Homebrew

2023 Campaign Adventure 7

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Good evening all and welcome to a short Seventh day of adventuring. Whilst not giving away the campaign, adventure or plot moving forward I will attempt to write up each adventure this year continuing with my 2023 campaign adventure 7. Today was a bit longer than the last session we had and we progressed further.

This is a continuation from 2023 Campaign adventure 6 as the party continues on their first mission as members of the investigation of the strange creatures in these lands.

2023 Campaign Adventure 7

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Plot:

Suncrest

Having decided to leave the crossroads to make for Suncrest before darkness fell the party made good time. Having unburdened animals to take them across the roads was a lot easier than moving with the wagons by foot from a few days ago. However the signs of what they encountered all to recently were still visible.

The deep ruts where the wagon got stuck which revealed a kobold-fashioned scimitar, the camp site where they were attacked by the lizards in the middle of the night. All was familiar yet different from their last foray through this part of the countryside.

However something else new was waiting for them as they rose over the crest and looked at the village of Suncrest. A plume of smoke was visible from above the towns and sending Armaeth to scout it was revealed to belong to a single man who was frantically looking through the ruins of the town. The Fairy also reported that there were several gaping holes in the ground in Suncrest. Cave ins to tunnels below which looked like it was somewhat recently made.

Making the decision to approach the town they made for the town and found a suitable barn to keep their, rather expensive, horses safe. However as they were leaving the barn they were spotted by the man walking through the town.

Enter Henrey.

After, somehow, Kai had convinced the man to come into the barn (and that he was someone called Lucky Barry) they quickly disarmed him and began questioning him. It turns out his life was worth more than his loyalty to his boss, Boss Barry, who had threatened to kill him if he didn’t find something of value in the town.

After a brief discussion it turned out that Henrey was part of a bandit gang who had stumbled across Suncrest and was subsequently attacked by kobolds who spilled out of their tunnels. Many bandits died but they killed twice as many Kobolds who then fled from the tunnels. Henrey then explained that the boss, Barry, had taken Lucky… Barry (two Barry’s was a bad idea) and the other bandits to investigate a manor near by whilst Henrey continued to look for a ‘hidden treasure’ that Lucky Barry could feel was in the town. The party promised Henrey that he would be safe if they left town. But Henrey mentioned a farmhouse on the way out of the town where they had stashed some plunder – this drew the attention of the party.

The Farmstead

Ruined Farmhouse Roof – Created in Inkarnate (see base below)
Ruined Farmhouse – Created in Inkarnate (see above for roof)

The farmhouse was small and in ruins. But they managed to find a sack of swords (about 20 useable blades within), some passable vegetables (maybe for animals that is) and some tools that could fetch a few gold.

They also found a locked wardrobe that had some fine clothes, a hunting longbow and some arrows stashed in there. But they failed to notice the bandits approaching.

Closure

Fleeing wasn’t an option but bluffing was. Convincing half the bandits that they had reinforcements meant they only had to deal with half of them now, the others ran off towards town. However the first five bandits were just the beginning as another five returned with Boss Barry.

After a long and tense fight the party succeeded and managed to wrest a worn looking short sword from the death grip of Barry. However upon closer inspection the blade had a name in dwarvern, Frost Thorn. The blade was not made by a dwarvern hand but it had a lot of characteristics as if it was constructed in the dwarvern ways. But there was a something odd about the blade. A permanent chill could be felt from it and they felt lucky that the blade had not caressed their skin when wielded by the bandit leader.

Main NPCs:

Armaeth
Groku

Thanks for joining me tonight and for continuing on this campaign with me. We just managed to get through what I wanted to today but there is always the sense of wanting more. But the party were excited to play and are looking forward to the next session – which is always the goal.

