Sample file Sample file Table of Contents

Adventure Title ...... Author ...... Artist ...... Page Tower of the Black Pearl ...... Harley Stroh ...... Cliff Kurowski ...... 3 Old Feodol’s Basement...... Adrian Pommier ...... Brad McDevitt ...... 15 Lair of the White Salamander . . . Phillip Larwood...... Stefan Poag ...... 26 The Golden Auroch ...... Andrew Hind ...... Cliff Kurowski ...... 40 The Forgotten Sentinel ...... Michael Ferguson ...... Friedrich Haas ...... 53 Well of the Worm...... Harley Stroh ...... Doug Kovacs ...... 66 The Plague Wight’s Revenge . . . Dieter Zimmerman ...... Jesse Mohn ...... 77 The Stench of Death ...... Andrew Hind ...... Ian Armstrong ...... 87 Fate of the Vigilant ...... Adrian Pommier ...... Brad McDevitt ...... 98 When Kobolds Fly ...... Brendan LaSalle ...... Brad McDevitt ...... 113 Chilled to the Bone ...... Jason Little...... Friedrich Haas ...... 125 The Isle of Fury ...... Greg Oppedisano...... Jesse Mohn ...... 139 The Beast of Barren Hill ...... MichaelSample Tresca. . file...... Scott Carlton ...... 157 A Question of Morels...... Jason Little...... Michael Wilson ...... 167 The Black Larder...... Adrian Pommier ...... Jason Edwards ...... 180 Mage Maze ...... George Strayton...... Friedrich Haas ...... 193 By Invitation Only ...... Bret Boyd ...... Cory Hamel ...... 199 Hive of Villainy...... Andrew Hind ...... Jesse Mohn ...... 211 The Crystal Shrine...... Jeff LaSala ...... Stacy Drum ...... 225 The Dripping Temple ...... Rob Manning ...... Doug Kovacs ...... 235 Appendix I: New Monsters . . . . . Various ...... Jesse Mohn ...... 246

