D&D4e - Treasure Of Talon Pass.pdf - D&D 4e (WotC) - Matrinicz

T REASURE OF T ALON P ASS

™

An ADvEnturE For 2 nD -LEvEL ChArACtErs

David noonan

INTRODUCTION

In Treasure of Talon Pass ™ , the player characters explore

an ancient mountain garrison in search of a jade chalice

reputed to be worth a small fortune. But the path to

the jade chalice isn’t easy. A dragon and its kobold

minions have taken up residence in the garrison, and

some undead soldiers from long ago still haunt its halls

as well.

Nor are the PCs the only ones seeking the jade chalice.

A band of orc mercenaries known as the Nightfists are

after the chalice . . . and they arrived at the dungeon only

minutes before the PCs.

Treasure of Talon Pass is designed to take 2nd-level

characters to 3rd level. It is full of familiar features of the

D & D ® game, including traps, tricky

kobolds, an evil wizard, and of course, a dragon.

There’s also plenty of room for a DM to alter and expand

Treasure of Talon Pass to fit into an ongoing campaign.

pass. But barbarians sacked it shortly before the empire

fell, and today only shards of brick remain to hint at its

former glory.

However, set into a cliff near a waterfall on the edge

of the meadow, a stone stairway leads downward into

the stronghold’s basement. About six months ago, a black

dragon named Skatharilarn found the subterranean

section and decided that it would make a comfortable

lair—even if it was higher in the mountains than black

dragons usually live. Arriving with a train of kobold ser-

vants and a mercenary human mage, Skatharilarn cleared

out most of the dungeon, leaving only a few undead sol-

diers undisturbed (and a few secret passageways he hasn’t

discovered yet).

When the adventure begins, the PCs have just arrived

in Talon Pass and discovered the entrance to the tower’s

basement. The Nightfist orc mercenaries, following the

same information, arrived less than an hour earlier. Now

they’re pinned down in room 3, getting ready to make

another assault on the kobolds in room 4.

BACKGROUND

Treasure hunters across the region have long sought a

piece of jewelry known simply as the Jade Chalice. The

chalice is the missing part of a finely carved set that many

local lords would pay handsomely to be able to display on

the mantel in their grand hall.

Recently, information has surfaced indicating that the

chalice was last seen centuries ago in the Tower of Talon

Pass, once a stronghold of an ancient human empire. In its

heyday, it housed soldiers guarding the nearby mountain

ADVENTURE HOOKS

Any adventure hook that gets the PCs to the dungeon

entrance and clues them in to the presence of the Nightfist

orcs will work. For example:

✦ The PCs come across the aftermath of a battle between

the Nightfist orcs and a caravan heading up the road

to Talon Pass. The sole survivor from the caravan tells

CREDITS

David Noonan

Design

Rob Lazzaretti

Cartographer

Andy Collins

Development and Editing

Erin Dorries

Publishing Production Specialist

Kim Mohan

Managing Editing

Cynda Callaway

Production Manager

Stacy Longstreet

D&D Senior Art Director

D & D , D&D, W C , Player’s

Handbook, Dungeon Master’s Guide, Monster Manual, Treasure of

Talon Pass, all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their

respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. in

the U.S.A. and other countries. All Wizards characters, character

names, and the distinctive likenesses thereof are property of

Wizards of the Coast, Inc. This material is protected under the

or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein

is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards

of the Coast, Inc. Any similarity to actual people, organizations,

places, or events included herein is purely coincidental. Printed in

Chris Seaman

Cover Illustration

Lars Grant-West

David Griffith

Ralph Horsley

Zoltan Boros & Gabor Szikszai

Doug Kovacs

William O’Connor

Steve Prescott

Interior Illustrations

320-3714A-001 EN

9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

First Printing: May 2008

Visit our website at www.wizards.com/dnd

them the story of the Jade Chalice before expiring in

classic pulp fashion.

✦ A local lord hires the PCs to retrieve the Jade Chalice,

warning them that a rival lord has hired orc mercenar-

ies to snatch it first.

✦ The ghost of the jade carver who made the chalice

appears to the PCs in a dream, telling them to retrieve

the Jade Chalice, warning of dire consequences if the

orcs get their hands on it.

Treasure of Talon Pass employs the “parcel” technique

of treasure distribution described in the Dungeon Master’s

Guide ® . You’ll need nine treasure parcels in addition

to the Jade Chalice, which is an art item worth 260 gp.

You can use the list of parcels below, or you can create

your own using the rules in Chapter 7 of the Dungeon

Master’s Guide.

If you’re using the “wish list” suggestion in the Dungeon

Master’s Guide, you can assign magic items based on those

lists. Otherwise, select magic items from the Player’s Hand-

book ® appropriate for your characters and the adventure.

Parcel 1: Magic item, level 6

Parcel 2: Magic item, level 5

Parcel 3: Magic item, level 4

Parcel 4: Talon amulet (new magic item; see page xx)

Parcel 5: Two 100 gp gems + 90 gp

Parcel 6: Two potions of healing + 70 gp

Parcel 7: 150 gp + 200 sp

Parcel 8: Potion of healing + 40 gp

Parcel 9: 30 gp + 300 sp

Level 2 Major Quest: If the PCs successfully recover

the Jade Chalice from Hareel Vaar, award each character

an extra 125 XP.

