September Short Adventure 26: Let's Make a Deal

Preamble

A September of Short Adventures is an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over atthe Asshat Paladins blog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon overon the right-hand side-bar (just above Features) to learn more aboutall of this stuff from Matt directly. All of our 25 (possiblymore...) entries are formatted along the lines of what Matt calls theGet Ready, Get Set, Go! format. In a nut-shell, thisapproach breaks each adventure into a Title, Three escalatingsections of adventure details (the Ready section is limited to anelevator pitch only 2 sentences...), and a final catch-all sectionfor any NPC notes/stats. The idea is to keep it short, simple, easyto read without any maps, drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keepdescription to a minimum, avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts ofthousands -- unless it's an invading horde of three-eyed orcs orgoblins riding purple wombats.

We're also goingto aim to keep things generic, setting agnostic and thus portable oradaptable to any campaign/setting using the particular rules-setwe'll be using in any given September Short Adventure such as MutantFuture, Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (WhiteBox), etc.

FreeRules

LabyrinthLord: http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords andWizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 26

Title: Let'sMake a Deal

Rules: Swordsand Wizardry (White Box)

Ready

The players havebeen attacked in the middle of a dark and dismal forest by a largepack of worgs. Despite their best efforts, the worgs have practicallyoverrun their position and they have become separated as they make ahasty tactical retreat...

Set

One of the Player Characters is chased across a bare stretch of frozen rock when asection gives way and they fall into an ancient, forgotten chamberdown below. The worgs will prowl around the hole, occasionally pokingtheir grizzled muzzles in to snap, bark and drool offensively at thetrapped Player Character below.

They areunharmed. No injuries sustained in the fall.

The chamber isdry, but small, perhaps 12' in diameter, with the ceiling maybe16-18' overhead. The worgs will eventually settle-down and just waitfor the PC to try to leave via the hole. If they look around, even inthe darkness just outside the shaft of dying light coming in from thehole above, they will discover that there is an opening leading offto another chamber beyond. This is obviously some sort of ancientburial mound or lost barrow.

It's a real Conanmoment.

Do they have theintestinal fortitude to go into the other chamber?

Go!

Insidethe second chamber is an empty throne, a lot of dust, and a magicalweapon appropriate to the Player Character's class/race.

Theweapon is ancient and has been locked-away down here in the darknessfor centuries. It craves the light and it desires to be put to gooduse.

Itclaims to hate worgs...

Butcan it be trusted? Is it smarter than the PC? Will it try to takethem over right away, or wait and look for a better host or a moreopportune moment to possess them?

Surethe Player Character and the magical weapon can come to some sort ofdeal, a working arrangement of sorts—it desperately wants to getout of the barrow and go killing things, so the weapon is more thanwilling to make a deal. Now.

Butsometimes the enemies of your enemy are better left lying in thedarkness and dirt.

Thisweapon is a cultic artifact of a group of vampiric woodsfolk whotrace their lineages via oral traditions back to the now vanishedempire from which this tomb dates. They will recognize the magicalweapon. It will attract them, call to them, and it only begrudginglyserves the PC...unless somehow they were to prove themselves to be asuperior or more appropriate host than the diabolical descendents ofits original masters...

Butthis aspect of the magical weapon won't be immediately obvious, nornecessarily revealed right away...

Somethings take a little time to set up.

Andgood things come to those who wait...even in the darkness and thedirt...

Notes/ NPCs

CorruptedWorgs (2d4)[HD 4; HP 20,20,18,18,16,15,14,12; AC 6[13]; ATK 1 Bite; Move 18;Save 15; CL/XP: 4/120] Note: These creatures are supernatural andhave some measure of human in their ancestry due to unspeakable ritesperformed by demented cultists long, long ago...there will also beanother 2d4 of the things out in the woods, watching...

Asfor stats for the Magical Weapon...that is something best left to theingenuity of each DM for themselves. Suffice to say that it isessentially a +2 weapon with some useful abilities/handy powers, anda fairly high INT and Psyche/Ego...and if you want a few examples, try out our post: Eight Magical Weapons.

September Short Adventure 25: Down in the Hole

Preamble

A September ofShort Adventures is an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over atthe Asshat Paladins blog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon overon the right-hand side-bar (just above Features) to learn more aboutall of this stuff from Matt directly. All of our 25 (possiblymore...) entries are formatted along the lines of what Matt calls theGet Ready, Get Set, Go! format. In a nut-shell, thisapproach breaks each adventure into a Title, Three escalatingsections of adventure details (the Ready section is limited to anelevator pitch only 2 sentences...), and a final catch-all sectionfor any NPC notes/stats. The idea is to keep it short, simple, easyto read without any maps, drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keepdescription to a minimum, avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts ofthousands -- unless it's an invading horde of three-eyed orcs orgoblins riding purple wombats.

We're also goingto aim to keep things generic, setting agnostic and thus portable oradaptable to any campaign/setting using the particular rules-setwe'll be using in any given September Short Adventure such as MutantFuture, Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (WhiteBox), etc.

FreeRules

LabyrinthLord: http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords andWizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 25

Title: Downin the Hole

Rules: Swordsand Wizardry (White Box)

Ready

The playersdiscover a hole in the ground that they just barely avoid fallinginto. There's someone down there...

