Long ago, a small but mighty humanoid kingdom existed in what is now the local wilderness. Bugbear and ogre warriors fought brutal wars of expansion, earning great fame and amassing considerable fortunes from their predations. Those who died in battle were buried in large tomb complexes dug into hillsides and honored as patrons of the living. Among these tombs was the large tor known as Hightower. Though it was neither the largest nor the most famous of the kingdom's tombs, Hightower did represent a typical example of this kind of structure. As happens to all such nations, the cruel humanoid kingdom eventually fell to a more powerful foe that razed all its cities and outlying fortifications. Of the tombs, only Hightower escaped destruction -- largely because it was an unimportant monument in a remote location. A few tribes of humanoids that survived the devastation tried to use it as a fortress, but the humans with whom they clashed defeated them soundly and sealed the entrance with a huge, round stone to ensure that the tor could no longer be used as a base. Since then, Hightower has served as a landmark for travellers in the know, but it has otherwise been largely forgotten. But the electrical storms that have plagued the area in recent days have been quite severe, and a few weeks ago, a stray lightning bolt broke open the stone seal. Tonight, yet another terrible storm is sweeping through the wilderness, driving all creatures to take shelter where they can find it. Hightower looms on the horizon, and its door is no longer blocked. Will the PCs dare to enter its silent halls?
The night air is chilly, but the crackling fire you've started warms your bones comfortably. Crickets chirp, and you smile up at the stars, glad for the quiet evening. There is a loud roar, and you are blinded momentarily as the campfire suddenly surges up into the air. The flames split down the middle, revealing an abyss that leeches the warmth from your soul. Out of this hellish place stumbles a black-cloaked figure clutching a scythe. Quickly, you reach for your weapons. The strange apparition staggers for a moment. Then, gathering its strength, it pulls back the hood on its cloak. Beneath is a bleached skull with stars for eyes. "I am Azrael, Lord of the Undead," it hisses. "Or rather, I will be Azrael, after time itself has died." Even as Azrael speaks, decay begins to eat away at its body, and the god shudders. Holding one arm up to watch as tiny fissures form in its bones, the deity sighs, "Ah, sweet Entropy, come to claim me at last." It's gaze sweeps back to you. "But no, not just yet. First, I must set events in motion." Weakness begins to overcome Azrael, and it sinks to one knee. "Long ago, I became the most powerful of all the gods, in spite of my enemies' efforts to stop me. Delirious with power, I destroyed the other gods and eventually fell to feasting upon the souls of their worshipers. After devouring every living creature, I consume the planets and, eventually, the stars themselves, until I was left alone, in darkness." The god struggles to finish its message as its bones turn to dust and blow away, "Unexpectedly, I felt remorse for what I had done. I grieved for the universe I had destroyed, but I lack the power to recreate it. So, I have come to you, to beg you to do what I cannot." Azrael reaches into its cloak and produces a leather sack. "Take these items and use them." As Azrael dissolves, it gasps out, "Kill me tonight, or tomorrow will never dawn." All that remains is a pile of dust and a leather bag.
Set in the Radiant Citadel, this is the perfect supplement to your "Journeys Through the Radiant Citadel" campaign, allowing adventurers to explore the ancient city and discover more about its people and places. From the Trade Discal to the Preserve of the Ancients, delve deeper into the secrets of this bastion of wonder and hope. Included in this supplement you’ll find: 10 one-session encounters for characters ranging from levels 2–13 A hand-drawn dungeon map for a new area in the Citadel 3 VTT maps 5 original stat blocks 2 new magic items A printer-friendly version with only essential graphics and text And a host of memorable NPCs! Easily drop an encounter into your existing campaign or build out a new adventure entirely. You’ll find a broad range of themes to help your table bring to life this ancient city in the heart of the Deep Ethereal Plane.
This is the introductory adventure in the Bugger's Mill campaign. It introduces the characters to the village of Oak Mill along edge of Border Forest and has them hunt down a local arsonist, as well as assist with putting out a forest fire.
From the magazine: "'That's right," said the druid. "You must steal the giant's cauldron - without harming him in the slightest.'" The adventurers are sent on a mission to reclaim the legendary Cauldron of Plenty for a celtic inspired kingdom. This magic item is kept by an intelligent Verbeeg called the Bolg Mor. A secondary goal is to discover the command words for the cauldron in the cave system. There is a curse on the cauldron, stating that violence breeds violence; he who slays the owner of the cauldron and steals the device will also fall prey to acts of violence. Players are encouraged to attempt to roleplay and negotiate with the villain to gain the cauldron.
