A Compilation of all Basic D&D Adventures in Dungeon and Dragon Magazines

Chronological Index (order of organization in the pdf, per bookmarks)

Dungeon #1 (cover)
The Elven Home (#1, 1-4 of 1st-3rd)
The Keep at Koralgesh (#, !-" of 1st-3rd)
The Trou#le $%th &'lv%n (%m#l' (#), !-1* of 1st-3rd)
Tortles of the +urple ,age - (#!, -" of 4th-1*th)
Tortles of the +urple ,age -- (#., -" of 4th-1*th)
The D/%nn%0s 1%ng (#2, 1 of 3rd, elf, solo)
The 3hostsh%p 3am#%t (#2, 4-! of 3rd-!th)
4t the ,pottle +arlor (#1, 1-3 of nd-4th)
5f 6ests and 6at%ons (#13, 3-) of "th-1th)
The (ererats of 1elfren (#14, 4-" of 3rd-!th)
-n +ursu%t of the ,la'er (#1), !-" of !th-2th)
+r%de of the ,7' (#*, 4-! of "th-1th)
The 8ane of Elfs$ood (#1, 4-) of 1)th-1"th)
1an7 4mateurs (#, !-" of 1st-3rd, humano%ds)
The 9%ne'ard 9ales (#3, 4-! of nd-4th)
-n the Dread of 6%ght (#4, )-" of 1st-3rd)
Hrothgar0s 1est%ng +lace (#), 4-! of 4th-.th)
:aravan 3uards (#!, !-" of !th-"th)
Tarf%l0s Tom# (#., )-. of 1*th-14th)
&anden0s &eathoo7s (#", 3-! of 4th-!th)
6%ght of ;ear (#", 1 of 1st)
-sle of the 4##e' (#34, 4-! of 1st-3rd)
The ;ounta%n of Health (#32, 4-! of 1st)
4 (a' $%th (ords (#41, 3-! of 1st-3rd)
1ansom (#4, 4-. of 3rd-)th)
The Hand of 4l-D/amal (#44, 4-! of 2th-1th)
Dovedale (#4!, -3 of 1st-3rd)
Them 4pples (#4", 4-" of 1st-3rd)
The 5#/ect of Des%re (#)*, 4-! of )th-"th)
The (%tch of (%ndcrag (#)1, 4-! of nd-3rd)
Ele<a0s Endeavor (#)3, 4-! of 4th-.th)
1edcap0s 1ampage (#)4, -) of 1st-3rd)

9o'age of the :r%mpshr%ne (#)2, 4-! of 3rd-)th, 4D=D &'stara)

The :reature of 1h'l (Dragon #)), -! of 1st-3rd)
The ,$ord of ?ust%ce (Dragon #2, 4-! of 1st-nd)
A Compilation of all Basic D&D Adventures in Dungeon and Dragon Magazines
Index by Party evel
6%ght of ;ear (#", 1 of 1
st
)
The D/%nn%0s 1%ng (#2, 1 of 3rd, elf, solo)
The ;ounta%n of Health (#32, 4-! of 1st)
The ,$ord of ?ust%ce (Dragon #2, 4-! of 1st-nd)
The Elven Home (#1, 1-4 of 1st-3
rd
)
Dovedale (#4!, -3 of 1st-3rd)
1edcap0s 1ampage (#)4, -) of 1st-3rd)
The :reature of 1h'l (Dragon #)), -! of 1st-3rd)
4 (a' $%th (ords (#41, 3-! of 1st-3rd)
-sle of the 4##e' (#34, 4-! of 1st-3rd)
Them 4pples (#4", 4-" of 1st-3rd)
-n the Dread of 6%ght (#4, )-" of 1st-3rd)
The Keep at Koralgesh (#, !-" of 1st-3rd)
1an7 4mateurs (#, !-" of 1st-3rd, humano%ds)
The Trou#le $%th &'lv%n (%m#l' (#), !-1* of 1st-3rd)
The (%tch of (%ndcrag (#)1, 4-! of nd-3rd)
4t the ,pottle +arlor (#1, 1-3 of nd-4th)
The 9%ne'ard 9ales (#3, 4-! of nd-4th)
9o'age of the :r%mpshr%ne (#)2, 4-! of 3rd-)th, 4D=D &'stara)
1ansom (#4, 4-. of 3rd-)th)
The 3hostsh%p 3am#%t (#2, 4-! of 3rd-!th)
The (ererats of 1elfren (#14, 4-" of 3rd-!th)
&anden0s &eathoo7s (#", 3-! of 4th-!th)
Hrothgar0s 1est%ng +lace (#), 4-! of 4th-.th)
Ele<a0s Endeavor (#)3, 4-! of 4th-.th)
Tortles of the +urple ,age - (#!, -" of 4th-1*th)
Tortles of the +urple ,age -- (#., -" of 4th-1*th)
The 5#/ect of Des%re (#)*, 4-! of )th-"th)
:aravan 3uards (#!, !-" of !th-"th)
-n +ursu%t of the ,la'er (#1), !-" of !th-2th)
5f 6ests and 6at%ons (#13, 3-) of "th-1th)
+r%de of the ,7' (#*, 4-! of "th-1th)
The Hand of 4l-D/amal (#44, 4-! of 2th-1th)
Tarf%l0s Tom# (#., )-. of 1*th-14th)
The 8ane of Elfs$ood (#1, 4-) of 1)th-1"th)
The foIIoving Basic D&D advenlure
can le inserled inlo any canpaign in
vhich characlers lraveI lhrough viIder-
ness areas. The advenlure can aIso le
pIayed as a shorl session. Il is lesl
suiled for 1-4 characlers of 1sl-3rd IeveI,
lhough il can le used as a side lrip for
nosl any IeveI lo reIieve lhe loredon of
a journey lhrough lhe viIderness.
The advenlure slarls as lhe parly is
lraveIing off-road lhrough foresled hiIIs
in lhe earIy aflernoon. The Dungeon
Masler shouId read lhe loxed lexl lo
lhe pIayers or paraphrase il as desired.
The Elven Home
As your parly rounds a lend, you see
a slrange cIusler of unusuaIIy Iarge
lrees on lhe side of a Iov hiII. Huge,
green Ieaves exlend fron gnarIed,
gray lranches, and lhe lree lrunks
are aInosl haIf again as vide and
laII as surrounding lrees. A led of
fine grass dolled vilh faIIen Ieaves
carpels lhe hiIIside, and a visp of
snoke fIoals on lhe vind. Iron
sonevhere ahead cone lhe sounds of
shriII screans and spIashing valer.
THE ELVEN
HOME
BY ANNE GRAY MCCREADY
A Basic D&D
W i l d r e s s
Scenar i o
RegardIess of vhal lhe pIayer charac-
lers nay lhink al firsl, lhey have aclu-
aIIy slunlIed across a secIuded eIven
hone in lhe viIderness. Nolhing is
vrong, lhe sounds cone fron a group of
young eIves pIaying in a nearly pond. If
lhe parly invesligales lhe noises, go lo
lhe seclion leIov on lhe lullIing pooI.
If lhe parly invesligales lhe hiII, il firsl
finds a narrov palh lhal circIes lhe lase
of lhe hiII and Ieads lo lhe source of lhe
vispy snoke.
IoIIoving lhe rough dirl palh lhal
Ieads around lhe hiII, your parly
finds a cIear, coId slrean, shaIIov
and easiIy fordalIe. The slrean fIovs
fron a source vilhin lhe hiII, exiling
lenealh one huge lrees rools. The
snoke anong lhe lrees enanales
fron an hoIe in lhe ground up lhe
sIope fron lhal parlicuIar lree.
The slrean does nol iniliaIIy seen
unusuaI, excepl lhal il fIovs fron
lenealh lhe Iarge lree. Hovever, if lhe
pIayer characlers valch lhe slrean for
Ionger lhan a round, lhey nolice lhal
Iarge lullIes are carried aIong in lhe
running valer. The lullIes conslanlIy
pop vilh a fizzing noise.
The lullIes are fiIIed vilh a gas
38 Issue No. 1
vhich nixes vilh lhe valer al ils
source, deep vilhin lhe hiII. CaIIed
energy gas ly lhe eIves vho Iive in
lhis area, lhe gas causes anyone vho
lrealhes il lo inslanlIy feeI a surge of
cooI adrenaIine rush lhrough his lody.
The eIves have Iearned lo caplure lul-
lIes in lighlIy voven, cIolh sacks kepl
in lhe valer, lhey lhen lrealhe lhe air
lrapped in lhe sacks. The eIves, vho
Iive in a hoIIoved-oul seclion of lhe hiII
lenealh lhe characlers feel, aIso lene-
fil fron lhe gas as lhe underground
slrean surfaces in lhe niddIe of lheir
hone, giving lhen a conslanl suppIy of
lhe gas. The eIves cannol conlroI lhe
suppIy of gas and do nol knov vhere il
cones fron vilhin lhe hiII.
The gas affecls anyone vho lrealhes
il, giving hin exlra energy and vilaIily.
ne deep lrealh of gas adds 1-4 hil
poinls lo lhe sniffers ovn hil poinls and
one poinl lo his slrenglh. This effecl
onIy Iasls for five rounds once lhe char-
acler slops lrealhing lhe gas. A charac-
ler can lenporariIy gain nore hil poinls
lhan his nornaI anounl in lhis nanner,
lul slrenglh scores cannol exceed 18.
Characlers can allenpl lo lag sone of
lhe lullIes, as noled alove, lul lhe gas
lecones dispersed in lhe air and ineffec-
live afler lvo lurns.
Vegelalion groving around lhe source
of lhe slrean has aIso leen affecled ly
lhe gas, vhich is caplured ly lhe rools
of lhe lrees and causes lhen lo grov
exlreneIy Iarge. As noled leIov, lhe
lree over lhe source of lhe slrean is nol
a lrue lree al aII, lul a lreanl (vhich is
avare of lhe parly and is renaining
nolionIess and quiel).
If lhe characlers invesligale lhe
source of lhe snoke, lhey find a circuIar,
1-dianeler opening in lhe ground. The
snoke prevenls lhen fron seeing dovn
lhe hoIe. Any characler vilh infravision
can see a fire lurning al lhe lollon of
lhe shafl. If lhe characlers pour severaI
gaIIons of valer dovn lhe hoIe, read. lhe
foIIoving:
As lhe snoke sulsides, your parly
can easiIy see dovn lhe hoIe lo an
open area aloul 5-6 leIov. Innedi-
aleIy lenealh lhe hoIe is a piIe of
haIf-lurned Iogs and ashes conlained
in a lIack pol. Beside lhe pol is a
snaIIer lIack pol fiIIed vilh Iiquid,
If lhe parly searches lhe lop of lhe hiII
for an enlrance, read lhe foIIoving:
THE ELVEN HOME
Your parly finds no door on lhe lop of
lhe hiII, lul you do discover a cIear
sIal of gIassIike naleriaI enledded
in lhe hiII near lhe snoking hoIe.
The sIal is approxinaleIy 3 x 6.
Through lhis sulslance, you can see
lhal a dveIIing of sone sorl Iies
lenealh, lhe hiIIside, The dveIIing is
Iil ly naluraI Iighl (lhrough lhe
ceiIing gIass). Thick, grayish candIes
can le seen scallered lhroughoul lhe
roon, none of lhen are Iil al
presenl.
n one side of lhe roon is a snaII,
snoolh, paIe vood lalIe surrounded
ly lhree chairs. The chairs are leau-
lifuIIy crafled, apparenlIy nade fron
lhe sane vood as lhe lalIe. Near lhe
fire pol is a fourlh chair. In lhe
soulheaslern corner of lhe roon, nexl
lo lhe lalIe, is a Iarge, curved cali-
nel carved of lhe sane paIe vood.
Bolh calinel doors are cIosed.
The olher side of lhe roon is hid-
den ly a heavy lIankel lhal appears
lo serve as a roon divider. The ceiI-
ing is covered ly a nelvork of
exposed rools fron lhe lrees alove.
Near lhe curlain is a piIe of firevood
and a lalIe on vhich resl severaI
lovIs of dark Iiquid, lerries, and
edilIe Ieaves and rools.
A grass nal sils aIong lhe vaII
near lhe slrean. Nexl lo lhe nal is a
pair of snaII, vorn, Iealher shoes.
The fIoor is covered vilh a Iarger,
round grass nal lhal nearIy reaches
lhe vaIIs. A slrip of lhe nal is cul
avay vhere a spring lullIes up fron
lhe earlh and runs lhrough a hoIe in
lhe vaII near lhe shoes. A piIe of
cIolh sacks Iies ly lhe spring.
If lhe characlers allenpl lo enler lhe
dveIIing ly chipping avay al lhe gIass,
lhey discover lhe naleriaI is exlreneIy,
hard ~ in facl, il has lhe consislency of
sleeI and cannol le penelraled ly ordi-
nary veapons or slrenglh. In addilion,
lhe parly viII le aulonalicaIIy sur-
prised ly a lreanl vho allacks under
lhe assunplion lhal lhe characlers are
lhieves vhich nay, of course, le lrue
enough). The lreanl is lhe lree sland-
ing over lhe source of lhe slrean,
sIighlIy dovnsIope fron lhe skyIighl.
The lreanl has exceplionaI povers
fron ils Iong exposure lo lhe gas in lhe
slrean, if lhe lreanl noves avay fron
lhe area for Ionger lhan haIf an hour,
aII of ils heighlened scores drop lo lhe
given Iover IeveIs. The higher IeveIs
are received once lhe lreanl relurns,
pIanls ilseIf again, and vails for a fuII
day (one lreanl: AC 2, HD 8, hp 45 (64
vilh gas), #AT 2 lranches, Dng 2-12/2-
12 (3-18/3-18 vilh gas), MV 6O', Save
I8, ML 9, AL L).
The lreanl firsl onIy lries lo push
characlers avay fron lhe gIass pane,
doing 1-6/1-6 hp danage lo anyone il
slrikes. Il does lhis reduced danage
onIy if no one slrikes lack al il or dis-
pIays fire. If allacked vilh veapons, lhe
lreanl fighls lack al fuII pover, lul il
vonl Ieave lhe area unIess allacked
vilh fire.
The lreanl has no lreasure. If lhe
characlers nanage lo escape lhe crea-
lure, il does nol pursue lhen off lhe
hiII. The lreanl is an oId friend of lhe
eIves and aII of lhen enjoy lhe lenefils
of lhe unusuaI IocaI gas suppIy.
The characlers nay aIso lry lo find
lhe door vhich is on lhe veslside of lhe
hiII. A rool exlends fron lhe dirl lo
serve as a door handIe. The door ilseIf
requires a check lo Iocale conceaIed
doors lecause il is cIeverIy disguised lo
lIend inlo lhe grassy hiIIside. Il is
aInosl invisilIe fron lhe oulside excepl
for a hairIine lreak in lhe grounds
surface surrounding lhe door.
The sod-covered door sIanls lack vilh
lhe naluraI shape of lhe hiII, and, vhen
open, is onIy 5 high. The ceiIing inside
is onIy 5 high in nosl pIaces. Rools
in lhe ceiIing curI dovn inlo lhe roon
and snake lack inlo lhe ground.
If lhe characlers nanage lo find lhe
door and enler (lhe door is never
Iocked), lhey see lhe sane roon as vas
vieved lhrough lhe skyIighl.
The air inside lhe snaII hone is
lhick vilh vood snoke and lhe sneII
of danp earlh. A naluraI spring
lullIes oul of lhe ground inlo a
snaII pooI leside lhe door, giving off
a fresh, nisly odor lhal fiIIs lhe air.
The air aIso has a pecuIiar cooI linge
lo il lhal is hard lo idenlify, il seens
lo nake one feeI leller jusl ly
lrealhing il.
Anyone lrealhing lhe air in lhe roon
for Ionger lhan one round receives aII
As you slrike lhe gIass for lhe firsl
line, lhe ground runlIes sIighlIy.
Before you can reacl, a fIurry of Ieaves
and lranches descends upon you.
lhe lenefils of lhe gas ~ lul lhe DM
DUNGEON 39
THE ELVEN HOME
shouId nol leII lhe characlers lhis.
Inslead, he shouId secrelIy nole any
The Iiquid in lhe pol ly lhe snoI-
changes lo pIayer characler allrilules
dering fire is aloul enough lo fiII a
and appIy lhen as necessary.
vine skin. The Iiquid is dark and
Iooks lhick.
Behind lhe curlain are lvo sels of
rope hannocks, one pair alove lhe
The curved doors of lhe calinel are
pIain excepl for a snaII carved lor-
der around lhe edge of each door.
olher, on eilher end of lhe roon.
HandIes are carved inlo lhe doors al
They are supporled ly knolly lhe cenler of lhe piece.
vooden poIes vhich are anchored in
lhe ground and lhe ceiIing. A snaII,
foIded lIankel Iies in lhe cenler of
each hannock, and a siIver dagger
The hannocks are vhal lhey appear
sIeep. The Iiquid in lhe pol ly lhe lire is
lo le ~sinpIy lhe pIace vhere lhe eIves
(vorlh 2O gp) is hidden vilhin each
a speciaI eIf lrev. The sveel, dark Iiq-
lIankel.
uid, no slronger lhan leer, has no nagi-
caI properlies. The eIves lrev snaII
pols of il al a line using various lerries
fron nearly lushes. AIlhough lhe lrev
has IillIe effecl on hunan characlers,
eIves-are grealIy effecled ly even snaII
anounls (-2 lo hil for 1-4 hours as a
resuIl of drinking a nug of lhe sluff).
Inside lhe calinel, lhe characlers can
find lhe usuaI array of lIankels, ealing
and vriling ulensiIs, and olher snaII
personaI leIongings. Iour speII looks,
conlaining aII speIIs used ly lhe eIves
vho Iive here (as given leIov), are kepl
lenealh lhe faIse lollon of lhe calinel
(a roII lo delecl secrel doors is required
lo find il). Nole lhal each speII look has
lhe speII rca nagic in addilion lo aII
olher speIIs.
Behind a piIe of lIankels is a vase
aloul 1 high. Ils vhile surface is
cracked and aged. CircIing lhe vase are
lhese vords elched inlo ils surface.
lncn aq is nign|
An nign| is aq
Tnc sun an nccn
Sna|| pass |nis uaq.
The eIves donl knov vhal lhe vril-
ing neans. The vase has leen passed
dovn lhrough lhe generalions for ages,
during lhal line, lhe neaning of lhe
vords vas Iosl. The eIves lhink lhal lhe
vase vas used in sone ancienl eIven
riluaI. If lhe characlers lake lhe vase
oul of lhe eIves hone, il changes coIor
as soon as lrighl sunIighl or noonIighl
hils il. The eIves viII lrade lhe vase
avay, lul lheyII accepl no Iess lhan 1OO
gp or anolher ilen of siniIar vaIue.
If characlers lrade for lhe vase or
sleaI il, lhey discover lhal il changes
coIor each day in naluraI Iighl. The
Iighl of a fire or nagicaI Iighl causes
lhe vase lo lecone vhile again. The
characlers viII discover lhal lhe vase
changes coIor in reguIar nanner, vilh a
differenl coIor each day for seven days
(red, orange, yeIIov, green, lIue, vioIel,
lIack) lefore il legins lhe coIor rolalion
again. InleIIigenl characlers soon dis-
cover lhal lhey can leII lhe day of lhe
veek ly lhe coIor of lhe vase. The vords
engraved inlo lhe surface of lhe vase
renain visilIe lhrough each coIor
change. A lypicaI nerchanl viII luy lhe
vase for 4O-24O gp.
Buried in lhe earlh lenealh lhe snaII
square nal is a Iealher pouch vilh 39
gp, 115 sp, and six gens, each vorlh 2O
gp. No olher coins or gens are in lhe
eIven hone.
40 Issue No. 1
THE ELVEN HOME
The Bubbling Pool
Characlers vho head for lhe source of
lhe shrieks and spIashing valer soon
cone across lhe foIIoving scene:
The slrean vinds ils vay around a
Iov lree-covered hiII for aloul 8O
yards. The shrieks grov Iouder vilh
every slep, vhen suddenIy you find
yourseIves upon a cIear pooI of valer
aloul 8O across. SpIashing aloul lhe
valer are lvo young eIves. SuddenIy,
fron a lree ly lhe pond, anolher
young eIf junps in lhe valer, aInosl
on lop of lhe olher lvo.
If lhe characlers have nol yel
olserved lhe lullIes in lhe slrean,
lhey do so as lhey valch lhe eIves. The
lullIes vhich have nol surfaced nov
lursl in lhe pond vilh a sofl popping
sound.
The eIves are surprised on a roII of 1-
4, unIess lhe characlers have nade a
greal deaI of noise around lhe under-
ground hone or vhiIe approaching lhe
pond. If nol surprised and if lhe parly
hasnl yel arrived al lhe pond, lhe eIves
fIee inlo lhe voods, heading for a
friends hone a niIe avay.
The eIves evenluaIIy nolice lhe char-
aclers valching lhen if lhe parly sin-
pIy slands lhere. They are nonenlariIy
frighlened, lul if lhe parly lakes no
lhrealening aclions, lhe eIves sniIe and
vave shyIy, crouching dovn in lhe
valer so onIy lheir heads shov. If lhe
parly conlains eIves and seens friendIy
enough, lhe svinning eIves can le
laIked oul of lhe valer and viII inlro-
duce lhenseIves as Derrin (naIe), AlIee
(fenaIe), and Yanna (fenaIe). Though
lhe eIves vonl nenlion lhis, a fourlh,
Repo (naIe), is off relrieving a digging
looI lhal olher eIves have lorroved.
Their slalislics (heighlened ly exposure
lo energy gas in lhe pooI) are:
Derrin: AC 7, MV 12O (4O'), L2, hp 8
(12 fron gas), #AT 1, Dng 1-4 (dagger)
+ 2 (fron gas), S 15 (16), I 1O, W 11, D
17, C 12, CH 12, AL L, dagger, c|cc|
nagic, nagic nissi|c
AlIee: AC 8, MV 12O (4O), L3, hp 12
(15 fron gas), #AT 1, Dng 1-4 (dagger)
+ 1 (fron gas), S 12 (13), I 15, W 6, D
14, C 11, CH 14, AL L, dagger, cnarn
pcrscn, s|ccp, |SP
Yanna: AC 6, MV 12O (4O), LI, hp 4
(7 fron gas), #AT 1, Dng 1-4 (dagger), S
9 (1O), 19, W 16, D 18, C 13, CH 1O, AL
N, dagger, snic|, s|ccp
Repo (nol presenl): AC 6, MV 12O If lhe characlers lry lo cul lhe conver-
(4O), L3, hp 14, #AT, Dng 1-8 (Iong- salion off lefore an hour has passed, lhe
svord) + 3, S: 18, I 13, W 11, D 14, C eIves again lecone upsel al lhe charac-
13, CH 12, AL L, Iong svord, Iealher lers rudeness. nIy afler an hour are
arnor, |ign|, nagic nissi|c, intisioi|i|q lhe characlers alIe lo poIileIy excuse
As fev nonslers have ever leen seen lhenseIves. The eIves offer lo Iel lhen
in lhis parl of lhe counlry, fev veapons spend lhe nighl vilh lhen lul are nol
are carried or used. Repo carries his offended if lhe characler refuse.
svord lo inpress his friends, lul he If lhe parly has previousIy ransacked
knovs hov lo use il, loo. Repo viII lhe eIven hone, lhe eIves viII le
relurn lo lhe eIven hone al sunsel, grealIy angered and viII denand lhe
using his intisioi|i|q speII lo surprise relurn of aII sloIen ilens (and are viII-
his friends (and lhe pIayer characlers ~ ing lo fighl lo gel lhen lack, unIess lhe
if lhey are sliII around). parly is olviousIy loo dangerous lo deaI
If lhe pIayer characler parly appears vilh). If lhe parly has enlered lhe eIven
hosliIe, lhe eIves are nol as vuIneralIe hone lul has nol harned anylhing, lhe
as lhey nay appear. Aside fron lheir eIves vonl nind al aII (Lveryone
speIIs, a nunler of sharp nelaI daggers drops in.).
(8) have leen Iefl on lhe lollon of lhe Aloul lvo hours afler lhe parly
cIear pond, and lhese nay le relrieved, arrives on lhe scene, a nunler of
lvo al a line, in a singIe round ly each slirges fIy pasl lhe area in search of
eIf. The daggers are laIanced for lhrov- nourishnenl ~ i.c., Iive leings Iike
ing. The eIves can aIso dive undervaler eIves and hunans. The slirges allack al
for a fuII round each. A snaII underva- once, lul nay le delecled (vilh a sur-
ler cave exisls, onIy 1O square vilh a prise roII) lefore lhey are upon lhe
4 ceiIing, near lhe soulhern edge of lhe parly (lhree slirges: AC 7, HD 1, hp 7,
pond, lhe eIves viII fIee lo lhe cave, 7, 6, #AT 1,,Dng 1-3, MV 3O (1O)/ 18O
vhich has a Iarge air pockel conlinuaIIy (6O), Save I2, ML 9, AL N).
freshened ly lhe oxygenaled gas in lhe If lhe parly heIps lhe eIves fighl off
valer, and viII renain lhere for as Iong lhe slirges, lhe eIves viII le lhe parlys
as necessary lo escape allackers. friends for years lo cone. The eIves are
If lhe eIves are lrealed veII, lhey offer nol crass enough lo acluaIIy offer nale-
lo lake lheir guesls lo lheir under- riaI revards for lheir safely, lul nay le
ground hone, of vhich lhey are quile nore lhan viIIing lo offer free roon and
proud. If lhe characlers decIine lhe loard for severaI days as a resuIl.
eIves offer, lhe snaII leings lecone
ralher offended, saying, See if ve are
nice lo lhe Iikes of your kind again! We
Future events
gel so fev visilors as il is, and lhey
have lo le so haughly! If lhe charac-
lers accepl lhe offer, lhe eIves laIk
aInosl conlinuousIy. The characlers can
hardIy squeeze in a singIe vord. The
eIves are so pIeased lo have visilors,
lhey forgel lheir nanners and nonopo-
Iize lhe conversalion.
The eIves expIain lhal years ago, lheir
anceslors sellIed here lecause of lhe
greal leauly of lhe selling. Through lhe
years, hovever, il has lecone sIighlIy
Iess allraclive lo lhe eIves (lhe lrees
have grovn gnarIed, lhe slrean has
lecone snaIIer ~ aeslhelic concerns
lhal are of greal inporlance lo lhese
Depending upon lhe parlys conducl in
lhis lrief encounler, a nunler of fulure
advenlures and scenarios nay le con-
slrucled. The lhefl of naleriaIs or lhe
deslruclion of lhe eIves properly nay
lring relrilulion as lhe eIves (incIuding
lhe alsenl Repo) lrack dovn lhe guiIly
parlies invoIved. IIayer characler eIves
nay, al sone fulure dale, vish lo sellIe
dovn in lhis area and conslrucl hones
of lheir ovn. The nyslery of lhe coIorfuI
vases origins and purpose renain lo le
resoIved ~ vhich couId Iead lo a higher-
IeveI lask Ialer in lhe canpaign.
leings). They have senl oul expedilions
of eIves lo search for a nore suilalIe
pIace lo Iive, lul have found nolhing lo
lheir Iiking so far. The eIves reveaI lhal
lhere are severaI olher eIf dveIIings in
lhe area, lul decIine lo idenlify lhe
olhers hones in order lo preserve lheir
privacy.
DUNGEON 41
THE KEEP
AT
KORALGESH
BYROBERTB. GIACOMeZZI AND
JONATHAN H. SIMMONS
Buried in fire,
but hardly
dead
Artwork by Ma rk Nelson
CartOgfOphy by Diesel
Robert Oioc omorn ana J onathan S im-
mnnware teachers {or talented and gifted
children in Kdleen, Texas uheir sludf: lIls
intr oduced them t o ( em /allY
Both r'{them enjoy a variety of{il>hing
and IWlllinHspur!s, both reed SF and
funtas;rstories, (/ 1/11 both collect mi nia-
t ure figurE's, Robert is married and ha!!
two ki ll s, twa dURs, WId ru-e pythons:
J onathan has only Olll' dog. apt ly 110 m I' l l
Gobl in.
Th e Keep at Koralgesh is a Basic
game ad vent ure for 68 player charac-
t ers of Ist-Srd level . This dungeon is a
difficul t adventur e for a party made up
only of Let-level cha ra cters. Since thi s
dungeon is not intended few a party
made up solely of players new t o th e
DUXGEONS & DRAGONS'"ga me
system. it is recommended t ha t at least
t wo or three PCf; in t he part y should be
a bove l st level i n experience. Note t he
mappi ng sugge sti ons in " The Shrine of
Kor" if placing thi s advent ure in a
la rger ca mpa ign.
For the Dungeon Master
Foll owi ng are some hi nts to t he OM to
height en t he inter est of t he players . ;';-0
informa tion should be si mply given to
the player cha racters IPCs). Knowledge
should he ea rned by exper ience. As an
exa mple, if a PC picks up a magic
sword, t he should not infor m t he
charact er t hat it gives a +1 to hit and
da mage. Let the PC lind t hat out for
himsel f in t he next melee. It is also
recommended t ha t t he OM ha ve a list of
the PCs' a tt r-i butes and make ul l neces-
sary sa ving t hrows for the PCs, infor m-
ing t hem of any obvious effects.
Likewise, th e DM should describe t he
mons ter.'! encountered - not just name
t hem. For inst ance, a hu man lighter if;
attacked by a hideous, boesrltke hu man
(ghoul) and takes 3 hp damage. The DM
shoul d make th e lighter's sa vi ng throw
VB. pa ralyzat ion a nd inform him of any
negut ive resu lt s.
The OM should also keep t he pe s
infor med of t hose factors in t he environ-
ment t ha t would he readily a va ila ble to
t he senses. such as noises, smells, etc.
Some obvious playe r act ions shou ld be
te mpered wi t h ap propr-i ate saving
t hrows . For exa mple, any foolhardy
acti on, s uch as lea pi ng across a lava
fiss ure with no a ids 01' safety rope,
should requir e the PC to roll his dexter-
ity or less on 3d6 to avoid a fatal fall .
DUNGEON 45
THEKEEP ATKORAl GESH
The DM should use his imaginat ion t o
pict ure t he possible results of player
actions, and take t he necessary steps to
help curb fooli sh acts.
Not e t hat the statistics for hit dice of
monster s ma y have asterisks (*) beside
them. Th e presence of an as terisk indi-
cates t he monster has one OT more spe-
cial abilities, as not ed in t he Du ngeon
Masters Rulebook for the Basic D&D
game.
Infor mati on ava ilable to pl ayer char-
acters is enclosed in boxes; the infor ma-
tion following th e boxed materi al is for
t he DM's use in play i ng this module.
Adventure Background
The legend of Koralgesh is k nown by
many, but few re me mber its days of
glory. Pr ior to t he advent ure. the OM
sh ould famili arize t he players with the
following story, as it is common knowl -
edge in t he area around the Mountains
of Gesh.
Not e: Koralgesh was dest royed 62
years prior to the start of t his adve n-
ture, but it ha s al ready faded into leg
end and myth in t he surroundi ng areas.
The Dl\1 should avoi d giving exact dates
for its destruct ion, but the PCs should
eventually piece together the date of the
Helm's Peak blast.
As ships sailing towards the r ising
sun crossed over the dark waters of
t he Western Sea, t heir crews viewed
with awe the appearance of a great
white fortress embedded like a bright
jewel in t he dark rocks of t he coast of
Oes b. As t he shi ps approached the
Keep, the sh i ning city of Kor algcsh
slowly came into view over t he bon-
zon. Koralgesh see med a sol ace,
granting" safe ha rbor to all who
sailed withi n.
Koral gesh seemed to be t ruly
blessed by her patron Immort al, Kor
t he Su n King, for t he city was a
legend amo ng t he seaports of t he
Wester n Sea. Her riches were un-
counted. her merchant fleet swift ,
and her harbor nearly invulnerable
t o storm or enemy. In addition, t he
great Keep t hat overlooked t he bar-
bor had more t han once repelled
attacks by pirates fool ish enough to
come within range of its cat apults
and ot her engines of war.
It is said that the stone blocks of
t he Keep it self were cut from the
granite walls of t he White Moun -
46Issue No.2
tains and transported to Koralgesh
by the dwar ves of that land. Thei r
ski ll in stonecraft had no equal, a nd
t hey built the Keep into t he very face
ofthe great mountain called Helm's
Pea k, that towere d like an Immort al
itself over the ha rbor.
All went well for Koralgesh for
many years . Her fame as a seaport
spread throughout t he land, a nd her
riches grew ever la rger. Her very
streets were paved in gold, and no
citizen wit hin her walls knew sorrow
or loss.
Th en came the ill-fated day of the
summer solstice when t he face of Kor
s hone acros s t he land in t r iumph
over t he da rkness t hat was Tram, a
chaotic Immortal who opposed hi m.
Upon t h is day, a vast pirate fleet that
followed Tram' s way some how
breached the defenses of Koralgesh
a nd attacked in t he midst of t he
celebration of Kor. Magical fir e and
deat h were brought with them, a nd
ma ny of the city's inhabitants died
without drawing arms. The King of
Kore dgesh rallied hi s t roops, and
they foug ht the invaders in despera-
tion; ma ny heroic deeds were done,
but to no avai l. The defender s of
Koral gesh sold their lives at great
cost to their enemies until all in the
city wer e slain or had fled, save for
those defenders in the Keep above
the city.
What happened next is only conjec-
ture. It is believed t hat the last de-
fenders of t he city appealed to t he
Immor tal Kor hi mselffor vengeance.
If this was so, t hen Kor heard t he
pleas. A deep r umbling sounded
through t he whole of Helm's Pea k
Mountain. For the first ti me in the
memory of man, Hel m's Pea k voiced
it s rage. With a ru shing wind, great
fissures opened in the side of the
mount ain. Smo ke, lava, and choking
as h rained down upon the city. With
a treme ndou s blast , the side of
Helm's Pea k below the Keep burst
out, burying t he ru ined city in fire
and ash. Glowing rivers of lava
wound t heir way to the rolli ng sea to
send great vaporous mount ains tow.
ering into the sky. Finally, t he moun-
t ain sli d back into silence. Lava
cont inued its winding path to the sea
and Koral gesh, jewel of the Wester n
Sea. was no more - and the pirates
who captured that jewel were no
more as well .
Sailor s of t he Western Sea sti ll
claim to catch occasional gli mpses of
t he Keep in t he mist s, hi gh on
Helm's Pe ak, but none venture near
the treacherous waters below it ,
which boil and steam with Kor 's
wrat h to this dav. What secrets t he
Keep holds , it ~ l s to itself al one.
Sfarti ng the Ad venture
The adventurers meet in the town of
Vinyard, located in t he footh ills of t he
Mountains of Oesh. Here t hey rest,
relax, a nd sample some of t he vintage
wines produced by Vinyard's wine mas-
ters. St rangers a re a luxury, and t he
townspeople are eager to goss ip.
The Tavern of t he Golden Vi ne is t he
town's main source of entertainment
and lodgings. Here, t he adventurers
have the opportunity t o question some
of t he townspeople and hopefully gain
informat ion about the mounti ng rumors
that the Keep is still intact. The inn-
keeper is named Fla nn {AC 3; F3; hp 19;
MV 120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg by weapon
type (see below); Save F3; ML 11; AL L;
S 17, 112. W 8, D 16, C 9, CH 14). Flann
is a ret ired figh ter and wears fine cha in
mai l under his tunic. He keeps a mace
+1 under the bar and always wears a
dagger. He is a jovial man but won' t
a bide brawls in hi s tavern. Fla nn al so
knows t he lege nd of Kor algesh and
rumors 19 and 20 (see " Rumors of
Koralgeah"), plus one of the DM's
choice . If Fla nn is questioned. about
Koralgesh, he must be convinced of t he
party's int egr ity before he mentions his
frie nd, Stump, the town's blacksmi t h.
Stump fAC 4; D3; hp 25; MV 30' nO');
NAT 1; Dmg by wea pon type (see below);
Sa ve D3; fI.! L 11; AI.. N; S 18, 1 10, W 11,
D 14, C 16. ell 7) ca n be found at hi s
shop during the day, but is al wavs at
t he Golden Vine in t he eve nings. He
has been kn own to drink to excess and,
whe n in this befud dled state, to chal-
lenge other patrons of t he tavern to a
game of darts. If he loses, he becomes
sull en and refuses to talk to his oppo-
nent . The only way to regain his favor
is to set him up wi th another mug of ale
and lose t he next match. St ump is a
dwarf who wears leather armor and has
a wooden right leg, t he origi nal having
been lost to a dragon. He al ways carrie s
his blacksmit h's hammer (t reat as a war
hammer ) a nd regards Fla nn as one of
his only friends.
Stump's father, Banduron , was t he
bl acksmith to the King of Kor ulgesh,
and Stump won 't hesitate to brag about
it if he has had too much to drink. He
only agrees to tell the part y how to get
into t he Keep of Koralgesh if they
swear to bring him the gr eat ha mmer of
hi s father in r et urn (see area 10. Level
Two). He wears an amulet in the sha pe
of a coin t hat was give n him by his
father; the amulet has a picture of t he
Shrine of KaT (see below) on one side
and bears the following i nscri pti on on
its back:
In valley east ofgreat Helm's Peak,
if Koralgesh is what you seek,
Stand close and face the Shrine ofKar
ifyou would find the only door
In morning light of longest day
ifKor wou ld send you on yo ur way:
Int erestingly enough. t he summe r
solsti ce (the longest day of the year) is
only a week away, as St ump points out
to t he PCs. St ump has not visited the
Shrine in many years, however, and he
has never looked for or foun d the "only
door: '
Rumors 01 Kor al gesh
If the PCs make an effort to lea rn more
about Koralgesh, t he DM may roll Id20
for one or more r umors per indivi dual,
depending upon the size of the pa rty.
Duplication is allowed only when all
choices ha ve been exhaust ed. The DM is
fr ee to add more rumors or de lete from
the provided ones.
1. A horri ble cr eat ure has been prey-
ing upon t he cr ews of shi ps tha t vent ure
too close to t he mists around Hel m's
Peak. It is called a tyrannabyss (ty RAN
a biej, the t error from the deep. (True)
2. The King of Kor al gesh is said to
have kept a great dragon for his prot ee-
tion. (Al most true; see area 15, Level
Three , fir st floor )
3. The Keep is haunted by its dead.
(Tr ue )
4. It is sai d t hat anyone who stands in
the li ght of the sun in the Temple of Kor
will be cured of all illnesses. (Generally
true; see area 45, Level Three)
5. Foul creat ures have taken up reel.
dcnce in t he Keep. CI'rue)
6. The streets of Koral gesh were
pa ved in gold. (False)
7. Ships that have entered the mist s of
Helm's Peak have never been seen
again. <Unrelated; small, volca nic-t ype
eruptions and sha rp rocks have clai med
a few)
8. An army of orcs has sworn al le-
giance to an evil wizard in the rui ns of
t he cit y. (False)
9. The Shri ne of Kor still overlooks
the valley east of Helm's Pea k. (Tr ue,
but no one goes nea r it now)
10. Sheep have been lost in the Moun-
tains of Gesh, and only th eir partially
devoured remains have been foun d.
(Unrelated; predator s abound here)
t r . Helm's Peak is cursed by the Im-
mortals. (False; it is merely a dormant
volcano)
12. Three shephe rds hav e gone in
search of st rays s nd never returned.
(Unrelated: see rumor 110
13. A r aving sailor was found adrift at
sea, claiming he had been to a great
fortress in the mi st s. He found t hree
pearls the size of robi n' s eggs before he
was dr iven off by a grea t sl uglike beast.
(True, but the sa ilor is dead now)
14. No one vi sits the val ley of Kor
because she pherds hav e seen a huge
shadowy creature prowli ng there on
moonlit nights. (False; someo ne made
up t his story for fun)
15. Bright li ghts ca n be seen at the
top of Helm's Peak, at which time
strange creat ur es appear in t he ai r
around t he crest of the mountain.
(False; someone had a drunken visio n)
16. He who find s t he Shield of Kor,
lost in t he Keep, become s invincible in
battle. (False; no such item exis ts,
though magical shiel ds exist in t he
Keep)
17. A dragon beari ng t he ma r k of Kor
is said t o dwell in the Mountains of
Oesh. The beast is said to judge all
whom it meets. (False; der ived from
rumor 12)
18. An evil wizard named Landau now
rules the Keep. (fal se, t hough it was
deri ved from actual hist ory; see area 29,
Level Th ree , second floor)
19. The t rea su res of Kor algesh have
never been found, and t he Keep is
thought to be t heir home."'* (Tr ue)
20. The vill age smi t hy claims his
father was t he bl acksmit h of t he Kin g
of Kor algesh. (True)
Should be known to the party.
The Shri ne of Kor
Following Stump's directi ons to the
Shrine of Kor, the part y may easily find
t he Shr ine of Kor. The DM may crea te a
map of t he wilderness region between
Vinyard a nd the coas t, placing the
Mountain of Gesh parall el t o the coast
THEKEEPATKORALGESH
such t hat t he ruins of Kor algesh and
t he Keep a re on the sea wa rd side of the
r an ge, and Vinyard and the Shri ne of
Kor a re on the other. The Shr ine is 45
mi les from Vinyard; the forced march
r ul es in t he Expert ru le book (pages 20
21) may prove usefu l. Remember that a
week remain s before the summer
solstice occurs.
No wilderness encounters are met on
the way to t he Sh rine , other t ha n the
following (at the DM's di scret ion).
Roll Encounter
1-2 Furti ve movemen ts along t he
horizon that appear to be fol-
lowing t he pa rty
3 Partially devoured remains of
sheep (wolf t racks nearby)
4 Glint of sunlig ht off metal in
t he distance
5 Skel etal remains of three men,
shepherd's staffs nearby (as
well as wolf t racks)
6 Kobold encou nt er in t he Valley
of t he Shrine (seve n kobolds:
AC 7; HD 112; hp 4, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2,
1; MV 90' (30'); 1AT 1; Dmg by
weapon type (short swor ds and
shor t bows) - 1; Sav e normal
ma n; ML 6; AL C; 324 cp eac h)
As you re ach t he eastern side or t he
vall ey, you see a lush, green expanse
of tall grasses and flowering shrubs.
The white granite of t he Shrine
stands out sha rply from the dark
rock of Helm's Peak on t he far west-
ern side of the vall ey. The r agged
peaks of the Mountai ns of Gesh ri se
into t he sky to your left . As you nea r
the Sh rine, you notice its immense
pill ars with their encircli ng vines of
bri gh t flowers. Within t he Shri ne is
a great stat ue of the Sun King; Kor.
His arms are rai sed above hi s he ad,
a nd he holds an immense amber ge m
in hi s hands .
On the morning of the summer sol-
stice , t he longest day of the year, t he
party u ~ be near en ough to t he
Shrine to see t he stat ue ofKor at sun-
r ise. The Shrine is open to t he eleme nts
but has weathered t hem well.
The amber gem cannot be damaged 01"
removed from t he st at ue. Anyone touc h-
ing it rece ives an elect ri cal sh ock for 13
hp da mage.
DUNGEON 47
THEKEEPATKORAl GESH
As dawn a pproaches, the eastern
horiz on becomes bright er and
brighter. The morni ng sun can be
seen r ising in the not ch of a dista nt
mountain ; its rays crawl a cross t he
valley floor and eventually ill umi-
nate the interi or orthe Shri ne. As
you watch, the sun's ray st rikes t he
gem in the hands of K OT, which glows
brilliantly. A new la nce of bri ght
light is emi tted from t he jewel to
str ike the second pillar from the
north.
Both t he wall to the west and the wall
t o t he south have a secr et door, detect -
able on a roll of I on Id6 (12 for elves
and dwarves). If t he party is ine xper i-
You wa lk west alo ng the corridor,
stepping wa r ily around rubble t hat
has a ppare ntly fallen from t he ceil-
ing. You a re occas ionall y sta rt led by
ra ts as t hey scurry from the l ight
into hol es in the walls. The t unnel
seems to go on endlessly, but your
light fi nally reveals a blank wall
before you.
l evel One
Si nce the fall of Kcrejgesh, various
cr eatures have made t heir way inside
the Keep by entering t he part overlook-
ing the sea. through local caves and
nat ura l tunnels. and through t he secret
door in the Shr ine of Kor. This assort-
me nt of monsters found wi thi n t he
Keep's upper level is descr ibed below.
Roll Id6 every other turn. A result of 1
indicates a wand er ing monster en-
counter on the next turn. 'Ib det ermine
t he type of encounter, roll ld4 and
consult t he table below.
Ro ll Encounte r
1 16 orcs (AC 6, HD 1; hp 8, 7, 6,
6,4,4; MV 120 ' (40' ); IIAT I ,
Dmg by weapon type (short
sword); Save F1; ML 8; AL C; 3-
24 cp each)
2 25 lizard men (AC 5; HD 2 +
1; hp 9, 8, 7, 6, 5; MV 60' (20');
IIAT 1; Dmg by wea pon type
(club); Save F2; ML 12; AL N; 4
gems, total va lue 700 gp)
3 l ogre (AC5; HD 4 + 1;hp 16;
MV 90' (20' ); IIAT 1; Dmg by
weapon t ype (club) + 2; Save
F4; ML 10; AL C; 70 gp i n sack)
4 Noxious fumes issue forth from
lava fissures, ca us ing dizziness
for - I " t o hi t" for a ll creat ur es
for t wo tur ns.
Lava fissu r es : These narrow fissures
are about 30' deep. Slow movin g cur-
re nts of la va flow t hrough them, casting
a fai nt red glow t hroughout t he ar ea
imme diately around the fissure. They
CRn be crossed by bridging them with
wooden planks or some simi lar device,
or by jumping across t hem. Any PCs
attempti ng t o leap across must roll
their dext erity or less to succee d. Fail -
ure means a 30' drop int o the lava and
their deaths.
Nort h
The ladder descends 20' to a corri dor
hewn from t he rock; t he corri dor
disapp ears into t he da rk towards t he
west . An iron lever is embedded in
t he rock at t he foot of t he ladder.
Cobwebs a re abundant a nd the air
sme lls sta le and earthy.
FRONT VI EW
SHRINE OF
KOR
Debr is lit ters t he floor, and rats chi t-
ter from t he darkness t hroughout the
tunnel. The lever controls t he secret
door in t he pillar above. More footpri nts
may be foun d about the base of t he
ladder - pri nts of all size and shapes.
Ceiling height on t his level is varia-
ble. from 8' to 11' a t vario us places,
unless ot herwise st ated. The wall s are
rough a nd dry, unless ot her wise stated.
This level appear s to have bee n crudely
carved , though by whom is a myst ery.
If anyone takes t he ti me to inspect the
floor of t he Shr ine, a n occasional foot .
print is revea led. Nothi ng can be t old of
what manner of cr eature made t he
prints, however. The prints a re act ually
t hose of orcs and ot her cre atures comi ng
a nd going from t he depths of t he Shrine
over t he last few years.

South
,I
)
i. I
I
.
1 square = 10'

s/
Inspect ion of t he pi\l ar, especially
when t he li ght fir st stri kes it , r eveals a
small depression. If presse d, a door in
t he pillar rot ates open, re vealing an
iron rung ladder t hat disa ppears into
the depths. It is necessary to strip away
the vine/ encircl ing the pillar to gai n
access. If t he PCs fail t o locate t he t rig-
ger mechanism for the secret door
wit hin t hree minutes, they can inspect
the pi lla r and locate t he door on a roll of
Ion Id6, elves a nd dwa rve s on 1-2 on
Id6. Torches or lanterns are req uired for
the und er gr ound journey.
South
48Issue No.2
enced or lacks magic weapons, t he DM
may prompt t hem towar d th e south wall
first . Each door is operated by a lever
concealed behind a loose stone in the
wa ll next to each door. The levers move
hori zonta lly: left to open, right t o close.
The sout h door opens into a 10' cubicle
t hat contains old provisions (now use-
less), a sui t of plate mail armor + I,
s word + 1, mace + 1, and sh ield + 1. The
shield has a pale-blue upper hal f with a
sun r ising from the dark blue sea of it s
lower half. A pack cont ai ns 20 gp and
one healing potion. The wes t door opens
int o t he lowest level of the Keep .
1. Wine Ce ll a r
Thi s room smells fai ntly sulfurous,
and it contains eight immense
wooden barrel s. The wall s, floor. and
ceil i ng appear to be ca rved from
native rock.
Four bodies lie on the floor in the
southwest corner of th e room. Thr ee a re
t he remains of orcs, whil e one is huma n.
Their weapons are pit t ed and useless ,
and the human still gr asps t he broken
hilt of a sword. Combined t rea sure on
the bodies totals 57 cp, 9 s p. and 5 gp o
The sout hwes t barrel has it s western
side knocked out and is now t he la ir of a
crab spider (AC 7; HD 2*; hp 9; MV 120'
(40'); 'AT 1 bit e: Dmg 1-8 + poi son;
Save Fl; ML 7: AL N). The spi der en-
tered one day when the secret door in
t he Sh ri ne wa s left open, and has fed
itself on local monsters ever since .
A secret door is concealed in t he
northwest cor ner of t he room. It opens
into a 10' cubicle with a cent ral , ra ised
pede stal. In it a re four recessed cha m-
bel'S wit h four sma ll balls of colored
cryst a l. By placing a colored sphere in
the cup at the center of the pedestal, the
room fun ctions as an elevator. Red t akes
the room to Level One, yellow t o Level
Two, green to Level Three: First Floor,
and blue to Level Three: Second Floor.
It takes one round (minut e) to travel
one floor.
2. Mud Pool,
This chamber's 0 001' has a th ick coat
of slick mud, sloping down t o a sl imy
pool at the center of t he room. A thin
film of water covers the mud pool.
an d t he odor is most foul.
Th ose ve nt uri ng within 5' of t he pool
must roll t hei r dexterity or less, or lose
their footing and slide into the pool. If
this occurs, a ll wandering monster roll s
increase to 1-2 on a Id6, untiol the
smell y mud is cleaned off. Th e mud has
t he advantage of drawing venom, if
applied soon after t he i nju ry (allows for
second save vs. poison if applied one
round a fter a poisonous bite ).
3. Ore's r oom.
This room is filthy a nd unkept. Dirty
bl ankets a nd foul smelli ng clot hi ng
are piled t oward th e nort h wall. In
the room are six ugl y, humanlike
creatures wh o scra mble for t heir
weapons as they become a ware of the
party.
Six or cs are present CAC 6; HD 1; hp 8,
7,4,4,3, 3; ~ 120' (40'); /AT 1; Dmg
by weapon type (shor t swordI; Save FI;
ML 8 0 1' 6; AL C; 150 sp in leather bag,
one gold chain worth 25 gp and one
healingt poti on ). The leader of this band
is named Grirner, having 8 hp and +1
t o all damage. He wears t he gold cha in
THE KEEP AT KORAlGESH
and carries t he potion in a crude pouch
on his belt. lfhe is killed, b'TOUP morale
drops from 8 to 6. Hiding: un der t he pile
of bla nket s is Teutung, a l-hp ore. He
has a split personality and const ant ly
argues with himse lf. One personali t y is
a br aggart and bu lly, whil e t he other is
a wh ining coward. He is fam il iar wit h
t he lower level a nd ca n be of use to the
party. He knows of the venom dr a ..... ing
abili ty of t he mud in room 2, but won 't
advise the party of its benefi t s unless
bu ll ied into it. He is sly and treacher-
OUS, and the part y that heeds all of his
advice had best be wa ry i ndeed. He will
lead t he m into t raps or encounters in
his effort s to escape them and run away
at the firs t opportunity to do so sufcly.
4. Storeroom.
Th e room is a jumble of overturned
boxes a nd barrels. Th e barrels t hat
are sti ll in t act cont a in oil. water;
vinegar, a nd torches. A small a lcove
i n t he sout hwest corner of the cham-
bel' contains a number of badly dete-
r iorat ed sheet s of leather.
DUNGEON 49
THE KEEPATKORAlGESH
LEVEL ONE 30' up to Level Two
A nest of' fbur giant ce ntipedes (AC 9;
HD '12; hp 3, 3, 2, 2; MV 60' (20' ): fiAT 1;
Dmg poisonous bite; Save normal man;
ML 7; AL N) li es under t he leather in
t he alcove. Bitten characters must save
vs. poison or become violently ill for 10
days. They ca n move only at half-speed
and ca nnot perform any other physical
act ion.
5. Ocean Pool.
The corr idor opens out onto a broad
expanse of cl ea n sand tha t s lopes
gent ly down to lapping water. The
pool occup ies much of' the chamber,
an d a st rongly built wooden box rest s
in the shallow water near the shore.
Bl urred foot prints lead int o t he
wat er.
A tri p wire is conceal ed in the sand
that drops a weight ed 10'-square net on
any character that triggers it. Each
charact er has a 50% cha nce of t r igger.
ing t he t rap. Once t he wire is tripped,
three li zard men (AC 5; HD 2 + 1; hp
12,10,10; MV 60' (20'); (fAT1; Dmg by
50 Issue NO.2
weapon ty pe (d ub ) + 1; Save F2; ML
12; AL N ) emer ge from t he water one
round lat er a nd attempt t o ca pt ure or
kill the party. Each lizard man has a
belt pouch cont ai ning 2 20 gpo
6. La va Pit .
The room has a charred smell to it .
Along th e walls are a number of
empty shel ves whose lower portions
are scorched and blackened. A shut
cabinet hangs on t he sout hwest wa ll.
A charred rept ili a n ske leton, of
which the bones are missing down
from its knees, lies on t he floor.
The crusty black floor is actually a
ha rdened sheet ofl ava over a molten
pool. Each PC has a 1 on Id6 chance of
breaking through t he cr us t if t hey ven-
t ure out onto the floor a lone. The
chances of breaking t hrou gh t he la va
crust increase t o 13 on Id6 if more t ha n
one PC crosses the floor at a time. If
t his occurs, the PC invol ved suffer 5-20
hp damage per round. A full two t urns
is needed to clean the ha rdened lava
from a rmor, et c. The ca binet contains
two vi a ls of healing pot ion.
7. Rat La ir.
The room sme lls musty a nd a lar ge
pile of refuse lies in the sou t hwest
corner. Furtive movements around
the refuse pile can be seen as you
enter, but th ey stop immedia te ly,
Here, 18 normal rat s (AC 9; 1 hp each;
MV 60' (20'); #AT 1 bite/pack; Dmg 1-6
+ disease; Save normal man; ML 5; AL
N ) have made their lair in t he refuse
pile. They won't attack th e party unless
their la ir is disturbed. They fear a nd
avoid fire if possible. If they do attack,
t hey do so in three packs of si x rats
each. PCs bitten have a l i n20 chance
of being infect ed, save vs . poison a l-
lowed (if i nfect ed, xp val ue of rat be-
comes 6 instead of 5). If the saving
t hrow fail s, t he vict im may die in 1-6
days (l in 4 chance), ot herwise becom-
ing sick for one month an d unable to
adventure.
8. Alcove. Th e chamber is empty,
except for the skelet a l remains of a
human in rusted armor. The body has
evidentl y been ra nsacked, and the third
finger of its r ight hand is missing.
THEKEEPATKORAlGESH
9. Pool of Seeing.
The heavy wooden door is padl ocked,
as well as being locked, a nd a large .
orna te L is bra nded into the door.
The room is large and spacious. The
odor of unwashed clot hi ng a nd bodi es
is st rongly evi dent . There a re 10
sleeping pallets along the north wall ,
a nd near the east wall is a charcoal
brazier a nd its cooking implemen ts .
Bags of assor ted material s scavenged
from the dungeon are cast ca re lessly
a bout.
Once the door is opened, a small
chamber is revealed. In t he center of the
room is an or nate marble pool. Its wa-
ters are clear and sweet smelling. As
the party looks into t he pool, its s urface
becomes cloudy and an image forms on
it s surface. The pool shows one of the 10
listed rooms below and changes its
image to a not her if t he wat ers are di s-
t urbed. Th is ca n be done for a total of
three times per day. The OM determine s
the room by choice or by r olling I dl 0.
th en cons ult ing the followin g table .
As the pes t ravel down t he corri dor
leading to thi s room, they notice water
seeping slowly from th e wall s, As t he
corridor's slope increases a t t he poi nt
marked T, each PC must roll his dexter-
ity or less to avoid sli pping and falli ng.
Any PC who doesn 't make hi s roll sl ides
t he rest of t he way down the slope into
the pool. Dexter ity checks a re mad e
every 10' unti l the part y is safely in t he
room, The slide t rap causes no damage,
but cau ses t he first person that fall s to
pl ummet into t he pool wit h a resound -
ing splash. When this occurs, a portion
of the west wall coll apses into t he water,
sounding very much l ike a la rge body of
some kind . Torches carried by t he par ty
members that slide into the pool are
ext inguishe d.
A number ofl a rge blind fish swim in
t he pool, and eac h PC has a 13 cha nce
on a Id6 of having t he m bump or slide
past hi s legs per round t ha t he is in t he
pool. PCs must check for dexterity as
they leave this room 3S well . The r ubble
at the center of the pool conceals a r up-
t ured wcoden ches t containing 537 gp of
mixed coi ns and gems. The body wears
a ring ofprotection +1, and a rope of
cli mbing lays nearby. Under t he body is
a bone scroll case wit h a scroll bear ing
one first- level magic-user spe ll ,
ueturi loquiem:
Level Two
Roll Id6 eve ry ot her turn; a result of 1
indicates a wa nder ing monster en-
counter on t he next t urn. A result of2
or 3 ha s a specia l effect that takes place
when t he next door is opened by the
part y. Roll 1d6 and compare t he result s
wit h th e foll owing tabl e.
Roll Encou nter
1 l ogre (AC 5; HD4 + l ;hp16;
MV 90' (30'); NAT I ; Omg by
club, Id4 + 2; Save 1"4; ML 10;
AL C; 70 gp in sack ). Note :
re roll if ogre ha s already been
kill ed in Level l,
2 8 ske letons {AC 7; HD 1; hp 8.
8. 6,6, 4, 4,2,2; MV 60'
(20');I AT I ; Dmg 3 by short
sword Id6, 5 by club Id4; Save
Fl ; )l L 12; At CJ; all have
broken manacl es on t he ir
wris ts.
3 1 carrion cr awler (AC 7; HO 3
+ I "; hp 16; MV 120' (40'); NAT
8; Dmg paralysis; Save F2; ML
9;ALN)
The ent ire floor of the room is cov-
ered wit h a pool of da rk water 3'
deep. A small island of ru bble whi ch
fell from t he ceiling occupies the
center of t he pool. A skeletal arm can
be seen protruding from the r ubble.
Rusted r emai ns of iron cages are
scat tered a bout. Some are occupied
by skeleto ns of great cats and apes,
whil e ot he rs have had t heir doors
wrenched off and are empty.
11. Shrieker Room.
13. Besti a r y.
The room has a musty smell, and t he
floor is covered wit h fungi a nd mush-
rooms. Five large mushrooms are
scattered around the room.
12. Bat Chamber.
Suspended in t he corr idor between
room 12 and t he Keep proper is an
almost-i n vis ible mi st net used by the
orcs to trap bats for food. The cha mber
itself is swa rming with them. 1100 bats
(AC 6; HD 114; 1 hp each; MV 120' (40' );
NAT confus ion; Dmg nil; Sav e normal
ma n; ML 6; At N). At least 10 bats are
required. to confuse one party member.
Those PCs so at tacked suffer a -2 pen-
alty to t hei r "to hit" roll s a nd sa ving
throws, a nd cannot cast spells. Normal
bats must check morale each round
unl ess summoned or cont rolled.
The mi st net is woven of ext remely
strong fibers that are so thin eve n bat
rada r cannot detect them. The net is 5'
square and ha s no encumbrance. It is
not truly magical.
Th e corridor across the fissure ha s
sever al bats appare ntly sus pended in
midai r. Their t hrashing and chit ter-
ing fails to free them from their
predicament . and t he ir efforts in-
crease as th e lights of the party draw
nearer.
The five large mu shrooms are shr-iek-
ers (AC 7; HD 3; hp 17, 14, 12, 11. 10;
MV g' (3' ); ' AT see below; Omg nil ;
Save F2; ML 12; AL N). Shri ekers react
to light within 60' and movement
wit hin 30' by emitting a piercing shriek
which lasts from 13 rounds. DM rolls
I d6; any result of 46 ind icates a wan-
der ing monster investig ates t he noise
and arrives in 212 rounds.
Roll Room
6 Lvi 3. Rm 23
7 Lvi 3, Rm 29
8 LvI 3. Rm 44
9 Lv13.Rm45
10 Lv1 3. Rm 54
Roll Room
1 Lvl 2,Rm t
2 Lvi 2. Rm 10
3 Lvi 2. Rm 16
4 Lv1 3,Rm 3
5 Lvi 3. Rm 15
10. Ore Lair.
Th is is the lair of 10 orcs (AC 6; HD 1;
hp 8, 6, 6, 5, 5 (males), and 4, 4, 4, 4, 4
(female s); MV 120' (40') ; NAT 1; Dmg by
wea pon (mal es use short swords , fe
ma les use clubs); Save Fl ; ML 8 or 6;
AL C), The leader, Gronk, has 8 hp, a
shield +1, one pot ion of invisibility, a nd
+ 1 to his damage roll s, He dri nks the
poti on himself if he feels t he situa t ion
warrants it. If invisible when he at-
tac ks , he gai ns +2 on his " to hit" roll
and immediately becomes visibl e. One
of t he eight bags contains 173 gp, and
752 sp, while another contains di rty
clothing and a small sack with six fine
gems totalli ng 520 gp value inside. The
rest contain moldy food, assorted n-i n-
kets, a nd junk of no va lue.
DUNGEON 51
THE KEEP ATKORAlGESH
20' up to Level Three, Floor I LEVEL TWO
Altar with KGI' I t.at ue c::::::J
StIItU0 @
4 2 t roglodytes (AC 5; HD 2"; hp
10, 8; MV 120 ' (40'); /f AT 3, 2
c1aws/ l bi te; D 1-4/14/14; Save
F2; ML 9; AL Cl. Note: PCs
mus t sa ve V i>. poison or suffer
- 2 to their hit roll s. The troga
lair in area 3, t his floor.
5 1 tara ntella (AC 5; HD 4*; hp
15; MV 120' (40'); IIAT 1 bite;
Dmg 18 + poison; Save F2;
ML 8;ALNl
6 2 ghouls CAG 6; HD 2*; hp 11,
6; MV 90' (30'); KAT 2 cJawst l
bite; D 1311 3113 + paralyza -
tio n; Save F2 ; ML 9; AL Cl.
The ghouls lair in room 5.
A result of " 2" on a wandering mono
ster roll ca uses a chilling wind to rush
out through the ne xt door that is
opened. It blows out all torches carri ed,
but i t has no ot he r harmful effects . A
result of "3" on a wa nderi ng monster
roll causes a hot wind t o rush out
through t he ne xt door t hat is opened . It
ca uses all iron based met a ls to glow
with an a mber light, t oo weak to use for
light. It has no har mful effects and
si mply ser ves t o make t he party more
visi ble . It also blows out all t orch es
carried. The glow lasts 3 t urns or until
canceled by t he chill i ng wi nd.
52 Issue No.2
The ceili ng heigh t for thi s level is 10',
unless ot herwi se stated. Ceilings a re
perfectl y flat, ofte n covered wi th pa t -
terned geometric designs. All of t he
archi tecture dates from the age of
Koral gesh.
1. Dungeon.
Two rows of six cel ls bord er a 10'-
wide corridor t hat t ravels the lengt h
of t he room. Several cells ha ve their
door s ripped from t heir hinges. Each
of t he ot her cells is occupied by two
skeletal figu res, chained to the wall.
An open archway on t he nort h wall
is barely vis ible in t he darkness.
One roun d afte r t he PCs enter t he
room, ghostly apparitions r ise from th e
skeletons in t he cell s, float to t he hal' S,
a nd grasp t hem with thei r hands. They
t hen be gin to wa il, "Free me!" in high,
t rembling voices. Their noise has a 50'if,
chance of drawing t he attent ion of tbe
esc aped skeletons (t hose listed as wan-
dering monst er s), which arrive 16
rounds later.
Th e back room is a torture chamber
with a rack, iron mai den, fire pit ,
brandi ng iro ns, and a chopping block
sca tt ered a round t he chamber. f:ight
sets of chains have bee n snapped at the
manacles, leavi ng- t he chains hangi ng
on the wal l.
2. Tra i ning Room. The room is clear
of all furnishin gs except for a number of
rack s on the south wa ll. These racks
hold a number of wooden or bl unt wea p-
ons and five shields . The sh ields a ll
have a sun ri sing from a deep, blue sea
on a pale bl ue fiel d.
3, Barracks .
A large number of r an sacked bunks
occupy t bi s room. Bla nkets a nd mat-
t resses a re st rewn around t he floor,
and a large fir eplace occupies t he
center of the west wa ll.
This room is the lair of two t rcgto-
dytes. If t hey have not been encoun-
tered as wa nde r ing monsters. t here is a
50% chance th ey a re here . If previously
encountered and not sla in, they a re
defi nitely in the barracks. Concea led in
a leather ba g un der a bed in the sout h-
east corn er of t he room is their hoard:
933 sp, a magic-user 's scrol l wit h t he
followi ng spells: flrst-level charm and
second-level inuisi bility; a nd a
medallion o(ESP.
4. Bar r acks.
A large number of ransacked bunks
lind ragged bedding are sca t t ered
around t he room. A fir eplace occu-
pies the center of the west wall .
5. Mess. Four 20'-long tables can be
seen in this room, and one of t hem has
been turned over on it s side in the
northeast corner. Broken chairs litter
the floor amid wooden plates and eating
utensils. An open corr idor leads west ,
and doors are located on the north and
east wall s. An open doubl e door in t he
sou th wall leads to what appears to be
another room.
6. Kit chen.
The room has two counters on the
sout h wal l and II long tabl e in the
middle of the floor. The table has
been turned on its side. Two ovens lie
along t he east wall , and II fire pit has
been bui lt aga inst the west wall .
This room is the lair of two ghouls. If
they have not been encountered as
wandering monsters, there is a 50%
cha nce t hat they are here, hidi ng be-
hind t he table. The DM must make t he
appropriate di e rolls for sur pr ise. If they
ha ve already been encountered, but not
slain, t hey are defi nitely in t heir la ir. In
a small leather bag concealed in the
ashes of the fire pit are four gems: one
10-gp turquoise and three 500-gp pearl s.
7. Storeroom.
Crates, barrels, and assorted un iden-
t ifiable objects fiU t his room - all of
which are covered with a ye llow,
cottonlike material. Doors are lo-
ca ted on the nort h and south walls.
The cot tonlike matter covering every'
thi ng in the room is actuall y yell ow
mold (AC can always be hit; HD 2*; hp
14; MV 0 ; NAT1; Dmg 1-6 + special;
Sa ve F2; ML we: AL N). It ca n be kill ed
by fire. and a torch does 14 hp damage
per round. It sq uirts out a 10' x 10' x 10'
cloud of spore s if disturbed. Anyone
caught in t he cloud takes 16 hp damage
and must save VB. death ray or choke to
death within 6 roun ds.
8. Chapel.
A low altar lies near t he south wal l.
Upon it st ands a 4' stat ue of the
Immortal Kor holding a silver chal-
ice in it s cupped palms. A large.
brass bowl lies on t he altar at the
feet of the stat ue.
The chalice is finely crafted silver
with embossed suns on four sides. It is
fill ed with clear, sweet water. If t he cup
is lifted from it s palms, t he stat ue
speaks: "May t he blessings of Kor be
upon you!' If the contents of the cup are
t hen drun k, 2 hp damage are cured. The
cup must be refilled from the br ass bowl
and pl aced back in t he hands of the
statue for its cur ative effects to wor k
again. The bowl neve r empti es, but t he
waters may cure each character only
once per day. Ifthe chali ce is removed
from the chapel, it curses the person
who took it . Wounds then take twice as
long to heal, a nd healing spells or po-
ti ons only restore hal ftheir normal
a mounts. The chalice is wor t h 500 gpo
9. Museum.
A long, glass cabinet lies against t he
west wall of this room, while t hree
suits of plate mail st and with t heir
hands resti ng on top of t heir
grounded shiel ds along t he northeast
wall . Two i mme nse stat ues of crabs
cut from coral stand in t he northwest
and sout heast corners . The wall s are
adorned wit h paintings of sea bat-
tl es. j awe of shar ks, harpoons, fishing
nets, and st uffed fish.
The glass cabinet contains scri mshaw
artwork in ivory, whal es teeth, and
mot her of pearl (total val ue: 1,200 b'P).
The crab statues (AC 4; HD 3; hp 16
eac h; MV 90' (30') ; NAT 2: Dmg 1-6/16;
Save F3; ML 11; AL L) a nimate a nd
attack anyone t amperi ng wit h t he con-
tents of t he museum. Corridors enter
from all four walls.
10. Armory a nd Smithy.
Racks of weapon s li ne the walls of
this room. In t he northeast corner
are a for ge and bellows , a large
chest , a nd an a nvil on a heavy oak
pedestal. A door can be seen on t he
north and east walls.
THEKEEPAT KORAlGESH
Most weapons in t his room are no
longer serviceable. Two bat tl e a xes,
three maces, a nd five swords a ppear to
be in excellent condit ion. but cannot be
r emoved from the r acks. The anvil on
the oaken pedestal shows signs of con-
siderab le use and is curi ous ly otTcenter
on the pedest al. Concea led in a hollow
cavity ben eath the a nvi l is a beauti ful
sword (sword +1, +3 undead) wit h a
ru by pommel and a red , lea ther sca b-
bard. The chest contai ns useless art icles
of clothing and the gr eat ha mmer of
Banduron (hammer +2). If the a nvil or
chest is touched, t he listed weapons
spring from t he wall a nd attack t he
party (AC 3: HD I : Dmg by weapon
t ype). If hit once, the weapon drops to
the floor. Once all t he weapons are nul -
lified , or t he party dr opped to zer o hit
points a nd unconscious, all damage is
di scovered to be illu sionary. Whil e t he
party lies unconsci ous, all of the weap-
ons return to their rac ks or rea nima te
five rounds after th ey have all been
nulli fied. Thuching t he chest or a nvil
agai n r epea ts t he process. After t he first
t ime it occurs , t he weapons actually
cause 14 hp damage regardless of
weapon type.
1l.lnfirrnary. The condition of this
room is a ppall ing: furniture ha s bee n
spli ntered and brok en, cabine ts
smashed. a nd broken glass litters t he
floor. Fou r cots a re intact, a nd upon
t hem lie t he wit hered remai ns of four
men . A door is vis ible on t he opposite
wall.
12. Ca ptain's Quarters.
Four beds occupy t he corners of t his
room. A wooden chest lies at the foot
of each bed . In the center ofthe room
is a battered table wit h a barrel on
end beside it.
Thi s room is t he la ir of an ogre. If it
has not been met as a wa ndering mon-
ster, t here is a 50% cha nce it is here. If
it ha s been encountered but not slai n, it
seeks refuge in its la ir. It habit uall y
uses the bed in t he sou t hwest corner of
the room and this can be easily noticed
due t o the rumpled state of t he bedding
and sl umped ma ttr ess. In t he chest by
this bed is a ba g of holdin g with 554 gp,
987 sp, four gems totallin g 650 gp , a nd
t wo potions o{healing. The ogre uses
t he pot ions o{ heali ng if wounded.
DUNGEON 53
THE KEEP AT KORAlGESH
1. Courtyard.
The movemen ts in the fountains
are large. disgusting looki ng sale-
menders. They are har mless. but if
touched, t heir sli my bodies ca use
sever e symptoms much like poison
Numerous sli me trails along the
floor appear old a nd dull , but one
glistening trail passes from t he
courtyard in t he Keep. The fountains
are fill ed with sli my, green water,
and their surfaces a re occasionally
di sturbed by movement below. Huge
statues of kn ights in armor flank a
central st at ue of Kor the Immortal.
Stringy, unhealthy-looking vegeta-
tion has spr ung up bet ween the fla g-
stones ofthe floor, th ough t hey a re
absent wherever a slime t rail has
coated t he surface.
Encounter
First Floor (L3)
1 mountain lion (AC 6; HD 3 -+-
2; hp 16; MV 150' (50' ); /J AT 2
c\awsl1 bi te; Dmg 1-3/1-3/16 ;
Save F2; ML 8; AL N)
3 shadows (AC 7; HD 2 -+- 2*;
hp 13, 11, 9; MV 90' (30'); /J Ar
1; Dmg 14 + speci al; Save F2;
ML 12; AL C; SD each hit
dr ains 1 point of st rengt h for 8
t urns)
6 skeletons (AC 7; HD 1; hp 8,
8, 5, 5, 4,4; MV 60' (20' ); KAT
1; Dmg 16 by short sword;
Save FI; ML 12; AL C)
2 ghouls (AC 6; HD 2*; hp 12,
7; MV 90' (30'); KAT 2 clawsl 1
bite; Drug 13113113 + paraly-
sis; Save F2; ML 9; AL C). Lair
in barracks, room 2.
3 rock baboons (AC 6; HD 2; hp
14,12,10; MV 120' (40'); KAT 1
c1ub/l bite; Dmg 16/13; Save
F2; ML 8; AL N)
1 tyranna byss (AC 8/6; HD 5*'";
hp 30; MV 60' (20' ) la nd/120'
(40') wat er ; I AT2 c1awsl i
sting; Dmg 14/1-4/14 + spe-
cial; Save F3; ML 9; AL N).
Range of pa ralyzing sti ng is
10' ; success ful saving throw vs.
pa ralyzation nullify its effects
(see new monster description
for detai ls).
5
4
3
Di ce
r oll
1
2
6
Four slabs along t he walls support
t he bodie s of four men. A large stone
sarcophagus occupies the center of
t he room. Cobwebs hang heavily
from the ceil ing, even to t he point of
coveri ng t he bodies on the slabs.
16, Tomb.
Thi s room has been ransacked, and
t he only things of possible value are
some scattered torche s a nd a small
barrel of oil. A secret door is conceal ed
in the northwest corner of the room for
acces s to t he elevator. Its trigger meche.
nism is located to t he right ofthe door
a nd is activated by simply pressing t he
stone . This also ser ves to summon the
elevator.
The bodies are zombi es (AC 8; HD 2;
hp 14, 12,10, 8; MV 90' (30'); tAT 1;
Dmg 18; Save F1 ; AL C) and always
at t ack last , with no initiative roll . The
sarcophagus contai ns t he body of a man
in clerical robes and a st aff ofhealing
l ies on his breast beneath hi s hands.
l evel Three
The ceiling height for this level is 10' ,
unless otherwise stated. This level, too,
dates from t he ti me of Koralgesh.
Roll Id6 every other t urn. If a " I" is
rolled, a wa ndering monster is encoun-
tered on t he following turn. The kind of
monst er encountered is determined by
die roll of t he DM's choice. If a "I" or " 2"
is roll ed on the above die-roll check,
a ghostly phantom is seen, glowing
faintly. When it notices the party, it
glides to a wall, floor, or ceil ing a nd
passes beyond it . They cau se no damage
or ill effects, being not hing more t ha n
the rest less dead ofKoralgesh .
15. Storer oom.
Scattered crates and barrels litter
the floor, and rats sca mper across t he
litter. M08t of t he cr ates have been
broken open. Bolts of decaying cloth
are heaped near the west wal l.
t heir savi ng t hrow tha t says: " Who
dares to steal the t reasur es of
Kor algesh? Sleep and I shall come for
you!" The message serves no purpose
now, si nce its originator died in the
dtsaeter that destroyed the cit y. It mi ght
increase player anxiety, however. The
chest is locked and contains 370 sp and
290 gp in loose coins .
Both doors to t his room are locke-d.
Each bag contai ns 1,000 cp. Be neat h
the hea vy bags is a secret compartment
that ca n be detected by a thief, an elf, or
a dwarf, if t he party sea rches for it . The
compartment can only be raised by
moving a lever concealed behind a stone
i n the wal l to t he r ight of t he nort h
door. If t he lever is moved to the left,
the secret compartment rises (rom t he
floor to reveal a st rongly made chest
with brass ba nds reinforcing it. The
lever is trapped; if it is moved to t he
right, sleep gas floods t he ch amber. All
persons i n the room must save vs. poi-
son or fall asleep for 2d4 t urn s. A voice
is heard only by those people who fai led
14. Va u lt .
The floor of the room is bare, except
for six leather bags piled in t he cen-
ter of t his room. On the east and
west wall s are two magni ficent tap-
estr ies of saili ng vesse ls and sea
combat.
13. Room of the Cube. Both doors to
this room are trapped with a poi son
needl e in the door ha ndle. Un less suc-
cessfully re moved by a thief, anyone
attempting to open the door by using
the ha ndle must save vs. poison or drop
unconscious for 1-8 turns.
A gelatinous cube (AC 8; no4*; hp
18; MV 60 ' (20'); 'AT 1; Dmg 28 +
special; Save F2; ML 12; AL N) roams
t hi s corridor mindlessly in a clockwise
direction. It surpr ises on 14 on Id6 due
to it s transparency, and successful hits
require its target to save vs. paralysis
or beparalyzed for 2-8 turns. Once para-
lyzed, hits are automatic and da mage
only is rolled. The gela ti nous cube can
be harmed by fire and weapons , but not
cold or li ghtning.
54Issue NO.2
ivy. No damage is incurred (t houg h a -
2 "to hit" is gained), and the rash disa p-
pea rs i n 2d4 t urn s. If anyone looks out
over t he ci ty, all tha t can be seen is t he
city's destroyed curtain wall, ruins,
mist, and eea. Severa l t rails ma y he
seen leading to the courtyard from t he
surroundi ng cliffs.
2. Barracks.
The bunks in this room are over-
turned or pushed int o random posi-
t ions. A large. oaken tabl e stands
before a stone fireplace in t he north-
eas t corner of t he room. A door can
be seen in t he northwest corner.
This room is the lair of t wo ghouls. If
the y have not already been encountered
as wandering monsters, t here is a 1 i n
Id4 chance t hat t hey are in t his room.
They have concealed 1453 cp and three
gems worth a tota l of 1600 gp in the
matt ress of t he upper bu nk in t he ex-
t reme southwest cor ner of the r oom.
The door leads to a spiral stair way that
is choked wi th rubble and cannot be
used.
3. Ant echamber,
Several alime t ra ils glisten in t he
dim li ght and win d t heir way around
the room and out t he archways to t he
nor th a nd sout h. A fount ain in t he
center of the room su pports an ala-
bast er statue of a beaut iful woman in
flowing robes. A heavy doub le door is
located in the center of t he east wa ll.
and similar door s lie on the floor just
inside t he open passage in the west
wall.
The doubl e doors on the east wa ll arc
locked and t he hinges rust ed shut. They
are ext remely diffic ult t o ope n, even for
a t hi ef ( - 10%to pick locks rol l). The
shallow wa ter of t he pool is surpr-isingly
clear, a nd 258 sp are scatter ed aroun d
its bot tom. If a coin is t hrown int o t he
pool , the stat ue spea ks: "The poor of
Koral gesh t ha nk you for your generos-
ity." If a coin is removed , t he sta t ue
ask s: " Would you steal from t he poor of
this city?" The st atue serves no other
purpose.
4, Bar r a ck s. The bunks in thi s room
have been overturned, and t he en t ire
room is in a state of ruin. A table stands
before t he stone fi replace in t he sout h-
east corner of the room, and a door can
beseen in t he southwest corner. The
door in t he southwest wall opens i nt o a
corridor t hat lead s t o a funct ional spiral
stairway.
5. St orage.
Five lar ge bar rels stand on end
around t he room and a large shelf
occupies t he north, east , and sou th
wa lls.
This room is the lair of five giant
rat.s <AC 7; HD l ~ hp 4, 4, :3, 3, 2;
MV 120' (40'); fiAT 1 bite each; Dmg
13 + dis ease; Save normal man;
ML 8; AL C). Anyon e bi tten by a rat
has a 1 i n 20 chance of becomi ng
infected (saving t hrow vs. poison
allowed). Failure of sa ving throw
means t hat the vict im ma y die in I -
S days (l in 4 chancel or become too
sick t o adventure for a period of one
THE KEEP AT KORAlGESH
20' up to Level Three, Floor 2
month. The rats have hoa rded three
bright gems worth a total of 350 gp in a
pi le oflitter beneath t he eastern
shelves. The barrels contai n water,
vinegar, oil, pi tch , and wine. Th e ma te-
rial s on t he shelves have ken over-
turned an d ruined by the rats. One 50'
coil of rope is intact on t he norther n
shel f.
6. Kitchen, The open a rchway leads
into a room wit h a table nea r the nort h
wall, a cupboar d against t he west wall ,
and a fire pit in t he south east corn er.
The floor is littered wit h pot s and pans.
This room has been ransacked, and
not hing of va lue is her e.
7. Me ss . Thr ee great oak t ables stand
in the center of t he room, a nd broken 01'
over t urned chairs litter t h ~ floor. A
large fireplace occupies the sout hern
halfofthe east wall . a nd a n open arch-
way can be seen in the center of t he
west. wall . A door is located on both t he
nort h and east. walls. Th is room has
been ransacked, an d nothing of value is
here .
DUNGEON 55
THE KEEPAT KORALGESH
8. Great Hall.
A massive double door occupies
the east and west walls of t his
chamber. Its 15' vaulted ceiling is
supported on each side by seven
gilded pill ars that border the
great hall near the north and
sout h wall s. Twelve suits of plate
mail stand between t he pillars,
each holding a halberd at port -of.
arms position. On the north a nd
sout h wall s arc giga ntic tapes-
tries illustrated with ocean
scenes and battles with sea
monster s and pirates.
Th e throne room is guarded by four
sentries (AG 3: HD 3; hp 21 , 20. 17, 13;
MV 90' (30'); NAT 1; Dmg 1-10 by po-
lea rm; Save F2; ML 12; AL N) which
a re magi call y animated suits of armor.
If any person enters the hall from t he
throne room, nothing happens. If he
turns arou nd and goes back t o the
throne room or enters throug h the west
door, t he four suits of armor nearest the
throne room animate and bar the way.
They do not at t ack unless the pa rty
t ries to force by t he m or attacks. Both
doors of this room automatically swi ng
shut one round after t he party en ters.
Both doors a re locked, and the west door
closes slowly due to its r usted hinges.
9. Kit c he n.
The open arc hway leads into a room
wit h a tabl e near the sout h wall , a
cupboard against the west wall , and
a fire pit in the northeast corner.
Scattered pans a nd debris litter the
floor.
A box in the open cupboard has a 6"-
diameter hole in one e nd. Anyone plac.
i ng his hand in t he box triggers a spr ing
bl ade and takes 1 hp damage. The box
is a rat trap, and if the part y looks
around carefully, it sees scatter ed drop s
of dried blood leading from t he cupboard
out t he door. The t rap is used by the
ghouls in room 2 (t his level ) to catch
food.
10. Mess.
Three great oak tables stand in
the center of t he room. A la rge
56 Issue No.2
fir eplace occupies the northern ha lf
of t he east wall , a nd a number of
broken chairs have been piled next to
it . An open archway is located in the
center of t he west wall, and a door
can be seen in the sout h and east
walls.
Examinations of the fir eplace reveal
that it is st ill in use. The ashes are st ill
warm, and t he broken chairs have been
used as fuel.
11. Storage.
Three ba re she lves stand against t he
north, ea st . a nd south walls. Stacks
of barrels occupy the southwest per-
tion of the room. Cobwebs and dust
cover everyt hing in t he room.
A small , ornate rosewood box lies
bet ween the bar rels. Anyone attempt.
ing to reach in a nd grab it ha s a 50%
chance of overt urning the preca riously
bal anced barrel s. If this happens, every-
one within 10' of the barrel s must roll
t heir dexterity or less to avoid taki ng
Id4 hp da mage. The box contains snuff.
12. Armor y.
Two long r acks of weapons stand in
the center ofthe room. Another rack
stands against the west wall. A
closed cabi net sta nds against th e
east wall wi th two snor ing figures
lying in front of it. A fla t. rosewood
chest abou t 3' long lies open on the
floor nea r the west wall.
The two sleeping figures are ban-
dits (AC 6; FI ; hp 7. 4; NAT 1; Dmg
18 by swor ds; Save Fl ; ML 8; AL C)
dressed in lea ther armor. A bow.
quiver, a nd two shiel ds lie on the
floor near the bodies. They failed to
disarm t he trap in the cabinet
against the east wall and t riggered
sleep gas when t hey attempted to
open it . They wake up if any noise
is made by anyone enteri ng the
room, and they try to kill t he party
members if they are not out nurn-
bered. If t he party a ppea rs to be too
strong, t hey attempt to join them.
They are sly a nd treacher ous, and
may steal from or kill PCs if they
t hink t hey ca n do so safely. Bla nn is
a swordsman a nd Dark eye fanci es him-
self as an archer. The flat rosewood case
contained 10 arrows +1. Their clips are
now empty and t he arrows are in
Dar keye'a quiver. The locked chest on
the east wall cont ai ns one sword +1.
cure light wounds I1day in a green.
leather scabbard.
By sheer luck, the bandits have not
yet encountered the ghouls on thi s
level. and neither have the ghouls found
them.
13. Game Room.
Three tables sta nd in the central
area of the room, and a fireplace is
built into the east wall.
The door is sl ightly ajar. and when
anyone opens it , four ghostly figu r es are
seen sitting at one of t he tables, pl ayi ng
cards. They then see the party, lay down
their cards, and leave t hrough t he sout h
wall. If anyone exami nes t he cards. t hey
find t hem to all be composed of aces and
eights.
14. Captain's Room.
Three beds stand with their head -
boards against t he east wall . A sma ll
ni ghtstand occupies a space to the
ri ght of each bed , and a fireplace has
been built into the sout hern part of
the west wall .
The fireplace is t ra pped, so the
DM should make all applicable sav-
ing throws for t he party members
who investi gate it . Up insi de t he
fir eplace near the flue are three
soot -darkened levers. From left to
ri ght, the levers are formed in t he
shape of a dr agon's head. a skull.
and a gargoyl e's head. The levers
can only be moved to t he left or
ri ght, and the proper combination
required to safely open a concealed
compartment in the mantle is left)
left/ r ight . Any movement other
t han the proper combination trig.
gera a poison needle in t he appropri -
ate lever. If a successful save vs.
poison is rolled. the victim only
feels t he sharp pr ick of t he needle.
If t he saving t hrow is failed. t he
vict im gasps for air and col1apses to
t he gr ound in a comatos e st ate . All
signs of life are reduced to a point
where t hey are practically undetect-
able (roll a 1 on lcllO each time the
victim is examined). Th is deat hly
coma lasts for 6 turns. [ f the proper
combination is met, a concealed
panel in the mantle slides open to
reveal a compartment containing a
small leat her bag. The bag contai ns
33 gp, 27 ep, 5 pp, and three gems
each worth 25 gpo
15. Throne Roo m.
Two giant statues of KaTthe Im-
mort al stand near the east wall
on either side of a raised da is.
They each hold a trident of which
t he butts rest on the floor and a
crystal sphere I ' in diamet er that
is raised above their heads. Each
sphere emits a brilliant light
that illuminates the room. Two
thrones of polished granite re st
on eit her side oftbe da is. An
ornate tapestry behind t he
thrones pictures a rolli ng sea
wit h a beautiful white ship crest-
ing t he waves. In front of a fire-
place on the north and sout h
walls are two long benches facing
a low stone chair in t he center of
the room. This chair is of white
granite and faces t he thrones. A
large dou ble door is located in
the center of the west wall , and a
door is also located in t he eastern
portion of the south wall .
Before t he king's t hrone {on the
left of t he dais) is a blade-wide slot
in the stone at the foot of the chair.
If a sword is placed i n the slot and
pressed down, t he Seat of Justice
before t he dais glows br ightly. Any-
one reaching into or touching this
glowing area feels a pleasant tingle.
If anyone sits in the Seat of J ustice
whil e it is glowing, he is ins tantly
te lepcrted to a cell in the dungeon
on Level 2 (r oom 1). The DM decides
whether or not the cell door is in-
tact or wr enched open. If any skele-
tons are left on Level 2, there is a
50% chance per t urn of their re-
sponding to the wailing of the cap -
tive spi rits.
Concealed in the left arm of the
king's t hrone are two studs. If the
first st ud is depressed, a small,
round pedestal that contains six
small , leather bags in a recessed
compartment rises from the dais to t he
left of t he throne. Each bag contains 25
gpoIf the second stud is depressed, an
illusionary gold dragon (AC - 2; HD nil;
' AT 2 clawsll bite + breath; Dmg 2812-
8/6-36l appears and immediately uses
its breath weapon for 44 hp fire damage
(saving throw applicable for half.
damage). The body of anyone slain by
t his breath attack drops to th e floor and
collapses from within, leaving all be-
longings behind as t he body disappears
to reappear in the dungeon on Level 2
(room 1). The dra gon does not attack
anyone on the dais and orders any sur-
vivors of its initial attack to surrender.
Anyone who does so is orde red to t he
Seat of Justice and is teleport ed to the
pri son below, whether or not a sword is
in t he slot before the ki ng's throne. All
damage sustained by pe s is ill usionary
in nature, and one succes sful hit on the
dr agon dis pell s it. Anyone "slain" by
the dragon awakens i n I d4 tu rns.
16, Ship Roo m.
Two long shelves on the nort h and
south walls support 27 models of the
ships of Koralgesh. All vessels are
armed with cata pul t s fore and aft ,
and all bear t he colors of Koralgesh.
The models are of great value as col-
lector 's items hut are ext r emely fragi le.
Transportation is nearly impossible. but
in the event of anyone devising what
t he DM feel s to he a possible method,
each ship is worth 150 gpoThere is a
25% chance that the model s break re-
gardless of their method of t ransporta-
ti on, and 95% if t hey are roughly
handled.
17. Stai r way.
A skelet al figure in chain ma il lies
on t he floor near a stairway t hat
leads upwards. Shield and swor d lie
near t he body.
If t he body or its possessions are dis-
turbed, t he skeleton (AC 7; HD 1; hp 8;
MV 60' (20'); tAT 1; Dmg 1-8 by sword;
Save Fl; ML 12; AL C) ani mates and
attacks. It cannot be tu rned until it
animates. The skeleton wea rs a ring of
fire resist ance on its right hand and
THE KEEPATKORALGESH
a leather pouch on it s belt cont ains 12
gpo
18. Lounge and Libr ary,
She lves of moldy books line the
wall s, and an unhealthy. green
growth clings to the ceili ng and wall
to spread across th e floor.
The green slime (AG can always be
hit; HD 2 ; hp 16; MV 3' (1' ); 'AT 1;
Dmg turns flesh to sli me; Save Fl ; ML
7; AL L) does not attack anyone unless
t he room is entered. It can only be
harmed by fire or cold. It can be hurned
01T armor or clothing if attended to
quickl y. Once in contact with flesh, it
t urns t he victi m into green sl ime 14
rounds aft er th e first e.round (one min-
ute) per-iod. Burning t he sli me after it
has mad e contact wit h flesh ca uses half-
damage to the vict im and half damage
to the sli me.
Second Floor (l3)
19. Closet. The door opens out ward to
reveal a small chamber that contains
mops, buckets, brooms, lar ge bar s of
yellow soap, and five small kegs.
The kegs contain hi gh quality oil for
t he lamps in t he quarters located on
t his floor.
20. Guest Room. Two large beds, a
table, and a rumpl ed carpet occupy th is
room. A fireplace is built into the ea st -
ern wall, and an overturned nightstand
lies on t he floor near the bed towards
the east . The room has been r ansacked;
not hing of value remains.
21. Guest Room. Two beds stand in
the norther n part of t he room, and an
open chest lies overturned near the
DUNGEON 57
THE KEEP ATKORALGESH
easter n wa ll. A t abl e near t he west wall
has been t urned over, a nd its legll have
been removed. An ova l carpet lies on
the Fl oor near 11 fir eplace on t he sout h-
ern wa ll. The room ha s been ra nsacked;
nothing of value remains.
22. Guest Roo m. Two beds sta nd
near the mi ddl e cf t he room. A chest
ncar the bed t o th e west has been bro-
ken open , and a tabl e li es on it s side
near t he north wa ll. A tattered ova l
carpet lies on th e floor unde r the cast-
ern bed . and a fireplace ha s heen built
int o the center of t he western wall . The
~ :
~ ~ ...... ~
'--'--'-----""
58Issue No.2
room has been ransacked; nothi ng of
va lue rema ins.
23. Ba t h.
The shatt ered door t o thi s room lies
just i nsi de the door fra me, and a foul
odor fills the air. Thick t rails of mu-
cous lead from t he door to a murky
pool of da rk wat er in t he center of
the room. Several obscure forms ca n
be seen fl oat ing in t he pool.
Fre sh slime tra il s lead t o and from
this room. and the foul odor is not iced
whenever anyone ventures within 30' of
the door. This room is one of t wo la irs
for t he t yra nnabyss (AC 8i6; HD5**; hp
30; MV 60 ' (20')la nd/ 120' (40') water ;
IIAT 2 claws/I sli nl'( ; Dmg 1-4/14/14 +
special ; Save F3; ML 9; AL NI. Ifit has
not already been encountered and slain,
there is a 25% chance t hat it is lurking
in the dark wa te rs of the pool. It att ach
intruders immediate ly if it gai ns sur-
prise or it wa it s for them t o approach
t he pool. It uses its lon g eye stalks
much l ike a peri scope, It surges up from
t he pool and fire a its la ncet a t the near-
es t target. If a victi m is hit, the t yra n-
nabys s drags him into the pool and
submerges. The victim t akes l isted
damage per round or dies by drowni ng,
whichever comes first. His comrades
may be able to force the tyrunnabyss
from t he pool and sa ve hi m if t hey react
fast enough, or sever the lancet's con-
necting tube if they are standing close
enough to do so before the victim is
dragged into the pool. Blind attacks into
the pool with arrows, et c., are at - 3 to
hit , and have a 1 in 6 chance of hitting
t he vict im.
Three partially cons umed bodies (a
week old) float in the pool. Two of them
appear t o besa ilor s, and each body
wears u gold earri ng wor t h 1 gpoThe
third body is t hat of an ore wea ring a
t orn belt pouch that contained 30 gp,
now sca ttered ever the floor of t he pool.
Assumi ng t ha t the part y notices t his
and decides t o retrieve the coins, 1d4
t urn s are needed to do so.
24. Li bra ry. Shelves fill ed with books
li ne the walls, sev eral of which have
been pulled do..... n to spill their contents
ont o t he floor. A long tabl e wit h six
chairs stands befo re a fireplace nea r th e
ea st wal l.
Though none oft he rema ining t exts
a re magi ca l in nature, the DM may
create a n assortment of st ra nge and
unusual t omes with references to lost
t rea sure hoard s, shipwrec ks, ways to
create pot ions, and so fort h, Some false
information an d forged treasure maps
would also be helpful.
25. T hr o ne a n d Dini ng Room.
Great murals of ocean adventures
decorate the room and a la rge tapes-
try hangs on the northern wa ll.
Thr ee i mmense tables of sca rred
wood sta nd ncar the center of t he
room and a sma lle r. r ichly carved
table stands before t hree ornate
chairs near the north wall. Chairs,
plates, a nd eat ing uten sil s litter the
floor. Open archways lead from t he
room in the sout h and south east
wall s. A small , man-sized arch way
can be seen in the extr eme southeast
corner a nd closed door s ca n be seen
in t he east. sout h, a nd wes t walls.
The distance that the PCs can see is
lim it ed by their source of light. The DM
must examine the map of t he room and
reveal what he feel s t he peopl e can see
from a ny gi ven area in the room. Pew-
te r dishes on the royal t able have a net
worth of 200 gpoAs t he party member s
approach within 30' ofthe door to room
29, a ghostly image appears. beckoning
to the part y to follow. a nd di sappears
into room 29.
26. Royal Guards' Room.
Five bun ks st a nd a long th e wa lls ,
and t hree st one statues stand in th e
room in var ied positions.
The stone statue s have shoc ked. horrt -
fied express ion s. They wear expensi ve.
or nately curved breast plates a nd
greaves. On e st ands wi th his left. fore-
ar m rai sed before hi s hel med head and
h is right hand on the- hilt of h is '
sheathed sword . Another looks li ke he
j ust roll ed off his hunk, and crouc hes
wi t h hi s left han d raised in front of him.
On t he floor bel ow his outst retched
fingers li e a number of glas>: sha rds c-
the remnants of II mirror. Th e last fi g--
ure stands as if frozen in the mi ddle of a
charge , sword rai sed over his head.
Unde r one bunk if! a he lmet Ident ical to
t hose worn hy t he statues.
If rescued by a stone 10 fl,'sh spell , t he
guards rocnl l seei ng Landau (as men-
tio ned in area 29, thi s level) entering
the room a nd orderin g them to surre n-
der t o hi m or peri sh. Moving in to arr est
n
+
I 1
C T:..:I
42
...,
"
him, the men were at t acked by a me-
dusa that Landau generat ed using- a
{Tre/le any monster spell. Landa u, now
long- dead, wa s a 24th-level mag ic-use r.
27. Royal Guar ds' Room, Five bunk s
stand al ong t he wall s. The bedding
been stripped off and laid in a pil e in
t he center or th e room. The room wa s
ransacked; nothi ng of va lue rema ins.
2S. Kit c hen.
A fir e pit stands next to the north-
east and west wall s. and a counter
wi th t wo cabinets stands in the
southern pa rt of t he room. An open
archway ca n be se en in t he nor th-
west corner.
Four giant cent ipedes (AC 9; HD
hp 4, a. :3, 3; xi v60' (20') ; NAT 1; D
Poison; Save normal man; :\lL 7; AL ='i l
li ve in the left ca binet (it s door is
slight.ly ajar).
29. Room of t he Book.
Th e door opens into a small room
dec orated wi t h a ri ch tapestry that
THE KEEP AT KORAlGESH
ha ngs on the east wall. The tapestry
displays the he raldry of Koralgesh,
and II stone a ltar bearing an im-
mense, closed book st a nds before it.
Lying on t he floor in front of t he
altar is a skeletal figur e in blue
clerical robes.
The body has no va luables a nd lies
wit h its right arm stretched t owa rd t he
a lt a r with a wr iting qu ill clenc hed in it s
hand. The book is closed. a nd it s an cient.
leather cover is emboss ed with the sun
and sea of Koralgesh. If opened, an
unseen voice reads the pa g-e . Whoeve r
opens the book must turn each page
unti l the book is completed. Upon com-
pletion, the book closes by itself. This
act lay s the spir its of the dead to rest
throughout the Keep, dCl'il roying all
un dead a nd phantoms. Th e following
infor mati on is read t o the party.
The {orf'{at hers ofour city were me n
u( t"ourape and uiisdam: In their plan-
1llil M of lhe const ruction oflhis, nnr
ci ly. Ihey consulted nur men.
and were advised by these worthies 10
look {i!r a buil di ng si le rmly
b.ytht' SM, Long did 1I11',v j our /lf":.v .
DUNGEON 59
THE KEEP AT KORAl GESH
along the coast s of/he West ern Sea.
At last; along the forbidding coast of
Gesh, a natural harbor was foun d. at
the wry feet of lhe g N! al mountai n,
Helm's Peak. Here. they decided,
WtJuld they build the queen ofall
seaports, Koralgesh.
They sent afar (or stone masons
whose craft. uould bPworthy ofsuch a
task, alld the dwarves oftk White
Mountains answenod their chaUenge.
The to the moun-
tains o{Gesh CUld labored ham and
long. upon tier ofcity I;trt"f!ts and
buildings wen! constructed from tM
IJl:'ry of the Western Sea up the
sicks of Helm :' Peak itself Granite
from their homeland was imported to
construct the face ofthe Keep; and with
grrol cunn ing the dwarves detoed into
the body ofthe mountain:
In defenee of our harbor; a f:rMl sea
chai n was stretched across its mouth.
Thi s harrier kept at bay the pircuen thol
raided the ooast ofGesh. A small fo'"
tress waHerect ed, and a fxx1y of loyal
guards controlled the wi ndlas s that
lowf!red tbe chai n for tboee ships outno-
rlsed to teaoeor enkr our porL
Soon. Korolgesh became the leading
seaport ofthe Westl"rn Sea Her riches
beoome an assd thaJ1Mcouncil used to
a fUvt ofships, the liMofwhich
had nl"Vl'r saikd the briny dtpih.'I, and
trrv:le npcuukd to t"VE'". SffifJOrl almlg
1M Si lks, jeu-.el& sJJis, art. and
prttious metals Ul('T(' entrust ed to Ih ew
vessels and neverU:(LSa oorgolou. The
repulal ion ofOIU city grl.'W until tM
decisions ofour eoancilu-ere t'ieWf'd as
the laws ofthe sec,
Then ro me the man who Mlled
hi mself Landau. His uias a power
whoRe limits we knew not, alia by
guile and sorcery did he insin uate
himllelf infa the confidence flf Our
60 Issue No.2
nobility. His honeyed tongue made
many fritmds. and his favor and
power was sought by many who were
not content with their pos uione in our
city. He bame a familiar figu re at
court, and often he was seen
ing the ships in our harbor: Most
in terested he in the operation of
the great chai n across t he inl et. Alas.
et't'n 1 wa$ decei ved by his talents.. In
a blind fait h in his i ntegr ity, I
awarded him the freedom of t he Keep
and much honor: Here, to my eternal
shame, I unknowingly betrayed my
king and my people,
His tr ue nature was fin(jlly ret'ealed
upon the day of the summer soietice.
Th is, our most holy of days, was a
celebration ofth e longest day of the
year and the triu mph ofKor the Sun
King over Tram, Lord of Dark ness.
At the heighl of celebration; Landau
caused a great weariness to fall upon
our sentries and the harbor gllardS.
He then Iou-ered the sea chai n for the
pirate fleet lying in wail dow n the
coast. Too late did I see our folly, and
too fute were my u'arn i ngs to save our
city. Th e pirates caught the city l.UI-
aware and great UlQ.\: the slaughter:
Our king ralli ed the remnants ofhis
guard, and the su n and sea of
Koralgesh str uck int o the heart of our
enemies: Our warriors I'l lew three for
every one otou r own. hut th f' pi rates
preeeed forwa rd in such numbers that
the standard ofour city was ouer-
thrown and trampled underfoot.
One by one, our fell until.,
01 last, King Amhril faced our ene-
mies alone. I wat ched in di smay as a
rain Qfarrows descended upon him.
for the cowards would not brat'e the
terri ble lengt h ofhis sword Before he
fell., he rai sed swo rd ant'l/: f' his
head, and drove it halfits If'nRth into
the very body of Hel m 's Peak. With a
great c". to Kor tu avenge him. he
snapped the blade off within the
stone, and the Immortal answered
Deep beneath our (f'et the mountain
growled in anger: Great "racks
opened i n its sidell, and gum'ing rock
poured forth to en/l ulfour enemies.
With a shudderi ng roar that Ieeeled
bui ldings, a great explosion rent the
mountain from wilhin. I watchf'd in
horror as the ent ire city below the
Keep was cast i nto the lieu. A huge
eioud of glowi ng embers rolled acrose
the harbor; and destroyed every lihip
therein. The eery water.\: of the sea
boilf'd; a shrol.ld of mist rcse high i nto
the sky.
S taRKerinl! thro ugh the choking
gaslfes, 1 found t he oathbreaker; Lan-
dau. a.\: hf' was looti ng the grwt t'aulL
Long di d we battle and magic filled
the air: We exhausted our tal ents an d
(ought lik e beast s until, at last. I slew
hi m wil h my oum hands. Now. I am
th f' last to record t his knowl('dge in
the Chronicles ofKoraigesh: I end my
j ournal to await my fate, May the
Immortal Kor he me rciful:
30. St udy.
Two doors stand i n t he southern
porti on orthe east and .....est walla.
Two plush chairs occupy the center of
th e room, and a bookcase sta nds
agajnst the west . north. and ea st
walls.
The shelves contai n books coveri nKa
variety of topics: poetry. history, shi p-
ping. la...... a nd economics to name a few.
The second shelf in t he eastern book-
case conceals a hidden panel that ca n be
rel eased by removing the books from
the shelf. and depressing a concealed
st ud in the left corner of the shelf. The
compartment contains one scroll of
protection from lyeanthropes and a
potion ofgaseo1l8 form.
31. King' s Guardroom. Two low
benches lie on t heir sides near t he north
a nd sou t h walls. Li tter covers t he Fl oor
a nd t he room has a pungent. animal
odor. Nut hi ng of value is in this room.
32. King's Chambers.
A massive oak desk and chair occupy
t he northwest part of t he room. A
Ilreplaee stands in t he center of t he
east wall , and a large readi ng chair
sits on a n ornate carpet in front of it .
A large bed and a small nightstand
occupy the sout heast corner: t he
oak en foot a nd headboard corner
pos ts are surmounted by a la rge. gold
ball. An open clothes closet st.ands
agai nst t he south wall. Two large
mirrors ha ng on either side of th e
door in the west wall. and a not her
door ca n be seen in the north wall.
The mirrors re flect t he contents of t he
room whenever t hey are looked i nto at
an a ngle. Anyone ....-hc looks directl y
into t he mirrors for more t ha n one
round is awarded a view of t he outside
of the Keep as if he were standing upon
the battlements. Rolli ng mists arc all
that can be seen now. A vague, birdlike
figure is seen as it plummets fr om
above and disappears int o the cloudy
vapor; the figure is t hat of a harpy that
lain. in the ruins of th e outer batt le-
ments, now inaccessible fr om t he inside.
It won' t be encountered by t he party
unl es s the party a tt empts t o scale th e
mountain above t he Keep. I n the
drawer of t he ni ghtst and is a dugger
+2; also. a ring of water walk ing is
con cealed in the Kolden ba ll at the left
of the foot hoard (t he ha ll ca n be un-
screwed from it s hase). Several oil
lamps hang on the wa ll s a nd. if the
s upport bracket t o the lamp left of the
fi replace is pu lled directl y outwards , a
s har p cl ick is heard, and t he secr et door
in thi s waH opens. Tu close the door;
simply reverse the process. Mat ch ing
lamps in t he cor ridor open the se cret
doors from t he other side ,
:33, Lou nge.
A fireplace occupies the southeast
corner of this chamber, A low book-
case stands against t he north a nd
west walls, and a door is located in
Lhe wester-n sid e oft.he north and
sout h walls. Two du sty, bu t comfort-
able looki ng chairs si t before the
firep la ce.
The room is un occupied, and t he only
it ems of a ny va lu e are two golden can-
dlest irks (.')0 !''P each ) and a small j ade
stat ue of Kor (250 h'P) on the mant le of
th e fireplace.
34. Servant's Quarters. A small 10'
square room lies behind th is door. It s
cobwebbed in t er ior s hows only a cot, a
wooden ch air, and a small ruble with a
basin set into its surface. There is not.h -
ing of va lue in this r oom.
35 . Queen 's Room.
This is a large, or nate room. A plush
ch air on a n oval carpet fa ces a fire-
place in the cent er of t he east wal l. A
ca nopied bed, lady's vanit y tabl e, and
a ches t ca n he seen near the north
wal l. Two large mirrors h ang on
either si de of a door on the west wall.
Anot her chest and a ro u nd table are
located in t he southern portion of the
r oom. An open a rc hway and a door
can he seen i n t he sout her n wall.
The open archway leads t o a nursery:
inside are a ch ild 's crib a nd corner Fi re-
place. Severallifelike toy birds arc
suspe nd ed in the air above th e cr-ib. If
to uched light ly, t hey sin g melodiou sl y,
If moved with any force, t hey lose their
dweomer and fa ll t o th e 11001". A small
ha ndmaiden's chamber lies next to t ilt'
nurse ry.
Th e mirrors on t he east wall are identi-
cal to t hose in room 32. There ill a lO'k
chance for each PC to catch anot her
glimpse of t he harpy. A silver hand mi r-
ror, comb, and brush (25 gp value) lie 0 11
the vanity. Each chest contains clothing.
but the only t hing of r ca I va lue is a silver
embroidered bel t or soft leat her wit h n
buckle of smal l pearls set in t he shape of
t he sun (250 gp value). A secret door- is
concealed in the nort hern corner of th e
east wa ll; it is opened in t he same man-
ner as th e door in room 32.
36. Musi c Room,
This room contains musica l inst ru -
ments of many diffe ren t and
ty pes. \VOOdCll flutes, harps, lutes.
and others lint' the wa ll s. Woodell
stools arc scattered around th e room,
and an open archway is located in
t he center of the west wal l.
These inst r ument s have ull suffered
fr om t he dampness , a nd an' wor thless
and u np layahle as a result.
37 . Weaving: Hoom.
A l ar ge loom occupies the center uf
the r oom. An ornate cha ir a nd
wooden chest st and next t o it.
A tapestry of an ocea n scene has been
started on t he loom. If t he chest il'l
opened, it reveals spools of different
colored t hread. A spool of sil ver- thread
and a spool of gold thread (wor t h 10 and
20 gp) lie in t he buttum of t he chest.
beneat h t he removable up per nick .
38. Royal Hat h.
The door t o t h is room has been forced
off its and lit's just. in si de t he
doorway. A fou l odorfl lls the room
and glistenin,; , wet tr-aii s ca n be seen
on the marble 1100r. A la rj.(e bathing
pool occupies t he cente r of t he room :
its wa ters are da rk and murky. A
fireplace can he seen in t he center of
the north wal l.
THEKEEPATKORAlGESH
There is a n SO' It, chance t hat t he
ty ru nnabys s is lyi ng at the bottom of
t he puol , if it ha s not already been en-
countered and slai n. The water in the
pool is too fil t hy to see through. U
present . t he t yrunnabyss t r ies to gain
surpr-ise a nd a t tack wi th its har poon
weapon. Any char act ers so hit are
riragl,'l'd int o t he pool . If the beast su o-
ceeds in capturing- it s pre y, the vict im's
fr-iends ca n curne to h is ai d at -3 to hi t
t he submerged animal, at a 1 in 6
cha nce of st rik in g its pr ey. There is 470
gop of mixed coins at the bottom of the
pool (l dB t urns t o re trieveL
39. Pr tn coss's Cha mber.
A !Hrge vani ty has been pulled away
fr om tho wa ll towards th e door. and
:111 or nat e chest ca n be see n ncar t he
sout h wa ll. A na rrow table with
cobwebbed ca ndle stic k", a nd small
jar s also st a nds against the south
wall. A ca no pie d bed and a smal l
nightstand occupy t he northeast part
of th e room, and a fi replace is built
into th e center of t he east wall .
Laq.w mlrrurs hang on either side of
the dour.
The door to thi s r oom is bolted from
within. and must be forced open. As
soon as t he partv t ries to force t he door,
it hears a muffled crush from wit h in the
room. The long t a ble a gai nst t he south
wall is covered with cobwe bs, but the
smelljars ha ve recent.ly been disturbed.
A wooden chair- lit's on its back in fro n t
of t he t able, and a small paint bru sh
l ies beside it , still wet wi th red pa int.
'l'herc is one opened jar on t he tab le and
it contains old, dr-ied red pai nt. A parch.
mont 0 11 the t able depicts a br ightl y
color ed bi rd sti ll in the pro cess of bei ng
pairrtr-d. All of'the jar- s con t ai n dri ed
pig ment s. The mirrors per form the
same WHy as l hos!c' in Rooms:l2 li nd :3,'i .
ln a sma ll silver box at the ba ck of t h e
drawer in th e vanity are four gold r ings.
Gill' of t he rings i>l a ri nu of animal
control. The t otal value of t he box a nd
th e lith er rilll-{ll is 500 gop.
40, Stewar d 's Roo m.
The door upens int o a sruul l j O'
:;4u;Il' Cent r y that leads into a larger
r oom. A table st ands agai nst the
nort h wall and a fireplace can be
see-n ill the northern cor ner of t he
DUNGEON 61
THEKEEPATKORALGESH
west wall . A bed, desk, and cha ir
occupy t he remaining part of t he
west wall . A cloa ked figu re sits in a
chai r facing the fireplace.
The cloaked figure is t he skel etal body
of the Keep's steward. A chain of office
hangs around his neck, and a he avy
gol d r ing wit h a large dark gemstone is
worn on hi s right hand. The heavy
faci ng or the ring rot ates and produces a
small key from t he ge m's surface. The
chai n is wort h 25 gp a nd t he ring is
worth 55 6'P.
41. Se rvant's Qua rt e r s.
Six bunks are scattered t hroughout
thi s room, and a firepl ace is located
in the northern corn er of the east
wall.
This is t he lair of three ghouls (AC 6;
HD 2"'; hp 14, 12, 10; MV 90' (30'); IIAT 2
cla ws/I bite; Dmg 1311311-3 + paralysis;
Save 1"'2; ML 9; AL C); they are awake
and alert. The door is locked from within.
Any noise made by the party in its at -
tempts to pick or force t he lock alerts the
ghouls inside. The ghouls unlock t he door,
open it, b'fab whomever is on the other
side, and snatch him into t he room. Two
of them attempt to d ose and lock th e door,
while the third keeps t heir victim busy.
Behind a l o o ~ stone in t he southwest
corner of t he room is a d oth sac k contain-
ing 423 cp, 107 sp, and 185 gp , but a PC
must look carefull y to see it beneath the
dust and liner,
42. Map Room and Obser vat o ry,
Th e door opens to reveal a room
whose western wall cont ains two
shuttered windows at the cor ners of
the chamber. A pedestal supports a
long, t ubelik e structure before ea ch
wi ndow and a small statue st ands
between th em. A long table st ands in
t he center of the room; the t able is
hare except for a small , carved sta nd.
A large shelf ag ai nst t he north wall
contains rolls of parc hmentlike ma t e-
r ial, a nd a small table stands against
the south wall .
The cupped st and on t he t abl e is t he
rest ing place for a crystal ball conceal ed
behind the map shelf on the north wa ll.
At the back of the lowes t shelf is a
sma ll sca m that appears slightly
chipped and cut . By insert ing a dagger
62 Issue NO. 2
blade i nto t hi s sea m and prying down-
ward, a catch is rel ease d with an a udi-
bl e click. The enti re shelf can now sli de
al ong t he wa ll to the left to expose a
small , locked wall safe. Inside t his safe
is a crys tal hall in a blue velvet bag.
Th e brass t ubes are green with corro-
sian, hut could he cl eaned up. They are
telescopes, bolted secure ly t o t he ir ped -
estals. If they can be removed without
damage and are pr operl y cleaned, each
t el esco pe is worth 750 gpo The small
st at ue is a replica of t he Immortal Kor-;
it has a small slot in t he base of its low
stand. If a gold coin is dro pped into t his
slot , t he st at ue says: " High humidit y
a nd deep fag" . . . again. Water tem pera-
ture va riable to boili ng, and it looks
li ke rain." If the base is smashed open,
no coi ns are found, and t he statue
cease s t o operate.
43. Wiza rd's Chamber.
A shuttered window is located in t he
center of t he west wall. A bed, fir e-
place, desk , a nd chair occupy t he
northern part of the room, and a very
la rge carpet covers the cen t er of the
floor. Below a very large painti ng on
th e south wa ll stands an or nat e
chest .
The 8' x 20' painting on t he south
wall port r ays a mir ror copy of the room
it self. Standing on t he carpet in t he
painting is a large, apelik e figure with
scaled sk in a nd long, muscular a rms.
Thr ee orcs st and hu ddled behind the
desk , and two hideous, ghou l-like crea-
t ures sta nd near the chest. The apelike
creat ure is a n epadrazail (eh pa DRA zil:
AC 3; HD 4 + 1*.... ; hp 21; MV 120'
(40'); KAT 2; Dmg 1-4./1-4; Save F3 +
special ; ~ L 12; AL C). It steps out of t he
pa inti ng ana attacks anyone or any-
t hing disturbi ng its master's belongings
(see ne w monster descripti on for de-
ta ils). Anyone capt ured by the epadraz-
ail and placed in the pa int ing can be
rel eased hy means of a dispel magic
spell, a rod of canrellation, or by de-
stl'Oying t he pai nt ing (AC 9; hp 20 ; half
da mage by weapon type). This also frees
the three orcs (AC 6; liD 1; hp 6, 6, 5;
MV 120' (40'); /fAT 1; Dmg by short
sword, 16; Save F1; ML 6; AL C) and
the two thouls (AC 6; HD 3*'"; hp 22
(now 14), 13 (now 9); MV 120 ' (40'); KAT
2 cl aws; Dmg 1311-3 + paralyzation,
ML 10; AL C). The two thouls are
wounded and regenerat ion takes place
one round aft er t hey are free . The orcs
bolt for t he door, initiati ng combat wit h
anyone in their path. The thouls have a
5 ~ chance of attacking t he or cs; other-
wise, they attack the part y unless en-
gag-ed immediately by one group or the
other. The orcs each have 216 cp: the
thoul s have no t reasure. The chest con-
tains one pair of elvish boots, an elv ish
cloak, a nd three magic-user's scrolls. A
small leat her hag cont ains 15 gp and 3
pp. Scroll 1 has t wo second-level spells:
detect in oieibility and phantasmal [orce,
Scroll 2 has one First-level magic missile
spel l , with 3 missiles. Scroll 3 has one
fir st-level detect magic spe ll and two
second-level spells; knock a nd levitate.
44. Wiza rd's Workr oom,
A long table cluttered with t ripods
and beakers st a nds in the cent er of
t he room, and a large desk ca n be
seen near t he sout h wa ll. Four book-
shel ves st and agai nst t he walls: one
t o the north, one to the west , and two
to the sout h. A heavy, hlack marbl e
a ltar occupies the northernmost wa ll.
A pent agr a m has been inscribed on
t he floor in front of it. A large
counter wit h four cabinets stands
agai nst the east wall .
The door to this room has been wizard
locked. A knock spell opens it, but the
door locks again if it closes. It can be
opened by force, but al ways at some
penal ty {roll strength or less on 4d6, for
example>.
Anyone entering the room must save
vs. spells. Successful characters see a
blinding flash a nd Iose their sight for
one turn . Th ose char act ers who fa il
their saving t hrow see their exact dupl t-
cates st ep from the pentagram a nd
engage their counterpar t s in melee.
Any PC who succeeds i n slaying his
doubl e see s it fade and disa ppear. Each
double is only visible to its origi nal
cha ract er. All damage appears real and
lasts for two turns. If a PC is "slain" by
hi s duplicate , he recovers in two turns
from the ill usionary damage and is
under a compulsion t o leave t he room,
nev er to return. The count er with four
cabi net s contains t he foll owing":
Cabinet 1: 20 vials of assorted matet-i-
als, spices, dried powders, et c. Each
st opper is numbered a nd vial 7 and 19
are also sealed with wax. Vial 7 is a
potion of diminution and vial 19 is a
poti on of ht'oli ng.
Cabin et 2: empty.
Cabinet 3: mi scell an eous magi c para-
phernalia, 10 small jars of lizard scal es,
powdered blood, ha ir, etc.
Cabi net 4: gla ssware and a bundle
cont ain ing chain mail armor +1
wrapped in oiled leather.
A large , shallow bowl on t he altar is
actual ly a shield +2.
45. Temple of Kor.
This la rge room is ncarly empty
except for a large al tar of polished
marble, and a la rge oval carpet on
t he floor in front of it. A fi replace is
locat ed in t he center of the south
wall , and a shut door ca n be seen in
the north wall. Three stained-gla ss
windows arc built into the wester n
wall , and t he one above t he alta r
appears t o have wri t ing on it.
The inscripti on on t he sta ined-glass
window over t he a ltar reads as follows:
He who stands and beholds my face
With heart and courage pure,
My Blessings on him [ wi ll pl ace
And all his ai lme nts cure.
Anyone wh o stands in the light of t he
late afternoon sun has all of hi s wounds
healed . Th is takes pla ce only if the DM
feels t hat t he character has been prop-
erly played and has l ived up t o t he
rhyme. A result of 1 on 1d6 indicat es
that the eun is blocked by r ising mists
from the sea bel ow, and no healing t hus
takes place.
46. Bishop's Ro om.
A sma ll bed lie s near the north wall
of t his r oom. A fire pl ace and mantle
can be seen in t he nor theast cor ne r,
and a small desk sta nds aga ins t the
east wall. A st ained-glass window is
locat ed in th e northern pa rt of t he
west wall .
A sliding door in t he left side of t he
ma ntl e reveal s a narrow compart ment
containing t wo cl eri ca l scrolls . Scroll 1
ha s two first -lev el spell s, cure light
wounds and light. Scr oll 2 has one
second-level spell , protection from evil,
and one first-level detect magic spell .
47 , Administrative Office. This
room is empty except for t wo overturned
desks and l ittered paper. Ex aminati on
of th e papers i ndica tes that thi s was a
record s office . Ledgers of shi ps, cargos.
ports, etc.. are all that ca n he found
here.
48 . Cleric's Room. Three cot s st and
in a. row against the south wa ll. A fire -
place is built into t he northwest corner
and a des k stands aga inst th e nort hern
wa ll. Nothi ng of val ue is here.
49, Admi r al 's Ch a mber,
Rubbl e is scattered over t he Floor and
the outer wall of the Keep is de-
st royed. An overturned desk lies in
t he nor theast corner and a fire place
is bui lt into t he sout h wa ll.
This is the la ir of five rock ba boo n s
(AC 6; HD 2; h p 11, 9, 9 , 6, 5; l\IV 120'
r40' ); IIAT 1 club, 1 bite ; Dmg 16/13 ;
Save F2; ML 8; AL NJ. Ther e is a 50"{
cha nce that t hey Uf C here. If nut, t he y
are defi nitely in room 50 und <I re at-
t ract ed t o thi s roo m by any noi se ,
50. Ruins, See monster des cri ption in
Room 49.
51, Cl assroom. Two rows of five
small desks occupy the center uf t hi s
room. A lect ure stand and bla ckboard
can be seen nca r the eastern wall. Not h-
ing of va lue is in t his room.
,';2. Tr e asury. The ent r ance to this
room hal' t wo bac k-to-back doors . The
outer door is made of heavy oak and
opens outwards . The lock is needle-
tr-apped (sa ve vs. poison at +:1 to aged
venom l. This dOOI cannot be forced
inwards due to the presence of t he sec-
ond door. The se cond door is made of
iron bars and opens into t ilt' r-oom. It is
locked and chai ned. Th e ste ward's ring
key (room 40 . this le vel) opens bot h of
t hese lock s.
A lon g, Lehaped counter travels t he
length of th e room. A desk occupi es a
space in t he southwest em-net- and a
heavy oaken door can be SN'n behind
th e count er.
The small room behi nd the counter is
empt y with the exce ption of a br ass
anchor about l ' long, hanging on a peg
in th e nor thern wall. If t he a nchor is
removed from it s peg, a secret door int o
Room 53 opens . Replacing the a nchor
shut s the door,
THE KEEP AT KORAlGESH
53. Trapped Co rri dor.
A long- corri dor st ret ches near ly ao-
to t he east. stopping at a wooden
door.
The cor r idor if; actually :10' lonA", hut
skillful workmanshlp has g-1",ithwll:v
decreased t he di mensions of th e wa lls,
floor . and Cl'i1ing to pr ovide t he illus ion
of dis tunco. The eastern end of the corri -
dor is only 4 ' high with a heavy :'\ ' door.
Halfwnv down t he corridor is a ll an ti-
~ l a v i t 11:l1p. The ceiling here ext ends
upwa rds for 10' . Anyone wa lking unde r
t his area fall s upwards and takes ld6
hp da mage. Impact with the cei ling
a nimates t hree skele tons lAC 7: lll ) 1:
hp 6, 6, 6; HAT 1; Dmg by short sword 1
6; Save F1 ; ML 12; AL C! wh o attac k
t he unfo rtunate adventurer, The brass
a nchor null ifies the ant.i-g'ruvi ty t rap, jf
ca rr ied beneat h t he pit in the cei lin g.
This acti on drops everyt hi ng to thu flour
for Ldf hp falling dam age. lf t he an chor
is carried out Irum under the pit , any -
thi ng- sti ll bel ow it fall " upwards and
takes t he l isted damage.
The ::1' door i n t he east wall is made of
heavy oak a nd bound with m-ass; it
can not be forced open. There is a hr nss
pla t e in the center of t he door with a
peg near it s t op. If the bra ss anchor is
hu ng on t his peg an d used as a knocker.
t hree kn ocks open t he door. Any ot he r
met hod us ed to open t hc door resulls in
t he release of II th rowing star from II
concealed slot in the west wall fur Id4
hp da mage, The stil l" st r -i kes one perxnn
st anding in t he center of th e hall way. If
it s pa th is unobstr ucted, it st r ikes any-
one standi ng in front of th e door or the
door it self. A tot a l of five such star can
be re lea sed - one pel- attem pt to open
the door rsu-t ko as fo'4 1.
DUNGEON 63
THEKEEPAT KORAlGESH
54. Treasure Vault .
New Monster Descriptions
TYRANNABYSS
,
3
4 + 1 ***
120' 140')
2
1-411-4
1
Fighter 3 + special
12
Nil
Any
,150
EPADRAZZIL
The epedraeetl is a scaled, apel ike crea-
ture wit h unusu all y long arms. The
ski n is br ownish-grey, and the cre at ure
appears to have some repti lia n or igins.
The epadrazail is a conjured guar dia n
from a two-dimensional pla ne of exist -
ence. On ly a high-level magic-user has
t he ability to summon th is creature to
do hi s bidd ing. Thdo so, the magic-user
must create a special pa inting (AC 9; hp
20; half-damage fr om weapon t ype ) in
the room whose contents t he magic-user
wishes the creat ure to guard. The pa int -
ing must be an exact mi rror image of
the room. The epadrazail is confi ned t o
t his pa int ing unless its services are
required. Any creat ure other t han the
epadrazail'e ma ster t hat tampers with
the cont ents of the room summons the
creat ure from t he pai nting. The erea-
t ure immed ia tely a t t acks to ca pt ure t he
int r uder. The epadr aaail's great speed
all ows it to surpr- ise 66% of t he time 0 -4
on 1d6 ).
Any hit from the crea ture paralyzes
it s victi m unless a successful sa ving
throw vs . paralysis if! mad e. Any victim
hit by both attacks is grasped, picked
up. a nd ca rried into t he paint ing t o
remain i n st asis until released. The
victi m ca n be released by a dispel magic
spell , a rod of cancellutia n or by destroy,
ing the pai nt ing, The latter re sult s in
the release of t he epadrauil from its
bondage; it t hen ret urns to it s own
plan e. Th e epadraaall can regenerate 2
hp per round that it remains in the
pa int ing. All attacks on t he creat ure
wh ile it is in t he paint ing only damage
t he paint ing - not t he epadrazall. The
epadrazzil cont inues to attack t he in-
t ruders unti l it is sl a in or unt il the
room is cleared. It is semi-intelli gent
and is immune t o sleep, charm and
ot her mind-affect ing spells.
Armor Class:
Hi t Dice:
Move:
At t acks:
Damage:
N"o. App:
Save as:
Morale:
Treasu re:
Alignment:
XP Value:
automatic Id6 hp damage per rou nd of
cont act. Thi s mouth can r asp through
armor at a rate equal in rounds to t he
difference between t he AC a nd 10. For
exam ple. chai n ma il (AC 5) requires 5
rounds before act ual damage to the vict im
results. while plate mail (AC 3) requires 7
rounds. If the victim breaks away before
it takes any personal injury, damage to
the armor st ill t akes place.
Below the mouth of t he tyrannabyss is
it s primary hunting weapon, an elon-
gating tube t ha t ca n fi re a barbed st ing
t o a ra nge of 10' , It s sting pa ral yze s
(sa ving throw a pplicable) its prey an d
the tube is retracted t o draw it s vict im
wit hin range of its tentacles. If the
savi ng t hrow is made , victims with a
strengt h of 15 or better can reeiet the
pull ing tube. but lake I hp damage per
round due to t he lacer at ions from the
ba rbed st ing. The sti ng ca n onl y he used
once: t hen, 3 turns are required for it to
he rearmed.
Th e tyrannabyss is covered with a
t hick coat of muc ous which a llows it to
wi thstand prolonged periods out of
water, if it can st ay damp. Th e ty ranna-
byss ha s been report ed to att ach itself to
t he bottom of boats wit h its numerous
suckers a nd prey upon the crew above.
It s soft back is AC 8. whi le it s under-
si de, tentacles, eyest alks. a nd sti ng are
AC 6. Blunt weapons do onl y half da m-
age, wh ile edged weapons and fi re do
full damage. If injured but not slai n, the
tyrannabyss can rege ne rate 1 hp per
turn in seawat er. It has the ability to
a ssume the coloration of its surround-
ings and its boneless body ca n squeeze
t hrough openings considerably smaller
than it s body size. It cannot squeeze
under doors or through sma ll cracks. If
a man can crawl t hrough a n opening, so
ca n a tyrannabyss.
8/6
5"
60' (20') on l and
1120' (40') swi mming
2 clawsll sl i' lg
1-411-411-4 + special
14
Fiuhter ,1
9
U
Neutral
425
Ar mor Cl ass:
Hit Dice:
Move:
55. Storage. The door to t his roo m is
forced off its hinges. The interi or of t he
room is in ru ins . Shattered boxes, bar-
rel s, a nd Klass cont a ine rs litter t he
floor. Nothi ng of' value remains.
Attacks:
Damage:
No. App.:
Save us:
Moral e:
Treasure:
Ali gnme nt:
XP Value:
The tyrannabyss inhabi ts coastal wa-
t ers - especially reefs a nd rocky shoa ls
- whe re it prowls the sea floor in
search of prey. It can swim rapidly for
short distances by undulati ons of it s
body. It s circular mouth is lined wit h
ras ping teeth. If it s prey is hit by both
clawed tent acles (ld4 hp damag-e eacht,
it is drawn up aga insi. t his ori fice for an
Four large chests sta nd near the
north wall. Several dark stains ma rk
the floor in front of t hem.
One chest contains 6,320 sp. a nother
con t ains 3,370 cp, the t hird contai ns
5,050 ep, a nd the fourt h cont ains 3.960
gp and 500 pp. A small chest behi nd t he
others contains 97 gems worth a t otal of
2870 gpo
64Issue NO.2
THE TROUBLE
WITH MYLVIN
WIMBLY
The enemy you hunt
may not be the
enemy you find.
-
McC....y w,," inlroduetd 10 l h.
Dil l)" 60m. by 11;' dad. ,b. DM of
And""".. ,_P"" Ib_J"'lF'- \\'110.
/I ;" {afbw ... ,.._ """"" 1M
A.-drno> _ o\io_
C"nwtlly .. frwIt_ """'"i"4/ '" "."pr
ill ".,cltdloo <It JIIl'- Cd. iJo
J,"",-. Jliu in W . ANlnuJ "-that
Ih. pul>iiculi<m ", My!>';.. Wimbly
br=l. o{bad luch b. 11... "ad
in , rlt ing hi> ",,,,II publi.h.d.
n... Bui. D&D II_me ..,narK> _ _
u-.l ...di...,...m., bHWft..
alh'M>lurn _ .. r..... put,- of
6-10.....--,. rn.... I'" lO3rd 1eo'eI.
pnofenbl, iDdlidillf lot IHtt .-1Ia1f-
line. If t be party iI......, .... _ power-
r.,l than I"" _mended _ and
Ie",,], tile DM should i ....... ...., or
d.., ,..,,,oethe number of"reo lh.
cont rol of t he ch""tio "'agioian,
The DM may choooe bet we.n r . &ding
the Adventure B-ekll"Oul>d to t he pb y
..... or plari"i' out the p(A' fU"Ol
_ ,n' .. wi th Myhi ll Will>b!y.
Adventure llod<ground
Havin, left to'Wn littJ.l..ur tha..
expected on an upedition 10 check
out an olf of emptoym. nt, your
party [ocaught in t he middle of ..
tar,.. r_ by nirhtr.ll. RNl wng
!hal. tJ,en is no in .. for mi ld. 7"" MOt
up _pi n .. -.;'" in ' ho _
Aft -.kin&a __f"" ..... piek-
i cuard shi1U.,.... drift "'h,,
Iol p. ..... by .....
NOIIoo l_.fter I"" .......... Mift
belli.... overy,,,.. it jolled r""" .I""p
by houl from t h. guard, V" u cBu h
a 21impe<"fhurt . humanlike
..... . tu... nocin2 into the unde rl>ruoll.
11Ie cuard expl';... t h.1be-...pped
out of earnp r.... _tto <OI1eoct.
fl .......... Whe1l be mun>td. he "'..
-.Ma ' Iuollli.... d;pi....
into _ "flhoo kl*'u. He relied.
ar><! 1M tt.ortl Iuolnin2 cnbbedone
ofl"" pocband I\ed into t he """",",
You ....... mbl. '" your f""l an d
lhro ugh I I.. pIlCh 10
fiod OUl ..hal I.... Uttl. fugit ive took,
It. m&Kic.....". in)'Our iJ'OUpnclsi"'"
Ih.t the pack .....tainillll" hit c..........1
....11 books it "' - DC- [lfthoror.,.,
DO magic-....... i. the pan,.
thot DM tIwuId . Iocr. ..... OIlier
item '" import&lKefur tho
h.lninrl" oleal.l
DUNGEON 33
THE TROUBLE WITH MYl VlN WlM81.Y
FOf the Dul'lgeon Mosler
Mylvin Wimbly. 1"Y.l friend . nd liard
worker Qmong II.lning on"" . n. ..'ered
n ad'erti.ement loo.king for Q" i ht
to ..,"'e Ir.'eli ng m. gic"""r ',
bOOYil'Uard. TIle magic-u..r, Luambu
IIIe M. gici an. "",ferred. IIuman r..-IIt -
. r ... an .If. H-...r. wb.n f<ned ...
pick bee......n Myl....., ..ho cnul d opaU
......... and a dwarf ..ho> put
hia poa.nta on _k..ard and iDaidaout.
1.alaJnbar deci<Ie<l lhat the halni.... ....
batt than ... lIl"n! al all.
.\a lb. _ u went by, Myl vin I'1'du
alll 1ean>ed t bat hiumployer _ cIeopiloe
his grandf. t ilu ly look. _ ...... t ruly
<h""He. Myl , in, be, ng neutral h, m..lf,
n", ,..,ly ignor ed th ia diff.r ence in opln.
ion u far ""Ihoir "",*,n.1r elnll onohip
wao l rn:erned, On
Mylvin followed Luambu 10.n_
. ncampmenl ..here. mucll ... Ilia our
prian, he wil neMtd ...... chariofMtic
.....p:;an pi.. ... ...., boond Uleo,
with ...... help 01. W. opoe1Ia. F tba
_ ...-era! ..-b. lotyh-in tnI.-e1ed
wit.b Lazam_ and ...... _ -.duatr
r... treaaure I ...mbar ..
buried in the Wh ile hu.. 'i for
t h. Ioot'w location . ...... bn.nd..mped in a
omaIl "'l'e wilhin large rnck near lhe
center orthe wood.
In tho middle ofthe """"nd w""k. one
of l.azamhar', 0'" pHtr ol. wn, aur prioed
nnd al most by . ""tty of
ad.-e nl uren who had moved in... I""
...... The oola ...., aurYi_01tile
ambuoh otruuledbad<.....mp .nd
.........p to ...... 1.alaJnbar , the
.. _ .... oItIM intnlders bef be died-
Within IIllnut., tba map:...- had I".
..-ciah r""""" .....,. and laUD<bed
haaIy, .......1,pl. nned e...mlenll.laCk.
Ml lvi n, in hill eapaeill .. bndyguard.
""""",,,,,nied Luambu IlIld t lul """,, H.
wu holding hi, ow.. in lbe d uh ..h. n
he . uddenly ""'"lInired t..,o of hi, old
fri endo in t he opp".ing band, In . pro--
dkament bet.......n hi. duty to hia
empl"Yer . nd hia loyally to hi . frl . nde,
Mylvi .. quielJ y wilbdre.. from t h" n. llt
nd obaerYed freon boohincl a .... .
.-rbJ bill.
After inll iel i"l Iou..,- ....wtiool ....
tba..,.. ...... .---ely __
iMn>don _ ted m- ,bore.-.
M, Ivi..l l wo halfiin.J rriendr.. ho......
..... ..ptw-ed II)' the "",,, ..hen I""
tried ......."". I .. ..mhnr .... enraged
I t the damoge IIi. r<>r<:eo had Iah .. , h.
h. d loot more t hon ""-Ifof hi . or<: . ll i...
34 Is&ue No . 5
in I"" __Iy ....OlJ In ...n ...... I.uam.
bar docidtod the haming pri _ 1'3
hould bo tortured to dl h. MyJyi n
OIlKKel l ed that L.... mb. r hold t he pr i..
oneil r<>1' ,.noom i""td, their
d. al lll ..ouid _ b.m. fll t he "," gioian'.
""..... Lazambar did ,,,,,ider
I"" idHo. he dil mi-.l the l boughl . r>d
ordeftd an ere h1adomitb te =aloe
bnndi .... irons wilb ..IIicb to tori.....
... -
By nichtfalL LaJ.amJ.r .... .--1,- to
becin the ftlCUtioa- The evil """IIician
pl-.l hia irono in.... .....-u..- f"".
'nlen he ordered the """' ... tie the half-
linp to I_ large 00.1<1 .. thaI t hey
fflCe<l .... anot.her. \\'hen t h" i""", gr e"
,"'hit. hot , Laza mhor ..Iected On. and
walked to t h. lar gor of the pr ia-
on.... In I nuIT)' of indeciaion, Mylvin
oIartad r.,.......-.:t. only to be otopped . hort
by I houll"ta ..rloyally to hia empl"Y.r.
Bul l"" bou.r>d batniJlll',<')'ft implonld
him to ""Ip i .. the _ or ...... Criend-
ohip .....,. 0"'"' had ohand and the t-I
ortheir -.._nat. Gnbbi .... .-.....
iron.. Myl" n ebarpd the m-ic m.ap-
eian. The -.Jburned the
"""lIic-UMr' .-..beand bIIried i_lfi n
bia ri gllt thigh. Lazambar acr-med i..
p.in.r>d Mylvin dropped tlul iron and
,..
Althoull'h Mylvin novor know ii , h.
..ved hi. fri . nd, Ii" ,.Th" 0"'" bolt ed
from l he mp in an a\l.mpt 10 kill i he
litl le Ir.il' Laza mba. dr...k pol_
o{1o li.... nd raced .nee Ilia h h-
ma L.tl.I in the clearing, ......
agila h.lni ... w<riggIe fret
oItha .....' akwY and .... on
in puUe. A filthl and ,,""".-cd Wam'
bt.r,,"urnod '" hio p te n Dd the
.. t.ne.. ..-, h If"l .....,,,
with Mylvin Wimbly iflle had ... ..,y in
IIIe ..-lo rorever.
Now. 1...0 monlh. later, Mylvin ill otill
end renning in thil part oflhe
Woodl , Hi uppli...rImo. t gone and
h. lOll t wko . ttacked whon h...ked
for food.nd ...iota n.., from lravel.... in
the (omit. )Iylvin ..ould be perfedly
willi... 10 lhe ..........Dd go home.
hul he k_ be m_ kill Lazambor...
ha.-e DO.curi.,. ...,..hare. The _on
the tnaP: ..-deno, ha.... aet Inpo
and laid humeo but "".. _ rec
... dod in ..pturi.... tba balfl;q.
Th. f..-- in which tho ad ,""'
tak.. pi",," io quiloe ntanoi , only .
portion or t heoe .......... however. ill
, bown on tho map. Th. t ..... aland
,..,Iati' ely do.. togdher. but . few
c1. ....ingll doeaili. Wi, hin Ihia hanMoi
of clearingo . re oet tho many lrap"
Amhush.. of t"" o. il w ambar.
In th. center of . I. rgo d . ",. i1lK
at and. Ahugo r""k, Age. ago, it ltoed
river bed. Th. inter ior o( lbil l re_
rlouo boukler Iuoa boo.. eroded into
cluunbero l 8, 9. and 101
The foreol p baoboon dra..n ...
IAat Hcll ia 120' __)1:<11II;
.........."'bered PCo a1kOM .....
per 1Ilnt.r>d run t.breoo bo1eo po< "'nL
Myl<rin .. UDCbCUmbored.
'!'ITinI toeateh. ""Ini... .....
.....t to be Cl-DiM. in tbe midd le 01.
dark ...'OOdo und.... the moonli ght, ia
Ir ieky bu. inHi. Mylvin Wimbly hid...
from t he PC. , Irlothem into IlIpl ,
nnd does o,oryl hinw in hi. power t o
ovRde hi, pur l ue," and o50ape to hi .
oman cave hi.......t<. rea HI).
TIle ]>lIlh ft>l ....... to ,,"urn to
hia hideoul ia marhd 0" the ....p. He
""'" out oraho advenlureR' ca"",
........... the -u.e-. thea rot...... lhe
II1Irbd trail ..... ....... ..,. drviata m-
il wtIeso ho b tnrad to do Each Iurn.
Nyh-i n adv_OM Ione the p'-'h
_ ..-.I hio h;deout. HO'IIe\'. if he _
IolIrdtlighl or . ny her ..-tiflci" llipl
""""'. be runo for t hree .. do..n the
trail duri ng t lta l urn. H. ll oo
begina to run if t be pC. enler hil
proaenl hex or if t hey make a lolo(
noi.. in an .djacent hn.
Th. pr.".,.... or . bonn"" of lighl ia
important in IIIia _nario. Any .....
t,,", wilb a lighc _ 1OrCh, Ian
larn. ... .....,;cal illumi t ioo _ ia
-'oedby "'1- in the """'" . any
Oo4,io<aottl ""a. n.rearrieI- or. lilbt
0tIW'ft .... DOdtoo.-to 1UJllri-, Si.-
the <>n:lI do _ .....1arIy <any torclI...
......ir chanoeo or IIlrpri.. are unaffeocted.
TIle benefila ..r carrying- a lighl
include . n inc.......,d chance of nnding
trnp' Idetailed for each Ir ap) and I n
eo. i.r joh of t rocking l ho
Myl, in. Porti el Wi lking wil h a light
.....,..,. have Chl nC1l! of IpoWng
Wimhly.....pe route. Ulbe Pea .... in
...... that Mylyin paged tbroup.
.. ......-ked on t be P .....,. hava 25..
ehanooe '" _ ice -.... twigo,_.
l un>od _ and ol._
oipo or !II, I ...- iDeludi"l ....
dire<:tion 0I1re f . each "U", hal f-
li ng i n the party. the chance i D<T ._
by 151l ..........imum of 85.... For
.....pl. party th.t includeo an "If
. nd two II.lnin... hu a 70% (25" haM
+ t 5% for on. elf + 30';( ror two
M,l..-ia&va.
-.-_tbel: if Myl..-iahM beea
.....
Ihho ,.,..,. -..:bel a 11ft ' MI-
..,.triDhao IlQ( anlered ,1,'. then
a 4O'lI> unmodified chan to nnd
!up number of bootprinta leading
_ ard Lazambar. headquMte... Th....
,nnta may be followed. ..It heut any
dw><e of l...ing t M trail, bacauae the
... hu. no rellIOIl to """"'" th.ir
..-.cka. Ifthe part, ia notunying a
liPt ac>UI'a!. the Pe. .utomatiealb'
Iorlail .", opportunit, to dia<oYer both
1II,),i. a aD<! the _ ' Inda.
'iltaDdoerinc -..... ......, iJl tI>iI
put <Iithe ........ but Ihay de> __
eJly .t " il hl. third tun>,
the DM ahould roll IdS. Oa roll <IiI
........ _ ".. ........... Tbo DM
....Id datoonniDol the dire<lioa <Ii
oppo.-:h ..... roll apia 10 deIenni...
the ...t W'1l of the ....,.".!ar:
12. 1-1 """' V. C 6; HO I ; hp 5eac:h;
MV lZO' (41)'); I AT1; Dma' by ....pon
'TP"; S.ve Ft; ML 8; AL C) canying
looking fer Mylvin. Eam oro
Iwo1 10 op on bia ....n.
S-I. 2-5 gl . nl rata (AC 1; HD '10; hp 3
eKh; MV lZO' (40'); IAT I; 0"", 1.3 +
s."" nonnal _ n; ML 8; AL NJ
"'" bllDtinl: fa- rood.
&-&. 1-6 0 ...,. (aa..- ......l..-ith
abaot ....... aD. their _y the
euarda "" duty .t .... 8. Eao:han: hao
1.10.""
, ... 1-6 0<eI \aUM.. _Iwitb
abaot ....... returDing to 1"amba."
............
Encounl ef LocatIons
tbe enIuntera give.. h...... are m.-n 0 0
the Foreot Map.
la and l b. The Pita. Th... I..o IU'eIUI
MOh ""'nlllin a poorl y <amoul1. o.ged pit.
n.. pita an: e.., to opot in
day];,bl. but at " igbt IIwy .... diaoov
-.l onl, 50'10 ol the time by walling
Pea ..1>0 eany _ rc.n.. <Ii utificio.l
JiIhI.. R" nniDg Pea tab. I K penalty
oa tl>eiJ'chaD<e to di '''' the pi ta, and
u-. PCa ..bo an -m.c..-itbotn. a
liPt RO<e;-. -:lO' pe...tty_Any PC
..bo __011 "'"<Ii. pit talle ill, but
..._ "m.. ..ho ... rou-;,....
belli1Ml ba"" a to 0II0pin
IiIlMl if..alkio,g. :lO-.. if nmlU"lI"
M, IYin Wimbly baa ral lan into eac:b at
th_ I S' >< I S' pita on.., "" he no long.
er venl ures into t M" ...... unleao he ia
FOREST MAP: '. "
,'" ,:-:.. --:" . .";' . .--'. '.' ; " :
""./"'" ..'.r '.'.> ' _". ' , . '7," , _,

