Typical, isn't it? The party has just had a really good dinner in a peaceful inn when someone staggers in needing their help and right now. The Player Background sets the scene, with a comfortable 'gastropub' inn in an unnamed settlement (so it's easy to slot it in to an appropriate place in your campaign world) and a badly-beaten fellow pleading for the party to rescue his son from whoever's got him.

The DM Background explains what led up to this situation, and then its straight in to the adventure as the party gets an opportunity to begin their investigations (assuming they accept the challenge... if they don't, find some new adventurers!). This should take them out of towm to some ruins beside the road where there's plenty of unfriendly wildlife to deal with before they even get near the villains of the piece. There's a basic plan of their lair under the ruins, descriptions of what is to be found and an interesting opportunity to talk the situation through rather than resolve it with combat.

Oddly, it's not until the end that we find out that there's a dangerous untamed wilderness between the inn and the ruins, and are provided with an encounter table - this really ought to have been provided earlier in the adventure. It pays to read through the entire thing before you play it! A new monster and a quite intriguing new magic item complete this offering.

This makes for a nice adventure which is both financially and emotionally rewarding for the party. The alternative ways of dealing with the situation give the players different options. There isn't much in the way of follow-up adventures, although the grateful father could be a useful patron in the future. You might want to reuse the inn as well, especially if the party is into good food! A nice little interlude.