Ideas for cool forest / nature / druid adventure

[Newoblivion]

Hello friends :)

The setting is: Forgotten Realms, Cormyr, 1359 DR.

My party have few objectives in a forest, but the problem is that gnolls invaded the forest, and the common folks asked the druids for help. At first the druids defended the forest, but as time passed by the attacks became more savage until the animals and druids started to attack everyone, and the forest became a very hostile place.

So in order to reduce the danger level of traveling the forest, the party decided to solve the druid issue first.

So I am looking for a smart side quest that will be fun and different. I don't want to go for the Shadow Druids / Druids of Malar route. I want something with a twist maybe.

Would really like to hear your ideas!

Thanks a lot!!!

:)

[Steampunkette]

Here's a few things to maybe sprinkle in:

Desecrated Shrines to other Nature Gods. The druids in the forest weren't always EVIL. It is only through their prayers are denied, again and again, by endless encroachment from outsiders seeking to despoil the woodlands that they forsake the old ways and seek out the more destructive aspects of Nature. And in their wrath and anger they lash out at their former deities. (Could go Malar >.>)

Divine Retribution. If you used the Desecrated Shrines then the former Druid of, say, Mielliki who desecrated her shrine and sacrificed a Unicorn on the altar in a show of violent hatred may be cursed in a variety of ways. Perhaps she and all of her acolytes bear terrible deformities as Mongrelfolk. Some may even be doomed to return from the dead as wandering ghosts tied to the sites of their dark acts, where nothing grows and they will be tormented by their inability to experience nature. Perhaps an entire group of the druids were forced into vermin forms they cannot escape, or were cursed with Lycanthropy for their trespasses.

Abused Animals: If the druids have turned to cruelty then there is no goodness in nature: Only the HUNT. Have animals in the area be panicked and the approach of humanoids may trigger flight or fight responses, perhaps even stampedes that would make for great skill-challenges as the PCs try to keep the wild rampaging beasts from crushing travelers under hoof and paw.

Loss of Humanity: In with the Divine Retribution aspect, to some degree, you could lock the druids into animal forms not out of divine edict, but personal choice. Maybe they've given up on humanity, or humanoidkind as it were, and have chosen to be as beasts, live like them, kill like them. An intelligent sleuth of Bears attacking villages in the night, using complex tactics and distractions, before dragging away their victims could be pretty impressive. And if the villagers don't know they're druids there comes the mystery of what happens to the bodies of the Bears when the villagers are -certain- at least one was killed...

And then here are two ideas for the core story:

Yeenoghu: How about revealing that the group was secretly infiltrated by a shapeshifting demon seeking to impress Yeenoghu as a means to free himself from a different demon lord's grasp? Have the story reveal the Gnolls were manipulated into the attacks in the first place, then he slipped in with the druids after a vicious battle and took up the "Life" of one he slew, to use his new position to turn them more and more cruel and further and further away from their original alignments.

Fey Court: Have the adventurer's actions reveal that the Fey in the area are so angry about the incursions they're nearly ready to go to war against human settlements with all the magic and might they can muster! Perhaps they've got alliances with local Giants who will come to their aid, or some leprechaun holds a contract which will force a Dragon into action in payment of some ancient debt. The druids aren't becoming more aggressive because they're evil: They're just trying to keep the peace of diplomatic relations while adventurers and merchants unintentionally antagonize the local Faerie Prince who has had it up to here (Ruler with the 4 inch line marked) with all these damned mortals traipsing through his realm like they own the place!

[Asmotherion]

Hello friends :)

The setting is: Forgotten Realms, Cormyr, 1359 DR.

My party have few objectives in a forest, but the problem is that gnolls invaded the forest, and the common folks asked the druids for help. At first the druids defended the forest, but as time passed by the attacks became more savage until the animals and druids started to attack everyone, and the forest became a very hostile place.

So in order to reduce the danger level of traveling the forest, the party decided to solve the druid issue first.

So I am looking for a smart side quest that will be fun and different. I don't want to go for the Shadow Druids / Druids of Malar route. I want something with a twist maybe.

Would really like to hear your ideas!

Thanks a lot!!!

:)
The forest of Icewind Dale is a Cool forest XD

So, here is a possible plot: The forest is haunted by some evil ghosts. The ghosts posses random gnolls who are passing by, and make them attack. Nobody thinks much of it, it's typical gnoll behaviour. They however ask for help by the druids, since it's the forest that's under attack, which is kinda their domain. They do kill the gnolls, but then the ghosts possess them, and some animals, and things get out of control.

The ghosts ultimate goal could be to protect their death place, which was discovered by accident by the gnolls, and they feared that their remains would be used to force them into submission or simply banish them. How they were killed and why were their remains laying in the forest can be an adventure hook for the next chapter of your campain. :)

simple and effective, and can be altered to the needs of any campain.

Hope you liked it.

[tieren]

Maybe the twist is the druids aren't acting evilly at all, but there is some greater threat in the forest they are trying to keep others away from for their own protection.

Perhaps some demon has been capturing travelers and feeding on their souls increasing his own power, and to limit his growth the druids are stopping anyone else from getting near him. As much as the druids might like adventurers to remove the threat they are more concerned the attempt would fail and make their foe stronger.

[Newoblivion]

Oh wow! Great ideas guys!

I like the Yeenoghu idea. Mostly because the leader of the gnolls is something like a Draegloth only with gnoll. But I will take small things from most of the things you guys wrote.