"
,
'.
Ir7inI to __pot from an enemy. Fort u
...teIy r...hiJn, bolh pita ....... ....:I, 5'
d.p when hot fell ill, and be ped
1 .,mhotr later .....-..d the _
to doaapon bot h pita 10 10'. B,,"". <Ii
tho '''''s'>- tho "'Ia, an, PC
rotli.... hia dntarit7 _ '-ou 1d20 ia
ahla to elimb oul pil durinc the
nut roww:L ral li ng into eithotr
pit tal<.. 1-6 hp damage.
Th. ... an: ""ver.l . mall metal <Up".
. Il.eched to eord lied to lho
Ing Mauch that r8t ll e loudly ..hen
_n)'thing f oll . into a pit . I f ""mean<>
r. lI . into pil l t he... ia. 1S'!> ohllJlce
that t hree memben tho on: det.ech
men t j est the pil (area 61
in '1: tbe dnmk... on:guardo
. 1.... 1. ju8l: beyond pit Ill-an: unable
10_ .",..-paired .--.. to tho
raWing" .-..I.
I- n.. Moomd 01Din. Thla mowod
.... __by tho ora from the dirt Ihay
_,ad to mo.l<e tbo pita 01areaa 1.
..... Ib. 1 ...mbor l"an>ed tbo ..... to
"*"" tho dirt ben to prevenl ena"""
!'rom IJU<IBini the Joc:o, 'iona at the pit
tr_pa. 11>0 lOiIaDd-d., -.utd iA.boIIl
21)' long, 20' wi de. _nd 8' tall. PC.
THE IROUBU WIlH MYLVlN WlMBlY
.,
..
..
al-Ietnpl.iog 10run _ tho -..ad muot
roll theirdoenerily __ou 1d20 or
l.-tl>eiJ'r-u.a: .. tho ""- aDil.
:L The B.....,. Trap. The ora
u..upt tbia t7ap miPI i"""peeil-ata
M, hi u "" hot could be uptured.
Vufortuna"'l" the .u.pid..... p;eked
brandl 3'10' from the ,.....,.... and it.
oailo harml-ty o""r 1oI, l'oi o'. head. On
tho FOund, _ raiaed trip ..ire ia lied
bet.....n t wo oak tree. W81king Pea
h.v. a 50%ch.nce of otepping on the
trip wi ....; running Pea h8V. a 90%
ch.nna of touching the triner. Ifthe
thin trip wire ia toucl>ed in any W. Y
larp br.nch "';ngo f"",,,,"wb' bet_n
tho _. hitUllll tho f\rot PC to
bota.n the treaa if""" part, ia beaded
--ua or..--; howe .e,. 111. bad. of tho
PC ilD di.tely fa1lo>orinc the te-dors is
ltitiltbeputy is
b
edinl-nh __
Quite _DIy. tbo PeaJD.ich._
tbia ....p bef..... tbey _ ..... it. Thinaoe
.... 0p0I the t7ap ..-itb the ......J.
....."""". and el... and halfIinp loa-
cb....,.. to _ .. the ....p. 'Ibere ia
no chance. """'-. of nnding the ....p
while running or morinr ..-ithout li ght.
The PC who .pota t ho 'r. p ..., hulr"
DUNGEON 35
THE J1K)lJBU WlTll MYlVlNWIMBlY
THE ROCK IN THE FOREST
N
I Iqlla... . 5'
bnncb.....appM '-:It &r<I1lDd tho .;d. '"
its tree . nd t Kod. to a otak. on lhe olher
aid. '" t he tnl ok. Touchi ng t ho trip ..iN
,, _ \.h. loop to olide ofT Ih. ltak .
,..,I...ing th. br.noh io a forceful ... .
Mylvio h.. . njoyed this f"lil e att.mpt
to.akh him. aod .uffe... 00 "'ow.... for
I ding hi. many tormentorl h. ,.., for a
f"", bally ""ha, An elf. buman. 01" ore
takH 28 hp damage if hi l by t b.
branch. Ow"",H are bit on the f<nhHd
(or bllet "' Il>e h. ad) and take only 2..5
bp d&n>&,p. but "'_..v. v.. bfta\.h
_pon_ ba k.....t ed ..-..eioouar... 2
1\I UI'1I&. Pea _ fill plIlte In&iII&ke 2
lip d&Iup '-thaDiDdie&led"" Il>e
d... &ridPea l'1lDDinI-.th ... __
!.be dit&cCiorI Ihe brancb owiDp _ taka
1 '-lip d&-. The Itajl aI..,. .....
al '-I IIpdamap......... ifll>eflll&l
....11 .. _ l han I . HalfIi_aull"or ....
adv...-.. oft"lICta, ... 1M bnm<1I __
&bon ..... i . '-do.
4. The Nd Trap. IfPea are not run
ning ..h.n t he,. . pproaoch\.hia .......
t lul,. Ina)" noti<:e that leafy ah.d.,...1in
daylight form. diamond pattern On tha
ground. Th. y <:.!In disoov. r the r o....n
for Ihll hy looking up. Slret r hed
36 I$SUO NO. 5
be.."e,,,, tho tr-. a n u n d ~ IhilI
d earing .. a SO' ~ SO' (i.ho.man. net
..ith _ights attached in 1pia""".
When a PC .nlt>n t hi . hu . h .
trip wi... oat by t h. OI"OJ15O'l .hanre of
. pringing the tr ap, .a"oinK'he nel to
f. lII. A PC .tanding n.ar th. edge of lh.
net must ron hi. dexteri l Yor 1... on
10120 to avoid baing tr.pped by the
fall ing net. n- PCI lI anding &<1"'''-
I,.1rit llin \.h learing ha.e .....hane<l1o
avoid baing u-apped by I"" naI. Entan-
gled PC. require 3--30 rounda10 get free.
Myl"':n baa already ....ml_Iltia
partin>Iar U"&p in douiI. and "" kDOWlI
the trip -.u-. \ouJ;ioc>a and ..bat hap-
_ if _ Ie pulled. N .....11.. be
... _ nUt' tltle _ ..1Ii1. brilti"
Jl'l"IlIO'II. H. ba, bo ' u . led aariolll
groupo 01 into the Inp1' aaadiltl'
... bail near middJ. ancI __ping
..""" !he ehartIo. Ho mo,hl doIhr
....... to the PCI if 7 I.,..
5. Th.. So .... "J)-ap. Four of the tren
in lItio oe::tion of Iha ......,.ja ani equipped
with f_.Jtnlbbing l nare trapa. Pea
Wilking willt Ii"ht ..." .... hay. an 60%
chance to notice eit h.. t he rope. hang.
;ng from the Ire.. or 'ho loop. below,
t hue ...,;dil\l[ the embarTuailtl' a nd
uoeomfotl&ble problemofflndinllhem.
..Iv.. ouddonly hanlliDll upoide <Jo..nin
l h. middl e of th. clearing. If the PC
are running or moving wil hnul li" hl .
th.y .... i cumulati v. penalti .. of
40%Ir"nning) and 30'if, (no lightl '0
loco' e lhe trapo.
Anyon. wh.o ia nOi . ....... of t he trI p'
haa 41)"il; . h oI being grabbed by
OM of \.he 011 Pea ....k hod from
I"" rmund by thooe <levkft . re lolally
helpJ... unlil &JIolher PC euU the rope .
When tho ropo ia cut. an elf ... IIl1.1D&n
ouITen no ......... if be puu ouill ia .......
to brwJr. the fal l Bill- 6' ofI'the IJ'IOI'Id ia
qu ite IIa,h for- a dwuf... ball1inc. n-
.-taka 1.3 bp fall in& damqe it ....
......., .. made lO..teII lloom.
... o...Amb uoh. n-.. ........ _
lAC 6; HD I ; IQ> 7.6. 6. 4. 3, 2; )(V 120'
C40'l; 'AT I; Orne h,. -nil"'" Iypo; Sa...
FI; ML8; AL C; 3 ha.., ............... . 11
have l hort " ", ordo) lriding in lIt ia dark
. Iuri ng. n.a, do _ MtritslO to . uaet
parly that incl"d...lv... but iflhe
porty h.. nOelv... t hey reBel pnoilively
on roll 0( 9 .". betle r on 2<16, Jr tho
......U.n II poI'itive, ond if t he . dvent"r
..PBf- "" baMiloo -.tboy _ \0
oab the !'Co 10Luambar.
tc tho ""'" .ttacl<. tIM l.hne Iltd>en
lop s. a. 2l ellclll'int one qu .......1frotn
llooir """'OO.... then .n the ora ta""
.. ........ds.nd . U..I<. [ftheir mor.le
filii., they attempl to nee 10 Lazambar.
_ dquarter o; failinil" thi l. th.y . ltlT<!n
..... Eac h orc ha.o 120.p on hi. p,,,,,on.
tc tho PCI fIll inlo t hl pillt """I I a .
tho on: iab archan .... aent 10 invellti
,.108. lf the party h.u "lIin the an:ben
01. the pil, lbe !'Co lind on!)' lhree ora
-nil ahort oworda hen al ..,..,. 6.
7. Drunk Guarda. 1D thia amall dear
....... lhree lIl'OIlACt; HD I ; lop 6. 4. 3;
lolV30"1101; IAT 1; Doq b1_
typo; So.. Fl;)fL II ;AL Cl .... aininlr:
..-..d 0 dyiqcampl".... "..,. hi...,
bed li ttle mon _ l.haD tboy abouId
hi... &attend aboul tIM outpost an: 14
ompty and two halUu ll .-in. botl.lea.
Thoorca ere atoli onod he.. 10ch",,1< On
tho nearby pil (area lhl . nd nel (,.,.. 14)
<rIp, . In Ih.ir p.e..nl Ctl ndil ion. ho",
ev , the orCa . .. in. opabl. of checkinll
t ho trap.
WMn the Pea .nte. the orca' camp.
roll 2d6 fur th.",.,.' reaction.lfthe
-wt ill above 7. thoo ora bunt into
lo.....u. ., apparenl1y lIndine the Pea'
""- bilarioua. If the ....11 ill 5-7. the
..... ail and ataroo i n 0 <lrunUn
....poI". H...-eo'ft, if the ....11 is Ina
tha.a 5. the""" the PCa fur 3-12
.....-. thrD auad< if tho adftDtWftS
"'"'.. _ 1rft. Tho ora he.. apean but
eI,.. -mrIael., .1. - 4 p<De1tylO
hit. PCamay a..rt riol. .... by ofI' erintl
onolh... I>otUo. at.ine, . hioch l he """
_ o. ly accept. _ umi", the I dv.nt....
. ..Join th.ir liltl .,.I.bl ion. Eac h on:
rri 112 51'.
8. Llzambar. H d qua rte.... A
I\I3TOW pl t b", ay I.ado up the aid. of
thi l huge rock . Nnl to the path. in .
prot.a<ti..., nich. iol. the 1IOoe, otaDd
-.no! eIClvatioD 10010.. all
'lith dirt. In addition to the.,..Jeo and
""'"-Is. the niobe contaiao .....u eart,
its is_..aIIa . .... ..... with. dirt.
AI the Inpatthe poth. as _nin& in
the rocl< loeado inta the ..... that _
.. the IIoeadquaru.n """ Launbar'.
operatio... ta capture the baIfi i"i. The
ltIu. ll"OefIt .........a heal thn>ugh
l ime " ill uallUe is thilI <aee. LNambar'.
rage hee ""ly lIOIten -..- . i""" Myh in
fn ed hill 1. 11. In fact. the m.gi.\l8@I' ilI
on t he "",ge orin..nil y.
n.e....., .. lit b1 taodNo held in
....keehif\ bolden. WlM1l the PC. .ater.
10 on: ,....-da CAC I ; HD I; bp8.
6. 4. MY 120' (401; 'AT
I; Oma' b, wel_ Iype; So.o Fl ; ML8;
AL C) mo.... ta hal l the inl ru.ion by
bl"" kinll the p8I&Ii<''''. y 10 the ......
_ l ion ofth. CIV. (. .... 9) . nd aiminll
.rouoo"'. at th. PCI. AI long aO the
PC. do not .tta.k. Luemh the M. gi
clan emer g.. from Ih. back of the cav.
in I .... rounda.
Uthe party dnoe not hi.. Myl'Oin
Wimbl, . roll I dlOand ...bWed the
number 01baIfiinp in u..par1y. Ifthe
.-It ill gree..... u.... I . Lau...bar taIka
'lith tho puty brieiI,. ; dinl ta
their queoti<mo ta the '-t <Jl hia kncI-l
..... If M ilI)lrOloedabout the haHlia l ,
M u.lI. the PC.. eonde I __<Jl
the DM. biotory ...,.jin... 10-.tid Ii""
the trait<lrOUl helflinll'OUl'" Leza.m-
bar'. lea: ", ith bnndillll iron "'hHe M
.I.pt. He millhl be 'lillillll" to let t he
i'Vup . ""nd the ' III oh he night her . if
t hey hlv. no h.1ninil" or elve but h.
would prefer to bid Ih.m f"" ewell ....k
i nil" t hem to ...port lIndillllO 10 him.
If the ..... ull of the ro ll ill 1, or if
My..in ill with the pu!y. Laumbar
00"'dtn t h...... to .!tICk . nd ret.reel.ato
the bed: <Jl tbe ..ve. FOW" ore erdIoen
...... let _ quarnol a" then all the ...
a!tICk. n.eon: ..m.s tbeir leader
CI hpl obort __it> 1 the
reet ploy -"" Ifthe ora _
-.Ie. they retnoeI ta the r-r <Jlthe
...... 10"1I .. LNam.... is eli ........
'l'ithi" liehl, tboy .....tinlOe ta light; the
ora ......,nd.... ifLuatn.... dies, ......,n
don, or disappaare. Eec:h "'" bao120
If'. . nd eacb ..... an:h... Iou 27 ""t re
qu.rrels in hillquir. for u" in pro-
longed mi..il. baltl...
9. The Sleepl nll C. ve. Wh.n tho
party am",,".t t he 10.... oIthe main
cav...... they lind I\I3TOW tunnel 1eed
ina: 10m.el1er ca . Si. COlI .... acel-
tered . boul thil ....'-d_ . A "'-
is Ilidde.. beoeath ..d. 01the OllIe end
bed:pael< Iiee OD top 01_<Jlthe becIa.
n.ecIeeor 01thiI oI.opi.., ....... is do>Ini-
...tad by .Iarp radI eot iata the _
'"IlL s..- .-....fuI on: haa ""'
stubby .....u.. IlOp the radI. ..... the
Will haa melted ...... tIM _ is gray
n wuleta.
Luemhar el",aya fell he w.. do ta
catohi ng MylYin, but he "" It .....
j uet 00'" cioae h..._ Ifth PC. with
rombined . t",nlllh of 40 pull on tho
THE TROUBLE WITH MYl ViN W1MlllY
rocl<. it rolb out <Jl u.. _,. \O.......:J
MylYin. hideout.
If Lazambar ill forced10r",hl, he
appo__the bed W\th the bed:pack
ond eeell hill_ U. The lint_ll he
ceoII- wh.n hode_ l he orca ....
losi nil" in the front c. ... _ io mirror
; m<W. H. th.n cut lup and .k",m
p,"wn. If it becomeuvident that he
", ill not be ..ble 10def t the party. h.
rrabo hill backpack _ if "" can _ and
CI.ItI invia ibilil;y. An- doi"" t hi8. be
_ 10 plot bia l'eY'OIlJlI . When the
PCI emerge from the ....., I ...m ....
roIJow. them'lithout lbeir ""nwiedF.
if pooaible.
Ft.. 01the cbeate ..... 1ait> foodand
1lIlbn- ...""lieo: kJrcbM. oil, etc. The
oc.bn- ebeot, the ..... uro<let I .,.mbe'
-.coDtIina only food..... 100 edditioa-
el quarreIa lOrthe oreiIb .,.,, 10.....
Be....th the feleo bot tom <Jl thill
.... 83t s'" 1_ rubiea Cwortb 60 lIP
eMh) in 0 ...,.n pouch. Iwo polio... of
I nd. m.p indicat ing ...m.
kind of t"'Mu" cache bunK n.arby.
Th. DM may decid. if th a.he actu
I lly ..iota and wb.t I.... ou.. iI holds.
If the PC. il""ab LaJ.ambaro backpack.
they find t wo worth at ratio....
threo torcl><s, 0 tiJ>derbn,., .....u bIen
kot. 0 J>lIlW'eontaini 25 "P. end I
bottle <Jl_tered 'I'i In addi tion . the
Mekpeclt _ ina. (eleirled <:opJ <Jlthe
_ ia the I . " mber _ to<aJ.
1y tnut.ed the ora ..... !hoouP1u...,.
IniPt .ttempl ta _ k tha hMI<Ieto <a<:ha
the_ loea- Baa;dee the f.1eo IItIp.
Lau... bar eleo ""pi bis _II b<d<in the
....k. Thill opell boot """leina el l the
opelle Laumbar k_ Needl.... ta ..y.
losiail" hill opell boot 'li ll h.ndicap
Laumbar l ill" iflc. nl ly. If lhe party
l Ike. the o""ll book. t hey a.... viaited by
plall\1. ofthi in L. ... mbar'l hire
who Iry to Ita.l evary bool< in the PC.'
_ionuntil the m. /lK:uoer get.a hill
opell book beeJr..
10. MylYin Wi",b ly'. Hideout. PC.
who eutnine the northwlot aide ol the
hupboalder in the cIeari"i -aa
IIIlIil lIP ill u.. buehee oumNndinlI
thilI aide <Jlthe rocl<. If tboy probe the
-. tboy m-er 0 amelI boloo is the
bouhiM" that leado to 0 ahort tunnel
".. boale io tao amall i'nr all hut en.l
ina: c1w8"ellor omeller creelures, .....
tIMlun....l ill "" wider thoa the hoi .
Magical "",ana <Jl."l.ry ma" of cnune.
a l... be used. Aboul 10' in. t he lunnel
110m . sharply upward and wid.1lI
37
,
I
THETROUBLEWITH MYlVINW1MBty
AD, PC ..ho ClOD fIt
u.n.u,h ..... tun...I ....., dim!> up iDto.
-.J1..-1IwhaI.--.:I u M,I".;,,'.
Ioideotrt rot" m. two ...."tha.
noill .-ill nck<I to I ".ml.."
l.lorouP aD oponiD,g iD1M
_ ....U. AIarp boulo..-, obaftcI iDto
m. PI' tt- ..... other oicle, bIocb t.hio
-';"C_1flhroe Pea with oomI>iDed
ob'etIIth of 40 puab 011 thoo boulder, il
n>lb iMo. Iafpr .." beyoOtld. nidi ill
'The
magi<__lei ba" the .........wl,
;..., al l _ t.hiopIM>o if be hew .bout
it. M, I.,;.. oflon l ioteDed. at u.., bouId<or
",.. InforfbOl.lot> oboul .. "" ambuobn.
If thtoPea ,,",up l M, lriD earlier iD
thtoad""........ thill ""'Ill ill " oinh.hit.
ed. If M, lyln baa ....ped their ..o"ottIo.
.....ti".... readin, thi .:tion.
In thooend.-d opaoe. the Pea OM.
candle nicker i..,; beyond tho. omall
erealure hllddl... ",..,r the I nlenla "' a
bo.kpa.k (t.he one otolen from the PC.l
whi.h he hu ju.t emptied onl<>the
ground. Piled . bout on the bare rock are
numeroua other item. which the ha lf-
linll h 1"" takon. Obvio....ly. Ihi "
littl e t hief made regular habit of
..qui . in, ot her poopl<!'a thing.. Ift he
PCI w.it few rou...... they hear sob-
bi", and a quiet whioper of complaint:
"So hunlP'J ... norood:'
Myl.,;.. Wimbly ..ill....-uinly be our
prioecI to I....... lbot ,.,... hu found
hillitll<! hi"""'. If PCo approoclI
hilll with be i.. a_-
DeI". V they ot.tod. bowe_, Myl"; n
r""ta u ..... be ClOD with hio
......-d.. 1D thoo third ...... of the firbt.
M, m.. bociuto oulfer .0......... paino,
..... biI,., hit n>llo ON ' t bJ 2
....til the rllht iII __
If the Pee _ -.h hiJn
cally. Nym.. II will;"" to talk - .......
.. ill -.redtbe PCa .... DOt wwk;""
rot" Luambc_ Nym.. ClOD tell tho PCa
_ 01the ;nr..,...tion ,;y.... iDFot" tho
lf the PCootrer hi m
rood ..... drink. be ....:epU withou1 __
tioa. He k-. he will die _0 withou1
-.....ce; if the rood II poiIoned, it
wi ll j...t ....kl lha eDdiD& <ome littloe
quicka. At\.- ..tin, hia fill . "" hoco.....
mudl more aIJabl .
MylviDio qui.. willi", to ,;ve the
PCa onythin, in the """" they " ant
t h.t ill not hill p"l'lIOnai PI'OPt'"Y- The
itema t he party ....y take incl ude a ho:t
of nine pink .andle. t hree ba.kpa.kl.
five iron . pi k... . a Iluffed eagle. a "",,,,.
bar. a I mall lOok, a broken lantern.nd
38 Issue No.5
the pany.. .... ..... i .. ........n...
U, after the baIfIi.nc &ella hio tale, the
PCa 10 "i_ta' a..mbar.
Myl.,; IMd u..... .........,j the nd.
1O.....
PCa ha... DOt ,............, t-.. tberel
MylTi .. haa DOt . _ . a td -rr......tlyto
u.;..k 01ou.u-tiDf: l hat the Pea ......,
Ihe boaWer ..... ourpriae l .,. mbe .....
hiI ..... tr- behiDd. bu.t thoo PCa y
di a lhio tbomoolea-
If I ... ...... iocWeaud. the 1WfI ....
"",y ba:otne ht'D':hlllo"'a1ly r...the
pany. if the OMbaI_ the pany .....Id
beDelit tr-lha I""';otioo and u..,
PCa .... wi lli.., to add him to u..,ir
b.nd. If the lWfIi.., ...... DOt joi.. thr
p-oup. ha ntwmto biI he....towD,
marriel hia childhood """"'O"'art. and
_ lie..... to JO .......nt uring "';n.
concluding meAd ventu.e
J u.t bee........ the cho.raote.. may h.ve
found Mylvin and defeated wamba.
d_n' t mea n Ihi. ...n... io ia exha usted _
The advent ure, in fa.t. may be jus,
beKinninll. The PC. ....y bave L....... m-
bar'. treuure map and .Itempt to lind
tho hidd.n .acho. [t ia .. IM qui l e iikely
Ihlt wlmbar (if he l lll'Yiveo) will _ k
reven,.. on the ad....nt nre d of
coune. he lIill hu a ooore to ttle with
Mylvin Wimbly.
NPC COp$U1e$
Myl ria Wl",bl y io . 11I1eve1 balIliDe
........1...............-bodyl\lOl'dlAC1; hp
6; loW 90' (301; S 10. 113. W 9. 0 13. C
14.Cb 12; OJ I: Dmi: br_1ype
... HI;ML4:AL
Hill equipmeDt iDcl .....
....I!>er .........,. 0 ' .. with ........
qu&lTtl lo, .. obon ...-.l, Mckpa:k
ti.. I ............. pair ol uaed ..........
H. p-atefull, """"'PIa ythiDr thoo PCo
011" hi to m.r- bio ouppIiea,
boca hehu ..""'_...
purclo.- the thinp he ____
Myl"" W bl' ill "", to be .........,j
..baDtm.a pod. 1D ""'" time&,
bowner. he teDdo10 ba:on>e witbdraWD
. Dd """"'y. He II flerctl y loyal to his
mewand employe..... PCa thai a1Jo-
him to joiDtheir poorly will find bi m
determi ned fllIhter who taI<eo .....-l-
ble riIkI i .. combat. I willi.. g negot i. -
tor when he ...n ..,,,,,,,,,,,icote ith
mon nd ahrewd bllAi deale.
who n often 15O'llo chance) get a we.p-
on 0 uit of ar mor I t only 8O'J> of ila lilt
pr ice. Due to hi . inteUigence, h. "pe.ko
the 10......... oI pizieo in addiUo" ", .-
__n \on,.... and halnm,- opeedo.
Alloori", Myl"';" 10join the party ....
""'... Ita b, hcrwe...-r_ He __
..... to he \oeft with ..., ma,;.e.
_ _H...... iI tDO<ienrel, a11erg:ic ...
fur and herina ., i .., oi<>Iently if I
Iarpqooantit, of b.airl . bear rill. ",..
eump!el_withi.. 20' ol hill __
n.. OMollouWroll ",.. -anderina' __
-. t wice 10 cIteD _ betl thio allergy iI
.,.;yoted. ..... DO ourpriae ill ai lowed tloo
poorly cIuri", _ oI Mym .. 1 ...-illg

I.. additioll to hil . llergy. M,I't-iD hal.
.......nipftobia ..... 1_i ..to u.., ...-
vi the .......... ponoo . t the oighl <Jf.
........ ""'- lIpidoer. The", iI DO te Um,-
wb.1might h.ppe.. Uh. _ """ of the
larp. lipid variotieo "'DlIt'lOll in
dun,...,....
LoJ.mbar t he Ma Riei. n i.1 Uh-
level ml,;. ........,. advent u, . and ezpe-
n enced ...in i.., (AC9: hp 10; MV
S 12. 117. W 8. 0 12. C 9,
Ch 16; 'AT I; Omg by wP'ln o, "pell
ty",, ; S.... M4; ML 8 (9 if Mylvin;"
ALCl. H.. uoe. a lffigg.. +J io
combat. but be .lon..... two normal
d.lliion in raee IOmel hi.. , h"p!","" to
l he mqi...l one. Laumbar i. well
IloCked wit h I UPl'l i and his h"d,,,,,.k
-.-... .. aD e n"7 pacJr.. He opeakl
_ mon. ore, pb!i aDd 011"'_
'-amhtir ill. familia. Ii,..,... i .. ce.-
toin iIoIa<ed ofm. .."..Id. People
Iov. 10Ila.p _ lOr hUn. The_
_ lor ror... 01u.- compotitioDl ia aD
ard>er)' ....._ with .....nn, target-
I _ mba, ia ';"" " lha CDWlt oi lOto
Nil .. far .. lie ClOD before lha ucben
otart .....; n'_
I ".m",. ,.....wily male him ""
_ lor with kil magi< iIlotn>not" that
lie wu';""'" a opeII boo!< with only
...J. in it- p....,. thiI ralher
poi"';...- I .....m""'.haa ....
Ia:ted the roUowi.., _ 1'-: """""
_ Iitua ....,p,. /odd -w. 'Odd
....... oJnp. 1mittUe, .....
",im:wi>rat1tft. At the u-oft.hioad D
t nre. h. hal. ....fIMWiuod t:Aarm penoll,
. Ip, i>wUibi /ily, . nd ,.;.n,,- im<lge.
Luamhar. _nt objeoti .... ill to
. r;terml ...te MylriD Wimblyl>ut he ill
quite willin, to add other w-ge\o to hi
l iA He ill vet)' bi,ote<l to"'on! holflin,..
. nd would loy.. 10le. ve ..ach <If lhem
wilh t h.. lOme...,. on the n,h! t hi,h
t hat Mylvin gi V. him.
TORTLES
OF THE
PURPLE SAGE
Part 1
BYMERLE ANDJACKIERASMUSSEN
Would you wal k a
thousand miles for a
tortle?
Artwor k by Jim Holloway
Cortogrophy by Diesel
40Issue NO.6
Merle and Jackie Rasmussen live a qui et
life in the small /owo town of Huxley.
Merl e is general manager of a game
store in Des Moines, and Jackie is a
legal secretary. Both have written for
DRAGONDMagaz im! and TSR's games
division. Besides writing nwdules for the
D&/P game, the pair have worked on
many TOP SECRE'J't game projects.
Tortlee of the Purple Sage is a D&D
game Expert Set wilderness adventure
designed for a party of 28 characters of
4th-10th level , including a cleric no
lower than 6th level. Each PC should
have two or three magical items, includ-
ing magical weapons and armor. All
PCs should be outfitted for a long-term
wilder ness adventure.
Thi s adventure takes place in the
Known World of the D&Dgame, as
outl ined throughout the D&Dgame
rule books and modules . The DM may
find it useful to consult the Companion
and Masters Set s, as well as most of the
X-series of Expert Set modules. D&D
Expert Set module X9, The Savage
Coast , would be especiall y helpful, as
Thrtles of the Purple Sage could easily
serve to continue that module's dtrec-
ti on and plot line, adding a previously
undescribed area (the Great Northway)
to the Known World. The DM may al so
place the areas and events of this
advent ure within an existing campaign
setting, as long as the geographical
areas of the campaign match those set
forth here.
Most of the st atis tics for monsters set
in boldface type appear in t he Corn.
bined Monster Statisti cs table at the
end of this adventure.
Adventure Background
It is important that t he PCs learn about
the legend of the Great Northway.
Many folk are willing to tell what they
know (or think they know), but the
Great Northway legend is often con-
fused by rumors of mysterious dangers
haunting the Savage Coast . In any
tavern or inn, PCs can hear the Great
Northway legend from storytellers; a
visit t o a library or sage could yield a
written tale of the legend . Denizens of
the marketplace or wharf area know
little about t he Great Northway but are
qui ck to repeat Savage Coast rumors. If
the PCs attempt to bribe or coerce any '
one to give more informat ion about
Great Northway lands, they hear only
Savage Coast rumors.
The legend states that t he Great
Northway is a broad and mi gh t y river
which flows southward for thousands of
miles t hrough desola te grasslands. At
its source, the legend says, lies the
Spring of Good Health from which the
waters of the great r iver run r ich with
earth.
Some say t he Gr eat Northway is not So
river but a channel to the arctic waters
of Frosthaven. If this is SO, ships using
the cha nnel could easily reach all parts
of the Known World. Along t he r iver's
shores. the legend relates. live fierce,
uneducated savages who pray for floods.
During t he floods, islands covered with
animals float down the r iver a nd i nto
the sea.
Long ago, a great earthquake
dest royed many cities near the r iver.
Sages believe the Great Northway's
cours e was changed by the quake, and
t he new mouth ha s yet to be discovered.
It is said t hat Akobaan the Mercha nt
was the fir st to find the present mouth
of the Great Northway. When a floating
island cr ushed his ship against t he
riverbank, hi s crew was lost. Akobaan
and his first mate escaped t he disaster,
and the latter was rescued by members
of a st r ange sect, the La wful Brother-
hood. The first mate died of fever, but
not before he reported that hi s master
was determi ned to find t he source of the
great river on foot . Akobaan, however,
was never heard from again .
A journal or map showi ng exactl y
where t he new mouth of t he Great
Northway is located is worth much to a
kin g and count ry. Bot h t he Kingdom of
Ier endi a nd t he Empire of Thyatis have
offer ed exclusive trading ri ght s between
thei r nat ions and t he sa vages of the
riverba nk s to whoever finds the mouth
of t he Gr eat Northway.
'Ib determine which Savage Coast
rumors the PCs hear, rollld12 and
consult t he li st below. The OM should
not just give the rumors to t he players;
t hey must ask for infor ma t ion from
NPCs. Each NPC questioned knows 1-4
rumors. It is possible t hat two or more
NPCs will kn ow t he same rumor. Pes
should not find out whether any rumor
is t rue or false, except t hrough t hei r
own explorations .
1. The mouth of the Great Northway
is also the mouth of t he Empty Valley
Ri ver. (False . The Great Northway is
much farthe r north.)
2. There are five ancient and lost
cit ies on Savage Coast la nds. (False.
There are only four.)
3. Head-hunting cannib als a mbush
explorers in t his region. (True. They are
directed by t he Chaotic Sisterhood).
4. The Gr eat Northway is a channel to
t he arct ic waters of Frosthaven. (False)
5. Uneducated savages of t he plains
use gemstones to scrape animal hides.
(False)
6. Plains savages worship the earth
a nd pray for floods. (True. Annual flood-
ing of t he Great Northwa y replenishes
t he soi l.)
7. No one knows where t he mout h of
t he Great Northway lies. (Fal se. The
Chaotic Sisterhood, some members of
t he Lawful Brot herhood, a nd certain
wayfarers know.)
8. The Chaoti c Sisterhood is get ting
r ich t rading directly wit h uneducated
savages. (True)
9. Watch out for Skurge, a ma rauding
black whale stalki ng the Savage Gulf.
(True)
10. The Yazak Steppes a re somet ime s
plagued by random objects falling from
the sky. (True)
11. Straight l ines crossing t he Yazak
Steppes were used to guide ancient
inhabitants bet ween cities. (True. They
al so intersect ancient cere monial
mounds.)
12. The Portal s to Everyl and were
cr eated by an ancient Dr a vish magic-
user. Th e key to operating a gate stone
has somet hi ng to do with tortles.
(True)
Aft er researchin g t hese legends and
rumors, t he pes may need a bit of
refreshment . Whil e the Pes are rel a x-
ing in their favori te t avern, read the
foll owing t o them:
A festive mood fill s t he air as sailors
a nd explorers swap tales of far away,
exotic lands . Around you, old fr iends
greet one a not her wit h back slaps.
Deals are sealed with hearty hand-
shakes. Elves, half'li ngs , and dwa rves
mingle with humans placing orders
for food a nd drink. The door opens
and a l arge, silent figure enters the
room. It s purp le garments embroi -
dered wit h gold t hread catch your
eye. The visitor is not human, yet it
walks on two legs. A bea ked reptil-
ian head nods slowly atop broad
shoulders. You have neve r befor e
seen a member of this fabled, a ncient
race - t hat of t he tortles.
TORTLESOf THEPURPLE SAGE - Part 1
The massive figur e pl ods t hrough
the noisy crowd in your dir ect ion.
The locals hardly pay the visit or
heed as it approaches your table and
cr eaks, "I, Kallot , a m sage of tortles.
My people search for br ave escorts. I
mu st lead my clutch to our ances tral
ha tching gro unds . Hundred years
ago la nd was ours. Now la nd held by
enemies. Must join other clans there
if next generation to recei ve bless-
ings of t he Immortals.
" I see you r asking faces. Why pick
you? You are newcomers. I saw you
come this pl ace. My peopl e pay for
protection two ways. Our eggshell s
are worth much to your peopl e. They
make light wei ght ar mor. We also
know of Yazak Steppes . Your people
seek mouth of river Great Nort hway.
Guide us safely to hatching grounds,
a nd we pay you eggshe lls a nd guid-
a nce to Great Northway. If you seek
t his pay for la bor, find me at library."
The purpl e-clothed sage then t urns
and plods out of the chamber.
For the Dungeon Master
The best pac ing for adve nture has the
tortle inter rupt t he Pes as t hey are
decidin g how to begi n t heir search for
t he Gr eat Northway. Ifthe PCs decide
to delay t heir explorati on pla ns and
accept the tortl e's offer, they can indeed
find him at t he local library, reading a n
a ncient t ome. He i nsists on collect ing
his family (l d4 +1 mated pairs of tor-
tl es) and departing at once. The PCs
must provide t he ir own supplies a nd
t ranspor tatio n. but t he tortles have
t he ir own wagons and draft horses if the
PCs decide on a n overland t rek.
The fir st leg of t he t reache rous jour-
ney t akes the pe s and thei r charges
fr om t heir home port to Richl and Trad.
ing Post , on t he uncivilized Tall Grass
Coast. Whe ther t he group t ra vels by
land or sea, it is plagued by dangerous
monster s a nd unpredi ct abl e weather
(wit h the possibility of a shipwreck).
The tortle sage does not surv ive t he
t ri p and dies of either combat or old age
at the OM's discretion. Wit h hi s dying
words, t he ancien t tortle direct s:
"Choose good guide. Protect family.
Eggshell s. Use portals." Th e remaining
tortles, caught in the gr as p of biological
nece ssity, have little time to mou rn , but
look to t he pes as a uthority figures,
granting them t he same respect a nd
DUNGEON 41
TORTLESOFTHEPURPLE SAGE- Part 1
N
Wild
Lands
Great Wast e

,
;{'I\ Pramayama.
. Sl agovich
/.J1 i Q, P
Mule
Beach Empire
of
Thyatis
<::J \J.". <?:>
Is le
of Dread
"
Hule
Savage Coast B
- C
Ri chl and Tradi ng Post ..... A
The
Great
Northway
MAP 1: CONTINENTAL MAP

$
'" "' J'
f
$
obedience as they gave their sage. Th e
DM shoul d role-play the tortles so as to
make it extremely difficult for the PCs
to abandon t hem.
At Richl and Trading Post, the Pes
should hi re a guide to lead t he m over-
land to Yazak. Depending on which
guide is hired , the PCs either sail up
t he coast and into the Empty Valley to
an ambush in Dravya, travel overland
to an earth mound from which they can
follow a mysterious pat h to Yaza k, or go
directly over land to their rendezvous
wit h the gathering tortle clans.
From Yazak, myster ious paths can be
followed across t he steppes to a solitary
wa ter hole. The wagon t rai n of tortles,
guarded by t he PCs, next ent ers t he
enemy-he ld Dry Flats. The tortles'
ancestral egg-laying grounds are
located somewhere on the Dry Fla ts.
Soon t he newly-laid t ortl e eggs hatch in
t he wa rm sand, and t he PCs are paid for
t heir services in eggshell.
On t hei r journey with t he tortles, the
PCs learn that the creatures wor sh ip a
number of weat her-wor n stones in t he
r egi on of t he Great Northway - stones
wi t h legendary powers of teleportation
which the tortles call the " Portals to
Everyland" These mysterious gate
stone s, boulders wit h human-sized pas-
sages bored t hrough them, hint at a
means of t r avel far superior to eve n t he
waters of the Great Nor thway. Once
thei r guard dut y is fulfilled, and if they
are will ing to put off their explor ation
of t he Great Northway, all t he adven-
t urers have t o do is find t he key to oper-
ate t he gate stones a nd they can t ravel
great dist ances instantly. The gate
stones are jealously guarded by various
war ring fact ions, a nd no one seems to
know t he key to their operation.
Unknown to most of t he rest of t he
wor ld, female clerics of a group called
the Chaot ic Sister hood have found the
Great Northway's mout h. In order to
exploit t he area for t heir own gai n and
to dri ve off compet ition by profit seek-
er s , t he Sisters ha ve developed a pl an.
Adventurers are discouraged and turn -
ed away fr om t he area usi ng local
rumors a nd legends of terrible beasts,
natur al barriers, a nd head -hunting
cannibals. The closer a party get s to t he
r iver's mouth, the more frantic t he
warnings become. Local nati ve con-
verts, worki ng for t he Sisterhood,
a ttempt to t hwart t he invaders' prog-
ress by da maging shi ps, drivi ng off
mounts, a nd imprisoni ng the expl orers .
The Chaot ic Sister hood has also
for med an alliance with t he spiderlike
aranea and t he saltwater snappers. The
ara nea of the Grass Plains live under-
ground like gi ant, intelligent t rapdoor
spiders. The sn appers of t he Sav age
Gulf are intelli gent ehe ll-bearmg r ela-
t ives of t he tortles. Furthermore , the
Cha otic All iance is driving t he Lawful
Alli ance of t he Yazak Steppes against
the Neutral Alliance of t he Byler Hill s,
areas near the Great Northway. These
latter t wo alli ances, like t he Chaot ic
Alliance, are composed of simila rly
aligned beings.
When the PCs decide to explor e t he
Great Nor t hway r egion, t hey may set
out fr om any coast al city. The campaign
coastl ine is dotted with primitive tribes,
eac h with its own taboos and t r aditions.
Some t r ibes are hostile, some are
ext r emely fri endly, and some may chal-
lenge t he ad vent urers wit h dangerous
sports.
Nefarious members of the Chaotic
Sister hood ha ve t aken control of one
lost ruin and are responsible for t he
act ions of local native converts. Flash
42Issue NO.6
floods, native upr isings, a nd t errifying
weather phenomena keep the party
al ert dur ing its travels. Ruined cities
and huma n-made t ra ils ent ice the
adventurer s to explore.
Preparing for the Journ ey
The PCs may begin their journey in
Siagovich, Mule Beach, Pramayama,
Specular um, Ierendi, or the Isle of
Dread, all of which were previously
descr ibed in X-series modules for the
D&D game (see Encoun ter Maps), You
may ha ve t he PCs start from some ot her
locat ion more fitting to your campaign
if you decide t o lit t he Savage Coast and
its surrounding areas into your own
campaign setting.
The PCs may t r avel by sea, by land,
or by both .IfPCs decide to travel by
sea, t hey must acquire a ship. Most PC
parties should have no trouble raising
enough money to buy one, but if t he
PCBcannot afford a large shi p, t he DM
should arrange for t he party to rent or
buy a boat t hat can sail t he coastal
waters.
PCs who follow t he coastline or travel
st raight west from Sl agovich over open
water should enter Ma p 2 at t he he x
marked B. PCs who travel straight west
from Mule Beach over open water
should enter Map 2 at t he hex mar ked
C. PCs at hex B may sail al ong t he
coast to hex C, or vice versa. If the PCs
sail out of sight ofland and have no
navigator aboard. check t o see if they
become lost.
If t he PCs decide to t ravel by land
from Slagovich , Mul e Beach, or any of
th e lands north of t he Savage Coast ,
they shoul d enter Map 2 at t he hex
marked A.
Duri ng t he PCs' travels. use t he wil-
derness ru les from t he Expert rule book.
The DM should roll I d6 t wice per ga me
day for wandering monster s. On a roll
of 1-3, use the Wilderness Encounter
Tables from t he Expert rule book (pages
30 and 35). On a roll of 4.6, use the
Great Northway Wilderness Encounters
(see end of module). PCs i n t his adven-
t ure encounter wandering monsters on
Sand Beach, Western Sea, and Orcs
Head Peninsula only. For additional
encou nters in t hese regi ons, t he DM
may want to use modul e X9's encount-
ers as well.
The general weather pa tterns of t his
part of t he worl d move from east t o west
but ther e is oft en wi nd from t he north,
west. and south. The coastal climate of
t his area is similar to t he southeast
United States. The inland climate
changes to th at of Southe rn California
or the Mediterranean . Mild weat her
conti nues even during t he winter, when
t he Yazak Ste ppes are not un like t he
mi dwest United States prair ie duri ng
spring or fall.
Th understor ms in t he Dar k J ungle
and gentle showers over t he rest of th e
area occur year round. The Bylot Hill s
and t he Dry Flats are arid beca use t hey
are so far from any large bodies of water
or moun tain chains . The most da nger-
ous weather occurs on the Yazak
Steppes during t he spri ng months of
Apr il , May, and J une. 'Ibrnados, with
dest ruct ive winds of up to 300 MPH,
skip across t he la ndscape at speeds up
t o 30 MPH. 'Ibrnadoes forming over
water are called waterspouts. St range
objects, both organic and mineral, fall
from t he sky miles from where t hey are
picked up by eit her sort of whirl wind.
Encounter Maps
Map 1 shows t he contine ntal posit ion of
t he lands surrounding t he Great
North way. Map 2 is an overall view of
th e Gr eat Northway lands . It shows
detai ls of t he continent , Orcs Head
Peninsula, the Weste rn Sea, and t he
Savage Gul f. Th e DM should prepare a
rough map of t he adventuring area for
the players to use; only t he coas tli ne
should be dr awn in, leavi ng t he rest of
the map open for expl oration. If the PCs
have adventure d t hrough module X9,
t hey may pencil in any features of the
land they have lea rned about from
previous explor ation.
'Ib get a better idea of how t he Great
Northway lands relate to ot her areas of
the D&D game worl d, note that the
easter n edge of Map 2 in th is adventure
connects with the western edge of t he
map of Hule, on page 31 of module X5.
A sect ion of the Savage Coast which
connects with the southern edge of t hat
map of Hule is found in th e lower right
hand corner of Map 2 in t his adventure.
The west edge of t his inset ma p con-
nects with the east edge of t he mai n
map. The map of Hu le shows t he port
city ofSlagovich with some of its sur-
rounding terrain. Slagovich and Mule
Beach bot h appear on t he Wild Lands
map in module X6. Pr amayama appear s
on t he Wilderness Map of t he Great
Wast e in module X4. Specularum, Iere n-
TORTlESOFTHE PURPLE SAGE- Part 1
di , and th e Isle of Dread appear on the
Continent map in module Xl. The lower
portion of Map 2 in t his adventure
duplicates the map of th e Savage Coast
on t he out er gatefold of module X9.
savage Coast Map Key
Map 2 is a lar ge-scale wilder ness map .
Use t his map as a gui de when PCs tra-
vel by la nd or sea in t he Savage Coast
ar ea . This map may also serve as an
example of a large-scale wilderness
design. You may want to base dungeon
and wilderness adventures of your own
on this map, or you may expand t he
map by design ing wilderness areas
whe re t he map ends.
Below is a general key to t he regions
shown on t he map. The key gives only a
brief descr iption of most areas. You may
flesh out individual encounter areas
wit h your own infor mation . To read the
map, start in th e lower r ight corner and
read clockwise around the face.
Sand Be ach. This sandy, rolli ng
stretch of land ext ends as far inl and as
one can see from the shore. The sandy
shore is dotted with tall grass which
forms dunes. Over t he crests, t he dunes
sprout shrubbery that forms a blanket
of grass clumps and bushes all t he way
north to the Yazak Steppe s. Sand Beach
st retches fr om t he Gulf of Hu le to Or cs
Head Peninsula.
Claw Peni nsula. Named aft er Claw
Inlet which lies beside it , t his sandy
peninsula jabs into t he Wester n Sea.
The New Hope River meets t he sea
here. The New Hope Lawful Brother-
hood Cleric Outpost stands at the ti p of
t his peninsul a.
New Hope Ri ve r. This navigabl e
waterway can be sai led for at least 150
miles inland. Native villages. overha ng-
ing br anches, and hostile vegetation
provide adventure.
Camel Hump. This wi ndblown bul ge
of camel-colored sand du nes and beach
grasses presses out into the Weste rn
Sea. Dust devils skip along the beach
obliterating footpr ints in a matter of
minutes.
Twin Island Peninsula . Th is flat-
topped sandstone linger of land point s
to matching isl ands offshore. The penin-
sula's 100't all cl iffs serve as t he rooker-
ies of many sea birds. It s coastli ne is
rocky.
Twin Isl ands. These look-alike
isl ands are made of light grayish brown
sandstone. They were cut off from t he
DUNGEON 43
. ';
';.I:r--
.
~
'"
TORTlES OF THE PURPLE SAGE - Port 1
mainland peninsula by the ceaseless
erosion of wave action. The Oat, hush-
covered tops of the islands are surround-
ed by 100' -lall sandstone cliffs , dropping
to rocky coastlines. (Beware of the
tyrannosaurus that lives here , accord-
ing to module X9.)
Dr eam River. This waterway is navl-
gable for over 75 miles inland. Strange
vegetation inhabi ts these waters, and
the Lawful Brotherhood Second Chance
Cleric Outpost stands beside the mouth
of t his river.
Western Sea. This body of salt water
lies south of the Savage Coast. It con-
nects with the Gulf of Hule, Claw Inlet,
Hel met Bay, and the Choke . The deep-
est parts of t he Western Sea are the
haunts of oversized sea monsters.
Claw Inlet. This curving natural
harbor connects the New Hope Rive r
with t he Gulf of Hule. Each spring,
t housands of small edi ble fish crowd
i nto this narrow inlet to lay eggs on the
beach a nd then die .
Helmet Bay. This body of water once
a ppeared on maps as a flattened,
double-horned he lmet. The Dream River
flows into the east horn point. A sand-
stone reef lies just beneath the surface
of this bay. Mer maids, marine decepi,
and mysterious sea creatures inhabit
this bay. Aranea lairs have been found
inland, and fortified snapper egg-laying
grounds have been found along the
coast of Helmet Bay.
The Choke. This smooth cove marks
t he end of Sand Beach and the begin-
ning of Orcs Head Peninsula. The
Peaceful Lawful Brotherhood Cleric
Outpost stands beside the mout h of the
Choke River.
Orcs Head Peni nsu la, Th is oddly-
shaped land mass, lying southwest of
the Grass Plains, is a continuation of
the Savage Coast.
Dark J un gle. This unexplor ed area is
a subtropical forest overgrown with
cli nging vines and low-lying shrubbery.
Ga rgantuan white apes inhabit this
jungle. Daily thunderstorms drench this
forest and feed rivers and streams
which wind to the surrounding seas.
Wildlife abounds in this region, eepe-
cially al ong t he wi nding banks of For-
bidden Ri ver. The river is navigable for
at least 75 miles inland but is prone to
nash flooding. The rai n forest's coas t -
line is muddy. Pes may mistake the
Forbidden River for t he Great
Northway. The demolished Forbidden
River Lawful Brotherhood Cleric Out-
46 IssueNo.6
post stands beside the mouth of the
For bidden Ri ver.
Forbidden Highlands . Grass and
deciduous trees cover these rolli ng hills.
Several of the pen insula's meandering
rivers start in these highlands. The
region is ma rked by beautiful water-
falls, where r ivers plummet 50-100'
over rocky cliffs. The rui ns of the lost
city of Risilvar lie in the Forbidden
Highlands.
Safe Harbor Peninsula. This point
of land is an extension of the muddy
Dark J ungle coastli ne. (Module X9
mist akenly locates a tortle egg-laying
ground on the tip of t his peninsula. It is
more likely a fortified snapper egg-
laying ground.
Safe Harbor. The calm waters of this
inlet are protected by nearby Safe Ha r-
bor Peninsula.
The Horn. This peninsula is the start
of a rugged, rocky coastli ne much like
the nearby Trident Isles.
Trident Isles, These rocky, mountain-
ous islands resemble the tips of a huge
underwater, three-tined spear. There is
an ore village on one of these islands.
The other two are uninhabited.
Trident Ba y, This sheltered body of
salt water lies north of Orcs Head
Peninsula. It s northern extreme is par-
tially marked by the Trident Isles. Dan-
gerous reefs lie in Trident Bay. A
pha naton settlement is located inland
from the southern coast of the bay.
Savage Gulf, This stormy body of
water lies west of Orcs Head Penin sula
and the Grass Pl ains. Windswept waves
scar t he surface of the gulf and buffet
its eastern shoreline.
The Bayou, This marshy, sl uggish
body of water is a confusing maze of
water routes which connect Shady River
to Trident Bay. A large cay-man com-
pound is located in the heart of the
Bayou.
Shady River. Large deciduous trees
overhang t his multi-brunched water-
way. Shady River empties into The
Bayou and is navigable for hu ndreds of
miles inland. PCs may mistake Shady
River for the Great Northway.
Tall Gr ass Coast. A narrow layer of
ri ch, dark topsoil nourishes tall grasses
along this muddy coastline. The charred
rui ns ofthe Seaview Lawful Brother-
hood Cleric Outpost lie beside the
mouth of a short river along the coast.
Empty Valley. This 150' .deep rift
valley contains little soil and fr esh
water. There is almost no plant or ani-
mal life. Empty Valley once held t he
Great Northway river, but an ancient
earthquake changed t he river's course.
A deep, rocky valley now scars t he
Yazak Steppes. The stone canyon walls
show both water erosion a nd geol ogic
upheaval. A slight trickle of fresh run-
off water sometimes splashes in muddy
torrents from the cliff walls during flash
floods caused by distant thunderstorms.
Salt water from the Savage Gulf has
infiltrated the sunken valley, ma king
the chasm navigable by lar ge ships for
hundreds of miles inland.
Mud Water Cove. At the extreme
north end of the Savage Gulf, t he cool,
muddy-brown water is shallower and
less salty than in the rest of the gulf.
The Great Northway, This wide,
powerful r iver empt ies i nto Mud Wate r
Cove. It is navigable for thousands of
miles inland except for a giant waterfall
240 miles from its mouth.
Grass P lain s. All the land north of
Sand Beach and east of Savage Gulf is
called the Grass Plains. The domi na nt
feature of the area is the Yazak Steppes,
sometimes called the Dravish Steppes
by the people of Hule.
Yazak Ste ppes. This vast, semi-arid,
grass-covered plain is veined with t ree-
lined st reams separated by rolling hills.
Large herds of migrating animals move
across the land, grazing with the sea-
sons. Blooming purple sagebrush fills
the air with a pleasa nt aroma.
Dry Fl ats. Rain rarely falls on this
arid wasteland. Little plant or a ni mal
life can survive here.
Bylot Hills, These hot, dry hill s are
covered with dense t hic kets of shrubs
and small trees. The rugged terrai n is
pockmarked with caves and burrows.
Great Northway Area Encounters
Each encounter described be low is
designed to take place in certain regions
on Map 2. Check the Area Encounters
Table to determine which encounters
may take place in each area. Most
regions have more t ha n one possible
encounter. For example, if the Pes are
t raveli ng through the Bayou region,
they may become involved in any or all
of encounters 2, 8, or 10. The DM
decides how many encounters take
place and in what order. If des ired, the
DM may have t he PCs involved in one
encounter per day, or he may subject
them to three or four encounters in one
day, depending on t he terrain. Such
TORTLESOFTHEPURPLESAGE Part 1
Area En cou nter s Table
1. Tidal Bore. A si ngle crest of water,
l ' high, rushes upr iver at a rate of 60'
per round. It is currently 600' away.
Th is encounter occurs twice a day at the
same hour s, within 24 miles of the
mouth of a river. Roll ld12 to determine
t he hour, A.M. or P.M., at which the crest
moves past a part icular point on any
r iver.
t imi ng keeps t he adventure exciting
and myster ious for the players, and
he lps adapt the adventure to t he OM's
own ca mpaign more smooth ly.
Some encounte rs may occur only once.
Oth ers may occur several ti mes in dif-
ferent terrains. Tr y to separate repea t
encounters with at least one wandering
monster encounte r fr om the Great
Northway Wilderness Encounter
Tabl es . Not all t he possible encounters
in an ar ea need occur.
C'
--
unless defeated. The whale ca uses 636
hull points damage in a successful ram.
A vessel's ar mor class is found on page
43 in t he Expert Set rule book.
Skurge attacks t he largest targets
firs t: ships, then lifeboats, then ind ivid-
uals. If t he PCs attempt to fight Skurge
in the water, man-sized or smaller crea-
tures are swallowed whole on a die roll
t hat is 4 or more th an t he score needed
to hit . A swa llowed creature ta kes 318
hp damage from Skur ge's stomach acid
per round.
After ramming the vessel, Skur ge
dives and stays submerged half a mile
deep for one hour. Ifthe survivors have
not moved i nto shallow water in one
hour, the crea t ure atta cks again.
Any sharp or pointed hurled weapons
doi ng maximum damage stay in the
whale's body. Weapons which remain in
t he whale's body cause permanent dam-
age which is not re generated between
battl es. Missile weapons such as arrows,
quarrels, spea rs , and lances (harpoons)
are the most destruct ive. IfSkurge is
killed, its body floats on the surface for
one day before sink ing; i mplanted weap-
ons can be retrieved duri ng t his time. If
its intestines are searched, 10,000 gp
TTS-=-- ._
The wave was caus ed by t he surge of
the incoming ti de colli ding with river
water. PCs aboard a vessel suffer no
damage if t he ship's bow is t urned
directly into the wave . If the PCs turn
t he bow from straight downstream or
attempt to reach shore, they are hi t by
t he wave amidships, causi ng 16 hu ll
points of damage to the vessel. Vessels
moored along the shore suffer no dam-
age from the bore. People along the
shore may be swept i nto t he water by
the sur ge (60%), but other wise t ake no
physical damage from it.
2. Sku r ge
Your vessel's timbers shudder with
an eerie creaking sound. J ust 600'
ahead of your vessel, a single white
pl ume of spray r ises 30' above the
waves. A 60'long sea creature turns
a single whit e eye above the foam as
it approaches to menacin gly circle
480' from your vessel.
I

