Giants of the Star Forge
Bigby Presents: Glory of the Giants offers a wealth of resources to help Dungeon Masters craft their own adventures featuring some of D&D's most enormous monsters. "Giants of the Star Forge" draws on the ideas, maps, stat blocks, and other details in the pages of that book, standing as an example of how to put all those pieces together.
You can use Glory of the Giants to help inspire alterations or expansions to this adventure, and of course to help you create your own adventures and even whole campaigns with giants in prominent roles.
Adventure Background
For pious giants, position in the ordning is everything. Brimskarda, a legendary fire giant smith, is discovering what it means to fall in the ordning's ranks. Various missteps in recent years have imperiled her lofty station. To re-secure her standing in the ordning and prove that she is still the greatest smith among giants, Brimskarda has reclaimed the legendary Star Forge and set about crafting her greatest creation yet: a titanic war machine called a runic colossus.
As proud as she is, Brimskarda knows that she lacks certain expertise necessary to complete her work. To fill the gaps in her knowledge and learn the secrets of the Star Forge, Brimskarda has kidnapped the renowned human smith Theldin and forced him to toil at the forge alongside her. Complicating matters is the Star Forge's most recent master, a red dragon named Akaanvaerd. Brimskarda's nephews have managed to draw Akaanvaerd away from his lair for now, but it's unclear how long they can keep the territorial dragon distracted.
Work on the runic colossus is almost complete. Unless capable heroes arrive to rescue Theldin or defeat Brimskarda, it's only a matter of time until the region is turned to ash by an angry red dragon, a haughty fire giant, or a destructive war machine.
Running This Adventure
This adventure is designed for 16th-level characters. It can be run in a single three- or four-hour session.
The adventure begins when a noble emissary asks the characters to rescue the region's greatest smith. The emissary explains that a fire giant named Brimskarda kidnapped the smith and took him to the Star Forge, a giant furnace built in the crater of a fallen star. The party can inquire at the nearby Fireside Monastery for more details about their giant adversary and the Star Forge. The monastery's adherents offer the characters useful information, plus additional aid if the characters compete in the monastery's tests of strength.
To reach the Star Forge, the characters confront or circumvent fire giants battling a red dragon atop the crater's rim. Once in the crater, the characters might face Brimskarda's minions around the Star Forge. In the Star Forge itself, the characters meet Brimskarda, who is loath to give up her prisoner without a fight. The adventure ends when the characters rescue the kidnapped smith.
Adventure Hooks
If the prospect of doing a good deed isn't enough to entice the characters, you can further motivate the party with either of the following hooks:
- Acidic Lake. Water from the nearby mountain has become acidic, poisoning people, livestock, and wildlife who drink from any of the nearby streams. Acid seeping from a fallen star into an alpine lake is causing the pollution. Repairing the magical runestones at the lake's center should make the water safe again.
- Legend of the Star Forge. The characters learn the location of the Star Forge, a furnace built by giants eons ago at the spot where a star fell to the earth. A talented enough smith could use the Star Forge to craft a legendary weapon or suit of armor. Word has it that one such smith has recently been seen at the forge.
Getting Started
The adventure begins when the characters are approached by a knight named Evin Giltall (lawful good, human knight). Evin beseeches the characters to rescue his uncle Theldin, who was kidnapped by a fire giant named Brimskarda.
In the course of their conversation, Evin conveys the following points to the characters:
- Forced Labor. A week ago, Brimskarda and her nephews visited the city from which Evin and Theldin hail and demanded to speak with Theldin, a legendary crafter whose blades have made the city rich and famous. Though he answered Brimskarda's call, Theldin rejected the giant's demands for him to come with her to the Star Forge. Last night, the giants returned to the city and took Theldin by force.
- Star Forge. Giants built the Star Forge eons ago in a crater up the mountain. The site is named after the fallen star that formed the crater and that the founding giants harnessed to power a massive furnace.
- Fireside Monastery. Evin suggests the characters visit the ancient monastery partway up the mountain. "The students there have a long tradition of fighting giants," he says. "They might know more about Brimskarda and the Star Forge."
If prompted for a reward, Evin says the city can afford to offer 5,000 gp for Theldin's safe return. A character who succeeds on a DC 13 Charisma (Persuasion) check can get Evin to increase the reward to 8,000 gp and secures Evin's promise that Theldin will craft the characters a magic item in exchange for the party's effort. "I'm sure Theldin would be happy to craft you anything you like," Evin says, "as long as he can do so from the comfort of his own forge."
Once the players are ready to continue, proceed to the "Fireside Monastery" section below.
