I've had this idea for a haunted house quest line for a while now, and I have a way for my party to be hooked into it. I was really hoping for some feedback from the community on things you think I could add, take away, or change. Much of the inspiration for this is taken from Dael Kingsmill ideas of how a ghost encounter should go.
Setting:
Kytrala, city of iron veils. Spies abound and everyone who is anyone has someone in their pocket to keep up with the goings on of the city. The citizens are in a very rigid social hierarchy denoted by turban color.
Hook:
The party will enter the city (Kytrala) and one of my players is very eager to go meet back up with his parents. They're lower class and plan on moving into a house on the nice side of town so the blacksmith father will have access to more wealthy consumer base. The father is an orc, and very looked down upon in the city's society. They saved up all their money for years to buy this house, finally acquired the deed, and were then told it was haunted. Now they're out thousands in gold and have the deed to a house they can't live in. They sold their old house to get the last little bit of coin needed for the haunted house, and will be homeless within the week. They ask their son (And by extension the party) to see if they can un-haunt this house.
Quest Info:
The party will go to the house, and while either asking around for information about the house or its previous occupant, meet NPC Mrs. Mooney. She seems to be in her early thirties, pretty, long hair kept behind a simple turban. She's got on practical clothes, very sturdy and durable more than fashionable. She tells the party that a girl Erica used to live there. She was in love with a man named Ostimin. Ostimin picked another woman instead, and Erica killed herself out of grief. Mrs. Mooney always feels guilty when she looks at the house, because Ostimin chose her They have been happily married for 12 years now.
House description:
The house looks nearly identical to its neighbors. Tall and narrow, you can tell the exterior hasn't been painted in a long time. The windows are grimy and the only clean spots are where daring children have scrubbed at them to see inside. A dim light comes out of the second story window.
As you approach the house, the temperature drops and your skin prickles (None of my party are scaly or feathery). Your breath becomes visible, and darkness seems to reach the corners of your eyes. An uneasy feeling overtakes you, and you can't shake that you're being watched.
Inside the House:
Living Room:
Opening the door reveals a set of wooden stairs and a cramped living room. The air is still and it is clear nothing has disturbed this place in quite a while. A chill runs up the party's spine and they rolls a DC15 INT saving throw. Passing means you realize the enemies you see are illusions, and they cannot hurt you. Failure means the enemies can hurt you, and deal psychic damage. Scale the encounter to party level.
When the party ends the combat, they see that the living room has a door against the far wall and stairs leading up. The living room has a rocking chair next to a table with a lamp and a small empty picture frame on it. The party rolls a CHA check, lowest roll feels slight curiosity and then overwhelming dread. A half-made scarf is bundled on the floor in a messy pile. A DC 10 Investigation check will allow the party to infer that someone was knitting a scarf and went to answer the door, then never came back to the scarf.
Kitchen/Dining Room:
The door on the other side of the living room leads to a quaint kitchen and dining table. Long abandoned spider webs cling to the corners of the room and one glass sits on the dusty table, its contents dried up (There is no residue on this glass). There is shattered glass lying on the floor, with some kind of residue on it. An appropriate check (Investigation, Arcana, Medicine, etc.) allows the party to discover the residue was a potion of unknown type. On an especially good roll, it is revealed the potion was intended to cause the drinker to feel intense sorrow. Two chairs are situated as if people were sitting in both. When the party steps into the room, a furious pounding is heard and felt through the floor. Fresh blood is spattered on the floor beside the chair that doesn't have a glass, and each <i>thud</i> of the pounding causes more blood to appear. There is a folded letter on the table. When the party touches the letter, an shriek is heard. A young woman with short black hair and desiccated skin, empty eye sockets and clear tear marked cheeks appears and shrieks again. She is incorporeal and no efforts to harm her work. She chooses a party member at random and dissolves into black mist, flowing through them. That party member acts as though they are filled with joy, starts uncontrollably laughing, and acts under the Command spell, with the command "Break things." Taking damage ends the spell. The letter cannot be destroyed by the berserking, and reads "My dearest Saleena, Something was missing in my life. I really don't know what it was. But, since the time you came in my life, I started feeling complete. I am only for you. Saleena, I love you so much, all day long I yearn for your touch. Your presence in my life makes my heart soar in ways I never knew before. I don't know when or why all this happened but this feeling of love is felt from heart. Now, that you and I are together, we shall never ever part. I just want to thank you for coming in my life. When I see you, my love, it is like the sun itself is burning me away. I Love you so much, and will never leave you, Ostimin Mooney."
