One

Bad Apple
A Novice Quest for Shadow of the Weird Wizard


Finding food to eat, water to drink, shelter against Credits
the storms that blow in from the south make life in Writing, Design, Art Direction: Robert J. Schwalb
the borderlands anything but easy. But when Editing and Development: Jennifer Clarke Wilkes
others direct the full weight of their unprovoked Proofreading: Jay Spight
malice against innocents, life becomes almost Graphic Design and Layout: Kara Hamilton
impossible. Not everyone finds the arrival of
refugees into borderlands to their liking, and some One Bad Apple is © 2023 Schwalb Entertainment,
of the most devious inhabitants see all these LLC. All rights reserved. One Bad Apple, Shadow of
people as victims in the making. the Weird Wizard, Schwalb Entertainment, and
One Bad Apple offers a quest for novice their associated logos are trademarks of Schwab
characters. In it, the players assume the roles of Entertainment, LLC.
ordinary—or almost ordinary—folk faced with an
old and terrible evil, one that threatens to put an Schwalb Entertainment
end to the fledgling community before it has a <logo>
chance to grow. Whether used as a one-shot or as
the start of an entire campaign, One Bad Apple PO BOX #12548
makes a great introduction to Shadow of the Weird Murfreesboro, TN 37129
Wizard. [email protected]
schwalbentertainment.com

1
 Woods
The Quest A small wood of eucalyptus trees grows to the
southwest of the village. The villagers shrank the
A group of novice characters completes the quest
after they find the Elder Rock, remove it from wood to build their homes, and the stumps of
village, and bring the goblins responsible for its these felled trees fringe the woods on the side
appearance in Two Forks to justice. closest to the community. Birds, monkeys, wild
pigs, and other wildlife live here. Somewhere near
the center of the woods stand the ruins of an old
Background temple.
Bedger, a goblin, traveled to the Shadow Market
and traded a two-headed sheep for a bit of Elder
Rock—a black stone imbued with soul sickness.
Supporting
Bedger and his cronies slipped into the village of
Two Forks and left the Elder Rock in the Characters
blacksmith’s workshop. A few days later, the A few people living in Two Forks act as supporting
blacksmith has become a rampaging monster, a characters. They use rules for peasants.
wild killer halfway turned into an orc.
Bedger hopes to live up to the memory of his
father, Shymstik the Sweating, who killed
Elder Myriam
Leadership agrees with Myriam Shew and she
Mellifluous, the faun prince, in single combat, who
regrets nothing about how she bullied, cajoled,
befouled an altar to the Horned Lord and lived to
and pushed herself ahead of everyone else in Two
brag about it, and had even been cuffed by the
Forks to gain her position as village elder. Myriam
Goblin King himself! With such a pedigree, it’s no
knows she holds her position through force of will
wonder Bedger’s mam filled his head with great
and fears that the trouble with the blacksmith will
expectations. Bedger believes corrupting the
see her pushed out, especially with Saul Saulson
people of Two Forks must earn him attention from
angling for her position. Myriam, a human woman
the Goblin King and a reward for his ingenuity.
in her fifties, wears a loose dress of homespun, a
shawl over her head to keep her wiry gray hair
Environments under control, and walks with a cane.
One Bad Apple can take place anywhere you
choose. It uses the following environments, all of Pete and Bill
which can be adapted to fit the setting you choose Lacking any appreciable skills beyond drinking
for this quest. beer at the public house, Pete Saulson and Bill
Pedigree decided to form the militia, which is
Two Forks something of a release as Pete’s too lazy to work in
the fields and Bill’s lost more sheep than he’s
Settlers founded their tiny village between two saved during his short stint as a herder. The two
forking streams of sluggish, muddy water about a men look alike, despite lacking any blood
year ago. Between the waters stand eight connections. Both stand about six feet tall, weigh
buildings constructed from logs resting on stone around two hundred forty pounds, and have
foundations and with thatch roofs. The buildings ruddy, red features. Pete has red hair, while Bill’s
include a small chapel dedicated to the High One, a receding hair is black.
blacksmith’s forge and attached shack, a public
house notable for its porridge-like small beer, and
five residences belonging to the families who Victor the Smith
settled here. All structures stand close together. Two Forks’ blacksmith came from the Old Country
along with everyone else and set up shop here
Fields and Pastures having found it as good as anyplace else. A lifelong
bachelor, Victor the Smith (orc trooper) lives in
Fields of grain and pastures for cows and sheep the shack attached to his forge, and if he’s at all
surround the village. A barn and pen house the worried about burning his home to the ground,
livestock just north of the village. he’s given no indication. The Elder Rock hidden in
his shop soured his soul and filled his head with
violent thoughts. He’s well on his way to turning

