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Help: Game tonight and no ideas!

The one that I enjoyed from Fiery Dragon was N'mourian's Vault (ok.. spelled wrong but sounds like it). It was a great 1st level adventure and also had a really plausable background which I loved... openned a lot of doors for later.
 

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You can download a free adventure from The Kyngdoms website:

http://www.thekyngdoms.com/utils/utils.shtml

Just click on the button under Adventures and download it. It's for 1st level characters and is pretty short - so doesn't take a lot of prep time. It does involve a difficult opponent (for 1st level PCs), so your players will have to be on their toes from the off, but it's a fun little adventure (even if I do say so myself).
 

[Warning: possible Sunless Citidel (SC) spoiler alert]

Did you have some background ideas for the bandits? And why the sea coast?

Whenever I think of sea-coasts, I think of bronze dragons. The Sunless Citidel has a dragon that lives in a water filled cave on the lower level. You could use the map from that, change the dragon from black to bronze, and maybe tweak the treasure.

The bandits live in chambers above the dragon-lair, unaware of the dragon's presence (they moved there recently). Use a section of a dungeon map from SC, but turn the map sideways and replace all the traps with the equivalent CR. Replace the humanoids with human bandits or other kinds of humanoids of your choice. Change any other special effects in the dungeon to be those dedicated to an old sea-god. The bronze dragon was the guardian of the temple, but has slept for the last few decades.

A low-level sorcerer has a treasure map that leads to the bronze dragon's lair. But the sorcerer has been captured by the local noble.

The Hook: Nobles are touring the land (including the PC), visiting an old watchtower that has some important place in local lore, when the PC is approached by a group of elders. They are from a local fishing village and worshippers of an old, and benevolent sea-god mostly forgotten. It seems that a sorcerer, before being captured by the local nobles troops for the crime of evil sorcery (perhaps trying to charm a local fighter into accompanying him as a henchman) was bragging in a tavern about how he found a treasure map. Everyone thought it was a forgery but an elder recognized the symbols on the map as being of the old sea-god. The place of the treasure was marked as the "reliquary chamber" and contains holy items of the order. The location of this temple has been lost decades ago, and fishing has not been profitable as a result.

The elder wishes to recover the map, find the chamber, and restore it so that the sea-god once again blesses the coastal villages. The local nobles don't care because they worship other gods. Even most of the young people of the fishing villages consider the god just a folktale. The local nobles have turned the elder away and ignored his entreaties - they're miffed that he hasn't converted to worship of their favored deity. Plus the elders held a rival festival last year that took away adherents from the festival that the nobility set up. So there's bad blood. As outsiders, unfamiliar with local politics and petty rivalries, the PCs are in a unique position to help. The elder could promise them incidental treasure as a reward. He could also help decipher some of the symbols on the map that might reveal certain traps and such on the map - as well as how to activate a teleportal that transports persons to the reliquary chamber.
 

As it so happens I just wrote up an outline for a beginning adventure and your paladin will fit right in. The bad news is that it is an unedited first draft. Many, many spelling mistakes. However, it may suit your needs.


It requires that they are waiting for a new addition to their party, and then .....


THE SETUP

The PCs are getting ready to go on their first adventure. They have only to wait on one more person, Ruella the Devout who after one night of meditation and the cleansing ritual in the morning, will become Ruella the Paladin. But late that night a loud crash is heard from within the alter room! The PCs arrive to discover the local parrish priest talking excitedly with others outside the door. They don't want to enter the room and disrupt the ritual but they fear for Ruella. Wheather the door is opened immediately or later, the same thing is found: Ruella is dead, crushed by the large chanelier above, and it is soon discovered that the rope has been cut. Ruella has not been the victim of chance, she has been murdered!

STEP ONE: WHAT HAPPENED


Ruella has been killed, of all people, by the librarian. Ruella believed in strict orthodoxy and adherence to the law of the sect above all else. He feared she would influence others and eventually seperate those that were lawful and good in the faith. He used the secret enterance, not to the alter, but in the back of the room. He stole the potion of neutralize poison from the apothecary and went drinking with the gardener to gain access to the tunnel, when the gardener passed out, he took what wits he had remaining and drank the potion to clear his wits before going down the tunnel. From there, it was a simple task to use Viron's knife and boots to sneak in and cut the rope. But his intent was to injure and prevent her from leaving with the PCs, not to kill. When he saw what he had done, he dropped the knife and ran. He did not suffer change of alignment, but his lack of trust and willingness to use violence instead of reason caused the loss of his paladin status. He threw the boots into the garden to cover up his crime and went back to pretending to be drunk while he tried to figure out what to do. He is currently rationalizing not confessing out of his original concern with the seperation between law and good in the church.