Stairs:
The stairs become an infinite corridor until the party reads the letter. After, they are just wooden stairs leading to the second story. At the top of the stairs, there are two closed doors; one faces north and one south.
North Room:
Appears to be an office. There is a desk on the far wall, with a plain leather bound book on it. The book details the life of Erica, mostly talking about her future plans with Ostimin and how she enjoys her time with him. She is insecure, but very in love with Ostimin. (Here I plan to have a prop. A page or so of written diary entries.) The final entry is in different handwriting and says "No! Ostimin said he loved ME! This is what I was always afraid of. I knew I would never be good enough for him, despite his reassurances I was the only one for him. My heart is broken beyond repair. I think this will be my final entry; it seems Saleena was right. Goodbye."
I want to have some kind of mechanic here that allows the ghost, which is comprised of extreme emotion and cannot speak, to convey in its own way that it did not write the final page. I can't think of anything except getting angry and throwing things when they get to the final page.
South Room:
The party opens the south room to find a bed on the far wall. While neatly made, it has a large blood stain spreading from around the middle of the bed and staining the floor. The <i> drip, drip </i> of blood is constantly heard in this room, dripping onto the floor from the bed. A simple dagger rests on the bed. The air gets colder the closer to the dagger you get. The player that touches the dagger first takes 1d12 of cold damage. The woman from earlier with dried out skin and hollow eyes that cry appears, shrieks, and is able to fight. Every round, on initiative 20, the dagger shakes and tries to draw closer to the woman. If a party member is holding the dagger, they feel the pull. If no one is holding the dagger, a DC10 perception check will show them the dagger pulling towards the woman. The woman can be reduced to 1HP by all other means, but must be defeated by being stabbed with the dagger. When she is killed, the party views the full story in a vision.
Full Story:
Erica is sitting knitting a scarf for her beloved, Ostimin. There is a beautiful sketch of her with her arms wrapped around a man's neck, kissing him in a frame on the table. There is a knock on the door, and Erica goes to answer it. Ms. Mooney comes in bustling by, and Erica looks exasperated, but follows her into the kitchen. They sit down, Erica has gotten them each something to drink. Ms. Mooney shows Erica the letter, and while she's absorbed in reading it, Ms. Mooney slips something into Erica's drink. Erica finishes reading it, and laughs, asking Ms. Mooney if she wrote this herself. She stands up, ready to usher Ms. Mooney out of the house. Ms. Mooney laughs also, says "Can't blame a girl for trying," and raises her glass to Erica. Erica raises her glass as well and when she drinks it, looks around confused. She sees the letter again, starts crying, throws her glass down and shatters it. She's screaming about Ostimin and their life together, bawling on the floor and pounding her fists on the ground.The shards of glass cut her fists and she begins bleeding. Ms. Mooney gives herself a self-satisfied smirk and tries to steer her up the stairs and into her bedroom. Once there, she begins telling Erica about how she'll never be happy again, and the only way to not hurt is through the dagger. Erica points the dagger at her heart and Ms. Mooney's hand helps her push. Ms. Mooney stands slowly, finds Erica's diary, and writes the final page. She starts whistling The Bridal Chorus as she saunters out of the house.
With this information, the party will likely seek out Ms. Mooney and confront her.
Ms. Mooney:
When the party confronts her about what they've seen, she reveals she made a deal with [The Big Bad]. In exchange for her soul, she would get 12 years of happiness and joy as Ostimin Mooney's wife. To facilitate this, he granted her the special potion that causes its drinker to become severely depressed and open to suggestion. He also replaced Erica with Saleena in Ostimin's mind, such that he would know Saleena as the woman he loved. She regrets that she must sacrifice the last month of happiness with Ostimin to kill the party, and says "Hear me now, [Big Bad], our bargain is fulfilled. My soul is yours. I only pray that these interlopers are your enemies, and that you grant me the power to destroy them."
She morphs into an appropriate monster and fights the party. After Saleena is defeated, either Erica appears in front of them, thanks them, and moves on, or they go back into the house to her room and the same thing happens. Depends on the party.
Ostimin:
Reacts poorly. Very sad. Goes to visit Erica's grave more often, and brings her flowers
Resolution:
Parents can buy the house. Not sure what to grant as a reward. It probably constitutes a level up for my party as they are.
That's all of the plans I have for this haunted house. Writing it all down took me so many more days than I wanted it to. Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks for reading through this long post.
One idea to tell them that the last page of the diary wasn't her is to literally have the ghost scratch a short message like "Not Me" into a random characters skin. It only does 1 point of damage but they feel a itching, then pain as the message is scratched in (On a old show sightings there were actual reports of ghosts doing this, might have been fake).
