TEXT:  
   
   
  
  Introduction 
  The Lurker Beneath Red Larch is a Dungeons & 
  Dragons adventure designed to be completed 
  in about 4-6 hours of play. The combat 
  encounters have been calculated to present a 
  tough challenge to four 3rd level characters. 
  They will present a less difficult, though still 
  enjoyable, challenge to higher level characters 
  or larger parties.  
  Not every loose end is tied up in the following 
  text, nor every possible reaction accounted for. 
  Be ready to improvise, and do so with 
  confidence! 
  Unless stated otherwise, assume any NPCs are 
  human and have the stats of a commoner. 
  The Cast 
  Following are the key characters in this 
  adventure. 
  Aleena Ironsky 
  Aleena is the newly appointed Constable of 
  Red Larch. She is just 21 years old, with 
  fierce green eyes, shaggy blonde hair and a 
  lithe build. She has struggled to assert her 
  authority with the villagers, who don’t take 
  her seriously because of her age.  
  Grindol Farmoor 
  Grindol is a carpenter who has lived in Red 
  Larch for about a year, having moved there 
  from Triboar. He is 30 years old with large 
  blue eyes, close cropped dark hair and a thin 
  face. He is a private man and has no real 
  friends in the village. 
  Kali Brightsong 
  Kali is a popular street performer in Red 
  Larch. She sings, juggles and tells jokes and 
  stories. She supplements her income with a 
  bit of sewing and gardening on the side. Kali 
  is about 50, with short grey hair, smiling eyes 
  and a wrinkled face. 
  A Murder 
  Our heroes are in Red Larch and have just 
  entered the Helm at Highsun tavern. Read the 
  following –  
  Ribbons of blood dance through the air, 
  tracing wide crimson arcs before splintering 
  apart into thousands upon thousands of 
  bright red droplets. The cheerful tavern 
  atmosphere evaporates in a moment, rent 
  apart by screams and cries. 
  A woman with grey hair stands near the bar, 
  grasping at the dagger in her throat with 
  fingers made slippery by blood. She sways and 
  collapses. More screams. 
  A man stands before her. He is holding the hilt 
  of the dagger, but lets it slip from a gory hand 
  as the woman falls. He freezes for a moment, 
  then spins and sprints away, knocking aside 
  people as he goes.  
  A young, flaxen-haired woman stands up at 
  the back of the room and cries out, “Stop him! 
  Stop him!” as he approaches the entrance – 
  the entrance where you and your comrades 
  are standing.  
  What do you do? 
  The running man is Grindol Farmoor. He is 
  unarmed, so the PCs should be able to easily 
  grapple him to the ground if they choose.  
  Deputies 
  A moment later the flaxen-haired woman, 
  Aleena Ironsky, runs out of the tavern. If the 
  PCs subdued Grindol, Aleena will thank them, 
  and then ask them to help her take Grindol to 
  the lockup.  
  If the PCs let Grindol through, then Aleena will 
  tackle him just a few yards from the tavern. 
  She will look at the PCs, identify herself as the 
  constable, and demand that they help her take 
  
