The Hand of the Highwayman - A Web Enhancement for Song and Silence - Adventuring Guide

Oct 5, 2026

Upload by acoobca

Bardic abilities are presented as a versatile toolkit for an adventuring party, covering area and situation knowledge, mystery clues, guidance for the Dungeon Master, and ways to identify player interests. Bardic music supports combat effectiveness, helps counter spells, and enables noncombat play through information gathering and investigations. The web enhancement introduces a spymaster NPC, sample traps, and a mini-adventure for four 6th–7th level characters built around a necromantic plot in Restenford.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryStory & Novel

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time17 min

AccessFree to download

Adventure Summary

Preparation

Adventure Background

Character Hooks

The Hand of the Highwayman A Web Enhancement for Song and Silence The judicious use of bardic abilities can help an adventuring group in a variety of ways. Bardic knowledge can provide background information for an area or a situation, offer clues to a mystery, serve as a vehicle for the Dungeon Master (DM) to introduce new concepts, and even help the canny DM determine what areas of the campaign world interest players most. Bardic music can bolster an adventuring party ’s combat capabilities, counter spells, and pave the way for gathering information, conducting investigations, and a host of other noncombat situations. In addition, the bard’s normally high Charisma helps him make friends and gain new allies almost everywhere he goes. |
Credits
Design: David Noonan, John D. Rateliff,
and Penny Williams
Editing Miranda Horner
Typesetting: Sue Weinlein Cook
Web Production: Julia Martin
Web Development: Mark Jindra
Graphic Design: Sean Glenn, Cynthia Fliege
Based on the original DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® game by E. Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson and on the new edition of the DUNGEONS & DRAGONS game designed by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, Skip Williams, Rich Baker, and Peter Adkison.
D&D, DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, DRAGON, MONSTER MANUAL, and DUNGEON MASTER are registered trademarks and the d20 System logo is a trademarkowned by Wizards of the Coast, Inc. All Wizards characters, character names, and the distinctive likenesses thereof are trademarks owned by Wizards of the Coast, Inc. This material is protected under the copyright laws ofthe United States of America. Any reproduction or unauthorized use ofthe material or artwork contained herein is prohibited without the express written permission of Wizards of the Coast, Inc. This product is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual people, organizations, places, or events is purely coincidental. This Wizards of the Coast game product contains no Open Game Content. No portion of this work may be reproduced in any form without written permission. To learn more about the Open Gaming License and the d20 System | | --- | | License, please visit <[www.wizards.com/d20](www.wizards.com/d20)>

©2001 Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
All rights reserved. Made in the U.S.A. Visit our website at <[www.wizards.com/dnd](www.wizards.com/dnd)>

| If your players aren’t accustomed to using bardic abilities to their fullest, it may help to send the characters on an adventure that offers several opportunities for using these talents. Here’s a short scenario that demonstrates how bardic abilities can enhance a group’s success. This DUNGEONS & DRAGONS® web enhancement showcases bardic abilities (particularly bardic knowledge) and features a spymaster NPC, as well as several of the sample traps listed in Song and Silence: A Guidebook to Bards and Rogues. It is designed for four characters of 6th to 7th level. The party should include at least one bard. PREPARATION You need the Player’s Handbook, the DUNGEON MASTER’s Guide, the MONSTER MANUAL®, and Song and Silence to run this mini-adventure. Text in shaded boxes is player information. Monster statistics noted in each encounter are radically abbreviated, but provide the MONSTER MANUAL page number. ADVENTURE BACKGROUND The elven overlords ofthe Lendore Isles want control of the few remaining human-ruled coastal towns of this continent. Their efforts to gain that influence through alliances have thus far been rebuffed. Therefore, they have decided to use more circuitous means to reach their goal. They have sent two agents, a necromancer and a spymaster, to the coastal city of Restenford to start a mysterious “crime wave.” Their hope is that this will panic the citizenry and force Baroness Andrella to waive the town’s autonomy and call on the elves for help. After assessing the situation, the two decided to create a little-known necromantic item called the glorious hand to use in their “crime wave.” The

FAQs

How do bardic abilities help an adventuring group in this web enhancement?

They provide background knowledge, clues for mysteries, ideas for new Dungeon Master concepts, and help reveal which parts of the campaign world interest players. Bardic music also bolsters combat, counter spells, and noncombat investigation and information gathering.

What is the adventure scenario about?

Elven overlords plan to gain influence over coastal towns by triggering a mysterious “crime wave.” Two agents—a necromancer and a spymaster—stage the plot in Restenford, culminating in the spymaster continuing the mission alone.

What should players do to uncover and stop the plot?

Players can investigate Restenford’s key locations, interact through the baroness via bard performance, and gather clues with guards and the sewers. Correctly connecting those clues leads to discovering the spymaster’s role and ending the crime wave.

Oct 5, 2026

Upload by acoobca