Prison of the Hated Pretender is an introductory adventure for 4-6 characters levels 0-1. Originally published on the Dungeon of Signs blog, it is a short drop-in location-based adventure with a couple of interesting puzzles, a lack of "book" monsters, implacable foes with an obvious weakness, and a very weird roleplaying opportunity. The new 2020 edition republished by Hydra Collective adds suggested guidance for new Dungeonmasters who grew up with 5th edition and don't know how old-school works. Stats for both BECMI and 5th edition, and setting neutral (though there are some implied things about the history of the world).
In an age obscured by mist and memory, Sir Galen the Brave and his knights struck down the Drake of Crestmoor with steel and flame. But as the years turned, and the heroes returned to dust, their deeds faded into myth. Doubt lurked where awe once dwelled, and in time, the bards sang of lesser deeds. In the hollows of the wilderness, the stones of their forgotten tomb crumbled beneath ivy and shadow. The Cursed Knights of Crestmoor is a short dungeon crawl for four characters of levels 1-2 using Shadowdark RPG ©. The adventure is designed to be easy to run for new game masters. Players should not be cavalier in their approach to this dungeon. There are threats in the tomb which could easily kill foolhardy player characters. Long ago a band of knights led by Sir Galen slew the black dragon known as the Drake of Crestmoor - a malevolent creature whose true name was Morghast the Black. With his dying breath, the dragon cursed Galen and his friends that they would never find rest in death. Today, the once well-kept tomb has fallen into ruin. Some time ago a band of kobolds moved into the subterranean mausoleum and began using it as a base of operations. More recently, a lizardfolk shaman named Kall’eth and his warband arrived and took over, pressing the kobolds into their service. Kall’eth came to Galen’s tomb to recover the knight’s Fireblade - a sword of dwarvish make used to slay Morghast long ago. The tomb is crawling with kobolds, lizardfolk, and the restless husks of Galen and his compatriots. A magic sword, a missing wedding ring, and plenty of adventure await you in…The Cursed Knights of Crestmoor!
Halfling thief, Alton Lightheart, awakens to discover his shadow is gone! A child's doll kills its victims in a cruel and unexpected way. A sound-stealing sword is lost in a ruined volcanic temple. Among the witch’s valley mist, The Murk, sinister fey shadows terrorize the forest, demon spirits haunt old ruins, and undead howl from the volcanic shrine. Can the adventurer’s purge the vale of evil to gain its lost magic and riches? A three part adventure: 1. Alton’s Shadow: Delirious, bloodstained, alone. Halfing thief, Alton Lightheart, awakens to discover his shadow is gone! Will the adventurers help him to confront the unknown dread that awaits him? 2. The Vanishing at Rhu: Long Ago, the folk of Rhu made an agreement with a witch to save the thorp from destruction. She honored the agreement, but the folk broke their promise. One year later the village was razed. How? What wickedness lurks among the ruins of the fallen-tree village? 3. Stillness: A temple suffers a volcanic eruption. Believing it is the will of an angry god, all of its shaman are ritually slain. After years of disuse, the temple awakens as the zealots are reborn . . . as undead. Meanwhile, a magic sound-stealing sword is lost by explorers. Should an expedition seek the weapon and uncover the secrets of the lost shrine? Published by Wicked Cool Games
"The broken outline of Cear Ferros emerged on the horizon. Its ancient walls stand silent and looming as you approach them, casting long and eerie shadows across the land." An adventure through a cursed castle crawling with undead in search of missing merchants. For Shadowdark Published as part of the Shots in the Dark collection.
The Tomb of Firkin is a challenging and varied Dungeon Tomb-Raid from Dunromin University Press Designed for 6 to 10 adventurers of 3rd to 5thlevel, this is a Tomb dungeon scenario with a more to it than just Undead. Suitable for any OSR flavour and 1st and 2nd Edition D&D. Thelkor Boghammer and his band of Dwarven murder-hobos opened up the tomb of the Gnomish Firkin family a few months ago. They had a bad time of it and the sole survivor, Tutlin, is drowning his sorrows and desperate to sell the map he made of the tomb to any eager adventurers he comes across. His map contains a clue to a secret way he never realised was there – can any more noble adventurers decipher the clue and find the riches without being slaughtered by the Undead guardians? Or, failing that, could your characters do it? ;-) The Tomb of Firkin is more than just another tomb; hidden in the depths are a humanoid tribe and a secret cult based on geometry. The adventure is 44 pages with quality maps and illustrations to help you visualise the encounters. The style is based on minimal set-up, total carnage, maximum fun - the Tomb of Firkin would also work as SOLO PLAY! SM13 The Tomb of Firkin is available in pdf, softback or hardback Print On Demand at amazing value for such a quality product! But the best quality playing aids at the best possible prices is what we do at Dunromin University Press...