  Grindol in. If the PCs still refuse, the 
  adventure is over.  
  If the PCs help Aleena, she will lead them to 
  the “lockup”, which is actually just a small 
  garden shed behind the butcher’s shop, with a 
  barred window and a padlock on the door. 
  There, Grindol will be safely locked away. He 
  seems stunned and says nothing, even if 
  questioned closely. 
  After that, Aleena will formally deputize the 
  PCs. This murder is the biggest matter she has 
  dealt with while deputy, and she needs some 
  assistance. If the PCs won’t willingly help, she 
  will inform them that village ordinances mean 
  they are obliged to assist her. She can’t really 
  force them, however, and if they persist in 
  refusing then the adventure is over. 
  If they ask about payment, she looks glum – 
  she has barely enough money to live on 
  herself. However, she believes one of the village 
  patrons may be willing to offer a reward – she 
  will look into it. Unless reminded, Aleena will 
  forget about this request. 
  Why does Aleena trust them? 
  For this adventure to work Aleena needs to 
  put a fair bit of trust in the PCs. You need to 
  find a good reason for this trust to exist. Here 
  are some suggestions –  
   News of their last adventure reached her 
  ears, and convinced her that they were 
  honorable people 
   One of the PCs grew up in Red Larch, and 
  has a good reputation with the locals 
   The party did Aleena a small favour of some 
  kind when they first came to the village 
   Aleena and one of the PCs grew up in the 
  same city, and vaguely knew one another 
  Another good way to handle this is to get the 
  PCs to participate in the narrative 
  development. Pick someone and ask them to 
  explain how their character knows Aleena 
  and why she trusts them. 
  Just the Facts 
  Aleena takes the PCs back to the Helm to do 
  some preliminary investigation. The murdered 
  woman (whose body is still there) is Kali 
  Brightsong, a popular local street performer.  
  Many people from the village have gathered at 
  the Helm by the time the PCs and Aleena 
  arrive. They are angry and some want to hang 
  Grindol immediately.  
  A large number of people saw Grindol plunge 
  the knife into Kali’s throat. Aleena listens to 
  their stories and takes the murder weapon, 
  wrapping it in a cloth. She then calms the mob 
  down by telling them she will be going to fetch 
  the magistrate the next day. 
  As the crowd disperses, Imdarr Relvaundar, 
  the local priest of Tempus, says he will take 
  care of the body. Aleena asks the PCs to come 
  and see her at the lockup the next morning. 
  You may assume the PCs are staying at the 
  Swinging Sword overnight. 
  On Your Own 
  The next morning, Aleena hands the PCs the 
  key to the lockup. She has to go and get the 
  magistrate, Harburk Tuthmarillar - who also 
  happens to be the former constable. Harburk 
  now has a turnip farm and lives some distance 
  out of Red Larch. Aleena will not be back until 
  the afternoon of the following day. 
  The lockup does not need to be watched 
  during the day as the butcher’s family keep an 
  eye on it, and also feed the prisoner (a hunk of 
  bread through the barred window). But Aleena 
  would like at least one of the PCs stay in the 
  small room she rents from the butcher 
  overnight, just in case there is some kind of 
  trouble in the dark hours.  
  Aleena says the PCs are free to investigate the 
  case further, though she believes it is a 
  straight-forward matter and Grindol will hang 
  in a few days. Just before she leaves she says, 
  “When the magistrate comes, make sure you 
  say nice things about Red Larch. He is very 
  parochial.” 
  
  Investigation 
  The PCs may choose to do nothing until 
  Aleena returns, in which case skip to the 
  conclusion. But it’s more likely they will do 
  some investigation.  
  Talking to Grindol 
  Grindol will be in a much more talkative mood 
  this morning. He is very upset and will insist 
  that he didn’t want to hurt Kali, and that he 
  can’t understand why he stabbed her.  
  In conversation, he will tell the PCs the 
  following information –  
   He left Triboar a year ago after his wife 
  died of an illness. He came to Red Larch to 
  start a new life 
   He is a carpenter by trade, and has been 
  doing odd-jobs around the village 
   He has struggled to make friends here 
   He started having nightmares some time 
  ago, of a cloaked figure whispering violent 
  suggestions to him 
   About two months ago he moved into 
  Nightwall Cottage. It was abandoned, so he 
  decided to take possession and renovate it 
   If asked whether the nightmares started 
  after he moved into the cottage, he will 
  pause a moment, then say "yes" 
  More Red Larch 
  Red Larch is a village of about 600 people 
  that lies on the Long Road, roughly midway 
  between Waterdeep and Triboar. If you would 
  like more detail about Red Larch, the D&D 
  adventure Princes of the Apocalypse 
  contains a map of the village and several 
  pages detailing a large number of the 
  inhabitants and buildings. 
  Talking to the Villagers 
  The PCs may decide to make some general 
  enquiries around the village. One obvious 
  place to go would be back to the tavern. Meals 
  are served throughout the day, so there are 
  always a few people there. The PCs might also 
  want to visit the village crossroads where there 
  is usually a bit of traffic, or they might 
  randomly enter a shop and begin talking to the 
  proprietor or customers. 
  The sidebar box titled The People of Red 
  Larch gives details about some of the NPCs 
  the party might encounter around the village.  
  The following information should emerge from 
  conversations with these NPCs. If your players 
  are inexperienced, you might have one helpful 
  NPC give them all of the information with only 
  a bit of prompting. If your players are more 
  experienced, you will probably want to split 
  the information between NPCs, and make the 
  PCs work harder to obtain it.  
  Here is the information -   
   Kali has lived in the village for many years 
  and is very popular 
   Kali has no family in the village, but many 
  friends 
   Grindol has only been in Red Larch for 
  about a year. He is seen as an outsider 
  and not much liked 
   No-one knows why Grindol would kill Kali 
   Grindol is a good carpenter, and has done 
  work for a number of villagers 
   Grindol recently moved into a rundown 
  house called Nightwall Cottage on the 
  eastern side of the village. He was 
  repairing it 
   Nightwall Cottage has a bad reputation - 
  people don't stay there long, and some 
  have even disappeared 
   Nightwall Cottage had been abandoned for 
  about five years when Grindol moved in 
   The cottage was built by Randall 
  Nightwall, who was a creepy hermit and 
  very unpopular with the rest of the 
  villagers. He was run out of Red Larch 
  twenty years ago after he was discovered 
  interfering with corpses  
   When the PCs meet the magistrate, they 
  should say nice things about Red Larch as 
  he is very parochial.  
  
