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1 Treasure Trove 37 The Sun Never Rises By Christopher Perkins By Shawn Merwin Published adventures are great . . . especially Drow have taken hostages in the temple the ones I never use. of the sun god, and it’ll take more than diplomacy to win the day. This D&D adventure was originally run at Winter 2 Some Like It Hot Fantasy 2012 as a tease for the Rise of the By John “Ross” Rossomangno Underdark series of D&D Encounters™ An undead wizard is about to light a seasons. The adventure comes with six fire under the citizens of Starpine Vale. pregenerated 1st-level characters. A D&D® adventure for characters of levelsSample 17–20. file 26 Massacre at Misty River By Stacey Janssen A dead goblin king finds new life in the body of an unlucky ranger. A D&D adventure for characters of levels 7–9.

ABOUT THE COVER: Adventurers feel the heat as they assault a volcanic fortress in Craig J Spearing’s feature illustration for “Some Like It Hot.” EDITORIAL

216 Dungeon July 2013 Treasure Trove Senior Producer Christopher Perkins By Christopher Perkins Producers Greg Bilsland, Steve Winter

Managing Editor Miranda Horner I’ve been writing adventures since I was ten, I collect I remember the day I received Dungeon 1 in the adventures as a hobby, and I read adventures for fun. mail. I read it from cover to cover, starting with “The Development and Editing Lead Jeremy Crawford I just finished working on two of my own: Ghost of Dark Tower of Cabilar” and ending with “Guardians Developer Chris Sims Dragonspear Castle™, available at Gen Con, and Ark of of the Tomb.” In the days and weeks that followed, all Senior Creative Director Jon Schindehette the Mad Mage, designed for the next series of Penny I wanted to do was write my own adventures, and I Arcade podcasts leading up to our annual D&D Live wrote a bunch of them (none worthy of publication, Art Director Kate Irwin Game at PAX. My next adventure project is a sequel to mind you). Twenty-seven years later, things haven’t Graphic Production Specialist Jessica Dubey Mines of Madness™, which I co-wrote with Scott Kurtz changed. When I dive into the submissions inbox or (of Table Titans fame) for PAX East. It’s nice to know read the first draft of an adventure that made it from Digital Studio Consultant Josh Dillard there’s always some new adventure on the horizon. pitch to complete manuscript, a tiny little demon Contributing Authors Stacey Janssen, Shawn Merwin, Jeremy Crawford and I were discussing our mutual claws at my brain, and I get a sudden urge to write an John “Ross” Rossomangno love of adventures and how married we are to our adventure of my own. I don’t always follow through, Contributing Editors Dawn J. Geluso, Ray Vallese Dungeon collections. In its 27-year history, Dungeon but the urge is strong. It’s an urge I hope I never lose. has published more than 800 adventures. Although It’s hard to find adventures that are perfect for my Contributing Artists Chippy, Emrah Elmasli, Ralph most of them are tied to earlier editions of the game, campaign. You think this wouldn’t be an issue for me, Horsley, Tyler Jacobson, Howard they are still precious, if only for the maps, villains, since I’m the guy who decides what gets published Lyon, William O’Connor, Chris and story ideas they contain. The magazine is an ever- in Dungeon and what doesn’t. I could pay people to Seaman, Craig J Spearing, growing treasure trove waiting to be plundered, and design adventures tailor-made for my campaign, Beth Trott any good DMSample can strip away the old-edition file elements, but “providing adventures for Chris Perkins’s home Cartography Jared Blando, Jason A. Engle take what’s left, and make the most of it. campaign” is not Dungeon’s mission statement and I’ve probably used less than 5 percent of all the ultimately wouldn’t appeal to anyone (not even me). adventure content ever published in Dungeon, and yet Every DM needs adventures; however, unless he or these adventures are all immensely valuable to me—so she is running a complete, published campaign such much so that given the choice between keeping my as The Shackled City™ or Age of Worms™, a DM can’t rely Dungeon collection or my job, I’d probably choose the on other people to create more than a fraction of the former. I primarily collect adventures because I enjoy adventure content that the campaign demands. The reading them, and I read adventures mostly for inspi- value of Dungeon isn’t just the adventures it provides, ration. Would I like to run every adventure? You bet! but the ideas and the inspiration that every DM needs In reality, I can’t. That said, every adventure I read fills to create his or her stuff. my head with ideas and makes me a better adventure Dungeons & Dragons, Wizards of the Coast, D&D Insider, their respective logos, D&D, Dungeon, and Dragon are trademarks of writer. Novelists talk about how their writing is influ- Wizards of the Coast LLC in the USA and other countries. ©2013 Wizards of the Coast LLC. enced by literary predecessors, and artists admire the This material is protected under the copyright laws of the United States work of other artists. Adventures inspire, educate, and of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written motivate me, as they do for many other DMs. permission of Wizards of the Coast LLC. This product is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, places, or events is purely coincidental. Some Like It Hot A D&D® adventure for characters of levels 17–20

