Time For Another Round Of Iron Dm!!!
- Thread starter el-remmen
- Start date
Wulf Ratbane
Adventurer
Rune said:
Could be worse... Could be Triumph the Dog criticism...
el-remmen
Moderator Emeritus
My immediate thoughts about Wicht’s excellent entry was that it might be better served to introduce the PCs to the scenario while the other fire priests are still alive, but slowly being picked off. This can create the creepiness of gothic murder mystery, especially if one of the PCs happens to be a fire priest.
But putting that aside, the nature of the mystery and conspiracy is wonderful. The manipulative and corrupt priest double-crossing the repentant vampire and his own clergy is a great idea that can be drawn out 9esp. using the above idea) to make what is happening not so obvious to the PCs ~ the introduction of a few other members of the church could also draw suspicion away from the “benign and helpful” fire priest.
Wicht’s multiple plot hooks are also excellent, and among the best and most varied of those ever presented in the handful of IRON DM competitions I have run here and on other boards.
Rune has fewer, but nearly as elegant hooks for the PCs. As long as the PCs get to the city it does not seem like it’d be too hard to get them involved in the action. Even if they are not persuaded by the beggar family’s story of their missing daughter, they could be approached by the fire priest’s daughter, the ghost, or simply be interested (esp. if pilgrims) in investigating the rumors of the dying flame that is never supposed to die.
This is perhaps the hardest judgment I have had to make in this game. The key difference in these two scenarios is that Wicht’s comes to a particular climax (or at least it could) that can resolve the whole thing, while Rune’s is much more open ended, leaving more room to expand the elements of the adventure into more campaign wide themes –esp. if they choose to help Diamond, or seek to fill the power vacuum and become involved in what seem to be the convoluted and cut-throat politics of the place.
And there is where I laid my decision. It is easy to imagine the PCs getting wrapped up in the events of Rune’s scenario even if they do nothing – the church guards could easily see them talking with the beggar girl’s family, or overhear them asking about the (or simply being told about) the rumors of the waning power of the fire – or see them conversing or even battling the ghost of the former fire priest. The politics implied by Rune’s description strike me as the kind of place where it’d be hard for people as curious as PCs usually are to keep from getting in trouble.
So, in the end I give the edge Rune. . . especially, keeping in mind that his repentant undead is a bit more believable – a ghost who chose to commit one evil act over another – as opposed to a vampire who feels remorse, why? It did strike me that the vampire would have been cooler if he were an actor or bard – someone dramatic who wanted a dramatic end, wh owas simply tired of his long unlife, as opposed to feeling bad about his killing – and maybe wanted to explode in a blaze glory that would always be remembered.
Wicht, great entry! As usual. . I feel bad having to eliminate you at this point – but the upset goes to Rune – who will face either Wulf or RG in the final round. . .
P.S. I know some people will complain (the Wicht fanboys
) about Wicht’s loss, but ya can’t please everyone and it could have gone either way.
But putting that aside, the nature of the mystery and conspiracy is wonderful. The manipulative and corrupt priest double-crossing the repentant vampire and his own clergy is a great idea that can be drawn out 9esp. using the above idea) to make what is happening not so obvious to the PCs ~ the introduction of a few other members of the church could also draw suspicion away from the “benign and helpful” fire priest.
Wicht’s multiple plot hooks are also excellent, and among the best and most varied of those ever presented in the handful of IRON DM competitions I have run here and on other boards.
Rune has fewer, but nearly as elegant hooks for the PCs. As long as the PCs get to the city it does not seem like it’d be too hard to get them involved in the action. Even if they are not persuaded by the beggar family’s story of their missing daughter, they could be approached by the fire priest’s daughter, the ghost, or simply be interested (esp. if pilgrims) in investigating the rumors of the dying flame that is never supposed to die.
This is perhaps the hardest judgment I have had to make in this game. The key difference in these two scenarios is that Wicht’s comes to a particular climax (or at least it could) that can resolve the whole thing, while Rune’s is much more open ended, leaving more room to expand the elements of the adventure into more campaign wide themes –esp. if they choose to help Diamond, or seek to fill the power vacuum and become involved in what seem to be the convoluted and cut-throat politics of the place.
And there is where I laid my decision. It is easy to imagine the PCs getting wrapped up in the events of Rune’s scenario even if they do nothing – the church guards could easily see them talking with the beggar girl’s family, or overhear them asking about the (or simply being told about) the rumors of the waning power of the fire – or see them conversing or even battling the ghost of the former fire priest. The politics implied by Rune’s description strike me as the kind of place where it’d be hard for people as curious as PCs usually are to keep from getting in trouble.
So, in the end I give the edge Rune. . . especially, keeping in mind that his repentant undead is a bit more believable – a ghost who chose to commit one evil act over another – as opposed to a vampire who feels remorse, why? It did strike me that the vampire would have been cooler if he were an actor or bard – someone dramatic who wanted a dramatic end, wh owas simply tired of his long unlife, as opposed to feeling bad about his killing – and maybe wanted to explode in a blaze glory that would always be remembered.
Wicht, great entry! As usual. . I feel bad having to eliminate you at this point – but the upset goes to Rune – who will face either Wulf or RG in the final round. . .
P.S. I know some people will complain (the Wicht fanboys
) about Wicht’s loss, but ya can’t please everyone and it could have gone either way.
