The Eoan Plateau

The Wild East of Ternia, the land of the Ruby Branch. The largest city, Enuillo, perched at the foot of the Eoan Falls, commands the trade of the entire region. East of here, on the Eoan Plateau, the river is rapid and untamed, branching into countless canyons and arroyos as it drains what little moisture can be had from the rugged scrublands beyond the falls.

Heartless snake-men stalk the land seeking slaves to build their temples, and wild rock-men, the Mahkah, roam the ranges, raiding travelers for reasons they keep to themselves. Civilization hides here, clinging to the gullies and washes like the ephemeral flows of water it thrives on. The mesas and the rolling desert hills belong to no one, or everyone, but they certainly don't belong to the King. This is the land of the cowmage, those rugged riders who for centuries have guided herds through the treachery of the East, relying on no law but that of the draw—no judge but the quickness of the wand-hand.

But time keeps no traditions, and tinkerers have discovered gunpowder, placing in the hand of any man with coin and nerve enough a weapon with the power to rival that in the cowmages' wands. Suddenly, common men without the Talent can wield quick death. For some it is liberating, for others, enabling, but to all it is deadly.

Enuillo at Last

Senza's Last Drive

Senza, a humanoid of mysterious origin, with hair like flame and eyes that literally smolder, has just completed the largest cattle drive ever to reach Enuillo. Combining the herds of the snake's take of the ranchers in the region with his own for a cut of the sale, he has finally turned a profit after a lifetime of building his business.

Less expenses and pay for his cowmages, he plans to take 86,000 gold pieces home in a wagon to his family and retire. He has hired on his most trusted cowmages (some of the players) to escort him on his journey, but a wagon full of gold East of Enuillo will sooner run into trouble than it will a loose stone...

Some Men Have No Honor

In fact, the adventurers don't even get that far. The group is with Senza, who is talking about a man's legacy.

"All a man's got in this world, when it comes down to it, is his legacy. And this wagon is mine. My family can finally pay off our debts and live the life we deserve. It means so much to me that I've got good cowmages like you to herd me back home safe. Hell, I'm cutting you in for a tenth share of this to split amongst—"

Quick draws! A group of bandits attack! They ignore anyone who drops, trying to drop the entire party. They are thugs, though, and didn't expect the party to be as quick as they are. Once they are outnumbered they try to flee. Senza can cast cure wounds to stabilize any fallen party members until he goes down. If he doesn't go down, he has a heart attack immediately after the end of combat.

The players may recognize a couple of the thugs as some of the cowmages that accompanied them on the last drive. Anyone who's captured will, if heavily pressured, tell them that the person who hired them is Van Clef, the players will recognize this name as the toughest, fastest cowmage on the drive. He had a long face and wore a black hat. His past is mysterious: Some of the cowhands in his circle call him "Captain" Van Clef, but whether this is a reflection of a legitimate rank is likely known only to the man himself.

A Man's Legacy is All He's Got

Senza uses his dying words (he can't be saved, for story reasons) to make the party give their word that they'll deliver his money to his family, handing them a map to his home which, in fact, is the legendary city of El Dorado.

His words may be something like:

"Make sure, whatever happens, you get this money to my family. They're in a special place. You must never tell anyone where. Take this map... Over the Mountains of the Moon, through the Valley of the Shadow, this is where you must go, if you seek for El Dorado. You'll need help, he's after the money. Remember. There are many guns, but few good hands to hold them. Don't fail ... Don't..."

If the party gives their word and double crosses him, they are dishonored and suffer the Curse of the Deadhand: The weight of their misdeed hangs from their gun arm, giving them disadvantage on initiative rolls unless they fulfill his dying wish.

The map will be familiar to the players. It is a map of the Eoan plateau, but most of the cartographer's labeling is erased and Senza has drawn and hand-labeled the tiny frontier town of Pecho, the Mountains of the Moon, the Valley of the Shadow, and El Dorado. Normally this area is drawn as a wasteland and labeled "SNAKE-MEN".

Senza has also drawn the moon in various phases along the route. The players may be able to deduce that their passage through the various locations should coincide with the appropriate moon phases, giving them roughly two weeks to traverse the mountains and the valley.

