Dungeons & Lairs #19: Griffon Nest

G Running the Adventure

riffon Nest is a Fifth Edition plug-in adventure

for four characters with an average party

level (APL) of 5, 8, 11, or 14. This document

To run the adventure, you need the three Fifth Edition core
offers details for each level and makes
rulebooks. If you don’t have a copy, you can access a free
adjustments accordingly. The characters visit a
basic ruleset from the official source.
high-up location home to a griffon nest. They

can take the griffon eggs and sell them, or

raise the griffons themselves using the supplemental griffon Text that appears in a box like this is meant to be read aloud or
training rules included at the end of the document. paraphrased for the players when their characters first arrive at
a location or under specific circumstances, as described in the
text.

Credits When a creature’s name appears in bold type, that’s a visual

This Fifth Edition adventure was brought to you by cue pointing you to its stat block as a way of saying, "Hey,
the following talented folks. game master, make sure you get this creature’s stat block

Designers: DMDave, The Griffon's Saddlebag, Cze ready—there’s going to be an encounter!" If the stat block

& Peku, ItsADnDMN, Paper Forge appears in the Appendix or the accompanying supplement by

Additional Design: GMBinder, Shutterstock ItsADnDMonsterNow, the text tells you so; otherwise, you

Story Creators: DMDave, The Griffon's Saddlebag can find the stat block in the core rulebook.

Rules Development: DMDave, The Griffon's Spells and nonmagical equipment mentioned in the

Saddlebag, ItsADnDMn adventure are described in the core manual for players.

Art: Cze & Peku, Paper Forge, The Griffon's Magic items are described in the core manual for game

Saddlebag, Shutterstock masters unless the adventure’s text directs you to an item’s
Interior Design: DMDave, GMBinder description in the supplements by The Griffon's Saddlebag.
Interior Illustrators: Cze & Peku, Paper Forge, The
Griffon's Saddlebag, DMDave, Shutterstock
Cartographer: Cze & Peku Plug-in Adventure
Special Thanks: Wizards of the Coast, GMBinder, As a plug-in adventure, the adventure content serves as drop-

Shutterstock, Patreon, and, of course, our Patrons, in material for game masters who wish to add a dungeon to a
family, friends, fans, and everyone else that preexisting campaign or need a side quest. If you need a hook
supported us during the creation of this adventure. for this adventure or already have a similar hook, the Griffon

Nest Hooks table below offers details for introducing this

adventure to your players.

1
 Griffon Nest Hooks Level Selection
Side Quest Before play, be sure to know the level at which you wish to

d8 Type Details run the adventure. Overall, the locations and their

A magic item crafter needs the descriptions in the adventure remain unchanged throughout
1 Fetch Quest
characters to fetch a few griffon eggs. the levels. However, most of the encounters, hazards, traps,

and treasure scale with each level of the adventure. The

A knight’s horse was killed by a griffon keyed locations will present the differences between each
Recover and its corpse was dragged away. The
2 level.
Stolen Item horse’s saddlebags had important
Also, the adventure works for more than just the listed
documents in the bag.
levels. If you wish to run this adventure for levels other than

Griffons in the area are growing 5th, 8th, 11th, or 14th, the chart below shows you which
Receive
3 particularly aggressive. The characters
Information version of the adventure you should select for each level. A
are sent to their nest to learn why. given version of the adventure might be easier or harder for a

A druid tells the characters that a given party. Characters with an average part level of 4 or less

griffon’s nest is in trouble. The might find the encounters in this adventure particularly
Rescue
4 characters must race to the top of the challenging. Similarly, characters with levels higher than 16
Mission
mountain and save the griffon from might find the adventure to be too simplistic for their players’

dangers (choose a random encounter). taste.

