Act 1, Hook 1; The Bloody Bonerattlers

The Frozen Secrets Campaign Modular is set up in a rather unique fashion, aiming to present a GM with options. Its broken into five acts and the fifth act will be altered by the four adventures your party decides to engage with and complete on their journey to that final act. It is not a linear path, but a branched path, allowing more reuse of the Campaign Modular. Each act will consist of one adventure chosen from two options, and presented here is the first act's first option. The Bloody Bonerattlers.

In each Hook you shall find the various story beats outlined as quest/scene plot articles, labelled in the order they would most likely occur, however do not be afraid to be flexible. After all our players are human beings and not that predictable, so don't be afraid to improvise and go off script. This is not meant to be a bible, merely a skeleton, a framework for you as a GM to bolt whatever parts and add whatever branches you desire, or burn away others should you wish. You will also find the level range your party should experience listed here as well as a brief little primer paragraph to help you understand the sort of adventure this is geared to kind of turn into.

The Bloody Bonerattlers adventure is meant to carry a party from 1st level to just reaching 5th level after the climactic final act of the adventure, so filling levels 1-4 with gameplay. There will be noted milestone moments in the modular if that should help you guide when to give level ups, however feel free to alter those should you desire.

Plot points/Scenes

Hook 1: This plot, the introduction shall be presented as two possible openings which will ultimately define how this adventure feels. You as a GM should figure out with your players the dynamics of the group, and decide which makes more sense based on the background traits they have picked and the intended dynamics. Do they wish to start play knowing each other well? Are they action oriented or roleplay oriented individuals/group? Which style is a better hook for them, which will buy them in and tangle them into desiring to follow the through line of this adventure more? So you will be presented with two ways to run this first 'session' within this article.

Scene Two: Investigations This part can last one session or several, and even can bleed into other scenes and between them, however it should start after our first scene/session, even if your group does this multiple times. There are a variety of things to learn, investigate and figure out for the players to have paths to advance forward with this story, and to tap into various of the background traits some of the party may have taken. This article will be laid out a little more freeform, explaining the various things that your players may find or discover, the avenues of investigation they may take, whilst trying to find and confront some more of the goblin menace, or even trying to figure out a direction to search for a hideaway.

Scene 3: Shallow Graves This scene the party should be at least 2nd level, before reaching. This is the first real sign of the truth of the raiding party, in that its not merely opportunistic. The players discover a missing military patrol from a nearby garrison, buried in shallow graves, and will have a harrowing first skirmish with Old Grimjaw, whom has dug up the Tantur soldier's corpse and is feeding when they arrive. The grouchy old manticore is not directly tied to the plot, however there is a notable bounty on its head, should your players be aware, do not stop them. If they wish to chase or hunt him down now or later, think of him as a bonus distraction to tick away more narrative time. Remember time moves on without them, don't be afraid to strengthen the goblins, have them boldly strike another wagon whilst our heroes are off hunting a manticore, and maybe they even take prisoners. The world should not wait for them, but allow them to interact with the world.

Bonus Scene; Old Grimjaw: This is useable whenever your party wishes to engage with it, if they ever wish to. Hunting down and confronting the ornery old manticore known as Old Grimjaw. A full boss monster encounter in its lair is presented here that can be utilized. (He will be a proper boss level challenge for a party level 3 or 4. Above that he will feel less epic, though still appropriate enough to consider beyond an average Manticore. Anything below that he is extremely dangerous.)

Scene 4: Bonerattler Raiders: This is a through line from Shallow Graves if they manage to track the goblins and arrive at the raider camp. This is a rather standard large encounter for Adventures in Valerick in that it can be done as a few careful sudden and coordinated attacks and assaults, or potentially one big and difficult skirmish. The party should be 3rd level when they arrive here.

