D&D 5E [Solitary Play] Dagenholt Campaign

[Marc_C]

This campaign is a hex crawl created from scratch as I go along. I'm using the excellent 5e Solo Adventurers Toolbox and a few personal solo ideas I developed over the years. The battle mat is from Loke Battle Mats.

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The adventurers are Gervish a level 2 rogue, Corden a level 1 fighter and Mordann a level 1 ranger. Having been released from force conscription by the lord of Dagenholt, for two years, the group of friends decide to go look for trouble in the Oakwood forest.
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Day 1: Following a trial discovered by Morrand (ranger) they are attacked by a band of 5 goblins. The fight lasts 4 rounds. All the heroes are injured but the goblins are defeated. The goblins have no possession other than their clothes and weapons. After a short rest of 1 hour (+1 HD) they resume their trek on the trail. Nothing happens. They set up camp. The night is uneventful.


Day 2: Encounter 1 The adventurers managed to surprise a group of 5 goblins escorting a human prisoner. The surprise round was devastating for the goblins. The adventurers won the initiative and attacked again. The goblin archer on the left managed to flee during the fight.

The heroes discovered the prisoner is an injured wizard (level 3). Toraden was ambushed by the goblins while travelling on a road a few miles back. His two bodyguards were killed. He has no idea why he was left alive and taken prisoner. The wizard's spellbook is in a bag carried by the goblin chief.

The wizard offers a 100gp if they take him back home to the town of Dagenholt. The heroes accept. Trusting the ranger the group starts moving. The ranger failed his Survival roll, the group is moving in the wrong direction...

 

[Marc_C]

Day 2 - Encounter 2: The adventurers realize the ranger has lost his way when they reach a marsh with a bubbling pool of green-brown water. The odour of the fumes coming out of the pool is putrid. They have lost half a day. Suddenly a rotting heap of animated vegetation bursts from the pool and attacks Morrand the Ranger! It's a shambling mound.

The shambling mound missed both surprise attacks against Morrand the ranger. According to the oracle Toraden is a level 3 wizard. He cast Scorching Ray at the creature hitting twice and inflicting 13 damage. He then moved away from the creature. Morrand decided this creature was too powerful for him and fled. The shambling mound failed the opportunity attack! Taking a hint from the ranger, Corden the fighter and Gervish the rogue also fled. The shambling mound sank back into the fetid pool.

The adventurers realizing they were extremely lucky put as much distance as they can from the shambling mound. After a heated debate they determine collectively the direction to follow. This time they are going in the right direction.

General area map 24miles per hex. Adventure map 2 miles per hex.

 

[Marc_C]

Night 2 Encounter: The group find the ruins of a small house. They decide it is a good location to spend the night. Later that night Corden is standing near the entrance while the others are asleep. He hears footsteps coming from the West side of forest. A band of six skeletons enters the small clearing surrounding the ruins. Corden (fighter) alerts the others and throws his hand axe at a skeleton.
Toraden (wizard) provides better illumination by casting the spell Light on the entrance door lying on the ground. Gervish (rogue) climbs and jumps over the back wall of the ruins. Morrand (ranger) shoots an arrow through the window. The skeletons advance and melee ensues.
The battle lasted 4 rounds. Morrand shot arrows from the top of the ruins corner. Toraden uses his Fire Bolt cantrip very effectively. The skeletons were all destroyed but Corden sustained 10 damage and Gervish was injured for 12. The rest of the night is quiet.

 

[Marc_C]

[Day 3] The next morning the party decide to march towards the nearest settlement before going to Dagenhold. The small village of Obandek is located six miles South of the border of the forest. The day is uneventful.

After they arrive in Obandek the adventurers rent a room at Mira's Brew, the local tavern. During the evening the locals are curious. Gervish tells them of their encounters with the goblins and the skeletons. The locals reveal several villagers have disappeared in the recent month. The ruins was the house of Enrik Garsh, the local woodsman, who also disappeared.

The mayor Rudolf Fienard asks the adventurers to try to find the missing villagers. Goblins are unheard of in this part of the forest. Surely the goblins have kidnapped them for a nefarious reasons. He can offer a gold ring with a stone of (150 gp) as payment.

Intrigued by the mysterious disappearance the group accepts the offer. The two local town guards (npcs, brothers) decide they want to join the group. Their uncle Samuel is missing (motivation). The mayor sends a courrier with a message to warn the lord of Dagenholt.

