Dusk falls, and several travelers come to the Green Dragon Inn for food, warmth, and a place to rest. A handful of villagers are here, eating, drinking, and talking about their day. One day is much the same as another in the hamlet of Villane. But, looking at you, something tells these villagers something will be different today.

Now would be a great time for you ask the Players to describe their Characters. It's good for everyone to get an idea of who they are and who their party is made up of, it will help you all get a bit more immersed in the story.

Once everyone has shared their Player Character, you can get the ball rolling again by introducing the first Non-Player Character, Matt, the Serving Boy.

Can I get you anything to eat? To drink? Where are you from, where are you going? Not many ratcatchers coming through Villane these days.

This is your opportunity to help the players get immersed in the world, feel free to embelish Matt with personality! Take a moment to describe what he looks like, how he moves, what he's doing as he approaches.

While Matt is off fixing whatever the PCs have ordered, and the characters have had a chance to get to know each other and the NPCs, something has to happen...

A large man, wearing a black leather apron over linen shirt and woolen pants bursts in the door. He smells of sulfur and carries a heavy hammer. "They got Bess", he says, "they got my girl!"

Goblins have kidnapped the Blacksmith's daughter!

That's right, the second key NPC, Lars, The Blacksmith.

The villagers all know Lars, he's well-loved, but none of them are equipped to face the challenge of hunting down goblins.

Lars will recognize a band of ratcatchers as quickly as anyone, and he won't hesitate to approach the adventurers to ask for their help.

If your players aren't motivated, simply by their sense of justice and duty, you can have Lars point out that their is a standing bounty for goblin ears by order of the Duke.

Now is a good time to remind you, one of your best moves as a Dungeon Master is to simply ask the players, "What do you do?" — this is a great opportunity to use that move!

Once Lars has convinced the adventurers to help, you can continue on to Part 2 .