In the city of Waterdeep rests a tavern called the Yawning Portal, named after the gaping pit in its common room. At the bottom of this crumbling shaft is a labyrinthine dungeon shunned by all but the most daring adventurers. Known as Undermountain, this dungeon is the domain of the mad wizard Halaster Blackcloak. Long has the Mad Mage dwelt in these forlorn depths, seeding his lair with monsters, traps, and mysteries—to what end is a constant source of speculation and concern. This adventure picks up where Waterdeep: Dragon Heist leaves off, taking characters of 5th level or higher all the way to 20th level should they explore the entirety of Halaster’s home. Twenty-three levels of Undermountain are detailed herein, along with the subterranean refuge of Skullport. Treasures and secrets abound, but tread with care!
“The Temple Between” is an adventure for 9th level characters, and it is challenging enough to take them to 11th level by the time all is said and done. Although intended as the final chapter of the heroic tier portion of the Scales of War Adventure Path, it can be run as a standalone adventure, or as an adventure in a campaign of your own making, with a small degree of modification. It contains elements of urban investigation, dungeon delving, and even wartime conflict, making it a suitable adventure to players of many tastes and preferences. The western end of Elsir Vale has been greatly troubled in recent days. The threat of the orc hordes from beyond the Stonehome Mountains, though turned back at Bordrin’s Watch, still lingers in the people’s minds. Peculiar and hostile creatures of shadow lurk in the caverns and caves below. Political squabbling grows among the city’s powerful dwarf clans. All this makes the city particularly vulnerable to an enemy nobody saw coming - that nobody even imagined. This enemy has goals and objectives far beyond the ultimately unimportant Elsir Vale, but the first step is the utter subjugation of Overlook. An enemy who, at least in part, is already here. In this adventure the player characters start by investigating the strange behavior of the city's clergy. They swiftly discover hints of a conspiracy worming its way through the city hierarchy - some members are possessed while others have been replaced by dopplegangers. After trailing this conspiracy to its source they discover a portal that leads to an ancient temple in the mountains. Using the portal, the PCs go to the abandoned ancient temple where they must confront both a cadre of fey and a band of mercenaries, from whom they learn there is a plot for a full-scale invasion of the region! The PCs must them rush back to Overlook and cement their place as heroes as they face off against the invading forces. Pgs. 4-71
𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐩𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐒𝐚𝐠𝐚. The PCs have escorted a trade caravan to the dwarven stronghold of Nirzumbil and are preparing for a boring trip home. But what is that sound of horns in the distance? And why are the dwarves closing the front gates to the mines? This is an adventure for 2nd level PCs. It is the first in a series of adventures detailing on orc uprising against the dwarves with sinister implications. Includes a 5th edition write up of the Dread Warrior, an undead that previously appeared in Monsters of Faerun.
In the deep desert lies the dead city of Yumar, the source of countless bizarre rumors. Was it destroyed by a demonic metal sphere? Did it sink into a pit of acid? Were its people transformed into cursed beasts? Is it ruled by vicious thieves or mad nuns? In fact, the only thing stranger than what happened to Yumar a century ago is what will happen a few days from now... ADVENTURE TYPE: Medium Sandbox City / Ruin DESIGN NOTES: This adventure is intended for characters levels 5 to 8. It includes a ruined city, shrine, wizard tower, menagerie, several factions, and the surrounding wilderness. Each area contains various encounters and unique items. There are many opportunities for combat, but it is possible for players to explore most areas and complete many interactions without any combat at all, depending on their choices. INCLUDES: Story hooks, dialogue prompts, random encounters, factions, illustrations, stat blocks, original creatures and treasures, and overview maps. KEYWORDS: city, ruin, celestial, angel, dwarf, dwarves, miner, thief, thieves, cleric, nun, shrine, adamant, adamantine, lycanthropy, mind control, nightmare, mutation, mutant, wizard tower, menagerie, body horror
This adventure is part of TSR 9386 FRM1 - The Jungles of Chult Introduction: Lord Onovan of the Dales stumbled through the underbrush, his clothes in tatters, his body aching from a tenday in the jungle. The food was gone; the water, too. The last of the bearers had fled hours ago, leaving him nothing but the tunic on his hack and the sword in his hand. Through the lush curtain of vines and broad-leafed plants surrounding Onovan came the ominous sound of Batiri war drums. He glanced up at the thick canopy high overhead. The sun was going down. The goblins would be after him soon. The howling packs would trail him like bloodhounds through the jungle until the sun drove them into hiding again. Panic closed around his heart like a stone giants fist, crushing his dreams of escape. The goblins had killed Kadir Silveraxe and Ryn the Bold as if they'd been stripling warriors, not experienced sellswords. And if stout warriors like them were no match for the Batiri, what hope did a gentleman explorer like Onovan have? That grim thought flew from the explorers mind as he pushed through a tangle of saw-leafed vines. The creature lurking there in wait for him was huge, at least as tall as a two-story building. Splashes of browns and greens covered the beasts scaly hide, perfectly masking its bulk against the jungle. A dinosaur! Onovan noted in fearnumbed awe, just before the allosaurus snapped him in two with its powerful jaws and row after row of daggerlike teeth.
Once a paradise at the heart of dwarfdom, the Valley of the Cracked Helm has lain forgotten for ages, lost to the vagaries of natural disasters, goblin invasions, and generational benders. Over the years since, its name has invoked only shame—furtive, deep-seated dwarven shame—for the valley is where the wild dwarves dwell. . . Valley of the Cracked Helm is an off-beat scenario for old-school style games involving a hidden valley filled with tribal dwarven nudists and exploitative prospectors. It is formatted as a double-sided tri-fold brochure that contains everything needed to run the module. It includes: A ready-to-run module suitable for ongoing campaigns and one-shots. A detailed pointcrawl of the Valley of the Cracked Helm. Dwarves Gone Wild! (This pointcrawl scenario can be dropped into any classic fantasy campaign allowing gratuitous dwarven nudity. More setting than adventure, it encourages/requires referees to improvise or develop content further to fit their own needs. Low-level PCs may need to be lucky or clever to survive.)
When a series of grisly murders and raids on farms and fishing boats come to light, accompanied by a strange fog, the people of Elmwood need heroes to investigate and stop the attacks. There is hardly anyone in the Moonsea who’s life hasn’t been touched by one of the tragedies over the past years, and these attacks may have deeper causes than anyone knows. Part of the Elmwood Adventures Series
The Blistering Forge Situated atop Mount Marazbor, an active volcano, it the dwarven lava-forge once known as Citadel Grungharaz. Once, this great armoury produced hordes of weaponry for dwarven regiments in far off lands, but now it has been taken over by rampaging fire giants. Are you capable of infiltrating the Gauntlet of Flame?
Abandoned and forgotten ruins never are. He left the Abyss to visit his human mother, not realizing he was a century too late. Still, there was a lot he had left to do... An ancient castle, Nol-Daer, has of late become the site of frequent strange occurrences. Gargoyles and Blood Hawks roost in the keep's ruined towers, Dwarves have been disappearing from the nearby area, and a Cambion controls it all from the shadows. Pgs. 3-17 & 64
Faced with an unusual alliance of giants raiding the countryside, the party must venture into the steading of hill giant chief Nosnra and uncover maps to the locations of the other giant strongholds. “Steading of the Hill Giant Chief ” can be run as a stand-alone adventure, or you can play it as the first part of a four-part series that continues with “Warrens of the Stone Giant Thane” (Dungeon 198), “Glacial Rift of the Frost Giant Jarl” (Dungeon 199), and “Hall of the Fire Giant King” (Dungeon 200). The adventure is part of the Against the Giants series originally by Gary Gygax, hence the writing credit.
The Alchemist's Eyrie takes the characters into a fortified dwarven tower, where they are sent to recover some needed items. When they arrive, they discover the tower has been captured recently by a warband of renegade lycanthrope dwarves. Between the interlopers and the remaining traps set by the late owner, the characters may find themselves in deep, despite the lack of head clearance.
The loss of Skyreach Castle in Hoard of the Dragon Queen was a major setback to the Cult of the Dragon, but still only a setback. The cult is determined to retake the castle and claim Tiamat’s lost treasure buried in its frozen walls and cloudstuff vaults, but they aren’t the only ones. Blagothkus the cloud giant is still the master of Skyreach, and he has gone to the hall of his cousin Brunvild, ice lord of Uldoveld, for the resources to repair and reoccupy the castle. At the same time, the party is dispatched by the Council of Waterdeep to reclaim some of the stolen treasures lost when the castle fell.
