Banshee's Redemption

***Banshee's Redemption*** is a *Dungeons & Dragons* minicampaign.

The story is a fey-centric retheming of the third section of *The Lost Mine of Phandelver*; it follows *The Devil of Fandaren* adventure.

## Plot

### The Mage of Orthica

#### Ruined Watchtower

Built thousands of years ago by a long-vanished empire, the ruined watchtower now consists of little more than a few crumbling walls and the broken stump of a tower. In the tower's courtyard stands an old well that still delivers clean, fresh water. Recently, prospectors in the area have noted that someone has set up a campsite at Old Owl Well, and that undead guardians have been posted to keep intruders out.

As the party crests a low ridge, they spy the crumbling ruins of an old watchtower standing amid the rugged hills. The place is so old that the walls are only mounds of rubble enclosing a courtyard of sorts, adjacent to the broken stump of an old tower. A colorful tent has been set up in the middle of the courtyard, but no one is in sight. The ruins are currently occupied by Hammond Frost, a mage who is busy exploring the site in the hope of gleaning arcane lore left behind by its builders. The characters can enter the site from any direction, either following old footpaths or scrambling up the slope and finding a gap in the surrounding walls of rubble.

Six Zombies lurk inside the crumbled shell of the old watchtower and can't be seen from outside. However, any party member with a passive Perception score of 10 or higher smells a deathly odor wafting from the tower's direction. When characters approach the tower or the tent, the zombies shamble out of the tower; if a battle erupts, Hammond emerges from his tent and asks, "What is the meaning of this?"

Frost is a red-robed figure with sallow skin, a shaved scalp, and a black tattoo on his forehead. A character who succeeds on a DC 15 Arcana check recognizes Frost's tattoo as a necromantic symbol. A successful DC 15 History check verifies the garb as that usual for Hwæssing, a land far to the west where wizards pattern their flesh with tattoos. The tattoo on the head represents a wizard's school of magic. Frost's school is necromancy. If any character attempts to talk to Kost, even by calling out a greeting or answering his questions during combat, he temporarily calls off his zombies. The wizard is not particularly aggressive, and he is willing to strike a deal that advances his interests at the same time it helps the characters.

Frost stays tight-lipped about the reason for his presence in the region. He is, however, willing to provide information the party needs if it does a favor for him. If the characters give Frost some indication of what they want, he shares one or both of these requests:

* He wants to ask a question of Esmerelde the banshee: "What is the name of the wizard who built the tower at Old Owl Well?" Frost won't risk the banshee's anger, but the characters could ask the question for him. (Esmerelde knows the name: Arthur Kingsley.)

***Treasure.*** Frost's tent contains a comfortable traveling suite, including a cot, a chair, a writing desk, supplies, and a chest of clothes. In the chest is a leather bag containing 35 silver, 25 gold, 5 platinum, one pearl worth 100 gold, a potion of healing, a scroll of *Darkness* in a bone tube, a small jeweled box worth 25 gold containing a ring of protection, and a jeweled silver comb. If Hammond has been killed, his journal is found among his possessions, with entries explaining that the comb was found in the dark forest around an area known as Westrid Peak.

#### Westrid Peak

The forest grows dark and still as the trail winds deeper into the trees. Heavy vines and thick layers of moss drape the branches, and the air is noticeably colder that it was in the ruined village. Rounding a bend in the trail, the party sees a screen made from the warped branches of trees standing close together, woven into a domelike shelter in the shadows. A low doorway leads inside.

If the party exercise caution and remember what they've come for, they will be able to speak with the banshee. When the characters enter the shelter, they find that a home of sorts is sheltered within the dome of woven branches. It is sparsely furnished with chests, shelves, a table, and a reclined couch, all of it old and of elven craft. Esmerelde senses the party's intrusion and manifests shortly after they enter the home.

The air grows cold, and a powerful feeling of dread grips the party. A cold, pale light flickers in the air, rapidly taking on the form of an elven woman, her hair and robes waving in a spectral wind. She might have once been beautiful, but a hateful expression contorts her features now. "Foolish mortals," she snarls: "What do you want here? Do you not know it is death to seek me out?" If the party are rude, disrespectful, or threatening, Esmerelde scowls and disappears. She does not attack them, nor does she return if the party calls out.

If the party are respectful and polite, Esmerelde can be persuaded to help them with a successful DC 15 Persuasion check; the party member that takes the lead in speaking with the banshee makes the check, with advantage if they play the encounter well. If any party member carries the silver comb and presents it to Esmerelde as a gift, the check automatically succeeds.

The ghostly figure smiles with cold amusement. "I know that you seek many things. Ask me one question, and I will give you an answer." The banshee is well-informed and a capable diviner, so she can answer almost any single question pertaining to the adventure that the party thinks to ask. However, the banshee answers only one question, so the party should choose it carefully; if the party wants more information, Esmerelde will gladly answer one question per soul coin from Cyrus's stash that the party are willing to part with.

If the party asks about the locked book they recovered from the basement of Lumberpond Estate, Esmerelde admits that she knows where the key is but cannot get to it. Without requiring compensation, she reveals that the book had once been part of the library at her family home, Mondelver Hall, and that as far as she knows, the key is still there; Mondelver has been overrun by hobgoblins, however, since her family was betrayed by her suitor and slaughtered by a Death Dragon.

