Looking for an adventure of 3.5e

[BloodSnake'sCha]

Hello guys :)

The game where I am first time DMing is going to start and I am looking for an adventure because I think it is to early for me to make one.

I am going to adjust it to my world alone, I am using the map of faerün but with easier lore for me to handle(my homemade lore with the help of the two vetarns).

I have 5 PC, 3 new guys and 2 veterans(they are playing play form the first editions).

We are starting at lv1 with +1LA for everyone(acting like they are at ecl1).

I want it to be a short adventure and to have one as a backup.

I want to use the adventure as a guide line for stuff that happens.

This isn't going to be a game full with combat(maybe 1-2 a day base on the day and on the PCs actions), I will like an adventure with puzzles and riddles.

I will like some DM guides that you guys think are good, I want to do my best

We are going to start at a lord territory were most of the PC working for the lord and getting his protection.

I am reading now the DMG, if you have any more books that you thing I should read I will be very happy to know.

[tstewt1921]

When you say short campaign are you planning on them leveling at all? What level do you want them to get to?

Couple of puzzles/traps I favor using;

1. Room with 4 statues each of a different monster. Room can be whatever size you want, on the floor between the door and a chest behind the monsters are markings, there are 5 different markings, once a marking is stepped on it's corresponding monster is activate and initiative is rolled. If they step on the lucky 5h all monsters are activated and initiative is rolled, however, when that person steps off the mark, the monster freezes and is healed fully, if the monster is killed the monster shatters and a statue reappears in the spot. To beat this room, they just need to survive and get to the chest for the items, they don't actually have to fight. It's another one just to mess with them. They do have to unlock the chest though obviously.

2. Large room, I'm talking 20x20 squares large room, in the middle of the room is a pedestal, with an orb on the pedestal, upon grabbing said orb the door on the other side of the room unlocks. On the ground are markings, make them actual useful checks that would tell them something about the room. All the information you would feed the players about this room is useless, to beat this room they have to walk to the center and grab the orb, this is to mess with experienced players who expect all kinds of bad stuff when entering the room, you can even make it when they step on specific spots a breeze enters the room, just a bunch of little bs stuff to keep them wondering what combo they need to do.

3. While walking down a hallway it comes to an end and there are two doors, one leads to extremely challenging combat, the other leads to treasure. Outside are two creatures, come up with whatever you want outside, one is cursed and can only lie, the other is telling the truth. PC's have to decide which one and choose a door. You determine the cap on a sense motive check if you want to know which one is lying or, have the party ask questions to figure it out and don't give them a sense motive.

Riddles:

1. What runs around a city but never moves? Answer: Wall
2. Iron roof, glass walls, burns and burns but never falls, what am I? Answer: Lantern
3. I have rivers without water, forests without trees, mountains without rocks, towns without houses, what am I? Answer: Map
4. I have many tongues but cannot taste, by me, most things are turned to waste, I crack and snap, yet I stay whole, I may take the largest toll. I assisted all of the first men. And I will pay them back again. What am I? Answer: Fire.
5. Two bodies I have, though both are joined in one. The more I stand, the quicker I run. What am I? Answer: A Hourglass
6. A box without hinges, key, or lid, yet golden treasure inside is hid. What am I? Answer: An egg.

Hope this helps.

[Mike Miller]

This thread could help you with ideas for adventures.

[BloodSnake'sCha]

When you say short campaign are you planning on them leveling at all? What level do you want them to get to?

Couple of puzzles/traps I favor using;

1. Room with 4 statues each of a different monster. Room can be whatever size you want, on the floor between the door and a chest behind the monsters are markings, there are 5 different markings, once a marking is stepped on it's corresponding monster is activate and initiative is rolled. If they step on the lucky 5h all monsters are activated and initiative is rolled, however, when that person steps off the mark, the monster freezes and is healed fully, if the monster is killed the monster shatters and a statue reappears in the spot. To beat this room, they just need to survive and get to the chest for the items, they don't actually have to fight. It's another one just to mess with them. They do have to unlock the chest though obviously.

