The Thieves Guild Ebonclad has learned of a construct that would make an ideal guardian or soldier. Unfortunately the constructs creator is looking to sell this to The Crown. It is in Ebonclad's best interest to intercept this construct before its abilities can be demonstrated. The party plays the role of a group of saboteurs, required to sabotage or destroy a construct named Marx before it can be demonstrated to The Crown in less than a day’s time. The mission’s primary objective is to locate the construct Marx and destroy or sabotage it. If Marx is destroyed outright, the party will need a patsy to pin the crime on. If possible, the party should steal Eva Dalphane’s schematics for Marx, as well as investigate how the artificer brought the construct into the city undetected.
Duke Adrian Abdel is a living legend in the city of Baldur's Gate, and much of the city has gathered to celebrate him and his accomplishments. On tis day of festivities, though, the dukes past will finally catch up with him, with dire consequences. Murder ha returned to Baldur's Gate, and brave heroes are the city's only hope to stop the violence. Wealth flows into the city of Baldur's Gate like water. As the rich luxuriate in their mansions atop the bluff and artisans ply their trades on the steep streets, masses of poor laborers swell the slums. Money and power beget political scandal, religious fervor, crime . . . and murder. No one feels save on the rain darkened streets. Strange, foreign gods are beseeched in secret shrines. The city is rife with corruption. And through it all, the body count keeps rising. Murder in Baldur's Gate™ is a Dungeons & Dragons® Roleplaying Game adventure that can be played using the rules for 3rd Edition (v.3.5), 4th Edition, and the D&D Next playtest.
The Maimed Virulence has come. The future of the Cinnabar Throne and the lives of the denizens of Phlan are in jeopardy. The Cult of the Dragon rejoices, and the Black Fist is powerless to stop them. How will the factions of the city respond to this threat? Can Phlan be saved this time? Part One of Under Emerald Claws. An adventure for 5th-10th level characters.
A ship captain, Alyse Carl, double crossed the Thieves Guild Ebonclad in the past. Alyse and her ship, the Spearhead, has recently returned to port in Kintalla. Seeing an opportunity, the guild sends out a crew of its newer members to settle the debt. The mission has three major objectives: to discredit the reputation of the trader captain Alyse Carl, to turn the goodwill of her crew against her, and to relieve her of ownership of her longship, the Spearhead. The party can use whatever resources it desires to complete the mission, but is under orders not to kill Alyse Carl.
Darkness festers deep inside the forest of Logard. A beast has emerged, killing and abducting local villagers. A secret society of monster hunters has enlisted the heroes to help find one of their missing members and aid them in killing the beast… The Great Rebirth is a streamlined Draw Steel adventure with embedded rules references to make running and playing fun and easy. The adventure is laid out so players are introduced to a new mechanic (tests, combat, montage, and negotiation) one at a time, keeping the game and story engaging, without being overwhelming. What is this adventure about? The heroes have answered the call to eliminate a beast that has rampaged through the local village of Logard. They receive help in navigating Logard forest where they discover and explore a set of ruins while learning about tests. The ruins are trapped and a group of cultists send the heroes plummeting into their lair; combat ensues. From there it's a fast-paced journey of survival as the heroes escape a collapsing dungeon in a montage test, then negotiate with a speaking stone door in order to finally gain access to the monster they’ve been looking for: a being that has undergone the evil saint Eseld’s ‘Great Rebirth.’ Who is this adventure for? This is an ideal adventure for those wanting to run Draw Steel for the first time or looking to onboard newer players. The adventure is broken into various encounters, each focused on separate mechanics. This allows players to learn the different aspects of Draw Steel in a digestible and fun way. The Great Rebirth Features: - A 3-6 hour level 1 adventure for 5 players. (Balance suggestions included for various party sizes.) - 3 custom encounter maps (2 for combat, 1 for tests). - Embedded stat blocks and ‘Rules Recap’ text to keep things flowing at the table and minimize time spent searching for common answers. - All original artwork from Katrina Neyra (cover art) and Shaeomar.
Wherein a solid plan to ransom captured wands turns sour for three friends and their employees, and a local luminary loses his tongue.
