A three-session D&D 5e horror adventure of colonial dread
Cannibal Island is a psychological horror adventure rooted in colonial dread. The players arrive at a remote mining outpost run by an expanding empire. On the surface it’s a routine job: guard duty, caravan escort, good pay. Within a session, something is clearly wrong. Within two, they know what it is. By the end, they face a choice that has no clean answer.
The adventure works because its horror is structural, not decorative. The violence and the cosmic threat are real. The true weight, though, comes from moral complicity: the players realize they have been part of something terrible since the moment they accepted their first paycheck. Every option in the final session costs something that cannot be recovered.
Structure. Three sessions of three to four hours each:
| Session | Title | Level | What happens | Combat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Arrival and the First Run | 3 | The players arrive, take the caravan job and see the mine | The river crossing |
| 2 | The Mine | 4 | They find proof of the corruption and cross the point of no return | Captain Blackwood |
| 3 | The Temple | 5 | They hear the truth and face the Anchor | The final battle |
Characters gain a level at the end of each session.
Documents. This file has everything the DM needs: the story, the scenes, the Corruption rules and the stat blocks. The handouts file has what the players see at the table, plus the maps.
Content warning. This adventure depicts colonial violence, forced labor and body horror. Talk through expectations with your table before play.
Tone. It leans on dread over gore. The horror works best when players feel the conspiracy closing around them before they understand its full shape. Corruption should feel like a slow tide, not a sudden punishment. Reward the players who investigate.
The island. A jungle island about 60 km across, on the edge of the Empire of Dragons. It has one coastal town, one road, and a mine at the foot of the volcano about 25 km inland. The road through the jungle takes a whole day, dawn to dusk.
The town. About forty buildings stand behind a palisade, with watchtowers that face the jungle, not the sea. The stone governor’s house and the armory are the only solid buildings. There’s a well with a small altar and an underground tavern, and the docks can hold two medium ships. The ship that brings the players won’t stay the night; the next one comes in a week.
Pay. Guard duty pays 100 sp a day. A caravan run pays 1,000 sp.
Magic. It’s extremely rare, about 1 in 250,000 people, and has historically been hunted. Anyone who uses it hides it. Magic items are just as rare. A player who wants a spellcaster needs a good reason why they’re hiding out here.
Timeline.
| Name | Who they are | What they want |
|---|---|---|
| Governor Reynolds | Island commander, a weathered veteran in his late 40s. Corruption stage 3. | To keep the town alive at any price, and to have the players understand why. |
| Tradesman Beclu | The town’s “herbalist”, really an alchemist in hiding. | To earn back a court position at home. He’s invested in everyone’s survival. |
| Sergeant Mikeal Zentu | Leads Yellow team. Calm, dark-skinned, and draws his scimitar faster than the eye can follow. | To start a mercenary company with Damien once they’re done here. |
| Sergeant Damien von Hans | Leads Red team. Stocky, fights with two axes, and his crossbow bolts are envenomed. | Brotherhood. His men come home alive. |
| Marcus Drummond | The foreman. A former veteran in his late 50s, warm and welcoming. Corruption stage 3. | To keep the mine digging toward the voice. |
| Guard Captain Thomas Blackwood | Captain of the mine guard. Corruption stage 4. | To bring others into the Anchor’s embrace. |
| Elena Vasquez | A prisoner at the mine, formerly a teacher. | To be believed. |
| The necromancers | Painted priests carrying bone staves. They’re seen at the treeline long before anyone speaks to them. | To feed Nilith and be fed in return. |
| Nilith El’Zen | The Anchor’s avatar. | Everything, slowly. |
The Anchor’s influence reaches the whole island and grows stronger the closer you get to it. Track each character’s stage, from 0 to 5, on the Corruption Tracker (Handout 5). Describe symptoms to the player, not stage numbers.
When a trigger happens, the character makes the saving throw. On a failure, they advance one stage.
| Trigger | Save |
|---|---|
| First night on the island | DC 10 Wisdom |
| The night after each trip to the mine or the temple | DC 12 Constitution |
| Witnessing a sacrifice ritual | DC 14 Wisdom |
| Entering the deep shaft (each visit) | DC 15 Constitution |
| A creature’s Corruption Aura or attack | See its stat block |
| Touching the Anchor | DC 18 Constitution |
One stage per scene. Outside the Anchor chamber, a character advances at most one stage per scene, however many saves they fail. In the chamber there is no limit.
