The Vengeance of Malazor (5e Quest)

An adventure for 4 characters of 3rd level

Background

Malzor lived 500 years ago and last time amassed a terrifying army of the undead. He would have turned Niben into a kingdom of the dead, had it not been for Fulcrum Wayland and the Redfists defeating his forces in the open field and driving him back into Külddbad, his cave fortress. Fulcrum followed Malzor into the cave, but Malzor disappeared and was never seen again.

Overview

Malzor the Dark returned after being defeated five centuries ago, and is amassing an army of undead on his ancient cave fortress of Külddbad. In this adventure, the heroes must:

• Part 1. Investigating the death of Yarin Wayland, the descendant of the hero that defeated the dark Malzor centuries ago. Their investigations will reveal that the assassination was hired through a intermediate famous in the docks, Theon Yarinson. This culminates in a fight against a cultist bearing a symbol, a skull with a dagger. (This grants them 3600 xp).

• Part 2. After discovering the symbol, the characters must research its meaning. In order to do so, they will require an old codex of occult symbols that was stolen by student of magic, that now hides in the Starbreak caves to perform his studies alone and unbothered. The undead start destroying the villages on the outskirts of Niben, and the characters, handing the book to the Bishop Satail will finally reveal that all of these events are machinations of a cult of Malzor. (this awards them 7200 xp or 1 level if playing by milestone)

• Part 3. Finally, the characters must dwell into the caves of Külddbad and defeat the evil necromancer once for all. (this awards them 11.200 xp or another level)

Hooks

• The Festival of Habakkuk is a notorious festivity, specially for characters that are related to the sea. A mariner, pirate or aquatic creature character may want to make wishes and ask for protection.

• One of the characters is native to Niben, having friends, family or relatives there. Maybe they can be relatives to Bishop Arin or to Satail.

Part 1. Trouble in the Festival

1. The Three Oars

Characters start waking up in The Three Oars with the intention of attending the festival of the tides in the Temple of Habakkuk that afternoon. The festival is celebrating the bounty of the ocean and praises Habbakuk

• Give them the morning to shop, etc. If they don’t go to the festival then they hear the keep bell ringing and see smoke rising.

• Samantha Stone (commoner) is the owner of the Three Oars.

2. The Festival of the Tides

The Bishop Yarin starts the festival with a small sermon. In the middle of the sermon. In the middle of the sermon, Yarin is struck by two crossbow bolts and then a blast of fire, killing him.

3. Against the Assassins (Combat Encounter)

• Enemies: A Drow assassin (statistics of a spy) and one Malzor Cultist (cult fanatic).
• Complication: During the battle the Cultist starts fires. The building has 150 HP and takes 1d8 damage per round for every instance of burning. At 50 damage the building starts collapsing, characters pass acrobatics checks DC16. On failure they go prone and take 1D6 fire damage per turn they’re under. Strength check DC16 to get up.

• Resolution: If it looks like they could be captured, the Assassin and the cultist will commit suicide by drinking poison. Or the Cultist could cast self-destructing magic.

• Reward: 975 xp

4. Meeting the Acolyte

Acolyte Pim will be outside treating the wounded, he’ll approach the party. He’ll beg you to find who did this.

• Investigating: On examination the cultist can be found to have a tattoo of a knife through a skull, but if his body is trapped inside then this is likely to be lost.

• Reward: 350 xp

Conclusion

If players:

• miss the body and tattoo go to Part 2a.
• find the tattoo go to Part 2b.

Part 2a. The Chase

5. Investigating

Given that one assassin was a drow, they’d stand out. They can gather the following information while investigating the drow presence:

• At the Three Oars: Samantha Stone can confirm the assassins stayed there and that they left early in the morning (well before the festival).
• Asking around the city: Asking around will confirm seeing the Drow down by the docks talking to Theon Yarinson.
• In the Docks: Sailors will know that Theon Yarinson is a fence for smugglers. During the days Theon is loading down by the docks and in the evenings he often drinks at The Three Oars.
• Finding Theon: Upon approaching Theon, he will run pulling down crates, etc as he goes.

6. Chase through the Docks (Skill Challenge)

A chase scene will happen as he dives into a crowd. The characters with proficiency in Acrobatics, Athletics or Perception can make checks to attempt to reach Theon against a DC of 11.

