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Moon Over Graymoor
Moon Over Graymoor
Moon Over Graymoor
W
elcome to Moon over Graymoor, an
adventure written for Dungeons and
Dragons 5th Edition, for first level player
characters. Moon over Graymoor is
intended to be a good first adventure to run;
something for new players, or even a new
Dungeon Master to try. It could even serve
as the beginning of an ongoing campaign! That said, this
adventure material does assume you are familiar with the
rules already, and can refer to the Dungeon Master’s Guide,
Player’s Handbook, or Monster Manual, if need be.
Moon over Graymoor is written to be played in one sitting,
of about three hours. However, as all seasoned DMs know,
things are rarely so simple. There is a break near the
middle of the adventure, and you are encouraged to stop
there if you feel like it will become a drag to try finish the
adventure in one sitting! Better two or three good sessions,
than one that becomes too tiring.
Also, if you're a first time DM, it's worth noting that you
should read this adventure front to back before trying to
run it.
1 WELCOME
The Villain The Heroes
As the DM, you should know from the outset that Father First of all, the players should feel free to make their own
Daragor is the villain. He is a werewolf, who has recently characters! Making characters can be half the fun of
discovered that the blacksmith’s daughter, Eryn Gilly, has playing Dungeons and Dragons. That said, if they want to
also contracted lycanthropy. While he is a fully-fledged play quickly, or they want to try the game before
werewolf, she is not, and cannot yet control her committing to a character they've made themselves, the
transformations. The murders are his doing, but he is following are three pre-made character concepts that fit the
trying to convince her that she is the one who has been adventure. You are encouraged to roll stats for them
killing people, while out of control. Father Daragor believes yourself, to foster a connection with them!
that he can control her with this guilt, and convince her to
join him as an evil werewolf, taking her as a surrogate Kathra Fenglove / Halfling Fighter
daughter. He plans to turn her just before the Feast of the Kathra was the only daughter of Al Fenglove, until he died
Moon, so she can help him massacre the townsfolk. of a sickness late last spring. She knows nothing of her
mother, and has lived a drudging, solitary life, working her
father’s farmland outside Graymoor. She has had little to
The Setting no opportunity to make friends, pursue romance, or do
Ultimately, the setting is up to the DM. The adventure much of anything else. Long has she dreamed of a new life,
includes some elements from the default Fifth Edition and when she woke up one cold morning to find all her
setting, Faerûn, but the adventure refers to the livestock with their throats torn out by something with a
surrounding land as Argoloth. This adventure aims to be wicked set of teeth, she finally decided to abandon the
easy to drop into any setting, and an enterprising Dungeon farmhouse. She dug her late father’s arming sword from
Master should easily be able to change cosmetic elements the cellar, and planned to hunt down whoever or whatever
of the story to suit another world. killed her cows. On the way into town, she ran into
Coroner Oswald, the man sent to investigate the recent
murders, and decided to tag along, if only because she
knows she will do a better job investigating than him.
Willem Quarrel / Half-elf Rogue
Willem has spent a lifetime in the King’s Law, the force
that patrols Formianth, the Capital. He joined when he
was young and thirsty for adventure, and promptly got
assigned to a watchtower as a marksman, where he spent
several years of his life doing nothing. After begging his
superiors for a new assignment, he was put forward for a
deep-cover assignment, slated to infiltrate a criminal
organisation that was smuggling drugs under the city. He
was a double-agent for five years, and a very successful one,
until someone sold him out, and his entire operation was
blown. The criminals killed everyone involved, and left him
for dead, missing a hand. After recovering, he was ejected
from the King’s Law, and retired to the countryside, where
he has lived since. Now that something grim is unfolding in
Graymoor, Willem feels that he needs to put a stop to it,
perhaps for fear that violence has followed him from the
city.
Odette Snowfall / Human Cleric
Odette was orphaned in an accident that she doesn’t
remember, and as is the local custom, a child orphaned by
sudden inexplicable death becomes an altar server in a
chapel of the Raven Queen. Clerics of the Raven Queen
are respected by most in Argoloth, if only because they deal
with the dead; a job no one else wants. Odette is currently
on her first assignment away from the temple, investigating
a series of strange and potentially unnatural deaths in the
nearby town of Graymoor. When she arrives, she finds
others on a similar path, and joins them, meaning to let fate
eventually draw her to the truth.
