Faring Ford

The party has arrived at the small town of Faring Ford. Crowning the top of a small rise near the ford, the town serves as a meeting place for all the mines in the eastern hills, and a link to the river running deeper into the mining territory.
Quick addendum to yesterday's post: the town will have a dock for ships. This means the abutments can be part of a bridge, most likely a drawbridge, allowing for a wider gap between them.
The mines in these hills are more recent than the ones upriver in Aron's Bowl. They are much rougher and cater to a wild assortment of vagabonds. Many of these mines are operated by half-orcs and "reformed" bandits of all kinds. They tend to operate in rather shady conditions, often hiring bands of mercenaries to serve as security. Only very select wagon drivers and crews are permitted to come to town, and they do so under guard.
This makes the entire town a strange mix of civilization and secrecy. The needed conduit provided by the river, linking mines with suppliers and markets, keeps the town operating with a modicum of order (at least during the daytime).
I've got nothing today... I hadn't expected a town yet. I'll need to figure this out. On the one hand, it seems too close to the wilderness they just left. On the other hand, they are meant to start encountering civilized territory (gradually, to be sure) as they near Aron's Bowl. It should be a stretch to call this a town. The dock and a warehouse can work, as well as a drawbridge. The rest I need to think about.

Just one more thing...

Touching base on last night's entry, escaping required getting past 3 or 4 watch groups. These should be smaller bands, probably with more muscle, like three hobgoblins and 1 or 2 hobgoblin captains. If they aren't able to get through without alerting them, have them encounter a larger "command" group, with 5 hobgoblins, 2 hobgoblin captains, and a hobgoblin warlord. This group would also have a mid-level warlock as well (I mentioned sorcerer last night, but I think the warlock could be worked up to fit better, though I'll admit I haven't compared them to be certain. Definitely something I'll get to soon).
Once the party deals with these groups and is able to get away, keep them moving until they get clear of the valley and are back near the river. At that point, if they would like to pause and take a short rest, they will have gotten far enough away from danger to be able to do so. Where the adventure leads from here is somewhat up in the air. If they found the folding boat earlier and have held onto it, they will have transportation. If not, what kind of boat will they find? This falls on the DM unless the party made any particular or detailed preparations days ago when they first left the river. Maybe the boat is right there where they left it (or one similar enough), maybe a delivery is on its way past, or maybe their only option is to proceed on foot for now.
I'm going with the last option. They return to the river, and whether they took pains to conceal or protect the boat or not, they find it smashed, looted and scattered along the shore. They will need to proceed on foot. If they prefer, they can head up into the hills around the shoreline and look for some kind of path or trail heading more directly upstream, but they should be reminded of the kobolds and company that poured out of those same hills so recently.
The players can head south along the western bank of the river, continuing upstream. There is a mostly level flood plain flanking the river for several hundred feet on either side at this point, and they can easily pick a path through it. The valley leading to the fortress was near one of the jutting ridges running down out of the mountains to the west, so the path they choose does run close to a steep rocky wall around the bend in the river.
Once they come around the bend, they see the river runs mostly straight (meandering from left to right in broad turns) for what looks like a couple of miles. The hillside drops back to a more gentle slope on their right as they move south upstream. From here on there are more signs of civilization. You quickly come across the makings of a rudimentary trail running along the western shore of the river, and on some of the steep rises on the far side of the river valley there appear to be mine openings, and evidence of roads. As yet, there are no visible signs of inhabitants. The lowland valley you are walking through is flattish, with small ridges and rises in places, but none standing out. There are small trees clustered in many spots near the bends of the river, with wide sandbars and sharply carved overhangs in many places as you walk. In the latter, there are often falls of dead wood and broken branches.
After two miles of this terrain, the trail you have been following shows signs of greater traffic as it nears one of the sandbars in the river. Coming over one of the small ridges, you notice the trail continues on upstream, but forks with a branch turning to cross the river. The river crossing is a semi-permanent crossing, with stone abutments built out from each bank, with a large gap between them for boats to navigate through. The abutments are cribbed, with a ten foot wide gap of open water between them. On the far shore, the trail becomes a discernible road running straight up into the hills toward the distant mines, and south along the edge of the river toward a small hamlet tucked up on another of the small rises that dot this area. From the river, you can see the road leading into the village a half mile away, and at least three houses on the top of the rise. Gentle smoke rising from their chimneys issues you an inviting call.

Time to Go

After foiling the onslaught of the earth elementals and accompanying forces, the weakened structures of the fortress walls (if still intact) collapse, causing 3d6 bludgeoning damage to anyone still in the building. The characters are able to get into the dungeon before the collapse, but still take 1d4 bludgeoning damage from debris falling throughout the dungeon.
As the dust settles, word comes that the svirfneblin army has arrived. A hasty conference will suggest that the options are closing down, and that it is probably best to plan an escape before the kobolds bring in any more reinforcements. The svirfneblin are willing to aid in your escape, but have no interest in a protracted engagement this near to the surface. They will make a feint to give you an escape option, then fall back into their own tunnels, drawing the enemy in or collapsing the tunnels to seal them out as they think will work best.
A careful search of the area near the stairs up into the fortress building will show that it is completely buried above. The only apparent options are to go into the svirfneblin tunnels, or make a break through the lower entrance. Encourage the party to do a careful search of the tunnels for another way out. With the collapse of the buildings above, part of the ceiling in one of the rooms nearest the stairs (next to the kobold tunnels) has fallen in and reveals light coming through.
Checking this out is promising. With the buildings all trampled, and access to the tunnels from above cut off, the kobolds have left the hilltop to gather for an assault at the lower entrance. There is a small group of 6 kobolds and two bugbears left at the ruins to keep an eye out. Knowing they have sealed off the entrance, they are not paying very close attention to anything on the hilltop.
Night is falling quickly, and everyone is poised for an almost certain night assault. Studying the movements of the few opponents above will show them huddled near a small fire about 50 feet from the edge of the ruined walls. They appear to have found a wild boar that they are roasting over the fire, while they divide the spoils they have gathered from the battlefield.
The gnomes will aid you in slipping out into the night through the partially collapsed ceiling. Have the characters make Stealth checks with advantage against the monsters' passive perception scores. Anyone who makes a successful check is able to slip out and take cover amid the debris. If someone fails, the bugbears head over to check out the noise. Let them roll a perception check against their stealth checks for them to remain hidden. If they notice nothing, they will return to the fire. Otherwise, they will approach whoever they notice.
If the characters are quick, they can overpower the small band, and slip away. Once they have taken the hilltop, they can survey the valley below. At some signal, the bulk of the forces below move around the hill toward the lower entrance. The svirfneblin pour out of the entrance to engage the kobold army, and draw all of their attention to that area. This opens a path down the hill and across the valley. The players need to make three or four perception checks to notice roving guard units, followed by stealth checks to avoid detection. They have the option of fighting, but doing so will create noise and draw attention.
If they engage two or more of the groups, it will trigger an encounter with a tougher band, led by a powerful sorceress.

