I'm still a new GM, having only run "Quest for the Everflame"  from Pathfinder (only partially, as the school year ended and I was unable to continue the campaign with my students... I'm a teacher and was introducing students to tabletop RPG's).

I've now been asked to introduce a colleagues husband to RPG's and I've decided to try my hand at designing instead of making a pre-made module. I'm designing my campaign on the classic DOS based PC game Quest for Glory: So You Want To Be A Hero (lots is changing to increase the intrigue of the story). But one of the things I want is two bandit hideouts. The first one will have the PC's be at level one, and ending at level 3. I'm looking to "beef-up" the hideout (dungeon? cave? abandoned mansion?) with encounters (more than just the bandits).

I was thinking of introducing them to the classic dungeon Gelatinous Cube during this time. Sprinkle in a trap or two (spike pit, or even a pit to a basement with native creatures [giant spiders, centipedes... etc.]).

Basically, I'm asking for ideas to help flesh out a PC Level's 1-3 encounters for a bandit hideout. What sort of creatures might bandits keep for security purposes? What sort of traps would they have in place for defense?

There are plenty of maps online for ideas, but now I'm looking to fill one of these maps with encounters

Sorry for the redundancy, I'm writing what is coming to my mind right now.

Thank you in advance for your input.

Greetings! I'm not sure how much I'll be able to help, but I'll get right to the topic. So, when your making these "hideouts" the biggest thing you need to worry about, is keeping the atmosphere of the hideout going, while adding in monster variety. I think some of the best ways to do that, would be to mention creaking floor boards for mansions, dripping noises for caves (perhaps reminding players of the darkness?) And keeping a looming threat above the players in dungeons. Anyhow, for monster variety, you could range from anything to a zombie in a old house, to rat in a cave. A good suggestion for low-level players might be a giant rat. It could be a challenge, while not being such an impossible challenge for the players. Make sure that the traps and monsters fit the theme, and your good to go! I'd suggest low-level "grunts" in a way, to lead up to something bigger, and at the same time, not making the traps lethal, then building up suspense in the atmosphere in the place where you players are. If you want more details for recommended troops, I'd be happy to share some.

Hope this helped you!

~Warrior

Thank you in for your advice. I'll keep ambiance in mind as I interact with the PC's.

My hope for this thread though was to get ideas for encounters. I want it to be realistic, so a single day's adventure (4-6 hours in game time, not play time, possibly 2 meet-up sessions) to go through the hideout (I'm leaning toward a cave for the first hideout, and then an abandoned tower for the second hideout). So I'm not expected the PC's to use a long rest. With that in mind, I obviously want a handful of bandits, possibly a guard dog or two, and possibly a waste disposal location (a pit with a gelatinous cube at the bottom?). But I feel that bandits would also have some kind of trap... maybe a pit, or falling rock attached to a trip line...

I've also determine that the PC's will meet a minor boss at the first location that in turn (either through conversation/diplomacy or left over notes) sends the PC's on the remainder of the quest.

What would be found in a hideout? How many "rooms" should there be? Here's a small list I've thought about: barracks/sleeping, mess hall, weapons locker, kitchen/cooking location (possibly same location as sleeping location or even mess hall), minor boss' private area. In addition to this question, what kind of booty would be at this initial hide out... obvious gold, weapons... anything else of worth?

I like the idea of a Giant Rat. Are there any other monster/troop suggestions?

Hello!

Glad my first message could help you! I'll get more in depth on how I would suggest the hideout should be built. So, you took the first step in picking a cave, and already started plotting the rooms it should contain. A recommendation of mine, would be to have hallways that have traps. Make some of the traps obvious, perhaps? Or you could make all of them super-hidden, but only have one or two in the dungeon. So, a room recommendation for a hideout, would be a meeting room (make sure to put chests, weapons, gold pieces, and perhaps find a magic item in the hand book to put on the table? Nothing overpowered, but like a ring of wisdom, something like that?) and perhaps a prison, with intractable NPC's, that the players could talk to, and perhaps even help them, to get items from them, or get them to join their party? That's up to you. Anyways, when they enter the main room of the cave, you could have a type of "hub area," and have multiple hallways and doors, going to guard houses, a prison, mess hall, meeting room, barracks, lockers for battle gear, and perhaps a longer hallway that leads to the mini boss? 

Moving on to the monsters. I think that with bandits and Giant Rat's, you could add some low-level, magical creatures to the fray, just for a different kind of combat style. Like...(https://www.dndbeyond.com/monsters/acolyte) This is a level 1 spell caster, meaning that your changing up combat, while adding a type of "humanoid bandit" to the battle. You could also use bats (https://www.dndbeyond.com/monsters/bat) to annoy the players, and slowly poke down their HP, if they keep missing the bats. If your looking for a bit more of a challenge then you can try a Boar. (https://www.dndbeyond.com/monsters/boar) These would be a tad harder for the players to take down, because they have the health of a level one player, but give fifty XP when killed (useful for leveling up the players at the section of the dungeon you want them to level up at.) 

I think that's about it for now! Good luck with your dungeon, and I hope this helps!

~Best of luck!

Warrior.

Thank you for all the feed back. The acolyte and the animals are great suggestions.

