TTRPG

Ambush at dusk

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Tonight we expand our adventure forward by looking at the two trigger points for this weeks Soulbound adventure. This weeks pivot starts with an ambush at dusk and devolves into a frantic race and struggle to survive. Intrigued? Well sit back, grab a coffee and let’s roll into tonight’s writeup.

Ambush at dusk

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The party sailed low in the small airship, a modified grundstock gunhauler, as it head towards the edge in the direction Lord Brighthammer had sent them. The light of Hysh was high in the sky when they saw ruined research outpost that they had been flying towards. Setting down near a relatively intact tent, that wasn’t completely riddled with bolt or arrow holes and large gashes they threw a large length of cloth over the kharadron vessel to keep it from being discovered easily, as metal tends to attract the wrong typoe of attention in these lands.

Searching the outpost they didn’t find the remnants of the people posted here, nor the guard that was meant to stand watch but evidence of them being here was everywhere. The binding found a few vials of Aqua Ghyranis which they stockpiled for later and eventually found a barricaded door.

Forcing their way in they found what looked like the remains of the scouting team, cut to ribbons in the cruellest of ways. But what was more shocking was that they had all their belongings and supplies still on them.

Visitation

The beating of large wings drew them to take a defensive position inside the doorway but a familiar, yet surprising and unwelcome, voice called out through the camp. The Dawn Keeper had flown here on his two headed griffon and was looking for the party. When he saw them the amber mage’s face lit up with glee as he raced to greet them.

“Boy am I happy to see you. And I see you have found the scouts. I do apologise but time is short. Lord Brighthammer has sent me here to retrieve the Amberbone as quickly as possible. The Orruks are massing and we have no time to waste. Sigmar is bringing down his stormcast but we fear it may be too little. We need the amberbone to guarantee our success and my griffon is blessed with Ghurian magic. It will get the amberbone quickly.” he said as he looked around for the amberbone.

Not taking no for an answer the ruler of the Dawnbringer crusade grabbed the amberbone and clambered onto his griffon, barking out gutteral words that made the hair on the back of the bindings neck stand on edge. The griffon shrieked with primal energy as it took to the sky and flew off at great speeds towards the centre.

Ambush at dusk

Watching the mage go the glint of steel flashed from a nearby peak and a bolt of metal and wood slammed into the griffons side. A mass of feathers and meat fell to the ground and the Keeper with it. However within a few seconds the form of the falling battlemage shifted as he took on a primal shape as wings sprouted from his back and he darted low and into the setting sun.

I was evident that there was something on a nearby hill that had its great weapons trained on the skies. The binding could risk take off and hope that the setting sun protect them or wait a few hours until the light from Hysh had vanished. But there was no telling what lay in wait in the hills or what had killed the scouts within the outpost. Regardless of the choice the binding was in for a tough decision and potentially many tough days to come ahead.

Thanks

Thank you for joining me tonight as we continue on with our Soulbound adventure. Tonight I wanted to capture the essence of the adventure, discovery, tough decisions and overall danger. I have added elements of risk into each action or outcome this week and I want the players to feel that. The world of warhammer, and by extension soulbound, is a cruel and unforgiving space and there are more sad stories than happy ones. It’s now upto the power of the binding, and their choices, if this ends up being a happer one or a sad one.

So to end the night I wish to say thanks for joining me for another day but there is more to come. Tomorrow night I look at maps and the extra things that make it just so right. Friday and the weekend we have our encounters and, hopefully our writeup for this adventure. So to aid you in this week, I wish to grant you a bonus to all save rolls. Perhaps that extra chance to shrug off something aiming for a weak spot will come in handy for you, perhaps not. But having it is nice regardless,
The Brazen Wolfe

Lord Brodderick Brighthammer

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Tonight we continue the soulbound week by exploring who Brodderick Brighthammer is, Lord Castellant from the Stormcast Eternals. Being part of the dawn bringer crusade, or merely assisting the battlemage who works with him to command the forces of order is a big job. Which is why a Lord Castellant is in charge. So sit back ,sip on some coffee and let’s roll into tonight’s update.