  The People of Red Larch 
  Following are some of the people the PCs 
  might encounter about the village - 
   Garlen Harlathel – the jovial though greedy 
  proprietor of the Helm at Highsun tavern. He 
  has sharp brown eyes, coarse blonde hair, a 
  plain face, and a gangly build.  
   Imdarr Relvaundar – a rather stern priest 
  of Tempus. He has short brown hair, a thin 
  face, and a large build. 
   Helver Tarnlar – a clothier with a haughty 
  disposition. He has beady grey eyes, greasy 
  brown hair, and a slender build. 
   Jalessa Ornra – the butcher. She has warm 
  blue eyes, slick red hair, and a lined face. 
  She is a nervous woman, and becomes 
  angry when put under pressure. 
   Ilmeth Waelver – a sullen and selfish 
  wainwright. He has wide blue eyes, fine 
  black hair, and a craggy face. 
   Kaylessa Irkell – the sturdy and pleasant 
  proprietor of the Swinging Sword inn. She 
  has gentle grey eyes, wooly black hair and a 
  stout build. 
  Lise Buckthorn 
  Sometime in the afternoon, the party will be 
  approached by a tiny old woman with sad eyes 
  and wispy white hair. She will introduce 
  herself as Lise Buckthorn.  
  She has heard that the PCs are investigating 
  the death of Kali, and she wanted to talk to 
  them. Ten years ago her husband, Dale 
  Buckthorn, was sentenced to hang in Red 
  Larch for stabbing a young man to death. Lise 
  insists that Dale was a gentle old man, and 
  had no reason to commit the murder.  
  A few months before the murder, Dale and Lise 
  had moved into Nightwall Cottage. They both 
  began having strange and violent nightmares. 
  Lise believes the cottage is cursed, and blames 
  it for her husband’s crime. 
  As it happened, her husband was never 
  executed - he escaped the night before his 
  hanging. Lise swears that she hasn’t seen him 
  in the ten years since, and she believes he 
  must be dead.  
  Lynch Mob 
  If one or more of the PCs stay in the butchers 
  back room that night, they will be woken in 
  early hours of the morning by the sound of 
  someone clumsily creeping around outside. 
  When they investigate they will find Ilmeth 
  Waelver the wainwright, along with a group of 
  four other people. They are trying to force open 
  the door of the lockup. One of them is holding 
  a rope with a noose. 
  The PCs will need to either intimidate or 
  persuade the small lynch mob to return to 
  their homes and let justice take its natural 
  course. 
  Nightwall Cottage 
  If the PCs have done even a small amount of 
  investigation, they should conclude that there 
  is something strange going on in Nightwall 
  Cottage. The cottage itself lies on the eastern 
  edge of the village, on the Cairn Road. It is 
  rather decrepit looking, though there is 
  evidence of the repairs that Grindol has been 
  undertaking. 
  See the map on page 11. One square = 5’. 
  1. Main Room 
  This room has a broken table, a few chairs, an 
  old iron stove in the corner and a new broom 
  leaning against the wall. Most of the room is 
  quite dusty, though parts of the floor have 
  been recently swept. There is a pile of wood in 
  the corner.  
  The contains a sack of flour, a bottle of oil and 
  a small barrel of ale, alongside a pair of 
  sausages hanging from the roof. The sausages 
  are covered with flies. 
   
  
  2. Bedroom 
  The floor of this room has been swept very 
  clean. An old bed with fresh linen lies against 
  one wall. A spare set of clothes sits on the end 
  of the bed. 
  On the wall hang a number of tools, including 
  a frame saw, a plane, a mallet and chisel, 
  some dividers, a straight edge and a pouch of 
  nails.  
  A successful DC 15 Wisdom (Perception) 
  check will find a small purse hidden in the bed 
  frame. It holds 35sp and a copper locket 
  containing a portrait of a dark haired young 
  lady. 
  Dark Whispers. Determine which PC has the 
  lowest wisdom score, and secretly tell them 
  that they are starting to hear a menacing 
  whisper inside their head. The whisper says 
  destructive and violent things such as – 
   You don’t belong here 
   You are going to die 
   I’m coming to hurt you 
   These people are not your friends 
   Get them before they get you! 
   Run or die! 
  These whispers will continue for as long as the 
  PC is in the house or the caverns beneath. 
  They will vary in intensity, sometimes barely 
  noticeable, and other times filling the PCs 
  head. Every now and again, tell the PC that 
  they can’t help but verbally repeat one of the 
  whispers. 
  If the PC obtains the holy symbol of a good 
  deity, they will no longer be affected by the 
  dark whispers. 
  3. Spare Room 
  The door to this room sticks a little and 
  creaks. The room is full of cobwebs and there 
  is thick dust on the floor.  
  There is an old writing desk and stool on one 
  side of the room and a trapdoor in the 
  southwest corner. 
  Desk. The desk contains three old and 
  crumbling books. The titles are –  
   A Wanderer in the Spirit Lands 
   The Signature of All Things 
   The Forbidden Rites of Death Magick 
  A DC 15 Intelligence (Arcana) check will 
  identify these as necromantic texts. 
  Trapdoor. The trapdoor has an iron ring and 
  opens with some difficulty. Below it is a set of 
  steep wooden stairs leading down 15’ to the 
  basement.  
  4. Basement 
  The walls of the basement are earthen, but the 
  floor is covered with old wooden planks. It is 
  filthy, covered with stone, dirt and old wood. 
  There is a chest against one wall, with a foul 
  stench coming from it. 
  Chest. If the PCs approach the chest, it begins 
  shaking, and there is the sound of something 
  rattling inside it. Opening the chest will 
  require a crowbar or a DC 10 Strength check. 
  When it is opened, 8 Crawling Claws will 
  emerge and attack whoever is closest. At the 
  bottom of the chest is a container made from 
  an inverted human skull, and full of gold 
  pieces (95gp in total).  
  Secret Door. A successful DC 15 Wisdom 
  (Perception) check will locate a secret 
  trapdoor in the middle of the basement floor.  
  Beneath the trapdoor is a large cavern with 
  walls that glitter dimly in the light. Iron spikes 
  have been driven into the cavern wall next to 
  the trapdoor, and may be used to climb down 
  to the floor 30’ below. Each PC must make a 
  DC 15 Dexterity saving throw in order to 
  make it down safely. If they fail, they must roll 
  1d6 and multiply by 5 to determine how many 
  feet off the ground they were when they fell. 
  Normal falling rules then apply.  
   
   
   
  
  The Caverns 
  Features 
  These large, natural caverns are primarily 
  shaped from limestone. The roof varies in 
  height, but is typically about 20’, whilst the 
  floor is highly uneven. Both floor and ceiling 
  are littered with stalagmites, stalactites and 
  limestone columns. The cavern is quite wet in 
  many parts, with puddles of water on the floor 
  and damp moss and lichen clinging to the 
  walls.  
  The caverns are full of rats, bats, insects and 
  other vermin which live on each other and the 
  lichen on the walls.  
  See the map on page 12. One square = 5’. 
  Light  
  The caverns are pitch dark. 
  Resting 
  Most of the creatures in the cavern are quite 
  stationary, so the party can rest as needed. If 
  you feel the party is taking too many rests, 
  have 1d4 giant rats attack them in the middle 
  of a break. 
  1. Glittering Cavern 
  The walls of this large cavern are filled with 
  tiny, natural, reflective stones. Any light 
  causes the entire cavern to glitter beautifully. 
  As mentioned above, there are a series of iron 
  spikes driven into the eastern wall, leading up 
  to the trapdoor in Nightwall Cottage. 
  There is nothing of value here. 
  2. Sulfurous Soil 
  The north-western corner of this cavern is 
  filled with thick, yellow soil. Anyone examining 
  it will notice that it is quite churned up. There 
  is a sulfurous smell coming from it. 
  This is actually home to 2 ankhegs, which 
  burrowed up from the depths of the earth 
  some time ago. Whilst deriving much 
  nourishment from the sulfurous yellow soil, 
  they leave they lair sometimes to snag the 
  occasional rat or bat. They can detect the 
  party, and will burst forth from the soil 1d4 
  rounds after the PCs arrives. If the party 
  dispatch the creatures and decide to dig out 
  their lair (which will require shovels and 1d4 
  hours of work), they will find 100pp, which 
  belonged to an unfortunate dwarf one of the 
  ankhegs devoured in the Underdark. 
  3. Slippery Slope 
  This 20’ stretch of tunnel slopes down sharply; 
  the cavern floor is very uneven and is covered 
  in scree.  
  There are 10 stirges nesting on the roof 
  directly above the slope, and they will 
  immediately attack the party if they pass 
  underneath. Each round that a PC is fighting 
  on the slope, they must make a DC 10 
  Dexterity saving throw or else slip and tumble 
  down to the bottom of the slope, taking 1d4 
  bludgeoning damage, and also provoking an 
  opportunity attack from any stirges that they 
  were fighting. 
  If the PCs search the slope, on a DC 15 
  Wisdom (Perception) check they will find a 
  necklace with a small silver gauntlet attached 
  to it. It is a holy symbol of the god Torm, and 
  belonged to the cleric buried in location #4. 
  4. Heroes End 
  The floor of the cavern here consists of 
  churned dark soil, and the PCs will spot a 
  partially buried metallic object protruding from 
  the ground. If they dig it out, they will quickly 
  discover it is an old rusty sword, being gripped 
  by a rotting hand.  
  Moments later, 6 zombies will rise from their 
  shallow graves and attack the PCs. From the 
  remnants of their rotting equipment and 
  clothing, it will be apparent that they were 
  once an adventuring party. 
  If the PCs dig amongst the graves after 
  dispatching the zombies, they will find 350cp, 
  
