The Hunt in Norton Forest | Free 5e-Compatible Adventure

Adventure Summary

The Hunt in Norton Forest is a short, direct adventure for four 3rd-level characters. With Nortonshire facing a lean harvest and scarce game, the adventurers must enter the deep forest, survive its strange hunters, and bring down the monstrous boar that could feed the village through the coming hardship.

Adventure Background

Nortonshire's harvest has failed. The grain stores are low, garden plots have yielded little, and hunters return from the forest empty-handed. Sir Ernst Cragholm, the village elder, knows of one desperate opportunity: an enormous boar said to roam the deepest reaches of Norton Forest.

The beast is aggressive, cunning, and large enough to provide hundreds of pounds of meat. Several villagers have found its tracks, but none have dared follow them. Sir Ernst asks the characters to kill the boar and bring its carcass home before hunger becomes desperation.

Part 1: The Village of Nortonshire

Sir Ernst meets the characters outside Nortonshire's small meeting hall. A broad wooden sled waits nearby, fitted with rope harnesses and low runners that can be dragged over roots and leaf litter.

Read Aloud Sir Ernst Cragholm rests both hands on the head of his walking stick. Behind him, the village fields stand thin and yellow beneath the morning sun. “Our harvest will not see us through the season, and the forest has been strangely empty. There is one creature left that might make a difference—a giant boar in the deep woods. Bring it down and bring back the meat. Nortonshire will remember who helped us when our tables were bare.”

Sir Ernst supplies the party with the following:

A sturdy hand sled capable of carrying the boar.
Fifty feet of hempen rope, two tarps, and a set of butcher's tools.
Three days of trail rations for each character.
Directions to the last place where the boar's tracks were seen.

He cannot offer much coin. Instead, he promises provisions and access to a guarded magical spring if the characters return with enough meat to help the village.

Encounter 1: Fungal Hunters

4 Myconid Hunters Difficulty: Medium Terrain: Wet Forest Hollow

After several hours beneath the dense canopy, the party passes into a wet hollow filled with shelf mushrooms and fallen trees. Four myconid hunters are stalking small forest creatures here. The strange fungal warriors regard armed outsiders and their noisy sled as competitors trespassing in their hunting ground.

Read Aloud Pale shelf mushrooms cover the fallen trunks ahead. A soft clicking passes through the hollow, answered from three different directions. Four squat, broad-shouldered figures rise from the undergrowth, their caps mottled brown and crimson. Each carries a stone-tipped spear. A cloud of yellow spores drifts toward you as they advance.

The myconids attack from 30 feet away. Two approach from the front while the other two emerge from either side of the trail. They fight to defend their hunting ground, concentrating attacks on whichever character appears most dangerous.

The hunters retreat if two are defeated and the remaining creatures can escape. They do not pursue characters beyond the hollow. A character who examines their spoor and succeeds on a DC 12 Wisdom (Survival) check notices that the myconids have carefully avoided a set of enormous boar tracks. This grants the party one automatic success in the hunt described below.

Myconid Hunter

Medium plant, neutral

Armor Class 13 (natural armor)

Hit Points 22 (4d8 + 4)

Speed 25 ft.

STR14 (+2)

DEX12 (+1)

CON13 (+1)

INT8 (−1)

WIS12 (+1)

CHA7 (−2)

Skills Perception +3, Survival +3

Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13

Languages understands Common and Sylvan but cannot speak

Challenge 1/2 (100 XP); Proficiency Bonus +2

Traits

Fungal Body. The myconid has advantage on saving throws against poison and is immune to disease.

Actions

Stone Spear. Melee or Ranged Weapon Attack: +4 to hit, reach 5 ft. or range 20/60 ft., one target. Hit: 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage plus 2 (1d4) poison damage.

Choking Spores (Recharge 5–6). The myconid releases spores in a 10-foot-radius cloud. Each non-plant creature in the area must succeed on a DC 11 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned until the end of its next turn. The cloud then disperses.

Encounter Balance Four myconid hunters make a medium encounter for the intended party. If the characters are already badly depleted, use three hunters. If the party contains five or more characters, use five hunters.

Part 2: Tracking the Beast

After nearly a full day of searching, the characters find churned earth, broken saplings, and hoofprints as wide as dinner plates. From here, the hunt becomes a group challenge. The party must earn 3 successes before 2 failures.

Ask each player how their character contributes. A character then makes an appropriate check. A particular skill can normally provide only one success, encouraging the group to use different ideas. Good plans may lower a DC by 2, grant advantage, or succeed automatically if they consume a useful resource.

Approach	Check	DC
Follow hoofprints, broken brush, and rooting marks	Wisdom (Survival)	12
Spot fur, disturbed birds, or concealed game trails	Wisdom (Perception)	13
Recall how boars choose bedding and feeding grounds	Intelligence (Nature)	13
Move the sled quietly through tangled forest	Group Dexterity (Stealth)	12
Climb for a better view without revealing the party	Strength (Athletics) or Dexterity (Acrobatics)	14
Use bait, magic, or another credible plan	Choose the most fitting ability	12–14

Once the challenge is resolved, let the players describe how they intend to approach, trap, lure, or ambush the boar. Reward specific use of the terrain and equipment.

Who Gets the Advantage?

3 successes before any failures: The party finds the boar unseen. They choose the starting positions and gain a surprise round if at least half the group succeeds on a DC 12 Dexterity (Stealth) check.
3 successes after 1 failure: Both sides sense the other. Roll initiative normally, but the party may choose its starting positions.
2 failures: The boar circles downwind and attacks first. It begins 30 feet from the party and has advantage on its initiative roll. Any character whose passive Perception is lower than 13 cannot take reactions until after that character's first turn.

