Nothing stirs in St. Anton. Through the alleys and streets, along castle walls, the town lies in a dreamlike lull. Moonlight shines upon the cobblestone paths winding lazily up and down the small hills. Sagging balconies and arching trees bow idly over the quiet streets. Evils is Afoot The Baron has descended into insanity, an eldritch creature stalks the streets, and clouds of despair gather over the townspeople. St. Anton needs brave heroes to unravel its mystery, and restore her fire.
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
Into the Forsaken Temple's Crypt is a short adventure for four 10th-level characters. The adventure takes place in a buried temple crypt, which has been sealed for centuries. Dungeon Masters can adjust it for higher-level characters by widening the dead magic areas and increasing the number and power of constructs and undead that inhabit the complex. The PCs have entered the Forsaken Temple's crypt and started exploring a bit. They had the opportunity to work with some drow to get past clay golems. Now they face a greater danger, but maybe they'll turn back before it's too late.
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.
Ten days ride north of the great city, there is a small town named Treefall. Up until recently, this town was well known for its rich harvests, happy villagers, and prosperous weather. These days, however, the once-proud details from Treefall have turned darker. Instead of tales of unending prosperity, you hear hushed whispers of a great curse that has struck the once-happy village. Word has it that, where once roamed contented cattle, now strange beasts hunt by the moon's cold light and terrorize the hapless region. You have scoffed with the others at these stories. Despite the things you've seen in you adventures with your friends, the thought that such ill might befall such a sleepy town strikes you as terribly unlikely. There is plenty of evil in the world, true, but there are also much bigger and better targets. But, tonight despite the firmness of your disbelief, the stories come to find you. You have been traveling north along the roads on your own business, enjoying the rich fall colors and warm afternoons. Your camp os small and secure, with a roaring fire and meat cooking over the flame. It's one of those crisp autumn days that makes you long for a warm hearth after a long ride in the cool air. Still, the fire is good enough for now and you and your friends have a wonderful meal, talking and singing and laughing, anticipating a restful sleep beneath the blanket of stars. Until the beast attacks.
"The first raid on our village happened a little over 3 months ago. We awoke in the morning to discover that the Cooper family's house at the edge of town had been sacked in the entire family was missing," croaks Obed, the village elder. "We mounted a search party, but found no trace of them." The old man lifts his gaze to the west woods. "After the third such attack, we sent a messenger to seek aid from one of the larger towns nearby. He never returned." He turns back to face your party and continues, "We had no idea who or what was attacking our village... Until last week. Creatures in black robes drifted out of the woods to the west and began setting houses on fire. Then, they seized four of our bravest men and carried them, screaming, into the mists." Obed throws his mug of ale into the fire, suddenly angry, "The only creature capable of this evil is the Barrow King, who lives in the burial mounds to the west. But I swear, we have done nothing to focus his anger upon us, nothing!" Warily, the elder stands, leaning heavily on his walking stick. Slowly, he lifts it, pointing at each one of you in turn. "If it is the Barrow King, God help us!"
A Giant Ransom is a short adventure for four 11th-level characters. There are opportunities for diplomacy, stealth, and combat, based on the choices the PCs make, so any mix of classes is appropriate. The adventure can be set in any campaign world, in a frontier region near glacier-covered mountains. In the first episode, the PCs were employed by Duke Ambrinigan to exchange a ransom of 10,000 gp in gems for a golden lion that was taken by frost giants in a recent raid. While waiting for the giants to arrive at the designated meeting place, the PCs watched as the white dragon Whildenstrank attacked the giants and then flew off with the statue. Charged with returning the golden lion statue at all costs, the PCs dealt with the remaining frost giants and then headed west, toward the lair of the dragon in the midst of the nearby glacier. Along the way, they encountered Velg the Dragon Tamer, another frost giant who was also on the trail of the dragon. Velg may or may not be with the party now. The PCs are now traveling across the flat icy surface of the glacier, and may have just noticed something burrowing under the ice, heading straight toward them.
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 had just entered the citadel in the last episode. Are they now dealing with hauling statues or fighting angry staircases in their efforts to get to the second floor?
Can the city of Redshore be saved from utter destruction? "The Razing of Redshore" is a D&D adventure that confronts the party with the destructive force of an awakened sperm whale druid and the sinister machinations of a secret cabal of powerful assassins. It is designed to provide such a group with an opportunity to continue their adventuring careers into the realms detailed in the "Epic Level Handbook". This book is not required to make full use of this adventure, though; any pertinent information from the supplement is reproduced here. Pgs. 72-106
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.
