Introduction

This is a variation of an introductory mission I used with my D&D party some years back. It is intended to be used for those squishy, starter PCs that die so easily but need some experience to grow.

Yes, they can still die but, if they’re careful – and the dice are lucky – they can gain some good experience. It’s also good for new players, as it tries to exercise some of the things they’ll need to learn to be successful in Fantasy RPGs.

As per usual, I am trying to avoid any reliance on a particular RPG, so my descriptions will not include stats but should be sufficient for you to implement using the NPCs, monsters, traps, and challenges of your choice. You are also encouraged to rename people, places, and things to fit your own world.

Let me know in the comments how I did.

Adventure Summary

Rumors of war have not yet reached the ears of the people of Delphos. A center of commerce, the city of Delphos welcomes all to its gates – to buy and sell to their heart’s content. Everything has been peaceful for decades.

But a war is brewing. Tribes are banding together under a strong leader named Rognack. He scouts are ranging far and wide, gathering everything an army needs – weapons, wagons, food.

Marilith Dulac is a purveyor of fruits and vegetables and maintains a network of family farmers whose produce she sells. She has noticed, however, that the weekly wagon from Theodore Farnsworth, owner of Farnsworth Farm, is overdue. She worries that something may have happened.

Theodore’s farm was attacked. While Theodore is alive but in hiding, his wife and son were killed in the attack. Rognack’s scouts are collecting all the produce they can gather, intending to bring it to their superiors.

Goals for the players include:

• Kill, capture, or drive off Rognack’s minions.
• Rescue Theodore.
• Get the produce to market while it is still fresh.

NPCs

Marileth Dulac

The owner of Dulac Grocers, Marileth is an outspoken, coarse sort. Well-respected in the city but with a sharp tongue, her establishment is an important supplier to the finest restaurants in Delphos. She knows if her service or quality of produce should lag, competitors will take away these key customers and she may never get them back.

Hotek Gospar

Hotek is a young rancher from the upper plains. This is the first time he has been entrusted with leading a cattle drive. When things are going well, Hotek is smooth and confident. He completely breaks down when things go awry, however, getting anxious and willing to say anything to anyone to get their help. Even if he can’t keep the promises he makes in the moment.

Theodore Farnsworth

Theodore, also called Ted Senior, on account of his boy being Ted Junior, runs a farm that has been in the family for four generations. He beams with pride when he thinks of the promise young Ted Junior shows. A surprisingly emotional man for one who spends long days toiling in the fields.

Adventure Options

When I ran this, Rognack was a hobgoblin general and the scouts were typical goblins. You could change up the monster types to fit your world, but they should be geared towards beginner players – limited combat options and easy to subdue or kill.

The coming war, which you can use to fill out a larger campaign, was not directed towards Delphos or its people at all. The goblinoid army was simply taking what they could as they marched towards their ancestral homeland that was taken from them long ago.

I left the attack on Farnsworth Farm intentionally vague. You may want the scouts to be scavengers who came upon the farm after it was attacked and Mrs Farnsworth and son killed. The PCs could discover this from the scouts and be led on to find the real killer.

Or keep it simple and let the scouts be the killers. Totally up to you.

Adventure Hook

Marileth Dulac has sent a request to the Minister of Commerce in Delphos, seeking aid in discovering what has happened to the delivery from Farnsworth Farm. The weekly delivery of produce is long overdue and her customers are threatening to take their business elsewhere.

The Ministry, however, is currently planning an upcoming Market Faire and has no resources to devote to a late delivery. “Perhaps his wagon broke an axle,” they suggest. She is encouraged to try the Adventurers’ Guild if she’s desperate for aid.

And so, Marilth comes with a promise of reward for anyone willing to undertake the two-day journey out to the farm to see what’s going on and, most importantly, get the produce back to the city while it’s still edible.

Scenes

Meeting with Marileth

Assuming the PCs are associated in some way with the Adventurers’ Guild – even if they just check the jobs board – they will learn of the offer and be directed to go and meet with Marileth at her grocery.

Dulac Grocers is a large warehouse. Its outer walls are of weathered wooden planks and its roof is of rusting tin. Great double doors are flung open from early morning until well after sundown. Rows and rows of trestle tables hold the day’s produce (appropriate to the season in which you choose to run this).

A loud woman’s voice rises over the sounds of sellers and buyers, harranguing some young worker over mispriced vegetables. Anyone there can direct you to Marileth, the owner of that voice.

“You think I’m made of money? You think we can just give those away? If you screw up again, I will take it out of your pay, you got me?”

As Marileth finishes her tirade, she notices the PCs approach.

“Let me guess. You lot must be the ones to help me with me problem? Well Ol’ Farnsworth’s wagon is late – shoulda been here yesterday morning. Ain’t like him. Never missed a delivery, Ol’ Farnsworth. One of me best suppliers.”

She wants to PCs to head out right away – it’s more than a day away – and find out what’s keeping the wagon and get the produce here as soon as possible. There’s a lot of people expected in the city for the upcoming Market Faire and the city’s finest chefs need ingredients if they don’t want to serve up a lot of nothing.