[Day 4] The four adventurers, the two guards and a packing mule leave Obandek early in the morning. The group travels back to the location of the second goblin ambush hoping to find a clue. Morrand (ranger) is on top if his game this time and they arrive at the site at the end of the afternoon. They set up camp. The night is uneventful.

 

[Marc_C]

[Day 5, Encounter 1]

'Turn back, this is the land of Lord Grumarr! No humans allowed!'

Three hobgoblins shoot their arrows at Morrand (ranger). The two arrows inflict 7 damage. Before the group can react the hobgoblins retreat 30' deeper into the woods.

Morrand shoots an arrow and hits, scoring 5 damage. Toraden sends Magic Missiles at the same target inflicting 11 damage to the hobgoblin, who falls down dead.

The two remaining hobgoblins run further into the woods. One of them screams 'You will regret this'. The adventurers decide not to chase them. This could be a trap.

 

[Marc_C]

[Day 5, Encounter 2]
The heroes decide to move away from the trail they were following. They go deeper into the woods for about 10 minutes. They set up camp in a favorable position. Morrand can rest for one hour (short rest HD).

Morrand (ranger) and Gervish (rogue) decide to scout ahead to see if the hobgoblins have prepared an ambush. They come back safely after one hour. There is a rock formation 30 minutes further down the trail. Goblins are guarding what appears to be the entrance to a cave. That must be were the villagers are kept hostage. They heroes have no idea how many humanoids there are. They vanquished fifteen goblins and one hobgoblin so far. How many more can there be?

They decide to approach the rock formation cautiously from the North, away from the trail. They want to circle around the formation and surprise the goblin sentries from the flank.

The plan: Gervish (rogue) will climb the formation and attack the furthest goblin archer from behind. Toraden (wizard) will send a Fire Bolt at the nearest goblin archer. Then Morrand (ranger) will move from cover and shoot one arrow at the goblins near the entrance. Finally Corden (fighter) will attack the last goblin standing.

The surprise movement goes without a hitch. Toraden burns the archer goblin to death with Fire Bolt. Gervish back stabs the other goblin archer and kills him. Morrand runs out of cover, shoots an arrow (20!) and kills the goblin with an arrow to the throat. Corden moves from his hiding position, attacks the last goblin and misses!!!

Toraden has the initiative. He moves and sends a Fire Bolt to the last goblin, hits and does only 2 damage. The goblin fearing for his life Disengages from Corden (no opportunity attack) and runs inside the cave. Seeing this, the heroes retreat as agreed beforehand. They wait 10 minutes hidden in the woods. No one comes out if the cave... They decide to wait another 10 minutes... tick, tock, tick, tock...

 

[Marc_C]

[Day 5, Encounter 3]
The heroes decide to enter the cave. The two guards stay outside with the mule to prevent an attack from the rear.
A rock staircase leads to a narrow corridor. Toraden places the spell Light on a copper coin and puts it in a pocket of his robe. The corridor widens into a large cave with strange luminescent crystals that paint the cave with a soft blue light. There are three other exits to this room.

Three goblin archers hidden behind crystals move out of cover and immediately attack with arrows.
The heroes have the initiative. They fall for the hobgoblin trap. Corden (fighter) and Gevish (rogue) charge two archers leaving Toraden (wizard) and Morrand (ranger) alone to be attack from the sides by the hobgoblins. Seeing this Morrand screams 'Obandek to me!' 'Obandek to me!'. The two guards rush down the cave tunnel to the aid of the heroes.

The melee lasted 3 rounds. Morrand falls unconscious on the first round. The guards attack the hobgoblins on the second round injuring one. Toraden Disengages and moves against the Eats wall. After finishing the goblin archers Corden and Gervish attack the hobgoblins. Toraden sends a Fire Bolt but misses. The last hobgoblin proves to be very resilient against the guards and Corden. Gervish delivers the fatal blow with a sneak attack.

Corden uses his Second Wind. Morrand is given first aid and is now stable. The two guards carry Morrand as the group leaves the caves to hide in the forest hoping there will be no pursuit.

Corden and Morrand have earned enough experience to reach level 2. Gervish is already level 2. Toraden joined as a level 3.

 

[Marc_C]

[Day 6, Encounter 1]
The night is uneventful. The next morning the heroes return to the cave. It is empty. No one is waiting for them. The group begins the exploration of the other passages.

