Temple of the Gleaming Sands is a short adventure for four 5th-level characters that features monsters, spells, and items from the newly released Sandstorm book. You can use this scenario to introduce the new material on deserts and arid wastelands into your campaign, or you can just use it as a site-based adventure in a desert area. The scenario is set in a remote area of the desert that very few humanoid travelers visit. The temple from which the adventure takes its name has lain forgotten for centuries and is now inhabited only by monsters who use it as a base. The area around the temple should be inhospitable enough to discourage humanoid settlement.

“Gorgoldand’s Gauntlet” takes place in a cave network in the side of a cliff overlooking a lake and can be inserted easily into any campaign. Gorgoldand’s Gauntlet is a site-based adventure with a pre-dominance of puzzles and traps. The PCs discover a map leading to the Gauntlet and explore it looking for treasure. They test their strength and wits against various traps and puzzles created by a gold dragon who converted a cave network into a proving ground to surreptitiously test the abilities of local adventuring bands. If they make it all the way to the end of the Gauntlet, they’ll have the chance to fight a dragon construct made of the dungeon's treasure hoard and have the chance to gain access to a magic item that can have a significant impact on their adventuring careers. Pgs. 39-51

There was no greater scholar, explorer, or collector of antiquities in the area than Hallomak Stromm. The enigmatic Stromm recently passed away, and the PCs have received personal invitations to appear at the public reading of his will. Pgs. 72-77

Mimic Madness is a psudeo-adventure with four interesting mimic encounters. These four encounters are structured in a way that they can be used together as one adventure, or each individually dropped into any adventure from EL4 to 7. The encounters vary the mimic's tactics significantly, such as by having them we a weapon rack that wields the weapon it holds, pretending to be animated furniture using its ability to speak, and pretending to be a floor covering a pit; none of them rely on the typical chest or door mimics. Pgs. 24-25

The wizard Abracadamus hid the Forever Stone in the darkest depths of a failing mine, coerced monsters into serving as guardians, and rigged the dungeon with traps galore. Then he died, as all good wizards do. Many heroes have fallen prey to the Forever Stone’s lure of immortality. To date, only one stalwart band has plunged into the Mines of Madness and lived to tell the tale. You think you’re better than them? You think you got what it takes to grab life by the stones and conquer the dungeon that won the 2012 Gygaxian Award* for Bonecrushing Awesomeness? We seriously doubt it, but go ahead . . . prove us wrong! Mines of Madness is a Very Special D&D® Next Adventure written for PAX East 2013 and designed for four 3rd-level characters.

The frost giants of the Ice Mountains have long held to the belief that a great Jarl will one day step forward to unite the families as Konung (king). With the Ordning shattered, Jarl Ryndölg believes that if he can locate Hartkiller’s Horn, a legendary artifact among giant-kind, he could be the one. He may very well have found what he is looking for. A great clarion call has echoed across the Hartsvale for two days, and the giants are all marching north, has Ryndölg done just that? A Four-Hour Adventure for 5th-10th Level Characters This adventure consists of three Parts, as follows: Part 1. The adventure begins with the characters having already arrived in Stagwick (whether sent by their faction or by their own, individual search for adventure and wealth) and have been briefed before preparing for an important journey to the north Part 2. From Stagwick, the players discover their guide has been killed and must make their way through the deadly cold fingers of the Ice Spires alone—either by skill or luck. Part 3. Once at Ise Festing, the group discovers it’s been inhabited by a troupe of Shatterblood Ogres whom they must defeat to gain access to the redoubt’s observation deck.

The necromancer Tal Lorvas has unearthed an underground tomb that dates back to the height of the ancient tiefling empire. Lorvas has been terrorizing the surrounding lands with his vile experiments, and now he hopes to find a ring, hidden in the tomb, that is tied to a ritual he wants to perform by the rise of the next full moon. The PCs must enter the tomb of Empress Nemeia, deal with the servants of the necromancer, and confront Tal Lorvas before he can claim the ancient relic and move one step closer to ultimate power over the undead. Pgs. 36-41

This scenario sees the adventuring party given an important quest to collect a number of broken magical seals and to light a number of magical braziers, all of which once protected the crypts of Kelemvor. In so doing, they can help to quell a devastating uprising of undead — organized by a powerful lich named Idris bent on destroying the city of Neverwinter. “The Crypts of Kelemvor” is a one-shot Dungeons & Dragons adventure for characters of levels 3 to 5, adapted from a quest in Neverwinter online.