An egg-hunter went missing a few days Scaling the Adventure

Find a ago. People suspect it was the griffons
5 Average Party Recommended Adventure Relative
Missing NPC —but it was something much more
dangerous! Level Version Difficulty

Griffons keep getting killed. The 5 5th-level Hard

Monster
6 characters must wait by a nearby nest to 6 5th-level Medium
Hunt
see what keeps attacking them.
7 5th-level Easy
Dead horses surround a tower of natural
Supernatural 8 8th-level Hard
7 rock. The characters are sent up the
Investigation
tower to learn why. 9 8th-level Medium
A wizard will assist the characters in 10 8th-level Easy
one of her endeavors—but only if the
8 Secure Aid 11 11th-level Hard
characters retrieve a few eggs for her,
first.
12 11th-level Medium
Gold Rewards. To further incentivize the party to travel to 13 11th-level Easy
the griffon nest and collect the griffon eggs, the party’s patron
14 14th-level Hard
might offer them a gold reward. If you aren’t sure how much

to reward the party for completing the adventure, pay them a

15 14th-level Medium
total of 500 gp per level of the adventure so long as their 16 14th-level Easy
patron is wealthy enough to afford such a price.

Omeria Placement
The griffon nest can be found in any area with tall mountain

ranges, mesas, or canyons. In Omeria, you can place the

griffon nest outside of Orbea and Arruquetta, in Vaskil Valley,

or within any of the mountain ranges in Odonburg.

2
 Check
Griffon Nest Total Lore Learned
The griffon nest featured in this adventure rests atop a karst, 1-5 No lore learned
a tall, thin rock formation covered in greenery. Nearly a
Griffons are carnivorous creatures that prefer the
6-10
thousand feet below the karst’s top, chaotic waves batter the taste of horse meat.
cliffside. Crude wooden bridges erected by prior griffon

hunters connect the neighboring karsts, allowing limited

Griffons sleep during the day and hunt at night. At
access to the nests.
11-20 night, it might be easier to sneak into the nest as
most of the pride will be away hunting.
The area is windy, but not windy enough to impose

disadvantage or limit flying. Securing a satchel of beast chow (see the magic
The griffon nest itself is composed of sticks, leaves, and the 21+ items supplement) will help the characters
bones of their prey, mostly horses. The nest holds six eggs,
surpass the griffons without having to fight them.
each the size of a cantaloupe.

Day or Night
Griffon Research Griffons are nocturnal creatures; they hunt at night. They

Before the characters set out on their quest to collect griffon often hunt in small prides, flying high over plains and forests

eggs, they can spend one or more weeks of downtime within a few miles of their aeries. They prefer to kill herd

learning what they can about griffons. To do so, the animals and horses. However, they will also eat hippogriffs.

characters need access to a library or expert on griffons—a While hunting, only one or two griffons remain at the nest

local ranger, for example. The characters need to spend at to protect the eggs. During the day, the full pride is present,

least 100 gp to cover expenses related to the research. the majority of which sleep during the hot sunlight hours. A

After the characters spend a workweek (eight hours per full pride consists of twelve griffons .

day for five days straight) researching the griffons, one of the

characters must make an Intelligence check with a +1 bonus Approaching the Karst
per 100 gp spent beyond the initial 100 gp, to a maximum of
If the characters make the mistake of approaching the karst
+6. If the character making the check is a ranger with
at night riding horses, they’re surprised by a loud screech
expertise in forests or mountains, the character gains
from above. A pride of griffons attacks, targeting their
advantage on the check. Refer to the table below to
horses. The number of griffons that attack depend on the
determine how much lore the character learns about griffons.
level of the adventure, as shown on the table below.
The results are cumulative.

3
     Griffons have no interest in a horse’s rider unless the rider If half the party succeeds on their check, they reach the top

attacks the griffons. The griffons only want the horses. of the karst without any issue. If every member succeeds,

they do it in half the time. Inversely, if the party fails their

Griffon Attack group check, it takes twice as long to reach the karst. And if

Adventure Level # of Griffons every member of the group fails the check, the character with

the lowest result (lowest Strength score "wins" ties) falls 2d6
5th 4
x 10 feet, taking 1d6 bludgeoning damage for every 10 feet

8th 6 fallen.