Rune
Once A Fool
HOLY CRAP!!! I got the upset!?!
Wow, Wicht (and Nemmerle)! You really had me worried and on edge since I read your entry! I must say that I was extraordinarily impressed, especially with the roving packs of rightious undead. Beautiful! I'll have to steal it (I can't run the whole scenerio, because two of my players have read it and I don't much care for vampires, but I'll definetly steal much from it!)!
Nemmerle, thank you for your astonishingly in-depth and nemmerlesque critique. I am incredibly grateful for your tireless, painstaking attention to such a thankless duty--that of the judge!
And now, I will go home and be worried about the next round!
Good night, everybody!
PS- By the way, Wicht, for what its worth...your dryad ghost/mast is the only thing I remember from last year's Iron DM contest. Truly impressive.
Wow, Wicht (and Nemmerle)! You really had me worried and on edge since I read your entry! I must say that I was extraordinarily impressed, especially with the roving packs of rightious undead. Beautiful! I'll have to steal it (I can't run the whole scenerio, because two of my players have read it and I don't much care for vampires, but I'll definetly steal much from it!)!
Nemmerle, thank you for your astonishingly in-depth and nemmerlesque critique. I am incredibly grateful for your tireless, painstaking attention to such a thankless duty--that of the judge!
And now, I will go home and be worried about the next round!
Good night, everybody!
PS- By the way, Wicht, for what its worth...your dryad ghost/mast is the only thing I remember from last year's Iron DM contest. Truly impressive.
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Radiating Gnome
Adventurer
Hindergarten’s Atlas
Hindergarten’s Atlas
An Interlude for a party of characters lvl 7-9.
Oval Door
Permanent Image
Quicklings
Female Hill Giant
Staff of Thunder and Lightning
False Beard made of Dwarf Hair
Intro (will eventually be told to the players by a townsperson in Eck.)
A while ago – before most of you were kids – there was a gnomish illusionist in these parts, a queer, reclusive big-nosed git who lived up in the hills above the town. Hants Hindergarten, he called himself. He passed through the town every once in a while – never shopped for more than a bit of vegetables now and then. It became a game with some of the local lads as we grew up, trying to follow him back to his hideout up in the hills, but we never found it. He would always just turn a corner and disappear.
Anyway, as you may or may not know, powerful folk draw trouble like warm turds draw flies. No one knows for sure what it was that happened, but sure enough, one day , not so very long ago, he turned up dead out there in those hills, cut up with little knives, lots of little cuts, here and there – not one of them enough to kill you, mind you, but all together like that . . . it were bad.
Folk around here figured he woke something up – there are all kinds of old wives’ takes about the wee creatures of the woods that come out and steal babies and such, but I don’t hold with any of that.
Since then, things do go missing all the time, though. Maybe it’s the ghost of that gnome. And maybe it’s the gremlins that killed him. Who knows?
Anyways, not many hunters in these parts anymore. There’s not much game, what with big Nernice out there bashing around, making that racket of hers. She’s not much of a neighbor, either – keeps to herself, mostly, not that there’s any around here that’d try to go after a giant, now, even if there are rumors about her havin’ the wizard’s treasure and all. It ain’t like folk around here have much use for something like that, even if it were real.
Mind you, every once in a while there’s one or two who think they can sneak in at night and get it, but it just don’t work out that way. It’s like she sees better at night than she does by day. Uncanny, she is. So after enough of the town’s boys didn’t come back, they stopped going up there in the first place. And as long as you don’t mind losing stuff, well, this ain’t such a bad place to be.
Backstory:
About 20 years ago a Gnome Illusionist calling himself Hants Hindergarten took up residence in the hills beyond the small roadside village of Eck. He lived there, shrouded in plenty of mystery, making occasional trips to visit libraries and other wizards far and near, and always passing through the town each time he did so. No on in the town ever saw his home, although many tried to follow him over the years without success. By and large the hills around Eck were fairly peaceful. There were a couple of hill giant families rumored to be making their homes further up in the hills, but while the wizard was in the area between them and the town they did very little to bother anyone.
About a year ago, things took a turn for the worse. Although no one knew it at the time, a tribe of Quicklings, lead by a sneaky, evil little creature named Spivet, moved into the area. Notoriously mean-spirited and impossible to spot, they started to pester the townsfolk, got bored with that quickly, and then moved up into the hills looking for more fun.
They discovered Hindergarten’s secret home, and were insatiably curious about what he had inside. He managed to drive them off a couple of times, thanks mostly to his staff. It gave him some pretty powerful attacks, especially a few area effect attacks, the one thing that was very effective against the blindingly fast Quicklings. As an illusionist his ability to cast serious area effect direct damage spells himself was limited. After a few engagements. the quicklings decided that they were not going to get him in a direct attack.
Then the quicklings discovered the Giants, not far away. Finding the giants much easier to manipulate, they stole their bags and dragged them off towards the gnome’s house, making it look like he had stolen their bags.
The Quicklings managed to lure the Giants past the permanent illusion that hid the small oval door that led to Hindergarten’s home. There they orchestrated a fight between the illusionist and the giants that left most of the giants dead. One of the females, named Nernice, managed to get away with only being blinded.
