith, in a muted disguise and without his shiny rapier, has claimed a stool in the Pick and Lantern, one of the more human-friendly taverns down here. It’s just past midnight and it’s a good night – busy, with a mixed crowd of regulars and newcomers. He’s finished his fourth drink and wonders if he wants another one when a young serving lad approaches him. He gestures to order another drink. Much to his surprise, however, the boy slides a piece of paper towards him. “Your reck’ning, sir”. Much faster than any human child has a right to, he is gone. The hair on the back of his neck prickles, but he forces himself to sit quietly. Behind his cup he carefully unfolds the slip of paper that he palmed. It is blank, but smells vaguely of lemon.

Of course he could go back to Catchbreeze to read the message, but the two-mile climb would take hours and the small candle on the table tempts him. Doing his best to look utterly careless, he holds the note a small distance from the flame. One minute and one blister later he glances surreptitiously at the text

You lying charlatan, 

You are not the first to approach me about the craven thief I am ashamed to have once called my brother. While you were perhaps cleverer than most in claiming to be him, rather than to have caught him, you should know that Alasdair is dead. 

Years ago I myself spilled his life blood on the streets of Waterdeep for all to see. His right hand, with the scar of the wound I gave him the night he betrayed us, was on display for months beside the Skullport gates, and his severed head is still held in the archives of the Xanathar Thieves’ Guild as a reminder for other bleeding hearts and guilty consciences.

Let it be known that I do not take kindly to anyone who rings the bell of memory that is his name within earshot or eyesight of myself or the omniscient power that employs me.  

Lulach Northbron

Naismith feels dizzy. He’s never claimed… He’s never even asked directly. And when Lulach – if it really is him – mentions an omniscient power, does he mean… And why the mention of the scar, if Lulach knew bloody well he’d gotten that scar on one of their first jobs together. None of this makes any sense.

Another young server, this one a deep gnome, approaches him, eyebrows raised in inquiry. He nods. She fills his cup. He picks up his drink and inhales deeply. The raw alcohol sears the inside of his nose. One slow sip, and then another. An idea begins to form inside his head. Staring back down at the note, he checks the corners. A small ink spatter draws his attention. He counts. Counts again. Mouthing the numbers quietly to himself, he tries their old boyhood code. He finds an I. Then a D. In less than a minute, he’s deciphered the message. ‘Idiot. Run.’ The same words he heard from Lulach on the night they’d parted ways. He can only hope the order is not as urgent as it was then.

He sips again, appearing relaxed while scanning the crowd. Nothing seems amiss for now. He pretends to search for his purse and roots around for coin. Just for show, he gives a few good yawns. It was a brilliant move, because – as if on cue – half a dozen drow in various corners of the taproom yawn as well. The hair on the back of his neck stands up. Six ordinary Skullport ruffians are just a bit of sport. Half a dozen of whatever these are… probably not so much.

He calmly stacks the coins, rises from his chair and adjusts his cloak. It takes a fair amount of willpower not to bolt, but he slowly weaves his way through the crowd. The first of his shadows only rises as he reaches the door. Knowing full well what will happen, he slips through and turns into the alley that runs alongside the building. It leads to a small yard, from which a number of quiet streets fan out. If luck is on his side, they may split the group.

Unlike all the other times he’s done this, he’s not taking any chances. He darts through the quiet street and into a busier one, slides underneath a fishmonger’s cart that pulled into the street and dashes into a washerwoman’s shed where he’s stashed a piwafwi. He slings it around his shoulders, then climbs up onto the roof of the laundress’ house.

This move has been anticipated. He’s barely pulled himself up before he sees a number of shadowy figures – at least four – approach his location. He moves faster, making a few daring leaps to higher, harder to reach areas. Soon, he’s moving as fast as he can, ducking behind chimneys and weaving though forests of drying laundry, but wherever he glances, someone is trailing him. He counts at least a dozen. Who could rally this kind of manpower? Slavers? Unlikely. The Zhentarim? Maybe. Thieves’ guild bounty hunters? More likely. Lulach himself? Even more likely, but then, why send a note? That seems so unlike his brother. Purely on instinct, he leads his pursuers north to the Threads – hoping he can shake them off in the warrens and use the tunnels to make it to the surface.

Just as he wonders which tunnel gives him the best chance of running into a huge crowd of people, he hears a familiar sound below. Without thinking, he jumps, landing with a single roll in front of an enormous boar. Behind Tusker, he sees Ilian’s startled face. He hisses “Trouble. We’ve got to go.” At that point, the first of Naismith’s pursuers lands beside the trio. Naismith’s dagger flashes, and the shadowy figure dodges, thereby stepping right into the scimitar that Ilian just drew. The shadow collapses. “There’s too many of them.” Naismith snaps. Ilian nods and stows her sword before making a few swift hand gestures and a hissing sound. “Lead the way.” In a very different tone of voice, she says “Tusker, leave that corpse. You don’t know where it’s been.” Then, they run.

Once their pursuers are far enough behind them, Naimith turns: “You shouldn’t have been down there. You have no idea.” Ilian fixes him with a stare. He pushes on. “It’s different for me. I… well…” She cuts him off. “You get to come here. Play mouse in some cat’s game. You can try to tell me I don’t get to be here. But with you down here, do you expect me to listen?” Naismith shakes his head. “It’s not like that. Not anymore. This was something else.” He pauses. “Glad you’re back, though.” Ilian smiles wryly. “I’m only passing through – came off a ship at evening tide. Finally learned that I’d have the best chance of finding you down there.” “I don’t go as often as I used to. Probably won’t go back for a long time after tonight.” Naismith grimaces in frustration. Ilian gives him a curious glance. “Care to tell me what’s changed?” He gestures dismissively. “I’d been looking for someone. He’s not wanting to be found. The news could really be worse.”

In companionable silence, they hike through the last, steep stretch of tunnel. The sky has lightened in the east by the time they make it outside through the abandoned, half-finished shafts of the Hoist. “Let’s go home.” Ilian says. “Show me how fat Petri’s gotten before I look in on Royce and Nong.” Naismith makes a face. “Better turn around then. Nong’s been gone for over a month – no one knows where – and Royce went to the docks tonight. I’ll go home though.” He yawns, this time for real. “I think I might actually get some sleep.” 

Before the last stroke of the gong in the House of Heroes, Tempus’ temple, had echoed away, Royce stood on the border of Waterdeep’s Sea Ward, looking west and squinting into the setting sun. There used to be a street here that gave a view of the harbor, a perfect vantage point to see if any new ships had come in that day. However, some new construction around the Hall of Shipwrights now blocked the view. 

