Dragon temple

The basic idea: A lizardfolk person asks for help in exchange for what they want. Their clutch, their home is under attack. From their perspective, the people are ‘evil’ and killing everyone. The players should be led to think it might be goblins? Fight through beasts that were missed, primitive traps. When they get to the end, it’s actually a band of mercenaries hired by the local village to wipe out the lizardfolk because they’ve been stealing the cattle and maybe even children. They have to choose between helping the lizard or the adventurers. Either way, lizard king or queen and a few soldiers are guarding the clutch in the next room. Depending on which way they decide, they have allies and enemies.

The final adventure:

In the heart of the Fakatoa Bog, near the small village of Azutesh, is a small mountain that holds what was once a temple for a cult that worshiped a now long-dead ancient black dragon. The temple has largely been forgotten by Azutesh, but is now home to a lizardfolk clan. When the lizardfolk are slaughtered by some terrible foe, will you be the ones to help their druid save the clutch of eggs from intruders? Or will you choose an alternate path?

In temple areas- Flat ground-flagstone

Rubble- difficult terrain

Temp- cool

Illumination- dark- lizardfolk don’t have darkvision, so they need torches.

Suffocation- hold breath for 1+con mod in minutes (min 30 seconds). If it runs out of breath or is choking, it can survive for a number of rounds equal to con mod (min 1). At start of next turn, drops to 0 hp and is dying. Can’t regain hp or be stabilized until it can breathe again.

In cavern areas- Either rough stone or muck (difficult terrain, can’t charge or run), some slightly underwater. Cool. Dark.

Random encounters-

1- 1d6+3 stirges

2- 1 swarm of poisonous snakes

3- 1d6 giant rats

4- 1d3 lizardfolk

5- lizardfolk on giant lizard

6- 1d4 crocodile

1 Exterior- You notice a large, stone dragon head jutting out of the side of a rocky cliff that rises out of the swampland. Beneath the head is an entryway. Looking closer, you can see that this used to have doors attached, but they have since either rotted away or been broken off.

2 Temple Entry- Entering this room, you immediately see a wall of rubble and broken stone against the back wall, obscuring what would probably be the way further into the structure. In the corner, however, you do notice a tunnel of rough stone. The entry has well-crafted stone walls and flagstone floor where it hasn’t been broken and collapsed by whatever happened. There are piles of rotted wood against the sides of the walls.

3 Cavern entry. This section of the cave holds three lizardfolk bodies.

(Investigation 10- these three lizards were probably some sort of fighters. They have roughly-made weapons near their bodies.

15- They have gaping wounds, caused by some sort of gouging or slashing as if swords or claws.

Survival/Medicine 15- They’ve been dead less than a day.)

4 Collapsed room. This appears to have once been a room, but everything is collapsed. Most of the walls and ceiling are in crumbled bits all over the floor.

5 Brackish pool. As you come to this tunnel, you note a bit of a musty smell as the ground starts to descend. When the short tunnel starts to open up, you can see that there is water-- still, brackish water— that fills the area. (The room continues to descend in level, so the further from the opening, the deeper the water. It’s 10 feet deep in the corners. The water is gross and salty. (Per 15 to see the shiny, 20 to see the giant octopus.) Treasure- A statue made of pure platinum worth 500 gp. (8)

6 Kitchen. (Door: wood, rotted.) This room seems to be the remains of a kitchen of the temple that stood here. The wood has mildewed and is moldy and rotting, but you can see the remains of tables, counters, and chairs. There are rusted metal utensils, pots and pans, and other kitchen implements.

7 Cages. (Door: wood, rotted.) This room has the rusted remains of several cages along the edges. There is a hole half-filled with rubble in the corner, a bit of cooler air coming in from the tunnels beyond. In the center of the room is a dead lizardfolk and a dead giant lizard.

If they look closer, they disturb the stirges that were feeding.- 6 stirges (Athletics 10 to climb or 1d6 bludgeoning damage from falling.)

