Thunderhead Rising

Four Horsemen Clarksburg

MEGADUNGEON
 Black is the day when Captains of the Inner
Sea be bested by the likes of that blue devil
Thundermaw. Many a ship weve lost and many a
friend and crew mate met an ignominious end at
the bottom of the Blacking Deep.
Rise up brothers and sisters of the of the
oceans swell and take back what be yours. Be
ye Reaver, Rouge or Royal Marine band together
now to end the tyrannical reign of that black
hearted stinking tar stain.
You have been ship wrecked!
You and your crews have been set adrift on
this swamp infested, insect ridden, diseased
wracked island. Once at each others throats vying
for plunder and the rule of the open seaways. The
other side of the Doubloon pirate hunters and
privateers of the Red Order sworn to tear the
heart out of the Dread Isle inhabitants and all
who truck or trade with them.
You must forget all the bitter hatreds and
petty rivalries to put and end the rapacious Wyrm
that eats away the heart of our Sea home and
destroys all who it thinks weaker that itself.
The wretched, thunder spewing midden spawn of
a rot filled gutter harlot deserves to die.
Each of you have survived the attack you your
individual ships and have found the only
sanctuary from the Lizardman patrols and their
hunter beasts. It is a small coral caves forced up
from the ocean floor long ago by violent volcanic
upheavals that formed this small island chain.
From boiling clouds it came. Sweeping down
without warning without cause bringing ruin and
fire at its beck and call.
Razing lighting strikes rained down upon deck
and rigging burning gouges and setting your
tattered sails alite fluttering in the starless night
sky.
Bravely you stood against raking talons, razor
sharp teeth and buffeting wings selling your lives
dearly, but to no avail. After destroying the main
mast the beast landed heavily upon the burning
deck. Taking its spear length claw it ripped into
the deck like a green grocer into an overripe
melon. Gutting the ship tearing into the lower
decks it ignited powder stores, barely flinching at
the massive, explosion the blue beast dug further
and further. Shredding timber and steel as if it
were a child breaking kindling sticks till finding
its ultimate goal. The ships locker filled to the
brim with stolen gold, jewels and artifacts hard
won by the crew. Seizing the huge chests in
clawed hands the monster hunkered down and
folded its wings back. It laughed. A laugh that
would crush the soul of the stoutest heart then,
smiling as only a dragon can, it launched itself
back into the pitch black sky.
The belly of the ship lay open like a
butchered whale taking on water quickly
quenching the deck fires. The flames gutter out as
the ship slowly slips under the waves. As a final
insult the demon beast wheels tightly and turns
back to the sinking debris that was once a proud
sailing vessel makes one final strafing run
spewing lightning from its distended gaping
maw gleefully burning survivors as they tried to
swim away from the wreckage. A nimbus halo of
crackling energy trailed along as it disappeared
into the storming night.
You find yourselves sodden to the core, cold
and shivering. you summon the last iota of your
depleted strength and pull yourselves free of the
turbulent surf. Inch by agonizing inch you crawl
across the sand just grateful of not having to fight
the oceans fury. Your minds clutch at the truth,
although alive where has fate deposited you and
your crew mates. The storm rages on unabated
overhead. A sudden realization strikes you like a
weighted belaying pin, you smell smoke from a
wood fire! SALVATION! Your numb battle
weary limbs refuse to obey you. Force of will is
the only thing keeping you going towards the
dancing flames just visible through the dense
jungle vegetation. You faintly aware of those
poor souls that have been cast up here with you.
Too exhausted to even speak you continue
onwards, the hope of warmth and shelter the only
thought penetrating the fog of pain and fatigue.
On hands and knees you struggled forward. A
worn jungle path eases your arduous progress
past the sharp cutting vegetation and tangling
vines. After what seems like hours you finally
reached your goal a volcanic cave mouth. The
simple joy of warmth and shelter penetrates your
persecuted psyche urging you forward towards
the blazing fire that lyes within.
Completely spent you drop to your knees and
crawl to the center of the cave and collapse in a
heap by the warming fire. If this be hell, you
think to yourself at least its warm before around the fire and the dwarf slowly lowers
unconsciousness overtakes you. You awoke with
a start! You felt your face and limbs to make sure
all are whole and intact and you stared dumbly
about trying to get you heading. How much time
had passed before you awoke you could not say.
