Contents

INTRODUCTION ...... Introduction...... Contents 1 ...... 6 ...... Story Overview 6 ...... Running the Adventure 6 ...... Abbreviations...... 6 Adventure Summary ...... 7 Death Curse ...... 7 Character Advancement 8 ...... Starting at Higher Levels 8 ...... Starting the Adventure 9 ...... Syndra Silvane’s Curse 9 ...... Character Hooks 10 ...... Welcome to Chult 11 ...... Weather...... 11 Races of Chult 12 ...... Chultans 12 ...... Chapter 1: Port Nyanzaru 16 ...... Arrival ...... 16 Side Quests 17 ...... Locations in the City 18 ...... Old City ...... 19 Merchants’ Ward...... 19 Harbor Ward ...... 21 Market Ward ...... 22 Malar’s Throat 23 ...... Tiryki Anchorage 23 ...... City Denizens 24 ...... Volothamp “Volo” Geddarm 24 ...... Merchant Princes 24 ...... Merchant Prince’s Villa 26 ...... Lower Level 27 ...... Upper Level 27 ...... Factions and Their Representatives 28 ...... Emerald...... Enclave ...... 29 Flaming Fist ...... 29 Harpers ...... 29 Lords’ Alliance ...... 29 Order of the Gauntlet...... 29 Red Wizards...... of Thay ...... 30 Ytepka Society 30 ...... Zhentarim 30 ...... Things to Do 30 ...... Buying a Special...... Item ...... 30 Dinosaur Racing ...... 31 Finding a Guide 32 ...... Gathering Information 34 ...... Chapter 2: The Land of Chult 36 ...... The Expedition Begins 36 ...... Travel Distances...... 36 Navigation...... 37 Dehydration ...... 37 Diseases 37 ...... Random Encounters 38 ...... Locations in Chult 38 Locations F - I 50

INTRODUCTION ...... Locations J - L ...... 64 Locations M - P...... 68 Locations R - S 77 ...... Locations V - Y 78 ...... Chapter 3: Dwellers of the Forbidden City 86 ...... Omu 86 ...... Approaching the...... City ...... 86 Entering the City ...... 86 History of Omu ...... 87 Legend of the...... Nine Gods ...... 87 City Inhabitants...... 88 Puzzle Cubes ...... 89 Navigation ...... 89 Random Encounters in Omu 91 ...... Locations in the City 91 ...... Chapter 4: Fane of the Night Serpent 105 ...... Schemes of the Yuan-ti 105 ...... Ras Nsi 105 ...... Fenthaza 105 ...... Getting Inside 106 ...... Infiltrating the Temple 106 ...... Captured by the Yuan-ti 106 ...... Locations in the Temple 108 ...... 1. Main Gate ...... 108 2. Hall of War...... 110 3. Hall of Serpents ...... 110 4. Armory ...... 110 5. Fenthaza’s...... Quarters ...... 111 6. Sacrificial Chamber...... 111 7. Evil Oracle...... 112 8. Prisoner...... Pits ...... 112 9. The Fane ...... 113 10. Harem ...... 113 11. Throne Room...... 114 13. Ras Nsi’s Lair ...... 115 13. Storeroom...... 115 14. Venom Distillery...... 115 15. Snake...... Pit ...... 116 16. Blood Baths ...... 116 17. Sauna ...... 116 18. Yuan-ti Nests ...... 117 19. Slave Grotto...... 117 20. Underground...... River ...... 117 21. Hydra’s Lair ...... 117 22. Fungi Cavern 118 ...... 23. Secret Entrance 118 ...... Chapter 5: Tomb of the Nine Gods 119 ...... History of the Tomb 119 ...... Rise of the Tomb 119 ...... Nourishing the Atropal 119 ...... Exploring the Tomb 119 ...... General Features ...... 120 Tomb Inhabitants...... 120 Fabled Treasures ...... 121 Spell Restrictions 121 ...... Replacing Dead Characters 122 ...... Spirits of the Nine Trickster Gods 122 Spiritual Inhabitation 123

