Ruined Monastery (day 4-5)

The heroes continued their trip through Darkmoon Vale, when a giant mosquito crossed their path and soundlessly attached itself to Tok. The heroes killed the disgusting insect before it could do him any serious damage.

After exploring Darkmoon Vale, only one ingredient remains to be found: ironbloom mushrooms. These small toadstools are known to be a dwarven delicacy, but there are no dwarves living in the area. As such, the heroes' only hope of retrieving these mushrooms is to search the ruins on the other side of Darkmoon Vale.

Unfortunately, predators have taken up residence in the ruined building. Unless otherwise noted, none of the chambers inside the monastery are lit. All of the rooms have 10-foot-tall ceilings at the minimum, but since most open up to the sloped roof above, many reach a height of up to 20 feet. The walls are all stone, with the interior walls being 1 foot thick and the exterior walls measuring at least 3 feet thick. All of the doors are strong wooden doors, and many are swollen stuck.

Sitting squat at the foot of an imposing mountain, a ruined monastery came into view between ancient gnarled trees. Made of simple stone blocks, worn smooth with the passage of time, the stout building is falling apart. Sections of the slanted shale roof have collapsed and portions of the outer wall have crumbled. Weeds and wild thorn plants run rampant across the field leading up to the place, leaving only the slightest indication of a path that ends at the ruined front doors. Beyond, an overgrown yard sits in shadow.

The old path that leads up to the ruins ends about 50 feet from the monastery. Before entering the yard, the path passes between a pair of old stone statues. While one of them is little more than rubble, the other is relatively intact. The 5-foot-tall statue is incredibly worn but it can still be made out as a dwarf holding aloft a great stone hammer. Moss and creeper vines cover most of its surface.

Tall grasses and chunks of stone debris have all but overtaken the small yard. Off to one side, a wooden stable has collapsed into a mound of rotting timbers and moldy straw. The outer wall on the east side has also collapsed, leaving a ragged hole. Three doors exit into this yard – a pair of double doors to the east, a single door to the north, and a lone door leading into the squat tower in the southeast corner. A few lone razrocrows roost at the tower and caw at anyone who enter their domain.

This yard lies in ruins. Searching the tall grasses revealed a few interesting clues. A well hides in the northwest corner of the yard, with 10 feet of rope dangling into it. The water is more than 30 feet down and is brackish. Lying next to the well is a body. Valeros revealed that this body was devoured by a rather large animal.

The ruined stable hides a few ancient bones, but little else of value. The heroes revealed that these are the bones of a pony.

Although the tall grasses obscure most trails, Tok revealed faint signs that some creatures do enter the main building through the double doors. Some of these tracks looked reptilian while others are clearly made by four-legged mammals. The reptilian trail always leads to the entrance and then out into the wild while the mammal tracks leave by either the main entrance or through the hole in the eastern wall.

Hiding inside a rotting backpack at the base of the well were the remains of a week's worth of trail rations, a set of thieves' tools, 50 feet of silk rope, a small coinpurse with 42 gp in assorted coins, and a small blue vial containing a potion of cure light wounds.

The door leading into the tower was stuck. A rather aggressive monstrous spider dwelt in this room, hiding in its webs. The moment the door opened, the spider dropped down to attack. Its webs allowed it to move throughout the tower, but did not hinder the heroes' movement. The spider fought to the death

Atop the 30-foot-tall tower is an open trapdoor that leads into the interior. Thick webs covered much of the ancient crates and barrels stored inside the base of the tower. A rickety wooden staircase ascended along one wall to reach an open trapdoor above.

The wooden staircase leading to the roof of the tower was not safe. When Hrol attempted to climb the stairs the staircase collapsed.

While the supplies in most of the crates and barrels in this room have long since rotted away, one small crate contained a masterwork short sword wrapped in oilcloth.

