"An army on the move, an ancient artifact, its purpose long forgotten, and the sinister plans of an unknown foe: When these elements combine, it's bad news for the good-aligned cities of the Blood Plateau. A massive band of orcs is marching on the Monastery of the Yellow Lotus, intent upon taking the "Flower That Does Not Bloom." The heroes must trek through goblin-infested tunnels and monster-filled woods ahead of the orcish horde, in a deadly Race to the Yellow Lotus." This adventure is the second in the "Tales from the Blood Plateau" series, but works well as a standalone or an intro to another campaign. Though the party does not actually engage the Death Knight/Blackguard antagonist, he is the primary driving force behind the events of the adventure. Published by MonkeyGod Enterprises and Highmoon Press

Kingdom of the Blind is a short adventure for four 8th-level characters. The adventure is set in a minor duchy that is fairly removed from the ruler of the land. As a result, trouble can brew in the land and the king would not know immediately. About three years ago, a medusa, Zhanna Serpentlock, began systematically turning every person in Duke Jellhyn Fedorel's (N male human Ari5) duchy to stone. After losing many peasants to the medusa, Jellhyn attempted to placate her. He offered her his second son, Dephyl, for a husband. Duke Jellhyn and his family had always been rather tense and uncomfortable around Dephyl anyway due to the fact that Dephyl had lost an eye in a freak magical explosion as a boy. Zhanna accepted the marriage, and though Dephyl didn't really care for his family due to how they treated him, he was also less than happy with the arrangement. A year ago, Zhanna appeared at Fedorel's citadel again. She claimed that Dephyl had been untrue and that she had turned him to stone for his adultery. Throwing Dephyl's stone head down in the courtyard of the citadel, she swore vengeance on all Fedorels for his betrayal. Duke Fedorel and his household fled the citadel. Rather than give chase, Zhanna took up residence there and began ruling the duchy as the sole remaining Fedorel family member. Jellhyn and his family have lived in exile for a year. This is what the PCs can learn, but more is going on. As it turns out, Dephyl is alive and quite happy with his marriage. Zhanna is not repulsed by his disfigurement as his family was, and Dephyl's missing eye is something of an asset in the relationship since it lessens his chance of being accidentally petrified by his wife. In the two years of his marriage, he has grown up and gained ambition -- he wants to rule. As a second son (pawned off on a monster), he would never have received the chance. Now, with Zhanna's help, he can rule. However, Dephyl doesn't have the stomach for killing his father and brother. Instead, he and Zhanna plotted to take over the duchy by frightening everyone away. Zhanna carved a stone bust of Dephyl and used it to frighten off the rest of his family. Now Dephyl and Zhanna live happily in the citadel and rule the duchy together, though Dephyl's existence among the living is a secret.

Trouble Cubed is a is a pseudo-adventure with three interesting gelatinous cube encounters. These three encounters are structured in a way that they can be used together as one adventure, or each individually dropped into any adventure from EL5 to 7. The encounters vary the cube's encounter situation significantly, and the tactics needed to deal with them, such as by trapping a character with a portcullis between a cube and a pit trap, placing a cube half down a pit trap, and having the cube accidentally ingest a beneficial potion (such as spider climb). Pgs. 29-30

Bringing Diablo II to the tabletop. The legendary Diablo and Diablo II computer games come to life with the release of the tabletop Diablo II: To Hell & Back roleplaying adventure. All a player needs is the Dungeons & Dragons(r) Player's Handbook (0786915501-8/00) to accompany the Diablo II game. Every level and all 4 acts of the computer game are represented in the tabletop mega-adventure, which will also include 64 pages of monsters, information for levels 1-30, and over 60 maps!

Was it destiny or something worse that destroyed the Order of the Opal Fist? A dungeon crawl designed for four 3rd level characters. The original article has a sidebar for scaling the adventure up or down. Pgs. 106-124

A mad necromancer imprisoned in a sanitarium has died. Now he has come back as a powerful undead wizard. His lunacy was only increased by his death and he has turned all the other inmates into his undead servants. Now the sanitarium is under his control. A traveling group of adventures must put a stop to the necromancer before his evil madness spreads.

For centuries, the Three Kingdoms have warred endlessly. The river flowing through it holds so many dead on its banks that the locals call it the River of Blood. But now, a new peril rises. With all three armies tucked into their winter camps, patrols and outposts on all sides report ambushes with alarming frequency - those who survive to make their reports, that is. None can say just who attacked them, however, for the assailants appear from the fog or in the middle of a snowstorm, hit hard and fast, then disappear. Arden, Duke Regent of Tyndall, fears that the dead have risen to haunt the living. Is he right?

