Go to Part 1

SPOILER WARNING!

The following thoughts contain minor spoilers for Keep on the Shadowfell. If you don’t want to be spoiled, don’t read it. And if you’re in my gaming group then you definitely shouldn’t be reading it.

THE THREE CLUE RULE

At the beginning of May I wrote a lengthy essay on the subject of scenario design and the Three Clue Rule:

For any conclusion you want the PCs to make, include at least three clues.

Basically, the idea is that every chokepoint in your adventure design (the points where the PCs must do X or be unable to proceed) are all potential points of failure: If the PCs fail to do X at any one of those points, the adventure will grind to a frustrated halt.

There are two ways to deal with such chokepoints: Either you can railroad your PCs through them (a “solution” that I find drastically unappealing) or you can design alternative paths through the adventure. And in my experience, designing three alternatives results in a sufficiently robust design so that the players will never find themselves clueless.

Probably the most common problem with published adventures are their chokepoints — they’re usually riddled with them, creating countless pitfalls for the DM to overcome. So the first thing I typically do when looking at a published adventure is to track the flow of the adventure: How do the PCs get from one point in the adventure to the next? Once I’ve identified the chokepoints, I’ll start designing alternative paths until I’ve satisfied the Three Clue Rule.

The flow of Keep on the Shadowfell was particularly baffling for me. For example, as the name of the adventure might suggest, the PCs are supposed to eventually go to the Keep. But there are only three ways that will happen:

(1) You can use the adventure hook which basically tells the PCs “you’re coming to Winterhaven in order to investigate the Keep”. But, if you do that, it’s very likely that the PCs might decide to ignore the kobold threat and go directly to the Keep… which is designed for higher level play and will prove rather deadly for 1st level characters.

(2) The PCs can succeed at a Religion check to identify a holy symbol of Orcus, conclude there’s a cult active in the area above and beyond the kobold tribe, and then… rewrite the adventure so that the PCs can learn that the Keep was once a site of Orcus worship without first asking a specific character about the Keep separate from the Orcus worship.

(3) The players read the title of the module and conclude that they should find out about this Keep.

Similarly, there’s encounter A4: Dragon Burial Site. As far as I can tell, the only way the PCs will ever go to the dragon burial site is if you use the “Missing Mentor” adventure hook. If you don’t use that specific hook, the PCs will never have any reason to look for Douven Stahl — which is the only reason they would ever go looking for the dragon burial site. (Which isn’t much of a loss, admittedly, since in the original adventure there is no useful information to be gained at the site.)

So these problems needed to be fixed. In addition, I had a desire to remove the CRPG-like quest-givers in Winterhaven, which meant that I would need a more robust Three Clue Rule design for the kobold sections of the adventure, too.

REVELATIONS

Although this is one of the last remix essays I’m writing for Keep on the Shadowfell, it’s actually describing the first steps I took in revising the module. And the very first step I took was to identify and list the revelations the players would need in order to move through the adventure.

First, there are three location-based revelations. The adventure basically takes place in three locations: The kobold lair; the dragon burial site; and the Keep on the Shadowfell. The PCs need to (a) identify these as places they should go; and (b) go there.

Second, there are two revelations which allow the PCs to figure out what’s going on: They need to know what the cult of Orcus is and they also need to discover the existence and purpose of Kalarel’s ritual. These revelations are less important because the adventure can continue even if the PCs aren’t entirely sure what’s going on — in other words, these aren’t actual chokepoints — but my players get a big kick out of discovering hidden lore. And, also, knowing these facts will help raise the stakes of the adventure.

Starting tomorrow I’ll break down how I applied the Three Clue Rule to each of these revelations.

Continued…

Go to Part 1

SPOILER WARNING!

The following thoughts contain minor spoilers for Keep on the Shadowfell. If you don’t want to be spoiled, don’t read it. And if you’re in my gaming group then you definitely shouldn’t be reading it.

A4. THE DRAGON BURIAL SITE

This encounter will largely play out in the same way, but we’re going to change the nature of the artifact (to have it tie directly into Kalarel’s ritual) and expand the information Douven Stahl has to impart.

THE ARTIFACT: The artifact they’ve dug up is a small stone idol of Orcus. It can recognized on a successful Religion check (DC 15).