Set

The immediatearea around the hole is slippery, treacherous and uneven.Investigating who or what is down there will take some cleverness,ingenuity, spells or lots and lots of rope. It is a challengingsituation, not an impossible one, and anyone with a little effort andforethought can either lower someone down to investigate things, orat least make a good attempt at extricating whomever is down therewithout too much difficulty. At least in terms of getting themselvesdown there, or the victim brought up to them...then it getsinteresting...

Attempting tocommunicate with whomever is down there will reveal that there is infact someone down there and they appear to be injured orwounded. There is blood. If left down there, the harsh winter nightwill kill them via exposure, or the wolves or worgs will surely getthem.

What do thePlayer Characters want to do about this?

Go!

This is not an excuse for ambushing the Player Characters while they are in the middle of doing a good deed. Far from it. The hoary old chestnut of the damsel-in-distress as the monster can work, and we've allowed for that down below, but really this scenario starts to get interesting when you move past the falling damage, broken rope gambit, or just giving your vagabond miscreant PCs some sort of moral dilemma. The real meat and potatoes of this Short Adventure comes from the implications and repercussions of how the characters respond to the initial set-up.


Sometimes doing the right thing will lead to terrible outcomes. The worst monsters are not the balrogs or dragons, but the ones that look like us. What really makes this sort of encounter work is to play-up the social aspects, the gratitude of the victim's family, the hatred of those who see the PCs as idiotic meddlers in things they know nothing about and should leave alone. Secrets and shame, the kind of subtext and greasy underlying sense that things are just not quite right. Imagine Lovecraft's Innsmouth run by worgs and not fish and you're half-way there...


Ifthis is taking place out in the woods prior to Short Adventure 24: A Babe in the Woods the young girl will be unable to talk—her tonguehaving been cut out.

Ifthis is taking place around the time of Short Adventure 23: A Snowy Evening then the young boy down in the hole will identify himself asHans, the son of the local cobbler. He claims not to know how heended-up down in the hole. He is lying. There are 1d4 worgs downthere with him—they will let him go free if he lures down better,more meaty prey...

Alternatively,if you prefer, the injured person down in the hole could instead bepoor old Franz from Short Adventure 22: Art Thieves. Franz might havefallen into the hole while trying to escape from a pack of worgs thatchased him after he crossed the frozen lake. Franz may or may not becapable of speech. He might also have various bits of loot stolenfrom Lord Rupprecht's salon that he could use to bribe the Players torescue him. Also, whomever Franz works for might have sent someone tohelp retrieve him after his daring escape from Lord Rupprecht'schalet...so there could be further encounters and entanglementsgalore just from pursuing that angle...

Anotheroption is to have one or more Therioclast Troopers trapped down inthe hole. The party then has to sort out whether or not to save thefanatics who will very likely accost them for just being out in thewoods and even if the PCs do rescue them the troopers will remainhighly suspicious of them. Those worgs and their allies are a craftylot, very tricky. Depending on how that plays out, the PCs could earnthe grudging gratitude of Somber Jill and her Therioclast troops...ortheir vengeful enmity...plus those worgs are watching and they justmight decide to take advantage of any situation that the PCs leaveopen for them to sow more chaos, discontent, distrust and falseleads...

Andthen you might consider a slightly more Shirley Jackson meets ArthurMachen approach—the child down in the hole was driven out of thelocal village as a suspected ally to/depraved consorter with theworgs. Or they were sent out into the woods as a sacrifice to keepthe village safe from the worgs (a classic fairy-tale extortionscheme). Bringing either or both of Hans and Greta back to thevillage will seriously and adversely impact the reaction rolls ofeveryone noted as being in the group that brought them back. If thevillage was making a sacrifice, they'll be guilty and afraid of beingreported to the Therioclasts. If they drove either or both of thechildren out of the village as worg-spawn, then some might repent oftheir harsh deed and others will want to finish the job. Role-playing opportunities and bad accents abound.

Ifeither or both of the kids actually are somehow tainted by theworg-spawn, then it gets violent as the worgs will be watching whathappens and they (or their allies) will intervene if necessary. Ifthe children are innocent, what then? How will the PCs handle thefrightened villagers? Will a mob arise? Will the villagers call outthe Therioclasts and Somber Jill to drive off the PCs who are'obviously' in cahoots with the worgs?

Oh,and as a more Hammer-like twist, either or both of the children couldbe the product of Herr Doktor Morbius' (see Short Adventure 21) latest experiments in tissue regeneration and golemification...or ifyou really want a more Hammer-esque spin on things, either or both ofthe children could be runaways from the village who have decided tojoin the circus...from this post at Old School Heretic, perhaps...

Evenif there is just a simple peasant girl down in that hole, who's tosay that she isn't somehow tangled-up with the worgs? (She could evenbe pregnant with another hybrid-child, or she might be a suitablewet-nurse for the babe if they recovered it in Short Adventure 24...of course, whatever you decide, this woman does not exist in a vacuum and may have familial ties to the worg-cult, the Therioclast-fanatics, or other factions. This is a chance to muddy the waters with all sorts of contradictory loyalties, bad choices, social obligations, lingering vendettas or feuds, unspeakable secrets hidden within local blood ties and relationships that could lead to all sorts of troubles, conflicts and great opportunities for misunderstanding if the PCs just start to talk to this simple, harmless victim whom they've just rescued...)

