ADVENTURE:

ESCAPE FROM THE

GHOST PIRATES
ENCOUNTERS: FOUR
DIFFICULTY: NORMAL
DURATION: 30-40 MINUTES

DESIGNED AND MAPPED

BY
JUSTIN HALLIDAY
Hero Kids Adventure Adventure Intro
This adventure requires a copy of the Hero Kids RPG Today’s trouble is worse than usual, a ship full of
to play. The core game and this adventure include: ferocious pirates has sailed upriver and raided the
• Hero Cards for each player town, captured many of the towns-folk and
• Monster Cards for the unique monsters in this imprisoned them in the hold of their ship.
adventure (ghost pirate captain) and the standard The adventure begins with the heroes locked in one of
Hero Kids monsters (pirates and skeletons) the cells in the hold of the pirate’s ship, the adults are
• Print-outs of all of the encounter maps held in the other cells.
• Stand-up minis for the heroes and monsters “PSSSST! Hey kids. Wake up!”
Additionally, these extra materials are required: You wake up groggily and look around to see that
• Six-sided dice (d6s) you„re in a small wooden room. Strangely, the whole
room seems to sway slightly.
• Pencil and eraser
Again you hear a voice from outside the room.
Background “Wake up! After you kids went to bed last night a foul
fog rolled up the river. Before we knew it, the town
You all live in the same village, Rivenshore, which is
was overrun! They rounded us all up and threw us
nestled in a tight valley beneath a towering mountain.
here in the hold of their ship. Kids, we‟ve been
A river runs past the village and flows into a small bay.
captured by pirates!”
Rivenshore would be a beautiful place to live, if it
One of the grown-ups calls you over to the cell door.
weren‟t beset by an endless series of calamities.
You see that the adults are trapped in a cell like yours,
Adventure Overview on the other side of a wooden passage.
“We can‟t find a way out, but you kids should be able
This four-encounter adventure takes place on the to squeeze through the bars. If you can find the keys to
ghost pirates’ ship. the cells then we can all escape and get home.”
The hero kids start the adventure held captive in a cell He finishes with a warning.
in the ship’s hold. They escape and fight their way to
“There‟s something funny „bout these pirates, so be
the upper deck where they battle the dread pirate
careful.”
Flynn for the keys to the cells to free the adults.
Hero Kids Adventure – Escape from the Ghost Pirates Justin Halliday Page 2
Encounter 1: Jail-Break Encounter Intro
Following the adventure intro, the heroes are all in
The first encounter takes place at the aft (rear) of the the cell. If required, prompt them to squeeze out of
ship’s lower deck. In this encounter the heroes their cell and into the central corridor, then read this:
emerge from their cell and fight their way towards the
front of the ship’s lower deck. You slip out of the cell and find your weapons and
equipment in a pile at the end of the corridor.
Map As you collect your equipment, you hear the heavy fall
of footsteps from the open room at the end of the
corridor. You look up to see a bunch of fierce pirates
approaching.
Encounter Features
The four rooms at the left of the map are the cells
that hold the heroes and the adults. The right side of
the map is the ship’s main aft room, the cannons and
barrels are obstacles that provide cover.
Ability Tests
The heroes can perform these ability tests:
• Intelligence (Perception) test at difficulty 4 to hear
footsteps from this deck and the deck above.
• Intelligence (Knowledge/Lore) test at difficulty 5
know that these pirates haven’t been heard of in
these waters for almost a hundred years.
• Intelligence (Knowledge/Lore) test at difficulty 6
to know that the keys are with the pirate captain.

Hero Kids Adventure – Escape from the Ghost Pirates Justin Halliday Page 3
Monsters Tactics
This encounter features pirate swordsmen who use All of these pirates engage the heroes with simple
melee attacks against the heroes. melee attacks.
1 Hero: 1 x Pirate Swordsman To reduce the difficulty you can leave off a couple of
2 Heroes: 2 x Pirate Swordsmen the pirate swordsmen and then bring them onto the
map (from the right) once a couple of the others have
3 Heroes: 3 x Pirate Swordsmen
been knocked out. Alternatively, if you have more
4 Heroes: 4 x Pirate Swordsmen than four heroes or skilled players, you can increase
Use these health boxes to mark off damage: the difficulty by adding extra pirates.

Pirate Swordsman Conclusion

Once all of the monsters are KO’d, read (or
paraphrase) this:
Pirate Swordsman
The last of the filthy pirates drops to the ground with a
clatter.
Pirate Swordsman You have only a moment to catch your breath before
you hear shouts and the sound of muffled footsteps
Pirate Swordsman from the deck above.
If the heroes have taken damage in this encounter,
they can take a short rest to remove damage.
Extra Pirate
Then encourage the players to take their heroes
through the door at the right of the map to continue
Extra Pirate to: Encounter 2: Fore-Ward Ho!