Lord Brodderick Brighthammer

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The binding stood in front of him as he looked over a map before him. The current camp was just a small marker on the large parchment that lay before him and it was surrounded by miles of rolling hills, vast forests and rocky mountains – Ghur. Somewhere out in the hills towards the edge was the last known direction the scouts were heading. It is also the where the last message had come from raven to notify the crusade of a potential threat – a gathering of orruks.

Brodderick rubbed his brow, causing his sigmarite plate to clank as the binding stood silent in front of him. He turned towards them, Gwen, Brung and Kathe who had just joined. Ymran stood at the edge of the doorway and listened but kept a watchful eye outside the tent. “As you would know we have a growing warband of Orruks milling in the hills a few hours towards the edge from here. That is also the last known position of the scouts we sent out.” he paused as Brung cleared his throat as if to talk, the impatient arkanaut admiral was used to getting his way. But before he could get his words out the Dawn Keeper spoke, the battlemage who was charged with the success of the crusade.

The Dawn Keeper…

“Lord Brighthammer. We don’t even know if they survived or not. I wont have you risk more of my men by sending them on this foolish mission” the battlemage practically spat, the influence of Ghur influencing his connection with the amber winds of magic.

“Keeper, I am not asking you to risk your men. I have a mission for the binding who are small enough to slip by without being noticed yet powerful enough to handle just about anything Ghur will throw at them.” he paused as he stared down the mage, the smell of ozone wafting through the air.

“Aye, I thought that would be the case. But as the Keeper said, why risk going after scouts that are likely dead.?” Brung asked, Kathe stared daggers down at her companion.

“Amongst those scouts was one who had a different mission. I received word a few days ago that there had been a research outpost that had gone quiet. I sent the scouts there to find out why and recover what they could.” he paused again and held up a hand to cut off the Dawn Keepers oncoming tirade. “They reported that they had found a cache of amberbone. Enough that if it fell into enemy hands it would spell out demise. I need that amberbone retrieved.” the Lord castellant spoke. The Keepers eyes bulged in his head as the possibilities rushed forth into his mind.

Change of attitude

“Well.. Why didn’t you say so. You can have the gryph knights – they will retrieve these stones for you” the battlemage said as he got ready to summon his retinue.

“No. If the scouts last messages were true then we are in imminent danger. The gryph knights will be needed here. They also draw too much attention. No I think the binding is the best bet.” the castellant said as he looked away from the Dawn Keeper and towards the party. “We really need your strength on this.” he said quietly as the battlemage started rambling to himself whilst flicking through a tome.

Created in night.cafe studio
Created in Artbreeder

Well that sets the scene for our party as we move onwards with soulbound. Tonight we looked at the hook for the party to sally forth out of the safety of the camp, explored some dangers and met both Lord Brighthammer and the Dawn Keeper. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for more Soulbound content and I grant you further rerolls to ensure that you don’t miss,
The Brazen Wolfe

Gathering Storm

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Tonight we start the first week where I focus on Soulbound and the Gathering Storm that is occurring in Ghur. With one more character to be introduced from the story (or playthrough Zine) all we have left is the rest of the adventure. Not much right? So sit back, grab a coffee and let’s roll into it.

Gathering Storm

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The Orruks gathered around the hills and rocky formations. Calling out to the Gork and Mork in their frenzied battle cries they feasted on the beasts they had hunted during the day. Despite the festivities and the humans that had camped nearby they held back from a fight as the cunning shamans had a plan, one most cunning.

The humans relied on their scouts to tell them the lay of the land, but the sudden appearance of Kruleboyz and the shamans that they brought with them gave them pause to think. And think they did. As the Kruleboyz pet sloggoths dragged the gargantuan bow to the peak of a hill they waited and continued to rally, gathering in force until their warrgh couldn’t sustain itself. Despite their frenzy they still managed to contain their urge to fight. Soon the trap would be sprung and then the humans would be ripe for the slaughter and the boyz would be ready.

