TEXT: Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �1
  dm’S KIT
  Springboard    
    Adventures
  Springboard    
    Adventures
  FOR TYRANNY OF DRAGONS
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �2
  Springboard Adventures 
  For Tyranny of Dragons Storyline  
  This guide helps a Dungeon Master review the adventure books from the 
  Tyranny of Dragons storyline, take an inventory of key elements and re-use 
  the material for new and interesting encounters. In addition, this guide 
  provides eight Departure Points to start your new adventures from the 
  storyline and provides a baker’s dozen worth of outlines  
  for Springboard Adventures. 
  by TROY E. TAYLOR 
  DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon ampersand, Player’s Handbook, Monster 
  Manual, Dungeon Master’s Guide, D&D Adventurers League, all other Wizards of the Coast product names, and their 
  respective logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast in the USA and other countries. All characters and their 
  distinctive likenesses are property of Wizards of the Coast. This material is protected under the copyright laws of the 
  United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use of the material or artwork contained herein is prohibited 
  without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast. 
  ©2016 Wizards of the Coast LLC, PO Box 707, Renton, WA 98057-0707, USA. Manufactured by Hasbro SA, Rue Emile-Boéchat 
  31, 2800 Delémont, CH. Represented by Hasbro Europe, 4 The Square, Stockley Park, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UB11 1ET, UK. 
  This work contains material that is copyright Wizards of the Coast and/or other authors. Such material is used with 
  permission under the Community Content Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild. 
  All other original material in this work is copyright 2016 by Troy E. Taylor and published under the Community Content 
  Agreement for Dungeon Masters Guild. 
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �3
  Greetings, from  
  a frugal-minded 
  Dungeon Master.
  What 
  adventure 
  books are on 
  your bookshelf? 
   
  Do not let 
  them collect 
  dust.  
   
  Consider using 
  them again!
  Table of Contents 
  What’s a Springboard Adventure 
  4 
  ...........................................
  The Inventory 
  Chart 
  6 
  ...................................................................................
  Map Survey 
  7 
  ..........................................................................
  Monsters and NPCs 
  8 
  ..............................................................
  Departure points 
  Rebuilding Greenest 
  9 
  .............................................................
  Scattered to the Four Winds 
  9 
  .................................................
  The Road North 
  9 
  ....................................................................
  Greypeak Wardens 
  10 
  ..............................................................
  Waterdeep Troubleshooters 
  10 
  .................................................
  A Mintarn Odyssey 
  10 
  .............................................................
  Thay in the Fray 
  10 
  .................................................................
  Frostkimmr’s New Crew 
  10 
  ......................................................
  Adventure Outlines 
  Delegation to Scornubel 
  11 
  ......................................................
  Track Down Swinders 
  11 
  .........................................................
  Lumber in Short Supply 
  11 
  .....................................................
  Luskan or Bust 
  12 
  ...................................................................
  A Tear in the Seam 
  12 
  .............................................................
  Ogre Foothold 
  12 
  .....................................................................
  Beast Lords of the High Forest 
  12 
  ............................................
  Stargazers of Castle Naerytar 
  12 
  ..............................................
  Discord in Silverymoon 
  13 
  .......................................................
  Axe to Grind 
  13 
  .......................................................................
  Lady Silverhand’s Light Touch 
  13 
  ............................................
  Going Gothic 
  13 
  ......................................................................
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
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  PLAYING DUNGEONS AND 
  Dragons requires a considerable 
  expense. 
  Setting aside the costs for the 
  core rule bo.oks, a Dungeon 
  Master who ran Tyranny of 
  Dragons from its two adventure 
  books had to dig deep 
  Hoard of the Dragon Queen and 
  The Rise of Tiamat are both 96-
  page hardcover adventure books. 
  Each retailed at $29.95 in the 
  United States.  
  Months of Fun 
  Now, I’m not saying the expense wasn’t worth 
  it. My group got months and months of play out 
  of each, going from Greenest to the Well of 
  Dragons. It was great fun. We shared a lot of 
  laughs and were thrilled by our characters’ 
  heroic deeds.  
