The House on Gryphon Hill

Also known as The House on Gryphon Hill, Gryphon Manor is an infamous haunted house of history and legend located within Mordent. It is almost entirely shunned by the living, though it acts vortex drawing in all the ghosts and ethereal creatures whom come near Mordentshire. These unfortunates become subject to abuse, torment, and exploitation of the manor's master, Lord Wilfred Godefroy. Over the years, the manor has become host to innumerable lost and unquiet souls, most of whom suffer on as geists unable to leave the manor without Lord Godefroy's permission.

With a long history of trauma and a level of primordial wrongness puzzling even Godefroy himself, Gryphon Manor holds evil of impressive power. It clocks in as a rank 5 sinkhole of evil.

History (Pre-5th Edition)

Though more recently associated with the Godefroy Family, the House on Gryphon Hill bears a long history of darkness even prior to their arrival in Mordent. In the year 180 BC- long before Mordent became a domain of dread, Jacques Renier brought his family to the region near a then unnamed fishing village that become more affluent under his leadership. As this future Mordentshire began to prosper, Jacques Renier commissioned the construction of Gryphon Manor. However, the house's construction did not go smoothly, as ill luck and mysterious accidents- even causing death of some of the workers. Nonetheless, Renier insisted the building continue and without worry settled in following Gryphon's Manor's completion in the autumn.

Jacques Renier's peace did not last long, as only his family fled the manor in the dead of winter. He may or may not have paid a dear price for his pride- five of his six children eventually manifested lycanthropy as natural wererats. Whatever dark presence lurked within the House on Gryphon Hill may have had something to do with the lycanthropic stain that would haunt the Reniers for centuries to come.

In any case, the misfortune surrounding Gryphon Manor caused the general Mordentish public to shun it forever thereafter, with only the rare foolish noble to try and tame the house. Such efforts were always short-lived, with the evacuation of any such upstarts and their families following soon after settling in. It became said that the house's dark aura could instill delusion and paranoia upon the mind as cycles of inheritance and tragedy passed on through the ages.

Eventually, the House on Gryphon Hill passed into the hands of the Godefroys, whose luck with the house was seemingly different from those from before. The Godefroys achieved greater levels of influence, wealth, and even admiration working closely to the common people. At the same time, the family suffered a decline in numbers, contributed to by periodic irrational desires over power. Although some other Godefroys had earlier married into other families, eventually Lord Wilfred Godefroy became the last heir to carry the Godefroy name, and thus he became the heir to Gryphon Manor.

Doubting any rumors of Gryphon Manor's reputed cursed nature, Godefroy made the place his home and even seemed to enjoy living there. In seeming defiance of the house's baleful nature, Lord Godefroy resided in the house for some time seemingly without incident before marrying Estelle Weathermay in 566 BC. Together they sired a daughter, Lilia Godefroy, two years thereafter but never produced any sons, much to Lord Godefroy's chagrin. Without heir, Godefroy's heart sank further into darkness- for he was a wicked man even prior to coming to Gryphon Manor. Nonetheless, his increasingly bitter nature turned to suspicions that Estelle deliberately worked against him. In 578 BC, Lord Godefroy murdered Estelle along with Lilia, whom had attempted to intervene.

Though Lord Godefroy successfully covered up the crime, it did not go unpunished. The restless spirits of his wife and daughter came back every night to cause him suffering until he took his own life on the New Year's Day of 579 BC. For a time, he managed to escape their wrath by being interred at Heather House- as he instructed so in his will.

Later in 579 BC, the Alchemist arrived in Mordentshire and moved into Gryphon Manor heedless of the public's warnings. In October, the Alchemist's experiments with the Apparatus ushered in a period of disorder and bewilderment, including the seeming arrival of Strahd and Azalin into Mordent. Not much time passed before the Mists claimed Gryphon Hill along with the rest of Mordent. With the departure of Strahd and Azalin, Lord Godefroy became the realm's darklord. With it he gained greatly increased powers but only enjoyed them briefly before discovering the reinstatement of his nightly torture by the hands of his ghostly wife and child.

Aside from his nightly torments, Lord Godefroy became complacent in his ability to rule over his domain unchallenged. As such, his involvement with the living was minimal and mostly passive, his focus centering on the many unfortunate souls trapped in his manor. An attack upon Gryphon Manor in the mid to late 740s BC changed that, so now Lord Godefroy is more actively- if still covertly- taking control over what happens in his domain.

Data from the Ravenloft Catalogue

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		Secrets of the Dread Realms - pp42-43 Ravenloft Third Edition - p129 Domains of Dread - p41 Ravenloft Campaign Setting:Domains and Denizens - pp24-25 Tales of Ravenloft:The Briar at the Window - pp84-98 Realm of Terror - p77
		Gryphon Manor House on Gryphon Hill, The House on Gryphon Hill