SCENE 0 | WELCOME 2
Timeline
This adventure takes place over three days. This timeline is
intended to give the DM something to refer to quickly if
they want a rough idea of when things tend to happen,
based on play testing.
Remember, if players skip scenes, or do them in a
different order, that’s totally fine! You can reorganise things
on the fly as much as you want.
Day One:
Morning:
Murder Outside the Graymoor Bend
The Players investigate the body of George Gilly, and
speak to Sagh Gazara, owner of the inn George was killed
outside.
Midday:
Stone Cold
The players investigate George Gilly’s house for clues.
Evening:
The Veteran’s Quill
The players investigate the house of Ser Thames.
Night:
Interlude
The players turn in for the night, and by the time they
wake, Xalyth the locksmith is dead.
Day Two:
Morning:
Key Behind Lock
The players investigate Xalyth’s house.
Midday:
By Our Lady’s Grace
The players talk to Grimmund at the Chapel of Selûne
Evening/Night:
The Barn
The players turn in for the night, but are roused by Sagh,
who has bad news.
Take a break here if you need!
Day Three:
Morning/Midday:
Lady Sybil
The players are called out to a strange old woman’s
house in the forest.
Blade in the Woods
The players hunt down the sword that Ser Thames has
been sent.
Evening/Night:
The Feast
The players attend the Feast at the chapel of Selûne, and
face off against Father Daragor.
Remember!
Don't feel beholden to this timeline. It's not the way things
have to go; it's just here to help you remember the different
strands of the story as they happen. If the story starts to go
in a direction that's not covered here, go with it! Listen to
what your players are saying; if they have a good idea, steal
it. They'll be amazed they could predict what was going to
happen with such accuracy!
3 SCENE 0 | WELCOME
Scene One: Murder
More Townsfolk
Outside the Graymoor Note that there are also quick sketches of
Bend townsfolk who are less important to the tale, at
the back of this adventure! Feel free to grab one
of them if your players put you on the spot by
A light mist drifts from the loamy sky above you. The drizzle
talking to passers-by, when the characters on this
quickly freezes into glass in the streets. In the middle of the page are not around.
small town’s square, Graymoor’s blacksmith, George Gilly,
lies face down in the snow, still, and ashen.
The party stands around the latest victim, in the middle of Investigating the Body
the town, outside it's only Inn, the Graymoor Bend. With
them are a handful of the townsfolk, and the Coroner. Oswald will impatiently allow the players to inspect the
body, to see if it’s connected to Ser Thames' death. Any
The Coroner Intelligence (Investigation) check reveals that George was
Oswald, the Coroner, is in town specifically to investigate killed by a long laceration from his left shoulder blade to
and tax the death of Ser Thames, a knight who lived in his right hip. It likely severed his spine, and could have
Graymoor, and the one who was first to wind up dead. Ser been done with a sword or dagger, but not with bare hands.
Thames was the closest thing Graymoor had to a sheriff. Exceeding DC 10 also reveals that there is a trail of
Oswald the Coroner has enlisted the help of the players, blood, frozen between layers of snow, leading behind the
and will often try to boss them around, and even sneer at Graymoor Bend. This suggests he was attacked there, and
their ideas during the investigation. He is interested in then chased out into the street.
investigating Ser Thames' death, but feels little empathy for Exceeding DC 17 reveals something else...
anyone else affected by whatever is going on in town. It’s
likely he plans to pocket the money from the taxation, too, Near the start of the bloody trail, you find a deep gouge,
as he’s very finely dressed, and obviously profits well from scored into the earth, as though someone had been digging
the suspicious deaths of others. Think of him like the
Pardoner, from Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales; A hypocrite for treasure with a mattock. On a hunch, you ask for a
through and through. shovel, and start clearing snow away. A cold dread prickles
up your back when you find another... and another... all in a
The Townsfolk trail toward the body. They're footsteps, you're sure of it, but
These are some of the other characters that could be so deep and far apart as to suggest whatever chased the
standing around during this opening scene, but they don’t poor blacksmith down was running at a speed you can only
have to be. describe as inhuman.
Sagh Gazara Sagh is the proprietor of the Graymoor Bend.