  But you know what? You can still squeeze 
  some more value out of the books. That’s right. 
  Before you put that $59.90 worth of tomes on 
  your shelf to collect dust, consider utilizing them 
  for Springboard Adventures. 
  What’s a Springboard 
  Adventure? 
  A Springboard Adventure takes a theme, an 
  unexplored aspect or even a reskinning of some 
  portion of an already published adventure, and 
  as the name implies, build additional adventures 
  from it.  
  Usually it’s thought of as a continuation of 
  the storyline. Most published adventures usually 
  conclude with a few paragraphs making 
  suggestions on how the storyline can continue. 
  In the case of The Rise of Tiamat, for instance, 
  now that Tiamat has either triumphed or failed, 
  the DM provides the next chapter: What’s next? 
  While that is one kind of Springboard 
  Adventure, it’s not really the focus of this 
  product.  
  To fully utilize the wealth of playable material 
  in these two books, most of what we’re going to 
  explore as Springboard Adventure opportunities 
  involve encounters for a new group of characters. 
  Maybe they start out at ﬁrst level, perhaps a few 
  levels higher. That’s up to you. The thing is, to 
  make good use of these books again, the 
  characters should be in the power range the 
  books were written for in the ﬁrst place.
  P
  Check it out 
  For an example of a sequel-styled Springboard Adventure, check out DM’s Kit: Calimport and the Cult of 
  the Dragon, that will soon be released on the DM’s Guild <dmsguild.com> . It’s an adventure for 16th level 
  player characters who’ve just ﬁnished The Rise of Tiamat adventure. Look for it during Spring 2016.
  b
  A frugal Dungeon Master always 
  looks for the best value in spell 
  components ... and game books.
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
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  Benefits to the “Novice” 
  Dungeon Master 
  Some Dungeon Masters are more 
  comfortable running out of a published 
  adventure than creating one from scratch. 
  I certainly fall into that category. 
  Or perhaps you started Tyranny of Dragons 
  as a novice Dungeon Master, and the ﬁrst place 
  you turned was to a published adventure. As 
  Fifth Edition was a new set of rules, that’s 
  natural. Congratulations for taking that step. 
  Being a Dungeon Master is a rewarding part of 
  play. 
  By using Tyranny as a Springboard, a 
  “novice” DM (though anyone who has run 
  Tyranny can no longer rightly be called a true 
  “novice”) need not feel like they have to start 
  fresh. The books provide support material — a 
  lot of it, in fact.  
  Don’t know how to create a random 
  encounter chart? That’s OK. Use the one on Page 
  7 of Hoard and expand on it. Never made a magic 
  item before? Take the Wand of Winter on Page 94 
  and tweak it. There are relevant suggestions in 
  the Dungeon Master’s Guide on how to do those 
  things.  
  Let the adventure books serve as guides on 
  how to construct Springboard Adventures of 
  your own. It’s a good way to grow your skills and 
  conﬁdence. 
  A Time to Heal, A Time to Plan 
  Everything has its season, so says the poet. 
  And that’s just as true regarding a roleplaying 
  campaign as it is other things in life. There’s 
  really no need to Springboard straight from the 
  conclusion of Rise into the adventure we will 
  devise.  
  It’s probably a good thing to let a little time 
  pass. Players will need time to digest the 
  consequences of the campaign. They may even 
  have an appetite for a diﬀerent sort of adventure. 
  Absence makes the heart grow fonder, after all. 
  Make good use of the time in the interim to 
  survey the two books, ﬁnd the bits you want to 
  use. Be as thorough as you can.  
  And after the players at your table have gone 
  oﬀ to ﬁght space battles, explore the Underdark 
  or dodge a certain vengeful vampire lord, then 
  they might be longing to revisit the Sword Coast 
  and confront its many dragon-allied nemeses.  
  Then is a good time to unveil this sequel or 
  spinoﬀ to the original Tyranny of Dragons. They 
  will even thank you for anticipating their desire.
