Table of Contents
I’ll be back filling in these over time, so if an article isn’t linked yet I just haven’t got around to writing it yet!
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Additional Content
Chapter 1: A Tale of Two Cities
- 1.1 The Fall of Elturel
- 1.2 Escape from Elturgard
- 1.3 Journey to Baldur’s Gate: Setup and Day 1
- 1.4 Rumours in Baldur’s Gate
- 1.5 The Outer City Murders
- 1.6 Assault on Stormshore Warehouse
- 1.7 The Struggles of Stelmane
- 1.7a – Setup
- 1.7b – The Blade and Stars Tavern
- 1.7c – Stelmane Manor
- 1.7d – The Sewer Keep
- 1.7e – Dusthawk Hill
- 1.7f – The Underwater Nautiloid
- 1.8g – Proactive Node: Mindless Thralls
- 1.7f – Wrap up
Chapter 2: Elturel Has Fallen
- Better the Vampire You Know
Chapter 3: Avernus
- Dara’s Quest
- The Adamantine Rod of Nine Parts
- Kostchtchie’s Vanthampur Jailers
Chapter 4: Sword of Zariel
Chapter 5: Escape from Avernus
I’m sure more content will come as I progress through the campaign – so I will update this list retroactively.
Descent into Avernus is just over a year old as I write this blog post. It is a campaign of a dozen fantastic ideas, poorly connected and often lacking in coordination. This has been covered in depth by Justin Alexander over at his blog, in the Remixing Avernus series.
I will assume that anyone reading my content has at least read, if not fully incorporated, all of his Remix. It would probably also help to have read some of his other articles. I will link to any of them which are pertinent to my content as much as possible.
I’ve also become a Patreon of _PogS_ who releases fantastic maps, both for free in lower (but still totally usable) quality as well as in full quality for their Patreons.
The point of these articles is to provide content which utilises _PogS_ maps and Justin’s Remixed content, expanding upon it rather than replacing it. It also builds upon Adventure League modules and DM’s Guild content in places too.
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I am using this material extensively and I find it extremely useful!
I ran a mission just outside Elturel, and the players rode in to Elturel as they were seeing the Companion star turn apocalyptic. I am using this material to run the 3 or 4 session journey to Baldur’s Gate. So far, I’ve done ”A hope and a prayer”, ”Lack of Food”, ”Worse than Vampires”, ” Bad Weather”, ”Broken Wagon Wheel”, and ”Death on the Road”. I am using some of Dara’s Refugees, with altered descriptions that fit my campaign. Billiam the noble poet is a great addition. I used him to write a song for the Fallen of Elturel (available upon request), and I literally sang it to my players while playing my accordion, as part of a memorial ceremony for their lost citizens. found that to be a very unique D&D experience, my players gave me DM inspiration (which is as cute as it is totally useless!).
The work found in this website was REALLY a life saver, sooooo well organized, and really made running the journey easily manageable as well as fun. I am avidly looking for more of your material for the following Baldur’s Gate sessions!
Thanks again.
Luther
Thanks for the kind words!
It sounds like your campaign is going incredibly well. Singing and playing the accordion to your players sounds very fun. There’s another song later in the Elfsong Tavern which perhaps you may want to do the same with!
I am still curious about your choice to have Gargauth symbols carved on murdered victims. Later, in Baldur’s Gate, victims will also be found with Dead Three symbols.
I just ran ” Fessel’s Body” and my players went hunting for the cultists. I had them meet Pip Kip (Devil in the Details), and they made a deal to help find cultists if they would agree to later help him fulfill his contract (that part was tough). So they found 3 cultists by a campfire, captured one, killed the others. Interogation lead to reveal their boss sent them to kill Fessel Obaartaen, last of his line.
I fear having Gargauth cultists AND Dead Three Cultists in Baldur’s Gate will get confusing to players. What were you planning to do, may I ask. Competing cultist cells, or working together? Looking for suggestions!
Yeah, Elfsong on the accordion. I’ll think about it. But there is a youtube link with a woman singing it already so, might take the easy option.
thanks!
Love the deal with Pip Kip. When you say that part was tough do you mean that the gnolls were too difficult?
The killings in the city will be very clearly expressed as two different groups, but they will most likely only be able to solve one set at a time. Flame Zodge will use the ‘outer city murders’ (of my creation) as like a test to see if the PCs are worthy of being deputised and allowed into the city to solve the ‘inner city murders’ (of Justin’s Remix). As such it shouldn’t be too confusing, as after all they are explicity being carried out by two different groups, but they happen in series.
