C REDITS

Designer T.M. van Dalen

Proofreaders Klary van Eersel, Michael Heemskerk, Julia Wagner
Editor T.M. van Dalen
Playtesters Rens Althuis, Arnoud Bleeker, Maurits Bleeker, Carl van Dueren den Hollander,
Michael Heemskerk, Philip van der Hoek, Niels Hoiting, Tim van Kappen, Zakaria Makhlouf,
Shams Mizakhyl, Jelmer Mulder, Walid Said, Stef van Schuylenburg, Jasper Selman, Yoran
Sturkenboom, Luc Veldhuis, Julia Wagner, Marianne Wagner and Bart van Wezel
Cover art Code Orange, Photo by NON on Unsplash
Interior art Provided by Wizards of the Coast, Corey Johnston, Simon Berger on Unsplash, Wes
Hicks on Unsplash, Ivy Barn on Unsplash
Cartography T.M. van Dalen
Special Thanks Stef, my forever DM, for getting me into the game and continuing to excite me
with his creativity. M.T. Black and S.T. Mannell, whose excellent published materials inspired me
to write my own adventure. Julia, for putting up with me while I secluded myself to write this.

Disclaimer: The authors of this module and Wizards of the Coast are not responsible for any skeletons that come to life near
you. While definitely not related to playing this module, should you hear knocking on your front door at 2:32 AM, simply make
sure the door is locked and go back to sleep. The knocking should stop after the fourth day.

DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Eberron, the dragon ampersand,
Ravnica and all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast
in the USA and other countries.
This work contains material that is copyright Wizards of the Coast and/or other authors. Such material is used with
permission under the Community Content Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild.
All other original material in this work is copyright 2021 by T.M. van Dalen and published under the Community Content
Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild.
 C ONTENTS
I NTRODUCTION ............................ 1 5. Kilvars’s Smithy . . . . . . . . . . 9
Adventure Background ............................... 1 6. Herbalist’s Shop . . . . . . . . . 9
Waterdeep Academy for Fine 7. Farms . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Adventuring . . . . . . . . . . 1 8. Pine Mill . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Adventure Hook .......................................... 1 What’s next? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
Running the Adventure............................... 1
Adventure Synopsis . . . . . . . . . 2 C HAPTER 3: A TTACK ON THE F ARM .. 11
Pronunciation Guide . . . . . . . . 2 Heartfire Farm ............................................ 11
Sidebar: Theatre of the Mind . . . . 2 Skeletons at the Door . . . . . . . . 11
Using the Maps . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Trail of Bones ............................................. 11
The Heroes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2
C HAPTER 4: I NTO THE C RYPT .......... 13
Adventure Flowchart . . . . . . . . 3
Greenhill Crypt ........................................... 13
Adjusting this Adventure . . . . . . 5

C HAPTER 1: N IGHT IN THE W OODS .. 6 C HAPTER 5: W RAPPING UP ............. 17

First Watch .................................................
What’s next? . . . . . . . . . . . . .
C HAPTER 2: W EALDHAM ................
Important NPCs ..........................................
Town Description........................................
1. Laughing Squirrel Inn . . . . . .
2. The Trade and Post . . . . . . . .
3. Town Hall . . . . . . . . . . . . .
4. Neray and Daughters Fletchery .
Back in Town.............................................. 17
6
Conclusion ................................................. 17
6
Continuing the Adventure . . . . . 17
7
A PPENDIX A: M AGIC I TEMS ............. 18
7
7 A PPENDIX B: L ETTERS ................... 19
7 To the characters........................................ 19
9 To the town ................................................ 19
9
9 A PPENDIX C: M APS ....................... 20