11th 8
Grabbing the Eggs
14th 12 Once the characters get near the griffon eggs, they will either

have to fight the griffons present or sneak past the griffons. A

Climbing the Karst character trying to sneak past griffons must succeed on a

Dexterity (Stealth) check; the DC for this check is 20 during

Even with reliable bridges and switchbacks, it will take the the day and 15 at night. If the characters are caught, all

characters six hours to reach the top of the karst on which griffons present (two at night and twelve during the day)

the nests lie. The climb is dangerous. Before the group sets attack.

out, have them make a group Strength (Athletics) check. If

the group can fly, ignore these rolls. The DC for the group Other Complications
check depends on the level of the adventure, as shown on the Humans aren’t the only creatures trying to get their hand on

table below. griffon eggs. Despite being something of an apex predator

themselves, griffons have creatures who hunt their eggs for

Climbing DCs by Level
their savory flavor. If you wanted to add a little more

Adventure Level Climbing DC challenge to the adventure, roll a d10 and reference the

5th 13 Griffon Predators Table below to determine what other

creature the characters must contend with during their egg

8th 14 hunt. Creatures marked with an asterisk are featured in the

11th 15 Griffon's Roost creatures supplement. The kobold airship is

featured in the Appendix.

14th 17

Griffon Predators

d10 5th- or 8th-level Encounters 11th- or 14th-level encounters

1 3d6 kobold kite-flyers* 1 kobold airship
2 1d10 giant vultures 1d3 chimeras
3 1 squall elemental* 1d4 + 1 squall elementals*
4 1 manticore 1d8 + 1 manticores
5 2d4 harpies 1d6 + 2 bulettes
6 1d4 giant egg-eating snakes* 2d6 giant egg-eating snakes*
7 1 wyvern 1d4 wyverns
8 1d4 trolls 2d4 trolls
9 1 roc 1d4 rocs
10 1 young red dragon 1 adult red dragon

4
 Crafting Magic Items
Griffon Downtime Griffon eggs aren’t only sought after for the purposes of
Once the characters secure the griffon eggs, they have a few raising and training griffons. The egg yolks possess potent
options available to them, as shown below. properties used in the construction of magical items. Below

is a list of a few of the items that can be crafted using griffon

Selling the Eggs eggs. If the item’s source is SRD, it’s featured in the Fifth

Edition systems reference document. Item’s marked GN are

The characters can sell each of the eggs. To sell the eggs, a
featured in this adventure's supplement.
character must spend at least a week of downtime searching
In addition to the griffon eggs, creating these items come
for a buyer—unless the character already has a buyer lined
with a gold piece cost that covers other materials, tools, etc.,
up. At the end of the week, the character must make a
based on the item’s rarity. Those values, as well as the time a
Charisma (Persuasion) check. The buyer offers to pay the
character needs to work in order to complete the item, can be
character an amount of gold equal to 10 times the result of
found on the table below. A character also needs the requisite
the check (maximum of 200 gp) for each egg. If the character
tool and/or skill proficiency appropriate for the item’s
refuses the price, they must spend another week of downtime
creation, also shown on the table.
to secure another buyer, making a whole new check.

Griffon Magic Items

Item Rarity Source Workweeks Cost Tool Proficiency

Eyes of the eagle Uncommon SRD 2 200 gp Arcana, glassblower’s tools
Goggles of night Uncommon SRD 2 200 gp Arcana, glassblower’s tools
Griffon coinpouch Common GN 1 50 gp Arcana, leatherworker’s tools
Griffon component pack Uncommon GN 2 200 gp Arcana
Griffon key loop Common GN 1 50 gp Arcana, leatherworker’s tools
Potion of animal friendship Uncommon SRD 1 100 gp Arcana, alchemist’s tools
Ring of jumping Uncommon SRD 2 100 gp Arcana, jeweler’s tools
Satchel of beast chow Uncommon GN 2 200 gp Arcana, cook’s utensils
Tempest griffon bracers Rare GN 10 2,000 gp Arcana, leatherworker’s tools
Tempest griffon feather cape Very rare GN 25 20,000 gp Arcana, weaver’s tools
Winged boots Uncommon SRD 2 200 gp Arcana, cobbler’s tools