The thing is now that the druids are feral, will the only option be to kill them? Or can there be some other way? I don't mind putting my players with hard dilemmas but it can be a decision that will shape the future of this forest. And I don't want it to be something simple like killing them all :/

[Laurefindel]

isn't there an old elven ruin in the forest of Cormyr (or near it)? The mythal could be "leaking" corrupting plants and animals alike.

[Newoblivion]

Maybe the twist is the druids aren't acting evilly at all, but there is some greater threat in the forest they are trying to keep others away from for their own protection.

Perhaps some demon has been capturing travelers and feeding on their souls increasing his own power, and to limit his growth the druids are stopping anyone else from getting near him. As much as the druids might like adventurers to remove the threat they are more concerned the attempt would fail and make their foe stronger.

Thet's a really cool idea.

[CursedRhubarb]

Maybe the twist is the druids aren't acting evilly at all, but there is some greater threat in the forest they are trying to keep others away from for their own protection.

Perhaps some demon has been capturing travelers and feeding on their souls increasing his own power, and to limit his growth the druids are stopping anyone else from getting near him. As much as the druids might like adventurers to remove the threat they are more concerned the attempt would fail and make their foe stronger.

I was thinking on similar lines but was thinking of drawing more inspiration from Fern Gully: The Last Rainforest and having the druids be Neutral and defending their homes and the hills could be but the first in a series of invaders as the BBEG wants to turn the place into resources. For added twist the PCs could start by taking a job from said BBEG, thinking the druids and such are evil and crazed but can find out the truth with the help of an NPC. Toss in a mini BBEG that can be unleashed if a sacred Grove gets destroyed and depending on how the PCs go they can unwittingly wipe out the druids and their leaders, or figure things out and take on the true BBEG with the druids in an epic battle. My vote for a great thematic BBEG would be a Ancient Black or Green Dracolich that disguises itself as a wealthy Lord when dealing with minions, er...employees I mean. With a Phylactery made of adamantine and gems, magically reinforced to be indestructible so to prevent it from returning it must be buried inside an enchanted tree that the druids watch over and as the tree grows the Phylactery becomes better protected until enough time passes that people forget why the tree is sacred...

[Vogonjeltz]

Hello friends :)

The setting is: Forgotten Realms, Cormyr, 1359 DR.

My party have few objectives in a forest, but the problem is that gnolls invaded the forest, and the common folks asked the druids for help. At first the druids defended the forest, but as time passed by the attacks became more savage until the animals and druids started to attack everyone, and the forest became a very hostile place.

So in order to reduce the danger level of traveling the forest, the party decided to solve the druid issue first.

So I am looking for a smart side quest that will be fun and different. I don't want to go for the Shadow Druids / Druids of Malar route. I want something with a twist maybe.

Would really like to hear your ideas!

Thanks a lot!!!

:)

Possibilities:
1) Gnolls severely depleted the stock of available prey animals, now predators are getting hungry, and thus more aggressive. The Druids understand that the only way to prevent the total destruction of the prey species (and thus the starvation deaths of all the animals of the forest) is to kill/relocate several of the larger predators. The Druids have been attacking those who enter to prevent further hunting of the prey animals which would exacerbate the problem.

This quest gives the party several options:
A) Do what the Druids ask, kill several large predators to restore balance and allow the forest to repopulate over a long period of time.
B) Do what the Druids ask, by relocating larger predators to other areas where they can safely be absorbed into the populations there.

C) Do NOT do what the Druids ask, but instead attempt to restore balance by introducing new stock to the forest and thus maintain the current population numbers. This requires the Players to think outside the box, not just doing what a questgiver asks of them just because they ask. This would also lead to the greatest success, as the forest does not take years to recover.


2) In conjunction with #1 PCs must convince local trappers/hunters that they have to stop or relocate before the entire stock is depleted. This could be done violently or non-violently as always (i.e. kill the hunters, defeat the hunters and order them to relocate, pay off the hunters to leave/retire, persuade them that it's in their best interests not to eradicate the forest population, but to relocate until it returns to normal, etcetera).

3) Alternative to #1/2, Gnolls are not the only adversity that the forest denizens face. The Druids and Animals when encountered behave erratically, a Ranger or Druid might notice this. The Druids speak in strange tongues, the animals appear to have strange growths on their ears. It turns out that there's a new, dangerous, fungal growth in the forest which takes control of creatures to reproduce. It incubates in the creatures bodies, eventually destroying their brains entirely and turning them into a fungal shambling mound (or just zombies reskinned at fungus monsters) which seek to infect new hosts.

The party has some options here:
A1) Attempt to find a cure, saving the infected. a2) Having a cure might enable the Druids to temper the fungus and live in balance with it.
B) Purge the fungus, it must be eradicated. This could be done by controlled or uncontrolled burns, introducing a heavy frost lethal to the fungus, etcetera.
C) Discover the origin of the fungus. To build off the other posts, maybe instead of being a natural occurance of the material plane it's demonic in nature; or it the result of a portal to a strange plane of fungus. This could hook into future adventures.

#3 can be reskinned as any parasite which takes over hosts.

[Specter]

Druids are capturing young children because their blood is the only thing that can rejuvenate their corrupted forest. They care more about preserving the balance of nature than the lives of humans.

[Asmotherion]

Druids are capturing young children because their blood is the only thing that can rejuvenate their corrupted forest. They care more about preserving the balance of nature than the lives of humans.

That's basically Nazis, except istead of arians you have plants.