CONTENTS
ii
I NTRODUCTION
W
ELCOME TO T ROUBLE IN W EALDHAM ,
a D UNGEONS & D RAGONS
5th edition adventure. This adventure
is intended for both new and
experienced Dungeon Masters and players.
The adventure works great as a one-shot,
but it can also be used as the starting point for
a new campaign or (with a few tweaks) as a
drop-in adventure for an existing campaign.
Depending on how you play and your time
constraints, this adventure takes around 3–4
hours to complete.
Trouble in Wealdham is designed for
three-to-seven 1st-level to 4th-level characters
and is optimized for five characters with an
average party level (APL) of 3. Characters
outside of this level range cannot participate in
this adventure.
A DVENTURE
B ACKGROUND
Faurius Besk is a rich and powerful
necromancer (VGM p. 217) from the North
Ward in Waterdeep. For some time now, he has
been working on setting up a criminal
syndicate in the city. He is not yet ready to
show his full force, but he is cautiously testing
the waters.
His latest invention is the Orb of Raising
Undead, a powerful magic item that causes
havoc on a local area by raising any corpse in
its range as an undead creature. Faurius
wanted to test his invention far away from the
city, where he doesn’t have to deal with all the
prying eyes that could give him away before he
is ready to come out of the shadows. He chose
Greenhill Crypt, an old crypt north of
Wealdham, a sleepy town in the Westwood, to
test the orb. After he installed and activated
the device, Faurius travelled back to his lair in
the city, from where he watches events in
Wealdham unfold using scrying magic.
WATERDEEP A CADEMY FOR F INE
A DVENTURING
Meanwhile, the Waterdeep Academy for Fine
Adventuring, located in the Sea Ward, was
alerted of the strange things that were
happening in and around Wealdham.
Despite the name, the Academy operates
more like a guild than a typical school. When
students pass their courses and graduate from
the school, they are generally expected to stay
on as adventurers to pay off their tuition.
Almost all students and graduated adventurers
live at the Academy.
The current head of the Academy is Ismelda
Philomena, a human woman who used to be
an adventurer, before she took a job as a
teacher. She was trained as a Fighter, and the
martial arts are still her main area of expertise,
but she is now also in charge of the
curriculum and managing all the jobs the
Academy accepts. She is a strict and tough
teacher, but generally fair and warm to those
who do her proud.
A DVENTURE H OOK
The characters are recently graduated
adventurers that have stayed on at the
Academy. Ismelda has accepted a job from
Narder Helman, the leader of Wealdham, to
investigate the strange happenings in town.
It is now up to the characters to do justice to
the reputation of the Academy and solve
Wealdham’s troubles.
Ismelda acts as a sort of group patron (TCE
p. 83) for the party. The characters can
contact her once a day using the sending stone
she gives them.
R UNNING THE
A DVENTURE
To run this adventure, you need the fifth
edition Player’s Handbook, Dungeon Master’s
Guide and Monster Manual. Within the text of
this adventure, references are made to these
and other books. The abbreviations used to
indicate these books can be found below. Note
that only the so-called three core rulebooks are
required. All other references are optional but
can help to bring some more depth to your
adventure.
Referenced Books
Abbreviation Book
DMG Dungeon Master’s Guide
MM Monster Manual
PHB Player’s Handbook
TCE Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything
VGM Volo’s Guide to Monsters
XGE Xanathar’s Guide to Everything
Text that appears in a box like this is meant to be read
aloud or paraphrased for the players when their
characters first arrive at a location or under specific
circumstance, as described in the text.
The Monster Manual contains stat blocks for
all monsters and NPCs found in this adventure.
When a monster’s name appears in bold type,
INTRODUCTION
1
 that’s a visual cue pointing you to the
creature’s stat block in the Monster Manual.
All magic items that appear in this adventure
can be found in appendix A. Magic item names
appear in italic type.
A DVENTURE S YNOPSIS
Figure 1 is a flowchart that shows the intended
flow of the adventure.
The adventure starts with the party camping
in the woods in chapter 1, having almost
reached Wealdham. There, they will get the
first indication that the hamlet is dealing with
trouble of the undead kind.
Next, they enter Wealdham in chapter 2 and
meet its residents. The party will have the
opportunity to ask around about what has
been going on and they can stock up on
supplies.
In chapter 3, they are awoken in the middle
of the night when one of the local farms is
attacked by skeletons. After they defend the
farm, they have a trail to follow.
The trail leads to Greenhill Crypt, which the
adventurers discover in chapter 4. In the crypt,
they will find a magical item that raised those
buried there.
After they’ve cleared the crypt, the
characters will be able to go back to Wealdham
for some closure in chapter 5.
P RONUNCIATION G UIDE
The Pronunciations table at the bottom of this
page shows how to pronounce many of the
names that appear in this adventure.
Theatre of the Mind
Not all combat encounters in this adventure come with
a battle map on a grid. In particular, the attack on
Heartfire farm in chapter 3 doesn’t come with any
tactical descriptions.
This encounter lends itself well for the so-called
“theatre of the mind” approach, where you as the DM
describe the environment without getting caught up in
tactical minutiae.
If you would prefer, you can of course make a tactical
map yourself, using the description of the farm as a
guide.
U SING THE M APS
The maps included in the main text of this
adventure, those of Wealdham and Greenhill
Crypt, are for the DM’s eyes only, as they
contain markings. Appendix C contains maps
that you can show to your players.
V IR TUAL T ABLETOPS
All maps embedded in this file are
high-resolution images that you can copy and
use to run this adventure. However, with this
adventure, you should have also received
gridless map variations for use with virtual
tabletop software. Below, you can find the grid
sizes for these maps.
Map Grid Sizes
Map Size
Wealdham 40 × 30
Greenhill Crypt 25 × 25
T HE H EROES
While creating characters can be half the fun
for players that are familiar with D UNGEONS &
D RAGONS, it can be intimidating for new
players. If you are running this adventure for
new players, consider handing out the
character concepts presented below to your
players. The players will still have to roll stats
for their character, but having a backstory that
fits with the adventure can make it a lot easier
to get started.
If you are running this adventure for players
that want to make their own characters from
scratch, it can be helpful to ask them how
their character ended up at the Academy.
Remember that the characters are still
low-level. Their days of fame and heroic deeds
are still in front of them, not behind them.
B AR THOLOMEW B LADESEMMER J UNIOR
(H UMAN B ARD )
Bartholomew grew up in the Bladesemmer
family villa in the Sea Ward of Waterdeep, on
the northeast corner of Sul Street and Rough
Road.

Pronunciations
Name Pronunciations Description
Aben Gardye A-ben GAR-die Runs a trading post in Wealdham
Faurius Besk FAU-ri-us BESK The necromancer that started the trouble
Gerey Gardye ge-REE GAR-die Works at the trading post in Wealdham
Ismelda Philomena EES-mel-da fi-LO-me-na Head of the Waterdeep Academy for Fine Adventuring
Kilvar Strongheart KIL-var STRONG-heart Blacksmith in Wealdham
Serilye Neray ser-il-JEH ner-AY Local fletcher
Wealdham WHEEL-dam The town that is in trouble

