
The Search for the Dysfinia

Needed: Player's Guide, Ravenloft Campaign Set
Pretty handy to have: Monstrous Manual, Dungeon Master's Guide

There are some new creatures you may come along that I mad up but most are from the Monstrous Manual.  If you have any questions, praises or criticism, E-mail me at ITalk42 (AOL)

Roll randomly for creatures to attack.  Use the table found in Domains and Denizens.

Read: You are sitting in the Red Dragon Tavern when a page rushes in. "I need some        
    hearty adventurers to complete a mission.  I can only tell you of this adventure if                  
    you say "yes."  Will you do it?

No:  This adventure can't be played

Yes:  "Good, good."  The page takes you to a dark corner of the pub and explains.
    "In the Ravenloft domain of Borca, there are two rulers, Ivan Boritsi and Ivana   
    Dilisnya.  Both hate each other and are continually trying to kill each other by 
    means of poison.  So far, no poison has worked.  I am a page for Ivan and he think's
    he has found a poison that will work.  Unfortunately, it is made from the flower 
    of a Dysfinia, a very rare type of flower found in the mountains of Borca, the 
    Gries Mountain.  Any questions?

Why secretive: Ivana has many spies.
What does it look like?  Resembles a daisy only is completely black.
What is mountain terrain like? First, a large forest, next is a grassy plain and third,      
    the top, is covered in ice.  This ice part is where the flower grows.
Reward: 10,000 gps. each

The Adventure:
    You begin on your journey.  The mountain looms in front of you.  You can't see the top.  You walk through for about 15 minutes when you hear a scratching noise. [any sound checks or detect reveal nothing]  You hear it again, only louder. [Still reveals nothing]  Suddenly, you hear a shuffle and out jumps........a mouse.  It scampers away and you are left to think how stupid you reacted.  Unfortunately, out flies a giant bat!

(1) Huge Bat: AC: 7; MV: 3, FL 15;  HD: 4D8; Hp:19; THAC0 17; At#: 1; Dmg: 2D4; Scream, 
Sv. vs. Paral. or paral. for one round; exp: 420

You land the last blow and the bat drops to the ground, dead.  You push on, only this time you're a bit more careful.  You come upon a bed of thorns. [ask if pc's want to try anything.  Each thorn has poison doing 1D4 dmg each prick out of 5D6 prickers]
You realize that you cant get through this way.  This is bad, especially because there are 5 wild boars heading straight for you!
What do you want to do? [trick is to let boars clear path for pc's.  If PC's fight and kill first 5, 5 more will keep coming until PC's get the picture.  100 exp. if PC's think it up on first try]

(5) Wild Boar : AC: 7; MV: 15; HD: 3D8+ 3; HPs: 10, 8, 6, 11, 13; THAC0: 17; At#:1 each; Dmg: 3D4 Exp: 175 each.  

You walk through the path the boars cleared, avoiding the thorns.  You notice a tree in the woods with a glow surrounding it.  On closer inspection reveals it has symbols.  Magical symbols.  To read, must cast "read magic" spell.  It turns out to be Strahd's Malefic Meld Spell, found on page 99 in Ravenloft Realm of Terror book.

You come to a bend in the road.  According to the skimpy instructions you received, this is where you'll spend the night.  It also says one should keep watch while the other rests, but you should both get sleep.  Who will go first?

PC watch 1: Your companion(s) fall asleep in your tent and you sit down to keep watch.  Soon you feel drowsy.  You want to stay awake but you just can't keep your eyes open.  You are about to rest for just a minute when out jumps a Kirre and you snap awake.  He must have been using psionics on you.  You risk a glance at you friend(s) and see him in a trance, eyes open wide, yet without life in them. [Other pc(s) are under psionics and can't be awoken until after Kirre is dead].  

(1) Kirre: AC: 7; MV: 15; HD 6D8+6; HP: 25; THAC0: 13; At#: 7; Dmg: 1D4, 1D4, 1D6, 1D8, 1D4, 1D4, 1D6; Exp. 650

After the battle, you notice a ring on the ground. (Don't say but is a R. of Regeneration)

Now, it's your turn to take a rest.  Unfortunately for both of you, the night is only half over.  [read to new guard] Suddenly, you see something dart through the woods.  But it is to dark to see anything more than a dark blur.  Then you see it again.  As you pear into the woods, a weretiger attacks from behind!

(1) Weretiger (Cara): AC:3; MV: 12; HD:6D8 +2; Hp: 28; THAC0:15; At#: 3; Dmg: 1D4, 1D4, or 2-5, 2-5 and always finishes with 1D12; exp. 0
PC's can only hit with silver weapons or +1 magic weapons.

