This was nearly completed two weeks ago… then I got sick and it’s taken a while to get back to RPG stuff.

Four players with some good role-playing, reaching second level, and towards the end, a straight forward combat.

Levelling was unsurprising, as most people focussed on boosting skills they already were good at or improving MM in their armour type. More Power Points, and new spells were very welcome.

After practically exhausting their supply of healing herbs at the start of the session, one player put a rank into Herb Lore this level and they spent some time foraging. They made good rolls, and located a fine quantity of useful herbs. Non-magical healing is extremely valuable in MERP. They had found (or been given) some herbs in the past, but this was the first time they did their own searching, and learnt how effective both the Foraging and Herb Lore secondary skills are. It really helps to know what might grow in particular region, rather than searching blindly for “healing herbs”.

27th May. Norwarden lays a day’s ride north of Bree. The small town is hedge-ringed like Bree, with a central square and an Inn called the ‘Mithril Flagon’. A few farmers, hunters and traders greet the group and are happy to hear news from Bree and its outlying villages. The group hear more detail on the “haunted tower”: There is a light in the top of the tower around sunset and it has been visible for about two weeks. Most people think its youngsters, travellers or bandits. Unrelated, some traders from Rood passed a few Dwarves on the road near the forest yesterday afternoon. The Dwarves were on foot and heading for Norwarden, but did not arrive yesterday or this morning.

The group head north-west along the road seeking sign of the missing Dwarves. About two miles out, they find cart tracks and footprints mixing. Tracking takes them along the road then south along the base of the bluffs. One of them notes broken stone more than one and Broheim thinks someone has been breaking the cliff wall and examining the rock. They locate a recent campsite, and then more sign of fossicking along the bluff. It’s not long before the sound of mining is heard. Two Dwarves are ahead, one working the cliff with a pick, and the other with hammer and chisel. The first introduces himself as Bali, and talks excitedly about the nature of the chert in the cliffs, and the hope of finding particular minerals and maybe even iron in the rock here. Eventually they learn that the second dwarf is Kilim, and that they haven’t seen their third companion, Farak, for some hours. Leaving the pair to continue prospecting, they head south watching both forest and cliff edge. There are tracks, then a pickaxe, and soon animal screams. They find Farak atop a large rock with a 2′ long reddish badger-like animal screaming, snorting and trying to get to him. He looks very pleased to see aid. The creature turns and charges straight at Broheim. Aglann quickly nocks an arrow and looses, embedding it deep in the animal , which collapses, screaming and thrashing before ceasing, dead.

They take Farak back to his friends and learn that the dwarves have come from the north-west where the mine they were working on is closing. They had heard rumours of work near Bree. He expects that they will stay in Norwarden for a while so that the pair of miners can confirm whether it’s worthwhile to excavate the cliffs here.

After lunch in the Inn, they head east for Dol Tira (S. watch hill) and its tower. They stop to speak with a farmer nearby who tells them he has seen the light each night for two weeks. He thinks it odd, but he says there are farmers over the other side of the road near the forest with more serious problems – a very large wolf.

The tower is closer so they continue up the hill. Celeblason notes no tracks or signs of animals in the last week, though insects buzz past. The main ruin is overgrown with weeds and ivy, while tower shell is full of dusty cobwebs. The ground is littered with bits of rock, tile and guano. A lantern and some torches are lit, and some of the cobwebs cleared to show stone stairs rising around the inner wall. Celeblason climbs them. They are broken, with a large gap before the first landing. It looks easier to climb around the wall than jump the gap, and Filencë comes up to lead the way with a rope. As he reaches the landing, a dark shape drops and he feels a sharp pain in his back. He falls unconscious and a huge black spider is visible. Arrows miss and it jumps again to the stairs. Broheim makes a stand swinging his axe to take off a leg. His return swing is a better blow that crushes the spider completely. Hérehort heals Filencë who passes out again – poisoned. Celeblason climbs to the top of the tower, and finds a large polished bronze plate blocking a west-facing window. They realise that it has been reflecting the setting sun.  It appears to have fallen from the decaying roof structure. They hurry into town with Filencë, learning that serious injuries or illnesses are better dealt with in Bree.. They get help to make a travois and rush back to Bree, reaching the Heathertoe farm as the sun sets. The wife of the former mayor is both Animist and Herbalist. She helps stabilise the feverish Elf and by morning, he is well again.

