"Do whatever you want, I don't really care." She goes back to her book.

Josephia weighs in, "you two should get along better if you expect to kill a dragon. Teamwork is a very powerful tool."



"We get along fine, don't worry about it. It doesn't matter anyway."



"You're right, it won't matter when you're dead."

"Jokes on you, I'm a cursed immortal cyborg."

Josephia starts playing her lute, "Ashley the undying, won't die for not trying, she's curse in her body and mind..." Lute strums a delicate and upbeat tune.



"I think it matters a lot anyway, we care about you girls, we want 4 dragonslayers back here not 2 immortals and a bucket of ash."

"Haven't you ever heard of plot armor?"

Josephia laughs, "Not every death can be reversed, but you're right, a good story matters more than petty mortality, in that we can agree. At least you won't be cowering when the time comes, tough girl."

"Freya, can you reenact the encounter?" Quagg yells as his table full of drunken half-orc companions laugh heartily.
Seconds later he's drenched in alcohol and lit ablaze in a cool blue flame... as his table full of drunken half-orc companions laugh heartily.

Yulya looks at the savage behavior with a mixture of fear and disdain glad her party has nothing to do with such people

Freya glances to Alice then back to Yulya
"In all seriousness darling, I must insist you take that sort of thing elsewhere and only use these facilities for cooking edible things. However, once you're outside the city limits, there are no restrictions on what you do at your own campfire."

Yulya sighs
I am just glad I asked before those geniuses started making a fire in their room.

But I agree we have no time to waste. Who knows how peaceful our rest time will be and what hardships we may encounter. I like to check that everything works before we head out. So we can still buy additional items if needed. So please Alice and Cat head out and try to produce at least a few poisoned arrows!

"What's the rush? Aren't we killing a spider first?

Yulya scratches her head
There she goes again with the giant spider...
How and why do you know there will be a spider at the mine Ashley? Sir Gundrens brothers certainly did not. Only that something unnatural was going on there. I rather expected undead though I cannot say what would be worse.

Josephia weighs in, "you two should get along better if you expect to kill a dragon. Teamwork is a very powerful tool."

Yulya is glad about Josephias support but ashamed as this would be her job as Peace Cleric. She turns to Alice and Ashley in a somewhat helpless attempt touching them on their shoulders
Please dont fight! We have enough troubles already!

"If Cat's going I'm going."

That's the spirit!
I already wanted to ask if you can't learn your spell while walking. Who knows if we might need someone to negotiate - or a mass spam of summons? I like it better if we don't split up. Right, Yulya?

"Come on, big spider mural, goblins, then the goblins involvement in the mine, gotta be a big spider. It's just a guess though, I really don't know."

I don't really see the connection but I'd rather fight goblins and spiders than incorporeal undead. I can't do much against enemies immune against physical attacks.

"Who's fighting, we're just talking. If we were fighting she'd be Apathetic or have a serious wasp sting by now." Ashley smirks and pats Yulya on the head.

Yeah yeah.
Keep your wasps for the trade guild! From that distance I'd have you restrained before you can summon anything!

Freya shows up with dinner, several delectable things in fact, she sets a hunk of well marbled meat in front of Alice with cider, she has a smattering of bread, meat, fruit, sauses and cider for Cat , for Yulya she brings vegetable stew, soft warm bread, and cider, and for Ashley she's made a delectable looking sandwich with cider.

Alice stares at Ashley's 'sandwich' while cutting pieces from her hunk of meat
Oh wow that's huge!
And I was wondering if you only wanted a light snack...

Very well I would also prefer if we all go together!

Freya shows up with dinner, several delectable things in fact, she sets a hunk of well marbled meat in front of Alice with cider, she has a smattering of bread, meat, fruit, sauses and cider for Cat , for Yulya she brings vegetable stew, soft warm bread, and cider, and for Ashley she's made a delectable looking sandwich with cider.

"If anyone needs anything else, please let me know."

Yulya gives her vegetable stew a sad look then glances at the meat dishes the others received.
I may be a Peace Cleric but that doesnt mean I am a vegetarian. Clearly I must have committed grave sins in my past lives...

Yulya sighs and starts chewing on her vegetables

As your chatting away you fail to notice an extremely large man step up to the table.

"I heard you wanted to talk Dragons," His voice booms.



"How's my favorite adventurers? Off to fight a dragon already? And not even silver?" He laughs heartily, "I admire that adventurous spirit, the hubris, and gall of it. What makes you think you're ready to fight a dragon?"