INTRODUCTION ...... Leaving a Host ...... 123 Fighting Over a Host 123 ...... Roleplaying the Spirits 123 ...... Level 1: Rotten Halls 123 ...... 1. Acererak’s Warning...... 124 2. Gallery of Tricksters...... 124 3. False Entrance ...... 124 4. True Entrance ...... 125 5. Trapped Corridor...... 126 6. Crystal Window ...... 127 7. Grand Staircase...... 127 8. Magical Attraction...... 127 9. Magic Fountain...... 128 10. Obo’laka’s Tomb...... 128 11. Gas Pocket...... 129 12. Trapped Chest...... 129 13. Stone Skull ...... 129 14. Moa’s Tomb ...... 129 16. Wongo’s Tomb ...... 130 17. Underground...... Waterfall ...... 131 Level 2: Dungeon...... of Deception ...... 131 18. Devil Pit ...... 131 19. Gravity Ring ...... 131 20. False Tomb ...... 133 21. Zombie Door ...... 133 22. Papazotl’s Tomb ...... 133 23. Bottled Genie...... 134 24. Nangnang’s Tomb...... 135 25. Scrying Pool ...... 135 26. Spiral Staircase ...... 135 27. Forge of the Tomb Dwarves...... 136 28. Withers’s Office...... 137 Level 3: Vault of...... Reflection ...... 138 29. Jackal Mask ...... 138 30. Iron Barrier ...... 138 31. Reflected Hall ...... 138 32. Rotating Crawlways...... 140 33. Chamber of...... Opposition ...... 140 34. Peephole ...... 141 35. I’jin’s Tomb ...... 141 36. Chamber of Respite ...... 142 37. Winds of Pandemonium...... 142 38. Revolving Room Trap ...... 143 39. Golem Pit ...... 144 40. Curse of the Golden...... Skull ...... 144 41. Tomb Guardians...... 145 42. Kubazan’s Tomb ...... 145 43. Veils of Fear 146 ...... 44. Vault of the Beholder 146 ...... Level 4: Chambers of Horror 147 ...... 45. Gargoyle Guardians...... 148 46. Lizard Den ...... 149 47. Elemental Cells...... 149 48. Shagambi’s Tomb ...... 150 49. Maze of Death...... 151 50. Mirror of Life...... Trapping ...... 152 51. Ghastly Door ...... 153 52. Throne Room...... 153 53. Crypt of the Sun...... Queen ...... 154 54. Rolling Doom ...... 155 55. Unkh’s Tomb...... 155 56. Grandfather Clock 157 57. Oubliette 157

INTRODUCTION ...... Level 5: Gears of Hate 157 ...... 58. Cog of Rot ...... 158 59. Cog of Acid ...... 158 60. Cog of Blood ...... 158 61. Control Room ...... 159 62. Stone Juggernaut ...... 160 63. Gas-Filled Room ...... 162 64. Base of the Waterfall...... 162 65. Underground Lake ...... 162 66. Door of Devouring...... 163 67. Hall of the Golden...... Mastodon ...... 163 68. Hall of Decay ...... 165 69. Mechanus Chain ...... 165 70. Armillary Sphere ...... 166 Level 6: Cradle of the Death...... God ...... 166 71. Lair of the Sewn Sisters...... 167 72. Trial of the Triangle ...... 170 73. Trial of the Square ...... 170 74. Trial of the Pentagon...... 170 75. Trial of the Hexagon ...... 171 76. Trial of the Octagon...... 171 77. Death God’s Nursery...... 172 78. Chapel of Hate...... 174 79. Hall of Finality...... 174 80. Red Library 175 ...... 81. Ebon Pool 176 ...... Conclusion 176 ...... Lost Treasures ...... 176 Syndra’s Fate...... 177 Artus...... and the Ring of Winter ...... 177 Dragonbait ...... 177 Omu ...... 177 Red Wizards of Thay...... 177 Acererak the Eternal 177 ...... More Adventures 177 ...... Appendix A: Character Backgrounds 178 Anthropologist 178