Beyond the double doors off the yard is a small dark hall. Littered with mounds of debris and a year’s worth of dead leaves, it is clear that a narrow path winds inside. There is nothing of interest in the piles of dirt and leaves.

Pews of darkwood lie tipped over and covered in dust on either side of this ancient shrine off the entry hall. At the far end sits a large ceremonial anvil, but its surface is defaced and ruined.

The anvil was identified as an item devoted to Torag. Of particular note is a space upon the altar containing five small depressions. 

Darkmoon Vale (day 2-4)

The hobgoblin attempted to flee while his hawks fought to the death. During that fight, the heroes were assisted by a mysterious and slightly intoxicated gnome priest of Cayden Cailean, Wrackomelor, who joined their quest. Mrunk managed to incapacitate the hobgoblin and the heroes left his fortune to the fates afterwards.

Hrol removed the fox from the trap. The pitiful animal put up no resistance.

The fox was badly injured, it's hindquarters slashed by the hobgoblin's trap. Hrol and Wrackomelor saved and treated the fox, nursing it back to health.

Later on that same day, a giant mosquito crossed the path of the heroes and soundlessly attached itself to Wrackomelor. The heroes killed the disgusting insect before it could do him any serious damage.

The next day, the heroes found a rare, glowing mold covering the undersides of several large rocks deep in the forest. Valeros and Mrunk managed to harvest enough of the mold without destroying it to serve as two separate light sources. Once removed from the rock, the mold continued to glow with the brightness of a torch.

Later that day, the dense trees and thick brush of the forest give way, parting seemingly in respect for the titanic darkwood tree that dominates a clearing. Several times taller than a temple minaret, in one direction the obviously ancient tree reaches into the sky with branches like a giant’s arms, while in the other it plumbs the earth with roots thicker than a man’s waist. Its limbs broad and strong, its bark thick and so richly colored as to almost be black, and its leaves the size of bucklers, the giant thing is less a tree and more a cathedral of boughs and branches.

Despite its serene nature, the glade was not without danger. A rare serpentine creature made its lair in the branches of the massive darkwood tree.

When the heroes entered the glade, the creature was hiding among the tree's limbs and branches near its trunk. When the heroes approached, it charged from the tree, pouncing on Mrunk and almost killing him. After a harrowing encounter, the heroes managed to slay it while it attempted to flee.

Focusing on the elder darkwood's trunk, the heroes revealed a small patch of elderwood moss Laurel described. The growth was easily collected by even the most unskilled hand.

This elder darkwood tree is the most ancient of its kind in Darkmoon Vale according to Milon. The clearing is roughly ovular, The elder darkwood has low, easy to climb branches that extend from the trunk in every direction. Valeros and Mrunk eventually scaled the tree's height, gaining a commanding view of the entire forest. During their climb they noticed three bodies hanging in the high limbs.

The heroes investigated the bodies in the elder darkwood to find the corpses of three medium-sized humanoids. Although the bodies had been stripped of nearly all their flesh, their equipment still dangled from their half-devoured carcasses. The heroes searched the bodies and found the following items which remained in useful condition: two light crossbows, two short swords, a suit of hide armor, a masterwork shortbow, a signet ring with the image of a flaming hawk, 9 gp, 12 sp and eight days' worth of rations.

On the next day, the sounds of the forest become suddenly distant as the trees part, opening into a small, almost perfectly circular glade. The nearest stands of pine, eyln, and darkwood – all typically sturdy woods – twist away from the clearing, as if bent by some impossibly strong wind or seemingly in an attempt to flee despite their paralyzed roots. At the glade’s center squats an ugly cottage, little more than a pile of twigs, shoots, and ivy stacked upon mud walls. From the thatched roof hung bundles of gnarled roots, old dried beast carcasses, and knucklebone bangles, all clattering together like gruesome wind chimes. A dozen small thatched fetishes – each shaped like a tiny man, imp, or rearing serpent – stand propped in the yard, keeping guard before a rickety plank door.