The cleric begins the walk down to Dock Ward. Soon, it would be prime dinner time in the taverns on Fish Street, and if he wanted to find who he was looking for, he should expect to hit at least a half-dozen of them before the sailors got too drunk to respond to a description. Should he start at the Cat O’ Wine Tales? The Mainstay Inn? The X Marks the Spot? No, not that one. He’d just run into all the acolytes he’d dismissed from weapons training at last bell. They’d just ask him to tell them more stories. He could hear their voices even now. Olaf: “Can you tell us more about the man who rode a dracolich?” Seriah: “No, no, about when your friend sacrificed his own pet basilisk to save a Drow maiden!” Jessup: “I want to hear about how you revived your friends when they had been petrified!” Dytre: “I think you should tell us about when your boat was sunk in the Dark Lake and the undead tried to pull you under the wa…” Royce cuts off the thought with a quick hand gesture. He’d only tried to reach Jimjar a fortnight ago, and while the deep gnome turned Deva did not seem to mind his attempts at conversation, it was poor form to dwell on him so much. Unbecoming to someone meant to show Tempus’ less experienced champions what it means to fight and worship as one, decisive action.

His musing is interrupted by the smell of tar, old sweat and cheap beer and the sound of someone scratching out a tune on a poorly-tuned fiddle. Royce looks up to read the weathered sign. Safe Harbor. Picklock Alley is probably as good a place as any to start the search. If Tempus has faith in him, he might get a dinner here that wouldn’t leave him puking later, and maybe the apprentice tariff clerks would be in there sharing gossip. 

More than an hour after his planned time for ‘just dinner’ had passed, he steps out of the door of the bar. His pace is hasty. Behind him, a slurred voice calls “Hey man, just let me buy you a drink. You’re a real hero, man. Come oooonnn…” After a minute’s brisk walk past the now-lit lanterns of the bars, he swears. He’s left his cloak behind. Luckily, the night is windy but not cold – a good night for a place at this latitude. Tomorrow, he’d send one of his charges to fetch the cloak for him. They’d probably think it was an honor anyway. He shakes his head. 

Just as he suppresses a smile at the thought of one of the acolytes bragging to the others about the silly errand, a suspicious noise gets his attention. He tries to whip around, but is stopped when a pair of arms grabs him from behind. “Ho, mate. You’re late for deck swabbing duty.” says one familiar voice. The other, also familiar, responds “Nah, he’s too good for that now. Little Roycey the cabin boy is faaaamous.” A calloused hand swats the back of his bald head, he is released and hysterical laughter erupts behind him. Royce himself begins to laugh as he turns around. 

“I’ll swab the deck with you Erich. And when I’m done, I’ll make you famous, Terka. But not in a way you’d like” He exchanges hugs, first with a rawboned man whose heavy tattoos obscure his pale skin, and then with an exceptionally tall, dark-skinned woman with a cutlass at her side. He continues. “Has either of you made captain yet? Or is old White Hair so desperate at your stupidity he still hasn’t let go of the big wheel?” Terka responds with a raised eyebrow. “You know as well as we do that no one’s taking Captain Mollor off of The Flaming Sword with anything other than a piece of sailcloth and a prayer. And you’ll be pleased to know that hasn’t happened yet.” Royce nods. “I’d heard a rumor you might have come into port. Thought I’d see how you fared.” “We’re on pier sixteen.” Terka says. “Had to offload a passenger, so it was civvie docks for us this time.” Royce snorts, but looks pleased. “I’ll go pay a visit, then. Enjoy the night’s leave, you two.”

Some time later, a curly-haired boy hails Royce with rapid-fire speech. “Welcome to the finest vessel on the Waterdeep docks – a beauty called The Flaming Sword, good sir! What is your name and purpose good sir?” The cabin boy doesn’t stop when Royce has proved his credentials and is admitted aboard. “Please follow me to the quarterdeck sir, no sir, please let me be your guide sir, I shall inform the captain of your visit, sir, yes sir, I will ask if he will see you sir, please wait here sir!” With that, the cabin boy slips behind a massive wooden door and closes it in Royce’s face.

The cleric smiles, and when the door swings open and the boy gestures to welcome him in (please come in sir, the captain will see you now, sir), he grabs the boy’s hand and presses a silver piece into it, giving him an exaggerated wink. 

From behind a desk laden with papers, a man gets up. He isn’t as old as the wild shock of snow-white hair seems to imply, but there is a touch stiffness in how he rises, and when he smiles at the sight of his visitor, his face wrinkles and folds with age as well as joy. “I rejoice to see that Tempus has kept you safe.” he says, before enveloping the cleric in a rib-cracking hug. “It does me good that you come see me, when – if the rumors are anything to go by – you could be in the company of fine lords and rich ladies.” Letting go of Royce, the captain pulls on a thin rope on the cabin wall and asks “Drink?” Royce smiles, but shakes his head. “I’ve done enough of that, cap. Thank you. Care to tell me how you and the old tub are doing, these days?” The captain makes a sound in the back of his throat. “Sit down. I’ll tell ya. We’re the same, mostly. Got my letters of marque to patrol the waters south from here. The pickings aren’t quite as fat as they were when the conflict was at its peak, but merchant shipping is picking up and most know me as a man worth his salt. Sometimes we serve as armed convoy to a trade fleet. Other times, I pick up a little business myself. That’s how I took on a passenger this time. Came with little requirements, destination Waterdeep and a big, big sack of gold. I had said yes before she’d even finished telling me about this beast that she also wanted me to take aboard.” 

At that point, the boy stumbles back into the cabin, still chewing. “Waffan I do fow youw, siw?” “A pot of tea, please, Rodi. And a bottle of the Calimshan brandy. Tell Gerey to bring it, so you can finish your supper and get to bed.” With a nod, the cabin boy is out the door again. “Good kid,” the captain says. “Reminds me a little of you at that age.” He pauses briefly “What did you do with your curls anyway?”

Royce stares down at the polished wood of the cabin floor. “It’s a long story. How much of it have you heard?” “Songs and whispers, really. The songs are all heroics and battle and sacrifice. The whispers are of madness and great evil come to corrupt those very same heroes.” The cleric grimaces “Half of one, and most of the other. But mostly there was exhaustion, endless darkness and the deep hopelessness of almost everyone you meet being divorced from reason and sense. Suffice to say that…” 

Conversation halts as a portly female dwarf with an apron and a kerch steps through the cabin door, carrying a bright blue teapot and a fat glass bottle on a small tray. She places the tray on a corner of the desk, and disappears, but not before giving Royce’s shoulder a very firm squeeze. 

“Well.” Royce continues. “… I caught a glimpse of what awaited me… them… all of us at a very crucial moment. I knew then that I needed to understand Tempus’ teachings differently in order for us to complete our task. My hair, the drinking. Those are details.” The captain eyes his former crew member with worry, but continues pouring tea.

