Spicing up the H-series modules...

[T-Bone JiuJitsu]

I would like to gather advice on how the DM's here have added to the KotSF module, and Thunderspire Labyrinth as well.

On first read it seems a little light on plot, and a bit linear. I would like to add more story elements and just general improvements to make it better.

What have you done, or are planning to do?


Here's my first thoughts:

We are running "Kobold Keep" from the DMG as a kind of warm up game. One of the hooks I used for that was the "recover the dragonscale" for the dwarven armorer for an extra 200gp. I'm thinking that when the PC's get back to town, the dwarven armorer will be gone, and his wife will report that they got word that a caravan delivering goods to Winterhaven was ambushed near that village, and the armorer & his wife's son was part of the crew that is now missing, no bodies found. Now the Armorer has dusted off his heirloom dwarven chainmail armor and set out to recover his son. The wife would like the PC's to go find her husband before he gets himself killed.

In Winterhaven, some villagers will rember seeing the dwarf pass thru, asking questions at the inn. The spy at the inn has sent him to the waterfall lair to be killed by the kobolds there, as she will the PC's, telling them that that is where the dwarf was off to. As I recall, one of the treasures in the waterfall lair (sorry, I dont have my book nearby and dont recall the proper name) is a suit of Dwarven armor, that will turn out to be the armorers suit, him being captured and sold off to slavers along with the caravan crew and his son.

From there, I need to spread some more clues around, and try to incorporate the KotSF side treck encounter from the wizards website. I haven't yet started reading H2, but I'm trying to plan ahead in order to bridge the two adventures together, and recovering the slaves will be one part.

One other idea I had was one of the NPC's in winterhaven will be big on joking with people. He will always have a sarcastic answer, or send them on a goose chase for a harmless laugh. Some things he may do are:

If asked about the missing people, he will joke that they are locked up safe in his cellar, just kidding, ..no really. You wont tell will you? ha! had you going for a second! something of those sorts.

Also, if asked about a death cult, he will get really serious, looking around like someone might be watching, insist that everyone come inside and close the doors and windows so he can tell them something. Then when everyone is inside, he'll say "have you mentioned this to anyone else? are you sure?" he kneels down to a big wooden chest, opens it slowly "I wish it haddent come to this but I'm going to have to kill you all now, I'm very sorry, but you understand." if/when the PCs draw their weapons to defend themselves, he breaks out laughing and pulls out some harmless something (mideval equivalent of a squirt gun or something) and says "you should have seen the look on your faces! You thought I was serious?!"

anyhow, that's just the preliminary thought process. It all needs polishing a smoothing out the details.

Please, post more ideas.

TBone

 

[Jack99]

What did I do...

Well, I keyed H1 and H2 together via Castle Whiterock and a few other plots.

The overall plot goes like this (bear in mind, that the players belong to the newcomers - newly arrived to this world via a portal, fleeing a dying world. There is so far no contact to inhabitants of this world)

The Duegars of Thunderspire have been expanding the buying of slaves. At some point, they run into the Slavers of the Iron Fist (newcomers) and strike a deal with them.

The Iron Fist install themselves in Castle Whiterock (so far I am only going to use the first level. Deeper levels may come into play later.). Tunnels lead from CW to the Thunderspire Labyrinth

Mr. Jacoby (Iron Fist high-ranking member) runs the show from Drahar (newcomer capital), where he hires adventurers for different jobs, which inevitably lead them into the clutches of either the Iron Fist, or their allies, The Green Serpents, a local tribe of Kobolds.

This has been going on for a couple of months. Meanwhile, Kalarel has moved into Danar Hold, an ancient dwarven fort, built to protect the rift.

The Iron Slavers have contacted Kalarel to see if he would be interested in acquiring some slaves. (they learned of him through the Green Serpents, who he uses as well). He dismissed them emissary, but the hobgoblin Bloodreavers proved to be interested, and another alliance was forged.

The players get embroiled in all this, when they accept a job for Mr. Jacoby, and get captured by the kobolds. They also stumble over a dwarven ruin in the forest, talking about the plight of Sir Keegan and the demise of the keep (aka Danar Hold)

I also plan to incorporate that they (Iron Fist) have kidnapped an elven tribe-daughter (chief's daughter).

So in Danar Hold (KotS) players will find evidence that the Bloodreavers are in on this whole kidnapping thing, with mr Jacoby (whom the players have already hunted, but he escaped) and the kobolds. They will head to CW, and on the way, they will encounter the elves who have lost their tribe daughter (still unsure on how I want to play this part). Once at CW they will face the Iron Fist, possibly with Jacoby (or maybe he has already moved in deeper, towards Thunderspire.

Either way, this should lead them deeper into the mountain, towards the Labyrinth..

I will know more once I get to read H2.

 

[vagabundo]

I've mangled the modules to fit into an 4e version of Magnamund (Lone Wolf). And I've grown to dislike Kobolds and have replaced them with Skaven (warhammer). I've kept the plot as is, mostly.

