The Blackroad — Four Free Illustrated Roadside Encounters

Four strange road encounters. Choices that continue beyond the crossing.

Download a free, illustrated four-page roadside sample from Saltwraith Press. Each encounter provides a situation, someone who wants help, a concealed complication, practical choices and an aftermath.

Four standalone encounters

• The Toll of Borrowed Memories: a ghostly bridgekeeper offers a temporary memory bargain.

• A Cart Across the Causeway: rising water threatens medicine and evidence of a corrupt levy.

• The Orchard That Walks: thirsty trees seek water through a village’s fields.

• The Scarecrow’s Petition: a field guardian asks for witnesses before its charm is ended.

At the table

Choose any entry that fits the journey. Each includes what the party first sees, NPC motives, alternatives, a delay or escalation procedure and consequences. Every situation can resolve without a fight.

Format: one four-page digital PDF, with one illustrated encounter per page. GM-facing, system-neutral fantasy; use your own RPG and supply combat statistics if needed.

Playable prototype v0.1: ready for review and table testing; not yet table-tested. Writing, design and illustrations were developed with AI assistance.

Free download. No physical book is included.