INTRODUCTION
2
 A DVENTURE F LOW

Chapter 1
Night in the Woods
Characters arrive
in town

Chapter 2
Wealdham
Characters are
awoken in the middle of the night

Chapter 3
Attack on the Farm
Characters decide to
investigate the tracks

Chapter 4
Into the Crypt
Characters head back
into town

Chapter 5
Wrapping up

Figure 1: Adventure Flowchart

INTRODUCTION
3
 The family is well known for their weapon
forging and the making of exotically designed
armors. His family always planned for young
Bartholomew to follow in the footsteps of his
brothers, father, grandfather and their fathers
before them, but weapons were of no interest
to him. Instead, he would skip his forging
lessons to sneak to the Castle Ward, where he
would listen to the stories and songs of famous
bards recounting heroic deeds.
More than anything, he wanted to have
adventures and, more importantly, tell others
about them. At great displeasure to his family,
Bartholomew joined the Waterdeep Academy
for Fine Adventuring to follow this dream.
C AELDRIM L ATHALAS (H IGH E LF
W IZARD )
Wizarding runs in the Lathalas family, and
Caeldrim is no exception. He started his
training at the Conclave of Silverymoon.
Initially, he thrived in the academic setting,
but after a while he grew bored of all the
theory and wanted to see more action.
When he got word of the Academy in
Waterdeep, where he would be able to continue
his studies but focus on adventuring, he
decided to move away from his ancestral home.
He was able to quickly convince the Academy
to let him join, as he already showed great
knowledge about the arcane.
During his training at the Academy,
Caeldrim was able to pursue the more
practical sides of wizardry that he so desired.
INTRODUCTION
4
L ILITH (T IEFLING R OGUE )
Lilith grew up as an orphan on the mean
streets of Waterdeep’s Field Ward. She learned
to steal, deceive and pickpocket to survive.
Then, one day, she made a decision that
would change her life. She targeted an
unassuming human woman and tried to pick
her pockets. The next thing she knew, she was
in an alley, grappled by Ismelda Philomena,
who was in the Field Ward on business.
Ismelda took pity on Lilith and recognized
her talent and already quite formidable skills.
She took Lilith to the Academy to give her a
formal training, and Ismelda has been like a
mother to Lilith ever since.
O VINA G OLDFINDER (H ILL D WARF
C LERIC )
The Goldfinder clan moved to Waterdeep for
the promise of riches long ago. Ovina wanted
to be an adventurer for as long as she can
remember and joined the Academy as soon as
she was old enough to do so.
She initially trained in the martial arts, but
that changed during her first year when she
saw the injustice and horror in the world. Her
god gave her a clear and unmistakable sign
and she dropped everything to serve the divine.
From that day on, she spent most of her
time training with the Clerics in the Academy.
R OSALIND F ARBRAID (H UMAN F IGHTER )
Born and raised in Goldenfields, Rosalind
knew she was destined for greatness by the
time she was 10. She spent all her free time
running around town having adventures and
going on quests for her neighbours.
 When she turned 18, she set out on her own.
Her destination was Waterdeep, with the goal
of selling her services as an adventurer in the
City of Splendors. However, fate had other
plans when she was robbed by goblins on the
way to Amphail. She barely made it out alive
and her ego was badly bruised.
She spent her last coins on an escort to
Waterdeep, where she decided to join the
Academy to make sure she would never be
taken by surprise quite like that again.

A DJUSTING THIS A DVENTURE

This adventure is optimized for five characters
of level 3. To determine if you need to think
about adjusting the adventure, calculate the
average party level (APL) of the characters by
adding up the total levels of all characters and
dividing that by the number of characters. The
table below gives an estimation of the party
strength of your players.

Determining Party Strength

Party Composition Party Strength
3–4 characters, APL less than 3 Very weak
3–4 characters, APL equals 3 Weak
3–4 characters, APL greater than 3 Average
5 characters, APL less than 3 Weak
5 characters, APL equals 3 Average
5 characters, APL greater than 3 Strong
6–7 characters, APL less than 3 Average
6–7 characters, APL equals 3 Strong
6–7 characters, APL greater than 3 Very strong

When an encounter benefits from being

adjusted for a party that is of non-average
strength, you will find a sidebar called
Adjusting the Encounter presented with it.
Below is an example.

Adjusting the Encounter

Very weak. Remove 2 skeletons
Weak. Remove 1 skeleton
Strong. Add 1 wight
Very strong. Add 1 wight and 1 skeleton

INTRODUCTION
5
 C HAPTER 1: N IGHT IN THE W OODS
Estimated Duration: 15–30 minutes

T
HE CHARACTERS ARE ON THEIR WAY FROM
Waterdeep, heading into their first
real adventure outside of the Academy.
Their rectrix, Ismelda, sent them on a
mission to investigate the town of Wealdham,
from where the Academy has received strange
reports about vandalism and things
disappearing in the night. Hand the players
the letters from appendix B and ask them
which characer is holding them.
This morning, they departed from the
Stag-Horned Flagon, a cozy tarvern in Amphail.
They started their day on the safe Long Road,
but have now entered the Westwood. They are
within 2 hours walking distance of Wealdham
when the sun begins to set and they come to a
nice spot to camp.
When you and the players are ready to get
started, read:

This morning, you left the comfort of the Stag-Horned

Flagon in Amphail and followed the Long Road in the
direction of Triboar. Late in the afternoon, you took a
trail into the Westwood, where a marker pointed in the
direction of Wealdham. You marched on into the woods,
but it’s been a long day and it’s getting awfully dark
between the dense trees. As you begin to feel the efforts
of the day in your legs, you come upon a clearing that
would make for a good camping spot. From what you’ve
heard, Wealdham should be about another six miles
further along the trail.
the check reveals that these creatures are
called will-o’-wisps (MM. p. 301).
The will-o’-wisp poses no danger to the
characters, and is indeed moving away from
them. If the characters decide to pursue the
will-o’-wisp, refer to the rules on chases in the
DMG (p. 252).
After that, nothing of interest happens
during the night.

