[D20cember] N is for Nomadic Gypsies

Nomadic Gypsies: A Get Ready, Get Set, Go! Labyrinth Lord adventure set in the Ashford Valley.

Get Ready:
A group of travelers comes to town and several events occur, including a range of entertainments, the escape of performing bear, a fight in the dark, a host of flying creatures and the theft of a priceless jewel.

Get Set:
The PCs are in either Ashford town or Tradetown when the gypsies come to town. They can get involved because of the entertainments (fire jugglers, fortune tellers, bear dancers, horse masters, etc.) or they're there to collect a debt from one of the local merchant houses.

Go!:
The adventure begins in the gypsy camp at night during the entertainments: Jugglers and acrobats wander amongst the crowd showing unrivaled skill, a bear is dancing with a gypsy, an old woman is telling fortunes, a beautiful young woman dances on a tabletop while a knife-thrower tosses knives at her showing his skill as she kicks up her heels, and a magician performs tricks to the delight of the audience.

This gives the players an opportunity to do a bit of roleplaying before the main action begins later on in the evening. Around midnight, while the party is still in full swing, a group of giant bats decide to raid the camp for some snacks. The bats fly around, taking a swipe here and there at the PCs and the gypsies while the crowd run around in panic. Amidst the chaos of the fighting, the bear makes a break for it and disappears into the darkness.

After the fighting ends, the gypsies thank the PCs for helping out and one of them returns a purse "that fell on the ground earlier." If the PCs killed most of the bats then the gypsies declare their undying friendship (and suggest friends help friends - especially find the bear).

In the morning, the local constabulary show up at the PCs tavern, looking for them. During the night (exactly when the fight went on), a valuable jewel was stolen and a clue points to the gypsies and the PCs. The watch is mum about the particular clue but the implication is that the PCs and the gypsies are working together.

Since the PCs know one of the watchmen, the information they get is not good. The evidence points to one of the characters, in the form of a token that the PC had in the past but has been missing for at least a week.

If the PCs decide to investigate the scene of the crime, the house is surrounded by woods and is only a mile or so from the gypsy camp, as the crow flies. The jewel was stolen from the second floor and there is no evidence that the thief climbed the walls or used the front door (it was barred that night) and the first floor has bars on the windows.

Searching through the woods, the PCs encounter the performing bear. It can be captured if one of the PCs is willing to dance with it (like the gypsy did the night before) or they play some music to sooth the savage beast. In the midst of all of this, one of the PCs spots a giant raven flying through the trees with a silver coin in it's mouth. Could the thief be that big black bird? Oh, yes. In a tree on the edge of the wood, the raven has a nest. It takes either a ability check vs. Dexterity or a thieves' climbing ability to reach the nest, which is filled with a range of junk, from bits of shiny metal trash to the missing jewel (GMs choice of what else is in the nest). The raven will defend his nest but will not fight to the death.

Notable NPCs:
Gypsies (12 Normal Men); Alignment: Chaotic; Armor Class: 7 (leather armor); Hit Dice: 1d8, Hit Points: 6, 5, 5, 4, 4, 4, 3, 3, 3, 2, 2, 1; Attacks: short sword (1d6) or club (1d6); Save: NM; Morale: 6.

Performing Bear (1); Alignment: Neutral; Armor Class: 6; Hit Dice: 4d8, Hit Points: 21; Attacks: 3 (claw 1d3, claw 1d3, bite 1d6); Save: F2; Special abilities: if the bear succeeds in both claw attacks on the same target, he grabs the target and does an additional 2d8 in a bear hug; Morale: 7.

Giant Bats (5); Alignment: Neutral; Armor Class: 6; Hit Dice: 2d8, Hit Points: 13, 13, 12, 11, 10; Attacks: bite (1d4); Save: F1; Morale: 8.

Thieving Giant Raven (1); Alignment: Neutral; Armor Class: 6; Hit Dice: 2d8+1, Hit Points: 13; Attacks: beak (1d4); Save: F1; Morale: 8.