dmdave

All New 5e Adventures Are Free for the Time Being...

Hey all,

Just letting you know that we're offering up all our new adventures for free for the time being. This will be any adventures written and released this month (January 2026) plus any more that we do going forward.

Why?

Well, back in 2020 we did similar when we had COVID going. While everyone was quarantined, we decided to hand out our adventures to help them get through the tough times. Those who paid, could, and everyone else paid back in their own ways. It felt good...

[Free] Dungeons & Lairs #121 - Corroded Cleft (Levels 11 to 13)

For the time being, we're offering free fifth edition adventures (from January 2026 forward). If you'd like to support us and see more, please subscribe: https://www.patreon.com/join/dmdave

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Among the drifting towers and chained islands of the Rift Cleft stands a fortified structure claimed by the Corroded, its walls braced with scavenged stone and rusted arcane machinery. From this bunker, they watch t...

One-Word Prompt Requests: Wraith Hall

Edit: We're about 10 prompts short. So if you've already added one, feel free to add another below. Thanks!

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Hey everyone,

We're doing another round of one-word prompts. This time, it's for Wraith Hall. Here's the introduction:

Suspended on a drifting island opposite the Saltspire Redoubt (see the adventure Dungeons & Lairs #121: Corroded Cleft) stands Wraith Hall, a once-grand artisan hostel now hollowed out by death and neglect. Its leaning tower a...

2026-01-22 21:00:55 +0000 UTC View Post

[Free] Dungeons & Lairs #120 - Specter Vault (Levels 11 to 13)

For the time being, we're offering free fifth edition adventures (from January 2026 forward). If you'd like to support us and see more, please subscribe: https://www.patreon.com/join/dmdave

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Behind the cracked census mirrors in the Hall of Exiting Numbers, the characters uncover a sealed register of impossible exits—entries that do not resolve to any known plane, marked only by repeating sigils and ga...

[Free] Dungeons & Lairs #119 - Crawling Claw Gear Works (Levels 11 to 13)

For the time being, we're offering free fifth edition adventures (from January 2026 forward). If you'd like to support us and see more, please subscribe: https://www.patreon.com/join/dmdave

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Beneath the silent pillar of the Directory Engine lies a forgotten maintenance complex where the true machinery of Mortisphere’s record-keeping once operated. This sealed gear works has recently begun to awaken, i...

[Free] Dungeons & Lairs #118 - Gnoll Maw (Levels 5 to 13)

For the time being, we're offering free fifth edition adventures (from January 2026 forward). If you'd like to support us and see more, please subscribe: https://www.patreon.com/join/dmdave

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Beneath the wind-scoured foothills, where the snow never fully melts and the rock itself seems chewed and broken, a lost shrine has cracked open like a split jaw. The gnolls have found it—and in doing so, awakened...

[Free] Dungeons & Lairs #27 - White Dragon Cavern 2026 (Levels 5 to 13)

For the time being, we're offering free fifth edition adventures (from January 2026 forward). If you'd like to support us and see more, please subscribe: https://www.patreon.com/join/dmdave

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Once-green slopes along the Basilisk’s Spine now lie entombed beneath unrelenting ice, their villages half-buried, their roads erased by drifting snow. Blizzards rise without warning, avalanches thunder down famil...

[Free] Dungeons & Lairs #117 - Mammoth Trail (Levels 5 to 13)

For the time being, we're offering free fifth edition adventures (from January 2026 forward). If you'd like to support us and see more, please subscribe: https://www.patreon.com/join/dmdave

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A frozen gust rolls across the steppe, carrying wisps of fresh-fallen snow. Two mammoth calves flinch beneath their mother’s legs; she steadies them with a gentle nudge, her tusks bobbing like driftwood above thei...

Poll #535 - Pick a Theme for Horror and Mystery Adventures in January 2026

Hey all,

In 2026, we will bring more mystery/horror adventures into the fold here on the site. These will have a very similar format to Dungeons & Lairs, but will have a bit more event-driven storylines than location-driven, with mysteries, exploration, and other fun things being the theme. And while it's horror... you'll still be able to bonk the hell out of the monsters.

Below are some horror themes that John and I hope to explore in January 2026.

Please let us know w...