If the PCs were hired to recover the chalice, their

employer pays them 260 gp for its return. Otherwise, they

can sell it for that price, or perhaps hold onto it . . . which

you can encourage them to do if you want it to become a

significant item in your campaign.

MINOR CHARACTER HOOKS

In addition to implementing one of the adventure hooks

listed above, consider using either or both of the minor

character hooks below. Adding a personal investment to

an adventure makes it more meaningful for the charac-

ters, and can draw their attention more effectively than

any monetary reward.

✦ An ominous vision has appeared to many servants of a

deity affiliated with one of the characters in the party.

In this vision, undead beings beneath Talon Pass, long

forgotten to the world, have recently been awakened.

Level 2 Minor Quest: If the PCs defeat all the

undead creatures in rooms 2 and 9, award each PC an

extra 25 XP.

✦ An evil mage named Hareel Vaar is wanted in connec-

tion with several thefts over the past few months. One

of the PCs has accepted a commission to hunt this man

down and return him, alive, to civilization.

Level 2 Minor Quest: If the PCs return Hareel

Vaar to any town or city without killing him, award

each PC an extra 25 XP.

Once you’ve assigned magic items, apportion the treasure

parcels to rooms as given below:

Room 5: One parcel

Room 6: Two parcels

Room 8: Three parcels

Room 9: Two parcels

Room 11: The Jade Chalice and one other parcel

ROOM SUMMARIES

See the encounters on the following pages for more

detailed descriptions of each room and its inhabitants.

1. Entry: This chamber is empty, but holds potential

clues for the PCs.

2. Infirmary: This room holds several undead rem-

nants of the dungeon’s former inhabitants.

3. Prison Chamber: Most of the surviving orc merce-

naries are here, readying to attack the kobolds in room 4.

4. Pillared Hall: The kobolds have pinned down a lone

orc in this room.

5. Sacrifice Chamber: This secret room holds a trap,

as well as a shaft leading down to room 8.

6. Kobold Sanctuary: The kobold leaders lair here,

guarding the stairs down to room 7.

7. Statue Room: This room holds a nest of spiretop

drakes and two guardian constructs.

8. Dragon’s Lair: The leader of the dungeon’s current

denizens lives in this natural cavern.

9. Officer Quarters: Three more undead lair here,

lying in wait for living prey.

10. Hall of Champions: This antechamber is guarded

by an imp and three iron defenders.

11. Test of Valor: The final chamber of the dungeon

holds a small gladiator pit, overseen by the cruel mage

Hareel Vaar.

GETTING READY TO PLAY

Other than spending a little time looking at the monster

and trap stat blocks, and reviewing the maps on the inside

covers of this booklet, you don’t need any special prepara-

tion before running Treasure of Talon Pass.

If you’re using Treasure of Talon Pass as a stand-alone

adventure, you can give the players the character sheets in

the back of this booklet. Each two-page sheet describes a

pregenerated 2nd-level character.

If you’re using Treasure of Talon Pass to start a new cam-

paign, tell the players to make 2nd-level characters. They

can have any reasonable amount of ordinary equipment,

plus one 2nd-level magic item and one 1st-level magic item

per character. Each character also has 20 gp in cash.

ROOM 1: ENTRY

SETUP

This room doesn’t have monsters.

When the PCs first descend the stairs, read:

This stone chamber has an intact set of double doors in the east wall

and a set of double doors hanging precariously from a single hinge on

the west wall. There’s a weird mix of stone and jagged metal debris in

the southwest corner.

TACTICS

There’s nothing to fight here, but the PCs can gain some

clues that will help them in later rooms. It’s also pos-

sible that the PCs will retreat here if the battle in room 3

doesn’t go their way.

This room is also a good place to establish the common

pieces of “dungeon dressing” that the PCs will be dealing

with throughout the adventure. See the Common Dun-

geon Elements section below.

COMMON DUNGEON ELEMENTS

The following elements are present in room 1 and

throughout the dungeon, unless otherwise noted.

Floor: The f loors are f lagstone tiles—a mix of 1-foot-

square stones and 1-foot-by-2-foot rectangles.

Wa l ls: The walls are masonry facing with a mix of

dirt and stone behind them. Unless otherwise noted, it

requires a DC 20 Athletics check to climb a wall.

Ceiling: All ceilings are 15 feet high, with stone but-

tresses supporting wooden planks. In a few places on the

upper level, the planks have rotted away, revealing a mix

of dirt and stone above.

Doors: The iron-bound wooden doors require a DC 18

Strength check to force open. They are hinged to swing in

both directions.

Stairs: They’re all steep enough to constitute difficult

terrain when moving up.

Ambient Sound: The waterfall outside the entrance

can be heard as dull noise throughout the dungeon,

although it’s loud enough in room 1 that PCs will have to

speak clearly to be heard.