The last session of the Evokers’ Annual Calling had ended shortly after midday. Since he opted not to stick around for yet another luncheon where he’d be asked to hold forth on the breakdown of algorithms for precise height determination when casting fireballs over allied forces, this meant that Kendel arrived back at Catchbreeze just an hour or two later – in time, if he was lucky, to still get some fresh-baked scones and chilled juice of oranienap before the kitchen started in on serious dinner preparations.

The delightful weather makes him briefly consider sitting down at a table in the estate’s small orchard to work through an intriguing set of arithmancy problems, but he swiftly changes his mind and heads down to the library. Fewer chances of bugs in the inkwell or wind blowing away a loose leaf and also less chance of Sur finding him and trying to convince him to schedule a full re-roofing of the chapel this very instant. The man knew his business, for sure, but finding finances to have the estate kept up to his exacting standards was a challenge Kendel did not relish nearly as much as arithmancy. Come to think of it, he’d start learning divination spells before he’d do any more fundraising.

Just as Kendel sits down at his favorite desk, Petha Amers, majordomo of Catchbreeze, soundlessly steps up beside him. She is holding a tray. “I trust you’ve had an interesting conference, ser?” she says. Kendel rolls his eyes a little. “I don’t think half of them had left their houses at all between this one and the last. They are ink-stained up to their elbows, and have beards so long they trip over them and all I ever hear of them is theoretical mumblings and vague theories of how things might work if the stars aligned just right.” Petha gives the wizard a genuine smile. “Whereas you, ser, are of course beard-free and only ink-stained at the very tips of your fingers.” The wizard grimaces. “You did ask me not to remove any more spiders for the house staff. And it was such good practice. Soon I, too, will be ink stained beyond measure” Kendel retorts, arching an eyebrow at the liveried half-elf. She bows briefly and smiles. “We do so appreciate that you leave this duty to others now, ser. Your dedication to their disappearance was sometimes a little…” she pauses, still smiling, “…fiery.” Kendel shrugs. “We all have to make do. I can’t just pick them up and take them outside like… well.. like some people.” Petha’s expression softens and becomes sympathetic. “There is that, ser. But that is not why I am here. Would you like some iced tea and biscuits?” Kendel fakes a look of exasperation and exaggerates a sigh. “I know what this means, Petha. You want me to check the ledgers again, don’t you?” 

“It is time to review spring quarter numbers, ser, and it is custom that a member of the house review the books for final approval.” Kendel sags in his chair, twirling one hand in half-serious annoyance. “Fine, o valued keeper of this esteemed and ancient house. Bring me the ledger and I shall review them, if only because I am apparently the only member of the house who can sit still and look at rows of numbers without suffering psychic damage.” 

Some time later, when the biscuits and tea have been disposed of and all the numbers have been added and subtracted properly, Kendel wanders through the herb garden to gather materials for a new ink he wants to make. Then he sees Royce, who leans over a large silver dish that brims with water. The wizard watches his friend for a moment, wondering who he is looking at this time. He has long since stopped asking, but he was glad he’d brought the dish back for the cleric from his recent excursion to Neverwinter. The gift had made him happy, and it gave him something to do beyond hanging out at that temple complex trying to teach some city kids what end of a cudgel to hold. 

He feels a little bad at the uncharitable thought. Royce’s magic had always stood them in good stead throughout their adventures, and Tempus had seen fit more than once to send a celestial being their way to help them out of a sticky situation, or into a safe one, like that wonderful expanding fortress that they found. Still, the gap between the divine and the arcane is not so easily crossed. If his friend had been a little bit less upstanding… if maybe his response to seeing Orcus standing in his path had been different… if maybe they had made a different choice somewhere that this god had disapproved of… No. No, magic from a god is a fickle thing. Better to keep it in a spell book. 

A small chime goes off. Royce, lost in his scrying, doesn’t hear it, but it makes Kendel turn on his heel and walk back to the house. Almost time for his daily casting of the teleportation spell. He heads down to Catchbreeze’s basement level to prepare.

The balmy dawn promised a gorgeous early summer’s day and Naismith was climbing up the short, steep cliff that forms the border of Castle Ward and the estate called Catchbreeze – home to him and his friends. He was drunk and exhausted, but the climb was familiar to him, and he scaled the rocks without effort. With a bit of luck, he thought, he’d be able to catch a wink or two in Jero’s hammock in the rose garden as the sun came up. It would be his best chance to get some sleep

The night had been long and boring, starting with some drawn-out dinner because Ilian would have to travel for a bit, to do… well… something. Naismith shrugged as he climbed. She’d be back soon. She’d looked uncomfortable about the formal affair, and surely would not mind that he’d snuck away as soon as he could.

He’d spent the night in Skullport, two miles below the surface of Waterdeep. There too, things had been disappointingly quiet. Not until he’d gone down to the Dredge had Naismith found his mark: a group of down on their luck slavers who looked just desperate enough. He’d made his rounds around the Scupperden then, cracking a joke here, sharing a laugh there until, finally, he was noticed by the gang. They had assumed he was what he pretended to be: some bored Waterdhavian kid with exaggerated stories and a flashy, dull blade. Once he was certain he was their target, he’d left, allowing them to follow. He’d let them chase him as he dipped into narrow alleys, trotted across suspended catwalks, and lead them into cul-de-sacs from which they believed his escape was impossible, and then faking clumsiness as he evaded their grasp by inches.

Eventually the gang had become winded, so he let them catch up. Once he was surrounded, he’d drawn his rapier and take them on. Not that they were really a challenge. His only challenge was being quick enough to avoid notice of the Skulls and coming up with yet another disguise to prevent being recognized. Well, that, and waiting until one of his contacts would get back to him with the information he’d so furtively been searching for since coming back.

Just as he reaches his hand over the low wall atop the cliff that marks the end of Catchbreeze’s private garden, a hand comes down upon his wrist and begins to pull him in. 

Startled, he looks up. “Ho, Ilian.” Hells! He wishes he’d sounded a bit more sober. In less than a second he is over the wall, standing in the garden at the heart of the estate. The half-elf looks him up and down. “Secret staircases not secret enough for you, Naismith?” He opens his mouth for a rebuttal, then changes his mind and shrugs. A large pack leans against the wall he just climbed over. He gestures at it. “And you? More formal dinners?” He aimed for a joke, but it falls flat. He sighs and shrugs apologetically. She shakes her head. “It’s alright. Spare me a few minutes? I’ve barely seen you lately. ” “You see me more than most.” he retorts. “My rooms were next to yours, Naismith. I would wake up.” The rogue looks at his feet. “I just have a lot to think about.” “That’s not what I’d call it. Look, man, it’s no surprise any of us have nightmares. That we’re still haunted by… well… by everything. And I really didn’t mind keeping you company at night.” Naismith clenches his jaw even tighter. “You worry too much. They’re just dreams. And why are you talking about everything in the past tense? You’re just traveling, that’s all. It’s not a big deal!”