STEP TWO: SUSPECTS


Ruella - the desceased. She didn't commit suicide, but you'll proabaly have a PC speculate about latent psionic abilities. She was the daughter of a noble and came from a background of great wealth and influence until she found her true calling.
statblock: treat as a level 1 paladin with high CHA

Viron - a former theif and her lover. Viron is the owner of a +1 dagger of sharpness and boots of elvenkind that were used in the murder. He is the highest level NPC and assists the apothecary by finding rare ingredients and also slays any nearby predators that might happen by. Ruella's love is what brought him to the side of good and when she told him she needed to fight evil on her own terms he was emotionally crushed and felt betrayed by the cause of good.
statblock: chaotic good rogue, 7th level. Formerly evil. High DEX.

Norbart - the librarian and former mentor to Ruella. He is widely known to be clumsy and that's why after a brush with death early in his career he chose to help instruct other paladins rather than die
statblock: paladin-1, expert-4, DEX 6, WIS 18

Fuller - the gardener and handyman. Openly envious of nobility and every week confesses to Sister Brenna the Cleric. Was envious of Ruella in particular and often and openenly hoped she'd get a sound thrashing when she made her way in the world.
statblock: expert 3, neutral good

Brenna - a young parrish preist and highest level cleric of this small church. She is currently in charge for the month while the high cleric (high in title only) is at the Abby 40 miles away. She was in prayer with the other dozen or so members of the church and acts primarily to vouch for their attendance. She is the voice of the church in this adventure.
statblock: cleric 2, lawful good

Alphonse - the apothecary. Was in prayer with Brennan and others. He will probably be called on to identify the bottle of neutralize poison. If asked, he will say that he kept his lab open as a show of trust for Viron.
statblock: expert 4, lawful good, high INT

STEP THREE: CLUES

At the scene of the crime:

1) Two chandiler hooks - one over the area in front of the alter, one a little further back. The one further back is the main hook and if the rope breaks the people in the front pews may get a broken toe or two, but that's all. The back up hook is used rarely and endangers those performing ceremonies, but that's better than endangering those who come to worship.

2) The knife, a +1 keen dagger - it has a skull on the pommel with the words "death demon" engraved on the blade. Death Demon is the name of the blade and is a relic of Viron's former evil ways.

3) Secret doors - there is one on the floor a few feet behind the alter that goes down below the floor and out of the church. It was built in case anyone had to escape if the church was under attack. What is less well known is that the tunnel has another door that is well disgused as a large flagstone, also on the floor. DC 12 to find. Only those who have been at the church awhile know about it. That would include everyone level 3 and higher, except for Viron.

Elsewhere....

4) The boots, boots of elvenkind - found in the garden flowers between the gardener's hut and the church. DC 12 to spot. These establish that someone other than Viron could have snuck up on Ruella.

5) The bottle, a potion of neutralize poison, used by Norbart to recover from drinking with Fuller. This is located outside the outside of the church near the living quarters. Norbert dropped it here while drunk before it had time to act while he was on his way to Viron's unocked room to get the magic items he would need to commit the crime. The bottle is unlabeled and will have to be somehow identified (probably by the apothecary)

STEP FOUR: INTERROGATE YOUR NPCS

Figure out what they'll say when questioned and what others will say. If you have to, change the suspects, clues, and even the crime if you find holes in your plot.

Everyone -
Detect Evil - negative for everyone

Ruella - dead, but get in the habit of preparing for the Speak with Dead spell. In this case she heard nothing and saw nothing. She was in prayer and her eyes were open so she could meditate by looking at the alter. She loves Viron, but needs to find her own way for now. She respects Norbart, but disagrees with him because she feels that the law of the church must be obeyed lest people justify evil actions in the name of good. She dislikes Fuller and his open dislike of her is trying. She likes Breanna and Alphonse as members of the church.

