In one of their recent Adventures (The Mercenaries), the PCs encountered a group of mercenaries putting together an army for a land baron. They were using less than honest means to do this.

The PCs stopped them and and sent them packing off to prison. The sheriff wasn't ready to arrest the Baron (he had to gather a posse), but now he's ready and he sends a message off to the PCs asking for their help.

Winston Rotburg III, the local land baron on Shadow Reef, wants to expand his territory and take the island from the “uncivilized savages,” but the locals refused to be a part of his army.

He hired a group of mercenaries to raise an army for him by any means available. They chose mass hypnosis and brainwashing. The Baron gave them supplies for training them, with the expectation of receiving troops in the near future. They never got the chance to deliver, as the PCs came along and rescued all the “recruits.”

The sheriff has finally wrangled enough volunteers to form a posse. His posse is mostly composed of the “recruits,” who all want a chance to get some pay-back.

• Sheriff Dalton of Shadowgate sends for the PCs.
  • He's offering a fair bit of cash if they'll help him arrest the Baron.
  • He's also been authorized to offer the PCs a discount on all goods purchased in Shadowgate.
• The PCs arrive in Shadowgate, to find a militia composed of the very same people they rescued.
  • They're quite angry and looking for pay-back.
    • This aspect of his posse makes the Sheriff nervous.
    • He asks the PCs to speak with them and make sure they won't kill the Baron.
    • The PCs will probably spend some time getting to know them better
      • This is for the sake of knowing their capabilities.
  • Amazingly, Anna's goblin friends want to help, too.
    • They've grown somewhat fond of their new business partners.
    • The sheriff has offered them a similar discount as the PCs.
  • If the PCs rescued Angel McCade from the sinkhole, she'll lend a hand, too.
• The posse gets moving.
  • The sheriff leaves a volunteer to watch after the town.
    • This is the owner of the Shadowgate Hotel.
  • It's a two day trek through the desert.
  • There's a few bumps along the way.
    • Caught in a sand storm.
    • Giant bug attack.
• They arrive at the Baron's estate (The Red Fortress).
  • Intelligence gathering.
    • They're armed with Gnomish firearms.
    • The Red Fortress is quite well designed and defensible.
      • The front gate is guarded by a Gnomish tank!
  • Siege.
  • The PCs storm the place.
    • The Posse keeps the Baron and his men from escaping.
    • The PCs (hopefully) break in through the secret entrance.
• Captured Baron
  • Tried in Shadowgate for his crimes.
  • Sentenced to exile on the Isle of Sandwich.

• The Baron already received some of the troops, forcing the PCs to take a lighter approach.
• The Mercenaries brainwashed some of the “uncivilized savages” in order to prove what they could do.
  • The Baron will use them as shock troops.

Describe possible adventure hooks to get the PCs involved in the story.

Each section of the adventure should have a unique name, so it's easy to reference. Add a section to the page for each part of the adventure. Describe in detail what happens during this chunk of the story.

Flavor text to be read to the players may be marked like this (1×1 table):

Detail how to end the story. List possible hanging plot elements that might be revisited at a later date. Describe rewards and/or penalties that might be obtained for success or failure.

Display maps and describe the locations found within. Be sure to detail any unusual conditions.

Files for GCS character sheets for the characters should be linked to from here.