The East passage is a dead end. Three tunnels were started but they were never expanded. Gervish doesn't detect any secret passages.
The West passage twists and turns. It leads to a revolting scene. Three villagers in chains are dead. Their throats were slit not long ago. Closer inspection reveals they were forced to mine the end of the tunnel with picks. Morrand notice something strange about the rock. It contains small veins of unrefined silver.

The North passage leads to another dead end. Three other villagers in chains have been murdered. The guard's uncle Samuel is one of the victims. The end of the passage also has silver veins.

The heroes decide they must avenge the villagers deaths! Outside the rock formation Morrand finds three sets of hobgoblin footprints leading North, deeper into the forest. Two sets of footprints seem to be carrying something heavy.

The chase is on!

 

[Marc_C]

[Day 6, Encounter 1 continued]

The tracking of the hobgoblins footsteps goes well. Gervish and Morrand often sprint ahead to see if they are catching up with their quarry. At the end of the afternoon the rogue and the ranger spot two hobgoblins carrying a chest, two goblin archers and a larger hobgoblin leading the pack.

After the rest of the group catches up with Gervish and Morrand they decide to confront the hobgoblins. The mule is tied to a tree. The adventurers starts sprinting to catch up with the murderers of the silver mine.

'Halt' shouts Corden as they approach the group of hobgoblins. The hobgoblin leader turns around. 'FOOLS, turn back before the wrath of Lord Grumarr falls on you!' He looks at the goblins and shouts 'ATTACK!'.

Both goblins miss. The hobgoblins drop the west and take their swords in hand.

Round one: The heroes have the initiative. Toraden moves and hurls Scorching Ray at the hobgoblin leader. Two hit for 17 damage. Corden moves and throws his hand axe at the same target and deals 5 damage. Gervish moves and shoot an arrow with his short bow, hits and inflicts 8 damage art the leader. Morrand moves and shoots an arrow at the leader but misses his target. The two guards move and throw their spear at the leader. They both miss.

Taken aback by the force of the heroes attack the hobgoblin leader hesitates (morale roll) but regains composer. 'CHARGE!' The three hobgoblins move and attack Corden. Only one hobgoblin hits scoring 7 damage. The goblin archers attack Gervish and Toraden with arrows. Gervish is hit with 6 damage. Toraden is hit with 5 damage.

Round two: Toraden sends 3 magic missiles at a goblin archer killing it. he then moves to have a line of sight to the other goblin archer. Gervish kills the hobgoblin leader with a sneak attack. One guard injures a hobgoblin. Corden and Morrand miss their attacks.

The goblin archer shoots an arrow in the back of Gervish, hits (20!) scoring only 4 damage. One hobgoblin misses Morrand. The other misses Corden.

Round three: Toraden shoots a magic missile at the last goblin archer killing him were he stands. Morrand and Corden hit the same hobgoblin. The hobgoblin falls to the ground dead. The two guards attack the last hobgoblin and miss. Gervish sneak attack the hobgoblin and misses.

Round four: Corden shouts 'Surrender'. The hobgoblin says 'You achieve nothing today. Our Lord Grumarr has been warned about you!' he raises his sword to attack. Corden is faster, hits and inflicts 7, uses his action surge, hits again, inflicting another 11 damage. The hobgoblin falls to his knees then falls face down on the ground.

After a short rest Gervish opens the lock chest. Inside they find rocks of unrefined silver (1000 silver).

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Epilogue

The return trip to the village of Obandek is uneventful. A funeral is held for the victims of the goblins. The Lord of Dagenholt has sent four soldiers and a captain to investigate and protect the villagers. The villager smith manages to melt the silver from the rocks. The heroes decide to donate the silver to the village. The gold ring (150gp) promised by the mayor is a sour recompense but they take it anyway.

Later that night at the Mira's Brew Toraden says: 'I'm intrigued by the skeletons we destroyed in the forest. They don't walk around by themselves. A necromancer must be behind this."

Gervish is now level 3.

Thus ends the Silver Mines of the Oakwoods. Hope you enjoyed it!

 

[jayoungr]

This is a really cool writeup! I love the photos.

Is this the solo adventuring tool you were using?

The Solo Adventurer's Toolbox - Dungeon Masters Guild | Dungeon Masters Guild

The Solo Adventurer's Toolbox - Want to travel in a world where the fall of the dice can make things appear randomly? Get completely lost in this book w

www.dmsguild.com