Everyone who’s anyone has heard of Starburn Academy. The elite boarding school is famous for teaching students to excel in magic, history, fighting, and anything else a precocious child in the city of Seledor needs to know. But now, one instructor at the school is using his position to carry out a nefarious plot which is at best unethical and at worst deeply dangerous. The only people standing in his way are a mage with an unreliable reputation and the handful of talented children she picked off the street to infiltrate the school and get the evidence needed to take him down. That is, you.
An unusually severe drought in a remote area recently worsened dramatically when three lakes dried up almost simultaneously. The locals suspect foul play, and the foulest player they know is a bugbear named Relgore -- the leader of a highly successful group of humanoid bandits. Could he be seeking revenge for the militia attacks that recently dispersed his band?
This adventure is designed as a side quest that can be inserted into an ongoing adventure or campaign. It involves a series of three linking scenes (and an optional fourth research scene between the others) that can be placed in between the action of whatever other event the party is undertaking. Ideally the scenes of this side adventure should be spread out and inserted into the game over several sessions of play.
TENTACLES. VERY DANGEROUS. YOU GO FIRST. Adventure in the Underdark, Part Two The colony of svirfneblin, while grateful for the adventurers’ deeds, is still in need of a reliable source of drinking water. The kuo-toa hold the lake, and there is the matter of the tentacled menace the party faced previously… This adventure is a continuation of Tentacles. Why Did It Have to Be Tentacles?, but can be run by itself as well. It is designed to easily fit into any standard fantasy setting. A 4-hour adventure for 6th-8th level characters
During a brief stop-over at a wilderness stronghold, a simple trip to a local provisioner reveals foul play! The shop has been broken in, and the shopkeeper is missing. But the place has not been burglarized. The heroes are thrust into an investigation. Clues discovered by the heroes’ hint at larger corruption that festers among the border lands surounding the stronghold. What sinister forces lurk beneath the keep?
... for hundreds of years, the monks of Sheargardt Manor at Luci Vale have provided spiritual guidance (in the name of their deity—Caelis) and world-class ales to the folk who live in nearby Luci Village. At the head of the high-mountain valley Luci Keep is tasked with keeping the pass over the high mountains safe fortravelers throughout the year. However, in recent months, word has come down from the mountains to the port city of Galan that the Abbot Christoph has allowed evil to enter the Manor. And now, a representative of the Caelian order is sent to learn the truth of the matter, and remove Christoph if necessary... Published by Usherwood Publishing
Solve the Mystery! A series of unfortunate events wreak havoc in the small village of Cloudhost. From strange noises at night to temporary madness, from painful nightmares to freak accidents in the local temple, everything is going wrong and the people believe the city is cursed. Who is behind these events? Are they natural or magical? Discover the secret of Cloudhost with your party! A 1st level mystery adventure for 5th edition. After being caught in a fight on the Winter Festival, the party must investigate what is happening at Cloudhost, with a big showdown with evil! Meet reclusive merchants, fierce priests, and undead! Written for the RPG Writer Workshop.
The Vault of Pallon the Pious is an adventure for four 2nd level PCs. A famous pirate captain came to worship a lawful god in his final years. After a lifetime of plundering, pillaging, scuttling, and murdering along the coastline, the fear-inspiring Pallon the Merciless rebranded himself as Pallon the Pious. But, a history of violence is a hard thing to reconcile, and the salty old dog slowly succumbed to madness. His most precious possession was a set of scales that reflected perfectly his own inner conflict. The Scales of Misjudgement are buried deep in the treasure room of his crazed rock-island vault.
The night mist hangs low around von Helter Manor. A man and woman share a tender moment on their balcony after the best night of their lives—a flash of red as they fall. Blood begins pooling around them, staining the earth crimson. A mysterious figure grins in the darkness. The Red Lady has taken her next victim. Pgs. 75-81
The couatl Tlanextic saved the village of Pearlglen from a terrible plague many years ago, and now he has returned. But why is he hiding in an abandoned temple in the woods instead of working in town, the way he once did? And what exactly is the threat to the village this time? Does the mysterious death of the town's chief warden at the bony hands of skeletons have anything to do with it? Download this new adventure by Skip Williams and give your PCs a bit of detective work to do to find out what's really happening in Pearlglen. The scenario is set in a forested area, and the action takes place in the village of Pearlglen and a nearby, half-ruined temple. As always, feel free to adapt the material presented here as you see fit to make it work with your campaign.