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A Few Good Hands

The players should think to hire help at a saloon. Some saloon names could be: Madame Calome's, Cuecho's, The Slick Holster, The Rusty Spur, or La Plata Cantina. Wherever they go is a rough western bar with grizzled old drunks. Depending on the name, it may be full of vaqueros, poker tables, or have a cozy upstairs for a shiny gold piece. Seated at one of the tables is the target of another player's long quest. The player gets a chance to introduce their character by dealing with this person in the way they would like. This player may have a posse with them, in which case the object of the player's quest will also have a few sidekicks for them to handle. This should be sufficient to impress the players into hiring them.

Players with a passive perception above 15 will notice they are being watched by the men at one of the other tables. These are part of Van Clef's gang and will attack them in their rooms at night if they stay here. This is an opportunity for another perceptive player character to be introduced by pointing them out to the other heroes. You might give them this information with a cool line like "Not a man there's taken a drink with his gun-hand since you walked in."

Once the party has been collected, they can decide how to handle the group eyeballing them. If they stay the night, the thugs will sneak into their rooms and try to knife them in their sleep. If they head out, the thugs will tail them, out of town if necessary.

The Trail

Pecho: The Viper's Den

Once the players head out, they should head for Pecho. The saloon there is called The Viper's Den, and is represented by the "Hard Knocks" saloon, above. The layout is similar to that of the saloon in Enuillo, though more rustic and with stables alongside the saloon with cows, horses, and pigs for slaughter. Men, some in army uniforms from the nearby fort which protects the frontier from raiding snake-men, are scattered about the establishment, nearly comatose from heavy doses of snake venom, which is literally the venom of young snake-men. When drunk to excess, the venom causes total paralysis, numbness, and obliviousness. This is a sensation which appeals to those affected by the nihilism of the empty wasteland around them and the constant threat of a snake-men raid.

Van Clef and his men find the players here if they have lost the trail. If it is not easy to just steal the wagon, they will try to draw the players out of the saloon (if they stop there... which... come on) into an ambush. Van Clef sends the "town sheriff" in, claiming that the players are in possession of stolen gold, on the run from Enuillo. In reality, the sheriff has been tied up in his jail and this is one of Van Clef's men wearing his star, though not one the players have seen before. The players may notice the other patrons eyeing the "sheriff" oddly. Close inspection of the sheriff reveals his clothes are dusty and he is not town-clean, as if he has been on a long ride. He pretends to be willing to have a sending spell sent to the authorities to sort out the ownership of the gold if the players come with him to his jailhouse.

Stepping out into the street is a mistake, though, because Van Clef has surrounded the saloon with his men and they will open fire on anyone who comes out the front door. The players could choose to pick off the men from the saloon windows, but given that they should have good cover, this will be difficult. Any player who exposes themselves to take a shot will receive a readied shot as a reaction immediately. The players will have to be creative to find a way to get the money out of town with their lives. Van Clef may appear, or shout at the players from outside, but he does not put himself at great risk.

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If the players significantly wound Van Clef, or manage to inflict significant casualties on his gang, Van Clef retreats to the fort. There he uses his military background and deputy's star (stolen from the sheriff's jailhouse) to convince the army that the players are dangerous criminals who have attacked the town and are taking stolen gold to the snake-men. The captain in charge of the fort issues him a company of cavalrymen to hunt down the players, along with a wagon loaded with a special surprise.

The Mountains of the Moon

The adventurers may have asked about the Mountains of the Moon, but most people either have not heard of them, or think they are a mirage, or a trick of snake venom on the believers. The reason for this is that the mountains exist within the Feywild, and passage by creatures of the mundane world into the mountains requires the Moon to be half full. Even then, they can only be seen from quite close range. The mountains are inhabited by packs of werewolves and other lone lycanthropes, such as Billy the Young Goat.

Billy likely runs across the party in the desert, especially if they are lost or can't find the mountains. He is a small, white goat, with a nametag around his neck made of rusted barbed wired and a carved shred of wood that reads "Billy". He can speak only as well as any other goat, and tries to follow the party and/or lead them to the Mountains of the Moon, yelling "Moo-oo-oon".

The mountains are forever in twilight, with the Moon suspended in place and slowly, slowly turning through its phases against all reason. Billy can become a goat hybrid here, and explains his situation to the party. He explains that the werewolves tormented him, wrapped the barbed wire nametag around his neck, and then left him alone. He wandered out of the mountains hoping to see the world a bit before he finally is killed, having no hope for a better life as a weregoat. He is envious of the players' purpose in delivering Senza's legacy, and vows to help them as best he can.

