Frostmire and the Baron of Languish

Frostmire and the Baron of Languish is an Dramatis Personae

independent product published under the
Shadowdark RPG Third-Party License and Baron Brage Birchleg (Brag-eh)
is not affiliated with The Arcane Library, LLC.
Shadowdark RPG © 2023 The Arcane Library, Nine feet of lanky, strong limbs and
LLC. disproportionately large feet. A once friendly and
charming noble cursed with hideous appearance,
Written and Illustrated by Todd Jeffcoat sores and horrible tinea pedis. Application of
blood is all that assuages his pain and irritation.
Frostmire and the Baron of Languish is
appropriate for character’s of any level, but Personality: Neutral. Desperate and hopeless.
recommended for 3rd and 4th. (Naturally Hospitable and charming).
Fenos Glatar
Summary
Kindly priest. Concerned with helping Birchleg
One of the PC’s is cursed after a run-in with fey. rather than condemning him.
A terrible accident occurs at the chapel causing
a strange monster seeking release from its own Personality: Lawful. Warm hearted and devout.
curse to flee into the woods, leaving a bloody Melendrin the Magnificent
trail.
Placed the curse on Birchleg out of spiteful
Story jealousy. Now a ghost dwelling in the castle.
While blood assuages Birchleg’s suffering,
Baron Brage Birchleg was known as a Melendrin’s blood lifts the curse entirely.
charismatic and charitable noble, loved Personality: Chaotic. Childish and petty.
universally save for one individual.
Melendrin the Magnificent was jealous of
everything Birchleg had and insisted that were he
not so handsome, he would never be so popular.
When cursing Birchleg with horrible looks failed
to prove his point, he then afflicted him with
terrible sores hoping to sour his demeanor. When
this also failed, he afflicted the noble with terribly
itchy feet, causing him to stomp and kick wildly.
Melendrin, so pleased with his handiwork, died
of laughter at the sight of the baron and took with
him the hope of lifting the curse.
Birchleg became an unwilling hermit, his antics
tolerable only to the most mischievous of fey.
As the centuries passed, he lost hope that even
death would release him, becoming the Baron of
Languish.
Until one day, he saw smoke on the horizon…
Hook
PC’s awaken in Frostmire after a period of
carousel. Whether the PCs were there to begin
with is another story.
One PC at random is cursed with an
embarrassing and inconvenient affliction after
having inadvertently or otherwise insulted a fey
creature while carousing. Design your own or use
one from the following table:
• Your hair grows very quickly, dragging on the
ground in a matter of hours.
• Swarms of birds follow you and perch on you
wherever they can.
• Your teeth constantly fall out and regrow.
• A large worm with a human face grows out of
your forehead. It criticizes everything you do.
• Your flesh becomes highly magnetic. All metal
within close range gets stuck to you.
• You laugh uncontrollably at the most
inappropriate things.
Investigation or intuition reveals that Fenos
Glatar, the head priest of Frostmire chapel, is the
person to see for removing curses.
Set Up
Sightings of a horrible monster have the town of
Frostmire in an uproar. It was seen in the early
hours before sunup, fleeing into the woods to
the southeast. It left bloody footprints in its wake,
causing the townspeople great duress.
In the chapel, Fenos Glatar was preparing a
scroll of revival, believing he could lift the curse
by slaying the creature, then resurrecting him,
since all conventional methods had failed.
During its preparation, the creature inadvertently
stomped an acolyte to death. The blood coating
the creature’s feet seemed to assuage its
suffering.
Fenos agrees to lift the curse afflicting the PC
if they swear to use his scroll to assist the poor
creature, making good on the promise if they
return with some evidence of the deed.
Reaching Birchleg’s castle is a simple matter of
following the bloody footprints in the snow.

If the PCs Fail

If the PCs don’t intervene, townspeople arrive at the baron’s castle attempting to
slay him and dozens of lives are lost in the process. The cursed PC’s affliction
advances into a life-threatening condition.
Castle Birchleg Features
Forest Gnomes
Danger Level: Risky
Spies on PCs to discern their intentions. If
Encounters caught, beseeches PCs aid in getting rid of their
rivals, the Red Caps. Upon PC refusal, they
2d4 Encounter begin harrying them with hit and run tactics,
tripwire traps and cave-ins.
2 Helpful Fairy
AC 13, HP 14, ATK 1 rock (near) +3 (1d4), MV
3 Trickster Fairy near, S +0, D +3, C +1, I +2, W +1, Ch +1, AL N,
LV 3
4 1d4 Forest Gnomes
Vanish. While unobserved, teleport to a near
5 Roll Twice location you can see.
Sneaky. ADV on DEX checks for hiding and
6 Fairy Circle
sneaking.
7 1d4 Red Caps

8 Baron Brage Birchleg

Fairy Circle
Encounter Descriptions PCs unwittingly step into a fairy circle and are
teleported to a random location on the table
below.
Helpful Fairy
1d12 Location
Advises PCs not to fall for the tricks of other fey 1 Entryway
in the area. There are no magical puzzles or
riddles to solve. Aside from the occasional fairy 2 Dining Room
circle and the castle’s strong connection to the
fey realm, it’s perfectly mundane. 3 Foyer

4 Library

5 Patio

6 Sunset Room

Trickster Fairy 7 Pantry

8 Kitchen
Encourages PCs to waste time trying to solve
the library’s riddle of organizing its books in the 9 Grand Hall
proper order to open a portal to Birchleg’s realm
in the Feywilds. 10 Sitting Room

11 Master Bed

12 Balcony
 Red Caps

Issues an ultimatum to PCs: Help them capture a

gnome to throw to Birchleg and watch him stomp
it to death or they take one of the PCs instead.
AC 14 (leather) HP 15, ATK 1* dagger (close/
near) +3 (1d4), MV near, S +0, D +3, C +1, I +1,
W +1, Ch +0, AL C, LV 3
Keen Senses. Can’t be surprised.
Backstab. Deals x2 damage against surprised
targets.
Bloodlust. Whenever 4 or more damage is dealt,
get an additional ATK.