Fireside Monastery
The Fireside Monastery is the name of an ancient stone cloister about ten miles up the mountain from Evin and Theldin's home city and five miles downslope from the Star Forge. Ascetics and mystics from all walks of life seek enlightenment within the monastery's halls, including a significant number of firbolgs (Humanoids believed to be distantly related to giants). The Fireside Monastery's most famous aspirants are hardy firbolg martial artists who call themselves giant wrestlers.
Fireside Giant Wrestlers
A Fireside giant wrestler uses the firbolg wanderer stat block (see the x).
Meeting Diasma
The most senior giant wrestler at the Fireside Monastery is a lawful good firbolg named Diasma. She meets the characters at the stone archway marking the monastery's entrance, then ushers them to a sitting room to answer their questions about the Star Forge.
Diasma conveys the following information to the characters during their conversation:
- Acidic Lake. One of the runestones stabilizing the star beneath the Star Forge has been damaged, causing dangerous acid to seep into the surrounding lake. The acidic lake has attracted evil creatures from the Elemental Planes and poses great danger to anyone who goes near the water. Giant smiths at the Star Forge once used magical rings to protect themselves against acidic compounds; the characters might be able to find such rings in one of the shelters around the lake.
- Disgraced Giant. Diasma knows Brimskarda by reputation. Once the fire giant was well regarded among her kin, holding a position of great power in what giants call the ordning. However, Brimskarda's standing has waned in recent years. Brimskarda's scheme to kidnap Theldin and exploit his skill is no doubt part of a plan to increase her standing, likely by using Theldin to craft something horrible and deadly that will set Brimskarda apart from giantkind.
- Lair of the Red Dragon. Before Brimskarda's takeover, an evil red dragon named Akaanvaerd controlled the Star Forge. Brimskarda's minions lured Akaanvaerd to the crater's outskirts, but it's only a matter of time before the enraged dragon overcomes the fire giants and lays waste to everyone in his lair.
After Diasma shares what she knows, she issues the party a challenge in exchange for further help from the monastery. Run the "x" section below.
Roleplaying Diasma
Diasma is a serene but playful adventurer whose primary interests are giantkind and the natural world. A few years ago, she took up residence at the Fireside Monastery, where she quickly rose through the ranks to become one of the monastery's best giant wrestlers. She still considers herself an adventurer, though, and has recently begun to feel the itch of wanderlust. The characters' quest to rid the Star Forge of evil giants might just be the impetus Diasma needs to leave the monastery and continue her adventuring career.
Diasma's Challenge
Diasma questions whether the characters have what it takes to compete with fire giants. She offers to put their skills to the test by challenging them to the monastery's three Fireside contests. To make the challenge more enticing, Diasma says that for each contest the characters win, she will award the party some additional aid in their quest.
These contests are optional; the characters can proceed to the Star Forge at any time.
Fireside Contests
The Fireside contests are described below. They can be run in any order. The rules of the Fireside contests are as follows.
Competitors
Any number of characters can partake in each contest, but each contest is held only once. After hearing a contest's objective, all the characters who wish to compete in the contest must do so at the same time.
Objective
To win a contest, a character must complete the contest's objective before the other competitors. The objective for each contest is included in the contest descriptions that follow.
Opponent and Conduct
One Fireside giant wrestler competes in each contest against any characters who take part. Purposefully dealing damage to another competitor immediately disqualifies the attacker. Other forms of interferenceāsuch as tripping or distractingāare permitted but are considered poor play. Using magic and supernatural abilities is not only allowed but expected.
Prizes
As long as at least one character wins a contest, the party earns that contest's prize. Each contest's prize is indicated in the contest's description below. Regardless of how many characters win a particular contest, only one prize is awarded per contest.
Fire Giant's Spirit
Diasma leads the party to the base of a 100-foot-tall cliff. A series of hempen ropes dangle from the clifftop. Each competitor must climb one of these ropes. The first competitor to reach the clifftop wins the contest. A competitor who stops touching one of the ropes at any point is disqualified.
At the start of the contest's second round, wrestlers atop the cliff dribble boiling oil down each rope. A creature that starts its turn holding onto the oily rope takes 5 (2d4) fire damage, or half as much damage with a successful DC 10 Dexterity saving throw. A creature must succeed on a DC 15 Strength (Athletics) check to climb an oily rope. Failing this check by 5 or more causes the creature to fall.
Prize
If a character wins the contest of fire giant's spirit, Diasma awards the party a potion of fire giant strength.
