Building my Nightmare Before Halloween Adventure! [help/PEACHes?]

[Morph Bark]

Introduction


'You are attending the king's royal ball where many nobles, wealthy families and succesful adventurers are invited to. Just as the evening seems to be getting dull, the music suddenly changes as if to mimic the sound of a thunderstorm! Clouds of purple smoke blast forth from seemingly nowhere and when it soon clears a small army of undead stands about. At the command of a tall and gentlemanly-looking skeleton dressed in a black coat, with a ring on almost every finger, they attack the guards while their leader advances upon the king's daughter...'


This is the start of a short adventure (one or two sessions, I hope) that I plan to subject my players to. I plan on including a low-level statblock for each enemy and trap and an advanced version for mid-level play, as my own players are low-level currently, but so that others with higher-level parties can still use it for a bit. It won't be particularly horror-some, but what it will do is emphasize some Halloween themes and provide for a fun game - I hope...

...though yes, it will involve Disney stuff.

Since this is my first attempt at writing something up like this, it will probably turn out like crap in how it looks and the way it is organized will probably be chaotic, but we all gotta start somewhere.



EDIT: Decided to sadly have to abandon this, for several reasons. First off, there is NO way I can pull this off in the required amount of time, while still working my job, studying for my exam, and finishing my stuff for the running contests. Second, there is NO way that I can make it awesome enough AND tailored well enough to my players as they currently are, and I couldn't get them to the starting point in time. As such, this will have to wait until... well, Before Christmas?

DUN

DUNN

DUUUNNNNNN--!!!


...I make no promises.

[Morph Bark]

First Encounters

After this brief, but so-far adequate introduction, the players immediately get to face a band of undead lead by the skeletal kidnapper-to-be. Besides the players there are several guards who are also occupied with the undead (this is taken into account in the statblock below, the amount of undead given is the amount the players need to face). Jack, the gentlemanly skeleton controlling the skeletons, meanwhile occupies himself with killing the princess' bodyguard and charming the princess herself. Other attendants to the ball meanwhile try to get away through the doors. As this is a ball, the PCs may not wear armour, but are allowed to bear arms (druids included).

Undead minions (CR 4 or 8)
Jack, like any good necro-lord, always makes sure he has a bunch of undead minions to come along when he goes out, especially for a good kidnapping. If you're using the low-level variant of this one-two shot adventure, use 9 Human Warrior Skeletons (as found in the MM and SRD). If you're using the mid-level variant of this one-two shot adventure, use 6 2nd-level Human Fighters with the Bone or Corpse Creature template (BoVD 184).

Statblocks to come.

After 2 rounds (presuming it takes this long or longer for the party to take out the skeletons), Jack looks upon the PCs, comments on how well they dealt (or are dealing) with his minions, takes hold of the princess and disappears in a cloud of purple smoke.

[Morph Bark]

Reserved for other encounters and moar fluff.

[Morph Bark]

Reserved for other encounters and moar fluffies for Jack's Castle. Prolly dun need more reserving... I hope.