12.3 The Hammer's Heir

SESSION DATE: May 10, 2025
PRESENT: Rory, Kemurial, Lim Dul, Freya

Deep Dive

![[Rory - 12_3 The Hammer's Heir.wav]]

Adventure Photos

![[Hargrim Gives Kemurial Hammer of Fate.mp4]]

![[Viomencia Approaches.mp4]]

Adventure Song & Lyrics

![[The Hammer's Heir.mp3]]

[Verse 1]
We stood where the mountain still whispered of flame
Debating the weight of a long-forged name
The hammer lay silent, but not without voice
Its presence alone made us reckon our choice
Hargrim’s eyes held the past like a blade
Torn between roots and the future we made
And none of us spoke of what we might gain
Only who’d bear the burden, and carry the strain

[Chorus]
Raise not your hand for power or praise
The hammer remembers the silence it sways
One oath, one purpose, carved in the air
The world still waits for the Hammer’s Heir

[Verse 2]
Lim Dul spoke with the fire of men
Who've walked through ruin and won’t break again
The dwarves found space where grief could rest
While the skyship turned east to answer the west
Kemurial bowed, not to be crowned
But to carry the weight where it touches ground
He spoke not of glory, just honor and stone
And pledged to a path he’d never call his own

[Bridge]
Mist in the distance, a stillness like glass
Then a shadow that moved too fast to pass
Scales like midnight, eyes like stars
The gem dragon came from the wound in the dark
We rose with the wind, with spells and steel
And none could retreat, and none could kneel

[Chorus]
Raise not your hand for power or praise
The hammer remembers the silence it sways
One oath, one purpose, carved in the air
The world still waits for the Hammer’s Heir

[Solo]

[Verse 3]
Freya burned quiet, her magic refined
While Rory struck hard with a soldier’s mind
Lim Dul chanted, calm in the storm
And Karl lit the dark with a prayer, soft and warm
Kemurial soared on wings not his own
Each blow he struck was a prayer made in bone
And none sang a song, and none cried a cheer
But the sky bore witness to the Hammer’s Heir

[Chorus]
Raise not your hand for power or praise
The hammer remembers the silence it sways
One oath, one purpose, carved in the air
The world still waits for the Hammer’s Heir

[Chorus]
No promise of triumph, no fortune to spare
Just one more soul who chose to care
So here in the stillness, we offer a prayer—
Stand, if you must, as the Hammer’s Heir

World Anvil Journal

sooo... we tawk abowt wat were gonna tawk to the dorfth abowt to git tha hamer and im wike well ath wong ath the hamer ith on are thide then we shud be gud and it doethnt mater who hath it tho im gud with watevr they want. dum dum thayth we shud git the dorfth on the ship with uth and that thowndth gud to me to. hawgwim thayth theyl come with uth on tha ship and that he thinkth kimiweel shud weeld the hamer but kimiweel hath to pwomithe not to uthe it for pwide or thomethin but he hath to uthe it to oner the dorfth and heth wike yah okay i can do that.

tho the dorfth come with uth or at weetht all tha woneth that thurvivd the fite with the bawor and win we git on tha ship the dorfth tell uth we can by thingth fwom ther twesher twove tho we maik shur to thtok up on thtuff and even git thome thingth for dady karl. we by him thome new majic awmor and a sheeld and a majic wepin tho he can do more thtuff to help uth. the dorfth thay ther goin to thith pwathe cald karka kardin or thomethin but theyl taik uth wherevr we wanna go firtht tho we tawk to thoren at the glided iwon and git cot up on thtuff with them and we tell them evwything we thaw on thith twip and he thayth hell hav to tell uth waiter wath goin on down ther. we tell him were gonna go meat up with gortek and felikth and tho we athk the dorfth to taik uth to pwog tho we can meat up with them and they turn the ship to git their.

wile we r twavelin i thtawt twyin to weed that buk of ektherthithe and it tuk me a wile but i got thwu it. i can defnitwy tel a difwinth cuz i feel thtwonger now tho thath cool. win i wath dun with it i gaiv it bak to the dorfth tho they can uthe it agin thometiem.

we finawwy maik it owt of the caoth wathteth and the theenewy bewow uth ith a nithe chainge. their r thome pwatheth that are kinda foggy or mithty but the wetht of it wookth nithe.