Cloud Giant's Grace
Each competitor must carry a 200-pound boulder across a 150-foot-wide lava field. If the boulder touches the ground, the competitor is disqualified. The first competitor to reach the other end of the lava field without dropping the boulder wins the contest.
The lava field is a smooth tract of hardened lava that still smolders with intense heat. A creature that ends its turn touching the ground of the lava field takes 21 (6d6) fire damage.
At the start of the contest's second round, a volcano erupts, sending large boulders crashing down the mountainside. At the start of each competitor's turn, the competitor must succeed on a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw or have the prone condition. The boulders settle across the lava field at the end of the second round, creating potential safe spots for competitors to jump between to avoid touching the lava field.
Prize
If a character wins the contest of cloud giant's grace, Diasma awards the party a potion of flying.
Stone Giant's Resolve
Each competitor must sit or stand atop a wooden post beneath a roaring waterfall. If a competitor's body ceases to be in contact with the wooden post, the competitor is disqualified. The last competitor touching their wooden post wins the contest.
Each competitor is coated in a magical mud paste. After 1 minute, the paste hardens into a protective barrier as hard as stone. However, a single movement causes the mud barrier to crack, ruining its protection. After the paste is applied but before it hardens, each competitor can take a place on a wooden post beneath a waterfall whose river has been temporarily dammed. The contest begins when each competitor's mud paste has hardened and the dam is removed.
This is a contest of willpower, not fortitude. The crashing waterfall is almost deafening, and the sensation of being encased in mud is unpleasant. At the end of a mud-encased competitor's turn, that competitor must make a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw. On a failed save, the competitor flinches, causing the mud barrier to crack. If the barrier cracks, at the start of each of the competitor's turns, the competitor must succeed on a DC 20 Strength saving throw or be pushed 15 feet from the waterfall and have the prone condition.
Prize
If a character wins the contest of stone giant's resolve, Diasma awards the party a Quaal's feather token (tree).
Concluding the Contests
If the party wins two or more of the contests, Diasma is thoroughly impressed. She and three of her fellow giant wrestlers offer to accompany the party to the Star Forge. Diasma explains that while the giant wrestlers are convinced the characters can accomplish their goal, they want to help, and they will relish the chance to practice their training against some fire giants.
Star Forge
The Star Forge is located in a large crater near the top of the mountain where a falling star struck a ridge and displaced millions of tons of rock. The displaced rock formed a 150-foot-tall rim around the crater's basin. Snowmelt and precipitation gradually smoothed out the crater floor and filled it with water. A mound of rubble forms an island in the crater's center around the fallen star, atop which ancient giants constructed the Star Forge.
From the Fireside Monastery, it's a three-hour hike to the crater's rim.
Battle on the Crater Rim
On the rim of the Star Forge's crater, four fire giants harry the adult red dragon Akaanvaerd. The five combatants move around the crater's rim while fighting, effectively patrolling the perimeter. If the characters don't want to alert these enemies to their presence at the Star Forge, they need to sneak toward the crater's floor.
To sneak into the crater unseen, the party must make a group Dexterity (Stealth) check. The DC is 23 to avoid the notice of Akaanvaerd. On a failed check, Akaanvaerd spots the characters, but he doesn't pursue them immediately. At your discretion, the dragon might arrive at the Star Forge just in time to complicate (or simplify, depending on how things go) the party's encounter with Brimskarda.
To avoid only the fire giants' notice, the DC of the group Dexterity (Stealth) check is 16. If the characters fail this check, two fire giants break off and attack the party on the crater's rim.
Wrestlers' Aid
If any Fireside giant wrestlers are with the party, the wrestlers rush off to distract the giants, and the characters automatically succeed on their group Dexterity (Stealth) check. "We'll hold them off," one wrestler yells back excitedly. "Go to the Star Forge. We can take care of a few runts!" In this case, Akaanvaerd and the fire giants are too confounded by the pesky wrestlers to notice the characters.
Beseeching Akaanvaerd
Parleying with a red dragon is a perilous feat, but a feat that bold characters might nonetheless attempt.
If the characters defeat the four fire giants on the crater rim and supplicate themselves to the dragon, Akaanvaerd swoops down to inspect the interlopers. He has no interest in the characters' quest but considers whether he can use these little ones to further his own aims. Namely, Akaanvaerd wants to seize his lairāthe Star Forgeāfrom the fire giants who invaded it.
A character who succeeds on a DC 15 Charisma (Deception or Persuasion) check convinces Akaanvaerd to refrain from attacking the characters as long as the fire giants remain at the Star Forge. In this case, Akaanvaerd might fly ahead to soften up the fire giants before the characters arrive, or he might retreat for a few hours to lick his wounds before returning to incinerate anyone still in his lair.
