There were eight of them:
Pobe "Divine Prophet" Nirnopibang, a
priest of the sun god,
Mobmu "The Roarer" Sasirbudo, his
barbarian bodyguard,
Tal "The Quarreler" Sestaabo, a
ranger skilled in caving,
Spuxi, a mysterious cowled
monk,
Kerleb the Clobberer, a scar-faced
warrior from the north,
Pundik "Goldgarnish" Abliabuth, a swashbuckling
bard,
Likot, a dwarven former
militia captain,
and his twin brother Minkot, a
mining expert of some repute.
They chose the dwarven entrance as they would be unwelcome in Theliiri lands, and were uninterested in the gold mines. They had come to slay the dragon.
Stealthily as best they could, they approached Asteshdatan, finding it in ruins again; a quick inspection gave up nothing but Likot insisted on searching for his and Minkot's kinsmen. Eventually, a dwarven figure beckoned them into the side tunnel where it revealed itself to be the old healer, Letmos Melbilnish.
"By Gods, you have come to save us all, have you? The dragon employs goblins to mine gold and expand his army... you could strike a blow against it if you destroyed the mining operation."
***
The adventurers' path lay east through recent battlefields still littered with bones of dwarves and Theliiri. The ranger Tal was leading the way, his expertise proving enough to spot the trap: two large, serrated discs primed to strike the tunnel right ahead. Disarming it took long enough, but it turned out to be only a distraction. The real trap was a hidden contraption that caused a ceiling grate to collapse upon their heads. Kerleb heroically held it up long enough for everyone to escape but had himself perished.
The dice are rolled!
Adventurers roll: 11
Goblins roll: 8Down in the mines, it was a massacre. The two dwarves especially held no punches against their hated enemy, and by the end of the day all of the goblins were slain or scattered. Upon their return to Asteshdatan, old Letmos healed the heroes' wounds and told them about a piece of artifact armor the dwarves hid from the dragon in the long-desecrated tomb below. Descending into the lower dungeons, they found the tomb and recovered the eldritch shield Rërithduthnur, "Chaosguard".
The prison was nearby, guarded by Triton minions, all of whom fell before the adventurers' weapons. Rith and Momuz were freed; while Momuz was too weak from incarceration, Rith took up arms to join the group for the showdown.
***
Below, the dragon's army was mustering for battle.
The dice are rolled!
Adventurers roll: 14
Vîrfesh's army rolls: 7
Adventurers roll: 11
Vîrfesh rolls: 9They fought through the mining tunnels and into Galkagaval, inciting a rebellion among human miners and beating back Vîrfesh's army cavern-to-cavern. They then helped themselves to the treasure in the old Goblin tomb, and set up the area for battle against the dragon. No way would it ignore their challenge. Only now it was not faced by a lone defiant goblin; the adventurers and their new allies took no chances and greeted him with massed crossbow fire. The first volley merely scratched his hide, as the dragon rushed forward onto the fortifications the dwarves had built just prior. The second volley descended onto him as he puffed up to melt everything in dragonfire.
Everyone took cover behind their shields, but the fiery onslaught never came. A bolt had caught him in the eye; Vîrfesh was dead.
"Minkot, did I tell you how much I love crossbows?"
"Yes, brother, sixteen times this morning."
With the death of the only great power, the world passes into the Age of Decay.