Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 21

Elowen

Day 21 – Organizations

Day 21-What are the major organizations of the campaign? How do they deal with visitors?
Corporations, guilds, secret societies; what groups with influence exist in the campaign and how do they interact with the setting and its denizens? 

Elowen’s Journal

"I used to think organizations were neat things. Boxes you could label. Lists you could finish.

West Haven cured me of that.

There are covens, traditions, lodges, guilds, circles, and groups that insist they are none of those things but somehow still meet every week. Some overlap. Some pretend they don’t. Some share members and pretend they don’t notice. I have stopped trying to keep a perfect list.

The easiest place to start is my own. I belong to the West Haven Coven. Larina is our leader and High Priestess, though she rarely acts like either unless she needs to. Our coven includes me, Grýlka, Doireann, Celeste, Cassandra, Amaranth, Aisling, Esmé, and Katrina. Katrina also has a Lodge of her own. They are mostly alchemists, so people like Émilie. She says it’s “just practical,” but I think she likes having something that is hers.

The Rangers of the North Star patrol the frontier north of the towns. I see them sometimes on the roads or near the mountains. They are grim, quiet, and always polite. Not everyone trusts them, but everyone respects them. Even the ghosts give them space, which I have learned to pay attention to. I admit they fascinate me. 

There’s a Thieves’ Guild, too. They call themselves The Beasts. I only know that because Amaranth told me, and not to ask questions. Their territory includes the Drunken Orc Inn, somewhere behind doors I’ve never noticed before. The guild is one of the reasons the inn feels safer than it should.

The Druids here aren’t quite what I expected. They call themselves the Ban Drui, and they’re a mix of Druids and Witches. Their coven is the Daughters of the Flame, led by Saileach and Teamhair. There is a quiet power between those two. It's like you can see the magic dancing around them. I wish I could see auras like Aisling can. She always seems happier and sadder when she sees them. She says it because their auras are so bright. 

There are other witches, too. The Strixes, who turn into giant owls when they fly. The Daughters of Diana, who look like they’re always heading to some athletic competition and all carry bows. The Mara… I don’t like the Mara. They keep trying to recruit me. Ghosts follow them everywhere, thick as shadows. Larina says I need to wait before having any serious dealings with them. I would rather not have any dealings with them at all. There are also the Pumpkin Spice Witches. I am not sure if they are a real coven or a social club. 

Once, a group of elves calling themselves the Court of Swords came to West Haven. They were already established here somehow, though I didn’t understand how. Larina dealt with them directly for a week, and Katrina and Esmé took over my lessons. No one explained why. I didn’t ask.

And then there are the Westhaven gnomes. They pretend to be innkeepers, traders, and hosts. They are also a cabal entirely unto themselves. I am convinced they know everything that happens in the valley before anyone else does.

That’s just what I can name. There are more. Covens I recognize by habit, by the way certain witches always sit together or walk home at the same hour. I don’t know all their names yet. I think that’s normal.

East Haven is different.

They have organizations, too, but they are sharper, more formal. The Church of Light dominates much of public life there. Priests, lay-priests, councils, and rules that are meant to apply evenly, even when they don’t. They deal with visitors politely, as long as those visitors behave correctly. Witches are tolerated at best, distrusted at worst. The ghosts from East Haven remember a lot of sermons.

West Haven doesn’t ask you who you answer to. It asks who you sit with when you’re tired. I think that tells you everything you need to know."

Designer’s Notes

Organizations in West Haven are intentionally overlapping, informal, and relational. Power flows through trust, shared history, and social gravity rather than rigid hierarchy. Covens, lodges, and guilds often intersect, and membership is fluid. This allows characters to move between groups organically and gives the setting a lived-in feel.

East Haven provides a deliberate contrast. Its institutions, especially the Church of Light, are centralized, doctrinal, and rule-driven. Visitors are assessed by conformity rather than connection. This tension reinforces the ideological divide between the two towns and provides ongoing sources of conflict.

Not every organization needs to be fully defined. Some exist simply to be noticed, feared, or hinted at. West Haven is a place where influence is sensed before it is explained, and where belonging matters more than titles. 

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 20

Day 20 - Mysteries

Day 20-Are there any mysteries as yet unsolved?
Legendary tales, lost civilizations, or cryptid creatures; does the setting have anything for the amateur detective?

Elowen’s Journal

"Not everything wants to be solved.

That was one of the first lessons I learned here. Witches don’t rush mysteries the way other people do. Some questions are meant to be lived with, turned over slowly, like stones in a river. Still, there are things I keep circling back to, no matter how many times I tell myself to be patient.

Everyone asks what happened to the Elves of the Wood. The Goblins live there now, in what we call the Goblin Wood, but it belonged to the elves long before that. The histories say they left. The goblins say they were already gone when they arrived. What troubles me is this: there are no ghosts. Not one that I’ve seen. Elves don’t just vanish. If they died here, I would know. The silence feels deliberate.

Then there is the Great Flood.

The druids say it was simple. Weeks of rain. A thaw. A glacier finally breaking loose in the mountains. It makes sense, on paper. But witches look at timing as much as cause. The flood came the very night fifteen people were meant to burn. I hear ghosts argue about this sometimes. Some say it was chance. Some say it was mercy. Some say the Goddess herself reached down and said, "Enough." I don’t know which answer scares me more.

The Maiden Wood is another mystery I try not to think about too much. It isn’t dark or tangled like the Goblin Wood. It looks calm. Inviting, even. No one goes there. Everyone avoids it. When I ask why it’s called the Maiden Wood, I never get the same answer twice. That’s usually a bad sign.

And then there is the West.

The Western Road leaves through the Lughnasadh and Samhain Gates and just… keeps going. People talk about it like it’s obvious where it leads, but no one ever says. Frontier. Beyond. Elsewhere. I’ve stood at the gate and watched travelers leave, wondering what kind of person keeps walking once West Haven is behind them.