2
into an orc and his skin has taken on a grayish entire family herds the livestock, though Maybell is
color, teeth more pronounced, and his hair has a deft hand with needle and thread.
been falling out in clumps. Dirk Dirkenson: The public house belongs to
Dirk Dirkenson, a rakish young man not yet thirty
Brother Clegg with an easy smile, loud voice, and good looks. He
employs two local girls to help him cook and
Clegg was among the refugees who settled Two
serve. Dirk knows a fair bit about brewing, having
Forks and, being a lifelong follower of the High
learned the trade from his father. A bauchan (see
One, urged the community to build a chapel to the
below) cursed him a few weeks back. The man has
god as the first order of business, arguing that
told no one of his troubles, but he has suffered a
honoring the god means gaining the god’s
string of bad luck.
protection. Since, Brother Clegg has ordained
himself and ministers to the locals. He has no
credentials and only a rudimentary understanding
of the faith, but he’s creative, able to fill in the gaps
Part 1: Prisoner
of his knowledge with clever fabrication. Clegg The characters spot Elder Myriam arguing with
turned forty last winter and a lifetime of hard Pete and Bill in front of the blacksmith’s shack. A
drinking shows in his nose and his bloodshot eyes. few others watch, worry creasing their faces.
He has a heavy body that he keeps covered with Eavesdropping characters can hear Myriam tell
black robes. the guards to stay put and keep him inside no
matter what. She then turns to the villagers and
Bystanders urges them to remain calm. She explains that
Victor has fallen ill. From inside the shack,
Other people live in Two Forks. Although none something kicks at the door, making the whole
play a major role in the quest, you can develop thing shudder. Unless stopped, Myriam goes back
them as needed to bring the community to life. to her house and closes the door behind her.
Saulson Family: Saul Saulson and his family live
in one of the residences. His wife, Emily, bore him
four sons and two daughters. Saul believes he
should be leading the community, but defers to
What’s Going On?
Characters looking into the situation can learn the
Myriam for now. The Saulson family grows
following information by talking with the locals.
vegetables in their gardens and three boys work in
the field. The fourth boy is a guard (see above).
One of the daughters, Megan, works for Dirk Myriam
Dirkenson at the public house. The village elder hopes this problem will go away
Pedigree Family: Aunty Tea left her husband in on its own, and is at her wits end. She becomes
the Salt Barrens, but made it to Two Forks with friendly if the characters approach her with
two sons, one of which is a guard, and three questions and reveals the following information.
daughters. Her elder son and daughter both herd
sheep, while her youngest was works for Dirk • Victor attacked Ruprecht Allson this morning.
Dirkenson. • The two men are friends.
Macon Family: The Macons were a large family • It took both Bill and Pete to drag Victor back to
until they hit the Salt Barrens, and only a small his shed.
family survived the crossing. The Macons include • Myriam caught a glimpse of him, and he
Mikke the Elder, and his three children, two of appeared unwell.
whom work in the fields, while the other tends the • She does not know what happened to Victor or
cattle. the motives behind the attack.
Shew Family: Two Fork’s elder leads the Shew
family, which consists of nine children, aged Myriam prevails upon the characters for their
between thirty and nine. Eight of the children split aid. She offers to deputize them and pay them each
between working the fields and tending the 1 sp if they get to the bottom of what happened to
livestock. Victor. If they can save his life, she’ll double the
Allson Family: The Allsons have little to do with pay.
other people, though they are friendly enough.
Ruprecht and Maybell have three children, and the

