Seven Ravens

An adventure plot inspired by the Brothers Grimm...

The Horror Over Jalnhavn
A mysterious terror hunts the hapless folk of Jalnhavn.  Once a peaceful hamlet, its able-bodied young men were levied into Konrad von Verwittervold’s ill-fated expedition to restore the catholic faith in the Southern Marches.  Shorn of healthy menfolk, the village became a town of women, children, and crippled elders. 

Shortly after word came back of Earl Konrad’s defeat, folk began dying in increasingly frightening ways.  Livestock was found dead, the animals' remains torn asunder and devoured by hideous carrion birds.  Villagers disappeared or were found dead, their eyeless corpses a frightening mystery.

A party of vagabond adventurers may be the village's only hope.

The Seven Survivors
The villagers lack one important bit of information, the key to this mystery:  Not all of Earl Konrad's men were lost in the fateful battle that ended his campaign.  A band of seven brothers escaped the carnage, but fell victim to a grim curse.  The sole remaining survivors of Earl Konrad’s doomed force, they have been trapped in the shape of massive, bloodthirsty ravens. 

Before the brothers went off to war, their respective paramours sought a way to preserve their lives.  Risking their immortal souls, the women had secretly crept through the forest to the hovel of an ancient witch-woman.  The crone called up a malevolent spirit, the “Shadowed Man”, which promised them all that their lovers would return safely.  The demon's price was high, forcing the women to submit to midnight visits filled with suffering and degradation. 

Even more cruel, the sinister spirit twisted its promise, preserving the seven brothers by transforming them into massive carrion birds, ravenous nocturnal ravens the size of wolfhounds.  Able to understand each others’ speech, but helpless to communicate their condition to others, they keep hidden from the villagers. 

Filled with overwhelming frustration and hunger, the ravens first took out their rage on livestock.  Their next victim was a villager who attempted to shoot at one of them.  Soon after that, one noticed the dark spirit sneaking from his lover’s cottage:  Since then, the brothers have targeted the families of their “unfaithful” paramours.  They rest in the tottering remains of an abandoned barn during the day, emerging to hunt after nightfall.

Hunting the Hunters
Some players will attempt to ambush the creatures preying on the townsfolk.  A well-executed plan may succeed in trapping them or forcing them into battle, but the party will soon discover that normal weapons cannot seem to kill the things.  The ravens suffer pain and can be driven off or captured, but to finish them, the party must wield magic or silver weapons. 

Characters investigating the murders may discover hints of the girls’ demonic lover, discovering that their nocturnal visitor is something inhuman.  Those who anger the cruel spirit had better finish it off, or they will find it adept at a variety of grim magics.

The girls suspect what has happened, but dare not speak of it, lest they be tried for witchcraft.  The ravens’ spell is tied to their lives: If they die, the spirit’s curse will end. 

The seven brothers also have a younger sister, a perceptive girl who has divined their true nature.  She has kept this secret, fearing that the discovery would kill their elderly father if he were to learn.

Some characters may learn of the witch-woman’s demon-guarded hovel in the depths of the wood.  She knows a way to cure the brothers, a remedy that requires they drink the lifeblood of a beloved family member.

Last edited by Sir Wulf (2013-05-29 14:15:07)