28th The group devotes a week to training. They spend time both in Bree and at Herehort’s Uncles farm just out of town. They also use some time each day foraging for herbs. An old book recovered from the bandit’s keep and some suggestions from Mrs Heathetoes guides their hunt.

4th June: Back to Norwarden to see if the farmers near the forest still have a wolf problem. A few farmers say they have sighted a large black or dark grey wolf, much larger than the grey wolves occasionally seen in the forest. This one seems to have no fear of humans, and they are worried it will come up to their farms and attack livestock. They head down to the forest and look for paths and tracks. Within the forest, they locate a clearing with huge rocks, and two grey wolves. While they fight more wolves emerge from clefts in the rock. As they defeat the last, there is a growl from behind them – a black Warg lunges at Filence! The huge beast’s bite almost drops Filencë unconscious. Hérehort moves forward to defend him and stops his bleeding with a spell. They others defeat it without serious injury and Filencë is healed. The return to town to tell people that the threat has been dealt with, then in the afternoon return to Bree.

6th: Meneldir comes to the group. He has received a letter for them from Candaith. It asks them to ready for an attack on the goblins in the Midgewater, and that Saeradan (met 1st May) collect them on the 8th to join up with a group of Rangers.

8th: Saeradan rides into Bree and the group (including Tom) head east and around the marsh, stopping near the hill where the group first met Candaith. They are introduced to another six rangers, and two young men who will hide their horses nearby. Tom is asked to stay with the horses for now, but can join an attack in the hills on the morrow. He acknowledges may be a hindrance within the marsh, but is happy to stand guard. Candaith wants them to attack two large camps within the marsh today, and one in the hills to the east tomorrow. They will split into two separate groups for each attack. Saeradan (a warrior) and Rillathan (an Animist) will work with the group, while Candaith leads the other five. He leads them through the marsh and within sight of the first camp.

Sitting between low hills, smoke rises from a few small fires behind a palisade. Filencë sends his owl on a flyover of the camp, taking note of the structures, counting 28 goblins, and then the two groups discuss strategy. There are three watchtowers, but one is empty and the goblins in the other towers are sleeping or watching the interior of the camp. Tents and small wooden huts could hold other goblins. Candaith will lead his rangers in from the west, getting as close as they can quietly before charging in. Celeblason, Aglann and Rillathan will climb the eastern hill and use the trees for cover for missile fire, while Saeradan, Hérehort, Broheim and Filencë (prepared to cast Sleep) enter from the south-east. The melee group engage the goblins just within the palisade, though Filencë loses his concentration and his spell fails. They steadily draw goblins to them, while the archers target the goblins in the northern tower and any that approach. They manage to fight well, taking minor wounds but knocking down their opponents. There is a tense moment as one goblin runs towards the archer’s hill, and all three arrows loosed at him miss – as the goblin reaches them, he collapses from blood-loss! Two armoured orcs run down from the central rise, and Filencë tries another Sleep spell. This time it works and he drops two of the gathered goblins. The orcs are tough opponents but they are steadily overwhelmed. An arrow takes down the last goblin, loosed by Candaith’s group emerging from the centre of the camp. There is a quick check for anything valuable and then the camp is torched. The normal haze of the marsh will disguise the smoke so that the second camp (miles away) is not alerted. They have accounted for three dozen goblins here, and do not believe any escaped.

There is time to tend wounds, before heading south-east further into the marsh. The next camp is on a flattened hill, backed by a high stone ridge. There are many ruined stone buildings and the remains of a small keep. Again, Filencë watches the camp through the eyes of his familiar, spotting watch towers, fires and goblins.

A fun session where everything went smoothly for the players – in terms of dice rolls, stealth, and combats. No serious wounds to any player – they have learnt to have one or two PCs do little more than parry a tough opponent while others aim for damage and stun effects. We did have three players each roll a weapon fumble, and a fourth missed doing so by 1%. The follow-up rolls to see what went wrong were all low, so all were relieved.

They had cleared their main objective (Midgewater goblins) and then decided to follow up rumours heard and investigate the stones mentioned in their thousand-year-old letter. The blessing gained from the shrines is a Fate point. (Allows a bonus to a roll, re-roll, or reduces a Critical effect.)

Notes: 1. Cirth (plural) is the old Sindarin runic alphabet originally used by the Elves (and later replaced by the Tengwar) that was adopted by the Dwarves because it was easy to carve into stone. 2. The map marker is in miles.

