I am converting the 3E WotC module The Sunless Citadel into a 4E adventure. I will describe one encounter per post, and post one encounter per week. This week’s encounter is:

ENCOUNTER 1: WOOD FOR THE CAMPFIRE
Encounter Level 1 (500 XP)

The player characters are on the Old Road traveling toward the ravine where the Sunless Citadel is located. When they stop to spend the night, they are ambushed by twig blights. This encounter includes the following creatures:

• 2 twig blight brutes
• 2 twig blight thornsprayers
• 4 twig blight saplings

Have the players place the miniatures of their characters on the map to represent where they have camped for the night. Then read the following to the players:

The overgrown Old Road wound through rocky downs, near stands of old-growth oak trees, and past abandoned farm shacks. You saw no other travelers along the lonely road. As the sun set, you decided to pitch camp for the night just off the main path, along a narrow trail that led to a crumbling homestead. Now, after having eaten your rations and chatted around the campfire, you decide to retire to your bedrolls for the night.

Have any PCs on guard duty make a Perception check versus the twig blights Stealth check. Sleeping PCs use their passive score, but suffer a -5 penalty. Any PCs who succeed can act in the first round of combat; those that failed can’t act until the next round. Read the following:

The wind blows through the leaves with a dry rustling, and the fading light of the campfire cast dancing shadows across the nearby trees, twisting their surfaces into the semblance of sinister, humanoid shapes. You frown, a sudden feeling of unease overtaking you. You rub your eyes, blink and stare harder at the trees. That’s when you realize that there is no wind blowing, and only some of the trees are moving. As you come to attention, a group of 3 1/2-foot tall, treelike creatures separate themselves from the surrounding foliage and shuffle toward you.

Tactics
Place the twig blights in a rough circle around the PCs. Intersperse the brutes with the minions on the frontline and place the thornsprayers on opposite sides behind the other twig blights. The brutes and the saplings will converge on the PCs standing watch. The thornsprayers will focus their attacks on the sleeping PCs. The twig blights fight until dead.

Features of the Area
Illumination: Dim light.
Rubble: The squares around the abandoned shack that contain rubble are considered difficult terrain.
Trees: Squares with trees provide concealment.