Recaps

Renato discovered that his Heavy Armor Proficiency had upgraded through his combat experience, then Madra summoned him and offered a quest to retrieve the Deepforge Family’s divine artifact, the Mind Ripper. Balin challenged Madra’s plan, and the chapter left Renato listening as the two argued over whether the expedition was a trap.

• Renato noticed that Heavy Armor Proficiency had become Heavy Armor Specialization and wondered whether his actions could improve his feats.
• A guard escorted Renato to Deep Hammer Tower, where Balin was arguing with Madra.
• Madra asked Renato to retrieve the Mind Ripper from the Rolling Stone City Ruins and offered 500 gold coins and 4,000 experience points.
• Madra explained that the artifact could sever telepathic links between Mind Flayers, while Balin warned that seeking it could be a trap.
• Madra insulted Balin’s origins, and Renato realized the old Dwarf had a complicated past with the Deepforge Tribe.

Renato negotiated with Madra for access to Deepforge resources, asking instead for the power to enchant a sword forged by Balin. While gathering materials, Renato and Balin debated the danger of Madra’s mission to find an Artifact, and Balin revealed a bottle of demon’s ashes as a possible forging material.

• Madra offered Renato gold, shelter, and a Deepforge Emblem in exchange for his cooperation, but Renato said he wanted power to enchant Balin’s sword.
• Madra gave Renato an Emblem and permission to take materials from the storeroom, warning that the cost would come out of his pay.
• Renato and Balin discussed the mission to find an Artifact, with Balin doubting it had escaped the Mind Flayers’ notice and advocating a direct attack.
• Renato judged that searching for the Artifact was safer than fighting the Mind Flayers, while Balin explained that he would preserve the sword’s carefully balanced alloy.
• Balin opened a locked cabinet with Madra’s Emblem and showed Renato a bottle of demon’s ashes, explaining that demons returned to the Abyss after turning to ash.

Renato watched a Duergar Psion screen refugees at New Rolling Stone City's gate, then bought See Invisibility Potions and asked Dain where he could find entertainment. Dain directed him to the Acid Tunnel Mine, where Renato planned to go next.

• Renato left Balin engraving a rune tablet and saw a Duergar Psion forcibly screen refugees for mind flayer influence.
• Renato bought two See Invisibility Potions from Dain for nearly 500 silver coins.
• Renato asked Dain about work and places for gambling or entertainment inside the city.
• Dain told Renato to visit the Acid Tunnel Mine and use his name to get past the gatekeeper.

Renato entered the Acid Tunnel Mine, a hidden Duergar gathering place, and confronted Flori while looking for work. Flori dismissed Renato’s threat and warned him that Duergar had killed powerful Sorcerers before.

• Renato used his Deepforge crest and shadow magic to persuade the doorkeeper to let him into the Acid Tunnel Mine.
• Renato found Duergar tormenting a chained Troll and recognized Flori, an explorer from his previous expedition.
• Renato introduced himself as a Swordsman and Sorcerer and asked Flori for work, but Flori said the mine was only a place for entertainment.
• Renato corroded a metal cup to challenge the Duergar gathered around him, and Flori crushed the ruined cup in his hand.
• Flori warned Renato that Duergar had killed many high-level Sorcerers and that another warlock would not matter.

Renato visited Flori at the Acid Tunnel Mine, where the Duergar offered to broker trades and showed him unusual goods. Renato learned that Flori partnered with a clever troll named Big Tooth, and the chapter ended with Flori pitching Deinonychus claws as a virility remedy.

• Flori explained that the Acid Tunnel Mine hosted barter, and Renato offered gold coins as a possible trade.
• Flori cleared the mine of its customers so he and Renato could talk privately.
• Big Tooth broke free of its chains, spoke Common, and obeyed Flori, who explained that they worked as partners.
• Renato asked to see Flori's merchandise, and Flori displayed an assortment of strange creature parts.
• Flori claimed that powdered Deinonychus claws could restore a Duergar man's virility.

Renato bought a mysterious ore from Flori and mastered Gorogoroth's Form-Twisting, using it to imitate Madra before realizing the spell could not change his height. After the spell awakened an urge to read The Edict of Dakoul, Renato resisted the Grimoire's influence and recognized the growing danger of pursuing dark knowledge.