  A tradition of replay 
  The approach I’m exploring in this product, re-using a published adventure, is far from new.  
  A whole generation of Dungeon Masters once took adventures such as In Search of the Unknown, 
  Keep on the Borderlands, The Isle of Dread and Castle Amber and mined their contents again and again 
  for new play opportunities. And those modules were no larger than 32 pages.  
  But their approach, making the most of those modules’ component parts and using them to launch 
  new adventures, remains tried and true.
  p
  Wait for your chance to 
  reintroduce the next adventure. 
  The time has to be right.
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
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  THE FIRST OBLIGATION IS to review the 
  adventures for unused material.  
  Perhaps it was one of the side quests 
  from “On the Road” in Episode 4 of 
  Hoard or perhaps a whole chapter, such 
  as “Mission to Thay” in Episode 8 of Rise. 
  It could also be NPCs, monsters or magic 
  items that you didn’t encounter or use. 
  Perhaps it was a random chart that 
  didn’t seem to ﬁt. Only you, as a DM, can 
  answer that question. 
  Basically, anything that your group 
  skipped over is fair game for the 
  Springboard. Use the chart on this page 
  to list anything and everything that 
  didn’t get used the ﬁrst time. 
  It’s not that all we will be doing is 
  stringing together a kitbash of unused 
  things to make an adventure. Some of 
  the things on your list may still go 
  unused. That’s up to you. It is a good 
  idea to know the elements your players 
  haven’t seen. 
  (It’s also a good idea to make a list of 
  your players’ favorite things, and use 
  them again.)
  The Inventory
  T
  Unused adventure elements
  From Hoard
  Page
  From Rise
  Page
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �7
  The Maps 
  The next thing to get a handle on is the 
  number and kind of maps at your disposal. For 
  convenience, I’ve made a list of them. While 
  looking at that, I made a notation on each one’s 
  possible re-use. 
  For maps, count among your resources those 
  maps printed in the Dungeon Master’s Guide. 
  Speciﬁcally, I am going to call out the unkeyed 
  settlement map on Page 115 and the maps in 
  Appendix C starting on Page 310. Don’t hesitate 
  to consider their future use.
  Map Survey for Hoard
  Page
  Possible new use
  The Sword Coast
  4
  Lots of blank spaces to place own base town, 
  encounter areas
  Greenest
  10
  Can serve as a generic town or as a rebuilt Greenest. 
  lots of unmarked buildings to key as you would wish
  Raider camp
  16
  Any valley or hollowed out settlement.
  Dragon Hatchery
  23
  Basic cavernous retreat re-keyed
  Carnath Roadhouse
  41
  Can stand for any roadhouse along the Trade Way
  Castle Naerytar, ground level
  51
  Fortress and surrounding swamp
  Castle Naerytar, Level 2
  55
  Can serve as 2nd ﬂoor or as an underground 
  dungeon map
  Castle Naerytar, Level 3
  58
  Can serve as 3rd ﬂoor, as as a dungeon map
  Castle Naerytar, Dungeon
  60
  cavern complex; clearings near a lake/glade
  Hunting Lodge, ground ﬂoor
  66
  any sort of border fortress, remote school
  Hunting Lodge, upper ﬂoor
  70
  same
  Parnast
  73
  Hamlet map
  Skyreach Castle
  76
  Another sky city or possibly a mountaintop fortress.
  Map Survey for Rise
  Page
  Possible new use
  Arauthator’s Iceberg
  31
  Any dungeon, any dragon or monster’s lair
  Tome of Diderius
  40
  Dungeon or mining complex
  Neronvain’s Stronghold
  51
  Any cavern or dragon lair
  Xonthal’s Tower
  65
  Traditional maze, tower with ﬂoors, small 
  underground dungeon
  Well of Dragons
  80
  Mountain city
  Tiamat’s Temple
  84
  Small island
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �8
  Monsters and NPCs 
  I’ve provided a list by challenge rating of 
  monsters and unique NPCs with stat blocks that 
  appear in the appendix section of both books. 
