Ashes of the Last City
Ashes of the Last City
In the shattered ruins of Valdenmoor, once the greatest metropolis of the old world, the party must track down a ruthless scavenger warlord named Korrax the Hollow who has seized the only functioning water purifier in the region — and is using it to enslave desperate survivors. The heroes must infiltrate his fortified stronghold, free the captive workers, and destroy or reclaim the purifier before Korrax can consolidate enough power to dominate all remaining settlements. Every crumbling street corner and rusted relic whispers of a civilization that burned itself to nothing.
Read Aloud
You trudge along what was once a grand boulevard, now a fractured spine of cracked stone swallowed by pale grey ash. The skeletal husks of towers claw at a sky permanently stained the color of a bruise, and the wind carries the faint tang of sulfur and old smoke. Rusted frames of enormous iron carriages lie on their sides like toppled gravestones, their interiors long since stripped clean. Ahead, a hand-painted sign nailed to a leaning lamppost reads, in desperate strokes: VALDENMOOR OUTPOST — CLEAN WATER — 2 MILES — BRING SOMETHING WORTH TRADING.
Description
This is the opening scene, setting tone and stakes. The party is traveling toward Valdenmoor Outpost, a refugee camp built into the ruins of an old market district. The boulevard is littered with environmental storytelling: scorched handprints pressed into a crumbled wall, a child's ceramic doll half-buried in debris, rows of dry fountains crusted with brown mineral deposits. As they approach the outpost, they encounter Mira Duskhollow, a gaunt survivor who is fleeing from the direction of the outpost in obvious terror. She is the hook that reveals Korrax has just seized control and taken hostages.
DM Notes
DC 12 Wisdom (Perception) to notice Mira hiding behind a collapsed archway before she bolts. DC 14 Charisma (Persuasion) or DC 12 Charisma (Intimidation) to calm her enough to speak. She provides the key intelligence: Korrax's Scavenger Reapers — about a dozen enforcers — now control the outpost and have chained the water purifier operators. She mentions a side entrance through the old sewer grate the Reapers haven't found yet. If the party helped her first (a DC 10 Medicine check to bind her bleeding arm), she gives this information freely with no Persuasion check needed.
Read Aloud
The outpost materializes from the haze like a bad dream made physical. Thick walls of welded scrap metal and salvaged stone blocks ring what was once a covered market — its vaulted glass ceiling now a skeleton of iron ribs and jagged shards. Two armored brutes stand at the main gate, their patchwork armor decorated with the severed hand insignia of Korrax's Reapers, while a third lounges atop a rusted watchtower fashioned from stacked shipping containers. The distant sound of coughing and muffled weeping filters through the walls, and somewhere inside, a machine hums with desperate, mechanical life.
Description
The outpost entrance is a social and tactical decision point. The party must decide how to get inside: brute force at the gate (3 Spy stat-block Reaper Guards), a disguise or bluff to pose as traders, or use Mira's information to find the hidden sewer grate on the eastern side (DC 13 Investigation to locate it without her, DC 10 if she guides them). The Rogue will find the sewer route straightforward. A frontal assault alerts the interior, putting the hostages at risk — a Reaper inside will threaten to harm prisoners if fighting erupts at the gate (Korrax's standing order). Ideally the party chooses stealth or deception.
DM Notes
DC 14 Charisma (Deception) to bluff past the gate guards as traders — they demand to see goods. DC 13 Dexterity (Stealth) to slip through the sewer grate undetected (advantage for the Rogue if using Cunning Action). If the party attacks the gate openly, use the 3 Spy stat-block guards as a combat encounter and add the Complication: a Reaper inside moves to harm one prisoner per round of combat heard from outside. The watchtower guard has a horn — DC 14 Dexterity (Sleight of Hand) or a ranged attack (AC 12) to knock it away before it is blown.
Read Aloud
You emerge into the cavernous belly of the old market, and the smell hits you first — unwashed bodies, machine oil, and the sharp mineral bite of processed water. Roughly thirty hollow-eyed survivors are chained in rows along the eastern wall, their wrists bound by lengths of rusted iron cable looped through old market stall brackets. At the center of the hall, a humming cylindrical machine the size of a wagon — cobbled together from pipes, pressure tanks, and glowing amber crystals — pumps clear water into a sealed reservoir guarded by two Reapers. A child near the back of the chain catches your eye and holds one finger to their lips.
Description
This is the stealth and social heart of the session. The party has infiltrated the market interior and must free the prisoners without triggering a general alarm. Three Reapers patrol the hall in loose rotations. The water purifier is the central object — it can be sabotaged (destroying Korrax's leverage), captured (a huge benefit to survivors), or used as a bargaining chip. Freeing all the prisoners requires cutting or breaking 5 lengths of cable (DC 13 Strength or a sharp weapon) or finding the master key on the patrol leader's belt. The child who signaled is named Pip — a clever NPC who knows the patrol timing.