### Mondelver Hall

The centuries have not been kind to Mondelver Hall. The hobgoblins have shored up the weakest areas beneath its falling towers with crude timbers, but it's only a matter of time before the structure collapses completely. Ceilings are 15 feet high unless noted otherwise. Interior doors are made of wood reinforced with iron bands; they have neither locks nor keyholes. A successful DC 15 Strength check is required to break down a door that is barricaded shut. Floors are cracked and uneven flagstones that conceal a dirt floor underneath. A small amount of natural light filters through the arrow slits around the castle. During the day, this provides dim light in most areas; at night, all areas are dark. Exterior walls and load-bearing interior walls are 5 feet thick, with 3 feet of mortared fill sandwiched between 1-foot-thick courses of hard stone blocks; interior walls are 1-foot-thick worked stone. Arrow slits in the castle walls are 10 feet above the outside ground level, 4 feet above the interior floor level, 8 inches wide, and 4 feet high. A creature on one side of an arrow slit gains three-quarters cover against attacks from the other side.

#### 1. Castle Entrance

The main gates between the Entrance and the Trapped Hall are made of bronze-covered wood, but they are corroded and collapsed. The castle consists of seven crumbling towers of different sizes and heights, but the upper stories are in varying states of collapse. A short flight of steps leads up to a terrace in front of the main entryway. Beyond the wreckage of a pair of sundered doors lies a shadowed hall. Round towers loom over the entranceway, with dark arrow slits looking down on the terrace.

No monsters dwell here, but the hobgoblin sentries in the Archer Post are keeping watch. They glance occasionally out of the arrow slits, however, so characters who move quietly might be able to creep past them. Each party member will make a Stealth check, with the lowers check being the DC for the hobgoblins' Perception checks to notice the party. If the hobgoblins spot the party (or if the party approach openly), the hobgoblins shoot arrows from behind the arrow slits. However, they cannot fire directly at enemies at or past the broken gate.

The hobgoblins also shout loudly enough to alert their comrades in the Ruined Barracks and the Storeroom that the castle is under attack. Rather than storm Mondelver Hall with weapons in hand, clever parties might try to talk their way inside. For example, they might don the cobalt cloaks of The Blue Bloods and claim to be emissaries sent by Cyrus Deville, the Blue Blood leader, to meet with the Hobgoblin Warlord, Baron Grendor.

#### 2. Trapped Hall

Once the castle's foyer, this wide hall makes a dangerous battlefield. Doors stand closed to the north and south, with a crumbling mound of rubble partially obscuring the southern hall. To the east, a broad corridor ends in two more doors leading south and east. The corridor is cluttered with dusty rubble and fallen plaster from a partial collapse of the ceiling overhead. If the hobgoblin sentries in the Archer Post raise the alarm, the hobgoblins in the Barracks come running out of the north and south doors at the same time. They attack from both directions, attempting to overwhelm the party and drive them out of the castle.

The dusty plaster and rubble in front of the door leading to the Dark Hall conceals a copper tripwire connected to linchpins hidden in the ruined ceiling. Spotting the tripwire requires a passive Perception score of at least 20, or a successful DC 12 Perception check if the party are actively searching for traps in the area. Once spotted, the tripwire is easily avoided and disarmed (no ability check required). Any creature that walks over or through the rubble without avoiding the tripwire triggers a cave-in of wooden beams and heavy stones. Any creature in the area when the trap triggers must succeed on a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw or take 3d6 bludgeoning damage from the falling rubble (half as much on a successful save). The noise of the collapse puts the monsters in the Archer Post, Banquet Hall, Dark Hall, and Shrine on alert.

#### 3. Archer Post

Mondelver Hall's primary defenses are its secret location and the appearance of having been abandoned. In addition, Baron Grendor posts sentries to drive off intruders who get too close. The small Post is littered with debris; the arrow slit opposite the door offers a fine field of fire over the terrace in front of the castle gates. Two hobgoblins occupy each of these two rooms. By taking turns shooting arrows and ducking back, both archers can fire each round at targets outside. When characters enter the room, the hobgoblins drop their crossbows and draw their melee weapons.

#### 4. Ruined Barracks

The Mondelver hobgoblins make use of every bit of available space within the castle. The southwest tower of hte castle is little more than a heap of rubble. Several ragged bedrolls are scattered across the remaining floor space, and a small, twisting passage leads east through the ruins. Three hobgoblins bunk here. Though the rubble appears dangerous, the tower is stable, and the eastern passage is safe. Any loud noises here attract the attention of the hobgoblins in the Banquet Hall. One hobgoblin comes to investigate the disturbance; if it doesn't return, or if it spots trouble and sounds the alarm, the others investigate.

#### 5. Storeroom

Caravans raided by the hobgoblins along the Loughroad supply provisions for the castle. Old casks of salted meat and sacks of rotting grain fill this storage area; among the supplies, the party sees a bloody suit of chain mail, a heavy crossbow, and an battleaxe with the emblem of the Thunderson family worked into the hilt. Though the stores here are not edible by human standards, hobgoblins can tolerate them when fresher food isn't available.