Don’t forget to come back tomorrow as we catch up on this weeks adventure. And, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Strands in a Web

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Back to the deep dark and the cocoon covered cavern we find the party stuck in strands in a web. This Monday night is more discussing the multiple options to get to the same path – a final confrontation between the heroes and the Lord of the Pit . Employing the ‘all roads lead to Rome’ approach we can see a few options leading us to where we want to be. But there is a warning with this as it can feel like the power is taken away from the players and replaced with strings. So let’s sit back grab a coffee and let’s roll into this weeks adventure!

Strands in a Web

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Avoiding the Ambush

The party looked down at the twitching bodies of the ettercaps and driders as they scraped off the webs from their skin and gear. Luckily they had heard the creatures coming down the path around the same time that they realised that the spiders weren’t real. But the wounds and pain that they had caused definitely were.

Leaving the pile of corpses they moved towards the entrance to the cavern. Something in here must have sent the creatures to ambush them and orchestrated the phantasmic spiders to attack them. Something powerful. A Thrum of power could be felt coming from below much like at the Ice Spire and well of souls. Somewhere here they may find the answer to what Andrasa had investigated. A seal for a great calamity if what they have learnt so far was to be believed. But unlike the Spire where the giant defended a crumbling statue and the undead were drawn to the out of control Well of Souls. Here the energy was under control and it was growing, thriving in the dark.

Something was amiss here. A puppeteer worked the strings of fate and they were dangerously close to being caught in the web. But they could tell that the Pit of infinite darkness that lay at the bottom of the cavern was being fed energy, souls from the captives in the cocoons and they had to stop it by any means.

The cavern before them was still impossibly dark but they could make out what was near them. Bridges made from webs led to cocoons where the captives were calling from. They had seen some of the spiders using them and they were certain they had seen something larger, bigger lurking around these platforms. Moving forward they looked at how they could make it across and after a tense moment the web-bridges were proven to support their weight, at least for now.

As they scouted the bases of the giant cocoon-like structures they found human sized cocoons stuck to the base and familiar faces of the drow, duergar and svirfneblin, deep gnomes, staring back at them. Some of the captives were alert and pleaded to be let out but some were not so. Some were barely holding on to consciousness and upon further inspection, barely holding onto life. Something was draining their life essence here and as they moved across the captives the familiar faces of Viktira, Morali and Qistra all appeared. Viktira, Morali and Qistra all appeared. Viktira was barely conscious and she looked gaunt however Morali and Qistra had a lot of fight left in them.

Something moved in the dark. A presence like a thousand silent bats moving through the cavern in a swarm. Something that made the vampire form the carrion swamp feel like a stubborn teenager stomping its foot in impatience. This was ancient and dark and without a doubt – the one pulling the strings and the caller of the shots here. But it watched and waited. A presence that dwarfed what they had faced so far hovered just outside of their vision, something made of smoke and shadow itself.

Dragged away in silken bonds

The party were conscious throughout the entire ordeal. Their weapons and a few items were bound to their sides but their backpacks were left somewhere where they were captured. The ettercaps were ruthless ambushers and almost like a trained squad of assassins they had lunged forward and garrotted the party with a silken rope. A drider hung near by and watched the ettercaps bind each of the party, but it looked down at them like they were subjects of interest rather than threats. Like its eyes were not its own. Clearly the ambush and the illusionary spiders were party of a plan by a more powerful entity. One that was calling all the shots and pulling all the strings.

The party were conscious throughout the entire ordeal. Their weapons and a few items were bound to their sides but their backpacks were left somewhere where they were captured. The ettercaps were ruthless ambushers and almost like a trained squad of assassins they had lunged forward and garrotted the party with a silken rope. A drider hung nearby and watched the ettercaps bind each of the party, but it looked down at them like they were subjects of interest rather than threats. Like its eyes were not its own. Clearly the ambush and the illusionary spiders were part of a plan by a more powerful entity. One that was calling all the shots and pulling all the strings.

As they moved across the silken walkways the ettercaps hauled the party members one by one, dumping them on jagged rocks at the edge of one of the web-bridges. As the party lay there in the dark a rock or discarded blade jabbed into their side painfully, deep enough to hit armour and cut skin. But it also cuts at their web bindings.

