Marchlands Pocket Adventures Volume 7:

Camp Cairn
Published By: Sad Fishe Games, LLC
Written by: Longnut and Tyler A. Thompson
Maps by Dyson Logos under CC BY-SA4.0, Art by Patrick E.
Pullen
Compatible with Zweihander by Daniel D. Fox

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 FOREWORD
Some might call the Marchlands a feral wilderness.
Barbarian territory, unexplored, untamed, uncivilized, and
inhabited by outlaws, exiles, and savages. Such people
might be correct, in some ways, but the vast Marchlands
are far from empty or lacking in history or culture. The
people of the Marchlands live in roaming bands or
pastoral clan communities, ranging from a few dozen to a
thousand or so in population, though rarely do they sustain
anything larger. These communities are governed by
chiefs or councils of respected (or feared) members of the
community. Sometimes one clan will come to dominate
others and form an often short-lived kingdom, or several
clans will come together to form a confederation for a time
to address some common concern, but the tribal clan
persists as the dominant level or organization for
Marchlanders, and serves as an important part of
individuals’ identities.

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 Introduction
The Reformers are a community notorious for their
acceptance of others who might find themselves legally
outcast or executed elsewhere due to social offenses -
serious criminals, former bandits, etc. This is not because
this community is evil or accepting of such things, but
because of their ardent efforts to rehabilitate and reform
such folks. They see good success in these efforts, though
it is inevitable that some folks relapse, so to speak, into
their bad behavior of the past.
The Reformers have become aware of a wooden fort
constructed on a hill in a sort of no-mans land nearby -
Camp Cairn. The residents of this fort are a band of
outcasts who engage in robbing, poaching, and so on,
which is causing problems for other local communities.
Everyone wants this to stop, but the Reformers in
particular want to bring as many of these folks into the
fold as possible. They will pay for the banditry stopping,
but will pay extra for every person brought in to them
alive, so that they might be afforded the chance to reform.

Camp Cairn’s Crew

The camp is home to a couple dozen bandits of various
backgrounds. The most notable of those present are as
follows.
Captain Gorn Blackwind
Male human Templar Fanatic turned Bandit Captain
after one too many run its with forces he could not
comprehend. Bright green eyes and wears a shining gray
cloak over his polished armor. He hates being cheated
more than anything, and he believes he's been cheated his
whole life, despite his former rank in society. Thus, Gorn
justifies his outlaw status and actions as the fault of society

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for neglecting its people like him and his crew. He
eventually hopes to found his own town- one in which he
may do as he pleases.
Vezra the Scout
Female elf Brigand. Grey-haired with sullen eyes and
wears a studded vest of black leather over a fine blue tunic.
Captain Blackwind took her in under his wing after her
forest home was pillaged. She seeks to repay this debt with
undying loyalty.
Seltie the Devout
Female human acolyte magis turned Occultist. Blonde
hair with a face aged beyond her years and wears a flowing
brown robe with a gilded stole. A childhood friend of
Captain Blackwind. Seltie stays at Camp Cairn in hopes
that Blackwind will eventually change his ways and atone.
Boog the Thick

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Male Ogre Mercenary. Bald with a long, frizzed beard and
hands stained black with gunpowder. After escaping from
death row, Boog sought refuge in the first place that would
accept him, although his cruelty continues to cause
problems even among vagabonds.

Into the Camp

The Adventure assumes the Party has been given their task
by the Reformers, likely via posting in their own or a
nearby village. The location of the camp is known, the
way charted. All that is necessary is getting there.
The action begins as the Party is approaching the outskirts
of Camp Cairn. Their task is to clear out the camp of
bandits, with the secondary goal of convincing as many
of them to join the Reformers as possible, or otherwise
bringing them in alive to be given a chance or brought to
proper, procedural justice. Putting a stop to the camp's
activity will earn the party a happy princely sum of 50gc,
plus an additional 1gp for each surviving turncoat or
apprehended person. When ready , read the following:
By the early afternoon after several hours of travel, you
spot a wooden fort built between and atop two steep hills
ahead. The small valley between the hills is blocked by
15ft tall gated stockades to the north and south. A tall
stack of stones on the eastern hill gives this fort its
namesake - Camp Cairn. As you draw near, the northern
gates open and a group of four black leather-clad
bandit-types set out into the outlying forests on
horseback with a wagon in tow and the gates shut
promptly behind them.
This group consists of Vezra the Scout and three Bandits
(Petty Thugs) who plan to scope out the surrounding
area as well as bring back some food for the camp. They
will return around nightfall if not dealt with sooner.

