SEEDS OF CHAOS THE HORROR OF HORTICULTURE Valentine Manor is beauty entrapped in architecture. The lavish stately home is renowned throughout the realms, and its gardens even more so. However, despite its famed beauty something has found its way into the garden and corrupted its allure. Could it be something to do with the new gardeners, or something even more sinister? A tthour adventure for Istdth level characters, ByJVC PARRY (U6 (45 DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand Players Handbook, Monster Manual, Dungeon Master's Guide, D&D Adventurers League, all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective Jogos are trademarks of Wizards ofthe Coast in the USA and other countries. All characters and their distinctive likenesses are property of Wizards of the Coast. This material is protected under the copyright laws ofthe United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission ‘of Wizards of the Coast. ©2016 Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98087-0707, USA. Manufactured by Hasbro SA, Rue Emile Bofchat 31, 2800 Delémont, CH. Represented by Hasbro Burope, 4 The Square, Stockley Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1E UK.TABLE OF CONTENTS L Introduction 11 Tips for the DM 1.2 Dungeon Background 13 Hooks 1.4 Opening 2Dungeon 21 Kitchen Garden 22 Topiary 23 Orchard 24 River 25 Map - Kitchen Garden/Orchard/Topiary/River 26 Maze 2.7 Map - Maze/Fish Pond 28 Fish Pond 29 Rose Garden 2.10 Map - Rose Garden 3 Outcomes 31 Aftermath 4 Appendix A 41 Dark RoseINTRODUCTION eds of Chaos is an adventure fora party of low TW evel characters, that should only take around 4 hours to complete. Ireated this adventure to GAD) introduce a group of 7 new players to D&D. My ) layers all levelled up half way through the F) séventure.Itwas a tough fight, several players © were knocked unconscious throughout the evening, but there were no deaths and the victory felt well earned ‘Tips FoR THE DM ‘As with any adventure, Seeds of Chaos should be adapted to ‘work for your group, Ifyou dont like the way an clement of it works, please feel free to change it. Ifencounters are too dificult for your players, remove monsters or replace them with easier but fitting foes. ‘Similarly, if you would lke to adapt Seeds of Chaos for your world you can easily substitute appropriate plot hooks, NPCs and items, In order to deliver an optimum experience for your players, it would probably be best to read the adventure in fll before attempting to run it, There are traps and puzzles that you need to understand fully in advance. In my opinion, players should evel up atleast once, half ‘way through this adventure. They may not have achieved all the necessary xp from combat, but | would suggest rewarding players xp for solving puzzles to make up the difference. ‘ry to have fun running this adventure! It was highly enjoyable to create and play with my own group, and [hope that you can share in that experience! DUNGEON BAcKGROUND ‘Valentine Manor is a grand stately home owned by the Valentine family, a noble family of Eladrin belonging to the Seelie Court in the Feywild. They are well known for their beautifully cultivated gardens and courts, growing rare varieties of magical fruits and herbs. The household and gardens are currently owned by Eldan Valentine, who is the benefactor ofthis quest Recently however, Eldan has employed some new irardeners, the rambunctious satyr, who have been nothing, but trouble! They appear to have allowed something sinister into the garden, which has taken over, and needs removing! ‘The naive Valentine knows litle of the true nature of what hhas occurred in his garden. To begin with, the satyrs' revelry ‘was nothing to worry about, but as time went on their carousing became wilder and wilder. Eventually, their riotous behavior became so extreme that it allowed demonic madness to infect their minds. Since then, they have been sacrificing animals to the demon lord Demogargon, These sanguine rituals have invoked a demonic creature known as the dark rose. Hooxs Hook 1: The Tavern Note During their travels, your adventures stop in a local tavern. Here, a noticeboard of local jobs displays a note from Eldan Valentine asking for some bold adventurers to assist him in ridding afoul plague from his gardens. He offers a large reward of 200gp per person. Hook 2: Over the Garden Wall Whilst travelling, the adventurers trek past a large manor house just off the main road. As they approach they hear strange growling noises {rom over the stone walls, a8 well a sinister bouts of laughter, Arriving tothe forefront of the houee, they notice an elf, running this way and that, tying to shoo tiny deer from his luxurious front awa. This elfis Eldan, and he will as the questers for their assistance Hook 3: Satyr Revelry During their exploration ofthe area, the adventurers happen upon a group of satyr (MM 'p6.267), who are merrymaking in nearby woods. The satyr invite them to join in their dance and song, and ifthe players resist they may attempt to magically charm them. The satyr are all glad in green aprons and have small tool belts with trowels and other gardening implements attached. Once the