The famous Cave Elf Bard Chelicera is playing a set at the old church outside of town. Fans from all over the province have come to see her. It would be nice to figure out what happened to all those people who saw the show and never came back.
EVENT SCHEDULE
The schedule is the same every night. The first Fans arrive at sundown, doors open an hour later. Admission is free. About an hour after doors open Chelicera and the Haunted Castle Doctrine take the stage at G1. The set lasts a couple hours, including dancing lights and other visual effects to punctuate the music. At the end the Cave Elf retires from the stage, going downstairs for an afterparty with a handful of fans chosen from the audience. The venue stays open for a couple hours after, so people can drink and eat and buy merch. The Vendors herd everyone out of the church and the place closes before the sun comes up.
THE CHURCH
The church was built for a local deity, abandoned after the surrounding villages were forcibly transferred elsewhere. By day exterior doors are locked barred. Cave Elves sleep in the upper level while summoned Fiends patrol the building. At night the place is packed with Fans.
The walls are stone, formerly clad with lime. Windows have wooden shutters and no glass. The roof is ceramic tile, failing in places but repaired on the east side of the structure. The depopulation of the surrounding area stopped the church from being disassembled for building materials by locals.
GROUND LEVEL
G1: Chapel with raised pulpit converted to stage. Chelicera, Fovean and Cribella perform here during shows. Pews removed for standing room only, packed with fans during showtime. Ropes in front of stage mark off-limits area so band can egress through door to G2.
G2: Stairs to balcony level.
G3: Disused backroom, benches used for drunken hookups.
G4: Stairs to U4, off-limits with wooden planks covering opening above (weighed down with furniture).
G5: Curtained annex with waist high wooden barricade. During shows the Malenbranche Crushfinger hides here casting special effects spells and watching for threats. Turns Invisible if curtains are opened.
G6: Side door to show floor, blocked during events by people who can't fit in G1.
G7: Basement stairs with big chain and "employees only" sign.
G8: Bar area. VENDORS selling food, drink and merchandise. Full before and after show, sporadically visited during show.
G9: Main entrance to church with heavy wooden doors. No locking mechanism but can be barred from inside.
G10: Side door with balcony. Can be locked. Fans smoke here at night.
UPPER LEVEL
Window shutters on U2 through U6 are weighted with bricks glued to the interior. Exteriors are sticky and adhere to climbers' hands, then break off when yanked potentially causing nasty fall.
U2 Gallery access. Door to the east is locked. Invisible Lemure Gluttoriel guards during shows, attached to ceiling.
U3: Office converted to bedroom for Fovean and Cribella. Cribella's side has her drumkit, Potion of ESP, Potion of Healing, 8,800 SP in assorted gems, and posters of mage-slaying mercenaries The Strong Men. Fovean's side has his guitars, 3,900 SP in assorted gems, Potion of Treasure Finding, Potion of Clarivoyance, landscape paintings of Heart-of-the-World worth 1,700 SP. Door to U2 locked, U5/U6 unlocked.
U4: Landing converted to Chelicera's bedroom. Staircase down to G4 covered with boards which are home to Black Widows, enchanted with Animal Friendship to bite anyone who tries to break through into the room above. 12,400 SP in assorted coins, plus 2,000 SP in stolen furs and silks on the bed. Curtains to U5.
U5: Trophy room holds painted skulls of sacrifices, arranged in grid on walls. Eyes set with jewels taken from victims. Topaz worth 300 SP, three beryls worth 500 SP each, Sapphire worth 600 SP, four Rubies worth 700 SP each, eight emeralds worth 800 SP each, five black opals worth 900 SP each. Curtains to U4 and U6.
U6: Dining area for Priests and important visitors, now used by Cave Elves. Pots of Heat Metal and Wand of Prestidigitation allow for cooking without water or fuel. Monster parts and staples bought from VENDORS. Treasure from victims displayed including jeweled sword worth 1,500 SP, enormous pearl broach worth 2,500 SP, matching Goblin silver rings and bangles worth 800 SP, tiny gold ankle chain worth 200 SP. Cashbox holds 10,201 SP and fistful of hungry Rot Grubs, convinced not to attack Cave Elves via Chelicera's animal friendship. Curtains to U5.
BASEMENT
Entrance trapped with skein of metal wire, looks like cobwebs strung across the stairwell. On contact wire wraps around victim and heat up as per Heat Metal. Disarm with command word uroshnor.
2,000 SP in silk furnishings, drink and drugs (mostly tobacco but exotic stuff mixed in). Special treat is Cave Elf Wine - drinker perceives jokes as funnier than they actually are.
B2: Crypt used for ritual sacrifice by Chelicera. Sarcophagus used as executioner block where captives are decapitated, decorated with 8,000 SP image of Decapitator made of victims' gold and silver hammered together. Basket for heads taken upstairs after guests vacate. Shelf holds Chelicera's folding ax, wrapped in oiled cloth and lovingly tended.
