Reply to thread

Message: <blockquote data-quote="Rune" data-source="post: 5411338" data-attributes="member: 67">On the Sunken Pool[sblock=Synopsis<img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":]" title="Devious    :]" data-shortname=":]" />Two rivals vie for a great prize, both yielding to their baser natures to attain the treasure.  A captain on the Sunken Pool seeks to play both ends against the middle.  No one realizes that the true prize to be gained is clarity, and the greed that leads those to it only serve its purpose.[/sblock][sblock=Hooks<img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":]" title="Devious    :]" data-shortname=":]" />1.  A mercenary group, the Zombie Dogs of War, have heard that a great treasure can be found in the town of Sunken Pool, but have lost their map to it.  Somehow, the PCs have come across this map, and they are now trailing the PCs to regain it.  They are a level 1 party consisting of an Elf Archer (Monster Vault pg. 110), two Halfling Thieves (MV pg. 169), and two Human Common Bandits (MV pg. 170).  (625 XP=Level 2 Encounter)  At some point during the PCs’ journeys, they will ambush the PCs.  Whatever the result of that ambush, the PCs should gain information enough about the mercenaries’ ambitions to know that a trip to Sunken Pool should be quite profitable.2.  The PCs encounter a man in their travels who is desolate and forlorn.  He beseeches the PCs to help him to find an old friend in the town of Sunken Pool.  This friend is the half-orc, Grift, but Grift has no memory of the forlorn friend.  The friend is a human commoner with no particular skills or wealth.  Whatever the real connection between this man and Grift (if any), and whatever the PCs’ course of actions regarding this relationship, the events of the adventure will begin to unfold when the PCs arrive in the town.[/sblock][sblock=The Golden Goose.]In the Duchy of Dusk, on the edge of the great, partially subterranean lake known as the Sunken Pool, a town resides with the same name.  The Duke of Dusk’s son has come to the age of majority of late, and was gifted with an audience with the local oracle of repute.  Said oracle has intoned that a gift of great value will be found on the “hidden water.”  The Prince, Frist, takes this to mean Sunken Pool, and has ventured there.When the PCs enter town, it will take no great effort to hear that the Prince is in the local tavern, The Golden Goose, as it is the topic foremost in every local’s conversation.  If they have come to find a treasure, local gossip will readily tell them that the Prince is on a similar quest, and, further, that many speculate what the treasure could be, but not a soul knows.If the PCs have come in search of Grift, a simple streetwise check will similarly point them to the direction of the Golden Goose, for half-orcs are unusual hereabouts, and his story has made for good gossip.  As the telling goes, Grift is in search for a family he has never known, having only his mother’s descriptions of his father to guide him.  By the time he has come to Sunken Pool, he has all but given up hope, and, further, has begun to question his own identity and worth.If the PCs enter the Golden Goose, they will see the two interact for the first time.  It is animosity at first sight.  Frist views Grift as a commoner and thug, well beneath him.  Grift views Frist as a spoiled boy with no authority to support his nobility.  If Frist had any guards with him, Grift would be imprisoned for such insolence, but Frist has set out alone, thinking it a better course for claiming glory in his quest.At this point, the PCs may join the confrontation, watch it unfold, or walk away.  If they join the confrontation as mediators, it is possible to bring about a short-termed truce between the two.  If they join one side or the other, their presence should discourage violence from the other side, but, should violence prevail, the side that they have joined will dominate the other. (Skill Challenge with complexity 3 (8 successes); DCs=6 at 12 or opposed, 2 at 19 or opposed, and 2 checks granting advantages, instead of successes; relevant skills=Bluff, Diplomacy, Insight, Intimidate; minor skills could include, History, Heal, or Streetwise; 300 XP)Frist is not interested in having a commoner’s blood on his hands and will request that the PCs do not kill Grift should they have him defeated, rather preferring to shame the ruffian and send him on his way.  Grift is wily enough to know that killing a noble is a good way to become an outlaw, which is a fate he is not aiming for, and will similarly restrain the PCs from lethal blows, if they are on his side.If the PCs merely observe the conflict, or walk away, the conflict will likely escalate into violence, but the two combatants will find themselves evenly matched and neither is committed enough to fight to the death.