The ancient world of Harth withers beneath its dying sun…but it’s not dead yet. Welcome to the strange and dangerous city of Carcassay, huddled below the skeleton of a titan rat, sprawling above the ruins of countless dead civilizations. This is where folk come to find wealth, power, revenge, secrets, oblivion… and everything in between. Carcassay is a sandbox city adventure. There are many locations to explore in, around, and under the city. Players can explore any place at any time, and may radically reshape the city’s politics, economy, religions, and physical existence. There are standard dungeons stacked under the city, and GMs are encouraged to keep adding more dungeons… all the way down. Tone. It leans more toward low fantasy or sword-and-sorcery. Most shops look like real shops. Most people look like real people. But strange and horrible things lurk everywhere as soon as you start to scratch the surface. This is my Lankhmar. Carcassay is a vast, bizarre city. It has over 100 locations where you can meet Chaos cultists, Lawful knights, retired adventurers, shopkeepers, brewers, musicians, artists, scientists, hermits, royalty, beggars, doctors, space vampires, eldritch horrors, machine priests, crab colonists, mushroom farmers, mummies, assassins, and diplomats from distant lands… and the moon. And every one of them has goods or services to sell, and a quest (or three) to offer. What sort of quests? Fetch a relic, assassinate a rival, find a relative, steal a soul, implant an agent, cure a disease, stop a riot, solve a murder that hasn’t happened yet, hunt a thief, locate a shrine… the list goes on. And for every Quest, there is a specific Reward: money, weapons, relics, Chaos mutations, exclusive memberships, information, Angelic miracles… the list goes on. This is a place where you can make a lot of money, but also where you can spend that money on interesting goods and services. Factions? We have a few. Seven Chaos cults, five knightly orders, two mercenary companies, four wealthy families, six (seven!) Corpse Lords, foreign diplomats, rival innkeepers, rival tavern owners, plus all the dungeon-delving gangs currently mucking about underground. When you grow weary of all the adventures at ground level, there are three classic dungeons buried under the city to explore. This book contains months (if not years) of campaigning. Enjoy the Chaos.
A Deadly Curse is Spreading! Morrick Mansion and the surrounding vineyards were deserted years ago when a terrible curse twisted every living thing on the property into a mockery of its prior form. Once whispered about and avoided, fear now grips the land. The curse spreads and someone needs to stop it. Can you find its source and cure it forever, or will the very curse you are investigating touch you with madness? Hatred, Death, and Danger! Morrick Mansion challenges adventurers to battle strange, mutant creatures in an effort to solve a mystery and stop an insidious curse. Do your players dare enter the mysterious mansion and can they survive long enough to discover the source of the curse?
"Ribbons of blood dance through the air, tracing wide crimson arcs before fraying into thousands upon thousands of bright red droplets. The cheerful tavern atmosphere evaporates in a moment, rent apart by screams and cries. A woman with grey hair stands near the bar, grasping at the dagger in her throat with fingers made slippery by blood. She sways and collapses. More screams. A man stands before her. He is holding the hilt of the dagger, but lets it slip from a gory hand as the woman falls. He freezes for a moment, then spins and sprints away, knocking aside people as he goes. A young, flaxen-haired woman at the back of the tavern cries out, “Stop him! Stop him!” as he approaches the entrance – the entrance where you and your comrades are standing. What do you do?" A lonely outsider murders a popular village local before a room full of witnesses. But could he be innocent? The Lurker Beneath Red Larch is a 4-6 hour adventure for characters of 3rd-4th level. It is full of roleplaying, problem solving and challenging combat encounters.
Word has reached your ears that a relic weapon is nearby and at the ruins of Linthar Keep. Once a bastion of humanity the remains of this fortress is now home to roving bands humanoids that have been attacking nearby communities. Can your young adventurer brave the dungeon of the old keep and find the riches others have been unable to…..the famed SKULLCLEAVER blade!
The Merchant Princes have a treat in store for everyone! A new team-based event has been added to the roster and the factions are throwing their hats into the ring. Climb aboard and saddle up! Part One of The Jungle Has Fangs Trilogy.
There is no particular overarching story here, just a prospect gate keep dungeon you can drop into your own sandbox and run as you see fit. This adventure is formatted to both 1E & 5E gaming rules.