"It's just a white dragon, no biggie." Ashley says without making eye contact.

"Well, little miss, you're certainly fearless, you'll need that. So then my beloved Freya mentioned you might stop by but I couldn't wait, this is too much fun. I figured I should come and give you some pointers." He pats Cat's shoulders, "Here's your champion, her rage will be a big benefit, extra damage, and extra tough not to mention the buff she can generate for the other front liner. Get her right up there and hitting big, pin him down. Yes, certainly do that. Good to see you again Cat." He smiles like a broken mirror, but in a kindly way, then points to Alice with a wink, "Now the monk will want to grapple, yes even a dragon can be grappled and that'll also keep him from breathing on you, and believe me, you don't want that, keep doing it, keep him wanting to waste moves trying to get you off all the while needling him with hits, preferably ones that cut and wound if you can."

Brutus is talking about jagged weapons, you don't have them, but you do have poison soon which can only benefit piercing and slashing weapons.

"About that breath, spread out, don't give him an opportunity to breath on more than one at a time. Dragons also love to fly up where you can't reach them and that won't stop them from breathing on you, so keeping him grounded is a priority, if you have a mage, get web scrolls, that'll keep him down and if you had a druid, then entangle or other spells to keep this beast rooted, if you can get to him while he's sleeping, even better, set up physical barriers, chain him if you can." He stroked his beard thinking.

"Grœt"

Another familiar face waddles around the massive barbarian.



"You weren't there Grœt," Brutus pulls his plate up. "That claw over in that glass case against the wall, that was the hand of the beast that did this." He points to his face, and the lines of the scars do make sense now.



"Grœt"

Brutus laughs, "Alright go ahead."

The frog headed creature seemingly incapable of any sentient form of communication looks directly at Yulya, a flash of divine light shines in his eyes.

"Grœt"

He's cast some unknown spell, and in that moment, she was given a mind blast of the known weaknesses of dragons, the information was vast and varied and took no more than a half second to convey.

Grœt has magically conveyed to Yulya the following knowledge that can be used only three times and only once per turn, for one dragon: She may give anyone who can hear her a known weakness of the dragon. That person or creature will have a +5 attack and +3 damage this turn for melee, ranged, or ranged spell attack. This can be done as a free action. If directed at Ashley, any of her summons will benefit. The creature must understand the language she's speaking. After three occurrences the spell will fade.   
 
"Huh, never knew that, didn't need it." Brutus said in response. "Go on and hit me with your questions, it was a while back, but I know I can think of something else."

[Responses required]

Man, it's hot in here!
Alice packs her wofl cloak into her backpack again, then continues eating

As your chatting away you fail to notice an extremely large man step up to the table.
Alice waves with her fork, another large chunk of meat on it

Oh, hello Brutus! How convenient! We've got the expert here now!

"How's my favorite adventurers? Off to fight a dragon already? And not even silver?" He laughs heartily, "I admire that adventurous spirit, the hubris, and gall of it. What makes you think you're ready to fight a dragon?"

Alice grins eerily
Well, to give you even more to laugh, a little girl gave us that quest...
You know Summer of Leilon? Probably not. Some runaway royalty kid, packed to the brim with magic items. I assume she wants that same tag you got. You know those people...
No idea why she didn't ask you for help but us. Said she needed heroes. She must be crazy.

He smiles like a broken mirror, but in a kindly way, then points to Alice with a wink, "Now the monk will want to grapple, yes even a dragon can be grappled and that'll also keep him from breathing on you, and believe me, you don't want that, keep doing it, keep him wanting to waste moves trying to get you off all the while needling him with hits, preferably ones that cut and wound if you can."

Alice's jaw literally drops to the table
You want me to do whaaat?
Grapple a dragon?
That's even more insane than trying to poison it with a bait! Even if I could wrap myself around his mouth, my strength is abysmal and it would just scrape me off with its claws like a cat trying to remove a collar!

"About that breath, spread out, don't give him an opportunity to breath on more than one at a time. Dragons also love to fly up where you can't reach them and that won't stop them from breathing on you, so keeping him grounded is a priority

Yeah we already had that with that green wyrmling and it sucks. And in combination with flying, that breathing is even more annoying. What does its breath even do? Freeze i suppose. Just great. There's nothing I'm more vulnerable against than cold. If that thing gets me once I'm a goner!

if you have a mage, get web scrolls, that'll keep him down and if you had a druid, then entangle or other spells to keep this beast rooted...

