at CREDITS Project Lead: Christopher Perkins ‘Writers: Justice Ramin Aman, Sadie Lowry, Jeey Ludwig 'k Directo: Kate Irvin ‘Adventure Developer: Dan Dillon, Christopher Peking Rules Developer: jeremy Crawford Editors: Jy Bauer, Kim Mohan Senior Graphic Designer: Tish Yochum Graphic Designers: Matt Cole, TystanFaleane Cover ilustrator: Ekaterina Burmak, Hydro Interior lustrators: Tor Babbey, Mark Behm, Olivier Bernard, Zoltan Bore, Bruce Brenneee, Sidharth Chaturvedi, Nikki Dawes, Simon Dominic, Olga Drebas, Merlin G.C., Suzan ih, Ralph Horsey, Katerina Ladon, Oly Lawson, Andrew Mar, Robson Michel, rina Nordsal, Ned Rogers, rai Sparing Cory Tego-E:dner, Randy Vargas, Campbell Whit, Shawn Wood, Zuzanna Wu i cartographers: Coupleofkooks, Dyson Logos Concept lustators: Tus Lun Stat lock Analyste: Makenzie De Armas, Taymoor Rehman Project Engineer: Cynda Callaway Imaging Technicians: Danie! Corona, Kevin Yee Prepress Specialist: Jerson Dunlap Shawn Wood This adventure is dedicated to Alex Raymond and Lorenzo Ellic determined to become the next leader ice, poses with his solar dragon in stunning cover illustration 947654321 Fapevnd an Def 20 0 sda ive OP D&D StupIo Executive Producer: Ray Wininger Director of Studio Operations: Kye Brink Game Architects: jeremy Cranford, Chvstopher Perkins ‘Design Manager: Steve Sct Design Department: Sydney Adams, judy Bauer, Makenzie De as, Dan Dillon, Amands Hammon, Sen Petrizar,Taymoor Rehman, F. Wesley Schneider, James Wyat ‘a Department: Mat Cole, Tystan Falcone, Bree Hels, Kat lew, 0b otdan, Em Ta Trish Yochurn Senior Producers: Liss Ohanian, Oan Tovar Producers: Bil Benham, Raber Hawley, Lea Director of Product Management: Lz Schuh Product Managers: Natalie Egan, Chv's Lindsay Hilary Ross, Chris Tulach Marxering Director of Global Brand Matketng: Bian Petry Senior Global Brand Manager: Shelly Mazzancble ‘Associate Global Brand Manager: Sara Chan Senior Marketing Communications Manager: Greg Tito Community Manager: Brandy Ca Social Media Marketing Managers: Nicole Olson joshuz Mortis t Semple Jr (ON THE ALt-Cover. Princess Xedali, illustrated beautifully by Hydro74, aims to keep her evil brother from inheriting ther father’s throne. The symbol ofthe Xarysian Empire graces the back coverCONTENTS Introduction: Wildspace Aws Adventure Summary Xaryxis Adventure Structure Running the Adventure ‘Adventure Inspiration. Starting Characters Character Advancement Where to Begin? Sidebar: Using the Starlight Apparition, Part l: Seeds of Destruction Chapter 1: Astral Rain Astral lights (Crystalline Vine. Danger in the Streets. Trouble atthe Docks. Possible Endings. (Chapter 2: Attack ofthe Star Moth Aboard the Moondancer. When Elves attack ‘Tracvus Takes Over, ‘othe Rock of Bal Mind Flayers? Chapter 3 Treacherous Salvage. ‘The Lucent Edict. Neogi Raiders. 4 a 4 6 6 Part 2: Terrors of the Void Chapter 4: Friend Indeed Nightspder Nightmare. Welcome tothe Rock Commodore Krux. The Second Wind To the Edge of Wildspace Ruthless Reigar Chapter 5: Living onthe Edge Adrift Topolah's Tower Oh, Mommat. Old Flame, Gargenhale's Fleet. ‘The Last Breath Chapter 6: A Grave Alliance. Ship of the Dead, Mutiny Look, Princess! Part3:Chaos in Doomspace, Chapter 7: Trust Issues. Princess Xedali Old Wounds. Into the Astral Sea. Arrival in Doomspace ‘The Aartuks of Aruun Bulette Time. 20 21 2 2 2 24 25 26 26 26 30 31 31 32 34 35 36 37 38 38 38 39 39 cat 40 Chapter 8: Arena of Blood. What Coalition? Vocath's Base Meeting Vocath, Arena Battles Xeleth’s Big Entrance, CChapter 9; Discord and Diplomacy. ‘The Xaryxian Threat Alliance in Doomspace. Assemble the Fleet Red Dragon Rider. Part 4: Saviors of the Multiverse (Chapter 10:Space Invaders. Knight of Tu'narath Arrival in Xaryeispace Attacking the Ci Final Approach. Xaryxispace: Citadel Overview Chapter 11: Crowning Moment Arrival at the Citadel Temple of Light ‘rial by Combat, Chapter 12: Light of Xaryxis. Dying Wish Life or Death Conclusion Further Adventures el.—— 1s DUNGEONS & DRAGONS ADVENTURE begins in a world of your choosing, then ventures into Wildspace and the Astral Sea. The characters navigate these envi- ronments aboard ships that can traverse vast dis tances by using a magical form of travel known as spelljamming. Before running this adventure, read the Astral Adventurer’s Guide, which contains infor ‘mation about these settings and how spelljamming, ‘works, The adventure assumes the characters have no prior experience with spelljamming—but that is, about to change! The information in this book is for the DM's eyes only. [fyou're planning to play the adventure with someone else as your DM, stop reading now. ADVENTURE SUMMARY This story revolves around the characters’ efforts to save their home world from an attack by an empire of astral elves. The attack is underway when the adventure begins. After taking refuge aboard a spelliamming vessel, the characters head for the stars to discover who is responsible for the attack and how they can save their world, During the adventure, the characters encounter ‘many space-dwelling creatures, some of which become companions on the party's voyage. The characters also meet Princess Xedalli, an astral elf ‘who is embroiled in a power struggle with her twin brother, Prince Xeleth, over who will rule the em- pire that currently threatens the characters’ world. With or without Xedalli’s help, the characters must assemble an unlikely alliance to strike at the heart of the astral elf empire. The characters encounter many grandiose lo: cationsas the adventure unfolds, including an asteroid city known as the Rock of Bral and the im- perial citadel of the astral elves, which orbitsa star called Xaryxis, Xaryxis The light of Xaryxis has nourished the Xaryxian Empire for millennia, serving as a wellspring for the ‘magical power that the astral elves of Xaryxispace use to sustain their empire. A thousand years ago, the star's light began to fade, threatening the elves’ prosperity, so Emperor Xavan turned the dying. star into a parasite that leaches the life from worlds using crystal seeds harvested from the star. INTRODUCTION | WILDSPACE AWAITS! INTRODUCTION 6Wildspace Awaits! ‘After the elves select a suitable host world, ships known as star moths release hundreds of astral seeds into the planet's atmosphere. The seeds fall from the sky and bury themselves in the ground and. the oceans of the world, After the astral seeds take root, they produce enormous crystalline vines. The tendrils of these vines extend deep into the world and draw life energy from it. Once the vines have sapped a world of its energy, a process that can take months, they send out a bright beam of light that travels back to Xaryxis, temporarily replenishing the star's radiance and leaving the host world a barren husk. Although Xaryxis shines brilliantly after each re- plenishment, it isn’t long before the light of Xaryxis, begins to wane once more, presaging the doom of another world. Once astral seeds have taken root on a host world, there is no easy way to stop the transformation — the vines are too thick and too numerous to be uprooted. Destroying the star Xaryxis, which acts asa lodestone for the astral seeds, is the only way to free a world from their grip. Ifthe star goes dark, the crystal vines release their stored energy back into the host world, shrivel, and die. ADVENTURE STRUCTURE This adventure has four parts, each divided into three chapters. Each chapter is designed to be run. asa single play experience lasting 2 to 3 hours, with the expectation that a group should be able to com- plete the adventure in twelve sessions of play. Each chapter begins with an overview that gives you a sense of what is ahead for the heroes and recaps what has happened so far. There's no telling howa session will unfold, since the players have some control over the plot, but the text tries to give you enough information to run the various creatures ‘and encounters. If the characters do something unexpected, improvise as best you can while gently steering them toward their main goal. Each chapter ends with a cliffhanger to set the stage for the next session, assuming things go as planned. The four parts of the adventure are as follows: Part 1: Seeds of Destruction chronicles the devastation wrought by the astral seeds on the characters’ home world and the party's escape into Wildspace. After fleeing to the Rock of Bral, the characters seek out Commodore Krux, a gifl,hoping he can help them thwart the Xaryxia Empire's machinations and save the c! world in the process. Part 2: Terrors of the Void deals with the char acters’ journey to the edge of their Wildspace system, where they encounter Princess Xedalli and learn the enormity of the task that lies before them. The characters head for Doomspace, where Krux plans to join a coalition of those that oppose the Xaryxian Empire. Part 3: Chaos in Doomspace begins with the par- ty’s arrival in Doomspace, where the coalition they had intended to join turns out to be a bunch of quarreling factions. They must find away to u the factions before attacking the Xaryxian Empire Part 4: Saviors of the Multiverse describes Xaryxispace and the characters’ climactic encoun: ter with Prince Xeleth and the armada under his command. Finally, the characters arrive at the imperial citadel, where they discover the true cost of saving their world and must decide the fate of, Xaryxis and the Xaryxian Empire before making the long voyage home. aracters! RUNNING THE ADVENTURE To run the adventure, you need the fifth edition core rulebooks (Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, and Monster Manual). In addition, you need the other two books included in this product: Boo's Astral Menagerie and the Astral Adventurer's Gu Text that appears in @ box lke this is meant to be read aloud paraphrased forthe players when their characters frst ative at a location or under a specific circumstance, as described in the text. Whena creature's name appears in bold type, that’s a visual cue pointing you to its stat block as a way of saying, “Hey, DM, you better get this creature's stat block ready. You're going to need it.” Usually, you can find the stat block in the Monster Manual; ifthe stat block is in Boo's Astral Menagerie, the adven ture’s text tells you so. Spells and equipment mentioned in the adven. ture are described in the Player's Handbook, while magic items are described in the Dungeon Master's Guide, unless the adventure's text directs you