# [[Grumblebum]] Grumble is a dwarven [[Tomb Wardens|Tomb Warden]] barbarian from [[Dongan Hold]], a dwarven city near [[Alkenstar]]. His clan makes guns for export through Alkenstar. He worships [[Torog]]. *I may be small, but I am larger than life!* ## Identity & Personality Grumble is the party's solitary, blunt, duty-bound dwarf. He's patriotic to his people without much care for others, and he has *no* restraint in a fight. He thinks the rest of the party is weird — Ash and Zuhri move in unison, everyone climbs every available tree, and someone keeps leaving him a creepy doll. - **Resistances**: Fire and sonic damage - **Solitary**: Finds Ash and Zuhri's constant pairing strange - **Tree skeptic**: When a dangerous underground creature emerged in camp, *everyone* climbed a tree except Grumble, who stood at the base of his and waited for it - **Boon from Torog**: Received a single dwarf-ancestry effect of Torog's choice (Session 066) - **Far from home**: Both Bond and Grumble are far from theirs - **The creepy doll**: A doll in [[Otari]] keeps appearing with *"Grumblebum"* written on its dress — Grumble interprets this as a secret admirer ## Tomb Warden Duty Grumble's identity is welded to his role: recover dwarven dead, return clan daggers to the right hands, and keep the order's promises. - **Rescued Varlon**: In Session 062, found [[Varlon]] — a small boy with dreadlocks — and made him his follower - **Clan daggers**: Recovered four clan daggers from the fallen Tomb Wardens, plus more from [[Death Wardens]] who were trapped and cannibalized each other; he considers returning each one his duty - **Kit from the fallen**: Acquired *Boots of Free Running* and splint mail from the same Tomb Wardens - **Death Warden status (Session 100)**: Spoke up for [[Vayle]] in the [[Dawnflower Library]] debate — *"I am a Death Warden. Normally Death Wardens hate the undead. I'll attest that Vayle is one of the good ones."* - **Locate Dwarf**: Used to find dwarven bodies, weapons, and remains throughout the Gauntlight (and to confirm the [[Death Shepherd]]'s dwarven origins, and that its thralls were dwarven too) ## Xal'garoth's Boon In Session 075, [[Xal'garoth - The Apex Beast]] recognized in Grumble a kindred sense of duty. - **Beast's message**: *"There's something similar between him and the beast. They both understand duty. Grumble has a duty to his people and to the [[Tomb Wardens]]."* - **Spell granted**: *Locate* at will — finds dwarves and dwarven-made items (weapons, places, corpses) - **Lightning axe**: *Gutsplasher* now channels lightning, scorching the ground around Grumble while leaving him undamaged - **Woodland helm**: Antlered, enhances his abilities - **Enhanced movement**: Improved tumbling, climbing, and shield-speed - **The beast's challenge**: *"You have faced many challenges in pursuit of your duty. But you'll face more difficult ones. Is your might enough?"* ## "How Dare You Do That to My People!" The Thri-Kreen / dissection arc is Grumble's central campaign mission, building from Session 086 through Session 103. - **Vision**: Saw a mantis-like humanoid in a surgical mask cutting dwarves apart (likely [[Jafaki]]) - **Stockroom (Session 089)**: Discovered the [[Gauntlight Stockroom]] with surgical tools, armor racks, and jars of preserved humanoid parts (including dwarven and halfling) - **Recognition (Session 102)**: Recognized the [[Thri-Kreen]] as the dissecting creature from his vision; attacked in rage shouting *"How dare you do that to my people!"* — but the Thri-Kreen's 35 ft movement was too fast to catch - **Dissection room (Session 103)**: Discovered recently dead dwarven bodies on metal shelves and slabs in the operating/dissection room; searched for clan daggers; confirmed the Thri-Kreen has been dissecting dwarves - **Drow oath (Session 065)**: Vowed revenge against the three drow who tricked dwarves into the soul-gem deception, including [[Volluk Azrinae]] ## Notable Capabilities - **Locate Dwarf** at will (from Xal'garoth) - **Gutsplasher**: Lightning-channeling axe (named in Session 060) - **Critical hits**: Blinded the [[Death Shepherd]] with a critical (Session 086); 38-damage critical hit on the [[Mulventok]] (Session 097) - **Shield discipline**: With his [[Rune of Retaliation]] (Level 10, rare), Shield Block now unleashes 8d4 force damage automatically once per hour - **Door breaking**: Kicked a southern Gauntlight door to pieces (Session 089); helped break the jammed Chafkem door - **Battlefield logistics**: Set up fortifications and tracks around camp; cooked filter masks from rations (+2 against poisonous swamp fumes) - **Survival**: Rolled 28 on Survival to navigate the first day of the