```metadata
title: 'ADVENTURE: Orson''s Claim'
description: ''
tags: []
systems: []
renderer: V3
theme: 5ePHB
```
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# Orson's Claim
The Kobold Species of Humanoids, if they even qualify for that moniker, are at best loathsome and at worst vermin. The tiny reptilians have only a small window of reason and a near void of logic. Furthermore, their hygiene is abysmal. And yet… They are capable of constructing complex mechanisms and fiendishly clever traps. Their ability to survive is something of a mystery. Perhaps it is their one other truly mastered ability that enables them to thrive. Reproduction. A Kobold infestation must be handled quickly or their stupidity will wash over nearby civilization like a child’s bucket against a sand castle.
}}
{{toc,
- ## TABLE OF CONTENTS
- #### [{{ SETUP INFORMATION}}{{ 2}}](#p3)
- #### [{{ ACT 1: A Village in Need}}{{ 3}}](#p4)
- #### [{{ ACT 2: Orson’s Claim}}{{ 3}}](#p4)
- #### [{{ ACT 3: Kobold Chaos}}{{ 4}}](#p5)
- #### [{{ ACT 4: Kolgrot’s Demands}}{{ 4}}](#p5)
- #### [{{ CLOSING}}{{ 5}}](#p6)
- #### [{{ LORE AND MORE}}{{ 7}}](#p8)
- #### [{{ MAPS}}{{ 9}}](#p10)
}}
### ADVENTURE SYNOPSIS
Trouble has been brewing in the local mine for a while now. What started as missing tools and insignificant mishaps slowly grew into dangerous, even deadly, accidents. Yesterday some adventurous children were attacked by creatures in the mine and one was taken captive. A rescue party was formed to go in search of her, but they too never returned. Now the players will be called on discover what lurks in the darkness and hopefully rescue the missing villagers.
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#### MECHANICS
- **Target Party:** 4 Level 1 Players
- **Expected Playtime:** 3+ Hours
- **Tone:** Search and Rescue
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### PLAYING A.O.G. ADVENTURES
AOG adventures are written and designed to be system neutral to avoid Copyright and IP conflicts or issues. They will lean toward a d20 system, particularly 5e D&D, but language referencing specific creature types, treasures, and environments may be more generic or cast in my Homebrew World. All of which should be easily imported into any system of your choosing. I also write and do a lot of things in my own style. There is a simple breakdown of these things at the end, and this link leads to an [Appendices](https://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/share/mycj8rDJGKXG) of notes and my thoughts on mechanics to help GMs and Players understand what I may mean by certain phrases and ideas, as well as helpful links to our own source materials.
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## What is The AOG?
It started 40ish years ago. I still remember the day my cousin brought out this thin blue book with a white sketched dragon on its cover and a pile of strange dice. He told eight year old me that we were going to play a game where I could be anything I wanted (as long as it was an elf, dwarf, human, or halfling). I immediately developed that love of bringing people along on journey after journey, and through all the moments and four decades of playing, the trip has never lost its wonder.
Now, my son and I run Amplus Ordo Games as armchair content creators who donate our work to the hobby at large. We host a Patreon which runs like a D&D Magazine, posting mostly Maps and Full Adventures. We do dabble into other areas like stories, and thoughts on the game. My son helps write our “Year One” series which are adventures designed for entry level DMs and players, and we use that content to run the after school Jr High Group.
Any donations are used to fund an afterschool TTRPG Club, our own hobbies, and of course pizza. If you would like to make some requests or support the work you can check us out at [AOG](https://www.patreon.com/amplusordogames). The site has over 2 year's worth of work and there are no paywalls. 50+ Adventures, Hundreds of maps, and a lot of support content.
On the purely Social Media side. We're active on Reddit Subs and our Discord, where we host games, fulfil requests for our supporters, and a smidge of commission work. I coach many of our subscribers regularly on DMing and fantasy cartography.
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### Contact us
:
[PATREON](https://www.patreon.com/amplusordogames) Amplus Ordo Games
[DISCORD](https://discord.gg/GDp7a3CFtA) Join the Network
[REDDIT](https://www.reddit.com/r/amplusordogames/) Our Sub in Reddit (Not super active)
[FACEBOOK](https://www.facebook.com/Amplusordogames) Yeah we know... Facebook...