to the Astral Adventurer's Guide.6 The Astral Adventurer's Guide describes the many pes of spelljamming vessels mentioned in the adventure and includes deck plans for each one. At ‘your discretion, you can provide the players with ‘a copy of the deck plans for whatever ship they're sailing aboard and allow them to manage the ship's activity during encounters, freeing you to concen: trate on running the nonplayer characters and their ships. ADVENTURE INSPIRATION Light of Xaryxis is inspired by the 1980 film Flash Gordon and serialized Flash Gordon comic strips from the 1930s, The adventure’s heroes, like Flash Gordon himself, must defeat otherworldly foes to save their home planet. Campy supporting char. acters, implausible situations, and over-the-top dialogue help push the story toward its inevitable conclusion. Absurd plot twists undercut the sense of urgency, keeping the heroes on their toes as they stumble from one cliffhanj Here are some thingsyou can do to make Light of Xaryxis feel like the pulpy scifi tales that inspired i: «+ Watch the 1980 Flash Gordon film. It's not Shak: s ut the dial quotabl and sets are fantastic + Any nonplayer character who isn't fighting the heroes should naturally defer to the heroes, giv ing players the sense that their characters matter (no matter how puny and insignificant they might ‘seem to their enemies). + End each session with a cliffhanger. The adven- ture already has one at the end of each chapter, but you can create your own cliffhanger by ending a session with an unexpected threat, twist, or revelation + When you're ready to begin a new chapter, read or paraphrase the recap that appears at the start of the chapter, embellishing it with pertinent events or memorable quotes from earlier game sessions, STARTING CHARACTERS The adventure assumes that the characters start at Sth level. If your players have characters of lower level, they will need to go on some other adventures first to gain enough experience to advance to Sth level. Both the DUNGEONS & DRaGons Starter Set and the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Essentials Kit con- tain adventures that will take characters from Ist level to 5th level. Alternatively, you can simply ask your players to create new Sth-level characters, as described in the next section,CHaRacrer CREATION If spacefaring races are common on your world, you can add backgrounds and races from the Astral Ad- venturer’s Guide to the list of character options that players can choose from when creating their charac ters. As the DM, you decide what is available to your players and what isn't. If, during the adventure, a player wants to create a new character (perhaps because their previous one died or left the party), that player can roll up a new character of the same level as the rest of the adven: turing party, choosing from the options available. If the party is in Wildspace or the Astral Sea, you can assume that all the character options from the As. tral Adventurer's Guide are available, To create Sth-level characters for this adventure, players can use the character creation steps out lined in the Player’s Handbook. In addition to more hit points, class features, and spells, each character has normal starting equipment plus 625 gp to spend on additional nonmagical gear. If youre running a high magic campaign, each character also gains one uncommon magic item of the player's choice, sub ject to your approval. CHARACTER ADVANCEMENT ‘At the end of each of the adventure's parts, every- one in the party receives enough experience points toadvance 1 level so that they are at the level they should be for the next chapter, as shown in the Character Levels table. Characters who finish the adventure advance to 9th level CHaracter Levets Part Character Level 1: Seeds of Destruction sth 2: Terrors ofthe Void 6th 3: Chaos in Doomspace 1th 4: Saviors of the Multiverse ath WHERE TO BEGIN? ‘The adventure begins in a coastal city or port town on a world where the characters are either seeking their fortunes or resting between adventures. Since most of this adventure takes place in Wildspace and the Astral Sea, the initial setting doesn't have much effect on how the adventure will play out. The char. acters’ home world serves mainly to set the stakes for the story—it's in danger of being destroyed!—so using a world your players are familiar with works best, whether that is a published campaign setting, or a world of your own creation. Ifyou used Lost Mine of Phandelver (the adven: ture in the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS Starter Set) ‘or Dragon of Icespire Peak (the adventure in the DUNGEONS & Dracons Essentials Kit) to get the characters to Sth level, then Light of Xaryais begins in the same region featured in those introductory adventures: the Sword Coast in the Forgotten, Realms setting, on the world of Toril. The city of. Neverwinter, one of several major ports along the ‘Sword Coast, could easily be where the characters find themselves at the beginning of this adventure. All the locations the characters visit in this adven ture are described in this book, and further details, about the Rock of Bral are provided in the Astral Adventurer's Guide. USING THE STARLIGHT APPARITION In addition to being a fascinating encounter in its own right, the starlight apparition (see Boo's Astral Menage tre) can be a useful device for you fa key nonplayer character meets an unfortunate and unexpected end. later in the adventure, the characters need a piece of information only that nonplayer character would know, you can have the nonplayer character appear in the foo of a starlight apparition to guide the characters.See aie) ART‘S THE ADVENTURE OPENS, THE CHARACTERS. are going about their daily business in a bustling coastal settlement, where every: one is talking about the spectacular meteor showers that have blazed through the sky the past, several nights. In fact, what folks have witnessed are showers of astral seeds falling from space and plunging deep into the ground and water in and around the settlement. Some of these seeds have now germinated. The adventure begins when enormous crystalline vines erupt from beneath the streets, throwing the community into chaos. ASTRAL BLIGHTS When you are ready to begin play, reac: | nity, where local fshing boats share the harbor with trade vessels fom far and wide. Lately everyone has been discussing the deluge offalling stars that has lit up the evening sky fr the past several nights. Some saythese celestial events are omens of impending disaster. Others believe they area precursorto the gods descending from the heavens to walk the land Noone knows for sure You ate just fishing your midday meal wie lis tening toa blacksmith tell about being awakened lastnight by aloud crash According tothe smith crystaline vine burst out of the ground and punched a hole through the roof of his neighbor's bakery. “Must | be divine punishment forthe bad pies and steep prices,” says the blacksmith witha nervous chuckle Suddenly, the earth shakes violently beneath your feet. You hear the dull oar ofa distant eruption. The | smith and several others hury outside. Joining them, you see a sinuous, crystaline vine erupting from the ground a few blocks away—tall enough tobe seen above the rooftop, Screams of pane rise from the same direction ‘Asallor standing in your midst says,“ think i's time | returned t my ship. You're welcome to join ime. You woul be wise to flee as wel” With that, she makes her way toward the docks CHAPTER 1 Astral “Rain, The ground churns again, and more eruptions burst through the streets all around you. From these sites sprout smaller crystalline vines that uproot them: selves and begin lurching through the streets, driving panicked citizens before them, while the enormous vine in the distance stretches ever taller. | The friendly sailor, Elaina Sartell, is described later in the chapter. She flees at once, leaving the charac- ters to decide their own course of action, The ambulatory vines are six astral blights (see the accompanying stat block). They focus their attacks on nearby commoners, ignoring the characters except for any who attack them. The blights’ slow speed means the characters can evade them easily. ‘The characters have several choices for how to proceed: Fight the Blights. Ifthe characters destroy all six blights, new ones appear; roll a d6 to determine how many. These new arrivals either burst up from the ground or shamble along streets and al- leys, converging on the characters’ location. Each. time the characters defeat a group of blights, a new wave appears; repeat the die roll to see how. many more blights arrive. With the appearance of each new wave, it should become increasingly obvious to the players that the characters can't eliminate all the blights and should consider a different course of action, Head to the Docks. If the characters heed Elaina Sartell's advice and head to the docks, run the “Trouble at the Docks" encounter when they arrive Hole Up. Ifthe characters try to barricade them- selves in a building or find somewhere else in the settlement to hide, the increasingly violent earth tremors cause their shelter to partially collapse, ‘making it apparent that there's no safe refuge in the settlement. The characters will need to choose another option. Investigate the Crystalline Vine. Ifthe characters ‘make their way toward the enormous crystalline vine, see “Crystalline Vine” below. Make for the Outskirts. Ifthe characters bolt through the streets and alleys toward the out skirts of the settlement, see “Danger in the Streets” below. CHAPTERI|ASTRALRAIN i ‘ 3>» ASTRAL BLIGHT Medium Biot, Unalgned ‘Armor Class 12 (natural armor) Hit Points 26 (48 + 8) Speed 10 ‘STR DEX 1663) 8-1) CON INT WIS CHA 1462) 6-2) 1060) 3-4) ‘Damage Resistances cold radiant ‘Senses blindsight 60 ft. (blind beyond this radius), passive Perception 10, Languages — Challenge (200 xP) Proficiency Bonus +2 Ilrmination Wile i has a east 1 hit point, the astral Blight sheds dim light in a 10-foot radius Unusual Nature, The blight doesr't require airor sleep. Actions “Multiattack. The Bight makes two Heat-Draining Vine attacks Heat-Draining Vine. Melee Weopon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 10 fe one target Mit:6 (Id6 + 3) radiant damage, and ifthe target is’ Large or amaller creature, itis grappled (escape OC 13). ntl this grapple ends, the target takes 3 (146) cold damage at the