heavy-downpour journey to [[Absalom]] ## Active Objectives - **Hunt Jafaki and the Thri-Kreen**: Avenge the dwarves dissected in The Gauntlight - **Return clan daggers**: To their rightful clans - **Honour the Tomb Warden order**: As one of its remaining members in the field - **Avenge the soul-gem dwarves**: Take down [[Volluk Azrinae]] and the drow who participated - **Survive the Doomed-adjacent shadow attacks**: After Enfeebled 4 in Session 115, another permanent death is closer than he'd like ## Unresolved Questions - Why was a Tomb Warden so far from the Dwarvenlands? Tomb Wardens typically bring their dead home — what brought one to where the party found him? - Who is leaving the creepy doll in Otari? - What does Torog actually want from him? - Will the dissecting Thri-Kreen / [[Jafaki]] connection become Grumble's confrontation, or someone else's? ## Relationships - **Party**: [[Jaspen Bond Callistair|Bond]] (both far from home), [[Ashnefrotty|Ash]] (movement-with-Zuhri puzzles him), [[Vayle]] (Death-Warden-protective; bought them an Elixir of Life when they hit 12 HP after the *Doomed* condition), [[Zuhri]] - **Follower**: [[Varlon]] - **Allies**: [[Hearthmother Saesella]] (gifts of the eternal eruption crystal ball and a Feather Token Balloon), [[Vandy Banderdash]] (cured the Black Frost curse), the [[Stonescale Kobolds]] community via Bond - **Enemies**: [[Volluk Azrinae]], [[Jafaki]], the [[Thri-Kreen]], the [[Death Shepherd]] (now defeated), [[Belcorra]]'s shadow attacks - **Rejected**: Refused [[Szek]]'s infernal contract (daily advantage on one save in exchange for a hundred-year service); called her out from invisibility but kept the conversation going ## Notable Events Timeline Combat round-by-round and HP-tracking removed; preserved in the session notes. - **Session 056** — *Guilt of The Huntress*: Identifies the [[Desolation Locket]] as the focus of Esefna's guilt; explains the guilt enchantment; acquires the [[Cloak of the Huntress]] from her tomb - **Session 057** — *Berry Bush*: Buys two Moderate Healing Potions from [[Magiloi]] at [[Crow's Cask]] (50 gp each); rolls 28 on Survival through the heavy downpour - **Session 058** — *Werewolf Woodland*: Finds a hidden metal trap door under a bed with manacles for five; suggests the ration-mask trick for the swamp poison - **Session 060** — *Bulette Rodeo*: Gutsplasher named; successful foraging - **Session 062** — *Fallen Tomb Wardens*: Rescues [[Varlon]]; helps Vayle out of the bear trap; identifies the fallen as a Tomb Warden of [[Zarmavdian]]'s tomb; recovers four clan daggers, *Boots of Free Running*, splint mail; finds the creepy doll with his name on it - **Session 063** — *Dwarven Souls*: Identifies the 10 dwarves in the tomb as artisans/warriors from long-lost clans; attempts to extract the wall gems but they cannot be removed - **Session 065** — *Coalition*: Discovers three humans had captured Varlon and were inspecting Malleus; vows revenge against the three soul-gem drow - **Session 067** — *Arbor Felix*: Has 5 hero points; nat-success navigating; *not* targeted by [[Hunter Elise]] when the villagers attack - **Session 069** — *Defense*: Splits the village fighters by cardinal direction (N: 75, S: 75, E: 50, W: 50, 50 reserve); assigns the best to Hunter Elise - **Session 073** — *Lamashtu Temple*: Hears lightning and wind in his brain when the Alpha dies; witnesses the Alpha turn to smoke and reveal a dwarven body in armor - **Session 075** — *Xal'garoth's Boon*: Locate Dwarf, lightning axe, antler helm, enhanced movement - **Session 076** — *Underground Lab*: Receives the eternal eruption crystal ball (lava-fireball, 5d6 in 70 ft) and the Feather Token Balloon from Saesella; teleports via Zarmavdian's clan dagger; describes the dwarf as *"quite small and thin... and naked! And there's a lot of unruly dwarven beard."* - **Session 086** — *Tree & Mimic Combat*: Throws a torch at the [[Leafy Fleshwarp]] tree (it reacts to fire; feels like hard rubber, regenerates through glowing green buds); blinds the Death Shepherd with a crit - **Session 087** — *Black Frost*: Tied a mimic corpse as bait, accidentally reanimating it; contracts the [[Black Frost]] curse alongside Vayle; cured by Vandy (party owes her a favour) - **Session 088** — *Barracks*: Buys an Elixir of Life from [[Magiloi]] at [[Crow's Cask]]; receives the [[Roaring potion]] in loot distribution; reaches Level 7 - **Session 089** — *Stockroom*: Reveals he's from [[Dongan Hold]]; the gun-trade with Alkenstar; kicks open a southern door; finds the [[Gauntlight Stockroom]] with the preserved-parts jars - **Session 091** — *Poltergeists*: Finds the [[lead-lined steel box]] thrown around by the