Chapter 12: Doom of the Desert - Storm King's Thunder

Chapter 12: Doom of the Desert. Upon his return to Maelstrom, King Hekaton is quick to act against the evil that threatens all giants. With the help of his scrying pool, Hekaton figures out where Iymrith has gone to ground. Seated upon the Wyrmskull Throne, Hekaton summons the adventurers before him, thanks them for their help thus far, and asks them to join him as he takes the fight to Iymrith by storming the dragon's lair in the desert of Anauroch. If the characters were unable to rescue the storm giant king, or if Hekaton didn't survive, Princess Serissa vows to avenge her father's death, swearing that Iymrith's deception will not go unpunished. She reaches out to the adventurers one more time, imploring them to join her as she confronts the dragon. An ancient blue dragon is more than a match for a party of 10th-level adventurers, but the characters have storm giants watching their backs. Hekaton or Princess Serissa also gives each character a potion of giant size (see appendix B) from the royal treasury, enabling them to face the dragon as true giants when the time comes. The storm giants describe the effect and duration of the potions, but they leave it to the characters to decide if and when to use them. The characters can quaff their potions before they enter Iymrith's lair or wait until they are about to engage the dragon in battle. Conversely, one or more characters might prefer to use the potions only as a last resort. Hekaton or Princess Serissa also gives the party a claw of the wyrm rune (see appendix B) recovered from a shipwreck near Maelstrom. Like the potions, this item is a gift; the characters can do with it what they will. Finding Iymrith The storm giants bear the burden of finding the dragon so that the characters can focus on preparing themselves for the final showdown. Hekaton and Princess Serissa know that blue dragons favor desert surroundings, and it doesn't take much research for them to discover that Iymrith has a reputation in the Nor...