24th May. The company climbs out of the cave and tower, and leave the hidden grove. They decide to ride back along the river, slowly to keep watch for goblins, tracks, tree roots and other obstacles. They stop briefly in Combe. Those in town are now avoiding the Tor to the north, as the wolves have mostly gone quiet and are turning up dead! They decide it is more important that they return to Bree to report on the goblins, than to investigate the Tor immediately. They slowly make their way up Combe hill trying to find the clearing where they sighted dwarven stones ten days ago. It does not take long to find them again… nine carved pillars in a long line over the hillside, each one carved with a single ‘B’ rune. They take note of the way up and down that side of the hill and plan to return tomorrow. Riding back to Bree, they report to Meneldir. The guard captain is pleased to hear of the goblins killed, and even happier to hear of Candaith and the Ranger’s plan to make an assault on goblin camps in the near future. Tom returns home and the others arrange a room in the Prancing Pony and have a good evening meal. There are rumours and stories heard: Wolves have been disturbing Archet and Combe; a group of Dwarves passed through Bree heading for the Weather Hills (to build a road); and a farmer delivering ale from Norwarden (to the north) says a watchtower is haunted – a strange light has been seen in the evening.

25th : There is restocking of provisions and a brisk ride along the East Road to Combe. They stable their horses – surprised to have their coin refused. They learn they have a growing reputation (particularly with those that frequent the Blue Trout) because of fighting wolves, returning recipes and hat feathers, and keeping the area free of goblins. They make their way on foot back to the stones. There is debate between Celeblason and Hérehort in determining whether they go north or south, over the facing of the runes verses facing the runes. Re-read, the letter (translated to Westron) is clearly to “Face the rune and turn right to seek the Shrine.” Looking at the line of stones running almost east to west, they head roughly north. As they head into thicker forest, Hérehort realises that some of the others keep drifting off to one side; Filencë feels there may be some enchantment misdirecting them. Warned, they are all more careful to keep to a straight line as best they can. Perhaps a mile from the stones, there is a circular stone pavilion in a large clearing. While there is much long grass, none has overgrown the steps or stone floor. Slightly weatherworn columns support a domed ceiling that by carving and colour resemble branches in a canopy of green leaves. The tiled floor has small bits of fallen stone and wind-blown dirt across it obscuring a man on a horse. Clearing the debris reveals the whole image – a man holding a hunting horn astride a black horse, while a hound runs ahead. The elves recognise Araw (S), or Oromë (Q), Lord of the Trees, the huntsman of the Valar. Hérehort praises Eru and Béma (as the Rohirrim call him), and feels blessed. Others copy his praise but feel no different, though while they examine the shrine, all hear the sound of a distant horn, though from different directions.

Looking over the letter, then the map given to them by the Shirrif of Archet, they eventually decide the next closest shrine is probably well to the north, on the large hill just north of the Chetwood, near the Midgewater. The wolf occupied Tor is closer… They soon reach the west side of the mile wide hill and start searching around the base in a clockwise direction. All soon recognize that it is too quiet – no birds or insects. Celeblason finds sign of animals, but none from the last few days. Following some of the trails, he sights old bloodstains, bits of fur and damaged saplings. Then part of a deer is found; the corpse a few days old, and torn apart. Nearby he locates a footprint nearly two feet long. They suspect a troll. On the northeast of the rocky peak, they find a fair sized cave opening. Celeblason starts a fire with fallen timber while the others spread out ready for combat. When he pushes part of the burning wood close to the cave, hoping to smoke out what is within, there are snarls from within – four wolves rush out. It is a long fight; one wolf escapes while the others are stunned, knocked unconscious or drop from bleeding wounds.

They rest, and then continue round the cliffs, finding a narrow gully leading inward. Rocks and broken trees appear to have been cleared out of the space, and dumped to the side. The work appears quite recent, and they locate another large footprint. Broheim notes a carved piece of stone with a partial rune on it. The group search for the broken piece but to no avail. The dwarf considers the visible part of the Certh rune – deciding that it is most likely F, Th or N. The gully ends at a carved cave entrance, ten feet high and across. Another fifteen feet in, a great boulder blocks the tunnel.

