Updated 10/25/2026, 3:53:15 AM
Human • Paladin
Role: gravekeeper of the Border Village chapel who urgently sends the party to recover
HP 10 • AC 14
Practical, tired, and brave; she knows the chapel, the mausoleum cellar, and the village defenses, and she can explain the bell’s warning in plain terms.
Event 1
Read Aloud
The chapel bell gives a dull, wrong note from somewhere under the wall, then rings again by itself. Elspeth Vale catches you at the door, pale with worry, and points toward the mausoleum yard. 'The dead-man’s bell means something has gone below,' she says. 'Get to the cellar before nightfall and bring back the coffin-key.'
Details
Elspeth Vale is practical, tired, and urgent; she knows the chapel and mausoleum layout. No monster is present here. The scene is a quick briefing and choice point: the party can trust her, ask for details, or rush ahead. If they press for more, she explains the key unlocks the cellar storage and that the bell only rings when grave-magic is disturbed. The scene changes the situation by giving the party a clear mission and a time pressure to move now.
Event 2
Read Aloud
Cold mist hangs over the chapel yard, and pale drag marks scrape through the dirt toward the mausoleum stair. Two Skeletons rattle near the broken cellar latch, turning their empty skulls toward any sound. They do not roam far from the door, as if something below still commands their watch.
Details
Attached monsters (use these exact stat blocks): - Quantity: 2; Monster: Skeleton. Why here: They patrol the mausoleum stair and guard the cellar door where the coffin-key was taken. Activity: Rattling around the broken latch and watching for anyone who comes down the steps. Attitude: alert and hostile if disturbed Encounter start: alert monster at a distance Response trigger: They attack if the party rushes the door, touches the latch, or fails to sneak past. Aftermath: The stair is clear, and the drag marks point straight to the cellar entrance. Room guidance: Two Skeletons are here because they are patrolling the mausoleum stair and guarding the cellar door where the key was taken. They are aggressive and threatening, but they only attack if disturbed or if the party rushes the door. Encounter start is alert at a distance: call for a Spot surprise check. On success, the party notices them first and may act, hide, or withdraw; on failure, the Skeletons notice first and may brace the stair or attack. If the party is noisy or closes to open combat, use normal initiative. If they are avoided or defeated, the aftermath discovery is automatic: the broken latch, drag marks, and a smear of grave-cold mud show the route into the cellar.
Event 3
Read Aloud
The cellar is narrow, damp, and close with old grave-dust. In the shadow of a storage niche, a Zombie sways upright with the coffin-key in reach, as if it has only just remembered how to stand. Its empty stare settles on you, confused rather than fully enraged.
Details
Attached monsters (use these exact stat blocks): - Quantity: 1; Monster: Zombie. Why here: It has been left in the cellar to guard the coffin-key from the storage niche. Activity: Standing watch in the shadow of the niche and clutching the key’s resting place. Attitude: defensive and confused Encounter start: mutual awareness at close range Response trigger: It attacks if the party grabs the key, threatens it, or strikes first. Aftermath: The coffin-key is recovered, and the niche can be searched for signs of who moved it. Room guidance: One Zombie is here because it has been left to guard the coffin-key in the cellar niche. Its starting attitude is defensive and confused, not fully mindless; it clutches the key’s resting place and reacts to intrusion. Encounter start is mutual awareness at close range: the party and Zombie see each other immediately, so begin with roleplay or initiative as its attitude demands. It attacks if the party reaches for the key, threatens it, or strikes first; it can be calmed, distracted, or lured away if the party speaks or offers a better target. After the encounter, the automatic aftermath discovery is the coffin-key and the storage niche’s disturbed dust, which shows the key was moved recently.
Event 4
Read Aloud
Loose burial tags lie in a drift across the cellar floor, and one heavy stone marker is wedged beneath them. The room is quiet now, but the marks in the dust suggest the key was not simply dropped here. A narrow route of scuffed stone leads back toward the chapel records and the wall-side crypts.
