Curses are an interesting way to introduce morally gray conundrums (and bloodthirsty monsters) to your game. The curse's recipient might not have deserved to be turned into a horrible creature, but they are wreaking havoc on innocent civilians, so they have to be stopped—right?

Will your party focus on putting their tormented soul to rest? Will they investigate the cause of the curse and potentially track it back to the caster? Will they research a cure that was previously lost to time? Or were they responsible for the curse and must now deal with its consequences?

In this article, you'll find three haunting examples of cursed creatures from the Grim Hollow: Campaign Guide—the Herald of Calamity, the Sightless Agony, and the Verminous Abomination. Each embodies the curse that transformed it from a humanoid into an abomination, and each can serve as the centerpiece of an unforgettable adventure.

• Verminous Abomination
• Herald of Calamity
• Sightless Agony

Verminous Abomination

Kitt Lapeña

A Tale of Greed

Afflicted by the Curse of Insatiable Greed, the Verminous Abomination is avarice made flesh. Victims of this malediction are warped by greed until their hunger for possessions twists them into bloated, ratlike horrors. These cursed creatures hoard obsessively, amassing labyrinths of junk beneath cities and settlements. No item is worthless—gold, jewels, a child's doll, or discarded trash. All are treasures in their eyes.

Their swollen stomachs teem with parasitic life, spewing forth swarms of ratlings to harry intruders. They know their labyrinths intimately, ambushing from filth-ridden tunnels before retreating into piles of refuse. And yet, for all their grotesquery, these cursed lairs may hide wonders—riches buried among the trash.

Herald of Calamity

Guilherme Castro

Lore of the Herald

Transformed by the Curse of Ill-Fated Fortune, Heralds of Calamity are tragic figures doomed to bring ruin wherever they linger. Those who fall to this fate waste away while their luck curdles, leaving only skeletal phantoms adrift in misfortune.

These cursed creatures haunt vital places—a healer's house, a busy bridge, a crossroads—where calamity spreads swiftly before it becomes abandoned. Though lacking physical might, Heralds are deadly in other ways. They can drain the vitality out of living creatures, and their presence twists fate itself: blades find allies instead of enemies, bows misfire, and companions perish in deadly accidents.

Abilities of the Herald

Once transformed, Heralds gain the Aura of Calamity trait. All within 30 feet other than the herald suffer Disadvantage on D20 Tests, and take maximum possible damage from environmental effects, such as falls or traps.

They also gain the Mishap Reaction, which can redirect attacks back onto their foes or their foes' companions.

These deadly twists of fate, combined with the fact that the herald is Invisible unless in an area illuminated by moonlight, make these devious beings difficult to track—and harder to kill.

Unfortunate Adventure Hooks

You can use the following hooks to craft adventures that include a Herald of Calamity:

Sightless Agony

Lucy Lisett

Tortuous Tragedies

A poor soul that succumbs to the Curse of Crushing Sensation becomes a Sightless Agony, the embodiment of torment. Victims of this malady retreat from the world, unable to endure light, sound, or touch. In despair, many claw away their own eyes or skin, searching for relief that never comes.

What emerges is a trembling, cursed creature—flayed and sightless, shuddering at unseen stimuli. Though winged, even the air sears them, keeping them grounded. They bury themselves in silence and darkness, lashing out not from malice but from a desperate plea for solitude.

Abilities of the Agony

When these monstrosities encounter sound or sensation—like that of an approaching adventuring party—they fly into a white-hot rage, desperate to quell the anguish.

The monster's greatest horror is its ability to project its agony onto others with psychic assaults.

Both the Shared Agony trait and Wave of Agony Reaction send psychic shockwaves of pain across the battlefield when the sightless agony takes damage, making it potentially deadly to attack—even if it's not attacking you.

Agonizing Adventure Hooks

You can use the following hooks to craft adventures that include a Sightless Agony:

Cursed Be Thy Name

The 10 cursed creatures in Grim Hollow: Campaign Guide are living parables of the curse that twisted them into monsters, whether it be misfortune, torment, greed, or another element. Each offers Dungeon Masters the chance to weave more depth, choice, and consequence into an adventure.

Where did this creature come from, and why is it wreaking such havoc? Who cursed it? Will the characters choose to end the creature's suffering? Can they survive long enough to tell the tale?

Curses are never straightforward to deal with, and presenting your players with these morally gray scenarios is sure to test their mettle—and cause them to wonder if they did the right thing.