2. Large room, I'm talking 20x20 squares large room, in the middle of the room is a pedestal, with an orb on the pedestal, upon grabbing said orb the door on the other side of the room unlocks. On the ground are markings, make them actual useful checks that would tell them something about the room. All the information you would feed the players about this room is useless, to beat this room they have to walk to the center and grab the orb, this is to mess with experienced players who expect all kinds of bad stuff when entering the room, you can even make it when they step on specific spots a breeze enters the room, just a bunch of little bs stuff to keep them wondering what combo they need to do.

3. While walking down a hallway it comes to an end and there are two doors, one leads to extremely challenging combat, the other leads to treasure. Outside are two creatures, come up with whatever you want outside, one is cursed and can only lie, the other is telling the truth. PC's have to decide which one and choose a door. You determine the cap on a sense motive check if you want to know which one is lying or, have the party ask questions to figure it out and don't give them a sense motive.

Riddles:

1. What runs around a city but never moves? Answer: Wall
2. Iron roof, glass walls, burns and burns but never falls, what am I? Answer: Lantern
3. I have rivers without water, forests without trees, mountains without rocks, towns without houses, what am I? Answer: Map
4. I have many tongues but cannot taste, by me, most things are turned to waste, I crack and snap, yet I stay whole, I may take the largest toll. I assisted all of the first men. And I will pay them back again. What am I? Answer: Fire.
5. Two bodies I have, though both are joined in one. The more I stand, the quicker I run. What am I? Answer: A Hourglass
6. A box without hinges, key, or lid, yet golden treasure inside is hid. What am I? Answer: An egg.

Hope this helps.

I am planning to go to level 6-8

I really like the traps and puzzles.

This thread could help you with ideas for adventures.

It can help but I was looking for published adventures.

[Jarmen4u]

Most published adventures are in books that you can buy online.

These are the ones that I run, and their related levels:
Sunless Citadel (1-2)
Forge of Fury (3-5)
Speaker in Dreams (5-7)
Standing Stone (7-9)
Heart of Night Fang Spire (10-13)
Deep Horizon (13-15)
Lord of the Iron Fortress (15-17)
Bastion of Broken Souls (18-20)

[ksbsnowowl]

The Sunless Citadel is an excellent first adventure, though if two of your players are veterans who have played since the '70s, there's a good chance they've played the module before.

It has ties that lead it into the follow-up module, Forge of Fury. That module specifically lists being hired by a weapon-collecting baron to go investigate the area of the forge as one of the proposed plot hooks; this would meet your desire for the PC's to be working for/under a noble patron. You could even revamp one of the proposed plot hooks from Sunless Citadel (being hired by the Hucreale merchant family) into being sent by the local lord, after a request from the merchant family for the lord's assistance.

Those two adventures would take you from level 1 to level 5.

Heck, the next module in that series, Speaker in Dreams, also involves a city and the baron of that city (I won't go into great details here, as it is more than just the plot hook). That module would take you to about level 7.

If you get all those modules, you could just make the baron from the 2nd module's plot hook the same baron and the same city as that in the 3rd module. Then the party could either have some down time (to scribe spells, craft items, etc) between the 2nd and 3rd modules, which gives time for the underlying plot of Speaker in Dreams to take root and grow. Or you could speed things along, and have that part of the plot development occur while the PC's are traveling weeks away at the adventure location of Forge of Fury.

Both Sunless Citadel and Forge of Fury have some riddles and puzzles in them, though they certainly aren't the showcase of those locations. The entire plot of Speaker in Dreams is a big mystery to be solved, so is a puzzle, in a way.

[BloodSnake'sCha]

Most published adventures are in books that you can buy online.

These are the ones that I run, and their related levels:
Sunless Citadel (1-2)
Forge of Fury (3-5)
Speaker in Dreams (5-7)
Standing Stone (7-9)
Heart of Night Fang Spire (10-13)
Deep Horizon (13-15)
Lord of the Iron Fortress (15-17)
Bastion of Broken Souls (18-20)

Thank you :)

The Sunless Citadel is an excellent first adventure, though if two of your players are veterans who have played since the '70s, there's a good chance they've played the module before.

