Module for 2-5 adventurers at levels 3-6

Setup: The players have arrived in the port town of Cuesta Laverde, a mid-sized city with a population of about two thousand. Cuesta Laverde is an important trading hub for an elven kingdom and so the town is full of many different races but mostly inhabited by elves. The players know the town sheriff, a retired elven ranger named Luxidor Agoura. The players can decide the nature of their relationship with the sheriff. Maybe he traveled with them in the past or maybe he’s family or maybe they just met him at a tournament and hit it off. Either way, he considers the players as friends. He’s invited the group to Cuesta Laverde for a party. Every year, the town holds a celebration called Bright Day to honor the town’s founding. There will be games, good food, a dance contest, and a fireworks show. The players will find the town decked out for the festivities.

There are streamers hanging on the buildings. Flower poles have been set up. Musicians play in the streets. There are vendors of all sorts hocking their wares along the main road. People are smiling, dancing, and laughing. You find the sherriff’s office easy enough but once you walk through the door, the positive mood changes dramatically. No one here is smiling. The guards scurry about you with distress in their eyes. You find Luxidor sitting at his desk. By the marks, he looks like he hasn’t slept at all. “Thank the gods,” he says when he looks up. “My friends, I desperately need your help.”

Luxidor explains that the town mayor and his family have disappeared. They haven’t been seen in two days. He’s kept it secret but it won’t be long before the town discovers what has happened and he will have to cancel the celebration. The party is tomorrow. Here’s what Luxidor knows: Mayor Syllar Duskspark, his wife Moralia, three children (Leia, Genven, and Daylen), and their five house servants are all missing. They were last seen two days ago by a number of people. The only person left at the manor house is Dell, the groom who was asleep in the stables when everyone vanished. Luxidor has searched the house. He’s found signs of a home invasion and some blood on the floor. However, there are no tracks outside of the house and there has been no ransom note or demands. He asks the players to help him find Mayor Duskspark and his family.

Duskspark Manor: A lush house on the outskirt of town, Duskspark Manor screams wealth. The grounds are well tended with beautiful bushes, fountains, and statues. The road leads to a large stable next to the impressive manor.

Stable: The stable holds a beautiful carriage and ten stalls. Elegant horses stamp and snort as you walk past them.

Dell can be found in the stable. He’s a human with a perpetual grimace on his chiseled face. The players will find him brushing one of the horses. The horse has wild eyes and is sweating but Dell is keeping it calm by soothingly talking to it. Dell will mention that the horses all seem to be on edge. Players can make an animal handling check DC 15 to determine that the horses are all scared of something. Players who can talk to animals will hear the horses say that there is something evil in the house but they don’t know what.

The lord and his lass went riding that evenin. They like to do that every couple of days. It’s how they keep their romance alive. He rode Caran over there and she took Meril. They seemed happy. Nothin out of the ordinary. They left the horses with me and then when they went into the house. I didn’t see em agin. I stayed here with the horses that night. They’ve been scard see. Might be the kids shooting off early fireworks so I thought they’d be happier with me here. Well Bresta over there woke me up. That takes a lot. I’m a heavy sleeper but she kicked open her stall screamin like she was on fire. They were all spooked. It took me till dawn to get em to settle down. When I did, I went to the house to tell me lord but there was no one there. I went to get the sheriff right away.

Dell doesn’t have any other information. The next step will be to investigate the house.

Grand Hall: A large staircase dominates the grand hall leading up to a second floor and a balcony. The tiled floor features an enormous rug and various paintings and banners hang from the high walls. Empty suits of armor stand at attention. There are two doors on the left wall and two on the right with one door next to the staircase.

The only thing of note here in the grand hall is that the door was locked. There were no signs of forced entry.

Coat Closet: Several fur coats and rain gear hang from pegs in this small coat closet.

A perception check DC 13 notices that one the fur coats is damp and smells of sea water.

Drawing Room: The Drawing Room has a fireplace and several comfy chairs for sitting. A small coffee table sits in the center of the room. Of notice are the decorations. There are five model ships under glass cases along one wall. The ships are each labeled and dated.

