A Level 1–2 light-hearted Winterfest caper! #### 🧭 **ADVENTURE FLOW OVERVIEW** 1. **Arrival & Introduction** 2. **Task 1 – Deck the Halls** 3. **Task 2 – Retrieve the Table Settings** 4. **Task 3 – Horse Chaos Outside** 5. **Guests Arrive** 6. **Festive Finale – Pudding Gremlins Attack!** 7. **Resolution & Rewards** Each step below includes: ✨ Read-aloud text 🎲 Skill checks 🐴 Combat / hazard notes 🧩 NPC behaviour 🎭 GM tips ## ⭐ **1. STARTING THE ADVENTURE** ### **Read Aloud** "Stepping into the venue, you’re hit by a wall of warmth and a medley of mouth-watering scents. The blend of spices, freshly baked pastry and roasting meats is the unmistakable smell of Winterfest. As you shake off your heavy layers and stamp the snow from your boots, other staff hurry past you clutching supplies. It seems there's still a lot to do to have everything ready for the banquet tonight." ### **GM ACTIONS** - Artum rushes over, frazzled and busy. - He gives them a “You’re my only hope” look. ### **Artum’s Greeting** - Flustered, polite, hopeful. - Hands them the **Party Checklist**. ### **Plot Seed** He promises: - **25 gp each when done** - **A seat at the banquet** BUT they must “please, PLEASE don’t break anything.” # ⭐ **2. TASK 1 – DECK THE HALLS** ### **Read Aloud** "You stand at the top of a grand, double-sided staircase looking out at the opulent room. The central table is bare, as are the walls. Fir garlands lie bundled in a heap beside several very wobbly ladders." ### **Goal** Hang the garlands safely and neatly. ### **Skill Checks** - **Climb ladder safely:** _DEX (Acrobatics) DC 10_ Failure = wobble, nearly fall. - **Hang garlands high on beams:** _STR (Athletics) DC 12_ Failure = garland droops or slips. - **Coordinate positioning:** _CHA (Performance) or INT (Investigation) DC 10_ Success = they impress Artum later. ### **Complications (optional & fun!)** Roll a d6 or pick: 1. A ladder _tips_ unless caught (DEX save DC 10). 2. A garland falls on someone’s head. 3. A guest walks in early and critiques the decorations. 4. A staff member rushes through and bumps a ladder. 5. Someone sneezes from the pine needles. 6. A mouse steals a berry ornament. --- # ⭐ **3. TASK 2 – SCULLERY RECOVERY MISSION** ### **Read Aloud** "The shelves are groaning with the weight of mismatched plates, bowls, candlesticks, decanters, and more. The Winterfest china is somewhere in this chaos — the set with the mistletoe pattern." ### **Goal** Find matching Winterfest tableware and wheel it back safely. ### **Inside the Scullery – Skill Challenge (3 successes before 2 failures)** **Checks:** - _INT (Investigation) DC 12_ – find the mistletoe-pattern pieces. - _WIS (Perception) DC 10_ – spot cracked plates or dangerous stacks. - _DEX (Sleight of Hand) DC 10_ – avoid knocking things over. - _STR (Athletics) DC 10_ – control the heavy trolley on stairs. **Failure consequence:** You drop something → _lose 1 piece of china_ → Artum frowns dramatically. **Success:** They bring back a beautiful, stacked, impressive Winterfest table set. # ⭐ **4. TASK 3 – HORSE CHAOS OUTSIDE** ### **Read Aloud** "Dust is swirling around the driveway. Two huge draft horses run in panicked circles, kicking up snow and gravel. Lanterns lie scattered where they’ve been knocked over. Bolla clings helplessly to her cap as she shouts: 'Jingle! Jangle! Oh—whichever of you is which—STOP THAT!'" ### **Goal** Calm or restrain the loose draft horses. ### **Underlying Cause** Elias’s dog **Toffee** startled them. ### **Skill Checks** They need **2 total successes** using any of: - _WIS (Animal Handling) DC 12_ - _DEX (Acrobatics) DC 12_ – dodge kicks - _STR (Athletics) DC 13_ – grab reins, guide them - _CHA (Persuasion) DC 12_ – soothing voice ### **Failure Consequences** - A horse kicks a lantern → small fire (DEX save DC 10 to stomp out). - Bolla drops her reins. - Decorations get trampled. If things go **very wrong**, you may use the **Draft Horse statblock** for a non-lethal tussle. --- # ⭐ **5. THE FIRST GUESTS ARRIVE** Just as the horses calm: ### **Read Aloud** "As you finish calming the horses, the first carriages arrive. Six finely dressed guests sweep past you into the banquet hall, trying to pretend they saw none of the chaos you just wrangled." ### GM Notes - Guests whisper about the party’s competence (good or bad). - Artum gives a relieved-but-panicked smile and says: “We’re almost ready… just… please—no more surprises.” (He is WRONG.) --- # ⭐ **6. FESTIVE FINALE – PUDDING GREMLIN ATTACK!** ### **Trigger** Once the table is fully set and the guests settle… ### **Read Aloud** "A bubbling sound rises from the dessert table. Two small, gooey shapes leap out of the centrepiece pudding — wide-eyed, sticky, and cackling. They slap the table, and with each splatter, another gremlin forms. Guests scream and dive under the table!" ### **Combat Encounter** **Start with 2 Pudding Gremlins.** At the end of each gremlin’s turn, it uses **Create Gremlin** (statblock ability) unless the party interferes. ### **Gremlin Behaviour** - They avoid direct fights. - They are obsessed with _chaos, mess, and dessert sabotage_. - They target **decorations**, **table legs**, **the dessert tower**, and **terrified guests**. ### **Protecting Guests** Any guest harmed = Artum → **SCREAMS** → -5 gp tip. Protecting guests = **+5 gp tip each**. ### **Fun Environmental Options** - Throw tablecloths (DEX attack to restrain gremlin). - Grab ladles and whisks as improvised weapons. - Use hot gravy as a splash attack. - Collapse curtains onto multiple gremlins. --- # ⭐ **7. RESOLUTION & REWARDS** When gremlins are defeated: ### **Read Aloud** Elias, the exhausted chef, throws down his apron. "I… may have tried a new pudding recipe. From an old book. With glowing runes. I thought it meant 'extra flavour.' I did not expect 'extra gremlins.' I am… so sorry." Artum facepalms. ### **Rewards** - **25 gp per character** for the day’s work. - **Banquet seats!** - **5 gp tips** from grateful wealthy guests. - Elias gives them: **A tin of spiced biscuits** (flavourful, non-magical). --- # ⭐ **OPTIONAL DIFFICULTY VARIANTS** ### **Level 3–4** - A **Dire Wolf** tries to attack the horses. - **4 Pudding Gremlins** at start. ### **Level 5–6** - **Two Winter Wolves** at the driveway. - **Eight Pudding Gremlins** inside. - Gremlins start **fires** if not handled. --- # 🧊 **KEY NPC QUICK REFERENCE** ### **Artum Gresit-Hughes — frazzled event organiser** - Overworked, precise, dramatic sighing. - Loves perfect Winterfest execution. ### **Bolla Ritinswort — adorable, distracted carriage driver** - Loses reins. - Calls both horses the wrong name. ### **Elias Joster — chaotic chef** - Ambitious. - Covered in batter. - Accidentally summoned dessert monsters.