Third Age · 2994–2995 · After Balin’s Silence
The Road to Khazad-dûm
A chronicle for the clan of Hanar the Lesser — what you have seen and what you carry
Contents
Why You Came
You left Gondamon in the Blue Mountains seeking two things: the favour of Balin, Lord of Moria, and the mithril veins that might restore your clan’s fortune — though Kaedrin Ashbeard believes Balin is already dead and the whole expedition folly.
Balin’s company retook Khazad-dûm years ago. Early reports were hopeful; later messages spoke of drums in the deep. No word has come for over a year.
On the road west, Gríma son of Gálmod intercepted you with a summons from his master — Saruman the White (called Kurdumakh in some of your notes). At Orthanc, the Wizard offered a contract far more lucrative than any clan elder imagined: retrieve a black book from Moria’s depths, written in the Black Speech — a Song of unmaking, words of power said to twist living flesh into foul things. Saruman insists only he can safely contain such evil. Previous attempts failed; the last was a black Númenórean sent on his orders. Saruman asked you tell no one of the mission.
You also carry your clan’s own charge: find Balin, learn his fate, and bring glory — and perhaps mithril — home to Ered Luin.
The Company
All of you hail from the proud mithril-crafting clan of Hanar the Lesser, of Gondamon. Expectations weigh heaviest on Ófhin; Hanar’s are lowest, for he wandered among Elves west of the mountains for twenty years.
Great-uncle to the brothers. Tired of fighting, thought washed-up — but the clan’s consigliere. Skeptical of the quest; chose to press deeper into Moria after the ambush despite Veig’s plea to leave.
Clan COO, uncle to Ófhin and Hanar. Approachable face of the expedition — and its boss. Asked Kaedrin to abandon Moria after the ambush; was overruled.
Book-learned and dwarven in bearing; drafted Saruman’s contract. Bears the Seven-Rings chest and The Citadel Covenant Ring. Took a Shadow scar in the fight with Zimrakhôr’s thralls.
Least dwarven of the brothers after years among the Elves. Carries Kaedrin’s lyre. Took a Shadow scar alongside Ófhin. Played a mournful melody after kin fell under enchantment.
The Chronicle
Departure · Gondamon
The Summons
You set out from the Blue Mountains toward Moria. Gríma son of Gálmod brought word that Saruman would greatly appreciate a meeting at Isengard — a matter of import to both his interests and yours.
Orthanc · September
The Wizard’s Contract
At Isengard, Saruman charged you with retrieving the black book from Moria. Ófhin drew up generous terms. You learned a black Númenórean had failed before you. Rather than cross the Misty Mountains so late in the year, you rode east of Fangorn with ponies and gear.
The Farm · Enedwaith
Balkîr’s Children
Two days out you found a sturdy farm held by three adolescents — Mara and her brothers Finn and Eldrick. Their mother was dead; their father Aren had gone on an errand. Kaedrin suspected Aren was the Númenórean Saruman had sent to Moria.
Riders came seeking Balkîr of Umbar. Mara showed an ancient blade Ófhin named Bâr-agar, Khîm an-Balkîr — Lord-blood, Sword of Balkîr — confirming Aren was Balkîr, a black Númenórean who had broken with his kin to build a new life. You decided the children and sword should go to Saruman for safety.
Before you could speak with them, raiders returned in force and set the roof ablaze.
The Road North
Fire, Hostages, and Dead Lands
You fought three of Grishak’s ruffians; Grishak himself fled when the battle turned. After quenching the fire, you sent the children and sword toward Orthanc and continued north with the bandits as hostages — thugs from Tharbad, hired to escort Grishak on artefact hunts.
At the Limlight, two Rohirrim warned of banditry and decline. You sent the captives toward Fangorn. Further on you found dead farmers dumped in the wild, a raided farm strewn with orc and human corpses — one man and one orc showing signs of torture — and four more dead orcs past the Nimrodel. Heavy hoofprints led north.
