DREAD HARVEST

Dread Harvest
Keys of Wonder Lore Guide

D T HT V is a haunted adventure
in which the characters must stop an
evil naturalist named Mandi Sweetvine as
Alternate Plot Hook/
Greenwold
he terrorizes a town’s Festival of the Holy
Harvest. He has turned some of the villagers
into abominations of body parts and bestial
entities. As the party stops the abominations
W hile the party is exploring The Grange, a
rich expanse of farming villages North-
east of Slew, they come across some delightful,
and uncovers more horrors of the twisted woodland critters delivering a message. Read
man, they must battle the final monstrosity the following aloud:
of Sweetvine’s disgusting mind - an Abomi- Autumn has settled across the Greenwold.
nable Hulk! If you’re playing along with the As you walk through lush farmlands, golden
Keys of Wonder campaign setting, this lore wheat, ripe gourds, and tall cornrows surround
guide provides a new plot hook to place the you. The rare, shade-casting oak has leaves of
adventure in Greenwold, flavor to round out vibrant reds and oranges. The air is cool and
the parties exploration of the Festival of the the sense of harvest is in the air. As you amble,
Holy Harvest, an in depth look at the downfall you see nearby bushes rustle. A large black crow
of Mandi Sweetvine, and the opportunity to sweeps by just overhead, bearing something in
recover a lost Key of Wonder! its talons. It lands just ahead of you, perching on
the shoulder of a scarecrow standing alone on

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the edge of a rustling cornfield. It tucks the scroll lain. At the center of the disk was a small hole.
it’s carrying into the overalls of the scarecrow, Mandi put the hole up to his ear and heard
and looks in your direction before cawing loudly sounds like he had never heard before. He
and flying off. could hear the plants, the earth, the critters.
You can just make out the scarlet wax seal of Not words, but life! Almost as if Tilthar was
Maestro Hewert on the rolled up scroll. speaking to him through every living thing's
essence. Amazed by this find, Mandi began to
The contents of the scroll read: experiment with the disk. But nefarious hands
Brave adventurers! I have caught wind guide innocent minds.
that you are enjoying the harvest season in The
Granges! I wonder if you can make your way to K DHVT
Vencia, a delightful village. I met a nature holy Mandi stumbled upon the Disc of Voices (See
man named Mandi Sweetvine some years back. Sidebar, pg 4), a wondrous magic item with
He was very talented at cultivating new life. He powers to preserve and grow life. This item
had mentioned a magical relic he found. At the could grant the bearer the ability to hear all
time it didn’t register to me as connected to the living things, even those with no voices of their
Calliope of Wonder, but I have been receiving own. At first Mandi listened to all the beautiful
strange magical energies from that area. noise of nature he knew so well - the bird song,
Please find Mandi and see if he may have some the growing of flowers and crops.
knowledge of this. Vencia throws a fantastic However, the more he listened the more he
celebration around this time of year called the heard. Songs and voices he had never heard
Festival of the Holy Harvest, and Mandi is one before began to fascinate him - the sound of
of the organizers! Perhaps you can let loose and the worms and fungus writing in the soil, the
enjoy yourselves for once! You deserve it! Sing song of insects and vermin coming from under
music, fair adventurers, and the calliope shall every stone, the chorus of a billion bacterial
sing with you! voices that decompose the world from within.
Mandi had never realized the rot of nature
Mandi Sweetvine, could be so beautiful. Captivated by it, he soon
began to seek out mold and decay, seeking the
Agriculturalist turned Killer strange beauty of this overlooked song. Before
long he found himself wandering into those

M aestro Hewett is correct in his assump-

tions about the mysterious relic Mandi
Sweetvine had found. The relic Mandi found
places where magical discord was strongest
- listening ever more intently. He started to
make out another voice, one even more secret
was, in fact, a Key of Wonder. than the voice of rot. Standing knee-deep in a
Mandi Sweetvine once lived a holy, simple festering pool of decay, his eyes closed as he
life. A nature cleric of Tilthar, God of the Harvest, pressed the disc to his ear, Mandi made out
Mandi was revered for his connection to the the secret voice at last. It was the whisper of
land. Every harvest season, Mandi blessed the Discord… the din of evil magic, and an echo of
lands and brought rich prosperity to the crops evil and twisted minds.
and the farmers. He would travel from village The voices in the discord had messages
to village, lending his services in exchange for for Mandi. Messages about unnatural growth
food and housing. Mandi made quite a name and aberrant creations. Just as he had been
for himself, and was welcome everywhere in fascinated by the song of rot, this new message
The Granges. captured Mandi’s attention. It was not long
One day, while cultivating some cabbage before the druid’s mind began to deteriorate
fields, Mandi was digging in the dirt and came to madness.
across a concave, circular disc made of porce-

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 He began to have his own visions - dreams achieve his dreams - the scythe of preservation
of creating a new race of creatures. Creatures (see sidebar below). His preparations com-
that could be stronger than other races, more in plete, he began his plans for this year's Festival
touch with all of nature’s aspects… rot and all. of the Holy Harvest.
Dreams of the artistry of creating abominations If the party recovers the disc and taps their
of flesh. Fueled by these visions, Mandi made an tuning fork to the artifact, it records the eerie,
amulet out of the disc, inscribing it with dark haunting timbre. The Lost Key can then be
runes, and began to craft a tool to help him returned to the Calliope of Wonder

