Legend has it that the great draconic elders once ruled our world. Most of them are no more. All that remains of them are tales and effigies spread across the realms. In the Scarlet Desert, the Effigy of the Thunder Elders is a beacon for students of the arcane.
Knowledgeable scholars believe that lore and magic can be acquired by communing with the lonely effigy from eons past. The characters have a conundrum. They seek ancient magic or forbidden knowledge that they need to learn. The sages have sent them here to seek the effigy.
This adventure. In Lamu Village, a settlement on the border of the Scarlet Desert, the characters get ready for a dangerous journey into the scalding sands. The Effigy of the Thunder Elders may provide them with the knowledge they seek.
Scarlet Desert
Unprepared expeditions into the Scarlet Desert incur a great risk of failure. Many travelers meet their untimely demises after underestimating the difficulty of traversing this arid expanse.
Guide
For a fee of 100 GP, a Lamuan man offers his services as a travel guide. Others in town vouch for him and claim that no one knows the Scarlet Desert better than he does. The guide’s name is Yarlik Brownash (Lv. 4 Ranger). This middle-aged man has dry skin, a long, gray beard adorned with clay beads, and always wears a red headscarf. On his back, the desert traveler carries a large water container.
Level-5 Adventure
The Journey
The five-day journey to the Effigy of the Thunder Elders requires a DC 20 Survival check. The party has a +4 bonus on this check if Yarlik is present.
Success. The party reaches the Scarlet Basin. This is where the effigy is found (see area 1).
Failure. 1d6 days are added to the travel time as the party gets lost during a sudden sandstorm. In addition, they stumble into the hunting grounds of a pack of three bulettes. The sand crawlers can still be evaded by moving slowly (DC 16 Stealth check).
Farewell. Once a year, Lamu Village celebrates the Farewell of Sand. An evening of prayer in the name of all those whose lives were taken by the Scarlet Desert.
Attire. The guide advises the characters to purchase clothing appropriate for the scorching desert. Proper garments grant Advantage on checks made to resist the effects of exposure in the inclement desert.
Predators. Some legends claim that bulettes are related to the thunder elder dragons. Alas, there is little evidence to sustain this, as bulettes themselves are not related to dragonkind.
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1. The Scarlet Basin
After many arduous days under the relentless sun, the dunes part to reveal an arid basin dominated by a tall, brass sculpture.
Scholars’ Campsite. The characters and Yarlik are not alone in the basin. Two scholars, Martha and Johann (commoners), and their three guides/bodyguards (toughs) arrived here 2 days before to study the brass effigy. The scholars claim that a unique astral alignment related to the draconic elder beings shall occur tonight. They expect something special to happen but fear it might be dangerous too.
2. Echoes from the Past
Scattered across the terrain are large pieces of rock heavily eroded by the elements. Some still cling to some sculpted shapes.
The effigy has been here for thousands of years. Many temples and monuments have been erected in this place. Careful inspection of this eroded debris reveals that they were once part of thick pillars (DC 18 Intelligence).
Myths. Yarlik Brownash can lead the party and the scholars to some half-buried rocks in the area that still bear ancient, legible runes on their surfaces. The guide cannot read them as they are in Draconic but found them in past visits. A wizard who studies these runes for 1 day can learn the Wall of Fire spell.
3. The Effigy
The abstract, brass sculpture depicts four slender, draconic necks and heads, with antlers like lightning.
None of the heads points to a direction in the compass. Instead, if observed against the night sky, the visages gaze at four circumpolar stars.
Observations. Martha and Johann point out that one of these stars will be part of a rare alignment of celestial bodies tonight. Such an event shall not be repeated for decades. Everyone present has been brought by fate.
4. The Dunes and Beyond
For miles, the Scarlet Desert continues to the north until it reaches a town named Garuda. That is where Martha and Johann came from. Their journey here was easier than the characters’.
Rise of the Thunder Elder
A warm quality envelops the starlight as four celestial bodies become aligned near the horizon. The earth trembles as rocks and sand spark with short-lived lightning. Next to the brass sculpture, a magnificent dragon rises from the shifting sands. The ancient brass dragon has emerged from a millennium-long slumber and gets ready to fly away before noticing the characters and their companions. Amused by the mortals’ presence, and cognizant of the legends of promised lore that are said about the brass effigy, the brass dragon lowers its head in poignant expectation.
Draconic Lore. The ancient dragon introduces itself as Nidram, the Ashen. It claims to know many things about the cosmos and the nature of the veil of magic. It shall impart its knowledge, if he possesses it, upon whoever asks. This effect is akin to the Legend Lore spell. For 10 minutes, questions asked of Nidram are answered truthfully. The scholars ask about the origin of one constellation and its meaning; crucial lore about these celestial objects is revealed to them.
Random Events (1d6)
| d6 | Details |
| 1 | Two bulettes come within sight of the effigy and unearth themselves next to it, as if praying. If ignored, they leave the Scarlet Basin after 1 hour. |
| 2 | A lost caravan arrives at the basin. They got lost after a sandstorm and seek a place to rest. Six commoners are thirsty and desperate for food. |
| 3 | A strong sandstorm hits. It forces everyone to retreat into tents or underground shelters. |
| 4 | The ghost of a man who died in the desert begs the characters to retrieve its body 1 mile from the campsite so it can rest. It attacks if refused. |
| 5 | A band of eleven bandits on camels arrives at the basin. They want to rob everyone present. |
| 6 | As night falls, a luminous haze bathes the stars as the astral event is close to beginning. |
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