Haunted House

Introduction

• People closer to the downtown have heard that Storm's Griffin's innkeeper is looking for help for a reward.
• Storm Griffin's innkeeper Gluronk Skullbinder tells adventurers that he recently bought a house next door thinking of expanding his business. And the house was suspisciously cheap, but he took the deal anyway. And apparently the house seems to be haunted and he is looking if someone could help handling that for a reward.

Haunted House

• Once they enter the house the party notices a dark almost empty house with a couple of broken furniture around. It feels colder than expected.
• DC 15 Perception can hear footsteps and weird sounds on the second floor.
• DC 14 Arcana/Religion helps to understand that cold spots and strange noises are signs of a ghost. A ghost is the soul of a once-living creature bound to haunt a specific location, creature, or object. A ghost yearns to complete some unresolved task from its life. A ghost might not realize that it has died and continue the everyday routine of its life. The surest way to rid of an area of a ghost is to resolve its unfinished business.
• Upstairs doors to the right is the ghost's room. Once the party enter they see a ghost sitting across and reading a book. The ghost asks if players have come to vandalize his home as others. Ghost's name is Herman Cromwell. Herman was a scribe working at the mayor's tower. He had a wife once who died in childbirth.
• If players engage with the ghost he explains that he wants justice and his killer to be persecuted. He explains that he was killed by his brother Thoman Cromwell. Thoman was a gambler and had a lot of debt. He also borrowed a lot of money from his brother, thus, Herman did not agree to lend him anymore. That's when the argument started. Thoman came back drunk and angry and tried to threaten Herman with a knife probably thinking he would give in. But Herman resisted and in a struggle between them Thoman stabbed Herman and he bled to death. He still despises his brother for his death and ruining their family.
• Upstairs doors forward is the ghost's brother's Thoman room. DC 15 Perception they will find a sinister metal box with an iron lock built into each of its four sides and four iron keys. Each lock sports a keyhole with a sculpted image above it.
• If players completed the murder investigation and explain to Herman that Thoman was locked up in prison for murder and then hanged, Herman will accept this answer saying that most likely someone who wanted him gone quickened the sentence. He was in dept for a lot of people and Herman suspected that for shady people as well. He could have been a lesson for other gamblers to pay back their debts.
• After hearing the truth Herman will have a last wish - to bring flowers to his wife grave. If his wish is completed he will disappear and stop haunting the house.

Skeleton Keys

• Each key has a different number of teeth: 7, 6, 5, 4.
• Each lock has a creature molded in iron above it: a mouse, spider, snake, and panther. These locks can't be picked. If anything other than the correct key is placed inside a lock, creatures corresponding to the image above lock are summoned into the room.
• DC 10 Nature the character know that "natural" knowledge about mice, spiders, snakes and panthers in general won't help here.
• DC 10 Perception the character realizes that they keys' skull-shaped heads are all the same and probably have no bearing on the puzzle's solution.
• If players bring the box and the keys to Herman he looks at it and says this box was probably his brother's secret safe and that Thoman was not stupid and it could be something with the words of those animals themselves.
• Loot: inside the box Stone of Good Luck.

Murder Investigation

• If the party goes back to Gluronk Skullbinder he hasn't heard of the Cromwells, but he hasn't lived long in Hill's Edge and believes that maybe the tragedy happened in the earlier days. He recommends to ask around older people who might remember something.
• Any older taverns guests or cooks will remember the Cromwells. They will explain that the tragedy happened almost 30 years ago and Herman was put under arrest by the town guards and locked up in the Mayor's Tower. But nobody knows what happened after that.
• The party cannot enter the Mayor's Tower itself as the guard will tell them that without an official notice they're not allowed. However, the guard can let them know that the prison has another outside entrance to the side.
• The prison entrance will not be as guarded and the party can enter it. There is a long corridor downstairs and at the end of it a desk with a lonely guard and extra secured door behind him. The guard will hint that he wants a bribe for the information.
• DC 15 Persuasion/Deception/Intimidation or a bribe will get the guard talking. He will disappear behind the locked doors for a while and in 5 mins will get back with a pile of records of prisoners that were locked here 30 years ago. And says to look into it themselves.
• DC 10 Intelligence while looking for the criminal will notice that the records are order not only by the date and name but also by the crime. It makes it way more quicker trying to find Thoman Cromwell.
• Once they find the name they figure out that Thoman Cromwell was indeed locked up here in this prison. But after a month was transferred to Iriaebor for hanging. If they ask the guard he can explain that in Hill's Edge they don't do hanging here. The prisoners get transferred. And he can confirm if the records say hanging then it means he's dead.

Conclusion

• Once the ghost is dealt with and players get back to Gluronk for the reward, he will dearly thank them offering free stay at the inn for several of nights and 90 gold.