The plan

The sloggoth placed the large crossbow on the hill and the lanky kruleboy orruks strode up to its side. Placing a large cruel hand on its flank the sloggoth moved away to cower elsewhere as the boss looked at the fine machine. Bolts as large as a ships mast were brought up by hobgrots. These bolts were large enough to take down even stardrakes or their lesser kin the draconith, but their target was something else.

Rumours of flying wizards and the cursed soulbound had come to them through a source. This bow would be trained on the skies waiting for the elite warriors and leaders of the forces of order to rally forth, then it would be too late to turn back.

With the party potentially riding out into a trap we find ourselves with a question. What does this weeks adventure hold for our members of the binding. We will continue to unravel this adventure as the week continues so don’t forget to come back and check in. And while we look at a different system I think its a good reminder that there are more than one great TTRPG.

There are many in fact and I hope to gradually explore several of them, and who knows what the future holds. So I will leave you with a thirst to look outwards and explore and finally a blessing or rerolls to ensure that you don’t miscast,
The Brazen Wolfe

Crelion Manor Guest book

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Welcome to the end of the week where I had a bit of a lazy day and create the puzzle for this week, the Crelion Manor Guest book. This is the puzzle piece that needs to be worked through with the roleplay aspects in this adventure to help drive the party to the answer to the riddle.

Crelion Manor Guest book

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Throughout the manor, as the party moves through the halls the walls are decorated with portraits or landscape paintings of the manor on a large expansive field. The rolling hills of grass touched by sunlight gave the paintings of the Manor a wondrous appearance. Further down the halls portraits of Jane and Tom were hung on the wall, proudly sitting in chairs and looking fondly outwards.

The brass frame of the portraits was perfectly polished with not a spec of dust on it or the canvas itself. However on closer inspection Tom’s portrait seemed to have suffered some damage and his last name “Dottery” has been scrubbed off. Either by accident or deliberately its hard to tell.

Thoughts

The idea is to drop hints that Jane’s real name is Crelion, not Dottery. Upon saying her name, and her hearing, the visage that she portrays disappears and her true form is revealed. Upon being revealed the house starts to break apart and her body starts to wither and fade. I think by having it be a puzzle rather than pure combat encounter it can be a fun way to end the adventure.

Thanks for joining me tonight. Tomorrow I will aim to have the Zine out for last weeks adventure. This week I will look at Soulbound adventure so be on the lookout for that. So make sure to come back tomorrow and the other nights this week and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Gwen Hart

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Tonight I want to look at another member of the binding, Gwen Hart our battlemage of light. Quick to forgive and think of the best in people her reasons for joining the binding are plain to see. She wants to use her magic to protect and aid the heroes that are guarding the dawn bringer crusade.

Gwen Hart – the Battlemage

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Gwen looked back towards Kate and worried. Despite her training preparing her for tough decisions and situations she was unsure how to help the stoic Stormcast. Brung was easy to read, he missed his ship and would rather be amongst the cloud rather than on the ground. But no matter how much she plied he wouldn’t go into his reasons for joining the binding. Ymran was also difficult to read and, if she was honest with herself the presence of the aelf made her uncomfortable. In reading up on the Idoneth deepkin she know that they were ripped from the Chaos god Slaanesh and no amount of purity or redemption would heal that stain.

Perhaps that’s why Ymran was quiet around her, maybe he senses the light she brought and shied from it. She shrugged outwardly and smiled at the dawners as they moved around camp, packing up tents and moving them to the large armoured wagons as they prepared to move tomorrow for the final stretch. As she walked her staff gave a soft glow of dawn that seemed to lift the spirits of the people in the dawn bringer crusade. It pleased her that her presence, like Kates, was was something that brought people hope.

But the talk of the greenskins had her worried. The early reports had indicated that there were pockets where undead mingled and gathered. But the gryph-knights had dealt with them quickly enough. But now the prospect of a warrgh had her anxiety grow. She just wished that her companions would show a similar emotion as they moved towards the command tent. Beyond this path lay the source of her anxiety.

Lord Brodderick Brighthammer, a Lord Castellant from the Stormcast Eternals Hammers of Sigmar and a battlamage lie within the canvas tent. She had no fear in front of these warriors as they all sought the light that she brought and that guided them onwards. But there was something that unnerved her about the griffon that the battlemage rode on. There was something wild and predatorial in the eyes of that beast that she couldn’t even home to tame.