Ilian frowns, grabs her pack, takes Naismith by his arm and moves further into the garden. She pushes him down on a carved stone bench, reaches behind him and pulls out a jug, which she uncorks and hands to him. It’s coffee. She stands in front of him and folds her arms. “You barely sleep at night. You have constant nightmares. You wake up screaming and swear up and down that there is a medusa standing in the corner of the room. During what little sleep you get you talk of Lulach this and Lulach that and beg not to be sent away. Nobody has any idea of the state you’re in! You go on excursions to Silvanus-knows-where looking like some North Ward popinjay. You come back with cuts and bruises you refuse to let me tend. And now I have to go away and I can’t look out for you and I have no idea if I’ll ever be back and I can’t decide if I should tell Royce on you or shake you like a rag doll until the truth falls out of you! It is a big, bloody, godsrotten deal!” The little ranger spits the words at his feet, raising her chin as if expecting a punch

Naismith, feeling like he’s just been punched himself, stares at her wide-eyed. “D-don’t tell Royce. Or anyone.” After a while, she relents “I won’t, then. But you’ll take Petri.” “I… No. I couldn’t. She’s your basilisk. And you know what happened to Fosse. I killed him.” “And I killed Fluffy. And Achtoë. And Sunflash.” Ilian says, curtly. “I don’t say this for Petri’s sake, but for yours. I want you to have her. She’s a fierce little thing, and she can be your friend if you let her. She’ll guard your room when you sleep and keep you company when you can’t.” She pauses briefly, then continues. “ And I wasn’t asking. You keeping her is my price for your secrets.”

Naismith gulps more coffee. Eventually, he nods. “I’ll take her.” Ilian deflates with relief. “Good. Then get up and say your farewells. I’m leaving.” Naismith splutters. “Surely not now? And besides, you’ll be back soon, right?” Ilian gives him a dark look as she straps on her pack. “You can walk me to the gates. Tusker is waiting there with my guide.” 

Clinging to the jug of coffee as if his life depends on it, Naismith walks with her through the courtyard, the dining room, the library and the lush gardens out front. When a last copse of trees stands between them and the gate, she stops and puts an arm around his shoulders. “Sorry if I was harsh just now. I just worry.” Naismith squares his shoulders and aims for the best of his reassuring smiles and his most jovial voice. “Don’t. It’ll be fine. I’ll fatten up your lizard while you gallivant across the country and you and mister pig will be back before you know it.”

Suddenly she squeezes him fiercely and plants a kiss on his cheek. Before he can respond she’s let him go and stepped through the trees, in full view of the gates. Naismith watches from the foliage as she wipes her face with her sleeve and spends a long moment fussing over the already perfectly adjusted straps of her pack. She calls over the big boar and finally hails a tall figure in green robes who stands outside the gate holding a pair of horses. They’re gone so swiftly he barely manages to catch a glimpse of Mielikki’s holy symbol on one of the saddles.

Mordrock hastens home through the narrow, dusky streets. Give it an eighth bell and the lamp lighters would be out and about. The cobbles he walks on aren’t slippery yet, but soon they would be, and it would be hospitable to put some sand on the steps for this visitor he was supposed to receive. Veras, one of the senior priests in Kelemvor’s temple at The Plinth, had mentioned that the man, though no noble himself, was associated with a fine estate in Castle Ward, and that there had been a request for a consultation. 

Halfway between annoyance at having his routine interrupted and curiosity about the nature of the request, he had left his duties in the City of the Dead earlier than normal to make sure he could receive company. Not the best of times. So close to midwinter it was important to keep an eye on things.

Trudging up the steep alley that leads to his rooms, he keeps an eye out for his furry friends. Nosey he had already spotted near the now-empty spot for the fishmonger’s cart. Sashay would be ensconced near the row of boarding houses – the crowd that occupied those louse dens was usually drunk enough to drop food or even vomit up what they’d just eaten. Mouser and Whisky would be strutting up and down between Goosey’s Kittle Housie and his front door. Skeeter would normally have hidden high up, between the crooked chimneys and laundry lines but not anymore. She stayed indoors now. 

He eyes the worn stone steps that rose off the alley, then grabs the shovel out of the communal sand bin. Once the steps are well covered, he climbs them, feeling for his key. Light shines behind the windows to the right and left of his front door. Must have been a quiet day at the quayside if both neighbors were home already. 

His rooms are up two flights of stairs, right under the eaves of the tenement. Some might not like the amount of climbing it takes to get there, but he enjoys the extra light that the elevation brings him, as well as the privacy of not sharing a front door. Plus, his neighbors are not the kind of folk to call the city guard for unusual noises or the odd experiment that got a little lively.

Once inside, he hangs his bearskin mantle on a hook and puts his boots on a reed mat to catch the mud. He pokes at the fire and adds a log, then uses a thin splinter of kindling to carry a flame over to the brace of candles on his table. Before he can light the last one, he is interrupted by a knock on the door downstairs.

Mordrock goes over to where he hung his mantle and pulls on a thin cord until he hears the latch lift. That would be Dewen, the ale boy from Kishfettle’s. “Bring it up here, lad. You can set it on the table, as you please. Light footsteps come up the stairs. “Was it four quarts tonight, ser Ironpost?” “No serring me, Dewie, but yes. Four quarts. Seems I might have company.” Dewen, a scrawny human boy of maybe twelve years old, appears in view with a wicker basket and an earthenware pitcher which he places on the table. Before the boy darts out again, Mordrock tosses him a copper piece. 

The smell of roasted meat begins to fill the air. Mordrock swallows. As he rummages through a low cupboard for a second trencher and cup, he hopes his guest will not be late. 

Sur Hennerly is never late. Just as the temple bells strike Evenwatch, another knock falls on Mordrock’s door. This time, he makes his way downstairs to open the door in person. He looks up at a young, red-haired human male, clean-shaven and in simple garb.

As calloused hand meets calloused hand, the men take each other’s measure. “Sur. Of Catchbreeze. Pleased.” “Mordrock Ironpost. Come in. I was to sit down for supper. You can join me and talk while we eat.” The human nods, steps inside and begins to unbutton his wool coat. 

Soon, the men sit opposite each other at the table. Mordrock serves out the food and ale. Sur reaches into a leather satchel and pulls out a bottle of wine. “Gift from the house.” Courtesies thus fulfilled, there is a quiet moment as the men devote themselves to the food. After a while Mordrock – mouth full – gestures for Sur to state his business. He does so, between bites. “Catchbreeze. It has been empty some time. Only recently staffed in preparation for a re-deeding. You familiar with the place?” Mordrock shakes his head and swallows. “Back when I lived in Castle Ward with my old lot it was already empty. Never saw much but the fence.” Sur looks at the dwarf with a bit of surprise. “You lived there? When was that? “Och, some twenty years ago, I think? Eventually most of them had… other business that took them away from town. I decided the place was too big for me. Downsized a bit.” He gestures to the rooms around him, which, though clean and in decent repair, do not compare to even the most modest house in Castle Ward. 