A Crushing Blow

After a few hours, another assault is made. This time, the 30 kobolds are joined by 6 bugbears, 6 hobgoblins, and 2 earth elementals. Around midday, a shout goes up from the forces gathered below, followed by a ripple of laughter and taunts as the troops make their way up toward the fortress.
The kobolds rush forward, with the bugbears and hobgoblins following in a more ordered march. The earth elementals lurch forward in a surreal fashion, almost seeming to glide over the earth and through all rocks and natural obstacles in their path.
As they near the fortress, the kobolds lose their enthusiasm, especially coming in view of the scattered carcasses of their kinsmen. They drop back, allowing the others to move past, falling in step behind the elementals. The hobgoblins and bugbears are less skittish, but they also seem to slow as they approach. The elementals continue to glide forward.
The elementals head directly for the most intact buildings, working to bring them down to rubble. The kobolds and others will fan out behind them to attack anyone that tries to stop or interact with the elementals.
If the party was able to recover one of the ballistas, they can use it against this new assault. Otherwise, they will have to find another way to deter the assault.
Meanwhile, the svirfneblin are facing an attack from the kobolds in the tunnels below. This battle can be managed as the DM sees fit. I feel like the best option is use the conflict as a means to keep the gnomes busy and block access to the players from the tunnels. Given the release this week of rules for mass combat, this could also be a way to try those out.
It is probably the time to bring this whole scenario to a conclusion. Tomorrow. As a setup to that, it is probably best to allow the elementals to destroy the buildings above, and have the main svirfneblin force arrive at the conclusion of these battles.
Tomorrow, we'll figure out a way to engage the main force and allow the players an opportunity to slip away. I'm blank at the moment. They could escape through the svirfneblins' access point to the Underdark, but I don't like that. It feels too much like an ex machina solution.

New Day, New Trouble

The rest of the night passes without major incident. After defeating the oni, the party is able to return to their base for the night. Occasional sounds of skirmish come from the tunnels as the svirfneblin hold off the kobolds through the night. More curious are the sounds rising up from the valley floor. There are shouts from time to time, and the sound of something heavy being moved, but no attack comes.
In the light of morning, you notice that the kobolds and company have been busy in the night. There are three ballista set up lower down the hill. Each of them has a crew of five, with two hobgoblins and three kobolds around each one. There are two groups of attackers between each ballista that charge as the first shots are fired. Each group consists of three hobgoblins, 10 kobolds, and four winged kobolds.
Ballista, AC15, HP 50, can fire at a target once every three rounds. Their range is 120/480, so the assumption is that the kobolds crept pretty close to the fortress atop the hill in order to set up their siege weapon. I think setting up at 150 feet makes sense, with their first shots targeting the building itself. Given the size of the building, the disadvantage from long range attack is negated.
The walls are meant to withstand damage, but most of the outer walls have fallen in the fortress, and the remaining building has been fortified from the rubble as needed. It is not meant to withstand direct assault. The walls have a damage threshold of 10, with 35 hp damage enough to bring the building down, causing 3d6 bludgeoning damage to anyone inside when it collapses.
The two groups will rush forward to engage anyone coming out of the fortress, while the ballista try knocking the building down. The kobolds don't mind blocking the entrance to the dungeons, or losing allies in the process. They are able and confident tunnelers, and the overall plan is to trap the players within and overrun the tunnels to take them.
If the two groups are defeated, the ballista will continue to fire as long as possible, with the hobgoblins rushing forward to engage while the kobolds continuing to fire. If the hobgoblins are killed, the kobolds will abandon the ballista and race back toward their allies below.
The PCs have the option of attacking the ballista directly to break or disable them, or of defeating the defenders and recovering one of the massive firearms for themselves.
Following a defeat, the players can take a short rest to recover before the next assault begins in early afternoon. Recovering the ballista may prove to be a useful option...

Round Two

After three or four hours of relative quiet, with darkness swallowing all view of the valley below, the sound of battle is heard from deep in the tunnels below the fortress. Word spreads quickly, and a runner from the svirfneblin ranks comes to the party's base of operations (I assume this would be the room at the base of the ladder into the fortress, or the fortified room above it). The runner reports that an assault has begun in the outer, natural tunnels.
Concerned that their reinforcements haven't arrived yet, the runner is asking that you join them in the tunnels to defeat the intruders. Three of the svirfneblin remain on guard in the fortress to keep a lookout on the valley below. As you race to join the battle, further word comes that this is more than just a unit of kobolds. There is something much larger threatening everyone as well. The svirfneblin have been reduced to ten warriors in addition to the three above, and their leader.
The kobolds have come with a band of 15 kobolds, 4 bugbears, and an oni. The svirfneblin have been split into two groups, with seven of them not accounted for. When the party arrives, there are 8 kobolds and two bugbears before them. As they fight, the oni arrives. It uses its spells to blast everyone from a distance.
The battle can move throughout the tunnels, with both sides feinting and trying to outflank each other.  The other group of svirfneblin can resolve their battle and regroup with the main gang at any point you choose.

The Gathering Forces

During the night, while the party is getting their rest, several things are happening at the same time. A large army of kobolds, led by several ogres and other villains pours into the valley around the central hill from tunnels and paths all around. Within the tunnels below the fortress, another band of creatures is tentatively making their way out into the dungeons.

Moving forward out of the Underdark on the trail of the grimlocks, a large group of svirfneblin makes their way into the fortress complex. The grimlocks broke through from their own tunnels into the labyrinth dug by the kobolds, rushing forward to attack the players. Now, it turns out they were likely being driven out by the band of svirfneblin. 

The final watch of the party will note the arrival of the crawling horde on the plains below as the sun creeps over the ring of mountains. Shortly thereafter, three svirfneblin will make their way into the party's presence, requesting a meeting. In brief, the entire hillside is surrounded, but you are not alone in your defense. The gnomes have secured the lower entrance, which is also threatened, and have sent runners back to their underground city to send reinforcements.

With the growing light, you note ogres and two large brutes that seem to be made of the mountain itself, earth elementals. The svirfneblin assure you they have xorn coming with the balance of their forces, and that they will arrive soon.

In the full light of day, it becomes apparent that other creatures have been drawn to the valley. In the distance, on the slopes of the icy heights, you notice several yeti, and on another hill a shifting image of large dogs, stealthily taking in the proceedings. A Survival check (DC16) will recognize them as blink dogs.

Through much of the morning, little appears to be happening. Suddenly, the army seems to surge forward as one. They advance on the hill, tightening their pincer grip. Then two groups of 20 kobolds, each led by an ogre, and surrounded by 5 winged kobolds, break away from the others and charge up the mountain toward the ruined buildings of the fortress. One groups is coming directly at the party's location, while the other one is rushing toward a mostly intact building several dozen feet away. The leader of the svirfneblin will send a companion back into the tunnels to call more troops, then head forward with his other companion to meet that attack. Five others will come from the dungeon to follow them forward. 

The kobolds will send another two waves forward after a short rest once the first has been dealt with. If their numbers are greatly reduced, the sally will retreat and regroup. After three attempts, the kobolds will settle in for a long rest to consider their options.

Soon, the big boys will enter the battle, and things will open up on a second front, but that is good for now.

The Final Defense

I'm backing down from my original intent for today, of a major assault ending with destruction and the party back to the river. Instead, I want to consider a better setup to that. In the end, there should be a driving force sending the party out and back along their original journey. The question is, how to push them to that point.

Once they have defeated the dragon (an encounter that should be made more challenging, by the way) and returned to the fortress and the skirmish with the Grimlocks, they should be allowed a long rest. My thought is to put them through some type of siege before having them move on. In this light, several things need to happen. First, they need to be trapped within the fortress, i.e. surrounded. Secondly, their resources and their resolve need to be fully taxed, maybe even exhausted. Thirdly, some major element needs to be introduced that threatens to overwhelm them. And finally, they need to be presented with an opportunity for escape that is sudden and irresistible.

Step one is easy enough... after the long rest, they awake to find the valley floor crawling with a kobold army, sufficiently reinforced with larger goblinoids to deter a direct escape attempt. The details of this army are important, and need to be sufficiently balanced, but on a basic level, the answer is simple enough.