There is a road that is impossible to lose, but Billy explains that it is also impossible for anyone to pass over the mountains on the road as long as they are being pursued by anyone else within the mountains. The inhabitants are hungry.

Werewolves (Monster Manual, p.211, with vulnerability to silvered weapons and no damage immunity) will attack the party until their leader, a massive werewolf with the statistics of a draegloth (Volo's Guide to Monsters, p.141), is slain, at which point they will want nothing to do with the party and they can pass. Van Clef is also on their trail, however, and just when the party seems to be leaving the mountains, the trail will wind and the two bands will find themselves face-to-face on the road. The following is one possible outcome of the confrontation, which should give ideas and explain more of the motivation behind some characters:

Van Clef has acquired more men from the fort and a gatling gun, which is pulled from a wagon, mounted, and fired at the party. The heroes are pinned down in a gully just on the edge of the border with the Valley of the Shadow. The horses pulling the gun wagon are spooked when it starts to fire, and they run away towards the party, where Billy gets an idea, switching the horses between the two similar wagons.

At some point Van Clef offers to let the party go if they leave the gold behind. Billy rides out with the party's horses and seemingly their wagon, as if trying to make it away into the mountains on his own with the gold, and Van Clef orders his men to ignore the party and chase him down. One of the players should notice the wagons have been switched. Since Van Clef is temporarily uninterested in the party, they can make a break for it into the Valley of the Shadow. Billy has found something worth giving his life for.

The Valley of the Shadow

The party races into the valley ahead, and the twilight fades to darkness. Tumbleweeds roll across the ash-gray sands of the valley floor, and the smell of death soaks the party. Mummified horse carcasses, and macabre tableaus of massacres and murder are the only landmarks, with dessicated husks of people posed in scenes preceding their gruesome deaths.

The Sun does not rise here, only the Moon. The adventurers should know from the map that they must leave the Valley before the Moon reaches half full or be forever trapped. Dangers abound here, including bodaks (VGtM, p.127) haunting the ghost towns. Looking directly at one will enrage it and cause it to attack. There are devourers (VGtM, p.138) stalking the tableaus, grabbing the husks and stuffing them into their mouth-like ribcages, where the shades come to life and scream in pain as they are consumed. Occasionally they use their Soul Rend ability to inhale all of the souls in a tableau at once. This should be described in a way sufficiently frightening to the players that they know to avoid approaching these monsters.

The players find a tableau for Senza, surrounded by the thugs the players killed in the first ambush. If approached, Senza's corpse releases his shade, which can conveniently instruct them of anything they haven't picked up on as of yet. It also warns them that a final test will come, and to pass, they must "Ride, boldly ride, if you seek for El Dorado." If the players approach any other husks in the tableau, they are attacked by the shade of that husk (statistics of a shadow, MM p.269, but instead of taking damage, it is stunned for one round by any successful attack). Senza can burst into brilliant light and destroy any attacking shades, but warns that he cannot follow them further and protect them.

The test that comes is a final tableau: Billy's husk, riding a ghostly, tattered wagon towards the husks of Van Clef and his men, who are stalked from behind by multiple werewolf husks. Their shades spring forth and attack the players, with Van Clef's shade hissing that they'll never leave this valley with an ounce of "his" gold. Billy's shade does not attack, it instead encourages them to "Ride, boldly ride!" Eventually they see a trio of devourers ahead, sillhouetted against the faint orange glow of sunrise beyond the final veil of the Valley. Despite the shades clinging to the players and draining their life, Billy tells them to ride boldly towards the devourers!

If the players pass close to the Devourers, they will pick off the majority of the shades, enough that the players can survive until they leave the Valley, where the sunlight burns away the shade of Van Clef. The players look down into a golden basin of lush wheat fields surrounding a great stone city on a hill, golden in the morning sun. Light clouds and running rivers announce the abundance of water in the region. It is a simple, tranquil place, protected from the horrors of the world by the evil route of approach.

El Dorado

As the players approach the fabled golden city along a road that becomes more established as they approach, the idyllic setting suddenly turns sinister; a passing farmer warns the travelers to hide their guns and wands. Later the party approaches guards positioned along the road, presumably to exact a toll upon the travelers. Upon approach, these are discovered to be snake-men!

