Ash on the Brackenford Road
Ash on the Brackenford Road
Read aloud
A scorched pawprint smolders on the reeve's table as she lays a purse of silver beside it. 'Something is killing travelers on the Brackenford road. Find it, kill it, and bring me proof before the next wagon is due.'
Run the session
Cheat sheet
Objectives
- 11. Establish where and when the Ashmaw was last seen.
- 22. Track the creature to the Warden's Cairn.
- 33. Kill the Ashmaw and prove the road is safe.
- 44. Preserve the cairn and learn what it may be guarding.Optional
The clock
The next supply wagon is due in two days. If the road is still closed, Brackenford must ration food and fuel, and the wagon may attempt the dangerous route without help.
Scenes
- 0:00A Contract in Silver
- 0:30Tracks in the Ash
- 1:05The Ravine Trail
- 1:45The Beast at the Stones
- 2:45Payment and Warning
Cast
- Reeve Hesta ValeQuestgiver
- Tomas ReedWitness
- Mara FenAlly
- The AshmawAntagonist
The hook
Set the scene
Read the hook aloud in Hesta's cramped office. She offers the agreed reward and describes the last attack: a supply cart was found overturned, one mule dead, and the driver missing. Tomas waits outside, pale and reluctant to talk; Mara watches from across the lane, concerned that the party might disturb the cairn.
How Reeve Hesta Vale asks
Hesta summons the party to her office, sets the contract and reward on the table, and asks them to leave before dusk.
She is direct and practical, but avoids discussing the cairn unless the party asks.
Rumours
Scenes
about 3 hours0:00
30 min
socialThe table is here
1. A Contract in Silver
Reeve Hesta's office and the lane outside in Brackenford.
Hesta presents the contract. Tomas shares what he saw, and Mara cautions the party about the cairn. The group can gather supplies or ask questions before setting out.
NextTomas points out the last attack site and offers to guide the party to the edge of the woods.
0:30
35 min
exploration
2. Tracks in the Ash
A damp woodland track beside a wrecked supply cart.
The party examines the ruined cart, finds scorched pawprints, and follows the trail toward the ravine. Tomas can identify where the beast doubled back, while careful examination reveals signs that it avoided the cairn's boundary stones.
NextThe trail narrows beside a ravine, where wolves have gathered around a fresh kill.
1:05
40 min
combat
3. The Ravine Trail
A narrow forest path beside a shallow ravine.
The party must cross the ravine trail and deal with the wolves. After the encounter, tracks continue toward a clearing marked by old stones.
The Ravine TrailNextThe wolves' tracks mingle with a much larger scorched trail leading to the cairn.
1:45
60 min
combat
4. The Beast at the Stones
A smoky clearing surrounding the old Warden's Cairn.
The Ashmaw confronts the party. Characters may notice its pain and the cairn's warmth, but the contract still requires them to kill the beast. The party decides how much risk to take around the stones.
The Warden's CairnNextOnce the creature falls, the party can inspect the clearing, retrieve proof, and return to Brackenford.
2:45
25 min
social
5. Payment and Warning
Brackenford's reeve office, with villagers gathered outside.
Hesta verifies the proof and pays the party. Tomas tells the village what happened, and Mara responds to whether the cairn was preserved or damaged.
NextClose the adventure with the road reopening, or introduce one of the follow-up hooks.
Behind it
What people believe
Travelers and livestock have been attacked on the woodland road outside Brackenford.
Reeve Hesta Vale hires the party to track down and kill the dangerous beast before it strikes again. A local guide warns that the old Warden's Cairn lies near the creature's territory.
Background
For generations, the charcoal burners of Brackenford have left offerings at a stone marker called the Warden's Cairn.
Three nights ago, something began stalking the woodland road, killing pack animals and leaving scorched pawprints. The local reeve has closed the road, threatening the village's winter trade.
The stakes
If the Ashmaw remains alive, travelers and livestock will continue to die and Brackenford's road will stay closed.
If the cairn is damaged, the creature may be stopped, but the village could face a new danger later.
Encounters
2The Ravine Trail
Combat
A forest trail runs along a shallow ravine. One side is a steep earth bank, the other a 10-foot drop to a rocky shelf. Roots and loose stones provide occasional cover.
