G REYSTONE A T A G LANCE - Raging Swan Press · G REYSTONE A T A G LANCE ... NE female degenerate...

2

G R E Y S T O N E A T A G L A N C E

Thesharp-pointedhillshuddlecloselytogetherasthelandrisesinexorablythroughthedeepeningshadowstowardtheMottledSpire’s loomingtitanicbulk.Shriekingwindscoursthedesolate,treeless hilltops and fills the tangle of uncharted steep-sided,rock-strewnvalleyscuttingthroughthehills. Civilisation’s creeping tendrils did not linger long in such ahard place. A century ago, settlers from Languard foundedGreystone as a fishing villageand rebuilt the shattered ruin oftheShardasa lighthouseandwatchtower.However, theharshweather, isolation and events of a certain terror-filled nightdoomedtheireffortstofailure. Now, the decayed ruins of Greystone yet cling to thevertiginous, landward flank of the Mottled Spire and are stillvisiblefromLanguard’sramparts.Mostofthebuildingsarelittlemore than crumbling facades built over the mouths of thenumerous caves riddling the rock. Linked by steep and narrowroads hacked from the Spire’s living rock, these homes oncesheltered almost 200 souls. Sickly briars and the flotsam ofcountlesswinterstormsnowchokemanyoftheroadsrenderingthem all but impassable—only the nimblest or strongesttravellersfindthegoingeasy. Anamelessauraoffearanddecayhangsoverthecrumbling,wind-blasted ruins. Seemingly perpetually shrouded in shadowbytheMottledSpire’s loomingbulkdarklegendsclusterthicklyaboutthevillage.Storiesofghoulishhauntingsandmythsofthedegenerate,inbredsurvivorsoftheoriginalsettlerslurkingamidthe ruins alongwith the village’s isolated position, conspire tokeepdecentfolkaway.

D E M O G R A P H I C S

RulerUljasAlanenGovernmentOverlordPopulation68(68degeneratehumancultist)AlignmentsNELanguagesAbyssal,Common

N O T A B L E F O L K

Few folk dwell in Greystone anymore; those that do are thedegenerate,inbreddescendantsofthevillage’soriginalsettlers:

Ilari Alanen (location 6; CE male degenerate human banditcaptain) Ilari stalks theMottled Spire and knows its secretpathswell.

MarjaAlanen (location6;NE femaledegeneratehumanmage)Uljas’wife,Marjaisevenmoredepravedthanherhusband.

Uljas Alanen (location 6; NE male degenerate human cultfanatic) The depraved leader of the Dagon cultists, Uljasenjoyssacrificinglivingvictimstohisdarkgod.

VilhoAlanen(location6;CEmaledegeneratehumanberserker)Bloodthirstyandhideous,Vilholovesfighting.

N O T A B L E L O C A T I O N S

Most of Greystone comprises nothing but ruined buildings. Afewlocations,however,areofinteresttoadventurers:

1. The Docks: Pummelled by winter storms and hide tides, thedocks and their tumbled stone breakwater are battered andcracked.

2. Hall of the Storm Mistress: Dedicated to Serat, Mistress ofStorms,thisruinedbuildingstandshardagainstthedocks.

3. ShrineoftheFather:Thewallsofthisbuildingstillstandproud,but surely they must soon collapse. Fallen rubble hides theentrancetoaforgottencrypt.

4. ForgeoftheDead:Asmallcave-homeatthebackofthisforgeishometoseveralravenousghouls.

5. AlanenManor:Thisramshacklemanorhousehidesabone-filledshrinededicatedtotheShadowintheSeainitscellar.

6. TheCaves:Caveshoneycombtherock;Dagon’scultistsyetusetheseastheirhome.

7. TheTwistedPath:ThisprecipitouspathleadstotheShard.8. The Shard: Destroyed decades ago, at the height of a vicious

and prolonged storm of unnatural virility, the Shard juts fromtheMottledSpirelikeajagged,brokentooth.Occasionally,faintlightsareglimpsedinitsvicinity.

H I S T O R Y

Born of a foolish, and ultimately doomed, attempt to bringcivilisationtotheMottledSpire,Greystone’shistoryisshortandcloaked in sorrow, suffering andmystery. The village stood foronly20years,beforedisasterovertookitsfolk. Almost wholly dependent on traders for fresh vegetables,grain and other staples, the villagerswere oftenmalnourishedand ill. A shortage of fresh water further exacerbated thevillagers’healthproblems.Rumours,however,placedastrangeinvisiblemiasmaoverthevillagethatmade its folksickwith itsnoxious vapours. Such suffering and depredation created afertilebreedinggroundforDagon’ssinistermessage.Bychance,the Alanen’s built theirmanor over an ancient place sacred totheShadow in theSea.Discoveredwhen the foundationswerelaid, the family’s patriarch—Armas Alanen—became obsessedwiththeshrineandquicklyfellunderitsmaster’sfell influence.Fromthen, likeacancer,hisworshipspreadslowly,but surely,through the populace until—in one terrible, bloody night—slaughterwasvisitedontheunbelievers. The few right-minded survivors of that terrible night fledwhiletheremainingcultistsmadetheirhomesamongthebonesof their slainneighbours.Withnooutside influenceworking tokeeptheirsoulssafefrometernaldamnation,thecultist’fallwassoon complete and they became degenerate, twistedperversionsofwhattheyoncewere.

3

V I L L A G E L O R E

A PC may know something about Greystone, its history andsurrounds.APCmakingaDC10Intelligencecheckknowsoneormore pieces of information from the list below. A successfulcheckgainsalltheinformationrevealedbyalessercheck.

§ DC 10: Greystone has been abandoned for decades, after anightofmadnessandslaughter.

§ DC 15: Although the ruins are visible from Languard, fewbothertoinvestigatethefallenvillage.

§ DC20:Thevillagerslivedincavesscreenedbynormalbuildingfrontages.Passagesandtunnelsriddlethewholearea.

V I L L A G E R S

AppearancePaleof skinanddirty the folkofGreystoneareanugly,loathsomefolk.Inbred,theyareaggressiveandviolentanddonotventureoutwillinglyduringtheday.Theyavoidcontactwithothersandviciouslydefendtheircavernhomes.

Dress Dressed in a patchwork of rags and ripped clothes theywraptheirfeetinstripsofscavengedclothandleather.

NomenclaturemaleAtro,Jani,Raimo,Valto;femaleAila,Emmi,Laina,Satu;familyAalto,Keto,Outila,Takala.

W H I S P E R S & R U M O U R S

While inGreystone,aPCmayhearoneormorerumours.APCmaking a DC 10 Charisma check learns one rumour from thetable below. A PC exceeding this check learns an additionalrumourforeach5pointsbywhichheexceededDC10.

D8 RUMOUR

1* The spirits of all those who died in the ruins hauntGreystone.Itisacursedplace.

2 The nobles of the village—the Alanen—went mad anddelvedtoodeeplyintoancient,best-forgottenlore.

3*Aninvisiblemiasmahungoverthevillageintheolddays.Itmade the villagers sick; somewentmadwhile othersdiedyoung.

4Something large and dangerous lives in Greystone’sharbour. After several fishermen disappeared in theharbour,noonevoluntarilydocksthereanymore.

5 The nearby waters are particularly cold, but teemwithfish.

6* An invisible demon lives in Greystone and whispersmaddeningthoughtstothosesleepingintheruins.

7* ExpeditionstoGreystonealwaysendindisaster.

8Lord Villamor dreams of re-establishing Greystone as afunctioningsettlement,buteveniftheplaceweremadesafenoonewouldvoluntarilylivethere.

*Falserumour