Traveling adventure?

[Maraxle]

Hi all. I am running a new campaign, but have been too busy this past week to think up and write an adventure. So, I am looking for some help.

The party has recently been contacted by an organization (good-based) that has noticed their deeds, and has invited them to a meeting of sorts. The organization sent a couple of people along, who talked to the party directly and requested their help. The party agreed. This week's adventure is going to be the trip to the secret meeting place, which is several days away.

Well, I have never run a traveling / wilderness adventure, so I'm not sure what would make a good one. The two people who are leading the party to the meeting have not told the party where they are going, so it could be on back roads, through numerous towns, whatever. The organization is secretive, and hunted, as their main enemy has strong government ties, and control over the law enforcement of the kingdom.

Does anyone have a good idea for an adventure that could take place along the road like this? Ideally, the party would arrive at the meeting at the end of the adventure, so we could start there the next time.

Are there any good free adventures out there that I could adapt to work like this? Or even PDF downloads that I have to pay for?

 

[Maraxle]

Has anyone run a travelling adventure before? Please help.

 

[John Crichton]

I don't know of any downloads you can grab to help you out but I can throw you a few suggestions. I typically run adventures that are wilderness based and this involved much traveling.

The trick is to keep things moving. If the party is not doing anything for a day, there is no reason to bore everyone with trivial descriptions of the local fauna, unless there is something particularly interesting or important to be found.

If the party has mounts, the travel time should be cut as least in half. I would suggest, since they want to stay hidden and "under the radar," that these NPC's take them through some kind of danger area that not many would follow them through. Something like a bog/swamp, very dense forest or trecherous mountain range.

Along the way, these places tend to have their own nasties built right in. A forest with a deep river will keep mounts from going across. A rope bridge will do the same. Broken bridges can be a challenge as well. I've had parties take up a whole evening just find a way to cross a chasm.

Most forests are particularly deadly at night as are any other natural setting. If you want to throw alot at them, have there be a small, remote outpost about halfway to the destination so they can heal up and maybe restock on a few supplies. Also, it depends on what level they are and the classes in the party. The higher the level, the longer they can stay out there and not have to stop and rest.

I hope this little bit helps.

 

[LostSoul]

You could always run it like a typical dungeon.

Keep the PCs to paths and roads (instead of hallways and corridors). Instead of rooms and chambers you have a dark meadow and the small town of Fuller's Hill.

 

[Kilmore]

Wandering Monsters... don't use 'em. Of course, that's my personal opinion, but I generally think about encounters that the PC's would have on the particular trip. I usually don't key the encounter locations to a specific location unless the party has some sort of map to begin with, so I don't waste time planning encounters that never occur (though it's not a bad idea to have some spare ideas kicking around).

Is the party known to the villians at this point? How secure is the law enforcement in the wilderness? Or at least along the roads? If enforcement is high and the law is as corrupt as you suggest, there may be multiple posts along the road that the party may want to avoid. Of course, avoiding the guard posts is very suspicious activity! Perhaps a chase can occur while dodging a post and being detected by the guards. The posts can be made more odious by a hefty travel tax.

If enforcement is not so high, then there's bandits to worry about. Of course, there's nothing to say that the bandits are not associated with the law enforcers!

Of course, no wilderness adventure is complete without good varmint encounters. Figure out what kind of environment the party will travel through, find out what infests that environment, and create it's lair and the method it uses to bushwhack silly adventurers that stumble through it's domain.

Oh, and John is right. Natural hazards are wonderful, too.

 

[Hand of Evil]

First think about terrian and the condition of the roads the players are going to be traveling. Think about people, places and things they will see on the road. Make note cards on them.

Now break the trip down into 'legs'. Set up events to happen, this is a scripted encounter that WILL happen to the players and can be anything from meeting an important NPC, finding an old standing stone, to fighting monsters.

During the first leg they will see farm lands, drovers, rangers, hearders, small animals, banbits.

The second leg, may see a lone ranger, a bounty hunter, larger animals, farmland become wilderness, may see a lumberjack camp and spend the night, roads are not in the best condition, maybe ruins dot the country side, bridges may be out, rivers flooding their banks.

When setting up your legs have a peak. The worst thing happens at this time, the rest of the trip after that is unevent.

 

[Airwolf]

Perhaps one of the two guides is actually a spy for the 'evil' group. Have one of the guides secretly trying to contact his/her group to stage an ambush.

Give the PC's a couple of chances to spot the spy. If caught make sure the spy has a good story already, don't just give into the PC's and say "ah shucks you caught me."

You could also have the spy leave notes indicating where the hideout is. Maybe this is his/her first chance to get out and try and make contact. The notes could even look like the PC's wrote them in case someone from the 'good' group finds them. This would frame the PC's.

At this point the 'good' group could think the PC's are working for the 'evil' group. At the same time maybe the 'evil' group knows the PC's met with the 'good' group and now thinks they are allied with the 'good' group.

The PC's could then get caught in an ugly crossfire between the rival groups.

Those are just some thoughts off the top of my head. Good luck!

 

[Hand of Evil]

List of events:

Gone lame - PC or horse goes lame and forces the party to seek help. Party looses one day or two and meets NPC, say a wise hermit/monk. Hooks: Monk is the last of his temple and ask the party where they are going and then to carry a letter to a friend in the town the party is going to.

Broken wagon - Party comes across a wagon that has lost a wheel. NPCs ask for help. Party looses 1/2 to one day. Hooks: Highway robbery, the wagon is a set up, people who stop and start to help are ambushed by banbits, who jump out of the wagon and side of the roads.

Old Bridge - How safe is it and will it hold a man and horse? Options: Ambush, Toll, river in flood.

Lumber Jack Camp - Lumber Jacks are a rough lot and love to tell tells, they are also spend a lot of time in the woods away from the fair sex. Trouble or lasting friendships.

Farmers Child - Life on the farm is boring, hard and sometimes farmers have too many kids. Farmer ask for someone to take his child on as an apprentace or the kid runs after the party and joins up.

Monster Attack - standard monster on a rampage.