1001 Mysteries...

[The_Warlock]

14) Who Watches

When the group is camping in a remote location, the night watches pass uneventfully, except for a regularly occuring, if odd sounding, night bird call across the region they are in. But if the sound is investigated, it is always off in another direction.

In the morning, when breaking camp, literally hundreds of sets of taloned, bird or reptile-like small foot prints can be found in the mud and earth surrounding the camp just beyond where the firelight reached.

If tracked, the tracks come from every direction, heading directly toward the group's campsite. However, the tracks simply start, as if from nowhere, a mere 100 yards from the camp.

 

[The_Warlock]

15) Deadwater

In a remote locale, the group comes across a beautiful spring-fed pool amidst crumbling rocks and renewed nature.

Animals will refuse to approach the pool, and familiars and magical creatures will feel skittish while in proximity to it. Those with natural lore will be able to determine that the water is perfectly safe to drink.

Perceptive members of the group will be the first to notice something wrong with the reflections in the pool.
Thinking, sentient beings (Int 3 or equivalent in a system of choice) cast no reflection.

Unless they have died and been brought back by some means. Such beings always show their true, original form (in the case of the reincarnated) as a reflection.

Returned individuals who drink from the pool always feel refreshed and without fatigue. Returned individuals who swim in the pool see a vision of something they desire.

Those who have not returned from death who drink the water note that it has a strange coppery taste, and see a vague but gruesome image of their own death, leaving them shaken until the next dawn.

If an individual who has not returned from death attempts to wade or swim in the pool, they are forcibly dragged under the waters by an unseen force, and then released moments before drowning. They are likewise shaken by the experience until the next dawn.

Should the group leave the area for more than a day, and return at some point, they will find the pool gone, replaced by fire blackened earth.

 

[The_Warlock]

16) Fractured Peace

Deep in an underground locale, multi-level dungeon or basement of some long ruined structure beyond the bounds of established civilization, the group will hear a gently melodic sound, not quite music, like wind blowing through some distant instrument.

If investigated, they will find, out of plain sight, but not truly contained or under cover, what appears to be a fracture in the air. Light refracts and reflects through odd "panes" hanging in mid-air, causing odd shadows on any nearby surfaces, while a calming windsong like sound emanates from the fracture.

While within about 30' of the fracture, no being, regardless of immunities or protection, is capabale of taking violent or aggressive action.

Additionally, all beings within 30' perfectly understand the languages of other beings within the area.

Unfortunately, creatures beyond the boundary of the Calm are fully capable of raining death and destruction down on those within it, and those within cannot retaliate while staying within the area of the Calm.

 

[The_Warlock]

17) Fragment with a View

In ruined room, or treasure, the group discover a shattered piece of silver just larger than a man's fist, that is as smooth as glass, with edges just as sharp and jagged as if it was glass. It seems unbreakable, yet cannot scratch or cut the softest materials, though it can draw blood if used to cut living flesh.

More disturbing is that despite it seemingly shiny surface, it reflects no images, just light sources.

If this is investigated at length, it will be noted that any light reflected off the shard onto another surface has strange, faint shadow forms in the reflected light, but nothing truly discernable.

In mere starlight or absolute darkness, those near the shard with sight beyond the norm will see images within its small surface which seem to shed no light into the real world, but still be visible.

The images are usually hard to place due to a lack of perspective, living flesh, twisitng impossibly hued crystals, bubbling gelatinous fluid and such. No matter what the visions, they are never the same with a new viewing, regardless of how much or little the viewer has moved, though during any one viewing, moving the shard appears to shift the point of view through some other otherwordly space.

If the shard is ever totally immersed in warm blood of a living (or just recently living) creature. It appears to dissolve into nothingness.

The last person to view the shard's otherworlds is granted a painful, but helpful, vision to some goal or quest of theirs, and finds a strange sharp-edged "drawing" on their left hand, both back and palm reminiscent of the shard's shape. It cannot be removed.

 

[Andor]

18) Anachronism

The party encounters a lost individual dressed as a wizard or psion. He asks them for directions to some mundane location, and if they help him he insists on paying them for their help telling them they have done more than they can know. If examined the coins he pressed upon them show an unknown but aged king whose name matches that of the ruleing king's youngest son.

 

[Andor]

19) Misplaced

While traveling (where is unimportant, but the farther from the sea the better) the party notices the overwhelming stench of rot. If the seek it they find the decaying carcass of a whale lying in an otherwise unremarkable field.