For over a thousand years the things that lurk beneath the waters, skulk in the darkness and lie hungrily in dank crypts have been patient, while all around them men and monsters bicker amongst themselves, bold enough to traverse the dark caverns' depths but afraid or perhaps wise enough to leave the forgotten vaults and hidden passages alone. Beneath the lost ruins of ancient Thracia lie the vast caverns of a once great civilization. While a death cult rules the surface, the Minotaur King and his beast men lurk fall below. Descend even deeper into the darkness and discover a lost and arcane world that waits for those brave enough to enter! Necromancer Games and Judges Guild have teamed up to expand and update the classic module Coverns of Thracia for 3.5. Designed for characters of 3rd to 8th level and higher, the Caverns of Thracia is a mini-campaign setting that presents intricate plots and exciting adventures.

In The Standing Stone, a tiefling sorcerer named Dyson discovers a circle of standing stones constructed centuries ago by druids to hold their annual rituals; the druid community was later destroyed by the great dragon Ashardalon. Dyson uses the magic of the stones to replace people with animals transformed into humanoid form, loyal to him. Dyson encounters the player characters in the village of Ossington and tries to manipulate them into eliminating the remaining enemies standing in his way.

April, 1453. For a thousand years, the Byzantine Empire has been civilization's guardian, carrying on Rome's legacy. Now 100,000 battle-hardened Turkish warriors have surrounded the great city and are making ready to storm its mighty walls. Find the young empress - if she even exists. Stand alongside the last Roman emperor in a climactic fight to the death. Fight Vlad the Impaler, nastiest of the Sultan's allies. Meet the Eastern world's most exotic temptress. Wield new weapons: Greek Fire, arquebuses, and the Great Cannon. And as the Turks pour into the breaches, opportunities to hack abound. A stand-alone adventure, or use its detailed background as source material for your own campaigns! Published by Avalanche Publishing

The ancestral swords of a powerful lord have been stolen! In the dark of night, on the eve of battle, a shadowy figure crept into Lord Kunemura's chamber and made off with the most potent symbols of his power and lineage. Worse, Lord Kunemura had declared war on his old enemy, Lord Shotokami. The imminent battle will be decisive, and the future of Lord Kunemura's lands and family hang in the balance.

Darwell Umbruskor has long been known around town as an eccentric but ultimately harmless old sage. From what you've heard, he keeps odd hours, rarely speaks a word to anyone, and lets no one enter his tower save for a few servants. Though quiet and mysterious, Darwell has done nothing to around undue suspicion. Sir Jeffers, a crusading warrior who just made your acquaintance, claims otherwise. According to evidence he recently came across, Darwell Umbruskor is both a necromancer and a dedicated priest of an evil power. Published by Fantasy Flight Games

The Blood of Ancient Battles Rises An eternal demonic war draws dangerously close to an end, threatening the balance of all existence. At the crux of this chaotic feud resides a legendary terror fixated upon immortality at any cost. Only the most powerful heroes can hope to defeat a force that lies beyond the influence of the gods. "Bastion of Broken Souls" is a stand-alone adventure for the Dungeons & Dragons game. Designed to challenge 18th-level D&D heroes, it pits them against some of the most powerful beings in the multiverse. This adventure is the last element in a collection of adventures designed to take characters from beginner to advanced levels of play (although no previous adventure need be played to play this one). "Bastion of Broken Souls" features an additional 16 pages of content for the same price as most of the previous adventures in the series. WOTC 88167

Legend tells of a long-dead empire of sphinxes, ruled over for millennia by a great queen named Ankharet. She fell into darkness and her empire was shattered, as her subjects rebelled and cast her down. Unable to kill her, it is said that they bound her with great magic and buried her in a tomb, to wait for the foretold heroes who would be able to slay her and end her evil forever. Their empire in ashes, the sphinxes scattered to roam the world in bitter freedom, save a single great androsphinx. On the edge of the mysterious Barren Hills, between the mountains and the Great Desert, there is a gigantic statue of a crowned gynosphinx, ancient beyond reckoning. At its feet, a great androsphinx known as Khubsheth the Prophet has dispensed counsel and prophecy to all who come to him for longer than mortal records can tell. The heroes have come to visit Khubsheth, whether for counsel, prophecy or out of curiosity, but as soon as he lays eyes on them, he attacks! Upon his defeat, he tells them that they are the heroes foretold by the legend of Ankharet. Ankharet ruled over a long-dead empire of sphinxes, but she fell into darkness. Her subjects rebelled and cast her down, but were unable to kill her. It is said that they bound her with great magic and buried her in a tomb, to wait for the foretold heroes who would be able to slay her and end her evil forever. Kubsheth the Prophet tells the heroes that they must enter the tomb of the long-dead sphinx queen, kill her, and destroy her cursed crown, an artifact of tremendously evil power. As his blood seeps into the sands, a doorway opens at the base of the statue, leading down into darkness…

Kingdom of the Blind is a short adventure for four 8th-level characters. The adventure is set in a minor duchy that is fairly removed from the ruler of the land. As a result, trouble can brew in the land and the king would not know immediately. The PCs faced all manner of fungus last time. Perhaps with a little more investigation, they'll discover what's really going on with Zhanna and Dephyl.

