MERCANTILE MISSIONARIES #1: FASHION CONSCIOUS PART 1 OF A MINI-ADVENTURE TRILOGY IN BALDUR’S GATE In the metropolis of Baldur's Gate, a garment-thieving outlaw gang runs rampant, raiding seafront stores and stripping merchants of money. Itis your patron's tum to be struck by the outlaws, and you have been called upon to stop them! A TWO-HOUR ADVENTURE FOR 1ST LEVEL CHARACTERS By F.A. HADDOW, ROLLBINGETM Ub) Co ‘DUNGEONS DRAGONS, uD, Winans os Cosy, sco aka a AO ESI, Pure uvoscok. Mons Mana, Dunc Masta Gu DD 2016 waans oF Cour LC PO Hox TO, EON WA 057707, USA MANICURED HY sen SA RUE EMBO 31,200 DeLMOWT CH REPEATED BY Hsa80 ‘Binoy, Tur Seu Soc Pu, Urabe, Mouse UBT, [Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use ony. Matec 1FASHION CONSCIOUS INTRODUCTION In the metropolis of Baldur's Gate, a garment: thieving outlaw gang runs rampant, raiding seafront stores and stripping merchants of money. It isyour patron's turn to be struck by the outlaws, and you have been called upon to stop them! ‘This adventure is best played by a group of three to five player characters, with one Dungeon Master. Thisadventure isthe first part of the Mercantile Missionaries trilogy, however itis designed to be easily adapted fora one-shot adventure, or as part of your own campaign. The adventure is set in Baldur's Gate, in the official Forgotten Realms D&D setting, AREA INFORMATION Baldur's Gate is a bustling centre of trade, with goods coming from north and south by wagon. along the Trade Way and by ship on the Sea of Swords, and from the east along the River Chionthar and from Cormyr and Sembia. Baldw’s Gate is situated ona prominent bluff next to the river, overlooking an excellent natural harbour.It is divided up into three distinct segments: the Upper City where the richest and most influential citizens live and where the city’s marketplace (the Wide) is located, the Lower City, which surrounds the harbour andwhere most of the city’s ‘merchants live and conduct their business. and the Outer City, which lies outside the walls and where most of the city’s labourers reside in conditions that vary from crowded but clean to squalid, = Extract from Tyranny of Dragons: Hoard of the Dragon Queen KEY CHARACTERS Kristof Swiftfinger. A very successful merchant situate din Baldur's Gate. He inherited his father’s ‘merchant business, Swiftfinger’s Mercantile, many years ago, and has since grown it toa substantial size. He evenhas influence in government and political matters within Baldur's Gate.He is a well- dressed, dignified man in his later years. He keeps both his friends and enemies close. (see appendix) Jack Elmon. Owner ofa hatters businessin the Lower City on the seafront. His business supplies Swifffinger’s Mercantile with various fashionable hats. He is a relatively small man who tends to avoid social encounters with strangers, spending ‘most of his time crafting hats, some of which he wears himself. (commoner) Grimm McSmiles.Leader ofthe Bentsword Band; a group of self-proclaimed ‘pirates’ that raid seafront stores for fashionable clothing iterus. He isa dim-witted and lonely half-ogre, and does not find his crew to be valuable company because of the racial differences. (see appendix:) BACKSTORY Nearly a decade ago, the half-ogre Grimm ‘MeSmiles was exiled from his ogre tribe in the Evermoors after inciting the wrath of its leader with an insult. He reamed the Sword Coast alone in search of a purpose, until he managed to band togethera group of outlawsin Scornubel, convincing them he hada plan to make them rich. ‘They stole.a small unguarded caravel moored on the River Chionthar and sailed to Baldur's Gate, christening themselves the Bent sword Band (the name came from the shape of their scimitars). Grimm suggested the idea that they raid seafront clothing storesin the Lower City, then sail back to Scornubel and sell the stockpile of stolen goods on the black market, However, Grimm hasa hidden agenda: he plans to ditch the outlaws once they reach Scornubel and take the clothing to the Evermoors, find his tribe, and offer it asa gift with hopes they will welcome him back in, Player Character Backstories Since the hook in this adventure is based on the backstory of the player characters, i isimportant to discuss with the players how they could have become involved with Kristof ‘Swiftinger. The player characters could be: + Members of Kristot's private