Runes & Ruins | Free Encounter for D&D 5e and Pathfinder 2e

Designed by Hana the Lorekeeper; Pathfinder 2e conversion by Zac Chaney

As your players journey deeper into the jungle, the setting sun casts a shadow over a sinister, ancient shrine. What mysteries lie within the skull-shaped ruin? This encounter brings your adventurers face-to-face with an ancient evil, as a pair of cold-blooded crocodylids attempt to free a long-imprisoned chaos elemental, Aslokfrd. Will your party be able to stop the dark ritual in time, or will chaos once again reign over the land? Dive into this thrilling encounter filled with danger, deception, and a battle for survival!

Runes and Ruins - D&D 5e

Level. This encounter is designed for a group of four to six level seven characters.

Creatures. This encounter features the following creatures: chaos elemental, crocodylid commoner.

Location. As the sun sets, the jungle does not sleep. Tree leaves and bushes rustle as the wind passes by; the cacophony of croaking can almost be considered melodic, and there’s a faint hum of insects buzzing. However, an unnatural stillness grasps this part of the jungle. An old stone shrine sits dark and unmoving at the bottom of a cliff, emanating a sense of irritated hostility. The shrine is 10 feet tall, 40 feet wide, 5 feet deep, and the front is skull-shaped. Carved into the surface are Dwarvish runes, and inside the shrine’s mouth is a smokey orb 2 feet in diameter.

Loot. Four black opals, used to seal Aslokfrd, sit in the shrine’s mouth; they are worth 250 gp each and only appear if the sealing orb breaks. Aivilo is carrying a sacrificial obsidian blade worth 50 gp, and each crocodylid is attuned to a ring of warmth.

Encounter Description

One night, as the party is setting up camp, they notice a pair of torches moving in the distance. The torches’ owners don’t approach the camp, but if the party investigates, they’ll encounter a grisly scene.

The characters will encounter one chaos elemental and two crocodylid commoners during this encounter.

Roleplaying Notes.

• Aivilo leads the pair. She is cruel, heartless, and vindictive and speaks with a deep, gargling voice. She has a deep, jagged scar that stretches over her nose. While not proficient in Deep Speech, she knows enough to use it for the ritual conducted solely in that language.
• Rima is Aivilo’s junior by a few years and follows her lead. He does what she orders him to, even if it doesn’t sit right with him. Numerous scars and scrapes from wrestling his fellow crocodylids cover his body. His voice is quiet, a harsh contrast to his grizzled appearance.
• The pair has been ordered to travel to this site with a sacrifice to release a potential ally from their imprisonment. They must complete the ritual when the stars are in a certain position, which is not ideal due to the cooler temperatures at night. To counter their inability to produce body heat, both crocodylids are wearing heavy clothes and are attuned to rings of warmth.
• Rima is carrying a body in a burlap sack. They don’t care about whose body it is; the only important fact is that it belonged to the descendant of a local hero.
• Aslokfrd (as-lock-ford) is an evil chaos elemental imprisoned in this shrine 100 years ago by a group of young adventurers. They have remained aware of time’s passage during their imprisonment, which fuels their anger into a violent whirlwind.

Encounter Notes.

• When the party arrives at the shrine, the crocodylid have cleared away the mouth of the shrine in preparation for the ritual to release Aslokfrd. A character who watches them and succeeds on a DC 15 Wisdom (Nature) check will realize it’s odd that these cold-blooded creatures are out at night.
• Because of their attunement to rings of warmth, the cold vulnerability for both crocodylid commoners is negated.
• The crocodylid are watching the sky intently but will snap to attention if the party is not sufficiently stealthy. If the party approaches, Aivilo and Rima will stall, lie, and deceive however they can to ensure the ritual is successful.
• Aivilo begins the ritual 1 minute after the party arrives on the scene if they remain hidden and do not approach the pair. Performing the ritual requires her to use a bonus action on each of her turns.
• During round one, Aivilo will say, “Aslokfrd, I call you by name.” The orb within the shrine will begin to shed a dim light for 20 feet.
• During round two, Aivilo will unveil the corpse of a brown-skinned, curly-haired young man in hunter’s clothes and say, “This is one of the blood who wrongfully sealed you away.” A wind wall will manifest, surrounding the shrine and any standing on the stone steps. This wall remains in place until the ritual is completed or successfully interrupted.
• During round three, Aivilo will tear out the young man’s heart, holding it aloft while saying, “I use this relation to set you free.”
• During round four, Aivilo will crush the heart and strike the orb with her first, yelling, “You are no longer bound!” At this point, the orb shatters, and Aslokfrd joins combat, rolling for their own initiative. Aslokfrd emerges in a whirlwind of anger, chaos, and hatred, targeting the first enemy they can see.
• Aivilo must perform these actions within a minute of the stars aligning; otherwise, the ritual fails.
• If the party attempts to stop Aivilo at any point, Rima will do everything in his power to prevent them from reaching the shrine.
• If the ritual is stopped or has no chance of success, the survivors would rather die than face punishment from the ones who sent them here. They fight to the death, hoping to take one or more of the characters down with them.
• If the ritual is successful, the consequences are left to the game master to use in a way that supports the overarching campaign or gives the characters a new problem to deal with, leading to further adventure.

Ruins. A character who succeeds on a DC 15 Intelligence (Investigation) check will determine that the shrine is several centuries old based on the unique stonecutting that gives it this shape. A character who succeeds on a DC 15 Intelligence (Religion) check will determine that the shrine belongs to Angafin, the Dark Minister, goddess of death.

Runes. The runes covering the shrine are more recent than the structure itself. They say that when chaos enveloped the land, a brave group of heroes sealed away the evil plaguing them. A DC 16 Intelligence (History) check recalls obscure local folktales that align with this narrative.

