Nestled along the eastern edge of Belladonna’s central ward, the Ranger Apartment District is a narrow, sloping cobbled lane known colloquially as “Quiver Row.” The street is lined with narrow, stacked stone-and-timber cottages, each no wider than a single wagon but rising up two or three stories like vertical quivers. Shuttered windows, wooden balconies, and laundry lines stretch from roof to roof. Most doors are reinforced with dark oak and bear small carvings of wolves, arrows, or crescent moons—symbols of the Rangers Guild.
A communal message board stands crooked at the end of the lane, filled with local notices, bounty flyers, and scratched-in jokes. Oil lanterns hang from iron arms along the walls, enchanted to flicker gently at night with a blue-tinted flame. The scent of pine tar and roasted game is ever-present.
Children of rangers play with wooden swords in the alley, and neighbors tend rooftop gardens. Despite its charm, there’s a hush about the place after sundown—like the street itself listens for returning boots… or ones that never come back.
A sparse second-story flat with a slanted roof and wide, triangular windows.
Living Space: Bow stands, gear hooks, and a single worn chair by the hearth. A dried pine branch from the Blackpine Forest hangs over the mantel.
Sleeping Nook: A roll-up bedroll, leather-bound journals, and a keepsake locket.
Extras: A small cubby containing childhood drawings and a map torn from the Rangers Guild archive.
Neater and better furnished.
Living Room: A reading desk, archery trophies, and a painting of the Royal Library.
Kitchenette: Stocked with herbs, tea, and jerky.
Bedroom: A journal with pressed petals from his patrols with Kira.
Ground-floor and shadowed by ivy.
Main Room: Dark, dusty, and lined with weapons wrapped in oiled cloth. A cracked mirror and three locked chests dominate the space.
Study: Filled with old war maps, missing ranger reports, and a hidden drawer under the desk.
Back Cellar: Concealed by a trapdoor, it smells of old blood and smoke. Chains hang from the walls—clearly unused, but unsettling.
Medium humanoid (human), neutral
Level: 5 Ranger / 2 Warlock (The Hexblade)
Armor Class: 15
Hit Points: 62
Speed: 30 ft.
STR 12 | DEX 16 | CON 14 | INT 11 | WIS 13 | CHA 16
Skills: Survival +5, Stealth +6, Insight +4, Arcana +3
Saving Throws: Dex +5, Wis +4
Abilities: Hunter’s Mark, Hexblade’s Curse, Dark Whispers (1/day), Ranger’s Eye, Buried Secrets
Once a rising star of the Rangers Guild, Dardick disappeared for three years after a mission into the Shadow Marches. He returned changed—more reclusive, more intense, and harboring a shadowy power he never explained. Whispers suggest he struck a pact with something beneath the marshes to survive.
Despite the Guild’s suspicions, he was quietly reinstated. Dardick now mentors new recruits with a bitter edge and patrols the town’s fringe with religious consistency. He trusts no one, not even himself. His nightmares leave claw marks on the walls. And he speaks the name “Nym’kaleth” in his sleep.
Quest Giver: Dardick Hawk
Summary: Dardick admits he’s been tracking a “Wisp Lantern,” an eldritch lure that draws rangers into the Hollow Pines where none return. He believes it’s a living curse tied to a missing patrol—one of whom was his old lover. He begs the party to destroy it and return a bone ring he once gave her, now worn by the Wisp.
Reward: Bone Ring of Second Breath (revive from 0 HP once/day), Dardick’s Trust (pact sigil lore)
Medium aberration, chaotic evil
AC 14 | HP 75
Immune to nonmagical weapons
Can cast Phantasmal Force and Hypnotic Pattern
Soul-Drain Beam: DC 14 Wis save or 4d10 psychic and Charmed for 1 min
Small shadowy constructs
AC 13 | HP 30
Explode into shadow mist on death (heavily obscures 10ft radius for 1 round)