Akaanvaerd is supremely proud and frames any alliance brokered with the characters as strictly a favor on his part. Any insinuation to the contrary garners his scorn and foils any attempts at negotiation.
Entering the Crater
Read aloud the following to describe what the characters see in the crater:
From the crater's rim, it's a 150-foot descent to the lake's edge. The safest path to the lake is a series of switchbacks along the crater's southern slope; a character can spot these switchbacks with a successful DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) check. Characters who take this path arrive at the crater floor just south of x (see the "x" section). A creature that travels by foot along any other part of the slope must succeed on a DC 12 Dexterity (Acrobatics) check to maintain its balance on the hazardous scree. On a failed check, the creature tumbles down the steep slope; the creature takes 21 (6d6) bludgeoning damage and has the prone condition when it reaches the crater floor.
Star Forge Features
Areas around the Star Forge share the following features:
- Ceilings. The ceiling inside the Star Forge is 100 feet high. Ceilings in any of the shelters around the lake are 50 feet high.
- Light. The forge itself is a great housing of iron. Pipes extend from a central vessel, channeling the radiance of the forge into a vent so bright it's painful to look at. Giant runes etched on the iron flare with white light. The Star Forge sheds bright light for 100 feet and dim light for another 100 feet. An Undead that starts its turn in the bright light takes 3 (1d6) radiant damage. On a clear night, the light is visible for 300 miles.
- Walls. The walls of the Star Forge and the shelters around the lake are made from stone reinforced with iron. A 5-foot section of wall has AC 18, 20 hit points, and immunity to poison and psychic damage.
Star Forge Locations
These locations are keyed to the map.
1: Broken Bridge
When the characters reach the bridge, three apparitions of acidic mist float up from the lake below to meet the party. The apparitions are vaguely human-shaped and are hostile toward the characters. Each apparition uses the air elemental stat block with the following changes:
- The apparition has immunity to acid damage.
- The apparition's Slam attack deals acid damage instead of bludgeoning damage.
2: Acidic Lake
The lake is 10 feet deep along the shores and 30 feet deep at its deepest.
The compromised runestone in area 5 has enabled some of the fallen star beneath the Star Forge to seep acid into the lake's water. As long as the runestone is cracked, the water remains unsafe to drink, touch, or even go near.
Acidic Fumes
A creature that starts its turn within 10 feet of the water's edge or anywhere in the air within 100 feet above the water must make a DC 15 Constitution saving throw, taking 21 (6d6) acid damage on a failed save, or half as much damage on a successful one. A creature that starts its turn submerged in the water takes 42 (12d6) acid damage.
3: Iron Shelter
Two cinder hulks (see the x) loyal to Brimskarda stoke the forge in this shelter's southern room. They've been ordered to collect metal scraps from around the lake, melt them down into ingots, and transfer the ingots to the Star Forge. The cinder hulks are hostile toward the characters and attack them immediately.
Treasure
A character who searches the pile of trinkets finds two rings of resistance (acid) sized for fire giants. A Medium or Small Humanoid can wear one of these rings like a bangle.
Also within the pile is a stone medallion the size of a dinner plate, inscribed with the fire rune. A character can repair the cracked runestone in area 5 by removing the runestone and replacing it with this medallion.
Other Shelters
The other shelters around the lake have similar features and lie in different states of disrepair, but none contain any items or creatures of interest.
4: Island Path
Brimskarda's most trusted companion, her sister Zohelm, guards the path to the Star Forge. Zohelm is a fire giant of evil fire (see the x), and she is accompanied by two salamanders she summoned from the Elemental Plane of Fire. The three guard the area of the island south of the Star Forge and stamp out any intruders they find. They particularly enjoy driving enemies toward the nearby lake and throwing them into its acidic waters.
Treasure
Zohelm carries the following items in a velvet-lined bag at her hip: six giant-sized iron ingots and a diagram showing how to make a spiked tower shield. The bag also contains 110 sp, 90 ep, 100 gp, and 9 pp.
5: Cracked Runestone
The runestones embedded in these pillars form a magical ward. This ward contains the power of the fallen star beneath the Star Forge. Brimskarda's thunderous hammering on the Star Forge's anvil has caused a runestone on one of the pillars to crack.
Each pillar has AC 16, 30 hit points, and immunity to poison and psychic damage.
Repairing the Runestone
A character who knows the Giant language can repair the cracked runestone with a successful DC 15 Dexterity check using either mason's tools or the Sleight of Hand skill. Failing the check causes the runestone to break. Alternatively, any character can remove the cracked runestone and replace it with the stone medallion in area 3 (see "x").
