The Road to Baldur’s Gate has led our heroes past a forest’s edge before, and it wasn’t good news. This time, the adventurers are sure to be on their guard. Any little noise from the forest’s edge should cause them to draw their weapons in readiness, let alone the bloodcurdling screech that echoes out of the forest when they’re spotted by the Raiders of the Reaching Woods.
This week’s encounter is titled Raiders of the Reaching Woods, and pits the characters against a group of demon-possessed maniacs in the middle of the wilderness. “The Road to Baldur’s Gate,” in which a group of adventurers will travel down the Sword Coast over road and wilderness, from the gates of Waterdeep to the threshold of Baldur’s Gate. You may use this series as an introduction to the upcoming D&D storyline Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus, as an expansion to the caravan sequence in the first D&D storyline adventure, Hoard of the Dragon Queen, or piecemeal as standalone encounters.
You can keep track of this journey on this massive map of the Sword Coast, originally presented in the Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide. The trip from Waterdeep to Baldur’s Gate covers about 750 miles of both road and off-road wilderness. A small party on horseback can cover about 24 miles per day at a casual pace, with just under two days off for rest per tenday of travel. All in all, this journey takes just over a month to complete for a small party of adventurers—assuming they’re well-prepared and no serious complications arise. And note, not every day of travel needs to be represented by an encounter; the characters may go for days with only minor encounters with passing merchants or travelers.
This is the tenth encounter along this journey. The previous encounters are:
- The Road to Baldur’s Gate
- Devil in the Details
- Danger in Daggerford
- Misty Marauders
- Detour Past Dragonspear
- Trollclaw Terrors
- A Break at Boareskyr Bridge
- Najaran Nemeses
- Deathly Demons!
Leveling Advice
The characters should be at least 3rd level by the time they begin this encounter. Though this encounter series is supposed to lead directly into Baldur’s Gate: Descent into Avernus, that adventure begins its characters at 1st level. You can choose one of the following options, or create your own plan, in order to make this series flow smoothly into Descent into Avernus:
- Treat this series as a prologue, and start Descent into Avernus fresh at 1st level with new characters
- Scale up the Baldur's Gate content in Descent into Avernus from 1st to 3rd level, and slow XP gain down significantly by halving or even quartering XP values until they reach Avernus.
- Skip the Baldur's Gate content and go straight to Avernus.
Combat Encounter: Raiders of the Reaching Woods
This combat encounter is suited for 3rd-level characters. The combatants are chaotic but bloodthirsty, and tend to focus all of their attacks on one character in order to defeat them as quickly as possible.
In this encounter, the characters are attacked by common bandits—or so it seems. This group of lawless brigands are known throughout northern Elturgard as the Raiders of the Reaching Woods, and stories of their bloodthirstiness and cruelty are legendary. The truth behind the matter is much more dire than the people know: the Raiders of the Reaching Woods were once common cutpurses and highwaymen, but one day they stole an idol of the Demon Lord Yeenoghu from a demon worshiper traveling along the Trade Way in secret. When the Raiders returned to their hideout, the acolyte of Yeenoghu followed them back unseen, and then slaughtered the Raiders’ leader before all of his allies as an offering to the Beast of Butchery.
The remaining bandits tore the cultist limb from limb in a frenzy, and from that day forth they were little more than pawns of the Lord of Savagery, Yeenoghu. These men and women have degenerated to the most primal forms of their mortal beings, practically running on all fours, and devouring the flesh of their victims after plucking any shiny baubles from their corpses. These are the foes the adventurers face on this leg of their journey.
Before the Encounter Starts: Pip Kip and the Soul Coin
If the characters took the soul coin from Kendrei all the way back in Encounter of the Week: The Road to Baldur’s Gate, the demon-frenzied raiders focus their attacks on the character holding it. If you don’t know which character is holding the soul coin, but don’t want to give things away, consider using this optional scene in the morning before the encounter:
First, ask which character is holding the heavy coin marked with an Infernal rune that they found at the beginning of the journey. Then, read or paraphrase the following to that player.