The Red Plumes have increased patrols in the region surrounding Hillsfar, and a string of disappearances has followed in their wake. Naturally, this has roused the suspicion of the factions. Join your factions and find out the truth behind the missing farmers. A four-hour adventure for 1st-4th level characters.

“The Shadow Rift of Umbraforge” is a sequel to “Siege of Bordrin’s Watch” and the third part of the Scales of War Adventure Path. In “Siege of Bordrin’s Watch,” the PCs discovered that dark creepers had sold arms and tactical intelligence to the orc war chief Tusk, aiding him in his attack against the folk of the Stonehome Mountains. In this adventure, the PCs investigate the link between the orcs and the dark ones, stumbling into an armsrunning operation that takes them to the Shadowfell in order to finally confront the charismatic figure behind it. Pgs. 4-53

In The Standing Stone, a tiefling sorcerer named Dyson discovers a circle of standing stones constructed centuries ago by druids to hold their annual rituals; the druid community was later destroyed by the great dragon Ashardalon. Dyson uses the magic of the stones to replace people with animals transformed into humanoid form, loyal to him. Dyson encounters the player characters in the village of Ossington and tries to manipulate them into eliminating the remaining enemies standing in his way.

A war criminal is broken out of prison by well-armed kobolds working for a mysterious mastermind who threatens the gnomish city of Hupperdook.

In this adventure, the Lord Commander of the Sharn Watch hires the heroes to investigate the murder of an actress. The investigation quickly spirals into a bloody dispute involving a dead wizard’s spell-book, political rivalries, and secrets that might foment war among the Five Nations. Pgs. 1-37

The PCs intervene in an attempted murder and are hired to find out what made a guy go mad. This leads them to search for Yenejg Togan's tower/a strange merchant in the nearby forest, where they discover that bugbears have moved in. After exploring the tower, finding the "merchant", and dealing with the bugbears and the lamia that caused the incident in the first place, they were still unable to get into Yenejg's inner sanctum without a key. The PCs return with the key and figure out how to use it to enter Yenejg's sanctum. They then explore it, dealing mostly with traps, and finally discover the resting place of the treasure Yenejg stole from the town. This adventure begins with a skill-based roof-top chase and can include some complex non-combat interactions with potentially hostile NPCs. It includes some semi-interesting traps as well as some nifty puzzles. No villain to speak of. Fool-hardy adventurers can get themselves killed, but some caution will result in only one extremely hard fight, and even that can be avoided if action is taken quickly. Pgs. 74-107

Evil Reigns in the Elven Ruins Where elves once built the shining city of Myth Drannor, demons and devils now prowl in search of prey. Ancient evil slumbers beneath mossy stones, waiting for those foolish enough to venture within its grasp. Bold swordsmen, stealthy rogues, and skillful wizards have all met their end within the walls of Myth Drannor. But the lure of the city's magical treasures still draws heroes and villains alike to tempt death—or worse. Drawn by the dream of limitless magical power, the Cult of the Dragon has carved out a secret stronghold in the heart of the ruins. Using the power of a corrupted pool of radiance, the Cultists stand poised to attain their goal of subjugating all of Faerûn... unless a group of brave heroes can stop them first.

Fort Dalton along the River Lis was long ago destroyed. Now rumors tell of foul cults practicing their dark rites within the fort’s ruins. Are the rumors of elemental cults true or are the rumors a cover for some other sinister plot? A two-hour adventure for 1st-4th level characters.