If the runestone is repaired, the light seeping from the pillar dims, and the wards containing the fallen star restabilize. Any acid damage dealt by the acidic lake water (see x) is halved. After 1d10 days, the lake's water becomes safe to drink.
If the runestone breaks, the light of the fallen star beneath the Star Forge shines even more intensely, and more acid seeps from the star into the surrounding lake. The Star Forge sheds bright light for 200 feet and dim light for another 200 feet. Any acid damage dealt by the acidic lake water (see area 2) is doubled.
6: Star Forge
If the characters haven't yet faced Brimskarda, add the following when you describe the room to your players:
The giant smith is Brimskarda, a lawful evil fire giant forgecaller (see the x). Theldin (neutral good, human commoner) toils alongside his kidnapper, performing the work that requires finer movements.
Brimskarda has no interest in negotiating with the characters or bartering for Theldin's freedom. All she wants is to reaffirm her lofty position in the ordning. To achieve her goal, she requires Theldin's expert, nimble hands. Together the smiths will soon complete what Brimskarda is sure will be her magnum opus: a titanic war machine called a runic colossus. Theldin fears for his life and therefore does whatever Brimskarda demands.
Brimskarda stays close to the furnace, knowing that her immunity to its intense heat and blinding radiance gives her an edge in case of combat. If attacked, she fights to the bitter end, knowing that to surrender to mere humans would heap the worst kind of shame on her name.
Blinding Furnace
A creature that starts its turn within 60 feet of the furnace must succeed on a DC 15 Constitution saving throw or take 22 (4d10) fire damage and have the blinded condition until the start of the creature's next turn. On a successful save, the creature takes half as much damage only.
Brimskarda and Theldin wear protective goggles that make them immune to the furnace's blinding light. Brimskarda is immune to fire damage. The shackle Theldin wears is magical; as long as the shackle is within 120 feet of the Star Forge, its wearer is immune to fire damage.
Giant Anvil
The anvil has AC 18; 250 hit points; and immunity to fire, poison, and psychic damage. The anvil has immunity to all other damage unless it takes 25 or more damage from a single attack or effect, in which case it takes damage as normal.
Freeing Theldin
Theldin is secured to the anvil by a 100-foot-long adamantine chain attached to a locked shackle around his left ankle. A character can pick the lock with a successful DC 20 Dexterity check using thieves' tools or the Sleight of Hand skill. Brimskarda carries the manacle's key in a pouch on her belt.
Treasure
Brimskarda carries everything she owns in a leather bag on her belt. The sack contains three boulders (minus any she's already thrown), a giant-sized leather apron stained with soot, fragments of a fire opal (worth 60 gp), and a 3-foot-tall ceramic mug decorated with golden paint. It also contains 270 sp, 60 ep, 90 gp, and 14 pp.
Destroying the Colossus
If the characters free Theldin, he insists they help him destroy the runic colossus Brimskarda was building. He explains that the half-finished Construct is a weapon of war capable of cataclysmic destruction, and the possibility that some other giant might find and complete their work fills him with dread. The half-built colossus is a Huge object that has AC 20, 150 hp, and immunity to poison and psychic damage. To destroy it, the characters must reduce it to 0 hit points and then feed the broken pieces into the furnace. If Brimskarda, her nephews, Akaanvaerd, or any of the other residents of the crater remain alive, they might appear (at your discretion) and interrupt this task. Otherwise, it's safe to assume Theldin and the characters can complete the task with about a half hour of work.
Conclusion
Once the characters free Theldin and return the smith to his home, they've completed their quest and earned their reward. If the characters didn't already coax such a promise from Evin at the adventure's outset, Theldin offers to craft a magic weapon or suit of armor for his saviors. This could be a +2 weapon, a suit of +1 armor, or some other rare magic item of your choice.
If Theldin doesn't return home safely, Evin and other members of the city's royalty build a funerary pyre to honor the smith and mourn his loss. Evin thanks the characters for their efforts but cannot give them a reward; the city must preserve all the wealth it can now that its prized smith is gone.
The fate of Brimskarda has a ripple effect on the region. Should the fire giant survive and retain control of the Star Forge, it's only a matter of time before she either completes her runic colossus alone or kidnaps another capable smith to help her finish the job. Once her war machine is complete, Brimskarda's first order of business is to lay waste to the city that hired the adventurers who nearly foiled her plot.
In the event of Brimskarda's death, the dragon Akaanvaerd once again claims the Star Forge as his lair. It will likely be some time before another giant capable of challenging the dragon rises to the occasion.