Start off as a pre-existing band of adventurers, in medias res. Pick 2 each of 8:
Bitty Bee - Pegasus, rogue, mare Big Tuck - Earth pony, fighter, stallion Pepper Papers - Earth pony, scholar, mare Green Bud - Earth pony zony, herbalist, mare Soaring Stratus - Pegasus, weatherpony, stallion Moon Magic - Unicorn, healer, mare Arrow Weed - Earth pony, ranger, stallion Brass Bobbins - Unicorn, tinkerer, mare
Caught by the ancient dragon Nares of