D20 SYSTEM✦ Normal

The Ballad of Drowned Echoes

# Investigation# Fey# Social# Intrigue# Dark Fantasy

Moonshadow Lake was once a serene pilgrimage site, but now phantom ships rise from its depths to drag vessels to a watery grave. The fey-touched beast known as the Echo Wyrm, a creature of memory and despair, is blamed. Yet the bards of the Silver Lyre guild know the truth: the 'phantasm attacks' are meticulously staged illusions designed to sell their tragic ballads. Players arrive as investigators, only to find themselves caught between desperate fey defenders and ruthless entertainers, where the line between monster and man is as murky as the lake itself.

Chronicle Prelude

The Mistwall Inn & Dock, a safe but tense hub on the lake's southern shore. Fishermen refuse to sail, refugees from the northern shore crowd the common room, and Silver Lyre bards perform nightly to packed, fearful crowds.

Environmental Traits

The northern shores of Moonshadow Lake are sinking into a fey-touched mire as the Echo Wyrm's grief manifests physically. The lake itself is becoming a sentient trap. Victory lies in uncovering the conspiracy and deciding the fate of both the creature and the charlatans exploiting its pain.

Legendary Archetypes

Rayan

HP:45

STR:16

WIS: 12

CHA:11

Key Factions & Autonomous Nodes (8)

Aldric Silverstring
A flamboyant human man in his late 40s, dressed in theatrical silks of deep blue and silver. His eyes are intense and passionate, but shadows of desperation linger beneath the artistry. He wears a silver lyre pin prominently.
Lady Maren, Voice of the Drowned
An ethereal fey woman with translucent skin that shifts like water. Her form is draped in flowing, kelp-like garments, and her eyes are pools of deep, sorrowful blue. Faint, ghostly faces of children and elders flicker within her silhouette.
Echo Wyrm Avatar
A shifting, semi-translucent figure composed of lake water, moonlight, and swirling, ghostly fragments of memory. It has no fixed form, constantly rippling and reforming into hints of draconic or humanoid shapes. It emits soft, melancholic chimes.
Dockmaster Harv
A stocky, weathered human man in practical woolens, constantly wiping his hands on a rag. His eyes dart nervously toward the misty lake. He smells of fish, rope tar, and cheap ale.
Silas 'the String'
A lean, sharp-featured human man in dark leathers, with nimble fingers and a perpetual smirk. He wears gloves with conductive fingertips and a lute strapped to his back alongside a shortsword. His eyes seem to focus on things just beyond normal sight.
The Collector (Unknown)
A presence felt, not seen. His influence is in the guild's funding, the precise clauses in contracts, the demand for 'authenticity.' He is a shadowy patron whose obsession with tragedy as high art drives the entire conspiracy.
Mourning Wisp Guide
A softball-sized orb of soft, blue-green light that drifts silently just above the water's surface. Within its glow, fleeting images of a child's face or a dancer's form appear and fade. It emits a faint, sad humming sound.
Lira, the Orphan
A small human girl, around 8 years old, with tangled brown hair and wide, haunted eyes. She clutches a tattered blanket and sits in a corner of the inn, often staring out at the lake. Her clothes are damp and travel-worn.

Chronicle Prelude

Environmental Traits

Legendary Archetypes

✦ Related Cases ✦

The Screeching Cipher of Macaw Cliff

The Unlocked Casements of Shadowkeep