Searching for the spirit guardian that had followed her since she graduated from the towers of eight winds she spotted the Golden eagle perched on a tent nearby. Flying through the material to land on her staff it cooed down at her as she gave it affection.

What ever was wrong with that griffon she would uncover it and look to cure it.

Character Sheet

Gwen-Hart-Battlemage-LightDownload

Well that’s it for tonight and for Gwen, for now. Don’t forget to come back tomorrow for the end of week writeup (hopefully another Zine). As we are at the end of the week I hope you had time to spend some time on the tabletop. If not I hope you plan for it soon. Don’t forget next week we have more content so come back for that. And, as always don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Waking Phantoms

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Welcome to Friday Fightnight, or maybe tonight should be called Fright-night as we deal with waking phantoms. Tonight is all about the creatures that the party see when they have their nightmares. Shadowy, real, nightmarish or common – it doesn’t matter what they are in statistics just how we describe them as the DM.

Waking Phantoms

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Tonight I am using Kobold Plus Fight club for a very specific reason. Looking for any creature(s) under CR1/2 (hard/ deadly) which each of the players will need to fight solo. It doesn’t matter what it is being from a could of goblins, kobolds to a single orc or gnoll as long as its enough to pose a threat to our level 2 characters.

This works across systems that have ways of balancing encounters as well. Soulbound you can have 2 warriors or a single warrior and a swarm of 3-4 minions appear in the dreams to haunt the players. Pathfinder would be similar as orcs and goblins but making sure that its balanced to be a hard or difficult encounter.

Remember that the creatures aren’t there to kill the party members. They are there to create exhaustion and prevent a full nights sleep. This is what pressures the players to solve the riddle and escape, but more on that tomorrow night.

As I mentioned earlier this week, (Haunting of the Inn) the party are attacked in their dreams. Each night when they go to rest they dream of a strange, or familiar place where they are attacked. This prevents them from fully resting as each time they try to get back to resting they simply can not. These creatures may morph from their allies or randomly appear in a door way but they need to be sudden and definitely out of place.

The maid that the bard was seducing may suddenly turn around and split into three goblins. Or the priest that the cleric was consulting may open a door and throw the party member in to be torn apart by zombies or skeletons. What ever the creature the difficulty doesn’t matter and death shouldn’t be the goal.

Thoughts

This weeks encounter should be a fun one. I have planned it to be non-deadly encounters with a deadly consequence. As we know in a few game systems without proper rest you don’t heal, can’t replenish limited powers (once per day abilities, spell slots, toughness or wounds, etc.). So that means for our party what I have planned is actually quite serious.

In D&D5e exhaustion caps out at 5 effectively. The final stage being 6 results in the creature dying. This means our party has exactly 4 days (day 5 they cant move) until they simply waste away into nothing. The 1st and 2nd day wont be a big stress but once they catch on what’s happening the last few days will be a frantic rush to escape. This will be fun.

Thanks for visiting tonight and looking at the encounters we have planned with the waking phantoms. This weekend we will ahve the finishing touches added to the adventure before we close off with, I hope, another Zine (adventure booklet!). So it’s been a big week and I am happy that you have decided to spend some time here with me.

Don’t forget that next week is the last week of the month week so I will have something a bit different planned and it should be good. And so I hope you don’t forget to come visit again and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Reused and Recycled

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Welcome to a night filled with maps that I’ve dragged back from previous adventures, Reused and Recycled if you will. Part laziness but part emphasising the key part of creating maps for TTRPGs is that you can have a lot of variety and diversity in your world. But you can also say that the forest you are walking through today is similar enough to the one you walked through last week or last month even. This doesn’t make us lazy as Game or Dungeon Masters it makes us efficient.

So tonight I am going back to a few maps used in the past to give them a new take on life and to show that all maps can reused and recycled.