Herehort becomes thoughtful, and wants part of the letter read again. The group start making connections…

The writer was Isilmirë of Harlond, a Noldor name, which Filence and Celeblason realise would likely be Thilmîr in Sindarin. The tower had both “Thilmîr of Lindon” and a ‘Th” rune carved on it. The letter mentions the forces of Angmar, trolls, sealing threats and the phrase “seek my rune.” If trolls have recently been released here, it would explain the unusual behaviour of the wolves and the absence of normal wildlife.
It takes two of them to shift the boulder, only a foot at first, then enough for any of them to pass through. While they prepare, a gruff voice in bad Westron grunts something about ‘draught’ and ‘door’. There is a vain hope that they might lure them out into sunlight. Broheim sneaks in, not needing light to see, and soon finds a wide cave with two large shapes on the floor, and a third standing on the other side. He quickly retreats and they find positions near the door boulder, with Hérehort and Aglann in the gully but with sight along the entrance tunnel.

As the first troll comes up to the door, Broheim and Celeblason attack it. Stunned briefly, it takes more minor wounds – but two slightly smaller trolls are approaching. The passage is narrow here for the trolls and Filencë is able to put the second, then the third to sleep. The first drops unconscious. There is a moment for those with missiles weapons to reload, and all prepare to strike the second troll. It wakes and tries to get to its feet. Broheim blocks its strike, and the return attacks knock it unconscious. The third troll fairs only a little better. The group has only minor wounds, and heads into the lair with torch and lantern. They start to look around the sleeping cave, noting old bedding, an alcove with dry meat and a scattering of coins in a broken urn. A fourth troll, larger than the others, strikes from a side passage at Aglann with a glancing blow. This fight lasts longer… The troll takes many small hits, though they keep it from doing much in return. Then a solid slash takes one hand off. It stands confused for a few seconds then drops, dead before they have caught their breath. This time they make certain the remainder of the caves and tunnels are empty before sorting the few valuables. There are many old rusted human sized weapons in a side chamber, coins (copper, bronze and a few silver) and a silver clasp shaped like a leaf. Once out of the cave, Filencë determines that is magical. Inscribed “Gartha” (Q, ‘ to defend’), he believes it produces a shielding spell, twice a day. He gives it to the Dwarf, suggesting it be used when he wishes to fight with his two handed axe. It is now late afternoon, and they find a sheltered space atop the tor itself to camp.

26th: They return to Combe, and tell of the wolves and trolls. Regaining their horses, they head north, then east through the Chetwood to the ruins on the edge of the Midgewater. They sight a few goblins lying in wait in the grass along the path between forest and marsh. They charge forward, taunting the goblins. Thrown javelins miss; the goblins retreat briefly then rush out again. Dismounting and ready weapons, a brief melee begins. On perhaps his third such attack in as many weeks, Hérehort (still mounted) finally get a strike with his lance. They sink the bodies in the marsh and head north, reaching a river running down into the marsh from the hill they seek. The river appears to have a fine cascade through a steep sided ravine part way up the hill and they hope this is “Alder’s falls”.

Heading west to find safe footing, they are attacked by a small flock of gorcrows. The birds are small and fast. Hard to hit, they only retreat when Filencë uses the last of his power for the day and sleeps half the flock. Any further activity would be occurring in the dark, so they set-up a simple camp site.

27th: An early start has them leaving the north most edge of the Chetwood and climbing the hill. They sight the falls from a higher vantage, and not far from a small lake (from which the river emerges), they sight more of the tall pillars. There are seven here of the same size as before, running almost north to south. Broheim identifies the rune on the southern side as “Ch”. Heading east for about a mile, they find a ring of trees. Once again, it takes concentration to make their way through them without turning aside. The rocky outcrop on the other side overlooks the deep gorge of the river. Another circular pavilion has columns of pale stone; one is broken. The tiled floor has an outer black ring and a pale woman in a blue dress with stars, surrounded by light. The dome overhead is a very dark blue flecked with small white points. The elves recognise Elbereth Githoniel, or Varda (in Quenya) – Lady of the Valar, Queen of the Stars. Celeblason bows his head and extols her greatness. He feels blessed. Many of the floor tiles are cracked and Broheim notes signs of repair. For a moment, everything beyond the shrine seems to fade away, and they stand under the night sky full of bright stars.

Their letter suggests two more Shrines are in the Weather Hills far to the east. Since they are now most of the way to Norwarden, they decide to head there next to investigate the haunted tower.

