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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Deuce Traveler" data-source="post: 6910513" data-attributes="member: 34958">Iron DM 2016, Round 1, Match 4, Deuce Traveler Submission (Leaping Shimmers)Entry Name: Leaping ShimmersIngredients:Jumping BeetlesFeat of WeaknessNightmare ClockEchoing SoundsWild DogsPink SocksRule-Set: Envisioned for dungeons and dragons of any edition, but could work in a number of other rule-sets and technology levels.Synopsis:Old man Wetherby has a pretty good racket going on.  Every few months he hitches his wagon and travels to a new town to sell off the goods he's collected and purchase for himself some room and board.  A shrewd trader, the man always manages to have a bit of extra coin on him so he can purchase earthly pleasures.  Although the kind of expensive dining silver and rare pictures always changes from place to place, one item he continues to sell each time he moves is a worn, disturbingly-decorated grandfather clock.  The clock itself is garish; the type of thing that only the well-to-do might afford in order to show off as a conversation piece.  The clock has a secret, however, in that Wetherby will set a hidden, special internal chime that is set to go off weeks or even months after he auctions it off.  When this chime goes off, a large swarm of shimmering beetles erupts from a compartment devouring all organic material it crawls over.  The fast, leaping beetles will kill for an hour, following a combination of sound and heat signatures as they kill every living thing in an operating radius that can include an estate or keep.  The swarm itself communicates by mimicking noises, each beetle echoing the noise to the others in its swarm and moving towards the intended victims, splitting into smaller swarms against multiple targets, and leaping over obstacles, up stairwells, or even into high windows to get to their targets.  Old man Wetherby decides when the chime is to go off, so he is ready to appear after the duration of the beetles' attacks and pick the area clean of valuables.  He then stashes them for awhile until any investigation is over, purchases the clock through third parties, and moves again to another far off town.  He would have gotten away with it too, if it wasn't for some kids and some wild dogs.Hook:The recent mass slaughter of an entire estate or plantation has local investigators stumped and authorities call for outside help.  All that were found of animals and people at the crime scene were skeletal remains picked entirely clean.  Several small valuables have also gone missing, though the authorities are unsure of a connection, or if locals decided to take advantage of the tragedy and loot the scene.Clues:There were two survivors of past attacks in different locations that the adventurers might seek out and interview, both surviving through fear-induced feats.  One young man was passing by drunk in the fields of a plantation late at night when he was set upon by a pack of wild dogs.  They had surrounded him, yelping and growling, and the young man froze in place since he knew the animals would set upon him if he ran.  He saw the swarm of leaping, shimmering creatures bound over some hills and towards the dogs.  One brave mutt ran forward and barked, only to have the swarm bark back and devour it.  The swarm then split and followed the now-terrified fleeing pack of dogs down some hills and when they were out of sight the young man fled to the authorities.A young woman was in a keep when the swarm attack occurred.  Young and foolish, she fled behind a tapestry with nothing but her quivering legs covered with pink socks showing from the bottom.  She wept quietly as the swarm went up and town the keep's steps, mimicking its screaming victims while ignoring her.Both the youths recall hearing the loud chimes of a grandfather clock.  Their stories reveal potential weaknesses of the swarm, which is that the swarm attacks by following a mixture of movement, sound, and heat.  The rare color of pink is part of a color spectrum that does not register to the beetles.  A silence spell can greatly disrupt the swarm, stopping the little creatures from echoing to each other the sounds of their detected targets.Whenever Old man Wetherby is investigated, those near him when he is sleeping or passed out drunk will hear him mutter through fearful nightmares about the horrors of the clock.  Just because he profits from the device does not mean that the man does not worry about his own survival should he ever make a mistake.</blockquote>

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