Looking for a strong drink? Look no further than the Hanging Tree Tavern! This intriguing watering hole, home to Dohma Raskovar's band of orc mercenaries, is a place for ale, whisky, rum—and contracting shady dealings for assassins and bounty hunters.

Let’s take a look at this villainous lair and its dangerous inhabitants from MCDM’s Where Evil Lives!

Warning! This article contains spoilers for the Hanging Tree adventure included in Where Evil Lives. If you’ll be experiencing this adventure for the first time as a player, we recommend turning back now.

• The Inconspicuously Dangerous Dohma Raskovar
• Have a Drink at the Hanging Tree
• Tavern Brawl: Fighting Dohma Raskovar and His Mercenaries
• Hanging Tree Story Hooks

Map Mobs of Mad Mercenaries

Master-tier subscribers can access all the tokens and maps included in Where Evil Lives in Maps. This VTT seamlessly integrates with your D&D Beyond library, allowing you to set up combat and exploration with a couple of clicks. Then, when it’s time to run your session, invite your players and use fog of war, drawing, measurement, and ping features to streamline play!

The Inconspicuously Dangerous Dohma Raskovar

The tired orc bartender pouring a drink when you first enter the Hanging Tree Tavern may not be what he seems at first glance.

This is Dohma Raskovar, the de facto leader of a group of orc mercenaries known as the Ivory Throne. Under Raskovar, the company has thrived and now brokers cutthroats, bounty hunters, and men-at-arms to the highest bidder.

Raskovar uses the Hanging Tree as a base of operations, allowing him to maintain cover as the inn’s weathered barkeep. But, when clients want to get his attention, they order a secret drink, which lets Raskovar know that they’re here to do business.

Raskovar’s success has come from his cunning as much as from his prowess in combat. His well-run establishment gives him the perfect cover, and he’s known to remain perfectly neutral in matters of politics, which allows him to effectively provide his business to whoever's offering the most gold.

Have a Drink at the Hanging Tree

The Hanging Tree Tavern is a front for the Ivory Throne's shady business dealings. It maintains the disguise of being a regular, old tavern, but underneath its unassuming facade lies a hive of rooms and corridors that house its orc mercenaries.

While the hospitality industry may have tight margins, mercenary work is where the money is. The secret areas below the Hanging Tree are well-stocked, so all those who receive Raskovar’s blessing can bask in good food, fine wine, and creature comforts.

Getting Past the Facade

There are a couple of ways to gain access to the clandestine lair beneath the Hanging Tree Tavern.

Get Invited. The first and safest option is to secure an invitation from Dohma Raskovar himself—or "Roscoe" as he’s known to his unwitting patrons. If you’re convincing enough, you could have your discussion moved to the meeting area inside the Ivory Throne’s hidden headquarters. This invitation is the best way to ensure you’re not set upon by a dozen burly orcs if you get discovered trespassing there.

Infiltrate. A perceptive adventurer may note where buff orcs just happen to appear while enjoying an ale in the Hanging Tree, which may give them all the information they need to slip down into the base while no one’s looking

Raskovar’s Hidden Contingency. Any mercenary company leader worth their tusks would have their own secret way of expeditiously getting back to their base, but this method may require a Detect Magic to reveal.

Exploring the Ivory Throne’s Hideout

Once you’re in the Ivory Throne’s hideout, you’ll come across storerooms and holding cells that contain the mercenary company's provisions and prisoners, respectively.

If you’ve entered the base in an unscrupulous manner, you’ll definitely have to keep a watch out for roaming mercenaries. Consisting of Orc Godcallers, Blitzers, Garroters, Furies, and Terranovas, the Ivory Throne’s retinue of ruffians will make most invaders wish they stayed for another ale in the tavern above.

They also have a robust security system, which allows them to set the entire headquarters on high alert with a single spoken word. If that fails, they can fall back on the more mundane security system they installed: sharp blades wedged into the ceiling that they can drop on intruders.

The Dohmain

The Dohmain is where the Ivory Throne mercenaries go to unwind after a long day of assassinations and bounty hunting. Dubbed the Dohmain after Raskovar’s love for the finer things in life, it functions as a luxurious private lounge for the Ivory Throne's elite.

If you want to access the Ivory Throne’s vault, you’ll need to go through this room full of rough-and-tumble mercenaries, so good luck with that.

