Chapter 1: Cabin in the Woods
Story Overview
The towns of Windholmst and Greenweald are connected by a winding path known as the Jade Road. It hugs the edges of the Witchfen: a thick forest known for housing dangerous flora and fauna. The Jade Road takes a traveller four days to trek across, but would be significantly reduced if one were to cut through the Witchfen. However, all progress made to create a path have ended in abrupt cancellation, and anyone brave-- or foolish-- enough to take a shortcut seldom returns without injury, madness, or worse.
Recently, and seemingly overnight, a fork of the Jade Road appeared that leads directly into the Witchfen. Just a few miles from Windholmst, The path looks just as worn and travelled as the rest of the road, and even stranger yet, the entrance is adorned with a sign hanging from an arch-shaped tree branch, advertising a new inn by the name of "The Tilted Tap Tavern".
Of course, Rumors are abound in the village of windholmst. Some locals say it's a ruse from a group of well coordinated pranksters. Some say its a business venture from the mind of a wealthy madman. Others, still, think it may be from something far more insidious...
The adventure begins with the party in Windholmst. At the Jade Road exit, a group of around half a dozen or so guards (Almost the town's entire infantry), sheepishly explain they are tasked to investigate the inn under orders of the mayor, but have been shirking the responsibility as they've started beliving the rumors surrounding the new path. They offer a cut of their salary as payment to have the party investigate instead.
Once the party ventures forth, they see the fork in the road that cuts directly into the Witchfen. Inside, the path slowly degrades, turning darker, muddier, and more overgrown with each passing moment. Inside, they are ambushed by animated plants and beasts, until they come across the rumored structure, conviniently at dusk: a building comprised of clashing sections labelled "The Tilted Tap Tavern".
Inside the building is an elvish woman with an eyepatch. She greets the adventurers and offers them a free stay in the inn, as long as they do a few chores around the house. If they accept and do what's required, they will be awoken in the morning to find the innkeeper furious that the chores have not been done at all. The party then sees that everything they have done has been completely reversed, back to exactly what it was like when they first stepped in. To make matters stranger, some characters will not remember doing the chores in the first place. The elf then tells them they have made a "grave mistake", as the Tavern begins to twist and morph with dark magic.
Eventually, the party will soon discover the elf is actually a hag in disguise, and the tavern is her lair. She purposefully reverts the cleaning the party does, and has been influencing their memories to keep them trapped. The party must fight their way out of the lair, and back through the winding path alive.
By the end of this adventure, the party will reach second level.
Part One: Windholmst
Windholmst is a small farming town that was established when Greenweald's population began to boom, which overtook the farmland with industry and residence. As such, the town's economy is circulated by the growing of maize and poultry, traded to greenweald for other resources. The town has about 80 buildings, each showing signs of regular upkeep. Most are clustered upon the eastern side of the town, as the west is dedicated to farmland and barns. Windholmst is mostly inhabited by Humans and Halflings, with a handful of more exotic races, such as a family of green Dragonborn.
The town has a few key areas, each providing the adventurers with something to do as they explore the settlement. Inside of each area there are always groups of people that are murmuring and gossipping about a mysterious new tavern in the Witchfen, most wondering why anyone would even build something there. The town is split into these four key locations:
The Farmer's Market
"The town square seems to also function as a market. There are about half a dozen horse-drawn carts walking about this large, circular road, perusing the multitudinous stands littered about the inside and outside edges. Most of the stands seem to be manned by either humans or halflings, selling harvested crops and cuts of poultry. Off to your right is a stand with a box of small candy-like objects ran by two young dragonborn."