start ofeach of ts tums. Te bight has twa vines, each of which can grapple one creature. = CHAPTER] | ASTRAL RAIN CRYSTALLINE VINE The vine growing in the center of the setlement sproutedafter an astral seed fell from the sky, crashed into the bakery, and buried itself in the ground. The vine is 50 feet wide at its base, rises 1,000 feet into the air, and i still growing. tis made of an iridescent mineral that is impervious tothe characters’ spells and weapons. A character who makes a successful DC 10 Intelligence (Nature) check determines that the substance is a type of liv- ing crystal. No astral blights congregate near the crystalline vine, which means the characters can approach and study it without being attacked. The vine is warm to the touch and pulses with light. Any character who succeeds on a DC 15 Intelligence (Arcana) check realizes that the vine's roots extend deep into the earth and are feeding on the planet's ther- ‘mal energy. There appears to be no way to stop this process. As it grows taller, the vine also grows wider, slowly pushing away the dirt and debris from around its base. Inform the players thatthe tremors seem to be getting stronger as the vine grows, eav ing them with two options: flee for the docks (see “To the Docks" below) or flee forthe outskirts (see “Danger in the Streets” below). DANGER IN THE STREETS Astral blights roam the streets. Members of the local militia (use the guard stat block) try to hold the blights at bay long enough for unarmed civilians, to lee the vicinity. Ifthe characters stay in a si location for longer than 1 minute, 1d6 astral blights (see the accompanying stat block) converge on their location and attack them, The following events occur as the characters move through streets and alleys toward the outskirts of the settlement, but not if they head straight to the docks: Avalanche of Debris. Tremors cause buildings close to the characters to collapse, catching them in an avalanche of debris, Each character must make a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw, taking 22 (4d10) bludgeoning damage on a failed save, or halfas much damage on a successful one. Terrified Citizens. A crowd of thirty commoners, rushes past the characters, led by a scrappy youngster who shouts, “To the docks! We'll take one of the ships! I's our only hope!” An old ‘woman grabs the arm of a character and moans, “Those vines are everywhere! There's nowhere safe! We're all doomed!” Suddenly, a tremor causes a building to collapse, burying half of the crowd and scattering what's left of itIfthe characters leave the settlement by land, they see dozens of gigantic crystalline vines sprouting across the countryside as hundreds of astral blights rove the fields. The tremors become full-blown earthquakes as the crystalline vines plunge their roots into the earth and reach hundreds of feet into the air. Characters who press on in this direction instead of heading back to the docks are eventually rescued (see "Emergency Airlift” below). TROUBLE AT THE DOCKS When the characters arrive at the docks, read: The scene at the docks is chaotic. Hundreds of people swarm the piers, trying to push their way onto three vessels that haven't yet set sall: two longships and a galleon. A group of thugs in black leather armor use their clubs on a crowd of screaming commoners, keeping the people away from the ships as they're loaded with cargo under the supervision of a sneering man with long red hair ‘Awoman steps out ofthe crowd and wipes blood from her chin. “Glad to see you again,” she says with ‘a smile. “I'm Captain Elaina Sartell, and one of those ships is mine, Pity can’t reach it. Would you be good ‘enough to help me? | promise to return the favor.” Y Captain Elaina Sartell, a chaotic good bandit eap- tain, commands the galleon Moondancer. She is. unflappable—an island of calm in a sea of chaos. ‘TRAEVUS AND His GANG Captain Sartell identifies the red-haired man asa local crime lord named Traevus—a neutral evil vet- ‘eran, The ten thugs blocking her path work for him. ‘Traevus and his thugs are indifferent toward the party but turn hostile if the characters try to force their way onto the Moondancer with Captain Sartell in tow. Although Sartell knows Traevus, he doesn't recognize her. Traevus is intent on saving himself and as much of his merchandise as possible. As an action, a char. acter can try to convince him to take the party and Sartell on as crew, doing so with a successful DC 10 Charisma (Persuasion) check. If Traevus learns that Sartell is the ship's captain, he orders his thugs to apprehend Sartell, hoping. that capturing her will help keep the crew of the Moondancer in line. Ifhe is challenged, or if he catches one or more characters trying to get aboard the Moondancer, Traevus attacks along with six of his thugs while the others continue to hold back the mob that has gathered at the docks. If Traevus is de- feated, any remaining thugs in his employ lose their will to fight. Some are overrun by the mob, and the rest leap into the water and swim toward the two longships as they set sail Once the thugs are defeated, the Moondancer takes aboard the rest of the citizens gathered at the docks—sixty souls in all—before shoving off. See chapter 2 for more information about the Moon- dancer and its crew. PossIBLE ENDINGS If the characters boarded the Moondancer at th docks, wrap up the session with “Up and Away’ Otherwise, use “Emergency Airlif.” Up AND Away Once the characters and other passengers are safely aboard the Moondancer, read: Ai Here ends chapter EMERGENCY AIRLIFT Ifthe characters don't make it to the docks, Captain Sartell reveals her identity to Traevus and negoti- ates a deal with him whereby she takes command of the Moondancer in exchange for delivering Traevus, his gang, and their belongings to a safe port. As ‘soon as they set sail, Sartell orders the ship to take flight and rescue the party. Traevus and his thugs are too stunned by this development to interfere, Wherever the characters happen to be, Sartell finds them. Read: {A great shadow falls over you. You look up to see a mighty galleon floating mn midair, ts sails ruffing in | the breeze. A rope ladder tumbles down from the ship's side to hang mere feet above the ground, and a face appears over the side of the railing “Need a lift?” ask the sailor you met earlier. 4S Hore ends chapter pt CHAPTERL| ASTRAL RAIN 112 CHAPTER 2 Attack of the Star Moth, Driven from a coastal settlement by gigantic erystalline vines, astral blights, and earthquakes, the characters se- cured passage aboard the Moondancer, a gallean under the command of Captain Elaina Sartell The ship then rocketed into space! As the Moondancer leaves the planet's atmosphere and enters Wildspace, Captain Sartell sets a course for the Rock of Bral. Now is the time for you to de. termine where the Rock of Bral is situated relative to the characters’ home world, Once you've deter: mined the Rock of Bral’s location in Wildspace, es timate how many days it will take the Moondancer to get there. If the adventure began on Toril, the Rock of Bral is one of several asteroids orbiting the planet, and getting there takes only a few hours. Otherwise, assume the Rock orbits another world Capram Evan Samreus CHAPTER 2| ATTACK OF THE STAR MOTH e ors situated in a nearby asteroid belt and requires several days to reach. In this chapter, the Moondancer is intercepted by an astral elf vessel shortly after leaving the charac: ters! world, but the characters have time to finish a short rest before the enemy ship arrives. Before running this chapter, familiarize yourself with chapter 2 of the Astral Adventurer’s Guide. Keep the deck plans for the space galleon and the star moth handy, because they will come into play. ABOARD THE MOONDANCER ‘As the Moondancer leaves the characters’ world behind, read: Standing on the deck of the Moondancer, you see scores of erystalline vines erupting from the surface of, your world, some ofthe vines reaching high enough to break through the clouds. You find yourself sailing through a void filled with colorful gases and blinking stars. A school of space-dwelling Ssh swims past the ship on the starboard side. "Welcome to Wildspace,” says Captain Sartel sweeping her arms wide. “That was a clase thing, down there, Blast if | know what those vines are or how to getrid of them, but somebody on the Rock of Bral might.” | Only two members of the Moondancer's crew are aboard: Captain Sartell and a spelljamming flumph (see “Flapjack the Flumph" below). Depending on how events played out in chapter 1, the Moondancer ‘might have the following passengers on board, in addition to the characters: + Traevus and his thugs (neither Traevus nor his, ‘thugs will take orders from Captain Sartell, in stead keeping to themselves as long as the charac. ters are around to thwart any open revolt) + Upto sixty commoners (six of whom are compe: tent sailors) ‘The Moondancer is armed with two ballistae but hhas no crew to operate them. Its mangonel was de- stroyed in a recent engagement, and Captain Sartell hasn't replaced it yet. Getting a new mangonel was the main reason Sartell was on the party's home world, since wood is much easier to find there than. at her usual portof call, the Rock of Bral.CapTAaIN ELAINA SARTELL Captain Sartell operates out of the Rock of Bral as a privateer under the commission of the city’s ruler, Prince Andru, She assures the characters that they'll be safe there. ‘Once her ship docks at the Rock of Bral, Captain ‘Sartell plans to offload the characters and the ship's other passengers. This act marks the extent of her willingness to help the characters. FLAPJACK THE FLUMPH (One crew member stayed aboard the Moondancer ‘while it was in port: a flumph named Flapjack, who serves as the ship's spelljammer. Flapjack has the following additional action option: Spellcasting. The flumph casts one ofthe following spell, re ‘hing no material components and using Inteligence a the spelleasting abilty (spell save OC 12) ‘At wil: moge hand, minor ilsion day each: magic missile, unseen servant FEATURES OF THE MOONDANCER Use the space galleon deck plans in the Astral Adventurer's Guide to represent the Moondancer. Noteworthy features are described below: Area 3: Captain’s Quarters. Among Captain Sar. tell's possessions is a locked treasure chest, which she keeps in her cabin. Captain Sartell carries the only key to the chest. As an action, a character can pick the