I don't know if it was the inspiration, but I saw a similar idea in a book by Saramago, Death with Interruptions. By the way, the book and your idea are spectacular. I'll definitely save it not only to play, but also to explore the possibility of making a Hexcrawl map (which I think would be perfect) for your adventure.
Viewing post in Death, Imprisoned! jam comments
Joy-in-the-woods is a village, so called because it is surrounded by glades filled with abundant beautiful and aromatic flowers- it benefits from an underground heated river. One day a hot spring will appear. Its sister village, Hope, is fairly mundane by comparison.
The sword is hidden in a cave- I thought a grotto, decorated with religious icons and pictures, sealed away after the saint’s death; I saw the sword as being instrumental in his death as well as in his life, so it was hidden by the clergy because it could be a powerful force for either good or bad.
The lighthouse is on a headland, high up on cliffs. Below, the rocks stretch along the coast just below the surface of the sea and are razor sharp, able to rip the belly of a ship out in a second. There are fortunes to be found on the sea bottom along with countless wrecks.
Hope my take on the locations are interesting, but please flavour them to work in your game. Thanks for asking!