The Inn That Started It All
Alone at night on the road there is little comfort to be found, especially in the harsh North. You can hear the thunder of an oncoming storm and the baying of dark forest creatures at your back. The one reprieve is the pinpricks of light ahead of you in the darkness. Hopefully you can reach them before the things in the night reach you.
The Hooded Stranger Inn is the only respite a traveler can find on the road through the Pale between Westfall and Midheim. It is a cramped, uncomfortable place by the standards of those in the city, but beggars cannot be choosers in the wild between places of the world. Behind it’s palisade walls lies a warm fire and a stuffy room if one is available. Otherwise, there is always the hay in the stables. Just don’t forget to lay down some fresh hay before tucking in.
The inn sits at the edge of the river and there is a small dock there as well for boats going to and fro about their business. It has changed hands many times over the last 80 years. Sometimes even the inn’s caretakers don’t make wise decisions on who they allow through the gates. Such has been the death of several owners and their family. It has also been occupied as a military outpost both by the Kingdom of Mac Tir and Northgate. As of today, it stands as a neutral zone between Mac Tir occupied territory and Midheim to the West.
A Game Master’s Perspective
Over the years I have found that the best way to start players on a new campaign is to put them in a situation from the start that limits immediate options but has wide open potential. This lets players explore the new game’s mechanics and their characters abilities while not overwhelming them with choices. The Hooded Stranger Inn is just such a location.
The Setup
The characters are on the road between Westfall and Midheim, two of the larger cities in the setting. It is storming. The road is muddy and difficult to traverse. If the players don’t find shelter soon, they will become exhausted and possibly ill. The kicker is that in the darkness of the trees to either side of the road they can hear far off braying of goat men. Do they press ahead or try to stand their ground and fight?
It almost never fails that my players will choose flight over fight. The disadvantages of the storm and possible exhaustion in their mind outweighs anything they have to gain at this point. They are new, know they are weak and have no true resources.
A Race to Safety
The players continue on in the dark wondering what I will spring on them next. Then I call for the perception check. “Uh oh! That’s bad man”, I hear one of the guys say. Dice clatter across the table and I hear sighs of relief from the ones who passed the check.
“You can see these faint pinpricks of light off in the distance. They are not moving. You think it could possibly be shelter but you aren’t sure.” At this point they are all but scrambling over each other to get there.
My First Campaign and the Seductress Demon
In that very first game I pulled this exact ploy on the players. Not only were they racing for the lights in the distance, but I initiated a chase sequence by having the goat men catch up to them at the edge of the woods. They needed several successful opposed checks to stay ahead of the ravening monsters behind them. The group did make it to safety at the Hooded Stranger, but that was the least of their worries.
They had some basic fundamentals of the game system down. Now it was time to push them a little bit harder. The people who were running the inn were pretty unfriendly toward the group. As soon as the group had eaten, they started to notice their stomachs cramping and they felt weak. “No way. We haven’t been poisoned, have we?” I just gave a sly smirk. That’s when they started to notice something else strange that they didn’t pay attention to before. The doors to the rooms had locks, but they were on the outside of the door. This is when the group started to freak out a little.
It wasn’t long before they started to hear the crashing of tables, chairs and doors giving way. Screams from the other patrons echoed through the inn. The group was split. Half wanted to climb out the window and were tying bed sheets together. The other half wanted to see what was causing all the commotion and decided to break the door down as it had been locked earlier trapping them inside.
The one group made their way down the hall to another room and watched a lithe, naked, female figure with horns and claws massacre the two men inside the room while the inn proprietor held a smooth, carved gem idol in his hands.
The Straw That Broke the Proverbial Camel’s Back
The characters were watching the scene horrified. Players shouting back and forth across the table at each other about what to do. They were only beginner tier. They couldn’t take on a demoness, could they. Time for me to force a decision.
“The demoness turns toward you and gives a sultry smile while running her gore covered hands seductively across her skin.”
“Nope!”, I hear one of my players shout as he grabs his miniature and moves it back down the hallway and into the groups room on the game mat. “Guys, I’m out!”
Out the window they went. One was so desperate that he just jumped without hesitation or care of the consequences down the 15 feet to the ground causing himself an injury. The players proceeded to steal the three horses in the stable and ride frantically into the night, thus ending the first session in what was soon to become our favorite long running campaign world.
Isolation Equals Perfection
Hopefully this gives you some ideas and perspective on how you want to use this location. The isolated setting of the inn is rife with possibilities for storytelling. It also provides the perfect setup to make players feel safe or vulnerable depending on how you play it. Sometimes it can even do both.