The party arrives at the gates of a small walled town just as the guards are pulling them shut for the night. They are the last ones standing outside when the heavy timber bar drops into place. No amount of knocking or reasoning moves the guards, who have their orders and aren’t inclined to bend them for a group of road-weary strangers. The inn, the warmth, and the safety of town walls are visible but unreachable. It’s getting dark fast.
They’ll need to make the best of it. There’s a shallow overhang near the gate, a woodpile stacked against the outer wall, and precious little else. Then, from the tree line a hundred yards out, a long howl cuts through the cold air. Then another. Torchlight from the walls above confirms the guards heard it too, but the gate stays shut.
A pack of goblins mounted on worgs emerges from the tree line, half a dozen at least, and the way they spread out suggests they’ve worked this ground before. The party is on their own, in the cold, with whatever they were already carrying.
Party Level: 1-3. Designed as a first session encounter that drops new characters into immediate danger with no time for introductions. Being stranded outside the walls with whatever they happen to be carrying sets the tone for a grittier campaign right from the opening minutes.
World: Any
Rules-set: Any
If this made your session better, buying me a coffee keeps the Vault stocked.