Viron - very angry, full of depression and rage. Fell in love with Ruella and his conversion to good cost him his former life. He hates Fuller and has threatened to kill him if he kept pestering Ruella, but those were only empty words and he would never have acted on it. He finds Viron's clumsiness funny. He respects Alphonse and uses him as a role model. Viron had a lock on the door to his quarters (DC 24 to pick) but claims to never lock it in imitation of Alphonse's trust. He did lock it when he first arrived at the church when gravely injured and did not trust the people bringing him back to health. Viron claims to have been deep in the garden near the woods at the time of the crime, wallowing in grief and only came back when he saw the candles moving through the church windows from a distance. He claims to have seen someone moving in the garden at night but never bothered to investigate who that was in his grief, he did not get a good look at that person. Viron claims to have left his possession in his room because he "was going out to think not to adventure!"
Sense Motive - DC 12 - he is in deep grief and pain and has the capacity to kill
Gather Information - DC 10 - Viron was well on his way to becoming an assasin before his conversion. Confrontation: Viron admits this is true, but maintains his innocence.

Norbart - claims to have been drinking with Fuller. He thought Fuller's disklike of Ruella might lead him to do something to disrupt and disrespect the ceremony so he was keeping an eye on him.
Gather Information - DC 10 - a clumsy paladin who retired early rather than die accidentally on his own sword, yes, he's that clumsy
Gather Information - DC 12 - he and Ruella argued often about law and good
Sense Motive - DC 10 - he is hiding something. Confrontation: he admits he was frightened of Ruella's devotion to law above good.

Fuller - claims to have been drinking with Norbart. Yes, he thought Ruella was an over privlideged elitist whelp who needed a broken nose to be taught humility. He did not wish her death. He has gone drinking with Norbart before, Norbart can't hold his alcohol though and Fuller typically, thought not always, drinks him under the table. He doesn't remember much about the previous night, but found Norbart on the floor as usual, though he woke up quickly with his infernal paladin magic immunties.
Error: Fuller doesn't know that a paladin of Fuller's level would not be immune to poison, Brenna would.
Gather Information - DC 8 - Fuller hated Ruella and envied her wealth
Sense Motive - DC 10 - Fuller doesn't really regret that Ruella is dead. Confrontation: he admits this failing and often confesses to Breanna.

Brenna - in prayer with everyone else. She ordered Fuller and Viron not to tell anyone that the chandalier was on a different hook. She has no idea if that order was followed.

STEP SIX: RED HERRINGS

The clues and suspects that lead nowhere and mean nothing.

1) It did not require a special magic weapon to cut the rope so well. Anyone strong enough could have done it. There are two members of the church with a high strength, Eris and Wullen. Eris was in prayer with the others though she might have had time to sneak in and out during the devotional while everyone's eyes were closed. But the devotional ended at least a quarter of an hour before the crash was heard and the rope was cut cleanly, not frayed. Wullen arrives in the morning and was at a farmer's house the previous night getting food for the next day's feast. The farmer can confirm that if the PCs travel the five miles to ask. Wullen would have not had time to cut the rope and make it back to the farmer's house before the farmer woke up before dawn to begin his chores.

2) In the infirmary is Callie, a young up and coming theif who is infected with disease. She initally claims to have been bitten by a wolf and explains the lack of a bite wound by saying she drank a healing potion. She actually triggered a curse that gave her the Red Doom (STR based disease). She was left alone during the night, but stayed where she was as the church was healing her. She has never even heard of Ruella or anyone else in the church (even Viron) and the only person whose name she knows is Yinolla, the nurse. She lacks motive and would surely have left in the night and kept the magic weapon. Both the nurse and Callie will confirm the only other person in the infirmary at all this past week was a farmboy who had injured himself while shoeing a horse. Norbert was the one who used magic to quickly heal that wound (he was on call for magic healing that day) and the farmboy was on his way.
statblock: lawful evil, 3rd level theif, +1 dagger

3) Armory. The church has a small armory that holds, among other things, Ruella's +1 sword, a gift from her family. Ruella had donated it to the church as soon as she arrived. Search and Spot - DC 10 will point out cobwebs on the wepaon, it clearly hasn't been used in some time.


