Widow Tree Orchard - WIP encounter (Patreon)

I ran this encounter in one of my Witherwild campaigns and it went about as perfectly as I think was possible. I'd designed it to pull on character's heartstrings and balance out some of the characterization of the Haven/Fanewick dynamic, and I'm really pleased with it.

I also have a Witherwild adventure I'm working on (using the Archetype adventure design system I've been developing, previously called "Made to Measure" design), but I haven't decided whether to include this encounter in the adventure as it's fairly stand-alone. But I wanted to share my current version, which is pretty much how I ran it for the group. I plan to keep refining this, especially if I get another chance to run it for a group. This encounter operates under the assumption that the Service Lottery exists in the Witherwild setting:

WIDOW TREE ORCHARD
Tier 2 Encounter

Introduction
While traveling through Haven-controlled territory, the group walks a road through endless Lady's Veil fields, white flowers as far as the eye can see. But in the middle of the fields, a stand of a few dozen trees with white blossoms.

As the group approaches, they can tell that these trees are growing Lady's Veil, even though that plant is a flower, not a tree. Laborers attend the trees, surrounded by both standard Havenite soldiers seen in any Lady's Veil field but also troops carrying carved magic staves.

In the scene are a number of Haven Soldiers equal to the number of PCs +2, 2 Haven Burn Troopers, and 6 Civilian Farmers.

Encounter Guidance
This orchard is a Havenite experiment. Mages have tapped into the magic of the Witherwild and forcibly grown lady's veil flowers into trees with many flower blooms and found a way to guarantee more frequent red flower blooms. Haven leadership is aware of the dangers from the Widow Trees and views them as an acceptable cost for the increased yield of cures.

As the party approaches, the PCs can engage with the Withered Botany feature to study the trees and figure out how they were made. Additionally, when investigating the trees or at some point in the scene, reveal that several of the trees bear red Lady's Veil buds in the process of blooming, nearly ready for harvest.

While the group is studying the trees or speaking with the soldiers that stop the group before they can get too close, use Cruel Awakening to spotlight a Widow Tree that has been granted greater intelligence and mobility but driven to aggression by the barely-controlled Witherwild magic used by the Havenites. Not all trees in the orchard are already awakened in this manner, but any of them could be. The Haven soldiers will try to protect the farmers but the Burn Troopers will only use their flamestaffs on the trees if soldiers are in mortal danger.

PCs may attempt a ritual or other magic to calm or still the Widow Trees, per the Withered Botany feature. The Widow Trees are not inherently evil, they are pained and panicked by the magical transformation they've been put through and the magical command to continue growing and consuming.


WIDOW TREE ORCHARD
Tier 2 Exploration
A magically-created orchard of Lady’s Veil flowers turned into trees, some grown aggressive from being warped by the Witherwild.
Impulses: entice civilians with the promise of red lady's veil, commit atrocities against nature, show the dangers of using the Witherwild.

Difficulty: 14
Potential Adversaries: Widow Tree, Haven Soldier, Haven Burn Troopers

FEATURES
Army Patrols - Passive: Haven Troopers are on-hand overseeing the farmers/orchard workers and keeping them “in-line”. They will stop and question any PC that gets within Close of one of the trees.

Civilian Farmers - Passive: A dozen Havenite civilians tend the orchard, desperate to harvest a red lady's veil and earn a lot in the Service Lottery for a chance to earn a dose of the cure to Serpent Sickness. The civilians have an Evasion of 10, 2 HP, and a Major threshold of 5.

Withered Botany - Passive: An Instinct or Knowledge Roll made within Very Close distance of a tree reveals that the trees in this orchard are a Lady’s Veil flower that has been transformed by barely-harnessed Witherwild magic into a tree with dozens of buds.
Further investigation can give the following info:
–Each tree is guaranteed to grow one red Lady’s Veil flower per week.
–All of these “trees” were created by the same mage.
--Breaking the enchantment that turned the flower into a tree requires completing a Progress Countdown (4) with a Difficulty of 16.

Cruel Awakening - Action: Spend a Fear to transform one of the trees in the orchard into a Widow Tree as the barely-understood magic drives the plant to confused frenzy to “Feed. Grow" (the commands it was given by the magic that warped it into a tree)

Backup! - Reaction: When a Widow tree or PC “gets aggressive, set a standard Countdown (3). When the Countdown triggers, summon three Haven Guards and a Burn Trooper, which appear at Close range.