One small cask is filled with an exceptional Dwarven brandy, which the hobgoblins overlooked because of its size. The cask contains the equivalent of twenty glasses. A character who drinks a glass of brandy regains 1 hit point, but a character who drinks two glasses within 1 hour becomes poisoned for 1 hour.

#### 6. Barracks

Four plain straw pallets and bedrolls are lined up on the floor of this barracks. Brackets on the walls hold a number of weapons – spears, swords, morningstars, and more. The north wall shows signs of damage, but the floor is swept clean of rubble. Four hobgoblins are quartered in this room; because their neighbors are constantly getting into fights, they don't pay a lot of attention to noise in the Trapped Hall or the Archers Post. However, they are quick to defend their tower if any intruders appear, or to respond to an alarm raised by the sentries.

***Treasure.*** Mounted to the walls are five spears, four longswords, three morningstars, two greatswords, and a fine quarterstaff that once belonged to Esmerelde: the quarterstaff is engraved with stylized feathers, is surprisingly light, and worth 10 gold.

#### 7. Banquet Hall

The lord of the castle once entertained his guests here, throwing lavish banquets and dances. Now the place is a foul hobgoblin mess hall. The western portion of this large hall ends in a wall of rubble, but the remainder is still intact. Two large wooden tables with plain benches stand in the middle of the room, and a brass brazier full of glowing coals is tucked in one corner. Dirty dishes, half-full stewpots, moldly heels of bread, and gnawed bones cover the tables. This hall holds several miserable hobgoblins and their leader, a Hobgoblin Devastator who is the chief cook for the hobgoblins that viciously bullies his unwilling assistants as they go about the work of putting food on the tribe's table. If he is killed, any hobgoblins left alive flee to the east or west, avoiding the north door because of the Trapped Hall.

#### 8. Dark Hall

Even by day, this area has no exterior light. This high, narrow hall looks as if it might have been part of a chapel or shrine at one time. Angelic figures are sculpted along the room's upper reaches, looking down on the floor below. To the north, heavy curtains block a matching pair of archways. Between the archways is a cracked but ornately carved stone brazier. This chamber contains a Kruthik, the special pet of the hobgoblin Lerth. The kruthik likes to climb up to a ledge hidden in the shadows of the sanctuary int he higher reaches of the room. It quietly observes intruders that enter the area before dropping down to strike. Compare the kruthik's Stealth check to the party members' Perception checks (or their passive scores) to determine who among them is surprised. The kruthik knows that hobgoblins are not to be eaten unless Lerth says so. The rest of the hobgoblins are terrified of Lerth's pet and hurry through this room, preferably in twos or threes.

Any cleric who examines the chapel's decor can attempt a DC 15 Religion check to identify the deities that were once revered here: (Oghma (god of knowledge), Mystra (goddess of magic), Lathander (god of dawn), and Tymora (goddess of luck). This is an obvious sign that the builders of the castle were elves. If combat breaks out here, the hobgoblins in the Shrine cannot be surprised.

***Treasure.*** The stone brazier contains a mound of coals, buried under which is a golden statue of a sun elf worth 100 gold and warpped in crimson cloth. A hobgoblin hid the figurine here, hoping his fellow hobgoblins wouldn't steal it from him. A *Detect magic* spell reveals that the statuette is imfused with divination magic. Any non-evil creature grasping the statue can ask it a question and receive a telepathic response, as though it had cast *Augury*. Once a creature has asked its question and received a response, it can never activate the statuette again.

#### 9. Hobgoblin Shrine

Hobgoblins have no use for human gods, so the hobgoblins here have rededicated this place to Maglubiyet, the god of goblinoids. This chamber occupies the northern tower of the castle. A stone altar stands in the middle of the room, covered with bloodstained black cloth. Golden ritual implements – a chalice, a knife, and a censer – are carefully arranged on top of the altar. Two archways to the south are covered with heavy curtains.

This shrine is home to Lerth and two ordinary hobgoblins that serve as his acolytes. They all wear robes over their armor, but none of them possess divine powers (although Lerth claims to hear Maglubiyet speaking to him). If the hobgoblins heard the party fighting the kruthik in the Dark Hall, they hide behind the altar and attempt to surprise the party. Otherwise, all three hobgoblins are kneeling before the altar, praying to their evil god. The bloodstained cloth completely covers the stone altar, the sides of which are engraved with images of the same gods reflect in the decor found in the Dark Hall.

Laid neatly in a row in front of the block are the heads of hobgoblins, bugbears, and goblins lined up as well as a few humans; these beheaded goblinoids were executed for incompetence. These hears are also offerings to their god, Maglubiyet. At the end of the row are the remains of a statue's head sundered in half. The sundered stone head appears to be the face of a beautiful elven woman (a DC 15 Religion check reveals it to be Chandara, the goddess of the moon).

On the northern wall of the room is a simple steel axe hanging from pitons crudely hammered into the wall. There appear to be smears of red all across the walls. Any party member with a passive Perception above 15 will notice that the red smears seem to be an effort to deface the symbols of the god who was once revered here. Behind the axe, the party can make out what appears to be the symbol of a full moon and a bluish gray semicircle. Extending from the moon are painted representations of blue and silver rays of moonlight. These rays stretch across the walls, and although the paint is nearly worn away, the party can see evidence of a single moonbeam that stretches all the way across the floor to the opposite wall.