Whicheveryou decide to use, remember that there are worgs in these woods.Clever beasts who have mingled their blood with humans off and onover the centuries, and they are most definitely watching, waitingand looking for a chance to sow chaos, terror and mayhem amid theirenemies...

Notes/ NPCs

Greta(1) [HD2; HP 12; AC 9[10]; ATK 1 dagger; Move 12; Save 17; CL/XP:1/20]

Hans(1) [HD1; HP 7; AC 9[10]; ATK 1 club; Move 10; Save 18; CL/XP: 1/10]

CorruptedWorgs (2d4) [HD 4; HP20,20,18,18,16,15,14,12; AC 6[13]; ATK 1 Bite; Move 18; Save 15;CL/XP: 4/120] Note: These creatures are supernatural and have somemeasure of human in their ancestry due to unspeakable rites performedby demented cultists long, long ago...there will also be another 2d4of the things out in the woods, watching...

Franzthe Flesh Golem (1d4)[HD 12; HP 68; AC 9[10]; ATK 1 fist; Move 8; Save 7; CL/XP 12/2,000;Special: Only lightning(whichheals the thing), fireand coldspells (only slow it down) affect it, and you need a +1 or betterweapon to harm it.] Note: Franz works for someone, possibly HerrDoktor Morbius from Short Adventure 21: A Pound of Flesh? (S&W[WB]Bk IIIp. 19)

TherioclastTrooper (2d4) [HD 3+1; HP 12 on average.; AC6[13]; ATK 1 weapon; Move 12; Save 16; CL/XP: 4/80; Special: +2 onSaves vs lycanthropy] Grim and dour warriors who might be eitherHumans, Dwarves, Elves or Halflings. Studded-leather armor, crossbow(with a mix of silver and iron headed bolts), silver-headed hand-axeor blessed scythe, rune-engraved short-sword and skinning-dagger.These are hard-bitten professionals who exterminate shapeshifters andeach one has a 10% chance to spot one outright.

September Short Adventure 24: A Babe In The Woods

Preamble

A September of Short Adventuresis an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over at the Asshat Paladinsblog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon over on the right-handside-bar (just above Features) to learn more about all of this stufffrom Matt directly. All of our 25 (possibly more...) entries areformatted along the lines of what Matt calls the Get Ready, GetSet, Go! format. In a nut-shell, this approach breaks eachadventure into a Title, Three escalating sections of adventuredetails (the Ready section is limited to an elevator pitch only 2sentences...), and a final catch-all section for any NPC notes/stats.The idea is to keep it short, simple, easy to read without any maps,drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keep description to a minimum,avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts of thousands -- unless it's aninvading horde of three-eyed orcs or goblins riding purple wombats.

We're also going to aim to keep thingsgeneric, setting agnostic and thus portable or adaptable to anycampaign/setting using the particular rules-set we'll be using in anygiven September Short Adventure such as Mutant Future,Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (White Box), etc.

FreeRules

Labyrinth Lord:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords and Wizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 24

Title: A Babe in the Woods

Rules: Swords and Wizardry (WhiteBox)

Ready

The players are caught out in ablizzard and take shelter within a section of dense forest. The snowand wind howl and swirl for hours, but the Player Characters are safeand even build a small fire to keep warm.

Set

There is a sound off past the first rowor two of trees. It is intermittent, getting weaker and is distinctlyhuman-sounding. As though someone were crying.

Go!

The sound is comingfrom a baby that has been abandoned out in the woods by its parents.

As far as the PCsknow, if they do not rescue this child, it will die. But that is nottrue at all.

If they do golooking for the baby, they will find it easily enough and return totheir camp-site with no real bother. In fact, nothing will botherthem for as long as they remain in the woods and every morning afreshly killed deer will be left within close proximity. They willreach the next town or village easily, well-fed and completely safe.

If the PCs abandonthe babe, then it will suddenly stop crying altogether, veryabruptly. The next morning, and every morning after that, mutilatedbodies of brutally slaughtered farmers, woodcutters and travelerswill be found right at the edge of their camp with bloody trailsleading to the place of ambush. These bodies will all be arranged tolook as if someone inside the camp dragged the corpses through thewoods to the periphery of the camp. Within 1d4 days, a party ofTherioclasts will come upon the PCs. They are following the trail ofwhatever has been preying upon the locals...following a trail thatleads clearly and unmistakably right to the Player Characters...

There are worgs inthese woods. Clever beasts who have mingled their blood with humansoff and on over the centuries. They know how to be good friends andterrible enemies...

Notes / NPCs

Baby Worg-spawn(1) [HD 1; HP 4; AC 9[10]; ATK 1 Bite; Move 4; Save 19; CL/XP: 1/10] Note: This is a changeling-child, a hybrid of human and worg. It willappear mostly human until it reaches puberty, then its more bestialside will emerge, often tragically.

Therioclast Trooper(2d4) [HD 3+1; HP 12 on average.; AC 6[13]; ATK 1 weapon; Move 12;Save 16; CL/XP: 4/80; Special: +2 on Saves vs lycanthropy] Grim anddour warriors who might be either Humans, Dwarves, Elves orHalflings. Studded-leather armor, crossbow (with a mix of silver andiron headed bolts), silver-headed hand-axe or blessed scythe,rune-engraved short-sword and skinning-dagger. These are hard-bittenprofessionals who exterminate shapeshifters and each one has a 10%chance to spot one outright.

