Making A Spooky Haunted House (3.5/Pathfinder/3rd Party)

[atemu1234]

Okay, so I've got a group of low-level adventurers who I've... kind of put through the ringer the last couple of missions. The first mission ended with, of the four of them, three in negative hit points and one at zero. They wound up surviving because the NPC they rescued was retconned happened to have max ranks in heal for a first-level adept. The end of the second mission was okay, and they hit second level. Then, next mission, they wound up nearly dying again, though instead of nearly all of them, only half were reduced to negative hp.

So now I want to design a spooky haunted house, scooby-doo style, for them, with a nobleman trying to convince wandering travellers his 'abandoned' mansion was haunted. I've got a basis for his motivations and details on the mission itself, but as to how to fake a bunch of ghostly stuff I'm at a loss. Is there anything pre-made that can help me? If not, any ideas? They're near-ish to third level now, and I hope to have them at third by the end of the mission, maybe through roleplay xp.

Any advice?

[TheFamilarRaven]

Ghost Sound, Mage Hand and Silent Image Spells might work. As would a Hat of Disguise for your 'monster'.

Having assistants who are in on the scam would be beneficial.

If your bad guy has levels in conjurer wizard he can short range teleport. Which could come in handy for a quick gey away. If you want to replicate those moments where they almost capture the perpetrator

[Coidzor]

Cackling Skull (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/c/cackling-skull/), bonus points if ruled to work with Permanency. It causes Shaken, is a skull, and says something too. I believe that the cackles of multiple ones can push a creature to Frightened, but I can't recall for sure.

Enter Image (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/e/enter-image/) is a great way to spy on people, though you effectively take a -10 Penalty to your Perception checks.

Haunt Shift(Libris Mortis, IIRC, 3.5 at any rate) allows you to put a mindless undead minion that you control into an item as a poltergeist.

If he's willing to get his hands dirty, or has someone to get their hands dirty for him, they could create a few forms of undead via torture or neglect or disease. Such as Attic Whisperers (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/undead/attic-whisperer), Slaymates(Libris Mortis), or Drekevacs (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/undead/drekavac/). I believe Allips can also be made intentionally via torture, though not reliably.

Aura of Doom (http://www.d20pfsrd.com/magic/all-spells/a/aura-of-doom/) on someone in disguise can scare people.