Spooky Adventure Contest (Submissions)

[stormshade]

Post your entry to the Spooky Adventure Contest in this thread!

Please keep this thread to submissions only. You may discuss the contest in this thread.

[brockengem]

1st time ever hope i'm doing this right

It's midday all is fun and ok the world is flowers and sun
but there are ghosts all around.

city of neverwinter

your 1st gole find out who the ghosts are (you can talk too only 7 { 7 NPC ghosts} ) by asking them the right questions for thay can only answer with a " Yes / No " answer
2nd : what do they wont
3rd : who or what send them
after finding out who send them
find the ( NPC ) old man scarecrow he will now answer you with a lot more details , you can find him by the graveyard
go back to town inform the people they are safe and to try to communicate with there loved passed ones.. one problem ghosts all look alike , so by asking the right question of the living and the dead you might just help reunite some of them
example :
you-> ghost :
Q : do you know pick a name , list of names (7 names in total ) if the ghost knows that person it das not mean they are related so what would you next question be

you find out this is the day of the year the only day were the ghosts are permitted to visit the living , all thaws ghosts have decided to visit on this day their relatives and loved ones and to answer each one 1 questing ( remember a yes or no answer only )

2 ghosts are Not so friendly in fact they are after 1 person Gishi the miller they wont revenge.. but what did he do ? and is he worthy of saving ? or perhaps you should just let them finish the job
they have trapped him in hes mill and the mill the mill has 5 lvls go from one to another facing the ghosts magic and traps and illusions , Gishi might be in any one of thaws lvls so check every coroner.. even under beds watch out they can Bite.
you find him grate ! he tells you that he had to leave the former 2 man to there deaths by fire even thow he could have saved them Only because he was afraid some one will find out he set the fire himself for gold , he watch them burn alive
knowing they will hunt he's dreams every night and he will always see them at day , now thay are finally here he wont's to stop running and let them do with him what ever they wont

the quest splits in to 2 what ever you decide will happen you can try to explain Gishi's actions to the hunting ghosts and perhaps redeem him and save he's soul.
or perhaps hes crime is one you can not forgive and let the ghosts do what they wont to him ( you have 1 min to decide )
here you need to talk to the ghosts : explaining to them both the Millers day to day torment for what he has done , and maby if the ghosts will be vengefully to the end they will not be permitted to return to rest in peace for all eternity
on the other hand the Miller committed murder acting out of selflessness and cowardly and both man were burned alive can he be permitted to go on ?
and remember what gos around come around.

[anoranda]

Its a Dungeons & Dragons adventure but ill write it as a story

The outskirts of the city of neverwinter

As you aimlessly stroll around the outskirts of neverwinter you stumble upon a small path that leads into the woods, curiosity overtake you and you decide to follow and see where it leads.

(Quest: follow the path and see where it leads, auto complete upon arrival)

You arrive to a small hill in the mids of the woods, on top of which stands a small wooden hat, with an oddly colored straw roof, that shines strangely in the moonlight. Around the hut and all over the hill lays a field with various things growing in it.

(Quest complete)

It is seems that your arrival was not unnoticed as a relatively young girl in a country-side dress comes to greet you from the hut.

(Girl npc, name:unknown)

"Hello adventurer! What brings you to this side of the woods?" she says.
"..."
"Well since you're already here, why not help me out with a few simple tasks? Its hard on a young lady like me, to manage a farm this big , all alone in the woods!" she says

"All alone?"you say

*The girl ignores the question*

"Anyway since you already agreed to help why don't you go behind the hut and take care of those stray wolfs on the pumpkin patch, I don't know why are they there, I never thought wolfs would eat pumpkin, but they do, and you need to shoo them away!" - she says

(Quest: shoo away 10 wolfs from the pumpkin patch)

Stunned you head to the back of the hut to find a huge pumpkin patch that lays on the whole side of the hill, and it seems that the girl was right! There are wolfs eating the pumpkins in this patch! They look like normal wolfs, aside from that strange glow in they're eyes, you decide to help the strange young girl. For now.

After you finish of scaring the wolfs you head back to the girl to tell her that the coast is clear

(Quest complete)

The girl is delighted to hear that you've done her bidding and rewards you with the next "small" task she needs assistance with.

"Thank you for the wolf extermination, now i can go and collect enough pumpkin to make Halloween snacks without worrying about being attacked by those beasts!
I will want to make a pumpkin pie, a pumpkin candy and a sweet pumpkin corn!
For these I will need sugar, and i just run out! Would you kindly go and fetch some sugar canes that grow in the woods on the east side of the hill?
If you I will share some of my sweets with you!"

The girls makes less and less sense as the minuets go by, "Pumpkin corn"? "Sugar canes"?
And yet you still agree to help her.

(Quest: Cut down 13 canes)

As you head to the east side of the hut, and deeper into the woods you begin to notice an unnaturally sweet smell coming from ahead of you.
When the trees clear out of your way, you can no longer believe your eyes.
Right in front of you lays a whole patch of an oddly shaped, canes, the kind that elder people use for walking, only bigger, sweeter smelling, stickier, and worst of all! Every cane in the patch was colored in the most funky, bright, eye disturbing colors, that you could bring yourself to imagine!

After you recover from initial shock, you remember what you came here to do and start chopping down the canes, despite they're looks the canes are quite sturdy and hard to cut, but you don't give up, and after you finished getting 13 of them, you load them on your back (while praying that your back will not get stained by the odd colored sticky canes) and head back to the hut.

When you come back the girl greets you with another charming smile, while you were out she collected the pumpkins she needed and started a small bonfire on top of which stood a huge, round and black cauldron, bubbling with orange pumpkin juice.

"I thought you'll never make it!, Come on, hurry up! The sweets are almost ready! All i need now is the sugar!"

as she says that, the young girl, snatches all 13 oddly colored canes (as if they weight nothing) from your back, and throws them in into the cauldron.
The cauldron immidetly begins to hiss, shake, bubble (more then usual), and erupts in a huge splash of orange lava right at your direction.

(Quest complete)

When you awake you find yourself laying on a picnic cloth that is layed out on the wooden floor inside the hut, around you sweet smalls of pumpkin reveal mountains of hot corn shaped like pumpkin sweets, pumpkin pies, small pumpkin shaped warped candy, and everything is, of course colored in the fanciest, brightest, eye disturbing way possible.

"You're up!" Calls the girl

"Thanks for all the help! The candy production was a big success! Here this is your share!" The girl says as she hands you a bucketful of corn and candy, on top of which lies a big round pumpkin pie, in the pinkies color that pink could ever look.

(Received items: Bucket of colorful sweets (click to open), Disturbing pink pumpkin pie (DPPP for short))


"Ugh, thanks.." You manage to say

"Ow don't be shy!, the fun has only begun! now we have to EAT these" The girl announces with a proud look on her face.

As the hours go by, you and the girl stuff yourselves with the oddest shaped, and colored pumpkin sweets that taste remarkably good,and you cannot stop eating until you're completely full and cannot take another sweet thing into your mouth.

(Hp/SP/Every stat recovered to full, weapon unequiped)

Well, it is time you go back home to neverwinter, as you say your goodbyes and head back to the woods you remember that you forgot your weapon back in the hut.

(Quest: head back and retrieve your weapon)

As you make your way back to the hut, the moon is no longer shining, no light is seen in the windows of the hut, so you assume the little girl went back to sleep.
The door is unlocked so you head in, you remember where exactly you put your weapon so you don't bother turning the lights on, you manage to grab your weapon in the dark, and just as you were to turn around and head back...
A HUGE SCARY MEAT-PUMPKIN SMELLING LYCAN, 2 TIMES YOUR SIZE APPEARS RIGHT IN FRONT OF YOU!!

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWWRR RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR RR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(would be cooler with sound effects don you think? )

You wake up in your bed, in the inn of newervinter / or your house if you have one.
You calm down. Relieved that all of that was just a bad dream.
You swipe away the cold sweat on your face, and as you do so you notice... that the moon that shines brightly through your window...( IMPOSSIBLE!) Illuminates a small bucket filled with colorful candy and a DPPP (Disturbing Pink Pumpkin Pie) on top of it.... Located right in the middle of your room.


(Quest complete, weapon equipped back, achievement unlocked: "It was a dream.. right?")


THE END

Do tell me if i did something wrong coz im not accustomed to writing dragon and dungeons adventures, but i sure had fun writing this in teh middle of the night ;D

[gillrmn]

I should have written better, but time constraints didn't allow it. Spent a few hours on this - No maps, descriptions, encounters or stats - just a rudimentary mission. Please accept this my official entry.

Ok. Here is my quickly composed entry due to lack of time.
A lot of gaps have been intentionally left for DM so that campaign is flexible - i.e. It can be made short/long/verbose/humorous if needed. Encounters are only briefly described and left for DM to design.

A player can never die in this campaign. But the player goes into comma or frozen state. The player must be thawed and revived from this state.

Background
All the PC go to a local tavern on their way to Neverwinter. (Depending on circumstances, each player has to go to the basement.)
Strikers

All
Rats in basement for money as your money is not in currency accepted by bartender. You propose to do a quest instead and she tells you to kill rats.
There is no trace of rats in basement.

Defenders

All
Rats in basement for money as your money is not in currency accepted by bartender. You propose to do a quest instead and she tells you to kill rats.
There is no trace of rats in basement.

Controller and leaders
&Divine

Bartender tips you that there is an old artifact which used to be implement of your deity. You decide to evaluate it for bartender - agreeing that if it is of value, bartender will let you have it. You cite your chuch's clergy/religious group as indemnity.
However you find that implement is fake.

&Arcane

Bartender tips you that there are some ghosts which keep appearing in the basement. You persuade bartender that it may be because of formation of "micro-leylines". Bartender agrees to let you check if it rids the place of ghosts while you are free to use arcane energies of the "micro-leylines" in your arcane implement to store "power".
Ofcourse, no arcane trace here.

&Primal

Bartender tips you that there are some ghosts which keep appearing in the basement. Ofcourse you are interested in spirits of ancestors and stuff.
You can't find any spirits in basement.

Rest

Martial

All
Rats in basement for money as your money is not in currency accepted by bartender. You propose to do a quest instead and she tells you to kill rats.
There is no trace of rats in basement.

