The Coven of the Red Moon

This scenario is about the dagger that is needed to permanently banish Xolthog.

Remember that the scenario stresses atmosphere and not combat. Care needs to be taken to make sure the atmosphere is right and that the characters donât just wander from place to place bored. Keep them alert. Possible encounters for the combat oriented are the Satyr, the nymphs, forest animals, the rune wraith, the coven, the villagers, the forest troll, the nightmare ghosts and the envoys. In addition the witches keep all manner of pets, ranging from cats to rats and serpents. They might also have some pet that is less of a cliche.

Goals:
-Understand the prophecy and locate the abbey.
-Find the Satyr
-Create the dagger

The scenario can be solved in a number of ways:
-They can slay the satyr and carve a dagger from its hip bone. This is something the shadowdancers probably will favour and the others wonât.
-They can talk to the satyr and convince him that their cause is a just cause. Then he will direct them to the remains of his slain rival, Lupercus. Lupercus' hip bone can then be used to create the dagger. Lupercus remains are located in the area of the abbey lake.
-They can romance the nymphs of the lake and get them to tell about Lupercusâ remains.

The prophecy:
The prophecy speaks of the dagger made from a Satyrâs hip bone:

"... Zarghuthen the Hermit, beloved of Aahr our lord of time, has once again spoken of the future. Let the truth be told to the children of Laumaetha. (Ancient Bluethon for Lumaratha)

Long hair, dirt and grime.
Adderâs bride, marked by time.
(This portion is about the witch Famina).

Child bearerâs lover, the ancient beast,
Carries the secret, the hidden piece.
(This portion is about the Satyr and reveals that he has the dagger).

Northern mountains, fallen faith,
blooded moon, female krait. (Nocturnal snake)
(This portion reveals the location of the dagger to be near the abbey where the coven has taken over).

A dagger carved from Satyrâs bone,
Sharpened hip makes demon groan.
(A dagger made of a Satyrâs hip bone will be useful against Xolthog)

Zarghuthen howled these words after the audience with the white mage of the elves had ended. His howling ended with the heartbroken whispers 'woe to the people of the forest, woe and eternal sorrow. Long shall they fade and in the last of their days shall they fall to a traitor. Their very souls shall be in peril and their blood shall be abused. May the goddess have mercy on them' ".

The Abbey of the red moon:
The abbey of the red moon is an old convent of Fhalgharod. It is a beautiful building located at the top of a small hill surrounded by the forest of the abbey. In the distance to the west is the mountain range known as the Cyllearean Mountains. The ocean in the east can be seen from the abbey if the weather allows it.

A small cobble stone road, partially overgrown by grass, wind down the hillside. It stretches through the forest. Close to the village, in an oak-covered part of the woods, is a brick-bridge wide enough to let a large wagon cross.  Within the forest is also an idyllic lake, a place where the young village couples romance on hot summer nights.

The abbey itself has been erected on the levelled hilltop. Once the abbess made her nuns keep the grass short, the hedges trimmed. But now the garden is overgrown, the abbey decaying. Some of the hillsides (south and west) are steep and bricks and large stones have been used as a foundation to make the hilltop level, thus brick-walls can be seen several places on the western hillside and one place on the southern side.

Forest of the abbey:
The forest of the abbey is a mixed forest with thick coniferous woods at its heart. At the edges grow oak and ash and the trees are more spaced. Moss covers much of the forest floor and several streams run through the forest. Their waters are icy cold and originates from the ice and snow in the mountains.

Scene: Travelling through the forest, the pcâs will discover tracks of a large hoofed creature. Strange thing is that it seems to walk erect. If they follow the tracks, they will lead to the small forest lake. There they will encounter yet more tracks, these of barefooted human females or possibly small men. It seems like the females and the hoofed creature was dancing together. The human tracks originate from the lake and it seems they arrived by a small canoe. They obviously left the same way.

The hoof tracks continue to the abbey, where they abruptly end near the south edge. At this location there is a sheer cliff some forty yards up to the abbey.

Searching might discover nearby holes in the cliff face. These small holes have been carved as to not be seen by travellers. This ladder ends 10 yards above where a small tunnel concealed by bushes is hidden. These bushes are called Fyrmaen and carries small yellow berries called Camlob. The berries have the ability to heal the body naturally. The tunnel leads to the portion of the abbey called the hidden sanctum.

Scene: At some point the characters will feel watched. But when they search the area they will discover nothing. They will feel no ill will or hostility from the watchers and an idea check will reveal that the spirits of the forest have gathered to watch the first elves seen in several thousand years. Upon seeing the shadowdancers the trees will begin to creak and grate for some seconds in protest against this abomination. The elves will feel an atmosphere of sorrow and regret, even though they might not understand why.
The shadowdancers will not feel watched, having lost their affinity for nature.