The monster is Skurge, a sperm
whale, It sees the vessel as a t hrea t and
rams t he shi p 10 rounds aft er spouting
4, 9, 13, 15,17
1, 10
1
2, 7, 8
4,9, 11, 12, 13
7
1
2,5,8
1
7
4, 8
1, 9, 10
3,4,5, 6, 9, 11, 15,
16, 17, 18
2, 7, 8, 9
4, 9,12, 13
4, 11, 12
4, 12
3, 4,5, 9, 11, 16, 18
Encounters
1, 7,9
4, 9, 11, 13, 14, 16
4, 6,11
7
7
6, 11
7,8
4
12
8
4, 15
5, 9, 11, 13, 14, 16, 18
1, 9,11,13, 15,16, 17
Map Area
Bayou
Bylot Hill s
Camel Hump
Choke
Claw Inlet
Claw Pe ninsula
Coast al Waters
Coastline:
Muddy
Rocky
Sandy
Dark J ungle
Dry Fl ats
Empty Valley
Forbidden
Highlands
Forbidden River
Great Northway
Helmet Bay
Horn
Mud Water Cove
New Hope River
Open Sea
Ri ver (unnamed)
Safe Harbor
Safe Harbor
Peninsul a
Shady River
Tall Grass Coast
Trident Bay
Trident Isles
Twin Isl and
Peninsula
Twin Islands
Yazak Steppes
DUNGEON 47
TORTLESOF THEPURPLESAGE- PerI l
worth of waxy gray ambergris is found.
The material fi lls 10 la rge trunks but
weighs 1,000 en. It is valuable to alche-
mist s and perfumer s.
This encounter should occur again
a nd a ga in unt il Skurge is defeated.
Each time Skurge returns, the creature
bears t he scars of previ ous battles hut is
at full hit points unl ess weapons are
stuck into it s blubber.
3. Distant Th un der
Thunder rolls in t he distance. The
noise begins to shake the ground,
drowni ng out all ot her sounds. Gr ay
clouds blow over you, smell ing of
dust and sweat. Suddenly, over the
cr est of a low hill 800 ' away, a dark
brown wave 0300 shaggy-headed
beasts st ampede in your direction.
The a nimals are bi son. Each herd
section is led by a larger animal , t he
bull . The 30 animals in each section
move at a rate of 80' per round . If t he
PCs do nothing for 10 rounds, t hey are
caught i n t he sta mpede and suffer 120
hp damage from trampling. If t he PCs
stop or divert the bull leadi ng t he sec-
tion closest to them, t he sect ion is al so
stopped or diverted. A bull ca n be
di verted by fire, four-wheeled wagons,
or objects more massive than a bison.
Ther e a re no t re es or boulders to hide
behind . If t here is a cliff nearby, the
herd animals run over the edge, plun g-
ing to t heir deaths. Crossing water or
stopping 10 herd bulls st ops the st a rn-
pede. Mounts st ampede with t he herd,
throwing their r iders under the herd
50% of the time. If the PCs levitate or fly
above the herd, t hey a re safe.
'Ien rounds after the herd is encoun-
tered, wildfire st reaks across t he grass-
land, driven by t he wind at 80' per
round.
Now you smell smoke. In the dis-
t ance, you hear the crackle of a fast-
moving wildfire. A wave of heat and
wh ite smoke blows your way. Sud-
denly, over the cr est of the same low
hill that hid the bi son herd, 10' high
flames r ace ahead of t he wind, burn-
ing t all dry grass into black st ubble.
Lightning ha s caused a grass fir e
which is moving in the PCs' direction.
The scorching fire line causes 224 hp
da mage to unprotected PCs. Anyone
who t ri es to avoid the fla mes by cli mb
ing, levitati ng, or flying above them
receives 120 hp heat damage up to 10'
above the ground a nd 1-10 hp damage
from 10-20' above t he ground. No heat
damage is received above 20' . The
fla mes cannot travel over scorched
eart h, ice, bare dirt, or water.
4. Ra re Spices
Drifting t hrough t he air are pleasant
spicy scent s you have smelled before
at nobles ' tables. Your mou ths begin
to water as t he r ich fragrances fill
your nostrils. The nearby trees and
shrubs are ordinary, worthless vege-
tation. From t ime to time you hear a
deep buzzing sound comi ng from
beyond the nearby shrubbery.
If a ny PC searches beyond the nearby
common veget ation by followi ng t he
scent or sound. read the following:
You find small flowerin g plants and
short trees whi ch are the source of
the pleasant odor. Fl ittin g from
br anc h to branch are several 3' -long
gia nt dragonflies, al so at t ract ed by
the pleasing odors.
'" DM may choose which of the two is found.
"'''' Cigam is a nati ve plant which, whe n dr ied and gr ound, produces a spar-
kling powder. In ha nd-to-ha nd combat, if 1 cn weight of this powder is thrown
i nto a living creature's face, the creature mu st make a Saving Throw vs. Paral-
ys is or be paralyzed for 14 rounds.
Ra r e Spices
d 100
1
2-3
4-6
7-10
1115
16-21
2228
29-36
3745
4655
56-64
65-72
73-79
80-85
86-90
9194
9597
98-99
00
Ra r e s pices
Saffron, Cigam**
Celery, Chervil
Tarragon, Rosemary
Savory, Sage
Allspice, Bay leaf
Dill, Garlic
Mace, Nutmeg
Basil , Sesame see d
Poppyseed, Anisee d
Caraway seed, Thyme
Cardamon, Marjora m
Cinnamon, Parsley
Cloves, Turmeric
Mint, Chili peppers
Oni on, Cumin
Fennel , Mustard
Paprika, Ginger
Pepper, Coriander
Oregano, Fenugreek
Weight
4 on
15
18
28
30
32
34
36
40
42
45
54
56
66
72
75
B4
126
130
Val ue
250 gp
67
56
36
33
31
29
26
25
24
22
16
17
15
14
13
12
8
7
'Ib get to the spices, 2-12 dragonfl ies
must be driven off or sla in. The type of
dragonflies pre sent depends upon the
terrain. If t he spices grow on Orcs Head
Peninsula, half t he dragonflies are
green and half are red. If the spices
grow in t he Bylot Hill s, they are red
and gold. If the spices grow a nywhere
else, the dr agonflies are blue and gold.
Unlike full -sized dragons, the br eat h
weapon of a dragonfl y inflicts only 1 hp
damage per hit die of the monster, and
each breat h is only 3' long. Each breat h
normally affects only one cre ature, but
a Saving Thr ow vs. Dragon Breath (for
half damage) is allowed if the victi m is
not fighting the dragonfly in melee.
Those in hand-to-hand combat have no
saving throw against t he breath. Each
dragonfly can breathe and bite during
each round of combat, and there is no
limit to the number of breat hs. The gold
dragonfly can breathe either gas or fire
at will. These dragonflies do not pursue
if PCs retreat. Their t reasures are the
r are spices.
By touching, sniffing, or tasting the
scented plants. a PC can discover what
type of rare spice is present . Have t he
player roll 1d5 a nd refer to t he Rare
Spices Tabl e. The PC shoul d be told in
48 Issue No_6
secret which of the two spices indicated
is found. No other rare spices are found
for t he period of one day. If any other
PCs sear ch for pla nts, t hey a lso find the
same r are spice in an equal quanti ty.
No more t ha n four t imes t he st ated
quantity ma y be found.
5. Deadly Whirlwi nd
Huge white t hunderheads lit from
wit hin by flashes of hot lightn ing
pile high upon the western horizon.
'Ib the northwest , slanted purple rain
is falling. 'Ib the southwest, the dark
gray base of the white boulder clouds
suddenly drops toward the ground.
The wind blows increasingly harder,
spitting l arge raindrops from t he
southwest. Suddenly, t he surface
wind dies and approaching dark
green clouds boi l across the sky.
Within 3-60 minutes a dark. funnel -
shaped cloud, revolving counterclock-
wise , descends from t he low clouds . The
PCs cannot outrun t he t ornado, but
they can out ma neuver it . After t hey
have chosen their course of action, read
t he following.
Suddenly, a li ght gray, needle-t ipped
funnel cloud descends from the low
cl ouds above. Debr is is scattered
al oft as t he howling wind becomes a
dr agon's roar. The spiraling cone
t urns black and grows wider, carry-
ing all it touches high into the sky.
If the PCs stay i n one place, or t ravel
west or northwest , they ar e hit by the
violent tornado. If the PCs tr avel north,
they encounter light rain, t hen heavy
rain and light hail. If the PCs travel
northeast, t hey meet heavy rain and
hail. If the PCs travel east or sout heast,
t hey ar e hi t by light rain before the
st orm passes to t he north. If the PCs
travel sout h, t he stor m passes safely to
th e north. Th e most intense part of t he
storm lasts 224 minutes.
If the PCs ar e hi t by the fun nel cloud,
t he t orn ado carries 112 PCs (except
those who found shel ter in low-lying
areas), 14 miles to th e northeast. Each
tornado passenger must make a Saving
Throw vs. Death Ray or suffer 240 hp
damage (half damage with save). Tents
or shelte rs are torn and flattened. Any.
thing not faste ned down or worn blows
1-20 miles northeast.
Light hail causes 1-4 hp damage to
anyone with AC 6 to AC 9. Hea vy hail
causes 1-6 hp damage to anyone with
AC 4 to AC 9. Hail causes each unt ied
animal to stampede 1-4 miles in a ran-
dom direction. Th e ani mal 's tra cks may
be visible, dependi ng on the terrain, so
they can be t racked down and (with
luck) recl aimed.
6. Beach Rubble
The receding tide strands pieces of
bone-colored dr ift wood and rotting
seaweed alo ng t he shore. Broken sea
shells, put rid fish car casses, and
uprooted kelp lie strewn across the
sandy beach. The gent le rippling of
waves is th e only sound.
Roll I d6 and see the list below to
dete r mine what other items t he PCs
find along the shore :
1. Shell. A light gray, irr egularly
shaped shell with bot h halves intact lies
half- buried in the sand. This marine
mollusk is a pearl oyste r. lithe shell is
pr ied open, the meat is rotten , but a
pear l is found. If the pearl is not washed
in sal t water or rubbed in a mild abra -
sive, like salt, it is only worth 250 gpo
Properl y car ed for, it is worth 500 gpo
2. Amber. A fist -sized, transl ucent ,
yellow-orange stone contai ni ng an
immobile insect lies on the sa nd. This
see-t hrough stone is a fossil resin worth
100 gp whole. If t he sto ne is br oken
open to release the insect, the amber is
wort h only 25 gpoThe ancient winged
insect is well preserv ed but long dead.
3. Sai lboat . This small, abandoned
boat drift ed here from a nat ive village
during a recent storm. It has a hull
made of reed bundles, a wooden mast,
and a cloth sail. The boat is in good
r epair and could hold two PCs plus
1,000 en additional weight .
4. Mound. Only 100' ahe ad is a 5' -
hig h mound of wet san d. The moun d is
10' in di amete r and looks recently
deposited. It is too far from the water 's
edge to have been caused by wave
action and too wet and cr umbled to
have been piled up by the wind. PCs can
climb th e mound wit h ease. The first PC
t o reach the mound notices t he beach
sand has been pushed up by a great
force. Suddenly the mound trembles,
shifts, and expands. One round later, a
gi ant marine slime worm erupts
through the mound and th rows the
nea rest PC into the air. It then attacks
TORTlES OFTHE PURPLESAGE- Part 1
the closest PC it senses.
Marine sli me worms attack with sur -
prise whenever possible. They swa llow
t heir prey whole on an unmodified hit
roll of 18 or more. Swallowed prey t akes
2-12 hp damage per round until dead or
free (similar to a purp le worm). These
monsters are gi ant -sized burrowers t hat
secrete a st icky substance which coat s
thei r entire bodies. The slime does not
affect attacks. They roll in th e sand and
pick up whatever is lying there. Th is
particular sli me worn is coated with
sa nd, shells, seaweed, and gems. If the
worm is defeated, the PCs gain one
1,000 gp opal, two 500 gp topazes . 10
garnets worth 100 gp each, and 20 onyx
st ones worth 50 gp ea ch.
5. J ellyfish. A small white sack filled
with clear gas and trailing several
white te ndri ls lies baking in t he sun.
This dead jellyfish was was hed up on
t he shore . If stepped on or struck the
sack will pop harml essly. The danger is
in the stinging tendrils, whic h cause I
hp damage each time touched by bare
flesh .
6. Footprints. A set of bar e human
foot pri nts lead along the beach for 100
yards before they turn inla nd. The foot-
pri nts lead to a burned-out ceremonial
clearing littered with th e dea d remains
of native vill agers. The foot pri nts
belong to a native enchante r (AC 9;
MU5; MV 120' (40' ); II AT 1 bow; Dmg by
weapon type + poison; Save MU5; ML
7; AL N; spells: magic miss ile, read
magic, ESp, web, fire ball) standi ng in
the center of the cer emonial grounds.
These bur ial grounds may also be
haunt ed (at t he DM's discret ion) by
seven skeletons. five ghouls. four
wights, or three wraiths. A nearby
native vill age mayor may not be friend.
ly, accordi ng to its location and t he
DM's discretion.
7. Salt Water Driftage
Your boat ri ses and falls with t he
rocki ng waves. Sea bir ds whee l over-
head, and you hear the di stant roar
of sunon t he shor e. These bl ue, salty
waters contain few fish.
Roll Id6 and see below to determine
what item the PCs find:
1. Flag. Bri ghtly-colored fabric is
wr apped around a human-sized body
float ing past . Someone aboar d recog-
nizes the clot h as the flag of the King-
dom of Ierendi. The flag shrouds the
DUNGEON 49
TORTLESOF THE PURPLE SAGE- Part 1
9. Plagues from the Sky
A small , dark cloud in an ot her wise
clear sky grows in size and moves
directly above you. Suddenl y, hun-
dreds of objects begi n to fall from the
cloud.
na tive necklaces worth 1,300 gp each;
and a sleeping femal e sea dragon. She
has stats as above , 32 hp, and can spea k
and cas t six spells: charm person, protec-
tion from evil, sleep, detect invisi bility,
ESP, and invisibility.
Roll1d10 and see bel ow to determine
what falls from the sky on t he PCs.
Where two items are listed, t he DM
may choose whi ch fall s. Anyone with
AC 4 or bet ter, or who reaches shelter,
receives no da mage. The items cont inue
to fall for 1-10 r ounds.
Dmg/Rod
o
1
14
1-6
1-B
2-8
1-10
2-12
120
1100
dlO F alli ng Items
1 White fiber s
2 Flesh and blood
3 Frogs/Thads
4 Pebbles/ Nut s
5 Stones/ Rocks
5 Fish/Eels
7 lee bl ocks
8 Birds/Bats
9 Burning sulfur
10 Fiery meteors
10. Menace from Above
Roll 1d6 each game hour to see if
somet hing falls from the over ha nging
br anches ont o the PCs or t heir vessel. If
you roll a 1, roll l dl 0 a nd see below to
determine what fall s:
1. Biting Gnat CkJud. Each PC mu st
make a Sa vin g Throw vs . Dea t h Ray or
be driven to jump into the water to
escape the st ingi ng insects. Fire, smoke ,
ice, cold, or gas drives t he biting gnats
away. Anyone not leaping into t he
water suffers a total of 1 hp damage
from a multitude of tiny bites.
2. Corpse of Hanged Man. The corpse
wears a robe and carr ies nothing. If a
clerical speak with the dead spell is cast
Branches of la rge trees along the
riverbanks overha ng the water way.
The living t unnel is dim and humid.
Vi nes and dead bra nches hang touch-
ing t he water 's surface. Birds and
insect s fly beneath the protective
canopy as lea ves , twigs, and blos-
soms fall from above.
8. Sea Dragon
The blue-green water st retches out to
t he hori zon where t he sea and sky
meet . Few sea birds fly overhead.
Flying fish occasi onally glide past.
These salty green wa ters abound
with fish. Skimming along t he hori-
zon is what appears to be a small ,
ye llow-crested green dragon. Instead
of legs it has finl ike wings with
which it paddles thr ough t he wa ter.
The cre ature dives and l at er surfec-
es, sending a double plume of mist
skyward. Wit h it s head and neck
above the surface it begi ns t o circl e
your vessel, spiraling closer and
closer wi th each revolution. It seems
to be examining your ship.
The sea d ragon is 360' a way when it
surfaces and begins circl ing. Each revo-
lution it moves 60' closer (6' per round)
to t he vessel. Its approximate r ange.
revolution time, hit modifiers, and hull
point damage are as follow:
Con dition Rnds, Rng, Mod. Dmg.
Surfaces 360' 0 0
1st revolution 36 300' 0 0
2nd revolution 30 240' 0 0
3rd revolution 24 180' - 1 1-4
4th revolution 18 120' - 2 1-8
5th revolution 12 60' -3 112
6t h revolution 6 0' - 4 1-20
Ninety rounds (1
1
12 t urns) after surfac-
ing, the sea dragon compl etes its third
revolut ion and is 180' from the vessel.
The turbul ence of the water sets t he
shi p spinning, and anyone wi t hi n the
whirl pool suffers - 1 t o his chance to
hit. The vessel takes 1-4 hull points
damage from the whirlpool.
Unl ess attacked, t he sea dragon
reaches t he vessel a nd begins bit ing and
spitti ng 126 rounds (2 t urns and 6
rounds) after surfaci ng. A sea dragon
can spit up to three times per day, but
t here is a 50% chance of it using this
wea pon at any particular ti me. Those
spit at must make a Sav ing Throw vs .
Dragon Breat h or die. Thi s poison loses
it s effecti veness after one round. The
bi te of a sea dragon is not poisonous.
This particular sea dragon is not able
to talk or cast spells. It can be subdued
if PCs dive into t he water and strike
wi t h t he flats of t he ir swor ds. It s trea-
sure lies in a hi dden sea cave along t he
nea rest shor e. The cave contai ns 3,375
cp; 25,000 sp; 1,250 ep; 1,750 gp; 3, 125
pp; five rubies worth 1,000 gp each; 10
sword-scarred body of a recently killed
swashbuckler who was buried at sea. If
the clerical spell speak with the dead is
cast on the corpse, the deceased spirit
may bequestioned. The swashbuckler
was commissioned by aristocrat ic families
of the Kingdom of lerendl to find the
Great Northway's mouth. His ship was
at tacked by female pirates casting clerical
spells. He remembers nothi ng else.
2. Li feboat. An empty lifeboat blows
past . Someone aboard the PCs' vessel
recognizes the skillful shipbuilding
handiwork of the Empi re of Thyatis.
This well-built lifeboat has 15 hull
points and contains 10 iron r ati ons.
3. Fishing Boat. A water-logged,
blood-stained fishing boat missing its
sail and mast sloshes by, t raili ng a
fishing line . If t he fishing line is hauled
in, a sealed tube is found at its end. The
tube contains a common rock to keep it
submerged a nd a map of the Savage
Coast whi ch accurately shows t he
mouth of the Great Northway. The PCs
will not know if t he map is accurate.
The damaged boat has onl y 5 hull
points left .
4. Barrel. A red-pai nted barrel tied to
a ne w yellow rope bobs 150' from t he
bow of the PCs' ship. The barrel is a
buoy t o warn passing ships of an under-
sea rock outcropping. If the PCs sail a
large vessel within 50 ' of t he barrel,
t heir ship stri kes t he rock s for 2-24 hull
points damage. The barrel is sea led
wit h pitch.
5. Aeri al Assault. Twenty circling sea
birds begin dropping inedi ble saltwater
termite l a rvae on the PCs' deck. The
dirty-white insects at tach themselves
a nd begin burrowing through the wood
immediately. The birds drop 1-4 larvae
per round but are frightened a way by
loud noises , r ap id movement, or br ight
light. The young insects attach t hem-
selves to any a vailable wood immedi-
ately and can only be fought for two
rounds befor e t hey burrow out of sight
into t he ship's timbers. These grubli ke
cr eatures do not bi te unless cornered.
Instead, they use an inky black spr ay for
defense. When fri ghtened above water, a
normal "to hit" roll must bemade. A
victi m hit by the spray must make a
Savi ng Throw vs. Poison or beparalyzed
and bli nded for one turn. Each larva
causes 1 hull point damage t o t he vessel
before exiting into the sea.
6. Seaweed. A bed of green kelp floats
by. The kelp (2d20 rations ) is edible but
not t ast y.
50 Issue No.6
on the corpse, its spir it may be ques-
ti oned. This man was an adept of t he
Lawful Brotherhood on a jour ney back
to civilization. He was ca ptured and
lynched by three Chaot ic Sisterhood
members for no apparent reason.
3. Crab Spider (See chart, pg. 62).
4. Fresh Nuts. These windfall s cause
1 hp da mage to a nyo ne whose head is
uncovered but provide one r ation of
food. The tree above supplies 2d20
rations worth of nuts.
5. Giant Ant (See chart, pg. 62).
6. Giant Centipede. The centi pede's
bi te does no dama ge, but the victim
must make a Saving Throw VB. Poison
or become violently ill for 10 days. PCs
who do not make their saving throws
move at hal f speed and ar e not able to
perform any ot her physical action.
7. Giant Hom ed Chameleon Tongue. A
chameleon in the trees above shoots out
its sticky, 5'-long tongue. A successful
hit mean s t hat loose, unprotected
objects may bepulled from the vessel to
t he chameleon's mouth. Stuck victims
may bebitten for 2-8 hp damage .
8. Gray Ooze (See chart, pg. 62).
9. Ripe Fruit. An amount of fruit
equal to I dlOrations falls on the PCs'
ship. The tree above can provide IOdlO
r ati ons worth of ripe fruit .
10. Snail. Th is land murex has a col-
orful, frilled sheU. lfits shell is broken
ope n or if the meat is sliced, a ha ndful
of yell owish fluid squirts out . After
exposure to light for one round, t he
ye llow fluid changes to purple dye
which stains anyt hing it touches . The
dye will not wear off for over a week.
Alt hough t he dye is neit her magical nor
har mful. PCs will not know t his.
II. On tbe Move. The PCs are not
t he only group moving across t he sea.
Roll I d6 and see below to dete rmine
what type of group is encountered.
I. Robison the Crusader (AC 9; HD 2;
hp 10; MV 120' (40' ); 'AT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; Save F2; ML 8; AL LG) is
a warrior who lost his way dur ing a
holy war seven years ago. His clot hing
and hat are hand-made of leather and
he carries a leather umbr ella. He was
befr iended by Yadirf, a barefoot nati ve.
If t he PCs appr oach Robison, he is
struck with awe at seei ng t hem. If spo-
ken to in the common tongue, he is
friendly. He knows where everything on
t he Savage Coast is located, i ncluding
the Great Northway. If asked. he gives
t he party directions to anywhere they
want to go. If the party chooses to inv ite
him, he and Yadirf accompany the party
as NPCs.
2. 212 Clerics of the Chaot ic Sister-
hood (spells: cause light wounds, dark-
ness, cause fear, confuse alignment,
silence 15' radi us, cause disease, st rik-
ing) are all fema le. This party of well-
armed but poorly provisi oned clerics
does not spot the PCs unless the PCs try
to get their attent ion. The clerics are
traveli ng toward Drav ya and choose not
to accompany the PCs. The chaotic
clerics are likely to circl e around and
attack th e PCs at night after calli ng on
their nat ive allies for rei nforcements.
3. 2-12 Clerics ofthe Lawful Brother-
hood (spells: cure light wounds, light,
remove fear, know alignment, si lence 15'
rad ius, cure dis eases, striking) are all
mal e. This par ty of unar med hut well-
provisioned clerics does not spot the PCs
unless the PCs try to get their atten-
ti on. The cleri cs are travelin g to Rich-
la nd tradi ng post and will accompany
the PCs or deliver messages to Richland
for th em. They will also share their
provisions , cure disease, and cure light
wounds on t he spot.
4 and 5. A party of 12 well-ar med and
provisioned explorers does not spot the
PCs unless the PCs try to get t heir
attention. There are two types of explor-
er groups: one fr om the Kingdom of
Ierendi (4) and the ot her from the
Empire of Thyatis (5). Bot h parties were
sent out by their respecti ve govern-
ments t o locate the mouth of the Gre at
Nort hway. Eleven of these scouts are
bu man wa r ri ors. A human swash-
buckler leads the party.
If the PCs approach the scouts in a
friendly ma nner, the scouts speak in
common. If asked , the scouts share their
provisions with t he PCs and te ll t he
PCs t heir quest .
6, Deer herd (330) Eac h deer can
provide 10 rations.
12. On the Rocks
The water has stranded pieces of bat-
tered drift woodand shredded seaweed
along the shore. Wort hless broken
shells, scaled fish, and uprooted plants
lie strewn among the rocks. The crash-
ing sound of waves is a constant roar.
Sea spray is blown yards from the sea
onto the eroded rocks.
Roll Id6 anc\ see below to dete rmine
what other ite ms the PCs find lyi ng
TORTLESOFTHEPURPLESAGE- Part 1
alo ng the rocky shore:
I. Sea shells. Hal f a dozen rough,
spiny, spi ral seashells lie clu stered near
t he edge of the surf. These fr illed mure x
shells are from sheltered seas. Thei r
calm home waters must have heen dis-
turbed for them to be cast up on this
beach. If a shell is broken open or if the
meat is sliced, a handful of yellowish
fluid squi rts out. After expos ure to light
for one round, the yellow fluid changes
to purple. This purple dye stains any-
thing it touche s and ta kes over a week
to wear off. The dye is worth 1 gp per
shell to dyers and alchemists. It is nei-
t her magical nor harmful, but PCs will
not know t his. There are 520 mu rex
shell s lying in a bed 25' unde rwa te r,
j ust off the shore wher e these few shells
wer e found .
2. Drums. Distant heavy dr ummi ng
fills t he air, first to one side of the PCs,
then far off to the other side , as if
natives are signali ng ea ch other.
3. Leftovers . St ill smoki ng are the
remains of a cooking fire complete with
broken shells, fish heads, and bird bones.
It appears that someone left t his place in
a hurry. If the PCs search t he fire. they
find glowing embers and a dead sea bird,
rolled in mud, baki ng beneath the
DUNGEON 51
TORTlES OF THE PURPLE SAGE- Part 1
14. Neut ral Alliance P at rol
Onl y one val uable mi neral may be
found per PC per day no matter how
hard t he PCs search.
Dust rises in t he dis tance. A her d of
20 horses ridden by robed humans
leads a pride of 10 sabre-tooth tigers
r idden by cat-headed huma noids.
The group does not see the PCs and is
traveling toward the Bylot Ruins. If
approached in a friendly, open manner,
the PCs are invited to travel with t he
patrol. Lupins, dervishes , and tortles are
not welcome. Host ilit ies may (50%
chance) break out against such individ-
uals unless weapons are thrown down or
a white flag of truce is shown. If the party
approaches within 1,000' of t he patrol in
a secret or hostile manner, they are spot -
ted 50% of the ti me. Intruders are not
welcome, whoever t hey are, and the
patrol members will attack.
Each of t he p agans is armed with a
nor mal swor d and carries 110 gpoEach
of t he r akastas is armed with war
claws a nd wears jewelry worth 10100
gpo The sabre-tooth tigers are con-
trolled with knee pressure and heavy
riding crops. Th ey are a lso fitted wit h
special saddles that do not hinder t heir
fighting abilities. These saddles also
allow t he r akastas t o leap off their
mounts (up t o 20') and attack in the
same rou nd. These "tame" sabre-t ooth
tigers are too fer ocious to be ridden by
any non-rekaeta.
This gro up of phanatons represents
t heir tribal king, who is worried about
t he Chaotic Alliance threatening the
la wful phanaton way of life. The phana-
tons welcome anyone interested in
defeating the Chaotic Alliance. As the
phanatons see the sit ua tio n, t he snap-
pers want to expand t heir t erritory
beyond t he Thll Grass Coast. The Chao
otic Sisters want to overpower t he Law-
ful Brotherhood. The aranea are
t r aditi ona l phanaton en emies a nd
attack pha natons on sight. Fort unately,
other chaot ic creatures, li ke the orcs,
are t oo disorganized t o pose a ser ious
t hreat.
This group consists of a phanaton
subchief and war ch ief, five subchie f
bodyguards, seven war chief body-
guards, a nd 30 adult phanatons.
As you move acros s a t reeless area
clear of shrubbery, you hear a hollow
echo benea t h your feet . The ground
seems to be undermined below you.
16. Aranea Traps
Without trees, wild a ranea li ve
undergroun d. Stepping on the well
concealed t rapdoor alerts t he four ara-
nea that live in t hi s under ground lair.
Upon careful inspection, a ca mouflaged,
huma n-sized t rapdoor can be found a nd
pried open. A white-walled shaft. drops
30' st ra ight down a nd i nter sects with a
t unnel connect in g various ch ambers.
The web-lined la ir resembles a white-
wa lled cave. Many pieces of crude furm-
ture ma de of web, vine, and wood are
woven in pl ace on the floor of t hese
lairs. The four a ranea attack intruder s,
one aranea from each t unnel direction
as the other two climb nearby shafts to
attack anyone on the surface outside
the invaded shaft. The intelligent giant
spiders have wove n treasure worth
1,000-4,000 gp into t he ceiling of each of
t heir lairs for safekeeping. These are-
nea are wi ld and do not have spell
books.
GP value
5
10
25
50
100
300
500
750
875
1,000
Minerals found
Turquoise flakes
Quartz crystals
Citrine, uncut
Onyx, uncut
Ga rnet, uncut
Silver ore
Topaz, un cut
Gold nuggets
Opal , un cut
Ruby, uncut
dloo
0110
11-20
2133
34-45
4660
6175
7685
86-95
9698
9900
coals. The meal is the equivalent of two
r at ions, fragrant with expensive, rare
spices.
4. Statue. Faci ng the sea is a 2' -tall
stone statue of a two-legged, multi-
toothed r ept ile. The statue is hol di ng a
short spear in its forepaws. The gray
stone st at ue weighs about 1,000 cn but
is wort hless. It is a native carving
designed to guard t he land against
reptile invaders from the sea.
5. Amoeba. A 30'-deep tidal pool, 30'
in diameter, is filled with a strange,
clear fl uid. The flu id looks like water
but quivers in the breeze instead of
formi ng waves. The pool' s rocky bottom
is easily seen. There are no trapped fish,
shells, sea weed, or starfish in the pool.
Floati ng in t he pool 's center is a 1'
diameter, gray, spherical cloud. Th e
t idal pool's fluid is actually a gi ant
a moeba protoplasm; t he float ing gray
cloud is t he amoeba's nucl eus. All ot her
animal a nd plant life in the pool has
been absorbed by the amoeba. Any
plant or animal matter placed in the
pool slowly di ss olves and disappears.
Any i norganic material such as metal
or rock slowly sinks to t he bottom of the
pool. Weapons or magi c used agai nst the
amoeba cause it t o leave its pool and
ooze toward t he sea using it s pseudo-
pods in defense. The amoeba does not
move unl ess attacked. Anyone touching
t he creature with bare flesh suffers 212
hp acid damage.
6. Seals. A herd of 30 brown fu r se als
lies basking in t he sun light. If the PCs
approach wit hin 40' of any seal, the
entire herd is startled and stampedes
toward t he water. If they stampede over
the PCs, t he PCs sutTer 1-20 hp dam age.
The ani mals' pelts are worth 100 gp
each.
13. Valuable Minerals
The rocks in this area glint with
mineral deposits. Much of the st one
contains worthless fool's gol d and
salt crystals.
If a ny PC examines the rocks closely
by picking one up, sit t ing down on top
of, or cli mbi ng over a ny, that PC discov-
ers valuable minerals. Have t he player
roll I dS a nd see bel ow. The PC should
be tol d in secr et what wa s foun d. If that
PC cont i nues to search, no other r iches
are found for t he period of one day. If
a ny other PCs search t he rocks, they
also find one random val uabl e mi neral.
15. Phanaton Expedition
You a re suddenly surrounded by a
chittering, gest icula t ing ma ss of
monk eylike creatures t hat have
dro pped and glid ed from t he trees or
popped up out of t he tall grass .
17. Cha otic Alli ance Camp
Smoke rises in the di stance. A circle
of a dozen leather lean-to shelters
surrounds a smolderi ng fire. Anned
orcs move among t he shelt er s and
occasionally a bow-armed snapper
appears between lean-tee.
52 Issue No.6
The ca mpers do not see you and are
waiting for ni ghtfall to break ca mp. If
observed afte r nightfall , they are travel -
ing toward t he Dravya Ruins. If the
party approaches withi n 1,000' of the
camp in a secret or hostil e manner, they
a re spotted 50%of t he t ime. Intruders
are not welcome, whoever they are, and
the campers defend themsel ves. If the
party a pproac hes in a hosti le ma nner,
t he campers alert everyone in ca mp to
help defend.
If the PCs approach t his temporary
Chaotic Alliance camp in a friendl y
ma nner, t hey are invited to stay and
eat. Hostilities may (50% chance) break
out against non-chaoti c individuals
unless weapons are thrown down or a
white flag of truce is shown. If the PCs
throw down their weapons or speak on
friendly terms in the common tongue,
the monsters meet them with lowered
we apons a nd welcome t hem into thei r
ca mp. Once inside, the monsters sur-
round and attack them. The monsters
attempt to capt ure t he PCs a live, hold-
ing t hem until Chaotic Sisterhood me mo
ber s arrive (cumulat ive 10% chance per
day) t o determine their fate.
Each of the t wel ve lean-toe houses six
orcs, a ll armed with spears. The or cs
are l ead by an or c chieftain. Among
t he lean-tos are four ogres, a troll, a nd
a snapper. Each ore carries 3-24 cp.
Each ogre carries 2-8 gpoThe troll
wears t wo armbands each worth 2,000
gp, a nd the snapper carries 1-6 pp.
18. Lawful Alli ance Patrol
Dust rise s in t he distance. A huge
pack of 40 dire wolves ridden by dog-
headed humanoids armed with la ne-
es approaches.
The group does not see you and is
trave ling toward t he Yazak Ruins. If
approached in a fri endly, open manner,
t he PCs are invited to travel wit h t he
patrol. Rakasta, pagans, and nomads
are not welcome. Host ilit ies may (50%
chance) break out against such individ-
uals unless weapons are t hrown down
or a white flag of truce is shown. If the
party approaches wit hin 1,000' of t he
patrol in a secret or hostile manner,
they a re spot ted 50% of the t ime.
Intruders are not welcome , whoever
t hey are, and patrol members defend
t hemselves.
Each of t he lupins is armed wit h a
l ance and carries 20-120 cp, 1080 sp, or
1-20 elect rum pieces. Onl y the lup ins
can ride the di r e wolves.
Set l ocation Encounters
Each encounter below is set in a specific
hex on Map 2. When the PCs enter a
lettered he x, refer to the cor respond ing
encounter to determine wha t , if any-
t hing, t he PCs see in t hat area.
Locations A, B, a nd C are gu ideposts
to help you mark t he PCs' movement
toward or away from t he Grea t
Northway's mouth. When t he PCs are
in a specific regi on (t he Yazak Steppes,
for example), use the notes given under
t he Savage Coas t Map Key t o describe
their current surroundings.
The following encounter s should occur
as gi ven only once (t he fir st ti me t he
PCs enter t hat lettered hex). If t he PCs
leave a lettered hex a nd ret urn later,
alter the encounter based on the PCs'
fi rst vis it to t hat a rea.
U attacked, the natives defend t hem-
selves to the death. If capt ured and
questioned, natives do not involve the
Chaotic Sisterhood but state there is
" very much badness" wher e the PCs
are going. Asked to explain , the nat ives
TORTLESOf THE PURPLE SAGE- Part 1
tremble in fear and shake their heads.
A. Land Route. Start here if the PCs
followed t he coast on l and from cit ies t o
t he east .
B. Coast al Route. St art here if t he
PCs foll owed t he coas t by water or
sa iled due west from Siagovich.
C. Open Sea Route. St art here if the
PCs sailed due west from Mul e Beach.
D. Ric hland Tra ding Post
Snuggled on t he tall grass prairie
against t he foa ming sea is the las t
remnant of civilizati on. A small
cluster of buildings surrounds a
rectangular palisade guarding a
tower perched on a man-made hill.
White wisps of smoke r ise fr om ch im-
neys mingli ng wit h t he odor of fresh-
ly plowed fields. Robed figures can be
seen leading farm animals along
qu iet dust y streets. Hel meted figures
appear from t ime t o ti me making the
rounds ofthe catwa lk inside t he
palisade. The post's gates are open,
DUNGEON 53
TORTLES OFTHE PURPLE SAGE- Part 1
and it s drawbridges are down. A
single 50' -long dock juts into the surf
from the south edge of the settle-
ment. No vessel s are tied to t he unat-
tended dock.
The trading post is populated by an
exotic mixture of greedy merchants,
daring adve nturer s, artist ic cr afts men,
dusty prospectors, stoic nati ves, peace-
loving clerics, and amiable tortles. Rich-
land is t he j umping off point for
expeditions into t he vast unexplored
wilderness to the north. Expediti ons are
painst akin gly provisioned , and knowl-
edgeable guides are hired. Raw materi-
als collected from t he untamed wilds
are traded here for the manufactured
product s of civilization. Controlling
most of the business transactions i n
Richland is Trader J ack, an ex-
merc enary, ex-adventurer, ex-pirate,
expatriate.
Trader J ack, shipwrecked on t he site,
built a motte-and-bai ley tower to stake
his clai m to t he surrounding r ich but
host ile la nds. Cler ics of t he La wful
Brotherhood were granted permission to
build outside Richland's palisad e soon
54 Issue NO.6
after it s founding. Th is arrangement
proved mut ually benefici al and soon
adventurers, explorers, t raders, a nd
craftsmen arrived to visit and eventu-
ally stay. Richl a nd is a free city, not
aligned wit h any nat ion, order. or race.
All ali gnments are tolera ted , but overt
hostilit y is quickly a nd severely
quenched by t he local inhabit ants.
If the PCs enter t he t r ading post i n a
friendly, nonviolent manner, they are
met and welcomed. It is t he Brother-
hood's cust om to be hospit able by pro-
viding food and shel ter to t r avelers. The
party is shown to rooms in the hostel.
Supplies, armor, weapons, and equi p-
ment repairs are all provided at cost . If
the PCs have escorted t he tortles here
by boat. t hey can buy wagons and draft
hor ses for the overl and part of their
journey. All wounds are healed by the
clerics if t hey are politely asked. A
donation is appreciated but not
required.
The PCs are ask ed where they are
going. If they answer t hey are t ry ing t o
find the mouth of the Great Northway,
the clerics look at t he m wit h surp r ise
and fear. The Brothers warn every one of
terrible beasts, natural barriers (t idal
.I
"
I',
waves, whirlpools, reefs), and head-
hunting cannibals to t he north. Worst of
all are the chaot ic legions made up of
salt wat er snappers, un derground ara-
nea, a nd The Sist erhood. If asked where
t he mouth of the Great Northway is,
90% of the cleri cs say they don't know;
10% of t he Brothers can give rough
direct ions.
If any male PC speaks in t he Lawful
tongue, that PC is invited to wor sh ip in
the chapel, to become a me mber of t he
Lawful Brot herhood. a nd to leave the
group of explorers. Female PCs are not
allowed inside t he chapel. Any damage
to property while staying a t the post
mu st bepaid for wit h t reas ure or labor.
Any cri mes committed dur ing the par-
t y's vis it , including females entering
t he temple. are pun ished by banishment
from the post .
Soon after the PCs settl e into t he
hostel , Hea thgate (AC 5; HD 5; hp 32;
MV 120' (40') ; tAT 1; Dmgby weapon
type; Save F5; ML 9; AL N; chain mail
armor, two-handed sword), a human
fighter who ha s been wor king as a wil-
derness guide for several years, finds
t he party and introduces himself. He
will gladly guide the party to any deati-
nation for 200 gp per month. Heathgate
owns a horse and carries his own food
and supplies, but wants 20 gp in
advance. He claims to beneutral and
t rustworthy. The price is fair, but other
gui des might do the job for less. If hired,
Heathgate will lead the party to area U.
He r efuses to approach Yazak because it
is controlled by the Lawful Alliance.
Heathgat e is of neut ral alignment and
fears for his life.
Zhingler CAe 9; HD 2; hp 11; MV 120'
(40'); NAT 1; Dmg by weapon type; Save
F2; ML 8; AL C; sword) is a human
wi lderness guide who will do the job for
100 gp per mont h and does not want to
be paid anything in advance. He
appears if Heathgate is not hired.
Zhingler is experienced and well
known. He is also chaotic and, if hired,
leads the party by ship up the coast and
i nto the Empty Valley, to an ambush in
Dravya . He has no supplies, hor se, or
ship of his own.
The last human wilderness guide to
approach the party is Lyn uel (AC 5;
HD 6; hp 36; MV 120' (40'); IAT 1; Dmg
by weapon type; Save F6; ML 10; AL L;
chain mail armor, battle axe). He claims
to be lawful and know t he shortest a nd
safest route to Yazak . Instead of a sal-
ary, he asks 400 gp be donated (in
advance) to t he cleri cs of t he Lawful
Brotherhood, to whom he owes his life.
Lynuel is expens ive but honest . If hired,
he will do his best to lead t he party
dir ectl y overland to Yazak. Lynuel owns
a horse and can provide his own food
and supplies.
A guide does not have to be hir ed to
lead t he part y, but without one the
party will have little chance to find the
tortle gathe ring place at Yazak.
Th e PCs will have extensive opportu-
nit y to explore Richland Trading Post in
Pa rt 2 of t his adventure (issue #7).
E. Tall Grass Coast Landing
A small group of natives on the shore
wave frantically at your party. They
do not appear to be hostil e and are
not armed.
Ten n atives led by a warrior and
traveling on foot or by canoe approach
the PCs. They attempt to wa rn of a
terrible monster living in t he direct ion
the PCs are traveling. though they
cannot give a clear description of it .
F. Empty Valley River Landing
A steep, narrow staircase cut i nto the
rocks leads from a small wooden dock
to the cliff top 100' above.
Each PC must roll his dexterity or
less on I d20 to climb t he staircase safe-
ly. If the dexterity check fails, the PC
falls 50' into t he sea.
At the top of the staircase. a stone-
lined path follows the course of the
Empty Valley River to t he Dr avya
Rui ns (area R). Twenty natives led by a
warrior, t rav eling on foot or by canoe.
secretly approach the party.
If the PCs are traveling by ship, the
na tives attempt to cut t he anchor or
mooring lines at ni ght so the vessel
drift s aground. downstream, or out to
sea. If the vessel runs aground, it takes
1-4 days work to free the craft.
lf t he PCs are t raveling by land, t he
natives attempt to cut loose and stam-
pede t he party's mount s at night. It
takes 14 days wor k to collect all t he
animals.
G. Savage Gulf Beach La ndi ng
A pure white sand beach stretches
along t he shoreline below rolli ng
dunes. Ships can easily be beached
on this shore.
Thirty natives led by a warrior,
traveling on foot or by canoe, secretly
approach the party. If the PCs a re t rav-
eling by ship, t he nat ives attempt to set
the sails and rigging on fire, st randing
the vessel. Rowers can move a sailing
ship at one-t hird speed if t he PCs have
no spare sails aboard.
If the PCs are traveling by land, the
nat ives attempt to steal all mounts from
the party.
H. Re ef Point Landing
Ships can be moored to tree trunks
leaning out from shore . A narrow
path has been hacked through t he
underbrush leading roughly north-
east.
The narrow footpath leads to the Dra-
vya Ruins (a rea R). Forty n ative s led by
t wo warriors and a he r o. t raveling on
foot or by canoe, ap proach the party,
beating t heir shiel ds and chanting,
"Tray Sure! Tray Sure!" (" Treasure!" )
TORTlESOFTHE PURPLE SAGE- Port 1
They are friendly but demandi ng.
If the PCs are traveling by ship,
natives in canoes attempt to surround
their vessel. If t he PCs do not gi ve t he
eq ui valent of 10 or more gp worth of
t reasur e to eac h native, the natives
attempt to board t he vessel. They do not
really wa nt a fight. only to come a board
and look for treasure.
If the PCs are t ra veling by land, t he
natives attempt to surround the party.
They want t reasure but do not want a
fight . If the PCs do not give the equiva-
lent of 10 or more gp-worth of t reasure
to each native, t he natives attempt to
take the t reasur e from PCs' pockets or
from t he pack ani mals.
If t he party allows the nat ives to
search, t he na tives at tempt to loot all
the party's treasur e. If interfered with.
t he nati ves defend t he mselves while
running away with a ny loot t hey have
grabbed. If t he natives are questioned.
they claim to be allowi ng t he PCs to pay
t ribute in r eturn for "safe passage"
through t heir territory. The natives
warn the PCs that great dangers lie
ahead.
1. Yazak Steppes Cli ff Landing
A steep. narrow staircase cut into t he
rock leads from a small wooden dock
to t he cliff top 50' above.
Eac h PC must roll his dexterity or
less on I d20 to climb the staircase safe-
ly. If t he dexteri ty check fails, the PC
falls 25' into the sea.
At t he top of t he staircase, a st one-
li ned footpa th leads northeast to t he
Dravya Ruins (area R). Fifty nati ves
led by two warriors a nd a he ro, travel-
ing on foot or by canoe, secretly
approach t he party.
If t he PCs are traveli ng by land. t he
na tives attempt to kill all t he party's
mount s by poison or combat.
If t he PCs are traveli ng by ship, the
na tives attempt to board the vessel and
overpower t hose aboard. If the PCs are
captured, the na tives attempt to load
t he m a board six-person boats. The PCs
are given pad dles and directed to paddle
out of sight while nati ves aim drawn
bows at t heir backs. As t he PCs paddle
a way, thei r captured vessel is sailed
toward the Empty Valley River a nd
then upstream to t he Dravya Ruins. The
natives were trai ned in seamanship by
t he Chaotic Sisterhood. who confiscate
t he vessel a nd return it only if all trea-
DUNGEON 55
TORTlESOFTHE PURPLE SAGE- Part 1
sure, maps, and logbooks are turned over
to them. The Sisters claim that the
natives warned the PCs to turn back or
be killed. They l uckily were only set
adrift and their vessel turned over to t he
Sisters. The Sisters warn the PCs to turn
hack now or meet with a worse fate.
J . Mud Water Cove Landing
A narrow path has been cut through
the t all pr ai r ie grass leading due
east.
The narrow path leads across the
prairie to the Dravya Ruins (area RJ.
Sixty n atives led by three wa rriors
and a hero, t ravel ing on foot or by
canoe, secretly approach the party.
If the PCs ar e traveli ng by ship, the
natives attempt to hoard t he vessel and
kill t hose on board. If any PC jumps
overboard, Ieuitates. or flie s away from
the ship, that PC escapes. The captured
vessel is sailed up t he Empty Valley
River to t he Dravya Ruins. The na tives
were t r ained in seamanship by the
Chaot ic Sister hood, who confiscate t he
vessel a nd ret urn it only if all t reasure,
56 Issue NO.6
maps, a nd logbooks are t urned over to
them. If the PCs are traveli ng by land,
the na tives attempt to capture t he party
members. If t he party is captured, t he
natives ca rry them, bound hand and
foot, to the Dr avya Ruins where the
ca ptured party is t urned over to the
Sister s. The Sisters only r elease the Pes
if all t reasure , maps, and logbooks are
turned over.
In eit he r case, the Sisters clai m the
na tives warned the Pes to t urn back or
be kill ed, but luckily t hey (or t heir
vessel) were only det ained a nd t urned
over to t he Sisters. The Sisters warn the
PCs to t urn back now.
K. Great Northway Mouth Landing
A stony. weed-lined pat h starts at t he
riverbank and leads due east.
The weed-lined path leads to the Dra-
vya Ruins (area R). Seventy natives led
by t hree warriors and a he r o, t ravel-
ing on foot or by canoe, secretly
approach t he party.
If the PCs are t raveli ng by la nd, the
na t ives try to kill t he party members.
If the PCs are t raveling by ship, t he
na t ives attempt to board t he vesse l and
kill t hose on boa rd. Any party members
who escape see t hei r cargo looted and
t heir vessel set on fire and destroyed.
IfPCs esca pe to t he Dravya Ruins, the
Chaotic Sisterhood clai ms that t he
na tives wa rned t he PCs to turn back or
be killed. They " luckily" were spared to
become prisoner s of the Sisters, who
confiscate all treasure, maps, and log-
books.
L. Cr opl a n d
Unarmed na ti ves cultivate wheat
and corn fiel ds beside a broad river.
Small canals and ditches provi de t he
fields with l ife-gi vi ng water. Fishi ng
lines a nd net s reach out into t he
ri ver. Dogs bark in the distance as
children st a nd waving at you
unafraid.
If t he PCs land, t hey find innocent ,
hard-worki ng fa rmers and fishers. The
fields are irrigated wit h water lifted
from ca nal s by human-powered wa ter
wheels. Th e nat ives have nothi ng of
va lue to t r ade, but can give t he PCs
food and water. In the fall duri ng har-
ves t , t hey t rade grain by weight for
gemst ones or gold nuggets. They do not
understand coi nage or magic items. The
legends of st upi d savages using gold
nuggets for fish ing weights is unt rue.
The only valuables t hese industrious
people have a re a golden harvest of
grain each fall a nd a year-round supply
of fish.
In addition to spears, clubs , and bows,
each na tive male defends himself, fami-
ly, and vill age with 1-4 traine d dogs,
M. Great Northway Waterfall
The distant sound of rushing water
becomes a t hunderi ng roar as a mile -
wide waterfall 150'-high comes into
view. Th e sight of whit e water plung-
ing over moss-gr een cliffs into the
muddy-brown river is stunni ng.
Rai nbow mists drift from the water-
fall 's base to dampen t he r iverbanks
downstrea m for a mile.
Th e Great Northway waterfall is
impassible by water vessel. The cliffs
forming the fall s are part of a r ift which
runs sout h along the Empty Valley
where the river once flowed. When t he
earthquake which destroyed the Drav-
ish cities occurred, the land west of the
Empty Valley tilted toward the Savage
Gulf. The Great Northway's course was
shortened, a nd the river plunged into
the rift and along a new fissure to the
sea instead of following the now Empty
Valley. It is nearly impossible to portage
water vessels around t he falls. The
sheer 150' cliffs run unbroken to the
south. The best chance of overcoming
the falls is to travel 24 miles or more to
the north where the grade is less steep.
Vessel s or individuals in the water
within 500 ' of the base of t he fall s a re
caught in the under tow and suffer 10
200 hull point s damage or 10-100 hp
damage. Vessels or individuals in t he
water within 1,000' of the top of the
falls are drawn over the falls and sufTer
5100 hull points damage or 550 hp
damage plus the undertow damage
listed above.
N. Floating Island
Upstream, roundi ng a river bend, is
a flat , grass-covered floating island
about 300 yards in diameter, slowly
floating downstream. Birds stand on
the island's 4'-high shore. There is
only a little space to pa ss t he island
on either the inside or outside curve
of t he r iver bend.
The isl and is a sudd, a floating mass
of vegetation which broke free from a
riverbank upst rea m during a flood.
There is plent y of room on the rive r to
avoid the mass if t he PCs pilot their
vessel to t he inside curve of t he r iver
bend . If t he PCs try to pass on t he out-
side bend, t he sudd crus hes their vessel
against t he riverbank causing 318 hull
points damage. Any indi vidual pinned
between the sudd and t he riverbank
suffers 1-6 hp damage. The PCs can also
avoid the sudd by moving downst ream
faster than the island, t hen turning and
passing it on a st r ai ght away i nstead of
a curve.
The island easily su pports anyone's
weight . If the PCs land on the sudd,
there is a 25% cha nce per turn t hei r
vessel is crushed unles s they pull it onto
t he floating island. When the PCs land
on t he sudd, t hey di sturb 12 nesting
d r agonflies with 3' wingspans. The six
white and six black creatures attack
fur iously. They have no t reasure, but
the sudd contains fruit t rees that ca n
supply 5dlO rations.
For more informati on on dragonfl ies ,
see Great Nort hway Area Encounter #4.
Care must betaken to get off t he sudd
before it floats downstream 96 miles
(four hex es). In 24 hours, the sudd
reaches the Great Northway Waterfall
and is dest r oyed going over the falls.
Vessel s or indivi dual s in the water or on
t he sudd within 1,000' of t he br ink of
the fall s ar e drawn over t he edge and
suffer damage as listed for area M.
O. Surfers
Twelve natives are r idi ng t he waves
into shore on thin wooden planks.
They kneel on the pla nks and paddle
out to deep water. When a large wave
begins to form, t hey stand on the
planks and ri de to shore on the wave
cre st .
If the PCs approach the surfers in an
open, fri endly manner t hey are invited
to try to ride the planks. Roll I d20 . If
t he number roll ed is less t han or equal
to the PC's dext erity, t he sur fer success-
fully rides a plank to waist -deep water
near shore. If the roll fails, t he surfer
wi pes out in water 6' deep or more. 1b
add inj ury to insult , the pla nk hits t he
would-be surfer in t he head, causing 16
hp da mage.
If over half the party member s sue-
cessfully surf into shore, t he natives
ha ppily t rade informat ion or belongings
with t he PCs. The natives are will ing to
trade food or weapons for gemstones
and normal ite ms (including a nimals),
but they do not underst and the concept
of coins. If the PCs t ry to t rade an item
whi ch is obviously magical, t here is
only a 25% cha nce that the natives
accept it .
If the PCs approach t he surfers i n a n
unfr ien dly manner, the natives attempt
to flee . They have no wea pons and live
somewhere inland.
P. Cliff Di vers
Twelve natives are di ving head first
off cliffs 100' high. Before they leap,
they r un to the edge so they are sure
to clear the rocky cliff face. On t he
way down thei r ar ms sweep around
until t heir ha nds meet, a nd t hey
enter the pounding surf point ing
straight down. After t he divers resur-
face, t hey cli mb back up the cliffs to
dive agai n.
TORTLESOf THE PURPLE SAGE- Part 1
l f t he PCs approach t he diver s in an
open, friendly manner they are invited
t o t ry t he clifT dive. Roll Id20 twice and
compa re t he value rolled to t he PC's
dexterity. If the fir st number roll ed is
less t han or equal t o the PC's dexteri ty,
t he diver success fully misses the cliff
wall . If the number rolled is greater, the
diver painfully grazes t he rock wall and
suffers 212 hp damage. If the second
number rolled is less than or equal to
the PC's dexter ity, t he diver safely and
successfully enters the water. If t ha t
number is greater, the diver painfully
strike s submer ged rocks, sufferi ng 3-18
hp damage. If the PC ca nnot swim or is
weighted down in the surf, he drowns
unless rescued by party members.
If over half the party me mbers j ump
off the cliff, t he natives ha ppily t rade
information or belongings with t he PCs.
The natives are willing to trade food or
weapons for gemstones and normal
items or animals, but t hey do not under-
st and t he concept of coins. If t he PCs t ry
t o trade an item which is obviously
magical, there is only a 25% cha nce the
natives accept it .
If t he PCs approach the divers in an
unfriendly manner, t he natives will
attempt to flee. They have no weapons
and live somewhere inla nd.
Q. Muddy Water
Th e water in t his cove is brownish,
and t he air smells odd.
If t he PCs touch the water, it feel s
cool. If t hey taste the water it is fresh,
not salty. If they plumb t he depth, they
find the water is fai rly shall ow a nd t he
bottom muddy.
Lost Ruins
Read the general description below
followed by t he specific description for a
each lost ruin. PCs will have the oppor -
tunity to explor e t hese lost ruins in
more detai l in Part 2 of this adve nture
(issue #7) .
Scattered over a square mil e is the
rubble of a r uined city. The most
conspicuous structure in the city is a
central 50'-tal l moun d. Several huge
stones wi th holes t he size of a man
bored through them stand about the
central mou nd. Stone arches stand
20' over some st reets . The rest of t he
DUNGEON 57
TORTLESOFTHEPURPLE SAGE- Part 1
rui n is only 10' high or less, with a
few 20 '-t811 stone pedest als and 30'-
tall bri ck pillars poking above the
rubble.
Most of t he buildings within the city
were built of sun-dr ied bricks. A few
IO'-tall wooden beams stand wher e they
once supported wooden roofs. All arch-
ways and round pedest als are built of
stone. The 50' -tall mound is of packed
earth.
These ruins have been deserted for
centuries. Noth ing per ishable remains.
Vegetat ion gro ws on wa ll tops and
through cracks in paved st reet s. An
earthquake has cr acked st reets, broken
buildings, and toppled columns. Rubble
generally lies in a northwest to south-
east pattern. The earth mound is unaf-
fected. Only the sound of wind fills the
once-busy streets .
R. Dravya Ruins
Scavenger birds wheel above a cit y
overgrown wit h dead weeds. A cold
wind moans t hrough t he empt y
streets of t he vast deserted city. The
ruins lie t rapped between desolate
grassla nds and a deeply eroded river-
bank squeezing a trickle of stagnant
water.
These ruins are t he stronghold of the
Ch aotic All iance: spider like aranea,
saltwater snappers , and member s of t he
Sis ter hood. The aranea do not live i n
the st ronghold. Spell-casting Sis t ers
guard the ruins wit h t he help of
enchanted monsters and th e sna ppers .
S. Bylot Ruins
Skinny sheep and goat s graze on
sparse grasses surrounding an
ancient, dusty city. Ruins stand on
t he broad vast ness of a plateau .
These ruins are t he st ronghold of the
Neutral Alliance: feline rakastas,
nature-worshipp ing pagan s, and flock-
herding nomads. The nomad t ri be con-
sists of 300 fighti ng men plus 600
non-combatants that tend flocks on the
city outskirts. These 900 peaceful peo-
ple want to migrate wit h their flocks to
fresh grazi ng land on the Yazak
Steppes. Th ey welcome anyone who
helps them on t heir quest. Th ey can pay
for safe passage with 100 of their fine st
58 Issue No. 6
ani mals, worth 10 gp or three standa rd
rati ons each. The rekaetas and pagans
will not travel with t he nomads .
The Neutral Alli ance cont rols the Dry
Flats and t he Bylot Hill s. They are at
war wit h the La wful Alliance of lupine,
dervishes, and tortles who hold t he
Yazak St eppes. The war is a racial con-
flict between t he r akastas and lupin e,
and a religi ous conflict between t he
pagans and dervishes. The normally
peaceful nomads and tortles, who once
mi grated as they willed. have sided
with th e vari ous fact ions for protection.
The warring fact ions can be separated
by clever PCs who suggest making the
Dry Flats an unclaimed no-man's-land
between the Bylot Hills and Yazak
Steppes (or by some other suggestion).
'!br tl es and nomads are t he n free to
cross the zone and serve as a buffer
between the host ile Alliances. The
nomads can move their flocks to better
grazi ng land on the steppes, and t he
tortles can reach t heir egg-laying
grounds. With luck, th e r akast as and
pagans will never see t he lupins and
dervishe s.
T. Yaza k Ruins
Gr ay-yellow dust clouds rise to t he
east of a weed -choked ancient city.
The ruins sprea d across a squa re
mile of grass-covered pl ain.
These rui ns are t he stronghol d of t he
Lawful Alli ance: dog-headed lupine,
human dervi shes, shell-beari ng t ortles,
and members of the Broth erhood. The
tortles worship the gate stones that
st and near t he base of the city's central
earth mound.
A car avan of 100 hor se-drawn wagons
is forming on t he eastern edge of the
city. One hundred tortle couples , armed
wit h light crossbows, are preparing to
t ravel by wagon t r ai n to t hei r ancestral
egg-laying grounds on the Dry Flats at
t he base of the Bylot Hills. During t hi s
trip, t hey need adventurers to scout
ahead, ser ve as sent ri es, and fight off
enemy attacks . So, even if the PCs have
br ought their tortle charges here safely,
their job is not yet over. In return for
the PCs' services, the tortles intend to
pay them 1,0004,000 empty eggs hells ,
worth 10 gp each to alchemi st s and
armorers in civilized lands. The lupins
and dervishes will not travel with the
tortles.
Earth Mounds and Paths
Mysterious path s (see Map 2 ) conn ect
the lost rui ns and intersect several
large earth mounds on the Yazak
Steppes . Only PCs who look down from
the tops of the mounds or fly at least 20'
above t he pa t hs are able to see th ese
roads.
PCs who investigate what they ha ve
seen fr om above find t he paths were
made by clearing away stones on t he
surface to reveal the soil, which is t he
same color as t he rocks . The differ ence
between t he soil and t he stones is in
text ure only, so t he pa t hs are only
noticeable from above.
The paths are human-made, are not
magical , and are al most perfectly
straight. The pat hs pass st raight over
all terrain and disregard vegetation and
barriers . They cut acr oss st reams, up
hills, and over rolli ng grassland.
These paths had a religious signifi.
cance to t he ancie nt people who
scr atched t hem out. The lines cot -res-
pond with t he teleport directions of t he
magic gate stones (see Part 2).
U. Ring-Shaped Earth Mound
A mile in th e di stance a small hillock
rises 20' above t he otherwise Oat
ground. The hummock appears to be
an earth mound overgrown with
t rees and shrubs . Upon closer inspee -
t ion you ca n see t hat the mound is
perfect ly round and about 50' in
diameter. Various animal tracks and
heavily-traveled t rail s converge on
the area.
Th e moun d is of hu ma n or igi n and is
neith er na tural nor magi cal. It's shape
is a symbol for t he gate stones found in
t he lost ru ins. If the mound is exca -
vated, no treasur e ia found. If t he
mound is scaled or viewed from above,
re ad the following description.
The center of t he eart h mound is a
10'-dta meter circular depression; t he
earth mound is actually ri ng-shaped.
Rainwate r has collected in the center
depression , and t he earth mound
serves as t he only water hole for
mil es around. Thick patches of
shrubs and trees grow out of t he
water, and t he air is filled with t he
calls of nesting bird s.
TORTlESOFTHE PURPLE SAGE Port 1
You plainly see two straight,
unswerving paths leadi ng from t he
earth mound's base. The paths
extend to the northwest and south-
east . The long, 5'-wide pa ths are
al most impossi ble to see at ground
level.
If t he water is approached. the PCs
note that a dozen t horny dwarf trees
growing out of 3' -ta ll mounds of sickly-
looking green leaves surround the
water hole. The footprint s of a nimals
lead t o and from the water 's edge,
where lily pads float on t he clear, st ill
wa ter.
If any PC or PC's mount approaches
within 5' of t he water, t he four nearest
archer bushes attack, sprayi ng the
victim wi th thorns. The water hole
ca nnot be a pproached safe ly unt il all
twelve archer bushe s are defeated.
The water in the central pool mea-
sures 5' at its deepest point . Paths vi si-
ble only from the air or t he earth
mound top connect with Dr avya to the
northwest and Yazak to t he southeast.
V. Two Semicircular Earth Mounds
Large birds circle in the vast blue
sky. A mile ahead, a small hillock
rise s 20' above t he otherwise flat
ground. The hummock a ppears to be
an earth mound overgrown with
trees a nd shrubs . When you
approach t he mound, you discover
that it is perfectly round a nd about
50' in diameter. A 10'-wide ditch
bisects the circular earth mound into
two equal semicircles. The ditch ru ns
roughly east to west. Various animal
tracks and heavily.tra veled trails
converge on t he area.
The mound is of human or-igi n and is
ne ither natural nor magical. It's sha pe
represents the sy mbol for a tortle egg-
shell broken in half. If t he mound is
excavated, no treasure is found. If t he
mound is scaled or vie wed from above.
read t he following description.
Rainwater has collect ed in t he center
ditch. and the earth mound serves as
the only water hole for mi les around.
Thick patches of shr ubs a nd t rees
grow out of the water and t he air is
filled with t he calls of nesting birds.
You plainly see t wo straight,
unswerving paths leading from eac h
end of t he earth mound's ditc h. The
long, 5'-wi de paths a re almost i mpos -
sible to see at ground level and
extend to t he west a nd east fart her
than t he eye can see.
If t he water is approached, the follow-
ing description shoul d be read.
Al ong each ba nk of t he ditch are 10'-
wide swaths of cat t ails and sa wgrass.
The footprints of a nimal s lead to and
from the water 's edge where lily pads
float on the clear, st ill water. The
reflection of a large bird flashes
acr oss t he mir rored surface.
If any PC or PC's mount approaches
wit hin 5' ofthe water, three circling
giant hawks swoop to attack. The
water hol e cannot be approached safely
until all the giant hawks are defeated.
The water in t he ditch measures 2' at
t he deepest point . The pat hs connect
with Dra vya to t he west and Bylot to
the east. The sa wgrass causes 1 hp
da ma ge per 10' to t he unprotected skin
of a nyone who runs t hrough it.
W. Earth Mound
A mil e in the distance a sma ll hillock
rises 20' above t he ot herwise flat
ground . The hummock appears to be
a n earth mound overgrown with
trees and shru bs. Upon closer inspec-
t ion, you can see that the mound is
sha ped like a tortle. The mound
measures 50' fr om the ti p of t he
tortI e's nose to t he tip of its tail. A
1O'-wide depression surro unds the
base of t he earth mound.
Rainwater has collected in the
surrounding depression and serves as
the onl y wa ter hole for miles around.
Thick patche s of shr ubs and trees
grow out of t he water, and white rose
bush es bl oom on the sides of t he
earth mound. The ai r is fill ed wit h
t he calla of nest ing birds. Various
a nimal t racks a nd heavily-traveled
t r ail s converge on the area.
The mound is of human origin a nd is
neither natural nor magical. It is in the
DUNGEON 59
TORTLESOFTHE PURPLE SAGE - Part 1
shape of t he symbol for a newly hatched
tortle (called a tort). The wa ter-filled
depression measures 2' at its deepest
point . If t he water is crossed in order to
sca le t he mound, t he t wo neares t white
rose bushes uproot themselves and
attack the nearest PC or PC's mount.
The eight white rose bushes ar e act u-
ally vampire roses. The water hole
cannot be approached safely until a ll
the vampire roses are defeated.
If the mound is excavated, no tr easure
is found. If the mound is scaled or
viewed from above, t he PCs can plainly
see two st raight , unswerving pa ths
leading from the nose and t ail of t he
earthen tortle. The pat h fr om the nose
of th e tortle extends to the northeas t
toward Byl ot ; the path from the tai l
runs to th e sout hwest toward Yazak.
The long, 5'wide pat hs a re almost
impossible to see at ground level.
X. Tortle Egg-Laying Ground
A str ange collection of wi nd-sculpted
boulder s stands on a sandy flatland of
desolation. The vari ous ly-sized boul-
ders look like frozen trolls, monoliths,
slugs, shark fins , piles of corpses,
whal es, cattle, and tortles. Scattered
among the statues at the base of t he
nearby hills are roofless corral s with
G'-hi gh walls built of piled stones.
Each corral's entryway is a narrow,
winding, roofless t unnel.
The st one walls surround the t ortle's
ancestral egg-l aying grounds. Tortles
usually li ve 4050 years, mating and
producing childre n only near t he ends of
t heir lives, and l aying their eggs in
family egg-laying grounds near t heir
homes. Once every hundred years, how.
ever, all ma t ure tortles ma ke a religious
pilgrimmage to t heir a ncestral egg-
laying gro unds on t he Dry Fl ats. The
tortles believe tha t t he Flats a re the
well-spring of their r ace, and t hat t he
sands t here are imbued with a special
life essence. The children hat ched in the
ancestral egg-l ayi ng gr oun ds are consid-
ered a special , blessed generatio n, and
their parents, who normally die soon
afte r t he eggs a re laid, are granted an
ext ra 10 years of life t o guard and ra ise
these special torts.
There are four corrals st anding on the
Dry Flats. If t he PCs are accompanying
t he t ortle wagon train to these gro unds,
read t he foll owing description.
60Issue No.6
The caravan spli ts into four lines,
a nd 25 tortle coupl es set up camp
around each corral. You lose t rack of
the old sage's family as wagons are
pulled into a circle outside each cor -
ral t o form a temporary pen for t he
draft horses. Once settled into camp,
the tortles busily collect stones t o
repair fall en wa lls.
Seven days after arrival , 25 female
tortles enter each corral to lay 10-40
eggs each. The 25 mal e tortlea take up
defensive positi ons on t he corral wa lls,
in the wagons, atop the boulders, a nd
around t he entrance to the corral. Three
days a fter t he eggs are lai d in the ble ss -
ed warm sands of the Dry Fl ats, the
baby torts hatch and are carefully load-
ed into t he wagons. The various gro ups
break camp a nd form a car ava n which
prepares to return t o the Yazak Steppes
where food is more plent iful.
After t he torts are carefully loaded,
t he me rcenaries are paid 250-1,000
eggshells per camp. Moist tortle egg-
shell can be fash ioned into objects suc h
as armor a nd shiel ds. When dry, the
hardened eggshell is lightweight but
stronger than plat e metal. Tortl e egg
shell armor has an Armor Class of 1. It
takes 25 eggshells to armor t he average
human-sized body. The white armor can
be painted a nd does not soften if r eo
moistened.
Contl nulnq the Adventure
The PCs are welcome t o accompa ny t he
tortl es back to the Yazak Steppes, even
t hough they are no longer obligated to
guard the wago n caravan. Or, they may
choose to search for t he Gre at
Northway, explore Byl ot , or r eturn to
Richland Trading Post. If t he tortles are
asked where the Gre at Northway is
located, they tell t he party t o travel 840
miles due west.
If the PCs enter t he ruined city of
Bylot , t hey ma y learn t he secret of
operat ing t he gate stones. The Ne utral
Alli ance will even offer to sell t heir gate
st ones for 10,000 pp eac h or t he equiva-
lent in ot her val uables. The PCs may
t hen return t o conquer the Chaotic
Alliance in Dr a vya, search for t he Great
Northway, or guide nomads from Bylot
to new grazi ng lands on the Yazak
Steppes. A peace treat y between the
Neutral and Lawful Alli ances may be
made with the PCs' help. If the Great
Northway is found, the Pes can build
rafts to float downriver. A floating
island, a dangerous waterfall, and
fri endly natives may be encountered.
At any t ime, the Pes may at tempt t o
return to Richland Trading Post and
civilizati on. If the adventurers return to
t heir home port wit h a map showing the
mouth of the Great Northway, t hey will
be commiss ioned to ret urn and explore
the conti nent's heartla nd, and may be
sent to find the source of the Great
Northway in the land of Frosthaven.
The pl ayers may choose to have their
Pes sa il st ra ight to t he mouth of the
Great Northway. Once t he site is
located, t hey will want to sa il st raight
back t o civilizat ion for t heir reward.
(The DM ma y wa nt to influence the PCs
to land al ong the TaU Grass Coast if
t hey bypassed it before.) Details for
complet ing t his ad venture will appear
in issue 17, i n Part 2 of Thrtles of the
Purple Sage.
Great Northway Lands Encounter Tables
Rollld6 a nd refer to this table to de t ermine which monst er table t o check .
Woods, HiUs,
Id6 Clear, Grassland Valley, Barren River Swamp Ocean Jungle
1 :Animal Animal A:nimal Dragon Dragon Animal
2 Animal Dragon Dragon Flyer Flyer Animal
3 Dragon Flyer Flyer: Flyer Swimmer Drago
4 Flyer Tri be Swimmer Swimmer Swimmer Tri be
5 Tribe Tr ibe Swimmer Swimmer Swimmer Tribe
6 Unusual Unusual Tr ibe Tr ibe Tribe Tribe
Animals
Barren,
Id6 Clear, Grassland Woods River Valley, Hills Jungle
1 Caecilia Bear, black Amoeba, giant Caecil ia Caecilia
2 Dog, normal Centipede Decapua, marine Dragonne Centipede
3 Horse, draft Devil swine Gray: ooze Dragonne
4 Hor se, war Dog, normal Gray ooze Horse, draft Purple worm
5 Purple worm Owl bear Rat, normal Horse, war Rat , normal
6 Rust monster Rust monster Termite , fresh Rust monster Rust monster
Tribes
Valley,
Id8 Clear, Grassland Woods, Jungle River, Swamp Barren, Hills Ocean
1 Dervish t\ ranea Cay.men Dervish" Snapper
2 Lupin Dervish Day-men Lupin" Snapper
3 Native Lupin Day-men Native Snapper
4 Nomad" Native Tortl e Nomad Snappe
5
0 "
Pagan Thrtle
0"
Snapper
6 Pagan" Phanaton Tortle Pagan Snapper
7 Rak ast a "" Rakasta
0"
Rakasta Snapper
8 Tortl e Thrtle
0"
'Ibrt le" Snapper
" Except in Bylot Hills and Dry Flats. Roll agai n.
" Except in YDZak Steppes. Roll again.
Flyers Un usuals
IdlO All Terrains I d12 All Terrains
t Dragontl y, bl ack 1 Djinn i, lesser
2 Dragonfly, blue 2 Doppleganger
3 Dragonfly, gr een 3 Efreeti, lesser
4 Dragonfly, gold 4 Golem, amber
5 Dr agonfly, red 5 Golem, bone
6 Dr agonfly, white 6 Golem, bronze
Hawk, normal 7 InVisible stalker
8 Hawk , gia nt 8 Living stat ue, crystal
9 Pocket dragon 9 Living stat ue, iron
10 Pocket dragon 10 Living stat ue, rock
11 Hypnosnake
12 Shadow
Swimmers
Id6 Ri ver/Lake Swamp Ocean
1 t\ moeba , gia nt giant i\.nioeba, giant
2 Amoeba, giant Amoeba, giant Decapua , marine
3 Gray ooze Decapus ,Dlarine Fish, giant r ock
4 Gray ooze Gray ooze Giant . storm
5 Hydr a, sea Gray ooze Gray ooze
6 Termi te, fres h Termite, swamp Termite, sal t
Dragons
Clear/Barren,
Id8 Grassl a nds Woods/Jungle River/Ocean Swamp HillS/Valley
1 Chimera Chimera Chimera Chimer a. Chimera
2 Dragon, blue Dragon, gold Dragon, gold Dragon, black Dragon , gold
3 Dragon, gold Dragon, green Dragonne Dragon. gold Dragon, red
4 Dragonne Dragonne Hydra, flying Dragonne Dragonne
5 Hydr a, flyin g Hydr a, flying Hydr a, sea Hydra, flying Hydra, flying
6 Wyvern Wyvern Wyver n Wyvern Wyvem
COMBINED MONSTER STATISTICS TABLE
Name AC HD Mov e
"cr
Dmg Save ML AL Source
Amoe6a, giant-
--9 - 15 - 30'(10')- -
- I - - 2-12 -- F7 10 N CC50
Ant, giant 3 4' 180'(60' ) 1 bi te 2-12 F2 7 N B25
Aranea _
7_3"'':'''' _ 180'(60'), in .web.l20'(40'J__ 1 bite.
- -
_ 1.-6 + poison
-
MU3__ 7_
c_ eGG
Archer bush 7 2 3 '(1 ' ) I 1-4 FI 12 C CC5
Bear, black 6 4 120 '(40 ' ) 2 c1awsll bite 113 113/1-6 F2 7 N B26
Bison, bull 7 4 240'(80 ') 1 butt 18 FI 5 N E46
Caecilla-"
-
- 6
6'
60'(20') -
- 1 bite --
---lS--
a
F3- 9- - N- E46
Cay-ma n 7 2 90'(30') 1 bit e or wea pon 1-4 or BWT FI 8/9 N CC33
Centipede, giant.. _
-
9 _ 1/2 60'(20')
--
I bit e _
poison NM_ 7
. N _ 828
Chameleon , giant horned 2 5' 120'(40' ) 1 bitell hom 2-8116 F3 7 N B32
Chimera 4 9' 120 '(40' ), fly 180'(60' ) 2 c1awsl3 heads + breath 1-311-3/2..gj! 1Of3.12 + 3-18 F9 9 C E47
Cleric, Chaot ic Si st erhood 4 7 120'(40' ) I BWT Ct -7 9 C
Cler ic, Lawful Brotherhood - 4-7-120'(40')- 1-
BWT - Cl-7-9 ~
Crab spider 7 2' 120'(40') 1 bite 1-8 + poison FI 7 N B38
Decap ua, marine _ ..5_ ..4 _3'(1' )
-
..9 tentac1es_ . 16 ea.
-
__F2_
. 9_C_CC64
Deer, herd ani ma l 7 2 240'(80' ) 1 butt 1-4 FI 5 N E46
Dervish V I 120'(40') I BWT FI 10 L E53
Devil swine 3 (9) 9' IBO'(60' ), human 120'(40') 1 gore or blow 1-12 or BWT F9 10 C E46
Dire wolf"
- 6-4 +1-150'(50')--
a
- 1 bite"- -
-
--28 F2
- 8- N"
B39
Djinn i, lesser 5 7 + l'" 90'(30' ), fly 240'(80' ) 1 fist or whi rlwind + specia l 2-16 fist or 212 whirlwind FI4 12 C E48
o g _ ~ 7_2+2....180'(60') 1 bit e 16 _ Fl_ 8!6_ N. CCl3.
Dopplegan ger 5 4'
90'(30') I 1-12 F8 8 C B28
Dr agon, black 2 7' 90'(30'), fly 240'(80' ) 2 c1awsll bite 2-512-51220 F7 8 C B28
Dr agon, blue 0 9' 90'(30' ), fly 240'(80' 2 clawsll bite 27/2-7/3-30 F9 9 N B28
Dragori, gold- 2 11 * 90'(30' ), fly 240' (80' ) 2 c1awsf1 bi te 2-8f2-86-36 -
-
- FI I-I 0-L-B28
Dr agon, green I 8' 90'(30' ), fly 240' (80') 2 clawsl lbite 16/1-6/3-24 F6 9 C B28
Dragon, pockeJ.
-
8 3' _ 90'(30' ), fly. 120' (40') 1 bite .
-
1-3 + venOIll
MU3__8_ N_CC7l},
Dragon, re d 1 10** 90'(30' ), Oy 240' (80') 2 clawsl1 bi te 18/18/432 FlO 10 C B28
Dragon, sea I 8" 180'(60') swim or glide 1 bite or 1 spit 324 or special F8 9 N CC64
Dragonfly, black I 3+2 60'(20 '), fly 240'(80' ) 1 bitell acid breath 1-6/3 F3 8 N CC64
Dr agonfly, blue
--
1 4+2 60'(20'), fly 240'(80' ) 1 bite/ l lightni ng breath - 1-6/4
-
F4 - - 9-N-CC64'
Dr agonfl y, gold 3 5 +2 60'(20'), fly 240' (80' ) 1 bitel1 gas or fire breath 1-6/5 F5 9 N Now
Dr agonfly, green 0
-
4_ 60'(20'), fly 240' (80') 1 bite!1 gas br eath _ 1-6/4
-
_ F4.. 8_ N.. CC64,
Dragonfly, red 2 5 60'(20' ), fly 240 ' (80') 1 bitell fire breath 1615 F5 9 N CC64
Dragonfly, white 2 3 60'(20' ), fly 240' (80') 1 bitell cold breath 1-6/3 F3 8 N CC64
Dragonne 3 8'
150'(50') 2 clawsll bi te or roar 16/16/424 F8 8 N CC65
Efreeti, lesser - 3 - 10 -90'(30' ); Oy 240' (80') - 1 fist
-
-
2-16"
-
- F15 12 C E48
Fish. giant rock 7 5 +5* 180(60) 4 spines 14 ea. + poison F3 8 N E49
Giant , storm_ 2 _ 15*':-150'(50' )
-
_ 1.t special _, _ _ 84 8 + special _ _
-
F15.
. 10.
_ L E50,
Golem, amber 6 10'
180'(60') 2 clawsll bite 2-12121212-20 F5 12 N E50
Golem, bone 2 6'
120'(40') 4 weapons BWT F4 12 N E50
Golem, bronze 0 20** 240'(80') 1 fist + special 330 + specia l FlO 12 N E50
Gray ooze' --
-
8- -3"'- 10'(3')
-
1- - --26
--
a
F2 - I Z-N B31'
Hawk. giant 6 3 +3 450 '(150') I 16 F2 8 N eC16
Hawk. normal _
-
8 -Jh
_ 4BO'(l6Q:)_
-
I
--
__1-2 _ mf __
7_ N_ CCI6
Hero, human 7 41 120'(40' ) I BWT F4 7 V
Horse, draft 7 3 90'(30') Nil Nil F2 6 N E51
Horse , war 7 3 120'(40' ) 2 hooves 1-6/1-6 F2 9 N E51
Hydr a, flying 5 5-9*'" 60'(20') - --13--- - - 1-LO'ea . +'''"special -
a_
F512 - 11- N
E52
Hydra, sea 5 59*'" 120'(40') 5-12 1-10 ea F5-12 11 N E52
Hypnosnake
-
4
8':""
90'(3.0) _ ____1 bi.te.OI :. l..ga?:,e; tai l _ 1-8 or sleep; 110 MU5 _9_ C _ CC70,
Na me AC li D Move
' AT
Dm. Save ML AL Source
Inviejbleatalker 3- -S - 120'(40')
1 blow
=
F8 12-N-ES2
Living sta t ue, crystal 4 3 90(30) 2 1-611-6 F3 11 L B32
Living statue, iron _ 30(10) 2
F4 __11_ N_B32,
Living st atue, rock 4 5' 60'(20' ) 2 2-1212-12 F5 11 C B32
Lupin 6 2 120'(40') 1 BWT F2 6 L CC3.
Native 9 I 120'(40' ) I bow BWT + poison F1 7
y
CC41
NomalJ _ .. - y

=
-
t"weapon BWT - Fl- S- N-E53'
0"", 5 4 +1 90'(30') I BWT+2 F4 10 C B35
Ort_ __
6_ 1. _.120'(40') 1. spear
BWT__
FI 618_ C: _ B35,
Ore chieftain 6 1 120' (40') 1 spear BWT FI 8 C B35
(attac ks as a 4 HD monster)
Owl bear 5 5 120'(40' ) 2 c1awsl l bite 1811811 -8 F3 9 N B35
'Pagan 6-1- - 120'(40' )
1
..,.. -,
BWT- FI- S-N "' CC42
Phanaton 7 11 90'(30'), gliding 150' (50') I 1-6 Fl+2 7 L CC43
Phanaton, aubchief 6_6_90'(30'), 1 2:7 F6.t 2 _ 7_ L. "CG43
Ph anaton, eubehie f 6 3 90'(30' ), 1 1-6 F3 +2 7 L CC43
bodyguard glidi ng 150'(50' )
Phonaton, wor chief 8 3 90'(30' ), glid ing 150'(50') 1 1-6 F3+2 7 L CC43
'Phonolon;-warchier-- 6 ' 2-90'(301/ - I
1-6 F2+ 2-7-r.- CC43
bodyguard glidi ng 150'(50')
Purple ,wor m I bitell sting . 2
i
l6Jl -l;l .'t..poison FB_I0--..N_ EnS
Rakasta 8 2 + 1 90'(30') 2 war clawll l bite 1-4/14 /14 F2 9 N CC44
Rat , normal s

60'(20') 1 bite per pack 1-6 + disease NM 5 N B36
Rust monster 2 5' 120'(40' ) 1 Nil F3 7 N B36
Sabre-tooth tiger ' =- 0-8-150'(50')' " 2"Claws/1 bite" -
F4- S- N
' B27
Seal, fur 7 3 120'(40' }, swim 240' (50') I butt 1-6 FI 5 N New
Shadow