Stage 1: Whispers. The character has nightmares of a pulsing red sun and hears whispers in unknown languages.
Stage 2: Touched. The character speaks Deep Speech in their sleep, is unusually curious about the mine, has cool skin, and their fingernails grow sharp.
Stage 3: Claimed. The character feels a compulsion to protect the conspiracy. Their voice sometimes harmonizes with itself, and their shadow lags behind them.
Stage 4: Consumed. The character’s personality begins to fragment. Their eyes glow crimson in the dark, and they speak Deep Speech while awake.
Stage 5: Vessel. The character becomes an NPC who serves the Anchor.
Every stage keeps the effects of the stages before it.
Level 3. The players arrive, take the job and see the mine. By the end they know the island is wrong, and they’ve helped deliver prisoners.
The ship spends two to three days at sea. Ask each player: “What brought you to seek work on this remote island?” Give them the Ship Rumors (Handout 1). A DC 12 Intelligence (Investigation) check in the hold turns up the cages below deck. The captain is professional, and he refuses to stay overnight at the island.
The ship’s sails slacken as you approach a rough wooden dock below a small coastal settlement. Forty or so buildings huddle behind a crude palisade, watchtowers rising like broken teeth against the jungle. The silence strikes you first: no market calls, no children playing, just the lap of waves and distant bird cries. The few dock workers move with purpose, avoiding your eyes as they secure the lines.
The palisade has fresh repairs, and there’s a smell of decay under the salt air. Reynolds meets the players on the dock himself. He’s tired but friendly, and seems to care about newcomers.
Beclu’s shop. Give the players Beclu’s Price List (Handout 2). He calls himself “good with herbs”, and a DC 15 Wisdom (Insight) check shows he knows far more than that. He pushes blessed salt, healing draughts and fire: “Carry fire. Always. They don’t like it.”
The well. It’s stone-lined, with a small altar of flowers, carved figures and coins.
The underground tavern. It’s cool, dim and full of gallows humor. Use Overheard in the Tavern (Handout 3).
Night watch. The players walk the palisade. It has claw marks, and the guards keep calling out “contacts” that vanish.
When the players go to sleep, they make the first corruption save (DC 10 Wisdom).
Before dawn, ox carts are loaded in the square: food, tools, medicine and prisoner cages. The caravan is twenty soldiers, ten each for Yellow team (Mikeal) and Red team (Damien), plus the players, split between the teams however they like.
Mikeal:
Damien:
The prisoners. A DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check notices the cages being loaded. They hold war captives from the Empire’s expansion, plus some debtors.
Players who refuse to go lose the pay and stay on the island anyway. Players who go earn the teams’ respect. Either way, let the moment sit.
Use the Jungle Signs (Handout 4) all the way along the road.
Broken ground. The party’s guide makes a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check. On a failure, the caravan reaches the river late and ragged, and the players have disadvantage on initiative there.
The river crossing combat. The river is crossed by a makeshift bridge, 5 feet wide and 60 feet long. Halfway across, 6 undead cannibals attack from both banks. The sergeants hold one bank and the players the other.
The mud. Finding a safe path takes a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check. On a failure, one character or an ox sinks.
The jungle gives way to a clearing carved into the volcano’s base. Stone buildings and mining gear dot the complex, and the rhythm of picks echoes from the pits. Guards walk the perimeter, but unlike the nervous men in town, these move with a disturbing calm. Nothing in the jungle makes a sound.
Drummond greets the sergeants like old friends.
The players can notice:
Run the trip back as a montage. The carts are heavy with gold, and the jungle follows them without attacking. At dusk, everyone sees a painted man with a bone staff standing at the treeline, watching. When they look again, he’s gone.
That night, the players make the “night after a trip” corruption save (DC 12 Constitution).
End on one of these:
Level 4. The players find proof and confront Blackwood. By the end they can’t pretend anymore.
Describe the symptoms of any character who failed a save. The sergeants are warier:
If a player earned Beclu’s trust, he quietly hands them a dose of Suppression Compound.
This time there’s no attack, and that’s worse.
Unloading and loading the carts takes two to three hours, and nobody is watching the players closely. They can investigate any of three places, in any order.
The slave quarters. Getting in unnoticed takes a DC 13 Dexterity (Stealth) check. The quarters are crowded and afraid.
