LB01

Crossroads of Chaldén

By Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat,

and Rene Baradat

© MMXXIII All Rights Reserved www.dragonsfoot.org

 Crossroads of Chaldén
An AD&D Adventure for Characters Levels 2–3
© Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

AUTHORS Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

LEAD EDITOR Ron Redmond
EDITORS Joe Mohr, Ghendar, and Attronarch
ART FSF-INK
CARTOGRAPHY Andreas Claren
LAYOUT Attronarch

As your party makes its way through the wilderness at the northern edge
of civilization, it comes to a small kingdom whose heir has been taken
hostage. Can a group of strangers rescue the prince and save the realm?

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LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

Brown bears that might suffice, as would a demonstration of

the party’s good alignment and its intent toward
2 Brown Bears (AC 6; MV 12"; HD 5+5; hp 34, 28; the thieves of Ripyoff, such as showing the king’s
#AT 3; D 1d6/1d6/1d8; Int Semi; AL TN; SZ L; SA pass (unlike elves in the forest, this group will be
hug; XPV 504, 468) interested in the party’s errand). They will likely
Bears are fairly aggressive but will not attack on intervene if the party has Alfrëdor and is being
sight unless hungry (50% chance). On a paw hit closely pursued. The elves can provide some infor-
of 18 or better the bear will also hug its opponent mation about the Old Wood, such as a warning
for an additional 2d6 points damage. A bear will about the spiders or a mention of the "wise man
continue fighting for 1d4 melee rounds after its Cramlack", or a little bit about other areas on the
hit points drop below 1, but will drop dead upon area map (though probably not about anything
reaching -9 or lower. south of where the encounter takes place), and
they know the thief stronghold is not in the forest
or the hills. The fighter/magic-user carries 10 pp,
Side path or river branch ∗ † 22 gp, and 60 sp, and the others 10 gp and 20 sp
each.
This is either a faint path coming off the roads
shown on the map, or a branch off whatever
river the party is following. A side path or branch Merchant caravan †
will extend for 20-100 yards, where it either fades
out or abruptly ends. An extra encounter check Southerners (south of Chaldén)
should be made any time the party follows one
to its end. Merchant (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 4; #AT 1; D 1d4;
Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 10) armed with dagger
and riding a light warhorse (11 hp).
Elves †
Apprentice (AC 10; MV 12"; F-1; hp 2; #AT 1; D
Caledara (AC 4; MV 9"; F2/MU2; hp 8; #AT 1; D 1d6; Int Very; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 7) armed with short
1d8; Int Excep; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 with normal sword and riding a pony (3 hp).
bow or sword; XPV 170) wearing chain mail and
shield and armed with long sword. Drover (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 4; #AT 1; D 1d6; Int
Low; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 9) armed with a staff. He is
Spells: Shield, Sleep
mounted on a pony (6 hp) and leads 4 mules.
5 Elves (AC 5; MV 9"; HD 1+1; hp 4, 3, 6, 5, 8; #AT
6 Guards (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 6 each; #AT 1; D
1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 with
1d6 or 1d8; Int Avg; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 16 each)
normal bow or sword; XPV 28, 26, 32, 30, 36) wear-
armed with lance and long sword and mounted
ing chain mail and armed with long sword and
on light warhorses (hp 9 each).
short bow. Each wears a quiver of 12 arrows.
These elves of the Old Wood are seeking adven- Light Warhorse (AC 7; MV 24"; HD 2; #AT 2 hooves,
ture in the lands beyond their forest. The leader 1 bite; D 1d6/1d6/1d3; Int Ani; AL TN; SZ L; XPV
has a scroll of one magic-user spell (Spider Climb), 20+2/hp).
for which she has little use. It is in a wooden case Pony (AC 7; MV 12"; HD 1+1; #AT 1 bite; D 1-2; Int
hanging from her belt, and she might be per- Ani; AL TN; SZ L; XPV 36).
suaded to part with it for: no less than 500 gp (this
won’t be easy); a better or similar magic item; 4 Mules (AC 7; MV 12"; HD 3; hp 14 each; #AT 1
vital and/or extensive information about the orcs, bite or 2 hooves; D 1d2 or 1d6/1d6; Int Semi; AL
thieves, or wilderness plus no less than 300 gp; TN; SZ L; XPV 77).
or a piece of beautiful jewelry of at least 300 gp
Talmat and his caravan travel the northern re-
value, for which she may be willing (if its worth
gions of civilization, visiting this area from time to
exceeds 650 gp) to pay extra, up to the 75 gp
time. He will be eager to sell to the party so long
worth of money she carries.
as it doesn’t resemble a band of thieves—he has
The elves will not join the party’s search but may dealt with the local cutpurses before. His stock
be of help in other ways, if it can gain a mea- includes most everything in the PHB, p. 35–36,
sure of their trust. If the party includes an elf, except for armor, livestock, transport, standard

14
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

rations, and most weapons. His stock does in- Rangorik himself carries two rare frost rubies from
clude clothing (the party may be in need of cold- the Barbarian Mines. Both are small and un-
weather gear) and rope, but he does not have worked; the first is valued at 150 gp while the
a grappling hook. All items in his stock will be second is a very small, perfect stone, which will
relatively expensive, being inflated about 30% fetch no less than 350 gp even as is. Within,
above the listed price (e.g., a week’s iron rations one can see the distinctive mark of a frost ruby:
will cost 7 gp, and a suit of local cold weather streaks of white fanning out in a semicircle from
gear costs 9 gp). Nonetheless, an encounter with the edge of the gem, which makes these stones
the merchant could prove helpful to the party if so highly sought after in the area. South of the
it’s running low on supplies. He can tell the party map their asking price varies; many jewelers will
where the south road leads, if they ask. Note that pay only 80% value for them, thinking them oddi-
Talmat is on good terms with Gailaif; if the char- ties, while those more knowledgeable may pay
acters should attack the caravan, word would up to 30% above value. The design so prominent
reach him before long, and make the party’s in the smaller stone is also present in the first ruby,
next reception frosty indeed. though it is irregular and imperfect. A gem cutter
who successfully cuts these stones will add 10-40%
to the value of each (the chances of success or
Northerners (north of Chaldén) failure will depend on the cutter’s skill, as outlined
on p. 30 of the DMG).
Merchant (AC 5, furs, includes +4 due to dexterity;
MV 15"; B3; hp 26; #AT 1; D 1d8+1 (strength); Int Aside from its own weapons and supplies (north-
Avg; AL TN; SZ M; SD climb cliffs and trees (87%), ern equivalent of 5 weeks’ iron rations in jerked
surprised only 10% of time, back protection (15%), meat), the caravan has little of value and will sell
leaping and springing, detect illusion (15%), de- the party pelts and rubies (at the above prices),
tect magic (35%), running; XPV 164) armed with nothing more.
battle ax).

Drover (AC 9, due to furs; MV 12"; F1; hp 7; #AT 1; Berserkers †

D 2d4; Int Avg; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 17) armed with
broad sword. He leads 3 mules (hp 16, 18, 15). Leader (AC 7; MV 12"; F1; hp 6; #AT 1 or 2; D 2d4;
Int Avg; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 40) armed with broad
6 Guards (AC 7, furs, includes +2 due to dexterity; sword.
MV 15"; B1; hp 11 each; #AT 1; D 1d8; Int Avg; AL
7 Berserkers (AC 7; MV 12"; F0; hp 5 each; #AT 1
TN; SZ M; SD climb cliffs and trees (85%), surprised
or 2; D 2d4; Int Avg; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 19 each)
only 10% of time, back protection (5%), leaping
armed with broad sword.
and springing, detect illusion (5%), detect magic
(25%), running; XPV 42 each) armed with battle These 0 level fighters have gathered under their
ax. first level leader to seek loot and glory in com-
bat. They come from the cold lands of the north,
3 Northern Mules (AC 7; MV 12"; HD 3+3; hp 15
and will probably attack the party on sight. They
each; #AT 1 bite or 2 hooves; D 1d2 or 1d6/1d6;
never check morale, and their ferocity and zeal
Int Semi; AL TN; SZ L; XPV 120 each).
give them either two attacks per round or one
Rangorik the Trader comes down from the frozen attack at +2 to hit. They cannot be subdued and
lands beyond the edge of the map, bearing valu- will all but fight to the death. Each carry 4 sp.
ables from the north. The members of his caravan
wear furs and skins which are tough enough to
count as armor class 9. His sturdy northern mules B. River intersection
are laden with pelts:
The road crosses a river. There’s no bridge
Animal Unit price Quantity here, as you might expect this far from a city.
Ermine 5 gp each 10 It looks like Gailaif was right that it’s all but im-
Fox 3 gp each 30 passable in rainy seasons. As it is, you could
Marten 4gp each 20 have a hard time crossing even now in the
Sable 4 gp each 20 summer.

15
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

The river poses no serious threat to man-size crea- they will manage to grab their companion and
tures, though the party can’t see that without pull him to safety, but otherwise the demi-human
attempting to cross. A search in either direction must discard non-magical metal armor, anything
will reveal that no shallower point exists nearby. in his hands or arms, and all heavy objects, in-
The water reaches three and a half feet deep cluding weapons and backpacks holding more
in the middle (approaching chest high to most than 200 gpw. Items (even metal ones) which fall
humans); no chance of drowning or injury exists in the river are swept away by the current and
for most man-sized people, but someone may lost. A ranger will be able to find one lost item
slip and drop items carried in their hands. Party per level of experience.
members must save versus strength: elves nor-
Mules and donkeys will be unwilling to enter the
mally, half-elves and half-orcs at +1, humans at
river, and may take some pushing and prodding
+2. Dwarves, gnomes, and halflings must be car-
to encourage them across. One to three turns
ried across; those carrying them cannot bring any
will probably be required to convince them to
other items and must save or slip and dump their
traverse the ford, wasting time and energy. If the
load (i.e., fellow adventurers) into the river. If so,
party is being pursued, it may have to abandon
they must roll to save again, and if they succeed,
its pack animals and the goods they carry.

16
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

C. The hill encounter in case the party goes that way. (If playing in the
World of Greyhawk, this could be High Hadleigh
After several miles’ travel through the hills, in the northern Duchy of Tenh.) The city might be
you notice that the brush and foliage have home to an antiquary, for instance, who would
been thickening. As you round a bend in the be interested in the old coins found at Area 7.
road and pass a low hill you hear a sound and the statuette found at 16. in the Ripyoff dun-
from behind. geon. If so, merchants in Chaldén might refer a
party to him if it tries to sell these items in town.
The city also has spell casters who would be inter-
The noise is caused by four outlaws from Ripyoff. ested in the spell book found at 9. in the Riypoff
They (AC 8; MV 12"; T1; hp 3, 5, 4, 2; #AT 1; D 2d4; dungeon. The DM can refer to Getting Lost in the
Int Avg; AL CE; SZ M; SA Back stab; XPV 26, 30, 28, Introduction to see whether the party accurately
24) lie in wait for some unfortunate traveler to pass guesses where it is or which fork leads toward the
their way. Each has a 2 in 6 chance of attempt- stronghold.
ing a back stab at +4, doing double damage on
a hit; the others will be off balance and miss their
chance to attack this round. Initiative will then go E. Southern river intersection
to the party. If any of the attackers are captured
and interrogated, see Bandits on the Wilderness You reach a river crossing. This one seems
Encounter Table. If one or more escape, they will fairly small and shallow, and crossing it
likely flee to Ripyoff and alert the stronghold that shouldn’t be difficult.
a strong group is headed south, making the band
more vigilant.
Here the river is but a foot and a half deep at
The bandits carry 1 sp and 2 cp per hit point each, most, and even a short gnome or halfling can
and the one with 5 hp wears a pair of bronze cross with safety. Animals will also reach the other
bracers worth 10 sp. If the party searches the side without incident.
area, it will find a small clearing with a fire pit in
the center. Near the fire pit is a large, poor qual-
ity, tent (600 gpw encumbrance, 25 gp value) F. Guardhouse
which will not stand up to strong winds but may
provide welcome shelter to a poorly equipped You see the remains of a small building which
party. Inside it are four bedrolls, each with a dirty must have been abandoned long ago. One
brown cloak on top. A store of dried fruit and corner is still partly intact, and the walls ta-
nuts in a corner of the tent will make the equiva- per down to rubble at floor level. There’s a
lent of two weeks’ iron rations, and hidden under wooden stockade just to the south. You no-
one of the bedrolls is a small sack containing tice as you enter that the remaining corner
1 gp, 15 sp, and 25 cp. On the other side of faces the stronghold and you are now just
camp from the tent is a mound of junk (leaves, out of sight of it.
sticks, bones, and so forth) which contains noth-
ing but an old leather sack in which naught can
be found but creepy-crawlies of a type particu- The building was a guardhouse of Old Chaldén
larly disliked by the character exploring the pile before the sack of the castle. It stands just 130
(or by the player). feet from the walls of Ripyoff, so anyone ap-
proaching it in daylight is likely to be spotted by
the tower guards; at twilight the chances are
D. The south fork 50/50. If the party is seen the stronghold will be
alerted for the rest of the day and the ruined
South of the hills the road, already overgrown, building carefully watched, as will further move-
splits into two fainter paths. The southeast fork ment of the party thereafter. Enough remains
leads to the shrine while the other takes travelers of the wall that the party and its chattels can
about a hundred miles to a city of some 1500 in- remain there out of sight of the fortress.
habitants who have heard of Chaldén but know
little about it. The DM may choose to fill in this city Nothing of value is to be found here, since the

17
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

place has been picked over many times. How- the thieves’ vigilance if the party was spotted
ever, a successful search for secret doors will re- on approach—from this distance it may look like
veal a round stone which protrudes from the floor the intruders have ridden off. That will, however,
but feels loose. If it is twisted clockwise a 2’ x 2’ deprive the party of use of the animals on the
section of floor will swing open, showering dirt return trip, and the players need to think about
and debris through a hole underneath. The party how to return to Chaldén with the outlaws in pur-
can hear the dust settle on the floor below. suit—and which supplies they’re willing to carry
on their backs, given that encumbrance will slow
The pit uncovered is about nine feet deep, with
them down.
finger and toe holds in the wall to let people
climb up or down. The door can be closed and
reopened easily enough from inside; it clicks shut G. Forest bridge
and releases with a handle on the underside.
From here runs a 4’ diameter passage which
heads toward the stronghold, although the tun- You come to a wide wooden bridge which
nel’s direction won’t be noticed unless the party rises much higher and goes further across on
asks (dwarves and gnomes will know for sure; oth- both banks than the water level can reach.
ers will merely think it’s headed that way, and 2 It seems that during rainy seasons the river
in 6 may get it wrong). This is a secret entrance to swells to great heights.
the castle, used during the time of Old Chaldén
but never discovered by the bandits. It leads
to the unexplored section of the dungeon men- The bridge, though only of wood, is built ex-
tioned hereafter (see 10. Passage to dungeon tremely strong and sturdy to withstand the force
level in Part III of the dungeon for details). of the river, which floods especially high every
few years. It’s of thick oak and is very solid un-
derfoot, no matter how much weight is carried
across.

H. Bridge
Traveling toward Flaxton:

As you trek further east you spot a river and

soon come to a bridge crossing it. This river
is a bit wider than the last, and the bridge is
built higher and wider than the water level.
Beyond you see the road continue, appar-
If the party has mounts or pack animals, they ently passing through a small settlement on
cannot be brought into the tunnel. They can its way to Flaxton.
be tied up here if the party has rope available,
though they might alert the brigands that some-
one is nearby; if the bandits take them or other- Traveling toward Chaldén:
wise investigate the guardhouse, they will almost
certainly find the secret entrance, since the trap Outside of town you spot a river and soon
door will now be cleared of the debris that had come to a bridge crossing it. It’s much higher
covered it. They may decide to have a look in- and wider than the water level.
side, but will not get past the bat cave; chances
are they will simply wait outside for the intruders
to come out. If the party has no rope, it could The bridge itself is virtually identical to that at G.,
leave someone to tend the animals, though they except that it has a stone foundation. The set-
would run the risk of being captured if spotted. tlement which the party sees is Flaxton, though
Releasing the animals and whipping them to gal- this will not become apparent until the group
lop off will resolve this issue, and might also relax actually reaches the center of town.

18
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Town of Chaldén
1. King’s Residence
2. King’s Armory
3. Barracks
4. Dining Hall
5. Kitchen
6. Servants’ Quarters
7. Stable
8. Courtyard
9. Gates
10. Watch Towers
11. Outer Courtyard
12. Bridge
13. River
14. Moat
15. The Mill
16. Smithy
17. Outside Armory
18. Trading Post
19. The Tavern
20. Outside Stables
21. Outside Barracks

The area is full of fields and farmhouses death, and the law is more rigidly enforced here
surrounding a large, irregular-shaped stone than in Flaxton. Townspeople caught in the act of
fortress rising against the flatness of the sur- stealing or other such pursuits are treated harshly,
rounding landscape. As you approach you although travelers not known to be working with
see several buildings which make up the cen- the outlaws (such as character parties) would be
ter of town. You also notice that the castle brought before the king for questioning.
wall extends across the river, supported by King Gailaif will receive suspects in his audience
low stone bridges. room, and will hear accounts from both sides be-
fore pronouncing judgement. Of course, there
will be stern penalties for crimes worse than a sim-
As mentioned elsewhere, the whole of Chaldén ple pilfering, such as attacking a townsperson.
is on alert. By royal decree all outlaws are put to If the crime was less severe, or the evidence is

19
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

ambiguous, Gailaif will want to give the party the the invaders before the latter can organize or
benefit of the doubt unless it shows some indica- shelter themselves.
tion of abandoning its mission to rescue Alfrëdor.
If only one or two party members were involved, The main outer wall is 20’ high, while the wall sur-
he will at least let the others go, possibly jailing rounding the mill rises to but 15 feet, partly to
the offender(s) until the party returns from its mis- entice attackers to try the mill area. The five out-
sion. If appropriate, the king may simply spare side towers are 30’ square, while the inner ones
the party, on condition that it pay a fine (say, are but 20’ in diameter. Also, the inner walls are
twice the value of any items taken) and go off in 25’ high. If the castle seems overly fortified, it is
search of his grandson immediately. because Gailaif vowed not to leave his castle vul-
nerable to attack as did the kings of Old Chaldén.
Should the party attempt to fight its way out, the To this end he has been successful, for never have
six royal guards along the walls (AC 5; MV 9"; F3; the outlaws staged an attack on the place, and
hp 14 each; #AT 1; D 1d8; Int Avg; AL NG; SZ M; it is doubtful they ever could, with any chance of
XPV 77 each) will encircle and engage, while the success.
king (AC 9, due to dexterity; MV 12"; F9; hp 45;
#AT 1; D 2d4+1; Avg Very; AL LG; SZ M; XPV 1530)
takes his Bastard Sword +1 from the wall and will Chaldén Encounter Table
join the fray next round.
An encounter check should be made every
At the same time, his court magician will begin square traveled by the party on the town map.
spellcasting. He (AC 10; MV 12"; MU6; hp 13; On a roll of 1 in 6 (2 in 6 inside the river that rings
#AT 1; D 1d6 [staff]; Int Excep; AL NG; SZ M; XPV the town), the party will meet the following.
329) has the following spells memorized: Burn-
ing Hands, Shield, Shocking Grasp, Sleep, Scare, d20 Result
Web, Gust of Wind, and Hold Person. He will try 1–2 Beggar
to immobilize the party if possible, and will do 3 Character party
everything he can to protect the king. 4–8 Farmers
9–10 Farmers’ sons
Any such disturbance in the audience room will
11 Farmer’s wife
attract the six guards from outside (AC 5; MV 9";
12 Merchant
F0; hp 6 each; #AT 1; D 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M;
13–16 Patrol
XPV 16 each), who will be able to attack on the
17–18 Thieves
third round. Further, it will attract 1d3 separate
19–20 Tradesman
patrols (see Chaldén Encounter Table for details),
who will burst in—one every third round—and at-
tack.
Beggar
The bridges spanning the river are protected by
portcullises, so no one can enter the castle by Beggar (AC 10; MV 12"; F-2; hp 2; #AT 1; D see
swimming or floating under the walls. Anyone below; Int Low-Avg; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 7).
trying to do so will likely (85% chance) be seen by
Beggars will be poorly-clothed, and likely
castle guards, and if possible, brought before the
maimed or diseased (looking?). They will
king for questioning.
beg alms from passers-by—particularly adven-
Both the inner and outer gates have a portcullis, turers—but the king recently made an attempt
and the construction of the walls is designed to end their profession here. Although this project
to fragment and slow an invading force, while ended in failure, it is still remembered well enough
archers, javelineers, and crossbowmen above that any beggar will scuttle off if the party calls
weaken the invaders. Also, the bridge at 12. will for the guard. However, this will incur the wrath
be withdrawn if the mill area is taken, thereby of all beggars in town, possibly resulting in some
cutting the aggressors off from the main section form of minor revenge before the group’s stay is
of the castle in an almost defenseless part of the out, such as petty theft or similar mischief. One
stronghold. They will be exposed to attack from in five doubles as a pickpocket (as first-second
above while the fortress itself remains fully pro- level thief) and may attempt to steal something
tected, and the defenders will pick off many of from the party if refused alms.