While Hindergarten managed to defeat the giants, the quicklings got what they wanted – the great oval door was open, and they were able to get inside. Before Hindergarten returned from driving off the giants they managed to steal a great deal. Hindergarten returned and managed to drive them out of his home again, commanding his familiar (a tabby cat named Slats”) to shut the door, but he himself was caught outside, cut off by the Quicklings.
In then end, Hindergarten died trying to reach the town, where he hoped to be safe. The quicklings had some loot from his home, but not everything, and they were unable to get in once again. They forgot about poor Nernice for the time being, much more interested in getting past the Oval Door (actually a trap door, set horizontally into the top of a hill). They tried to lure the cat out – even using one of the things they’d stolen from the illusionist, his home-made, Dwarf-hair, False Beard of Disguise, to try to convince the cat that they were her missing master finally returning. Of course, that didn’t work at all.
Months later, Nernice managed a bit of a recovery. She is still blind, but has learned to compensate (she has a few levels of fighter now, and has learned blind-fight and blindfight 5’radius). Because she uses her other senses, and is no longer bothered by the invisibility of the Quicklings, she has been able to hold her own against them, killing enough of them in little skirmishes from time to time that they have learned to leave her alone, although they hope to lure some unsuspecting heroes to her lair to take care of her for them. Nernice, for her part, knows what she’s up against now – she sets snares for the Quicklings, kills any that get too close, and is totally focused on killing them now that the wizard is dead. Over time, after a lot of exposure, she has also developed a tolerance for the Quickling’s sleep poison, which no longer affects her.
Nernice did recover some of the wizard’s belongings, including a journal which will offer some clues to the riddle used to conceal the secret word that will open the Oval Door.
The Present.
Part 1.
The party is nearing the bodaciously small town of Eck. They might not even stop to take much notice, but a bearded gnome they pass on the road outside Eck has a few words with them. He tells them about the great wizard who died in the area, and his missing staff a staff that gave him the power to command the thunder and lightning. He tells them his name is Spivet (the truth, although some PCs may feel it’s an odd name for a Gnome) that he has given up looking for it (the truth) and he hopes that they have better luck than he did (also the truth). He also warns them about the Giantess – has seen her brain many a young foolhardy soul (his own people, also the truth).
This gnome is actually Spivet, the occasional leader of the Quicklings. Spivet and the quicklings tried for MONTHS to figure out the secret of the great Oval Door, and finally had to give up. Spivet’s current plan is to lure humans up into the hills to try to open the door, and in the bargain perhaps also kill Nernice, the vengeful blind hill giant who is stalking his people.
So in this encounter he is actually telling the truth at every turn. Of course, the Quicklings are far too undisciplined to simply meet the party and have this conversation with them. While Spivet is talking to them, two young quicklings steal up to the two rearmost members of the party and try to pick their pockets (The quicklings pick pockets at +12. Unless you really feel like making rolls for them, assume they take 10. If either of the characters being picked can make a spot check at DC 22, they notice something, but when they turn around they’ll see nothing, as the quicklings are invisible.)
Should Spivet be revealed, he’ll disappear into the underbrush as quickly as possible. If captured, he’ll reveal nothing, and do everything he can to escape. He’ll have plenty of help from his fellow Quicklings, and will more than likely get away. Should he actually be killed, another Quickling will take his place, although without the Beard of Disguise.
In town the party can gather a bit more information. To begin with, they can ask about the story that they were told by the Gnome on the road. The Townsfolk can back up much of the story with their own experience. Hindergarten was real, and did turn up mostly naked and dead. Nernice is real, out there in the woods. And things disappear all the time now, and they have just learned to live with it. (Note: An interestin detail PCs may or may not notice is that the townsfolk know nothing about an Oval Door, or where Hindergarten was actually living)
Observant PCs (DC 25) will also spot that many of the townsfolk have superficial cuts on their hands and any other exposed flesh – all minor, all in various stages of healing. If they ask, the townsfolk will usually dismiss the cut as an accident, the sort of thing that is always happening in Eck.
The more time the PCs spend in the little town the more they will lose to the quickling thieves. It won’t be very obvious at first, but bits and pieces of their gear will start to disappear, something which the townsfolk dismiss with a shrug. “That’s life in Eck. No sense owning nice things, they just go missing after a bit."
Spivet’s plan, of course, is to lure the PCs off to fight Nernice for him and to make their way past the Oval door. So the thievery will not be subtle for long. Eventually, at some appropriate moment in the evening, a quickling will snatch something very abruptly from one of the PCs – something clearly valuable, and disappear into the dark nighttime hills.
Once the party is ready to head off after the burglars, they’re hooked.
Part 2
Spivet’s trail leads into the woods. Eventually it leads to a fairly worn, easy-to-follow game trail (Will some PCs remember that there isn’t much game in the area, according to the townsfolk?). Making it even easier to follow is the obvious drag marks made, from time to time, by the bag of loot, lifted off the PCs, that the figure they are tracking seems to be burdened with.
Just before dawn they will lose the trail, but see a small cliff face ahead. A DC 20 spot check will see the flicker of a campfire, nearly dead, reflecting off the cliff. (this is not Nernice’s campfire – she has little use for one. The Quicklings are using their ability to create Dancing Lights to create the illusion of the fire.)
