Talon's Height: Brightwood Overview and Random Encounters

The Brightwood

OVERVIEW

Population: Perhaps 80 assorted foresters, miners, and hermits, 24 kobolds under Targyn, a dragon accompanied by several dozen henchmen, 14 sentient giant beavers, several fey, and who knows what else.

Game Function: The Brightwood is, in game terms, a “monster forest” - many dangerous things lurk here, and might be encountered, but in line with the themes of the setting, some of these dangerous things can be negotiated with, and there are strange societies who adventurers might befriend (or kill). Two of the major factions are located here – Nimthur's Lair is found in a quarry in the east of the Brightwood, whilst King Targyn rules his Kobolds from the Dragon's Tooth. The Prince Most Magnificent in Shimmering Smoke is beginning to extend his influence here as well.

Description: Covering the entire northern march of Talon's Height, the Brightwood is a mature mixed forest, with a range of hills deeper in, dominated by the Dragon's Tooth. Things under the eaves are a little darker, a little stranger, a little more threatening than out in the open. There is a constant promise of wonder or danger round each turn.

LIST OF LOCATIONS (LOW DETAIL):

1. Hex 1-4: Granny's Cottage: A witch's cottage inhabited by a cat and a corpse. Not the sort of witch you might think.

2. Hex 2-4: Lost Tanariel: A half-ruined Eladrin city that phases in and out of the Prime Material Plane, full of goodies, angers, and a mysterious figure known as the Silver Handmaiden.

3. Hex 3-3 Cave of the Great Shell: A cave connected to the Elemental Plane of Earth (8-room dungeon, intentionally linear). Inhabited by various earth-aspected elementals, shaped like a snail shell, and enterable by each person only once a year.

4. Hex 3-6: Logging Camp: Owned by Lady Jana and worked by sturdy foresters, it is threatened by “wood woses”.

5. Hex 4-3: The Dragon's Tooth: A small (8.5 room, single level) dungeon inhabited by the Kobolds of King Targyn. Possible allies for those who oppose Nimthur the Dragon. The locals are very much Tucker's Kobolds. They trade with the Weaverfolk and clash with the Lordship of Talon's Height and Nimthur.

6. Hex 5-5: Shattered Tower: A ruined wizard's tower with an unbreached vault (4 rooms and a door puzzle, a bunch of magic items). Rupprecht the Golden, freelance conjurer in the pay of Nimthur, is trying to get in.

7. Hex 6-3: The Luminous Caverns: Some Myconids and Vegepygmies live together in this set of fungus-covered caves (a small dungeon, not fully mapped yet). They are peaceable but troubled by Anna the Hag.

8. Hex 7-3: Anna's Homestead: Anna seems to be a friendly old woman living in the hills, giving adventurers borderline-accurate information about the local area. She is in fact a spiteful Annis Hag giving subtly-inaccurate information so as to cause trouble for her neighbours.

9. Hex 7-5: Exploratory Mine: A Dwarf got some miners together and started digging a promising seam. A Korred (earthy fey) has different ideas and has chased them out. Whose property is it?

10. Hex 9-3: The High Lake: An artificial lake created by a giant dam built by the Weaverfolk (sentient beaver people). The Weaverfolk are peaceable but not very interested in the world around them. Destroying their home has the (fringe?) benefit of flooding areas of Nimthur's Lair.

11. Hex 9-4: Nimthur's Lair: The home of one of the faction leaders and the most obvious “Big Bad” early on. Nimthur is a young blue dragon who thinks he deserves to be recognized as ruler of the region due to his might. He doesn't like any other faction and will seek their destruction or subjugation. His lair is built into an abandoned quarry, and he is served by Broken Pot Goblins, Blue Lightning Kobolds, and Feathered Axe Lizardfolk. He also is hosting contingent of Duergar from the Underdark city of Karrowzar who have formed an alliance with him. They have built a great forge in the lower levels of his quarry to gather materials and create weapons of war. This is a big dungeon – 5 levels with over 30 rooms/areas.