FINALLY: RUN THE GAME

The key is the neutralize poison bottle. Once that's found Norbert becomes a likely suspect as his drunkeness is eliminated as a factor. Norbert will say he drank it on the way to Fuller's place so he would be able to keep up with him. But it's pretty clear that the potion would have no effect if consumed before the booze. After that, Norbert has the ability and motive to commit the crime and all that's left for the party to do is ask Norbert to perform some act that a 1st level paladin could do. Since Norbert can'd do that anymore, his status as a fallen paladin points to his guilt of something and since the party can discover he had the ability to heal as recently as a few days ago, it's clear he must have done SOMETHING! At this point Norbert confesses and claims he did not know the chaniler had been moved to a different hook and all that's left to do is keep Viron from killing him.

Case solved!
 

gizmo33 said:
[Warning: possible Sunless Citidel (SC) spoiler alert]

Did you have some background ideas for the bandits? And why the sea coast?

Whenever I think of sea-coasts, I think of bronze dragons. The Sunless Citidel has a dragon that lives in a water filled cave on the lower level. You could use the map from that, change the dragon from black to bronze, and maybe tweak the treasure.

The bandits live in chambers above the dragon-lair, unaware of the dragon's presence (they moved there recently). Use a section of a dungeon map from SC, but turn the map sideways and replace all the traps with the equivalent CR. Replace the humanoids with human bandits or other kinds of humanoids of your choice. Change any other special effects in the dungeon to be those dedicated to an old sea-god. The bronze dragon was the guardian of the temple, but has slept for the last few decades.

A low-level sorcerer has a treasure map that leads to the bronze dragon's lair. But the sorcerer has been captured by the local noble.

The Hook: Nobles are touring the land (including the PC), visiting an old watchtower that has some important place in local lore, when the PC is approached by a group of elders. They are from a local fishing village and worshippers of an old, and benevolent sea-god mostly forgotten. It seems that a sorcerer, before being captured by the local nobles troops for the crime of evil sorcery (perhaps trying to charm a local fighter into accompanying him as a henchman) was bragging in a tavern about how he found a treasure map. Everyone thought it was a forgery but an elder recognized the symbols on the map as being of the old sea-god. The place of the treasure was marked as the "reliquary chamber" and contains holy items of the order. The location of this temple has been lost decades ago, and fishing has not been profitable as a result.

The elder wishes to recover the map, find the chamber, and restore it so that the sea-god once again blesses the coastal villages. The local nobles don't care because they worship other gods. Even most of the young people of the fishing villages consider the god just a folktale. The local nobles have turned the elder away and ignored his entreaties - they're miffed that he hasn't converted to worship of their favored deity. Plus the elders held a rival festival last year that took away adherents from the festival that the nobility set up. So there's bad blood. As outsiders, unfamiliar with local politics and petty rivalries, the PCs are in a unique position to help. The elder could promise them incidental treasure as a reward. He could also help decipher some of the symbols on the map that might reveal certain traps and such on the map - as well as how to activate a teleportal that transports persons to the reliquary chamber.

Great idea except that the adventure you're describing is The Forge of Fury, not Sunless. I don't have Forge anymore, unfortunately.
 


The free adventures at Wizards are here. There are a few low level coastal adventures, 'Wreck Ashore' and 'Secret of the Windswept Wall.' I've read them but never run them, I think that they're not bad.
 


Update time: Here's how it went.

At the last minute, my wife lost her character sheet and had to use a backup character, which, coincidentally, fit the setting a bit better. So, we ended up with a human paladin and a human druid. Got them together relatively easily, along with a gnome bard NPC who let slip some rumors about conflict between the druids and the new church being built in the Duke's town, along with the setup for the murder mystery, though we didn't get to that last night. Had some bumbling bandits instead, the leader of whom joined the group as the "stealth" expert, and provides an interesting moral counter to the paladin. She's N but primarily motivated by greed. So, while the foundation was laid for the murder mystery and conflict between "old ways" and the new church, we didn't actually get to the meat of it last night.
 

Sounds good... though it's useless now, if the Int/Dex Fighter would be coming back, he's heading for Swashbuckler/Fighter with Daring Warrior?

Did you read Seps storyhour here? Lots of nice ideas about pagans and official churches.
 

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