A potential opportunity for an escape, a glimmer of hope but when was the right moment to use it. As the party member was then picked up and carried across the web bridge the cocoon came into better sight. Rows of people; drow, duergar, deep gnome (or svirfneblin), and some surface races were bound and lined up against what appeared to be giant cocoons suspended by webs throughout the cavern.

Each person was conscious, some were in pain and making noise but others were listless, barely holding onto whatever drove them to fight. But the party didn’t have long to notice Viktira, Morali and Qistra all appeared before them lined up against the wall before they were unceremoniously discarded a few cocoons down from them.

A presence hung about them like the sensation of a thousand cicadas buzzing in a muggy evening, the presence was almost over bearing and a shape. A large mass of darkness given a monstrous form moved somewhere nearby. Something that dwarfed driders and made Ettercaps look like mice. The puppet master had revealed itself and it studied them for a moment before disappearing back into the voice beyond.

A fun one tonight. Regardless of the outcome there is always room for moving the story forward and this week is evident in that. So don’t forget to come back for more content as we move forward with this adventure and as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Well of Souls

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Tonight and I have created a zine for a long over due adventure, The Well of Souls. This adventure can be used system agnostic as we explore other RPGs out there other than D&D. So please adjust to what ever creatures you are using in your adventure! However as always Kobold fight club can be used to quickly balance an encounter for Dungeons and Dragons and Tetra-cube currently provides the stat-blocks for creatures in this adventure.

So I hope you enjoy this weeks adventure, The Well of Souls. There is a lot more content within the Zine, again, this week so if you want to get the full experience then download the pdf!

If you like this format please let me know and I hope you enjoy.

The Well of Souls

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Well of souls – created in nightcafe

Battling undead and repairing barricades may not be the favourite way for the party to get to know the people of a new town, but it was how the people of Ferklend got to know them, and began to respect them. 

However during the night after the fighting and repairing was done Viktira left and disappeared into the swamps seeking out the ruins. What’s worse is that Rike, the only one who has been to the ruins, allegedly, believes that she may be in danger, and a danger to everyone as the well of souls may react to her bloodline.

After the encounter with the undead at the gates of Ferklend the party recovered and helped with some of the repairs. The party managed to secure another night where they were staying and the people of Ferklend were more accommodating after they helped defend the town. 

However in the morning the party woke to find Rike frantically looking around the town. Upon spying the party he rushed to them. 

“Thank the gods I found you! It’s Viktira, we were talking about her family last night and I think she may be descended from the tribe of people that once called the jungles home. She was super curious about the ruins so I told her where to find them. I didn’t think of it more than someone being interested in the history of the swamp I swear. But when I went to warn her about the ruins this morning she was gone. One of the guards said he saw her leave the town by the main gate and then head towards the ruins. 

If she is the descendent of the original custodians of the well of souls the inscriptions at the ruins say that she may make the ruins more unstable. You’ve got to stop her.”

PDF adventure – The Well of Souls

the-well-of-soulsDownload

Thanks for joining me tonight for another Zine. This one had more content added to the Zine but like a few of my other ones I kept that in the Zine, not the blog. So you will just have to trust me on that and grab a copy of the Zine to check it out.

Next time you get a party together consider running this adventure and I hope that you enjoy it.
I hope you don’t miss a thing so come back daily in the coming week. This is so you can experience the creation of the next adventure as it evolves and shapes out. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Phantasm Spiders

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Another weeks end see’s more spiders join us on the battlemap and the star of the show is the Phantasm Spider. There are a few other encounters that could be listed here but these little, weak and (actually not there) spiders love to swarm on living prey. But don’t let them tie you down as there are other more dangerous things lurking around the corner. So in order to not get distracted too heavily let’s roll into tonight’s adventure!