Scene: The elves notice a foul stench carried by the wind. It smells like rotting flesh. The shadowdancers will growl and will feel compelled to hunt down and eat the source of the smell.

The smell originates from a moss covered cave in the coniferous part of the forest. Within the cave dwells a forest trolls and the smell comes from the rotting corpse of a small girl. The troll is strong and brave but will turn to stone if exposed to daylight. He is not very bright and do not know any language other than the speech of northern troll kin.

His tree-trunk club can kill a man with a single stroke. Luckily he is slow.

Abbey Lake:
The abbey lake is a peaceful place. If they stay here for a certain period of time some interesting things might happen. It lays south of the abbey. The southern edge of the lake is a marsh full of reeds, while the eastern edge rise fifteen feet above the water, an excellent spot for divers. The western edge is shallow and has a small, muddy beach.

Scene: (While resting and after a certain amount of the story has passed) Three unnaturally beautiful ladies emerge from the lake. They head towards the nearest, non-shadowdancer, elf. The ladies will be charming and will try to engage any pretty elf in conversation. The ladies are not terribly well oriented about anything outside the immediate area. If some elf manage to romance one of these ladies, they might tell about the remains of Lupercus IF they are told of the elves quest.

If an elf has smitten one of the nymphs they will attempt to get him to stay permanently.

If Inuus discover that one of his nymphs has abandoned him for a mortal he will be enraged. The poor individual will know the full rage of a fully grown Satyr.

The Village of Herschburg:
In the valley below the abbey lays the village of Herschburg. Its buildings are two to tree stories tall and made of bricks covered by white plaster. Wooden beams painted dark brown can be seen on the surfaces. The roofs are covered by red tiles.

In the middle of the village lies the village square. There is a small, round and unadorned fountain here and two to four local merchants gather on the square each day to sell food and clothing to the villagers. The only public buildings are the town hall and the tavern of the broken keg, both located at the square.

The elves will not be welcome in the village and will be engaged by a scared local militia if they do approach the villagers. They villagers will be scared out of their wits and will employ ranged tactics like hiding behind their tower shields while drawing their crossbows. Then they stand upright, partially hidden behind their shields, and launch their bolts. Their skill is not terribly great.

If the elves charge the militia, most of the militiamen will flee in panic. If the hexenjaegers are in town (late afternoon/evening) they will follow the militia and will not flee. Instead they will use the confusion to ambush any bloodthirsty elf (i.e. the shadowdancers) following the fleeing militiamen.

The eastern Abbey hillside:
Eight black rams graze along the road here. They are large creatures, maybe five feet at their shoulders. They retreat from anyone closing in on them, even elves, and seem strangely fey.

The rams are the witchesâ animals and can be called upon by their owners. On the night of a full moon the rams gain the ability to run on the winds and talk. On rare occasions the coven rides nude to the witches Sabbath astride their rams, as witches are wont to do.

The Garden of the Abbey:
The garden is in a serious state of neglect. The grass has grown tall and small bushes and trees are growing everywhere. The statues circle, of the fifteen saints, is covered in bird droppings. The inscriptions on the statues cannot be seen anymore, having been totally covered by weed.

The hexenjaegers can be sometimes be found sneaking through the garden at night.

Scene: (night time) the garden is filled with ravens. Amidst the ravens walks a lone lady. She is softly singing to herself. Or is she singing to the ravens? After a few minutes of singing, she exits the garden through a door into the abbey.

Scene: (full moon) a large bonfire has been lit in the centre of the gardens. A pregnant and repulsive old hag is throwing small items (dung beetles) into the bonfire. The other witches stand in a circle around her holding hands. There are a total of seven witches all wearing red robes with red, crescent moon necklaces around their necks. A shrill scream climaxes the chant they are performing, and the centre figure faints. She is shortly thereafter carried inside the abbey by the scared and panicking women.

Scene: (dawn, unless it is the night of a full moon) A large man, hoofed but walking erect, enters the garden. His head is bearded and he has large curved horns, at least two feet long, protruding from his forehead. He is nude with only a reed pan flute hanging from a thin, worn rope around his neck.

Right behind him is an old, ugly crone. She is apparently pregnant and the couple stops outside a large window. They seem to argue in agitated whispers and then the beast howls and starts dragging the woman after him. The woman utters a syllable and her hand becomes black and smouldering and she rests her hand on his wrist. With a horrible roar he lets her go and shakes his head. Then they hesitate for a moment before hugging each other. The crone remains while the beast descends the garden well.

After a minute several half naked women appear and look around. They all start to question the pregnant crone who whisper something then withdraw inside.

The Abbey cellars:
The cellars have a low ceiling and even lower doorways.