7_2,t2:-90'.(30;) 1 1:4..!r ,llpecial F2 _12_C_B36

Slime worm 6 10 60'(20') 1 bite 2-12 F5 9 N CCSS
Snapper 5 3 30'(10'), swim 180'(60' ) 2 c1awsll beak or l iang bow 1-611-611-8 or BWT F3 9 C CC46
Sperm whole 6 36' 180'(80') 1 bit e 380 FI5 7 N C38
SWlfllhbuck ler; human S- -5 - 120'(40')
1 BWT FS- 9- N
'Iermite, fresh water 8 2+ 1 120'(40') special 1-4 F2 8 N E56
Thrmite, 1l81t water 5_4_ _180'(80' ) special 11i F3 _ 1 1_ N . ES6,
'Thrmite larv8,"salt -;;;:te r
9 'k ISO' (60') 1 bite or ink spray 1 NM 3 N ES6
'Thrmite, swa mp 4 1 +1 90'(30') special 13 Fl 10 N E58
Thrt le 3 4 30' (10') 2 c1awlll beak or weapon 1-4/1-411-6 or BWT F4 11 L CC47
TroJl"- "- 6"+" 3" -120'(40')
= =
bite-- - 1-6/1-6/1:10 - F6-10/S-C - ES6'
Vampi re rOMe 7 4' 30'(10') 1 thorn + blood drain 18 F2 12 C CCS8
Warr ior, .human _, 1 _ Bwr..t poison
F2. _.B__V
Wyvern 3 7' 90'(30'), fly 240'ry'90' ) 1 bitell sti ng 2-1611 -6 + poison F4 9 C E57
CC Creat ure Catawg B- Basic Set Dungeon Masters Rulebook E - EX1Jf!rt Rul4' book
C Companion Set Book 2 NM'" normal man BWT-by weapo n type
Vvaries
Note: AC for human NPCs and demi -human monsters assumes:
AC Armor worn AC Armor worn
8 Shie ld only 4 Chain mail with shie ld
7 Leather 3 Plate ma il
6 Leather with shield 2 Plate mail with shie ld
5 Chain mail
I
,
TORTLES
OF THE
PURPLE SAGE
Part 2
Through the gate
stones. into the
unknown.
8 usue No.7
Mu ll ttl& Ill' if tptlldUtill&il _
,.",. -.It;.", D&lJI"
-.I... 10 6",,, .. DUNGEON
A.to-J_ H .... ...dn'811d "
oM ill WIIt"'6 F"
.....,i.... 1O':
"ll>ftlft of oM 1'>0"'" s..,. _ Parl2 .......
plotel .. 1M!) l::. pert Set ..udiot ..
...-.... _ btpfI '" OONUW N
_ .. If! n llo for
.. P"1"t1 r# 2-lI .......- of 4, j,.IOtb
\eYellDdudme' tlmt nok>ooeT than
6tII _ l Earil PC .......1ol h..... " ... ...
lhree martUI '-\rlcludl". mag\<Al
_ alld annoor. All f'Cs &bauld to.
0IIlIrned tor WIlde.......
8II.....
11,;. """- " 1.0",, in !he
Ko.;>wn \\;;Jo ld'" U", 0&0 """"". lib
...Ui."'" llu_l.....1\.heD&D
rul e boolt...1 modukt. fl ,. DM " ..,
find" ....rllll:o """..,11the CompaniOD
.M. Mu te.. Seta, .. ",ell lOt moot of the
X-"";eoot Expol"l mo,hd.o.
Sel module X9, 8<>""B' CIXUI,
..",, 101 boo OIpoclnlly helpful, ... 7brlk. o{
jM P"'PUS",o00\1101 """ily aerve t<>
.o"tin", thai modulo'. diredion and
plot lin. , additllJ undoecribed
'""00 to t ho 1(.""""" W",Jd. Th<I DM ""'y
o.loo plOd t ho . .... and oonh of this
i>d ntu.. wl l lli .. u eampai,rn
M li IOlli"1M _ O.Phi<aI
........ ofl.tl. "'""!,,,;"" "'Wh 11_ ....
,--
M_ W ...li.UN I'nr ................nd
KPCt.- lWl>eI .... """ in bnIdf_
t YJl<' .-ill tMCmnbiDfd:\Io:r:5ter
5I..otiol.i<s1loble M .......... afthia adven
_ .. n. CIa I<JrtIo,o olwuld
be ... bJ inl'""",,tioD t'n>m
cilhoo:.....t... X9 ... t.tw er-.....
Iopo; u.. ...n. olto<tLo oouWll ..
....................... -nal--.Jd._ bc
o.alooke4-
kli!he Dungeon MoPeo
If,-M.-e Paot 1 oltM. -.I"""""",> bu.
b_ ,.t pla)oed it, ,-<all WIC &l>c
inform 10 Put ! .. ..
to -,uod 1M K:O """lontioD orR"'"
Lo.Dd '1nd.onr .- and tIM u.r.. lost
_.
If ,.... ... .... tIornugh Put 1.
Pr...,.. _ hbll' ;.., np from
thioir k tt1 1l"'1 . 1>0 ''''''
tIea... fpl" 1.0 their _alllJIi,. rrnund.
TheY Ihnuld beOOIl tl nUl"ll' tMlr Inter
rupted pl ..... to find , he mouth of the
GA.t Nort hwf,y and cl.tm the reward
offered byvariouakinidom. for its
""'ot fur Ih. PC. to
TORRES OF THE PURPLE SAGE Parl2
La-wful Brotherhood C10ric Out post
Tho cleric outpoat Richland Trading
poe( belong. to tho Lawful Brotherhood,
GREAT NORTHWAY
LANDS
start lo at Riohland Trading PQllt on the
'Ihli Gr""s Cooot. The PCo"'ay
.topped to hir. a whil.
til<> tortlo. to tho llyM Hilla,
and the tradmg post i ! bnelly desc:ribed
in Part I . In t hill part, it ill completely
detai led and i""lud a description of
tho Lawful Bt ot he..hood (:lprio Ont!""'!
that sha,..s the grounds. Pes again
ho.o t.hp option'" ni", a goid.; thoy
"'OY . 1"" u"" tno olerics'Ubrary to
researcll the m..tory of tho aNa for du,,"
to tho location orthe Groat Nonhwa.v if
they failed to r _ ive direcliOlll! from
t he I.orrl ,
If, huw.v." tho PC. w. "" mor.
by rho I.<>rtl.,' mention of th.
my.toriou, "Portal. to Every-land" and
decide to fir.t unravel the "'yory of
the and.nt gate 'U"'''' ,they ""'Y oet off
for one of the loat , ruined citi.. ill tho
area, Again, a .top at. Riehland Trading
Foot oiIlowath<:mto gather infuTmation
and perha"" hi", a golde.
If you want to play Part 2 without
Put 1, tho b<.ot pla to start i. at Rieh
land 'I,.,odingl'ost. Th . 1'1;. may bo
ther<> in tho coor"" oHho", trovols, moy
h" v. boen . hipwN><kod oJong tho Tltll
Gra.. Coast. or moy head tho"" ffom
any ojty ,..,.pon.o '" ,nm"", nf t",a_
lnot on Crra.. PIal"".
Of mu....., ifth@PC.knownnthlng
about 1Ilrt!es, the DMshould still give
them every opportunity to dillcov... clues
to the OllOl'lltion of the gllte . 1.0",," (ve<--
hapSin th. library al Riclilirnd
Pool or from a tortle residillll there), If the
Po.. tn<k I.<> 1.1,. HrMHills, they may be
...
that. the baby _ have
8Uocessfully hatch,.] andbeentaken
home _ Ihe eggshell being valuable not
only", ...-mor--makilll; materiol ("" pc>'
the Crroture bUI "''''''"","" fur
the operation ofthe gat.! stone..
During the PC. ' (Ta"ol., ,..., <he wil _
d....". .. rul fTomtho &:port Rukb=lo,
The DM i;hould roll Id6 Iwioo p<rr go"'"
day, at da"", and dusk, for wandering
monotero, Un a Toll """the WII_
,u,Tnoo, E""oun_ Ttob\@, from
Jfxp<'J'1R" I.book (pag... au and 35) . On
roll of 4-6, use the Great Northway
l':n"cmntl''' ':'oa nf mod
ulel_ Tha DM may want to use module
X9. enoountera lISwell .
Trodlng Post
Po;( iimplo in ito
layout, ""naisting or a .mall duster 0/'
bWldingo .""",unding a ,oolongular
pahoad. WIthin til<> fortli b ",,,,,l<;Irlo,
an octagt>nal tower r;"es from a man-
modo h, ll IHho PC.. by boat.
th"l' fi,..t ...o t.ho f"l't'. 1\O'_long dock
ono" ttl th" ""uth edge of
the settlement,
Tho post i. POpulat.d by an
exot ic mixt1ll"o of mermanlli, w1vontlU'-
oro, p,,,,,V""Lun, .., ...
ie" ....w of ':helled being<!
_ the tortl",. The ""tabliohment
founded and is by '1\";><10'
Jack, an
and who "'M ohipwrkcd
I 2 24 mileo
noar thi. sit. many yoaTO .go_ Ho hnllt
t no "'WeT tIl hio doito to tho l"-nd
and later granted permission for cIeri<"
of t he Lawful Br otherhood to build an
outpost on his property, The combina-
tion of a fo!"tified towe' helpful
cler i"" ""ploro, . ,
a
"""mil'" """ltUtl'" ...... ", about the
. mall outpost.
DUNGEON 9
roenss OF ltlf PUQI>l..f SAGf Port 2
Outp..n Cl_ P..-itt.o...
!Soot """ Cor oMt.o.&b _ oodI poort_. and Io<totioon )
C.oft&Jnc,n'. W.......hop" (........ 21n
anlaalll lOtl ln m- Ibopo to
procI_ ..Ul, Ute It""'... p<oil -m.
E-=lo"""" uppli.... LuuI.. ..m.
fllliohood I of """ craft. finisbod
,....ho..Uwl -.dani p<i<ew, .. od tbo
abo do _ lr. ro. hiR.
'tho ,.....,. ts 01 01u.-
_k _ _ he ""'""' left f..- the D!oI to
......... ...1. opt' _tohio..mpaip
All crwfUopooplo _ --' ""--toDd
....... -... the _ iI&aiiwtOw(AC G;
......,..j h_CHD IIIhJo 18; )IV 120'
(10'); ' AT I ; _ \ Y1'O'> 500...
_ --' ........... lolL8; AL "yI If
...... (l.S(I<11- ll
mal .......... _I> 14Itp) .....y M.dded
to Mc'h sloop; t1....... _1ikoIy chi!-
_ othoot fsm1l)' _'-",-""ing
.. ,. 1., .-
I. Cobble,. st-aDd bootstaD. be
........ '" 00'tIer In U The cobl>I....
abo u4 otocb ....Icetion
01 In 0 wide
..",.. of..but lil tle clooice or stylc.
a Saddle, &lid Bridle M.lr.e . Sad
dl... bt"idl... and . sddle ""' .,ill'
ble be",. TII<l le.lher ...",korean ..1.0
m.lld
Area OMel'ipl;oru; (OM Map 2)
s....-aJ __of tho tl"tI<h"ll
pwb'OI.... ..,. _nea. A ..try is ......Jy
Ill...,. (noept b1 Ute 11K" a
10.--'" foPt- 01 . hil;'
I)' lAC /I \I'+>a'" ..... " 1: Itr Ml; MV
lIlT GllTl '''T I ; t>ma: II)' _poIl l,ypl!
CIDnC ......-.l); So... Pi; ML 7; A.L ""1,
bur -all)- laml!
I . Doclo.. Theoolitary ..-oooiea ....,.
jata 50' _ r.- ..... into the crashin;i;
wrf. The dadri.., ;., ""PfI<I<'ed by
.......... pilillP......... <Iecp i ..... the
.......n-. On\)' lboPee' .......I (if tlocoy
:". ..MI;., 1Iy \.iM to u..
doelr.. A"""'" _ n__ &om
u.. \aDdwml ...... 0I u.. dod: _ ..
e1_ oI"b...I4l"ll.}IIOI .... I_IM-
_I> u Of IMlndrnS "..
V_I f... \0 tie up to Ih. und_
I.n<loddod: on. n.., ,.",... fi_ ..rYM
1-01T """'8'" Any h.-..til. lIoC'ion.
.""l<pnt hy 1M ",nlrl ...trlp
p.lilll<le. An immediate 10 iven.
and .11l"habltanU ut the _ ,
arm tlw lvc......In.t The
"'. uu.....J. Illd .nyu,,"
trapJll'd oulaide the ",.u. ill len tothe
ell-ac1<en' meloy

...
111
"
.,
t-s
..
r.a

....

e
,
e
....... ..hi e ....
cq>l.i..... itt tho _.--npl.ioM.
o.ncs,......... -.....
1'1>0 LaWful _"orboooI ""f'IIn!WIto
.......... to """"'WI """,IS i n
p..had........... ,"," ty _ _ """"'"
.llll "l"'llo.. N_ Irow td wan>o<!
. ny. . lloo.rod tho In whid>
tJ>o, .... Ire II"''' be1ow.

o" ""U )I, " .... dapel1
1 Lot Ie-oorlo _IiM-...do
2 IaJeql: Iipl
3 2nd. ......, blra
4 :hid __
6 ....."
ij 1.. w..1 ".-off<fion fro... ..,.1
7 3td "'"disftlst
2nd 1 1 ",I.n"" M ' " ,fllb'
!l 4th 1 1: ...,... """'bJ wobnds
10 3rd level: ",m""" ClI!'U
Il 4th 1",,1: protection (rom ""U
10 ' Md'b'
All La,.,fulll,oth... hood ol""e. hs v.
A.C 9 (unlo th.y doci ,;" t_ ....mo. them
...lv for ooml:>st). 'AT 1. Dmll hy ",.op-
001 t yp" ("'.....). MV (tu). ond oro,
of"",,"". of l.wful .lip.mcnt ,
romo,nine: . tot',.,. ..... n. tnt,,,..,
P"triNY'4' N1; hr at; Ml. II.
1JU!S4' ('.fI: hp 2Il; s..ve ell; J\lL 10.
BuMp.' C7; tip 2&; S...... C7; MI.9.
EUJn: C6: bp 21; s..... ce. MLtI
Cw-ak:-t:l; h))1& s... CS: ML 7.
V"....., C4; bp 14; S. C4. MI.6.
Pr;a,. (;$; Lao 11. 80 03; .
AJc.ool C2, Itp 7. C2; NL 4.
S. ... cusn. a
01'lI....1 p""lt"'n
....
.....
H_ lw.Osll......-
A1t1lDnet. Chamberlain
s.n.. Com"".......
Dun ci 0rW. Pr.entor
Rered oo-l.... a......"l. Chon...llor.
Sub-...-ut, So..b.....lOI'
!'.a_y. w-.. of N<m<O$, Ch.>p<J
Keeper. Granalot' Adopt 2 1
N<I'ri<e, S. ....nl Aoolyto 1 None
I..oludos 4>ly t e,",,,",, doctot". gnrd.",... h.nd, . n;mal kMP"'", <II" <>tho.
pooit i_n lleted .. belo"lli nll 10 ofth. BrOlMrhood.
'f'IIMtable
'I'ime Actmt)'
Wonhip in ..,mpIe
UlO..- BId. to bed
&:OllOt ........
"30 "'-"'- BftUf_
7:Oll.ut Wcdl .-.tiDe
9:00Hl. Wonhip ill tM>pIe
llXlO 4-1t w.u... '" ...Ipool ball
11:00 4)01. Wonlllp no...,1e
N_ Lunolo
:::oec.
:t:OO,... Wonl", ;.. _ pie
,:z-.Y1 . .. __
41111 . .. Wtrroht p '" .....rle
4,30'''' Work
SUpper
1:00 ,.... Wonlu)) In _ pi c
1:30,... 1\1 brd
....hlel. a l'toAJ)<lQtlble rc.. l ite .pi l'llua!
aDdbod ily wellbeinwIIItho' ..,.t
",.iden'" . lId 'II> en...... l.he
nl.i"l.lOi" " ...hool, and
i"lin"....."d ..n In.t rume lltlll ill
pn,.:I"e"'" nOled ,,<><>do ond food.tuff.
Ifth. renloe the tr ..ding p""t in "-
fri.ndly, nonviolent ma nnor. th.y ore
Wf>loom_d by tho <Jeri...nd p"",iOOd
...ith food ..nd .heliQ. in t he B""-hcr
hood'. """"'1. Tho010r1<:o will . !so hoa!
wound. i( tho PC.. aol< poli",ly and
,...haps ;l'" . ..... 11 dona tion to Mlp
......,. on tho S....u-.' l/OOd_1to.
1". eleties tOll_ .. _ -..tuJ. _
...,. =<4 h, p.""""......-k O""tofou.
m;nutooo W .,.... .....h -.-hip tilN'. t"'"
-....TMl ..mI,..... 1fM...... on
....... 1'1<.,. ti._d wta...,
n oawed fn"lt WWlhl p Ill'" lltUIli ..
... ...n....puniWntoal. AM nQI>
TORTlES OF THE PURPLE SAGE Port2
RICHLAND TRADING POST
1 squa,e - 10'
N
I
~
".
I
,
""
. . .
I
,----, 0 0
"" 0 0
f----I
0 0
'
0 0
"EM 0 0
0 0
D3Jgg
, .
,

I O>Ao.' ",
I
"

_.
Duu","" L..rl ~
'"
".
r;r;:1 '"
L.:.I.:.:.J "
".
".
" . 7 ~ "'I;
DUNGEON 11
TORTLES OFTHE PURPLE SAGE - Pari 2
4. A.m"....r. Any woapon liet od on
paso 19 "ftho Exp.rl R"I.book i. ovail
ab l. heTe. The armorOrmaks. odged
woapon<, shiekl. , bal"ding lOr hor"""
and ohain mail and pht o mail armor at
hi, l o, ff"
5. Wood and S, one . Deco,",,
And itm. of woOO .nd
'lone Ibowls, Ir"-.'/". statues , ""'.) are
.vailable hel'\!. Gem.tones andje"..elry
can be apprai:;ed, but t ho arti.an will
not purchase them.
6. Thnne r. TI,. Ieoth.,. wo<'k", ' """.
her own (a .melly j:ocedure
about which her constantly
<x>mplain). She ... U. t anned h;de. to t he
""bbler (area 2) and . addler ("",a 3) but
keepa tho be,t ,kiM fOT the loath...
armor she make'! and sells.
1. M<>t..J=rith. Th;" e."fu"n u ""Ol'k.
in coppor, . ilvor, gold, and plati num,
Coms and metal or. can be exclJangro
Il<!r<> for gokl pi. .... ofoquol vol"", I...
a b% oxolumge f"",
Bl acksmith. The ring of metal on
metal weeto All traveler . .... t hey
approach rhe post, The black
.mith "hoos hor""s and makes useful
ItemuclJas firepl""o pokers and pot
hook..
9. FUller, Thi:l textile wQIker pro<>
e,,"", cloth by oluiukin;; and preaoing it
to ito weight and bulk.
10. Cooper. Th. barrd maker i.
ahno.at as ""und ... hi . W<U'Cl!. He 1"''''''
eh""". formed harrel hoopo from the
blacksmith (ar<oa 8).
Il. Turn@r. Th@l urMr oper ate.oa
foot.po"",...J lath@toprodu<:<ldOC<>rati".
itoms sueb ao table IeI!' . oandl. , ti cks,
.von wood.n flulo<>
12. Po",,"', l .odgp. Thi . !'OIlm i.
currently vacant. Auy pri ..m." token
by t he derlcs of tbe Lawf\11 Brotherhood
will be lo<:ked in this room.
13. 'I1,e well is a .imule ,Ume
.truotu", ii ' ill and 3'
The water i. pur e and
.....11 per..,,,,, who are li.ted in
below are cleric>of t he Lawful
hood. Their . tat i.t ic. Rl"e lioted by thair
positions on the Outpo.t Clerie Pnsi
1211M.la No. 7
tio,," Inble, Certain lotlevel clori oo nrc
give n 1_ job/, to tott t he
.trongth of thoir vocation. Stot i.tic. for
the lstI.".1oI....io, ..... li,wd under
"A"dyle" on Uw Outpo.t Cl....i" Posi.
tlOru! ti<bl.
14. l .odgi ng. Th "
"hoolmIli<l" <1""1'" in !'Ollm IdA . ,
night. Duringth. day, h. I , in th o
. ebool (area 15), One room{l4B) I'
vacant, reserved for cleric.,
Lawful PCs who decide to l.ave their
will be to he""
15. Sc hool. Thl. woodandst one
structure is detailed below,
I SA. Sc riptori nm. The r..-.e floor of
thi:l tW<Hltory building i. a writing
room. He"" manu".'ipt pog<>. oro writ-
ton, copiod, ond iIlominotod (odom<:d
with or""m""t al dcoigo. , min ialure
paintingo, or lot tee;ns ;n b.mianl col",.
or p""'ious A """lion oftbo
OCTiptorium i. pm1ition.d off a. a lock<>d
"""' .rial ofl",. whioh oontain' bJanlt
p"l"{'hm.nt.andbox.s (for ora..ng),
f"'M, inll, on" s er W('l1'1.h of gol" leof A
loch" ""rnng",x in t,M flffi"" Mnt" iM
143 pp,
In rhe . crlptorl um. 10 'tool. fare 10
desk, with sl anted t opo, One to tour
ad,pls .it in the writill,j(roomeach day
during work period" The Bur>a .. in
of all "'Ulle., .. ",e""
the oecretaria! offire. li e ear,ie. two
keys: one to the downstain; office and
another t o tho otrong room up.ot.iro.
The room .hove tho ocriptorium i
libnry. Tho boolta an> kept in 10 book
cases with four shelves each. Each shelf
bola." about 25 velume s arranged by
.ubje<:\, which inolud. : temple found.n '
WTitingo, lWltory and Iiv"," of famollll
der i,,", Brotherhood law and civil law,
and tho weiling. of tMny ramo". p""
pl<>. Six wooden tables ond ohairs a....
pl"".d aoout t he room for .....dmg and
There are mOrec.ndles for
I;ght ing I,han in " ny Olher room.
Gu.lltttlon of t ha lihrary Is Alockod
r oom t hat contains ancient
booko, a .croll, a ""'p, a flat wooden
box. and a lo<: ked .tron2 box. The IlCroU
oonlJiin, fourth lovel elodcal
.....Us; ..",mule tkwl. "roole wul<"
d"pd "'''IiI'.The .t'Oflg1.o.l huloh t;)Jj> ,
The Ulap , ho"",, t he SanKe Coast po.i-
tion. of BtolheThood cieri.
outllO"ts , It doco not .bow t he Cre"t
Nortbway'. mouth. The f1al wooden box
"""lnins tho torn of book
",",oiptB, which .bow who borrowed
booka thot have not yet boen TOt uruod.
Ono to four .<hpl ....od in t.ho> library
1>etw..n 7:00 and 9:1)0 A,M. every morn_
mg. The i. in ohoege of t he
hbnlry ."d th. , ocroti<rlOl off,,,,,. He"
in t.he .very rley Bnrl ""tW,O
hy. til I.h"""IBr;ol office end
""mng room
A PC who take. 1( day. to sBarch t he
bookshelves finds intjlortant informa-
tion in the ""ction on hi.toO' and lives
of d""jo" One mentiu,,",
Akub."" \1", w!lu
t he SO"".'(8 eoa.t and fBUlld t he ",,,,,til
of the Great Northway. Otheo l<!xts
deocriba t he eJl'eclo of the devo,toti!lj{
earthquake that moved the Cre.t
Northway'. mout. b from tho Tall
Gra"" Coastto the lands at the end of
t ho Savage Gulf. Lnt<><, Lowf111Bl'Other
hood m"mber. found pcaeoful, bard
working farm.r. irrigating "",pa along
the muddy ri""r'. banks , The Brother
hood decided to diocour"8" profit.
_king oxplore.. from I""..
inn"""nt nBtlvend dIrected e""h
outpost to l ake appropriate acti on to
prevent. Mvili,ed from mnt.<lN"
l og the defen..l. ... riv.monk dw.ll..,..
15B-G, Navltlate. This area contains
a donuitoO' (15B) and <I""sroo"", (15Cl
fur !.henuvi"", and private qullClo"
(IuD) for ,!leu' te""he[. tho Mw;ier 01
Nuv"...., TI,e Masf<>l' amI f""'''''' Or.
p.--nt at all time", t he novire. r arely
leave !.henovitiato bafure they beeom.
adept>,
The novire. e""h lIO"..... a chang< or
undel'Weo., on. tunie, poi. of sl ip""... ,
a pai r of boo",_a pair ofleggi ng., one
blankat, two pai .. of white "",,1<0,
l oath. r bollt, t"," handk,,,,,hiefo, ueodl.
and thl'99.d, writing moterial o, ond 13
penonol book-o.
bUIlding aJoo oent",n. a ""hool.
room (lbE) for or,hnBry pupIl. WIth
ledginlt' (15F, 15G) fn. two
....mBin wit.hin hllilding nfthe
time. The young mele natl"". and tOt
ti es (rumally 28 of each] who M.udy here
live in the Almonry (area 17B\.
16. fluolei. The"" trovele,,' BOCOJIU[l(J
,..... buill BJl upen cuW' l.-
yard, The contain. stables fot
be...to of burden (16A, 16D), four "",,11
bedrooms {160Fl, end dining o.teD
(160) fur vio;tlng travel.... Gue locked
"""" (l 6W i. for ,tol:lllg me,
cl"",lo' 1(00<I,. Vi"ilor , are reqlle.t.d to
1<K!;;e at t he ho.tel dW"lng their may at
the trading J'O"I. No camping lo allowed
wil hin the ground..
The HMtell. , i. in of Ihe hoo
l el end Ihe dlalingui"hed guo""" ho""e
(oren 37). Ho vi .ite Ir.vel .r. during
workin g homo un l"". he hac boon nt
on .n . ....and_ The HO.Ulnar ""rrio>, a
koy to Iho stTongbox at l he d,.hn
l1"i.hed S"",ls' hoc.._
11. Multi-Pu.".,,,,, Bullding_
11A. ..... a nd StJ)T/l gP "' /1_ In a
locked CeHOT ba lnw t'"n"nd 1 pI. I"Tgl>
....h f,ll"'; w;t,h w;nP1., . nd !>P. r
pil"" h/>low """""-Il"" an d cheese. Ihat
hang from l h. rafters. Dried troil and
salted fi sh are packed away in bo
stacked again.. the walls. Alocked
contain. 212 pp aJIII 1-6
wurl..h 100-LOOO . ""h,
On t.lle lU"illlloor. a locked
area oontains furnitore and suppli e.
th at the PC. may buy . t co.t f,.., m the
Comnwn.r. For acomplde H.t of nor
m.l eq uipment .vailable , . ee page 10 of
the Exp<rt RuleblHJk. The Commoner
.upplie, the derica wi t h any to
what i. p,ovided fo' aU. He o(])"r loo
throc kcyo, one to the collar, one to I.he
stmngho., and one 10 the storage area,
17B. A1moDr)' Th.. room is l<>r pil .
i/ri_ and poor Ir"""Ie,"_Th. young malo
natives and torlleBwho study at th e
""hool (""." WE) . I""P h.,... at Tllj/ht The
A lmo"." i. in <>f ...-.nP<'ting "1m"
" no "rlmlni<t"",ng ""hoot H.
keeps acoounts and maintains t he almon
ry during u", doy_The Almoner cames a
leather (>01I, h c:ontainillll 1-100 lIP, He
will acoopt any dunatl""" and will IP"" 1
lIP to any PC who bel!",
17C. L"l"; " .
I 7D. Infirmary. Thi , aroa ,erye. a. a
placo wh",'e medi cinal leemo" aro
applied to bleed the . ick. and aa oddi
tional . W'gi cal 'paco. If PC. refu"" \ 0 be
hoaled by tho cleric. but.till ""ck medi-
col aU.entioo.they "'"0 br ought horo,
Tho doctor frem buildillll19 com t o
apply 1-4 blood I_ h to tha pationt.
'I'lta blood l...oh... C"Wla 1_4 hp da mag<!
p<lc d. y thoy " r"
In ad dition to .ighl bada," ,..,h of
t ho mt'1rmary ca n r .v. al five
d"llg<'ro of vanoU!i ",Z. ' , on. oil fla.k. a
50' length ohop<, a la rlS" .<><k, a tindo,-
b,,,,,le<, a dun ,word u,ed for
ca uterizing wonnd. (1-4 hp damage per
application, but the wouad ioared
d_d), oi" filled wa""'skin" and ,nx
wineakino holdlns quart of win. e:>eh,
A flaok e.mtalning 1-24 m.di...
in wat . r i>l u""" for tram portlng Ih.
la.oh. Thay di e If oul waWr for
llION th.n 24 hoW'. _
I 7E. lU....t;ng H.II a n rl fl<>rmitnry_
'I'm. area ha, a lacgo ""low
.MV' . /1. 11 ex","pt
novi o.. goth"" io the meeting hall
t y da y from 10:00 to 11,00 /I..\t. t o di s-
<I,"" the ol...ic ""tpllon huoine"". The
meeti ng i.led by the Sub-priG' The
room' . ","lls are lIned with chair..
The durmitoty wall. above"," lin""
with boo bed., wooden ",i,,-
crossed with ropes holdill-'l' down-filled
,nal\ re ,,,,,., At ea ch bed', fooll, a
locked ""nl aining cler ic'"
1',,,"',101 aud any clothing
not currently being worn,
Each cleric h.. t we t unic., one thang<
of under w.ar, ""ven pai", of wh;t<
wck" two pai", of . li ppo"" two paira of
b<Jot", one pa ir of leggings, a ""apula t,
two cowl t wo hond cap", a leather bdt,
sovoro,] haodkereh",f" two bl.nkoto.
nC'edl e th",ad. w<lting motorl"lo,.
hol y .ymbol neckl.ce, aDd a key to hlO
own otTongoo._ !:lomecieri," h.w tlu>ir
own par'lOnol book.
'I'M , I<>, ie. or. only lU t ho donmtor y
durmg sie\lta and at ni ght , The Dmn or
fJrd, .. r on he ony",heTO) m"ke .
.",.,. "H cleM"" attmd wo",hip and t heir
o"ti"_
11F. Refeetoo and Th i.
\ WO, tDIY ar ea ha. a dinin<: belo""
and a dot """ ,to">Ille 'OOIll with lau nw-y
alxwe, III 1.10" 1'<'<"" , IUlJ g
.t-lo"d be.ide equall y wooden
l able . :-.1001. ar" . er vcd on wooden
pla te., The R. kctorial1 i. in ona,ge of
the ha ll .od dire"'" the <Ukpl.
""ho ",.it on tabl", during mear,. Mo,t
cloriea aro he", men l peried
oQl.ing 0\" ",.ving,
Up,tai", in tho loundry, cloth a,..,
",,,,,h.d by haod io ooppar tub . Th.
Cha",o.rloin . uparvi..., tho I.undering
nd p, oing of cleric,' cioth . H. car
Tie, pouch oont aioing pp
17G. of ,-hi. room
lS "',._ wi'-h
i'. ", "11 r ock holo" " mlmhor or l"r go
roenes Of l HEPURPLE SAGE Perl 2
knive. ("'eot "" normal d.gge"') and
mea t d eev ero (lre ot "" hand Th.
eon",r of the !'<)Om l. domlootcd by a
lor ge, blood sb i ned chopping block, 3'
to ll and 3' ... U"'O
The kltehao canu..ln. m.ny oish..,
pet., pa"" , and ....I. roki"" fuJI of V,rl_
ou. tl u;" , e'pa<;"Uy ...;ne ond al._
Th e,"" .,.., n.".mal , al ioM wadh 01'
v.g.l .bl fruit , bread, eMo"', egg",
000 fi_h Th e Tell "0"10 of 1M!:" 000"
ing fir. glow on ' he
Th, r . II",,, i . in ehArgp of meM,
_nppli.., and ,iel.u" I._He carrie. a
lealher pouoh that ennt.in, 10 pp.
18. Plty.le Ga rden. Pl ants used for
makinll medioinea aTe il'Iown in this
To c.nolly whnt
heebe are "rown !Iv" lUuch i.
roll 1J5 Llu"" tim"" al1J ref., tv
the Ra,e Spioes Thble in P..t 1, on
48 of i",ue 16.
19. PlQ-.i d.n'. II"".... Thi. baildiog
eoot ai Ull both t he doctor', quarters and
room, for very ,iek pntienb, There .re
no potionto ho", now. but thc w,(n
,."vont of th. el06ca) i. either inolde 0'
at the infir mary (ar ea 17D).ln addi ti on
to t he deetor'. peewnel the
bulldlng contai ns , a lontorn, a
oiocd _ I mi....or bulb of gar lic, thNO
wooden ,lakes, a mal let. a wator skin
hol ding a quarl of wa ter, and 0"" bun<h
of wolhbane
20. Cemetery. Th i. wa lled enclosure
cont";n, R h"ri"1 ground marked hy
'imple ,tonend "ulplUre. No undead
crea tu re s dare to enter the cemet ery of
a lawful clenc Qut rost,
21. OW;" F'ldd.,
w.,n. 'fbi to
area 13,
23. Duck and Co".e H""..,. Twe nty
duck> and I g gee.o Ilve in pena our-
r ounding a e<nl.,a! Enoh pen
contalno Il brick lined. pool of wll\e r, Tho
fowl ace heacd duri nll t be day from
"everal yard. ,,"way, AI. night, th"".
noioy bi rd!; ar o ohd inoido tho ,mall
r ound hou...., and .hut in _If the hou,," i
d,,\W'hod Illght , t ho poult')' k'Npor ,.
ala,\od by tho an d h,..mg "f
thollOe,.
24. PIl"ltry Th e
JIf'" ltry h pJ''' i. pre",nt here at all
DUNGEON 13
,
TORnES OF THE PUl?PLE SAGE - f'on 2
tim.... I<IoMo he ..Jo.o_ th.
_I _ ldl"&" 2.1.NI ....1oM.
peDII and tollta 4Mchicbn. dudr. ,
...-.....
.. n..uH.....-. ThiftY_ ...... and.
r.- "'-'1i...
_a1h,jicli"o(. on. .........10<1" lh.
...D..1'tlIIDll Mdu* to ""'"' CD
tho,. _ tho ......... ot...u. II ..
cbr_.._al,-"" ....,..M. cIa_..-
rl--.w....... the t>ipt, W.-s'
bet.rtI_tMuadiDg
....,t. lfu.. .-._ , Ihop<JJr)
....... ..........a.
ll6A. Hone Slablt!. 'I'wo to 12 IIllIJY5
..-I .. rid;D(f"""-1-8
1-6 ",w. ... .tobltol SUr. t_
wl>MlH'-'",-", i<latIN
mul.... Hall tile IWffIlea4 area ill100red
r"" \lOOt ... "",lon,
2l'IB. s......"t.Qu. ........._'fw"
llve her. and aJ? .ImomBlwaJ'!l
00be round In th. !>.om
26C, C"ul. 6 to1bl Thi. II! the home
"r 212 """n,Sil , <dr... .,." . t"red here
...illl .i. pI"..... Abu... the rtable i
baylQ/l,
2"1. O de...... 11".,, _Th. ""*-'"''
tnodICl'. i" the ._bloo prdeo
(_ Wh." "ot i" .... prden, be
io ill hio hwoo.
28A. Gr."" AI'boc. 11...,.,...,., r...m.,.
........ """""" _ booriJIc bo&h -..
and dark P"'P"IP'"_
29B. ,"...1 hkc...-.&... N.M.-of
.... t l ..-i-o._wallM__
...... romaldr ,, otl.. _-.-, c.t>-
"- _... _III
tlrio ' \ ; ,.. 1II'\tOd> -rbe
........ cnltoo PflII_,... "'"'_

-.i otrIII,f beeaL n-,....._
0IIb be ' ibed to IbePC& fId, IlIetlIfd..
.lAL
D. O..d ..-<l n.... _ ""'.'""
pnmed .nd. traiaed fruit _ IlI'Ples.

30. Di ld., Thoo dlldl ..............un&' the
ie 2(1' and 10' deep, Rain
... .... huoolkded ta _depth 0(5'.
3t . Pal;.a<k. Th. "'"'l""'ed log.
from ....hich pBhlde ia constructed
14 ISlue No.7
n. c.....' I<, A 6.on<\e Wllllr. 3' from
tMUlp.tMpoH_. ...... ......I'l_ly
......t>dthoohai"" ..Ik ;__
!Ilble't1l. tw...........
..... 1IloII 4a3". ftIUt
_1rinI P<ltnoIlheeatwalt .. raMom
iDterTalL At eid.t oetltrieo.,..
.......
.A. So1<th0-'>"..... <W......
Tba dte-trid&e _ f.bt, dilcll
l1li be Iw>ioted by two mea IIAin&' a
"';...Da. iD lhe pw.- Amet<oi.
ohco.tI...d ,..-wulh. <:&II be drnpped
qual, __the opelliJli by thopping
Ttoe pte .......
paat the po.liaNe ... 'IB b<.......
.. rlghti"4l pl.o.tf<Jnn. TwoIaddero
inside t he ataDCI ap.ill5l the oides
01' tlMo plabouM .110-;"8" __to tho
.....t lk. IIghhni pl.Uorm, d,.wbridGo
_ aldl nd pol't<'Ul h uppo<t l'QPe.
M R. ... (S. J.4' portJ.
Sol. t h. r"'Ahnol"" (MA),
Me. E..I G"t "hou. e (Postern), See
the Soulh OatehOtUf(33M.
34. BIIlI. ,. n", CQUtly..d in.ide the
....li-.Je ill di .ioMI lry din ....",." and
"'....J... .u..... Ew...JI bWJdinp ......d in
the bailey.
S.
alii.... CboopooL Thia dIapd .. for- both
lIM>""';- aDi tMdorico. The CJwpJ
lC_ is ill""'"
..... ......... Ttoeehapcl
coataiM_IMIy.,...bol W1Irilo 100_
8l' -amIJoIy _ ..wa. no. bani
_ .. Mt , "". alt-..p. Jl WI>OO'_
_ -""'- a1t.... tl.UoI .. tho n.-
tht-el ,lit 1M lIwUl....
-n.e _ ...... OIl ehup ol....."w
JmIIIic: on<! , _."". " Afil .. ",1OOi.
AlI.-....d
noY1I:N _-,duri,._ip
,.,....
s.m.,-,The MtriIIIYis where
""' . .........1duUli ..... boo ....... and
.tandardo ... ol.<or1Id Iooh..-... _ ill
In the lodr.ed .....ioty '"'" .....
en ..-nIB_mbroiden.l ..ith gold
tlu-ead{worth 25 Q _I.) .nd temple
om.....nte "';old...Iv.... and p""Ciou.
.ton"" (worth 1,000-6,000 j1.
Th. Sc>crislloolu tf\er temple mainle_
__lipu"ll, """ He .. <>1ao
i .. dI-s- of 1IUIrI"II ia1n>beo,
bat&, . ..... ttaDdat<lo. H.o -n..
koy t<I tbo -.,tad It ill tho vastry
dlOrUl(..-t porioda "..
"'Il'" _ ."Iooonoo ,n _
talnpl. <tut_"A__;"thA....".
__tbiI s.c:n. io'-
aoc. Vntr)', n.ereouy io ..-t-o tAo
drid' cJeo1ca 10 btron ""'" _ the
<%J"O_y til hlto .... DlIt at
their folia 1'lMre iI. loeked
;.. 11,.........., 2-1Z pp.
M A. Ttodi" 1 1l aU. Dw-illJ[
1>0-. thia luge dwnbor ;. filk><l ...;...
noillc ond _ivity. AIIJ'1'R"...-ho """
anythiDg to.lI buyQ):neI; bere to
trade. Long.....id. _Ieta bl"" divio!c
tho hall and hold tha "'a&o good., Pil..
of ""Ito. pr ..iouo Ito...., rpi..... and
manut'act ured ioodo fill the air with a
, t , anp mixtu... of 0<10.... 'l'ho mood in
tho hall " ganorall)' )<Ivl.l nd food
n, t h!'(lUllh tho orowd hawk.
ing t heir tasty WUH. Nearly any stand-
. .... r""la "" s .....a can"'" bo>lght. >cld, or
..adod In thl. h.ll. Q.ually .. a f. ;"
mark" pl1Ce_ UveolllCk and "-"ptu.....
..-lId animals Ire al the ""ering
Iroullh tUM -'41O\llllilt r.ho IWI.
AI n1rhl. tho hall tran ll'ormo iDle a
dilli .. bal1l'ut rr.... e;"m IP""" by
Trade.- J.tr...a11 ........looio<allnding
poat .-ioolton &ad iWoabilallta. (Clooi<ll
...... tbov 0W1I tit<beoI and dinluc hall
ill buildi", n.)81 ..,.....,
fiaoIo .....,et -...... III oIp """""'
......-ly.f"Ud-ed ,....w. ... woaold -.-.
cMndioc ..... be ,....o..l
Jolooa """'_io W 1M ia \hia
hall, i.ool....... u.. biri,.,- of
..- = iN ...,.wiota. Hiftd 001
d--. .Il t ,. i __.. aJ>iau,I
__
opwa., II" ,..--
rluvoch tho ("" '"""" H
"1_ _
.,..,. a...... .... llw ""mmlarglWk ...
....-v-. It ..-t11"", be lone until_
""'" approachea tl\l>m with iaf........titm
on ...... their lll<elIa CllD be n.ltllled.
E.....-ybody hoI,. everybody and r.-
.........lad.
Ifthe Peaneed to hi.. a nille. tbeT
mBJ'd_ ah'IOhlI' tho w...cun'eotly
availabte (_ I'art I , Neo M -M, ;""U"
16), or 00....... if a rui<lc ...... provioualy
hiredand proved aoc:eptable, he may be
j
TORTLES OF THEPURPLE SAGE Pori 2
,.
'''.


IW...I If
returned to the wat and the
PC.. eateh oi"ht of him, thera may b<
'rouble.
36B. Guard Quarte r. TY;o of Trader
Jack', fine ,t menenari... ar med with
. wor d, ,tand gtlu,d here duy un<! ni ght
t<> keep watch ever the treder'. w""co ill
the next room (36C),
36C. Warno. Valuabln commoditi""
purchaO<'<! by Jack ;>to ,loud in
this lOCked chamber. The room contams
a eros, bowWIth 3U quar""l' in a oa... ,
one long bow, one .hort bow, 20 , ilver
til'P<><! annw., " light "''''I'lll " fiv.
pitch shots, a .ilver dagger, barding for
one horse, chain mail armor for one
human fig-hwr. plate mail armor (or one
hu ma n filrhter, a IrI"OpplinRhook. one
holy .ymbol worth vial of holy
wa !.<or, " el or !.hief'" (001" wllh
brielle, lock,el cho.t. [JJ. io.ko Il,e
ebe, ( are a swo"j +1, 10 ,,",'rows +J , a
uil of teath<.. onnor ' 1, a polion of
dim,nut",,,, ,, ".;roll with a levitate . pell,
a r,ng ofanimal ""n/",I, a wand of
enemy detection, a !xv: 0(dec""ur'''!f.
36D. Granary. Tbi. room i . "Wr e
house for brewery Jll'ain, The Granator
look. a!'ter tho ,uppli., of wheat , harley,
and rye,
37. Priory (Distinguished Gu est,'
The.. quarter> for sueot, of
qWllit y arc eW'<entlyvaoant . PC. may
stay here only if thoy arc at the 9th
levol of eX!l"ri.nce or .bovo,
nu. dwQlling ill riohly d=<ated and
linely fumlShed , It has lll""" In t ho "in
dows , carved wooden ""Uing', and lOur
tapestrieJl lworth gpeach) hanging in
of the bedrooInll. Tho hou.. rout"lllS
R RmRII n7"-\ t.wtl ho><1ohom"""
m1B, 37(';), a ",IIRr (37m. hutl>!ry
l37El, wardrobe (37Fl, 8tOrerooms (37Gl,
office 137Hl, study (37l), aud plll' illl'137.1l.
A holy symbol (maile ortortle shelll hangs
in each room. The buttery OO1ltaiJUj ";h'.".
w","" worth 1.000 'P. In the dUl...,:J are
"""l<Il"Ill.> willi ;:uld
(wud ], :w w ). A luckecl """'J!lw, "'"I<>i,,
in!: 430 I>P i, kepi in the "ffic".
It ill nearly impossible to sea lhe Pr'."',
lI e i. in oharge of an 01"'-;0' at the out
I"'0t and de<ide. what each doe" Ha hM
a couuoi l of aonior cleric . to advi.., bi m
and two "". ;eh n" to belp in bi , work.
The Prior'. &;r:reIUlY eun'
writes letters. and serve, as the Prior ',
_sonal a,.i.W"t, The Prio,-'. Su,wonl
arder . , upplie., .Il_Vloe, houoeholcl
! erv""h, and , hook. on tbe oondition or
rooms, furniture, linen, and d othing.
Th. Price, Secretary, and Steward a re in
the hou.. ut ell t.ime. , the Sec",
'lU'Y when r llltning an <'1' r and.
38. and Watering 'ft'<>ugll.
Llve. t ock and oaptnred wil d b<t..t , ar.
.rodod h9ro during tha day. At night, all
animal, are placed in appropriate
barns. Wild .nlmal. aN lockod inside
O" eAA in tho; kMMI (4 2B J
119. Food Servtces BUildln gs .
area, maint"in<>cl hy
clerlos), ,uppl1es the LawfUl Brot her
hood.nd much of tbe sutTounding ar ea
with foodand drink. It ts fUrther
below,
39A. Wine P r e . Tho v,,,I,,",' i. a
pd""t who p"""""" grape' durillg work
pori""".
39B. Butt y. Thi. buttery;" a ,tore
r ""'" for liquom.
DUNGEON 16
TORTLES OF THEPURPLE SAGE- Pcrt 2
39C. Brewery. The brewer is a priest
wlw wile here duriIlll' wtIrk per;<Kb.
390, Kiln. The pollr,. i. a p,'ie.t who
throw. clay pot. and fires t hem in the
kiln.
ailE. Fruit-Drying H"u. e, Cr ape_,
apple s, apriootl!, peaches, and plum,
hans to dry on , <lOU ;l\ th" buil<ling.
39F. Kitchen. See the doocriptiQn of
area 17G.
M i ll ",illwright i. a priest
who grmds ","am dunng ".",1:. hours .
3IlH. Pant ry. Th;" ill a . loI"al>" room
f..... flTo,;.iono, glo'<WA,e, plAte", An 6
eatlog nt'm.il.
391, Bakery, The baker I. a pries,
who toil. here work period .
4(1. BarQ with Thre.hing Floor, Tit;"
lal'l(C huildillR i. otacked to the rallen
with dry fOOde, and !<Cain to he
thr..hed.
41, Sh eepfold. The ,hepherd.' quae-
ter.! are here 424 ohoop. The two
ohepherde are l ot Icvel elerico lind MC
alway. h.re,
42A. K'lIIn "b. U.uaI1y, 2_12 dog. ean
b<! fou nd in Ihi. kennel,
42 R. Wild 4 ni ... ,,1 St " nge. At night,
R c.Rptm..-l wilrl .nim.1b",ught for
t,..de i. eAgAd in tho nne empty
Th det ermine which wild animal i. lie"',
roll onlhe Great Northway Wander ing
Encounter TIIble. ror Animal., under
t ype uf Wrraiu
42C. St ables tor Se rvants' Horoeo
a nd Oxen. The ..,.,..,.,,,,s' qua"'''''. "'e
here among 212 ri ding 2-12
<!raft horse., and 212 oxen. The two
groom5 are almost alway. here.
43. Goot Sheds, The geath.,.,I.' qua:--
ten are hore muong 4 24 ll"""to. The lwo
goatherd. are !!eM'anb oftha cler ics and
are . lwo}.. horo.
44. l"Igllt ie-. Th w",.,herdo' quar
ters are here among 4-24 pig. 'I'lle two
SWiM"....:!' v' rt" all y liw, with t heir
I,m' oine ehRTses
'5, Cow Sheds. The ",wherdt;' quar-
16 l$sUEl No , 7
tees are here among 424 oows and
oalv"". The two rowherds are hexe
unle", they are milk to t he
kitd,olJ' (17G, 39F, n6B)
46, Stable. for Mare. /ll>dFoal .
This .table i. empty at pre.ent, except
fnr a few miner tool.
{7. Mott<. The motto i . a human-
modo e....h mound me""",,;og UO' in
<li.meter at ito b""" and standing llO'
hi gh, The earth used to const ruct the
molt<! was duS from tho oun'OUndins
m""t. Th" mette'. t op i . flot ond m<t.O.
.""'. 00' m diameter.
48. M""'. The moat," 4U' OOl"WlS and
isdng 20' he'nw ground level RAinwa
,..,. has mlleetl'd in mnot UI a rlep'h
of W , Themoat oompletely ,urTound.
t he motte and with the diUh
surroundllW the bailey,
49, PI"nk BrhlK'" A 3' -wide plank
.t<..,l.ch., 4u' WI"'" the meaL,
the bailey to tbe b... ""tb.
mol t. and Ih. timber .tair,
60. Timber SUU" A 1O'wid. wooden
.tai"",oe climb. the ,ide of the m<>lta
f,""m the end of the pl....k bridge to tho
deor of tho keep'. getehou!IC.
51. Sa.....t Ent eanee. Atth. baeo of
tho motte f.eing northwaol, 0 eonoeolod
antran"" an<t tunnel lead to tho
dungeon 10v. 1ofth. hop (55.). Evan if
t h" moot i. rilled In t he t op, this open
ing i. "ill I ' wAte, ' . vel Th u",
th" """",I MIn"",,, t b. mAA' m".' hoo
crossed.
32, Pall.ade, 'The 'harpened log.
frcm which the calisade iocon.trueted
stand 20' high.
M . Catwalk. A 5'",id. walkway 3'
from the top of the pali . ado r uW! eom
pletely around the keep, The catwalk il
aoo.""ibl. via two exlerior ladders at
the gatehou"". During the day, t wo
IlCtltric. patrol thc e.tw.lk at il'l'<!gulat
intervall, At nighl, four "entries aro
...
M. Gat.hou"e. Thi. gatol>o""e ha.
no drawbridge. A m.tal.heathed port-
culli. ean b<' dropped qUickly a''''',,,,, tho
opening by ehnpping a . upporting rope
The g'l-I'-hou" juto 1"'01 t he p.hsad. so
It!! roof can lie uBed as fighting pl.t.
fOTm. Two lodder< .1.Rnrl egoiost the
Bides of the gatebnu"" RllllWing to
the o.twelk, !lghting platform, and
I'Orl<;ulli upport repe,
Thi tone-wall ed tower replaced 0
wooden structure built hy Trader Jack
when he flrslloodod on th. Tall Or"".
Coast. The roof of the keep ia SO' .bove
the top of tho motto; lhe eounl"Y"ide can
be viewed froma height of 110'. Six
alTow loop' pierce tho towor w.!!. 5'
.heve the ground. StX pilled window.
..... oat inln tha walla 15' above
the gronnd. lltainedgla", window,
.... 25' abow the ground. 'I'm chim_
ney polO .tend atop t he obimney on the
north 'Ii"" of the tower. The odg<o ofth.
roof;" crenellated with merlon s and
emheR"""'. mol' fo,
detail. "fthe tower', fnur level.
Leoel
Tile .Iooe and floor of Ibis le.el
a>'. 10' thick.
5GA, Well Room, Aspinilltairw,y in
the northe.st cornet ofthi. poorl,ylit
chamber lend. 10the n....emeJ>t level
(56\ A eoocealod dooT io th. norlhwest
corner ""nneets with the oecret door 51
are. 51 via u leng, downward. leping
I""not In tho ..nt<!r af th. room iB
froBh_water wall 150' d...p,
5511. Pri..,,,er '. The door 10thi.
""II >II unk>cked. 1nslde tho c.lt i. a
OOI"U. wnn i . actually. gU"" of TroA<>r
JlICk. Hi. modest acoommod.tion was
nne of two I.n in k""fl for vi.i1"... . If
tbl, part of the .dventu,.., I. ruu Won>
the PC, are hired by the tnrtles (or If
they heve declined to helpA he is pack-
t"lo: hi . purple to le.ve for
Y. n k . lId W" ""ntelmi.l W
hi . "nc.",..."l )O"ou"d. H.
can be hired fur 3 SI' per day In 8""ide
t he p"rty dir..tly to Yuak.
Me, Priooner'a Cell , Thi" ll i.
.urrently empty but can he uaod by
8"""010 ef Tl-.c1er J""k. Advenlurer. who
break any 1'U1.. 01" offend Trade< Jook
are impriooned in Ihi . dark room.
B",.ment Lw./
Entrywoy. The onlranoeto Uno
ohoot. hallwoy i. gl.la>x1ed hy a ",,,,"1.
.he.thed porteullis which can btl
TORTLES OFTHE PURPLE SAGE Port 2
\
.
1i6B, Kitchen, Thi. room' . floor L.
oowered with ..nd flocked with blood, A
rack on the wall hold number of
l.rge <leavers (treat ... hand ""e.) and
"","ving kniv,", (\.Nat ao ",,,,,,,al dag-
g"'.), In tho ,oom'. oonu.r i. a largo,
wooden, blood-lltained chopping block
..... t.ll ond 3' .qu..... ,
Th. Iutchen oonlain. food preparation
Ulan.ilnd e.hng imple"",nto of aU
Waterskino full of wine and ale
hang fTom woorl.n!",lI" on t.hR wallo.
and a dead duck and chick"" .... Ou...
pended by their necks fi'omthe rafter.
The door to :l6A can be barred from
the in.ida. A .piral.talnvay wnn""t. <0
U'" l.,.lloalu," and Lh.llr.at
hall 1.,01 .00, . An .rrnw loov vian",
the wall near the .pn-al.tairway_
drnppPll .",.""" t.hR o!"'ning hy chopping
it! support rope_ Doing SO might
would-be attacker. In the gatehou!le
between lIOrt<ulli or in.ide the entry-
way. whe,.., 1"'lIe woodan dour. balTad
from the inside hlock their p."".ge,
Arrow. or Loilina wawr CilIJ be
ODtO U8Pped invader. throuall d.,.ee
murder hole. in the ceili,.. f,'om <be
guard room (57BJahove.
500. Armory. Thi. door i. look.d.
Any type of armor OT weapon Ii.ted in
the &p<'1 Rulebook Ill be found in
thi<; ehtunbor, The room iA lit through
two arrow loop".
56D. Storage. Th.. door io not looked.
L...ge ... offood, drink, wood, gnd
honsohold tored in thio
,Mrnb.T, There 1_12 nornu>l rat=s
"ere, The roo'" ,.lit through thr....
alTOw 1M!",
Greal Hall u""1
A spiral stairway connect.
w ith 1.,d <h.
men< le,el below.
57A, Great HaU, The Rfeat baU is
richiy de.corot.<>d ond finely furni.hed
There L. gl""" in the metal-grill"" win
dow. Bnd the ceiling. nC of carvod
wood. A large oak !>'estle table .tretche.
40' acroas thi. firepl .."" hoaled eh[UJ1ooc.
Eigh'""n eat"V.dwood.. n chai.. our_
round th. impr...iv..ly t l abl . The 18
silver platea are worth 10 ap each, and
tho fi,. u!en.iInd gOOlot ...1 at eh
pla,,"re wort.h 1O.p more Fiv. MaulJ
ful t.'1"'01""' (worth I m>
from the ceiling heam., Between the
hm doo"" on the oouth "",11 i. an unfin-
iched mo.p of the G",.t Northway l.nd.
Riohl<lndTrading Purl i hown Illa,,!!
tho w....t ""..t. The ring and <orllc
&haped.arth mounds (_ Part 1, J>'-g.'
5-8-59, i.sue f(;) "'" shown a. wat.r
hoi, 'I'h. Ik...t NOO'lbw.y .od tho
lnealions of ruined <iti are not ohown
57R.l1u ar<l Room. Thi, room 10
directly abo". the .ntrywoy (MAl. A
JlOI'toulllswlndla.. atand. to nne . id. of
the room, Unle". the tower !laB been
reoently attacked, the metalsh.athed
I-"-'J'\culli. uvl-"-'cL.d by a WI'" in
Ihi. rWIll. A door read,ed by .q""",ing
around lhe .oopellded POr"'ulli. l.ad.
tothe roor of the ..,
which oeT".' A' 0 fi,hting pl<ltfo.-m.
Three fi.tsited murdeT hole. P;eT"" tho
floor of t b. gutU"d room ond allow t he
entryway to be observed or defended.
The guard room i . illumiootod through
two .,,;ned window"
A 'plCal .tain...ay eonooet. this l.v.l
wi'h the ,.""fle....,1 .nd tm. greal
nall loyd bel.,..... Thi.lovel i. ri<hly
de"",.ted and finely rUToi.hed. There i.
O\<>;n"d-gl"". '0 the window., and the
ecilings ...0 d""'OT.ted with wood """... _
ing<. A holy "}'mool ..nd n tnpo....y
(wol'th 250 gold pi__) haog io each
ch.mt-.
It JS"".ely irnp"""ible to 1hd.r
J...,k W;lhout "" Ho i. ill
ch..ge ot tho .. nti .... trading (.""..pt
rOT the der;,") and decide. what overy_
en" "I." d......, " <, ", "'.inS .""
hi. ""","ot.ry (""" <'''Wom
(see area MA., The ,eo'"tl'ry runo
. write. letters, and as
Tradec Jack's personal "",i.tant.
.toward ",d.", .uppli"".uper,ises
huu..,lwld ..,nanL<>, dIed,,, un the
condition of room.., furniture, linen, and
dolhiUj(, Tl'ad..- Jack' oeret.ty and
otowa,d.,.., in lhe keep at all ti mes
except when running clTnndo_TTndec
Jack i. cUlTemly at home, but he often
gocJl ""ploeing f.". month> nt Btime,
58A. Study, Outpo.1 buoin,"," i. 000
dueled in thi. omee. During daylight
hou",. 'Ihd.r Jadr'. steward {At: 9;
H; hp IXI' I; Urng by w"'pon Iypo;
MV rae-14U'1; San ML 6; AL NI
DUNGEON 17
TORTLES OFTHE PURPLE SAGE . Port 2
"an befound delving into paperwork. At
night, the ,t.wnro .Ieop. hero. He
always eani an d"gll"c,
U PC. a,k 10 ''''' tho
steward politely M is them that the
t r9.der ""'. no on. without"" appoint.
ment . One. mad<>,
PC:. will ho> a '.im. Ul ret"tn Ul
t his room to meet and talk with Trader
J",k _ U!lUally In 1-4 daY"
P arlor, This silting room sports
an uv.rstutTed diva n upholstered in
animal skin (w"rth 100 gp)
58C. Chapel. In tI,e "h ap.l ha"2
e, Ime-nI. embroid....d "itl. guld
thread (,.,..,,-th 25,iWJ. Chapel ornament:;
of gold, oil",,", and .to"" ..-e
worth 100600 gpo
MD. AImp """"Pied
bed nlmoot fill. thit; l"OOl"tI. Trodor Jnok
.1_h.<9on f<>UI' "";mol , kim WOtth
200 gp "l"ooo. Preciou. ston.... and "Pi",,"
lotalling 1,Q00-4,OOO gp adorn. tOO room.
MK Hath. The ,.oom', a l,. and wa_
Me h.atod by . lorf1'! fi....pIRC<'. W""m
w.I.. ,. i" pouN'd into a woodon tub "".d
fOT bJoth ing. Thp.... i<no MRp, hnt
of coarse toWel, hang along the wan.
58F, Wardroom. Trader Jaclr.'. per.
>!Ona! . ecrelary(AC 9; F3; hp fAT
1; Om;! by Iyll"; MV 120' (40');
Save F3; AL [,., III
this roomday and unless halpim:
to run errand.. for hi" Il1Mter. Tho room
alllO contai"" ""vera l un1<><k. d the.ta
holding five animal..kin robe. worth
200gpeach, jew.lry worth a total of
500 gp, ODd r= .pi... worth 50 gp, The
oe=tary wear. n hnnd oxe on hin bolt.
59. Re>of Level. A spi ral stairway
conn",,\o t hi , lovol to tho ..,l or lovol
""low. .. Jack tAC 9; 1"9; hI' 41;
'AT 1; Omg by type; MV izc-
(40'); Save F9; ML n: AL N; two-
hanrl...t .wo,rt) 'p"nrt. mlle!> of f"", .
ltme behind t he"" b..tt.lemont. , un-ey_
ing Riohland Trading PMt and the ,ur
rounding wllderne,.. He often keeps
watch for to
ruunul' luft..
m,o"", ... " .....-ty uf .."", ",,(.0
for unknown lan<1o or """". Jatk ",,,w,,,
oeveral of hi:; pigeon:; aion;( with them.
He inotrocto ad..-enture... to tie me"",, _
to tho pigeon', leg. and l"eleaoe them from
t;mo to lime to infoml him oftheu- prog-
ress. It "' t hrough ouoh intdligcnoo-
18 Issue No . 7
gathering operatioru; that Trader Jack
hao am=<! muoh pr<>e\i<:nl
llhout the GrOllt Northwoy Londo, Tradc<
Jack has known to "'""".. 1001,
oaptured, or dying parties after reooiving
a pi.... f"" he!p ";.. pigI>OO "",mger. U'
the PC, msk. an oppointment to "peak to
bi m, J.ek req'-"'SlS thRt they 10k<> U
pigeon_along to inform himof their prog-
"'''''. PC. ",fi,,,, twjI,,,",, ,
Iltay in Ricl:tbrnd moy bo a ohOl"t. one. If
they donot lISe tbe birds ... instructed,
the PC. "ill not be welcomed toRichland
in the future,
The
When the PC! leave Richland Tradillll
Poot, tI,ey may dod 10 eJqlloro allYor
all of the three lo.t rui""l""ated Oil the
Creat Northway Land.. map. iliarya
lie, be.ide tbe Empty Valley River,
Brlot nc.U nP1aD.$ tho Bylot Hills,
and Ynzo.k ,land. elono on tho ntcpP""
that ito nam.
Remember to usethe Wild.ma."
Encounto>" 'fibl from th. &pul
book and the U....at Northway Wildsr_
""'" Enooun"'," ( end of thl.
!IS the PC. travel alangthe 'Hill Grass
('"a",. aod "''''l' ." . Y.,.k S'ep",. and
Rylot Hi ll. i. aIM 21lo}' ohanco
per day that, if t h. y """a not hil'ffl '
reputable guide, the PC. will I:>eoome
lost and wander almle,sly rsee Export
Rukbook, 41l.
Alllhree 01' the I"", cuiI\lj"'" wid out
ill tile ,eille U.., the w. t
Map as a j(llide \Q the ,e"lLa! """till" of
. ach ruin. Specific ar. ... 1'ealmo diffo!'
ent encounter! in eaeh ruin, however,
PC. feel only a .light 8enlIIlt;on wh;l.
I&porlir>g via the gate oWneo and may
not l'COlillo they ore io 0 diI1'<rcnt ruin
boooUBC the lnyouro ore almoot idontielll.
11' an Moo'Hontenl. diffor only . light
ly from roin to l'uin, " !I" na1 d...,;p-
h on i. given forst, followed by <pecifio
feat"""" oUlla' ....... ill .....n rotll. !teed
th<! pI"" ony apl>"opri
Rte specifrc cleocriphon """,b h"", the
PC. ll"mho>'"d a""a
1. Gate v"rim,.
. t on are >hown as IA. IB,1C. 1D. l E,
and 1F on the Loot Rutns Map.
A carvod gato , t Oll<' blocka
15' .",ide t. Th. mao,i" e round
... bore;
t hr ough it.
This artifact;8 known"" a "Portal ro
Evtryland." Anyone passing through the
oponing in tho "'-'"""l <brection while
holding tho proper key ill tt_
()Olted toan identical gate stone in a
distant location. Conwt ded... OV".ation
i. only diooov",""" by oxporimentahon or
talkmg to loco! ".m.,u (ortl.,.".
,nappers): A fragment ofrortle eggshell
("' 1M1lt n.% of a .,ngl. ,h.m mnll! bo>
heMin. h""", h"nd ,,-, ""'i,"'" ,.ne t<>/p.
port devl",. Nl tTav.l.". """J1' rllrnllEh
tna gate iWlne, tho eggllhell fragment
dJBinWgnl1e. InUl powder. Eggshell tTag_
men", not nald in a bare hand are tmaf-
f""l<ld, "" may travel up to
1'our tim"" with ...ingle egwillell by pIa<>
ill" Iho f..""",onto iJl a ,"",k or
baJ;; ",hil. tekp;n'I;'<K,
Tho gate oWn.. ",ero nred by messen
go," of the ono;cnt Dr llv" the rllCe who
built Ih. dtie, that are now t ho lost
",ina. Shell folk w .... once a suboen-i-
cnt to the o.ovo nnd we", fOTbid
don t o w;c t he gntc stonea, 'Ib the abon
f<>lk, who ... gar<:l .peed a. a virtue, tho
gate .to""" b""amo a "ymbol of il'"""''-
pow.... Not .ll shell folk ....member how
the gat.. OIon worked, thcugh Ihoy
,till thom
Th , fiM gate wa. <.....at<><! hy a
n , avi. h m.gie,,,"er
oity ftf Y" "k folk
claim h. had " or
tice , depending On wbleb 'Ian you talk
to,) During the earthQuake whioh
d,,-,troyed tbe Dravi5h citi"" and .hifted
the Graat Nortbway'. roarse, the seoret
to _ .. the .10"" w .. lu.t,
Nati""" who 18te r di""""",od tbo
oWoo. did nol re8lizo t heir magical
powe", but knew thoy we' e important
10 their anoeotoro.
D_,J'<' a-Ston
Clinging vin"" from t he gnt c
rtoneo at l A, I B, l C, and 10, blocking
thoir openingnd tniling into tho
strt. The,e gate ston.. navo oom_
pletely lo.t t h.ir mag,c. 'l'hq vin aN
!lCtually st rangl" th.t oan pnll.
PC from tho vound. Th"'II"tt on. '
eJOll .voi rtAd hy movi ng ..
,-,, @il.h..-r.irle oft.hem
The magieal gate . tone at lE is a on.
way ..kporl d. vice. Movinz southeast
t he p t. atone while a
uf wrtle /ekparl . the
PC to j(ate .lone I B in Yozak. Nothinj(
bappe '1\! if t he PC move. northw.st
t hrough the gate otone or doe. not hold
tortlo cggoholl ,
LOST RUINS
TORTLES OF THE PURPLE SAGE Part 2
I aquar e 1U'
CROSS SECTION
=Gate stone
Crumbli ng monol ith
Marble column
':1,.: Rubble
I::;) Pile of bones
4 3 1 5 1 2 1
DUNCEON 19
TORTLES OFTHE PURPLE SAGE - Part 2
Irale .lone at IF while holdinl: a frag.
menl oftortle teleports the PC
to I:a(.e stone Ie in ByM. Noth inl: hap-
!J"U' irthe PC ow,e. iu the """",e
diNletion or doos nol use an egg,hell,
flyk,t Gate 8ro"es
PC., ,.ho try to pa'" the open-
ing. {in either di<e<ti",,) of gate stone.
lA, l B, IE, or IF are .trucl< by a sevo",
electric , hock, a sign t hat the magic of
th""c gate .tone. hw.o begun to fodo ond
"go bo.d," The current oppearo no light
ning radintin.g from oil . idee of the
P"" ""'g'''''''"y. Th. ";"Iim .ulT...." 120 hp
eloctrioal damoge if
oompWu,ly p.... t Ju-ough the opening,
wit h or v..ilheut tortl<!
PC. who p"" thro"l1h gat<> stone .
in .pi'e of the 'h""k ha"" 8 5% oho"""
Ul h. r.li'[>i>rwi mil"" in "h.
di....,linn th.y tnn1<
throulrh l he stone (If. of rour"". they
carried tonle elUlshelll, Otherwi.., the
I:at< . tone doe" nothinl:'
Moving w""tsouthwest throul:h the
,lUlla .. lIe while Lorlle
em:shell "'k"",." the PC to stone
IF in Dravya, Moving oouthwe.l
through the "ate stone atlD ..nd. the
PC to galton. l A in """ak, Nothing
haJ'P"Il" if the PC mov,," in the oppo.ite
di=ion th",ugh the stones or
doe' not hold 0 fragment of tortle egg
&hell.
Gate Sid"".
Tho p to .tonoo ot Ie, lD, IE, and IF
produoe m. lighlnin.g offt ..
tb""" at !lylot. MOVi ng northwe.l
through th. gate lito.... at lB t.kpo,,"
PC '" . tnM IE in
IhrOllgh ",..
lA ..ndo thO! PC Lo gatton. iD in
Bylot. Nothinz happens if thO! PC moves
in the oPllO"ite diroctlon t hrough these
,tones or doos not hold the
required pi""" of lorUe "1:1:,hen,
2. Cru' Il-bliu l\" Mo" olith. The,.. ", e
two uprlj:ht, crumblinl: monoliths _ 2A
and 2D- in each kJ.l ruin.
This 30-high, squsre. crumbling
monolith suppom a motionless.
humansi<ed lii:u", .l.and;nll on top.
Gril.ty loehuld unc"
\b" pill",.
The loelwlw. U'"
l.ouild"r' \0 .lId ",.illla;u ll,.
her"",,' stalue. atop there monolit hs. If
the PC. att<ompt to climb a monolith,
20 1S$\l e No, 7
roll Id20. Ifth. val"" i. I, than or
equal to tbe pc. Dexterity, he o11mb.
the monoli th safely, If the value is
I:",..t"r t han the PC.,. Dexlerlty, he f"ll'
l S' ont o the .treet for 2d6 hp damage.

Groemoh-brown metol . tatllell of
anciont Dravioh heroe. dr ."ed in
armOr stand atop the pilla,.". Bird.
ocea,ionally land on the hwnan. i2ed,
hollow whioh "'"0 "OI1",ly mor--
tored to the orumbling monoli t h:!. If l he
mortar ioohiwled aw,,>", or if t he dork
oorr""ion i. r"tohod f'om a . ...t"" by
forca, <opper_""le"'" b... metal
appOM' . JO""hstat"" i. ma d. ot p""o
<lppor, _igh, 300 pound., .nd i. worth
zoo lIP
ByllJl MMolUh.
The PCs oense they are being watched.
Surln.nl)', f1gur . on top ofth. pillOT
bendo down end begins beeting a loud
dr um. The ngure is a pSgRDlookout
.igneling othee Neutrnl Alli a""" memo
ber>. Alkr bnatlnKUte dmm for twtl
,uunw" he atl<J<1o PC. with hi.
lonl: how and 20 aJ'l"<Jws. The pnl:an
carrie/! no per""nnl trea","'.
Monolith.
The PC. renu lhey are heing watched,
Suddenly, tho atop the pill'" lin.
an animel horn wit. lip. and begi ns
trumpeting. The figure ;" " dervish
si gnaling othor L.wful Alli,.n..
m<>mbers. Aft.r trumpotin.g hi. horn for
lwo rounds, he attacks the I'Gs with his
light ... "","""" and 30 q""-l'l'el. 'I'he
d.nio!> oorri<>. no p",""onal tn."""'.
3. M81'ble Columns. There are two
nprigh.. mOThl.oolumn.' _ U,
in each 1_ ruin.
Thi8 20'hi gh, round mubi.
<lJumn ouppoct moti""l...,
num.n.l>ed lIg""" on top.
Th. column i. of poliohod lito"" and
h!tl! no toehold.!!.
Byk,/ and Ya", k Co/urn",
TIt<> .tont at..... at@ooulptu.... 01
Tlr.v;,n 1.JJn." dr."",," ;n
flowing ro;""' . An ,",""" innal hlrd land'
on eaeh statue, head.
DrtWJa Column.
The 'Lonn .tntun" dnpJc-' nncien< Drnv
io}" du th...," ill Bylot .ud
Yazak. However, tbe I""t ant a PC touch-
e. the ma rble, the column topple. from
its ba. T1I. PC who tll11oh<>rllhe
muble and anyone within 30' mu,t
make a Saving Throw v., Deatlt Ray or
suffer 220 hp dama!:t,
. , w ee, The'" W'eeight lerr.
(4MH) in the rui",'d '<if-
the central earth mound in
each city. Some been empty for
yo".... Other. "'er' recently va<ated by
theic ocoupant., Some ofthe bi... oon
"'in ormed ....8tur.
Nul the buildhrjl' lh., oueruuod
the . entr. l monnd .pl>Oar do.."I.d,
$ome ha, ..,lid r'OOf' .nd.
tude offoolprinl" leading from their
dark d_w"y.
La".
Near4A and 4B, tho pc" aense they are
nol a1ono, Suddenly, a <eptiHu on"p'
pet he.d pokes out of a doorway, oim-
ing a long bow in the advent,."..,..'
direction.
Long whi t lrand. blow from the
O]l'ln doorway of tC. Fo,.".
juot diolodgod t ho webbing a. they
charge lhrough the opening,
Crowhng .lowly oul tho doorway of
4D io lorS'
iM .. hl.nd nf
the oolon of t he reinbow, Th16 ""esture
i. a ..mi.i ntell ig.n.. hypno. na ke. I..
ettempta to catcb the PCs niTguard "" 11
can "UflIrio. th.m with ita mllnolic
g""e devouring tham, If a party
.".""Iure," "'lock. I,he llJ pn""aoke,
it curl. II. t.il.-.rouud 10 .I""h while it
attempt:; to make eye oontact with one
of the PC" It oontinu", to attack with
taU and goz. until killed or tho party
fleea, unlea:! itfail. a morale check, If
tho ""ventur.... alumpt to fight it
without looking at it, the hYPl\Ollnoi.
"""" ito bite and tail ror sombat. If the
.. fl"'" lving .ny of thoir
party mombe.. tbe hypnoonake
immedi.t.ly bogi"" to davaW' on. oflhe
. l.oping indlvidllala. Thio t ..... ix
round,. d,.".mg whioh the onoke d"". J./)
hp "'l,h. al""'ping ii,
i..... Onowallow<>rl, ..n.
unfortnn.te PC Mnt iou tn take 1-6 hp
damage per round until dead, A1tee six
hours. the body is dil:ellted and unrecov
.rable. The hYPllOlUlue h"". ,ery
efficient diKestive svstem and mana2e.
to ""noume virtually e-verything it .wal-
low., including magic.l item., wo"p<""',
gold, and je_I" If the nypn".nake ;.,
defeated and it . lair i. ...arched, two
opal. and two rubie., worth 1,000 IW
uch, are found,
Fr om deep in the ohad."..." nea r
t he PC. detect moyemenl, Something
human nppet>r. te be conjuring n .pen
(cider cleric of the Choot ic s.;ote,..
h.,.,d, AC 1; C6; hp 6 36; MV 120' (10');
1, Dmg by epa ll or wupon typo,
Save c e , ML 6; AL C; Spall .: ca U""
lighl woun ds, cnnso r.ar; hold poroon,
<i/on"" 15' rodin<, can" di.""w, .tam_
Ao a member of the PC. ' party .top.
out of tho !hadoW'O 4F, a ",bed mon
oP!"' " ", i. od "ol ly Amogi"""",
of th o Ch otk Si!!l....hoo.-l whn "" "' "-
pOlymorph ,..,/f sp"11 UJ appear as a
memher afthe Lawful Brothe rhood_ She
tri es to convince the party that .he is a
broth er who has be<ome 1000t while on"
mi'Mun eherie uutlJUl'l. ITlh n
PC. " t t ack lon" "ho d<>fond<. her""lf wilJJ
spells (n ecromancer of the Chaotic
Si"tuh<><><l., AC 9; MUS; hp 20; MV
120' (40'1, IAT I, Dmg by opoll or weop'
on type; Save MUS, ML 10; AL C, dag.
ger, Spell .: charm per ron, magic
",;",il.>, m<Ji<, ron,inual darh . "",
d. t",,1inuwible, i"oi. ib'lity, {iroball,
lightning boll, oharm mo""ler, poly-
morph self
from rover .,e" 4(;, ..
human d",,,,,,ed in dark . oior ' abo .. t a
PC'. baok (pil fer . , of the Cha otic
Si9terhood, AC 7; 1'7, hp 18; MV 120'
140'); 'AT 1, Dmg hy weapon tYP"; S""e
1'7: JIlL 9; AL C: long ' w....d; OL
s-r 40%. RT 38%, PP 50%. M545%, CSS
931t , HS Mit, HN MJ.
From d""p in thn 4H,
PC.
l.ube " ..,11
(ma tria r ch of t he Chaotic Si .tcr-
hood, AC 9; C9, hp :12; MV 120' (40');
IAT I , Dmg by . pell or ....apon t yp.,
Sav. C9; ML 11; AL C; rna""; Spel ls:
cau,e lighl wound" darkn..o, proleclion
from <"V ii, blighl, fr<>t "I,nce 16'
r<>di us, ron/i n""i dark"""., cau", dio
cas o, ""no, cause ,"" ,,,,.. wound.., pro
!o!cI;"" from ouHIO' r<><Ii ",,).
Bylor Lai,.
Tn" Pl'. !><Ie. (ho iow gl'QWl. and pu"".
of large cat" ne ..r ... 4A.. Thi. build.
109is a shelter fot" 11Usahr...tooth
mmmU I, In ,aka<U1"
t.hat in 41\, 41:, ond 4D, Build_
ing!! 4E4H M e t h.l..;" of I _W paga no.
Yazak Lairs
Buildinlr.l4A, 4B, 4C "'-'" t hola;.."
un-lOlu"i"", h",h,
"'....,, 1. CUJHe (l'UIn 4D, uoed ""
i
kennel for the lupm'. di. e wolves
(equal in numher UJ lupin. ). Buildings
4K-4H "'" t he l"i... of 1_ 10 d"rvi"h,, ".
Ii. Bone PUe
In the miMI. ofa w;d. aven"",
only " fewyard. from t he eent r al
eorth mound, thous and. of .un_
bleached human bones form a grisly,
20' _'all pile
" ,'(wya, Ra" .
i'lnrlrl.nly, a (""-'-'I,m"; , manlike
t on _p" au ' hnm hf'hind a we ll
blocks the path to the earth mound. It Is
armad wit h four nor mal sword. , The
creature i. a hone "olem set t o guard
(he ear(h muund_j f PC ap pr""ch""
t he muulld, a u.-
to a .pel!, (he ""lon, attaok, up l<>
t ",o PCs each l'(lUM ont11 it is defeated
or the T'Co ape dJ-iven off. The bone
golem he> no <rea.ure and 0.1"". not
retreat fr om combat.
Bywe Y""oJo Bone Pile,
Gold glint, fromtho tootb of Govor ,,1
.kllll. a"'P the bo"" pile , I f tb. skulls
TORTLES OFTHE PURPLE SAGE Port 2
/
aro searohed , 5_lUU lIP warth of ar tifi.
cial teeth are found . The anCIent Or a v.
.pp,,"ntly pr oot,i' .Ao1 denU..ry
6. Earth Moun d. In the center of.-he
ruine d city, a square, na t-topped pyr a-
mid uf to",e," above the rubble .
W"""" OIl il . ide, _
pile uf inte r wove" ("i>:. and
OIl the py.-amid'. top appear> l<o I>< a
larl;<' ne,l , above . treot level. I f the
pyramid;" ""oled, rend one "Hhe fol-
lowing p..... oge"
D""'-'Y<' Mound
A. , un the l op of lh.
pyl'amid, YQlJ OSll .... WI<
lIe. t ,> illlOJ,twilJ<d bra"dJ , s", ell
3' -iollj( wiJl,i(edlizard .-e, emblh'2
g,=n dTagon.lie ,lrepingon 0
piie of . iiv er eoin> and a few bl ue
ge me-
The wJn ged l",ardo poc k-
et dragon. Their hoard <ontain, l ,OS(l
ep, 7,350 ' p, ,,"ven top.." worth
gp eoeh.
DUNGEON 21
TORTLES OFTHEPURPLE SAGE - Port 2
As you top of the
pyramid, t wo huge bro',;n bIrd. l'\lsh
to tho oky in a flurry off.atho,.. ..nd
dry .wiff" Th. V.n' hil'(l. of p""y
wh",, 1t<l " tt. ok wilh talon. ""dy.
This io tho oMt of a mated pair of
lI'I"nl h",,' lro. Thoro i , no t",.,u", in
t.hir n."'" hnf th.r. aro t.wo. gg<'-",io.
t.he 'izo ofa man '. head, ",,,dy to hatch.
The giant hawks defend their eggs to
the death,
By{,,1 Muund
Aoyou appro. oh the top of the
flYl'amid , you "an ....
n",,'.'. intl'rtwined ""anoh"".
creat ur e, wit h the $haggy head of a
!ton and the I:old body of a dragon.
lies sleepinl: on a pile of . ilver
and coin.,
Any PCwithin 120' "'tm.
when it ro.,.. mum make a Savim: Throw
VOl. Dr"l(OD Breath or fl.., in fuar for t wu
,<lUllu". TI", drubUlJlI. 'O """. deaf", ,. auy
croalw-eowllhin 30', Deafened creaturo.
ouffer a -2 penalty 10their hit roll, for 2-
12 toundo, The dro.gonneCAn TO..,. M<e
evocy three roun&, hut CllnrlOl bite in lbo
8IImo round t hat it roat3. Thi, dragonno'.
ncot. oontnin.. a h<>l>rd of 1,000 gp, 2,000
cp, and 5,000 ep.
If the PC, roach t ho> pyramid top ond
dol""1 ar driv" olJ tho nost buildors ,
,..,ad tM lollowingo
From the pyramid'. top, you ..,.
the . ubble of " ruino<! eity ett'Ctehing
out in all diroetlon.. Six briel< and
debris litlcred .tr""t" radiale from
tho oarth monnd'a ba... to tho oity' ,
out.r adg"., You plainly '.0 t wo
lamt, un.worvmg pathll I.ading out
of ' ighl lrom tho out.r and' oft",o of
tlla .tr!to. Th lon.g, 5' wid. pRthS
a"" nifficnl'." iI"""nn
My.lcrlOUSpot h<, Vl.,bl. only from
high in tho air or from tho .arth UlOund
top, ,0nn'>Ct I""t . " i ,," Only PCs
who look down from , II<! .Art,h mnund
tap or fly allea" ao' Ihe lin.. ate
to _tham
PCs who investigate t he lines find
path. mad. by away . t une. ta
",,,""I ""i1. Ao ""il io
color !Ill t he rocks , the paths au onlY
22 Issue NO. 7
fuoo" ered when t he ditTerente in tex,
t ure is noted from above. On the Lost
Ruin. Map. tho axle nd tho '!-reat .
fwm the muu"d',
b""" in t he dir ections mark.d A, 8 , C,
D, E, and F,
The patM arO man'mado, not magical,
and do not devinte i'om b<ing perfectly
straight more than a few yard s in a
milo, Th. !"'tM pnM ovor all
terrnin, vegotation, ond b=iorn, Thoy
out through forest " aero"" rive,.", up
hills, and 0""" r oning gra,:,.land. The
path, had a roligiollO. ignifioallO<l to t lla
anci ent people who ""r"leh.d Ih.m oul,
S""", lin oor""'pond with tho l'i'poT!
direct,ons oftb. mag,cal gat e
Th. p.th ,.., _n ton_hpgth. loOl
r"iM nn of Gl'I'M
I..nd.
Dmuya PatM,
The paths extend 10 the ea. l-northeast
and to the .southeam, The path ta Yluak
(E) in"""",,!.>;
mound about 150 miles from either oity.
The paU, te Bylot (F) intersect. a illouud
ohalH'd like two oemi<irde' about 400
mile. from Dtn vya,
Bylol PalM,
The I"' th, elflcnd 10 thc ,.,ut hwo. t and
oonaeoting Bylot with
Drovya (e) and Ynzak (D), Halfway
botwoon Bylot and Dtavya, the path
inte:roectoan . arth mound . hap<><! iik.
two ..",i,irol"., A t ertle. haped mound
on th<l path fro'" Hy!ot to Yll.2ak lioo
obout mil from oilh... city.
Pnlh.
t<l t.honorth"""" and north_
west connect Y""al< with Bylot (A) and
fBI. E.th In,,,r _ t. an
earthen mound (<00 Dra"ya and Bylat
paths above),
Concluding the Adventure
TIte mall)' pos:liblo Ollie"""" for thi .
advent""" all of which pwbo,bly ....ult in
the PQl returning II) ci"ilization ""haost,
ed from ""!<king <""""""",ntry (pel'hapa
""""ralli"",.), If they Ilurvivodthe trip
bot woro in finding lbe
mouth of the Great Northway, they may
w""t to l'O<lt up, "'provision thc=lvw.
and -...h Iftho ad". nt""","
not)'lrt oxplcrod th" ruinod cilia<, the
enooutage them tomount an expe'
dition to the Yll.2ak stePP"" an<! Hylot
Hill" as the """,ani. of umavohng the
my.."", "Pr:irUlI. ' (I R"""'l'I"M"
rival evOll those offeredfur a map ro the
mouth ollbe Great NorthWllY.
at eIther venlllre
",ward>. If tho adventurers return 10
<iviliz.d purl wilh
the mouth of the Great Northway, they
or. commu..lone<! to ,'eturl< a"d
the oontin""t '. hearllaud, and may he
"",t to flnd the sout<e of the Groat
Northway in the land of Frost heven.Jf
the PC. learn tho oeeret ei operat ing
the gale gtoneo, lbey hnve a t aot io<>!
advantago ior defeating- the Chneti e
Alliance of aranea, snappel1l, and the
Chaetie Si'lorllood. The """""t of tlu>
gatt ono,' <>p<trntien i. almo. t beyond
pr ie<>; b<>lh m,,,..,,,,,,,t, and sail"" will hid
agal""t each other for tblS valuable
knowl..Ige. If. in addition, the PC.
,...'"rn wit," pi"""" of tort,l.
'''.y .011 thorn for " good
price in any aiz;eable WV>1l or city. f.I
QuiCK Fix
,
The ...!:ion .hown h.... appear.d
on Mep 1, 42, ofissue '6,
"Enwi ... of'J'hynt; ." Lo only n
l{eUoyic IeIm for the K"OKl'aphical
a.-en, uel a . lat oment of polili cal
nlality, Th. countri in this
"'gien are independent, ""ve",ign
nationo, not undor the Thyatian
Empire'. conlrol , The Empire
oont rols only t he shaded area on
the map and moot
llU'g<I island 10 t h" east (tho of
lliw,"
Great Northway Lands Encounter Tables
Rollld6 and refer to this table to determine which moniter b"ble to check.
Woodo, runs,
'"
mea r; Grala nd Valley, .. River Sw"",p
Oe".... JunKIe
i Animal :Anlmal Animal
lli"". lli"".
A.,"",
a Anillllll
lli_

Flyer Flyer Animal
a lli..,. Flyer
'''''
"'"
Swimmee Dr"ll<>n
,
Flyer ","0

Swimmer Swimmer
on"
,
Thib. on",
Swimmer Swimmer Swimmer Thibc
s Unu.ua.l Unu.ual .. Thib. Thibe Thibc
A.nimalo
Ha......n.
'"
a u r; Gr "".I" nd Wood. Hiver Valley, HiUe Jungle
,
Ca""iHa R"" r, bl""k
A"",,"M, giant C... dli. C....,iH..
a 1'loII, Mrmal ('",ntip'lllo ru....pu. mari"" Dr"ll"n"" Centipe<l.
a
""'"". draft
fl<>.;l
(' '''''' j' ""1';4 Dog, Ml'rna l Drag<>Tl""

Ko""e, war IloiI, normal Gray"",,,, HOT,"" draft

WOTm
s Purple worm Owl bear Rat,oormal Horoe,war Rat, nOl'mal
e RUBl rno""ter Rust ll1fIoster ThmIlte. fwlh Ru", mnmrt.'" R"... mon""'r

Valley,
rae Cleou-, Gr.. ...h...111 WlMJdo, Riv"r, Sw" mp BliI''''''', Hill. Ocea n
i
"""'"'
Araue.. c...y"",n Derviah" Snapper
a Lupin
Dervl""
Cay. men Lupin" s"ap",,"
a Native Lupin Caymen
Nati"" SnaPP""

Nomad'
Nati""
""",
Nomad Snapper

0"
Pagan
- "
""
Snapper
a Pngnn" Phandon Torlle Pagan Snapper
7 Rakasta
""'...
""
R...... SMppe<
a -,. -,.
""
'lbrtl..
.Snap
E"".pt in Ya=!< St.ppoo. Roll <>gain.
!o:x","pt in ByJot Hi ll. and Dry Fl ..t.. RoJi again.
Unu.ual.
l<UO All Thrraina Id12 AU 1"l'1'Dln.
,
Dragonfl y, bI""k
,
Dji oni, lesser
a Dr..gonfly, bit,. a Doppl.gang<>r
,
Dragonfly, green a
F.f. aati , 1... _

Dragonlly. i old

Golem, amber
s Dragonfly, red s Golern, bone

Dr"llunfly, wbile e Gulem. bro"".

7 Hawk, IlUl"mnl
,
lnviloihltal ker
a Hawk, e . (atua, cry_WI
s P<>ckel dral[<>n s Uviug lItnluo, isu"
ro P""ket draR<>n ro . tat ue, rock
ri lIYPllo. nake
ie Shadow
SwimmeTl!l
'"
RiverlLake Swomp Oeea"
t AmO$ba, giant AmO$ba, giant Amoeba, giant
,
Am""ba, giant AmoeM, giant Deo.apll., merino
a Uray..,..
U""ap"", fuh, giant rock
,
Gray "".. G.-ayo<>u Ui ant, . torm
s Hydra, "'0 Gr..y OM. G,.y""".
"
Thrmit" , f",. h ""'Tmito, _ omp Tonalte, It
Dra gona
Uelll'lBanen,
".
Gr"""lands Woods/Jungle River/Ocean Ilwamp
,
Chi"",ra Chimera Chimera ChImera Chimera
a
Dra""", bl"" Dragon. black Dral<l1l1. itl ld
a DralOOO, guloJ Drag<.JIl, I:Tcrn Dragan, gold Dragon, red

Hvdra, D,a20nne
s Hydr a, lIyd...., Hy,.lo'a, ""e H"oJ, n. nyu", Hydra , n Vi"ll
,
Wyvfff n Wyveru Wyvo..,
Wyvern W.vvern
COMBINE D MONSTER STATISTI CS TABLE
N_
AC HO Move
'"
Dm, ,.- m AL S.. .. ,..,.
'Atnoe1>.a':"giw

,.
15 - 30'(10' ) I ""idie t nu. h 212
-
F7 -10 N C, ,,,,
." . allea
, ,..
18[),{60'), in w.b 120 \401 I bite 1-6 + !,,>ioou Mt13
,
C
""
Bear. black
. '
_ 4_J2O'(40' ) 2elaw.n. bito>
Li 3-lJSIJ.-S __
_ F>
-'-
N ass
Caeoili a e
,.
6O'(2()' ) 1 bit<
"
Fe e N
'"
Cay.man
,
a
OO'(3()')
I bit< or weapon 14 or BWT F> .. N ccaa
Centip<de, giant
,
"
60'(2 0') 1 bite
Poi""" NM
,
N sse
Chil>1l!Ts,:""e
,
-"2Q'{t o'l:'!1y'180'(601 _ 2 daWilS heads + b,.-ath-l.:l1\.3I2-&'lCloo.I2"+"3-18 -F9- 9- C - E47
Dee.pw, .......in. s A S' (I ' )
9wntllcl 1-6 ea. F>
,
C
"""""
V@
J 121Y{4lYl :
. ..hi. .... l ..""poD
<BWT.,
_ Ft-lO-L_F..53
Devil.wine 3 (9) ,-
180'(00'). hu"",.. 120'(40) 1 lIOn or ...apen 112o:rBWT rs W C
'" Dire wolf e ... lSO'(W') 1 bite a-a sa
,
N ass
1_,
,
7 +1* OO'(3[)'), fly 240'18O'j 1 list or whirlwind + sp<tei..l 2-16 fiot or 2-] 2 whirlwind
'"
ra C
'"
"'"
- 1 bite' - 'f-8"- .- --Pt - 8/6'- N - e CI

, ,.
OO'(3(1l I blow 112 sa a C ..
n.,-.\>JoIrk
a 1/ ' 00'<.30'),. fly 3iO'(8(I' ) 2 elaw.ol1 bile
Dragon, blue n
,- OO'(3tl'), fly 240'{8(I'
:I .'" wllll bile 27127!3-30
,
N

Dragon, gold -, 11** 00'(30'), tl y 240' (8(1') 2 0:"",1IIl bite 2-81285-;16 Fn W L

Dr.goll, gtreD
,
,- 00'(30'), fly 240' (80' ) 2 cl"ws! ]bite 1-6/1';;" S-24 ra
,
C .aaa
'io.g.iJi,-poeliet

kNr"l- MUS- 9 -N'"' CC15

Dr"l:"n, N<! -, 10*- 9-3'(30 '), flv 240' 2 olaWlll hite
,,,
ro C

,Dr!,goaily, bl'\.C"
,
__ , ! bit:el l ' -6013 ..
Dragoaily, blue
-,
" ,
6{}'(20'1, fly 1 blWl lightnillg breath 1-6/4
"
s N
Dragonl1y, gold
-,
,.,
1.l'(201, fly 240'(80' 1 1 bite'l g... or fi,.., breath
,,,.
ss s N N_
DragonOy>green c A 6{}'(20'), fly 240' (801 1 blte' l g... bre" t h 16/4
"
s N CC64
'DriogollOY, ..,.j !:-2
f5 _ 6O'(M')", tJy 24lJ'(80')'
'1 blM r>t<H relllh 1-815 Fli- 9 - N

Dragonfly, white a a Oy 240' (tI01 1 blt.e!l <:old br eath
W,
ss e N
,Drag""..., a
,-
' 5QXW l 2.olawill bite or. roar )..liJ14'4-24 F 8_ 8 _N_ CC&6
Efroeti,l_ a ,W 00'(30'), Oy 240'
,
2-16
,,,
ra C
'" Fish, giant ro<k
,
5 +5" 180(60) 4..,i n 14 ..... .. poiaon
"
s N
'"
Giant, storm a 15*" 15(1'(50') 1 + speci.1 8-48 + .F>!ci..l
,,,
W L E50
'G<>lerir:'amb<!:r e .t o*- tW161)') ....nMt.ti _
-
2-12.'212.'220
=
E50
Go1...., bo".
,
,-
: 20'(401 4 ... apo", .W,
"
ra N
E"

O_ ,W':""UO'@Oi! ] J:"Wl. FlO-,2 _N_ E50
Gray """. a
,- LO'(S') ] acidic wuch a-e sa ra N
'"
H.",k, giant
,
..,
] 01.... r.s sa

N CCl6
Hawk, normal a

1 claw
,.,
NM
,
N eC1S
'Hem;;.; dm/t.
.,.-
- 3 -:3't{2()').
Nil ' Nil p'!' -6-N" ESt'
H""",. r1dinr;:
,
a 120'(40' l
2 """"'..
I-Itl -l
"
,
N EM
, 8-...", 7 3_120'(401;),
""",q
].51)";
F2......9 _ N
'"
Hydra , Oyil1ll s 59'* 60'{20')
,.,
1-10 ..... + "",,"i..l F5 t2 n N
Hydra , sea
,
59 " 1200(40') 5L2 1-10 .... . F5 12 n N E52
Hypn06nake
,
,-
1 hite or 1 gat<!;Ini l 1-8 or.l..p; I-1O
MU'
a C CC70
] nVisibl. sWkei'
, ,.
- 1:HI0(40'}
1b1.....-
.."
--*-
F3 ' -12'- N - E52
Lw;ng statll'l, orystal
,
e 900(30'.' 2 hi" ... HIl1S PO n r. B32
,LiYi!>istat"". i>n
a l"._SO\HI? 2j>1""", _ 1-811.8 _ PO
ass,
Lw;ng """t".., rook
, ,.
2 IIl.agn>O jets 2_1212_12
"
n C BS2
Lup in

a 120H 01
I ""'''pOn
nwr sa a L CC39
Menenory
,
a 12or40')
I we"pOn

"
s N
NlIt!Ye'"
,

1'bow- -
-
- BWT poison
---Fr-
,
V "'CC4]
N_.
,
1_ 120\ 40 ').

-
"

rc
EO'
i

j
h
n
H

z
THE
DJINNI'S
RING
BYVINCE GARCIA
A djinni in need can
be trouble, indeed.
Artwork by Daniel R. Horne
24 Issue NO.9
Vince Garcia's 20-year dream ofsalvag-
ing the Titanic was recently crushed.
Nevertheless, he continues to send in
module proposals and is a frequent
contributor to DRAGON@ Magazine.
Vince is designing the thief, assassin,
and merchant guilds for the Living City
in POLYHEDRON"', the magazine of the
Role-Playing Game Association'" Net-
work. In his spare time, Vince's main
interests in life are Stevie Nicks, Jan
and Dean, and Victoria Principal. Look
for more ofhis work in DUNGEON'"
Adventures soon.
"The Djinni's Ring" is a Basic D&D@
scenario for a single player taking the
role of Moonstone, a 3rd-Ievel elf caught
up in an Arabian Nights adventure.
This module is presented in a format
new to DUNGEON Adventures - no
Dungeon Master required! The text
directs you through numbered sections
based on Moonstone's actions and the
results of combat. It is also possible to
use one of your own D&D characters, or
even an AD&D@ fighter/magic-user, but
there may be some conflict between the
actions your character attempts and the
choices given. If so, use your own good
judgment to determine the results in
each situation, and follow the paths of
success or failure as Moonstone would.
At times your character will be called
upon to test a characteristic such as
Strength or Dexterity to determine
success in a particular task. 1b do so,
roll three six-sided dice (3d6); a score
equal to or less than the characteristic
indicates success.
When an initiative roll is called for in
combat, roll one six-sided die (ld6) for
each side in the fight; the side rolling
the higher number attacks first.
1b determine whether you hit your
foe, roll a 20-sided die (ld20). Ifthe total
is equal to or higher than the roll
required to hit the monster (as listed in
the text), your blow connects. Now roll
one six-sided die and add 1 point
(ld6 +1) to see how many points of dam-
age you have inflicted. Deduct this
number from the total hit points listed
for the monster. When the creature's hit
points reach zero, you have killed it!
The monster, of course, is also attack-
ing you. Roll attacks alternately after
the first initiative roll, and deduct any
damage inflicted on you from your total.
If your hit points reach zero ... well,
you can always start again and try a
different path.
Saving Throws:
Death Ray or Poison: 12
Magic Wands: 13
Paralysis or Turn to Stone: 13
Dragon Breath: 15
Rods or Staves: 15
Spells: 14
Armor Class: 5 (leather armor)
Hit points: 15
Chance to find secret or concealed
doors: 1 or 2 on Id6
Weapons:
Normal sword (Dmg 1-8), silver dag-
ger (Dmg 1-4), short bow and quiver
with 10 arrows (Dmg 1-6).
Equipment:
Leather armor, backpack, flask of oil,
visible. Then your name is called again,
and you realize it comes from your ring,
which emits a ghostly white glimmer-
ing in the moon's radiance.
"Who are you?" you ask in surprise.
"I am Rafii," comes the soft answer,
"a djinni whose soul was long ago
divided and bound into two rings by
Abu Iblis, master of dark sorceries. For
years, he forced me to obey his com-
mands, until his enemies at last ended
his reign of evil by sealing him alive
within a chamber of his ivory palace far
away in the great desert. In the battle,
his right hand - and the ring you now
wear - was sundered from him, and I
fell to a succession of owners until you
took me from the bandits.
"Because I sense you are one of good
heart, I have revealed my existence to
you, to beg your help in setting me free.
Ifyou are willing, I can take you to Abu
Iblis's palace. There you could free me
by finding the chamber in which Abu
Iblis died, joining the two rings, and
reuniting me with my other half.
"I will not lie to you, and I warn you
that the palace may yet be guarded by
the remnants of his evil sorceries. But
while there may be great danger, there
may also be great reward for you if you
succeed in your quest. I have thus
revealed my secret, which I have kept
from all the others who have owned me
- those who did evil or were selfish or
Moonstone
3rd-Ievel Lawful Elf
Saving Throws are made by rolling a
20-sided die (1d20). A throw is success-
ful if it is equal to or above the number
for that type of Saving Throw on Moon-
stone's character sheet.
Keep a separate tally of any damage
taken as a result of poison, disease, or
heat exposure. Opportunities may arise
to heal these types of injuries in this
adventure.
Most adjustments for ability scores
have been already been added to Moon-
stone's statistics or otherwise taken into
account in this adventure, but don't
forget to add 1 point to the elf's damage
rolls to reflect above average Strength.
Adventure Background
Nearly two years ago, you left your
home in the Canolbarth Forest and
joined a party of adventurers to seek
your fortune. For a time, there was
much adventure to be had within the
Grand Duchy of Karameikos, but the
discovery of a treasure map eventually
led your group to the deserts of the far-
away Emirates of Ylaruam, where
adventuring was much different from
back home.
The harsh, merciless environment
was like nothing you had ever experi-
enced, and soon you longed for home.
When the opportunity presented itself,
you explained your feelings to your
friends and bid them farewell. Refusing
to take a magical sword offered you
because the party had greater need of it,
you asked for nothing more than money
enough to get home - and a bandit
chieftain's moonstone ring fashioned in
the shape of a cobra.
After many days of travel across the
hot sands, you began the long sea jour-
ney home, eventually landing in the
port of Serendib, one of the cities of the
Minrothad Guilds. With a three-day
wait until the next vessel sailed for the
city of Specularum, you paid for lodg-
ings in one of the city's better inns.
Wearied from the long, restless voyage,
you stored most of your gear in a closet
and collapsed into bed, falling deeply
asleep.
With a start, you awake, certain that
someone has called your name. Grasp-
ing the hilt of the silver dagger you
always keep beneath your pillow, you
turn to see who has entered your room.
The entire chamber is bathed in the
silvery light ofthe full moon gleaming
through an open window, yet no one is
S
13
I
16
W
14
D
16
C Ch
13 14
THE DJINNI'S RING
too faint of heart to aid me.
"And I would tell you last of all that,
because I am separated from the other
half of my soul, my powers are weak
and may be used only during the times
of full moon. Even so, I am empowered
to aid you one time if you call upon me
- but do so wisely, for the cost to both of
us could be great. Will you now aid this
unwilling slave to be set free?"
Goto 1.
1
"I don't care about any reward;' you
reply. "I wouldn't want to be a slave,
bound in a ring. I'm willing to help you,
but are you certain I can do the job?
And how will I find the room that holds
the other half of the ring?"
"Your courage alone is a great weap-
on;' the ring replies. "Use it together
with wisdom, and no enemy will prevail
over you. As to the chamber holding my
other self, I am blinded to its location. I
know only that it lies within the palace
where I shall take you. Now hurry! My
power weakens with the dawn, and we
have far to go before then. Step onto the
carpet lying before your bed."
Looking down at the foot of the bed,
you see a carpet some 6' long and 4'
wide. Ifyou obey the djinni and immedi-
ately step onto the carpet, go to 10. If
you get dressed first and retrieve your
equipment, go to 13.
mirror, one week's iron rations, two
full waterskins, 50' rope with grap-
pling hook, three small sacks, 12 iron
spikes, a small hammer, tinder box,
two torches, spare tunic and boots,
spare dagger, spell book.
Valuables:
Moonstone ring valued at 500 gp;
purse containing 30 pp, 15 gp, 12 sp.
Spells: Two first-level spells and one
second-level spell from the spell book
below. Choose wisely. Moonstone
may not have the opportunity to
change these spells during the course
of the adventure.
Spell book:
First Level Spells: Detect magic,
magic missile, read languages, read
magic, sleep.
Second-level spells: knock, levitate,
mirror image, web.
DUNGEON 25
THE DJINNI'S RING
2
As you near the city, it becomes clear
that once many people must have lived
here, for there are remains of quite a
few structures, although most of the
smaller buildings have fallen to rubble
from the long period of neglect. While
passage is somewhat difficult as most
streets are filled with rubble, the wide
stone avenue you are now approaching
extends almost unobstructed to the
intact pyramid.
If you want to explore the areas of
rubble, go to 28. Ifyou would rather
explore the area around the pyramid, go
to 16. Ifyou turn around and walk east
in the direction the carpet was last
heading, go to 6.
3
You're not going to risk life and limb
on anything that's not directly related
to the quest - the city's probably haunt-
ed anyway! The carpet, meanwhile,
continues on toward the rising sun, and
eventually heads downward, landing
upon a sand dune.
"We are here:' comes Rafii's voice. "The
palace lies beyond this mountain of sand.
With the dawn, I weaken and can give
you little aid. If you find the chamber
containing my other self, place the rings
together and command my release, and I
shall be freed. But be wise - the enchant-
ments yet protecting the palace may
prove deadly. Proceed cautiously, and may
fortune smile upon our quest:'
Goto 40.
4
Curiosity has always been one of your
traits, and this is too good an opportuni-
ty to miss. If you climb the rope hang-
ing down from the opening, go to 34. If
you prefer to use your own rope and
grapple, go to 12. Ifyou have memo-
rized a levitate spell and wish to use it,
go to 42.
5
The gallery leads you 30' into the
pyramid before you discover it has been
sealed off with gigantic blocks of lime-
stone weighing many tons. But to the
side, a small passage has been chiseled
away. Squeezing through and upward,
you discover another gallery, the floor of
which must be the tops of the limestone
blocks preventing passage from below.
Youcontinue on for about 100' until you
reach a dead end where another tight
passage leads down, presumably beyond
26 IssueNo.9
the obstruction. Youhave a very uncom-
fortable feeling.
If you wish to continue exploring, go
to 18. Ifyou decide that whatever evil
doubtlessly awaits can go on waiting
while you leave the pyramid, go to 25.
6
You begin what you hope will not be
too long a walk, for the sun is rapidly
becoming unbearable. Check your Intel-
ligence. If the roll is successful, go to 40.
Otherwise, go to 23.
7
Youfind yourself looking at a giant
scorpion behind a mound of rubble. It
notices you and begins to approach,
pincers clacking and needle-sharp tail
quivering.
Ifyou draw your sword and fight, go
to 11. If you prefer to cast a sleep spell,
go to 17. Ifyou'd rather cast a mirror
image spell and attack, go to 15. Or, if
you call on Rafii for aid, go to 19.
8
Youswing your trusty blade in the
mummy's face, but your blows glance
impotently off the supernaturally pow-
erful creature. Ifyou now use your torch
against the mummy, go to 43. Ifyou
have picked up the glowing sword and
try it against the foul monster, go to 26.
Or maybe you should call on Rafii for
aid (go to 19).
9
The scorpion swarms at you with its
pincers and deadly tail. Dodging as best
you can, you make several lunges at it,
each failing to penetrate the creature's
thick body armor. Then, at last, you
discover a soft spot in the chitin and,
making a perfectly timed lunge, you
thrust your sword upward through its
jaw and into the brain cavity.
For a moment, the monster stares at
you with unseeing eyes. Then it falls to
the ground with a thud. Youprod it
with the toe of your boot to satisfy your-
self that it is quite dead, then proceed to
search the area.
Your scrutiny reveals no treasure of
any sort. If you now choose to explore
near the pyramid, go to 16. Ifyou think
it's time to leave the city and head east,
go to 6.
10
Swiftly, the carpet rises and floats out
the window. "I hope you know that I
don't have any of my gear:' you call out
while grasping tightly to the edges of
the rug.
The djinni in the ring chuckles. "You
didn't think I would ask you to face Abu
Thlis's palace in your nightclothes, I
hope? Look back:'
Glancing behind, you notice your pack
and the rest of your gear floating in
mid-air. Keeping one hand tightly
secured to the carpet, you snag every-
thing and start to dress.
"Remember:' Rafii warns, "my
powers weaken with the coming of
dawn, but I can aid you one time. May
your quest be successful for us both:'
Goto 31.
11
Yourealize that this is a fearsome foe,
but your sword arm has never failed
you yet. Roll for initiative and begin
combat. The scorpion needs an 11 to hit
you. It makes two attacks with its pin-
cers for 1-10 hit points damage each,
along with 1-4 hit points damage from
its stinging tail. If you are stung, you
must make a Saving Throw vs. Poison
or take 8 additional hit points of dam-
age. Youneed to roll 16 or higher to hit
the scorpion, which has 16 hit points.
Ifyou kill the scorpion, go to 9. Ifthe
scorpion kills you, go to 108. If the fight
looks hopeless and you decide to call on
Rafii for help, go to 19.
12
Check your Dexterity to snag the
grapple on a secure anchorage. Ifyou
succeed, go to 42. If your Dexterity fails
you, try the hanging rope (go to 34), use
a levitate spell (go to 42), or give up and
head eastward (go to 6).
13
"First things first:' you answer. "It
wouldn't do to go on an adventure in my
nightclothes with nothing more than a
dagger! You'll have to wait a minute:'
After dressing and hurriedly grabbing
your things, you jump aboard and bare-
ly have time to toss a platinum piece
onto the bed to cover the carpet's cost as
you lift up from the floor and begin
moving out the window.
"At least you could have waited for
me to put my boots on:' you exclaim,
peering down upon the darkened city.
"There is no time to waste:' the djinni
answers. "Before the dawn comes and
my powers wane, I want to make sure
you arrive safely at Abu Iblis's ivory
palace. But at worst, I shall at least get
you near it:'
Goto 20.
14
The hieroglyphics read, "The hand of
death be upon those who disturb the
sleep of the entombed:' Goback to 37
and decide what to do next.
15
Several mirror images of yourself
appear, confusing the scorpion so that
you may make two free attacks before
rolling initiative. Goto 11 and conduct
combat.
16
As you draw near the pyramid, you
discover something interesting. An
opening exists halfway up the structure,
from which hangs an old rope. The
bones of a few camels lie on the ground
below the pyramid, where they appar-
ently were securely tethered and then
abandoned.
Ifyou try to find a way up the pyra-
mid, go to 4. If you'd rather leave the
city and head east, go to 6.
17
With the calm you've learned from
hard experience, you intone a droning
series of syllables even as the scorpion
advances toward you. Then, just as it
rears up to strike, the creature sinks
downward into the sand and lies still.
Quickly, you bury your sword in its
head. After satisfying yourself that
the scorpion is quite dead, you search
the area but find no treasure. If you
choose to explore near the pyramid, go
to 16. If you decide to leave the city, go
to 6.
18
Nervously, you creep down, coming
out before a large copper doorway with
many strange hieroglyphs and symbols
etched into its surface. Three wax seals
upon the door have been broken, and a
rope binding the double door handles
has been cut and tossed aside.
Prepared for danger, you pull one of
the handles and the door pivots open. In
the torchlight, you see the remains of
four tomb robbers spread around a stone
sarcophagus at the chamber's center.
Next to the doorway lies a glowing
sword.
If you go in and search the bodies, go
to 32. Ifyou retrieve the sword and
depart, go to 27. Ifyou decide to exam-
ine the sarcophagus, go to 37.
19
Instantly, a whirlwind engulfs you,
carrying you out of the city and high
into the sky. Over the desert you sail
until you are deposited before what is
obviously Abu Iblis's ivory palace.
"You should have avoided the city;'
Rafii's feeble voice speaks. "I am great-
ly weakened now, and I fear my
strength will not return until I am
reunited with my other self. I can do no
more now than wish you luck. When
you find the other portion of the ring,
place the two together and command
my release. Then I shall be free:'
With that, Rafii's voice fades away,
leaving you alone. Goto 40.
20
Youfly all night on the carpet, cross-
ing the sea and penetrating deep into
the deserts you so eagerly departed just
a few days ago. Then, as dawn starts to
break ahead of you, the carpet begins to
shake and quickly loses altitude. Hold-
ing on for dear life, you are unceremoni-
ously dumped on top of a sand dune.
While shaking the sand from your
clothes, you notice the remnants of an
ancient city below you. There is no sign
of any ivory palace, but at the center of
the city lies an intact pyramid amid the
ruins of what may have been temples.
If you decide to explore the city go to
2. Ifyou start walking eastward, the
direction the carpet was flying before it
crashed, go to 6.
21
With a grating sound, the lid begins
to slide away. Then, to your horror, a
bandaged hand reaches out from the
coffin and grabs hold of your arm. Make
a Saving Throw vs. Paralysis. If you
fail, you are paralyzed with fear for one
round, allowing the mummy to attack
first. Ifyour Saving Throw is successful,
roll initiative and conduct combat.
The mummy needs a 9 to hit you, and
makes a single attack per round which
does 1-12 hit points damage. In addi-
tion, a successful attack transmits a
disease which prevents your wounds
from being magically healed. Youmust
roll 15 or higher to hit the mummy. It
has 15 hit points.
Ifyou attack with your own sword, go
to 8. If you have the glowing sword, go
to 26. If you swing your torch at the
THE DJINNI'S RING
mummy, go to 43. If you call on Rafii for
aid, go to 19.
22
Inside the sarcophagus you discover a
golden headband fashioned - like your
ring - in the shape of a cobra. A copper
scepter capped by a golden eagle lies on
a mouldering pillow. As you grasp the
scepter, knowledge comes to you that it
holds several clerical spells which you
may cast at your desire (remember to
cross off each one after it is cast):
Resist fire
Snake charm
Cure serious wounds (heals 2d6 +2 hit
points damage)
Striking (Youmay cast this spell on a
weapon of your choice prior to any com-
bat. For five rounds of combat, the
weapon will do an additional 1-6 hit
points damage on each successful hit.
The spell duration expires after one
hour).
Goto 25.
23
Unlike the forest, there are no mossy
trees here to help you tell the direction
you're heading, and soon you begin to
stray. The heat is made bearable only
DUNGEON 27
THE DJINNI'S RING
by sipping water as you trudge along,
but you soon realize you have been
drinking too much. Cross one waterskin
off your list. Ifyou have no more water,
take 2 hit points damage from exposure.
If your hit points fall to zero or lower, go
to lOS. Ifyou still survive, go back to 6
and check your Intelligence again.
24
The carpet obeys your command to
land and gently sets down on the out-
skirts of an ancient city abandoned
perhaps for centuries. Most of the build-
ings are now rubble, yet at the center of
the city rises an intact pyramid.
If you want to explore the city, go to 2.
If you think it is better to forget the city
and fly on, go to 29.
25
You make it back to the outside with-
out incident. It is now early afternoon,
and you pause to take a drink of water
before fastening your grappling hook
and descending. Evidently, you've been
sipping without noticing, for the
waterskin is now empty. Cross it off
your list, leaving you a single
waterskin. You free your grapple with a
flick of your wrist, coil your rope, and
begin walking east, the last direction
the carpet was heading. Goto 6.
26
The sword does half damage against
the creature, with a +1 bonus to hit
and to damage. Ifyou kill the mummy,
go to 46. If the mummy kills you, go to
lOS. Ifyou wish to call on Rafii's aid, go
to 19.
27
Through the glow, you can see that
the sword is quite plain. A simple
. leather-wrapped hilt and steel quillon
are attached to a thin, flexible blade.
(This sword gives you a +1 bonus to hit
and to damage.) Add the sword to your
list of weapons and go to 25.
28
As you move through the fallen
masonry, nothing of special interest is
apparent. Roll one six-sided die (ld6).
On a score of 1 or 2, go to 35. Ifyou roll
3 or higher, go to 7.
29
"I'm not here to explore dead cities:'
you say to yourself as you step aboard
the carpet again. But now, with the
28 Issue No.9
sun's arrival, the carpet quivers weakly,
evidently unable to fly.
If you step off again and explore the
city, go to 2. Ifyour judgment tells you
to start walking in the direction the
carpet was flying, go to 6.
30
Your backtracking returns you to the
avenue leading to the pyramid. If you
explore the area around the pyramid, go
to 16. If you leave the city and walk
east, go to 6.
31
Hour after hour passes, and as you
look down it seems as though you have
been flying over the sea forever, for
you're certain that you detect waves
and whitecaps below. Finally, however,
the first signs of dawn appear ahead,
and in the pale light you realize you
have crossed the sea and have been
flying over an expanse of rolling desert.
The carpet still flies well, and as the
sun begins to appear on the horizon, you
notice the remnants of some sort of city
lying below.
If you attempt to land and investigate,
go to 24. Ifyou decide to keep going, go
to 3.
32
The robbers must have discovered this
tomb fairly recently, for their corpses
are still bloated and rotting. It takes
only a few minutes for you to decide
that the bodies contain nothing of val-
ue. The glowing sword near the door-
way catches your eye as you turn away,
so you thrust it through your belt next
to your own sheathed blade. Add it to
your list of weapons.
Ifyou want to examine the sarcopha-
gus now, go to 37. Ifyou've had quite
enough of the smell and only wish to
leave, turn to 25.
33
The "ivory palace:' you notice, is
really made of bleached limestone
attractively decorated with mosaic tiles.
On approaching the gateway in the
wall, you discover its thick iron portcul-
lis has been battered down and lies on
the ground before you. As you step
through the opening, you feel a magical
tingle play over your skin.
Beyond the fallen portcullis, a long pool
faces the palace, reflecting its silver dome
within shimmering blue waters. Ringing
the pool are several stone benches. 1b
either side of you, two wings of the palace
fronted by open, roofed galleries extend
up to the towers in the wall. Each tower
has an entryway at ground level through
which you can see a flight of winding
stairs. Goto 52.
34
The rope seems old and tattered, but
it will probably hold your light weight.
Youmake it almost all the way up and
are getting ready to swing onto the
ledge before the opening when the rope
finally parts.
'Thst your Strength to hold onto the lip
of the ledge and climb over. If you are
strong enough, go to 42. If your Strength
roll fails, you slip and fall, plummeting
toward the ground 100' below. With cer-
tain death a heartbeat away, you call on
Rafii for help. Goto 19.
35
As you pause for a moment, your keen
hearing detects a snapping and scraping
sound on the other side of a large pile of
rubble. If you investigate, go to 7. Ifyou
prefer to retreat cautiously, go to 30.
36
Through an open archway in the left
wing of the palace, you discover a well
filled with water! Drinking from the
well will cure all damage you have
suffered from thirst and heatexposure.
You may also fill both your waterskins
if you wish. Goto 53.
37
Approaching the sarcophagus, you
observe it has an outer casing of stone,
possibly protecting an inner casket
beneath its heavy lid. Hieroglyphics are
inscribed upon the lid's surface, and
lying on the floor nearby is an iron bar.
If you cast a read languages spell, go
to 14. If you use the bar to attempt to
open the sarcophagus, go to 41. If you
search the bodies for valuables before
departing, go to 32. Ifyou decide to
leave the room as it is and exit, go to 25.
38
"I am the true Rafii," a voice speaks
from the ruby as the face of a djinni
appears in the gem. "Earlier, I sensed
your arrival and knew you meant to do
good. Youcarry Abu Iblis's soul in the
tome you carry. Cast the book into the
flames and he will be destroyed!"
Not hesitating, you drop the locket,
cracking the ruby on the floor, and tear
at your pack to pull out the book. From
the fire pit, the almost-complete Abu
Iblis screams in terror as you hurl the
tome into the flames. In an instant, the
fire pit explodes, shattering the re-
forming mage like a broken mirror.
Then, from deep below the earth, a
rumbling begins and the palace starts
to shake.
The legs of the huge statue crack and
it topples forward, forcing you to duck
away from the locket holding the djinni.
You make your way back upstairs and
stagger out of the pavilion just as its
silver dome collapses inward, sealing off
the lower portions of the palace. Out-
side, the flagstone courtyard rolls like a
choppy sea, and you barely make it past
the gateway before the palace and its
grounds begin to sink beneath the des-
ert sands. The cataclysm lasts for sev-
eral minutes, and you duck low behind
a small dune in case some other explo-
sion ravages the area. Finally the din
stops, and all is quiet.
"Well done!" a voice booms.
Youlook up to see Rafii - now a 10'
humanoid whose lower portion is
formed of a shimmering whirlwind -
floating above you.
"I'm glad you're all right:' you
answer while getting to your feet.
"And I am pleased that you have
destroyed the Accursed One and set me
free! Youhave earned your reward
indeed. I cannot journey farther than
the edge of the desert, but the means is
at hand to get you home. I shall journey
with you at least as far as I may. Come!"
Go to 115.
39
Check your Dexterity. If the roll is
successful, go to 49. Otherwise, go to 59.
40
The heat of the sun is almost blister-
ing, but you trudge onward for almost
an hour. Then you climb a large hill and
pause to look down. Resting in a valley
below the sand dune you now stand
upon is a white palace. A wall sur-
rounds its perimeter, with a pair of tall,
slim towers at the two corners nearest
you. A gateway at the center apparently
allows entry onto the grounds facing the
domed palace itself, which is set back
100' from the wall. Go to 33.
41
Youpick up the iron bar, wedge it
under the lid, and try to slide the heavy
stone aside. 'Thstyour Strength. Ifthe
roll is successful, go to 21. Otherwise,
you cannot open the sarcophagus and
may either search the bodies and depart
(go to 32) or you can depart and leave
the room as it is (go to 25).
42
Youhave made it safely onto a ledge
halfway up the pyramid. Several feet
away, an aperture is roughly chiseled
into its limestone shell, and beyond
stretches a long gallery some 20' in
height and breadth. Hesitating to trust
infravision, you decide to light one of
your torches before entering. Cross one
torch off your list and go to 5.
43
As you swing the torch, you see your
opponent's wrapped appendages begin
to catch fire. Youinflict 1-6 hit points
damage with each successful hit. If you
win the fight, go to 46. If you are killed,
go to 108. If you wish to call Rafii for
help, go to 19.
44
The pool glistens in the sweltering
heat like a sparkling blue jewel reflect-
ing the palace as though its surface
were a mirror. As you approach the edge
of the pool, you can see its tiled bottom
a foot below the surface of the water.
If you taste the water (especially
tempting if you've been suffering from
heat exposure), go to 39. If you ignore
the pool and explore somewhere else,
return to 52.
45
Roll for initiative and conduct combat.
The cobras need a 14 (16 if you now
wear chain mail) to hit you. Each cobra
makes a single bite for 1-3 hit points
damage. Further, you must make a
Saving Throw vs. Poison if you are
bitten, or take an additional 2 hit points
of poison damage. Youneed to roll 11 or
higher to hit a serpent, and each has 3
hit points.
Ifyou kill all three cobras, go to 48. If
they kill you, go to 108. If you wish to
call on Rafii's aid, go to 65.
46
As you fall back against the wall,
exhausted and relieved that the mon-
ster is destroyed, you notice that the lid
THE DJINNI'S RING
of the sarcophagus has been partially
slid aside by the mummy's emergence.
If you decide to search the sarcopha-
gus, go to 22. If you'd rather search the
tomb robbers' bodies, go to 32.
47
Moving toward the right wing of the
palace, you note that quite a bit of rub-
ble litters the walkway, as though vari-
ous items were dumped onto the tiles
for inspection. It's shady here, though.
As you move to peer through a door left
slightly ajar, three snakes slither out
from a pile of refuse next to you.
Ifyou decide to fight them, go to 45. If
you have memorized a sleep spell and
would like to cast it, go to 61. If you've
found a magical scepter and would like
to use it, go to 57.
48
Youdance and dodge as you meet the
cobras attack for attack. Finally, the
last of your foes lies cut in two, quiver-
ing in its death throes.
Continuing your exploration, you
decide the right wing of the palace was
once a barracks for Abu Thlis's men-at-
arms. A few skeletons show where the
men must have fallen during battle, but
DUNGEON 29
THE DJINNI'S RING
the barracks appear to have been
already (and thoroughly) searched).
Return to 52.
49
You lean over to touch the bottom of
the pool and catch yourself before tum-
bling in. This is an illusion! There is no
water - nor a bottom within immediate
reach.
If you use your rope and grapple to
descend into the pool, to see what lies
beneath the illusion, go to 55. Ifyou'd
rather explore elsewhere, go to 52.
50
The main palace is octagonally
shaped, and you enter through an arch-
way. Its interior is an open pavilion
richly tiled in green and yellow mosaics
beneath a huge silver dome. Four sets of
bronze double doors exit the pavilion.
You quickly peek through the crack
between each set of double doors.
Behind the northwest and southwest
doors, stairs lead upward to the second
floor. The other two doors, on the north-
east and southeast, lead to stairs going
down. Across from the pavilion's entry-
way, a fifth exit leads through an arch-
way to the back of the palace grounds.
Through the arch, you can see two more
wings of the palace, each two stories
high. Will you:
- Go through the northeast doors?
(Go to 73.)
- Go through the northwest doors?
(Go to 54.)
- Go through the southeast doors?
(Go to 67.)
- Go through the southwest doors?
(Go to 69.)
- Go through the far archway and
explore the back of the palace
grounds? (Go to 56.)
51
Cautiously, you ascend the right tower
to its top. In a room at the very height
of the tower, a skeleton lies next to its
broken sword. There is nothing else of
value here, so you descend.
The left tower is similar to the right,
but totally empty. The topmost room in
this tower has an unglazed window that
looks back' into the palace grounds,
providing a good view of the entire
complex. From your lofty perch, you can
see two more wings of the palace
extending out to the rear of the two-
story structure.
Check your Intelligence. Ifthe roll is
30 Issue No.9
successful, go to 63. Otherwise, return
to 52.
52
Will you:
- Examine the pool? (Go to 44.)
- Check out the right wing of the pal-
ace? (Go to 47.)
- Check out the left wing of the palace?
(Go to 36.)
- Investigate the towers? (Go to 51.)
- Ignore everything else and head for
the main palace? (Go to 50.)
53
An opening next to the well leads to
stables and a blacksmith's shop. Near
the forge lies an ancient but complete
set of chain mail. Youmay don it, if you
wish, changing your armor class to 3.
Return to 52.
54
Through these doors, a stairway
winds up and around the northern side
of the pavilion, emerging onto a hall-
way. Several doorways lead to bed-
rooms, all ransacked and abandoned. At
the hallway's end lie a pair of broken
bronze doors leading into what you
presume was Abu Thlis's bedchamber.
Once sumptuously furnished, it now lies
in tattered ruin, its silken tapestries
and fine rugs slashed and thrown about
in disarray.
Roll one six-sided die (ld6). If the
result is 1 or 2, go to 75. Otherwise, go
to Ill.
55
Twenty feet below the lip of the pool,
you reach bottom. At the eastern end of
the pit, a passage leads forward toward
the pavilion. 'Ib either side of this tun-
nel, stairs lead up to the courtyard. The
illusion above is not visible, and the sun
shines clearly through.
If you decide to explore the passage,
go to 100. Ifyou'd rather leave and
explore elsewhere, return to 52.
56
Through the back archway, you dis-
cover the remains of four men, tied and
beheaded. Between the right and left
wings of the palace lie the remnants of
a garden and vineyard, long withered
away. Go to 58.
57
Yougrasp the scepter and cast its
snake charm spell. Immediately, the
snakes rise up and begin to sway. With
the tip of your sword, you gently lift
each one and drop it into an old clay jar,
covering it with a loose tile when all the
snakes have been deposited.
Continuing to explore, you find a few
bodies and what was once a barracks.
From the wanton destruction of bunks,
footlockers, and shelving, you decide not
to waste your time looking for treasure
here. The room has obviously been
thoroughly searched. Return to 52.
58
Will you:
- Explore the right (southern) wing?
(Go to 71.)
- Explore the left (northern) wing?
(Go to 62.)
- Ignore the rear area and check the
main palace? (Return to 50 and make
a different choice.)
59
As you lean down to submerge your
arm in the water, you lose your balance
and fall forward. The water and the
pool's bottom are obviously an illusion!
Take 2 hit points damage and go to 55.
60
Behind a tapestry you notice the door
to a secret compartment. Boy, would a
thief be handy about now to check for
traps! If you'd like to open the door, go
to 70. Otherwise, go to 58.
61
As you chant the ancient syllables of
the sleep spell, the cobras' hoods relax.
They rest their heads on scaly backs
and lie still. After cutting each one in
half, you advance to the doorway and
look in. Youdecide this was once a bar-
racks, but now it contains only a few
skeletons. Return to 52.
62
Walking through an archway, you
emerge into a long dining hall, once
richly furnished. Rotting tapestries of
green, scarlet, and gold hang along the
chamber's white marble walls, and
once-fine rugs lie beneath a layer of
dust on the floor. Running down the
center of the dining chamber is a sunk-
en area, three steps below floor level. A
short stairway at either end leads down.
Here meals were enjoyed, as you discern
from the remnants of cushions and low
tables, dishes and serving pots.
Roll one six-sided die (ld6). If the
for merciful
far end of the
black book illumi-
that beam
stamea-gtass win-
Run and
89
Thobad you're not a thief'! Check your
Wisdom. If the roll is successful, go to
77. Otherwise, go to SO.
90
Within the maze of pipes, you find an
oddity: a small glass bottle securely
attached to one pipe by a harness.
Removing the bottle and tipping it
slightly, you discover a constant stream
of life-giving water flows from its spout.
The water completely cures any damage
you have suffered from heat exposure.
Youcap the bottle with an improvised
plug cut from the end of a torch, and
return to the courtyard. Go to 52.
91
Scanning the ceiling and floor for any
obvious sources of danger, you step
through the doorway and begin edging
toward the waiting treasure. Suddenly,
a nightmare arises from the floor!
Writhing black tentacles reach up to
entwine you in their iron grip.
Roll one six-sided die (ld6) to see how
many tentacles have you in their grip.
Youmay fight the tentacles (go to 76) or
call on Rafii for help (go to 98).
92
With an ominous creaking, the doors
begin to swing outward. Instantly, you
grab your sword. Beyond the doors, a
huge chamber is revealed, lit only by
the eerie glow of the fire pit nestled in
the hands ofa 15'tall statue of a jackal-
headed man. Columns surround the
templelike auditorium, possibly hiding
other areas from view in the shadows.
Lying on the floor just below the fire
pit is a robed body. Cautiously, you
advance toward it, keeping your eyes
active for any ambush or danger. As you
draw near the body, you note that its
right arm ends abruptly at the wrist,
while the other arm lies hidden from
view. Go to 83.
93
Removing a hammer and spike from
your pack, you edge toward the chest. If
you have a magical chalice, go to 103.
Otherwise, go to 96.
94
With your last breath, your screaming
abruptly ceases. Were anyone else
present, he would notice a moonstone
ring lying on the floor atop a pile of
ashes. Your adventure has ended. 0
95
Tearing at the body, you find a locket
on a golden chain around its neck. You
jerk the locket free, and instantly a
large, red ruby at its center begins to
glow with a soft light. A voice speaks.
If you have the book from the temple
upstairs, go to 38. Otherwise, go to 106.
96
The lock breaks away and the lid pops
open, spraying the area with a green
gas. Youfall unconscious, awakening
hours later with a dull headache.
Since you haven't been harmed while
unconscious, it occurs to you that it may
be safe to stay here and study your spell
book without fear of wandering mon-
sters. Youmay rememorize or change
spells as you desire. When you are
through, don't forget to check the con-
tents of the chest. Go to 87.
97
The statue certainly seems fearsome,
and you hope it won't come to life. But
as you near it, nothing happens. A
search of the statue and the alcove
reveals nothing. Goback to 86 and
make a different choice.
98
If you have previously called upon
Rafii for aid, go to 113. Otherwise, go to
110.
99
Drawing near to the doors, you sense
magic. And lying before them is a black-
ened, shriveled hand - minus a finger.
With a chill, you wonder if the remains
of Abu Iblis await discovery beyond this
portal. Testing the doors, you conclude a
knock spell will be required to open
them. Ifyou do not have one in readi-
ness, you may sit down and memorize
this spell (go to 92). Or, you may return
to the upper level of the palace and
explore elsewhere (go to 50, but you
may return to this section at any time
you feel confident enough to penetrate
the doors).
100
The passage leads forward about 100'
to a small room filled with pipes. You
feel certain some are drains, while oth-
ers must serve purposes unknown.
Roll one six-sided die (ld6). If the
result is 1 or 2, go to 90. Otherwise, you
may return to the courtyard and explore
elsewhere. Goto 52.
THE DJINNI'S RING
101
Youswing your sword again and
again, hacking your captors in half with
each blow. The last of the horrid-
creatures? - drops away, and you stum-
ble to the far wall, safely out of reach of
any others that may be lying in wait.
Skirting the sides of the room, you
make it to the far end and lay claim to
quite a fortune in booty! Youpack away
many thousands of gold pieces' worth of
rubies, emeralds, and gold. Then you
turn your attention to the chest. Visions
of the fantastic treasure within tanta-
lize your imagination. Will you:
- Attack the lock with a hammer and
spike to break it open? (Goto 93.)
- Cast a knock spell (if you have one
memorized)? (Go to 79.)
- Ignore the chest and return to the
ground floor of the palace? (Go to
111.)
102
The water in the pool is fresh and
clear, revealing several skeletons at its
bottom. Steps lead down into the water,
and the bottom of the pool may be clear-
ly seen 4' below. Two small drains are
set into the tiles on the bottom, one at
each end of the pool. Return to 88.
103
A brilliant green glow shines through
your pack as you near the chest. It's
your magical chalice, but is it warning
you of danger or pointing the way to a
fantastic treasure?
If you try to open the chest, go to 96. If
you feel the chalice is warning you to
leave the chamber, go to 111.
104
Instantly both moonstones shatter,
and the flames of the fire pit rise to the
roof of the chamber. Amid the roaring
thunder of the fire, a humanoid figure
begins to form. Youstep toward the
statue to observe this fascinating sight,
but in moments your fascination turns
to horror. Taking shape in the flames is
a figure identical to the body on the
floor. You've been tricked into releasing
the captive spirit of Abu Iblis!
"Well-meaning fool:' the coalescing
figure hisses down at you with an evil
leer. "You have freed me from the
entrapment I have endured for so long.
How easy it was to trick your puny
intellect into helping defeat those who
bound me.
DUNGEON 33
THE DJINNI'S RING
"Centuries ago, I transferred the
essence of my magical powers into two
rings so that my strength would never
wane, no matter how time might wither
my bodily shell. My soul was entrusted
to the care of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-
Named; it resides elsewhere in safety. I
was invincible until my enemies tricked
me into using nearly all my stored
power. Then my true enemies launched
their forces against me, and in my
weakened state I was overcome and
driven into this chamber. But my con-
sciousness remained, and so I did not
truly die.
"My enemies were wise to remove but
one ring - one portion of my magical
essence - for that act blinded and
weakened me more than if they had
removed both halves of the ring. They
knew that, with only a part of my magic
separated from my body and soul, I
would never be able to muster my ener-
gies over the centuries and re-form.
"My enemies cast all manner of
enchantments over the palace to keep
out those of evil or greed who might aid
me, but overlooked what I had realized:
One of unselfish heart might be seduced
into coming here and reuniting my
magical essences, giving me the power
to form a new bodily shell and reclaim
my soul. You, in your beguiled inno-
cence, were able to enter the grounds
and accomplish that task. And shortly,
when I am fully re-formed in my new
body, I shall thank you properly:'
Go to 85.
105
You bolt from the room, leaving Abu
Iblis to complete his re-formation. As
you leave the palace grounds and run
blindly into the desert, you hear his
laughter echoing behind you. 1b your
relief, he doesn't seem to be following ..
. but perhaps he doesn't need to. You're
all alone in the most forbidding land
your world has to offer, with no idea of
how to find civilization. Your chances of
survival are virtually nil, and Abu Iblis
knows this. That's why he's not follow-
ing - your death will be much slower
this way. Q
106
"I am the true Rafii," the voice
speaks. "It is too late now to stop Abu
Iblis, Hurl me into the flames while
there is yet time!"
Without hesitating, you hurl the lock-
et into the fire pit and it explodes,
34 Issue No.9
releasing a shimmering whirlwind
which carries you out of the chamber
and away from the palace as Abu Iblis
curses. Youfly across the sand like a
shooting star to land safely at the des-
ert's edge on a hill overlooking a small
village.
A shadow falls, and you look up to see
a bearded, lOt-tall, muscular humanoid
whose lower portions are shrouded in
the dust of a whirlwind. "This is as far
as I may take you:' the djinni speaks.
"I didn't mean to-" you begin.
The djinni hold up his hand to stop
your words. "I know you meant only
good:' his voice booms. "You were
deceived into serving evil. Yet you have
freed me from Abu Iblis's bondage.
Though his power is again great, his
reign is not fully established. I will seek
out those who can face him on equal
terms - and in time he shall fall. For
now, fare you well, and my thanks for
freeing me:'
With that, the djinni fully assumes
the form of a whirlwind and flies off,
leaving you alone. Ifyou want, you can
begin to make your way back home. But
if you can find a way, perhaps you'll
head back into the desert to help fight
Abu Iblis,
Dejected, you begin walking down
toward the town below. Q
107
Youreceive no mercy, and what you do
receive is too unpleasant to describe.
Consider your adventure over! Q
108
As your vision begins to grow dark,
you realize that you are dying. The
sounds of the world around you fade
away, replaced by a loud ringing in your
ears. The peace of death comes a
moment later, and your last thoughts
are the realization that your quest has
failed. Q
109
Back upstairs, you have several
choices. Will you:
- Go through the northwest doors?
(Go to 54.)
- Go through the southwest doors?
(Go to 69.)
- Explore the back of the palace
grounds? (Go to 56.)
110
A whirlwind begins to fill the room,
pulling you away from the tentacles'
grasp and depositing you back down-
stairs. Will you:
- Go through the northeast doors?
(Go to 73.)
- Go through the southeast doors?
(Go to 67.)
- Go through the southwest doors?
(Go to 69.)
- Explore the back of the palace
grounds? (Go to 56.)
111
Youreturn downstairs. Would you
care to:
- Go through the northeast doors?
(Go to 73.)
- Go through the southeast doors?
(Go to 67.)
- Go through the southwest doors?
(Go to 69.)
- Explore the back of the palace
grounds? (Go to 56.)
112
Back downstairs, you must decide
whether to:
- Go through the northeast doors?
(Go to 73.)
- Go through the southeast doors?
(Go to 67.)
- Go through the northwest doors?
(Go to 54.)
- Explore the back of the palace
grounds? (Go to 56.)
113
Desperately, you hope that Rafii's
powers are great enough to help you a
second time, but there is no response.
Go to 108.
114
A whirlwind engulfs the serpents,
sweeping them away into the desert.
With the whirlwind's coming, you sense
Rafii weakening.
Inside this wing of the building are
only some skeletons in what was once
their barracks. Return to 52.
115
It's great to be home - and it's not
bad being rich, either. You've a pack full
of gold and jewels, Abu Iblis's spell
book, and a flying carpet that folds
down into a silken handkerchief, among
other treasures. But coming home with
the tale of a great adventure surely is
the best treasure.
After all, how many elves can count a
djinni as a friend? Q
SHIP
IT
i 9 you'll
d
THE GHOSTSHIP GAMBIT
N
Trade Routes
1 hex = 24 miles
the ghostship. Shortly after the first
attack, a troop of militia set out in a
harbor patrol boat to find the menace.
And they did find it - or rather, it
found them. The troopers reported that
a dead silence fell just before a grisly
craft, all rotting and hung with sea-
weed, breached the surface of the water
about 50' off their starboard bow. The
ship appeared to be abandoned; there
was no one on deck. It merely bobbed up
and down in the water for several min-
utes, as if it were looking them over,
then silently sank below the waves
again. After that, no more patrol boats
were sent out, but one or two harbor
patrollmen were added to the crew of
each ship that put out of Koll harbor.
No ship carrying a harbor patrolman
has ever been attacked by the ghost-
ship, although it has been sighted sev-
eral times.
The PCs hear this information repeat-
ed wherever they go, and the need for
haste in dealing with this menace
comes across loud and clear. The adven-
turers can easily check out the truth of
all the above information.
When the PCs first visit the water-
KOLL AND VICINITY
#' 1 t ~ ~ W '''-I
tion in every tavern, ship, and inn. DMs
should not simply give players the infor-
mation, but should role-play the parts of
shopkeepers, bartenders, and patrons of
various establishments. By asking
polite questions, the PCs can discover
the following factual information:
- The ghostship attacks only weak,
unprotected vessels and seems to be
able to tell these from better armed
ships.
- The port masters are in a hurry to
be rid of the ghostship because port
business is falling off, resulting in a loss
of revenues.
- Merchants, craftsmen, and the
seamen's guild are complaining loudly
about the rise in freight rates, loss of
merchandise, and danger to crews.
There have been calls for the ouster of
the port masters.
- The ghostship is interested in ships'
cargo only. Ships are never destroyed,
and seamen are not taken as slaves or
food. Crews are allowed to abandon
their vessels, and the ships themselves
are usually found the next day, floating
lifeless with empty holds.
- The local militia has tried several
times - unsuccessfully - to deal with
't:I}E MastERS Of tl}E PORt Of Roll
OffER, plEbCiE, aNb Otl}ERwiSE CiUaR-
amEE a total Of J0,000 CiPto aNY
CiROUP Of bRaVE aNb NOblE souls
williNCi to Rib tne local SEa laNES Of
a bREab MENacE. PaYMENt Of bOUN-
ty ON PROOf Of oastnucnox Of salb
MENacE. Apply PORt MastERS' Offic-
ES, WatERfRONt, ROil.
DMs may wish to copy the poster on a
separate piece of paper and hand it to
the players. It is common knowledge
that the rumored ghostship is the "men-
ace" mentioned in the poster.
For the Dungeon Master
Koll is a busy but rather out-of-the-way
trade port. It has an excellent deep-
water harbor and is a stopping-off point
on a major caravan route. The docks are
almost always busy as inland goods are
loaded on ships bound up and down the
coast, while other ships unload goods to
be carried overland to the interior.
Ships leave and arrive daily, and the
land caravans do the same.
All this activity makes Koll appear
richer than it actually is. Adventurers
examining the ships and their cargoes
notice many in poor condition. While
some of the merchandise is valuable, a
great deal is not. Many of the cargoes
waiting on the docks are cheap goods:
large kegs of rotgut mead; thin, watery
wine and sour beer; piles of poorly made
furniture; bolts of coarse cloth; boxes of
inexpensive earthenware; etc.
Most of the ships hauling these goods
are no better than tramp freighters.
These ships are of many types (sailing
ships, galleys, etc.) but are all in poor
condition. With well-patched sails,
warped deck planking, and barnacle-
encrusted sides, these homely but still
seaworthy vessels run the coastal trade
routes, eking out a living for their cap-
tains and crews.
But not all cargo leaving and entering
the port of Koll comes by tramp ship.
Occasionally, a war galley arrives as
escort for prosperous ships carrying
valuable goods. Or alone, a fearless,
well-kept, and trim merchantman
leaves with a valuable load. If, however,
PCs try to hire a ship to pursue the
ghostship, only tramps are available,
never a well-kept vessel.
As the ghostship is the talk of the
town, PCs are able to pick up informa-
DUNGEON 45
THE GHOSTSHIP GAMBIT
front, an abandoned freighter is being
towed into port. Longshoremen on the
docks reveal that many of the crewmen
who abandoned the vessel were sighted
two days ago on a beach many miles
away; a rescue ship has been dispatched
to pick them up.
PCs also hear many rumors about the
ghostship and its terrible crew. The
ghostship is a hot topic in town, but the
party has no way to check the validity
of these rumors as no one in town can
give positive confirmation or denial.
Roll 1d20 and consult the following
table twice per PC per game day. Sev-
eral PCs may hear the same rumor, or a
single character may hear the same
rumor twice or more.
Rumor Table
1. The ghostship's crew is led by a
powerful vampire. (False.)
2. Clerics have no power over the
undead crew of the ghostship. (True.)
3. Magic of any kind will not work
against the ghostship. (False.)
4. The ghostship is in league with a
storm giant, and the two share the loot.
<False.)
5. The ghostship attacks only at night.
(False.)
6. There is more than one ghostship.
<False.)
7. The ghostship's crew can control
the weather. (False.)
8. The crew of the ghostship use magi-
cal items. (True.)
9. At least half the ghostship's crew
are bone golems. (False.)
10. The leader of the ghostship's crew
can conjure and control water elemen-
tals. (False.)
11. Somewhere on the bottom of the
ocean is a huge pile of treasure collected
by the ghostship. (False.)
12. There is a large amount of gold
and jewels on the ghostship itself.
<False.)
13. The ghostship can be diverted
from attacking by throwing a small
amount of treasure overboard. (False.)
14. The ghostship is equipped with a
large catapult. (False.)
15. Only several patriarchs working
together will be able to destroy the
ghostship. <False.)
16. The creatures on the ghostship are
from another plane of existence and are
immune to both normal and magical
weapons. <False.)
17. The ghostship can be destroyed by
46IssueNo.9
a dispel evil spell followed by a bless
spell. <False.)
18. There are only 10 of the creatures
(whatever they are) aboard the ghost-
ship. (True.)
19. The ghostship uses trained sharks
to attack any victims they find in the
water. <False.)
20. The masters of the port ofKoll
have secretly sent for a high-level
magic-user, in the hope that the wizard
can rid them of the ghostship by some
powerful blast of sorcery. (False.)
The adventurers will probably want to
talk to a survivor of one of the ghost-
ship's attacks. PCs who ask the where-
abouts of an eyewitness are directed to
a local tavern to talk to Jackie Bar-
barosa (AC 9; F2; hp 11; MV 120' (40');
IIAT 1; Dmg by weapon type; Save F2;
ML8; ALLN).
Jackie tells his story with frequent
interruptions to call loudly for more ale.
He sometimes drains his tankard and
states simply, "My cup's empty:' Then
he will not continue with his tale until
the PCs have refilled his cup. Here,
minus the interruptions, is the old sea-
man's story:
"We were a day out from Koll, on a
filthy barge of a galley called Effete
Efreet. She was hauling ingots of tin
and bars of unworked iron upcoast
aways. We kept close in, as near the
shore as was safe, so you could spit
and hit sand. It was sundown, and
we was sure we'd given Old Ghosty
the slip and it'd be easy going from
there on. I was relaxing aft, and I'd
just shut my eyes for a wink or two.
Then it happened, all at once like.
"A dead silence fell. Youcould just
make out in the last light of the sun,
men opening their mouths to holler
and no noise coming out. Nor sound
of sea, nor creak of the ship ... just
silence. Then I could see a gurgling
and a swirling in the water to star-
board, and rising up alongside - a
ship!
"All gray she was, worm-eaten and
rotten. Slime and ooze slithering
down her rigging, water pouring off
her deck. When the lads saw that,
most of 'em were off and away, over
the port side and heading for shore.
Me, the captain, and a few more
stout lads tried to make a stand
amidship. Old Ghosty just stood off
from us, matching us speed for speed,
turn for turn.
"Then, in the almost dark, a light
flared bright and clear on the ghost-
ship. And I could see then, plain as
plain can be. There they was, as
terrible and cold as anything I'd ever
imagined - the crew of Old Ghosty.
Eyes all aglittering, hair all wet and
green and slimy, they just stared at
us. Then, one of the grizzly things
points at us and that was the end of
it. We went mad. All I remember
after that is terror. We was all
gripped by the blackest fear, you
wouldn't wish it on your worst ene-
my. Over the side we went, even the
captain, and I wouldn't be surprised
if some of them poor lads aren't run-
ning yet.
"They found the Efreet next day,
her hold empty. They found most of
us the day after and brought us in. I
believe one or two of the lads was
never found. No more can I tell you,
for no more do I know:'
Jackie is a seaman, not an adventurer.
He is unable to tell the PCs what type
of creatures, living or dead, crewed the
ghostship. If the PCs press Jackie hard
on the type of creatures that attacked
his ship, he simply repeats that part of
his tale describing them. Tell the PCs
that the creatures were terrible and
cold, grizzly things. Give the PCs only
the most general of information. If play-
ers grumble about this, remind them
that Jackie is a seaman, not an expert
on monsters, and that he was, by his
own account, terrified during the
encounter, thus clouding his memory.
Hiring a Boat
PCs will have to rent a vessel of some
kind if they do not already own one.
Even if the PCs have a ship, they may
wish to rent another rather than risk
their own. The owners of idle freighters
can be found in taverns, inns, and eat-
eries near the docks. Ships can be
rented by the month at 10%of their
cost, plus a sizeable deposit. The DM
should check the Water Transport Table
on page 19 of the Expert Rulebook to
find the cost of any vessel. For example,
the table lists the cost of a small sailing
ship at 5,000 gpo Thus, one month's
rental of a small sailing ship is 500 gp
(10%of 5,000 gp). Ship owners rent
their vessels at only the monthly rate,
THE GHOSTSHIP GAMBIT
THE UNDERSEA BOAT
not for weekly ?r daily rates, although
the DM may wish to make an exception
for PCs on a tight budget.
If PCs wish to buy rather than rent a
ship, refer to the Water Transport Table.
The price of any vessel, regardless of its
condition, is as listed.
All of the idle ships in Koll harbor
available for rent or purchase are of the
tramp variety. PCs will want to know
the names, costs, and capacities of the
available tramp freighters, so the DM
should prepare a short list.
cost of renting or purchasing a
covers the vessel only; captains,
navigators, and crews must be hired
separately, and at premium wages.
Seamen of all types can be found virtu-
ally anywhere in Koll. The DM should
consult the specialist section of the
Expert Rulebook (page 26) for the cost of
hiring seamen. As the hunt for the
ghostship is regarded as dangerous
duty, the cost of hiring seamen is twice
the amounts listed. PCs will be unable
to hire mercenaries. Any mercenaries in
Koll are not interested in fighting a
ghostship at any price.
The captain or a spokesman for the
crew will make it plain to the adventur-
ers that any difficulties the PCs get
themselves into, the PCs will have to
get themselves out of. Under no circum-
stances will a hired crew fight in place
of the PCs, and the DM should not allow
PCs to use NPCs as cannon fodder. A
hired crew will take care of the ship and
fight only if attacked. The crewmen
defend themselves in a fighting with-
drawal until they may safely quit the
battle. A hired crew will not pursue a
beaten enemy.
The number of seamen needed
depends directly on the size of the vessel
acquired by the PCs. Consult the Water
Movement Chart on page 43 of the
Expert Rulebook. All seamen hired by
the PCs are 1st-level fighters with no
armor, average morale (7), and only
daggers for weapons. The DM may
allow higher-level NPCs - 2nd-, Brd-, or
4th-level fighters - as navigators and
captains. Higher-level NPCs also have
no armor: average morale (7), and are
armed WIth daggers. Most of the sea-
men in Koll are of Lawful alignment.
Once the PCs have secured a ship and
crew, they are ready to search for the
ghostship. Weather factors can either be
ignored or the DM can use the Water
Movement Modification Chart on page
44 of the Expert Rulebook.
u.ndersea boat is 30' in length,
10 Wide, and when running on the
surface has a draft of 2-3'.
The Ghostship
The ghostship plaguing Koll is, in reali-
ty: an undersea boat (see end of module).
Pirates have disguised the boat as a
ghostship, using pieces of rotting hulks
found on the ocean bottom. Garbed
In old, rotten clothing and greasepaint
the pirates disguise themselves to '
appear as a crew of undead. So far, their
secret has never been discovered.
It is important that the DM make no
mention of pirates until the PCs discov-
er the nature of the ghostship's crew for
themselves. It is also very important to
avoid deliberately misleading the play-
ers. The DM should say only that the
ghostship's crew "look like zombies" or
that they "appear to be undead" not
"the zombies are led by two or
"the undead attack:' If any players
complain of being deceived, remind
them that no one in Koll, even eyewit-
nesses, had ever seen through the
pirates' disguises. It was therefore
impossible for the people' of Koll to '
describe the marauder as anything
other than a ghostship.
The pirates are led by a 5th-level
human magic-user, Sork the Enchanter.
1 square = 2'
Sork is the undisputed captain of the
undersea boat. He is intelligent and
greedy, but will seldom let his greed
overcome his common sense. Sork cares
little what damage he does or evil he
causes, so long as his own desires for
wealth and comfort are met.
Sork the Enchanter: AC 8; MU 5' hp
14; MY 120' (40'); 1M 1; Dmg by spe'n
or weapon type; Save MU5; ML 9; AL C;
S 9, I 16, W 14, D 10, C 11, Ch 12;
spells: charm person, magic missile
inuisibility, web, hold person;
Items: ring ofprotection +1, wand of
fear.
. The second in command of the pirates
Is.Bryndle, a 4th-level human cleric.
VIcar Bryndle is also the ship's naviga-
tor. Bryndle serves Sork because it
serves own interests. Like Sork,
Bryndle ISgreedy, but unlike Sork, his
greed often overcomes his better judg-
If the price is right, Bryndle is
willing to do just about anything.
the Vicar: AC 5; C4; hp 18;
MY 120 (40'); IAT 1; Dmg by spell or
weapon type; Save C4; ML 9; AL C; S
12, I 10, W 15, D 9, C 12, Ch 8; leather
DUNGEON 47
THE GHOSTSHIP GAMBIT
armor +2; mace; spells: cause fear, light,
silence 15' radius.
Sork and Bryndle disguise themselves
as ghouls. The crew of the fake ghost-
ship consists entirely of eight aquatic
elves (see end of module) disguised as
zombies. These particular aquatic elves
are exiles, outlawed from their ocean
clan for allowing some injury to come to
its revered frond keeper. Even an elf PC
will not be able to get the full story
from these aquatic elves. The morale of
the exiles is very low. They serve Sork
out of fear and because they have no
place else to go.
The aquatic elves have spells that are
primarily defensive (shield, invisibility,
etc.) or for detection (detect magic, locate
object, etc.). Ifthe adventuring party is
very strong, the DM can beef up the
elves' spells with more offensive ones or
raise the level of some of the elves. The
2 HD elves have short swords, and the 3
HD elves carry spears.
Aquatic Elves (8): AC 5; HD 3 (x 4),
2 ( x 4); hp 16, 14, 12 ( x 2), 10, 8 ( x 2), 6;
MV 120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg by spell or
weapon type; Save E3 or E2; ML 5;
ALN.
The pirates attack exactly the same
way every time. They position the
undersea boat directly below the ship
they are about to attack. Bryndle then
casts his silence spell onto a starfish or
some other small ocean dweller. The
silenced starfish is then pinned to the
hull of the hapless merchant ship with a
dagger. The attacked vessel only knows
that a sudden dead silence has fallen.
The pirates then rise slowly out of the
sea about 50' away from their victim.
At first, the merchant seamen see only
a rotting and worm-eaten wreck rising
slowly from the depths. The pirates
remain hidden below deck until their
craft has fully surfaced. They then rush
forth in their hideous disguises and let
their victims get a good look at what is
attacking. At this point, most crews
begin abandoning ship.
If any sailors attempt to stand and
defend their ship, Sork uses his wand of
fear, effectively breaking any resistance.
Ifthe defenders somehow still hold their
ground and appear to be well armed and
armored, Sork avoids the battle. In the
face of stout opposition, Sork submerges
his boat without attempting a fight.
PCs will need to remain hidden, invisi-
ble, or disguised if they wish to battle
Sork and his crew. Remember, no spells
may be cast or command words spoken
48 Issue No.9
- by PCs or pirates - within the
silenced area. .
Only after most of the crew has aban-
doned ship will the pirates grapple and
board (see page 44 of the Expert Rule-
book). The DM can use the deck plan
provided for the undersea boat or create
his own using the same dimensions.
Plans for the PCs' boat will have to be
drawn depending on the vessel rented
or purchased.
In combat, the aquatic elves' favorite
tactic is to bear hug an opponent (nor-
mal "to hit" roll), then dive into the sea.
Once in the water, the victim is released
to either sink or swim. The pirates do
not take captives; anyone surrendering
is stripped of valuables and tossed over-
board. Heavily encumbered PCs who
dive or are dragged into the sea must
rid themselves of heavy objects and
armor before they can safely swim to
shore.
Once the pirates take control of a ship
they loot it, throwing overboard any-
thing they cannot use or carry. The
empty freighter is then set adrift, and
the booty is hidden on some deserted
stretch of shore until a buyer can be
found for the goods.
It is during combat with the pirates
that PCs should realize they are not
dealing with undead. Adventurers
should notice that the so-called zombies
are attacking with normal initiative.
When describing the fake zombies, the
DM should point out their blue or green
hair and tell the PCs that all the zom-
bielike beings appear to have neck
wounds. Any character who examines
one of these wounds realizes it is a gill
slit. Also, the false undead bleed when
cut. Zombies with bleeding wounds
should be a dead giveaway to even the
most inexperienced adventurers.
It will be obvious when Sork and
Bryndle attack with weapons and not
claws that they are not ghouls. Also,
their attacks do not cause paralysis as
ghoul attacks, although Sork may use
his hold person spell to fake this effect.
If the battle turns against Sork, he
attempts to cut the grappling ropes and
get away. If Sork is able to cut free the
lines and submerge, the elves dive over-
board and join him underwater. If Sork
is killed or captured, the elves immedi-
ately surrender. Killing or capturing
Bryndle has no great effect on the elves.
Only Sork and Bryndle know the com-
mand words for controlling the under-
sea boat.
If the PCs defeat the pirates, they find
a locked chest bolted to the floor of the
captain's cabin on the undersea boat.
This chest is not trapped, and Sork has
the key hidden in his robes. The chest
contains Sork's spell book, with all
those spells he has memorized plus read
magic and light. There is also a scroll
containing the command words for the
undersea boat (see end of module). The
scroll lists only the command words, not
what each word does, so PCs will have
to use trial and error if they use this
scroll. The chest also contains five gems
in a leather pouch (500 gp each), a small
silver statue of a horse and rider (worth
500 gp), a ruby ring (1,000 gp), and a
sack containing 600 gpo
The wand of fear and the ring ofpro-
tection +1 can be taken from Sork. As
Sork has used the wand often, there are
only five charges left. The command
word ("Phobos") for the wand is written
on its shaft, but a read magic spell is
required to understand the script.
Concluding the Adventure
If attacked by Sork, the PCs are likely
to find themselves abandoned by their
hired crew (DMshould make a morale
check at - 2). As all attacks take place
near busy sea lanes, PCs who cannot
sail the ship themselves can hail
another vessel and be towed to the near-
est port. Local ships are especially glad
to help the PCs if they have defeated
what was believed to be the ghostship.
PCs unable to defeat Sork and his
crew but discovering that they are
pirates, not undead, are paid 1,000 gp
by the port masters of Koll for this
information. PCs unable to defeat the
pirates or discover the secret of the
ghostship should probably move on to
simpler adventures.
PCs must bring the undersea boat
back to Koll as proof that they have
defeated the menace. With this proof,
the port masters gladly pay the bounty.
The masters also allow the PCs to keep
any and all treasure they took from the
pirates, but claim the undersea boat in
recompense for damages done by Sork
and Bryndle. If the PCs refuse to turn
over the undersea boat and its command
words, the port masters order their
arrest. Koll has a well-trained civil
guard, so the adventurers have little
choice but to turn over the boat.
Aquatic elves surviving as prisoners
are sentenced by the authorities to work
in the port. With their water-breathing
T r
Morale:
AT THE
SPOTTLE
PARLOR
BYRIC!< SWAN
Some games aren't
played for fun.
Altwork by Michoel Wflght
24 IssueNo, 12
. - - ,
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. .. ,
. ...
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.' ,' : . ,
Rick Swan's "The Golden Bowl o( Ashu
H'san" appeared in n UNGF:ON3 iS1Wt>
11 9. Hi s other reef'nt proj ects (or TSR,
Inc, include WfJrk on WG7 Castle
Grey hawk My Par ty and ['II Die if
t Want Th"), the S NIPER!'" Special
Forces board game, and cont ributions to
the new and TOP
SECRET/S,/,'"" game supplements. Rick
is a resident ofexotic Des Moines, Iowa.
" At t he Spottle Parl or" is a mod-
ule for one to three characters of 2nd
4th level. A variety of classes would be
helpful , including at least one fighter.
The adventure takes place in a wood-
edarea just nort h of the city of Gla ntri
in t he D&D game's Known Wor ld (see
GAZ3 Principalit ies o(Gumtri), These
wishing to incorpor ate t his adve nture in
a diffe rent setting should feel free to
ma ke adjust ments as they see fit . The
OM shoul d have two six-sided dice
avai lable far each PC.
Adventure Background
The wanderings afthe PCs have
brought them to the lush forests of the
Wendar ia n Ranges, north of t he fabled
city of Glantri. The sun ha s set, Tired
fram t he long day's journey, the PCs are
looking for a place to ca mp among the
beautiful blue pine s,
No sooner has the party located a
suitable clea ri ng tha n the sound of
r ustli ng i n t he hushes alerts them to
t he presence of an i ntruder. From
behind a tall pine t ree steps a fat dwarf.
elegantly dressed in polished chain mail
and a flowing sati n cape. " Hold your
swords!" he says. "I come as B friend."
The dwarf bows deeply, hi s ample
belly sagging over his leather belt . "My
name is Bufred Shabbin," he says, "and
I am here to extend an invitation on
behalf of my employer, the honor abl e
Bradbert Niss , who requ ests t he plea.
sure of your company in his home for an
eve ning of spottle, "
The PCs immediately recognize the
name of Brad bert Niss, a lege ndary
thief who reputedly r('tired with ri ches
enough to last a hundred lifetimes. He
has since become celebrated throughout
the Known Worl d for hi s higb-etakee
spot tl e games, where rumor ha s it that
millions in gold pieces change hands in
a single ni ght. What's more , he 's said to
give a way fortunes to players whose
company he enjoys,
Invitations to Nlss's games are highly
coveted and are generally extended only
to wealthy aristocrats, high-ranking
officials, and other eminent nobles. The
PCs may be delighted that they've been
offered this golden opportunity, but they
may also be puzzled - considering their
modest means, they're hardly typical
spottle players.
For the Dungeon Master
For nearly two decades, master thief
Bradbert Niss and his loyal assistant
Bufred Shabbin plundered the treasures
of Glantri without once being appre-
hended. Their roguish style earned the
admiration of the Thugs' Guild, while
their generous contributions to orphan-
ages and hospitals made them heroes
among the common folk. Even the local
constabulary admitted to a grudging
admiration of Niss's skill and spirit.
One summer's day, a small group of
Grand Army soldiers led by Constable
Jherek Virayana were on routine patrol
in the woodlands of the Wendarian
Ranges when they were brutally
ambushed by a bandit gang from Daro-
kin. Surprised and outnumbered, the
Grand Army soldiers were on the verge
of annihilation when Bradbert Niss
appeared out of nowhere to wade into
battle. Niss singlehandedly drove off
the bandits and, in the process, rescued
Virayana from certain death. When the
last bandit was driven away, the griev-
ously wounded Niss collapsed uncon-
scious on the battlefield.
In spite of his heroism, Niss was sub-
sequently arrested and brought to Glan-
tri to stand trial for his years of
thievery. Virayana spoke on Niss's
behalf and secured a pardon on the
condition that Niss retire from crime
and live out the rest of his days as an
honest citizen. Niss, approaching old
age and crippled as a result of his
wounds, graciously accepted the terms
of his pardon.
With the help of his new friends from
Glantri, Niss established a home in a
secluded forest area near the Wendarian
Ranges. 'lb while away the time, Niss
invented spottle, a no-limits gambling
game that quickly became a favorite
pastime among the local aristocracy.
Niss settled into a pleasant routine of
nightly competition with his wealthy
companions.
But last night, after the evening's
players had gone home, Niss answered
a knock on his door to reveal an unex-
pected visitor - Lord Guzz, the king of
a hobgoblin tribe that had recently
taken up residence in the Wendarian
Mountains. Lord Guzz said that he'd
heard of Niss's famous game and want-
ed to play. Niss knew that fraterniza-
tion of any kind with the hobgoblins
was strictly forbidden by the officials of
Glantri, yet the opportunity to gamble
with an actual hobgoblin was tempting.
Against his better judgment, Niss
invited Guzz in for a session of spottle.
Luck was not with Lord Guzz that
night. After losing 10 straight rounds of
spottle, Guzz angrily accused Niss of
cheating and threatened to kill him on
the spot. The terrified Niss volunteered
to return the winnings, but Guzz wasn't
satisfied. Guzz offered to let Niss live if
Niss would round up some new slaves to
work in the hobgoblin coal mines. Guzz
would return the following midnight,
taking with him either the slaves or
Niss's head.
Niss spent the rest of the night weigh-
ing his dilemma, but in the end felt he
had no choice but to comply with Guzz's
demand. He and Bufred could hardly
take on an entire hobgoblin army.
Escape was impossible - how far could
a lame old man get in less than a single
day? Help from Glantri was also out of
the question; ifthe officials found out
he'd violated the terms of his pardon by
associating with hobgoblins, he could
find himself living the rest of his life
behind bars.
Earlier this evening, Niss sent Bufred
to scour the woods for the most
harmless-looking travelers he could find
and invite them home for a spottle
game. Niss planned to keep them win-
ning so they'd be sure to stick around.
When Guzz arrived at midnight, Niss
would turn the spottle players over as
the new slaves of the hobgoblins and be
rid of Guzz once and for all.
It was unfortunate, thought Niss, that
innocents would have to pay the price
for his indiscretion. But what else could
he do?
Off to the Game
If the PCs accept Niss's invitation,
Bufred tells them to follow, urging them
to hurry. "The sooner we arrive:' he
says, "the sooner you can count your
winnings:' If the PCs resist, the DM
should remind them that these invita-
tions are offered only rarely and would
be considered by most to be the opportu-
nity of a lifetime.
AT THE SPOTTLE PARLOR
Bufred doesn't know the details of
Niss's arrangement with Guzz; he's just
doing what he's told. Ifthe PCs have
any questions, Bufred tells them that
Niss will supply the answers when they
arrive. If the PCs are fuzzy about spot-
tle (a distinct possibility), Bufred
assures them that Niss will go over all
the rules before the game begins.
Bufred leads the PCs on a winding
route that takes them deep into the
forest. If the PCs wish to engage Bufred
in conversation, he is glad to reminisce
at length about his exploits with Niss
back in the good old days, including the
story of how Niss received a full pardon
from Glantri after his brave rescue of
Constable Virayana.
Bufred Shabbin: AC 5; D5; hp 26;
MV 60'(20'); IIAT1; Dmg 1-8; Save D5;
ML8; ALN; S 17, I 7, W 10, D 10, C 16,
Ch 9; sword +1, chain mail.
TheSpotfle Parlor
After about an hour's journey, the party
comes to a heavy iron door set in the
side of a mountain. Bufred produces a
set of keys from his pocket and uses
several of them to unlock the complex
latches. He pulls the door open and,
with a bow, ushers the PCs inside.
Bufred follows them in, closing and
locking the door behind him.
The PCs step into a circular room
about 25' across, bathed in the warm
glow of an elaborate brass chandelier
containing huge white candles. The
chandelier hangs over a large marble
table with a small iron ring protruding
from the center. The walls are decorated
with colorful silk tapestries featuring
scenes of jeweled mountains and rivers
of gold. One wall has a small round
window. In the wall opposite the door is
a passageway covered by a black satin
curtain. Next to the curtain is an B'-tall
iron statue of a warrior with a promi-
nent star-shaped hole in the center of its
chest. The statue is covered in a thick
layer of dust.
Three other guests are already seated
at the table - a fragile-looking man
dressed in an oversized gray robe, a
chubby teenage boy in ragged work
clothes, and a lizard man with darting
eyes, his hand on the club dangling at
his side. The guests sit silently, fidget-
ing nervously in their chairs.
Bufred offers the PCs seats at the
table. "Please make yourselves comfort-
able:' he says. "I'll tell Master Niss
DUNGEON 25
AT THE SPOTTLE PARLOR
that all the players have arrived;' With
that, Bufred bows and disappears
behind the black curtain.
Getting Acquainted
While waiting for Niss, the PCs may
wish to acquaint themselves with the
other guests.
Vansin Vanslep: AC 3; C2; hp 5; MV
60'(20'); NAT1; Dmg by weapon type;
Save C2; ML 7; AL N; S 9, I 10, W 9,
D 9, C 12, Ch 8; plate mail (under
robes), mace, silver holy symbol, pouch
with 9 cp of church money; spell: cure
light wounds.
Vansin is a 2nd-level human cleric
who has been charged by his superiors
to solicit funds for the construction of a
holy shrine in the Wendarian Moun-
tains. He is extremely high strung and
nervous, more so lately because he has
only been able to solicit 9 cp in a week
of trying. His armor creaks slightly
when he moves his arms or shoulders.
If the PCs address him, Vansin at first
is too timid to speak. Ifthe PCs gently
draw him out, Vansin identifies himself
and his mission, explaining how he
jumped at the chance to attend the
spottle game in hopes of increasing his
funds for the shrine. "I guess this isn't
exactly the way my superiors would
want me to raise money;' he says, "but
if I come back empty-handed, they'll
make me the permanent missionary to
the Blight Swamp;'
Shkad (lizard man): AC 5; HD 2 +1;
hp 13; MV 60'(20'), swimming 120'(40');
NAT1; Dmg by weapon type +1; Save
F2; ML 12; AL N; large club, sack with
30 gp and three dried fish, empty wine
flask.
Shkad was patrolling the Wendarian
Mountains with a lizard-man military
unit until he split off from the group to
indulge in a flask ofleech wine. He
drank until he passed out, and when he
came to, his unit was gone. While stum-
bling around the woods, he ran into
Bufred and eagerly accepted his offer
for a spottle game, knowing that extra
money would come in handy for bribing
his superiors.
Although he can speak their lan-
guage, Shkad ignores any overtures
from the PCs, hissing a threat to leave
him alone if they persist.
Gergy d'Ambreville (wereboar cur-
rently in human form): AC 4 (9 in
human form); HD 4+1*; hp 17; MV
150'(50'); NAT 1; Dmg 2-12 by tusk-bite
(or by weapon type in human form);
26 Issue No. 12
Save F4; ML 9 (6 in human form); AL
N; dagger hidden in clothing, belt pouch
with 3 gpo
Gergy is a distantly related member
of the famed d' Ambreville family of the
House of Sylaire in New Averoigne
(described in D&D module X2 Castle
Amber). Like many members of that
family, Gergy is affiicted with lycan-
thropy. His disease causes him to peri-
odically transform into a wereboar.
In his human form, Gergy is 14 years
old, overweight, and has a face covered
with acne. He is lazy and stupid, but
(unlike most wereboars) is very friendly.
Those in his general vicinity will also
notice that he is not fond of baths.
Gergy recently ran away from home
when his parents told him he wasn't
doing his share of the chores. He hopes
to win enough money at spottle so that
he never has to go back to his mean old
mom and dad.
Gergy converses freely with the PCs,
although questions more difficult than
"What's your name?" tend to give him
trouble (he has an effective intelligence
of 6). He gives no indication that he is
afflicted with lycanthropy, which he
considers a shameful secret.
Before Niss appears, Vansin rises to
make an impassioned plea for donations
from the assembled spottle players.
Shkad laughs at him. Gergy asks a
randomly chosen PC to explain what
Vansin is talking about, but no amount
of explanation enables Gergy to grasp
the concept of a shrine, and therefore he
won't donate. It is up to the PCs wheth-
er or not they make a donation - Van-
sin is delighted with any amount. The
DM should take note of any PC who
gives Vansin a donation.
Meeting Niss
After Vansin completes his fund drive,
the PCs hear metallic clanking coming
from somewhere deep underground, as
if heavy latches and doors are being
opened and closed. The sounds gradu-
ally move toward the wall with the
satin curtain. A final door opens and
closes, and the curtain parts. Bufred
appears, carrying a leather bag and a
small brass balance (used to check the
weight of the spottle dice). Both are
placed on the table in front of the empty
chair nearest the curtain.
The curtain parts again, and an old
man limps out dressed in formal eve-
ning wear. He has a bushy gray beard
and, like Bufred, a large belly hanging
over his belt. He carries a small sack
and a wooden box with several holes
drilled in it.
The old man eases his girth into the
empty chair, setting the box and the
sack on the floor beside him. He smiles
broadly at the players. "Welcome to my
home, good friends;' he says. "My name
is Bradbert Niss. May the luck of the
Immortals be with you tonight!"
Bradbert Niss: AC 5; T12; hp 28; MV
60'(20') (reduced due to injury); NAT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; Save T12; ML 6;
AL N; S 13, I 11, W 12, D 16, C 10,
Ch 15; leather armor, dagger under
clothing.
Before Niss can continue, Vansin rises
from his seat and passionately explains
his fund drive for the shrine to Niss,
concluding with a request for a dona-
tion. Niss shrugs. "Of course;' he says.
"How much do you want?"
"Anything, sir!" says Vansin. "Any-
thing at all would be most gratefully
appreciated!"
"Help yourself;' says Niss, tossing
him the sack. The sack is actually a bag
ofholding and contains a portion of
Niss's treasure (475 cp, 512 sp, 905 gp,
270 pp, 31 cloth-wrapped gems of ran-
dom value up to 500 gp each, and a key;
in addition, assume there is enough
money here to cover almost any reason-
able bet the PCs make, but only the
items givenabove are found in the bag
if it is taken or stolen).
While Vansin rummages through the
bag ofholding, Niss asks if there are
any questions before he goes over the
rules. None of the NPCs have any ques-
tions, but the retired thief cheerfully
answers any general questions the PCs
might have. If asked how they were
chosen, Niss says he wanted some new
faces at the table and instructed Bufred
to invite the first travelers he could
find. If asked about the curtain, Niss
explains that it leads to the living quar-
ters and treasure vault, all securely
guarded by a series of intricately locked
doors. (This is true; the PCs can get no
further into Niss's home - unless the
DM has mapped it out and wishes to
allow the PCs to explore the complex.)
Vansin produces a small ruby from
the bag (value 500 gp) and asks if Niss
is willing to donate it to the shrine
fund. "Of course;' says Niss carelessly,
taking back the bag (he will do any-
thing to keep the players in the game).
Vansin stuffs the gem into his pocket
and breathlessly thanks Niss. Unknown
to Niss, the ruby is not all Vansin took.
The cleric also noticed a star-shaped key
with a black diamond in its center. He
didn't think Niss would donate the key,
so he took it without asking and secret-
ly slipped it into his pocket.
"Before we begin:' says Niss, "I'll
give you the usual warnings:' Niss says
that some guests might be tempted to
take advantage of his hospitality, then
gestures to the iron statue. "This is a
living statue:' he says, "a gift from the
grateful citizens of Glantri. As you can
see from the dust, it's been quite a while
since I've had to activate it, but rest
assured that it is fully operational:'
Niss then places the box on the table,
opens the lid, and lifts out a fat green
toad the size of a small dog. The toad
has short, skinny legs and two huge,
bulging eyes that rotate independently
of each other. The toad is covered from
head to toe with white freckles. A thin
chain hangs around its neck. It looks
over the players with disinterest, then
sneezes. Niss wipes its nose with a silk
handkerchief.
Spottle toad: AC 7; HD 1; hp 6; MV
10'(3'), in water 30'(10'); NAT 1; Dmg 1-4
(bite); SA sticky tongue automatically
catches items within 6' weighing 1 en or
less; Save F1; ML 6; AL N.
Niss places the spottle toad in the
middle of the table and clips its chain to
the center ring. "Are all of you familiar
with spottle toads?" asks Niss. Assum-
ing the PCs are unfamiliar with these
creatures, Niss explains that spottle
toads are a rare breed of amphibian
especially bred for the game of spottIe.
"And this is a good one:' he says. He
produces a bit of food from his pocket
and tosses it straight up in the air. In
the blink of an eye, the spottle toad
flicks out its tongue to a length of 6' and
snags the food, instantly reeling it into
its mouth. Niss pats the toad affection-
ately on the head as it contentedly
munches its catch.
Niss says that if they wish, the play-
ers may stroke the toad for luck. Once
the game begins, however, stroking the
toad is not allowed. Shkad sneers at the
offer, but Gergy happily gives the toad a
light pat on the head. Vansin is afraid of
it. The PCs may stroke the toad if they
wish. (Stroking the toad is mere super-
stition and has no effect on the game.)
When everyone has had a chance to
stroke the toad, Niss explains the rules
of the game.
The Rules of Spottle
Spottle is a simple dice game resem-
bling blackjack. Niss carefully goes over
the following standard rules.
1. The SpottIe Master is in charge of
all aspects of the game. His decisions
are final. (Niss, of course, is the eve-
ning's SpottIe Master.) Players are play-
ing against the Spottle Master, not
against each other.
2. Each player is required to have two
spottIe dice. A spottle die can be any
six-sided die, but the die must be weigh-
ed and treated by the Spottle Master
prior to use. A die cannot exceed 1 gp in
weight and may be no larger than 2"
across. Treatment of a die consists of
rubbing it in powdered flies (thus mak-
ing it more attractive to the toad). Only
the Spottle Master is allowed to perform
this treatment. The Spottle Master is
paid 1 cp per die for this service.
Players may use the same set of spot-
tIe dice throughout the game. However,
if a die is lost or eaten by the toad, the
player must have a new die weighed
and treated by the SpottIe Master, pay-
ing 1 cp per die for the service.
3. At the beginning of a spottIe round,
each player places a bet in front of him
on the table. Unless the Spottle Master
declares otherwise, there is no limit on
the amount of the bet. Instead of money,
players may also bet objects. The Spot-
tle Master announces the value of the
object bet prior to the roll of the dice. If
the player does not agree with the
amount announced, he may either place
a different bet or sit out that round.
(Niss uses the standard prices given in
the D&D game rule books; therefore, if
a flask of oil is bet, Niss sets the value
of the bet at 2 gp.)
4. After the bets are placed and the
values of all bet objects are determined,
each player rolls one die on the table in
clear sight of the Spottle Master and all
of the players.
5. When all players have rolled one
die, the Spottle Master rolls one die on
the table in clear sight of all.
6. After the Spottle Master has rolled
one die, each player must declare either
a Raise or Hold.
If the player declares a Raise, he must
double his bet. The player places an
equivalent amount on the table with his
original bet. (If the player does not have
the equivalent amount of his original
bet, this option is not available to him.)
If the player declares a Hold, he stays
with the amount of his original bet.
AT THE SPOTTLE PARLOR
After the player declares either a
Raise or Hold, he rolls his second die.
7. When all of the players have
declared and made their second rolls,
the Spottle Master makes his second
roll. Unlike the players, the Spottle
Master does not declare a Raise or Hold.
8. After the Spottle Master makes his
second roll, the round is over. Winners
and losers are determined as follows:
a. Any player whose dice total is 11 or
12 automatically loses the round. His
bet is forfeited to the SpottIe Master.
The Spottle Master's total is allowed to
total 11 or 12 without penalty.
b. Each remaining player whose dice
total exceeds the total of the Spottle
Master is a winner. The SpottIe Master
pays each winner the amount of his bet.
(If a winning player declared a Raise,
the Spottle Master pays him twice the
amount of his original bet.)
c. A player whose total is less than
that of the SpottIe Master loses, forfeit-
ing his bet. (If a losing player declared a
Raise, he forfeits twice the amount of
his original bet.)
d. A player whose total matches the
total of the Spottle Master is neither a
winner nor a loser. He keeps his bet.
9. The spottle toad may swallow a
player's die at any time (it can digest
almost anything but metal). Spottle
toads are trained not to swallow a Spot-
tle Master's die. A swallowed die counts
as a roll of zero for that round; the play-
er may not roll a replacement die. The
player must pay the Spottle Master for
a new treated spottle die at the begin-
ning of the next round. (Example: Play-
er A rolls a 2 on his first die and a 6 on
his second. Unfortunately, the toad
swallows the second die after it is
thrown. Player Ns die total for this
round is 2. Before the next round
begins, Player A pays the Spottle Mas-
ter 1 cp for a new, treated spottle die.)
The DM should be sure that these
rules are fully understood. After any
questions are answered, each PC and
NPC gets a pair of spottle dice ("Com-
pliments of the house!" says Niss, who
normally has players pay 2 cp for the
pair). The game is ready to begin.
Running the Game
For the convenience of the DM, all of
the rolls and bets for the NPCs as well
as the rolls for Niss are provided in the
following charts. If the DM prefers, he
can ignore the charts and actually make
the necessary bets and dice rolls while
DUNGEON 27
AT THE SPOTILE PARLOR
Round Four
The PC who rolls first has his first spot-
tle die eaten by the toad. He'll have to
purchase a new one before Round Five.
At the end of the round, Gergy grunts
in delight that he's won, and the victori-
ous Shkad cackles with glee. The losing
Vansin asks his chosen PC if he'd con-
sider a loan.
Round One
1st Roll 2nd Roll
Vansin 2 cp (2) Hold (1)
Gergy* 1 gp (3) Raise (5)
Shkad* 1 gp (5) Hold (4)
Niss (3) (2)
Niss announces that Gergy's boot has a
value of 2 cpo After declaring a Raise,
Gergy increases his bet to two boots for
a total value of 4 cp. All the NPCs lose.
Vansin puts the squeeze on his chosen
PC, adding any money he gets to his
next bet (and losing it again). Gergy
asks his PC, "How can I win one time
and lose the next time? I don't get it:'
Shkad leans into his PC and hisses,
"You put the evil eye on me again and
I'll kill you:'
2nd Roll
Raise (4)
Raise (1)
Raise (6)
(6)
2nd Roll
Hold (eaten)
Hold (5)
Raise (3)
(6)
1st Roll
1 cp (3)
boot (2)
2 gp (5)
(2)
1st Roll
1 cp (2)
fig (5)
5 gp (4)
(5)
Vansin
Gergy
Shkad
Niss
Round Three
Vansin
Gergy
Shkad
Niss
Niss announces that Gergy's dried fig
has a value of 1 cp, The spottle toad
slurps up Vansin's second die as it tum-
bles across the table. Vansin spends 1 cp
at the beginning of the next round for a
new spottle die. Again, all the NPCs
lose and are very discouraged (Gergy is
becoming hungry and really wanted
another fig). Concerned that they'll
quit, Niss tells the players they've just
played a "charity round:' He dips into
his bag ofholding and gives each of the
players 10 gp, PCs included (the NPCs
are stunned and pleased). Shkad accepts
the money but warns his chosen PC,
"You make me lose again and your evil
eye is mine:'
.Round Two
own bets during these rounds in accord-
ance with the rules of spottle.
A round is played as follows:
1. Each PC announces his bet, places
it on the table, and rolls one die. (Niss
decides the order in which the PCs roll,
and this order remains for the rest of
the game.) .
2. Each NPC then announces his bet,
places it on the table, and rolls one die.
(The DM reads this information from
the chart under the 1st Roll column; the
die roll is the number in parentheses
following the amount of the bet.)
3. Niss rolls one die. (The die roll is
the number in parentheses in the 1st
Roll column.)
4. Each PC makes his declaration
(Hold or Raise). If he Raises, he places
the increase on the table. He then rolls
his second die.
5. Each NPC makes his declaration,
places any bet increases on the table,
and rolls his second die. (The DM reads
this information from the 2nd Roll
column.)
6. Niss rolls his second die (the num-
ber in parentheses under the 2nd Roll
column).
7. Niss pays off the winners and col-
lects from the losers.
Following each chart is an events
section which explains specific NPC
actions and other interesting occur-
rences which take place during that
round.
Here's an example of how Round One
might go, using the information in the
Round One chart. Assume one PC is
playing. The PC bets 5 gp and rolls a 2
on his first die. The DM announces that
Vansin bets 2 cp and rolls a 2, Gergy
bets 1 gp and rolls a 3, and Shkad bets 1
gp and rolls a 5. Niss rolls a 3. The PC
declares he will Raise, adds another 5
gp to his bet, and rolls a 5 on his second
die, for a total of 7. The DM announces
that Vansin declares a Hold and rolls a
1 for a total of 3. Gergy declares a
Raise, adds 1 gp to his bet, and rolls a 5
for a total of 8. Shkad declares Hold and
rolls a 4 for a total of 9. Niss's second
roll is a 2 for a total of 5. Niss pays off
the PC, Gergy and Shkad. Vansin loses
his 2 cp,
NPC players' names marked with
asterisks in each chart are the winners
of those rounds.
the game is in progress. In this case, he
will also have to improvise the reactions
of the NPCs, but he may use the events
sections of the charts for suggestions. If
the DM chooses this option, he should
refer to "Simulating Spottle,"
The DM should bear in mind that
Niss is less interested in winning than
he is in keeping the PCs and NPCs
around until Lord Guzz shows up. Niss
assumes that his guests will keep play-
ing as long as they're winning - so he'll
do whatever it takes, including invent-
ing new rules, to make sure everybody
stays happy and stays put. (For tips on
handling unexpected actions of the PCs,
see "Troubleshooting:'
A game of spottle consists of an indefi-
nite number of rounds. Information is
given in the charts to play 10 rounds,
after which Lord Guzz shows up (see
"Midnight Rendezvous"). However, if
the PCs are getting restless, the DM
may eliminate the last few rounds and
go straight to Lord Guzz's arrival, mak-
ing appropriate adjustments in the
monetary totals that each NPC has.
Fun With the NPCs
Before beginning, the DM should secret-
ly choose which PCs the NPCs will
harass during the spottle game. Make
sure that every PC has been "chosen"
by at least one NPC.
Vansin constantly nags one PC for
donations to his shrine fund. The nag-
ging becomes particularly obnoxious
whenever the chosen PC wins a round.
Vansin's chosen PC should be one who
donated to the shrine fund when the
party first met him.
Gergy is too dense to understand the
intricacies of spottle and peppers one
PC with stupid questions throughout
the game (Examples: "Which is more,
one silver piece or one gold piece?" "If I
rolled a 5 the first time, what do I have
to roll to add up to 7?")
Shkad is very superstitious. He
becomes convinced that one of the PCs
is giving him bad luck. Whenever
Shkad is losing, he snarls at and threat-
ens his chosen PC. Shkad's chosen PC
should be either a fighter or the leader
of the party.
How to Use the Charts
The following charts give the DM the
necessary information to run 10 consec-
utive rounds of spottle without actually
having to roll dice for the NPCs. The
PCs roll their own dice and make their
28 Issue No. 12
Vansin's ruby is the donation given to
him earlier by Niss (value 500 gp). Shkad,
disgusted by his run of bad luck, bets a
dead fish he was saving for a snack. Niss
announces the value of the fish is 2 ep,
"Ibo much to bet;' hisses Shkad, and he
bites it in half for a bet valued at 1 cp,
After declaring a Raise, Shkad tosses in
the other half of the fish, increasing the
value of his bet to 2 ep,
When Vansin loses the gem, he is so
despondent he says he's ready to quit.
This panics Niss, who declares another
"charity round" and gives everyone 10
gp from his bag ofholding. His generos-
ity may make the PCs suspicious; if
they question Niss's motives, he dis-
misses their doubts with a smile. "A
little money means less to me than a
good game;' he says. "I just want every-
body to have fun:'
Vansin*
Gergy*
Shkad
Niss
1st Roll 2nd Roll
Vansin* 5 gp (6) Hold (1)
Gergy* 10 gp (4) Hold (5)
Shkad 5 gp (1) Hold (1)
Niss (3) (1)
Vansin is almost in tears with joy at
having won this round. But at the end
of the round, Shkad leaps up as if to
lunge across the table and grab at his
chosen PC. Before Shkad can grapple
the PC, Bufred intervenes with a shout
and holds up his hands to ward off the
attack. "That's not the way we settle
problems here:' says Niss. Then turning
to Shkad he asks, "Do you wish to issue
a formal challenge?" Shkad ignores him
and hisses at the PC. Ifthe PC wishes
to challenge Shkad, they duel as
explained in Round Five. If not, the
game resumes.
Round Five
1st Roll 2nd Roll
Vansin holy symbol Hold (1)
(2)
Gergy* 10 gp (4) Hold (5)
Shkad 1 gp (4) Hold (3)
Niss (6) (2)
Niss announces that Vansin's holy sym-
bol has a value of 25 gp; losing the sym-
bol causes Vansin to turn pale and offer
a prayer for forgiveness for betting it.
At the end of the round, Shkad lunges
at his chosen PC again. "I challenge
you, evil eye:' Shkad hisses. If the PC
refuses the challenge, Niss explains
that the PC will not be allowed to play
for the rest of the night. Further, the PC
must sit at the feet of Shkad and act as
his personal servant.
If the PC accepts the challenge,
Bufred leads the two combatants to a
clear area beside the gaming table.
Bufred explains they are allowed to use
personal weapons, but they cannot use
magic, and they must stop the duel
when he gives the signal. Otherwise, he
says, the living statue will be activated.
Shkad fights viciously with his club.
When either he or the PC has lost half
his hit points, Bufred signals for the
duel to end and leads them back to their
seats. If the PCs' friends join the fight,
the fight is declared invalid and ordered
stopped (or else Bufred threatens to
activate the statue). If the PC is wound-
ed, Vansin offers the use of his cure light
wounds spell. After the spell is used,
Vansin politely asks the PC for a contri-
bution to the shrine fund; any money he
gets is added to his next bet.
Bound Six
Vansin
Gergy*
Shkad
Niss
1st Roll
ruby (5)
10 gp (3)
fish (5)
(4)
2nd Roll
Hold (6)
Raise (6)
Raise (1)
(3)
AT THE SPOTTLE PARLOR
Round Seven
Before this round begins, the toad turns
toward the window and starts to howl.
It continues to howl throughout the
round. If a PC asks what's wrong with
the toad, Niss explains that the moon
must have come out - spottle toads can
sense the presence of the moon and
enjoy serenading it.
Gergy becomes upset when he hears
the moon is out, as he's afraid it will
trigger his transformation. If a PC asks
why he is so agitated, Gergy refuses to
explain. "I won't tell:' he says. "I've
gotta go!" As Gergy rises to leave, Niss
stops him. "You can't go!" Niss says.
"This is ... uh ... the howling toad
round! There's big money in it if you
stay!" Reluctantly, Gergy sits down.
1st Roll 2nd Roll
10 gp (3) Hold (4)
1 gp (2) Hold (6)
10 gp (3) Raise (2)
(1) (4)
Gergy appears very excited and happy
with his winning streak, snorting and
smiling, but also appears increasingly
nervous. In addition to paying off the
DUNGEON 29
AT THE SPOTILE PARLOR
bets of Vansin and Gergy (and any win-
ning PC bets), Niss dips into his bag of
holding and gives each winner a blue
pearl (value 50 gp) as a bonus for the
"howling toad round:' "See?" he says.
"Aren't you glad you stayed? Now let's
have no more talk about leaving:'
Round Eight
Before this round, Gergy shakes and
gasps, then quickly transforms into his
wereboar form. When the transforma-
tion is complete, he sighs with a snort
and signals with a hairy hand for the
game to continue - since his is.
out he might as well keep playing. NISS
but says that they'll have to.
figure out a way for him to communi-
cate his declarations. If the PCs are
unable to come up with an idea, Niss
suggests that Gergy grunt once for Hold
and twice for Raise, which Gergy does.
Shkad is not happy about this arrange-
ment. "I don't want to play with an ani-
mal!" he snarls, then demands an
from his chosen PC. "What do you think
about it, evil eye?" Regardless of the PC's
answer, Shkad hisses at him.
30 Issue No. 12
1st Roll 2nd Roll
Vansin 5 gp (eaten) Hold (1)
Gergy* 10 gp (5) Hold (4)
Shkad 5 gp (4) Raise (2)
Niss (4) (3)
The toad eats Vansin's first die; he'll
have to buy a new one before the next
round. Since Vansin lost again, he'll
make a particularly pathetic plea for
donations from his chosen PC. Any
donation that Vansin is given is added
to his bet in round 10.
Shkad loses his temper after losing
the round. "I'm not sitting at a table
with a stinking pig!" he hisses, and
lunges across the table for Gergy. Feel-
ing more aggressive in his wereboar
form Gergy is only too happy to fight,
and moment later they are rolling on
the floor, biting and clawing at each
other. "Oh well:' sighs Niss. "Let them
have it out:' Vansin scrambles under
the table to hide. If a PC interferes with
the fight, both Gergy and Shkad attack
the PC until he withdraws.
One combat round after the fight
begins, there is a loud bumping at the
door. "Open it!" Niss cries to Bufred,
expecting the arrival of Lord Guzz.
Bufred pulls open the door, and two wild
boars run in, squealing ferociously.
Wild boars (2): AC 7; HD 3; hp 12, 16;
MV 90'(30'); NAT 1 (tusk); Dmg 28;
Save F2; ML 9; AL N.
Gergy summoned the boars to help
him fight Shkad. Unfortunately,
boars aren't sure who the enemy IS
supposed to be, and they charge directly
at the PCs. The boars viciously attack
the PCs with their tusks, and Gergy is
too preoccupied to call them off.
Niss and Bufred huddle against the
wall while the battle rages. Niss forgets
completely about activating his living
statue and the noise drowns out any
pleas from the PCs for him to do so.
Vansin stays under the table. Gergy and
Shkad scuffie on the floor, attacking any
PC who interferes. The spottle toad
appears very bored during the fight
raging around it.
If one of the wild boars is killed, the
other panics and runs away. Bufred
slams the door shut and locks it. If all
the PCs are killed by the boars, the
adventure comes to abrupt end
(although if the demise of the PCs
seems imminent, a compassionate DM
AT THESPOTTlE PARLOR
Round 'Ien
Mi dnight Rendezvous
At t he completion of the 10t h round (or
ea rlier, a t t he OM's discret ion), there is
a loud knock on the door. Bufred nero
vously opens it, and in st ri des a la rge
hobgobl in weari ng a br ass crown. He is
The NPes' enthusiasm for t he ga me is
about gone. " I forgot to ment ion a ape-
cial rule: ' says a nervous Ni llS. " When
t he Spottle Master rolls a 9 in t he ni nth
round , everybody wi ns!" Ni8Spays ofT
all the SPell a nd PCs the a mount8 of
their original bets.
Thou!: AC 6; HD 3; hp 18; MV
120'(40' ); 'AT 2 claws or 1 weapon; Omg
1-311 -3or by weapon type; SA paralyz-
i ng touch; SO regenerates 1 hp per
round; Seve F3; ML 10; AL C.
Guzz slams the door behind him and
Bufred locks it on his orders. When
Vansin gets a good look at the hobgob-
lins, he Iainte dead away.
Guzz surveys t he room and nods his
approval. "Very good, Ni88. These mon-
grels will make fine t hou] food:'
At t his point, the PCs may li kely
suspect they' ve been sucke red. But
before they can take action, Niss spea ks
accompanied by two hobgobli ns carry.
i ng ba t tle a xes a nd a fourth hobgoblin
with glazed eyes. The hobgoblin with
t he crown is lord Guzz, t he axe carriers
are his bodyguards, and t he fourth is a
thoul in t he service of Lord Gun.
Lord Gun (hobgoblin king); AC 6;
HO 5; hp 22; MV 90'(30' ); t AT 1; Dmg
by weapon type +2; Save F5; ML 10;
AL C; sword.
Hobgoblin bodyguards (2): AC 6;
HD 4; hp 13, 15; MV 90'(30'); t AT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; Save F4; ML 10
(if king dies, reduce ML to 8); AL C;
battle axe.
2nd Roll
Hold (2l
Rai se (5)
Hold (4 )
(3 )
1st Roll
10 gp (1)
10 gp (6)
1 gp (5)
(6)
Round Ni ne
Va nsin
Gergy
Shkad
Niss
1st Roll 2nd Roll
Vansin 40 gp and HGId (l)
pearl (l)
<;ergy 5 gp (6) Raise (4)
Shkad flas k (6) Hold (2)
Ntse (6) (61
The disgusted Shkad bets his empty
wine flas k. Ni ss a nnounces t he fla sk
has a va lue of2 cp. The toad eats the