The fire roared still and your clothing had not
dried much, but much of the fatigue and pain had
left you. Propping yourself up on a log you scan
the cave through blurry salt crusted eyes. There,
lying about the cave are a half dozen beings
scattered about the sandy floor. A few stirring
you recognize immediately. With the suddenness
of a adder strike you realize that most of the
beings that followed you into the cave are NOT
your crew and you have never before laid eyes on
them! With a swiftness born of a thousand land
and sea battles you leapt to your feet brandishing
the remnants of your broken sword somehow still
had clutched in your bloodied hand. In unison as
if some perverse puppeteer had yanked the strings
of all his marionettes upright all at once. To a
man, woman and whatever else that were counted
counted amongst them drew what pitiful arms
they had left to them and struck a defensive
stance ready for a certain and immediate attack. A
rasping cough started the lot. As one they turned
to an previously unnoticed seated figure slumped
upon a log. A wheezing wet cough escaped
between gritted teeth. Ye damnable fools aint
ye seen enough killen fer one blessed day And
enormously stout green clad dwarf sputtered
through a shining braided black beard. Clutching
his finely embroidered greatcoat festooned with
brass skull buttons with one hand he brought to
bear a Dwarven hand cannon leveled at the
group. Unless ye wanta meet the rest of yer
friends in the afterlife I be suggestin ya lay to
and lower yer weapons!! After a few painful
moments of deliberation you lower your sword
and the rest of the survivors follow suite.
The Dwarf was of middling years for his race,
scant over the 200 year mark but his face, lined
with grief and worry lines gave him the hard
looks of someone well beyond his years.
The dwarf took a moment to survey the lot and
spoke in a low grumble IN er Out!, Make up yer
bleedin minds, yer lettin the bugs in. Bewildered
at the dwarfs ranting you slowly make your way
further into the cave.. You form a semicircle
himself back down upon the log from which rose
earlier. Sweat is visibly rolling down his forehead
and face the strain of moving showing in the
halting movements of his sturdy frame. Dropping
the weapon between his knees the dwarf reaches
inside his greatcoat and produces a brass flask, he
head and face of a dragon inscribed on surface
reflects the light dully back as he lifts it to his lips
and takes a mighty pull. Wiping his mouth on his
coat he shivers slightly and drops the flask next to
the hand cannon. Through clenched teeth he
begins to speak again, his words strangely
echoing in the cave.I charge ye all with a quest
he coughs out. A quest to bring down the
personification of the Devil Himself the evil blue
bastard know as Thundermaw! He said his
voice rising to a boom in the confines of the cave,
When he began to speak again his voice took on
an eerie metallic tinge, ye have been put here by
the providence of the gods, ye are the last of yer
crews that that sniffling son of a sea daemon
either killed outright er sent the the bottom in a
watery grave. I task you with his destruction
he said as his voice seemed to get louder but
seem far far away like a distant light tower. You
have to destroy the temple here and rid this aisle
of the accursed Lizard Folk that worship that
slimy Wyrm as a god he gained momentum as
he raged on. Steal the Silver conch that they call
the great Yer Taell from the depths to carry them
with sacrifices AND FOOD FOR THEIR
DAMNABLE MASTER! He looks each and
every one of the survivors staring deeply into
your eyes. His amber eyes boring into your very
soul weighing, measuring, seeing you at your best
assessing you at your worst. Your vision blurs
your limbs give way and you spiral downward
into unconsciousness.

Clothing still damp from the previous nights

ordeal you slowly awaken. The call of jungle
birds and the buzzing of insects fills your ears as
well as the wind rustling thought the dense
canopy of vegetation. Blinking away the dried
sea salt and sleep from your eyes you look about
the cave. You notice that the fire has gone
completely out and the Dwarf is gone. You
survey your fellows and get to your feet To your
surprise you feel incredible. You look down
expecting to see a battered body, torn and
abraded hands to see every thing but your torn
and tattered clothing is whole and unblemished.
You cast about to find a small cache supplies,
food, water and survival gear. You ask one
another again and again to make sure you were
not dreaming the events of the last few days but
lo and behold you are here and the daunting
quest that lies before you beckons

Introductions: characters.

Exploration:.

Cave of shadows:
The jungle proper
Staring at stegadons
Skinks skinks and more skinks
The beach
Drums in the deep (jungle that is)