The wine cellar:
Huge amounts of wine have been hoarded in this cellar. The walls are lined with the fine vintages of the abbey. The wine supply seems to be dated from before six years ago and no newer wine is present. One chamber has had its wine partially replaced with empty bottles.

The abbey archives:
This small chamber has had its walls covered with bookshelves. Within these shelves scrolls have been placed.

The scrolls are mainly records of purchases and written records of unusual activity. Three passages detail the coming of the red coven: (The seer will know they are here if her visions have not been rendered useless by herbal potions)

"Shultar the eight day of the month Kaldamar, Aahr 972 after the landfall:
Today the strangest of women paid the abbess a visit. She claimed to be a member of a powerful order of sisters dedicated to divinations and healing. While I sensed that she was untrustworthy, there was also a ring of truth to her words. I did not like the looks of that woman but the abbess says I am too suspicious of strangers."

"Tirendil the seventeenth day of the month Arbanagh, Aahr 972 after the landfall:
The strange woman came by today. Her wolf fur cloak was coated with snow and she was cold and sick. The abbess bade sister Magda and I take care of her and nurse her back to health."

"Tirendil the third day of the month Dhaarnaz, Aahr 972 after the landfall:
The abbess passed away today. The plague has taken everyone now, except sister Magda and me. In a matter of days this strange affliction has decimated our order. Our spells donât work and we are left defenceless. My strength is now leaving me and I fear I shall fall victim to the plague as the other sisters have. I pray to Fhalgharod for mercy and that he will protect poor Magda. The plague cost the use of her eyes and now she will soon be left all alone. I know that the ungodly woman we nursed is responsible for this. I could feel her weave her blasphemous spells when she thought us asleep. The abbess would hear none of it though and I was forbidden to talk to her. The sanctity of the abbey has been ruined now and I will retreat to the hidden sanctum where I will die close to my god."

The prophecy of the coming saviour can be found within this chamber, as can the prophecy of the dark war. (Relevant in the third and second campaigns)

Scene: (if the elves rest in the cellar) the hilltop was a sacrificial site in the ancient days before the rise and fall of Bluethon. The wards of Fhalgharod banished the pagan spirits that haunted the hilltop but now that the wards are gone, they have returned. Within the cellar wanders a spirit known as a rune wraith. In life they were chieftains and shamans of their tribes who failed to administer the law of their tribes. They were corrupt and were damned for it, cursed to forever walk the earth and judge the living.

The air grows chill and there is a strange tingling through the flesh of the elves. Dark shadows dance on the walls and the shadowdancers growl, their demonic senses alerted to some unseen presence. Suddenly a vaguely humanoid shape materializes. It is composed of translucent dark mist, a rune wraith. Its face bears a cold, emotionless expression. It will stare intensely at all the characters, one at a time. If engaged it will do battle draining the life force of its victims with its gaze and killing with its touch. It will not attack those that restrain themselves. If left alone, it might tattoo a rune into the chest of one random character before disappearing. The tattoo will reflect the soul and actions of the chosen individual and will be a boon if the character has been true to his cause and a bane if he has not. Regardless of the nature of the rune; it will bring searing pain to the bearer whenever he is in the presence of a rune wraith.

The hidden sanctum:
A small altar with fifteen small statuettes (the fifteen holy saints of Fhalgharod) on has been placed against the far wall in this room. In front of the altar lays the skeletal remains of a human clutching a medallion (the holy symbol of Fhalgharod). A lion face relief has been carved into the wall above the altar and from its mouth runs cold water (healing and cures any non-magical disease). The chamber is dimly illuminated by a crystal ball resting atop a shelf on the wall (provides light. Any individual peering into it will feel inner calm if of good alignment or feel uneasy if of evil alignment).

A sword has been inserted into a custom made slot in the altar. Its hilt is the only part showing and is made of polished ivory with a pommel of polished steel (although some dust covers it now). If drawn they will see that it is a bastard sword with a blade of polished steel and the ricasso has a rune engraved (Rune for courage). It is a beautiful weapon and one that the followers of Fhalgharod believe to be blessed by their deity. It is not magical however, but in the hands of a true believer it will bolster his skill as well as the damage he does. It is considered a lesser relic by the church of Fhalgharod and is called "Sun's searing".

A hatch leads through the ceiling and into tunnels beneath the abbey. The coven does not know of these tunnels, except Famina who knows that there is something down there but now what. Only Magda and Inuus know the tunnel network and Inuus use the tunnels to reach Famina so he can mate with her.

The abbey interior:
The abbey interior is lavish and filled with expensive carpets, extravagant furniture and silver candelabras. Huge paintings of the fourteen abbesses that have served within the abbey adorn the entrance hall. Landscape paintings adorn the other chambers throughout the abbey. The walls are made of bricks, as are the fireplaces and stairways.

