Flamerule 4 - 6, 1491 DR
The group started out early the next morning and soon were winding their way through Neverwinter Wood, searching for Cragmaw Castle. They would be coming at it from the east this time, but Nash was confident he could lead the group there. Soon enough they came upon a light trail that showed recent use by goblinoids.
They followed the path with Nash in the lead ahead of the rest, going slowly and cautiously keeping eyes and ears open for goblins. They followed the path for over a mile and soon Nash found himself about 50 feet away from 2 guard post tree stands. Unfortunately they had heard his approach and had arrows at the ready and fired down on Nash. They missed and he was taking cover.
The battle was over quickly but Nash had taken some arrow damage. Bronn quickly healed him up. From there they continued on the trail for a mile or so and they came upon the eastern side of Cragmaw Castle. The moved among the edge of the woods until they were on the north side. They would use the hidden door in the north to gain entrance.
They had to neutralize a patrol coming up a northern trail and took some time to wait. They would wait until dusk to start their assault. Their attack went very well. They gained entrance and battled their way through some hobgoblins who were in control of the eastern part of the castle. Some tried to flee to the western rooms but were cut down.
Farooq masterfully chased a hobgoblin into a room with 4 goblins and with spinning strikes and a final thrown spear he managed to kill all in the room before they could react. Bronn grumpily complained that Farooq was leaving no goblins for him to kill. Soon the rest of the castle was routed as goblins came streaming out of every room to run out the front entrance of the castle and dash for the forest.
The PCs let none of the goblins get away. Confident that the fighting was over, the went back into the castle and went room by room searching for what valuables they could find. Their greatest success was finding a cask of dwarven brandy amongst the more mundane armor and weapons they were scrounging. They shared that cask as Farooq and Bronn got incredibly drunk and Finder, Keeper and Nash approached the strong liquor with more caution.
They spent the night in their newly claimed castle and in the morning they were headed back to Phandalin with their spoils. They camped again on the trail back to Phandalin and were not bothered in their rest.
By Flamerule 6 they were back in Phandalin a bit later in the evening. The town was mostly quiet except for the rowdy crowd at the Sleeping Giant Tavern. They decided to just head to the old Redbrand hideout and sleep there. It was time that they took ownership of their new hideout, and the idea of having the Manor above rebuilt was growing more appealing to them.
They cleaned off some beds and settled in, dreaming of adventures to come.
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