12. Hex 10-5: Palisar's Garden: A local garden wizard [a class from Coins and Scrolls], Palisar, lives on the fringe of the Brightwood. He hosts fellow garden wizards on the Vernal Equinox to uphold planar treaties – good fences make good neighbours, and all that. He begins the campaign besieged by Broken Pot Goblins in the service of Nimthur.

Brightwood Encounter Chart

d6 each hex, on a 6 roll again:

d20

1: Forest Gnome Dell (mark hex)

The Hornpipes, a family of Forest Gnomes (grandfather, mother and father, three children) live here and cultivate local fruit trees. They seek to scare off dangerous-looking intruders (such as adventurers!) with illusions of beasts and monsters. They will welcome peaceable folk and give them food. They know the location of Nimthur's Lair.

2: Bear Cave

The adventurers come upon a cave mouth, with a half-woken Cave Bear shuffling around. There is a squeeze through to Underdark passages beyond.

3: Padron the Seer (repeatable)

The adventurers see signs of a campfire a few hundred feet away. If they go to it, they find Padron, blind fortuneteller, accompanied by a silent half-orc Berzerker who Padron does not name. He will offer to tell the fortunes of adventurers for 2sp each, and will give them cryptic glimpses of challeges they may face. If he knows the characters already, he will ask them their news. He does not agree to meet them in the future or tell them where he is going, though he is perfectly polite about this.

4: Wolf Pack

8 x Wolves (Morale 8) catch the party's scent and begin to stalk them. Characters with Passive Perception of 16 or more will realize they are being stalked; equally, if the adventurers are intentionally travelling slowly and carefully, they will hear or spot their hunters early. If not, the wolves will be in sight before the alert is raised. It is possible for the party to avoid the wolves – they might cover their tracks or cross a stream, for instance.

5: Hunter's Snares (repeatable)

The adventurers enter an area heavily trapped by local hunters. There are 3 x Simple Pit Traps, and 2 x Falling Net Traps scattered across a square half-mile. It will take 1d4+1 days for the hunters to check the area.

6: Lost Child (mark hex)

The adventurers hear what sounds like a child weeping. Upon investigating, they find a lost, weeping child, whose forester family live a couple of miles away. He got lost whilst playing. If they take him back to his family they will give the adventurers 2 x Healing Potions.

7: Herd of Red Deer (repeatable)

The party crosses the track of a herd of red deer; adventurers may track them with a DC15 Survival roll. When they are close, they must pass a DC15 Stealth check (as a group) to get within 120 feet, or else the deer will flee.

8: Blight Attack (repeatable, mark hex of Gulthias Tree)

Roll 1d4:

(1-3, repeatable) 1d6+2 x Twig Blights and 1d4 x Needle Blights (Morale 6) leap from the undergrowth to kill intruders on their territory, but are fairly cowardly.

OR

(4, only once) The adventurers come upon a sunken, misty grove, with obscured visibility throughout. There are 3 x Patches of Quicksand surrounding a central islet upon which grows a Gulthias Tree. It is guarded by a Bandit Captain in its thrall, who sleeps in a small lean-to constructed on the islet (inside is a cast-aside moneypouch with 25gp and a diamond ring worth 80gp). There are also 2 x Vine Blights, 2 x Needle Blights, and 6 x Twig Blights in the vicinity. The inhabitants know where the quicksand is. If the Gulthias Tree is killed, this encounter can only occur once more, with an automatic result of 1-3.

9: Campfire

ONCE: The adventurers come across a Drow Elite Warrior (Shoor Vandree) at a campfire. He offers them food. 4 x Drow (Morale 10, Shoor Vandree) are waiting in ambush, looking for an opportune moment. The Drow seek to incapacitate adventurers, and take them to the Gatehouse, and from there to Velkynvelve (see the Out of the Abyss adventure book).

ONCE: The adventurers come across a campfire in a clearing, still smouldering. There are scorchmarks around the fire, though they do not reach the trees. There are no remains of whoever set the fire, and no tracks leading away.

