A look at this blog is probably more than enough to tell you that already. From an early age, I was fascinated by myths, legends, and folklore from around the world, with all the stories, gods, and monsters they entailed, and it's no secret that this canon formed a fundamental part of my inspiration for the Lunar Lands. When thinking of the works that got me into fantasy and proved the most influential on my conception of the fantastic adventure, The Hobbit is definitely one of them, but equally important would be The Odyssey. In fact, in retrospect, it's some of the most OSR literature out there - the narrative is fairly episodic, showcasing a number of interesting locations and encounters, and the protagonist largely gets by through using his wits to exploit the situation to his advantage more so than brute strength. Odysseus would be very good at old-school RPGs! For this week's Friday Encounter, I've gone back to the source to bring one of the most iconic scenes from The Odyssey to the table.
Do note that if players are familiar with The Odyssey, they may be able to figure out how this encounter works. If this will be a problem, or if you believe such meta knowledge will make it harder for your players to meaningfully engage with this encounter, you may want to substitute a different plant for lotuses, or otherwise change the details accordingly.
The Lotus Eaters
This encounter is probably best suited to a wilderness locale - in order to best present the party with an interesting dilemma, I recommend using it somewhere desolate and inhospitable (such as an oasis in the middle of a desert, or on an isolated island) so that the PCs may mistake it for a spot to rest and resupply.
The party should come upon a community of strange people, who seem especially carefree - nothing seems to bother them or threaten them, and they have no worries, remaining blase about everything and showing little drive or any sense of urgency. Their relaxed demeanor may come across as lazy, but they take life slowly and don't worry about the future, nor do they have regrets for the past. Curiously, these people all seem to subsist entirely on a white lotus plant that grows abundantly in the area, and have no other source of food in sight. A DC 10 History check will note that the people appear to be unusually ethnically diverse and speak in a variety of accents - in fact, these people were all once travelers from distant lands who became enthralled by the lotus and lost sight of their goals, deciding to stay here. They do not remember anything about their past lives or even their names; all they know is that the lotus sustains them, it only grows here, and there is nothing worth worrying about beyond the grove. The lotus eaters know, and will explain, that the lotus leaves them feeling well-fed and peaceful, but are genuinely unaware of its other properties.
The lotus eaters ask the PCs what brings them to their land, but regardless of how they answer, they will insist that they are worrying themselves over silly things and that there is no use in holding onto their troubles. They encourage the party to stay a while and rest, offering them lotus to eat.
Should any PCs eat the lotus, they will find a single plant to be as filling and nutritious as a complete meal, and imparts all the benefits of a hero's feast; in addition, it removes all levels of exhaustion (and stress, for those using the rules from Van Richten's Guide to Ravenloft), as it leaves all who consume it feeling a profound sense of peace and calm. However, these properties are addictive. 24 hours after consuming the lotus, a creature must make a DC 15 Wisdom saving throw or be compelled to seek out more - without it, they discover, they cannot find the same sense of serenity no matter how hard they try. As the lotus only grows in one spot, affected PCs will have the urge to return to the grove of the lotus eaters, and will only move in that direction unless forced. You may wish to mark the hex or point this encounter was obtained on, if using such mapping schemes, to make this easier to track. Repeat this save after 24 hours; on a successful save, the creature manages to overcome their compulsion.
If the lotus is consumed multiple days in a row, the effects become more pronounced. Anyone consuming the lotus over a period of several consecutive days must make the Wisdom save every 24 hours, but the DC increases by 5 each day. Additionally, for every failed save after the first, the affected creature begins to lose its memories. Eventually, they will forget their name and what they came here for, and go back to live with the lotus eaters in perpetual bliss. This is best roleplayed, but magic-users affected by the lotus's memory loss will lose one spell slot per day while under the effects of the lotus. For each day a creature goes without consuming the lotus, their memories will return one at a time each day.
The lotus only grows in its grove; attempting to plant its seeds elsewhere will be unsuccessful. If the grove is destroyed, the lotus eaters will become infuriated that their source of sustenance is gone (they do not remember any food elsewhere and believe the lotus to be the only food in the world) and attack whoever is responsible, fighting to the death.
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