DOUVEN STAHL: Douven Stahl can tell them everything on pg. 210 of the Monster Manual regarding the cults of Orcus. Then he will continue with a description of local cult activity:

“Two hundred years ago, this entire region south of the Cairngorms was a stronghold of the cult. The cult deliberately created a gap between this world and another realm – the Shadowfell. Although not inherently evil, the Shadowfell is fraught with dangers, and through the gap between worlds the cult brought forth skeletons, zombies, and even fouler creatures.

In those days, fortunately, the Empire of Nerath was still strong. A legion was dispatched to quell the threat. They destroyed the undead, sealed the rift, and built a keep to keep watch over the location and contain the threat. Today, however, that keep lies in ruins.

I came here merely to study history. But now I fear that the cult has returned, and seeks to open that gap between worlds once again. If that were to happen… without the Empire to respond…” He shudders.

If asked, Stahl can also tell them about the ritual:

“The worship or Orcus revolves around the practice of human sacrifice. But these sacrifices are not merely about death, they about the collection and distribution of a victim’s blood. Cult rituals often revolve around filling a skull with blood, drinking it, and then filling it again for Orcus and pouring it over his idol.

If these cultists are trying to reopen a portal to the Shadowfell, then they must be attempting to tap into the ancient magic that first created the gap between worlds. There will be a sacrifice of blood and an idol of Orcus.”

If Stahl is shown the Orcus idol:

“This is an ancient idol, but you can see by the markings along its base that it is merely part of a larger set. When brought together, these multiple idols intensify each other’s power. By capturing this idol, you will have delayed whatever ritual they’re preparing for… but not prevented it.”

FOLLOW-UP: Douven Stahl will return to Winterhaven and lodge up with Valthrun. He can be found in Valthrun’s tower if the PCs need to ask him further questions.

THE KEEP – AREA 18

CRUCIFIED ANGEL: Hanging above the altar in this area is an angel of protection (Monster Manual, pg. 14). It has been pinioned to the wall with multiple adamantine spears. A wall of arcane magic surrounds the angel and can only be penetrated if the ritual in Area 19 is disrupted.

ANGEL’S BLOOD: Blood flows from the angel’s wounds, over the Orcus-pledged altar, through the wall of arcane magic, and down into the pit below. Corrupted by the mystic energies of the altar, it is serving as a crucial material component for Kalarel’s Ritual.

THE KEEP – AREA 19

THE FANE OF ORCUS: The pit in the center of this room is, in fact, 60 feet deep. Standing in this pit is a 60′ tall statue of Orcus the Demon Prince. This is the Fane of Orcus. Through the fane, Orcus is able to manifest some portion of his will upon this world. It is an important part of Kalarel’s Ritual.

THE IDOLS OF ORCUS: The four grates depicted on the map are, instead, sunken depressions in the floor. In two of them, the Idols of Orcus have been placed. (If the PCs failed to disrupt the activities at the Dragon Burial Site, three of them will be occupied.) Blood flows up out of the pit and towards these depressions. (See Kalarel’s Ritual.)

KALAREL’S RITUAL

Level: 25
Category: Travel
Time: 120 days
Duration: Permanent
Component Cost: Special
Market Price: n/a
Key Skill: Religion

Kalarel’s ritual will open a permanent connection between this world and the Shadowfell. Once the ritual is one-quarter completed, the Thing in the Portal manifests (see module).

Special: Kalarel is able to perform a ritual so far above his normal level because this specific ritual is bound to the Fane of Orcus.

The smaller Idols of Orcus are also being used to help focus the ritual, reducing the amount of time necessary. Each idol added to the ritual reduces the remaining time of the ritual by half.

TIMELINE

When the PCs first arrive in the valley, 30 days have passed since Kalarel started his ritual. Kalarel had also already recovered two of the Idols of Orcus, reducing the remaining time for the ritual to be completed to 45 days.

If the PCs don’t interfere with Kalarel retrieving the Idol of Orcus from the Dragon Burial Site, it will be installed and whatever time remains will be further reduced by half.

REVERSING THE RITUAL

Kalarel is working from a reconstructed and partially translated text known as the Scrolls of Hamasatra. This text is located atop the altar in Area 19 of the keep. The skill challenge for reversing the ritual is based, in part, on an article available at WotC’s website.

Level: 6^th
Complexity: 3 (8 successes before 4 failures)
Primary Skills:

Arcana (DC 22): As a standard action, you can call upon your knowledge of magical effects and rituals to study the ritual book and determine the next step in unbinding the ritual. The first successful Arcana check also allows the character to figure out how a Heal check can contribute to undoing the ritual. A failed check indicates that the energy of the ritual attacks you: +10 vs. Will; 1d6 + 4 necrotic damage.