As they approach the cliff, on the path or otherwise, they will begin to encounter an intermittent collection of traps and snares. None of them are very skillful or complex – simple tree snares and deadfalls, a pit here or there, etc. (In a finished adventure, a list of these traps would be provided, along with either a map of the area and the placement of the traps, or some way of determining who hits the traps as the party approaches the campfire.
As they near the clearing at the base of the cliff, the party will see a large a large sleeping matt near the "fire," as well as a couple of worn bags much like the one they have been tracking over hill and dale. Nernice is standing in the shadows of the cliff face, waiting for the moment to make her entrance – which is when one of the party members touches her bags.
The fight with Nernice should be interesting. As soon as Nernice springs out of hiding, the Quicklings will drop the Dancing Light Campfire, which is illuminating the battlefield. The PCs may have to come up with some of their own light.
It’s possible that the PCs will try to talk to Nernice, who might even be convinced to stop trying to kill them long enough to let them know her side of the story.
Nernice’s treasure is actually a bit on the rich side for a lone Hill giant – double the standard “what’s in the giant’s bag” loot, and add in a journal and a spellbook, both small in size. They both belonged to Hindergarten. The journal itself is actually a travel journal, including pages and pages of hand-drawn maps, in addition to some other maps, obviously drawn by other hands. Flipping through the book a few of the party members can find each of their home towns sketched, and some important features noted – along with many other places as well. The other book, a minor traveling spellbook, contains a few illusionist spells.
There is also, on the last couple of pages in the journal, a few short lines about the Quicklings.
I don’t know what they are – they move so fast. I turn at the sound of a creak or a distant laugh, and there is no one there again. Things go missing. It smells of something fey, and something fell. Slats has seen them more than I, and he’s convinced they’re trying to get into the house. It’s time to set some wards.
Part 3. On the trail again.
While the party is sorting through the Giant’s bags, Spivet (disguised as a Gnome again) will appear, stepping out of the underbrush. Spivet might have done much better to let things evolve on their own, but he’s just not able to be that meticulous all the time. He needs to taunt the players a bit. He asks about the Staff – seems very interested in the Staff. His real intention is to get the party angry or curious enough to chase him again, this time Hindergarten’s door. If it isn’t going very well, he’ll even resort to pulling off the magic beard and revealing his real form, and waving one of the stolen bits of the PC’s loot, taunting them with it, before disappearing into the woods. He is careful not to conceal his trail, and heads directly for Hindergarten’s house.
Should the party not pursue, Spivit will try again, this time appearing to them as the ghost of a gnome, dressed only in his underclothes, cut to ribbons with little cuts. He’ll beg the party to set his spirit to rest by opening the Oval Door.
If that fails to entice the players, Spivet will set up an ambush for the players a bit further ahead, bringing with him all the Quicklings he can (the whole group from part 3).
Part 4. The Oval Door and Hindergarten’s House
Eventually the trail will lead the players to a simple hill. They will be able to see a worn path that leads up the hill to a certain point, then seems to stop abruptly. This is a trail worn by the comings and goings of the Quicklings – a trail they have intentionally worn to help spot the illusion. It should help the party see the illusion for what it is, too. Once past it, they will be faced with a great wooden Oval Door, actually a trap door cut in the top of the hill, which has been flattened where the illusionary hill continued to rise, perhaps an image of what the hill looked like before the top was chopped off and the hill hollowed out to make Hindergarten’s home. On the door there is a riddle carved in Gnomish Script:
It has cities, but no houses;
It has forests, but no trees;
It has rivers, but no fish.
What is it?
The only way to open the door (short of VERY powerful magic that should be beyond the party) is to answer the riddle, in gnomish (answer: a map). It’s possible that the party will find some other way to get in (trained or polymorphed Umber Hulk, anyone?). Whatever way they manage to get in, the result will be the same. They get into the house, and the Quicklings try to sneak in along with them. The party will have a few minutes to examine the handful of rooms on the first level before they will start to notice the presence of the quicklings.
[Once the password for the door has been heard by the quicklings, they will be able to repeat it and open the door themselves, should the players decide to close it behind themselves. If the party manages to make it impossible for the Quicklings to enter, they will set an ambush outside the door and wait for the party to come out.
The Gnome’s home consists of two levels. The upper level has simple living quarters – a small bedroom, a kitchen, a root cellar, and a comfortable library. All of this is gnome-sized, and once the action starts all medium sized characters (except dwarves) will suffer a -2 circumstance penalty for having to stoop and fight in such close quarters.
In the library, set idly in a corner, is Hindergarten’s Staff. Spivet, who has seen it in use, knows he wants to grab it right away, and will make a move for it, even if that means revealing himself. (On his last day, Hindergarten had used all of the charges the staff would allow him, and left it behind when he went out to try to finish off the last of the giants. So when he was cut off from his home by the Quicklings he did not have the staff with him)
Another trap door blocks entrance to the lower level of the house. It’s here that the party will find the weak, emaciated form of Slats, who has been guarding this door for the past year, waiting for his master’s return, living barely on what it could scrounge to eat in his master’s cupboards and a few insects here and there. He’s a mostly normal cat now, although some vestige of his connection to his dead master keeps him at his post, guarding this door, although there isn’t much fight left in him. As the party nears him he will first try to scare them off (feeble). After a few moments of interaction with the party, if it’s possible for a Quickling to be there with the party, Slats will turn and face an empty corner, and hiss like crazy, very upset. If left on his own, he’ll eventually spring and last at the empty air, stop in mid air and collapse, gutted by an unseen blade.
