It all started in the pub...

Sitting in the 'Giggling Goblin' tavern, Solstice, Jakkar, Artasia, Torban and Dandellion sat at their tables and looked around. Night was drawing in and the warmth of the tavern was a welcome change from the hardships of the road. As they gently supped their beverages, they saw most of the other patrons were just like them, weary travellers on the way to somewhere else. As Artasia finished her pint the young barmaid, Mara, smiled at her and asked if she needed another. Art nodded her thanks and Mara laughed at Art being so far 'into her cups'. Torban and Solstice noticed a group of four men drinking and laughing in the corner of the bar. Their easy manner with one another showed them to be friends, possibly ex-soldiers or sell swords. Morkan Fellkan, the tavern owner was in his mid 40's, his bald head and heavy set acting as proof of his love of good food and good ale. Solstice and Jakkar sought information about the temple they had investigated days before. Morkan shook his head slowly and said he'd heard of it, but didn't know anything, but that Balgan the cook might know something. As Balgan ambled out of the kitchen, unkempt hair on his heavy shoulders, it was obvious he was once powerfully built. Sitting with Solstice and Jakkar, he laughed a little when asked about the temple, saying he'd not be out that way in fifteen years. The last time had been to clear out some Kobolds who'd been there. As closing time approached, two men entered the tavern, one younger, one older. Solstice quickly recognised the younger man as Velkin Tarn, the secretary of a wealthy and trusted trader from Tagarten. As they settled at a table, talking quietly, Torban approached them. Sitting with them, the older man introduced himself as Gorvan Olforg, a merchant from Tagarten. As Solstice and Jakkar joined them, Solstice remembered his name and that he was known to a man of trust and honour in business deals. Velkin stood and announced to the other patrons that they were looking for a few 'stout types' to help guard their wagons on the way to Darabin. As they were joined by Art and Dandellion, Gorvan began to discuss why he needed such help. A recent caravan of his had been attacked on the way to Darabin, the wagoners killed. Gorvan felt it was incumbent on him to honour his deal with his good friend Khuzal Drakemane and deliver the promised goods to Darabin. Gorvan wouldn't be drawn on the precise contents of his four wagons, but promised the little group that there was nothing illegal on board and that they would be paid five gold each for their service. The deal agreed, the five adventurers retired to their respective rooms and slept until dawn. After waking they went down to breakfast, Balgan having prepared a hearty breakfast at the behest of Gorvan. Seeing the group of four men from the night before, they realise that Gorvan had obviously hired others as well. Assembling in the courtyard, Torban gained a seat on the front coach with Gorvan, Dandellion on the second. The group of four were polite, but kept to themselves as the party set off. As the carts slowly began the journey to Darabin, Torban chatted to Gorvan, asking him again about the contents of the wagons and finding no hint of deceit in the old man. The well travelled road and overcast weather making the journey far more bearable than some others had been, although Velkin was obviously not used to this kind of rough travel. As the evening began to close, Velkin indicated that the wagoners should find a place to camp for the night. Turning from the main track, the carts rumbled towards a clearing. As they approached, Torban and Dell caught sight of two horses and a rider lying in the clearing. As they cautiuously went forward, Torban's urge to help those in need overriding his caution, Art suddenly tensed and called a warning as she spied goblins in the woodland. As her shout went up, the goblins burst from the treeline and attacked. Art responded with a firebolt, taking a goblin from its feet as Torban charged forwards. Jakkar and Dell spread wide, launching arrow after arrow at the goblins. Dell's arrows found their mark quickly, slaying a goblin as it charged. Solstice called upon the powers of Tillar and thorned vines erupted from the ground, entangling two goblins. Assailed from both sides, Torban swung furiously as the goblins hit him, before Art dived forwards, unleashing a thunderous blast and knocking two goblins backwards. As a goblin returned his blow, wounding him, Torban unleashed a blast of divine energy, blasting the goblin head into paste. The goblin's companion fared no better, his body pulverised by divine magic. As shouts were heard from the rear of the wagons, Torban turned and began to run, too late realising his mistake as a goblin savagely put him down. Jakkar loosed an arrow into the creature, taking the beast in the throat as Torban collapsed. As Art and Dell forced the goblins back from Torban's body, killing two, Solstice threw herself at the last goblin, swinging her quarterstaff and crushing the greenskin's skull in. As they turned to help Torban, Velkin rushed forwards, clutching three healing drafts. Pouring one down the throat of Torban, the cleric returned from the brink of death. Velkin smiled as he gifted Torban with the remaining two potions, saying that he would perhaps be a better guardian for them than he. Hearing celebrations from behind them, they saw one of the other guards strutting up, shouting how they'd killed two goblins. He stopped in his tracks when he saw the eight dead goblins lying in the clearing, muttering a awe struck curse as he did so. Deciding to camp for the night, the group searched the goblin bodies, finding a small amount of coin on them, some arrows and a healing potion. As they cleared the bodies into the woodland, Torban examined the fallen rider and the horses. Seeing that this was some sort of messanger, he searched the man's saddle bag, finding a scroll case sealed with wax addressed to 'Khuzal Drakemane, Captain, Militia, Darabin'. Resolving to delivery this to its rightful recipient, Torban put the case into his pack unopened and the party settled down for the night. As dawn slowly broke, the party began to prepare for another day on the trail....