Phantasm Spiders

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The area that the party are fighting within is next to where all the prisoners are kept. They can be heard calling out for aid or, simply calling out continuously. This really increases the difficulty of paying attention to what’s going on around them with the noise generated from the captives. The DC to detect the illusionary Phantasm spiders is high because of that, but I would also remove passive perception checks to detect the stealth attempts of the creatures sneaking up on them. They are distracted quite heavily so active vigilance will be required here.

The phantasm Spider is created by the Lord of the Pit. These creatures are not-quite illusions but are treated much the same. Convincing enough as they all die and the mind makes the party believe that they are lethal enough to convince the players they are real through physical stimulus.

However a successful investigation check (DC 18) will reveal them as illusions and they will cease to inflict any damage or, even hamper the party member when moving through the illusionary spiders. True sight will also see this and Witch sight (or detect magic) will detect them as being entirely magical – but not if they are illusions as such.

Because of their low HP and lack of damage they are best in swarms, Dozens of spiders attacking at once to make the party feel godlike when a single attack kills several spiders at once. It aids to the feeling of a standoff against a hoard of creatures.

Phantasm Spider – Created in Tetra-cube.

And some old friends, the drider and Ettercap. Back again for another adventure this week these stealthy creatures will aim to try and capture the party while they are distracted fighting the Phantasm Spiders.

Drider created in tetra-cube.
Ettercap – created in tetra-cube.

Now the other creature that may make an appearance in the tunnels is a great stalker of the underdark – the displacer beast. Now this creature needs no real introduction other than to say its can be a mean piece of work.

Displacer beast – created in tetra-cube.

Thanks for coming back tonight for another fun night in the spiders web. Don’t forget to come back this weekend for some D&D content and as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Spider Pit

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Coming from last night’s update, Web of Lies, tonight we get a glimpse of the Spider Pit in which he party will be dealing with the machinations of the lord of the pit. A few floating cocoons hold the prisoners just outside of reach but close enough that those with energy left can still be heard calling for help. But, that can be revealed tomorrow. So let’s grab a coffee and roll into tonight’s map!

The Spider Pit

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The Spider Pit is more a large cavern coated in Webs. Some are made by spiders, others by Driders and Ettercaps and something else by something much more foul. The encounter below has the sticky web everywhere which is flammable. So you can burn away the web to provide an area to fight in.

Parts of the map are difficult terrain with dexterity checks to avoid being stuck (if you touch the walls), others are just occasional trip hazards (roll of a 1 on a d6.) The spider webs leading out to the suspended giant cocoons are able to be walked on, and they aren’t sticky. But the fall if you slip or fail a dexterity/acrobatics check is quite far. So the party better watch their step when moving near the edge.

The Spider Pit- Created in Inkarnate

That’s it for us tonight. Tomorrow we have a look at stat blocks, some existing ones as a just in-case, some other underdark creatures and… the giant spiders that attack relentlessly – or they don’t… that’s for the party to find out. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for more content, and as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Web of Lies

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Welcome back to another night where we look towards web of lies that the party are falling prey to. Or not. You see this week is a bit of concept heavy week where if pulled off well the party will be in awe. But pull it off poorly and it feels like a thinly veiled attempt to stall, hinder or railroad. But let’s assume we can pull it off and it will feel rich and rewarding for all. So let’s sit back, grab a coffee and roll into tonight’s adventure!

Web of Lies

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The first of the spiders dropped from the ceiling next to the party had them taken by surprise, for a moment. An arrow through their head caused the body to tumble over the edge and into the pit with a trail of silken thread floating behind. However there were more and soon the realisation of what they had stumbled into made the parties skin crawl.

The cavern itself was covered in web with bulbous cocoons hanging suspended from great webs near the centre. The light that they had with them enabled them to see the walls, a few web-walk ways towards the centre cocoons and some figures moving in the gloom but the sudden appearance of the spiders came with a realisation as well. The whole area was a giant cocoon.