And then the Quicklings will attack.
Probably. At some point the party will have to fight the Quicklings – a lot depends upon if the party decides to go to Hindergarten’s house, how they get in, and what sort of precautions they take. But once the door is open, the quicklings have what they wanted – they can get into the house, and they can kill the players at their leisure. They won’t just blindly attack, however. They’ll sneak along with the rest of the party, and if a party member goes off on his or her own, a few will try a quick ambush to try to stack the odds a bit in their favor. But once the fighting starts, in the cramped quarters of the gnome’s house, all ten of the quicklings and Spivet himself will get into the action.
The lower level of Hindergarten’s house is breathtaking. It’s all one big room – a 50’ long oval. Along the walls in spots are more bookcases. These are filled with journals much like the ones in the Giant’s bag. In those journals Hindergarten managed to catalogue the entire known world of [Greyhawk]. And, filling the center of the room, is Hindergarten’s masterpiece, the product of those journals. He has created, using a Permanent Illusion, a detailed, three dimensional map of the known world. An arcane spellcaster, by concentrating, can actually control the map, and zoom in on specific locations. Many of the locations have been marked with notes, and are clearly carefully detailed to allow for teleportation with as little chance of error as possible.
The magic that creates the image is centered on a flagon-sized Garnet set in the floor of the room. Should it be pried up, it can be carried around and will not lose its powers unless dispelled by a high level (12 or more) spellcaster. However, just putting the stone in a bag or covering it will not suppress the illusion – for that it will need to be placed in some sort of magical container (a bag of holding will do). The stone itself isn’t something that will interest just anyone, but a powerful political figure or similar figure might be enticed to pay upwards of 5000 gp for the Hindergarten’s Atlas.
The Quicklings themselves don’t have much of a lair. There’s a covered pit not far from Hindergarten’s house where they dump most of the loot they pick up when they steal from the townsfolk and travelers. Most of it – missing boots, utensils, simple jewelry, etc., will be of little value to the pcs, but if returned to the people of Eck will earn them the local’s undying gratitude (for what it’s worth).
Encounters:
Townsfolk (a few experts, maybe, but not very high level, and no combat is expected here)
Nernice Female Hill Giant FTR2, CL 9
A handful of traps (all CR 1-3, very light-weight)
11 Quicklings (10 + Spivet). CR 10ish.
Major Loot:
The Staff of Thunder and Lightning (treat it as the 3rd edition Rod by the same name)
The Beard of Disguise (as a Hat of Disguise, except it’s a fairly scratchy false beard made of Dwarf hair)
The Atlas of Hindergarten, the great illusionary map of the world, which is centered on a 10-pount Garnet.
----
Ugh. Time to go to bed. I’ll be looking forward to reading yours, Wulf.
I reserve the right to tinker and edit and fix typos in the morning when I can see straight again.
[EDIT 11 am CST: I did come back in the morning and fix a few typos, and try to clear up a confusing point, but to be fair I didn't change anything addressed in the post below. The place that I tried to iron out a little is in part four, where I discuss the moment when the Quicklings attack -- specifically I moved the "Probably" to the begining of the next paragraph, where it seemed it would make more sense. I hope I have not disqualified myself.]
-rg
Hindergarten’s Atlas
An Interlude for a party of characters lvl 7-9.
Oval Door
Permanent Image
Quicklings
Female Hill Giant
Staff of Thunder and Lightning
False Beard made of Dwarf Hair
Intro (will eventually be told to the players by a townsperson in Eck.)
A while ago – before most of you were kids – there was a gnomish illusionist in these parts, a queer, reclusive big-nosed git who lived up in the hills above the town. Hants Hindergarten, he called himself. He passed through the town every once in a while – never shopped for more than a bit of vegetables now and then. It became a game with some of the local lads as we grew up, trying to follow him back to his hideout up in the hills, but we never found it. He would always just turn a corner and disappear.
Anyway, as you may or may not know, powerful folk draw trouble like warm turds draw flies. No one knows for sure what it was that happened, but sure enough, one day , not so very long ago, he turned up dead out there in those hills, cut up with little knives, lots of little cuts, here and there – not one of them enough to kill you, mind you, but all together like that . . . it were bad.
Folk around here figured he woke something up – there are all kinds of old wives’ takes about the wee creatures of the woods that come out and steal babies and such, but I don’t hold with any of that.
Since then, things do go missing all the time, though. Maybe it’s the ghost of that gnome. And maybe it’s the gremlins that killed him. Who knows?
Anyways, not many hunters in these parts anymore. There’s not much game, what with big Nernice out there bashing around, making that racket of hers. She’s not much of a neighbor, either – keeps to herself, mostly, not that there’s any around here that’d try to go after a giant, now, even if there are rumors about her havin’ the wizard’s treasure and all. It ain’t like folk around here have much use for something like that, even if it were real.
Mind you, every once in a while there’s one or two who think they can sneak in at night and get it, but it just don’t work out that way. It’s like she sees better at night than she does by day. Uncanny, she is. So after enough of the town’s boys didn’t come back, they stopped going up there in the first place. And as long as you don’t mind losing stuff, well, this ain’t such a bad place to be.