First Meeting
Door locks behind them.
Players meet each other and introduce each other.

Basement:
Objects of interest

• Barrels. Lid is tightly shut. May be opened with strength to see that they contain ashes.
• Vats.Lid is tightly shut. INT check to trace a way to get drops of what was last put in it and then Heal skill to find that it is diluted human blood. Otherwise it appears as red wine. If PC drink it, they will get cranky for rest of the day.
• Inscription. In draconic, "There was no tavern." Religion check - faint symbol of Bahamut.
• Above the vats. Needs acrobatics - unreachable otherwise. Hidden from view are a few bones. Elvish inscription, can be relayed vocally as "a straight line with a hanging chilly... etc." and reads (for those who know the language) "I was able to escape to this place and survive. But there is no escape. The place sucks your energy and there is no way out. I even found the keys! But I hope they never find my remains. Who knows what they do with them. There is also an inscription of a bird's head(can be described). Religion check (raven queen's symbol). You can search for the key if you know about it.
• Door: If you have the key you can open the door. In front of you is darkness. It seems you are trapped in a separate dimension. (p.s. Discourage players from jumping. However if they jump even after strong warnings, they will be lost in dimensions. So don't let them jump.)

Rest of the room is normal.

Event 1
Trigger:

The PC are suspicious of each other and bicker.
Or
They have tried to roll for all objects they can and have exhausted all options.
Or
They try to rest.

DM notes: Select any one(and only one) PC. First choice should be if anyone with exceptional religion and associated with Raven Queen/death in some way.

One of the PC notices a trace of some ashes.

Arcana check:
Any PC asks question, "Are they magical" or "Is there any magic in room" then DM may respond that ashes "smell" magical. After this DM may use arcana check passively. Otherwise no checking - let them suffer.
Arcana check success:
Its a trap. But the magic can easily be dispelled. Arcana success PC walks to the place and dispels it.
Arcana check failure:
The magic is not very strong in nature. Only enough to move a small metal object.

Trap activates:-
A drop of acid from roof on alternate squares from the position of the player who talks to the NPC.

Encounter 1
Once the ashes are touched, a spirit of a beautiful female cleric emerges from the floor. She cries, "Noooooo! Don't touch me!"

Naked female cleric spirit's head (and a little bit of outline of shoulders).

Skills of NPC:- Religion(high), Bluff(low), Diplomacy(low), Insight won't work on her as she is confused about her state after death

She thinks the ashes are her "body" and by touching them you have "offended" her. She constantly uses divine prayers of retribution but they are not working.

Calming her down:-
She clams down after appropriate dialogue, or immediately if

- diplomacy check is high
or
- religion check is high and deity is not an enemy of Raven Queen (otherwise it backfires and fight her to submission [mime fight as she can't actually do anything in material world])
or
- A charismatic bard makes her fall in love with him.

Information NPC can give:-
-Obvious info divulged willingly

• She was dead long ago and her spirit has been loosing memories constantly.
• She used to worship "Queen of winter" and had pledges her soul to her service.
• She belonged to lost bloodline of "Queen of winter".
• She is suffering constantly.

-Unverified info - has to be asked

• There is a way out. I just have to remember.
• I am not responsible for their deaths.
• I think the temple is a monster itself. (Religion+diplo means she tells them that she came to the temple made of stone and was trapped and not a tavern)
• There way out is from a temple.

-Bluff

• I am the strongest adventurer ever(obvious but harmless bluff)
• Even if you die here, I will be able to ressurect you if you take me outside.(she forgets that she is a ghost)

-Religion

"Queen of winter" is a deity with symbol of raven.

-Diplomacy

• I will help you.
• This room is slowly sucking their souls. Its a necromantic spell.

==== ==== ==== ====
If she helps you, it means she joins your party.

She can keep 1 spirit or 1 human (but not undead) busy and concentrated on her.
She is immaterial so all attacks won't affect her.
Undead won't sense her.
Add her wisdom bonus to the saves of the PC who diplomatic to her or the bard who she fell in love with. (bard first priority)
==== ==== ==== ====

Thuswise or Otherwise:

"I can help you find the way. There is a switch under te vat in complete darkness. You will need light to see there. Pushing that switch will open a wall behind vats. The secret is there... perhaps?" and she forgets all about it after telling the players.

Event 2
If there is no light, DM should hint that players can use their weapons to see and have a perception check. Otherwise probability of pushing the correct button is 1/16 (16+ on a d20 dice)
If they see - there are four buttons. Thus 2^4=16 combinations.

They search on the switches:-
Quality of light+perception check:

• Low: All buttons are in down position
• normal: It looks as if first and third buttons are never touched
• High: The paint from second button is faded on the lower side and there are scratch marks on fourth button upper side

WIS check - automatically pass if npc is in party - "is helping" otherwise

• High: while switch off, all buttons should be pushed toghether. So scratch on only one side of button means the code is: DOWN <unknown> DOWN UP
• If npc is helping she suggests that it should be UP for second button.
• Also if any PC follows deity of luck and tosses coin - DM can reward him with right answer.

Answer to puzzle: DOWN UP DOWN UP

Encounter 2

• Zero to One button correctly pushed:- Very very tough encounter with zombies
• Two button correctly pushed:- Tough encounter with zombies
• Three button correctly pushed:- Normal encounter with zombies
• Four button correctly pushed:- bonus to initiative to players and same encounter as for three

FIGHT!!!
COMBAT

NPC proves completely ineffective against zombies. PC and NPC may bicker.
If in love, she remembers her name as Shadya Soulreaper. As she remembers her weapon, her spirit gives it a shape. It is a scythe.

As the PC skip through the space beneath Vats, they soon come across a crowd of people.

Event 3 and Encounter 4
"Oh! A party! Lets rock!"
Ain't you like... Dead?
I hate you the most
<Now I will shorten it to bare essentials to complete it>

Perception check:-

• The vamps are pretty elves
• Anyone of noble background or has diplomacy or streetsmart:-
• They act like nobles
• Arcane check or if NPC is helping
• They are pale court

At this point, NPC may decide to attack vampires as it is her "duty" to do so. PC can persuade her to not by diplo or bard-love check.

• There are guards at gate.
• There are a lot of nobles.
• They are drinking the wine/blood from the vats.

Possible solutions:-

1. If Religion and Diplomacy seperately pass with high and DM thinks she has not been offended - she can be persuaded to use her ashes to mix in vat. As he ashes are sacred of Raven Queen, nobles will be nauseated and fall (not die). Guards will come and escort important ones. That time everyone can try to escape. NPC cleric with scythe will stop in between and cry in a voiceless scream. She won't be able to be cheerful. GIVES YOU NO TREASURE.
2. If NPC is allowed to charge in the party, all the nobles will be concentrating on her. Also, guards will be called there. This will give the party the time to slip unnoticed. However, guards soon realize that the ghost is harmless and they come back to their post. While coming back, they realize that there are some intruders and a HARD encounter with guards follows. Hallway is trapped after that and then they enter boss room. GIVES YOU WEAPON DROPS.
3. If NPC is not in party, they may try to prick their finger and use their "fresh" blood to lure a few nobles. After clearing the eastern side of the room near washroom, (3 easy encounters) they climb up the stairs unnoticed after wearing the masks of vampires. After going to top, they find that they can cut a big rope from the high ceiling and swing to other side. Rest of the vampires think it is a masquerade doing a trapeze. This way the players come directly to boss room. GIVES YOU GEM DROPS.

BOSS ROOM
The players are in the tavern again. The bartender is now very pretty elf and drinking the blood of another elf of opposite sex. "I will make you pretty my dear! You may hate me now but you will come to love me for I am beautiful like you!"

The tavern has black silk draperies and a silk bed in middle which is very odd.

NPC cleric is lost in the walls of room and does not comes in.

1 - Fight with vampire.
2 - When bartender is bloodied, she controls the new recruit to fight. Slay the new recruit.
"I am a noble eladrin elder of noble court. Do you think you stand a chance against me?"
3 - PAUSE

A - "Wait why do you kill me when I try to save you?" says bartender.
"You were trying to kill us!" say PC
B - "No you were already dead in the books of Raven Queen. I just protected your souls" says bartender.

A is lie, B is true. Extra goading and DM can tell that they still had one month.

Choice Alpha:
Ok. Make us a vampire too. <facepalm and brutally end the PC as lunch for vampire party>

Choice Beta:
We are leaving. They open the door and walk out. As they walk a few paces,

- if they did not poison or kill guards - a lot of vampires mob them
- otherwise as tey walk a few meters the world dissolves and they are lost in dimensions of worlds

Choice gamma:-
We will kill you and leave. They kill her and get treasure but the worlds dissolves. However the npc guides them to their world as a light and vanishes. They now know they have one month to live before Raven Queen claims them.

Choice Delta(needs at least one succesful religion check by PC in campaigns as they need to know that cleric is of raven queen):-
We will kill you because we promise the cleric and we will ask her to recommend our lives to Queen of death
NPC cleric comes in from the walls. The walls have black draperies which cover her - she has become semi-material as the bartender has weakened. If she howls silently, that is an added benefit.
The bartender turns crazy and runs outside the tavern in fear saying, "Soul Reaper! No!". Rest of the vampires also get scared and run away - whoever are living.
As the bartender runs outside, she realizes that she is trapped in her own trap. As the dimensional distortion vanishes, the PC can hear the voice of bartender saying, "No! My eyes! Are you her? Why are you here? Nooooo! I don't want to be mazed"

Then the cleric thanks the party as she links with real world and is getting her sanity back. She tells them she is not a cleric but an avenger of Raven Queen. She tells them that she can see that they have only one month left but her soul was pledged to Raven Queen and they have helped Raven Queen get "her stuff back". Also she is unaligned and temperamental so she will surely reward their service with some more years of live - so that the PC die natural deaths at old age, if they are not slain or murdered.

THE END

p.s. Vampire can sense her but not skeletons or zombies. This is because vampires are sentient or something...

[aavarius]

((I'm not sure if I'm going to get to finish this in time. I have a relatively busy weekend. Here's what I have done so far. I'll add the rest if I get time to finish.))