5
 Griffon Training Appendix: Kobold Airship
Of course, the characters may also raise the griffons

themselves, training them as mounts or companions. Griffon

Kobold Airship
training is dangerous, time-consuming, and expensive—

griffons require a lot of meat. Once trained, a griffon is a

fierce and loyal steed, bonding with its master for life. Huge construct, unaligned
First, the characters must have a place to store the animal,

specifically one from which it won’t be able to escape via

AC 15 (natural armor)
flight. Such griffon sanctuaries are hard to find, and usually
Hit Points 300 (40d12 + 40)
only exist in large cities close to griffon nests.
Speed 0 ft., fly 50 ft.
For characters who wish to forego hunting their own

griffons, the prices to purchase griffons is shown on the

Griffon Cost Table. The Griffon Upkeep Costs table shows STR DEX CON INT WIS CHA
the costs required to stable and feed griffons. Griffon eggs
16 (+3) 7 (-2) 13 (+1) 8 (-1) 7 (-2) 8 (-1)
require 35 days of care from the point they are laid to when

they hatch. Barding, bit and bridles, saddles, and other

Damage Immunities poison, psychic
equipment related to mounts are detailed in the Fifth Edition
Condition Immunities blinded, charmed, deafened,
SRD.
exhaustion, frightened, incapacitated, paralyzed,
petrified, poisoned, prone, stunned, unconscious
Griffon Cost
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 8
Carrying Languages Common, Draconic
Item Cost Speed Capacity Challenge 10 (5,900 XP)
Griffon egg 350 gp — —
Vehicle. The kobold airship is a vehicle. Up to eight
20 ft., 50 ft. Small creatures can ride on the ship without
Griffon cublet 500 gp 75 lbs.
fly squeezing. To make a melee attack against a target
30 ft., 80 ft. within 5 feet of the ship, they must use spears or
Griffon, wild 5,000 gp 540 lbs. weapons with reach. Creatures in the ship have
fly
three-quarters cover against attacks and effects
Griffon, 15,000 30 ft., 80 ft. from outside it. If the ship is destroyed, creatures in
540 lbs.
trained gp fly the ship are placed in unoccupied spaces within 5
feet of the ship.
Griffon Upkeep Costs

Item Price/Day Price/Week

Actions
Multiattack. The airship makes two attacks with its
Egg care 1 gp 7 gp ballistas.
Feed (raw meat) 5 gp 35 gp
Ballista. Ranged Weapon Attack: +7 to hit, range
Stabling (griffon sanctuary) 5 gp 35 gp 120/480 ft., one target. Hit: 16 (3d10) piercing
damage.
Trainer 5 gp 35 gp
Cannon (Recharge 5-6). Ranged Weapon Attack: +7
To train a griffon, a character must spend a minimum of
to hit, range 600/2,400 ft., one target. Hit: 44
eight hours per week for two years (104 weeks) if the griffon
(8d10) bludgeoning damage.
is a hatchling, one year (52 weeks) if it’s a wild full-grown

griffon, or six months (26 weeks) if it’s a trained full-grown

griffon.

If they pay a trainer to assist them (see the table above), the

characters are not required to make checks. They only need

to spend the time and money. Otherwise, the character must

make a DC 10 Wisdom (Animal Handling) check at the end

of each week. The character gains a +1 bonus to the check

per each additional eight-hour period spent that week

training the griffon beyond the first eight hours, to a

maximum of +6. At the GM’s discretion, certain spells,

character features, and magic items (such as the satchel of

beast chow detailed in the supplement) might grant the

character advantage on the check. If the check is successful,

the character gains 1 week of progress. If the check fails, the

character gains no progress but loses none either.

Once the griffon is trained, the character may ride it

without any issue. The griffon’s loyalty is to its new master for

life, and it will fight to the death to defend them. Ω

6
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