Backstory:
About 20 years ago a Gnome Illusionist calling himself Hants Hindergarten took up residence in the hills beyond the small roadside village of Eck. He lived there, shrouded in plenty of mystery, making occasional trips to visit libraries and other wizards far and near, and always passing through the town each time he did so. No on in the town ever saw his home, although many tried to follow him over the years without success. By and large the hills around Eck were fairly peaceful. There were a couple of hill giant families rumored to be making their homes further up in the hills, but while the wizard was in the area between them and the town they did very little to bother anyone.
About a year ago, things took a turn for the worse. Although no one knew it at the time, a tribe of Quicklings, lead by a sneaky, evil little creature named Spivet, moved into the area. Notoriously mean-spirited and impossible to spot, they started to pester the townsfolk, got bored with that quickly, and then moved up into the hills looking for more fun.
They discovered Hindergarten’s secret home, and were insatiably curious about what he had inside. He managed to drive them off a couple of times, thanks mostly to his staff. It gave him some pretty powerful attacks, especially a few area effect attacks, the one thing that was very effective against the blindingly fast Quicklings. As an illusionist his ability to cast serious area effect direct damage spells himself was limited. After a few engagements. the quicklings decided that they were not going to get him in a direct attack.
Then the quicklings discovered the Giants, not far away. Finding the giants much easier to manipulate, they stole their bags and dragged them off towards the gnome’s house, making it look like he had stolen their bags.
The Quicklings managed to lure the Giants past the permanent illusion that hid the small oval door that led to Hindergarten’s home. There they orchestrated a fight between the illusionist and the giants that left most of the giants dead. One of the females, named Nernice, managed to get away with only being blinded.
While Hindergarten managed to defeat the giants, the quicklings got what they wanted – the great oval door was open, and they were able to get inside. Before Hindergarten returned from driving off the giants they managed to steal a great deal. Hindergarten returned and managed to drive them out of his home again, commanding his familiar (a tabby cat named Slats”) to shut the door, but he himself was caught outside, cut off by the Quicklings.
In then end, Hindergarten died trying to reach the town, where he hoped to be safe. The quicklings had some loot from his home, but not everything, and they were unable to get in once again. They forgot about poor Nernice for the time being, much more interested in getting past the Oval Door (actually a trap door, set horizontally into the top of a hill). They tried to lure the cat out – even using one of the things they’d stolen from the illusionist, his home-made, Dwarf-hair, False Beard of Disguise, to try to convince the cat that they were her missing master finally returning. Of course, that didn’t work at all.
Months later, Nernice managed a bit of a recovery. She is still blind, but has learned to compensate (she has a few levels of fighter now, and has learned blind-fight and blindfight 5’radius). Because she uses her other senses, and is no longer bothered by the invisibility of the Quicklings, she has been able to hold her own against them, killing enough of them in little skirmishes from time to time that they have learned to leave her alone, although they hope to lure some unsuspecting heroes to her lair to take care of her for them. Nernice, for her part, knows what she’s up against now – she sets snares for the Quicklings, kills any that get too close, and is totally focused on killing them now that the wizard is dead. Over time, after a lot of exposure, she has also developed a tolerance for the Quickling’s sleep poison, which no longer affects her.
Nernice did recover some of the wizard’s belongings, including a journal which will offer some clues to the riddle used to conceal the secret word that will open the Oval Door.
The Present.
Part 1.
The party is nearing the bodaciously small town of Eck. They might not even stop to take much notice, but a bearded gnome they pass on the road outside Eck has a few words with them. He tells them about the great wizard who died in the area, and his missing staff a staff that gave him the power to command the thunder and lightning. He tells them his name is Spivet (the truth, although some PCs may feel it’s an odd name for a Gnome) that he has given up looking for it (the truth) and he hopes that they have better luck than he did (also the truth). He also warns them about the Giantess – has seen her brain many a young foolhardy soul (his own people, also the truth).
This gnome is actually Spivet, the occasional leader of the Quicklings. Spivet and the quicklings tried for MONTHS to figure out the secret of the great Oval Door, and finally had to give up. Spivet’s current plan is to lure humans up into the hills to try to open the door, and in the bargain perhaps also kill Nernice, the vengeful blind hill giant who is stalking his people.
So in this encounter he is actually telling the truth at every turn. Of course, the Quicklings are far too undisciplined to simply meet the party and have this conversation with them. While Spivet is talking to them, two young quicklings steal up to the two rearmost members of the party and try to pick their pockets (The quicklings pick pockets at +12. Unless you really feel like making rolls for them, assume they take 10. If either of the characters being picked can make a spot check at DC 22, they notice something, but when they turn around they’ll see nothing, as the quicklings are invisible.)
Should Spivet be revealed, he’ll disappear into the underbrush as quickly as possible. If captured, he’ll reveal nothing, and do everything he can to escape. He’ll have plenty of help from his fellow Quicklings, and will more than likely get away. Should he actually be killed, another Quickling will take his place, although without the Beard of Disguise.