If the characters decide to set up camp, ask D EVELOPMENT

them how they divide the watch. If they If the characters don’t set a watch, but instead
instead opt to press on and move on to choose to all go to sleep at the same time,
Wealdham, continue with chapter 2. nothing bad happens. The will-o’-wisp does
not approach them.
F IRST WATCH When they wake up the next morning, have
one of the characters find the small bone next
About halfway into the first watch, one of the
to the campfire.
characters that are on watch notices
something white next to the campfire. If they
go to pick it up, they discover that it is a piece
W HAT ’ S NEXT ?
of bone. A DC 12 Intelligence (Investigation) When the characters wake up the next
check reveals that the piece of bone is very old, morning, they can resume the last stretch of
but seems to have not been here for long. their journey to Wealdham, where they arrive
During the second watch, any character with just before noon.
a passive Perception of 15 or higher, or any
character with darkvision, notices a tiny light
in the distance. Any character that was alerted
to the light can make a DC 15 Wisdom
(Perception) check to discover a bobbing
lantern light moving away from them. A
character that makes a DC 10 Intelligence
(History) check remembers hearing about
undead creatures that lure unsuspecting
people in with lights. Rolling 15 or higher on

CHAPTER 1: NIGHT IN THE WOODS

6
C HAPTER 2: W EALDHAM
Estimated Duration: 1–2 hours
W
EALDHAM IS A SMALL HAMLET OF
approximately 150 people,
located inside the Westwood near the
Sword Coast. Most people in town are
human, though there are a few elves and
dwarves around.
Things are generally peaceful and quiet in
town, which is just how people like it. The
founders of Wealdham moved here to get away
from city life, looking for a spot where they
could build a community on those values.
The town is led by a council of elders, with
Narder Helman, a human male, currently at
the head of the council.
When the characters first arrive in
Wealdham, read:
The track emerges from the forest to a large clearing, and
you see Wealdham lying in front of you. The town
consists of some forty-odd buildings, in various styles and
of various age.
The first buildings you pass are a large farm and a mill.
As you walk past, some people look up or out of their
windows, eying you suspiciously before going back to what
it is they were doing.
As you walk further, you pass a couple more houses
and a blacksmith, before arriving in the square in the
middle of town.
If the party asks about the square, add:
A statue of a man stands in the middle of the dirt square,
holding a sword and wearing a helmet.
Around the square, you see a small town hall, a few
houses, a blacksmith and the Laughing Squirrel Inn, your
current destination.
The statue is of Geoffry Holte, who is said to
have saved the town from a pack of
bloodthirsty wolves a long time ago.
The characters can spend the day
investigating the recent troubles, talking to the
townsfolk. As part of the deal with the
Academy, they get free lodging in the Laughing
Squirrel Inn. The adventure continues in the
next chapter when the characters go to sleep.
Don’t worry if the characters want to leave
town on the first day. Without any solid leads,
there isn’t much of interest going on in the
forest surrounding Wealdham. If you want to
add some extra stuff to do for the players, refer
to the section on Random Encounters in the
DMG (p. 85) or the Forest Encounters table in
XGE (p. 97). If the party skipped the discovery
of the will-o’-wisp in chapter 1, you can
consider moving that encounter to the forest
surrounding town.
I MPOR TANT NPC S
Here is a quick summary of the most
important people that live in Wealdham.
Walhest Netherpike Innkeeper
Narder Helman Leader of the council of elders
Aben Gardye Runs a trading post where
characters can buy gear
Gerey Gardye In charge of weapon and armor
sales at the trading post
Elean Horne Herbalist
Gilbert Heartfire Head of the Heartfire family
farm, that gets attacked in chapter 3
Jilian Elderberry Head of the Elderberry farm
Kilvar Strongheart Blacksmith
Serilye Neray Fletcher
Winona Norther Miller
T OWN D ESCRIPTION
Since Wealdham is quite small, the characters
can just about speak to everyone they want to
meet in the first day that they’re here.
Map 2.1 shows the layout of Wealdham. The
following sections describe locations of interest
around town.
Some people and locations have a Trouble
paragraph. When asked about the recents
events around town, this is what they have
experienced. Feel free to add other
descriptions of events alluding to undead
activity in the area here, or swap the events
between people. The only location that is
important for the story to move forward is the
Heartfire Family farm, so be careful with
changes to that place.
1. L AUGHING S QUIRREL I NN
The inn at the large town square is a stone building. It
looks old, but well maintained. Right above the door
hangs a wooden sign depicting a very fat, very happy
squirrel. As you enter, you see that there are locals in the
common room, enjoying mugs of ale. The locals look up
when you enter, suspicious after the events of recent
weeks.
The owner of the inn, Walhest Netherpike, is
a friendly half-elven male. He greets the
characters warmly, saying that he’s been
expecting them. He then asks them to wait
while he fetches the head of the council of
elders of Wealdham.
CHAPTER 2: WEALDHAM
7
 When he returns, he is followed by Narder character’s room and board is provided as part
Helman, a older male human who looks of the deal with the Academy, they are free to
worried at the characters. order some extra’s from the menu. The
following is available.
“Adventurers,” he says, “we have been eagerly waiting for
your arrival. Things are not well in Wealdham. Do you Food and Drink
have something for me?” Item Cost
Ale
Gallon 2 sp
If the characters hand over the letter from
Mug 4 cp
the Academy, he studies it before explaining
what has been going on in recent weeks: Bread, loaf 2 cp
Cheese, hunk 1 sp
• Some things have gone missing in the night.
Meat, chunk 3 sp
• People report seeing movement in the woods
at night. Wine (common, pitcher) 2 sp
• There has been vandalism at the edges of
Rumors. If the characters spend some time in
town.
the common room of the inn, they can strike
• No one has gotten hurt yet, but the
up conversations with a number of people.
townsfolk are starting to get antsy.
• People haven’t yet turned on eachother, but • Odo, a young lumberjack: “I lost my axe last
he fears they might. week. I swear I left it at work, but I can’t
find it anymore.”
• Giselle, a stonecutter: “Our little town is
“Now, these things probably sound trivial to big city folks
normally so quiet, I hope this doesn’t last
like yourself, but for us this is a deadly serious matter,” he
long.”
continues. “You have to understand, this is a quiet town,
• Bran, the herbalists’s son: “My mother found
nothing like this ever happens here.”
her herb garden destroyed a while ago.” (See
section 6 for more information.)
The Laughing Squirrel Inn provides modest • Thoman, an old woodworker: “Strange things
accommodation and meals. While the have been happening. Last week while I was

