While exploring an ancient dungeon, the party finds a map to an uncharted island, with the words: "seek the heart of darkness in the mouth of khyber."
This is designed for a party of five level 8-9 adventurers playing D&D 3.5e, and can be adjusted to the DM's needs.
Map scale: 1 square = 1/2 square mile.
Water elementals guard the island except at the mouth of the bay. 2x huge water elemental = CR9.
Various wrecks lie scattered about the perimeter of the island. Treat each as a CR8-11 encounter with 3x treasure. Salvage items should be mostly ruined by seawater, but should include mundane items found on seagoing vessels.
Island Features:
1. Forest nearest the bay is bronzewood. Raw bronzewood is worth 55.55 gp per lb, but harvesting it requires tools harder than iron. Anyone attempting to harvest the wood will be visited by a Dryad (CR3) who begs the intruder to please leave any living wood alone. An hour of foraging (Search DC 15 or Survival DC 12) can yield 1d4 lbs of wood that has fallen from the trees and is large enough and of sufficient quality for crafting use.
Anyone persisting in attempting to harvest live wood will be attacked by 3 Dryads led by a Dryad expert archer (6 levels of fighter, with feats Great Fortitude, Weapon Focus(longbow), Point Blank Shot, Precise Shot, Rapid Shot, Weapon Specialization (longbow); +1 longbow fires arrows tipped with Giant Wasp poison). If these dryads are defeated, it is possible a Spirit of the Land will rise to defend the forest https://www.realmshelps.net/monsters/block/Spirit_of_the_Land .
2. Fissure to the west of the forest. A ruin on the hill overlooking the fissure was built to the dimensions of half-giants. Searching the ruins will turn up a Mirror. On it, inscribed in an ancient dialect of Giant: "Beam of sol/Reflected key/Unlock the gash/In Khyber’s throat: (Decipher Script DC 10 for anyone who speaks Giant; DC 25 for anyone speaking Dwarven, Gnome, Goblin, Orc, or Terran, which use the same alphabet).
At the bottom of the fissure/chasm is a pedestal. Placing the mirror on it and directing sunlight at a door in the side of the chasm, causes the door to open. Inside is a tunnel, leading into large chamber. When anyone enters the chamber, two gargantuan creatures (DM's choice, preferably extraplanar or aberrations, total CR12) move to defend a doorway into the Underdark. When defeated, each contains a 5,000 pearls worth 10 gp each, and a single-use Gate item that deals 5d6 Con damage when used (can be divided among up to 6 creatures linked by physical contact).
3. Tree to the northwest of the forest. This tree is surrounded by a treeless meadow with a radius of several miles. The tree is distant offspring from the plant that links together the various bodies that form the planet Garden (Knowledge: The Planes DC 25), and is known as the Seed of Yggdrasil. White bark, deep green leaves, glowy yellow fruit plum sized. A Yrthak lives in/near the giant tree and protects it. Tree emanates an antimagic field 200’. Individual fruit: emanate antimagic 5’, flesh is firm and glowy, contain 4 seeds each about a half inch in diameter. Off the tree, fruit last about 30 days before rotting. When eaten, suppress magical abilities for 1d4 hours (Fort DC 25 to overcome, on failure, effect occurs 1 hr later for 1d4 hours). Alchemy DC 15: 1 fruit: antimagic potion, instant lasting 6 seconds, worth 300 gp. Poisoncrafting DC 25: 2 fruit: injury poison DC 20, antimagic 1 minute, secondary 1 minute more, worth 1000 gp. Containing the effect of the fruit requires a lead-lined box.
4. Families of dire apes live in the rain forest northwest of the mountains.
5. Volcanic rock in tallest peak can be good source of khyber dragonshards.
6. There is a blue dragon (young adult) in the cave on the tallest mountain. Map:
https://media.wizards.com/legacy/dnd/images/dng_dragon-lair.jpg . His name is Apalala, and I use the Pathfinder version for a CR12 encounter:
He is fond of a cat named Pooky; if adventurers agree to find the cat and/or pay annual tribute, he may let them go. He has 1 level of cleric of Tiamat (LE), and will not let the party go in search of the cat without administering an oath over a pint of Oathbeer (see Dragon magazine, issue 334 p.59). He makes very detailed oaths (like a lawyer) with no loopholes. Here's an example: "I will not reveal the location of this island to anyone not in this cave, and I will erase the memory of any that I have previously led to this island, I will not despoil the island, I will defend it from all intruders, I will leave untouched the hoard of the dragon Apalala, and I will pay tribute of 10,000 gp per year to the dragon Apalala, by this day each year. If I fail in this oath, my skin will turn black and rot off within 1 week." (curse attached)
The cat is actually the wizard Gorgolund in disguise. He stops by from time to time to check on his dungeon (see area 7), and the dragon does not realize he is a wizard. Incidentally, the pseudodragon in area 7 is also fond of the cat, whom he calls "Smets."
7. The lake that forms the "eye" of the dragon-shaped island is the entrance to a classic dungeon known as Gorgolund's Gauntlet (see Dungeon magazine issue 29). I scale it up to the level of the party. For example, giving the Jermalains levels of fighter to make them CR 4 rather than 0.5 . The final room of the dungeon (where the coin dragon is located) I connect with a tunnel to the back of the blue dragon's lair. The coin dragon is given the stats of a silver dragon (but not its alignment). And I've adjusted the Hoardmaster sword to have the following stats:
Hoardmaster Sword (18,312 gp) +1 longsword, 1/day detect coins 6’ radius 10 rds, will defend a hoard, creating a construct dragon of 1 CR per 2000 coins (max CR equal to owner’s class levels).