THE MONSTER'S BALL

A level agnostic adventure for 3-5 players with playing D&D 4th Edition. Loosely inspired by Edgar Allan Poe's Masque of the Red Death.

ADVENTURE BACKGROUND & SYNOPSIS
At least one noble villa in the Blacklake District houses its actual owner, but that fact is far from good news for the people of Neverwinter. The dashing Mordai Vell, leader of the local Ashmadai cult of Asmodeus worshipers, holds sway over a small, well-guarded compound known as Vellgard Manor.The product of an affair between a devil and a member of a human family from the south, Mordai was a scandalous embarrassment hushed up by his human relatives. When they perished in the cataclysm,he inherited the family estate. Mordai and his Ashmadai allies (who are scheming to take control of Neverwinter under the nose of Lord Neverember) moved back into the city before Neverember arrived. While he occupied the manor house, his Ashmadai cohorts hid in the cellars beneath the place. With the arrival of the Lord Protector, Mordai took a more visible role in the district.Charismatic, handsome, and wealthy, he has become a popular figure - a civic leader who, some whisper,might aspire to hold the throne of Neverwinter.The estate is an armed compound flanked by metal gates and hidden guards. An inner wall creates a killing field that could stop a small army. The Ashmadai covertly make use of arcane wards and summoned devils within the walls. They try hard to keep their power base in the district both secret and safe.

Vellgard Manor is well defended, and the characters will have substantial difficulty gaining entrance by stealth or force. However, Mordai Veil loves the games of nobility, and he entertains guests frequently and with relish. Characters with facility in Bluff or Diplomacy can waltz right in the front door and obtain an audience with Mordai, particularly if one of them is a genuine noble and (preferably) female. Mordai is far from stupid, however, and anyone who tries to beat him at his own game receives intense scrutiny.

This sect of the Ashmadai once served Thay, but now only gives lip service to the far off nation. Seeking to claim power for themselves, Mordai and his group have begun tenuous negotiations with the Neterese. The two groups have no reason to trust each other, but the Ashmadai have what the Netherese want: a foothold in the city. Likewise the Netherese have what the cultists want: independence.

Two weeks ago the Neverwinter gentry, as well as various influential movers and shakers in the city of lower station, received an invitation to a masquerade ball at the ever mysterious Vellgard Manor, a place for which there is much gossip about, that few have ever seen the inside of. More than just a curiosity, the manor is an outright mystery to most of upper society Neverwinter and its charming owner keeps his home private from all but the most influential members of society when he makes his frequent appearances.

Known to nobody outside Mordai's sect of the Ashmadai, the tiefling nobleman has come into possession of a ritual that he believes will finally cement his hold on the city of Neverwinter. The ritual allows the dark acolytes of the cult to capture the souls of dozens of people in one fell swoop and exchange these souls for devils that inhabit the bodies of the ritual's victims. In doing, Mordai hopes to supplant the important and influential people of Neverwinter with this ritual all at once and thereby take control of the city by proxy.

This kind of magic was previously available to the Ashmadai, but only on a much smaller scale. Having stolen this ritual from his Neterese "ally," Mordai expects to enact a coup d'etat that nobody will be any the wiser for. Unfortunately he's overestimated his understanding of Neterese magic and doesn't know that the ritual works by transferring a part of this world into the Shadowfell---a dark realm where the lines between life and death are paper thin...and where the Netherese are right at home.

If they're not careful, the PCs might become victims of this dark magic, and they may be the only people that can stop it.


GETTING THE PCs INVOLVED
It is unlikely that the PCs know that Mordai leads a set of the Ashmadai cultists, though it goes without saying that in the days before the cataclysm there were no tiefling noble families from the city. Mordai's heritage is certainly a mystery any noblemen in Neverwinter would like to know the truth of.

However, if your Neverwinter campaign has gone on at least a little while, especially if the PCs have made allies of anybody working for Neverember's government, the PCs are likely to have earned a nod or two of prestige among the movers and shakers of the city. As such, the easiest way to get the PCs involved is to give them invitations to the masquerade ball in recognition of their past accomplishments.

WHAT THE PCs KNOW
The PCs probably know Mordai Vell by reputation if they haven?t met him already. He's handsome, mysterious, and charming. Although normally a neighborhood plagued by near-lawlessness, the invitation to Vellgard Manor is an opportunity to relive the past when Blacklake was a posh neighborhood of stately manors and green thoroughfares. This masquerade ball is a prime opportunity for ambitious PCs to rub shoulders with the people that make the wheels of the city go round, including Neverember himself. It should be devastatingly obvious that this party is the best opportunity the PCs will have to advance their own agenda in the city or perhaps smooth over any previous gaffs with the authorities.

HISTORY (DC 10) Relate to the PCs the history of the Blacklake district and how most of its estates have become holdings to squatters and would be upstarts that don?t appreciate the order and law of the Protector's Enclave. This is also sufficient for the PC to know about some of Mordai Vell's civic or social generosities for the sake of the city.

ARCANA (DC 10) Many of the more powerful people in the Blacklake district have used magic to fortify their holdings and it's an open secret that much of the district's intactness is a result of the old nobility's possession of such magic. Some of this power is sure to be hidden throughout the district. This result is also enough to know that Vellgard Manor is likely no exception.

STREETWISE (DC 10) The Blacklake district is home to myriad low life criminal groups seeking to gain power in the city, including wererats and cultists of Asmodeus, the dark god of tyranny and devils.

RELIGION (DC 10) Share with the PCs common knowledge about Asmodeus and/or the Ashmadai if they find out about his cult from a previous Streetwise check or from previous experience adventuring in the city. Try to keep the air of mystery, however.

The invitation is clear that this is a formal ball, with a strict dress code required of its attendees, to include a mask. The events include dancing, dining, and music and will begin at nine in the evening and end with an unmasking at the stroke of midnight. Weapons are prohibited and all but ceremonial armor is frowned upon.

With a Slight of Hand check a clever PC should be able to conceal a small weapon or magic implement in their clothing. Since there's no rush allow the PCs to take 10 if they wish. The hidden items can be spotted with an opposed Perception check, though once past the coat check few people will be actively looking for arms. Female characters might be able to get away with slightly larger items if they come dressed in voluminous formal party gowns (many of the other noble women will certainly be dressed this way), but you should encourage the PCs to be creative.

Other PC equipment that has to be worn (like neck slot items and rings to name a few) may be allowed if it's appropriate for use with formal wear. If, for instance, a player's magical bracers don't appear to be anything more than worn leather bands then a DM should call them too informal for the ball, but if these same bracers were describable as ornate with intricate filigree and special oils, then a player could argue for keeping the bracers while at the masquerade.

PROFILE, REOLEPLAYING, & TIMEKEEPING
The events of the masquerade ball are a grand stage for the players to show off their roleplaying muscles. Despite the dancing and the music, the ball is primary a social function and just as the PCs are likely to jockey for attention, so too are the other attendees. A measure of a character's social influence at the ball is their Profile. Higher Profile characters are the center of the social scene, while lower Profile characters are gossiped about and shunned. The nobles of the ball are a fickle bunch, however, and one's Profile can change from moment to moment.

• A PC's Profile is equal to his Charisma modifier + bonuses.

• If a PC is from or has spent a significant amount of the last few years around Neverwinter, increase his profile by +1.
• If he's a foreigner decrease it by -1.
• Any PCs that are nobles or otherwise influential in high society, increase their Profile by an additional +1.
  
• Feel free to give PCs an additional +1 or -1 to their Profile if they?re particularly famous or infamous in the city respectively.
• Members of monstrous races such as orcs, goblinoids, kobolds, etc. suffer a -1 penalty.
• Though usually shunned, a tiefling PC gains a +1 bonus to his Profile because of the mystery he supposedly brings to Mordai's party.
• A PC with a particularly flamboyant mask or formal attire increases their Profile by +1
• A PC found with a weapon or implement takes -1 to their Profile. It looks bad and the security confiscates the item.
  

The PCs are on a ticking clock at the party and there's only so much time to get any business done. However, time should be kept very loosely. The party lasts 3 hours and is tracked in "half hour" increments (there are 6 of them total). Try not to get too bogged down with these measurements. Exactly how long these "half hour" increments last in real world time is really up to you and the needs of your group. Once each player in your group has had ample spotlight doing a little roleplaying and/or gotten to roll a few dice, mark down on your notes that a "half hour" has passed at the ball and don't sweat it. If your group is having fun with crafting a dancing scene or chatting up a partygoer or sneaking around the manor, then give them some time to play before you mark down your half hour. If a player is involved in a particularly involved situation, let them know the action takes two half hours. When you mark down half hour give each PC the following?

• If a PC spent a significant portion of his time in and around the other masquerade guests during the last ?half hour? then automatically increase his profile by +1. If he was a wallflower or was not seen mingling (maybe because he's elsewhere in the manor), automatically decrease his Profile by -1
• Once during a half hour if a PC makes a social gaffe (such as a failed skill check), further decrease his Profile by -1 or if the PC makes a good showing of himself increase his Profile by +1 (such as a successful skill check). A quick thinking PC might be able to smooth over a gaffe with an adequate enough response and thus not have any net change to his Profile.
  

The point is to allow the players free reign (and a certain amount of editorial license) to write the scene while you constantly throw little events at them to react to in character. Take cues from the people and places described below and certainly feel free to make up any of your own. A tense social interaction with a rival from earlier in your Neverwinter campaign is a great example of this.

Whatever you do, allow the PCs to add their total Profile to any checks they make that might remotely affect their social situation. Bluff, Diplomacy, and Intimidate checks are prime candidates. But so are Acrobatics checks to dance. A PC may step onto the bandstand and join the musicians in a waltz or stand up on a chair and call a line dance or impress a group of bored nobles with the story about the time he was neck deep in carrion crawlers with nothing but a penknife and a shoehorn (using an Endurance check to show off that impressive scar from the ordeal). The skill needed is whatever you and the player agree on with a Medium, or Hard DC set by you based on your assessment of the PC's ability to pull off whatever social stunt his player is describing. The PC's Profile bonus should allow your group to use untrained skills with increasingly more confidence as the night goes on.

Many uses of Profile might not even involve dice if your group is composed of a group of method actors. Compare the PC's Profile to the NPC's Profile when determining just how far a roleplay description really goes--and don't forget to give your player some credit if they come up with particularly clever things.