Located directly in the town square, a 150 foot circular cobblestone road is peppered with stands and carts selling gardening tools, crops, and cuts of cured meat. One stand in particular is run by two green Dragonborn: One, a teenage male named Turk (N dragonborn commoner), the other, a female child named Trik (CN dragonborn commoner). They sell a Windholmst Staple, popcorn balls. These particular sweet snacks are dyed green and molded into little dragon heads. For 5 silver, a player can buy a set of three. These items radiate minor magic from the shcool of Abjuration, as eating one will give 1 temporary hit point until the next short or long rest. They only have two sets in stock.
Trik dreams of becoming an adventurer, and if the party promises to come back and tell her tales, she'll give them another set for free. Turk is reluctantly supportive.
The Raven's Tree
"The tavern's panelled wooden floors seem to almost squish as you bring your feet to them, and the smell of musty alcohol and faint manuere permeate your nostrils. This 30 feet by 40 feet room is not too crowded, except for the back corner, where a crowd has gathered. A middle aged human woman is seated across from a halfling man with frazzled white hair, garbbed in blindingly refliective robes adorned with golden and silver trimmings, with commoners gathered around. The woman slams a hand of cards on the table, and collects a handful of coins as the crowd cheers and the man depressingly puts his head down on the table. As quickly as it began, the cheers die down as the crowd disperses."
The southern side of Windholmst is home to The Crow's Nest, an inn where the working class come to revel and gamble the night away, trading complaints of whatever ails them. This inn has rooms available as it is not the ironically named "Resting Day", a biweekly tradition of the farmers holding a party on the day they offer tributes to Gresha, the goddess of harvest. The rooms cost 3 gold, and comes with supper, as well as a greasy breakfast. A Character may also purchase some Windholmst Moonshine, a staple drink, for 1 silver. It is extremely potent, and a character will become drunk after a number of rounds equal to their Constitution Modifier - 1 (Minimum of one).
The old halfling man dressed in ridiculously gaudy robes named is Gordy (CN Halfling Charlatan), and is down on his luck. A DC12 Wisdom (Insight or Perception) check reveals the robes are made of fake jewels and painted gold. After the players spend some time in the tavern, He spots the PC who has the lowest wisdom score and beckons to them:
The halfling in the corner lifts his head up and lightly slaps his face, wiping a tear from his eye. He scans the room for a moment, and beckons to you: "Interested in a round of Gordy's Gold?""
If the player accepts, he introduces himself and explains the rules of the game:
"The game is simple." The halfling says with a smirk. "First, we both draw 3 cards. Then, choose up to 2 cards to discard, and draw back up to three. Finally, we reveal the cards, and the one with the highest total wins the money! The only catch? a straight automatically wins."
Playing Gordy's Gold
First, The player bets an amount of money. Both the DM and the player rolls 3d8, and keeps track of the rolls. Both players may then reroll up to 2 results, and must use the new roll. After that, Both the player and the DM reveal the total of their rolls. If the player has the highest total, Gordy gives out coins equal to the amount the player bet. (Gordy has only 8 gold on his person at this time.). If he wins, he takes the amount the player bet. Rolling a straight (for example, a 3, 4, and a 5,) automatically wins, despite the totals.
A player can cheat by making a Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) check contested against Gordy's Wisdom (Perception) check. Gordy has a +0 modifier to this ability. If the player succeeds, they can change one die roll to any number they want. If he catches the player, he will call them out, and won't report it to the tavernkeep if the player forfeits the gold. If they refuse, he will attempt to tell the tavernkeep and the party will be kicked out, no refunds.
Giant Step's Inn
This building is spacious and comfy, the walls are covered by a row of windows letting in natural light, as servers bring out large plates of roasted chickens, and plenty of side dishes to round tables with families clustered around. A woman in a green colored uniform welcomes you and ushers you to the front of the room, where a half elvish man greets you somewhat nervously. "Uhm, Hello, a-and welcome once again to the Giant's Step Inn. Will you be dining, sleeping or both?"