The snake-men are merely ensuring that no guns or wands are brought into the city to threaten their master, Rayo Traeluto, whose name means something like "Thunderbolt that Brings Grief". Rayo is an evil dragon with reddish-sand-colored scales and the statistics of an adult blue dragon (MM, p.91). If the snake-men find no illegal weapons (guns and magical wands) they let the players pass. They do not take the gold, as large shipments of gold are a common arrival here.

Long ago, El Dorado was a place of great prosperity and wealth, owing to its fertile location and access to a mine flush with gold veins upon which the city was built. This wealth attracted the attention of Rayo Traeluto, who struck from the skies during a thunderstorm, overpowering the city's meager defenses before flying circles around the city to prevent evacuations. His army of snake-men worshippers then arrived to manage the population, forcing them to work the mines until only gold dust could be pulled from the depths.

When the mine was exhausted, Rayo cleverly offered hope instead of death to his hostage population. They must accept a heavy tax burden. If they could not pay, they must work the land and feed the city, but if they could pay they would be permitted to leave. Families would save up the money to pay the tax for one member who would go out into the world to make a fortune to bring back to pay the family's ransom. The tax is enormous, and grows each year, so only extremely lucky or industrious persons are able to actually afford to free their families, but the few stories of success gave hope to those who remained that perhaps their searcher, as the lone family member is called, would be the next to find fortune abroad.

The adventurers can find Senza's family with little trouble, as most people in town know the name of each family's searcher. His wife, Zelion, and adolescent son, Jowee, await him. The sad news of his passing is devastating, but Zelion is consoled that he gave his life for their freedom. Jowee, on the other hand, would trade a lifetime of servitude to the Bringer of Grief for a chance to meet his father. It will take effectively the entire remaining sum of gold to pay off Rayo and earn passage out of town.

Will the adventurers leave Senza's family destitute but free? Will they part with their hard-earned shares of the treasure? Or will they risk everything for a few dollars more?

Magic and Marvels

These can be found as loot on bodies or hidden amongst the tableaus in the Valley of the Shadow.

Horse Shoes

Magical boots

Wearing these boots over a long rest transforms the wearer into a Centaur. The wearer gains a walking speed of 50 ft, a size category of Large, and back legs. The wearer has advantage on checks to interact with horses.

Moon Brew

Black magic brew

This potion is pale, translucent white and nearly inviscid, like liquid moonlight. Drinking it grants the lycanthropy trait (wolf strain), but with total control over one's form. This effect lasts until the next sunrise.

Blasting Oil

Marvelous Material

Smashing, shooting, or otherwise violently breaking this bottle, or exposing its contents to open flame, causes an explosion, with the effect of the fireball spell centered on the bottle's location, with thunder damage replacing fire damage. Damage to structures and vehicles is doubled.

A single swallow of this fluid can also be used to restart a dead creature's heart within one minute of death. The drinker is considered dying, with zero hit points, and must make death saving throws on his or her turn.

Wand Holster of Quickness

Enchanted holster, requires attunement by a spellcaster

This holster has a metallic coating which is nearly frictionless. The user learns the firebolt cantrip if it is not already known. The holster grants the quickdraw ability of the gunslinger class, which the user can only use to cast a cantrip, using a wand drawn from the holster as the spell focus, instead of firing a firearm.

Deadeye

Enchanted token, requires attunement

This token consists of a flat, triangular wooden token which hangs from a necklace. Set in the block is a shriveled eyeball which opens and whose gaze follows the wearer's gun wherever it points. The wearer gains proficiency with firearms if they are not already proficient. The wearer's firearm shots deal an additional 1d4 necrotic damage on a hit, and the user can reroll one attack roll between short rests.

DM's eyes only: The first time an attuned user has a misfire while wearing the deadeye, one of their eyes falls out and replaces the eye in the token. The old eye shrivels and turns to dust on the ground. The attuned user can now see through the deadeye as if it were their own. The deadeye has darkvision to a range of 120 feet. The user suffers disadvantage on perception checks without a drawn firearm.

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Van Clef Gang Member

Medium humanoid, neutral evil

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• Armor Class 15 (leather armor)
• Hit Points 30 (CR 1) or 90 (CR 3)
• Speed 40 ft.

