The Fleece of Colchis
One-Shot · 6 PCs Lvl 10 · ~3–3.5 hrs · Heist · Steal the Golden Fleece
Style: Harbor → Palace/Seals → Grove extraction |
Win: Fleece on the Phasis skiff
Maguffin: Ram’s Bell of Phrixus · Ally: Medea · QG: Hera (Lady Argive)
"Ring once at the root of the golden oak — not thrice — and even sleepless lids grow heavy for a breath."
Major Beats
- Hera: steal the Fleece before Aeëtes sows a war-army.
- Enc. 1: Harbor guards + bronze calf; Alarm carries.
- Enc. 2: Recruit Medea; Blood / Fire / Night seals.
- Enc. 3: Bell → Cut → skiff; manage Alarm / Spartoi.
Alarm Track
| Alarm | Effect |
|---|
| 3 | 2 Spartoi spawn |
| 5 | +2 Spartoi; breath R4–6 |
| 7+ | Muster — board or soft loss |
Difficulty
| Tier | Adjust |
|---|
| As Written ★ | 6 PCs · APL 10 |
| Library Standard | 6 PCs · APL 8 — Dial back: reduce boss HP ~20–25%, cut one legendary action option or recharge breath to 6 only; Favor/track thresholds −1 where present; skill DCs −1. |
| Easier | APL 8–9: use the Library Standard (6×L8) box, then shave one more minion wave. |
| Harder | APL 11–12: boss HP +20%; +1 legendary; Favor/track +1 to win. |
Hera (as Lady Argive) warns that Aeëtes would sow war from the sacred oak. Mist opens on the harbor of Aea. Slip the watch, court Medea in the pharmacy, open the Three Seals of Ares, and lift the Fleece from under the sleepless dragon — then run for the river before Spartoi claw up from the teeth.
Creature / Enemy List
| Creature | Counts / Notes |
|---|
| Harbor Guard | 3 · 4 · 5 · Enc. 1 |
| Bronze Bull Calf | 0 · 1 · 1 · Enc. 1 |
| Palace Sentinel | 2 · 3 · 4 · Enc. 2 |
| Medea | 1 · 1 · Recruit |
| Sleepless Dragon | adj · 1 · 1 · Enc. 3 |
| Spartoi | 0–2 · 2–4 · 4–6 · Alarm spawns |
DM Tips
- As Written ★ — 6 Players, Average Level 10: Baseline for this guide. Numbers, DCs, and win tracks assume six PCs at average level 10.
- Easier: APL 8–9: use the Library Standard (6×L8) box, then shave one more minion wave.
- Harder: APL 11–12: boss HP +20%; +1 legendary; Favor/track +1 to win.
Encounter 1 — Harbor Shadows
🗺 Terrain Docks 60×40 · crates (½ cover) · 10-ft water edge · calf at the inland gate · horn-post center pier. · Night on the Phasis docks. 4× Colchian Harbor Guards pace the pier; 1× Bronze Bull Calf heats the customs gate. Tribute wagons and fishing smoke offer cover.
- Non-combat: Disguise as tribute-bearers — group Deception/Stealth 3 before 3 (DC 13) while one PC distracts the calf (Animal Handling or Ram’s Bell). Success: enter city at Alarm 0.
- Alarm Track starts here: Horn or open melee +1 each. Carry 0–2 into Enc. 2/3.
- Quiet entry: If Alarm stays 0, Medea’s Enc. 2 recruit DC is 12 and she gifts one Salve use early.
- Bribe: 50 gp + Persuasion DC 14 silences one guard pair for 10 minutes.
- Tip: Wondrous Item (maguffin), Unique
Encounter 2 — Pharmacy, Seals, and a Princess
🗺 Terrain Wing 50×40 · pharmacy alcove · pantry · brazier niche · seal lintel corridor · balcony drop 20 ft. to gardens. · Aeëtes’s palace wing smells of resins and bronze. Medea works late among vials. Beyond her door, the Three Seals of Ares bar the grove causeway. 3× Palace Sentinels rotate.
- RECRUIT MEDEA: Persuasion DC 14 (DC 12 if Enc. 1 Alarm 0). Vow: no massacre, Fleece leaves Colchis. Success → she joins Enc. 3.
- Seals puzzle: Blood / Fire / Night (see seal card). Night auto-opens with one careful Ram’s Bell ring against the recess.
- Combat path: fight sentinels; each round of open battle in the wing Alarm +1. Medea may still recruit if spared and persuaded after.
- Aeëtes is holding court elsewhere — do not stage his death. If the party seeks him, a glimpse and a shouted order raise Alarm +2 and force a retreat to the seals.
- Tip: Medium Humanoid (sorceress of Colchis), Chaotic Neutral · Recruitable Ally
- Tip: RECRUITMENT (Enc. 2). Found in the palace pharmacy. Persuasion DC 14 (DC 12 if Enc. 1 raised no Alarm) and a vow not to butcher Colchians needlessly. She joins Enc. 3 with Salve and Countersong.
- Tip: If not recruited. A sealed vial of Salve can still be stolen (Sleight DC 15) — no Countersong, Fleece Cut without her aid.
Encounter 3 — The Golden Oak (Final Heist)
🗺 Terrain Grove 80×60 · oak center (difficult roots 10 ft) · brush patches · shrine with false fleece · skiff 80 ft south along a 10-ft path. · The grove breathes gold. The sleepless dragon coils the oak where the Fleece hangs. River mist waits south — the extraction skiff rocks against black reeds.
- Suggested order: Bell (Drowsy) → Salve/Cut → False Fleece feint → dash for skiff.
- Win: Fleece on the skiff + ≥1 PC aboard and free of the coils. Mist closes; Hera’s bargain is kept.
- Dragon at 0 HP dies — allowed, but note Hera’s silence. Prefer Drowsy escape.
- Tip: 1. Ram’s Bell. Drowsy the dragon (see maguffin). Once preferred.
- Tip: Medium Humanoid (sorceress of Colchis), Chaotic Neutral · Recruitable Ally
- Tip: RECRUITMENT (Enc. 2). Found in the palace pharmacy. Persuasion DC 14 (DC 12 if Enc. 1 raised no Alarm) and a vow not to butcher Colchians needlessly. She joins Enc. 3 with Salve and Countersong.
- Tip: If not recruited. A sealed vial of Salve can still be stolen (Sleight DC 15) — no Countersong, Fleece Cut without her aid.
- Tip: Wondrous Item (maguffin), Unique
DM Callouts
- Wondrous Item (maguffin), Unique
- Medium Humanoid (sorceress of Colchis), Chaotic Neutral · Recruitable Ally
- RECRUITMENT (Enc. 2). Found in the palace pharmacy. Persuasion DC 14 (DC 12 if Enc. 1 raised no Alarm) and a vow not to butcher Colchians needlessly. She joins Enc. 3 with Salve and Countersong.
- If not recruited. A sealed vial of Salve can still be stolen (Sleight DC 15) — no Countersong, Fleece Cut without her aid.
TOOLS / NPC
Ram’s Bell of Phrixus
- Enc. 3: ring once → Drowsy Con DC 16 · twice/thrice Alarm +2
Golden Fleece
- Cut free Ath/Sleight DC 15 · sheds light · win on skiff
Seals of Ares
- Blood / Fire / Night · Night = Bell · Force Str DC 18
Hera (Lady Argive)
- Steal, don’t sack. Mist-exit after river extraction.
Remember
- Heist first. Sleep the dragon. Medea is the pharmacy key.
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