Adventure log of Session 03
of Nightmare over Ragged Hollow
using the Dolmenwood System
Tuesday, the 26th of May 2026
Players, characters and retainers:
- Kyle was playing Julius, a level 1 Knight
- Marcus was playing Lament-of-Broken-Bones, a level 1 Elf
- Nick was playing Rodger, a level 1 Thief
- Callum was playing Adder, a level 1 Mage
- Ythan was playing Sigurd, a level 1 Fighter
- Ash was playing Kristi, a level 1 Mage
- Moss, a level 1 Cleric, works for Lament-of-Broken-Bones
Read here if you missed the previous session report, or here if you missed the introduction to this campaign.
Session report
We opened the session by narrating how, on their way back to the Lost Ox Inn, Julius, Lament, Adder, and Kristi noticed Rodger’s brother drinking at the bar with a trio of strangers. Rodger, who was continuing to sleep at his ant house, remained completely oblivious.Nick, during the previous session, decided to recruit Rodger’s brother as a retainer and gave him an appointment at the inn, but later in the evening, changed his mind and decided not to show up. There will be consequences…
We then continued with a flashback to the previous day, when Kristi spent her time studying the golden barrier, relaying information to her master — the old mage Radomir — and looking for possible buyers for the reliquary she stole during the previous session.
Discreet enquiries revealed two obvious but problematic interested parties, and a less obvious third one. The temple would certainly be interested in retrieving the “lost” reliquary — if Kristi could somehow gain access to it. The bandits gathering somewhere in the Wailing Hills might also buy it, though care would be needed to avoid simply being robbed blind instead — assuming they did not recognise her from the previous encounter. A third possibility was the wealthy strangers staying at the inn. They did not look like pilgrims and, as outsiders, had no obvious ties to the local ecclesiastical hierarchy.
Radomir immediately recognised the barrier as a magical phenomenon, though one rooted in holy magic rather than arcane incantation, his own field of expertise. He could offer little further insight, save for an old book containing the hagiography of St. Sedge, including notes regarding his four miracles:
The miracle of the Holy Dirk:
In his youth, Sedge served as a knight’s page and became embroiled in a bloody war against the armies of a sorcerer king. His master was slain by a spectral warrior, whom Sedge then confronted alone on the field of battle. Praying to the One True God, he defeated the monster with only his dirk, which was enveloped in a silvery radiance. The site of the monster’s destruction scarred the land with a circle of ash, upon which an obelisk recounting the life of St Sedge was erected in later years.
The miracle of the Crown of Dreams:
A wealthy baroness was afflicted by terrible nightmares, and no remedy could ease her suffering. In her desperation, the baroness made a pact with a wicked Fay Lord, who granted her the Crown of Dreams, a relic able to draw away troubled visions. Yet though her nightmares ceased, the crown stole all dreams from her land, and her people fell into a wasting sickness, their spirits withering in the empty dark of sleep. St Sedge came upon these lands and, perceiving the cause of the affliction, set aside the Crown of Dreams and prayed to the One True God. By his faith, the baroness was cured, not by Fay's magic, but by grace, and the dreams returned to the people. The crown he bore away and sealed within a convent, where it could do no further harm.
The miracle of the Golden Barrier:
In his journeys, Sedge came upon a small chapel where monks sheltered villagers fleeing a band of ruthless brigands. As night fell, the outlaws surrounded the chapel and prepared to break down its doors. Seeing the fear of the faithful, Sedge knelt before the altar and prayed that the innocent be spared. As his prayer ended, a round barrier of radiant gold rose from the ground about the chapel, forming an impenetrable dome of divine light. All through the night, the brigands hacked and battered at the shining wall, yet their weapons could not pierce it. When dawn came, the outlaws gave up, and the golden barrier faded like mist in the morning sun.
The miracle of the Blood Wyrm:
In the lands of the north lay the Upper Hammet Valley, where a monstrous Blood Wyrm held dominion. The beast demanded yearly tribute from the surrounding villages—livestock, treasure, and at times, even children. Hearing the lamentations of the faithful, St Sedge journeyed to the Upper Hammet and challenged the Wyrm. The monster rose like a mountain of scales, its breath thick with venom and its jaws wide enough to swallow a horse. Sedge met the creature alone, armed with nothing but his Dirk and the strength of his faith. In the battle that followed, the Wyrm struck the saint with its poisoned fangs. Falling to one knee, Sedge prayed to the One True God, rose once more, and drove his Dirk into the creature’s throat, slaying it before succumbing to the venom.