September Short Adventures 23: A Snowy Evening

Preamble

A September of Short Adventuresis an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over at the Asshat Paladinsblog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon over on the right-handside-bar (just above Features) to learn more about all of this stufffrom Matt directly. All of our 25 (possibly more...) entries areformatted along the lines of what Matt calls the Get Ready, GetSet, Go! format. In a nut-shell, this approach breaks eachadventure into a Title, Three escalating sections of adventuredetails (the Ready section is limited to an elevator pitch only 2sentences...), and a final catch-all section for any NPC notes/stats.The idea is to keep it short, simple, easy to read without any maps,drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keep description to a minimum,avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts of thousands -- unless it's aninvading horde of three-eyed orcs or goblins riding purple wombats.

We're also going to aim to keep thingsgeneric, setting agnostic and thus portable or adaptable to anycampaign/setting using the particular rules-set we'll be using in anygiven September Short Adventure such as Mutant Future,Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (White Box), etc.

FreeRules

Labyrinth Lord:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords and Wizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 23

Title: A Snowy Evening

Rules: Swords and Wizardry (WhiteBox)

Ready

It is another dark and bitterly coldnight out on the road and the Player Characters are still miles awayfrom the closest village when the snow really starts to fall. Theroad extends between a dark and deep forest filling up with snow anda frozen lake.

Set

The wind is easy and the snow fallsgently making the night seem almost hypnotic, the Player Charactershave the impression of traveling through the gentle snow-storm asthough it were a sort of hallucination. It is peaceful. Quiet.Serene and beautiful.

No on will see them stop here.

The woods are deceptively bare andstark-black, and quickly filling-up with downy snow, making theprospect of traversing them both slippery and disorienting. All thepaths that might be there are obscured or buried in snow. Soggymasses of heavy snow will fall from the branches of trees to dousetorches or to knock out lamps. Something dark and sinister lurkswithin the shifting shadows of these trees. But getting through thesewoods will be a true test of the adventurer's endurance, strength andagility as they must climb over or under obstacles, contend withslick patches of snow-covered ice, avoid falling into pits or declivities or sliding down steep ramps that end with masses ofrecently snapped and very sharp stake-like branches. Once they enterthe woods, the feeling of something watching them will become all butpalpable. Something is definitely there. Watching. Lurking. Waiting.But for what?

The frozen lake is breath-taking,especially in those brief moments when the moon shines through asudden break in the heavy clouds above. The wind is gentle and thesnow soft like down floating on the night air. Crunching over thedrifts and avoiding the worst of the exposed surface of the icy lakeproves no problem as the adventurers explore this area. In fact theycan make excellent time and reach the middle of the lake with noappreciable difficulty whatsoever.

Go!

Further on alongthe road is a farmhouse.

• If the Player Characters go off into the woods first, then this place is dark, empty and the roof is sagging as snow slowly fills it. The place might provide a minimal bit of shelter, but has more of a chance to collapse on the party than provide any real protection. Examining it will reveal the front door wide open, but minimal or no signs of struggle, and the signs of bodies being dragged out into the woods from the back-door...but the tracks rapidly filling-in with the snow.
• If the Player Characters explore the frozen lake first, then this place is well-lit, the door hangs wide open and partly off its hinges, several windows are broken and there is blood everywhere. But no bodies. Just a few bloody tracks showing where victims were dragged off into the woods by something.
• If the Player Characters ignore the woods and the lake and instead head down the road to the farmhouse then they will notice the flickering light of a bonfire ahead of them and as they draw closer they will find the farmhouse completely engulfed in flames and a group of heavily-armed Therioclasts making damned sure that the accursed place burns completely.

Into The Woods

A small pack ofWorgs have returned home after having prowled along the entirecircumference of their territory. They were born here and are relatedto the family of farmers who used to live here. Those farmers werekilled by the Therioclasts for being tainted with worg-blood. They intend to slaughter the current family occupying this farmstead.Going into the woods allows the worgs to ambush the farm and carryoff the entire family to a terrible fate, unless they can be rescuedwithin one hour of the Players reaching the farmstead. Traipsingthrough the treacherous woods will also give the PCs a 1 in 4 chanceof encountering the Therioclasts who might just mistake them forworg-allies or worse...

Out On The Lake

A pitiful andpartly burned victim of a recent lynching lies sprawled half-buriedin the snow out on the frozen lake. They are a Flesh Golem, and haveonly recently escaped from an irate mob. No sooner do the PCsdiscover this grotesque unfortunate being, than the farmstead will behit by the worgs. The screams of the family will carry quite clearlyover the lake. There is a 50-50 chance that the PCs can beat theTherioclasts to the farmstead, if they decide to go investigate thescreams.

Burning Down theHouse

Going past thewoods and the lake both will allow much of the evening's mischief andfoul deeds to proceed without interference. The Flesh Golem willescape. The farmstead will be attacked by worgs and the bodiesdragged off into the woods never to be seen again. The Therioclastswill destroy the farmhouse as though it were somehow responsible forthe depredations of the worg-pack. And the PCs will need to convincethese people that they are not allied to the worgs or in cahoots withthe local shape-shifters...