A nest for spiders, the ettercaps and the drow. The captives from the underdark cities and towns were the food for the brood, an insatiable hoard that had taken over this cavern and was reaching further up into the underdark. Each kill the party made sent another large spider over the edge of the ledge they were on and into the depth. But they were without numbers and they were hungry.

The creature sat and watched as the humanoids fought in the tunnels. She analysed their prowess, how they fought and their team work as she sat still on the ceiling and she smiled. She knew that they would work it out eventually. There is no way that there would be that many spiders and her powers only allowed her so much flexibility with the phantasms she could create. But still as a means for tiring our these interlopers it was a useful tool in her arsenal. It also aided in distracting them from the ambushing party that was approaching them from behind.

That right. Illusions, but a smidge better used this time. I think the idea of a big bad (see Lord of The Pit) staying in one place and assessing the party for their prowess is probably the most terrifying. It’s rare we have a creature that would do this to the party and so I think the concept pushes the next two weeks up to being one of my favourites. But there is more, as always, so don’t forget to come back tomorrow for a map and Friday for stat-blocks. And while you’re at it don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Silken Path

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Back after our light digression with our Halloween Zine, this week follows on from the adventure that takes place in Kalehgrul. This week our party follow (or are part of) the Silken Path. Captured or following along the Drider raiders the party head deeper towards Duraegis and, the deep Dark. This will be the second last part of this underdark adventure so let’s sit back grab a coffee and let’s roll into this weeks adventure!

The Silken Path

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The silken Path – Created in Nightcafe

The driders and ettercaps were not hard to track. The creatures lay great paths of webs as they moved back through the hidden tunnels below Kalehgrul. Their prisoners, the first wave of residents bound in webs and occasionally, feasted upon by the monstrosities that held them captive. The silk itself was strong, light and durable. Those entangled by it would not be able to break out in a hurry and with the venom that the ettercaps injected into the strongest of the prisoners there was no hope of escape.

And in the dark tunnels where no light could be seen from even glowing mushrooms or other flora and fauna there was no hope of a rescue. Along the way those that the abominations deemed too sick, frail or weak were left bound along the path to die surrounded by their silken bonds. Lost amongst the dark, cold and at mercy to be preyed upon by what other nightmares haunted these tunnels.

The path led on for days of travel. The party had met some of the other residents of the tunnels but they fled when the true power of the party was revealed. Although the tunnels were bare from game or really edible material there were supplies and goods that had been with those taken from Kalehgrul that the party were able to find along the way. However by the Third day of travel the amount of webs on the ceiling, walls and floor of the tunnel decreased and a draft could be felt coming from up ahead.

As the party continued down the passageway the source of the draft was revealed. A large orb-like Cavern filled with webs and cocoons, and in the centre lay a inky-black pit. Something that seemed to drink in all light. The deep dark lay waiting before them.

Another few days in the underdark but this time chasing spiders to… something potentially worse. Don’t forget to come back each day this week so you can stay up to date on how this adventure turns out and as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Foul Assault on Ferklend

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Tonight and I have created a zine for a long over due adventure, Foul Assault on Ferklend. This adventure can be used system agnostic as we explore other RPGs out there other than D&D. So please adjust to what ever creatures you are using in your adventure! However as always Kobold fight club can be used to quickly balance an encounter for Dungeons and Dragons and Tetra-cube currently provides the stat-blocks for creatures in this adventure.

So I hope you enjoy this weeks adventure, Foul Assault on Ferklend. There is a lot more content within the Zine, again, this week so if you want to get the full experience then download the pdf!

If you like this format please let me know and I hope you enjoy.

Foul Assault on Ferklend

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Tulkore Jungle – created in Nightcafe.

The drive to move onwards towards investigating the points of power that the Mage Andrasa had studied continued. Despite the gained knowledge from the Ice Spire there was a compulsion to move forward. 

Not all was right at the Platara Ridge and from what they had heard of The Fulkore Jungle, and the Carrion Swamp, there was something foul brewing there too. 

