Act I — The Withering
A prosperous farming village begins dying — crops blacken, livestock sicken, and the earth itself rejects life. The party is hired to lift what locals believe is a simple curse. A desperate village elder offers everything they have when the party witnesses a child's fever that no healing magic can touch.
Act II — The Bargain Unearthed
Investigation reveals the curse is not malicious — it is the enforcement mechanism of an ancient oath made 400 years ago by the village's founders to bind a planar entity beneath the earth. Lifting it requires breaking that covenant. The party discovers that the dead founders are still spiritually bound and actively maintaining it — they are not victims but willing sacrifices guarding something terrible.
Act III — The Choice Below
To proceed, the party must descend into the sealed crypt where the bound entity still writhes and the founders' spirits stand eternal watch. Face-to-face with the planar entity and the spectral founders' collective will, the party must choose: sever the oath permanently, fulfill the original covenant's hidden clause, or renegotiate the terms entirely.
Patron — Ser Aldric Venn
Apparent: Protect innocents from supernatural corruption. True Agenda: He knows the curse's true nature and hopes the party will break it so he can claim the sealed vault beneath the village — rumoured to contain artifacts his Order desperately needs. He will betray the party if they prove inconvenient.
GM Note
The Hunger is not acting to escape on its own — something external is calling it from beyond the seal. Reveal this slowly through the founders' growing agitation, whispers in dreams, and accumulating hints. This turns the quest from 'local curse' to 'you are being manipulated by larger forces.'