lock by making a successful DC 15 Dex terity check using thieves’ tools, or break open the chest with a successful DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check, The chest contains three bottles of fine wine (10 gp each), six gold bracelets(25 gp each), nine pearls (100 gp each) in a velvet pouch, and a spell scroll of air bubble (see the Astral Adventur. er's Guide). Area 5: Spelljamming Helm. The ship's spelliam. ‘ming helm looks like a floating, ornate silver chair ‘with a purple seat cushion and no legs. Glowing blue crystals underneath the seat project a magic circle onto the floor, stabilizing the chair. Flapjack the flumph sits in the chair while piloting the ship. Area 12: Upper Cargo Hold. The upper cargo hold contains a dozen healthy mules (wiiich Sartell plans to sell as beasts of burden); sacks of food for the animals; and material placed here by Traevus and his gang (see chapter 1), which consists of twenty 40pound crates of assorted martial weap: cons (2,000 gp total value) and five hundred bottles of brandy (3 gp each). Area 13: Lower Cargo Hold. The lower cargo hold contains crates of foodstuffs and casks of fresh water, enough to last ten Medium creatures for thirty days, * WHEN ELVES ATTACK The characters have time to take a short rest be fore trouble catches up to them and Captain Sartell presses them into service. At the end of the charac ters’ short rest, read: "Astral elves,” curses Captain Sartell, “and they | Meer es aati ae | The astral elf vessel is a star moth called the Dark ‘Star. Itis crewed by three astral elf warriors—Cap. tain Azmadian (lawful evil), Lieutenant Jalin (lawful evil), and Lieutenant Zanth (lawful neutral) —as well as a neutral evil astral elf star priest named Altura (the ship's spelliammer), and nine hadozee ship- mates of various alignments (see Boo’s Astral Me- znagerie for the astral elf and hadozee stat blocks). CHAPTER 2 | ATTACK OF THE STAR MOTH 1, wega 14 Surp-To-Snip BaTTLe See chapter 2 ofthe Astral Adventurer's Guide for rules on ship-to-ship engagements. Captain Sartell grimly informs the characters that the star moth is the faster ship and that the Moon- dancer has no hope of outrunning it. She estimates the characters have about a minute to prepare before the star moth gets close enough to use its. ‘mangonel (at long range). Once that happens, Sar- tell orders her ship to turn about and close with the astral elves as quickly as possible to minimize the Dark Star's opportunity to fire on the Moondancer. Itthen takes another minute for the two ships to come within boarding distance. DEALING WITH THE Dark STAR Once the ships are close enough, the three astral elf warriors board the Moondancer, their faces hid- den behind visors, and haughtily demand Captain Sartell’s surrender. She politely declines, prompting the astral elves to attack while the hadozees use the Dark Star's ballistae to fire on characters they can see. Captain Sartell fights alongside the characters, but Traevus and his thugs, if they are aboard, come to the Moondancer's defense only if it looks like the characters are about to lose. (CHAPTER 2| ATTACK OF THE STAR MOTH er ‘The astral elves are confident they can conquer the Moondancer, but iftwo of the warriors fall, the third tries to retreat to the Dark Star. After that at tempt succeeds or fails, the star moth beats a hasty retreat. The star priest, Altura, remains aboard the Dark Star and uses a sending spell to relay what hhas happened to Helix, an astral elf on the Rock of Bral (see chapter 4). The hadozees, meanwhile, are not great fighters and either flee or surrender if the characters engage them in melee. QuestioniNe THE ASTRAL ELVES Characters who capture and interrogate one or more of the astral elves can learn the following information: + The astral elves, by order of Emperor Xavan of the Xaryxian Empire, are responsible for dropping, astral seeds on the party's home world. + The leader of the astral elf forces in this Wild- space system is Commander Vael. Most of ‘Commander Vael's fleet has already begun sail ing back to Xaryxispace. The Dark Star was left behind to monitor the astral seeds’ progress. + The vines and astral blights will feed on the plan- et’s energy and that of its flora and fauna until the party's home world is a dead husk, a process that takes several months. The energy then will be transmitted in a single, enormous burst of lightback to the astral elves’ home system to be ab- sorbed by their star, Xaryxis. + Once the astral seeds have begun their work, there is no way to stop the process. (This isn’t true, but the crew of the Dark Star believes itis. The characters won't discover the truth of this matter until later in the adventure) Quesrionine THE HapozeEs The hadozees are mercenaries and have no insight into the astral elves’ motives or plans. Even so, they can provide the characters with the following pieces of information: + The Dark Star's cargo hold was packed with at least a hundred astral seeds, which were jet- tisoned one by one into the atmosphere of the party's home world. (The hadozees don't know what the astral seeds do, but they know that each one resembles a crystal pod roughly the size and shape of a coffin.) The astral elves hail from a faraway Wildspace system called Xaryxispace. The Dark Star was one of several astral elf ships that traveled to the party's home world. The rest of, the fleet has already departed. The hadozees are willing to serve aboard the Moon- dancer if they are treated fairly. If she survives the battle, Captain Sartell puts the hadozees to work, though she keeps them under close supervision. PRISONERS OF THE ASTRAL ELVES Ifthe characters are defeated, the astral elves allow dying characters to be stabilized. The astral elves assume control of the Moondancer while keeping Captain Sartell hostage aboard the Dark Star to en- sure Flapjack’s compliance. The astral elf and hado- zee crew members are split between the two ships. ‘The astral elves then start heading for the edge of the Wildspace system to rendezvous with the rest of \Vael's fleet. En route, the two ships might encounter the derelict nautiloid, neogi raiders, or the Rock of Bral navy (all described in chapters 3 and 4), provid- ing the characters with opportunities to escape, TREASURE The Dark Star is a fine treasure; however, surviving hadozee crew members recommend abandoning it, knowing that the astral elves will rain vengeance ‘upon anyone in control of one of their ships. Its spelljamming helm is a more easily usable prize. Itlooks like a legless, high-backed chair made of ‘wood, with crystal wings and armrests. Luminous crystals under the seat project a golden hexagon conto the floor; this hexagon stabilizes the helm, al- Jowing it to swivel while holding it in place, ‘The Dark Star's cargo hold contains enough food. and water to sustain the ship's crew for twenty days. A TRAEVUS TAKES OVER Ifthe astral elves are defeated and Traevus and his, thugs are alive and aboard the Moondancer, Traevus (neutral evil veteran) tries to take the galleon by force before the characters have a chance to finish a short rest. To THE ROCK OF BRAL Assuming the characters repel the astral elves, the ‘Moondancer resumes its journey to the Rock of Bral, Even ifthe characters didn't interrogate the astral elves, Captain Sartell has a hunch that the astral elves have something to do with the calamity befalling the party's home planet and says as much, ‘She also mentions knowing someone on the Rock of Bral who might be willing to help the party. Ifthe characters inquire further, Sartell informs them the contact is a giff named Commodore Krux, but she can’t tell them more than that since she knows Krux only by reputation. Enough time passes for the characters to take a Jong rest. When they're not resting, the characters are assigned miscellaneous chores. During the voyage, the characters are free to ask Sartell or Flapjack more about Wildspace, the Rock of Bral, or the duo's previous adventures. Captain Sartell enjoys telling of her encounters with various Wildspace creatures (among them a friendly solar dragon and some not-so-friendly space clowns), while Flapjack explains the subtleties of astral nav- ‘gation. If the party has any spellcasters, Flapjack takes this opportunity to instruct them in the rudi- ments of spelljamming. MIND FLAYERS? When the characters are hours away from arriving at the Rock of Bral, read: Beate oa ae ee 1. Hereends chapter? CHAPTER? | ATTACK OF THESTARMOTH 15 Ni siete‘The characters escaped their endangered world with the help of Captain Sartell and her ship, the Moondancer, ‘and ran afout of an astral elf ship called a star moth, After surviving their frst Wildspace encounter, the characters resumed their voyage to the Rock of Bra. Along the way, they made a terrifying discovery: a mind flayer ship lurking ‘among some asteroids! What at first appeared to be a dangerous mind flayer ship turns out to be a derelict vessel. Closer investigation turns up a single member of a pirate crew. In fact, this “survivor” is a psurlon ringer, a horrific predator disguised as a human. Tue Lucent Epict The vessel is the Lucent Edict, a nautiloid, After the characters sight the craft, read: | 6s tena shaped vss ifs cose Captain Sartel lets outa sigh ofr, "t's a dereiet= she says pining otis stripped weaponry and broken hull If there wee mind ayers aboard the wouldve attacked by now: Look ke somebody's already picked it over Stil there might be something eft worth bagi. The sensory input provided by the Moondancer's spelliamming helm interfaces in a special way with Flapjack’s Advanced Telepathy, enabling the flumph to sense the presence of telepathic activity on nearby vessels and making the flumph a sort of early warning system in advance of encounters with mind flayers and their ilk. The nautiloid makes. Flapjack uneasy, a feeling that stems from the pres- cence of psurlons on board it. At the same time, the psurlons’ Alien Mind trait confounds the flumph's Advanced Telepathy. Flapjack has the vague sense that something is aboard the derelict vessel but can't say What. He shares this information with Sar. tell and any characters with whom he has forged a close bond. Captain Sartell orders Flapjack to bring her ship alongside the vessel while she designates the char- acters as a boarding party, instructing them to kill any hostile creatures they encounter. Ifthe characters balk at exploring the nautiloid, Captain