  Unique NPCs are always good to re-use. Just 
  scratch oﬀ the name and assign a new one — 
  instant, brand-new character! 
  Monsters 
  CR: 1/2 
  Ambush Drake, p. 88 H 
  CR 1 
  Dragonclaw, p 89 H, p. 89 R 
  Ice Toad, p. 90 R 
  CR 2 
  Guard Drake, p. 91 H, p. 90 R 
  Dragonwing, p. 90 R 
  CR 5 
  Dragonfang, p. 89 R 
  CR 7 
  Dragonsoul, p. 89 R 
  NPCs 
  CR 1 
  Jamna Gleamsilver, gnome, p. 91 H 
  CR 2 
  Frulam Mondath, human spellcaster, p. 90 H 
  CR 3 
  Dralmorrer Borngray, high elf spellcaster, p 90 H 
  Pharblex Spattergood, bullywug, p. 91 H 
  CR 4 
  Azbara Jos,. human spellcaster, p. 88 H 
  Langdedrosa Cyanwrath, half-dragon warrior, p. 91 
  H 
  CR 5 
  Captain Othelstan, human warrior, p. 89 H 
  Talis the White, half-elf spellcaster, p. 93 H 
  CR 6 
  Rath Modar, human spellcaster, p. 92 H and p. 91 R 
  CR 7 
  Rezmir, half-black dragon, p 93 H 
  CR9 
  Blagothkus, cloud giant, p. 89 H 
  Neronvain, elf warrior, p. 91 R 
  CR 11 
  Naergoth Bladelord, undead, p. 91 R 
  Severin, human spellcaster, p. 92 R 
  CR 30 
  Tiamat, dragon ﬁend, p. 92 
  Other Encounter Charts 
  Hoard and Rise have a fair share of 
  randomized charts. Having a list is good for easy 
  reference. It doesn’t preclude you from making 
  your own or on expanding on these. 
  Hoard 
  Episode 1 Encounters, p. 7 
  Episode 3 Encounters, p. 21 
  Hiring Out, p 31 
  Trade Way Events, p. 34 
  Encounters North of Waterdeep, p. 40 
  Mere of Dead Men Encounters, p. 44 
  Rise 
  Sea of Moving Ice Encounters, p. 26 
  Ice Caves Encounters, p. 30 
  Serpent Hills Encounters, p. 39 
  First Attack Cult Forces, p. 55 
  Second Attack Cult Forces, p. 55 
  Third Attack Cult Forces, p. 56 
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �9
  THERE ARE PLACES IN THE 
  adventure narrative that serve 
  as good spots the DM can use to 
  start their Springboard 
  Adventure. This is especially 
  true in Hoard for low-level 
  parties. 
  Consider these departure points 
  as places to begin new 
  adventures. 
  Rebuilding Greenest 
  The attack on Greenest was devastating. The 
  town’s mill, temple to Chauntea, and even 
  portions of the keep will need to be repaired, if 
  not reconstructed. Many dwellings, stores and 
  workshops were also probably destroyed. 
  Moreover, the town was robbed of what few riches 
  it possessed. Even if a portion of the treasure 
  was recovered from the cult, it is insuﬃcient for 
  the task of rebuilding.  
  It is the PC’s new mission to help, with the 
  town serving as the party’s base. 
  This will be a “frontier-style” adventure arc. 
  In the vast grasslands of the Western Heartlands, 
  Greenest is fairly isolated. Even before the Cult of 
  the Dragon began attacking settlements, the 
  lands between the sparsely populated villages 
  was ﬁlled with dangerous adversaries. 
  Scattered to the Four Winds 
  The Cult of the Dragon is on the run, most of 
  its forces defeated at the Well of Dragons. Even 
  so, the sort of folk who might join the cult out of 
  fear, intimidation or a desire to inﬂict dominance 
  over others are still out there. 
  In this campaign, the PCs embark on a quest 
  to track down the remnants of the cult. Some 
  cultists will try to blend in among the common 
  folk in the surrounding country.  