So after a short but bloody battle and the near death of a party member, the party has accumulated the following: 20 gold pieces 3 regular healing potions (2D4 +2 HP restored for each one used) 10 goblin short swords, 2 short bows and 10 sets of goblin leather armour (you know that these will not be worth much, but could be sold to a smith or armourer to be made into other things) A scroll case containing some form of message

As the group of travellers woke the encounter with the goblin raiders had put most of the party on edge. Gorvan and Velkin in particular, seemed worried. Whilst the day was bright and clear, the harm caused to the party, although light, played on everyone’s minds. Swiftly getting on the road, Torban again sat with Gorvan and passed the time in idle conversation while Jakkar acted as a lookout at the front of the little caravan. As the day passed, the mood lightened and the party began to relax. Rounding a corner in the road, they saw a lone figure and called a greeting. The young dwarven woman who replied stood beside the severed remains of two goblins. As Jakkar spoke to her, she explained that the foolish greenskins had attempted to kill her but had not reckoned on her skill with an axe. Introducing herself as Barbrunna Onyxgart, Torban wrinkled his nose, remembering the name of Onyxgart as one associated with the shame of her father. Worse still though was the reputation of her former hearth lord, Lord Gurnheryedd. A dwarf known for his brutality and desire to plunder the lands of those around his lands and a particular hatred for elf kind. Torban would get to know this young dwarf and determine the extent of her honour. The day passed slowly, but without further incident and as dusk approached, Gorvan instructed the caravan drivers to find a campsite. As Jakkar and Dandellion scouted the new campsite, they found nothing untoward and the party approached the campsite unmolested and begin to settle for the night. Circling the wagons, the guards set about preparing a meal and setting watches.
As Gorvan and Velkin sat down to discuss business and consult the waggoneers about how much of the journey remained, the guards sat with the party and begin to swap stories of past glories, insistently passing out the gamey horsemeat stew they had cooked along with wine and beer. As some of the party noticed that the guards had not touched their own food, Torban and Solstice suddenly keeled over. However, the moment of the guard's triumph was short lived as the rest of the party turned to them, fighting off the effects of the poisoned stew. Barbrunna seemed particularly unaffected, merely grinning as she unsheathed her grandmother's axe. Gorvan shouted out as two of the guards grabbed him and begin dragging him towards the forest. The bandits told the party to stay where they were, they just wanted the old man. Seeing the need for swift action, Art channeled her powers and snuffed out the fire, plunging the clearing into semi darkness. The human bandits stumbled slightly as they tried to drag Gorvan away, the darkness confounding their footing as Barbrunna charged the bandits by the fire. Jakkar and Dandellion loosed arrows at the bandits by Gorvan, narrowly missing the old man and felling the two bandits, just as Barbrunna buried her axe in a third bandit. The remaining bandit shouted out in surrender, hurling his sword away.