DM Notes
DC 12 Dexterity (Stealth) to move through the hall without alerting patrols. DC 15 Sleight of Hand to lift the patrol leader's key without waking him during his rest. DC 13 Strength (Athletics) to snap the chain cable, but creates noise — DC 14 Stealth to muffle it. DC 14 Arcana or Investigation to understand the purifier well enough to sabotage it cleanly (takes 2 actions) vs. blindly smashing it (1 action, but it explodes: 3d6 fire damage, DC 14 Dex save for half, in a 10-foot radius). Award the party an Inspiration if they free all prisoners without combat. Pip (the child) acts as a free scout — he knows that Korrax is in the back storeroom and has one big guard with him.
Read Aloud
The patrol rounds the far corner of the machine with a casual arrogance — two Reapers in mismatched armor, one carrying a rusted crossbow slung lazily over one shoulder, the other dragging a length of chain that scrapes against the cracked tile floor. They speak in low voices, laughing about rationing water to a man they clearly see as a number rather than a name. They haven't spotted you yet. The shadows near a collapsed market stall offer just enough cover — but the chain-scraping stops, and one of the Reapers tilts his head, listening.
Description
A mandatory combat encounter inside the market hall, triggered either by the patrol discovering the party or initiated as a preemptive strike. Two Reaper Enforcers (Spy stat blocks) patrol together with a third positioned near the purifier. The encounter takes place among market stalls, overturned carts, and support columns — excellent terrain for Rogue ambushes and Fighter positioning. The noise of this fight may alert Korrax unless the party is swift (defeating all three enemies in 3 rounds or fewer keeps the alarm from being raised).
DM Notes
If the party initiates from hiding, the Rogue gets a free Sneak Attack on the first round as all enemies are surprised. DC 13 Dexterity (Stealth) check at the top of round 4 — if any Reaper is still alive, they attempt to shout. The columns provide half cover (+2 AC) and the overturned carts provide three-quarters cover (+5 AC) for anyone crouching behind them. If the party drops all three Reapers before the end of round 3, Korrax and his ogre bodyguard are NOT alerted and the next encounter begins without any preparation advantage for the boss.
Read Aloud
The storeroom door is a slab of reinforced iron bolted over what was once a loading bay — and it hangs slightly ajar, spilling amber torchlight across the floor. You push through into a chamber where Korrax the Hollow holds court from a throne assembled from broken furniture, salvaged armor plating, and the bones of what might once have been a very large animal. He is leaner than you expected, sharp-featured with a shaved head and a long scar bisecting one pale eye socket, and he looks up at your arrival with an expression not of surprise but of profound, cold disappointment. Beside him, an ogre the size of a freight wagon rolls its knuckles against the stone floor and rumbles deep in its chest.
Description
The climactic confrontation. Korrax has been alerted (if applicable) or is caught in his throne room with his bodyguard ogre, Brul. This is the boss fight of the session. Korrax fights with tactical intelligence, using the terrain of the storeroom — shelving units as cover, a raised platform (his throne) that gives him high ground advantage, and oil lanterns he can kick over to create fire hazards (1d6 fire damage, DC 12 Dex save, spreads 5 feet per round). Korrax will attempt to negotiate briefly before fighting, offering the party a cut of the water supply if they walk away — this is a deception. He has no intention of honoring any deal.
DM Notes
If Korrax was not alerted, he and Brul act in a surprise round against the party only if a DC 15 Wisdom (Insight) check fails to detect his intent to spring a trap on any negotiators. DC 12 Wisdom (Insight) during negotiations detects he is lying. Korrax prioritizes targeting the Fighter to remove the primary damage threat. Brul the Ogre goes berserk and attacks the nearest creature. The room has oil lanterns that Korrax can kick as a bonus action — spilled lanterns create a 5-foot square of burning oil dealing 1d6 fire damage on entry. If Korrax is reduced to 30 HP or fewer, he attempts to flee toward a hidden tunnel behind the throne (DC 13 Perception to spot it beforehand).
Monsters
Tactics
The Reapers fight as a coordinated unit — two press forward to engage in melee while the third (the one with the crossbow) retreats to range behind an overturned cart for three-quarters cover (+5 AC). They use Cunning Action (Dash, Disengage, or Hide) liberally. If one Reaper drops below 10 HP, they attempt to flee and raise the alarm rather than fight to the death — their loyalty is to their paycheck, not the cause. The ranged Reaper prioritizes any party member who appears to be casting spells or using ranged attacks. They do not expect a well-armed party and are briefly hesitant on the first round — DM may impose disadvantage on their first attack roll to reflect this.