The brilliant (if somewhat eccentric) detective Viktor Saint-Demain has put more criminal masterminds behind bars than any three other inqusitives. But when the master sleuth fails to get the recogintion he deserves, he sets out to prove to Sharn that they can’t live without him. Pgs. 16-34
When huge stones fall out of the night sky, A deadly curse settles over Gravencross. Help the village exorcise the Demon Stones. “The sun had set an hour ago, and the rain lashed down and the wind howled on the dark moor. A storm this late in the season was unusual, but this one seemed different. The clouds were more menacing, tinged with anger, the rain colder and more biting than usual. Skerrill had to find the lost calf and get him back to the farm before his father came back from the city on business. He’d been looking for two hours now, and he was right in the middle of the moor when the storm hit. He knew he should have turned back as soon as darkness fell, but then he was never the brightest boy in the valley. If only he had remembered to lock the farm gate. The calf was now likely dead anyway having stumbled among the boulders and rocks, panicking in the dark, and then fallen in a floodwater stream and drowned. Either way, he was in more trouble than he could imagine. Suddenly, a bright flash of white light and a roaring peal of thunder were preceded by an explosion as a huge object fell from the sky and impacted the ground of the moor no more than a stone’s throw from him. Dirt, mud, water, and debris erupted from the impact site, flying high into the air and then covering the moor for hundreds of feet all around. Skerrill was knocked to the ground instantly and covered in the fallout from the blast. His ears rang and his head spun, but he staggered to his feet in a daze. He stumbled to where the blast had happened only moments before, and in a depression in the ground lay a huge stone glowing orange as if hot. Skerrill passed out. Two more thunderous explosions crashed in the distance.”
Finding missing people is a job any adventurers for hire get used to. But when the missing person turns out to be the recently deceased wife of a prominent merchant's son, and when there is the small matter of a major jewelry theft to deal with as well, then you've got an adventure that is nothing other than normal.... Find the Lady is an adventure for the D&D and AD&D game systems. It is designed for a party of 1st - 3rd level characters, with secondary skills generated according to the article in this issue. This scenario was not designed with any set number of characters or mix of professions and levels in mind, and could equally well be run as a group or solo adventure. It can be played as a one-off adventure or as part of the Pelinore or Zhalindor campaigns, and notes are included on placing the adventure in either world. GM2 Find the Lady Pgs. 15-46
Despite what some may think, those in Zhentil Keep haven't forgotten about their orc troops in Phent. In public discussion in Zhentil Keep, the leaders of the Zhentilar, the military branch of Zhentil Keep, have confidently asserted that the orcs in Thesk are completely loyal to Zhentil Keep. They maintain that the orcs are just biding their time and building up trust among the citizens, until the appointed time when the word is given. In private, these same leaders are gravely concerned. The leaders didn't get to positions of command by being idiots, and they know that the orcs are treated well and accepted in Thesk, which is a rarity for them with the humans and humanoids of Faerûn in general. The leaders know that many of the orcs would be reluctant to destroy the source of this acceptance. But what if the orcs' chief god, Gruumsh, told them to? The Zhentilar turned to the Black Network and presented the problem. The Zhents knew what to do. The Zhents have dispatched a powerful cleric, a master of persuasion and deception, to pose as an orc prophet of Gruumsh and whip the orcs into a destructive frenzy. In addition, the Zhentilar have staged raids against human caravans by what look like orc warriors so that they can start antiorc sentiment among the population of Thesk. Twin Oaks is a tiny, sleepy little thorp located just within the sheltering eaves of a great forest. Home to an extended family clan of farmers and woodcutters, the community was founded within living memory and since its creation the inhabitants have known only peace and prosperity. But just as the gentle breezes of late summer can transform rapidly into the deadly storms of autumn, dark times have come suddenly to Twin Oaks, in the person of Deskryn, a vampire who finds himself on the run from deadly enemies. Just two nights ago, as the good folk of Twin Oaks prepared for the annual harvest, Deskryn’s castle home was invaded by an intrepid band of adventurers led by a noble paladin. Although the party did not achieve its goal of slaying the vampire himself, they managed to drive him from his lair and force him to flee into the night with only the barest fraction of his former resources in tow. Unfortunately for the good folk of Twin Oaks, theirs was the community onto which the 2 vampire stumbled first, and it is here that the fiends have taken refuge. The little settlement offers the displaced vampire all that he needs: shelter from the hateful light of the sun, a selection of new servants, and a supply of fresh mortal blood. Even in his current condition, Deskryn alone is more than a match for the nhabitants of the thorp; but his best hope of survival lies not in conquest, but in secrecy. He plans to hide in Twin Oaks until he believes it safe to leave; then, he can begin plotting his revenge on the hateful paladin and her compatriots who brought him to this lowly state. As for the citizens of the thorp, they are all but helpless in the face of this powerful enemy. The vampire has already slaked his unholy thirst on one of their number, and his minions have taken hostages to ensure that the inhabitants do as they are told. All the folk of Twin Oaks hope that Deskryn will take what he wants and then leave them in peace, but few of them believe that such hopes are realistic. Until Deskryn has satisfied himself that the coast is clear, Twin Oaks—and its people—belong to him.
