I envisioned a big bad thing, or a group of big bad things when thinking of the Shadows and magic eaters that are behind the deaths this week and so I think I’ve captured just that.
So grab a coffee, maybe a few extra lanterns as we fight off the shadows tonight’s encounter!
Shadows and Magic Eaters
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For D&D Systems
D&D Statblocks for Shadow Swarm and Shadow Beast – created in Tetra-cube.
The shadows that come out of the book cases to swarm towards the sources of magic. They would focus on those that can cast magic or have magical items over those who have mundane weapons. When in doubt they would try and hide in the shadow to attack from a different direction.
For Daggerheart Systems
The above Adversary Stat block was created by me. Rules were adapted and inspired by adversaries and environments from the Daggerheart System Reference Document 1.0 and any likeness is the copyright of DRP, Darrington Press, who are the creators of the material (Adversary Stat Blocks). This content was modified/created is licensed under the DRP Community Gaming License which can be found here: Darrington Press CGL.
Thanks for visiting tonight for another set of updates for this weeks adventure featuring some additional Daggerheart content. Don’t forget to come back over the weekend for more updates and lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
The Magus College Library is the source of our Adventure this week where something is hunting down magic and those who wield it and nothing is safe.
So grab a coffee, maybe some mundane gear as we locate the source of the murders!
Magus College Library
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Magus College Library – Gridded – Created in Inkarnate.
The small corridors of the library are the perfect place to be ambushed by a creature, construct or curse. The light isn’t that bad to warrant torches but the drift globes that illuminate the rows of books periodically help shed some of the gloom.
Thanks for joining for another map night this week. Don’t forget that we have a few more nights left this week so make sure to come back each day to see what I add to this adventure. And lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Now for the next Zine of the year I present, in single page zine format, Trusted Axe Cartel. I still believe that these provide DMs a lot more freedom to tinker with it how they want and open up the adventures to be more free formed and flowing than the larger booklet zines.
There is references to the blog nights which are D&D centric but it can easily use the adversary stat-blocks highlighted in Friday nights post if you’re running Daggerheart. As always Kobold fight club can be used to quickly balance an encounter for Dungeons and Dragons and Tetra-cube provides the stat-blocks for many of my D&D creatures.
So I hope you enjoy this weeks adventure, Trusted Axe Cartel, and that all your rolls are made with advantage.
Trusted Axe Cartel
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Trusted Axe Cartel – Created in WordPress.
The Silver Ring Tavern had been brimming with cheer and comfort. Music played, patrons danced, meals were served, and drinks flowed freely. The adventuring party was enjoying a well-earned pause in their journey while soaking in the lively atmosphere. The back booth, occupied by stylish merchants throwing around gold, added to the merriment. That warmth vanished instantly when six furious dwarves stormed through the door, tattoos on their hands marking them as members of the Trusted Axe Cartel.
One younger dwarf shouted loud enough to quiet the entire room, demanding the whereabouts of Jeb and Tarnius, two merchants accused of passing off low-quality gear. As confusion spread, the dwarves searched for answers while the eldest among them paid the barkeep and approached quietly. A calmer dwarf engaged the party with questions about the missing merchants and explained that their guild had delivered finely crafted weapons and armour, yet had been accused of sending faulty goods. Garmanel, the cartel’s leader, arrived with tankards and offered a proposition. He believed the adventurers might uncover who had sabotaged the deal and recover their reputation.
The Cartel’s tale was troubling. Their contract with Jeb and Tarnius had been solid until someone swapped their dwarven wares with inferior items, clearly made by inexperienced human hands. Known for their honour and craftsmanship, the cartel was humiliated and determined to uncover the truth. Garmanel and his ward Gondanel appealed to the party for help. In return, they offered not only gold but a bond of trust and future support that would be worth more than coin.
Drinks helped ease the tension as Garmanel bought a round for the tavern, and Garabek – the fiery dwarf, left to chase a lead. The party now faced a choice: step into this growing conflict for honour and reward, or walk away and leave the mystery unresolved. The promise of dwarven loyalty was tempting, especially given the Cartel’s influence and steadfast nature.
Their first clue led them to a bustling marketplace thick with noise and smells. After navigating the chaos, they found a vendor selling dwarven goods. A mercenary elf tried to interfere, but the party managed to speak with the merchant, who hinted at access to more of the valuable equipment. He invited them to return at sunset when he could show them his best stock.