INTRODUCTION Introduction

omething evil is trapping the souls of the dead Beneath the cracked and broken streets of Omu lies a and draining life from all who have been raised secret yuan-ti temple called the Fane of the Night Serpent, from death by magic. This worldwide “death where Ras Nsi holds sway and plots to bring about the end of curse” not only prevents the raising of the dead the world. Omu is also home to the Tomb of the Nine Gods. As but also causes creatures that were previously the characters explore this multilevel dungeon, they encounter raised from the dead to wither and die. The the spirits of Omu’s trickster gods and are potentially source of this death curse lies in a trap-riddled inhabited by them. Each god embodies a different alignment, Stomb hidden beneath a lost city in the depths and any character inhabited by one gains a special power as of a vast jungle. well as a flaw. The nine trickster gods don’t get along, and they Tomb of Annihilation is a Dungeons & try to push one another out of the characters’ bodies. As the Dragons adventure that takes place on the gods fight over their living hosts, the characters must deal peninsula of Chult in the Forgotten Realms. Chult is a tropical with the deadly traps and monsters that guard the Soulmonger. wilderness composed mostly of jungles, plateaus, impassable Venturing deeper into the tomb, they uncover clues about the mountains, and belching volcanoes. You can substitute a dungeon’s evil architect — the archlich Acererak — and learn different jungle setting, changing location names as needed. that the Soulmonger is feeding souls to an undead horror Alternative D&D settings include the Amedio Jungle of Oerth, called an atropal. Once it consumes enough souls, the atropal the Savage Coast of Mystara, the jungles of Xen’drik on will transform into an evil god. Eberron, or a comparable setting on your home campaign Destroying the Soulmonger ends the death curse affecting world. the world, while killing the atropal incurs the wrath of This adventure is designed to begin with a party of four to Acererak. Under normal circumstances, the enraged archlich six 1st-level characters, who should advance to 11th level or would be far too great a foe for mortal adventurers to Storyhigher by the adventure’s Overview conclusion. overcome, but with the trickster gods of Omu on their side, the Runningheroes have a fighting the chance. Adventure

The characters are drawn into the story by Syndra Silvane, a retired adventurer and merchant who, years ago, was raised To run this adventure, you need the D&D fifth edition core from the dead. Now, she’s withering away. When she rulebooks (Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, consulted priests, Syndra learned that the affliction was andText Monster that appears Manual). in a box like this is meant to be read widespread and that no spell could cure it. She spoke to her aloud or paraphrased for the players when their friends among the Harpers, who determined the source of the characters first arrive at a location or under a specific affliction: an ungodly necromantic device called the circumstance, as described in the text. Soulmonger. The Harpers received their intelligence from a lich, but they don’t know much about the Soulmonger other than its name and general whereabouts. Adventurers willing The Monster Manual and Volo’s Guide to Monsters contain to help Syndra must travel to Chult, a land of jungles and stat blocks for most of the creatures found in this adventure. monsters, to find the Soulmonger and destroy it. You don’t need the latter reference to run Tomb of Unknown to Syndra and her allies, the Soulmonger is Annihilation, as all the necessary stat blocks from Volo’s Guide trapping the souls of the dead and depriving liches of the to Monsters are included with the new monsters in appendix D. means to trap souls in their phylacteries. (The Soulmonger When a creature’s name appears in bold type, that’s a snatches up the souls before they can be trapped elsewhere.) visual cue pointing you to its stat block in the Monster Manual. Szass Tam, the most powerful lich among the Red Wizards of If a stat block appears in appendix D, the adventure’s text tells Thay, has sent operatives to Chult to steal the Soulmonger or, you so. failing that, destroy it. Leading the Thayan expedition is Szass Spells and equipment mentioned in the adventure are Tam’s devoted lieutenant, Valindra Shadowmantle. Valindra described in the Player’s Handbook. Magic items are described has been warned that adventurers might cross her path, so in the Dungeon Master’s Guide, unless the adventure’s text she’s prepared for them. directs you to an item’s description in appendix C. Also lurking in the heart of Chult is Ras Nsi, a mythic, Abbreviations villainous figure among Chultans. Ras Nsi was a human paladin and a sworn protector of the city of Mezro. He betrayed his oaths and was banished. Rather than redeem The following abbreviations are used throughout this himself, he raised an undead army to conquer Mezro. The would-be tyrant was defeated and banished once more. Mezro adventure: was later destroyed by the Spellplague (or so it seemed), hp = hit points gp = gold piece(s) during which Ras Nsi lost his power to create and command undead. He withdrew to the city of Omu, leaving the vestiges of LG = Lawful good CN = Chaotic neutral his undead army to roam unchecked throughout the jungle. That was not the end of Ras Nsi, however. Bitter over his loss AC = Armor Class ep = electrum piece(s) of power, he forged an alliance with the yuan-ti lurking in the ruins of Omu and underwent a ritual of transformation, CG = Chaotic good LE = Lawful evil becoming a yuan-ti malison. As a yuan-ti, Ras Nsi imposed his terrible will on the evil snake people and became their leader.