3
Pete and Bill Bystanders
The guards posted in front of the shack appear The characters might talk to other locals to gather
shaken. Pete has a black eye and Bill holds his ribs more information, including details about the
on the left side. They answer any questions put locals.
them, having forgotten to keep quiet about the
matter as Myriam instructed them. • Two people saw the attack. Both agree that
Ruprecht did nothing to provoke it.
• They were coming back from the public house • Brother Clegg was seen talking with Victor last
when they saw Victor running across the street. night. Then conversation appeared heated.
He tackled Saul Saulson and started beating on • Victor has been acting strange the last few days.
him. It took both of them to pull him off. He’s been unfriendly and has been keeping to
• Bill talked to Victor yesterday. The blacksmith himself. Most evenings, he goes over to the
was irritable and looked unwell. public house for a pint or two and light flirting
with Megan Saulson.
Victor the Smith • Megan can reveal that Victor hasn’t been around
Myriam ordered Pete and Bill to prevent Victor and called her a pig when she went to check on
from leaving the shack, but she said nothing about him yesterday.
letting anyone inside. Neither of the guards think • One person complains about losing three
going in is a good idea, so it will require a chickens.
successful Intellect or Will roll to convince them
otherwise. If the characters fail, entertain other Brother Clegg
ideas for distracting the guards so the characters The characters might seek out Brother Clegg for
can interview the blacksmith. aid or to question him if they learned he was seen
Having almost fully transformed into an orc, talking to the blacksmith. Brother Clegg spends
Victor makes a poor conversationalist. He’s most of his time during the day tending the chapel
hostile, aggressive, and attacks if given the chance. garden.
He howls like a wild thing and throws himself at
anyone who comes to his door. • Brother Clegg went to speak with Victor after he
A character with some knowledge of history or and Megan had a falling out. He went to offer
magic can make an Intellect roll with 1 bane. On a him counsel, but the blacksmith wouldn’t have
success, the character recognizes some of the it. Victor yelled at him and threatened to split
signs as being consistent with soul sickness—a his head with a hammer if he didn’t bugger off.
plague that transforms ordinary folk into • Victor appeared unwell. Some of his hair had
monsters. fallen out. He also seemed agitated that Clegg
was at the forge. Clegg recalls Victor kept
Ruprecht Allson looking over his shoulder.
Characters looking for Ruprecht find him in his
house, where his wife Maybell is patching him up
while begging her eldest two boys not to go Investigating the
stirring up trouble. Ruprecht took a beating. He
has two black eyes, a broken nose, several broken Forge
ribs, and a missing ear—Victor bit it off. If Four thick posts hold a roof over a firepit, anvil,
questioned, he can supply the following answers. rack of tools, buckets of water, oil, a bench, and all
the other things one expects to find in such a work
• Ruprecht was heading to the river to check his place. Have each character searching the forge
traps when Victor came out of nowhere and make a luck roll. The character with the highest
attacked. successful roll discovers amongst the chunks of
• Ruprecht and Victor got along well enough. They charcoal in a bin, a fist-sized rock that radiates
sometimes sat together at the public house. menace. The character with the second-highest
• Ruprecht cannot imagine what would have success finds prints in the mud around the forge,
triggered the attack. barefoot and the size of a child’s foot, but with six
toes.

4
 None of the village’s children have six toes on plants form a dense carpet that makes travel
their feet. Myriam can recognize the prints as through the woods difficult, but also makes
belonging to a goblin. Searching the area for prints finding paths made through it easy. Bedger and his
turns up more of the same around the forge but cronies made no effort to cover their trail and
they disappear in the harder packed earth ten feet many of the smaller plants have been trampled by
away. None of the locals have seen a goblin, but if their movements.
Bill is anywhere nearby, he admits to seeing a
funny looking child running off to the woods a few
days ago. He didn’t say anything as he wasn’t sure Exploring the Woods
that he saw anything. Many of the smaller plants have been trampled by
the goblins, leaving a clear path to their lair.
Elder Rock Anyone inspecting the trail finds a few chicken
The essence of the Ancient Ones, the black rock feathers. Characters following the path can reach
called Elder Rock carries the taint of soul sickness the lair in 15 minutes, but one of the goblins
(see Diseases in chapter $@). The stone resembles notices the characters and warns Bedger and
charcoal and even leaves a black residue on company. The goblins remain alert for 1 hour and
whatever it touches, it feels heavier than its size then drop their guard.
suggests and anyone gripping it tight feels a If the characters avoid the path the goblins left,
throbbing in it that syncopates one’s heartbeat. it takes them 30 minutes to find the goblin camp.
Any creature that spends 1 hour or longer in the Have each character make a luck roll. The
same zone as the Elder Rock becomes exposed to character with the lowest failed result steps on a
the disease. Any creature carrying the Elder Rock viper that then attacks that character for a round
makes rolls to attack with 1 boon. or two before slithering off.
No one in Two Forks recognizes the stone or
where it comes from. Salty Lemon
Breaking the Elder Rock into smaller pieces has Salty Lemon, a vicious bauchan, lives in the
no effect on its infectious nature. woods. He despises mortals as do many of his
kind, but Two Forks earned his enmity by cutting