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## SETUP INFORMATION
Our *Quick Shots* are usually designed with a "less is more" thought process. Typically written as side quests, dropped in as the kind of adventure a DM uses to get the players moving a certain direction or to bridge the gap between other things they have going on. They aren’t overly well fleshed out and tend to be pretty bare bones. We provide an outline and some ideas and then let you run away with it. And after all, if we’re honest, we all know players are going to force you to make almost all of this up as you go anyway.
As an entry level Adventure, all players need to succeed will be their typical starting equipment and maybe a couple healing potions to be spread around between themselves. They also do need to play smart-ish, if your group is one that likes to take wild risks maye drop a few extra potions on them. Either way this is a great sandbox to test a new party's abilities and strengths. There will be traps and ambushes and a mad-kobold-king that they might talk to… or stab… good times!
Other helpful information for how we style our adventures and our homebrew rules can be found in The Appendices, a collection of notes and thoughts I am gathering together in one place. Any Helpful info for this particular Adventure can be found at the end of the module in the Game Notes section.
### Adventure Backdrop
Orson’s Claim is a middling yield copper mine first discovered by Orson True-Forge. The mine was once a large operation and turned huge profits. The village of Orsville quickly sprang up, but the copper quickly slowed, and so did the village. Orson (Old when he founded the mine) is long dead, his sons died within the past year, and his grandchildren are either uninterested or have moved on. In many ways the mine’s output mirrored the True-Forge family, slowing significantly and petering out, but it does still generate just enough wealth to keep what’s left of the village stable.
A month ago one of the miners was found dead. A tunnel collapse seemed to be the cause. A common enough death among those who dig through the stone. A few days later there was another fatal accident, this one due to an equipment failure, resulting in a fall. Whispers began spreading. Is the mine cursed? Has the spirit of Old Orson True-Forge come to reclaim what is his? The next day, a fire broke out in a mess hall, when a lantern reportedly flew from a table into a pile of crates. That was enough for the remaining miners to hang it up and leave.
Just when the miners began to consider going back to work, some local children went into the mine on a dare. They claim to have been attacked in the dark by vicious creatures. One of them, Hielien Springsong, did not return. A rescue party, including the girl’s parents, went into the mine looking for little Hielien. Sounds of battle and screams of horror were all that returned from the dark. That was yesterday… today the village will call upon your Adventures to delve into the dark and discover the secrets of Orson’s Claim.
### Local History
Historically the village isn’t noteworthy and has never been a notable place for problems, though there has been some issues over the years. The Inn has changed hands several times, once under mysterious circumstances. One of the other locals had tried to buy the mine on several occasions, the True-Forge family always staunchly refused those attempts. The local church closed shortly after construction finished. The Cleric who was to run it disappeared and no other clergy ever took it over. There was a Goblin attack a few years back that was thwarted by a spooked herd of cattle passing through to market. The cows trampled the invaders to death before a single blow could be struck against the village. Other than that, just typical village stuff.
### Game Opening and Hooks
- **Hook 1:** You players are locals! They’ve been hearing about the trouble in the mine for a while now. Now that folks they know are missing the time for talking is over. The time to go be heroes has come!
- **Hook 2:** The Players are part of a Caravan, working as guards. They have stopped in town to pick up copper, but the shipment is still in the mine. They are tasked to go get it, and save anyone possible for extra payment.
- **Hook 3:** The players are traveling through town on their way to find a grand adventure. This much smaller adventure finds them first. The locals offer them a good sized reward from helping them out.
### PRE-GAME
Other than having a session 0 to establish what your run of games will look like there isn’t really much pre-game work to be done here. This is a pretty straight forward Search and Rescue mission, with a little Search and Destroy to keep things lively.
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## OPENING CUT-SCENE
{{monster,frame
##### Several folk congregate in the local tavern. It is time for evening drinks and spreading local news. The Old Dwarf tips back his mug… way back, and slams it down on the table. “I tell you it’s Old Man Orsen come back to haunt us. He’s down right buggered that none of his kin want the mine and the few of ye here that got coin are squabblin over it.” The Dwarf next to him waves his hand dismissively. “There ain’t no spooks in them tunnels. Old Man Orsen spirit is pist surely, but my bets on Fey folk. A patch of Quicklings. Maybe some nasty little Red Caps or Pixie mischief. Ghosts don’t break equipment and collapse tunnels.” The first Dwarf nods. The Barkeep wipes a mug. “Could be Kobolds?” They all are silent for a moment, as if the thought hadn’t occurred to them. The first Dwarf laughs. The second Dwarf laughs harder. The bartender laughs awkwardly because he was serious. The Kobold laughs because everyone else is laughing.
