The Wand of Orcus

"Aeons ago, in the time of the Dawn War, the ancient heroes Dunstan of Moradin, Dhaunayane of Lolth, Lirael of Mellora and Jareth of Kord struggled against and defeated the Primordial Orcus. The Demon Lord's terrible Wand was cast far across the Multiverse, long lost to the sight of Men. 
But nothing lasts forever..."

Session 6 25/3 to 2/4/717 Questing for Tannheim

1, Leleth Snow, Armiger of Fallcrest, daughter of Alana. Half-elf Blackguard (Tiffany)
2. Messoria Dorimant, Armiger of Fallcrest, daughter of Kallain. Tiefling Paladin (Judith)
3. Arjhen, soldier of Fallcrest. Dragonborn Slayer Fighter (Jelena)
4. Aelar of Harkenwood, soldier of Fallcrest. Elf Hunter Ranger (Philippe)

Bronze Warder

25/3/717 PCs Leleth Arjen and Messoria recover white dragon's treasure from Kobold Hall. Hand over treasure chest, keep the greatsword & armour of fallen Fallcrest knights Sir Egan Vardis & Sir Tal Lorvas. Dragon is persuaded. Lady Diana Sone, Egan's former squire, is very happy.

30/3/717 PCs leave Fallcrest bound for lost dwarf hall of Tanheim, stay night at Thunderspire's Seven Pillared Hall guarded by Bronze minotaurs, meet various traders and Aelar.

31/3/717 PCs stay night at the Fiveleague House Inn.

1/4/717 Leleth leaves horse at Inn, group heads south. Ambushed by 6 Ravenroost brigands. Kill 3, 3 flee. That evening they hear sounds of pursuit, detour into Harken forest to hide.

2/4/717 2 hours before dawn (4am) two bandit scouts find their camp, but guard drake alerts PCs. Aelar chases them down and kills them before they can warn other bandits. Group heads south to Harkenwold, reach a local village and purchase supplies, then head east upriver into the Dawnforge mountains.
At nightfall (ca 6.30pm) the group reach the head of a large mountain lake, and spot an ancient crumbling tower where a stream flows from out of the mountain into the lake. Is this Tanheim?

Messoria Account

The Road to Tannheim
Having been sent on a mission by the priest of Sehanine, Ressilmae Starlight, Messoria returns to Fallcrest in time to see her companions return triumphant from Kobold Hall where they had convinced the Kobolds’ leader, the white dragon Szartharax, to take up residence in the town on an island in the middle of the river.
Recalling the dragon’s hoard, Leleth, Messoria and Arjhan return to the Hall as the return of its treasure may be the best way to keep so fractious a creature good tempered. Leleth is able to bluff a couple of kobold guards that we are in the service of the dragon and that they should direct us to the treasure. Cowed by Leleth’s certainty and the dragon’s name they do so and soon we return to Fallcrest with the dragon’s treasure in a chest in addition to the enchanted armour and greatsword belonging to the knights who had earlier been sent against the kobolds.
It takes a little more flattery on Leleth’s part to convince the dragon to return the sword and armour to the Lord Warden, but she appears to be developing a rapport with the creature. A few days pass in which time we find that Aelar has headed over toward the Harken forest but plans to rendezvous with us at Thunderspire which is where we will be planning to stop on our way to Tannheim. I spend the time collecting the stories about Tannheim that confirm all we had previously heard that the dwarves there consorted with demons or devils in their quest to craft more powerful arms and armour, and that other dwarves had declared them anathema.
We set out from Fallcrest planning to stop at Thunderspire and later at Five League House before cutting south to skirt the Dawnforge Mountains. Once we reach the White River we shall follow it upstream to its source on a mountain lake which is where Tannheim is believed to be located.
On the road we hear rumours of a powerful group of bandits based out of the ruins of Ravenroost. They wear raven masks and some are said to carry the symbol of the Raven Queen. Some are even said to be Shadar Kai, the mysterious cursed race from the Shadowfell. Being in the service of the Raven Queen, Leleth is concerned by these rumours but the level of reward offered for their capture is high enough to warn that they may well be as powerful as we have heard.
We manage to meet up with Aelar as planned in the Hall below Thunderspire where peace is ruthlessly maintained by the Mages of Sarun. Traders whose races would elsewhere kill each other on sight have set up stalls and many interesting items are offered for sale. Leleth voices an interest in a magical Resounding hammer (until she discovers the price), but from whom we do buy a scroll of Comprehend Languages. I meet with a dwarf priest of Moradin called Torgun who had long ago fought alongside my father at the Battle of Gardbury Downs. We tell him of our quest to Tannheim and purchase some Holy water from him.
The next day we travel without incident to Five League House which offers a good deal on ale and food. As we know we are to travel into rough country, we arrange to stable Leleth’s warhouse at the House and continue south on foot.
After only a few miles we are stopped on the road by a bandit demanding our goods. Aelar had managed to warn us of others lying in ambush, but even he had missed on rogue who, as soon as we declared our defiance, whipped a garrotte around Arjhan’s neck. Leleth charged for the leader while Arjhan and I focus on the rogue. Aelar is able to evade the bandits while all the time shooting them with his mighty greatbow.
The rogue soon falls with Arjhan’s pet Draco tearing into her body, so I rush to aid Leleth while Arjhan charges the crossbow-armed bandits. Having apparently expected an easy victory, the bandits’ nerve snaps and they turn to flee. Moments later the bandit leader falls having warned us with his last breath that his masters will be hunting for us. We take what wealth they are carrying: some silver coins and a couple of sapphires before weighting the bodies and tipping them into a nearby pond.
A few hours later it seems his words are prophetic as we hear from behind us the baying of hounds. The forest seems to offer the best scope for escape so we rush for the treeline and are lucky enough to come across a forest stream running north to south. The deviousness that seems to be a part of my tiefling blood pushes me to suggest we go north: elven and human settlements lie to the south, and if the hounds have no trail to follow I believe our pursuers would think we would have headed that way seeking safety.
We splash upstream as quietly as we can and even though the cold seeps into our limbs we are heartened as the sound of the dogs recedes and them goes silent. Above us the moon appears from behind a cloud and I know Sehanine has blessed our escape. We cold camp for the rest of the night. A few hours before dawn Draco alerts Leleth who in turn awaken the rest of us. Aelar alone hears the bandit searchers and ghosts into the trees to confront them.
With his speed and bow skill he is able to kill them both before the rest of us are able to catch up. We leave as soon as we can and around midday arrive at Easthill village where I purchase some bacon to enhance our trail rations while Arjhan buys a whole ham. The villager tells us of slavers working along the Trade Road and of people kidnapped and taken south. He has heard tell it is connected with the same Iron Circle hobgoblins we fought a few weeks earlier.

Now resupplied we follow the stream away from Easthill and up into the Briar Hills. It’s late in the afternoon when we reach the lake so we pitch tents for a good night’s rest before exploring further.

Session 5 22/3/717 Kobold Hall

Group goes to Kobold Hall, kill kobolds. Arjen befriends a guard drake. Go downstairs. Kill more kobolds. Find secret door to the undercaverns. Find a white dragon. Bring it back to Fallcrest. After discussion Lord Markelhay grants it the Tower of Silence in the middle of the river. Leleth Snow is made a Knight of Fallcrest - Lady Leleth.