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I've had this idea for a haunted house quest line for a while now, and I have a way for my party to be hooked into it. I was really hoping for some feedback from the community on things you think I could add, take away, or change. Much of the inspiration for this is taken from Dael Kingsmill ideas of how a ghost encounter should go.
Setting:
Kytrala, city of iron veils. Spies abound and everyone who is anyone has someone in their pocket to keep up with the goings on of the city. The citizens are in a very rigid social hierarchy denoted by turban color.
Hook:
The party will enter the city (Kytrala) and one of my players is very eager to go meet back up with his parents. They're lower class and plan on moving into a house on the nice side of town so the blacksmith father will have access to more wealthy consumer base. The father is an orc, and very looked down upon in the city's society. They saved up all their money for years to buy this house, finally acquired the deed, and were then told it was haunted. Now they're out thousands in gold and have the deed to a house they can't live in. They sold their old house to get the last little bit of coin needed for the haunted house, and will be homeless within the week. They ask their son (And by extension the party) to see if they can un-haunt this house.
Quest Info:
The party will go to the house, and while either asking around for information about the house or its previous occupant, meet NPC Mrs. Mooney. She seems to be in her early thirties, pretty, long hair kept behind a simple turban. She's got on practical clothes, very sturdy and durable more than fashionable. She tells the party that a girl Erica used to live there. She was in love with a man named Ostimin. Ostimin picked another woman instead, and Erica killed herself out of grief. Mrs. Mooney always feels guilty when she looks at the house, because Ostimin chose her They have been happily married for 12 years now.
House description:
The house looks nearly identical to its neighbors. Tall and narrow, you can tell the exterior hasn't been painted in a long time. The windows are grimy and the only clean spots are where daring children have scrubbed at them to see inside. A dim light comes out of the second story window.
As you approach the house, the temperature drops and your skin prickles (None of my party are scaly or feathery). Your breath becomes visible, and darkness seems to reach the corners of your eyes. An uneasy feeling overtakes you, and you can't shake that you're being watched.
Inside the House:
Living Room:
Opening the door reveals a set of wooden stairs and a cramped living room. The air is still and it is clear nothing has disturbed this place in quite a while. A chill runs up the party's spine and they rolls a DC15 INT saving throw. Passing means you realize the enemies you see are illusions, and they cannot hurt you. Failure means the enemies can hurt you, and deal psychic damage. Scale the encounter to party level.
When the party ends the combat, they see that the living room has a door against the far wall and stairs leading up. The living room has a rocking chair next to a table with a lamp and a small empty picture frame on it. The party rolls a CHA check, lowest roll feels slight curiosity and then overwhelming dread. A half-made scarf is bundled on the floor in a messy pile. A DC 10 Investigation check will allow the party to infer that someone was knitting a scarf and went to answer the door, then never came back to the scarf.
Kitchen/Dining Room:
The door on the other side of the living room leads to a quaint kitchen and dining table. Long abandoned spider webs cling to the corners of the room and one glass sits on the dusty table, its contents dried up (There is no residue on this glass). There is shattered glass lying on the floor, with some kind of residue on it. An appropriate check (Investigation, Arcana, Medicine, etc.) allows the party to discover the residue was a potion of unknown type. On an especially good roll, it is revealed the potion was intended to cause the drinker to feel intense sorrow. Two chairs are situated as if people were sitting in both. When the party steps into the room, a furious pounding is heard and felt through the floor. Fresh blood is spattered on the floor beside the chair that doesn't have a glass, and each <i>thud</i> of the pounding causes more blood to appear. There is a folded letter on the table. When the party touches the letter, an shriek is heard. A young woman with short black hair and desiccated skin, empty eye sockets and clear tear marked cheeks appears and shrieks again. She is incorporeal and no efforts to harm her work. She chooses a party member at random and dissolves into black mist, flowing through them. That party member acts as though they are filled with joy, starts uncontrollably laughing, and acts under the Command spell, with the command "Break things." Taking damage ends the spell. The letter cannot be destroyed by the berserking, and reads "My dearest Saleena, Something was missing in my life. I really don't know what it was. But, since the time you came in my life, I started feeling complete. I am only for you. Saleena, I love you so much, all day long I yearn for your touch. Your presence in my life makes my heart soar in ways I never knew before.
I don't know when or why all this happened but this feeling of love is felt from heart. Now, that you and I are together, we shall never ever part. I just want to thank you for coming in my life. When I see you, my love, it is like the sun itself is burning me away. I Love you so much, and will never leave you, Ostimin Mooney."
Stairs:
The stairs become an infinite corridor until the party reads the letter. After, they are just wooden stairs leading to the second story. At the top of the stairs, there are two closed doors; one faces north and one south.