Map 2.1: Wealdham

CHAPTER 2: WEALDHAM
8
 out in the woods, I saw weird lights dancing
in the distance.”
• Millicent, the innkeeper’s wife: “I sure hope
you can figure out what’s going on, everyone
is quite on edge.”
• Devin, a farmer’s hand: “I work at the
Heartfire farm. Over the past few weeks, our
fences keep getting broken in the middle of
the night.” (See chapter 3 for more
information.)
2. T HE T RADE AND P OST
This small trading post is run by Aben and
Gerey Gardye, a human couple. They function
as a general store for the town, and they buy
everything the locals make.
Once every two tendays, a trader from
Waterdeep arrives to buy goods to sell in the
city.
Aben, a woman in her late thirties, handles
the financials and most trading goods.
Characters can buy everything from the
Adventuring Gear table from chapter 5 of the
PHB (p. 150) here, with the exception of items
that cost over 25 gp.
Gerey, a man in his early forties, is in charge
of armor and weaponry. The party can buy
simple weapons (PHB p. 149) and armor (PHB
p. 145) here, with the exception of items that
cost over 30 gp.
Trouble. Aben and Gerey recount that their last
shipment of goods from Waterdeep was late
because the trader was scared in the woods at
night. He was talking about seeing lights in
the distance.
3. T OWN H ALL
On the town square, just next to the inn, stands the large
stone building that is the town hall. Next to the wooden
door, there is a large announcement board with a single
message pinned to it. It reads: “People of Wealdham,
please remain calm. We have contacted the Academy for
Fine Adventuring in Waterdeep, and they have sent a
team of their best and brightest to investigate the recent
events. The adventurers should arrive within a few days”.
If the characters have already spoken with
Narder Helman, he can be found here. He
offers the same information he gave when they
first met him in the common room of the
Laughing Squirrel.
If the characters haven’t yet spoken with
Nardar, the door is closed.
4. N ERAY AND D AUGHTERS
F LETCHERY
Serilye Neray, an elf woman, runs this
fletchery on the east side of town with her two
daughters, Tiuri and Eldartas. They make
bows and arrows from the wood they get from
the lumber mill and feathers they get from
Elderberry farm.
They don’t sell their wares at their workshop,
but they are for sale at the Trade and Post.
Trouble. About two weeks ago, Tiuri found
some old bones lying in the forest while on a
walk. A couple of days ago, arrows went
missing from their stockpile.
5. K ILVARS ’ S S MITHY
Kilvar Strongheart, an old and very skilled
dwarf, moved to Wealdham to get away from
the pressures of city life. Since he arrived here
ten years ago, he’s been providing the town
with whatever blacksmithing they required. He
also still makes weapons and armor, which are
for sale at the Trade and Post.
Trouble. Kilvar hasn’t seen anything himself,
but he heard goblins kidnapped someone
south of town. This is not true, but the town
has been gossipping for a while and the story
has attracted some attention seekers.
6. H ERBALIST ’ S S HOP
The herbalist’s shop is the most westward building in
Wealdham, situated just where the forest creeps closest
to town. When you arrive, Elean Horne is picking
mushrooms out back. “Welcome, what can I do for you?”,
she says.
Elean is a human who serves as the town’s
herbalist, taking care of small ailments and
boosting the farms. She can sell the characters
the following items (see appendix A):
Medicine
Item Cost
Chicory paste 20 gp
Goodberry 10 gp
Potion of Healing 50 gp
For items with a limited potency, assume
that Elean creates them on-demand.
Trouble. About a week ago, Elean awoke to find
her herb garden vandalized. She found a trail
going into the woods, but quickly lost the
track.
7. F ARMS
There are two large farms in Wealdham.
7 A . H EAR TFIRE F AMILY F ARM
The Heartfire’s, a human family with Gilbert at
the head, lives and works on this farm. They
mostly grow vegetables, but they also have a
few cows and goats.
Gilbert is a kind man who grew up in
Wealdham and married a local girl, Rosalind.
They have two children, Henry and Ella.
The family employs a few farmhands to help
run everything smoothly.
CHAPTER 2: WEALDHAM
9
 The Heartfire’s farm is the focus of chapter 3,
which has more information about it.

7 B . E LDERBERRY F ARM
Rounding the corner past the mill, you see Elderberry
Farm stretching about before you. The farm consist of
largely fields of wheat, though the Elderberry’s grow other
crops as well. Before you reach the fields, you pass a
chicken coop.

Jilian Elderberry, a halfling, lives here with

her family. To make everything run smoothly,
they have hired farmhands from town to help
with tasks that require a certain length.
Trouble. Three weeks ago, the Elderberry’s got
the first indication that something strange was
going on when one of their fields of wheat
suddenly perished, while the rest were totally
fine.

8. P INE M ILL
Pine Mill stands at the fork of the main road
into town and the Elderberry Farm,
conveniently near the fields of wheat.
Winona Norther, a human female, runs this
mill but lives in town with her family. She gets
wheat from Jilian, mills it and delivers it to the
local bakery, where the townsfolk can enjoy
fresh bread.
Growing up in Amphail, Winona always
loved the Westwood and often visited
Wealdham. When she was old enough, she
moved here and has enjoyed living in the forest
ever since.
Trouble. There was a wheat shortage a few
weeks back, when all the plants in one of the
wheat fields on the Elderberry farm suddenly
died.

W HAT ’ S NEXT ?
If the characters talked to the people of
Wealdham, they have learned a lot about the
recent troubles, but they haven’t yet found a
solid lead. The story continues when they go to
the Laughing Squirrel to rest when they are
awoken in the middle of the night.
If the players are unsure of what to do but
have visited a lot of places, remind them that
it’s getting quite late in the day and that they
should consider turning in.

CHAPTER 2: WEALDHAM
10
C HAPTER 3: A TTACK ON THE F ARM
Estimated Duration: 45 minutes

A
FTER THE CHARACTERS GO TO SLEEP
in The Laughing Squirrel in, they are
suddenly awoken by Walhest just after
midnight. He is at their bedside with a
candle and a look of shock is on his face.

