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1 THE Graveyard Shift An Adventure on Tap product

Credits Author: Emmet Byrne Layout: Emmet Byrne Editor: Patrick Brophy Art Director: LJ Phelan Cartograpy: Emmet Byrne Interior Art: Joyce Maureira (used with permission), DMs Guild Resources Special Thanks:My wonderful wife Marie and my beautiful son Max, the Dunegon Master's Guild Creator's Circle, and you! Contents Introduction 3 Adventure Summary 4 Chapter 1: Wake the Dead 5 ChapterSample 2: Dead Wood file 9 Chapter 3: Dead of Alive 13 Resolution 16 Appendix A: Important NPCs 18 Appendix B: Stonewood 21 Legal 23

2 Introduction The Adventure on Tap series is designed to give you, the Dungeon Master, everything you need to run an adven- ture using the 5th Edition Dungeons & Dragons rules. It was created to enable busy DMs to run an adventure with minimal preparation and still have a great time playing.

The most important thing to remember when playing is to have fun. If you find something contained within the adventure that doesn't work for your group, or you need to approach events in a different way, then change it! This book is meant to aid DMs in running a great game so cus- tomise it in a way that best suits you and your players.

I have endeavoured to provide as much information as possible for each scenario and location that the charac- I'm a Note Box! ters might explore throughout the adventure. I have also I provide helpful hints and tips on running the adven- provided further information on locations and NPCs the ture, gleaned from "in the trenches" experience over 20 characters might seek out based on my own experience years of Games Mastering! running the adventure (and knowing that no adventure survives contact with the players!). Acronyms When referring to any of the three core books I have short- I'm read aloud text! Read me out loud! ened them to the accepted acronym. These are

• PHB: Player's Handbook • DMG: Dungeon Master's Guide • MM: Monster Manual I'm an Encounter Box! Rawr!

I provide the list of enemies in the encounter, Feedback where to find them, how much XP they're worth, I strive for ease of use and clarity in the products I release and the difficulty of the encounter! and I am continually refining my adventure format. If you have suggestions and feedback on things you found helpful Easy Medium Hard Deadly and especially on things that were unnecessary or confus- ing I'd love to hear from you. Thanks for downloading, and happy gaming.Sample Cheers! file Emmet Byrne February 2018 Email: [email protected] Twitter: @emmetation

3 The Graveyard Shift is an introductory adventure for 4-6 Chapter Summary 1st level characters, and assumes a wide range of skills and abilities. It is designed to be played in a single 3-5 hour ses- The following chapter summaries present an "ideal scenar- sion, excluding character creation. io" for how the adventure might play out. The adventure centres on the city ofStonewood but can Chapter 1 easily be transferred to any medium or large settlement as The PCs receive the job from a local merchant named long as there is a graveyard nearby and access to a local Adair whose brother Dayton is missing, and head to the forest - Neverdeath graveyard in the city of Neverwinter site of the abduction - the city’s necropolis. When they ap- in the Forgotten Realms would provide an ideal setting proach the half finished grave where Dayton disappeared for this adventure. The adventure was designed to have they are attacked by a group of undead that seem to have an equal balance of combat, exploration, puzzle, and role- already been wounded. After dispatching the undead the playing encounters. PCs search the area. Their investigation turns up some un- usual soil that points to the forest at the center of town. For ease of use the adventure has been broken up into three acts, which are described below. It is recommended that you read through the entire adventure at least once to fa- Chapter 2 Arriving at the forest the party soon discover runes etched miliarise yourself with its contents, but the act summaries into a number of standing stones. When activated in the should suffice if you are short on time. If you are looking correct order the runes transport the party to a windowless for a little more information Appendix A contains notes on stone room filled with cages and surgical equipment. important NPCs, while Appendix B contains information on Stonewood, including rumours, local lore, and other Chapter 3 locations the party might choose to visit. The PCs confront the mage Margaux Duret and discover her experimenting on Dayton. The party can either attack Margaux and free Dayton or speak with her and discover Adventure Summary the truth - that Dayton is a vampire and is responsible for The Hook numerous deaths in the last few months. Margaux believes that no-one is ever truly lost and her work aims to cure When visiting the city of Stonewood the party are asked to vampirism. How the story ends is up to the players. find the brother of a local merchant, who recently disap- peared during his shift as a gravedigger. Getting the Party Involved What Happened Here? The Graveyard Shift is meant as an introductory adven- ture and as such can serve to kick off a new campaign. The The missing brother, Dayton, is a vampire who works as adventure is written under the assumption that the party a gravedigger to conceal his true nature. He has been kid- has already agreed to the job from Adair in return for pay- napped by a necromancer named Margaux Duret who ment, but other potential hooks are presented below. hopes to cure him of his affliction. Hook 1: Old Friend Important NPCs One of the party members is an old drinking buddy of • Dayton Wyatt. Male human vampire, gravedigger, Dayton and heard he was missing. They were already con- currently missing cerned, having not seen him in a while, and now they've • Adair Wyatt. Male human, concerned brother and decided to try to track him down themselves. merchant • Margaux Duret. Female elf necromancer, seeking a Hook 2: A Grieving Brother cure for vampirism One of the party members is the brother of Maisie Rosca • Maisie Rosca. Female human, restless spirit slain by and is looking into her death. He is heading to the necrop- Dayton olis to pay his respects when he encounters the open grave. • Tereza Vesely. Female half-elf vampire spawn, held captiveSample by Margaux Hook 3: Servant of Kelemvorfile Further information on the characters listed here is pre- One of the characters is a servant of Kelemvor and has sented in Appendix A. been sent from the temple in the city to investigate the recent reports of a necromancer operating in Stonewood. The unusual circumstances of Dayton's disappearance has lead them to the necropolis. 4 Chapter 1: Wake the Dead