As for the next point, testing and taxing their resolve... a lot of that comes from the balancing mentioned above. To further that, I think the elements of a siege are important. The party will be defending on two fronts, through the fortress, and up from the tunnels. Multiple waves of attack, rather than a mass assault, will drain resources. Choosing different types of monster to make up the army will mean different styles of attack, which will tax varying resources. And time will factor in significantly, with short rests, day turning to night, etc.

I think it might be too daunting to have an around the clock attack, preventing the party from getting a long rest. It would be better to have waves come again and again, then retreat to plan a new strategy. Let the party get a long rest, then have a new wave of attacks come, perhaps from the tunnels.

The third condition, the threat of being overwhelmed, can be met in two ways. First, the waves of attack come in greater numbers from above and below, simultaneously. Secondly, a new danger enters the attacks. I'm thinking of giants or elementals. Something that brings a threat to the structure of the shelter as well as to the players' well-being.

Finally, some opening appears to draw them out and away. I picture a daring counter-attack, almost a last ditch charge out from the gates that pulls everyone there for the confrontation, allowing the party to slip away unnoticed through the tunnels. This brings out a problem... how can the party escape if they are needed to launch a counter-attack? The only solution is to introduce some kind of allied army that can aid in the defense of the fortress. I've got a kernel of an idea of how to develop this, but it needs a night's sleep to mull over.

Minor Invasion

With the dragon defeated, you make your way back to the fortress to recover, and prepare for the next stage of your journey upriver. While you are there, a noise comes echoing through the dungeon chambers below, growing louder and closer. Investigating, you are overrun by a dozen grimlocks making their way through the dungeon from the tunnels leading outside.
Ordinarily able to move quietly, they are rushing through the tunnels towards you with little regard for the noise they are making. They have come to the surface sensing a shift in the scents of this locale, and hoping to grab new prisoners to drag back with them to the Underdark. Fearful of the dragon they still think flies above, they are moving with haste.
Grimlocks are blind, and move by a combination of hearing and smell. They have honed in on the party in the labyrinth of tunnels, and quickly strike at one or two targets, attempting to grapple them and drag them away.
This is not a particularly taxing encounter, depending on how depleted your resources are from the fight with the dragon. In game terms, its really just meant to stall them slightly so that they remain at the fortress to take a long rest before continuing upstream. They can defeat the Grimlocks and set up a camp for the night, with a more challenging assault due to come before they leave the next morning. That will be a major encounter, and require the party to defend their position. Ultimately, it will likely cause the destruction of part or all of the fortress and tunnels, forcing the party back on their journey.
To that end, it may be fun to give the Grimlocks one or two magic items to aid in that encounter. They have a scroll with Transmute Rock and marble elephant (one of the Figurines of Wondrous Power).

In the Ice Cave

Perched high on the cliffside lies the lair of the young white dragon. Nearly inaccessible, it can be reached by recklessly scaling the cliff, or by air.
The cliff rises about 300 feet from the valley floor. The cave entrance is on a thin ledge of ice 100 feet from the top of the cliff. Using ropes and spikes or grappling hooks, the party can make the climb in roughly four stages, basically 50 feet per stage. As long as they are using ropes, they should be able to make the climb without fear of falling. This is a difficult climb, so it requires a successful DC18 Athletics check for each stage of the ascent.
The party should make a group check for success. Each member of the party making the attempt at the climb rolls against the DC18, with a majority of success or failure determining the result. As long as the party are using ropes, failure will only mean an extra stage of climbing. If all members fail by greater than 5, have them slip down 50 feet. If the climb takes more than 6 stages to make the ledge, the dragon will come out on the ledge, having sensed danger, and coming to investigate.
If the dragon emerges, it will fly out to use its breath weapon on the exposed characters. Their best option will be to finish the climb, and try entering the dragon's cave, forcing it to reenter in order to get to them. If the party is able to reach the ledge and enter the cave before the dragon emerges, they will find it at rest, hanging from a perch on the far side of an enormous ice cavern.
The cavern is 100 feet across, and coated with ice, making it difficult terrain to cross. The entrance to the cave is 20 feet above the floor of the cavern, and the ceiling rises 60 feet above the entrance ledge. The dragon can be seen perched on a ledge 10 feet from the ceiling on the far side of the chamber, where it appears to be resting. Once any movement is made within the chamber, the dragon becomes aware of the party's presence.
Unlike the cliff face outside, the chamber is full of small ledges and broken surfaces, making it possible to cross and climb without the use of ropes. The ice makes the surface of the cavern difficult terrain, but characters can attempt to move their normal speed with a successful DC15 Athletics or Acrobatics check. The floor of the cave is scattered with small elevation changes, and stalagmites which can provide partial cover for line of sight spells and targeting. The dragon's breath weapon is a cone of icy breath, which ignores any such cover. Within the ice covering the floor and small platforms are sparkling gems and occasional glints of steel.
The dragon will remain up high, and try breathing as often as its breath weapon recharges. On turns where it doesn't, it will swoop down to attack with its bite and claws, then move away to a spot high on the wall. This is a young white dragon just establishing its lair. As such, it does not exert any regional effects as a more established dragon might. It does have the ability to use lair actions of initiative count 20 as listed in the Monster Manual.
For treasure, there are 800 cp, 6000 sp, 2600 gp, an 140 pp. In addition, there are 11 gems worth 100 gp each, and three magic items - two +2 weapons, and a wand of paralysis. The treasure will be scattered throughout the cave, mostly encased in ice. Once the dragon is dead, the temperature in the cave will gradually rise, although it is likely to take days to fully return to a natural state. Much of the ice has been created by the dragon using its breath weapon to create an environment preferable for its taste. If the party is willing to spend a full day recovering the treasure, allow them to uncover it all. Otherwise, reduce the amount of coins by 10-20 percent to allow for haste.

White Dragon tracking

High above the fortress and surrounding valley, white wings beat against the thin air. The far-seeing eyes of a young white dragon peer into the valley below, searching for movement and watching with keen interest the activity centered on the central hill and fortress. With wry amusement, it circles behind a row of peaks and perches on the edge of a tall cliff, slipping inside a cold cave lined with ice.

Down in the valley, the party is holed up in the fortress, trying to locate the white dragon's lair. They have been scouring the hills each day, looking for signs of its passage. Unfortunately, the dragon keeps to the air, making tracking it difficult. Of course, there is ample evidence of movement on the hillsides. The movement comes from the many wolves in the area. Going on the theory that the presence of the wolves is tied to the location of the dragon, the party decides to track the wolves to their den.

After several hours (two successful DC15 Survival checks to locate and track), the players find themselves on a ledge overlooking a concealed hollow behind an outcrop of rock, with wolf tracks leading in and out of the den. Since it is still afternoon, the wolves are sleeping in their den. There are 5 wolves in the den. If the players start a fight, a winter wolf will join the battle from higher up the hillside.

Inside the den, there are scattered items scavenged from the victims the wolves have brought here and torn asunder. Searching them will reveal one or two items still useable, like a +1 shield and a suit of plate mail. There is also 75 gp scattered among the remains.

Beyond the wolf den, there appears to be another path, concealed behind the line of the ridge, which leads through to a narrow vale concealed from the valley below. Starting up it, you finally notice, high in the cliffside overhead, a large gaping maw in the middle of a sheet of ice.

As they watch, they see the dragon descend from the clouds, pause at the opening in the cliff, hanging from the side of the cliff, before ducking through into the darkness behind.

