The Accord of Reeds
The Accord of Reeds
Read aloud
The river towns of Brackenford and Reedhollow are one argument away from closing the Silverweir locks against each other. Magistrate Elira Voss offers you payment to attend their annual Accord as neutral mediators and help them agree on a fair water schedule. The meeting begins at sunset, and the first angry crowd is already gathering by the canal.
Run the session
Cheat sheet
Objectives
- 1Keep the Accord in session and secure a peaceful outcome.
- 2Determine whether anyone has manipulated the water dispute.
- 3Help both towns agree on practical terms.
- 4Uncover who stands to profit from the conflict.Optional
The clock
The Accord must produce a signed agreement by dawn. At midnight, the lock crew will begin the scheduled water release; without agreed terms, either town may attempt to take control of the gates.
Scenes
- 0:00The Meeting at the Weir
- 0:35Two Accounts of One River
- 1:30A Crowd on the Edge
- 2:10The Missing Page
- 3:05Terms Before Dawn
Cast
- Magistrate Elira VossQuestgiver and Brackenford negotiator
- Tamsin ReedReedhollow envoy and ally
- Orren ValeBrackenford lockkeeper and suspicious witness
- Nessa QuickWildcard courier and market informant
The hook
Set the scene
At sunset, the party arrives at the Silverweir's public lockhouse. Brackenford's delegation occupies the dry upper gallery, while Reedhollow's representatives wait beside the canal doors. A crowd presses against the railings, and a bell rings once from the lock tower despite no scheduled release. Magistrate Elira Voss quietly asks the characters to take their places between the delegations before anyone mistakes the bell for a threat.
How Magistrate Elira Voss asks
Magistrate Elira Voss approaches the party at a roadside inn or the Brackenford gate.
She speaks plainly, offers a written payment agreement, and stresses that the characters must be seen as neutral. She asks them to attend the Accord, investigate any suspicious evidence, and keep both delegations engaged long enough to negotiate.
Rumours
Scenes
about 4 hours0:00
35 min
socialThe table is here
1. The Meeting at the Weir
The public lockhouse gallery and canal-side entrance at sunset
Introduce the dispute and establish the party's role as neutral mediators. The unexpected bell and gathering crowd show how quickly a misunderstanding could escalate.
NextElira asks the characters to hear brief opening statements from both delegations before the Accord formally begins.
0:35
55 min
social
2. Two Accounts of One River
A long table in the lockhouse, with both delegations and anxious townsfolk watching
Let the party gather positions, test claims, and discover that the lock schedule has a suspicious gap. Tamsin presents the downstream hardship; Orren can point out inconsistencies if approached with respect.
NextA shove near the canal doors turns the debate into a confrontation, while Nessa slips away toward the archive.
1:30
40 min
combat
3. A Crowd on the Edge
The narrow walkway beside the canal and its stacked maintenance crates
Resolve the lockside confrontation. The party can calm the crowd, expose the hired bruiser, or use force carefully. A search or pursuit may reveal a copied lock schedule.
The Lockside Shoving MatchNextOnce the walkway is safe, Orren admits that a page is missing from the archive and asks the party to inspect the lockhouse records.
2:10
55 min
exploration
4. The Missing Page
The lockhouse archive and control platform, where damp papers and working machinery limit movement
Investigate the archive, compare the surviving schedule with testimony, and find who has altered or copied the records. The party may negotiate with Nessa, follow her, or stop the break-in.
The Lockhouse Break-InNextWith whatever evidence they have recovered, the party returns to the delegations for a final negotiation.
3:05
60 min
social
5. Terms Before Dawn
The lockhouse gallery, now open to witnesses from both towns
Have the party propose terms and address each side's priorities. Evidence of a paid provocation can unite the towns, but the characters can still succeed with a temporary compromise if the culprit remains unknown.
NextA signed agreement leads to a joint inspection of the weir; a failed negotiation leaves the towns to face the consequences of their distrust.
Behind it
What people believe
Brackenford and Reedhollow are in conflict over water from the Silverweir.
Brackenford maintains the locks and says the current schedule is necessary to keep them working; Reedhollow says the schedule leaves its farms without enough water. The annual Accord of Reeds gives both towns a chance to settle the dispute, and the party has been asked to mediate, verify the lock records, and help produce a workable agreement before the gathering turns violent.
Background
For generations, the river towns of Merevale have shared the Silverweir, a chain of locks that controls irrigation and trade.
The town of Brackenford maintains the locks, while downstream Reedhollow depends on their water. A recent drought has made every release contentious, and the annual Accord of Reeds is the last recognized forum where both towns can amend their water-sharing agreement.