I have a net!
Alice takes her net out of her backpack
Catching a dragon with a net fits nicely into the other insane ideas.

if you can get to him while he's sleeping, even better, set up physical barriers, chain him if you can." He stroked his beard thinking.

Yeah, filling his nostrils with poison while he's sleeping would be best. And tying his shoelaces together I mean chaining his feet. How about digging a hole and hoping he falls into it?

"Grœt"
Another familiar face waddles around the massive barbarian.

Alice laughs at the funny creature
Ah the comedian!
Nice seeing you again!

The frog headed creature seemingly incapable of any sentient form of communication looks directly at Yulya, a flash of divine light shines in his eyes.
"Grœt"

Alice applauds the show, hoping that Yulya will turn into a bunny or dove. Or frog.

"Go on and hit me with your questions, it was a while back, but I know I can think of something else."

Alice thinks for a moment
How many people were with you when you fought that dragon and how many of them died?

Good God I did not hear you coming Sir Brutus!

"Stealth is an unfair advantage, use every advantage you can. If even someone as large as me can sneak up on four wary adventurers, then sneaking up on an unaware dragon is trivial."

But how do you fix a chain Nya? Can't tie a knot into it Nya. A lock Nya or manacles Nya?

Brutus smiled genuinely, "That's it, and a rope can also work though they'll get out of it easier and if you can't lock it down by a heavy anchor, a cart even, chain a wing to a leg so it can't fly, but that's only if it's sleeping, but they're notorious for sleeping for days after a big meal. Wait him out, time is on your side."

Nyaa what's a white dragon's general weakness Nya? Fire Nya?

Brutus thinks, "I presume it might be weak to fire. The dragon I fought was an adult red dragon, and I was told later that he was likely weak to cold, so it figures."

Nyaa I know Nya not the most honorable way Nya but I need to help my friends Nya they're not strong fighters Nya we all aren't compared to you Nya! What dragon was it Nya?

He laughed, "there's no lack of honor in battle, not for barbarians anyway, the thrill of combat, the chaos and brutality of battle leaves no room for honor, you could say valor is how we're measured. Don't expect him to hold back or be honorable, chromatic dragons have no honor or valor, only hubris and arrogance."

You were Silver when you fought the dragon Nya?

"Silver? Oh ho ho no. I was vying for gold, aiming for a miracle and that miracle would be to save a town from destruction by this beast. The monster was insidious, he toyed with them, asked for sacrifices and played with his victims. By the time I got there, prayer was all they had left, they were starving and menaced, they'd given everything to this demon on scaly wings, he'd burned their fields and many of their homes. The miracle was that anyone could stop him before they all perished from his insatiable blood lust. Red dragons are known for their cruelty, and he was an adult red dragon with hundreds of years of evil acts under his belt."

You look at the massive claw again and can imagine that striking his face yet he tanked it. The scars did not look fresh, it must have been years ago.

"The town did not survive, there wasn't much but a charred forest and burned fields, but many of the people did, and I helped them relocate."



Kessandra Lacewing, his final party member, arrived and smiled as she posed as if displaying him, "They called him Saint Brutus for a while, erected a statue of him on the spot, but that town also failed, many of them came here, others found refuge in smaller settlements. The statue is still out there in the ruins somewhere. I wish I had been there."

Brutus laughed, "It was ridiculous title." Then he sobered, "and yes, unwalled towns are always going to be vulnerable without high level adventurers there to protect them until they can afford a garrison full of guards."

Alice listened patiently then peppered him with questions,

You know Summer of Leilon? Probably not. Some runaway royalty kid, packed to the brim with magic items. I assume she wants that same tag you got. You know those people...
No idea why she didn't ask you for help but us. Said she needed heroes. She must be crazy.

...we were somehow dragged into this by Summer as Alice said...

"Only rumors of her and yes, the title is sought after but frankly there were a lot more of us at the end of the last flight of dragons."

You want me to do grapple a dragon?

He took a proud stance, "Someone has to and why not? If he takes to the air, you go with him, attacking him as he goes, of course that's a dangerous prospect and to help I had trained hard in grappling, and with rage, well, falling from high places isn't that much of a worry, just avoid them crushing you."

That's even more insane than trying to poison it with a bait! Even if I could wrap myself around his mouth, my strength is abysmal and it would just scrape me off with its claws like a cat trying to remove a collar!