The guard barracks. Searching it unseen takes a DC 16 Dexterity (Stealth) check. Inside:
The deep shaft. Entering triggers the corruption save (DC 15 Constitution). Inside:
If the players stay after dark, they can watch guards lead two prisoners into the shaft. That counts as witnessing a ritual (DC 14 Wisdom).
Blackwood finds the players in an isolated corner of the mine. He’s been watching them, and he tries to convert them first.
He attacks if they refuse, threaten to expose him, or try to free prisoners.
Blackwood fights alone at first. If the fight is loud, 1d2 corrupted guards join him in round 3. If the players are losing, a sergeant arrives: they’ve been looking for the players. Drummond stays out of it, and afterward he calls it a mining accident. That calm should scare the players more than the fight did.
The necromancers know what happened. Run the return as a chase. The party makes three group checks at DC 14:
For each failure, choose one:
The players make the “night after a trip” corruption save (DC 12 Constitution). Let them talk through their options:
End on this: the prisoners from their caravan vanish overnight, and at dawn Reynolds asks for a private meeting.
Level 5. The players learn the truth, reach the Anchor and choose what it costs.
The meeting is in the governor’s office. Reynolds knows exactly what the players found.
He admits to the pact and the necromancers. He says the alternative is the annihilation of everyone on the island, and that the Empire doesn’t know. He asks the players to leave on the next ship and keep quiet.
He doesn’t want a fight. If one starts, use his stat block, and note that he can’t bring himself to harm the Anchor’s servants.
After hours, the sergeants meet the players in the empty tavern.
They bring six to eight loyal soldiers and their knowledge of the island. They know that the corrupted guards’ tracks lead to an old temple on the volcano’s slope.
The temple is 8 km off the road through deep jungle. The whispers grow louder, trees repeat themselves, and a character sees their own face on one of the carved totems. Nothing attacks. The jungle is letting them in.
The jungle opens into a clearing around a stone temple older than any human presence on this island. Carved totems ring it, their geometry shifting at the edge of sight. The air thrums, and deep inside, a red glow pulses like a heartbeat.
In the outer ring, 2 necromancers and 6–8 undead cannibals are sacrificing the prisoners from the players’ own caravan. Anyone who watches makes the ritual corruption save (DC 14 Wisdom). The players must choose:
In the middle ring, Nilith El’Zen speaks into every mind at once. It offers each character exactly what they want, drawn from their background:
Each character makes a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw. On a failure, they advance one stage.
At the bottom of the stair stands the Anchor: a crystal thirty feet tall, blindingly bright, warm and humming. Looking at it risks its Seductive Radiance (see The Anchor). Up close, the truth is plain: the thing inside is growing on sacrifices, and the mine will reach it from the other side in two or three years.
The players have four choices:
| Choice | What it takes | What it costs |
|---|---|---|
| Destroy it | Break the crystal (see The Anchor) | The island sinks within the hour, with the town, the mine, and everyone who can’t reach a boat. |
| Contain it | Someone holds the Anchor for 3 rounds while the others defend them. Needs the rite from the outer ring, or a DC 18 Intelligence (Arcana) check to improvise it. | The one who holds it becomes its eternal warden, which is effectively death. It buys decades, not forever. |
| Escape | A fighting retreat to the coast, then the next ship | The pact goes on and Nilith grows, but the Empire hears the truth. |
| Submit | Accept the Anchor’s offer | Everything they are. |
Unless the players submit, Nilith manifests fully to stop them.
If they destroy the Anchor. Once it cracks, the players have 10 rounds to get out of the chamber before it detonates. Then comes the run to the coast, while the island dies around them: three group checks at DC 15. Each failure costs a companion, and the sergeants and soldiers are the ones who stay behind so others can go.
If they contain it. When the third round ends, Nilith unravels, and the undead in the chamber collapse. Every surviving character’s stage goes down by 1.
If they escape. Use the same three group checks as for Destroy, back through the jungle. Then they must hold the town or commandeer a boat until the ship comes.
Artifact
A crystal of unearthly origin, 30 feet tall and 20 feet wide at its base. It is older than any human presence on the island and older than the Empire. It is beautiful. It speaks to the mind, and what it says feels true.
Psychic Broadcast. The Anchor’s influence covers the whole island. It is the source of all corruption there.