first di e of t he last PC to roll . All of the
NPCs are ready to gi ve up , especia lly
Vansi n, who gave i n to an impulse a nd
was virtually wiped out in t hi s round.
Niss as ks the PCs if they'll keep play-
ing. If t hey agree, Ni88 ins ists t he NPCs
stay too, 80 t he PCs won't have to play
alone. If t he PCs also are ready to call it
a night, Ni ss starts offeri ng "bonus
money" fro m his bag of holdi ng. He
first offers them 10 gp each. If the PCs
st ill resist , he offers each a n additi onal
50 gp, t hen 100 gp. lfthe PCs become
suspicious of his motives, N'i88 la ughs
nervousl y and assures t he m he's just
hav ing a good time and wants the game
to go on.
might have Bufred Of" Niss help them
fight t he boars).
Assuming th e boars are dealt with,
Bufred signals for the fight to end "or
else suffer the bl ows of t he livi ng
stat ue." Exhausted. Ger gy and Shkad
cease fight ing and shamble back to
t heir places at the tabl e. They each
have suffered 6 hp damage from their
scume. " If you' r e finished," says Niss,
" let's get back to t he game."
DUNGEON 31
AT THE SPOTILE PARLOR
up. "What do you mean, thoul food?" he
says. "That's not what you told me!"
"What do you care?" barks Guzz.
"They're mine now!"
Niss is suddenly overcome with guilt
- innocents for slaves is one thing, but
thoul food is quite another. "My statue
will stop you:' he says defiantly, then
fishes inside his bag of holding for the
star-shaped key to activate the statue.
"Where's the key?" he says, searching
frantically. "It was in the bag! I know it
was!" (Not anymore. As explained pre-
viously, the key is now in the pocket of
the unconscious cleric.)
Guzz motions for his bodyguards to
round up the spottle players. The thoul
goes to Niss and touches him on the
shoulder. Niss collapses to the floor.
If the PCs surrender, the hobgoblins
take all their possessions and shackle
them in heavy chains. They are then
taken to the hobgoblin camp and served
as a meal to a lair of hungry thouls.
If the PCs resist, Guzz orders his body-
guards to kill them. The bodyguards,
along with the thoul and Guzz himself,
viciously attack the PCs and NPCs.
They fight to the death.
In the first combat round, the thoul
touches Bufred and paralyzes him. The
thoul then turns his attention to Gergy
and Shkad. Guzz and his bodyguards
concentrate on the PCs. If the thoul
succeeds in paralyzing both Gergy and
Shkad, it joins the attack on the PCs.
If any PC thinks to search Vansin, he
finds the living statue's star-key in the
cleric's pocket. If the PCs manage to
revive Vansin (cure light wounds or a
potion of healing will do it), he voluntar-
ily gives up the key as a reward for (he
believes) saving his life.
Placing the key in the star-shaped hole
in the statue's chest instantly activates
the statue, which obeys all orders given
by the person who activated it.
Living statue (iron); AC 2; HD 4*; hp
30; MV 30'(10'); NAT 2; Dmg 1-8/1-8 +
special; SD nonmagical weapons stick
in statue's body if Saving Throw vs.
Spells fails; Save F4; ML 11; AL N.
The PCs may attempt to escape by
unlocking the front door. A thief has the
standard chances of unlocking the door,
or someone must search Bufred for the
keys. No PC can unlock the complex
latches on the door behind the satin
curtain. As noted earlier, the rest of the
complex cannot be reached unless the
DM so decides.
32 Issue No. 12
Concluding the Adventure
If the PCs wish to leave before the bat-
tle ends, they'll have to do so without
the NPCs. Bufred and Niss (assuming
they're conscious) refuse to abandon
their home. Likewise, Shkad and Gergy
choose to stand and fight; Vansin feels
guilty about stealing the key and also
chooses to stay.
If the PCs leave anyway, the forces of
Guzz ultimately win the battle. Niss,
Bufred, and all the NPCs are taken
away, and Niss's home is looted and
destroyed. The officials of Glantri even-
tually learn of the PCs' role in the loss
of their favorite gambling site, and the
PCs are disgraced and unwelcome in
Glantri for the rest of their days.
If the PCs kill Guzz and his body-
guards, but Bufred and Niss don't sur-
vive the battle, the PCs may search the
parlor. All they find of value is the bag
ofholding, which has only 480 gp left in
it. There is nothing of value on the
bodies of Bufred and Niss.
However, if the PCs defeat the forces
of Guzz and Niss survives, he apologizes
profusely for his deception and pleads
with them to accept a peace offering. If
the PCs agree, Niss retreats to his pri-
vate quarters and returns with a sword
+1 and a gold ring (value 500 gp) for
each PC and NPC. He also gives them
the remaining 480 gp from the bag of
holding to divide among themselves.
Finally, he extends an open invitation
to participate in his nightly spottle
games whenever they're in the area.
Troubleshooting
Here are some tips for handling unex-
pected problems that may crop up dur-
ing the adventure.
The PCs go broke: If the PCs lose all
their money early in the spottle game,
or if they don't have much money to
start with, Niss makes them a no-
interest loan, telling them they can pay
him back with their winnings or make
arrangements to do some work later to
payoff their debt. If the PCs resist a
loan, Niss gives them 10 gp each as a
gift.
The PCs threaten or attempt to rob
Niss: Niss threatens them with the iron
statue. If the PCs persist, remind them
that Niss is well regarded in Glantri.
Should any harm befall him, the PCs
will likely be in big trouble with the
Glantri officials.
The conflict with Shkad gets out of
hand: The chosen PC may get fed up
with Shkad and decide to eliminate
him. So be it. The game continues with-
out Shkad.
The PCs wish to leave early: It is of
vital importance to Niss to keep the PCs
in place until Lord Guzz arrives. If they
try to leave, Niss offers them increas-
ingly higher amounts of treasure to get
them to stay. If this isn't working, Niss
says that without them, there won't be
enough players to continue. The NPCs
won't like this, and they also insist that
the PCs stay put.
Simulating Spottle
The DM may wish to actually roll dice
for the NPCs instead of using the
tables. If he chooses this option, he
should secretly roll1d10 for every die
rolled by the players or rolled for the
NPCs. If a 10 is rolled on the 1d10, the
character's die has been eaten by the
spottle toad.
For a more interesting simulation,
take a long piece of string and make a
circle about 2' in diameter on your gam-
ing table. Place a saucer in the center of
this circle to represent the spottle toad.
Players toss their dice into this circle. If
a die strikes the saucer or lands outside
the circle, it is considered eaten by the
toad. The decision of the DM as to
which dice are eaten is final.
As a variation, you might try Three-
Die Spottle, which increases the stakes
and adds another element of uncertain-
ty. Each player rolls a total of three
spottle dice; each Raise doubles the
previous bet. (For instance, if Player A
bets 1 gp and Raises on his second roll,
his bet increases to 2 gpoIf he Raises
again on his third roll, his bet increases
to 4 gp.) When all of the players and the
Spottle Master have completed three
rolls, the Spottle Master rolls 1d20. Any
player whose total exceeds the number
rolled on the 1d20 automatically loses.
The surviving players compare their
totals to the Spottle Master's total, and
winners and losers are assessed as in
standard spottle.
As the popularity of spottle continues
to spread across the Known World,
other variations are sure to develop.
Regional versions rumored to exist
include Dead Man's Spottle, Fireball
Spottle, and the extremely tricky Gelat-
inous Cube Spottle. The DM is encour-
aged to explore these and other spottle
variations in his own campaign. n
OF NESTS
AND NATIONS
BY IlANDY MAXWEll
Arson, rioting,
sabotage, murder
- and no suspects.
ArtworIo: by Paul Joquava
"This mOOule," Randy says, " WIU writ -
ten Qnthe flovr, whik in a constant stale
of dri rmishinf( with my dog. Whilt' work-
i ng on manuscripts, I make piles of t he
pages. maps, and reference books to JUI'P
them wi thi n eMy reach. Th e dog insists
hi' has th e right to sleep on these pi les. I,
on t he other hand, prefer t hat su.ch ROptr
rific excursions tak e place elsewhere. Th
date, the border dispute has not been
settled to the complete sat isfaction of
eit her party."
"or Nests and Nat ions" is a ~
modul e for 35 cha racters of 8t h to 12t h
level. The advent ure takes place in
Speeularum, t he capital city of the
Gr and Duchy of Karameikos. The
Dungeon Master may wish to consult
the D&D Compa nion a nd Maste rs IIets
for deta ils concern ing some as pects of
this module. The gazetteer GAZI T h ~
Gran d Duchy of Karameikoe is highly
recommended for play; it ca n be used to
add detail and at mosphere. and to pro-
vide a deep a nd vivid background for
t he adventure. Many major NPCs men-
tioned herein (such as t he Duk e, Baron
von Hendriks, a nd Thldon) are also
found within that work, t hough the OM
can easily create new statistics for t hese
characters. The OM may also place
Specularum in his own game world.
usi ng the city map provided a nd ren am-
ing the city and its major fact ions as
necessary.
Thi s advent ure deal s primarily wit h
the hivebrood. The OM can find i nfer .
mation detailing these monsters in t he
Creature Catalog, pages 6870 . However,
enough i nformation on the hi vebrood is
presented in thi s modul e to all ow the
OM to conduct t he advent ure even with-
out this book.
Adventure Background
Specu larum is in an uproar. In the last
few weeks , guards on t he city walls
have been mu rdered at t hei r posts; a
watchma n was hurled ecreammg from
the High tower; fir es ha ve broken out in
the city; warehouses filled with goods
have burned to t he ground; conjured
monsters have a ppea red in t he ma rk et-
places a nd done a great deal of damage;
a nd water ter mites have appeared in
Mirror Bay, doi ng damage to bot h docks
and shi ps.
No design or pattern ca n befound in
the murders, fire s, or conjurations.
Traladara n a nd Thyati an guards have
DUNGEON 47
OF NESTS ANDNATIONS
Rumor ThbJe
Choose the appropriate statements from among those in brackets to suit the situa-
tion. The OM may wish to include Baron von Hendriks and the Black Eagle Barony
as IUllI1e8 mentioned in the rumors. Thyat ian nobles al ways blame the Traladaran
clans; the 'Iraladaran clans, of COUI'8e, blame the Thyatian nobles. In a mixedgroup of
Thyati ans and Traladarans, elements from the Foreign Quarter are blamed. It is
likely that people will accuse groups or organizations they ha ve personal u ~
against. All of the roman are (alae, but the PCa ha ve no way to knowthis at fust.
Some of the rumors are known to be(alae by the Duke andhis advisors. but informa.
tion on the veracity of a rumor may not yet have reached the general public.
1. Some (minor Thyatian nobles; lesser 'Iralad ar an clans; foreigner s of all sorts)
have joined together to overthrow the Duke. They are using fire and murder to
get r id of anyone who stands in their way. They are not above murdering or bum-
ing some of t heir own in order to avoid suspicion.
2. The Duke was nearly assassinated by someone using a crossbow. A (Thy-
alian; Tr aladaran; foreign) quarrel was definitely used in the attempt .
3. The lTral adaran clans; Thyatian nobles; forei gnersl have secretly asse mbled
a fleet of ships and mean to breach the sea gates and sack the city.
4. The lmniortals are wreaking havoc on the city for failure to follow the principles
of the [Church of Karameikoa; Ch urch ofTraladara; Cult of Halev]. Only strict adher
ence to those principles will convince the Immortals to show mercy.
5. The [Kingdom of Thieves; Veiled Society; Iron Ring} is directly responsible for
all the trouble.
6. The [Church of Kar ameikos; Church of Traladara; Cult of Hetevl is r esponsi -
ble for the fires and murders.
7. The Patriarch of the [Church of Karameikos; Church of Traladara; Cult of
Halavl haa offended creatures from another plane of existence. They will cont inue
their attacks on the city unt il the Patriarch l S overt hrown.
8. Many wells and fountains in t he city have been poisoned by [Thyat ians; Tr a-
ladarans; foreigners}. The poison causes a mild ins anity, making people attack
one another or commit suicide. When th ings get bad enough, the poisoners will
charge a very high price for the ant idote.
9. The [Order of the Griffon; Magicians' Guild; Elvenguardl has something to do
with all these strange goings-en.
10. The Elvenguard and Admiral Hyrakeoe are using the murders and fir es as
an excuse to [depose the Duke and establish a military rule; have the Duke raise
taxes so he can Increase the amount of money spent on the mili tary; form a secret
network of spies and informers to spy on the people cf Specularum].
11. The flrea and murders are part ofa complicated extortion plot by some group
' in the [Old Quarter; Nest; For eign Quarter!.
12. Specularum is under a curse, and the only way to lift it is to [depose the
Duke and put a Tral adaran in his place; rid the Duke's court of all Traladarans;
rid t he cit y of all fcrei gnersl .
Mob Clash Table
Each t ime a PC is involved in a clash of mobs, a riot, or a gang war, use this table.
PCs must roll percentile dice for each listed incident . It is possible for everything
below to happen to each PC within a single ri ot.
5%chance of being knocked down and tr ampled by the mob for 28 hp damage.
5%chance of having pocket picked of all money, with no chance to noti ce it .
5%chance of having pocket picked of most valuable object (magical item, jew-
elry, etc.) with no chance to notice it.
5%chance of bei ng hi t by projectile (rock, bottle, board, etc.) for 1-4 hp damage.
5%chance of accidentally losing a valuable object in the crowd (OM's choice or
random roll).
- 5%chance of being mistaken for a hated enemy and attacked by a crowd of
5 10 rioters (AC 9; HD 1; hp 5 each ; MY 120'(40' ); 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon
type; Save Fl ; ML 10; AL N-C) armed with clubs and torches.
5%chance of taking 1-6 hp damage from a militiaman's club by accident as t he
guard attempts to restore order.
5%chance of being mistaken for a r ingl eader or person r esponsible for inciting
the riot, t hus being arrested by the militia. The arrested PC spends 4d6 +12
hours in jail before being released.
48 Issue No. 13
been killed in about equ al number.
Tr aladaran clans and Thyati an nobles
have all lost goods and buildings in
fires. The conjured monsters have
appear ed at random with no set time or
place of attack.
There is ris ing enmity between al l
fact ions in the city, and hard words are
being spoken. Wild and exaggerated
rumors ru n through the streets (see the
Rumor Table). The Pes are likely to
hear rumors anywhere, from t he court
of the Duke to the back alleys of the Old
Quarter.
The separate fact ions all claim inno-
cence and blame each other for the
cri mes. The thi eves' guilds have sworn
to the Duke that they are not reaponsi -
ble, but accuse one anot her. The Veiled
Society has openly accused the Iron
Ring of setting fires. The Kingdom of
Thieves has blamed both the Iron Ring
and the Veiled Society for the incidents ,
cla iming the two are in league to over-
throw the Duke. The Church of Kara-
meikos, the Church of Traladara, and
t he Cult of Halav have called for calm,
but each accuses the ot hers of not doing
enough to quell t he unrest.
The streets are not safe at night. Old
hatreds and long-forgot ten ri valries and
feuds have been infl amed . Ther e are
clashes between Traladaran and Thy-
atian mobs, foreigners and locals, and
between various organized street gangs.
The militia usually breaks up these
r iots before they tum deadly, but the
clashes are becoming more frequent and
more violent, and are involving more
and more people. On any ni ght Pes are
in th e streets , there is a 5%chance they
become involved in one of these clashes
(see t he Mob Clash Thble for the resul ts
of such involvement ). The DM may
place a clash or riot at any location and
on any night desired.
The Duke and his advisors are very
concerned over the growing unrest in
Specularum. It has been decided that
the Duke mus t do something _ any-
thing _ in order to show the people he
is still in charge. As the posted rewards
are not bringing any r esul ts, t he Duke
has called a meeting of community
leaders and other powerful individuals.
Audience with the Duke
Thday is the 11th day ofVatermont. The
Pes have been invited to the Hi gh Pal -
ace for an audience with the Duke. If
the PCs are not already involved in the
OF NESTS ANDNATIONS
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, ,
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, I
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..
. ~ ,
. ", .: ~
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HIGHRC,ltCH
tVOL. "' c"" RI VER
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DUNGEON 49
OF NESTS AND NATIONS
duchy's affair s t hrough fr iendship with
t he Duke or ot her polit ical figures, they
should be invited to attend the meeting
becau se t hey are of high-enough level to
beof service. Even if t he PCs are not
exact ly respecta ble Oike the envoys
from t he t hieves' guilds), t hey are st ill
invited to attend. Leedera of the various
Tral adaran clans. Thyati an nobles,
representerivea from all guilds (includ-
ing thieves), and other dignitaries are
in attendance. The Duke himself
addreseea the gat her ing:
"Honored guests , nobles, and cit i-
zens: Due to the gravity of t he situa-
tion, I will dispense with the usual
introductions and honor ifics. As you
kn ow, t he unrest in our city is grow.
ing worse. My advisors and I have
decided to pool all knowledge con-
cerni ng rece nt events. In this way,
we hope t hat your groups will work
with rather than against each ot her,
and t ime will not be wasted in t he
duplication of effort. Mak e no mis-
take; our Duchy itself is at ri sk. I
needs the hel p and goodwill of all
citizens, and before this is over, per-
haps the help and goodwill of the
Immortals themsel ves.
"Above and beyond what I have
already offered, I cannot post bounty
or list r eward for such service, for I
know not what we are fighti ng or
how such service should be honored.
I can only say help will be rewarded
most generously and hindrance pun-
ished most severely. I will leave you
now to Lord Kerri gan, who will
explai n the facts as we know them
and share such information as we
have. May the Immortals smile on
you and your chil dren; I bid you good
day."
Wit h t hese words, the Duke t urns and
leaves the hall . A personal audience can
be arranged for t he following day, but
the Duke knows no more than is availa-
ble from Lord Korrigan.
Lord Kerrigan has been actively read-
ing and correlati ng reports of th e cri mes
happening in Specularum. At t he
Duke's exit , Lord Kerrigan stands and
deliver s a long speech deta iling when
and where mur ders were committed,
fires set, and monsters conjured (t he
DM can prepar e t his speech after read-
ing the list of incidents t hat follows).
Lord Korrigan points out , on a large
map of Specularum t hat hangs in t he
50 Issue No. 13
hall, t he locations of all these various
incidents (the DM should now give t he
player s a copy of t he "Playe rs ' Order of
Events" and a map of Specularum with
only locati ons A-L indicated).
Lord Korrigan also peaeea on t wo
important pieces of information. The
first and foremost is ahout t he Black
Eagle Barony. Suspicion automatically
fell on Baron Von Hendriks and hi s
wizard, Bargle the Infamous, when the
murder s and fires first began. It is now
known that Bargle has been in the
Minrothad Guilds on t he baron's busi -
ness for the past several weeks. The
baron has just recover ed from a pro-
longed illness (some say he was poi-
soned) and is busy purging his own
ranks. It seems extr emely unli kely,
wit hout Bar gle close at hand and with
internal stri fe in his own bar ony, that
von Hendriks would attempt, or could
attempt , a stratagem of arson and mur-
der against the city.
The second piece of information is
about t he clergy. The clerics of Specu-
larum ha ve declared they will not use
commune spells until a clear, concise,
and significant set of questions can be
asked. The Pat riarc hs feel it is inappro-
priate to bother the Immortals with
questions such as, "Is so-and-so
involved?" or "I s t his group respcnei-
ble?" As the Patriarch of t he Church of
Tr aladara has sai d, "If you bother the
Immortals with a question, the answer
had better be worth knowing: '
If the DMhas allowed a magic-user PC
to obtain a oontact outer plane spell from
the D&DCompanion Set , the PC should
be allowed to use the spell. No NPC
should have this spell or use it for any
price. The Traladaran Patriarch's words
should beheeded, for the Immortals do
not enjoy being disturbed by a game of 20
questions unless it is important to their
sphere of power. Immortala so disturbed
may well penalize a PC by increasing his
chance of insanity or their own chance of
lying when contacted.
Player s' Order of Events
This is the sequence of events t hat have
happened in the city before the PCs'
meeting with t he Duke and Lord Korri -
gan. Letters in parentheses indicate the
locations of the incidents on the map of
Specularum. Included is a summary of
what Lord Korrigan knows or beli eves
to be true concerni ng these incidents.
The PCs may examine evidence collect-
ed from any crime scene and acquire the
names and eddreseee of any witnesses,
euepeete, or involved parties by contact -
ing Lord Korrigan or hi s underlings.
(See "Dungeon Master's Order of
Events" for more information on these
events.)
Nuwmont 18th: A guard on the wal l
(A) between t he north end of the Nest
and the Great Church of Karameikos
was found murdered just after sunset .
The guard's neck wa.sbroken, but the
other guards 88W and heard nothing. A
speaJe with the chad spell revealed the
guard was gr abbed from behind, felt a
sharp pain in his neck, t hen knew noth-
ing more. The Duke offered a 2()(}'gp
reward for the name ofthe person
res ponsible.
NUUlmont 20th: A warehouse (B) full
of cloth burned to the ground after an
initial explosion. In t he night, a disre-
putable merchant was found murdered
in an all ey (C) not far away. As with the
wall guard, the merchant' s neck was
becken. A speak with the chadspell
revealed nothing. The merchant is
known to ha ve t ies to both the Veiled
Society and t he Kingdom of Thieves. It
is possible th at this murder may be due
to a dispute over stolen goods. As t he
merchant still had his full purse when
the body wa.s found, robbery has been
ruled out as a moti ve for the murder. A
2()(}'gp reward was offered for the ware-
house arsonist and 100 gp for the mer-
chant's kill er.
NUUlfflOnt ZJrd: Fresh-water termites
(apparentl y created by magic) attacked
ships and wooden docks in Mirror Bay.
Two small galleys were sunk, and the
southernmost docks on the western si de
of the bay (0) were damaged. In the
confusion of the attack, a watchman
was t hrown from the Hightower (E).
Many of the guards from the Hightower
had come down to help fight the ter-
mites. Those that remained in the tower
saw and heard nothing until t he watch.
man fell screaming. The Duke offered
200 gp for the names of t he persons
respons ible for each cri me.
Nuwmont 25th: There was fir e by day
and murder by night. An lerendi
frei ghter (F) caught fire at noon, killing
two crew members and injuri ng four
more. The saili ng ship was taking on
great bales of fleece from the ware-
hcueee on the southern shore of Mirror
Bay when one of the bales erupted in a
fiery explosion. The fire burned out of
OFNESTSAND NATIONS
cont rol, and t he shi p wu towed out into
the bay, where it burned and 88nk safe.
ly away from t he docks and ot her shi ps
two hours later. The exact ca use of the
fire is unknown .
Th at night, a halfi ing was found mur -
der ed; his neck had been broke n. The
body was thrown into t he bay but had
washed up on the beach of the sout her n
shore (G). A spro)r with dead spell
revealed nothing. The halfl ing, Arte-
mua Gravel , still carried 50 gp in his
pocketa. He lodged at the Elk Horn
rooming house. The Duke offered 500 gp
for the shi p arsonist and 100 gp for t he
halfl ing's murderer.
,,"u u-mOll I Z81h: Another wa ll guard
waa murdered. The guard waa stationed
on the wall (II) just sout h of t he Hall of
the Order of the Griffon. Again, t he
guard's neck was broken. The other
guards heard him scream but arrived
too late to help or even see what hap-
pened . Spells r eveal ed not hing further.
Three owl bears suddenly appeared in
t he Merchant Distri ct OJ. Th ey killed
two hones, demoli shed a shop dealing
in rare and valuabl e porcel ain, and
badl y injured t wo people. After t he
attack. the owl bears just as suddenly
disappeared.
A wholesale foodstuffs business (J) in
the Merchant District was heavily dam-
aged by fire , No one sa w or heard any-
t hing unusual. Thldon, head of t he
Magicians' Guild. examined t he area
and stated t hat a blast fire ball
gem was pl aced under some sacks of
Ilour. 'Iel don also te ntat ively connected
the warehouse fire with the Ierendi ship
fire three days ago, and more positively
connected the wall guard's murder wit h
those of the halning, merchant. watch.
man. and other wall guard. based on his
studies . Enraged, t he Duke offered
2.000 gp for t he name of th e murderer.
2.000 gp for the name of t he magic-user
who is conjuring monsters, and 2,000 gp
more for the megie.usee setting fires.
3rd: A priv ate guard, hired
by s shi p's captai n. was found dead in
t he night aboard the ga lley he was
guardi ng (Kl. Ot her sa ilors in t he area
were attacked by sleep spells. When
quest ioned. t he ship's captain was
amazed. The ship had not loaded any
cargo; the guard was simply a precau -
t ion agai nst other sai lors " borrowi ng"
gear from his vessel while he and his
crew spent the night ashore. There was
only one th ing missing from t he vessel:
a keg of lamp oil wit h the ship's name
etc hed into the top and bottom of the
small barrel. Th ill made t he keg a very
" hot " item; no one would buy it. si nce it
was linked to a murder. Examinat ion
showed th e guard was killed with an
axe, but revealed not hing more. A 100
gp reward was offered for t he kill er.
JUtermol'lt 7t h: A small warehouse (1. )
filled with kegll of tar, pitch , and ca ulk-
ing used by the naval shi pbuil ders was
set ablaze. The body of a guard was
found in the ruins. Several sailors saw a
spell-easter hurl a fire ball spell at the
warehouse; they chased him, but he
escaped by cas ting a lL' t'b spell across a
narrow alley. cutting off pursuit. Believ-
ing t his may bethe same magic-user
who has set fires across the cit y, the
Duke ofTers5.000 gp for the fire -sett ing
magic-user and 2.000 gp for any of hi s
henchmen. All ot her offers still stand.
For the Dungeon Master
Human agents are not t he cause of
t hese di saste rs . They have bee n planned
and carried out by hivebrood. large
paras it ic insect creatures that live by
DUNGEON 51
OF NESTS AND NATIONS
infecti ng ot her beings, controlli ng and
eventually destroying them as indi vid-
uals in the process. The hivebrood live
in communities eomewbet similar to
anta' nesta, and come in five types:
broodJing. hi vebreod, hiveleadet;
hivemind. and broodmother.
Hivebrood i ndivi duals have no mean-
ing or worth; only t he interests of the
hive are important . These interests are
primarily to protect and preserve the
broodmother. the most important mem-
ber of the hive. who lives at the center
of all the hive's activities and is protect-
edwith fanatical devoti on by he r "chil-
dren." This large creature (only one per
hive) exists solely to prod uce t he small
larvae called broodlings.
Broodli ngs are pl aced on paral yzed
vict ims, us ually bumanoids of various
types, who act 8B hosts for the parasitic
young. A broodling does not kill ita
host; it adapts and modifi es itself to the
host in such a way that the host and
broodling become virtually a si ngle
creature. This process takes one whol e
day and causes major changes in the
host and broodling. The most obvioua
changes are t hat the host creature
develope a chi ti nous outer shell, its eye.
film over, and it becomes stiffer and
more "inaed.!ike" in its movements.
Afterward, the new broodling joi ns its
fell ow hive members at work . The brood-
ling later metamorphceea into either a
hivebrood, hiveleader; or hivemind.
The hivebrood ill t he mat ure workerl
soldier of the hive, from whence the
entire group gets ita generic name. The
hiveleader is a more powerful form of
hivebrood, able to give orders to t he
lesser members of the hi ve. Hivel eaders
act as lieutenants for t he hiveminds,
who are a barely mobile t ype Oike the
broodmother) entirely devoted to con-
trolli ng t he activities of the hi ve. The
hiveminda make all important decieicne
concerning the hi ve.
The most feared aspect of th e hive-
brood. ia the hivemind's ability to
acquire and pass on to other members of
the hive the capabilities of any creature
it has eaten. When a hivemind devoun
a creature, it gains all that creature'.
abilities. includi ng saving throw . It ill
then able to pass these abilities to any
member of ita hive through airborne
chemical emleeicee. Thus, a hivemind
that haa dined on a 3rd-Ievel thief and a
6thlevel magic.user can send out chem-
ical signals to all the hivebrood so that
t hey can hUh ill . ha.crow, as though
52 Issue No. 13
they were 3rd-level thieves, and cast
any spells the magic.user had memo-
rized at the time he was devoured. It is
posaible for each member of a hive to
cast a fin boll spell ita hivemind haa
eaten a magic-user who knew the spell.
Once an ability baa been passed by the
hivemind, it 18 forgotten by that
hivemind. An ability is defined as being
one oftbe following: one spell of any
level or t ype; a skill such aa one of a
t hiers special abilit ies; an Attack Rank;
a fighter's combat opt ion Ieee Playu'.
Companion. page 18), or a level of weap-
on mastery (see Book,
page 15).
In the metamorphosis of humanoid to
hi vebrood. , one of the most amazing
changes is to t he humanoid's voice. The
vocal chords st iffen, the tongue fla ttens
and becomes hard, and t he proeeee of
speech becomes music itself. Air is
forced t hrough the vocal chorda, causing
vibrations, then over the stiff'tongue,
causing a low buzz. The two eounde are
combined and manipulated usi ng the
jaw.. mandibles. and teeth. The voice of
a hivebrood, from broodJing to brood.
mother. ecunds like a large bassoon or
oboe. The hivebrood language is based
on the placement of the notes in the
scale, although broodlinga, hivebrood,
and hiveleaders rarely we language,
preferring to rely on chemical ecents for
communication. It ia pri marily the
hiveminda who use t he language to
discuss affairs of t he hive. Hiveminda
may al80 speak melodious versions of
common, elvish, or other languages.
No hivebrood. of any kind haa a per-
sonal name (numbers have been gi ven
to the hivel eaders in this adventure to
clarify matters for the DM). All others
are si mply part of the whole and have
no specific identities. Only the brood -
mother has t he peculiarity of being a
singular unit in the hiv e.
Food (or Thought
The current situation began 10 months
ago when a 20th-level magicuser, alone
and unconscious, was found by the hive-
brood in the heavi ly wooded area west
of Rugal ov Village. The hi vebrood
brought him back to the hive, west of
Rugalov in Dymrak Forest. The magic
user had had a heart attack and was in
no sha pe to be used for anything but
food, 80 he was delivered, unconscious
but still alive. to one hivemind's cham.
ber as ita evening meal.
Later, in t he derkneee of ita chamber,
the hi vemind brooded as it listened to
the distant rustling of hivebrood coming
and going. The hivemind contemplated
ita newfound power, magic and knowl
edge swirling i n ita mind. The hivemind
absorbed the power, gaining the spells
that were once the magic-user's. These
new powers al80 let the hivemind ace an
old problem in a new light .
All the hivemiada of the nest knew
the Eastron Road to t he 80Uth of the
hive was becoming too well traveled.
Rugalov Village was becoming too pros-
percus and Rugalov Keep too strong.
Humanoids were needed for broodlings
and food, but humanoida in force would
harm the nest. The hiveminda knew the
hive's securi ty lay in its conceal ment. If
the humanoida found t he nest, they
would lay siege and destroy it . Unti l
now, t he hivemi nde had no power to do
anything except mount a dir ect suicidal
8888ul t on the road, village, or keep.
Ope n warfare with the humanoida
woul d befstal for the entire nest.
The hivemind now saw another way
t hat t ha t problem might be solved. It
&ent hi vebrood I!ICUrI'}'ing off to the
nest's garbage pit, whi ch held al l man
ner of trash and treasure - clethee,
armor, shi elds , weapons, boots, hata.
jewelry, gemll, coina, IJtaffs, rods, rings,
acrol la., spell books, and anything else a
humanoid might wear or carry. The
hivemind wanted the 2Othlevel magic-
user' . spell boolr..s and a medallion of
peculiar design_The spell book.s, t he
hivemind knew, were a source of great
power, a tool to wield to solve t he
"humanoid probl em: ' The medallion of
ESP (30' range) t hat the magi c-user had
worn was a key to t he doors of the
humanoid mind .
When the hivebrood re t urned with t he
spell books and t he medallion, t he
hivemi nd sent forth t he signal. Threat
to the broodmother! Threat to t he hive!
Threat! Threat! The hi ve paused for a
moment, scent ing t he alarm. It con-
cerned hivemieds only, so all others
resumed t heir labors. Here and there
throughout the great nest. hiveminda
stopped their work and began moving
inward to the nest's center, to a large
chamber near the broocJmother. The
Council of Drone. had been cal led.
The hi veminda arrayed themselves in
a rough circle. In the center was the
alarm-giver, the hivemind who had
devoured t he 2Othlevel magic-user, It
offered a possible solution to t he threat
of t he humanoids. the music ofit.& voice
echoing off the vaulted roof of the coun.
cil chamber. Here and there, different
music sounded as other hiveminds
spoke. Knowledge was expanded. and a
synthesis reached and announced by the
council-calling hi ve mind. The other
hiveminds voiced their opinion in a
booming choir of assent: The humanoids
would be attacked. (See "The
Hivemind's Plan")
The Hivemlnd Itself
The hivemind who devoured the 2Oth-
level magic-user is now a very powerful
creature with multiple spell-casting
abilities (Ae 6; HD 6 +6; hp 40; MY
30'UO' ); 'AT 3 (2 clewe/t bite); Dmg 1-4/
1-4/1.f> plus paralysis; Save F12 or
MU20; ML 12; AL N). The bite of the
hivemind causes paralysi s for 2-16
turns unless a Saving Throw VB. Poison
is made. This hivemind's saving throws
are made as a 2Othlevel magic-user or
as a 12thlevel fighter, whichever is
better. The hivemind has also devoured
many low-level thieves, clerics, elves.
and magic-uaera over the years and st ill
retains many of their abilities. For this
reason. the hivemind has spells exceed-
ing the limitations of a normal spell.
ceeter,
The hive mind has the same chance of
performing or transferring a thief abili -
ty as thieves of the following level s: 6th,
5th, Srd, 2nd ( X3), 1st ( x 4). It may use
or tranBfer any thief ability at any of
the listed levels, at will .
The hivemind has devoured nine
clerics and is able to Turn Undead at
the following levels: 6th, 4th. ard, 2nd
(x 2), 1st (x 4). Like thief abilities. the
Turn Undead ability may be used at
any listed leve l, at will. The hivemi nd
c:an cast or transfer the following cleri-
cal spells: cause 'isht wounds. cure lisht
wounds (x 2), darlmf!SS, 'isht (x 2),
remove fear, resist cold, blight. find
trapR, resist fire. silence 15' radius ( x 2).
eausedisease.
The hivemind has devoured six magic-
users of the following levels: 20th. 4th,
3rd, znd, 1st (x 2). It has also dined on
one 2ndlevel and two ret-level elves.
This gives the hivemind the ability to
cast the following spells: charm perlJ(Jn
(X 3), chtect magic, hold porltll, light
( x 4), magic missile (x 2), readlan-
guage. , read magic( x 4), shield, . leep,
continual light (x 2), ESP()( 2), llnoell,
levitate, mirror image. wizard locll.
dispel magic, fire ball, fly, hold person,
invisibility 10' radius, charm monster,
confusion, curse. polymorph others,
polymorph self, an imate chad ( x 2),
[eeblemind, hold monster, death spell,
invisible stalker, lower waUr, weat her
control, create normal monsters, delayed
blast fire ball. sword, per manence, sym-
bol (sleep).
The hivemind has a medallion ofESP
(30' range) but no weapons or armor.
The spell books of the hivemind contain
only those magi c-user spell s listed. The
hivemind understands and can use all
these spells to their greatest potential,
learning them over again at 20th level
once each has been cast. IT. however, a
hivebrood of any type (including the
hivemind) casts a spell of any sort, it
loses 1 hp in the process. Any hivebrood
will cast a spell and lose a hit point
even if it leads to death, for the hive is
far more important than the individual.
The hive mind will not let the spell
books fall into humanoid hands. It will
cast a fir e balispelJ on the books in an
attempt to destroy them, or will use an
invisible stalker spell to take the books
to another plane. The hivemind does all
it can to avoid being captured; if no
escape is possible, the hivemind casts
its ckath spell on Itself It will, of course,
try to lure the PCs into the spell' s area
of effect before doing 80. ITcaptured, it
will refuse to cooperate at any cost.
The Hivemlnd'a Plan
The attack upon the humanoids would
have to be carefully planned. All
humanoid prisoners in the nest were
interrogated using the medallion of
ESP. From most, no useful information
was gathered. Occasionally, a thief from
Spec:ularum, an elf with a good memory
for the streets and alleys of the city, or a
fighter with dealings in the neighbor-
hoods called the Old Quarter and the
Nest was handed to the hivemind for
interrogation. Weeks and months
passed, with prisoner after prisoner
being interr ogated, until synt hesis was
reached.
The hivemind learned many strange
things about humanoids. Unlike hive-
brood, humanoids were not all alike.
Thi s lack of wholeness, it realized, could
be exploited to cause humanoid to fight
humanoid. The hivemind decided to
enter the hive of the humanoids, the
one they named Spec:ularum. With some
specially prepared hiveleaders, it would
OFNESTS ANDNATIONS
tur n the humanoid gr oups against one
another, causing an internal war.
Only three hiveleaders were needed
(hi veleadera being preferred because of
their higher intelligence and tough-
ness). The three hiveleadera received
polymorph st'lfspells from the hivemind
and polymorphed themselves into
humans. The hive mind then passed
permanence spells to three other hive-
leaders, who cast these spell s on their
polymorphed brothers. Because the
hiveleadera used polymorph self spell s,
their normal armor class, hit points,
and saving throws remained unchang-
ed. However, once polymorphed into
human form, the hiveleaders were no
longer able to receive abiliti es from the
hivemind by chemical transference. The
hivemind also passed the same two
spells to a second hivemind, who imme-
diately t ransferred them back to the
firet 80 that the ori ginal hivemind
would not permanently forget or lose
the spells. The hivemind then had brood-
lings and hivebrood scour the trash pit,
arming the polymorphed hive leaders
with magical arms and items.
The three polymorphed biveleaders
in human form now have the following
statisti cs: AC 2; HD 5 +I i hp 28 (11). 21
(12), 24 (/3 ); MV 120'(40'); IAT 1; Omg
by weapon type; Save F7; ML 12; AL N.
Hivel eader 11 has a mace +1 and a ring
of spell stori ng. The ring contains these
spells: charm person. web, sleep. fire
ball, create normal monsters. Hiveleader
12 has a ring ofhuman control and a
sword +1. Hiveleader 13 has a ring of
i nvisibility and an axe +2. ITa hive-
leader is captured, it can tell PCs noth-
ing. QuestiolUl, ESP, and any other
magical mind reading reveal only such
information as : "This unit was so
ordered;' "Unknown to this unit; ' and
"Non sequitur; that is hivemind func-
tion ." Their physical appearances are
quite bland and nondescript, matching
the local human population.
The spell s in the ring ofspell storing
are replaced by the hivemind. Though
the hivemind casts spell s at 20th level,
the OM should remember that the ring
stores spell s at the lowest level needed
to cast them; the fire ball spell produces
a 5-HO fire ball, and only 15 HD of
monsters are created when the creat e
normal monsters spell is used. Created
monsters revert to their normal behav-
ior if uncommanded by a epell-ceeter:
water termites attack and eat wooden
objects, croccdilea attack and eat any-
DUNGEON 53
OFNESTSANDNATIONS
THE FLYING HAMHOCK TAVERN
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Lumber Warehouse
1 square 5'
54lssu. No. 13
one they find, etc.
The three polyrrwrphed hivele adere
were now ready to infiltrate the city.
From pr isoner inte rrogations, the
hivemind chose the Fl ying Hamhock
Tave rn as the base for launching its
campaign. The hivemind rode to t he
city in its own for m. in a covered wagon
pulled by captured hor ses, wit h the
polymorphed hl veleedera along 88 drtv-
ere a nd an escort. Once wi t hi n a mile of
the city, t he hivemind poly morphed
itself into human form. This ga ve them
about four and a half hours (t he dura-
ti on of the hivemind's poly rrwrph self
spell) to enter the city, then find and
ta ke over t he Flying Hamhock.
Once a base of operat ions was cap-
t ured, the hivemind's pla n was to carry
on a ca mpaign of terror using invisible
stalker spells to murder guards, delayed
blast fire ball spells to cause fires, and
erecre normal monsters spells to stir
havoc. This would be done slowly and
carefully. 'Tho heavy or too sudden a
blow would bri ng the city together
instead of tearing it apart. Whil e t he
hivemind did not undentand the differ-
ences between hu mans , it knew that
such differences were important to the
humanoids and could be made to work
aga inst t hem. The various humanoid
groups, not knowing who was to blame
for t he trouble, would hopefully blame
each other. Th en, as was typical among
humanoids , war would begin.
The Flying Homhock Tavern
Unfortunately for the staff of the Fl ying
Hamhock, t he hivemind's plan went
like clockwork. The hi vebrood found the
ta vern without difficulty, rented t wo
upstairs rooms, and wai ted for the tev-
em to dose for the night. When the
hi veleadera attacked, the ta vern owner
fell under the spell of t he ring of human
control , and t he bouncer fell to a charm
person spell from the ring of spell stor-
ing. The ot her tavern personnel found
themselves face to face with the
hivemind in its natural form. The
hivemind used its charm person spells,
and th at was the end of any resistance
by t he staff.
After being charmed, the staff memo
bers of the Fl ying Hamhoc::k were told to
act normally and carry on bus iness as
usual. The only difference at t he inn is
that no upstairs rooms will be rented,
and no one but the staff is allowed
above t he ground floor. Hthe charm
person spell on any staff member is
dispelled, he will act ively oppose the
hi vebrood and help t he PCs. The OM
should not give experience points for
any of t he tavern staff killed by PCs;
t he staff members are innocent pawns
of t he hivemind. If any staff member is
se nt to pr ison or separated from the
hivemind for longer than t he duration
of the charm person spell (one week),
the hivemind sends an invisible stalker
to kill th at person.
The staff members of the Fl ying
Hamhoc::k Tavern have had shady deal.
ings with every thieves' gui ld in Specu-
larum, but they do not belong to any
guild. The staff consi sts of the owner,
Fyodor Karamazov. and four others :
Mit ya Ivanovich, Katerina Polenov,
Gregor Samsa , and Grushenka.
Fyodor Kar amazov. tavern owner:
AC 7; T5; hp 14; MY 120'(40' ); t AT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; Save T5; ML 9;
o 16; AL N. Fyodor is the owner and
bartender of the Flying Hamhoc::k 'Iav-
em. He allows no one to te nd t he bar
but himself, claiming that the others
ei ther don't water the liquor enough or
steal it out ri ght . Fyodor is pleasant to
the customers, unpleasant with the
staff, and is considered a master con
artist by all i n the neighbor hood,
including hi mself. Fyodor is unarmored
but armed with a short sword and a
dagger +2.
Mitya Iveeovtcb, cook: AC 9; HO 1;
hp 3; tAT 1; Dmg by weapon type; MY
120'(40' ); Save NM; ML 6; AL C. Mitya
is a fat . stupid. and easygoing individ-
ual. So long as he can cook and prepare
simple meals in the tavern, Mitya is
happy. Hattacked or in need of a weap-
on, Mitya will use one of the many
kitchen kni ves (treat as daggers). If
attacked outs ide the kitchen, treat
Mitya as unarmed.
Katerlna Polenov, servant : AC 8;
T3; hp 8; MY 120'(40' ); IAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; Save T3; ML 8; D 15; AL
N. Katerina serves food and drinks and
acts as mai d for the eecond floor (Fyodor
looks after his own apartment). As wait-
reea and maid. Katerina is able to pick
pockets and pilfer small val uables.
Techn ically, Fyodor is supposed to get
25%of her "take." He never knows how
much Katerina has stolen, however, so
he is constantly shortchanged (there is
no honor among t hieves). Katerina is
armed with a dagger and keeps a black-
jack hidden in a skirt pocket .
Gregor Samsa, waiter and handy.
OFNESTS AND NATIONS
man: AC 9; T4; hp 11; MV 120'(40' );
IAT 1; Dmg by weapon type; Save T4;
ML 8; AL N. Gregor serves food and
drinks but seldom attempts to pick
pockets . He prefers to confi ne his thiev-
ery to an occasional big job, such as
looting a warehouse or ransacking t he
home of a wealthy merchant. Gregor
likes working for Fyodor because the
tavern owner knows every deal er in
stolen goods in Speeularum. Gre gor is
armed with a short sword and dagger.
Grushenka, bouncer ; AC 7; F4; hp
19; MY 120'(40'); IAT; Dmg by weapon
type; Save F4; ML 10; AL N.
Grushenka's job is to throw out rowdy
drunks and settl e quarrels (forci bly, if
necessary). Grushenka is short. stocky,
stubborn, and mean - everything a
tavern bouncer needs to be. She can be
a good frie nd or a bad enemy.
Grushenka wears leather armor and
fights with a dub. She al so wears a
special spiked glove, a punch from
which does 1-4 hp damage. Grushenka
carries three daggers , one openly in a
sheat h on her belt and t wo in conceal-
ment (one is in her left boot and the
other in a speci al sheath up her right
sleeve). Grushenka throws these dag-
gers at Expert level of weapon mastery
(see "Weapon Mastery," page 16. and
the "Weapons Chart: ' page 20, in the
Master Players' Book).
The Flying Hamhoc::k is a typical
small tavern. As far as the local author-
ities are concerned, this tavern is no
worse than many others, and has a
better re putation than some. Because of
its location near the cit y wall, the wall
guards often stop in for a pint of ale or a
bowl of stew. and t hey are always treat-
ed well .
The hivemind has found out from
Fyodor which customers are tavern
"re gul ars" and which are not . HPCs
visit the tavern more than twice. inves-
tigating cri mes or inte rrogati ng the
staff. the hi vemind casts its invisible
stalker spell and orders the creature to
kill a PC randomly chosen by t he
hi vemind while spying through a peep-
hole in Fyodor's bedroom (the DM may
choose or roll r andomly). The inviaibl e
stalker (AC 3; HD 8; hp 40; MV
120'(40' ); tAT 1 blow; Dmg 4-16; Save
F8; ML 12; AL N) will try to attack
when the PC is alone.
Descriptions of the various rooms in
t he Flying Hamhock, as shown on the
tavern maps with th is module, follow.
DUNGEON 55
OFNESTS ANDNAnONS
1. Common Room. This room is well
lighted with large lanterns. Daylight or
dark, shutte n always cover the win-
dews. This is partly because lea ving the
windows open leu in the BOunds and
smeUs of working horses and laborers
lnot to mention th e accompanying flies),
and partly to prevent anyone from spy-
ing on thoee in the tavern. The room is
well worn, fairly dean, and smells of
greasy food and cheap ale.
Hidden on the floor at the sout hern
end of the bar is a trigger; when
tripped, it ri ngs a small bell upstairs .
This warns anyone on the second floor
that t he authori t ies are coming up.
Thus warned, fugi tives. thieves wit h
stolen goods (or in this case, hivehrood)
ca n escape detection by using a secret
door to the lumber warehouse be hi nd
the tavern. 1b catc h the hivebrood
before they eaa escape through t he
secret door. the PCs must stop Fyodor
from triggering the bell. Thieves i n t he
common room have nonnal hear noise
cha nces to detect the ringing ofthe bell .
2. KlU::hen.. The kikhen is a jumble of
pots. pan&, and cooking utensils. Mitya
Ivanovich rul es over the disorder with
calm. He 1lOOm& to know where every-
thing is. and can pull a small spat ula or
an egg whisk from a jumble o( uu-nail s
whenever he needs one. The (ood being
prepared is plain. greasy. and nourish-
ing. The kitchen is always kept very
warm by t wo ovens. This room smells
pleaaantly of spices and herbs that are
kept, but never used, by Mitya.
3. Cell a r (not shown on map). This is
one lar ge room, 45' )( 60', with great
wooden beams supporting the ceil ing.
Extra chain. tables. and bed fram es are
piled in the center of the room. The
wall s are lined with stacks of casks,
kegs, and cra tes. The cas ks and kegs
hold various wines, br andies. and ales
- IIOme good, IIOme bad. and some 80
cheap aa to give a perecn a headache
just looki ng at the keg. Many ofthe
crates hold cheap earthenware plates.
bowls, cupe. and tankartis; othen hold
knives. fork&, and spoons. There are
alec miaceUaneoua tools and hardware
stored in the cellar: hammer, nails,
buckets, mope, brooms, and ot her iu-ms
useful in running a tavern.
4. Fyodor'a Apartme nt. FyOOor 's
neat and clea n quarters are divided into
two rooms. The sitting room (4A) is
56Issue No. 13
furnished with comfortable chain and a
table, its floor carpeted with a worn but
clean ru g. Fyodor 's bedroom (4B)eoa-
tains a bed. a nightatand, a chair, and a
wardrobe. The bedroom is uneerpeted,
but t here is a small rug near the bed.
The nightatand conceals a peephole in
the floor. When the nightatand is moved
away from the wall . the peephole is
revealed. Anyone looki ng through the
peephole can see the western 30' length
of the common room and bar. not the
kitchen or stairs going up. The peephole
is plugged when not in use, and from
t he common room it appears to be noth-
ing but a small knothole.
Fyodor keeps nothing of value in his
apartment and only the minimum
amount of coin (cha nge worth 130 gp
value) needed to run the tavern. He,
like the rest of t he staff. keeps his valu-
abies in a well -protected bank else-
where in town.
5. Unen Closet. This room contains
nothing but a la undry bi n for dirty
sheets and blankets, and shelves held-
ing dean linens, blanketa. and quilts.
8. Staff QuarWrL These employee
bedchambers were originally guest
rooms, but t hey have been perecnelieed
and made more livable by the servants.
Mitya's room (6A) haa several unused
cookbooks on a shelf over t he bed.
Grueahenka's room (6B) haa a shield
hanging from a peg on the wall and an
old sui t of leather armor stashed under
the bed. Kau-rina' s room (6C) contains a
la rge trunk filled with stolen skirts,
dresses. shirts, and shoos. She also has
a lar ge mirror hanging on the wall to
the left of t he door. Gregor 'lI room (6Ol is
very clean and sparsely furnished. It
contains not hing but a bed, a night.
stand. and a spare lIuit of clothes hang.
ing on the back of the door.
7. Guest Rooms. The guest rooms are
all eJ:actly ali ke, each with one or two
beds. a chair, and a nightatand. They
are clean and spartan. meant only to
keep travelers comfortable (or a night
or two, but are too plai n and bare for
prolonged stays. Hiveleader II occupies
room 7A, hiveleader 12 is in room 7B.
and hiveleader 13 haa room 7C. The
other guest rooms are empty.
8. Hi vemiDd'. Room. Under normal
circumstances. this room is never
rented by Fyodor because it contains a
secret door. The hivemi nd had the bed
removed and a trunk brought up from
the cellar. The mfflallwn of ESP and
spell books are stored in the trunk. The
secret door in t he southern wal l of the
room leaela to t he loft area of a lumber
warehouse behind the tavern. The
hivemind will use it as an escape route
if nec:esaary.
Ifhard preeeed, or 88 a last resort
before escaping. the hivemind casta s
creue IIOrmal fflOMler iJspell to create a
Tyrannosaurus reI (AC 3; HD 20; hp
91; MY 120'(40'); IAT 1; Dmg 6-36; Save
FlO; ML 11; AL N>. If thi s spell is cast
on the second or first floor of t he tavern,
the weight of t he creature causes the
floor to collapse, and all persons and
objects within 10' fall t hrough the hole
with the monster. If the dinosaur falls
through t he second floor and lands on
the ftnrt floor, that floor ecllepeee into
t he cellar. For each floor t hat ccllepeee,
PCs, NPCs. and the din088ur each suf
fer 110 hp falling damage and 212 hp
dams ge from falli ng objecta (chairs,
beds, boards, beams, other PCs. etc.).
PCa face the additi onal danger of bee-
ing the dinoeeur fallon them; each PC
baa a 10%chance that this oocun to
him, doing 2-20 hp damage. It is poeai-
ble (or the dinosaur to (all on all the
PCe, 88 it ia large enough to belly nop
on the entire party.
In the (;(InfUAion. the hivemi nd casta a
permanence spell on the diD088ur before
the durat ion o( the r:reaU IIOrmal mon
iJleN spell expires. So long 88 a PC
remains alive in the ruins. the dinosaur
will not leave the tavern. If all PCs ar e
abl e to flee t he ruins o( the tavern, the
dinosaur esca pes into the streets of
Specularum in 212 rounds. It attac ks
anyone or anyt hing it finds there: PCs.
innocent bystanders, horses. guards,
etc. The dinosaur else damages build.
ings, wall s. and other structures in ita
path. The OM ahould decide what type
of 8lrUct ure the dinceaur is attacking.
then use the chapter on siege equip-
ment i. n the M QlJler P14yviJ' Boolt. espe-
ciall y the "Creature Attac ks" aection,
page 26, and the "Fortificat ions" table,
page 28.
As the din088llr is large. noisy, and
easily eeen, it will not take long before
the city begins to fight back. After one
turn, 2-8 people per round (both mili.tia
men and ordinary citizens) begin to
arrive and attack t he creature with
CI'OII8bows, sli ngs, long bows. and short
bows. The OM may play out this battle
ifhe likes; otherwise, the dinosaur is
slain after half an hour.
After it has made the dinosaur perma-
nent, the hivemind attempts to esca pe
from the ci ty. Any surviving hiveleadere
must do thei r best to escape with the
hivemind. Otherwise, they are left to
di e in the ruins. Any hiveleaders
t rapped in t he ruins of the tavern
attack PCs until either they or the PCs
are destroyed.
9. Lumber Warehouse. This SO' x
80' lumber warehouse is owned by a
friend of Fyodor. one who keeps his
mout h shut about any nefarious goings.
on. The secret door in room 8 opens onto
a loft area of the warehouse. The main
floor can be reached by stairs to the eas t
and west. The warehouse holds scat-
tered bundles of lumber and stacked
boards of various sizes and sha pes. The
loft area holds boxes and kegs of nails,
pegs, hinges, and other hardware.
Dungeon Master's Order of Events
At the end of t his secti on is the full
order of events in Specularum as the
Dungeon Master knows them. The DM
must keep in mind that th is is not a
mystery modul e in the lrtrictellt sense.
As PCs investigate the murders, flees,
and conjured monetere. details will be
supplied by the OM as they are discov-
ered, but th e PCs will probably never
deduce t hat there are hivebrood at the
Flying Hamhock. The best the PCs can
do is to realize something is wrong at
the tavern and organize a raid on the
place.
PCs will have a direct effect on the
events that take place after Vatermont
11th. After the hivemind is discovered
and exposed. no further events take
place. The DM is free to rearrange these
events, but care should betaken t hat
clues are not clustered together. giving
the PCs too easy a solution.
Hthe PCs wish to question NPCs, the
OM must arrange this as appropriate.
Meet ings wit h any government figures
will, by the Duke 's order. run smoothly
and quickly, without the usual bureau-
cratic delay. The two major churches
and the Cult of Hal av can becontacted
and meetings arranged by simply going
to t he reepecuve places of worshi p.
Church and government officials cooper-
ate freely with the PCs.
Ordinary citizens can befound at
home or contacted by looking for them
at work, neighborhood taverns, etc.
Thyatian nobles, t he heads of the Trala-
daran clans, guild mas ters, and other
important people must be contacted and
meetings arranged through servants
and underlings. Meetings are held at a
t ime and place convenient for the NPC,
not the PCs. It is more than likel y t hat
ordinary citizens and important people
will want some form of payment for the
informati on they supply. which may be
inaccurate regardless of payment. Such
individuals may have purposes of their
own or ulterior moti ves for supplying
information.
Contact with th e underworld of Specu-
larum can bemade at the Black-Heart
Lily Tavern. Representatives of all
thieves' guilds, criminal organizati ons.
and even some st reet gan gs can be
found ther e. Any thief or underworld
figure will certainly want payme nt for
information.
Nuwmont 11th: The Flying Hamhock
was at tacked and taken over by the
hivebrood. The rest of the evening was
spent settling into the inn and prepar-
ing the at tacks to come.
Nuwmont 18th: The hivemind cast an
invisibk stalker spell before sundown.
The sta lker was commanded to kill a
guard on the wall (A) whom the
hivemind saw from its window. Other
than the information listed in the
"Playe rs Order of Events," ther e is no
other evidence to be had concerning th is
cr ime.
Nuwmo"t 19th: The hivemind
relearned the invisibk stalker spell.
Relearning and transferring spells
always occurs on the days immediately
following an attack using any magic-
user spells; the t ime between attacks is
also used to gauge the success ofthe
hivemind's plan so far.
NUlDmont 20th: Hiveleader 13, whil e
itunsible, planted a chlayed blas t fire
ball gem at the warehouse (B) in the
ear ly morning. There is no evidence.
othe r than blast marks, left behind
after the ensuing explosion.
In the late afternoon. the hivemind
watched the common room through the
peephole in Fyodor's bedroom. He
picked a merchant at random and cast
an inoisible stalker spell. The merch ant
was killed by the invisible stalker (at
B1) after he left t he tavern. Interviews
with the merchant's friends and his
widow disclose t hat the merchant owed
the Veiled Society a large gambling
OFNESTSANDNATIONS
debt . An interview with any representa -
ti ve of t he Veiled Society reveal s that
the merchant had worked out a pay-
ment schedule with them; his payments
wen! up to date. The Veiled Society
could only lose money from the mer -
chant's death. The re is no evidence that
anyone would want to have killed the
merchant . Spells reveal nothing.
Nuwmont 23rd: Hiveleader 11 walked
from t he Flying Hamhock at dusk to the
shores of Mirror Bay and cas t a create
normal monsters spell, creati ng 10
fresh-water termites (D). The hiveleader
was seen by an elven sailor on a small
cr aft docked at the sout hern shore. The
elf could not give chase or capt ure t he
spell-caster because his vessel was
being attacked by the termites. The elf
saw the epell-caeter turn and walk due
sout h, away from the bay. Once the
spell-caster was past t he wall tower, the
elf could not see where he went. The elf
described the assaila nt as a normal
human wearing local dress, but distance
and darkness prevented him from see-
ing more.
The hivemind used its inuieible stalker
spell during t he termite attac k. The
stalker was commanded to kill anyone
it chose in the Hightower. The stalker
chose the watchman tending the fire
and threw him from the tower (E). A
speak with the dead spell reveals t hat
the guard was thrown from the tower by
an invisibl e force and did not jump.
Then! is no other evidence.
Nuwmont 25th: Hiveleader 13. whil e
invisible. hid a chlayed blast fire ball
gem in a bale of fleece being loaded on a
ship (F), just before noon. The Ierendi
freighter loaded the bale onboard, and
12 rounds later the gem exploded. All
those killed or injured were Ierendi
sail ors . There is no evidence of what
caused the explosion (even if PCs dive
and examine the remains of the ship).
The hivemind used the peephole in
Fyodor 's bedroom agai n t hat evening. A
halfling was chosen at r andom, and an
invisible stalker was sent to kill him.
As ordered, t he stalker followed the
halOi ng until he was alone, then killed
him and t hrew him into the bay (G).
Interviews with the halfl ing's frie nds
(eight people, evenly divided into males
and femal es, halflings and humans)
reveal the following: The halfling. one
Artemus Gravel, was a con artist who
confined his activit ies to rigged games
of three-card monte and selling phony
t reas ure maps. The haJning and his
DUNGEON 57
Radu's Ust or Customers
Most of Radu's custome rs are known to him by name and place of business. Some
are known by name only and are not steady customers; they come in occasionally
and Radu knows no more about them.
The following customers visited Radu'e establishment the day of the fire. They
are listed in the approximate order they arrived as Radu can best remember. The
customers need not have purchased anythi ng but may have come in to check the
pr ice, quality, or freshness of ite ms. Unknown customers are not unusual , as
nearly every day half a dozen people enter t he shop who are tota l stra ngers to
Radu.
1. Dhansur, an elf, comes in occas ionally.
2. Darya Alexeyevna, the cook for the Dragonfly tavern.
3. Unknown woman.
4. Boris Ni koli, a grocer in t he Lesser Merchant District .
5. Tit us Angel icus, a grocer from the Merchant District .
6. Irenak Irenkov, the cook for the Laughi ng Dog tavern.
7. Petrovovich, comes in occasionally.
8. Unknown halfl ing.
9. Gladsholme Axehigh, a dwarf buyi ng supplies for a large adventuring party.
10. Mit ya Ivanovich, t he cook for the Flying Hamhock tavern.
I I. Bar b Rahdjee J ung, comes in occasiona lly.
12. Unknown man.
13. Phineas Hilltopper, halOing cook for the Open Door, a roomi ng house in the
Old Quarter.
14. Unknown man.
15. Corneli us Andr acus, comes in occasionally.
16. Unknown elf.
17. Kl aus Roeder, a foodstuffs buyer for several local logging companies.
18. Crimso n Noblius, a buyer from t he Trader 's Corridor.
19. Rhadjarry Moar, comes in occasionally.
20. Corina Ptolemisus, owner of the Mirror Bay Inn .
OFNESTS AND NATIONS
frien ds visited seve ral inns and taverns
on the night of his murder. The friends
left Artemus about a block from his
lodgings while they ret urned to the
Laughi ng Dog Tavern. If suspicion falls
on t hem. all those accompanyi ng Arte-
mus t ha t ni ght are wi lli ng to undergo
testi ng by ESp,. ring of truth, scroll of
truth, or any ot her magical means of
determini ng t he t ruth, to prove they
had nothing to do with the crime.
On the night of his murder, the half-
ling vis ited two inns and three taverns
in the following order: Dimens ion
Doors, the Wizard's Gizzard . the Laugh-
ing Dog, t he Flyi ng Ha mhock, and the
Graceful Swan. The Graceful Swan Inn
is loca ted in t he Old Quarter, a nd
Dimension Deere is in Westron Alley,
just nort h of the Magicians' Guild Hall.
Both inns are respectable eeteblieb-
ments. The employees of each inn
remember that Artemus came in wit h
his frien ds and had a meal. He is
described as "a happy lit tle chap, free
with his money and fond of his dinner."
They all express surpri se and shock at
his murder.
The Wizard's Gizzard is located on t he
northeast comer of the intersection of
Westron Alley and the Street of
Dreams. Thi s tavern is a gatheri ng
place for young magic-users looking for
adventure. The st aff of the tavern
remembers the halfling came in and
had a br andy with his friends, and th ey
all len shortly thereafter.
The Laughing Dog is located in the
Nest . It is a disreputable dive and hang-
out for th ieves and cutthroats of all
types. The staff there remembers Arte-
mus and his friends came in and gave
some young t hieves a lesson in rigging
a card game. The waite r at t he tavern
confirms that Artemus's fri ends
returned later without him.
The Flying Hamhock should betreat-
ed no differently than the others. The
staff remembers Artemus, of course. (Th
clai m he never came in would be suspi-
cious behavior indeedl) The halOing and
hi s frie nds tried to get a game of three-
card monte going, but the t aver n's
patrons wer e too wise to play. The staffs
of all three taverns express shock and
surpr ise at the halOing's deat h.
PCs searching t he ha Ining's room at
the El k Hom rooming house find not h-
ing of interest .
The PCs must get permissi on from t he
owner of each establishment or from the
authorit ies before any searches can be
made. If t he PCs attempt to storm
through these inns and taverns, taking
t hem apart plank by plank looking for
clues and casti ng spells r ight and left ,
t he Duke beers of t hei r behavior and
puts a stop to it immediately. PCs tak-
ing such a course of action are fined
heavily by t he Duke. If it happens more
t han once, th e PCs are taken ofT the
case and asked to leave Specularum.
The OM should remember that casti ng
a spell on an unwilling person is a
cri me in Specula ru m, a crime the
unwilling party will report as soon as
possible.
Nuwmonl 281h: A wall guard was
killed by an invisible stalker (H) at mid-
morning. The hivemind used t he peep-
hole and picked the lerendi guard at
random from the crowd in t he tavern's
common room when the man came in for
breakfast . The stalker was ordered to
slay the guard when the man returned
to dut y. Becauseof several dru nken
brawls, the man had been forced to
choose between imprisonment or "s pe-
cial service" as a wall guard. The guard
had no friends in Specularum, and no
one knows or remembers at rll"llt that he
stopped at the tavern. There is no evi-
dence to be found otherwise.
Hiveleader 11 hid in an alley at noon
and cast a create normal monsters spell,
creati ng t hree owl bears. The owl bears
rampaged through the Merchant Dis-
trict OJ for one turn. An eyewit ness
remembers seei ng a man enter an alley,
t hen suddenly the t hree owl bears
appeared from the same alley. The wit-
ness can tell t he PCs no more than t hat ,
as he fled t he area. Visit ing t he alley
accomplishes nothing. There is no other
evide nce.
Radu's Wholesale Foodstuffs (J) was
set ablaze by Mit ya Ivanovich, the cook
at t he Flying Hamhock. The hivemind
ordered Mitya to hide a delayed blast
fire ball gem under sacks of flour at
Radu's. The PCs can find out t hat Mitya
was at Radu's by asking the owner for a
list of everyone who entered the shop
t hat day. Ift he PCs do thi s, th e OM
should give them "Radu's List of Cus-
tomers," This list contai ns customers'
na mes and what Radu knows about
each of them.
58lssuo No. 13
If asked, Mitya confi rms tha t he was
in the store that day. He points out that
he shops there weekly for flour. Bugar,
and ot her gooda needed in the tavern. It
ac:cused of setting the fire , Mitya denies
it . He sticks to the story that he was
only doi ng his weekl y shoppi ng. No
judge in the city will agree to formally
charge Mitya or set a triat date unleslll
t he PCa ca n u ptai n how Mity a came by
the cklaynJ bkut firr ball gem. Mitya
may. i n turn, charge the Pea with elen-
der if they accuse him. If 80 charged. a
j udge will orde r the PCs to stay away
from Mitya and the Flying Hamhock
until their trial date (somet ime i n
Yarthmont). If the PCs fail to obey t he
judge's order (t he staff of the Flying
Hamhock will certainly complain to
authori ties if they don'U, they may be
imprisoned or exiled to the vill age of
Marilenev or Sulescu until the trial
date. The PCa will have similar luck if
t hey attempt to charge a ny ot he r of
Redu'e eustcmere with the cri me.
News of t he judgment ofThldon (lee
"Pl ayer 'l Order of Events ") electrified
the town thil day_Paranoid rumon and
fighting between various city factiora
picked up conaiderably over the next
few daYI as the search for the murder-
en and eebceeure took shape.
lGtt'rmolit Hiveleader II , unarm-
ed, went walking along the docu
accompanied by an invisibk hi vel eader
13, armed with an axe. When they came
upon a galley (K)., hiveleader 11 cast a
Ilnp spell on its guard and hiveleader
13 killed him with the axe , becoming
visible. The two then took a keg of lamp
oil and went back to the tavern. Wit
nessea in small craft on either side of
t he galley can tell the PCs that they
sa w a man walk along the dock, stop at
the gall ey, and r ai se his hand. That is
all they remember; everyone on both
sides of the galley was put to sleep by
the Ilnp spell . When they awoke, they
went to the galley to lee if the guard
there had bee n put to sleep as well , only
to find him dead.
l att'rmont 7tll : Hivel eader 11 was
caught i n a small warehouse (1.) while
attempting to cast a spell . A guard
discovered and tackled t he hi veleader in
the middle of epell-casr ing, The hi ve-
leader wu able to knock the guard out ,
step outside the warehouse, and cast a
nonnal ball spell. The hi vel eader
was chased by several Bailon but
escaped usi ng a web spell in a narrow
alley. The guard died in the fir e; a , peak
wi th the dead spell reveal s the magic.
user's appearance wu like that of hun-
dredsof local people; the man Will
simply nondescript and wore regular
work clot hes . However, t he guard's
spirit does know that the spe ll-caster
was very powerful and tried to bi te him,
though the spell-caster had no fan gs.
lOtIl : After hearing the
accounts of these crimes, Thldon, head of
the Magicians' Guild, was now eon-
vinced that some mad high-level magi c-
user was loose in the streets of
Specularum. He advised the Duke to
confiscate all spell books and magic.
user scrolls , no matter how trusted the
indi vidual magie-user might be. The
Duk e decl ined this advice, fearing t he
consequences. Thldon closed the Magi.
ciara' Guild Ha ll and refused to teach
any spells until the "mad wizard" WlUl
caught . Unless the PCs an trusted by
and frie ndly with Thldon, the old wizard
will not be much help to them. The
wizard st ill eensulta with the Duke and
ot her advison, but he is very suspicious
of any magie-ueer he haa not known for
a long, long ti me. As 'Ieldcn says, "Bet-
ter suspicion undeserved than trust that
kill s." Magi c.use" in the city avoid
OFNESTS AND NATIONS
identifying t hemselves as 8uch from
this day on t hrough the rest of the en-
eis, to avoid vigi lante action agairat
them.
lQtermont 1ltll: The PCs have their
meeting with the Duke and Lord Kcrri .
gan. From thi s point on, the PCs may
become invol ved in the investigati on,
and may also accide ntally walk into one
of the sabota ge at tacks as it ha ppens.
The OM should treat the following a8 a
set of guidelines in this case, preparing
to al ter the outcome of events depend.
ing on the speed and power of the PCs'
responae to the sit uat ion.
The hivemind cancels a planned foray
for this eveni ng i n favor of another
attack to be made two da ys from now
(lee following entry).
lGtennont /Jtll: It is a terrible day for
Speeularum. Three large sailing ships
return at da wn from the Thanegioth
Archipel ago carryi ng cargoes of 8trange
and rare creatures captured on thcee
distant islands. The creatures an tran&-
ferred to warehouse (M) on the west-
ern shore of Mirror Bay. The warehouse,
though well guarded by the adventuren
who capt ured the creatures. is set
abl aze. A smal l empty oil keg is found
DUNGEON 59
OFNESTS AND NATIONS
only a few yards from the fire; t he keg
can be identified, by the name on the
top and bot tom, 88 t he ODe stolen from
the vessel where the pri vate guard was
killed 10 days before . Other th an t he
fact th at these t wo crimea are linked,
there is not hi ng more to discover.
The attack occurs 8 S follows: Hi ve-
leader 13 walks up to t he warehouse
while invis ible a nd seta it on fire using
t he keg of lamp oil and a torch. The
guards are 90 busy watchi ng the doors
and monsters that they are taken by
surprise when a wall goes up in names.
As the warehouse burns, the capt ured
cr eatures go insane with fear at the
smoke . heat, and fire . Several esca pe
from the warehouse and manage to get
into the city streets. The mili t ia and the
adventurers responsible for bringing
the monsters into Specularum go after
them but can't beeverywhere at once.
The PCs may play an act ive r ole in
hunting down some of these creat ures
or be called upon to help subdue or kill
a cre at ure once it is cornered.
Two pborcebecoeee (AC 6; HO 3; hp
11, 9; MY 150'(50' ); ' AT 1 bite; Omg
1-8; Save F2, ML 8j AL N) esca pe fr om
th e warehouse, then begin chasing
down small ani mals (pigs, dogs, goats,
halflings, etc.) for food.
Two dimetrodons (AC 5; HO 7; hp
32, 29; MY 120'(40' ); ' AT 1 bite; Omg
2-16; Save F4, ML 8; AL N) at tack any-
thing that they might be able to eat .
These large, sail-backed lizards are
especiall y fond of crashing in to t he
stables ofinns and taverns, killi ng and
devouring the horses, poni es, and
stableboys t hey find t here.
Two eebee-eooeh tigers (AC 6; HD 8;
hp 37,28; MY 150'(50' ); 'AT 3 (2 claws!
1 bite); Omg 1-811 -81216; Save F4; ML
10j AL N) are savage and dangerous.
The t wo hunt together through t he
streets of Spec:ularum looking for
humanoids, their favorite prey. They
may lair in any convenient bui lding.
A giant scorpion (AC 2; HO 4; hp 18;
MV 150'(50' ); ' AT 3 (2 c1aws!1 st ing);
Dmg 1-1011 -1011-4pl us poison; Save F2;
ML 11; AL N) hunts around the shores
of Mirror Bay. It attempts to kill and
eat any sailors or dockworkers it can
find. H not destroyed quickl y, it will
establish a lair among the many ware-
houses along th e docks .
A giant tuatara lizard (AC 4; HD 6;
hp 25j MY 90'(30'); ' AT 3 (2 claws!
1 bi te); Omg 1-4/1-412-12; Save F3; ML
6; AL N) escapes into the Nest . It hunts
60 Issue No. 13
for prey in t he narrow winding st reets,
establis hi ng a lair in an aba ndoned
building.
The Duk e swears the death penalty
for anyone convicted of setting the fire .
He pronounces a new law forbidding
anyone to store dangerous creat ur es
anywhe re wit hi n the city wall s. The
Duke offers 10,000 gp each for th e name
of th e murderer, summoning magi c-user;
or arsoni st .
Riots break out thi s eveni ng between
numer ous factions across t he city. Sev.
era l suspected magic-users are attacked
by mobs, and two are slain. Reli gious
and political groups battle in the streets
as well . Six other persons die as guards
t ry to sepa rate t he fighters . Rioting
conti nues on th e following night.
Guards and vigilantes patrol the streets
heavily for the next six ni ghts .
Val ernJonl 161h: The PCs receive a
note via messenger: " Meet me toni ght
at the abandoned farm sout hwest of
town. Bring 5,000 gp in gems or jewelry,
and 1will give you th e names of those
responsible for the murders and fires. I
am a wanted cri mina l in Specularu m
and cannot claim the reward without
facin g imprisonment, but I am also a
patriot . These cr imes must be stopped.
Think of the 5,000 as my share of the
reward. Under no circumst ances bring
any militia or guards with you. I will be
watching. HI suspect you have set a
trap to capture me, I will take my ofTer
elsewhere. Br ing the valuables and wai t
in the old barn. When I'm sur e it 's safe,
I will contact you?'
The note is an invitation to a trap. A
gang of thugs from the Street of
Dreams, known locally as th e Dream
Streeters, have sent the note to t he PCs.
The Dre am St reeters will do virtually
anything if the pr ice is r ight . The t hugs
hope to lure the PCs to the aba ndoned
farm and rob t he m of t he 5,000 gpoThey
will also take the PCs' weapons , armor,
magical items, and anyt hing else of
value, but only slay the PCs if t hey
resi st .
Ifthe PCs follow the note's inatruc-
t ions, they take the Farmer's Road th at
travel s sout hwest out of the city. Two
miles down this road is an old, rick ety
barn, all that remains of a once-
prosperous farm. The Dream Streeters
have surrounded the barn in a wide
circle, und ercover. Any at tempt by the
PCs to bring t he militia, guards, or
anyone else along for pr otection is
not iced, and the encounter does not take
place. However, th e ga ng is looking for
visible signs the PCs have an escort.
Inv isibl e or hi gh-flying PCs may follow
t he ot he rs and arrive in t ime to ambush
the ambushe rs.
The old barn is 100' long by 80' wide.
(As t he bam is nothing but a large
rectangle, t he DM can dr aw hi s own
map running north to sout h.I The roof
towers nearly 75' overhead. The bam
once had doors at bot h t he north and
sout h ends, the only ways i nto or out of
the bu ilding. The door s at the southern
end are completely gone, lea ving an
ent rance 30' wide by 20' hi gh. The t wo
northern doors st ill stand and are both
20' wide by 30' hi gh. Both doors stand
wide open. If inspected, the doors obvi-
ousl y ca nnot be dosed or even moved.
They sag deeply into the earth and
mud. Anyone approachi ng the barn
from the north or sout h can see there is
virtua lly nothing inside. The bare
beams and supports of the loft st ill
remain, but the boards are gone. The
PCs ca n see at a glance th at it is impos-
sible for anyone to hide in the barn.
There is a noisy st re am running d ose to
the eastern wall of the barn. The st ream
bubbles and chatters so loudly over the
stones that it complete ly negates a
thief e hear noise ab ili ty.
If the PCs have come alone, then 21
Dream Streeters dose their circle about
the barn and attack only one tum after
the PCs enter the barn.
Elite Dream Streeter thugs n O): AC
7; F3; hp 16, 15 P< 2), 12 rx 5),11 rx 2);
MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon
t ype ; Save F3; ML 9; AL C. Each is
ar med with two vial s of sleep gas, a
crossbow with five poisoned quarrel s,
and a short sword. All wear leather
armor.
Typical Dream Streeter thugs nO):
AC 8; F1; hp 6, 5 ( X4), 4 (X5); MV
120'(40' ); ' AT 1; Omg by weapon ty pe;
Save Fl ; ML 8; AL C. Each is armed
with a vial of sleep gas, a cross bow with
two poisoned quarrels, and a short
sword. All carry small shields but wea r
no armor.
The group is lead by a 5th-level thief
(AC 5; T5; hp 12; MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; Save T5; ML 10;
AL C). He is armed with a crossbow
with five poisoned quarrel s, a short
sword +1 and a dagger +2. The thief
wears leather armor +2.
The thugs attack firs t by t hrowing
vi als of sleep gas (Save vs. Poison or
sleep for 2-12 hours). Savi ng throws
must be made every three rounds as
long as a PC is in or passing through a
gas cloud. The small gllUla vials each
burst into a 20' )( 20' cloud of gas that
lasts one turn before di ssipating. The
thUgBthrow the vial. into the barn and
in front of t he exits from the barn (with
a 5% chance each that t he thug dropa a
vial and breau it ). The PC. can leave
the barn only by running through at
least two gas clouds. one in the barn
and one in front of the n it. At least
four thugs will hold their vial . for use
in combat later.
Anyone escaping the sleep gas is . hot
wit h poisoned quarrel. The quarrels do
normal damage, and a Saving Throw va.
Poison must be made per hit or the PC
is paralyzed until cured by a Mutraliu
poiMJ1I or currall spell . After the thugs
exha ust their supply of sleep gas and
poison quarrels, a nyone not as lee p or
paralyzed is attacked with ahort ewcrde.
If the PCa raU to the Dream Streetere,
t he 5,000 gp and all their po88e88ions
are gone forn er. The PC. are found the
next day by fannen and. depending on
the PC. ' conditi on&, ei ther re t urned to
Sperolarum or buried. If the PCa defeat
t he Dream Streetere. it breab the back
of the gang and the Dream Steeeters
cease to be of concern to Specularum.
l atf'nnont 19th: A man is found mur-
dered with an axe in hi a rooms at t he
Black-Heart Lily Tavern (Nt The man
was actually a apy hired by the Veiled
Societ y to infiltrate the ot he r thieves'
guilds. None of the ot her guests heard
or saw anything unusual.
The spy tried to sell stolen goods to
Fyodor Karamazov. However. after
comi ng under the hivemind's spell ,
Fyodor was forb idden to engage in crim-
inal activity. as it might bring th e mili-
tia to the Flying Hamhock. When
Fyodor refused to act all buye r or direct
the spy to someone who would . t he spy
threatened to make trouble for Fyodor.
The spy did not elaborate. but the
t hreat was his own death sentence. The
hivemind sent an invi8ibk hivel eader
13 to kill him with an axe (while carry-
ing another invi8ibility spell for escape
in memory).
The spy lodged in two 10' )( 10'
rooms, one a bedroom and t he ot her a
sitting room. If the PCIIsearch the bed-
room. they find nothi ng but a table,
three chain, and a wardrobe holding
nondescript clothing. If they seareh the
sitting room, they may find a spelJ book
with an invi8ibility spell cast on it,
resting atop t he wardrobe. The PCs
must feel around on top of the ward
robe. or else use a cklm invi8ibk or
cktt mcgic spell, to find the book. The
book has a small lock that is wiuvd
locJmJ at the 4th level of ability.
If the spell book is found and eJ:8m-
ined, the PCs di scover that the spy wee
a 4th-level magic-user. The spell book
contains these spells: f'f'Od langlUJl/f'.,
nod mogk. light, invi8ibility, Wf'b, and
wizard Ioclt. It also contains eeveral
notes and a map. The map consilJta of
various sizes of lIqWlI"e8 and rectangles
with DO markings, magiul or ether-
wise, to explain what it iA; it doee not
even have a compaaa point to orient it .
This map is actually a fabe clue; it is a
map of an area of town in which the spy
believes the Kingdom olThieves' head-
quarters is located. Only by using a
. ptale with tMchadspell (the spy wu
Chaotic) to interTogate the dead spy will
the map's purpoee be revealed. The spen
book also contains several ecribbled
notes the magic-user apparently wrote to
bimlIelf u reminders, uaing a private
magical ahorthand; a nod spell
allows these notes to be translated, lUI
shown in parent.he8eain the notes below:
"S's from lIuds:' ("Remember to pick
up ahirta from the laundry: ' )
" K's weird. Who use peeper?" ("Kara-
mazov is acting m angely. Who ill uai ng
the peephole?")
"Looky gp man, ha-ha dog, flypig,
D.O. BH Lily. No go:' ("I looked for a
deal er in stolen goods in t hese taverna:
La ughi ng Dog, Flying Hamhock, Dain-
ty Ogre, Black-Heart Lily. I didn't find
one.")
"T' s jerk. Hall no go, must weird
stop," ('''Thldon is a jerk. The Magicians'
Guild HaU will not be reopened unless
the murders and firell cease and the
perpetrator ill discovered." )
"Looky over MD. LMD. No go fi!ad-Za
my gp_Try SM. HM." ("I looked all over
the Merchant Dilltrict and the Leeeer
Merchant District, but I couldn' t find a
. lHp spell 8Cf'01l at the price I wanted to
pay. I will try the South Market and the
Hill Market nen: ')
"Kat got gp? Very looky:' (" Did
Katerill8 pick my pocket? I will watch
he r very dosely.")
If the PC, confront Fyodor Karamazov
with the second note, he does not deny
knowing the murdered man. He claims,
however, that the man offered to sell
him stolen goods, but he turned the
offer down. Karamazov flatly states
OFNESTS ANDNAnONS
t hat, al t hough he used to buy and sell
stolen property in his younger daYII, he
hu been out ofthat bus iness for yean.
He claims to kno w nothing about any
peephole. Ifthe PCs find the peephole in
his room. he whispers that i t ia there to
keep an eye on customers and the staff,
and therefore must remain a secret. If
uked, Katerina does not deny knowing
t he man either, but claiIna to have aev-
er picked his pocket (or anyone elAe'.,
she sa,.1.
Jbt#rmMI ZI.I: There is a fire at the
Great Church of Karameikos (0) in the
afternoon. No one ia injured, but dam-
age is moderate. The cathedral is
unharmed; only meditati on and storage
rooms are damaged. The Cult of Hala.
is rumored to have set the fire, and
If! veral cult members are attack.ed and
injured by an irste ttoWd in the Mer-
chant District shortly thereafter_
Hiveleader 13 seta the fire using a
ek1ayftJ bloat(in balL There is DO evi -
dence other than the blast and burn
marks to indicate a cklayed blMt /irebaIl
gem was left in a storage room. No one
aeeeor hears anything unusual. 1be
church is open to the publie, and many
people come andgo daily. It is therefore
impoMible flr church officials to supply
the PCs with any UBeful information
about who was in thechurch that day.
Hllermont :stA: Late in the ni ght, the
hivemind and hi veleader II use the
secret door to enter the warehouae (P)
behi nd t he Flying Hamhoc:k. Hiveleader
II cuts a cnate normal fflOm tera spell
and creates a .sant amoeba CAC 9; HD
15; hp 67; MV 30'(10'); IAT 1 add touch;
Omg 2-12; Save F7; ML 10; AL N). The
hivemind casta a f1#rman#nce spell on it ,
and the creature 002e1l off to disappear
into the Nest, killing and eating any-
thing it can. Ifthe PCs ask for times
and locations of attacks by the amoeba
(in an attempt to establi sh a pattern or
direction of movement ), the OM can
mark their map with pointe anywhere
in the Neat. The amoeba hunts at ran-
dom, moving in one direction then
another. It may ki ll a pony, a pig, and
eeveral chickens in a maight li ne head-
ing south. t he n suddenly t urn west to
devour a mi lk cow. then t urn north to
eat sever al goat&. The resulting "pat.
tern " is a meandering line leading
nowhere. The timn of t he attacka are
likely to be vague or contused as well
(an owner, for iDiJtabce, may only kno w
that he r milk cowdUappeared. some-
t ime between IJUDdown and sunrise>.
DUNGEON 61
OFNESTS ANDNATIONS
The amoeba stays in t he Nest unti l
driven out or destroyed, liking the food
it gets here.
Public outrage mounts. Rumors are
heard on the next day that the Duke has
been quarreling with his advisors or with
ot her major officials in the city over a
response to this and other events , and
that city officials are at wit's end. A
drunken dockworker is slai n by a para-
noid guard on the following night afte r
failing to give the proper password before
boarding 8 shi p. The guard is released
after questioning and is not charged.
Vatt'nnont 28th: J ust after midnight .
there is 8 huge explosion at the High-
tower (El, The roof a nd top floor burst
into names. Four guards are killed and
12 are injured. Damage to the Highto-
wer is 50,000gp , plus the replacement
cost of catapults and balli stas. Flamin g
debr is and rubble fall on nearby war e-
houses, docks. and shi ps, and into the
Merchant District below. causing many
fires. There is a general alarm and call
for volunteers across the city. Specu-
larum comes completely awake, and t he
Duke orders a mili tary alert to quell
looting and r ioting. Nearly 200 people
storm t he city's gates and flee for ot her
62 1ssuo No. 13
towns, will ing to risk travel at night
r ather than stay in t he city any longe r.
Six shi ps also cast ofT and sail out of
port that night.
The hivemind cast fly and invisibildy
spells on hiveleader 13 and then cast a
delayed blast fireball spell. The hi vemind
gave the delayed blast fire ball gem to
hi veleader 13 and told it to fly over the
Hightower, dropping the gem into the oil
fire that bums there to guide ships into
the harbor. The gem was dropped into the
oil fire without anyone noticing, andthe
hiveleeder flew back to the Flying
Hamhock undetected When the gem
exploded 10 rounds later, it threw the
fiery oil everywhere and detonated sev-
era l kegs of oil stored nearby. There is no
evidence of how the explosion happened.
The tower will be repaired in two months.
but during that time it has no ball istas or
catapults.
In the fiery confusio n that follows,
hivel eader 11 uses hi s r ing to cast a
crease rwrmal monsters spell at area Q,
creating 30 kobolds (AC 7; HD Ih ; hp 3
( x 15), 2 ( x 15); MY 90'(30' ); I AT 1; Dmg
by weapon type at -1; Sa ve NM; ML 6;
AL C) wearing leather armor and
armed wit h short swords. For the spell's
durat ion, t he kobolds scatter through
the afflicted area and attack anyone
attempt ing to put out t he fires. No one
notices who created the monsters . Eight
people are slai n and 15 are injured
befor e all the monsters vanish.
Anyone who walks the streets i n obvi-
ous magic-user garb afte r the blast is
subject to attack by enraged and fri ght-
ened townspeople or to arrest by frus-
trated guardsmen. The DM should play
out these events as desired. Twenty-
nine suspected magi c-users ar e arrested
(possibly includi ng PCs ), but all ar e
freed 13-24 hours late r afte r being
investigated. Anyone caught with a
scr oll contai ning a fire ball or monster
summoning spell or the like will be held
indefinitel y and carefully investigated
by the Duk e's own staff of spell-casters.
Ext ra guards may have to defend pri e-
onere from lynch mobs and vigi lante s.
Thaumont 2nd: This nig ht, a large
sailing ship from t he Minrothad Guilds
is docked on the southern shore (lU. The
shi p carries a cargo of rare silks and
expensive glass sculpt ures. After t he
ship's captain is warned of the current
situation in Specu larum, he orders
armed guards to patrol the shi p while
the vessel 's crew goes ashore for the
night. The ship is to be unloaded in the
morning. Three hours later, the ship
lurches and sinks to the bottom ofthe
bay. City guards are summoned, and the
area is blocked olT. A small riot breaks
out as hundreds of people flee the area,
fearing further attacks or explosions.
From the guards, t he PCs ca n learn
that, about midnight , a man walked on
board carrying two large j ugs . The
guards challenged him, but he ignored
all warnings . The guards fired t heir
crossbows and hit the man twice, but he
seemed unaffected and j umped i nto the
cargo hold. The guards looked down just
in t ime to see him break both jugs,
releasing a li quid whi ch immediately
began to eat t hrough the wooden hull.
The guards fir ed at the man once more,
but the water began pouring in and
they abandoned ship.
Divers attempting to retrieve the glass
sculptures at dawn claim that the man is
still in the hold, "just standing there with
a bunch of arrows in him and his feet all
eaten up by the acid." The divers refuse to
go back down to the ship until something
is done about the man.
1b accompli sh this feat , the hi vemind
used an animate chad spel l on a
deceased thief(who was poisoned by
Mit ya on the hivemind's orde rs) to cre-
ate a zombie . The hivemind instructed
the zombie to go to any large shi p, enter
the hold, and break the jugs. The Minra-
thad freighte r was unfortunate enough
to be the first ship t he zombie found.
The hi vemind assumed the zombie
would bedestroyed by the acid, but the
inrushi ng water lifted it out of the acid
and hurled it to the back of the cargo
hold. There it now stands on ru ined
feet, await ing further instructions.
The shi p was sunk in a dee p-wate r
berth used for large saili ng vessels. The
top deck of the ship is only about 3'
underwater ; the floor of the cargo hold
where the zombie stands is about 40'
underwater. The zombie (AC 8; HD 2;
hp 3 U5 ori ginally); MY 90'(30' ); IAT 1;
Dmg 1-8; Save Fl; ML 12; AL C) is
unarmed. It may be Turned or
Destroyed normally by a cleric, or eli mi-
nated by a spell-caate r us ing a dis pel
magic spell .
If a spealt. with monsters spell is used,
the zombie answers the cleric's quee-
rtons. If a spealt. with the dead spell is
used, t he zombie is silent; it is undead,
not dead. If the zombie is Destroyed
befor e a spealt. with the dead spell is
used, the spell operate s normally.
The PCs must hurry if th ey want to
question t he zombie. The hivemind
hean ahort ly after the divers return
that the zombie ia still in the ship, and
it senda hiveleader Il to deal wi th it,
Hiveleader II casta a erecze normal
mofUtu. spell , creating seve n croco-
dil e. (AC 5; HD 2; hp 14 ( )(21, 9 ( )(3), 7
( x 2); MV 90'(30' ). swi mming 90'(301;
'AT 1 bite; Omg 1-8; Save Fl ; ML 7; AL
Nl that attac k anyone in the water.
They al so fight over the zombie, scatter-
ing ita remains all over the bay.
A water spell lowers the water
level in and around the ship to half ita
normal depth, but does not keep the
crocodil es out. The inrushing water
knocked a cargo bay door from the side
of the ship, allowing easy access into
t he cargo holds for all the marine life in
Mirror Bay. Unless the PCs talk to the
divers about t he cargo hold. they are
not informed of the missi ng door. It
cannot be seen unt il after a waUr
spell is cas t or the cargo hold is entered.
Once the crocodiles have attacked the
zombie, there is nothing left on which to
WIe a aPftJk with . spell . Hiveleeder
11 hides farther down the docks from
the sunken shi p, and after casting the
spell he returns to the tavern unnoticed.
He casts his spell at the exact time as
the fU'8t spell i. east on or at the zombie
(or corpse) by a PC (a cleric's Turn or
Destroy attempte do not count ). The
crocodiles arrive four rounds after the
spells are cast. The PCs have these four
rounda to ask questions and receive
answers . The DM should WIe real time
for these four rounds (40 seconds), keep-
ing an eye on the second hand of a
watch but speaki ng normally and not
hurrying the answers. When the four
rounds are up, the Pes will be too busy
to converse with t he zombie.
In zombie form, the dead thief
answera questions about his tife, death,
and undeath. If asked, it tells the Pes
that a " huge inaect" Bent it to destroy
the shi p; the "inaect" lives on the top
floor of the Flying Hamhock. A8 a
corpse, the dead thief can only reveal
what happened up to the ti me of his
death. He remembers drinking heavily
and alone in the Flying Hamhock, sud.
denly feeling a sharp pain in his neck,
then nothing more.
The DM may design
more sabotage attempta by t he
hivemind and hiveleaden along the
above lines, though t here is an increas-
ing chance that the monsters will even-
tually be caught by hypercautious
guards or by their own mistakes. Each
such event further teereeeee the panic,
anxiety. dread, and anger of the city 's
inhabitants. Rioting, loot ing, and eopy-
cat works of anon and murder may also
spread as different groups fight it out in
the belief that other groups are respon-
sible far the troubles.
OptioruUr ltCO'Httr r. The DM may WIe
this encounter at any time the PCs visit
the Flying Hamhock. If the PCs attract
the hivemi nd's attention by asking
questions and snooping around, t he
hivemind casta a spell on a single
gold piece . The hivemiad t hen delivers
t he cursed coin to the PCs i n this fash-
ion: Gregor hides the gold piece in his
hand, then clumsily tri es to pick the
pocket of one of the PCs (DM's choice or
roll randomly). The PC, upon catA:hi ng
Gregor, may naturally assume the gold
piece is his own. No judge in Specu-
larum will charge Gregor with anythi ng
but petty t heft (if so charged. Gregor
pleads guilty and is fined 6 gp). As one
gold piece 1000 much Ii.ke another, the
PCs will be unable to prove to a judge
t hat Gre gor planted t he curud coin.
The coin's CUTH' acts the same as a
clerical COlUe fNT spell and takes effect
every Id6 +24 turns, Anyone i n posses.
sion of the gold piece when the curse
takes effect runa off in a bli nd panic for
two turns. Any magical attempt to cure
the panic, such as a fftll', dirpt!l
magic, or remooe curse spell , not cast
directly on the gold piece warD onl y for
the spell's durati on (spells with perms-
nent duration have no effect at all).
After that t ime, t he curse starts again.
In addi ti on, anyone who owns this coin
will not want to spend it or be parted
fr om it for any reason. 1b be perma-
nently ri d of t he curse, magic must be
used directly on the coin, or the coin
must be destroyed.
Concluding the Adventure
If the hivemi nd is discovered and either
destroyed or driven from Specularum,
the Duke immediately sends forth ertere
and heral ds to tell the people they have
been duped into fighting one another.
The Church of Karameikoe and the
Church ofTraladara hold a joint servi ce
and call for brother hood. The two
churches and the Duke establish a spe-
cial tribunal to settle disputes among
groups . They el eo raise, with equal
shares from each, a fund to pay for
damages and heal wounds caused by t he
OFNESTS ANDNATIONS
unrest. In this way, the Duke hopes that
no festering grudges will be held or
re pri sal s taken.
ITthe PCs rid Specu1arum of the
hivemind, t he Duke raises the lKIciai
status of each survi vi ng party member
by one rank. but no one will be granted
a title higher than baron. Those PCs
already holding a barony are gi ven
more land. ITit is irapcasfble for a PC to
rece ive land connecting to his property,
because of geography or because all
existi ng connected properties bel ong to
someone else, the Duke grants that PC
a one-year tax exemption.
In addit ion to social adv ancement, the
Duk e pays for aU equi pment , magical
ite ms, armor, and weapons damaged.
destroyed, or used up by the PCs in
r idding Specularu m of the hi vebrood.
The Duke also gi ves each survivi ng PC
a 20,OOO-gp reward. The DM should
give this reward i n goods and services
rather than in coi n. Arms and armor,
hones and livestock, minor magica l
items, and the services of court special.
im (such as the sage, cartographer. or
armorer ) are more appropriate rewards
than a huge diamond or a chest of coins.
Ifthe PCs are unable to find the
aource of the troubl e in Specuiarum, the
DM may resolve the situation in a num.
ber of ways. There are a host of NPCs
avail able in the gazetteer GAZI TM
Grand Duchy of Kororruikoa who may
be able to hel p the PCs. " Lord" Dmi.
trioe, Prince of Beggars, while begging
in the Merthant District , may see hive-
leader II conjure monsters and secretly
follow it back to the Fl ying Hamhock.
Dmit ri os, fearing th at t he hivel eader is
in league with one of the Tr aladarn
clans (people he does not want any trou-
ble with>, may give his information to
t he Pes (for a pr ice, of course) rather
than to the mi litia, Or perhaps Lady
Mananita, the ambassador from the
Principalities of Gla ntri, while shoppi ng
in t he Merchant District, feels a pres-
ence and casts a cktm inviribk spell.
She see8 invisible hiveleader 13 stroll
by and fallows it back to the Fl ying
Hamhock. Being invisible is not a cri me
in Specularum. but it is still suspicious,
and she gives this information to the
PCs to check out .
PCs with high Charisma l!lCOreB may
choose to try to unite the people against
the unknown foe. However. the PCs will
not be able to look for the hivemi nd and
be peacemakers at the same t ime. It
takes too much ti me to meet with veri-
DUNGEON 63
(cont inued from page 17>
THE RUINS OF NOL-DAER
OFNESTS ANDNATI ONS
cua leaders and family heads , settle
grievances. and negotiate equitable
agr eements between groups to have
t ime left over to invest igate mysterious
fb-ea and murder s. As peacemaker s, t he
PCs should be kept very busy running
all over Specul arum visiting and calm.
ing one hot spot after another. If t he
PCs do cal m the populace and hel p keep
orde r in the city, t he Duke is free to
dir ect efforts to root out the hivemind.
For such help, the Duke pays a 20,000.
gp reward per PC and raises the social
sta tus of each PC by one rank, with no
one made higher th an knight . If a PC
holds such status or hi gher already, the
Duke instead adds an extra 5,000 gp to
the reward.
The DM may wish to let things get
more and more out of hand until civil
war breaks out, taking such a war in
any direction he wishes. Karameikce can
become stronger, weaker, a perpetual
war zone, or cease to exist as a nation.
The Black Ea gle Barony and echiema
within the Church of Karameikce may
gre atl y influence t he outcome of such a
war. The OM is advised that such wars
can take a great deal of time and effort
to prepare and run properl y.
Hthe hivemind escapes Specularum
and returns to the hive, it gives the
other hivemi nds details of what hap.
pened and how successful the plan was.
If a civi l war breaks out , the hiveminds
bide their time and occasionally "har.
vest" stray humans near the hi ve. Hthe
hive mind is discovered befor e it flees
Specularum, the Council of Dr ones calls
for the broodmother to lay broodmother
eggs. These eggs are then taken to
remote locat ions wit h a retinue of hive.
brood, and new hi ves are establi shed.
Ultimately, of course, the PCs may
wish to carry the fight straight to the
hivebrood complex, leading to a protract -
edwar deep in the underground tunnels
(unless poison gas and explosive spells
are used to produce random but exten-
sive damage to t he complex). The OM
should take time to make the hivebrood
complex reasonably dangerous, assum-
ing the hiveminds have done their best
to set up defenses suited to stopping
humanoi ds from invading it easily. Loss
of the hi vemind leading the light against
Specularum will seri ously cripple t he
hivebrood's abil ity to combat the PCs,
though the hivebrood will light to t he
bitter end without question or quarter.
And, as always, there are other nests to
carry on the battle another day. 0
64Issue No. 13
MacDaer
Major Cambion
ARMOR CLASS: 1
MOVE: IS"
HIT DICE: 7
HIT POINTS: 43
NO. OF ATTACKS: 2
OAMAGElATI'ACK: By weapon type
SPECIAL ATI'ACKS: Spells. thieving
abilities
MAGIC RESISTANCE: 15%
SIZE: M (6'5", 215 1bs.)
ALIGNMENT: Chaotic evi l
PSIONIC ABILITY: Nil
S IW O C Cb Co
18189 16 8 16 15 14 5
MacDaer appears human, except for
vestigial horns, misshapen ears, and
glowing red eyes. He fights as a 7-HD
monster in addition to funct ioning as a
7thlevel t hief and a gth. level magic-
user. As a t hief, he is able to backstab
for triple damage (at +4 "to hi t ") and
has the following abili ties:
PP OL IT MS HS HN CW RL
60% 52% 50% 55% 43% 25% 94% 35%
MacDaer is a pr acti cing thaumatur
gist. The spells he normall y has memo-
r ized are: idm ti fy, magic missile (x 2),
'M'RE FGHTlNGFOl
\Cffi UFt
sleep, rope trick, sti nking cloud, and
sfuw. He also owns severa l magical
ite ms which he keeps on his person at
all t imes .
At his waist , MacDaer carries a scroll
of protection from breath weapons in a
silver case, and a full pot ion of invisibil-
ity. He wear s bracers of defense AC 4, a
ring ofprotection -+ 1, and at all t imes
wears an amulet of the Abyss (Bee "New
Magical Items"). Although he carries a
normal dagger, his weapon of prefer ence
is his magical fung sword -+2. An unu.
eual sword, with an intelligence of IS
and the ability to speak the demon
tongue, it can detect evil, good, and
invisi ble objects in a 10' radi us and
detects sloping passages in a 30' ra dius.
It has an ego r at ing of 6. Since it was
forged in the Abyss, it is aligned to
chaot ic evil. Anyone of a different align-
ment who touches the sword suffers 6
hp damage every time any portion of
the sword is touched. If MacDaer is
reduced to fewer than 7 hp, the sword
either conti nues th e fight (50% chancel,
causes itse lf to dr op from his grasp (25%
chancel, or forces MacDaer to seek out a
more powerfu l owner and r elinquish th e
sword (25%chancel. 0
American Heart cta
Association V
THE
WERERATS
OF RELFREN
BYGRANT BOUCHER ANDWlWAM KURTWENZ
The best laid
schemes of rats and
men ...
48 Issue No. 14
Gran t Boudlrr rnidn in Rod :lrdllr.
Florida, Gnd U finally maJrin, a li t'ins
eu a wri ter grodUaling
{rom tla r Unit't"n ily of Florida hut
Hr U U'OTJri1lll a trll .it'f' ly
willi Wri t End Go", a' S TAR
Tla.. Rolrplayi ng Gomf'. Til ;' ;' hi.
fourth i1l DUNGEON'
with "AnciMI Blood" and
"Out of tlar A.II,.. .. fo,.publico-
tion in tla.. lutu,.e.
Kurt K-t-riZGUo f'", id... in Rod.lf' dll f'
and olt f'ftd. Brevard Community Col-
Irgt . Ht' ;" a ll octiw m..mber oftlar Socie-
ty for Crratiw Anachronum ffimrf'j.
r:haptrr) and dabbl('l1 in philollophy and
ptH'try. Kurt ;" prrpari ng to mow to
California in tlar . pri nR. Tll ia ia hi. flrl l
in DUNGEONAdt'f'nlurr.
"The Wert'rala of Reffre n" is a D&: D
Expert Set modu le for 4-8 c:haract.en of
3rd-6l h IrYeI. As most or t he molUUore
a nd charaeten nist in the AD&: D-
ga me all well , enterpris ing DMs ca n
easily ada pt t his if they desire.
If this .. done, the preeeeee of spells
such as "' 'lOW a lig1J11It' 1I1 or magical
items such lUI a W01Jd of t''It'11I1dt'I t'Clio'l
may give away the ..ererets' secret.
The town of Reffren ahoul d be placed
along a rela ti vely untraveled mountain
pa.. in t he campaign world. betwe-en
t wo kingdoms. Convenie ntly, ReIC",n
r are ly appears on any major maps of the
mountains since it hlUl only recently
become important . The paas on which
Relrren lies ia one of only two acl'08l the
ran ge, though it te not the better one,
being longer and rougher.
The adventuring party should contai n
all human character dane. , and at
least one th ieC ia recommended. El vea,
dwarves, and halfli ng& will find th is
advent ure particularly dangerous, emee
many oCthe townspeople are infect ed
wit h lycant hropy. a rare disease that
kill . demihumans (D&D Bas ic Set
Dl.l ngN n M tul " f'I Rult'boolr. page 331.
See " On Wererata" Cor more i nforma
t ion on the eWerts and of th is

