A dwarven laboratory forgotten for many centuries has finally been rediscovered, but there is sure to be danger lurking within. It turns out some of the other machines within are still active, as are some of the traps and puzzles. Prepare your party for a blend of challenging puzzles and diverse fights in the dungeon that was home to my first player kill.
Legends of a "mountain of gold" provoke a mad scramble for a mysterious book laden with clues to find certain statues around the city, which themselves hold additional clues leading to the hiding place of the fabulous treasure. An adventure for using old-school advanced rules with twists and open-ended problem-solving in a city rife with overt treasure-hunting and covert Byzantine plotting by multiple factions. Published by Coiled Sheets of Lead
"The Warlock's Crypt" is a fext and noctiny lair suitable for four 9th-level characters. This adventure can be completed in a single session. An ancient warlock king known as the King in Silver, whose patron was Death itself, knew he was growing old and would soon die. The aging king pledged the souls of his two sons, the Black Prince and the Red Prince, to Death in exchange for his own eternal life. As the final worlds of the pledge pass his lips, the old king collapsed to the ground, dead. Elsewhere in the castle, the two young princes died suddenly in their sleep. All three were interred in the royal crypt within a nearby burial mound. ultimately, the king got what he asked for - he and his suns were returned to life as fext in the service of Death itself. When the fext awoke and climbed out of their coffins, they were confused because it seemed they were trapped within the small royal crypt. Then, the King in Silver discovered a secret door leading to a hidden stone stair that descended into a complex of ancient tunnels and chambers. At the far end of the complex, the fext discovered a second set of ancient stone stairs leading up through a shaft to a hidden exit on the surface. The three fext now lurk within the lower chambers, doing their patron's dark bidding. When commanded, they creep forth from the crypt to spread death during the dark of night.
Every year, the small town of Whitetree has to sacrifice a child as tribute to a fiery salamander slaver, Zassan. The players must pursue the slaver, attempting to stop him and retrieve his precious cargo before it’s too late!
A fallen clock tower holds components from an ancient artifact. Upon discovery of the components, competing agents look to launch expeditions to uncover additional components scattered across distant places—and times. The now-lost Temple of Moloch and the construction site of the legendary Tomb of Horrors are two of those locations. However great the risks, finding the components demands the effort, for whoever does so can reassemble the fabled Infernal Machine of Lum the Mad!
A short adventure of human greed meeting weird horror with a quite messy outcome. An encounter set in a church, with a Shoggoth like eldritch horror as the Boss.
Thane Tinewiner’s daughter has been kidnapped just before her betrothal and her love slain! Who will avenge this mockery? Can the girl be brought back alive? Is your PC brave enough to face this challenge alone? Surely a handsome reward will be at stake but more so the fame of saving a damsel in distress and the honor to go with it. Few clues are available and most of the Thane’s military are on the hunt for the woman so you’ll need a little bit of luck if you are to grab the honors and save the day.
The king summons the heroes to investigate the death of a knight, and the final fate of the king's long-missing son. The knight and his entire order was killed by a Dragon! Yay we get to fight a dragon in the first issue of Dungeon Magazine! Much travel over many different terrain types featuring avalanches, volcanoes spewing lava, and many random encounters (not detailed here) before the heroes reach their real goal: A lake with a ruined wizard's tower and dragon's cave. Opens with a particularly byzantine Background section for the DM involving a prince you never meet, pirates you never meet, knights you never meet, and deep gnomes you never meet. See Out of the Ashes in Dungeon #17 for sequel to this adventure. Pgs. 42-60
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.
In Claine Forest near Padduck Village there has appeared a pit. No-one knows where it came from, it just did. It is not so deep that you cannot see the bottom, but people fear it and avoid it. No-one who has climbed into it has come back, having been dragged beneath the surface by unseen hands. A necromancer has come to the forest, seeking the pit. She does not quite know what she expects from it, but what she hopes for is protection from death. Player-characters may wish to get involved, and thus this constitutes an adventure for old-school systems, for 5-6 PCs of 2nd level 2 or slightly fewer of 3rd. The PCs won’t necessarily all die, and the players will almost certainly survive. Reviews elsewhere: "It pours out flavour in nearly every word, creating delicious situations for the party to interact with. ... We got a village, two rival groups of adventurers, a weird-ass forest, and somewhere in the forest a pit, your final destination. From this, joy is made. Each one of those elements has their component parts well done and, because of this the whole is a wonder." — Bryce Lynch of tenfootpole
Did you know there’s a skeleton inside each of us? The players will find themselves in a community of scared anthropomorphic rabbits and exploring the lair of undead wizards looking for flesh to wear. There are opportunities for combat, roll play, puzzle-solving and exploration. This was written as a submission for the Summer Adventure Design Contest over at Bryce's Adventure Design Forum.