Notes / NPCs

Corrupted Worg(2d4) [HD 4; HP 20,20,18,18,16,15,14,12; AC 6[13]; ATK 1 Bite; Move18; Save 15; CL/XP: 4/120] Note: These creatures are supernaturaland have some measure of human in their ancestry due to unspeakablerites performed by demented cultists long, long ago...

Frozen Flesh Golem(1d4) [HD 12; HP 68; AC 9[10]; ATK 1 fist; Move 8; Save 7; CL/XP12/2,000; Special: Only lightning(which heals the thing), fireand cold spells (onlyslow it down) affect it, and you need a +1 or better weapon to harmit.] (S&W[WB]Bk III p. 19)

Therioclast Trooper(2d4) [HD 3+1; HP 12 on average.; AC 6[13]; ATK 1 weapon; Move 12;Save 16; CL/XP: 4/80; Special: +2 on Saves vs lycanthropy] Grim anddour warriors who might be either Humans, Dwarves, Elves orHalflings. Studded-leather armor, crossbow (with a mix of silver andiron headed bolts), silver-headed hand-axe or blessed scythe,rune-engraved short-sword and skinning-dagger. These are hard-bittenprofessionals who exterminate shapeshifters and each one has a 10%chance to spot one outright.

Somber Jillis their leader. She is a 10^thlevel Fighter/Magic-user of indeterminate descent and no tolerancefor shapeshifters whatsoever. She wears blessed chainmail, carries aflaming sword and a silver-headed hand-axe and crossbow (withsilver-headed bolts). Adjust her stats to best present something of achallenge to your players, but not an overwhelming one. Her CHAR isat least 15, otherwise her other stats are all open to yourinterpretation. (We might further develop her if there isinterest...)

September Short Adventure 22: Art Thieves

Preamble

A September of Short Adventuresis an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over at the Asshat Paladinsblog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon over on the right-handside-bar (just above Features) to learn more about all of this stufffrom Matt directly. All of our 25 (possibly more...) entries areformatted along the lines of what Matt calls the Get Ready, GetSet, Go! format. In a nut-shell, this approach breaks eachadventure into a Title, Three escalating sections of adventuredetails (the Ready section is limited to an elevator pitch only 2sentences...), and a final catch-all section for any NPC notes/stats.The idea is to keep it short, simple, easy to read without any maps,drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keep description to a minimum,avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts of thousands -- unless it's aninvading horde of three-eyed orcs or goblins riding purple wombats.

We're also going to aim to keep thingsgeneric, setting agnostic and thus portable or adaptable to anycampaign/setting using the particular rules-set we'll be using in anygiven September Short Adventure such as Mutant Future,Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (White Box), etc.

FreeRules

Labyrinth Lord:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords and Wizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 22

Title: Art Thieves

Rules: Swords and Wizardry (WhiteBox)

Ready

It is a cold, windy night and thePlayer Characters are safe and snug in their rooms at the Chalet of alocal warlord who is interested in hiring them on for a specialexpedition. Then there is a loud CRASH!

Set

The entire chalet has been awakened andguards are starting to patrol the outer areas, a few have dogs withthem. Lord Rupprecht is not amused. He demands that whomever it isthat has broken into his domicile be caught and punished immediately.It will take him 2d4 turns to get his armor properly situated (heblames his half-asleep attendants). This is the Player Character'sbig chance to show off in front of their potential new boss...

Go!

There are intrudersin the Salon where Lord Rupprecht keeps his priceless art collection.

The intruders areservants of a nefarious mastermind who may or may not be someone thatthe PCs have run up against previously. In either case, thisdastardly villain is a master of the black art of golem-making andthey have sent their minions to plunder Lord Rupprecht's collection.

• Is Franz after aspecific piece or just a lot of easy-to-transport loot?
• Is thenasty mastermind the good Doktor Morbius from Short Adventure21?
• What do theMisshapen Pilferers manage to make away with?
• How does LordRupprecht want to deal with this gross violation of his sanctum?
• How will he seek torecover his property or exact revenge?

Things could getcomplicated. Especially as someone within the chalet opened the doorfor these thieves to enter and if it were not for their bumblingincompetence (or was that really the reason for the crash that woke everyone up?), these horrid thingsmight have gotten away unhindered and undiscovered until after it wastoo late to do anything about it. That means there just might be a traitor onthe staff or within the PCs' party...or possibly even closer to LordRupprecht than he might suspect...

Notes / NPCs

Franz the FeloniousFlesh Golem (1d4) [HD 12; HP 68; AC 9[10];ATK 1 fist; Move 8; Save 7; CL/XP 12/2,000; Special: Only lightning(which heals the thing), fireand cold spells (onlyslow it down) affect it, and you need a +1 or better weapon to harmit.] (S&W[WB]Bk III p. 19)

Misshapen Pilferers(4) [HD 3; HP 16,16,14; AC 9[10]; ATK 1 fist; Move 6; Save 16; CL/XP:5/240; Special: Only lightning (which heals them), fireand cold spells (only slow them down) affect them, and you needa +1 or better weapon to harm them.] Note: These brutish masked loutsare of minimal intelligence and mindlessly obey Franz unless theirMaster is present. They are confused easily.

Various Disgruntled By-Standers(2d4) Dwarves, Halflings and a few Humans. Mostly unarmored, withmaybe a candle-stick or heavy book for weapons.