Some mysteries feel like doors. Others feel like warnings. I’m learning how to tell the difference."

Designer’s Notes

Mysteries in West Haven are intentionally unresolved. They exist to invite play, speculation, and emotional investment rather than to be “completed.” Each mystery offers multiple interpretations, none of which are confirmed as correct.

Also, keep in mind that Elowen is the stand-in right now for the Player Characters. They are not going to know more than her, often less. 

The disappearance of the Haven Elves suggests an event outside normal cycles of death and memory. I'll be honest, I am not even sure I know myself yet! 

The Great Flood sits at the intersection of natural disaster, divine intervention, and myth-making. Though the answer here is more natural than supernatural. The rain and melting ice in the Broken Mountains breached the glacial dam. It just happened at the exact right moment.

The Maiden Wood is a narrative negative space, defined more by avoidance than description. Though it is called that due to the Dryads. The zoo of yesterday is the clue. This wooded area is home to a group of dryads that Larina rescued from the lands of Faerie (going back to my 4e days).

The Western Road represents the unknown future and the temptation of leaving safety behind. It is there to provide new adventures. It is a mystery to Elowen because she has not left the safety of West Haven. There is a set of barrow mounds out west, but she doesn't know that yet.

These mysteries are not all required to be solved. They are meant to shape tone, inspire questions, and remind players that the world is larger than their characters’ understanding. In West Haven, curiosity is encouraged, but that doesn't mean the answers will be satisfactory.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 19

Day 19 - Must-See Sites

Day 19-Any 'Must See' sites?
Are there any places or things a visitor to the setting just has to check out?

Elowen’s Journal

"If you only have one afternoon in West Haven, go to the Fountain Circle. Or Fountain Square as some witches still call it. I have not figured out why. 

That’s where everyone ends up eventually. On warm days, it turns into a kind of living map of the village. Farmers resting their feet, witches arguing good-naturedly, children daring each other to toss copper coins just right. The statue of Maiden faces east, the Mother north, the Crone west, and somehow it always feels like someone is watching over you, no matter where you sit. I like to people-watch there. It makes me feel less strange.

The Library is the other place I always recommend. It might not have the book you came looking for, but it will absolutely have the book you need. Sometimes it finds you instead. I don’t understand how it works, only that it does. Knowing that Larina used to be the librarian explains a lot. I always leave with more questions than answers, and I think that’s the point.

Everyone says you should see the Cailleach’s Bones. They’re right. They’re ancient, and powerful, and full of history. I have seen them. Once. That was enough. Some places don’t need revisiting to be remembered.

Émilie’s apothecary is quieter, but no less important. I like visiting with her sister Céline. She is the strangest witch I have ever met, and after three years here, that is saying something. She has everything you could want for an alchemy lab, a healing kit, or a kitchen that takes herbs seriously. Omar’s, of course, has everything else. If you can’t find it there, you probably don’t need it yet.

Renee’s is perfect for lunch. The Purple Dragon for dinner. That’s just how the day flows. In summer, everyone drifts back toward the Fountain Circle again for evening music. Lanterns go up. The air cools. It feels like the town is exhaling.

I haven’t been to the observatory yet, but I’ve been told the stars look closer from there. I am not sure I want to see them that close. What strange ghosts inhabit those worlds? Am I meant to know?

East Haven has its own sights. A zoological garden that people speak highly of, though I don’t like seeing some of the animals in cages. They look… diminished. That would never work in West Haven. Their library is large, orderly, and very good at helping you find exactly what you're looking for. It’s just not very good at surprises.

Doireann has promised to take me to the Goblin Market one night. She won’t tell me when or where. Just “soon.” I am trying very hard to be patient. Amaranth tells me it is a great place to get ripped-off, but I am not listening to her."

Designer’s Notes

West Haven’s must-see sites are intentionally layered. Very few are strictly tourist attractions. Most are places that reward lingering, repeat visits, and emotional engagement. The Fountain Circle anchors the social life of the village. The Library reinforces discovery over acquisition. Shops like Émilie’s and Omar’s blur the line between mundane commerce and magical infrastructure.

East Haven serves as a contrast. Its attractions are impressive, curated, and well-organized, but often lack the intimacy and improvisational magic of West Haven. This distinction reinforces the broader thematic divide between control and emergence, certainty and discovery.

Many locations are invented as needed, on purpose. West Haven is meant to feel alive, responsive, and slightly unfinished, like a place that grows around the characters rather than ahead of them. If it feels like there’s always one more place to see, that’s working as intended.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 18

Day 18 - Getting Around

Day 18-Forgot to ask; How do we get around?
What modes of transportation are available to people in the setting. 

Elowen’s Journal

West Haven is small enough that you can learn it all on foot. 

You can walk everywhere here. It surprised me at first how close everything feels. The streets curve, but they always seem to bring you where you need to go. The South Road, coming out through the Beltane Gate, is the busiest and safest. In East Haven, they call it the West Road, or the Western Trade Road, which feels like a small argument in itself. That’s where the Drunken Orc Inn sits, and where most travelers first arrive. It feels like a threshold more than a road.

People cross the lake all the time. Boats go back and forth, especially during market days. I don’t like it. The water feels crowded to me, and not in a friendly way. I prefer to keep the lake at a distance, even if that means walking farther than necessary.

A lot of witches fly. More than I ever imagined. Brooms, charms, whispered spells, things I don’t fully understand yet. Because of that, many buildings have entrances on both the upper floors and the ground. It took me a while to stop being startled by someone stepping out of a second-story door like it was the most natural thing in the world. I hope someday I’ll be able to do that too without thinking. Gaining your first besom, or witch's broom, is something of a milestone event for a witch.

