This is a copy of my session notes for a one-shot I ran in 2020, and again in 2023. It probably won’t make a ton of sense.
The party has been contracted for a heist by the Prophet of Kyriakos, and this is just on their way to the mark's location. The characters are making their way east through the windswept badlands towards the Colossus Heel and the session takes place about a week away.
The area is blasted by high winds, usually from the east, making travel very difficult. There are shrubs and short trees growing essentially sideways above very short grass. Most previous campsites have been in caves or on the leeward side of hills. Small animals like rabbits and armadillos make up most of the fauna, no birds can fly in the high winds.
The characters encounter even rougher winds than normal, then the rain starts to drizzle around mid-afternoon. By sunset the rain is coming down in sheets, turning the dry soil into mud and battering the party from all sides
The manor is in the shade of a low cliff, blocking the wind in the surrounding area. A small plot of tilled land has a garden and there's a well near the house. It seems a bit out of place but it's undeniably a good place to rest. The windows are lit up bright like a beacon.
Look through the windows
You see a dining room, with several figures sitting at a long table. A fire roars in the hearth, and the wind doesn't batter the windows hardly at all. They seem joval, laughing as they talk and eat a freshly-placed meal of roast turkey and vegetables.
DC15 Stealth check: Failure One of the figures sees you, but she doesn’t seem angry. She waves you to the door and grabs some towels from a nearby rack.
Knock on the door After a few seconds, a refined elven man in a nice suit opens the door, and his face goes from blank and stoic to a look of concern.
Come in, come in! Let’s get you out of this rain. You must be freezing, and the storm is only going to get worse.
He gestures you all into the main entryway, which is much taller than you would have expected. The walls are an ornate marble, with gildings along the trim and beautiful paintings and sculptures on each wall. Two grand statues stand on either side of the grand stairway, both encased in suits of armor. The main foyer splits off into several hallways, which lead into the kitchen, the dining room, the sitting room, and some bedrooms.
From the dining room arrive several figures, who see you and immediately start grabbing towels from a nearby bench. They start speaking at once, about how you can’t be out in that cold, you must absolutely come in, and do you need some food? We have plenty. One of them gestures towards a nearby serving girl, who scampers off to the kitchen to grab more food. They invite you into the dining room, laying towels on chairs for you to sit on.
The invitation The man at the end of the table stands up and speaks in a friendly, but firm, voice.
“My name is Thaddeus Blashikmund Jr., and Uvot as my witness, I will not let a traveler go hungry or cold. I insist that you partake in our food, and we will have rooms drawn up for you if the storm does not let up. I should also introduce everyone else here. To my right is my wonderful wife Isabel, without whom this house would not function. Her sister is Cleo, who is responsible for the wonderful art you see around us. If my daughters, Yasmine ask you to play hide and go seek, they will cheat. My father, to my left, has earned a peaceful retirement by negotiating trade along this river for the past sixty years, so please do not bother him. You have already met our beloved butler and bodyguard, Mr. Belvedere, and his assistant Timothy. You are, of course, welcome to any service we can offer.”
As he finishes up, the the serving girl enters with another tray full of food, from roast turkey, potatoes, and carrots, to creamed corn and bottles of wine.
House Blashikmund