[/sblock][sblock=In Pursuit of Agendas]If the PCs have stepped in, they likely will find themselves allied with one of these individuals--and be adversaries of the other.  Should this be the case, they will be asked to aid in one way or another.  Otherwise, their own investigations will lead them to the following events (all of which are, naturally, subject to change due to their interference.If the PCs have allied with Frist, he recognizes them as being a cut above the commoners and potential tools in the fulfillment of his quest.  He requests that they aid him in his quest and is willing to reward them a level 1 treasure parcel for that aid, once he has met success.If the PCs have allied with Grift, he recognizes their potential utility in furthering his aims (which primarily revolve around making whatever treasure Frist obtains his own) and requests that they keep tabs on Frist and find out what he is up to.  He promises to share any profit that this venture should yield.[/sblock][sblock=If the PCs Travel with Frist]The next day, Frist requisitions a boat and heads out onto the Sunken Pool.  He does not know exactly what he seeks, but is sure he can find it on the dark body of water.  If the PCs are with him, they will be present when the boat is attacked by the very lake, itself.  In some deep places of the world, the fabric between the planes is weakened, or sundered.  The Sunken Pool has one such rift, minor, as yet.  Through it, an occasional elemental leaks out.  Frist (and the PCs, if they are with him) find the boat attacked by a Lesser Water Elemental (Monster Vault pg. 109) and four to six lacedons (Grasping Zombies with swim speed 4; MV pg. 293).  (500-700 XP=Level 1 Encounter--see the "Running the Adventure" section, below)  The elemental is recently escaped from the rift; the lacedons are recent victims of it.Frist is determined to push on.  Perceptive PCs may note that there is a boat following them, with a faint light-source partially masked from view (DC 19), but Frist seems not to care, one way or the other.  Eventually, he crosses the expanse of the Sunken Pool to find a small fishing village.  A quick exploration reveals that the village has been assaulted by a handful of stirges (Monster Vault pg. 259).  (100 XP per Stirge=Level 1-2 Encounter, depending on number of Stirges--see the "Running the Adventure" section, below)  There are some survivors in this village, still being harried by the flying parasites, whom Frist sees glory in saving.If they are saved, they may even be of some help; tales of their elders speak of an island of light, long since gone dark out in the middle of the great lake.  The island, they claim, is, haunted.  That sounds encouraging to Frisk; he is ready to explore it.  The eldest among the villagers can give enough detail that the island can be found, for the island is taboo, and they actively avoid it.The ruin on the island is a small one, only a few crumbled rooms that once must have been a lighthouse, but it is, indeed haunted by the restless dead; specifically, several (between twenty and twenty-eight) Decrepit Skeletons (Monster Vault pg. 255) mindlessly patrol the place where they were deprived of life.  So, too, does the Ochre Jelly (MV pg. 220) that killed them lurk.  (800-1000 XP=Level 3 Encounter--see the "Running the Adventure" section, below)Scattered through the ruins can be found three level 1 Treasure Parcels, which Frist deigns to allow the PCs to squabble over, for it is beneath his dignity.  He is sure these petty treasures are not what he is after.  An insightful PC may determine that these skeletons must have been animated by some entity or power that is no longer present, but that mystery is one with roots beyond the scope of this adventure.Alas, there is nothing for Frist, here.  Back in the boat, it is soon evident that another boat is in pursuit, for it is getting closer.  In it, a mercenary man of disreputable demeanor, one Captain Fanesworth, rows steadily toward the group alongside the half-orc Grift.  Frist does not care whether the pursuers catch up, for he views them as irrelevant, but he does not attempt to dissuade the PCs if they attempt to evade.With at least three  PCs rowing, such an evasion should be a moderately easy success, although, this need not be the case.  It can be run as a skill challenge.  (Complexity 3-5; 8, 10, or 12 Successes; 6-8 checks at DC 12 and 2-4 at DC 19, and 2, 4, or 6 checks granting advantages, instead of successes; relevant skills=Athletics, Endurance, Stealth, made as group checks; minor skills=Dungeoneering, Nature, Peception; 300-500 XP; Frist will not likely participate in the challenge, and should not be included in the XP reward.)Should this happen, the PCs and Frist will be directionless once again in the vast expanse of the dark lake.  