Larina has a Gate in her cottage. She uses it to travel to distant places, even other worlds. She says I’m not ready yet. I want to argue, but every time I look at it too closely, I get dizzy, like the world is tilting sideways. So that feels like a fair warning. I’ve also been told there are Gates hidden in the Library, but the librarians, Cassandra and Celeste, won’t tell me where. Though I did find out by accident that Larina used to be the librarian before she became the Witch Queen. That explains a lot.

Doireann says there are Gates in the Labyrinth, too. I don’t know if she’s teasing me or not. With goblins, it’s always hard to tell. But goblins seem to have a way of moving all over, so maybe she is right.

For now, I walk. I watch the sky. I learn the paths that don’t show up on maps. West Haven makes getting around feel like part of the adventure, even when you’re just going home.

Designer’s Notes

Travel in West Haven was designed around two core ideas. First, everything important should be close enough that play does not get bogged down in long, uneventful journeys. Second, the setting needed to acknowledge the reality that witches fly.

West Haven is walkable by design, but vertically layered. Upper entrances, rooftop paths, and night-time travel through the air are common for witches, which changes how the town functions socially and architecturally. This idea was inspired by my time at the University of Illinois at Chicago while working on my first Ph.D.  The East Campus buildings were connected by elevated walkways, creating an entirely different sense of movement than ground-level travel. They were there when I did my first campus visit and gone before I started attending some 6 months later. 

That physical East/West divide also fed directly into the conceptual split between East Haven and West Haven. Though Lake Haven is a bit more dangerous and has fewer restaurant choices than Chicago's Little Italy, which splits the campus.

Gates exist, but they are deliberately restricted, hidden, or guarded. Easy teleportation solves too many problems too quickly. In West Haven, magical travel is powerful, tempting, and dangerous, something to grow into rather than rely on from the start. Movement here reinforces one of the setting’s core themes: magic expands possibility, but it also demands patience. Esmé is my expert on Gates. I am sure she will teach them all to Elowen someday.

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Mail Call Tuesday: Star Trek Adventures, 2nd Edition

 I have been watching so many of my friends, both online and in real life, go on about the new Star Trek Adventures, 2nd Edition game from Mōdiphiüs. Both Carl Stark's Character Creation Challenge and Adam Dickstein's RPG Campaign Tour Challenge, along with my friend Greg Littlejohn's Trek game, and new Trek on TV,  convinced me it was time to take the plunge. But the final and ultimate motivation was DriveThruRPG offering "retail" copies of their books, not print on demand, but retail version of their offset printed books.

Well, they came last weekend. Shipped to me faster than some print-on-demand books I had ordered a few days prior. 

Now, keep in mind I am fiercely loyal to my FLGS. But I really wanted to see how these products looked. I am very impressed. Mōdiphiüs shipped these out, and I got them really fast. 

The books are gorgeous, as expected. A nice mix of new art and some art from the shows. All eras and shows are represented here. If there is a Trek you love, you can do it. If there is one you hate (*blasphemer!*), then you can ignore it.

Two of my favorite ships!

I have not gotten deep into the rules yet, but they seem simpler than the First Edition.

My oldest and I are going tomake some characters and ships here soon. Last week was Valentine's Day, and today is Fat Tuesday, so it's the busiest time of year. But I am looking forward to working out the Mercy, the Protector, and my various Challengers.

Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 17

Day 17 - Wars & Battles

Day 17-Can you tell us about any famous battles or wars?
Tales of conflicts and combats abound across the multiverse! Any interesting ones in your setting we should know about?

Elowen’s Journal

"Witches do not remember wars the way other people do. Neither do ghosts.

The living talk about who won. The ghosts talk about what was never recovered afterward. Fields that never grew back the same. Songs that stopped being sung. Names no one says anymore because it hurts too much to remember them. Witches talk about what was lost.

I do not read about wars. I walk through them.

There are still ghosts here from what the historians call the Elf-Goblin Wars. That name is wrong. It always was. It was really a war between the elves of the old forest and the Mountain Orcs, long before humans ever came to the Haven Valley. The goblins were caught between them, and so were the dwarves. The dead remember confusion more than hatred. Orders that made no sense. Allies that vanished overnight. I cannot tell how long ago it was. A thousand years, maybe more. Time blurs when everyone involved is gone.

The conflict that shaped West Haven most was not really a war at all.

Before there was an East or a West, there was just Haven. One village. One valley. When fear took hold, fifteen women and men were accused of witchcraft by a mob led by a lay-priest of the Church of Light. The night they were meant to burn had already seen three days of heavy rain. Somewhere in the mountains, a glacier finally broke loose. The flood came down the valley and erased the village before the fires could be lit.

The witches survived. Most of the townsfolk did too. But Haven did not.

Afterward, people did what they always do. They moved apart. Humans went east to higher ground. Witches, both human and gnome, went west. Two towns grew from the same grief and the same blood and convinced themselves they had nothing left in common. When I walk near the lake, I can still see the old streets beneath the water. The ghosts remember when it was all one place."

Designer’s Notes

West Haven’s conflicts are defined less by battles than by their aftermath.

The Elf-Goblin War predates human settlement in the Haven Valley and was, in truth, a multi-sided conflict involving Mountain Orcs, Haven Elves, Goblins of the Wood, and Dwarves of the Rock. Its echoes linger in the form of lingering spirits, ruined sites, and long-standing cultural tensions that never fully healed.

The defining event for human history in the region is The Founding and the Flood. Originally settled as a spiritual utopia by followers of the Lords of Light, Haven later absorbed a second group of pagans, mystics, and practitioners of the Old Ways. Though uneasy, the two communities survived together until fear triggered witchcraft accusations and attempted purges. The Great Flood, whether an accident, fate, or an intervention by the gods, destroyed the original village and ended the violence.

It didn't end the distrust.