This inn is the cozier and quieter alternative to the Crow's Nest. This tavern is also suited more to the tourists and traders of Greenweald, as well as those who don't understand the appeal of Resting Day. A room in this Inn will cost 5 gold per night, with dining included. While there's no gambling to be had in these halls, The tavernkeep, named Vestan (NG Half Elf noble) will ask the party for a favor if they dine.
"The town's infantry have been so busy slacking off recently that they haven't been much help in this at all. I have a son, his name is Alden. He's still just a child, and I haven't seen him all day. This morning he left to play with his friends but they haven't seen him either. If you could help me out here, I'll let you stay here for free. He went to play with his friend William, I believe. His family lives in the farming district, maybe you'll have some luck there."
If the party finds Alden, Vestan will reward the players with 10 gold, a free night's stay, and a potion of healing.
Farming District
The buildings are more and more sparse as you make your way through this district. Rows and rows of corn lie before you as you walk down the street. As you cross a large barn to your right, you can hear a small, painful moan, from the inside. Shortly after, a series of hushes are heard from the same point.
Alden (N Half Elf commoner) is hiding with his friend William and two other kids. inside of the barn. In order to get to them, they have to get inside of the barn, which has been held shut by furniture. A DC10 Strength (Athletics) check is required to push the barn door open. If a PC succeeds by 5 or more, the door breaks open instead. When the PCs make it in, read:
"As you spill into the dusty barn's interior, you can see a small half elf boy with a broken arm on lying on a pile of hay, surrounded by a group of other children. All of them look at you and immediately start screaming in a jumbled mess of 'sorry!' and 'We didn't mean it!'"
Alden's friends will try to explain in panicked voices that they were playing with him, and he fell, breaking his arm. They were hiding with him because they didn't want to get into trouble. Alden has a piece of bone sticking out of his arm. The party can deal with this any way they would like. A lesser restoration spell will recover alden's wounds. Alternatively, A DC12 Wisdom (Medicine) check will provide a stint and stop the bleeding. If the check is failed by 5 or more, Alden gets hurt and passes out.
If awake when helped, Alden will tell you he lives at the Giant's Step Inn and wants to go home. William and the other children are brothers, and live across the road from the barn. If turned in, their mother, Alyssia (NG Halfling commoner) will give them quite the punishment, and apologize to the party for the trouble.
The Jade Road Gate
This long, wooden fence closes off the eastern side of Windholmst, with a 15 foot wide rode cutting through the middle. At the gate, slightly to the left, are about half a dozen men with red sashes, mostly human, with two halflings. They seem to be huddled together and arguing, until one sees you. At that point, they all stand tall as the more grizzly looking halfling walks toward you. "You all! over here, now!"
Whether the party complies, the halfling will attempt to get the party's attention. Dexter (LN halfling guard) wants the party to investigate an Inn that showed up in the Witchfen, a dangerous forest that borders the Jade Road. He and the town guards have been ordered by the mayor to post a notice declaring that, since the inn is technically on Windholmst owned land, they must pay property taxes. As the source of many frights and rumors, nobody wants to go into Witchfen anyway, so why an Inn would open up, or why the mayor cares, is beyond him. He and the rest of the guards will try anything to get the party to do this job for him. He starts by offering half of the guard's weekly salaries: 30 gold. With a DC15 Charisma (Persuasion) or a DC12 Charisma (Intimidation) check, he'll offer an additional 30 gold out of his savings. Have Dexter respond accordingly to the player's responses, and try to keep his offer on track.
If the players agree, Dexter explains that the fork is about half a day's travel down the jade road, and it's impossible to miss. He hands the party an envelope and explains that the owner of the building must be handed this item.
