Act 1 — The Haunting of Thornwick – The Shattered Veil

Act 1 Overview

The party arrives in Thornwick, a village paralyzed by a veil-tear in its church. The dead walk the streets at night, not as malevolent undead but as echoes — fragments of souls caught between worlds, replaying their final moments. The villagers have barricaded themselves in their homes. Sister Mirela tends the church alone, keeping the tear from expanding through constant prayer and ritual.

The heroes must:

Investigate the village and earn the trust of its terrified residents.
Defend the church when the echoes grow aggressive on the third night.
Discover the shard buried beneath the church cemetery — a fragment of the Shattered God's essence that the Veilbreaker planted three weeks ago.
Seal the tear by destroying or purifying the shard.

Expected Duration: 2-3 sessions. Target Level: 3.

Echoes vs. Undead

The creatures in Thornwick are echoes — not true undead, but psychic impressions of the dead given temporary form by the veil-tear. They cannot be Turned by positive energy in the normal way, though Heal spells still damage them. They are vulnerable to ghost touch weapons and mental damage.

This distinction matters: a cleric who tries to channel positive energy will find it partially effective (half damage), which may confuse the party until they research the phenomenon. Sister Mirela can explain this after the first encounter.