Squire Richard Cabell — The Hound-Haunted Squire
Black hounds circle Cabell’s Devon estate before anyone is dead, which means the legend is not waiting for posterity to begin.
Richard Cabell is adapted into 1454 as a living Devon landholder already entangled with the black-hound curse later generations would turn into legend. He is proud, domineering and feared by tenants, but the supernatural question is deliberately uncertain: are the hounds his punishment, his protectors, another family’s curse or a story criminals are exploiting?
At a Glance
- Role: Devon squire, harsh landholder and centre of a black-hound mystery
- Primary region: Devon
- Status: Alive and actively haunted
- Campaign use: Cursed patron, suspect, regional antagonist, supernatural mystery
- Power: CR 7 in life; hounds increase encounter threat
Game Statistics
5.5e / 2024
Richard Cabell — CR 7 Medium Humanoid; AC 18; HP 88; Str 17, Cha 16. Skills Animal Handling +7, Intimidation +8, Perception +6. Hound Master. Allied supernatural hounds within 30 feet gain +2 damage. Haunted Reputation. A creature hearing the hounds for the first time must make DC 15 Wisdom save or become frightened until end of its next turn. Estate Authority. Advantage on checks to command his own servants and tenants, though fear is not loyalty.
Pathfinder 1e
Richard Cabell — CR 8 human aristocrat 4/fighter 4 with bound-hound supernatural feature; hp 78; AC 22; Intimidate +16, Ride +14, Perception +13.
D&D 3.5e
Richard Cabell — CR 8 human aristocrat 4/fighter 4; hp 66; AC 21; Leadership, Mounted Combat, Iron Will; supernatural hounds treated as separate creatures.
What Is Richard Cabell Doing Right Now?
Black hounds have begun appearing around Cabell’s estate before violent incidents, but no one agrees whether they warn, hunt or cause the bloodshed. Cabell insists enemies are using trained animals to frighten tenants.
A smuggling group is indeed manufacturing some sightings, which makes the genuinely impossible tracks harder to recognise.
Encounters
- Hounds circle the party but refuse to cross a boundary stone.
- Cabell hires investigators while hiding one crucial family document.
- A tenant claims the hounds saved a child rather than attacked anyone.
- Smugglers stage a false haunting on a night when real hounds appear.
Personality, Appearance and Manner
Proud, hard and domineering, but not a pantomime monster. He hates losing control of his estate and fears the possibility that the legend knows something about his family he does not.
He dresses as a prosperous Devon squire and hunter, with practical riding gear and sword.
Relationships and Influence
- Tenants: fear Cabell but possess the best local knowledge.
- Family: protect older documents and stories.
- Smugglers: exploit the hound legend.
- Black hounds: relationship uncertain and central to the mystery.
Equipment and Possessions
- Sword and hunting gear
- Estate keys
- Horse and hounds
- Family papers
- Boundary maps and old tokens
Using This NPC at the Table
Keep the curse ambiguous as long as possible. Cabell can be guilty of cruelty without being responsible for every supernatural event attributed to him.
Adventure Hooks
- The Boundary Stone: hounds will not cross one old marker.
- The False Haunting: smugglers imitate the legend.
- The Family Paper: one document predates Cabell himself.
- The Saving Hound: a beast protects someone unexpectedly.
- The Estate Hunt: Cabell tries to capture a hound alive.
Related Places and People
Sources and Adaptation
Consolidated and adapted into a living 1454 Devon squire already associated with the black-hound legend. Duplicate ghost/fiend mechanics are removed in favour of an ambiguous active curse.