If things get stale, throw a monkey wrench (see below) into the social situation just to mix things up. Just allow the PCs an opportunity to build their Profile (and "play the (social) system" so to speak) high enough they can earn the attention of (or make fools of themselves in front of) whichever person they came to the masquerade seeking to do business with. Use that NPC's Profile as a minimum that a PC has to himself meet before socially engaging with that NPC.

• Unless stated otherwise, any given noble's total Profile is +3 to +6. As experienced socialites their Profiles do not have any net change throughout the course of the masquerade.

Whatever you do, don't let a PC get away without describing in vivid detail that awesome thing they did during the half hour.

AREAS OF INTEREST (people in those areas)
Vellgard Manor

MONKEY WRENCHES
(rumors and events)

MIDNIGHT AND BEYOND

[tinyish]

I've split this into two posts worth. Sorry if I got carried away with the length. Its only about 12 rooms.

The Haunted House

The adventuring party (and likely many other parties) was tasked with hunting down a fugitive who has stolen a valuable item (a jeweled royal crown or insert your adventure hook item here) and is fleeing through the countryside. The party has caught his trail and has nearly caught up with the fugitive, who is a mere hundred yards ahead of the party who may be chasing him on foot or on horseback, when he ducks inside a small door in an odd building in a field just off the road. The building is round and steeply sloped with a pointed top. It is entirely covered dirt-covered reddish wooden shingles all the way to the ground. Fresh dirt is piled around the building, as if it had just recently pushed its way to the surface. The small door that the fugitive escaped through remains open.

If the party backtracks to ask the local population about this odd building they may find that it is a legend in these parts that this building rises from its grave on harvest full moon nights to lure in the unwary. Some say that a vampire controls it and collects people to feed on. Other people think that the building itself is the hunter. One person suggests that the building is actually just a mimic that looks like a building and going through that small door is like climbing into its belly. Nobody is sure why it exists; though people have reported seeing it, nobody alive today who has ever gone inside has ever come out. Corril, the village baker claims that their great grandfather came out alive and came back to tell him about it once when he was a child, but was never seen again after that. The baker's claims are met with disbelief by the other townsfolk. Some people deny its existence altogether or claim that the building is a mirage or a ghost.

Tower room:
"Looking through the trap door you can see that this door looks down from the roof of a very tall round room. It is 20 feet from this door to the floor below. Moonlight spills in through the window and silky curtains wave in a gentle breeze. The room is finely furnished and appears to be a child's room; it is painted in pastels. There is an open toy box and a well kept few toys scattered around the floor. The sharp smell of cloves wafts up from the room. A little girl sleeps soundly in her bed and a single candlestick still burns on the bedside table. Directly below the door there is a trail of fresh blood that leads from the center of the room to the one door from the room which remains ajar."

The PCs may lower a rope and climb down into the room. Upon touching the floor of the room the illusion that the room is finely furnished is broken. This is revealed to anyone touching the floor: "The room may have been once finely furnished, but it now lies in ruins. The toys on the floor are broken and tattered. The window coverings are in tatters and reveal that the dirt outside the window is tightly packed against the glass. With no moonlight, the room is much darker, yet the single candlestick still burns on the bedside table. The smell of cloves is replaced by the smell of flesh rotting in stagnant air. There are splatters of blood on the wall all the way around. The girl who slept soundly on her bed is actually a fairly well decomposed corpse who is missing eyes or eyelids, but still wears the very tattered and dirty bedclothes. Her fingernails have grown into long sharp claws."

The zombie girl rises and attacks the first adventurer who touches the floor. Anyone who still hasn't touched the floor may (or may not, at the DM's discretion) see the reaction of their party members and may see the little girl stand up, but they will still see the rest of the room as being finely furnished and will not see the little girl attack. The candlestick here is an ever burning flame.

The little girl zombie is a medium difficulty solo encounter. She can take much more damage than a normal zombie and attacks with claws but doesn't hit much harder than normal. She may have the ability to trip an adventurer who she hits with a melee attack. If a tripped opponent remains down during her next round she will attempt to bite the opponent's face or neck.

Any attempt to climb up and out of this room is met with an illusion of the room stretching longer and longer. A PC who is affected by this illusion will climb the rope think he is climbing but his hands will slip down the rope. A PC looking down on an affected climbing character will see them climbing the rope without making progress and never getting more than 10 feet above the floor. If a PC uses levitation or flight or disbelieves the illusion then the doorway will animate and snap shut with a growl, severing any rope or chain that passes through it. The door will not re-open (as if magically locked), but is otherwise a simple wooden door and may be broken from either side. Climbing the walls is similarly impossible while affected by the illusion. If all player characters are inside the room then the door will automatically close.

The doorway out of the tower room leads to a spiral staircase leading down to the east side of the main entryway. The trail of fresh blood continues down the stairs.

If you like this adventure so far and want to play this as a PC with your own gaming group, now would be a great time to stop reading and suggest the adventure to your DM.

Main Entryway:
"The main hall is fairly large, about 30 by 30 feet and the 10-foot vaulted ceiling is crisscrossed with heavy wooden arches. The Iron-bound front door here is exceptionally large in every way, making you feel oddly small. The front door is flanked by two large windows which look out on a grassy field. There is a dark hallway leading to the West, a spiral stairway to the East leading up to the little girl's room, and a heavy looking ornate wooden door to the North. There are two couches here facing each other. The trail of fresh blood that continues down the stairs runs under the door to the North. You think you can barely make out some scratching noise behind the door. Before you can even figure out whether any of your friends have heard the noise, the heavy ornate door swings silently open. Beyond the door is magically dark and you can make out wisps of dark fog that flow out of the unknown space beyond. Almost at once the sound of tiny scratching footsteps is clearly audible. They accelerate to a run and a tiny skeletal humanoid comes running out of the darkness."

As with every window in this house, if the glass in the main room is broken then anything that appeared in the window is revealed to be an illusion and there was actually just dirt packed against the glass. If the characters attempt to break through a wall they will hear a loud growling sound coming from all around. If the characters are inside the house and manage to break through a wall or what appears to be an exterior door they will find that they are now underground and the dirt is packed hard just beyond the wall or door. The doorway or opening they created sprouts sharp teeth and bites at the adventurers. If they attempt to leave and dig their way out or continue to damage the house then the house comes to life (see below).

The tiny skeleton quickly attacks whoever is closest to the door. This encounter is actually just a single, tiny skeleton with 1 or 2 hit points and should be ridiculously simple to defeat. A character could stomp on it or kick it and it will die. If the characters flee this room then the skeletons will continue to come out of the closet as described and will pursue them throughout the house.

As soon as the tiny skeleton is slain, small skeleton footsteps are heard running and a small skeleton comes out of the closet and attacks the party. Again, this is just a small skeleton and should be a very easy encounter.

As soon as the small skeleton is slain, medium skeleton footsteps are heard running and a medium skeleton comes out of the closet and attacks the party. This is just a normal medium skeleton and should be an easy encounter.

As soon as the medium skeleton is slain, large footsteps are heard, more slowly making their way through the darkness. A skeletal ogre emerges from the darkness and attacks the party. This will be an average or easier encounter since it is still just a single unarmed skeleton.

As soon as the large skeleton is slain, there are a few heavy skeletal footsteps that vibrate the windows of the house. A moment later a huge unarmed skeleton crawls out of the doorway on its hands and knees. Since the huge skeleton is cramped in this space it should be at somewhat of a disadvantage, and may accidentally end up doing some damage to the walls or ceiling of this room. This may be a somewhat difficult encounter.

As soon as the huge skeleton is slain, there is a pause followed by two giant crashing footsteps which shake the foundation of the house. A window or two might break. An easy level appropriate dexterity check should be made in order to keep from falling down. A second later a Gargantuan skeletal arm emerges from the doorway almost up to about the shoulder. It is long enough to reach almost every part of this room. Since the party doesn't need to do enough damage to kill this gargantuan skeleton, and the skeleton can't see the party, this encounter may be even easier than the huge skeleton fight, or it could be harder, depending on how mean the DM wants to be. It will very likely do a lot of damage to this room. Once the bones in the skeletal arm are sufficiently broken it retreats back into the darkness.

There is a pause of several rounds. The door remains ominously open and all is silent. "There comes one more footstep. At first, you think that the house has exploded. The sound is deafening and leaves your ears ringing. The room is sprayed with tiny shards of glass from the large front windows as they are shattered. The foundation is rocked so violently that you're not sure if the ground beneath your feet heaved up and tossed you or just dropped away beneath you, but you land hard and it is difficult to remain standing." The players should make a hard difficulty level-appropriate dex check to remain standing. "A colossal skeletal finger thrusts its way slowly through the door, taking most of the door frame and part of the surrounding wall with it. It extends all the way across the room, tearing up every floorboard along the way. The colossal fingertip barely touches the front door and stops. It stays there, unmoving, but blocking passage between the East and West sides of this room."

This not really an encounter; the players need only do 1 point of damage to the skeletal finger. If they do not do any damage to the skeletal finger, it will simply remain there through the end of the adventure. It is somewhat difficult to climb over the finger unassisted, as it is about 8 feet tall, smooth and round.
If at least one point of damage is dealt to the finger: "The finger descends back into the darkness, taking even more of the doorway with it. It doesn't take a well trained eye to tell that the magical darkness is quickly dissipating. You can barely make out through the fading black fog the image of a colossal skeleton about 200 feet away. The doorway is at his eye level, the pinpoints of red lighting its eyes shine like blazing furnaces. It hauls back its fist and punches at the doorway. In the same instant that you're sure that the fist is going to demolish what is left of this room, the last of the dark fog dissipates with a soft "pop". The hallway beyond the door to the North is untouched."

Northern Hallway:
"This 15-foot wide, 50-foot long hallway is lined with large paintings of richly dressed people. There is a doorway on the West side which opens into the dining room and a second doorway further to the North on the West side which is closed. There is one large wooden door on the East side across from the dining room which is ajar and a smaller closed door further North on the East side across from the other door. There is also an ornate looking door at the Northern end of the hallway. You get the distinct impression that the paintings of the people are watching you somehow, but each time you look them in the eyes you see only a still painting. A lit chandelier near the end of the hallway squeaks as it swings back and forth very noticeably. The trail of fresh blood leads under the North West door."