INTRODUCTION DC = Difficulty Class sp = silver piece(s) precious time. Mostly he likes to watch them suffer and die as a result of their magical pursuits and folly. NG = Neutral good CE = Chaotic evil Although he has lived on many worlds and crafted countless demiplanes, Acererak spends most of his time XP = experience points cp = copper piece(s) building tombs. He fills each one with treasure to attract powerful adventurers. He then kills them off in terrible LN = Lawful neutral NE = Neutral evil fashion, using deadly traps and monsters while baiting and ridiculing them. The terror he evokes scars their souls, which pp = platinum piece(s) NPC = nonplayer he traps in his phylactery, the location of which is one of the character multiverse’s greatest secrets. N = Neutral Not too long ago by human standards, Acererak found an Adventure Summary atropal adrift at the edge of the Negative Plane and built the Soulmonger to nourish it to godhood. The lich chose one of his tombs — specifically the Tomb of the Nine Gods on Toril — to The adventure is likely to play out as follows. serve as the atropal’s nursery. The adventurers are teleported to Port Nyanzaru, the only For more information on Acererak, including his statistics, major settlement in Chult. After exploring the city (chapter 1), see appendix D. they embark on an expedition into the wilds of Chult (chapter Death Curse 2), eventually finding the ruined city of Omu (chapter 3). The characters don’t know that Omu is their ultimate destination from the outset; they must find clues or evidence pointing in Understanding how Acererak’s death curse works is vital to that direction. running the adventure smoothly. In this adventure, three creatures know that the cause of The Soulmonger was activated 20 days ago and remains the death curse lies in Omu: Grandfather Zitembe in Port active until it is destroyed. While the Soulmonger is active, the Nyanzaru, Valindra Shadowmantle in the Heart of Ubtao, and following effects are in play: Saja N’baza in Orolunga. Several creatures know Omu’s Any humanoid on the planet that has been brought back location: the guides Eku and Salida in Port Nyanzaru, Valindra from the dead begins to waste away. Its hit point maximum is Shadowmantle in the Heart of Ubtao, the aarakocra of Kir reduced by 20 (1 for each day the Soulmonger has been active) Sabal, Zalkoré of Nangalore, Saja N’baza in Orolunga, and the and decreases by 1 every midnight until the Soulmonger is red dragon Tzindelor in Wyrmheart Mine. If the characters are destroyed. If a humanoid’s hit point maximum drops to 0, it unable to locate Omu or ascertain the source of the death dies. Traveling to another world or plane does nothing to halt curse, the following additional creatures might possess the the wasting effect once it has begun. knowledge they seek, at your discretion: Krr’ook in A humanoid whose hit point maximum is reduced can’t Dungrunglung, Nephyr in Firefinger, Nanny Pu’pu in Mbala, increase or restore it. This is true whether the creature’s hit Bwayes O’tamu in the wreck of the Narwhal, the survivors of point maximum is reduced by the Soulmonger or by some the Star Goddess shipwreck, and Red Wizards under Valindra other life-draining effect, such as the touch of a wight, wraith, Shadowmantle’s command. or similar creature. As the adventurers explore Omu, they are either captured by If a humanoid dies anywhere on the planet, its soul yuan-ti or forced to confront them in their underground becomes trapped inside the Soulmonger. Only the destruction temple (chapter 4). Not far from the yuan-ti temple is the of the Soulmonger can free the trapped soul. entrance to the Tomb of the Nine Gods (chapter 5). The Any spell that breathes life into the dead (including Soulmonger lies deep within the tomb, which is riddled with revivify, raise dead, resurrection, and true resurrection) puzzles, traps, monsters, and magical wards. Best case automatically fails if cast on a humanoid whose soul is either trapped in the Soulmonger or has been devoured by the scenario: the adventure concludes with the destruction of the atropal (see “Soul Devouring” below). Soulmonger and the heroes’ daring escape from the tomb. The Soulmonger does not affect the workings of speak Worst case scenario: the characters succumb to the evil of with dead spells or similar magic. The death curse has no Acererak, and their souls are devoured. WHO IS ACERERAK? Meateffect on Grinder preexisting ghosts or spirits.