There is no obvious path up the cliff to the opening above. It appears that either the party will have to fly to the entrance, or use rope and spikes to scale the cliff itself. They can return to the fortress to gather supplies, make their plans, and decide on their course of action before tackling the dragon in its lair. If they put any kind of watch on the cave or valley, they will be able to determine that the dragon likes to exit the cave in late afternoon, hunt and fly through the night, then return to the cave shortly after daybreak, only occasionally venturing out during the daytime to check for the approach of danger.

Meandering

I lost my way. I tried to get ahead of the game a little and actually outline this section of the adventure, in order to better be able to fill in the details and keep some level of continuity. Unfortunately, I forgot my script as soon as I'd written it. I plowed on as if the outline were the adventures, and not the preamble to adventure.
The fortress is meant to serve as a central figure in this stage of the adventure for multiple encounters before the action once again shifts to moving upriver. The interaction with the emissary and the excursion to the stone giants to recover the axe was the first of these. Getting kidnapped and escaping from the kobolds was the second of these encounters. The party should be encouraged to return to the fortress to rest, recover, regroup - take your pick.
I like the idea yesterday's session ended with, of having something storm the fortress and overrun it, destroying it in the process. This will destroy the party's refuge and force them to continue their journey. But, the big adventure in the area was meant to focus on locating and destroying a young white dragon in its lair. That slipped my mind until today.
The build up to that was to involve scouting out the valley, tracking wolves and such up into the hills, and then attacking the lair once its location was finally determined. This is where the party should be next.
Following the escape from the kobolds, the party should need to return to the fortress to gain a long rest. Perhaps adding one or two aspects to the pursuit by kobolds should be added to encourage return to the fortress. One option would be that they left some of their belongings there to return for. Another might be to increase the number and strength of any pursuers in order to inflict greater damage and threat to the party as they escape so they feel compelled to seek shelter and recover fully. A third option would be to add a feature or magic to the cultist's shrine that has healing properties so they feel encouraged to return for healing. Perhaps adding some lycanthropes to the pursuit or an attack so there is a curse that needs to be removed by accessing the power of the shrine.
I'd be inclined to add most, if not all, of these elements.
Once the party is safely ensconced in the fortress, I would allow them the security of a long rest and the ability to fully heal or recover from a curse. I think the natural extension of this leg of the story is that the pursuers realize the characters have reached a point of relative safety and withdraw. They return to their warrens, then send out runners to recruit many more kobolds and larger, more dangerous allies, to return to the fortress in force. This can be the destructive army that overruns the complex and destroys it, forcing the party to flee.
That attack will come in 7-10 days, giving them time to track down and defeat the dragon before continuing upriver. Tomorrow, I'll get back on track, detailing some of the searches and encounters found looking for the dragon, then we'll get to the lair and beast itself, before dealing with the destructive assault. Tomorrow, I run a game, so tonight I'll sleep and prepare for that in the morning. Then we'll give this more proper attention.

New Bearings

The experience in the tunnels will eventually lead the party to the shelf. Once they reach the top and defeat the main guard, they will be able to exit the mountain and be on their way. The main kobold army is away, but they will return eventually. The party need to get going and be on their way, before they are overtaken. If anyone has Survival, they can roll a DC15 check to get their bearings.
The kobolds have taken them several miles up into the mountains away from the river. Indications are that the bulk of the kobolds have continued even further into the hills. You are able to find evidence of a trail leading down into the valley. Perception DC18 will understand that the trail is likely to be watched. If they take care, the party can avoid detection with successful DC15 Stealth checks when they pass a lookout. There are three watches on the pass between the cave and the river. Each watch consists of 8 kobolds. Once all three have been passed or defeated, the party can find their way to the river without further incident. They reach the river about a mile south of where they went up into the gully where the stone giants were. They can make their way upriver and back to the fortress if they desire, or continue on the way upriver. They have lost their boat, unless they took care to secure it at some point and go to that location.
As a game master, you have multiple options. I like the idea of using the fortress as a base for excursions into the hills, and as a spot to defend on occasion. There is still a need for experience, and the fortress offers a lot of good options. I don't know that they need to be written out as much, the beauty of the location is that the encounters can be random.
At some point, it will make sense to drive them out and get them on the move again. If you choose to do so at this point, have kobold-themed groups come after them, looking for them. Throw in some ogres, bugbears, hobgoblins, etc. and the threat will eventually put some pressure on them to get moving.
The key to this episode is the movement of the party past the watches. The options I gave above are good for a quick escape, but they could be fleshed out to fit your interests and desire. This is a good opportunity to explore more of the story telling elements of gameplay. The barrenness of the hills, the steep trail and sketchy looking rocks leaning against the cliff... a good chance to play up the scenery. If they fight or don't fight, its less relevant for this part.
I like the idea of them going back to the fortress. I think it would make a good location for a proper send-off encounter, with an army and powerful monster. Something grand and glorious to really tax their resources, and bring the place down in a pile of rubble. That would be a good reason to start moving, and fast! Something to ruminate over.

Out of Darkness

I cut yesterday's offering short because it felt like the whole idea was getting glossed over, and I wanted to reproach it. As I set out yesterday, this is a multipart encounter that really fits over several days in terms of this presentation. What I was putting out there yesterday was meant as an overview of the whole scenario.
The first part isn't as critical for details. I think you just pick a gang and keep sending in the troops... I like using kobolds. I'd send in a band of 10-12 kobolds with 2-3 ogres and 5-6 winged kobolds. The ogres should be able to pin the characters down in order to give the kobolds advantage. The winged kobolds can zip in and out, staying out of melee range. From there, just pour more in to overwhelm them. I like the twist of having Ference connected with the attack. I'm not sure how it could have been prearranged, but its possible they were watching him and followed them into the canyon, gathering more forces to capture them. It is a good way to get him out of the picture, maybe to bring back later as an enemy.

Once the party is taken prisoner, they are bound and gagged, their wounds stabilized, and they are transported to the kobold warren deeper in the mountains. They awake after a long rest in the orange shaded area of the map accompanying. They could all be in one larger room, or separated into the smaller rooms. They away in darkness, with many of their belongings missing.
Fortunately for them, the kobolds have mostly evacuated these tunnels to attend a larger gathering deeper into the hills. They have left a very sparse number of guards. There is a main group at the entrance to the tunnels, indicated by the blue oval. This section of the tunnel is elevated from the remainder of the labyrinth, with ladders withdrawn to the upper shelf near the exit.
Because of this, there are few kobolds scattered throughout the complex. There is a guard room off the main tunnel either way out from the shaded area where the prisoners awake. The one to the right has 3 kobolds and the balance of the party's gear. The other has 5 guards. None of the guards is really expecting any action. They believe the party is too ill and injured to act, and are content to let the darkness keep them safe. Leaving them stripped down and alone in the dark with guards in either direction gives them confidence in their safety.
The key here is to encourage the players to figure out their situation and work out a means of escape. This isn't meant to kill or destroy the players, or to keep them prisoners, just to have some fun with managing their escape and recovering their belongings. It also serves as a way (mentioned above, of separating Ference from them with something to hold against him in future).

Taken!

