CONTENTS

4 CROSS CITY RACE 47 THE KEEP ON THE CHAOS SCAR 79 EYE ON THE REALMS By James “GRIM” Desborough By By Adventurers—noble and otherwise—from all across The Keep on the Borderlands is a classic adventure Tarmel Drouth was outcast from the Ilance family the land have gathered to participate in the annual site from both 1st and 2nd Edition. Updated for in Suzail, but he has not taken his banishment Cross City Race. Can you be the first across the the first time in over ten years, this iteration of lightly and seeks revenge against those who have finish line? A Dungeons & Dragons adventure for the keep is intended to be placed near the Chaos ostracized him. characters of any level. Scar as a new base of operations for heroes seeking their fortunes in the valley. 82 DUNGEONCRAFT By James Wyatt 25 CHAOS SCAR: DEAD BY DAWN 57 CODEX OF BETRAYAL: GERYON James discusses the latest changes to his fledgling By Aeryn “Blackdirge” Rudel By campaign. If even the monsters of the Chaos Scar have left The Broken Beast was ruled Stygia, but was cast a place abandoned, it’s probably for good reason. down by Asmodeus despite his loyalty. Exiled from 85 RULING SKILL CHALLENGES But when night falls and the dead stir, a lost, the Pit, he now seeks a return to his former glory. mysterious temple of death might be the only By Mike Mearls hope the characters have for surviving ‘til dawn. Mike continues to educate on the nature of skill A Dungeons & Dragons adventure for 2nd-level 6 3 CREATURE INCARNATIONS: challenges, with unique applications and examples. characters. FOMORIANS By AndrewSample Schneider file 38 CHAOS SCAR: THE CROSSROADS The mad, powerful, and deformed giants control vast stretches of the Feydark. Discover more new fomorian By Rodney Thompson variants in the newest Creature Incarnations. Just beyond the King’s Wall sits the Crossroads—an inn and trading post for anyone passing into, out 70 ELEMENTAL MOTES of, or near the Scar. But the taint of the Chaos Scar has long since grown beyond the mortal attempts By Charles Choi to contain it, and the Crossroads offers its own This unique type of terrain, magically buoyed hazards to the unwary. A Dungeons & Dragons to float in the air, can make for compelling adventure for 2nd-level characters. encounters and adventures. Learn how better to ON THE COVER use elemental motes in your campaign. Illustration by Howard Lyon

Dungeons & Dragons, D&D, Dungeon, Dragon, d20, d20 System, , all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, LLC, in the U.S.A. and other countries. ® This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. This product is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, places, or events is purely coincidental. Printed in the U.S.A. ©2010 Wizards of the Coast, LLC. No portion of this work may be reproduced in any form without written permission. For more Dungeons & Dragons articles, adventures, and information, visit www.wizards.com/dnd EDITORIAL 176 DUNGEON March 2010 Zombie Style Editor-in-Chief Chris Youngs