The North West door leads into the kitchen. The South East door leads into the Torture room. The paintings are non-magical; it is just the party's paranoia. There is no sign at all of what makes the chandelier swing. The Northern door leads to the Master Bedroom. The North East door is a stairway down into the cellar and is locked but can be opened with a very difficult pick lock check or by using the fugitive's steel key.

If the party is entering from the kitchen or dining room and the colossal skeleton has not yet destroyed the dimensional pocket that is linked to the Southern door from here to the Main hall, then also describe that door as an Ornate heavy looking wooden door. If the current skeleton is killed in this hallway then the southern door here will open itself and release the next skeleton in the series. See the description of this encounter under the Main Entryway.

West Hallway:
"The South side of this narrow dark hallway is made up almost entirely of glass, as there are several large windows but they are covered by heavy curtains which only let in slivers of moonlight. Along the North side of the hallway there are two wide doors which lead into what appears to be the dining room. The East end of the hallway opens into the entry hall. At the west end of the hallway is a smaller door." The smaller door leads to the servants' quarters.

As the players make their way down the hall they can hear a tapping on the windows. If they ignore the tapping then it becomes a pounding. If they pull back the curtains then they see a sea of fresh zombies across rolling hills; dead people as far as the eye can see. The front row of zombies is pounding on the glass. The pounding is clearly audible, but the zombies make no other noises.

If a character touches any window then all of the windows in the hall will shatter and the zombies will reach their hands through. As with every window in the house, if the window is broken then the illusion of whatever was seen through the window is gone and there is actually a hard wall of dirt on the other side of the glass. In this case, however, the dirt is there but the zombies' hands and arms are protruding from the wall of dirt. In the 30 foot hallway there are about 200 hands and arms. If the arms are cut off of the wall (damaged) then they will become minion-level monsters and continue to crawl along the floor with their fingertips (move 5-ft/round) and grab at the adventurers. For a smart party this may be an incredibly easy encounter.

If the party has chosen to ignore the zombies and attempt to continue down the hallway either way then the zombies will wait until the first character reaches the destination before all of the windows shatter and the zombie arms will reach out and grab the rest of the party. Thus, if they were coming in from the dining room then they will be grabbed when one person reaches the main entry hall or the door at the end. If they're coming in from the main entry hall then they will wait until the first character reaches the doorway to the dining room. Anyone in the hallway when this happens will be grabbed by many arms (very high escape DC check) and squeezed against the wall (moderate crushing damage). If other characters can come to the rescue then it will be simple to escape. This encounter will still likely be quite easy. After this encounter the hallway and some of the adjoining rooms will likely be littered with humanoid limbs.

Servants Quarters:
"This small room houses a bunk bed and a broken armoire. Two skeletons lie in the two beds. They still remain dressed as they were in life, in simple servants' uniforms and tucked into their bed as if they'd died in their sleep." These are not undead. There is nothing of interest in the armoire.

[tinyish]

The Haunted House (Continued from above.)

Dining room:
"This large dining room is richly furnished. Large woven tapestries adorn the walls. There are large windows on the West wall and are covered by silky curtains, but no moonlight shines in from this side of the house. A giant table takes up most of the room, leaving only a narrow aisle around the edge of the room. It is surrounded by numerous intricately carved chairs. Each of the thirty or so place settings is set with fine silverware adorned with star rubies, pearlescent plates. A line of ten silver 3-candle candelabras runs down the center of the table. A thick plush carpet covers almost the entire floor. There is a closed door to the North, and a doorway leading into a hallway on the East wall. On the South side two doorways lead to a hallway that passes by the dining room and large windows with heavy curtains are visible through the doorways. The hundreds of candles on the giant chandelier and each of the candelabras light themselves as you step into the room."

Literally everything in this room is animated and it will all come to life. The timing of each is up to the DM; maybe the table will only come to life after the characters are already in the room fighting candelabras and chairs. The table will slam against the walls and likely crush the tops of the chairs. The chairs will walk to the party and kick them and slam into them. The plates and silverware throw themselves at the party. The silverware will twist to stab at anyone who picks it up. The curtains will twist into fingers and hands and grab at the characters to lift them off the ground. The rug will kick up to throw the characters off balance. The chandelier's hundreds of burning candles explode from it, showering the room with fire. The candelabras will bounce or crawl off the table and attempt to set the characters on fire.

Navigating through this room may be a challenge, especially with the huge table trying to injure anyone. If someone gets on top of the table it will attempt to buck them off but is not terribly good at it. If someone gets underneath the table then the table will attempt to stomp on them, which will hurt a lot, but there are large areas that the table cannot reach with its legs. The plates and silverware will each only throw themselves once, but they will not throw themselves all at once. The chairs and candelabras that are not crushed by the table will follow the party out of the room.

The table has hardness of wood and is also even more resistant to piercing damage. It may be as difficult to kill as the DM chooses; even continuing to attack the adventurers after being set on fire and/or cut in half, but it should not be able to exit the dining room.

Kitchen:
"What you can see of the 20-by-20-foot kitchen is very clean aside from a trail of fresh blood that leads from the western door to the lifeless body of the fugitive that the party was chasing. He grasps an intricate steel key in his hand. There is a single knife stuck in a large round table and the only light in this room comes from a single candle lit in a chandelier above the table which seems to only cast light on the table below. There is a double-wide door on the Northern wall of this room, a single door on the Southern wall and another door on the Western wall. There are windows on the Eastern wall but the moonlight doesn?t shine through them on this side of the house. You hear some pots rattling quietly on the shelves on the other side of the room."

A closer inspection of the fugitive's body indicates that he was bitten on the neck. His leg was broken in his fall in the tower room. The body is cold; it looks like he has been here for some time. Pots rattle occasionally from an unknown force but become still when any character approaches. There is nothing that can be found that is doing this. The kitchen knife is ordinary. The single candle is an ever-burning flame and it just so happens that the shape of the chandelier allows the light to be cast so specifically on the table. The door to the North leads to the Zombie room. The door to the East leads to the Northern Hallway and the door to the South leads to the dining room.

Torture room:
"The door to this room lies slightly ajar. The room is 20 feet square. Four-pairs of manacles on 15-foot-long chains are attached to the Southern wall. Scratches up to an inch deep crisscross the entire floor which is stained dark brown by an untold amount of dried blood. There are also scratch marks on some of the walls. Broken arrows litter the corners of the room. Everything here is covered in some amount of long-dried blood including sprays and splatters on the ceiling. Along the far wall is a vast array of hundreds of implements of torture: knives, thumb screws, and dozens more you can't even name. They are spread out on what you first assumed was a shelf, but after a mere moment you realize that no shelf exists here and the implements are simply levitating."

When the first adventurer steps foot in the room the implements form a swarm and attack the character. Also the door slams itself shut behind the first adventurer. The door can be caught by a level-appropriate high dexterity check by anyone nearby, or unlocked by an easy lock picking check, forced open by a level-appropriate high strength check or beaten down; it is made of partially rotted wood and should not take the party more than two rounds to destroy it. Treat this medium difficulty solo encounter as a swarm, except that it has a hardness rating and is an evil-aligned construct. Add level-appropriate damage reduction as appropriate, bypassed only by Good-aligned or adamantine weapons. Good-aligned AND adamantine weapons will have their crit range doubled against this otherwise un-crittable monster. It is immune to non-magical fire. The monster will not attempt to pursue the party more than 30 feet from the doorway of this room.

Zombie room:
"Behind the heavy steel door lies a room that is packed with dead bodies standing shoulder to shoulder. The stench of rotting flesh is of a power that few of you have ever experienced. As the door swings open several bodies tumble out only to be buried in a wave of more bodies that fall over on top of them. Almost at once the bodies begin to stir and attempt to stand from the pile."

Upon opening this door any characters who can smell must make a fortitude check or be sickened until they leave the vicinity of this doorway (50 feet). This room can release up to 100 zombies. It should be enough that the players know that they need to flee, but can be tapered off if the players are having problems. The rate the zombies emerge should initially be large, but is at the DM's discretion. The encounter will likely be difficult, but can be stopped if the closet is successfully closed with a DC20 strength check.

Master Bedroom:
"The master bedroom, a 20 by 40 foot room, is illuminated by a silent fire in a hearth in the far corner and by the moonlight that slips past the purple silk curtains that cover three high windows. The rest of the room is richly furnished with deep purple drapes and sheets on a high four-posted bed. Even the floor is covered in a thick, plush carpet. A man sits in a high backed chair near the fire. His skin is an ashen grey and his eyes are unnaturally dark. His friendly smile allows fangs to slip past his lips. He speaks to you in a very calming voice at once when you enter the room: 'Please come in friends and have a seat. I very much want to talk to you, but you would do well to stay away from me. I can smell your blood from here.'"

This human vampire is named Cadema the Baker. He has not fed in some time and he's sure that the mere smell of their blood would send him into a frenzy. He says that he used to be a baker by trade until he became a vampire a few years ago and recently discovered this house and decided that it would be a good place to hide out, being that it is underground and only surfaces at night. He found out that if you spend more than the evening in the house then you will exit an entire year later. About a thirty nights ago he went to visit his great grandson, Corril, who also aspired to be a baker like him and his son and his grandson. He wishes that he could give the boy a cookbook of recipes that had belonged to their family for four generations before him, and claims that there are such secrets in it that would bring the mouths of kings from across the mountains to his father's door. He has no more use for the book, as even the sweetest of delights taste as ash in his mouth. After giving the book to the players he says that he is without his one true love of sweet food, and no will to feed on people and cause them any more pain. He asks that they do him the favor of killing him. He warns that others have tried, but every time he loses control at the smell of their blood and goes into a blood rage and kills those who would end his suffering. If the party agrees to try to kill him then he asks the party's forgiveness for any pain that he will cause them and then signals that he is ready. The party may take as long as they wish to prepare for this fight, and Cadema will even assist them in vampiric lore checks, though he knows little about other vampires. Even if the party chooses to pass on this encounter they may also choose to take or leave the cookbook.