guard. Kristof employs several men as guards and security for his residence The close proximity between Kristof and his guards means he has knows all of them quite well + Old friends of Kristof Kristof was part ofthe city guard.in Baldur's Gate before he inherited his father’s business He developed good friendships during this time, some of ‘which persist even to this day + Advisors or merchants within Swiftfinger’s Mercantile, Potential with an adventuring or military past However, asthe DM itisyour choice whether you go with this backstory hook Itis purely forthe purpose of Continuation into the next adventure inthe Mercantile Missionaries trilogy. Ifyou are running this adventure as a ‘one-shot or as part of your own campaign, the characters could simply be employed by Kristof as mercenaries or Investigators for a short period of time. THE SWIFTFINGER RESIDENCE luxurious three-story stone building nestled amongst the other large buildings in the Upper City. Kristof Swiftfinger, his wife Jane, his daughter Alesia and several servants, maidsand cooks ll live within the residence. There are several guest roomsand a large hall, entering into.a dining room fit for any event. Kristof Swiftfinger’s enormous Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use only. Matec 2‘wealth has allowed him to buy a relatively large area of expensive land in the Upper City, despite the population- swelling situation affecting all of Baldur's Gate. ADVENTURE During their time at the Swiftfinger Residence, the player charactersare approached by one of Kristof’s servants (either together or individually), asking that they visit Kristofin his office. Once the characters enter his office, read Youall enter lavishly furnished chamber. To one side, ahubristic painting of Kristof Swiftinger, and below it logs crackle in the hearth. Kristofhimself sits ata desk onthe far side ofthe chamber, with stacks of parchment piled around him, He welcomes youalland directs you to sitona long bench draped in colourful animal hides. Kristof then explains the situation withJack Elmon's hatter’s store being repeatedly robbed by a group of outlaws calling themselves the Bentsword Band. As ack supplies Swiftfinger’s Mercantile with a variety of fashionable hats that make a lot of money for the business, his store cannot be allowed to fail. If the robberies persist, the store wil be forced to close down. Kristofasks the characters that they visit Jackand investigate the robberies, and offers a rewardor bonus for doing so. THE HaTTer’s TRAP ‘The characters should proceed to the Lower City. His store lies on the seafront, just behind boat docks where goods are unloaded and brought into Baldur's Gate on foot. Once they enter the hatter's store, read: ‘The building you enter has fashionable hate stackedon shelves either side of you. Ahead of youisa counterand large mimror hangs to one side, However, younotice the ol! amps hanging from the ceiling are all unlit, despite the gloomy, shadow stricken halflight inside the store. The hatter you seekappearsto be absent. Falling Net Trap. Concealed above a ceiling trap door isa large 10-foot- square net, just several steps from the entrance. Allow the player characters to attempt aDC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check. If successful, the characters notice a disguised trap door inthe ceiling. When it falls, anyone trapped under the net is restrained, and those that fail a DC 10 Strength saving throw are also knocked prone. A character can use their action to make a DC 10 Strength check, freeing themselves or any other character within their reach ona success. The net has AC 10 and 20 hit points. Dealing 5 slashing damage to the net destroys a §-foot-square section of it, freeing anyone trapped in that section. jack equipped this trapafter the previous Bentsword Band robbery, with hopes to catchthem next time. The trap is triggered when Jack pulls the cord inhis hand, «Ifthe characters trigger the trap, Jack Elmon will burst out from behind the counter exclaiming that he has “got you now!" He believes the characters are from the Bentsword Band and are attempting to raidhis store. The player characters can convince him otherwise with a DC 10 Charisma (Persuasion) check. Otherwise, he will run out of the store and call, for help. 4 guards will rush into the store a few ‘moments later (the characters have time to