The Silent Bell of Bellweather
The Silent Bell of Bellweather
Read aloud
The river has risen past the old flood marks, and the lock bell is silent. Lockkeeper Mara Venn offers a reward for the missing silver clapper, while the people of Bellweather watch water seep beneath their doors. A witness insists the bell rang by itself just before the storm began.
Run the session
Cheat sheet
Objectives
- 1Assess the failing lock and identify a safe way to relieve the river pressure.
- 2Recover Rowen's silver clapper from its current keeper.
- 3Stabilize the lock before the flood peaks.
- 4Uncover the truth beneath the old lock.Optional
The clock
The river reaches its peak after the final scene or roughly four hours of in-world time. Each substantial delay raises the water and makes movement through the lower lockworks more dangerous.
Scenes
- 0:00The Missing Clapper
- 0:25Across the Broken Walkway
- 1:05Reading Rowen's Work
- 1:40A Thief's Warning
- 2:25The Last Release
Cast
- Mara VennQuestgiver
- Tamsin ReedAlly
- Orric ValeAntagonist
- PellWitness
The hook
Set the scene
Mara Venn meets the party on the lockhouse steps as rain lashes the river. She points to water creeping beneath the lower doors, then to the empty bracket where the bell's clapper should hang. Tamsin Reed, standing nearby, recognizes Rowen's distinctive mark on the bracket. Before Mara can explain more, a sharp metallic note sounds from somewhere below the lock.
How Mara Venn asks
Mara Venn approaches the party directly at the lockhouse, offering an immediate reward and access to the maintenance tunnels.
She is candid about the flood danger but initially downplays the lock's history.
Rumours
Scenes
about 3 hours0:00
25 min
socialThe table is here
1. The Missing Clapper
The crowded lockhouse steps, with the flooded lower district visible behind the party.
Mara explains the emergency, Tamsin identifies Rowen's mark, and Pell reports hearing a bell note before the storm. The party must choose whether to question the witnesses or head straight to the lock.
NextMara provides access to the upper lockworks. A trail of fresh scratches leads toward the maintenance catwalk.
0:25
40 min
combat
2. Across the Broken Walkway
A slick catwalk above the roaring water channel.
The party crosses the damaged walkway and reaches the lock controls. They can fend off scavengers, drive away the river hound, or use the machinery and terrain to bypass the danger.
The Broken WalkwayNextThe party finds a diver's tether leading down to the maintenance chamber.
1:05
35 min
exploration
3. Reading Rowen's Work
The lockhouse's cramped control room and the upper gate platform.
The party searches the lockworks for the safe release sequence. Rowen's marks, old plans, and the sound of the bell offer clues. Each delay allows water to rise further.
NextThe clues point to Orric's hideaway below the lock, while the next surge begins to shake the gates.
1:40
45 min
social
4. A Thief's Warning
A half-submerged chamber beneath the lock.
The party confronts Orric and learns why he took the clapper. They can win his trust, bargain for it, expose his assumptions, or fight for it.
The Clapper's KeeperNextWith the clapper or a plan to replace its function, the party returns to the controls as the flood reaches its peak.
2:25
45 min
skill
5. The Last Release
The central lock platform as the gates groan and the river surges through the channels.
The party operates the gates under pressure. If they uncovered the sealed chamber, they must decide whether to secure its records, open it, or prioritize the town's safety. Resolve the flood crisis and show the immediate consequences.
NextAfter the water settles, Mara gathers the survivors and asks what the party found beneath the lock.
Behind it
What people believe
The river is rising, the old lock is failing, and the silver clapper made by Rowen has gone missing.
Lockkeeper Mara Venn asks the party to recover it and help operate the flood gates before the lower district is overwhelmed. A witness claims the bell rang once before the storm, though no one was near it.
Background
For generations, the people of Bellweather have rung the bronze bell at the old river lock whenever the flood gates are opened.