Morning has come, and you feel a strange lightness when you awaken. A heavy weight has vanished from your being, and only by its absence do you realize that the weight was there in the first place. You quickly realize what it is: the coin is missing.
If the characters are traveling with Pip Kip, then the imp is sitting out in the middle of their camp, holding the coin and turning it over in its tiny hands. It looks up at the character as they approach, and tries feebly to hide the coin behind its body. “I just had to see it…” the imp says sheepishly. “I’ve been sensing it on you this whole time. The smell of a mortal soul. Of a soul coin!”
The imp reluctantly gives up the soul coin if pressed, and explains everything it knows about it:
- Soul coins are the currency of the Nine Hells.
- They are literally forged from a mortal soul that has been lost to the Nine Hells.
- In Avernus, the level of the Nine Hells that Pip Kip hails from, soul coins can be used to power the hulking war machines that blaze across the blasted plains of the Hells’ first layer.
- Demons sometimes seek out these coins, not because those chaotic monsters have any need for currency, but just because they like hoarding souls!
If the characters aren’t traveling with Pip Kip, the coin has rolled, seemingly of its own volition, into the tall grass. The sun glints off it menacingly, and anyone that succeeds on a DC 10 Wisdom (Perception) check can find it.
This is a brief scene with low stakes, but it establishes who has the soul coin going into the main encounter—if they have it at all.
Encounter Start
As the characters travel between the villages of Triel and Scornubel, read or paraphrase the following:
A fresh breeze blows over the plains, rustling the tall grass and showering you with the scent of fresh wildflowers. In the distance, you can see the edge of the Reaching Wood, and the mighty River Chionthar cutting through it. In time, that river will guide you straight from Elturel to Baldur’s Gate, if your map is to be believed.
Then, the wind changes. It blows westward, from the woods, and a foul scent assaults your senses. Blood. Musk. Rot. Something is coming.
If the characters stand still long enough to make a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) check, they can see a small horde of humanoids running on all fours with blades strapped to their backs, or clenched between their teeth. This group of eight bandits have the following additional traits:
Aggressive. As a bonus action, the bandit can move up to its speed toward a hostile creature that it can see.
Demonic Fortitude (Recharges after a Short or Long Rest). If damage reduces the bandit to 0 hit points, it can use its reaction to make a Constitution saving throw with a DC of 5 + the damage taken, unless the damage is from a critical hit. On a success, the bandit drops to 1 hit point instead.
They begin 1000 feet away from the characters, and move 90 feet closer to them every turn. If a bandit dies, its soul immediately falls under Yeenoghu’s complete control. The Beast of Butchery transforms the soul into a maw demon, which gestates and explodes from the bandit’s chest 1d4 rounds after the bandit’s death. The bandits and the demons that burst from them are drawn to the soul coin—if the characters possess it—like moths to a flame, and focus all their attacks on the character that carries it.
If you don’t have Volo’s Guide to Monsters, you can substitute a quasit for a maw demon. These quasits have 15 hit points instead of 7, but are witless, bloodthirsty monsters, and never use their Invisibility action.
Conclusion
One of the bandits still possesses the golden idol of Yeenoghu that began all this tragedy. It is in a leather pouch on her body, and just holding it is enough to send a shiver down most folks’ spines. The idol isn’t magical, but it does possess a faint connection to Yeenoghu, as a ritualistic tool. Any merchant willing to take such an unpleasant item would pay 200 gp for it. It could also be sold to a smith or a jeweler for 50 gp, as they would melt the idol down into raw material.
This attack is more than just an unexpected random encounter; it’s a sign that the Beast of Butchery is active in the world. And when a Demon Prince is active in the world, surely he is active elsewhere throughout the planes, too. If the characters present the idol of Yeenoghu in Scornubel or Elturel, perhaps they’ll hear an ancient tale of Elturgard in times long past.