  Others, though, will have to be pursued to 
  the major cities of the Sword Coast. In the 
  underbelly of these urban areas, cultists are 
  trying to form new cult cells. 
  As time passes, the cult will replentish its 
  resources and its members will grow in power. 
  The Road North 
  There are many locations and opportunities 
  on the long road from Baldur’s Gate to 
  Neverwinter to branch oﬀ and seek adventure. 
  In many instances, the PCs will aid rural 
  local folk beset by marauders, bandits and 
  reavers. But goblins and orcs that come down 
  from the high places might also assail travelers 
  and villages. 
  Carnath Roadhouse provides a solid location 
  that can serve as a base of operations for the 
  PCs. Instead of being a den for cultists, it can be 
  a waystation from which deputized marshals can 
  patrol the trade route and set things right in an 
  otherwise lawless environment.
  Departure points
  T
  When you review the contents of 
  an adventure module, you will 
  discover many places where you can 
  branch off from the main narrative.
  w
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �10
  Greypeak Wardens 
  After bringing order to Parnast, the PCs can 
  reclaim the Hunting Lodge and from there act as 
  one of the few agents of law and order in the 
  Greypeak Mountains. 
  The challenges of defending Parnast can 
  certainly be daunting. The Greypeaks are home 
  to stone giants, worg packs and dragons. The 
  latter might be a reason former cultists might try 
  to regain their footing here. The area is isolated, 
  and cultists might not believe there are 
  adventurers in the region capable or inclined to 
  try and stop them. 
  Waterdeep Troubleshooters 
  Harper leaders Leosin Erlanthar or Remallia 
  Haventree have need of adventurers who can 
  form a team of agents available to be dispatched 
  at a moment’s notice. 
  Based in cosmopolitan Waterdeep, these 
  “ﬁreﬁghting” teams are dispatched to strongholds 
  and cities vital to the Lord’s Alliance and work 
  through means subtle and straightforward to 
  resolve the latest political crisis. 
  Likewise, Ontharr Frume and the Order of 
  the Gauntlet might assemble a similiar unit. 
  However, in the latter case, the team would be 
  dispatched when it is certain that a martial 
  solution is needed. 
  A Mintarn Odyssey 
  The PCs are veterans of the battle at the Well 
  of the Dragon who only wish to return home. 
  Perhaps they were attached to a group of 
  Mintarn mercenaries that have their base back 
  in Neverwinter. Perhaps they were infantry in 
  support of Purple Dragon Knights based in 
  Cormyr. Perhaps they are Thayan allies, facing 
  even a longer voyage. 
  Thus, they begin the long trek. Shall they go 
  by sea or land? But are the gods against them? 
  What forces are being employed to delay and 
  torment these soldiers? Most certainly, they will 
  have adventures along the way. The journey 
  home is never so simple. 
  Thay in the Fray 
  The presence of so many Thayan Red 
  Wizards within the Cult of the Dragon is most 
  troubling to the new Open Lord, Laeral 
  Silverhand.  
  Even while maintaining an uneasy alliance 
  with Thay, Waterdeep’s leadership is vigiliant 
  against inﬁltration of their society by the eastern 
  power’s agents. Assembling a team of magic 
  users and adventurers with other skills, 
  Silverhand would direct them to investigate 
  reports of Thayan intrusion, all the while 
  entreating with their emissaries and using the 
  same team to shore up those relations. 
  Frostskimmr’s New Crew 
  Frostskimmr’s captain, Lerustah Half-face, 
  thinks there are riches to be had by voyaging up 
  the Shaengarne River into the Maer Dualdon. 
  There is trade to be made in the Ten Towns 
  region of Icewind Dale. 
  But he needs a sturdy crew that’s not afraid 
  to leave the ship and go exploring overland. 
  It’s an opportunity for cultist bounty hunters 
  to visit Bryn Shander and the other remote 
  locations in the north. Even in the far north, 
  cultists who ﬂed the Well of Dragons are plotting 
  their next move.