Reused and Recycled

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Road-Ambush (Surveying the Battlefield)

Something that could work for either a forest encounter heading to the manor, moving away form the manor or as part of a dream scape. It’s also an re-use of an older map because diversity is extremely important as a DM.

Made with Inkarnate.com

Inn in a strange town (Doorich Cottage)

The feat of waking up in a strange and unfamiliar place can be quite crippling. But what if your mind told you that this isn’t new, what if your allies around you acted like nothing was wrong. Running out into an unfamiliar street where people greet you like an old friend can send someone into a mild, or severe, panic attack. This could be another dream scape for us and another great example of a may being reused and recycled for a new purpose.

Made with Inkarnate.com

Hidden Waterfall (Welcome Rest, Unwelcome Guests)

I adore this map. Out of all my maps I think that this one is probably one of my favourites. A soothing camp fire, soft noises that lull you into a sense of security then something goes wrong. The perfect recipe for a nightmare and yet again another example of a map being Reused and Recycled.

Made with Inkarnate.com

Well I want to say thank you for joining me tonight for my lazy-Map night. When I first imagined the content I would bring up for Brazen Wolfe Tabletop it was about having variety, versatility and promoting reuse. That’s why I have a tag under each blog (i.e. 303ThReRe) so I can go back and refer to content I liked and want to reuse. Tonight I looked through the 50 or so Thursdays I have created a map for this blog and selected but a handful. There is a lot already here and any of them will make excellent maps for a diverse set of adventures.

Now we have the weekend fast approaching so don’t forget to plan some tabletop time and let’s not forget to roll with advantage while you’re at it,
The Brazen Wolfe

Haunting of the Inn

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Welcome to Wednesday night’s update to our weekly adventure. Tonight we reveal what’s happening in Crelion Manor where we look at the haunting of the inn.

But why is the party of adventures the only people who stay in the inn and, why does Tom glare at them constantly? Let’s read on tonight and during the week more will be revealed!

Haunting of the Inn

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The rain continued well into the night and while the party sat by the warm roaring fire they wondered when the storm would let up. The manor seemed to be equipped for just about all their needs and when ever they asked Jane about something of interest she would be able to provide some advice or tool to assist. There was enough space for the adventurers to stay in a single room or in several and the beds were comfortable, much more so than the open road at least.

As the night continued onwards the party members retired for the night and eventually the manor was silent except for the howling wind and battering rain. One by one they drifted off to sleep and one by one they suffered a nightmare that when they woke they felt more exhausted than they had in the morning. When they complained about their sleep they began to realise that they all suffered the same nightmare. The same creatures had attacked them in their dreams and where they suffered wounds they hurt the next morning but without physical harm. The innkeeper Tom stood at the doorway to were they talking and, with a hint of sorrow to his frown filled face nodded towards the door once more.

Departure

As the party moved to the front door of Crelion Manor Tom looked both sad and gleeful at their choice to depart. After the haunting night they could not be blamed after all. The days sun barely pushed its away through the stormy louds above and the rain and wind made it difficult to walk. But they continued outwards and beyond.

‘See you real soon, take care!’ Jane called as she leant against her quiet husband at the front door. As the wind whipped at the capes Jane had provided them for fear of their health. It wasn’t long until the rustling of footsteps could be heard behind them but as with last time nothing could be seen. As the further they got from the manor the more frantic they became, desperate to reach the party. As they continued faster away from the hounding footsteps a crack was the last sound they heard as a branch from a tree fell down and hit them.

Soon they woke, the images and sounds of pursuit still haunting their waking thoughts. Sore but comfortable and warm, the sounds and smells of food cooking brought them back to the present. ‘Hello dears. Oh you’re lucky we found you when we did. Tom brought you back after you ran into the woods in the middle of the storm. Don’t you worry you are safe here with us.’ Jane said as she came in with plates filled with delicious smelling food. Cured meats, eggs and bread piled up high.

The book

As they looked at the food Tom appeared in the doorway and shook his head, sadness appeared in his eyes as he frowned at them and clutched his guest book tighter. But… was that a purposeful look at the book. Jane turned around at that moment. ‘Tom… Oh yes that’s right. They still need to sign the book with the duration of their stay, come in dear and give it to them. Make sure the ribbon is on the right page – we want to make sure the guest book is in good order now.’ Jane said with a broad smile as she walked out of the room.