Complications down some of his trees. More than the other

feckless talking apes, he hates Dirk Dirkenson the
Inaction or delay might lead to the following most, having seen him make advances on one of
complications. the young women who work for him. Salty
Another Attack: Ruprecht Allson goes berserk intervened on the girl’s behalf and cursed Dirk.
and attacks his family the night after being Since, Salty watches the village, waiting for Dirk
attacked. If not stopped, one of his sons brings him to do something equally loathsome or stupid so he
down, but not after the elder Allson creates a few teleport to his side and deliver the beating the
casualties and infects the rest of his family. man well deserves. While watching the village,
Inspecting his body shows corruption leaking out Salty saw the goblins sneak into the village and
from the bandage covering his ear hole, gray skin, deposit the Elder Rock in the blacksmith’s
and missing hair. workshop. Salty knows what the substance is and
Victor Escapes: Two days after Ruprecht goes what it means for the people. He’s torn with
on his rampage, Victor (now an orc trooper) indecision. Helping the villagers means giving aid
breaks down his door, overpowers the guards, and to filthy mortals, while not lending his aid means
runs off into the woods. Both Pete and Bill unleashing a plague of orcs.
contract soul sickness. The bauchan notes the characters moving
through the woods and watches them from hiding.

Part 2: The If the characters dispatch the goblins, Salty

approaches them. He’s insulting, rude, and
thoroughly unpleasant. If the characters attack

Woods him, he teleports away, beats Dirk Dirkenson to

death, and then returns to curse the character who
The trees found in the nearby wood form a dense attacked him first.
canopy that plunges the environment in shadow. If the characters befriend him, or, at least, avoid
Flowering shrubs, vines, prickly weeds, and other fighting him, Salty offers to give them a recipe for

5
making a balm to help fight the soul sickness attack with their slings—characters cannot take
provided the retrieve something for him. He the initiative. If the goblins are unaware of the
claims an evil priest stole a jewel from him a characters, the characters can start the combat
thousand years ago. The bauchan believes the from any position they choose once they can see
priest is buried somewhere in the woods. He is. the goblins (within two zones or less).
His remains are in the tomb accessed by a Temple Ruins: The rubble, fallen columns, and
sinkhole, somewhere in the woods. the like grants partial cover against enemies
If the characters find the cat’s eye agate and give outside the zone, or total cover against such
it to the faerie, the faerie gives them the recipe for enemies if the creature in the zone is prone.
curing soul sickness. The characters can find all Light Forest: The trees in the forest grant
but one ingredient in the forest. The missing partial cover to creatures in it from all attacks
ingredient, Starshine Nectar, Salty supplies, but he except those made by enemies in the creature’s
has enough only for five doses. Starshine Nectar reach. Targets separated by two or more zones of
comes from an exotic plant that grows in the light forest have total cover from their attackers.
Gardens of Whispers, a hidden realm accessed
from somewhere in the new lands that can be
harvested only at night and then only during a
Combat Developments
The following developments might occur.
new moon.
Falling Tree: A tree falls into the zone of the
The characters can make the balm or Elder
first combatant to get a result of 0 or less on an
Myriam can if no character has the proper training
attribute roll or luck roll. Each creature in the zone
for making consumables. The balm works only on
makes an Agility roll. On a failure, the falling tree
people who have not yet been turned into orcs, but
deals 1d6 damage to them and knocks them
suffer the disease’s effects.
prone.
Defeating the Goblins: The goblins fight until
Feral Hog three of their numbers become incapacitated or
A feral hog (boar) roams the woods. The goblins until Bedger becomes incapacitated. If the goblins
have been attacking it with their slings at it for a can’t flee, they surrender if the goblins believe
couple of days, in the hopes of making a meal of it. their lives will be spared.
The hog has no intention of being eaten and Any prisoner other than Bedger knows their
prowls the woods, attacking anyone it encounters. leader dropped off something in the village but
The characters run into the injured hog (the boar’s they don’t know what it was. If Bedger is captured,
damage total is 13) on the way to goblin camp. he tells the characters exactly what he did and tells
them that there is no cure for the soul sickness the

Part 3: Temple Elder Rock creates.