This is the first stage in a series of connected encounters. For that, it requires more of a preface. This was an idea I had in writing my original story idea down, and I think it would be fun to incorporate into an actual adventure. Basically, the party is attacked by a gang of small creatures - goblins, or the like, overwhelmed and "killed", awaking as prisoners in the darkness. At this point, they must find each other, their belongings, and the way out.
Taking them prisoner is the first step, and likely will need to feature an almost endless surge of monsters. Once they are prisoners, there is less interest in battling their way out, its more about the uncertainty of where they are and what is happening, leading them to improvise in order to recover their spoils and escape.
For this adventure, it would probably fit better to use kobolds, but that might be a stretch. On the other hand, there would be a glorious element of humor to overrun a group of mid-level adventurers with a band of kobolds! To make that work, I'd literally swamp the party in kobolds. Send them in, let them get massacred, and just keep pouring more in until the party is overrun. The key is that the party isn't actually getting killed, they're just getting zeroed out so they're unconscious.
Adding a generous portion of winged kobolds would help, and there is no harm in throwing in a few larger types, like a bugbear or hobgoblin or something. Frankly, the monster you use is irrelevant. I thought of using Drow in another adventure for similar effect. It just fits with the idea of the cultists and the kobolds to use them. As for motive, they could have tracked them here, amassing a large number of allies to grab the party, with plans to deliver them to the higher orders of the cult.
The party's challenge is to find a way to escape the warren of the kobolds, with their belongings, before they can turn them over to the other faction.

Ambush

Getting into the valley to locate the stone giants and recover the frost axe was one thing, but getting out is proving to be more challenging. As you start making your way back toward the river, the sense of movement on the ridge above to your right grows more noticeable. The rising howls on the wind give a name to the movement, wolves. Knowing the trail runs through a narrow section just ahead, the danger of ambush is high. With the sun fading fast, your options are to try pressing ahead, braving the almost certain risk of ambush and a battle under low light in the narrow canyon, or to retreat back to the giants' house and use it for shelter. The wolves are likely to track you down and attack, but you will have the benefit of familiar ground and shelter to help defend yourselves.
Should the players opt to hurry on, the wolves will drop into the canyon ahead and behind you at a steep narrow location. There are two winter wolves and a pack of 10 wolves. The winter wolves will leap into the ravine ahead of and behind the party, and will attack with their breath weapons, blocking the movement of the party forward or back. The other wolves will leap down into the midst of the party and attack. The wolves are able to leap and scramble their way up out of the ravine if they are badly injured, or wish to regroup. If any characters want to try, they need to succeed on a DC20 Athletics check to be able to scale the wall. If they fail by more than 5, they take 1d6 damage from slipping and falling back to the canyon floor.
If they opt to return to the stone giants' stronghold, they can defend themselves against the wolves from their. Let them give any instructions for watches and positioning. The wolves know paths up into the hills above, and will try to skirt the main trail to drop onto the ledge and attack. The winter wolves will remain in the valley, openly howling and taunting the players, but they do have sense to remain 150' away to stay out of easy range. When the other wolves have made their way onto the ledge, the winter wolves will charge for the trail ramping up to the ledge.

Giant Stronghold

Ference can eventually be convinced to give up the information he knows. He will agree to lead the party to the location where he expects the artifact is being held.

Leading the party down out of the valley and back downriver for 2 miles, he then locates a barely recognizable trail running back up into the mountains, roughly toward the valley you just left. After a half mile run up into a canyon, the gap runs back north along the back ridge of the mountain until a point where a broad ledge jutted out overhead to your right. There you can see a rough stone building hugging the wall.

There appears to be a rough trail climbing up over the rocks that zig-zags up to the ledge. There are three switchbacks, each 50 feet long leading to the ledge. You can see that there are giant creatures at the top of the trail, each with two heads. Seeing you, one of the heads yells back at the stone building in giant that there are scrawny little humans in the valley. Another one starts arguing with its twin about how they should deal with them. After some discussion, one of the ettins starts lumbering down the trail toward you.

There are 4 stone giants inside the building as well as the two ettins. One of them fancies himself the king of this small domicile, and will remain inside bellowing out instructions to the others, asking what is happening, giving direction, berating anything that doesn't work out.

The wall can be climbed directly at half speed, with athletics checks each turn to be able to avoid sliding back down 10 feet. Otherwise, they can move up the ramp. The ettins will move down to engage the party on the ramp, as well as one of the stone giants. The other two giants will stand at the top and throw rocks down on anyone climbing the wall, or on the ramp. If the characters are on the last leg of the ramp, they will bowl the rocks down trying to knock the characters prone.

If they make the top of the ledge, one of the giants will engage the characters while the other moves back into the building. The king and the lone giants will begin gathering items into two large chests, then start down a back stairwell that opens two hundreds yards further along the canyon from the stronghold.

If overtaken and defeated, the chests contain a wealth of treasure, 2d6x100 sp, 1d8x100 gp, 8 gems worth 2d4x50 gp each. There are also several items of armor and weapons, mostly chain mail and long swords. Among these there is a pair of twin gilded war hammers, and a finely crafted battleaxe with etched blade and a faint bluish tint to it. It also seems to give off an unnatural cold.

Just One More Thing...

With the dragon cult emissary in custody (presumably in one of the dungeon cells), attention is turned to the contents of his satchel. Most of his equipment is standard adventuring fare for travel in the wilds of the mountains, but there is also a collection of five scrolls bound together with a leather strap. Two of them are spell scrolls, Create or Destroy Water and Tenser's Floating Disc. The other three are sealed with a red wax embossed with a detailed image of a dragon.
All three are written in draconic (if opened for reading), but can be read with Comprehend Languages. If none of the characters have the spell, they can find it in a spell book tucked in among the papers of the acolytes. It can be copied into their own spell books, or cast directly as a ritual from the book.
The first scroll is a description of the destroyed shrine and the concern of the cult leaders that an important artifact had been taken. The instructions in the note were to locate a party of adventures matching your description, and to recover the necklace taken from the shrine. If there are any survivors, they are to be delivered to Drathkos, in the Molten Hills, along with the necklace.
The second scroll is a letter of inquiry, mostly conversational, but with two paragraphs of particular note. They mention the frost axe of Rain Thana (History DC20 (12 if dwarven) to recognize Thana as a mythical dwarven warrior and king who led a successful attack against a dragon and its army), and ask whether any news has been found to reveal its location. Somewhat scathing in places, the sarcastic tone suggests that the answer is already understood to be no, and the expectation is slight that they will. To this end, the intimation is that an adventurer capable of locating the axe is being sent along with a letter of recommendation. The third scroll is this letter, and vouches for the knowledge and ability of the emissary, Ference Trensal.
Ference Trensal is ranger, and has been sent because he knows these mountains well. He also is an expert of Dwarven studies centered on ancient kingdoms that once made their home in this area. He is reluctant to share any of his knowledge, but with charm, persuasion, or even outright bribery, he will. Defeated, he will need a long rest to recover his full health, and will refuse to answer any questions until he has had one. In all likelihood, he will feign incapacity until he has fully recovered.
Once questioned, he will try to avoid giving any information, but if pressed or otherwise convinced, he will give the location of a stronghold that he believes is the resting place of the fabled frost axe of Rain Thana. Unless successfully charmed (and overwhelmingly so), he will plot a path that exposes the party to difficulty and attack, though he will lead them to the stronghold in the end.
The stronghold is currently being held by something big... I'll think about that, probably giants of some kind.

New Information

Searching the rooms beneath the fortress reveals many artifacts and notes of interest. Among the artifacts you find several uniquely crafted daggers. The higher ranking sorcerers have them among their possessions. You are able to recover three of them in all.

These daggers are ornately damasked with flame etching on the blade, and hilts of deep, reddish-golden hue. The hilts appear to be of laminate construction, with the chitinous red layer secured to the core (DC18 Nature to recognize dragon scale). The daggers do not give off the appearance of magic, and look more ceremonial than anything, although they are sharp. Each of them has a gem embedded in the pommel - sapphire, ruby, and emerald. A DC22 History check will recall mention of ceremonial daggers used for summoning dragons, but more details have long been lost. Anyone who speaks draconic can make an Arcana check (DC20) to know they have a ritualistic use involving sacrifice, but in those legends, there are five daggers.