Scene 5: The Bonerattler Warrens: This is the journey to, the finding of, and perhaps an initial encounter with some of the Bonerattler Goblins, specifically a local patrol who's job it is to hunt, forage and keep intruders away from the warrens, or at least alert them of intruders in the area. In total the Bonerattler tribe numbers some 60 or so goblins of fighting capability and five hobgoblins whom make up leadership when it comes to combatants, and their warrens are extensive. Though depending how things have gone, the number of hobgoblins may be as low as 3 or 4, and they may only have one shaman left, they are still formidable by sheer numbers. The party should be allowed to attempt their first foray into the warrens if they wish, but if they find initial success that should be short lived. The Bonerattler tribe are ferocious and not afraid to use weight of numbers, dark sorcery from their blood shaman(s), and other tactics to get an edge. Ultimately a 3rd level party should be bloodied and unable to purge the warrens on their initial push, needing to fall back and recover once or twice.

Scene 6: Confronting Chief Sawtooth Bonerattler; Eventually the party should be 4th level, and once they've managed to navigate the warrens, eventually they should find what they've come to for. This scene is presented as an encounter with some variable information for you the GM based on how your party has fared in the warrens themselves in their skirmishes and assault on the place. The showdown with Chief Sawtooth Bonerattler and his Frost Worg mount Snarl will be the big finish to the adventure, and at the end our heroes should just hit 5th level.

Themes

This is the version of the campaign modular that sticks mostly to that old school TTRPG feel. Kick the door, beat the monsters, get the loot, save the townsfolk. Its straight forward, its structure and tempo will be familiar, even with some secondary little plots and questions that will show up as foreshadowing for later possible adventures and twists. This path is a good one for new players or vets alike, and allows some easy action oriented gameplay with with social roleplay taking a secondary or backseat role if the party so desires. This isn't to say you should shut the door to your players on the social roleplay side of things however, never restrict them in that fashion. However if they follow this throughline, they will find a more action oriented story at its base, which means any heavy social roleplay stuff is totally improv and additions you and your game group weave into the narrative yourselves.

Structure

Exposition

Hook 1, Version 1, Caravan Assault

This version kicks things off quite swiftly and assumes a couple of things. Your party is okay with starting the game and story on a job, already knowing each other at least on a first name basis. They are traveling with a pair of wagons returning from Vorgistal to Spruce Point, one of them intending to continue on to Needle-Grove. They shipped timber to Vorgistal that was on order by the granite quarry and the town itself, and in return have been loaded up with granite bricks and blocks to be shipped mostly via rail eventually, as well as some money, pelts and pickled trout. Besides the PCs, depending which roles they fill, their should be a handful of other people. In sum total, there should be; Two drivers, two laborers whom assisted with loading and offloading, and at least two caravan guards, as well as a civilian or two perhaps, traveling with the caravan more for the safety in numbers, helping with basic tasks, meals and the like whenever needed. Both wagons are pulled by two horses.

Set the Scene

It is early in the short tundra summer, the sun is shining, there is a light breeze. It is midday, and your but some ten to twenty miles away from Spruce Point. The forest is quiet, the drone of insects, the occasional sounds of birds or the tapping of a woodpecker off in the distance. The mating call of an elk flutters into your ears, clearly carried over many miles. Your stomach is rumbling, and its nearing mid-day as (one of the NPCs) calls out, asking if its time to stop and break for a meal.

If both drivers are PCs, let them decide what they wish to do. If one of them is an NPC, engage in banter and discussion. If the consensus is to stop and eat, stop and eat, allow the roleplay and such. If the consensus is to keep going, let the wagons travel another kilometer (half a mile) and then proceed with the next paragraph.

TN 16 Awareness to realize something isn't right, TN 18 just catches sight of a small form hiding amongst a tree alongside the road.

As you continue on, following the roadway for another half an hour, the woods seem still and calm all around you, making you feel comfortable. Its been an easy trip, and profitable with no real trouble of any kind.....Suddenly two loud crashes echo in your ears, one behind and one in front. Two large spruce trees have crashed across the road, one in front and one behind, blocking your progress about fifty feet in either direction. Inhuman shrieks come from both directions in the treeline! Bursting from cover come goblins, at least eight of them, screaming bloody murder and violence, as two arrows hammer into the horses on the lead wagon. You all realize that on each side of the road, hidden in the trees, are two more goblins with bows! (Appropriate NPC screams panicked orders)

Have the party roll for initiative and run the combat via the instructions of the combat encounter.

