As war rages throughout the North, a dark despair now casts a shadow over the land, no inns or farm houses with welcoming fires, just broken walls and blood stains  now litter the roadways and farmsteads of the north. The gods seem distant somehow. Ulfar gets a feeling his god is somehow not where he should be…… distant somehow.

An oppressive feeling spreads over the characters as they race to save Naxenes life. But a true darkness waits in the doomed city of Never winter. It is shrouded in a deathly black  magical cloud, small pockets of purple energy crackle through the city, the Rift into the Under dark seems once again open and the world is once again open to the  deathly Drow.

Entering the city the characters look for the jewelers quarter, they need a 300GP diamond, moving into the city  they find a small pocket of humanity who seems to have escaped the mobs of dark demons and other creatures that inhabit this dark kingdom  , the girl also says no help has came from any of the other major cities , and before this there was huge unrest between the leader of the northern cities ,   she  points the characters in the direction of the trade district , but then disaster as a band of demon creatures attack…..

The Dark rider appears once again , this time in league with a fire giant and 3 hell hounds , they seem to be looking for Naxene Drakthala as to the whereabouts of Harstanag . After saving the Caravan from the evil creatures , once again the dark rider disappears . He is seems to be everywhere the trouble is ?

Every bone in her body tells Naxene that the attack on Caravan and surrounding settlements is just the beginning. She's heard "rumblings" that other settlements have been impacted by the sudden appearance of giants-and not just hill giants but also stone, frost, fire, and cloud giants. Naxene is convinced that now is not the time for half-measures. She has read books about the ancient conflict between dragons and giants, and she urges the characters to seek out a powerful good dragon, convince it to contact other good dragons, and use them to combat the giants.

Naxene is confident that the Lords' Alliance will support this plan, given the gravity of the situation. She couldn't be more wrong. Naxene is unaware that the Lords' Alliance leaders would rather hurl themselves into the Nine Hells than deal with dragons. She recommends that the party speak to an acquaintance of hers-a "dragon expert" in Waterdeep named Chazlauth Yarghorn (CN male Illuskan human mage). Naxene provides directions to his residence in the city's North Ward: a tall stone house with a tower on one corner.

When asked about Harstanag she said he was the last of the Fabled Force Grey Giant hunters and maybe someone in the black tower will know?

With that the characters head off but which direction?

1. North after Garelle and Albino Drow ?

2 . To neverwinter to fnd out about the beam ?

3. To waterdeep to find out about the black tower? Harstanag ? and the dragon expert ?

Throughout the demon prison , many lesser demons stalk the halls of the dark and evil place . The prison itself has living walls and floors , that leaks pussy liquids and dark vapours .
What you first thought were goblins and are little babau demons , filthy creatures , born of pure hate .

The babau is an assassin, a murderer, and a sadist— certainly not traits unusual in the demons, yet the babau's penchant for stealth and surprise sets it apart from its generally less-subtle kin. With no need to eat (although most babaus relish the flavor of mortal meat on their thin, raspy tongues), a babau can wait in ambush for years or decades—their inhuman patience in anticipating a well-conceived murder also setting them apart from the other denizens of the Abyss. Babaus obsess over the act of killing and take great pride in their grisly art, often leaving behind some form of grim marker or obscure signature, whether it be a distinctive modus operandi, an unnerving token, or other profane evidence.

You wait at the entrance to entrance going down into pitch blackness , knowing the answer to the ring of winter and scribbling dark elf , could  wait down below.

You hear an un earthly scream – making the whole place shake as something large seems to have sensed your presence , you hear a voice in your head , deep and rumbling and ancient as the night sky.

I am ERTU it says in a heavily accented voice , you save`d my brother, you banished   the life of one of the ancient ones , but with this master awoke  and my brother was back to 9 hells . Come to me and release me and i will tell you as much as i know to aid you in your cause .
Again the a huge painful scream erupts , and voice is gone , leaving pitch blackness and the gibbering sounds of demons below .

Things to note :  The Huge Black Rune giant not seen for an age .

After the Freeing the demon ERTU the character question him

The demons information as follows :

The ring of winter was forged in years gone by , it was forged by a mighty Rune-lord named Karzoug  he was the Rune lord of greed , his 6 brothers and sisters  each ruled a part of land , millennia ago , but what made Karzoug the most power full was his control of the  mighty giant lords  , Hill , Stone, fire , frost , Cloud and mighty Rune  , as his minions , these giant lords each had a lair . the ring of winter was a key to get into each , and also karzoug could utter a single word and bring the giant lords under his complete control. No body knows was sure how why the cataclysm that wiped out the rune lords happened , but some say it was the power of the crystal shard or maybe the elder gods .

The Black tower in water deep was the last place to know of the where about of the mighty ring , the current Black Hand of the tower , is Erlwin Rathmere , a dark mage of some repute , he may answer you questions for a price .

The White haired drow albino  is something i can answer yet , but know this the goddess Lloth and Tiamat are very interested in this drow , his power seems to rival that of god , but i sense he is in a weakened state.

Seek out Erlwin , if anyone can help it is he .

Now i must go and feed , the battle goes beyond this plane , but if we meet again , i cant offer you same courtesy , . .

With that he blinks from view .