As a half-orc, she stands a full six and a half feet tall, and
generally has a cheery disposition. Her and Henriette are
long-time friends and on-again-off-again lovers, and the pair A word on Skill Checks
of them essentially run the town together.
The DM has the final say on how skill checks
Henriette Pascal Retired wizard, hasn’t cast magic in work, but this adventure includes a lot of them,
years, and is no longer sure if she can. Maintains an and if you’re a new DM, there’s a few things you
impressive library, and is often approached for help by the should consider keeping in mind.
townsfolk with problems that require academic insight. First, if someone fails a check, don’t let them just
Eldariel Hoxaris Non-binary elven apothecary. Presents as keep rolling until they make it! Try not to think of
androgynous. Fiercely proud of their horticultural work, skill checks as a gate the players have to get
through. Instead, try thinking of them as a fork in
and has been successful breeding several new species of the road. Beating a check should make the player
flower. Bottles potions, but sells them only to friends. feel good, but failing a check can still be
Grimmund Daldrin Burly dwarvern man, with grand interesting, if you spin it into the story and move
on.
dreams of performing opera in the big city. Is a remarkable
tenor, and the star singer in the town’s chapel choir. Secondly, if it feels like only one person is doing
all the investigating, remind the players that they
Xalyth Tass A shy and timid drow woman, who works can use the Help action outside of combat to
primarily as a locksmith, but tinkers with other mechanical give each other Advantage on skill checks.
oddities in her workshop. Extremely paranoid about what’s
going on in the town, and is convinced that she’s going to
die next.
Interlude:
By now the players have probably spent their whole day
investigating.
Oswald, at the very least, will want to turn in at the
Graymoor Bend after Ser Thames' house has been
searched. This gives the players a chance to talk about what
they’ve found, to theorise, and to talk to some more
townsfolk if they like, as anyone the DM chooses can be
present in the Inn, having a quiet drink. Now is also a good
time to bring up Quintin Nary’s death, and his fight with
Grimmun Daldrin, if it hasn’t already been mentioned.
The next morning, Sagh is waiting for the players with
breakfast, and sour news. Xalyth Tass, the locksmith, was
found dead in her house that dawn.
Father Daragor
Father Daragor will meet them outside, as they arrive. He
is a older, weathered man, in his forties or fifties. Silver
haired, with a scar on his jaw, and a set of fake teeth. His
dentures are made of cow bone, if they care to ask. He is as
helpful and forward as possible.
“I’ll do whatever I can to help. I hope the chapel can be a
sanctuary. As it should, in dark times.”
“You charge the door, but forget to stay low, and clear of the
Inside, the players find the corpse of Oswald, the Coroner. thickening smoke. It burns in your lungs as your short sprint
He has been torn to pieces horrifically. Either a DC 10
Intelligence (Investigation) or a DC 10 Wisdom (Nature) forces you to inhale a lungful of the choking air. You close
check reveals that it's likely the work of something with your eyes, feel the wood splinter against your skin, and then
giant claws. Choosing to use Wisdom (Nature) also points are free, coughing and hacking on the cold grass outside.
out that if it was the work of an animal the corpse would Roll 1d8, and take it as fire damage.”
likely be at least partially eaten, but there are no teeth
marks anywhere.
This is still failure, but it’s interesting and fun.
As you investigate, you hear a soft thunk and turn suddenly Doing this gets easier the more you practice it,
to find the barn shut. Within seconds, the scent of burning and players tend to love it.
mould envelopes you. Black smoke starts to rush up the You shouldn’t do this all the time; sometimes a
failing a check is a dead end, or worse, and
walls like an inverted waterfall. Flames climb from the
should be. Just remember it doesn’t have to be,
corners to the rafters. and that not all scenes are created equal! This
What do you do? one requires some flexibility, but a scene like the
finale does not, and a failure there will be far
more costly than 1d8 of fire damage!
If the players give chase, they find the trail of a large four-
legged creature, which has left paw prints the size of
human hands.
There is no way for them to catch up with it.
A DC 10 Wisdom (Nature) check could reveal that this
is certainly the trail of a wolf, but one bigger than any
should be. If the players also found the wolf tracks at
George Gilly’s house, they will be able to tell they are the
same.
