An Introductory Adventure for Storm King's Thunder. As evening approaches, you spot a wooden signpost next to a trail that heads north into the hills. Nailed to the post are three arrow-shaped signs. The two marked “Waterdeep” and “Daggerford” follow the High Road but point in opposite directions. The third, marked “Nightstone,” beckons you to follow the trail. If memory serves, Nightstone is roughly ten miles up the trail. This is Chapter 1 of the greater story available for free on the Dungeon Master's Guild.
The Shackled City Adventure Path enters the home stretch as the forces of evil take direct action against the heroes of the Cauldron. Dangerous secrets are revealed, important NPCs bit the dust, and your heroes will never know who to trust again! This adventure is seventh part of the Shackled City Adventure Path that began with "Life's Bazaar" (Dungeon #97). Pgs. 36-67
The invisible enemy. Rats, cats, and double-drats. Six months ago, the residents of Luskwald heard rumors from passing merchants of a possible goblin incursion into the region. News from the nearest city confirmed speculations that goblin tribes were massing in the distant hills. Worried about the future of his small community, the Laird of Luskwald commissioned a stonemason and several carpenters to rebuild a damaged keep two miles north of the village. The repair crew worked for weeks restoring the keep's fallen walls, while waiting nervously for the first goblin to show its ugly head. For the first several days the restoration proceeded according to schedule, but in the weeks that followed several 'accidents' led many to believe the keep was cursed or haunted. In the past week three of Luskwald's villagers have died, each the victim of a grisly assassin whose identity remains a mystery. Several citizens have heard or seen peculiar things over the last several days, leading them to believe that Luskwald has been cursed, or worse, ravaged by angry spirits--perhaps sent by a greater evil that dwells within the ruined keep! Pgs. 34-52
Giants have emerged from their strongholds to threaten civilization as never before. Hill giants are stealing all the grain and livestock they can, while stone giants have been scouring settlements that have been around forever. Fire giants are press-ganging the small folk into the desert, while frost giant longships have been pillaging along the Sword Coast. Even the elusive cloud giants have been witnessed, their wondrous floating cities appearing above Waterdeep and Baldur’s Gate. Where is the storm giant King Hekaton, who is tasked with keeping order among the giants? The humans, dwarves, elves, and other small folk of the Sword Coast will be crushed underfoot from the onslaught of these giant foes. The only chance at survival is for the small folk to work together to investigate this invasion and harness the power of rune magic, the giants’ weapon against their ancient enemy the dragons. The only way the people of Faerun can restore order is to use the giants’ own power against them.
In this adventure, the Lord Commander of the Sharn Watch hires the heroes to investigate the murder of an actress. The investigation quickly spirals into a bloody dispute involving a dead wizard’s spell-book, political rivalries, and secrets that might foment war among the Five Nations. Pgs. 1-37
"The adventure begins shortly after the PCs arrive in the village of Whitebirch, located just one mile outside Bunglewood, a thick forest. Unless the adventurers prefer to camp by the side of the road, the only rooms in town are available at The Swanmay's Song, a local inn. Shortly after nightfall, a wounded traveler staggers into the inn." -- from the module. Includes overland map, ambush site map, and cave system map.
Nothing's more dangerous than a vengeful dwarf except, perhaps, a greedy one. En route somewhere in a barren wilderness, the PCs find a couple of dwarves--one is burying his brother who was killed by a stone giant; but not all is as it seems. "The module can be placed in any temperate wilderness setting. Players who excel at role playing may find the adventure more rewarding than hack-and-slash types. At least one character should possess a silver or magical weapon." Pgs. 16-17
Chip off the old block. The dwarves of Underduin and Thunderdelve have made some new friends … and enemies. A stronghold of dwarfs has been takin hostage and its up to the part to save them and return the stronghold to its former glory. XS2 Thunderdelve Mountain may act as a prequel. Pgs. 8-31
From The Magazine: "Every summer, Duke Hightower holds a competition quite different from the traditional jousting and archery tournaments held by similar lords of his station. The rules of his tournament change from year to year, and, to oversee the games, the duke has appointed two wizard brothers who help choose the setting and create the rules and challenges of the competition. This year the competition is called the “Owlbear Run,” an overland race that requires each participating team to escort a live owlbear from the town of Telvorn to the town of Milvorn. The teams will face a variety of challenges; some are devised by the wizards, others by the competing teams or their sponsors, and some occur entirely at random. All of these tests are in addition to the challenges inherent in motivating a temperamental owlbear. Fortune and fame await the first team to cross the finish line, and the local lords sponsoring the race are eager to enlist skilled champions for their causes." Pgs. 2-27
The party is enlisted to assist the Righteous Host, an army formed as a last resort to defend the world against the monsters of Elemental Evil. The host is greatly outnumbered. Its leaders send the party on a series of missions, each of which will give the Righteous Host an edge in the great battle to come. This epic adventure ends with the final push against the forces of Elemental Evil in the Meadows, and the outcome is informed by how effective the party is in their missions... and whether they are willing to risk putting themselves in the front lines. If the Righteous Host loses, players may decide to travel to Hommlet or other nearby towns to defend them. Whether the host is successful or not, players can decide to follow many different plot threads: exploring the Temple of Elemental Evil, finding the lich Kell the Eldest's lair and destroying his phylactory, or following the will of Bitbaern's Shield and discovering historical sites that were previously lost. Pgs. 44-69
In order to stop a series of devastating giant raids, the party must venture into the stronghold of the frost giant jarl Grugnur to both recover the giants' plans and eliminate Grugnur, who is the tactical head behind the operations. The adventure is part of the "Against the Giants" series originally by Gary Gygax, hence the writing credit.