I don't know if you ever played QfG, but the second in command turned out to be the court jester from the baron's mansion, and the bandits called him a warlock, so i thought I could make him an acolyte/bard/bandit hybrid of some sort.

What are your thoughts on the following: Not necessarily a trap, but an alarm at the entrance to the cave... a trip line attached to a bell? How would I describe the entrance to hint at a possible issue?

What kind of booty would one find in a bandits' hideout? I know that I'll use the DMG to help flesh out some of this... but would there be any low-level magical items, or even +x weapons (does 5e even have +x weapons or masterwork weapons?)? I feel that the minor boss would have a better weapon then just the henchmen... I don't want to make the PC's rich or OP-ed, but I still want it to be fair.

How does one tier the encounters to make sure that they don't use all their abilities or spells or Hit Dice... Basically, how many encounters should they expect if they were to clear the dungeon without a long rest? Three encounters (mini-boss, henchmen room with an animal, dungeon monster [ooze?]) with two or three traps?

I know I'm asking lots of questions, but as this is the first true time I'll be DM-ing, and I'm attempting to world build as well, I'm looking for lots of help.

First session I ever played was a hideout. They had a room filled with cages and a pair of mastiffs in there. They're scarcely fed and very mistreated by the thieves. If the player's fed them and spend a few minutes with them, they can make some checks to see if the dogs will follow them. The players don't controlled them and can't really order them without animal handling checks, but they'll protect the players through the rest of the dungeon and even help find the thieve's cache through a secret door (the stole a spice traders shipment, so the dogs honed right in).

Glad to see some of the stuff your coming up with! 

So, your thinking along the lines of an alarm at the entrance to the cave, but you want to hint it... The best way to hint it, without spoiling the trap all together, would be to see if players role a perception check, or state that they "look around the area" in some way. If they don't, and they enter a suspicious door, then that's on the players. In other words, if the players don't look for it.... Act like it's not there. If they do, and roll above (insert number you would call a passing roll here) then you tell them about it.

Awww yeah! Onto some of the best parts of D&D, the loot! I'm almost 100% sure that 5e has masterwork weapons, because I have created some myself, and used them in dungeons. For lower level items, try to give small, but useful things. Start out with say... Picking up 10 GP from a minion, and maybe getting his sword/bow/staff/wand/slingshot or whatever he was holding, then move on to something more. That something more can be just more gold, or magic items, or armor from fallen foes. What you want to try and do for the high-level stuff, is have the bosses/harder troops, use some of the items they have in battle. So, say you have a boss with a magic neck less that increases damage from magical attacks? Say something to the players about a powerful aura around the beast. I can't particularly tell you what to put in the dungeon for items, but I suggest you check the Dungeon Master's guide for item ideas, and how OP/Under powered said item will be.

For encounters... Hmm... Well, again, this is all in your hands, but I will give a few suggestions. Without a long rest, and only one short rest (assuming you give the players that) I'd say they could clear about four encounters of an easy tier (Meaning nothing more then two monsters, of a 1/4 difficulty rating, etc.) and with healing items obtainable for the players. I suggest that you plan out your encounters in rooms that you can describe to the players extremely well, so it's easier for both you and the players to keep track of things. I put the monsters I recommend in the last message, but if you wanted help planning out the encounters, then by all means, I'm more then willing to help. If not, I do suggest that you have the whole dungeon layout built first, before you add the goons and monsters.

~Hope this helped!

Warrior.

I'm a week away from finally running this campaign. So I thought I would give an update.

I sent out a cry for help through a "poster" (email) that each PC saw. They have all heeded the call and have arrived in the town Spielburg around the same time. As the sessions begins, the PC's will be in the local inn breaking their fast when a towns person comes rushing in asking for help as his carriage is being ransacked by the brigands.

At the carriage will be three brigands, with three more brigand "minions" (1HP characters). At the end of the battle, the sheriff will arrive and invite the adventurers back to his office to talk.

He has received word of a nearby hide out, and as he is busy with a string of burglaries (a side plot, if they choose to pursue it in the future), he is requesting the aid of these adventurers.

The trek to this hideout is about a half days walk... Insert random encounter(s) from Xanathers Guide's forest or mountain table.

The hideout encounters will be based on whether they camp first or go in without resting. Most likely, they will encounter 2-3 bandits at the entrance (possibly intoxicated or sleeping on the job or hangover...), followed by a dinning room (middle of the night, no one; morning, 1-2 bandits). Their will be a barracks hallway (middle of the night, sleeping bandits; morning, no bandits). Their will also be a couple of cages... If they are doing poorly health-wise, they will find a cleric (no one choose to play a cleric, so I have a ready made one just in case...). Regardless, they will find a local towns person to save.

As they near the mini-bosses room, they will come across a hungry bear chained up (I've named him Yogi)... I have a ranger in my group, I hope he tries to tame it...

Before they enter the room of the mini-boss, there will be a small trap puzzle for them to figure out.

The mini boss will be a varient of the acolyte, but with Bard spells instead of Cleric spells, a Mastiff, and a couple more of those Bandit "minions."

Upon beating this character, they will either find out through dialoguing with him (if subdued), or finding a note (if killed), the next plot hook.

I'm hoping this will take us through the first to second session. We have planned 4 hours for the first session... What do you think?