Grateful - A behind the scenes look at a recent Legends one-shot.

I like to write themed one-shots for the various holidays of the year. This is the Thanksgiving one-shot I DM'd to our group on Black Friday, titled 'Grateful'. It turned out to be a murder-mystery culminating in a good ole-fashioned throw down in the Thanksgiving style! I run variations of this story every Turkey Day, but the end result is always the same. The build up can go in infinite directions, as this one did, but the climax is always as goofily holiday-themed as I can get. Enjoy taking a look at how I as a DM brought 'Grateful' to life, and how thanks to the players, it became a moment in time in the lore of The Forgotten Realms...

Grateful - a Black Friday D&D One-shot

-Begin reading opening to the party:

“The rays of a late afternoon Sun slowly descend on Waterdeep. The City of Splendors. Faerun’s biggest metropolis, situated on the northern reaches of the infamous Sword Coast. Seated behind the Trollwall in the north-west of the city, rests the Sea Ward. The wealthiest of the city’s wards, where noble families and the most well-to-do merchant lords alike make their infamously bourgeois homes. And it is here, in one of these houses(locally known as villas)where a tragedy of untold ferocity has occurred. The Bortaska family, a publicly well known family. All dead! They had their fingers in many of the city’s pies. This is after all Waterdeep. Where everybody is out to gain something, because everybody has something to lose. Beyond the jagged socio-political ruse of this great city, there are those who are just living to see the next sunrise. And five of those individuals now stand in the moderately sized crowd in front of the entrance to the Hero’s Garden at the ward’s northern end. A small stage has been erected. And standing upon it is the Sea Ward’s mayor, Girard Bustram. He, closely guarded by a few members of the City Watch(police).”

Mayor Bustram:

(accent - everything sounds like ‘sh’) “Well yesh yesh, you can be well ashured we are going to get to the bottom of thish tragedy, oh yesh no doubtsh about that!” the mayor decries to the concerned citizens hounding him with questions. As no doubt already the rumors have been swirling, both from makers and sharers of the art. What exactly happened to the Bortaska family, and why? So many questions were already raised, and there were many more to come. The mayor looks back to his Watch detail and they egg him on silently to ask the next question.

Mayor Bustram:

“Now now, who here will offer their sherviches to the realm, and our great chity(lol) to help us quell thish poor tragedy hmm? Who among you will shtand above all and be of shervice to the Lordsh of Waterdeep? Letsh have a show of handsh.”

He scans out among the crowd(& picks out the party members who raised their hands.)

*Party all should have raised their hands. If not, find out why and play it out to reunite them at the Bortaska Villa regardless. (Party split?)

-continue:

“The “yeah, sure” reaction of the dispersing crowd is not too instilling as the members of the Watch suddenly present themselves, flanking you, non-threatening, to escort you to the Mayors house in the Bustram Villa. Palatial, exquisite, and excessive could describe the Mayor’s estate. The best of everything that you can imagine having, the Mayor has. You are shown up to the 3rd floor exterior, and offered seats at a grand table, full of foods and drinks and local delicacies. The Mayor joins with the party on this outdoor “balcony” which is about the size of a large hall which overlooks the streets below.” Do party member introductions here in-game.

The Mayor fills them in with the details they need. “Just yesterday eve, the Bortaska family sat down for their annual Autumn Fest feast. Not a few hours later, they were all dead! A servant was found by a patrol of The Watch screaming in the street, eyes widened in fear staring at the house. She desdcribed showing up for the evening cleaning services and found the family seated at the table, their final resting place. The Mayor presents you a map of the Sea Ward with the Bortaska villa circled on it. He also confides to you that earlier today the City Watch team assigned to the Bortaska case were relieved of their duties without notice nor reason. Just an order from their Commander to desist in the case. This puzzled The Mayor as the command did not come from him as it normally would being the boss of the Ward’s Watch Commander, and when he tried gaining any insight into the ordeal, he received an anonymous message to essentially “back off”. But that is for him to be concerned about, not the party. The party’s concern is to get yourselves to the Bortaska Villa and solve the mystery of who murdered the poor family of four, and ensure the safety of the Sea Ward’s denizens once more, by any means necessary.” (show map where they are there, & where they must go, stopping anywhere they want.)

Time to explore/make stops? Do NPC’s for each whether shops or residents(Perception/Insight checks when needed). Either way they are instructed by the City Watch to meet out front of the Mayor’s residence tomorrow after 2nd breakfast, and they will be escorted under guard to the Bortaska villa. (Party split?)

Along the way from the Mayor’s villa to the Bortaska villa, describe the locals and the body language they use to react to the procession making its way through their neighborhood.

Once they arrive(show image) describe building. Two floors / attic. Basement entrance outside.