Beneath our feet is the mythological hollow world – a realm of dense jungles, putrid swamps and rugged mountains. Here a brave party will struggle for survival as they seek to fathom the unseen expanse and to prevent a once defeated god to rise again. ‘Journey to the Inside Out’ can be played as a stand-alone scenario or be used as the first installment in a trilogy of connected adventure modules each taking place in a different era. The scenario can be used with Swords & Wizardry or any other early variant of game rules. Inside you will find: • A 40+ page old-school module with a layout optimized for fast and easy interfacing. • A challenging lost world setting with the possibility to toggle the complexity. • Alternative suggestions for entry to the hollow inside. • Downloadable maps for both players and the Referee. • Story-points for a guided scenario and tables for sandbox and hexcrawl-style play. • Advice for an ongoing campaign. • Locations allowing the PCs to travel to another era within the setting. • Unique new creatures. Published by CTM Publishing.
The Rise of the Runelords Adventure Path begins here, in the small coastal town of Sandpoint. Five years after a tragic fire and spate of brutal murders, the people of Sandpoint eagerly anticipate the Swallowtail Festival to commemorate the consecration of the town's new temple. At the height of the ceremony, disaster strikes! In the days that follow, a sinister shadow settles over Sandpoint. Rumors of goblin armies and wrathful monsters in forgotten ruins have set the populace on edge. As Sandpoint's newest heroes, the PCs must deal with treachery, goblins, and the rising threat of a forgotten empire whose cruel and despotic rulers might not be as dead as history records.
A 1st-level dungeon crawl for Shadowdark RPG where the characters delve into a ruined citadel hunting for legendary treasures while avoiding the wrath of the infamous scarlet minotaur! Inside the citadel are secrets about the downfall of the warrior-cultists who once ruled it, three legendary weapons they wielded, and several factions of intelligent creatures to turn into allies or enemies. This adventure is part of the free, digital Shadowdark RPG Quickstart Set, which comes with two 68-page booklets (Player and Game Master guides), 8 pre-made characters with gorgeous art, and a form-fillable character sheet. Shadowdark RPG is what classic, old-school fantasy gaming would look like after being redesigned with 50 years of innovation. It's the world's greatest roleplaying game in a whole new light! Download the free Quickstart set here: https://www.thearcanelibrary.com/pages/shadowdark
A prequel adventure for Xumoria Megadungeon. “The famed archaeologist Jonas “Greytooth” Walker discovered a strange pit upon an expedition to the Dead City. A spiral staircase descended into this pit, leading to a series of rooms carved from the rock. Each room lay behind a closed door and their mysteries have not been unveiled. The entrance is marked by a large portal made of black basalt. There is a belief that this underground complex may hide information about the mythical city of Xumoria, which is rumored to be located on the Isle of the Ancients. There are inscriptions at this site indicating the presence of an ancient wizard named Arne “Sacre” Nissen, a well-known Xumorian scholar and great explorer of Artrusia. Adventurers seeking the entrance got and haven’t returned yet. Exploratory expeditions are leaving Crimsonwater, heading for The Dead City. Dare you go down into The Pit?" About Our Adventure Voxelhouse and Elevated Pachyderm are proud to present The Pit, a prequel to our forthcoming Xumoria Megadungeon. The Pit will give you an introduction to our gameworld of Artrusia and the powerful sorcerer, Berdolock. Our goal is to get you acquainted with our game material, and bring a whole bunch of new stuff to your OSR table. This adventure is fully compatible with OSE, BX, BECMI, and with minor adaptations, DCC. In The Pit, your character will explore a small dungeon, in search of the map that will lead them to fabled Xumoria. This is an introductory adventure for players who want to explore our Megadungeon. Details of what you can expect in Xumoria are coming soon, but for now we hope that you’ll have fun with our module.
The second installment of the Skull and Shackles Pathfinder adventure path. Bound for adventure upon the pirate vessel they've taken as their own, the heroes face a sea of dangers as they chart a course to become true Free Captains of the Shackles. But life as a pirate doesn't prove any easier now that they're in command, as deadly sea monsters, the corpses of drowned scalawags, and raiders from the deep rise to oppose them. When a most unusual map falls into the adventurers' hands, they have the chance to change their fate in a shingle daring raid. Is it the heroes' destiny to be the next victims of the merciless waves, or will fortune smile upon them and spur their rise as the newest and most infamous pirates of the Shackles
Two hundred years ago, the great dwarf smith Durgeddin the Black built Khundrukar, a hidden stronghold for his war of vengeance against all orckind. For years Durgeddin labored, until the orcs discovered Khundrukar and stormed the citadel, slaying all within. Legends say that Durgeddin's masterful blades and glittering treasures were never found.