To handle absent players in this campaign, I am trying something different from my usual approach. Ash was not present during the previous session, so these research and information-gathering activities are what we agreed Kristi was doing in town. I would welcome any similarly low-risk endeavours that do not involve leaving Ragged Hollow.
Finally, I asked which spells Kristi and Adder would be studying that morning. Adder chose Decipher, while Kristi chose Vapours of Dream.
Until they tell me otherwise, these are the spells the two characters will continue studying each morning. I also reminded them that Radomir is an old mage and, if properly impressed — or properly paid — might grant them access to additional spells.
Moot, the 18th of Iggwyld 1661
Windy, CloudyThe players decided to spend some of the money they had looted the previous day. After selling the gold thimbles and the silver mouse trap, the party purchased the following:
- Rodger acquired leather armour
- Sigurd acquired chainmail
- Adder bought a pipe and some smokeleaf
- Julius bought the old horse Sharp used in his shop, along with two hounds
In addition, Adder went to sell the fish he had caught the previous night at the Hooked Fin, where he met Martine, the local fishmonger. She bought his catch and sold him some bait. Adder also noticed several arcane talismans made of pinecones and fishbones hanging around the fishmonger’s house.
When asked about them, Martine explained they were gifts from Beatrix — the kind old woman who lived in the Gloam Wood — and that they supposedly kept wicked Fay away. Martine often gifted Beatrix fish in return. Adder decided he would do the same.
Around midday, the party departed northward, crossed the river by ferry into the Gloam Wood, and noticed more of the same talismans hanging along the riverbank. Following Martine’s directions, they travelled east toward Beatrix’s cottage, arriving around 1 pm.
While Rodger scouted from atop a tree, the rest of the adventurers approached the cottage and accepted Beatrix’s hospitality. After offering their fish as a gift, they were invited into the garden for tea and biscuits.
Beatrix immediately recognised the curse affecting Lament-of-Broken-Bones’ face as Orla’s handiwork. She explained that, short of Orla’s death, only the hag herself would be capable of undoing the curse. Beatrix admitted that she and Orla had once been close, but that the hag had since committed terrible acts and become extremely dangerous.
She also told the party that, should they suffer illness or other ailments, they could return to her for healing.
Beatrix further asked the adventurers to convince the goblins to stop stealing her cookies. If they succeeded, she promised to reward them with Swiffy the magic broom. She also reminded them that the Goblin Market would take place on the night of Eggfast, the 20th of Iggwyld — the night of the full moon — though she warned them to be cautious when dealing with the Fay.
The party thanked Beatrix and resumed their journey westward. Later, they spotted a strange moving light deeper in the forest and briefly attempted to investigate, but abandoned the chase once it drifted southward into the woods.
Eventually, around 6 pm, they arrived at another crossroads. A northern trail continued onward through heavy thorny undergrowth, while a brook and a small bridge lay to the west.
Eventually, around 6 pm, they arrived at another crossroads. A northern trail continued onward through heavy thorny undergrowth, while a brook and a small bridge lay to the west.
Investigating the thorn bushes, the party discovered a corpse tangled among them. The dead traveller wore a pair of very fancy boots, claimed by Kristi, and carried a longsword, taken by Sigurd, along with a pouch of gold, claimed by Adder.
A discussion then began regarding Julius’ silver boots — the ones he had looted from Windler House — and the rest of the party dared him to try them. Julius accepted the challenge.
Activating the boots launched him sixty feet into the air. From above the treeline, he spotted an island to the north where something shiny glimmered among the three branches, and beyond that, a large wooden dam. Most importantly, to the west, he finally saw the barrow they had been searching for. On the way down, Julius managed to catch hold of a tree branch and safely descended using his rope.
The group waited for an hour before retreating to make camp some distance away from the corrupted area. They were reasonably prepared: everyone except Rodger had a bedroll, they carried firewood, and they even had two tents. Everyone except Rodger enjoyed a restful night without incident. At midnight, they heard the town bell ring thirty-six times.