In town the party can gather a bit more information. To begin with, they can ask about the story that they were told by the Gnome on the road. The Townsfolk can back up much of the story with their own experience. Hindergarten was real, and did turn up mostly naked and dead. Nernice is real, out there in the woods. And things disappear all the time now, and they have just learned to live with it. (Note: An interestin detail PCs may or may not notice is that the townsfolk know nothing about an Oval Door, or where Hindergarten was actually living)
Observant PCs (DC 25) will also spot that many of the townsfolk have superficial cuts on their hands and any other exposed flesh – all minor, all in various stages of healing. If they ask, the townsfolk will usually dismiss the cut as an accident, the sort of thing that is always happening in Eck.
The more time the PCs spend in the little town the more they will lose to the quickling thieves. It won’t be very obvious at first, but bits and pieces of their gear will start to disappear, something which the townsfolk dismiss with a shrug. “That’s life in Eck. No sense owning nice things, they just go missing after a bit."
Spivet’s plan, of course, is to lure the PCs off to fight Nernice for him and to make their way past the Oval door. So the thievery will not be subtle for long. Eventually, at some appropriate moment in the evening, a quickling will snatch something very abruptly from one of the PCs – something clearly valuable, and disappear into the dark nighttime hills.
Once the party is ready to head off after the burglars, they’re hooked.
Part 2
Spivet’s trail leads into the woods. Eventually it leads to a fairly worn, easy-to-follow game trail (Will some PCs remember that there isn’t much game in the area, according to the townsfolk?). Making it even easier to follow is the obvious drag marks made, from time to time, by the bag of loot, lifted off the PCs, that the figure they are tracking seems to be burdened with.
Just before dawn they will lose the trail, but see a small cliff face ahead. A DC 20 spot check will see the flicker of a campfire, nearly dead, reflecting off the cliff. (this is not Nernice’s campfire – she has little use for one. The Quicklings are using their ability to create Dancing Lights to create the illusion of the fire.)
As they approach the cliff, on the path or otherwise, they will begin to encounter an intermittent collection of traps and snares. None of them are very skillful or complex – simple tree snares and deadfalls, a pit here or there, etc. (In a finished adventure, a list of these traps would be provided, along with either a map of the area and the placement of the traps, or some way of determining who hits the traps as the party approaches the campfire.
As they near the clearing at the base of the cliff, the party will see a large a large sleeping matt near the "fire," as well as a couple of worn bags much like the one they have been tracking over hill and dale. Nernice is standing in the shadows of the cliff face, waiting for the moment to make her entrance – which is when one of the party members touches her bags.
The fight with Nernice should be interesting. As soon as Nernice springs out of hiding, the Quicklings will drop the Dancing Light Campfire, which is illuminating the battlefield. The PCs may have to come up with some of their own light.
It’s possible that the PCs will try to talk to Nernice, who might even be convinced to stop trying to kill them long enough to let them know her side of the story.
Nernice’s treasure is actually a bit on the rich side for a lone Hill giant – double the standard “what’s in the giant’s bag” loot, and add in a journal and a spellbook, both small in size. They both belonged to Hindergarten. The journal itself is actually a travel journal, including pages and pages of hand-drawn maps, in addition to some other maps, obviously drawn by other hands. Flipping through the book a few of the party members can find each of their home towns sketched, and some important features noted – along with many other places as well. The other book, a minor traveling spellbook, contains a few illusionist spells.
There is also, on the last couple of pages in the journal, a few short lines about the Quicklings.
I don’t know what they are – they move so fast. I turn at the sound of a creak or a distant laugh, and there is no one there again. Things go missing. It smells of something fey, and something fell. Slats has seen them more than I, and he’s convinced they’re trying to get into the house. It’s time to set some wards.
Part 3. On the trail again.
While the party is sorting through the Giant’s bags, Spivet (disguised as a Gnome again) will appear, stepping out of the underbrush. Spivet might have done much better to let things evolve on their own, but he’s just not able to be that meticulous all the time. He needs to taunt the players a bit. He asks about the Staff – seems very interested in the Staff. His real intention is to get the party angry or curious enough to chase him again, this time Hindergarten’s door. If it isn’t going very well, he’ll even resort to pulling off the magic beard and revealing his real form, and waving one of the stolen bits of the PC’s loot, taunting them with it, before disappearing into the woods. He is careful not to conceal his trail, and heads directly for Hindergarten’s house.
Should the party not pursue, Spivit will try again, this time appearing to them as the ghost of a gnome, dressed only in his underclothes, cut to ribbons with little cuts. He’ll beg the party to set his spirit to rest by opening the Oval Door.
If that fails to entice the players, Spivet will set up an ambush for the players a bit further ahead, bringing with him all the Quicklings he can (the whole group from part 3).
Part 4. The Oval Door and Hindergarten’s House
Eventually the trail will lead the players to a simple hill. They will be able to see a worn path that leads up the hill to a certain point, then seems to stop abruptly. This is a trail worn by the comings and goings of the Quicklings – a trail they have intentionally worn to help spot the illusion. It should help the party see the illusion for what it is, too. Once past it, they will be faced with a great wooden Oval Door, actually a trap door cut in the top of the hill, which has been flattened where the illusionary hill continued to rise, perhaps an image of what the hill looked like before the top was chopped off and the hill hollowed out to make Hindergarten’s home. On the door there is a riddle carved in Gnomish Script:
It has cities, but no houses;
It has forests, but no trees;
It has rivers, but no fish.
