The North can become very appealing to those who seek fame and fortune on their own course. The North is also home to humanoids and fell creatures, things that can find a foothold in the lawless wastes while also making a living. Larger and more lethal creatures like frost giants and white dragons can also be found, assuming you are foolish enough to go looking for them. This adventure is formatted to both 1E & 5E gaming rules.
Gray Mountain lies deep in the lush elven forest. The temple there was a haven of meditation and learning - until taken over by an evil cleric known as the Rahib. Far under the mountain, he paces before the temple's great altar. A brown-robed servant rushes in and falls to his knees, trembling at the sight of the Rahib's black panther. "Rahib, adventurers came to the village as the sun rose - the strangers now protect Rahasia." A scowl crosses the Rahib's face. "I must have Rahasia! Attack again tonight." As the servant scurries away, a deep growl rises from the giant cat. Gripping the panther's leash, the Rahib paces again, speaking out loud. "We must dispose of these strangers quickly; the secret beneath the temple will not wait much longer." Note: the setting is unspecified, but certain tie-ins, like the wines, prefigure Ravenloft. See: https://twitter.com/chrisperkinsdnd/status/703751906703749120 TSR #9115
"The first raid on our village happened a little over 3 months ago. We awoke in the morning to discover that the Cooper family's house at the edge of town had been sacked in the entire family was missing," croaks Obed, the village elder. "We mounted a search party, but found no trace of them." The old man lifts his gaze to the west woods. "After the third such attack, we sent a messenger to seek aid from one of the larger towns nearby. He never returned." He turns back to face your party and continues, "We had no idea who or what was attacking our village... Until last week. Creatures in black robes drifted out of the woods to the west and began setting houses on fire. Then, they seized four of our bravest men and carried them, screaming, into the mists." Obed throws his mug of ale into the fire, suddenly angry, "The only creature capable of this evil is the Barrow King, who lives in the burial mounds to the west. But I swear, we have done nothing to focus his anger upon us, nothing!" Warily, the elder stands, leaning heavily on his walking stick. Slowly, he lifts it, pointing at each one of you in turn. "If it is the Barrow King, God help us!"
A plug in adventure that can be used as part of a larger campaign or run as a one shot for 3-4 Tier I characters (scalable for tier II characters) set in the Forgotten Realms. This adventure can be placed in other settings as well. The characters have learned of a new and young threat in the Mere of Dead Men. Sent to identify and solve the issue for the nearby people of the region there are multiple setups and information for continuing adventure within the Mere. The adventure comes with the following: 10 page PDF adventure file. 1 Regional Map of the Mere of Dead Men 3 Parchment style DM and Player maps ready for VTT use 3 Printer friendly DM and Player maps ready for VTT well as printer friendly DM and Player maps that are VTT ready 1” diameter tokens ready to be cut out for use in person as well as files for use in a VTT
Some monsters don't have any class. The quest for knowledge can be as dangerous as any other. The heroes investigate a library after one of the locals claims to have seen a librarian be attacked by a tentacled creature. In reality, a group of orcs found a secret entrance into the library and the "tentacle" is merely the whip that the leader wields. The party must make their way through a labyrinth hidden underneath the library and rescue the hostages. Pgs. 4-9
The trouble began several weeks ago when a duergar excavation team went to work in a long-abandoned temple. Drawn to the temple by stories of riches and artifacts, the duergar hired several giants as laborers before cracking the temple’s sealed doors. The largest of the giants, a loathsome Thursir mutant named Huppo, used his acidic vomit to expedite tunneling into the temple’s collapsed hall of worship. Then, Huppo found the horn—an unusual instrument made from a single piece of stone, with a mouthpiece so intricate only a master carver could have made it. The horn became the giant’s obsession. Seeing only the horn’s potential sale value, the dwarves demanded Huppo turn it over to them, but Huppo refused. To force compliance, the dwarves stopped feeding the gluttonous brute, but Huppo had already found his own source of food; in deep areas of the temple, worms were chewing out of the rocks, and Huppo ate them by the fistful. He also played the horn. Then, after several days of blowing the horn and devouring the strange worms, Huppo released a belch so noxious the dwarves had no choice but to lock him in a sealed chamber and carefully consider their next move. The horn’s call, however, had caught the attention of passing nomadic orcs. They set up camp outside the temple entrance in the hope of finding the horn and its player. That’s the current situation at the temple: the giant refuses to stop blowing the horn and belching out deadly clouds of stomach gas; the dwarves are frightened and edgy while their leader is obsessed with malevolent whispers; orcs are threatening to overrun the place; and the population of worms grows steadily as something awakens deep in the stone beneath the sanctuary of belches.
