Wow, so far that's 4 adventures in a single issue of Dungeon Magazine that can have uses in Ptolus!
This one has a city on the verge of all out riots and internal warfare with every faction that has a bone to pick with someone else beginning to pick that bone. The Commissar would probably be calling on everyone to come together to solve the problem and offers of rewards would continue to grow.
There's a problem with this however. The way this is written we would be expected to believe that a small number of events, mostly coincidental, and inconsequential appearing, would get almost every faction in the city gnashing at each other's necks. In Ptolus it would take quite a bit more activity of a more serious and directed nature for that to happen.
It's apparent that this is two adventure ideas trying to have a baby together, but neither knows anything about the birds and the bees. Don't let that stop you from using the neat idea seeds planted here to grow into some great scenarios.
First the problems for the city.
Murders, arson, strange creature summoning, etc. are happening as it progresses, and this time it has nothing to do with chaos cults, but they do like the chaos and some might take advantage of it to stir up more. This stuff is happening just about everywhere in the city.
Events can put a couple of factions on edge and with enough trouble, the Commissar and City Council would indeed put up rewards while trying to calm the situation, but all-out warfare in the streets is unlikely, and the factions aren't the only parties affected since the serial murders have included a handful of the city watch.
You'll need to figure out who the antagonists are because the ones in the written adventure don't make sense in my opinion. Consider making the bad actors separate individuals with no connection except the conspicuous timing.
The arsons would be the events I would choose for heightening tensions between perhaps the Balacazar's and Killraven's group. The arsons target two businesses and a cargo ship, all of which could be tied to those criminal organizations.
There is a timeline of events that lends itself easily to being parsed out while characters are busy with other things so that it will be happening in real time for them.
The intended culprits are a parasitic hive of creatures that could easily be leftover remnants of Ghul's Squirming Horde that some delvers accidentally awakened. This is the second seed and should not connect to the first.
Make these bug-like creatures the escapees from a previously sealed and inactive lab in Ghul's Labyrinth. Have them begin spreading out into other areas including pre-cleared sections of the dungeon. Make them show up in all sorts of inconvenient locations including the Undercity Market, Delver's Square, etc. Let this lead to a bug hunt as they need to be hunted down and the nest located and destroyed.
Create a timeline of events for the bugs similar to the timeline for the city problems and trickle out the happenings in the same fashion. Have these two seeds overlapping so you can maintain more of the feel from the original adventure.
You'll have to work out what creatures to use as the bugs, or create them from scratch. Certainly avoid using them as written since that way leads to madness and over-complication.
I'm amazed to find 4 adventures that can at least somewhat be used in Ptolus in a single issue of Dungeon Magazine.
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