• Renato sensed shadow energy converging on a strange blue-black ore and bought it from Flori for three gold coins.
• Renato studied the Skin of the Nameless One and learned Gorogoroth's Form-Twisting.
• Renato changed his appearance to resemble Madra but remained too tall to pass as a Duergar.
• Renato considered how the spell could help him disguise himself and evade pursuit on the surface.
• Renato felt an unnatural desire to read The Edict of Dakoul, resisted it through meditation, and warned himself about the Grimoires' influence.

Renato learned that the strange ore was star antimony, a metal from beyond the known worlds that could hold runes not yet defined. Balin used it to create a Negation rune for the Silent Lady, though the weapon’s enchantment was not yet finished.

• Balin identified the ore Renato brought him as star antimony, a rare metal from beyond the known worlds.
• Balin explained that star antimony could hold rune structures that could not be realized on ordinary materials.
• Balin transferred the Nemesis rune from a runestone tablet onto a strip of star antimony by shattering the tablet with his warhammer.
• Balin modified the rune into the Negation rune, which he intended to use to enchant the Silent Lady.

Balin reforged Renato’s Silent Lady with star antimony and a negation rune, turning it into a rare magic weapon. Renato tested the completed sword and offered to pay, but Balin said Little Deepforge had covered the cost and called it a gift from Moradin.

• Balin strengthened the Silent Lady’s alloy, coated it with demon ash, and forged a negation rune into its spine.
• Renato chose a mithral grip, and Balin finished the hilt with kuo-toa leather and woven adamantine wire.
• Renato attuned to the completed Silent Lady and learned that its rune could disrupt magic and deal extra force damage.
• Renato tested the sword’s balance and offered Balin twenty gold coins as partial payment.
• Balin refused Renato’s money, saying Little Deepforge had paid for the enchantment and the sword was a gift from Moradin.

Renato and Balin explored an earthquake-damaged Duergar fortress in search of artifacts, finding an abandoned shrine to Laduguer. After discovering signs of earlier looting, they debated whether the deity had truly been a Duergar who freed his people from the Mind Flayers.

• Renato and Balin pushed aside a boulder and reached the cavern marked on their map.
• From a rubble heap, Renato spotted a damaged shrine to Laduguer inside the leaning fortress, and Balin warned that Mind Flayers could use illusions.
• The two searched the fortress and found no living creatures, while Renato noticed that someone had scraped the gold from ritual objects.
• Balin searched for hidden rooms and dismissed the story that Laduguer had been a Duergar who ascended to godhood.
• Renato picked up a stone holy symbol depicting a broken arrow piercing a Mind Flayer's skull and placed it on the shrine's remains.

Renato and Balin left the empty fortress and encountered two owlbears in a tunnel. Renato used the Silent Lady’s Negation rune to dispel an owlbear’s Enlarge spell and kill it, while Balin defeated the other; Balin then credited the weapon’s power to Moradin’s will.

• Renato and Balin found no treasure or Mind Ripper in the fortress, then left without resting.
• Renato asked Balin about his military service, and Balin recalled fighting orcs as an auxiliary with the Tenth Legion.
• Balin signaled Renato to be quiet after they heard several growls coming from the tunnel ahead.
• Balin stunned an owlbear with his Runes Warhammer and hurled it into a cavern wall.
• Renato pierced the other owlbear with the Silent Lady, whose Negation rune dispelled its Enlarge spell, then cut it in half.
• Balin praised Renato’s work on the Silent Lady and said Moradin had a purpose in granting him the weapon.

After Renato and Balin fought owlbears released from a hidden cavern, they returned to Deep Hammer Tower and confronted Madra about the search for the Mind Ripper. Madra revealed that the expeditions were a test to expose traitors among his followers, and Renato offered cooperation based on their shared interests.