Tavern Brawl: Fighting Dohma Raskovar and His Mercenaries

If you’re caught being shady in the Hanging Tree (specifically toward the Ivory Throne, that is), you’ll incur the wrath of Raskovar and his very capable retinue of orc mercenaries.

MCDM’s monster book Flee, Mortals! introduces the concept of creature roles, which allow DMs to run more strategic fights using a variety of archetypical creatures. These roles are on full display in the Hanging Tree, because Raskovar’s mercenary company requires a wide array of talents.

For instance, sneaky jobs are likely left up to his Garroters, who have the ambusher creature role. These stealthy orcs can turn Invisible, which allows them to get Advantage on their first Strangle attack of each encounter.

There are also Orc Ramparts and Furies, who have the soldier and brute creature roles, respectively. These tanky orcs are the ones who get sent into the thick of combat so they can soak damage and protect support allies, like Godcallers.

When their approach requires less face-to-face interaction, the Ivory Throne turns toward their artillery Conduits and controller Terranovas. These sharpshooters can inflict tons of damage from range but aren’t all that hearty in a one-on-one fight.

In his stat block, Raskovar is listed as a leader creature, meaning he’s purpose-built for commanding troops while in the fray.

Fearless Leader

Despite a War Mace attack that can daze opponents, Raskovar’s deadliest abilities are those that allow him to better coordinate his forces.

If left to his own devices, Raskovar can whistle up 10 Orc Blitzers to the battlefield using his once-a-day Reinforcement action. Then, with his soldiers on the field, he can use Reactions like On the House to allow his minions to reroll their attacks.

But that’s not all. Because of his leader status, Raskovar gets special villain actions. These are like legendary actions; they can be used after an enemy’s turn, but villain actions can only be used once each per encounter.

With his Close In villain action, Raskovar can command each ally within 60 feet to move up to their Speed. Then, this display of overwhelming force can inflict the Frightened condition on any creature who ends up with an orc suddenly standing next to them.

He can also use his Lockdown villain action, which allows all of his buff orc mercenaries to attempt a Grapple. Which, after ten orcs get summoned to the battlefield, can be a tall task to avoid.

Relentless Fighter

After seeing the Dohma using his tactical leadership abilities to gain the upper hand on the battlefield, your party will likely want to take him out first. But that’s much easier said than done.

He can heal for 20 Hit Points and gain Resistance to Bludgeoning, Piercing, and Slashing damage until his next turn with his Dohma Rally Bonus Action. He can also use this ability reactively with his Adrenaline Rush feature, which allows him to pass a failed saving throw, similar to the way legendary resistance works.

Thanks to his Relentless ability, even knocking him to 0 Hit Points won’t finish off Raskovar. If he takes enough damage to drop Unconscious, he can take a weapon attack, and if the attack drops the target to 0 Hit Points, Raskovar stays standing at 1 Hit Point.

Hanging Tree Story Hooks

If you’re looking for ways to ensure your party antagonizes Dohma Raskovar inside his stronghold, look no further than the "Hanging Tree Story Hooks" section in the adventure. These hooks will elicit quests where your party will:

• Break into the Ivory Throne’s vault and acquire a treasured family heirloom.
• Find and destroy a contract that is locking a boy’s father into the Ivory Throne’s servitude.
• Force the Dohma into an early retirement, so a former leader of the Ivory Throne can reclaim her station.

So, if you can’t think of a reason to pit your party against the mercenary company’s head honcho, these are great ways to get them to lie to, steal from, and fight with Dohma Raskovar and his band of merry mercenaries!

Talk About a Strong Drink

Where Evil Lives is now available on D&D Beyond. Alongside its companion book, Flee, Mortals!, this collection of premade adventures allows DMs to drop a fully prepped villain’s lair into their campaign with almost zero work on their end!

Plus, seeing as this particular adventure is for level 3 characters, you have the chance to turn your campaign’s beginning from "You meet in a tavern" to "You meet in a tavern full of orc mercenaries who want to beat you to a pulp."

Mike Bernier (@arcane_eye) is the founder of Arcane Eye, a site focused on providing useful tips and tricks to all those involved in the world of D&D. Outside of writing for Arcane Eye, Mike spends most of his time playing games, hiking with his girlfriend, and tending the veritable jungle of houseplants that have invaded his house.