She’ll offer them a reasonable sum of coin in return, more if they get the produce within the next four days. She can provide directions to the farm, which is out the Main East Road. Once you reach the Whispering Wood, there’s an old well for watering horses and a narrow road that leads out to the Farnsworth Farm.

On the Main East Road

As the PCs travel to the farm, this is an opportunity to introduce some non-combat encounters. Mix in anything to tie it to your world, such as gossip about raiders (Rognack’s scouts), monster activity (maybe foreshadow what actually attacked the farm), or even the upcoming Market Faire.

You may also have them come across Hotek Gaspar just before sunset. Hotek is a miserable wreck – he was driving his herd of cattle to Delphos when something spooked the animals. It might have been wolves.

The danger’s gone, but his cattle (20) are scattered and he needs to get them rounded up before it gets too late and night monsters come out to hunt and feed.

“Gosh, friend. Some dang wolves or some such critters done got my herd all spun up. I went and scattered the villains, but my cattle done scampered off. Can you help a feller out? I’ve got a little bit of coin if you can round em up for me. I’ll have more if I can get em to market, a-course.”

The PCs can use a variety of skills to help Hotek.

• Tracking or survival skills to find the trail of the animals.
• Animal handling to coax them back.
• Lore related to nature to understand how they might scatter and what they might do once the panic has diminished.
• Strength-related activities to physically manhandle some wayward bull.

This can be a skill challenge in which you set a progress clock or a number of successful versus unsuccessful skill checks to determine if (and how) successful are. Spells may also be used in place of skills.

Hotek should reward the players based on the degree of success they achieve – full reward for recovering all the cattle or a percentage of the offer based on number of cattle rounded up safely. He may try to renege or at least talk the PCs down from his original offer, so this is an opportunity for some persuasion, intimidation, or deceit by the PCs to get what they deserved.

Camp for the Night

Depending upon how the session time is going and your players’ interest in combat, having a random encounter early in the evening can give them a chance to draw their blades and still get a good rest before the next day’s adventures.

It’s best not to have a scout or scouting party appear, but some wild animals that can be driven off or some troublesome fey creatures might be of interest. Particularly with brand new players, they may need encouragement to set watch, manage their armor and shields, and otherwise be prepared for unexpected attacks.

Farnsworth Farm

Ideally, the PCs will reach the farm while it is still light out, but with nightfall approaching. If they dally, they may be forced to either explore (and fight) in the dark or give away their presence with torches.

With the Whispering Wood on their right, the PCs crest a hill and gaze down upon Farnsworth Farm. A large field is filled with crops. Just beyond, a small farmhouse sits beside a fenced in corral. Just beyond the farmhouse stands a large wooden barn.

The entire scene is very quiet. No movement in the fields, no sounds from the house or barn. The corral is empty and the gate left open.

A perceptive or curious PC should notice that the crops have been well picked through – there’s nothing even close to ripe in the field.

Theodore Farnsworth is hiding in the root cellar of the farmhouse, beneath a secret door. Depending upon what you decide started the attack – scouts or monster – he saw it coming and hid. His wife and son had gone out to the stream to wash some clothes – he didn’t dare go try to find them.

The PCs should find their bodies out behind the farmhouse. They had apparently come running when they heard a ruckus up at the house. They were spotted and killed. They may be partially devoured, depending on the attacker.

The farmhouse (building in the northwest of the above map) has been pretty well ransacked by the scouts. In fact, the leader of the scouts is in the farmhouse eating a very fine meal while his soldiers are in the barn (northeast building), eating what’s left of one of the horses, and bickering.

They are taking a break from loading produce onto the wagon to then haul off to Rognack’s nearest camp. They have, wisely, kept two of the horses alive to pull the wagon.

From a timing perspective, the scouts may be well ahead of Rognack’s army, meaning they didn’t have to rush to bring the food back, as the army will be nearby on the following day.

As long as the party approaches the farm stealthily, the scouts are unlikely to be aware of them. This farm is quite remote and they do not expect anyone to be in the area. If they are not stealthy – perhaps they are approaching with a light source at night – the scouts should setup an ambush, hiding either in or behind the buildings to get cover.

This will make the scenario far more dangerous!

If you decide the scouts were not responsible for the attack, you may want to leave evidence of what did cause the attack. Perhaps a giant, burrowing insectoid creature was simply looking for a meal?

In any event, the scouts and scout leader should put up a fight, knowing that they have to get this produce to feed the army – there’s no way they’re going back empty handed. Of course, they may be willing to become deserters if offered a good (and safe) opportunity.

Especially if the scout leader is dispatched! The scrub scouts certainly feel put upon and wouldn’t mind being free.

Conclusion

This is a reasonably simple adventure for new players and new PCs. They may endear themselves to Theodore if they make an effort to bury his dead family members. If they can get the wagon to market with the produce, Marileth will also be happy.

Feel free to have Theodore reward the players. Perhaps some valuable he had been saving to give his son when he took over the farm.