GNOME MINE

 

Hook: It's been hours... The underworld has been a dark, dismal, musty place. Damp with water filtering from the world above, thick with mushroom spores and wet earth, the moldy scent of limestone caves, and the acrid stench of your torch smoke... When you've found clear-running, mineral rich streams that were safe to drink from, the air was clear and cool and inviting, welcome in a world of suffocating sulfer caverns and hot lakes... You're contemplating this and idly wondering about your destination, a gnome mine said to be located somewhere in these caves. How deep could they be? A few sudden chasms yawning in the dark could have cut the venture short, but, your careful pace ensured you didn't fall in and saw the open pits just in time to avoid disaster... Aside from the gentle echo of dripping water and rushing streams, the quiet squeal of bats, it has been quiet... The sound your own gears makes nearly masks the noises of the caves... which has caused you some concern... Goblins and wraiths live in the dark, as do other things that avoid the light... A movement ahead stops you short... You are caught by surprise when a small shape detaches from the earthen wall of the tunnel, a very short, grim, aged-looking man dressed in a dark, dirty tunic embroidered brightly upon the hems. His leather shoes make no sound as he steps in your path, short spear grasped in both hands...

Details: The gnome mine is typical for its kind. Usually, such mines are found closer to the eponymous gnome city beneath its namesake, Mynydd Áŵr (The Golden Mountain). However, this one also serves as a settlement for a small number of clansmen searching for gemstones deep in the earth. There are mineral-rich caverns nearby, which drew the attention of the gnomes and decided them on settling the area. They are friends with a local wizard living above ground whose need for their services is great. He is sending those he can muster (and trust) into the caves to hand the gnomes a lapis gemstone of exceptional quality that he will need cut and inscribed with runes of power (something only mountain gnomes can do, reliably). The gem is in his possession, but, he will give it to those he can trust to take it below to the gnomes he discovered, years earlier. However, there is a problem, The small clan of gnomes has been taken hostage, some killed, by troglodytes that have taken over the complex. A single gnome has escaped, and has been patrolling the caves surrounding the mining settlement, ever since... He says the clan and will gladly do the job for free, if any of the party can help liberate his people. He will lead the group in, join them, even, and show them the layout on a crude map he'll draw with a dagger in the dirt of the cavern floor, to help the group visualise where the  various mine entries and troglodyte guards are. He doesn't know where his people are being held, or if they are even alive.

The troglodytes and mountain gnomes are bitter enemies, reflections of one another. The lizard people are capable of good tool use and craftsmanship, but, are nowhere near as skilled as the gnomes. A large female rules the tribe of skink-like lizards, and she is voracious and looking to lay eggs. She has likely eaten a few of the clansmen, already. The mountain gnome is desperate to get his people free, and may offer more as a reward, if the group presses, but, mountain gnomes are good and lawful by nature, and will not appreciate the immorality of such an aggrandising action, and may 'reward' the party with faulty goods or trick them into accepting false gold, or something similar. They do possess an earthy magic and enjoy simple pranks intended to teach lessons. If the characters in any way threaten or abuse the gnomes, or show they are ungrateful, the clan will move on and collapse the mining settlement.