An interesting and atypical adventure in its writing style. For one the module contains insightful "When things go Wrong" sections and DM guidance for sticking close enough to the rails for the story and fun's sake. Lots of DM hints about how to handle PCs' choices. Overall the story is fine too - a traditional hook, a mystery, some twists. There's a tower, a surprise pocket-dimension context, and a dungeon. It's mirror of life trapping, isn't it? Well, yes and no. People go in, and they don't come out. Nor can you talk with anyone inside. Somehow, that's not quite the way you remember those mirrors work. This Skarda fellow showed up a few years ago with a band of raiders, and no one in the land has been safe since then. Whole villages have disappeared into this Skarda's mirror. Your band is approached by relatives of one of the victims?and adventurer like yourselves. You have to get into that mirror of whatever-it-is, find this man, and get him out in one piece. The reward is more that adequate. Only problem is, no one out here can tell you what to expect once you get in? or even how to get there. TSR 9188
The Thieves Guild Ebonclad has welcomed its newest team to the fold, assigned to the Keeper Reese Kincaid for instruction. The recruits are green, but capable. Their Keeper has devised a job for them to assess their talents. If his new team is successful, he gets some insight as to how his new Scraps operate, in addition to scratching something off his to-do list. If they die trying, well, then Reese has one fewer thing to worry about. The party must track down the slum thief Dale E’ssio, and reclaim valuables marked for the guild. Should anything unfortunate happen to Dale, there must be no evidence tracing things back to Ebonclad. The mission will require the party to enter Kintalla’s sewers to ultimately confront Dale E’ssio in a ruined slum house. Characters may have to explore the city while trying to get a lead on him.
A minion of chaos has come to the Prime Material Plane from the void of the Far Realms to terrorize and conquer in the name of its masters. The PCs must act quickly to assemble a legendary artefact powerful enough to weaken the minion so it can be defeated. Pgs. 20-47
This one-shot takes about 3 to 4 hours to complete and is optimized for four to six 1st-level heroes. It works as a gentle introduction to new Draw Steel players, demonstrating the main mechanics that make up the game one at a time. The characters are locally famous heroes who were recruited by Basil, a mutual acquaintance, former Courser operative, and current tavern keeper. An old friend of his needs help on some Courser business, so the heroes must meet on the Red Boar tavern and wait further instructions. What they don't know is that the Coursers have been compromised; their leadership is now controlled by Ajax the Invincible! Under Ajax's command, the Coursers's main function has become to get rid of any obstacles to the tyrant overlord's imminent invasion of Blackbottom. The heroes' "mission" is actually just one of several ambushes taking place in the city to kill those who pose a threat to Ajax's rule.
Three important citizens of Phlan, who stand against the tyrannical dragon that rules, seek to escape and find refuge across the Moonsea. Can you extricate those that are vital to the factions before it’s too late?