The vampire will not attack back or dodge or defend himself for the first round. On the second round he loses his self control and begins to fight back. Even with the head start this should be a fairly hard solo encounter. When defeated he likely reverts to gaseous form and escapes through cracks in the floorboard and is not seen again. There is no sign of his coffin within the house. A detect undead spell may reveal the vampire resting in his coffin which is about 10 feet behind one of the walls. As with all walls in the house, if the characters attempt to break through the wall and dig through the dirt then they will hear a loud growling from all around. If they attempt to dig toward the vampire then the hole in the wall will animate, grow sharp teeth and bite at the adventurers. If they continue to damage the house then the house comes to life (see below).

Cellar:
"At the bottom of the stairs is a very large unlit room with a dirt floor and cobblestone walls. Old gravestones are packed closely together in narrow rows. Despite being sheltered underground the gravestones appear to have a great deal of weathering, making the ancient letters almost unreadable, and they are in a language that you've never seen before. In the center of the graveyard is a pedestal with a large red crystal; its dull glow is the only light here and it casts just enough light to see that there are five [or insert party size] empty graves around the pedestal."

Characters who get close can hear the faint but incessant screams of hundreds of beings from within the crystal and feel a pulse of sickening dark energy like a heartbeat. The crystal is fastened securely in place. If the party makes sufficient attempts to remove or damage the crystal then a loud, low growling is heard from all around. If they continue to attempt to remove or damage the crystal then the house comes to life. No bodies will be found if the players attempt to dig up graves. Digging in the floor here is permissible.

The House Comes to Life:
"The house shudders and dirt and dust falls from rafters as the walls themselves twist around and loud cracks can be heard as the beams and studs in the walls break themselves. Splinters of wood break through the plaster of the walls and twist themselves around to stab at you. Somewhere in the house you hear a crashing sound as an entire room caves in. The dirt leaking from the ceiling above you is quickly becoming worse."

Any player character within 5 feet of any wall will be attacked. These splinters are minion-level monsters and can each be killed with a single hit but there are many of them and they are pretty much everywhere.

If the players never approach the crystal or damage the house, the DM should use his discretion to trigger this event whenever he feels the players have completed the adventure; no part of the adventure is mandatory except for this event.

After a moderate amount of damage is done to the house the house stops attacking and begins to collapse more quickly. At the DM's discretion, any room may be already caved in.

One way or another every character will be buried.
(Option 1): If the players have been running from one room to the next, the rooms should collapse one at a time, possibly burying the party members one or more at a time. There might even be a short pause before the last adventurer is buried; leaving him to believe that he alone will survive. Then the room he is in also collapses.
(Option 2): The floor gives way beneath the party and each falls neatly into one of the graves in the basement (assuming the players have exited the basement).

Finale:
"The rest of the house shatters and quickly gives way to a flood of soft dirt which falls and fills all spaces, burying everything and everyone. You feel the dirt pressing on you, the weight growing to what feels like you're being crushed. There is no air here; you cannot breathe. You cannot move. You are enveloped in complete darkness and after a moment when the when the house has finished collapsing, everything is still and silent. You have just been buried alive. You feel yourself start to lose consciousness but instead you suddenly snap awake. You are freed from your earthly cocoon and find yourself lying on your back looking up at a moonlit sky full of stars. You are covered in loose, moist dirt. You're in a field, just off of the road and around you lie your party and the fugitive; his eyes wide but devoid of life and his illicit package lies on the ground, still clutched tightly in his grasp. Fifty feet away there is an odd pointy building in the field just off the road with a small door in the side. The dark shingles glisten in the moonlight as if coated by a layer of fresh and flowing blood. You take a moment to wipe some dirt from your eyelashes and when you open your eyes again the building is gone; replaced by a simple outhouse made of reddish wood. Come to think of it, you really have to go..."

If any or all party members have died during this adventure other than being buried alive, they will also awaken here in the field covered in dirt at the same time as the rest of the party. Attempted resurrections do not work while inside this house, as the character isn't actually dead.

The party can rest anywhere in the house without being harassed by wandering encounters, but if they spend more than 8 hours in this house then when they emerge it will be on a harvest full moon one year later.

Epilogue:
The party may take the vampire's cookbook back to Corril the baker at the nearby village and he may offer to reward them with some magical food if they'll come back when he has mastered the recipes in the book. (Magical bonuses are at the discretion of your DM.) Corril may become a worthwhile contact in this tiny town. As he will gain great wealth over time by using the recipes in this book, he will always be glad to help out the party. Additional adventures may follow while attempting to gather rare ingredients for Corril.

The party may have also retrieved the fugitive's stolen item and turn it in. The reward should be an appropriate treasure for all encounters defeated. Optionally, no treasure can actually be removed from the house.

[wraithshadow13]

It's a Storm ridden night, the rain and the wind making it impossible to start a campfire, even in the dense woods of this forest, but you're in luck. Ahead in the distance there is a light shining through, an inn/hunting lodge. Once inside your party makes itself comfortable joining a group by the fire. Of the hunters and adventurers gather for the night there is an awe and silence to the group as they pass stories around, tales of adventure and glory, some of mystery and intrigue when a lone battle worn rogue begins his tale.


The story starts of a headstrong young drow named Arcanous (pronounced Are-K-Noose), gifted in the ways of necromancy. He wanted but two things in life: power and wealth. As he would gain one, the other would follow, no sacrifice would be too big or too small to achieve his goals. Finally after years of work he'd gained the notice of Lolth herself. It was said that she gave him a task and sent him forth with the promise of knowledge of a ritual to increase his power one hundred fold upon his success. To this day know one knows of his fate, whether he'd failed or succeeded but what was known was before he'd taken to his task he'd hidden all of his riches, a vast wealth even today, and hidden it deep in a cave with in a dark forest to be protected by the bodies of those he crushed on his rise to power. A cave which the rogue had recently discovered.


Before he was able to hire a party from nearby Neverwinter though he was ambushed by a group of bandits who had taken all he had, including the journal which contained the path to the cave. Possibly the only reason he'd been alive still was a passing bard had brought him to this lodge where he was able to recover. Whether it be justice, the call of adventure or the search of fortune, your party steps forward to assist.

The terrain is dense forest with hard wind and rainmaking visibility difficult. At one point you're attacked by a pack of wolves. A standard encounter as you probably just wandered into their territory on your journey. The size of the pack is dependent of the size of the group to add difficulty as they are just standard wolves. A second encounter is of a small group of bandits, no doubt part of the clan that ambushed your guide. Dressed head to toe in dark greens and browns they can easily hide in the forest day or night making it easy to ambush weary travelers. Two archers that attack from a far as cover a thief with daggers, a fighter with an ax, one with sword, and a monk.


It's through this encounter that you learn the where about of the bandit camp. Entering it seems to be shut down for the night, so stealth is an option instead of combat. Set up as a shanty town of sorts it's mostly wagons instead of tents, all shut tight to wait out the storm. There are a few traps hidden through out the camp, any of which could alert the bandits if triggered. The Loot is stored in the bigger wagon along with the Bandit leader, depending on the route taken he's either awake from the alarm, or asleep from the stealth. Stealth how ever fails as the rogue botches his revenge leading to an early ?boss fight?.


Having dispatched the Bandit leader (and gained some loot in the process) you're soon at the mouth of the cave, almost a welcomed site as it's free of the poor weather outside. Occasionally your party stumbles across a random wolf or bandit enemy (no doubt hiding from the storm) as you venture into the cave, though the deeper you go the less you see of normal enemies and more spiders and their webs, both becoming larger the further in you go. The webs eventually encompassing all but a narrow path on the floor riddled with web traps, some holding you in place, others calling in a small group of spiders to attack along with the irregular appearance of a corpse or two which also become more common as you traverse the cave. Some are bandits that ventured too deep while others look like they might have been towns people from Neverwinter that got lost on the woods. The more powerful of the undead are much older and do far gone to see what they once might have been.


Fighting your way through you come a cross a large chamber in the cave with three pathways. The middle leading to another chamber blocked by a large ornate door, almost as if someone had built a castle out of the cave itself. Another leads to the hatchery, a room full of dozens of eggs, large and pulsing ready to hatch eggs, the other is full of the bodies, possibly a feeding chamber as many are still trapped in the webs and look quite fresh. Both of which need to be searched as a means of opening the great door. The eggs act as traps, unleashing small spiders when triggered, some of which will try to attach to the back of your neck digging into the skin causing random effects like poison or confusion, some even causing party members to attack others for a short time. Defeating or evading the traps here you find a large key matching the decorations of the door, clearly designed in tribute to Lolth. The other room acts as a loot chamber letting you find small items to heal or rearm yourself from the items once owned by the trapped. On one of the skeletons you find in the room is a large handle which could be attached to the door. Upon picking it up the room shakes slightly as the small spiders (like from the hatchery) begin swarming the room attaching to the bodies, seemingly reanimating them to attack.


Fending off both the spiders and the undead you finally reach the last room and open the great doors. You're nearly blinded as all the treasure glistens in the light of the room. The room is silent except for the sound of dripping water as well as the shuffling sound of some small animals, likely a few rats or spiders afraid to come out. Your party as well as the guide revels in the victory and riches blindly as you fail to realize the doors have closed behind you. Around the walls of the room there are large piles here and there, some gold, some jewels, things woven beautifully of 'unknown' silk, some ancient and arcane scrolls of untold knowledge. There are even several suits of full armor shining as if freshly polished, some having an almost mystic aura to them. In the center of the room there is a large platform surrounded by a large pit of unknown depth. At the center of this platform is a large chest adorned in a similar fashion of the key and doors, clearly the centerpiece of this collected wealth. As your party approaches the small bridge to reach it you hear a disembodied voice echoing ominously from the very walls of the cavern. ?While my pets keep me well fed, it's been ever so long since I've been able to hunt for myself......?


