Chapter One - The Coming Together

Hammer 1, 1371 D.R.

            Well Met and welcome to my tale.  A Tale of a group of adventurers formed in the spirit of adventuring from all walks of life, various locations, and more backgrounds than members present.  It will be an incredible journey taking the group close to death, fill them with life, and have many tales to share.  Before we begin, you must know the people involved and how we all came together.  Allow me to introduce the group of us.

            First we have Cedar, a Human wizard traveled from his home with his Mom, Dad, and Sisters in Susail, which is in Cormyr, along with his Mentor named Master Zorthaster.  Cedar has headed out into the big world to seek gold to send back to his parents and sisters, who he often dotes.  His father is in unskilled labor but has the virtue of being more interested in his family and having a devoted wife than the riches of the world.  This has rubbed off on Cedar as one of his life goals, too, is to have a bunch of daughters and a devoted wife.  He also realizes that gold will be needed with all the ladies around.  Cedar is out looking for the knowledge of the world, how it works, why people do what they do, and what is really out there.  He came to Dagger Falls for the romantic-adventurous reputation as it is the wild, rugged frontier where adventure comes knocking at your door. 

            Next there is a Dwarven Paladin named Oskar Bladebright who serves his clan and god.  His axes deal great damage and his gruff, straightforward Dwarven attitude will help keep the group focused and straight to task.  Oskar is a member of the local Brightblade Clan and hopes to join the Paladin’s Guild at some point in the future.  He is very Lawful and Orderly sharpening his axe the exact same way every time in the exact same manner.  Don’t let his outward mannerisms stop you, however, as there lies a heart of gold underneath his gruff exterior looking to make things right wherever there is wrong.

            Cedric is our Female Priestess of Corellon (the elvish god of nature).  The curious fact is that she bares a male name to her female self.  Odd indeed but screaming that there is a good story behind such a coincidence.  She is full Moon Elf but how and why she has arrived in Dagger Falls is a mystery all unto it’s own.  She is very competent in the healing arts and is not afraid of battle in the least.  She is a grand addition and will keep the males of the group in check as we go.

            We also have our Halfling Monk named Shane Highhill.  While he does not stand high vertically, his fists and feet move incredibly fast and the damage he can deal out to an opponent is very deceptive for his size.  He was trained under Master Woo from the area of Dagger Falls.  He, too, is of logical and orderly mindset like Oskar.  It has been said that the Monk is like an Oriental Paladin so this could be correct.  His enthusiasm for adventuring and his upbeat spirit are an inspiration for our entire group. 

            Our Half-Elf Ranger is named Xanthulus EverStalk.  He prefers the Long Bow as his primary weapon and in a pretty good shot with it already.  His stealth in the woods is great but he doesn’t seem to like indoor spaces at all - especially in towns.  As rangers go, he is somewhat withdrawn but not nearly as much as the Far Rangers I have seen.  He is open and straightforward when talking with someone with a skillful mind for details in the woods.  How Xan ended up in Dagger Falls is unknown but he does wear a family heirloom on his wrist from his Mother.  This, too, could make an interesting story as he has mentioned his Mother practiced the magical arts.

            Aramil is our next party member is our stealthy type both indoors and out.  While in the outdoors, he can be stealthy with our ranger and is pretty good with his Short Bow.  When indoors, his real skills come out as he finds and disarms traps, opens locks, and makes passageways safe for the group.  He’s also our indoor scout as he secures the way ahead.  His personality is a little brash and he may not be the most attractive guy in the group but his heart seems to be in the right place. 

            And, lastly, we have myself - Kerith.  I am a Half-Elf Bard who calls the Dalelands home.  I stand 5’7” tall, 184 pounds, green eyes, shoulder length deep brown hair in braids with beads on the ends, in a combination dress of adventurer and entertainer.  My rugged human father met my beautiful elven mother many years ago before the northern Dalelands became filled with turmoil.  A marriage followed a long courting period and soon I became part of the world.  Out of honor for my elven side, my parents decided to give me an elven name - Kerith.  Unfortunately, father needed to find a better paying job to support his family.  We lived in Coymanthor where opportunities outside of large cities are few and far between.  The Zhentarim were in a town not too far away recruiting for guards for nearby cities and caravans.  Since this would still keep father close to home, he signed up.  The first few years were as he had expected - training, local duty, never really gone for more than two weeks at a time, the usual.  He had shown his capabilities and work ethic and was selected for promotion whether he liked it or not.  He now began traveling the Dalelands wherever the Zhents took him.  I grew up with my mother amongst the elves from that point learning many skills and enjoying life.  I, surprisingly, wasn’t teased nearly as much as others but I also had a knack for telling when something said was in seriousness or in jest and took it accordingly.  Something I remember was growing up with a beautiful elven maiden in my village.  She was older than I, of course, but has a playful heart about her and the beauty of an enchantress.  Someday, I hope to revisit her again as she never was one for talking and I never did know her name. 