Also on the wall is a phrase written in Elvish: "*The path opens for our goddess, her feet bathed in moonlight.*" At the southern end of the room is a marble statue of a woman with the head removed. The statue appears to be facing the wall instead of into the room. The statue's feet are attached to a stone circle. There is a small half-inch gap between the edges of the stone circle and the floor. A DC 15 Investigation check reveals that it may be possible to rotate the statue; party members may be able to figure this out themselves without the check. If the statue is turned in the direction of the moon symbol, there are clicking and clanking sounds and the altar moves aside, allowing entry to the Mondelver Sanctuary.

#### 10. Postern Gate

This side entrance to the castle is locked but unguarded. On the south side of the old castle, an overgrown path leads to a passage that climbs up into the wall. A large iron door stands here, sheltered from direct outside attack. Arrow slits ten feet above the ground overlook the path. The iron door is locked. It can be opened with Thieves' Tools and a successful DC 15 Dexterity check, o rknocked down with a successful DC 25 Strength check.

Any character who pauses and listens near the arrow slits hears, from the Banquet Hall, an occasional clatter of crockery and angry hobgoblins arguing over whether the dishes need cleaning. The hobgoblins aren't keeping watch from these arrow slits. However, ift he party makes a lot of noise or commotion, such as knocking down the door, the hobgoblins came and look. If they see intruders outside, they shout an alarm.

#### 11. Ruined Tower

Dusty canvas hides the northern entrance to this area, blending in with the surrounding stonework and rubble. A character who succeeds on a DC 15 Perception check spots a footpath leading up to the hidden entrance. If the party are actively searching the outside of the castle for a hidden entrance, they can make a DC 10 Perception check to spot the canvas "door." This tower has almost completely collapsed, although the ground floor still has a little open space. Rotting crates and ancient barrels show that provisions were once stored here. A heavy curtain blocks a crumbling area to the south, and an intact door leads east. To the north, a short passage through the rubble ends before a screen of canvas.

#### 12. Guard Barracks

The creature here keep watch from the arrow slits, so any party members creeping around the east side of the castle are likely to be spotted and attacked. A stone brazier full of coals glows in the middle of this small barracks. Four straw pallets are lined up along the east wall. The wall to the south has collapsed, but a barred wooden door in that direction is still clear. A curtain hangs in an archway to the north. Two hobgoblins stand guard in this room. They are smart, tough, and loyal to Baron Grendor. At the start of combat, one hobgoblin runs to warn the Baron in his quarters, then returns 2 rounds later to rejoin the fight. This area was once a parlor for the castle's elven occupants, though its rotted furnishings were broken up by the hobgoblins and used for firewood.

#### 13. Owlbear Tower

This room was once a library and workshop, but nothing of its original contents remains intact. The door to this room is held shut with a heavy wooden bar – a subtle warning that danger lies beyond. when the bar is lifted, the creature in the room awakens and lets out a terrible roar. The arrow slits here are shuttered, leaving the room dark; the upper floors of this tower have collapsed to create a hollow silo at least thirty feet high, and the upper reaches of the room are lost in shadows. Dust, rubble, and broken glass cover the floor, and old worktables and bookshelves lie strewn to the south.

In the middle of hte room is a hulking beast that looks like a mangy bear with an owl's head. It rears up and roars when it see you. The hobgoblins have captured an owlbear and confined it to this tower. The room is kept dark to keep the beast calm, but Baron Grendor doesn't know what to do with it yet. If a party member throws it fresh meat, the owlbear devours the food. Otherwise, it attacks the first creature it sees in the doorway. If the party open the door and stay out of the owlbear's way, it feels the castle (most likely through the Ruined Tower); the creature attacks anything that gets in its way.

***Treasure.*** All that remains of the tower's second floor is a jagged ledge, upon which sits a battered wooden chest. The chest is hard to see from the floor, requiring a successful DC 15 Perception check to notice. The chest is unlocked and contains 90 gold, 120 silver, a potion of healing, a spell scroll of *Silence*, and a spell scroll of *Revivify*.

#### 14. Baron's Quarters

Any party member who listens at the door hears two voices in a heated discussion – a loud, growling voice demanding payment for something, and a silky-smooth reply. This chamber has been set up as a crude living space, with thick furs thrown on the floor to serve as carpets, old trophies hanging on the walls, a large bed to the north, and a brazier of coals burning brightly. A round table with several chairs stands to the south near the door. The Northwest Room is partially collapsed, and was once a comfortable ballroom. It still contains a large tile tub, unused by the castle's current occupant. Near the table, on the floor, is an unconscious dwarf, Edric Thunderson, who looks badly beaten.

Baron Grendor is a fierce old Hobgoblin Warlord: he rules the hobgoblins through pure intimidation. Age has stooped his shoulders and hunched his back, but he remains surprisingly agile and strong. He is demanding and vindictive, and none of the hobgoblins dare to cross him. Grendor is attended by a Dire Worg and the Duergar Warlord, Daradin Blackstone. The Hobgoblin and the Duergar are arguing other whether to ransom the dwarf back to his family or sell him into slavery.