Sartell sarcastically apologizes for | CHAPTER 3 Treacherous Salvage Ye interrupting their “pleasure cruise” and wonders aloud whether they'd rather stay back and swab the decks while she does all the hard work. Ifthe char- acters still refuse, Captain Sartell makes good on her threat and boards the vesselherselfin search of salvage. When she doesn't return, Flapjack urges the party to go and find her, refusing to leave the nautiloid behind until they do so. BENOTO KRALAZAR ‘Whether or not the characters consent to Captain Sartell’ plan, they soon see a young human in ragged, bloodstained clothes step out onto the nau: tloid’s battle prow. He waves his arms to get their attention and seems tobe in distress. If one or more characters enter the nautiloid’s air envelope, he in troduces himself as Benoto Kralazar and explains that his ship (the nautiloid) was attacked by neogi He informs the characters that most of his erew are dead, but there are still afew survivors aboard in need of healing, and he begs the party's help. Benoto is a psurlon ringer (see Boo's Astral Me- nagerie), a descendant ofa group of psurlons that traveled with the Lucent Edict’s original mind flayer crew. The mind layers were attacked and wiped out by githyanki, who disabled the nautiloid and left itadsift. Human pirates found the wreck and tried to plunder it, unaware thatthe psurlonsleft behind a hidden clutch of eggs. After hatching from their eggs, the juvenile psurlons began preying on the pirates, killing several of them and forcing the rest to flee. One ofthe psurlons then assumed the form ofa pirate named Benoto Kralazar and has since been using the disguise to ure other victims onto the Lucent Edict. IF the characters board the Lucent Edict, Benoto shows them around the ship while he spins a tale about his crew's harrowing encounter with a group of neogi. The tale is not entirely fanciful-a band of neogi did recently board the Lucent Edict in search of salvage, but they retreated once they realized the nautiloid was home to a bunch of psurlons. ExPLoRING THE Lucent Epict Use the nautiloid deck plans in chapter 2 of the Astral Adventurer's Guide to represent the Lucent Edict. The ship shows signs of battle damage and has 220 hit points remaining. The nautiloid is also missing its spelliamming helm and its ballistae, and its mangonel is broken.‘The Lucent Edict has the following features: Illumination. All areas in the ship are dimly lit by flickering, bioluminescent orbs mounted to the walls or hanging from the ceiling. Removing an orb from its socket causes the orb to go dark. Interior Doors. Each interior door is a fleshy bar. rier that opens when a creature that has telepathy approaches within § feet of it, then quickly closes after the creature and its companions have moved through it, A door must otherwise be pried or tick: led open, which requires an action. ‘The following locations are depicted on the nautiloid deck plans. Locations that are not described below are assumed to contain nothing of interest. 1 Captain's CHAIR ‘An impressive chair is posed at the end of a catwalk s0 ts occupant ean look down onto the bridge floor. Green, glowing maggots crawl over the chairs current ‘occupant: a headless mind flayer corpse. A githyanki knight beheaded the nautiloid’s captain and took the head as a trophy, leaving the rest of the corpse slumped in the chair. Any character who disturbs the headless corpse causes the green, glowing maggots covering it to become a hostile swarm of insects. Treasure. A character who examines the captain's chair and succeeds on a DC 15 Intelligence (Investi gation) check finds a secret compartment in the left armrest. This compartment contains a black metal tube containing a spel! scrol! of wall of force. 3: SPELIJAMMING HELM Lying on the floor ofthis raised platform isthe head- less body ofa mind fayer. The stench ofthe rotting corpse is unpleasant, to say the least. The dead mind ayer lies in an otherwise open space where you imag: ine the ship's heim used to be. ‘The githyanki who attacked the nautiloid disabled the craft by removing its spelljamming helm. They took the head of the dead mind flayer as a trophy. Treasure. Lying on the deck near the dead mind flayer is an Joun stone (reserve). The stone currently holds a single casting of the shield spell.4: BRIDGE FLOOR ‘The nautiloid’s bridge has a high ceiling. Stairs ascend toa forward observation deck, and toward the stern a ladder climbs to the top of a balcony. Four psurlons (see Boo's Astral Menagerie) hide in the shadows under the two fights of stairs that climb to the observation platform (area 2). These psurlons attack to kill. If Benoto is present, he helps his fellow psurlons, 6: OBSERVATION PLATFORM The splintered remains of a mangone! lie on ths fr ward deck, strewn around piles of ammunition, Amid several stacks of ballista bolts are a few clus: ters of mangonel stones. If the characters are inter ested in salvaging this ammunition, assume there are forty of each kind. 10: Mess HALL The door to this forward compartment has been fastened shut with sutures made of ropes and steel hooks, A character can cut through the sutures with a suit able tool and 1 minute of effort, after which the door can be opened normally. ‘The mess hall contains a neh-thalggu (see Boo's Astral Menagerie) that currently has eight brains, The neh-thalggu, kept as a pet by the mind layers, evaded the githyanki by using its invisibility spell, but it was later trapped here by the human pirates, after it killed one of their number. Ifa character approaches within 10 feet of the sutured door, the neh: thalggu calls out for help in ‘Common, begging to be freed. It pretends to be a hu: ‘man pirate named Jaspar Graves and claims to have been trapped here by the aberrations that murdered the rest of the crew. (The neh-thalggu knows that psurlons have killed the other pirates and warns, the characters about this if they haven't already discovered it for themselves, If the characters askBenoto about the neh-thalggu’s story, he dismisses itasa fabrication, explaining that “Jaspar” is a brain-devouring aberration and that the characters, shouldn't trust a word it says, nor should they free it. 14: Carco HoL> This cargo hold looks and smells like slaughter house. Bodies lie strewn about the deck, and the floor {s stained with blood, Mast of the bodies appear to be ‘human, but one is an arachnid form with an ee neck and head that lies as motionless asthe others. Ifthe characters follow Benoto here, he tries to split the party at this point. He invites one or two characters to accompany him to area 4 (where the other psurlons lie in wait) while suggesting that the remaining characters stay behind and search the cargo hold. Corpses. The cargo hold contains eleven human corpses, The arachnid form is a dead neogi (see Boo's Astral Menagerie). A character who examines the corpses and makes a successful DC 10 Intel: ligence (Investigation) check discovers that all the bodies have circular bite marks on them, including the neogi. Although several scimitars and cross. bows are scattered about the room, the corpses show no evidence of having been struck by them. The bodies are in varying states of decay. With a successful DC 10 Wisdom (Medicine) check, a char acter can determine that the neogi died within the last 24 hours, and that the freshest human corpses are at least three days old. ‘Supplies. In addition to the corpses, the cargo. hold has enough food and water stored in crates and casks to nourish ten Medium creatures for five days, as well several barrels of pickled brains floating in brine (food for the mind flayers). Treasure. A search of the human corpses in the cargo hold turns up a total of 23 gp and 117 sp in loose change and a bloodstone ring (50 gp). 17: CeLLBLOcK ‘The rotting corpse ofa headless mind flayer ies amid the hacked-up corpses of three hulking creatures with blood-spattered white fur. The condition ofthe corpses suggests that something or someone has been feeding on them, Githyanki warriors slew a mind layer and its three quaggoth thralls, then claimed the illithid’s head as atrophy. The corpses are slowly being consumed by the quaggoth in area 19, who survived the githyanki attack by hiding. Characters who take the time to search the bodies find something of value (see “Treasure” below). ‘The cells used to contain nine prisoners. The githyanki liberated their kin and put the other pris- ners out of their misery. Characters who search the cells find the remains of three humans, a dwarf, ahadozee, and a plasmoid. Treasure. The beheaded mind flayer wears a +1 breastplate embossed with tentacles. 19: STORAGE | Aterible stench fil this compartment, but the ik tring lights caf revels sure, You da, howe, tear ey boating. A quaggoth hides around the corner on the star: board side of the compartment, out of view of the doorway. Fearing capture, it attacks any creature that enters the compartment. ‘Stench. Once the quaggoth is dealt with, the characters can track down the source of the terrible stench: the putrescent, mostly eaten corpses of five psurlons hidden under a staircase that climbs to the battle deck. Within these foul remains are dozens of. gelatinous, marble-sized egg casings left behind by the psurlon worms that hatched from the eggs. NEOGI RAIDERS “The neogi raiders that made an abortive salvage attempt on the Lucent Edict didn't go far. Reasoning that other ships might be attracted tothe drifting derelict, the neogi piloted their craft into a cluster of nearby asteroids and waited, The neogi watch the Moondancer’s approach with interest, waiting to see ifthe characters board the nautiloid. Once the characters leave the Lucent Edict and return to their ship, the neogi spring their trap Just as you are making ready to leave, a dark shape glides across the face of a nearby asteroid. It is another ship. The new arrival resembles a giant spider, complete with long, delicate legs and weblike rigging. Starlight gleams off its metallic hull as it creeps silently toward your vessel “Anightspider!” shouts Captain Sartell. "The neog! ‘were using this hulk a bait, and we've flown right into their web! A Here ends part ofthe venture. Each character should gaina evel before the nex session CHAPTER 5 | TREACHEROUS SALVACE — A 19TERRORS OF THE VOID ea ad Zz~ ra Qo CHAPTER 4 “A Friend “Indeed En route tothe Rock of Bral, the characters discovered a derelict nautloid