The Moon-Bloom Greenhouse
The Moon-Bloom Greenhouse
Read aloud
Enid Sinclair catches you outside Nevermore's old greenhouse, her usual bright confidence edged with worry. "Something in there is scrambling my senses, and I heard it crash through the glass last night. Can you help me figure out what it is before someone gets hurt?"
Run the session
Cheat sheet
Objectives
- 11. Discover what has been moving through the abandoned greenhouse and why Enid's senses are affected.
- 22. Prevent the frightened creature from reaching the occupied academy grounds.
- 33. Keep Silas from taking a dangerous moon-bloom sample, or establish what happens if he gets away.
- 44. Learn who brought the creature into the greenhouse and what it needs to recover.Optional
The clock
Silas plans to remove the greenhouse's rarest viable bloom before dawn. Each major delay gives him more time to pack specimens or move the creature toward the academy grounds.
Scenes
- 0:00Enid's Request
- 0:25Tracks in the Glasshouse
- 1:05The Greenhouse Breakout
- 2:00A Secret Kept for Kindness
- 2:35The Sample at the Gate
Cast
- Enid SinclairQuestgiver and ally
- Mara VossWitness and student grounds assistant
- Pip CalderWildcard and student naturalist
- Silas RookAntagonist and outside botanical broker
The hook
Set the scene
Enid meets the party near the greenhouse's rusted side door after classes. A cracked pane glitters in the weeds, and faint pawprints cross a patch of silver dust before vanishing at the threshold. Enid explains that she heard movement inside the previous night and that the scent has made it unusually hard for her to track anything. She asks the party to investigate without causing a panic among the students.
How Enid Sinclair asks
Enid approaches the party directly and asks for help before reporting the incident to the academy staff.
She is worried about other students, but also frustrated that her senses are unreliable.
Rumours
Scenes
about 3.5 hours0:00
25 min
socialThe table is here
1. Enid's Request
A footpath beside the abandoned greenhouse at Nevermore Academy.
Enid describes the strange scent and asks the party to investigate discreetly. The group can establish what she noticed and decide how to enter.
NextThe damaged pane and silver dust lead the party inside.
0:25
40 min
exploration
2. Tracks in the Glasshouse
The greenhouse entrance and its first overgrown aisle.
The party examines tracks, broken glass, plant labels, and a damaged notebook. Mara can provide useful details but initially withholds that she has seen someone entering after hours.
NextThe evidence points toward the central growing chamber, where movement stirs behind the benches.
1:05
55 min
combat
3. The Greenhouse Breakout
The central greenhouse chamber, where silver pollen drifts between vines and cracked panes.
The party confronts or calms the pollen-warped stagling among the benches. Careful observation reveals it is frightened and confused, not deliberately hunting students.
The Greenhouse BreakoutNextOnce the immediate danger is contained, Pip appears or is found near the creature and can explain how it arrived.
2:00
35 min
social
4. A Secret Kept for Kindness
A potting shed behind the greenhouse, crowded with labeled jars and handwritten notes.
Pip admits to hiding and feeding the creature. The party can decide how to protect it, address Pip's actions, and learn about the moon-bloom's effects from the greenhouse records.
NextA vehicle arrives at the loading court as Silas begins removing a specimen case.
2:35
45 min
social
5. The Sample at the Gate
The greenhouse loading court and service gate.
Silas tries to leave with a moon-bloom sample. The party can bargain, expose him, stop his escape, or let him go and deal with the consequences.
The Broker's BargainNextWith the creature and sample accounted for, the party returns to Enid to choose what becomes of the greenhouse.
Behind it
What people believe
Enid Sinclair asks the party to investigate strange activity in an abandoned greenhouse near Nevermore Academy.
A peculiar scent is interfering with her senses, and something has broken through the glass. A botanical broker is also trying to obtain a rare plant sample, and the party must uncover the source of the disturbance before the danger reaches the academy grounds.
Background
A new moon has left a silver sheen across the grounds near Nevermore Academy, and a series of pawprints has appeared where no animal could have walked.
The tracks lead toward an abandoned greenhouse once used to cultivate rare night-blooming flowers. Enid Sinclair has noticed that the scent of those flowers makes her werewolf senses go painfully quiet.