If the villains have been warned that an attack is imminent, Daradin hides behind the door to the northeast, leaving it open a crack and hoping to attack an intruder from the rear. Grendor holds Edric hostage, ready to murder the dwarf if the party doesn't back off. The arrow slits in this room are 15 feet above the ground outside, and the creatures here aren't keeping watch. They are unlikely to notice intrudes moving around the exterior of the castle. If Grendor is killed, Daradin tries to kill Edric and flee, heading toward the Ruined Tower and escaping through the concealed canvas door. If cornered, the Duergar fights to the death rather than allow himself to be captured.

***Treasure.*** Hidden beneath Grendor's bed mattress is a stitched leather sack containing 220 silver, 160 gold, and three potions of greater healing.

#### 15. Mondelver Sanctuary

A swirl of dust spirals into the air when the party descends into the Mondelver family sanctuary. The noises of the hobgoblins in the castle fade to nothing here – the silence feels absolute. The sanctuary served several purposes: This was where Esmerelde's father, Erring Mondelver, kept his private study. It also housed a more intimate private shrine to Chandara as well as the sacred Well of the Moon. Finally, this was a refuge area for family members to keep safe should the castle ever fall under attack. In addition to the secret entrance from the altar room above, a secret tunnel leads out from the sanctuary to a location int he woods outside Mondelver Hall.

**The Attack on the Sanctuary.** Esmerelde's lover, the human bard Wendell, learned of the sanctuary's location through Esmerelde. Betraying her trust, he shared the information with a Death Dragon with whom he was in league. When the family retreated into the sanctuary, Wendell opened it up, and the dragon spewed its necrotic breath into the underground chamber, killing the entire family except for Esmerelde, who had by luck been gathering medicinal herbs in the Prismatic Forest near Fandaren. Kobolds who served the dragon brough the bodies up to their master, who devoured them one by one. The dragon has since grown into an Adult Death Dragon with Wendell as its Deathless Rider: the party will encounter the pair after reaching Benneth Knor when they are hired by the Thunderson family.

##### 1. Erring Mondelver's Study

this is where Erring Mondelver, Esmerelde's father, studied the arcane arts as well as wrote most of his correspondences. Most of these books are not spellbooks, but rather books on the theory of divination and illusion magics.

**Mya's skeleton**: Hidden underneath the desk is a small skeleton wearing the clothing of a very young elven girl. This is Mya Mondelver, Esmerelde's younger sister. Although Mya had succumbed to the death dragon's necrotic breath, her body had been overlooked by the Kobolds. Esmerelde learned about what happened to her by casting *Speak with dead*. Mya had observed a human riding the back of the death dragon and by her description, Esmerelde deduced that it could only have been Wendell behind her family's death.

**Bookshelf**: A thorough search of the shelf will reveal the Cerulean Spellbook, containing 3 or 4 divination and illusion spells of the DMs choice as well as a book on the Mondelver family history. Should an elven or half-elven party member be related to the Mondelver family, their grandfather's name will be written in the family tree.

**Chest**: The lock on this chest has been smashed open. At first glance, the chest is empty. However, there is a false bottom int he chest which will be revealed by a DC 15 passive Perception. Inside the false bottom is Erring's journal and a platinum signet ring with the Mondelver family crest worth 50 gold, as well as a steel key glowing faintly with moonlight. The ring may come in handy later when speaking to any living members of the Mondelver family. The journal expresses concern about a death dragon who has made its lair near the castle, as well as concern about Esmerelde spending too much time with her human lover, the bard Wendell.

##### 2. Sanctuary Shrine

This small shrine is dedicated to Chandara, the goddess of the moon; there is an alcove in the wall with a beautifully painted statue of the Mondelver's divine patron. If anyone in the party has Mondelver blood, they are immediately drawn to the alcove and they sense that something important is behind it. A DC 10 Perception check reveals that the alcove is turned slightly to the side. Esmerelde, in her haste to seek revenge on Wendell, failed to seal the alcove properly when she left.

##### 3. Well of the Moon

The secret door to the Well of the Moon is behind the shrine to Chandara. Inside is a small pool that emits a bright silvery light akin to that of the full moon. Upon the surface of the water is the image of a large full moon. this is where members of the Mondelver family partook in the Silver Truth as well as performing scrying spells.

**Boon (The Silver Truth)**: Beside the well is a silver dipper set upon an ornate wooden side table with the following words written in elvish on its surface: "May the silver truth guide you." If any party member drinks the water of the pool, they are imbued with the single-use power to remove delusions and self-deceptions from any being. They will also be able to detect delusions in any being as they speak. Once the water is imbibed, the full moon in the pool gradually fades to a faint crescent moon and to the darkness of a new moon. The well takes 30 days to return to a full moon state, whereupon a drinker can receive the Silver Truth boon again.

