There is a witch in the wilds, a goddess unremembered, and a madman. There is a circle of stone - who knows what lies beneath? The villagers are distraught: their children! replaced by fae! The villagers are distraught: who heeded their plea? Ravenous inquisitors, that's who. Oh, and adventurers... This investigative folkcrawl adventure module contains: * an isolated village full of secrets, riddled with strange traditions, * adventure sites and dungeons populated by peculiar denizens, * a small Fae Realm to explore, weird and perilous, * a terrible fae threat and too many curses, * unlikely friends, and foes nobody expects! An OSR adventure module for character levels 3-4, designed for use with the Old-School Essentials ruleset, compatible with most old-school pen-and-paper RPGs. Includes a fully-linked interactive PDF, a fillable Referee's Toolkit, and player-friendly VTT maps.
At the borderlands between the Noteflame Coast and the Duchy of Starryshade is the small town of Bluffton. You and your party heard of strange lights in the sky there while visiting the capital city of Vandosia. Further research shows that merchants that passed through the area two days ago and saw the strange lights at night and it appeared to be powerful magic at work. Vandosia was becoming stale anyway so a quick trip to a cartographer and you can be on your way to adventure!
Nestled high in the mountains of the Holdfists is Karnack, known for a millennium as the ‘city of the gods’. Known for its multitude of shrines, one in particular has caught the attention of the party. Annwyn is the legendary Plane of Magic for Filbar and can be used to recharge magical weapons that ‘lose their edge’. This adventure was used to help the party recharge one of their weapons they had, but this setting can be used for a variety of different purposes including a visit with a rather nasty neighbor beyond the city borders….it ain’t easy being green!
You visit the peculiar village of Basht expecting a pleasant evening filled with good food and drink, and a chance to learn their strange customs and superstitions. Your evening is interrupted when you are asked to rescue their mayor. Their mayor? A goat that lives in the center of town. Why is he so vital, and why is this a job for adventurers? A Two to Four-Hour Adventure for Tier 1 Characters. Optimized for APL 3. The Goat Mayor originally debuted at U-Con on November 2019. (https://www.ucon-gaming.org/)
Ashvale is a simple village, full of people who live their simple lives without knowing anything about the world outside their simple valley. But there is one thing that they know: animals can sense danger. And, for the last few days, animals have been running out of the woods. Characters are hired to investigate and must venture into the forest. But the culprit, a dryad, may have a good reason for chasing all of those animals away.
A band of shipwrecked adventurers awake to twilight on an uncharted jungle island to the Northwest of the Nalanthars with amnesia, little do they know the amnesia is recurrent at the completion of each long rest until an ancient curse powered by an incomplete Mythallar is lifted.
Under raging stormclouds, a lone figure stands silhouetted against the ancient walls of castle Ravenloft. Count Strahd von Zarovich stares down a sheer cliff at the village below. A cold, bitter wind spins dead leaves around him, billowing his cape in the darkness. Lightning splits the clouds overhead, casting stark white light across him. Strahd turns to the sky, revealing the angular muscles of his face and hands. He has a look of power - and of madness. His once-handsome face is contorted by a tragedy darker than the night itself. Rumbling thunder pounds the castle spires. The wind's howling increases as Strahd turns his gaze back to the village. Fas below, yet not beyond his keen eyesight, a party of adventurers has just entered his domain. Strahd's face forms a twisted smile as his dark plan unfolds. He knew they were coming, and he knows why they came, all according to his plan. He, the master of Ravenloft, will attend to them. Another lightning flash rips through the darkness, its thunder echoing through the castle's towers. But Strahd is gone. Only the howling of the wind - or perhaps a lone wolf - fills the midnight air. The master of Ravenloft is having guests for dinner. And you are invited. TSR 9075
While camping in the wilderness, the characters find a tracker surrounded by wolves. Once the heroes dispatch the beasts, the tracker reveals that she is seeking aid in the fight against the darkness enfolding her community, Silver Lake. Should the characters help, they find the village terrorized by lycanthropes that hail from a tiny island rising from the mist-shrouded lake.The island is a fey crossing, and heroes who set foot on it find themselves in the Feywild, where a war is brewing; the lycanthrope clans are at each other’s throats, and many are turning their feral eyes outward to the rich lands beyond their secluded valley. To avert an unimaginably savage war, the heroes must rescue a werewolf lord from his captors and expose the conspiracy that threatens to drench the Feywild in blood...
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.
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.