“I’m sorry to wake you at this hour, but I think you should
come and see this,” he says. “This here is little Henry, the
son of Gilbert Heartfire. He ran here all the way from the
farm.”

Henry tells the characters that they were

awoken by weird noises near the edges of the
farm, and saw shapes moving around in the
forest. He begs the characters to follow him to
the farm.
Long before the characters reach the
collection of buildings, they start hearing weird
scraping noises. Henry explains that they’ve
heard these noises before but were afraid to
leave their house. The next morning, they
found their fences destroyed.

H EAR TFIRE F ARM

The Heartfire Family Farm is the northernmost
location in Wealdham. Gilbert and Rosalind
live on the farm with their children Henry and
Ella.
They employ several farmhands to help till
the fields of vegetables and to care for the cows
and goats, but they don’t live on the farm and
go home at night.
S KELETONS AT THE D OOR
As soon as the characters arrive at the farm,
they see six skeletons (MM p. 272) and four
crawling claws (MM p. 44) rampaging on the
farm. They are destroying fences and wreaking
havoc on the fields, but don’t seem to notice
the Heartfire family or the characters.
Gilbert and Rosalind are hanging out of a
window.
D EVELOPMENTS
In the unlikely event that the characters are
defeated by the undead, have them wake up in
the Heartfire’s home. Gilbert explains that the
monsters left when the threat was over.
If the characters defeat the monsters, Gilbert
suggests that they sleep at the farm before
trying to follow the monsters’ tracks the next
morning. If the players don’t want to rest,
remind them that they were unable to finish a
long rest this night and of the effects of
missing a long rest (the optional rule for going
without a long rest from XGE p. 78 are
recommended here), before allowing them to
continue.

“Henry, get inside, quickly!”, Rosalind cries out. “Please
help us, adventurers,” Gilbert shouts.
If the characters attack, the monsters notice
them and start focussing their efforts on them.
Since they are not very intelligent, the
skeletons will mostly gang up on whichever
character is hurting them most, to try to take
it out. The crawling claws follow the example
of the skeletons and claw at the legs of their
targets.
Adjusting the Encounter
Very weak. Remove 2 skeletons and 2 crawling claws
Weak. Remove 1 skeleton and 1 crawling claw
Strong. Add 2 sekeltons and 2 crawling claws
Very strong. Replace 1 skeleton with a ghast and add 1
crawling claw
T RAIL OF B ONES
When the characters awake at the farmhouse
the next dawn, they can finally survey the
complete damage. The farm is ravaged, with

CHAPTER 3: ATTACK ON THE FARM

11
 broken fences and dead plants strewn all
around.
When she first sees it, Rosalind breaks down,
saying she doesn’t know how the farm is ever
going to recover from this. Gilbert consoles her,
assuring her that they will rebuild. In truth, he
is not sure they will be able to.
After the characters have surveyed the initial
damage, they quickly find a trail going into the
woods. To follow the trail, they will have to
make three Wisdom (Survival) checks, the first
one DC 10, then DC 12 and finally DC 15. If
they fail a check, they cannot try again until
they spend an hour trying to get their bearings
and backtrack to the last place they had the
trail.
When the characters pass the first check,
read:

You follow the trail through the woods, picking up

fragments of bone as you go along. So far, the tracks are
mostly heading north.

When the characters pass the second check,

read:

The tracks have veered north-west now, and the terrain

is slowly undulating beneath you.

When the characters pass the third check,

continue on to the next chapter.

CHAPTER 3: ATTACK ON THE FARM

12
C HAPTER 4: I NTO THE C RYPT
Estimated Duration: 1–2 hours 2. E NTRANCE C HAMBER

A
S THE CHARACTERS EXIT THE FOREST AND
see the site of Greenhill Crypt for
the first time, read the following text:
As you follow the last bits of the trail, the tracks are
getting heavier and easier to spot. The trees begin to thin
and you’re suddenly in a clearing, with a verdant hill in
front of you. Behind the hill, the forest continues for
miles. Directly in front of you, the path leads to a large
boulder rolled before an entrance in the hill.
The characters have reached the site of
Greenhill Crypt, the place that is the origin of
all the weird things that have been happening
around the town of Wealdham. Inside the crypt
is a powerful magic item that has caused the
buried corpses to animate and wreak havoc on
the area.
As you enter the stone hallway, you see a small chamber
ahead of you. In front of you, everything looks dark.
When your eyes adjust, you see that there are sconces
on the wall, but no torches. On the floor are the skeletal
remains of some poor souls. Ahead of you, the corridor
continues.
Six skeletons (MM p. 272) are lying on the
floor in this area. Until they move, they are
indistinguishable from actual skeletons. They
attack when a creature moves on to area 3, or
when a creature touches them.
Adjusting the Encounter
Very weak. Remove 3 skeletons
Weak. Remove 1 skeleton
Strong. Remove 3 sekeltons and add 1 ghast
Very strong. Add 2 ghouls

G REENHILL C RYPT 3. C ORRIDOR

This is the final resting place of people from
Wealdham, but it has not been used for
generations. The people that are buried here
are the ancestors of the people who grew up in
town and live there now.
Right now, many of these bodies have been
raised as undead. They don’t have a particular
goal, but they will protect the crypt and the
item in area 6.
Map 4.1 shows the layout of the crypt.
1. B OULDER
The skeletons that attacked the farm rolled
this boulder in front of the cave in an attempt
to hide it.
This corridor connects the entrance chamber
with the burial rooms that are deeper within
the hill.
At the end of this long corridor, you can see a faint red
glow coming from under a door. The long corridor looks
slightly damaged, with supports holding up the ceiling at
one place.
The door to area 6 is locked. It can be
opened with the key in area 5, or with a
successful DC 15 Dexterity check using
thieves’ tools.

The large boulder is blocking an entrance of some kind.