**Sword sheath**: At the south end of the room on two iron hooks is an ornate sheath of a sword with platinum and gold filigree. It looks to be valuable. Should a party member pick it up, they see a line of what seems to be moonlight pointing in a southern direction. A successful DC 12 Arcana check will reveal that this is probably the location of the sword for this sheath. After Esmerelde had cast *Speak with dead* on her sister to learn what had happened to her family, she went straight to the well to scry on the location of her lover Wendell, who was heading toward Benneth Knor. In a rage, she took the sword from the wall, neglecting the sheath as well as neglecting to completely seal the shrine's secret door as she left in pursuit of him.

##### 4. Ransacked Supplies

Broken barrels and crates are strewn all about this area, covered in a fine layer of dust. These crates had been torn open by the Kobolds who worked in the serve of the death dragon. Nothing is in them. Anything that was not consumed on the spot was carried away.

##### 5. Bedchambers

These bedchambers served as an emergency sleeping area for the family in case of a siege. Judging by the thick layer of dust, no one has been here in a very long time.

**Secret Passage**: To the south of the room, a DC 15 Perception check will reveal a secret passage to the south. This passage leads to the woods outside Mondelver Hall.

##### 6. Privy

Three rudimentary toilets line the far end of the room.

##### 7. Secret Passage

This secret passage is 8 feet tall by 5 feet wide, and progresses for 600 feet before opening out into the woods outside Mondelver Hall.

#### Returning War Band

If the party survived the confrontation without sufficient difficulty, a complication can be added in the form of a hobgoblin war band returning home, just as the party prepares to leave the castle. This war band consists of three hobgoblins and two worgs.

### Ruins of Trysernia

Near the place where the Loughroad emerges from the Prismatic Forest stands the abandoned village of Trysernia. Once, this was a prosperous community on the outskirts of the forest, wealthy from the work of its woodcutters and trappers. Thirty years ago, an earthquake devastated the town. In the wake of the natural disaster, a plague of strange zombies swept over the area, killing or driving off those who survived the eruption.

Though most of the zombies have long since crumbled to dust, strange magic permeating the area has mutated the local vegetation into new and dangerous forms. Few people dare to venture into the ruined village now, and those who do so seldom stay long – with two notable exceptions. The druid Reggan visits the Druid's Watch in Trysernia from time to time, keeping a wary eye on its dangers. Cultists have also arrived recently to treat with a dragon that claims the ruins as its domain.

As the party approaches the ruins, the trail gradually becomes an old, overgrown lane winding between dilapidated buildings choked in vines and brush. Ahead of them, in the middle of the settlement, rises a steep hill, upon which stands a stone tower with a partially collapsed roof and an adjoining cottage. A dirt road hugs the base of the hill and wends its way between old stone houses, many of which are roofless ruins with interiors open to the weather. Other buildings appear more or less intact. The whole place is eerily silent. A wooden sign is nailed to a post nearby, reading: "DANGER! Plant monsters AND zombies! Turn back now!" Reggan placed the sign to discourage bands of treasure seekers from stirring up the monsters in the area.

Many of Trysernia's buildings have crumbled in the years since the town was abandoned, even as nature threatens to swallow what remains. Ruined buildings are empty shells with stone walls 5 to 8 feet high. Their roofs are gone, leaving piles of debris inside the walls. The debris is difficult terrain. Intact buildings are rundown, ramshackle stone cottages that are otherwise still standing. Their wooden doors are swollen and require a successful DC 10 Strength check to force open. The windows of any intact building are 2 feet wide and covered by wooden shutters containing 6-inch wide arrow slits. Creatures on one side of an arrow slit gain three-quarters cover against attacks from the other side. Dusty old furnishings such as simple wooden chairs and tables remain in most intact buildings.

Trees average 30 to 40 feet tall and provide cover. Brush consists of large bushes that count as difficult terrain.

##### 1. Westernmost Cottage

This cottage has seen better days. Cowering in the shadow of an old tree is a crumbled stone cottage with no roof. Weeds are rampant here. Two vine blights hide among the weeds that flank the cottage's open doorway. Make a Stealth check for the blights, and compare the result to the passive Perception scores of the party members to determine if the blights are spotted. The blights do not attack on their own (except in self-defense) but quickly come to the aid of the twig blights in the Blighted Cottage if combat erupts there.

##### 2. Blighted Cottages

Wind and weather have done their work here, and little remains of these houses or their former contents. These ruined, side-by-side cottages look as though they might have been the homes of prosperous shopkeepers or well-off farmers in their time. All that remains are collapsed walls and piles of debris. Several young trees have grown up in the midst of the ruins. The overgrowth conceals a deadly threat: six vine blights lurking among the ordinary foliage. Spotting them requires a successful Perception check challenged by the blights' Stealth check. These plant monsters are hungry and fight until destroyed. One round after they attack, the twig blights from the Westernmost Cottage join the fray.

***Treasure.*** A merchant who once lived here had a chest full of coins hidden under the flagstone floor of his home. A thorough search of the interior of the eastern cottage and a successful DC 10 Perception check reveals the old chest among the roots of the tree growing up through the house. The chest contains 700 copper, 160 silver, and 90 gold.