Preservation Field. Undead and corrupted creatures within 300 feet of the Anchor have advantage on saving throws and regain 5 hit points at the start of each of their turns.
Seductive Radiance. A creature that looks directly at the Anchor must succeed on a DC 16 Wisdom saving throw or be charmed by it for 1 hour. While charmed, it can’t damage the Anchor or move more than 60 feet away from it.
Destroying the Anchor.
Undead cannibals. They aren’t mindless zombies. They’re the island’s own tribes, dead and raised by their priests with the Anchor’s power. They set ambushes, learn from each encounter, and speak in fragments of their old language. Fire stops their regeneration. The tribes were already changing long before the Empire came.
The necromancers. They’re the last of the tribes who are still alive: priests who found the Anchor, made a god of it, and raised their own dead to serve it. They have a deal with Reynolds, and they keep it for as long as it feeds Nilith.
Corrupted guards. Corruption doesn’t make people evil, it makes them certain. The guards believe that what they do is necessary and that anyone who opposes them is the real threat. Many were decent soldiers, and traces of those people never fully disappear.
Nilith El’Zen. The avatar is not the entity itself. It’s a projection, a mouth for something too vast to take a body. Nilith doesn’t want to destroy the world; it wants to consume it, slowly and joyfully. It doesn’t lie about what it offers, and it can deliver every promise. The price is everything the person is.
Medium undead, neutral evil
Armor Class 13 (natural armor)
Hit Points 22 (4d8 + 4)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 13 (+1) | 6 (−2) | 8 (−1) | 4 (−3) |
Skills Perception +1, Stealth +3
Damage Immunities poison
Condition Immunities exhaustion, poisoned
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11
Languages understands the languages it knew in life but can’t speak
Challenge 1/2 (100 XP)
Regeneration. The cannibal regains 3 hit points at the start of its turn. If it took fire damage since its last turn, this trait doesn’t function on its next turn. The cannibal dies only if it starts its turn with 0 hit points and doesn’t regenerate.
Pack Tactics. The cannibal has advantage on an attack roll against a creature if at least one of the cannibal’s allies is within 5 feet of the creature and the ally isn’t incapacitated.
Actions
Multiattack. The cannibal makes two attacks: one with its bite and one with its claws.
Bite. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.
Claws. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) slashing damage.
Reactions
Drag Under. When the cannibal hits a prone creature with its bite, it makes one more bite attack against that creature.
Medium humanoid (human), neutral evil
Session 3, and glimpsed at the treeline before that. One necromancer leads each war band of eight or more cannibals.
Armor Class 13 (bone charms)
Hit Points 44 (8d8 + 8)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 (−1) | 14 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 13 (+1) | 16 (+3) | 12 (+1) |
Saving Throws Wis +5
Skills Nature +3, Religion +3, Stealth +4
Senses passive Perception 13
Languages Deep Speech, the island tongue
Challenge 3 (700 XP)
Spellcasting. The necromancer is a 5th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Wisdom (spell save DC 13, +5 to hit with spell attacks). It has the following spells prepared:
Actions
Bone Knife. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) piercing damage plus 3 (1d6) necrotic damage.
Rally the Dead (Recharge 5–6). All undead cannibals within 30 feet that can see the necromancer regain 5 (1d10) hit points and have advantage on attack rolls until the end of the necromancer’s next turn.
Reactions
Flesh Shield. When the necromancer is hit by an attack, an undead cannibal within 5 feet of it takes the hit instead.
Medium humanoid (human), neutral evil
Corruption stage 1–2. Sessions 1–2.
Armor Class 14 (chain shirt)
Hit Points 32 (5d8 + 10)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 14 (+2) | 11 (+0) | 7 (−2) | 10 (+0) |
Saving Throws Str +4, Con +4
Skills Athletics +4, Perception +0
Senses darkvision 30 ft., passive Perception 10
Languages Common
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Anchor’s Whisper. The guard has advantage on saving throws against being frightened, and can sense other corrupted creatures within 60 feet.
Loyalty Beyond Death (1/Day). If the guard drops to 0 hit points while within 30 feet of a corrupted creature of CR 3 or higher, it makes a DC 12 Constitution saving throw. On a success, it drops to 1 hit point instead.
Actions
Multiattack. The guard makes two longsword attacks.
Longsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d8 + 2) slashing damage.
Heavy Crossbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, range 100/400 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d10 + 1) piercing damage.
