The Unstable Run
The Unstable Run
Read aloud
A horn sounds from the Slope-Watch Lodge, and red smoke rises over Screefoot as a fresh slide traps three wagons on the climb above town. Havel is already gathering rope and asks you to help bring the caravan down before the slope shifts again.
Run the session
Cheat sheet
Objectives
- 1Climb to the trapped caravan before the light fails.
- 2Open a safe path and lead the caravan off the unstable slope.
- 3Keep the prowler from separating the rescuers from the caravan.
- 4Hear and record the strange response from the old wall.Optional
The clock
There is about an hour of useful light. In addition, every 10 minutes spent working on the slide, roll a d6; on a 1, another loose-stone slide threatens exposed creatures.
Scenes
- 0:00The Horn at Dusk
- 0:15The Climb
- 0:30The Slide
- 1:15The Scree-Prowler
- 1:35Three Taps
Cast
- HavelQuestgiver and trail-clearing crew leader
- Jorun Gravel-GripGuide and cautious ally
- Omiya VelaSyndicate toll inspector and wary witness
- KusiOread surveyor and wildcard
The hook
Set the scene
Read aloud: A horn sounds three short blasts from the Slope-Watch Lodge, then a long one, and the whole bench of Screefoot goes still. Red smoke climbs from the Cairn-Ring in the damp air. Muleteers drop their harness, a smith lowers her hammer, and somewhere above the bluff a rumble rolls down the mountain and keeps rolling. Havel, a gray-bearded Oread who leads the trail-clearing crew, finds the characters within moments. Three wagons are trapped above town, their mules near panic, and the other available hands are already committed. He presses rope and a rescue pack into motion, offering crampons, trail supplies, and a guide's favor if the party helps. Jorun warns them to rope in and says his guides will follow, not lead. Omiya asks them to note the caravan's people and cargo. A DC 10 Wisdom (Insight) check suggests her concern is less about the slide than about what the ledger will say afterward.
How Havel asks
Havel finds the party in the settlement and immediately starts toward the climb, offering supplies and a guide's favor as he explains the danger.
He expects help, but does not demand it.
Rumours
Scenes
about 2 hours0:00
15 min
SocialThe table is here
1. The Horn at Dusk
Screefoot's gate and the approach to the Cairn-Ring, under damp evening air and red smoke.
The horn and smoke bring Screefoot to a halt. Havel recruits the party, Jorun warns them to rope in, and Omiya asks for a record of the caravan. Let the urgency carry the group out of the gate as Havel starts up the trail.
NextHavel leads the party onto the rising trail while the rumble above fades into the scrape of stone underfoot.
0:15
15 min
Skill
2. The Climb
A fixed-rope ascent along the bluff, with gusts tugging at clothing and loose grit rattling downslope.
The party climbs a roped section roughly 400 feet above the settlement. The trail is slick, and a Force 1 Strong Wind imposes Disadvantage on ranged weapon attacks and extinguishes open flames. A failed climb check costs time and causes a short, rope-arrested slide.
NextThe last rope anchor brings the party around the bend, where mule screams carry up through the wind.
0:30
45 min
Skill
3. The Slide
A narrow ledge above cloud, where wet shale has formed a steep gray ramp across the trail and the mules strain against their traces.
The party finds Idrel Brandt, drivers Pol and Sorrel, Jory, and the distracted Oread surveyor Kusi among three wagons. Run the route-clearing challenge at : the party needs 4 successes before 3 failures. At the end of every 10 minutes of work, roll a d6; on a 1, loose stone slides and each creature in the open makes a Dexterity saving throw, taking bludgeoning damage on a failure or half as much on a success. Apply the specified consequences for each challenge failure.
NextAs the caravan shifts forward and the last ropes tighten, something moves among the stones behind the line.
1:15
20 min
Combat
4. The Scree-Prowler
The fractured trail beside the wagons, where loose stones shift beneath each step and the slope falls away into cloud.
The scree-prowler lunges for the last creature in line or a bolting animal, attempting to knock a target prone and bite before retreating. Its arrival should interrupt the rescue and force a quick decision. The party can fight it, draw it away with salt fish, or calm it with food and a clear way out.
The Scree-ProwlerNextOnce the caravan reaches safer ground, the wind eases and Kusi turns back toward the newly exposed blocks.
1:35
15 min
Exploration
5. Three Taps
The slope's exposed edge, where pale dressed blocks and inward-pointing marks emerge beneath the cleared shale.
Kusi stops whistling and touches the dressed stone. Read aloud: Kusi holds up one hand for silence. The wind drops, as it sometimes does at dusk. Then, from somewhere beneath the stone, comes a sound so soft you might feel it in your teeth before you hear it: a tap, a tap, a tap. A pause. A tap, a tap. The rhythm repeats three times and stops. If a character knocks the same rhythm against the wall, it answers once. Kusi wants to return with a lantern and a proper crew, telling anyone nearby before Omiya can leave.
NextAs the party descends with the survivors, Kusi hurries ahead to share what he heard, carrying the wall's secret into a dispute over who gets to return.