party engage in the merriment, you should describe them beginning to fall unconscious. When the wake, they will be on the front lawn of Valentine Manor, with Eldan standing above them, demanding to know what they're doing on his property, OPENING ‘The adventurers find themselves on the front lawn of Valentine Manor. Itis well trimmed, but currently home to a ‘small herd of tiny deer. There are tall conical topiaries leading down the center to an ornate fountain, on which a young elf lounges, this is Eldan Valentine. Eldan Valentine stands before the party. He is a tall Eladrin ‘with long silver hair and piercing green eyes. His garb is fine and flowing, decorated with floral motifs in silver thread. He ‘wears 2 wealth of silver jewelry, ranging from necklaces to toe rings which acorn his bare feet His mannerisms are rather camp and sassy, but he is honest and desperate for help. He will ask the party for help. Since he employed his new aatyr gardeners his grounds have gone wild. Weeds abound throughout, and something wicked has got into the plants. He tells the party that he has been attacked by the shrubs, but they may put this down to his somewhat hysterical mind-set. ‘To entice the party he will offer them 200gp each. He also tells them that there are two entrances to his grounds, the let leads to the Kitchen Garden and the right to the Orchard. When moving throughout the garden, the party will become aware ofits ethereal nature. Each section of the ‘grounds is enclosed in red brick walls or hedges which Appear to extend higher and higher if any character tries to fly over them. Not only this, but whenever a character moves through a door or gate from one section to the next, they experience a strange hazy feeling, accompanied by a floral ‘scent, which becomes sickeningly pungent as the party move toward the rear of the garden (the Rose Garden is the farthest portion from the manor). The truth is that each clement of the garden is its own private demi-plane.DUNGEON ‘The following passages describe the layout and feel of the dungeon, including the encounters that take place within. Descriptive text to be read aloud to the players is contained in the grey boxes. KiroHEn GARDEN Ifthe party take the left entrance to the grounds, they emerge into akitchen garden, {A strange haziness and floral scent overcomes you as you walk through the gate. Materaising before you is walled kitchen garden, made up of four rows of raised beds, each containing some exotic variety of plant. Three scarecrows stand between them, + The raised beds each contain a different variety of plant, ‘which can be identified with a successful DC 12 Intelligence (Nature) check. The party can harvest 1d4+1 Blessed Berries which restore 1d4+1 hit points when consumed They may also acquire one ripe Opalescent Onion, which puts the eater under the effects ‘of the Invisibility spell (PH pg.243) ‘+ Asuccessful DC 10 Wisdom (Perception) check also reveals the presence of a golden carrot buried inthe third beat This bizarre item will be used later on at the River. + Taking the golden carrot will animate the three scarecrows (MM pg.268), who target the holder of said item. ‘The party can exit the Kitchen Garden through an oak door in the eastern wall This door leads to the Topiary ares. The gate on the southern wall, through which they may have tentered, has been locked from the outside. Topiary ‘This area can be accessed from the Kitchen Garden or Orchard You find yourself onthe rear lawn of Valentine Manor. Box hedges line the walls ofthis garden and in each corer are brilliantly sculpted topiary animals resembling a bear, elk, horse and wolf, Suddenly you notice movernent as several Satyr gardeners flee toward the back gate + Onentering the Topiary area for the first time, the party will hve the opportunity to fight 1d4*1 satyr (MM. 16.267). These satyr wield garden tools (instead of sshortswords and shortbows) which are melee weapons dealing 146 damage. If questioned, the satyr reveal nothing, and appear to be in a frenzied state of gardening. ‘+ Ifat any'time both the golden carrot and golden apple are inthe room, the topiary animals animate and attack the bearers. The topiary animals use the stats ofa black bear (MM pg. 318), elk (MM pg. 322), riding horse (MM 1pg.336) and wolf (MM pg.341) except that they are all vulnerable to fire damage, have the plant type and lose their Multiattack action if applicable. ‘The party can exit the Topiary area by the west (Kitchen Garden) north (River) or east (Orchard) The north pair of doors is locked by a chain which requires a successful DC 10 Dexterity cheok and a set of theives tools to open. OrcHARD ‘The Orchard can be accessed via the right hand entrance to the grounds or from the Topiary area, Before you lies atypiesl orchard, rows of fut-bearing trees somewhat obscure the sky, but plenty of green light fters down to illuminate the garden, + A-successful DC 10 Wisdom (Perception) check allows the players to notice a golden apple hanging from one of the trees. This item is necessary to progress later on at the River. * Taking the golden apple will cause the tree from which is, ‘was plucked to animate, becoming a hostile