Lord Rupprechtis a12^th levelwizard who once earned distinction as a fighter in the service of anobleman who betrayed him and left him crippled, poisoned and lockedaway behind bars for a crime he did not commit. In his quest forvengeance Rupprecht sought-out a nymph-born Druid who performed aritual of reincarnation upon his old and broken-down body, allowinghim to be reborn as a magic-user. At times Rupprecht can recall somesmall vestige of his past life and act as a 4^thlevel fighter, but only for brief periods of time (3d4 turns), duringwhich time he cannot cast spells. He also wears a peculiar antiquebronze form of enchanted chainmail which does not interfere with hisspell-casting. This armor will crumble to dust, rust and debrisshould anyone else attempt to don it. (Rupprecht does know how toacquire a similar suit of armor, however...and that couldbe the gist of the Special Expedition mentioned above...)

September Short Adventure 21: A Pound of Flesh

Preamble

A September of Short Adventuresis an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over at the Asshat Paladinsblog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon over on the right-handside-bar (just above Features) to learn more about all of this stufffrom Matt directly. All of our 25 (possibly more...) entries areformatted along the lines of what Matt calls the Get Ready, GetSet, Go! format. In a nut-shell, this approach breaks eachadventure into a Title, Three escalating sections of adventuredetails (the Ready section is limited to an elevator pitch only 2sentences...), and a final catch-all section for any NPC notes/stats.The idea is to keep it short, simple, easy to read without any maps,drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keep description to a minimum,avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts of thousands -- unless it's aninvading horde of three-eyed orcs or goblins riding purple wombats.

We're also going to aim to keep thingsgeneric, setting agnostic and thus portable or adaptable to anycampaign/setting using the particular rules-set we'll be using in anygiven September Short Adventure such as Mutant Future,Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (White Box), etc.

FreeRules

Labyrinth Lord:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords and Wizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 21

Title: A Pound of Flesh

Rules: Swords and Wizardry (WhiteBox)

Ready

It is a cold, drizzly night out on theroad and the Player Characters are just passing-by a twisted old treegrowing at the side of a cross-roads. The old tree has been used agibbet for hanging convicted criminals for generations; 1d6 bodiesare swaying from half-frozen ropes right now.

Set

The sound of shovels striking frosty,muddy earth ceases suddenly as the Player Characters continue onwardspast the gibbet-tree.

Out there in the darkness, past thehedge and the partly tumbled headstones of the local cemetery acrossfrom the gibbet-tree, someone is digging.

Should the Player Characters choose toignore this and ride/walk onward to the next village for a hot mug ofcider and a warm bed for the night, all will be well and good forabout 1d4 nights, after which time a newly-assembled Flesh Golem willcome barging into the village raising all sorts of fuss and ruckus.

If the Player Characters elect to gosnooping around in the cemetery in the drizzly night, then they willdiscover Herr Doktor Heinrich Morbius, late of the Academy atWuftstopp or some such place, and his hired gang of cut-throats andformer circus side-show attractions who are busily digging up spareparts for the next series of experiments.

Go!

The diggers are a grumbling, unhappylot who are only doing this out of desperation. At the first sign oftrouble they will panic and run off, leaving Herr Doktor all on hisown in the drizzly night to face whatever justice the PlayerCharacters care to dispense.

Their cart will contain 1d4 cadaverswrapped in burlap. The scrawny horses hooked-up to the cart aremiserable and shivering in the cold, and will bolt if surprised,leading to all sorts of potential mishaps and fun in the slippery mudof wide-open graves in the dark...

For his part, Herr Doktor Morbius is afairly charming sort (CHA 17), and he has a little money set asidefor a rainy night like this (say 3,000 gp or thereabouts, back at hisroom at the local inn), and he does have impressive soundingcredentials and titles, and so forth, with a slight claim to somedistant, foreign aristocratic blood-line. So he will definitely tryto charm, plead, wheedle and negotiate himself out of this rathercompromising situation. Being the sort of man he is, Herr DoktorMorbius may try to hire the Player Characters to finish the job andto help him with his Great Work.

Herr Doktor Morbius is extremelyearnest at this moment, but he remains a duplicitous, treacherous,and completely conscience-less fanatic driven by his obsession overgolem-making and 'beating death.'

Herr Doktor will require more and morespecimens to continue his work, and he doesn't care where they comefrom, but he will increasingly require fresher and fresher subjectswith which to experiment upon, leading the Player Characters tofacing some moral and ethical challenges that could very well haveserious implications in respect to their future well-being.

Working for thisguy will present a lot of challenges in short order,guaranteed...

Better get theRandom Mob of Villagers ready, just in case...

If the Playersreject Herr Doktor's blandishments as he attempts to hire them, hewill meekly accompany them into the nearest village or town andquietly, even obligingly let them arrest him and place him in thehands of the local constabulary.

Then it getsinteresting as the constabulary are far more likely to believe HerrDoktor's version of the story as he is an upstanding person ofdistinction, while the PCs are wandering vagabonds. Given a littletime, Herr Doktor Morbius can round-up a number of paid witnesses(most having had time to clean off the grave-mud) to help make thecase even more damning against the players who could find themselvesunder charges of grave-robbing and worse.

Sometimes doing theright thing is the worst possible thing you might have done.

This one could leadoff in all sorts of directions...