Part Two: The Jade Road
The Jade Road is a stretch of land that curves around the Witchfen, a dangerous forest that both Windholmst and Greenweald border. It sees travel from plenty, mostly as transportation of goods between the two cities. The road itself is a winding one, that curves and undulates, rises and falls, twists and turns. In order to reach another city, four days of travel are required. It only takes about 6 hours, though, to reach the point of interest for this adventure. When the party starts travelling, read:
You work your way along the dusty, slightly sunken path, crossing a number of travellers on the way. They all seem to be talking about the new fork in the road. Hours pass without issue as what you've been looking for comes into view: A part of the path splits, naturally, just as well travelled as the rest of the Jade Road. It breaks right through the bramble, and leads at least a few hundred feet into the forest before taking a sharp right turn. The entrance sports a tree, bent into a perfect arch, with a sign posted just in front reading "This way: The Tilted Tap Tavern.
On foot, this path takes about an hour to get through, leading to the tavern at the end. As the party makes their way through, the road starts to look more and more neglected. Bramble and plants start to grow in patches, and the dirt becomes wetter and stickier. After the players are notified of this, a few Blights will try to ambush them. Read:
"From directly behind you, you can hear a rustling in the dead shrubbery. You feel as if you're being watched."
These dead shrubs are three Twig Blights and one Needle Blight. The Twig Blights will try and swarm whoever is closest to them, while the Needle Blight will hold it's ground in the back, using its Needles attack.
Thanks to the Blights' False Appearance ability, the players will not be able to tell they are being stalked at this point, no matter how perceptive they are. However, if the party continues on, and then attempts to look again, a DC12 Wisdom (Perception) Check reveals that the exact same shrubs are somehow still right behind them. If they notice this, the blights will attack. If they do not, or if they do not bother to take another look, the party is ambushed, and surprised. This battle can start early if the party threatens, attacks, or investigates the shrubbery the first time it is introduced, in which everyone but the instigator is surprised. The blights are not carrying anything with them.
After the battle, the party should continue on. By now, assuming the adventure has started in the morning, Dusk is quickly approaching. The Witchfen is a thick forest capped with twisting canopies, and no light is able to break through. For the purposes of travel, it is completely dark. Another 15 minutes of travel are still needed to reach the Tilted Tap Tavern. When the party gets there, read:
A series of warm lights in multiple shades of yellow and red break through the blackness of the path. Upon closer inspection, you can tell these are lanterns affixed to the walls of a large, three story building. This structure has no sense of cohesion, with a cabin-like front, with a more industrial, metal-plated left side, and a ramshackle, dirty stable to the right. There's a rather clean sign above the main door, painted in exotic pigments that clash with each other, reading 'The Tilted Tap Tavern'.
Part Three: The Tavern
The party has a clear path to the front door, but can also take a peek through a window if they'd like. On the ground level, there is only one window, on the right side of the Cabin-like section, If a character takes a look inside of it, or if the players enter the tavern, read:
You can see a rather cozy looking, albeit very cluttered, interior. A row of shelves and display cases line almost every wall, displaying jars of strange materials, chunks of multicolored rocks, old, rusty weaponry, and piles of papers and books. Stood in the center of the room is a younger blonde elvish woman, with one green eye, the other covered by an eyepatch. She looks to be feverishly sweeping the floor with a broom, a small cloud of dust wisping around with each sweep. She seems too busy to notice you right away.
If the players are inside, continue:
A sun elf woman greets you. 'Welcome to the Tilted Tap!' She says with a look of pure excitement. She has blond, slightly wavy hair that drops to just below her shoulders. One of her eyes is bright green, and the other is covered by an eyepatch. She is attractive, but clearly very tired. 'What can I help you all with?"
This is Gruth, a Hag in disguise. While friendly to the party, she is using this disguise: A blonde elf with an eyepatch. Effects that would detect this do not seem to work. Under this disguise, she calls herself Kylia, and will offer to tell adventurers a surprising amount of information to convince them she's genuine. When roleplaying Kylia, keep in mind the following things:
- Kylia was an adventurer until last year, when she lost her eye. She decided to leave her group shortly after, and open a tavern instead, showing off the treasure she gained, while listening to other's tales.