What is it?
The only way to open the door (short of VERY powerful magic that should be beyond the party) is to answer the riddle, in gnomish (answer: a map). It’s possible that the party will find some other way to get in (trained or polymorphed Umber Hulk, anyone?). Whatever way they manage to get in, the result will be the same. They get into the house, and the Quicklings try to sneak in along with them. The party will have a few minutes to examine the handful of rooms on the first level before they will start to notice the presence of the quicklings.
[Once the password for the door has been heard by the quicklings, they will be able to repeat it and open the door themselves, should the players decide to close it behind themselves. If the party manages to make it impossible for the Quicklings to enter, they will set an ambush outside the door and wait for the party to come out.
The Gnome’s home consists of two levels. The upper level has simple living quarters – a small bedroom, a kitchen, a root cellar, and a comfortable library. All of this is gnome-sized, and once the action starts all medium sized characters (except dwarves) will suffer a -2 circumstance penalty for having to stoop and fight in such close quarters.
In the library, set idly in a corner, is Hindergarten’s Staff. Spivet, who has seen it in use, knows he wants to grab it right away, and will make a move for it, even if that means revealing himself. (On his last day, Hindergarten had used all of the charges the staff would allow him, and left it behind when he went out to try to finish off the last of the giants. So when he was cut off from his home by the Quicklings he did not have the staff with him)
Another trap door blocks entrance to the lower level of the house. It’s here that the party will find the weak, emaciated form of Slats, who has been guarding this door for the past year, waiting for his master’s return, living barely on what it could scrounge to eat in his master’s cupboards and a few insects here and there. He’s a mostly normal cat now, although some vestige of his connection to his dead master keeps him at his post, guarding this door, although there isn’t much fight left in him. As the party nears him he will first try to scare them off (feeble). After a few moments of interaction with the party, if it’s possible for a Quickling to be there with the party, Slats will turn and face an empty corner, and hiss like crazy, very upset. If left on his own, he’ll eventually spring and last at the empty air, stop in mid air and collapse, gutted by an unseen blade.
And then the Quicklings will attack.
Probably. At some point the party will have to fight the Quicklings – a lot depends upon if the party decides to go to Hindergarten’s house, how they get in, and what sort of precautions they take. But once the door is open, the quicklings have what they wanted – they can get into the house, and they can kill the players at their leisure. They won’t just blindly attack, however. They’ll sneak along with the rest of the party, and if a party member goes off on his or her own, a few will try a quick ambush to try to stack the odds a bit in their favor. But once the fighting starts, in the cramped quarters of the gnome’s house, all ten of the quicklings and Spivet himself will get into the action.
The lower level of Hindergarten’s house is breathtaking. It’s all one big room – a 50’ long oval. Along the walls in spots are more bookcases. These are filled with journals much like the ones in the Giant’s bag. In those journals Hindergarten managed to catalogue the entire known world of [Greyhawk]. And, filling the center of the room, is Hindergarten’s masterpiece, the product of those journals. He has created, using a Permanent Illusion, a detailed, three dimensional map of the known world. An arcane spellcaster, by concentrating, can actually control the map, and zoom in on specific locations. Many of the locations have been marked with notes, and are clearly carefully detailed to allow for teleportation with as little chance of error as possible.
The magic that creates the image is centered on a flagon-sized Garnet set in the floor of the room. Should it be pried up, it can be carried around and will not lose its powers unless dispelled by a high level (12 or more) spellcaster. However, just putting the stone in a bag or covering it will not suppress the illusion – for that it will need to be placed in some sort of magical container (a bag of holding will do). The stone itself isn’t something that will interest just anyone, but a powerful political figure or similar figure might be enticed to pay upwards of 5000 gp for the Hindergarten’s Atlas.
The Quicklings themselves don’t have much of a lair. There’s a covered pit not far from Hindergarten’s house where they dump most of the loot they pick up when they steal from the townsfolk and travelers. Most of it – missing boots, utensils, simple jewelry, etc., will be of little value to the pcs, but if returned to the people of Eck will earn them the local’s undying gratitude (for what it’s worth).
Encounters:
Townsfolk (a few experts, maybe, but not very high level, and no combat is expected here)
Nernice Female Hill Giant FTR2, CL 9
A handful of traps (all CR 1-3, very light-weight)
11 Quicklings (10 + Spivet). CR 10ish.
Major Loot:
The Staff of Thunder and Lightning (treat it as the 3rd edition Rod by the same name)
The Beard of Disguise (as a Hat of Disguise, except it’s a fairly scratchy false beard made of Dwarf hair)
The Atlas of Hindergarten, the great illusionary map of the world, which is centered on a 10-pount Garnet.
----
Ugh. Time to go to bed. I’ll be looking forward to reading yours, Wulf.
I reserve the right to tinker and edit and fix typos in the morning when I can see straight again.
[EDIT 11 am CST: I did come back in the morning and fix a few typos, and try to clear up a confusing point, but to be fair I didn't change anything addressed in the post below. The place that I tried to iron out a little is in part four, where I discuss the moment when the Quicklings attack -- specifically I moved the "Probably" to the begining of the next paragraph, where it seemed it would make more sense. I hope I have not disqualified myself.]
-rg
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