Tomb of Annihilation can be played as written, or you can Acererak is a powerful lich known and feared throughout make it even more difficult by running it as a meat grinder. the multiverse. Much of his past is forgotten, but ancient texts This mode of play is suitable for experienced players who have assert that he comes from a world called Oerth. highly optimized characters and who don’t mind putting those Acererak travels the planes in search of artifacts. When he characters in jeopardy for the sake of a good challenge. It is finds something useful or interesting, he locks it away. less ideal for players who are inexperienced or get anxious at Although he’s powerful enough to pursue godhood as other the thought of losing their characters. liches have done (Vecna being a prime example), Acererak has You must choose to run the adventure as a meat grinder no interest in being a god or being worshiped. He prefers to from the very beginning. In this mode of play, the Soulmonger create evil gods and unleash them on mortals and immortals gains the power to draw characters who are close to death, who oppose him. and the following rule applies: Despite passing up opportunities for godhood, Acererak A death saving throw succeeds on a roll of 15 or higher attracts his fair share of followers and worshipers. He doesn’t (instead of 10 or higher). This effect ends when the grant spells, nor does he give his devotees much of his

FOOTER 1 Soulmonger is destroyed. Other rules concerning death city as a terrifying place so that players feel the tension of Soulsaving Devouring throws remain unchanged. Characterwanting to get there Advancement quickly, but not too quickly.

The soul of any humanoid that dies while the death curse is active becomes trapped inside the Soulmonger. The soul Characters begin the adventure at 1st level and gain XP by remains there until it is consumed by the atropal or the defeating monsters. After each game session, add up all the XP Soulmonger is destroyed. earned and distribute it evenly among the party members. If Once a soul becomes trapped in the Soulmonger, it’s only a the characters gain enough XP to advance a level, encourage matter of time before the atropal devours it. You can your players to level up their characters before the next determine the status of a trapped soul at dawn on any given session. Ideally, the characters should fall within the desired day by secretly rolling a d20. On a roll of 2 or higher, the soul level range for each chapter of the adventure, as shown in the remains trapped in the Soulmonger, at least until the next Suggested Character Character Levels table. Levels dawn. A roll of 1 indicates that the soul was devoured by the Chapter Suggested Level atropal. A creature whose soul is devoured in this horrific manner can’t be returned to life by any means, including 1. Port Nyanzaru 1st and higher divine intervention. 2. Land of Chult 1st–6th If the Soulmonger is destroyed and you haven’t been 3. Dwellers of the Forbidden 5th–8th tracking the status of a particular soul trapped within, grab a City handful of d20s — one die for each day the soul was trapped — and roll them together. If you roll a 1 on any of the 4. Fane of the Night Serpent 7th–9th dice, the soul was devoured before it could be set free. 5. Tomb of the Nine Gods 9th and higher Spells such as commune and divination can be used to determine whether a soul has been devoured or whether it’s still trapped in the Soulmonger. You can slow the rate of advancement by withholding XP, How many souls must the atropal devour to become a god? “banking” it until you’re ready for the party to level up. It could be thousands or millions. Ultimately it’s the DM’s call, Conversely, you can hasten level advancement by awarding ad but the default assumption is that this apotheosis could take hoc XP for making discoveries, completing goals, roleplaying Replacementmonths or years. Characters well, and surviving or avoiding deadly traps. Any such ad hoc award should be no more than what the characters would earn for defeating a monster with a challenge rating equal to their The death curse means that, for the most part, dead characters level. For example, a fair ad hoc award for a party of 2nd-level stay dead. If a character dies and there’s no reasonable way for adventurers would be 450 XP, which is what the characters the player to continue playing that character, you can have the would earn for defeating a challenge rating 2 monster. As with player create a new character. A replacement character should other XP awards, the amount should be divided evenly among be the same level as the rest of the party. all party members. Chult attracts adventurers from all over the world, and As the DM, you can dispense with XP tracking and allow the activation of the Soulmonger draws even more characters to gain levels at whatever pace suits your campaign, adventurers than usual to its untamed wilderness. The player using the Suggested Character Levels table as your guide. characters are among the earliest to arrive, but adventurers Chult is loaded with fun distractions, alluring locations, from across the globe begin to converge in Chult as the crisis and opportunities for characters to explore. Consequently, it mounts. It should not be difficult to introduce new characters can be hard to gauge what level the characters will be when to replace those who have perished. A new character might be they arrive at adventure locations. Again, let the Suggested the last surviving member of a doomed expedition, a guide Character Levels table guide you. For example, if the who has lived in Chult for years, a lone explorer seeking glory characters are 4th level and about to stumble into Omu or treasure, or someone racing against time to save a loved (chapter 3), you might want to steer them in a different one affected by the death curse. Work with the player to come direction, throw random encounters at them until they’ve Tickingup with a story Clock that makes sense, given the circumstances. reached 5th level, advance them to 5th level automatically, or adjust encounters in Omu to make the threats easier toovercome. Tomb of Annihilation is a time-bomb adventure. In other Starting at Higher Levels words, time is of the essence. The characters are under pressure to find and destroy the Soulmonger quickly, since many lives depend on it. Although the adventure assumes that the characters begin at Time pressure aside, Chult is a land ripe with adventure Starting1st level, you can at start 5th them Level off at 5th level or 9th level instead. possibilities, and characters might be drawn by curiosity or circumstance to locations such as the garden ruin of Nangalore, the dwarven forge of Hrakhamar, or the pirate haven of Jahaka Characters of 5th level will still find parts of chapters 1 and 2 Anchorage. Such locations present dangers that, when challenging. If an encounter becomes too much of a cakewalk, overcome, prepare the characters for greater threats awaiting you can introduce enemy reinforcements. Hold off on XP them in Omu. If the characters reach Omu too soon, they awards and level advancement until the characters reach Omu probably won’t be high enough level to survive there for long. in chapter 3. When the characters make inquiries about Omu, paint the lost