The wizard Abracadamus hid the Forever Stone in the darkest depths of a failing mine, coerced monsters into serving as guardians, and rigged the dungeon with traps galore. Then he died, as all good wizards do. Many heroes have fallen prey to the Forever Stone’s lure of immortality. To date, only one stalwart band has plunged into the Mines of Madness and lived to tell the tale. You think you’re better than them? You think you got what it takes to grab life by the stones and conquer the dungeon that won the 2012 Gygaxian Award* for Bonecrushing Awesomeness? We seriously doubt it, but go ahead . . . prove us wrong! Mines of Madness is a Very Special D&D® Next Adventure written for PAX East 2013 and designed for four 3rd-level characters.
Called by the Elder Elemental Eye to serve, four corrupt prophets have risen from the depths of anonymity to claim mighty weapons with direct links to the power of the elemental princes. Each of these prophets has assembled a cadre of cultists and creatures to serve them in the construction of four elemental temples of lethal design. It is up to adventurers from heroic factions such as the Emerald Enclave and the Order of the Gauntlet to discover where the true power of each prophet lay, and dismantle it before it comes boiling up to obliterate the Realms.
Tears for Twilight Hollow is about mystery, danger and deceit- the players seek a missing Paladin in an increasingly-troubled town, chasing clues around a village and through a valley only to discover that the Paladin's old friend long ago began worship of an evil S&M goddess. Betraying her friend and trapping her soul in a Devourer, a powerful extraplanar undead creature, the evil priestess continually parades the soul-bereft corpse of their fallen Paladin in front of the villagers in a show of 'sorrow', all the while gaining immense pleasure from the village's pain. Pgs. 62-110
The Underdark is a subterranean wonderland, a vast and twisted labyrinth where fear reigns. It is the home of horrific monsters that have never seen the light of day. It is here that the dark elf Gromph Baenre, Archmage of Menzoberranzan, casts a foul spell meant to ignite a magical energy that suffuses the Underdark and tears open portals to the demonic Abyss. What steps through surprises even him, and from that moment on, the insanity that pervades the Underdark escalates and threatens to shake the Forgotten Realms to its foundations. Stop the madness before it consumes you! Note for DMs: This adventure is not for the faint of hearted, to run or to play. The module starts with 10 NPCs traveling with the party through the grueling Underdark. This number can grow. The encounters within the book are often incredibly deadly for the characters that would be going through it. This is because the module expects them to run or talk their way through the events, or, in some cases, the module expects them to lose. If your players aren't the kind of party to run, talk, or surrender, do not get this adventure. The module almost requires that you use milestone leveling because the experience provided does not commonly get players to the levels they should be once they get to certain milestones in the story (7th when they leave the underdark, 15th when they face the demon lords.) Good luck and happy questing.
Into the void. It all started with two wizards feuding now a sphere of annihilation and a daemon princess threatens the whole town. It is up to the party to stop things before the city is destroyed. Pgs. 24-47
Smoke still rises from the shattered buildings and ruined streets of the troubled town of Cauldron, yet if not for the actions of a band of heroes, it would not exist at all. A sinister cabal of cultists bent on plunging Cauldron into the prison plane of Carceri had awakened the volcano below the town, and amidst the attacks of dragons and fiends from the outer planes, these heroes were able to evacuate the city and then strike at the cultists in their lair near the volcano's heart. Now, this cult, the Cagewrights, lies shattered, their members put on the defensive for the first time. All that remains is to finish the job, but the surviving Cagewrights still have some surprises left in their mysterious stronghold under the snake-haunted ruins of Shatterhorn. "Strike on Shatterhorn" is a Dungeons & Dragons adventure designed for four 18tth-level characters. This adventure is part of the Shackled City Adventure Path that began with "Life Bazaar" (Dungeon #97) and continued with "Flood Season" (Dungeon #98), "Zenith Trajectory" (Dungeon #102), "The Demonskar Legacy" (Dungeon #104), "Test of the Smoking Eye" (Dungeon #107), "Secrets of the Soul Pillars" (Dungeon #109), "Lords of Oblivion" (Dungeon #111), "Foundation of Flame" (Dungeon #113), and "Thirteen Cages" (Dungeon #114). The Adventure Path concludes in Dungeon #116 with "Asylum." Pgs. 56-82
An adventure included in the Essentials Kit (2019). The party starts in Phandalin, the starting town for the Starter Set (2014) adventure, Lost Mine of Phandlever. Various jobs are posted by Harbin Wester, townmaster, which the PCs can pursue. These jobs culminate in a raid on Icespire Hold, where Cryovain, a young adult white dragon, has recently claimed as its lair.
The heroes have spent the last several days in the quiet, secluded town of Relvaunt. Relvaunt's vineyards, wines, and scenic beauty are the subject of bards's songs, and many travelers journey long miles to visit them. Another site receives far fewer visitors--several miles east of town, partially obscured by woods and hills, stands the wondrous Castle Freitstein. As the heroes depart the town in search of adventure, an elderly couple approaches them. The woman suddenly clutches her chest and collapses in the street and the old man calls out to the heroes for help. Includes castle random encounter chart, a map of castle grounds and isometric castle level maps (four main levels, a tower level and a cellar level).
To stop a devastating rampage of giants across the land, the party must venture into the lair of the stone giant thane Arnak to uncover the truth about why he has broken his peace with the neighboring dwarves. In the process, they will have the opportunity to retrieve important symbols of the fight against the giants and uncover a dangerous excavation. The adventure is part of the "Against the Giants" series originally by Gary Gygax, hence the writing credit.