D&D 5E One-session modules for new players
Some fun ideas here.
For a higher level experience, I'd recommend any of the giant lairs from Storm King's Thunder. They're all awesome.
For a lower level experience, here's how I introduced a group of noobs...I had both the Starter Set and Essentials Kit, and I mashed them together. I gave them several quests from the "job board" in Essentials Kit. I let them discuss, debate, and agree on which quests they wanted to take. This gave them a hint of how a sandbox works. Then, before they could begin their chosen quest, I had goblins raid the town. They backtracked the goblins to the Cragmaw Caves from the Starter Set. That's a great low level dungeon which we had a lot of fun with. That campaign actually continued for 25 more sessions.
The shorter version of that would be to just run the caves and skip the rest.
For a higher level experience, I'd recommend any of the giant lairs from Storm King's Thunder. They're all awesome.
For a lower level experience, here's how I introduced a group of noobs...I had both the Starter Set and Essentials Kit, and I mashed them together. I gave them several quests from the "job board" in Essentials Kit. I let them discuss, debate, and agree on which quests they wanted to take. This gave them a hint of how a sandbox works. Then, before they could begin their chosen quest, I had goblins raid the town. They backtracked the goblins to the Cragmaw Caves from the Starter Set. That's a great low level dungeon which we had a lot of fun with. That campaign actually continued for 25 more sessions.
The shorter version of that would be to just run the caves and skip the rest.
Satirical Bard
Explorer
I played SKT but we only went to the Hill Giant's lair. It was fun, although I've heard others are better, and have actually wondered about using them as Tier2 standalone short adventures! Which of the others would you say are the best in this kind of context (ie. as standalone assault missions, ignoring the plot of SKT)? How long do you think they'd be - mostly 1-2 sessions?
It's not quite the level range you mentioned (designed for 4-5th, though not too hard to scale it) but I've found A Wild Sheep Chase to be whimsical, fun, an easily completed in a single session. Bit linear, but very suitable for new players.
My main group of 5 players doesn't move particularly fast. Plus combats with giants get a bit grindy because they have a lot of hit points. I incorporated additional story elements into each giant lair as part of a larger campaign. With all of that in mind, lairs averaged 3 to 6 sessions of about 4 hours in length. You might be able to get through them in 3 or 4 sessions -- but they're at least 2 sessions long, minimum.
Some thoughts on each:
Stone giants are my least favorite giant, so their lair was my least favorite. However, that's a matter of personal taste. The map is solid, and could make a good spot for an orc or goblin tribe -- or even a dragon.
The ice giant lair is an iceberg. Conceptually it's very cool (pun mostly not intended) and one of my favorite lairs. The iceberg's layout is simple and a careless party could turn the whole thing into a big brawl very quickly. If you want to add the complication of how to get on and off the iceberg that could be fun, too.
The fire giant lair is basically a factory. It has multiple levels as well as an automated ore bucket that together create opportunities for both stealthy infiltration and tactical combat. We had a lot of fun here. One additional factor is that there's a secondary location which is a yakfolk village that guards the entrance to the lair. I replaced the yakfolk with goblinoids, which are more to my taste. Regardless, the village makes getting into and out of the lair more complicated. You could cut it in the interest of time, if you wished.
The storm giant lair is an undersea fortress. We didn't go there in my campaign. But it's a good map and a really evocative location.
If you can find it, there's a module called the Cloud Giant's Bargain that has the player characters adventure in a floating castle. In my campaign, I used the floating castle from the last chapter of Hoard of the Dragon Queen as the epic finale to SKT. Protip: If you have an adventure in a floating castle, crash it!
Hope this is helpful.
(EDITED for clarity.)
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Rabulias
the Incomparably Shrewd and Clever
There is no authorized PDF of Lost Mine of Phandelver. That link is not legit. You should remove it from your post.
Lakesidefantasy
Hero
I like The Crimson Oubliette.
koboldpress.com
It's a simple delve into a giant pit full to the brim with red, flesh dissolving slime. The slime is however averse to fire, so carrying a torch causes the slime to pull back and form a 30 foot bubble around you.
I like it because it gives characters a reason to carry a torch.
Warlock’s Apprentice: The Crimson Oubliette
Bringing you a taste from the dark pages of Warlock… Down a mostly forgotten passage of the Undercity, behind a partially cleared rockfall, lies the arched chamber containing the Crimson Oubliette. Once known as the Depths, this wretched prison of narrow cell doors dotting the curving walls of a...
koboldpress.com
It's a simple delve into a giant pit full to the brim with red, flesh dissolving slime. The slime is however averse to fire, so carrying a torch causes the slime to pull back and form a 30 foot bubble around you.
I like it because it gives characters a reason to carry a torch.
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