but thin we here a bell wike befowe win we wath under atak tho we all git up to the top dek and shur nuff we thee thomethin comin in tha dithtanthe ITH A BIG BWUE JIM DWAGGIN UH OH. we git weddy to fite and it thtopth a good dithtanthe fwom tha ship and atakth uth fwom ther tho ith gonna be hawd to fite if we canth weech it. it utheth thome thuper powrful thtuff that wookth wike beemth or thomethin and it poithonth fwaya. well i cant weech it wite now tho all i got ith my cwothbo but ith mitheth tho i got nuthin but i gotta pwan. dady karl cathth thomethin on uth that maketh heewing ath gud ath it can git tho thath gud. fwaya heelth up and thin goeth invithibel tho now i cant thee wear she ith. dum dum and kimiweel cant hit the dwaggin eether tho they jutht wait for it to git cwother and kimiweel fwieth up. tha dwaggin twieth to thtay away but evinchuwy comethin cwothe nuff for uth to be abel to hit it. i pop owt my wingth and dwink a poshin of thpeed tho i can git ther fatht enuff and kimiweel doeth the thame thing and i awtho uthe miwow imaje. the dwaggin keepth uthin that beem and thtuff but win it geth cwother we thee ith got thith wike ora awownd it or thomethin. it doethnt theem to do n e thing win we go inthide it but thin it gitth bwiter and it ekthpwodeth and doeth a ton of damaje to dum dum and fwaya and dady karl and it awmoth kild dady karl but he wath abel to hang on bit thin the ora got thmawwer tho mabee ith not ath powrful now who nothe. im finawwy abel to maik it cwothe nuff to tha dwaggin to atak and i thwing and hit but thin the dwagginth ora gith bwiter agin and thith tiem it kinda hurth are mindth. i yeld to tha ship cwew to git on tha cannonth and the harpoonth if ther ith n e harpoonth but i dont no if they herd me. i cant thee fwaya but i can thee the thpellth theth cathtin and sheth doin her nowmal thtuff wike makin her fier wayth into athid and thtuff and she cathted a orb thing but the dwaggin theemth to be abel to shwug evwything off but hopefuwy it cant do that much mor. i thee dum dum heel up a bit and he wookth weddy to atak if it gitth cwothe enuff to him. thin kimiweel twieth to tell tha dwaggin to gwovle but it doethnt withen to him and thin he thwowth thome kinda majic box nektht to him and owt popth a gwiffin. wered he git that cuz thath kinda cool i never theen that befowe. and thin he cathth a burtht of thunder at tha dwaggin but it wookth wike it mitheth.

dwaugnir we weewy need ur help budy i no were fitin a dwaggin and mabee thath agintht wat u wud wike but we cant help it thith tiem pweethe help uth.

Private Notes

• We have a discussion on whether we should ask them for the Hammer of Fate, or if they should come with us with the Hammer of Fate. In any case, the hammer is the center of discussion.
• We come to the conclusion that it's best that we have the hammer than not, regardless of who wields it (one of the dwarves or one of us), as it proved to be such a useful weapon/tool in taking down the Chaos enemies and the Balor itself. Now we need to either convince Hargrim either to part with it, even if temporarily, to come with us himself to wield it in battle if necessary, or to pass it to another dwarf worthy of carrying it and using it.
• Lim Dul agrees that the dwarves that are left should get on the Spirit of Grugni and move out, but he also believes that Hargrim should join our party, simply for the purposes of wielding the hammer. Lim Dul tries to persuade Hargrim and the remaining dwarves to join us, saying that if they stay here, they will perish eventually as the Chaos horde is just too numerous and relentless. Hargrim agrees that the hammer should not remain idle, but he doesn't want to leave his people. Rory says they can come with us, but then Hargrim asks Kemurial if he'd be willing to wield the Hammer of Fate. Kemurial says it seemed to reject him when he used it yesterday. Hargrim says it's a miracle it didn't kill him outright. Kemurial says he'd be honored to try, but doesn't want to bring dishonor to their people. Hargrim says if he's willing to take up that honor, he'd compel Kemurial not to do anything to dishonor the dwarves, and do not carry it for glory and pride, but rather for honor and the fate of this world. Hargrim asks Kemurial for his oath and a bond on that promise. Kemurial gives his word that he'll use it exactly as intended, and for nothing more, or less.
• We discuss having as many of the surviving dwarves come with us back to the Spirit of Grugni. Hargrim says their intention was to retreat to Karak Kadrin, or Slayer's Keep. We have room on the ship for all the remaining survivors, which is around 30 of them. Karak Kadrin is a dwarven stronghold located in the World's Edge Mountains located far east of the main Westmarches map. It's one of the most populous dwarven kingdoms. It has been besieged countless times, but never fallen. It's the home of the so-called Slayer's Cult, but "cult" here is used lightly, more as an overzealous name. They are a clan of the ultimate dwarven warriors, who won't stop fighting until those who speak negatively of their kind are eradicated.
• The surviving dwarves come with us. Varek welcomes them all aboard, and Maleki pilots the ship outbound from Karag Dum. We decide to head toward Prague to meet up with Gotrek and Felix while using the Sending Stone to make contact with Soren at the Gilded Iron to catch up on things.
• While on our way back, the dwarves open up their treasure hoard to allow us to buy magical items from them.
• We take some time to find things to buy for Friar Karl. We end up buying him the following:
  • Enspelled Armor (Beacon of Hope, 3rd Level) - 4000g
  • Shield - 10g
  • Enspelled Weapon (Guiding Bolt, 1st Level) - 400g
• Rory asks how much time until we reach Prague on the airship. It'll be about 10 days travel time, so Rory sets aside enough time to studiously study the Manual of Gainful Exercise, which surprisingly he is able to do without issue. Woo! Rory then hands the manual back to the dwarves as it'll regain its magic in a century from now.
• Kemurial uses the Sending Stone to talk to Soren, reporting everything we've found since we last spoke. Soren asks if we have a new course of action. We tell him we're going to Prague to meet with Gotrek and Felix, and the Spirit of Grugni will continue to Karak Kadrin. Soren says we've caused a good amount of disruption on the Chaos force advancements in the west. He warns us that the Chaos force frontlines are mere days away from Prague and moving toward it, so we may end up caught in a siege soon. We ask for word on Castle Rend and the things going on there. He says he'll get in touch about that soon.
• We find ourselves flying over the lands on our way to Prague. The change of scenery is nice, but the Chaos influence has certainly grown noticeably.
• We're flying into a shroud of mist toward the southwest. As we're looking into it, the warning bell rings once again warning everyone onboard of an impending threat. We head to the ship's top deck as we watch a dragon approach the skyship. Preparations are being made by everyone onboard. When we reach the top deck, we see a large blue dragon making its way toward us. It's not just blue, though. It's a deep dark blue with gems growing out of it. INITIATIVE!!!

