Rise of the Raven Prince | 1st-Level Fifth Edition Adventure

Rise of the Raven Prince

Rise of the Raven Prince is a Fifth Edition adventure intended for three to five characters of 1st to 2nd level and is optimized for a party of four characters with an average party level (APL) of 1. Characters who complete this adventure should earn enough experience to reach 2nd level. An undead necromancer is raising minions in the catacombs of an abandoned temple. This adventure takes place in the Freelands campaign setting but fits into any existing campaign with an ancient temple and catacombs with only a few modifications. 

Backstory

Razhul was once a vibrant young man who lived a simple life learning magic with the shaman of a nomadic tribe living in the Sargoth Plains. The tribe affectionately dubbed him the “Raven Prince” because he was the chieftain’s son, and his raven familiar Lucious never left his side. The orc raiders that tore through the tribe shattered this idyllic life, and he became the sole survivor of his people, barely escaping with his life. For years he sought a way to gain the power he needed to hunt down the orcs and enact his revenge. 

The young mage eventually joined forces with a party of adventurers, learning what scraps of spells he could find as they traveled across the Freelands. While clearing a tomb, Razhul and his companions came across a nest of necromancer cultists raising undead minions. After narrowly defeating the cult, Razhul discovered a tome of necromantic rituals, and he began to study the dark art in secret. 

The new necromancer eventually gained enough knowledge and skills to put his plan into motion—he would become undead himself and raise an army of minions to strike back at the orcs and have his vengeance. His adventuring party friends caught him in this dark ritual and attempted to stop him, but it was too late. The now undead necromancer slew two of his companions and drove another to insanity in the process. Razhul raised his former compatriots as his very first minions. Embracing the title of Raven Prince to honor his fallen tribe, he has now made his lair in the crumbling catacombs of a ruined temple, gathering the bones of the interred to begin to build his army.