As the fire roared back to life, the remaining bandit was roughly tied up, while his comrades were searched. Besides weapons and a few coins, the only oddity found was a piece of parchment with strange scribbles on. The bandit's resolve held briefly under the questioning of the party, until Art expressed a deep desire to eat him. Seeing a member of demonkin licking her lips and considering which bit of him to eat first was too much for the young man and he eagerly blurted out that they'd used spider blight poison on them and that it should have killed them. Jakkar laughed at their stupidity. Spider blight poison was only deadly in neat form, diluting it in a stew would merely knock someone out for a long time.
Barbrunna began to strip the bandits for anything useful, as the party made Solstice and Torban comfortable. Seeing an opportunity, Dandellion suggested to Gorvan that a some additional fees might be in order for their efforts to save his life and he agreed to pay them for the bandits they had killed. As Solstice and Torban finally came round, Barbrunna related that she had found tattoos on two of the dead bandits and their live prisoner. Torban recognised the tattoo as that given to soldiers in one of the southern baronies. Their young prisoner reluctantly related that they'd been in one of the southern armies, but been sell swords ever since. He said that his comrades were in some caves, about two hours walk into the woodland near the clearing. The band of theives consisted of a number of humans and goblins led by a brutal human bandit who he'd once seen beat a man to death for disagreeing with him. Deciding to continue on to Darabin at the first chance, the party settled down for the night and rested.
The following morning, quiet conversations took place between the little group. As a consensus was reached, they decided that they would try and secret the prisoner in Darabin and find out more about him. Torban volunteered to talk to Gorvan with their proposal. Gorvan assured Torban that he could not go along with their plan. Khuzal Drakemane, the captain of Darabin, was an old and trusted friend and to deceive him was not something Gorvan would do. Scratching his beard, Gorvan proposed that he would speak to Khuzal and call in a favour. He was as eager as anyone to know why he might have been targetting by the bandits. Hopefully it was just because he was rich, but if it was more sinister, he would like to know, so he agreed that he would convince Khuzal to commute the death sentence for banditry to hard labour.
As the caravan entered Darabin, they saw that is was a small town, surrounded by a stout wooden pallisade and many defences. It was obviously a town used to threats and danger. The stout dwarf who strode from the barracks was intimidating even for a dwarf, especially an unarmoured dwarf. His manner was brusque, language blunt as he and Gorvan talked. Unhappy at the deal which had been struck, Khuzal still agreed that the young bandit would be subject to hard labour. Torban handed him the scroll the party had retrieved from the dead message rider. Seeing the seal on the scroll case unbroken, he nodded approvingly. When Dandellion asked him what was on the scroll, Khuzal simply said he'd tell them if it concerned them. Khuzal said he could spare no men to deal with the bandits, but that they would need dealing with, so he suggested that Gorvan's new friend's could take on the challenge, in return for any loot they found in the caves for which an owner couldn't be found. Agreeing to the deal, the party sought refuge for the night, with a promise from Gorvan that he would give them a wagon and drivers to take them back to the clearing. Torban and Dandellion enquired as to whether other travellers had been attacked or gone missing. Khuzal thought carefully and said that he didn't believe in coincidences, so yes, he thought that the disappearance of a father and daughter further up the trail could be related. Their wagon and some belongings had been found a week or so before, the girl's mother and some other workers slain. Of the father and daughter, no sign was found.
Later that night, Art found Gorvan in the town hall and spoke to him. Smiling at the young teifling, he expressed his gratitude for their rescue of him and Velkin from both the goblins and the bandits. Pulling a tarpaulin back, he showed her a strongbox which he had buried deep on one of the wagons. The party had the gratitude of the town, for the money in the strongbox was to pay to help build the town further and paying the militia who guard it. Handing Art a bag of coins, he told her she and her friends would always be welcome at his home in Tagarten and should visit him whenever they wished. Returning to the rest of the party, Art counted out the 90GP they had been given.
Boarding the wagon the next day, they swiftly returned to the clearing where the bandits had tried to take them. Passing the piece of parchment they had found to Dandellion, he smiled and told them it was thieves cant, a set of secret directions to follow to the enemy camp. Showing Jakkar the first symbol, they quickly found a tree marked with the symbol and began to follow the path. Finally reaching a gentle slope in the forest they crested the rise looked down into a small valley, the vague outline of a cave visible behind some bushes....