##### 3. The Auburn Mare

This was formerly The Auburn Mare, a tavern renowned for its excellent ale. A weathered signboard by the door of this large building shows the faded image of a horse holding a flagon of ale. The building is sagging and dilapidated, but it is more intact than the ruins across the road. Four Zombies lurk in the shadows in this building, slumped against the walls or under the bar. When living creatures enter, the zombies groan and stir, slowly climbing to their feet. They pursue any characters they see, attacking until destroyed. The eastern half of the building is the old common room, while the western portion held the kitchens and the brewer's vats. Huge wooden tuns stand to the west, and a faint smell of yeast still permeates the air. The ale is long gone.

##### 4. Druid's Watch

When Reggan visits Trysernia, this is where he makes camp. This small house appears to be in better condition than the ruined and dilapidated structures nearby. The doors are reinforced with heavy iron bands, and thick shutters protect the windows. Reggan is a gaunt, white-bearded human who doesn't use two words when one word will do. Though he receives very few visitors, he is reasonably hospitable.

Reggan is adept at staying away from the zombies that overrun the village, as well as avoiding the area's mutated plants. He knows that dangerous spiders lurk in the ruins at the base of the hill, and he suspects that someone is hiding out on the eastern side of town – he's seen "folk in black masks and cloaks" (the cultists) skulking around. However, he is currently most concerned by the fact that a green dragon has moved into the Tower since the last time he was here. He warns the characters of all these threats, and suggests that they leave Trysernia before they get themselves killed.

If the characters ask about Cragmaw Castle, Reggan will not divulge its location but will offer to guide the party there in exchange for a favor: he wants them to chase off the dragon. If they succeed, Reggan will honor his part of the agreement but will not accompany the party inside the mine. If the characters attack him for any reason, Reggan transforms into a gray squirrel and scurries out of the cottage through a crack in the wall. He vanishes into the woods, then waits for the hostile characters to leave. His watch post contains nothing of value.

##### 5. Blighted Farmhouse

To its south, this farm abuts a field with thick patches of gorse and briars. This ruin looks as if it might once have been a farmhouse. It is now half swallowed by a dense thicket, with trees growing up through its ruined foundations. The lane continues south a short distance past the ruin before ending in an overgrown field. The thicket east of this ruin is crawling with eight vine blights. Any disturbance in the ruined farmhouse (for example, party members rooting around in the rubble) draws the blights' ire. Each round for 3 rounds, two vine blights head for the south doorway leading into the farmhouse while two more head for the north doorway. The blights attack until destroyed.

##### 6. Ruined Store

This former general store is not a complete ruin yet, with portions of its tile roof still intact. At an intersection near the middle of the village, a narrow lane winds up the steep hillside to the north. Directly to the south is a ruined building that might have been a store or workshop. Webs stretch across the lane, from the building to the trees on the north side of the road. Two phase spiders hide on the inner walls in this ruined building, so they are not visible from outside. Trailing lines from the webs in the lane allow the spiders to sense when prey is moving through the webs, at which point they nimbly scuttle over the wall and attack. The alert spiders surprise any character whose passive Perception score is less than 17.

The webs fill two squares north of the doorway. They are difficult terrain, and a creature trying to move through them must succeed on a DC 10 Athletics check; on a failure, the creature is restrained in the webs. A snared creature can take an action each round to attempt to break free with a DC 12 Strength check, or it can try to cut its way free by using a light weapon that deals slashing damage. The webs have AC 10, 5 hit points, vulnerability to fire damage, and immunity to bludgeoning, poison, and psychic damage. Going around the webs is difficult because of the thickets on the north side of the road. Going around the ruined building to the south leads to the vine blights in the Blighted Farmhouse.

***Treasure.*** The corpse of an unfortunate adventurer is cocooned in spider silk in the western half of the building. The body is shriveled up and sucked dry, but appears to have been a male elf. The body wears studded leather armor and a shortsword in the scabbard at its hip. A careful search also yields a potion of healing in a belt pouch, along with 23 gold and 35 silver.

##### 7. Dragon's Tower

This tower was formerly the home of a human wizard, who was killed fighting the zombies that overran Trysernia thirty years ago.

At the top of the hill stands a round tower with a cottage attached. Both are in good condition, although half of the tower's roof is gone. A door leads into the cottage, and several arrow-slit windows are visible in the tower. You can't help but notice an eerie quiet in the area and a strange, acrid smell in the air. The corpses of two hideous phase spiders are sprawled near the edge of the pathway, apparently dragged there. Their bloated bodies are puckered and blistered, and appear to have been mauled by a large animal.

A juvenile green dragon named Lasarath has recently claimed the tower, having passed over Trysernia while searching the Prismatic Forest for a suitable lair. The giant spider corpses are the former residents of the tower, killed by the dragon after it tore its way through the roof. Since then, Lasarath has been laying low. The dragon lives in the tower – a single room with a 40-foot-high ceiling. A 5-foot-wide staircase circles the interior, rising to the now-opened rooftop that allows the dragon easy access to its new home. Heavy wooden beams and stair supports crisscross the tower interior.

Lasarath does not want to give up such a promising lair, but if the party reduce the dragon to half its hit points, it climbs to the top of the tower and flies off to fight another day. The cottage outside the tower contains dusty furniture draped in webbing, but nothing of value. If the party make a lot of noise in the cottage, the dragon hears them and steels itself for a fight.