8 Pool. As you walk deeper into this section of the cave, you once again notice the floor tilting down and water. Unlike the other water, this is clearer. (Perception 15 for shiny (it’s nothing), 20 for the holes that the swarm of quippers lives in.)

9 Destroyed room. A destroyed room full of rubble that opens into a larger, empty cavern.

10. Collapsed room. A completely demolished room with further collapse that leads to the west. (giant toad)

11 Water seepage. The bit of water seeping in through the wall here has puddled and created mud around and under it. (MUD MEPHIT)

12 Storage. This room must have been storage with several rotted crates collapsed in on each other, their contents either long looted or destroyed over time.

13. There are several dead lizardfolk here.

Perception 10- Some have been singed, others cleaved open.

15- One has several smaller wounds in its back.

14 Tunnel. This tunnel twists around and ends in a dead end. There are several bodies littering the floor along the tunnel’s length and a pile of long-dead bones scattered across the floor at the end of the tunnel. If they disturb the bones, a swarm of poisonous snakes will attack)

15. There is a pile of bodies outside of the door to this room. (If you look, you’ll find the body of the villager here, partially butchered.)

Listening will allow you to hear soft voices within. Depending on whether the people inside are alerted, you may catch them by surprise. Perception- +6

When you open the door to this room, you see three humanoids inside. There is a dragonborn tending the wounds of a dwarf with a bandage. The dwarf is cleaning her axe while the dragonborn wraps her thigh. There is also an elf looking at a scroll. (The halfling is hiding in the corner near the door to get the drop on anyone who comes through.)

The elf is wearing fine wizard’s robes of a deep green and silver. He has a smooth, ivory wand and a dagger tucked into his belt. In his pocket is a shimmering pearl, and he has a scholar’s pack with a potion of healing in the pouch.

The fighter is wearing half plate armor and has a greataxe with dwarven runes carved into it ( “strength of stone” ), two light hammers, and a javelin that is double ended with silver lightning bolts. He has an explorer’s pack with mason’s and smith’s tools in it as well as two potions of healing.

The silver scaled dragonborn is wearing splint armor and has a shield with Bahamut’s symbol on it. He has a spear and a longsword and a blue and gold cloak over top.

The halfling is wearing leathers and has several daggers tucked into her belt and sash. She has three vials- a potion of healing, a vial of acid, and a potion of poison- in her sash. She’s wearing a burglar’s pack with theives tools.

The party responsible for the death of all the lizardfolk (and looting) is taking a short rest inside. Rhogar, the dragonborn cleric, has been tasked with clearing and destroying the ancient black dragon temple. The nearby village has been suffering from lizardfolk attacks as they have raided the town’s cattle and even some children have gone missing. They know the leader of the lizardfolk is in 16 guarding the clutch in 17, so they were taking a short rest to recuperate before attacking. The players will have to choose sides. If they side with the lizardfolk, they will have to fight the wounded adventurers. If they side with the adventurers, their lizardfolk guide will attempt to run and inform the king/shaman and they will be prepared. (Rhogar, dragonborn cleric. Helja, dwarf fighter. Bree, halfling rogue. Aelar, elf wizard) 10- pearl of power, 3 potion of healing, potion of poison, acid, boots of elvenkind, javelin of lightning, cloak of protection

16 Altar room- This room appears to have once been a place of worship. There were benches, now piles of rotted wood scattered across the floor. There are stone statues of dragons along the edges of the room. There is a door in the center of the wall opposite the entry, but standing in front of it is a lizardfolk larger and darker of scale than the others you’ve seen. (LIZARD KING- 110 gp, feathered talisman 25g, rabbit fur talisman 25g, trident) 9

17 Dragon’s perch- This room is worked stone close to the door, but the further you look, the more it opens up into a large cave with water beyond. There is a platform, 10’ tall, only 20’ into the room. Along the floor level are several nests with lizardfolk eggs and other, non-combatant lizardfolk huddled in fear. (The platform used to be where the black dragon would rest and take visitors from the cult that worshiped it. It would come in via the watery tunnels and use the platform.)