It has ties that lead it into the follow-up module, Forge of Fury. That module specifically lists being hired by a weapon-collecting baron to go investigate the area of the forge as one of the proposed plot hooks; this would meet your desire for the PC's to be working for/under a noble patron. You could even revamp one of the proposed plot hooks from Sunless Citadel (being hired by the Hucreale merchant family) into being sent by the local lord, after a request from the merchant family for the lord's assistance.

Those two adventures would take you from level 1 to level 5.

Heck, the next module in that series, Speaker in Dreams, also involves a city and the baron of that city (I won't go into great details here, as it is more than just the plot hook). That module would take you to about level 7.

If you get all those modules, you could just make the baron from the 2nd module's plot hook the same baron and the same city as that in the 3rd module. Then the party could either have some down time (to scribe spells, craft items, etc) between the 2nd and 3rd modules, which gives time for the underlying plot of Speaker in Dreams to take root and grow. Or you could speed things along, and have that part of the plot development occur while the PC's are traveling weeks away at the adventure location of Forge of Fury.

Both Sunless Citadel and Forge of Fury have some riddles and puzzles in them, though they certainly aren't the showcase of those locations. The entire plot of Speaker in Dreams is a big mystery to be solved, so is a puzzle, in a way.

Thank you for the information.

[ksbsnowowl]

Oh! I just recalled that one of the modules they published just before the end of 3.5 had several puzzles, a small labyrinth, and a couple false tombs in it. Barrow of the Forgotten King (Level 2) is the first of a three-module plot arch (the other two are meant to start at level 5, and level 7). Around the same time they also published Scourge of the Howling Horde, a 1st level module that is designed to award roughly 950 xp (50 xp shy of reaching 2nd level).

You could have your party start on the road heading toward the village/location of Barrow of the Forgotten King, as SotHH starts with a goblin ambush on the road, and then add in one extra encounter en route to get them to 2nd level for BotFK.

Scourge of the Howling Horde: Level 1, typical dungeon assault. Go root the goblin bandits out of their caves.
Barrow of the Forgotten King: Level 2, investigation of a burial barrow of a long-forgotten king. There are others investigating it as well.
The Sinister Spire: Level 5, follow grave robbers from BotFK into the underdark, to a drow city that was recently devastated by a plague. There is a lot of roleplay and investigation to do before going into the abandoned necromancer's tower for the climax.
Fortress of the Yuan-Ti: Level 7, the true motivators behind the grave robbers now have the supplies to hatch their devious plan. Assault their fortress and stop them before they complete a ritual.

You could easily just treat the Barrow of the Forgotten King as a one-off, and just end that plot there, or have it lead toward another plot of your own designs.

[BloodSnake'sCha]

Oh! I just recalled that one of the modules they published just before the end of 3.5 had several puzzles, a small labyrinth, and a couple false tombs in it. Barrow of the Forgotten King (Level 2) is the first of a three-module plot arch (the other two are meant to start at level 5, and level 7). Around the same time they also published Scourge of the Howling Horde, a 1st level module that is designed to award roughly 950 xp (50 xp shy of reaching 2nd level).

You could have your party start on the road heading toward the village/location of Barrow of the Forgotten King, as SotHH starts with a goblin ambush on the road, and then add in one extra encounter en route to get them to 2nd level for BotFK.

Scourge of the Howling Horde: Level 1, typical dungeon assault. Go root the goblin bandits out of their caves.
Barrow of the Forgotten King: Level 2, investigation of a burial barrow of a long-forgotten king. There are others investigating it as well.
The Sinister Spire: Level 5, follow grave robbers from BotFK into the underdark, to a drow city that was recently devastated by a plague. There is a lot of roleplay and investigation to do before going into the abandoned necromancer's tower for the climax.
Fortress of the Yuan-Ti: Level 7, the true motivators behind the grave robbers now have the supplies to hatch their devious plan. Assault their fortress and stop them before they complete a ritual.

You could easily just treat the Barrow of the Forgotten King as a one-off, and just end that plot there, or have it lead toward another plot of your own designs.

That sounds nice, thank you :)


BTW, do you guys have any tips on how to be a good GM?

[ksbsnowowl]

That sounds nice, thank you :)


BTW, do you guys have any tips on how to be a good GM?

Practice. Observing other good DM's. Read campaign journals from DM perspectives.