* ***Treasure.*** An old wooden chest broken open on the tower floor holds the last of the dead wizard's treasure: 800 silver, 150 gold, four silver goblets set with moonstones worth 60 gold each, a scroll of *Misty Step*, and a scroll of *Lightning Bolt*. Lasarath spends much of her time greedily admiring the loot.

The dragon has barely noticed the most interesting item in its hoard. Beneath the coins is a rusty old battleaxe of dwarven manufacture. Runes in Dwarvish on the axe head read SKÆRE, and the rust is misleading. Skære is a +1 battleaxe that deals maximum damage when the wielder hits a plant creature or an object made of wood; Sarsen recognizes the weapon immediately as another artefact of the Thunderson Family. Whoever carries the axe feels uneasy whenever he or she travels through a forest.

##### 8. Old Smithy

This smithy was abandoned long ago. A wide chimney and rotted piles of firewood jumbled outside the walls of this sagging building suggest that it was a smithy in its day. Two zombies are slumped on the floor; when the party enter, the monsters climb to their feet and then attack. When the zombies have caught sight of the characters, they pursue them no matter where they go. A variety of old tools – tongs, bellows, hammers, and a pair of iron anvils – are scattered around the interior of this building.

##### 9. Herbalist's Shop

This was an herb and alchemy shop belonging to the family of Marina Benson, now a resident in Fandaren (see encounter 5 in the "Redbrand Hideout" section). This ruined shop is cluttered with sagging storage shelves and broken furniture; shards of glass and pieces of pottery glint in the weeds and rubble next to rotted books and casks. All the reagents and concoctions here have long since been ruined, and the books are unreadable masses of rot. However, a small wooden case is hidden in a compartment beneath the storage shelves. A party member searching through the wreckage can find the case with a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check. The check succeeds automatically if Mirna sent the party to find the heirloom.

* ***Treasure.*** The case is worthless but contains a gold necklace with an emerald pendant worth 500 gold.

##### 10. Town Square

Encroaching underbrush has yet to engulf the square. On the east side of town, the lane opens up to form a small square. Several ruined buildings surround the south side of the square, but a larger, intact structure to the north looks like a barracks. One lane leads southeast, another heads southwest around the hill in the middle of the town, and a third way meanders north. In the middle of the square, leaning to one side ever so slightly, is a weathered wooden statue of a warrior clutching a spear and shield. The leaning statue is ten feet tall, including the base. It depicts an old hero of Benneth Knor who defeated several monsters in the Prismatic Forest when Trysernia was first founded. A character who studies the statue recognizes the depiction with a successful DC 15 History check.

##### 11. Old Garrison

For the residents of Trysernia, living so close to the Prismatic Forest demanded constant vigilance. The barracks appears to have weathered the years better than most buildings in town; its rooftop features a simple battlement, and arrow-slit windows confirm that it was built to serve as a small keep in times of emergency. Five zombies lurk within this building. Former members of the garrison, they still wear the remnants of rusted mail and soldiers' surcoats. These scraps of armor do not improve their Armor Class, however. The zombies animate and attack if any living creature disturbs their rest.

The interior of the building still contains furnishings, and the main room has a ladder leading through a trapdoor to the roof. The chamber to the north contains two double bunks, while the chamber to the south has three double bunks, providing quarters for ten soldiers altogether. To the northwest of the main area of the barracks was a kitchen and pantry, now containing piles of well-rotted sacks and barrels that once held salted meat. All the foodstuffs have long since been devoured by vermin.

##### 12. Weaver's Cottage

This fallen cottage is a lure for the creatures that lair nearby. Heaps of wreckage litter the interior of this ruin, and a broken loom stands in one corner. Six vine blights lurk in the thicket south of this ruin; each party member may attempt a Perception check contested by the blights' Stealth check to avoid being surprised by them.

Any loud noises here alert the cultists in their hideout, who quietly and cautiously investigate.

##### 13. Cultist Hideout

A group calling itself the Cult of the Dragon seeks to create a draconic demigod by way of a ritual conducted on a dragon egg. Toward that end, eight cultists recently tracked a green dragon to the tower in Trysernia and have recently stolen an egg from it. They now only need to acquire a Green Dragon Mask to complete the ritual, and have recently received information that one may be

in Mondelver Hall. This small farmhouse appears to be just another empty home at first glance. However, all the doors are shut and windows shuttered. The doors to this cottage are barred from the inside, requiring a successful DC 20 Strength check to force open. The shutters are also barred from inside and can be forced with a successful DC 15 Strength check.

Three human cultists occupy the house, while the remaining five are guarding the dragon's egg in the basement. The cultists wear green cloaks cut to resemble dragon wings, and green leather masks with stylized dragon horns. In addition to the Common tongue, these cultists speak Draconic. The interior of the house is dusty and strung with cobwebs. The only furnishings are a small stove, a table, two chairs, and a bunk (which the cultists share). The leader of the group is an evil and ambitious young man named Varrek, who hopes to create a draconic demigod that he believes he can control.

***Treasure.*** In the basement, Varrek has a chest containing almost all of the spell components necessary for the completion of the ritual: three diamonds worth 300 gold each. He also carries a potion of flying in a stoppered vial around his neck.