2 Tower of the Black Pearl By Harley Stroh AN ADVENTURE FOR CHARACTER LEVELS 1-2

Introduction tum. The fabled Black Pearl will be theirs for the tak- Sampleing...if file they can survive the Pearl’s curse. The Tower of the Black Pearl is designed for four to six characters of 1st through 2nd level. Characters can be Game Master’s Section of any class, although a well-rounded party will have the best chance of success. Rogues will find their talents in Encounter Table high demand during the exploration of the Tower. In lieu Loc Pg Type Encounter EL of rogues, spellcasters will have their creativity and 1-1 5 C 3 Pirates 2 resourcefulness put to the test. 1-2 6 T Burning hands trap 2 Adventure Summary 1-3 6 C/T 4 animated fetishes 2 Once every decade, the tides of the Empyrean Ocean Camouflaged pit trap 1 recede far enough to reveal the highest eaves of a mys- 1-4 7 P Portal puzzle 3 terious undersea tower. Long ago this was the eldritch 1-5 7 C 3 pirates 2 fastness of a powerful mage, but now the tower is known simply as the final resting place of the fabled 1-6 8 C/P Skeleton 1/3 Black Pearl – an artifact rumored to bring doom upon all 1-7 8 C/T Savage Quenn, Ftr1 3 who dare to possess it. 2 pirates Tonight the moon nearly fills the sky, and the tides have Wall blade trap 1 already begun to recede. The PCs have eight short 1-8 9 T Flooding room trap 3 hours to explore the tower before the dark waters 1-9 9 T Spear trap 1 return. Unfortunately, a ruthless band of motley pirates has already made it to the Tower. The adventurers must 1-10 10 C Skeleton 1/3 outwit and outfight the pirates, dodge ancient traps, and 1-12 10 C 25 sea vipers, Tiny 6 solve arcane puzzles to reach the Tower’s inner sanc- P Black Pearl Shrine 4 3 Scaling Information corpse, but all the stories agree on two points: that a enormous black pearl is hidden in the tower, and that The Tower of the Black Pearl is an adventure designed certain doom awaits any thief who dares to steal the for 4-6 characters of 1st-2nd levels. You can adapt the Pearl. scenario to higher level parties with a few simple modi- fications. Savage Quenn and the Pirates of Stronger parties (7 or more characters, or higher the Black Mariah than 2nd level): Add 3 pirates to every pirate The nefarious pirate known as Savage Quenn is feared encounter, giving each an additional level in warrior. up and down the coast. Quenn has terrorized the sea Increase Savage Quenn’s fighter levels by 2. Increase lanes for three years now, and the local lord has finally the DC of all traps by 5, and make the vipers in area 1- decided to bring the pirate’s career to an end. But 12 Medium size. Quenn has no plans to end his career by stretching a Getting the Players Involved noose. Instead he sold his ship and dismissed his entire crew, save for a few handpicked rogues. Use one the following plot hooks to get the characters Tonight his band will sack the Tower of the Black Pearl, directly into the dungeon. and if all goes as planned, the savage pirate-lord will be • All of the locals know stories about the fabled Black the only one to emerge from the tower, Pearl in hand. Pearl, and the underwater tower that can be Quenn will vanish into retirement, and none will be the reached but once a decade. An aging pirate, drown- wiser. ing in his cups, informs the PCs that this is such a Quenn is a comely half- who would appear more at night, and that a band of hearty souls might make home in a sylvan court than on the deck of warship. The their fortune tonight if they were willing to risk life fancy silk doublet and dainty rapier disguise a ruthless, and limb. He offers directions to the tower and the self-absorbed murderer, who has put entire cities to the use of his skiff exchange for 20 gp and 1/10 the torch. haul. Quenn’s pirates are a motley band of desperate ruffians • While relaxing in a seaside inn, the PCs overhear a and rogues. All are wanted men and will do everything scuffle taking place outside. Running to the rescue, in their power to avoid capture. All are mongrel humans: they discover two of Savage Quenn’s rogues mug- a mix of human and half-, sprinkled with the ances- ging a robed magician. The rogues flee the instant try of half a dozen other goblinoid races. Their appear- they sight the PCs, but for the magician it is already ance is a testament to their desperate lives: rude, too late. Investigating his corpse, the PCsSample discover homespun file trousers and vests, bare feet, sun-weath- a map directing them to what seems to be an ered skin, and colorful, sprawling tattoos that cover their underwater tower; the back of the map is covered in bodies. All sport multiple piercings and brands from time a complex series of astrological equations. A DC 10 spent as convicts. They fight with fierce cunning; no Knowledge (arcana) check determines the equa- trick or deception is too low for them. tions to be tidal and lunar patterns. Judging from the equations, the tower is not underwater tonight. Player Beginning • The PCs are approached by a sharp-eyed mer- chant. He offers the PCs a proposition: he’ll pay the Start the adventure by reading or paraphrasing the fol- PCs 50 gp each to retrieve the Black Pearl from the lowing: tower of the same name. He’ll provide the map and The dark sea rolls, solemn and quiet beneath the bone- the skiff, the PCs will provide the wits and brawn, white moon. The old Maiden of the Sea, waxing full, and the PCs are welcome to keep any other loot seems especially close tonight, its reflection unbroken they happen to find. There’s only one problem to on the gently rolling waters. Dim lights of town twinkle in the merchant’s plan: his arch-nemesis, Savage the distance, and when the wind is right you can still Quenn, has already left for the tower! hear sea chanties being sung in the night. Background Story A cry goes up from the front: your companions have sighted something breaking the water’s surface. Could The Tower of the Black Pearl is a popular tale in seaside it be the fabled tower? With wide grins and bright eyes, taverns. Nearly everyone has heard of the tower that you bend your backs to the oars. appears but once every ten years, when the tides are right and the seas at their lowest. Fewer stories recall the wizard Sezrakan that built the tower to house his