If the players think to ask whether or not the claws in these
prints could have killed Oswald, or any of the other victims,
you can tell them they are not big enough.
For the DM:
The wolf stalking them is Eryn, as she is now begrudgingly
working with Father Daragor, trying to cover up the crimes
that he’s made her believe she committed. She is not able to
control or remember her transformations into her wolf
form, and cannot take the shape of a Hybrid, like Father
Daragor can.
Break
This isn’t a bad spot to take a break, as playing any further
than here will probably make you feel as though you have
to see it through to the end!
The envelope is blank on the outside, but when opened, If the players try to open the door, they find that the door is
reads; “Send them to me.” locked, and cannot be picked open. If they try to force the
Henriette can explain that there’s an old woman who lives door open, they can make a Dexterity Saving Throw to
alone in the woods, named Old Lady Sybil. Most of the avoid falling into the gaping void behind the door, and on a
townsfolk don’t trust her, because no one normal could failure they topple in and vanish. What happens to them is
survive alone out there for so long at her age, but Henriette up to the DM.
has asked her for help translating scrolls and books in the The package
past, and she has been friendly in the past. The children of The package with the Player Character's names on it is a
Graymoor are often told she will eat them if they don’t do nicely wrapped box, with a brown ribbon tied in a bow
their chores. around it. Inside is another letter to the party, and two
Henriette is also able to tell them how to get to her house, objects. The letter reads:
as Sybil obviously wants to speak with them regarding the
mystery, but recommends waiting until morning, as it’s “Hello lovelies! I’ve been interested in you since you started
nearly a whole days walk there and back. poking around, and I think it’s only fair I make myself known
to you, given that it’s likely you would have crossed paths
It’s likely that at this point, your players are caught between with me later anyhow. The long and the short of it is, I want
waiting for the sword that will be delivered to Ser Thames to help you. I can’t tell you exactly what it is you must do,
house in the morning, and investigating the Chapel again,
but only have one more day before the feast. They may because frankly, I have no idea. But I can give you this key.
need to split up in order to go to Ser Thames' and Old Lady Take it to Henriette’s library, and follow the map. You’ll find
Sybil’s houses at the same time, and this should be allowed. what you need there. And don’t forget Ser Thames' sword!
If some players do go to Ser Thames' house, just skip to the Remember, do your best, and if you don’t figure it out by
next scene for them; Blade in the Woods. midnight tonight, everyone in Graymoor will die.
Kisses,
You gather out the front of the Graymoor Bend, as the sun Lady Sybil”
rises. The cloud above has broken up; tonight will be clear,
and the full moon will be bright.
The key is an old, wrought iron thing, heavy and rusted. The
map is scawled on a roll of parchment, and is labelled as
Henriette arrives quickly, having dug up a scroll from her "Henriette's Library."
library. She hands it to the players, and explains that it is
instructions for reaching Old Lady Sibil’s house safely. The
instructions are as follows;
1. Go to the edge of the wood. It doesn’t matter where.
2. Whisper the following;
Freedom on the edge
of the wood, a pale star
Guided by the spirit
who walks freely
3. Walk forward until the trees block out the sun.
4. Close your eyes, and keep walking until you feel her
doorstep.
5. Do not go inside unless invited.
6. To leave, do everything in reverse.
APPENDIX 16
Credits
Art:
Jakub Rozalski
https://www.artstation.com/jakubrozalski
Mihkel Mätas
https://www.artstation.com/kuumehike
Josh James
https://www.artstation.com/stokens
Mateusz Michalski
https://www.artstation.com/kalberos
Rob Joseph
https://www.artstation.com/rob-joseph
Sean Sevestre
https://www.artstation.com/sean
Noah Bradley
http://noahbradley.com
Lukas Esch
https://www.artstation.com/lukasesch
Ailmur
https://elmunderleaf.deviantart.com/
Eoawyn
https://eoawyn.deviantart.com/gallery/45592522
Drawings-Books-n-scrolls
Unknown
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Longsw
Resources:
Formatting
http://homebrewery.naturalcrit.com/
Statblocks
https://valloric.github.io/statblock5e/
Writing:
S. T. Mannell
https://crypticparlour.com/
https://twitter.com/crypticparlour
17 CREDITS