poltergeists for centuries - **Session 097** — *Mulvenboom*: 38-damage crit on the Mulventok - **Session 100** — *Library*: Death Warden support for Vayle; nat-success Perception reveals the entire clergy has been arguing about Vayle for hours - **Session 101** — *Shopping*: Potion of Flying from Magiloi (50 gp); two Moderate Energy Mutagens (6 gp each); the [[Rune of Retaliation]] for his shield (Level 10 rare, 8d4 force on Shield Block, once per hour) - **Session 102** — *Thri-Kreen*: Recognition and rage attack - **Session 103** — *Dissection Room*: Confirms dwarven dissection - **Session 106** — *Black Knight*: Couldn't open the construct; watched Bond do it and rescue Andy and Gran - **Session 108** — *Graveknight Negotiation*: Nat-20 religion check on Nhimbaloth's permanent-death zone; offers to reverse the Graveknight's curse (dismissed as *"irrelevant"*); learns the 1-10 day respawn time and that *Remove Curse* + physical destruction are both required - **Session 109** — *Sythra Intel*: Learns from Sythra that [[Sketh]], [[Jafaki]], and [[Volluk Azrinae|Volluk]] all *"need to fulfill their purpose"*; learns of her connection to [[Tarcannah]] - **Session 112** — *Refused Contract*: Refuses Szek's hundred-year service contract ([[112_20260404 The Pentagram Shards]]) - **Session 113** — *Elixir for Vayle*: Buys an Elixir of Life (moderate) for Vayle at 12 HP after the *Doomed* 1 condition - **Session 115** — *Enfeebled 4*: Severe Shadow Hand attacks from the Belcorra-controlled Siora — 18 void + 4 precision early, then 34/17/21 precision from duplicates that each steal a piece of his shadow; reaches Enfeebled 4; survives long enough for Vayle's Cailean Key activation - **Session 117** — *Goblin Workshop Bribe*: Bribed the goblins who own the only workshop in [[Otari]] so [[Jaspen Bond Callistair|Bond]] could dissect the [[116_20260517 The Cooperative Balloon|Cooperative Balloon]] eye; bought *ghost rune*s for his gloves - **Session 118** — *A Bad Omen*: Browsing weapons in the garrison armory, his [[Death Wardens|Death Warden]] insignia **cracked in half** — a bad omen. Something in him has broken; he feels the weight of all the undead he did *not* kill - **Session 119** — *The Dwarven Souls*: Took two dwarven soul gems from [[Jaspen Bond Callistair|Bond]] and grew agitated over what should be done with the trapped dwarven souls — a question that fits his Tomb Warden duty, though no one else in the party seemed to care - **Session 120** — *Acid Prep*: Bought three acid mutagens (12 gp each) ahead of the Gauntlight run, and noted water bombs as an option (minimal nonlethal bludgeoning/splash, with a flat check to save). Quietly left 10 gold hidden by [[Maret]]'s flower bed - **Session 121** — *Pulling Maret Free*: With [[Vayle]], hauled the newly-transformed [[Sarangai]] [[Maret]] out of her collapsed hut and weathered the psychic pulse of her forehead soul-gem as werewolves attacked under the full moon - **Session 122** — *Shield and Charge*: Raised his shield and Sudden Charged into the werewolf pack, then attacked and damaged Wolf 6, holding the line as the wolves swarmed the downed [[Maret]] - **Session 123** — *Silvered Axe*: Took 19 damage and was marked by the wolves as the fight wound down. Afterward, [[Helly]] revealed she can silver weapons and **silvered Grumble's axe** — a lasting boon against werewolves - **Session 124** — *Sevara's Killer, Paper Spotter*: The wolf Grumble killed in the fight turned out to be [[Sevara]], a prominent [[The Gallowhops|Gallowhops]] figure who was something like the pack's leader — the ex-werewolves mourned her. Later, at [[The Rowdy Rockfish]], he and [[Jaspen Bond Callistair|Bond]] spotted an **insect made of paper** torn from an ancient tome; Grumble downed it with a thrown dagger, and it sprinkled a dust-like substance as it fell. They recognized the paper as the same ancient tile-paper last seen around [[Chafkem]] — part of a ritual that transforms someone into a **mummy** ## Equipment - **Gutsplasher** — axe; channels lightning around Grumble - **Woodland helm** — antlered, gift from Xal'garoth - **Boots of Free Running** — recovered from the fallen Tomb Wardens - **Splint mail** — recovered from the same - [[Cloak of the Huntress]] — from [[Esefna Menhemes|Esefna]]'s tomb (Session 056) - [[Rune of Retaliation]] (Level 10, rare) — on his shield - Multiple clan daggers (4 from the Tomb Wardens; more from cannibalized Death Wardens) - Eternal eruption crystal ball — lava bomb, 5d6 fireball within 70 ft - Feather Token Balloon - [[Roaring potion]] - Various potions and mutagens (Moderate Energy Mutagens, Potion of Flying) - *Ghost rune*s for his gloves (purchased Session 117)