"My dragon was large, but not very agile, so holding on wasn't an issue, I stayed on it's back, holding on to horns and wings, he wasn't easily able to hit me, but I had free access to smash him over and over. My strength was my tool to stay on, for you it could be prowess with acrobatics to avoid his grasp."

[5e Rules allow Acrobatics or Athletics to resist the grapple and it's only fair to allow either to hold the grapple as well.]

What does its breath even do? Freeze i suppose

"I would think so, yes," Brutus said.

Kessandra chimed in, "Yes, white is frost, red is fire."

If that thing gets me once I'm a goner!

"Defense, parry, try to misdirect and use everything you can," he countered.

How about digging a hole and hoping he falls into it?

"Many dragons are great diggers, that probably wouldn't be effective as long as his claws are intact."

How many people were with you when you fought that dragon and how many of them died?

Tell us about it Nya!

You are certainly right we must avoid its breath and keep it grounded. Though I am not sure I can work with scrolls or if we can afford them. I want to hear your dragon story as well Sir Brutus!

Brutus' eyes flashed, "They called me crazy of course, I needed a mage or druid, and none would commit to helping me, so I was alone. Having a mage with invisibility, dispel, counterspell, web, or a druid with Mask of the Wild, earth bind, spike growth and entangle would have helped a lot and they wouldn't need to fight directly. None would listen."

"There's no dishonor in a Barbarian's heart, only the thrill of the battle, and fleeing is no cowardly act, it's a strategy. I had dug many tunnels and spider holes and I made magnesium tipped arrows, once lit it could cause a blinding light, so he never saw where I went or where I would pop up."

My main fear literally it the dragons terrifying presence. I think we encountered it once at the rest stop. I was so terrified I could not move - not do anything. So I think we must also avoid its gaze. At least me I am not as fearless as Ashley.

"I don't think he even needs to look at you, rather his presence is enough, I had prepared myself, watched him from the shadows for many days, setting my traps and digging my holes, by the time I had to face him, as terrifying as he was, he was just another foe to me."

Moreover we are fighting a White Dragon in its domain - a snow covered mountain. It will feel perfectly comfortable there while we will be struggling with the cold and the rough terrain. I am not even sure we can reach this place in the current climate.

Brutus' voice was deep and grim, "I can't say I had to fight a red dragon in a field of brimstone, but he had charred the land terribly, he took pleasure in it. My saving grace was the rocks in the area, I could stay out of his sight, and out of the reach of his breath."

Brutus continued, "I was still a young man full of hubris and valor, but even I was no match for it directly, it took a siege, I stalked it like a hunter, I scarcely let it rest, I kept on him, set traps many of which he never sprung, but I wore him down. I was lucky too, a critical on his wing, and from then on his fate was sealed, unable to fly more than a few hundred feet, I chased him and kept him on the run. He had me beat in strength, power, even magic, but he underestimated me and my resilience. The battle lasted days, and I wore him down. I almost died many times, but I thank Tempus for his guidance and the strength he bestowed in me."

I am sure you have heard the land east of the beginning if Triboar Trail is covered in ice and snow. Many people have remarked that such wide-area effect is beyond the capabilities of a White Dragon. Who knows who or what is really behind this big freeze?

Kessandra spoke up, "When I first heard of this, and it has affected as far west as the high road in the south, I knew it couldn't be the work of a chromatic dragon. The land has become blighted by this snow and frost for many miles, this is beyond unnatural, and why would a dragon want to waste such energy to do this? They are known to make changes to their environment, but only locally, not over a whole region; it's a tremendous waste of time. Only a powerful mage could do this, and not just that, one who has been planning this for years, such a powerful ward would take a lot of planning and many resources, the next question is why? What would a mage have to gain for this? To destroy a forest for no reason is unfathomable without cause. Whoever has done this has conspired to cause a disaster without hope for redemption."

Brutus added, "That's another issue, concentrate on the dragon, nothing else should be on your mind, take your time, plan well."

Ashley quietly listened as she hid behind her book, trying to look disinterested.



"Grœt"

Thank you sir Groet! You certainly are capable!
I feel this information will certainly help us a lot! I hope I can repay this kindness - if we make it back alive that is...

Brutus seems satisfied and pats Yulya and Cat on the backs, "If you have any other questions let us know."

[State your next moves and actions before we continue]

"Stealth is an unfair advantage, use every advantage you can. If even someone as large as me can sneak up on four wary adventurers, then sneaking up on an unaware dragon is trivial."