As the sun fell, the merchant led them to a warehouse where they encountered a dozen armed traders and likely more hidden away. He revealed that his group had taken advantage of careless deals to acquire high-quality gear. But when one man spotted the adventurers and recognized them from the Silver Ring Tavern, panic swept through the warehouse. The tone shifted instantly. What had begun as a quiet lead now felt more like a trap, one bound to unravel deeper secrets.
Thanks for joining me today for another adventure. Please feel free to leave comments if you like what you see when you grab a copy of the PDF. Next time you get a party together consider running this adventure and I hope that you enjoy it. Don’t forget to come back daily so you don’t miss a thing in the coming weeks adventures. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Armele’s other environments help set the scene outside of the warehouse, where the final confrontation occurs, where we find the party trying to find information on the merchants who stole from the Trusted Axe Cartel.
So sit back, grab a coffee or other hot beverage and let’s roll into tonight’s adventure!
Armele’s Other Environments
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Armele’s Other Environments
The smell and sounds of the market place were overwhelming at first as the clash between goods raged on. Carts selling produce, stalls selling cooked food and the smell of hot iron mixed together to a confusing mix that left the party feeling heady. However, the market sprawled before them and after just a few moments they spotted a stall that interested one of them.
It didn’t take long for them to find another stall that sold something else of interest and soon they were getting the information they were after. There was a merchant at the market that was selling dwarven goods and despite the mercenary of the elf they asked attempting to intervene between the party and the baker who offered the information for a handful of gold.
The above Environment Stat blocks were created by me. Rules were adapted and inspired by adversaries and environments from the Daggerheart System Reference Document 1.0 and any likeness is the copyright of DRP, Darrington Press, who are the creators of the material (Environment Stat Blocks). This content was modified/created is licensed under the DRP Community Gaming License which can be found here: Darrington Press CGL.
Thanks for joining me tonight for a little expansion for this weeks encounter where we look deeper at some of the environments for the Daggerheart RPG system. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for the end of week Zine and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
It’s uncommon for a merchant company to not have guards or mercenaries but the Griffin Trading Company came prepared to fight off more than just an adventuring party.
So grab a coffee, find a spot to sit and watch the spectacle in tonight’s encounter!
Griffin Trading Company
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Griffin Trading Company – created in copilot.
For D&D Systems
D&D Statblocks for Noble, Thug, Gladiator, Mage and Mercenary Mage – created in Tetra-cube.
The secret to having a good warehouse clash is having the right balance of enemies to fight. Some lower level thugs guarding our nobles, the merchants, make up the bulk of the fodder here coming in waves until the party can either escape with proof or the nobles alive.
The Gladiator, Mage and Mercenary Mage fill out the other roles which is the shock troops, the hired mercenaries that were paid in good coin to protect the warehouse, its good and their employers and that’s what they will do.
For Daggerheart Systems
The above Adversary Stat blocks were sourced from the Daggerheart System Reference Document 1.0 and are the copyright of DRP, Darrington Press, who are the creators of the material (Adversary Stat Blocks). This content was not modified is licensed under the DRP Community Gaming License which can be found here: Darrington Press CGL.
Based on the balancing section of the Daggerheart books we can have twelve sellsword’s as they have the minion tag and will die very easily, a single spell blade will command the lower level troops to cause distractions while the two merchants and two petty nobles, the target of this encounter, will try to remain protected as possible by getting their guards where they are. For the sake of this encounter I would change ‘Guards, seize them!’ to summon sellsword’s rather than bladed guards.
The Master Assassin will look to cut off the party and get in as a last resort while eight apprentice assassins follow the lead and jump out to stop vital information from being found, or, from their employers from being taken. This scene has two leaders, a few social adversary who may try to bribe or plead their way out (or stop the party from doing so) and quite a few minions to give a feeling of power and accomplishment to the party as they are able to dispatch many minions at once.
Layer
Role
Purpose
Minion Frontline
Sellswords
Crowd control and visual momentum
Tactical Controller
Spellblade
Battlefield Manipulation
Assassination Elite
Master Assassin
Climatic Threat
Target NPCs
Nobles/Merchants
Social intrigue and leverage
Infiltration
Apprentice Assassins
Disruption, sabotage, targeting key players
Thanks for visiting tonight for another set of updates for this weeks adventure featuring some additional Daggerheart content. Don’t forget to come back over the weekend for more updates and lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
The Griffin Trading warehouse is where we find our party this week and while I make no effort to conceal my dislike of battle maps that are under a roof or in a city this week is… no different! This week I have a few things to help us get an idea of what the environment and area could be like when we run this encounter in the theatre of the mind.
