They Came From Beyond Chapter 2 - Village of the Absent Sun | New 12th-Level Adventure for Fifth Edition

Village of the Absent Sun is a Fifth Edition adventure for three to seven 11th-to-13th-level characters. It is optimized for a party of five characters with an average party level (APL) of 12. Characters who play through the entire adventure should earn enough experience to reach halfway to the 13th level, especially if they participated in the first chapter, Mutiny on the Calamity. The adventure takes place in Borgstrand, a small village in the arctic circle. Although the adventure is set in the Legends of Omeria campaign setting, you can just as easily place it in any campaign setting that includes an arctic region subjected to polar nights.

This is the second chapter of the adventure series, They Came From Beyond! Look for the other parts in the series both on DMDave’s Patreon as well as Roll20.

Background

There’s something strange going on in the arctic village of Borgstrand. A couple weeks ago, a bright, green flash filled the sky north of the village. A group of hunters led by the butcher Thorleif Egner left to investigate the disturbance. Three days later, the group returned claiming they had not found anything. As life in Borgstrand started to settle back down, Egner’s wife, Sigrid reached out to the village reeve, Markus Aasen. Troubled, she claimed Thorleif had been experiencing unusual behavior ever since he returned from the expedition. The next day, Reeve Aasen went to the Egner home to investigate Sigrid’s claims. When Sigrid answered, she looked confused—she told Aasen she didn’t remember inviting him to their home. All of her concerns regarding Thorleif seemed to disappear overnight.

Over the next few days, Reeve Aasen noticed unusual behavior exhibited by other members of the Borgstrand community. Many of the Borgstranders—especially those closest to the original hunting party—had a cold, eerie calmness about them. And they spoke slowly, too, as if they had to carefully consider each word before they spoke it. Every step they made was slow and concise. It reminded Aasen of someone trying on snowshoes for the first time.

Aasen only trusts a few Borgstranders now—others who’ve noticed the change in their community. This small group meets regularly at the inn, The Crowded Otter. Far from civilization, Aasen and his compatriots aren’t sure what to do or where to go for help.