From Waterdeep to the Keep
Dramatis Personae:
Liavara Kayne, the Aasimar Warlock of Neifion, the Lord of Bats, librarian extraordinaire
Iona, the Wood Elf Monk who can't stay alive
Shump, the Half-Orc Cleric who keeps Iona from permanent death, and replaced Ishir after his untimely demise
Keh-Tee, the four-armed Mad Catter Warlock of Y'Chuk
Lady Orhialla "Nya" Tarnash, the Teifling Sorcerer and Lady of the Zhentarim
Teegan, the Dragonborn Sorcerer of Many Faces
Orvu, the Human Rogue who loves shinies
Ishir, the Dragonborn Fighter who met his end to the Deck of Many Things; and now inhabits a dwarven golem
At the inn the Ironfang Eight lodged at during their stay in Waterdeep, there was a pit that had different chambers, always changing called the Yawning Portal. Sometimes people didn't make it out at all, sometimes they barely survived, and sometimes they came back with a small fortune. The patrons of the inn made bets about every group that went down, about who would come back, when they would come back, etc. One day the Eight were approached by a group who issued a challenge: the two groups would go into the pit, each leaving one person behind in the inn, and they had eight hours to return; the group that came back with the most money received half of the other groups winnings. The Eight gladly took the bet, and leaving Teegan behind to gamble, the group ventured down into the pit.
The Eight took a different route than the other group, so they would not be likely to bump into each other. The first chamber the group entered was a small, inviting kitchen with the table set for dinner... Except that everything was on the ceiling. They used their brooms and flight spells to investigate the kitchen and found that they could not move any of the furniture. One person took a loaf of bread from the table, and while it did release when grabbed, the moment the grip on it loosened, it floated back to its original place on the ceiling. The group was baffled by this room, but decided that it wasn't worth wasting anymore time on.
The party next entered a room that had an acid pool beneath it, with something that would allow it to drain. While examining it, they triggered some sort of alarm that caused them to be attacked by several jellies. The battle was difficult, but the group prevailed. They knew it would take time for the acid to drain enough for them to investigate, so they moved on to a room that had a throne, and a strange green orb that was suspended in midair. Ishir's impatience caused a trap to be set off, and suddenly Iona found herself trapped in the orb, while the rest of the group was now facing a dragon. They defeated the dragon, and freed Iona, and after gathering their treasures they moved on to another room.
A corrupted angel awaited the group in the next room they entered. The battle was grueling, it even took Iona's life. Had they not been able to cleanse the angel of its corruption, bringing about guilt about it slaying Iona, she may have died her final death. Fortunately for the monk, the angel felt guilty enough to resurrect her. Finally the group went back to the room where they had faced the jellies, and found the acid to be drained. Under the acid was a deep, dark pit, with levers on one wall, and two doors of metal bars, like jails have, flanking the levers. Ishir once again was a bigger threat than the actual enemies, as he decided to play with the levers... He released something dark and twisted from one of the doors and the group was forced to flee before it could end them. They got away, but Iona again sustained injuries due to Ishir's impatience. Finally, the group decided it was time to head back to the inn to learn the results of their expedition.
Instead of finding the way up though, the group found a well dressed man alone in a room. The man had the Deck of Many Things, and wanted to play. Everyone drew cards, with greedy Ishir taking three, and slowly revealed them in turn. Keh-Tee received two wishes and the deed to Ironfang Deep. Nya received a mortal enemy and the ability to undo any one event that happened at any point in time. Lia got a bag with $50,000 in gems and the vizier card, which lets her receive the complete truth in answer to a single question, and she was given one year to use it. Ishir met his end with his second card; his soul was put in an orb and sent somewhere in the Underdark where the group couldn't go. Orvu received three wishes, and later used one to obtain the orb with Ishir's soul; with as many times as she was injured from his carelessness she found it to be poetic justice. After parting with the man, the group headed back up to the inn. The results of their riches were tallied, and they managed to win the bet with the other party. The group was happy with their prizes.
They spent a couple days shopping before they were told it was time for them to travel. When they arrived at the teleportation site, they were greeted by Shump. He told the group that his God had told him to come to them, and with losing a member they seemed like they could use another person; they readily agreed. Had Shump not joined them, Iona would have likely died her final death soon after. The spell could only send six people, so the group had to leave Teegan behind in Waterdeep.
Arriving at their destination, they discovered that they needed to get to a floating city- that was what the cultists were using to travel south. The group snuck onto the city with no trouble, though after takeoff the cult was made aware of their presence. They approached the white dragon who was aboard the city under the guise of making a tribute, and with Keh-Tee's persuasive powers, they were able to gather some information. They found out the location of the priestess' quarters and made their way there. Keh-Tee and Lia both donned the robes of priests and knocked on her door... They did not take into account that the leader would know all of the other cultists who were high enough in rank to wear the purple robes. The fight was a struggle, but they prevailed as usual. After several fights with the cult, they managed to completely purge the floating city of the cultists. The giants who owned the city thanked them, and offered to take them wherever they wished. They were dropped off a day's walk from Alaghon, a coastal town near the mountains where they believed Ironfang Deep to be.
The red line across this map shows the group's journey from Waterdeep to the coast of the Sea of Fallen Stars
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