Hushed Bellward
This hazard is a listening ward woven into hanging bells. It does not merely make noise when disturbed, but reacts to abrupt motion and raised voices by releasing a piercing chord that rattles nerves, sets teeth on edge, and alerts nearby guardians. Adventurers can outwit it, sneak past it, or blunt it with silence, but barging through turns the whole corridor into a shrieking alarm.
Hushed Bellward
Defenses
Detection
“A ring of tarnished silver bells hangs from black silk threads in a doorway or narrow hall. The bells are the size of walnuts, but they never quite stop trembling, and when the room is quiet they seem to ring in a sound just below hearing, like a memory of music.”
Standard Engagement
A creature enters the warded space without moving carefully, speaks above a whisper, or causes sudden vibration such as running, striking metal, or slamming a door.
On initiative count, the bells tremble and ring if a creature in the area speaks above a whisper, moves at more than half Speed, or touches the hanging threads without first securing them. The hazard attempts its Shattering Chord. Creatures that take the Seek, Sneak, or Interact actions to carefully move through the area do not trigger the hazard that round.
The hazard resets after 10 minutes of silence, or immediately if the bells are rethreaded and the clappers are touched back into place.
The hazard emits a concussive peal in a 10-foot emanation. Each creature in the area must attempt a DC 21 Fortitude save. Critical Success: Unaffected. Success: 1d4 sonic damage and no other effect. Failure: 2d4 sonic damage and the creature is stupefied 1 until the end of its next turn. Critical Failure: 4d4 sonic damage, stupefied 1 for 1 minute, and deafened for 1 minute.
The bells are tuned to react to vibration. A creature using a loud weapon, thunder damage, or a heavily armored rush through the area increases the save DC of the hazard by 2 for that trigger, as the resonance is sharpened by force.
If the hazard is successfully disabled, creatures can move through the area normally without fear of triggering the bellward until it resets.
Turn Hushed Bellward into a sheet
A high-res, share-ready sheet you can post or print.