- The party are her first customers, as she just opened the building two days ago. It was constructed with the help of an archmage (she will make up a name and city if pressed), which is why it radiates magical energy (she will avoid the question of why its illusion magic and not conjuration, explaining that she isn't too versed in the arcane).
- Kylia was born in Greenweald and hated the long travel it took to get to Windholmst to see her friends. Her goal is to cut through the Witchfen and tame it, providing a stopping point between the cities.
If the players present the envelope to Kylia, she will explain she had no idea that she was still in Windholmst's borders, and will get the paperwork done as soon as she can. Kylia desperately wants the players to stay, telling the players that it's dark outside and the Witchfen is still dangerous. She offers the party to stay for free, if they do a couple of basic chores.
The Building is Alive
The Tilted Tap Tavern is filled with strange illusory magicks. While Kylia is being friendly to the party, the building is in "Neutral Mode". This means that the building acts as a normal building would. However, if Kylia is suspicious or hostile toward the party, the house is in "Hostile Mode", and the following effects are in place:
- When the party goes through a door, roll a D6. on a 1, the door takes them to a random room instead (roll a d10 to determine the room). The front door will always trigger this effect.
- All windows in the building disappear, as if they were never there to begin with.
- a character must succeed a DC10 Intellegence saving throw to remember the path they took, or what door leads to what room.
- Kylia is now in her hag form: Gruth, and will wander around the building to look for them. When the party goes into a room, roll a d10. On a 1 or 2, Gruth is in that room as well. If the party is being stealthy with a DC10 Dexterity (Stealth) check, they can back out of the room before Gruth Notices.
- If the party takes a short rest, roll a d10. On a 1 or 2, Gruth will find the party, interrupting the rest.
If the players decline Kylia's offer, she tells them they are making a "grave mistake". If they still decline and try to leave through the front door, The Tavern will immediately enter "Hostile Mode", meaning the party will get lost inside of the building.
If they accept, Kylia will give the party three chores: To clean up the muck in the stable, to organize the bookshelf in the main hallway, and to chase the raccoons out of the attic. Each chore can be done by one or more party members.
The Chores
Cleaning the stable requires no ability check, but 20 minutes of work divided by the number of players must be spent.
The bookshelf in the hallway is filled with tombs of multiple different languages, all seemingly about mundane things. Some are even blank. To organize the shelf, a DC15 Intellegence check is required, minus 1 for each different language the characters organizing the shelf know.
In order to chase the raccoons out of the attic, a DC10 Wisdom (Perception) check needs to be made, then a DC12 Wisdom (Animal Handling) or a DC12 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check is needed to either coax or wrangle the tiny beast out of the building. If any check fails, the process must be started over from the beginning. Each check takes 5 minutes of in-game time to perform.
Once all three chores have been completed, Kylia will thank the party and direct them to their room, where they can sleep. In the morning, however, they are awoken by a very angry Kylia. She bangs on their room's door until they answer. When a character opens the door, read:
"How could you exploit me like this?" The furious elf asks you all. 'I ask of you a very simple task and you shirk it off? Even after I let you sleep for free?"
If the party tries to explain to Kylia the chores were done, she shows them the bookshelf, and the stable from out the window. Both of these areas are exactly how they were before the party came to them: A dirty stable and a cluttered bookshelf. When Kylia accuses the party, all players interacting with her must succeed on a DC14 Wisdom Saving Throw. A character who fails remembers agreeing to do the chore, but not doing the chore whatsoever. After the Saving Throw, read:
Kylia's voice grows deeper and raspy. "You have made a grave mistake," she says to you as she storms downstairs. Suddenly, the window revealing the stable fades out of existence, until it shows nothing but a wall where it once stood.
Whether the party tried to immediately leave, or were falsely accused of not doing what was asked, The house is now in "Hostile Mode." The party must now find a way to escape, while being stalked by Kylia, who has dropped her disguise and wanders the building as Gruth.
