The Twentieth Lash was the twelfth and last adventure released for the Blackwheel Company Faction Adventure to be run as part of the Xen'drik Expeditions campaign.
Synopsis[]
Introduction[]
The adventure opens deep in the jungles of Xen'drik, where the PCs meet with Mehmet, the seren dragon shaman. He tells them what he knows of the situation.
Part One: The Encampment[]
Mehmet: The PCs are dropped into the region via MAAD in the middle of the night and are located by Mehmet. He explains Hruuagoryn's betrayal and outlines his theory of what's happening in the area.
Drow Encampment: The drow in the area have spent the past year relentless attacking the yuan-ti as "interlopers", and won't hesitate to do the same to the PCs. The party either sneaks or fights their way past the encampment.
Lost River Delta: An ancient giant's temple was built in time immemorial on the banks of an ancient river, and above the buried site of the rakshasa prison. In the time since, the river has changed course and is now a wide delta the party navigates to reach the temple itself.
Part Two: Yuan-Ti[]
Outer Temple: The PCs encounter the outer guard of the yuan-ti tribe—and contrary to Mehmet's guess, they are not peaceful followers of the Silver Flame. Instead, they worship the demon within the Silver Flame and fight the party to the death.
Lower Temple: Having gotten past the outer temple, the PCs descend deep into the temple and past the giants' temple to a buried ruin of an even older civilization. The yuan-ti set off another of their traps: the area is rapidly filled with water, forcing the PCs towards a confrontation with the tribe's warriors.
The Hatching Chamber: The PCs battle the yuan-ti's finest warriors amidst waterfalls, pools, streams, and increasingly rising water. While the death of the yuan-ti warriors won't give them a moment's pause, the party discovers that the chamber is a hatchery for a future generation of yuan-ti. Should they be killed, as well?
Part Three: Spirits Imprisoned[]
Three Rings: Hruuagoryn has so far been unable to get past the three wards surrounding the inner sanctum. As the party passes through them, they are harassed by the spirit of a couatl, which becomes less distinct with each seal they break.
Hruuagoryn's Ritual: The trapped rajah has promised the dragon scholar the secret of immortality in exchange for the dragon releasing it. After decades, the dragon now has access to the location he needs to perform the ritual. The PCs can choose to confront the dragon with force or by attempting to stop the ritual itself.
Rajah Loosed: The might of the rajah is so great that even with an incomplete ritual, it manages to break the prison's bonds. Fortunately, it is still bound to the couatl's spirit for the moment. In its anger, the rakshasa battles the couatl, the dragon, and the party, while the couatl struggles to pull the raskhasa back into its prison, while the dragon attacks the party and the couatl. With luck, the PCs may manage to destroy the rakshasa's weakened form before the couatl is destroyed, allowing the couatl to pull the demon back into its prison.