"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.
Settling down as the sky turns black with rest, you gather by the heated campfire and swap stories to pass the night. You hear tales of wonder and worry, descriptions of distant lands, plants, and beasts. Exchanged this night are stories of thieving travellers, worried giants, and godly squabbles. Ever wanted small stories to make travel more interesting than random encounters? Ever just wanted to run shorter games? Maybe you’re just low on prep time for your next session. In this volume of campfire tales you’ll find eight half-a-session length adventures that help with all these classic DM worries. Also included is an in-depth appendix of fauna, flora, locations, and more to help boost your game.
Fight the Monster in its Den … If You Dare! Book of Lairs brings you 24 great monster lairs for 5th edition! Each of these exciting and unusual battlegrounds comes with a complete short adventure, including a hook, area hazards, tactics, and treasures. Stage your 5th Edition fights in unforgettable locations like: Alchemist’s Guildhall Necromancer’s Cistern Clockwork Tower Den of the Rotten Kings Lost Halls of Everforge A Pirate Cove Crypt of the Warlock Citadel of the Void Dragon A Dark Grove Lost Fane of the Serpents Branches of Yggdrasil Tomb of the Scorpion Prince Sky Stairs of Beldestan Imperial Ghoul Outpost Umbral Vampire Lair And 10 more! Designed by some of the top names in the RPG industry, Book of Lairs is sure to add an aura of wonder and mystery to your game! Book of Lairs uses standard monsters as well as surprising new creatures from Tome of Beasts, and both monster books are required for maximum playability.
The Tower. Standing on a grassy hilltop, it seems unremarkable from a distance. Two stories high, cylindrical, thatched roof. Simple and idyllic. There's even a whisper on the breeze, or maybe a thought in the back of your mind: There's nothing to see here. What brought you in the first place? Just turn around and go back. Those that venture nearer find that it's much more than meets the eye. The closer you get, the taller the tower seems to be... until standing at its base, the tower rises dozens of floors and pierces the sky. Do you have the courage to enter the unknown sanctum? What could possibly await you within? Gather your allies and find out!
A mission to find a rare recipe ingredient for a local wizard. The recipe to fashion that magic item calls for a few drops of fey blood. Hmmm...where in the world can that be found?
A blood curdling SCREAM shatters our adventurers rest as they set up camp for the evening. Without warning the forest comes alive and a heroic struggle begins, as our adventurers battle to avoid becoming the forest's latest victims. Take your players deep into a cursed glade on a dark and stormy night to confront an evil Druidess, and a horrifically corrupt tree...
"Sometimes bugs are just bugs, and sometimes they are organized into a hive mind that is just as smart as humans. Ants are just that. In battle, the ants become a horde of raging combatants that form a blur on all sides. While ants are typically peaceful, they respond to a threat against the hive with a scale of violence that’s almost impossible to imagine. Utterly devoted to duty, ants never retreat from a confrontation—even in the face of certain death. Their engagements are brief and brutal. Working in teams, ants grab enemies, holding them in place until one of the warriors rips into the captive’s body, leaving it smashed and oozing." "Of Ants and Men begins as a quest to recover (e.g., steal) eggs from a giant anthill near the town of Endhome." "This adventure is designed for characters of levels 4 to 8." "The adventure can also be played (perhaps more effectively) by smaller groups. In response to many requests from our fans, the main encounters are designed to work well with groups of two to three characters of levels 6 to 8. Even a solo adventurer could do reasonably well, if the individual character had very good climbing, trap finding, and stealth skills. Druids, barbarians, and rogues will fare best in cases where the groups are limited in size." "While there’s plenty of opportunity for combat here, characters who think through a situation before drawing their swords are likely to do best. Hacking one’s way through is likely to result in character deaths."