Medium humanoid (human), chaotic evil
Corruption stage 3–4. Session 3.
Armor Class 16 (chain mail, shield)
Hit Points 58 (9d8 + 18)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 (+3) | 11 (+0) | 14 (+2) | 10 (+0) | 5 (−3) | 11 (+0) |
Saving Throws Str +5, Con +4
Skills Athletics +5, Perception +1
Damage Resistances necrotic
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11
Languages Common, Deep Speech (fragmentary)
Challenge 3 (700 XP)
Anchor’s Champion. The veteran has advantage on attack rolls while a corrupted creature of CR 5 or higher is within 60 feet of it.
Corruption Aura. A creature that starts its turn within 10 feet of the veteran and isn’t corrupted must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw or advance one corruption stage.
Actions
Multiattack. The veteran makes three attacks: two with its longsword and one with its shortsword.
Longsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) slashing damage plus 4 (1d8) necrotic damage.
Shortsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 3) piercing damage.
Reactions
Anchor’s Resilience. When the veteran drops to 0 hit points, it makes one melee weapon attack before falling.
Medium humanoid (human), chaotic evil
Corruption stage 4. Session 2.
Armor Class 17 (splint)
Hit Points 78 (12d8 + 24)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 (+3) | 10 (+0) | 15 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 3 (−4) | 13 (+1) |
Saving Throws Str +6, Con +5
Skills Athletics +6, Intimidation +4, Perception +2
Damage Resistances necrotic, poison
Senses darkvision 60 ft., truesight 10 ft., passive Perception 12
Languages Common, Deep Speech
Challenge 5 (1,800 XP)
Anchor’s Awareness. Blackwood knows where every corrupted creature within 300 feet of him is, and he can’t be surprised.
Corruption Aura. A creature that starts its turn within 10 feet of Blackwood and isn’t corrupted must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or advance one corruption stage.
Legendary Resistance (1/Day). If Blackwood fails a saving throw, he can choose to succeed instead.
Actions
Multiattack. Blackwood makes three greatsword attacks.
Greatsword. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 10 (2d6 + 3) slashing damage plus 9 (2d8) necrotic damage.
Corrupting Gaze (Recharge 5–6). One creature within 30 feet of Blackwood must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be stunned until the end of Blackwood’s next turn and advance one corruption stage.
Bonus Actions
Command the Corrupted. One corrupted creature within 60 feet of Blackwood can use its reaction to make one weapon attack.
Medium humanoid (human), lawful evil
Corruption stage 3. All sessions.
Reynolds doesn’t want a fight. He wants the players to understand. Play him as a reasonable man in an unreasonable place for as long as you can.
Armor Class 14 (breastplate)
Hit Points 45 (7d8 + 14)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 (+1) | 12 (+1) | 14 (+2) | 15 (+2) | 6 (−2) | 16 (+3) |
Saving Throws Int +4, Cha +5
Skills Deception +7, History +4, Persuasion +7
Senses darkvision 30 ft., passive Perception 8
Languages Common and three others
Challenge 3 (700 XP)
Anchor’s Puppet. Reynolds must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw to take any action that would directly harm the Anchor or its servants.
Corrupted Intuition. Reynolds knows the corruption stage of every creature he can see.
Actions
Multiattack. Reynolds makes two rapier attacks, or one rapier attack and one use of Reveal the Truth.
Rapier. Melee Weapon Attack: +3 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d8 + 1) piercing damage plus 4 (1d8) necrotic damage.
Reveal the Truth (Recharge 5–6). One non-hostile creature within 30 feet that can hear Reynolds must succeed on a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be charmed for 1 minute. While charmed, it can’t take hostile actions against Reynolds or any corrupted creature. It repeats the save at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on a success.
Medium humanoid (human), neutral evil
Corruption stage 3. Sessions 1–3.
Armor Class 15 (chain shirt, shield)
Hit Points 65 (10d8 + 20)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 (+3) | 10 (+0) | 14 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 4 (−3) | 13 (+1) |
Saving Throws Str +6, Con +5
Skills Athletics +6, Intimidation +4, Perception +1
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 11
Languages Common, Deep Speech
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)
Mine’s Protector. In the mine complex, Drummond has advantage on attack rolls and saving throws.
Corruption Aura. A creature that starts its turn within 10 feet of Drummond and isn’t corrupted must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or advance one corruption stage.
