Ruins of the Grendleroot is a book of ten easy-to-prep and easy-to-run adventures for the fifth edition of the world's most popular fantasy roleplaying game. Designed for characters of 1st to 5th level, these adventures take place in the caverns, chambers, tunnels, and ruins of Blackclaw Mountain, within which lurks a strange otherworldly sentience known as the Grendleroot. Ruins of the Grendleroot focuses on the sense of mystery and wonder that comes from exploring ancient ruins and lost chambers. The central hub of these adventures, Deepdelver's Enclave, is a frontier outpost overlooking the ruined city of Shadowreach, set deep within the mountain. In Deepdelver's Enclave, adventurers and explorers recount tales of their explorations, trade treasure and artifacts, and enjoy their shared love of uncovering the mysteries of the mountain.
Originally designed as a convention module, this adventure sends the heroes into the underdark to do battle against the mysterious denizens of the deep! A drow housemistress commissions the characters to acquire a mysterious weapon known to be in the hands of her dark elf enemies. Locating, identifying, and acquiring the magical weapon leads the heroes on a great trek across the underdeep, where they must battle svirfneblin, a powerful lich, and enemy drow. This adventure us specifically designed for play by drow characters, but can be used with any adventuring party. Pregenerated drow characters are included.
"The module takes place in a large cavern that is part of an extensive underground cave network. It can be used as a side-trek encounter in the Undermountain or Night Below campaign." -- from the adventure. Includes a small keyed map of the cavern.
For the most part, the town of Ockney’s Hold has always been a peaceful place—bordering on boring. The most interesting things going on in this frontier mining settlement include the annual livestock fair, the cost of spirits at its various inns, and speculation fueled by those same spirits as to what foul things are being dumped into the river by the ore refinery. Recently, however, the usually placid Baron Reinson has begun to act erratically, ignoring most of his counselors, giving more responsibility to his equally erratic chamberlain, and replacing key figures in Ockney’s Hold with outsiders. With no clear answers as to what might be behind the baron’s strange behavior, his last loyal counselor seeks out a band of adventurers to help. Will these brave heroes be able to get to the bottom of a widening conspiracy? And can they expose the terrible and unseen forces manipulating the baron in time to save Ockney’s Hold? Published by Gamehole Publishing.
If absolute power corrupts absolutely, Matron Maelora best beware; her plans for total domination of the Underworld are already close to satisfactory completion, while attacks on the Upperworld have become increasingly successful. The other power-hungry drow families of Holoth may despise her but they know a true leader when they see one, and House Gullion has been revealed as the family to lead them all on the path to glory. With the entire Underworld in chaos and the Spider Goddess regularly communing with her chosen Matron, far greater dreams than mere regional conquest are within the grasp of the drow, as Maelora prepares her grand dark elf army for victory! With other mystical allies standing firm with the Matron, other Underworld races beneath her heel or cowering behind fortified walls, and every drow ready to play their part when she gives the word, what could possibly stop her from achieving her final triumph and fulfilling her destiny? But even the greatest of plans has a flaw if you look hard enough, and a party of stout heart and strong resolve can make a difference. At first, such a party may well believe it is on a smaller adventure, perhaps to win a few baubles or some small acclaim by rescuing a few kidnapped villagers. Soon, however, those adventurers will realise that much more is at stake, and that they are the ones who will need to make moves against the evil Matron Maelora and her increasing dominance if both the entire Underworld and Upperworld are to be saved. But how will they go about it? Can they ensure their own success when an entire city is standing against them? Only they have the chance to halt the Rise of the Drow! Published by AAW Games.
This adventure is written with the intent that it takes place in the subterranean world called the Underdark in the world of Forgotten Realms, although it may be placed in other settings. Within the Underdark, Cyrog's lair can be placed anywhere though it is stated to be thousands of miles east of Gravenhollow. If you are running Out of the Abyss, you may want to have your players see the vision Cyrog Lives! Hail Orcus! (OOTA, 158). Additionally, it is recommended that this adventure be used for a party of 4 to 6 players, level 9 to 12. While merely hinted at through visions in Out of the Abyss, Orcus is roaming the Underdark unchallenged with an army of mind flayers at his disposal. Cyrog, the elder brain of a mind flayer colony in the Underdark has died. The demon lord Orcus has reanimated and taken control of it. The hive of mind flayers is now bent to Orcus's will through Cyrog as he strives to make all life in the multiverse into a vast undead horde under his control. The adventurers are contacted by a patron who gives them a special item (such as brain worms) to suppress their brain waves and make it possible to infiltrate the Cyrog's Lair without immediate detection. The adventurers must defeat or otherwise subdue mind flayers and a few guards, override the elder brain's mechanical defense system, and slay Cyrog.
As a member of a bold party of adventurers, you and your associates have trekked far into what seems to be a whole underworld of subterranean tunnels -- arteries connecting endless caves and caverns which honeycomb the foundations of the lands beneath the sun. Your expedition has dogged the heels of the Dark Elves who caused great woe and then fled underground. This module can be played alone, as the conclusion to module D1 & D2: "Descent into the Depths of the Earth," or as the third module in a series that forms a special extended adventure (G1-G3: "Against the Giants"; D1-D2: "Descent into the Depths"; and Q1: "Queen of the Demonweb Pits"). TSR 9021
Deep beneath the Isle of Dread, in a place forgotten by the world of light, an ancient, unfathomable evil festers. Within the desiccated ruin known as Golsimorga, the debased kopru servants of Demogorgon work foul rites, steeping immature shadow pearls in pits of liquid insanity. None from the world above have yet fathomed what terrors lurk beneath the Isle of Dread, nor what mad scheme roils to profane life deep within the city's gangrenous corpse. "The Lightless Depths" is the sixth chapter of the Savage Tides Adventure Path, a complete campaign consisting of 12 adventures appearing in Dungeon magazine. For additional aid in running this campaign, check out Dragon magazine's monthly "Savage Tidings" articles, a series that helps players and DMs prepare for and expand upon the campaign. Issue #353 of Dragon features ways to improve the PCs' vessel, the Sea Wyvern, as they take their adventures back to the seas. When the PCs journey deep under the Isle of Dread to find the source of the shadow pearls, they discover horrors beyond imagining in a haunted underground city perched on sanity's razored edge. Pgs. 28-66
A band of evil fey, led by a corrupt bralani, has raided an eladrin city and kidnapped several respected elders. The fomorian king claims the rogues don’t act on his behalf, but the eladrin city threatens the fomorians all the same. To prevent war, the PCs travel through the Underdark of the Feywild—a wondrous place filled with the beautiful and the horrifying—in search of the evil fey and their captives. Pgs. 96-101
After a drow girl goes missing, characters must delve into the depths of the Underdark to bring her back. As they journey through the dark, characters discover not all monsters are monstrous and webs are capable of restraining all manner of creatures; in fact, they can capture magic itself.
Expand your game with this collection of 56 NPCs of various Challenge Ratings, thirteen of which include maps and details of their lairs. Add these NPCs as a side-quest, a main villain, a one-shot, a bounty for easy money, or however else you wish. Written by some of the best-selling authors on the Dungeon Masters Guild and outstanding podcasters, each NPC includes an image, a backstory, motives, flaws, and a stat block. Some even include new magic items!
The waters of a sunless sea meet a pebble-strewn shore, beyond which opens a wide Underdark vista shimmering with pale cave-light. Titanic columns as big as castles march miles into the misted distance. The wide, steeply sloping base of the nearest colossal column is carved with streets, walls, and elaborate structures, many with gaping, empty windows. A few glimmer with faint illumination. Are you brave enough to explore the spire-city and face the terrors that lurk within? Part 2 of the Barrow of the Forgotten King series. Followed by Fortress of the Yuan-ti.
In the Anauroch desert, darkness is growing. The followers of the Vile Spore Goddess Zuggtmoy have stolen the dreams of the Bedine Seeress Deja, trapping them in an eldritch artifact. Unless her dreams are returned, the Seeress will descend into madness, and her people along with her.
With allies gained from denizens of the Underdark, the former drown enclave of Szith Morcane is on the precipice of being retaken. During the battle for Szith Morcane, secrets of the drow community are revealed. What will you do with this knowledge, and how will it affect the outcome of the conflict?