In Claine Forest near Padduck Village there has appeared a pit. No-one knows where it came from, it just did. It is not so deep that you cannot see the bottom, but people fear it and avoid it. No-one who has climbed into it has come back, having been dragged beneath the surface by unseen hands. A necromancer has come to the forest, seeking the pit. She does not quite know what she expects from it, but what she hopes for is protection from death. Player-characters may wish to get involved, and thus this constitutes an adventure for old-school systems, for 5-6 PCs of 2nd level 2 or slightly fewer of 3rd. The PCs won’t necessarily all die, and the players will almost certainly survive. Reviews elsewhere: "It pours out flavour in nearly every word, creating delicious situations for the party to interact with. ... We got a village, two rival groups of adventurers, a weird-ass forest, and somewhere in the forest a pit, your final destination. From this, joy is made. Each one of those elements has their component parts well done and, because of this the whole is a wonder." — Bryce Lynch of tenfootpole
The adventurers travel across Serpent Lake with a group of Rybalkan soldiers. The group camps for the night adjacent to the ruins of Ka’Teek. As they sleep a goblin steals a precious keepsake from one of the PCs and disappears into the ruins. The party pursues and finds themselves confronting undead guardians of the Sun Lord while avoiding dangerous traps. Will the PCs find the goblin and retrieve their precious keepsake or stumble upon something much more sinister?
From the magazine: "Brave are the mortals who take on the tasks of the gods - and dreadful their fate if they fail." This adventure is heavily themed on Greek mythology, using Greek gods as NPCs and even sending the PCs back to ancient Greece to obtain the main object of the quest. Eventually the PCs find the chest that they seek, which actually holds the god Hermes inside. He was being held by the Aloeids, two brother cyclops. After rescuing him, the PCs may gain his favor and perhaps the favor of more Greek gods.
Reavers of Harkenwold pits the heroes against the Iron Circle, a company of cruel mercenaries that has seized control of the small land of Harkenwold. In this adventure, the heroes become daring rebels and lead the folk of Harkenwold against their oppressors.
This sequel to issue #87’s ”Raiders of Galath’s Roost” takes the PCs back to the Dales region, where they must uncover a plot to destabilize the region. Zhentarim agents from Zhentil keep are disrupting trade along the Moonsea Ride, while drow from the forests are slaughtering merchants and taking their goods to sow discord between the humans of Misteldale and the elves of Cormanthor. The PCs must embark on a convoluted investigation to uncover the mystery behind the attacks. Pgs. 48-68
"Ruins of the Umbral Tower" is a shadow fey hunter lair suitable for four or five 8th-level characters. This adventure can be completed in a single session. The ruined Umbral Tower rests deep in the forest, in a marshy region avoided by all but songbirds. Long abandoned by its original occupant, the tower features a malfunctioning gate that connects this place and the Plane of Shadow. The site serves as a base for a group of shadow fey hunters and their entourage of hounds and guardians. The hunters used the gate to travel from their home plane, and they now attempt to bag as many trophies and as much loot as possible before returning home when the gate reactivates.
Into your hands has been thrust a great responsibility: the management of a growing domain. It has been a hard winter. Now, with the coming of spring, the populace looks to you for leadership. It will take a careful and generous hand to restore your subjects' confidence. But even as you hold your first courts of the new season, an ominous shadow falls across the land. Earthshaker - wonder of the world - has arrived! Will its arrival be a curse or a blessing? With bold action and skillful diplomacy, you may yet divert disaster. But if you fail, the consequences will certainly be the subject of many a minstrel's tragic songs for years to come! "Earthshaker" includes a complete dominion setting, new player characters and NPCs, and complete material on one of the greatest marvels of the world - the giant and unstoppable Earthshaker! TSR 9128
The Borderlands. An untamed wild region far flung from the comforts and protection of civilization. A lone fortified Keep is the only bastion of Good desperately striving to maintain the forces of Chaos at bay. But Evil is everywhere, lurking in dark caves, fetid swamps, forlorn forests. Bands of cutthroat brigands and ruthless tribes of humanoids eager to clash with the forces of Food rove the region. The Borderlands hold many secret wondrous locations, and opportunities for fame, prestige, and fortune are plentiful. But equally abundant are the perils, risks, and challenges to those brave enough to explore the wilds. Sharpen your swords and axes. Purchase your iron rations and tinderboxes. And Don't forget at least one 10-foot pole. Adventure awaits those with the mettle to confront Chaos in the Borderlands!
Every autumn the reclusive goliaths of the Silvertop Mountain Clan hold their Festival of the Hunt, inviting neighbors to join in the partaking of merriment and mead. Your adventuring company finds themselves drafted as monster hunters when a young huntress is slain. The culprit? A lamia, whose lair has discouraged all previous attempts to destroy her. What the party finds inside her cave triggers a different call to action. Pgs. 21-27
Far above the village of Barovia sits Castle Ravenloft, the home and fortress of vampire lord Strahd Von Zarovich. Legends claim that Strahd flies with the bats and runs with the wolves to terrorize the countryside. Ancient tales also tell of dungeons and catacombs deep under the castle. Other stories recall the great halls, treasures, and glory of Ravenloft in centuries past. "House of Strahd" is a revision of the classic gothic horror tale I6: Ravenloft, one of the most popular adventures ever produced for the AD&D game. This version is updated for the AD&D 2nd Edition rules, and those from the Ravenloft campaign set. Count Strahd is now more powerful, and his castle is even more terrifying! TSR 9418