“Well, the place is set to no longer be empty.” Sur says “A staff has been assembled to prepare it for this group called Drow’s Bane. Heroes who did something in the Underdark against the demon lords. Haven’t heard the details. They’re still in Gauntlgrym at the moment.” Mordrock nods with a half smile. “Familiar story. I’d heard something was going on down there. Some of Kelemvor’s order had their fair share of visions about it. So it’s a bunch of rat catchers that gets to live above their station, eh? And you to clean the place up for them?” Sur chuckles. “Like that, yes. Heard they’re alright folk, though. One of them is actually a proper North Ward kid. One of those old elven families.” Mordrock grimaces. “Those starchcollars need to unlace their corsets every now and then. It must’ve sent them all in a tizzy to have one of their own run off and do something other than sip cordial and compose poetry.” He takes a swig of ale. “Be that as it may, what do you need my counsel on?” “Catchbreeze has an old plot. All family graves of a century or two. The land has shifted over the years, more than I’d expect. I want advice on how to determine the cause and how to restore…” Sur pauses “… proper order.” “Rehallowing is your best bet. Can do that for you in a jiffy. Regular order’s rates, too. But that’s only if nothing is already rumbling there. Noticed any unusual mounds or small depressions? Animals avoiding the area? I take it there are no walkers yet?” Sur shakes his head. “Nothing yet. Just want to make sure.” 

“I’ll be happy to come by. After midwinter, though. There’s much for me to do this time of year.” “Understood.” Sur says. “Leave a note for me at the carpenter’s guild two days before you want to come. List of supplies too, so I can get those, and your fee slip. No order prices though, I want your own rate. The high one. City foots the bill. Oh, and sup with us that night. We’re on the grounds already and Jero knows his way around a stove.” 

Sur gets up, preparing to take his leave. As he glances about the room, he sees light reflect off of a row of dragon scales set on a shelf. His eyebrows raise a bit. As he puts his coat back on, Mordrock gets up as well. The day’s digging made him a little stiff. He walks his guest downstairs. Sur steps through the door into the freezing night, then turns back and extends his hand once more. “Glad you’ll be helping out.” He pauses. “And thank you for your service. My father used to tell stories of you and your companions to my sister and me.” 

Mordrock shakes his head after he closes the door. Nice to know someone remembers. Guy seemed decent. The money would come in handy too. 

Once he is back upstairs, he sees a sleek grey bundle of fur on the table, sniffing at the remains of the roast chicken. “Clever lass to stay up in the rafters while that fellow was over, Skeet.” In response to his voice, the small cat crouches and looks back, prepared to jump off the table if he moves too fast. Other than her eyes, which are clouded over, she looks completely ordinary. Mordrock moves very slowly, keeping up a low-voiced stream of soothing talk. “Wouldn’t want to startle him. How about I get you a wing of that nice bird, eh? Maybe we’ll give the rest to your outside friends. They need it more than you now.” Still suspicious, the milky-eyed cat backs away from the platter but stays on the table. Mordrock is able to reach the chicken now, and breaks off the wing, which still has some meat clinging to it. He pushes it a little into the direction of Skeeter, then picks up the platter with his other hand. He would keep the remaining leg for breakfast. The rest could go to the outside cats. 

As he goes downstairs for the third time that night, he thinks about Skeet. She wasn’t really supposed to have been an experiment. She was just the most friendly of the little colony of Corkscrew Alley cats. Had been for years. When he’d found her struggling a year ago, trying to give birth to an oversized, two-headed kitten, it had seemed kindest to just give her a grain of his most powerful sedative and let her pass without any more pain. But then, after he’d carefully removed the kitten from her limp body, the idea of not having her around had been unbearable. First his mother’s letter about the debtors still hounding her years after the closing of the family foundry, then the last of his old friends moving away. Not getting the warden job at the City of the Dead. A man needs a friend in times like those, and if a little grey cat was all he had, then that’s what he would pray to Kelemvor to keep. 

An epic campaign (level 16 to 20) that picks up where Out of the Abyss left off for the mighty ‘Drow’s Bane’.

Faerun Calendar of Harptos months explained

Hammer (month 1) through Kythorn (month 6), the Sword Coast

The Drow’s Bane have been ‘pop’ stars in the months since their epic victory overthrowing the demon princes of the Abyss, saving the Underdark and Faerun.  Besides much needed rest, each character has been invited all over the Sword Coast to accept awards, give speeches, and be sculpted or painted. Bards across the Sword Coast are singing songs about the glorious victory and the trials and tribulations of the characters’ lives down under.

Two of the most esteemed awards to be received are the title of Emissary and Royal Advisor to Laeral Silverhand of Waterdeep and Emissary and Royal Advisor to King Brunnor Battlehammer of Gauntlgrym. As emissaries to Waterdeep, Laerel gifts them occupancy to the estate known as “Catchbreeze” in the Castle Ward.  As emissaries to King Battlehammer, they are assigned a residence in Gauntlgrym known as “Hwemenocter” in Vault of Kings.  The expectation and new responsibilities as royal advisors require the characters to spend time between both places on a constant basis.

But as the Drow’s Bane settles into their new residences and responsibilities, the ranger Ilian and her companion Tusker are recruited by the Emerald Enclave for special assignment.  She cannot share details with her comrades, who are now family to her, but the farewell feast is a hearty, joyful and tearful one.

Nong Sung Roc continues to struggle with hearing the voice of the Wand of Orcus in his dreams and constantly fights off Royce to open the bag of holding to have a little look at it, maybe even pet it slightly (i.e. imagine Gollum and ‘My Precious!’).  A few days after Ilian’s departure, Nong disappears from Catchbreeze with just his personal belongings.  Royce feels deeply disappointed but understands Nong’s affliction. With Nong absent, the wand becomes a constant burden to Royce; it subtly tempts Royce to join forces with it for ultimate power and authority…even greater than Orcus himself.

A modest, but comfortable city estate, easily recognized by its copper roof and ivy-covered red stone walls. It lies at the edge of Castle Ward, with its facade shielded from onlookers by a garden full of evergreens and rose bushes, and its heart well-protected by a steep drop in terrain, which provides a dynamic view of Dock Wards and the sea beyond.

The building is a former finishing school which was converted to a private residence after the idea of sending adolescents away to be educated fell out of fashion with Waterdhavian nobility. The building’s origins can still be found in the over-sized library, the large kitchens and store rooms and random bits of graffiti carved into the wood beams that support the lower floor.

These days, the estate has been lovingly refitted to accommodate half a dozen permanent residents. Both the grounds and the design of the building allow for much privacy, but the receiving rooms (former lecture halls and teachers’ common room) are well-appointed and can be used to host gatherings and soirées for visitors of all sorts.