Hook 1, Version 2, Public Alert, Private Goals

This version is more nuanced and more for a roleplay centric introduction and beginning, social encounters, and is more targeted towards a group that have chosen less directly involved background traits and are more interested in working their way up in pacing instead of starting on a high intensity moment. This introduction or 'hook' is also for more veteran GMs in general as it basically skips the obvious connective trauma that easily establishes a party of the other Hook, and actually basically starts the campaign as Scene Two; Investigations relying on the background traits and motivations of the individual PCs and the GM's skill to pull all that together in a smooth, fun and engaging way.

Generally this hook is more open ended and freeform, and less directly likely to result in immediate engagement with this throughline, however can be more fun for the right group. Investigative, inquisitive problem solving types, whom love to get into the weeds of social roleplaying and social TTRPG play, especially with dynamics within the party, due to the personal and potentially secretive interests some PCs may have in following and interacting with this plotline for background trait reasons.

In this case the PCs do not need to know each other that well if at all yet, all that needs to be established is that they all end up at our starting backdrop, the Charcoal Horn, the local alehouse and eatery in the small village of Spruce Point. Allow them some time to roleplay, to socialize, provide them a chance to meet an interesting individual or two from the village, allow them to all arrive via their chosen methods, scenery and reasons, and eventually, once they are all there, interacting a little with the locals and maybe with each other, move forward with the following;

Setting the Scene

It is late in the evening now, food is being served, an individual is performing for the entertainment of the patronage.

It will be someone playing a flute and singing unless a PC is playing an entertainer and wishes to be the performer in question.

Allow the PCs whom are there some time and let everyone (or everyone else as appropriate when you read below) to show up narratively, organically. Let the players socialize with locals, maybe meet each other, and roleplay a little bit. When you feel it is appropriate timing to refocus, to keep energy good, carry on with the next bit below.

Suddenly there is a loud slam as the door to the establishment is opened with fury and slammed closed. A surly looking individual storms towards the bar, swearing, shaking and sits down.

This person is a dwarven woman by the name of Avil Nazirok, unless a PC wishes to be the surviving caravan guard. If that is the case do not finish the rest of this section, let that player play this out. However if no PC took that background trait, continue with Awareness skill check and the next bit of aloud text below.

TN 15 Awareness to note this dwarf has a bandaged left hand, and came in with a notable limp. TN 19 Awarness can tell she has more bandages under her clothing.

She raises her hand snarling loudly at Theolin Denir, the middle aged human working behind the bar. "A pint of the strongest whiskey ye have and some smoked moose and mash quick as ye can damn ye! I need to drown some sorrows and eat something afore I pass out." She shakes her head, realizing the bar has gone a little quiet and everyone is kind of staring at her and her bandages and obvious injuries. "What ye all looking at, ain't any of ye sawmill working fuckers seen a victim of a goblin attack afore!? Let me be, keep yer eyes to yerself!"

From here let your players continue as they wish, and let the night fall and the next day begin should they choose not to interact with this individual. Come morning they will hear more, as a general warning will be passed out via the local taverns, business, and a village crier, detailing that another trade shipment was attacked by a goblin raiding band, the third in two weeks. A general travel warning about the roads east of Spruce Point will be issued to the public, which you should word and play out as you feel is appropriate, be it handbills, village crier, or however each PC would find out about it. From there it is up to them how much they wish to initially interact with this dangled hook or not. Should they not, feel free to let them play out a couple days doing whatever they wish, exploring Spruce Point, etc, and then go for one of the other 1st level hooks for one of the other adventures and present that event to them instead.

Conflict

The initial conflicts of the paths will vary however the big one to note should your party commit, is naturally with this adventure's villian, the Bonerattler Goblins, and more specifically Chief Sawtooth, though the PCs will not know the hobgoblin in question until much later.