• Renato and Balin found a fissure that led to a cavern full of gnawed owlbear remains, realizing they had accidentally freed the surviving owlbears.
• Renato and Balin returned to Deep Hammer Tower, where Madra and Balin argued over the failed search for the Mind Ripper.
• Renato questioned whether Madra truly wanted the artifact and pointed out that his small, scattered search parties seemed poorly suited to finding it.
• Madra showed Renato a map and revealed that the expeditions were a screening process to identify ambitious followers who planned to seize the Mind Ripper and power.
• Madra asked whether he could trust Renato, and Renato said their shared interests gave them a stronger basis for cooperation than an oath.

Madra used the mind flayer threat and the Artifact search to consolidate his control over New Rolling Stone City, then summoned Renato to discuss the next move. Renato and Balin headed to Deep Hammer Tower, where Madra wanted Renato’s advice.

• Madra blamed the expedition’s losses on mind flayers, branded the survivors spies, and rallied the Duergar to support his Artifact plan.
• The crowd voiced support but offered no volunteers or supplies, while Balin guarded Madra and Renato noticed that Madra trusted them both.
• A Deepforge guard said Madra held the righteous cause and that rival factions had to support him publicly, prompting Renato to ask about Madra’s plans.
• Renato claimed Madra had summoned him to enter Deep Hammer Tower, then followed Balin upstairs after learning Madra wanted to discuss their next move.

Madra ordered the Duergar to assemble in three days to search for Laduguer’s Artifact, but told Renato that he would leave the city early with Balin. Balin explained the covert plan and prepared Renato for the expedition, which would begin through a tunnel in four hours.

• Madra reviewed New Rolling Stone City’s shortages, dismissed the miners’ wage demands, and ordered the city’s captains to prepare for an expedition to find Laduguer’s Artifact.
• Renato praised Madra’s political maneuvering, then learned that Madra would stay behind while Renato left early with Balin.
• Balin said Madra would lead the other Duergar through the Underdark to draw the Mind Flayers’ attention while the small party slipped away.
• Balin revealed that an Engineering Master and a Veteran Dungeon Scout would join them, and that the party would travel with a mysterious machine-like device.
• Balin told Renato to gather seven days of supplies and meet him in four hours to leave New Rolling Stone City through a tunnel.

Renato joined Balin, Flori, and Big Tooth on a search for the Mind Ripper, using a Rockborer mech to cut through ruined parts of Rolling Stone City. After their first search site proved empty, Balin planned to check District 2 before risking District 1 and explained why the dormant artifact might evade the mind flayers.

• Flori questioned Renato’s place on the expedition and brought the troll Big Tooth along as a porter and laborer.
• Balin unveiled the Rockborer mech, piloted by the hard-of-hearing Whitebeard, and the group set off through the rock.
• The Rockborer carved a straight route through the tunnels, while Balin guided it, Big Tooth cleared rubble, and Renato and Flori reinforced the walls.
• After nearly twelve hours, the group searched a ruined section of Rolling Stone City but found no artifact, then stopped to rest while the mech cooled down.
• Balin marked Districts 1 and 2 as the remaining possible sites and chose to search the more remote District 2 first.
• Balin explained that the Mind Ripper was dormant because its divine power had gone unused, and said Madra had rediscovered it in the Deepforge Family records.

Renato, Balin, and Flori infiltrated District 2 while the Mind Flayers’ forces were reduced, aiming to reach Deepforge Fortress and find the Artifact. They prepared to kill the three slaves guarding its entrance.

• Renato and Balin left Whitebeard, the Rockborer, and Big Tooth outside District 2, keeping a Sending bracelet ready to summon the mech if needed.
• Renato recalled that Madra had sent a Duergar army toward false coordinates to divert the Mind Flayers and weaken District 2’s defenses.
• Flori reported that Mind Flayers and roaming slaves had largely vanished from the streets, so Balin ordered the group to move immediately toward Deepforge Fortress.
• The three infiltrated through hidden alleys and reached the fortress, where three mind-controlled Duergar slaves guarded the only entrance.
• Balin assigned one guard to each of them, and Renato aimed his dart at the middle slave.

Renato, Balin, and Flori searched the ruins of Rolling Stone City for the Mind Ripper while evading Duergar patrols. After a patrol discovered them and a Mind Flayer failed to raise an alarm, they killed the group and continued toward District 1.