Your investigations into weird occurrences in Waterdeep's Field Ward leads you to the source of a disease that suddenly breaks out. You are the only ones who know of the cure, but you won't be able to procure it if you remained quarantined like the rest of the ward. The clock is ticking for you and your allies.
On the shores of the Sea of Fallen Stars, in a small and xenophobic coastal town, there is a mystery that must be unraveled. People have started disappearing during the past months, as a direct result of the criminal activities going on in town, under cloak and dagger. The players must examine clues, talk with witnesses, and investigate further, to help the people of Saltwater restore peace and order. The smuggling mastermind and his lackeys, including a vicious shapeshifter, will stop at nothing to stop the players from achieving their objective. This is a starting adventure for players and DM’s alike, which may also be used as a starting point of your campaign and easily adapted to any small coastal town in your game world. It involves a great deal of roleplaying and some degree of battle, depending on the player’s decisions. A cloak and dagger investigative adventure, for nerves hard as steel and fists tough as nails.
Long ago, a powerful lich threatened the kingdom and was destroyed by mighty heroes. Though its phylactery could not be found, a powerful curse was laid upon the lich, trapping it inside its phylactery. This fading magic can’t hold the creature muchlonger, so the PCs must enter the phylactery itself in order to destroy the lich before it escapes back into the world. Pgs. 144-149
An Adventurers League Con-Created Content Module. Tier 1, 2-4 Hours. (Compatible with Homebrew games too!) May I have the next 100 words to convince you to purchase this adventure? **PITCH BEGINS!** This module features three ways to play: join the Knights of Holy Judgment, the Cult of Zariel, or the forces of Chaos as you search for a lost Angel of Tyr, Ser Vindictus. Play like it is 1990 and experience the first Adventurer’s League module to use 16-bit art for maps, tokens, NPC portraits, and magic items! Each purchase includes the PDF, Fantasy Grounds module, four maps, 15 tokens, comic art for the backstory, and an imaginary high five from the author. Make a DC 92 Wisdom saving throw. On a success, reroll! On a failed save, buy this adventure! **PITCH ENDS!** Author’s note: This is part one of a two part Tier 1 series. I plan to make future Verses if these do well and people like them. Thanks for looking at my adventure and please leave an honest review! -Anthony Joyce (Twitter: @Thrawn589) All artwork was commissioned and commercially licensed for this module. Pixel Art by: Joaquin Reymundo "Dsurion" (Twitter: @Dsurion) Comic Art by: James Gifford (Twitter: @Mrjamesgifford) Fantasy Grounds Module by: Chris Jernigan
In the Tower of Yladhra the Grim, a party of adventurers braves the dangers and puzzles of an enchanted wizard's tower, and finally confronts the wizard herself. The adventure is designed for a party of five adventurers between levels five and eight. It features: Encounters by Level - Varying types and quantities of creatures are suggested based on the party's actual level, allowing each encounter to present the appropriate challenge to the party. Encounter Notes - Suggestions for how to run combats are provided for game masters who place an emphasis on engaging, tactical battles. Inciting Action - Suggestions for ways to present the adventure to players are provided. Aftermath - Ideas for future adventures based on this one. Unique Magic Items - New magic items to introduce into a campaign. Ease of Use - The format and style of the document allows the game master to find information quickly while running the game at the table. Detailed Maps - What's an adventure without maps? Not much else to say here.
You are charged with rescuing Bea’s missing sextuplets and must bring their captors to justice. A walk in the park for brave adventurers, unless the trail extends beyond the darkness.
The City of Bergholt lies upon the southern shores of the Interzae. Her crumbling walls and ancient cobbled streets are little more than a backwater, controlled by powerful merchants and thieves. In these darkened streets and twisted alleys people claw their way to the top through violence and guile. In Bergholt, the fear lingers in every shadow. In By Shadow of Night you’ll find a complete detailed description of Bergholt, a rich cast of NPCs who all have their own plots and plans, over 20 encounter areas, including a small dungeon and a large fold-out map of the city. All this setting material comes to life in the dark and deadly adventure, also included within, that is By Shadow of Night. By Shadow of Night picks up after the Death in the Treklant series, available from Troll Lord Games, though it can be a stand-alone adventure if desired.
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.