Though many conflicts and encounters may occur some key ones to note besides this that might exist of course are naturally listed here to insure you are thinking about them and their impacts and potential;

• Criminal Complications: If you have a PC whom picked the Shady Business background trait to be tied into the Vorgi, this of course creates a number of issues, not the least of which is the information that the goblins didn't take the wagons, and that means they are going to be recovered, and likely by some local authorities, if not a military escort, perhaps in two days at most? This puts a pressured timeline on that PCs efforts to recover the contraband.



• Missing in Action: If you have a PC whom picked the Missing Family Background trait they now know the goblins were interested in taking prisoners, which means their family member may still be alive, though if they are, they likely don't have long, a few days at most, if the filthy greenskins are feeling playful? So what do they do now?



• Wyrid Weapons: The archers in the ambush, or the stories of the survivor definitely inform you that yes, the damned goblins have gotten their hands on a corruptive and evil armament, something truly henious and as such, a PC with the Dark and Wyrid Rumors trait will have a certain level of duty to do what they can to help cleanse this problem. What's their next move?



• Local Militia: Any PC who took this trait has a very direct conflict through line as Spruce Point starts accepting willing and capable volunteers to work with their limited official deputies to start patrols around the village out to a 30 km (15 mile) radius. So they have an obvious direct conflict with the goblins, and a method by which to directly involve themselves.



• Criminal Cover-up: This is tied to the Cover Up Background trait and is the other sort of criminal option, and in this case it is the knowledge of what must have happened to the minting press and the wizard (apostate, not licensed) that Colm had hired. A PC with this trait now has a quandry. They need to search the recovered wagon from the attack before this one, which is under lock and key at the Spruce Point Sherriff office, as it is still being treated at this point as potential evidence of a murder or highway robbery. Because if the minting press is there, then that's all they need. However they also know the goblins had been taken prisoners which means the apostate may yet live and he knows to much to let the authorities take him. Do they seek to insert themself in the patrols and investigations to make sure he's dead, seeking a body to confirm? If the press isn't with the remains of the wagon in lockup, then what? Clearly if it is not with the wagon remains, it was looted. If that is the case, do they seek the goblins hideaway and try and sneak in and steal it back?

Rising Action

There will be many up and down beats of tempo, however some key rising actions are meant to be;

• The potential discovery of the Voidstone Powder and what that could entail, the threat that poses.



• The initial attack, and then two rounds of combat later, should the introduction be the caravan assault, when the horse struck by arrows mutates and joins the fray.



• The party's first run-in with Old Grimjaw/the discovery of the dead military patrol, which takes things from mere highway robbery to a notably different level.



• The discovery of a full on warband encampment, with live prisoners in cages.



• The discovery of what the prisoners are meant for, should they take a goblin alive and successfully question it.



• The PCs first encounter with a Bloody Bonerattler, of which there are three counting Chief Sawtooth. The Bloody Bonerattler is the warband leader, and is gifted by Iracundia via the voidstone powder and a sacrifice of slaughter (prisoner)

Climax

The climax occurs deep within the warrens of the Bonerattlers, or perhaps out on a battlefield amongst militia and local troops from a nearby garrison fighting the goblins should they have military ties and wish to go that route. However it is whent he PCs face down with Chief Sawtooth and Snarl.

Falling Action

The falling action begins when Snarl or Sawtooth falls, though the PCs will quickly realize if they haven't wiped out the other hobgoblins, this is merely a reprieves and they will need to face them down to escape with the prisoners.

Resolution

Once the hobgoblins are all dead, the Bonerattler tribe decimated, their warrens purged and any survivors fleeing into the mountains, the conflict is resolved and a relative demeanor of peace returns, as much as exists in such a frontier region anyway. However some loose ends and small threats may remain, such as Old Grimjaw if the PCs didn't decide to deal with the ornery old beast, which perhaps that bounty may entice them later. Besides that by now the voidstone powder should be a pressing issue for the party, or at least one they wish to insure is going to be looked into and resolved....though perhaps for at least one among them they are hoping no one looks too hard.

Components

Goals

Besides the background goals noted for the individual background traits, one can consider the handling/vanquishing of the goblin threat a goal, as well as recovering any prisoners whom are capable of being rescued. Perhaps even slaying the local pest and menace that is Old Grimjaw will cross your party's list as a goal worth achieving.