Possible details to add:

-Lying rushed under the body of the whale is a goblin shaman who appears to have been performing some magic ritual.

-The whale bears intricate tattoes about it's body and has a necklace of coral and glass.

-The stomach of the whale contains a human skeleton dressed in archaic armour.

-The head of the whale bears a shipping label in some undecipherable script.

 

[Andor]

20) Ancient Evidence

A landslide has revealed an ancient ruin. Within the complex contains the rusted, tripped and disabled remains of many deadly traps, some with skeletons still impaled on them.

A large central chamber bears the evidence of an epic fight although all that is left now is dust and bone. The rotted remains of great chests are along one wall, all empty. A still functioning magic circle holds the eternally trapped skeleton of a great demon.

 

[The_Warlock]

The whale is FABULOUS. Especially since I'm playing in a campaign with a goblin shaman of a sea god, and I could SO see that happening.

21) A Shooting What?

When in the wilderness, the group sees a flash up in the sky, and then a great whistling and thunder as a shooting star streaks overhead, but closer than any have ever seen. Just past a line of trees or hills there is a crack of thunder and second flash of light, followed by the earth bucking like a sea wave, knocking the group from their feet.

If they decide to investigate, it takes perhaps an hour and a half on foot to find the site of the impact. What they find is a blasted crater perhaps 200' in diameter. At it's center, however, there is an unblemished circle of land about 40' across. Upon it is a great stone obelisk, smooth carved and brightly painted as if erected mere days ago, depicting an ancient wizard-king's triumph over a terrible foe. If the area around the crater is searched, the smallest of extremely weathered hard stone foundations are found scattered on several of the surrounding hills and copses of trees.

If mapped out, the edges of the ruins bound enough space to be considered a small, but circularly laid out, village where no one has ever heard rumors of one, let alone a wizard's empire.

No names, writings, nor secret compartments are to be found.

 

[The_Warlock]

22) Land locked

While traveling through rocky terrain, such as foothills or a low mountain pass, the group hears the sound of a small bell ringing the watch.

If the sound is followed, they find a small box canyon.

Literally half-embedded in the stone of walls of the canyon, as well as partly in several boulders is a whole sailing ship of magnificent design. There is no sign of actual damage to the vessel, except the torn and tattered sails and rigging. Where the wood of the ship and the stone of the canyon touch, they seem to have been fused together.

A small bell rings the hourly watches on it's own, imbued with magic to do so, so long as it remains attached to its housing on the ship.

No bodies or inhabitants are to be found. Nor any signs of violence.

There may be some cargo still in the hold.

 

[The_Warlock]

23) Facetious

The group comes across a broken open barrow, perhaps infested with undead. Apparently previously looted, it is obvious that a pile of stones near the back of the barrow is more recent, and looks deliberately stacked.

If moved, it reveals an ancient metal door that swings sideways into the ceiling on some sort of pivot.

Beyond is a simple room with layers of dust, and dozens of foot prints, obviously from different times that lead to a stone pedestal engraved with various abjurative runes and patterns. Upon it is a fabulously crafted full face mask of steel, silver and ivory, covered in some dust, but otherwise unblemished, depicting a beautiful smiling face.

As soon as light falls upon it a voice is heard, "True heroes? Let it be so, that my gift of speech be freed."

No amount of attempted interaction will produce any other result from the mask.

If taken, the individual carrying the mask finds that they can understand any speech heard. If a character dares to wear the mask, they find that they can speak fluently the language of any one person at which they are looking. Alas, once worn, the mask always returns to the possession of the person who wore it first after removal from the barrow, even if others wear it afterward, or it is thrown away.

More disastrous, one day after one person has worn it, the mask will make off color remarks, innuendo, and insults at random individuals near to the bearer, always seeming to originate from the bearer, in their own voice, and perfectly understandable by the target, despite language difference. The mask does not need to be worn for this effect to begin taking place.

With each day, the mask will choose more obviously wealthy, powerful, or physical imposing beings to direct it's insulting jokes at, making the bearer's life miserable, if not downright dangerous.

The only way to be free of this curse is to find the abandoned barrow, fight whatever new beasts or brigands have decided to use it as their home, and place the mask back upon it's pedestal. At this point will be heard the bearer's voice from the mask, "No sense of humor. None at all."