animated tree (MM pg.317). Players can leave the Orchard through an oaken door in the western wall, which leads to the Topiary area. The gate on the southern wall through which they may have entered, has been locked from the outside. RIVER ‘This area can only be accessed by the northera gate in the ‘Topiary area. This gate is locked and can only be unlocked with a successful DC 10 Dexterity check with thieves’ tools. ‘Awide, rushing river flows through the garden, blocking your route through iis around twenty feet aeross and te rong Current makes it impossible to wade through Two stone Blinths stand on ether side of he river. Orthe far bar, you See. eloud of sprites bickering an, a5 you watch, the group Spits ino two halves to guard the for of gates.Map - RIVER KiTcHEN GARDEN/ ORCHARD /ToPIARY/ RIVER‘A closer look atthe stone plinths on this side reveal a ‘spherical hole in one, and a conical hole in the other. These holes match exactly the golden carrot and golden apple. Placing the items into their slots causes a magical ‘stone bridge to erupt from the river and adjoin itself to the plinths on their bank. + On the far side of the bank, the players have a choice, ‘either the left or right gate. Each is guarded by 144+1 sprites (MM pg.283). They are not hostile toward the players, but will respond with violence if attacked. The groups of sprites are guardians of the gates. I'you approach, ether group will announce that they will only answer one question, and thatthe other group of sprites: are all liars. Not only this, but one of the gates is trapped, ‘50 the characters better pick the right one. + The left gate leads to a trap, walking through it plunges the party into a pocket dimension filled with writhing and ‘whipping plant tendrils. They must make a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw or take 7 (246) slashing damage, or half on a suecess, The party are able to leave this «dimension via the gate through which they entered. +The right gate leads either to the Fish Pond or the Maze, roll to determine which, with a 50:50 chance of either. + The easiest way to pick the correct gate is to ask; If asked which gate is not trapped, which gate would the other sprites point to? The lying sprites would point to their own door (the trapped door) The truthful sprites ‘would point to the left door (the trapped door) Because cither sprite swarm will point to the trapped gate, the ‘characters should be able to pick the other gate with ease. pee =), This riddle is a classic logic puzzle that has been around forever. If you're struggling to roleplay the sprites, or you don't think your players will enjoy this section of the adventure, fel free to skip it altogether. Instead, consider throwing in an interesting combat against a water weird (MM p29), that resides in the river. It will ry to pull in ‘the players and drown them. Once the players have completed this area, they are roughly half way through the dungeon. I would recommend allowing them to level up here, just before they enter the Maze or Fish Pond, as the remaining portion of the adventure is significantly harder. To do this, calculate all the combat xp they have earned so far then award enough to level them up. for solving the bridge andor riddle. Mazz ‘The Maze can be accessed by picking the correct gate at the River or the side door of the Fish Pond. (On the other side ofthe gate, you enter what i clealy a maze, Tall box hedges rise up ten feet on either side of you, forming verdant corridors which twist and turn taking you deeper into the labyrinth, Somewhere inthe distance you can hear the clanging of tools + ‘The Maze is an ever-shiftng labyrinth of passages. A successful DC 12 Intelligence (Arcana) check reveals that the area is thick with magic, but simply attempting to retrace their steps should reveal to the party that the maze has moved. There is no way to escape the maze, other ‘Wisdom (Survival) check, which you (the DM) should prompt them to do, The result ofthis check determines what happens: | Roll | Result| |} |0-5 | Encounter with a gorgon (MM pg.171) without its Petrifying Breath ability | | 610 | Encounter with 10412 bine blights (MM pg.32) which crawl out of the hedges. || 1-15 | The final ‘corridor is blocked by razorvine (DMG pg.110). || 16-20 | Find the centre of the maze, which houses a decrepit garden shed Inside the shed is a Sickle of Harvesting. || 20=| Result of 16-20 and an ‘encounter with a friendly satyr who can warn the party of what's ahesel | + The gorgon is constructed from rusted garden tools, jneluding a bucket and pair of trowels for a head and a wheelbarrow body Itis the source of the clanging noise. + The Sickle of Harvesting is a magic item which acts as a normal sickle, but does an extra 1d6 slashing damage against anything with the plant type + The friendly satyr is named Olinysus. He has been trapped in the Maze for ages and thus was not afflicted with the demonic madness. Since then he has sensed a ‘reat darkness in the garden, and worries that the satyr may have accidentally summoned something evil He can tell the party that the other satyr are unlikely to listen to them, and their only hope would be to kill