Adventure Name: Nightfall in Ebonwood Vale
Session 1: "Into the Ebonwood Vale"
Plot:
The adventurers arrive at Edgehart and are summoned by the merchant's wife, Lorna. She is a
seemingly distressed woman who is eager for the return of her husband and his guards. Lorna
offers the adventurers a handsome reward to retrieve her husband and the lost caravan.
She presents the adventurers with a few magical "Sunstones," enchanted items that, when
activated, emit a very bright light. She explains that she purchased them from a traveling wizard
for her husband's protection during their journey. These stones, she assures them, will provide
light for an hour when activated, and they can be tested as they work once a day, resetting at
midnight.
Mystery Encounter:
As the adventurers prepare for their journey, they might notice (or uncover through subtle
inquiries) that the townsfolk behave strangely when Lorna's name is mentioned. Several
townsfolk might hint at the fact that Lorna was not treated well by her husband and that she
was often seen with unexplained injuries. The more they learn, the clearer it becomes that the
merchant trader is abusive towards her.
Social Encounters:
Interactions with the townsfolk in Edgehart reveal superstitions, cautionary tales, and folk
legends about the Ebonwood Vale forest, creating an atmosphere of tension and foreboding. A
former woodsman named Idris claims to have seen twisted, shifting creatures in the forest's
depths after he tarried once after dark and warns the party about the impending dangers.
Upon further investigation, they could meet a local healer or apothecary who has been treating
Lorna's injuries. The healer would share how Lorna was often scared but recently appeared to
have found some hope.
The adventurers could also meet a local innkeeper or bartender who noticed a mysterious
stranger meeting Lorna late one night. This stranger hasn't been seen since, but Lorna seemed
unusually determined after their meeting.
Combat Encounters during Day:
Venturing into the Ebonwood Vale, the adventurers face the natural beasts of the forest. If they
decide to activate the ‘sunstones’ during the day, perhaps to offset the dark gloom of certain
parts of the trail, then the encounters will be those creatures that normally are encountered at
night.
Combat Encounters at Night:
While traversing the forest at night, the adventurers encounter more than just natural
predators, they encounter evil and dangerous beasts that only come out at night in the forest,
like dire wolves or giant spiders, or trolls. These encounters will be relentless and likely to result
in the group being overwhelmed. Using the Sunstones to fend off these creatures, they notice
the stones have an unusual effect - instead of scaring off the beasts, it seems to attract more
dangerous ones. They will need to flee the forest to survive.
Conclusion:
As the session wraps, the adventurers might begin to suspect that Lorna and the mysterious
Sunstones play a more crucial role in the disappearance of the merchant and the caravan than
initially thought. The sense of danger grows as they journey deeper into the ancient, ominous
forest.
If, at some point after surviving the forest (or before they head out), they confront Lorna, she
will become very emotional and seem to genuinely want them to return her husband and his
guards safely and point out if she was behind his disappearance, why would she pay so much for
a group to find him, and even pay them so much, in advance, to try? (Because without proof of
his death, she inherits nothing, but this would be an obscure legal detail that few would know
about).
Session 2: “The Forest Deeply”
Plot:
The party, having survived their first trek into the forest, either returned during the day or, by
some miracle, fended off the nighttime attacks. Eventually, through tracking skills, find signs of
the caravan's departure; broken wheels, items dropped in haste, and eventually, a derelict,
abandoned wagon. Either way, by venturing deeper into the forest to follow this trail of
breadcrumbs so to speak, they realize that the forest is becoming darker under its ancient
canopy and oppressive, leading them to a darker and more menacing part of the forest as night
approaches.
Combat Encounters:
As night falls, and if they are off of the main road trail, the forest's true horror reveals itself. The
trees begin to shift and move, disorienting the party's sense of direction. They get attacked by
eerie, shadowy figures (pick an appropriate encounter here from the creatures section of the
BRP) that are repelled by the torchlight, forcing the party to strategically use their limited light
resources. If they use the sunstones here, double the number of encounters, and they will
quickly note that the creatures do not seem bothered by this light source.
Puzzle/Mystery Encounter:
They find an eldritch, ancient stone monolith covered in a mysterious script. Deciphering this
could reveal clues to the true nature of the forest and what might be controlling it. This will be a
safety zone for a desperate party to camp out where nothing is willing to approach closely. In
the morning, they will be able to proceed further into the forest, following the scraps of things
left to fall to the ground from the caravan party. Footprints will be able to be seen that appear
to be shod feet. (There was a group of Orcs used by the sorcerer at the center to capture the
caravan party). They also forced their captives to march along. So it is clear that at least some of
the caravan group is alive.
Session 3:” The Heart of Darkness”
Plot:
Venturing further into the forest, the party eventually comes across a clearing with a decrepit
castle shrouded in an eerie gloom. This castle is the ruined lair of a powerful sorcerer, (let’s call
him the Shadow Lord) an entity that has been corrupted by dark magic and is causing the
nighttime transformations in the forest.
Social Encounter:
The party finds the missing merchant and wounded caravan members chained and imprisoned
in the castle, driven mad by fear. They discover or confirm that the merchant had been
ensnared by a mind-controlling sunstone given to his wife by a mysterious stranger (revealed to
be a servant of the Shadow Lord.
If the party has the means to help or cure the imprisoned guards and merchant, they will have
an easier time getting them back home, but if they do not, there will be a very challenging
problem getting them to not be terrified of the forest and resistant to being led out.
Remember if they get some lucidity restored that the merchant has no idea his wife set this in
motion, but when he learns that she paid the adventurers to find him, he gives a cynical laugh
and said she just wanted to get proof of his demise. He might at some point realize it on his
return and likely exact some retribution on her for it.
Combat Encounter:
The servants of the Shadow Lord are strange-looking Orcs, with black eyes and skin. They are as
described by the BRP book but also have a stealth skill of 80%. They cannot leave the underkeep
during the day, so the group will find the prisoners unguarded. (But if they activate the
sunstones to see in the gloom of the keep, they will come pouring out to attack, given that they
are protected by the day when these stones are active). A clever trick would be to use it to lure
the creatures out during the day, then destroy the stones. The creatures will suffer immediately
from whatever penalties operating during the daylight hours would impose.
The final battle involves combating the Shadow Lord, who can manipulate the forest and
summon Shadow Beasts. The Shadow Lord can only be defeated by destroying the source of his
power - the Dark Crystal located in his throne room. (Or some other appropriate mcguffin that
makes sense here)
Conclusion:
Upon defeating the Shadow Lord and destroying the Dark Crystal, the forest reverts to its
natural state, freeing the merchant and the caravan members from their terror. The party
returns to Edgehart as heroes, having lifted the dark curse that plagued the Ebonwood Vale
Forest.