Characters Defeated: If the goblins drive off
the characters, the goblins let them run off, but the

Ruins goblins pick up and move off, heading for safer

territory somewhere else. If the goblins have any
The 5 goblins (Bedger has Health 12) make their characters as prisoners, they drag the prisoners
camp in the ruins of a temple dedicated long ago off with them, which might become the basis for a
to an Ancient One. If the goblins know the rescue mission, if you choose, or result in the
characters approach, they hide behind the rubble prisoner being sold in the Shadow Market a few
and fallen columns, springing up to loose stones days later to a fate best left undescribed.
from their slings when the characters move to
within two zones of them. Otherwise, the Exploring the Temple Ruins
characters might take the goblins unaware—have If the characters look around the temple ruins,
the characters make Agility rolls to sneak up on they can discover any of the following.
the goblins. If half or more succeed, they all do. Campsite: Five ratty hides that serve as bedrolls
lay around the smoldering remains of a campfire.
Combat Zones Gnawed bones—from squirrels and hares—lay
The combat’s zones include the temple ruins zone scattered around the site.
and any number of light forest zones. The goblins Fallen Column: Vines wrap around an old,
are in the temple ruins. If the goblins are aware of column that lays on the ground. Inspecting it
the characters, the goblins jump out of hiding and reveals the monstrous eyeball. Anyone with

6
professional knowledge of religion can make an colors, though one lacks it as noted in the secret
Intellect roll with 1 bane and, on a success, recalls door description below.
an ancient cult dedicated to Shagnagrath the Beast Giant Eye: A black membrane stretches across
with Many Eyes. the giant eye’s pupil. Anyone touching the
membrane causes the giant eye to recede and then

Part 4: Tomb swing open to reveal a passage beyond.

Secret Door: Any character examining the
north wall for 5 minutes or longer notices one of
Not far from the goblin camp, the ground gives
way to a sinkhole. The goblins used it as their the smaller eyes has an unpainted iris and does
latrine. Inspecting it reveals a cavity in the wall, not swivel. Any pressure placed on this eye causes
just above a mossy stone. The opening leads into it to sink into the wall and irregularly-shaped
an underground chamber (room 1). section of the wall to fall inward and break apart
A character can wriggle through the hole with a in rolling stone eyes that bounce down the steps
successful Agility roll—a result of 0 or less toward the landing beyond.
indicates the character becomes stuck and must
be dragged out. Alternatively, a combined Strength
of 30 can shift the mossy boulder out of the way to
2. Trapped Corridor
allow access to the chamber without needing to Hieroglyphs cover the walls, ceiling, and floor of
make a roll. this dusty chamber. Nearly all depict some act of
The tomb holds the remains of a priest of human sacrifice, prostration, or genuflection
Shagnagrath. Darkness prevails in all tomb zones, underneath a watching eye.
the air smells stale, and intruders feel as though Trap: A poisoned dart trap protects this
they are be observed at all times. The following corridor.
entries describe the major zones presented on the
accompanying map.
3. False Treasure
In each corner, a column of eyes extends from
floor to ceiling. A chariot, several iron-bound
chests, silk bags, bolts of cloth, and other valuables
occupy the room’s center. More eyes appear on the
walls, floor, and ceiling. A stone door with handle
stands in the center of the south wall.
Trap: The treasure is a persistent magical
illusion. Attempts to touch the goods pass through
the image, causing the whole thing to waver, and
triggers the portcullis trap that closes off the exit
to location 2.

4. Shrine of
Shagnagrath
A stone idol depicting some monstrous thing
covered in bulging eyeballs commands the south
1. Hall of Eyes wall. A dozen prayer rolled up prayer rugs rest
against the north wall. The east wall holds a mural
The short, cramped passage from the sinkhole
opens onto a good-sized chamber with bas-reliefs that depicts the being the idol represents razing a
of eyes covering the walls, the leaf-strewn floor, city, while the west wall has been painted black.
and ceiling. A giant eye stands in the center of the Prayer Rugs: The rugs crumble at a touch.
wall opposite from the entrance. Idol: The idol has Health 50. When a creature
Eye Carvings: All eyes except for the giant eye strikes the idol, the idol’s residual supernatural
swivel to watch intruders, focusing on the lead power reduces the weapon to 0 Health and the
character and then the large group of characters. creature wielding it makes a luck roll. On a failure,
The small eyes have irises painted in different

7
the creature loses 1d6 Health and becomes floor, and ceiling of this chamber have been
stunned for 1 minute. painted black and flecked with tiny white spots
that look a bit like stars. A hole in the wall

