Running This Adventure
GM Notes & Adventure Guidelines
Running the Adventure
The story works best if the players gradually realize that very few of the people they meet are truly "evil." Most are trapped by grief, guilt, fear, or old promises they cannot bring themselves to break. Lean into those moments whenever possible—the horror comes from tragedy more than monsters.
Recurring Themes
- Grief and acceptance: Nearly every major NPC, living or dead, is struggling to let something go.
- Knowledge has a cost: Keth-Veyr's fall began with curiosity rather than malice, and that distinction matters.
- Isolation breeds despair: Thornwick isn't falling apart because of a single curse. Long before the veil-tears appeared, its people had already stopped trusting one another.
Encounter Difficulty
The encounters assume four PCs. If you have five, adding another creature is usually enough to keep the pressure up. With only three characters, removing a creature generally works better than simply lowering hit points, though reducing enemy HP by about 25% is a reasonable fallback for encounters with only a single opponent.
Treasure Expectations (Per PC)
| Act | Liquid Gold & Gems | Key Magic Items & Runes |
|---|---|---|
| Act 1 (Level 3) |
~125 gp | +1 Weapon runes, Potency Crystals, and low-level Pharasmin scrolls/elixirs. |
| Act 2 (Level 4) |
~215 gp | Striking weapon runes, +1 Armor runes, and utility items like a Healer's Toolkit (Expanded) or Crying Angel Pendant. |
| Act 3 (Level 5) |
~340 gp | Resilient armor runes, 3rd-level staves/wands, and a unique thematic Soul-Bound Relic. |
GM Note: Ensure the party uncovers the fundamental weapon and armor runes early in each Act so their mathematical progression matches the encounter scaling.