The resulting split gave rise to East Haven and West Haven. Both towns share laws, bloodlines, and trade, but diverged culturally and spiritually. That divergence, rather than any single war, is the wound that still shapes this setting. In West Haven, history is not past. It lingers, watches, and sometimes, if you know how to listen, it speaks.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 16

Day 16 - Direct Threats

Day 16-Are there any direct threats?
Who or what in your campaign actively means the people in it - including the PCs - harm?

Elowen’s Journal

"When people ask about threats, they usually mean something with teeth. An army. A monster. A name you can point to and say, 'that one.' I don’t think it works that way here.

There are names that change a room's temperature when spoken. You can feel it in your skin, like a window just opened somewhere you didn’t see. Even the ghosts react to some of them. They fall quiet. Or they leave. That scares me the most. 

Kelek is one of those names. I don’t know much about him. Only that he hates witches, and that hatred feels old and practiced, like a blade sharpened over generations. The ghosts that remember him do not scream. They whisper. That somehow feels worse. 

I also always hear awful things about Skylla, but the few times I have met her, she didn't seem that terrible to me. 

There is someone called the Bone Man. I don’t know if that is his real name or just the one that survived him. He wants the magic of West Haven. Not the people. Not the land. Just the power that leaks out of everything here, whether we want it to or not. Ghosts do not like him. They do not like to say why. They do not like to be around when he is talked about.

East Haven scares me in a different way. Not because of monsters, but because of certainty. There are men there who believe witches should not exist at all. Not regulated. Not controlled. Erased. The ghosts from East Haven carry a lot of unfinished anger, and none of it is aimed at the right people.

Then there is Katrina.

She is on our side. I know that. She has saved my life. She has saved Aisling's life more than once. But she wants a world that belongs to witches alone, and when she talks about it, I understand why. I also understand why Larina listens carefully and says very little in response. Those two are going to have a fight one day, and I am not sure who is going to come out on top. 

The most frightening threat does not have a name I am supposed to write down.

There is something the ghosts sometimes circle around without touching. Something they remember only in pieces. A presence that does not rage or conquer or declare itself king. It waits. It remains. Even Larina does not speak its name. At all.

If there is a single truth I have learned, it is this: West Haven is not threatened by invasion. It is threatened by people who want to define it. Control it. Simplify it. Turn it into something smaller and easier to rule.

The monsters are real. So are the ideologues. But the most dangerous things are the ones that believe they are right forever."

Designer’s Notes

Direct threats in West Haven are intentionally asymmetrical. Some are personal. Some are ideological. Some are cosmic. None should be what the characters or even the players expect. 

Kelek represents institutionalized hatred of witchcraft through arcane authority. Skylla is a cautionary tale for witches. Normally I have been avoiding "other IP" in my West Haven, but these two have been such a staple in my games for so long it is hard to part with them. 

The Bone Man embodies predatory magic seeking to extract power from place and people alike. He used to be a citizen of West Haven. He had been in charge of the gravesites, and for a while, he ruled as Lord Autumn in the Autumn sector. But his desire for power, both necromantic and political, drove him out of West Haven. Some say he left to find better ways to seize power; others say he was forced out by the Witch Queen at the time. He shows up occasionally, attempting to sow discord, but has not been seen in years now.

East Haven’s Patriarchy reflects systemic, conservative opposition to witches as a social and spiritual force. Thankfully, they do not represent all the people of East Haven, but they are rather vocal. They are followers of Providence Stoughton, one of the founders of the original Haven settlement and village. Stoughton was a devout member of the Lords of Light and the spiritual founder of the Church of Light in Old Haven. The Temple of Light in East Haven was dedicated to his memory. While Stoughton was a moderately conservative priest, he was not a fanatic. The Patriarch of East Haven though feels that since he founded the Haven Settlement all these lands, including West Haven, belong to him and therefore belong to his legacy, which they claim. 

Katrina exists as a morally complex internal threat, an ally whose vision could become tyranny if unchecked. Sadly, if the Patriarchy were ever to become a true threat again, Katrina's position would grow more attractive, especially to younger witches.  One thing I hope to convey through Elowen is that Katrina has some good points. It is through older witches like Larina and Esmé that we see what threat Katrina really brings. 

The greatest long-term threat is The One Who Remains, a force that does not attack directly but erodes reality, memory, and identity over time. It is not always visible. It does not always act. But it is always present. The One Who Remains is also the threat that could cause all the participants above to put aside their differences and fit this greater foe.

West Haven survives not because it is strong, but because it refuses to be defined by outsiders.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 15

Day 15 - Things Best Avoided

Day 15-What are some things in the setting that are best avoided?
Dangerous terrain, haunted places, angry natives, and even unpleasant beverages; name some elements in your campaign that should be given a wide berth. Obviously these are beings and things in the setting the tourist should avoid but which Player Characters would likely run towards. 

Elowen's Journal

"People warned me about West Haven when I first arrived. They said it was dangerous. Haunted. Wrong. I think that’s funny now.

The places I avoid are quieter than that.

I stay away from the lake. I can’t explain it properly, only that the ghosts there feel unfinished in a way that makes my chest hurt. Not loud. Not violent. Just… stuck. Some of them don’t even know they’re dead. Others know too well. I can stand at the shore, but I never linger. I don’t like how the water remembers.

East Haven makes me nervous. I can walk its streets. I have. But it feels like a place that watches you back. The rules are clearer there, sharper somehow, and I am never quite sure which ones I am breaking just by existing. My first real adventure started there, and I learned quickly that “safe” and “familiar” are not the same thing.

I will not go near the Cailleach’s Bones. Everyone says you can feel them before you see them, and they are right. The spirits there are old and proud and very sure they were right to die for what they believed. That kind of certainty frightens me more than anger ever could.

The Maiden Wood is worse. Everyone avoids it. Even people who pretend they don’t believe curses can affect them still take the long way around. I know better than to ask questions. I have seen Larina walk into that forest more than once, calm as if she were stepping into her own kitchen. That does not make me feel safer. It makes me feel like there are rules I do not yet understand.