Act 1 sees the characters visiting the necropolis in intricately worked metal gates adorned with a latticework Stonewood and the site of Dayton’s disappearance. of leaves which stand closed. A smaller gate is set into the right hand gate and hangs open. A man in leather armour The people of Stonewood have a strange relationship with stained a deep blue and wearing a plain white mask stands death. A number of their beliefs are listed below, which a by the gates, a tall hanging lantern held in one hand. character can recall with a successful DC 12 Intelligence (History or Religion) check: This man is Gusten (NG human male guard, MM p.347), the night watchman for the necropolis. Beneath the mask • It is considered obscene to witness the bodies of the he is a middle aged man with scraggly stubble and bitter dead as they are transported from the undertaker’s eyes. He has gotten word from Adair that the party would to the necropolis. For this reason a bell is rung when be coming to investigate the site where Dayton disappeared a coffin is being moved through town to warn the and will allow them to enter unmolested. Gusten doesn’t townsfolk to avert their eyes or steer clear of the streets know anything about Dayton’s disappearance except that it outside the necropolis. happened two nights ago and that no-one has bothered to • When the people of Stonewood mourn or visit the ne- finish filling in the grave he was working on. If questioned cropolis they wear masks to hide their faces, believing further he is short with the characters (having gotten a lot that Death lurks there and will follow them home if it of heat after the recent grave robbings) but can have his knows their identity. tongue loosened with coin to provide the characters with • The site of an open or unfinished grave is considered information about Stonewood’s beliefs in regards to death incredibly bad luck so very few people are keen to so- as well as any of the Lore & Rumours from Appendix B. cialise with gravediggers or anyone else who works in the necropolis. • Mourners visit only during the day, with the business 1.B Open Grave of maintenance and the digging of graves left to the night time hours. A cool night wind pulls lightly at your clothes as the spider- • For fear of being buried alive, people are buried with a web of pathways leads you through the maze of tombstones bell tied to their wrists. It’s hoped that if the bell is rung within the necropolis. After a few minutes you come upon the gravedigger will hear and let them out the site of Dayton’s disappearance: a half finished grave. A large pile of earth sits sulkily nearby, and the bottom half of a splintered and broken shovel lays discarded beside it. A number of other graves nearby also appear to have been 1.A. Necropolis Gates left unfinished. The characters will not be allowed to conduct their inves- tigation during the day but are free to enter when the sun Any character with a passive Perception of 12 or more sets, and as such it is assumed that this part of the adven- hears faint groaning and the sounds of movement coming ture happens at night. However if the characters do decide from within the open grave. to try to gain access during the day, the only way inside is by climbing the wall (DC 12 Strength (Athletics) check) The open grave is where Dayton was working prior to his or by distracting the gate guard to sneak past. If they are abduction by Margaux. When Margaux attacked she used spotted after sneaking in during the day (and have not her own magic as well as a number of scrolls of animate adequately hidden their identities) the characters will be dead to awaken the dead in the graves around Dayton, in- asked to leave, eventually being escorted out by members cluding in the one he was working on. of the town guard. If a character looks inside the open grave they can see a As the party approaches the necropolis read the following broken casket poking out from beneath a mound of dirt. text: Laying atop the casket with its legs splintered and useless is Samplea wounded zombie (MM p.316file) with the other end of the broken shovel protruding from its throat. The zombie has As you crest the hill and make your way down the cobbled 5 hit points remaining and cannot climb out of the grave. It street leading to the necropolis you can see a stone wall is worth only 10 XP if killed. some 10 feet high that encircles a large swatch of land, lit- tered with gravestones and tombs. Your path leads to two A character inspecting one of the other seemingly un- 5 finished graves can make a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) or in the graveyard. This is very difficult to spot and as such Intelligence (Investigation) check to realise that the grave requires success on a DC 17 Intelligence (Nature) or Wis- isn’t unfinished, but instead that something crawled out of dom (Survival) check. This check also tells the character the grave and disturbed the soil. that this type of soil is common in places where stonewood trees grow, such as the forest in the centre of town. What Happened Here? There are a number of clues in the area that can help the What Maisie Saw. If a character moves away from the rest characters in discovering what happened to Dayton and of the party, perhaps to check nearby tombs, read the fol- where to go next. lowing text:

Expired Spell Scrolls. A character who succeeds a DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check finds a number of frayed and You feel a sudden chill run down your spine and get the un- burnt pieces of parchment nearby. The wind has scattered shakeable feeling that you are being watched. As you turn to them about but a character with a keen mind can deduce look about you a ghostly figure sweeps across your eyeline. that these belong together. A successful DC 13 Intelligence The spirit floats a few feet off the ground and her mournful (Arcana) check reveals that this particular type of parch- eyes linger on you. She silently begins to drift closer. What do you do? ment is usually used in the scribing of magical scrolls but it is impossibleSample to tell what spell was inscribed here. Casting file a detect magic spell on the paper scraps causes them to give This ghost isMaisie Rosca (see Appendix A) and she means off a faint aura of necromancy. the characters no harm. Speaking to her will be unsettling for the characters as she still bears the wounds of her death Red Earth. A character inspecting the area using Survival - a large chunk of her throat has been entirely ripped out. or Nature discovers unusual red earth that doesn’t belong Though still somewhat confused by her current form, she 6 answers the characters questions in an echoey and hollow at their legs. Once a hand is exposed characters have ad- voice. Maisie saw some of what happened, and can tell the vantage on saving throws to escape being grabbed. On characters that an elven woman in pale blue robes raised their turn a character can take an action to escape with a the dead and attacked the gravedigger (she doesn’t know successful DC 10 Dexterity (Acrobatics) or Strength (Ath- Dayton’s name). Maisie fled for fear of the woman control- letics) check. Alternatively they can attack the hand (AC ling her and didn’t see the rest of what happened. Maisie is 8, HP 5). If the hand is reduced to 0 HP it retreats beneath hesitant to speak about Dayton directly, but if pushed tells the earth. the characters that she has seen him steal from those he is meant to be laying to rest and that she doesn’t like him. Encounter: Undead Leftovers

Undead Leftovers 5 x Zombies (MM p.316), 250 XP When you feel sufficient time has passed with the charac- Hazard: Grasping Hands, 50 XP ters investigating the grave site, read the following text: Total: 300 XP

As you stand amongst the tombstones you hear the faint sound of jingling bells from nearby, followed by noises of Treasure shuffling and movement. You look about to see a number of If the characters search the bodies of the zombies they find shapes stumble out from behind nearby tombs, their steps only a single gold bracelet worth 25gp. The rest of the bod- unsteady. They look for all the world like people but their ies are surprisingly devoid of adornment, despite some flesh is pale and hangs loosely from their bones. Their once of them having their ears pierced or lines on their fingers fine burial garments are caked in dirt and grime and seem where a ring would normally sit. to have been eaten away at by insects. Each one of them has a small bell tied to their wrist. The creatures let out a hungry snarl and lurch towards you. What Next? After investigating the grave site the characters may have discovered leads that take them directly to the Stone For- est or see them searching for a female elven mage. At the These are 5zombies (MM p.316) that Margaux abandoned very least they will suspect that there is potentially a nec- in her haste to get Dayton back to her workshop. Her con- romancer in Stonewood, given that they were attacked by trol over them ceased the night before and they had been a number of zombies. wandering about nearby before the sound and smell of the characters drew them near. Each zombie has 1d6 less HP than listed in its stat block having been wounded in the fight with Dayton. A character with a passive Perception of Troubleshooting: Mysteries 12 or higher can easily hear the creatures coming and has As this adventure was written as an introduction for a round to prepare. new players, the following section includes a number of skill checks to find clues when investigating the grave The tombstones and tombs provide half cover if a character site. It is written and designed in this way in order to hunkers behind them, while the large mausoleums provide teach any new players how skills and skill checks work. three-quarters cover. However, when running an investigative or mystery fo- If the party haven’t already met Maisie Rosca, she appears cused encounter or adventure it is usually not wise to during the second round of combat and watches the battle keep necessary clues and plot points "locked" behind from nearby. Any character with a passive Perception of 12 skill checks. This could cause the game to grind to a or higher spots the ghostly apparition. halt as the players become frustrated and don't know what to do next. With this in mind you may wish to en- Hazard: Grasping Hands tirely remove the skill checks to discover clues relating If a character steps onto one of the graves marked "H" on to the Expired Spell Scrolls and Red Earth, and sim- the map, there is a 50% chance that a skeletal hand bursts ply allow the characters to find these clues and discern forth andSample tries to grab them. These hands belong to more of their importance. file the undead Margaux raised but who weren’t strong enough to claw themselves free of the earth.

Characters must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity saving throw or become grappled as the hand clutches and grasps

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