Anchor’s Voice. Drummond can speak telepathically with any corrupted creature within 300 feet.
Actions
Multiattack. Drummond makes three warhammer attacks.
Warhammer. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) bludgeoning damage plus 7 (2d6) necrotic damage.
Call the Corrupted (1/Day). 1d4 corrupted guards answer Drummond’s call and arrive at the start of his next turn.
Bonus Actions
Tactical Command. One corrupted creature within 60 feet of Drummond has advantage on its next attack roll.
Large aberration, chaotic evil
Session 3.
The players should never meet Nilith without warning. By the time they reach the temple, they should have heard it in their heads and seen it at the edge of their dreams. When it appears, it should feel like something they already know. Speak to each character on their own, using their background. It knows what they want. It always has.
Armor Class 18 (natural armor)
Hit Points 195 (17d10 + 102)
Speed 40 ft., fly 20 ft. (hover)
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 22 (+6) | 14 (+2) | 22 (+6) | 20 (+5) | 18 (+4) | 20 (+5) |
Saving Throws Str +11, Con +11, Wis +9, Cha +10
Skills Arcana +10, Insight +9, Perception +9
Damage Resistances bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks
Damage Immunities necrotic, poison, psychic
Condition Immunities charmed, exhaustion, frightened, paralyzed, poisoned
Senses truesight 120 ft., blindsight 60 ft., passive Perception 19
Languages all, telepathy 300 ft.
Challenge 14 (11,500 XP)
Legendary Resistance (3/Day). If Nilith fails a saving throw, it can choose to succeed instead.
Magic Resistance. Nilith has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
Anchor’s Conduit. While within 100 feet of the Anchor, Nilith regains 15 hit points at the start of each of its turns.
Eldritch Presence. A creature that starts its turn within 30 feet of Nilith and can see it must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or be frightened until the start of its next turn and advance one corruption stage.
Actions
Multiattack. Nilith makes four attacks, in any combination of Arm Strike and Corruption Touch.
Arm Strike. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 15 (2d8 + 6) bludgeoning damage plus 9 (2d8) necrotic damage.
Corruption Touch. Melee Weapon Attack: +11 to hit, reach 10 ft., one target. Hit: 18 (2d12 + 5) psychic damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or advance two corruption stages.
Whisper of Desire (Recharge 5–6). Each creature within 60 feet of Nilith must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or be incapacitated until the end of Nilith’s next turn, lost in perfect visions of what it wants most.
Reality Tear (1/Day). Nilith tears open a 20-foot-radius sphere centered on a point within 60 feet. Each creature in the sphere must make a DC 18 Constitution saving throw, taking 36 (8d8) necrotic damage on a failure, or half as much on a success. Until the start of Nilith’s next turn, the area is difficult terrain, and Wisdom saving throws made in it have disadvantage.
Bonus Actions
Advance the Harvest. Every undead cannibal within 120 feet of Nilith that can perceive it moves up to its speed toward the nearest creature that isn’t corrupted, without provoking opportunity attacks.
Legendary Actions
Nilith can take 3 legendary actions, choosing from the options below. It can use only one option at a time, and only at the end of another creature’s turn. Nilith regains spent legendary actions at the start of its turn.
Arm Strike. Nilith makes one Arm Strike.
Step Outside (Costs 2 Actions). Nilith teleports up to 60 feet to an unoccupied space it can see.
Whisper of Madness (Costs 2 Actions). One creature within 60 feet of Nilith must succeed on a DC 18 Wisdom saving throw or use its reaction to make one weapon attack against the nearest ally.
Medium humanoid (human), neutral good
Armor Class 16 (breastplate)
Hit Points 65 (10d8 + 20)
Speed 35 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 (+2) | 16 (+3) | 14 (+2) | 12 (+1) | 14 (+2) | 13 (+1) |
Saving Throws Dex +6, Wis +5
Skills Athletics +5, Insight +5, Perception +5, Survival +5
Senses passive Perception 15
Languages Common and two others
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)
Quick Draw. Mikeal draws his scimitar as part of an attack. On a turn when he draws it, his first hit deals an extra 7 (2d6) damage.
Actions
Multiattack. Mikeal makes three scimitar attacks.
Scimitar. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) slashing damage.