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STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
13 (+1)	18 (+4)	14 (+2)	10 (+0)	12 (+1)	14 (+2)

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• Skills Intimidation +4, Sleight of Hand +6, Perception +3, Stealth +6
• Saves Dex +6, Wis +3
• Senses Passive Perception 13
• Languages Common
• Challenge 1 or 3

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Actions

Multiattack. The gang member makes either one (CR 1) or 2 shots (CR 3) with his pistol and can reload or repair as a bonus action.

Pistol. Ranged Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, range 60/240ft., one target. Hit 1d10 + 4 piercing damage.

Pistol Whip. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit 1d4+1 bludgeoning damage.

Reactions

Dodge Roll (CR 3 only). On taking damage, the gang member moves up to half its speed and reduce damage it takes from an attack by 4.

Snake Venom

Just straight poison

Upon drinking this incredibly potent neurotoxin, diluted to taste, the drinker must make a Constitution saving throw with a DC equal to 5 times the number of shots consumed or be poisoned for 5 minutes per shot, taking effect after 1 minute. If the save fails by 5 or more, the drinker is unconscious while poisoned in this way. If the save fails by 10 or more, the drinker dies when the poison takes effect.

The drinker gains the following benefits for 1 minute. All benefits are cumulative.

Snake Venom Shots Benefits

Shots	Benefit
1	Advantage on Dexterity checks and saving throws
2	Gain temporary hit points equal to your maximum hit points. When the effect ends, subtract any missing temporary HP from your normal HP.
3	A glimpse of the future at the DM's discretion
4	You can bite as a bonus action, and you deal an additional 5d6 poison damage.
5	Your race changes to snake-man (yuan-ti pureblood). Permanently.

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"One Shot" Van Clef

Medium humanoid (human), neutral evil

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• Armor Class 17 (studded leather armor)
• Hit Points 109(14d8 hit dice)
• Speed 40 ft.

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STR	DEX	CON	INT	WIS	CHA
13 (+1)	20 (+5)	16 (+3)	16 (+3)	16 (+3)	16 (+3)

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• Skills Intimidation +8, Sleight of Hand +10, Perception +13, Stealth +10
• Saves Dex +10, Wis +8
• Senses Passive Perception 23
• Languages Common, Snake-Man
• Challenge 6 (2,300 XP)

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Grit. One Shot has 5 grit points which he can use to perform Aimed Shots, Quick Draws, Arm, Leg, Head, Body, and Wing Shots, and Violent Shots

Quality Cigar. One Shot can regain up to 2 grit points as actions between long rests.

Sharpshooter. One Shot ignores all cover except full cover, suffers no disadvantage from long range, and can do an additional 10 damage on a hit for a -5 penalty on the attack roll.

Actions

Multiattack. One Shot makes three attacks with his revolver or rifle. He can reload or repair his weapon as a bonus action.

Revolver. Ranged Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, range 240ft., one target. Hit 2d8 + 5 piercing damage.

Rifle. Ranged Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, range 800ft., one target. Hit 2d10 + 5 piercing damage.

Pistol Whip. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5ft., one target. Hit 1d4+1 bludgeoning damage.

Reactions

Dodge Roll. One shot can move up to half his speed and reduce damage he takes from an attack by 5. Opportunity attacks against him while he's moving are at disadvantage.

Credits

Page 1: "Sunset", MikaelWang, Deviant Art.
P. 2: Sir Walter Raleigh's map to El Dorado, (modified), British Museum.
P. 3: "Hard Knocks Saloon & Brothel", sadizzm, Deviant Art.
P. 5: "Dragon's Lair", Spellsword95, (modified).
P. 7: Lee Van Cleef, image from For a Few Dollars More, Directed by Sergio Leone, possibly stylized by http://www.myfavoritewesterns.com?
Story elements from Take a Hard Ride, Screenplay by Eric Bercovici and Jerrold L. Ludwig, and El Dorado, E. A. Poe.

DM Notes

This adventure was originally played under special rules designed to enhance the tension to better emulate the mood of the great spaghetti western films.

Players were level 7, and use of firearms and the gunslinger class (https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B4fgrcv8-6IKaHZtbXRiOW8zQmc/view) was encouraged. Firearms are considered martial weapons for the purposes of determining proficiency for other classes.

All damage values are doubled. Damage reduction features are doubled. Healing is unaffected. Revivify, Resurrection, and other such spells do not exist.