An ancient chest is left with items for the characters

 

With increased monster  Activity and especially the giants , word has spread through the realm , of this increased activity , the white haired man still haunts your dreams most night , with his insane scribbles , he seems encased in an ice lair , an ancient darkness emanates from his very being . Sending out his team of Graea Hag Spy’s, some foul plot is a foot.

During that Evening a Huge bolt of energy fill the night sky, and fires from somewhere in the never winter wood, hitting directly into never winter – a sign from the gods or something more sinister .

On the road to Neverwinter – you meet a caravan traveling to Waterdeep – The Caravan leader Nev  invites the characters to join them – the news passing to the south is Neverwinter is ruins , and darkness grips the city , either some sort of sickness or foul  being . But the rumors are Rife. He also tell you of increased Giant activity and they just escaped a hill giant and bunch of hobgoblins and ogres,  A real filthy band of creatures who are hell bent on stealing food and kill farmers , they seem to be gathering provisions .

 

The Next day, the characters see the said band of creatures attacking a farm , they approach, a dark rider appears and calls out for the creatures to find out from the farmers where the ring of winter is hidden ? Blood lust takes over and the monsters attack, with that the rider disappears. A fight ensues and you save some of the farmers.

They question the local farmer leader and he says the only place he can think of is the old standing have strange runes on them.

Investigating the runes they start to glow and the dark  rider appears , when runes glow  purple they all recognize , they suddenly see (as if perception has changed ) in the distance see a strange island in the shape of a huge giant Skull  surrounded by  in a broiling lake of red and black .

The Dark Rider once again keeps his distance .

The Order of the Gauntlet is taking strides to deal wit the giant threat. The characters encounter a knight of the order mounted on a warhorse clad in chain mail barding . Lady Harriana Hawkwinter (LG female Chondathan knight of Helm) is a Waterdhavian noble and a champion of the god of watchfulness. She and her squire recently rescued a village of people left for dead in the middle of nowhere , they seemed dazed and confused, with a few mentioning dark elves.they  had been attacked by stone giants  by ogres and hobglobelins , which the characters in due course slay .

Lady Hawkwinter asks the characters to take the village  to the nearest settlement while she continues to follow the giants' path and search for other survivors. Sir Jordeth Tavilson (LN male Illuskan knight of Tyr), a believer in swift justice, has a gash in his armor and a broken lute strapped to his back. The lute belonged to his squire, who perished in a recent battle against ogres with strange  purple tattoo showing an strange eye .Jordeth managed to kill one ogre, but the other got away. The characters move north .

It has been many months since the lost mines of phandelvar , but the nightmare persisted , Woodchuck, Ulfar and renmear look into that huge eye, then suddenly a choking  feeling , the all the life being sucked from them , darkness , and then , a huge intake of breath , small read eyes, a handsome face frames with the silver white hair " Krenshinibon " it croaks in a dry voice , as ancient as the start of the world. The 30 grae hags   standing around , flinch at the name .

Then you wake in a cold sweat, it started every night , then every week and now only a few times every few month.As if the creature is moving further away .

The town of Phandalin has seen little change , Halia Thornton has returned with the death of the duergar smith , Ulfar now spends most of his time in deep conversations with Daran Edermath and the tattooed elven necromancer Hamun kost . the Graea coven shook ulfar to his core , and his church seeks answers .

Travelling to ancient library at Candle Keep on the sword coast , Ulfar and  Hamun Kost have worked out the ancient symbols on the ancient door are very old Giant Runes . When ulfar mentioned Krenshinabon to Kost , deep within the cellars of candle keep , brother Dirthol a blind aged monk shows them a most vile text written in the demon script , it explains the following .
Crenshinibon was a vile relic of immense power, a crystal shard that drew its magical energy from the light of the sun. Crenshinibon was a sentient artifact, and it possessed a never-ending hunger for power and glory at whatever cost; therefore, Crenshinibon was not a reasonable being. It always desired a powerful wielder, usually a corruptible magic-user of some sort, and greatly enhanced that wielder's powers. The Crystal Shard also insidiously manipulated its wielder and would readily abandon him or her for someone more capable of furthering its goals of ultimate conquest. The relic could lure in thousands of evil-intentioned beings with its magical call, creating a the mightiest of evil armies. It has been lost for thousands of years , but rumours have passed over many centuries , that a fragment of  key to crenshinbons hiding place was held by 5 giant lords deep within each ones lair  .

Meanwhile Elrath has been working closely with the harpers and Zhentarim as a duel spy, his inn is well known to be a source of information throughout the realm , and many come seeking it. He has become very close to sister Garelle, but she has now been missing for over a month and you have tried all your informants but have came up blank, your last chance is Halia thornton , she said she would help , the cost…. will be repaid at a later date , she tells you the Garelle was last seen in the ice wind dales at a town called Bryn shander , she is looking for a giant relic called the Volindod , but did not leave any word with you….. strange you think?



Rolling out 2 huge maps , Hamun Kost looks down at the 2 huge maps , and lights the candle , Elrath and Ulfar sit in shadow . I have had word from the Red Wizards of thay , says Hamun . The news is not good , it seems your red eyed man has been seen in the Reghed Glacier to the north , so the journey to Bryn shander with our esteemed warlock friend , could be a starting point ?

Elrath speaks of Garelle and it seems the untamed north  of the ice wind dale could further all of your causes .

Yes agrees ulfar ?