5 Curses and Bargains Plot Hooks for D&D 5e
Ready-to-run curses and bargains hooks for D&D 5e, each paired with a free statblock and a one-shot in Questweaver.
Drop one of these on the table
Grimcrown Caller
CR 4 humanoid- A widow paid the caller to speak with her dead husband and came back mute, her voice traded to bind the spirit longer.
- Three soldiers found their dead captain's signet ring on their doorsteps overnight, each engraved with a new order in his handwriting.
- A pale bird has been circling the bell tower for six days, and the sexton says it screams in a voice he recognizes.
Marrowpact Shaman
CR 5 fiend- A merchant's hands turned black overnight; he says he bought a charm from something in the bog and never paid the second installment.
- Villagers leave animal skulls at the swamp's edge each new moon, and the fever that plagued them for a decade stopped.
- A missing herbalist was last seen following a trail of golden sap into the mire.
Tidemark Oracle
CR 4 fey- Fishermen found a pearl on the beach inscribed with a date that hasn't happened yet.
- A merchant captain claims a voice in the surf warned her away from a reef that sank her rival's ship.
- The tide pools near the headland glow faintly at dusk, and the locals refuse to go near them.
Moonbranch Sylph
CR 4 fey- A grove falls silent each full moon, and those who enter return changed.
- The local wardens seek a blessing for a failing harvest.
- A child followed a song into the woods and never came back.
Cinderclaw Harrower
CR 8 fiend- Scorched claw marks appear on the city gates each new moon.
- A fire cult claims their patron walks the alleys at dusk.
- A smith's forge burns cold until a debt is paid.
Curses and Bargains monsters and NPCs
Curses and Bargains one-shots
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What the Dead RememberThe party needs information only a dead person can provide. A Grimcrown Caller can summon the spirit, but every summoning feeds the shade bound to the caller's crown, and this one is getting hungry.
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The Bone LedgerThe party seeks out a swamp-dwelling shaman to lift a curse or retrieve a missing person. The shaman deals on its own terms, and if the party cannot stomach the price, the negotiation turns violent fast.
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The Tidemark PriceThe party seeks knowledge from a sea oracle who speaks only at low tide. She offers answers but demands a memory from each petitioner, and the sea itself enforces the bargain.
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The Moon's BargainThe forest's fortune has faded, and the Moonbranch Sylph offers a remedy at a steep, mysterious price. The party must reach its hidden glade, learn its terms, and decide what to sacrifice.
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Ember DebtA pact-brokered devil enforces a forgotten debt, burning the livelihoods of those who refuse to pay. The party must uncover the original contract, protect the victims, and face the Harrower in a forge-lit alley.