Staff quarters are present and are all located on the lower level, adjacent to the kitchen and larder with wine storage. The majordomo has a small apartment to allow for receiving tradesmen, while a further 3 members of house and kitchen staff can be retained in individual rooms.

Residents quarters exist of apartments that have 3 floors, making the most of the different nature of each floor. The lower level has access to private washing facilities, and place for a dressing room or study. Each room has doors that open up onto a covered courtyard which has in the past been used as a place for physical exercise, as well as for hosting large, informal gatherings. While most of this floor lies below ground level, carefully enchanted windows allow daylight to come into the central covered courtyard, while being indistinguishable from the rock in which they are embedded from the outside.

Basement Level

Note that two hidden exits from the residence are on this level. The one accessed via the outer wall exits at the bottom of the steep drop that forms the estate’s border, landing the user on a small, unnamed alley in Docks Ward. The one next to the majordomo’s apartment exits on estate grounds inside the mausoleum of the Dessavere family – the founders and long-time headmasters and -mistresses of the once-famous school.

Garden Level

The garden level of the main building contains the entryway, library (continues on the balcony level via its own staircase) a music or drawing room, a salon and formal dining room, along with washing facilities for guests. The dining room, as well as residents’ quarters on this level all lead out onto an enclosed garden that shields against the strong winds and harsh climate of Waterdeep. A small fountain, various low-growing fruit trees and many flowering plants make for a lush retreat with ample opportunity for private conversation.

Balcony Level

The balcony level is the most private, and yet the most open. Long, outward-facing porticoes allow residents to enjoy the ocean breeze and look down on city life as it spills out beneath them. Other than the second level of the library (no exits on this floor), there are no public spaces on this level, and house staff can use the exterior staircases to access quarters if needed.

Grounds

The grounds, while small due to Catchbreeze’s central location, have some outbuildings. There is a dedicated guest house that offers two suites for visitors of various size and preference. The chapel is small, but lovely and sits among a carefully planted grove of fragrant besom trees. It has a small plot on which there is room to inter one’s loved ones. There is a groundskeeper’s cottage nearby, which features three rooms underneath a thatched roof.

Last, but not least, a stable offers room for riding horses, a pair of coach horses and coach, as well as room to house smaller animals such as hunting dogs or birds for falconry. Do note that Waterdeep does not permit hunting within the city limits, unless by guild-permitted rat catchers.

The estate covers its expenses by means of some acreage of field and forest outside the city limits. The fields are on a long-term lease to the cattle drivers’ guild, who rent out portions of it to local farms with small herds of either dairy goats or the local variety of longhorn sheep (prized for their delicate wool), and keep the other part in reserve to receive large herds of livestock from the backcountry prior to butchering or shipping. The forested parts of the estate’s grounds are currently under lease to the neighboring Bleutenger family, who use it to expand their recreational hunting grounds. This lease is soon set to expire and re-granting it could be a good way to curry favor.

Staff

Majordomo – Petha Amers, a half-elven woman of excellent repute. She is a middle-aged spinster who has worked in service all her life and was invited to administer the estate ages ago due to her flexibility when dealing with unorthodox residents. Her human origins lie in lands far to the east, and she claims wood-elf ancestry. While she would never gossip, she is a font of information about the city and its history. She has a sister, Esthra, to whom she writes and who she visits during her annual leave. Her sister has children, which are full humans, and she speaks of her nephews and niece fondly. The elder nephew, named Doro, has recently become a sailor. The younger one, Semre, is recently apprenticed to a cobbler, although it seems he can be found haunting the taverns more than usual for a boy his age. Petha’s niece is called Kasha, and she is still in school. It appears she has a little magical talent, and Petha wonders if she should give up some of her savings to get her niece into a proper magical academy once she is the right age.Petha is quite formal with most people, but once she has developed a sense of trust with her employers, she will show her innate sense of humor. She feels closest to Kendel, both because she enjoys his attitude and because he is the most traditionally ‘lordly’ out of the bunch. Her tasks are financial management of the house, arranging maintenance, acquisitions of household goods including food and wine, menu planning and serving at large or formal meals. She will be delighted if she finds that any of the estate’s residents has any interest in this work, and she believes that input from the owners is invaluable to the optimal running of a proper house.

Cook – Tarrus Ropewell, is one of the Hin (i.e. Hafling). A relative newcomer to the Waterdeep food scene, he made a grand entrance by challenging the long-time family cook of Kendel’s parents to a cook-off of a number of exotic dishes some months ago. While Tarrus’ cooking cannot be faulted, Kendel’s mother was not impressed with his style of showmanship (or his swearing), and decided the sailor-turned chef would perhaps be well-suited to serve at the estate which now houses her son. She arranged for Tarrus to be escorted to Catchbreeze with a glowing letter of recommendation and a complement of guards, which would not leave Petha’s quarters until she had promised a position to the young upstart. He now cooks pungent dishes from a variety of locales and origins, and has only stopped trying to serve his ‘Gracklstugh Mushroom Special’ to the party after Royce and Naismith once held him at knife-point.

Tarrus mentions neither friends nor family, only referring to his past in the vaguest of terms. Under what circumstances he lost his ear, is as of yet unknown. He likes to sing while working, but the words to any song are invariably changed to something raunchy. Tarrus can neither read nor write, which he will do his very best to hide. If he is ever found out, he will do everything he can to ensure his secret is kept, up to and including bribery and threats of grave bodily harm.

House keepers

Djanni Morvillis is a young human woman who came to Waterdeep as a child when fleeing the conflict in the southern states. Now she lives at the estate and is responsible for the management of household tasks and chores. If needed, she can serve as valet or lady’s maid for formal occasions, but her best work is in arranging domestic tasks and services. She has deep roots in the community of professional service workers, and Petha, with whom she is fast friends, often relies on her to find additional serving staff for formal occasions. Most of Djanni’s pay goes to her parents, but she also tithes to the temple of Selûne, the deity she claims helped her and her people escape the war. She has two younger brothers, Aiken and Daran, who both work on the docks. Djanni’s most treasured possession is a fur coat: a present from lady Ervienne Melanctha, for whom she used to serve as lady’s maid. She is currently being courted by Domenco Melanctha, a younger cousin of lady Ervienne’s, but she is hesitant. While she likes the man well enough, she isn’t inclined to give up what she sees as the independence and freedom of a well-paid position for the relative bondage of life as the wife of a minor noble in the status oriented and hierarchical city of Waterdeep.