• Flori, Balin, and Renato dragged three dead Duergar into a fortress hideout and searched it, but the Mind Ripper was not there.
• Flori pried gold from Laduguer's ritual vessels while Renato salvaged an adamantine gauntlet from the ruins.
• Balin ordered the group to leave for District 1, but earthquake rubble forced them onto the main roads.
• A Duergar patrol surrounded the trio, and its Mind Flayer leader questioned Renato telepathically.
• Balin killed the Mind Flayer, and Flori, Renato, and Balin quickly killed the five Duergar slaves before they could raise an alarm.
• Balin ordered Flori to stop looting a corpse and lead the way.

Renato, Balin, and Flori entered District 1 to search Deepforge Fortress for the Artifact, but found a recently slaughtered patrol and signs of a dangerous Mind Flayer attack. After contacting Whitebeard for the Rockborer, Balin urged them onward while Renato prepared for a fight.

• Renato, Balin, and Flori reached District 1, where Balin gave Renato a Feather Fall scroll and they noticed the streets were deserted.
• Balin sent Flori ahead, and the group discovered dead Duergar slaves and a Mind Flayer whose host body had been torn apart.
• Renato found evidence of several different attacks and suggested that more than one Mind Flayer might have been involved.
• Balin contacted Whitebeard and learned that the Rockborer would arrive in half an hour, then ordered the group to keep moving toward the Artifact.
• Renato took out two potions and said he would drink them before the expected fight.

Renato, Balin, and Flori fought Drow ambushers outside Deepforge Fortress, then faced a Drow Priestess and her warriors as they emerged from the gates. Renato was blinded by magic during his duel and struck back by instinct, leaving the fight unresolved.

• Renato found a dead Duergar slave outside Deepforge Fortress and realized Mind Flayers had brought attendants.
• Drow crossbowmen ambushed the group, but Renato and Balin killed the attackers on the left while Flori defeated a rooftop archer.
• A Drow Priestess emerged from the fortress with two warriors and empowered them with divine magic before they attacked.
• Renato traded blows with one warrior while the Priestess lashed at Flori and the other warrior fought Balin.
• The Drow warrior blinded Renato with magic, and Renato raised his Shadow Shield and swung the Silent Lady toward an approaching attack.

Renato and his companions defeated Tristana Nightbreeze’s guards, then met Klauthsura, an unusually articulate Mind Flayer who claimed to oppose the Elder Brain. Klauthsura explained that it had been exiled and began telling Renato that no one could truly escape the Elder Brain.

• Renato used his last glimpse of the Drow warrior’s position to kill him after being blinded, while Balin blasted the other guard to death.
• A Mind Flayer emerged from a psionic portal, stopped Tristana Nightbreeze from casting, and persuaded the group to negotiate by claiming they shared the goal of opposing the Elder Brain.
• Renato, Balin, and Flori followed the Mind Flayer into Deepforge Fortress, where Tristana stood under its control and Flori kept his crossbow trained on it.
• The Mind Flayer introduced itself as Klauthsura and showed an image of Laduguer’s rebellion against the Mind Flayers and the Elder Brain.
• Klauthsura said the Elder Brain had exiled it, but told Renato that no one could truly escape the Elder Brain and noted Renato’s desire for knowledge.

Klauthsura revealed the Mind Ripper and proposed an alliance, but Renato and the others attacked instead. Balin freed the artifact, which broke the Mind Flayers’ hold over their servants; the ensuing battle brought down the fortress, forcing Renato and his companions to flee.

• Klauthsura revealed the Mind Ripper and explained that it could oppose the Elder Brain, then proposed that Renato’s group defend it while the Mind Flayer broke its barrier.
• Renato attacked Klauthsura while Balin rejected the proposed alliance and threw a Deepforge Emblem at the artifact’s pedestal, dispelling its protective barrier.
• The Drow priestess attacked Klauthsura with her whip, but Klauthsura struck her with a Mind Blast and escaped through a portal.
• Balin took the Mind Ripper as portals brought Mind Flayers and their servants into the fortress, where the artifact freed the servants from their masters’ control.
• The freed servants attacked the Mind Flayers, and the battle damaged the fortress until Balin shouted for everyone to run and Renato charged for an exit.