Following the voice is a maniacal laughter as a large Drider drops from the cave ceiling standing over the chest. The former Drow turned monster has long white, almost web like hair, a neatly kept goatee and looks as if he'd once been a wise and knowledgeable elder, with slight bags under his normal red eyes although forehead held several smaller eyes. His body turning from normal Drow skin to a chitinous armor plating as it furthered down his torso leading into a monstrous spider frame. Two arms and eight legs he begins attacking switching between arcane blasts from his hands to slashing strikes with his forelegs to even trying to trap your party with webbing. At every quarter of his life taken he will retreat to the caverns ceiling hiding among the stalactites and darkness. He summons a group of undead and small hatchery spiders to attack as he drops web traps on the floor to avoid. Once each wave is defeated he will drop back down attacking the group. Once he is down three quarters of his life he will shift forms from a drider to a giant spider, losing his magic attacks for more feral spider like moves. In his final summon of the spiders/undead instead of hiding in the ceiling he climbs into the pit, periodically reaching out and swiping at adventurers or spitting poison but leaving him vulnerable to attacks. Once the party has taken the last of his health the Giant Spider staggers from on side to the other then back again, the last few steps end over the pit causing him to fall into it's unknown depths leaving the Ornate chest in the center ready for the taking. Congratulations to you and your party as they collect their loot and rewards and defeating the Drider Arcanous.


As you exit the cave, the storm has passed and it is safe for your company to travel on. The rogue asks if you're sure you don't want to return to the inn, but you decline and head your separate ways. It's a shame that with all your celebrating no one noticed the rogue's bags were full of eggs and not gold, or that the breeze blowing through his long dark hair revealed something dug into the back of his neck as he walked back to the inn whistling an eerie tune.

[remedialhappyman]

This is an adventure using the Dungeons and Dragons 3.5 or Pathfinder ruleset created with the Pathfinder ruleset in mind. This is an adventure for 4-5, 10th-11th level PC's inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. This adventure while in the spirit of Halloween has been hand crafted tediously for ultimate fun at the table and is not necessarily designed with horror in mind. However feel free to adapt the characters or settings for whatever atmosphere you want to project at your table.

A creation by the mind of the Insane Mad Dungeon Master Aaron.
Maps and Drawings made by Aaron Andersen.
All quotes are either direct quotes or plays upon Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.

Background:
The Village of Debin's Edge lies just outside the northern boundaries of Neverwinter Forest and is a reclusive home for the families that have lived there for many generations since its founding by the pioneer Debin Rompenstein. Rumors have begun to spread of missing persons and strange lightning storms coming from the Rompenstein estate which can be picked up at any inn of any of the surrounding villages or even the village or Debin's Edge itself. If the players chose to follow the lead they can find the whereabouts of the village by,
A) Getting directions from a friendly NPC that would know the surrounding area.
B) Buying the information for around 5-10 gold.
C) Following the lightning storms that should start appearing in the distance if they leave their current town in a different direction than they came.
If your players don't bite you can try enticing them with the fact that the current lord of the Rompenstein estate is a very talented construct/magical item creator and an entrepreneur of adventure's who wish to pawn off artifacts and other extraordinary goods.
In any case whenever they arrive at the village advance to
Part 1. Arrival at Diben's Edge.


The players arrive at the outskirts of Dibin's Edge. The village has no walls and from the looks of it no guards patrolling the entrances to and from the village. When the players get close enough to hear have them make a DC 15 Perception Check to hear the crowd gathered in the village center. (If the PC's advance at night have the mob carrying a variety of lit torches.)

From somewhere within the crowd you hear the shout of a desperate young man.

"They've gone too far this time governor!"
Cries of agreement stagger with greater frequency into an inane rabble. Silence follows and a high pitched voice echoes forth.

"The children are of my utmost concern! However, with the violence of this storm can you justify me asking you to risk your lives looking for the children at the manner?"
The silence continues and a general air of reluctance stagnates in the crowd.

"Can't professor Rompenstein help us?" Shouts an older woman from within the crowd.

"Jona we have already sent some of the militia to get help from Professor Rompenstein and none of them have returned. How can I send more of my people forward if I can't understand the situation surrounding the manner?"

If the players haven't intervened by now the crowd disperses into unhappy weeping and hopeless regret. With only the mayor and his advisers standing present.

Mayor Elfort Conny is a middle aged male Halfing with a plump build and un-groomed features. He cannot pay any gold for the investigation of the missing children but he does possess a heirloom that can lead to (the next player adventure insert mcguffin here). All he knows is that the kids went to explore the Rompenstein Estate, a large manor that sits atop an eerie outcrop overlooking the city. Yesterday Professor Rompenstein's assistant Megor made his weekly carriage ride to the city to stock on supplies for the manor. The mayor notes that Megor pays far above average prices on Rompensteins behalf with well-wishing's for the village with every departure. The village itself has not seen Professor Rompenstein for some time however.

Whether they decide to help the village or investigate the manor on their own the manor itself is very easy to find. All the players have to do is follow the road leading out of the village, information that any NPC living in Diben's Edge can provide. No matter how they get to the manor they advance to Part 2.

Part 2. The Rompenstein Estate.

A heavy darkness surrounds the Rompenstein Estate as rain pours and lightning roars white slashes across the sky. At the end of the rising road towards the estate an Iron gate bars the way. As you get closer you see what appears to be a face forged across the thick iron bars. A deep creaky voice rattles across the bars.

"WHO GOES THERE?"

As you assume the role of Rusty the old gatekeeper of the Rompenstein estate it is important to note that his eyesight and hearing aren't as barring as they used to be. It would be easy for a PC of at least decent ability to bluff his way past the gate especially if he plays along with the Rusty's painfully droning stories. Also make sure that the players remember that they are in the middle of a rain and lightning storm.

If the players try to force their way past Rusty or bypass him through means like flight he gets very angry and draws lightning towards himself. Once per a turn he can shoot a lightning bolt that deals 4d6 electric damage and arcs to 2 additional targets dropping 1d6 damage each time for a total of (4d6+3d6+2d6 damage) the bolt has a range of 120ft and arcs 40ft each time.
Rusty has 120hp and a hardness of 10 (equivalent to 4 bars breaking)
No matter how they get passed, Rusty is a CR8 encounter.

As they advance towards the manor they are greeted by an Owlbear with a top-hat and an umbrella which a DC15 Knowledge Local reveals to be Mr. Megor.

"Welllrlrrlrlrlecome thoo the Rllrlrlrrlompenstein estate. I trllrluhst Ywho will want to see my master?"


#1 Rompensteins Bedroom
Rompensteins bedroom is a luxurious room filled with ornate furnature and plenty of silk sheets and silverworks strewn about. All of the pictures that litter the dressers and the mirror in the corner have the glass broken, the pictures are missing. If the PC's decide to loot the room there is about 500gp worth of silver throughout it.

#2-5 Guest Rooms
These are all well decorated rooms that appear to have not been used in some time. Though they are well kept as Megor has kept the cobwebs off the ceiling and the dust off the dressers so to speak. Feel free to change the colors of the sheets and such, though I prefer them uniform as it suits professor rompenstein better.

#6 The Washroom
Like Rompensteins room the mirrors have been shattered but everything else remains immaculate.

#7 The Study
This room is locked with a steel masterwork lock DC35. If the room is forced open the PC's can find notes and schematics thrown around the room and pinned to every section of the walls detailing the creation of some type of machine codenamed
Project T.W.R.E.C.K.S.

(Don't show them the stat block obviously)



They can also find the notes detailing an entrance to the laboratory behind a shelf in the dining room with a plaque above it.

#8 The Dining Room
A DC 25 sense motive reveals that Megor knows the whereabouts of the children but will never disclose the answer. If the PC's don't chose to discern his sincerity continue to the next encounter which is Megor inviting them in for dinner.
The dinner table is a vast expanse of expertly cooked pork, salad and fresh produce and drinks with rufflings of owlbear feathers mixed here and there.
If the players inquire about Professor Rompenstein you can drop these quotes throughout the conversation. (Remember to stay in character with the voice that sounds like the tootsy pop owl).
"He has love in him unlike any person I have ever met and rage unlike any other as well. If he does not satisfy one he tends to satisfy the other."
"He had an accident a while ago and lost the majority of his flesh to this accursed storm. It was not the burns that brought sorrow upon him but the loss of his nature. He told me. "Nothing is so painful to the human mind as great and sudden change"."
"When falsehood can look so like the truth how can a human assure himself of greater happiness?"
There is also a plaque upon the wall that bears in chiseled script
"Thus strangely are our souls constructed, and by slight ligaments are we bound to prosperity and ruin."
And so advances the third and final part of the adventure.

Part 3. Things that go Romp in the Night.
Later into the night if they are either invited to sleep over to pass the storm or the dinner takes more time than expected (longer than 20 minutes) the players are shook by a massive rumbling from the other side of the house. Professor Rompenstein has completed the T-WRECKS a massive Iron Golem that he has bound his soul to as his phylactery. If the players head to the source of the sound they find his laboratory filled with high level potions and scrolls with the drained bodies of the children and adults sent to find them. Written in blood on the wall is "IF I CAN NO LONGER INSPIRE LOVE I WILL INSPIRE FEAR!". Below the writing is a horribly burned man with a face covered in agony holding a journal and the body of a young boy from the village.
The Journal is mostly filled with pages that have been covered over with ink except for one which is dated with the sessions current date (fill-able if you print out the handout)



The players can easily track the Professor as he heads towards the town. If you feel like you can roleplay the professor well enough for a diplomacy conclusion then do so if the players want to. Otherwise he only seeks to rampage towards the village and enact revenge on the citizens that live there. Regardless of how they stop Professor Rompenstein they are successful if the village survives and fail in tragedy if he gets to the village and ruins it by destroying the buildings and slaughtering the inhabitants.

The distance is as long as you need it to be to ensure they have several rounds to try and stop Rompenstein bound to the T-Wrecks.

Edit: for some reason adding the images using the image command posted them as links I hope they still count even though they aren't technically in the post. All of the images were made by me personally and not used for anything else other than this contest.

[jadescimitar]

(Continued from...)

[ooc/ I do not claim any ownership of the pictures included in the story. They are merely added to enhance the enjoyment of readers of the story and can be taken out if need be save the riddle scroll which is essential to the story and my creation /ooc]

Moriera leaned her head and back up against the massive tree trunk as she sat in a dark hollow of exposed roots flowing out of an ancient oak tree. The outside world bathed in the mid-day sun was no place for a shade but Moriera felt an iota of comfort under the thick and daunting canopy of intertwined leaves and branches that made up the Neverwinter Woods where there were shadows a plenty. She clutched her beloved shortbow close to her chest and closed her eyes as she tried to get even the smallest bit of rest but the maelstrom of images whirling in her mind prevented this.