Among the notes, you can find several spell scrolls, as well as a bundle of scrolls written in draconic. They relate to the actions of the cult tracking down the party and waiting to ambush them at a point about 10 miles upriver. There are also references to contact with a larger group of cultists from the south, and of an emissary from the town of Pinching expected in the next few days with news of the movement in the cities.
If the party decides to wait for the emissary, have them arrive the following day. The emissary is an adventurer with experience surviving in the wild. He brings sealed messages for the leader of the cult. If no one is on guard when he approaches, he will become suspicious and attempt to sneak in through the lower tunnels to determine if all is well or not. Doing so will make him instantly aware the fortress has been overrun, and put him on a defensive setting. He will try to gain as much information as possible before leaving to report the loss of the stronghold to the rest of the cult members.
If there is a watch posted, they will gain inquisitive looks from the emissary for their unusual appearance, but with no knowledge of who is in this chapter of the cult, he will not believe they are anything but the members he was sent to deal with. The more the players act the part, the more he will accept their hospitality.
Once he is inside the fortress and the dungeons, have him make an Insight checks against Persuasion or Performance for anyone interrogating him or actively trying to impersonate a cult member. He will naturally get more suspicious the longer any interaction takes place, particularly if the conversation strays too far into the activities of the cult. He doesn't know what this chapter was planning, or any strong details about the grand plans, if there are any, but he knows they have all been collecting dragon related relics of interest, and shipping them to a secluded location deep in the Molten Hills.
If there is an attack, treat defeat as non-lethal. Tomorrow, we'll consider what information can be found in the sealed messages, and maybe interrogate the prisoner...

Looking Ahead

This should be a bridge arc, carrying the story and allowing the characters to gain experience and gold as well as knowledge. The final arc is more intense, and definitely one of movement and action. I see it beginning at the mining outpost of Aron's Bowl, and following the river up into the mountains toward the dragon's lair. Frankly, that is a major element of the final arc. It is as much about the lair effects and the approach as well as the dragon itself.
So, this second act is bookended by the takeover of the fortress and their arrival at Aron's Bowl. Distance-wise, this is a fairly quick trip up the river, 200 miles by boat. The river is easy enough to travel. Moving directly across country, the trip is closer to 150 miles. The route is difficult, but passable. For this section, the emphasis needs to come off the travel, and be about the locations. That means two or three decent side quests.
One possibility is to have them go hard after the cultists. Track down a more powerful hideout and destroy it. The trouble with doing this is that the main quest can still feature cultists as part of the endgame in the final act. This could be a destruction of the minor cult of the white dragon, with the red dragon cultists stronger and still ahead, but it might be better just to skip them so the final run-ins don't start to feel too derivative or familiar.
One good option would be to deal with the slavers on the river. The bandits from early on were kidnapping people to send upriver in chains to be used as forced labor in the mines. The mines can be goblins run, with plenty of prisoners kept in dungeons and forced to work. The party can have an encounter with the bandits, learn the details of what happens, and then seek to destroy the operation by defeating the bandit headquarters, and then the goblin miners, freeing the prisoners. This is a keeper. I can see a lot of fun opportunities here - infiltration, traps, resistance, other (ogres, etc. in the mines).
I think something magical would be a welcome change. Actually, this is the place to use the astral plane hermit. There would have to be something to suggest a hermit, then a quest of sorts to locate his hovel in the cliffs along the way, and finally a way to locate or open an astral gate. Once inside, there are obvious possibilities with Githyanki, etc. Maybe if the hermit is an exile and not just an ascetic. That way, there would be a reluctance to return voluntarily, an active hunt for him once they crossed to the plane, and a reasonable suggestion to delay the quick location of the gate.
I always feel like there is fun to be had fighting giants, and that would be a good third option. A stone giant lair, stumbled across, causing the giants to attack. The lure of glory and gold will draw in the party, and give them a fight. Stone giants shouldn't be too lofty to handle, and what I see is them being based in a series of caves and tunnels.

End of Act I

The more I think about this setting, with the fortress and the valley, and with the competing agencies in the area, the more it feels like a stopping point. I don't mean the adventure is over, not by a long shot. This campaign runs up the river to an ultimate confrontation with a red dragon and its lair. This is literally just a stopping point.
Making the decision to use this as a stopping point suggests a few things. First, we can take another look at the entire story so far, with an eye toward revising it. For the most part I've tried to create an encounter per entry, but they've been written up as they came to mind, so they are more intuitive than structured or detailed. There is a value in reworking them with details and encounter balancing.
I like to jot down ideas, sketch out locations or interactions, then build detail into that framework.
Granted, I don't think the kind of work that needs doing lends itself well to this kind of journaling. So I think I'll work on it separately and post updates as I go.
I guess that I've just talked myself out of the stop I talked myself into last night. I'll sketch out an outline of what has happened so far and drop that in soon. To really sell this as a complete stage within the campaign as a whole, I can already see that more needs to be done to connect the initial encounter with the shrine to this cultist enclave. The dual magic items are a good start, but I think revising some of the bandit and goblin encounters to feel less random by making them connected to the cultists in some way will give the illusion that the party's actions against the shrine mattered greatly to someone unseen, and that there is a real threat from them.
Not every encounter, but enough to show a recurring theme. It may ease some of the concern I've had about the river making the whole adventure too linear. The threat of a chase requires linear movement. I do think the side trip to a mage's tower needs to be worked up and added into the encounter chain, probably between the bandits and the snow storm at the landing.
This should be a side trek into the hills to find and consult with the mage. This would serve two purposes, it would allow the party to gain more information about the artifact they found at the shrine as well as info about the cult itself, and it would allow the trailing cultists to overtake the party, causing them to cut across the hills directly to reach the fortress ahead of the party.
But, now we're back at wondering who the mage is, and what encounter can be built around them? The planar shift would work for skipping time ahead, or to explain the cultists passing them. I'm not sure it is the type of mage I'm looking for. I also think that since the purpose would be related to a dragon and an artifact of this world, an extra-planar consultant wouldn't have much to add. I think that is a better element to add at a later stage.
The questions to answer are: what does the mage know?; why is he a recluse in the mountains?; and what kind of encounter should take place?
Tomorrow, hopefully, some answers. Also, an idea of where the story should go from the fortress. It is time to start sketching Act II.