By John “Ross” Rossomangno Illustrations by Craig J Spearing Cartography by Jason A. Engle

Through his reckless pursuit of power, the pyro- mancer Hazakhul doomed himself and his followers Sample file to undeath. But his obsession with fire lives on, and now he seeks to channel the last spark of a forgot- ten primordial’s life force. He has allied with a band of efreets who share the mysteries of the Elemen- tal Chaos with Hazakhul in exchange for residents abducted from the valley below his volcanic retreat. The player characters must free the settlements from the pyromancer’s tyranny, and they must also end his increasingly dangerous efforts to harness con- flagrations beyond his control. Background The valley known as Starpine Vale is home to a number of farming and logging communities. In an effort to make the valley more self-sufficient, pio- neer and entrepreneur Timos Bergan oversaw the

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construction of roads linking some of the towns and pyromancer would spare the valley’s settlements. defeat weakens the enchantments that suspend the villages as well as the building of the fortress at Ber- This ensured a consistent supply of slaves to trade fortress. The characters must escape before they gan’s Gap. He knew even a small force could hold the with the efreets, without drawing undue attention to plummet along with it into the heart of the volcano. narrow pass and ensure the safety of the entire valley the pyromancer’s activities. should dark times fall across the lands. Running the The arrival of the elf wizard Hazakhul went largely Adventure Synopsis unnoticed by most villagers at the time. At most, they Adventure regarded his ascent into the mountains as the behavior The adventure opens with the party’s arrival at Ber- of an eccentric wizard who required solitude. When gan’s Gap. The fortress is manned by Hazakhul’s The adventure begins when the party approaches the the occasional raids of humanoids from the mountains mercenaries. They claim that a plague still lingers in fortress of Bergan’s Gap, which guards the entrance to ceased entirely, the people of the valley counted them- Starpine Vale, but when the party presses for more Starpine Vale. The bulk of the adventure is location- selves lucky for the wizard’s appearance. answers, one of the pyromancer’s lieutenants, Cul- based, with encounters keyed to the accompanying In truth, Hazakhul came to the mountains seeking dred, orders his servants to attack. maps of the valley and Hazakhul’s retreat. the last vestiges of a fiery primordial’s spirit beneath Once in the valley, the party encounters the a dormant volcano. He did not care about the raids burned ruins of Birch Glen. The pyromancer recently Involving the Characters suffered by the residents of the valley. The humanoid made an example of the village after residents Starpine Vale is isolated by mountains. The locale tribes that once troubled them were enslaved by the refused his demands. He razed every structure and can be placed in any mountainous region that is not pyromancer. Along with his new allies, a troupe of abducted its entire population as a warning to the completely explored. The party could arrive in the giants, they constructed a retreat for his studies. other settlements. vicinity for a number of reasons. In a flawed attempt to recover the primordial Bergan’s Mill, the next nearest town, now som- F The ruler of a nearby region sent emissaries to the spirit, Hazakhul triggered a devastating, cataclysmic berly prepares their offering of slaves. The people valley to reestablish contact with the settlements eruption. An unexpected by-product of the ritual are hesitant to discuss their plight, but the town’s there. Her diplomatic party never returned, and channeled forces from the Elemental Chaos into leader, Timos Bergan the Second, hopes the party can she wants the heroes to determine its fate. the heart of his stronghold. The pyromancer and his free the valley.Sample Hazakhul’s scrying fileprompts him to servants perished, but twisted fire and necromancy teleport henchmen to the town to deliver a lesson of F Scholars are curious about the distant volcano that reanimated them into undead creatures. obedience. Bergan the Second asks the party to con- erupts with abnormal regularity. They believe it Attempting to refine his failed ritual, Hazakhul front the pyromancer in his lair, a fortress suspended might have prophetic significance and hire the secured the aid of efreets from the Elemental Chaos. over the maw of the volcano. characters to lead an expedition there. In return for slaves, the efreets promised lore that The tower’s exterior is guarded by an enslaved F A high priest of a temple friendly to the party sees would strengthen the ritual intended to contain efreet and other minions, and the party must decide portents of a dangerous extraplanar force that the primordial’s lingering energy. The pyromancer how to access the precariously situated tower. Inside, could disturb the world. His visions point to the initially offered his humanoid followers. After his the upper levels house the pyromancer’s allied valley, but not to the nature of the threat. supply was exhausted, he looked to the people of giants as well as the captives from the valley. The Starpine Vale. lower levels hold the abandoned quarters of his now- Treasure Hazakhul sealed off the valley by capturing the undead minions. fortress at Bergan’s Gap. To discourage visitors, he Hazakhul and his apprentices are found in the This adventure has treasure appropriate for 19th- sent agents into the surrounding lands to spread lowest chamber. He is once again attempting to level adventurers. The monetary award is 210,000 word of a deadly plague in the valley. He then struck manipulate the power of the primordial’s life energy. gp. The magic items are of levels 20 to 23. You can a one-sided bargain with Timos Bergan: If Bergan When the characters arrive, the pyromancer is all too replace the existing treasure or supplement it as contributed two dozen captives each month, the eager to engage them with the excessive power at his needed for your campaign. disposal. If the characters are victorious, Hazakhul’s