}}
## ACT 1
### A Village in Need
#### Setting
The village of Orsville. A Small 25ish household village with the staple businesses necessary to sustain itself. The village was founded by Orsen True-Forge after he found a rich vein of copper in the hills.
#### Problem
Something has “invaded” the Copper Mine, Orson’s Claim, and chased the miners out. A local child, Jeilein Springsong and the rescue team sent into find her have gone missing. No one knows exactly what is going on in there. Only that people have gone missing or died.
#### Alternate Problem
I released this adventure just before Thanksgiving in the U.S. so maybe the problem isn’t missing villagers, but missing Turkeys! Something came up out of the mine and snatched the birds they need for the Village Feast!
#### Player Actions
This Act is all about introducing the problem and allowing the players to find motivation and information that will help them solve the problem. Unless they’re local, they will likely ask around about the Mine and its History.
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## ACT 2
### Orsen’s Claim
Exploring the mine shouldn’t be terribly hard, at least environmentally, but it shouldn’t be easy either. The Miners have done a good job keeping the tunnels wide and clear, however, the Kobolds have been busy this past month and have already dug several very tiny Kobold sized tunnels that connect some of the areas. They have filled other tunnels with rubble and set the terrain in their favor. Oh and there are traps. Lots of Traps. Act 2 and 3 work pretty interchangeably. Act 2 outlines areas of the mine itself and lists some traps and hazards. Act 3 starts once the Kobolds get truly involved and discusses their actions against the party and gives you some more traps to play with.
### Early Events
#### The Road to the Mine
The road up to the mine is a narrow switchback, locals usually use a lift but there is noone up top to operate it. So they'll have to walk. As the players approach the mine the Kobolds, who will be hiding above will move in secret to defend it. They'll do this by starting a rockslide.
- **Rockslide Trap:** The Party must pass Easy Dexterity Saving Throws or take minor Bludgeoning Damage.
#### The Mine Entrance
The Entrance area consists of the Foreman's Office, The Miner's Quarters, and The Mess Hall. These places are in disarray as the Kobolds have sacked the place looking for treasures, and while they take items that are obviously treasure (coins and gemstones) they often miss items that would be very valuable but not obviously so. Things like expensive tools and works of art. They also take things that have no value at all… like garbage. They've also rigged the place to make a lot of noise if someone else starts poking around!
- Alarm Traps: Precariously placed equipment and dishes are set to tumble over at the slightest bump. A Medium Trap Check can be made to spot the Hazard. A Hard Dexterity Saving Throw can be made to catch the items before they clatter to the ground.
#### The First Floor Tunnels
There is little worth finding on the First Floor. These Tunnels haven't been mined in years and the Kobolds have not made much use of them yet. Still we don't want them to completely wast their time, so if they go looking and make a solid Search Check have them find a Survivor whit a broken leg hiding in the tunnels. The survivor can describe to them ferocious humanoid creatures that ambushed them. They barely escaped with their life!
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#### The Lift Down
Near the lift of this chamber is where the rescue team was ambushed. There are broken arrows and some easy to spot blood stains, though not much. A Medium Check can be made to realize that there isn't enough blood here to make them think anyone actually died. An Easy Check will lead them to believe that the wounded were taken down the elevator.
- The Broken Elevator: The lift is rigged to crash. Thankfully the safety break will kick in slowing the fall, but still dropping down to the 3rd floor. Unfortunately since the damage is down below there is no way to detect it before using the lift.
## ACT 3
### Kobold Chaos
Once the Players are down well into the mine, likely down on floor three, the Kobolds will begin using their traps and some hit and run tactics. Remember to keep an eye on the health of your players as Level One Characters are pretty squishy. If you’re using a lot of kobolds, which can be fun, consider only giving them low AC, 1HP, and having them throw rocks rather than use weapons. This keeps the damage to 1 maybe 2 points. The Kobolds will intentionally flee from confrontation, leading the players into traps and places they can use to their advantage. After a few of these moments the players will be filled with murderous rage for the little creatures. And so continue to aggravate them! Good times!