[Copper+ Patrons] Dungeons & Lairs #116 - Frost Giant Dominion (Levels 8 to 16)

High on an ice-choked mountainside, the earth splits open with a sound like a splintering ship’s hull. The frost giants have uncovered what nature has sought to conceal for hundreds of years: the ruins of a fallen cloud giant city, half-crushed on impact, its spires shattered. Driven by their warlord’s prophetic visions of an engine of destruction, the frost giants excavate with haste, but their work has attracted the attention of outsiders eager to exploit the cloud giants’ riches for ...

[FREE] Dungeons & Lairs #115 - Winter Wolf Hunting Grounds (5th-Level Only)

Download the FREE Version of the Adventure at the bottom of the page.

Looking for the maps and full adventure with adjustments for 6th to 13th level?

Become a DMDave Patron, today!

In the frozen silence of the arctic frontier, a string of brutal killings leaves nothing but shredded tents, blood-soaked snow, and tracks that vanish into the endless white. A small inves...

2025-11-28 15:50:21 +0000 UTC View Post

Poll - November/December Dungeon Themes

Hey all,

Vote for the overarching themes of the new Dungeons/Lairs from now until the end of the year.

Poll #... 0? Soft Reboot pf DMDave

Hey all,

I'm still in the process of recovering from the absolute disaster that was my 2023 (long story involving gaming licenses, kidney stones, and a new store). But I want to put some love into the ol' Patreon again.

And I want to hear from all of you—new fans, old fans, paid fans, and free fans—what sort of content do you want?

I want to return to a steady Friday release schedule, with the 1st of the month Bucklers, and then book releases every 3-4 months. We'll als...

Poll #533 - Just Passing Through - Darklake Description and Adventure Poll

A stilted haven between lake and sea, Darklake endures shifting winds, old grudges, and the deep, unseen things stirring beneath its waters.

Cold mist drifts off the dark lake as you approach the stilt-built town, its rooftops braced against the fierce winds that sweep in from both west and east. Narrow, winding walkways twist between weathered buildings perched above ...

2025-11-14 15:00:18 +0000 UTC View Post

Poll #532 - Just Passing Through - Crimson Bay Description and Adventure Poll

A conquered harbor of blood-red sails and smoldering ruins, Crimson Bay survives on fear, secrets, and the thin hope of rebellion.

Salt wind lashes the black cliffs as waves crash below, their roar echoing through a harbor choked with mismatched ships and wary crews. The town’s crooked streets climb toward a battered wall, its cobblestones slick with brine and the lin...

2025-11-13 15:49:49 +0000 UTC View Post

Poll #531 - Tomb of Ten Thousand Traps

Hey all,

I'm breaking ground on Tomb of Ten Thousand Traps for this month's big release. The book is set to be 76 pages exactly.

Which format do you prefer:

• One-level dungeon with light details (about 20 pages dedicated to the actual dungeon) and then tons of tables for traps so you can make your own (50 pages of dungeon tables, details, etc.)

• One-level dungeon with detailed traps, puzzles, etc. (about 50 pages dedicated to the dungeon with appendices...

  2025-11-08 18:48:04 +0000 UTC View Post

Poll #530 - Which adventure names do you like best?

Hey friends!

Quick Halloweenish poll for you. I'm writing a pair of short, undead-themed/horror adventures today and this weekend. Which of the following adventure names do you think sound the most interesting? The top two results win.

[FREE] Just Passing Through Extended Edition - Mistwood

A thriving crusader outpost where tensions run high between the human and fey-touched populations.

A low mist clings to the trees as you approach the village, the sound of a winding river filling the air. Wooden homes rise from both banks, their rooftops slick with rain, half of them built with an elegant, almost elven touch while the others stand sturdy and plain. A bridge connects the two halves, arching over the silver water below. On a hill beyond the mist, a pa...

2025-10-16 15:45:28 +0000 UTC View Post

Tomb of Ten Thousand Traps Coming in December 2025

In November, my crew in Dallas, Texas, BGG.Con will run a tournament adventure called the Tomb of Ten Thousand Traps. Does it really have 10,000 Traps? Nah, but it sure does sound cool.

This full-length hardcover book will feature 75 pages of absolute old-school trap-lovin' doom, just as the forefathers of tabletop RPGs intended.

