Map of Ossington
Ossington:
Allegiance N/A
Thorp: (isolated) Democracy; AL N
Buy/Sell Limit 40GP (virtually no assets remaining)
Population 74 (68% Human(52), 32% Halfling(17) +Authority Figures and Heros )
Authority Figures
-Elder Murdows, Human Male (Mayor)
Heroes
-Dyson, Male Tiefling (Sorcerer, Leader, Romantically linked to Henwen)
-Henwen, Female Human (Druid, Romantically linked to Dyson)
-Tully, Female Human (Fighter, Dyson's personal bodyguard)
-The Cuckoo, Male Human (Bard)
Once a small village, the recent problems of Ossington have reduced it to a Thorp and if things continue the way they are the village will soon die. With the thriftiness of typical country folk, the stone walled, thatch roof cottages are built right alongside the standing stones of the inner circle, sometimes using a menhir as one wall. This juxtaposition of a small farm village with an ancient megalithic monument gives the place an odd look. The villagers of course, show no awe at any of the relics.
The Double Circle: The 91 stones of the outer circle stand 30 feet high and each weigh many tons. The 28 stones of the inner circle stand about 20 feet tall. All stones are roughly shaped and each inscribed with numerous deep carvings and ruins.
0 The Well: This stone rimmed well serves the village as a source of fresh water.
1 Elder Murdow's House: The only 2 story home in the village. This small manor is home to Ossingtons leader. Murdows has no family but lives here with 3 servants.
-Elder Murdows, Human Male (Mayor)
-Liese, Female Human (Serving Wench, Extremely Hyperactive and quick)
-Raflees, Human Male (Butler/Valet/Cook, Dirty)
-Evans, Human Male (Secretary, Quick, Shy)
2 The Grange: This large stone barn serves as a storage place for grain, a mill and a meeting place for the villagers when darkness or bad weather prevents them from meeting on The Green. Its also Home to Pease the granger and 7 Halflings who assist him.
-Pease, Human Male (Grainger, Strong, Aggressive)
3 Dyson's Tower: The tallest structure in town possessing some castle like features. This building is made entirely from stone.
-Dyson, Male Tiefling (Sorcerer, Leader, Romantically linked to Henwen)
-Henwen, Female Human (Druid, Romantically linked to Dyson)
-Tully, Female Human (Fighter, Dyson's personal bodyguard)
-The Cuckoo, Male Human (Bard)
4 Cottage: Four villagers live here. Every window is boarded over and the inside is very dark but otherwise the building is in remarkable shape. Its inhabitants are very shy and skittish.
5 Cottage: Flowers planted on either side of the door and underneath each window give this place a friendly welcoming feel. Seven villagers live here in this single room hut. They are all shy and quick individuals and are enthusiastic supporters of Elder Murdows.
6 Dilapidated Cottage: Eight villagers share this place, the most ill kept and dirty of the inhabited buildings in Ossington. Inside, dirty sheets divide sleeping area from workspace among a relaxed tolerance of clutter. A loom and spinning wheel reside in the work area. Willard, a particularly clever man claims to be the villagers Weaver but you get the feeling that he has no idea how to use the equipment.
-Willard, Human Male (Weaver, Bucktooth, smooth talker)
7 Cottage: Nine Halflings live here in cheerful disarray. Ostensibly Tailors, ever since the supply of cloth ran out they have busied themselves trying to scrounge up enough food to stay alive. The floor is littered with grass seed and acorns for being ground into flour, grasses being leached in pots and the like. Of all Ossingtons residents, this household appears to be the least hungry (but still starving).
8 Cottage: 3 Human Males and a Human Female live here. Presumably former charcoal makers, the group has lost any desire to venture into the forest looking for suitable firewood and have instead started an indoor mushroom farm in this dark damp hut.
9 Cottage: Thirteen villagers share this place. A stately old patriarch by the name of Hoel leads the household by night and sleeps by day. A dozen youngsters are active round the clock and alternate between taking naps and wakefulness without any real schedule. The youngsters are all halfling sized but look human ranging in ages from about 4-14 and all act like mature adults.
10 Cottage: This is set aside for Henwen's use but its apparent at a glance that it's rarely used based on the amount of dust and cobwebs strewn about.
11 Abandoned Cottage: The door hangs by a single hinge, theres not a stick of furniture inside, and fallen chimney stones have punched a hole in the roof. This is one of several former residences abandoned as the Thorps population diminishes.
12 Cottage: This is The Cucckoo's house.
13 Abandoned House: (Your House) Ossington has no Inn so this is the house that Elder Murdows has offered to you to stay in for the duration of your visit. The door has no lock, only a simple latch. The place is fairly clean and the thatch roof is thick enough to keep out most of the rain. The only furniture is an old but sturdy table and a broken bed frame.
14 Cottage: Eli the Tanner lives here alone. He is a clever and personable individual with a lot of time on his hands since the hunting fell off. He is eager to be friends with you and asks many questions of the world outside the Double Circle. Eli's cottage is innocuous and covered with burn marks and soot, yet no hides.
-Eli, Human Male (Tanner, Smelly, Curious)
15 Cottage: Three humans live in this messy but sturdy cottage. The village baker used to live here but the ovens are now stuffed with straw to make beds for its new residents.
16 Cottage: 5 Humans share this neat but unremarkable home.
17 Cottage: This cottage is neat but very sparse. This is the home of Brock the Halfling, his beloved wife and 2 other human farmers. All are in mourning over the deaths of Harard and Misha who also lived here before they were slain by The Knight.
-Brock, Halfling Male (Farmer, Stealthy, Slitted Eyes)
Ossington and Vicinity:
Map of Ossington and Vicinity
GM NOTE: Please ignore the section of the map that reads "Abandoned Grugach Settlement". I dont have the tools to edit it out of the map and plan to disregard that section of the adventure anyway.
The Chapel of Nine Gods:
Should probably read "The Chapel of Seven Gods". I couldn't find enough proper deity's to convert from 3.5 to this adventure.
Dyson's not sure whether this is a very primitive building or very old barrow from which overlaying earth has eroded away. He believes it was once sacred to an earth mother goddess but was long ago adapted to the worship of the current deity pantheon. The area within the "ring ditch" has been used as a cemetery of hundreds of years. Henwen spends most of her time in worship here.
Shrines: Sarenrae, Pharasma, Nethys, Gozreh. Irori, Shelyn, Abadar
The Great Barrow: This structure was raised in memory of the Warlord Saithnar, who fell in battle centuries ago after 2 great victories. Dyson confides that it is his belief that "The Knight" is none other than The Warlord himself, returned from the grave after all these years.
The Silence Keepers: Dyson describes this as Five tall, thin, weathered stones that stand upright supporting a single large, flat stone above them. Local legend has it that the 5 evil sorcerers once who slew Saithnar the Warlord were turned to stone by the Druids of the forrest.
Massacre Site: This is the site where Saithnar the Warlord lead 2 great battles against invading armies but perished in the second.
Red Horse Hill: Dyson believes the image of "The Red Horse" is actually a depiction of the dragon Ashardalon who ravaged the area centuries ago, noting that the woods north of town are far less dense than anywhere else in the forest with the re-growth being only a few centuries old.
Little else is known of Saithnar or Ashardalon aside from the information presented above. Nobody knows why these monuments were erected or when.