You can’t quite look around it, but you can see flagstones
inside, indicating something man-made. Though it looks
quite heavy, you think you should be able to roll it away.

The boulder is heavy, but it can be pushed

aside with a combined Strength of 15.

Greenhill Crypt: General Features

The crypt was made a long time ago, but is still mostly
intact.
Ceilings. All rooms and corridors have 8-foot ceilings,
except where noted.
Darkness. The crypt contains no natural light sources.
There are sconces for torches in all rooms which can be
lit. When activated, the item in area 6 also gives off dim
light. Otherwise, the only light that enters does so from
area 1.
Treasure. None of the undead carry anything of value.
The only treasure can be found in area 4.

CHAPTER 4: INTO THE CRYPT

13
 T RAP
About halfway through the corridor, skeletons
have rigged a collapsing roof trap. It uses a
trip wire to collapse supports that keep the
ceiling from coming down.
The trip wire is 3 inches off the ground and
stretches between two support beams. The DC
to spot the trip wire is 10. A successful DC 15
Dexterity check using thieves’ tools disables
the trip wire harmlessly. A character without
thieves’ tools can attempt this check with
disadvantage using any edged weapon or edged
tool. On a failed check, the trap triggers.
The ceiling above the trip wire was damaged
by the skeletons, and anyone who can see it
can tell that it’s in danger of collapsing.
When the trap is triggered, the unstable
ceiling collapses. Any creature in the area
beneath the unstable section must succeed on
Map 4.1: Greenhill Crypt
CHAPTER 4: INTO THE CRYPT
14
a DC 15 Dexterity saving throw, taking 11
(2d10) bludgeoning damage on a failed save, or
half as much damage on a successful one.
Once the trap is triggered, the floor of the area
is filled with rubble and becomes difficult
terrain.
4. T OMBS
As you round the corner, you are standing at the start of
a broad gallery. The entire west wall of this area is made
up of tombs.
There is nothing of special interest in this
area.
T RAP
If the characters try to open a tomb, a
crawling claw (MM p. 44) jumps out and

surprises them.
If they open another tomb, they will only find
the remains of humanoids.
T REASURE
If the characters defeat the crawling claw, they
find 2 gp in the tomb it came from,
presumably buried here with the deceased as a
gift for the afterlife.
5. C ARETAKER ’ S R OOM
This room used to function as the work area of
the caretaker of this crypt. The caretaker is
long gone, but his tools are still here. The door
to this area is unlocked.
You enter what can only be described as a small
workshop. On either side of the door, there is a suit of
armor presenting a sword. A desk stands against the far
wall.
Inside of the two suits of armor are
skeletons. They function mechanically as
animated armors (MM p. 19) and the swords
function as flying swords (MM p. 20).
Until a creature touches the keychain on the
desk (see “Treasure”), the skeletons don’t move.
When a creature does so, they attack,
attempting to surprise the party.
Adjusting the Encounter
Very weak. Remove 1 animated armor
Weak. Remove 1 flying sword
Strong. Remove 1 flying sword and add 1 rug of
smothering
Very strong. Add 2 rugs of smothering
T REASURE
There is a keychain on the desk, containing
the key which opens the door to area 6.
6. I NNER S ANCTUM
This room is the central burial place of the
crypt. It is also the location chosen by Faurius
Besk for his experiment.
The item in the middle of the room is an Orb
of Raising Undead, created by Faurius to test
his powers. The orb controls all undead in the
crypt and created all undead that have
plagued Wealdham.
As you open the door to the inner sanctum, a soft red
glow falls on you. Before you, you see a large chamber
with a high ceiling. Along the sides of this chamber are
four tombs, situated in places of special honor. In the
middle of the chamber is a strange object, the source of
the dim, red light.
The ceiling of this chamber is 12 feet above
the floor. Hidden in the tombs in this chamber
are a wight (MM p. 300), a ghast (MM p. 148)
and two skeletons (MM p. 272).
Adjusting the Encounter
Very weak. Remove the wight
Weak. Replace the ghast with a ghoul
Strong. Replace 1 skeleton with 1 ghoul
Very strong. Remove 2 skeletons, add 1 ghoul and 1
ghast
T ACTICS
When the characters touch orb, the monsters
will open their tombs and attack. The party
can still inspect the orb from a distance
without setting off the undead.
If a character attempts to open a tomb, the
monsters also attack, with monsters in
untouched tombs staying hidden until their
initiative count.
They fight till the death, defending the item if
the characters attempt to disable it during
combat. The wight takes charge and uses its
Life Drain ability on any character that comes
close to the item.
T HE O RB
While activated, the orb is locked into place,
hovering 1 foot above the ground. It cannot be
moved in any direction. The orb gives off a dim
red light. In the light, characters spot four
sigils on the orb, one in every cardinal
direction. A DC 12 Intelligence (Arcana) reveals
as much, as well as the fact that the item can
be deactivated.
Deactivating the orb requires touching the
sigils in the right order: east, north, south,
west. When the correct sigil is touched, the orb
starts glowing a little dimmer. When an
CHAPTER 4: INTO THE CRYPT
15
 incorrect sigil is touched, the orb’s brightness
goes back to what it was initially. In this
manner, the party can figure out the order by
trial and error. When the final correct sigil is
touched, the orb deactivates. If the orb is
deactivated while there are still undead active
in the crypt, the monsters collapse. When
deactivated, the orb falls to the ground and
stops giving off light. The characters can pick
it up without complications.

W HAT ’ S NEXT ?
If the characters managed to disable the item,
they can move on to the next chapter to wrap
up loose ends.