  160sp and 50gp. They will also find a rotting 
  leather bag containing 10 large green dragon 
  scales, worth 15gp each. 
  5. Rat Attack 
  As the PCs pass through this area, they hear 
  loud splashing ahead and a scurrying, 
  scratching noise. 1d4 rounds later, they will 
  be attacked by 10 giant rats. These creatures 
  have grown to enormous size living on the 
  other vermin in the caverns. They possess 
  nothing of value. 
  Just beyond the encounter area is a shallow 
  pool of fetid water. 
  6. Abomination Corner 
  Hiding in the shadows of the north-western 
  passage is a gibbering mouther. This 
  miserable creature is usually rather timid and 
  lives on small vermin, but the PCs present far 
  too tempting a meal to pass up.  
  The mouther has dwelt in this area for so long 
  that all of the area marked on the map is now 
  aberrant ground, as per the description in the 
  Monster Manual.  
  Tactics. As soon as the PCs get bogged down, 
  the mouther will commence gibbering and will 
  also make its blinding spittle attack. It should 
  have a good chance of surprising the party. 
  The following round the mouther will move in 
  to bite the nearest PC, and will continue to use 
  blinding spittle as often as it recharges. 
  7. Mud Hole 
  There is a large pool of mud in this cavern. 
  Near the center of it is a geyser which blows 
  out a stream of boiling mud every 30 seconds 
  or so. Anyone caught within 10’ of the geyser 
  when it blows must make a DC 15 Dexterity 
  saving throw or take 3d6 fire damage. They 
  will take half damage on a successful save. 
  The mud pool, while not deep, is home to 7 
  mud mephits who have migrated here from 
  the depths of the earth. They will wait until the 
  PCs are midway across the pool and then 
  attempt a surprise attack. If the PCs stop to 
  engage the mephits, they risk getting caught in 
  the geyser (which will blow every 5 rounds). If 
  the PCs push on, they risk opportunity 
  attacks. 
  If the PCs decide to search the mud pool, it 
  will take them about half an hour. A 
  successful DC 20 Wisdom (Perception) check 
  will see them find a bracelet made of electrum 
  and silver, and worth 120gp.  
  8. Den of Dark Magick 
  The entrance to this irregularly shaped cavern 
  has been shaped into an arch, and carved with 
  symbols of the deity Bane – an upright hand 
  with the thumb and fingers together in a claw 
  shape.  
  The cavern itself contains a small statue of 
  Bane opposite the arch, depicting him as a 
  figure in dark and ornate armour with jeweled 
  gloves, one hand held up in a claw shape.  
  In the north part of the cavern is a small 
  chest, a smashed up cot, and an old table with 
  some surgical implements on it. Toward the 
  southern end of the room is a pile of bones, 
  many with rotting flesh still attached. 
  Standing before the statue of Bane are 4 
  skeletons, each armed with a sword. Hiding 
  behind the pile of bones is a nothic. Using its 
  telepathic ability, it has been tracking the 
  party ever since they entered Nightwall 
  Cottage. 
  The Arch. The inside of the arch is inscribed 
  with a glyph of warding, though the glyph is 
  old and not as potent as it once was. The first 
  creature to pass through the arch will trigger 
  the glyph, and all creatures within 20’ will take 
  2d8 lightning damage. A DC 15 Dexterity 
  saving throw will see the affected creatures 
  take half damage. 
  Tactics. The four skeletons will stay stock still 
  until the PCs close to melee range. At this 
  point, the skeletons will attack, and the nothic 
  will attempt to attack from the rear. The nothic 
  will not engage the party in melee until it is 
  
  forced to - it will stay at a distance, using its 
  rotting gaze power. 
  If the party try to take the skeletons out at 
  range, they will retreat to the southern part of 
  the cavern and wait for the PCs to enter. 
  During combat, if any of the skeletons are 
  destroyed, at the end of the round the eyes of 
  the statue of Bane will blaze briefly, and one 
  new skeleton will emerge from the pile of 
  bones. This will happen once per round until 
  there are four functioning skeletons again. If 
  the statue is tipped over or the eyes (which are 
  made of glass) are destroyed, new skeletons 
  will no longer be created.   
  Once the nothic is destroyed, the dark 
  whispers afflicting one of the PCs will stop. 
  Treasure. The chest is neither locked nor 
  trapped. Inside it the PCs will find –  
   2100 cp 
   1300 sp 
   320 gp 
   2 Citrines (50 gp ea.) 
   4 Moonstones (50 gp ea.) 
   A Quartz (50 gp) 
   A Sardonyx (50 gp) 
   A Hat of Disguise 
   The Deed to Nightwall Farm – this 50-acre 
  farm has been occupied by squatters since 
  Randall disappeared. The PCs will be able 
  to sell the Deed in Red Larch for 200gp.  
  The statue of Bane is worth nothing – the 
  jeweled gloves were simply colored glass. 
  Around the neck of one of the skeletons is a 
  small silver pendant with the name Lise 
  inscribed on it.  
   
   
  Randall Nightwall’s Story 
  As a young man, Randall inherited a 
  respectable sum of money from his father, a 
  prudent silver merchant from Waterdeep. 
  Randall never learned a trade, and spent his 
  youth on a debauched lifestyle.  
  With funds running low he moved from the 
  city to Red Larch. He was contemptuous of 
  the villagers and they disliked him in turn. He 
  became a great recluse, and was increasingly 
  absorbed in the lonely study of necromancy.  
  He discovered the caverns by chance and 
  spent some of his dwindling funds 
  constructing a new house above them – 
  Nightwall Cottage. These caverns became his 
  workshop, and he began communing with 
  dark powers and performing hideous 
  researches using forbidden magic. The 
  gibbering mouther and zombies were the 
  results of some early experiments.  
  He regularly dug up corpses from the 
  graveyard for use in his necromantic study. 
  One night he was discovered and hounded 
  from the village, but he slipped back in and 
  took up residence in the caverns. He still 
  occasionally moved amongst the villagers, 
  using a hat of disguise which he had acquired 
  years before. 
  One night an experiment went hideously 
  wrong, and he found himself transmogrified 
  into the form of a nothic. Although he 
  retained a shadowy memory of his previous 
  life, he became an altogether more primal 
  being, focused on food and inflicting misery. 
  Those who moved into Nightwall Cottage 
  became his special victims. Some he simply 
  devoured, creeping up from the basement at 
  night to steal them from their beds. But he 
  also used his newly acquired telepathic 
  abilities to torture their minds – some fled the 
  cottage screaming, while others (like poor 
  Grindol Farmoor) were driven to acts of 
  madness. 
  