20
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Each beggar has 1d6+2 cp. As they carry no Merchant encounters will be with Kinid, the owner
weapons, their only damage is from unarmed of the trading post. He is richly dressed in reds and
combat, rocks, or whatever they can find close blues and carries a small dagger which hangs
to hand. from his belt. Upon seeing the adventurers, he
will approach and try to interest them in visiting
his store to sample his wares. Kinid carries 3 gp, 9
Character party sp, and 11 cp.
This is identical to the Character Party on the
Wilderness Encounter Table (q.v.) Patrol

Lieutenant (AC 4; MV 9"; F2; hp 10; #AT 1; D 1d8;

Farmers Int Very; AL LG; SZ M; XPV 65) armed with long
sword. 3 Soldiers (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 5 each; #AT
1 to 2 Farmers (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 3 each; #AT
1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 15 each)
1; D as beggar; Int Avg-Very; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 8).
armed with spear and long sword.
Farmers are adequately dressed but not rich.
Crossbowman (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 5; #AT 1; D 1d4
They are more or less used to travelers and will
or 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 15) armed with
answer questions if asked. Each carry 3-4 sp and
light crossbow and long sword. He wears a quiver
1-10 cp.
of one score light quarrels.
All patrol members wear chain mail, and the lieu-
Farmers’ sons tenant carries a small shield. Each carry 5 sp and
10 cp.
1 to 4 Farmers’ Sons (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 3 each;
#AT 1; D 1d6 or as beggar; Int Avg; AL CN; SZ M; A patrol may stop and question the party when
XPV 8 each) armed with sticks (count as clubs at encountered; if the characters give an unsatis-
-1 to hit) if looking for trouble. factory response, the patrol will attempt to take
them to the outside barracks for questioning. If
Farmers’ sons are not dressed quite as well as their
given acceptable responses (or shown the king’s
fathers. They know enough of adventurers not
pass), it will leave the party alone, and if asked
to pick fights with a party, but if sufficiently bored
the lieutenant will direct the group to any place
(10% chance) they may do so anyway. Each has
in town. Note that if the players decide to attack,
0-4 cp in his pocket.
the three soldiers will try to hold the party off with
their spears while the remaining man-at-arms fires
Farmer’s wife his crossbow.

Farmer’s Wife (AC 10; MV 12"; F-1; hp 2; #AT 1; D Any such attack will alert 1-2 other patrols, will
as beggar; Int Avg-Very; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 7). likely raise a general alarm, and will arouse the
hostility of Chaldén’s inhabitants, while alerted
A farmer’s wife will be out on errands, such as buy- patrols will attempt to subdue the party and bring
ing food. She will take little interest in the party it to the king for questioning.
and will avoid strangers if possible. If the party
asks her any questions she will answer quickly and
continue on her way. She will carry 10 sp and 15 Thieves
cp. Note that harassing or detaining her is likely Leader (AC 8; MV 12" T2; hp 7; #AT 1; D 2d4 or
to draw a hostile crowd of locals; also, the worst 1d4; Int Low; AL CE; SZ M; XPV 34) armed with
form of trouble will come from harming a farmer’s broad sword and dagger.
wife. Lynch mobs are an option here.
4 Thieves (AC 8; MV 12"; T1; hp 4 each; #AT 1; D
2d4 or 1d4; Int Low; AL NE; SZ M; XPV 14 each)
Merchant armed with broad sword and dagger.
Merchant (AC 10; MV 12"; F-2; hp 4; #AT 1; D These are from outside the kingdom, which has
1d4; Int Very; AL LN(g); SZ M; XPV 9) armed with no Thieves’ Guild. They come from Castle Ripy-
dagger. off in disguise, spying on the town’s activities or

21
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

simply hoping for an easy chance to rob or steal. 2. King’s armory

They wear ordinary clothing over their leather
armor, so all that the party will see is a group The wooden building closest to the audi-
of portly men wearing swords. They will avoid ence room has double doors. The left one is
contact with others and appear to be out on open and inside on the far wall you can see
business. If Alfrëdor is with the party, however, several swords and other items.
they will attempt to recapture him—which inci-
dentally may attract a patrol, who will recognize
the king’s grandson. They will be desperate to This is the royal armory. When the characters en-
get Alfrëdor back, though they won’t kill him if ter, Andantu, the king’s armorer, will ask if they
they can avoid it. Each will have 10 sp, and 10 cp. have leave to trade there. If they show Gailaif’s
If some are captured and interrogated, see the pass, he will welcome them and invite them to
Bandits entry on the Wilderness Encounter Table. purchase whatever they like. If they do not show
the pass, he will not let them shop there, but will
suggest the outside armory and can direct the
Tradesman party to it.
Andantu (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 5; #AT 1; D 2d4;
Tradesman (AC 10; MV 12"; #AT 1; D see below;
Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 10) wears a broad sword
Int see below; AL see below; SZ M; XPV 5+1/hp).
and is protected by four soldiers (AC 5; MV 9"; F0;
Tradesman encounters will be with the miller, the hp 4 each; #AT 1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int Avg; AL TN;
blacksmith, the armorer, or the innkeeper. They SZ M; XPV 14 each) who hold spears and wear
will be dressed according to their profession, and long swords. Any loud disturbance here will at-
friendly to a party of travelers, who after all are tract at least one patrol, and will likely arouse the
potential customers. See their places of business attention of Gailaif himself.
for details. The armory’s stock consists of the following:
Item Value Available
Chain Mail (human-size) 72 gp 6
Key to the Town of Chaldén Ring Mail (human-size) 28 gp 1
Studded Leather 13 gp 2
Across the drawbridge and through the gates is
(human-size)
another wall facing diagonally ahead. To the
Helmet, small 9 gp 2
left, through the inner gates, is a large courtyard
Shield, small 10 gp 3
ringed with buildings set against the wall. On the
Long Sword 14 gp 9
left is a single stone building, and along the wall
Crossbow, light 10 gp 5
to the right and the two walls in front are three
Bolts (score), light 1 gp 5
wooden structures with downward-slanting roofs.
Spear 1 gp 6
Mace, horseman’s 4 gp 1

1. King’s residence
3. Barracks
This stone building is guarded by two soldiers.
It has a pair of arrow-slit windows on the sec- The door of the building next to the stone
ond floor, giving it a facial appearance. This structure is closed but not locked. Inside you
is Gailaif’s audience chamber, as you recall. see a lot of bunks and can make out some
soldiers sitting around a table.

The interior of this structure is detailed under

section Town of Chaldén above. The building’s These are the inside barracks of the town; within
chambers (other than the audience room) can are a total of forty bunks. If the characters come
be accessed only by secret doors which the in, the ten soldiers (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 4 each;
party cannot discover. #AT 1; D 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 12 each)

22
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

will ask what they are doing there. They will be re- 6. Servants’ quarters
quired to leave, even if they present King Gailaif’s
pass, for civilians are not allowed in the building Inside are numerous bunks, and in the center
and the soldiers happily enforce this rule. of the room is a large table around which sit
Hidden in each bunk are 4 sp and 9 cp. Inside several of the king’s servants.
the room are also three spears and a small shield
plus a light crossbow with a quiver of a dozen
bolts. Gailaif’s servants live in this building, which has a
total of twenty-five bunks. Inside can always be
found 2 male (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 3 each; #AT
4. Dining hall
1; D see below; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 8 each)
and 3 female (AC 10; MV 12"; F-1; hp 2 each; #AT
There’s no one inside. Down the middle of 1; D see below; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 7 each)
the room is a long table with benches on servants. Their reaction to the characters will be
either side and a tall chair at either end. On similar to that at 5., although they have no food
the table are a few candlesticks, and at the here and might be puzzled at this unusual interest
far side of the room is a large door. in their living quarters. A search of the room will
turn up nothing of value but ordinary clothing.

The king and his men dine here, and until recently
Alfrëdor would eat there also; there is still a place 7. Stable
set for him, which is starting to gather a little dust.
The five candlesticks are of brass and are worth
5 sp each, though trying to sell them in Chaldén Wide double doors open to the royal stables.
or Flaxton would cause trouble as any local will Inside you see stalls aplenty, horses, and har-
recognize them as bearing the royal seal. Any ness on the walls.
loud noise generated by the party will attract the
attention of the servants in the kitchen, who will
The stable holds 30 stalls and 27 horses. Two male
come out to investigate (see 5.).
servants (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 3 each; #AT 1;
D unarmed; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 8 each)
5. Kitchen can be found here at any time. They will try to
be helpful to the party, and can sell the follow-
On the far wall you can see a huge fire- ing, prices depending whether or not it shows the
place, and in the center of the room a stout king’s pass. Horses can be quartered here for 1
wooden table. There are some servants in- sp per night with the pass, 2 sp per night without.
side fixing a meal, and there’s a door along
Animals (available) Pass No pass
the left wall.
Can carry up to∗
Light war horse (2) 120 gp 170 gp
The three male (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 3 each; #AT 3000 / 5000 gpw
1; D see below; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 8 each) Draft horse (22) 25 gp 40 gp
and four female (AC 10; MV 12"; F-1; hp 2 each; 4000 / 8000 gpw
#AT 1; D see below; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 7 Light riding horse (2) 20 gp 30 gp
each) servants are busy preparing the next meal 1000 / 2000 gpw
of the day and will not much bother the party if it Donkey (4) 7 gp 10 gp
does nothing destructive and doesn’t get in their 1500 / 2500 gpw
way. One of them may ask if he or she can be Mule (7) 18 gp 25 gp
of assistance. If the adventurers are courteous, 5000 / 7500 gpw
they will be asked if they are hungry, and if so, will
be fed a basic meal of bread and hard cheese. ∗ Animals carrying greater than the first num-
If, on the other hand, the party causes trouble or ber (e.g., over 4,000 gpw for a draft horse)
looks suspicious, the servants will likely call for the are encumbered and will travel at half
guard. Servants carry 2 sp and 3 cp each. speed.

23
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

Tack, harness, feed Pass No pass across the moat is lowered in the daytime, raised
Bit & bridle 10 sp 20 sp at night, and secured with a portcullis.
Harness 8 sp 16 sp
Saddle 7 gp 13 gp
Saddle bags, large 3 gp 5 gp
Saddle blanket 2 sp 4 sp
Grain for animals, 1 day 8 cp 1 sp

8. Courtyard

This is a spacious earthen area ringed by

buildings set against the high stone walls. A
few people are walking around, most seem-
ingly on errands or other business of their
own.

Three to eight persons will be in the courtyard at 11. Outer courtyard

any time. Consult the Chaldén Encounter Table,
There is little to see in these oddly shaped spaces
ignoring Beggar and Farmers’ sons results.
and few people will be found in them, except
those traveling between the inner and outer
gates.
9. Gates

Each gate has two guards (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp

5; #AT 1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; 12. Bridge
XPV 15 each) who hold spears and wear long
swords and chain mail. Across the drawbridge This is a narrow wooden bridge that connects the
and through the gates is another wall facing di- mill to the main body of the castle. It is the only
agonally across the outer courtyard. Through the feasible means of access to the mill, and can
inner gates is another, larger courtyard ringed be withdrawn or dumped into the moat if nec-
with buildings set against the wall. To the left is a essary. Like the gates, the portal to this bridge is
single stone building, and along the wall to the protected by a portcullis which is up during the
right and the two walls in front are three wooden day.
structures with downward-slanting roofs. Each
gate has a portcullis behind its doors or draw-
bridge. 13. River

The river water is clean and cool and would be

10. Watch towers good to quench a traveler’s thirst.
The castle has both inner and outer towers, all of
similar construction. Stairs up can be accessed
through a stout wooden door at the foot of each 14. Moat
tower, which can be bolted from the inside. The
top of each tower holds two chairs, a table, two A slow-moving current of water forms the
short bows, two light crossbows, and three score castle’s moat.
each of arrows and light quarrels, plus two guards
(AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 4 each; #AT 1; D 1d4, 1d6, or
1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 14 each) armed There are no fearsome critters here to guard the
as usual with long swords and spears, although moat, but the water is semi-stagnant and uninvit-
the latter are leaned in a corner. Lower levels of ing. It is also watched by the guards in the castle;
the towers are generally empty. The drawbridge entering it would be considered suspicious.

24
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

15. The mill party: iron hoops for barrels, tool heads, and the
like. He carries 1 gp, 5 sp, and 20 cp; his appren-
tice carries nothing.
Surrounded by the protective walls of the
castle, this stone building nestles peacefully
by the bank of the river. Its paddlewheel 17. Outside armory
turns slowly with the gentle current of the
water. Moss has grown on the wheel, giving A low wooden building sits in the fork of the
it patches of green which fade against road on this side of the river.
the deep brown of the wood of which
this object is built. The doorway is open,
revealing a twilight interior gently lit by the The armorer’s name is Rustung, and he wears
sun’s warming rays. his finest suit of chain mail, a hauberk of excel-
lent craftsmanship which includes a mail hood,
Inside you see the miller working at his grind- which he will not sell for anything less than 150 gp
stone. Sacks of grain are stacked on the wall and which will sell elsewhere for only 100 gp (his
to your right, and to the left beyond the mill- pride of workmanship has led him to overvalue
stone you see a large pile of unprocessed the item). He is also proud of the shiny suit of
grain. The miller turns as you enter and asks scale he’s fixed up (below), but unlike the chain it
what he can do for you. was always intended for sale. He (AC 5; MV 9"; F0;
hp 5; #AT 1; D 2d4; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 10)
wears a broad sword, and in a small belt pouch
There is nothing of value here except the grain he carries 2 gp, 8 sp, and 10 cp.
itself (barley, this time of year), and each sack
weighs about 600 gp. The miller (AC 10; MV 12"; Rustung’s stock consists of the following; all armor
F0; hp 3; #AT 1; D 1d6 [club]; Int Avg; AL NG; SZ is human sized:
M; XPV 8) will be happy to sell the party grain Item Cost Available
in portions equivalent to standard rations, 2 sp Padded armor 4 gp 4
per day’s worth—which will last indefinitely if kept Leather armor 6 gp 2
dry, but must be cooked (generally, made into Studded leather 20 gp 3
porridge), not eaten raw. He carries 6 sp and 18 Ring mail 30 gp 2
cp. Scale mail 50 gp 1
Shield, small 12 gp 8
Shield, wooden 2 gp 3
16. Smithy Broad sword 12 gp 5

A wooden building with small, open double

doors, the smithy faces out toward the north- 18. Trading post
east. Inside is a furnace throwing light on one
half of the room. You can see the blacksmith
working at his anvil. He dips a horseshoe into This wooden building is nestled by the banks
a large metal bin; over the hissing he hears of the river. Inside, behind a long counter,
you enter, turns, and asks if he can help you. stands a man in rich costume who seems to
be the owner of the place.

The smith’s name is Drostan and he wears a large

black apron. He (AC 10; MV 12"; F2; hp 13; #AT 1; The owner, Trondheim, is slender with yellow hair,
D 1d4+1 [work hammer, -1 to hit]; Int Avg; AL LN; and in his belt pouch are 3 gp, 9 sp, and 11 cp.
SZ M; XPV 46) has an apprentice, Bridei (AC 10; He (AC 10; MV 12"; F-2; hp 2; #AT 1; D 1d4; Int Very;
MV 12"; F0; hp 4; #AT 1; D 1d6 [club]; Int Very; AL AL LG; SZ M; XPV 7) has a small dagger hanging
TN; SZ M; XPV 9), working in the back room. from his belt. At any time there will be d4-1 other
people inside (use the Chaldén Encounter Table).
Drostan can shoe horses for 4 sp each, although Trondheim will recommend that the party equip
the rest of what he makes is fairly useless to the itself for cold weather.

25
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

The merchant’s stock is as follows: The innkeeper’s name is Johann. He (AC 10; MV
12"; F0; hp 4; #AT 1; D 1d6 or unarmed; Int Very; AL
Item Cost Available
CG; SZ M; XPV 9) has a great brown beard and
Sword, long 18 gp 1
wears a large apron over a roomy shirt. His belt
Sword, broad 12 gp 4
pouch holds 5 gp, 20 sp, and 25 cp and he car-
Dagger 2 gp 10
ries a platter which is usually occupied by several
Backpack 2 gp 8
mugs of beer; in case of trouble, he has a club
Rations, iron, 1 week 5 gp 20
stashed behind the bar. The tavern’s prices are
Rations, standard, 1 week 3 gp 4
as follows:
Hat 8 sp 3
Belt pouch, large 1 gp 4
Belt pouch, small 10 sp 3 Item Cost
Belt 3 sp 8 Ale 1 sp
Boots, high, hard 2 gp 8 Small beer 5 cp
Boots, high, soft 1 gp 4 Mead 5 sp
Cloak 5 sp 9 Wine (good) 10 sp
Cold weather outfit 8 gp 10 Meal (breakfast, dinner, etc.) 1 sp
Blanket, heavy 5 sp 8
Bedroll 1 sp 10 The party can easily get some rumors from the
Tent, large, 75 gp 1 innkeeper and his customers (see Rumor Table),
adequate quality either by engaging for a while in friendly conver-
Tinder box 1 gp 6 sation or by buying a round or two. They can
Lantern, hooded 8 gp 4 also spend the night here for 1sp per night each;
Oil, pint 1 gp 12 assuming the party arrived in town late in the
Torch 1 cp 21 day, it will probably be a good idea to spend the
Iron spike 1 cp 22 night here before setting out on its mission, and
Rope, 50’ 5 sp 5 if it does so it will hear at least one rumor that
Grappling hook 15 gp 2 evening and another in the morning. If the party
has animals, they will have to stay at the stables.
Standard rations are bulky and will spoil in a week
if not eaten. A grappling hook will also be bulky,
75gpw encumbrance, but (with rope) would be
very handy for scaling walls.
20. Outside stables
The characters would be well advised to equip
themselves with cold weather outfits, or at least Large double doors announce this building
cloaks and blankets. as a stable. Within you see rows of stalls on
either side along the walls. On your right a
The tent will also be helpful for sleeping outdoors,
man is working at his anvil by the fireplace.
providing shelter at night; it will sleep 4 comfort-
ably, 6 cramped and with gear left outside (or
6 and 8 small demi-humans, respectively). It will
stand up to windy weather but will collapse and Ivar the stablemaster (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 3; #AT
take damage in strong winds. It is 750gpw en- 1; D 1d4+1; Int Avg; AL NG; SZ M; XPV 8) is balding,
cumbrance to carry. middle aged, and speaks with an accent. When
the party approaches he will ask what they need,
and will be glad to shoe their horses (4 sp each),
19. The tavern provide them with tack and harness (as at 7. Sta-
ble on Key to the Town of Chaldén), or put their
Sitting across from the stables, this two-story horses up for 2 sp each per night.
wooden building sports a sign: "The Barrel
Full". As you enter you see numerous ta- Tack and harness hangs on the far right wall.
bles and, along the wall to your left, several Prices and carrying capacities are as follows, and
booths, a few of which are occupied. capacity is in gold piece weight (GPW).