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Starpine Vale Five years ago, after Hazakhul captured Ber- gan’s Gap and spread rumors of a plague, outsiders The forests and the river access make the valley an shunned the place. Timos Bergan died soon after ideal logging region. Although several small vil- agreeing to the pyromancer’s bargain. His son, Other Settlements lages were founded in the valley, Timos Bergan’s Bergan the Second, took up the mantle of leader- The map of Starpine Vale shows additional villages leadership allowed the communities to develop and ship. He struggles to sustain hope among the steadily not discussed in the course of this adventure. If the prosper. Bergan’s Mill grew into a sizable town, and dwindling population of the valley. party explores them, use Bergan’s Mill as a guide for people established additional scattered villages in how the residents react to the party. Starpine Vale. Unlike the more prosperous town, these villages are depleted by Hazakhul’s demands, similar to Birch Glen prior to its destruction. Some villagers hold a great deal of resentment toward Timos Bergan the Second and the bargain his father struck with the Starpine Vale pyromancer. A few residents believe that delivering the party to Hazakhul could lead to favored treatment. In the hopes of saving themselves, they might coordinate an ambush with Hazakhul’s giants. These isolated villages are threatened by Hazakhul if the party attempts to evacuate the valley. Refer to the “Fleeing the Valley“ sidebar in area C. Sample file D A. Bergan’s Gap C When the party approaches Bergan’s Gap, read: Two towers are carved from the stone of the cliffs that meet B the banks of the swiftly flowing river. A stone bridge high above links them and straddles a roaring waterfall. A wooden signpost next to the path is painted with a red skull. In Common it bears the words: “Beware, plague.” A. Bergan’s Gap A Dragonborn mercenaries now hold the towers of Ber- B. Birch Glen gan’s Gap. They are watched over by Hazakhul’s chief C. Bergan’s Mill apprentice, a flameharrow named Culdred. D. Hazakhul’s Retreat The dragonborn were hired by the pyromancer to prevent anyone from leaving the valley or investigat- ing it. They are positioned throughout the towers and observe the party from the arrow slits.

