The start of something new

"The start of something new" is the Dungeon Select series premiere. A group of individuals all got invited to The Archmage Tower in The Expanse by Archmage Brassbend to discuss the retrieval of a trinket called The Chromasphere, the group get's introduced to eachother and set out on this adventure...

Part 1
The Party meets up at The Archmage Tower in The Expanse, a desert province in the world of Kel'Dalar, named after the allfather of the gods in the realm. Everybody arrives one after the other and find out that Archmage Brassbend had been watching them, before he made the decision to invite them to the tower.

After introductions were made and the plan got explained, The Party decided to heed Archmage Brassbend's call and fetch The Chromasphere for him, of which the last known location was with a Drow community down south, in the Mystery Mountains. In return for this favor, the group would be rewarded 100 gold coins each, and 1 magical artifact of their choosing, or simply, information.

The Party set out on their way down south and after a long time of walking, they found an oasis in the desert and decided that it would serve as their campsite for the night. The party set up for a long night's rest, but Ashtaranu Gotar hears whispers coming from a nearby rock. He wakes up Nakul Sparkbolt and the both of them go to check it out quietly. But eventually Nakul decided to let the whispering individuals know that they are awake and this leads into a fight, waking up the rest of the group.

The Bandits
Four bandits wielding a shield and scimitar appear from behind the rock. And a fight breaks out.

The first bandit gets taken down by Ashtaranu Gotar thanks to a Psionic Blast, after which Ash steps back and tries to intimidate by yelling "Run while you can!".

The second bandit puts up a bit of a fight, but the combination of a javelin stuck in his leg by Aktanis and a crossbow bolt shot inbetween his eyes by Kiseran Duadhe is too much for him to handle as this bandit collapses face flat onto the sand.

The third bandit gets burnt down to a crisp thanks to a firebolt flung at him by Tramaris who then mutters "Never trust vultures" as he asked a vulture earlier to keep an eye out for trouble.

The last remaining bandit saw all of his compatriots perish against the force of this group and before he can do anything he gets struck in the shoulder shot at him by Lozan Ariztar. The eyes of the bandit go wide with panic and regret.

Ashtaranu Gotar then proceeds to try and jam both of his daggers into this last remaining bandit, missing one of the two due to hitting the shield.

Nakul Sparkbolt finishes the job by slamming his maul into the side of the bandit's head and knocks it straight off the body, sending it flying away.

Part 2
After defeating the bandits and going back to their rest, the party wakes up in the morning and continues their trek to Valley Village. On their way there they encounter a band of bards, known as Jimmy and the Three Musketeers who warn them that the village has been attacked by Drow.

After arriving at the outskirts of the village they see that the town is burning, thick plumes of smoke emerging from some of the buildings. They spot a patrol of Drow marching around the town borders.

The party decides that it would be a good idea for everyone to be tied up and be escorted as prisoners by Lozan Ariztar since he is a Drow, as well as Tramaris who uses magic to make him look like a Drow.

Upon closer inspection the party learns that these Elves are acting strange. They speak a strange language and all move in sync with eachother. The party decides to loosen their bonds and initiate an attack.

The Drow Patrol
Before loosening his bond, Ashtaranu Gotar unleashes a Psionic Blast at one of the Drow and all they hear in response is a guttural moan.

Everybody loosens their bonds and Lozan Ariztar fires an arrow at the one that has already been hit by Ash, and as the drow patrol comes running towards them, the arrow strikes true and kills the Elf before he reaches The Party.

Tramaris shoots another Fire Bolt that already got hurt by another Psionic Blast, and as the bright orange light fades all that remains is a burnt, crispy dead Drow.

After Lozan Ariztar hits one of the Drow with an arrow, they respond with a cry for help in Undercommon as opposed to the Deep Speech they have spoken so far, but before they can even utter another word, the Deep Speech returns to finish the sentance. It looked and sounded like whatever is happening to these people, it is not something they are happy with.

A closer inspection reveals that these Drow their eyes are completely white, no pupils, no iris, just white. Almost like a foggy haze. The group senses that there is definitely more at play here.

The third Drow suddenly turns away from the fight and starts walking away. As it does this it starts speaking in Deep Speech.

Tramaris casts Detect Magic and determines that something is enchanting these Drow and notifies the group. The Drow hear this and before they can do anything, their necks just snap and both fall dead to the floor.

The Party

 * Tramaris
 * Ashtaranu Gotar
 * Nakul Sparkbolt
 * Lozan Ariztar
 * Aktanis
 * Kiseran Duadhe

New

 * Archmage Brassbend
 * Unnamed human bandits
 * Jimmy and the Three Musketeers
 * Unnamed Drow Patrol