Endurance (DC 18): As an opportunity action, triggered when an adjacent ally has just failed an Arcana or Religion check to reverse the ritual, you can allow the necrotic energy flowing through the ritual to damage you instead of your ally. Success at this skill use aids the party, but does not count as a success toward completion of the challenge.

Heal (DC 18): As a standard action, you can make a Heal check and spend a healing surge to send positive life energy into the necrotic ritual in order to help disrupt it. In doing so, you automatically expose yourself to the energy of the ritual, which attacks you: +10 vs. Will; 1d6 + 4 necrotic damage. This approach to undoing the ritual can be determined on any successful Arcana, Religion, or Insight check.

Insight (DC 18): A character succeeding at an Insight check as a free action, triggered by observing the ritual, can figure out how a Heal check can contribute to undoing the ritual. Success at this skill use aids the party, but does not count as a success toward completion of the challenge.

Religion (DC 22): As per the Arcana check.

Success: The ritual is undone. The angel in area 18 is freed, but collapses into unconsciousness. (However, nothing stops Kalarel from starting the ritual afresh. If the Scrolls of Hamasatra are destroyed or the angel escapes or Kalarel is killed, however, the threat has passed. In that case, reward the adventurers a major quest reward of 750 XP.)

Failure: If the skill challenge is failed, the magical energy of the Shadow Rift stabilizes. Necrotic energy surges through the ritual book and the altar, striking all of the characters attempting this skill challenge. Each of these characters loses a healing surge and is attacked by the necrotic energy: +10 vs. Will; 1d6 + 4 necrotic energy.

The ritual isn’t complete, but the partially opened rift remains as such until either Kalarel is killed or the ritual is completed.

Continued…

Go to Part 1

SPOILER WARNING!

The following thoughts contain minor spoilers for Keep on the Shadowfell. If you don’t want to be spoiled, don’t read it. And if you’re in my gaming group then you definitely shouldn’t be reading it.

THE RUINED KEEP

FEATURES OF THE AREA:

Rubble: With the exception of the cleared path leading to the trapdoor, the ruins are filled with rubble. These squares are difficult terrain.

Rubble Piles: Where indicated there are larger piles of rubble. These require Athletics checks (DC 15) to climb at one-half speed.

AMBUSH: This ambush is set 1d2 days after the PCs wipe one (but not both) of the kobold barricades. (If they wipe out both barricades, there are no kobolds to perform the ambush with.) The kobolds here are drawn from encounter A1 in Keep on the Shadowfell.

• 1 kobold skirmisher (K)
• 3 kobold dragonshields (D)
• 1 kobold wyrmpriest (W)

TACTICS: The kobolds wait until the PCs reach a point even with the southernmost dragonshields and then attack as described below.

Dragonshields: The dragonshields simply move out from their hiding places, converging on the PCs.

Skirmisher: The skirmisher is hiding just behind the peak of a pile of rubble. He has taken the time to soak the pile with oil, making it slippery and more difficult to climb (Athletics, DC 20). When the ambush is launched, he will stand up and begin making his ranged attacks.

Wyrmpriest: The wyrmpriest is actually perched on the thick wall behind the central tower. He can move along the top of the wall to the wall of the tower itself. While perched up there he grants combat advantage. The walls is 20 feet high at that point.

Continued…

As part of my prep work in designing the manor house in Winterhaven, I needed to stock the store room. So I cracked open my 4th Edition Player’s Handbook…

… and discovered that all the non-adventuring equipment has gone M.I.A. Even stuff that has obvious utility for adventurers is gone.

Ink and parchment? Gone. Chalk dust gone? Gone. Caltrops? Gone.

The 10-foot pole? Gone.

Was the 10-foot pole really one of the sacred cows that needed to be slaughtered on the altar of 4th Edition?

Another fun one: On the first page of the Equipment chapter, they tell you to look in the “Adventuring Gear” section for flasks of oil. Guess what isn’t in the Adventuring Gear section? Guess what isn’t in the book anywhere at all?

So I did the only thing I could do. I went back to the 3rd Edition Player’s Handbook and found what I needed. This is something I’ve been doing with rather ridiculous frequency as I repeatedly encounter areas where the 4th Edition core rulebooks aren’t delivering the same basic functionality as the 3rd Edition core rulebooks.