Secret. Aivilo and Rima kidnapped and killed a local hunter named Meteo while he was checking traps. As a descendant of one of the heroes who originally sealed Aslokfrd, they need his blood to break the seal. If the characters return Meteo’s body to his family, his parents can give the party 100 gp for bringing their child back, which is their son’s life savings.

Runes and Ruins - Pathfinder 2e - Severe

Level. This encounter is designed for a group of four level-seven characters.

Creatures. This encounter features the following creatures: chaos elemental, crocodylid commoner.

Location. As the sun sets, the jungle does not sleep. Tree leaves and bushes rustle as the wind passes by; the cacophony of croaking can almost be considered melodic, and there’s a faint hum of insects buzzing. However, an unnatural stillness grasps this part of the jungle. An old stone shrine sits dark and unmoving at the bottom of a cliff, emanating a sense of irritated hostility. The shrine is 10 feet tall, 40 feet wide, 5 feet deep, and the front is skull-shaped. Carved into the surface are Dwarvish runes, and inside the shrine’s mouth is a smokey orb 2 feet in diameter.

Loot. Four black opals, used to seal Aslokfrd, sit in the shrine’s mouth; they are worth 250 sp each and only appear if the sealing orb breaks. Aivilo is carrying a sacrificial obsidian blade worth 50 sp, and each crocodylid is invested to a charm of cold resistance.

Encounter Description

One night, as the party is setting up camp, they notice a pair of torches moving in the distance. The torches’ owners don’t approach the camp, but if the party investigates, they’ll encounter a grisly scene.

The characters will encounter one chaos elemental and two crocodylid commoners during this encounter.

Roleplaying Notes.

• Aivilo leads the pair. She is cruel, heartless, and vindictive and speaks with a deep, gargling voice. She has a deep, jagged scar that stretches over her nose. While not proficient in Deep Speech, she knows enough to use it for the ritual conducted solely in that language.
• Rima is Aivilo’s junior by a few years and follows her lead. He does what she orders him to, even if it doesn’t sit right with him. Numerous scars and scrapes from wrestling his fellow crocodylids cover his body. His voice is quiet, a harsh contrast to his grizzled appearance.
• The pair has been ordered to travel to this site with a sacrifice to release a potential ally from their imprisonment. They must complete the ritual when the stars are in a certain position, which is not ideal due to the cooler temperatures at night. To counter their inability to produce body heat, both crocodylids are wearing heavy clothes and are invested to charms of cold resistance.
• Rima is carrying a body in a burlap sack. They don’t care about whose body it is; the only important fact is that it belonged to the descendant of a local hero.
• Aslokfrd (as-lock-ford) is an evil chaos elemental imprisoned in this shrine 100 years ago by a group of young adventurers. They have remained aware of time’s passage during their imprisonment, which fuels their anger into a violent whirlwind.

Encounter Notes.

• When the party arrives at the shrine, the crocodylid have cleared away the mouth of the shrine in preparation for the ritual to release Aslokfrd. A character who watches them and succeeds on a DC 20 Nature (trained) check will realize it’s odd that these cold-blooded creatures are out at night.
• Because of their investment to charms of cold resistance, the cold vulnerability for both crocodylid commoners is negated.
• The crocodylid are watching the sky intently but will snap to attention if the party is not sufficiently stealthy. If the party approaches, Aivilo and Rima will stall, lie, and deceive however they can to ensure the ritual is successful.
• Aivilo begins the ritual 1 minute after the party arrives on the scene if they remain hidden and do not approach the pair. Performing the ritual requires her to use an action on each of her turns.
• During round one, Aivilo will say, “Aslokfrd, I call you by name.” The orb within the shrine will begin to shed a dim light for 20 feet.
• During round two, Aivilo will unveil the corpse of a brown-skinned, curly-haired young man in hunter’s clothes and say, “This is one of the blood who wrongfully sealed you away.” A wind wall will manifest, surrounding the shrine and any standing on the stone steps. This wall remains in place until the ritual is completed or successfully interrupted.
• During round three, Aivilo will tear out the young man’s heart, holding it aloft while saying, “I use this relation to set you free.”
• During round four, Aivilo will crush the heart and strike the orb with her first, yelling, “You are no longer bound!” At this point, the orb shatters, and Aslokfrd joins combat, rolling for their own initiative. Aslokfrd emerges in a whirlwind of anger, chaos, and hatred, targeting the first enemy they can see.
• Aivilo must perform these actions within a minute of the stars aligning; otherwise, the ritual fails.
• If the party attempts to stop Aivilo at any point, Rima will do everything in his power to prevent them from reaching the shrine.
• If the ritual is stopped or has no chance of success, the survivors would rather die than face punishment from the ones who sent them here. They fight to the death, hoping to take one or more of the characters down with them.
• If the ritual is successful, the consequences are left to the game master to use in a way that supports the overarching campaign or gives the characters a new problem to deal with, leading to further adventure.

Ruins. A character who succeeds on a DC 20 Perception check will determine that the shrine is several centuries old based on the unique stonecutting that gives it this shape. A character who succeeds on a DC 20 Religion (trained) check will determine that the shrine belongs to Angafin, the Dark Minister, goddess of death.

Runes. The runes covering the shrine are more recent than the structure itself. They say that when chaos enveloped the land, a brave group of heroes sealed away the evil plaguing them. A DC 20 Society (trained) check recalls obscure local folktales that align with this narrative.

Secret. Aivilo and Rima kidnapped and killed a local hunter named Meteo while he was checking traps. As a descendant of one of the heroes who originally sealed Aslokfrd, they need his blood to break the seal. If the characters return Meteo’s body to his family, his parents can give the party 100 sp for bringing their child back, which is their son’s life savings.

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