whatever they have summoned Ofinysus can also give the players some {dea of the layout ofthe grounds, Once the party have dealt with their rolled encounter, they ean escape the Maze. They can do this through the side door ‘which leads tothe Fish Pond or the back door which leads to the Rose Garden,Map - MazE/FisH PonD Fis Pon.Fis Ponp ‘The Fish Pond can be accessed by picking the correct gate at ‘the River or through the side door of the Maze. A scene of battle confronts you. The possessed satyr are assaulting a giant koi carp, which is writhing around in pond, tossing the satyr about with its powerful jaws. + There are 1d4+1 satyr (MM pg.267) who are in combat with the giant koi carp (use the stats of the plesiosaurus MM p¢.80), + Assisting the satyr to kill the giant koi earp will just cause the satyr to turn on the party. They intended to bring the ‘lant koi carp back to the dark rose as an offering. Not only this, but the satyr are insane and are likely to deem the party a viable replacement sacrifice. + Assisting the giant koi carp to fight off the satyr causes @ miraculous transformation. The giant koi carp will revert to a normal size, and cach player will be given the Blessing of Scales, + The Blessing of Scales manifests as a shimmering layer of scales aver each blessed member. Each player gains one use ofthe blessing, which allows them to automatically resist a grapple. Once used, the spectral scales disappear {rom that character, Once the encounter has elapsed, the party can leave the Fish Pond through the back door which leads to the Rose Garden or side door which leads to the Maze. Rosz GARDEN ‘The Rose Garden can be entered by the back doors of either the Maze or the Fish Pond. Before you sit a hideous monstrosity. A grea bloated ase lice creature sloucnes against the reat wal of the garcen being {ed ive rabbits by the Satyr that surround it On your approae itrears up and the petals of is flower-bud head pen to reveal row upor row of serrated teeth, ‘+ ‘The party must fight the dark rose (Appendix A) as well as 1d4+1 satyr (MM pg.267) ‘Killing the dark rose will bring the garden back to its former splendour. All the weeds that have sprung up will ‘and disappear, the sickly sweet scent leaves and flowers bloom. On top of this, any remaining satyr break from their trance, and fall unconscious. OvuTcoMES At the most basic level, the outcomes of this adventure are clear Killing the dark rose rids the grounds ofthe curse, as the rose itself was the manifestation ofthe evil power. However, in your setting there may be some follow up necessary to bring this adventure together with your campaign arc ‘The players should also be rewarded by Eldan Valentine, to the tune of 200gp per adventurer. He could also offer the party free stay in his manor house whenever they need, or use of is grounds to train. AFTERMATH, Once the dark rose has been dealt with, all the satyr break free from their trance. Ifthe players can wake one or more of them they recount them with tales oftheir accidental summoning of an evil power after being inflicted with demonic madness, This power fits well into a Rage of Demons style campaign. Alternatively it could be a manifestation of an alternate plane of existence and pethaps by destroying the dark rose a portal to the world of Curse of Strahd would open up. Use whichever power suits your campaign best.Map - Rosz GARDEN Rosé GARDENAPPENDIX A Dark RosE Large plant, chaotic evil ‘Armor Class 14 (natural armour) HitPoints 114 (12410 + 48) Speed Of. STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA 16 (+3) 10(+0) 19 (+4) 6(-2) 131) 6(-2) Damage Vulnerabilities fire Damage Immunities poison Condition immunities poisoned ‘Saving Throws Con +7 ‘Senses darkvision 6Oft, passive Perception 11 an Chalenge 5 (1,800 x?) Actions ‘Muttiattack The dark rose makes three attacks: one with its bite and two with its tendrils, Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach Sft, one target. Hit: 12 (248 + 3) piercing damage Tendrils. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, each 10ft, one target. Hit:7 (Id8 + 3) slashing damage plus 4 (148) poison darnage. Ifthe target's Medium or smaller, it is grappled (escape DC 13) and restrained until the grapple ends. The dark rose has two tendrils, each of which can grapple one target. Tendril Slam. The dark rose slams creatures grappled by it into each other or a solid surface. Each creature must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or take 10 (2d6 + 3) bludgeoning damage and be stunned until the end of the dark rose’s next turn. On a successful save the target tates half the Bidgeonng damage and isn't stunned. Legendary Actions ‘The dark rose can take 3 legendary actions, choosing. from the options below. Only one legendary action option can be used at a time and only at the end of another creature's turn. The dark rose regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn. Uproot The dark rose moves up to 30 feet. Erupting Tendrils (Costs 2 Actions) The dark rose shoots 4 tendrils up from the ground within a 30 ft. radius of itself Each tendril makes a melee weapon attack (+6 to hit) dealing 5 (2d4) slashing damage on a hit.