The campaign begins (Day: Ogrus' Mercy 6) with five adventurers traveling to Timber Fall Hollow, each for their own reasons. They share a stagecoach from Algorand’s Crossing, settling in for the six-hour journey along the Old Timber Path. Small talk fades, and soon, each traveler drifts into their own thoughts—until a sudden yelp from their driver, Telly, shatters the quiet. A loud crash follows, and the coach lurches to a stop.
Rushing outside, the party finds themselves ambushed by eight kobolds, three of whom are manning a large cart-mounted ballista. Chaos erupts as the fight begins. Telly is struck by the ballista bolt and collapses, bleeding out. The party fights fiercely, cutting down the kobolds—all except for one, who manages to flee into the woods.
After the dust settles, they search the fallen kobolds. One had stolen Telly’s coin pouch, while the rest carried only poor-quality weapons and armor. The only worthwhile find is a single suit of chainmail and about 30 copper pieces.
While inspecting the kobolds’ ballista cart, Secrets-Thokein discovers a hidden compartment. Inside, he finds a rolled-up scroll—upon unrolling it, the group is met with a crude charcoal drawing of Costa. Puzzled by this, they take a moment to regroup before clearing the road of the felled tree and preparing to continue their journey.
Before they can leave, however, a distant scream pierces the air, followed by the glow of fire to the north. Acting quickly, Secrets-Thokein uses Speak with Animals to calm the horses, asking them to stay put while the group investigates. They sprint through the woods and find a small campsite ablaze. Near the fire lies the body of a young woman, recently slain.
As they investigate, they confirm that during her struggle, her tent caught fire, creating the smoke they had seen. Searching for tracks, they spot the fresh footprints of the kobold who escaped. The chase is on.
The trail leads them north until the kobold’s tracks suddenly stop. It appears he mounted a large creature—one with eight legs and a heavy gait. The party pursues but quickly realizes that whatever it is, it’s too fast to catch. Forced to abandon the chase, they return to the woman’s campsite, extinguish the fire, and head back to the waiting horses.
Relieved to find the animals still there, they resume their journey to Timberfall Hollow. After another hour and a half of travel, they finally reach the town gates.
At the gate, they are greeted by a tired, possibly drunk guard named Peabody. After a brief exchange, they manage to convince him to waive the gate fee, and they enter the town.
The first stop is the stable, where they leave the horses before heading to the The Lone Beacon, the local tavern. Inside, the atmosphere is quiet and tense. Behind the bar, Seraphina Thornbrook, the bartender, eyes them coldly. A lone town guard drowns his sorrows in ale, while three farmers huddle in a corner, deep in hushed conversation.
The adventurers procure drinks from an unamused Seraphina and take a table near the farmers. As they rest from their long journey, they overhear talk of a recent break-in at Redbraid Forge. The blacksmith, Calder Wainwright, is offering a generous reward to retrieve stolen goods. Though the farmers consider taking the job themselves, they quickly dismiss the idea, realizing the task is beyond them and it was the ale talking. Spotting the adventurers, they share what they know, believing the group is far better suited for the job.
With this lead in hand, the party retires for the night, ready to seek out Calder Wainwright in the morning.