What surprises me most is that people think West Haven itself is frightening. They whisper about witches and ghosts and strange folk in the streets. To me, it feels honest. The dangerous places announce themselves here. The truly terrible things do not bother with disguises.

If I have learned anything, it is this: not everything dangerous feels threatening, and not everything that feels safe actually is. West Haven taught me that. It also taught me how to listen when the land says, quietly but firmly, do not go there."

Designer Notes

This day reframes classic adventure locations as lived warnings rather than explicit hooks. Elowen’s perspective emphasizes instinct, emotional danger, and spiritual weight over physical threat. Places players will be eager to explore are introduced as areas locals avoid for reasons that are felt rather than explained. 

West Haven is a paradox: widely feared by outsiders, yet experienced by residents as a place of clarity, where danger is visible and negotiable. This reinforces the setting’s core philosophy: witches and ghosts make the world safer not by removing danger, but by naming it. This is a "witch village," the villagers are not afraid of the same things.  

This sets up future adventures while reinforcing trust in intuition, boundaries, and the idea that some places are not meant to be entered until you are ready—or ever.

There is an ancient elven ruin in the Goblin Wood. The Lake is cursed, as are the Callieach's Bones. The Maiden Wood isn't cursed, but the dryads are violent to outsiders. There are more haunted houses in West Haven than in cities five times larger. 

There are wererats fighting aligatormen in the sewers and septic pits under the village. Werewolves roam north of the village, and they are barely contained by the Rangers of the North Star. There are enough undead to keep the Church of Light and the Knights of St. Werper busy for decades. 

There's a lot to do here, and almost none of it is safe. Elowen might avoid these places, but I suspect adventurers won't. 

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 14

Day 14 - Eat Like a Local

Day 14-What to order to 'Eat like a local'.
Are there any foods unique to the campaign setting? If so, what are they like?

Elowen’s Journal

"Eating like a local in West Haven is not about ordering the right dish. It is about knowing what you need. And where to get it. 

Renee’s always tastes like safety to me. Warm bread, gentle herbs, tea that settles instead of wakes. When I sit there, I remember learning how to breathe again. How to listen. How to stay in one place without feeling like I needed to flee. The Purple Dragon tastes different. Heavier. Louder. It makes me think of Aisling and Eodard, of music and laughter and the way healing is not a straight path. She is further along than I am, I think. That is all right. I am still walking.

The Westhaven gnome inns taste like discovery. Every meal feels like a small, pleasant surprise, as if the village itself is reminding you that kindness can be inherited and practiced without being announced. Even the Drunken Orc has its place. I cannot help laughing when I eat there, remembering how uncomfortable my parents were the first time they visited. It is not comfort food, exactly, but it is honest.

Still, if I am telling the truth, my favorite place to eat is Larina’s kitchen. A long table. Too many chairs. Someone is always cooking. Someone is always talking. Food passed without ceremony. That is what belonging tastes like. It is not something you can order. It is something you are invited into. We are a coven, but we are also a family. Despite what Katrina says. Or maybe because of it."

Designer's Notes

In West Haven, food functions as emotional shorthand. Each location feeds a different need. Healing, celebration, grounding, nostalgia, or belonging. None of these spaces are random. They are designed to support character arcs and reinforce the idea that rest and nourishment are part of play, not distractions from it.

Day 14 intentionally avoids listing signature dishes. Instead, it frames eating like a local as an act of understanding context and community. Players who pay attention to where they eat, and with whom, learn as much about West Haven as they would from any lore dump. Food here is memory made edible, and the kitchen table is often where alliances, confessions, and character growth truly begin.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 13

Day 13 - Food & Drink

Day 13-Where can we get a drink and a bite to eat?
Give us a few of your most notable restaurants and bars in the campaign setting. Tell us something about these places and what makes them distinctive.

Elowen's Journal

"If you want tea, you go to Renee’s. That part is simple. It is perfect for luncheons, for afternoon conversations that turn into confessions, and for evenings when you only want something light and warm before heading home. Renee always seems to know when to refill your cup without asking, and I have learned that whatever pastry she suggests is the one you should take.

The Purple Dragon is better when you are hungry in a serious way. Big meals. Loud tables. Music drifts through the room, whether you planned to listen or not. It feels like a place where stories get told out loud, not whispered. 

But if you want the best food in West Haven, truly the best, you go to one of the inns run by the Westhaven gnome clan.

They used to be called 'Winterhaven,' long before the flood, back when Haven was still one settlement. The stories say they hid a group of witches during a hunt, fed them, sheltered them, and never asked for anything in return. The witches blessed them in return, and when some of the clan stayed in the valley, they changed their name to Westhaven. Their cooking is… more than good. I do not know how else to say it. Their bread alone feels like it remembers every meal you ever needed. I dream about it sometimes. They make this pastry, which they call "walking bread." It's light, fluffy, sweet, and filled with fruits and cream. It's crazy how good it is. One day, Doireann and I went all over the village and got a different one at each inn. I was sick to my stomach, and Doireann laughed, but it was completely worth it. 

Food changes with the seasons here, too. Each quarter does its best work in its proper time, but no one does autumn like the Mabon Quarter. Stews, roasted roots, apple breads, things that make you feel like winter will not be quite so cruel after all.

Friday the 13th is my favorite. It is not a big festival. No banners or speeches. Just a quiet understanding that luck bends a little differently that day. Extra dishes appear. Drinks get stronger. People linger longer. Witches smile more than usual. It feels like the town is taking a breath and remembering who it belongs to."

Designer's Notes

Food in West Haven is intentionally grounded. Meals are communal, seasonal, and often layered with subtle ritual meaning, whether the diners are aware of it or not. Eating together is one of the ways the town maintains cohesion between witches and non-witches, locals and travelers, living and lingering.

