Coordinated orc raids are devastating the southern villages of the Kingdom of Korvast — but behind the orc warlord stands a goblin wizard with a four-day countdown to a demon summoning, a network of human spies, and no intention of sharing the spoils with anyone.
Welcome to “Orcs of the Southern Kingdom” 5E adventure! Within these pages, you’ll discover everything necessary to embark on this thrilling quest, complete with detailed descriptions of locations, encounters, NPCs and stat blocks, maps, and handouts.
This adventure also features a versatile and scalable system, allowing Game Masters to easily adjust the difficulty and complexity of encounters to suit their players’ preferences and skill levels. Whether you have a party of advanced players or beginners, you can tailor the challenges to ensure an exciting and engaging experience for everyone involved. The scalable system guides modifying creature statistics, making it simple to customize the adventure to fit your party’s level.
In “Orcs of the Southern Kingdom,” a party of 4-6 characters (levels 5-7) is commissioned by King Theron Vael to investigate a campaign of strategic orc raids striking the southern villages of Korvast with uncanny precision — targeting granaries and smithies while avoiding patrols, using intelligence that only an insider could provide. The conspiracy has three layers. Orc warlord Grimjaw Ironskull believes he is fighting to establish a permanent homeland for his people. Goblin wizard Korthak the Cunning has supplied Grimjaw with magical enhancement, tactical intelligence, and false promises — while secretly engineering the bloodshed needed to weaken planar barriers for a demon summoning. And merchant Garek Marrow has been feeding village layouts and patrol schedules to the raiders in exchange for protection of his trade routes. A four-day countdown to the new moon drives every decision. The adventure is divided into three parts across six scenes, designed for one to two sessions of four to six hours total.
Part 1: The King’s Commission
The adventure opens in the throne room of Highcrest Keep, where King Theron commissions the party and Captain Myrra Ironward briefs them on the raids’ uncanny precision — along with a quiet personal plea: her brother Marcus vanished near Ashwick two weeks ago while investigating on his own. The trail leads to the battered village of Harrow’s End, where palisade walls have been hastily thrown up and citizens work in nervous clusters watching the tree line. Investigation of the attack sites turns up magically enhanced fire damage and goods stolen with inside knowledge, and survivor accounts of disciplined orcs directed by goblins and a robed figure at the forest’s edge. Here the party can catch merchant Garek Marrow in his deceptions — and decide what to do with him: turn him into a double agent, arrest him, watch him, or deal with him more permanently, each with its own consequences down the line. The scene climaxes with an ambush by orc war chief Skargh Bloodfang, whose crude maps — marked with village locations and notes describing the party’s own appearance — confirm they are already being watched.
Part 2: The Goblin Conspiracy
The trail leads to the Shadowclaw Lair, a network of caves hidden in a narrow ravine and reinforced with goblinoid engineering — archer platforms, concealed traps, and a fortified guard post stand between the party and what lies inside. Eight villagers are imprisoned here, four of them holding intelligence the party badly needs, including a captive who can confirm Marcus Ironward’s fate and provide tactical detail on what waits ahead. Deeper still, the party confronts Korthak the Cunning himself, in a laboratory of arcane workbenches and a silver-inlaid ritual circle. Korthak opens with negotiation, presenting himself as a visionary and offering the party a place in his new order — but his own research notes reveal the truth: the demon he intends to summon is powerful enough to break free of his control entirely. Cornered, Korthak fights cunningly and flees toward Ironhold when the battle turns against him, leaving his laboratory’s treasure and incriminating documents behind.
Part 3: The Fortress of Ironhold
The final approach is to Ironhold, an ancient hilltop fortress reinforced with orcish palisades and watchtowers, its dark central tower flickering with the unstable energy of Grimjaw’s failed attempts to continue Korthak’s work. Reconnaissance reveals patrol timings, weak points in the walls, and visible signs of internal clan discord — and the party can choose how to get inside: stealth, disguise and deception, a diplomatic approach under a flag of truce, or a direct assault on the main gate. The climax is the confrontation with Grimjaw Ironskull — frustrated, suspicious of Korthak’s absence, and increasingly aware he has been used, yet still committed to his people’s survival. The encounter offers three resolutions: present Korthak’s evidence and watch the warlord’s rage break as he understands the demon would have enslaved his people, opening a path to alliance or to a negotiated withdrawal; or settle it in honorable combat alongside his elite lieutenants. Whatever the outcome, the dangerous energies in the ritual circle still have to be dismantled under time pressure before the new moon rises. Rewards include the king’s payment and performance bonuses, Grimjaw’s personal hoard, Korthak’s ritual components, and a selection of magic items recovered along the way.
Release Date: 2026 Format: Digital (PDF)
Items Included
- Orcs of the Southern Kingdom 5E (PDF)
- A B&W Printer-Friendly Version (PDF)
- Maps
- Illustrations (Generated with Midjourney)
- Monster Stat Blocks
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