In the past week, numerous residents of Falcon's Hollow have fallen ill, each suffering from the same hacking affliction. Local remedies prove as useless as prayers at the Church of Iomedae, goddess of valor, justic, and honor, and already at least one town elder has been claimed by the wheezing death.
Fortunately for Falcon's Hollow, a canny local herbalist named Laurel has traced the source of the malady to Brookman's well, a small spring on the edge of town, and a rare fungus called blackscour. By banning the use of the spring, the town constabulary hopes to prevent further infection, but such measures offer little respite to those already afflicted.
While Laurel has attempted numerous treatments, she has been unable to cure the disease. She lacks the reagents to brew one last unusual medicine, though all the necessary elements can be found within nearby Darkmoon Vale. Thus far, though, no townsfolk have dared to venture into the wooded reaches and secure the ingredients for this potential cure.
*****
Percehed at the edge of civilized lands, the small town of Falcon's Hollow has always had to rely on itself to solve its problems. Meanwhile, the uncaring lumber barons squeeze the common folk for every last copper, deaf to their pleas. Now, the hacking coughs of the sick are heard throughout town. The plague has come to Falcon's Hollow and the town's leaders can't be bothered to stop it.