To Phandalin

This session, the characters both advanced to Level 2, and we learnt a bit of background about them.

Gary Barlow F2 - a former sailor who has a problem with foul language, finds it hard to stop drinking once he starts, and will never forget his first ship. He also sees himself as a predator with other ships on the sea as his prey.
Maybe he was in the Navy and took his job very seriously? Maybe he's not as Good as he makes out to be?

Tommy Tippee R2 - Tommy wants to become the greatest thief who ever lived. He is very greedy and slow to trust.
Tommy is appropriately still shrouded in some mystery. His alignment is Neutral.

How Tommy met Gary is still unknown.

So, neither are archetypal heroes but will be referred to as such.

Our heroes arrived in Phandalin, and deposit their cart full of goods at Barthen's Provisions. Barthen laments Gundren's disappearance. He tells Tommy and Gary about Gundren's brothers Nundro and Tharden who are out camping and expected to return any day now. After this exchange the pair made for the Stonewall Inn on Sildar Hallwinter's suggestion.

Slidar took a room and went to bed, intending to go to the town hall in the morning to enquire after Iarno Albrek, the Lords' Alliance's envoy to the area who he expects may know more about the situation with Gundren. Our heroes enjoyed the hospitality of the barmaid Elsa before retiring to their rooms in lieu of speaking to the locals at the bar.

During the night, Tommy tried to do Gary a favour and find him some shoes. He successfully sneaked past Elsa but didn't find any suitable footwear.

Replacing Gary's shoe being the main priority, the heroes headed to Barthen's again and Gary elects to buy the most fancy shoes he has in stock - Oxblood leather boots with silver eyelets. 3gp later and they are on Gary's feet. Tommy also asked about his glass cube, but Barthen was no expert, only suggesting that it might be something a wizard would use.

Asking around town, the heroes learn a few things about the Redbrands, a gang of thugs who have been causing problems for local trade and giving businesses a hard time. They also learn that their leader is a wizard called 'Glasstaff', and that the gang frequent the Sleeping Giant taphouse on the edge of town.

Speaking with farmer Quelline Alderleaf revealed that her son, Tobin, had left home to join the gang. Her other son, 10 year old Carp, said he wanted to join. Gary tried to intimidate the child into never thinking such a thing again and despite his noble intentions, he was so successful that he picked the halfling child up to eye level by the scruff of his neck and caused him to piss himself with fear. Quelline was not impressed and shut her door to the adventurers.

They also visited Daren Eldermath, the orchard keeper, who gave them free apples and some flagons of cider. He was happy to talk about the Rebrands and the trouble they have caused and informed them that he believed their main base was at Tresander Manor on the edge of town.

The heroes also spoke to Sildar again who offered them an official warrant to get rid of the Redbrands as they were the most immediate threat to order in the area. They also collected their reward for saving him from the Cragmaw goblins. In this process, they insulted Harbin, the official town spokesperson by ignoring him in his own town hall. Also interested in eliminating the Redbrands, their leader in particular, was Halia Thornton the head of the local Miner's Exchange.

Tommy and Gary headed for the Sleeping Giant and encountered Redbrand thug Everit Wendell outside. Admiring the 'balls' shown by the two in just walking straight up to the place, he escorted the two inside.

Gary attempted the bold tactic of using his Knowledge - History skill to speak with the Redbrands, perhaps in an attempt to enthral them into not fighting, but it was no good. A rapid exchange ensued in which two Redbrands were quickly dispatched, Tobin Alderleaf was told to run away, Everit lay bleeding to death on the floor. Tommy and Gary dragged Everit outside, and tied him up before giving him one of their healing potions. He woke up angry, and called the heroes bluff to kill him in front of several witnesses. They agreed to let him live in exchange for information and he told them that the password to go through the Tresander crypt was 'Netheril'. Instead of being killed, he was punched unconscious as the heroes donned looted red cloaks and went to the manor.

After a brief search of the ruined manor, Tommy found a secret passage to the basement which led to a room with a cistern. He silently killed two guards inside, who were still asleep on account that the heroes had not been particularly noisy.

The pair neglected to search the cistern and continued into the corridor to the crypt. They failed to spot a pit-trap, and Gary fell but managed to haul himself up into the corridor. Tommy managed to skirt around the edge. The doors to the crypt contained an interesting relief, however Tommy was so preoccupied with searching for traps that Gary did not see whether the motif had any historical significance.

Both entered the crypt and saw three skeletons draped over sarcophagi.