[...]

After waking up from the drow sleep poison, she could have immediately returned to Mordekai who was probably still licking his wounds well after the sounds of battle had long since died down. However, try as she did, she could not find the will to return to the dark and brutal lifestyle she had been living for the last 30+ years. Not to mention, she would probably be taking the brunt of Mordekai's rage and frustration for her catastrophic failure as a "sentry" for the camp. No, she was done with all that which left the unanswered question floating in her head. [What to do now going foward?] she asked herself the following night as she conducted a quick survey of the clearing where she and her shade contingent had made their camp. A careful scrutiny of the southwest tree line of the clearing joyfully reunited her with her beloved cherry wood shortbow but also revealed that the "would be assasin" that had stolen her talisman of comfort was truly a force to reckon with judging by the level of devastation she saw in the aftermath of what was undoubtedly a large battle. She could not believe a single person could have possibly routed Mordekai's shade contingent especially with the presence of the war-devils and the giant-sized footprints she spotted in the dirt near where she found her shortbow confirmed this as she slipped back into the dark forest.

The following night as she was skulking for news around the camp of a caravan fresh out Neverwinter, Moriera heard snippets of conversation between merchants regarding a new and extremely accurate seer that just moved into the River District of the city. This Madame Zazu apparently had accurately predicted a future business transaction for one of the merchants who ended up making quite a handsome profit. Moriera was intrigued by what she heard and made up her mind then and there to seek this Madame Zazu out to find a direction in her "life."

[...]

As night fell across the land, Moriera easily made her way to the northern outer wall of Neverwinter. She did not bother going to an entrance for fear of the type of reception she would receive being a shade and all. Moriera approached the darkest shadowed portion of the wall and wrapped the shadows around her like a blanket and vanished only to reappear on the other side in another shadowy recess of the wall. As much as she hated to admit it, being a shade did have its advantages such as shadow-stepping. Having never been in Neverwinter, Moriera had absolutely no idea where she was much less where the River District lay, so she did the only thing she could. She covered her head with the hood of her Netherese robes, picked a direction to walk in and hoped that Tymora would smile on the renegade shade.

Many hours later Moriera stood before a rather nondescript storefront in the River District of Neverwinter. A few torches were lit nearby and she was able to read, "Madame Zazu, Advisor and Seer" freshly painted on a wooden sign above the door. Moriera opened the softly creaking door and stepped inside. She was immediately assaulted with the heavy smell of burning incense and dust which made her wrinkle her nose. She looked around at the drab but comfortable looking furnishings in the room. "Hello?" she timidly called out clutching her shortbow in front of her.

"Why yes...." a disembodied female voice floating in from across the room.

Moriera looked across the room as a human female brushed apart the beaded curtain that hung in the doorway and stepped into the room.

"I am Madame Zazu, " the woman smiled as she crossed over to Moriera. "I see all and I know all. Please have a seat, " she added as she indicated to a large pile of pillows on the floor surrounding a low round table.

Moriera slowly sat down on the pillows but kept the hood on her robes on in an effort to hide her true nature from the fortune teller.

Madame Zazu kneeled down on a pillow and lit a large candle on the low round table and turned her attention to Moriera as the candle sputtered to life. "You need not be afraid, " she stated in a very reassuring tone, "no one will hurt you here, little shadow..." She moved a little closer to Moriera. "Now, let's have a look at you, " she stated as she reached for the folds of the hood of the robe. "May I? " she asked with her hands in the air. The hood seemed to nod and Madame Zazu folded back the hood and gently pushed the robes off of Moriera's shoulders and on to the floor. Moriera was instantly bathed in the candlelight. "Now, isn't that better, little shadow?" Madame Zazu ask the elven shade who slightly nodded her agreement. "Now, how can I help you?" she added with a smile.

Moriera started off slowly, unsteadily and unsure of herself, but like the breaking of a great dam that starts with the smallest of trickles, she eventually relayed all of her frustrations, all of her fears, and all of the darkness in her heart since she became a shade and the dark times even before that. She started crying halfway through her account of her life in the last 100 years or so and finished her tale in between sobs. Madame Zazu patiently listened throughout the entire heart wrenching account and offered her a handkerchief to dry the tears on her little grey face.

"You seek direction, a path to follow, " Madame Zazu asked to which Moriera nodded. "How about redemption or salvation?" she added with a look of seriousness.

Moriera hesitated. "What do you mean?" she asked Madame Zazu.

"What price would you be willing to pay for the return of your elven soul?" Madame Zazu clarified.

"No price would be too high, " Moriera answered emphatically with hope in her eyes for the first time in a very long time.

"Where are you staying tonight?" Madame Zazu asked suddenly changing the subject.

"I have no place to stay, " a confused Moriera replied. "What do I need to do to..." she started ask when Madam Zazu hushed her.

"I will consult the spirits tonight and get an answer for you and it usually works best when I am alone, " she answered as she took out a small piece of parchment, a quill and an inkwell from beneath the round table. She made a few scribbles and handed over the piece of parchment. "Go to that address and enter from the side door, " she instructed Moriera, "ask for Madame Rosene and tell her Madame Zazu sent you and that you need a place to stay and she will take care of you. Rest up and wait for me there and I will send you all that I learn from the spirit world as soon as I am done with my divinations."

Madam Zazu stood back up gathered the Netherese robes back up off the floor and looked at the sigil stitched into the fabric. A slight look of scorn flashed in her face but was gone in a blink of an eye. "These will simply not do, " she called back to Moriera as she reached into a small dark alcove and retrieved a folded pile of dark fabric. Madame Zazu shook out the fine black woolen cloak, wrapped it around Moriera's shoulders and covered her little grey head with the hood.

"Thank you... " the elven shade gratefully stated, "How much do I owe you for this, " she indicated to the cloak, "and for your services?" Moriera started to reach into her beltpouch.

"No, no, no... " Madame Zazu insisted as she placed a cold but gentle hand upon Moriera and stopped her from opening her belt pouch. "We will discuss the small matter of my payment, later..." she added vaguely.

Madame Zazu gently ushered confused Moriera out of her shop and into the cold night air, "go to that address and await my answer..."

Honestly, Moriera wasn't sure quite about her decision to seek out the rather strange woman. However, as she stood outside of the shop in her brand new cloak, she decided to have a little faith and walked off into the night to do as she was instructed.

[...]

A few hours later, there was a gentle knocking at the door to Moriera's room at the Driftwood Tavern. Moriera got off the bed, unsheathed a dagger and slowly approached the door. "Who is it, " she tentatively asked through the door.

"I bear your answer from Madame Zazu, " a low voice answered through the door.

Moriera cautiously unlocked the door with her left hand, held the dagger behind the door with her right and looked out to see a smartly dressed halfling carrying a rolled up scroll. She took the scroll from the halfing, tossed it on the bed and thanked him with a gold piece with which he promptly left. Moriera then closed and relocked the door. She sat down on the bed and opened the scroll.

After reading the scroll, a confused Moriera flopped herself on to the bed, folded her arms behind her head, and stared at the ceiling. "Who hates me the most?" she mused out loud, "I'm a shade... basically everyone... but that doesn't help." She grabbed the scroll again. "Green hair and gold eyes... a female rogue... fleeting ghost... hates the most..." Moriera sat up on the bed with a start. "The 'would-be assassin!' " she blurted out remembering the gold-flecked green eyes. "She has something that will help me get my soul back!" Moriera stated as she flopped back down on the bed as the first light of dawn started peeking in around the shade covered window of her room. She gave off a huge yawn and before long she was dreaming about shadowy crowns, lands of the dead, evil keys, and her soul to set free...

The next evening, a determined Moriera set out to find her emerald haired and golden eyed rogue. Many hours and even more bags of silver later, she crouched in the shadows across the street from the Source Stone Tavern. "Jade Korianthil..." she whispered into the night as she rubbed the back of her little grey right hand. Moriera steeled up her courage and was about to walk towards the tavern when the sound of booted feet and horse hooves made her retreat deeper into the shadows. She watched as a dwarf and an elflord approached the inn leading their asperii mounts behind them. Moriera almost gasped in wonderment at the sight of the amazing wind steeds, but quickly controlled herself. The elflord and dwarf intoned a few arcane phrases and both of their mounts shifted into a tiny figurine form which the pair picked up and stashed on their respective bodies. There was something extremely familiar about the elflord. An extremely old and faded memory that was just out of Moriera's reach...

[...]

"I told you we'd make good time with our new magical steeds, " Kyrin Korianthil jovially stated as he slapped the back of Debeers Diamondhammer, his dwarven brother-in-arms.

As they walked towards the tavern door, Kyrin hesitated as Debeers opened the door. "You go ahead first, " the elflord responded to the questioning look the dwarf shot his way. "I want to make myself presentable after all I've not seen her for what, nearly 50 years, " the elflord added as he began to brush the dust off of his studded black leather traveling tunic.

"Suit yourself! " Debeers answered and stepped in. "I need a drink or ten, you'll find me by the bar..." the dwarf's voice stated as it floated through the rapidly closing door.

"Make sure you have that anti-hang-over spell ready, you crazy cleric!" Kyrin retorted as he began to brush the dust off of his black leather breeches.

<Lord Korianthil...> the shadows called out to the elflord in elvish.

Kyrin immediately dropped into a crouch as an ebony bladed longsword suddenly appeared in his right hand along with 5 glowing balls of crimson energy that orbited his left.

<Identify yourself!> the elflord called backed dangerously while scanning all around him.

A diminutive cloaked figure holding a cherry wood shortbow in her left hand emerged from the shadows and removed the hood of her cloak to reveal an angular, ashen gray face flanked by delicately pointed elven ears.

<It has been many centuries, my lord, but on Evermeet you knew me as Ar'elandi Starym,> the elven shade revealed and hesitated for a second realizing she had not spoken her real name in over 30 years. <And, I need your and more specifically, your niece's help...> she added with miniscule glimmer of hope in her ashen grey eyes.

(Continued in the Source Stone Tavern)