Scythe of Preservation A creature can no longer control the

Weapon, rare (requires attunement) severed limb. If the limb is pressed against
The scythe of preservation gives a creature the location it was severed from, it can be
the power to harvest pieces of any living caused to reattach to the target if they receive
thing - be it a flower or a finger - and keep at least 1 point of magical healing.
them preserved perfectly in a state of repose. 3 / day the scythe can animate any sev-
The scythe is a +1 magic item that requires ered limb. The scythe of preservation can
two-hands to wield. It deals 2d4 sl command any animated limbs it imbues
A creature can use the scythe of within 300 ft. of the bearer. The animated
preservation to sever a body part of an limbs have similar properties to a crawling
incapcitated Medium or smaller creature. claw with the following changes:
The limb does not die, and is preserved in
magical stasis. Severed limbs can be grafted B
D S
together (DC 15 Wisdom (Medicine) check VT P
and form Abominations (Dread Harvest, pg Hand As crawling As crawling As crawling
11). claw claw claw
Additionally, the weidler may sever a limb
Foot 3 hit points 1d4 + 1 Speed - 15 ft.
if they roll a natural 20 on an attack roll with
the scythe. The effect of a lost limb is deter- Arm 4 hit points 1d6 +3 Speed - 15 ft.
mined by the GM. If the creature has no limb
Leg 5 hit points 1d8 + 3 Speed - 15 ft.
to sever, you lop off a portion of its body in-
stead. Severing a target's head does not kill it. Head 1d6 + 1,
The creature is able to see and hear through 2 hit points 1d8 +1 if a Speed - 0
the severed head, but not speak through it. beast

Tail 2 Hit Points 1d4 - 1 Speed - 10 ft.

The Disc of Voices is attuned with it is able to cast the following

Wondrous Item, very rare (requires spells:
attunement) • speak with dead 1/day
Should the disc of voices be returned to the • speak with plants 1/day
Calliope of Wonder, it can be restored to pris- • speak with animals 1/day
tine condition by the Maestro. If the disc is
restored to its original state any creature who • tongues 1/day

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 The Festival of the
Holy Harvest

T his adventure begins with the party arriving

at the Festival of the Holy Harvest. Likely, the
party will be excited to explore the festivities and
Tasty Treats!
The following is available to purchase
around the Festival of the Holy Harvest:
inquire about Mandi Sweetvine. Walking around • Apple Cider, 3 cp/mug - A light and crisp
the festival, the party sees many games, crafts, cider with notes of cinnamon.
food, and drink. Additionally, any character pro- • Apple Cider (alcoholic), 4cp/mug - A
ficient in Religion notices symbols honoring Eard refreshing, if potent, cider. For every three
the Tall and Tilthar. The following is available to mugs consumed per hour, a character must
the GM to round out the party’s experience before succeed on a DC 10 Constitution saving
the events of Dread Harvest begin. throw or be poisoned for one hour. Any
character who gets drunk on apple cider
gains advantage on all Charisma checks
PSMKºA made with any of the locals.
Should a party member ask around about
• Pumpkin cakes, 1cp- a small, individual cake,
Mandi, any local will tell them he is one of the
light and fluffy with hints of nutmeg
organizers of the festival and is responsible for
the epic corn maze. If a character succeeds on a • Pumpkin Ale, 6 cp/mug - a robust, unfiltered
ale. For every two mugs consumed per
DC 12 Charisma (Persuasion) check, the locals
hour, a character must succeed on a DC 11
are willing to give the following additional Constitution saving throw or be poisoned
information: for one hour. Any character who gets
• Mandi, though an organizer, has been very reclusive drunk on pumpkin ale gains advantage on
this year and only focused on the corn maze. all Charisma checks made with any of the
locals.
• Locals have noticed dark circles under his eyes
of late. “Burning the midnight oil, as they say”. • Corn Stew, 1 sp/bowl - a hearty corn stew
with a vegetal sweetness and tingly spice.
• He used to travel from village to village, but
has taken up residency in the barn on the other • Turkey Leg, 3 sp/leg - a greasy, and flavorful
side of the corn maze turkey leg with a crisp skin
• Should they succeed by five or more, one of the
villagers says, “That Mandi, he ain’t been the
same for years. Not since he found that strange
medallion he wears. It’s like it owns him or
somethin’.”

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Games and Entertainment increasing DC’s (8,10,12,14,17). A character
may only attempt one saving throw per round,
The following festivities are available around
and must succeed on a saving throw before
the festival: they are able to attempt the next one. The
• Hammer Slam, 3 cp - the classic carnival game. A first contestant to complete all five saving
character has to slam the base, shooting the ball up throws wins the contest. The winner receives a
to the bell at the top (DC 15 Strength check). If they wooden carving of a pumpkin and a payout of
win, they get to choose any gaming set or musical 10 gp. Hebey Wimple (bandit) is the five-year
instrument less than 10 gp (PHB, pg. 154). reigning champion of the contest. If he loses, he
• Straw Doll Making, 2 cp - a small craft table has will demand fisticuffs with his usurper.
been set up for the kids to make cute, straw • Largest Hog - The largest hog contest is the
dolls. Should a party member wish to partake, spectacle of the festival. Farmer’s far and wide put
they must succeed on a DC 10 Dexterity (Sleight their hogs on display. It has gotten so popular, a
of Hand or Performance) check. If they succeed small betting ring has been established. Should
by five or more, the kids around the table see a character wish to bet on the hogs, it is a 2-1
the masterpiece and all start crying. payout. The character can make a DC 13 Wisdom
• Cake Eating Contest, 5 cp - This pie eating (Perception) or Intelligence (Nature) check to
contest is a race to see who can eat five discern that two hogs, Bessie and Gertrude, are
pumpkin cakes the fastest. A character must the front runners. If they succeed by five or more,
succeed on five Constitution saving throws with they can tell that Gertrude is all fluff and hair, and
Bessie is the heaviest.