Red Hand of Doom (2006)

From the publisher's webpage

The Red Hand of Doom is an exciting super-adventure that pits heroes against an army bent on domination. Rampaging hobgoblins and their allies threaten to destroy the realm and all who stand before them. Characters who dare confront the horde soon discover that these particular hobgoblins worship Tiamat, the evil queen of dragons, and eventually come face-to-face with her draconic minions. The excerpts below include the introduction and adventure outline, two sample encounters, and statistics for the encounters. (Crafty DMs may find the encounters and their relevant statistics useful in other ways, too!)

Introduction

The dry hilltops danced with fire.

Throughout the heart of the wild badlands the humans called the Wyrmsmokes, great bonfires had been kindled atop the ridges overlooking Elsir Vale. There thousands of warriors had gathered -- hobgoblins in armor dyed scarlet, thick-thewed bugbear berserkers, goblin worg riders and skirmishers and archers, and the scaled ones as well, who often towered over the rest. For so long they had fought each other, tribe against tribe, race against race, engaged in the endless test of battle, feud, and betrayal. But tonight . . . tonight they stood together, hated enemies shoulder-to-shoulder, shouting together as brothers. And they saw that they were strong, and together they danced and sang and shook their blades at the smoke-hidden stars overhead.

"We are the Kulkor Zhul!" they shouted, and the hills shook with the thunder of their voices. "We are the People of the Dragon! Uighulth na Hargai! None can stand before us!"

One by one the tribes fell silent. Armor creaked as thousands turned to look up to the Place of Speaking. There, a single champion emerged from the assemblage and slowly climbed the ancient stone stair cut into the side of the hill. A hundred bright yellow banners stood beneath him like a phalanx of spears, each marked with a great red hand. The warpriests holding the banners chanted battle-prayers in low voices as the champion ascended.

On the hundredth step he stopped and turned to face the waiting warriors. He was tall and strong, one of the hobgoblin chieftains, but dull blue scales gleamed along his shoulders, and jutting horns swept back from his head. "I am Azarr Kul, Son of the Dragon!" he cried. "Hear me, warriors of the Kulkor Zhul! Tomorrow we march to war!"

The warriors roared their approval, stamping their feet and clashing spear to shield. Azarr Kul waited, holding his hands aloft until they quieted again. "The warpriests of the Doom Hand have shown us the way! They have taught us honor, discipline, obedience -- and strength! No more will we waste our blood fighting each other. We will take the lands of the elf, the dwarf, and the human, and make them ours! Under the banner of the Red Hand of Doom we march to victory and conquest! Remember that you stood here this night, warriors of Kulkor Zhul! For a hundred generations your sons and your sons' sons will sing of the blood spilled by your swords and the glory you win in the nights to come! Now, my brothers -- to WAR!"

The burning hills were too small to hold the shout the Kulkor Zhul gave in answer to their warlord's call.

War is gathering in the dry brown hills known as the Wyrmsmoke Mountains. As midsummer settles over the land, smothering everything in heat and dust, the fierce warriors of the Kulkor Zhul -- "People of the Dragon" in the hobgoblin tongue -- gather beneath the dreaded Red Hand banner, ready to sweep down out of the Wyrmsmokes and conquer the human lands below. Your player characters face an onslaught of fire and steel the likes of which few have ever seen.

Encounter Levels:Red Hand of Doom is designed for a party of four characters who begin the adventure at 5th level. Over the course of the adventure they should accumulate enough experience to reach 10th level before the climactic encounters at the end of the adventure.

From the back of the book

Who can stand against the Son of the Dragon?

The Wyrmsmoke Mountains shook with the thunder of ten thousand screaming hobgoblin soldiers. From the phalanx emerged a single champion. One by one the tribes fell silent as the warlord rose up, blue scales gleaming along his shoulders, horns swept back from his head. A hundred bright yellow banners stood beneath him, each marked with a great red hand. He stood upon a precipice and raised his arms. "I am Azarr Kul, Son of the Dragon!" the warlord bellowed, "Hear me! Tomorrow we march to war!"

Red Hand of Doom is a Dungeons & Dragons adventure designed to take characters from the 6th level to the 12th level. Confronted with the relentless advance of Azurr Kull's horde, the characters must undertake vital missions to influence the outcome of the war. Can they shatter the armies of the enemy, or will Azarr Kul's dreams rain destruction upon the human lands?

Expanded by;
Red Hand of Doom Creature Appendix

The Red Hand of Doom takes place ten years before the Scales of War Adventure Path, the first Dungeons & Dragons (4th Edition) Adventure Path in Wizards of the Coast's Dungeon online magazine.