Here’s the chain of command: Zariel > Gargauth > Thalamra Vanthampur > Her sons > Bathhouse Dead Three Leaders > then it forks into two cells, Poisoned Poseidon and Hamhock’s Slaughterhouse. As such leads from both locations point to the Bathhouse and they both work for the same group really. They are just split into two locations, the Poseidon cell killing inside the city and Hamhock cell outside the city. This is why they went after Fessel.
WOW THANKS! That makes it so much clearer for me. I already accidently made the fessels murderers into a cell operated at Hamhock, lead by a major NPC tied in to PC backstory, who tortured them when they were kids. So your work will fit in PERFECTLY for me. Nice.
For the Gnolls, I meant running the RP with Pip Kip asking for PCs help, was difficult. They were SOOOOO reluctant to sign any kind of deal, even a REALLY obviously GOOD one. I think the whole ‘Evil Creatures’, let alone ‘Deals with Evil Creatures’ is going to be a difficulty in this campaign. Pip Kip basically accepted all the risks of eternal punishment, plus giving away multiple magical toys, plus 10 days of servitude as a familiar, in exchange for help fulfilling his previous binding contract (in my game, its Goblins of the Black Fang Clan who killed the wizard’s son).
Thank you again, you are great.
Luther.
That’s a convenient coincidence and it’s always a good idea to tie things into PC backstories! Ah I see, well yes it is hard to get people to sign up for devil deals. The encounter was meant to ‘set the stage’ for them by presenting them with a very credible and rewarding deal, so that worse and worse deals seem tempting over time. Glad your campaign is going well, Luther.
Thank you. How is your campaign going?
I read Alexiandrian and his review of material, and I painfully realized that my prequel to BG in Elturel included a very ill-advised ‘Letter from Rezmir’, which totally spoils the following: Thalamra uses Dragon Cultist treasure to pay loyalty of the Dead Three, at Bathhouse in Lower City’…
I am sad to have spilled the beans, and I am wondering how I will deal with this issue. Fortunately, they have a lead with Fessel’s murderers and Gargauth symbol which I’ll use to run Outer city murders (can’t wait to read your articles). Hoping that buys me enough time to fix my problem. and I am open to your suggestions, if you have some.
Thanks again for all of your hard work, it is really paying off in my campaign.
It’s been on hold due to the holidays and finishing up the first Chapter in Masks of Nyarlathotep that I am a player in – but we are excited to continue next week!
Yes the letter to Rezmir I alluded to in my The Fall of Elturel article – “It also entirely undermines the Alexandrian Remix by revealing key information for the first chapter’s mystery – the villains of Baldur’s Gate.”
It’s unfortunate you have used it, but an easy ‘fix’ is to simply move the dungeon. After all, there’s not really anything to say it has to be there still… maybe the information is out of date and they have moved on to a bigger and better temple? Which is of course, just the same dungeon moved.
I have just posted my first draft of The Outer City Murders on my Patreon. It’s not complete but will give you a head start on what is to come.
Thanks again for the kind words!
That easy fix is quite clever! How long have you been a DM for? I am impressed. I am using that solution. You have my gratitude!
On and off since I was 9… so a ‘bit’ over 20 years. But with a big gap in the middle!
I have joined your Patreon. It was about time, after all your help.
Thank you, that really means a lot to me.
Hey this is great stuff. Are you still working on adding new content?
Hi wunksta`, please see my reply to John above. In short, yes hopefully ‘soon’ but I have been saying that for 4 months unfortunately. Best way to stay updated is to become a Patreon 🙂
Any plans to continue this series? I’ve used all your content up until the Basilisk Gate and would love to see more!
Yes there is, eventually. I have been unwell for a long time now and am only just starting to be back in a position to carry on with the campaign, and these articles. Best way to stay updated is to become a Patreon. You are only charged for my posts, so you’ll pay nothing until the blog is back!
Hi Sarainy,
As always your work is awesome. I’ve nearly caught up to your last article, and I was wondering if you would briefly telll me how you connect the Struggles of Stelmane in?
I think I’m planning to have one of my players get feebleminded or madness from the puzzle box and then the only source of greater resto be currently dealing with Stelmane…
But i thought you might have a more elagant solution so thought id check. Hope you’re well! ^_^
Hi Leo, thank you for the kind words and positive feedback!
There’s a few vectors of how the PCs might get involved in the Struggles of Stelmane.
Your plan of having a PC get weakned by the puzzlebox is an interseting vector too! I wouldn’t force that outcome at all, but should it happen it makes sense that anyone trying to cure the condition might somehow end coming to the attention of Stelmane or Ollin Rought. They both would be trying to discover if any further attacks had taken place, and might think that the feebleminded PC is the mind flayer’s latest victim.
Thank you for sharing your ideas.