Senior Art Director Jon Schindehette

Web Specialist Steve Winter Zombies. Who doesn’t love ‘em? And while we’re at it, unknown to their enemies until they start sucking people Web Production Bart Carroll what about vampires? dry, zombies are people you knew. That adds just the right Both of these classic monsters have seen a renaissance twist to a good zombie story. Best of all, zombies just keep Contributing Authors Charles Choi, James “GRIM” in recent years in Hollywood and literature (although coming, and if they get you, they recruit you. Desborough, Ed Greenwood, Ari calling some of these books “literature” is a stretch). And I think zombies have been given short shrift in our Marmell, Mike Mearls, Aeryn why not? They’re both badass. But before Twilight and game in recent years. As I stated before, you can’t shake a “Blackdirge” Rudel, Andrew World War Z, before the Vampire Diaries and 28 Days Later, stick without hitting a heroic-tier adventure that features Schneider, Rodney Thompson, ­Dungeons & Dragons did vampires and zombies, and it zombies in some capacity or another, but I think they James Wyatt did them well. deserve a chance to really shine on their own. That’s why Developers Peter Schaefer, Stephen Many times, the game has borrowed from the most this month, you’ll find a real horror-movie-style zombie Schubert, Rodney Thompson classic versions of these tropes. Count adventure, set in the Chaos Scar. is the best example, of course, easily reminiscent of the “Dead by Dawn” starts with the same premise as the Editors Miranda Horner, Steve Winter Lugosi-era Dracula. Zombies have shown up so frequently classic George Romero movies Night of the Living Dead and Cover Artist Howard Lyon that they’ve become classic staples of D&D’s early levels. Dawn of the Dead. We’ve tried to capture some of what You could almost run an entire heroic-tier campaign fea- makes these classic zombie experiences terrifying. The Contributing Artists Rob Alexander, Dave Allsop, turing nothing but zombies! characters have to hole up in an old, abandoned struc- Jared Blando, Vincent Dutrait, We can take a page from Hollywood’s book with both ture and survive the night against an endless assault of Wayne England, Christine of these, and other, classic monsters, and revisit them zombies. Of course, we add our own unique D&D spin MacTernan, Raven Mimura, from time to time. There’s something just . . . awesome on things, complete with appearances by the game’s own Craig J. Spearing, Spikytiger about a goodSample vampire adventure. There’s file something pri- twist on zombies. Cartographers CrazyRed, Sean Macdonald, mally frightening about a monster that wants to kill you I’m hoping that “Dead by Dawn” strikes as much of a Mike Schley by draining your blood. Hollywood would also have us chord with you as it did with me. Because I’m hoping that believe there’s something erotic about blood draining, but if the demand is there, I get to commission more adven- Publishing Production Specialists Angelika Lokotz, Erin Dorries, I ain’t buyin’ it. Being dead kind of puts a damper on sexy tures playing on other classic horror tropes. The Mummy, Christopher Tardiff in my book. the Wolfman, heck, maybe even a good-old-fashioned Web Development Mark A. Jindra Vampires are sneaky, charming, and deadly, but worst Dracula romp—they’re primed and waiting for their of all, they look like normal humans (unless you’re making chance on center stage. D&D Creative Manager Christopher Perkins a movie where they glitter—ugh). Anyone you run into on Which classic horror trope do you think would make Executive Producer, a dark street corner could theoretically be a vampire, and the best Dungeons & Dragons adventure? Which do you D&D Insider Chris Champagne it’s that feeling of unknown danger that makes the mon- think would be the most fun to play or run? Send your sters so awesome. feedback to [email protected]! Director of RPG R&D Zombies come at us from a similar place in the fear spectrum, but with one important distinction. Once more, Special Thanks these are creatures that were once human. They’re more Richard Baker, Greg Bilsland, Michele Carter, Jennifer Clarke grotesque, rather than more sparkly, but utterly lacking in Wilkes, Andy Collins, Bruce R. Cordell, Jeremy Crawford, Peter the emotional responses that make a human, well, human. Lee, Mike Mearls, Kim Mohan, Cal Moore, Peter Schaefer, Stephen Unlike vampires, who are often hundreds of years old and Schubert, , Rodney Thompson, James Wyatt An Adventure for Characters of Levels 1–3

illustration by Howard Lyon cartography by Jered Blando

Sample file Cross City Race By James “Grim” Desborough

The Best Adventure I Never Wrote As D&D 3rd Edition rode off into the sunset, Wizards ran a competition for our freelancers, asking them to present the ideas for the adventures that they had always wanted to write but had never done so for one reason or another. Those short synopses were voted on, and the eventual winner from the freelancer submissions was this, “Cross City Race!”

TM & © 2009 Wizards of the Coast LLC All rights reserved.