"More than five hundred years ago, clans of dwarves and gnomes made an agreement known as the Phandelver’s Pact, by which they would share a rich mine in a wondrous cavern known as Wave Echo Cave. In addition to its mineral wealth, the mine contained great magical power. Human spellcasters allied themselves with the dwarves and gnomes to channel and bind that energy into a great forge (called the Forge of Spells), where magic items could be crafted. Times were good, and the nearby human town of Phandalin (pronounced fan-duh-lin) prospered as well. But then disaster struck when orcs swept through the North and laid waste to all in their path. A powerful force of orcs reinforced by evil mercenary wizards attacked wave echo cave to seize its riches and magic treasures. Human wizards fought alongside their dwarf and gnome allies to defend the Forge of Spells, and the ensuing spell battle destroyed much of the cavern. Few survived the cave-ins and tremors, and the location of Wave Echo Cave was lost. For centuries, rumours of buried riches have attracted treasure seekers and opportunists to the area around Phandalin, but no one has ever succeeded in locating the lost mine. In recent years, people have resettled the area. Phandalin is now a rough-and-tumble frontier town. More important, the Rockseeker brothers - a trio of dwarves - have discovered the entrance to Wave Echo Cave, and they intend to reopen the mines. Unfortunately for the Rockseekers, they are not the only ones interested in Wave Echo Cave. A mysterious villain known as the Black Spider controls a network of bandit gangs and goblin tribes in the area, and his agents have followed the Rockseekers to their prize. Now the Black Spider wants Wave Echo Cave for himself, and he is taking steps to make sure no one else knows where it is." Extra Info from AL.com users: by @marcellarius. "There are a variety of locations in this adventure: the town of Phandalin, a gang hideout, a ruined keep in the forest, a destroyed village, and Wave Echo Cave (a dungeon crawl). The adventure is written in a sandbox style and relies on the players to choose their path. Phandalin offers several side-quests which could serve as hooks for continuing adventures. The premade characters have ties in their backgrounds to NPCs and locations. If you're not using these you'll need to consider other ways to introduce key NPCs."

Long ago, before the arrival of civilized humanoids, a large colony of ogres thrived in the local area. When a great invasion from another dimension threatened this colony, their king, Koptila, prayed for his people to be spared. The gods heard these pleas, but commanded Koptila to sacrifice himself. The leader did so, and the clan disappeared—whisked away by the gods and lost to time. Over the years, a city grew up above the former subterranean home of the ogres, and no aspect of Koptila’s ancient bargain was preserved or remembered. Even so, the stars are aligned for the return of Koptila and his people. These powerful repatriates are unlikely to appreciate the changes in their old home. A sage has found dusty documents prophesying this return, and he asks the PCs to investigate the catacombs to defeat the potential threat to the city. The PCs travel down through city sewers and subterranean passages before finding the catacombs that the ogre colony once called home. Pgs. 48-53

The town of Phandalin, nestled in the foothills to the east of the Sword Mountains, continues to grow since being rebuilt after the devastation wrought by rampaging orc hordes. It recently survived violent gang activity, drow machinations, and even the attention of a green dragon. But can it withstand a new threat, bizarre but no less perilous: the fame brought by a visit from none other than loremaster Volothamp Geddarm? Six 1-Hour Mini-Adventures for 1st-4th Level Characters. Also included in the purchase of this adventure is a version specially converted for use with the Fantasy Grounds virtual tabletop software. The converted adventure features all the text and maps from the original adventure along with cross-linking of monsters, spells, magic items, equipment, and story elements, plus the powerful rules automation for which Fantasy Grounds is known.

Beyond the mortal world, somewhere outside the bounds of the Astral Sea, the Far Realm yawns immeasurable. Beyond the reality of gods and mortals, this plane is a realm of contradictions, a mad place of fevered creation checked only by pointless extinction. The Outside is a sea of diseased possibilities, where the stuff of madness seethes in a soup of the incomprehensible and the unnamable—shuddering, squirming, and sentient. The Stormcrows, responding to the psychic cry from the stone, dispatched a force to retrieve it. The attackers descend on Wellspring, slaughtering and destroying in the search for their treasure. PCs can come to the town’s defense and repel the horde. A priestess of Ioun then turns to the heroes to find the item the monsters were seeking. From the recovering town, the heroes cross the wilderness to the Kaorti Temple. The trail ends at a ruined tower overlooking a deep ravine. Inside the tower, the heroes must overcome the terrible creatures in their search. In the end, they find the relic has been stolen.