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Five Rats Below - AI-generated fantasy Quest

Five Rats Below

Quests
4 scenes · about 1.5 hours · 1 encounter

Five Rats Below

Five hungry rats. One ruined cellar. A simple job before supper.

Read aloud

Mara Venn, keeper of the Brindle Hook Inn, sets a half-empty sack of flour on the table. 'Five rats have made my cellar their home, and now they are into the pantry. Clear them out before tonight's supper, and I will pay you.'

Run the session

Scene
1/4
A Job Before Supper
Objectives
0/3
Objectives
A complication

Cheat sheet

Objectives

  1. 1Remove five rats from the inn's cellar.
  2. 2Report the work to the innkeeper.
  3. 3Identify the source of the infestation.Optional

The clock

The rats are likely to reach the kitchen by evening. If the party delays past supper, Mara loses a night's trade and one rat may escape into the pantry.

Scenes

  1. 0:00A Job Before Supper
  2. 0:15Tracks in the Flour
  3. 0:35Five Rats Below
  4. 1:20Count and Report

Cast

  • Mara VennQuestgiver and innkeeper
  • Pell TarrowWitness and cellar hand
  • Sergeant Orra DaneAlly and local watch officer

The hook

Set the scene

Mara meets the party in the Brindle Hook's common room, away from the lunch crowd. She explains that scratching and squealing have been coming from below, and that the last cellar hand refused to go back down. Pell can guide the party to the cellar stairs and point out the broken drain grate.

How Mara Venn asks

Mara approaches the party during a lull at the inn, offers a straightforward payment, and asks that the job be completed before supper.

Rumours

Roll a rumour

1“Pell says the scratching started after the last heavy storm.”
2“A nearby shopkeeper claims the rats are large enough to carry off a boot, though this is an exaggeration.”
3“Sergeant Dane says the street drain has been slow to clear since the storm.”

Scenes

about 1.5 hours

  1. 0:00

    15 min

    socialThe table is here

    1. A Job Before Supper

    The Brindle Hook Inn's common room

    Mara offers the job, names the five-rat requirement, and agrees on payment. Pell provides the route to the cellar.

    NextPell leads the party through the kitchen and down to the cellar door.

  2. 0:15

    20 min

    exploration

    2. Tracks in the Flour

    The inn's cramped stone cellar

    The party examines the cellar, finds tracks and gnawed sacks, and can ask Pell about the rats or inspect the broken drain grate.

    NextScratching from behind the casks leads the party toward the rats.

  3. 0:35

    45 min

    combat

    3. Five Rats Below

    The cellar and adjoining pantry

    The party confronts the giant rats among casks, shelves, and the damaged drain. Use the cellar vermin encounter and the complications table as needed.

    The Cellar Vermin

    NextAfter the threat is handled, the party can check the pantry and inspect the culvert opening.

  4. 1:20

    20 min

    skill

    4. Count and Report

    The pantry, cellar entrance, and inn common room

    The party confirms the rats are gone, optionally traces their route to the storm-damaged culvert, and reports to Mara.

    NextMara pays the party and the adventure ends, or Sergeant Dane offers a lead on the damaged drains.

Behind it

What people believe

Five rats have invaded the Brindle Hook Inn's cellar and pantry.

Background

The old grain cellar beneath the Brindle Hook Inn connects to a disused drainage culvert.

The stakes

If the rats remain, they will keep spoiling food and may spread from the cellar into the inn's kitchen and nearby drains.

Encounters

1

  • The Cellar Vermin

    Combat

    A cramped stone cellar with stacked casks, low shelves, a spilled-water patch, and a broken drain grate. The cellar has one stairway back to the inn and a narrow culvert opening.

    Foes

    • Giant Rat

    • Giant Rat

    • Giant Rat

    • Giant Rat

    • Giant Rat

    ComplicationThe cluttered cellar creates narrow passages. A toppled cask can block movement, while the rats may slip under shelves or through gaps too small for most people.

    ScalingFor a smaller or less experienced party, begin with three giant rats and have the remaining two flee into the pantry, where they can be dealt with separately. For a larger or more capable party, add one giant rat, but keep the required objective at five. Use the giant rat statistics from the selected 5E ruleset.

Cast

3

  • Mara Venn

    QuestgiverQuestgiver and innkeeper

    WantsKeep the inn open and protect her remaining food stores.

    “I need five of the cellar rats dealt with before they ruin another sack of flour.”

  • Pell Tarrow

    Witness and cellar hand

    WantsHelp the party locate the safest route through the cellar and avoid being blamed for the infestation.

    “I heard scratching behind the casks. Then something dragged my lantern into the dark.”

  • Sergeant Orra Dane

    Ally and local watch officer

    WantsPrevent the rats from spreading into the street drains, where they could threaten the neighborhood.

    “The drain grate is loose. I can lend you a hook, but I am not going down there.”

How it ends

Rewards

Experience: Award experience using the group's preferred 5E encounter and quest reward rules. The five giant rats are the encounter's opponents; do not add extra XP for the same objective.
Gold: 10 gp total, paid by Mara upon completion. The GM may adjust this to fit the campaign's local economy.
In the story: The Brindle Hook remains open for supper, and Mara becomes a friendly contact.
Standing: The party earns goodwill with the Brindle Hook's staff. If they report the broken culvert, they also gain a small measure of trust from the local watch.

Items

  • A pouch of simple travel provisions from the inn's remaining stores

On a win

Once five rats are dead and the result is reported, Mara pays the agreed reward.

What it leaves open

Sergeant Dane asks the party to help inspect other storm-damaged drains nearby.
Mara offers discounted rooms if the party later needs a base in town.
Pell reports hearing movement in a different section of the culvert, leaving room for a follow-up investigation if the GM wants one.

If it fails

The party leaves without killing five rats or cannot confirm how many remain.
Mara withholds the promised payment and asks the party to return after the rats are dealt with.
The party allows a rat to escape into the pantry during the cleanup.
A rat gets into the kitchen and ruins prepared food. The inn must close for part of the next day, and Mara's gratitude is reduced.
The party damages the drain or cellar supports while pursuing the rats.
The watch seals the cellar entrance and restricts access to the adjacent drain until the infestation is resolved.

Complications (d6)

  1. 1A stack of empty casks topples, blocking the direct route back to the stairs until someone shifts it.
  2. 2A rat darts through a gap in the floorboards and reappears behind the party, forcing them to watch both sides of the cellar.
  3. 3A leaking water barrel makes a slick patch near the drain. A creature that rushes across it must contend with the slippery footing.
  4. 4The rats scatter into the pantry. Unless the party blocks the doorway, one rat can escape into the inn's kitchen.
  5. 5Pell drops a metal lantern, making a loud clang that alerts any remaining rats to the party's location.
  6. 6A rat tears open a sack of flour, filling the low cellar with a brief white cloud that obscures sight until it settles.

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