Something's not right in the hamlet of Verdinica. Why do the locals wear such thick clothing, even in the midst of a heart and muggy summer? And what sort of "prisoners" could make the strange, sloshing noises that are heard some nights coming from the gaol? Pgs. 38-57
What the living forget, the dead remember forever. For some, duty and revenge are stronger than death. Pgs. 4-7
Eons past the fabled sorcerer-kings of Parhok perished in a rain of eldritch fire. But legends hold that one tribe survived the apocalypse, fleeing with their slaves to a hidden city, where the greatest enchanters of all time could sleep away the centuries, and awaken in a future age as rulers of a ruined land. Now once more the forbidden spells of the Parhok threaten the good folk of the Known Realms. A kingdom lies ensorcelled, a royal family ensnared by the forgotten dweomers of a long-dead race. When the best attempts of seers and diviners have failed, it falls to the heroes to save the kingdom. Have the sorcerer-kings risen to reclaim their bejeweled thrones? Or has a more sinister power bent their ancient magics to its sinister will? Only the most courageous and cunning of heroes will emerge victorious from Dragora’s Dungeon.
"The first raid on our village happened a little over 3 months ago. We awoke in the morning to discover that the Cooper family's house at the edge of town had been sacked in the entire family was missing," croaks Obed, the village elder. "We mounted a search party, but found no trace of them." The old man lifts his gaze to the west woods. "After the third such attack, we sent a messenger to seek aid from one of the larger towns nearby. He never returned." He turns back to face your party and continues, "We had no idea who or what was attacking our village... Until last week. Creatures in black robes drifted out of the woods to the west and began setting houses on fire. Then, they seized four of our bravest men and carried them, screaming, into the mists." Obed throws his mug of ale into the fire, suddenly angry, "The only creature capable of this evil is the Barrow King, who lives in the burial mounds to the west. But I swear, we have done nothing to focus his anger upon us, nothing!" Warily, the elder stands, leaning heavily on his walking stick. Slowly, he lifts it, pointing at each one of you in turn. "If it is the Barrow King, God help us!"
There is no particular overarching story here, just a prospect dungeon you can drop into your own sandbox and run as you see fit. This adventure is formatted to both 1E & 5E gaming rules.
Expect a surprise when you open a magic jar. The evil wizard had a fail-safe plan for survival. It worked perfectly - almost... Pgs. 58-71
Many centuries ago, a band of paladins fell from grace. These blackguards were defeated after a great battle and their grim fortress, the Iron Tower, was razed. A small abbey was established near the ruins, where generations of monks mixed ancient eldritch wards, mighty clockwork traps, and multiple fail safes to build the Iron Crypt of the Heretics. Three mighty vaults ensured that its evils would be sealed for all eternity. But unbeknownst to the brotherhood, their impregnable crypt had a single weakness: the very monks that had built it, for they knew its secrets. When a devourer stole into their abbey, the profane beast forced the monks to help it inside the Iron Crypt. It successfully broke into the first of three vaults, releasing an army of wights. The story of the devourer and his wight army is told in Dungeon Crawl Classics #12: The Blackguard’s Revenge. Now, in the Iron Crypt of the Heretics, the heroes must venture into a crypt designed by the world’s greatest thieves, magicians, and seers, solve its puzzles and deadly traps, and seal it once more from the outside world.
The town of Canticle Bay has long been dependent on ocean fishing for its economy, and as demand has grown, the town has increased its efforts to supply the inland cities with the best seafood. Recently, however, the men who go out on the boats haven’t been coming back. A newly formed group of adventurers have been sent by the guild to investigate the missing men. Where are they? Those that are still alive can be found in the watery depths amongst the Sirens sworn to protect the ocean. Faced with the truth, whose side will the party take?
The quest: find a woman's son who has been missing for 10 years. She's only just received a map that may lead to his last known whereabouts. An adventure for characters that features battles, environmental hazards, and roleplaying. The 38-page PDF includes hand-drawn maps, art, stat blocks, and a battle stat tracker. The overall adventure is 15 pages. This adventure has even been test played by four DM's from around the world.
The mysteries and legends surrounding Whispering Widow Woods have always been enough to scare off the timid. The dense canopy shrouds the forest floor in darkness even at mid-day, and the tangled underbrush inhibits travel and can disorient even seasoned woodsmen. Lately, though, terrorized residents have described attacks by normally docile creatures, such as black bears. Respected citizens told wild tales of unprovoked attacks by treants, sprites, and brownies. The last two curious souls to venture into Whispering Widow Woods have not returned. Tales of Enchantment has no mechanism built- in to keep the players on track. That is part of the problem for them to solve. They can go as far afield as their bad judgment takes them, but the farther afield they go, the more trouble they find. TSR 9428