10: Fluffy the Magic Cat

The adventurers come across, or are approached, by a talking wild cat familiar with slightly purple fur (Fluffy, see NPCs). He is is looking for his wizard (Eltos, a LG Diviner). A DC15 History check indicates that Eltos is some kind of travelling wizard; a DC20 check adds that he is a respected historian of arcane matters. If attacked Fluffy disappears, grin disappearing last. He will join a friendly party until such time as he finds Eltos. Eltos has been kidnapped by by agents of the Prince Most Magnificent in Shimmering Smoke and taken to the efreet's prison. If the party follow Fluffy to where he last saw Eltos (about two miles away), they find a charred grove inhabited by a Fire Elemental and 2 x Smoke Mephits (Morale 14, Fire Elemental).

11: Bandits (twice, mark hex of Treetop Village)

(first time) 8 x Bandits try to Surprise the adventurers in a secluded place – a waterfall pool, a shaded avenue of trees, etc. Surprise is avoided by those characters passing a reactive DC15 Perception check. The bandits have white feathers in their hats.

OR

(second time) The adventurers come upon a bandit camp in the form of a treetop village. This is the home of the White Feather bandits. There are 6 x Bandits, 1 x Bandit Captain (Fat Helmuth), 13 x Commoners (the families of the bandits), and 1 x Priest (Pater Jan, priest of Kord). Helmuth, Jan, and the Bandits will fight to the death if attacked, to cover the escape of their families. Helmuth is a pragmatic, cheerful, essentially amoral man who looks after his own. He doesn't much like Nimthur's presence in the Brightwood, and may make alliances against the dragon.

12: Wild Boars (repeatable)

The adventurers hear movement nearby. There are 1d4+1 Boars (Morale 7) snuffling in undergrowth, who will attack if disturbed.

13: Forester's Hut (mark hex)

The adventurers come across an inhabited forester's hut in a clearing. Mrs Schultz and baby Elsa are present. During the day, Mr Schultz and their teenage son Arnie are working in the woods, but are home at night. Well-positioned for a camp, with a stream running through the clearing. Mrs Schultz is cautiously welcoming. The family are aware of the White Feather bandits (Brightwood Random Encounter 11), and can give rough directions – a DC19 Survival check is required to find their camp, described under that encounter.

14: Owlbear

An Owlbear begins to stalk the party through the woods, seeking prey.

15: Fungus Grove

The adventurers come upon an area of treefall which is rich with mushrooms and toadstools. There are many ingredients here for healing potions, poisons, and so forth. For any search attempt, the DM rolls the searcher's DC15 Survival check in secret – a pass means they find what they are looking for or know it's not present, a fail means they can't find it, and a Natural 1 means they believe they've found the right ingredients but have in fact found something with the opposite effect.

16: Lone Kobold

The adventurers come across a Kobold forager in the midst of their work. The Kobold flees them to warn his cohorts. In the first half of a day's travel, this will be one of Nimthur's Kobolds, whilst in the second half of a day's travel it will be a Kobold from the Dragon's Tooth.

17: Nimthur's Victims

The adventuers find the electrocuted corpses of 5 bandits, who came upon Nimthur whilst he was feeding. The grove in which they lay is full of shattered and split trees.

18: Feywild Breach

The adventurers travel through a place with a thin barrier to the Feywild. 1 x Redcap (Morale 11) appears out of nowhere and attacks them. If the Redcap fails a morale check, it will attempt to planeshift.

19: Electric Storm (repeatable)

A great electric storm strikes the area. A Survival DC15 check will allow the adventurers to find cover in caves; if stuck under trees, however, each must make a DC17 Dexterity Saving Throw or take 1d12 lightning damage. This is a sign of Nimthur's rising power.

20: Dryads/Satyrs (once each)

Day: The adventurers hear the sounds of dryads singing, but the 4 x Dryads very likely disappear if approached noisily. If somehow carefully encountered and politely treated, they can give information about the local area, and warn of nearby dangers. If left on truly friendly terms, the adventurers have a d6 Inspiration Die per day for the next 3 days.

Night: The adventurers see firelight and hear music in the dark. If they approach, they see 11 x Satyrs dancing and singing and celebrating , accompanied by many tiny fey spirits. This is a sacred ritual of theirs. They invite the adventurers to join. If the adventurers join in, and drink or eat mushrooms, characters may have visions (relevant/true or not), but wake up with a Level of Exhaustion.