As long as daylight persists, the general direction of the town of Sunken Pool will not be too hard to find, as it is located outside of the great cavern entrance that forms this lake, but Frist is not ready to return, for he still believes his treasure is out their, somewhere.It is possible the PCs do not wish to evade Fanesworth and Grith.  Should this be the case, the two pursuers maintain their distance but continue to follow Frist, waiting to see whether he has gained his treasure.Frist‘s search is in vain.  There may not even be any great treasure for him to find--at least, no tangible one.  Eventually, he will dock in an alcove to explore it, and Fanesworth will dock behind him.  Fanesworth will never disembark his boat, but Grift will, and, in some isolated alcove on the shore of the Sunken Pool, he will be attacked by a Crocodile (proceed to “The Crocodile and the Drakes“).[/sblock][sblock=If the PCs Attempt to Follow Frist]If the PCs are not with Frist, but are trying to follow him, they will likely need to hire a boat at the dock, for he has gone out onto the lake.  The only appropriately sized boat in the dock, Blackbird Pie, belongs to one Captain Fanesworth, a disreputable man who will attempt to pry every coin he possibly can out of the PCs for the use of his boat.  Captain Fanesworth insists upon accompanying the PCs, as he will not be parted with his boat.  This could be represented with a simple skill challenge.  (Complexity 1 (4 successes; DCs=12 or opposed; relevant skills=Bluff, Diplomacy, Insight, Intimidate, Streetwise; 100 XP)Should he succeed in selling his service, or should the PCs find another way to take his boat (which may be yet another skill challenge, likely more complex and involving stealth and thievery), a commotion at the center of the lake will soon become quite noticeable.Should they investigate, they will find, in its aftermath, the destroyed husks of a handful of lacedons, several large splinters of wood, and the drowning form of Frist.  If the PCs rescue Frist, he will explain the encounter he has had, when he regains his breath, and will offer the PCs his thanks.  Should the PCs linger in this spot overlong, however, more lacedons will come to assault them.Fanesworth knows of a small island in the dark of this lake, where once a lighthouse stood to aid travelers on the water.  He suggests that the place is haunted and may yet hold secrets of ages gone by.  He will gladly take his passengers to it, though he will not enter the ruin, himself.  Frist sees promise in such a locale.The ruin is a small one, only a few crumbled rooms, but it is, indeed haunted by the restless dead; specifically, several (between twenty and twenty-eight) Decrepit Skeletons (Monster Vault pg. 255) mindlessly patrol the place where they were deprived of life.  So, too, does the Ochre Jelly (MV pg. 220) that killed them lurk.  (800-1000 XP=Level 3 Encounter--see the "Running the Adventure" section, below)Scattered through the ruins can be found three level 1 Treasure Parcels, which Frist deigns to allow the PCs to squabble over, for it is beneath his dignity.  He is sure these petty treasures are not what he is after.  An insightful PC may determine that these skeletons must have been animated by some entity or power that is no longer present, but that mystery is one with roots beyond the scope of this adventure.Once back in the boat, Fanesworth takes them to whatever destination Frist deems appropriate--or, at least, that is what he pretends to do.  In fact, he has made a deal with Grith to ambush Frist in a hidden alcove, should the opportunity come up.  He believes he has gotten doubly lucky, taking Frist aboard in the first place, and taking Frist to the place where (he believes) Frist has found his treasure.  He hopes that, between the two, with the advantage of surprise, Grith and he can overpower Frist and, if necessary, the PCs.  Later, he figures, he can double-cross Grith at his leisure.Therefore, he takes his passengers to a hidden alcove, but finds that Grith is in mortal combat for his life with a Crocodile.[/sblock][sblock=The Crocodile and the Drakes]Grift is being attacked by a Crocodile (Monster Vault pg. 297).  Two or three Guard Drakes (MV pg. 82) and three or four Spitting Drakes (MV pg. 83) are rushing in to join the fray, as they have been attracted by the fight.  (825-1150 XP=Level 3 Encounter--see the "Running the Adventure" section, below)  Seeing Grift in danger, and a chance for his own glory, Frist will quickly rush to his aid.  Fanesworth will not join the battle.Should the foes be defeated, Frist and Grift will form the basis for a friendship from this fight.  A slightly wiser Frist will eventually determine that he has, indeed, gained a great treasure from his adventure, though he does hold out hope that, perhaps, something more tangible awaits to be discovered at some future point.  He agrees to pay the PCs their due, if such an agreement was made, and resolves to return home.Fanesworth, for his part, is not willing to attack the combined might of the PCs, Frist, and Grith, but if any valuables or gear was left in the boat, he is more than willing to take off with it.  