  A long journey or an ocean 
  voyage are great departure points.
  D
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �11
  EACH Springboard Adventure 
  is presented in the form of 
  adventure outline. Each 
  adventure includes a short 
  description, a list of resources 
  from Hoard or Rise that could be 
  applied to it. Lastly, there are 
  suggestions of other elements, 
  such as monsters or treasure 
  that can be used to enhance 
  your adventures. 
  Delegation to Scornubel 
  Greenest leader Governor Tarbaw Nighthill 
  sends a delegation of leading citizens, including 
  the chief priest of the temple of Chauntea (who 
  repeatedly counsels that “no deal is better than a 
  bad deal”) and the player characters, to negotiate 
  loans and other ﬁnancial assistance from 
  Scornubel’s merchant princes so that Greenest 
  can rebuild.  
  Locale(s): Scornubel, wilderness between the 
  City of Caravans and Greenest. 
  Adversaries: Grasslands monsters (DMG, p. 
  303), such as cockatrice, giant goat, hobgoblins, 
  and gnolls; nobles and bandit captains (as 
  merchant princes), thugs (merchant muscle), and 
  spies (Zhentarim agents). 
  Story goal: Navigate waters of ﬁnancial 
  sharks, avoid bad deals that require Zhentarim 
  entanglements, obligations or indebtedness on 
  the part of Greenest.  
  Rewards: Investment from reputable 
  persons; shore up reputation of town and its 
  citizens. 
  Track down Swindlers 
  Penniless townsfolk come to the governor 
  with grim news. Burly workers came to Greenest 
  oﬀering to help rebuild. But they demanded 
  payment up front. Now they’ve run oﬀ with our 
  money! Despite being angry with the townsfolk 
  for being dupes, the governor also thinks such 
  scoundrels should be severely punished.The PCs 
  are dispatched to track down ﬂim-ﬂam artists, 
  who were on the road south, according to 
  reports. The PCs will track them to a bandit 
  encampment. 
  Locale(s): Greenest and surrounding 
  wilderness, raider encampment (map HotDQ, p. 
  16) 
  Adversaries: Bandits and thugs, former 
  cultists; Grasslands monsters (DMG, p. 303). 
  Story goal: Recover the money, or at least a 
  portion of it; apprehend the guilty to face justice 
  in Greenest; make sure Greenest establishes a 
  reputation for prosecuting those who would 
  commit fraud. 
  Rewards: Gratitude of governor and 
  townsfolk; an oﬀer to join goodly factions, such 
  as the Harpers or the the Order of the Gauntlet. 
  Lumber in Short Supply 
  The governor makes a direct appeal to Elturel 
  for permission to obtain lumber from The Wood 
  of Sharp Teeth so residents might rebuild the 
  town, including a palisade to discourage attacks. 
  Locale(s): Greenest, road to Elturel, The 
  Wood of Sharp Teeth. 
  Adversaries: Forest monsters (DMG, p. 302), 
  such as kobolds, tribal warriors, giant wolf 
  spider, panther, black bear, and hobgoblins. 
  Story goal: “Reconstruct” Greenest, placing 
  new buildings on the Greenest map (HotDQ, p. 
  10) or keying existing ones using the Settlement 
  charts (DMG p. 112). 
  Rewards: As defenders, the townfolk insist 
  on building a lodge for the players characters in 
  an unclaimed area of town.
  Adventure outlines
  E
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �12
  Luskan or Bust 
  Remallia Haventree, heir to the Ulbrinter 
  shipping operation, hires adventurers to protect 
  their ships from pirates and seagoing monsters 
  in the northern waters oﬀ Luskan. 
  Locale(s): Seacoast between Waterdeep and 
  Luskan, ghost town of Port Llast, including the 
  islands of Ruathym and Aurilssbarg. 
  Adversaries: Pirates and pirate ships; 
  merfolk, giant octopus,ghost, sahuagin priestess, 
  sea hag, killer whale, dragon turtle and dragons. 
