Acquisitions Incorporated

I ~.

to advance to the next episode. The players should get

u sed 10 how big a part downtime and franchise activities

play in an Acquisitions Incorporated campaign.

CONTINUING THE ADVENTURE

Before the next phase of the adventure. make sure the

characters have their franchise and business affairs in

order. They should knmv who their franchise employees

are, giving those staff members detailed instruction s

about what IU do while the characters are away. This

sort of planning is a common theme in any Acquisi-

tions Incorporated campaign. so establish this prece-

dent early.

Speculating that Talanatha Three-Coins might have

fled 10 the Silent Sound lighthouse headquarters o f

another Acquisitions Incorporated franchise. the charac·

ters might attempt to make contact with that franchise.

either on their own or through H ead Office. However.

any such attempts yield no response. At some point,

Om in Oran contacts the characters if they don't contact

him first. H e's worried about what th e lack of contact

with the Order of the Stout H alf-Pint might mean. and

he wants the characters to investigate.

The presence of Oran Enterprises oper atives in

Phandalin is troubling for Om in especially if the Oran

Enterprises hobgoblins were killed without the cha rat·

ters questioning them , leading to th e assumption that

the organization was behind the initial attack. If the

characters aren't suitably intrigued by the orrery and its

newly discovered component. that can be another thing

that Omin charges them with investigating. Armed with

a solid guess that Talanatha Aed to the lighthouse. the

characters prepare to head north!

EPISODE 3: DARKNESS AT

THE LIGHTHOUSE

In this episode. the characters (newly enfranchised and

now 3rd level) travel to the Silent Sound lighthouse to

search for Talanatha. the tiefling paladin occultant of

th e Fellowship of the Colden Mongoose. On the way.

Om in Oran contacts them with a request. I le wants

them to stop in Neverwirner to check on a cache of

Acquisitions Incorporated treasure being stored there.

H owever. the doppclganger who hid the cache has been

arrested and is about to be executed. Even if the char·

acters save her. retrieving the treasure where it's been

hidden in the House o f Knowledgc-Oghma's temple i n

Neverwinter will take more time and effort than Omin

predicted.

L eaving Neverwintcr. the character~ h ead norch in

the direction of Silent Sound. But even as the light-

house comes into view. they spot a small boat under

attack by creatures from the deep. If they rescue the

crew, the characters might find a business opportunity

that involves partnking in a little mutiny against a ruth-

less captain.

At the lighthouse. the characters confirm that the

Acquisitions I ncorporared franchise h<'adquartered

there-the Order of the S1ou1 Half-Pint was attacked.

and that most of its members have been killed. Moving

C II.'\ PT!-R .J. 11 I I <l IHH R \ O ~ I HI \ \' ll 1 IU R

up through the different ltvels of the lighthouse tower.

the franchisee~ fi nd more and more t>vidence that the

same spellcastcr whose creations they\<• prt'viously

faced has wrought havoc there. That spellcastcr. Hoobur

Gran'Shoop. is found working inn i:i;risly laboratory be-

neath the tower. to which the adventurers gain entrance

th rough the lighthouse's magic lcn~. That laboratory is

only part of the lighthouse's secret ba::.cment. though.

and the characters engage in somt• dangerous and lucra-

tive dungeoneering after dealing with or doing a d<·al

with-Hoobur.

With the threllts in the lighthous<· dispensed with. the

characters lt'arn that its franchist' ill<'mbers had also

recently collt>Cl<'d one o f the clockwork components of

the OrrerJ' of tlw I ~mdcrer. They also have evidence in

hand pointing to the involvement of Oran Enterprises

in the attack on thc lighthouse. building on the sight-

ing of Oran Entt>rpriscs operatives in Phandalin. But

what does Oran Ent!'rpriscs want w ith the orrery? And

which band of plucky franchisees will be rnskcd with

finding ou(2

To T H E LIGHTHOUSE

With the franchise headquarters in Phandalin secured

and the r ebuilding ofTresendar :Vlanor underway. the

adventurers have a clear path alwad of them to the Si-

lent Sound lighthouse. However, you g<'t io decide how

complicated the journey turns out tc> be.

One big question is whether the drnractcrs should

travel overland up the Sword Coast. or whether you

wam to let them 1cleport directly lo Silent Sound using

the timepiece of travel. Either option i-, fine. With an At·

quisitions Incorporated campaign often involving access

to crazy magic. don't be afraid to lt' t th<' charac ters make

use of it. But there arc options for holding back on the

magic of tlw orrcry and its component..., if you want to

(see the "Levd Inappropriate" sid<"bar in episode 2). and

an overland journey has its own r<'wards. in the form of

addition al encounters and side treks thnt can help build

a fun story.

This episode provides one side trek that secs the

characters stop in Ncvcrwinter on their way IO the

lighthouse. which can be made use of no matter what

the party's method of travel. Additionally. if the charac-

ters are traveling O\'erland. you ran introduce random

encoumers along the road using tlw same method and

table from episode 2. lfyou roll a re~uh that makes no

sense, roll again or create an encounter of your own.

A DETOUR TO NEVERWlNTER

Before the characters leave for the lighthouse. or while

they are on the High Road tra\'eling toward Neverwin·

ter. Om in Oran makes contact with a .. .,mall fa,·or.''

Ncverwinter is !orated on the High Road on the way lo

t he Silent Sound lighthouse. so is an rasy stop for the

party to make.

Head Office ai-:signments of this sort can become

common in an Atquisitions Incorporated campaign. es-

pecially as the characters' reputation as troubleshooters

grows. You tan usc such side treks as useful support

for a franchise"~ main mission. or a an inconvenient

interruption.