someones Poisoned the Watering Hole - DnD5e One Shot - Kaneykreative

Oct 5, 2026

Upload by Ezra

Written DnD 5th Edition one-shot adventure designed for 4–6 hours, suitable for any player count (originally built for six) and adjustable across levels, with the recommended starting point for new characters at Level 1. The quest tasks players with investigating cistern contamination, clearing hostile creatures, and returning for reward, including 5,000 GP and access to the Guard Armory. Encounters mix dungeon-like exploration, puzzle solving, hack-and-slash combat, and suspense/horror elements across three cistern levels and multiple maze-like spaces.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryStory & Novel

FormatPDF

Pages49

Reading Time1 h 15 min

AccessFree to download

Quest Overview

Quest Hook-Someone’s Poisoned the Watering Hole!

Quest Set-up-Someone’s Poisoned the Watering Hole

Cistern Level 1

Intermission

Resume

Cistern Level 2

Final Thoughts

Introduction My name is Tim Kaney and this is an experiment. I recently got into Dudgeon and Dragons 5th Edition and was asked to run a one-shot adventure for the group with which I play. Me being me, I couldn’t settle on just one adventure – or what I viewed as local side quests. Eventually, I ended up making several written quests. The following in just one of those quests. It was part of a local scene where players could play this one adventure and that would be the end, or they could continue with the players completing the side quests in this area. The players would use prebuilt profiles, if they wanted, reveal all the missions they know, and then decide. In the first one shot, they were to make a quick decision in order to avoid being caught in a bar brawl. I wanted to split these up and provide them to the community for free so that others can enjoy the quest and either stick to what I created or take it a tweak it little for their own style, parties, etc. This being the first fully written quest, it seemed like a good plan to use this one. Focus was on more of a setting and mission described, how players interact with the environments, and the outcomes. There should be a mix of puzzle solving and hack and slash for this quest. That should help satisfy a few types of players out there. I tried to incorporate aspects of action, suspense, and horror into the quest. The experiment is that I have never made these before and only ran one session (not this quest) and I wanted to see if people enjoyed it ifI published this. This is meant to a DM to use to entertain their group of players. If I get positive feedback (at all) or even critical feedback on how to make it smoother, better, etc. I will go on to make more. If not, I know maybe I should focus on something else. Thankyou. Tim 3/20 DnD OneShot-Kaney Contents Introduction ....................................................................................................................................... 2 Contents ............................................................................................................................................. 3 Quest Overview .................................................................................................................................. 4 Quest Hook-Someone’s Poisoned the Watering Hole! .................................................................... 5 Quest Set-up-Someone’s Poisoned the Watering Hole................................................................ 6 Cistern Level 1 ................................................................................................................................ 9 Main Space 1.: Main Hall – 6 Rats ............................................................................................10 Main Space 2.: Well shaft, Inner cloister, Safe Space ............................................................... 15 Main Space 3.: Supply Room.....................................................................................................16 Main Space 4: Western Room-Air Shaft.................................................................................. 17 Main Space 5: Balcony / Floor Trap ..........................................................................................18 Main Space 6: Cistern Level 1 Observation Deck-Spiders (x6) & Giant Spider (x2) ...............19 Intermission ................................................................................................................................. 22 Resume ......................................................................................................................................... 22 Cistern Level 2.............................................................................................................................. 24 Main Space 1.: Main Cistern............................................................

FAQs

How long is the one-shot and how many players is it for?

The quest is designed for 4–6 hours and is built for 6 players, but encounters can be adjusted for other group sizes.

What is the main objective of the adventure?

Players investigate the cistern contamination, clear the area of monsters, and report back to receive a reward.

What types of creatures and environments does the quest include?

The adventure features rats and giant/poisonous variants, spiders (including giant and swarms), plus a phase spider. The setting is dungeon-like, cistern/sewer-like, waterlogged, and maze-like across three levels.

Oct 5, 2026

Upload by Ezra