26
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Animals (available) Cost 21. Outside barracks

Can carry up to∗
Draft horse (10) 35 gp
A heavy stone building sits by the road-
4000 / 8000 gpw
way. Its narrow, arrow-slit windows peer out
Donkey (3) 9 gp
gauntly at the surrounding countryside.
1500 / 2500 gpw
Mule (2) 25 gp
5000 / 7500 gpw Inside are three men sitting at a round wooden
table playing cards. Along the walls in front and
in back, and also on the wall to the right, are
Tack, harness, feed Cost numerous bunks, and on the left wall are a small
Bit & bridle 20 sp stone fireplace and a door. One of the men will
Harness 15 sp rise from the table and approach the party.
Saddle 12 gp
He is a lieutenant of the guard and will ask the
Saddle blanket 5 sp
adventurers’ business there. He (AC 5; MV 9"; F2;
Saddle bags, large 5 gp
hp 11; #AT 1; D 1d8; Int Very; AL LN; SZ M; XPV
Saddle bags, small 4 gp
68) and the others (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 5, 4; #AT
Grain for animals, 1 day 1 sp
1; D 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 15, 14) in the
main room are armed only with their swords; their
other weapons are in the storeroom. If there is a
Encumbered animals will travel only half as fast considerable noise here, the two soldiers in the
as normal. storeroom (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 6, 7; #AT 1; D 1d6
or 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 16, 17) will each
grab a spear (they are wearing their swords) and
Working in the stalls are two stable boys (AC 10; come out to investigate. The storeroom contains
MV 12"; F-2; hp 1, 2; #AT 1; D unarmed combat a dozen long swords, nine spears (not including
only; Int Very; AL CG; SZ M; XPV 6, 7), who are those belonging to the patrol, which brings the to-
quiet enough not to be noticed when someone tal to nineteen), six light crossbows, and six score
enters the building. light quarrels in quivers.

27
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

The Forest
1. Spider lair
2. The human
settlement
3. Elven village
4. Cramlack’s
hut

28
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Locals call this the Old Wood. The trees, 2d10 Result
mostly pine and oak with a smattering of 2 Character party ∗
birch, shade the forest floor, leaving it in a 3 Al-mi’raj ∗
perpetual twilight. Moss and fungi can be 4 Bandits ∗
found everywhere, abundant as the grass 5 Wolves ∗
and ferns which cover much of the ground. 6 Brown bear ∗
The woodland is home to many small an- 7 Poisonous snake ∗
imals—squirrels, birds, insects, and others 8 Sprites
which you see out the corner of your eye 9 Elves
or catch fleeting glimpses of, away against 10 Cramlack the Druid
the darkness of the trees, barely within sight. 11 Wood patrol
12 Squirrels
You’ve been told that at the eastern edge 13 Large spiders
near the road is a small settlement of hu- 14 Herd animals ∗
mans. You’ve also heard of an elven com- 15 Wild boars ∗
munity somewhere north of the road. Folk of 16 Faerie dragon
the region tell of great and terrible dangers 17 Treant
and whisper dark rumors about the elves. 18 Wolverine ∗
Woe to the adventurer who strays far from 19 Gnomes
the road and is preyed upon by the dark 20 Pixies
forces of the Old Wood.
∗ These encounters are described on the
Wilderness Encounter Table (p. 10).

This is what remains of a vast and ancient forest

which once covered the whole area; it stretched Sprites
from beyond Flaxton, south to the lake, and as far
west as the eye could see from where Chaldén 4 Sprites (AC 6; MV 9"/18"; HD 1; hp 7, 7, 6, 4 #AT 1;
stands today. It also reached far to the north, D 1d3 or 1d4; Int Very; AL N(G); SZ S; SD invisibility;
where there still stands a pine forest vaguely rem- XPV 87, 87, 86, 84) armed with small, thin swords
iniscent of this one. The rivers inside the forest are (count as daggers) and small bows having half
generally fordable, as opposed to those out on the range and damage of short bows.
the plain. If the party approaches fairly close to The sprites are 75% likely not to be noticed by
the human settlement or elven village, it is likely passers-by, and will fight only if attacked or if the
to hear sounds indicating some kind of habita- party includes several evil characters. Their ar-
tion nearby. True to legend, the forest can be rows, though doing only half normal damage,
hazardous. Though the elves of the Old Wood bear an ointment which will put victims to sleep
are nothing like what local humans claim, and for 1d6 hours. Affected creatures are then killed
reports of them being dark-skinned are no more if of evil alignment; otherwise, they are removed
than rumor caused by ignorance and the dark- to somewhere far from the encounter. The sprites
ness of the forest itself, other dangers exist which can move silently (as elves and halflings but with-
can spell disaster for the unwary. out chance of failure), Detect Good/Evil at a 5"
distance, and become Invisible at will. When the
sprites are invisible their opponents strike at -4 to
hit.
Each sprite carries 2 ep and 4 sp. If the party
gains a measure of their trust (see elves, Wilder-
Forest Encounter Table ness Encounter Table), it may be able to get di-
rections to somewhere in the wood, so long as
For every square traversed by the party on the For- the place desired is within about 6 miles of the
est Map, consult this table on a 1 in 12 if mounted, encounter. The party may also be able to learn
1 in 10 if on foot or camped for the night. If an some very general information about the forest if
encounter is indicated, roll 2d10: it has earned the trust of these woodland crea-

29
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

tures. They know, for instance, that no fortress of any hostility or breach of his trust. If the party
men is in the Wood. is friendly in return, he will tell anything it wants to
know—providing he knows it. If the characters
need something else that he is able to provide,
Elves he may take them to his home. See Cramlack’s
Hut for more information about this encounter.
10 (5d6) Elves (AC 6; MV 6"; HD 1+1; hp 10 each;
#AT 1; D 1d6; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 with
normal bow or sword; XPV 20+2/hp) armed with Wood patrol
short sword and short bow, each wearing scale
mail and a quiver of 12 arrows. Arlond (AC 4; MV 9"; F3; hp 12; #AT 1; D 1d8;
Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit with bow or
These elves are wandering through their wood- sword; XPV 71) armed with long sword and wear-
land habitat with no particular aim other than ing chain mail and shield.
enjoying the beauty of the forest. If ten or more
are encountered, it is likely (3% chance per elf) Endorin (AC 5; MV 9"; F2/MU2; hp 9; #AT 1; D
that from 1 to 4 will have attained first or sec- 1d8; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit with bow
ond level in a class (fighter, magic-user, thief, or or sword; XPV 96) armed with long sword and
combination thereof). Elves encountered will be wearing chain mail.
immediately suspicious of the party and will avoid Spells: Charm Person, Sleep
it if possible—they are disliked by men of the area,
and are unhappy about logging activities in the 2 Scouts (AC 8; MV 12"; F1/T1; hp 8, 10; #AT 1; D
southern parts of their forest. The party will have 1d8; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit with bow
to gain their trust (see elves, Wilderness Encounter or sword; XPV 36, 40) armed with long sword and
Table) in order to obtain their cooperation. How- wearing leather armor.
ever, once it does the elves may be of great help 4 Archers (AC 5; MV 9"; F1; hp 8, 6, 5, 1; #AT 1;
to the party and may even bring it to their village D 1d6 or 1d8; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit
if they have enough confidence in its intentions. with bow or sword; XPV 18, 16, 15, 11) armed with
The DM should judge this based on the party’s short bow and long sword and wearing chain
conduct as well as the solidity of its demonstra- mail.
tion of intent, taking into account how well the
players are doing so far. They should be rewarded 3 Spearmen (AC 5; MV 9"; F1; hp 7, 4, 3; #AT 1; D
for good play, left to their own devices otherwise. 1d6 or 1d8; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit with
The king’s pass won’t carry much weight with bow or sword; XPV 17, 14, 13) armed with spear
any of the elves or other creatures of the wood. and long sword and wearing chain mail.
Note, however, that while a party which includes The Wood Patrol is sent out from Nylffew to ensure
dwarves or half-orcs may gain some measure of that all is, and remains, well in the forest. It will not
trust, the elves are unlikely to bring it to the village. be encountered much further north than the vil-
Each elf has 1 gp, 4 sp, and 5 cp. lage itself, nor does it venture south of the human
settlement at 2 on the Forest Map.
Cramlack the Druid The patrol will stop and question the party if pos-
sible, or follow and track it if not. There is a 75%
Cramlack (AC 7; MV 12"; D7; hp 34; #AT 1; D 1d6; chance that its scouts will discover the party in ad-
Int High; AL TN(g); SZ M; XPV 497) armed with staff. vance of the encounter, which would preclude
He wears Bracers of Defense AC 7. surprising the elves. If possible, the patrol will ap-
Spells: Entangle, Faerie Fire, Shillelagh, Speak proach the party and ask its intentions and busi-
With Animals, Barkskin, Charm Person Or ness in the wood. If the group is hostile or looks sus-
Mammal, Cure Light Wounds, Heat Metal, picious, the patrol may try to disarm it and take
Protection From Fire, Pyrotechnics, Summon it to Nylffew for questioning by their king. Other-
Insects, Cure Serious Wounds. wise, it will allow the adventurers to pass. If the
party seems very sincere and harmless, it might
This old druid will greet the adventurers and re- convince the patrol to take it to Nylffew, though
gard them as friendly and even trustworthy, to the elves will be ever on their guard. Note that
a point. Of course, he will react strongly to the patrol will be much more easily convinced if

30
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

there are elves or druids in the party; they will rec- Levitate, Phantasmal Force, Slow, Suggestion,
ognize members of Cramlack’s profession and Fumble, Hallucinatory Terrain.
consider them almost kindred spirits.
The leader carries 5 gp, 25 sp, and 30 cp, while
the fighter/magic-user has 6 gp, 15 sp, and 10
cp. The scouts each have 1 gp, 10 sp, and 20 cp,
while the archers and spearmen will carry 10 sp
and 10 cp.

Squirrels

1-6 Ordinary Squirrels (AC 8; MV 9"; HD 1 hp; #AT

1; D 1; Int Ani; AL TN; SZ S; XPV nil).
Squirrels (MM II, p. 114) will be encountered scut-
tling through the trees or underbrush, making a
loud rustling which will startle anyone who is jittery
(especially if they’re nervous because of what
they’ve heard about the forest) and may put the
party on alert for no reason. The squirrels will run
from the group, so an encounter with them will
not usually be of any consequence. However,
human, dwarf, or half-orc characters (especially
superstitious ones) are likely to think the squirrels
look black and/or exceptionally large; this is not
actually the case, however, and is due to poor
lighting and overly active imaginations.

Large spiders

1-4 Spiders (AC 8; MV 6"*15"; HD 1+1; hp 6 each; This young adult faerie dragon (MM II, p. 57) is the
#AT 1; D 1; Int Non; AL TN; SZ S; SA Poison; XPV 77 only one of his kind in the region. He can bite for
each). 1-2 points damage, but in combat is more likely
These creatures are 50% likely to be found scut- to use his breath weapon—euphoria gas—which
tling along the forest floor, in which case they will he puts out in a 2’ diameter cloud, enough for a
run from the party rather than attack. Otherwise, single opponent. Those caught in the gas must
they will be sitting in trees overhead, waiting for save versus breath weapon or wander around
potential victims to walk by. They will jump from blissfully for 3d4 rounds, unable to attack and
their hiding places onto the backs or shoulders of adding 1 to their armor class (e.g., a 5 becomes
unlucky party members on a successful to hit roll, a 6). The victim must also save vs. intelligence
biting and injecting their poison into the wound. each round of the gas’s effects or be oblivious to
Those bitten must save vs. poison at +2 or die in surrounding events.
1d4+1 melee rounds.
However, the faerie dragon does not attack ex-
cept in self-defense; rather, he uses his magic to
Faerie dragon play pranks on passers-by. The party will not actu-
ally meet him (at least at first), but will encounter
Dragon (AC 5, 1 when invisible; MV 6"/24"; HD
the effects of his magic, as he casts some spell or
4; hp 7; #AT 1; D 1-2; Int Genius; AL CG; SZ S; SA
other at it. For instance, he might Push one party
breath weapon, magic use; SD invisibility, magic
member embarrassingly into another or drop a
resistance 35%; XPV 310).
Darkness 15’ Radius on the entire group, or per-
Spells: Dancing Lights, Enlarge, Message, haps Fumble someone carrying a lot of equip-
Push, Audible Glamer, Darkness 15’ Radius, ment.

31
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

The lair of the dragon is high in the tree in which Glindrik (AC 10; MV 9"; I2; hp 6; #AT 1; D 1d4; Int
he was perched (ten or fifteen feet above the Very; AL LG; SZ S; XPV 77) armed with dagger.
ground), in a hollow spot with a 2’ thick floor of As an illusionist, he is greatly respected by the
leaves. Inside the lair are five huge malachites gnomes of the area, including his fellow party
which have so many flaws that they are worth members.
but 5 sp each; this, however, is apparent only on
Spells: Darkness, Phantasmal Force
close examination by a dwarf, or someone with
the secondary skill of Jeweler/lapidary, and even Finta and Thindal, sister and brother respectively,
then, the exact value will not be known—only sedentary gnomes (AC 5; MV 6"; HD 1; hp 2, 3;
"less than a gold piece each" should be given as D 1d6; Int Very; AL NG; SZ S; XPV 12, 13) wearing
their worth. Also in the dragon’s lair is a red liquid, studded leather (per the MM) and carrying club
a Philter of Love, in a glass flask. and shield. Each carry 5 gp, 10 sp, and 10 cp.
The faerie dragon looks like a miniature dragon Similar to the Elves encounter described above,
with a long, monkey-like tail, wings like a butter- gnomes are simply enjoying nature. Unlike the
fly’s, and a smile like a Cheshire cat’s. As a young elves, gnomes are likely to be more of a nuisance
adult male, he is yellow in color with a silvery than a help, as they will seek out opportunities to
tinge. play a rich prank or practical joke on the party,
and in conversation are likely to poke fun at the
characters and their physical features. If, how-
Treant ever, the party proves respectful and friendly, the
gnomes’ joking will be of a more friendly nature.
Treant (AC 0; MV 12"; HD 11; hp 61; #AT 2; D
4d6/4d6; Int Very; AL CG; SZ L; SA arouse trees; SD See The Hills (p. 42) for more details on gnome
never surprised; XPV 3586). encounters.
A treant will likely go unnoticed by the party, un-
less it is doing something overtly destructive or Pixies
evil (in particular the killing of any forest animals
or plants), in which case it will arise, approach, 3 Pixies (AC 5; MV 6"/12"; HD ½; hp 3, 2, 1 #AT 1; D
and do anything in its power—including breaking 1d4, 1d4+1, or 1d3; Int Excep; AL TN; SZ S; SA +4
heads—to stop the action. It will kill any char- to hit; SD invisibility; XPV 108, 107, 106) armed with
acters who are obviously evil but will not harm swords and bows akin to those of sprites.
anyone of good alignment if it can avoid doing Pixies will be out for much the same reason as
so. If necessary, the treant can arouse 1-2 ordi- elves and gnomes—to take pleasure from the
nary trees within 6", which will have a movement natural beauty of the forest. Their arrows come in
rate of 3" and can attack as large, full-grown three types: those which cause 1d4+1 hit points
treants. damage, those which do 1d3 hit points and
Treants are highly vulnerable to fire, giving such cause a 1-6 hour comatose sleep to victims who
attacks a +4 to hit. They save versus fire-based fail a save vs. magic, and those which cause a
attacks at -4, and take 1 extra point per die of total loss of memory unless a save versus magic
damage from them. Encounters with treants in is successful. The effects of the latter do not wear
the forest will always be away from their lairs, so off and can be reversed only by an Exorcism.
no treasure will be found. Since pixies are naturally invisible, their opponents
strike at -4 to hit. They can become Visible or
Polymorph themselves at will, and can also Know
Gnomes Alignment. Once a day they can do the follow-
Stronti Strongarm (AC 4; MV 6"; F4; hp 29; #AT 1; D ing: Dispel Magic (at 8th level), Dancing Lights,
1d6; Int Very; AL NG; SZ S; XPV 176) wearing chain ESP, and Create Illusions both visual and auditory,
mail and shield and armed with short sword. which last until magically Dispelled; 1 in 10 can
also use Otto’s Irresistible Dance once daily. Pixies
Snurri Senbak (AC 8; MV 6"; T5; hp 12; #AT 1; D 1d6; can cause confusion in any creature they touch,
Int Very; AL NG; SZ S; XPV 150) wearing leather unless the victim saves vs. magic; affected vic-
armor and armed with short sword. tims can be returned to a normal state only by a

32
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Remove Curse spell. a 17 strength can break free in two melee rounds,
one with a 14 in five rounds, etc. Even with ex-
Pixies delight in wreaking havoc and playing mis-
traordinary strength it will still take a round to get
chief upon unsuspecting creatures, particularly
free. The twelve spiders (AC 7; MV 12"*10"; HD
very serious-looking bands of adventurers. They
1+2; hp 6 each; #AT 1; D 1d2; Int Ani; AL TN; SZ S;
may harass the party using their natural invisibility,
SA poison; XPV 122 each) bite for 1 hp damage
slapping people lightly on the back of the head,
and kill their prey within 3-30 rounds unless the
pushing characters around or into one another,
victims save vs. poison at +3 on the die.
stealing minor items, and so forth. Each has 4 gp
and 5 ep. Note that webs are not really flammable.

Anyone who looks up can see the spiders. If the

Key to the Forest party forms into a circle and watches the trees
above with weapons at the ready, the monsters
1. Spider lair will find it difficult to attack—though that won’t
stop them trying. If one drops on a party in such a
formation, roll d6; on a 1 it lands successfully and
This stand of pines bears the stench of death. can make an attack; on a 2-5 it will be warded
Your blood runs cold as you examine the off outside the circle; on a 6 it will get hurt: im-
area, whose massive trees allow but the paled on a weapon, thudding onto the edge of
dimmest light to filter to the forest floor. On a shield or the top of a staff, etc. (Blunt landings
the ground is the rotting carcass of a wolf. will do 1d4 hp damage; impaling damage will
A skeleton wearing rusted chain mail lies be by weapon type +2.) If the party watches the
sprawled at the foot of a tree near a rotted trees but does not form a circle, the spiders can
leather sack, only a few paces from it. The attack on a 1-3, be warded off on a 4-5, or hurt
remains of an orc can be seen, suspended on a 6. An impaled spider can be held in place if
just feet above the ground. The very trees the person holding the weapon gives their atten-
seem to be covered with webs intertwined tion to keeping it there—both he and the spider
as in some foul puzzle. will be unable to attack or defend. Another party
member can attack the spider at +4, but on a
natural 1 he will instead hit his comrade due to
The spiders will attack the party soon after it ar- the spider’s struggling.
rives. They jump from the trees onto the backs
of their intended victims, much like their larger The orc was wearing leather armor which is now
relative the giant spider. The spiders will attack unusable, and has a short sword entangled in the
a few at a time; if the party takes no special web near its right hand. A pouch on its belt holds
precautions, on a successful to hit against the 17 cp and 11 sp, plus a small gem (a citrine) worth
victim’s armor class the spider will land on its vic- 25 gp. The skeleton is human and wears chain
tim and bite successfully. On a miss, the spider mail and a small helmet, and has a Battle Ax +1
will take d4-1 hp damage from impacting its tar- and a jeweled dagger worth 75 gp. In the sack
get’s armor or equipment. Either way, the spider nearby are a Potion of Healing (a green syrupy
will fall or drop off and attempt to scuttle away, liquid in a glass flask), 35 gp, and 45 sp. The helm
and attacks made on it will be at -2 as it tries to and chain mail will sell for only one-third normal
escape. Any that do reach the trees unharmed value due to their poor condition.
will climb back up and make another attempt in
a few rounds.
2. The human settlement
If the adventurers try to run away, unless the play-
ers specify that they leave the way they came,
each will have a 1 in 6 chance of running into Eight shacks are scattered in this clearing,
a web and becoming entangled; the spiders and piles of wood are stacked against each.
will attack trapped characters at +4, and shields When your party leaves the trees, dogs start
and dexterity bonuses cannot apply until they barking and eight men approach you, one
break free. Doing so requires one melee round with a staff, one with a sword, the rest with
per point of strength below 19; i.e., someone with axes. Their dogs are with them.

