Steal This Encounter: Back to the Crossroads
You arrive at the Crossroads, as you always do, a place that is never quite the same, but never quite different, and always offers a moment's respite from the dusty trails you roam. At this one you find the ruins of an abandoned town. A beggar huddles beneath their rags and leans against the only sturdy building in view. A mottled, wasted hand holds up a tin bowl and their reedy voice fills the air between you, "We offer Gossip and Information for coin..."
If any of the Adventurers manage to see through his Illusion they will be shown The Beggar's True Visage.
Designer Notes: My players are headed to the rural city of Triboar, which I recently spent quite a bit of time overhauling (I ended up with over 73 NPCs spread out over 31 different locations), and this document doubles as session Prep for my own game. Sooo, you might have to do a bit of work to make this Encounter work for your own campaign.
The rumors listed in this table are highly specific to my campaign, but are hopefully compelling and intriguing enough to make a good template for your own table of rumors .
I didn't provide the DCs or specific Skill Challenges I used for this Encounter, as I hope you'll tailor those to your own Band.
The Beggar & Rumormonger will offer 1 rumor for any amount of coin. If one of the players donates coin to the Beggar, have them roll on the Rumor Table and then narrate:
"Our news is old and secondhand, but if you take it in your mouth with grains of salt you'll see true what lies ahead of you."
| 1d8 | Rumors |
|---|---|
| 1 | "The Heir to the Emerald Throne plagues these lands with the vile magic of her people. Guard your words when you see the Pretty Pink Petals that mark her presence." |
| 2 | "Harden your Heart when you see Lavender Eyes. they betray a Cruka addict, never give them your coin no matter how desperate their plight." |
| 3 | "Ware the Skinwalker who has claimed the Hills of Triboar for their Hunting Grounds." |
| 4 | An overly embellished rumor featuring one of your Adventurers. Example: "Watch the ground for winged shadows my friends and care who falls beneath your blade for a Valkyrie flies these skies. It is said she has ripped out the hearts of every man who has Slain the Innocent that walks the lands from the Coast to The Ice Spire to the Queen's Throne." |
| 5 | "Tensions are high in the Farmlands, I hear that blood gold is losing its flavor and will no longer satiate those who cry Feud." |
| 6 | "If you are on Pilgrimage to Saint Bryggvir's Lament your journey might be for naught, for the forest is a mirror to her master's bleak heart." |
| 7 | "The Gray Mistress of Freya has found fresh reason to Mourn and her magics and rituals are stronger for it... she is The Mourning Lady after all..." |
| 8 | "Danger lurks in Triboar, travelers! We hope, for your sake, the Grand Marshal keeps her head… should she lose it the streets will run red… if they aren’t already anyway…" |
"…forget naught that my news is old and secondhand…"
Extra Rumor Resources:
More For The Curious Adventurer
If the Band of Adventurers investigate the area sufficiently, they'll discover that the ruins that surround them and the beggar that claims them appear to be the only things to survive a recent Arcane Barrage.
A sufficiently pious, well-read, or well-explored adventurer might recognize some of the Iconography, Language, and Symbolism the Beggar is using and mark them for one of The Secondhand Folk, and/or the Godtouched, and/or the Wandering Mad.
If any of the Adventurer's offer the Beggar a mighty Boon, he will give them a simple leather pouch containing dark soil. This item gives off an arcane aura and if studied will reveal it to be a Hanged Man's Pardon.
Just Who IS The Beggar?
The Beggar is an Illithid who has been badly disfigured and cursed to never eat a brain again. They have gone mad over the 260 years they've been cursed this way. The recent bombing of their home is but the freshest of their woes.
The Beggar's true name has been lost to madness and time. They are a wretched thing that has lost all semblance of pride or confidence.
The Beggar uses what little magic they have left to cast a weak Illusion spell so that they appear to be a normal human beggar. The Beggar also casts subtle magics to make it seem like their voice is heard rather than emanating from inside the heads of those they speak with. An observant Adventurer might notice these discrepancies.
The Beggar's True Visage
"Your keen eye slips through the Beggar's meager illusion to reveal a mindflayer that looks as if they have been stricken with a wasting sickness. The tentacles that hide the beak of their mouth are swollen and ooze an unhealthy looking viscous fluid."
Some Mood Music
To ratchet up the atmosphere use this Spotyify Playlist: Mood Ominous.
Credits
Design by Bewby
Beggar by Tatiana Vetrova
The Beggar's True Vissage by Andrey Surnov
Shout out to /u/bezoing for his Curated Spotify Playlists for DND.
Who ARE the Secondhand Folk?
The Secondhand Folk are a group of the wandering mad that are loosely aligned by necessity of survival and because they have all been touched or cursed by the Gods. They are scattered across the Cosmos, wherever Yggdrasil's boughs cast a shadow the Secondhand Folk can be found. A perceptive adventurer might be able to spot the hidden Symbols that the Secondhand Folk leave behind for fellow Knights of the Road.
Most often these are priests or priestesses whose ambitions, like Icarus, far exceeded their capacity. The one thing that is true of all of these folk is that their proximity to Power marked them and drove them mad.
Designer Note: I always found the coded language of the Hobos to be enchanting. If you'd like to paint in some extra layers of detail, consider this article from Logo Design Love on Hobo Signs & Symbols.