halloween encounters

[fireinthedust]

I'm running a Pathfinder game set in basically a haunted castle. The scenario is "House on Haunted Hill", with an invitation to a party-gone-wrong, but the plot is more "get them to open an evil door" rather than "someone kill my ..."

Thing is, I am having difficulty coming up with 2nd level Halloween encounters.

The point is for the PCs to get a key to the BBEG room from each of the challenges, in a room of a haunted castle; then fight the bbeg.

I've got some ideas, but bringing them to life is hard.

1) Frankenstien: flesh golem will wake up; get the keys and get out before he stomps them dead (adamantine gate he can't get through should do it). This room I think is fine.

2) Zombie grave: done. Zombies that look like the PCs attack, etc.

3) Werewolf jail cell: there's a werewolf in a jail cell... yeah, that's all I can think of. I could do great description, but how to make it interesting?

4) Spooky garden: pumpkin patch with heads instead of pumpkins, that scream at the PCs. Basically difficult terrain, not very interesting.

 

[Aeolius]

1) Add a violin on a table. Playing the instrument soothes the creature. Also, make the room a classic laboratory with lots of apothecary glassware and metal devices for harnessing lightning (or a vat of electric eels).

2) Zombies... how about a flooded basement/crypt with lacedons?

3) Werewolf in Jail: Make it werewolves. The party sees two figures in a cell; a maniacal male and terrified female. As the moon rises, the party discovers that the man is simply insane and the woman is the werewolf.

4) Spooky Garden: lots of possibilities, here, from yellow musk zombies, vegepygmies, evil treants, scarecrows and jack o'lanterns (Tome of Horrors), etc.

 

[MatthewJHanson]

3) Werewolf in Jail: Something other than the moon causes him to change, so that he shifts back and forth several times while the PCs talk to him. Or maybe the key is the only thing stopping him from changing.

Some other thoughts

5) Ancient Crypt: It's full of bones, which animate as soon as the PCs pick up the key. As long as the PCs are in the crypt the skeletons target whoever holds it, plus the key slows whoever holds it. Maybe other effects also encourage the characters to pass the key from character to character.

 

[kinem]

4) The pumpkins are real, but a ghost takes possession of them (one at a time) and that's when a face appears on it, screams curses, perhaps causing some ability damage. If a pumpkin is destoyed, he just moves on to another one.

 

[falcarrion]

For the werewolf jail part try this:

they enter the room and see the jailer sleeping in the corner with the keys on the floor. In the cell to the left is a woman waving you over and motions for you to get the keys. The other cell is a man curled in the corner. The party notices the bars are made of silver. Now heres the twist the people locked in the cells are human and the jailer is the werewolf.

 

[OchreJelly]

I love doing Halloween-themed episodes of DND. One I had really good success with in the past went something like this:
The players see a mine cart with instructions to get in. (Keep in mind everything is played sorta tongue-in-cheek). Once in, the cart slowly enters the mine tunnels that are run by these prankster kobolds. One kobold is an illusionist that creates scary illusions that pop-out at the PCs. The players start to become accustomed to the illusions until an undead assasisn pops out and says "I'm real". At which point he sneak attacks the poor gnome mage. The villains of the episode where an evil monstrous party made up of said assassin, a kobold necromancy with a penchant for exploding zombies, and a frankenstein-esque half golem. Good times!

 

[Hand of Evil]

Animate Objects - rugs that try and trip and roll you up, armor that just walks about. Chains that break and re-attach.

Something I did a long time ago, it make a house a "vampire", for damage done to the party it was able to create spells, this was based on the spell point system. this gives a good "the house is trying to kill us" vibe.

Mimics are also a good monster to have around. Any of the undead, but crawling hand is fun. Oh, on the line of golems, dolls as a swarm!

 

[Aberzanzorax]

For the pumpkin patch, two ideas:

1. The heads are vargouilles (but are tethered to a square and only can extend a certain distance due to their pumpkin vines).

2. The heads are stationary. They can cast sound burst once each, but will not do so if it would hit other heads. If the players walk close to the heads, they will attempt to bite them. I'd use normal zombie stats for this, save that they are stationary, have a bite instead of a slam attack, and have the ability to cast sound burst.

 

[Aberzanzorax]

I also like the idea of something other than (or in addition to) the moon causing werewolf changes.

How about the strong scent of blood? If anyone below full hp comes within 10 feet (or if the creature goes near a recently killed body or somesuch) it triggers a change for a minimum amount of time (and perhaps triggers rage akin to that of a badger?).

With the insane man and the meek female idea, imagine her seeing the injured players and shouting "stay away from me"...they think she's shouting at the man, but really, it's them.