Go to Part 1

SPOILER WARNING!

The following thoughts contain minor spoilers for Keep on the Shadowfell. If you don’t want to be spoiled, don’t read it. And if you’re in my gaming group then you definitely shouldn’t be reading it.

INTERLUDE: THE DEAD WALK

This is Interlude Three from Keep on the Shadowfell (pgs. 60-61). However, in order to extend the cult’s activities in Winterhaven, we’re going to change it slightly: Ninaran invokes the ritual, but doesn’t stick around. After performing the ritual, she simply crumples up the note from Kalarel and tosses it into one of the crypts. (The note does not name Ninaran, although it is signed by Kalarel.)

THE LESSER LICH: In order to rebalance the encounter, add a human mage (Monster Manual, pg. 163) and describe it as undead. (Experienced players should experience a nice frisson of terror when they see an undead in tattered robes throwing spells around.)

INTERLUDE: CULTISTS IN OUR MIDST

There are, in fact, more than a dozen cultists active in Winterhaven. At some point after “The Dead Walk”, Ninaran gathers these cultists together and leads an assault on Lord Padraig’s manor house.

If the PCs discover that Ninaran is a cultist before this encounter happens, they may be able to confront her before this encounter happens. If they kill her, she isn’t present but the remaining cultists will organize and attack the manor house in any case. (This will make the encounter easier for the PCs, and that’s just fine.) If they capture her and turn her over to Lord Padraig, he’ll lock her up in the Winterhaven Barracks. In that case, the cultists will first free Ninaran from the barracks and then attack the manor house.

THE MANOR HOUSE – ENTRANCES

DOORS: The outer doors are barred from the inside (Break DC 20). The interior doors are not initially locked, although they can be if the cultists decide they need to barricade themselves (Break DC 16, Thievery DC 20).

ARROW SLITS: The arrow slits on the south wall of area 1 are not large enough to serve as entrances. However, they do allow anyone inside to shoot through without impediment.

WINDOWS – FIRST FLOOR: The windows on the first floor are, in fact, 20 feet above the ground. They are not designed to be opened and are lined with lead, but are easily broken (Break DC 5).

WINDOWS – UPPER FLOORS: The windows on the upper floors are locked. ( Break DC 5, Thievery DC 15).

CHIMNEYS: There are three chimneys.

• EAST CHIMNEY (KITCHEN): This chimney is too small to climb down.
• WEST CHIMNEY (BEDROOM): This chimney is cramped and difficult to climb down (Athletics DC 20). Stealth checks suffer a -2 circumstance penalty while climbing in this chimney.
• NORTH CHIMNEY (RECEPTION HALL): This is a very large chimney and relatively easy to climb down. (Athletics DC 15).

THE MANOR HOUSE – FIRST FLOOR

1. RECEPTION HALL: This is the hall in which Lord Padraig greets petitioners and sits in judgment.

The walls of this formal reception hall are paneled with dark mahogany polished to a gleaming shine. A high-backed wooden chair, its arms carved to look like bear claws and its back in sprigs of mistletoe, sits in a place of honor before a massive fire place.

The statues are of Lord Padraig’s father and grandfather.

2. KITCHEN:

An massive iron stove – an unmistakable remnant of the old Empire – fills the eastern wall of the kitchen. A spiral staircase of wrought iron stands in the corner, leading up to the second floor.

3. STAIRS:

Broad stairs of worn stone curve up to a landing on the second floor.

THE MANOR HOUSE – SECOND FLOOR

4. LANDING: There is a railing along the edge of this landing. It’s a 20 foot drop to the stone floor below.

5. GUEST BEDROOM: Lord Padraig offers this bedroom to visiting dignitaries. It is currently unoccupied. The bed is large and comfortable. There is an empty chest under the bed (where long-term guests can store their clothes and personal items).

6. SERVANT QUARTERS: Lord Padraig’s five servants sleep here.

Five narrow beds fill almost the entirety of this room. Although cramped, everything here appears to be kept in very neat order. There are footlockers beneath each of the beds.

The footlockers contain the possessions of the servants – mostly clothing and a few keepsake items. The footlockers are secured with very simple locks (Thievery DC 10). If the PCs choose to ransack them, there are a few items of value – a ring worth 15 gp; a golden lock with a portrait of a young woman worth 10 gp; a silver necklace worth 5 gp.

