Honest Bandits

Set Up

The PCs are traveling in the eastern Cairn Hills for any reason the DM wishes—to or from employment as militia, bodyguards, mercenaries, or perhaps investigating a cairn.

The Bandit Attack

The PCs are ambushed by Alkari Lantard, a bandit leader, and his men while they are abroad in the Cairn Hills. The bandits automatically gain surprise, and the aim here is to take out the PCs as swiftly as possible without killing them. The bandits will not kill the PCs. When the PCs have suffered sufficient disablement (through sleep/hold spells, paralysis, etc.), if any remain conscious, Alkari will demand their surrender. If the PCs don't agree, the bandits will subdue them with nonlethal combat. Statistics for the bandits are followed by instructions for handling the encounter from this point on.

Bandits (4): AC 3/4 (chain mail, shield, Dex bonuses F2;MV9;hp 15, 12, 11, 10; THACO 19;Dmg 1d6+1 (short swords) or 1d3 + special (blunted arrow + poison ALCG;SZ M;ML 13.

Sorry for the Inconvenience .. .

When the PCs are all overcome, the bandits (who are all masked) tie them up with fairly loose knots (a PC can escape in a number of turns equal to 30 minus his Dex score). The bandits take any coins or gems they have, leaving behind enough for a few meals for each PC (1gp equivalent in copper and silver). Then, the leader says to one of the PCs, "Look, I'm terribly sorry, old chap. If you will be good enough to give me your name and address, I'll make sure you get your money returned next Harvester, around the third week, if all goes well." With that, the bandits high-tail it.

The PCs can leave it at that if they wish. If they have given names and addresses, they will indeed get 75% of their monies returned anonymously the following Harvester. But they are more likely to want to find out what's going on here once they untie themselves and dust themselves off.

If you want to run this as a short encounter, then two successive, successful Tracking proficiency checks will enable the PCs to find the bandits' lair (see below), but the odds are against this, so the PCs will need to wander about and ask some questions. The following encounters should be used for a short or lengthier scenario; place these as you wish within the adventure locale.

A. The Wyvern Cave: The PCs see a large wyvern entering this cave, carrying a chest in its claws. For 3rd level PCs, a wyvern should be too formidable an opponent to take on, so stress how huge this one is. If they attack it, see below for notes.

B. Herders: A group of four hillsmen are herding mountain goats and will flee unless the PCs make a Charisma check. If the PCs explain what's happened to them, one of the herders will say simply, "happened to some of them dwarves last month, so they say. Left 'em trussed up like chickens but didn't harm any of them. Just took all their gold." Allow the PCs an Intelligence check to notice that another herder looks puzzled, as if trying to jog something out of memory. If the PCs ask him gently to try to remember, he says that the dwarves were also carrying a valuable icon (he struggles with this word as if he doesn't know its meaning), but the bandits didn't take that.

C. Gnomes: The 12 gnomes encountered here are traveling to a new mine their cousins have discovered. If asked if they have seen any bandits, they claim ignorance. If the PCs give a fairly accurate description of them, allow an Intelligence check for PCs to see that one of the gnomes is looking shifty and evasive. If they then question him pointedly but without offering violence, the gnome will say that "they don't harm us, them bandits. We don't care about them." If the PCs have told the gnomes that the bandits promised to return their money, the gnome adds, "reckon ya will and all." If attacked, these gnomes will defend themselves as well as they can with their picks; two of them are 3rd-level thieves. They know Lantard and his purpose, but won't reveal this.

Terrain: Hilly

Total Party Levels: 15-20 (average 3rd)

Other encounters may be added as necessary, but the PCs should eventually find the bandits' cave. If you wish to make this a longer scenario, of course, then you should not allow the PCs to find the bandits this time around; they will have to search further, and perhaps return at a later time, searching for rumors of the bandits. When the PCs do find the cave, there will be two bandit fighters on guard outside at all times, just inside the cave. There is, however, a period around mealtimes when the guards are not very attentive (+ 2 to PC surprise rolls). The cave is not mapped, since this is not important; it has a 10-foot wide entranceway that opens into a 25-foot-wide by 60- foot-long recess.

How the PCs handle this is unpredictable. They should know (1) the bandits are tough, and (2) the bandits didn't want to kill them. If they attack, the bandits should once again be able to overpower the PCs without slaying them. The PCs might try a "come out, we have you surrounded" line in the night, or they might simply try to parley right away. Eventually, this will get down to a negotiation of some sort. If the PCs are pleasant, smart, or have a charismatic spokesman, Alkeri will finally explain his actions.

Simply stated, Alkeri fell in love with the daughter of an Urnst noble. The noble refused Alkeri's advances on his daughter unless he spent one year and a day in the Cairn Hills, living off the land, and brought back a minimum of ten thousand and one gp in coins and gems, which would then be returned to whomever rightfully owned it (Alkeri negotiated a 25% slice for the poor of his home town, though). As part of the deal, Alkeri could kill no one during this work; hence, the scheme of disabling people and taking their money. The other bandits are brothers and cousins. Alkeri explains rather ruefully that his prospective father-in-law thought him a milksop who hadn't the guts, but nine months later, he has done well for himself (gaining experience levels and treasure).

Do the PCs want their money back? Alkeri explains that they will get it back, eventually. If the PCs want it back now, Alkeri refuses. If the PCs threaten to go to the militia, etc., Alkeri laughs and says he knows how to outwit them. The one thing the PCs should do is to tell Alkeri of the wyvern. He is interested in this news, and is ready to mount an attack, with the spellpower of his brothers and any PC spellcasters (Relten has stinking cloud and web in his spellbook, very useful against wyverns; the priest can slow poison). Alkeri offers a 50/ 50 split if the PCs tell him where the wyvern is and help with ranged attacks so he can go after it. Loot can be shared half for the bandits, half for the PCs. And they get their original money back, in addition.

You now need to stage an attack on the wyvern, which shouldn't be difficult. Relten will attempt to lure it out of its cave with an illusion, and ranged attacks can be followed up with Alkeri meleeing (protected by slow poison). The wyvern's treasure should be rolled up on the normal DMG treasure tables, with a minimum of 1,000 gp in coin.

After this encounter, Alkeri makes the PCs swear not to reveal what they have learned about him. If the PCs care to befriend him, he knows much of the Cairn Hills and could give them several pointers to adventures and contacts. Of course, he might like to recruit one or two PCs to his own bandit group!