Did you like this encounter? If you want to read more adventures, take a look at the other encounters in the Encounter of the Week series! If you're looking for full adventures instead of short encounters, you can pick up the adventures I've written on the DMs Guild, such as The Temple of Shattered Minds, a suspenseful eldritch mystery with a mind flayer villain (for 3rd level characters). My most recent adventures are included in the Platinum Bestseller Tactical Maps: Adventure Atlas, a collection of 88 unique encounters created by the Guild Adepts, which can be paired with the beautiful tactical poster maps in Tactical Maps Reincarnated, recently published by Wizards of the Coast.
James Haeck is the lead writer for D&D Beyond, the co-author of Waterdeep: Dragon Heist and the Critical Role Tal'Dorei Campaign Setting, the DM of Worlds Apart, and a freelance writer for Wizards of the Coast, the D&D Adventurers League, and Kobold Press. He lives in Seattle, Washington with his partner Hannah and their feline adventurers Mei and Marzipan. You can usually find him wasting time on Twitter at @jamesjhaeck.
Why not just twist the lore of the forgotten realms to your campaign... so for this encounter just attribute the curse to a god/demon lord of savagery. If your talking about the location and surrounding areas it doesn't have to be an exact match, the bandits appearing on a mountain path or behind a hill will make this much more melee-focused and hence more dangerous but would still not be too out of the realm of possibility.
Whoever said anything about standing still!!! You see a crazy person rushing at you and then try to brace yourself for impact, as if!!! Running battle here we go!!! Longbow, crossbow, or some appropriate cantrip, check. A quiver full of 30 arrows/bolts, check. 90 spare arrows/bolts in my backpack, check. Running Speed of 30ft, check. Willingness to just stand there like an idiot to let my enemies come to me... hmm, that's funny it seems to be missing.
Also, don't the characters supposedly have horses/mounts. If I was my Goblin Beastmaster I'd already be on my wolf. That is now the speed of 40 ft per round, thank you very much, and while a shortbow doesn't have the power or range of a longbow those poor cursed bastards still aren't catching me before I kill them. Characters should have a mount for such a journey anyway, either: a draft horse (40ft) (though that is more likely if your group bought a wagon, then just grab the more expensive/useful stuff and book it), a riding/warhorse (60 ft) for medium-sized creatures and small-sized creatures have mastiffs (40ft)(or wolves if they're rangers). Just zigzag a little so they don't think they're losing you and you can take pot-shots at them... of course, depending on the DM you might have to make a few skill checks in order be able to make sure you are at least skillful enough to do so while riding.
You just need to keep them within the range of the shortest ranged weapon which is about 80ft for a shortbow and light crossbows, noticed I didn't mention hand crossbows... they shouldn't be used by anyone but a rogue in a city setting, and even then a shortbow can be more useful as it is more versatile.
As far as spells go only a few damaging cantrips have a max range of 30ft, and if used a bit meta can have some interesting effects... Infestation causes 1-6 poison dmg if the target fails a CON save and move 5ft in a random direction that can slow one the bandits down a bit...
Now Thorn Whip was the other one that caught my attention in that you make a melee attack w/ it... now correct me if I'm wrong doesn't that mean that there is a possibility of wrapping the said whip around one the limbs of the bandit and then attach it to the saddle to drag the bandit for further damage??? Now if your DM allows for that then that's awesome... if not then oh well ya tried... Now if I was the DM and one of the characters thought this up I'd give them inspiration and advantage on the roll due to the nature of the whip (it has thorns... in other words it has grip) and I'd calculate the dmg as 1d4 per 10ft that the bandit is dragged (w/ a DEX/STR save for the bandit to break lose every 10 ft) + 1d4 for every round that the cantrip is sustained since the whip is extending the wounds due to the movement but in return for that I'd make the cantrip need to hold concentration and due to it being a cantrip it would take up their bonus action or action to maintain and the character would only be able to move at half speed due to the additional weight.