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
Freeport's in crisis, as war breaks out on the high seas and orcs riot in the streets. A map promises the biggest haul of booty in history, but nothing is as it seems. Buried with that treasure is a terrifying evil Freeport thought banished forever. Black Sails Over Freeport, the first mega-adventure for the award-winning pirate city, is filled with enough swashbuckling challenges to test the mettle of any band of heroes. Its 256 pages are packed with action, intrigue, and danger, delivered with the style and professionalism you've come to expect from Green Ronin. Black Sails are on the horizon. Do you have what it takes to face them?
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.
Six months ago, an adventuring group that calls itself the Company of the Shining Stone learned of an aged wizard’s tomb that lay in the rocky foothills of a prominent mountain range, and sought to plunder it. What they were not counting on was that a band of stone giants would move into the immediate area to make their lair. The giants have rebuffed the company’s attempts at getting past them and to their goal. Now is the time of the annual fair in Adurath, a small town located not far from the tomb, and thus, the giants. The giants have no interest in the town or the tomb, but are instead interested in a rare mineral found only in that region. A few of the townsfolk have seen the giants, but there has been no confrontation other than between the giants and the Company of the Shining Stone.
The peaks of a nearby mountain range have been home to Krikk, an old white dragon, for as long as anyone can remember. Aside from claiming ownership of a few villages and settlements near her range, she hasn’t posed much of a threat or even taken much notice of political events around her. Last week, a king’s prophet had a vision of golems made of ice that wouldn’t melt smashing through the royal castle walls, and of crops frozen under sheets of ice formed by the white dragon’s breath. Alarmed, the king has sent word that he desires someone brave enough to go to the dragon and find out whether she’s about to attack. If she is, the party must stop her before it’s too late. But, another prophet warns that the white dragon has an entirely different plot afoot, and that an icy grave awaits anyone who goes up the mountain. The player characters (PCs) have to figure out what’s going on—then decide on their own what they should do about it, while the fate of a king and his castle hangs in the balance.
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
A Giant Ransom is a short adventure for four 11th-level characters. There are opportunities for diplomacy, stealth, and combat, based on the choices the PCs make, so any mix of classes is appropriate. The adventure can be set in any campaign world, in a frontier region near glacier-covered mountains. In the story thus far, the PCs have been tasked by Duke Ambrinigan, a local lord, to recover a stolen statue of a golden lion. The lion was stolen in transit by frost giant raiders, and was to be ransomed back to the Duke for 10,000 gp. The PCs were sent to perform the exchange. The giants, however, were attacked by the white dragon Whildenstrank, who stole the statue and retreated to his lair in the middle of a nearby glacier. The PCs encountered the remaining giants, and then set off westward toward the dragon's lair. They traveled across the flat part of the glacier, encountering the frost giant ranger Velg the Dragon Tamer, as well as some burrowing bulettes. The PCs now have entered the Ice Canyons: a maze of twisting passageways surrounding the black spire of rock that the dragon calls home. They have just heard sounds of a battle ahead.
Nearly 100 years ago, Lord Eriador wrested the lands from the hands of evil and began a reign of unsurpassed courage, wisdom, and might that lasted over three centuries. One day this great man of valor was called onward to continue his battle for freedom and goodness on a higher plane of existence. Leaving the responsibilities of rulership to his faithful overseer, he donned his magical shield, helm, and sword and traveled to the Holy Maountain of Anduin to meet his destiny. Eriador left the overseer with this solemn promise: if there ever arose a time of great need, he would answer a summons from the Mountain of Anduin to come back to vanquish any evil that dared to oppress his people. It is now the reign of the third overseer. For years now, an evil mage has been plaguing the land by sending forth hordes of evil humanoid minions to oppress the people. The overseer has been forced to pay tribute to the mage to protect his people. Life has become nearly unbearable for his subjects. It has been over five years since the mage desecrated the holy mountain by placing foul creatures in its depths to guard against the possibility of the people seeking help from their nearly forgotten champion. A fortnight ago, your party was gathered in a secret council chamber to meet with the overseer himself. You felt a spark of hope for the people of this land as the overseer told the legendary tale of Eriador. He gave you the equipment you need and charged your party with the task of venturing into the heart of the now monster-infested Mountain of Anduin to call back the people's great hero, Eriador the Paladin. Although the three parties sent before you had not returned, ridding the of the land of the mage seemed worth any risk, and you eagerly set out on your quest. Now, standing before the defiled mountain, you wonder if perhaps you were too hasty.
A "Fast Play" introductory adventure to Dungeons & Dragons. Rather than requiring a d20, it is written for 3d6, and is meants specifically to teach new players how to play the game. The story is a simple dungeon crawl: players enter a small cave system to investigate an orc attack. After defeating a few orcs, they find an ogre's den, and must fight the ogre.
The Underdark holds many secrets. A series of earthquakes and eruptions have rocked a normally placid land. Strange creatures sighted in the dark of night raise fears across the already disturbed countryside. As tales of a lost race that once warred with the drow begin to surface, only the boldest adventurers dare to descend into the shadowy darkness.