Behind it
What people believe
A fresh slide has trapped a three-wagon caravan on the steep trail above Screefoot.
With the light fading and the slope still shifting, a rescue crew must clear a route, steady the frightened mules, and get the survivors down. The slide has also exposed an old dressed-stone wall, and the surveyor traveling with the caravan believes it is holding the hillside in place.
Background
Screefoot clings to a mountain route where weather, loose stone, and old construction shape daily life.
The Loose-Stone Guides maintain the ascent, while the Syndicate tracks tolls and cargo. A newly exposed stretch of dressed stone suggests that something built long ago still runs beneath the slope.
The stakes
If the party acts quickly, the caravan and its people can be brought down before darkness and another slide make the route impassable.
If they fail, the Slope Watch will attempt the rescue at a cost in animals, cargo, or injuries. What the party records about the exposed wall may also influence who controls its inspection.
Encounters
1The Scree-Prowler
Combat
A narrow ledge above a clouded drop, with loose shale, three wagons, panicked mules, and limited room to maneuver. The prowler hides in the scree.
Foes
Scree-prowler, a custom ambush predator from the bluff
ComplicationThe prowler targets the last creature in the line or a bolting animal, then retreats once it has taken 8 or fewer hit points of damage unless cornered. Fresh salt fish tossed away from the trail can lure it off. A character offering food and a clear escape route can make a DC 13 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check to calm it long enough to withdraw.
ScalingFor a fragile or small party, have it retreat after its first successful bite or after taking any damage. For a robust party, it can make a second attack before withdrawing. Keep its focus on animals and the rescue rather than fighting to the death.
Cast
4Havel
QuestgiverQuestgiver and trail-clearing crew leader
WantsHavel wants the trapped caravan brought safely to Screefoot and his trail crew kept out of a needless disaster.
“We get them down first. The mountain can keep its secrets until everyone is breathing.”
Jorun Gravel-Grip
Guide and cautious ally
WantsJorun wants the party to respect the unstable slope and prevent rescuers from becoming additional casualties.
“If you hear the stone move, do not debate it. Get low, find your rope, and move when I say.”
Omiya Vela
Syndicate toll inspector and wary witness
WantsOmiya wants an accurate record of the caravan and its cargo before the Syndicate decides who is liable for loss or damage.
“Names, cargo, losses. If the trail takes something, I need to know who will claim it.”
Kusi
Oread surveyor and wildcard
WantsKusi wants to return to the exposed wall with proper tools and a crew before the slope covers it again.
“I heard it through the stone. Three notes, then three taps. That cannot be ordinary settling.”
How it ends
Rewards
Items
One set of custom Talus-Grip crampons per character
One week's worth of trail supplies for the party
On a win
If the characters open the route and bring the caravan down, Havel gives each character Talus-Grip crampons and a week's trail supplies, and grants the party a guide's favor worth Standing 1 with the Loose-Stone Guides.
The characters reach 2nd level. After the rescue, Kusi draws attention to the wall and its unsettling answer. By morning, the Cairn-Ring's smoke bowls are warm again, and Omiya has requested a private meeting.
What it leaves open
If it fails
- The party does not open a safe route before the slide challenge reaches three failures.
- The Slope Watch and Havel's crew reach the caravan after the characters fail to do so. They rescue the survivors, but the caravan suffers losses and the party receives only the settlement's thanks. The party gains no guide's favor and receives Standing 0 with the Loose-Stone Guides.
- The first or second failure consequence triggers during the route-clearing challenge.
- A mule is lost and a driver is injured. The caravan can still be saved, but it moves slowly and needs assistance. The party may still earn the promised reward if it completes the rescue.
- The third failure consequence triggers during the route-clearing challenge.
- The caravan abandons one wagon, and a further slide threatens everyone still on the slope. The survivors can be escorted down, but cargo and evidence may be lost.
- The party rescues the caravan but does not investigate the exposed wall.
- If characters leave the dressed stone unexamined, Kusi brings its location to the Masons and Omiya after the rescue. The party misses the immediate chance to hear the wall answer, but the claim over who may inspect it still begins.
Complications (d6)
- 1A mule breaks its traces and bolts toward the exposed edge. A character can use an action and succeed on a DC 12 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check to turn it back, or catch it with a DC 12 Strength (Athletics) check.
- 2A fresh spill of shale blocks the safest route. The next character to work on clearing or marking a path must succeed on a DC 12 Dexterity saving throw or take 1d6 bludgeoning damage.
- 3A snapped harness pins a driver's leg. Freeing the driver takes a DC 12 Strength (Athletics) check or a successful use of suitable tools; until then, the driver cannot walk without help.
- 4A crosswind gust extinguishes exposed flames and pulls loose gear toward the drop. A character can secure one item or rope line with a DC 12 Strength (Athletics) check.
- 5Jory goes silent and freezes when the wagon creaks. A character who takes a moment to reassure him can make a DC 10 Charisma (Persuasion) check; on a success, he helps pass rope or supplies.
- 6Kusi wanders close to the dressed stone, absorbed in the cut marks. A character who notices can pull him clear; otherwise, the next slide consequence also places him in immediate danger.
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