The jungles have always had undead in them, hence the name given to the swamp. But they were increasing in number now and fewer and fewer people came back from the jungle and more and more undead found their way to the city’s walls. 

Is it tied to this Well of Souls or is there something else darker going on?

PDF adventure – Foul Assault on Ferklend

foul-assault-on-ferklendDownload

Thanks for joining me tonight for another Zine. This one had more content added to the Zine but like a few of my other ones I kept that in the Zine, not the blog. So you will just have to trust me on that and grab a copy of the Zine to check it out.

Next time you get a party together consider running this adventure and I hope that you enjoy it.
I hope you don’t miss a thing so come back daily in the coming week. This is so you can experience the creation of the next adventure as it evolves and shapes out. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Butcher of Ravencreek

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Tonight and I have created a zine for the spookiest of times, Halloween. I present to you as my offering to the pumpkin lord, and any else who share in the delights of fright, The Butcher of Ravencreek. This adventure can be used system agnostic as we explore other RPGs out there other than D&D. So please adjust to what ever creatures you are using in your adventure! However as always Kobold fight club can be used to quickly balance an encounter for Dungeons and Dragons and Tetra-cube currently provides the stat-blocks for creatures in this adventure.

So I hope you enjoy this Halloween adventure, The Butcher of Ravencreek. As usual there is a lot more content within the Zine, again, this week so if you want to get the full experience then download the pdf!

If you like this format please let me know and I hope you enjoy.

The Butcher of Ravencreek

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Ravencreek – created in nightcafe.

The party arrived at Ravencreek on a chilled morning. There is a light fog that seems to have settled around the little town that is famous for its week-long celebration which attracts people from all across the land. 

This means that for people who fancy themselves sellswords, thieves, do-gooders and even bandits the town is of a particular focus during these seven days of festivity. 

However what they find is not the excitement and party that they expected, it’s a headless girl, a mourning town and a funeral – the first of many to come this bloody week.

Can the party find out who or what is killing the townsfolk and why?

PDF adventure – The Butcher of Ravencreek

the-butcher-of-ravencreekDownload

Other Useful links:

Ravencreek street encounter map

Butchers Hill Encounter map

Thanks for joining me tonight for another Zine. This one had more content added to the Zine but like a few of my other ones I kept that in the Zine, not the blog. So you will just have to trust me on that and grab a copy of the Zine to check it out.

Next time you get a party together consider running this adventure and I hope that you enjoy it.
I hope you don’t miss a thing so come back daily in the coming week. This is so you can experience the creation of the next adventure as it evolves and shapes out. And as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Cindermare and its Rider

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Tonight we have a small reveal for some of the creatures for this weeks encounter, the Cindermare and its Rider! This deadly duo has a few tricks up its sleeve which will make it a challenge to any Level 9-11 party. But when we throw in the other creatures it will be truly horrific!. So grab a coffee and let’s roll into tonight’s encounter!

The Cindermare and its Rider

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No matter how I look at the Butcher there are a few choices that could make it nearly impossible to beat. So I scaled down from what I originally had and decided to change some of the original legendary actions I had worked out into mobility defining ones. A Elf lord turned cinder-wraith should be mobile as he was in life but with the undead-spookiness that undeath grants.

All the better to enact a final curse with I suppose.

The Butcher created in tetra-cube.

The Cindermare is really just a reskinned nightmare. Despite this I have removed its ability to shed light and changed it up, being a creature that swallows a fire like soot does to cinders in a fire. It has some of its riders abilities of incorporeality but not as much and its not much of a war-beast and more of stylish ride for the Butcher.

Cindermare – created in tetra-cube.

Thanks for joining me tonight. Don’t miss coming back for the next few days as I, hopefully, finish up this Zine for a Saturday D&D session and also, hopefully, publishing a Zine from the lost archives. So don’t forget to drop back in for that and as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe