CURSED VILLAGE | CURSED VILLAGE p1 [FREE]

FORGOTTEN PLACES CYCLE
Sometimes adventures take on an epic scale - in almost every game the heroes go to new places, meet new people, fight new monsters, and get more unique treasures. But it's good not to overuse it. Over time you realize that more does not mean better. Quick fights and fast-paced events should give a chance to something small, but eventful and dense.

In this cycle, you will find unique detailed locations and stories around it. All you need to do is to come up with your own story for your heroes, using ideas from the cycle adventures, and hit the road.

CURSED VILLAGE ADVENTURE
Shadows lengthen over the local villages, far from civilization. Strange signs and happenings herald the coming of evil. The elders say that the powers of these lands are slowly fading and when their time comes, something terrible will happen. Whether the heroes believe the tales of the wise ones or not, one thing is certain - something is really going on. And now they have an opportunity to find out what it is because the strangeness of the local land begins to repeat itself and form a pattern. And while the locals' minds become increasingly clouded, the heroes pack their backpacks, sharpen their swords, and set out to find the source of all the troubles.

HOOKS
The heroes may come to these places accidentally, fulfilling a more important mission. They may also have good reasons for being here, and then the GM can be sure that none of them will run away, being afraid of the strangeness of these lands, but will want to finish the quest. Who knows, maybe destiny will reward the heroes for their services in the end?

POSSIBLE CLUES
1. An old friend of the heroes went to these lands and never returned.
2. A wise man from the local village promises the heroes a lot of gold for solving the mystery of these lands.
3. The baron, who wants to get rid of the heroes, gives them a task beyond their strength - to solve the mysteries on the outskirts of its territory.
4. The seers describe this place as one of many vaults of the evil that is about to break out.
5. The king's heir has been kidnapped and hidden in these lands.
6. The local druid community is in panic - the ancient spirits are leaving these lands. Who knows what this could turn into and what's behind it?

HARBINGERS OF THE STORM
Finding themselves among the local villages, forests, and lakes, the heroes will feel a strange force surrounding not only all life around them but themselves as well.
Misty mind. Residents of the local villages behave extremely strangely - some of them do not understand where they are, wandering around, performing the same actions over and over again, while others suffer from an unknown disease. All of them can answer questions and talk to the heroes as if nothing happened, without seeing any weirdness around them.
Strange forces. Not only people but also the nature around them behave strangely. A flock of birds may attack the strangers who have not yet surrendered to the mistiness of the mind, or rain down dead from the sky. The fallen trees will form a bizarre pattern and the forest monsters will roam the streets, as if they were blind, sniffing out disobedient heroes. The dead will rise from their graves and events of the past days will repeat over and over again in a circle.
There is no way out. Strange and disturbing feelings may affect the heroes. Their fears will intensify and their emotions will take over common sense. They will feel the approach of the madness, increasingly striking their minds, and they cannot ignore its first sign. No matter how hard the heroes try, they cannot find their way back out of these lands.

ALL ROADS LEAD EAST
Playing along with the local oddities and looking for their source, the heroes will discover certain patterns.
1. A found map of the area will reveal existence of the village of Blinkwood on the edge of the forest, about which none of the locals remember at all.
2. The patterns appearing in the fields and formed from the vegetation will tell the heroes about direction of the strange magical forces, coming from the same place (Blinkwood village).
3. The local peasants can tell about relatives who once went east (towards the lost village of Blinkwood), but never came back (each of them will have their own reason for this confusion).
4. All forest creatures will always come from the east side.
5. At night, the heroes may notice strange flickers in the sky, the brightest and most frequent of which will be on the eastern side.
6. After performing a ritual to the local spirits, the heroes will hear a strange whisper. If the heroes try to delve into it, they will be horrified - dozens of people beg for help and ask to find them.

There seems to be no reason for the heroes to stay here. If they want to help the locals and do what they have in mind, they need to head east, through the Forest of Elders, to the village of Blinkwood.