Playing Strixhaven as Hogwarts

One of the latest books to come out for Dungeons and Dragons is called Strixhaven: Curriculum of Chaos. The book is designed to provide D&D players with the opportunity to play as students at a magical school. It’s pretty easy to see the connections to the adventures of Harry and his friends at Hogwarts. I think a lot of Harry Potter fans who play D&D will want to play through this adventure.

However, the book doesn’t really provide a lot of material to flesh out four years of story, so I’ve put together some suggestions for encounters, happenings, and problems for players to solve as they go through four years of magical education at Strixhaven. I wrote them in D&D terms rather than using Hogwarts-specific names and places so that they can be used with a Strixhaven campaign, but if you’re a Potter fan you will easily be able to “translate” them into the world of Hogwarts. The list is below, numbered so that you can use it as a random table.

Do you play Dungeons and Dragons? If so, are you hoping to play a campaign using this book? If you’re interested in purchasing a copy of the book, use this link and the Lexicon will get a small affiliate payment out of the deal: https://amzn.to/3rfY9tq.

Strixhaven: Random Encounters, Happenings, and Problems to Solve

1. Crudely carved into the inside surface of an old disused desk is a strange incantation. It seems to be the work of a student many years ago.
2. You happen to notice a hidden door cleverly disguised by the woodwork of a wall in a classroom.
3. Several times in the last few weeks you’ve noticed a particular set of initials: QXT. You’ve seen them written in a textbook, scrawled on a wall, etc. Who is this mysterious person?
4. A partial skeleton from the Necromancy classroom has animated and been stumping along, chasing students around the corridors.
5. For Alchemy class homework you’re required to bring in six examples of magical plants from the surrounding grounds. The teacher cautions the class against wandering too far afield.
6. An odd purple mist has been rising from a gully near the sports field. Odd mists are not really all that unusual around school, but this mist seems particularly interested in the game.
7. One classroom in a seldom-visited corridor is sealed. No one can tell you why.
8. The sight of a skunk wandering the corridors has the school in a minor uproar. Only you and your friends know that the skunk is a classmate whose attempt at Polymorph has gone awry.
9. You haven’t been able to practice some of your spells because they require moonlight and the nights have been consistently cloudy. Another student claims to have a magical device to clear the clouds for an hour. Trouble is, that device is specifically prohibited by school rules for some reason.
10. Potions practice goes wrong. The floor is lava.
11. A trip to the shops in the nearby village is a very pleasant way to spend a Saturday. While there, you and your mates discover a strange shop or pub in the base of a tree which you never noticed before.
12. Rumors have been all over the school that a silver ferret has been spotted on the grounds – a ferret whose fur actually consists of threads of silver. It’s common knowledge that the silver hairs from this kind of magical ferret grant limited invisibility.
13. While practicing Misty Step, you are startled to see the face of a dangerous-looking, bearded man as you move through the ethereal plane past him. He seems as surprised as you are. Then it happens again next time you Misty Step. He’s definitely paying attention now.
14. You need to purchase supplies for your Scroll-writing class. However, you are told that your school funds are used up. Did someone steal your gold? How can you earn a little more gold quickly?
15. The school Drama Club is planning a performance and require some lighting effects. They’re asking if anyone knows Minor Illusion or similar spells.
16. You’ve been collecting Marvelous Monster cards every since you were seven years old. There’s a group on campus who collects the cards but in order to join you have to have a card that no one else in the club has.
17. You need to research a particular type of magic for the upcoming exams. However, you discover that all the reference books about that type of magic are missing from the library and no one knows where they went.
18. After Potions class, the remains of the students’ attempts are poured into a drain in the corner of the Potions classroom. Where all that semi-magical slop ends up is a mystery, but lately there have been reports of blobs of magical goo appearing the bathrooms.
19. The Artificers’ Club has been working on a secret project without telling the teachers or staff. Rumors have been circulating that they’re building a mechanical reproduction of one of the school’s founders to surprise everyone during the end of the year celebrations. What can possibly go wrong?
20. There have been reports of strange music coming from the school musical instrument storage area during the night. A few of those old school instruments have been collecting dust in that room for centuries. That room is locked and inaccessible except during class.
21. A younger student is missing. They were last seen working in the school gardens. Could their disappearance have anything to do with that hidden passageway you and your friends discovered last year behind that heap of moldy crates and barrels full of dung behind the gardener’s shed? And if so, are you in trouble for never having bothered to report that find?
22. Another student has invented a magical net to catch birds for use in spells. When used, the bird isn’t trapped but instead flies away with the net over it and the student hanging on for dear life.
23. Some older student have been working on learning the spell Hero’s Feast. They invite younger students to try out the results of their efforts. Seems harmless enough and the food looks delicious!
24. On a visit to the library, you discover the place filled with people acting very strangely. One of the books in the library has apparently become dangerous, humming tunelessly and charming anyone within earshot. What book is it, what made it turn dangerous, and how can you stop it?
25. Several of the teachers have hit upon the idea of a “Dungeoneer’s Club.” They have set up a practice dungeon for students to go through, rather like an obstacle course. However, one of the teachers involved is known to hate students except their “favorites.” What surprises will that teacher have hidden in the practice dungeon?
26. One of the arrows from the magical bows used by the Archery Club has gone missing. Some have reported seeing it stalking students on the grounds in the evenings.
27. No matter how well they are shuffled, the Tarokka cards in the Augury Classroom always display the same last card in any reading: The Broken One. What are they foretelling? Is it a warning or just a prank?
28. You find an old piece of parchment folded up and tucked behind a bookcase. It seems to be a map.
29. You love Cottage Pie, particularly the way the school cook makes it: magically molded into the shape of a tiny cottage, complete with roof, a fenced yard, and a wisp of smoke coming out of the tiny chimney. But Cottage Pie hasn’t been on the menu for ages. You decide to go to the kitchens and ask the Cook why that is.
30. You’ve seen a strange new teacher walking around the halls lately. She radiates a feeling of dread. You decide to follow her and find out who she is and what subject she teaches. However, every attempt to follow her has failed. She seems to just disappear into thin air. The other teachers refuse to talk about her.