The dwarves of these mountains are a good and trustworthy folk, friends to both men and elves dwelling in the region. But their ancient homeland hides many secrets that they might otherwise wish forgotten. Recent rumors have surfaced that a long lost dwarven hall has been discovered. There are whispers that the place was once the center of an evil dwarven cult, though the dwarven authorities will say nothing of it. A recently acquired treasure map points to an ancient dwarven tunnel complex. Could this be the place? Are these the dangerous halls that were once the home for a dwarven cult worshipping an entity they called the Earth Dragon? Advanced Adventures #43 The Warrens of Zagash is an OSRIC(tm) module designed for adventurers of 6th to 8th level.
Ancient port city on the edge of a desert. The city is stratified by social class and some of the slaves have formed a cannibal cult to Kthulhu. City + hexcrawl + dungeon. The Anthropophagi of Xambaala™ takes players into an action-packed realm of adventure: the mythical world of Hyperborea, a sword-and-sorcery campaign setting inspired by the fantastic fiction of Robert E. Howard, H.P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, and others. This adventure is inspired by Robert E. Howard’s “The Man-Eaters of Zamboula” and by various short tales of H.P. Lovecraft and Clark Ashton Smith. It is designed for use with Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea ™(AS&SH™), a role-playing game descended from the original 1974 fantasy wargame and miniatures campaign rules as conceived by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. AS&SH is compatible with most traditional fantasy role-playing games (c. 1974 to 1999) and their modern simulacra, such as OSRIC™ and Swords & Wizardry™. This work is both a setting and an adventure. The setting describes the town of Xambaala, noting key people, locations, and local lore. The adventure proper provides players with a variety of environments and the several factions fighting over them for their own goals. With a bit of skill and luck, stalwart adventurers may emerge richer and maybe wiser. The situation that will develop in Xambaala will be determined by the players’ choices.
Local villagers whisper of a mysterious place deep in the marsh - a place shrouded in mist and dotted with barrow mounds, ruined columns, and standing stones. The tomb-robbers who explore beneath the mounds - or rather the few who return - tell tales of labyrinthine passages, magnificent grave goods, and terrifying creatures waiting in the dark. Are you brave (or foolish) enough to enter Barrowmaze? Barrowmaze Complete (BMC) is a classic megadungeon for use with any old school fantasy role-playing game. BMC includes everything in Barrowmaze I and II in the same book in addition to new material, art, layout, and cover art by Ex-TSR artist Erol Otus. Barrowmaze Complete will keep your players on their toes and your campaign going strong. BMC is brought to you by the Old School Renaissance (so don’t forget your 10’ pole). This edition includes art by the aforementioned TSR artists Erol Otus, as well as Tim Truman, Jim Holloway. New old-school artists include Peter Pagano, Cory Hamel, Stefan Poag, Zhu Bajie, Stephan Thompson, and others.
An adventure in Hyperborea designed for from four to six characters of 7th through 9th level Your party finds itself in the employ of Ragnarr the Sea-Wolf, a jarl of New Vinland and a reaver of old. His daughter, a shield-maiden named Gunnhildr, has been abducted by a brute called Björn Blackbeard. During a desperate search, the Sea-Wolf crossed sails with a former rival, and from the blood-flecked lips of a dying foe, he learnt the location of Blackbeard’s stronghold. Now, deep in the misty fjords of Brigand’s Bay, where cutthroats, pirates, and freebooters thrive, you have been charged with liberating the Sea-Wolf’s daughter. The Sea-Wolf's Daughter takes players into an action-packed realm of adventure: the mythical world of Hyperborea, a sword-and-sorcery campaign setting inspired by the fantastic fiction of Robert E. Howard, H.P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, and others. This adventure is designed for Astonishing Swordsmen & Sorcerers of Hyperborea™ (AS&SH™), a role-playing game descended from the original 1974 fantasy wargame and miniatures campaign rules as conceived by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. Therefore, AS&SH is compatible with most traditional fantasy role-playing games (c. 1974 to 1999) and their modern simulacra, such as OSRIC™ and Swords & Wizardry™.