FOOTER 1 Starting at 9th Level Syndrahave them meet Silvane’s at Syndra Silvane’s Curse residence. Characters of 9th level will steamroll through chapters 1 and 2, and that’s fine. Spend less time on encounters in the jungle, and steer the characters toward Omu as quickly as possible. Once they arrive, run the adventure as you normally would. The party’s benefactor is a retired adventurer named Syndra Characters at this level will still be challenged by chapters 3 Silvane. Being a wizard and merchant of no small repute, she and 4, particularly if you play the yuan-ti as intelligent has magic to expedite the party’s journey to Chult as well as adversaries. Hold off on XP awards and level advancement treasure with which to reward characters for their assistance. until the characters enter the Tomb of the Nine Gods in When you’re ready for the characters to meet with Syndra, read:You have been invited to the home of Syndra Silvane, a Startingchapter 5. the Adventure retired adventurer and merchant. A uniformed attendant leads you up a grand staircase to the third floor, then ushers you into a wood-paneled room with a fireplace, The adventure’s default starting location is the city of Baldur’s comfortable chairs, and a heavy table bearing goblets Gate on the Sword Coast, in the Forgotten Realms setting. and bottles of wine. The darkly paneled walls are hung However, any large settlement will do. Possibilities from other with maps and sea charts. Racks, shelves, and cabinets D&D worlds include the Free City of Greyhawk on Oerth, the hold hundreds more rolled-up maps and charts. city of Specularum on Mystara, and the city of Sharn on Eberron. A person is seated in an overstuffed chair near the fire. To get things rolling, read or paraphrase the following You can’t discern a gender, because only the person’s introductoryFor the past text several to the days, players: the talk of the streets and head emerges from under a heavy blanket draped over taverns has all been about the so-called death curse: a the chair, and an embroidered hood and silver mask wasting disease afflicting everyone who’s ever been conceal the wearer’s face. Even the person’s dry, raspy raised from the dead. Victims grow thinner and weaker voice provides no clue. “Help yourselves to wine, and each day, slowly but steadily sliding toward the death seat yourselves, friends — I hope I may call you that.” they once denied. When they finally succumb, they can’t be raised — and neither can anyone else, regardless of whether they’ve ever received that miracle in the past. Temples and scholars of divine magic are at a loss to The masked speaker is Syndra Silvane. She is a Tethyrian explain a curse that has affected the entire region, and human archmage, with these changes: possibly the entire world.  Syndra is lawful neutral and speaks Common, Dwarvish, Elvish, and Halfling. Syndra’s hit point maximum has been reduced to 79 by the Soulmonger’s death curse, and it decreases by 1 At this point, invite the players to explain why their characters every midnight. If her hit point maximum drops to 0, are together, how long they’ve been together, and what they’ve Syndra dies and can’t be brought back from the dead been doing. If the characters don’t know each other, you can until the death curse has ended (and if her soul hasn’t

FOOTER 1 been devoured). Destroying the Soulmonger is the only Shadowmantle, and were never seen or heard from again. If way to halt the attrition and restore her hit point the characters urge Syndra to seek out a more experienced Roleplayingmaximum to normal. Syndra Silvane Treasureparty of adventurers, she replies dryly, “I already have.”