#### Finding The Way Back Up
This portion of the adventure gets pretty free form, and is more governed by events than the Map. Their goal will be to find their way back up to the second floor and then on to the Crystal Grotto. The easiest way to keep them on task is to have them chasing Kobolds. I recommend events like the ones below while they navigate the lower tunnels.
1) **Kobold Pit Trap:** The players come across a pit trap. It has an Easy to Spot DC. The thing is, the Kobolds know it. If someone falls in great, but if not they are going to look at it, which gives them a chance to launch an ambush.
2) **Swinging Beam Trap:** The players find an obvious tripwire. When they go to disarm it or avoid it they accidentally set off the actual trap and a large beam comes swinging down. They face a Hard DC to find and disarm the actual trap, and a Medium Dexterity Saving Throw to avoid the beam. Failure results in a d4 of Bludgeoning Damage.
3) **Stone Throw Ambush:** A dozen Kobolds come out of hiding and throw rocks at the party then run away...
4) **BEES!** Ahead is a pile of rubble. Climbing over it crushes several bee hives. While they deal with that the Kobold throw rocks at them.
#### Getting Somewhere
After you sufficiently enraged your players and they are ready to murder any and all Kobolds they ever encounter, you can prepare to move them on to the next Act. You do this by having them find their way to the entrance of the Crystal Grotto. It is intended to be on the second floor, but players often end up off the rails pretty far. Feel free to put this entrance anywhere. That's one of the reasons I made the Mine Maps modular.
## ACT 4
### King Kolgrot’s Demands
The Grotto is a beautiful cavern filled with glowing crystals and thriving patches of mushrooms. A waterfall tumbles down on the far side filling the air with moisture and enabling the growth of many stalactites and stalagmites. A little over half of the cavern floor has been turned into a deep pool that drains out of a narrow crevice in the South West Corner. On the East side the rock slopes upward forming a natural ramp and staircase that leads to the upper ledges. There they will find the river cutting through the stone. It is slick on the bottom and a Dexterity Saving Throw will need to be made if they attempt to walk across it without precautions. The Kobolds have two warrens on the north side of the ledge, the bulk of their folk will be in there waiting to ambush the players if necessary. There is a large stone column here with a dark glowing crystal on it. The Kobold King has made his throne here and surrounded himself with treasures! (Garbage)
As they enter the Grotto, Kolgrot will challenge them from above. A "Come up here and fight me!" type of thing. Kolgrot isn't really a king, just currently the biggest Kobold. He has the folks the players are looking for locked up in cages behind him. He will attempt to negotiate with the players for their freedom. He wants the mine. He is a bit tougher than the average Kobold, but not very smart, making him pretty easy to trick if they “agree” to his demands. Doing so allows them to safely get the folks out. Then they can choose to go back and kill the rest of the Kobolds, or let them live, but you know they won’t do that. Particularly if you’ve made the Players miserable enough with Kobold antics. In fact they may just outright kill Kolgrot with no negotiation at all. If that’s the case, the Kobolds hiding nearby will join the battle. Have Kolgrot light the captive’s cages on fire, to add that extra “fun” environmental element to their adventure.
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## CLOSING & REWARDS
There are always several ways an adventure can end. Particularly, if you have creative players. Ultimately the ideal ending though is to save the Villagers and end the Kobold infestation. If they do this they will be named Heroes of the Village and be granted “Folk Hero” status in the area. Only accomplishing one of the goals will leave the villagers sad and potentially angry. They should also gain a monetary reward as well. They’re only L1 so nothing too huge, but the Village shouldn’t skip out either. They may also be willing to point them to something more worth their time. Other possible rewards could include free stays and drinks at the Inn (within reason of course).
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#### Side Note on Rewards
Interesting rewards can be hard. I’ve become a fan of giving low level parties a Donkey! Particularly a stubborn one that does what it wants but usually helps them out and is even a hero from time to time. The Donkey also kind of act like a bag of holding to carry all their stuff. My groups have a decades old joke "Donkeys are always smiling because they have great ideas but aren't telling anyone." So giving them a grumpy stubborn Donkey that is exceptionally intelligent becomes hilarious pretty quick. I promise you that after a few adventures they will go to the hells and back to protect it.
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# THANKS FOR PLAYING
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**I do want to take one last moment to sincerely thank you for playing an AOG Adventure. It means a lot to me as a creator. If you enjoyed it please leave me some comments on wherever you found this adventure. You can support more content like this by subscribing to our Patreon. [AMPLUS ORDO GAMES](https://www.patreon.com/amplusordogames)**
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### ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To the Long History of Open Gaming that allows our adventures to be written system neutral.