[after her 1st attack] Suddenly, the weretiger cries out in a raspy voice, "Please, take off this necklace I wear." Sure enough, she's wearing one.  [She says something to this effect every round until PC's take it off.  50% + each level of exp. to remove necklace]
[Cara MUST live.  Cara is a female trapped under a spell.  She will help the adventurers a great deal.  If Cara is killed, all PC's suffer a 40% Ravenloft Powers Check ]  

Cara's Combat:  Every time the PC's encounter a monster or foe, she will help attack.  It takes her one round to change into weretiger form, so she won't be able to attack the first time the rest of the group does.

As soon as you take the weretigers necklace the weretiger takes on her real form, that of a beautiful young lady.  "Oh, thank you, thank you so much. Here, drink this.  It should restore much of your health [elixirs for each PC, restore 2D6 hps].  I apologize greatly for having attacked you.  You see, I was under the spell of a White dragon, Carg, who lives at the icy peak of this mountain.  I am in your debt.  Will you let me accompany you on this journey, not only as a guide but as a warrior also?  (PC's have to say YES)

A foggy day rears its ugly head as you arise from a not so deep slumber.  Cara tells you of all the different plants, animals and formations as you walk.  Eventually, you come to a bridge.  
"Cross this bridge carefully.  These swamps it crosses are cursed."
As you're walking along, four mudmen jump out at you!

(4) Mudmen: AC: 10; MV: 3 (if PC's choose to flee, they automatically do so successfully); HD:2D8; Hps: 6/7/5/8; THAC0: 19; Dmg: see below; exp. 175 each.
Combat: Throw mud which hardens on hit target(-1 to MV).  When within 10 ft., it will hurl itself at PC.  If hit is successful, mudman is dead but PC get -4 to MV.  If miss, mudman spends one round regrouping itself.  When PC's MV is 0, 1D8 dmg (suffocation) per round until nose or mouth is cleared (1 round).  5 rounds of suffocation= death. 

After finding a way out of that predicament, you press on.  The trail becomes very bushy.  Vines and plants keep you from seeing the ground.  After walking for what seems like an eternity, you lean against a tree for a rest.  Suddenly, the tree comes to life! "Oh, no! It's a treant!!!" yells Cara.

(1) Treant: AC: 0; MV:12; HD:7D8; HP: 32; THAC0: 13; At#: 2; Dmg: 2D8, 2D8; Exp. 2000
+4 to all fire combat.

A nice cup of java sounds good right about now but you eat your groups rations quietly.  Suddenly, you see six hobgoblins coming down the trail.
"Guards of Carg," Cara tells you.  "If you decide to kill them, make sure you get them all.  If one escapes, Carg will know that we're here."

(6) Hobgoblins: AC: 5; MV 9; HD:1D8+1; HP: 5/9/9/7/3/5; THAC0: 19; At#:1; 
Dmg: 1D6 (sword) or 1D6+1 (morning stars); exp: 35 each.
If hobs are attacked, PC's MUST kill all of them or Carg learns of their presence and attacks every 3D4 rounds.  If PC's ignore the hobs, they keep right on going down the mountain.  

Goblins carry 1 healing potion 58 gps. total and a pouch with something alive in it.
Inside the pouch is a Ruge (rhymes almost with huge) snake.  This snake will bite the PC with the least amount of HP's and restores all of them.  Then the snake loses its power and shimmers into nothing.  If any type of spell, psionics, or too much poking and inspecting occurs, the snake loses its power and vanishes in the bag, so suddenly, the PC's feel nothing.

"Your lucky that was a ruje snake and not a poisonous one," says Cara.  
You start on your journey.  Soon the path turns thin as it travels through a lake of a dark murky substance.  "Be careful," says Cara. "This is lake is filled with a substance called Avla.  If you fall in, the stuff will try to suffocate or squeeze you till you die.  It's so strong, it takes two people to pull one that has fallen in, out.  BewareAvla monsters live in this murk.  Aval's are creatures that have fallen in and weren't able to get out.  These are beings that are able to breathe underwater.  This substance keeps them under.  Looking for friend or food, they will try to push you in.  Be extremely careful.

Chances to fall in.  Roll for each PC:
10 chances to fall in per PC.
50% chance Aval monster pushes PC in. (25% crawling or flying)
If pushed, 50% chance friends catch him in time.
If in the stuff, PC will die in 2D4 rounds.
25% chance to escape for each person helping to pull fallen PC out.

"Good, we made it," says Cara.
Soon, you see an opening to the forest.  It has come to an end.  Now, you must travel through the grassy plains of the mountain.In your happiness of being free from the dense forest, you don't notice the Aurumvorax sneaking up on you until it is too late...

(1) Aurumvorax: AC: 0; MV: 9; HD: 12D8; HP: 48;THAC0: 9; At#: 1; Dmg: see below; 
Exp: 9000
Damage:  The AV will attack until a bite is made, which causes 2D4 points of damage.  He will not let go of the PC he has bitten until death.  Each round, he causes 2D4 dmg. (bite) plus attacks 2D4 claws causing 2D4 dmg. each.