escape before the guards artive, if they choose to do so), The guards will take the characters to holding cells, but Kristof swiftfinger will arrange for their release the following day, unless the charactersattack the guards, at which point they fail the assignment and become felons. The characters may return to complete the assignment, however the falling net trap will have been removed, and Jack will be running the store ashe usually would. Jack will have been made aware of the full story and will apologise to the characters. Continue the adventure as before from this point. «Ifthe characters detect the trap door and actively avoid it, Jack will stay hidden. Ifthe player characters choose to search the room, they can attempt a DC 10 Wisdom (Perception) check to discover him behind the counter. Otherwise, they discover nothing of particular importance. If Jackis discovered, he will appear frightened, saying "take what you want." The character's must explain they are nota threat, which will take a DC 10 Charisma (Persuasion) check because of Jack's panicked state. If they do not manage to convince him, he will stay frightened but will not attempt to flee UNEXPECTED CUSTOMERS ‘An ornately dressed man and several servants enter the store quietly and roam around, seemingly in search of a particular hat. If the character's attempt a DC 10 Wisdom (Insight) check, they sense something odd or disguised about the strangers. These menare in fact 4 Bentsword Outlaws (see appendix). [Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use only. Matec 3Tu Discuisz Drops ‘The Bentsword Outlaws will attempt to move into a favourable position without arousing suspicion. Once they have roughly surrounded both Jack (unless he has not been discovered/revealed himself up to this point, in which case the outlaws automatically discover him) and the characters, the outlaws drop their disguise.{f the outlaws have not yet raised suspicions, they have around of surprise, In this case, two of them grab Jackand holdhim at knifepoint, ordering the characters to lay down their weapons. The two others rush around the store hastily, each filling large sacks with hats. AHasty RETREAT Ifthe characters attack and the odds turn against, the men, they will attempt an escape with whatever loot they have.No more than one or two ‘men should escape, but if none of them escape the characters see another man running past out front with a large bag of loot, towards the hidden Bentsword Band's caravel. Otherwise, if the characters choose to interrogate a defeated outlaw, he will tell them there are more of them aboard a caravel outside with aDC 10 Charisma (Intimidation or Persuasion) check. The characters receive advantage to their roll if they choose to knock him about a bit firs. THE CARAVEL ‘Mooredat a dock just out of sight of the hatter’s store isthe Bentsword Band's caravel. Itisa sturdy but seemingly outdated style. It is 60 feet in length with a 15-foot beam. Ifthe characters are chasing any retreating outlaws, they see the caravel as the outlaws reach the end of the dock, who then go to jump aboard. BATTLE ON THE DECK Grimm McSmiles (see appendix) and2 Bentsword Outlaws (see appendix) await the return of their coruradeson the deck ofthe caravel. Any retreating outlaws will jump aboard from the dock and join Grimm. Add these to the encounter, unless you feel the fight would be too difficult for the characters, in which case reduce the number of outlawsalready on deck. Mounted Crossbow. This improvised weapon is fixed to the stern section of the deck, raised above the ground on a fully-rotating turret.Itacts the same as. regular Heavy Crossbow, however small characters have no disadvantage on attack rolls. ‘There isa chest containing 10 Crossbow bolts beneath the turret. It is unmanned as Grimm and hismenare at the bow end of the deck. Once the charactersare aboard, at least one outlaw will attempt to run the length of the deck and mount it. ‘There are stairs leading down below-deckat the bow endof the deck near Grimm. BrLow Deck 4 Bentsword Outlaws (see appendix) lie sleeping in bunks below deck. At the sternendis.a small ‘wooden door, behind which lies several barrels of stolen garments, anda chest containing 50gp. If the characters attempt to take either the barrels or the chest, have them attempt a DC 10 Dexterity (Stealth) check. f they fail, the noise of them