Creative Traps A well-built snare, concealed pit, spiked barricade, or similar preparation should matter without ending the fight outright. A successful DC 13 check using appropriate tools might deal 2d6 damage, restrain the boar until it uses an action to escape (DC 13), deny its first charge, or give the first attack against it advantage.

Encounter 2: Norton's Giant Boar

Norton's Giant Boar Difficulty: Hard Terrain: Brambles and Mud

The trail ends in an old clearing surrounded by oak trees and waist-high brambles. A shallow mud wallow lies near the center. The boar uses the open ground to charge, then retreats through the brambles before turning for another pass.

Read Aloud A deep grunt rolls through the trees. The brambles shudder, then explode outward as a boar the size of a wagon crashes into the clearing. Old scars cross its shoulders, clods of black earth cling to its hide, and each yellowed tusk is longer than a short sword. It paws the ground once, lowers its head, and charges.

Clearing Features

Brambles: The 10-foot-wide ring around the clearing is difficult terrain for creatures other than the boar.
Oak Trees: A creature adjacent to a tree can gain half cover from the boar's charge if the tree stands between them.
Mud Wallow: The 15-foot-wide wallow is difficult terrain. A creature knocked prone in it must spend 5 additional feet of movement to stand.

Norton's Giant Boar

Large beast, unaligned

Armor Class 14 (natural armor)

Hit Points 95 (10d10 + 40)

Speed 40 ft.

STR19 (+4)

DEX12 (+1)

CON18 (+4)

INT4 (−3)

WIS13 (+1)

CHA7 (−2)

Saving Throws Str +6, Con +6

Skills Perception +3

Senses passive Perception 13

Languages —

Challenge 4 (1,100 XP); Proficiency Bonus +2

Traits

Charge. If the boar moves at least 20 feet straight toward a target and then hits it with a Tusk attack on the same turn, the target takes an extra 9 (2d8) slashing damage and must succeed on a DC 14 Strength saving throw or fall prone.

Relentless (1/Day). If the boar is reduced to 0 hit points, it drops to 1 hit point instead.

Sure-Footed. The boar ignores nonmagical difficult terrain caused by plants, loose earth, and mud.

Actions

Tusk. Melee Weapon Attack: +6 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 13 (2d8 + 4) slashing damage.

Furious Sweep (Recharge 5–6). The boar swings its tusks through a 10-foot cone. Each creature in that area must make a DC 14 Dexterity saving throw, taking 14 (3d6 + 4) slashing damage on a failed save, or half as much on a successful one.

Bonus Actions

Trample. After the boar knocks a creature prone with Charge, it may move up to 10 feet without provoking opportunity attacks from that creature. If it moves through the prone creature's space, that creature takes 7 (1d6 + 4) bludgeoning damage.

Reactions

Startled Rush. When a creature the boar can see ends its turn within 5 feet of it, the boar may move up to 10 feet without provoking opportunity attacks from that creature. It cannot use this reaction while grappled or restrained.

Running the Boar The boar is most dangerous when it has room to charge. It attacks an isolated target, uses Startled Rush to create distance, then charges again on its next turn. It does not deliberately attack an unconscious character. When reduced to 25 hit points or fewer, it attempts to flee unless surrounded or trapped. A party that planned well should be able to prevent its escape.

Return to Nortonshire

Field-dressing and loading the boar takes one hour. A character proficient with butcher's tools or who succeeds on a DC 11 Wisdom (Survival) check preserves the carcass properly. On a failure, the work takes two hours, but enough usable meat remains to fulfill the quest.

The loaded sled is heavy, reducing the speed of anyone pulling it to 20 feet. No further encounter is required. The return journey should be narrated briefly so the session ends with the party entering Nortonshire as villagers gather in amazement.

Read Aloud A shout rises from the nearest field as the sled comes into view. Doors open, children race along the road, and villagers gather behind you as the great carcass is hauled toward the meeting hall. Sir Ernst stares for a long moment before a weary smile crosses his face. “Tonight,” he says, “Nortonshire eats.”

Rewards

Sir Ernst's Reward

Village Provisions. Sir Ernst gives the party preserved meat, bread, dried fruit, and other supplies equal to 10 days of rations per character. While in Nortonshire, the characters receive modest food and lodging at no charge.

Access to the Spring. The party is granted continuing access to a magical spring hidden beneath the village meeting hall. Its water can be collected in up to five potent vials per week. Each vial remains magical for seven days and can be used to create one potion of healing.

Creating a potion requires one potent vial, 25 gp of medicinal herbs and alchemical supplies, and 8 hours of work by a creature proficient with an herbalism kit. No matter how many characters collect water, the spring produces only five potent vials each week.

Scaling the Adventure

Party	Myconid Encounter	Norton's Giant Boar
Four 2nd-level characters	Use 3 myconid hunters.	Reduce the boar to 75 hit points and remove Furious Sweep.
Four 3rd-level characters	Use 4 myconid hunters.	Use the statistics as written.
Five 3rd-level or four 4th-level characters	Use 5 myconid hunters.	Increase the boar to 115 hit points and let Furious Sweep recharge on 4–6.

GM Quick Reference

Sir Ernst Cragholm asks the party to hunt a giant boar and supplies a sled.
The characters defend themselves against four myconid hunters.
The party tracks the boar and decides how to approach or ambush it.
The characters battle Norton's Giant Boar in a bramble-ringed clearing.
They return with the meat and earn provisions plus access to a potion-making spring.

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