Hero Kids Adventure – Escape from the Ghost Pirates Justin Halliday Page 4
Encounter 2: Fore-Ward Ho! Encounter Intro
When the heroes enter this area, read this:
The second encounter moves to the foremost room
of the ship’s lower deck. The walls of this large room are lined with cannons
The heroes enter from the left, and the pirates come and piles of cannon-balls. Sturdy wooden pillars run
down the stairs from the main deck. in two rows, supporting the creaking deck above.
As you enter the room, you hear footsteps thump down
Map to this deck from the main deck above.
An ugly group of pirates emerges from the shadows and
rushes towards you.
Encounter Features
This encounter takes place in a large open room
which has a set of stairs in the middle of it. As with
the previous map, the cannon and barrels provide
cover.
Ability Tests
The heroes can perform a Dexterity (Throwing) test
at difficulty 4 to work out that they can pick up and
throw the cannonballs for one extra die to a ranged
attack.

Hero Kids Adventure – Escape from the Ghost Pirates Justin Halliday Page 5
Monsters Tactics
This encounter features pirate swordsmen who use The pirates engage the heroes with melee attacks.
melee attacks against the heroes. To reduce the difficulty you can leave off a couple of
1 Hero: 1 x Pirate Swordsman the pirate swordsmen and then bring them onto the
2 Heroes: 2 x Pirate Swordsmen map (down the stairs) once a couple of the others
have been knocked out. As ever, if you have more
3 Heroes: 3 x Pirate Swordsmen
than four heroes or skilled players, you can increase
4 Heroes: 4 x Pirate Swordsmen the difficulty by adding extra pirates.
Use these health boxes to mark off damage: Conclusion
Pirate Swordsman Once all of the monsters are KO’d, read this:
The lower deck falls silent as you dispatch the last of
the grubby pirates.
Pirate Swordsman
The sound of straining rigging and crashing waves
reaches you from the open stairs that lead to the main
Pirate Swordsman upper deck.
Again, the heroes can take a short rest to remove
Pirate Swordsman damage.
If the heroes are low on healing potions, you can
allow them to find replacements hidden amongst the
Extra Pirate
pirates’ supplies.
The exit from this room is the stairs that lead up to
Extra Pirate the main deck.
Continue to Encounter 3: Upper Deck!

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Encounter 3: Upper Deck! Encounter Intro
When the heroes enter this area, read this:
The third encounter sees our intrepid heroes venture
up to the ship’s upper deck. You emerge from the lower deck onto the main deck.
Here the heroes encounter two new threats: stronger It is a horrid night. Rain buckets down from the black
monsters and also pirates who use ranged attacks clouds and batters the slick deck. A flash of lightning
against them! shows the silhouettes of more pirates.
A moment later the moon emerges from behind the
Map clouds and the moonlight floods the deck. In the light
of the moon it is clear that these are no ordinary
pirates, they‟re GHOST PIRATES!
Encounter Features
This encounter takes place at the front of the main
deck and up on the ship’s forecastle. The stairs on the
left and right lead up to the elevated forecastle.
The cannons, barrels, cannon balls, and the large hold
hatch are obstacles that can be negotiated, but with
reduced movement. The mast on the forecastle is
impassable, but creatures can stand adjacent to it.
The walls that bound the forecastle are impassable
(although they could be climbed), but they can be
shot over with ranged or magic attacks.
Ability Tests
Again, the players can perform a Dexterity
(Throwing) test at difficulty 4 to work out that they
can pick up and throw the cannonballs for one extra
die to a ranged attack.

Hero Kids Adventure – Escape from the Ghost Pirates Justin Halliday Page 7
Monsters Tactics
This encounter introduces skeleton archers who use Half of these skeletons engage the heroes with melee
ranged attacks against the heroes. attacks, but the two archers use ranged attacks at the
1 Hero: 1 x Skeleton Swordsman heroes from the forecastle. If the heroes storm the
2 Heroes: 1 x Skeleton Swordsman forecastle and use melee attacks against the skeleton
1 x Skeleton Archer archers, they retreat to the main deck.
3 Heroes: 2 x Skeleton Swordsmen Add the extra swordsman and archer if there are more
than four heroes or if you want to increase the
1 x Skeleton Archer
difficulty.
4 Heroes: 2 x Skeleton Swordsmen
Conclusion
2 x Skeleton Archers
Once all of the monsters are KO’d, read this.
Use these health boxes to mark off damage:
As the pirates hit the ground, they leave only their
Skeleton Swordsman ragged clothes and scattered possessions.
The rain is so thick you can barely see the back of the
ship. But you know that the ship‟s captain is there
Skeleton Archer
somewhere, and with him you should find the keys to
rescue your families.
Skeleton Swordsman If the heroes have taken damage in this encounter,
they can take a short rest to remove damage.
Skeleton Archer If the heroes are low on healing potions, you can
allow them to find replacements hidden amongst the
pirates’ supplies.
Extra Skeleton
Once the players are ready, they should head to the
rear of the ship for the climactic battle.
Extra Skeleton Continue to Encounter 4: Rush the Aftercastle!