Notes / NPCs

Flesh Golem(1d4) [HD 12; HP 68; AC 9[10]; ATK 1 fist; Move 8; Save 7; CL/XP12/2,000; Special: Only lightning(which heals the thing), fireand cold spells (onlyslow it down) affect it, and you need a +1 or better weapon to harmit.] (S&W[WB]Bk III p. 19)

Assistants/Witnesses(2d4) Treat as either Dwarves, Elves or Halflings. Leather armor,shovel, dagger. They are not paid enough to fight anyone and at thefirst sign of trouble they will vamoose, abandoning their erstwhileemployer. Perhaps if he paid better...

Herr Doktor Morbiusis your basic, garden-variety 8^thlevel wizard obsessed with golem manufacture and given to anoverly-inflated sense of his own importance in the grand scheme ofthings.

An Adventure in Unspeakable Old School Randomness

Revised: 11/22/2011

Our Adventure won the contest!

Chris at Hill Cantons recently announced another one of his famous contests. It was about cobbling together a random adventure, and it sounded like fun, so we entered the contest.

First we rolled on the cliche-driven Old School Module-Naming Tables at Hill Cantons and came up with the result: 'Tomb of the Forgotten Toad-People.'

Not too shabby. Nothing to necessarily get too excited about, but a nice start.

So then we rolled on Raggi's Weird Fantasy Module-Naming Table and produced the following result: 'Planet of the Nameless Grimoire.'

Mashing those two titles together we have 'The Tomb of the Forgotten Toad-People from the Planet of the Nameless Grimoire.'

According to the rules set forth at the Hill Cantons blog (see THIS post), we kept things to one page and we decided to use the free Swords & Wizardry (White Box) set of retro-clone rules for this particular experiment.

• Just to keep it interesting, we incorporated a random sentence from the Random Sentence Generator that Porky mentioned in THIS post.
• Since this adventure called for a Nameless Grimoire we incorporated the Nameless Tome from Old School Heretic as both an encounter and a possible treasure.
• Since we rolled the 'Toad' result the first time out, we took it as a favorable omen and incorporated a faded-out version of our own little Toader-dude illustration into the background of the One Page Adventure.

And now, without any further to-do, our little Award-Winning adventure into unspeakable old school randomness is now available at DrivethruRPG and/or RPGNow.

September Short Adventures 20: Time For Bed

Preamble

A September of Short Adventuresis an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over at the Asshat Paladinsblog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon over on the right-handside-bar (just above Features) to learn more about all of this stufffrom Matt directly. All of our 25 (possibly more...) entries areformatted along the lines of what Matt calls the Get Ready, GetSet, Go! format. In a nut-shell, this approach breaks eachadventure into a Title, Three escalating sections of adventuredetails (the Ready section is limited to an elevator pitch only 2sentences...), and a final catch-all section for any NPC notes/stats.The idea is to keep it short, simple, easy to read without any maps,drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keep description to a minimum,avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts of thousands -- unless it's aninvading horde of three-eyed orcs or goblins riding purple wombats.

We're also going to aim to keep thingsgeneric, setting agnostic and thus portable or adaptable to anycampaign/setting using the particular rules-set we'll be using in anygiven September Short Adventure such as Mutant Future,Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (White Box), etc.

FreeRules

Labyrinth Lord:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords and Wizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 20

Title: Time For Bed

Rules: Labyrinth Lord

Ready

Warm and snug in the local Inn orHostelry, the Player Characters pull themselves back from theirtables and head off to bed after a good night of celebratory feastingand drinking in celebration of some excellent good luck, fortuitousdiscoveries, and/or some job well-done.

Set

Ah, but the life of an adventurer israrely an easy one. The windows explode inwards as the roof goes upin flames and all erupts into chaos, panic and much running aboutwith a goodly amount of screaming and all the customary chaos.

Go!

The Inn issurrounded by very despicable sorts in grim, even morbidly detailedarmor who sit astride things that might once have been horses. Theriders watch the Inn burn. No one leaves. They are very obviously waiting for something to happen, or for someone to come out to them.

The Player Characters could all roll an INT check to get a clue. The clue would be that these Riders are after someone; burning the Inn is merely a means to an end, not the end itself.

Should no oneattempt to confront the Grim Riders, the Inn will burn to the groundand all will perish, allowing the undead minions of a greater evil tosort them all out at their leisure before morning. That is the path of least resistance, hence their choice of strategy in this situation. Simple, direct, effective. These are professionals, military-types, not chicken-thieves or half-drunk bandits.

The Grim Ones arelooking for a very specific someone. They are ruthless and direct intheir approach to recapturing this person. They have every intention of making this person their prisoner, either dead or alive. They are not picky.

Should anyoneattempt to communicate with the Grim Ones, they will be told that theRiders are there for someone named 'Taffydaddle Treeroot' or somesuch very, very proper Fantasy name. This person is hiding inside theInn. If the rest of the patrons present this person to the Riders,they will leave in peace and no one need die. Tonight.

Some Questions the Player Characters Might be Asking:

• Who is this person?
• Why are these nasty Riders after them?
• What makes this person sospecial that someone would send these things out after them in thefirst place?

What do the Player Characters DO?

• Do they try to find out which of them is this person?
• Do they turn themover to the Riders?
• Do the patrons and PCs bandtogether and attempt to drive off the Riders?*

*Of course, someonewill conveniently remember that these Riders cannot stand thelight of day. But then one asks, how many hours do they have to holdthem off and keep from burning to death before the Riders mustpull out? Roll some dice or make a choice...it's up to you.