33
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

This is the kingdom’s lumber camp. If the char- 3. Elven village

acters explain who they are and make no hos-
tile moves (and especially if they show the king’s
pass), the villagers will be friendly, although they Among a group of very tall and ancient
will always suspect the intentions of any elvish, pines rests an elvish community. Several
half-elvish, or half-orc party members and will dwellings are visible up in the trees, sup-
never fully trust any strangers, especially demi- ported by low-hanging boughs. Some larger
humans. If the party tries anything hostile or pilfers structures are on the forest floor, in and
something during its stay, the villagers will set their around the greater trees. All the dwellings
dogs (AC 7; MV 15"; HD 1+1; hp 5 each; #AT 1; above are of wood and rope and seem to
D 1d4; Int Semi; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 30 each) on it be connected by catwalks, stairs, and lad-
and then attack (AC 10; MV 9"; F0; hp 5 each; ders. Those at ground level are of wood and
#AT 1; D 7x1d6, 1x2d4; Int Avg; AL TN; SZ M; XPV stone.
15 each) unless the party runs off. Fair elven voices can be heard in conver-
sation and song, while the faint strum of a
delicate stringed instrument blends with the
sound of laughter in the background. Sev-
eral of the elvenfolk can be seen in the trees
The elves of Nylffew know of this community, and above and on the ground below.
though they dislike its activities, there is little they
can do about it—the lumberjacks are under the
king’s protection, and any action taken against This is the village of Nylffew. It is ruled by Ffyll-
them would bring retribution. However, so long wyn, King of Nylffew and friend of the forest. The
as the humans don’t carry their activities north captain of the guard (AC 2, includes +3 due to
of the river, the elves leave them alone. So far dexterity; MV 12"; F6; hp 38; #AT 1; D 1d8+1; Int Ex-
there have been no serious confrontations, and cep; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit with bow or sword;
the elves’ wood patrol (q.v.) keeps watch to en- XPV 378) is armed with a Long Sword +1. Both he
sure that the loggers stay south of the river. The and the king wear elfin chain mail. The captain
lumberjacks can tell the party that the thieves’ commands the following:
stronghold is not close by, and that it’s not in the Lieutenant (AC 5; MV 9"; F3; hp 19; #AT 1; D 1d6+1
forest, at least not south of the river. or 1d8; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit with
bow or sword; XPV 77) armed with a Spear +1
and wearing a long sword.
7 Elite Fighters (AC 4; MV 9"; F2; hp 11 each; #AT 1;
D 1d8; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit with bow
The inhabitants do not carry money on their per- or sword; XPV 42 each) armed with long sword
sons (there’s nowhere here to spend it), but in and shield.
each hut can be found 5-14 (3d4+2) sp and 10-
22 (2d10+8) cp. Few items of value can be found 25 Archers (AC 5; MV 9"; F1; hp 5 each; #AT 1; D
in the shacks, as the inhabitants make all their 1d6; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to hit with bow or
items and utensils of wood. They have plenty of sword; XPV 15 each) armed with short bow and
food, though, and will be happy to provide a short sword. Each wears a quiver of 12 arrows.
generous meal for the party. The characters will
10 Spearmen (AC 5; MV 9"; F1; hp 7 each; #AT
also be welcome to stay the night in one of the
1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int High; AL CG; SZ M; SA +1 to
huts. This would be a good place to rest, heal,
hit with bow or sword; XPV 17 each) armed with
and memorize spells. The party would be wel-
spear and long sword.
come to stay longer, with meals included, for 5
cp per night each (or, better yet, in exchange for 5 Magicweavers (AC 8, 10, 10, 10, 10; MV 12";
a few weapons or tools). The community will also MU 3, 2, 2, 1, 1; hp 7, 5, 4, 3, 2; #AT 1; D 1d6; Int
happily pack them the equivalent of two days’ Excep; AL CG; SZ M; XPV 71, 38, 36, 17, 16) armed
standard rations for 1 sp per party member (the with staff. All know Magic Missile; the second and
food is perishable and will spoil if not eaten after third level elves also know Sleep, and the third
three days). level magic-user knows Web. The latter wears a

34
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Cloak of Protection +2. provide wooden shields, long and short swords,
short bows and arrows, and a week’s provisions
All except the magicweavers wear chain mail.
each, similar to iron rations but better tasting. He
Shields are of the small wooden variety.
can also give the party backpacks, wax candles,
These are the only soldiers of the guard, though belt pouches, ropes, sacks, and torches. The DM
many elves in the village have attained first or should ensure that the players do not overload
second level in fighting ability. A few others have themselves, as greed will offend the elves. The
reached first level in magic use. party will be welcome to stay in the village for as
long as it needs.
Whether the party came in peace or was cap-
tured, it will be brought before the king and his
counselor Avarnil. Ffyllwyn (AC 5; MV 12"; F8/MU7;
If asked about the thieves’ stronghold, the elves
hp 23; #AT 1; D 1d8+1; Int Excep; AL CG; SZ M; SA
will affirm that it is not in the forest, at least not
+1 to hit with sword or bow; XPV 1222), wears a
north of the road—they can no longer vouch for
Cloak of Elvenkind and a Long Sword +1, +2 vs.
the area to the south, though they know there
Humanoids.
was no stronghold anywhere in the woods before
Spells: Read Magic, Friends, Shield, Sleep, the loggers came, and the bandits have been
Ray of Enfeeblement, Web, Pyrotechnics, active much longer than that. They will say that
Gust of Wind, Suggestion, and Fumble Cramlack the Druid would know its location, and
can give the party directions to his hut at 4. They
Avarnil (AC 10; MV 12"; MU9; hp 21; #AT 1; D 1d6; would similarly refer the party to him for any in-
Int Genius; AL CG; SZ M; XPV 1194) carries a staff formation about what lies far to the south, and
and wears a Cloak of Displacement. might warn about spiders in the northern reaches
Spells: Read Magic, Charm Person, Burning of the forest.
Hands, Light, Invisibility, Levitate, Scare, Dis-
pel Magic, Hold Person, Slow, Confusion, Fear,
and Feeblemind
If the characters have attacked the village (or
elves in the forest), they will be brought disarmed
before the king for judgement. They will not be 4. Cramlack’s hut
harmed unnecessarily, and they might just be
pardoned if the king can be convinced that the
attack was somehow provoked or was due to a
misunderstanding. Otherwise, the party will likely The forest gives way to a small clearing with
be tied up, possibly put to Sleep, and placed a dwelling of stones and mortar, wooden
on a raft, put onto the river and allowed to drift planks, and thatch roof. Surrounding it is a
back toward Chaldén (still unarmed, though pos- large garden. The door of the hut rests upon
sessions might be placed on the raft depending thick wooden hinges and looks very sturdy
how badly the group behaved). Even if not sent even though it is not bound in metal.
downriver, a party which has angered Ffyllwyn
will be made to leave the village, and will be
shadowed for some distance to ensure that it
stays away. This is the home of Cramlack the Druid. If a druid
or ranger is with the party, he can identify the gar-
If the party came in peace, however, the
den’s contents as typical vegetables and herbs
king will welcome the adventurers as his
and the hut itself as nothing out of the ordinary ex-
guests—particularly if there are elves or druids in
cept that it seems to belong to someone deeply
the group. However, a party will never gain much
in tune with his natural surroundings. There is a
trust if it includes dwarves or—especially—half-
50% chance that Cramlack will not be at home,
orcs.
so half the time there will be no response to a
If Ffyllwyn can be convinced of the party’s knock at the door, which is unlocked. If he is
friendly intentions, he will be happy to assist it, home, however, he will open up and let the party
and will equip the party if it so desires. He can in.

35
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

of greater mistletoe—which would count as bor-

On the floor inside is a worn straw mat. It’s rowed mistletoe to anyone but Cramlack himself.
a one-room hut, furnished with a bed, ta-
If asked, Cramlack will tell where to find the
ble, chair, and other necessities. On your
thieves’ stronghold, and can offer three ways to
left are numerous jars and bottles, while a
get there. It may be discovered by marching
shelf on the opposite wall holds plants and
directly south from just east of the Old Wood (fol-
herbs. On the table are a small pot and a
lowing the arrow on the players’ map), though it
great wooden mug, plus a large knife and
would be easy to get lost that way, or by taking
a bucket which seems to be filled with wa-
the south road from Chaldén and then turning
ter. At the foot of the bed is a small wooden
left at the river south of the hills and following it, or
chest.
by following the river Chaldua south from Flaxton
and then taking the large branch that flows west.
If Cramlack is home he will be pleasantly sur- He can indicate these directions on the players’
prised to have guests. He will ask the party where map, and can say that the arrow seems to in-
it comes from and why it is here. He is good- dicate the general direction of the stronghold.
natured with a sense of humor, and is the only "Funny it should point that way, but then, they
druid in the area. If there is a druid in the party, he built their fort where the old castle was." He knows
will be especially welcoming and will gladly sup- a little about Old Chaldén though it was before
ply any material components needed, including his time, and can tell the party the bits of history
borrowed mistletoe. He would also be happy to outlined in this module. He will warn that south of
assist in harvesting greater mistletoe on midsum- the forest, orcs and bandits roam with impunity,
mer’s eve (day 6 of this adventure, by default). and he knows that the two groups are rivals. He
If midsummer has passed or the party isn’t will- can also show the approximate location of the
ing to lose time against its deadline, Cramlack orc lair on the players’ map.
can assist in harvesting lesser mistletoe at any
time. While waiting, the party might spend its Cramlack will warn that the stronghold will be
time healing, or exploring other parts of the forest. guarded, though the brigands are short-handed
Cramlack can direct or escort it anywhere in the now due to the king’s attacks on them. "But the
wood, though he will not approach the spider druid who trained me said there was a secret en-
lair, and can take it to the elven village, which trance that the bandits ne’er did find. B’fore the
would gain the party an immediate welcome. Sack were a guardhouse near the castle, and
in there was a trap door leadin’ to the dungeon
If Cramlack is not at home, there is a 10% chance b’low." This is, of course, a reference to the secret
per hour that he will return, and he’ll be back entrance at F. Guardhouse. He does not know
by nightfall in any event. He will not be upset how to access the entrance, only that it is there.
with a party that has entered his dwelling and
waited without taking or damaging its contents. He does not know anything about the lake at
A druid or ranger will be able to identify some of Area 6., but is familiar with the shrine at Area
the herbs on the shelf as mistletoe, oak leaves, 7.; if asked, he will say that a member of his or-
holly, acacia, radish, and tea leaves. In the pot der lived there long ago, in the latter days of
on the table are the remains of a vegetable stew, Old Chaldén—but whether he was killed or sim-
while the bucket holds ordinary water. The chest ply abandoned the place is unknown. If asked
is of pine, weighs 150gpw, and holds the following about the rumor of a wise man to the south, he
items: a golden sickle (value 200 gp), 50 gp, 30 will say that sounds like it’s probably about the
ep, 70 sp, 300 cp, a hand ax, a wooden bowl, old druid at Area 7., but he wouldn’t know either
a large white sheet, folded neatly, and a stash way.

36
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

37
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

Hamlet of Flaxton

1. Mayor’s home As you walk the road from Chaldén you cross
the river and see fields of oats and barley
2. The temple appear on either side of the road. A small
hamlet seems to have come up here, sur-
3. The merchant’s home rounded by open fields dotted with farm-
houses. A few buildings stand by the side of
4. The stables the road. You see little else of interest in this
hokey town, when the road suddenly ends
5. The tavern and you find yourselves, apparently, in the
village that Gailaif told you about.
6. Hill

7. Bridge As the king mentioned, Flaxton is under alle-

giance to him. Eight years ago, a force from
8. River Chaldén saved it from a large group of bandits
which the king’s men eventually hunted down

38
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

and destroyed. The village placed itself under party. They carry their pitchforks as tools but can
the protection of Chaldén and now owes him call upon them as weapons if necessary (count
fealty, though it still governs most of its own affairs. as military forks with –2 to hit).
The King maintains a guard here for the town’s
defense.
The village has a population of about a hundred. Patrol
The 10 guards (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 5 each; #AT
1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 15) are Lieutenant (AC 4; MV 9"; F3; hp 15; #AT 1; D 1d8;
under the command of three lieutenants (AC 4; Int Very; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 120) armed with long
MV 9"; F3; hp 16 each; #AT 1; D 1d8; Int Very; AL sword and wearing chain mail and shield.
LN; SZ M; XPV 124), and wear chain mail. They
2 Soldiers (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 5 each; #AT 1; D
are armed with long swords and spears, while
1d6 or 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 15 each)
the lieutenant carries a long sword and shield. In
armed with spear and long sword and wearing
time of need, thirty adult male farmers can be
chain mail.
summoned and will act as a semi-organized mili-
tia, armed with pitchforks (count as military forks 3 Peasant militia (AC 7; MV 9"; F0; hp 4 each;
with –2 to hit), and fighting at 0 level. #AT 1; D 1d6; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 13 each)
armed with spear and wearing studded leather.
Flaxton Encounter Table
Patrols in Flaxton are supplemented by levies from
Encounters in Flaxton occur on a roll of 1 in 6 for the local farmers, who serve in place of paying
every square traversed by the party (2 in 6 near certain taxes. If encountered, a patrol may stop
the center of town). In areas away from the cen- and question the party (see Chaldén Encounter
ter of town, the DM should ignore results above Table, Patrol for details). Each soldier has 3 sp and
17. 5 cp, while the lieutenant carries 2 gp, 11 sp, and
d20 Result 15 cp. The peasant levies carry no money.
1–4 Farmers’ sons
5–9 Farmer
10–14 Patrol Guards
15–16 Guards
17 Merchant 1–4 Soldiers (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 5 each; #AT 1; D
18 Priest 1d8; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 15 each) armed
19 Orderly with long sword and wearing chain mail.
20 Major
Guards are off-duty soldiers. They are armed at
all times, by order of the king. They will take little
Farmers’ sons notice of the party, thinking it better for a patrol
to handle strangers who aren’t presently causing
1–3 Farmers’ Sons (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 3 each; trouble. They may (25% chance) be tipsy on the
#AT 1; D see below; Int Avg; AL CN; SZ M; XPV 8 local ale, as there is little else to do here.
each).
Farmers’ sons will be poorly-dressed and possibly
obnoxious. They do not carry weapons, but can Merchant
pick up sticks and wield them as clubs if needed.
Merchant (AC 10; MV 12"; F-2; hp 2; #AT 1; D 1d4;
Int Very; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 7) armed with dagger.
Farmers
This is Thorsten Argentum, owner of the trading
1–4 Farmers (AC 10; MV 12"; F0; hp 4 each; #AT 1;
post. He is well-dressed and carries a small dag-
D 1d6+1; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 9 each) armed
ger at his belt. He will be friendly toward the
with pitchfork.
adventurers, especially if they seem well off. He
Farmers will be just adequately dressed. They will will welcome them to Flaxton, and invite them to
be moderately friendly but always wary of the his trading post at 3..

39
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

Priest If the party approaches, the guard (AC 5; MV 9";

F0; hp 6; #AT 1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int Avg; AL TN; SZ
Priest (AC 10; MV 12"; C4; hp 21; #AT 1; D 1d6; Int M; XPV 16) will stop it and ask its business. If the
Very; AL LG; SZ M; XPV 235) armed with staff. characters show the king’s pass they will be read-
Artis the priest is dressed in brown robes and walks ily admitted. Otherwise, they will have to show
with a gnarled staff. He knows the following spells: some positive evidence of their association with
Bless, Cure Light Wounds, Detect Magic, Chant, the king or convince the guard of their intentions
and Slow Poison. He will be friendly toward the or of the necessity or urgency of their audience
party, but will not cast spells for it without appro- with the mayor.
priate donations to his temple. See the DMG, p.
103-104 for details. He met Cramlack once about The mayor sits behind a large table which
three years ago, on his way to the lumber camp he uses as a desk. He wears woolen clothing
at 2 in the forest when it was being ravaged by a of high quality, seemingly a luxury in these
disease. The druid strikes him as a kindly old man, parts.
and told him that the elves are misunderstood by
humans in the area, which Artis thinks is probably
true. Rashonn wears a large belt pouch with 1 pp, 4 gp,
9 ep, 17 sp, and 5 cp and carries a broad sword.
He will express concern about the king’s grand-
Orderly
son and can tell the party that a lot of things hide
Orderly (AC 10; MV 12"; HD 1d4 (sedentary male); out in the northern regions of the Old Wood. He
hp 3; #AT 1; D 1d3; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 8) has also heard of "an old wise man" who lives in
armed with knife. the forest, whom the priest mentioned a while
ago. Unlike most people, he realizes that the ruffi-
Gerom is the mayor’s servant. He has a knife ans’ stronghold is to the south rather than in the
hanging from his belt and carries no money. He woods: "The bandits always come from the south,
will be out on business and will pay little attention especially that raid a few years back." If shown
to the party; should it waylay him, he will answer the players’ map, he will speculate that the ar-
any questions quickly and bluntly and then con- row may point toward the bandit stronghold or
tinue on his way. perhaps the site of the old Castle of Chaldén
(he’s right on both counts). He may also remark
Mayor that the forest extends a good way farther north
than the map shows. He can answer questions
Mayor (AC 10; MV 12"; F2; hp 13; #AT 1; D 2d4; about Flaxton and some things about Chaldén,
Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 74) armed with broad but knows little else about the outside world.
sword.
Rashonn wears woolen clothing of good qual-
ity (a luxury in Flaxton) and walks with an air of 2. The temple
importance—after all, he has been Lord Mayor
for over six years. His broad sword hangs at his A single bell tower rises to some three stories
belt; he will likely approach the party and ask its over this Romanesque structure. The door is
business. See 1. Mayor’s home for details about crisscrossed by two wide metal bands and
his interaction with the party. opens easily when pulled upon. Inside, sev-
eral rows of seats lead to a square stone altar
at the far end of the room. You notice as you
Key to the Hamlet of Flaxton enter that portions of the walls and ceiling
1. Mayor’s home are decorated with colorful paintings. Can-
dleholders carved in the shape of arms stick
out from the walls at regular intervals.
A single-story wooden structure directly over-
looks the road here. The guard slouching
next to the door suggests this is an important The altar is dedicated to the local farming god
building. . . for Flaxton. Gróumcrops, and bears an offering of some of

40
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

the seasonal grain (currently barley). The temple Item Cost Available
will generally be empty of worshippers, although Knife 3 gp 8
the priest can usually be found inside. Here the Meat Cleaver 1 gp 4
party can buy holy water for 25 gp per vial, and Iron Rations, 1 week 6 gp 6
also Holy Oil, a local specialty that functions as Torch 2 cp 13
either regular oil or holy water: that is, it can be Oil, flask 1 gp 7
burned in a lantern, used in combat as a flaming Tinder Box 2 gp 5
missile, or splashed on the undead. It is weaker Candle, tallow 1 cp 20
per amount than holy water, so a flask of oil is Belt Pouch, large 1 gp 3
equivalent to a vial of holy water. Undead struck Belt Pouch, small 15 sp 2
with flaming holy oil will take damage as if struck Belt 3 sp 6
by both holy water and flaming oil: 1d3+2 hp Grappling hook 17 gp 1
on a splash, 3d6+1 hp plus 1d6 hp the following Rope, 50’ 5 sp 3
round on a direct hit. Also, undead will tend to Boots, high, hard 2 sp 4
avoid anyone holding a lantern which is burning Cloak 5 sp 8
holy oil. It costs 30 gp per flask. Backpack 3 gp 2
Cold weather outfit 9 gp 4
Blanket, heavy 6 sp 5
3. The merchant’s home Bedroll 1 sp 6

If used in combat, meat cleavers should count

A high-standing single-story house bears a
as hand axes with a –2 to hit.
sign reading "TRADING POST".
Along the left wall hang some suits of The grappling hook is 75gpw encumbrance and
padded and studded armor and a small is bulky to carry, but with rope it would be useful
wooden shield. Against the wall to your right for scaling walls.
are several items of weaponry, while beside In this climate, the characters would do well to
a curtained doorway stands a guard with a equip themselves with cold weather outfits and
spear. Another man stands nearby with an bedrolls, or at least cloaks and blankets.
apprentice. As you enter, he turns and asks
what he can do for you. If looking for animals or tack and harness, the
party will be referred to the stables.