Hmm, maybe I can do that with Yulya's ring. Still, don't these things have Blindsight or something?

if you can't lock it down by a heavy anchor, a cart even, chain a wing to a leg so it can't fly, but that's only if it's sleeping, but they're notorious for sleeping for days after a big meal. Wait him out, time is on your side."

Now that's good advice! Chaining a wing to a leg while he's sleeping sounds reasonable. Yet I imagine it's hard getting a heavy chain around a dragon without waking him! Chaining him and setting him on fire sounds even more fun!

Don't expect him to hold back or be honorable, chromatic dragons have no honor or valor, only hubris and arrogance."

Yeah, I learned the hard way from that green one. It was outright stupid though. But I reckon they cannot be reasoned with. I'll keep that in mind.

"My dragon was large, but not very agile, so holding on wasn't an issue, I stayed on it's back, holding on to horns and wings, he wasn't easily able to hit me, but I had free access to smash him over and over. My strength was my tool to stay on, for you it could be prowess with acrobatics to avoid his grasp."

Alice thinks about the prospects of riding a snow dragon on some icy mountain top
Maaan this sucks. I bet the dragon itself is cold too! I hate cold! Did I say already that I hate cold! I hate it!
Well if we manage to chain his wings to keep him from flying I could grapple his mouth to keep him from freezing us. That would ease things a lot. At least for a short time.

"I was still a young man full of hubris and valor, but even I was no match for it directly, it took a siege, I stalked it like a hunter, I scarcely let it rest, I kept on him, set traps many of which he never sprung, but I wore him down. I was lucky too, a critical on his wing, and from then on his fate was sealed, unable to fly more than a few hundred feet, I chased him and kept him on the run. He had me beat in strength, power, even magic, but he underestimated me and my resilience. The battle lasted days, and I wore him down. I almost died many times, but I thank Tempus for his guidance and the strength he bestowed in me."

Alice intensely listens to Brutus story and can't believe her ears



You fought it alone?? Ok, no wonder they made a statue for you! That's really something! How many people took down a dragon alone? I bet not many in history...
I like the general idea of a siege - to observe him and prepare the terrain - if the terrain wasn't a freezing hell. I don't know what it looks like up there and how cold it is but I doubt we can camp out there for weeks without freezing just from the environment.
Alice wonders if the dragon really will be at her ship's wreck and if there is any way to communicate with it. In its deep frozen state, probably not. at least not with shards, maybe with the main body - if such survived.

Kessandra spoke up, "When I first heard of this, and it has affected as far west as the high road in the south, I knew it couldn't be the work of a chromatic dragon. The land has become blighted by this snow and frost for many miles, this is beyond unnatural, and why would a dragon want to waste such energy to do this? They are known to make changes to their environment, but only locally, not over a whole region; it's a tremendous waste of time. Only a powerful mage could do this, and not just that, one who has been planning this for years, such a powerful ward would take a lot of planning and many resources, the next question is why? What would a mage have to gain for this? To destroy a forest for no reason is unfathomable without cause. Whoever has done this has conspired to cause a disaster without hope for redemption."

Alice listens with great interest, but also worry
Years you say? That's crazy! I mean magicians here all are crazy strong but this is another level. I had no idea.
Alice thinks to herself:
I had imagined the reason to freeze the land was to keep my ship from liquefying and healing. Or to keep it from getting out of control. But if that took years then we can rule this out - unless the caster has received an oracle or something. A conspiracy of the gods against me - yeah that could still be it. Whatever, I don't give a damn about that dragon, I just need to unfreeze my poor ship!

Alice turns to Kessandra
Still odd - do you think the arrival of the ice dragon and the big freeze is entirely unrelated? What kind of coincidence is that? But Daran also said the dragon was irrelevant and would move soon Well, he wasn't worried about the cold either. But I don't think he's behind any of that. Which reminds me - didn't Summer say we gotta take down the dragon to keep the forest from dying? She seems to know a lot about dragons - and even more about magic! Yet she appears to believe this is the dragon's doing.

Brutus added, "That's another issue, concentrate on the dragon, nothing else should be on your mind, take your time, plan well."

Easy for you to say...
Alice thinks
...half of the world appears to wait in line to get a piece of my ship. And if only a tiny shard falls into the wrong hands - or any hand - your world will have a slightly bigger problem than a frozen forest...

Alright, let's eat, go shopping once more and then go for a field trip!
Any advice for a good spot outside of the city to cook poison for arrows and blades without bothering anyone - but also without being ambushed by monsters, bandits or other vermin?