So grab a coffee, some snacks as we look at a cinematic turn of events in tonight’s environment and theatre setup!
Griffin Trading Warehouse
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Griffin Trading Warehouse – Created in WordPress.
The warehouse was large going back easily 60 feet wide and much deeper with several rows of shelves, rooms tables and crates. Stairs led up the left hand side of the wide room to a balcony that overlooked the floor space where a room had been built with a large double door that was securely locked shut. Under the balcony more rooms had been built out of the same cheap looking wood with a single wide door that lay open, invitingly so with chests visible from the floor outside of the rooms.
The sound of guards could be heard from the deeper recesses behind the walls of goods, crates and few barrels that were stacked high on shelves. While the guards moved about several workers in the warehouse were moving goods from shelves to crates and barrels as the sound or horses could be heard from outside – a large order was being made ready.
Two windows could be seen on the roof looking at the dark night sky that was speckled with stars which was the only way in or out other than the large double doors behind them. Despite the volume of merchandise that occupied this room there were several tables that had weapons, maps, notes and other gear that would be associated more with mercenary work than the sale of goods.
The immediate space that the party found themselves in a small clearing of about twenty feet wide by thirty feet deep where two wagons lay side by side filled with sacks, crates and loose goods that look like they were already ready for immediate delivery.
Game Mechanics – Daggerheart.
Taking a leap into this a bit further into the rules of Daggerheart this week I wanted to spend some time building up some additional Enviroments that can be used. While not all Encounters will be confrontational I find that these rules give a basis and some guidelines to help put guiderails around what we can expect from a non-combat encounter.
While this one, and the others I have planned, can lead to combat it doesn’t mean that we have to start there and several party members I have had over the years have attempted to ‘win an encounter’ with something that is left field or non-combative which having Environments can assist in.
Merchants Warehouse – Environment
The above Environment Stat blocks were created by me. Rules were adapted and inspired by adversaries and environments from the Daggerheart System Reference Document 1.0 and any likeness is the copyright of DRP, Darrington Press, who are the creators of the material (Environment Stat Blocks). This content was modified/created is licensed under the DRP Community Gaming License which can be found here: Darrington Press CGL.
Thanks for joining for another map night this week. Don’t forget that we have a few more nights left this week so make sure to come back each day to see what I add to this adventure. And lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Tonight I give a sneak peak of what I am working on as part of this three week adventure where tonight we look at the streets of Felkirk’s environments. Now if that’s confusing don’t fear as I will go through it momentarily as I cover some of the GMing mechanics for Daggerheart.
So sit back, grab a coffee or other hot beverage and let’s roll into tonight’s adventure!
The Streets of Felkirk’s Environments
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Creating Environments – Created in WordPress.
The streets of Felkirk’s Environments can be varied depending on the time of the day. For my adventure that takes place over three larger scenes I wanted the setting to be a dark, tense and anxiety charged atmosphere to help fuel the feeling of an invasion going on. But before I get too far into that let’s take a step back.
In Daggerheart its not just Adversaries; the critters, creatures, monsters and hostile humanoids, that the Game Master, GM, can use to create tense atmospheric moments for the PCs its also the Environments that can change, evolve or manipulate the flow of the adventure. For the sake of this quick post tonight let’s treat an Environment as an Adversary as they have a tier, a type, something akin to Motives & Tactics in the form of Impulses as well as a Difficulty and Features.
Like Adversaries some Environments will have passives which alter the area in which the party are in. Examples might be Oppressive Heat where parties who travel through their Traversal environment mark an additional stress on all failed rolls due to the oppressive heat. Or like in my examples it gives a set of actions that he party may be able to take, or impede certain actions that the party may want to take.
The other type of feature that the Environment shares with Adversaries is actions (many do actually) which is an action. Whether this is a spout of burning hot lava erupting from the ground at the Fire-marsh where the Oppressive heat sometimes erupts form the ground causing PCs to make an Agility reaction roll or suffer burns from the boiling water and steam. Or where the GM can activate the Environments natural residence to make an appearance – summoning fire toads to leap from the boiling water to attack with blistering tongues – triggering an encounter. This may or may not cost a Fear, the GMs resource that they get from around 40% of dice rolls, but if it does then it may be a more powerful creature, or set of creatures, that are being summoned.
