Shnoggle Playtime

A Scenario for 5th-Level Characters

As the heroes make their way through the snowy landscape, they come to the small village of Gloomglade under the influence of a strange curse that causes its inhabitants to act joyfully and generously. They discover that the source of the curse is a mischievous shnoggle, a young fey creature from the realm of eternal cold. The heroes set out to track down the shnoggle and stop its destructive play, determined to lift the Jovial Curse and restore order to the town.

Background

In the forest to the north of Gloomglade lies a recently opened portal to the fey realm. A shnoggle, the young offspring of giant fey, has found its way through the portal and visits Gloomglade every afternoon for a snowball fight. The villagers don’t see this as a playful game. The massive snowballs cause chaos and destruction.

As the shnoggle plays throughout the town, it leaves behind the Jovial Curse on any object it touches. After only a week, nearly half the normally moody village is cursed, acting overly joyful and generous.

Visiting Gloomglade

Gloomglade can be any small town or village near a forest during the winter. Use the following hooks or work with players to determine why the group has come to Gloomglade:

Local. A character grew up in or around the town and has heard of the sudden jovial attitude that has stricken this dour town.

In Search of Rest. The party comes across the town after a week of travel in snow and sleet. Surprised by the generosity of everyone they meet, they eventually learn of the curse and the shnoggle.

Help Wanted. A local leader has requested help with dealing with the curse as some townsfolk have been taken advantage of by unscrupulous individuals.

Eamonn Dov

Eamonn Dov is the gruff and no-nonsense owner of The Lucky Lamp, the only tavern in Gloomglade. He’s lived in this small village all his life, and he’s seen a lot of strange things in his time, but nothing like the strange curse that’s been plaguing the town lately. Eamonn is especially wary of travelers who might see the generosity of those afflicted as an opportunity to relieve them of family heirlooms and other cherished valuables.

Eamonn knows more about the shnoggle than most people in town. He’s seen the creature firsthand, chasing people around and throwing snowballs nearly every afternoon. Eamonn knows that the shnoggle is playful and mischievous, but also completely unaware of the harm it’s causing. He likens the shnoggle’s behavior to that of his own young child. Eamonn has heard from other villagers that the strange curse started around the time the shnoggle first appeared near town, and he thinks the shnoggle could be a fey, given the forest to the north of town has a long history of fey sightings.

If the heroes buy a round of drinks or convince Eamonn of their trustworthiness, he will share everything he knows about the recent events in Gloomglade and offer to help them any way he can to find a solution to the shnoggle’s mischief and the strange curse.

Help Found

If the characters choose to help Gloomglade, there are a number of options available to them.

Fight. The party might choose the direct route and fight the shnoggle. They know it arrives nearly every afternoon and all they have to do is wait. See the Snowball Fight section.

Shnoggle Knowledge. A character can try to recall information about shnoggles with a successful DC 15 Intelligence (Arcana) check. They learn it is the young child of giant fey called shnaggles and they tend to be playful. They also spread the Jovial Curse to objects they touch. The curse’s magic naturally fades after a month.

Find the Source. The party could locate the fey portal in the northern forest with a DC 15 Wisdom (Survival) check. The portal can be closed with the dispel magic spell. Treat the magic being dispelled as the effect of a 9th-level spell.

Giant Wrangling. The shnoggle is similar to a toddler. A character that can communicate with it could convince it to leave Gloomglade with a successful DC 18 Charisma (Persuasion) check. On a failure, the shnoggle starts the Snowball Fight.

Fortune. An unsavory character can exploit the current situation within the town. Half the townsfolk the party meets are overly generous and will offer a random trinket, 1d10 silver, or a piece of equipment worth 5 gold or less.

Snowball Fight

The shnoggle visits the town almost every afternoon ready to play. Most townsfolk know to hide inside at noon, but some unlucky people are caught in the mayhem.

The shnoggle is excited to have creatures to play with. When it deals damage, it giggles and laughes. Conversely, when it takes damage, it cries, visibly showing its displeasure.

No Fun

A character can ruin the shnoggle’s fun by taunting it or destroying snowmen. If a character succeeds on a DC 15 Charisma (Intimidation) check or destroys a snowman, the shnoggle takes 14 (4d6) psychic damage.

Icy Pond

The pond north of the town is frozen over. The area is difficult terrain. A prone character in the area attempting to stand up must succeed on a DC 12 Strength (Athletics) check or remain prone and lose the movement used trying to stand up.

Conclusion

Once the shnoggle is defeated it immediately returns to the fey realm, never to return to Gloomglade. The town is able to repair the damage dealt from the snowball fights of the previous weeks and return to normal, although a bit less gloomy than before.

Rewards

The town is thankful to the adventurers and hosts a winter celebration in their honor. While the curse remains, relatives of those afflicted have renewed hope.

Shnoggle Shedding

If the shnoggle is defeated in combat, it sheds antlers and wool that can be used to craft items as per the Shed Antlers and Shed Wool feature. The townsfolk are able to provide the additional materials required to craft the items as a reward for helping them.

Favorite Toy

Whether defeated in combat or convinced to leave, the shnoggle leaves behind a shnoggle snow globe.

Further Adventures

The characters are left with mysteries surrounding the origin of this creature and why it suddenly appeared and the Jovial Curse that still haunts Gloomglade.

If the fey portal is still open, the characters can attempt to discover more about the shnoggle and the origins of the portal.

Cursed items touched by the shnoggle still remain within the town and must be secured to eventually eradicate the curse in Gloomglade.

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