Grove of the Ancients
Waytravel to Grove of the Ancients...
D
eep in the forgotten wilds of Dragonsmoke Archipelago, where the boundary between worlds is thinnest, the Grove of the Ancients lies undisturbed by the machinations of the mortal races. From the primal wood of these ancient trees, rife with elemental energies, staves of tremendous magical power may be fashioned, but the heartwood present at the very center of the forest is needed to craft the Staff of the Magi.
Tier IV Waypoint | The Iron Coin will not allow anyone through of 16th level or lower.
Grove of the Ancients Solo Encounters
CR 1: Fire Snake
CR 2: Four-Armed Gargoyle
CR 3: Flail Snail
CR 4: Blistercoil Weird
CR 5: Earth Elemental
CR 6: Galeb Duhr
CR 7: Druid of the Old Ways
CR 8: Big Xorn
CR 9: Frost Salamander
CR 10: Giant Four-Armed Gargoyle
CR 11: Dao
CR 12: Arclight Phoenix
CR 13: Dire Troll
CR 14: Devkarin Lich
CR 15: Fungal Servant
CR 16: Phoenix
CR 17: Nagpa
CR 18: Lichen Lich
CR 19: Ancient Crystal Dragon
CR 20: Ogrémoch
CR 21: Ancient Moonstone Dragon
CR 22: Zaratan
CR 23: Elder Tempest
CR 24: Ancient Gold Dragon
CR 25: Marut
Magically Charged
The denizens of the Grove of the Ancients are suffused with magical energy which makes them difficult to target with spells. If they do not possess them already, all creatures encountered in this region have the following additional feature:
- Magic Repulsion. The creature has advantage on saving throws against spells, and any creature making a spell attack against the creature has disadvantage on the attack roll. If a spell targeting the creature and only the creature misses, or the creature succeeds on the save, roll 1d6. On a result of 6, the spell is reflected toward the caster as though the caster were the target, using the caster's spell save DC.
Additionally, during combat each round on initiative count 0 an Awakened Tree joins the fray within 30 feet of the creatures fighting. This continues until only Awakened Trees summoned by this effect and the party remain. Once this occurs, the Awakened Trees revert to objects one at a time each round on initiative count 0. They remain hostile toward the party until none remain.
Grove of the Ancients Special Encounters
The following encounters appear only intermittently. When they have been slain, Notify a DM as they do not return automatically. Aerosclughpalar returns after a week, if Imvaenarho has not been slain. Imvaenarho never returns while any character which has previously slain him stands in his lair, nor will Aerosclughpalar return to face one who has defeated Imvaenarho. For all others, Imvaenarho returns one week after it has last been slain. Though you may need to fight Aerosclughpalar multiple times in order to fulfill the prerequisites to summon Imvaenarho, they only impart their rewards to a given character once.
Aerosclughpalar
| CR/Monster | Reward Type | Soloable? |
|---|---|---|
| CR 24: Ancient Gold Dragon | Treasure Hoard | Yes |
| Slayer(s) | Date Slain |
|---|---|
| N/A | |
| N/A |
WANTED: Aerosclughpalar, the Druid Dragon Aerosclughpalar, or "Gildenfire" as he is sometimes known, is tasked with guarding the Grove of the Ancients and maintaining the balance of arcane energies which run through the world. Many a powerful mage has come to stand before him seeking to supplement their considerable magical might with the legendary Staff of the Magi, only to be deemed unworthy by the Druid Dragon and turned away. Not accustomed to being denied what they wish, they inevitably turned their power against him and now their shambling husks wander the surrounding forests eternally set to the task of protecting that which they had tried to steal.
Prerequisites
- To summon Aerosclughpalar, a character must complete a three hard quests.
- Expend five Lore to learn of the central glade of the Grove of the Ancients where the heartwood lies. The character must travel one hundred miles using the !travel alias in the forest environment. Encounters generated by the use of this alias may count towards the hard quest requirement. For every five miles of travel, roll 1d100. On a result of 50 or lower, consult the !table wilderness alias.
- At the end of each encounter, the character must complete a roleplay session in which Aerosclughpalar contacts the character via Telepathy and tries to determine their motives. Each roleplay session must include a minimum of five lines of dialogue. Aerosclughpalar will inquire about the character's flaws, ideals, bonds, adventures, companions, possessions, and personality traits.
- When the hard quests have been completed, the character must complete a slow hard skill challenge including no fewer than two Charisma (Deception) checks, two Charisma (Persuasion) checks, and two Wisdom (Insight) checks.
Encounter Notes
Aerosclughpalar possesses the Magic Repulsion feature described above, just as all denizens of the Grove of the Ancients do.!map -bg https://i.imgur.com/ZP7EhcL.jpg -mapsize 64x44 -options c25d
Loot
- Coins: 21,000pp, 36,000gp
- Gems: 1x Diamond
- Art Objects: None
- Items:
Imvaenarho
| CR/Monster | Reward Type | Soloable? |
|---|---|---|
| CR 27: Red Greatwyrm | Treasure Hoard | Yes |
| Slayer(s) | Date Slain |
|---|---|
| N/A | |
| N/A |
WANTED: Imvaenarho Imvaenarho is an especially covetous wyrm of considerable power who desired the Staff of the Magi for himself, but deemed a contest with Aerosclughpalar to be too great a risk. With the meddlesome Druid Dragon out of the way, the Inferno of the High Forest swoops in to claim his prize, but takes care to wipe those who know of the exposed glade are forever removed as a potential threat.
Prerequisites
- To summon Imvaenarho, a character must complete three deadly encounters within a week's time after slaying Aerosclughpalar.
- Expend five Divine Favor to be granted entry to the central glade of the Grove of the Ancients, where the heartwood lies.
- When the site has been reached, the character must complete a slow hard skill challenge including no fewer than two successful Wisdom (Perception) checks, two Intelligence (Arcana) checks, and two Dexterity (Stealth) checks. On a failure, Imvaenarho still appears, but all other creatures in combat have the Surprised condition for the first round of combat.
Encounter Notes
Imvaenarho possesses the Magic Repulsion feature described above, just as all denizens of the Grove of the Ancients do.!map -bg https://i.imgur.com/ZP7EhcL.jpg -mapsize 64x44 -options c25d
Loot
- Coins: 22,000pp, 43,000gp
- Gems: 1x Black Sapphire, 4x Jacinth
- Art Objects: None
- Items: Sunhallowed Spear
This item may be kept as is or turned into the base for the Staff of the Magi.
Table of Contents
Grove of the Ancients Solo Encounters
CR 1: Fire SnakeCR 2: Four-Armed Gargoyle
CR 3: Flail Snail
CR 4: Blistercoil Weird
CR 5: Earth Elemental
CR 6: Galeb Duhr
CR 7: Druid of the Old Ways
CR 8: Big Xorn
CR 9: Frost Salamander
CR 10: Giant Four-Armed Gargoyle
CR 11: Dao
CR 12: Arclight Phoenix
CR 13: Dire Troll
CR 14: Devkarin Lich
CR 15: Fungal Servant
CR 16: Phoenix
CR 17: Nagpa
CR 18: Lichen Lich
CR 19: Ancient Crystal Dragon
CR 20: Ogrémoch
CR 21: Ancient Moonstone Dragon
CR 22: Zaratan
CR 23: Elder Tempest
CR 24: Ancient Gold Dragon
CR 25: Marut
Type
Forest