Frisk, the 19th of Iggwyld 1661
The following day, the party returned to the barrow, and Lament approached the goblin. At first, the goblin invited him to go inside, but after sharing some food with him, Lament realised the creature was starving and chained to a wooden stake. The party freed him.
The adventurers then used three of their bedrolls to cover the entrance to the barrow and muffle any sound of their work. They dug a concealed pit trap before the entrance, lining the bottom with sharpened stakes. The work took the entire day, but they managed to complete it without making too much noise. Afterwards, they hid among the trees and waited.
At midnight, the town bell once again rang thirty-six times.
I asked the players to make CON checks to determine how exhausted their characters had become. Everyone passed except Lament, who became Weary (-1 to attack and damage rolls, and a 1-in-6 chance to fail spellcasting), and Rodger, who worsened from Weary to Drained (-2 to attack and damage rolls).
Eggfast, the 20th of Iggwyld 1661
Windy, CloudyAt 3 am, the party saw a child emerge from the barrow. Lament approached to distract him, and the figure promptly fell into the pit trap.
Having gathered information about Orla’s illusion magic, the players correctly guessed that the “child” was actually the hag in disguise.
Julius, Lament, Moss, and Sigurd rushed toward the pit to finish the job, while Kristi and Adder remained hidden among the trees, and Rodger watched from above, hidden between the branches.
Suddenly, a gigantic skinless, skull-faced bear burst from the cave and swiftly struck down Lament, leaving him dying on the ground. At the same moment, a magical chain wrapped around Julius’ ankle and dragged him into the pit, leaving him equally close to death.
Moss attempted to turn the undead bear but failed miserably, nearly fleeing in terror. Sigurd was momentarily overwhelmed by horrifying visions of spiders crawling from the pit, though he managed to stand his ground.
The party was on the verge of collapse when Rodger managed to strike the monstrous bear with an arrow, whereupon the creature vanished into a puff of smoke. Lament, too, was suddenly revealed to be merely unconscious rather than mortally wounded.
The terrible bear was an illusion created through Phantasmal Force. Successfully striking it caused the illusion to collapse.
At that point, Kristi successfully cast a sleep spell upon the hag, reveling her true form. Rodger then attempted an elaborate acrobatic manoeuvre to rush to Julius’ aid, only to fall from his tree and knock himself unconscious. Kristi later stabilised him.
The session ended with the party looting Orla’s corpse.
Kristi claimed the hag’s necklace — an exact match for the one worn by Beatrix, depicting two girls embracing, one carved from ivory and the other from onyx. However, the face of the ivory figure had been violently scratched away.
Adder recovered a bloodstained wool scarf. After putting it on, he discovered he could imitate any voice perfectly. He also found a wooden doll wearing an orange dress, remarkably similar to the robes worn by the clerics of St. Sedge, with a cruel thorn driven through its back.
Sigurd claimed the magical chain and a wooden bracelet depicting a snake devouring its own tail. The moment he put the bracelet on, it constricted painfully around his wrist, sending throbbing pain up his arm — clearly a cursed object.
XP for session 03
Opponents neutralized:
1 Orla (300XP) for a total of 300XP
Treasure recovered:
1 Orla's necklace (45gg); 17 Gold from corpse (17gg) for a total of 62XP
Charitable acts:
1 Eliminated the Hag (200XP) for a total of 200XP
Totals:
- Rodger gains 94 XP and reaches 547 XP; they have 45% of the necessary XP to progress to level 2
- Julius gains 94 XP and reaches 547 XP; they have 24% of the necessary XP to progress to level 2
- Kristi gains 94 XP and reaches 365 XP; they have 14% of the necessary XP to progress to level 2
- Lament gains 62 XP and reaches 364 XP; they have 10% of the necessary XP to progress to level 2
- Moss gains 31 XP and reaches 182 XP; they have 12% of the necessary XP to progress to level 2
- Sigurd gains 94 XP and reaches 276 XP; they have 13% of the necessary XP to progress to level 2
- Adder gains 94 XP and reaches 276 XP; they have 11% of the necessary XP to progress to level 2
Credits
All the setting and the art belong to the Merry Mushmen
All the elements of the Dolmenwood System belong to Necrotic Gnome
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