4 HD 1/2d10; hp 2; Init +2; Spd 30 ft.; AC 14, touch 14, The Tower of the Black flat-footed 12; Base Atk +0; Grp -9; Atk/Full Atk Slam +1 Pearl melee (1d3-1); Space/Reach 2-1/2 ft./0 ft.; SA –; SQ Construct traits, darkvision 60 ft., low-light vision, hard- The tower and adjoining caves were built centuries ago ness 8; AL N; SV Fort +0, Ref +2, Will -5; Str 8, Dex 14, by Sezrakan the Elder, a mage of great renown who Con -, Int -, Wis 1, Cha 1. cherished his privacy. As the mage grew older, he Skills and Feats: – became obsessed with researching means to extend Hardness (Ex): An animated object has the same the span of his life. What became of the mage is a mys- hardness it had before it was animated. tery; one day he simply vanished, and was never heard Note: See area 1-3 for examples of animated fetishes. from again. Pirate, male human War1: CR 1/2; Medium Human; His tower remains, a testament to Sezrakan’s power. HD 1d8+1; hp 6; Init +1; Spd 30 ft.; AC 11, touch 11, flat- The tower is almost one hundred feet tall, encrusted in footed 10; Base Atk +1; Grp +2; Atk short sword +2 mollusks, kelp and coral. The inside of the tower is con- melee (1d6+1/19-20) or dagger +2 ranged (1d4+1/19- stantly damp, but the sea water is kept out by a magic 20); AL NE; SV Fort +3, Ref +1, Will -1; Str 12, Dex 13, shrine powered by the Black Pearl. Removing the Pearl Con 12, Int 7, Wis 8, Cha 7. from the shrine permits the water to rush in through a Skills and Feats: Balance +3, Climb +2, Escape thousand small cracks and holes, but clever PCs may Artist +3, Jump +2, Profession (sailor) +3; Agile, Skill find a way to escape with both the pearl and their lives Focus (Profession (sailor)). (see area 1-12 for more information). Possessions: Dagger, short sword, 10 gp in jewelry. All of the tower and caverns are lit by torches of contin- Dire Rats: CR 1/3; Small Animal; HD 1d8+1; hp 5; Init ual flame; the enchantments are wearing thin, and the +3; Spd 40 ft., climb 20 ft.; AC 15, touch 14, flat-footed torches provide only meager light. 12; Base Atk +0; Grp -4; Atk/Full Atk Bite +4 melee (1d4 plus disease); SA Disease; SQ Low-light vision, scent; Time is crucial to this adventure. Once they step foot on AL N; SV Fort +3, Ref +5, Will +3; Str 10, Dex 17, Con the tower, the characters have precisely eight hours to 12, Int 1, Wis 12, Cha 4. explore the tower and return to the surface. One minute Skills and Feats: Climb +11, Hide +8, Listen +4, longer, and the sea begins to rise over the top of the Move Silently +4, Spot +4, Swim +11; Alertness, tower, pressing the exit closed. PCs will simply be Weapon Finesse unable to lift up the portal from inside the tower, although Disease (Ex): Filth fever-bite, Fortitude DC 11, incu- it could be chopped open from below. Of course, this bation period 1d3 days, damage 1d3 Dex and 1d3 Con. breaks the pearl’s magic seal and sends hundreds of The save DC is Constitution-based. tons of sea water flooding into the tower, suckingSample PCs fileSkills: Dire rats can always choose to take 10 on along for a deadly ride. Even if they survive the crush of Climb checks, even if rushed or threatened. the water, the characters will still have to survive long enough to swim 50 feet to the surface of the ocean. Any Areas of the Map boat moored to the tower will have been sunk by the ris- ing tides, leaving PCs adrift in the open sea. Area 1-1 – Tower of the Black Pearl (EL 2): Read or paraphrase the following: Iron Door: 2 in. thick; hardness 10; hp 60; Break DC 28. The tower rises from the sea like something out Magic-Wrought Stone Wall: 5 ft. thick; hardness 20; of a fairy tale. And yet, it must be real, for waves hp 500; Break DC 40; Climb DC 15. lap at it just as they lap at the planks of your Wandering Monsters skiff. Snarling gargoyles crown the four corners of Check for wondering monsters once every half hour, or the tower, peering from coral-encrusted battle- whenever the characters make a significant amount of ments. More worrisome than the eldritch tower sustained noise. Roll d12; an encounter occurs on a 1. or the snarling gargoyles is the worn longboat If an encounter is called for, roll 1d4 to determine the moored on the far side of the tower. Squinting encounter. through the darkness, it seems that the deck of Roll (d4) Result the longboat is empty. 1 Animated fetishes, Tiny Three pirates are asleep atop the tower beside a 2-3 1d2 pirates keg of rum. Quenn left them with orders to guard 4 1d3 dire rats the ship, but rum and poor discipline have rendered Animated Fetishes, Tiny (4): CR 1/2; Tiny Construct; them senseless. Any loud noise (like the PCs’ skiff

5