This series of singular adventures center around the small town of Penchant. The area in question is home to a variety of challenges depending on the level of the PC. This adventure begins with the new PCs mentor sending them to a religious coronation that they cannot attend. The PC is to travel, via burro, to the Bu-San Monastery and extend salutations to the new head of the order. In this case the journey IS the adventure!
"Several small wagon trains have recently been overrun by a force of goblins and wolves while the former were camped out at night. Among the attackers was a titanic black beast on which some of the goblins rode, a monster so huge that it crushed whole wagons beneath its feet and flung horses and riders aside with its arms." --from the adventure. Includes an extensive narrative opening to the adventure and a map of the cave system.
The Sword of the Dales, an icon of the Dalelands symbolizing the unity and strength of the people, has reappeared! Created by Shraevyn the weapons-mage hundreds of years ago, the lost Sword had become nothing more than a fantastic children's tale - until now. A group of warriors led by Randal Morn, rightful ruler of Daggerdale, rushed to the Sword's resting place to recover it, but dark forces awaited them, and Randal and his men fell to an ambush. Only one man escaped, yet he brought with him the hope that Randal Morn yet lives. Resolved to rescue his leader, that lone survivor turned to the great Elminster of Shadowdale for aid. But Elminster is gone, off plane-hopping while the fate of Daggerbale hangs in the balance. Hence, it is up to Lhaeo, scribe to the old mage, to find a group of heroes who have mettle enough to face down the menace which claimed Randal Morn and his hearty followers... This is the first of three adventures that grant player characters the opportunity to determine the fate of Daggerdale. The saga continues with "The Secret of Spiderhaunt" and concludes with "The Return of Randal Morn." TSR 9484
This is the second of the "High Forest Factbook" adventures series. The caravans have stopped arriving from the North. Lady Morgwais has asked you to investigate and help reopen the trade routes. What begins as a quick job turns into a race to save a queen. This module includes a detailed description of the Elven village of Reitheillaethor including it's NPCs. It can be run either as a continuation of the adventure started in "Menace of Merric", as an extended stand alone adventure or the three individual tombs included in it can be run as short one-off adventures.
Old Olga and Young Yvonne is a four- to six-hour adventure for 1st-4th level characters, designed for Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, with a village theme, hags and witches, an abducted child to save, some horror, and mysteries to solve! Willow Creek, a remote farming village, is in trouble: livestock is going missing and reappears gutted in the woods, crops fail and fields blight - and now the bastard child of young Yvonne has gone missing as well. What no one in the village knows: Yvonne is a budding witch secretly feuding with Old Olga, an evil hag in the woods - who now demands a human sacrifice from Yvonne in return for her child. Who can sort out this mess, bring back the innocent child, prevent a murder, and return peace and quiet to Willow Creek? This adventure can also be used as a mini-campaign sandbox. With the branching and inter-connecting scenes, locations, and NPCs it provides, combined with the guidance on how to run a "village adventure", the material provided here on more than 60 pages can easily cover up to eight hours of playtime. Included with this adventure are: + an original custom creature, the young witch + 12 original fleshed out NPCs, including personality traits and roleplaying tips + a toolset for creating villager NPCs quickly + 7 hand-drawn maps of important locations + 4 alternative story rewards (depending on how the adventure resolves)
Noel Needs Elves is our Christmas tongue-in-cheek adventure! While it could be a 'real' adventure it was designed to just have a good time with some holiday strangeness! After getting done with your first adventure you head to a fortress in a canyon to resupply and heal up. There you meet Lady Noel who is involved in a fight of her own. She trades you healing for the promise to deliver a message to the Elves on the other side of the canyon. Happy holidays everyone!