  Story goal: Make Ulbrinter shipping an 
  unappealing target and dismantle at least one 
  Luskan controlled pirate enterprise. 
  Rewards: Pirate booty, support from 
  Waterdeep merchants and lawful seagoers; 
  recover Horn of Valhalla. 
  A Tear in the Seam 
  Neverwinter lord protector, Dagult 
  Neverember, asks the PCs to investigate a 
  possible “tear” in the seam over the former 
  spellplague chasm in the city’s southeast quarter 
  following sightings of aberrant monsters in those 
  neighborhoods. 
  Locale(s): Neverwinter; intact dungeon deep 
  down beneath the seam (DMG, p. 312). 
  Adversaries: Aberrations and undead, 
  including chull, grell, banshee, hook horror, 
  intellect devourer, nothic and mind ﬂayer. 
  Story goal: Clear out the dungeon beneath 
  the seam, prevent aberrations from terrorizing 
  this quarter of the city. 
  Rewards: Gratitude of Lord Nevember, 
  emnity of the Abolethic Sovereignty for destroying 
  its new “staging area.” Recover artifact valued by 
  Dwarves. 
  Ogre Foothold 
  An ogre tribe under the direction of a oni 
  chieftain has gained a foothold and is 
  threatening villages and merchant trains along 
  the High Road, requiring a response from a team 
  based at the Carnath Roadhouse. 
  Locale(s): Carnath Roadhouse (HotDQ, p. 
  41); for lair re-key the Dragon Hatchery map 
  (HotDQ, p. 23). 
  Adversaries: oni chieftain, half-ogres, ogres, 
  allied orc and orog bandits. 
  Story goal: Eradicate the ogre stronghold so 
  that merchant trains between Waterdeep and 
  Neverwinter can take the High Road unmolested. 
  Rewards: Gain recognition from the Order of 
  the Gauntlet, Zhentarim merchants or 
  Neverwinter’s authorities. 
  Beast Lords of the High Forest 
  Pixie emissary to The Emerald Enclave 
  requests assistance, saying a growing tribe 
  lycanthropes and other beasts roam unchecked 
  in the High Forest because there are so few 
  rangers in the aftermath of the assault on the 
  Well of Dragons. 
  Locale(s): High Forest, village of Nesme. 
  Adversaries: Lycanthropes, owlbear, 
  manticore, and allied warbands of bugbears and 
  gnolls. 
  Story goal: Force the lycanthropes to 
  disband, put down the menace posed by gnoll 
  and bugbear allies. 
  Rewards: Restore balance to the forest, earn 
  the gratitude of the Emerald Enclave and of 
  Delaan Winterhound. 
  Stargazers of Castle Naerytar 
  The recently liberated Castle Naerytar has 
  been reclaimed by the Academy of Stargazers. 
  The stargazers have learned how to use the 
  portal beneath the castle as a teleporter, using it 
  to dispatch “ﬁreﬁghting” teams to locations 
  across the Sword Coast to do acts of good. 
  Locale(s): Castle Naerytar (HotDQ, pg. 51, 
  55, 60), sites across the Sword Coast 
  Adversaries: Thayan mages and their 
  undead minions; chromatic dragons that hold 
  sway over remote areas. 
  Story goal: Accept orders from the 
  Stargazers and perform trouble-shooting 
  missions across the Sword Coast, disrupting the 
  inﬂuence of Thayan Red Wizards and their 
  minions. 
  Rewards: Acquire and keep safe the 
  legendary magic items the Thayans desire.
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �13
  Discord in Silverymoon 
  During a period of uncertainty and unrest 
  accompanying the war of the Dragon Queen, a 
  dissident group of bards are working to discredit 
  and undermine Silverymoon’s rulers, such as 
  Taern “Thunderspells” Hornblade.  
  Locale(s): Silverymoon; nearby walled town 
  of Washedberm (DMG, p. 114). 
  Adversaries: A secret society of bards, 
  druids and rangers and a few wizards who are 
  dissatisﬁed with Silverymoon’s rulers. Because 
  they operate in secret, they live openly in the 
  nearby town. 