  Conclusion 
  Assuming the PCs emerge from the caverns 
  alive, they will soon encounter Aleena Ironsky, 
  returning with the magistrate, Harburk 
  Tuthmarillar. Harburk will wave aside any 
  information the PCs wish to share with him, 
  saying they will need to save it for the trial.  
  He will then ask them what they think about 
  Red Larch. He won’t be satisfied with general 
  answers and will ask them to back up their 
  responses with details. If they are positive 
  about the village he will be very friendly and 
  cordial. If they are at all negative he will be 
  hurt and defensive, and will treat the PCs 
  coolly from then on. 
  If the PCs happen to see Lise Buckthorn and 
  show her the pendant from the skeleton, she 
  will excitedly tell them that it was her wedding 
  gift to Dale, and will demand to know where 
  they found it. The PCs will then have to decide 
  whether to tell her about Dale’s cruel fate.  
  The Trial 
  The trial will take place the next morning. It is 
  a bright and clear day, with Harburk sitting 
  beneath a tree behind a small desk, wearing 
  his magisterial chain and looking stern. 
  Grindol stands near the desk with his hands 
  bound behind his back and Aleena firmly 
  holding one arm.  
  Harburk will call the witnesses one by one, 
  establishing beyond doubt that Grindol did in 
  fact stab poor Kali. Grindol will be unable to 
  offer a satisfactory explanation for his actions.  
  Finally, Harburk will call the PCs and ask 
  them to tell their story. Even as he is cross-
  examining them, he will be unable to keep his 
  parochialism at bay. For example, if they are 
  talking about the Helm at Highsun, he might 
  say, “And tell me, how did you find the ale at 
  the Helm? How does it compare to the ale at 
  Waterdeep?” And so on. 
  If the PCs are unable to provide a coherent 
  explanation for Grindol’s behavior, then 
  Harburk will gravely find him guilty of murder 
  and sentence him to hang. 
  However, if the PCs can give a credible account 
  of what they saw in the caverns (perhaps 
  producing some physical evidence), and can 
  also explain a little about the nothic’s 
  telepathic abilities, Harburk will accept their 
  story. 
  After declaring Grindol to be “not guilty on 
  account of magical possession”, Harburk will 
  turn to the PCs, give a huge sigh, and say, 
  “One thing I never could stomach about Red 
  Larch – all the damned necromancers…” 
   
   
  
   
  Nightwall Cottage Map 
   
   
   
  1 
  2 
  3 
  4 
  
  Caverns Map 
   
   
   
   
  1 
  3 
  4 
  5 
  7 
  8 
  2 
  6 
  soil 
  scree 
  aberrant 
  ground 
  puddle 
  mud geyser 
  
  Credits & Legals 
  Design: M.T. Black 
  DUNGEONS & DRAGONS, D&D, Wizards of 
  the Coast, Forgotten Realms, the dragon 
  ampersand, Player’s Handbook, Monster 
  Manual, Dungeon Master’s Guide, D&D 
  Adventurers League, all other Wizards of the 
  Coast product names, and their respective 
  logos are trademarks of Wizards of the Coast 
  in the USA and other countries. All characters 
  and their distinctive likenesses are property of 
  Wizards of the Coast. This material is 
  protected under the copyright laws of the 
  United States of America. Any reproduction or 
  unauthorized use of the material or artwork 
  contained herein is prohibited without the 
  express written permission of Wizards of the 
  Coast.   
   
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Dungeons & Dragons [multi]/5th Edition (5e)/3rd Party/M.T. Black/The Lurker Beneath Red Larch.pdf