Barrow
of the
Elf King
An exploratory location for fantasy
tabletop adventure games.
Suggested for a party of 3-4 level one
adventurers.
Published by the Highland Paranormal
Society Division of Creative Works.
And if joy were not on the earth,
There were an end of change and birth,
And Earth and Heaven and Hell would die,
And in some gloomy barrow lie
Folded like a frozen fly
-W.B. Yeats, The Wanderings of Oisin
1
Deep in the Old Forest, where the trees
grow tall and thick, where the sun rarely
pierces through, is an earthen mound.
No birds sing in this part of the forest, no
wind blows. The leaves of the trees seem
larger, the canopy thicker. Even at mid-
day, it is almost too dark to see.
2
1. The Fallen Cairn
Next to the mound lie three smooth
stones, identical in shape but varying in
size. The largest is too heavy to be moved
by less than three people, the next re-
quires two, and the smallest stone can
be lifted by a single person. If the stones
are stacked atop each other, an entryway
opens on the Northside of the mound.
3
2. The Tunnel of Retainers
A narrow stone brick tunnel is lined with
small alcoves, two on each side. Each
contains a skull, covered in ornamental
markings in blue ink, with green gem-
stones (25 gp each) embedded in the eye
sockets. Three of the skulls have the large
eye sockets and sharp features of ancient
Elfs. The other is larger, but with smaller
eyes and a tusked snout of an Orq. One of
the tusks is gold (20 gp). A learned explor-
er might discern these are the remains of
retainers of high status, to have such a no-
ble burial. A hidden silver wire is attached
to the inside of each skull, the wires go
into holes under the skulls. If a skull is
lifted without severing the attached wire
the tunnel collapses. PCs must make a
Dexterity Save or take 3d6 damage.
Entrances: North end of the tunnel opens to
the cairn in the forest. South end of the tunnel
opens into Room 3.
4
3. The Grave Slab
An Elf King’s skeleton lies on a stone
slab. It’s attired in white wooden armor
(medium) and a crown of twisted white
branches from which green leaves grow.
Its crossed arms hold two black iron ar-
rows. A large hourglass is suspended from
heavy chains on a pulley system. An iron
crank rotates it. When the sand starts fall-
ing the ghost of the Elf King rises from
the skeleton, armed with a White Wood
Great Sword. He is not happy about in-
truders in his tomb, where he awaits res-
urrection when the universe is reborn. He
doesn’t know about the spider, worms or
any other intruders. The hourglass takes
only ten minutes to run out. The ghost
disappears when the sand stops
falling or if the hourglass
is broken. If the ghost
is defeated in combat
he’ll vanish, leaving
his sword behind.
Entrances: Opening
in North wall leads into Room
2. Locked door on East wall
goes to Room 6. Tunnel in
South wall goes to Room 4.
5
4. Goblin in a Barrel
Stifled sobbing and intermittent sneezing
can be heard coming from a rotten bar-
rel. Wogwurt, a small goblin, hides inside,
wearing a wooden bowl as a helmet, a
fake mustache made of leaves, and hold-
ing a toy sword made from two sticks tied
together. She got lost in the forest and
wandered into the mound through the
Great Oak (Room 10) and can’t remember
the way out. She is terrified and mildly
allergic to the tomb’s dust. Her family are
toad shepherds in
a nearby bog and
will reward her
rescuers with a
toad steed.
Entrances: Tunnel
in North wall goes
to Room 3. Wooden
door on East wall
goes to Room 5.
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5. The Guard Room
Three skeletons dressed in rusty armor
sets of varying completeness roll dice at
a small table. They are betting pieces of
armor and even their bones if they’ve lost
all their armor. An ancient enchantment
bound them here to protect the tomb but
the magic has eroded with time and they
are terribly bored. They’ll halfheartedly
ask intruders to leave and end every con-
versation with “Ok, time for you to go” or
“It’s getting late” while gesturing towards
the entrance. If destroyed, they’ll reas-
semble in one week. There is a fourth
skeleton guard stuck in the spider’s web
in Room 7. They are scared of the spider. If
their companion is rescued or their bore-
dom is cured they will reveal that a lock-
box is at the bottom of the well in Room
9 but the water is a magic acid that will
dissolve any items it touches but not hurt
flesh or bone.