  Story goal: Root out the troublemakers, 
  many of whom are well-respected members of the 
  Washedberm community. Disrupt their master 
  plot to overthrow Silverymoon’s rulers. 
  Rewards: Gratitude of Silverymoon’s elite 
  and any of the surviving Seven Sisters. 
  Axe to Grind 
  Adventurers out of Ten Towns and other 
  places are searching for legendary dwarven 
  weapon, an axe linked to Mithral Hall’s founding. 
  Brawnanvil can’t bear the thought of this artifact 
  ending up as some adventurer’s prize, but in the 
  aftermath of the attack on the Well of Dragons, 
  he hasn’t the men to spare on a treasure hunt.  
  Locale(s): Mithral Hall; old dwarf dungeon 
  hold that was recently re-opened (DMG, p. 113). 
  Adversaries: Underdark creatures (DMG, p. 
  305), including drow, drow elite warriors, driders, 
  drow mages. 
  Story goal: Explore the dungeon, return 
  with the legendary magical axe. 
  Rewards: Loot from explorations, magic 
  weapon. 
  Lady Silverhand’s Light Touch 
  Intelligence reports indicate a cell dedicated 
  to the Cult of the Dragon is meeting in an 
  underground location somewhere in the Dock 
  Ward. The City Watch has been dispatched, but 
  they haven’t turned up anything.  
  Locale(s): Waterdeep, a cult safehouse (TRoT, 
  Tomb of Diderius map, p. 40), and Waterdeep’s 
  Field of Triumph. 
  Adversaries: Cultists, dragonclaws, 
  dragonfangs, dragonwings and dragonsoul 
  minions of an undead cult leader (use Naegoth 
  Bladelord stats, TRoT, p. 90) and a dracolich or 
  great dragon. 
  Story goal: Stop the cult’s underhanded 
  strike on the Field of Triumph. The cult intends 
  to disrupt a sporting event and cause the death 
  of bystanders. 
  Reward: Thanks of the city and the personal 
  gratitude of the Lords of Waterdeep, including 
  Lady Silverhand. 
  Going Gothic 
  Sandesyl the vampire queen and Cult of the 
  Dragon ally has reestablished herself in a 
  mountaintop fortress in a remote and isolated 
  section of the Greypeak mountains. 
  Locale(s): mountaintop fortress and nearby 
  village (maps of Parnast and Skyreach Castle, 
  HotDQ, ppg. 73, 76). 
  Adversaries: All the traditional vampire lord 
  tropes, villagers who live in fear, a surrounding 
  wilderness ﬁlled with werewolves and other 
  creatures of the night, interloping troop of the 
  traveling folk, a mad scientist conducting 
  experiments in a forlorn castle, and of course, 
  the machinations of a vampire queen who is very 
  secure in her power base, a castle.  
  Story goal: Stop the vampire from re-
  establishing the Cult of the Dragon along its 
  traditional lines. 
  Rewards: The ancient treasure horde of the 
  vampire in a dungeon deep beneath the Hunting 
  Lodge. 
  z
  Undead horrors, a  
  great way to close out the list of 
  Springboard Adventures.
  
  Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  Page �14
  dm’S KIT
  Springboard Adventures  
  for the Tyranny of Dragons Storyline
  A frugal Dungeon Master is here to help you get more out of the adventure books,  
  Hoard of the Dragon Queen and The Rise of Tiamat, even after you’ve played through them once. 
  Both books are packed with resources that can be used again in whole new adventures. 
  This guide provides ideas for making Springboard Adventures, how to make a inventory of a published 
  adventures resources, lists of Departure Points for a new set of adventurers and a baker’s dozen worth 
  of outlines for new adventures within the Tyranny of Dragons storyline.
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dungeons & Dragons [multi]/5th Edition (5e)/3rd Party/Troy Taylor/Troy Taylor - DM's Kit - Springboard Adventures for Tyranny of Dragons.pdf