Joscellan Vegho is an older human male with an extensive resume in service, both as valet and household staff. He is extremely straight-laced and private, preferring not to share anything of a personal nature with those for whom he works. This reticence can easily be mistaken for rudeness, but it is really part of a sense of professionalism that represents an older ideal of service, no longer in vogue in households such as these. Joscellan occasionally laments the olden days but is also grateful for the improved standing of serving staff, and the rather loose approach that Catchbreeze’s current owners take with regards to propriety. It allows him leeway to take care of his oldest child and only son, Guilleme, who has fallen upon hard times after a failed business venture and needs both money and his father’s broad shoulders. Should Joscellan’s private concerns ever be discovered, he would greatly value discretion, but would feel obligated to accept any help offered if it benefited his son. In return, he would share information about his three daughters: Ermena, who has a small sheep farm outside of the city with her husband Denno and children Cara and Morro, Temera, who has recently made first mate on a trader ship, and Deleine, who works as a weaver in the wool district and has recently engaged herself with a young woman named Mayka and is set to marry come spring.

Groundskeepers

Jero Argario and Sur Hennerley, both human natives of Waterdeep, have worked on the estate since early adulthood, and have shared use of the groundskeeper’s cottage for almost as long. Some years ago, Sur’s sister Andra died in childbirth. When the baby also died and Andra’s husband had to return to sea, Sur took in Andra’s surviving daughter Yonica. She is a teenager with dark hair and eyes, who takes after her father, both in looks and temperament.

Jero serves as gardener, and he is exceptionally proud of the state for his rose bushes (along with tea roses and peonies he grows a unique purple variety, which is just now showing great results) and his ability to keep alive an oranianap tree in the sheltered house garden (they are rare and are native to much warmer climes). Petha allows Jero use of the house kitchen when the estate’s fruit harvest comes in, and so the house is always well-stocked with jams and marmalades. He will talk anyone’s ear off about gardening and botany and he will always treasure a gift of anything relating to plants and how to grow them. He doesn’t leave the estate often, but will, if given permission, borrow large quantities of books from Catchbreeze’s extensive library. If asked, he will mention his parents, both of which serve Chauntea. He has two sisters, Geri and Amri, but is not in contact with them at this time.

Sur is the estate’s handyman. He fixes everything, and if the job is too big for him alone, he knows which craftsmen to bring in to get it done. He is exceptionally well-connected in the city and knows many people in Waterdeep’s various guilds. Due to his exacting nature and limited quantity of patience, he is known as a hard taskmaster. He works together with Petha to keep the estate’s books current and spends much of his free time teaching his niece those things he considers useful. Sur is not very talkative, except on the subject of his latest project, but he is very observant and can sometimes let his curiosity get the better of him. This has occasionally unnerved his employers, especially if they were on the other end of his pointed questions, but his intentions are good, even if his manner isn’t.

Yonica, while still young, is very capable.  She serves as stable girl and takes care of the estate’s population of (fully licensed) rat terriers (Snap, Fang and Spotty, the latter of which she delivered and named herself). She is shy and reclusive and often feels embarrassed by her uncles and their various passions. This is likely a feature of her age and will lessen over time. When she is feeling particularly rebellious, she may attempt to sneak away and explore the city in disguise. No one knows quite where she goes when she does this.

The Hwemenocter estate, located in the Vault of Kings in Gauntlgrym is a fantastic piece of dwarven architecture, unique in its design and execution, since it was built specifically for the treasured human concubine of a historic dwarven hero. It takes into account certain aspects of design not common to such venerable dwarven residences, but that are prized highly by other races, for example: private washing facilities (rather than relying on public steams and baths) and stout doors to separate private dwelling space from communal areas. The dimensions of rooms are of course, generously scoped out to comfortable accommodate even the tallest non-giant races.

The estate is fronted by a small, but meticulously designed moss garden that provides excellent privacy despite its modest size. The original design of this refuge dates back to the time of high cubism but has also been influenced in later adjustments by the principles of new elaboratoria and second romantic minerology. These influences are especially visible in the addition of the hot-water fountains that house the colorful algae collections, and the use of wrought-iron trellises to guide the growths of caveberry and chalkblossom.

The ceilings of the estate, which reach a peak height of 120 feet in the dining room, once were part of a multi-bulb magma chamber filled with a particularly mineral-rich brew of molten rock. When the chamber was drained, a thin layer of ores and mineral stayed behind, causing the ceiling to glitter and glisten in swirling colors.  Once the city of Gauntlgrym was built, and this parcel of the King’s Vault was developed, these magma chambers were then deepened, and interior walls constructed from the finest hand-hewn Gracklstugh basalt. The floors have been laid in with petrified zirkwood, which is not actually a wood, but the silicated stem of a rare giant mushroom.

Of note is also the use of oiled Yartar oak wood, from which the elaborate privacy screens for washing and dressing rooms in each suite have been lovingly carved. Use of wood in any dwarven dwelling is a symbol of utter luxury since it is fuel spared from the forges and fires that make up Gauntlgrym’s source of wealth and fame. Each room’s screen is themed according to a prized sky-side beast: badger, mole, rabbit, otter, fox, bear, groundhog and mouse.

For the comfort of its residents, triangular hearths are placed at regular intervals in the dwelling, and a network of sub-floor steam pipes create both a pleasant temperature, as well as easy access to bath water. We must, however, warn you not to drink this water, as it has not been filtered after its use for the cooling of the forges, and may still contain traces of dawn titan essence. Instead, make use of the generous storage facilities accessed behind the kitchen and find large quantities of stout, pokeberry wine and of course, forge whisky and firespit drop.

The estate comes with a modest share in the famous Gauntlgrym forges, which, while not providing its owners with much income, more than suffices to maintain the estate and pay for staff. Administration of income and upkeep of the estate will be done by the Gauntlgrym Abacial Council, of which a thrice-annual report of its calculations can be requested.

Hwemenocter does not have outbuildings, but stabling and kenneling services for animals and pets may be requested at the offices of the vault’s Quartermaster, and space for storing bulk and precious cargo can be arranged via the same.

Unlike most sky-side estates, this dwelling has no live-in staff, and no quarters are present for their stay. Instead, a large number of families share the care and maintenance of the various estates in the Vault (this being a part of all adult dwarves’ communal service requirement), meaning that there is often a rotation for who is present when. However, since humans and those of other races often prefer to see the same faces, an arrangement has been made to provide a limited complement of staff to facilitate the residents’ comfortable stay. We kindly point out that the concept of body servants is unknown to the dwarves, and such services will not be provided.

Please also note that our staff members are not servants in the truest sense of the word. While Gauntlgrym has a monarch and we do observe certain social distinctions, we see our estate staff as valuable working professionals, not as chattel. When their treatment does not reflect their status, a complaint may be lodged with the Gauntlgrym Non-trade Workers’ Board.