The guard (AC 5; MV 9"; F0; hp 5; #AT 1; D 1d6;

4. The stables
Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 15) carries 5 sp and 8
cp. The owner himself, Thorsten Argentum (AC
10; MV 12"; F0; hp 2; #AT 1; D 1-4; Int Very; AL A pair of large double doors identifies this as
NG; SZ M; XPV 12), wears a small dagger. In his the town’s stables. The doors are opened
belt pouch are 2 gp, 6 ep, 8 sp, 12 cp, some wide, and inside you can see the stablemas-
pipeweed (worth 2 sp), and a tinder box. His ap- ter repairing a saddle. You notice there is
prentice Venn (AC 10; MV 12"; F-2; hp 1; #AT 1; D only one horse in the building, confirming
1d6; Int Very; AL LG; SZ M; XPV 6) wears one of the your impression of the town.
kingdom’s few short swords. Behind the curtain
are Thorsten’s living quarters, which contain little
of value. Yan the stablemaster is inside (AC 10; MV 12"; F0;
hp 4; #AT 1; D unarmed; Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV
The merchant is selling the two suits of padded 14), and when the characters enter, he will ask
armor for 7 gp, the two of studded leather for if he can help them (if they have horses, he will
17 gp, and the shield for 22 sp (all his armor is gladly put them up for 2 sp each per night, includ-
human-size). The weapons on the right wall con- ing feed). If they so desire, he can sell feed grain
sist of the following: 2 broad swords (11 gp each), (1 sp per day’s worth), a saddle (poor quality—6
1 hand ax (30 sp), a spear (7 gp), and a horse- gp), horseshoes (5 cp each), saddle blankets (5
man’s mace (10 gp). He can also offer the party sp each), and the single horse in the stables, an
the following items: old draft animal (AC 7; MV 12"; HD 3; hp 5; #AT

41
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

1; D 1d3; Int Ani; AL TN; SZ M; XPV 60) which he The Hills

will let go for 20 gp and which will carry 3500 gpw
(7000 encumbered). If they need more animals,
You enter a range of low, rolling hills. Bushes
he will suggest the stables in Chaldén.
and shrubbery abound, like in the surround-
ing landscape. No mountains are visible be-
5. The tavern yond—only more hills. Trees are present but
sparse, typical of these northern regions.
A large wooden building stands by the side
of the road. Rather than a worded sign
above the door it has an iron figure of a griz- The hills form an effective southern boundary to
zled old man drinking heartily from a mug of the influence and awareness of Chaldén. The
beer. latter knows of the hills’ existence but few of its
people have ever seen them. The locals know
that whatever may remain of the realm of Old
The innkeeper’s name is Tom (AC 10; F0; hp 3; #AT Chaldén lies beyond. They are also aware that a
1; D unarmed; Int Avg; AL NG; SZ M; XPV 8). He’s tribe of orcs roams the hills and many believe that
fond of ale himself, and if the characters buy him their lair is somewhere within (rumor has confused
drinks, he will indulge them in a local rumor or them with the smaller range that does house the
two (See Rumor Table). The players might also lair). There is little remarkable about the hills.
find a customer who will tell rumors if plied with a
few drinks. Prices are as follows: Most of the trees here are in the far northeast,
Item Cost where the hills mingle with, and soon give way
Ale 5 cp to, flatland forest and the expanse of the Old
Small beer 3 cp Wood. The far southwest is relatively sparse and
Mead 2 sp barren, and there is little of notice until the hills
Wine (watered) 3 sp end and travelers find themselves once again on
Meal (equivalent to Merchant’s Meal in 1 sp level terrain.
PHB)
The area’s gnomes have made their lair in the
wooded hills of the northeast. They have reason
The tavern has no private accommodations but
to distrust humans: the people of Old Chaldén
does have a common room costing 5 cp per
confused them with elves and were known to per-
person per night, and though not the cleanest
secute them. As a result, they have grown clan-
or most pleasant of chambers, it is safe and will
nish and suspicious and will be cautious about
serve the party’s needs. The party’s animals, if
revealing their lair to any outsider, even a lone
any, must sleep in the stable at 4.
gnome adventurer. They will not confront a party
if encountered but will rather follow close by in
6. Hill the hopes of finding where it’s headed and, per-
haps, playing some sort of practical joke on it. For
The village skirts a large broad hill. There is nothing instance, a thief might steal small items from the
to speak of on the hill; it simply rises off to the left pouch of someone at the back of the party, per-
as travelers follow the road through town away haps replacing them with items of lesser value.
from Chaldén.

7. Bridge Hills Encounter Table

This is the H. Bridge on the area map (p.9). This table should be used whenever the party is in
the hills, except the wooded part in the northeast,
8. River where the Forest Encounter Table takes over. It
can also be used in and around the cluster of hills
The river Chaldua flows south here. It’s wide and at Area 5., except that Bandits won’t be found
deep and is not fordable anywhere on the Flax- in the area—they know the orcs are there and
ton or area map, except where indicated. give them a wide berth. Encounters in the hills

42
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

occur on a 1 in 12 for every square (2 miles) trav- at the cave entrance, 1d4+1 warriors will come
eled if the party is mounted, 1 in 10 if on foot or out to investigate any loud noise from outside
camping. If an encounter is indicated, roll 2d8. (such as melee with the guards), raising an alarm
upon spotting the party.
2d8 Result
2 Character party Inside the cave are twelve adult male orcs and
3 Al-mi’raj a chieftain, ten females and twice as many
4 Herd animal young, and a tribal shaman, making a total of
5 Raven 44. From here they venture forth occasionally
6 Gnomes to raid nearby areas; unlike the bandits, how-
7 Brown bear ever, they rarely trek further north than the south-
8 Orc patrol ern edge of the Old Wood. The orcs and the
9 Wild boars thieves are aware of each other’s existence and
10 Poisonous snake greatly resent one another. However, the two
11 Squirrels groups haven’t openly confronted one another
12 Wolves because they were about equally matched until
13 Wolverine recently, and the orcs are unwilling to attack a
14 Blood hawk large fortification while the bandits do not know
15 Bandits exactly where the lair is and are not about to
16 Berserkers wander through the hills looking for it.

These are detailed in the Wilderness Encounter Ten of the orcs (AC 6(x5),7(x5); MV 6"(x5),9"(x5);
Table, except for squirrels (see Forest Encounter HD 1; hp 4 each; #AT 1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int Avg
Table). (Low); AL NE; SZ M; XPV 14) are armed with spear
and battle ax, while five more carry heavy cross-
bows and battle axes. Those armed with spears
The Orc Lair will hurl them and then close with their axes. All
orcs of fighting age wear armor as well: scale or
studded mail with large wooden shield (except
This area of low hills stands out against the those with crossbows). Females and young will
flat plain around it. Travel through the area is not fight unless attacked, and then only without
not difficult; you find you can easily tread the weapons for 1-7 and 1-5 hit points damage, re-
lower areas between hills, and few places spectively, and no XPV. Adult male orcs carry 5
are bothersome to climb. sp and 10 cp each; females and young carry
nothing.
The only item of interest here is a large cave near At the back of the large common area is a
the center, dug into the side of a hill and guarded smaller cavern, the chieftain’s room, which
by three orcs (AC 6; MV 9"; HD 1; hp 5 each; #AT houses three females and a small locked iron
1; D 1d6 or 1d8; Int Low; AL LE; SZ M; XPV 15 each) coffer, hidden under his bedding; it holds 15 gp,
armed with spears and battle axes. If the party 50 sp, and 100 cp. The chieftain himself (AC 3;
travels through the middle of the hills, it will have MV 9"; HD 1; hp 8; #AT 1; D 2d4+2; Int Avg; AL NE;
a 50% chance of running into 1d4+2 orcs going SZ M; SA +1 to hit, due to strength; XPV 216) has
one direction or another. Due to footprints and a 17 strength and is armed with a Morning Star
paths left by the orcs, it is 50% likely to run across +1 and wooden shield; he wears splint mail and
the cave entrance, or will automatically do so if a battered silver bracelet worth ten gold pieces.
the party includes a ranger. If it does find the en- If there is a disturbance in the cave (including
trance, the DM should roll for initiative; if surprise is a raising of the alarm by the guards or an ac-
indicated, the surprised group does not spot the tual invasion of the lair) he will emerge from his
other until the two are at a very short distance room, armed and ready for action—which nor-
of one another. This may enable the party to mally means breaking up one of the frequent
ambush the orcs, or it may give the guards time quarrels between his men. Since he expects trou-
to alert those inside and get help—1d4+1 more ble when responding to a commotion, he will be
warriors, armed similarly. Note that even if the prepared for combat and cannot be surprised
characters do manage to sneak up on the orcs by the party.

43
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

The shaman is at third level of ability and has the The Shrine
following spells: Cause Light Wounds, Darkness,
and Chant. If the lair is attacked or invaded, he
may cast Darkness on the intruders in the hopes In the distance you see a building near the
of effectively blinding them while the warriors fire river which is obviously old, but still standing.
missiles into the blackness (at -4 to hit). If he is As you near it you see it’s mostly intact. Per-
attacked hand to hand, many warriors will come haps it’s inhabited; certainly the road ends
to his aid, as he is the tribe’s religious leader; they here, just short of the river.
will try to block him off from his assailant(s) if pos- This appears to be a shrine of some sort. At
sible. The shaman himself (AC 6; MV 9"; C3; hp the far end is an altar, of carved wood but
13; #AT 1; D 2d4; Int Avg; AL NE; SZ M; SA spell use; covered with years of dust. On your left is an
XPV 137) wears scale mail and is armed with a old desk and in the corner to your right is a
large club (count as morning star). He also carries small pool of still, greenish water. Algae and
a Brooch of Shielding which can still absorb 35 mosquito larvae can be seen inside. An old,
points of Magic Missile damage; it is in the form rusty iron cup is on the floor next to it. It has
of a gold brooch with an M-rune inlaid in silver on a dirt floor and the roof is intact.
the front.

The original inhabitant of this place built it and

If captured or negotiated with, any adult mem- dedicated the altar long ago. A stream branches
ber of the tribe can give the party directions to off from the river and feeds the pond; in ages
the bandits’ stronghold; in fact they will be glad past, water flowed out as well, circulating the
for the opportunity to cause their rivals some trou- pool. Its exit has since been blocked off, and
ble. now the water inside is still and stagnant. The
building is used by the bandits as an occasional
refuge, and they often shelter there when on pa-
trol; it has no windows or door, just an open door-
way facing east. The gable roof is of slate and
still sturdy, though it cannot support a person’s
weight; there’s no attic so the bare underside
of the roof is visible from inside and looks a little
The Lake rickety. As for the cup—thieves get thirsty too. If
This lake is surrounded by small woods. Few the party makes camp here, there will be a 5%
things dwell in this miniature forest, and even chance per day that a group of bandits (see
the squirrels seem to be scarce here. The Wilderness Encounter Table) will enter.
lake is still and quiet, with only an occasional If the party decides to brush the dust off the altar,
ripple caused by fish touching the surface of it will find strange writings carved on it. A druid
the water. (or someone with special linguistic ability, such
as a 4+ level thief who rolls successfully to read
languages, or a magic-user who has cast Com-
prehend Languages) will be able to identify them
At the far west end of this lake are the remains as Druidic letters spelling the name of Belenos, a
of an old hut, once inhabited perhaps by some sun god. The altar is built directly on the ground,
hermit or fisherman. Inside there is nothing but is constructed of solid oak and doesn’t make any
decaying furniture: a bed, two chairs, and a ta- hollow sounds anywhere it’s tapped. If the play-
ble. The bed and chairs are not strong enough to ers wish to search the room more thoroughly, they
support the weight of a person, and will collapse will notice that while the altar is covered with dust,
if used. If the adventurers search under the bed, the rest of the room is not. If they inspect the floor,
they will find nothing but dirt, leaves, and brush. they will see numerous tracks (other than their
There is nothing else inside the hut. Water that own) all over. A ranger will be able to tell that
comes in from the river is balanced by outflow the tracks were made recently and will be able
through subterranean rivers, leading ultimately to to follow them; they lead eventually to Castle
a section of the Underdark. Ripyoff.

44
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

The desk has a hidden drawer above where a for 5 gp each. The rings are of plain gold and
chair would go; on a successful search for secret will sell for 2 gp each on the open market. The
doors a small knob will be found. If the knob repetition of the number seven is coincidental,
is twisted, it will pop inward and the drawer will though it may seem eerie or intentional to the
open. It contains 7 sticks of crumbling incense, 7 party.
rotten quills, a necklace, 7 scrolls, a wand, 7 silver
The river is not fordable anywhere between here
coins, and 7 gold rings. The necklace is a steel
and Flaxton, nor is there any large brush that
medallion with a golden radiant sun, set upon a
could be used for crossing. The river can be
finely wrought silver chain, and is worth 50 gp. The
waded across without much difficulty just past
seven scrolls are yellow-brown with age; one is a
its southernmost point on the map if the party is
Warp Wood scroll; the other six are records kept
intent on reaching the other side. The country
by the former inhabitant, in Druidic. They identify
beyond the river will be found very empty and
him as a worshipper of Belenos and tell of his dig-
barren, and this might be a good time for the
ging a ditch from the river to carry water to the
party to encounter someone such as the charac-
pool in his abode, and to carry it back through
ter party (from the Wilderness Encounter Table)
another ditch to circulate the water. The records
to vouch that the stronghold is not on the far side
also tell of his "great accomplishment", which
of the river. (Perhaps they’re here because they
they say "makes the seventh scroll." The wand is
visited the mayor of Flaxton and took him literally
a Wand of Fire with seven charges. The coins are
when he said the bandits came from the south.)
several centuries old and will be only grudgingly
If not, encountering the road to Calbut may be
accepted as currency, but if the players think of
enough to convince the wisest member of the
it, they may be able to sell them to an antiquary
party that it has gone too far east.

45
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

Castle Ripyoff

1. Master Burglar’s Room 6. Storage Room

2. Master Burglar’s Secret Storeroom 7. Thieves’ Quarters
3. Lieutenants’ Rooms
8. Stables
3a. Fourth Level Lieutenant
9. Watch Towers
3b. Third Level Lieutenant
10. Gates
3c. Third Level Lieutenant
4. The Great Hall 11. Courtyard

5. Kitchen 12. Ruins

46
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Atop a low hill is a wooden stockade with If the party finds a hiding spot (likely the copse
guard towers at each corner. Although or guardhouse) and decides to wait and watch,
the gates are open, the place is probably there will be a 50% chance per day of a bandit
guarded on the inside. Some ways in front of patrol coming or going from the stronghold (see
it is part of a ruined building, and downriver Wilderness Encounter Table). Each 12-hour day
is a dense stand of trees. or night the DM should also roll for the chance of
a wilderness encounter—which, if it happens in
daylight, may blow the party’s cover.
The fort was built about fifty years ago by the
A frontal assault should appear foolhardy (and
bandits upon the ruins of the old fief of Chaldén.
would be, since the bandits are expecting one),
Because of its raised position it will be visible from
and gaining entrance by disguise would be prob-
about a square’s distance on the area map,
lematic, as the thieves mostly know one another.
at least in good weather. Underground there
While the characters would certainly be seen ap-
still remains the old dungeon, part of which the
proaching during the day, they could creep up
outlaws are now using. When they came, they
on the fort after dark: if the party is careful there
cleaned out much of what had moved in over
is a good chance it could reach the walls with-
the years—spiders, rats, and so on—in the acces-
out being seen. First, the DM should roll a d4 to
sible parts. There was also an area which had
determine the phase of the moon:
been blocked off by boulders, though whether
by natural cave-in or deliberate action no one d4 Result
remains to tell. The bandits never bothered to 1 New moon
dig these out, since they had no need for more 2 Half moon, waxing
dungeon space. 3 Full moon
4 Half moon, waning
The stronghold is the headquarters of the brig-
ands, and at any time there will be 29 inside. The
The party has a base chance of 90% to reach the
makeup of this gang is as follows: 17 first and 8
walls without being spotted, modified as follows:
second level thieves, 3 lieutenants (2 third and 1
fourth level), and the Master Burglar, a sixth level Description Modifier
thief. First level thieves carry 10 sp and 10 cp, New moon +20%
while those of second level each have 1 gp, 10 Full moon -20%
sp, and 15 cp. The officers are described in their Raining or snowing +10%
rooms below. Per party member (except thief -5%
characters)
Two years ago, the leader of the bandits was as-
Per party member who is encum- -5%
sassinated by his lieutenant, the current Master
bered
Burglar, who then took command of the place.
Per party member in bulky armor -10%
This incident became known in Chaldén about a
(see below)
year later, when a captured outlaw mentioned it
Party was spotted from a distance, -10%
under interrogation.
e.g. at the guardhouse, or a bandit
Approaching the castle would be tricky, as there escaped from C. The Hill Encounter
is no good cover nearby. If the party has steeds Party was spotted earlier attempt- -10%
or pack animals, it must decide what to do with ing to approach (cumulative with
them. There is a dense copse not too far from the being spotted from a distance)
castle, along the river to the southwest, where an-
imals could be left attended or tied up, though For purposes of stealth at the castle, bulky armor
there would be a 30% chance of them being will refer to the bulkier, noisier metal armors: scale,
spotted over the course of a day. Anyone ap- splint, banded, and plate (also shields). Padded,
proaching the copse is likely to be spotted from leather, studded, ring, and chain do not count
the castle, unless they swing wide to the west as bulky armor for this purpose, but anyone in
and approach it from the far side so as to avoid chain will subtract 5% from the chances of suc-
being seen; if they are spotted, the thieves will cess. Alternative armors will have to be at the
watch the area, much like with the guardhouse DM’s discretion: brigandine, for instance, should
at F (p. 17). probably not count as bulky here since its plates