Some plac:es in this module call Cor
Inte lligence and Wisdom checlu (or
PC" which art' made by rolling Id20 to
get the appropriate stati.tic or lower.
stati.tics i nclude t he D&:D
game book and page nu mber! (or re fer-
ence IBD: Bas ic Set D U1I/l t<f 11J M tut t' r l
Rulf' booJ; ER: u pt'rt Rult'booIr, CC:
Cryatl.lN' Catalogu,, ).
For the Dungeon Master
Fourteen montha ago. some dlsreput-
able adventurers were explori ng the
tomb of a recently deceased baron when
they were ambushed by a large pack of
wererats. All the looters wert' slai n
except for th e party thief. Jiles
" Nimbletongue" Nogler. Badly wound-
ed, the rogue ned and sought shelter in
a nearby bam.
After a week of test, Jiles was healed
and ready to head out again. That
night . however, under a beautiful full
moon, Jil es turned i nto a strange ver.
sion of lycanthrope: a greater wererat
(see "On wererete" for detailsl. Reta in-
ing comma nd of his senses, Jil es got a n
idea . He ret ur ned to the baron's to mb
and used hia quick wit and persuasi ve
tongue to convince the normal were rate
th at ther e was more tr easure to be
gai ned under hie leader ship th an could
befound wanderi ng around a grave-
yard. The wererete. never being t he
br ightest or most organized of beasts ,
decide to follow their new comrade i n
search of advent ure.
The stra nge troop tra veled ecroes t he
land disguised as "Marvelous Minster
and his Rollicking Rats ." During the
day, thcy'd take in a few gold pieces
wit h a legitimate carnival show, while
at night th ey'd rob the nearest town
blind with their unique combi nation of
skills. By morning, they 'd be gone .
After a year of close calls , Jiles and the
wererete decided that t hey' d played out
their hand on the road and set about to
find a newer, safe r seam.
One of the troop's favorite snacks,
Emera ld Moon cheese, led the travelin g
show to the re mote mountain town of
Relfr en, where J iles recei ved th e inspi -
rat ion for a plan. The troop passed qui-
etly t hrough th e haml et three weeks
ago in human form, only to return later
at night . Th e wererate then cre pt into
the famous cheese factory and quickly
disabled all of t he guards. In the morn-
ing, t hey ambushed the owner and
proprietor, a low-level magi c-user
named Grendel Orfma n, infected him
wit h lycanthropy, and held hi m and the
injured guards captive within the facto-
ry for two weeks until all had turned
i nto greater wererete. The guards and
Grendel, never sociable, were not great-
ly missed .
Additionally, the local cleric, Father
Thero, was ambushed and bit ten (but
rel eased ) while he was out at night only
two weeks ago. He is unaware th at a
greater wererat bi t him and instead
thi nkBhe esca ped an attack by a bear
(see area 19). About thia sa me t ime, the
wererata murde red a dwarven sil ver-
smithing family and an herbali st in
town.
Th e chief consta ble for th e town was
badly bi tten by a wererat when he stuck
his hand through a slightl y open but
chai ned door at the Emerald Moon
cheese factory a week ago; he believed
the atta cker was a guard dog and had
his wound cured by Father Thero. The
chief consta ble, Bert Camem, was re luc-
tant to press charges because he felt
getti ng bitten by eemecne'e guard dog
was hi s own fault - t hough he recalled
that the Emerald Moon never ha d a
guard dog before.
Grendel , now Chaotic, has become th e
" front" for t he outfi t . Through the use
of his qu ick tongue and long-term aaso-
ciation with the werera te. J iles re ma ins
firmly i n control of the band, and
together Gre ndel and Jiles have set out
to ta ke over all of Relfren, hoping to
establish a wererat thieves' guil d th ere.
However, fate ofte n has a hand at
spoil ing th e best-lai d plans of mice,
men, and were-rats . Mere days ener the
first phase of the takeover of Relfren, a
bandit gang ca ptured the only ot her
pag t hrough th e mountains, cutti ng a
major trade route. It will be months
before imperial kn ighta can make the
route safe agai n. The once-untraveled
pass wherein Relfr en lies has now
become the only route between two
prosper ous reet me. and strangers of all
kinds have been arri ving steadi ly.
Among t hose strangers is a party of
young advent urera - the PCs.
The party's reasons for coming here
are left up to the OM. It is suggested
that th is advent ure occur while the PCs
are on t hei r way to another destination.
The plot within Relfren can then develop
around the party more naturally, The
only local source of food and shelter
along th is route is the town of Relfren, so
the stopover is a natural one.
Events In Reftren
Th e town of Relfr en is a small haml et
similar to those found throughout t he
Swtee Alps i n our own world. The people
are friendly and wel come st ra ngers, but
avoid drastic cha nge at any cost . They
are all human unl ess noted otherwise.
Recent ly, a great many visitors have
THE WERERATS Of RELfREN
been passing through Relfr en, and some
stra nge th ings have happened. A dwarf
and his family were killed two weeks
ago when thei r silversmit hy was
robbed. Right after that, the herbalist's
shop bur ned to the ground. Just the
week before all that, the famous Emer-
ald Moon cheese factory (t he lifebl ood of
t he town's economy) closed down, right
before t he big Founder 's Day festiv al
held every year at th is t ime. A sign on
t he door pre mises "somethi ng special"
is planned by the owners, but the towns-
people aren't known for their enjoyment
of surprises. The festi val is now only
t wo days away. Anyone will rel ate t he
above informat ion to PCs in converse-
t ion if the PCs are fr iendly and well -
mannered.
The town is very sma ll , with perhaps
only 100 or 110true reeidente, not includ-
ing travel ers and peddlers . The party is
unabl e to purchase anyt hi ng unusual
(see area 11). The merthanta here preff'r
bartering for goods, since gold is almost
useless among friends. The OM should
allow a 1()'l. discount on all goods and
services bartered for, as opposed to paid
for i n eee h. Also, all merchants rai se
their pri ces 25%for obvious newcomers
but are thereafter subject to normal
bargai ni ng.
The events within Rel fren follow
chronologically. The DM should use the
following infor mation to unfold th e plot
for the PCs, allowing them complete
fr eedom within the town otherwise, The
OM ca n cha nge the t ime the party is
allowed to complete th e mission (t hree
days), depending on the skill of the
players and th e amount of role-playing
involved. The DM has been given great
latitude in how to role-play certai n
citi zens of Relfr en, and many buildings
remain open for an ambitious DM to
show his own creati vity.
Morning, Day I, The PCs should
arri ve in Rel fren early one morning. As
they enter th e town, they see a huge
banner welcomin g t hem to Rel rren.
"Home of the Realm's Finest Cbeeee.
and advert isi ng the town's Founder's
Day celebration t wo days from now. The
PCs may spend t he rest of the morning
explori ng the town, stabli ng th eir
horses (area 23). getti ng a room for the
night (areas 1 or 22), and meeting peo-
ple. They will likely read the re ward
not ice (area 3) about the dwarves'
deaths and meet the blacksmith (area
13) for more information.
DUNGEON 49
THE WERERATSOf RELFREN
Aftt-moon. Day 1. Some time in the
aftemoon. whil e th e party is near the
stables (a rea 23), six hippogrifT8 from
the mountains attack the hoMletl. The
party should be within ran ge to hear
the disturbance and aid in the fight.
Since hippogriffs prefer horse flesh,
they attack humans onl y if t hey them-
selv.... are attacked. lf three or more are
slai n. the 8urvi vora flee.
Hlp popi.ff. (6): AC 5j HD 3 + 1; hp 14
each: MV 180 '(6O' Y360'(120' ); 'AT 2
d a wsl l bite; Dmg 1-611 -61110: Save F2i
ML 8; AL N; E&' 51.
The blacksmith (area 13) el so arrives,
8lI does Chief Constable Camem (from
area 17, but on patrol). The burgemae-
ref (area 10) arri ves enee the menace
hall been dealt with. proclaiming it a
"dark day for Belfren " and pr aising the
efforts of the town's herot' 8 (nota bly
ignori ng the party's important contri bu-
tio n). This event should help to estab-
lish a friendship between th e party and
the blacksmith, and he mentionJI the
reward for information on the dwarves'
deat ha if the PCs haven't al ready eeked
about it
Constable Ca mem st icks up for the
PC. and th ank. them eatenai vely for
their help. Th ill rril'nd!lhip ill in !lur k
contral!lt to hi. position on day 2, after
the constable turns into a greater were-
rat and joins the plot .
So (ar. only Grendel Orfman and the
(aewry guards (area 4). Constable
Camem. and Father Thera (ar ea 19)
have been infected with lycanthropy.
All but Camem and Father Thero are
full Iycanthro pes. Camem will become a
lycanthrope in t he evening of this day,
and Father There will become one at
midni ght on day 3, at the hei ght of the
festi val.
AI!I ment ioned in the section "On
Wererata" at the end ofthis adventure.
human wererate are known 8fJ gr eater
were-eta and retain t heir normal hit
pointa when in animal form, otherwise
having the same sta t ist ics 8fJ do normal
wererata. They usuall y at tac k while in
human form to allow use of their weap-
ons and magica l items. All normal
were rata in Relfren usuall y remain in
man-siaed r at form. Astute PCs will
attack t he lar gest rata (t he w('reratA)
and humans (greater wererata) firat i n
any battl e.
EVl'nina:. Day I . This eve ni ng, while
the town sleeps , Chief Consta ble Bert
Camem give. i n to his lyca nt hropy
50 Issue No. 14
infection. turns i nto a greater wereret,
and joins the evil plot as he seek. out
the other ra ta and wererete at the
Eml'rald Moon cheese factory (he can
. mell them easily).
Midnight. Day 1. The Silver Crescent
Inn (area 221i. sa botaged. The support
posta beneat h th e building are cut
through. and the enti re struct ure comes
crashing down i nto ruin. Those withi n
take 8d6hp damage. All ow any NPCs
who normally live or work at the inn a
2S'I> cha nce to be out of the structure
during the accide nt . The el ven innkee p-
era, however. die immediately in the
collapse. The DM may reduce damage to
any PC. if it i. ne'8118.ry to ens ure
their survival. though a minimum ofB
hp damage should be given to eac h.
Any PC who makes an Inte lli gence
check while examini ng the rui ns realiz-
es th at th e beams were chewed through
by huge teeth rather than by blades or
saws. Since the conateble is now part of
the eonapiracy, he di smisses any
attempta by the party to prove sabotage
or to investigate the matter further.
If any PC. are in the vicini ty of the
inn j ust after midnight (out searching
for dUM! to the dWllrv('s' murders or
alerted by th(' noise of th e i nn's eol-
lapse). they are as ked to come down to
th e stat ion for questioning. The DM
ahould refer to the events detailed in
" Ear ly Morni ng, Day 2" ).
The sabota gi ng of th is elven-ewned
inn was accompli shed by the wer ereta,
s ince th ey want all demi-humans to
leave the town but can't kill them eut -
ri ght 110800n after the murder oft he
dwarves. Only one or two other deml,
humans now live in town (and may be
devel oped by the OM all desired , though
they do not playa major part in the
adventure).
Early Morning, Day 2, lf the PCs
have spent the night at the Lazy Cat
Inn. they are awakened by one of the
townspeopl e, who i nfor ms them that
Consta ble Camem wishes to see them at
the guard stat ion (area 17) immediately.
lfthe PCs have spent the night at the
Silver Creeeenr Inn, see area 22.
When t he PCs arrive at the etenon,
the guard on duty as ks them to leave
their weapons and spell components at
the door, where they will be guarded at
all time. If the PCs refuse. the chief
consta ble cornell out and a88ures them of
the safety of th eir items.
Once insi de, Camem leads th e party
members past the cells. remarki ng th at
his pr ivate office is beyond. Once insi de
the cell block, he infor ms the PCs that
they are under arrest for sabotagi ng t he
Silver Cresce nt Inn and for the murder
of th e elves who di ed in the di saster, If
the party tries to resi st , the consta ble
dr aws his sword and warns about resi st
ing arrest. If the party pers ista in
attacki ng (Lawful PCs should be
cheeked carefully on this). Constable
Camem ca lls for help , and the ot her
guard in the station runs out to sum.
mon 220 townspeople. who arrive
armed with d ubs and daggers in 2-8
rounds. If the PC. refuAe the constable's
summons enti re ly, this same group is
sent out to hunt them down with
Cemem'e help.
'Iewnepeople (220); AC 9j HO I ; hp
3-6j MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 1 weapon; Omg
by weapon type; Save Normal Human;
ML 6j AL L or N each; 5O'J have d ubs .
51Yl- have daggers; BDI34.
The PCs are safer if they gi ve up,
since t hey will need t hei r strength for
later. If they spend the rest of the da y in
jail, they can quieti y diacu811 th e eit ua .
ti on and their plalUl for escape. Of
course, if any PCs manage to t'8C8pE' t he
jail, either t hrough tri ckery or by kfll -
ing th e guards , t he DMshould mobili ze
th e entire town to hunt them down.
Since Relfren is populated by peaceful
folk. the eecapeee should have an easy
t ime Ieeving town ir they hurry. How.
ever, since everybody knows everybody
here, th e PCs will not be able to find
safety anywhere in town. except for the
church (area 20), the blacksmith'. shop
(area 13). and the burgomaster's house
(area 10). The blacksmith and the bur.
gamester will hide th e party safely, but
the PCs will be secure only until night-
fall at the church Ieee atf'a 19 and 20). If
they are reca ptured, th e PC. are bound,
gagged, and re turned to th e jail . If th ey
atte mpt another esca pe, the PCs must
nee the town completely or disa ble all
their purs uers ,
Eveni ng, Da y 2. If any party mem-
bers are i ncarcerated, the blacksmith
and the burgomaster enter t he j ail and
release th em (ret urning their weapons
and po&se8ll ions) whil e the guard sta tion
is mysteri ously-unattended. The PCs
are taken in 8t'CI'('Cy to th e bur gom88-
ter'. home larea 10) and hidden in t he
basement , where th ey are told to lay
low ror a while.
THE WERERATS OFRElFREN
THE TOWN OF RELFREN
The twe men tion the follow.
ing ti dbita or information (or t he PC.
may hut t hem later. depending on t he
peefeeeeee and the party', .kill):
- Many of the townspeople are ..ring
that the death of the elves provetl lOme-
thine flaby in Rellre n, Investigation
of the debri_ ohhe inn might turn up
ecme dues. but Constable Camem ha.
ordered everyone to stay away from t he
......
- Pub lic opinion is on the party'ide.
Their help in dealing with th e hippo-
gr ifT. prove. that the PCa are not cri mi-
nal s. and the constable is acting very
strangely by &nesti ng people with no
appare nt evidence (Constable Camem
wu not very popular before . 11 this
happened. anyway).
- The RT8veyard has been locked by
Father There, who ia no longer ..
fri endly and open as he once wu. The
lut bodies to beburied in the graveyard
were thoee of the murdered dW&r\'etI
and the hemalm .
- Thehftbalist'. shop (area 8) burned
down recmtly, andalthough this Wall elec
thought to be'an accident, recent ""nb
raiJe MW IWIpkiona. Why would
"'ant to a friendly herbalist?
- The herbalist'. best customer,.... a
reclusive wizard ,..ho livH in a tower on
the 80Utheut edge ofto'WD(area 16).
Mean ,..hile, unknown to the PC.. five
entire familiH are bit ten by wererate
infe.ting their home. night . The
OM shoul d chooee randomly among the
many normal houles (are.. 2). Theile
people do not actually turn i nto greater
wererate, however, until th e following
eveni ng (lief! "Midnight , Day 3"). The
normal delay of224 da ya for lycanthro-
py to let in is greatl y shortened by the
preseeee of a full moon at t ha t t ime.
ThOlle bitten were attacked in dar knHa
and believe they were let upon by
either roa ming dogs, big rata, or bot h.
,

16 .
, '
.....:..
,
'!:.,,;
:,.
:
'I ;

' 1
- N
,
1 square 16'
14
I , I
, .

.>.
\ .
n ay 3. Despite the troubl ed night, the
daylong Cl"lebration of the town '. found-
ing held today. Everyone ia aupposed
to wear a coatume all day, and part of
the fun is to lee who correctJy gueuetl
the ident ity of t he most people . At mid-
night, the IOU'" are removed in a cere-
mony at the town square. Gre ndel
Orfman. proprietor of the Emera ld
Moon cheese factory, h.. premised
" lOmething apecial" for the festivities
and h.. been very secretive of late. The
presence of a full moon this night is
coruidered very lucky for aU.
The burgomaster auggesu that the
PCa wear ecme of hil old coatumes
roM'a creativity required here ) in order
to conceal their investigations. The
guardsmen will no doubt be learching
for t he party all day and will have the
routes out of town guarded at an timN.
Therefore, the safest place for the PCa
to be is out in t he open where they ean
move about freely. Allow PCa to come
up with their o.-n coatumea if they
wish, providing the auppliea are readily
eeceeeible withi n the town. A PC wit h
the nonweapon proficiency of disguise
can bemost useful here.
The day is filled with eati ng and
drinki ng contnta as well .. gamH of
chance and skill. The most important
upect of the costume game is that each
penon geta to uk for one clue to the
identity of the disguised. The clue ca n
be.. aimple as "not the butcher, not the
baker " (for the candle maker of area 61
or etee can bemuch harder. The PCa an
harueed constantly by well-meaning
citiuns and .hould come up with aui t
able clues of their own - misleading
clues, of course. Opting to pre tend to be
legiti mate c:i tiuna of the town ia poaai.
ble, eteeuree, but such PCs might actio
DUNGEON 51
THE WERERATSOFRELFREN
dentally run i nto the real peopl e .t hey
are impel1lOnat ing (who are alec In
disguise). The OMshould put the
through some hair.raising ordeal s WIth
these questiona, hut should allow the
PCI the chance to goof a few (the ciU-
una of Relfren aren't all that bri ght ,
after . 11).
Example: Young Karen Qwen (area 7)
11 wearing a pri nceSll COIItume,
with domino mask, long blonde half.
and a paste-jewel crown. All young
l ingle men of t he town are looking (or
her as part of a bet. A few of them have
flattered the town eeemetreeeee (area 9)
into teUi ng th e details of Karen'. cos.
tume. The first ma n who beli eves he's
found Karen runa off to claim victory,
collecting a lJubatantiaJ prize of 10 gp if
he ean pr ove hi, 8UcceSS. If a party
member (male or femal e) attempts to
impersonate the baker, th e young men
will no doubt find out quic kly, if the
diaguised PC does not take care to
retain bi. or her own mask.
Midnight. Day 3. Beneath 8 bright,
full moon, the enti re town gat he rs out-
side the Emerald Moon cheese factory
4) to wait for the grellt unmllsking
and l urprillE!. If the party hee not dealt
with the were rata, Grendel Ortman
appears on the factory etepe wearing a
skull muk. He announcea the "great
l urpri&e" - and t he unmasking reveals
the true spread of th e lycanthropy u
the townspeopl e pull off their maaka,
re veal ing acorea of horribl e furry lit tle
face.. M the wereeete, greater were-
ra ta, and giant ra ta pour out from
factory, the town is in chaoa aa panIC
br eili out among the populace. The
nonnal townspeopl e are eit her killed or
knocked unccnecious (and infected). The
PC, are in great trouble if they remai n
i n the town. It they flee , t hey can
always ecme back, but they will find it
hard to convince anyone else what they
law waa re al.
It, before midnight, the party haa
killed the werereta or forced them to
nee, the burgomaster announcea t hat
the great eurpnee is "free cheese for
every body" (a weak idea, but his beat
try) and opens the cheese factory, An
astute polit ician, t he burgomaster
inform8 the PCs that re vealing the
recently foiled plot is un wise at thi s
ti me and their he roiam goes unherald-
ed now. See "Concl uding the Adven-
ture" for more on how to wrap up this
acenario.
52lssue No. 14
The Town of Relfren
l. The Lazy Cat InD. Th ia rat-
infested inn and tavern remaina in
buaineaa because of unknowing trav-
elers and chea p food (not al waya what
it's claimed to be) and drink (watered
down, of course). The owne r and proprie-
tor ia a one-eyed, obnoxious army vet-
er an named Thegor Huatimar.
Thegor has four doubl e rooms to re nt
at only 2 sp per night. He r arely eleeee
these drafty roorna, and PCa have a 5lJ>
chance each ni ght to catch a bad cold
{lcwer ali lltatiatiea, attacks , and akill
checks by one poi nt for t wo weeu ).
Food at the I..azy Cat Inn is often made
from ra ta. the al e is alweys watered
down.and the baked goodsare alw8)'a
sta.le. Prices are about half the usual for
the campaign (e.g., t wo dozen pastriee for
a gold piece, instead of one dozen).
Th e place is infested with 3-30nor-
mal rate (&ee "On Wererata" for th eir
statiltica). If asked, Thegor explaina,
' 'Ti ger haa one injured leg and cannot
chase them." Actually, Tiger, a white
domeatic cat. never has chaaed t he rata
and mice around here , even when he
was i n his pri me. In fact , Ti ger is afraid
of anything that move,s. He ,all
his time sleepi ng on hla own chair In
the tavern area, above floor level where
t he ra u can' t get him.
lfthe Peschoo&e to stay here andthey
have made their intentions clear to J iles
andthe wel'erata (area the party might
be attaclt.ed.by ra ta during the night
(OM' a di.Bcretion). See area 4 for more on
the attack methodsemployed. by J iles and
his furry little fiends.
Ther or Kuatimar: AC 9; HD 1; hp 5;
MY 120'(40'); 'AT 1 short sword; Dmg
by weapon type; Save Normal Man; ML
6;ALN.
Ti ger. domestic cat: AC 7; HD "h; hp
3; MY 120'(40' ); 'AT 1 bite; Orng 1.2;
Save Normal Man; ML4; AL N; SA
surprise 1-4.
2. Normal Houae Each of t helle .
hoWJ8tl contains at least one generation
(1-4 adulta and 0-5 chil dren) of normal
citizens. All of the men and women ,are
t rained as town guards and take shift.e
guarding their loved ones. They have
little or no treasure, si nce they trade
with each other for moat goods and
eervi eee.
A normal house has a 20%chance of
having 1-8 Dormal rata withi n it (see
"On Wererata" for their statistics).
Theile rata steal food and trinketa but
will not attack anyone until midni ght
on day 3, at the orders of the werera ta
and greater wererata at the Emerald
Moon cheese factory (area 4).
Normal cltlun.: AC 9; HD 1: hp 1-6:
MY 120'(40'); 'AT 1 weapon; Dmg by
weapon t ype; Save Normal Man; ML 6;
ALN.
3. ThWD Sq uare. The party eeee
not ices posted all over t he town aquare,
each offeri ng a re ward of 1,000 gp for
any information leading to t he arreat of
t he person or persons responsible for the
murder of a fami ly of dwarves (si lver-
amitha by trade). The reward is offered
by t he local blacksmith (area 13)".This
much gold is eonaidered a fantast ic sum
locally, but the murders of the dwarves
were far more shocki ng.
The town's main well is located in the
eastern portion of the equate . During
t he da y, eccrea of people miUabout the
various shopa around the aquare, get.
ti ng water and tal king about the
upcoming Ieativel and t he recent trou-
bles in town. It is he re in t he town
square t hat most of t he Founder's Day
festivit ies and contests take place,
includi ng the "great unmasking" (see
"Midnight , Day 3").
4 The EmeraJ d MOOD Cbeeee Facto-
ry. 'Both ph)'lrically and flgUr8tively, the
Emerald Mooncheeae factory stands at
the heart of Relfren. The town sprang up
aroundw. tJu.e."",>, bWlding founded
by Relfren Orfman (the great-vandfather
of the eurrenr owner). Hia ab'ange choice
of greenccloeed eheeee with holes in it
has become one of the best-lovedcheeses
in the realm. The refusal of the ownera to
expand. the operation baa only inaeaaed
the value anddemand for the now-chic
cheese, But nowthe windows have been
shuttered, and a large aiga on the door
"""'"
ATlE'rrlON! A'I"nNT1ON!
IN HONOROF rae UPCOMING fOUNl).
Ell' S DAY f'ESTlVrnES, l'liEOWNEI AND
MANAGERS Of me f.MEAAu> MOON
CHEESE fACTORY WOULD UKE TO
OfPEll It.SPEOALSUII.PRLSE1'0 l'liEGOOD
PEOPLEOf RfulEN, AT MIDNIGHT Of
fFSt1VAL DAY, All Will BE RVL\LED.
UNTn. 11tAT MOMENTOUS DAY, HOW
EVER, -rxa SHOP WIll. BE C105f.D IN
o aDER TO INSURE SEClI RlTY.
(WOUlDN'T WANT TO SPOILTlfE sua
PRLSE, NOW, WOUIJ)
THE MANAGEMENT
EMERALD MOON
CHEESE FACTORY
Area 4
n' H -I-+-t-+-I-+-l
-1- ..*'0' 0101
AI 10
I 10101 01
THE WERER,6JS OF RELfREN

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All window. wi t hi n the bu ildin g are
and barred (rom with in. PC.
will hn e to bru k the . hut lt' 1"I and
bend the ban to get In way Oihly
mak ing too much h o llle). Locked doon
can bepicked normaUy.
All roonu wit hi n the buil ding are lit
with rotlti nualligAt spella cut upon
normal t.orth ecollCn. A amall black
doth coveor hanp on chai n bHid. each
ICOnal and can beplaced OYfOr the light
to darken the room. The roonu .,.
heaUd and cooled through si milar
magicu involving " hf'atf' r bloch ."
fA. Main o mce. The front door
(alway. locked theee daye) opena into
the only part oft he ractory moet people
enr Roe, the- front office. Nu merous
chain an placed against the wall.. (or
the (:(ImI'ort of waiti ng paUONI and
busionllmen, while a emel l table i.
usua lly kept IUppli ed with a mple. of
cheese to whet their appetites. Behind a
counter to the i padded chair.
an empty atrongbo:a:. and a door to t he
vat room (arn 4Bl.
Grendel Orfman (11M area 4L) wed to
lIen-e an cummers persona lly, jUllt to
kl'e'p hilD8t'lfbusy. but hasn't conti nued
the pr ad ice einee he became a greater
werer et and cleeed the factory. Now.
only the four Ift'ater we rt' rat factory
ruanU CF2; hp 15 each; 'AT 1 long
aword; Omg by weapon type; Save 1"2;
ML 10) and their eight normal rat peu
( Bee " On Wererau " for their statistics)
remai n on thi. level. Each of four
men haa an equal chance of bei ng in
th il room or the vat room (area roll
randomly for each turn .. they patrol.
The guards do not ascend the .tain to
the eecond Ilece unl eM in punuit of
intruders. EKh ot the guarch carriH a
by which operu aUthe doora on thil
level only. The table in the waiti ng
room haa no aample. left on it (jwIt
crumM), and there ia no trtoa.ure in th i.
room. The door to Ilrf'a 4B Ie locked.
The guards will order t heir rall to
attac::k anyone penon who 100.... like ,
apell-c:llIt.er In preference to any ot her
cha racter type. None or the guarda wear
armor. allowing tbemaelvH the chance
to t urn into rat form if neeesaary.
4B. Vat Room.. There are four huge
vall of mil k bei ng slowly t urned to curd
in here. The vall are magicall y heated
(through a spell cut by the founding
father >, and the te mpera ture iI a<ljUlta .
ble wit h the use ot a graduated lever on
each vat . A set or stairs lOing up (area
40 , i. viaible to the lIOuth. and another
door operu to the lIOut heUl into an.
4C. Th. re iI no treaaure in thil room,
but th e OM. hould note the chalKft for
the guards deribed in are. 4A to be
here.
4C. Fi rst Floor Slort'room.. The
metal door to \h il room il locked with
bot h a combination lock and a key lock.
The ruards fana 4A) have key. to open
the I.tu-r lock. but only Grendel know.
the combinat ion to the fonner.
. UHaful 01N" lod.. ron. or a . ingle
_110('. .pelt will undo t he combination
and open the vault. once the Jr.ey lock
baa been taken care ot.
Wit hin th is room are the ('&n'(ully
proterted jars or at.arter culture uAed to
turn the milk into eheeee. There are
alllO various tool. and equipment used
(or repairi ng t he vall and Itimng the
milk. All 0( the diacarded armor from
the greater wereret guarda iI alao here.
Seven large jara contain a thick. dark.
n uid. Th il i highly eencen.
DUNGEON 53
THE WERERATSOFRElfREN
trated food dye used to t um the cheese
green . A small drop will color an entire
vat of milk. 80 if a party member
decides to see whether the harmless
fluid has any magical properties, the
unfortunate imbiber will act ually turn
green as the fluid courses through his
syatem. It takes two weeks for the effect
to wear off entirely, bu t t he PC looks
merely deathly ill after one week .
The dye is only slightly valuable (100
gp per jar) compared to the cheese
Bta.rter, which will fetch 3,000 gp on the
black market of a major city.
40. Trapped Lowe r Stairway.
Theile wooden sta irs lead from the vat
room (area 4B) to t he doorway outside
the preee room (area 4E)on the second
Ilcor. Every third step has been deliber-
ately weakened and will break if more
th an 50 lbe. is placed upon it. Falling
PCa land on spikes for 4-24 hp damage
and must find some way to get out of
the narrow enclosur e.
Astute PCa who specifically say they
are examining the stain get an Intelli.
gence check to not ice that the trapped
stain are strangely unworn in contrast
to t he stain above and below them. All
greau-r and normal wererata, of ecurse.
know about the trapped stairs and are
careful to avoid them.
4E, PrelSing Room. The only keys to
this locked door are carried by Grend el
(area 4L) and J iles (area 4K). Inside ar e
a dozen short wood golema made by the
founding father of the factory. a wizard
of far greater skill than any of hi s
descendants. The golems' hands ar e
huge round dillal, specifically desi gned
to pre ee the cheese. These fista do 212
hp damage (instead ofthe regular 1-8
hp) when used as weapons, but t he
golema ar e clumsy and have a - 2 to
hit.
The golems obey the commands of
anyone who openly presents a speci al
moon ring (currentl y worn by
Grendel Orfmanl upon enteri ng. They
attack all other manlike intruders. Thi s
ri ng was fashi oned at the time of t he
golems' eonstruction and enables ita
wearer to command them. The gelems
will unde r no circumstances leave t he
factory grounds (t hey become de-
magicked if removed) and won't attack
animals, insects, etc. (including rat-form
wereeatal unl eu ordered to do so.
There is no other treasur e in this
room. An unlocked door to the north
54 Issue No. 14
leads to area 4G, and an identical door
to the east leads to area 4F.
Wood golems (12): AC 7; HD 2 +2; hp
11each; MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 1 huge flat
fist: Omg 2 12: Save FI ; ML 12; AL N:
SO can be hit only by magical weapons,
immune to charm, hold, and mOiJ'
ic mu silf' spells as well aa all cold, mis-
sile fire. and gases; - 2 to hit; - 1to
init iati ve: -2 to save against fiery
attacks and +1 hpJHD damage from
fire: ERl50.
4F, Seec nd Fl oor Storeroom. Racks
upon racks of cheese wheels line th is
chamber. Many rows of them have
fall en to the floor and are curr ently
being nibbled on by 10 gia nt r ata and
six werer ata (see "On Wererats" for
their stat istics). These creat ures watch
the PCs fight the golems in area 4E and
wait for them to enter here before
attacking. The wererata are smart and
remain in men-steed ra t form while
attacking. Since t he were rats are larger
than the giant rats, the party should be
able to si ngle out the Iycanthropes if
they know to look for them. The DM
should maintain a secret check to see
which of the bites on party members are
from gia nt r ats and which are from
wererats. At some lat er t ime, perh aps
even after the adventure il over, t he
DM should roll secretl y to see which
party members become wererete and
how soon.
PCs who take 50% or more of their hit
points in damage from the wer erete
become Iycanthropes and eventuall y
become NPCs under the OM's control,
88 discussed in the secti on "On Were
rats: ' unl ess t hey somehow overcome
these effects.
The wheels of cheese weigh 100 lbe.
each and are worth 200 gp each.
4G. Curing Room, The wheels of
cheese are aged in this large room
before being sold or placed in t he store-
room. Fourteen more giant r ats and
two more wererete are resting behi nd
and beneath the shelves. See " OnWere-
ra ts" for their stat isti cs and area 4F for
details on combat .
The re i l no treeeure in here except
the partially aged cheese. A secret door
in the eas t wall leads to a hidden stair-
case (area 4H).
4H. Secret St aircase. This staircase
is hidden behind the east wall of area
4G and connecta area 4G to area 41.
41. Foyer. The stairs lead up to a
small foyer wit h fine carpets on the
floor and paintings on the wall s. The
carpets are wort h 6 gp per square foot;
the painti ngs depict the curre nt and
three former owners of the Emer ald
Moon cheese factory and are worthless.
Behi nd the picture of th e current
owner, Grendel Orfman, is a secret door
to his pr ivate quarters (area 4Ll. An
area of black in t he lower left of the
picture is act ually only black gauze and
allows anyone in area 4L to see into this
room, provided the lights are dimmed in
the bedroom and lit in th e foyer (as they
are upon the party' s arrival).
An open door to th e sout h leads to the
guest apart menta (areas 4J and 4K).
There is no other tr easure in th is room.
4.1. Wererat Guest Room. Eight
more we rerata (see "On Wer er ata" for
statistics ) are lounging around in her e,
although these are currentl y in human
for m. They immediately grab their
swords and attack the party, hoping to
draw the PCs into t he room. The were-
ra ts scream loudly in battle, br inging
Jil es from area 4K and alerting Grendel
in area 4L.
The wereeete have no tre asure on
th eir persons but are guardi ng their cut
of the band's recent exploits. cheesy as
it may be. In a lar ge I18ck under the
Ilocrboards are 1,803 gp and 140 pp. For
obvious reasons, wer er ate won' t accept
payment in silver.
4K. Thief Gues t Room. J iles Nogle r,
professional thief and now gre ater
wererat ext raordinai re, resides here. If
th e PCs enter t hi s room before invest i-
gati ng area 4J, th ey have normal
chances to surpri se J iles. But if th e
party attacks t he wererats in area 4J
fir st , J iles sneaks up behind t he PCs
and joi ns Grendel in attacking th e
party's rear if th e group is small or
appears weak; otherwise. he flees to
mak e hit and run att ackl on the
group', st ragglers.
Jil es has accumulated little wealth in
his latest crimi nal esca pades but is
eagerly awaiti ng t he takeover of the
entire town (see "Midnight, Day 3" ),
when he can start exacting taxes of
visitors, extorting protect ion money,
and expecting regu lar tribut e from his
mousy followers.
In a chest beneat h his bed are 3,340
gp, 1.098 pp, and six gold neckl aces
worth 200 gp each. The locked chest is
.1110 lnppNI with. IJt')1.hi ng blade
which dOf'l 3-18 hp damagt' if not dia-
ermed.
J Ut' " Nl mbln o nru.." No glt'r: AC 4
(2 in rat form);1'8; hp 30; MV 120'(40' 1;
' AT I 10", . u'ONi +2, P"f'Ofl:
Orne by ""to.pon type; San1'8; ML 9;
AL C: S 12. I 14, W 10. D 16, C 12. Ch
18; SO immune' to normal in
rat fonn due to Iyanthropy; rifll( of
proltinn. ...3. of d'mbing. potion
of J il" ls prrM5 the most
charismatic and smoot h-tal ki ng weon-rat
alive. alway. mainta ining hi. ealm and
kHping hls wi"- .bout him. Through
heer force of peorKJuli ty. he k""plI hi .
Chaotic alii... and underlinltl ....Idfd
togrthn u. teem. Il l' will fouily adapt
to any sit uation, lying and ma king
deal. naturally and well.
41.- Main Bedecom, Within thi-
IUXuM()U.I bedrccm resu Grendel Orf
man, t'WTt'nt owner of t he Emeral d
Moon ch factory. 1W)f. prodaimf'd
braiM of t he t.alr.fOOvt' r, and Dewly eon-
verted . "l' rt.'ral wizard .
Grendt'l haa nowhere lW'ar the talt' Rt
hi. (onf.tht'A had for magic and hu
only barely ma nalft.'d to Ir. f1'P control of
the golems in Eth rough the use
of the moo" ri fl/( cr afted lonl{
ago. He is basically a coward and
attacks the PC. only when t he odd. are
in hil favor. If l urprilM"d in his cha m
Grendel pull s the old " thanlr. l for
rt"1'CUing me from the evil rat .men"
tr ick, in which he olTen the PC. plenty
of cheese i n return for th e removal of
t he who he claims have held
him against hil will . Any PC. who
believe that one deserve to be fooled. If
hard preeeed , Grendel locks hifflM'lf in
the bathroom Carea 401a nd tn t'll to
esca pe th rough th e window.
There is no rrees ure in here. but the
fumishinp are qu ite va luable and some
are even (pill o. .. tha t are
al way. nutTy. shf1't. that re main magi.
clea n, an ever-Iul! . ater gl.... a
that sorta c1othi nK, etc ." The
'- free to be u creati ve u poeaible
here.
Grendel Orfman: AC 8 (6 in rat
form); MUS; hp 20; MV 12O'C40' ); 'AT I
dlJlUl" +1; DmKby spell or weapon
t ype ; Se ve MUG; ML 8; AL C; S 9. I 16.
w10. 0 15. C 10. Ch 12; SA l pell s; SO
i mmune to nann_I . "eapona i n rat form
due to speU. : magiC' mu.
from ROOd, Iln-p. ddm
i"ltaibi/tty, minor fin ball. hold
(,
I
, II
.' t
..
/
/ -
""non.; magical itema: pot ion of .pnd.
moon ring. pot ion of flyi"ll.
Shou ld the PC. cure Grendel of h,-
lyca nthropy, he daima that the diseaw
made him insane and pecmi eee tc
return the factory to its pR"y i OlU glory.
Grendel remains an citize n
until the nest IIC8m (0"," to town.
Though not an evi l person, Grendel wu
very eelf.<'f: ntenod and gr uping befcee
he btocame a werera t ube dille..only
made hi m much WorM'; _.,..a 4Ml
4M. Wal k-I n Clo_L Th ,- appean at
fim to be just a hu ge fill.d
THE WERERATSOFRELFREN
with cloth es of many different colon.
but many of the robes see m to bepad .
ded with IOmet hi ng. The padding eon.
.ists of dot h wrapped around platinum
coins. which is how the
family fort une N fl'. All told. there i.
about 10.000 gp worth of plati nu m in
the PC. sean:hing t he
clOM'l not ice the heavy li ni ng if t hf"Y
each mak e an Intelli p nce check.
The may wilh to drop little
ru man about Gre ndel if the party u k.
about him in io'm. Thew could include
"hfO'. put on !lOme . eight reee erb" and
he'. bee n sampli ng his own
O\JNGEON 55
THEWERERATS OFRELFREN
wares again." 1Rougb coward. ~ n
del got. perverae ple..ure from wear
ing hi. coin-.tuffed clothing and
knowi ns: he had more money on hit
penon than the townspeople would lee
in their lifetimea. He plaDII to do this
again after the town has been taken
over.
" N. Third Fl oor Storeroom. Thia
room contairu miaeellaneoua odda a nd
ends like apare aheeta a nd IineruJ. There
ia nothing of any real value here.
40. Lavatory and Bath. This i. a
magical bathroom, with hot and cold
running water from pipes that end at
the wall. and a Ilueh toilet - even a
ahower it present. Like all the magical
devices in this howe. these were made
wi th ~ I spells by the gn.oat wizard
Relfren Orfman many yean ago.
$.. Meltle'. TBve m and Spirit Shop.
Thia u. the 8OUI'Ce of all the ale. wine,
and mead the town drinks. The other
inns and taverns.U pun:hue their
auppliH from the lavern'. owner, Fr-e-
derick Meld e. Frederick ia middle-
aged , fair-ha ired bachelor who. for JnOlIt
of hia life. kept the boob for his broth-
er 's distillery busi ness. Some years ago,
beretbed to Reltren in search or peace
and quiet. St ill keeping contact wit h t he
old busineu, Frederick bri ngs in a Ihip-
ment oflpiriu evel')' t wo monthl (a day
celebrated throughout the town).
Frederick le lll every kind of drink
(except hil aiel) to the other busineasetl
in town, at a price low enough to insure
their profiu but keep his competi tion to
a minimum. He Iltocka over 100 br and.
or ale (both bottl ed and on tap) in hi.
est.abJi.hme nt , and it is t he only place
for miles around with such a collection.
Hia place 11 a true ta vern - no food, no
frilta. just a long counter lined with men
and women letting go after a hard day'.
work. Most ohhe news of the town iB
distributed here, and a bulletin board
al...ay. baa the latest mesaagea.
F'ftderidr. i. relatively wealthy but
puu most of hiB profiu into importi ng
ne....r and rarer ales (hia pef'80nal hob-
by). Being one of t he brightest of t he
townspeople, Frederick helpe Miu Kil
lian !the general store owner, area 1J)
belenee her books. Rumor has it they've
become nry eleee friends.
Fl"t'deri ck Meltl e: AC 9; HD 1; hp 5;
MV 120' 401; IKl' 1 10ng owonl; Dmg by
weapon type; Save Normal Man; ML6;
56 Issue No. 14
AL N; S 14, 1 17. W 10, D 12,C 12,Ch 14.
8. The Lamb and Candle. ThiB little
shop is owned and operated by two very
aged people. Donam and Sara Borke.
Donam h.. been the town's butcher for
over 50 yean, and hia wife is a candle-
maker. Beeeuee Donam's hearing i8
poor. the Pea will have difficulty mak
ing them.8e'lv" understood. For exam-
pie, if they addreu hi m as "Mr. Borke: '
he handa them a few chapa and atarta
ta lki ng about t he high quality of the
pip he slaughters. Hia wife h.. normal
hearing but haa difficulty moving about
and remaina in t he back of t he ahop,
cutting wicks and dipp ing candles. Hia
meat and her candles are indeed of good
quality, and the Borkea are quite frie nd-
ly once the PC. manage to get through
to them; pointi ng out a sample in the
display ease i. usually sufficient.
Donam Barke geu li ve animals from
the valley (area 18) and .Iaughters
them in the baaement of the little shop.
The old couple have no lrfoa.aun.
Donam Borke: AC 9; HD 1; hp 4; MY
120'(.40'); ' AT 1 large meat cleaver;
Dmg 1-6; Save Normal Man; ML6; AL
L; S 16; 113, W 14, D 12, C 14, Ch 13.
Sara Borke: AC 9; HO I ; hp 3; MY
120'(401; ' AT 1 sharp aciuon; Dmg 1-3;
Save Normal Man; ML 6; AL L; S 8, 1
14, W 14, D 10, C 13, Ch 10.
'1. Karen', Bakery. A frie ndly 16-
year-old girl, Keren Qwen , il currently
the chief baker for this little town. Her
parentlilrained her well and wrote
down all the family recipes before their
deaths some four years ago. For over
three yean, t he young bw.ineuwoman
lived with the Borkea next door (ana 6),
but rece ntl y she was deemed old enough
to Jive on her own by the town council.
Her baked goods are fan tastic creations,
the mai n taste treau to be found in the
town.
Recently, Karen had a great ecere
when the herbaliat'. ahop next door
(area 8) burned down. Only the peree-
verance of the towtUpeople uved her
bakery.
Karen doean't know anything about
t he plot in town, but she knowa that the
herbalist never left. a Ilre going at night
(aa the constable maintains). She al90
knowa that the her balist had a pet dog,
who has been lee n wanderi ng about
town recently (lee area 14).
Karen Qwen: AC 7; HD 1; bp 5; MV
120'(40'); ' AT 1 cutti ng knife; Dmg 14;
Save Nannal Man; ML 6; AL L; S 12, 1
16, W 14, 0 17, C 14, Ch 16.
8. Herbal iat. The recent destruction
of this . bop was attributed to an acci-
dent. ('11:Ie herbalist left.a Iire going
and feUasleep" is the official version.)
Since the herbalist was a peacerul man
who had no known enemies, and also
becauae he didn't live long enough to
defend hitnAelf, the accidental fire the-
01')' haa been accepted by the nai ve
townspeople.
What t he enbene of Relfren don't
know ia t hat the werere te killed the
herbaliat and burned down hia shop
because they believed him to beth e
only source of wolfsbane in town. What
the were u ta don't know is that the
herbalist had just delivered hia entire
supply of wolfabanl' to the wiz.ard of the
tower (area 161the day before the rln.
'The party can tell only that the blaze
was deliberately set. All recorcU and
supplies were utterly conaumed in the
inferno. The herbal ist " pet dog, Fritz,
can be found at area 14. The herbalist'l
body lies in the catacombe of area 21.
9. The Two Sisten Clothlnl Sho p.
Two twin siaters, Nitty and Bitty
Bunkin, make doth and various artid"
or clothing. They also import leather
goods, like shoetl, for the citizeru. The
liaters have no knowledge or any or the
plott going on in town, but they do have
a good idea or evel')'body's costumH for
the fHti val , since they've made bitll and
pieces and sold th e cloth and the pat-
term. If as ked about Grendel Orfman,
t hey lIy only th at " thinp must be
gt"tti ng lean for him, aince he'a been
aski ng about how to do his own aewing
repairs" (Grendel's been sewi ng his
treesure into hia wardrobe; see area
4m
The women always consult with each
other about their fees.. Nitty c:hargH
10'1> too high, Bitt y 10'l too low. Listen-
ing to them tl')' to agree on a price can
be quite entertaining. They al...ay.
wear matching dreuea and have a good
time confw.ing newcomers to the town.
Ni tt)' and Bitt)' Bunkin. twina: AC
8; HD 1; hp 5; MY 120'(401; 'AT 1 knit-
ting needle each; Dmg 12 each; Save
Normal Man; ML 6; AL L; S 10,112, W
11, D 14, C 12, Ch 10.
10. Bureomaate-r '. House. This i.
the nicest houae in Reltren. 10 date, t he
bur gomaster (no one knows hi a real
name) has been left unmolested by t he
wererata .. they want to kef'p a eem-
blanc::e of order in the town unt illhe
Dormal trade route is reopened. The
rail .bo consider the burgomastfor a
fool anclu.eleu to their plota.
The joke around town i . that the
burgom..ter probably forgot hi. name,
as well as his panu etee, birthday. etc.
Th ia i . essentially true, for t he bur go-
master wa. once a very powerful wer-
rior wit h land. br avely won a nd deeds
heroically perfor med. But hi . last mia-
sion ended in t ragedy when he w. s
cursed by the evil object he waa sent Ul
deatroy. The CUrie' affected hi ' memory.
causing him to forget hi ll past life and
pr eventing him from remembering
many cf th e . mall det ail , of daily liv-
ing. For yean . he wander ed th e ccun-
t ry_ide as a beggar. When he arrived in
Relfre n. t he kindly towns people took
him in and gue him t he figurehead job
ofburgomaate r. Ever eteee, he'a han
died t he town'. meager affairs pauably
well. In any cue, he'. a fri endly guy
and is decepti vely st rong and . kill ed
when arouaed (t hough t his is not well
knownl.
The burgomut.er iB a good j udge of
character and trusta the blacksmith
(ana 13. implici tl y. These trai u lead
him to_ard helpi ng the PCs when t hey
get in trouble with the law.
Hia howe it a two-story mansi on (by
Relfren m ndards) wit h a few eervantl
to help wit h hia duties_The only Inter -
eat ing aspect of the house is a large
balcony which cver lcoke the town
square. It haa a high para pet , so that
even if th e burgomaater forgets to put
on his pants before a speech, he's st ill
"covered: '
The burgomaster wean a riTll of
WGlAing but haa no idea it is mag
ical. He b eps a tong sword +2, a eet of
piau rnml +2, and a +2 in a
locked chest beoneath his bed. He doHn' t
normally wear these, but if the PC.
convince him to joi n them (or he neoedI
to defend himaelJ). be puu these on and
.urpriaes everybody (including himaelO
with hi. warrior akills.
Burc:omaater: AC 1; FlO; hp 61; MV
120'(401; ' AT 1 weapon; Dmg by weep-
on type ( +3 for atnngth); Save FlO; ML
8; AL L: 518. 19. W 10. 0 16. C 16. Ch
"4; ring walJring. If a wuh ia
uaed to remove thia ma n's curse, he
quickly alTanges to leave Helfren and
return home to bill lands. Alte rnately,
the PCa might besent to find him at
ecme fut ure date at the of his
friend! and rel atives at home.
II, General Store, Mias J ulH Kill ian
own!l the only gene ra l It.ore in ReUTen.
She also Mils VaMOUIicrans and goods
made by the townspeople and takes care
of their money in a eecret vault in t he
back of her store. The cu t -iron vau lt
door ill locked with . three- number
combination dial (requiring three suc-
cessful IocA. rolls by a thief or a
A1IO('. spell). Inside are 10,321 gp,
19,616 sp, and miscell aneous jewelry
and other valuabl es totalli ng 1,600 gpo
This bright, middl e-aged woinan is
currently bei ng courted by Frederick,
the tavern owner (area 5), and they will
be engaged within two months (Fre-
derick says six).
The party can buy any nonnal sup-
plies here for a fait pri ce, except for
anything made of etl vee. J ulee expla ins
that since the dwarves ' deat hs (see area
12), t here have been no more silver
items made in town and she is C\ll'nntJy
sold out.
If the PCs uk more questions about
t ha t night, J utee whis pers tbat she
heard scratchi ng sounds coming from
her neighbors' side of the wall. She
aaaumes that theM sounds were made
by robbe rs looki ng for treasure, bu t
they could have been ma de by t he rau
th at have infested the building recentl y.
J UlIt aa she ment ions the r ats , J utee
100Maway, gr abs a broom, and ru na
across the shop mouti ng, ' There's one
of t hem ri ght now!" If the diaguating
rodent is caught, it turns out to bejust a
normal r at (see "On Wererata" for its
stat isti cal.
JuJee Killian: AC 8; HD 1; hp 6; MY
12O'(40');,Kf I ohort""'"" Oms by
weapon type; Save Norma l Man; ML 6;
AL L; S 10, 1 16, W 12,D 14, C 14,Ch 15.
12.. SilVf'nmitb. Another reward
notice is posted on th is door, j uat above
a sign sayi ng " No Admittance, by order
or the Constable." A dwereen fami ly
used to run this little sil ver shop, but
the dwarves were kilted t wo WHO ago
by the wererets beeeuee sil ver and
magical weapons are the only ones
capable of banning Iycanthropea in
anima l fonn. Now that the dwarves
have been eli minated, the wererats fH I
they wi lt have no difficulty taking over
the town, u magical weapons are
in Belfren,
The dwarv es were infected with lyea n-
THE WERERATSOF RELFREN
thropy by the were rats and died of it
(lee area 211. At rLnt glance, the shop
and livi ng quarten look li ke they've
been eeare hed and robbed, but if the
PCs ChKk the dwarves ' reconb they
find t hat not hing is miu ing at all! The
blacksmith haa been sa ying this all
along and rejoices if the party reaches
t he same concl usion.
Seeuered amid t he wreckage 10
silvered long swords and six silvered
daggen that the dwarves were ma king
as eoetume accessori es for t he upcoming
festival. The wererata were unable to
take them, aa even the touch ofsilver
caUlle1 lycant hropea great pain. The
PC. might find th ese weapons useful if
they need to ann t hemselves or a few
civiliaD8 ehculd the going get rough.
There is also 500 gp worth of silver
shavings and goods sca t tered around
the shop.
13. Blaclumitb. The only penon in
town wbo haa a strange accent i. the
blacksmith, Sven Pent . Sven is at north
ern barbarian descent (t wo generatiorul
ap) and met and married hiB wife of 20
yean in this very town_They have li ved
here ever since and have t wo strong
IlOna. The older lIOn left to ellplore the
world, while the younger h.. a family of
his own in town and expedB to take his
father's place upon his retire ment.
Sven and his family were good fri ends
with the dwarf and his family becaWle
of their similar profeu ioJ1!l and gener-
aUy similar outl ook on life. Sven swings
a mean hammer but pr efers to wield a
two-handed sword when forced into
acti on. He haa been trying for some
t ime to get the constable to act on find
ing those responsible for t he dwarves'
murders . According to Sven, the eonate -
ble aeems to be hiding somethi ng about
the recent turn at eve nts in Kelfren (not
true, reall y, until very lately; Sven and
the constable have never gotten along).
If the party diBooven any evidence
li nki ng the rall and the fac:tory to the
murders before actually engaging the
wererata in comba t, Sven gladly joins
them for the rest of the adventure.
Sven and his wife have 4.300gp laved
up in the town bank (the 1'8ult of
11) for their reti rement.
Sven Pent: AC 3; F6; hp 60; MY
120'(40' ); 'AT 1 two-h01ldl . word +1;
Dmg by weapon type plus strengt h
bonus; Save F6; ML 11; AL L; S 11,
110, W 14, D 18, C 16, Ch 14; kaJllrr
armor +1.
DUNGEON 57
THE WERERATSOF RELfREN
14. Playground. Thi51arge open area
neer the hou.es is alway. filled with
playing chil dren duri ng the daytitnC!' . A
6' tallltalue of an elephant stanch in
the middle 0( t he field. and the children
have a number of games involving t he
elephanL No one knows how the statue
got there. and few people even know
what an elepha nt is. In fact . the stat ue
Wall anted decades ago by the wizard
of the tower (area 16) just to . mUM! the
children.
For several day the children have
been playing with a dog named FrilZ.
the deceased herbali st's pet . Fritz ia
lonely and hungry and will befriend
anyone who petl him or offers him food. .
He will not go near any lyeent hrcpes,
barking viciously whenever any come
within 20' . but he won't at tac k eseept
in 1M!1( defense .
Fritz (domestic:: dog): AC 7; HD 2; hp
8; MV 180't6O' ); 'AT 1 bile ; Dmg 1-6;
Save Fl ; ML 6; AL N; CCI13.
ICthe PC. WIe a.prolr With animaL.
to uk Fri tz about the herbalist'a
death, he cri ngn back ward, hia chin on
the ground and hi s tail tucked bet ween
hia lep . Wit h much coaxing, gentle
words, and 10ft pats, Fri tz can be
induced to tell the followina: lltory :
"We had just finished supperrr, the
man and me, and werrre aitti ng down to
a cory evening by the fbrre. All of a
audden IIOme bia: animala burrrst in and
atarrrted to tearrr up the place. The
man atood up to atop them, but t hey hit
him acrrrou the race and he collapsed
in hia chai rrr agai n. I rrrushed rrright
in to defend him, t did. I grrrowled and
s napped at the th ings, and I would have
drrriven them olT, too, but they werrre
carrryi ng big f1ticks th at they at uck into
the firm grrrete. The sticks caught
firrre with a terrrible stink, and I held
my grrround unt il one of th e beas ts
waved a fietTry brrrand in my face. I
couldn't help it then, I had to rrrun.1
rrrac:ed out thrrrough my little doorrr,
barrrking for hel p, but ali i KOl wu a
pail of cold watenT t.hrrrown on me. I
couldn 't help him, J rrran away.. . .
Ooooooh, I'm ao as ha med."
Fri tz lapaoH into howla of despair, and
nothi na: more ea. n be roas:ed from him.
1$. Conatable's House. Moo people
feel very we having the constable
living ao near by, safer than t hey proba.
bly ahould. Since the constable apenda
much of his t ime going to and fro and
work ing st range hours, little not ice has
58 Issue No. 14
been taken of hi. rece nt activities.
The PC. can &earth this bouse. but
the only incri minating piece of evidence
they can find ia a frnh wheel of Emer-
aid Moon cheese hidden beneath the bed
(duri ng n ay 3 only ). The constable
keeps what little treasure he has at the
general store (ana 11). For more on the
constable, see area 17.
16. The Wizard's Tower. For decades,
this four story tower has sat alone and
und isturbed in the aoutheast corner of
town. At first, the tower WIUI feared, and
there were even failed attempta to bring
it down. Lat er, afte r no harm came from
the st ruct ure or its occupant , it W8S
ignored, and few people even notice it
anymore.
The resident wizard is none other
than the founding father of both the
cheese factory and the town - Relfren
Orfman - still as young and fit as ever.
Decades ago, the wiurd Jived ebeve the
cheese factory and conducted his magi-
cal reseanh there. One day, he acciden
tally dillCOVered an anti-8ging potion
that wor ked too well . He took one sip
and began getting younger and younger
eeeb YE'ar. Make-up and illusions could
do the trick for only 110 long, and finally
he had to stage his own dea th (of "old
age"). He then wt out adventuring to
find a cure for his malady. The wizard
eventually succeeded in halting his age
at a permanent 30 yean. He then
secretly ret urned to the town he had
founded and magicall y built t he tower
overnight, in a posit ion to oversee the
town and protect it from attac k.
Relfren Orfman spent t he next few
decades tryi ng to duplicate hi. earlier
Ieeee, but to no avail. Rently, however,
he has been busy with a new resea rch
project , "aomethi ng for the kiddi es."
One of his fint trick. wu to place the
stone elephant in the courtyard below
(area 14), and he watches the chil dren
play for hours (through window. con.
cealed by iIIusionsl.
Only t he herbalist. had IIt't'n the wiz-
ard in the recent put, . nd only because
the mage needed spell components and
news of the outside. Ever since the
herbalist died, the wizard hun' t had
any news . bout the town and haa been
too busy to not ice that hi. people an in
trouble. The PCs ha ve no chance to
break into the tower through force or
magic. but they can enlist the wizard's
ai d if they ta lk to the tower long enough
to convince him that they are sincere
and that the town is in danger.
The party probably needs his hel p,
too. For one of his many e:zpenments,
he recently pun::hased t he entire town'.
meagt' r aupply of wolfsbane, which the
herbalist fortunately aold to him before
his unti mely death . Even if the party
doHn't need t he herb to dri ve away the
Iycant hropea, t he wizard alao made t he
sil ver chalice t he priest (see areas 18
and 19) is looking for. This is the only
magic in town that can cure people who
have been infected with lycan thropy,
since no cleric in the town or the party
Is of l ufficient level to cure th e disease.
The wizard has no idea where the cha l.
ice is now, as the encha nt ments he laid
upon it prevent even him from locating
It magicall y.
Ift he PCs eueceed in talking to the
wizard. he givea them all his remaini ng
wolfsbane and teUa them the powen of
the chalice (see area 18), after first
e:ztracting thei r promise not to hurt
innocent people or damage property
(eapeeially the cheese factory ). He does
not give them his name, and he will
eeeept the death of Grendel once he
learns that his relative had become a
full lycanthrope.
The DMshould feel Iree to deaign the
interior of thi s tower to auit hi, whim.,
keepi ng in mind that Relfl'f'n baa a
special love for the un predictable and
une xpected. Ot herwise, the may
feel free to "wing it " with t he deeenp-
t lcn, auuming that Relfre n makes
extenai ve use of illusions and eeerer
doors to conceal and obscure much of
the interior.
The werer ete can' t get into the tower,
and th ey ha ve no idea how much ora
danger the wizard represe nts. Aflt>r aU,
no one's seen the owner in yean.
The OM should avoid letti ng the PCs
learn too much about Relfren Orfman or
hit; reeeereh (on magical confections and
toy. l. If a PCj ust happens to gu t'M the
link between t he wizard and the ele-
phant ltatue, the mage befrie nds t hat
penon and gives him a short tour of hi.
laboratory lDM'. cnoativi ty required
he",;
ReUren o rtman: AC 7; MU 12: hp
39: MV 120140'); 'AT 1 +3 or
spell; Orng by weapon type or spell ;
Save MUI 2;!oIL 10; AL L; S 10, 119, W
15, D 16, C 14, Ch 16; spells: magic
mi.. ( X3), dnp. ES P, mirror
phantc. mal wizard lock ,
magic, fl y, prottion from normal
canfu.ion, ice storm, poly-
rruwph u l(. kkpot1. ur-011 of and
proj trd imogr. magical items : . toffof
doa. and boola. rifl/l 0/
int'i6ibility.
17. Consuble Station. Constable
Camem is t he only full -time law
enforcement offiCE' r in Rellren. Every
ot her able-bodi ed citizen (me n and worn-
en over age 18) taltes a t urn ma nni ng
the guard station and watching t he
town at night.
As mentioned earlier, Constable
Ca mem Willi badly bitten by a werere t
whe n the constable stuck his arm
t hrough a partiall y open door at the
Emerald Moon cheese factory some ti me
ago. He becomes a greater wereret ahort
ly after the Pes arri ve in town. Until he
becomes a wereret. Camem believes that
the . i1versmit h dwarves were killed
duri ng a robbery (by strangM'S like the
PCs) and that the herbalist died of care-
le88nesL Though he knows better as
WI"I"eDt, the PC. ha ve no luck in con-
vincing him anything to the contnuy
- and in fad put themselves at risk by
telling him anything at all .
The station itself c;onllisll of one large
office and four IS' x IS' jail cell . dug
into the stone mountainside. The cell a
an cold and damp, but th ey a,. not
magically protected in any way, 10 typi -
cal st re ngt h rolls, spell s (providing the
spell componenta are available), and
lockpicki ng skills can open t he m. Usu-
ally, one adult vill ager guard (see stetie-
ti a at area 2) is on dut y he re at all
t imes.
Co nstable Bert Camem (before
becoming a greater werer at e AC - 1:
F7; hp 70; MV 90'(30'); 'AT I long
sword +I ; Omg by weapon type; Save
F7;ML 9;AL L: S 16, 11 0, W 10, 0 17,
C 17, Ch 11; chain mail + I , +2;
SO takes half damage from nonnal
weapons due to with Iycan.
thropy.
Co nstable Bert Camem (after
becoming a greater we,.ratl: AC 5 (5 in
rat form); F7; hp 70; MV 120'(40' ); ' AT
1 long.word + I U bite in rat fonn);
Omg by wea pon type (1 -4 hp in rat
form); Save F7; ML 9; AL C; S 16, I 10,
W 10, 0 17, Ch ll; +2 (used only
in human form).
Constable Cemem'e charisma largely
comes from hi s office, as he is not espe-
clally eal)' to get along with. In tenM of
penonality, he may charitably be
descri bed 88 dull, t hough he is not a
st upi d person. He is merely bori ng and
unremarkable - even after he becomes
a greater wererat.
18. Shepher d' . Stockyard a nd
Val ley. The ecut hweete m comer of
town is walled ofTwjt h a 10' high wood
en fence. Only one large door a ppears
throughout its length, with a much
smaller door cut into it. Behind the wall
IiV" t he town'. entire ani mal popula -
tion (u cept horses and pels). Cow.,
chickens, pigs, and sheep ere all raised
by one man, known to the townspeople
only as Animal Man.
This poor man is human but very,
very ugly. Because ofthis, he hides lik e
a leper behind the fen and takes care
or the only creat uret. he feels won't shun
him. Act ually, although the good people
of Relf,.n probably wouldn't i nvite hi m
to dinner every nigh t, lOme or t hem
woul d befriend him if he just gave t hem
the chance. Most peopl e allow him to
mi nd his own bueineee as long &I he
does n't bot her anyone . The only person
in town who hee eeen Animal Man
regularly is the pri est, Father Thero
(area 19). When orders for milk failed to
come t hrough one week, the priest man -
aged to convince Animal Man t ha t he
THE WERERATSOf RELfREN
,

,
. t o
needed hel p and was allowed in long
enough to IIet and heal the herder 's
rece nt ly broken leg . Father Thero had
bee n slowly getti ng t he misguided shep-
herd to come out of his shell .
There are a number of rumon going
around about Animal Man . "He's hal f
ma n, halfbeast" is one story. " Anyone
who looks at him will go crazy" haa
long been popu lar &I well . Act ually, the
shepherd is just a sad, ugly li ttle man.
The possibly disappointed party mem-
ben will have their fair share of t ru e
manbeasta before the advent ure is over.
Animal Man takes money for hi s
animals and milk through a small hole
in the large door, t hen leevee t he sold
goods in a small room behind the large
door while he sneau off to safety. When
he pulls a IIlring. the large door unlodta
and the buyer enters and takH his
purchase. A sign in the small mom.
reads "Cloee the door behind you!" It
will be rather easy for the party to
sneak i n th is way, etnee Animal Man
rarely checks to see if t he area is clear.
Empty metal milk jugs an ret urned by
t hrowi ng them over t he fence (t he ani-
mal . insi de have leamed to graze else-
where).
D\lNGEON 59
THE WERERATS OFRELFREN
The pre. can alao climb the fence quite
easily. Ocee iMide. they 8M huge,
well .kept courtyard which includes a
larp chicken coop from a pig
pen. Apus in the mountaifUl ide le.ciA
off into t he distance. If they follow the
pua, the PC. eventually tome to
grauy valley where the larger animals
grau. A na tural spring feedll the valley
. nd allow8 Animal Man to wub him-
lett hit! a nimala, a nd a ny returned milk
jugs. Animal Man alway. sleeps near
his animala, maki ng lure they art'
warm and well .
Beneath the floor of the chicke n coop
ia Animal Man', treasure - a deep pit
filled with 803 gp and a silver chalice.
He aaved up . 11 these coins over th e
yean, livi ng off hill own BnimHla lind
the ot her (ew necessities Father Thero
wu ki nd enough to bring him until
recent ly.
lfthe PC. ma nage to befriend Ani
mal MaD(perhaps by telling him of t he
.trange problema Fat her Thero ia hav-
ing), he ofTen t hem hi . magical chalice
and i nformll t hem of ite propertiea. The
. iln r chalice wu made by t he wizard
Relfren Orfman (area 16) to help the
town in cue of plague or othe r di.
eaxt. It w.. JOlIt by a ,..ell meaning
citizen, and the young childre n picked
it up. Afte r battering it around (or a
while, they accidentally t hrew it over
the fence into the stockyard and were
afraid to reecver it. An imal Man took
th e chalice .. payment for hia many
eereteee, elnee he keeps no ledger of hi.
businell dealings.
One day several months later, one of
Animal Man 's pigA was ill and he want-
ed to bring it BOrne water. Unjortu-
nllll!oly, hill wawr pail had a hoi", in it,
and Father There had take n it away to
be repair ed. Always wanting the best
for hi. ehergee, Ani mal Man used the
etlver chalice to bri ng water to hi.
stricken friend. Remarkably, t he pig
recovered almost immediately after it
drank from the chalice. Ever si nce t hat
day. Animal Man has used the chalice
to help eare (or his animal. when the
weather tW'lUl cold or the fiu goes
around.
The chalice will cure anyone diaelUe
(or one creature once each day. It will
even eure those infected with
py who have been wereereet uree (or a
long time. Uthe party members can
atch those infected i n t he town . hold
them long enough to get them to dri nk
from the chalice, and keep t he m from
60 Issue No. 14
becoming reinfeeted, the town'a
lema can be cured eventually.
Ani mal Man'. only other companion
ia Gunter, a grumpy goat. Gunter
anyone who enters the compound
(es cept for Animal Man) but won't usu
aUy harm people. He just makes enough
noi5l!' to alert Anima! Man to intruders .
Ifany lycant hropy-infected being
(i ncluding Father Thero) eeeerepentee
the party wit hin the compound, Gunter
chues that penon eve n after Animal
Man arrives. Animal Man quic kly graM
the goat and a pologizes, noti ng that the
goat normall y doesn't be ha ve BO badly.
Smart PCa can use Gunter or th e dog
Fritz (area 14) to point out infected
townspeopl e when t he nature of the plot
is re vealed.
Animal Man: AC8; HD 1; hp 4; MV
120'(40' ); 'AT 1 dagger; Omg by weapon
t ype; Save Normal Man ; ML 6; AL N; S
16; I 10; W 10; D 14; C 10; Ch 5.
Gunte.. the goat: AC 7; HD 2; hp 10;
MV 120'(40'); ' AT 1 butt; Omg 1-4: Save
Fl ; ML12; AL N; ER/46 .
19. Father Thero'. Quarters. Father
There of the town's churchgoi ng congre-
ga tion is in very Krest trouble. The
werereee decided to infect him 80 he
woul dn't cure dieeesed parishioners
duri ng the Iycanthropea' inte nded
takeover. but t he wererau didn't !tnow
that Fat her There was not of high
enough level to re move lyca nthropy
anyway. It was made to appear that he
had been attacked by a bear, and he
believe. he has had a lucky eece pe.
The good father hal alwaYI been very
lawful and helpful , and he Ie now be v-
ing great difficulty changi ng to t he
Chaotic ali gnment lycanthropy
He has had te rrible nlghtmarel about
huge ra te and blood, wh ich he believes
an tormente sent by the (orces of evil
and ChaOll. He has .pent the last week
repent ing hi. sins (all minimal) and
beggi ng for help from the Immortals.
He has not yet become a full lycan-
thrope. though he will become one at
midnight on day 3. At night. Father
Thero behaves oddly, walking the
grounds or the church (area 20) and
feeling very irritable beeecee or the
progress orthe disease and the presence
of an almost -full moon ( lee " Midnight,
Day 3").
If the PC. ma nage to convince the
pri est that he i. sufferi ng (rom a dtee eee
r ather than the temptations of ChaOll.
the good father believes that the PCs
came i n answer to lU. prayers and ofTen
to help them. Father Them despain of
ever finding a 100 silver chalice which
i. rumored to cure all di5l!'8lM!II. no mat-
ter how far progreued (1II!'e anou 16 and
18). The (ather te lls the party that he
believes the chalice might beatill with
in the town, but he has no idea where- it
might be.
The PC. an count on curative lpell.
and u nct uary (rom Fat her Thera
should they require anything. The party
cannot convince Father Thero to let
them i nto the graveyard (area 21), 10
they must enter there on th eir own
tal ents . The good fat he r has no tree-
sure. 81 he elwaye gave donations to the
needy or used them for repair. to th e
churc h.
Father Thero: AC 9; C5; hp 30; MV
120(40' ); 'AT nil (re fWIHto we weep-
ona); Omg nil; Save cs. ML 6; AL L; S
I S, 113. W 17. D9, C 12,Ch 18; (our
poti on. or hJliflg: take. half damage
from normal wea pons due to infection
with lycanthropy; spell.: light
wollnd. ( x 2), .. ( x 2).
20. The Church. Father Thero baa
been neglecting his dut ies recently, as
thia duaty littl e building iodic:atet_
Fort una tely (or the party, Fat her There
spends all of his time during the day at
home (area 19), 10 he will not lee any
intrulion into t he graveyard by th e
party during these hours. Unfoetu.
nately, Fat her There patrols the church
at night and angrily ebeeee ofT any
intruders, throwing rccke t hat alway .
miu . There il no treasu re i n t he
church.
21. Graveyar d. Space il always a
concern in a mountain village, and
Relfren is no exception, Years ago, when
the town was first founded, t he nat ur al
cav... here were converted into cata-
combs. Recently, the graveyard has
been busier than ever with t he deat hs of
the herbaliat and t he d,..arvea.
The gate entrance to the yard outside
the church is t he only way in and is
locked by a .imple padlock (Father
Thero haa the onl y key ). Int repid Pes
can climb over the gate or pick the lock
" uily. Within the caves are tb" remains
of the town'. dead, which are well pre-
served by the ca ve'l dry air.
The branch marked with an Xon the
map contains the aforementioned bodiH
covered in white li nen. The three
dwarves slain t wo weeks ago (al h" r,
mother, and child) an!! in rair condition;
euminatioDreveall only. few small
bite. on each of them. not enough to
hne UuaN their death&. The consUl-
hie. without adequate (Kilitie..
auumed that they had been poi-oned by
prof_ ionaS thieves who quickly ned
the town. Since lyc:anthropy kill_ demi-
humana., it .uonly neoceuary for t he
wererattcto bite each of t he dwarves
enough limN to infect them, then hold
t hem lItill until the disease ran iu
course.
The herbalist , CD t he other hand. was
murdered wit h a few dagger . winp .
Any PC cleri c who examines hi.
charred rem.ina can determine t hat .
few of the wound- were not inflicted by
raili ng debris. and that the herbalist
diedbefore t he fln wu tiel . While the
offici.1 cause or death is labelled ..
smoke inhalation. the lunp oCthe herb-
alist are he of smoke.
If party members lIM wilh 1M
thad spell, the victims delCribe their
ra tl ike proving th.t thftlr
death. were iodeed murden.
Thne dUH should prove UMful in a
trial if the criminals are apprehended
(r.ther than alain) and tried by IOrDeODe
other than the constable (who becomH a
wererat himMlf duri ng the evening on
day 2). 'There ill no treasure In the
graveyard.
22. The SUve r Cre.eent l nn. Two
newlywed elves Qil and Thaal Gold
bough, recentl y opened t he only new
busi neu in town, a beautiful Inn and
tavern. Thll is one of the few buildi ngl
In town bui lt up on stills end into the
mounlaiMide. Ma ny houses like th il
line th e paues to the east and west of
Relfren, and t he PCs may see several of
them u they enter or leave Relfren.
Being the only elves in town, the Gel d-
bought feel out of place but are trying
to make friend. .. best they can.
Their gouda are of the finelJt. quality,
but their prices are a little high. They
built their little chalet in order to
attract the upperKale merc:hant trade
that baa now be-gunto now regularly
throueh the town. Because of the poor
quality oI't he other inn in town (area I ),
busi neu has generally been very eood,
although no one is ltayina: here when
the part)' arrives. The Goldboughs know
nothine about the recent crimes in
town, u t hey have been too busy put-
ting t he finishing touches on eome new
decorations.
The party might end up ltayina: here
.t the tiDlfl when the wererats plan on
attacking {lee " Eveni ng, Day I ' '}. If eo,
the Pet each l.ake damage (u noted
under the events for Midniiht, Day 1)
and are ItiU arrested for the erime, even
though this is a patently abeurd U8e'r-
tion by the nowwererat Constable
Camem.
QU Goldboul h: AC 7; EI; hp 6; MY
120'(40' ); ' AT I lhort sword; Orng by
weapon type; Sa ve EI; ML 6; AL N; S
14,1 12, W 11, 0 17, C 12, Ch 16; spell:
magic mu.ik.
Te.aJ Goldbougb: AC 7; E1; hp 6;
MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 1 . hort sword; Dmg
by weapon type; Save EI ; ML 6; AL N;
S 12, 1 13, W 12,D17, C 12, Ch 17;
spell: dffp.
23. Stable.. The PCt must tillable
their honet here under the . habby cane
of Smythely Jonk, a r ather disrtoputable
man whom the town would r ather eee
gone. Smythely ill obnozious but not
criminal, and he wants only to be left
alone. Hill horwa N IUIe lycant.hropes
within the ltables and have been the
only thinp keepina: him aate from the
wererats.
Once a month, Smythely', cousin
comes through and takes hi. trealure to
a bank to the eut, 10 Smythely hal hO
great amount of money stored away In
town (eomethlng t hat makes the towns-
people even more luspicious). Smythely
i. one of the CWItornenl at Meltle',
Tllvern (area 5).
Smytbely J onle AC 9; HD 1; hp 6; MV
120'(401; 'AT 1 long sword; Dmg by
weapon tyPR; Save Normal Man; ML 6;
ALNi S 16, t 10, W 11. 0 14, C 12, Ch 7.
Concluding the Adventure
If the PCuCCHd in eliminatina: the
threat to ReUren with mini mum of
li ves loel and all the criminal. in eueto-
dy, the toWD.lpeople offer them an award
of only 1,000 KP each (no more can be
spared). 1J:lI addition, the blacksmith
t urm over the I,QOO-IP reward original
ly offered for findi na: the dWarYn ' mur
den.... AU crimes commJtted by the PCI
are pardoned unleu the acta wue
unusually NriOUS (the OMshould hue
his judgment on the alignments and
actiona of the party memben).
The PC, are aleo offered. the deed to
the cheese factory, and they may decide
to NUit or run it thellltleivel. No one in
town makes an immediate offer for t he
THEWERERATS OFRELFREN
factory, but the next day a traveling
merchant offen 20,000 IP (or the whole
thing (he can be bargained a little high-
er if the group if; cbariamatlc). This
merchant is actually the wizard Relfre n
in diJleuile. He could, orc:oune, claim
the (ae:tor)' outright, but he prefen to
remain incognito and pay the PCs a
truly fitting reward for their deeds. If
he purchue. the factory, the wizard
arranges a eecret pannenhip with
young Karen Qwen (ana 7), and they
u pand the bueinees into a full line
confectionery, wit h jamtl,
licorice. the woru . They conti nue to
make eheeee and baked goo&. .. well
.. eome lpeeial toys Relfren work.eon in
hi. lpare time. The townspeople end up
wit h extra work. for which Retrren pay.
hand.omely. This new prosperity dr aw.
in new businesae8 and new citiuna u
well. transforming Relfren within
month&. The wizard maintaina his tow
er and eventually leaves the entire
bu.aineaa to Karen when he rt'tUmll to
his spell reeeereh.
If the party Ileea from the lycan-
thropea iDtlt.ead of helping defeat them,
the infected population rrow- and &:1'0"
u more people spend the night and end
up ltaying permanently. The lycan-
thrope menace will eventually turn the
town into a wererat metropoli. , a base
of for a full wererat thieves'
guil d. Ofcourse, t he party may then
have to deal with this menace on the
way back through the mountain p....
Then, too, t he PCs might driv e mOlt of
the wererats and greater wererete out ,
usi ng wolfsbane and force, only partial.
Iy suoceedini in their tuk of laving the
town. Rewards . hould be adjWlted
according to the odds they faced and
how much or thei r miu ion wu eem-
pleted. A. long u t here i. one were rat
left in Relfren. there will lOOn be- more.
Finally. the mountain pa.u that wu
blocked by bandits will be in 2-6
monthti by an army of imperial knights.
If Relfren h.. become aate and prwper-
ous, ecme c:aravaDtl will continue to
head through it in preference to the
other paD- If Relfren baa been taken
over by wererata, wordwill led. out and
a major force of imperial knights,
backed by hiih.level magic-use rs and
d eric:a, will arrive within another 2-6
montha. The town'. pau will be cloeed.
for months during the fighti ng, and iu
fut ure afte rward will beuncertain
i ndeed.
DUNGEON 61
THE WERERATSOFRELFREN
, n Eon
' '' - -1'.
RAT
On Wererats
Accord ing to the D&D Basic: Set
Dungeon a s t ~ r Ruk hoolt. werere ee
are not like other lycanthropes. All
other Iycanthropes are huma n beings
who can cha nge into anima l (arm, but
wer erat.a are gia nt -sized rata th at can
take on hu man form. Thia is only hal f of
the story.
Usuall y, wererete are loosely orga -
nized sewer -dwellers that tend to domi.
nate lesser groups of giant and normal
rate, using them for foodwhen nothing
else i. available. In this envi ronment ,
only giant r ats that escape being eaten
can be infected with lycanthropy, AfI
normal rata never have enough hit
pointa to survive the infect ing bi te in
the rlrat place. Gia nt rete grow even
larger once they' ve contracted the dis-
ease and become wereeete themsel ves.
The constant struggles for food and
control 88 the wererala hattie each
ot her usually keep the wer erat popul a-
ti on und er control; weak , aged , and
st upid wererata are crowded out and
event ually eterve. Because of the
unique habi ta ts preferred by these
peculiar Iycanthropes, bit ing giant rata
62 Issue No. 14
GIANT R Aj
is usu all y th e only way of pasaing on
this dr ead disease. However, wererata
someti mes encounter human bei ngs or
demihumans - most etten adventurers
looking for underground treasure or a
way into a castle or town on the surface.
When demi-humans are infected wit h
lycanthropy Oosing 50% or more of their
hit points from wererar bite damage),
they sicken and die relati vely quickly.
Infected demi-hume ne will survive for
one hour per point of Constitut ion (which
allows them ti me to try to halt the prog.
reu of the disease). This gives PCpartiea
a seri ous time limit should someone get
bitten early in a fray. Infectedderni-
humans immediately feel weak, as if
they had been poisoned (gaining a - 2 on
aUrolls to hit and on sa ving throws), and
feel a burning fever race through them.
All demi-humen clans teach about these
phenomena, and demi-human PCs
should each get an Intelligence cheek to
real ize t hat they've been infected with
lycanthropy.
Huma na who encounter these crea-
tures r arely live to tell about it , 88
werer ete are a Chaotic lot who enjoy
human Ileah immensely. In t he
extremely rare instance in which a
GRfATER WERERAT
."
human being survi ves a wererat attack
and is infected, a special lycanthrope is
pr oduced (providing, of course, that t he
unfortunate person is unabl e to obtain
the curative a.istance of an l lth- or
hi gher-level cleri c). Sages refer to these
creat ur es as "greater" wererete because
they retain their classes and abilities
when in human form. but can change
into man-sized rata if they so desire.
Greater werer ats have the game statis-
ti c. of normal wererete. except th at the
original hit pointa and mentality of the
affected characters are reta ined in
lycanthrope form.
Ther e are both benefits and dr aw-
backs to becoming a greater wer er et.
The subject becomes immune to normal
weapons, lik e any lycanthrope, when in
either human or giantrat form. How.
ever, no mat ter what t he character's
ori gi nal alignment, the newly made
greater wereeat will event ually t urn
Chaotic. For PCs and NPCs, a Wisdom
check is made once each week before
shifti ng one alignment posit ion Ii.e.,
Lawful to Neutral , Neutral to Chaotic).
If the PC is strongly devoted to an
ali gnment Ie.g., a Neutral druid or a
highly Lawful clericl, add + 2 to the
check. Still. when the transformation to
bei ng a wereret is done, the PC becomes
Chaotic immediately, no matter what
alignment was held beforehand. Father
There, in this advent ure, will retain his
Lawful alignment until midn ight on
day 3, when he becomes a Iull lycan -
thrope and turns wholly Chaotic. PCs
who become Iycanthropes become NPCa
und er the DM's cont rol. 8 S per the
Dungtoll Masters page 33.
Great er wer er ate do not usually infect
other beings or creatures with lyean-
thropy, since they prefer to remain in
their more powerful human form and
only resort to Tal form as a means of
esca pe or for deceit. For reasons that
are not yet understood. lyca nthropy ca n
only bepassed through the ani ma lsel
of tee th by any lycanthrope. In th e
extr emely rare event that a lycanthrope
decides to deli beratel y spread its dis-
ease (as OUr1l in this adventure). th e
resul ts can bedevastating.
It is also an extremely rar e event for a
gre ater werer er to become established
as the leader of his own grou p of normal
wer er ate. Normal wererete are usually
difficult to control and. being Chaoti c.
difficult to trust . But some small thiev-
ing bands have been known to ravage
the countryside for a time before t hey
were event ually th rown down by the
local populace or by an anonymous
group of advent urers.
Many lear ned sages have wondered
why Iycanthropes have never infected
the entire world with their dre aded
disease. The immunity Iycanthropes
have to nor ma l wea ponry ma kes them
al most unstoppabl e und er most circum-
stances. but their Chaotic nature and
Inherent inability to or ganize them-
selves have kept them li ght ing each
ot her ins tead of banding together.
In any case. the existe nce of t he
greater wer erat has only recently been
discover ed. even th ough the phenomena
must have been oceurrt ng for centuries.
80 it is wise to 88.y that not everything
about lycanthropy has yet been divined .
The events chronicled rect!ntly in t he
little town of Relfren only show th e
genera l populace how little the 88.ges
reall y know.
For convenience. stat istics for normal
re te. giant rats, normal wer erats. and
gre ater werer eta are given here:
Normal rat: AC 9; HO less than 10
hp each); MY 6O'(20' Y30'OO' ); 'AT 1 bite
per pack of 5 10 (or per pack of 10 if
more than 10 are present ); Dmg 16 plus
disease; Save Normal Man ; ML 5 (but
nee from fire unl ess driven by magic or
wer er ats ); AL L; B0I36.
Giant rat: AC 7; HO In 04 hp each);
MV 120'(40'Y60'(20' ); 'AT 1 bite; Dmg
13 plus disease; Save Normal Man; ML
8 (but nee from fire un less dr iven by
magic or were rats ); AL C; 80136.
Normal werereu AC 7 (9 in human
form); HD 3- ; MY 120'(40' V30'OO' ) (use
former movement r ate in human form);
'AT 1 bite (1 weapon in human form);
Omg 14 (by weapon type in human
form); Sa ve F3; ML8; AL C; BDI33.
Greater wereeeu AC 9 (7 in rat
form); HO and hp 88 per previ ous cl ass
and level": MV 120'(40')(88 per normal
wererat in rat form. with swimmi na-
abili ties); 'AT 1 weapon (l bite in rat
form); Omg by weapon type (1-4 In rat
form); Save as per d 8S8 and level ; ML
8 +; ALC.
There is a 5% cha nce of contracting a
disease from the bite of a normal or
giant rat. This disease may beavoided
by a Saving Throw ve. Poison; if th is
roll is failed . the vict im has a 2511
cha nce of dying in 1-6 days. ot herwise
falli ng ill and being unable to go adven.
t ur ing for one month.
weeerate and greater wererete can
summon and control 12 rats or giant
rats each, with summoned creatures
arriving in 14 rounds to obey all com.
mands. A lycanthrope struck by wolfs-
bane in combat must make a Saving
Throw vs. Poison or else flee in fear. In
animal form, wererets and greater were-
rats can only be harmed by magi cal or
silvered weapons or else by magical
spells. The very touch of silver causes
lycanthropes intense pain. In human
form. wererate have slightly elongated
faces and pronounced noses, though this
is rar ely seen 88 except ional.
The normal wererata in this adventure
prefer to remain in their giant rat form
unle as it is necessary to seize an ite m or
escape in human form. The greater were-
ra ta prefer their human form at all
ti mes. unle aa their giant rat forms would
be more helpful. At midnight on the
third day. all wererats and greater were-
rats will be in their rat forms, to spread
their lycanthropy M widely M possible
among the towns people.
Though bot h werer ata and gre ater
wer e-eta can use nor mal tools and
weapons in thei r human forms. neit her
will wear ar mor, as it hampers their
abilities to cha nge shape. 0
THE WERERATS OFRELFREN
JUST
THINKHOW
YOURIDOS
WILLFEEL
WHENYOU
FINALLY
GETYOUR
NAMEIN
THEPAPER.
....
-tJ.-


-. S,-.-.;coa:..=,-_ ... "
-.- .
It's easy10 get your
name inprint. All you
have to do is neglect your
health, increasingyour
riskof heart attack, and
you could become a
newsmaker sooner than
you'd ever imagine.
V
AmericanHeart
Association
WrnHlGHTl1\GF01
'OPUFE
DUNGEON 63
IN PURSUIT
OF THE
SLAYER
BY CARL SARGENT
Can a merciless
killer possibly be
your ally?
Artwork cv Bob GlodrosiCI'I
Carl Sargent hasju8t fi nished a third
fantasy gamebook, for 1989 publ ication.
He has also pu bli shed a h()(Jk on the
tarot and is currently working all a 160-
page fantasy RPG scenario book, other
game product . and articles. and one or
two other writ ing proj ects. Carl reports
he needs to repaint the letters E, R, T. 0 ,
and H on hi s word processor keyboard
as t hey have disappeared with use.
" In Pursuit cf rhe Slaye r" is a D&Dt
module for 6-8 player characte rs of
levels 69. Any character class can play
t he advent ure, a nd a balanced group is
vital (or success. but the PC party
shoul d include at least t wo strong
dwar ves or figh ters, at least one of 9t h
level. Chaot ic characters a re not recom-
mended. It is essential to the advent ure
t hat t he Pes have moun ts . The module
can be played as an individual adv en -
ture or easily integrated into a n ongo-
ing ca mpa ign in a ny te mperate area of
far ms, plains, and lig ht forests .
This sce nario feat ures four monst ers
from AC9 Creature Catalogue. Whil e it
is desi rable to ha ve a copy of t his book
on hand, the text he re gives all t he
informati on a nd statistics needed to use
t hese monete re.
For the Player c nc rccters
You slow your mounts to a trotti ng pace
on t his warm summer day as you travel
onward; they are feeli ng the heat as
much as you are . It's a lazy, humid after-
noon, and somewhere to the nort h a
farme r is burning st ubble judging by the
plume of smoke you can just make out.
Then, some way ahead along the road,
one of you makes out a small running
figure heading south towa rd you. There
is no pursuer in sight, but it must ta ke
something unusua l to make anyone r un
so fest on so hot a da y. YOII ur ge you r
mou nts 10a fast er pace, a nd now you
ca n see clearly that t he runner is a
you ng hoy. He st umbles a nd fall s as you
get close to him, and he doesn 't get up.
When you dismount and r un to him, t he
hoy looks up a t you , hi s face st rea ked
with the sa me black t hat soil s his
clothes. He holds out his hands a nd falls
forwa rd, exhausted.
Soon revived, t he hoy says hi s na me is
Albedo. He is fleeing from his home at
Fairwel l Far m some mil es north. Close
to noon, Albe ri n tells you, a bearded
wa rrior in a rmo r rode up to t he farm on
a great black charger. He hel d a mighty
DUNGEON 13
INPURSUIT OFTHE SLAYER
sword in one hand a nd a slim length of
wood in the other. The red-cloaked man
simply pointed the wooden st ick, and a
great ball of Fire hurt led from it into the
farmhouse , setti ng it alight ins ta ntly.
As peo pl e fled in terror, th e warrior
slew t hem with hi s sword; ot hers per-
ished in the raging flames.
The man spurred his horse to r ide
a way. then saw Alber-in cowering by t he
well . He laughed at t he boy, the cruelty
in hi s face emphasized by t he black eye
patch he wore over one eye . " You' re too
little to beworth my while killing," the
murderer chuckled . " Know me 8S t he
Sl ayer!" he intoned. then rode off to th e
north, leaving a dozen souls dead in his
wake. Alberin fled in te rror despite the
man's words a nd is heading sout h to the
refu ge of a cousi n's home.
The plume of smoke . . . no st ubble
burning, then. The murderer is moun t-
ed, a nd you ha ve little time in wh ich to
choose your next actions.
For the Dungeon Master
In thi s scenari o t he PCs follow Wolfram,
t he Slayer, a nd t rack him to a great
fun eral barrow upo n a devasta ted plai n.
There, if not hing happen s to inte rfere
wit h Wolfr am'a plans, a great undead
army will bemagi cally raised to sweep
sout h a nd spread death on a scale which
will make hi s efforts look pit iful .. .
except t hat they aren't exactly his pla ns
a nd efforts.
Wolfra m is actually a deepl y Lawful
and good man, albeit one of very st r ict
beliefs (see the end of t he mod ule for
detail s on his stat istics and personality).
Hi s wand of fire balls is occupi ed by a n
undead be ing known as a posse ssi on
(also called a sword spir it) which has
taken over Wolfr a m's mind. It ca n also
use t he wa nd itself as a weapon.
Wolfram is headed for the Plains of
Despair, an ancient battleground. Ther e,
the possession intends to leave the wand
and inhabi t a different magical item, the
Staff ofShrioe ning. Thgether with the
staff, which is guarded by an other undead
creature - II grey philosopher - it will
begin t he infernal wor k of animati ng an
undead army from t he countless bodies in
the earth. Wolfram's stopping to kill pee-
ple en route is caused by the possess ion,
which gains power from the deaths it
causes, making the anima tion of undead
easier and quicker when it reaches its
dest ina tion.
Thi s grey phi losopher has long been
14 tseue No. 15
Fil led wit h a n especially deep hatred of
li ving creat ur es, amplified by magical
ba nes dee p wi t hi n the barrow. Its dehb.
erat iona, un usual for its kind, have
progressed to t he stage where it is ready
to begi n work animati ng undead . Th is
desolate place is also inhabited by a
secrcl . a t hird undead creature, which
will present a nother major da nger for
the PCs.
The PCs begi n a t t he X on t he ma p.
Th ey must follow Wolfr am as quickly as
possi ble a nd dest r oy the malevolent
e ntit ies before t he un dea d army is sum-
moned . This is a race against t ime, but
along t he way t here are both time.
wast ing diversions a nd al so sources of
important informa tion, especial ly a bout
Wolfram.
Th is powerful ma n has always been
known as t he Slaye r, for very good rea-
son - he is an implacabl e a nd merciless
foe of all t ha t is evi l. While he ta kes no
pleasure in his grim work , his task has
been to kill maraudi ng monsters, evi l
creatures, and murderers who have
been sentenced to dea t h but have
esca ped j ust ice - un til Wolfr a m ca tches
up wit h t he m. Wolfr am is not a vigil an-
te, however. When pur suing evil men
(as opposed to monsters), he kill s only
when he knows t ha t t hey have bee n
sentenced to death by j udicial a ut horit y.
He is Lawful, afte r all.
Along the way, the PCs should lind
enough i nfor mat ion to make t hem real-
ize that all ca nnot bewhat it seems
where Wolfra m is concerned, and t hey
should probably reali ze tha t kill ing him
will mean killing a good man a nd true!
The players' introduct ion has been
wr itten to set t hi s adventure in summer
for t wo reasons. First , it helps to
explain why a fire ball causes t he com-
plete dest ruction ofl arge far m buildings
(everyt hi ng is very dry a nd t he fire
spreads quickl y). Also, it hel ps to ma rk
Wolfra m as unusu al. Th is man is gallop-
ing around a nd fight ing in full plate
mail a nd shows no signs of exhaustion!
He must ha ve some ma gical resistance
to t he heat , so he's probably somet hing
special. Adding Wolfram's appare nt lack
of problems wit h t he heat to t he ques-
ti on, " What 's a fighter doing using fire
balls, a nyway?" should make t he PCs
curi ous enough about him to set ofT in
pursuit. The hot weather also sets the
scene for the t hu nderstorm on t he
Plains of Despair.
The Pes may want to quest ion
Alberin for any more details they ca n
get out of him. If so, t hey mu st ask clear
quest ions. If asked about the Slayer's
a rmor, Alber in d"lICJ'ihP!'I phd... ma il. HI'
is fairl y certai n, if asked, t ha t t he eye
pa tch was worn over t he ma n's left eye .
Alberi n al so remembers t ha t th e Slayer
had dark hair, and he ca n say tha t t he
"fire sti ck" (as he calls it ) was made of
pal e wood, about half a yard long. If
questioned closely, Alber in tell s the PCa
t ha t t he Sl aye r's horse was sweati ng in
the hot weather, but t he ma n didn' t
see m to be affected by t he heat . If asked
what lies to the nort h, Albe rin tell s t he
PCs of Crabt ree Fa r m, Hara kil 's Farm,
a nd t he vill age of Kaldarek (see Th e
Route of t he Slayer map), a nd a few
details about t he m. He can also give
reasonably accura te direct ions. Al berin
ca n gi ve a list ofthe dead at his own
fa rm (his father Marnt, mother
Hamana, brot hers Syl ran a nd Bertran,
and six farmha nds) ifthe PCs really
want to know. He has no idea why any'
one would wa nt to do such a terri ble
t hing at Fairwell Farm .
The Route of t he Slayer ma p shows a
number of locat ions a nd th e pa th which
Wolfra m ha s taken. Th e players do not
receive a copy ofthis ma p but ca n ma ke
t heir own sketch map from infor mati on
gai ned as t hey tra vel. Each t ime t he
PCs do not follow Wolfram's t r ail but
make a detour somewhere else, t hey
lose time pur suing hi m. Such lost time
is noted for all locati ons where this ru le
applies .
Keep a carefu l record of how many
detours the PCs make, for t his number
affects t he final combat on t he Pla ins of
Despair. Also, in some locat ions t he
party can gai n infor mati on about Wolf-
ram a nd t he direc t ion he has ta ken,
alt hough t hey mu st ask some quest ions
or they won't be able to follow him. If,
however, th e PCs spend hours ask ing
questions about t rivial details , at
Ka ldarek (a rea 4) or of t he dwarven
merchants (area 6) for example, t reat
this as furt her ti me-wasting a nd add
+1 to t he detour count. Don' t penalize
PCs trying to t hink of intell igent quea-
ti ona and looking for people or note in
Kaldarek, but only t hose spending a n
inter minable t ime over ma tters. The
PCs should realize t hey are not going to
catch anyone while wasting t heir time
in this way.
It shoul d also become clear to t he PCs
that t hey ca nnot catch t he Slayer on t he
first ga me day. If t he advent ure starts
just after noon, t hey will get to t he
IN PURSUIT OFTHE SLAYER
THE ROUTE OF THE SLAYER
N
s
--
o
sa.yer"iJ\'aoI
-- Rood