So long as you backed at least the digital level, you will receive a free PDF copy of the book when we release it in December 2025, after we ru...

[FREE] Just Passing Through Extended Edition - Millfiend

A fertile valley village overshadowed by a cursed windmill that no one dares speak of, save for a hidden cult that feeds it blood and fear.

The valley opens wide before you, a patchwork of fields stretching to the horizon, their crops swaying in the breeze. At its heart rests a large village—nearly a town—ringed with a stout wooden palisade. A broad river runs straight through the settlement, its waters glinting in the sunlight as bridges connect one bank to the...

2025-10-15 14:24:09 +0000 UTC View Post

One-Word Prompt #165 - The Tomb of Ten Thousand Traps

Edit: Just three more! Whatcha got?

Hey friends,

I'm writing up a new trap-heavy adventure that will serve as a tournament adventure for BoardGameGeek.Con 2025. We'll be playing it the whole weekend both there and at our store in Norman, Oklahoma.

Once the tournament is done, we'll have it out in both PDF format for you to download as well as hardcover, eta December 2025.

Once I've got a few of these projects knocked out, I'll be working on it. In the meantime,...

[FREE] Just Passing Through Extended Edition - Ironwood

Ironwood is an isolated, web-choked village ruled from the shadows by Spinnera, whose spies and servants ensure no secret escapes its twisted trees.

The village of Ironwood lies cloaked in shadow, its narrow paths winding beneath towering, twisted trees whose branches seem to claw at the sky. The air is thick with the scent of sap and damp moss, and silken webs glisten faintly in the half-light, strung between trunks and rooftops alike. Houses sag in quiet disrepair...

2025-10-14 14:12:19 +0000 UTC View Post

[FREE] Just Passing Through Extended Edition - Highgate

Highgate is a soot-stained dwarven mining village in the Shattercrags, ruled by the Mining Guild and torn between relentless silver production, dangerous flooded tunnels, and rising union unrest.

The village clings to the mountainside, a place where vines creep along stone walls and the constant clang of pickaxes and echo of miners’ shouts fills the air. The acrid tang of coal smoke and burning fires hangs heavy, while the ground trembles beneath the steady rumble...

2025-10-13 15:00:12 +0000 UTC View Post

[FREE] Just Passing Through Extended Edition - Havenmoor (and Morvok's Children)

A fog-shrouded swamp village devoted to the Whispering Willow, a sentient tree whose fading strength has turned its visions into nightmares.

A heavy fog blankets the land, clinging low to the earth and turning every sound into a muffled echo. The air is thick and unseasonably humid, alive with the drone of crickets and the croak of countless frogs hidden in the reeds. A handful of wooden houses rise from the mist, many perched on stilts above damp, sodden ground. Th...

2025-10-10 15:00:11 +0000 UTC View Post

[FREE] Just Passing Through Extended Edition - Greystone (and Serafina's Awakening)

A young spark carved from copper and stone.

The road winds into a narrow valley where a scatter of rough-hewn homes and smoke-stained chimneys cling to the mountainside. The sharp ring of hammers and the echo of picks striking stone carry on the wind, mingling with the creak of ore carts and the low murmur of tired voices. Fresh scars of earth mark the slopes where men and women toil, their efforts carving deep wounds into the mountain’s hide. The village feels sm...

2025-10-09 15:00:10 +0000 UTC View Post

[FREE] Just Passing Through Extended Edition - Fernwood (and The Ghost Tower)

Where axes bite deep, but the forest bites back.

The sound of axes and saws greets you as the forest parts to reveal a rough-hewn village rising from the Dreary Wood. Timber walls and cabins of fresh-cut pine crowd the riverbanks, smoke curling from chimneys where sweat-stained workers pause only briefly from their endless toil. The Beaver River churns nearby, carrying rafts piled high with logs toward distant markets. Everything here smells of sap, smoke, and hard ...

2025-10-08 15:00:10 +0000 UTC View Post

Just Passing Through Remastered Pre-Order is LIVE

Just Passing Through is the perfect toolbox for the Gamemaster who lacks adequate time to prepare. 

Back the campaign, now!

https://www.backerkit.com/c/projects/dmdave-publishing/just-passing-through-remas...