Fortress Refuge

The more I write about this area, the more I like it as a spot to stick with for an extended time. There is so much that can be done in this setting. Once the tunnels and dungeon are cleared, the spot would be an excellent location to rest and recover in. It would allow for a number of encounters involving groups attacking the fortress with the party using it from a defensive position.
I think a white dragon in the hills would at least do a flyby or two, if not an all out attack. There are numerous wolves and winter wolves in the mountains that would assault. In addition, there may be additional cult members caught out during the original attack returning, or just coming on missions or with direction to retake the hill.
It might be kind of fun to have the white dragon be a young dragon establishing a lair in the hills. The party is aware of this, and is inclined to seek it out and kill it before it can gain a foothold or more power. This could let the DM touch on some of the lair attributes in anticipation of the main dragon approach at the end of the adventure, but due to the youth and weakness of the dragon (because of it recent arrival), the effects would be partial or weak. In game terms, this would mean the party is aware of the presence of a dragon and the likelihood of a lair, but would need to make multiple forays into the hills to hone in on its location. This is perfect for several random, different, arctic/mountain related encounters - with bears, wolves, remorrhaz, or even a frost giant.
Though giants and dragons are typically rivals, the dragon may be establishing a lair in territory inhabited or traveled by giants. If you wanted a particularly nasty three-way battle, start a fight with a frost giant and have the dragon swoop down to join in. Both monsters would make impromptu "allies" against the other, but neither would be a friend to celebrate victory with...
One way to entice the party to remain for a period of time would be to have them here to find a frost battleaxe to use against the red dragon later. My original thought was that the item would be in the custody of the cultists. A better way to explain everything would be that they came here seeking it, and enlisted the kobolds to excavate the collapsed areas of the dungeon, but to no avail. Instead, they found references to it, and evidence that much of the fortress and dungeons have been recently looted. They suspect that the white dragon frequently seen overhead scoured the ruins for treasure to help her establish her hoard. They had begun to investigate where her lair might be, and how to find and best use the weapon. A captured prisoner would reveal this information with the proper persuading, otherwise it could be gleaned by careful study of the sorcerers' notes.
There is a good opportunity for some skill checks tracking things in the snow, as well as dealing with icy slopes and cliffs, exploring fragile snow caves, and avoiding avalanche. Actually, having a blizzard hit and snow them in might be the perfect way to keep them in the fortress. This would give them time to search the ruins, and really study the sorcerers' notes. Reward successful searches with interesting equipment or treasure in the form of art objects uncovered in the rubble. From the sorcerers' rooms, the treasure found would be magical in the form of scrolls and potions.
With the valley snowed in, the tunnels would become attractive refuge for wild animals in the region, giving options for encounters with a variety of natural critters after food, shelter, or dominance of the territory. Encounters could come from the cave and tunnels, or the buildings of the fortress above. In some ways, the party could be trapped with aggression approaching from two separate directions.

Tricks and Traps

This is a quick post tonight. I think there is a good framework for this setting now. There are kobolds near the outer entrance, fighters and cultists near the stairs up to the fortress and the prison cells, sorcerers in the cluster of rooms near the cells, and cobwebs between them and the kobolds. There are also natural predators in the natural caves and tunnels.
But I think the defenses of the complex are supplemented with a few traps, and some other tricks. I just thought of the cells housing prisoners. Not everyone would be full, but they have the cells, so I think they would be using them. These could be kobolds, acolytes or cultists locked up for disciplinary measures, or someone they've grabbed to torture for information. They may be rival dragon cultists grabbed to locate another magic item or shrine location.
In any event, it would be devious to have the locks to the cells guarded with poisoned needles to prevent escape. The poison could vary from debilitating to deadly. I think there could also be some pit traps/ceiling collapse type traps in the connecting corridors between the sorcerers and kobolds. They would know how to disable the triggers. The natural tunnels are more likely to be guarded by natural threats, such as oozes or fungal spores.
I think there could be one or two major traps. For instance, there are two rooms off by themselves near the natural caves that could simply be rigged to collapse completely when someone hits the middle of the room. It would be nice for the connecting room between the old and new sections of the complex to have a major trap effect that would encompass the entire room if not disabled - a sinking floor, sand pouring in, etc. The catch is that while it would be nice to have it affect the entire room, it would be necessary to have it be something easily reset. That gets tricky.
I always liked arrows firing from within the walls, too. That could be attached to any passage. I had some other ideas up my sleeve involving Alarm and Glyphs of Warding, but neither are sorcerer spells. Now if there were another kind of spellcaster...

Dragon Cult Humans

The cultists are of two types, there are a number of generic cultists, and several who are leveled NPCs. Some of these would be fighters, probably a total of 4 level four fighters, each with a band of 5 cultists. There is also an elite class of sorcerers that remain within a small area. The fighters and their units do sweeps of the tunnels and the surrounding valley. They are based in the renovated buildings above ground, moving into the tunnels several times a day to make their security sweeps.
The sorcerers stay in the underground chambers with a security guard of their own made up of acolytes. They study arcane texts and perform their rituals for power and understanding. The acolytes often leave on journeys to other pockets of dragon cultists, delivering messages and gathering information.
There are a dozen acolytes in all, with six level three sorcerers. The head of this enclave is a level seven sorcerer. She is the one responsible for creating the flesh golem and setting it to guard the lower entrance. She is also unwilling to die here. In the event that battle erupts and there is a threat to the cult, she will take 3-4 acolytes and leave. Forced to fight, she will deliver her strongest spells and continue on her way.
The fighters will engage and willingly fight. The sorcerers will defend their sanctuary, but are not willing to actively oppose anyone deep into the tunnels. They are more likely to flee, particularly if their leader does.
The kobolds in the tunnels are cowardly, but they also like to fight, and their aggressiveness will make them engage the party. They are fervent in their beliefs, and willing to fight in defense of the shrine. Unfortunately, the humans aren't nearly as committed to standing and fighting. The loyal cultists and acolytes will commit fully to any fight. The fighters will too, but the sorcerers will leave to continue their activities elsewhere. Their commitment isn't to defending this location, but the cult.

Culture Clash

The party has come to an entrance guarded by a flesh golem and two young remorhaz, with a band of kobolds deeper inside the complex. This entrance is a "working entrance" used by the lesser creatures and servants. The dungeon complex itself is a hybrid of two merged interests. There is the original dungeon setup that stretched below the fortress, and an added region of excavated tunnels.

This sketch is an initial attempt at a working dungeon map. As I see it, the tunnels were dug and inhabited by the kobolds. The original cellars and dungeons have been taken by the cultists. They understand the point of the fortress above as a defensive position, and have kept one corner of the fortress in good repair and guarded. They also understand that their secretive plans need to be kept discreet, so they have left most of the fortress in ruins, and stay out of view.

The cultists are human, and yet they have many kobold allies. Again, I think the kobolds stick to the rough tunnels as a matter of preference, and the humans stick to the rooms closest to the stairs up into the fortress ruins. This leaves the middle section largely unoccupied. That means natural encounters, like spiders and oozes, as well as shadowy lurker types preying on isolated kobolds and humans that wander through. My guess is that these slip in and out through the tunnels past the kobolds. As natural and individual predators, they probably don't trigger the command defense instructions given to the flesh golem, so it leaves them be.

It would be easy enough to have a secret door, or small natural passage, or collapse in the roof that would allow them to access the dark passages also. That makes an interesting point. The kobolds don't need light sources with their darkvision, so their tunnels are mostly dark. When the kobolds move, they use torches for extra light, and in the occupied rooms there are generally fires that give off light.

The humans like to keep their rooms well lit, however, they are careful about the light. There are wall sconces installed with torches that can be lit when occupied. The room with the stairwell actually has a sconce with continual flame cast on it. The sconce is mechanically connected to the doorway above so that when it is opened, the sconce is covered. This way, the room is brightly lit when the door is closed, and in complete darkness when it is open.

It is necessary still to flesh out the human cultists, both in number and in character. I also think the no man's land in the middle of the complex should be well guarded with traps and tricks to confuse and disable anyone unfamiliar with the defenses. I'm not sure what to do yet. I think the next thing to do is get a handle on the humans.