Baron Barge Birchleg

Stomping feet can be heard long before Birchleg

is seen. He is nearly impossible to understand or
contain.
AC 9, HP 46, ATK 2 kicks +4 (1d8), MV near, S
+4, D -1, C +3, I +0, W +1, Ch -2 (+3 natural) AL
N, LV 9
Regenerate. Regains 2d6 HP on its turn.
Trample. If both kicks hit the same target, deal
2d6 extra damage.
Haphazard. Only 2:6 chance to target the same
opponent for each ATK.
Sleep Susceptibility. Affected by the sleep spell
as if LV 2 or lower for 1d4 rounds.
Castle Areas
Unless otherwise noted, scripted encounters
behave the same as their random counterparts.
Approaching the Castle
Hidden by the surrounding forest is a small
castle laying in ruins. Nature has reclaimed large
sections and only one of the several towers
remains standing.
There are three entrances from the courtyard.
The main entrance in the front, one to the east
and one to the west.
The balcony at the south of the castle overlooks
a deep chasm. It can be reached with a DC 15
climb check.
Area 1: Entryway
Broken double doors lead to a small welcome
room with more broken doors on the opposite
side. A frost-covered circle of mushrooms lines
the interior.
Area 2: Foyer
A mix of giggling, cursing and stomping can be
heard from all around. The faint echoing effect
makes it difficult to ascertain where any of the
sounds are coming from.
Debris and wild flora impede the passage south.
Area 3: Dining Room
A broken table, scattered chairs and dishes. This
dining room hasn’t been used to serve a meal for
a very long time.
Melendrin’s ghost frequently visits the location
of his death. There’s a 3:6 chance he is present.
Talking Points
• He is pleasantly surprised to have company
who aren’t fey.
• States that he had every intention of removing
the curse after that evening’s meal, but was
unable to for obvious reasons.
• Divulges that his blood is the key to removing
it.
• He doesn’t know if death and resurrection will
remove the curse, but he doubts it.
Convinced that lifting the curse is key to releasing
his spirit, he agrees to assist the PCs in that
endevor.
Area 4: Library
Door. Unlocked.
2d4 Trickster fairies are present, laughing as
they constantly rearrange the order of books.
They flee at any sign of hostility.
Treasure (XP 3) golden bust of a handsome
noble (300 gold, 2 slots).
Area 5: Patio
This patio offers a clear view of a creek flowing
into a tranquil pond and the tower to the south,
where Birchleg’s stomping and wailing can be
heard with clarity.
Climbing the rubble to the tower requires a DC 12
STR or DEX check.
Area 6: Sunset Room
Once serving the purpose of viewing splendid
sunsets, the window in this room has long been
shattered and the view blotted out by vegetation.
A table flanked by rotted, wooden chairs has
recently been set for evening drinks.
Treasure (1 XP) upon the table is a silver platter
(40 gold), two wine glasses (5 gold each) and a
bottle of fine wine (80 gold).
Area 7: Pantry
1d4 Helpful fairies toil happily away organizing
platters of delicious desserts, transmuting the old,
rotten ingredients into fresh baked goods.
If the PCs are friendly, the fairies inform them that
they often use the sleep spell to give Birchleg
momentary reprieve.
Area 8: Kitchen
Stone tables, cabinets, chairs, pots and pan have
been stacked into barricades and temporary
housing. 2d4 Forest Gnomes take cover as PCs
approach and demand to know their allegiance.
If the PCs agree to help, the gnomes offer the
Cask of Abundant Sundries for driving out the
Red Caps
Treasure (XP 3) The Cask of Abundant Sundries
(300 gold).
Cask of Abundant Sundries
Benefit. Once per day, you may place a
consumable item in the cask and utter its
command word to duplicate the item. Doesn’t
work on duplicated items.
Area 9: Grand Hall
This is Red Cap territory. 2d4 Red Caps take
up defendable positions all around the PCs and
make their demands.
If the PC’s bring the Red Caps a gnome, they are
offered a Bloodstained Cap.
Treasure (3 XP) Bloodstained Cap (300 gold)
Bloodstained Cap
Benefit. As long as the cap has been drenched in
blood that day, its wearer makes melee damage
rolls with ADV.
Area 10: Sitting Room
A rotten smell hangs in the air in this room full of
broken furniture and stacked refuse.
Area 11: Master Bed
This room is worse than any other in the castle.
Broken furniture, putrid odors and ground piles of
blood and gore.
A trail of gore leads up the stairs to the southeast
of the room.
Area 12: Balcony
Overlooks a deep chasm, offering certain death
to those who fall in.
Area 13: Garderobe
Entering the room puts the PCs in the middle of a
fairy circle.
Upper and Lower Floors
Wine Cellar
If Melendrin isn’t encountered in the dining room,
he is in the Wine Cellar.
Second Floor Balcony
This balcony overlooking the Grand Hall is fifteen
feet above it.
Private Tower
Where Baron Brage Birchleg spends most of
his time languishing away. If he hasn’t been
encountered until now, he is here.
Conclusion
If Birchleg is slain then resurrected, there is a 3:6
chance that his curse is lifted.
Resurrecting Melendrin with Fenos’ scroll, then
covering Birchleg with a cup full of his blood
removes the curse. Melendrin agrees to this
willingly.