Summary The party is sent to deal with a problem that should be instantly familiar to all rookie adventurers - exterminating giant rats that have taken up residence in a beer cellar. However, if they are to achieve their goal our heroes are going to have to get their first taste of a real dungeon as they explore the ruins of an ancient Wizard’s Tower. What is this adventure? This first-level adventure is designed for D&D veterans and complete beginners alike. It only uses rules, items, monsters and concepts found in the free basic ruleset that can be downloaded from the Wizards of the Coast website. That means that you and your friends can play this without having to buy anything other than snacks, drinks and maybe some dice - though even these can be replaced by the many free Dice Roller apps available for phones and tablets.
'Fierce' was written for the annual release of Fierce, a tasty Berliner Weisse, at Off Color Brewery in Chicago, Illinois. It's a one-shot intended for both beginner players and DM's, with the space for personal flair to be added or to be run as-is.
Let nothing end the Feast by the River. Let the celebration of our enemy’s vanquishing ring out night and day for eternity. Let the bones of our enemies and our prey mingle below our feet. This is your time, our time, the best time. —Queen Gellao on the eve of her victory over the followers of Dur; decreed at the River’s Bend feast hall
The party finds themselves in a town being plagued by goblins, but not ordinary goblins - these goblins are zombified. Many of them are missing limbs and dripping with rot, but they still march to town with powerful intent. The party must help track down the origin of this plague - a Necromancer whose Blight Stone has been stolen by a group of mischievous kids who thought it would be fun to mess with the strange old man out in the woods.
Stormy seas rock your vessel, tossing her about like a toy in the jaws of a hound. Thunder rolls in the distance. Then, an arc of lightning splits the sky, and the sound like an exploding fireball all but bursts your eardrums. Your mainmast, struck by lightning, burns, splinters, and topples onto the deck like a felled oak. The last thing you hear is the cracking of wood as the deck explodes into splinters, and the ship is torn asunder. All goes black. You awaken in shackles, half-submerged in water, and surrounded by salmon-pink coral. You survived, but what fate awaits you now? The sound of soggy footsteps echo down the hallway. A creature approaches with an answer. This week’s encounter is Coral Colosseum, a combat encounter in which the characters must prove themselves as worthy gladiators to escape the clutches of a ruthless sahuagin baron. This encounter can serve as a follow-up to Encounter of the Week: Sharkfin Shipwreck, or as a stand-alone mini-adventure. It could also serve as an introduction to Ghosts of Saltmarsh, which releases on May 21st, 2019.
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to actually encounter an area where someone has used Guards & Wards, Symbol, and other spells to actually fortify a location against casual intrusion and thievery? If you want to find out just how deadly a wizard's "getaway cabin" in the mountains can be when the owner isn't there to let you in, this is the adventure for you and your players. Suitable for a single session of play (unless characters get killed, forcing a retreat and later return), there's only one combat encounter, but the traps are deadly. Not recommended for parties below level 12. All of the defenses are based on actual PHB spells, although a couple are assumed to have been bound into items or interactions within the dungeon. This dungeon is originally from the "Against the Idol of the Sun" high-level hexcrawl campaign.
This is a short adventure than can be completed in a single session, for 4-5 players of 1st level. The old church at the edge of town has long been abandoned, but a week ago several robed figures arrived in town and have taken up residence in the old church. Since then, the townsfolk claim to have seen a strange mist around the building, and several folks have gone missing. Little do they know, these cultists have awoken a long dead necromancer, who seeks to bind a dark power to its will.
This adventure previews the shoggoth, a monster from the Tome of Beasts (Kobold Press). Adventure cannot be readily solved by direct assault, so groups optimized for combat alone may find it difficult or impossible to succeed or, indeed, survive. If a direct assault and toe-to-toe combat is the goal, characters of level 17 or better are called for. It's also excellent for ending a campaign.
Not so deep in Lake Marione an amulet sinks. This adventure is set in the town of Marione where PCs will be asked to retrieve a lost amulet. I hope you enjoy the adventure! A D&D 5e One-Shot Adventure
Once, we were friends. She used her spells to ward our grove against the darkness in the woods. It was the mirror that turned her mind to covetous thoughts; she saw its power and changed. We have kept the mirror safe for an era, but her soldiers grow strong—and now something makes for our tree we cannot repel. If her aberration reaches the grove, the mirror will be hers, and then we will all know what lies at the tip of the wickedest branches.