When you get to the end of the battle and the maw demon start climbing out of the bodies you start all over again... or if the bodies are spread out kill them as they come to you.
Ah, informations about Soul Coins and what Pip Kip knows about it... Thank you ! My players are asking so much to him, making anything they can to gather informations, and I just Delay the answers because I don't want to break the canon lore for my next campaign ! :p
All of the grinds with great specialized abilities and variants like the ice devil, pit fiend, balor, or even the demon lords themselves are for much higher adventures than level 3
I think James dies his best with the low Cr feinds who have basic attacks and a few traits and defences.
Thorn Whip is a spell attack with an instantaneous duration. It appears, attacks, and disappears instantly. You have no time to tie it to anything before it is gone.
Well they're herectics, so they must be purged and no purging is complete without fire. If the bandit is burned to death the purifying flame may cleanse corruption from his meat and prevent it from gestating demons.
This has inspired me to do an entire adventure with a "The Thing" theme. You take a boat from A to B but unknown to the crew or you a fellow traveler is demon with the power to corrupt the flesh. Who's corrupted? Who's not? I'd bring cupcakes to these sessions and randomly take players away to "get a cupcake" just to build supsicion.
I love this idea! mind if I borrow it for my campaign?
True but it would be a good idea if you homebrewed it a little with inspiration... A regular whip would work too but... then your within ten feet of your enemy.
So does this imply that levels 1-3 of BGDiA will he set in Baldur’s Gate and levels 3-13 will be in Avernus? I’m hoping to plan my next step from Dragon Heist into Avernus and was hoping it would be similar to SKT with entering midway through at a higher level.
Ok I ran this last night, and it went haywire quick. My players had NO chance of winning. Tell me where I went wrong. They are handling the "ring bandits" well, but as they start becoming maw demons, i realize. These things are walking in fresh with 33 hp. These are cr 1 creatures, doing 2d8+2. That's higher than a few of my level 3 players have. And there's 8 of them. Isn't that like a cr9 encounter? Going on WHILE they're in a cr1 encounter? So on the fly, i took the damage the maw demons had taken as bandits, and added to their damage as demons, essentially dropping them all from 33hp to 20. Like that, it was a very tough fight with a couple death saves
Any coastal road between 2 major cities will work for this series.
Umm.. don’t forget 4-9!
I noticed this too. DURING the fight. So what I did was retroactively assign the hp the bandits lost to the maw demons, dropping them from 33hp to somewhere between 16-25. Still a deadly encounter, but not beyond deadly. I had one guy making death saves, but they won. And everyone said they really enjoyed the challenge of it
It's only going to be difficult if the party kills the bandits all at once. If we assume the encounter starts at the range described they should focus fire on one bandit at a time - that's sensible tactics under any circumstances. So one bandit goes down, and one demon emerges. So the party now have seven bandits and one demon, still a way off with no ranged attacks, and they are now clued in that it might be a good idea to disable rather than kill. It shouldn't be any trouble at all.
Also note Maw demon behaviour - they mindlessly attack whatever living thing is closest. That could be the surviving bandits if the coin isn't drawing them in.
Also note that if the party figure out the coin is attracting the bandits/demons, they could give it to a familiar that could flap about in circles out of reach while the party pick them off in complete safety.
Whoops, typo, I'm sorry
Thank you so much for this series! I played it as a intro to DiA, and it was really fun!
I'm not doing this series as a lead-in to DiA, I'm doing it as a bridge into a home-brew adventure about clearing an organized faction of vampires out of Baulder's Gate. Because of that, I'm modifying these encounters to have more undead than fiends. Now in my campaign, vampiric mists still retain sentience, and this organized faction (The Order of Sehet) has a procedure that allows vampiric mists too posses troupes of people. I'm thinking that's what happened here. So what would people suggest I use instead of Maw demons? My main thought was Will-O-Wisps.