Foes
2 wolves
ComplicationThe narrow path is difficult terrain. A character who falls from the ledge drops 10 feet onto a lower shelf, taking minor fall damage appropriate to the table's rules, and must climb back up.
ScalingFor a party of three or fewer, use 1 wolf. For a party of six or more, use 3 wolves. If the party is already depleted, one wolf flees after the first wolf is defeated.
The Warden's Cairn
Combat
A circular clearing holds an old waist-high stone cairn. Charcoal pits dot the perimeter, and low smoke drifts through the trees. The ash-covered ground is difficult terrain in scattered patches.
Foes
The Ashmaw (custom creature)
ComplicationThe Ashmaw uses the cairn's stone ring for cover and tries to drive characters away from it. If the party damages the cairn, the beast becomes more aggressive; this is a dramatic cue, not a required mechanical penalty.
ScalingFor a party of three or fewer, reduce the Ashmaw's hit points by about one quarter and have it retreat at half its hit points. For a party of six or more, add 1 wolf at the start of the second round. Keep its attacks focused on one character at a time to avoid overwhelming level 1 heroes.
Cast
4Reeve Hesta Vale
QuestgiverQuestgiver
WantsReeve Hesta wants the road reopened before the village's food and fuel run short. She would rather avoid panic than explain how little protection the village can offer.
“Bring me proof that the beast is dead, and I will pay what I promised. Bring it back alive, and I will pay you to finish the job.”
Tomas Reed
Witness
WantsTomas wants the creature killed, but feels guilty that he fled while his friend was taken. He can guide the party to the attack site if treated kindly.
“It wasn't a wolf. Wolves don't leave the trees smoking, and they don't stare at you like they know your name.”
Mara Fen
Ally
WantsMara wants the party to stop the killings without damaging the cairn, which she believes contains a protective ward. She knows the wood paths and can identify the beast's tracks.
“The cairn is older than the village. If you break it, you may trade one danger for another.”
The Ashmaw
Antagonist
WantsThe Ashmaw is driven by pain and territorial instinct. It wants intruders away from the cairn, and attacks anyone it perceives as a threat.
“The road is mine. Turn back, and I may let you keep your skins.”
How it ends
Rewards
Items
A charcoal burner gives the party one flask of lamp oil and a bundle of dry tinder.
Mara offers a small carved stone charm as thanks. It is a custom, nonmagical token with no special rules effect.
On a win
With the Ashmaw dead and proof returned, Hesta reopens the road and pays the promised reward.
Tomas gives a relieved account of the attack, while Mara asks the party to treat the cairn with respect. If the party preserved it, the clearing grows quiet; if they broke it, faint whispers follow them out of the woods.
What it leaves open
If it fails
- The party retreats or is driven away from the cairn.
- The creature continues to prey on livestock and travelers. The road remains closed, and Brackenford's supplies grow scarce. Hesta may offer the party another chance after the next attack.
- The party kills a wolf or finds tracks but cannot confirm the Ashmaw is dead.
- Hesta pays only half the promised gold, and the village's traders take the party's failure as a sign that the road is unsafe. The party can still pursue the Ashmaw, but its next lair is farther into the woods.
- The party kills the Ashmaw but breaks the cairn during the fight.
- If the party destroys the cairn, the Ashmaw is still killed, but Mara fears the village has lost an old ward. Strange lights may appear in the woods in a later adventure.
Complications (d6)
- 1A sudden shower turns the forest trail to slick mud. The next creature to be shoved or knocked prone on the trail slides an additional 5 feet.
- 2A frightened pack mule bolts across the party's path with a tangled lead rope. A character who spends an action calming or catching it prevents it from crashing into a nearby bystander or scattering supplies.
- 3A sharp gust blows smoke from a nearby charcoal burner's pit across the trail. Until the end of the next round, sight beyond 20 feet is lightly obscured.
- 4The party finds a fresh set of tracks leading toward a ravine. Following them saves time, but brings the group to the ravine's narrow, unstable ledge.
- 5A wounded deer bursts from the undergrowth. The Ashmaw follows it, giving the party one round to choose between protecting the deer and taking a clear position.
- 6The cairn gives off a brief pulse of warmth. A character touching it hears a whisper warning, 'Do not break the stone,' but cannot determine who or what spoke.
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