The tunnel carved by the purple worm stretched before them like a perfectly circular wound through solid rock, its walls smooth as glass from the creature’s passage. Bramdur’s eyes gleamed with avarice as he spoke of the fortune that purple worm eggs could bring, and despite the unease that crept along their spines, the party followed the sinuous path deeper into the earth.

The cavern that opened before them defied the darkness with its vastness. Even their enhanced vision struggled to pierce the shadows that pooled in its furthest corners. Above their heads, a web of impossibly strong silk stretched between the walls, and nestled within these strands like pearls in a net hung clusters of enormous eggs, each one the size of a small boulder.

Thorn took to the air with practiced ease, his elven grace carrying him upward to examine their prize. The silk beneath his hands felt wrong—not delicate like spider’s thread, but solid as steel cable. He drew his dagger and began the arduous work of cutting through the strands, each slice requiring more effort than hewing through thick rope. Below, Tempest waited with outstretched arms while Bramdur readied his cart with barely contained excitement.

It was Maledurk who first sensed something amiss. The dragonborn’s keen hearing caught a rhythmic rumbling, distant yet unmistakable—the sound of something massive drawing breath in slumber. While his companions focused on their prize, he prowled deeper into the cavern, following the sound through twisting passages until he found its source.

The giant lay sprawled in a chamber that echoed with each footstep, amplifying sound until even breathing became thunder. Maledurk’s brass scales prickled with warning as he took in the creature’s size—easily fifteen feet of muscle and malice, even in repose. Its club, a tree trunk carved for violence, rested within easy reach of one massive hand.

Above, Thorn felt the first vibration through the silk web. It started as a gentle tremor, like a plucked string, then stopped. He paused in his cutting, every instinct screaming danger, but the egg was nearly free. He resumed his work, faster now, urgency lending speed to his blade.

The second vibration didn’t stop. It grew, resonating through the entire web until the silk sang with an ominous tone that filled the chamber. The sound built upon itself, layer upon layer, until it became a dirge that awakened ancient hungers.

In the echoing chamber, the giant’s eye snapped open, fixing on Maledurk with primal fury. Its roar shattered the air as it surged to its feet, club already swinging in a murderous arc. Maledurk’s attempt at diplomacy died on his lips as he turned and ran, his powerful legs carrying him back toward his companions with the thunder of giant footsteps in pursuit.

The roar had barely faded when a new sound filled the air—the grinding of stone against stone, as if the mountain itself were tearing apart. From the northern depths, a purple worm erupted into the chamber, its maw a circle of grinding teeth capable of boring through solid rock. From the east came its twin, drawn by the vibrations that sang through stone and silk alike.

Tempest’s hands blazed with solar radiance as she channeled the Sunbeam spell, light erupting from her form to illuminate the cavern in harsh relief. The nearest worm lunged for her, jaws wide enough to swallow a horse, but her magical shield flared to life, deflecting teeth that could grind granite to powder. In that moment of reprieve, her wild magic surged unbidden, and she vanished in a flash of arcane energy.

Elora’s druidic power answered the threat with nature’s wrath. Thorns erupted from the stone floor, forming a barrier of piercing vines that caught both giant and worm in their grasp. The thorns tore at flesh, drawing blood that steamed in the sudden light, slowing the creatures’ advance even as they struggled forward.

Maledurk wheeled to face the giant, his form shifting as the beast within answered his call. His tail, now weaponized with primal fury, lashed out twice in rapid succession. Each blow landed with crushing force, and when the giant tried to retaliate through the wall of thorns, the vines tore deeper into its flesh. The massive creature toppled like a felled tree, its final breath rattling through the chamber.

Thorn’s staff of fire sang with power as he called forth explosion after explosion, fireballs blooming against worm hide with devastating effect. Yet these creatures, born of the deep earth and nurtured in darkness, possessed a terrible resilience. They pressed forward through flame and thorn, driven by hunger that knew no fear.