North Room:
Appears to be an office. There is a desk on the far wall, with a plain leather bound book on it. The book details the life of Erica, mostly talking about her future plans with Ostimin and how she enjoys her time with him. She is insecure, but very in love with Ostimin. (Here I plan to have a prop. A page or so of written diary entries.) The final entry is in different handwriting and says "No! Ostimin said he loved ME! This is what I was always afraid of. I knew I would never be good enough for him, despite his reassurances I was the only one for him. My heart is broken beyond repair. I think this will be my final entry; it seems Saleena was right. Goodbye."
I want to have some kind of mechanic here that allows the ghost, which is comprised of extreme emotion and cannot speak, to convey in its own way that it did not write the final page. I can't think of anything except getting angry and throwing things when they get to the final page.
South Room:
The party opens the south room to find a bed on the far wall. While neatly made, it has a large blood stain spreading from around the middle of the bed and staining the floor. The <i> drip, drip </i> of blood is constantly heard in this room, dripping onto the floor from the bed. A simple dagger rests on the bed. The air gets colder the closer to the dagger you get. The player that touches the dagger first takes 1d12 of cold damage. The woman from earlier with dried out skin and hollow eyes that cry appears, shrieks, and is able to fight. Every round, on initiative 20, the dagger shakes and tries to draw closer to the woman. If a party member is holding the dagger, they feel the pull. If no one is holding the dagger, a DC10 perception check will show them the dagger pulling towards the woman. The woman can be reduced to 1HP by all other means, but must be defeated by being stabbed with the dagger. When she is killed, the party views the full story in a vision.
Full Story:
Erica is sitting knitting a scarf for her beloved, Ostimin. There is a beautiful sketch of her with her arms wrapped around a man's neck, kissing him in a frame on the table. There is a knock on the door, and Erica goes to answer it. Ms. Mooney comes in bustling by, and Erica looks exasperated, but follows her into the kitchen. They sit down, Erica has gotten them each something to drink. Ms. Mooney shows Erica the letter, and while she's absorbed in reading it, Ms. Mooney slips something into Erica's drink. Erica finishes reading it, and laughs, asking Ms. Mooney if she wrote this herself. She stands up, ready to usher Ms. Mooney out of the house. Ms. Mooney laughs also, says "Can't blame a girl for trying," and raises her glass to Erica. Erica raises her glass as well and when she drinks it, looks around confused. She sees the letter again, starts crying, throws her glass down and shatters it. She's screaming about Ostimin and their life together, bawling on the floor and pounding her fists on the ground.The shards of glass cut her fists and she begins bleeding. Ms. Mooney gives herself a self-satisfied smirk and tries to steer her up the stairs and into her bedroom. Once there, she begins telling Erica about how she'll never be happy again, and the only way to not hurt is through the dagger. Erica points the dagger at her heart and Ms. Mooney's hand helps her push. Ms. Mooney stands slowly, finds Erica's diary, and writes the final page. She starts whistling The Bridal Chorus as she saunters out of the house.
With this information, the party will likely seek out Ms. Mooney and confront her.
Ms. Mooney:
When the party confronts her about what they've seen, she reveals she made a deal with [The Big Bad]. In exchange for her soul, she would get 12 years of happiness and joy as Ostimin Mooney's wife. To facilitate this, he granted her the special potion that causes its drinker to become severely depressed and open to suggestion. He also replaced Erica with Saleena in Ostimin's mind, such that he would know Saleena as the woman he loved. She regrets that she must sacrifice the last month of happiness with Ostimin to kill the party, and says "Hear me now, [Big Bad], our bargain is fulfilled. My soul is yours. I only pray that these interlopers are your enemies, and that you grant me the power to destroy them."
She morphs into an appropriate monster and fights the party. After Saleena is defeated, either Erica appears in front of them, thanks them, and moves on, or they go back into the house to her room and the same thing happens. Depends on the party.
Ostimin:
Reacts poorly. Very sad. Goes to visit Erica's grave more often, and brings her flowers
Resolution:
Parents can buy the house. Not sure what to grant as a reward. It probably constitutes a level up for my party as they are.
That's all of the plans I have for this haunted house. Writing it all down took me so many more days than I wanted it to. Any feedback is appreciated. Thanks for reading through this long post.
One idea to tell them that the last page of the diary wasn't her is to literally have the ghost scratch a short message like "Not Me" into a random characters skin. It only does 1 point of damage but they feel a itching, then pain as the message is scratched in (On a old show sightings there were actual reports of ghosts doing this, might have been fake).