Beat your swords into plowshares. "Blood on the Plow" is an "interlude" adventure for a small party. It can be inserted into virtually any campaign world where agriculture is a common way of peasant life, at any time during the late summer months. A small side track adventure for adventures in the country side. A string of accidents have prevented a poor farming couple from harvesting their wheat crop. A party of adventurers could help bring in the crop with a week of hard labour. By the time they finish they'll discover the previous accidents were more than just bad luck. Pgs. 32-33 & 59
This setting was used in the F series and was used as an area for multiple adventure opportunities as a separate crossing of the Border Mountains. This mountain area has several travel sections to get from the civilized area to the frontier. With a multitude of side adventures this area helps mid-level adventurers increase their experience point base. In the Filbar campaign it was commonly used to get from Havendale to Arcanum College and Cordicstown.
Darkness festers deep inside the forest of Logard. A beast has emerged, killing and abducting local villagers. A secret society of monster hunters has enlisted the heroes to help find one of their missing members and aid them in killing the beast… The Great Rebirth is a streamlined Draw Steel adventure with embedded rules references to make running and playing fun and easy. The adventure is laid out so players are introduced to a new mechanic (tests, combat, montage, and negotiation) one at a time, keeping the game and story engaging, without being overwhelming. What is this adventure about? The heroes have answered the call to eliminate a beast that has rampaged through the local village of Logard. They receive help in navigating Logard forest where they discover and explore a set of ruins while learning about tests. The ruins are trapped and a group of cultists send the heroes plummeting into their lair; combat ensues. From there it's a fast-paced journey of survival as the heroes escape a collapsing dungeon in a montage test, then negotiate with a speaking stone door in order to finally gain access to the monster they’ve been looking for: a being that has undergone the evil saint Eseld’s ‘Great Rebirth.’ Who is this adventure for? This is an ideal adventure for those wanting to run Draw Steel for the first time or looking to onboard newer players. The adventure is broken into various encounters, each focused on separate mechanics. This allows players to learn the different aspects of Draw Steel in a digestible and fun way. The Great Rebirth Features: - A 3-6 hour level 1 adventure for 5 players. (Balance suggestions included for various party sizes.) - 3 custom encounter maps (2 for combat, 1 for tests). - Embedded stat blocks and ‘Rules Recap’ text to keep things flowing at the table and minimize time spent searching for common answers. - All original artwork from Katrina Neyra (cover art) and Shaeomar.
This material was originally published as two separate adventures, D1: "Descent into the Depths of the Earth" and D2: "Shrine of the Kuo-Toa." Contained herein are referee notes, background information, maps, and exploration keys intended for use with the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons rules. The adventure can be used alone or as part of an extended adventure that begins with G1-3: "Against the Giants" and continues with D3: "The Vault of the Drow" and Q1: "Queen of the Demonweb Pits." TSR 9059
Always living in the shadows is hard when you're a clever and regal creature like a kobold. Now it's time to make a name for yourself and bring honor and prestige to your clan. In Little Trouble in Big Absalom, you take on the role of one of five kobolds from the Hookclaw clan tasked with exploring a treasure-laden vault discovered by a team of Hookclaw diggers. Enticed by the potential wealth, the kobolds brave terrible dangers in what turns out to be a grandmother's basement before being asked by the kind old lady to retrieve her magical hedge trimmer from a neighbor's garden. Little Trouble in Big Absalom includes two mini adventures that can be played back to back or alone—filling as much or as little time as you have for madcap adventure. In addition, the five pregenerated kobold characters provide a preview of the upcoming Pathfinder Advanced Player's Guide in this exciting offering for Free RPG Day! Grab some dice and some friends and play the role of determined kobolds!
"Gnolls have captured the heroes! After stripping the characters of all equipment except their armor and clothing, the gnolls drag them to an expansive briar maze known as the Twisted Thickets and set them loose. Then, armed to the teeth, the gnolls hunt down their prey. The characters must survive the hunt and outwit their pursuers. Stripped of your armor and weapons, you are cast into the Twisted Thicket and hunted like rabbits. If you want revenge, you must first survive Yeenoghu's evil Hunters. After dealing with the gnoll hunters, the heroes can try to reclaim their lost equipment and exact revenge on the tribe, which lairs in the caves beneath Dead Gnoll’s Eye Socket." Pgs. 2-14
Whilst spending time in Doorstep, the settlement that has grown up around the gates of Gauntlgrym, the town is attacked by an overwhelming force of orcs and you are pushed back into the city. You and your companions are offered an opportunity to escape the mountain through the trap laden, kobold infested, Red Wing Warrens and get help for the besieged city.