47
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

are muffled between padding and a leather cov- d00 Result

ering. 01–70 Miss
71–74 Catch and slip
If the party is seen, it will be impossible to sneak 75–00 Catch
into the fortress that night, or to approach the
walls without being seen and attacked from – Add 1% per point of strength above 6, plus
above. The party could lie low and try again 1% per attempt already made.
the next night, but at a 10% penalty for being
– If the party is experiencing strong winds, sub-
spotted earlier attempting to approach. Note
tract 5% from the roll. If stormy winds, sub-
that, depending on circumstances, raising the
tract 15%.
alarm might be localized rather than alerting the
whole place: maybe an isolated group of ban- – Short demihumans (dwarf, gnome, halfling)
dits is alerted to the presence of intruders but should subtract 5% from the roll.
doesn’t get a chance to raise the whole castle.
– Catch and Slip indicates a grapple which
The party might attempt to scale the walls. A will not hold a person’s weight and must be
thief can do it, using the Climb Walls ability with retried.
the following modifiers: – On a Miss, or a Catch and Slip, there is a
5% chance that the hook will fall on the
Description Modifier
thrower’s head for 1d6 points of damage.
Windy weather -5%
Stormy winds -15% – The party can make as many attempts as
Weather has been dry for the past +5% desired, but each time there is a chance of
two days being heard. An unsuccessful grapple has
Raining, or has rained that day -5% a 20% chance of alerting the castle, 25% if
Snowing, or has snowed that day -10% it lands on the thrower.
Thieves climbing with the aid of the rope will suc-
The thief must also take off encumbering equip- ceed automatically. Others will have a base 80%
ment, such as a heavy backpack, or suffer a chance of success, modified as follows:
25% penalty during the climb. Any number of
attempts can be made, but on a fall a thief will Description Modifier
take 1-6 hp of damage and have a 15% chance Wearing plate -25%
of alerting the castle. Once at the top he can Wearing chain, splint, scale, -15%
tie a rope for the others to climb. Equipment can banded
be hauled up and lowered down the other side. Wearing studded or ring -5%
Armoring up out in the open, of course, is almost Wearing no armor +10%
certain to draw attention—though weapons can Dwarf or Halfling -5%
be quietly readied without incident. Gnome -10%
Half-orc +5%
A magic-user could do the same kind of thing by Windy day -5%
using Spider Climb, though his sticky hands will Strong winds -10%
be unable to tie the rope for the duration of the Stormy winds -25%
spell—meaning he will have to wait at the top of Raining -5%
the wall until it’s worn off. This will not carry any Snowing/Hailing -10%
extra risk if he casts the spell from memory, but
if he uses a scroll the spell will last for 13 rounds, Anyone who falls will take 1d6 damage and have
giving him a 10% chance of being seen. a 20% chance of raising the alarm, modified
by the inverse of their armor modifier above (so
Alternatively, if the party has rope and a grap- someone in plate would be 20+25=45% likely to
pling hook, it can try to throw it up and catch alert the castle). Multiple attempts can be made.
the top of the wall. Any character can make Prior to the ascent, the DM should warn that
the attempt so long as they have a strength of metal armor will make climbing difficult: realis-
at least 6 to reach the top. The results will be as tically the characters should know to leave such
follows: heavy gear behind. Also, moving around in the

48
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

fortress in bulky armor (as defined above) will cer- gate from inside (leaving backpack and any-
tainly alert the castle; even armoring up in such thing heavy behind, of course). Once over the
gear after hauling it over will make enough noise wall, they must remove the bolt locking the gate
to attract attention. shut; a successful roll to Open Locks will do so
without being heard and will allow the party to
Once on top, the only way inside is to climb
get inside before attracting attention. (It’s simple
down again—intruders would be noticed strug-
to open but the bolt is heavy, so the roll should
gling along the top of the wall toward the guard
be made at +2 per point of strength, so if Str 15
towers. Note: did the party bring a second rope
the roll will be at +30%.) If they fail that roll, they
for the climb down, or did they think to tie it in
will be noticed and have to try to talk their way
the middle so the rope would reach the ground
out of the situation. If the thief is female this may
on either side? (A grappling hook can simply be
not be an option, since all the bandits are men.
readjusted.) Jumping or dropping from the top
will do 1d8+2 damage and have a 20% chance Consider this an opportunity for role-playing; a
of raising the alarm. clever player may be able to convince the tower
guards he was doing something innocent like
If there is a rope for the party to climb down, it
having a look outside, which would get him out
can be assumed that everyone will descend suc-
of immediate trouble but earn him a harsh re-
cessfully (though the DM should try to make this
buke and an order to get inside and stay away
sound dramatic, even perilous).
from the gate. It might also get the party spotted,
If the sound of a fall doesn’t raise the alarm, party especially if his excuse was that he heard a noise
members still atop the wall will have a chance outside. Either way he won’t be able to try again
of being seen: for each person still up there the without being seen. Once out of immediate view,
chances are 5% at new moon, 10% at half moon, the thief can scale the walls back out, but with a
or 15% at full moon. chance of being seen: 5% at new moon, 10% at
half moon, 15% at full moon, or 35% if he falls.
Pounding spikes between the posts that make
up the wall would make climbing much easier, If the Open Locks roll was successful, the party
but pounding them in would immediately draw can slip inside but will then be noticed and the
attention. alarm raised—the clanking and squeaking of
metal armor inside the walls will be unmistakable.
Should the party consider returning to Chaldén
This will be a time for quick action: the party may
or Flaxton for rope or a grappling hook, the DM
choose to find a defensive position behind the
should take note of how many days have passed
buildings, try to hide inside them, or maybe run
and how long it would take to get back to town
into the courtyard and make a break for the dun-
and return, and compare to the 27 days the
geon entrance. There will be 2d4 thieves in the
party has to find Alfrëdor. The players should be
courtyard once the alarm is up. The party might
apprised of this, since presumably the deadline
be able to sneak in the front gates without being
would be weighing heavily on the characters’
spotted, if it leaves its bulky armor outside, includ-
minds, though the players themselves may have
ing shields and helms. The chance of entering
forgotten it.
that way undetected would be 80% minus 5% for
An attempt to shoot the tower guards during the each member of the party (except the one who
day will be at -4 as the towers provide about 50% opened the gate), minus 10% at full moon, plus
cover. On a night of the full moon it will still be at 10% at new moon.
-4, as it’s assumed the party will wait for a chance
Once the alarm has been raised, any bandits
to see the guard silhouetted clearly. At half-moon
encountered thereafter will be alert and ready
the shot will be at -6, and at new moon -8. A
for action. Further, the officers will be about, co-
missed shot will almost certainly raise the alarm,
ordinating the effort—so their rooms will be un-
and a nonlethal hit may do so as well—but if the
occupied. Although the bandits prefer to avoid
party is able to take out the guard after dark, it
direct confrontation, they are quite capable of
could scale the tower (as above) and then simply
fighting when necessary, and while they look out
climb down the ladders into the stronghold.
mainly for themselves, they do have a sense of
The party might prefer to avoid ascending the community and security at the castle and will de-
walls by having its thief climb over and open the fend it to the best of their abilities, and they will

49
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

not betray their leader or the band in general. This chance will increase if the alarm has been
raised. Except where otherwise noted, the ban-
If the castle is frontally assaulted, the alarm will
dits are all of average strength and constitution
go up and the inhabitants will be prepared to de-
(no bonuses) some have a higher dexterity that
fend it. The gates, if open, will be shut and heavily
improves their armorclass.
barred, and the guard towers will be reinforced,
at least in the direction of the attack. Note that if
the party finds its way inside and the bandits are
hard-pressed, they may retreat into the dungeon, Alarm has not been raised: The chance of an
which could complicate the rescue. encounter is 1 in 6, and 1d3 thieves will be en-
countered. An officer will not be encountered
If the players try to thin the defenders by drawing outside of his quarters. Roll d12 to determine who
out small groups of them (say, by feigning retreat is encountered.
after being spotted) and are clever about how
they do it, they might manage to draw out a
small sortie, but this won’t work a second time. Alarm has been raised: The chance of an en-
The walls of the castle are about 1’ thick and counter increases to 2 in 6, and 1d6 thieves will
15’ high, while each of the guard towers is 20’ be encountered. Roll d20 to determine who is
high. The walls are made of vertical logs with encountered, rerolling results above 17 or for any-
pointed tips, held together about 2’ from the top one already eliminated.
by logs sliced in half lengthwise. Although there is
no parapet along the wall, it is possible to perch
there (precariously and visibly) with one’s feet on Officers
the half logs. The guard towers are also made of d4 Officer
vertical logs and have rough plank roofs. Each 1 Gantri, Master Burglar
tower has the capacity to hold up to four people Dex 17 AC4 HP 24
and contains a pile of fifteen large rocks and ef- Broad Sword +2 and dagger
fectively unlimited sling stones. Anyone atop the 2 Arval, 4th level lieutenant
wall or in a tower who takes a look inside the com- Dex 16 AC5 HP 14
pound is likely to notice the dungeon entrance long sword (+1 damage) and dagger
at 12. Ruins. 3 Ragosh, 3rd level lieutenant
If captured, the characters will be questioned Dex 13 AC7 HP 14
and then thrown into the cells at 4 in the dun- broad sword and dagger
geon, without weapons, armor, or equipment. 4 Jalon, 3rd level lieutenant
The bandits will demand another 250 gp ransom Dex 14 AC8 HP 9
per party member, which Gailaif will not pay. If broad sword and dagger
the party has played well and is deserving of a
second chance, the DM should allow it an oppor-
tunity to escape (perhaps the group’s thief kept Bandits positioned on map
a backup lock pick where its captors didn’t think
to look). Otherwise, it will soon become another Location Bandits
casualty of Chaldén’s war against the outlaws. Kitchen T1, Dex 14, AC 8, HP 3
Once the remainder of the month has elapsed, T1, Dex 11, AC 8, HP 4
Gailaif will know his grandson is dead and will T1, Dex 13, AC 8, HP 1
find and storm the castle, wiping out the bandits. T1, Dex 9, AC 8, HP 2
Unfortunately, by then it will be too late to save Dungeon room 2 T1, Dex 12, AC 8, HP 3
either Alfrëdor or the party. Main Guardroom T2, Dex 15, AC 7, HP 8
(dungeon room 5) T1, Dex 11, AC 8, HP 3
T1, Dex 9, AC 8, HP 4
Castle Ripyoff Encounter Table Guard Towers NW: T1, Dex 11, AC 8, HP 5
There is a likelihood that the party will encounter NE: T1, Dex 11, AC 8, HP 4
random thieves in the outdoor sections of the SW: T1, Dex 10, AC 8, HP 2
castle, generally whenever they turn a corner. SE: T1, Dex 10, AC 8, HP 3

50
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Wandering bandits yard. A successful search at the other secret door

will reveal a small knob; if it’s pushed, the door
d20 Bandit will open to 2. The only thing under the bed is
1 T1, Dex 10, AC 8, HP 6 a bedpan. Note that any disturbance here will
2 T1, Dex 12, AC 8, HP 6 likely (65% chance) raise the alarm, and will in
3 T1, Dex 15, AC 7, HP 4 any case attract 1d4+1 thieves to help him (use
4 T1, Dex 16, AC 6, HP 2 the Castle Ripyoff Encounter Table). The tapestry
5 T1, Dex 16, AC 6, HP 6 depicts a stone castle (the old fief of Chaldén)
6 T1, Dex 16, AC 6, HP 6 and will sell for up to 25 gold pieces, but weighs
7 T2, Dex 12, AC 8, HP 8 200gpw encumbrance.
8 T2, Dex 15, AC 7, HP 12
9 T2, Dex 9, AC 8, HP 10
10 T2, Dex 16, AC 6, HP 9 2. Master Burglar’s Secret Storeroom
11 T2, Dex 17, AC 5, HP 8
A chest is here, locked and trapped with a poi-
12 T2, Dex 17, AC 5, HP 5
son (type B) needle. If someone sets it off, they
13 T2, Dex 15, AC 7, HP 8
must save vs. poison or take 25 hp damage in
14 Jalon, 3rd level lieutenant
1d3 rounds. Inside the chest are 20 ep, 65 sp, 270
Dex 14 AC8 HP 9
cp, a suit of Ring Mail +2 (human-size), and a vial
broad sword and dagger
(6 oz.) of type B insinuative poison. The chest
15 Ragosh, 3rd level lieutenant
has a false bottom (treat as a concealed door)
Dex 13 AC7 HP 14
containing 8 pp, 34 gp, and a quiver holding a
broad sword and dagger
dozen Arrows +1.
16 Arval, 4th level lieutenant
Dex 16 AC5 HP 14
long sword (+1 damage) and dagger 3. Lieutenants’ Rooms
17 Gantri, Master Burglar
These rooms belong to the Master Burglar’s lieu-
Dex 17 AC4 HP 24
tenants. Each wears leather armor and carries
Broad Sword +2 and dagger
a dagger as a backup weapon. Small locked
chests are hidden under their beds. Note that
a disturbance in any of these rooms may (45%
Key to Castle Ripyoff chance) put the entire castle on alert, and either
way will bring 1d6-1 thieves to the aid of the lieu-
1. Master Burglar’s Room
tenant concerned (see Castle Ripyoff Encounter
Table).
The room contains a bed, table, and chair.
An old tattered tapestry is on the south wall.
3a. Fourth Level Lieutenant
Little else is of interest here except the fellow
who’s drawing a sword to defend himself.
You’ve apparently entered someone’s bed-
room—he’s grabbed an iron flask from the
This is Gantri, the Master Burglar. He (AC 4, in- table and taken a quick sip from it. Then he
cludes +3 due to dexterity; MV 12"; T6; hp 24; #AT vanishes.
1; D 2d4+3 or 1d4+1, includes +1 damage due to
strength; Int Very; AL CE; SZ M; SA +1 to hit due
to strength; XPV 417) is the leader of the outlaws. This is Arval, the second in command. He (AC 7,
The weapon he’s drawing is a Broad Sword +2, includes +1 due to dexterity; MV 12"; T4; hp 14;
and he wears a suit of Leather Armor +1. A dag- #AT 1; D 1d8+1 or 1d4; Int Very; AL LN; SZ M; XPV
ger is hidden in his right boot, while in a pouch 160) has a Potion of Invisibility with 5 of 8 (now 4)
he carries 7 gp, 12 sp, and 15 cp. partial doses remaining. He used a partial dose
when the party entered in order to slip unseen
A secret door is above his bed, on the east wall. through the door to escape and alert the castle.
A successful search there (either inside or out) He may instead back stab a party member on
will uncover a small square panel; when pressed, his way out (which will cancel his Invisibility) and
it opens an escape hatch to the eastern court- then run for the Master Burglar’s room, where the

51
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

two can make a stand and which will attract at- 4. The great hall
tention, as outlined in 1. The chest under his bed
contains 6 gp, 4 ep, 20 sp, and 60 cp. A long table with twenty chairs or so per side
dominates the room. A couple dozen places
He carries a long sword whose hilt is inlaid are set with plates, cups, glasses, knives, and
with silver and whose pommel is decorated a few goblets. There’s a set of double doors
with banded agate. Though not magical, the off to your right.
weapon is of exceptional quality (per the DSG, p.
26) and does +1 damage, so it will fetch 100 gp
on the open market. In his pouch are 10 sp and This is the dining hall where the outlaws take their
25 cp. meals. If the players decide to count the place
settings, they will find 54. (This means there are
25 empty settings; a few are for those out on er-
rands or patrol, but most are the result of Gailaif’s
3b. Third Level Lieutenant attacks prior to the kidnapping.) The 29 plates
and 13 cups are practically worthless, but the 29
This room contains a bed, table, and chair, knives can be sold for a copper piece each, the
as well as an ugly man who snarls and comes 12 glasses for two coppers apiece, and the four
at you. copper goblets for 3 sp each. The goblets are
used by the Master Burglar and his lieutenants.

This is Ragosh (AC 7; MV 9"; T3; hp 14; #AT 1; D 2d4

or 1d4; Int Avg; AL NE; SZ M; XPV 116), a half-orc, 5. Kitchen
who carries a broad sword. He was born at the
orc lair at 5 but was never really accepted there, This room contains a fireplace, a table, three
so he’s thrown in his lot with this band. He is the chairs, and four outlaws who don’t seem ex-
only non-human here, and isn’t overly liked but cited to be here, but are startled by your ar-
is respected or at least feared by the others. He rival as they grab for the knives and cleavers
habitually wears studded leather like his kin at 5, scattered on the table.
as a mark of personal distinction (see the table
near the end of this module for its effects on his
thief abilities). His chest holds 4 gp, 2 ep, 15 sp, These men (AC 8; MV 12"; T1; hp 3, 4, 1, 2; #AT 1;
and 5 cp, and in a small belt pouch he has 8 sp D 1d6 or 1d3; Int Avg; AL NE; SZ M; XPV 26, 28, 22,
and 15 cp. 24) are here on cook duty, which is always given
to the first level thieves. They will recognize the
party as intruders and are grabbing the knives
and cleavers to defend themselves; they are not
3c. Third Level Lieutenant eager to fight but will if they have to. In combat,
the cleavers count as hand axes with a -2 to hit. If
The room you just entered has a bed, table, the party attacks them, 1d4-1 others will hear the
and chair, and a man who’s preparing to noise and enter, joining the fray (use the Castle
defend himself. Ripyoff Encounter Table); if the party backs out in-
stead, they will wait until it’s gone and then raise
the alarm.

This is the junior lieutenant, Jalon. The chest under

his bed holds 3 gp, 2 ep, 11 sp, and 40 cp. He
(AC 8; MV 12"; T3; hp 9; #AT 1; D 2d4 or 1d4; Int 6. Storage room
High; AL CN; SZ M; XPV 92) has a broad sword
and wears a pouch holding 5 sp and 10 cp. Jalon This looks like a storeroom of some kind.
is generally quiet, but excitable. He is the newest Swords and daggers line the walls. The room
of the officers, having been promoted after the also contains several lanterns and a large
assassination of the group’s previous leader. cask.

52
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

On the walls are two long swords, eight broad An attack upon the guards at 10. (unless resolved
swords, fifteen daggers, three suits of leather ar- quickly and quietly while no one is in the court-
mor, and a dusty but usable suit of ring mail, all yard) is sure to be noticed by guards up here,
human size. There are 8 hooded and 1 bullseye who will give a hue and cry, raising the alarm.
lantern on the floor, and the cask contains oil for Each tower is accessed by ladders at ground
them. Next to its spigot is a bucket with a narrow level, but since the ladders creak, they are 75%
spout for refilling the lamps in the dungeon. likely to alert those above that someone’s com-
ing up. Those on guard won’t hesitate to hurl
7. Thieves’ quarters rocks at intruders climbing the ladders, or even
push them over if need be.

Many bunks fill this room, but apart from

those inside you see little of interest here. 10. Gates

Normally the gates are open during daylight,

Thirty bunks are within. This is where the castle’s but in case of open assault or a raising of the
first and second level thieves live. There is no alarm they will be shut immediately and the tow-
treasure here because no one wants to leave his ers will be reinforced. Closing the gates requires
money lying around with a bunch of thieves. Five 2 rounds, but thereafter they are impossible to
to eight (d4+4) will be here at any time; although force open without siege weaponry. If they see
they will not initially take notice of the door open- the party approaching to investigate, the tower
ing (people come and go all the time), if the guards will raise the alarm. If the party looks
party enters it will be seen and confronted. See strong the defenders will close the gates (which
Wandering Bandits Table for the thieves’ levels, open outward); if it looks weak, they might in-
ignoring rolls above 13. A fight here is 50% likely stead lie low and leave them open in order to
to alert the castle. lure the party inside where it can be surrounded.

