Scoundrel's Night

Scoundrel's Night is an annual festival celebrated in the Crestfallen regions of Wiegland, Drakmort and the Hegian Empire. The festival takes place on the first night of the year in which both moons synchronously enter their new phase, resulting in no visible moonlight in the night sky.

History

Scoundrel's Night originalted in the early Modern Era in the nation of Hegia; originally, the phrase "Scoundrel's Night" was a term used to refer to any night in which both moons entered their new phase simultaneously, so named because the lack of available moonlight was ideal for burglars, charlatans, and any other individuals who may benefit from the additional darkness during these particular nights.
Over time, the phrase evolved to take on a more symbolic meaning, with "Scoundrel's Night" now denoting the first night of the year in which double-new-moons occurred. During this night, evil spirits are said to gather in the mortal world in large numbers, and therefore must be driven out of the world so that their influence does not linger for the remainder of the year.
While originally a Hegian holiday, the expansion of the Hegian Empire's influence has allowed the festival to spread to other parts of the continent as well, most notably to the city-state of Drakmort and the halfling communities of Wiegland.

Description

The celebration of Scoundrel's Night focuses on the symbolic banishment of evil spirits and other negative forces from the world in order to ensure that the remainder of the year progresses without their influence. As part of the celebration, volunteers dressed in black robes and demonic masks will run through the streets of the cities where the festival is celebrated, pretending to "attack" and terrify the other citizens.
Those who encounter these masked volunteers are encouraged to play along by "banishing" the evil spirits in a number of ways: banging pots and pans, loud music, and the telling of jokes are some of the most popular means of banishment, to which the masked "spirits" will respond by running away and seeking new victims to terrorize. It is not uncommon for the volunteers masquerading as spirits to carry coins, candy and other treats in their pockets for children attending the festivities, handing them out as rewards for a successful banishment.
In addition to this activity, Scoundrel's Night typically features many of the other common fixtures of a city-wide festival, including music, food and drink, and games of chance. Festivities usually begin at sunset and end at sunrise, with the following day being treated as a work holiday to allow festival-goers to properly recover from the night's events.

Additional Beliefs

While fallen out of fashion in recent decades, superstition once dictated that any child born on a Scoundrel's Night was believed to lead a life of infamy; it was also believed that children born on this night were more likely to be born as tieflings, although most chalk up this occurrence as a mere example of confirmation bias.