We had four players again on the weekend. It was a little exploration, gathering info from Bree-landers, and a lot of small combats. I found it amusing that the least of all the opponents met (needing 1 damage to kill, that only inflicted 3 damage on a PC) was almost the longest combat and used more of the groups resources than any other. Overall the PC’s had the advantage (and better Crits) over me in the fights. The worst blow against a PC (an E Crit) only resulted in +6 hits, cracked ribs, and a -10 penalty, which was healed a few minutes later by the Animist.

They met their third Ranger (Culture as opposed to Profession), and one of the players recognised the name. I confirmed that yes, this one is based on a Ranger from Lotro (Lord of the Rings online), and so was one of the previous ones. I don’t mind mixing in some of the stuff from the online game to simplify some world-building.

The group also got into an place they had to skip two sessions ago, and got the prompt for a major story arc that ties a lot of the past into the present (and vice versa). I’ve spent a lot of time collating details of the past two thousand years in Eriador/Arnor to use in every session that we’ve played so far (be it gravestones or Angmarim ghosts), not all of it obvious. I’m always happy when the players remember past decisions, and/or return somewhere. I also like them having a few options for what they do next…

May 19th: The group meets with the guard captain to discuss the behaviour of the goblins around the Midgewater. He is concerned both by the numbers that appear to be active and how close they are approaching Combe. He suggests that they make another trip east, this time focussing on the section of forest between the river and the road. It might be worthwhile to stop at the Last Inn and asking those there – often hunters and trappers – of goblin sightings. Then he wants them to skirt the south of the marsh. If they find any sign of goblins, he’d like them to track and kill all they can find. If larger groups or camps are found, details on numbers, defences and so on would be valuable to plan a future raid. He warns them of the size of the marsh and how easy it is to get lost in. They decide to ride for this trip and ask Tolman if he wishes to join them. The curious and fearless hobbit is very happy to come along. They stock up on provisions (it could be a week before they return) and decide to head out on the next morning.

20th: Filencë’s Owl becomes his familiar! Filencë can now control its actions and share its senses. The Little Owl is mainly nocturnal, but does hunt during the day. They ride for Combe, with Tom on their pack pony. The main discussion is howling wolves at night to the north reported by local trappers and hunters. They sound disturbed or agitated. The group asks about Hobbits attacked by wolves and show some of the items they picked up from the forest road last week. They are directed to the smial of Rolf Grassfoot. He explains that three of them were returning to Combe when attacked by wolves that seem most interested in the ham they were carrying. His friend was bitten but not badly. Rolf is very pleased to have his Aunt’s pie recipe and his hat feather returned. Heading back to the East Road, they follow the edge of the Chetwood off-shoot, watching for tracks or disturbance. They are followed for a short time by a large black fox. The reach the ‘Forsaken’ Inn, and leave their horses in the stable. They find the interior much more presentable that the exterior. The half dozen people inside go quiet, but three Elves and a Dwarf is a novelty that soon has them welcomed and the focus of many questions. They learn that sighting the Gaich (black fox) is considered lucky, and two hunters tell them about increased goblin sightings over the last month. They stay in the Inn for the night.

21st: They head north into the end of the Chetwood where it’s starting to thin out and soon hear some odd noises. They choose to hide rather than follow the sound, and soon sight five goblins spread out and looking around. They are quickly defeated. Closer to the edge of the marsh they hear grunts from the long grass around them. A bunch of small fen boars rush through the grass deeper into the marsh while two larger males stand guard. The group retreat slowly, and the males follow the other boars. Moving along the edge of the Midgewater now, they try to keep to dry and solid ground. There are birds, flies, and midges, both seen and heard. There are also wisps of smoke far into the marsh, tracks of beasts and three encounters with small groups of goblins. In each case the foe is heard or sighted in advance, and ambush (and a magical sleep on the largest group), brings them out of each fight unharmed. Tom proves as effective with his sling as Aglann is with her bow.  They locate a ruined tower just off the road that gives shelter for the night.

22nd: The return to the marsh edge brings a cloud of carnivorous neeker-breekers. The noisy insects resemble large crickets, flying and jumping. Their bite is minor, though they prove very hard to hit. Filencë ends up using Sleep three times to drop them after only a single one of the dozen is squashed in melee. Continuing on, there are a few more humanoid tracks noted.