Hooks

We've already covered those in detail, but feel free to grow those and add other things of course. Again this is a skeletal structure and meant to be built onto by you as a GM however you wish. Nothing is off limits and no alteration is 'too far'.

Stakes

You have personal stakes once again based on personal background traits, as well as things like the lives of innocent prisoners, and the looming threat of a village being assaulted by a greenskin war party. There is no set way to utilize these potential stakes or insure the PCs know what failing to meet their goals has caused, so again as a GM take the knowledge of the outlined situation and potential plot points, encounters and motivations of the Bonerattlers and insure the stakes are what you feel is appropriate to keep things risky, interesting and engaging for your party of players.

Moral Quandaries

Moral quandries are light in this first act, though there does exist a constant question at the edge, or perhaps a main one should you have a player whom took the appropriate trait for the missing apostate to be relevant. Should he live and be rescued, he is a potential permanent ally to his rescuers, however do the strict laws and rules governing magisters, based on his reasons for having his licensing revoked and being declared apostate feel justified to your PCs, or do they feel it was to harsh a response and an unfair judgement, given the intended punishment is death.

Besides this there is a potential to come up here morally about the mutagenic effects of Voidstone exposure and some of the prisoners, should you wish, could have a visible physical mutation. Given the corrupting influence of Voidstone, the religious and even legal and arcane views of this are clear. Any such individual should be executed, full stop. They are to dangerous to live. Do your PCs agree? Did any of them experience a mutative effect from exposure?

Finally we have the coin minting and the void dust syndicate, the latter of which is one of the two choices for an Act 2 path, however the former is more of a small aside, should your PCs take any sort of interest or care about this, or should they put it together without a player whom took that trait when they discover the minting press and rescue/interrogate the apostate.

Cruel Tricks

The voidstone dust will be the crux of most cruel moments, including a mutated horse in the introduction, the slight exposure risk of random mutation in the rare cases it is used on the PCs and the risk of inhaling it should they not know its there when they search the stone shipment wagons. If they get distracted with the manticore, perhaps when they discover the raiding party's other encampment, they find one prisoner barely breathing, perhaps the apostate, whom tried to resist, and he's coming apart mentally and physically, for he was forced to swallow a handful of Voidstone Dust and left chained for dead. He has enough strength to inform the party of what the goblins intend to do with the prisoners, not even the direction they went in, before he becomes some sort fo hideous, mindless mutated horror that launches itself at them, snapping loose the chains. If they insist on being distracted and taking off doing other side activities for to long, perhaps wasting two weeks between noted scene events, then perhaps the Bonerattler tribe comes forth out of the woods and mountains one night and begins an all out furious, homicidial, bloodthirsty assault on Spruce Point.

Red Herrings

There are no true red herrings, I don't like the concept done blandly. There are distractions which could take them off the through line of this adventure and even have them start another. The voidstone powder, Old Grimjaw, the counterfieting operation, these things could throw them off the rails entirely and lead them to allow the Bonerattler situation to change drastically.

Relations

Protagonists

The PCS of your game

Allies

A lot of these would depend on the PCs and which background traits they each picked. However there are some notable ones worth listing here;

(List To be Added as I develop the individual scenes and the various peoples and connections of Spruce Point and such.)

Neutrals/Bystanders

In this initial story there isn't really many of these directly, however due to the....criminal complications there are notable neutral groups, two of them, whom could perhaps be made amicable and even helpful with certain concessions and returning of certain....property.

Competitors

Unless your party contains someone with each of the two criminal background traits, there will be people whom are trying to fulfill those goals that may interfere with, complicate, or otherwise create....wrinkles for your PCs.

Adversaries

Immediately of course there are two easy ones here;

• Old Grimjaw



• The Bonerattler Goblins

However there are many others whom could become such. The Topaz Apostate, the Vorgi Syndicate, the local garrison, Colm 'the Hammer' Pearson. Even one of the local lumber magnates, should they choose to do some digging about the smuggling of the Voidstone Powder, though again that would be dipping into activities that could have them inciting the Act II; Facing down the Vorgi Syndicate adventure option.