For months, the brutal serial killer Crimson stalked the streets of Saltmarsh, preying on dozens of men and women. Now the murderer lies dead, but although justice has been done, the danger has not yet passed. A soul as wicked and deprived as Crimson's does not rest quietly, and the local cult of Graz'zt has plans for the coming monstrosity. A D&D adventure for 1st-level characters.
Several days ago, a colony of myconids were born from the gloom and rot of a swamp near a small fishing town. They found a place to form their new colony, and settled on a crumbling mausoleum in a long-forgotten graveyard. Their rapport spores have been spreading unchecked, and have begun to infect the dead buried underneath the marsh. These dead have risen as spore servants, which the myconids are using as watchdogs to protect their new home from unwelcome intruders—like the adventurers. In this encounter, the characters stumble upon an old country graveyard in the middle of a swamp. When they investigate, they fall under attack by the living dead! Once they fend off their undead assailants, an investigation of the mausoleum reveals the true villain behind the attack: a group of mycanoids that infested the corpses with their spores, turning them into telepathically controlled puppets. From here, the characters can either negotiate with the mycanoids or kill them. This encounter’s three acts are: The Discovery: the characters find an abandoned graveyard. The Trial: the characters are attacked by undead. The Revelation: the characters learn that the zombies are really mycanoid spore servants, and can try to reason with the mushroom-people or destroy them. Either way, there’s treasure!
In this adventure, the coastal village of Fair Haven needs the characters’ help. For decades, Fair Haven has relied upon its lighthouse to guide merchant vessels into port. But on a recent stormy night, the lighthouse suddenly failed. The trading ship Nymph’s Kiss was dashed on the rocks, and smugglers have already raided the wreck. Somebody has to restore the lighthouse, but the locals are afraid to go near because it shows all the signs of being haunted. Yet there might be more to the story, since there’s something living in the sea caves below…
This scenario was presented to Gryphcon's 30th anniversary last year. The party finds themselves coming to the Triland on their way to Taco Del Toro. This island chain is unique in that it has a land mass made of clouds, hovering over the island. Upon landing, your group discovers that the governor's child has been abducted by a Cloud Giantess. Time for your hero hats...
A series of short encounters and story hooks that may cause your party to question the safety of their local tavern… Designed for characters of all levels
As the party relishes in the accolades of their achievements word of a Dragon nearby reaches their ears! Apparently a similar adventuring party stumbled upon the Wyrm by accident and was nearly wiped out. With the townspeople in fear, it is time again for the PCs to step up and perform heroic deeds! I wonder if there will be any pages from the mysterious Codex of Gamber Dauch will be around. With only one more adventure in the quest series the PCs must be getting close!
A Giant Ransom is a short adventure for four 11th-level characters. There are opportunities for diplomacy, stealth, and combat, based on the choices the PCs make, so any mix of classes is appropriate. The adventure can be set in any campaign world, in a frontier region near glacier-covered mountains. In the first episode, the PCs were employed by Duke Ambrinigan to exchange a ransom of 10,000 gp in gems for a golden lion that was taken by frost giants in a recent raid. While waiting for the giants to arrive at the designated meeting place, the PCs watched as the white dragon Whildenstrank attacked the giants and then flew off with the statue. Charged with returning the golden lion statue at all costs, the PCs dealt with the remaining frost giants and then headed west, toward the lair of the dragon in the midst of the nearby glacier. Along the way, they encountered Velg the Dragon Tamer, another frost giant who was also on the trail of the dragon. Velg may or may not be with the party now. The PCs are now traveling across the flat icy surface of the glacier, and may have just noticed something burrowing under the ice, heading straight toward them.
Ever wanted to face the cold, dark, and dangerous unknown without the advantages of a fantasy hero? This is your chance! Fifth Edition Funnel puts a spin on character creation. In the Funnel, each participating player quickly generates several 0-level characters blessed with the abilities and low survivability of your average commoner. Those that survive will be promoted to 1st-level heroines and heroes. The Funnel bonds characters over common challenges they meet and (hopefully) overcome. The surviving 1st-level characters share a common origin as adventurers. Instead of merely rolling dice, there is a trial by fire where average people succeed against the odds to do something heroic (or hide under a table in a tavern).
This is a trapped corridor which can be dropped into any castle, dungeon, ruin or underground adventure. It features full rules on how to scare the living be-jesus out of your adventurers and have sone great fun with them too. Get ready... as the 'Umber Eyes' is ready to receive you...