Catacombs and Caves

This is consideration of the layout and setup of the fortress dungeons. Setting this area up as a protracted series of encounters requires a different approach than what I've used to date. Much of what has filled this blog since the start of the year has been generated off the cuff as I wrote. To be honest, I feel like I've just been throwing bones out there, building a skeletal outline that can be fleshed out later into more detailed and nuanced encounters.
As a location based series of encounters, this area is different from what I've done so far. That means that this series of posts follow as a microcosm of the whole process encompassing the creation of this adventure. In short, that means sketching out a broad outline, adding specific aspects and elements to be encountered, building a map of the area, then populating it. Even then, there are aspects that will continue to be filled in, such as motivations, tactics, traps and defenses.
I've started drawing a map to use, but it is still rough. Basically, I've blocked out a section as the remnants of the original fortress dungeon. The opening that the party approached in the last entry is a large, hand dug opening cut into the side of the hill. Beyond it, there are tunnels carved into caves, or carved to connect natural caves, that work their way into the hillside, eventually connecting with a collapsed section of the original dungeon.
This fortress was originally built to command the valley, a bold statement of civilization's foothold in the wild mountains. This fortress is of human design, although the quality of its construction suggests the influence of dwarves, if not their direct contribution. Dwarven characters succeeding on a DC20 History check will know a little more of the area's background.
Dwarven legends tell of a race of mighty warriors that sought the power of the dragons to make them invincible. These Dragon Knights located a nesting site and built a bastion to protect them from the dangers of life among the dragons while they searched for a way to harness the dragons' power. The stories are scant on information, and always thought to be too farfetched for belief, but this location and the fortress lend credence to the stories.
The Dragon Knights forged a mighty battle axe that captured the icy power of this valley and the white dragons encircling it. The dragons themselves have always been skeptical of the intent of the humans in their fortress, but since they never sought to harm the dragons, or directly confront them, they were content to sit back and observe. They maintained a tentative balance with the Knights.
The cult members that have infiltrated the fortress and dungeons are eager to locate and destroy the mighty weapon. They have been sent to find the object and return it to Antaraxes Glavenis for destruction.
When the cultists located the fortress, they cared little for its walls and upkeep, always more drawn to the dungeons beneath the surface of the hill. The tunnels have been dug in an attempt to clear some of the more heavily damage sections of the dungeon, as well as to locate the magic weapon. Ironically, where the Dragon Knights sought to understand and harness the power of the dragons, the cultists here were inspired by the instruments of torture and isolation they found.
The cultists occupy the dungeon beneath the fortress, while the caves and dug tunnels are lived in by kobolds.

Valley of Pale Death

The valley before you is narrow with a ring of steeper hills rising around it in a tight ring. These peaks are high and imposing, with snow clinging to their jagged peaks. Within this ring there is a a small mound of rock rising from the center of the valley. Perched atop it lies the ruins of a once majestic mountain fortress. Now, even from this distance across the valley, it is clearly falling to ruin.
And yet, the instructions you have been following have led you directly here to this spot.
Moving closer, you can discern the clear passage of feet - shoe, horse, wolf, and other critters. You note that the road which you have been following ascends this hill, gradually winding its way back and forth across the face of the hill, switching back on itself three times. The evidence of foot traffic runs on up the hill on the road. At the first switchback, there is a large hole opening into the side of the hill beyond the turn in the road. You note the road from there to the top of the hill and the fortress is badly neglected, and washed out completely in more than one place. It appears that whatever forces are using this road and this fortress are entering the gaping hole, not traveling to the walled fortress above. This seems slightly odd.
The hole itself, under closer inspection, appears to have been carved out of the hillside far more recently than the construction of the fortress or the road itself. It is crudely excavated, but some attempt at decorative features have been tried. There are what appear to be columns shaped like rampant dragons on either side of the opening. There is also a guardian at the entrance. This guardian is extremely tall, close to eight feet, and terribly misshapen (DC17 Arcana check will recognize this as a flesh golem). It makes no move toward you as you approach on the road, but although it shows no sign of interest, you have the distinct sense that you are being watched.
Background: You are being watched, and how. The golem is paying close attention to your approach, and will react if you move toward the opening itself. In addition to the flesh golem, there are two young remorhaz concealed underground near the entrance. They will join the golem in defense of the entrance.
High in the ring of hills there are many more eyes. There are numerous wolves and some winter wolves roaming above. There is also a young white dragon that feels this valley is its home, so it waits in the snowy peaks and watches. Both the wolves and the dragon stay concealed until the party shows signs of leaving the valley, then they swarm to attack.
This chapter of dragon worship is set up to honor the white dragons of these high mountains. Within the entrance there are 10 kobolds and 4 winged kobolds that will come out at the sound of battle to attack. They are a sentry unit set to guard this entrance, but spend most of their time in their billeting quarters within the tunnel.
The cult came to this location because of the white dragons in the region. They explored the decrepit fortress and found a sprawling dungeon complex beneath it. This appealed to them and inspired them, so they moved in. They have expanded and fortified the dungeons, believing them to be the true heart of the fortress. I need to build a map of the complex, and stock it. There needs to be a more threatening adversary than kobolds. They can have lots of the little creatures around, but there needs to be a significant number of "higher order" creatures running the cult. Something to work out...

Dragon Cult Redux... The Fortress

The first encounter with the dragon cult was when the party dealt with the kobolds at the shrine, very early in the adventure. They were fervent worshippers, but they were more kobold than cultist. The kobolds had been living in their warren within the mountains when a cultist arrived, offering them whatever promises necessary to get them to help him locate the lost shrine and artifact.
Keen to attach themselves to anything dragon related, they quickly became devout worshippers, particularly after finding the shrine and artifact.
I worked out a framework for what the artifact would be in the Decisions, Decisions... entry. For that, I had it attracting fire-based monsters. I wonder if draconic monsters might be better. Also, I think (and couldn't decide what I wanted at that time, or now) that it should have a dual power that shifts depending on who has the item. What I mean, is that in the party's hands, it attracts monsters and has benefits against dragons, but in the dragon's hand, or its minions, it shifts to a beneficial effect for the dragon. Even something as simple as +2 on skill checks or saving throws for the party, +2 AC for the dragon. I think the best option is that for the party it offers protection from charm or fear, but if the cultists have it they gain the ability to Charm Person or radiate fear. I like that. For the kobolds, possessing it made them more confident and assertive.
I do like the idea of coupling the item with another one to boost their powers. This doesn't need to be another artifact, with augmented powers in that sense. I just think a weapon, like a battle axe, that works well in concert with the necklace. The necklace has powers that allow the wearer to control the scene, while the axe would take advantage of those powers to hit easier or do extra damage. The theory being that either one is useful, but both wielded together complement and enhance the strength of the party.
I suppose the hobgoblin warlord's axe could be what they're looking for, but it seems like an item they should have to work to get. That encounter was more of a humorous diversion than a challenging contest. We can assume that searching the bodies and caves gave the party the scrap of parchment with instructions/directions and a crude map. The map leads to a fortress high in the hills to the west of the river. From the directions, it seems you continue upriver about three miles to one of the granite spurs jutting into the river's path. The ridge forces the river to swing wide to the east before turning back along the northern edge of the outcropping. On the western side of the river, there is an old road, barely recognizable, running up into the hills in the shadow of the steep, upthrust ridge.
Following this road the party soon notices that it leads gradually up to a lone, smaller peak, tucked inside a small bowled valley encircled by taller peaks. On the lone hilltop, there stands an imposing looking fortress, half-built of the mountain itself. Unfortunately, the fortress was abandoned decades before, and has fallen into a bad state of ruin. Unknown to the party, the dragon cult has established themselves in this location as their northern base. There is yet another cult shrine somewhere deep in the mountains to the south, much nearer the smoldering slag of Antaraxes Glavenis' lair.
There is still a kobold influence at this base, and with their love of tunnels and torture, they fell in love with the dungeons underneath the fortress, expanding and enhancing them while the walls above fell to ruin.