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INTRODUCTION HOW TO RUN THE RACE remains in place. If the character has accrued enough failures to trigger a consequence, it must This adventure is designed to be a ‘side quest’, a break The race is made up of a series of skill challenges be resolved. from more typical adventures and dungeon delving. across a variety of routes, all leading to a final obstacle 3. Play proceeds with the next player in initiative It begins with the characters arriving within a city and the finish line. The number of successes gained order, starting at step 1. Continue until the race where a great fair and revel are in progress. The city demonstrates each racer’s position relative to each is won! is alive with talk about a race that forms part of these other on each of the routes. The more successes you celebrations and which engages the town’s interest like get, the faster you’re moving; the more failures you get, COMPLICATIONS little else. The race is held every year on the same day. the slower you’re moving and the more trouble you The goal is to take a letter from the southern gate to may run into. Various things can cause complications during the the northern watchtower as quickly as possible. Each turn, each racer makes an appropriate skill race, mostly when characters interact with each other While the race started out as a competition between check. If the check succeeds, then the racer advances or with nonplayer characters. The most common of two message carriers and a celebration of history, it is along his chosen route. If the check fails, then the these potential complications are described here. Use now open to anyone. There are loose rules about the racer either remains in place or takes consequences, these as guidelines if issues arise with similar powers, use of magic and physical violence between competi- depending on the challenge. The racer who reaches magic items, and so on. tors but it is, for the most part, a free-for-all with almost the end of the route first is the winner and claims the anything being considered ‘fair’. The race is also open reward, bringing the race to a close. Changing Routes to interference from the citizens. Many bands of chil- It’s best to run the adventure fairly swiftly to keep If a character is having a hard time with a particu- dren, ruffians, and the bored delight in setting ‘traps’ a sense of impetus and urgency to it. Things will lar challenge or doesn’t like the look of what they’re for the racers and watching them take a tumble. inevitably slow down in combat encounters, but the going to be up against, they can elect to change routes The prize for this punishing race is coin and the added jeopardySample should keep the tension file up in those with a skill roll. The character retains the successes added inducement of a magical item from the trea- instances. gained on the previous route when entering the new sury. This year, not only are there material prizes, but route or if the skill check failed. A switch can be the powers that be in the city are looking for a capable Running the Race made only between adjacent routes; a character can’t runner to take sensitive correspondence between their Roll Initiative for all the racers as you would for go directly from one roof route to another roof route city and another. The competition proves a method by combat. Rounds proceed in this order. without dropping down to street level first. Changing which they can find the best person for the job, mean- 1. The player whose turn it is may try to switch routes doesn’t end the character’s turn if the skill roll ing this could be used as an introduction to another routes, making the roll and taking the succeeds; the character can immediately attempt a plot or adventure for a needing a consequences. If the switch succeeds, that player roll on the new challenge for the area just entered. good ‘hook’. proceeds with step 2. Otherwise, that player’s If the skill roll to change routes fails, then the char- The adventure can be run with a single player, with turn ends and play jumps to step 3. acter takes the consequences listed below and his multiple players competing against each other and the 2. The player makes a roll for the challenge turn ends. nonplayer characters, or with one player as the runner of the character’s current route. With success, and the others providing aid to him and interference the character moves forward to the next to their rivals. appropriate space. With failure, the character

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Moving from skips his next turn entirely, but he can continue on can be rolled on the same turn. Once one of Roof to Street the Rich Street Route on the turn after that. the checks succeeds, that skill doesn’t need to Moving into the Main Street Route requires a be checked again, but both skill checks must Getting down from the rooftops to the street below is Diplomacy or Streetwise check against DC 15. succeed before the character can advance. This relatively simple but has the potential to do the char- Failure means that the character gets jostled by the should be a simple check of the appropriate acter a little harm. A character can reach the street in crowd and loses 1d4 hit points from being elbowed DC with appropriate consequences. A typical, one of two ways: and smacked around. Succeed or fail, the character is hasty obstacle (vegetable cart overturned on the F Jumping down requires an Acrobatics check on the Main Street Route. road, laundry line pulled down to neck height) against DC 15. If it fails, the character takes Moving into the Poor Street Route requires a adds a second skill check which must be made 2d10 damage but is not otherwise delayed. The Streetwise check against DC 15. Failure means that successfully before advancing. An actual trap player can make an Acrobatics check to reduce the character gets shoved to the ground by angry of some sort (a snare or net, for example) could this damage (PHB pg. 181). Succeed or fail, the people and misses the next turn. Succeed or fail, the force a caught character to lose a turn while character is now on the new route. character is on the Poor Street Route. getting free. Rigging a trap is considerably more F Climbing down requires an Athletics check time-consuming than upsetting an apple cart, so against DC 10. If it fails, the character falls and Sabotage it’s reasonable to make the lead character spend takes 1d10 damage. The player can make an A character or an NPC can sabotage the race route a turn or more (or make some skill checks) in Acrobatics check to reduce this damage. Succeed behind them in several ways. They could drop cal- order to lay the trap. or fail, the character is now on the new route. trops, spill oil on the ground, even set traps and Pushing Effects Moving from snares on the route. These types of tricks affect only Street to Roof characters who are behind the cheater and on the Many powers can be used to shift opponents around same route.Sample There are too many possibilities file to cover the battlemat during combat. These can be used cre- Getting from a street route up onto a roof route takes all of them specifically, but in general they should atively while addressing skill challenges during the an Athletics check against DC 10. If it fails, the char- have one of two effects: race. If two characters are in the same skill challenge acter falls and takes 1d10 damage. The player can F Increase the DC of the skill challenge: This and at the same number of successes, they are con- make an Acrobatics check to reduce this damage. The comes about by somehow modifying existing sidered to be ‘neck and neck’ in the race and within character is not switched to the new route, and his obstacles; pouring oil down a climbing surface, each other’s ‘threat range’. In these circumstances turn ends. for example, makes an existing challenge a character may forego their skill roll that turn and Moving from considerably more difficult for those following instead ‘attack’ the person who is parallel with them, Street to Street behind. Sabotaging a skill challenge this if appropriate. This knocks away one of the target’s way should increase its DC by 2 to 5 points, successes, forcing them backward in the challenge Moving into the Rich Street Route requires a depending on the nature of the interference. and on the track. Diplomacy check against DC 15. With a successful F Add an extra skill check: This sort of effect roll, the character makes the switch and continues arises from creating new obstacles or traps in immediately. If the check fails, the character gets other racers’ paths. The new obstacle requires caught up in street traffic or is being lectured on rude- a second skill check before the racer can ness by a merchant; this turn ends and the character move on to the next area. Both skill checks