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n
There are several ways to get into Camp Cairn:
Vezra
If the party subdues Vezra and her group outside the
camp, they can use their black leathers and wagon to
disguise themselves and infiltrate the camp via the gates.
The crew moreor less all know each other, but have seen
enough turnover in membership to be convinced, if
perhaps at a Challenging difficulty.

Stealth
The party can scale the sides of the hill, potentially alerting
nearby bandits upon a fail. The hill is steep, but not
without footholds. Timing and location of ascent is
important, to prevent any wandering watchmen from
spotting them on the way up or once they reach the top.
Climbing is more difficult at night, but will be much harder
to detect.
Combat
The party may be able to brute force their way through the
whole adventure, but this becomes significantly more
difficult if the bandits have a chance to regroup and fortify
as a result of poor planning by the party.

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Getting Caught
In order to improve and encourage stealthy infiltration, use
the following Triggers to determine the Level of alert that
Camp Cairn is in. The camp starts at an Alert Level of 0
which increases when the party gets sloppy in their
infiltration

Increase
Alert Triggers
Failed Stealth, Sleight of Hand, or +1
Deception Check
+1
End of any Combat Round
+2
Caught in a restricted area
+2
Unconscious body found
+4
Dead body found/Murder witnessed

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 Levels Alert

0 Everything is operating as normal.

Guards are slightly more suspicious: All
1 skill rolls to deceive them are more
difficult.
An additional Bandit patrol arrives from
2 elsewhere.
Boog the Thick is alerted and the gates are
3 locked down.
Bandits are lined up for role call and an
4 additional Guard patrol arrives.

All camp members retreat through the

5 Inner Pass and fortify around the Lounge.

Captain Blackwind rigs key locations to

6 explode and baits out the intruders.

The Bandits and Guards around Camp Cairn have varying

levels of allegiance to Captain Blackwind and his crew. For
each, roll from the following table to determine where they
stand, and how they may react if given the opportunity to
make a choice- they’ll not betray their fellows without
being requested or given a clear opportunity. Consider the
morale of the Bandit Captain, Scout and Mercenary Ogre
to be 1, and 6 for the Occultist.
Allegiance Behavior
1 Kills traitors.
2 Unyielding.
3 Must be beaten.
4 Must be convinced.
5 Surrenders quickly.
6 Eagerly aids party.

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 Getting Intel
When inside the camp and a player tries to listen in on a
conversation, pick from or roll on the table below.

Intel
"Seltie ain't cut out for this banditry business.
1 Don't know why such a sweet lady of the cloth
would be in the same boat as us."
"Lay off knobhead! I meant to shove it in
2 storage, but Big Boog never gave me the key!"

"Vezra said she'd be back before nightfall but

3 I'm starvin now..."
"A cairn's more than just a stack of rocks innit?
4 It's like a marker and that, ye? Maybe some
treasure under that one there then?"
Treasure
The fourth overheard conversation refers to the cairn atop
the camp's eastern hill. The original founder of Camp
Cairn buried a treasure atop the hill and marked it off with
an impressive stack of stones. The treasure consists of an
unlocked footlocker containing a Silvered dagger, a carved
wooden mask worth a handful of silver shillings, and a
stash of various tools of the thieving trade, immaculately
preserved.
Locations
Camp Cairn is quite dynamic and can change drastically
depending on the party's actions. Below are places of
interest around the camp as they would be without the
interference of the party.