From time out of mind, the standing stones known as the Circle of Cahervaniel have stood lonely vigil on a grassy hilltop. Sheepherders once moved their flocks over the hill and through the circle, sometimes resting in the cool shadows cast by the ancient stones. Everything changed when a stone finger fell, revealing a fissure in the earth. Now, dark shadows caress the circle after the sun sets. Creatures out of nightmare dance upon the hillside at night. Many swear that a unicorn of deepest ebony now hunts all upon two legs who draw near, while stunted creatures scurry in the shadows, abducting sheep from their sheds and drawing them down below ground for food. After the disappearance of a sheperd, fear grows stronger in neighboring villages. Who will brave the black hollow of the ancient Circle of Cahervaniel? Heroes of stern mettle must descend into the cavity and explore the ancient spaces existing there. Product History "The Shattered Circle" (1999), by Bruce R. Cordell, is a generic adventure for AD&D 2e. It was published in January 1999. Origins: Another Generic. After Wizards of the Coast began publishing D&D, their first year and a half of generic adventures were all classic revivals: returns to RPGA tournaments, to classic adventures, and to Dungeon scenarios. Even "A Paladin in Hell" (1998) was a return in its own way, to the demons and devils that TSR had become afraid of. Wizards was staking out new ground by reclaiming the past. "The Shattered Circle" (1999) was the first generic Wizards adventure that was simply a generic adventure, with no deeper origins and no hidden motives. Artifacts of Note. the foundingstone and the harp Euphonious are both one-off named magic items. However, it's sword Icerazor that's the most interesting. It's said to have grown from a shard of Frostrazor — a sword that would only appear ten months later in Return to White Plume Mountain (1999). There, it's listed as one of Keraptis' four implements of power, alongside Wave, Blackrazor, and Whelm — meaning that Icerazor (and this adventure) are just one step removed from White Plume Mountain itself. Monsters of Note: Chitine. It's somewhat curious, given the Greyhawk and Neverness connections, to note that the chitine debuted in MC11: "Monstrous Compendium Forgotten Realms Appendix" (1991). The spider-humanoids have generally been a Realms creature, featuring in bestiaries and histories for that setting. However, they also received a more generic "Ecology of the Chitine" in Dragon #223 (November 1995), which introduced the choldrith, or chitine priestess. This is their major adventure appearance. When asked about pronouncing their name Cordell says that he "can't be 100% sure of the original designer's pronunciation", but he prefers "KI-TEEN". About the Creators. By 1999, Cordell was one of D&D's most prolific writers. He'd previously authored many slightly related adventures, such as The Gates of Firestorm Peak(1996) and the sahuagin (1997) and illithid (1998) Monstrous Arcana adventure trilogies. This conversion guide allows DMs to run the original module with 5th Edition rules. To use this conversion guide you will need a copy of The Shattered Circle, originally available in hard-copy and now for sale in Digital format at the DMs Guild. This adventure is a generic adventure, not specifically based in any existing setting. Suggestions are given in the conversion guide to place the adventure in the Forgotten Realms.
Something fell. A sickly gloaming lit up the night like mock daylight, just for a moment, and then the hills trembled. Now, an alien entity lies brooding in a crater gouged out of the moor. Local folk are enraptured with the toothsome jelly exuded by this being, but are blind to the true nature of the events unfolding in their rustic little backwater.