  • Round 1

    • Viomencia - Moves forward and uses its Beam Gaze power on Freya. Freya fails her Con save, uses a Luck point to reroll, but still fails. She takes a good amount of Force damage. The dragon then moves backwards a bit to keep its distance.
    • Rory - Rages, fires his crossbow, misses, then ducks behind a deck room for cover.
    • Friar Karl - Cast Beacon of Hope, run up to the ship's gunwale and drop down for total cover.
    • Freya - Drinks a Potion of Greater Healing, getting full healing from Beacon of Hope, then casts Greater Invisibility.
    • Lim Dul - Moves to the edge of the deck and begins chanting. He holds his action to attack if the dragon moves within his range.
    • Kemurial - Uses his boots to cast Haste on himself, flies up 60' using his cloak, then takes the Dodge action.

  • Round 2

    • Viomencia - Moves toward the airship, uses Beam Gaze power against Kemurial, doing a good chunk of damage and applying the poison condition.
    • Rory - Drinks Potion of Speed for Haste, cast Mirror Image on himself, then use Hasted action to fire crossbow, missing again.
    • Friar Karl - Casts Orison on Lim Dul and Kemurial, then stays in cover.
    • Freya - Asks for help on how to deal with a gem dragon, Kemurial responds saying this type of dragon is immune to fire and suggests using acid on it instead. Freya spends a sorcery point to transmute a Scorching Ray into Acid and casts it at the dragon. All three rays hit. Viomencia uses its Fortify power to gain resistance to this acid damage. Freya then quickens Eldritch Blast, and all three of those hit as well.
    • Lim Dul - Continues chanting and remains in cover.
    • Kemurial - Moves toward the rear house of the ship to gain total cover, uses Lay on Hands to rid himself of the Poisoned condition, then rolls a Cube of Summoning which results in a griffon coming out of it. Nice!

  • Round 3

    • Viomencia - Moves toward the ship, uses its Jaunt power to get a little closer, and she's radiating a field of energy around her. She uses her Exploding Aura power. Lim Dul and Freya make their saves, but Friar Karl fails. 52 Radiant damage or save for half! OOF! Lim Dul fails his chanting Concentration check. Immediately, her aura reduces in size by half.
    • Rory - Sprouts wings, flies toward and behind and attacks three times, hits twice, and the first hit causes her aura to pulse a wave of Psychic energy, which damaged everyone within her aura. Rory yells to the ship's crew to man the cannons and harpoons. At the end of Rory's turn, Viomencia uses a Villain Action called Utter Devastation. Everyone within 60' of her must choose to either lose half their remaining hit points, or have Disadvantage against her powers. Rory, Freya and Friar Karl choose to gain Disadvantage, and Lim Dul chooses to lose half his hit points.
    • Friar Karl - Heals himself.
    • Freya - Uses a spell scroll to cast Cure Wounds on herself, then quickens a Delerium Orb spell on the dragon. It rolls a Nat 20 on the save for half damage and uses the Fortify power again to gain Resistance to it. Everyone within her aura also takes some Psychic damage again.
    • Lim Dul - Quaffs a Potion of Superior Healing, taking max healing thanks to Beacon of Hope. He then readies an action to attack the dragon if it comes within 10' of the port side of the ship.
    • Kemurial - Moves forward a bit and casts a quickened Command on the dragon, commanding it to grovel. The dragon fails its Saving Throw, but uses a Legendary Resistance to succeed instead. He then continues his movement toward the dragon a bit, but stays just outside of her aura. He then casts a Sorcerous Burst at Viomencia, choosing the Thunder option, but it misses unfortunately.

That's it for this session! We'll pick up the fight next time at the start of Round 4.

Adventure Loot