Whatever you do, this confrontation is something that the PCs can very much do something about.
They do not have to just sit and burn, nor do they necessarily have to fight the Grim Riders.
There could be a tunnel or opening to the sewers in the Inn's basement...and anyone smart enough to look for a way out should at least receive the benefit of a chance at escaping. The Grim Riders are far from omnipotent. But escaping only delays the inevitable questions...and the Grim Riders are very likely to return the next night unless they get the person they are after...

So many choices...

Where does all thislead?

Notes / NPCs

Grim Spectral Riders(3d4) [AL C, MV 150' (50')/Fly 300' (100')/Ride 600' (200'), AC 2, HD6, #ATK 1 (Touch, Weapon or Spell), DG 1d8+Level Drain/3d4+Poison/byspell, SV F6, ML11] Immunity:Unharmed by normal weapons, including silver. Immune to Charm,Hold or Sleep.They each are armed with a +1 Cruelly-Forked-Lance that is poisonedwith a terrible Necrosiseffect similar to the rotting produced by a mummy, but with a +2 onthe victims' Save. Note: Grim Riders take 1d4 damage every turn spent in natural sunlight until destroyed or they get out of the sun. If destroyed in this manner, they are non-recoverable. Lastly, just in case it comes in handy: Arcane scholars have noted that these riders are susceptible to Bronze Weapons that have been inscribed with the swirling spirally-patterns of the Miktal culture that died-out millennia ago, but no one really knows precisely just why that would be...whether or not someone among the Inn patrons or one of the PCs knows this little bit of trivia is entirely up to DM/GM whim, fancy or choice. (LLp. 96)

It is suggested that the DM/GM adjust the number of Grim Riders to suit the overall strength of the party/patrons so that they are not a completely overwhelming force, but a challenging obstacle. A smart, determined and clever party should definitely have a good shot at holding these things off until sunrise, or maybe even defeating them. In the event that more than half of the Grim Riders are destroyed and/or Turned, the surviving Grim Riders will withdraw and report back to their Evil Overlord...which will undoubtedly lead to further inconveniences and eldritch interruptions down the road...

Eldritch Mounts(3d4=as many as Grim Riders) [AL C, MV 600' (200'), AC 4, HD 3, #ATK 1 (Trample), DG 3d4, SVF8, ML 11] Special:These things are unnatural, twisted semi-intangible parodies ofhorses who radiate a weak Fear effect (Save +2 or suffer effects ofCause Fear spell: LLp. 25). They cannot abide sunlight (take 1d6 damage every turn spent in sunlight, if thus destroyed they are completely unrecoverable). These twisted, loathsome things are devoid of loyalty and lack any volition ontheir own and thus will do their best to obey any command they aregiven by whomever mounts them in the most direct and literal mannerpossible.

September Short Adventures 19: The Elephant

Preamble

A September of Short Adventuresis an OSR Challenge initiated by Matt over at the Asshat Paladinsblog. You can click on the Moustache Dragon over on the right-handside-bar (just above Features) to learn more about all of this stufffrom Matt directly. All of our 25 (possibly more...) entries areformatted along the lines of what Matt calls the Get Ready, GetSet, Go! format. In a nut-shell, this approach breaks eachadventure into a Title, Three escalating sections of adventuredetails (the Ready section is limited to an elevator pitch only 2sentences...), and a final catch-all section for any NPC notes/stats.The idea is to keep it short, simple, easy to read without any maps,drawings, diagrams or 8X10 glossies. Keep description to a minimum,avoid lengthy exposition, and no casts of thousands -- unless it's aninvading horde of three-eyed orcs or goblins riding purple wombats.

We're also going to aim to keep thingsgeneric, setting agnostic and thus portable or adaptable to anycampaign/setting using the particular rules-set we'll be using in anygiven September Short Adventure such as Mutant Future,Labyrinth Lord, Swords & Wizardry (White Box), etc.

FreeRules

Labyrinth Lord:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/labyrinthlord.html

Mutant Future:http://www.goblinoidgames.com/mutantfuture.html

Swords and Wizardry (White Box):http://www.swordsandwizardry.com/whitebox.htm

SeptemberShort Adventure Number 19

Title: The Elephant in theHallway

Rules: Labyrinth Lord

Ready

Your group turns the corner of thecorridor only to find yourselves faced with...an elephant?

Set

There is indeed an elephant standing inthe middle of the stretch of corridor just up ahead. How it got thereor why is unknown.

Go!

The elephant growsincreasingly skittish and nervous as the seconds tick by and it isnot finding that this is all a bad dream.

The elephant iseventually going to go mad from its sudden and completely unforeseenunnatural juxtaposition from the warm savannas of some far off placeto this dreary, dismal and rank-smelling hole in the ground. Itdoesn't help matters any that the elephant only barely fits into thesection of corridor it is in.

If provoked, theelephant will attempt to charge and trample.

Right now, justabout anything would constitute a provocation.

Notes / NPCs

Elephant(1) [AL N, MV 120' (40'), AC 5, HD 9, #ATK 2 or 1 (2 tusks, 1trample), DG 2d4/2d4 or 4d8, SV F5, ML 4] (LLp. 74)