8. Stables
11. Courtyard

The double doors of this room give it away as One to four bandits will be here at any time dur-
a stable; there are several horses here plus ing the day, 1d3-1 at night, or 2d4 day or night if
tack and harness. the alarm has been raised. Intruders who enter
this area wearing bulky armor will be noticed and
cause the alarm to be raised. Intruders not wear-
Ten draft horses occupy the sixteen stalls here. ing bulky armor might cross the area undetected:
Twelve bits and bridles, 11 harnesses, 10 saddles, if there are bandits in the courtyard, the party
8 small saddle bags, and 14 saddle blankets can would be 90% likely to be noticed during the day,
be found in its tack room. The outlaws do not or 70% at night. If no one is in the courtyard, dur-
enjoy looking after the horses, so they avoid this ing the day a party not in bulky armor would be
place and will not be encountered here unless 20% likely to be noticed by those up in the guard
the alarm has been raised. towers; at night it would be only 10% likely to be
spotted from the towers.
Watch towers

These towers each contain 2 chairs, 1 first level 12. Ruins

thief, and a pile of 15 large stones. The stones can
be hurled down, doing 2d4 points damage on a The remains of the old castle contain only rub-
hit. They have a range of 40 feet from up here ble and debris. These are the only stone struc-
and can be used on targets inside or outside the tures in the complex, although a few buildings use
castle walls. The tower guards also have slings them as parts of walls. One section in the court-
and a large pile of small stones for them. Stones yard holds stairs to the dungeon level, which will
fired from up here have 25% greater range (short be noticeable to anyone entering the courtyard,
5", medium 10", long 20”). perched on the walls, or in the watch towers.

53
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

Ripyoff Dungeon

1. Central Chamber 12. Empty Chamber

2. Guardroom to Storage Room 13. Entryway to Part III
3. Storage Room 14. Room of the King’s Sage
4. Prison Cells
15. King’s Office
5. Main Guardroom
16. King’s Personal Storeroom
6. Torture Chamber
17. Weapons Storage Room
7. Prison Room
18. Wreaked Chamber
8. Cleaned-Out Room
9. Wizard’s Library 19. Cleric’s Quarters

10. Passage to Dungeon Level 20. Prayer Room

11. Entrance Cave 21. Tunnel Blockage

54
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

Wandering Monsters in the Dungeon 1. Central chamber

Part I: Accessible and Inhabited (Rooms 1–7) You come into an empty square room with
passages going off to the north, west, and
Check in every hall or unoccupied room entered east as far as can be seen. A lamp on the
by the party: 1 in 6 if the alarm has not been wall gives the room some light, and the pas-
raised, 2 in 6 if it has. Encounters will be as de- sage east is also lit by lamps; the other two
scribed in the Wandering Bandits Table. Camping are dark. There are stairs going up to the
to rest up anywhere in Part I is 90% likely to get south.
the party spotted.

Note that any great disturbance in Part I or II

(such as a loud combat) may attract 1d3 bandits This is nothing more than an entry chamber. Near
and will have a 20% chance of alerting the entire the northwest and southeast corners there are
castle, unless there is a closed door between the old lamps (treat as lanterns) built into the walls.
disturbance and the stairs at 1. They are still functional, and the thieves use the
one on the northwest wall. The three passages
leading from this room also have built-in lamps
Part II: Accessible But Uninhabited (Rooms 8–9) about every forty feet along the wall on one side,
though only those in the passage to room 5. are
Check in every hallway entered: 1 in 8, or 1 in 10 if in use. Someone could enter here and see their
the party is camping. Encounters will normally be way to 5., but anywhere else they would need
with 1-2 giant rats (AC 7; MV 12"; HD 1d4 hp; #AT to bring their own illumination. The other lamps
1; D 1d3; Int Semi; AL N(E); SZ S; SA disease; XPV haven’t been used in a century and are com-
7+1/hp). They will attack with a 5% chance per pletely dry; they could be used again by adding
bite of transmitting a serious disease unless the oil and a wick. The outlaws use the northwest
victim saves vs. poison (consult the disease table lamp because it better illuminates the hallway
on page 14 of the DMG). Once the alarm has they use, but it also means that an intruder in the
been raised, encounters will be with 2-4 thieves corridor from Part II or III will be in shadow, hidden
instead. by the glare of the lamp.

Part III: Unexplored (Rooms 10–21)

Check (1 in 6) in every unoccupied room or sec-

tion of hall entered, except in and between F.10. 2. Guardroom to storage room
and F.11. Also make a check if the party is en-
camped. Encounters will be with (80%) 1d6 giant You see a room with a table in the middle,
rats or (20%) 1 small gelatinous cube (AC 8; MV at which a man sits facing you. He jumps up
6"; HD 4; hp 10; #AT 1; D 2d4; Int Non; AL TN; SZ L; as you enter.
SA Paralyzation, surprise on 1d3; SD resistance to
cold and immunity to certain other attacks; XPV
190). Note that the dungeon contains only one
’cube. The table has two chairs. The man is a first level
thief (AC 8; MV 12"; T1; hp 3; #AT 1; D 2d4 or 1d4;
Int Avg; AL LN; SZ M; XPV 26), armed with a broad
Key to Ripyoff Dungeon Level sword and dagger, and is just finishing a special
meal of roast pork from a boar he helped bring
Part I: Accessible and Inhabited down. He faces the entryway and thus cannot
be surprised. His pouch holds 3 sp and 9 cp. A
In Part I, the players should decide whether to tallow candle burns in an iron holder (value 2 cp)
close doors behind them. Closing doors may help in the center of the table, eerily illuminating the
avoid detection but will show the party on its way room and hiding the ceiling in a haze of greasy
out. smoke.

55
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

3. Storage room a ring of keys; one opens Alfrëdor’s cage and

the others are to the doors at 4. At A is a blank
section of plastered-over wall (see room 9. for
Inside this chamber are carelessly strewn
details). The two other thieves (AC 8; MV 12"; T1;
many objects—poles, a wheel, a halberd,
hp 3, 4; #AT 1; D 2d4 or 1d4; Int Low; AL NE; SZ M;
and others, plus a chest with a beat-up lock.
XPV 26, 28) carry broad swords and daggers.
The fight in this room will attract the guard from
This nearly bare room houses excess items which room 2. on the fourth melee round, and if the
the thieves neither use nor care to store above alarm is up already, a pack of 1d4+3 other ban-
ground. It contains a pair of broken wooden dits will come on the sixth. Note that if the
poles, a wagon wheel, five tattered blankets, party comes here from 9. via the concealed
a pair of empty iron flasks, and a large empty door(way), it should receive a +1 on its initiative
leather sack. Near the south wall are chaotically roll since the bandits aren’t expecting company
piled some weapons: a glaive, two spears, a bas- from this direction, and will avoid attracting at-
tard sword, a halberd, and three pitchforks, all in tention from elsewhere as the door to the hallway
good condition. Against the east wall is a large will be shut.
wooden chest with a broken lock which holds
two empty quivers, a dozen iron spikes, a string of
prayer beads, and a wooden holy symbol. Two 6. Torture chamber
small shields are also propped up against the
wall. Beyond the door you see a gruesome
sight—a torture chamber ready for use on
any prisoners. Inside are devices used for
4. Prison cells interrogation by the bandits.

There are several doors evenly spaced along

the wall, each with a barred window. This room, in reality used only to frighten those
few captives the brigands take, holds a brazier
and branding irons, chains (along the north wall),
Each room has a heavy, reinforced oaken door and a small rack. It is antique equipment left over
and contains a bed and stool, both of them old from Old Chaldén and has not been used since
and dusty. These cells are not currently in use as then—but this is apparent only on close examina-
the bandits rarely take prisoners, and the doors tion.
are unlocked. There is nothing of value inside.
7. Prison room
5. Main guardroom
You open the door and see a large iron
You push open the heavy oaken door into a cage, inside which is a young man fitting
room with a table in the center. When you the description Gailaif gave of his grandson.
come in, three men drop their cards on the He looks visibly glad to see you.
table, draw swords, and prepare to engage.

Alfrëdor is inside the cage which, though old, is

There are four chairs at the table; an old battered still quite strong. On the east wall hangs a whip
lantern rests on it, illuminating the room (it has four used by the guards to threaten him, though he
hours of oil remaining). The cards, if gathered up, has not been physically mistreated. Unless the ad-
will make a full—but much used—deck (value 1 venturers find and take the keys from the guards
gp). These guards are here to see that Alfrëdor in room 5. they may have a hard time getting him
does not escape and no one comes to rescue out if the party’s thief can’t pick the lock. Note
him. The leader (AC 7, includes +1 due to dex- that any great noise here, especially the sort that
terity; MV 12"; T2; hp 8; #AT 1; D 2d4+1 (strength); might be needed to free him without the key, will
Int Avg; AL LE; SZ M; SA +1 to hit, due to strength; attract 2-4 thieves to the scene, and the ensu-
XPV 59) wields a broad sword and on his belt is ing fight has a 2 in 6 chance of raising the alarm

56
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

(unless the party thought to close the door to 9. Wizard’s library

this room or either door in room 5.). Each party
As you round another bend in the hallway,
member can make one attempt to bend bars to
it widens into a large room with a table
free Alfrëdor quietly, but any further attempts will
and chairs and two large bookshelves along
draw attention.
the walls. Between them is a blank section
of wall, made of plaster rather than stone.
Alfrëdor himself is a first level magic-user, though The bookshelves are mostly empty, but hold
he will not reveal this if he can avoid it, since peo- some ancient tomes of large size.
ple in the region take a dim view of spell casters.
Though he has memorized Shocking Grasp, he
(AC 10; MV 12"; MU1; hp 2; #AT 1; D unarmed; Int
Genius; AL NG; SZ M) will not cast it unless he has
to. He is proficient with dagger and will accept Green slime has grown on parts of the ceiling
one for defense, if the party offers—he may ask in front of the bookshelves (but not between
if someone has a spare. He will happily return them), and will have a 75% chance of dripping
it when this is all over; if lent a magic dagger on anyone who approaches to examine them.
he may offer to buy it for 600 gp per plus of the The slime will eat through metal armor (such as
weapon, which Gailaif will pay over and above helms) in 3 melee rounds and, once in contact
the reward money (the court magician will be with flesh, will turn its victim to slime in 1d4 rounds;
willing to identify it at no charge). resurrection and raise dead will not be possible.
Slime can be scraped, frozen, or burned off, but
the only way to attack the slime itself is with cure
He is dressed in the traditional clothes of the disease, which kills it.
realm, though they are now dirty and torn, and
he seems to be about sixteen or so. Alfrëdor is
a prodigy of sorts, having attained first level of
magic-use at such an early age; Gailaif had him The table and chairs, while old, are still usable.
trained by the court magician when he noticed The books are mostly useless to the party but if
his grandson’s exceptional intelligence. When taken to a major city they will sell on the open
brought in he was taken straight to this cham- market for 1d10 gp each. There are twenty books
ber, so he knows nothing of the dungeon layout here, but each weighs 200 gpw and will prove
besides the way from here to the stairs. bothersome to transport. The DM should ensure
that carrying these out will be no easy task, es-
pecially during pursuit—and that finding space
for them will be a hassle for the party since each
would fill a backpack on its own. If the characters
search for more than two full turns (or take all the
Part II: Accessible But Uninhabited
books off the shelves), they will find an old spell
book which contains the following: Read Magic,
8. Cleaned-out room Burning Hands, Hold Portal, Jump, Message, Light,
Forget, Detect Evil, Knock, and Infravision. The
You enter a room but see little here, except book could be sold to an NPC magic-user for
in the far right hand corner there are two about 150 gp; Gailaif’s court magician will cer-
large black objects barely visible. You think tainly be willing to buy it.
they may be moving.

On the south end of the east wall between the

The objects in the corner are the husks of two bookshelves (A on the map) is a section which
huge spiders, which the thieves killed during their has been plastered over. If knocked upon from
cleanup of the dungeon and shoved into a cor- either side, it will give a hollow sound, a little
ner. They didn’t haul them out since they’ve like knocking on drywall, and if struck with force
never had any use for this room. Nothing of value will crumble, revealing a small—no longer con-
is to be found here. cealed—doorway.

57
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

Part III: Unexplored torches and interrupting spell casting. The DM

might consider to have each character holding
10. Passage to dungeon level a lantern roll a d20 (getting at or below WIS) to
think to put it out unless the player thinks of it first;
This tunnel, about four feet high, forces you on a failed save, there is a 50% chance of the
to walk in single file and anyone taller than a lantern being broken (it eventually will be broken
dwarf has to stoop to avoid hitting the ceil- if not put out). The bats will swarm about, buzzing
ing. and harrying anyone standing and preventing
passage through the room; they will continue
swarming until all light sources are extinguished,
The passage was used in Old Chaldén as an alter- and will begin again if light is reintroduced to
nate access to the guardroom. The bandits never the cavern. Thus, getting to the exit could be a
found it and did not explore the area beyond the challenge for the party. Infravision will be of little
blockage at 21., so this flaw in their defenses is help except in seeing the bats, since there are
utterly unknown to them. The passage thus serves no other sources of heat here. The party could
as an alternative to finding a way inside the cas- feel its way along the walls, or could leave a light
tle and then into the dungeon, allowing a safer source just inside the corridor at 10., giving ev-
means of rescuing Gailaif’s heir. eryone just enough illumination to find their way.
Light sources must be directly visible from the ceil-
The tunnel is roughly worked; though it was
ing to disturb the bats, so this method can work
carved out at the height of Chaldén’s power
with torches or, better yet, bullseye lanterns—but
it was neither finely finished nor lined with stone
hooded lanterns won’t shine far enough to do
like the rest of the dungeon. Though the bats in
the job.
room 11. rarely roost in this length of tunnel, they
have been here enough that if the players search
around, they will notice guano here and there on 12. Empty chamber
the floor—it looks sort of like messy pellets. There
is nothing else in the passage.
This square chamber is empty, except that
the floor is mottled with guano. A single pas-
11. Entrance cave sage leads off to the side.

The passage gives way to a large natural

Whatever may once have been here was
cavern. As you approach you hear a sound
cleared out long ago. There is nothing of value
of rustling and squeaking.
inside.

This cave is home to thirty bats (AC 4; MV 24"; 13. Entryway to part III
HD 1 hp each; #AT Special; D Special; Int Ani;
AL TN; SZ S; XPV 1 each), which fly out at night
to feed. Rather than the secret entrance, they A long table stands in the middle of this large
leave through a smaller passage which goes al- rectangular room, ringed by a few broken
most straight up to the outside. That way is in- chairs. Five doors lead out, including the
accessible, however, as it is narrow and mostly one you came through.
vertical, and is well-hidden by rocks and bushes
some 60 to 70 feet from the walls of Ripyoff, so it
Most articles of value have been taken from
also doesn’t let in any appreciable light, even at
the room, but two brass candlesticks (value 8
midday.
sp each) and three pewter mugs (value 10 sp
Unless the party has extinguished all light sources each) remain on the table. On the walls are nu-
before entering, it will disturb the bats and cause merous torch holders, most empty, although two
them to swarm about the cave, putting out hold unused torches.

58
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

14. Room of the king’s sage vs. poison at +4 or suffer Enfeeblement (as the
spell, 25%) for 1d4 days, starting 1d6 turns after
the bite.
About all that’s here is a desk, and even that
seems mostly empty. A door flanks it on the Unless some form of gauntlet is specifically be-
wall to your right. ing worn (unlikely), assume the following. Some-
one in plate will normally have plate gauntlets:
leather gloves with plates on the back of the
The items here are indeed of little value. On the hand and fingers, giving AC 4 (one point worse
desk are a wax candle in a brass candleholder than plate mail as the palm is protected only by
(value 10 sp) and a dry inkwell (value 1 sp). In the leather). Characters wearing scale, chain, splint,
desk drawer are a few sheets of old parchment or banded are assumed to have chainmail mit-
and several rotten quills. tens (AC 5), and anyone in another form of armor
would have hardened leather gloves (AC 8). Of
course, magical protection will still provide de-
15. King’s office
fense—so the hands of a thief in leather armor
wearing a Ring +1 would be AC 7, and those of
Two chairs stand in front of a large desk a fighter in Plate Mail +1 would be AC3 (giving +1
backed by another chair of greater size. A to those plate gauntlets). If the players decide to
closet stands in the corner behind it. shuffle the debris with a pole, dagger, etc., they
will uncover both the brooch and the centipedes.
They should have to think up a way to remove
On the desk are two silver candlesticks (value 10 the ornament safely, such as picking it up with a
sp each), each holding a half-used, yellowed pair of sticks, which can be found here. In the
wax candle. Also on the desk are a rotten quill, closet is a rack for a suit of armor and holders
two brittle sheets of parchment, and a dry sil- for a sword and shield, now empty. Three silver
ver inkwell (value 1 gp). Inside a half-opened pieces can be found in a corner of the cabinet.
desk drawer, under a quantity of dust, husks, and
other junk is a silver brooch with an S-rune inlaid
in gold on the front (value 40 gp). However, sim-
16. King’s personal storeroom
ply reaching into the pile without precaution will
arouse three giant centipedes (AC 9; MV 15"; HD
1/4; hp 2, 2, 1; #AT 1; D Nil; Int Non; AL TN; SZ S; The small chamber you’ve just entered
SA Poison; XPV 32, 32, 31) which have made this seems to be a storeroom. A large closet
their lair, and will attack the hand of whoever stands in the corner; racks for clothes,
searches around. Although the centipedes’ bite weapons, and so forth are attached to the
itself does no damage, those bitten must save walls.

59
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

The closet and racks are empty. A small stone crushed beneath the debris carrying 10 gp and
statuette lies in the southwest corner of the room 20 sp; it has since fallen out of his disintegrated
but will not be found unless the party decides to pouch into the mess beneath his body, and the
actively search the place. It can be sold to a party is unlikely to find it all.
merchant as a curiosity for five silver pieces, but
if taken to an antiquary will fetch twenty gold
19. Cleric’s quarters
pieces as this is a relic of very old (though today
obscure) local legend.
Steps lead down into a square room. A bed
lies along the far right wall, stripped of linen.
17. Weapons storage room
A bookcase stands across from you behind
The door to this room is locked, and though the a small bare desk. The bookcase is emptied,
lock has grown rusty, it will still have to be picked and little of interest seems to be here.
or forced.
As in the other chambers, all of the furnishings are
Inside are racks for weapons, only partially crumbling, and little of value remains from the
filled, while a chest on the north wall stands dungeon’s abandonment. In the desk drawer is
empty. There seems to be little of value here. a partially rusted iron holy symbol, which will take
a gold piece on the open market.
Inside are weapons left behind when the fief was
abandoned. A rack on the south wall, only a 20. Prayer room
quarter full, holds two long swords and four broad
swords, while another rack, on the east wall, sup-
A square stone altar is at the far end of
ports three battle axes and a hand ax. Several
the room. On the wall to your right is
racks along other walls stand vacant, while a
an iron coffer—probably for religious arti-
chest to the north lies open, also emptied of its
facts—standing open. On the wall above
contents. A dusty pile in the corner, if investi-
the altar is a large holy carving with a bright
gated, will turn out to be a suit of chain mail
gem at each of its four corners.
(human size).

18. Wreaked chamber

Much of this room’s ceiling has collapsed,

dropping a low pile of rubble on the floor.
However, it shouldn’t be hard to walk over
the debris to reach the exit around the cor-
ner.

The party can indeed cross over without difficulty.