The dreadful jails below the appalling City of Skulls, Iuz's nightmare capital, contain many wretched and desperate captives. Among them is Earl Holmer, Knight Commander of the Shield Lands. A brave spy in Dorakaa has shown the ay to find and free Holmer—is your party up to the job of freeing him? King Belvor IV of Furyondy believes so. In the way stand fearsome priests and mages of the Lord of Pain; ogres, giants, fiends, and worse hinder the struggle to defeat the traps and guardians of Iuz. Plucking Holmer from his grasp will bring great renown, knighthood, and treasure—for those who survive. None has ever escaped Iuz's jails. Who will you be the first to use stealth or storm to breach them? TSR 9405
Jack Mooney owner of the "Jack Mooney & Sons" Circus. Wants to hire the PCs to capture a great cave bear with a brilliant golden coat.
The citizens of Phent, which is a large town in Thesk, are a proud, yet warm and accepting folk. For the past nine years, they have been host to over six hundred orcs, which is certainly an anomaly in the average Faerûnian community. In 1360 DR, Zhentil Keep sent one thousand orcs to aid in the fight against the westward-sweeping Tuigan hordes. The orcs fought well—well enough that the citizens of Thesk welcomed them as citizens when Zhentil Keep abandoned them in this land in 1363 DR. Still, a current of unsettling concern lingers. Some believe that the orcs are still part of Zhentil Keep’s strike force, but that they went on standby to wait for the moment when their masters give the signal. Once allowed, these orcs may launch a crippling attack from within. However, in nine years, no signal has been given—at least none that any of the paranoid folk have noticed. The orcs are enthusiastic citizens and, apart from some rowdiness during breaks from the mines or fields, they have hurt no one. And then, a prophet comes, with a message of war . . . In A Call to Arms, the player characters (PCs) have a chance to prevent orcs from rising up against some humans. This adventure is designed for four 9th-level D&D® characters. The encounters can be adjusted up or down to suit your group’s needs, however.
The land lies under a curse. Fruit drops to the ground, its pulp black and rotten. Leaves curl and wither on the branches. Animals flee the parched vale, or starve. Long ago, the Downs prospered under the care of Druids, but the priests of nature have retreated deep into the woods and rarely show themselves. One old man claims that the Druids have the power to save the valley, if only someone could find their Oracle to seek help. Will you reach the Forest Oracle of the Druids in time? And if you do, can they really lift the curse? Or does the answer lie elsewhere? Only the most daring and cunning adventurers will save the Downs. N2: "The Forest Oracle" (1984), by Carl Smith, is the second AD&D adventure in the novice (N-) series. Unlike its predecessor, it is not intended for 1st-level adventurers, but instead for 2nd level and up. This conversion guide allows DMs to run the original module with 5th Edition rules and provides a reference sheet for encounters. Also contains suggestions for placement in the Forgotten Realms. To use this conversion guide you will need a copy of The Forest Oracle, originally available in hard-copy and now for sale in Digital format on the DMs Guild. Visit Classicmodulestoday.com to find out how you can create your own classic module conversions and sell them on the DMs Guild.
The greatness of a dwarven citadel is measured by its greatness of wealth. The dwarves steadily work mines and forges to fuel the wealth needed to make their presence known throughout the realms. Unfortunately, this also makes them known to those that would seek the opportunity to steal their glory and riches. This story occurs in a place that has experienced this struggle for millennia. New threats emerge as old threats become rivals through the tides of time. This story... your story... is another chapter of this ancient struggle.
