This seed came to mind when I thought about the possibility of albino cave crocodiles, but it does not have to involve an albino cave crocodile. Really!
While traveling in a subterranean landscape, the party comes across a large pond or underground lake. Something catches their eye. On the shore of the lake is a decomposing body.
Germinating the Seed with Secrets
Note that these secrets do not all have to be true. Indeed, some might be contradictory. You should pick and choose those secrets that work for your game and come up with your own secrets, as well. Anything in [brackets] is the choice of the GM. Honestly, it’s all the choice of the GM, but this gives you some options.
- The body is [human; drow; duergar; goblin; dwarf; gnome; an out-of-place elf].
- [Rival crawlers; Individuals of the same species; Enemies; Strangers] approach while the characters are inspecting the body.
- Rival groups, including a group that the deceased belong to, approach while the party is inspecting and trade confusion…and accusations.
- Rather than a full body, it’s just a [lower; upper] half. Might this be the work of an albino cave crocodile?
- There’s some obvious sign of an unnatural death, such as [half a body; an arrow; a sliced neck; a bludgeoned skull].
- (Alternatively…) There is no sign of an unnatural death, but something still seems off. Perhpas the body is potitioned strangely.
- The body has an interesting tattoo or a [pouch; bag; backpack with a cryptic letter; unknown holy symbol; strange dried flowers; glowing dust].
- There is indication the body was dragged to the location, potentially from the cave beyond.
- Soemone, perhaps the deceased, had a campfire here a few days ago. There is smashed glass next to the fire’s remains.
- The body, itself, emits a [faint glow; unexpected odor; buzzing sound]. Maybe it is [magic; larva inside]?
Grow
As an encounter, this could be as simple as finding the body, searching it, and searching the immediate surroundings. Maybe it’s just a coincidence. People die. Then again, whatever killed the deceased might arrive for the party. Again, albino cave crocodile! An arrow might buzz in from the darkness.
Expanding this to a one-shot, there could be a mission to find out what happened to the deceased, or the party might follow a lead they found on the body, such as a cryptic note. Maybe it is as simple as playing mediators in a beef between two sides.
The one-shot ideas could be extended to a longer adventure. A mystery might work well here. There is plenty to grow from an interaction between two rival parties, such as duergar and drow. There is nothing wrong with planting a map or map-like note on the body. Also, consider, why someone was down here alone.
As a campaign, this would work particularly well with the two sides angle. Maybe the decased was influential in some way and this death was enough to light the fuse for a subterranean war between two (or more) sides. Time for the characters to pick a side or go on their own.
Mechanics
Here are some quick mechanics for the albino cave crocodile, if you go that route, for Shadowdark:
Albino Cave Crocodile. Fat, scaly, white reptiles with stumpy legs and long, thrashing tails. They live in caves and have red eyes. AC 15, HP 25, ATK 2 bite +4 (1d10), MV near (swim), S 4, D 1, C 2, I -2, W 1, Ch -1, AL N, LV 5. Nightvision. Can see in the dark. Stealth. Advantage on checks to surprise.