Day 10 – and they call it a mine.

I dreamed of her again. It comforted me. She told me that I would be stronger, that she could grant me more power. When I woke up it was true, I could channel slightly more divine energy, not much but enough to be able to cast some sort of holy (or unholy?) curse. I can’t wait to try this out.

The cleric we killed the other day had a dopey looking helmet, it was kinda magical but it looked so uncool we sold it for a fat roll of coins, and that’s not all, Imoen had found this badass suit of armour earlier, before I got up. She didn’t tell me exactly where she had found it but I figured she’d “found it.” Enough said – neither of us could use it so we sold it for and even fatter stack than the helmet. We are so freaking rich, I was almost tempted to make the journey all the way back to High Hedge so we can splash out on spellscrolls – that’s how rich we are. I’m itching to try out some new magic.

So at this point I think we had seen all Nashkel had to offer so really the choices were to laze around in various inns using our new mountain of gold coins until we got old, assassinated or robbed, or to try and work out what happened to Gorion and get these assassins off my back. The first step, as Imoen rightly said (and I will admit I was pretty hasty i saying no way), is that we need an “in” with the people who know things and do things, powerful people basically, and that “in” is going to be this damn mine which every person and their fricking dog is yapping about. Fix the mine, become “heroes,” leverage that into power, prestige, even more wealth, and information. Damn I’m smart.

As we were heading south towards the mine we passed a Temple of Helm in Nashkel, huge thing, it made me feel uncomfortable to see it. I realised I was walking on the other side of the road to be as far away as possible, it didn’t affect Imoen in the same way.

Nothing is ever easy though. On the way to the mines, we were travelling through this canyon and yep, you guessed it: ambushed. A whole host of bandits and the like. Me and Imoen were about to runkill them when this half-orc showed up and started hacking apart the bandits. Seemed he held a grudge or something.

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dont let us stop you

He wasn’t actually that good at fighting but he served as meat shield while me and Imoen did all the heavy lifting. Well, until he was stabbed through the gut by one of the bandits. Me and Imoen were the last ones standing. To the victor the spoils as they say, we looted the corpses like the pair of scavengersbasasses we are. Not one but two magic swords, a magic shield which I could use – this thing is the shit, and some expensive looking potions. Whatever grudge was going on here, me and Imoen have lucked out, not so lucky for the eight corpses though.

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welp, eveyone dead

The mine looked just as shitty as I expected, peasants breaking rocks and humping dirt around. No thank you. But we were here do a job, and the mine overseer (asshole) told us we could have a one day to investigate – fine, I didn’t even want to spend a whole day here anyway.

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gross mine with miners

The miners were all panicking about “little demons” great, that would be just what I needed. I was thinking that they were probably scared of bats of some crap. But enough I am not going to describe in long and tedious detail the long and tedious schlumping me and Im did through layer after layer of tunnels. I’m getting a headache just remembering it, so I’ll skip to the end: It became preeeeetty obvious the mine was filled with kobolds, like do these people not read a fricking book every once in a while? How did they not realise this, I mean the upper levels were filled with soldiers from Amn supposedly “protecting the mine.” I’m sensing a theme – first the Flaming Fists, then these soldiers from Amn – professionals? Professional losers more like.

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We’re pretty good at killing kobolds it seems.

The mines connected to a series of deep caves, with even more kobolds, but after you’ve killed you 30th or indeed 300th kobold it all kinda blends into one. Finally, when I thought we could kill no more, We found an area where we could rest, catch our breath recover some spells. I was exhausted, and so was Imoen, these caves go on for ever.