The bell's original clapper was removed years ago and replaced with a silver one said to have been made by Rowen. Now the river is rising, the gates are jammed, and the silver clapper has vanished.
The stakes
If the party cannot stabilize the lock before the river peaks, Bellweather's lower district will flood.
If they uncover the sealed records, the town must confront the possibility that its prosperity was built on a deliberate historic disaster.
Encounters
2The Broken Walkway
Combat or bypass
A narrow timber catwalk above a rushing channel, with slick boards, hanging chains, and a winch platform.
Foes
Lockside scavengers
Flood-swollen river hound
ComplicationThe walkway shifts underfoot as the flood rises. A surge can separate the party or sweep unsecured tools away.
ScalingFor a smaller or less experienced party, use only the scavengers or the river hound. For a larger or more capable party, add a second river hound and make the walkway collapse in stages.
The Clapper's Keeper
Social confrontation or combat
A half-submerged maintenance chamber with a grated ledge, waist-deep water, and a narrow ladder to the sealed panel.
Foes
Orric Vale
Two hired divers
ComplicationOrric will flee toward the lower chamber if negotiations stall, forcing the party to choose between pursuing him and stabilizing the lock.
ScalingOrric may surrender or negotiate if shown evidence that the lock can be stabilized safely. Reduce the hired divers to one for an easier confrontation; add a hazardous current or another guard for a harder one.
Cast
4Mara Venn
QuestgiverQuestgiver, the lockkeeper
WantsKeep Bellweather safe and prevent panic, even if that means concealing how badly the lock has been neglected.
“The water is climbing the stairs. I can explain the old lock later, if there is a later.”
Tamsin Reed
Ally, a former apprentice of Rowen
WantsProtect Rowen's reputation and make sure their work is used to save the town, not claimed by the council.
“Rowen left that mark for a reason. Don't let anyone tell you it was just decoration.”
Orric Vale
Antagonist, a local diver and reluctant thief
WantsKeep the flood from uncovering a sealed chamber beneath the lock, though their plan risks flooding the town.
“I took the clapper to stop a worse disaster. If you put it back without knowing what it does, the river will choose for you.”
Pell
Witness, a young ferryman
WantsConvince others that something beneath the lock is waking, and avoid being dismissed as a frightened child.
“The bell rang once before the storm. Nobody was touching it.”
How it ends
Rewards
Items
Rowen's silver clapper, if the party chooses to keep it after the crisis
A waterproof lockhouse map marked with maintenance routes
A small set of river tools supplied by Tamsin
On a win
The party stabilizes the lock before the flood peaks, and the lower district is spared the worst damage.
They decide what to do with the clapper and any evidence found beneath the lock. Mara rewards them, while the town's response to the truth depends on whether the records are made public.
What it leaves open
If it fails
- The party does not stabilize the lock before the final surge.
- The lower district floods, displacing residents and damaging stores. The party can still rescue people and limit the damage, but Bellweather suffers lasting losses.
- The party allows the council to seize the clapper without exposing the theft or explaining the lock's danger.
- The town council takes the clapper and blames Rowen for the crisis. Tamsin loses standing, and the party's relationship with the council worsens.
- The party forces the gates open or removes the clapper without first relieving the pressure beneath the lock.
- The sealed chamber opens. Something inside is revealed, but the flood carries its contents into the river before anyone can secure them.
Complications (d6)
- 1A surge floods the lowest passage. Characters there must retreat, find a higher route, or spend time securing a line across the current.
- 2A panicked crowd blocks the lockhouse stairs, demanding to know whether the town should evacuate.
- 3A gate winch snaps and whips across the platform, threatening anyone working near the mechanism.
- 4Orric's warning proves partly true: a sealed stone panel beneath the lock begins to crack as the water pressure shifts.
- 5Tamsin recognizes Rowen's maker's mark on a piece of evidence, but someone has deliberately scratched out the initials beside it.
- 6A town council runner arrives with an order to secure the lockhouse and seize the clapper, regardless of the flood risk.
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