The Rise of the Runelords Adventure Path continues! A sudden string of brutal killings terrorizes the town of Sandpoint, and the killer's mark bears a familiar shape. Investigation leads to the Lost Coast's most notorious haunted mansion, a dilapidated ruin that has become the lair of a monstrous murderer. Yet this killer is but one of many, a member of a group of fanatic cutthroats calling themselves the Skinsaw Men. To defeat the cult, the PCs must travel to the bustling city of Magnimar to unravel the sinister source of these murders before they become the Skinsaw Men's next victims!
The duchy of Velen is a bastion of law and order in an otherwise untamed land. Its ruler, Duke Calchais, holds his citizens and visitors to his city to a high standard of conduct. When Velen's harbormaster is murdered, the duke enlists the aid of adventurers to see that justice is served. Was the harbormaster a victim of larceny gone awry, or is something more sinister afoot in Velen? Murder in Velen is a 4-hour standalone adventure set in and around the port city of Velen, which is located in the peninsula nation of the same name in southwestern Faerûn. Velen is designed for a party of five 10th-level player characters, but it can easily be scaled by adding or removing creatures.
A short Dungeon in the Desert for 3rd Level Characters. There is a secret in the desert that must not be discovered, and a gang of tomb-robbers are going to find it. Chase them through the dungeon and stop them. Of course, they almost found the secret. It couldn't be too much work for you to find it now... Unshifted Sands is a short adventure built around a tomb in the desert, designed to be played in 4-5 hours. VTT Maps Included.
As the floating cities of Netheril hover peacefully in the air, the winds of intrigue boil all around them. The phaerimm continue to plot the downfall of the Netherese even as Karsus prepares for the casting of his greatest spell. Undead walk the land, driving orcs and humans before them. And somewhere below the greatest nation of Faerûn, the Tarrasque awakens from a long slumber. How the Mighty Are Fallen, is an adventure designed for use with the Netheril: Empire of magic boxed campaign setting (which is required to play this adventure). Within these pages, the final heroes of Netheril can : Gather the spell components, that Karsus requires for casting his "most wondrous" spell, the only 12th level spell ever known. He just needs a few body parts from two creatures - A gold dragon and the Tarrasque. Reuinte lost lovers after they have been separated by death. Nopheu's wife was killed in a magical explosions, and now he's finally saved enough money for her to be resurrected. Certainly a dead body couldn't pose a threat to a band of stalwart heroes?! Follow the winds of fate to wherever Tyche delivers them. Numerous side adventures allow players to take their characters to a variety of different locations. Some heroes might want to follow the trail of the missing nether scrolls, while others might want to join the resistance and fight Karsus and the other archwizards. But only the bravest hearts can take the first step... TSR 9540
“The Temple Between” is an adventure for 9th level characters, and it is challenging enough to take them to 11th level by the time all is said and done. Although intended as the final chapter of the heroic tier portion of the Scales of War Adventure Path, it can be run as a standalone adventure, or as an adventure in a campaign of your own making, with a small degree of modification. It contains elements of urban investigation, dungeon delving, and even wartime conflict, making it a suitable adventure to players of many tastes and preferences. The western end of Elsir Vale has been greatly troubled in recent days. The threat of the orc hordes from beyond the Stonehome Mountains, though turned back at Bordrin’s Watch, still lingers in the people’s minds. Peculiar and hostile creatures of shadow lurk in the caverns and caves below. Political squabbling grows among the city’s powerful dwarf clans. All this makes the city particularly vulnerable to an enemy nobody saw coming - that nobody even imagined. This enemy has goals and objectives far beyond the ultimately unimportant Elsir Vale, but the first step is the utter subjugation of Overlook. An enemy who, at least in part, is already here. In this adventure the player characters start by investigating the strange behavior of the city's clergy. They swiftly discover hints of a conspiracy worming its way through the city hierarchy - some members are possessed while others have been replaced by dopplegangers. After trailing this conspiracy to its source they discover a portal that leads to an ancient temple in the mountains. Using the portal, the PCs go to the abandoned ancient temple where they must confront both a cadre of fey and a band of mercenaries, from whom they learn there is a plot for a full-scale invasion of the region! The PCs must them rush back to Overlook and cement their place as heroes as they face off against the invading forces. Pgs. 4-71