The folks at WotC, Paizo, Kobold Press, and others publishing with Creative Commons and Open Licenses.
Original story written by Amplus Ordo Games
All Maps and Handouts were done by Designers at AOG using Inkarnate
PDF Formatting done using The Homebrewery
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# ADDITIONAL NOTES
## Notes, Lore, Stories, Handouts, Maps, & Statblocks
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D&D is a complicated dance of information and imagination. I've often found a lot of trouble seeing someone else's vision in what they have written. Having put out dozens of adventures now, we at the AOG have figured out that what we see isn't always what you see. And while that is absolutely wonderful when it spawns creativity... it is absolutely tragic when it breeds confusion.
We understand that we have a specific and sometimes unique way of presenting infgormation, and so we've included the following items to help clear up some of that confusion.
You probably won't find sections like these in our "Year One" or "Quick Shot" Adventures, as those are designed to flow without a lot of extra information. But when it comes to our Bigger Releases we'll typically include quite a bit of extra information to bring some clarity to our thinking, to further expand on our vision, and hopefully add fuel to your own.
I think that's about all you need to know about this section.
And as always Thank You for playing with us!
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## PLAYING AN AOG ADVENTURE: THE BASICS
#### Homebrewed World
First off, almost all my adventures are set in my Homebrew World of Taalist, particularly the Continent of Krenshad. Which the majority of has a very Gothic Art and Renaissance Period cultural feel to it. With some Greek and Middle Eastern Cultre from various time periods thrown in there for flavor. That said… Almost all of my Adventures can be easily ported into your location of choice. If you would like to play in Taalist my Campaign Guide (All 150+ Pages of it) can be accessed on our Discord.
#### The Lay Out
I divide my adventures into “Acts”. An Act doesn’t necessarily reflect an amount of time, but more of an important series of events or locations. Some Acts may take 5 minutes, some 5 hours. Why? I dunno, ask the players who over complicate simple matters and simplify the overly complex.
#### Skill Check DCs
I don’t spend a lot of time defining DCs as I play with a bit wider scale of success and failures. What does that mean? For reference the DC scale in 5E looks like this.... Very Easy DC 5, Easy DC 10, Medium DC 15, Hard DC 20, Very Hard DC 25, Nearly Impossible DC 30. When I list a DC, I will tell you it is Hard. But Hard for one party may be easy for another so I leave the actual number value up to you. I also play with a “Success but with Consequences” mentality. That means if they get close they still accomplish their goal, but there is a “but” to that success. An Example? Hard Stealth DC is 20, they roll an 18, I tell them “You sneak past the guard you see, but the guard you didn’t see heard something and is headed your way.” I think it adds more to the story that way.
#### Search Checks
I often reference Search Checks. What is a Search Check? When the players want to “search” something or for something I let them use either Investigation or Perception. I know that isn’t RAW but it just makes things so much easier. I got real tired of explaining to players who have been playing with me for years the difference between the two… just let them look for stuff!
#### Treasure Sizes
Every game is different. So I do not *usually* list out treasures. Instead I use the follwing terms to assign value not size to the treasure Petty, Small, Medium, Large, Huge. Often I will use a combination of them. You can decide how best to fulfill that for your party.
#### Identify Rules
I use a different style of Identify. Items in my world have a Knowledge DC on them (Arcana, Religion, History, and Nature). I allow the player to use an appropriate Check on an item to identify it. The Identify Spell adds a +10 to this. It can be upcast for additional +5 bonuses. Depending on the score of the Check I give them different information. Some information is extremely hard to obtain, for example Curses are well hidden behind DCs that are at least DC 30, often much higher.
#### Opening Cutscene
I like to start my games with an Opening Cutscene which is read before anything else happens. These are usually really vague bits of information that give a glimpse into something that will maybe happen later, happened before the adventure, or is story adjacent to it. I have found these to be great tools to set the mood and create a little mystery.
#### Setting, Background Info, and Hooks
These portions can be used as you see fit. Each one is a little different, so it is hard for me to say how best to use them. Some will play better if you can get them into the hands of the players before the game. Others may have better influence when read just after the Cutscene. Some are really only relevant to moments in the story. But as in all things you do what is best for your game! That is always the way to go.