If a PC dies, have this person play Cara's part for the rest of the adventure.

Soon, you come to the skeleton of a dead warrior.  In his rib cage is a pouch.
Inside the pouch is a deck of many things.  I won't explain it here but it is located in the Dungeon Masters Guide.  If you don't have this, award treasure.

Suddenly, clouds start forming up ahead.  It looks like rain.   You see a cave.  You can do one of three options to wait out the rain.
-Wait outside.
-Go in the cave.
-Press on.

Wait outside:  You decide to wait outside in the rain.  "Oh, no," says Cara.  "Look up there in the sky.  Hags, three of them.  They haven't seen us yet.  What do we do?

Fight: 
(3) Hags: AC: 0; MV: 15; HD: 7D8+7; HP: 30, 29, 31; At#:3; Dmg: 9-16, 9-16, 3D3; Exp. 4000 each.
Read after battle:  Soon the rain stops.  [Continue with adventure]

Keep moving: You start walking around.  Suddenly, your companion in front of you disappears!  You freeze and look around.  Then you see him.  You are at the edge of a cliff.  He is just barely hanging on to the edge!  You pull him up.  "I won't continue in this rain," says Cara.  "I mean, we've come so far.  I don't want to die because of impatience."  [Cara will not move except back to the cave.  DM can make reasons why the PC's should stay with her.

Cave:
You decide to enter the cave.  You step out of the rain.  Suddenly, just when you're least expecting it,.......(pause) nothing happens!  You wait in here and eventually the rain stops.

You continue on, searching the ground for a single dysfinia.  A single stupid disfinia.
You feel a cold chill come on you.  You shiver.  "We are nearing the Arctic top of the mountain, where Carg lives.  I suggest we camp here for the night."

You wake up the next morning to the sound of eating and high pitched voices.  
If any check are made:  You recognize them as kobolds.  Three to be exact.  And they are eating your food supply.  

If anyone goes out or attacks:  The three kobolds begin a strange transformation into YETI!!!
(3) Yeti: AC: 6; MV: 15; HD: 4D8+4; HP: 21/23/19; THAC0: 15; At#: 2; Dmg: 1D6/1D6; Exp: 420 each

If no one attacks, they will eventually smell out the PC's and attack in Yeti form.

On one is a strange symbol.  "The symbol of Carg," says Cara. " He must know that we're here.  We have to hurry."  Soon, the grassy ground is replaced by a frozen one.  "I suggest that you put on your snow gear now.  Otherwise, you'll all die of hypothermia. 
Suddenly, the ground starts to quake under you!  A rastin jumps out at you!

(1) Rastin: AC: 1; MV:2; HD: 4D8; HP:20; THAC0: 15; At#: 3; 1D4/1D4/special; exp. 300
Special: freezes opponents hand so that he must drop whatever weapon he's carrying.
To do this, roll THAC0 but no damage.  PC's hand is frozen for 2D4 rounds.

"It's been a long time since I've seen one of those," says Cara. You proceed.  You come to the edge of the terrain and step onto snow.  You begin to search desperately for the dysfinia.  Just normal ice plants, a  fissg, a ralp, some yellow nobe but no dysfinias.
It is now below freezing.  Then you see up ahead a column.  On top of the column is a DYSFINIA.

Suddenly, a huge snow white dragon jumps in front of you, separating you from the precious plant. It's scales are frosty and teeth as pearly white as the snow.  He speaks, in a deep voice, "So Cara J'est, I say welcome again.  You shouldnt have left my service.  Now you and your friends shall perish!"

White Chromatic Dragon (1): AC: -4; MV: 12; HD: 11; HP: 61; THAC0: 9; At#: 3+ special; Dmg: 1D6/1D6/2D8+ Breath weapon (see below); Exp. 16,000

Breath weapon: 9D6+9. Saving Throw vs. breath weapon.  Succesful takes half damage.

You run up to the dysfinia and grasp it in your hand.  You slip in a protective case.
"Look at the dragon's nest!  I bet it has tons of treasure!" says Cara.  Inside the nest, you find ... what ever the DM thinks you should find+ 50,000 gps.  [Also there is a spell which Cara will cast after PC's are done in nest.]  "Hey, this look's like a transportation spell!  We can transport back to Ivan's castle and deliver the flower."  
Cara begins to chant words and wave her hands and soon, you are at the gateway to Ivan Boritsi's castle.  The page you saw earlier comes out and slips you the money.  "Now give me the flower." 

If give flower- "Thanks so much.  Maybe if Ivan rules all of Ravenloft, he will spare your lives!"

Don't give the flower-"Ivan will be angry.  He'll probably do something much worse than kill you."  [DM persuades PC's with threats.]

END:  You made it!  Congratulations!  
                           The End!