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The Ironwood Arena

Thirteenth of First Seed, 836 P.S.

Halfling monk Mojo, the warlocks Echo and Sweet Summerchild, the druid Tulgey and new roguish tabaxi ally XIII, followed rumours of some kind of combat arena recently built in the woods south of Drellin’s Ferry. It was well-attended, hosting a ladder of challenges called The Gauntlet, and the mysterious “Lady Dagger” was involved in the management. Eager to test their skill (and to get close to the figure linked to the Reavers of Wrath kidnappings) , the party signed up under the team name of The Paper Street Soap Company.

The Hateful Eight
The floor of the arena was manipulated by a druid to form different terrain, trap, and obstacle features. Eight goblins made use of the plentiful cover, but were dispatched quickly.

Daemon Daemonium
The terrain was mostly cleared, save for a row of chevaux de frise style spiked barriers. A horde of maw demons rushed the party. They could deal out some major damage, but were relatively easy to hit, and the team cleared this challenge too. Save for one last demon, inexplicably charmed and befriended by Summerchild. It would accompany the party into the final rounds, hereafter known as "Commandant Yellowfeather".

I-Spy
The arena was formed into a maze of open-roofed buildings. Stealthy assassins stalked among the structures. One of them downed Tulgey in a single round of attacks, and as they closed in around the other fragile spellcasters, things looked bad. Echo’s psychological magicks were able to rout a group of them, and, back on his feet thanks to Mojo, Tulgey summoned a pair of dire wolves to tear the assassins apart.

Hydrangea
From a small lake formed in the centre of the stadium, a great hydra reared its many heads. Bravely (some would say foolhardily) Mojo stepped (some would say drunkenly staggered) forward to meet the creature head on. And died many times. It was all Tulgey could do to keep him conscious. But his flurry of attacks hit home, and he and the Commandant kept the beast occupied, while the rest of the team threw everything they had from afar.

The hydra slain, the Soap Company acquired their title as "Champions of the Dagger". But with their namesake retired for the evening, they would have to find answers to her identity elsewhere, for now.

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