Syndra tells the characters her story and makes her request. Syndra promises each character a rare or uncommon magic Roleplay the encounter, paraphrasing the following item, delivered upon successful completion of her quest. (At information and responding in Silvane’s dry, cracking voice to the end of the adventure, each player can choose an the characters’ questions: appropriate item, subject to your approval.) Syndra also “I was an adventurer years ago. I died once and was expects that the characters will find enough treasure in Chult  raised from the dead. I have since closed the door on that to make them as rich as kings. stage of my life.” If the characters press for coin up front, Syndra gives each “The death curse you’ve heard about has struck me. I Players’character 50Map gp to defray of Chult expenses in Port Nyanzaru. don’t know how much longer I’ll last before I perish.  Clerics have no help to offer. They’re stymied by what is happening.” At this point, give the players a copy of Syndra Silvane’s “My contacts in the Harpers have learned that the cause incomplete map of Chult (see handout 1 in appendix E). of the death curse is a necromantic artifact called the Syndra gladly answers their questions to the best of her ability,  Soulmonger. According to their sources, the Soulmonger but she doesn’t know much more about Chult than what’s on is somewhere in Chult.” the map. She knows Port Nyanzaru well enough to assure “Chult is a peninsula ringed with mountains and choked Teleportingcharacters that they to can Chult buy supplies there. with rainforests. Enormous reptiles, savage goblins, and an army of undead prowl its jungles and ruins. Mapping the place has always been nigh impossible, and nothing is In the interest of time, Syndra is prepared to use a teleport known about the region’s current geography beyond a spell to transport herself and the heroes to Port Nyanzaru. If few miles from the coas“Working from dozens of sea the characters agree, don’t bother rolling to determine the charts, log books, and explorers’ journals, I assembled spell’s accuracy. Syndra knows the city’s Harbor Ward well everything known about the current state of Chult into enough to arrive on target. She chooses an outdoor location  one map. I’ll provide it to you if you undertake my near the docks as her destination. When the characters arrive mission.” in Port Nyanzaru, skip to the “Arrival” section in chapter 1. “When you’re ready to depart, I will teleport us all to Port Character Hooks Nyanzaru, the only major settlement in Chult. I’ve been there several times before, so there’s little chance of mishap. Once there, I’ll stay with a friend named Appendix A presents two new character backgrounds that Wakanga O’tamu. He’s one of seven merchant princes players can select with your consent: the anthropologist and who rule the city.” the archaeologist. In addition, the Player’s Handbook and the Syndra has misgivings about sending inexperienced Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide contain a number of adventurers on so dangerous a quest, but she isn’t taking any character backgrounds that are well suited for this adventure. chances. She fails to mention that other, more experienced If your players are having trouble fleshing out their characters’ parties of adventurers have been sent to Chult already. All backgrounds, share the ideas from the Character Hooks for have disappeared, and Syndra fears the worst. In truth, they Select Backgrounds table with them. fellCharacter victim to the perilsHooks of Chult for or Select crossed paths Backgrounds with Valindra Background Reference Character Hook Player’s Handbook Temples are vexed by a widespread magical curse that is causing people to waste away while also preventing the dead from being raised. An Acolyte expeditionary force is headed to Chult to find the origin of the curse, and you’ve decided to join it. Anthropologist Appendix A A wizard-merchant named Syndra Silvane is wasting away, and she has hired you to join an expedition to Chult to find a cure. Syndra believes that your expertise will prove invaluable, and you’ve wanted to study the cultures there. Archaeologist Appendix A You have learned that a wizard-merchant is planning an important expedition to Chult—a place full of lost cities you’re anxious to explore. Your request to join the expedition was approved. Charlatan Player’s Handbook After a few successful scams, you’ve gotten into some trouble with local authorities and criminal gangs. You were about to make a run for it when you heard a rumor that a merchant named Syndra Silvane is offering good pay for an assignment far from home. Cloistered Sword Coast A terrible curse is sweeping across Faerûn, and a dying merchant is Scholar Adventurer’s Guide gathering adventurers for a bold mission to destroy the source of the

FOOTER 1