A venom maw hydra lair suitable for four or five 10th-level characters. The Red Craw Marsh, so called because of the delicious and plentiful red crayfish that live in the area, is a boon to the nearby village. More than a few intrepid souls brave the swamp each season to collect the crayfish. They either sell the crayfish to local establishments or ship them to nearby cities, where they earn a good price as the crayfish is a delicacy among the wealthy. The villagers have established a tentative peace with a clan of trollkin that inhabit the swamp. The crayfish collectors pay a small fee to the trollkin, who allow them to ply their trade in the marsh without (much) interference. It is a tense but profitable relationship for all involved. A powerful creature has moved into the marsh, however, threatening the delicate balance. When a venom maw hydra decided to move to the area of the marsh between the human and trollkin villages, it brought along a number of creatures that worship and serve it. This hydra and its allies have killed some of the crayfish hunters and some of the trollkin. Each side, unfortunately, believes that the other has broken the truce, thus stirring up animosity and putting both groups on the verge of war.
Last Gasp is an adventure set in a desert setting, exploring the cursed tomb of an ancient king of great magical power, a magical river, and includes both deadly combats and mysteries to confound tomb-robbers. Seek out the riches of a king, and may fortune favor you!
The people of Feycircle believed the fairy ring for which their town was named protected them from the encroaching sands of the Western Wastes. When the ring withered, they learned they were right. Feycircle’s dewflecked pastures and verdant forests succumbed to the Wastes in an instant. Feycircle sank deep into the sands and was soon occupied by a tribe of fanatical dust goblins, a herd of dogmoles, and the giant worms that caused the blight. The PCs may explore the keep—the only structure remaining in the dusty sinkhole now called the "Pit of the Dust Goblins." Inside the keep is an entrenched gatekeeper who can divulge that two children remain in town, imprisoned by the goblins. The dust goblins have summoned and imprisoned a selang—a shadow fey—inside the blighted fairy circle. The goblins fear open combat and have laced the sunken keep with traps, and would sooner parley than fight.
"All-Seeing Eye" is a oculo swarm and night scorpion lair for five 5th-level characters.
Just outside Per-Bastet, in the kingdom of Nuria Natal, lie the newly discovered remains of Anu-Asir, a city once believed to exist only in myth. The ruins of Anu-Asir lie submerged under accumulations of sand, floodwater, and tall tales. It is now a hub of activity for those seeking to uncover its secrets— and profit from them. Droves of the curious, hopeful, greedy, and eccentric congregate around the unearthed city. And just outside Anu-Asir, across the River Nuria, lies the most recently surfaced relic: the Pyramid of Tiberesh. Dare you explore its deadly mysteries?
"The Riverfront Rat Gang" is a ratfolk lair, also featuring wharflings and a doppelrat, designed for five 1st level characters. This adventure can be completed in one session. The old dockyards once served as the primary center of commerce in town. Years ago, political pressure from an influential merchant who wanted the docks to be loser to her business forced shipping concerns to move their docks upriver. The new facility accommodates larger ships, and the old docks fell into disuse. Talk of converting the property into a set of riverside shops died when a rat infestation proved to be an unsolvable problem. Thus, the old dockyards have been decaying for years. This situation suited a former thieves' guild member, a ratfolk rogue, named Matimer Creel. A botched robbery (for which Matimer blamed his accomplice) turned the guild against Matimer, who fled from certain death at the hands of the guild master. He hid out in the old dockyards, confident that not even guild members bothered to go there. From there he began to exact revenge against the guild by ruining its plans or stealing directly from it. He also befriended the rat population, thanks to a golden rat's tooth he acquired, and the vermin help with his schemes. A trio of rat-like wharflings and a doppelrat, washed up on the riverbank near the docks, have joined Matimer's retinue.
Kidnapping and politics as usual? Not so much. Something is different about this job, and you just hope that difference doesn’t get you killed. Contains sexual content.
The earth churns in a city graveyard, revealing not the undead but an ancient war machine. A great iron transport bores its way up from depths below, disrupting funeral rites and sending the citizens into a panic. With an opportunity to investigate and reap the rewards of bravery, the party closes on the graveyard. There they discover that the pilots of the strange vehicle are soulless automatons who have spent an eternity burrowing toward the battlefront of a long-forgotten war. In this action-packed and gritty adventure, the party must battle automatons, breach the iron transport, and put down its mad and malfunctioning commander.
The noble dwarf Wulfstan vom Meer seeks adventurers to travel on his one remaining ship to the clan’s village, and to protect his vessel against any threats at sea. When they meet the White Worg Reavers, he wants the party to negotiate for the loan of two longships and their crew. Vom Meer offers 500 gp to anyone willing to undertake this task. It seems like easy money. However, the Wolfheim clan has troubles of its own—a group of trollkin bandits known as the Mossback Raiders have been competing with the White Worgs for territory west of Wolfheim. Their rivalry is coming to a head. When the PCs arrive at the White Worg homestead, they learn that the reaver dwarves are recovering from a recent attack. Their homestead has been sacked and vom Meer’s kinsman, Knud Stoneson, has been slain. Without a family connection, the clan’s chief will agree to vom Meer’s proposal only if the PCs will help rid them of that troublesome band of trollkin. If the PCs are to succeed in their task and help vom Meer, then a reavin’ they must go! This adventure for the 5th Edition of the world’s first RPG is meant for four 2nd and 3rd-level characters. Designed by Lou Anders, with cartography by Dyson Logos and cover art by Phil Stone.