The trek back to the town of Sunken Pool is not an easy one, but can be made on foot, should Fanesworth so abandon them.[/sblock][sblock=Resolutions<img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":]" title="Devious    :]" data-shortname=":]" />If the PCs encountered the Zombie Dogs of War, they may have acquired foes that could pursue them for some time, for the mercenaries are a petty lot and do not appreciate being bested.If the PCs encountered the man claiming to be Grift’s friend, they may have an opportunity to determine the truth of the matter.  Is he really Grift’s old friend?  Is he after something?  Or is he just lonely?If the PCs rescued Frist, and, especially, if they fought along side him, he gains some degree of respect for them, which is not something he gives out lightly.If the PCs agreed to work with Grift and ended up fighting along side Frist, Grift will view the PCs with some suspicion, but, in a way, that will make them more trustworthy to him.  At any rate, he will continue his search for family and may have a few ideas for the PCs’ help…If Fanesworth gets away with the PCs’ possessions, they may well want to chase him down.  This could be a difficult proposition on the Sunken Pool, for the Captain knows the area fairly well, and there are many places he could hide.  Still, he has to come to town once in a while…It is possible that the PCs will want to seek the answer to unresolved questions uncovered during the course of the adventure, particularly, for instance, who--or what--animated the skeletons on the island with the lighthouse ruins?  And, for what purpose?[/sblock][sblock=Cast<img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":]" title="Devious    :]" data-shortname=":]" />Prince Frist is arrogant, self-righteous, haughty, and narrow-minded at the start of this adventure.  There is room for some character growth during the course of events, but, by the end of this short excursion, he is likely to remain insufferable during most interactions.  Use the Human Town Guard (Monster Vault pg. 171) stats for Frist, except give him 78 hit points, 1 action point, 1 healing surge, and a great sword (same stats as the halberd, except without the reach of 2).  When running Frist, play up his sense of superiority.Grift is opportunistic, jaded, and cynical at the start of this adventure.  Like Frist, Grift may mature somewhat over the course of this adventure, but will likely remain standoffish and surly till the end.  Use the Human Common Bandit (Monster Vault pg. 170) stats for Grift, except give him 74 hit points, 1 action point, 1 healing surge, and the half-orc racial power, Furious Assault (Heroes of the Forgotten Kingdoms pg. 258).  When running Grift, play up his skepticism and gruff demeanor.Captain Fanesworth is mercantile, opportunistic, deceitful, and shifty.  He will take what he can get and get what he can take.  Growth of his character during the short span of this adventure is unlikely.  He will avoid combat at all costs, but if it is unavoidable, use the Human Common Bandit (Monster Vault pg. 170) stats to represent him.  When running Fanesworth, play up his seediness and his inflated ego (he calls himself Captain, for golly's sake!).[/sblock][sblock=Running the Adventure<img src="http://www.enworld.org/forum/images/smilies/devious.png"  class="smilie" loading="lazy" alt=":]" title="Devious    :]" data-shortname=":]" />Several of the encounters above may likely include one or more NPCs.  To compensate for this, an extra creature or two could easily be added to the mix.  Experience at the end of such a battle should be divided equally among all participants, although the NPCs will not actually use it.  Obviously, this will lead to longer and more complex combat encounters.  This approach is recommended for smaller parties than standard.In the event that the party is larger than standard, or that the DM simply does not want to run such complex  encounters, it is recommended that the DM instead separate combat involving NPCs from that in which the PCs participate and simply describe the NPCs' combat to the players in between rounds (or at when dramatically appropriate).The adventure has the potential for several skill challenges to develop.  The DM is encouraged to run them loosely and look for ways to engage the PCs in them, particularly in non-linear ways.  If the "Cool Factor" outweighs the "Rule Factor," definitely lean toward "Cool," particularly with the skill challenges.  For this reason, more than any other, the potential skill challenges in this adventure have been listed with minimal rules.[/sblock]--Edited to add a "Running the Adventure" section.  More likely to follow.--Edited to add XP, DCs, Skill Challenges, details in the "Cast" section, and further advice in the "Running the Adventure" section.</blockquote>

Verification