The night air is chilly, but the crackling fire you've started warms your bones comfortably. Crickets chirp, and you smile up at the stars, glad for the quiet evening. There is a loud roar, and you are blinded momentarily as the campfire suddenly surges up into the air. The flames split down the middle, revealing an abyss that leeches the warmth from your soul. Out of this hellish place stumbles a black-cloaked figure clutching a scythe. Quickly, you reach for your weapons. The strange apparition staggers for a moment. Then, gathering its strength, it pulls back the hood on its cloak. Beneath is a bleached skull with stars for eyes. "I am Azrael, Lord of the Undead," it hisses. "Or rather, I will be Azrael, after time itself has died." Even as Azrael speaks, decay begins to eat away at its body, and the god shudders. Holding one arm up to watch as tiny fissures form in its bones, the deity sighs, "Ah, sweet Entropy, come to claim me at last." It's gaze sweeps back to you. "But no, not just yet. First, I must set events in motion." Weakness begins to overcome Azrael, and it sinks to one knee. "Long ago, I became the most powerful of all the gods, in spite of my enemies' efforts to stop me. Delirious with power, I destroyed the other gods and eventually fell to feasting upon the souls of their worshipers. After devouring every living creature, I consume the planets and, eventually, the stars themselves, until I was left alone, in darkness." The god struggles to finish its message as its bones turn to dust and blow away, "Unexpectedly, I felt remorse for what I had done. I grieved for the universe I had destroyed, but I lack the power to recreate it. So, I have come to you, to beg you to do what I cannot." Azrael reaches into its cloak and produces a leather sack. "Take these items and use them." As Azrael dissolves, it gasps out, "Kill me tonight, or tomorrow will never dawn." All that remains is a pile of dust and a leather bag.

Through acrid mists and bitter waters they march. They are quiet, making no sound as they leave the marshland. Spears held high, the warriors scan the fog for signs of the attacker. Every step took them further from their old lands. Every step brings them closer to the lands of their 'allies,' who had abandoned them when teh marsh turned black and foul. Every step churns up more of the poisoned water as it seeps between their scales and below the skin. So many had already died on this march, and after the attack, they had so few left... The mists part in the night. The village's light bathes them in a false welcome. The human guards are unsteady, either from poison or drink. The town celebrates the end of the trade season, but not a man raises a toast to the creatures that died for it. So many had died from the first attack of the beast and from the aftermath, but the humans would suffer for such treachery...

Tears for Twilight Hollow is about mystery, danger and deceit- the players seek a missing Paladin in an increasingly-troubled town, chasing clues around a village and through a valley only to discover that the Paladin's old friend long ago began worship of an evil S&M goddess. Betraying her friend and trapping her soul in a Devourer, a powerful extraplanar undead creature, the evil priestess continually parades the soul-bereft corpse of their fallen Paladin in front of the villagers in a show of 'sorrow', all the while gaining immense pleasure from the village's pain. Pgs. 62-110

Why should anyone travel the cracked cobblestones of the Old Road? The fortress that once cast its shadow across the road does so no longer - some whisper that the earth swallowed the fortress whole in an age long past. Four brave adventurers resolved to discover the truth and set off down the Old Road, but they never returned. This adventure is a first level adventure for beginning players set in the dungeon of the fallen fortress.

The PCs intervene in an attempted murder and are hired to find out what made a guy go mad. This leads them to search for Yenejg Togan's tower/a strange merchant in the nearby forest, where they discover that bugbears have moved in. After exploring the tower, finding the "merchant", and dealing with the bugbears and the lamia that caused the incident in the first place, they were still unable to get into Yenejg's inner sanctum without a key. The PCs return with the key and figure out how to use it to enter Yenejg's sanctum. They then explore it, dealing mostly with traps, and finally discover the resting place of the treasure Yenejg stole from the town. This adventure begins with a skill-based roof-top chase and can include some complex non-combat interactions with potentially hostile NPCs. It includes some semi-interesting traps as well as some nifty puzzles. No villain to speak of. Fool-hardy adventurers can get themselves killed, but some caution will result in only one extremely hard fight, and even that can be avoided if action is taken quickly. Pgs. 74-107