Entrances: Tunnel in Northwest
corner goes to Room 6. Tunnel in
Northeast corner splits to Rooms
6 & 7. Tunnel in Southeast cor-
ner goes to Room 8.
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6. Royal Organ Storage
1d6+1 barrow worms have dug through
the floor and are feeding on mummified
organs. Broken urns and dried organs lit-
ter the floor. There are still
two urns left intact, one
contains the Elf King’s
heart and one con-
tains his brain, sus-
pended in a magic
jelly that keeps it
from decaying.
Entrances: Locked door in West wall goes
to Room 3. False wall in Northeast corner
opens into Room 9. Tunnel in East wall splits
to Rooms 5 & 7. Tunnel in South wall goes to
Room 5.
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7. The Spider’s Lair
Spider webs cover the walls. Sticky web
snares must be carefully avoided or a
Strength Save will be needed to break free.
Sargmotra Sinspinner, the oldest spider
in the forest, has made this chamber their
lair. Four web sacs hang from the ceiling.
Two contain desiccated deer, one con-
tains a dead woodsman with an ax and
4d4 gp, and one contains a trapped skele-
ton guard. Sargmotra desires to eat all liv-
ing things but prefers to play with them
first. It will offer to spare those who will
serve it. Servants of Sargmotra are bitten
and given The Spider’s Blessing. This lets
them climb walls and ceilings at half their
speed and see in the dark. In exchange,
they must bring Sargmotra a living thing
to eat every month. The Blessing must
be renewed every month or they become
ill and dies unless they make a successful
saving throw three days in a row.
Entrances: Tunnel in West wall splits to
Rooms 5 & 6, tunnel in Southeast corner goes
to Room 8, tunnel hidden by web in Northeast
corner goes to Room 9.
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8. The Tapestry
A vibrant tapestry spans the South wall.
The images move as if they are alive. It
depicts the fabled Elflands: elfs dancing
in a circle, birds flying, trees swaying in
the wind, an armored warrior battling a
blood red dragon. The tapestry is worth
500 gp to most art dealers but could be
worth many times that to a special col-
lector. Two people could carry it if were
rolled up.
Entrances: Tunnel in West wall goes to Room
5. Tunnel in North wall goes to Room 7. Tun-
nel in Northeast corner goes to Room 9.
10
9. Treasure Well
A well in the middle of the room is filled
with magical acid. It does not harm flesh
and bone but will dissolve any nonliv-
ing items. There is a lockbox containing
500 gp worth of gems at the bottom that
is immune to the acid. 1d6 spiders are
building a web across the tunnel in the
East Wall. Fresh air flows gently from
this tunnel.
Entrances: False wall opens to Room 6. Web
covered tunnel goes to Room 7. Tunnel in East
wall goes to Room 10. Tunnel in Southeast
corner goes to Room 8.
11
10. The Great Oak.
The tunnel from Room 9 ends inside
this large oak tree. A hole in the oak
opens into the forest. The hole is just big
enough for a person to squeeze through.
Packs and large items have to be passed
through separately.
Entrances: Tunnel goes West to Room 9. Hole
in East side opens into the forest.
12
Treasures
Black Arrow: +2d6 damage to dragons,
worth 25 gp each.
White Branch Crown: The wearer can
communicate telepathically with woodland
creatures. Worth 250 gp.
White Wood Great Sword: +1 to damage,
never dulls. If planted, in a years it will grow
into a giant White Oak with a door to Fairy-
land. Worth 150 gp.
Tapestry: Magical animated images show the
mythic Fairylands. Perhaps a skilled magician
can find clues to the mythic country’s where-
abouts hidden in the tapestry.
Skeleton’s Worn Dice: Whisper a number to
the dice and that’s what they’ll land on.
Elf King’s Heart: Consuming it heals all
wounds. Worth 200 gp to necromancers.
Elf King’s Brain: Consuming it teaches one
random spell. Worth 400 gp to necromancers.
13
Bestiary
Skeleton Guard: 2HD
Goblin: 1HD
Barrow Worms: 1HD,
1-in-6 chance of poisoning with bite.
Sargmotra Sinspinner: 4HD,
Shoots web, can climb walls and ceiling. Can
drink a targets blood to heal 1d6.
Spiders: 1HD
Can climb walls and ceiling.
Elf King Ghost: 3HD,
Can teleport within 15 feet.
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