Around midday the Midgewater edge shifts northwards, and they find tracks coming out of the marsh. Celeblason suggests perhaps eight goblins emerged in the last hour and they track them towards a wooded hill. After a while, they locate the prints of someone else following their prey. Moving through the mostly dead trees on the edge of the marsh, and into a rocky area, they sight a man. The crouched figure has noted their approach and waves to them. He introduces himself as Candaith, the star brooch on his cloak marking him a Ranger to the Elves. He has been trailing a large group of goblins out of the Midgewater that are heading towards a camp in the hills ahead. He was planning to pick off some off them. If they work together, they should be able to defeat the whole force.

They briefly discuss tactics, and then lead the horse quickly ahead to a rocky rise in the wood. Candaith, Broheim and Filencë position themselves behind rocks or trees to one side, while the rest ready missile weapons from a ridge. Eleven goblins approach without awareness of the ambush, and a volley of missiles rains down on them. Candaith and Broheim charge out, while Filencë casts Sleep, dropping roughly half the foes. The remaining ones seem stronger than most of those faced over the past few days, but within a minute or two, they are stunned or struck down without anyone taking a major wound. They drag the bodies down to the marsh to hide them, and then Candaith leads them back up the hill. Using his owl, Filencë spies on the camp. At least two dozen goblins are visible behind a palisade in a wide gully.

23rd: Goblin movements are the first point of the day. Candaith gives his observations about the goblins in the Midgewater and across the Weather Hills. He believes there are small groups coming down from the north in larger numbers than are usual for the Spring. They decide to ambush some of the scouts outside the camp, and successfully defeat three patrols of two to three foes each. These are also dragged back to the marsh. Candaith is grateful for their help. Being sworn to aid those who live in the Bree-lands, he is planning on gathering those he can call on to attack the camp just observed and two of the larger camps in the marsh. This won’t happen for a couple of weeks, but he can send a message to Meneldir in Bree if they wish to be a part of the assault. They agree to join in.

They decide to ride back towards the East Road, stopping occasionally to check paths on the marsh edge, and reach the tower they camped in previously in the afternoon. On the next day, they ride around the marsh edge again and then follow the Rushlight river back through the Chetwood until they can turn off to the trail with the old wall and barrier of trees discovered a week ago. This time they can get a bird eye view of what is behind the barrier – a large open space of grass and flowers, with three very old trees and a short tower on a huge boulder. They alternate sawing and chopping at what appears to be a narrower spot on the east side, until they achieve a hole all can fit through. They make their way across the boulder, noting ruined walls in the corners of the space. While they discuss sending someone up with a rope, Aglann is struck by a heavy blow. One of the trees has shifted in place and prepares to hit her again with its branches. The other two trees are also moving, though slowly. She runs towards one of the fallen walls for cover, while Celeblason begins to climb up the boulder. Filencë tries a sleep spell on a tree in vain, while the others attack with hammer and sword. The first tree takes five blows to stop it, but the second is shattered by a remarkable arrow shot from Aglann right through its core. The third tree also takes a considerable number of attacks before it stops moving.

Celeblason drops a rope to aid all in getting up the rock. The 10′ wide two-storey tower is a basic stone construction with slits in the upper structure. Carved over the small doorway is a Cirth rune “th“. Within Celeblason can see stone steps carved out of the rock, and debris across the wooden floor. The upper level and the tower roof have collapsed, though the interior timbers that remain have an elven look to their carving. He moves aside to let others in and the rotten floor collapses, dropping him into the basement. He manages to roll down the stairs and ends up with a stubbed toe. Filencë reads a carving in Sindarin over the inside of the door: “Aranarth of Arnor and Thilmîr of Lindon pledge their trust to watch over the North. The Angmarim will not return unseen. 17 Gwirith T.A. 1975”

There is a rusted iron door set into the wall of the basement. It takes three attempts before someone unlocks it, and then Broheim uses a pry bar to force it open. A narrow tunnel extends down into the rock, opening into a large cave with a mostly smooth floor. Cold water trickles in from one side and flows out through holes in the floor. The stone has been carved to make benches and shelves. There is some very old timber that crumbles when held, signs of old fires in one place, and pottery shards. On a high shelf they find a small metal box, and a bone case on another. The box holds four sealed vials. They determine the nature of the spells held in three of the potions. The case holds a letter in Sindarin, written just over a thousand years past by one of the Noldo to Prince Aranarth. Celeblason reads it out.  “A quest!” exclaims Filencë.

A pdf copy of the letter.