iserith
Magic Wordsmith
Originally posted by iserith:
B A R R O W O F T H E E V E N S O N G
Note: I wrote this scenario for my niece and nephew, so it's pretty simple, but perhaps you can have fun with it in your own game. It should be suitable for four 3rd-level adventurers. One of my goals was to pump this little location with a lot of potential leads to other adventures I'd write and references to old published modules I own. (Planescape was an inspiration here.)
The Evensong family is an elven clan with some storied history in this part of the world, though most of them have returned to their homeland on the outer plane of Arborea. This barrow was crafted in memory of some of their more famous family members that have since departed and also hides a gate that leads back to the elven community on Grandfather Oak, a vast tree that grows on Arborea. Its planar connection and coterminous location on this world has also caused some roots of the World Ash, Yggdrasil to grow here, winding their way through the barrow in some places.
In the last few years, its connection to the planes has drawn a troublesome curse to its halls of petrified wood - the Iron Shadow, a strange magical effect that drains color and imagination from all that it touches, spreading like a disease. The barrow has thus become infected as will anyone who may come into contact with the curse. It has already claimed the caretaker of the barrow, who now haunts the place as a ghost. It is only a matter of time before it spreads to other parts of the world and all the planes.
Meanwhile, the barrow is being used as the roost for a deranged harpy and as a staging point for a conspiracy against the city of Stronghold.
The Hook
On the way to or from the city of Stronghold, the adventurers become lost when a gray mist falls upon the land. They soon encounter a blink dog, Gambol, who is known among the elves of Grandfather Oak for his love of wandering the planes. He has recently been summoned by his master, Trillamir Evensong, and so seeks to return to Arborea. He does his best to lead the adventurers to the barrow where he knows a gate can be found and where he has already dug a hole into the tomb. But Gambol needs help activating the gate...
Rising from the ground in the middle of the forest is a large hill. Supernaturally large and odd-looking trees grow from its top, their roots twisted and entangled with each other and covering the hill. The dog barks and tries to lead to you to the top of the hill for some reason, but there may be good reason for caution:
On the west side of the hill, you can see a dug-out entrance to a cave, dark and gloomy, with what appears to be spider's webs all over, some of which stretch into nearby trees. And on the east side of the hill is another tunnel from which comes an intermittent song that frequently breaks into birdlike shrieks and sqawks.
This is an strange and unsettling place. What do you do?
(Credit: The black and white maps were adapted from The Crooked Staff Blog with art and image tools in Roll20.)
Under the Hill We Go...
General Impressions:
All of the monsters in this adventure are taken from the DM Basic Rules v0.1 and the Hoard of the Dragon Queen online supplement, both of which are available for free on the Wizards of the Coast website.
Timeline
There is no countdown timer on this adventure; however, taking a long rest isn't without its potential consequences. If a long rest is taken outside the barrow, check for a random event once per long rest (or 8 hour period if the adventurers linger for longer). If a long rest is taken inside the barrow, the adventurers risk becoming infected by the Iron Shadow. See "Time Passes..." for details.
As always, I welcome your feedback and questions. How would you approach this adventure? What would you change about it? If you play it, please let me know how it goes.
Have fun!
Update: I wrote an actual play recap that you can read here.
B A R R O W O F T H E E V E N S O N G
Note: I wrote this scenario for my niece and nephew, so it's pretty simple, but perhaps you can have fun with it in your own game. It should be suitable for four 3rd-level adventurers. One of my goals was to pump this little location with a lot of potential leads to other adventures I'd write and references to old published modules I own. (Planescape was an inspiration here.)
The Evensong family is an elven clan with some storied history in this part of the world, though most of them have returned to their homeland on the outer plane of Arborea. This barrow was crafted in memory of some of their more famous family members that have since departed and also hides a gate that leads back to the elven community on Grandfather Oak, a vast tree that grows on Arborea. Its planar connection and coterminous location on this world has also caused some roots of the World Ash, Yggdrasil to grow here, winding their way through the barrow in some places.
In the last few years, its connection to the planes has drawn a troublesome curse to its halls of petrified wood - the Iron Shadow, a strange magical effect that drains color and imagination from all that it touches, spreading like a disease. The barrow has thus become infected as will anyone who may come into contact with the curse. It has already claimed the caretaker of the barrow, who now haunts the place as a ghost. It is only a matter of time before it spreads to other parts of the world and all the planes.
Meanwhile, the barrow is being used as the roost for a deranged harpy and as a staging point for a conspiracy against the city of Stronghold.
The Hook
On the way to or from the city of Stronghold, the adventurers become lost when a gray mist falls upon the land. They soon encounter a blink dog, Gambol, who is known among the elves of Grandfather Oak for his love of wandering the planes. He has recently been summoned by his master, Trillamir Evensong, and so seeks to return to Arborea. He does his best to lead the adventurers to the barrow where he knows a gate can be found and where he has already dug a hole into the tomb. But Gambol needs help activating the gate...
Rising from the ground in the middle of the forest is a large hill. Supernaturally large and odd-looking trees grow from its top, their roots twisted and entangled with each other and covering the hill. The dog barks and tries to lead to you to the top of the hill for some reason, but there may be good reason for caution:
On the west side of the hill, you can see a dug-out entrance to a cave, dark and gloomy, with what appears to be spider's webs all over, some of which stretch into nearby trees. And on the east side of the hill is another tunnel from which comes an intermittent song that frequently breaks into birdlike shrieks and sqawks.
This is an strange and unsettling place. What do you do?
- Follow Gambol the blink dog.
- Check out the western tunnel.
- Check out the eastern tunnel.
- Get the hell out of here because I'm a defective adventurer.
(Credit: The black and white maps were adapted from The Crooked Staff Blog with art and image tools in Roll20.)
Under the Hill We Go...
General Impressions:
- Washed out, gray and gloomy with occasional splashes of color (effect of the Iron Shadow)
- Intricate elven craftsmanship and design throughout the constructed areas
- Clear sense that this place is a tomb of the Evensong family
- Thick, locked doors of petrified wood at four points
- Walls and floors of strong, petrified wood
All of the monsters in this adventure are taken from the DM Basic Rules v0.1 and the Hoard of the Dragon Queen online supplement, both of which are available for free on the Wizards of the Coast website.
Timeline
There is no countdown timer on this adventure; however, taking a long rest isn't without its potential consequences. If a long rest is taken outside the barrow, check for a random event once per long rest (or 8 hour period if the adventurers linger for longer). If a long rest is taken inside the barrow, the adventurers risk becoming infected by the Iron Shadow. See "Time Passes..." for details.
As always, I welcome your feedback and questions. How would you approach this adventure? What would you change about it? If you play it, please let me know how it goes.
Have fun!
Update: I wrote an actual play recap that you can read here.
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