So treating Environments like Adversaries also comes down to how they look. Environments also have stat blocks and that is precisely what I wanted to show off tonight! So have a look below at some of the Environments for the scene of Felkirk’s Foot Traffic.
The above Environment Stat blocks were created by me. Rules were adapted and inspired by adversaries and environments from the Daggerheart System Reference Document 1.0 and any likeness is the copyright of DRP, Darrington Press, who are the creators of the material (Environment Stat Blocks). This content was modified/created is licensed under the DRP Community Gaming License which can be found here: Darrington Press CGL.
Now while these Environments aren’t going to be game changing they add a bit of depth and structure onto what the adventure will do. If you read The Night of Silent Feet the scene plays out pretty closely. The Party are at the Lost Anchor Inn and they can perform some actions there while a timer ticks down – 1 action per player with the Countdown being the number of players. Once the countdown reaches 0 then the door opens and a guard falls in. The party leave the Inn to immediately get ambushed – the Ambush Encounter event. This is a small easy encounter to ease people in and once its over then they run through the streets.
This may trigger another encounter but it will get the party used to the mechanics of rolling dice to try and get a few successes before failure – and it shows consequence. Afterwards we move onto other smaller scenes (Social encounter at the Makeshift Barracks for scene two. Followed by another Felkirk Streets that moves to Market Street and then Forward Base.) By treating the travel like an adversary then it becomes less prone to becoming dull and the least favourite part of the journey. Many DMs / GMs have covered this type of travel before so I won’t go into it – but I do recommend that you look into it!
Thanks for joining me tonight for a little introduction into Environments for the Daggerheart RPG system. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for the start of a new week and new adventure and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Now for the next Zine of the year I present, in single page zine format, Felkirk’s Fallen. I still believe that these provide DMs a lot more freedom to tinker with it how they want and open up the adventures to be more free formed and flowing than the larger booklet zines.
There is references to the blog nights which are D&D centric but it can easily use the adversary stat-blocks highlighted in Friday nights post if you’re running Daggerheart. As always Kobold fight club can be used to quickly balance an encounter for Dungeons and Dragons and Tetra-cube provides the stat-blocks for many of my D&D creatures.
So I hope you enjoy this weeks adventure, Felkirk’s Fallen, and that all your rolls are made with advantage.
Felkirk’s Fallen
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Felkirk’s Fallen – created in copilot.
The wooden planks of the dock groaned beneath the party’s steps as smoke drifted from the burning galley behind them. In the eerie stillness, Bunker and Cinella emerged, their expressions caught between disbelief and admiration. Where once chaos ruled, silence reigned. Cinella’s voice trembled with both awe and relief as she praised the party’s staggering success. They had expected only to hold the enemy at bay, waiting for royal reinforcements that never arrived. Instead, it was the party who turned the tide. Bunker, always brimming with rough-hewn pride, reminded them of the warehouse lift, the very path that got them here in time.
The moment did not last. A soldier staggered onto the dock, breathless and dirt-smeared, bearing ill news. One of their own had returned from a mission to seek aid at the castle, only to collapse in death, muttering fragments about the dead and Merchants Way. Cinella’s stance shifted; they could send some troops, but mercenaries still stalked the shadows, and no one knew what lay ahead. She issued swift commands to rest and regroup. Her eyes then met the party’s, heavy with unspoken hope. Perhaps, once again, they would be asked to do what no others could
Merchants Way greeted the party with dread. Blood stained the streets in great swathes, walls scarred with frantic claw marks and steel gouges, but not a body lay in sight. The signs of violence were fresh, yet the dead had been moved, dragged up toward the castle. Shattered carts and broken doorframes littered the path, but the party pressed on with Cinella, Bunker, and a handful of steadfast allies. When the dead did return, it was not with blind fury, but tactical malice. From the shadows, the undead swarmed with unnerving coordination, seeking to entrap rather than overwhelm.