Gruth is a Green Hag, with the following changes to her stats:
- She has 42 Hit Points.
- Her Claw attack deals 1d4+4 slashing damage.
The Tilted Tap Tavern has ten rooms. Each room is accessible, and can be entered into randomly when the house is in "Hostile Mode".
Room 1: Foyer
"You make it back into the foyer you first walked into. This room is quite large, about 40 feet on each side. in the northernmost corners are two staircases, the one nortwest leads down, the one northeast leads up. On the east and west walls lie two doors, as well as the main exit to the south. The decorations seem to shake and swirl in place, as two wall mounted crossbows above the side doors begin tilting toward you."
While in the Foyer, on initiative count 20, two wall mounted Animated Crossbows will shoot bolts at whichever party member is closest to them. They have a +2 to hit, and deal 1d6 piercing damage.
Room 2: Kitchen
"This long room is 20 feet by 40 feet, and the walls are plated with metal. Shelves line one side of the room, stocked with old meats and rotting vegetables, on the other side, is a row of bubbling, stinking pots sitting upon open flames. The whole room is filled with a stinking mass of burning steam."
This room has a chest hiding behind one of the cauldrons, which can be spotted with a DC10 Wisdom (Perception) check. the chest is trapped, with a mechanism that slams itself shut. A DC10 Dexterity check using thieves tools can disable it. If not disabled, it slams shut dealing 1d6 bludgeoning damage. Inside of the chest is a strange quartz effigy, inset with tiny bloodstones, worth 50 Gold Pieces, to anyone who would buy it.
If Gruth is inside of this room, she will use an action to send a cauldron flying: Flying cauldron: Range 15ft. cone, all creatures inside must make a DC13 Dexterity Saving throw or take 2d4 Fire damage.
Room 3: Hallway 1
"This hallway is only 10 feet wide, and has three doors, each on the left side. At the end of the hallway, all the way to the north, is a oval-shaped mirror, about 6 feet tall, placed firmly on the ground"
The Mirror in the hallway is actually a door itself. A DC15 Wisdom (Perception) or a DC10 Intellegence (Arcana) check will show the reflection doesn't quite match up. If the party walks through the mirror, they will be in the reflected halls, which has a box at the end of the room. All 3 doors in this mirror world are merely decorative, and don't open. Inside of the box is an amulet, inset with a bright jewel. The amulet is worth 50 gold pieces, but more importantly, lets a player pass through a door in the mansion without triggering the random teleportation effect.
Room 4: Bedroom 1A.
The closest door in hallway 1.
This looks to be one of the guest rooms. Two large beds are in the center of the westernmost wall. In between them is a large suit of engraved plate armor. In the Southwest corner is a table with a jar of eyeballs. The eyeballs seem to be tracking your movements.
Inside of this room is safe, but Gruth will know the party is in this room, thanks to the eyeballs. If not already in the room, Gruth will arrive 1 minute after the party walks in.
Room 5: Closet.
The middle door in hallway 1.
This room is very small, only about 15 by 15 feet. Rows of tattered, smelly robes line both sides of the walls. When you step in, the door slams shut, as a pool of dark green sludge begins to drip out of the walls.
The green sludge is a Hagslime (See the Custom Monster block at the end of this chapter.). The door is magically locked, but can be broken down (AC10, 16 Hit Points.). The players can search the robes with a DC10 Intellegence (Investigation) Check. If they succeed, they find 2d8+4 gold pieces in the robes, as well as a potion of healing. If not, they prick themselves with something sharp in the pockets, taking 1 piercing damage.
Room 6: Bedroom 1B.
The farthest door in hallway 1.
This bedroom-- at least you think it was a bedroom-- is now in complete disrepair. The wooden floors are missing, revealing rotting earth. A pile of rubble, trash, and bones fill the center of the room, as an enormous, buglike creature is chewing on the last remains of a halfling woman. It notices you and makes a gutteral hissing noise.