If the players decide to search, they will see a
skeletal hand sticking out of the rubble. If they
dig it out (which will require three full turns), a
human skeleton will be revealed. At his side is
an oddly shiny weapon, a Dagger +2; he has
an empty rotted-away belt pouch and once The gems are alexandrite (100 gp value each),
wore leather armor. If the characters search but to remove them from the wall they must be
through the rubble they will pull up several mum- dug or chipped out. The DM should roll for dam-
mified rats—partially flattened and with bones age by weapon type twice per gem, first to see
showing in places. They will also find 1d6+4 gp whether the stone is removed (an accumulated
and 1d10+10 sp. When the ceiling collapsed dur- five hit points will do so), and second to deter-
ing the Sack, this man in the king’s employ was mine damage to the gem itself. Multiply the latter

60
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

by ten and subtract that from the stone’s value

(a hammer and spike would strike as a dagger).
A better way would be for a thief to use his picks
and tools to remove them: for each stone, roll to
open locks. On a successful roll, the gem will be
retrieved with no (additional) damage, but on
an unsuccessful roll it will lose 10-30 gp in value,
which counts 1d3 hp toward getting the gem out
("this is still better than some clumsy swordswinger
gouging ’em out!"). The thief may continue work-
ing at the gem until it’s removed—note that an
unsuccessful Open Locks that brings it past 5 hp
will remove the stone, though it will still damage
it.

Any intrusion upon the altar (such as for the close

inspection or removal of the stones) will disturb Escape
five giant rats (AC 7; MV 12"; HD 1/2; hp 3 each;
#AT 1; D 1d3; Int Semi; AL N(E); SZ S; SA Disease; Once the group has Afrëdor in tow, its first task is
XPV 10 each) which have nested behind it. The to escape the dungeon. Wandering encounter
altar was dedicated to a lawful neutral lesser god checks should continue to be made. If the
(perhaps Cyndor), but a century of neglect and alarm hasn’t been raised and the party came in
desecration by rats has removed its connection through the blockage at 21., it should be able to
to the deity. A cleric will be able to sense that climb back over—hopefully blocking it up behind
and know there is no supernatural danger in dis- it, though that will take a turn to accomplish. If
turbing the stones. The chest on the east wall is the passage is not blocked back up, the opening
empty. will be noticed as the bandits search the dun-
geon, and some effort will be made to guard the
blockage, probably from 1. If the group entered
through the castle and stumbles on the blockage
on its way out, it could dig its way through (see
above), finding a good place to hide and an
21. Tunnel blockage
easier way out. An escape through the castle
is unlikely unless most of the thieves are dead or
A pile of rocks and boulders blocks the pas-
the party is strong enough to risk an open field
sage here. What secrets lie beyond is im-
battle.
possible to tell, but the whole mound looks
rather unstable. Alfrëdor’s absence will be noticed and the alarm
raised within an hour or so of his rescue (1d6+3
turns). It will take 2 full rounds to reach the block-
age or return to the castle level, plus half a round
No one knows how this obstruction came about, for every closed door on its way out, and another
for the brigands found it this way when they round if they go through Part II to avoid the most
cleaned out the dungeon years ago. Its seeming used hallway; they could wait in the shadows out-
instability is misleading, although those climbing side room 1. until the coast is clear and then slip
the debris—either to inspect the top or to clear up the stairs or down the passage to 21. If leaving
away the rocks there—must save versus dexterity through the secret passage, the party will have
at +2 or fall and hurt themselves for 0-3 hit points to deal with the bat cave at 11. Of course, any
damage. Once at the top the party can start pursuers there would also be assaulted by the
clearing debris. It will break through in 1 turn and bats—and probably delayed, especially if the
can climb down the other side without much party does something clever like throw a torch
trouble. The DM should make an extra wander- into the cave on its way out.
ing encounter check when it reaches the other
side of the blockage. If the group leaves the castle any time before

61
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

nightfall, it will be spotted by the tower guards truders, figuring they will sooner or later run out
and pursued. This will happen even if it takes of provisions and have to come out. If the party
the secret passage, for the guardhouse is in plain manages to hide out for a day or so in Part III, the
sight of the fort. If the players decide to lay low brigands will start to relax their guard and thin out
in Part III of the dungeon, the bandits are unlikely the number waiting at each station—life has to
to follow, given their already limited manpower. resume, people will need to eat and sleep, and
More likely they will wait for them to come out. If so forth, so by the end of the second day they will
the bandits have also found the secret entrance, be down to half numbers, where they will stay.
this may leave the party bottled up.
The DM should keep track of how many outlaws
If the group is hiding underground and has ani- have been killed or disabled, and cross them off
mals at the guardhouse, the latter will be seen the Castle Ripyoff Encounter Table. When the
and taken once the alarm goes up, and the ban- alarm is raised, if the party has been spotted, a
dits will find the trap door. If someone was left skeleton crew may stay at the castle: probably 3-
behind to watch the animals, the bandits will at- 6 depending how many are left. Ten bandits will
tempt to capture them—they’ll question them mount the horses in the stable and go off in two
and try to work out a prisoner exchange. They groups of five, one led by the Master Burglar and
will negotiate in good faith, as they have little use the other by a lieutenant. If the thieves spotted
for another prisoner and just want Alfrëdor back. and captured the party’s animals, they will use
They will insist, however, that the party leave and them to form a third mounted unit. Any others will
not return—thereby abandoning its mission—and head out on foot in groups of five or so. Second
will be more alert and will guard Alfrëdor more level thieves will stand in for any officers that have
heavily from then on. Further attempts to ap- been eliminated.
proach the castle at nighttime will incur an extra
20% penalty and confrontations inside the fort will If the alarm has been raised but the party hasn’t
be with larger, angrier groups (doing +1 damage been spotted, the bandits will focus on search-
per hit), generally at the high end of the range ing the castle and dungeon for 7-12 (d6+6) turns,
given (so, instead of 1d4 bandits in the courtyard after which they will scramble off in pursuit, as
during the day, there will likely be 4, and so on). above. If unsure which way the party went, they’ll
spread out on this side of the river but will focus
Should the party be spotted in the courtyard and on the west/northwest, as they’ll assume the in-
seen descending the stairs, the alarm will go up truders came by way of the south road at some
and the bandits will attempt to root the group point. In the meantime, the party could clamber
out. If it’s not found after an initial search, and this out of the guardhouse and make a break for it.
can’t all be easily dismissed as a false alarm, they This will offer a bit of a head start, but will give
will probably split into more or less equal groups away its position.
(one being the guards in room 5.), each led by
an officer. (The bandits in other rooms, espe- If there isn’t a horse for every member of the party
cially those in the kitchen, will join these groups.) (especially if it didn’t bring one for Alfrëdor), it will
Chances are, one group will stay in the courtyard, have to share steeds. Only two persons can share
one will stand guard in room 1., and (if the party a steed (though three gnomes or halflings could
was seen approaching the guardhouse) another share a full-size horse). Sharing mounts will limit
will check that out and seize the party’s animals the party to a speed halfway between mounted
if they’re there. The officer going to room 5. will and on foot.
apprise the guards of the situation and help safe-
The river next to the castle is too deep to ford, so
guard the prisoner. He will likely be accompanied
the party can’t cross it without magical means
by a few other bandits if no one is sent out to the
or prior planning. Before taking on the castle, a
guardhouse.
clever party might try building a raft, which will
If the party is seen going through the blockage take half a day; this could be done at the copse.
at 21. or goes through unseen but doesn’t block A raft cannot be brought near the castle without
it up, the group at 1. will watch down that pas- alerting those inside—except at night, though
sage with the bullseye lantern (from 6. upstairs), it would take half the night to get it there and
which will prevent creeping up on them by nor- the raft would be spotted in the morning. Also,
mal means. They will intend to wait out the in- there may be little to gain by using a raft, as the

62
Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat Crossroads of Chaldén

river flows toward the lake rather than northeast but the DM should add an extra +15% (+25% if
toward Flaxton. sharing steeds) to the chance of being caught
by mounted thieves after the first day, since their
If the party flees right away, the chance of evad- horses will be tired.
ing each particular group of pursuers will be 40%,
modified as follows: If the party manages to evade pursuit, the
mounted ruffians will head north and search
Situation Modifier
around Chaldén, making it likely to have a run-in
Party mounted, thieves ±0%
with some of them there. Also, if the party wipes
mounted
out a group of mounted thieves, one of the un-
Party mounted, thieves on +10%
mounted groups may capture the horses and
foot
pursue as a mounted unit (at -5% due to delay in
Sharing steeds, thieves -10%
rounding up the steeds).
mounted
Sharing steeds, thieves on +5% If the party does not flee right away, but instead
foot hides out in Part III of the dungeon till morning to
Party on foot, thieves -20% let all search parties clear the area, its chances
mounted of success will be a little different. It will have no
Party on foot, thieves on ±0% steeds, as the bandits will have captured any
foot animals left tied up, and any sent off to fend for
Party escapes before the +5%/turn before themselves will be long gone—yet it will success-
alarm is raised fully evade the first flush of pursuit. This may be
Party escapes at night, at +25% an ideal option if the party had no animals to be-
new moon gin with. The chance of evading each particular
Party escapes at night, at +15% group will be 70%, modified as follows:
half moon
Situation Modifier
Party escapes at night, at +5%
Thieves mounted -20%
full moon
Thieves on foot ±0%
Party not seen leaving, but -10%
Party heads northwest -20%
was spotted earlier
Each combat with a pursuing group -5%
Party has been spotted -20%
or monster
and/or heads northwest
Party isn’t spotted until after +5%
However, once the party reaches the hills or the
leaving the castle
Chaldén-Flaxton road, or anywhere north of the
Anyone in the party is en- -20%
hills and west of the forest, it will face an addi-
cumbered
tional check per square (1 in 10) to see whether it
Each combat with a mon- -5%
is confronted by a group of pursuers, who will ex-
ster or pursuing group
pect it to head that way. Also, any Bandit results
on the Wilderness Encounter Table will be with a
Of course, a mounted party will not be overtaken
group of pursuers. If it takes the road through the
by thieves on foot unless it dawdles, doubles
hills, it will certainly be attacked by a group of pur-
back, changes course dramatically, or is badly
suers lying in wait at C. The hill encounter, added
delayed. Rolls can be changed to make more
to those already there if they weren’t wiped out
sense: in a flat-out pursuit, for instance, if the dice
earlier.
indicate an encounter with a group of thieves on
foot but not with one of the mounted groups, the If the party has trouble crossing a river it may have
DM should probably reverse that. He/she should to leave its animals (and the gear they carry) be-
also exercise judgement based on circumstances hind. Alfrëdor will truthfully volunteer that the king
and how clever the players are about evading will compensate for the loss of anything left be-
pursuit. If they lead the bandits through the small hind.
hills to the north, for instance, they might success-
fully entangle them with their orc rivals. Should the party head for Flaxton, once there
it will encounter a local patrol (see Flaxton
If the players choose to ride hard for the first day, Encounter Table) who will happily escort it to
they will probably avoid their pursuers for the day, Chaldén. If the party decides to visit the mayor

63
LB1 Vince Puccio, Leon Baradat, and Rene Baradat

before heading east, he will arrange two patrols its value to 75 gp. The gemstones include the
for an escort, and will accompany them in per- following:
son, as a gesture of loyalty to the king.
Gem type Value
The bandits will not give up easily, for Alfrëdor’s es- 2 azurite 5 gp each
cape means disaster for all of them. Where plau- 3 lapis lazuli 5 gp each
sible, two or more groups of pursuers may attack 2 hematite 10 gp each
the party in concert. During the chase, ordinary 3 malachite 10 gp each
Wilderness Encounter checks should be made. 1 moss agate 10 gp
Note that some—notably the elves or character 1 banded agate 15 gp
party—may come directly to the aid of the play- 1 jasper 25 gp
ers, while other encounters may add to its peril. 1 zircon 25 gp
Any who do help out substantially (except the 1 citrine 50 gp
elves) will claim a share of the reward, roughly
proportional to the amount of help given. The Inside are also two frost rubies from the north.
elves will be mostly interested in demonstrating The first is small and worth 175 gp, the second
their goodwill toward Chaldén, to establish that medium size and valued at a worthy 410 gp. The
their community is not an enemy of the realm. distinctive feature of the frost ruby is detailed in
the northern merchant caravan on the Wilder-
ness Encounter Table. The design on these rubies
is near perfect. If someone in the party previously
Afterward thought to sketch or map the bandit stronghold,
the party will be given an additional citrine of 50
If the party returns without Alfrëdor it will receive gp value.
nothing (except supplies and repairs), even if it
has wiped out a great many outlaws—for Gailaif Gailaif plans to assault the bandit stronghold
plans to do that anyway, and the loss of his heir once Alfrëdor is no longer a prisoner. Since the
will be a terrible blow to him and his kingdom. If, brigands know this, if their numbers are signifi-
on the other hand, the adventurers return with cantly reduced, they will abandon the fort. Either
his grandson safe, they will be greeted as heroes, way, once he has taken the place the king will
and Gailaif will speak: garrison it as an extension of his realm. His next
challenge will be to consolidate his holdings; he
will need to clear the area of remaining bandits
"You’ve been of great service to our king- and must find some way of dealing with the orcs
dom and stand to be rewarded. Bring it at 5. He may also come in contact with nation(s)
forth!" Two soldiers go behind the throne and to the south (the Duchy of Tenh perhaps, if played
carry out a small coffer. They set it in front of in Greyhawk) now that he has extended his sway
you and throw back the lid. Inside are coins here.
of several varieties, topped by some gem-
stones and a pendant. As you sift through For thieves wearing something other than leather
the treasure, you uncover more precious armor (such as Ragosh), this module uses the fol-
stones, and a bracelet. lowing table, adapted from the Effects of Armor
on Thief Functions table from the UA errata pub-
lished in Dragon Magazine #103. This version is
This small coffer holds 200 gp, 100 ep, and 300 sp. meant to make some alternate forms of armor
The bracelet is bronze, worked with silver, and will reasonable tradeoffs of AC vs. skills, whereas the
sell for 50 gp. The pendant is of copper but inlaid UA errata table seems intended to make the loss
with silver and set upon a silver chain, bringing of skills prohibitive for everything but elfin chain.

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Thief function No Elfin Studded Ring or Scale Splint Plate Plate

Armor∗ Chain or Chain or Mail Armor
Padded Banded
Pick Pockets + 5% -10% -20% -30% -40% -50% -75% -100%
Open Locks — -5% -10% -10% -15% -20% -40% -80%
Find/Remove Traps — -5% -10% -10% -15% -20% -40% -80%
Move Silently + 10% -5% -10% -20% -40% -60% -80% -100%
Hide in Shadows† + 5% -5% -10% -20% -30% -50% -75% -110%
Hear Noise — -5% -10% -10% -20% -30% -50% -70%
Climb Walls + 10% -15% -20% -30% -40% -90% -99% -99.9%

General Note: No dexterity bonuses apply to thief functions (though penalties do) when wearing armor
other than simple leather.
∗ This category applies when wearing bracers of defense and/or a cloak, but no actual armor.
† Assumes that armor worn is covered by another garment. Elfin chain mail is light and thin, and can
be worn under normal clothing. All other types of armor except simple leather are stiff and/or bulky,
and can only be covered by a full body cloak.
This chart can be used to keep track of the passage of time, and how much longer the party has before
the outlaws kill their prisoner. Day 6 is boldfaced as a reminder that that night will be midsummer’s eve.

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15
16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 Too Late

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Appendix A: Maps
Area map

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Town of Chaldén

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The Forest

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Hamlet of Flaxton

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The Shrine

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Castle Ripyoff

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Ripyoff Dungeon

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Appendix B: Player handouts

Players’ area map

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Ripyoff guardhouse

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Ripyoff Castle in moonlight

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Ripyoff Dungeon prayer room

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Ripyoff Dungeon tunnel blockage

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Appendix C: About the writing of little kingdom to crop up. It would also make the local
people likely a Flan/Suel mix.
this module
The shrine druid being a worshipper of Belenos was
Back in 1985/6, my brother Rene and I and a friend a nod to the Asterix & Obelix series. The DM may
decided to write a module and submitted it to TSR want to use a different god; for instance if the mod-
for publication. The company never responded to ule is run in Greyhawk it might be changed to Obad-
our submission, or to the several follow-up letters I sent, hai. The church in Flaxton was inspired somewhat by
so it remains under our ownership. Given what I’ve the church in my family’s old village in Aubin, France
read about what went down at TSR at the time, it’s no (see here). The candleholders shaped like human
surprise we were greeted with a stony silence. arms were taken from something I saw in the Riga
Ethnographic Open Air Museum in 1986: in one of the
Its working (joke) title was "Thief on the Borderlands", churches, the pulpit had a candleholder shaped like
but we eventually settled on "Tragedy in Chaldén". an arm sticking straight out from the wall (see here,
Revising it in 2014, Rene and I renamed it "Crossroads on the far left). The centipedes’ weakened venom is
of Chaldén", since there’s really no tragedy involved borrowed from U1 The Sinister Secret of Saltmarsh.
unless the party fails in its mission. Instead, we chose
a name to reflect that the kingdom is at a crossroads The head villain is not of course technically a Burglar
and its fate depends on the actions of the players. at all, but a Filcher, since he’s 6th level. But we thought
“Master Burglar” made a more impressive self-styled
Vince Puccio was the creative genius; he came up title for a Boss who was one step above Burglar.
with the idea to write a module, and he sketched out
its plot and basic layout. I did the typing and editing Because we wrote this thing back in high school, lots
work, and fleshed out a lot of the details—in particular of the writing was pretty juvenile. I’ve revised it sub-
the town of Chaldén itself. Rene was responsible for stantially (once in 2004 and then more thoroughly in
many of the smaller details here and there; he thought 2014–15), but bits of the old adolescent humor remain,
up a lot of ideas which others built upon (e.g., the frost such as the name of the bandit castle. Rene helped
ruby), and he contributed the town of Flaxton. Other somewhat with the 2014–15 revision, pointing out some
things, like the thief castle and its dungeon level, we specific issues: in particular, that the scale of the Forest
worked out together. The Outdoors Map is by Vincent; Map didn’t match its size on the Outdoors Map, and
the others are by me, though some are based on that Chaldén is hardly big enough to be called a city,
earlier, rougher maps of his. so it’s now referred to as a town.

Vince was our primary DM, and some of the vividness Also, the original manuscript was filled with vitriol to-
of his descriptive style comes through in places such as ward thieves. This was entirely Vincent’s influence; his
the boxed text for the forest and spider lair. The forest personal beliefs were strongly Lawful, and about the
itself clearly shows echoes of Mirkwood; I’ve always time we wrote this, both his house and his parents’
assumed that was Vincent’s inspiration for it. We even business had been broken into. So he seemed to be
considered including the Giant Black Squirrels from the using this as an opportunity to vent about it all. I’ve
Monster Manual II (p. 114) but decided against it since toned all that down and, I think, much improved it in
it’s not an old, dark forest possessed by evil. the process.

We tried to use saves vs. ability scores rather than class- Feel free to email me with any questions or comments.
based saving throws, as we felt ability scores tend to be Feedback is always welcome.
neglected in 1st edition, outside of extreme numbers Leon Baradat
that give special bonuses or penalties. We also wanted
to make use of the talents of druids and rangers, since lordpeyre@yahoo.com
their special skills are often little used—most adventures
focusing on the action underground. I’m especially
pleased that we included a druidic scroll—you don’t
see those much.
Several times we tried to work out where to place this
in the world outside. We happened to play in the
world of Greyhawk (the original, 576 CY), so our best
stab at a location was somewhere south of the various
Barbarians–possibly in Ratik, maybe northern Tenh. We
leaned toward the latter, and I explicitly placed it in
Tenh in my campaign. Logically that would position
this on the border of Tenh and Stonefist, perhaps a
wild region beyond either land’s control, allowing a

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