In a moment of desperate inspiration—or perhaps madness—Tempest made a choice that defied all sense. When the nearest worm lunged again, she didn’t dodge. She teleported directly into its gullet, past the grinding teeth, into the beast’s very stomach. The acid burned at her scales, but from within, she had no armor to pierce, no hide to penetrate. Her Sunbeam erupted from inside the creature, searing its organs with holy light. The worm’s body shuddered and convulsed, and in its agony, it expelled her with violent force.

She landed hard, covered in digestive fluids and gasping, only to face the creature’s fury anew. Its stinger-tipped tail caught her across the chest, poison glistening on its barb, but her draconic constitution held firm against the venom’s kiss. Lightning and light danced from her hands in response, twin spells that carved smoking furrows in the worm’s flesh.

The second worm, still trapped in Elora’s thorns, found Maledurk blocking its path. The barbarian stood firm even as the creature’s jaws closed around him, and darkness swallowed his world. Inside the beast’s gullet, he could feel the inexorable pull downward, toward acids that could dissolve steel and a death that would leave no trace.

The battle raged on, purple worm against steel and spell, monsters of the deep earth against those who dared to steal from them. The cavern rang with the sound of combat—the crackle of lightning, the roar of flames, the grinding of massive teeth against scale and flesh. In the cart, a single purple egg rocked gently, its value measured now not in gold, but in blood spilled and lives hanging in the balance.

The darkness of the Underdark had shown them its teeth, and the price of their greed was still being tallied in pain and peril. Whether they would escape with their prize—or their lives—remained unwritten in the savage arithmetic of survival that governed these lightless depths.

Session Notes

  • The party’s recent situation is summarized: after defeating the Demogorgon, the group spoke with residents of Gracklstugh, were brought to the red dragon Themberchaud, who chose not to eat them and instead gifted magical items from his hoard; a caravan leader named Bramdur was arranged to guide them toward the surface.

  • Magic items are clarified and assigned:

    • Tempest receives a Wand of Polymorph (uses charges; allows casting polymorph without a spell slot; the target’s new form is random; useful on allies, unreliable on enemies).
    • Maledurk receives a Belt of Giant Strength (his Strength is set to 25).
    • Elora receives a Ring of Shooting Stars.
    • Thorn has a Staff of Fire (contains burning hands, fireball, and wall of fire; uses charges; e.g., fireball costs 3 charges).

  • Traveling through tunnels toward the surface with Bramdur, the party spots a perfectly circular cross-tunnel identified by Bramdur as a purple worm burrow that did not exist on his last passage; he suggests it might lead to a nest with valuable purple worm eggs.

  • The party follows the worm tunnel and reaches a large dark cavern:

    • About 20 feet overhead, extremely sturdy silk strands and nets span the chamber; clusters of purple worm eggs are suspended in these nets.
    • Eggs are ~3 feet across (very large “beach ball” size), awkward but potentially carryable with two arms; weight unknown.
    • Concern is raised about lowering eggs 20 feet without breaking them.

  • Plan to retrieve an egg:

    • Thorn will fly up to the northern cluster, wrap an egg with rope, and cut it free while Tempest and Bramdur receive it below.
    • Upon reaching the webbing, Thorn observes the “silk” behaves like rigid steel beams with very little give; the egg is tightly bound and must be cut out (dagger used; cuts like very thick rope).

  • Perception checks are called:

    • Maledurk hears a faint, distant snoring somewhere in the cavern and begins to investigate toward the sound while the others focus on the egg plan.

  • Thorn secures a rope around an egg and begins cutting; partway through, he feels a brief vibration through the web, which stops, then resumes later, stronger and sustained, developing into a low musical tone resonating through the chamber like a giant stringed instrument.

  • Maledurk explores south/east into adjoining spaces with more overhead silk; the area acts like an echo chamber—each footstep echoes and builds, growing louder with each step.

  • Maledurk discovers a sleeping giant (about 10–15 feet tall) with an enormous club. He attempts to speak (“we’re here in peace”) but fails a Persuasion check; the giant roars, stands, and charges.

  • Initiative is rolled.

  • Thorn completes cutting, lowers the egg on the rope; Tempest takes the egg and places it in Bramdur’s cart. Thorn drops the rope and flies down. The party prepares to retreat with the single egg.

  • The web-tone continues to amplify; additional rock-on-rock sliding noises are heard from elsewhere in the cavern.

  • Combat begins to unfold on multiple fronts:

    • The giant (named Strunk) chases Maledurk from the south/east passage toward the party.
    • A purple worm emerges from the north and heads toward Tempest.
    • A second purple worm erupts from the east moments later.

  • Elora creates a long Wall of Thorns between the enemies and the party:

    • The northern worm and Strunk both interact with the wall; one fails and one succeeds on the initial saving throws.
    • The wall damages and slows them; remaining within the thicket causes ongoing piercing damage each round.

  • Tempest initially considers using the Wand of Polymorph but opts for offense:

    • She casts Shield to block a massive bite from the northern worm (at-will Shield prevents being swallowed on that attempt).
    • A Wild Magic roll occurs (not triggered by the at-will Shield earlier, but rolled subsequently) and produces Teleport up to 60 ft. Tempest initially teleports away to a safer position near the cart/guide.
    • She casts Sunbeam, blasting the northern worm; the radiant beam illuminates the cavern, making enemies visible to all.

  • Thorn launches an initial Fireball, placing it to hit both the eastern worm and Strunk; both fail their saves and take heavy fire damage.

  • Maledurk, raging, re-engages Strunk:

    • Uses Form of the Beast (Tail) and lands two hits for solid damage.
    • Later switches to Form of the Beast (Bite), continuing to pressure the giant.

  • The northern worm attempts to bite and swallow Tempest again; after earlier teleporting away, Tempest now chooses a bold tactic:

    • She teleports inside the northern worm, past its teeth (using the Wild Magic teleport effect), to attack it from within.
    • Inside the stomach (out of reach of external attacks), she continues Sunbeam, severely searing the worm’s interior.

  • The eastern worm, caught in Elora’s Wall of Thorns, struggles forward slowly, taking recurring damage each round while trying to force its way through toward the group.

  • Elora follows up by calling down an Ice Storm on the northern worm from outside; Tempest hears heavy impacts pelting the worm while still inside it.

  • Thorn maintains pressure on the eastern worm:

    • He uses the Staff of Fire to cast Fireball again (not expending his own spell slots), timing blasts to avoid harming allies, and continues to burn the thorn-snared worm.

  • The northern worm suffers significant internal and external damage:

    • It fails a Constitution check related to Tempest’s internal assault and regurgitates her, spitting Tempest back out into the cavern.
    • Immediately after, the worm lashes with its tail, hits Tempest for 18 damage, and attempts to inject poison with the stinger; Tempest succeeds on the Constitution saving throw, avoiding the poison.

  • Tempest escalates damage output on the northern worm:

    • She Quicken Spells to combine attacks in one round: maintains Sunbeam and also fires Lightning Bolt, pushing the northern worm below half health.

  • Strunk continues to be shredded by the Wall of Thorns while trading blows with Maledurk:

    • Strunk hits Maledurk once with the club (26 damage, halved to 13 due to Rage), misses the second swing, and then is torn again by the thicket.
    • Maledurk (Form of the Beast: Bite) lands further attacks and drops Strunk, who collapses into the thorns and dies.

  • Positioning choice to contain the eastern worm:

    • It is noted that if the eastern worm could be kept within the Wall of Thorns, it would continue taking damage each round.
    • Maledurk moves to block the worm’s exit path, holding the line at the edge of the thicket.

  • The eastern worm attempts to bite Maledurk:

    • The attack hits; Maledurk’s Dexterity save fails, so despite Rage halving the bite damage (30 → 15), he is swallowed and ends the round inside the eastern worm, which remains heavily damaged by the Wall of Thorns.

  • As the scene stands at session end:

    • The party has secured one purple worm egg in Bramdur’s cart.
    • The northern worm is badly injured (below half) after Sunbeam and Lightning Bolt plus Ice Storm; it has spit Tempest out.
    • The eastern worm is severely hurt, still entangled/slowed and taking ongoing damage from Elora’s Wall of Thorns, but has swallowed Maledurk.
    • Strunk the giant is dead within the thicket.
    • Initiative remains ongoing; the next turn will begin with Elora’s action (the session paused here).