Tom brought in the book with an inkwell as well and slipped the quill into the back of the book before handing it to them. As the party grabbed the heavy, large leather bound book he stared at them and then the book as he adjusted the feather in the last page. Tom then stood and left them to the book and the food.

As the party opened the guest book to the ribbon they noticed that there were hundreds of names in the ledger and each of them had a season and day of listed down in there. Turning to the last page, where the quill was jammed into the book they noticed a different list. Twelve names were on the page where eleven names ran down the page with a gap at the fifth line, each with a number next to their name. There was a blood smeared fingerprint on the page and the last name was separate and at the bottom of the page.

Thomas Dottery – 0

Thoughts

Alright the time to start the puzzle has begun! This week we have a list that is the key to working out the puzzle and a few horrifying encounters planned. Every night the party sleeps they are wracked with nightmares of being attacked, alone by some unknown creature. When they wake they feel more exhausted than before they went to bed and what’s more, each other member of the party has had the same dream. If they try and leave they get so far before they are attacked or otherwise injured and knocked out When they wake the yare back in the Crelion Manor with Tom standing nearby looking at them with sadness and frustration.

I designed this week to try and move away from the traditional format of my adventures being fetch or stop and look at a Learning one. Learn what the message on the last page is and then you can be free. That’s it.

Thanks for coming tonight and sharing this with me. As tomorrow is Maps and bonus content I hope to have the letter and a few maps organised as dream scapes are the maps of the week. So don’t forget to come back for them and, as always, don’t forget to roll with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

The Dottery’s

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Welcome to Tuesday night where we look at the NPCs that are joining us this week for our adventure. Tonight we turn our gaze and introductions to the Dottery’s who reside within the Crelion Estate. Despite being an odd pair they appear to have kept the inn in working order and welcome the party openly. Well Jane does at least. There is a warmth that feels almost unnatural that comes from the house. But it’s soothing and the sense of unease from the woods has gone.

But why is the party of adventures the only people who stay in the inn and, why does Tom glare at them constantly. Let’s read on tonight and during the week more will be revealed!

The Pennywhistle Company

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The keepers of Crelion Manor

The Dottery’s run the Crelion manor inn and are an odd pair. Jane is warm, welcoming and motherly while Tom rarely says anything at all and always stares at people as if he wished they were elsewhere. Together though they have appear to have maintained the manor to a high standard and the beds are certainly comfortable. Despite being situated near the woods that appear to be haunted, or worse the manor appears to be unaffected.

Jane can be found walking around the manor lighting lanterns and cleaning the house almost methodically while Tom never strays too far from the front door and a little desk where he keeps an ever watchful eye on the log book in front of him.

Tom Dottery

Created in Artbreeder

Tom is well built and tall. The signs of his age is slowly appearing in his beard and hair but his eyes have lost none of their youth. During the party’s interactions with him they don’t believe they have heard him say a single word to him or Jane who hovers around him and talks enough for both of them.

Despite being quiet, and his face set in a constant stare of disapproval he is quick to help the adventurers when they need it. Just as quick as he leaps into action to assist he goes back to being quiet with a frown fixed upon his face.

The party have caught him nodding towards an old guest book at his table and when his wife isn’t around he appears to gesture silently towards the door as if asking the party to leave.

Jane Dottery

Created in Artbreeder

Jane is a small and frail looking woman with eyes that look almost to large for her face. The opposite of her husband, Tom, she is exuberant and always happy to talk. She is quick on her feet and has a bad habit of sneaking up on people due to how quietly she moves.

Despite her diminutive frame it is obvious to any who witness her that she rules the manor on a daily basis. She is quick to insist that the guests reach out for any little issue but organises Tom to rectify any issues.

Despite her warm and caring nature she shies away from physical touch and blames a illness she caught when she was younger for a fragile constitution that is quick to bruise and bleed from the smallest of touches.