#### Skill Challenges
I use the idea of Skill Challenges a lot. What is that? It is an event in the game that isn’t quite an encounter and it isn’t a simple skill check. It is a problem they solve with their whole skill set. Typically they must get three successes before three failures in order to succeed in a skill check. The thing about a Skill challenge is they’re are vague on purpose to allow players to be creative in solving a problem. An example may help here.
> - DM says “Your Boat is taking on water. What would you like to do?”
> - Player 1 responds with “I use my carpentry tools to fix the hole” and they make a Tool Check. But they roll a 2 so they fail. Too much water.
> - Player 2 says “ wants to row harder with the crew to get us toward shore faster” They make an Athletics Check and roll an 18. So that is a success.
> - Player 3 “I use Destroy Water to get water out” OK, well it only destroys 10 gallons so it isn’t super helpful, but the momentary reprieve allows a little drywork to happen and allow player 1 to reroll.
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# Orson's Claim
### General Map
###
Orson’s Claim is a middling yield copper mine first discovered by Orson True-Forge. At first the mine was a large operation turning huge profits. The village of Orsville quickly sprang up. Unfortunately the copper quickly slowed as did the village. Orson (Old when he founded the mine) is long dead, his sons died in the past year, and his grandchildren are uninterested or have moved on. The mine’s output mirrored the True-Forges, slowing significantly and petering out, but still generates enough to keep what’s left of the village stable.
##### 1) Mine Entrance
##### 2) Foreman’s Office
##### 3) Miner’s Quarters
##### 4) Mess Hall
##### 5) Grotto Entrance
##### 6) Waterfall
##### 7) River Crossing
##### 8) Kobold Quarters
##### 9) The Dark Crystal Throne
##### A) Elevator Shaft
##### B) Natural Stairs
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# Orson's Claim
### Mine Entrance
Just inside the mine the players will find several rooms. It should be easily noticeable that everything has been riffled through. The Kobolds have sacked the place looking for treasures, and while they take items that are obviously treasure (coins and gemstones) they often miss items that would be very valuable but not obviously so. Things like expensive tools and works of art. They also take things that have no value at all... like garbage.
:
#### Likely Player Actions
- **Search the Area:** This shouldn't turn up a lot of clues as to what is going on. However there is a log book near the entrance that will mention lots of equipment breaking recently. As well as a lot of moisture on the second level near the new tunnels.
#### Clumsy
- The Kobolds have set several things to clatter to the ground and thus creating crude "Alarm" Traps.
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# Orson's Claim
### Main Shaft Room
###
This is the main elevator shaft and workroom. The players will find a lot of tools and basic mining equipment scattered about as well as some potential valuable ores. The elevator seems easy enough to operate. A series of switches allows those using it to select the desired level. The gears and pully systems do the rest of the work. There will be more obvious signs of someone rummaging through the Miner's things.
::
#### Likely Player Actions
- **Search the Area:** They can find a "Master Craft" Light Hammer by the forge
- **Look for Traps:** They may be starting to suspect the area has been trapped, and the elevator has been tampered with but down below. It is impossible to find the damage here.
#### Falling Down
- The elevator is rigged to plummet downward. Thankfully the emergency brakes will kick in.
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# Orson's Claim
### Second Floor Shaft Room
###
The elevator trap will drop past this floor down to the third level, so coming back here is not as likely. If they do though you can tell them that the Miners do the bulk of their smelting in this room. There are piles of coal in one corner and a large stockpile of goods in the other.
#### Likely Player Actions
- **Search the Area:** Near one of the smelters is a large lump of unrefined Copper Ore. Worth some cash, but folks will know they took it from the mine.
- **Look for Traps:** This will become a standard action.
#### Actual Traps
- The Kobolds will start using actual traps soon enough. When it comes to traps they are really clever and will use the environment and bait. Their traps often look like accidents.
#### Kobold Patrols
- Eventually they're going to spot and engage the Kobolds. I recommend a few shadowy sightings before an actual fight.
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# Orson's Claim
### Third Floor Shaft Room
###
The elevator trap will drop them down to here. This is the newest section of the mine. Though not where the Kobolds have come in from. They will find a lot of equipment and raw materials. Logs cut into support beams, ore being broken down into the more manageable hunks. Stone being shaped.
#### Likely Player Actions
- **Search the Area:** Nothing out of the ordinary.