No Loose Ends is a mini-adventure that has a single encounter, based on a group of orcs (or ogres based on level) setting up an ambush for the players by setting up a fake bridge that they attempt to collapse under the players before attacking. The cloak of elvenkind is optional, it is included only in the higher level adjustments. Pgs. 17-18
A proud paladin’s quest for glory against marauding orcs ends in tragic failure with his disappearance and presumed death. Worse still, an artifact of his faith entrusted to him has gone missing. Can the adventurers reclaim the artifact and force an end to the hostilities, or will the brightest beacon of good in the Western Heartlands be extinguished? Pgs. 28-43
When Volothamp Geddarm hires you to recover a missing key, you find yourself wrapped up in a series of murders in Lower Skullport. Can you find the killer before they find you? Part One of the Skullport Shakedown trilogy. A Two- to Four-Hour Adventure for Tier 2 Characters. Optimized For: APL 8
The Well of Souls. . . That's what Zugzul babe the Afridhi call the evil artifact that he had taught them to make. They must call it the Well of Souls, and they must carry it before them into every battle? and they would be mighty. Thus said the god of the Afridhi, Zugzul the One. So the Afridhi did as they were bade. Seeking the volcano called the Hill of the Hammer in the far Barrens of Karsh, they built in its heart a great forge. There, as Zugzul had promised, efreet came to help them make the mighty artifact. There, amid vile, unholy rites, they bound the souls of men into its very substance, and, for the red-handed work that must surely follow hard upon its completion. Many were the men who guarded the Hill of the Hammer during the days of making? for their foes in hated Blackmoor would try to unmake that which they had wrought. Yet, it was not men that would keep the Well of Souls from destruction, but a prophecy? that the artifact would be unmade only by the hand of one as yet unborn! TSR 9205
Base of Operations is a short adventure intended for four 5th-level characters. DMs can easily modify the adventure to suit higher- or lower-level adventurers, or larger or smaller parties of adventurers. Simply adding a few monsters to every encounter area makes the adventure more challenging for larger parties, and adding levels to any of the humanoids can make them more of a threat to high-level groups. For low-level adventurers, make the relationship between the two factions within Brightstone Keep more strained, and take away a few monsters from each group. You can remove levels from some of the humanoids in the adventure to make it a lower-level challenge, but it is important that the orc cleric (described in encounter area 8) still have the ability to animate the dead. Still, he can have fewer minions around him when encountered, and that makes him less of a challenge for a lowlevel party.
Long ago, before the arrival of civilized humanoids, a large colony of ogres thrived in the local area. When a great invasion from another dimension threatened this colony, their king, Koptila, prayed for his people to be spared. The gods heard these pleas, but commanded Koptila to sacrifice himself. The leader did so, and the clan disappeared—whisked away by the gods and lost to time. Over the years, a city grew up above the former subterranean home of the ogres, and no aspect of Koptila’s ancient bargain was preserved or remembered. Even so, the stars are aligned for the return of Koptila and his people. These powerful repatriates are unlikely to appreciate the changes in their old home. A sage has found dusty documents prophesying this return, and he asks the PCs to investigate the catacombs to defeat the potential threat to the city. The PCs travel down through city sewers and subterranean passages before finding the catacombs that the ogre colony once called home. Pgs. 48-53
A Scavenger Hunt? The adventure begins in the city-state of Zoa as the wizard Geolain tasks the player characters with a quest to gather three ingredients they will use to forge a magic coin to defeat an evil wizard. Which will be more dangerous to collect, the mysterious diamond touched by death, the blood of a devil spilled by a coward or a blue dragon's breath? As the player characters race around Reanaaria Bay ti find the rare items, their nemesis Daresh the wizard begins to grow in strength and wrest power from the Skryvalkkers of the Lands of Skaarna. Will the player characters find the ingredients and enchant the coin in time? They just might be Skaarna's only hope. Published by Kenzer & Company
This 4 hour adventure for 3rd level characters begins in a prison cell where the adventurers must figure out a way to escape, acquire weapons and armor to defend themselves more effectively, and most importantly, escape a repurposed dwarven forge that has been appropriated by a fire giant who uses slave labor and even a captured red dragon wyrmling to smelt ore and forge an arsenal under the volcano Mt. Hotenow.
Someone has "borrowed" a cleric, and without him, the fabled King's Festival cannot go on. Unfortunately, it looks like the orcs have him, and your characters must rescue him. A great learning adventure, King's Festival provides players and DMs with a valuable introduction to fantasy role-playing in the land of Karameikos. Full of helpful hints for the players and the DM, this module also provides a full dose of excitement! Orcs, carrion crawlers, and villains challenge the characters' fighting skills, and a host of traps and puzzles confound their wits! TSR 9260