The characters can use other skills with the permission of the DM, and a skil can't be used more than once by the same character. Alternatively, characters can justify the use of a spell, gaining 1 automatic success for each level of the spell slot used during the chase.

After a failure, that character is out of the chase. Three failures means Theon gets away. Three successes means that the party is successful in capturing him.

• Reward: 350 xp

• Resolution A - Theon Gets Away: Speaking further to people about Theon will reveal Midnight Cove as an old smuggler’s holding place. The party can then take a boat to the cove if necessary and there’ll be a small fight.

• Resolution B - Theon Gets Captured: Theon will not need persuading to give you his contact, a hooded woman. He had arranged to meet him in the Port Niben dockyard at midnight three nights from now to collect the rest of his payment.

7. Meeting the Hooded Women

At the docks you will meet the hooded woman is a Malzor Cultist (CR 4) who had the same tattoo as the cultist. Fight her.

• Reward: 1100 xp

Part 2b. Investigating the Symbol

8. Researching the Symbol

• Acolyte Pim does not recognise the symbol but suggests Bishop Satail in Port Niben might.

• Tempest Keep has a library in which “On Religious & Arcane Symbology” can be found.

• The Book “On Religious & Arcane Symbology” by Cicero suggests that skull symbology is often associated with necromancy or with gods of death and recommends Marcaro’s “Investigations into Black Cult Rituals” for further information on the subject. This book is not in Tempest Keep. Lots of people could suggest trying the Library in the Temple of the Niben.

9. Port Niben

• Speaking to anyone with relevant knowledge will point you in the direction of Bishop Satail for working out what the symbol means.

• Satail will recommend Marcaro’s “Investigations into Black Cult Rituals” but will say that the book was stolen by a student Azimogo of hers who stole several books and a powerful wand belonging to the church and fled to Starbreak Cave.

• Why haven’t the authorities chased him down? He’s not exactly causing any trouble, they’ll get round to it.

Part 3. Starbreak Cave

10. Approaching the Cave (Skill Challenge)

• By Land they have to wade into the cove and when wet have a disadvantage on initiative.

• If they travel to Starbreak Cave by land, have them attacked by small group of animals, by sea just let them get there.

• Coming towards the cave the party must make an effort to row in stealthily. Whoever’s rowing/sailing takes a stealth roll to see if they get in undetected.

• If they go into the reeds they can stay stealthy automatically, if they land on the beach get them all to roll stealth as they get off the boat.

• A high perception roll will notice that the moon illuminates half the cove but not the other half (where the reeds are). Sailing in the light will confer disadvantage on the stealth roll.

11. Fighting the Terramancers (Combat Encounter)

Fight a CR3 terramancer wizard and a CR3 terramancer paladin. Possible to sneak past the fight.

• Reward: 2100 xp

12. Fighting the Pyromancer

Inside the cave in dimly lit, fight a CR5 Pyromancer. Possible to sneak past, but harder.

• Reward: 1800 xp

13. Against Azimogo

Finally get to Azimogo (CR6 Aquamancer). If necessary, fight Azimogo.

• Trying to Talk with Azimogo: Azimogo is paranoid so a diplomatic solution is possible but unlikely to be reached.

• Mentioning Satail will cause a bad reaction.

• Offering some kind of a trade with another magic book will cause a good reaction and may lead to a persuasion roll.

• Azimogo may try to take the boat. He could cast an invisibility spell to escape and do this.

• Reward: 2300 xp

• If Azimogo takes the boat, go to Part 4a. Burrowburn Farm.

Part 4a. Burrowburn Farm

14. Farm in Ruins

Climb out of the cove or swim round (or any other solution your players come up with!). They come across a farm, that have been destroyed.

• Closer investigation will notice that the small family grave appears to be in the most ruin. A DC 20 Wisdom (Perception) check or a passive Wisdom (Perception of 20) will reveal that the graves seem to have been destroyed from below.

15. Walking Dead

• Six skeletons or 2 cult fanatics await in the ruins of the farmhouse. They will attempt to ambush players.
• Investigation on the bodies will show the same dagger-skull mark.