Different locations serve different roles. Renee’s Tea Shoppe is a social and conversational hub, ideal for quiet scenes and character development. The Purple Dragon handles larger gatherings, music, and shared stories. Gnome-run inns, particularly those of the Westhaven clan, represent inherited magical hospitality. Their food is blessed not through spells but through tradition, gratitude, and long memory.

Friday the 13th functions as a minor holiday in West Haven. It is not announced, but it is observed. On that day, luck, fate, and appetite all run a little stronger. For witches especially, it is a reminder that nourishment is not just physical. It is ritual, protection, and belonging made edible.

It is Friday the 13th here as well, and my son's bakery is doing its annual Pączki day, which may or may not be a good substitute for Westhaven Walking Bread. But don't try to eat more than two at a time unless you are a goblin. 

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 12

Day 12 - Entertainment

Day 12-What do people do for entertainment around here?
Music? Theatre? Sports? Gambling? What do the adventurers in your campaign do on their 'day off'? What is there for tourists to spend money on?

Elowen's Journal

"I used to think entertainment was something you planned for. A concert. A festival. Something announced ahead of time. West Haven taught me that it is more like stumbling into the right room at the right moment.

There are tea shops everywhere here. My hometown had one, and I thought that was very impressive. In West Haven, I find a new one every time I go out. Some are quiet places meant for thinking. Others are loud with laughter and gossip. You can always tell which coven favors which shop by the kinds of cups they use and how long people linger. At the risk of sounding pedestrian, my favorite is Renee's. I know, everyone loves Renee's; it has more teas than I ever knew existed (it was just "tea" singular before I came here), and has the most variety of patrons. But it is still my favorite. I think I could now write a book on the opinions witches have about tea.

Young witches race brooms through the streets when they think no one important is watching, even though the elders pretend to scold them while remembering when they did the same thing.

Larina once told me there used to be poetry competitions, years ago, until too many witches started sneaking spells into their verses. Apparently, it became impossible to tell whether people were applauding the poetry or the enchantments, so they stopped altogether. These days, she prefers a card game called Pentacles, played with a modified tarot deck and four other witches. Esmé plays too, but I have never managed to keep track of the rules. There are halls where the game is played seriously, but Larina treats it as a way to pass the time. Witches rarely gamble with coin. They gamble with favors and promises instead.

Aisling drags me to the Purple Dragon whenever she can. Her boyfriend, Eodard, plays music there, and the food is always good. She sings along and dances in the crowd. Amaranth occasionally dresses in something that would make a courtesan blush and disappears into the night, not returning until morning. When I asked her about it, she said she would tell me when I was older. I blushed and decided not to press. West Haven has taught me that some entertainments are not meant to be shared."

Designer's Notes

West Haven is designed to feel alive at all hours, especially at night. It never truly sleeps, because there is always something happening somewhere, whether it is a quiet game of cards, an impromptu performance, or a coven gathering that looks suspiciously like a social call. Entertainment here is communal, informal, and often layered with meaning that outsiders may not immediately grasp.

Different spaces serve different social roles. The Drunken Orc Inn caters primarily to adventurers and outsiders, a place to unwind loudly and visibly. The Purple Dragon is more for locals, a hub for music, good food, and familiar faces. Tea shops act as neutral ground for conversation, negotiation, and quiet observation. Together, these locations reinforce the idea that rest and play are part of survival in West Haven. In a setting where danger is never far away, entertainment becomes a way to stay human, connected, and grounded.

Mostly, I want a place where adventurers can find as much adventure even when they are not on the road.

AND if you get the chance wish our host Adam Dickstein a very Happy Birthday today!

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 11

Day 11 - Where to Find Adventure?

Day 11-Where would we go to find 'adventure'?
We've left the relative safety of the starting area and now we're looking for action! 

Elowen's Journal

"Adventure seems to be everywhere near West Haven.

The Goblin Wood is the obvious answer. It always feels like something is watching you there, even when the branches are still, and the paths look clear. The lake seems safer, wide and open, but it is not. There are so many ghosts in the water, and not all of them are quiet. Some of them remember drowning. Some of them are still trying to get home. The Maiden Wood frightens me more than either of those places. It is too calm, too deliberate, as if it is waiting for permission to be dangerous. And the Cailleach’s Bones… I do not linger there. Some spirits are old enough that they no longer remember being human, and that is not the kind of attention I want.

My first real adventure did not even involve leaving the region. Aisling and I took what we thought would be a harmless weekend trip to East Haven to see the markets. Somewhere along the way, we ended up with someone else’s pack full of stolen jewels. By the end of the day, we had the town authorities and the thieves’ guild both looking for us, and I learned just how uncomfortable a jail cell can be when you can see the ghosts pacing outside it. Katrina had to come get us out, and I do not think she has ever let us forget it. We did manage to sort it all out and even got a reward. 

That is the thing about West Haven. You do not usually go looking for adventure here. It finds you first."

Designer's Notes

West Haven was built to make adventure feel close at hand. The surrounding locations, the Goblin Wood, the lake, the Maiden Wood, the Cailleach’s Bones, even the Broken Mountains, and the larger presence of East Haven, all sit within easy reach, but none of them are truly safe. Each presents a different kind of danger, and witches in particular learn to read those dangers before swords are drawn or spells are cast.

One of the design goals was to ensure that adventure did not always require long journeys or epic quests. Trouble can emerge from a simple trip, a bad coincidence, or being in the wrong place at the wrong time. For witches, danger is often social, spiritual, or situational rather than purely martial. West Haven supports this by placing mystery, conflict, and consequence not just beyond the village gates but with the alleys and buildings of the village as well. It is a place where the world presses close, and where players quickly learn that staying alert matters more than seeking glory.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 10

Day 10 - What’s the First Thing We Should Do?

Day 10-What's the first thing we should do?
When heading out on a trip through the campaign setting (even just the 'starting area'), where should you go first? 

Elowen's Journal

"If you ask me where to start in West Haven, I will always say 'Omar’s.'