7. STAIRS: There is a portrait of Lord Padraig’s father hanging on the wall here.

THE MANOR HOUSE – THIRD FLOOR

8. STORAGE CLOSET: This closet contains a variety of common household goods – linens, lamp oil, mothballed clothing, a ladder, blank paper and ink, lanterns and lamps, and the like.

Tall shelves are crammed together in this narrow space, packed full with a wide effluvium of common household goods. There is a trapdoor in the ceiling, although it is partially blocked by one of the shelves.

The trapdoor leads up to the unused attic.

9. HALL: This grand hall leads to the library and lord’s bedchamber.

A thick, luxurious carpet runs the length of this hall. A chandelier of silver and glass hangs from the ceiling. Heavy doors of oak, carved with an Imperial signet of the old Empire, stand to one side with a smaller door to the other.

10. LIBRARY: This modest library offers a +2 bonus to History and Nature checks. Characters searching on particular topics of interest for the adventure may discover:

The True Historie of the Empire’s Keep, which describes the Keep on the Shadowfell (it gives the same information as a DC 25 Streetwise check and the first two paragraphs of Valthrun’s Follow-Up on the same topic).

Observations of Botany, a journal written by Lord Silvius (Lord Padraig’s great-grandfather). Silvius’ name is signed “Lord Silvius, Vassal of the Verdant Lord” and the text makes it clear that Silvius was a member of that druidic order. Near the end of the journal, Silvius mentions finding a cave which “led into what appear to be the ruins of the ancient keep”. He appeared to be fascinated by the unique cave ecology emerging there, but does not precisely give the location of the cave.

Four bookcases of blackoak stand along the walls of this library, their shelves covered in a wide variety of tomes and parchments.

11. LORD’S BEDCHAMBER: This is Lord Padraig’s bedchamber.

Upon the polished stone floor of this bedchamber sits an enormous bearskin rug at least twenty feet in length. A four-poster bed piled high with mattresses stands along one wall, an elegant fireplace is nestled along another. On one of the tables next to the bed there is a silver bust of a maiden’s head. A large chest of oak banded with steel sits in one corner.

CHEST: The chest is locked (Thievery DC 20). It mostly contains Lord Padraig’s clothing, but there is also a leather purse containing 100 gp in a random assortment of coin.

BEARSKIN RUG: Lord Padraig could tell the story of how his grandfather, Lord Patronus, led a hunting party to slay a dire bear that had been plaguing Winterhaven’s farms. The rug is worth 100 gp (although probably not in Winterhaven, where almost everyone would recognize it as belonging to Lord Padraig).

SILVER BUST: This bust is in the image of Padraig’s mother when she was a young woman. It is solid silver and would fetch a price of 225 gp (although probably not in Winterhaven, where almost everyone would recognize it as belonging to Lord Padraig).

THE MANOR HOUSE – ATTIC

A trap door in area 8 leads up to the fourth floor. The fourth floor was gutted decades ago by a fire and was later changed into an attic, which is now empty. There are, however, two windows in the south side.

ENCOUNTER: THE MANOR SIEGE

CULTISTS:
Ninaran (KOTS pg. 61) (N)
Human Rabble (x12) (KOTS pg. 30) (R)
Human Berserker (x2) (MM pg. 163) (B)

HOSTAGES
Padraig (P)
Servants (x5) (S)

SITUATION: Ninaran and the cultists break into Padraig’s manor house and take him hostage. In the process, they kill four of the Winterhaven Regulars. Ninaran’s primary goal is to prevent the village from organizing any kind of resistance to Kalarel’s plans.

Padraig and his servants are kept securely bound with rope at the locations indicated on the encounter map.

ESCALATION: Ninaran starts by making an outrageous demand for ransom (25,000 gp). Then she’ll kill one of the servants and throw the body out the window. Next she’ll demand that 10 ritual sacrifices are performed in the courtyard before the manor house.

Ninaran doesn’t actually expect any of these demands to be met.

APPROACHING THE MANOR HOUSE: The only cultists actively keeping a lookout are the human rabble at the arrow slits on the first floor and at the northern window on the second floor. Approaching the manor house without being spotted requires a Stealth check (DC 10).

However, there are blind spots to the east and west. If PCs climb over the outer wall of Winterhaven and approach the manor house from due west or east, there is no chance they will be spotted.

TACTICS: The cultists on the upper levels are specifically there as lookouts. If they detect the presence of PCs, they will run downstairs and alert Ninaran. At that point, the cultists will take all the hostages down to area 1 and fortify themselves there.

Continued…