Some ports are more dangerous than the storm. It's alive, it's hungry, it's growing. And you're on the menu. Alone, out in the wilds with a savage winter storm bearing down on you, you need shelter to survive. You stumble through the trees and smell wood-smoke. Ahead you spot the small fortified trading outpost known as Jacob's well. You're not the only traveller to find themselves stranded here in the teeth of the storm. The only problem, someone has bought something with them, it's alive, it's growing, it's voracious and you are all on the menu. Think Aliens and The Thing and you're on the right track. Has potential to be scaled to suit a group of adventurers. Pgs. 8-23
Daggerford is fairly quiet for a frontier town. Sure, lizard men raid the local baron's holding now and then, orcs sneak out of the Misty Forest to raid caravans on the Trade Way, and Lady Bronwyn has a few suitors who are a touch too passionate, but there's nothing going on that a member of the renowned Daggerford militia can't handle. Except that the Shining River has turned green, and cattle are dying. Except that the Elf King of Laughing Hollow, a place where no human dares go without fearing for his life, is asking the militia for help. Except that strange substances are oozing from the fissures caused by a recent earthquake. Except that the earthquake also has opened an entrance in the cliffs around the Laughing Hollow that might lead to the fabled dwarf mines of Illefarn. Suddenly, being a militiaman isn't quite as easy as it used to be. TSR 9212
The hunter becomes the hunted. Monsters prowl the hills, but you never see more than one at a time. The players will need to hunt down a polymorph monster. In order to confront it, they'll need to fight through its lair. Pgs. 4-13
Ten days ride north of the great city, there is a small town named Treefall. Up until recently, this town was well known for its rich harvests, happy villagers, and prosperous weather. These days, however, the once-proud details from Treefall have turned darker. Instead of tales of unending prosperity, you hear hushed whispers of a great curse that has struck the once-happy village. Word has it that, where once roamed contented cattle, now strange beasts hunt by the moon's cold light and terrorize the hapless region. You have scoffed with the others at these stories. Despite the things you've seen in you adventures with your friends, the thought that such ill might befall such a sleepy town strikes you as terribly unlikely. There is plenty of evil in the world, true, but there are also much bigger and better targets. But, tonight despite the firmness of your disbelief, the stories come to find you. You have been traveling north along the roads on your own business, enjoying the rich fall colors and warm afternoons. Your camp os small and secure, with a roaring fire and meat cooking over the flame. It's one of those crisp autumn days that makes you long for a warm hearth after a long ride in the cool air. Still, the fire is good enough for now and you and your friends have a wonderful meal, talking and singing and laughing, anticipating a restful sleep beneath the blanket of stars. Until the beast attacks.
"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."
For years the Count of Durwall Keep ruled over the land fairly and with justice. That ended during the Bloodrayne Conflict when the castle was felled by troops loyal to General Bloodrayne. In the many years that followed the triangular keep has fallen into a sordid state of disrepair. The keep used to hold mighty coffers of treasure for the Count and for the Emperor as well. A stronghold was built under the keep to secure said treasure and perhaps some treasure may still remain in the depths of its dungeons. Recently it’s been said that the Snaggletooth tribe of kobolds has seized the fortress and is using it as their home. It is also rumored that there may still be undiscovered treasure located in the dungeon of the keep. Faint echoes of the missing Orb of Ruler ship are still heard.
Five centuries is not long enough for a giant king to forgive a defeat - or forget a curse. When falls the axe of Mok-Turoknin. This is a moody arctic wilderness/dungeon adventure in which the player characters must undo an ancient frost giant curse that plagues a barbarian village and its tribal chieftains. The PCs will travel across a frigid tundra en route to the deserted mountain keep of the frost giants where they must put an end to the curse before the restless ghost of the frost giant king rises again to claim another victim. Pgs. 53-72
The Heart of the Haunted Sea e adventurers are on a storm-wracked ship, seeking the island of a long-forgotten, abandoned temple to the Sea Demon. In the temple, an extinct people sacri ficed their wealth, their criminals, and their kings to quell the demon’s wrath. Untold treasure is said to just be lying there. Are your heroes bold or ruthless enough to claim it? Written by Shane Ivey and illustrated by Kurt Komoda, “ The Sea Demon’s Gold” is an adventure for the Fi h Edition of the world’s most popular fantasy role-playing game. It can be played in any fantasy world you choose. It also makes the perfect introduction to the Broken Empire, a world of ancient mysteries, perils, power, and corruption featured in the Swords & Sorceries adventure line by Arc Dream Publishing.