Details
No monster is present here. The obvious features are the burial tags, the hidden marker, and the floor marks. The party can take the marker, compare it with chapel records, or follow the marks deeper. Their decision changes the situation by either securing a useful guide immediately or spending time to learn who moved the key and where the disturbance is spreading. The clue is not required to continue, but it gives a strong lead for the final scene.
Event 5
Read Aloud
The chapel wall gives a long, cold shudder, and a shape peels itself from the crypt slit like a stain pulled loose from stone. The air drops to a knife-edge chill as the bell under the wall begins to toll again. The Shadow turns toward the living with hungry intent.
Details
Attached monsters (use these exact stat blocks): - Quantity: 1; Monster: Shadow. Why here: It has risen from the wall-side crypt slit, drawn by the ringing bell and the disturbed burial marker. Activity: Pressing through the stone and feeding on the grave-cold around the chapel wall. Attitude: hostile and hunger-driven Encounter start: mutual awareness at close range Response trigger: It attacks when the party nears the slit, seals it, or fails to drive it back. Aftermath: The bell quiets, the village is safe for the night, and the cold trail points deeper under the moors. Room guidance: One Shadow is here because the ringing bell and recovered marker have awakened a grave-chill guardian bound to the wall-side crypt slit. It is hostile and immediately dangerous. Encounter start is mutual awareness at close range: the party sees it rise from the slit as it emerges, so go straight to roleplay or initiative. It attacks when the party approaches the slit, tries to seal it, or fails to drive it back. If defeated, driven off, or bargained down by a clearly successful table action, the immediate resolution is that the bell calms, the village is secured for the night, and the marker reveals the Barrow King’s power is spreading under the moors. Afterward, the party can search the slit and find the cold trail leading deeper underground.
No DM map cards yet.
Medium Undead | Lawful Evil | L1
HP
13
AC
13
Speed
30 ft.
Init
+2
STR 10 | DEX 14 | CON 15 | INT 6 | WIS 8 | CHA 5
Actions
Shortsword: Hit +4 | 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.
Shortbow: Hit +4 | 5 (1d6 + 2) piercing damage.
Magic
No spells
big undead | L1
HP
10
AC
12
Speed
30 ft
Init
+0
STR 10 | DEX 10 | CON 10 | INT 10 | WIS 10 | CHA 10
Actions
No actions
Magic
No spells
Medium Undead | Chaotic Evil | L2
HP
16
AC
12
Speed
40 ft.
Init
+2
STR 6 | DEX 14 | CON 13 | INT 6 | WIS 10 | CHA 8
Actions
Strength Drain: Hit +4 | 9 (2d6 + 2) necrotic damage, and the target's Strength score is reduced by 1d4. The target dies if this reduces its Strength to 0. Otherwise, the reduction lasts until the target finishes a short or long rest. If a non-evil humanoid dies from this attack, a new shadow rises from the corpse 1d4 hours later.
Magic
No spells
Item Handout
wondrous | common | L1
Value: 70 GP
The Wall-Side Crypt Slit
Description
Fine silk cloth dyed in rich, vivid tones.
Spells
No spells.
Item Handout
armor | uncommon | L1
Value: 185 GP
+1 AC when wearing this.
The Wall-Side Crypt Slit
Description
Light enchanted chain mail.
Spells
No spells.
The chapel bell falls silent at last, and the cold pressure in the walls eases as the last of the grave-magic drains away. Elspeth Vale thanks the party in her tired, steady way, then helps them secure the mausoleum, gather the recovered key and marker, and make the chapel yard safe for the night. The dead are laid quiet again, at least for now, and the village can breathe easier. If the players want it, this is a good moment for a short rest, tending wounds, and sorting through any loot or recovered relics from the cellar and crypt. Elspeth can also trade simple supplies, accept any useful graveyard finds, or help the party sell off minor valuables through the village if that fits the table’s tone. Keep the aftermath practical and calm, with the chapel returning to a place of shelter instead of fear. With the immediate threat ended and the bell no longer ringing, the dungeon is fully resolved for this chapter. The living hold the chapel, the dead are driven back, and the village has one clear night of peace. Congratulations, you are now Level 2!