After a week of travel you reached Moria’s East-gate, where Kaedrin began to recount Azanulbizar until interrupted by Tig, a scavenger digging up old iron from the resting dead.
East-gate & Dimrill Stair
Into the Mountain
Veig drove Tig off for desecration. Inside the gate, Kaedrin and Ófhin read a mark for the fifth hall — throne room of Naín I, son of Durin VI. An orc patrol ambushed you; five fell, but four escaped. You declined to lower the portcullis and instead tried the secret stair.
Kaedrin found a giant eagle feather and gave it to Hanar. At the stair’s foot, Tig’s ruin. He told you eagles guard the valley by night, but one was recently captured and dragged into Moria; he had seen an orc with ritual burn scars and confirmed Grishak had passed the East-gate at least once.
The secret door bore signs of a failed forced entry but opened for you. Within lay a dwarf corpse, scant weeks dead, pinned to the wall with scorch marks. You reached the King’s hall without meeting orcs — Ófhin steered you clear of a pocket of foul gas.
In that hall, Kaedrin and Veig saw Durin VI. The ancient king seemed to hand them a heavy ring of keys and a small black pouch, imploring them to deliver both to Durin’s heir — Daín II. When the vision ended, nothing physical remained — but you know such objects exist somewhere in Moria and matter to the royal line.
Westward Halls
Treasure, Judgement, and Retreat
Near the West-gate you found a days-old dwarf corpse in rags, manacled and collared — killed by a Númenórean arrow from a balcony. A bloody trail showed the captured eagle dragged through the gate. Shire-weed ashes on the balcony suggested Balkîr had ambushed the orcs who took the eagle and pursued west.
The untouched King’s quarters still held a great hoard. Hanar found a secret compartment with a gold and mithril chest inscribed in Elven: THE WORK OF THE PEOPLE OF THE JEWEL-SMITHS AND THE MASTERS OF THE CITADEL — the coffer that once held the Seven Dwarf-rings. After long debate, Ófhin agreed to bear it; if disaster struck, he and Hanar would flee Moria to bring it home. Among the treasure Ófhin took The Citadel Covenant Ring, a signet that lends quiet step and weight of treaty to the bearer. Kaedrin gave Hanar a lyre from the hoard.
In the Hall of Judgement, orcs had built a fighting pit. You found a lead tablet naming a convict: Imri. Drums sounded from the east; you ran west, ambushed a pursuing patrol, and withdrew to the King’s quarters for rest — interrupted before you could fully recover.
The Low Road
Hunter, Eagle, and Balkîr
Following the blood trail west, you slew two black Númenóreans — Thurak the Falconer and Murzad Black-Teeth. The noise drew a cave troll; you escaped by toppling a statue to block it.
At a ruined roadhouse you camped and set traps. In the night, someone cut the ropes without waking you and left a token — a deliberate taunt. You were being hunted.
Steel on stone led you to a vast cavern capped by a stained-glass roof open to the sky. An eagle was bound below. On a ledge Balkîr duelled Kastamir One-Eye while orcs watched. You joined the fight, freed the eagle — razor shards from the breaking glass slew the orcs — and Balkîr killed Kastamir.
Balkîr acknowledged the same errand as yours: the book Saruman wants is a force of darkness. Then drums seemed to rise from every direction, as if the battle and the eagle’s escape had woken Moria.
Before Mazarbul
The Ash-Marked Ambush
In a brief respite, Balkîr told you more:
- ◆ The book holds a song of unmaking — a spell to twist living creatures into abominations.
- ◆ It should lie in the Chamber of Mazarbul, the chamber of records.
- ◆ Balin was rumoured to have a colony there; Balkîr hoped he lived — but had never seen Balin’s people.
- ◆ Three of Balkîr’s pursuers were already dead; only Zimrakhôr the Ash-Marked remained — or so Balkîr believed.
- ◆ Grishak wanted Balkîr dead. Under Umbar law, Grishak could claim Balkîr’s title only with his body or a witness to his death. Balkîr refused to renounce his claim before witnesses.