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1. Northern Gate
Two squat guard posts flank this smaller wooden gate.
There's a guard (Petty Thug) in each post and they talk
loudly to each other through inward-facing arrowslits.
There is one Guard at the each post. This gate isn't used as
much as the southern one and there's nothing else of
interest here. The gate can be broken or forced open by
anyone with a bit of brute force and a heavy axe or the like,
though not quietly. It otherwise must be cranked open.
2. Southern Gate
Two large wooden doors block entry into the valley of
Camp Cairn. A wide turreted building is perched on the
hill to the right of the gate and several spear and crossbow-
bearing Deserter Soldiers keep watch. Similar to the
other gate, it can be broken fairly easily, but not quietly.
There are three Guards in the two-story tower beside it.
Inside the tower are an assortment of shortbows,
longbows and crossbows along with dozens of arrows and
bolts. On the top floor is a curved horn that is used to
notify the camp of danger.

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3. Volatile Hut
This small thatch-rooved hut reeks of sulfur. You hear the
sound of wood scraping against wood coming from inside.
Boog the Thick (Thug) is inside this hut portioning some
gunpowder from a keg into two powder horns. On Boog's
person is a key to the Storage Hut. Setting fire to a
container full of gunpowder can cause it to explode as
though a Firebomb.
4. Barracks
This large cabin of wood reverberates rhythmicallyto the
sound of snores coming from within. A handful of tied-
off horses eat lazily from a trough on the backside of the
building.
Sleeping inside on bunk beds are three Petty Thugs and
two Deserter Soldiers. As the camp goes up in Alert
Levels, these are one of the extra patrols that will be
activated.
Inside, one can find a chess set on an ale-soaked table and
several footlockers filled with leather armor and empty
sacks, all of little worth but worth all the same..
5. Storage Hut
The stones that make up this small building are all cracked
and mossed over. A heavy iron key-lock hangs from the
door. Boog the Thick holds the key to this hut. The lock
can also be picked, but stands to be noisy if not done
carefully.
Inside the hut is an assortment of crates, barrels and
chests. The party can find several 25ft spools of rope,
shovels, hammers, crowbars, pickaxes, a 10ft ladder, bed
rolls and a plenty of dried foodstuff.

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6. Inner Pass
A crooked tunnel has been dug through this hill. Inside,
you see the flickering of candlelight and hear a woman
softly chanting a prayer.
Seltie the Devout is praying at an altar in the heart of the
tunnel. She can help conceal the party behind the altar and
curtains if they're in a pinch. At the far end of the tunnel
is a raised portcullis. It is lowered only when the camp is in
danger, though it can be lifted with an Arduous Athletics
skill roll.
7. Lounge
Standing in the middle of this dry sump surrounded by
steep hills is a long building lined with brightly-colored
flags and banners. Two bandits drunkenly wrestle in front
of the building as two more emerge from the building to
watch on with tankards in-hand.
These four Petty Thugs are quite drunk, suffering all the

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effects thereto. Inside are several kegs full of mediocre ale
and a few dozen copper coins in change from an
unfinished gambling game.
8. Underhill Bunker
A vaulted tunnel extends into this hollow western hill. You
can see cracks in the walls inside from which a soft blue
glow seeps out.
Captain Blackwind (Bandit Captain) resides in this bunker
which is lit up by naturally bio-luminescent fungi. The
fungi can be harvested and sheds light similar to a torch for
up to a week after being harvested. A map of the
surrounding region is sprawled out on a table here and has
several places marked off with red X's.
Trap
The northern room of the bunker is Blackwind's personal
chamber. Behind the door and hidden under sawdust and
woodchips is a bear trap, well concealed if one does not
take notice of the debris itself.
Treasure
Inside this northern room is a treasure hoard containing
items and wealth of your choice in addition to a
Castleforged Battle Axe.

Aftermath
There are a number of different outcomes to consider
following the events of this adventure: The Party is paid
fairly, to be certain. The map in the Underhill Bunker has
several locations marked off on it, but one of them is over
some unrecognizable location rather than a settlement.
What is this place and why was Captain Blackwind

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interested in it? If any bandits managed to escape, they
could cause problems down the line locally or even try to
reclaim Camp Cairn. What comes of the efforts of the
Reformers? Do they succeed? Or does an unexpected evil
reveal itself from the ranks of Camp Cairn and lead the
Reformers to ruin? Follow any threads which may interest
the Party.

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