[5e] Back in the DM chair after a long hiatus.

Starting with a very simple dungeon crawl, just to get used to the mechanics and getting back into the swing of things again. Second session will have ties into a larger campaign.

The Ivory Kingdom has begun to return to its former prosperity and grandeur. Though the war, now 7 years past, has still scarred much of the land.

Our heroes will be starting their adventure in the service of a respected, young Lord, who is trying to rebuild his family's holdings. His father, once in service to the King, had disappeared during the war, and much of the family's wealth and records were lost. Since then, the young Lord has had to work dilligently to recover what he can.

The party is tasked with following up on a lead. An old soldier, once in service of the family, recalls escorting a courier to a hold in the north. The courier was said to have hidden had of the old records and ledgers, to protect them. If recovered, these would prove invaluable to the young Lord.

Where it goes from here: With promise of payment for the job, the party will go to this old manor house to recover the lost books (and whatever treasure might be there.) When they arrive, there are three individuals fighting a monstrous bear-like creature. Whether they help or ignore those three, the bear will be defeated. The party will have to decide how to deal with these three. (will they deceive? barter? fight? Sneak past?) Depending on their plan, of course, yields different results .. but I will say here that the three do not have good intentions, and will poison and/or block the party from proceeding.

The subbasement will have very little encounters, but ultimately will lead to a vault where the ledgers and some other items were stored. A crack in the wall/rubble will show some unidentified temple (inaccessible, but this is a clue for later) As the party lingers by the crack, a blight/ooze will seep out and attack. (also a clue)

Next phase (leading into campaign)

The ledgers, records, and books, was a huge win for your Lord. He discovered that his father had his hands into a lot more than he realized.

(Note - if people just want to do some small adventures, I can simply send them on negotiations missions and/or dungeon crawls from here)

But one of the texts that was recovered looks like research by father and grandfather, dating back generations. Long story short (too late), this will lead to escorting the young lord to a hidden location, where there is an artifact kept. As they progress, they'll realize more and more that this is NOT a good idea. I have thought out a number of outcomes, but the end result is an ancient vault is opened, and the Lord is enthralled by a great demonic evil. (party may help or hinder, may be captured or escape, may try to kill the young Lord or prevent him... Any choice they make will have repurcussions.) Thus begins the campaign.