When you told Balkîr his children and sword were sent to Saruman under the contract, he doubted the White Wizard’s intentions.
The next chamber was Zimrakhôr’s ambush: the Ash-Marked, four spellbound dwarves, and orcs. He offered your lives in trade for Balkîr. Kaedrin feigned agreement to draw a shot; Zimrakhôr ordered the enchanted kin to attack.
Balkîr declared Zimrakhôr would not have his body, stepped off a cliff, and vanished into darkness. Ófhin judged the shaft at least three quarters of a mile deep. You tried to subdue the thralls without killing them — all four perished anyway. Zimrakhôr and the orcs fell quickly after. You looted Númenórean treasure from the dead.
Hanar played a mournful melody. The company was devastated. Ófhin and Hanar each took a Shadow scar.
Veig asked whether you should leave Moria. Kaedrin argued you must press on and achieve at least one goal, so the journey would not be wholly in vain. After a short rest, you continued toward the Chamber of Mazarbul.
What You Carry
Relics & Treasure
- ◆ Gold and mithril chest (once held the Seven) — Ófhin
- ◆ The Citadel Covenant Ring — Ófhin
- ◆ Kaedrin’s lyre — Hanar
- ◆ Giant eagle feather — Hanar
- ◆ Númenórean treasure — from Zimrakhôr’s band
- ◆ Great hoard — taken from King’s quarters (24 treasure points)
Charges & Duties
- ◆ Retrieve the Song of unmaking for Saruman
- ◆ Find Balin — fate still unknown
- ◆ Locate the ring of keys and black pouch for Daín II (vision only; not yet found)
- ◆ Bring the Seven-Rings chest safely home if you must flee
Where You Stand
You are deep in Moria, eastward bound for the Chamber of Mazarbul, with drums still echoing through the deeps.
Allies & Contacts
- ◆ Saruman — patron; mission giver; trust now strained
- ◆ Balkîr — shared quest; cliff jump; fate unknown
- ◆ Freed eagle — flew up through the glass roof; whereabouts unknown
Enemies & Threats
- ◆ Grishak — black Númenórean; hunts Balkîr; heir to his title; still at large
- ◆ Orc patrol survivors — four fled the East-gate ambush
- ◆ Orc with ritual burn scars — rumoured; not yet met
- ◆ Drums in the deep — aroused since the eagle’s escape
What You Know About Key Figures
- ◆ Grishak — Black Númenórean who hired Tharbad thugs; fled both farm fights. Wants Balkîr dead to claim his Umbar title; someone hunted your camp on the Low Road and left a taunting token. No witness saw Balkîr die — succession contested.
- ◆ The Ashen Reclaimers — Balkîr’s pursuers: Thurak, Murzad, Kastamir, and Zimrakhôr are all slain. Grishak alone remains of that hunt in Moria.
- ◆ Balin — No confirmation of life or death. Last couriers spoke of hope, then darkness. Kaedrin believes him dead; Balkîr hoped a colony survived at Mazarbul.
- ◆ Imri — Name on a convict’s tablet in the Hall of Judgement; meaning unknown.
- ◆ Tig — Scavenger at the East-gate and Dimrill Stair; useful gossip, no friend.
Questions in the Dark
These are the doubts your company carries — not certainties, but the shape of what you do not yet know:
- ? Did Balkîr die in the shaft, or does Grishak still lack the witness he needs?
- ? What became of Balin and his colony — and will Mazarbul hold answers or only horror?
- ? Where in Moria are the keys and black pouch Durin VI showed in vision?
- ? If the book is so terrible, why will Saruman not fetch it himself — and why did he want Balkîr’s sword and children at Orthanc?
- ? What do the drums mean now that the mountain seems awake?
- ? Can any goal here — Balin, the book, Daín’s charge, the chest — be won without the toll growing worse?
“The treacherous are ever distrustful.” — Gandalf the Grey
The One Ring, Second Edition · Moria Campaign
Orthanc 