Random Thought Saturday

Adventure outline: Untitled Treasure Hunt #1

Adventure Synopsis:  A band of adventurers are initially hired to transport a bauble from a Waterdeep shop to a waiting scholar in Silverymoon.  Along the way, a few attempts are made by a variety of interested parties to acquire the bauble.  Upon delivery, the Bauble is explained by the scholar who hires the party of adventurers to retrieve the other missing pieces in a grand treasure hunt across the Forgotten Realms.  

The Treasure

The Item that kickstarts this adventure and draws everyone into a race, a search, and a couple of knockdown drag out brawls is the simplest of things.  A golden magnifying glass with a crystal lens is the key to all of the mischief in this adventure.  From the moment it is put into the hands of adventurers in a small shop in Waterdeep’s Docksward to the dramatic battle on the shores of Lake Mulsantir in the distant east, the magnifying glass will be a constant source of strife, amusement, and adventures beyond the wildest dreams of heroes.

The Transplanar Panopticon

Ancient Origins

The Magnifying glass is a piece of a more complicated artifact known as the Transplanar Panopticon.  Found in ancient historical recordings from lost Netheril, and even older texts from the Elven kingdoms from before then, descriptions of the ancient artifact vary wildly, but it always takes the form of some sort of looking glass.  During the fall of Netheril, the Panopticon was thought lost when it fell into the astral plane.  

It’s powers are rumored to be nothing short of world changing.  The fully intact artifact could open gates to other planes, summon monsters through, overlay planes on top of each other, and cause horrendous damage to the integrity of the multiverse.  It is rumored to have a malign intelligence that is both patient and cunning, and will seek to cause harm upon those around it.  It calls out to those of evil intent and disposition, and promises them power and wealth in exchange for freeing it from the hands of whatever do gooders have it.

Modern Tragedies

During the Time of Troubles, the boundaries between the planes were shaken and altered in ways that are still being studied.  During this time, a young boy pulled the magnifying glass out of a fishing net on the Sea of Fallen Stars.  The boy embarked on a madcap spree of murderous glee, and ended up dead at the hands of the clergy of Tyr.  The Glass was locked away for years, until it was discovered by a new priest, who sold it as a part of a lot of antiques to a traveling merchant.  It sat on the shelf of a shop in Waterdeep for years until it was discovered by a scholar from the city of Silverymoon.

It is soon to be loose in the world again, and many dark forces conspire to take it from the hands of heroes and turn its dark power against the world…

Adventure Background  

Part 1: Mead Run

The adventure kicks off with a group of adventurers starting the innocuous task of carrying the Magnifying Glass form of the Transplanar Panopticon from Waterdeep to Silverymoon.  An assortment of villains and evil power groups are interested in the Panopticon, but are unwilling to push their luck by drawing too much attention to themselves.  Following the Long Road, the Adventurers head north to Triboar where they meet up with the Evermoor Way.  The Evermoor Way brings them into the heart of Silverymoon and to the sage who purchased the item.  

Part 2 The Adventure Begins

Hired by the Sage, the adventurers head north to investigate a missing caravan that disappeared on the way to the Ten Towns region.  Deep in the Spine of the World Mountains, something mysterious has happened, and rumors of a lost city are circulating throughout the region.  Within this ancient, lost city, answers await, but they come with serious risks, and the living heart of the winter storm is wakening…

Part 3:  No Way Out But Up

The Lost City collapsed in on itself and has buried the adventurers deep in the underdark.  The way up is closed off, but there are multiple directions to take in this sunless dark.  New friends and enemies can be made in the deep places below the surface, but the adventurers will have to come face to face with an ancient temple and deal with its sinister guardians before they can finish their trek home…

Part 4:  Everything Burns

The adventurers have finally returned home to Silverymoon but disaster has struck.  Agents of the cult of elemental fire have attacked the city and caused widespread devastation.  Tracing these cultists  back to their lair will draw the characters on an adventure into the distant southern realm of Calimshan.  Ancient mysteries will be explored and the adventurers will have to confront the heart of the Cult of Fire to save themselves.

Part 5: Islands in the Sky

After their close call with the Cult of Fire, the adventurers are clued into an ancient Netherese stronghold that may hold the final secrets about the Panopticon and its purpose.  The adventurers will have to test themselves against the ancient guardians of this forgotten enclave if they are to finish the mystery and find the last pieces of the Panopticon.  

Part 6:  Meeting in Samarra

On the shores of Lake Mulsantir, the adventurers come full circle.  With the assembled Panopticon, they will confront lingering foes and be challenged by unexpected enemies.  Can they claim ownership of the Panopticon and keep it long enough to decide what to do with it?  Will they succumb to its dark forces?  Will they persevere in the face of such raw power?   

So, should I take this from an outline to maybe a full adventure idea with encounters and monsters and ludicrous outbursts of treasure and monsters?