A goblin warband has found the secret tunnel which leads from the dwarven keep of Hearth-Home to the nearby hills. The tunnel is intended to be a means of escape if the keep ever falls to attackers, but now it has provided goblins with an easy way into the Underkeep. So far, the goblins have confined their attentions to the various underground rooms that make up the Underkeep, but sooner or later they will find a way to the surface. They pose a serious threat to Hearth-Home - the goblins must be cleared out of the Underkeep so this breach in security can be repaired before the orcs hear of it and overrun the dwarven keep. This adventure is slightly more challenging than Red Hand Trail, and it is recommended that it is played after that quest and before Palace of Dread. However, the scenario in Trouble Below can easily be played independently from the rest. Part of TSR 1076 The Goblin's Lair
The Dwarven clans are in chaos, and a powerful host of goblins stand poised to sweep over the land in a wave of death and terror. Only the Axe of the Dwarvish Lords- one of the most powerful weapons ever created by the dwarven race- holds the key to ultimate victory against the massing humanoids. Can the PCs brave the labyrinth of an abandoned dwarven stronghold to find the Axe? TSR 11347
A vast, sprawling mega-dungeon beneath the ruins of a nearby castle. Reports have surfaced of stockpiles of wealth within the passages. Regions previously devoid of monsters are reported to teem with renewed activity. Magical and mundane traps have brought foolhardy explorers to their doom. Changes within the passages and chambers have rendered old maps and knowledge dangerously unreliable if not outright useless. To the bold and daring, only one message needs to be heard: the castle and its dungeons are once more ripe for exploration, and new legends are ready to be made. Note: This adventure requires three books for it to be complete (sold as a package): Adventure Book, Map Book, and Illustration Book. Published by BRW Games
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.
Anandak, a red dragon, has taken over an abandoned dwarven stronghold as his lair. He has also assembled together a rough confederation of monsters to act as his bodyguard. Anandak is preparing to enter into an alliance with the Black Prince, the March Lord Draven. The plan is for Anandak's monster allies to terrorize the lands north and east of Knacker Knob while the Black Prince, on pretext of marching to the aid of Knacker Knob, take control of Knacker Knob and the surrounding region. An emissary from the Black Prince, Lord Gonzaga, is currently in the dungeon, and he is in possession of papers that might reveal the Black Prince's treasonous plot. The lair is horribly overcrowded because monsters of all tribes and gangs are gathered to take counsel with the red dragon. Monsters are sleeping in the hallways because there is so little room, and the antagonism between races is at flash point. The PCs may be able to fan these resentments into intermonster battles. League of the Red Serpent is the third dragon's lair to conquer. Part of TSR 1073 The Dragon's Den
The outpost of Fort Dolor has experienced an unprecedented stretch of peace in recent times. Then nearly the entire garrison disappears on a supposed routine patrol, and the town— still on the frontier— is left nearly defenseless. Can the adventurers dig to the bottom of the mystery at Fort Dolor before they, too, disappear? Pgs. 82-103
The adventures in Dalentown continue in The Darkness Beneath Dalentown. Workers in the town’s sewers have stumbled upon the long abandoned halls of the dwarves that once settled beneath this region. What they’ve found is a haunted library. What they’ve woken is something far more sinister! The Darkness Beneath Dalentown features hordes of oozes, undead, and demons festering for years in an ancient dwarven mining stronghold. Now, they are slowly working their way to the surface, and the folk of Dalentown are in dire peril!
To a wizard, knowledge is power, and the wizard Lirdrium Arkayz wants to know the mysterious secret of The Rock. Many have tried to discover it - but The Rock keeps its secret well. The wizard offers a rich reward to anyone bold enough to solve this dark mystery. But the road to The Rock leads to danger and hidden peril - dangers that have claimed the lives of many brave adventurers. Rashness and folly will lead to quick death, but riches await the clever and brave. Have you the wits, courage and skill to survive the Journey to The rock? TSR 9106