passing the sleeping outlaws wakes them. The ‘outlaws try to attack, however the characters get a round of surprise over them automatically. The ‘outlaws are not equipped with armour (AC 11 instead of 12), but their weapons lie on the floor beneath the bunks andare easily within reach. Making the Chest a Plot Point Instead of having the chest contain monetary treasure, there are several alternatives you as the DM could choose; ‘making the chest a plot point leading on to further adventures With the concept thatthe Bentsword Band never opened this chest butin fact discovered it in arecent raid, some ideas include: + The chest is magically sealed and requires high-level magic to open. This could result in the characters using Kristof s connections to find a suitable arcanist, of venturing toa distant place where someone with the required arcane silsis said to be located. + The chest contains several old maps marking the locations of treasures across the Western Heartlands The treasures could have no connection to each other ‘and act as aseries of one-shot adventures, of the treasures could be different parts of an ancient artefact oF connected treasures that come together in some way ~for better ot for worse + The chest could in and of itself be extremely valuable to someone of a group of people unknown to the characters (and the Bentsword Band). This unknown peerson/group could be searching forth chest, and i they hear ofthe characters possession of it, they may be prepared to them kilt retrieveit Otherwise, continuation from this adventure into the next adventure in the Mercantile Missionaries tilogy can be {ound in the conclusion. CONCLUSION ‘The characters have successfully thwarted the plans ofthe Bentsword Band and saved Jack Elmon’s store. [Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use ony. Matec 4Ifthe player characters return the barrels of garments from the caravel to Jack, award each of thema bonus of 25 XP. Ifthe player characters decide to turn Grimm in to the authorities instead of killing him, award each of them 20gp as a reward, as well asa bonus of 25 XP each, ‘The characters return to Kristof who rewards them each a 25gp silver signet ring with the Swiftfinger’s Mercantile emblem engraved onit for their troubles. CONTINUATION Kristofreminds the characters that his daughter Kristina’s wedding isinone week. Because of their troubles, he would like them to attendand gives them each a letter of invitation. Only use this ifyou intend to follow this adventure with Mercantile Missionaries #2: The Gunpowder Plot. APPENDIX: BESTIARY stat blocksare listed in alphabetical order BENTSWoRD OUTLAW ‘Medium humanoid (human), neutral evil ‘Armour Class 12 (padded armour) Hit Points 9 (2d) Speed 30 ft 'STRI2 (1) DEX 13 (+1) CON 11 (+0) INT 10 (+0) WIS 10 (+0) CHA.10 (+0) ‘Senses passive Perception10 Languages Common Challenge 1/8 (25 XP) Actions Scimitar. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach ft, one target. Hit:S (Ld6 +1) slashing damage. Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reachS ft or range 20/60 ft, one target Hit:4 (Ld4 + 1) piercing damage Grimm McSmites Large giant (half-ogre), chaotic neutral ‘Armour Class 12 (leather armour) Hit Points 30 (40 +8) Speed 30 ft STRI6 (3) DEX12 (+1) CON 14 (+2) INT7 (2) Wis 9 (-1) CHAO (40) ‘Skills Intimidation +2 Senses darkvision60 ft, passive Perception Languages Common, Giant Challenge 1 (200 XP) ACTIONS ‘Rapier. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 tohit, reach ft, one target. Hit: 12 (248 + 3) piercing damage Light Crossbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, range 80/320 ft, one target Hit:5 (Ld8 +1) piercing damage KRisTor SWIFTFINGER ‘Medium humanoid (human), lawful neutral ‘Armour Class 12 Hit points 27 (Sa8 +5) Speed 30 ft ‘STRI3 (1) DEX14 (+2) CON 12 (+1) INT11 (+0) Wis 13 (+1) CHAI2 (-1) ‘Skills Insight +3, Persuasion =3 Senses passive Perception 11 Languages Common, Elvish Challenge 1/2 (100 xP) AcTIONs ‘Multiattack. Kristof makes two melee attacks Shortsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach ft, one target Hit:6 (Ld6 +2) piercing damage. ‘REACTIONS Parry. Kristof adds2 to his AC against one melee attack that would hit him, To do so, he must see the attacker and be wielding a melee weapon [Not for resale. Permission granted to print or photocopy this document for personal use only. Matec 5