A bubbling stream cascades into a hole in the earth, leading to a series of underground watercourses and scintillating grottoes. Adventurers who delve within may discover odd mosses and fungi, a ruined temple complex, and the lair of a crystal-eating dream dragon.
The Dreaming Caldera involves the players infiltrating a volcano teeming with monsters that are intent on constructing a chaos god. The players must navigate through the hostile environment, disrupt the monstrous activities, and ultimately prevent a catastrophic event. 27 keyed locations Written for the Old-School Essentials (OSE) rule system
The City of Bergholt lies upon the southern shores of the Interzae. Her crumbling walls and ancient cobbled streets are little more than a backwater, controlled by powerful merchants and thieves. In these darkened streets and twisted alleys people claw their way to the top through violence and guile. In Bergholt, the fear lingers in every shadow. In By Shadow of Night you’ll find a complete detailed description of Bergholt, a rich cast of NPCs who all have their own plots and plans, over 20 encounter areas, including a small dungeon and a large fold-out map of the city. All this setting material comes to life in the dark and deadly adventure, also included within, that is By Shadow of Night. By Shadow of Night picks up after the Death in the Treklant series, available from Troll Lord Games, though it can be a stand-alone adventure if desired.
The manor of Willowby Hall is under siege by a giant, enraged at the theft of his magical goose. The band of thieves has taken shelter within the manor's crumbling walls, cowering with their ill-gotten poultry as the building shakes itself apart. But something else is stirring. The giant's rampage is slowly awakening a Death Knight from its black slumber, and once it rises it will call on the bones of the manor's old residents to drive out the intruders. Will the party loot the manor of its ancient relics, or succumb to the blades of its skeletal guardians? Who will make off with the goose and its golden eggs? Will anyone survive the giant's onslaught? The only way to find out...is to play.
By a well-trodden road lies the estate of the Eryx family. At some point the estate was converted into a roadside inn. The merchant Robert E. Wardlove has received an urgent letter from his daughter Derleth. She begs of her father to arrive in haste to the faraway inn and take her back home safely for the Evening of Still Streets draws near... Enigma of the Eryx Estate is a break from the usual dungeon crawls of the Shadowdark RPG system recommended for characters of lvls 1-3. During this adventure players get to solve a murder and the mysteries that surround it. Exploration and intrigue are emphasized as player characters gain XP for uncovering secrets. Combat is in a more minor role during this adventure, but if the players don't figure out the mystery by midnight, they might be in a fight for their lives. The adventure is designed for ease of running with punctual room and character descriptions.
The Submerged Spire of Sarpedon the Shaper lies to the west of the Isle of the Dismemberer. On the northwestern shore of this island, crumbling steps spill from the shore directly into the sea. There, a seaweed choked stone path can be glimpsed winding down into the depths. At low tide, a quarter mile along the path, a lone onion dome may be seen poking through the waves. In the twilight of the sorcerer lords, The Submerged Spire was the jewel of the Shattered Isles. Within his submarine redoubt, Sarpedon penetrated ever deeper into the organic mysteries. Now, its for- lorn dome the roost of seagulls, its secrets slumber beneath the waves.
Beneath our feet is the mythological hollow world – a realm of dense jungles, putrid swamps and rugged mountains. Here a brave party will struggle for survival as they seek to fathom the unseen expanse and to prevent a once defeated god to rise again. ‘Journey to the Inside Out’ can be played as a stand-alone scenario or be used as the first installment in a trilogy of connected adventure modules each taking place in a different era. The scenario can be used with Swords & Wizardry or any other early variant of game rules. Inside you will find: • A 40+ page old-school module with a layout optimized for fast and easy interfacing. • A challenging lost world setting with the possibility to toggle the complexity. • Alternative suggestions for entry to the hollow inside. • Downloadable maps for both players and the Referee. • Story-points for a guided scenario and tables for sandbox and hexcrawl-style play. • Advice for an ongoing campaign. • Locations allowing the PCs to travel to another era within the setting. • Unique new creatures. Published by CTM Publishing.