• reward: 600 xp

Part 4b. Travel by River

16. Descending the River

If Azimogo has not stolen the boat or they travel by river

• If they use magic a Chuul will attack when they camp
• Else they will see smoke rising, if they investigate then this is Burrowburn farm.
• Reward: 1100 xp

Part 5. Back to Port Niben

17. The Tome of Malzor the Dark

• Satail will translate the text and will have deciphered the mark as belonging to an ancient Necromancer Malzor the Dark, and will reveal the following information:

• "Malzor lived 500 years ago and last time amassed a terrifying army of the undead. He would have turned Niben into a kingdom of the dead, had it not been for Fulcrum Wayland and the Redfists defeating his forces in the open field and driving him back into Külddbad, his cave fortress. Fulcrum followed Malzor into the cave where he killed him. Wait that’s a mistranslation… here it says that Malzor disappeared and was never seen again… not that he died… We have to see the High Thane"

• Satail will take the party to see High Thane Konrad Jorganerson. Satail will explain the situation. The High Thane will remain unconvinced, believing that some hedge mage has simply taken up the symbol for dramatic effect. He can’t spare any troops as they are all committed protecting villages from these bandits.

• Satail will encourage the party to go to Külddbad and kill Malzor before he regains full power. She’ll mark Külddbad on the map up in the Niben Spine.

• If asked about fighting the undead, she’ll suggest trying to find some silver weapons. This can be bought at Basher’s Hut.

• She’ll tell the party that Marcaro built three doors to stop people getting access to Malzor’s inner sanctum. The Bard’s Door, The Liar’s Door and the Door of the Word. Behind each door is a lever, activating all three levers will open the Sanctum Door.

Part 6. Külddbad

Party will not have trouble travelling to Külddbad and can do so by road or by river.

18. Skeleton Guards

Fight three Malzor skeletons (use the statistics for a minotaur skeleton)

• Reward: 2700 xp

19. The Bard's Door

• Far Left. Trap arrow ahead.. Then Solve the Bard’s Door. Each barrel on the floor has a gem on top that when touched emits a sound. The markings above the door can be interpreted by a bard as musical notation. The party has to “play” the barrels to the tune for the door to open.

20. The Door of Words

• Middle left. Avoid spike pits. 12 zombies will come up the stairs to the sides. When the room clears then approach the Door of the Word:

• See “Door of words” document for the puzzle

• Down one of the flights of stairs a box containing half a dozen large mirrors can be found.

• There are four statues, see other document for details.

• When the description on each of the statues is met, it will begin to glow.

21. The Liar's Door

• Right side. Liar’s door. The door has a face on it and will answer any question put to it with a lie. Force the door to say something that isn’t a lie and the door will open. E.g. “is this question false”

• When all gates are opened and the levers activated, the sanctum door will open.

22. Sanctum of Malzor, the Dark

• Continue into the sanctum to fight Malzor the Dark (Mage 6).

• Reward 3000 xp

• There is a ritual taking place and as you arrive Malzor places his staff into the centre of a pentagram. No way to talk your way out, this is going to be a fight!

• The ritual will summon 1D4 Skeletons between every round.

• Walking over the pentagram may, depending on how the battle’s going, require an acrobatics check as undead hands grab at your ankles!

• If the Malzor Skeletons are too powerful then I’ll just start summoning normal zombies.

• If the party is getting swamped then the ritual will just start to pulsate.

• Upon victory the ritual will explode in a flash of light

• Searching Malzor will find a note reading: “My friend Malzor. It was not an easy task to call your astral form back to this plain… I trust you will make the most of this opportunity I have afforded you. My servant will have also delivered a staff of intriguing properties, I believe you shall find it useful in your “experiments”. Your Patron.”

• The Staff used in the ritual is a “Staff of Arcane Channelling”. Initially it acts like a quarterstaff in combat and allows you to cast cantrips with double the range or for double the duration.

• In the boxes will be a little silver raven statue, a Figurine of Wondrous Power (Silver Raven).

Appendix: List of Rewards

Magic Treasure: 1 rare, 3 uncommon, 3 common (consumables) Magic treasure: 2 uncommon

• Staff of Arcane Channeling, Figurine of Wondrous Power (Silver Raven), potion of healing, two scrolls of 1st level,

Treasure: 7520 gp in total (3835 part III, 2462 in part II, 1230 in part I).

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