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Encounter 4: Rush the Aftercastle! Encounter Intro
When the heroes enter this area, read this:
The final encounter moves to the rear of the ship’s
main deck. As you approach the ship‟s aftercastle you hear the
This climactic battle pits the heroes against the ship’s captain‟s booming voice.
captain and his wretched minions. “Come on you scurvy dogs! Let‟s see what you‟re
When the pirate captain is first KO’d, he comes back made of.”
to life as the ghost pirate captain, the terrible undead There is a flash of lightning and you see the captain at
version of the previous captain! the helm of the ship. As the light fades you see the rest
of his crew of skeletal pirates.
Map
Encounter Features
This encounter takes place at the rear of the main
deck and up on the ship’s aftercastle. The stairs on
the left and right lead up to the aftercastle.
The cannons, barrels and cannon balls are obstacles.
All of these can be negotiated, but with reduced
movement for the heroes. The two masts are
impassable, but heroes and monsters can stand
adjacent to them.
The walls that bound the aftercastle are impassable
(although they could be climbed), but they can be
shot over with ranged or magic attacks.
Ability Tests
The players can have their heroes perform an
Intelligence (Perception) test at difficulty 5 to see
that there’s something strange about the captain.

Hero Kids Adventure – Escape from the Ghost Pirates Justin Halliday Page 9
Monsters Use these health boxes to mark off damage:
This encounter introduces the big boss, the pirate
captain (who becomes a ghost pirate captain when Pirate Captain
he’s first defeated), in addition to swordsmen and
archers. Ghost Captain
1 Hero: 1 x Pirate/Ghost Captain
1 x Skeleton Swordsman
Skeleton Swordsman
2 Heroes: 1 x Pirate/Ghost Captain
1 x Skeleton Swordsman
1 x Skeleton Archer Skeleton Archer

3 Heroes: 1 x Pirate/Ghost Captain

2 x Skeleton Swordsmen Skeleton Swordsman
1 x Skeleton Archer
4 Heroes: 1 x Pirate/Ghost Captain Skeleton Archer
2 x Skeleton Swordsmen
2 x Skeleton Archers Extra Skeleton

Hero Kids Adventure – Escape from the Ghost Pirates Justin Halliday Page 10
Tactics Conclusion
The pirate captain stays at the helm until the heroes Once all of the pirates are KO’d, read this:
come up on the aftercastle. If the heroes stay on the Your final blow lands on the last of the pirates.
main deck and use ranged (or magic) attacks, he will “Damn you! How dare you escape from your cell and
approach them and attack. defeat my minions. Mark my words, you haven‟t
The pirate captain taunts the heroes during the fight, heard the last of the ghost pirate Flynn.”
calling them ‘maggots’, ‘flotsam’, and ‘barnacles’. With his final words, the ghost pirate disappears, and
When the pirate captain is first KO’d, read this: his empty clothes and cutlass drop to the deck.
You strike a mighty blow to the pirate captain and he You can allow the players to role-play the search for
falls with a thump to the rain-soaked deck, his cutlass the keys and the release of the adults or you can
clatters next to him. simply read out these passages:
Just then the whole ship is illuminated by a flash of
You rummage among his clothes and find a large
light as lightning strikes the main mast, sending a bunch of keys.
shower of sparks cascading around you.
And this:
As you recover from the distraction, you see that the
body of the captain has disappeared, and standing its With the captain‟s keychain, you race below deck and
place is a horrible ghost pirate captain. to the rear of the ship, where you quickly unlock the
He reaches down and picks up his fallen cutlass. doors to all of the cells to release the adults.
“You won‟t beat me that easy!” “Well done, we knew you‟d be able to beat those
terrible pirates! Let‟s get this ship turned around and
Replace the pirate captain with the ghost captain
head home…”
(who is at full health) and continue to fight. Keep in
mind, the ghost captain has different actions and
powers to the original version of the captain.

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