drifting in an asteroid fleld. Only too late did they realize that another, more dangerous ship was lurking nearby, waiting to springitstrap! Annightspider crewed by neogi has made its pres. ‘ence known, but the characters aren't forced to deal with any new problems. The timely arrival of a naval patrol drives off the neogi raiders, after which the patrol sees the party safely to the Rock of Bral. There, the characters part ways with Captain Sartell, who encourages them to seek out a gif in- surgent named Commodore Krux. The giff brings the characters to his spelljamming vessel, the Sec: ond Wind. They set out into Wildspace pursued by Hastain, a deadly ally of the Xaryxian Empire. Before running this session, familiarize yourself with the Rock of Bral, which is described in chapter 3 of the Astral Adventurer's Guide, When the char: acters finally arrive at the Rock, you can show play: ers the poster map of the asteroid city. NIGHTSPIDER DEAD AHEAD ‘The neogi ship bearing down on the Moondancer at the end of chapter 3 is a nightspider called the Ebonsnare, See chapter 2 of the Astral Adventurer’s Guide for more information on nightspiders, ‘The Ebonsnare is crewed by eight neogi pirates (see Boo’ Astral Menagerie) and twenty common- ers of various races and alignments, whom the neogi have enslaved. The neogi also keep two um- ber hulks on board for use as shock troops during their raids. The nightspider is 250 feet away from the Moondancer when the characters spot it. The characters likely have little chance of repel: ling the neogi boarding party, especially ifthey have just fought off the psurlons hiding aboard the derelict nautiloid in chapter 3. Luckily, a patrol from the Rock of Bral happens upon the characters just in time to save them from having to fight the neogi, Alternatively, if the characters avoided encounter ing the psurlons or seem eager to test their mettle against the nightspider’s crew, allow a group of four neogi pirates and one umber hulk to board the ‘Moondancer, then have the patrol arrive at a suitably dramatic moment during the fight. ————— To THE Rescue! As the nightspider approaches the Moondancer (or after a few rounds of battle, if you decide to allow the characters and the neogi to clash), read: Suddenly, two galleons glide into view and begin pummeling the nightspider with ballista bolts and ‘mangonel stones, forcing itto break offits attack and ‘make forthe cover ofthe asteroids The newly arrived space galleons are the Stalwart and the Incorrigible, both under the command of a lawful neutral githyanki buecaneer (see Boos Astral Menagerie) named Daar'vik. The Stalwart's crew consists of eighteen bandits of various races and alignments. The crew of the Incorrigible con- sists of eighteen hadozee shipmates (see Boo's Astral Menagerie) of various alignments. The spelliammer aboard each ship isa lawful neutral, human mage. Commander Daar'vik, aboard the Incorrgible, is familiar with both the Moondancer and its captain, ‘whom he considers little better than a pirate, though the githyanki grudgingly respects Elaina Sartell's commission. His ship pulls up alongside the Moon- dancer so that Daar'vik can hail Captain Sartell and ask where the Moondancer is headed. She tells him thatthe Moondancer is going to the Rock of Bral, and Daar'vikoffers to provide an escort—an offer Sartell readily accepts in the wake ofthe nightspi- der's ambush If the Moondancer appears to be under the con- ‘rol of someone other than Captain Sartell (such as Traevus, the astral elves, or the characters), Daar'vik is suspicious and insists on escorting the ship back tothe Rock of Bral, where he has tim. pounded until the question ofits ownership can be resolved. Whether or notthe characters allow him todo this s up to them. IfCaptain Sartell is compelled to refuse Daar'vik's offer of escort (perhaps because someone is hold- ing her ship hostage or using magic to control her behavior), the githyanki commander wishes her safe travels and sets his ships in pursuit of the nightspider.Commovane ‘WELCOME TO THE ROCK When the characters arrive at the Rock of Bral, read ‘or paraphrase the following boxed text built across the top ofa gigantic asteroid. The as teroid's underside has structures as well, including fortresses and glant sails. Wooden docks protrude from one end of the asteroid, and a variety of ships are moored there. Space-dwelling ih scatter in front cof you a8 your ship adjusts its heading until the docks are straight ahead and level withthe ship's main deck Pier workers stand ready to catch ropes and te of the ship asi glides alongside one ofthe docks and slows toastop. "Welcome to the Rack! says Captain Sartell. "This fsa g us If she hasn't done so already, Captain Sartell urges the characters to seek out Commodore Krux, a giff ‘who has clashed with astral elves in the past and ‘who might be able to help the characters plan their next move, Sartell knows that Krux can usually be found at the Happy Beholder, a popular tavern, | suntght tuminats the rooftops and spires ofa cy The characters are free to explore the city. Ifthe party puts off meeting Krux for too long, move the story forward by having Captain Sartell send them. ‘a message that astral elves are searching for them, and they need to get off the Rock fast. ComMMoDoRE Krux Characters who venture to the Happy Beholder can find Commodore Krux there, day oF night, aursing hefty lagon of ale. When the characters enter the tavern, read: Alarge, spherical creature with eyestalks anda watch ful central eye tends barn this establishment. Filling ‘one side ofa table meant for sc isa broad-chested, hippo-headed man witha green parrot perched on cone shoulder. The haggard gure squint at you over the top ofan enormous tankard, then waves invitingly to the seats across from him, Krux is a lawful good giff shipmate (see Boos Astral Menagerie) a soldier who believes his glory days are behind him, Krux has spent the last few years working as a mercenary on and around the Rock of Bral, but lately the giif has been spending more time in his cups as new jobs have become fewer and farther between, The parrot perched on Krux’s shoulder isn’t his; the bird belongs to Large Luigi, the tavern's beholder proprietor. Luigi uses the parrot to help cheer up downtrodden patrons. Krux’s demeanor brightensif the characters men tion what's happening to their home world or start, to describe their encounter with the astral elves in chapter 2. The giff leans forward intently, shoves his tankard to the side, and implores the characters to tell him everything. Krux grows visibly excited as he listens to the party's tale; by the end of it, he is, willing to aid the charactersin their effort to save their world from what he calls the Xaryxian Empire, based on similar attacks he has heard about occur: ring on other worlds. Krux is tight-lipped regarding his own history with the Xaryxian Empire as well as how he plans tohelp the characters, indicating that itis best not to say too much where others might overhear: “A feet of astral elf ships visited the Rock of Bral a few days before launching the attack on your world, The elves gave fai warning to various captains on | the Rock, urging them to steer clear ofyour world lest ther ships be fred upon. The elves undoubtedly left spies behind to make sure their warnings were heeded. Best we continue this chat aboard my ship.”On the way to Krux's ship, the characters are ac- costed by four lawful evil astral elf warriors (see Boo’s Astral Menagerie) wearing cloaks and visors to conceal their identities. These elves (named Faar- fryn, Helix, Kekarion, and Lannis) seek to avenge the defeat of Captain Azmadian and the Dark Star by killing the characters in the streets. Gadaric ‘Main, the proconsul to Prince Andru of Bral, has given these emissaries diplomatic immunity. As a result, there's no one to stand in the elves’ way. Ifhe is present, Krux fights alongside the characters but, is poisoned for the duration of the fight, due to drunkenness, Ifthe characters are in danger of being defeated by the astral elves, a dozen commoners begin throwing stones and food at the astral elves. A few brazen locals even start attacking the elves with sticks and clubs. Realizing they're outnumbered, the elves withdraw while threatening to finish off the characters later. THE SECOND WIND Krux hurriedly ushers the party toward the docks in hopes of making a quick getaway aboard his ship. ‘As the characters make theit way to the Rock of Bral'sdocks with Krux at their side, read: Stately galleons, sleek cutters that resemble fying fish, and warships built to look like hammerhead sharks line the docks of Bral Kruxwaves his arm to- ward a craft that seems modest by comparison, The ship's sails are patchworks of mended canvas, while its hull seems barely held together by thick vines ‘that bind it like rope ts strangest feature isthe ful: ‘grown tree that sprouts from the aft deck. “The Second Wind,” Krux declares pridefully. “isn't she something?” ‘The Second Wind isa living ship equipped with two jolly boats called Little Boom and Big Bluster (Gee the “Jolly Boats" sidebar). See chapter 2 of the Astral Adventurer's Guide for the living ship's deck plans and weaponry. ‘The living ship's spelliamming helm, located be- owdecks, looks like an antique chair with golden upholstery and arms sculpted to look like smiling dolphins. The right arm is loose and falls off easily (hich has no effect on the item's functionality), and the chair reeks of stale ale. The chair is held aloft and stabilized by green crystals under the seat that project a magical green circle onto the floor. ‘As Krux and the characters board the vessel, they are accosted by its current captain, Fel Ardra, a chaotic neutral, tiefling cult fanatic who has been renting use of the ship from Krux. Felis irate at Krux because she still has forty days left on her lease, and the tiefling is preparing to undertake a big job when the party arrives. FELARDRA Fel Ardra is a capable spelljammer who, under dif- ferent circumstances, could make a comfortable liv ing selling her services to other captains, As it hap- pens, though, the tiefling has turned to smuggling to make enough coin to buy her way out of an infernal contract she entered into many years ago. Although Krux doesn't approve of Fel's line of business, the giff has had a soft spot for her ever since the two met. Fel sees their relationship as purely transactional, but