B3: Improvised locker room. Charmed captives strip believing this a prelude to an orgy, put valuables on old embalming shelves. Rowdy groups are Slept using Chelicera's magic pipes. Command Word Manacles stuffed in a locker respond to the word Lampadas.
CHARACTERS
HAUNTED CASTLE DOCTRINE
A trio of Cave Elves who play music about love and about the life of adventure, synthesizing the rhythms of the Abyss with surface world sounds. Normally known for stringed instruments, the lead singer recently incorporated panpipes into her act.
Chelicera
The famous Bard. Lazy, sensual, knows the true purpose of intelligence is to get something for nothing. Sings and plays the Baliset. Wears 6,000 SP in jewelry and a +1 mesh armor (chain but unencumbering), wields a +1 Rapier and casts as a Level 7 Bard. Spells Entangle, Detect Danger, Animal Friendship, Obscuring Mist, Heat Metal, Produce Flame. Can enchant and charm a crowd using her normal Bardic powers, including monsters and animals. Her magic Pan-Pipes have three effects, once each per day.
- Charm: An individual within 60’ who hears the song must save versus spells or be charmed. A charmed character will do what Chelicera says and defend her from harm. A character who saves is unaffected for the rest of the encounter. Killing Chelicera breaks the charm.
- Fear: All within 60’ must save versus spells or flee for 2 turns.
- Sleep: All within 60’ must save versus spells or fall asleep for 4d4 turns.
Chelicera worships the Decapitator, fanged spider-Goddess of sacrifice, Cave Elf version of the ecumenical God Bloodfeast. The concerts are a way to procure victims without doing any work besides performing, the one thing she really enjoys doing. She enchants Fans during the performance and invites them downstairs for an "afterparty". The sacrificial rite is simple, the victim must be executed by decapitation.
Fovean and Cribella
Fovean and Cribella are Chelicera's younger cousins. Cribella plays the drums while Fovean plays either rhythm guitar or bass. Fovean is a Level 2 Fighter, Cribella Level 3, they both wear mesh armor equivalent to Chain +1 and can both cast Auditory Illusion, Faerie Fire, Darkness. Fovean is charismatic but lacking in emotional maturity, and carries a Potion of Flying for quick escapes. Cribella is sulky but has a sense off humor and carries a Potion of Diminution for same. Each wears 3,000 SP in assorted jewelry.
Summoned Fiends
Because the Decapitator loves her too, Chelicera can summon one HD of Fiends (Demons, Devils, Loths, etc) for every two HD of intelligent beings sacrificed. Such a summoned being obeys her commands for one day before returning to its home plane. She can extend its stay on the material plane at a discounted rate, a 1:1 ratio rather than 1:2 for additional days. Summoned fiends cannot summon other fiends, even if their stats says it is within their power to do so.
The Malebranche Crushfinger is the first Devil Chelicera summoned for the event. She keeps him around because he's cheap and effective at only 5 HD a day. He stays invisible while patrolling the venue, protecting the sleeping Elves by day and providing security for the concert at night. He uses Illusions to provide special effects to accompany the music. He prefers to subdue intruders with Charm or Suggestion so Chelicera can sacrifice them.
The Lemure Gluttoriel serves as backup while Malebranche is busy. He's borderline mindless but he's got the same suite of spells common to all Devils, and he follows Chelicera's commands to keep people out of the private space upstairs during shows. After the set he's in charge of cleanup, slurping trash into his slimy body and dissolving it.
8 HD of nightly sacrifices is already pushing how many Chelicera can get away with and not be noticed. If she summons more demons it'll be a one-off thing, like in a climactic moment right as adventurers burst into the basement.
The whole operation is temporary. Stick around too long in one place and the risk of discovery goes up. Soon Haunted Castle Doctrine will abscond with their treasure and find another venue to play, far away from the family and friends of all the missing people they sacrificed.
VENDORS
The dozen Hobgoblin vendors are led by Antikuchu, who led an ordered life of fire and riot, raid and war until the spirit Aguardiente showed him the error of his ways - and the joys of drink and song. The Hobgoblins sell beer and kebabs and throw all the Fans out of the church before sunrise as a favor to the band. They know Chelicera is killing revelers and don't see a problem with it. Sacrificing people at ecstatic parties with music and alcohol is what a Maenad does. By day they sleep in a camp a few miles from the church.
FANS
About 150 people show up every night to see Haunted Castle Doctrine, mostly level 0 commoners with a handful of demihumans. Amid the rabble there will be at least one adventuring party worth of capable and dangerous NPCs. Use the OSE generator or equivalent to create them. Chelicera targets them for sacrifice because they're unlikely to be missed if they disappear. Even without her Charm spells the fans are devoted and will defend her from harm, although the apparition of a demon or reveal of her sacrifices will change that.
THE MAKING OF
I wrote this adventure based on the outcome of my playtest of The Marriage of the Giantess Morwenna, and based on a Reaper miniature I painted a couple months ago. The map is Dyson's Sanctuary of Lament. The name of the adventure is from a piece by Louie Zong. Voicecast for Chelicera is Beicoli.
No comments:
Post a Comment