The majestic tree of the Four Winds grew in the forest west of the village of Rybalka, revered by the Vikmordere druids of the Snoqua tribe for its power to control the weather and hold balance with nature. When the Klavek Kingdom invaded the area, a powerful druid named Manahzo transferred the essence of the tree into a magical flute to keep its power safe from the threat of the militaristic Empire. Entrusted with the flute by the Snoqua, he and his wife sought to hide the flute from the reach of the invaders. As they fought the Klavek military they found themselves forced into an old cave system in the mountains of the Vikmordere Valley where they faced not only the Klavek soldiers, but ancient primal horrors. While Manahzo kept the flute out of the invaders hands, he lost his wife in the battle. Manahzo now seeks revenge on the Klavek Kingdom and its citizens located in the village of Rybalka. The PCs find themselves in the midst of an attack on Rybalka by Manahzo and a group of rogue Snoqua warriors. They must fight beside the citizens of Rybalka to repel the attack, and then seek out the Snoqua to find a means to deal with Manahzo and his rogue companions. In the forests outside Rybalka they will face a demonic wolf ally of Manahzo’s before finally engaging him in a direct battle as he executes a final attack on Rybalka. Even if the PCs succeed in defeating Manahzo, the threat does not end as his thirst for vengeance continues even after his passing in the form of haunt on the village. Directed by the Snoqua on how to end the haunt, the PCs must venture to the caves where Manahzo’s wife died to confront the ancient horrors that were responsible for her demise and recover her body in order to give her a proper burial to calm Manahzo’s vengeful spirit once and for all and bring peace to the village of Rybalka. Also included in “Flute of the Four Winds”: Roleplaying opportunities to interact with various NPCs in Rybalka, the heart of the Aventyr campaign setting Two new monsters – The hive-minded Tunnel Horrors and their carnivorous primal kin, the Anglers High resolution encounter maps in a new location, the coal mines north of Rybalka
The wedding was meant to unite poweful families from Everlund and Silverymoon. "Til death do us part" comes sooner for some couples than others when undead hordes and a feral demilich are uninvited guests. The Dead Wedding is a short, 3 to 5 hour adventure for characters level 14 to 16. The adventure contains maps for Moonshadow Keep and the crypt of the demilichess Regetta Arch Therm, deadly traps, and RP hooks that enable players to use high-level non-combat abilities.
The Thorn Hag, an ancient evil thought vanquished by the Elf Queen and her heroic companions many years ago, has arisen from the dead. A fey harp, created from the heart of the treant that perished in the battle, has gone missing from Satyrs' Glen and the Thorn Hag seems to be behind it. The PCs must track the missing harp through a warped and eerie wood and into an unseelie area of the Feywild to stop the Thorn Hag wreaking revenge upon the Elf Queen before it's too late - the clock is ticking. The Sylvan Harp is a D&D 5e adventure for 4-5 PCs of the 1st tier (Levels 1-4). The adventure has been designed with suitable alternatives to run the adventure for 1st, 2nd, 3rd or 4th-level characters, including advice for adapting creature numbers and/or powers to suit the level of your party. The adventure is estimated to take 8-12 hours to run. A timeline of events, and guidelines on how the actions of the PCs can affect those events, is included. The adventure includes nine new creatures: gwerthin, satyr bard, ash guardian, light guardian, treant spirit, pixie rot zombie, green dragon skeleton, thorn hag and thorn hag's hut. It also includes two new magical items: a powerful magical harp with a dark hidden secret and a crystal ball of clairvoyance. Also includes a player handout of the rhyming riddle of the fey, and maps of the area and a darkling tomb. Requires Volo's Guide to Monsters.
The starting point of one’s career sometimes starts meekly, at other times not so much. This adventure sends a brand new (or 2nd level weaker character) on a simple fetch mission. A romance on the brink is in peril when the PC accepts the mission. A looming celebration has the player torn between a future on the road to adventure and the future with someone special. Is your player ready to take a trip to pick up some alchemical supplies?
*THIS IS A D&D NEXT/5E PLAYTEST ADVENTURE* Imani, a Turmishan wizard and former adventurer, seeks the aid of heroes to infiltrate Dretchroyaster’s lair and recover the Diamond Staff of Chomylla—the key to powerful magic and wisdom locked away for thousands of years. In addition to his own sagely interest in the lore of lost Uvaeren, Imani recognizes the dangers of such powerful magic falling into evil hands. The dracolich has secured the staff in his lair’s cen- tral chamber, using ancient wards of protection that can be bypassed only by four artifact-idols once belong- ing to a cult of Bhaal. Each group of adventurers enters the dungeon through a different section of the dun- geon—a forgotten temple of Bhaal, a vast underground lake, a troglodyte village, or Dretchroyaster’s vaults. Dretchroyaster’s lair is no simple set of caverns and ancient ruins. It sits atop a source of great power and energy, which the dracolich and his Cult of the Dragon allies hope to use to unlock the secrets of the staff. Only by undertaking a unified assault against Dretchroyas- ter’s lair can the adventurers hope to recover the Diamond Staff and survive the dracolich’s fury. The adventurers must make their way through the lair and recover the Bhaalite idols that will help unlock the Diamond Staff, all the while dealing with the lair’s creatures and avoiding the dracolich as he pur- sues intruders. Entering the Chamber of the Diamond Staff, the heroes must overcome its magical wards and claim the staff before being slain by the dracolich and his servants.
A nearly forgotten dwarven kingdom once ruled these mountains. Its rulers were wealthy beyond compare. Time and greed wore the kingdom to dust and now all that remains are ruins and wonders. Recently coins of that ancient kingdom have appeared in the streams of the foothills to the south of the mountains. Rumors have passed with tankards of ale that a vault laden with gold is waiting to be found. You and your friends, on a fortnight's furlough from guard duty, have set off in search of this lost horde.
