This adventure arch is based on a post that originally appeared on Easter Day 2012 at Rising Phoenix Games. It’s a fantasy adventure that should fit with most systems: I’ve specifically kept it system neutral but I do make references to Dungeons and Dragons type games as most GM’s may be familiar with those concepts.
It Begins
The characters are approached by an old, half blind lady, Madam Firth, who’s trying to sell chicken eggs to make some coppers. It’s clear from her appearance that she’s hard off. It’s also clear that not all of the eggs are hen’s eggs: one is much larger and has a grey, stone like shell. Give the characters a knowledge nature check or equivalent skill check to spot that it’s indeed a dragon egg.
What’ll We Do With The Kid
What the players decide to do next is up to them, but they may realize the need to return the egg to its rightful home. A dragon can be mighty protective, after all. If the players need more convincing to take up the challenge you can have mommy dragon pay a visit to the village and tear down a few homes while the PC’s aren’t around. She’s intelligent and with her keen senses she can figure it out that the egg is in town, but pinpointing the egg is not that easy for her. She’ll pay the village a few more visits if she’s still eggless. Eventually the characters will either decide they need to do something with the egg or face dire consequences.
The mother dragon should be a high level dragon, too powerful for the characters to beat just yet. The players will want to either sneak the egg back into her lair or try to negotiate with her, but a straight attack strategy is the worst idea. Ideally you can use the dragon and her little family as recurring NPC’s that can be dealt with finally when the PC’s have reached a high enough level. Give the characters knowledge history or knowledge local checks to recall information about the dragon, her lair and how powerful she might be. Finding the lair should be easy enough, and working through the network of caves and dungeons to get to her lair would be a dungeon crawl of whatever length you need.
It’s Never That Easy
So, just how did the egg find its way into the village? Enter, stage left, the villainous tomb robber Felix Gred. Felix managed to sneak into the dragon’s lair (through luck more than skill) and remove the egg, hoping to lure the dragon away from her treasure horde. Felix brought the egg back to the village, where he hid it in Madam Firth’s chicken coop. It wasn’t the best hiding place, but he had realised that the dragon would soon be after him. He needed to dump the egg. He figured Madam Firth would mistake the egg for a stone, it was way too big. Now the egg is missing and he wants it back. Build Felix as a sneaky rogue with a high level of stealth who follows the PC’s and attempts to steal the egg from them when they’re asleep or distracted. If he succeeds then it’s quite possible that the PC’s might find themselves standing in front of the dragon without the egg, a rather nasty spot for them to have to work themselves out of.
And Then…
This adventure hook can go many ways, but I think the nice thing about it is that you get a couple of NPC’s that can see a lot of use. There’s no reason to kill Felix, he’s a thief, not a murder, and if anything he should be under lock and key. Madam Firth is a witless old lady that can cause all sorts of trouble, without having an inkling of what’s happening. She might even prove useful to the PC’s, she has lived in the village her whole life and she needs to make some money. The dragon, on the other hand, is too powerful for the PC’s to deal with directly. They’ll need to be diplomatic in their dealings with her and try keeping her happy.
If you liked this adventure and gave it a try, leave a comment and I’ll do my best to get back to you. Also check out my website for more adventure awesomeness.
Rodney Sloan
Rodney Sloan has been writing adventures for the South African convention scene since 2009, for such systems as Dungeons and Dragons 3.5, 4th Edition and Pathfinder. He gained notoriety for creating Dr Frank and his flesh golum, Stein, who took an entire army of LARPers to put down. By day he enjoys rock star status as a teacher of English in several Japanese high schools. You can read more on his blog over at Rising Phoenix Games.