The abbey has fallen into a serious state of disrepair and cobwebs and dust adorn almost any room. The rooms are inhabited though, so cobweb wonât block doorways and windows. Some of the witches do not care for dust and cobweb and has cleaned their rooms.

The witches roam the abbey at will and thus there are no scenes for meeting the witches inside. Use their description and reason instead.

The abbey east wing:
The abbey east wing is reserved for dining and guests. Currently the envoy from Bin-Erek and his manservant occupy two of the rooms. Their sacrifice has been locked within a third room whose window opens towards the south side of the cliff. The envoy is enraged that he has had to spend almost a week here now and the hags still wonât see him. If the elves chance to listen they will hear him venting his anger on his manservant. After dusk he will be drinking heavily and complaining as usual. His manservant wonât be present though and will be sitting in his room reading letters of romance from Tatiana, a girl from the border city of Ohenaakar. He asked her father for her hand before he departed for the abbey and is longing for his return.

The abbey west wing:
The bedrooms of the coven members are located here. This is also where the elder witch lies sick in her bed. She occupies the room formerly belonging to the abbess of the convent.

Nightmares come to life: The elder witch is bedridden, dying of some unknown disease. This disease is in reality a poison and hails from the Dorwale black thorn. While out gathering herbs, the elder witch stung herself on this dreaded and extremely rare plant. Its poison brings slow, wasting death filled with nightmares. This time a strange twist of fate has increased the potency of the venom. The elder witch employs a strange necklace, the elderâs dream pearl necklace, to project herself into the dreams of otherâs. Thus she has visited young Lathia and tormented her.

The necklace has one property she is unaware of; it can project the dreamscape of the wearer unto reality. Thus the wearer could project a ghostly image of herself to any known place. Unfortunately this only applies if the wearer knows what he is doing and is in control of himself via meditation or the like. The elder is neither in control nor does she know what she is doing. She has fevered nightmares induced by a cruel poison and she triggers the necklace unconsciously.

Her dreams have brought her back to her childhood and reunited her with her abusive dad. She is constantly on the run throughout the convent, the dreams merging with reality.

Thus the elves may encounter a frail ghostly girl running screaming through the halls of the abbey. She might run straight through a character, resulting in his bodily temperature dropping a couple of degrees. Behind her comes her dad; wearing a thick cape and a hat with a buckle on, much like a pilgrimâs hat. His form seems immense and ghostly shimmering. Off goes his belt and he will run after the terrified girl lashing wildly with the belt. The characters will probably get hit by the belt and will lose the use of any limbs hit for the next couple of hours due to the cold. In addition the cold will result in some frost injuries. Then the pair will get out of sight and disappear. Shortly thereafter they will hear a heartbroken scream fading into miserable sobs. The ghost cannot be found now, having faded away. The sobs will linger though as will random screams of pain. Attacks wonât affect the ghostly projections but might make the elder witch scream. These ghosts wonât be met outside of the west wing.

These ghosts are the reason for the fear in the witchesâ coven.

The abbessâs room: This room is larger than the others and will contain the sick elder witch (see description). She wears a pearl suspended from a golden necklace on the inside of her white nightgown. The elder witch favours white and especially white linen.

Beside her bed is a silver tray with a china cup and can. The can is filled with tea which is warm at dusk and dawn. The tea contains a soothing herb which calms the fever and nightmares. Thus the characters wonât meet any ghosts at dusk or dawn when the elder is fed by her friend Dara.

Sample west wing noises:
No other noises than the screaming of the elder can be heard during the projected nightmares.

#1: The elves hear a piano being played somewhere ahead. Someone seems to be singing along but the song does not match the melody at all. While the piano is being played by a true master, the singer often misses the tones and ruins any pleasure they might have had from listening.

#2: The elves hear a glass breaking followed by the enraged howl of a human female. âYou imbecile canât you do anything properly?â the voice will scream. Then they will hear someone slapping someone and a frustrated scream. Then silence.

#3: Several female voices can be heard snickering and laughing. "Bring your boy Lathia, let us see you two lovebirds dance". The voice belongs to an obviously young female. Many other voices laugh at this and someone can be heard running away.

Other: The cast has enough notes to create a dynamic scene outside as well as inside the abbey. Study the cast and roleplay.

Notes:
-The witch hunters/hexenjaegers are prowling through the surrounding are at night. They will consider the elves as enemies but wonât attack until they are at a disadvantage. Remember that the elves are masters of stealth and might not be noticed by the hunters.
-The witches are panicking. The elder is dying, the second elder is pregnant and faints during divinations and the last elder is eating herself to death.
-The goal is not to slay the women nor raid to the abbey. The goal is to get the dagger.
-If the characters ever let their guard down, make sure they regret that decision.
-This is not a combat oriented mission. Remember atmosphere. Sounds, weather, description, emotion and voice acting. Remember them all. Engage every player and bring the game to a personal level.