In City Year CY444 the greatest Dwarf mage of all time, Archmage Panzar, mounted his Flying Pig and rode up to the Necklace to do battle with Guth-Targ Greller Ak Terraak, an Efreet, and her army in her asteroid palace. Despite his great magical powers, Panzar failed and his burnt and petrified body fell from the asteroid and crashed down upon a hillside somewhere in the Borderlands. His fall drove a narrow pit into the hillside to a great depth, although neither his body nor his legendary magical equipment were ever recovered. But now a seal ring bearing the mark of the House of Panzar has been found in a riverbed thirty miles west of the border city of Karan. The river is fed by streams emerging from the hill above it – Dol Jint. Could this large hill be the final resting place of the great mage and, more importantly, all his loot? The Pit of Panzar has over 300 encounter locations over 5 levels, this is a MEGA-DUNGEON scenario that follows the Dunromin University Press paradigm of Great Quality at the best possible value for money. The Pit of Panzar is designed for OSR and AD&D 1st and 2nd Edition, or pretty much any TTFRPG, intended for 5 to 8 adventurers of 6th to 9th level
There is a Ruined City in the central northern Borderlands, often called Ghoultown by explorers of the area, but its original name is Ust Lesesi and it was once the second city of the Empire of Karan. Long since plundered, ruined and abandoned, the place has become home to a sinister mix of creatures, some are trading with each other, some are resting between skirmishes, all are schiming and all of them are trying to survive. This is a toy box for the GM - there are three settings in one - the Abandoned City, with stange creatures wandering the streets; the Monstrous community with several significant and detailed NPCs and their followers all trading, quarrelling and trying to get along with each other; and the city of the (un)dead - there's a whole army hidden in here, what are they being prepared for? The Ruined City is a 40-page game resource rather than a complete adventure, although it has almost everything you need for a simple hack or a more complex web of intrigue. Along with a sumptuous set of maps is a set of encounters, monster and NPC stat-blocks, and ideas for how to use the place in a campaign. If you need a ruined city in a hurry, this is the supplement for you! The Ruined City is designed for OSR but is also compatible with AD&D 1st and 2nd edition and pretty much any TTFRPG you fancy. The encounters are all pretty high level but most of the encounters will not be immediately hostile. There is scope in this setting for far more than simple hack and slash. These resources allow you to build a set of encounters as complex as you like. You can simply try and hack your way through, but there are some VERY nasty encounters in here. You could maybe set up your own base here, or just try and take over an existing group. Perhaps you want to start up a trade route, or maybe even start a Civil War! All of these possibilities, and many others, are catered for here. SM20 The Ruined City is released by Dunromin University Press. We are a very small publisher based in the UK and our aim is to produce VERY high quality products as the best value possible.
In the flooded temple is hidden a great treasure, and the adventures are in race to get there first, but the ancient temple is the home of Death's Messenger and several cults each with their own agenda. Will the adventurers survive or be dragged off to the lands of the dead? The Flooded Temple is a low-level OSR adventure based on the greatest RPG ever written as system agnostic and easily adapted to your favorite version. The adventure was originally written for the Danish Living Campaign The Hinterlands, and it is for the first time presented in English. The adventure introduces the players to a different tradition of adventures, and it one with a focus on exploration and encountering the unknown. The adventure contains several new items to entertain your players, and several challenges for them to overcome as they encounter the residents of the abandoned temple. The Flooded Temple also have a prequel, Tomb of the Dragon's Heart, and a sequel, Grave of the Heartless. Published by Greis Games.
The island of Merehurst was once a bustling center for trade. But this was not to last, for in one single deadly night sixty years ago all the people and the animals of the town died - collapsing where they stood. The neighboring villagers of Coombe claimed that the miners dug too deeply into Ynyswel and the spirit of the isle was offended. The island gained a fearsome reputation and only the bravest would dare set foot upon its forested grounds. Yesterday strange lights were seen in the sky over the island and Ynyswel started smoking. The villagers can wait no longer. Brave adventurers must be found who are willing to investigate the Isle of Merehurst to either appease or oppose what lies behind the latest mysterious activities. Advanced Adventures #3 The Horror of Merehurst is an OSRIC(tm) module designed for 6-10 adventurers of 1st level.