Krux is convinced the tiefling hasa heart of gold, and he keeps trying to persuade her to give up smuggling. Now, with the party's arrival, Krux envisions the makings of a grand adventure, one he hopes that he and the char- acters can convince Fel to join, For her part, Felis indifferent to the party's plight and says that if Krux wants his ship back ahead of. time, he'll have to refund the rest of her lease pay- ‘ment, which amounts to 400 gp. Krux says he is, prepared to pay her back. Fel, however, can sense the giff's desperation, so she insists on also being compensated for the lost revenue of her next ven- ture, which she figures to be 3,000 gp. A character who makes a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Insight) check realizes Fel is bluffing—the tiefling secretly reckons she would be lucky to clear 1,000 gp—but she has always suspected Krux of having deep pock- ets and has no qualms about trying to gouge him. In truth, Krux has squandered most of his money and can barely afford to return the balance of Fel's lease payment, let alone pay the extra amount she's demanding, CHAPTERS |AFRIENDINDEED 23,24 Negotiation is not Krux’s strong suit, and the giff curns to the characters for help in convincing Fel to let them use the ship. A character can do so by impressing upon her the urgency of the party's mission and succeeding on a DC 18 Charisma (In: timidation or Persuasion) check. The check is made with advantage if the characters refund the rest of Fel's lease payment (400 gp). If the check fails, Fel is unmoved, and further attempts by that character to sway her fall on deaf ears. If the party doesn't have any spelicasters, Krux points out that they will need to hire a spelljammer. Ifthe party tries to retain Fel’ services for this pur: pose, the tiefling insists on a fee of 1,000 gp in ad dition to whatever agreement they reach regarding. her other demands. Ifit’s obvious the party can't pay what she’s asking up front, Fel is willing to accom. pany them in exchange for a 25 percent share of any treasure they find until she is paid in full. Ifthe party threatens to take the Second Wind by force, Fel storms off the ship. Within an hour, she finds four veterans who are willing to help her re take the ship. These veterans are armed with pistols (range 30/90 ft) instead of heavy crossbows. If the ‘Second Wind isn't gone by the time she returns, Fel and her hired guns attack. FLINCH ‘The first mate of the Second Wind isa neutral good hadozee explorer (see Boos Astral Menagerie) whom Krux refers to as Mister Flinch, The hadozee is also a skilled seamster; the repairs to the ship's sails are his work. Upon meeting the characters, the friendly hadozee begins offering unsolicited guid. ance on how to improve their wardrobes. Flinch is an old comrade-in.arms of Commodore Krux and stands by the giff through thick and thin. The hadozee knows about Krux's history with the astral elves but says nothing of it, replying, if pressed, that “tis not my tale to tell.” Flinch has spent the last several months keeping an eye on the ship for Krux while serving in Fel's erew. He is relieved to have Krux back on board and glad to see his friend in such high spirits, though he privately ‘worries that if their upcoming mission should fail, that might be more than the old soldier could bear. STARBOUGH The tree rooted to the Second Wind's sterncastle isa treant named Starbough, who is largely indif. ferent to the aims of either Krux or the party. Like many ofits kind, the treant considers most Human. ids’ problems to be fleeting affairs and takes a much longer view of life. Within Starbough’s reach are ten mangonel stones, which the treant can throw like rocks, To THE EDGE OF WILDSPACE Once the characters are aboard the Second Wind and safely off the Rock of Bral, Krux reveals his plan to them: to travel to another Wildspace system called Doomspace, where enemies of the Xaryxian Empire are assembling a coalition. Krux believes that the characters’ only hope of saving their planet lies in joining the coalition. Krux doesn't know ‘much about Doomspace, though, so the ship's im- ‘mediate destination is a lonely tower on an asteroid, where a wizard-cartographer named Topolah lives. Topolah is Krux's friend, and he's certain she will be ableto provide him with a map of Doomspace. Her tower's at the very edge of the Wildspace system. Having a new venture to occupy his thoughts lifes Krun’s spirits. The giff stops drinking and moves about his ship with purpose and authority, barking out orders like the military commander he once was. Any time the conversation turns to Krux's history with the Xaryxian Empire, however, the gif becomes quiet and brooding. I's obvious there isa painful memory Krux doesnt feel comfortable shar. ing yet if pressed, the giff waves dismissively, mut tering, “Things are bound to turn out differently this, time.” (More information about Krux's secret can be found in chapter 7.)RUTHLESS REIGAR Because oftheir exploits earlier in this adventure, the characters have unknowingly made an enemy of Hastain, a chaotic evil reigar (see Boo's Astral ‘Menagerie) who lives in a small palace on the Rock of Bra Hastain is a longtime ally of the Xaryxian Empire, which holds a grudge against Commodore Krux (for reasons described in chapter 7), Hastain’s spies have been watching the gif, reporting on his activities and contacts, When word ofthe recent altercation between the characters and the astral elves gets back to Hastain, the reigar decides to punish the characters for their insolence. Hastain pursues them in an esthetic (see Boo's Astral Menagerie), which trails the Second Wind ata safe distance. Once it becomes obvious that the party is heading to meet Topolah, a wizard the reigar knows by reputation, Hastain decides to put an end to the characters’ meddling: | Closing from behinds giant, bolnescent | iste creature witha farboyanty dened figure standing inside its glassy dome. The esthetic is 250 feet away at the start of the battle and tries to get close enough to attack the ‘Second Wind with its tentacles. The reigar casts dimension door on their first turn, using the spell to board the party's ship. When that happens, read: | ship. The famboyantly dressed figure steps through it | | tion ofa planet. promise, it will end beautifully — Hastain uses Summon Golem on their second turn in combat. While the reigar and the golem attack the characters, the esthetic uses Jammerscream against the Second Wind, then moves close enough. to the ship to attack with its tentaclesif it isn't close ‘enough already. VicToRY If Hastain dies, the esthetic uses Jammerscream against the Second Wind if the ship's spelljamming. ‘elm hasn't already been disabled. If the characters win the battle but their spelljam: ‘ming helms disabled, read t 1 | Youhave won a victory, but at what cost? Youre | | stranded on a ship without a functional spelfamming hel, adrift inthe vst ocean of Widspace Af) Here ends chapter 4 DEFEAT Ifthe characters and their allies are defeated, the reigar returns to the esthetic and commands it to demolish what's eft of the Second Wind. Enough of the ship's air envelope remains to keep any surviv. ing characters and crew members alive for 8 hours. If Hastain prevails but the esthetic did not survive, the reigar takes control of the Second Wind and flies it back to the Rock of Bral, but only after jetti soning the characters and crew and leaving them with enough flotsam and jetsam around them to pro: vide only an hour or two of breathable air. ‘Alp Here ends chapter 4 CHAPTER 4|AFRIENDINDEED 2526 a ‘The Xaryxian Empire attacked the characters’ world, fore- ing them to take refuge on the Rock of Bral. There, they met a sympathetic gif named Krux. Aboard his ship, the Second Wind, the characters headed toa wizard’ tower ‘on the outskirts of Wildspace, where Krurhopes to acquire ‘a map. En route to the tower, the Second Wind was attacked by Hastain, an ent ally of the Xaryxian Empire! Ifthe Second Wind was disabled or destroyed in the last session, the characters get to the wizards tower with the help of a pod of migrating kindori. Once they reach their destination, Krux and the characters hope to obtain a map of Doomspace from Topolah, a reclusive wizard. After defeating a void scawver named Big Momma, the characters seek out a notorious pirate who might be willing to join their fight against the Xaryxian Empire. ADRIFT Ifthe Second Wind is intact and its spelliamming ‘elm is functional, skip ahead to “Topolah's Tower” If the Second Wind was destroyed or its spelliam- ‘ming helm was disabled, read the following text to begin the session: Krux takes a drag from his pipe. “Settle in, everyone. We could be here fora while.” The characters have enough time to take a short rest before the kindori arrive. Krnport Pop An hour after the events ofthe previous chapter, the characters encounter a pod of six kindori (see Boo's Astral Menagerie) fying across space along a migration route. The kindori defend themselves if, attacked but otherwise pose no threat. The kindori keep their distance, staying at least. 