The winter moon hangs – a warrior’s shield hung on a field of midnight blue –
reflecting off powder with a shimmering glow.
The peace and quiet – an ominous silence in the muffled twilight –
belies the frozen corpses ‘neath the snow.
CONTENT WARNING: CANNIBALISM & ANIMAL DEATH
The Lorken Pass, set between the peaks of Shyr-la and Shyr-ka (together known as The Brother Wolves), is a seldom-traveled route in the southern mountains. The route would seemingly save nearly a month over the alternative path around the mountain range, but it is rarely traveled. Very few caravans make it across the pass, even in summer, and in the dead of winter successful passage is almost unheard of. Whenever travelers come stumbling back out of the mountains, they tell stories of freak storms, cold nights with no food, and whispers in the darkness. As such, few groups brave the pass anymore, and those that do are truly desperate.
Theme: Hunger
The Vacuous Totem buried beneath the pass fills the heads of the treasure hunters with thoughts of succulent feasts, casks of ale, and hot food among the frozen wasteland of Lorkenn Pass. Trees, rocks and branches seem like tasty treats, but everything the hunters eat is tasteless and unsatisfying. Whenever you can make something seem tasty and appetizing, regardless of how edible the actual thing is, do it.
Set Name: Lorkenn Pass
Set Goal: Learn what fate befell the previous travelers through the Lorkenn Pass.
Description: In the dead of winter, you and your fellow hunters are desperate to reach the other side of the mountains before a rival group, and have chosen to use the Lorkenn Pass to shorten the trip. The first few days climbing to the height of the pass have been uneventful, if frigid. As you approach the top, a sudden storm has rolled up behind you. A lucky cave is keeping you safe from the worst of the weather, but you won’t be able to make any progress until the weather clears.
Moments & Conditions
- A rabbit runs from a bush, your stomach growling at the implications.
- You find a pouch of pork jerky in the snow, only to bite into one and find stone instead of meat.
- A deer stares at you with a bloody snout, rabbit’s fur stuck between its teeth.
- A skeleton in the darkness, the femur disconnected and bearing the owner’s teeth marks.
| Props | Traps | Treasures |
|---|---|---|
| The Winter Storm: Through the mouth of the cave the winter storm rages. The shadows of great pines are barely visible through the flurry, and spirals of powder-sugar snow come spiraling close to the fire. | -Starved beasts of unusual varieties will attack the hunters. Deer, birds, rabbits, and other herbivores will tear voraciously at any meat they can find. -The swirling snow causes the hunters to quickly lose their way in the storm. | -Buried in the snow, a shattered human skull with a silver spoon still inside. The spoon is tarnished but still valuable. -A dead tree under a overhanging rock could be dry enough to light a real fire, though the hanging rock threatens to crush the hunters. |
| Around the Fire: The hunters sit around the small fire, shivering and bundled to shake off the chill from the storm outside. | -The smoke wafting from the fire reminds you of roasted meats and warm hearths. -The wet wood sputters and refuses to light. You may need to venture back out into the storm to collect more. | -The hunters are not the first traveling party to use this cave. What story is written on the walls in charcoal? |
| The Broken Cave: The back half of the cave drops off into darkness, where broken stones and thin passages lead to a deeper cave. | -The unstable ceiling looks ready to collapse at any moment. -Whispers in the dark lure the hunters into tight spaces that trap them. | -Packs from previous adventurers, still attached to skeletons. Most bones have been broken with the marrow sucked out. |
| The Deep Darkness: A hidden cave deep beneath the mountain. Ritual carvings from an ancient time cover the walls and ceiling, and a small plinth in the center of the room | -The Vacuous Totem lies on the small altar -The hunger makes the hunters light headed, causing the room to spin and buckle around them. It is difficult to tell which passage leads back to the surface. | -A carved circle around the altar contains the instructions for the ward ritual, though it has since been broken. -Hanging from the ceiling is a massive deer’s skull, nearly three feet from nose to antlers and bearing the fangs of a wolf. |
The Vacuous Totem
A blackened wood totem of a screaming man’s face. Six forked tongues protrude from the gaping maw full of pointed teeth. Living things within a roughly 100 foot radius around the totem are filled with an insatiable hunger that cannot be satisfied. This effect increases in potency the closer they are to the totem.
While a treasure hunter is within the area of effect, they may choose to consume something significant to add 1 light die to any roll. This is in addition to any devil’s bargains, but should be presented by the GM as a devil’s bargain the first few times the players roll while in the totem’s influence.
If a treasure hunter picks up the totem, they are immediately hit with an intense wave of nausea and are compelled to vomit into the totem’s open mouth. They take ruin equal to the number of times they used the power listed above.