- **Examine the Elevator:** It is badly damaged. A good check will reveal it was sabotaged.
- **Look for Traps:** This will become a standard action.
#### Actual Traps
- The Kobolds will start using actual traps soon enough. When it comes to traps they are really clever and will use the environment and bait. Their traps often look like accidents.
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# Orson's Claim
### Random Tunnel Map 1
###
I did not do detailed Maps of the entire mine so the Tunnel Maps are here to provide the DM with some extra Encounter Maps if necessary.
#### Necessary Events
- **Kobold Ambush:** There should be at least one Kobold AMbush in the Tunnels
- **Ladder Up:** If they don't attempt to climb the shaft, they should find a ladder to Floor Two somewhere.
#### Possible Events
- **Traps and Harassments:** The Kobolds should be a constant source of trouble for them. Whether that is through their traps or general mayhem. Example? If the players throw a grappling hook up somewhere... Right before they start climbing the Kobolds throw it back down.
- **Finding A Drunk Kobold:** Always a good time to have the players find a "helpful" NPC. Make that Kobold drunk and let the shenanigans begin.
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# Orson's Claim
### Random Tunnel Map 2
###
I did not do detailed Maps of the entire mine so the Tunnel Maps are here to provide the DM with some extra Encounter Maps if necessary.
#### Necessary Events
- **Kobold Ambush:** There should be at least one Kobold AMbush in the Tunnels
- **Ladder Up:** If they don't attempt to climb the shaft, they should find a ladder to Floor Two somewhere.
#### Possible Events
- **Traps and Harassments:** The Kobolds should be a constant source of trouble for them. Whether that is through their traps or general mayhem. Example? If the players throw a grappling hook up somewhere... Right before they start climbing the Kobolds throw it back down.
- **Finding A Drunk Kobold:** Always a good time to have the players find a "helpful" NPC. Make that Kobold drunk and let the shenanigans begin.
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# Orson's Claim
### Random Tunnel Map 3
###
I did not do detailed Maps of the entire mine so the Tunnel Maps are here to provide the DM with some extra Encounter Maps if necessary.
#### Necessary Events
- **Kobold Ambush:** There should be at least one Kobold AMbush in the Tunnels
- **Ladder Up:** If they don't attempt to climb the shaft, they should find a ladder to Floor Two somewhere.
#### Possible Events
- **Traps and Harassments**: The Kobolds should be a constant source of trouble for them. Whether that is through their traps or general mayhem. Example? If the players throw a grappling hook up somewhere... Right before they start climbing the Kobolds throw it back down.
- **Finding A Drunk Kobold:** Always a good time to have the players find a "helpful" NPC. Make that Kobold drunk and let the shenanigans begin.
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# Orson's Claim
### The Lower Crystal Grotto
###
The Grotto was "Almost" discovered by a few Miners right before all the trouble started. The Miners, however, were discovered by the Kobolds who successfully scared the Miners away. The passage has since been dug out by the Kobolds and their King has begun preparing for an invasion of the surface!
#### Likely Player Actions
- **Search the Area:** Lots to find here! Exactly what is really up to the DM!
- **Eat a Mushroom:** I recommend having a variety of effects. Everything from healing to being toxic, and of course highly hallucinogenic!
- **Look for Traps**: This will become a standard action. But there won't be nearly as many in their home.
#### Find a Way Across
- This room will present a bit of a skill challenge as they attempt to navigate up to the King's Throne on the level above. The crystals are luminescent so they can see that there is a large ledge about 100' above.
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# Orson's Claim
### The Upperr Crystal Grotto
###
The Upper Grotto is home to the Kobolds. Once up here they'll easily see the Dark Crystal Throne. If they tried to climb with ropes and hooks the Kobolds will cut their ropes half way up, dropping them into the water below. There is a shallow but slippery river they'll have to cross and then face the King and his minions!
#### Likely Player Actions
- **Search the Area:** Is that a secret cave in the corner? I wonder what lives there!?
- **Fight the Kobolds:** The most common outcome here.
- **Talk to the King:** There is a good chance that they'll try and reason with the King. There is also a good chance the King will be unreasonable. Play the king as a complete idiot mad with power. Maybe they'll talk him down... maybe they stab him. Probably stab.
#### Rescue the Captives
- Once they deal with the Kobolds they can free the captives, and head out of the Mines! Hoorah!!! They're heroes!