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Racial Abilities Cleric Warlord Several races have abilities which could impact skill Cause Fear: If used successfully, this knocks off Knight’s Move: You can inspire someone in the checks and challenges, as well as some of the compli- a success from a competitor anywhere in the same same skill challenge as you to make an extra roll this cations that have already been covered. skill challenge as the fear-causing cleric. The attacked turn at the cost of your own roll. character doesn’t need to be adjacent to the attacker. Dwarf Otherwise, this works the same as pushing, described Wizard The dwarven Stand Your Ground racial ability should above. Icy Terrain: The DC of a skill where slippery ice increase their defense against push attacks described Command: This can be used against anyone in would be a problem is raised by 2 until the end of above by +2. Dwarves can still use their saving throw the same skill challenge as the cleric; the target and your next turn. against being knocked prone against any circum- the cleric don’t need to be adjacent. The target of Expeditious Retreat: Moving with blinding stance that would cause this to happen. the command can be forced to skip a turn, fail a roll, speed gives you a free success on an appropriate skill knocked prone (requiring a turn to get back up again) check. Eladrin or pushed back (knocking off one of their successes). The Eladrin fey step racial power can let a character Barbarian avoid an obstacle or trap completely by moving past Fighter Combat Sprint: Combat sprint can be used to get a it, or get a free success on the right type of skill check. Get Over Here: If an ally of yours is one success free success on an appropriate skill check, represent- This represents them leaping forward using their abil- behind you in the same skill challenge as you, you ing the barbarian’s ability to move quickly over the ity. It still takes them their turn to do so, however. can haul them up/forward, bringing them to the same terrain. success level as you and effectively giving them a free Shifter success on the challenge. Druid The racial ability razorclaw shifting allows shifters to Sample file Twisting Vines: The DC of a skill check where run more swiftly when bloodied (along with its usual Rogue writhing, tangled terrain would be a problem is raised benefits) for the duration of the race. On appropri- Topple Over: Attacking with a weapon is against by +2 until the end of your next turn. ate skill checks or challenge rolls, they should get a the rules but an unarmed attack could still use this Fleet Pursuit: You can move quickly over the +1 bonus to represent their increased speed. to knock someone prone, delaying them for a turn, terrain and get a free success on an appropriate skill though it would also delay you. check. Class Powers Various classes have powers that could interfere with Warlock Warden the race in one way or another. The main ones to Ethereal Stride: For the purposes of the skill Mountain Lion Step: If someone has sabotaged be concerned with are addressed here. Using these challenges, this works the same as the Eladrin fey step the terrain, thereby increasing the DC, you can ignore powers takes up that character’s turn. power. that extra difficulty for one skill roll.

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