Manbearcat
Legend
@Manbearcat Good stuff, particularly like the wing of wyvern or blizzard idea! Would XP ya, but I did too recently.
In my game I've always treated Wyvern as basically a pack of flying Velociraptors (substitute tail stingers for raptor leg shanks). I did this and the PCs were not aware of the situation at the Inn until they arrived on the scene. They had to brave a blizzard during their transit through the mountain paths. Thinking they had finally reached a safe haven after a brutal Travel Skill Challenge, they discovered a stable bereft of horses, blood and gore everywhere...and a dark, winged shadow watching them from the top of the Inn. The Inn was called The Winged Wyvern so in the darkness, they thought it was just a decorative touch. They explored the stables further, following a trail of blood down into the cellar. The stench of death assailed them when they opened the cellar and they soon found the bloated remains of the stable-hand, horrible poison-induced necrosis and decomposition maiming his features. His trusty dog, refusing to leave his master's side, offered them a much weakened wag of the tail.
After they emerged from the stables, finally understanding what the dead man's fate and the lack of horses (but carts, wagons, saddles, bits and bridles galore) portended, a dash across the open space to the Inn commenced where they found the door shut, locked, barricaded and the same for the windows. The sound of something softly lighting down on the heavy porch awning and the PCs froze in terror. The awning didn't hold the weight of the beast and it fell through on top of them...shrapnel of wooden trusses and joists all over (hazard + difficult terrain + Wyvern immobilized until the end of its next turn). After an incredibly dangerous skirmish with the beast and 2 of its hunting partners (this was an L + 5 combat...lethal...and they knew it) the PCs managed to escape into the Inn through a window that was insufficiently barricaded.
Inside was a mess. 3 powerful (anxious and paranoid to boot) factions holed up in their separate rooms and an enormous amount of travelers, merchants and locals holed up in the Common Room like the Super Dome after Hurricane Katrina. They were running low on food with no way to re-provision. All they had in abundance was liquor...and sickness was spreading. It was a volatile powder-keg. It turned out awesome. Feel free to rip that off as the climactic end to your cult plot. Could be a good time for you guys.
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