Other witches have their own answers. Some go to shrines or groves or straight to the coven halls. I understand that. But Omar’s shop was one of the first places where I felt… normal. He asks questions when you come in, real ones. Not 'what do you want' questions, but 'why do you need it' questions. He listens carefully to the answers, even when they are not very good.

Mostly, though, I love Omar because he wanders around his shop in a fez and bunny slippers, singing dwarven opera at the top of his lungs. I cannot understand a single word of it, but I am certain it is about old battles, lost gold, and making your family proud. He sings while polishing armor, while counting coins, while handing you a coil of rope and telling you not to do anything foolish with it. I think he likes pretending he is not paying attention, but he always knows exactly what you walked out with.

If you are going to leave West Haven, you should stop there first. Not just for supplies. For perspective. Omar reminds you that preparation is an act of care, and that going out into danger does not mean you have to be grim about it."

Designer's Notes

Omar is one of those NPCs who started as a convenience and became indispensable. He is a fourth-generation dwarven goods seller whose shop provides a reliable starting point for adventurers across editions and systems. Out front, he sells mundane gear. Packs, ropes, torches, weapons, armor. Among these is Omar’s Standard, a 50 gp backpack filled with everything a beginning adventurer needs. The contents shift depending on the system being used, but the price and intent never change. It is always useful, always fair, and always exactly what the party forgot they needed.

In the back, Omar deals in magical items. Nothing flashy, nothing careless. His inventory reflects the setting. Practical magic. Old things with stories. Items that have passed through many hands before reaching his shelves. Omar works because he reinforces a core theme of West Haven: preparation matters, context matters, and people matter more than stats. Players trust him quickly, and that trust pays dividends later when choices start to have consequences.

Why does Elowen like Omar? Why should you?

Omar is a bit of absurdity amid an overwhelming number of odd things. Witches, goblins, ghosts, and even devil-people (tieflings) walk the streets. Omar is a weird dwarf with a penchant for fezzes and opera. He is here to make the characters (and maybe the players, too) feel at ease. Because Omar knows happy adventurers spend more money.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 9

Larina will still read your cards

Day 9 - Who’s in Charge?

Day 9-Who's in charge here?
Who are the major movers and shakers in the campaign?

Elowen's Journal

"If you are looking for a throne, you will miss the people who matter.

Larina lives in a small cottage with a large hearth, a kitchen big enough to seat an entire coven, and a soft chair she favors by the fire where she reads late into the night. There is a painting of her and her daughter above the fireplace, I have not met her yet, but she looks exotic. Larina just looks happy. If you did not know her, you would never guess she was one of the most powerful Witch Queens in the world. Esmé once told me she loves Larina dearly, but that she is also the single most terrifying thing she has ever known. I believe her. I know Larina rescued Amaranth from a terrible life. I know she saved Aisling from something like hell. Katrina calls our little circle “Larina’s Misfits,” and I suppose that includes me now.

Katrina herself is no less dangerous, just sharper around the edges. Where Larina is warmth and gravity, Katrina is clarity. Together, they do not rule so much as define. When either of them enters a room, the conversation changes. Not because people are afraid, but because everyone wants to hear what will be said next. 

That is how power works here. It gathers attention. It does not demand it.

There are other leaders, of course. The Lord Mayor and the Witan Council meet to handle the business of the village. Each quarter has its seasonal figure, Lord Summer, Lady Ostra, Lady Mabon, and Lord Winter, who preside over rites and celebrations and quietly settle disputes when the season demands it. But even they listen when witches speak. West Haven is not ruled by crowns or councils alone. It is shaped by those who keep it from unraveling."

Designer Notes

Authority in West Haven is deliberately layered and informal. On paper, the village has a Lord Mayor and a council known as the Witan, composed of respected elders from each quarter. These bodies handle civic matters, trade, disputes, and day-to-day governance. Alongside them exist the seasonal figures tied to the quarters of the town. Lord Summer, Lady Ostra, Lady Mabon, and Lord Winter oversee festivals, rites, and the rhythms that keep the community grounded in the turning year. Their power is cultural and ceremonial, but it is very real.

Above and around all of this sits witch authority, which is not codified but universally acknowledged. Larina is the most powerful witch in the region, with Katrina close behind, but their influence comes from reputation, history, and trust rather than formal titles. Among witches, power is social before it is magical. Elders lead because others listen. Covens follow because they choose to. This structure allows West Haven to function without collapsing into tyranny or chaos. Power here is not about command. It is about presence, memory, and the quiet understanding of who will step forward when things go wrong.

I wanted a place where if the characters asked, "Who is in charge here?" the answer would be, "It depends on what you want."

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 8

Day 8 - Local Peoples & Cultures

Day 8-Tell us about the local peoples and their cultures.
Describe the people and their Species, Nationalities, and other identifying features. 

Elowen's Journal

"When I first arrived in West Haven, I could not stop staring. I had never seen so many different kinds of people in one place before. At home, everyone fit into neat categories. Humans, a few elves, the occasional dwarf passing through. Here, the streets felt like they were unfolding into something larger every time I turned a corner.

Now I do not notice it the same way. They are neighbors. Friends. People who wave when they see me and ask how my parents are doing. There are tieflings who look like devils but have never once been unkind to me. Goblins like Doireann, who splash through puddles and laugh too loudly. Gnomes everywhere, running inns and kitchens and making sure no one leaves hungry. I even know a trolla, Grýlka, who is bigger than most doorways and a lot smarter than she lets on. Esmé says she herself is from another world entirely and came here by magic. Aisling says the same, but she never talks about where she is from, and I have learned that some questions are better left unasked.  Larina even said she spent a month and a half as a fox, but I am not sure whether she was teasing me or telling the truth. Reality is different for witches. 