Inside of the room is a Carrion Crawler. Due to its recent meal, however, it is feeling lethargic. Treat the Carrion Crawler as if it were under the effects of a slow spell for this fight.
Room 7: Basement
The staircase down starts wooden, but turns into hewn stone for the last couple of steps. As you work your way around the corner, you come into a large, damp room. This 40 foot by 60 foot basement seems to have a few cells on the west side of the room, with iron bars blocking entry. The bars look withered and rusted to the point of barely standing. You can see a soft glow, and hear tiny scratching noises from inside. to the east is a long table, about 15 feet, with a pile of old metal objects, like rusty forks, lockpicks, shreds of scrap metal lying on top of it.
Inside one of the cells is a Swarm of Fire Beetle Grubs. If any player is holding a torch, the swarm will attack that player. If a fight starts, On initiative count 1, the pile of metal awakens, Becoming an Animated Armor. A DC10 Wisdom (Perception) Check reveals a hidden passageway inside the cell that contains the Swarm of Fire Beetle Grubs. The party can use that to escape the building, exiting through the stables outside, But gruth may notice the party as they leave. If killed, the animated scrap contains 1d4 +1 Bolts.
The Swarm of Fire Beetle Grubs uses the Swarm of Spiders statblock, but with the following changes:
- Its bite attack is replaced with Bite: +2 to hit, range 5ft., 1d4 Piercing damage plus 1d4 Fire damage.
Room 8: Hallway 2
This is the hallway the party may have organized the bookshelf in.
This hallway, going down about 30 feet, has two doors on the eastern wall. At the end of the hallway is a bookshelf, filled to the brim with books of all kinds.
If the party tries to walk down the hallway, a book will fling itself from the shelf at the party. Each round, a random character must make a DC12 Dexterity Saving Throw, or take 1d4 bludgeoning damage from the impact. All of the books that are flung from this shelf are empty, and slink back into the shelf after a few minutes.
Room 9: Bedroom 2A
This is the room the players stay in if they did the chores for Kylia.
This large room is adorned with about a dozen paintings set up througout the walls. There are four beds, one on each corner, with a large circular table in the center. The table has a rug hanging on top of it. Each of the paintings, depicting wars, nobles, and landscapes of all kinds, seem to almost be swaying back and forth.
The rug in the room is a Rug of Smothering, and will attack only if the house is in "Hostile Mode".
Room 10: Bedroom 2B
As you enter the room, you see this one is much less decorated than the rooms you have seen before. The floor emits a loud creak with every step you take. This smaller, 20 foot by 20 foot room has a single bed in the northeast corner, propped up on its side. Littering the center of the room are wooden crates, some of which seemed to have leaked a viscous, syrupy material, with sprouting fungus growing around the bases.
The party can search the crates, with a DC10 Intellegence (Investigation) Check. If they succeed, inside are mostly broken bottles of aged wine, but there are 1d4 intact bottles, each worth 2 gold pieces. If the check succeeds by 5 or more, they will also find a vial of Assassin's Blood, found in page 258 of the Dungeon Master's Guide.
After the party searches the crates, the floor starts to crack, and collapses. Each character in the room must make a DC10 Dexterity Saving Throw, Or fall through the floor, taking 1d6 bludgeoning damage, and landing prone in the center of room 6. If they succeed, they may land safely in room 6.
PART FIVE: THE ESCAPE
The party can escape the tavern through one of two methods. The first one is by finding the secret exit in the basement, the other by destroying Gruth. If Gruth dies, the tavern automatically enters "Neutral Mode". It's up to the party to make it back to Windholmst. Due to the open options the players have during the adventure, there could be several times this part takes place:
- If the party accepted Kylia's offer and slept in the Tilted Tap Tavern, It would be the morning of the next day.
- If the party declined the offer, it would be just after dusk.