Thoughts

I came up with Jane and Tom to be opposites for a reason and it’s all to do with the Manor. And nothing is as it seems at Crelion Manor which I will expand upon this week. The interactions between the two hosts will need to be monitored closely this week as we move around the manor. And while waiting the storm to die down I will throw in some additional information to keep the part busy. But that’s for me to expand upon tomorrow.

Thanks for dropping in tonight and looking at the two NPCs for this week. There is a third that may be introduced later this week (or the end of week adventure) but that’s for another time. As always don’t forget to come back tomorrow for more updates to this weeks adventure. Tomorrow we cover the thickening of the plot so don’t forget take notes as this week is a bit of a mystery to unravel and, as always, don’t forget to roll it with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe

Crelion Manor

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Well another week is here and this week it just goes to show that there is indeed no rest for the brave. This week we have the party stumble across something a bit odd on their way to the city, Crelion Manor. What lies within its tall well preserved walls and what secrets does it contain?

Crelion Manor

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Wooded Road

The road was long and as night was quickly approaching the party of adventures quickly were finding that they were running out of options for safety. Thick clouds were forming overhead and the gusts of winds were increasing by the minute. The road had swerved into a small forest a few miles back and gradually an uneasy feeling had grown within them as the they began to doubt the traveller’s advice.

‘There’s an inn along this road, a few miles down the road. If you make haste you should be able to get there before the weather hits’ the man had said. The party had thought it odd since there was not a cloud in the sky, but the man had been right as quickly the wind had picked up and the clouds had rolled in. Then, as if on queue a sign appeared staked next to a tree. “Crelion Manor – Inn and Lodgings” they sign said with an elegant writing that spoke of pride and elegance. Up ahead the dark silhouette of a building suddenly flared into life as a glowing light appeared in several windows. The unease grew and the snapping of twigs sounded from somewhere behind them but when they whirled around there was nothing in the growing shadows as night encroached.

Making a dash for the light spewing from the windows the sound of heavy frantic footsteps could be heard nearby, but still no sign of pursuer. Passing the open gates the pounding of earth suddenly vanished and the creaking of a sign hanging from the front porch heralded the appearance of the Crelion Manor.

Crelion Manor

The building was three stories high and big enough to house a few dozen people at most. There was a small stable to the right of the entrance and the warm glow of lanterns and candles beckoned them onwards, the sense of unease dwindling as they walked into the light of the lanterns.

The door swung open slowly but forcefully and a large, heavyset man with a mighty moustache looked down at the party. As he stood there he didn’t say a single word and stared them down, grunting in response to the parties questions he strode into the building leaving the door open.

Entering after the man the inside was cosy, warm and inviting. A sense of warmth was present in the building and unlike the man who now sat behind a desk with a large ledger they felt welcome. ‘Hello travellers! Welcome Guests!’ a shrill and excited voice sang out from behind them as a thin woman stood in the doorway to a sitting room that housed a roaring fire. ‘Don’t just stand there. Welcome! Close the door dear if you will – you’ll let the cold in.’ she said as she moved to stand next to the large man.

‘Welcome to Crelion manor’.

Crelion Manor – created in Nightcafe.studio

Thoughts

Now this week leaves a lot to the imagination. Rarely do you find Inns, manors or buildings in creepy woods and something not being wrong with them. But they always promise three things. A roof over your head, protection from the draft and adventure.

The custodians of Crelion Manor are your regular yin and yang couple. One being stoic and quiet, the other cheerful and sociable to the point of being overbearing. This week we look at a smidge of horror and puzzle solving so be prepared to have hints and tips for our party this week. But that doesn’t mean that we wont have combat. I have a few idea’s up my sleeve to throw at the adventurers this week.

Thanks for dropping by tonight for another start of the adventuring week. I am pretty excited this week as we move ever forwards with our one shot adventures. With my planning and format I should be able to create more Zines at the end of the week so let’s look forward to that. Don’t forget tomorrow brings us more NPCs to add to our growing collection so you best return. Also the days after bring us the meat of the adventure, maps, extra content and the encounters… So don’t forget to come back each day this week and as always, don’t forget to roll it with advantage,
The Brazen Wolfe