Bonus Actions
Tactical Coordination. One creature Mikeal chooses within 30 feet can move up to half its speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
Reactions
Shield of the Vanguard. When an ally within 5 feet of Mikeal is hit by an attack, Mikeal takes the damage instead.
Medium humanoid (human), neutral
Armor Class 15 (studded leather)
Hit Points 75 (10d8 + 30)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 18 (+4) | 14 (+2) | 17 (+3) | 10 (+0) | 10 (+0) | 14 (+2) |
Saving Throws Str +7, Con +6
Skills Athletics +7, Intimidation +5, Perception +3
Senses passive Perception 13
Languages Common, Dwarvish
Challenge 4 (1,100 XP)
Actions
Multiattack. Damien makes three attacks: two with his handaxes and one with his hand crossbow, or three with his handaxes.
Handaxe +2. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +8 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 8 (1d6 + 5) slashing damage.
Hand Crossbow. Ranged Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, range 30/120 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage, and the target is coated in jungle spider venom (see Appendix C).
Bonus Actions
Aggressive. Damien moves up to his speed toward a hostile creature.
Battle Cry (Recharge 5–6). Every ally within 30 feet of Damien has advantage on its next attack roll before the start of Damien’s next turn.
Medium humanoid (human), neutral good
Beclu won’t fight if he can help it. If he must, he stays back and supports the party. He has hidden here for three years, and he is tired of hiding.
Armor Class 12
Hit Points 38 (7d8 + 7)
Speed 30 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 (−1) | 14 (+2) | 13 (+1) | 17 (+3) | 14 (+2) | 12 (+1) |
Saving Throws Int +5, Wis +4
Skills Arcana +5, Medicine +4, Nature +5, Persuasion +3
Senses passive Perception 12
Languages Common, Draconic, Elvish
Challenge 2 (450 XP)
Actions
Dagger. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 4 (1d4 + 2) piercing damage.
Healing Compound (3/Day). Beclu throws a compound at a point within 30 feet. Each creature within 10 feet of that point regains 10 (2d8 + 1) hit points.
Alchemical Grenade (3/Day). Beclu throws a grenade at a point within 60 feet. Each creature within 5 feet of that point must succeed on a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw or take 10 (3d6) acid or fire damage (Beclu’s choice).
Suppression Compound (1/Day). One creature within 5 feet of Beclu gets the benefit of Beclu’s Suppression Compound (see Reducing Corruption).
Bonus Actions
Alchemical Expertise. Beclu gives a potion to himself or to an adjacent creature.
Prices are in silver pieces. The players’ version is Handout 2.
Healing Draught. Potion, common. You regain 2d4 + 2 hit points. (25 sp)
Flask of Fire. Adventuring gear. This works as alchemist’s fire. It is the best thing on the island against the cannibals’ regeneration. (30 sp)
Blessed Salt (1 lb.). Wondrous item, common. Scatter it in a 10-foot line or ring. An undead creature must succeed on a DC 13 Wisdom saving throw to cross it or enter it. The salt loses its potency after 1 hour, or at once if it gets wet with running water. (10 sp)
Courage Elixir. Potion, uncommon. For 10 minutes, you have advantage on saving throws against being frightened and on corruption saves. (35 sp)
Jungle Spider Venom. Poison, 10 doses. A creature hit by a weapon coated in the venom must succeed on a DC 14 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned for 1 minute. While poisoned this way, it has disadvantage on attack rolls and ability checks, and it repeats the save at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on a success. Coating a weapon or 10 pieces of ammunition takes an action. (25 sp)
Beclu’s Suppression Compound. Potion, rare. Not for sale. Beclu gives out one or two doses to players who have earned his trust. It works as described under Reducing Corruption.
| Session | Encounter | Enemies | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The river crossing | 6 undead cannibals | Hard for four 3rd-level characters |
| 2 | Blackwood | Blackwood, then 1d2 corrupted guards from round 3 | Medium alone, deadly once the guards join. A sergeant can come to the rescue. |
| 3 | The outer ring (optional) | 2 necromancers, 6–8 undead cannibals | Medium if the soldiers hold the cannibals, deadly without them |
| 3 | The final battle | Nilith, waves of undead cannibals, Drummond and 2 veterans | Beyond deadly on purpose |
The final battle is meant to exceed what a 5th-level party can handle. The sergeants (CR 4 each), the soldiers, and fire and radiant damage against the Anchor are what make it survivable. It should still feel desperate.
Scaling.