Blades cleaved and spells burst as the party stood their ground, but with each strike a deeper horror unfolded. Among the dead were familiar faces; once citizens of Felkirk, and others who bore the long-decayed wounds of battles long past. These were no accidental corpses. They had been gathered and raised for war, prepared well before this night. A raven called from above and wheeled away toward the castle. Somewhere close, a necromancer guided the assault with chilling foresight. Wounds were bound in haste. The party moved, still bleeding, toward the storm that awaited them.
Their pace quickened as they neared the castle. Undead corpses now littered the stones like refuse, signs that someone; perhaps those within, had been fighting fiercely. Fire arrows rained over the walls, igniting swathes of the dead. Standing apart from the carnage was a robed mage, casting destructive spells heedless of which bodies they struck. Tattered like old feathers, the figure remained obscured behind waves of undead. But then, a new threat revealed itself. Rotting ravens, perched high and silent, watched from the rooftops. Their glassy eyes turned toward the party. Moments later, fresh zombies stirred below, forming a living barrier between the party and the mage. Just as all seemed lost, fire tore through the ranks. The mage’s attention faltered. In the chaos, gaps formed, narrow, fleeting, and dangerous. A chance to reach the mage was laid bare, but it would not last long.
Thanks for joining me today for another adventure. Please feel free to leave comments if you like what you see when you grab a copy of the PDF. Next time you get a party together consider running this adventure and I hope that you enjoy it. Don’t forget to come back daily so you don’t miss a thing in the coming weeks adventures. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
The Battle for Merchants way is a bloody one, one filled with old and new dead rising to join the party on the battlefield. However what is an undead army without a leader and boy do we have an iconic one tonight.
So get your spells ready, prepare your prayers as we face the undead enmasse in tonight’s encounter!
Battle for Merchants Way
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For D&D Systems
D&D Statblocks for Swarm of lesser zombies, swarm of zombies and Arch Necromancer – created in Tetra-cube.
The undead swarms can be joined with regular zombies to flesh out the battlefield but I think the swarms do a really good job at highlighting just how many zombies there really is on the battlefield. The Arch Necromancer can bring back a few zombies at at time or a swarm to really highlight the power that these dark mages bring to the battlefield.
For Daggerheart Systems
The above Adversary Stat blocks were sourced from the Daggerheart System Reference Document 1.0 and are the copyright of DRP, Darrington Press, who are the creators of the material (Adversary Stat Blocks). This content was not modified is licensed under the DRP Community Gaming License which can be found here: Darrington Press CGL.
Based on the balancing section of the Daggerheart books we can have four of the Zombie Packs, three Zombie Legions and one Arch-Necromancer calling the shots and really driving the combat forward. This is set up for a series of T4 party members but if its lower tiers then it can be adjusted to make it work by reducing the thresholds and difficulty on the zombie legion and arch-necromancer as well as adjusting the damage and attack bonuses to lower levels.
Thanks for visiting tonight for another set of updates for this weeks adventure featuring some additional Daggerheart content. Don’t forget to come back over the weekend for more updates and lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
This week the fighting takes place on Merchants way where several buildings lie in ruins, rubble is piled up and fires are spreading. But that’s the real problem as undead flood the streets – but that’s a problem for tomorrow night.
So grab a coffee, maybe a torch as we shamble into tonight’s adventure map!
Merchants Way
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Felkirk Merchants Way – Gridded – Created in Inkarnate.
The flickering firelight that had sprung up where the fire laden arrows had missed their undead-marks and landed amongst the wooden debris of the building around the street illuminated the desperate scene that lay before them. Broken buildings, rubble and the evidence at what once was a bustling area for commerce and mercantile now lay in ruins.
Undead patrolled the street and the damage that was being done by the undead to the area around them was met and sometimes exceeded by the damage done by those defending the walls just up the street. The party had stumbled into a battleground where they were caught staring destruction straight into its eyes.
Multiple layers to get the desired effect this week. A layer of dirt with a 70~% opacity for cobblestone was then muted by a soot-like layer and then darker dirt to represent the foot traffic, or undead traffic, that moved through the streets. Multiple layered art assets built up texture around the building to create depth. A night filter cause, its my favourite, and the use of fire assets and light to create visual pinpoints of light and maybe some strategic spots for the players.
Thanks for joining for another map night this week. Don’t forget that we have a few more nights left this week so make sure to come back each day to see what I add to this adventure. And lastly, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage, The Brazen Wolfe
Brazen Wolfe Tabletop 