The characters, members of the Clifftop Adventurers’ Guild, have been tasked with acquiring the Chains of Mur’taal, an artifact tied to Thelanis, by their guild handler, Lhara. This artifact is the latest in a series that Provost Nigel Faurious has commissioned the Clifftop guild to retrieve for him. The adventure starts when the characters arrive in Rhukaan Draal via Orien caravan. They’re given a chance to explore a small portion of the city before they head to a local bar to meet their contact provided by Lhara. Accompanied by a local guide, they make their way to the Seawall Mountains, where they’ll have to follow clues and their intuition to find the Valley of the Hero, which conceals the artifact that they’ve been hired to obtain. In order to earn the artifact, characters must first pass three tests laid before them by the Story: The Test of Courage, the Challenge of Wisdom, and the Trial of Honor. Once they finish the tests and collect the artifact, the party heads back toward Rhukaan Draal. But there are Marguul forces in the area, and they don’t intend to let the heroes escape with a priceless piece of their folklore…
A search for the ghostly dragon of the Deadwaters. The sage's deal is simple: The more you learn about the dragon, the richer you get. In this adventure, the bard Rondelle offers players rewards for learning all they can about a mysterious dragon that has been sighted in the area. Pgs. 22-38
A Riedran deserter has come to the adventurers with a simple request—save her lost love from the control of the Inspired and bring her safely back to Khorvaire. Player characters must navigate the sinister surveillance state, do battle with powerful psionic foes, and resist the creeping threat of psychic assimilation. Far more than an adventure module, Escape from Riedra provides DMs and players with a bounty of tools to bring any Sarlonan adventure to life, including: * An introduction to the empire of Riedra and how it integrates psionics into daily life. * A new system for tracking the nefarious and ubiquitous psionic influence of the Inspired. * An extensive bestiary with thirteen new monsters for use in any campaign. * Racial traits for Chosen and eneko player characters.
The Plains of Dorack are generally controlled by the evil mage Faltor the Demented who resides in his magically created fortress. The Onyx Spire rises in the middle of the Great Plains and the land around it has been cleared for miles so that its owner can keep an eye on his domain. He employs a large number of humanoids as well as humans, and rules out of fear and intimidation. While the powerful mage does not need it personally he finds that having so many minions allows him time for personal research. Those who have met the secretive mage know immediately they are in the presence of great evil.
Set to the west of Crystal Shores this old tomb is said to hold riches of untold value. Some say a magical healing item may be located within the secret rooms of the lost sanctuary!
The Temple of Tesh-Yatra is a setting-neutral dungeon delve for a party of 6th level adventurers, inspired by the classic funhouse dungeons of yesteryear. The dungeon takes 6-10 hours to fully explore. It features a high proportion of non-combat encounters: puzzles, exploration, and the occasional deadly centrifuge. The ungodly fusion of a mad scientist’s lab and a planar temple, the dungeon includes an encounter that can launch your players into the Nine Hells – for a price... The Temple of Tesh-Yatra includes two new constructs to use in your game: the sinister Maimers, and the enigmatic Skorverra; as well as a new magic item: the Amulet of Tesh-Yatra, an artisan’s dream! The Temple of Tesh-Yatra also comes with a VTT battlemap (transparent PNG format). The Temple of Tesh-Yatra was originally set in the Outlands, as an extraplanar dungeon. But given its self-contained nature and the Temple's age, it is well-suited to any wildnerness, and would work equally well seeding a hex crawl.
Deicide is a campaign designed to begin with a party of four to six 1st-level characters, who should advance to 20th level by its conclusion. The Gods have abandoned Faerûn. Bringing loved ones back from the dead hasn’t been done in centuries, and communion with the deities is a spiritual exercise only. Holy warriors and messengers have lost their powers and have all but completely disappeared. In this bleak world, wars are frequent, crime runs rampant, and hope has faded. Rumours are abound of a mysterious crime lord taking control of the underworld. Monsters roam the lands and every road is increasingly more dangerous. Without guidance, the many civilizations of this world are plagued by greed and corruption. The only way forward is to bring the Gods back, or to take their place in the heavens. Deicide takes place across two islands, Aurora and Limdorkal. These landmasses are the westernmost islands of the Moonshae Isles, an archipelago located roughly 400 miles west of the region of Amn and to the southwest of the Sword Coast. Surrounding the Sea of Moonshae, these islands feature a wide array of cities, civilizations, climates, terrains, and monsters. Limdorkal is famously a harsher environment, home to exotic races, whereas Aurora is almost entirely dominated by the human kingdom. Elminster Aumar, the famous Old Mage of Faerûn, once visited these islands and claimed it surprising how such diverse environmental systems erupted here, and how varied were the people inhabiting them. While the Sword Coast is part of Faerûn, a continent of Toril in the Forgotten Realms, feel free to adapt these islands to any setting of your choice, such as Ravenloft, Eberron, Ravnica, or even on your homebrew world. The story told here happens some hundreds of years after the beginning of 5th Edition, and the Overgod Ao is trapped inside an artifact, which limits the workings of gods around Toril. The characters will be able to learn more about the missing Gods, about a mythical folklore artifact known as the Wand of Wonders, which carries the powers of the Gods, and about the crime lord Kaiser Soze. Through their adventures, they will be able to visit other realms, planes, and dimensions, as well as come into contact with different races and civilizations. In the end, it is up to them whether to ally with the Crime Lord, and whether to release the Gods or keep their power for themselves. This campaign can work as a loose set of modular adventures, which can be easily picked separately and played as one-shots of different levels. Even their locations on the map might be moved, and events happening in particular towns can happen on others. The adventures include dungeon crawls, murder mysteries, sandbox urban quests, exploration on land and in the seas, inter-planar travelling, among others.
