“ A dark necromancer has discovered a way of making the magical energy cost of resurrection less than the energy he can gain by draining their life force. Given a sufficient supply of mind-drained minions, ultimate power beckons.”
“ Appearing a small ballista bolt, this bolt' is actually an arrow used by a god from a long-dead pantheon. Some sages theorize it was a weapon crafted by Loki to slay the world tree. Why it was never used escapes them however.
The spear has a divine-level anti-plant effect. When driven into the soil point first, a ever widening circle of destruction radiates out from the point, killing any plant material. Perfect for holding a kingdom's food supply for ransom.
How far it extends depends of course on the GM, of course.”
“ Near a major city, a mirror image of the place has appeared. This strange double is infested with hostile insectoid humanoids that appear to match the city folk in numbers and armaments. The humans' diviners have determined that the secret of the city's appearance can be found within the double's college of magic, so heroes are needed to explore within this mirror city and discover what has drawn it from its distant realm. There isn't much time to spare, as the bug folk find their mammalian counterparts unnatural and blasphemous, and plan to destroy them.”