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If the party bypasses the tower entirely through Features of the Towers Culdred Level 20 Elite Controller (Leader) stealth or flight, Hazakhul summons Culdred and Medium natural humanoid (undead) XP 5,600 Arrow Slits: The arrow slits throughout the tower the two flameborn to his fortress after he learns of HP 374; Bloodied 187 Initiative +13 grant superior cover to those behind them. the party’s presence in Bergan’s Mill. They reinforce AC 34, Fortitude 31, Reflex 32, Will 34 Perception +17 Ceilings: Ceilings in the towers are 10 feet high the wizard’s defenses and are encountered in areas Speed 6 Darkvision unless otherwise indicated. Immune disease, poison; Resist 15 necrotic, 15 fire; D13 and D11. Hatches: The hatches between levels in the tower Vulnerable 10 radiant North of Bergan’s Gap, an old logging road winds are unsecured unless otherwise noted. They can be Saving Throws +2; Action Points 1 into the valley and leads to the ruins of Birch Glen barred with a standard action. A barred hatch can be Standard Actions (area B). m Claw (fire, necrotic) F At-Will forced open with a DC 23 Strength check. Attack: Melee 1 (one creature); +25 vs. AC Light: The towers’ interiors are brightly lit by Hit: 2d8 + 12 fire and necrotic damage, and the target Culdred torches unless otherwise noted in the locations below. cannot spend healing surges until the end of Culdred’s Culdred is Hazakhul’s favored apprentice. He next turn. oversees the watchtowers when not studying the Move Actions A1. Fortress Approach F necromantic arts to further understand and exploit Dimension Hop (teleportation) At-Will Combat Encounter Level 19 (12,200 XP) Effect: Culdred teleports up to 5 squares. the effects his master’s failed ritual had on them. Minor Actions Through his studies he has altered his already unnat- When the characters approach, or if they attempt r Harrowing Gaze (fear, gaze, psychic) F At-Will (1/round) ural state to become a flameharrow. Culdred inspires to pass the towers, the dragonborn try to warn them Attack: Ranged 10 (one creature); +23 vs. Will terror and obedience in the people of Starpine Vale. Hit: 2d8 + 6 psychic damage, and the target is dazed off, claiming a dangerous plague is rampant in the If captured, Culdred would sooner die than offer until the end of Culdred’s next turn and pushed up to 4 valley beyond. anything more than fiery threats. In the event Cul- squares. Light: Based on the time of day. C F dred flees from the characters, he is encountered in Deadfire Gaze (fire, necrotic) At-Will (1/round) Monsters: Culdred, 2 flameborn, 12 dragonborn Attack: Close blast 3 (creatures in the blast); +23 vs. Reflex area D13. slavers. Hit: Ongoing 10 fire and necrotic damage, and the target is Sample file immobilized (save ends both). Cultists of Imix Read: Str 15 (+12) Dex 16 (+13) Wis 15 (+12) Con 19 (+14) Int 23 (+16) Cha 26 (+18) The imposing stone towers are dotted with arrow slits and Kaybu and Deltinara are flameborn of Imix, devoted Alignment chaotic evil Languages Abyssal, Common worshipers who have established cults of the Fire topped with battlements. A portcullis in the western tower Lord in several locations outside Starpine Vale. Fiery blocks the only passage through. The dragonborn and the towers’ other occupants keep visions led them to seek out Hazakhul in an effort to Perception DC 23: Movement and the gleam of watch from the arrow slits in various chambers of the ally with the pyromancer. metal are visible at some of the arrow slits. towers. Their starting positions are detailed below. The two humans are lovers and their loyalty is to The moment the watchers see the party, they alert Imix and one another before Hazakhul. They aid in one another in an effort to face the party at once. the defense of Bergan’s Gap, but they flee the vale If the characters gain entry unnoticed, they could if Culdred is slain. If captured, they know only that potentially fight the defenders in smaller encounters their visions revealed that Hazakhul can create a but any noise quickly alerts the mercenaries, the cult- bridge between the material plane and the Elemental ists, and Culdred. Chaos. They know nothing of his current plans.

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