Synopsis: Goblin Bathwater, a magical drug, has taken hold in a sleepy coastal town at the edge of the Empire. As the characters investigate the origin of the drug, they uncover an international criminal conspiracy, wild and ancient magic, and a threat to reality itself. Contents: This beautifully made, 54-page adventure offers: A fully fleshed out, setting-agnostic starter area, brimming with colourful NPCs and hooks for adventure. Balanced encounters to bring characters to level 2; then some more devious encounters on their way to level 3. Three mini-dungeons built on the design philosophy of the "5 room dungeon method" Multiple big, cinematic set-piece boss encounters what will make your players feel epic. A facetted intrigue, which does not immediately suggest a simple, ready-made solution but invites the players to come up with their own, personal approach. Why pick this adventure? Hey, my name is Marius. This is my first time publishing on the DMs Guild but I wouldn't call myself a newcomer. I started playing Pathfinder 1e back in 2014. When I took over as our group's DM in 2019, we swapped over to 5e. We have run many, many modules and adventures since. Currently I play three games a week. In short: You could say I'm hooked. I created The Goblin Bathwater Incident as the ideal adventure for in-between your big modules, but it isn't a simple little adventure. With a playtime of about 30 hours, it still manages to hit that sweet-spot, where it establishes context, makes you grow fond of NPCs, and makes those big bossfight wins so much sweeter, all without taking more than a few sessions. The Goblin Bathwater Incident is different from many of the 1st tier adventures in that it pits the characters against traps and monsters, but also asks difficult, open-ended ethical questions, where a simple strategy of "apply sword to head of bad guy" will not cut it.
𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐚 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐝𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐨𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝟏𝟗𝟕𝟕 𝐁𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐜 𝐑𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐨𝐨𝐤, 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐓𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐙𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐩𝐮𝐬. It includes the hinted at, deeper dungeons and darker secrets of Zenopus. This adventure details the Tower of Zenopus located in the map found in Ghosts of Saltmarsh and is a quick side bar for adventurers level 1-3. It has been 50 years since anyone has seen or heard from Zenopus. Rumors abound concerning cultists and marshland creatures roaming near Portown. Could it be that Zenopus is behind it all? Return to the dungeon that started it all. Additional material based on Dr. J. Eric Holmes’ original sample dungeon. More levels, more monsters, more treasure await under the Tower of Zenopus! 4 new dungeon levels included!
This adventure is designed as a side quest that can be inserted into an ongoing adventure or campaign. It involves a series of three linking scenes (and an optional fourth research scene between the others) that can be placed in between the action of whatever other event the party is undertaking. Ideally the scenes of this side adventure should be spread out and inserted into the game over several sessions of play.
A tribe of goblins are raiding travelers on the Long Road, and our heroes decide to help. After a dangerous overland journey, they enter a mysterious abandoned temple where they encounter terrifying monsters, deadly traps, dark magic and a shocking secret. Will they survive the Temple of the Nightbringers? This adventure contains 14 encounters and includes a mixture of combat, roleplaying, puzzles and traps.
You are aromantic, and your best friend is aromantic. There’s only one thing to do: go and fight a dragon. Two Aromantics Spend an Entire Day Doing Everything Except Experiencing Romantic Attraction is an unapologetically no-romo single-player adventure for a level 4 character. It should run for approximately 3-5 hours. This adventure requires at least some knowledge as to what it means to be aromantic. There are many useful resources available online for those unfamiliar with this term.
A wandering farm boy falls foul of an ancient trap and is plunged into a death-like sleep. The cure lies in a temple hidden in the green gloom of Merthington Woods, but to find it, the adventurers must brave a set of terrible traps laid by a forgotten sect of priests...
DC-POA-PND-3 The Watcher in the Attic (Part 2 of the Strange Case of Erland Forsk) Strange lights have been appearing in the topmost windows of the Forsk estate, and local cats have been going missing. Will you find out what lurks in the attic? A Two-Hour Adventure for Tier 1 Characters. Optimized for APL 3. Using the DungeonCraft seed Awake and Afraid Don’t go into the Attic! The Strange Case of Erland Forsk is a four part series of DungeonCraft adventures, each 2-hours long. DC-POA-PND-2 What Skitters Beneath? (tier 1) DC-POA-PND-3 The Watcher in the Attic (tier 1) DC-POA-PND-4 Eateat Go Home? (tier 2) DC-POA-PND-5 What Stalks the Night? (tier 2) ``` Unworkable inventions? Lost or shattered Nothing is perfect Nothing is worthless Unloved, dusty, rusty, dirty Here at the top Where the things that are lost find a home in my attic —Professor Elemental, The Attic ```