At times adventuring groups will hit a town after a successful foray and go their separate ways for a short time. This adventure centers on such a scenario with one member opting to chase down a thief that has burgled the merchant’s guild. When checking with their cohorts the adventurer discovers they are the only one interested and, since its only one thief, the challenge should be fairly easy….right?
You found the treasure you were seeking. Now you have to escape from it. A change in perspective makes all the difference. Sheltering from a storm in a wayhouse, the PCs fall foul of a powerful magical relic. They must navigate their way through an unfamiliar environment populated with changed creatures in order to free themselves from its influence. Pgs. 42-63
Your magic user friend has had his spellbook taken by marauding bugbears. He, and by extension you, are tasked by his mentor to recover the tome. Now you must track the goblinoids across the maze like hill country to find his stolen book. Pgs. 9-24 of Polyhedron #28
Yegor Bonecruncher is the most ferocious hill giant in the land. When he begins terrorising the small village of Frickley, the inhabitants have only one hope - the legendary warrior, Jahia Giantslayer. The PCs undertake a dangerous trek through the High Forest to find her, battling wild fey magic all the way. But can Jahia live up to her own legend?
There is a Ruined City in the central northern Borderlands, often called Ghoultown by explorers of the area, but its original name is Ust Lesesi and it was once the second city of the Empire of Karan. Long since plundered, ruined and abandoned, the place has become home to a sinister mix of creatures, some are trading with each other, some are resting between skirmishes, all are schiming and all of them are trying to survive. This is a toy box for the GM - there are three settings in one - the Abandoned City, with stange creatures wandering the streets; the Monstrous community with several significant and detailed NPCs and their followers all trading, quarrelling and trying to get along with each other; and the city of the (un)dead - there's a whole army hidden in here, what are they being prepared for? The Ruined City is a 40-page game resource rather than a complete adventure, although it has almost everything you need for a simple hack or a more complex web of intrigue. Along with a sumptuous set of maps is a set of encounters, monster and NPC stat-blocks, and ideas for how to use the place in a campaign. If you need a ruined city in a hurry, this is the supplement for you! The Ruined City is designed for OSR but is also compatible with AD&D 1st and 2nd edition and pretty much any TTFRPG you fancy. The encounters are all pretty high level but most of the encounters will not be immediately hostile. There is scope in this setting for far more than simple hack and slash. These resources allow you to build a set of encounters as complex as you like. You can simply try and hack your way through, but there are some VERY nasty encounters in here. You could maybe set up your own base here, or just try and take over an existing group. Perhaps you want to start up a trade route, or maybe even start a Civil War! All of these possibilities, and many others, are catered for here. SM20 The Ruined City is released by Dunromin University Press. We are a very small publisher based in the UK and our aim is to produce VERY high quality products as the best value possible.