Terrain
Ruined market hall interior. Rows of collapsed stalls provide half cover (pillars) and three-quarters cover (overturned iron carts). The central water purifier machine is a 10-foot-radius object that can be used as cover. Dim lighting throughout — torches on walls every 20 feet, with unlit gaps in between. A collapsed stall section in the northwest corner creates difficult terrain (rubble). Characters with Darkvision or a light source have no disadvantage; others make attack rolls at disadvantage in unlit gaps.
Monsters
Tactics
Round 1: Korrax deploys a Smoke Canister (bonus action) to obscure his position and opens with a Sneak Attack on whichever party member looks most injured or least armored. Brul charges the nearest large target (likely the Fighter) and swings his I-beam greatclub. Round 2 onward: Korrax uses the smoke cloud and shelving units for mobile cover, repositioning each turn via Cunning Action — he never stays in one place. He targets the same enemy repeatedly to stack damage. Brul fights stupidly and aggressively — always attacks the closest creature, no tactics. At 30 HP remaining, Korrax attempts to reach the hidden tunnel behind the throne (Dash action). If the party has a Rogue, Korrax specifically attempts to goad them with taunts about their methods mirroring his own. If Brul witnesses Korrax flee, he enters a reckless rage — attacks with advantage but grants advantage to attackers against him.
Terrain
Storeroom / throne chamber. The raised throne platform is 5 feet high (difficult terrain to climb, costs 10 feet of movement). Shelving units (10 feet tall, half cover) line both side walls. Five oil lanterns hang from the ceiling on chains — Korrax can use a bonus action to hurl one, creating a 5-foot burning oil patch (1d6 fire on entry, DC 12 Dex save for half). A hidden tunnel exit is located behind the throne (DC 15 Perception to spot before Korrax reveals it). The room is 40 feet by 30 feet — enough space for Brul to move freely without crowding the battlefield.
A locked iron strongbox behind the throne containing 180 gold pieces worth of mixed salvage coins, pre-collapse gemstones, and trade chits redeemable at three survivor settlements. The key is on Korrax's person.
A detailed hand-drawn map of the Valdenmoor ruins annotated by Korrax, marking three other fortified Reaper outposts, two unknown underground vaults marked with skull symbols, and a circled location labeled simply THE CORE — possibly the source of the cataclysm.
Salvaged alchemical smoke devices. As a bonus action, hurl one up to 20 feet to create a 10-foot radius heavily obscured cloud lasting 1 minute. Mundane item.
A single shoulder guard fashioned from layered scrap steel reinforced with a magical hardening treatment. While worn, the wearer gains a +1 bonus to AC. Requires attunement. (Uncommon magic item — reskinned +1 shield bonus pauldron.)
A crystalline fob key that governs the water purifier machine. Whoever holds this key controls access to the only functioning clean water source in a 40-mile radius. Enormous political and survival value in the post-apocalyptic setting.
Story Hooks
The Hollow Map points toward THE CORE — a heavily shielded underground facility that may be the origin point of the cataclysm that destroyed civilization. The two vaults marked with skulls could be follow-up dungeon sites or sources of pre-collapse technology. Handing the Water Purifier Control Key to Mira Duskhollow triggers her cooperative movement and could establish a powerful allied faction for the party in future sessions. The remaining Reaper outposts marked on the map suggest Korrax had lieutenants — if he escaped through the hidden tunnel, one of them now becomes a new antagonist.
Conclusion
Wrap Up
With Korrax defeated or routed and Brul subdued, the chains on the hostages clatter to the floor and thirty hollow-eyed survivors take their first free breath in days. Mira Duskhollow rushes to her brother Davan and holds him in the amber light of the purifier's glow. She turns to the party with tears cutting clean lines through the ash on her face and presses the Water Purifier Control Key into the nearest PC's hands, telling them to decide who it belongs to — she trusts them more than she trusts herself. The survivors begin drinking freely, and for the first time in the session, the mechanical hum of the purifier sounds less like a threat and more like a heartbeat.
Cliffhanger
As the party examines The Hollow Map and finds the circled marking labeled THE CORE, a deep, rhythmic vibration rises through the floor — felt in the bones before it is heard. The oil lanterns sway. Dust falls from the ceiling. And from somewhere far below Valdenmoor, a sound rises that none of them have ever heard: something vast, mechanical, and very much alive, powering on for the first time in years.
Next Session Hooks
- The Hollow Map reveals the location of THE CORE — a pre-collapse underground facility now humming with new activity. Someone, or something, has activated it deliberately.
- If Korrax escaped through the hidden tunnel, he retreats to one of the three Reaper outposts marked on the map and begins rallying his lieutenants for a devastating counter-strike against Valdenmoor Outpost.
- Mira Duskhollow begins organizing the Water Cooperative among survivor settlements — but one of the settlement leaders is secretly in contact with the Reapers, and the party will need to root out this traitor before the Cooperative collapses from within.
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