After emerging from Jiub’s ethereal manor, Athropos, the fellowship wasted no time in continuing their trek northward towards Greyfell, and into the waiting jaws of Eshrokk’s minions. Mounting their wagons, they set forth through a mounting blanket of fog which obscured the trail, and slowed their travel. As they wound their way along the aged and root-strewn path, the horses of the lead wagon caught the scent of something foul, and halted their advance - Turi, who was roving ahead of the wagon train, was joined by a hesitant Charax in the work of searching out the source of the odor. With their vision so obscured, the two happened upon a corpse along the side of the pathway - which Turi found to be trapped. The foul body was rigged to burst with crude, offal-covered spikes - a few of which spiked Turi, though the dwarf shrugged off the wounds. An hour or so later, the party encountered another corpse - seemingly human - hanging from the low tree cover. The unfortunate was strung up low enough that they had to be moved in order for the wagons to progress - Torgren managed to shoot the rope out, while Brutogg was given the task of dragging the potentially booby-trapped body into the woods. No trap was sprung, and the party ventured on.

Late in the afternoon, the wagon train found themselves approaching what they all knew to be the clearing in which sits Greyfell Manor - scant, grey light could be seen offering a weak glow ahead on the path, and the faint burble of flowing water could be heard filtering through the trees. The wagons were parked to one side of the path, and a scouting party was formed consisting of Sindri, Torgren, and Charax - accompanied by Copper, who Turi would be using as a vessel for his beast sense ritual. With the ritual complete, the scouts ventured ahead while the rest of the party took up positions to defend the wagons, and the vulnerable Barbarian.

The scouting party crept towards Greyfell Manor under the cover of dusk, hugging the winding wagon run with Copper, and by extension Turi, keeping watch from the air. As they approached, it became immediately obvious that kobolds and Draconians occupied the keep. Kobolds could be seen squabbling and struggling to keep their attention on sentry duty around the near side of the broken bridge - Torgren moved forward and took out the first kobold sentry with silent effeciency, while Charax and Sindri slid along the woodline, maneuvering for a better position. Sindri found the perfect spot and managed to spy a kobold on the watchtower, loosing a characteristically fatal arrow and skewering the creature - the body was launched off of the tower however, and almost landed in the nearby river, catching the attention of a pair of nearby kobolds lurking on the other side of a wrecked wagon. Torgren quickly intercepted and dispatched them. Through Copper's eyes, Turi watched as the group hunkered into their positions, absorbing as much intelligence as possible from their vantage points.

Sindri climbed the watchtower to get a better view of the situation, her elven eyes scanning the interior of the manor. From her vantage, she spotted a pair of iron cages in the courtyard, occupied by small shapes she couldn't quite identify through the gloom and fog. She also spied another troop of kobolds and a Draconian slaver loitering around - seemingly unaware of the scouts. As she cast her gaze around, she also noticed strange torches planted in the ground, illuminating a pathway leading north from the manor. These torches shed an eerie green glow that seemed to pulse with an otherworldly light.

Just as Sindri was about to clamber down from the watchtower, an enormous Draconian Juggernaut lumbered into the manor through the break in the northern wall - this was a creature none of them had encountered before, and left the scouts with a growing sense of dread; clearly, Dagoth had been perfecting his vile work. The party remained unseen, and the juggernaut sauntered northward again and out of sight of the keep - clearly, that northern path led towards the heart of Dagoth’s lair.

Leaving the tower, Sindri found herself rummaging through the wreckage of the broken wagon on their side of the river. Amidst the debris, she discovered trail rations (which curiously consisted of fatty nuts, dried fruit, and cheese - no meat) and two small chests of neatly bundled crossbow bolts, bearing a mark which Torgren identified as belonging to the engineers guild and school in Hardbuckle. Sindri also pointed out what looked to be "little shrieker" mushrooms on the far side of the river, which screamed like a human when any man-sized creatures unknown to them passed within ten feet or so.

The group took one last look around, and ventured back towards their comrades at the wagons. Reconvening there under cover of darkness, a rough plan was hatched - maneuver the ballista wagon into view of the manor, and utilize the little shrieker mushrooms to lure any occupants out fo their fortification. Once the Draconians have ventured out of their lair, the party would bombard them with spells, ranged attacks, and the ballista - hopefully ending the confrontation swiftly, and allowing them some time to navigate the broken bridge in relative peace. The ballista would likely be key in dealing with the new breed of draconian spied by the scouts, and this would prove a fine test for the groups’ war wagon...

The view of Greyfell - scouted by Sindri, Torgren, and Charax (as well as Copper-Turi), and reported back to the fellowship.

Defeated: A handful of Kobolds, a booby-trapped corpse (just absorbed by Turi), a hanging non-booby-trapped corpse (tag-teamed by Torgren and Brutogg)

Characters met: Draconian Juggernaut (introductions pending)

Acquired: 45 crossbow bolts, a few days’ trail rations, the satisfaction of watching a Kobold be swept downriver

Quests: Track and dispatch of Dagoth and Eshrokk (tracking 90%, dispatching 0%)