The Green Flame of Bellwether
The Green Flame of Bellwether
“A forgotten debt stirs beneath a dying beacon.”
— Hook · Investigation and supernatural threat
“The Beacon above Bellwether Hollow has turned green, the marsh bells are ringing without wind, and villagers have vanished along the old pilgrim road. The reeve offers coin and supplies if you can reach the Beacon, discover what changed, and bring the missing people home before the next midnight bell.”
— Hook · Investigation and supernatural threat
Rain falls steadily over Bellwether Hollow as the party is brought to the reeve's hall. Every window faces the hilltop Beacon, whose green light pulses through the storm like a slow heartbeat. Mara Venn explains that three villagers disappeared after following lantern-light toward the pilgrim road, while Nella Firth waits nearby, clutching a muddy silver button she found outside her house. Before the briefing ends, the village bell rings once from the empty bell tower.
Mara Venn
Mara Venn approaches the party in the reeve's hall shortly after they arrive in Bellwether Hollow. She offers an immediate partial payment, local supplies, and access to a village guide if they agree to investigate before nightfall.
Rumours
d5 · table- 01The Beacon has never gone dark, not even during the Great Storm.
- 02People who vanish in the marsh sometimes return years later without having aged.
- 03The old pilgrim road was built over a mass grave, though no map shows the grave's location.
- 04Sister Caldris was once the village's most trusted keeper of the Beacon.
- 05At midnight, the drowned can be heard counting the houses of Bellwether Hollow.
If the party fails, the Beacon's green flame will spread through the marsh at midnight, allowing the Bellwether Revenant to manifest fully. Bellwether Hollow may be abandoned, the missing villagers may become vessels for the dead, and the pilgrim road may become permanently haunted.
Background Lore
For generations, the village of Bellwether Hollow has relied on the Beacon of Saint Orra, an ancient lantern-tower built over a sealed subterranean shrine. The Beacon's blue flame guides travelers through the surrounding marsh and is said to keep the drowned dead beneath the fen at rest. Three nights ago, the flame turned green, the marsh bells began ringing without wind, and several villagers vanished along the old pilgrim road.
Bellwether Hollow depends on an ancient hilltop Beacon to guide travelers through the marsh. After its flame turned green, villagers began disappearing along the old pilgrim road, and the marsh bells started ringing on their own. The village reeve has hired the party to investigate the Beacon, rescue anyone still alive, and prevent the phenomenon from spreading.