The stakes
If the party acts quickly, the creature can be protected and the rare pollen kept out of the wrong hands.
If they fail, the frightened creature may reach the academy grounds, Enid may be unable to track it, and Silas may sell a sample that could endanger other outcasts.
Encounters
2The Greenhouse Breakout
Combat or nonlethal confrontation
An overgrown glasshouse with narrow paths, waist-high planting benches, hanging vines, cracked roof panes, and patches of silver pollen.
Foes
Pollen-Warped Stagling
Two Tangling Night Vines
ComplicationThe pollen-slick floor and hanging vines make movement hazardous. Loud attacks or sudden bright light may panic the creature and bring down loose glass.
ScalingFor a smaller or less capable party, use the stagling alone and let the vines hinder movement without attacking. For a stronger party, add a second wave of vines or have Silas's assistant interfere. The creature can be calmed, distracted, or driven off rather than defeated.
The Broker's Bargain
Social or combat
The greenhouse's loading court, where stacked crates, a narrow service gate, and an open drainage channel provide cover and escape routes.
Foes
Silas Rook
Two hired specimen porters
ComplicationSilas is prepared to flee with a specimen case. If cornered, he threatens to release a sealed pollen capsule, putting everyone nearby at risk.
ScalingFor a lower-threat scene, the porters flee at the first sign of resistance and Silas prefers negotiation. For a higher-threat scene, Silas has a prepared escape route through the service tunnels and the porters try to hold the party back. Resolve this through bargaining, pursuit, or combat as appropriate.
Cast
4Enid Sinclair
QuestgiverQuestgiver and ally
WantsFind out why the strange scent is affecting her and keep the danger away from students.
“I know asking people to investigate a creepy greenhouse is not exactly a chill afternoon, but something out there is messing with my senses.”
Mara Voss
Witness and student grounds assistant
WantsKeep students away from the greenhouse and conceal that she has been studying its unusual plants.
“The greenhouse is closed for a reason. People keep treating old warnings like they're just dramatic decoration.”
Pip Calder
Wildcard and student naturalist
WantsProtect a frightened, magically altered creature that she has been secretly feeding.
“It doesn't want to hurt anyone. It just wants the light to stop moving.”
Silas Rook
Antagonist and outside botanical broker
WantsAcquire a sample of the greenhouse's rare bloom for a private collector, regardless of the risks.
“A neat little mystery, isn't it? Shame if the evidence were to get trampled.”
How it ends
Rewards
Items
A sealed moon-bloom sample, if safely collected and the party has a responsible use for it.
A hand-drawn map of the academy's overlooked paths from Enid.
A small greenhouse toolkit recovered from the loading court.
On a win
The party protects the academy grounds, resolves the creature's immediate danger, and prevents or limits Silas's access to the moon-bloom.
Enid thanks the party and helps make sure the creature is moved to a safer place. Depending on the party's choices, Pip may admit what happened, Silas may face consequences, and the greenhouse may be sealed or restored.
What it leaves open
If it fails
- The party does not locate or calm the creature before it leaves the greenhouse.
- The altered creature escapes into the grounds. Enid loses confidence in the party's handling of the situation, and the next appearance of the creature happens somewhere more dangerous.
- The party fails to stop Silas from leaving with a viable specimen.
- Silas sells a stolen bloom sample. The party may still protect the creature, but the rare plant's effects become a problem beyond the academy.
- The party destroys the wrong plants or exposes Enid to a concentrated dose of the pollen.
- Enid's senses remain dulled until the source is removed and she has time to recover. She is shaken but not permanently harmed.
Complications (d6)
- 1A cloud of silver pollen bursts from a cracked seedpod. For the next scene, anyone relying on scent or keen hearing has difficulty distinguishing nearby creatures.
- 2A greenhouse sprinkler system activates, turning the stone paths slick and washing loose papers toward a drain.
- 3A frightened night-blooming vine coils around the nearest warm body and tightens whenever it hears a loud noise.
- 4Silas Rook's hired assistant arrives early and starts removing labeled specimen jars, including one that could identify the source of the scent.
- 5Pip mistakes the party for Silas's people and leads the altered creature toward a crowded courtyard to get it away from them.
- 6A glass roof panel slips from its frame. The party must catch, secure, or evade it before it crashes onto the greenhouse floor.
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