The Wild Beyond the Witchlight is a unique adventure for 5th Edition D&D, designed to take players through levels 1 – 8. The adventure is a wild romp through the Feywild, an alternate dimension of unusual design. A vibrant world of tactile color and sonorous light, teeming with wild creatures beyond imagination, and governed by magic beyond comprehension. And all it’s citizens contend with countless curious customs, construed to confuse and confound. It’s a cacophany of chaos. And it’s brilliant, if you want it to be.

Witchlight is a loving homage to the classic tales of childhood fantasy and literary nonsense. Alice in Wonderland, The Wizard of Oz, Peter Pan, Grimm’s Fairy Tales, even Willy Wonka, Monty Python, and Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy are all honored in this adventure. But although players start at first level, this is not a beginner’s adventure. To say this is role-playing heavy is an understatement. The adventure prides itself on the fact that you can play the entire thing and never enter combat. So, if you’ve been dying to unleash your dual-wielding barbarian/paladin and crack some skulls, this is not the adventure for you.

This Resource Page is a little different. Since starting this blog site, I have been running up to three campaigns and all the exhaustive writing that goes into these recaps and resource pages. I just wanted to play D&D and not worry about all the prep work and planning. Diane suggested that I check out the local hobby store, which we lovingly call the “Hobbit Hole” but that’s not its name, and see if there is a group starting up. Well there was, and here it is.

Will I be able to just play a character and not fall into DM Mode, telling everyone, “Here’s how I would have played it,” and offering an absurd amount of unsolicited advice? Will I survive playing with a new group of strangers, who might have wildly divergent play styles? Spoiler Warning: We have planners, schemers, tacticians, min/maxers, rules lawyers, a newbie, a follower, two mad scientists, and a storyteller; this is a wildly divergent group and we may implode. Will the play-once-a-week schedule overwhelm me with writing chores? I’ll tell you right now the answer to that one is, Yes.

Since I am not running the adventure, I won’t have access to the things, like maps and monster charts, that I usually include in these resource pages. When the campaign is complete, I will try to backfill all those things. Our DM doesn’t use minis or handouts either but I will try to add things when I can. Instead, this page will focus on the story, characters, player tips, and the literary inspirations used in this adventure.

Speaking of characters, I would like to feature the backstory of each character if the other players are willing. But for now I just have one, mine. The story of Durwyn, the Bastard Paladin of Rillifane. Born Hloradurwyn to a royal dwarven mother and unknown father, I tell the tale of how an outcast living in caves of Mithral Hall grew up to be a holy defender of an elven god, on a quest to discover his true heritage; and why he is purple. You can read the whole tale here:

Durwyn the Bastard Paladin Backstory

 

Campaign Diary

Session 1 – A new adventure awaits as a new group of lost souls explores the boundless chaos of the Feywild. But first, it’s Carnival!

 

Session 2 – We plunge deeper into the secrets of the Witchlight Carnival. But how far down the rabbit hole are we willing to go?

 

Session 3 – Enemies become allies, and suspects become victims as we race toward the climax of the Witchlight Carnival.

 

Session 4 – Coronations, grand larceny, extortions, incantations, teleportation; it’s not as easy as it looks to get into the Feywild.

 

Session 5 – The Misfits explore the Feywild, collecting birdcages and keys, making friends and creating enemies. And one of us dies.

 

Session 6 – We conclude our aggressive negotiations with the fastest thief in the Fey and get embroiled in some Soggy political intrigue.

 

Session 7 – The Witchlight Misfits wander around the Soggy Court, shop at the creepiest shop in the Fey, and storm a hag’s hut.

 

Session 8 – This week we rob a hag blind, fight a giant can of cranberry sauce, and get caught up in a salientian coup. Or is it caecilian soup?

 

Session 9 – Where we mislead an amphibious revolt, I channel Lewis Carroll, and we make the worst deal in the history of the Fey.

 

Session 10 – Where we fly to the Land of Thither, meet Rumpelstiltskin, then get lost in the woods and forget to bring any breadcrumbs.

 

Session 11 – Where we play with pixies, anger some goats, meet Will of the Fey, and disguise ourselves as unicorns, ’cause it’s cool.

 

Session 12 – Where we execute Will’s half-baked rescue plan; but first, an in-between session when half the party doesn’t show up to play.

 

Session 13 – In our second heist on the hag’s hideout, we look for more kids, tchotchkes, pigs, and portraits. And there are pixies.

 

Session 14 – We are in for the fight of our lives as we try to take on a hideous hag. And a T-Rex. And King Kong. It gets weird.

 

Session 15 – Where we homebrew the journey to the Land of Yon, I find a noble steed, and a bad deal breaks a companion forever.

 

Session 16 – Off we go into the wild grey Yon-der. The story twists into the Wizard of Oz, and we fly straight to this land’s witch, er, hag.

 

 

The Maps

Obviously, our DM doesn’t just plop a map down in front of us during the sessions. (Cause I would metagame like a bastard if he did.) But here are a few that I’ve been allowed to see.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Handouts

Our DM doesn’t rely on handouts, unlike me who loves them. But I’ll probably make a few or what I would have done if I were to run this myself.

 

 

 

This page is still a work in progress. As we continue through the adventure, I will add more stuff as it is discovered. Stay tuned.

And if you like these Resources pages, then check out the ones I’ve created for the other campaigns I’m running at the D&D Campaign Resources Page.

As always, it’s better to show than tell, and Game On!