            Unfortunately, I grew faster than the other elves and it became time for me to leave the village, as usually occurs to those of us half-elves.  We hadn’t seen my father for years so I set out to find him.  It took me months of traveling the Dalelands until I did track him down in Voonlar.  He had been stationed there and couldn’t get enough time off without losing an arm or leg to come home.  He was happy to see me and had seemed to change some but not as much as I would have expected from all the talk about the Zhents.  I traveled with him for the next few years.  His friends tried to talk me into enrolling but I just couldn’t settle down for that long yet.  We went to Dagger Falls, visited Snow Mantle (and saw the Flaming Tower and Temple in the Sky on the way).  We also spent some time in Teshwave, and even visited Yülash for a short period.  I got to know many of his friends and their “Non-Zhentarim” lives including family and realized that, like my father, the uniform didn’t make their hearts evil; it’s their hearts that made the uniform evil.  My father had surrounded himself with men of good character who did their job effectively when needed but had a heart in everything they did.  It had been a while since I had been home and decided to leave to visit mother again.  I found an artist to sketch a picture for my father and my mother of the two of us (he in his full uniform and I in my adventuring gear) and took the long trip to return it to her.  I was to meet my father in Voonlar in a month as he, too, would be out on a mission I could not attend. 

            I arrived home to find most of my village had left the area.  My mother had stayed knowing I would return.  She had told me that the elves were still on the move to a safer ground and that she was leaving for that place in two days with the remainder of the village.  All my childhood friends had already left including the elven maiden.  I stayed with my mother there and helped her pack.  I stashed what little gold I had in her things (I had five gold pieces at the time and was saving for a Long Sword) and escorted her to the edge of the village, as I could not go with them to the new place.  I had told her about father and my meeting him in Voonlar in case something happened on her journey.  My mother said she would find a way of finding me when she could so I would know where to find her.  After they left, I spent a day going through what was left of the village taking what I could use, cleaning up so nature could reclaim the area, and wondering where the elves had gone.  I hoped they would have appreciated that from me.

            I then began my travels back to Voonlar stopping in Shadowdale along the way as I had heard so much of the place.  It was a great trip meeting many people and hearing more good tales as well as sharing mine.  I returned to Voonlar and was greeted as I had left by those who worked with my father - he was not there.  I had asked what had happened and they assured me he was fine.  Upon his return from their successful mission ahead of schedule he was transferred again (the penalty of success).  They didn’t know much more than that and I left he message that I would start out in Dagger Falls and see where it lead me.  I knew they did not head that way at all recently but it was still in the Dalelands and close enough for contact if he got the chance.  That’s how I arrived in Dagger Falls. 

            Home for me is wherever I lay my head in the Dalelands.  I decided to start here as it was a growing area looking for good-hearted people and that was something I had from my parents.  I’m adventuring for the sake of adventuring with hope of finding my parents or that beautiful elven maiden from so long ago.  I have run into many judgmental types lately, which annoys me greatly.  I have run into many adventurers from the Merrydale Delvers who look to kill Zhents just to kill Zhents.  I wish they could meet my father as he has the heart to live in Dagger Falls and the work ethic of a hero.  He just was offered a job in a uniform for pay when he needed it. 

            I am entranced by Lore and Knowledge with storytelling and singing as my gifts.  Adventuring gives me a source for stories, money for getting information, and satisfies my curiosity of what is out there that I haven’t seen yet.  I have learned songs from various races and cultures and broadened my languages as much as I could.  Someday I will be a renowned Bard and be able to get my parents back together again as both of their hearts still long for the other. 

            Kerith’s statements on life:  Adventure to see what is out there.  Leave wherever you are better than when you arrived.  Don’t judge someone until you truly know him or her.  Quest for knowledge, as the more you know the better the decisions you can make.  Never give up hope in anything you believe.  Do what is right however you need to do it.

            Well, this is our group as it stands now.  Various names have been kicked around but we have not decided on one as of yet.  We met through a Wizard named Peraus Wands.  He is a former adventurer who has offered to guide our new group in the life of adventuring as we finish up things he left undone from his adventuring career.  He runs a shop in Dagger Falls.  It’s a great opportunity as we can work for him or others without needing membership in the Delvers Guild leaving us free to do our own bidding and jobs.  He seems to be very fair and honest from what little contact we have had with him.  He’s even willing to debrief the group so we can learn from our mistakes.  I believe he will be a good mentor for our group.

            The following pages will contain our adventures wrapped around the major focus of the venture.  It is my wish that you enjoy our adventures, as I’m sure we will.  Please learn from our mistakes and thrill in our successes.  Once a name has been decided on, we will have it entered into this story line.  Sit back, grab your glass of wine or mug of ale, and enjoy the story of our lives.

The Songs and Stories of my Life,

Kerith of the Dalelands