Moisture and Temperature: Enough mist from the

waterfall blows in that the upper rooms (1 through 6) feel

damp and have occasional patches of condensation on the

walls and f loor. The downstairs is noticeably drier, except

for room 8, which has its own water source. All the rooms

are a little chilly—about 50 degrees Fahrenheit.

FEATURES OF THE AREA

Illumination: None, other than what the PCs bring

with them.

Western Doors: You don’t have to be a forensic genius

to realize that someone busted these doors open from

inside this room. They’re hanging outward, so the damage

was done by someone trying to get out of room 1, not into

it. A character who makes a DC 15 Perception check

notices that the splintering on the doors is fresh—someone

broke these doors down less than an hour ago.

Eastern Doors: These ironbound wooden doors are

still intact. Judging from the darkness visible at the bottom

crack of the door, there’s nothing illuminating the room

beyond. And no sound either. In crude Draconic char-

acters, painted across the door in red, is a single word:

“Don’t.” (The kobolds want to make sure they don’t wind

up fighting the undead.)

Wreckage: The rubble in the southwest corner con-

sists of two of the spinning blades pillars found in room

5—except the kobolds “disabled” these pillars when they

arrived. If PCs spend time sifting through the wreckage,

they learn the following:

✦ Many of the stone pieces have a gently carved, curved

surface.

✦ The metal parts appear to be some sort of hinged and

jointed armature.

✦ There are pieces of a metal blade amid the wreckage.

If the PCs examine the wreckage, they gain bonuses when

they have to deal with the intact spinning blades trap in

room 5.

ROOM 2: INFIRMARY

Encounter Level 2 (660 XP)

When all PCs are in the room, or when a brave PC

walks more than 20 feet into the room, read:

The door closes and locks of its own volition. And you hear shuff ling

footsteps coming from the southeast. Lots of shuff ling footsteps.

SETUP

The undead here, once soldiers wounded in battle, wait for

further orders that will never come. They do not leave the

infirmary willingly but will defend it to the death—strictly

interpreting the last orders given them.

This encounter includes the following creatures.

2 deathlock wights (D)

10 pack zombies (Z)

If the PCs first open the secret door from room 3,

read:

Two corpselike creatures stand at attention next to a high table in the

center of the room. Two stairways in the eastern wall lead upward,

and a door is set in the northern wall.

Unless the characters loudly converse or make other obvi-

ous noise, all monsters are distracted at the start of the

encounter. The pack zombies have a passive Perception

score of 10, and the wights have a passive Perception score

of 11.

2 Deathlock Wights

Level 4 Controller

Medium natural humanoid (undead)

XP 175 each

Initiative +4

Senses Perception +1; darkvision

HP 54; Bloodied 27

AC 18; Fortitude 15, Reflex 16, Will 17

Immune disease, poison; Resist 10 necrotic; Vulnerable 5 radiant

Speed 6

m Claw (standard; at-will) ✦ Necrotic

+9 vs. AC; 1d6 necrotic damage, and the target loses 1 healing

surge.

R Grave Bolt (standard; at-will) ✦ Necrotic

Ranged 20; +6 vs. Reflex; 1d6 + 4 necrotic damage, and the

target is immobilized (save ends).

R Reanimate (minor; encounter) ✦ Healing , Necrotic

Ranged 10; affects a destroyed undead creature of a level no

higher than the deathlock wight’s level + 2; the target stands as

a free action with a number of hit points equal to one-half its

bloodied value. This power does not affect minions.

C Horrific Visage (standard; recharge ⚃ ⚄ ⚅ ) ✦ Fear

Close blast 5; +7 vs. Will; 1d6 damage, and the target is pushed 3

squares.

Alignment Evil Languages Common

Skills Arcana +10, Religion +10

Str 10 (+2)

If the PCs first open the door from room 1, read:

Remnants of wood-and-canvas frameworks are scattered across the

f loor. The chamber continues to the east, turning south beyond your

sight line. There’s also a downward stairway in the southern wall.

Dex 14 (+4)

Wis 9 (+1)

Con 14 (+4)

Int 16 (+5)

Cha 18 (+6)

10 Pack Zombies

Level 2 Minion

Medium natural animate (undead)

XP 31 each

Initiative +3 Senses Perception +0; darkvision

HP 1; a missed attack never damages a minion.

AC 14; Fortitude 14, Reflex 10, Will 11

Immune disease, poison

Speed 4

m Slam (standard; at-will)

+7 vs. AC; 4 damage.

Pack Attack

A pack zombie gains a +2 bonus to its attack roll if it is adjacent to

at least one other pack zombie.

m Lurching Sacrifice (immediate interrupt; encounter)

This power triggers automatically when a nonminion ally adjacent

to a pack zombie is hit by a melee attack. The pack zombie is

destroyed, and the damage dealt to the ally is reduced by 5.

Alignment Unaligned

Languages —

Str 14 (+3)

Dex 6 (–1)

Wis 8 (+0)

Con 10 (+1)

Int 1 (–4)

Cha 3 (–3)

D&D4e - Treasure Of Talon Pass.pdf

Plik z chomika:

Inne pliki z tego folderu:

Inne foldery tego chomika: