We found the Hopeful Dopes caught in a dire situation as their keep, the Dope’s Hope, was ambushed by a hoard of orcs and a werewolf. Several members were fell by this band of muscle and malice, but our weary defenders were able to finally repel them. Several guards, the decorated hobgoblin Grinkel, and the warforged Monk Rain all perished from the battle, but the survivors laid their companions to rest before seeking out their next adventure.
The next page in our adventures was found in a book describing the history of the mountain mining town, Vermeillon.
This town was home to a prosperous platinum mine, but the town found beset by shadowy nefarious forces. Not only did the mine suffer a cave-in but residents and travelers soon began to mysteriously disappearing, and the town was abandoned all together ever since.
The scent of adventure wafted itself into the nose of our group members so they set out for the next town over from Vermeillon, Merin. After several hard days of travel, the group guided itself to the nearest tavern called the Bored Weasel. The party members got to work asking around for any information about the abandoned town, and they were able to find an old bartender, Lucas, who had fled that place when his wife passed in the mining accident and directed them to talk with Astra Vorn. Mrs. Vorn had lived in Vermeillon as a child when all of the disappearances began, so her family left soon after. She warned the group about investigating the mysterious town, but she herself would be interested in what would come of it.
With few other leads from their investigation, the party moved to travel up the road to the lurking mountain. Shortly after starting their journey, the group found itself assisting several fellow cart guards being assaulted by two large muscular ogres, and they jumped into the fray! After a quick bout with the lumbering hulks, the group was able to slay the beasts before more of the escorts were killed, and several survivors offered to work at the Dope’s Hope after this event. With this encounter to their backs, the Hopeful Dopes continued onward to unravel the mystery of Vermeillon…
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