Morden's Bridge Story ideas

After the battle with the bounty hunters the party is beat up and in need of rest. Plan a minor encounter for them after camping as they get back on the road. Maybe a party of traders or soldiers that they can interact with in a non combat way. Soldiers from Penthos?   The piece of paper found on the Tiefling bounty hunter. The bounty hunter’s name is Blade Brasserelon. He had business cards on him and clearly thought he was going to be a big deal. The bounty notice is clearly for Vom Fass and lists several crimes he has committed over the last year. “Removal of property worth 14 wolves heads in ferartowne, Removal of property worth 56 wolves heads in Kierkewoode, Physical humiliation on the personage of a cleric of Kierkelon, Theft of an artifact in a temple of Corsun, Insulting a member of house Nuxhall, Insulting a member of House Quail, Removal of property worth 43 wolves heads in ....”   The piece of paper found on the Goliath’s bodies reads “ By demand of the Kingdom of Crossing Sun and Stars, By the Queen of the realm whom controls all of the Desert of Tanzarian and outlying land on the continent of Ventenheim in accordance of the laws of said realm the Queen demands the return of the princess Mewtoolian Moon in Ink Stars in Black pool reflecting on Night Sky. Use this bounty to remove said Royal personage and return her to her ancestral homelands whole and intact. She is wanted for crimes against the realm.”   You spend the rest of the day camping and resting. Around 4 pm a large battalion of soldiers can be seen marching down the nearby trail. A quick glance at the group as it marches closer reveals 25 soldiers on a practice march. Perception check DC 16 reveals that they are soldiers from Penthos. It is possible to converse with the captain and he would tell them that they are on a routine patrol guarding the area against different goblin groups.   As we approach Morden’s bridge you see lights up ahead and a few structures in the distance. Morden’s bridge’s Corsunalia is still under way just like Tellenor’s but it is more muted not quite as frenetic. Morden’s bridge is a smaller town about half the size of Tellenor but seems to be relatively peaceful. Still several hundred yards from town proper you pass by a large building under construction. The building looks to be about a century old and the stone is moss covered and weather beaten. Hayes, you remember this place, you used to play here as a child. It’s an old jail built a long time ago and had fallen into to disrepair. you never saw it in use. Four men are cutting and placing large wooden beams inside the structure and rebuilding the roof and one man is moving large iron bars into the interior of the structure. The man moving the bars looks up at your strange party and does a double take. Finally his eyes settle on the cleric. “Hopper?! Hey man! How’s it going? Didn’t think you would ever come back to this place!” Hayes, you send the rest of the party up to town proper and let them know to meet you at the Cobbleton Inn later that morning. you know the owner and you are pretty sure you can get a free room if any are available. Tell the owner that Blizzard hops sent you.   Blizzard Hops - You continue your conversation with an old childhood friend by the name of Biggs. “So how did the academy treat you? Where did you get assigned?” Continue conversation until Biggs informs Hops of the reason for fixing up the jail. Two townsfolk have been murdered brutally in town and the town elders suspect a murderer may be loose. The wounds look like stab wounds from a dagger, although Biggs says he overheard a guard say bite marks, and the town is trying to act normal for the Corsunalia festivities. The festival brings in quite a bit of coin and is important to the economy. Hopper is asked to investigate and help the town. "Hey, this kind of thing is right up your alley isn't that what you do as a cleric of Eigeralon? Also these um, friends of yours look pretty tough. Can you help us out?"   Karnak - As the party slowly walks into town and splits apart you notice a shop that just opened up. An older dwarf gently moves some beautiful glass sculptures into view for any traders or festival goers. A pleasant memory of your family passes through your mind, many of your family worked in the glass guild in your dwarven homeland. Not the most prestigious of guilds but your uncles and grandfather took great pride in it anyway. You walk into the shop and the old Dwarf hails you “Ho! Nice to see a familiar face! What brings you to this town so far from the dwarven lands?” He talks with you about his background and how he wound up in Morden’s Bridge. He was assigned a job as a young dwarf working the docks as merchant ships came in to pick up dwarven crafts and raw materials. Eventually he sailed with the East Tellenheim Trading Company to pick up a load of gems in Felos. His lust for adventure caused him to just keep going, after trying his hand at adventuring he found he didn’t have the heart or the skill for it so he learned glass blowing and settled in Morden’s Bridge.“ If I may, i see you are dressed fairly simply with very little metal. Found a bit of the Druid have you? I haven’t seen a Dwarven Druid in years” Karnak should ask in a round about way about his mother or a Dwarven woman who has natural abilities. The old Dwarf mentions a story he heard about a dwarf who could change into an animal out west. A town not far from Dagger Cat Pass, a town called Brother’s Bond. As you walk out of the building and head back to the festival you hear the old dwarf call you back one more time. He holds a spear and hands it to you. “you know I found this thing years ago, I used to be an adventurer for a short stint before i took an arrow to the knee. Never wound up using it, but you might. Good luck.”   Vorsalia - you keep your hood up and wander through the streets, avoiding the majority of the crowd and keeping to the edges. A young woman smiles at you and hands you a stick with meat and vegetables on it, she says it’s on the house and that you look like you might need it. you notice for the first time how hungry you are and how good it smells, cooked meat with actual spices is something you haven’t tasted in months. Roll nature check to make sure it’s good pure food (it is). Plus as a drow it feels good to have a stranger treat you as normal and not stop and stare or walk by real fast. You finish your tiny meal and begin to make your way to the large building you assume is the inn mentioned by Hops. ( Or whereever you want to go.) All of a sudden you feel a prickling on the back of your neck and you freeze. The voice says "I hope you liked the package i sent you. Be seeing you soon, can't wait to begin working together...Sister..." Do you do anything? Roll an Arcana check DC(16). It is a Sending spell the sender could be from anywhere. You can reply (if you make the arcana check). You are starting to think the frog creature was sent for you specifically. Roll a nature check again DC 17 - to determine if it’s a Banderhobb or not. You could always try to do some research in the library.   Cog - Once again in civilization you have warm new memories of Tellenheim and being treated as a living being. The Corsunalia festival lights and sounds feel familiar and welcoming. Most everyone stands and stares at you as you walk by and as guards approach you warily you gently point to your symbol from the wizard. It feels good to point at it and feel a bit more like one of the meat bags you are so intrigued with. Roll a DC 15 Perception check. If passed Cog sees a young man and a woman leading him into the woods. As a warforged you have no idea what to make of that activity, you make a mental note to ask a party member later. A small boy offers you a sticky bun, fascinated by your metal and your fun Knight Rider eye lights. As you decline he runs off to tell his dad about meeting you. Suddenly You feel a small tug in your chest pointing you towards a small clump of trees a ways away, you walk in that direction. As you wander a bit out of town and away from the townspeople the scene changes. You get close to the wooded area to the east and Your scanning HUD feels muted on the edges and blurry and a figure begins to appear not far from you. A voice says inside your head “Protect against this one, protect your friends, save innocents...”. It trails off Roll an Insight Check (DC 15). If passed you feel the voice is on your side, feels good. The figure in front of you is still blurry but is forming. It draws two blades and colors begin to form. It is a blue elven figure, but bright blue skin not like a drow and the ears are much to long. It’s hair is bright white and it’s eyes glow yellow. It attacks (make attack roll) Make Dex Check (DC17). Mike can make an attack roll here. Keep the battle going until Mike makes contact. He needs an attack roll of 17 and the vision kind of separates into dots. The vision ends and mike’s sword arm has impaled a tree. His HUD goes back to normal.   Mew - As you move into the crowd the urge to pick pocket a few merchants is hard to ignore. You move with your standard grace and staying at the edges of peoples peripheral vision just like you were taught. You keep your hood low and your mask concealed. You can make some sleight of hand checks. DC15 in this crowd is a success. If failed do a quick Hide check. You notice a very attractive Tiefling only a few yards from you. Make a perception check. On a success you notice that he too has picked some pockets. He flashes a smile and a quick hand motion moves some coins around his knuckles in impressive fashion. He motions you to follow around a corner. you can follow or you can head to the inn that Hops mentioned. (If follows). You round the corner and you see the Tiefling leaning against a building. “you have an impressive technique, Tabaxi?” “ Are you currently affiliated with a guild?” Roll a DC 15 wisdom saving throw. If failed you feel compelled to hear his sales pitch on a new Thieves Guild. If you save you quickly feel an unnatural happiness wash over you and then you shake it off. Doesn’t feel nefarious but maybe a bit obtrusive. your hackles are raised. “The Abyssal Knife is a new guild you should check out, maybe come to a meeting?” “tonight under the bridge 10 pm, come alone”   Vom Fass - Are you walking into town as the kobold or as the gnome in the hat? If the gnome - you see a familiar looking Halfling getting off of a merchant carriage. history check DC 16 - You notice the carriage is from the Rodriguez hortalez trading company, one of the two major trade organizations on the continent. This little guy is connected and has some means. “Hey! Hat gnome! Did you get any of those dinosaurs? I need like 6 to start.” “No worries, I’ve got lots of ideas for new projects. Perfume using Dragon Turtle Ambergris, or a bard judging contest we just need ..." A sexy Gnome walks near Vom fass trying to get his attention. Have him make a DC20 perception check. (the Gnome is the Wolfwere trying to select him as a victim not knowing that he is a kobold) as he gets closer have him do a perception check to see if he notices her sniff and change her mind suddenly. (The wolfwere smells his kobold scent and is turned off)   [ Abyssal Knife meeting under the bridge if Necessary - If Mew goes alone she meets with the pretty Tiefling and a female Half-elf both of which are dressed in dark leather armor. Their attire looks really cool and definitely is used for thieving. They begin their sales pitch “Our new guild is setting up operation all over the region. Their is a head office in Lamborginus that you have to send 15 percent of your take to but you keep the rest. Best part? No rules, you can kill if you have to, and no rules on magic or other techniques you want to use.” They leave her with a metal chit with a skull and a knife imprinted on it, just show it to someone in the guild in Lamborginus to join. “Don’t worry, you don’t have to find us we will find you. You should join, it might be bad for you if you don’t.”]   [The creature carrying out the murders is a wolfwere that is living just outside of town. This creature takes multiple attractive forms and plays an instrument.]   The players can go shopping now during the day and get some gear. They convene in the tavern section of the inn by nightfall. They can use the day to get their long rest in. Biggs comes in and pleads with Hops to investigate the murders. There have been two in the last week so they are escalating. The boy Cog saw earlier has just been found dead in the woods. The party can check it out before the guards cover up the evidence to keep everyone calm. Hayes why don’t you split the party take Cog and Vorsalia to investigate the body. Send Karnak, Vom Fass and Mew to question people around town and find some clues. As the players investigate here are clues they can uncover from other townspeople or through investigating the area- The Body CSI - -Clump of strange hair caught in the fingernail of the boy. Ranger Investigation check DC 15 to determine the type. Roll again to check the area of the struggle. On a high enough check the Ranger could notice broken twigs and branches that may reveal a struggle between the boy and a larger creature. Probably not a human woman. -Cog investigation check DC 16 - drag marks look like something stronger than him or most people dragged him several hundred yards into the woods.

Hops investigation check DC 15 - looks like all of the damage is physical, no magical effects. A chunk of thigh is missing looks eaten. The killer or a passing animal?

The town investigators - -there are extra wolves around. (the Wolfwere will summon them during the fight later) -The last two victims both seemed happy because they had met someone. -There are strange bite marks on the bodies. Not quite human not quite wolf. -The lute. Multiple people have seen a man and a woman with the same lute several times over the last week. It’s strange because musical instruments are rare and people are very protective of them. This lute is dark teakwood with a bright gold and red pattern painted on the side. One person sees a pretty half-elven woman playing it. One person sees a human male playing it. Another person sees an attractive Halfling woman playing it.   Let's try to get one of the characters away from the group. Have them dash after a large wolf into the woods. A woman grabs Hops or the Dwarf and tries to get them to help her in a small clearing where it will transform and try to get a couple attacks before the group reconvenes. Mew possibly hears the lute in the woods, goes to investigate and the wolfwere plays the song of Lethargy.   [Medium monstrosity (shapechanger), chaotic evil   Armor Class 16 (natural armor) / Hit Points 76 Speed 40 ft.   Abilities Str 17 (+3), Dex 15 (+2), Con 15 (+2), Int 16 (+3), Wis 12 (+1), Cha 18 (+4)   Skills Deception +8, Perception +5, Performance +6, Stealth +6   Damage Immunities bludgeoning, piercing, and slashing from nonmagical attacks not made with iron weapons   Condition Immunities charmed   Senses passive Perception 15 Languages Common, Elvish Shapechanger. The wolfwere can use its action to polymorph into a wolf-humanoid hybrid or into a humanoid, or back into its true form, which is a large wolf. Its statistics are the same in each form. Any equipment it is wearing or carrying isn’t transformed. It reverts to its true form if it dies.   Keen Hearing and Smell. The wolfwere has advantage on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on hearing or smell.   Pack Tactics. The wolfwere has advantage on an attack roll against a creature if at least one of the wolfwere’s allies is within 5 feet of the creature and the ally isn’t incapacitated.   Spellcasting. The wolfwere is a 6th-level spellcaster. Its spellcasting ability is Charisma (spell save DC 14, +6 to hit with spell attacks). It has the following bard spells prepared:   Cantrips (at will): friends, prestidigitation, vicious mockery 1st level (4 slots): animal friendship, charm person, longstrider, speak with animals 2nd level (3 slots): detect thoughts, enthrall, hold person 3rd level (3 slots): fear, hypnotic pattern Actions   Multiattack (Humanoid or Hybrid Form Only). The wolfwere makes two attacks: one with its bite and one with its claws or mace, or two attacks with its mace.   Bite (Wolf or Hybrid Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. Hit: 7 (1d8 + 3) piercing damage. If the target is a creature, it must succeed on a DC 13 Strength check or be knocked prone.   Claws (Hybrid Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 8 (2d4 + 3) slashing damage.   Mace (Humanoid Form Only). Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one creature. Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) bludgeoning damage.   Song of Lethargy (Humanoid Form Only). The wolfwere absent-mindedly strums its instrument. Any creature within 60 feet of it that can hear it, must succeed on a DC 14 Wisdom saving throw or become magically charmed. While charmed in this way, the target can’t use reactions, its speed is halved, and it can’t make more than one attack on its turn. In addition, the target can take either an action or a bonus action on its turn, not both. These effects last for 1 minute. A target can repeat the saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success. If a creature succeeds on its saving throw or the effect ends for it, the creature is immune to the wolfwere’s Song of Lethargy for 24 hours.]   As the party defeats the wolfwere and the town guard rush over to help with the clean up. the party is greeted by the rest of the town as heroes for solving the murders and protecting the town. Need some rewards here plus a magical item to be found on the wolfwere body. Karnak - Spear of Returning +1 to hit ( from the old glass beard) Vorsalia - Quiver of Green Arrow (from a guard) Hops - 45 gold and 22 silver Mew - A small Haste Charm - casts haste on yourself once per day by pricking your finger on the tiny needle. In the shape of a tiny bat. Vom Fass - Crisp Tube ( from the RHC Merchant ) Cog - Three healing capsules that can be thrown 1d8 healing   Maybe time to have Vorsalia find an animal companion? notices a hawk flying around her. Or finds one injured?     Morden’s bridge itself is an amazing work of stone craft, large enough for 10 people to walk across at a time and looks to be ten foot thick stone with spans going into the water every twenty feet. It crosses the entirety of the river and spans almost 200 yards. On the sides of the bridge are friezes depicting battle scenes from ancient times. Most are pretty weather beaten but historians can still see what is going on. Plenty of archaeologists and scribes still come to Morden’s bridge to research.   as they leave town over the bridge they encounter a full battalion of soldiers from Lamborginus on patrol. Hops would know the sigil on their breastplates and banner. Enough to know not to trust them too much and to have heard the rumors of war possibly on the horizon. The captain calls them over to question them. “You cleric of Eigeralon, what is your business north of the mountains?” Though he comes across as hostile at first he means them no harm. If the party continues to talk with him he mentions some news and rumors heard about the area they are attempting to go to. They had a run in with some bugbears and saved a couple of human farmers who say there farm was attacked, but he hasn’t had time to look into it yet. He does take notice of the strange group of adventurers and tells them to stay out of trouble.