This cottage was home to the witch Ulizmila according to Milon. Although her works still spoil in this glen, Ulizmila was long since gone.

When the heroes approached the cottage they could see that its moldering door had rotted off its hinges but still blocked the way within. Hrol easily hefted aside the barrier.

Inside, the cottage is dank, reeking, and filled with shadows. Haphazardly hung shelves line the walls, covered in all manner of clay jugs, clouded bottles, strangely cut rocks, rotted bunches of herbs, and a museum of other crude curios and remnants of a bone grinder's artifice. A rusted iron cauldron dominated the hut's single room, its ash-covered surface shaped with a relief of capering fiends and leering devils. Across form the door, against the far walls, stands a high-backed chair made of wicker, the gigantic curved tusks of some monstrous beast, and thousands of human teeth. In the chair sits what looks like a corpse wrapped in filthy burial linens, its form padded with pungent herbs and sprouting patches of think white mold. This ominous shape is actually only a bundle of branches, mud, and linen.

The cauldron in the cottage was a unique animated creature. It attacked Wrackomelor when he disturbed Ulizmila's possessions. The heroes managed to destroy it.

Due to the volume and disorganization of the cottage's contents, it took 20 minutes to locate the rat's tail. Besides the rat's tail, there were several other items of hidden value in the hut. After a minute searching Hrol and Valeros uncovered statuettes and rare stones. Detect magic revealed the only magic item that remained here, a disgusting shrunken head.

Darkmoon Vale (day 1-2)

The heroes were compelled to plot their own journey to and through Darkmoon Vale. Since none of them were familiar with the area, they needed to make a stop at the Lumber's Consortium Camp.

The Lumber Consortium Camp cuts an ugly scar of stumps into a dense stand of proud darkwood trees. Five sturdy-looking buildings - seemingly a bunkhouse, meal hall, office, barn, and smithy - stand with numerous wide carts and sleds amid the sawdust-covered clearing.

The camp appears callous and unrelenting. Hrok inquired the first band of surly loggers they encountered after woodsman Milon Rhoddam.

Milon Rhoddam is a blunt and quiet man. His nephew has taken ill with blackscour taint and, when the heroes explain they 're trying to find reagents to brew a cure, he gladly sketched them a rough map of the forest, marking the location of where he believes Ulizmila's hut, the oldest tree in the forest, and the dwarven ruins stand.

The entire journey, from Falcon's Hollow to the Lumber Camp, to various forest locations and to the old dwarven ruins, is just over 37 miles in length. The entire journey will take five days, plus any time spent exploring or days spent resting. (C) on the map denotes the eldest tree in the forest, while (D) is Ulizmila's hut.

On their first day in the forest, the heroes happened upon a dead tree streaked with multicolored dye. Three humanoid-shaped small figures made of gnarled wood were pinned there.

The first time the characters drew near the lake, Tok heard an animal's whimpering a short distance away.

Not far from the edge of the forest-shrouded lake, a fox with large ears and bright orange fur lay bleeding, its hindquarters caught fully in the jaws of a crude iron trap.

Although the fox here has obviously been snared by a hunter's cruel trap, the beast's cries are part of a ploy meant to lure greater prey. A hobgoblin with a prodigious cleft palate lurks in the nearby treeline, watching over his catch with his bow and waiting for greater prey.

All but Tok are surprised when the hobgoblin attacks, He is accompanied by two trained hawks, one of which Valeros killed. Tok approached the tree the hobgoblin was on, and afterwards he leapt from its perch.

An Elusive Antidote (day 1)

The three heroes arrive in Falcon's Hollow, one to aid with the plague, another passing by and deciding to rent his skills in aid, and the last, Tok, afraid that he is himself afflicted.