Basement: storage / crypt

First floor: parlor, study, kitchen, dining hall (their destination)

Second floor: 3 bedrooms, washroom

Attic: Storage. This is where they will find the summoning shrine the Bortaska boy used to bring forth the hellish demon.

Now that they are on premises, the Watch that escorted them will dismiss themselves and say something like “please do not return to the Mayor’s house until you have discovered what happened.” Then they dutifully they march off.

The party can now enter the villa anyway they like. There are no traps or blocks in any of the main entrances to the property.

Detect Magic will not pick up anything outside or at any of the entrances. It WILL however pick up in:

• Basement: Abjuration. Many family heirlooms/treasures down here under protection. (if one of em gets itchy here, probably the Rogue, play it out) There is also a solitary sarcophagus in the crypt. If Speak With Dead is cast, make up something on the fly(BS’DM your way out of it to close-ended aka family patriarch or…something)

• First floor: Necromantic(dining hall) where ‘it’ is

• Second floor: None

• Attic: Necromantic - The summoning source for ‘it’. (DONT show image of the source of “it” but it does exist in the background of the story for story’s sake.)

They can find various clues throughout the villa, left by both the parents and the siblings(son/daughter).

• Study - letter penned by the Father to Mayor Bustram describing the Son’s recent mood swings(disobedient, disrespectful, displaying unbecoming humor about things)

• Parlor - Another letter, this written by the Mother, to her Priest asking for help with her son’s “disturbing sleepwalking at night” (usually nude/smiling/possible blood smears)

• Kitchen - In one of the cupboards, an unusually large quantity of small animal bones(not all entirely cleaned off).

• Bedrooms - Son’s room a tome in an unknown language (Abyssal) with horrifying depictions of good vs evil, with evil triumphing

• Attic - The party find the demonic summoning circle decorated with things all demon. Include the necrotic energy swarm focused here.They see a small carving of a statue of a demon named Surak which is found in the summoning circle which is surrounded by 3 vials of what appears to be blood(reveal its the demon’s). When its name is said out loud while the carving is held(which hoping here one of the party members do but if they dont, make it happen) that awakens ‘“it” and they hear the ruckus down in the dining hall where the necrotic swarm intensifies and magickally transports them down to the dining hall where they are confronted with the killer of the Bortaska family…The Poultrygeist! When they get there(show image)

**Final fight shouldnt be too hard but use all the weapons the Poultrygeist has:

(secondary)Beak / claws(typical piercing/slashing)

(Primary) Burning Stuffing Breath(30ft cone Fire dmg)

(Primary)Haunting Warble(a psychic attack that Frightens the target)

(Primary)Reheat Leftovers(Necrotic energy shot from its tail feathers animates(sprout heads and limbs) other dishes on the table as 5-10hp/10AC allies. Picture mashed potato monster / corn swarm / cranberry sauce monster, etc

Once the demon turkey is beaten and banished, the party reconvenes at the Mayor’s house, escorted there by unit of The Watch to describe what happened(party mechanics here is fine). A handsome reward is offered by The Mayor(gold, and some decree that will last their whole stay i.e. lodging/supplies from anywhere in the Ward) and the city owes them a debt of gratitude blah blah(lol).

**Not a big deal if this part isnt gotten to. Looking at 3-4 hours of gameplay overall, it'll be late and quick to wrap up. Plus they'll get VERY decent loot in-game, plus their magick items to start with.

-Fin-

**Below is a little something extra I tossed in while writing the session just to show how in-game lore can be created. A post-credits scene if you will. Oh, & yes Volothamp Geddarm is that Volo. Some say he is an honorary Waterdhavian. Some say he's a scourge of Waterdhavians.

*Mayor Bustram's note found in his chambers stuffed in a drawer.

"Mayor Bustram,

The following is an excerpt of the story that ran in the following day’s copy of the Waterdeep Sentinel. It will do just fine. I assure you.

“…and so the Bortaska boy fell into toying with dark magicks. And ended up building a summoning shrine in the attic. In exchange for whatever the young lad desired, the demon equally demanded souls in kind. The boy foolishly agreed to offer up the souls of his own family. A small price to pay for the grand plans his darkened young mind envisioned.

To exist on this plane, the demon needed a vessel. The boy summoned the demonic spirit into the main course of the family’s Autumn Fest feast. What a sight for the young lad it would be, for the turkey to come to life and utterly destroy his family. And when the day came and they all took their final resting places at the family feast table, the boy learned that demons and devils rarely keep their word. And the end result was ALL members of the Bortaska family, laid out, souls removed…

This was the turn of events told by the five brave adventurers who volunteered their services to the Lords. They were the ones who via various clues unearthed the demonic energies and presence in the Bortaska house as it lie in wait for more souls. They valiantly vanquished the evil forever, returning claim of the Bortaska Villa to the great city of Waterdeep. The Lords, left pleased…

Reported by Sentinel beat reporter:

Volothamp Geddarm"