5. Tomb of the Priest opposite of the entrance offers a way out of this
chamber.
A sarcophagus rests on the floor at the center of Skeleton Choppers: The skeletons do nothing
this room. The ceiling bulges with eyes all pointed until attacked or the characters attempt to move
at the casket. The air in the room is about ten past them.
degrees colder than elsewhere in the tomb. Constellations: A character with professional
Sarcophagus: The lid bears the likeness of the knowledge related to astrology or astronomy
priest interred within the casket—a humanoid recognizes a pattern in the flecks of white,
figure dressed in robes, empty eye sockets, and suggesting the constellation of the Watcher, a ring
arms crossed. In the palm of each hand is a of stars notorious for being an ill omen when the
painted eye. A combined total Strength of 20 is moon passes through them.
sufficient to push the lid aside. Inside rests the
undead priest (draugr dark mage with Defense
11) lay inert, dressed in robes with a rod (as a 8. False Tomb
mace) on one side and an enchanted dagger on the A sarcophagus rests on the floor at the center of
other. Above the priest’s head is a papyrus scroll this room. The ceiling bulges with eyes all pointed
containing an inscription of the defy geometry and at the casket. This room is identical to room 5,
unlight spells from the Eldritch tradition. Held except the temperature is the same as elsewhere
between the priest’s teeth is a cat’s eye agate, in the tomb.
worth 50 gp. If the characters harm the body, the Sarcophagus: The lid bears the likeness of the
undead priest rises up and attacks them. If the priest interred within the casket—a humanoid
characters take the gemstone, the priest rises up figure dressed in robes, empty eye sockets, and
and attacks unless they immediately place the arms crossed. In the palm of each hand is a
Elder Rock or another object of similar size into its painted eye. A combined total Strength of 20 is
mouth. sufficient to push the lid aside. If opened, however,
darkness spreads throughout the zone and lingers

6. Slaves to Darkness until the end of the next round. Each character in
this room makes a luck roll with 1 bane and, on a
Two niches in the north, west, and south walls failure, becomes cursed for 24 hours. While cursed
hold the skeletal remains of the priest’s acolytes. in this way, the character also makes rolls to attack
On the center of the ceiling and floor are yet more with 1 bane. Finally, a skeleton soldier inside the
giant eyes. A few sacks rest in the corner. casket rises up and attacks the characters, fighting
Skeletons: Unholy magic binds the acolyte’s until destroyed.
souls to their remains. If anyone touches the bones
or moves to where they can reach them, roll a d6
once for each of the six sets of remains. On a 5 or
6, the skeleton awakens to become a decrepit
Part 5: Return to
skeleton. On any other number, the bones
collapse into powder and keening sound fills the the Village
air as the soul breaks free and tumbles into the What the characters find when they return to the
Netherworld. village depends on how long they spent in the
Sacks: The sacks contain sand. Sifting through woods. If they return within 24 hours, they have
the sand turns up 24 cp and a random oddity. time enough to cure Victor before his
transformation is complete. Otherwise, the

7. Guardians of the characters find the disease has spread to infect

one villager plus one for every 8 hours beyond the

Tomb
first 24 hours that the characters were absent
from the village along with any others that became
At the center of the room, stand 2 skeleton infected based on developments in Part 1. One
choppers. Each holds its axe in both hands before plus half the number of infected have become orc
its body, the butt planted on the ground. The walls, minions. The characters can fight these orcs or
not as they choose. If the characters opt not to

8
fight the orcs, the afflicted move off on their own,
possibly spreading their infection to neighboring
communities.

Conclusion
If the characters manage to complete the quest,
the hardship and danger they experienced gives
them sufficient reason to form into a group and
advance to level 1. In addition, everyone in Two
Forks becomes friendly to them for the next year,
offering free room and board as needed. Word of
the characters exploits travels to nearby
communities, so that the characters find
themselves recognized if they travel to them.
Failing the quest produces unhappy outcomes
for the people of Two Forks. If the characters
failed to find and remove the Elder Rock, everyone
in the village succumbs to soul sickness in a
matter of weeks and form into a mob of orcs that
terrorize the surrounding environment. If the
characters failed to deal with the goblins, Bedger
might appear later as another, more experience
and more capable foe, at the head of a larger band
of goblins. Finally, you might require the
characters to undergo another starnoviceting
quest before they can advance to level 2 or let
them do so, and have the plot for the next quest
involve the orcs, the goblins, or some other
consequence for the group’s failure.