Renato and his allies fought through the chaos after the Mind Flayers lost control of their slaves, while the collapsing fortress threatened to bury them all. As District 1 began to fall into deep fissures, Renato, Balin, and Tristana escaped by casting Feather Fall, though they plunged into the darkness below.

• Renato escaped the rubble with Balin and fought the frenzied Orcs, Goblins, and Mind Flayer-controlled Duergar.
• Renato held off the Mind Flayers while Balin remained pinned down by attacking Orcs.
• Whitebeard's Rockborer mech crushed one Mind Flayer, and Tristana struck another with a green ray before the machine finished it off.
• New Mind Flayers arrived through portals as the fortress collapsed and District 1 split apart.
• Renato activated a Feather Fall scroll just before the ground gave way, and he, Balin, and Tristana fell into the darkness.

Renato, Balin, and Tristana survived the collapse beneath District 1 and agreed to work together temporarily while searching for a way out. After five hours of carefully clearing rubble, they paused to rest and conserve their strength.

• Renato and Balin cornered Tristana in the rubble-filled space, and she surrendered her dagger and whip.
• Tristana offered her healing and magical skills, but Balin threatened her until Renato persuaded them to set aside their differences and escape together.
• Balin determined that digging through the sides was too dangerous, so the group began removing rubble to try digging downward.
• Tristana helped clear debris and used divine magic to heal Balin's head wound, earning a temporary chance to survive with them.
• After five hours of work, Renato urged the group to rest, and Balin agreed to eat and take half an hour off.

Trapped beneath the rubble with Balin and Tristana, Renato gave the thirsty Drow water in exchange for information about Klauthsura. Tristana revealed little about the mind flayer’s motives, and the three remained stranded in the ruins.

• Balin told Renato that he could not contact the Rockborer mech and warned that they would have to escape the rubble themselves.
• Renato offered Tristana water in exchange for information, and she drank after checking it for poison.
• Tristana said her memories were confused by psionic control and that she vaguely sensed Klauthsura had been interested in Renato.
• Tristana explained that some mind flayers became outcasts, but Renato pointed out that Klauthsura’s powerful psionics and apparent living body did not fit her examples.
• Tristana grew angry and vowed to skin Klauthsura if she saw him again, while Balin told Renato to give her time to recover.

After escaping the collapse, Renato and Balin argued with Tristana over whether to take her along until she offered her Ring of Spider Climbing in exchange for an escort to New Rolling Stone City. Renato accepted the ring and promised to escort her, but Balin spotted nearby trouble.

• Renato, Balin, and Tristana slid through a fissure and escaped the collapsing passage outside Rolling Stone City's walls.
• Balin refused to travel with Tristana, while she tried to persuade him and Renato by offering her skills and promising wealth from her family.
• Tristana offered Renato her Ring of Spider Climbing in exchange for an escort to New Rolling Stone City, and Renato's Adventurer's Guide presented a quest to escort her.
• Tristana handed over the ring, and Renato put it on despite Balin's warning about Drow tricks.
• Renato promised to escort Tristana, then Balin raised his warhammer and warned that trouble was nearby.

Renato, Balin, and Tristana met a band of Duergar slaves who rejected their account of Madra and attacked them for their supplies. The trio fought back, and the Stone Guard charged Renato after recovering from Tristana’s spell.

• Balin told the Duergar that Overlord Deepforge was dead and that Madra had founded New Rolling Stone City, while Renato explained that Madra was fighting the Mind Flayers and had freed them from mind control.
• After inspecting Renato’s map, the Duergar accused Balin of betraying Madra and demanded the trio’s food and supplies.
• Balin struck a Duergar with Lightning Bolt, and Tristana used magic to heat the Stone Guard’s armor until he collapsed in pain.
• Renato blocked the charging Duergar with Shadow Shield, shattered the barrier to wound them, and killed several with the Silent Lady.
• Tristana strengthened Renato as he cut through a Duergar’s shield and armor, then drained the warrior’s life with Touch of Dakoul.
• The Stone Guard recovered, grabbed his halberd, and charged Renato.