100 feet away from the crew of the Second Wind. The kindori are, however, attracted to lights. If the characters don't think of it themselves, Commodore Krux encourages someone to flash or wave a light to get the pod’s attention, Flashing or waving a light causes one or two kindori to approach within 15 feet of the light’s source while the remaining kindori keep their distance. CHAPTER 5 | LIVING ON THE EDGE CHAPTER 5 ‘Living on the “Edge — ee LassoInc AND RIDING A KINDORI A character who has a rope can use an action to try to lasso a kindori, treating the rope as an im provised ranged weapon. Alternatively, a character within reach of a kindori can to try to climb onto its body as an action, doing so with a successful DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check. Lassoing or riding a kin- dori doesn't cause it to attack. ‘A kindori lashed to the Second Wind with rope pulls the ship across space in whatever direction it is headed. Krux knows the way to Topolah's tower and can indicate which direction the kindori must go to reach it. The tower isn't along the whales’ mi gration path, so a character must coax the kindori into altering course. Asan action, a character mounted on a kindori can try to guide it in a particular direction, doing so with a successful DC 15 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check. This check has advantage if the character has some way to communicate with the kindori (telepathy, for example). If the check fails, the kin dori refuses to alter course. If the check fails by S or more, the kindori also distodges the character, who is pushed 10 feet away from the kindori before fall- ing into its gravity plane. With the help of one or more kindori, the char- acters arrive at Topolah's tower after 72 hours of travel, after which the kindori resume their migra- tion. If the Second Wind is intact and its spelliam: ‘ming helm becomes operational before then, Krux orders the characters to release the kindori so the creatures can go on their way. TopoLan’s TOWER Topolah's tower is perched on a lat-topped asteroid with an air envelope that extends 180 feet above and below the asteroid and 100 feet away from its sides. The asteroid's gravity plane intersects it horizontally at the level ofthe docks and the base ofthe tower. ‘As the tower comes into view, read Resets toptulent ere a felled steed inieg cece ee ee teen ee ten Dee eee a ree thats rom one side ft. *Mr Finch he sy, “readythe lhSIDE VIEW s aquare = 10 feet If the Second Wind was lost in the previous chapter, characters can ride the kindori to the dock. Other- wise, Krux is concerned about the poor state of To: polah's dock and fears the Second Wind might acci dentally smash it to finders or rip it off its moorings, For this reason, he orders Flinch to deploy a jolly boat while the Second Wind remains 100 feet away, its gravity plane aligned with the gravity plane of the asteroid. Flinch uses a winch to lower Big Blus. ter, one of the Second Wind's jolly boats, into the overlapping gravity planes of Topolah’s Tower and the Second Wind. Characters can use the six oars aboard the jolly boat to propel it to the docks while Krux stands proudly in the bow, pointing to the dock as if the destination were not obvious. APPROACHING THE DOCK As Krux and the characters make their way to the dock, read: Scores of pelicans, mollymawks, and smaller birds nesting on the asteroid squawk as you approach the rickety dock. At the end of the dock, two gray, shark like creatures fight over the remains of a pelican ‘Avwoman with frayed robes and bare feet sits in a rocking chair at the base ofthe tower watching the | fracas, her Face halfhidden by awide-brimmed hat | that has a blue jay perched on it The waman leaps to her feet, brandishes a staff, and snarls, “Go on, gt!” A fiery ray springs from her fingertip, frightening away [estate cess | ‘The woman is Topolah, a chaotic good mage. She is elated to receive visitors, especially since one of them is her old friend Krux. After welcoming Krux and his companions to her tower, Topolah insists on showing the characters, her abode (see “Tour of the Tower” below). If Krux. ‘or the characters mention the purpose of their visit (to acquire a map of Doomspace), Topolah tells them she'll talk business only after the tour is over. TOWER FEATURES Aside from its crooked architecture, Topolah’s tower has the following features: ‘Autognomes. When Topolah purchased an expen sive telescope from Orwyck Cogsworth, a gnome28 we Toons ano Hex Binos inventor on the Rock of Bral, he threw in eight autognomes (see Boo's Astral Menagerie) that he built in his likeness, each sporting a dazzling metal mustache. The indifferent autognomes have the three directives common to all their kind plus the following directive: “Defend Topolah from hos. tile creatures.” Birds. Harmless birds nest in all areas of the tower. Ceilings and Floors. Openings in the floors and ceilings connect the tower's three levels. A magi: cal rope-and-pulley mechanism serves as an eleva tor; a creature need only grab hold of the rope and say “up” or “down” to be hoisted or lowered one floor as desired. Mlumination. Continual flame spells bathe the interior in bright light. Topolah can suppress or reactivate the illumination on a particular floor by clapping three times while she is on that floor. Walls. From the outside, the tower initially appears tohave no windows. Topolah can cause an open ‘window (up to 4 feet wide by 10 feet tall) to appear on any wall simply by touching it, or she can make window disappear with a snap of her fingers. A creature in a window (perhaps sitting on the sill) ‘when the opening disappears is pushed out of the tower a split second before the window vanishes. CHAPTER 5 | LIVING ON THE EDGE Tour OF THE TOWER Topolah gives the characters a quick look at each floor of her tower, showing them how to operate the rope-and-pulley device to get from one floor tothenext. The boxed text describing each floor of the tower includes information that Topolah gives during her tour. First FLoor Four ring-shaped garden terraces line the walls ofthis | oindrical chamber. The gardens are vertically spaced ‘every ten feet and brimming with luscious fruits, veg tables, and golden wheat. Four mechanical gnomes ‘wearing harnesses tend tothe plants, The harnesses are attached to ropes that loop araund pulleys affixed to the cellng, enabling the gnomes to hoist them: | selves into the ar and move from one plot to another. “Most of my sustenance comes from these gat= dens," says Topolah. "I get regular deliveries of fresh scl rom dohwar merchants, and they get home- | grown food and birds’ eggs in return.” The four autognomes (see Boo's Astral Menagerie) here are named Orwyck 1, Orwyck 3, Orwyck 6, and Orwyck 8. Their rope-and-pulley harnesses enable them to tend to the gardens. SECOND FLOOR | Tis for olbe' dest itch wher to mes | chante! gnomes are prepa dine. Frnuhngs Incide an unmade be, a warrobe topped with bid nests anda bookshelf packed vith astologel texts tnd mor ied nets. “Here ae my ving quarters” says Topola, “where Irma mpbok and tak my ress My astagnomes have shortage of recpea. Ty's rapa ep fred ight scaversteakwtha lunar bechamel The two autognomes (see Boo's Astral Menagerie), Orwyck 2 and Orwyck 4, pay no mind to guests as they prepare Topolah’s next meal. Treasure. Topolah’s wardrobe contains an as- sortment of wizardly garments, including a robe of useful items, and her spellbook, the cover of which is splattered with dry bird droppings. The spellbook contains all the spells Topolah has prepared plus the following: air bubble” grease, haste, Rary’s tele- pathic bond, and repair object* (Spells marked with an asterisk appear in the Astral Adventurer’s Guide)Turrp FLoor | two mechani gnomes rs iing agsta potshal | ten-foot-long copper telescope in the center of this ‘chamber. Dozens of star maps lie atop tables that are also littered with sketches of planets and otherworldly landscapes. "And here is my observatory!" remarks Topolah proudly I aequired my autognomes from the same fellow who sold me ths telescope, which allows meto spy on all the worlds in this system and gaze at stars imother systems as well” Topolah walks across the room and touches a wall, whereupon a tallopening appears infront ofthe tele- scope, “Would you eare to have a look?” ‘The two autognomes (see Boo's Astral Menag- erie), Orwyck 5 and Orwyck 7, keep a close eye onvisitors. The telescope is pointed at the characters’ home world. Topolah has been observing the planet for the past several days. Anyone who looks through the telescope can see crystalline vines engulfing the planet. ‘Star Maps. The observatory contains forty-two maps of various Wildspace systems. None of them depict Doomspace or Xaryxispace (the two other systems featured in this adventure) Treasure. A Wildspace orrery (see the Astral Ad- venturer's Guide) rests on a shelf. Topolah acquired this magic item from a mercane trader some time ago but lost interest in the item because it makes her feel obsolete. OBTAINING A Map After finishing her tour, Topolah is ready to talk business. She starts the conversation with "What brings you to my tower? When she finds out that Krux was expecting her to have a map of Doomspace, Topolah reluctantly says she doesn’t have one. But to take its place, she is willing to part with the Wildspace orrery she keeps in her observatory. In exchange, she asks the characters to agree to dispose of a local threat: 1 “Avoid savver as started pring around my tower. | cal her Big Momma because she'senormous.tm | turrited you dd come acest et, but then, she canbe hard to see—encept for er single rede. tiveyou my Wleipocs oa yu ly Big Momma forme. Topolah trusts Krux and the characters to make good on their promise to kill Big Momma. Before giving them the Wildspace orrery, Topolah explains how it works: “This glzmo shows you where you are in relation to the planets, moons, and sun in a Wildspace system, but you must be in Wildspace touse it. To get to another system, you must first enter the Astral Sea, ‘which will take you wherever you want to go. Once you reach your destination, use the orrery to get your bearings.” [As they leave her tower and head back to their ship, she wishes them luck saving their world from an- nihilation. IfKrux and the characters no longer have a ship, Topolah allows them to stay with her until another ship arrives, in which case you should modify the rest of this chapter as follows: + Modify the “Oh, Momma!” encounter so that the void scavver attacks characters who loiter outside Topolah's tower or on the dock. + An hour after Big Momma is defeated, a cosmic storm engulfs Topolah’s tower. While marveling at the storm, Topolah conveys the information in the “Old Flame” section. During the cosmic storm, Grimzod Gargenhale pays Topolah a visit. Conclude with “The Last Breath skipping over “Gargenhale’s Fleet.” Ou, Momma! Ask the players which character has the Wildspace orrery. If none of the characters want to carry it, Krux takes it. With the item in their possession, Krux and the characters can hop aboard their jolly boat and return to the Second Wind, Have Krux and each character make a DC 21 Wis. dom (Perception) check. Those who fail the check are surprised when Big Momma attack: ‘As the jolly boat approaches the Second Wind, an ‘enormous jet-black behemoth glides out ofthe dark ness and cosmic dust, its red eye glowing brightly as its jaws open wide. Long, stringy strands of saliva break offinto weightless globs as the ravenous mon: (eee | Big Momma, a void scavver (see Boo's Astral Menagerie), starts the encounter 40 feet from the characters’ jolly boat, which is 50 feet from the end, of Topolah’s dock and the same distance away from CHAPTERS | LIVING ONTHEEDGE 29