After a short interaction with the patrons of the local tavern, where Tok is politely but firmly declined service because of his cough, Tok and one of the heroes learn that the local herbalist, Laurel, is aiding the families of the sick as best she can - although her proscriptions are little more than bed rest and a pungent black urdroot tea. The owner of the tavern directed the two heroes to Laurel's shop, the unmistakably named Roots and Remedies. The line stemming from Laurel's shop made a useful first-time meeting place with the last hero.

Creeping ivy and full window boxes cover the façade of the rugged-looking, two-story shop bearing the faded sign “Roots and Remedies”. A line of twenty-some somber townsfolk – some with pale, wheezing children, others seeming to be precipitously near tears – stretched from the open door.

It took nearly an hour for the heroes to reach the door of Roots and Remedies. Once inside, the clutter and disrepair of the shop showed the recent traffic. And Laurel visibly overworked herself at the store's rear, brewing remedies for the ill.

The smell of burnt earth and spicy incense chokes the air of the cramped, mud-tracked shop. Bunches of dried herbs hang from the ceiling, along with dangling pots, presses, alchemical apparatuses, and glassware of more arcane purposes. Pouches of rare plants, jars of colored glass, and all manner of dried, preserved, and jellied animal parts fill high shelves and tables doing double duty as displays and workspaces. In the shop’s rear, a rail-thin woman with severe-looking spectacles and hair pulled back tightly busied herself between an overpacked rack of herbs, a table covered in stray powders and measuring equipment, and a pot loudly bubbling over with thick gray froth. Over the din of her work and without looking up, the woman impatiently shouted, “And what’s your problem?”

The heroes conversed with Laurel and she told them anything they needed to know about the blackscour outbreak, how many people are afflicted, and - especially - how it's not her job to treat every cut and scabbed knee the daft people of Falcon's Hollow come crying to her about.

According to Laurel:

• Blackscour is just a fungus that's not good for anything. Hard, bitter, and sharp, it likes the water and gets people sick if they drink it down. She had never heard of it growing around these parts, though, until now.
• Blackscour taint is a sickness, almost like any other, but the afflicted get the mold growing in them. It starts eating away at their chest and belly and is damned determined to stay. Their body near turns itself inside out trying to hack the stuff up, but all that does is cut their guts up...bad.
• More than thirty townsfolk have blackscour taint, though at least three times that think they've got it.
• There isn't a cure around here. Laurel gets these folks what she can and waits to see what good it does.
• Laurel's grandmother's book has a brew in it that says that it's good for this kind of thing. A weird concoction that sounds more like hoojoo than real medicine.
• This medicine is some rare roots and concentrations, most of which Laurel has here, but there's three she doesn't. Elderwood moss, which she's never heard of, but her grandmother says it only grows on the oldest tree in the forest. A specially pickled root called rat's tail. And seven ironbloom mushrooms, stunty little things that only grow in dark places thick with metal. a favorite among dwarves,
• For the elderwood moss, there's gotta be an oldest tree in the vale. Laurel doesn't know where it is though. The rat's tail and mushrooms are even longer shots. Way north, towards the mountains, people say there used to live a bunch of dwarves. They're not there anymore, but their forges should be. If the heroes can find ironbloom anywhere around here, that would be their best bet. As for the rat's tail, Ulizmila, the witch that lives deep in the woods might know. She's a crafty, mean thing that knows all sorts of strangeness. She might even have one. Laurel doesn't know what Ulizmila might want for it, but Laurel doubts it would come cheap. Her grandmother traded her sight to the old crone for a few pages of what she knew, and that was years and years back, and Laurel doesn't know a soul who got nicer as they got older.
• They have no time to get the ingredients! People are dying every day! All they can hope to do now is treat who they can and hope to save the gravedigger some work.
• Laurel is not doing all this for free. If nothing else, this whole thing has been good for business. If the heroes come back with everything she needs to brew the medicine she will cut them in: 30 gp each.

Laurel suggested the heroes head to the Consortium Lumber Camp to the east and look for Milon Rhoddam - the most experienced woodsman in the Lumber Consortium.