Gyldrith the Great is coming, and she is not happy. How long have you been down in these caves? Days? Weeks? More? Time is hard to track this far underground. And so much has happened since you descended into the tunnels beneath Dhonin’s Lookout. Now, you stand guard at the Great Gate of Naakrasad. Exhausted from your past battles, and your narrow escape from the cat and mouse games of the ancient deep dragon, Gyldrith. You can hear the hoots and hollers of her horde of bloodthirsty minions just beyond the city walls. A battle is coming, a battle against great odds. A battle that will test your mettle like none before. And you wonder if you are up to the task. A massive battle ranging across the small city of Naakrasad in the Underdark. Giant map of the city of Naakrasad with close-up details of the major battle sites in the adventure. Several new monsters, including the vicious Half-Ogre Hound Master and his deadly Hell Hound pets. Unnumbered maps, including the entire city of Naakrasad, to use in your favorite VTT.
The Zhentarim ask the party to investigate what happened in one their most important underdark outposts. If the party accepts, they'll have to deal with maddening darkness, grimlocks, an insane kenku assassin and unpredictable mixtures of potions. A short, fun dungeon romp that is easily adapted to other settings and other patrons. The combination of utter darkness and a villain based on sound makes for fun shenanigans on the side of the DM. Feasible as a one shot for an efficient party. Two tendays ago, Zhentarim agents were to transport a shipment of rare potions between their Underdark outpost and the surface world. The shipment has yet to arrive, and the outpost is not responding to any sending spells. Growing worried, the outpost’s overseer sends a group of hireswords to investigate and return it to Zhentarim hands. This particular adventure deals with the delusions of madness of Fraz Urb'luu. It also features Muurmic, the mad kenku first described in the December 2015 issue of Dragon+.
Meaningful decisions, unexpected twists and memorable characters are the foundations of this dark 4-hour adventure for 5th to 10th level characters. A chance encounter on an unassuming road leads to a dangerous and lucrative opportunity. But what seems simple on the surface turns out to be much more below. Thrust into a world where every enemy has an enemy and everyone has their own dark motive, the only chance to survive is to ally with the right foe. Sometimes “doing the right thing” comes only in shades of black. Six Summoned Swords is a stand-alone adventure that begins on the side of the road leading to Phlan and can be easily accessed by any adventurers traveling through the Moonsea region. In addition to a world full of intrigue and complex character choices, purchasing this adventure includes: An Official Adventurers League magic item certificate Printable portrait cards with roleplaying tips for important NPCs Gridded reference maps for combat encounters Condition icons to help track character status Special Certificate Holder ideal for event play NEW: Season 8 Item Unlock Handout - prints 9 to a page, one for every player! * Looking for an adventure to run at your special game day or convention? This adventure includes a “certificate holder” that features specially created art of the adventure’s magic item. When printed in colour and on card stock, it perfectly frames the official AL magic item certificate from this adventure and makes for an unforgettable souvenir. About the Swords Below the Moonsea Saga The saga consists of three adventures, with this adventure serving as a stand-alone prelude. The series continues with Six Striking Swords and Six Swords Unbound, the two of which should be played in tandem.
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.
Hellmaw Island is a place of legend, a hidden fortress protecting the greatest treasures in the world. Rumour says it is guarded by wicked traps, bizarre and terrifying monsters, and maddening enchantments. Our heroes have been tasked with penetrating this mysterious stronghold, and they will find it to be stranger and more dangerous than anything they have encountered before. Assault on Hellmaw Island is a 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons adventure for characters of levels 5-10. It will take 4-8 hours to complete.
A strange journey through a living cavern. A request for help to rescue a mining crew leads a group of adventurers into a cave that has seemingly come to life, gripped by a melancholy wave of sadness and memory. In dark caverns where mushrooms walk, vines dance, walls watch, and stones speak, will your band of adventurers become heroes? Or will they be lost within the Mines of Memory? Mines of Memory is a short, 2-3 hour adventure for characters of levels 1-3. It is a delve into a cavern system that has become a Psychic Resonance environment, awakening the caves themselves. PCs will enter to rescue the miners, find the source of the mine’s awakening, and bring peace to a noble creature trapped in its own nightmare.