The Free City of Zobeck has thrived since overthrowing the tyrannical Stross family. But an ancient bargain gives the Queen of Night and Magic a claim to the city—and now the shadow fey have seized Zobeck as their own. The city’s only hope lies with a band of heroes who can outfight and outwit the shadow fey in the heart of their own realm: the maze of treachery and deceit that is the Courts of the Shadow Fey. This 148-page 5th Edition adventure contains 100 NPCs, a map with more than 60 locations of the Courts, and more than 40 combat and roleplaying encounters. Courts of the Shadow Fey takes you from the mortal world to the heart of Shadow, where you’ll: Fight your way through the dangers of the Shadow Realm to reach the shadow fey’s courts Engage in dangerous courtly intrigue, trying to increase your status to win an audience with the Queen herself Duel for honor, and perhaps win the hand of a lover among the fey nobility Can you free Zobeck from the grasp of the shadow fey? Or will your fate become a tale told in hushed tones as a warning against angering the Queen?
The mountains are the border between our kingdom and the realm of the fire giants. Look far eastward. See how the peaks turn black? Their forges must burn night and day to mark the mountains so. Some mornings, sunrise dims from the smoke and soot. Long have we watched the pass and tallied our fortunes at its stillness. Recently, though, there are signs our luck is turning. Fiery orbs sail through the night skies and land too near these woods. Scouts report deep craters shrouded in smoke and ash. One sits a mere hour’s walk from this outpost. I fear the enemy makes ready some terrible weapon . . .
A doctor who helps with rare and socially debilitating diseases who welcomes all to her doorstep suddenly becomes reclusive...and her patients are no longer able to be found. Adventurer's are hired by a powerful merchant who had committed her son to this doctor, and they need to find him and bring him home.
We saw it—don’t turn your heads. Up near Hilltop Crossroad and the temple. It walked south; the trees fell in its path. Even the moon hid. Gods help Father Dren . . .
Beware the night-things, strangers!
The first part of two lairs—a ratfolk warlock lair and a rattok demon lair—suitable for four or five 3rd-level characters. The lairs can be run separately or together as one longer adventure. Demon Lord of Rats is looking to corrupt the city with his influence. They have grown in number and now seek to infiltrate and influence the guilds of the city.
Fane of Serpents is a titanoboa lair suitable for three to five 10th-level characters. A rocky butte covered with soaring ruins looms over the landscape. Legend describes it as a monument raised by an inhuman race that was wiped out centuries ago as retribution over foul practices. Locally, the spot is known as Titan’s Height. It rises starkly above the surrounding area, with four terraced plateaus. Each level is covered with the ruins of many-columned halls in an architectural style unlike anything else in the area. Their age and strangeness alone are enough to generate fearful legends. The stories grow worse when travelers or livestock disappear near Titan’s Height, which they sometimes do.
Once, we were friends. She used her spells to ward our grove against the darkness in the woods. It was the mirror that turned her mind to covetous thoughts; she saw its power and changed. We have kept the mirror safe for an era, but her soldiers grow strong—and now something makes for our tree we cannot repel. If her aberration reaches the grove, the mirror will be hers, and then we will all know what lies at the tip of the wickedest branches.
The party arrange for passage on a fast ship called the Silver Slipper. The good Captain Sara agrees to take them aboard for a reasonable fee. The voyage, however, is marred by strange events, and the crew begin whispering about a dark statue taken aboard as cargo. The statue is to be delivered to a port beyond the PCs' destination. When a fog rolls in one night, the ship is attacked by evil agents of a dark god come to claim the statue. In this nautical nightmare, the PCs must travel aboard the ship, interact with the crew, and save themselves from a boarding party of eldritch evil.
Jobel the genie was famous for his bejeweled creations. But when a job to build a wizard’s tower took a turn for the worse, Jobel was imprisoned in a massive gemstone and buried deep within the earth. For one hundred years, the genie plotted his escape, using subtle magics, and slowly, he was able to work the gem toward the surface, where he’d be much more likely to be found and freed.
This is an adventure for four 6th to 7th level PC's that may be completed in a single session. The Untamed are a street gang in a busy city. A recent change in leadership has transformed the members from pickpockets and second-story thieves into kidnappers for an inter-dimensional aberration named Xlrieh'oc. Their hideout is now a strange and wicked factory, capable of extracting the firm essence from a person; the process leaves the victim partly ethereal and their form no longer casts a shadow. Although most victims die during the procedure, those who survive are conscripted into the gang. The extracted essence is crated and shipped to the aberration's home plane through a breach between worlds in the hideout's backroom.