The 24-Hour Eclipse
Adventure Title: The 24-Hour Eclipse
System: Any Horror or Modern setting.
Tone: Supernatural horror with cosmic dread and roadside Americana
Recommended Level: 3–6 (or a short one-shot for any group)
Synopsis
The players find themselves stranded in the middle of nowhere during a total eclipse. The only light for miles comes from a flickering Waffle House sign. The diner is open — it’s always open — but something inside feels… wrong. The coffee’s fresh, the jukebox hums softly, and the staff move in oddly perfect sync. Outside, the moon never moves. The eclipse never ends.
Hook
Option 1 – The Eclipse: While driving late at night, the party’s car breaks down during an unexpected eclipse. GPS fails, phones die, and the only nearby refuge is the glowing Waffle House sign in the distance.
Option 2 – Missing Persons: The group is investigating a string of disappearances connected to a diner off I-85.
Option 3 – Routine Stop: A mundane meal after a long road trip — until they realize the clock hasn’t moved for hours and the same song’s been playing on the jukebox since they arrived.
Setting Description
The Waffle House of the Eclipse stands alone on a desolate stretch of highway.
The sky is locked in twilight — a perfect ring of fire haloing an eternal eclipse.
The sign buzzes faintly; shadows ripple unnaturally around its light.
Inside, the interior is spotless — too spotless — but there’s a faint smell of burnt syrup and ozone.
A handwritten sign reads: “Now Taking Applications”, though no one remembers putting it there.
NPCs
NameRoleDescription
Martha- WaitressCheerful, too cheerful. Repeats the same four phrases in slightly different tones. Doesn’t blink.
Roy - Short-order cookHis face never leaves the grill, but his shadow doesn’t match his movements.
The Trucker - CustomerHunched in a booth, cold coffee untouched. If spoken to, he warns “You gotta leave before the next plate comes out.” Then vanishes.
The Manager??? - The office door is always locked. Sometimes something knocks back from inside.
Encounters & Events
The Loop Begins: After the party eats or sits for more than 10 minutes, time resets. The eclipse outside flickers, and they find themselves back at the front door as if they’d just entered.
Order Up: Each time they order food, a random event occurs:
Pancakes bleed syrup like veins.
Hashbrowns spell out a message in grease: “HELP ME.”
A shadowy version of a player character is seen cooking in the kitchen.
Eclipse Anomaly: Investigating outside reveals that the diner sits on a shimmering circle of asphalt where no sound penetrates. Trying to cross it loops them back to the entrance.
The Application Form: Behind the counter is a job application with one of the player’s names already written on it — in their handwriting.
The Manager Emerges: Near climax, the locked office opens. Inside is a pulsing orb of black light — a rift in reality. The staff begin chanting in reverse speech. The Manager is an avatar of the eclipse itself — a creature feeding on those trapped in its perpetual twilight.
Resolution Paths
Seal the Rift: The players can close the portal using the neon letters from the Waffle House sign, rearranging them to spell a banishment phrase (e.g. “HALO FE WASH”).
Escape the Loop: Discover that one must “clock out” by signing their name on the last page of the application — in their blood — to break free.
Succumb to the Eclipse: If they fail, they become part of the staff. The next travelers to arrive will find new smiling faces behind the counter.
Rewards
Cursed Waffle Iron of Binding: Once per day can trap a creature in a sizzling prison of iron and flame (at great personal risk).
Coffee of Eternal Vigil: Grants advantage on perception checks for 1d4 hours — but prevents sleep for 24 hours.
Grease-Stained Map: Points to other “24-Hour” establishments caught in similar loops.
Aftermath
If the players escape, the world outside is subtly wrong — clocks one hour off, the moon slightly too large, and every diner sign they pass flickers once as they drive by.