The heroes didn't know it, but the fact they were wearing their red cloaks prevented the bones from reanimating for a tough fight which would have alerted Redbrands in adjacent rooms. The only other way to deactivate them was to speak the password 'Illefarn'. 'Netheril' was a decoy password. It seems that Aldith Tresander, owner of the house, had a preoccupation with Illefarn, an ancient elven empire. Further searches of the mansion above would have revealed this to the heroes but they made a beeline for the hideout instead, and reliefs on the doors and walls of the crypt also referenced this, however it was thankfully moot.

Defiling the sarcophagi revealed the bones of a family and a platinum signet ring on each. Tommy took one, and Gary two.

The pair moved on to some cells where a pair of Redbrands were tormenting two prisoners; Thel Dendrar the Woodcarver's wife and family. The Redbrands were killed the prisoners freed. Mirna, Thel's wife, told the heroes the location of an emerald necklace in her family's abandoned shop in the ruined village of Thundertree.

Gary and Tommy both took a crossbow each from the Redbrand armoury before moving through a secret door, found by Tommy, leading into a large cavern with a 30ft chasm running through it, crossed by a bridge to the North and South. The heroes took the North bridge when a voice began to speak telepathically to Tommy. Undeterred, the thief lowered himself down on a rope tied to Gary, to explore the bottom of the chasm. There was a corpse down here (unbenknown to the heroes, it was Thel the Woodcarver, who had been gifted to the beast to secure a truce) and also an unlocked chest. Tommy opened the chest and stuffed his pockets with treasure, and took a fine sword called 'Talon' in a silver-detailed scabbard which Gary recognised as belonging to famous adventurer Aldith Tresender.

Tommy ignored the voice in his head and was assaulted by the creature responsible, who clawed at him in the back. He was rapidly hoisted back to the bridge by Gary, who got in front of him and took some serious damage from the rotting gaze of the creature which he recognised as a Nothic - a beast created when a wizard pursues dangerous eldritch secrets beyond it's ken. The Nothic also has the ability to peer into a person's mind and learn a secret about them. It learnt that Tommy once did something terrible on a burglary job, and that Gary has a drinking problem.

The Nothic was slain, but not without Gary's fantastic boots becoming slightly stained, and the heroes continued throughout the hideout. They interrupted some thugs playing a game of dice, and Gary managed to win some of their money before the heroes both charged in and killed them anyway. They continued through the dungeon to an alchemical laboratory, where they pocketed a Dwarven journal which they couldn't read, and learnt potions of invisibility were being brewed here.

Tommy also succeeded at capturing a rat; he pocketed the rodent rather than killing it. This, unfortunately, was a mistake. The rat was Glasstaff's familiar, and this alerted the wizard to the fact that something was amiss. He was only in the adjacent room but managed to escape before the heroes burst in. They searched the room and found a note from the Black Spider confirming that the missing wizard Iarno and Glasstaff were one and the same. They obtained some more treasures and some alchemical reagents from the room before trying to find Iarno, but to no avail. They finally searched the cistern and discovered the empty waterproof satchel inside which would have contained Iarno's 'getaway' kit should he be discovered. The only remaining room was guarded by two bugbears tormenting a lone goblin, who the heroes interrogated then let go. This goblin informed them about Iarno's familiar and Tommy unceremoniously killed it as a result. Gary looted a bejewelled eyepatch from one of the bugbears.

They then returned left the manor by way of a passage into the woods ouside Phandalin, and headed back to see Sildar, who offered the heroes positions in the Lord's Alliance. Gary was keen, Tommy more reluctant, but in any case they are now local heroes and recognisable in Phandalin. Barthen is happy to give them discount on their next purchases. Halia is non too happy that Glasstaff isn't confirmed dead, as that's what she actually wanted. The heroes retired to Stonehill Inn for the night, deliberately ignoring Elsa.

Gains;
-Gary now has a +1 longsword 'Talon' and some distinctive boots. Tommy has a lot of coin and gems.
-They are both recognised in Phandalin and on the whole the population appreciate the destruction oft he Redbrands.
-The heroes gleaned some information about the band of adventurers connected to the area - one of whom was Deren, and one of whom was Aldith Tresander.
-They also learnt that Iarno was in the employ of the Black Spider.

Mistakes;
-Rules-wise, I think we did ok.
-Hindsight is a wonderful thing in D&D but there is no real 'wrong' way to do things, it just makes for different results.

Link;
Player's Basic Rules
Player's 5th Edition Rules. I linked to the DM's last time in error.