What still stands out most, though, are the dead. There are more ghosts here than anywhere I have ever seen. No one talks about it, and yet everyone knows. They linger at the edges of crowds, in doorways, near the fountain. The living make room without meaning to. I think West Haven draws in those who do not fit elsewhere, living or not. And somehow, it makes space for all of us."

Designer's Notes

West Haven is intentionally inclusive in both population and tone. While the mechanical roots may lie in AD&D 1st Edition, the social philosophy leans more toward modern sensibilities. This is a place where misfits, outsiders, and the unusual are not just tolerated but expected. If a species is sentient, whether living or dead, there is a place for it here. 

That inclusivity is not accidental. 

Witches are the cultural glue that makes it work. Their presence normalizes difference, manages spiritual overflow, and enforces boundaries without erasing identity. The unusually high number of ghosts in West Haven is a feature, not a bug. The town attracts the lingering because it knows how to live alongside them. In contrast, East Haven's population dynamics are more traditionally oriented, closer to a classic AD&D model. West Haven, by design, lets diversity run wild. It is a place where the strange can call home, and where players are free to explore identity, culture, and belonging without needing justification beyond the simple fact that West Haven exists.

West Haven is by intent and design a place where the strange, the exotic, and the wonderful can call home.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 7

Day 7 - Weather

Day 7-What's the weather like today?
Is there a particular climate or weather that's prominent in the region of the campaign? Does it vary? What is it like and how bad does it get?

Photo by Péter Kövesi

Elowen's Journal

"I have learned that the weather in West Haven is not something you check. It is something you listen to.

I feel the seasons in my bones now. Autumn hums, like the air itself is quietly singing. Spells settle more easily then, and even the ghosts seem more alert, as if they are paying attention again. Winter presses inward. Snow piles high against doors and windows, and everything turns quiet and close. Summer storms tear through the sky with no warning, stripping away weak wards and careless protections as if the land itself is reminding us not to be lazy. The weather here is never just background. It participates.

I love the storms best. Doireann always tries to drag me outside to dance barefoot in the rain, laughing like she is daring the sky to strike her. Most of the time, she can only convince Aisling to join her. I usually watch them laughing outside, from under the eaves, feeling the thunder roll through me anyway. Amaranth complains about the cold from Samhain until nearly Midsummer, while Grýlka thrives in it, claiming the snow makes everything honest. You can barely get Esmé away from her garden in the spring. I think she missed her calling as a druid. Larina is...radiant, resplendent in the autumn. Everyone has a season they belong to. I am still figuring out which one is mine."

Designer's Notes

I never wanted West Haven to exist in a single mood. A place that is always sunny or always bleak becomes flat very quickly, both in fiction and at the table. West Haven needed seasons that mattered. Winters that isolate. Springs that promise too much. Summers that remind you how fragile your preparations are. Autumns that feel heavy with magic and consequence.

From a practical standpoint, I draw inspiration from a mix of sources, including the Haven boxed set, various city supplements like those from RuneQuest, and real-world climate patterns. Sometimes, honestly, I just cheat and use whatever the weather is outside and let that be West Haven’s weather for the day. It keeps the setting grounded and unpredictable. Mechanically and narratively, seasonal shifts affect spellcasting, rituals, and ghost activity, reinforcing the idea that magic in West Haven responds to the world rather than ignoring it. The weather here is not favorable. It is part of play.

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Barking Alien's RPG CAMPAIGN TOUR CHALLENGE! Day 6

Day 6 – Where Shall We Start?

Day 6-Where shall we start?
Where did the campaign begin and/or where should a traveler to the region start their journey through it?

Elowen’s Journal

"The first place I ever went in West Haven was the Drunken Orc Inn, and I still think that tells you everything you need to know about this place. Mother and Father were not impressed, and I think they wanted to turn around and take me home at that moment. 

It is loud. It is crowded. It smells like old ale, wet cloaks, and poor decisions. Voices overlap in ways that make my head ache if I stay too long. And yet, for all that chaos, it feels strangely safe. No spells are cast inside its walls. Not openly, anyway. No grudges are settled there, and no one pretends otherwise. What happens in the Drunken Orc is remembered, and that alone keeps most people careful.

It sits just outside the village proper, along the Western Trade Road, far enough that the laws of West Haven loosen their grip without letting things spiral completely out of control. When I want to feel like I have stepped outside the careful rhythm of covens and quiet streets, this is where I go. Aisling comes with me sometimes. She doesn't like me calling her "Dreamer," but that is what all the ghosts call her. They give her a wide berth and nod in respect to her. I need to find out why. We sit, we listen, we watch strangers who think they are unseen. It is not a safe place, exactly, but it does not threaten the people of West Haven. And that distinction matters more than most travelers realize."

Designer's Notes

The Drunken Orc Inn is a deliberately familiar anchor point. It is the kind of tavern players instantly understand, and that is exactly why it works. By leaning into the cliché rather than avoiding it, the inn becomes a stable social landmark where adventurers, criminals, mercenaries, and outsiders naturally converge.

In practice, the Drunken Orc functions as a neutral zone between West Haven and the wider world. It is commonly run by the local thieves’ guild, who use it to identify marks, recruit talent, and quietly enforce boundaries. Some patrons are fair game. Others are absolutely not. Elowen falls squarely into the latter category. The guild has been warned, directly and without ambiguity, by the Witch Queen herself to leave her untouched. This unspoken protection is why Elowen feels safe there without ever fully knowing why. It is also where adventurers brush up against covens and witch politics without realizing how close they are to real power.

BTW. Ghosts give Aisling respect because, like Elowen, she is half in one world and half in another. Unlike the gentle re-awakening of Elowen, Aisling came back from the dead screaming and covered in blood. Someone else's blood. Her death was tragic, her rebirth was violent, but she wants to live her life to the fullest and is, in fact, a rather sweet and nice girl. She and Elowen are likely to become good friends. Both are good people; they just had terrible things happen to them. 

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