I've set it in a town called Ruaron and Barraka (BBEG) is trying to raise a long dead demon called Lord Vashna. I'm renaming a few of the monsters:

Kobolds->Shaven
Goblins->Giaks
Hobgolblins>Uraks (could find anything close, made my own up)

The last piece of the ritual that is needed is the Dagger of Vashna, recovered from the remains of the Kraan beast (dragon type thing). The gnome shulk escaped with the weapon when I ran the encounter. If the PC's had recovered it, the cultists would have attempted to take it from them or negotiate.

My changes are very setting specific, so probably not much use.

I will be expanding the "bloodreaver" slaver connection for H2....

 

[Grimstaff]

I modified H1 for the Wilderlands of High Fantasy CS, and am using alot of the web-expansion stuff for H1 too. For my old-school players, I've renamed the adventure "Sinister Secret of Rockhollow", rockhollow being the town standing in for Winterhaven.

The PCs:
Nereia(Tiefling Warlord 1) The scion of a wealthy trading family from the Demon Kingdoms, Nereia is in training to one day take over the City State branch of the business.
Pyke(Elf Fighter 1) A veteran of the Gnoll Wars who never really adapted to peacetime in his elven home, Pyke takes occasional guard work in the City State to keep himself in shape.
Dohaan(Human Rogue 1) An Antillian rake sent to the City State by his family to ride out a vicious inter-clan vendetta far from the danger zone (or so he thinks).
Armas (Half-elven Wizard 1) A former street thug who discovered he has a gift for magic. Sent to the Temple of Thoth both for magical instruction and as the Guild's eyes and ears in the secretive arcane cult.
Moz Ur (Human Paladin 1) A sanctified desert warrior from the Holy Cities, Moz Ur has elected to keep his background and motives private, for now.



And an excerpt from my campaign journal:



ME19, 4438
The party departs Bier, gratefully, and heads east along the great blue Estuary of Roglaroon. River craft of all sizes dot the shimmering water, and party even spots one the Overlord's warships, no doubt patrolling the Estuary on guard against the notorious pirates of Hagrost.

The day passes largely uneventfully, and the party sets camp for the night next to a waterfall that crashes down from a high mountain spring into the Roglaroon.

That night, Moz Ur awakens to the sound of entrancing singing. Bemused he wanders over to the edge of the waterfall and by moonlight sees there, frolicking in the water, three lovely maidens. They see the paladin as well, and beckon for him to join them. Back in camp, Dohaan comes back around on his guard and notices the paladin has gone missing. Quietly, he awakens Armas, and the two follow Moz Ur's trail down to the waterfall, where they see the paladin knee deep in the water already. Armas' Insight tells him something is very wrong here, and he casts out a ball of light at the maidens, illuminating them. Once the moonlight is drowned out by the brighter magical light, they are shown to be hideous hags, with claws outstretched greedily towards the charmed paladin.

Dohaan hefts his crossbow and Armas begins chanting the words to a deadly spell, but the hags cackle mockingly, release the paladin from their grasp, and sink into the water to disappear.

ME20, 4438
The party follows the Roglaroon east another 5 miles or so before turning south around the edge of the Ered Losthain. Reaching the fast-running, icy-cold waters of the Brytalin Stream they march south towards Varin's Firth, a great mining town guarded over by a large fortress.

The priest tells the party he tried Varin's Firth for assistance first, but was never allowed audience with anyone of importance. The party enters the town quietly, secures lodgings for the night, and heads out early the next morning.

The food in Varin's Firth is hearty common-man's fare, and the party leaves well stuffed from both dinner and breakfast.

ME21, 4438
The party follows a worn traders' trail across lightly wooded lands east towards Rockhollow. Only an hour or so outside of town, they are ambushed by a group of child-sized hooded figures wielding a bizaare and somewhat archaic array of weaponry.

The assailants are treacherously fast and vicious, but clearly no match for what is becoming a well-honed party. The creatures are dispatched and Pyke uncovers their hidden features wonderingly. The priest tells them these are "Corrupted", a degenerate tribe of sub-human creatures descended from a servitor race of the long-gone Orichalans. To Pyke's eyes they appear as halflings tainted with hideous reptilian features, scales, fangs, yellow eyes, and even rudimentary tails. The priest explains that these "Corrupted" live in a series of caverns just outside of town living off the humans' refuse and petty thievery, but he has never known them to engage in wholesale banditry.

At last they arrive in Rockhollow, a well-fortified frontier town. Some miles away, just visible on a hilltop in the distance is a fortress. The priest explains this is crumbling ruin, thought by some to be a remnant of ancient Kelnore, and abandoned altogether when the towns own walls were completed. He tells them they area, though sparsely inhabited, is a treasure trove of ancient ruins and relics, and that some strangers from the west have been excavating the rumored burial ground of real dragon! He tells them a sage, Valthrun, lives in town, and is a good person to consult on local history. There is also a antique dealer, Bairwin, who does a brisk trade in local historical artifacts.

 

[Grimstaff]

H2, btw, will most likely end up as part of the endless dungeons beneath the great City State, with the Arcane Cult of Thoth taking the place of the wizardly order in the module.

Since slavery is an accepted practice in the City State, I'll have to think of a reason for the party to want to eradicate them rather than go shopping!