Contagious Fear - Reaction: When a soldier or farmer is defeated by a Widow Tree, gain a Fear.

WIDOW TREE
Tier 2 Withered Skulk
A mutated Lady’s Veil tree 15-17’ tall with innocuous roots that ensnares travelers and prey. The trunk conceals a toothy bark maw that softens and dissolves its prey with acidic fluids.
Motives & Tactics: Pose as a normal tree, constrain prey with roots, consume & grow.

Difficulty: 15 | Thresholds: 12/25 | HP: 7 | Stress: 3
ATK: +1 | Lashing Roots: Very Close | 2d8+6 phy

Experience: l Predatory Plant +2, Enticing Scent +2

FEATURES
Forced Fecundity - Passive: A Widow tree grows dozens of lady's veil flowers at once, and is guaranteed to generate one red flower each week.

Relentless (2) - Passive: The tree can be spotlighted up to two times per GM turn. Spend Fear as usual to spotlight them.

Wrap & Pull - Action: Make an attack against a target within Very Close. On a success, the target takes 2d10 physical damage, is pulled into melee with the Widow Tree, and becomes Restrained. A target may break free with a Finesse Roll or when the Widow Tree takes Severe damage.

Down the Hatch - Action: Make an attack against a Restrained target in Melee. On a success, Spend a Fear and force the target to take 2d20 physical damage and mark a Stress while the Widow Tree clears a HP.

Withered Acid - Reaction: When the Widow Tree takes Severe damage, all creatures within Very Close range are bathed in its unnatural digestive acids, taking 2d10 direct physical damage.

Scent Lure - Reaction: When a PC within Close range of the Widow Tree takes the spotlight, mark a Stress to force the PC to make an Instinct Reaction Roll or move into Very Close range of the Widow Tree.

HAVEN BURN TROOPER
Tier 2 Ranged
A Haven soldier bearing a flamestaff and a leather coat.

Motives & Tactics: Arrest, close gates, make it through the day, pin down
Difficulty: 14 | Thresholds: 9/18 | HP: 3 | Stress: 2
ATK: +1 | Flamestaff: Close | 2d8+3 mag
Experience: Soldier +2

FEATURES
Burn it Down - Action: Spend a Fear to make every target in front of the Burn Trooper Make an attack against a target within Far range. On a success, mark a Stress to deal 2d12+3 physical damage. If the target marks HP from this attack, they have disadvantage on Agility Rolls until they clear at least 1 HP.

Accidental Fire - Reaction: On a failure with Fear for a roll against the Burn Trooper or when they would be scared and startled, the Burn Trooper over-reacts and responds with a gout of fire that catches the nearby trees on fire. Activate a Countdown (Decreasing Loop - 4). When the countdown triggers, the fire spreads by a Close distance and you gain a Fear. When the countdown re-sets to 0, the fire has grown past the point of no return. PCs must mark 1d4 Stress to take an action, and most animals will flee for their own safety.

HAVEN SOLDIER
Tier 2 Minion
An armored Haven recruit bearing a pike and wearing a tabard in Haven’s colors.
Motives & Tactics: close ranks, make it through the day, earn a service lottery credit, pin down enemies
Difficulty: 12 | HP: 1 | Stress: 1
ATK: +0 | Pike: Very Close | 5 phy
Experience: Self-preservation +2 

FEATURES 
Minion (6) - Passive: This adversary is defeated when they take any damage. For every 6 damage a PC deals to this adversary, defeat an additional Minion within range the attack would succeed against.

Group Attack - Action: Spend a Fear to choose a target and spotlight all Haven Soldiers within Close range of them. Those Minions move into Melee range of the target and make one shared attack roll. On a success, they deal 5 physical damage each. Combine this damage.

--
Witherwild campaign frame designed by:
Carlos Cisco, Rowan Hall, and Spenser Starke

This text is not official content of Darrington Press or Critical Role and does not represent the opinions or stances of anyone other than Mike themself. This product includes materials from the Daggerheart System Reference Document 1.0, © Critical Role, LLC. under the terms of the Darrington Press Community Gaming (DPCGL) License. More information can be found at https://www.daggerheart.com. There are no previous modifications by others.