CHAPTER 4: INTO THE CRYPT

16
C HAPTER 5: W RAPPING
Estimated Duration: 15 minutes
H
AVING DEALT WITH THE UNDEAD THREAT ,
the characters can easily find their
way back to Wealdham. They should
have no problem following the trail
they made through the woods and end up back
at the Heartfire farm.
B ACK IN T OWN
At the farm, Gilbert wants to hear everything
about their adventure and seems heartened by
the fact that everything is behind him, gaining
confidence that they can rebuild. While
listening to their story, Gilbert escorts the
characters back to the Laughing Squirrel in
the town center.
There, everyone, including Walhest and
Narder, is very excited by their report. Narder
mentions that he has heard of the crypt and
that it’s called “Greenhill”. Previous
generations of people from Wealdham used to
bury their dead there, but it hasn’t been used
in a long time.
He then offers up the 200 gp that was
promised to the Academy and tells the players
that they’re welcome to rest at the Laughing
Squirrel tonight before they head back to
Waterdeep.
UP
C ONCLUSION
With order restored to the town of Wealdham,
the characters can return to the Academy for
Fine Adventuring in Waterdeep to make their
report. The locals will surely forever remember
their bravery and they will receive a warm
welcome here for a long as they live.
When they return to the Academy, they’ll
need to turn in the sending stone and the bag
of one-way holding. If it’s not yet in the bag,
they’ll also need to hand over the Orb of
Raising Undead.
Discovering the nature of the orb and who is
behind it are out of scope for this adventure,
though Faurius could serve as an excellent
villain for a follow-up adventure. See the next
section for more information about that.
In any case, congratulate the players on a
job well done!
C ONTINUING THE A DVENTURE
If the players like their characters and would
like to continue playing them, here are a few
ideas for how to go forward.
Faurius Besk. As mentioned in the previous
section, this adventure can serve as a perfect
springboard from which to launch a campaign
centered on Faurius Besk as a villain. After
their initial discovery of the orb, the characters
might help the Academy start an investigation
into Faurius’ dealings that leads them all over
Waterdeep and it’s neighbouring area’s. The
book Waterdeep: Dragon Heist can help with
information about the city.
Lost Mine of Phandelver. If the characters
started this adventure at 1st level, it might be
interesting to transition into Lost Mine of
Phandelver, an adventure in the D UNGEONS &
D RAGONS Starter Set. The adventure also takes
place on the sword coast, 120 miles north of
Wealdham. You can replace the default
adventure hook with this: The Academy for
Fine Adventuring sends the party to escort a
wagon from Neverwinter to Phandalin.
Storm King’s Thunder. This adventure can
also serve as a very good starting place for
Storm King’s Thunder, either at 1st level or at
5th level. If the characters are 1st level, the
Academy can send them to Nightstone to deal
with the goblin invasion (start with chapter 1).
If the characters are 5th level, the Academy
can directly send them to Bryn Shander,
Goldenfields or Triboar.
CHAPTER 5: WRAPPING UP
17
 A PPENDIX A: M AGIC I TEMS
B AG OF O NE -WAY H OLDING
Wondrous item, rare (requires attunement)
This bag functions as a bag of holding, but only
the attuned creature can take items out of the
bag. All other creatures can only put items
into the bag.
Attunement to this item only ends if the
attuned creature dies or if it voluntarily ends
its attunement as per the normal rules.

C HICORY P ASTE
Wondrous item, common
This paste is made from a variety of herbs,
with chicory being the main component. When
applied to a wound with an action, the
recipient regains 1d4 hit points.
The paste loses its potency if it has not been
used within 24 hours of its creation.

G OODBERRY
Wondrous item, common
This berry was created by the goodberry spell.
A creature can use its action to eat it. Eating a
berry restores 1 hit point, and the berry
provides enough nourishment to sustain a
creature for one day.
The berry loses its potency if it has not been
consumed within 24 hours of its creation.

O RB OF R AISING U NDEAD
Wondrous item, very rare
This experimental item was created as a test of
a necromancer’s power and it can only be
activated by a powerful necromancer.
When activated, this item gives off a dim red
glow and raises any corpse or skeletal remains
within 100-feet as an undead monster.

P OTION OF H EALING
Potion, common
You regain 2d4 + 2 hit points when you drink
this potion. The potion’s red liquid glimmers
when agitated.

S ENDING S TONES
Wondrous item, uncommon
Sending stones come in pairs, with each
smooth stone carved to match the other so the
pairing is easily recognized. While you touch
one stone, you can use an action to cast the
sending spell from it. The target is the bearer
of the other stone. If no creature bears the
stone, you know that fact as soon as you use
the stone and don’t cast the spell.
Once sending is cast through the stones,
they can’t be used again until the next dawn.
If one of the stones in a pair is destroyed, the
other one becomes nonmagical.

APPENDIX A: MAGIC ITEMS

18
A PPENDIX B: L ETTERS
T O THE CHARACTERS
This letter was given to the characters by
Ismelda, as an instruction for their mission.

Adventurers,
good luck on your very first mission outside of the city.
Your task is to make contact with the leader of the town
of Wealdham, Narder Helman. You will find him in the
town’s inn, the Laughing Squirrel. The town of Wealdham
has been plagued with weird events in recent weeks, and
it is your job to put a stop to it. I expect that it will be
easy work for recent graduates of our fine Academy!
During your stay in town, you can sleep and eat at the
Laughing Squirrel for free.
Enclosed with this letter you will find: a letter
addressed to Narder, a sending stone with which you can
contact me and a bag of one-way holding to put the
payment in once you have completed your mission.
Good luck!

T O THE TOWN
This letter was given to the characters by
Ismelda, to give to the leader of the town of
Wealdham.

Dear Narder,
In front of you you have the very finest adventurers
that Waterdeep has to offer! I have no doubt they will
quickly figure out what has been going on in your town.
As per our agreement, please put 200 gp in the bag they
carry that has the Academy’s insignia on it when they
leave town.

APPENDIX B: LETTERS
19
 A PPENDIX C: M APS

Figure C.1: Wealdham player’s map

APPENDIX C: MAPS
20
Figure C.2: Greenhill Crypt player’s map

APPENDIX C: MAPS
21