Staff

Household Foredwarf –Ludgard Aurumfeldt, a male dwarf of dark complexion whose advancing age and decades spent in service have given him the patience and meticulousness required to make Hwemenocter run like a well-smeared machine. He has lost a lot of vision in one eye, and has gone somewhat hard of hearing and is sensitive about people noticing this.  He is quite worldly and greatly likes to let his earlier travels and experiences with other cultures shine through in how he addresses people (messire, madame, etc) and how he organizes any chance for entertaining. He has a vast family of children and grandchildren (as well as great-grandchildren) of whom he rarely speaks. However, you may occasionally see him accompanied by a granddaughter or grandson, especially when he is not at work. He was approached for the position here at Hwemenocter by the chamberlain of His Majesty himself – having prior experience with the party, he felt that they would benefit from someone who knows the ins and outs of Gauntlgrym high society.

While his knowledge of sky-side is somewhat dated, he has a great number of friends and acquaintances throughout the city and one would be wise to ask him where to get help, counsel or services arranged.

Monitor Victualia – Kirge Veinfinder, is a youthful female dwarf whose age belies her experience as a cook for the finest and most prestigious clan halls in the Vault. For a time, she seemed poised to accept a position as Vice Monitor of bread and pastry at the court of His Majesty Bruenor Battlehammer himself, but she eventually refused due to a conflict of personality with the Monitor Victualia already established at court. When she heard that Hwemenocter would be once-more occupied, and learned who would take up residence in it, she petitioned the Chief Rosterminder for the position of Monitor. Due to her talents and insistence on taking the job, she was quickly affirmed.

She comes from the northernmost tribe of hill dwarves and has the associated reddish hair. Anyone who wants to keep on her good side, will not make jokes about her (supposedly also-fiery) temperament, no matter how tempting. She can be curt and is decidedly stubborn, but takes her work very seriously. When she is at the estate, no one will go hungry. Furthermore, she has a sense of humor that can be both dry and lewd, but is quick to defend those she considers vulnerable or in need of assistance. Her lifestyle is extremely sober since she sends most of her earnings home to support her mother and younger sister, since their father passed away in the mining of a risky passage through volcanic rock. The quickest way to earn her allegiance (and to find baked goods suddenly appearing in one’s room), is to display and explicitly value familial loyalty.

Chief Warden – Onk Rockbender, while he is a half-orc, we assure you that he is both capable and trustworthy, and comes with the highest references. He has a complement of guards dwarves under his command and will assign them to the estate as needed.

Onk is a deep-voiced, deep-minded, well-read man who has a great fondness for everything involving strategy and tactics. He is accomplished at dragon chess and will never refuse a bout. However, he abhors gambling, and will never place a bet. He has a talent for handling animals of all sorts, and can be trusted to take care of mounts, dogs and other animals, all of which will trust him immediately. His looks may be ferocious (he wears silver caps over his lower tusks to indicate his position of command) and his fighting style deadly to the extreme, he is, at heart, not a violent man. He is a teetotaler, and feels uncomfortable at events where much alcohol is consumed. Children, like animals, feel drawn to him immediately, and he will, when needs must, babysit the children of a few of his friends during his time off. He does not speak of his family, but will cheerily speak of his friends and companions of the present. In his free time, he likes to whittle, and a gift of a piece of sky-side wood will get you in his good books for a long time.

Craftsdwarves (on rotation) 

(note: Should you struggle to tell them apart, Mal has a small scar just visible above his impressive moustache)

It has occasionally taken people several years to figure out that there actually are two Splitfault brothers, especially since twins are exceedingly rare among the dwarves. Like the others in their family, the Splitfaults are of that rare kind that can make anything their eyes see, not just in metal, but in wood, stone and other materials. It was their seven-times great-grandfather who designed and made the woodcarvings Hwemenocter is known for, and the family has maintained their patriarch’s handiwork ever since. They will often accept work at other dwellings and estates to round out their working days.

Mal is the more talkative and jocular of the two. Nic is often quieter, except when riled up by his brother, or when he’s seen occasion to partake of the spitfire drop. When at work they are serious and inspired, often finding ways to add a little flair or flourish to even the most mundane job (if one ever wonders why the nails on the claws of the clawfoot tubs are done in gold leaf…).  However, once off-duty, they are some of the most extravagant partiers in Gauntlgrym and not every tavern will admit them. Never play cards with a Splitfault, unless your pockets are too heavy.

Domesticants (on rotation)

Olv Kuypenmack, a dour old dwarf with a tarred and pleated beard who irons the bedsheets (his iron is actually just that: a giant hunk of shaped metal which he wields with tongs) after making the bed and cleans smudges off furniture by spitting on a handkerchief the size of a table cloth. Will call anyone younger than Methusalah ‘dear boy’ or ‘dear girl’, and will get this wrong with elves about 25% of the time. If engaged, he will relish telling of the two trips he’s even made to the surface, once to visit a small dwarven outpost for a wedding of his sister, and once to assist the city’s Wildlife Wrangler on a mission to reclaim several rothe, since he was the only one well enough to ride during the Great Flu that happened 87 years ago (even His Majesty himself was ill, just ask anyone!)

Hilde Alsesdottr, an adult female dwarf who, by the standards of her kind, looks ephemeral and elegant. Her hair and skin are both exceptionally pale, and her build is very light (there is some rumor her mother may have had a gnomish lover, but no one who values their lives will ever mention this to Alse, her husband Kef or Hilde herself). She is gregarious and quick to smile, and has a fondness for studying military history. She is mildly suspicious of magic, unless it has to do with the city’s forges, and is somewhat more dependent on her parents than could be expected of someone her age. If asked about romantic entanglements, she merely stutters (but sometimes she can be seen with a particular dwarf from the Gauntlgrym guard, whose name is Rafk Bellowforce). Her somewhat unusual last name (a matronymic) is a custom of a small subset of eastern mountain dwarves, from which she is descended.

Annekje Silverbeard, this young, dark-complexioned female dwarf is the newest addition to the ranks of service staff in the Vault of Kings. Not one to continue her education for longer than absolutely necessary, she has been assigned to Hwemenocter rosters as a young adult to gain experience and encounter people outside of her (large, deeply devout) family. As one of the few of her line not pursuing positions in the faith of Moradin, her parents and siblings eye her with suspicion, of which she is often not aware. She is chatty and easily distracted, but can be petty when she feels slighted (which is often). Luckily, she also forgives and forgets quickly. She feels more at ease with those who show some sign of having faith, and can occasionally overstep the bounds of professionalism when she thinks a lack of faith poses a danger to someone’s soul.

Ferg Hammerstruck, an exceptionally good-looking young male dwarf with brown hair, beard and eyes, who is particular about the niceties of service, especially when it comes to table settings and dinner service. This makes him a favorite of Ludgard when entertaining (and Ludgard sees himself as the mentor of the young man). Reads voraciously, especially in books of etiquette from all races and cultures. Likes the finer things in life and spends most of his wages on fine fabrics, and quality accessories. Is an accomplished huntsman, and not a bad cook, who will occasionally help Kirge during busy times. Can be a bit shy when approached, but quickly warms to people, especially if he finds they have good taste.