The stakes
If the Accord fails, Reedhollow may lose more crops while Brackenford faces sabotage at the locks.
Continued distrust could close the river route and turn a manageable shortage into a lasting feud.
Encounters
2The Lockside Shoving Match
Social or combat
A narrow stone walkway beside a slow-moving canal, with stacked tool crates, a waist-high railing, and slippery algae near the water.
Foes
3 to 5 angry lockside laborers
1 hired bruiser posing as a local
ComplicationThe party can end the confrontation through calm negotiation, a successful show of authority, or by disarming the group without injuring anyone. A visible injury will make the next negotiation harder.
ScalingFor a smaller or lower-level party, use 3 laborers and omit the bruiser. For a larger or higher-level party, add 2 laborers. The laborers are frightened civilians and should flee or surrender when the hired bruiser is exposed.
The Lockhouse Break-In
Combat or skill
A crowded lockhouse archive with narrow aisles, a raised control platform, hanging chains, and a shallow water channel running through the floor.
Foes
1 hired bruiser
2 canal toughs
ComplicationThe hired bruiser tries to flee with a copied lock schedule. Capturing the bruiser intact or preserving the schedule provides evidence; destroying either reduces the party's leverage.
ScalingFor a party of 1st-level characters, use only the hired bruiser and one canal tough, and have them retreat when outnumbered. For a larger party, add one tough. Use appropriate official creature statistics for bandits or thugs, adjusted to avoid making the fight unexpectedly lethal.
Cast
4Magistrate Elira Voss
QuestgiverQuestgiver and Brackenford negotiator
WantsSecure a fair water agreement before Brackenford and Reedhollow turn a dispute into violence.
“I need a witness who can keep both sides at the table, not another champion for one town.”
Tamsin Reed
Reedhollow envoy and ally
WantsWin a guaranteed minimum flow for Reedhollow, even if that means publicly challenging Brackenford's control of the locks.
“We have buried two orchards already. Do not ask us to be patient while the river passes our doors.”
Orren Vale
Brackenford lockkeeper and suspicious witness
WantsPrevent the Accord from being signed until she exposes irregularities in the lock records.
“One signature is all it takes to make a theft look like a treaty. Ask who benefits from the panic.”
Nessa Quick
Wildcard courier and market informant
WantsProfit from the dispute by selling access to the lockhouse records, while avoiding blame for a missing ledger page.
“When everyone is shouting about the river, nobody notices who is carrying the sealed ledger.”
How it ends
Rewards
Items
A stamped Silverweir travel writ granting passage through the lock district
A set of well-made lock tools, offered by Orren Vale if the party returns the missing schedule intact
On a win
If the party keeps the talks peaceful and helps the towns reach terms, Brackenford and Reedhollow sign a seasonal water-sharing agreement.
The terms should include a guaranteed minimum flow downstream, scheduled lock maintenance, and a joint inspection of the Silverweir. If the party also exposes the provocation, the towns agree to investigate the grain factor together. If evidence remains incomplete, they can still sign an interim agreement and appoint a joint panel to continue the inquiry.
What it leaves open
If it fails
- The negotiations fail to reach a binding water-sharing agreement.
- If the party fails to produce credible evidence or a workable compromise, the Accord ends without signatures. The towns remain in a tense standoff, and the party must decide whether to help secure an interim truce.
- The party turns a tense crowd into a public brawl.
- If the party uses excessive force against townsfolk, Brackenford's council suspends the talks and requires the characters to answer for the injuries before any further mediation.
- The party cannot protect or verify the evidence needed to settle the dispute.
- If the party loses the lock schedule or allows the false warning to trigger a panic, the next water release is delayed. Reedhollow loses part of its remaining crop, and distrust deepens.
Complications (d6)
- 1A cracked sluice gate sends a sudden surge across the lower road. Anyone caught there must find high ground or be swept into the muddy channel.
- 2A sealed petition accusing Brackenford of withholding water is posted in the market before the envoys have agreed to present it. The author is unsigned.
- 3A Reedhollow farmer recognizes one of the characters as having accepted hospitality from a Brackenford official and demands an explanation.
- 4The Accord's ceremonial reed bundle is stolen. Both delegations interpret the theft as an insult, and the meeting is suspended until it is recovered.
- 5A sudden squall scatters the proposed treaty pages into the lock basin. The party must recover the originals or reconstruct the terms from witnesses.
- 6A bell rings the flood warning at the wrong hour. The crowd rushes toward the lockhouse, forcing the party to calm people and determine whether the warning is real.
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