Luxidor knows that Mayor Syllar is a collector of model ships. The model ships are called The Sky Dream, The Nora Grand, The Red Rose, The Wellspring, and The Little Finger. The most recently acquired is The Red Rose, which has a date only two weeks ago. Players with a passive perception check of 10 or less or roll and fail a perception check DC 10 will notice that the sails of The Red Rose seem to be gently fluttering as if blowing in the wind. However, they will stop the moment the player looks away, looks closer, or tries to show someone else. The ship will glow if a player uses the detect magic spell but nothing else can be discerned about it.

The Dining Hall: A large table dominates this room with eight high-backed chairs. A large portrait of the family hangs on the far wall featuring a handsome elven man and woman and three elven children all with the same delicate blonde hair and teal eyes. The main chair has been pushed back and there is an empty wine glass sitting in front of it.

A player who succeeds on a perception or Intelligence check DC 14 will notice that the silverware cabinet is very prominent and contains some very expensive plates and dishes. It is locked and nothing seems to be stolen. The wine glass is empty and does not smell of wine.

The Kitchen: The fine kitchen has all of the culinary tools needed to feed a manor of this size. The pantry door has been ripped open and hangs limply by one weak hinge.

A survival check DC 15 will see that there’s evidence of a scuffle here. A bag of flour was knocked over and several bare footprints can be seen in the dust. They appear humanoid. The handle had been wedged shut from the inside so the door was wrenched open by force. Luxidor thinks one of the staff may have fled here and hid inside but was captured by the abductors.

Servants Quarters: Six identical rooms each have a small bed, a dresser, a table, and a chair. Each room has been decorated to reflect its owner and holds the meager possessions of the servants. Dell’s room is undisturbed but the other five have been ransacked.

The bed covers have been thrown aside and each room has been turned upside down with furniture knocked over, feathers from a slashed pillow, and drops of dried blood. It is clear that something violent happened in these rooms. One door in particular was locked and broken open. One has a window partially open and broken glass.

The Library: Filled with shelves and books, nautical maps and sea-faring gear in cases, the library has several couches, a couple of low tables, and a gaming table with an unopened pack of cards sitting on it.

A careful search of the library will find the following. On a perception check DC 15, the player will find a book filled with information on famous ships and a bookmark at the entry for The Red Rose. See backstory. On a perception check of 10, the player will open the deck of cards and notice that a couple of cards are missing: the king and queen of diamonds, the five, seven, and ten of diamonds, and the Ace, two, three, four and five of the clubs. An Intelligence check DC 15 will realize that the missing children are the elven equivalent of five, seven, and ten in age.

The Master Bedroom: The four poster canopy bed has silk sheets tossed haphazardly aside. The room is decorated lavishly but tastefully with various art objects. Of interest is a stand on one wall in which hangs a single rapier but there are the holdings for two.

The missing rapier is under the bed. A perception check DC 12 will find it. The rapier has some blood on the handle. Nothing else can be found in this room.

The Children’s Bedrooms: All three children’s rooms has a handsome bed, a vanity, a chest full of toys, and a small bookshelf of children’s books.

In the eldest’s bedroom, the players find Leia’s Diary. Reading through it the players will see some disturbing notes in the last few pages. For the past two weeks, Leia has been hearing things at night. She’s heard footsteps, creaking wood, and the sound of distant cannons. However, when she’s looked around there was nothing there. Her father and mother don’t believe her and just tell her that she must have been dreaming.

Solving the crime: The Mayor bought The Red Rose model ship two weeks ago from a shady merchant (possibly Odrick). Two night ago was the full moon and Captain Dafeer and his men emerged and grabbed everyone in the house. Tonight is also a full moon. At midnight, a portal will open near the ghost ship and two plus one ghost crew for each player will emerge from it. They will attempt to capture the players. On failing, the ghosts retreat through the portal. The players can follow them into The Red Rose (see ship map). The players will find Mayor Syllar, his wife, his children, and two of the servants in the cages in the hold. Three of the servants are dead and fed to the ship. The players can save the group and flee or they can face Captain Dafeers in the ship heart and defeat him. Once defeated, the players do not get to loot the ship. Instead they will find themselves and the living survivors teleported back into the drawing room just as dawn peeks through the windows. Mayor Syllar will reward the players instead with 5,000 gp, one random uncommon magical item for each player, and a place of honor during the Bright Day celebrations. The players can decide what, if anything, they want to do about the ghost ship model since it will only attack again on the next full moon, which won’t be for another month.