Special Delivery is a short adventure by Shawn Merwin for level 1 characters. In it, a patron hires the adventurers to escort a carriage and its passengers to a border barony. It is not set in the Forgotten Realms, but instead in its own setting. I suspect you would have little problem adapting it.

Although there is no lack of action in the adventure, it has a distinct focus on the non-player characters. Any Dungeon Master looking for examples of what to do when starting a campaign would be well advised to study this work. The players get to meet people who should intrigue them. They also get to learn secrets that provide impetus for further adventures.

For me, it helps that I find the little half-elf girl at the heart of the adventure incredibly charming. She is the sort of character that I very much enjoy portraying. Anyone that the players enjoy interacting with is invaluable in enabling good role-playing sessions, and I suspect she would be that.

As you might expect, this is a linear, narrative adventure, where one challenge follows the next as the carriage makes its way along the road. It begins in the capital where a couple of role-playing interactions present the flavour of the city before the trip starts. On the road, there are a couple of combat encounters and some role-playing opportunities. Then, things end with a fight at the destination. I expect it takes one four-hour session to play, depending on how much your players get into the role-playing.

I appreciate the care that went into making the combats varied and exciting, and also that the adventure calls out secrets it raises and does not resolve.

Why doesn’t it resolve these secrets? The reason is that this is potentially the first adventure in a campaign. It is a Pay-What-You-Want charity adventure on DriveThruRPG, with the designer’s proceeds going to the American Red Cross. If enough people buy it, then a second instalment will be released, with the chain continuing as long as there is interest. Potentially this begins a level 1 to 20 campaign, but we will see how far it goes.

I would very happily use this as a stand-alone adventure to kick off a campaign, and then come up with answers to its mysteries myself, but I hope to see more of it released.

Special Delivery is a charming adventure with clever situations and entertaining characters. Highly recommended!