A party member must succeed on a total of three successful DC10 Wisdom (Survival) checks to make it out of the woods. If it is night time, this check is made with disadvantage. If the party fails a check, roll on the Witchfen Encounter Table below. Failing a check does not reset or affect the successes in any way.
Witchfen Encounters
| D6 | Result |
|---|---|
| 1 | A fallen tree covered in bramble blocks the road. Each party member must succeed on a DC10 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check or take 1d4 slashing damage. |
| 2 | The undergrowth is thick here. The next survival check's DC is increased by two. |
| 3 | The party is ambushed by 1d4 Twig Blights. |
| 4 | The party sees a Giant Spider's web. A random character must make a DC10 Dexterity Saving Throw or be caught in the web, becoming grappled and restrained. They can escape with a DC14 Strength (Athletics) Check, or the party can cut down the web with any weapon that deals slashing damage, and 1 minute of work, During which a Giant Spider appears to collect its prey. |
| 5 | A malevolent mist surrounds the road. Each party member must succeed on a DC12 Constitution Saving Throw or be poisoned for 10 minutes. |
| 6 | No Issues arise. |
After all three checks are made, the party is now back on the Jade Road. If Gruth has been defeated, the players will notice that the signs and the road are already starting to deteriorate. If the players have not slept in the Tavern, at this point they will gain one point of exhaustion.
Travel back to Windholmst across the jade road should be the same as when the party first left. When they make it back to the town gate, read:
After another few hours of walking across the jade road, you eventually come to see the cottages of Windholmst once again. Making your way up to the gate, you see the town's entire infantry (which is only about ten or so people) is being scolded by an older gentleman, human, with a navy trenchcoat and dark green embellishments. You come closer to hear "All you had to do was give someone a letter, And I can't even trust you to do that! You go and outsource it to wandering vagrants? What cowards you are!"
This man is Rudus (LN Human Noble) and the mayor of Windholmst. The party is able to introduce themselves to him here. If so, read:
The man takes a glance over to you as you approach. 'Ah, I haven't seen these faces. Are you the ones these so called 'guards' coerced into investigating that inn?'. The guards look at you with fear in their eyes, some of them are making motions to stop talking.
If the party members say they are, multiple sighs and groans can be heard from the crowd of guards. As rudus congratulates them on doing something that the guards could not. He offers a payment of 50 gold to the party. If not, Rudus tells the party there's nothing to see here and they should move along, and in a few hours, Dexter will approach the party, thank them for saving him and his fellow guards from losing their jobs, and gives them the gold he promised.
Conclusion
With their payment in hand, the party will now reach second level! The party should now have about a week of downtime to spend their hard earned coin, and potentially earn some more as well. During this week, regardless of whether the party admitted to it, Rudus will hear of the party's exploits, and contact them for a surprisingly well-paying job, which will be detailed in chapter two of this campaign.
Statblocks
Hagslime
Medium Ooze, Unaligned
- Armor Class 8
- Hit Points 18 (2d8 +5)
- Speed 15ft., Climb 15ft.
STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 14 (+2) 6 (-2) 14 (+2) 1 (-5) 6 (-2) 3(-4)
- Damage Resistances: Fire, Acid, and Bludgeoning from nonmagical attacks
- Condition Immunities: Blinded, Deafened, Charmed, Exhaustion, Frightened, Prone
- Senses passive Perception 8
- Languages None
Amorphous The ooze can move through a space as narrow as 1 inch wide without squeezing. Maddening Touch When the ooze comes makes a successful attack on a creature, it must make a DC10 Wisdom Saving throw, or fall prone in a fit of cackling laughter for one minute. Getting hit with an attack automatically ends this effect. Each round, the affected creature may attempt to repeat the save. If the affected creature succeeds, they cannot be affected by this ability for 24 hours.
Actions
Pseudopod: +4 to hit, range 5ft, 5 (1d6+2) bludgeoning damage.