High tide is coming in in this week’s encounter: Sea Trolls in the Net, a tongue-in-cheek combat encounter about a troll troubling fishermen and getting tangled up in their net. This encounter works best when it can add flavor to a grim, seaside locale as a random encounter the adventurers stumble across while exploring. While exploring a blighted shoreline on some forsaken coast, the adventurers find a sea troll feasting upon fishing nets full of freshly caught fish while their fishermen flee from the shore.
A dispute erupts between a trade ambassador and a wealthy merchant and the players are hired as champions only to learn that they face a brutal and savvy opponent. Will the players be a second in time? "A Second in Time" is a two-hour adventure for 3-6 players. It is written for characters 1st-3rd level. The players act as a champions in a harsh blood sport that is as much the court of a river city as it is entertainment. This module includes a new poison, a new type of item and a rudimentary rule for addiction. The river city of Lotian is a rough place, where might often means right and the thirst for blood is nigh unquenchable. Gold may be the currency of the realm but justice is paid for in blood...
About: This encounter was cooked up in the Write your First Encounter workshop by the Storytelling Collective. It CAN be slid in as a side quest in any urban or sub-urban context, or be adapted to add confusion to any rescue mission you are presently running. Synopsis: Through the doorway a young woman shackled to the wall matching the description of Helena can be seen. Though disheveled and looking to be in great discomfort, her beauty is remarkable. But on closer inspection, there are other people here — three identical Helenas! Noble woman Elize Cleron has hired the party to infiltrate the catacombs under the Schaefer Estate and free her twin sister Helena. Helena is being held captive by the Schaefer family, trade rivals rumored to have ties to the underworld. Elize has been unable to free her sister herself because of her identical appearance. Rather than pay an unrealistic ransom, Elize has provided the party with what they need to break her out. This encounter is intended for 3rd level characters.
An exceptionally smart ogre and its pet dire wolf have figured out the easy life. Why loot and pillage, when with a few words of common, you can threaten and intimidate your way to comforts?
"Monument of the Thunderer" is a desert half-dragon lair intended to challenge a party of four 7th-level characters. Near the city state of Makuria, on a small island in the middle of the Green Nuria River, an immense stone sculpture of a dragon watches over the mighty Red Cliffs and the waterfall that pours off them. The monument was built by ancient worshipers of the Mharoti conqueror known as Zulatil the Thunderer, but now serves as a base of operations for a band of sinister thugs who call themselves the Red Cliff Raiders.
Sometimes protecting the cargo is easy but getting the pay not so much. Work has been scarce, coin hard to come by, armor needs maintenance, weapons need to be sharpened and food is needed in the belly. Monsters on the road, on the other hand, are more and more common.
She lay down her sword and wept; her tears are the water. She lay down her body and slept; her bones are the fountain. Atop the mountain, at the war’s end, a place for gods to wonder.
A dwarven laboratory forgotten for many centuries has finally been rediscovered, but there is sure to be danger lurking within. It turns out some of the other machines within are still active, as are some of the traps and puzzles. Prepare your party for a blend of challenging puzzles and diverse fights in the dungeon that was home to my first player kill.
The poor village of Bunting Freely, somewhat off the beaten track, is suffering from an oral health crisis. The villagers are plagued by overly aggressive Tooth Fairies due to a confluence of events in recent history.
"Ambush at Boxcar Rocks" is a two hour adventure for character level 1-3 (3-6 players) but is easily adapted to challenge higher level PCs by adjusting the spawn rate and the spawn limit. It features one hand-drawn, color map. It can be run as a brutal oneshot gauntlet or a quick side quest to pad the players purses. Deep within the labyrinth of massive, glacier deposited rocks there is a natural cave once used for interring the dead. Now the bones of the pit within stir because of a foolish neophyte. A listless, blood thirsty horde tramples toward daylight and nothing will remain in their wake...