7
x

3
Dapl et b Woods (ar ea 81 in the early
evening. Aft er the comba t t here, the
party will have to sleep and regai n
s pel ls, eepecielly curative ones. The PCs
may wonder whet her t hey should pur-
sue t he Slaye r during the night hours.
Make it plain that they cannot tra vel in
t he woods by night, nnd t hat t he mun
t hey are following must lIurt'ly stop.
rest, and sleep also.
No detailed maps are provided for any
(anna or for Ka ldarek, a nd they should
not be needed since no combats take
place at any of them. Location deeerip-
hOM give basic details for de!lCri bing
these plares to the Pes.
Ma gi c al PUrllui t
It should nol be- poss ible for the PC. to
have any magiea! means o( eau hlng up
en maeee ....irh Wolfram before he geta to
the Plai ns of Despai r. Aepelt euch as
htute laHLlI only 30 minutes. \....hile a fly
spell llUltll longer. it affectll only one
character, and it should be dear t hat
one PC - even a strong one - would
have sericue problems trying to deal
with a ma n using a wand offi re ball&. If
a player is conte mpla t ing usi ng this
spell, you may drop a hint on t his 8COre.
Similarly, magical items have limited
use, either due to short duration {a
pot ion of flyinfl} or MaUI\t' only one or a
small number of PCI ca n be effected
(e. g., bootJl of spee d, carpe t of fly ing).
Onl y a party gTOIl.. qly cverequtpped wit h
mngtcal tranaport ite ms coul d catch up
wit h Wolfra m ee a group. If you have
such a party. you mulll find eome way of
relievi ng t hem of a few such items.
Inte lli gent players, however, may well
.use magical items or spells such 88 fly
and htute to scout a hud and track
Wolfram. A party may split up. agree-
ing to meet late r at a Ilaed place, with
the majority going one way a nd one or
more flying cha racters ma king a quick
check otTt he mai n trail. Thill ill not a
problem in running the IICt" nario, and
you ahoul d becareful not to increase the
detour count if magic is used to speed
up i nvestigation". For example, if the
ma in body of a PC group goes straight
from a i ~ e l l Farm to Kaldarek , while
a flying character checks on Ha rakil's
Fa rm, the farm visit should not be
counted as a detour since no ti me has
bee n 10/lt.
Encounter Areas
Many of t heee encounte r areas incl ude
meet ings wit h normal. nonadve nturing
huma ns . For convenience, stat ist ics ror
these people a re gi ven here.
Vill age rs a nd farmhands: AC 9;
Normal Man; hp 16; MV 120'140' ); I AT
I ; Omg by wea pon type; Save Normal
Ma n; AL L: equi pped 88 OM sees fit .
I . Fairw",lIf' ann. All that remains
here is a l ingle bar n to the north or a
group Dr st ill. burni ng shells or buildings
tfarmhouse, stabl es, two barns. Iarm-
hands' cottagt"8. ete.) which were alm08t
e nt irel y mad e of wood. There are no
IUrvl VOrs, only 10 charred a nd bloodied
bodies. sl ain by fire and by the I WOn!.
J ust to the east or t he main farmhouse
is a l a r ~ well (he nce the rarm's namel
next to which stand watering lroUKhs.
The PCs' mou nts can drink here (no
time penalty),
2, Hara kil' s " arm. Visiting t his farm
i8 counted III a detour, si nce Alberin
ma de it dear that the Slaye r road otT
north from Fai rwell Farm, end this
place ie almost due east . It is clear Irom
DUNGEON 15
IN PURSUIT Of THE SLAYER
a distance of half a mile away that all
appears well on this grai n and livestock
farm. The eeven farmhands and Hera-
kil. the owner, say they have eeen noth
ing unusual and are perfectly safe . They
eeeumed (rom the emcke that Marat
waa burning st ubble over at Fairwell
Farm. Once they learn differentl y, they
take step' to arm thernee lvea a nd
defend the farm.
3. Crab tn-e Farm. Visit ing this (arm
i . al ao counted aa a detour. alt hough it '.
not bad play coming here. AHleri n Mid
the Sl ayer rode off to the north. and th e
villain might have come here (alt hough
he hun't).
Th is farm is phyaica1ly si milar to
Har akil 's Farm. but th e owner ill a
re tired fighter. If the PC. specificall y
ask to see t he hoM. not Bet tli ng for the
obviously peaceful nature of the place at
fint sight. the five farmhands lead
th em to farmer Darri gan. lf the PC. Bilk
about t he Slayer. Damgan frowns and
looks t houghtful. " I' m lure I've heard
that name ecmewhere, heard aomething
about a fighter t ailed the 8layer; ' he
aaysslowly. " But it weren't sai d with
fear or anyt hi ng like t hat ." He cannot
recall any details. Once infonned of the
destnaction of Fairwell F&nn, Darrigan
orden hie fannhands to &nn themselves
and withdraw to the main heuee.
Farmer Dami an: AC 9; F4; hp 22;
MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon
type; 8 15; Save F4; ML 9; AL L: long
sword (kept in Iarmhouee),
4. The VlIIage of Kaldal"f'k.
Kal darek n a amall vill age of BOrne 80
souls on the main north-south trade
route between Lamford and Carra-
bri dge. At the village, horeee are ofte n
rested, and coach part ies and wagOnA
stop for the night, lID there is a fair-size
coachi ng inn (ru n by Martall us and hi.
wife, Diora) and a blacksmith!
stableman, Rodall an, who is al so
reepcneible for maintaining law and
order in thiAvillage. There's little trou-
ble, anyway. Outaidf'ra who C8Ul1e prob-
lema qUirkly find out they muse Ieee all
the Able-bodied men of KaldaN!'k .
The buildingl comprise the inn,
.mit by, two warehouses, l tables, etor-
ege barn. , a small ahop lIelling food and
tool., and some 15 smell cottagf'S and
larger dwell ings, mostly made of wood.
Just west of the vill age ata nds the
smolderi ng, burned-out . hell of a Iarm
gon. Beside it lie the blackened
161ssu&No. 15
bodies of two horaee and four young
men . Th ill tragedy happened two houri
before the PCa arrive (three houra if
they have made a detour, four if th ey
have mad e two detour. ). Careful eaami-
nation of the area reveala a blackened
patch of ground 20' in radius and clear-
Iy circular.
At the edge of th e village, half a doun
townspeopl e stand in a huddl e; ma ny
are dialraught and weeping. One man is
bei ng tended by hie frie nds. He was
struc k by debri. from the expl osion and
baa a deep, bleeding guh on his left leg.
A tun lisht woutlcLrspell will heal the
damage, and a Lawful PC cleri c ahould
m08l definitel y offer thia ai d. Unleu
otherwille noted, all villagers here are
treated .. Normal Men.
None of the vi llagf' rs actually saw
what caused the lire, but one of the
villagers - a young woman named
Farrah - aaw a man gall oping away
eaat on a black horae just after an exple-
aion was heard. He was some distance
away when she sa w him, and all she
could make out waa h.ia red cloak Ilut -
tering in the breese. Ot hf'rs can confirm
FlUTah's report of a loud bang, but no
one else sa w any deta il of the rider.
If the PCs i mmediately gallop ofT eeat ,
point out that their horses are sweati ng
and could do with a dri nk, easil y
obtained from th e pond i n t he center of
the vill age , Tbere iAno water eource to
the eeer until th ey get to Larred'e Farm
(area 7) or into the woods. If the PCa fail
to wate r thf'ir horses i n Kaldarek, their
mounts will be slowed. Count such
slowing &I a detour, even if a PC cleric
later cast.8 a r ~ waUr spel l for the
mounta. The hones will need twice
their normal wate r inta ke ener being
ri dden 10 far in such hot weather and
will drink alowly for t he entire hour t he
magical spri ng ia in es letence, 10 time is
atill loaL
The PCs might spli t up in Kaldarek,
ecme watering the horses and others
looki ng for more infor ma nts. If they as k
whether there is a village elder, may or,
or ot her authority, they are directed to
Rodallan, who 18 in his smit hy. Rodall an
haa instructed his aui8lant, a youth
named Clada w, that he dcesn't wan t to
be disturbed in his priv ate rooms
behind the smithy. The PCs must either
march in, bri be Clada w to show them
In, or impre81 the lad with a show of
authority to gai n entrance. Rodallan is
angry at bei ng disturbed, but if th e PC.
make it dear that t hey are trying to
t ra ck the Slayer (a name Rodallan haa
never heard), he becomes amf'nable and
repeats 8 l tory tol d to him by
Garal dat h, a young man who waa ri ding
into town from Larred'a Farrn when be
118W t he mystericua ri der.
The young man described the rider as
blac k ha ired and clad in plate mail ,
with a IWOrd in its ecabbard at hie side,
No wand was in view. Th e horae was
large, pure bla ck, and being ri dden at a
modest gall op since it waa eleerl y
swearing. Garaldath pla inly aaw the red
cloa k of the r ider. He didn't approach
him, si nce he was ri ding to the aouth of
the man in t he opposite direct ion, but
just after they passed he heard the man
ehcut out, "Curse! CUN!t'!" and looked
back to see him kick t he black hone
into a gallop. Garaldath watched him
ride away east, Th is met'ting took place
a mile or 80 outaide of Kaldarek .
Wolfr am'. cry was due to his br ieny
regaining control over his own mind
a nd screaming out what he believed
must have happened to him - that he
had been magically curs ed, The potJBe .
Ilion mompnlari ly relaJ:M its gTip on
Wolfram'lI mind, all owi ng him a few
eeccnda to undcnlland hi. plight and
react with hil anguished cry before it
reasserted its mali gn control once mor e.
orcourse , what th e PC. are told is
ambiguous, a. it is meant to be.
Ir the PC. converse with Rodallan
Iurther, he explai ns that he is reepcoei -
ble for law and order in Kaldarek and
mu st report what has happened to the
local baron (you may alte r this detail to
lIui t your campaign if you wish ), hence
his ea r lier inte rrogatio n o( Gar aldath.
Rodallan has not yet decided what to do
about th e situat ion. It il d ea r t hat the
a888.i lant must be powerful and i n pee-
sess ion of magic, and t he village haa
only a few men-at -arms. They tan hard .
Iy purs ue him. Rodallan has thought of
IlE' nding mc88t'ngere to local farrna to
give warni nif; Gar aldath himsel f was
ea ger to get home qu ickl y, for Lerred'e
Farm lie. to the east , and he If'ft withi n
an hour oft he atta ck.
Rodall an says that now that the PCs
art' challing t his dan gero us man, things
look bette r, don't they? No need to send
out poorl y equipped men.er-erms.
Rodallan will not accompany th e PC. ,
since he hall a village full of te rrified
people - not to ment ion four dead
bodies - to deal with . The PCs may
readily get infor mation about t he farms
lying eeet of Kaldarek, and the location
of t he woods. but no furt her inquiries
will bear frui t here,
Rodellem AC 5; F4; hp 21; MV
120'(40');IAT t at +2; Dmgby weapon
type; Save F4; 0 16, W 13; ML 9; AL L;
leather armor, long suord + 1 (in
smithy), long bow(in his home>.
5. Moynoran's Farm. Thia farm
differs from th e others. The surroundi ng
art's ill Blight l)" hilly, a nd the Iermhouee
li e. in a amall vale. with sheep grazi ng
the rich meadows. The Iarmbcuse ill
small - or rat her. was smell. Wolfram
has been here and ~ balWt he place.
Si nce t he far mhcuae WIUI made of wood
a nd some stone, m08t orit has burned
down. but a few flmoking Iramee remain
above the charred stonework . There are
no survi ve.... Three burned bodies lie
wit hin the house, a nd thre-e more bear-
ing s word wou nds are ece rtered outside.
One of these lies alm08t half a mile
away from the farmhouse; Wolfram rode
down a nd kill ed thill farmha nd as he
tried to eecepe. The PChould find t hie
body a. t hey t ravel to the farm. HOnK"1
ca nnot bewatered here aJl t he i ntense
heat ofl he fire ball melted the pump
used to raise water from a dee p well .
The PCs may get st uck a t this poi nt.
There are no wit nesses and no om' to
tell t hem where to head. They may
gallop st raight ofT ecut beeet to Larred'e
Farm (a rea 71, wasti ng a good bit of
ti me. Other t han magical inquiry, all
the party can do is r ide carefully around
t he farm look ing for a ny hint of a trail
(or use a epell auch as fly for t his pur-
pose). If t hey eeerch di ligent ly, ma ke
ma tte... easy for them. J Wlt east of t he
farmhouse and not very far from it , t hey
IM't' a trail of sil v('r coins which have
spil led out along a pa th head ing just
eeet of nort heast. obviously toward the
Daplet h Wood . Wolfram '. eeddle ba g
tore and Ipill ed out t hi s trail of 50 ep llA
he rode along. The trail extends for
abou t 500 yards.
After 20 minutes at t he farm, tell the
PCs t hat they ca n see a thin plu me of
white smoke ril ing in t he ecut h (from
area 6). Gi ve t hem every chance to look
for and find t he trail ofcoilUl Iiret . If
t hey do find this t rail , they should not
head ofT eout h - t hey have a perfectly
good t rail to follow, afte r all . (Suspicious
PCs may sus pect that the t rail is a
decoy, of cccree.j If they ha ven ' t thought
of looki ng for a t rail, this enforced
detour to t he lOuth will get them back
on t he right pa th even tually. If t he PCs
have found the trail but u k for detail.
of the smoke, you ca n say that it is
much leee t han that they have see n
from burning bu ildings, but do not
ment ion this detail unless t hey are
smart enough to allk.
6. The Dwarves , Visit ing this
encounter counts u a detour.
Smoke ri lleS from a group of three
wagons on the road heading lOut heut
from Kaldarek. Until the PCs approach
within 120' , the smoke obscures the
wagons, making it appear that it is the
vebtetee t hemselves t ha t are on fire.
Th e wagons contai n t he trade goods
(tool, ) of six dwarvps who ha ve had a n
acci dent along the way. A whe-el fell ofT
one wagon a nd the metal r im split . The
dwarves stoppOO a nd got out some tools
to repair the damage, buil ding a small
but smoky fire to assist their work .
The dwarves greet the PCs with com.
plaints about the heat, requ ests for
auistance, i nqui ries ae tc whether the
PCs want to buy some fiDtra te shovels,
a nd t he li ke. They will not beofTe nded
if the PC. get to important business (t he
Slayer l at once, especially ifofTered a
few gold pieces (add +2 to reaction rolls
if 10 gp or more is ollered for a ny he lp
or i nformat ion).
The dwa rves hav en't see n anyt hi ng of
the Slayer, but if the name i. mentioned
to t he grey-haired veteran named Slate
Hilleider, he i. sure he' s heard it before .
If t he PC. ha ven't paid any gold yet, he
pauses mea ni ngfully, 8fI if t ry ing to
recall the name. If th e PCs don't take
the hint, he may carefully mention the
wonderful effect t he sight of glinti ng
gold has on t he memory of a dwarf. At
last he points northeast toward the
Dapleth Woods. Slate 88ySt hat t he
"fair ies" ther e know of this perecn.
alt hough he recalls no det ails. Surely
t he man must be headl'd tht're? (" Fair
tee" is Slate's derogatory te rm for el ves:
he will clarify this if t he Pes aJik. If t he
advent uri ng party indudes a n t'l f. he
poi nts his thumb at t he elve n PC when
us ing this terml.
This infor mation al one is not a st rong
indication for galloping ofT to the woods,
but if t he PCs ha ve made a map of Wolf
ra m's progrell8lOfar. it's a pla usibl e
e nough po!lSibili ty th at he'a heeded t hat
way, for hi e trail leade generally north
eee t . If t he party is undeci ded, you may
decide to ha ve t he old dwarf remember
some t hi ng else (of course. more gold is
needed (or this). He rt"Calls t hat one of
IN PURSUIT Of THE SLAYER
the "fairi es" once tol d u fri end of his
that a human known as t he Slaye r
attended their council . at i nfreque nt
interval s. Slate's impressi on was that
his infor ma nt thought this man W iUI a
fri end of the el veA despite his einieter
name.
Ifthis still does n't gt' t the PCs rid ing
off to the wood. , you may ha ve to sug
gest that t he trail haa grown cold a nd
they must eit he r try Larred'e Farm or
go back to Moyn ara n's Far m a nd look
hard (or a trail (a return t rip there
counts lUI anot he r detour j.
Dwarv en me re henrs : AC 4; 01 ; 110
1; hp 6 each; MV 60 '120' ); IAT 1: Dmg
by wea pon type; Sa ve ni. ML 8: AL N:
dwarven cha in mail , small shiplds ,
hand axes .
7, La r rt"d ', Farm. Visit ing thieloce.
t ion counts as a detour, un less the PCs
spend leee t he n 20 minutes he re .
Th is is a large farm, with two Ierm-
houN's a nd sever al cottages a nd barM
clustered togethe r, surrounded by mead-
ows, fields, a nd livestock pens. Sheep
a nd a few goats marked with a ts-iangu-
lar blue brand graze happily. There has
bee n no damage here, but t here a re no
peopl e in si ght. All inhabitants ha ve
retreated into the main farmhouse, t he
wall s a nd rhetehed roof of which ha ve
bee n hast ily soa ked wit h water from a
nearby pond. The PCs won't not ice this,
however, u nt il they get withi n fifty
yard .
The occupa nts a re Larred, hi s IOn
Ga raldath and wife Birrana, and t hei r
16 male a nd ft'male farmha nds la ll 19
ere treated all Normal Mt' n). The melee
all ha ve cfOll8bows whi ch they hold
behind windows; their cover makes
t hem effecti vely AC 2 if a ny missile
combat ensues. Ga ra lda t h hall brought
news ofthe Slayer', doingll fr om
Kaldarek , and the farm folk have
ret reated i nto t he main Iarmhouse for
safety. The 10 ma le defen ders stay put
with C1'08tIbow bolts necked, a nd the PCs
will need to peDuade them that they
are fr iendly a nd wish to help. Shouted
negotiat ions will be neceRllB.ry!
If t he PC. did n't hear Garaldath's
story in Kaldarek, he ca n give them t he
details here Ieee area 41. AIIO. one of t he
farmhands, while track ing a lost goat,
aaw the red -cloaked rider gallopi ng
along some miles away, quite dearly
heading toward t he Dapleth woods.
However, Larred st ill ordered his people
inside the prot ection of the farmhouse,
DUNGEON 17
IN PURSUIT OFTHE SLAYER
8. 'The Dapleth Wood s, As t hey hea d
for the woods, t he PCs should know only
that Wolfram was heeded this way, and
that there are elves in the woods . The
advent urers may feel it is hopeleu to
just i n ~ t he red..(:loak ed. ridE'f dou-
bled back. The folk he re can \(>11 t he
Pes t hat there are el ves in the woods. if
the Pes don't already know t his.
UJ,lltly, th(' PC!!f1houltt watl:'r thf>ir
horses here. Me nti on t ha t thei r mounts
are getti ng t ired and, when give n t he
cha nce, dri nk large quant it ies or well' r,
taking 10 minutes to do 1lO.
, ~
...
,

try to pick up the Slayer's t rail. lf eo.
you might 8ugg(,111 that surely an elf or
two may have seen something.
As the PC. enter the woods it is eve-
ni ng - not yet dMk. but the l un il not
far from t he horizon. The re ie certainly
t ime to make some headway into the
wood. to look for II friendly elf or t wo.
Make it plain that th e PC. cannol eon-
tinue on through the night: t he horses
need rest badly, and the PCI themseh't's
wi ll betired after a long dS)"1I busy
pursuit in t he fati guing summer heat . If
the PCs pt'r sist in t ry inll: to march on
t hrough t he night, t he next encounter
should drain their magical rE' SOurcE'S
enough to make t hem think better or
this, and the elvers offer cf' hcepiteliry
they will get should beirreelsu ble .
The woods are light but eeem ebeer-
lE'ss : no birdsong liltel"ll down througb
t he t rees. The horses heed into the
woods wit h IIOme ne rvcuanese , and
el ve n PCs feel t ha t IIOme force of evil
has affected the woods, but ca nnot eay
what. If t he PCI inte nd to camp outside
the woods. agai n note that their horses
need to find wa ter soon. Usinll: a 6pt'aJt
with onimal spell to converse with some
small denizen of thE' woods re YE' alll that
there ill a very rE'fresh ing spring inside
t he woods, and directi ons can begiven.
The Pes Ilnd t hi s llprinll' l not ma rked
on the mapj just before it gr ows da rk ,
a nd they will have to make ca mp for the
night . They are now in much thicker
woodland, almost forellt. Allow the PCs
time to tether their hoMit'8 before t he
following e ncounte r, whi ch OCCUl"lljulit
IlS t he part y is preparing to retire. It is
a dangerous one, so dcn't epeing it on
them while t hey a re taking thei r a r mor
ofT, etc. They must be fairly close to fuJI
IItft' ngt h to deal with this attack.
The sound of IlOmet hing huge cornell
crallhinR through the da rken ing forest.
Allow t he PCs one round to make prepa -
rationl' Ispell-eeat mg. l(rabbing weapons
a nd shields , etc.) btofore they a re
at tacked from all sides by two animated
trees and four animated bushes.
On t he round a!\l'r t hi s vegetari an
attack!!, a bizarre creature comes ereeb-
inK into the fray. It appeara to bea n 18' ,
tall t ree m with bl ack bark and armed
with a giant club. This creat ure, a
ga kar ak, i8 a host ile, t reantlike bf.'ing
which figh tll all int ruders .
A successful hit from the gnkarak'lIdub
entangles the PCin writhing vegetation
(l'IO that the PC is helpleeerfor lIix t urns
unless a sulXelltlful Saving Throw VI .
Spc>lIs is made. The gaka rak can else flee
four wood darta from its hands each
round Irn rtgl'S 501100(150) r a ther than
Uliing itll d ub. Il may Ilre dzu-ta at several
spell<asters if more than one PC is trying
to eeet a spel l at it in the same round.
The Raka rak u!\{'s ue teleport ability
only to escape the battle if reduced to 8
hp or less. If the Ka ka rak escapes in this
way, the bushel a nd t rees it is animat-
ing i mmediately cease thei r attacks.
Ani mated rreee (2): AC 2; HD 8; hp
38 each; MV 60'(20' ); ' AT2 branches;
Omg 2.2412.24; Save F4: ML 12; AL N:
CC/66.
181" U8 No. IS
Animatf'd bUllhf' 1I (41: AC 5; HD 4; hp
18 each; 60"20' ); ' AT 1 bra nch:
Dm.c 18; Save F2: ML 12: AL N; CCI66.
Ga ka ra k: AC 0; 11 0 16: hp 68;
180 'l60' l; ' AT 1dub or 4 da rts: Omg
424 or t.e ( )( 41: Save FIB; ML 10: AL
N: CCI66.
The ga karak htu se ve ral s pecial
deferuell. It cannot be harmed by wood.
ton weapons . il immune to elect rical
attacka. and blunt weapons do only 1 hp
damage pe r hit lpl Wl and mag-
ieal bonullel. if arty}, The creature
regenera tes 3 hp p. r round while in
contact with " ('I{etation (which here it
obvioully iat
None of these monste rs has any trea-
sure uhere will be enough for the PCa
at the end of t heir quest. if t hey reach
and surv ive uu
Thill fight rna)' hot- a tough one for th e
Pes, E'lIpec:ial ly if more than one of t he rn
is entangled by the dub oUllch ofthe
gaka ra k. Iflht' party see ms to be in
!W.' rioua danger of bt>ingkillf'd otT, Kilor.
ian the elf rsee below! enters t he fight at
once, ulling hi. mOltic mi ssile attack. to
help the PC. avoid d,'oth . Iftht PCs are
winning the fight. Ki lori e n e nters it one
round before the PCa gai n thf'ir fina l
t ri umph - give th om every ebe nce of
glory, but bail t he m out if nl'Cel'88.ry!
All th e light com...11 to a cencl usicn.
three mOltic mi...il" Ilere through the
ai r to atri kt' t he ga ka ra k. Kilor ian t he
t'lf comt'll the part y'a side, with 24 eh'E'n
archt' T1I two rounds behind.
KJlonan: AC - I; E6; hp 30; MV
120'140' ); 'AT 1 at + 1(melt'('lor +3
Imi8llHellr, Omg by wea pon t yJM." ; Saw.'
F..6; ML 10; AL N; S 13, I 16. W 13, 0
18, C 1-4, Ch 13; c/UJ in mai l +3, t1u'Qrd
+ l : 1I pt'111I mt'moriw : mON'CfflUlIilf'
( )l 21, rMd magic, ESP' ifll.,uibility, fly,
hlUl f', In addi tion to hi ll magical chain
mail and award, Kilori an ha ll 8. wond of
fflrJRicmu.ilf'. with 10 cha rgell.
although he is rf'luctant to UM' any
more of t hf.'1le ,
Elvt' n llN:ht' r ll (24): AC 3; f:l; hp 4
E' ach; 120'(40' ); ' AT 1(at + 1 for
miMilt'8); Omg by weapon t)"J)t; Save
El ; ML 9; AL N; S 15, 0 15; chai n ma il ,
shield. IIhort IIwords, long boWII. Half of
thlOlK' ('Ivea know t he mCJl{ic mi...il..
IIpt>ll. 10 know the llpell.t....p. and t wo
have mt'mori U'd rnul ffl4RU'spelia.
Rocaull(' of Kilori an 's ht'l p. t ht' PCs
Il hould bII' well dillposed towRrd the elf
and hill frilOnds. who are t'qually plelt!lt'd
that the PCII hRve killed t ht' ('vii
gakara k that infl!'sted part of
woeds. When t he PC. as k about t he
Slayer, t here will be much to tal k a bout!
Kilorian is alltonillhed at the' PCa' tal l'
of Wolfra m's murderous travel s and
offt' rt1 them t he hOflpita lit y of his group's
tree houllt'lI , with rt"lJt and refrellhml'nt.
The e n d t he Sls)'(' r
t hat t he PCa accept t his
generous offer. they ca n dr ink and eat
well under t he IItarl ight in Kil orian's
luxuri ous tree house, which ca n be
reached in hal f an hour. Here, Kilorian
tells tbem what he knows of t he Sl aye r;
having aurr-ept it ioullly used his ESP
spell to check on t he truth of what t hey
hav e told him .
KHoti an tellAt he part y t hat " t he
Slayer" is the profeeeicnal name used
by Wolfram. a br ave and good lit.::htC'r,
He is known as8uch bece uee he is an
implacah lt" and utl Nly dedicated enemy
of evil . Ill' neve r takes any evil pns-
onere - hence. " t he Slayer" The elves
know of hi m because he hel ped them
fight olTa group of maraudi ng eree rtve
yean aKo. Wolfram lIi ngle handf'dly
IIIE' w a hill gian t and. pausing (or but
one 1Ipt'1i to be cut from hi s magical
sword. he then took on a monstrous troll
and di apetehed that all well . The elves
have good reason to be grateful to him,
alt hough t hey know little of hi. history,
Wolfr am is a secret ive man. a natural
loner. but hI!' dot'll come back once a year
to villit thOMe he fought bt-Ilide. and
while he hardly drinks and makes mt'r ,
f)', ht' to relax a littll' wit h t he
eh' en folk . lfthe PCs think to ask.
Kiloria n tell s t hl' m Wolfram was last
here about a y(' ar Ilgo.
AnN df'tailinKthe report.8t ht"y' ve
had of t he a ppeara nce of the Sl ayer to
Kilori an, t he PCalind him \.t"ry .....or
r ied IndN.'d. Wolfram ha l!l black hair. a
beard, alwaYI Wt"Dn a r__od d oak . and
haa an eye patch. Kilorian t.. U. the PCII
th at Wolfram ca n Moe pt'rft"Ct ly .....ell
throuR"hthe COVf'red e)e. which iSllOme-
how enchantf'd al thouKh he knows no
dlOtailA, Kilor ian ca n al80 ellplain about
th t' Slsyt" r'a heat regulating magi ca l
armor if the PC. th ink to u k about
th ill.
But KHoti an ill mOllt conct'rnf'd about
t he Slayt"r'1l r('port ed U!lt' of a u'and of
ti ff bolu, Ift hl' PC. ha\'f'n' t ligurt-d out
)'et that th ia is what Wolfram hu bet-n
us ing. Kilorian r..aliU'8 immf'diately
the ident ity of t hl"slender stic k. The t" lf
seiz.ea on t his fact and 88)'S that Wolf
IN PURSUIT OFTHE SLAYER
ram. as a fightt' r. cannot U/lt.' such an
item, 80clea r ly th i. fell ow riding
around must bean irnpcete r. The PCs
might put it to Kilorian that anyone in
armor using such a wand must be a n
elf, but Kilor ian points out {rat hf'r
piqued ! that el ves do not have beards.
and thltt Wolfram is the only perecn he
ever knew who plaWma il
t hat allowed the Il.f'arer to tolerate
summer hea t .
Kilorian inllillts th e ma n must be
eomec ne else, poss ibl e even ecmecne
who hall IIlai n Wolfra m and IItol!!n hi ll
po8lWuions . KHor ian st re_s the need
to tah t he marauder al ive. to see if he
is Wolfram. If he is not . t he man can
then be mt errogeted to It'llrn of Wolf
ram's fate. Try to impreM t ht" PCs ..... it h
t he st re ngth of KHorian 's bt-Iief; rhe
i mpee ter motif is one which will be
exploited short ly, e nd the PCs must gt't
t he idee t ha t Wolfram is a man t he
elves truer and can believe no evil of,
Kilorian tells the PC. to gl!' t some
slee p (accommodations are read ily
ava ilable) while he triell to li nd out if
llny of the wood elves hcve lII"'t' n this
impce t er. Wait ing but one ni ght to see if
any of the wood el ves have more Infer-
mation tea pt'rfl.'C't ly sensi ble optio n.
and travel at niwht ill very slew and
dangt' rous an)'way. The Pes may well
need hf'aling an er their light . but Kilor
ian MyS regretfully t hat he can do noth-
ing (or t hl' m lin fact , ont"of the eh'etl
kt"t' p8 II Il upply of a dozen poti otUI of
h.-ali nN, but th is is t he only magica l
ht' aling the elvt"s ha'i e and. bei ng S f'u,
tral . t ht"y 1l.111 not it away or e\'pn
IIt" Il ill.
I( you wish. Kilorian might e'ien
accompany t he PCII to lind the' Sla)t'r.
but only ift he PCa have bwon wt'akt.'nt'd
by the light with the (i.e. anN
heali nj( t hey an.' sti ll man y hit poinlll
bel ow ma" imum. or a PC has ht-en
killedl, If you do not wil'h t hf' elf to go
wit h t ht' PCa. Kilorian t'l plains that he
canllot 1t'8vl!' hill fellows si nce tht're
have bet'n many t' vil creaturell in t ht'
wooda of late - ora and even a giant or
t wo - and hf' is thl!' only eol f of hi a-h,
enough level to dl' al with auch thrt'IlU,
E'i en if he dot'lI llccompany t hl.' PCII . ht"
will not take hill wand with hi m, IlOllv,
i nK t his with another el f for de ft" nM' of
the ll'Toup.
In the morning. Kilori an ellCitt-dly
report a that a nod -cloaktod r id",r was
!il"t'n clOOle to tht.' e4lltem ed.:t.' of thf'
woods latt' las t night by a wandt.'ring eo lf
DUNGEON 19
INPURSUIT OFTHE SLAYER
of the group. Th is t'lf did not know Wolf
ram end hence made no a pproach.
Kilor ia n t hat t he man must
han med e (or the Plainll of II
wretched dust bowl and a n evil place.
The imposter must have bueineee t here!
Laman l, t he elf who mad .. the aiKhting,
u n KUi de thl' PC. to the spot where he
saw t he eider. Kiloria n and t he elves
know hu h.' or t he PI"iRs. only that t hey
are dellOl.t.. and barren. and t hl'y
believe t he a rt's to hto cur.rd in IIOme
" ay. The ..1.,. ('8 are "'tory lIoupt'uti tioulI
about the PlaiM and will not willi ngly
enter t here. Ila\' t' UndE'f Kil on an'lI
orden.
Aftlor a quick meal . mort' waiN for t hl'
hol"lK"S. and timE' for more ht'BlinK lind
memori zinlC Ilpells , th e PCa !lhou ld he ad
ofT at once . l.amarill ill a lig ht . will owy
elf and can easily ride behind one of t ht'
PC.tthe IlUme applies to Kilori an ifhl'
is with t h.. partyI. H.. allks to di llmount
dOM' by the t'astNn t"dge of t he woods
wht'r e he IlaWtht' mIlOIm' llr a n'a 91and
says the man Willi ht'adinK elUl t from
here. It is about a quart..r mile to t he
edge of th t' woods a nd t ht Pla inll of
Det!pai r. La ma ri s wish es th e PCs well
a nd Ilt'ta ofT back int o t ht' Woodll .
20Issue No. 1S
The PC may heHd t hrough the rapidly
thinning t1("('Sto th e edge of the Pla inll
of Despair, a deat hly silent area of
cracked a nd dry ground coated with
dust . Th is old batt le lite ill deeolate a nd
dt"fl poi led . No plant lift' groWl here seve
for a t hi n borde r o( scraKKI)', stunted
bushes and hardy KTallS close to th e
edge of t he fores t .
Allow the PCs a little t ime to look for
a ny sign oft ht.' Slayer before thl'y find
unmistakable hoofp rinta headed east .
As t hey a n" about to remou nt and foltow
th e tracks, who should happen al ong on
bis black horse. about 200 )'ardll to the
nort h as he skiru t he .-'<i Ke ofthe woods,
but a dark-h aired r-ider wearinKa red
cloa k!
9, The End II S iKh. The PCs shoul d
real iee at onee t ha t tht' r ider a pproa ch-
inK mig ht not be t he Slayer. Th.. mur -
der er'e tra il heeds east . but t hi s r jder- ill
tra yeli nKsout h, and he ambl es along
with no f1itrn of a ttack. HI.' al so has no
a rmor, wa nd. sword. or eye pa tch,
Alt hough this ill not obvi ous at fif1lt, it
is eh'ar w!lell he tl:l'18 wit hin 100 yunlll
of t h(' PCIiI .
If th e edventueere attack the ridf'r. he
turns around and Kullopll OfT Wl'lIt for HII
he ill wort h. di llappt'arinj( into the woods
before the PCs can get to him. Il l' ill out
of bow range, 110 only a long- -dist a nel'
spel l attack (such a!l a baW can be
used Ilgainllt him when he is fil'1lt seen.
In t his event , t he rider a85uml' " tnot
unreMOnsblyl that he i!l being euacked
by homicidal maniaa And figh u to t he
dee th. If th e PCIiI kill hi m and thi nk
t hey have deelt with t he Sla)N, t hey
will hav e many mere problems facing
thl' m in thl' nt>ar fut urt> ( Ill'l' art'a 10 and
" Concl uding t he Ad\,t' nt urt>" l. If tht>
pa rty cha1ol'1iI t hE' rider i nto th t" ..... oods
a fter a finot aUllck which l..a'(>11 hi ll
hortlt' ali ve, t hey event ua lly ca tch up
wit h him. t hill counts Il!l
a not her dl' tour.
Ift ht' PCI chOO!lt' not to attack him,
Slt"inmeyt' r t h(' c1C'ric ridl-' I up Ilnd
Kft't'ts t hem. li t' dO(> ha v.. blac k hair
and a red cloa k, bu t /all a lready notrol
no eye patch. armor, sword, or wHnd! li t'
il a n iti mra nt cJl-' ric who t hl' PC8
with tht' amBZinK lint' , III he ((BZe! out
over t he Pla im , " Wondt' n ul day to
thin k o( a ll the d('athll ht' re, illO't it?"
Stei nmt'yt'r is a n unullual mAn. to !lily
the leallt.
Stl' in mt' )t' r: AC - 3: CIO: hp 48; MV
120'/40' ), 240'(80' 1on hor flt'back; ' AT 1;
DmKby ..... eepcn type; Save CIO; S 12.
I 12, W 18. D 16, C 13, Ch 13; ML 10;
AL N: bracer, AC 2. rillll of
proeecuon +3. ma +3. Steinmeyer
ha ll 1,200 gp wort h or t reasure lto:emll
a nd je ....elryl. but no experienre.poim
a ward ill Kiven for killi ng him eie ce he
il not host ile. S o experie nce points
should be given for obtaining hi s t ree -
eure, either. Hill magical beecers art'
enchanted bracelets of copper whic h
confer a basic AC equa l to tha t of plate
mail fAC 2).
Ste inmeyer hu.8 the (oll owi nto: llpe llll
memoeteed : curt light wounds / lC oi l,
blt'n , rl'llillt /i r.. l lC 2\, spl'Ok U' ith ani
mal. rt'mot't' po'a. u,jth tht' ,It'rnl.
. tr;Jr illll, create watrr, curt' s rrlOUS
u,<JulIds. curt c,.,t u:ol U'QUlIl/,llt his !lpell
curell3 18 +3 hp damAj(el.
Steinmeyer is 33 yt'an old, of medium
build with short black ha ir and brown
eyes. lI il fa it h ill simple: Life ill a vall' of
tears, t ht' world i8 a n unhappy and
te rri bit' place Iilted wit h . in and miflt'l),
and dtpth ilil a merciful release from tht"
toils a nd tra" a ils of extet ence. However,
every Cft'llture'lI VlllUling from t he wcrtd
has it. a ppointed ti me and place. 110
taki nA" a shortcut b)' t'nd ing (Int"s own
miserable e xillte nce is not a pproved of.
Places where many ha n died l li ke the
.'Iaina o( Dt.>!lpair l attract Steinmeyer,
for he t ruly bl'!ievell that many aoulll
were released fro m tht' mi!ll'rl'lble bond-
aKe of worldly life there.
War hun e; AC i : 110 3; hp 20 : MV
120'140' " 'AT 2 hooves: Dmg 16116;
Seve F'2; 9; AL S ; ERi51.Ifthl PCl!
kill SleinmeYt'r'1 hor se, t ht'y have nmde
a 8t;>riOUll enemy.
Ru n thi s e ncou nte r for fun . Stei nml'y'
t' r would a pprt'C' ia tt.' a cha ne.. t o impre8!l
hi s bel it'fs on the PCs, but ht' a lso hall a
IIt' ri outl pUrpotll' i n t hill ad\enture.
Whilt- ht, know8 not hinKof t ht' Slayt'r
lbut hkl'tl the namt'! ' a nd won 't acco m
pany the PCs, hE' will llt.'l1 t ht' m hE' ahng
1Ipt' 1I8if t ht.'y Ol'tod th.-m. Tht> l 'Cs
IIhould be at full strt'nK\h for thl-' forth
comi n)( comba t : be ing t> vt' n a ft'w hi t
poin ts down could bot dangl' rou8 (or
thpm. Ste inml'yer chatll'e850 ICP (or a
IIRht 1I pt"II, 100 ICP (or a
cur t> If ..r; OUS 14'014'1,111 II pt-1I and 150 ICP for
a e Uff Cr d lNJI u'QulId. spell.
If the PCs talk to Stt"lhmt.'ytr about
Wolfr a m, th e c1t'ric IIppearll int r iltutod by
the fact t hat II lill'htt'r is UllinII' a u'and of
fire ba/III and offl' l'1I onl' pol'1Ilblt' t'x p!a ,
nation. He lIUKj(I-'IIts that the item mUlll
be cur1ll'd IPC8 may tloca l! Wo!fr llm'lICl)
here) or infested by ecme mal evolent
un dead spirit which i. using the item
and controlling Wolfr am. Steinmeyer
offen no detailed theor ies. sayi ng that
he strongly prefen to avoi d undead
hinuelr .nd doet.n't know too much
about them.
Steinmeyer 81110 know. ecme thinp
about the Pl aiM of Despair that he can
tell the PC. if asked. Many yean ago.
this wu the sue of. ift!at battle
between a n evil cleric a nd hi. minicna
on one aide. and human warriora led by
a powerful lind good magic-wer on the
other. The bat tle WAll fleree and unyi eld -
ing, and thousands were alain. The
cnce-Ierti le pl ain i. now bl eeted and
barren, believed by many to becurs ed.
Steinmeyer hall heard from sever al
&Duree. that gnat berrew mound lies
on the Pl s ina, allt>gf'dly infested with
some awful undead presence. Adventur-
en hav e tried before to 1001 it, but none
ha ve come back. " Dead. a n of t he m,"
the cleric: conti nues laconically. " You
hpading that way? Ah. well . For you. at
leeet, the end ia nigh," he i nto nes, rub-
bing hi . ha nda with a n expreuion of
pleasure. He eI plaiM that he i. pleased
for the PCa, as they will econ bel iber-
ated from the oppressive wei ght of their
exteteneee. With this bleak prcel eme -
t ion, he rid es off lKlUth to spread hia
depreaaing creed to a ny who will list en.
The PC. now ha ve a fai r idea of where
to go. A. they follow the trail e...t cntc
the Pl aina. their honM'1l become skittish
a nd restleee. Af\.er a mile. they cannot
beur ged on any farther. The PC. are
forced lo cont inue on foot . Half a mil e
later t hey find a dead blac k hcree with
t wo aaddlebags contai ning 700 gp, 2,200
sp, a nd mundane supplif'f (ropf'f. a ham-
mer and tool a blanke t. waterekin
a nd the lib). The bceee hu no wounds.
but a lat her of Iweat sti ll COlIta ita body.
If a PC ubfor more i nformation about
the horae. teU him that it look. as if the
poor creat ure W8!l ridden until it
dropped from exhau.nion. If Kil orian i.
wit h t he PC., he inli llUthat Wolfram
would ne ver treat an ani mal in thia
way. Somet hi ng must be affectin g hi s
mind or the man is an impeeter,
From t he site of the dpad hoeee, the
PCa ca n make out a large barrow
mound (ere e 101in the di stance. some
two mil es from where they now sta nd.
Ahm'e them the . ky is darkening with a
sudden storm, a nd a tr emendous crack
of thunder aplita the silence, i mpossibly
loud i n their ears. A. the PCs get with-
in half a mil e of the barrow, a downpour
of rai n a nd guns of wind hit t hem. The
driving rain a nd preternetural darknNl
reduce visibility to SO',
The darknell8 a nd the unnatural
storm are magica l effecta triggered by
t he proltimity of the undead poueuion
to magical ban" buriNi deep below t he
mou nd. What happena when the PCa
get c:IOlM! to the mound will depend on
their timing and how many detours
they have made.
10. The Ba rrow Mound. A long,
gfa.tllKOvered bi ll rUea 20' above the
plain. It is the tall....t object fur miles
a nd the only po8lIi blp place that the
Slayer could beheading for. The long,
roughly ova l mound is about 100' long
and 65' wide. The only entrance ia a 5'
diameter tunnel in the mound'. east
face. l nalde, the ceili ng hei ght in the
burial tombs is 89',
The Co mb at
Thie eecticn 100'" very detailed . but you
have only lo organiu the comba t as
shown in one of the four following para
gra phs. depending on how qu ickly the
PC. have foll owed Wolfram'.uail.
No detour. If the PCs have made no
detours (clever and fort unate!l, Wolfr am
and the aaerol (detailed laler) are out-
side the barrow mound and a ttack the
PCa. The grey ph ileeopher within the
barrow haa not yet bee n disturbed, a nd
he and hi. malicetl (eee detail. below!
u n be fought IIt"parately when the PC.
eate r the barrow afttor dealing wit h
Wolfr am and the eecrc l. Wolfram will
use only two of the t hrt"e remai ning
m ari" i n hiBwand a nd will not use it
if a PC d08t'B to mel ee. The poueuion
bide. its t ime, a nima ti ng Wolfram'.
sword and attacking the PC. after Wol(
ram haa been overeeme.
OM drlour. lf the Pes have made only
one detour, the sacrol stands outside the
barTow and altacu there. Wolfram ill
inside the barTow with the grey phtlceo-
pher and the malioea. The warrior ill
Rbout to take hold of the St4/(of Skrivm -
ing (detaila at barTow encounlM' are.a A)
to col'l,jtln andanimate undead creatures..
\\oOlfram fights with hill sword while the
mal icetlattack; the fires off one
charge from the u'Ond of/in balUat the
PCa Rfl they enter the berrow (if the Pea
lose initiative). Uwnanimatetl Wolfram's
IIWOr'd and atlac1ta after Wolfram has been
overcome.
IN PURSUIT Of THESLAYER
THE
BARROW
MOUND
18quare 10'
Th'O ddoura. If t he PC. ha ve made
two detours, things art' worse. Ringing
the barrow are 20 skeletcns which must
be (ought along with t he sacral. IMide
the barrow, the grey philoeopher ia fully
awalte and able to send four of t he mel-
ices cuteide to a ttack the PC. (t hese
eannot tra ve! mor e than 100' from the
grey philoeophed . Ins ide the barrow,
Wolfr a m hu abandoned t he "''GAd of {If
ball. and wields the
aa well as hi s sword fusing bot h weap-
ons in melee). Th.. poaseMion inhabits
the wand a nd attac:1u the PC . If \\'01(
ra m is overcome, it a ni matea the S tD. ff
to attack the PC .
Threeor detour. If the PCs ha ve
made three or more detours, t he combat
il the aame u for two detours exeept
that the number of . ltch.lon. outsid...
the barro w i. doubled. Twenty of t he&e
are prese nt at fi11lt. a nd aa the PC. eloee
to melee, another ri ng of 20 ri ses from
t he ground to a ttack.
Ofoall ng wit h Wol fr a m
The PC hould by now ha ve lYaliud
t hat Wolfr am must be insane, curud.
magically controlled. or hav e suffered
DUNGEON 21
INPURSUI TOF THESLAYER
a n alignme nt cheege. ThU8, t hey may
wonder how to overcome t he fighter
rather than kill him. If the PCs express
t his intention, there are sever al posai-
biliti t>8. Be hel pful if the playera ask
you about the fea sibil it y of any course
of action.
One cbvioue possjblfuy is the use of
magi c, most obvioualy the hold /Wrson
spel l or 8 spell lIuch 8 8 u',b. Wolfra m
ca n bea(fectro norma lly by th f'lK' . bu t
his savi ng throw isn't bad and t his
st rate gy may fail . Unarmed combat, if
you have the D&D Companion Set with
the full ru les , ill another poss ibility for
t he PCs, who may try to grapple a nd
overwhelm Wolfra m. He, of course, will
a ttack wi th a wea pon in reply to Much
attempts to overcome him.
You abculd alllO allow PCa the opt ion
of subdui ng Wolfra m with blunt weep-
ens or the natB of th('j r swords. Roll all
hi t rolls and damage nor mally; whe n
Wolfra m's hit points fall to zero or
below, he faUll unconscious . (AlIlluch
damage must be done in t hill way; the
PCa can't decide halfway t hrough to kill
him. If t he)' do. discount all prev ious
da mage from " Oa t bladl!''' blows and run
a nor mal fight to the deat h!1Likt'wi !l4:' .
22 Issue No. 15
the part)' ca nnot decide to st art eubd u.
ing him in the middle of 8 combat .
A di'fWi magic will not affect t he
that controls Wolfr am. but a
di .pt'i t'liI tlpt1\la(l:aintlt whi ch it makes
a Sa ving Throw V8 . Spt'lI sl forre Mit to
lellve t he ite m which it current ly eceu-
pice . t hus freeing Wolfrum, althoul!:h
the horrid t hi nl!: wi ll infl.'llt so me other
object after five rounds and attack all
best it can . If t he poseeeeion faila its
Savinjol Throw ve. Spells, it ill destroyed .
UWolfram iAincapacitated lin which
case the dropti ita control and
ammetee an objl'Ct to attack)or the con.
trol over him is otherwise broken , he fells
into a lllaW of ca tatonic Rhock and illout
of the action for the rest of the combat.
Tbe Undead Crt'at Uft>ll
S kt>l t>t onM: AC 7; UD 1: hp 5 each:
60'(20' ): 'AT I: Dmg by weapon
t ype ; Save FI; 12: AL C; swords:
80137. These animated skelet ons ca n be
Turned normally but art" immune to
sleep a nd charm spel ls .
Sacrol: AC 5, HD 8; hp 47:
180 '(60' ): ' AT2 (1 touchlt chokel; Dmg
level drainl2 8; Save F8; 12: AL C;
CC/87. The seerol ill an undead creature
formed of t he a ngry IIpir it Mof t hollf' who
di ed here. It appears all a large noat in)l;
human skul l surrounde-d by a ma ny.
hued mist which billows out over II(' V-
eral ya rds . Two tentacul ar extensions of
the mi st body drain one level of experi -
ence eneh per hi t , then choke the victim
(or 28 hp damagt> in every lIuttet>dinR
round. Tht'!lt. extensions al ways st ri kl.'
two different opponents . A eacrol rna)'
be Turned as i ( it were 8 spec t re, but so
close to t hi" ha r-rowa suttt'AAful Tur n-
inK attempt only makes the secrol heai -
tate (or 1-1 rounds before attack ing
again. The sacrol .....i11 pursue the PCII
anywhere on t he Plai ns wit hin one mile
o( the barrow mound.
Grt"Y ph lloeophe r- AC 4; HD 9; hp
40; nil; 'AT nil ; Drng nil : Save C9:
ML 12; AL C; CC/85 . The gr ey philoeo-
pher dwells within an'a A o( the barrow
mound but muy projl'Ct its ma liceslOi t-
tint(, almost -invisible which are
t he projections of ite evi l and brooding
thou/o:htlll up to 100' ewey, The philoso-
pher, the undead fl.lic of a Chaoti c ele s-i c
who died in the a ncie nt ba ttle here. ill a
({Til)', insubsta ntial figure t hat 8it3 atop
a sto ne t hrone in the barro.... . It dOl'II not
attack. nor dOl'II it deft'nd itse lf. Whe n it
iR destroyed, itA previoullly cowled and
invi llible (ace peers out with an exprea-
aion of evil enlightenment, a nd the
figu re dt aappears with Il bloodcurdling
scream. The grey philosopher cannot he
Turned. but ita mali ces can be Turned
8 8 epecrrea i n successful Turning
attempt affl.'Cts 212 of t hemI. These
hatefullutle e ntities look like small
wisps of smoh wit h vagul.' ly hu man
(acell and II pindl)' clawed hands.
l ; UD l ; hp S l;' tlch;
:.IV 150'(SO' 1; 'AT I touch; Dmg 16, }8,
or 1 10 1!K't' bel ow); Save C6: MI. 12; AI.
C: CC/85. Th e touch of a malice ca ullt'll
16 hp damage to Chaotic creat ures. 18
hp da mage to Xeutrals. and 1)0 hp
da mage to La wIuls.
POIUlt' HHion: AC variable; UD 7; hp
30; M\' 30U O'I; ' AT epeci el: Dmg varia.
ble : 58.\'1.' C9: ML 12; AL C; Ego 21: cc
87. ThE.' possess ion ill not a visibl e
crea t ure lalt hou(l:h a det ec t ("tit spell
will reveal Ite pre sence all a gl owing,
e morphoua sha pe, and a df'tf'rt iflt'i Jliblf'
spel l rna)' etso re\'1' 81it. It ill a spir it
which inhabi ts objects and which ca n
a tt ack only through t hem. Th Ull, it ca n
fi re the wand boll. which Wolf
ram carrit'8 and can animate objects,
cDulling them to Ily through t he air in
order to attack .II, a 711 0 monster.
A possession can beattacked and
damaged. ita a rmor c1alU!l dependi ng on
the objl'Ct it occupies. In t his combat, it
is AC 2 within either Wolfr am's sword
or the S taff ofShrit'f.'n.inR (deta iled la t.
er). The possession ca n be 'Turned (as a
vampi re. causing it to bedriven from
t he weapon it occupies in the form of a
gray, shadowy cloud eheped like t he
object it has just left . The cleric must
specifically di rect his Turning a ttempt
Ht the ebject occupied or at t he cloud
for m. In cloud for m th e po!l8t.'ssion can-
not Attack . but nei ther can it beet -
tacked (save by dispel evil speller, and it
must fi nd a new object to occupy. You
rna)' wish to beve it nee to one of the
PC's weapons a nd snatch it from the
advent urer's hand to a t tack (but only do
this if the combat ia going fair ly well for
the PCal. Finally, if 8 M'COnd attempt to
Thm the poeeeeaion Ie eucceesful while
it is in cloud form, it is at once
destroyed.
All in all, this is a complex a nd very
tough combat indeed . You should t ry a
s imulation of it before usi ng it in game
pl ay. The undead creatures will fiKht to
the end, alt hough only t he IlaCTUI will
pursue t he PCs if they flee .
Ha rrow Enco unter Art"a s
A, Main Cha mber. The grey philoso-
pher (see "The Undead Crea tures'Tsits
on its cold throne here if it has flot yet
been dis t urbed . The re is one object. in
this chamber that is important . This is
t he magical StaffofS hriewnill R. whic h
ma y beused by Wolfram in melee or be
a ni ma ted by t he po8llt'8lIion a nd Oy to
the attack. Th is is a highly evil Itoff +2
which st rik('8 vict ims for 212 + 2 hp
damllge (2 12 +4 hp da mage agai nst a
Lawful opponent]. On a ny hit , t he vic-
t im mu st Save V8. Spell s or be affected
by one of the following efTectJI (roll td6):
paralysis for one turn (13), mummy rot
(45), ent"rgy drain (6). If a natural 20 ia
rolled, the vict im ill drained of two e xpe-
rtence level s (as if hi t by a spectre).
The staff alec haa powers of summon-
ing a nd cont rolli ng un dea d, but these
a re detf'fmint>d i n part by how, where.
a nd b)' whom it is uSt'd. The PCs will
not beable to Ulle it (to do 80 is a highl y
evil act). If the staff is controlled by t he
po8llt's"ion, it ta k('8 the poeeseion's
number of hit points to dt"8troy it (37, in
t his case).
8. Chambe r of Tomb s. Three wood-
en tombs, broke n open a nd unoccupied,
take up al mOtlt all the epece in t his
II ma Uaide cha mber. The fint tomb
contains {h e gems sca ttered in the dust ,
worth a tot al of 2,700 gpoThe eecced
tomb holds a silvert>d dagger +2, and
t he third conta ins a geld-banded a nd
gem-set ivory horn worth 3.000 gpo
C, More Thmb s. There a re only shal.
low, empty tombs here , but 2' below the
lIOiI, at the point mar ked with an Xon
t he barrow map, i. a buried cbeet of
iron-banded hardwood which contai ns
wealth a nd magic looted by some of
t hOl'le who rouKht and di ed on the Pl ains
11010nKago . The ebest is locked but not
t r apped a nd contai n. t he followinK
treasur es: three bags holding BOO pp,
1,700 gp, and 4,000 ep: a pa ir of gold
bracelets worth 1,000 gp apiece: a heavy
sil ver neckchai n I\('t wit h jaspers , tour -
mat inee, and a daulinK ruby wort h
12,500 gp; a short sword +2 whi ch ca n
in ti, ible objects three timt"8 per
day on command: a carefully wrapped
ieond ofpvlymorphillR wit h 16 cha rge-s:
11 hea vy ceremonial mace +2, a nd a
small cas ke t contai ni ng three magical
rings, all of plain gold. One o( t heHe is a
ring ofprottitm +1, 5' radiUI, t he
second is a rinR of regenercnon, and the
thir d is a ring which magically raillell
the Wisdom of any character wearing it
to 16 80 lonlt as it is worn on the hand.
(PCIl with a Wisdom score of 16 or bet -
ter gain no benefit from .....ear ing this
r ing,)
Concluding the Adventure
The PCs may be {or eN! to net' t hill final
combat at some stage. If they do, only
the 8aCTUI will pursue them. ff one of
the advent urers looks back a. they run,
he !let'S a massive phalanx of skeletons
rteing (rom the ground around t he ber -
row. There can be no re turn again,t
euch a force. The depredati on. ofthis
sk eletal ar my will be highly unpleasant
for the surrounding country but not a
total disaater. If you wiah, you can
i nfor m the PCs eome week s l ater that
the undead army haa been fmally over
come by a large force of menata rms
commandt>d by IlOme other bra ve heroes.
If t he PCa return to filtht , t he DM
IN PURSUIT Of THE SLAYER
should create the "tatistics oft he
undead army aa he eeee fit .
The PCs may tri umph against t he
undead but kill Wolfra m, bei ng ei t her
unable or unwill ing to su bdue him (or
not having thought of thi. ). If Wolfram
di e. , th ere will be no additio na l
experie nce-point a ward.
Ifthe PCs defeat the undead a nd
overcome Wolfr a m without kill ing him,
t hey hav e indeed succeeded wel l. You
should awa rd a bonus of l ,(M)(l xp per
PCfor t his act ion (see statil'lt ica on Wolf
r am at the end orthill module I. Wolfr am
will ha vl." no memory of hi" actions
while under the control of t he pM8{'s
eion. He i. absolutely horrified to hear
what he haa done and ineiete on ma king
ame nds . Sens ible PCs will point ou t
that he can ha rd ly r ide back a nd try
this, since everyone in the erea will try
to kill him on aight . Wolfr am will then
ma ke hi. way back to th e el ves in the
Dap leth Woods for th eir ad vice.
One special note about experience.
point awa rds: If La wful PCa in t he pa r
t y decide wit h no prompt ing to donate
money to t he Iarmere a nd others who
hav e lost rela tives a nd property, a ward
a n addi tio nal 100 xp to each charac ter
who doe. t hi . Give t he full experience-
point a ward for t reasure gai ned with no
reduction for a ny gi ven a way in thi s
manner. But don' t . ugge8t suc h ge neros-
ity to t he players. The ext ra experience-
poi nt award is only give n for good
rol e.playing of Lawful character .
There are plenty of poss ibi litiea for
spin-off edventuree should you wish to
develop a ny of t hese. Wolfr am is a man
with powerful contacts who can intro-
duct" the PCs to important NPCa in you r
campaign world. Such NPCs could eom-
missio n th e party for all kinds of lall k.
lind quests. Wolfram himllelf mi ght
pledge hill service to a La wful PC fight.
er Ior a fixed peri od {run hi m ee en
NPCl, but gi ven hi s gri m a nd uncom-
promising personality, thi. mill:ht crea te
IIOme proble ma. lie mi ght aleo wa nt to
atone for t he mu rders he hall commit .
ted, begging a Lawful PC cle ric to pre.
scribe a lIuitabll"penance for him.
Wolfram then pleads with the eler ic to
take him to a major t mple of the cler-
ic'e deit y 80 that he ca n ma ke a ton e-
ment and pledKe se rv ice to the mOlit
powerful cleric there (aetti nKup a minor
adventure for tht' PC c1t'ric along the
way, if you wi8hl .
DUNGEON 23
PRIDE OF
THE SKY
BYRANDYMAXWELL
Pride goeth before
a long, long fall.
Artwork by Paul Jaquays
42Issue No. 20
Randy Maxwell reports that his local
geography is largely responsible for this
module. "The semi-arid desert of West
Texas is amazingly like the descriptions
of the Broken Lands in the D&/fl
Known World, particularly the descrip-
tion of South Gnollistan in GAZ 10 The
Orcs of Thar. When looking out over
such desolation, it is easy to imagine
manscorpion temples, ore tribes, and the
sun-bleached bones of mammoth crea-
tures awaiting discovery."
"Pride of the Sky" is a D&D module for
4-6 characters of 8th-12th level (about
50 total levels). A balanced party con-
taining at least one cleric is recom-
mended. The party should take potions
of antidote, bug repellent, and healing,
or other types of magical items (such as
a staffof healing) that either neutralize
poison or induce healing.
While this module is for Expert-level
play, some monsters, magical items, and
spells have been taken from the Com-
panion Set, and the DM should be famil-
iar with the Companion rules before
playing this module.
The adventure takes place in the
Broken Lands of the D&D Known
World. The Gazetteer GAZlO The Orcs
of Thar can be used with this adventure
to add detail, description, and nuance
that are otherwise unavailable to the
DM without a great deal of work. The
module can, with a little work, be relo-
cated to a similar geographical location
in the DM's own campaign world.
The scenario revolves around the
crash of a magical airship named the
Pride of the Sky. Magical airships are
built in much the same fashion as nor-
mal seagoing ships. The larger airships,
like the Pride of the Sky, look almost
exactly like full-rigged sailing ships,
but the keel of an airship is much flat-
ter than that of a seagoing vessel. This
type of construction eliminates the need
for any type of special landing facilities.
The airships can use normal freshwater
and saltwater ports, even if they are
frozen over, and can also land on level
dry land. While such ships are rare and
not a common sight, the PCs should at
least have seen paintings and drawings
of such airships hanging in taverns and
inns throughout the Known World.
Adventure Background
Of the tales of unclaimed wealth and
legends of lost treasure, the story of the
Pride of the Sky ranks among the best
known. It is told and sung by many enter-
tainers and tale-tellers throughout the
Known World, and it is known to virtu-
allyeveryone in the Republic of Darokin
andthe Principalities of Glantri.
The Pride of the Sky was a magical
airship that crashed in the Broken
Lands. The airship, along with her sister
ship(the Wind Chaser) was transporting
thetreasure hoard of a powerful wizard
from the city of Minrothad to Glantri
City. Over the Broken Lands, the Pride
of the Sky was attacked by a huge red
dragon. In the fierce air battle that fol-
lowed, machine and monster became
entangled and crashed in flames.
The Wind Chaser fled the area and
reported the crash upon reaching Glan-
tri City. The captain of the Wind Chaser
witnessed the final moments of the
battle between the dragon and the Pride
of the Sky, and recorded the crash in the
ship's log. He also had a map made of
the crash location. Daedalus Magus, the
wizard whose treasure was aboard the
Pride, refused to let the log and map be
made public while he lived. He assumed
that one day he would mount an expedi-
tion to the crash site and recover the
hoard. However, the magic-user died
before any such expedition could be
launched. After his death, the log and
map disappeared and were assumed to
have been stolen.
For the Dungeon Master
The log and map were indeed stolen.
In the 100 years since the death of
Daedalus Magus, they have changed
hands many times, being stolen or sold
again and again. The log and map have
passed through many cities and nations
since they were made. One of the PCs
inherits the log and map in the follow-
ingmanner.
A halfling named Mortimer Smalls
arranges a meeting with the PC (the
DMcan choose one of the PCs at ran-
domor choose a PC with an extensive
family background). Mortimer claims he
has business to conduct with the PC.
Mortimer Smalls: AC 9; HI; hp 5;
MV90'(30'); HAT1; Dmg by weapon
type; Save HI; ML 7; AL L; BD/31;
dagger, no armor.
Mortimer identifies himself as the
executor of the will of one Gertrude
'Ibklas, He says that the PC's "Aunt
Gertie" has recently died of natural
causes and has left a sealed scroll tube
to her nephew (or niece, as the case may
be). The PC need not remember Aunt
Gertie, as he may not have seen her
since he was a small child. In addition,
the aunt need not be a blood relative
but can be a friend of the family who
was called an aunt.
Mortimer is fussy and officious. He
asks for proof of the PC's identity and
proper receipts for the scroll tube he
delivers. The haltling explains that the
sealed scroll tube is the only item that
Aunt Gertie bequeathed to the PC and,
if asked, shows the PC a copy of Aunt
Gertie's will. The document clearly
states that her house and the bulk of
her estate have been left to her cats,
with all her possessions and money to
be used solely for their feeding and care.
Mortimer has no idea what the tube
contains. Being scrupulously honest
about such things, he has never un-
sealed the scroll tube to see what might
be inside.
The DM does not have to use Aunt
Gertie or any family member as the
person leaving the scroll tube to the PC.
However, even PCs who do not have any
living relatives have a past history. The
DM may draw forth any old friend,
teacher, pupil, etc. from that past to
replace Aunt Gertie.
The scroll tube is not trapped, though
the PCs, being naturally suspicious,
may use such spells as detect magic or
find traps to assure themselves of this
fact. The tube contains only a note from
Aunt Gertie, the log descriptions of the
crash, and the map to the crash site.
The DM should, at this time, give the
PC a copy of Aunt Gertie's note, the log,
and the map.
The note states:
"Dear Nephew: I have no way of en-
suring the accuracy of this log or map. I
acquired them from a friend who be-
queathed them to me as I now bequeath
them to you. He came by the map and
log in the desert sands of Ylaruam, but
he also acquired an incurable wasting
illness while in that desert and was,
therefore, never able to use them. At
the time I received these items I was
very old, and my health and age made
an expedition to prove their authentic-
ity out of the question. I believe they
are genuine, for the man who left them
to me was a serious adventurer and not
one to bother with false maps or to play
at trifles.
"I leave these items to you in good
faith, placing no restrictions on what
PRIDE OFTHE SKY
you do with them. You may sell the map
and log or attempt to find the treasure
yourself. I realize the person I leave
these items to is no longer the fearless
child who listened to my tales of drag-
ons and heroes years ago. So, dear boy,
in remembrance of those long-gone
days, I leave you a chance to live your
own tale of dragons and heroes:'
It is impossible and pointless to trace
the former owners of the map and log.
Whether because the owner died (either
while attempting to recover the trea-
sure or before an expedition could be
mounted), or because the map and log
were stolen, no one has ever succeeded
in finding the treasure-or returning
with it.
Inside Gertie's note is another roll of
parchment, brown with age and stained
with water (and something in the corner
that looks suspiciously like blood). The
ink has faded a good deal, but the writ-
ing is still quite legible. The parchment
is headed "Captain's Log" and reads:
"Entry for the 13th day of Klarmont
in the 899th year After Crowning: The
day started with fair weather and a fine
breeze at our backs. We were 40 miles
north of Corunglain, following the river
Vesubia, and were nigh over the first
cataracts of the river when a dragon
came. Blood red it was, and it bore ar-
row straight and hard upon the Pride of
the Sky. I saw the first swoop that took
the poor lad from the crow's nest and
splintered the yard of the main top-
gallant sail.
"I didn't see what happened next, for I
took a line hard to starboard, away from
the fight, and dove like a falcon for the
hills below so the dragon couldn't get
under us. I thought the Pride would do
the same, but she wasn't so lucky. When
I got my own ship squared and ready, I
looked up and saw the Pride was bad
hurt. She floundered with her mainsail
gone, foremast shattered, and all sails
on the mizzen naught but flying rags. It
was a hard thing to watch. There was
one small band of elven lads giving as
good as they got, but they just couldn't
maneuver.
"Then a strange thing happened. The
dragon dove out ofthe sun directly on
the Pride. Whether it thought the ship
would move out of its way or was trying
to splinter the ship asunder with one
mighty blow, I just don't know. The
dragon didn't pull up, and the ship was
just too crippled to get out of the way.
The dragon rammed chest first into the
DUNGEON 43
PRIDE OFTHE SKY
deck, skewering itself on the broken
foremast and letting out such a scream
of rage, hate, and pain that my ears
ring yet. It lashed and squirmed and
belched fire until the Pride near broke
in two and was alight from stem to
stern. Then all was quiet and still.
"As I watched, the Pride of the Sky
started falling. At first she sank slow
and gentle, like a leaf on an autumn
breeze. Then she picked up speed and
fell like a shooting star into the heart of
the hills. The sound of her hitting the
ground was like a thunderclap:'
Inside the old parchment is a thick
piece of vellum, yellowed with age like
the page from the ship's log, but in
better condition and less stained. It is
the final piece of the puzzle-the map to
the crash site of the Pride of the Sky.
Each PC will have heard 1-4 rumors
about the crashed airship. Roll 1d10 for
each PC to determine which rumors the
individual has heard over the years
concerning the Pride of the Sky, using
the section that follows. Duplicate ru-
mors are possible. These rumors come
from tavern talk and tale-tellers, who
often spice up the well-known story of
the crash with their own personal con-
.&
Mountain
M
Broken
lands
Badlands

Cataract

X Crash site
1 hex = 8 miles
"AqNT
GERTIE'S MAP
'''", J' ....... , /'
jectures and fabrications. All the ru-
mors are false except #8, which is not
completely true; only a few of the elven
crewmen now guard the treasure in
Undead form. The PCs have no way of
knowing whether the rumors are true
or false except by investigating the
crash site.
1. The dragon that attacked the air-
ship was not killed and still guards the
wreck and treasure hoard.
2. There are over 100,000 gp worth of
gems, jewelry, and precious metals just
waiting to be claimed by anyone who
finds the wreck.
3. The Immortals have claimed the
crash site, and it can no longer be found.
4. The Pride of the Sky never really
crashed. It was all just a clever hoax to
steal the treasure.
5. The orcs living in the Broken Lands
found the crash site and looted the wreck
long ago.
6. The airship either fell into the
Vesubia River or on the bank of the
river, and it has long since been washed
away in floods.
7. The Pride of the Sky did not carry a
great deal of gold, gems, or jewelry, but
was loaded with scrolls, potions, rare
books, and expensive cloth, all of
which were probably destroyed in
the crash.
8. The airship crew and the dragon
guard the crash site in terrible Undead
forms.
9. The airship exploded before it hit
the ground, scattering the treasure over
a wide area.
10. There was no treasure aboard the
Pride of the Sky. The Pride came along
only to protect the other airship.
If the PC wishes to sell the map and
the log, he will get a maximum of
1d4 x 10 gp for them. Without some sort
of proof of authenticity, most buyers will
be extremely skeptical and unwilling to
pay a large amount.
Those DMs not using GAZI0 The Orcs
of Thar can orient the log and Player's
Map with Map #2, "The Lands and
Environs of the D&D Wilderness;' on
page 33 of the Expert Rulebook. The DM
need only find find Corunglain in the
Republic of Darokin (it is assumed that
the PCs will begin their search here
because of the log entry). The rivers
forking at Corunglain are the Streel
and the Vesubia. The Streel flows down
from the Ethengar Khanate, while the
Vesubia begins its travels in the Princi-
palities of Glantri.
Journeying through the Broken Lands
should not be difficult for the party, as
lesser creatures will avoid any confron-
tation with such a powerful party. For
wilderness encounters, use the Chance
of Encounter table on page 30 of the
Expert Rulebook, treating the terrain as
barren lands. If an encounter is called
for, consult the Wilderness Encounters
table in this adventure.
If the PCs fly to the location using
aerial mounts, flying carpets, etc., use
the Chance of Encounter table but treat
the terrain as aerial. If an encounter is
indicated, consult the Flyers table on
page 35 of the Expert Rulebook.
It is impossible to take boats up the
Vesubia due to the many dangerous
cataracts (only the very largest are
marked on the Player's Map).
Once the PCs are within four miles of
the crash site, the DM should roll Id6
every four hours. During daylight
hours, a roll of 1-3 means that the party
has encountered a manscorpion patrol
from the temple at the crash site. Night
encounters happen only on a roll of 1-2.
The DM should note that the patrol's
morale is 12, and the manscorpions will
fight to the death. The patrol will not
44Issue No. 20
Wilderness Encounters
The Broken Lands are extremely barren but still maintain a large number of
inhabitants. Adventuring parties in the Broken Lands are often considered a
convenient meal by those residing in the desolate countryside. Because this is
their country, the orcs, kobolds, goblins, etc. fight with maximum morale against
humans and demi-humans. If an encounter is called for, consult the list below
using the sum of 1d8 + 1d12. The DM may change or expand the list to include
monsters other than the ones listed. However, the DM should keep in mind that
the Broken Lands are the home of the Ten Tribes of Thar, the nation of orcs.
Therefore, orcs and their many cousins are the primary wandering monsters here.
A DM using GAZ10 The Orcs of Thar may wish to increase or decrease the
probability of encountering certain monsters, depending on the PCs' location in
the Broken Lands. The DM may also wish to increase or decrease the number of
creatures encountered, depending on the strength of the adventuring party.
Lastly, wilderness encounters should be discontinued once the PCs are within four
miles of the crash site.
2-3 Hobgoblins (35): AC 6; HD 1 + 1; hp 6 each; MV 90'(30'); HAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; Save F1; ML 10; AL C; BD/31; short sword, spear.
4-5 Gnolls (24): AC 5; HD 2; hp 11 (x 9), 8 (X 15); MV 90'(30'); HAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type + 1; Save F2; ML 8; AL C; BD/30; sword, hand axe.
6-7 Kobolds (70): AC 7; HD 1/2; hp 4 (x 20),3 (X 30),2 (x 20); MV 90'(30'); HAT
1; Dmg by weapon type -1; Save Normal Man; ML 8; AL C; BD/32; club, dagger.
8-9 Bugbears (14): AC 5; HD 3 + 1; hp 17 ( x 5), 14 ( x 9); MV 90'(30'); HAT 1;
Dmg by weapon type + 1; Save F3; ML 9; AL C; BD/27; battle axe.
10-14 Red Orcs (45): AC 6; HD 1; hp 5 (x 30), 4 (x 15); MV 120'(40'); HAT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; Save F1; ML 8; AL C; BD/35; short sword, dagger.
15-16 Trolls (8): AC 4; HD 6 +3; hp 30 (X 3), 25 (X 5); MV 120'(40'); HAT 3 (2
claws/1 bite); Dmg 1-6/1-6/1-10; Save F6; ML 10; AL C; ER/56.
17-18 Ogres (12): AC 5; HD 4 + 1; hp 20 (x 6),16 (x 6); MV 90'(30'); HAT 1; Dmg
by weapon type +2; Save F4; ML 10; AL C; BD/35; huge club (does 1-10 hp dam-
age, excluding the +2 strength bonus).
19-20 Goblins (55): AC 6; HD 1 -1; hp 4 each; MV 90' (30'); HAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; Save Normal Man; ML 9; AL C; BD/31; club.
sendmessengers back to warn the tem-
ple. Manscorpion logic dictates that if a
patrol is victorious, no warning is neces-
sary. And if a patrol fails to return, that
is warning enough. If a patrol returns
and finds the temple has been attacked,
it will stalk the attackers throughout
the temple.
If any PCs surrender to or are cap-
tured by the patrol, they are taken to
the temple for interrogation and certain
death. Captured clerics suffer immedi-
ate ritual sacrifice on the altar, while
all others are allowed to live until fresh
meat is needed. Those unfortunate
enough to be allowed to live are often
used by the manscorpions for training.
Fighters, thieves, and even magic-users
are forced to fight to the death, defend-
ing themselves with blunt swords and
other ineffective weapons while the
manscorpions launch single and multi-
ple attacks against them to hone the
monsters' skill and timing in attacks.
Nonelven demi-humans (especially
halflings) are allowed to escape so that
the manscorpions can practice tracking
and stalking. The manscorpions also
take scalps. They inflict this indignity
on dead and dying captives as well as
those they kill in battle. Elven captives
are taken to area 19.
The Temple of Skorpios
When the Pride of the Sky crashed,
the dragon was still impaled upon the
foremast but was quite dead before the
ship hit the ground. The airship fell into
a deep, narrow ravine between two
hills. The fiery impact caused a great
avalanche of stones, completely cover-
ing the crash site. This is why the ship
cannot be found by searching from aer-
ial mounts, flying carpets, etc. The
tremendous heat generated by the
dragon and the burning ship was
trapped under the fallen rock, forming a
kind of kiln. This fused the loose rock
and boulders together, actually melting
some stones nearest the heat. All
scrolls, books, and wooden treasures
were completely incinerated in the heat,
but something very strange happened to
the coins and jewelry. Melted by the
heat, they formed pools of molten silver
and gold. In many places, the two ran
together, merging to form exotic pat-
terns. These streams of precious metal
are dotted by the many gems and jewels
that survived the inferno.
When the airship crashed, it acted as
a shock absorber for the dragon. Upon
impact, the dragon smashed through
the upper decks of the ship instead of
crunching directly down upon the stony
hills. The dragon's bones-indeed, its
entire skeleton-survived virtually
intact, while the flesh has long since
withered away.
The orcs and other creatures of the
Broken Lands avoid the area of the
crash site because they believe the huge
fireball they saw had something to do
with the Shining One, a kobold Immor-
tal who blinds his foes with shining
armor and tricks them into deadly
traps. Orcs and other humanoid tribes
simply regard the area as unus malus-
mater locus ("a place where it is unsafe
to go.")
Some 40 years ago, a tribe of manscor-
pions found the crash site quite by acci-
dent while taking shelter from a storm.
They entered what they thought was a
small cave but soon discovered they
PRIDE OF THE SKY
were inside a huge skull. With their
curiosity piqued, the manscorpions
widened a narrow passage directly
behind the skull (an opening where the
flesh of the dragon's neck had rotted
away) and set about exploring the drag-
on's skeleton.
When they discovered the great
golden floor with its manscorpion de-
sign (see area 9), the creatures decided
that the place should be made into a
temple. They delved the temple into and
around the dragon's bones and the
melted treasure of the wrecked airship,
excavating new chambers in the rock
and expanding the natural cavities left
by the decomposing dragon. Many
rooms in the temple have solid gold and
silver floors, with melted or fused rock
walls and ceilings. Some rooms are
pillared, floored, or roofed with dragon
bones.
The temple is dedicated to Skorpios,
the Immortal venerated by the man-
scorpions. It is a weird, exotic place. The
DUNGEON 45
PRIDE OFTHE SKY
Level One
1. Entrance. If the PCs follow Aunt
shipboard elves and inhabited the re-
mains of elven crewmembers who died in
the crash. These elven warriors used
potions of fire resistance, taken from a
large store of potions that was part of the
cargo, to save themselves from the fire
and heat of the dragon and the burning
ship, but they were unable to save them-
selves from the crushing force of the
impact.
Statistics for manscorpion clerics and
for wyrds are given individually. Mans-
corpion guards and giant scorpions en-
countered in the temple and on patrol
have the following statistics:
Manscorpion guards: AC 1; HD 8;
MY 240'(80'); HAT 2 (l weapon/1 tail);
Dmg 3-18/1-10 +poison; Save F8; ML 12;
AL C; CD/34; huge pole arm. Because
they consider the temple sacred, the
manscorpions' morale is 12.
Each manscorpion guard is clean
shaven and wears his hair in a long,
complicated braid that signifies his sta-
tus as a temple guard. The guards are
forbidden to wear any upper body orna-
ments, such as jewelry, wrist bands, etc.
However, this restriction does not in-
clude the lower body, and many guards
wear tail streamers. Each streamer
indicates a kill and is made from the
hair and scalp of the guard's victim.
Manscorpions are unaffected by po-
tions of bug repellent, but the giant scor-
pions of the temple are treated as normal
giant bugs with regard to this potion.
Giant scorpions: AC 2; HD 4; MV
150'(50'); HAT 3 (2 claws/1 sting); Dmg
1-10/1-10/1-4+poison; Save F2; ML 11;
ALN; ER/55.
Using pigments and paints, the man-
scorpions have decorated their scorpion
friends in bright colors and intricate
patterns: bright yellow claws and legs
with a black or green body; legs and
body banded with bright red stripes; or
each claw, leg, and the tail painted a
different color. Also, the manscorpions
have used charcoal to draw elaborate
geometric designs on the claws and
backs of the giant scorpions, who are
completely unharmed by these decora-
tions. The manscorpions do this to deco-
rate their lair with living artwork; the
designs have no other significance but
may serve to mislead the PCs into think-
ing they have encountered some new
variety of monster.
floor, only about 50,000 gp (one-third
the original amount) can be recovered
as actual profit if the floor is broken up
and resmelted.
If the PCs wish to recover and sell the
bones of the dragon, the DM should
point out that dragon bones are not
really that rare a commodity. Also, the
cost of recovering the skeleton from the
rubble of the crash site and transport-
ing it to a location where it might be
sold is nearly twice its sale value (so
PCs can only lose money on the deal). If
the PCs wish to recover a rib, thigh
bone, or the dragons' skull as a conver-
sation piece or decoration for a castle or
keep, they may do so, but such bones
have no experience-point or gold-piece
sale value.
Creatures
The temple contains only three types of
creatures: manscorpions (in one form or
another), who found and claimed the
crash site; giant scorpions, who are on a
very friendly basis with the manscor-
pions and are used as guards and beasts
of burden; and wyrds, evil spirits who
were attracted by the death throes of the
PION
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Treasure
The gold-piece value for much of the
treasure in the temple may seem low,
considering that an entire floor may be
made of gold and silver. Gold-piece val-
ues for melted treasure is not figured on
the basis of how much gold and silver
will actually be recovered if it is broken
up and resmelted. The resmelting proc-
ess is absolutely necessary to remove
impurities (bits of rock, charcoal, and
metallic junk from the wreck of the
airship, etc.) and separate the gold from
the silver.
Resmelting is an expensive process,
and its cost greatly reduces the value of
the treasure. In addition, while many
gems can be removed intact from the
melted metals, many jewels will be
scarred when removed and will lose
some of their value. So even though
about 150,000 gp worth of treasure was
melted and turned into a very expensive
N
MANSCOR
TEMPLE
Level One
melted treasure, fused rock, and dragon's
bones give the temple an otherworldly
aspect. When describing the 'Iemple of
Skorpios, the DM should always convey
the surreal nature of the place.
46 Issue No. 20
Gertie's map, it leads them to a narrow
valley running north to south between
two high hills.
You have been scrambling through
the rocks for hours. It is dry and
dusty, and the wind blows grit into
your face constantly. You are now
standing at the edge of a narrow
ravine between two hills. Ahead of
you, blocking the ravine, is a great
pile of boulders, rocks, and stones
obviously deposited here by a large
avalanche. As you look at the tremen-
dous pile of rubble, you notice two
large openings near the bottom of the
heap. It is obvious that the two cave
entrances open onto the same tunnel,
but why the tunnel has two openings
is not immediately apparent.
If the PCs happen upon these two
openings after dark, the manscorpions'
watch fires (in areas 2 and 3) outline the
caves clearly against the dark mass of
rock. The flickering of the fires causes a
constant shadow-play in the cave en-
trances, giving the impression that
there are a great number of small, rest-
less creatures fluttering about inside.
The cave openings are actually the
empty eye sockets of the dragon's skull.
The outside of the skull is completely
buried under dirt and rubble, so that,
other than the two openings, there is
nothing to suggest a skull is there.
When the PCs enter either of the
caves, read the following:
Passing through the opening, you
enter a small room with hard white
walls. While the floor of the room is
dirty and dusty, it appears to be made
of the same white substance as the
walls, which slowly curve together
overhead to form a low, flat dome.
The northern wall of the room con-
tains a large, roughly made archway
through which you can see red-gold
firelight playing on the rough rock
floor and walls ofthe room beyond.
2. Guardroom. The guardroom is
built directly behind and on either side
of the dragon's skull. It is constructed in
such a way that the back of the skull is
actually inside the guardroom. Like
most other rooms in the temple com-
plex, this area is lighted and heated by
a large copper brazier mounted on a
copper tripod. These braziers and tri-
pods were made by the manscorpions
from the melted copper pieces they
found in the wreck of the airship. The
braziers burn scented lamp oil that the
manscopions captured from a large
mule train that ventured too close to
their temple. The room is continually
manned by 10 manscorpions (hp 42
( x 2), 36 ( x 6), 32 ( x 2 and 10 giant
scorpions (hp 25, 21 (x 3), 18 ( x 4), 16
(x 2.
When the PCs enter this area, read
the following to the players:
As you enter this room, you notice
immediately that the air has become
hot and is heavily scented with san-
dalwood. The heat and aroma come
from a large copper brazier burning
in the center of the room. You are
also immediately aware that you are
surrounded by manscorpions and
giant scorpions.
The manscorpions and giant scorpions
attack at once. The manscorpion cleric in
area 3 becomes aware of the fight imme-
diately and arrives to attack within five
rounds. Unless silence spells are used,
the fight attracts the attention of other
manscorpions (see area 4 for details).
Other than the brazier, which is worth
50 gp, there is nothing of value in the
room.
3. Cleric's Room. This small room
has been roughly hewn from the fused
rock and is occupied by a manscorpion
cleric. It contains a brazier and tripod
exactly like the one found in the guard-
room (area 2), making this area ex-
tremely hot. This cleric is in charge of
the first level of the temple and will
lead the guards and giant scorpions
against intruders.
Molug (manscorpion cleric): AC 1; HD
8 (C8); hp 36; MV 240/(80'); #AT 2 (1
weapon/l tail); Dmg 2-12 (hammer)/1-10
+poison; Save C8; ML 12; AL C; CD/34;
spells: cause fear, cause light wounds
(X 2), hold person, resist fire, silence 15/
radius, cause disease, curse, cause serious
wounds. Molug is armed with a huge
war hammer that is too large and un-
wieldy to be used by a human or demi-
human. The cleric also wears a ring of
spell storing with the following magic-
user spells: web, fireball, lightning bolt,
and confusion. The manscorpions have
no way of recharging the ring.
Manscorpion clerics are easily identi-
fied by their shaved heads and full
PRIDE OFTHE SKY
beards and mustaches. Other than mag-
ical rings, they are forbidden to wear
any adornment whatsoever except when
performing certain rituals and rites.
4. Patrol Quarters. This large room
was excavated by the manscorpions
from the fused rubble and scoria that
covers the dragon's bones. It contains
two copper braziers for heat and light,
each worth 25 gpo The room is shared by
16 manscorpions (hp 40 ( x 2), 38 ( x 2),
36 (x 10), 31 (x 2 and 16 giant scorpi-
ons (hp 22 ( x 4), 18 ( x 8), 16 ( x 4 who
patrol the area around the temple. The
patrol works in 12-hour shifts, with
eight manscorpions and eight giant
scorpions patrolling while the other half
eat and rest in area 4. This means that
the room is always occupied. If the PCs
fight the guards in area 2, the noise
rouses all the creatures in area 4. They
arm themselves and arrive as a group
at the scene of battle in one turn. If the
PCs use silence spells or somehow noise-
lessly overcome the guards in area 2,
they have a chance to surprise the man-
scorpions and giant scorpions in this
room.
5. Larder.
This room is cool, damp, and reeking
of rotting flesh. As you enter, you
hear a soft buzzing sound like the
noise from a sleeping beehive. As you
look about the room, you see uniden-
tifiable lumps and piles on the floor.
This is the food-storage area for the
temple. If the PCs examine the lumps
and piles on the floor, they find they are
piles of carrion. Some of the carcasses
are identifiable (a man, a pony, an ore, a
giant fire beetle, etc.), but most are not.
The manscorpions generally dine on the
freshest meat, while the giant scorpions
are given the more putrid remains
(which they relish).
The room is filled with buzzing flies
and insects. Anyone disturbing one of
the carcasses or bringing in a light
source brighter than a single candle
causes the insects to swarm with the
same effect as the clerical spell insect
plague. However, because of the abun-
dance of food in this room, the insect
swarm will not pursue its victims. Once
intruders are driven from the room, the
swarm breaks up and returns to feeding.
DUNGEON 47
PRIDE OFTHE SKY
Looking over the side of the ramp,
you see a great white pillar reaching
down into darkness. Far below, you
see the play of light and shadow from
a flickering fire.
When you enter, you see a huge
golden brazier mounted on a tripod of
silver. It stands in the center of the
room, flooding the area with a beau-
tiful red-gold light. Looking up, you
see running along the center of the
roof what appears to be a great sup-
porting buttress. Arching down from
this huge buttress, forming a sym-
metrical line on both sides of the
hall, are gigantic pillars that arc
outward in graceful curves from
ceiling to floor.
Near the southern end of the hall,
the pillars curve inward across the
floor to merge and form a large white
dais, a massive, irregularly square-
shaped block. The buttress overhead,
the pillars, and the dais all gleam
like polished ivory even in the red-
dish light. Resting on the dais,
9. Temple Area. The temple, which is
within the great empty chest cavity of
the dragon, is entered through a large
archway carved in the shape of a giant
scorpion pincer.
Level Two
8. Guardroom.
The ramp leads directly into this
room, which is unlit and has no bra-
zier. Through the archway in the
southern wall comes the flickering
light you saw from above.
This room has been roughly hewn
from the scoria. It is hard to see
clearly in the flickering shadow play,
but you notice that something is
coming toward you.
large white central pillar. Closer inspec-
tion of the pillar reveals it is a large
thigh bone of the dragon. Footing is
good on the ramp due to the rough sco-
ria floor.
The room contains 10 manscorpions
(hp 41 ( x 3), 36 ( x 4), 30 ( x 3 and 12
giant scorpions (hp 23 (X 4), 18 (x 8.
They immediately attack any non man-
scorpion attempting to enter.
7. Ramp Down. This ramp is steep
and turns in a tight corkscrew around a
mining gear, along with a small porta-
ble bellows, a large heavy anvil, and
several kinds of metalworking ham-
mers. The manscorpions do all their
weapon forging and making of metal
necessities outside the temple, because
the interior is stuffy and not ventilated
well enough to house a foundry or met-
alworking shop. All these tools, both
mining and metalworking, are large
and heavy but usable by humans and
demi-humans.
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6. Armory. This room contains 10 of
the large pole arms favored by the in-
sectoid warriors. It also contains several
long bows, shields, and swords. The pole
arms are unusable by anyone except a
manscorpion, but the other arms can be
used by any creature normally able to
wield such weapons. The arms are
worth 1,000 gp total. Manscorpion pole
arms can be sold to an armorer for half
the normal price of a pole arm, as the
armorer must cut down and refit the
weapon for human or demi-human use.
This room also contains picks, shovels,
spikes, hammers, and miscellaneous
N
MANSCOR
TEMPLE
Level Two
1 square =5'
48 Issue No. 20
PRIDE OF THE SKY
starkly black against the gleaming
white, is a large, rough-squared bit of
scoria.
Your eyes are drawn away from the
dais and pillars to the wondrous floor.
It is solid silver with an immense
swirling pattern of gold imbedded
here and there with gems. The swirl-
ing gold pattern forms the vague
shape of a manscorpion holding a
scimitar. Two rubies are the eyes of
the figure, and it is crowned with
several diamonds. The wavy gold tail
of the manscorpion ends in a large
emerald stinger dripping sapphires.
The great buttress overhead is actu-
ally the dragon's backbone. The pillars
arching down from it are the creature's
ribs, and the dais is the huge breast-
bone of the dragon. The impact of the
crash jolted the dragon's wings wide
apart, and they were buried under the
avalanche of rubble. For this reason,
the wings cannot be seen in the temple.
The floor of the temple is actually a
thin layer of precious metal and gems
stretched over the rough granite of the
crash site. The golden manscorpion
figure in the floor is a purely accidental
design in the melted gold and silver.
The manscorpions, of course, see things
differently. They believe the figure is a
sign from Skorpios requiring that they
build a temple on this site.
The golden brazier and silver tripod
were made by the manscorpions from
gold and silver found in the crash site.
The brazier and tripod are worth 1,000
gp and 250 gp respectively. If the floor is
broken up and removed, it is worth
25,000 gp in precious metals and 10,000
gp in gems.
There is a 50% chance that Lysunts,
the manscorpion cleric in charge of this
level, is in the temple when the PCs
enter. See area 10 for more information
on Lysunts.
10. Priest's Quarters.
Upon entering this room, you imme-
diately notice the bones of a large
claw. Just over your heads, it reaches
down from the ceiling, talons out-
stretched, as if to grasp something in
the room. Beneath the claw is a circle
of 20 human and demi-human skulls.
The floor of the room is like that of
the temple, solid silver with a swirl of
gold. The gold forms no clear design
but looks vaguely like a running
man.
This room belongs to a 10th-level
manscorpion cleric named Lysunts. He
is in charge ofthe second level of the
temple and will organize and lead its
defense. There is a 50% chance that
Lysunts is in this room. If he is not
here, he is in the temple (area 9). If he is
in the temple when the PCs engage the
manscorpions in area 8, he rushes to the
scene immediately. If he is in his quar-
ters, he will not hear the disturbance.
This room has been excavated around
the dragon's right foreclaw. It is used by
Lysunts as a kind of bedroom, temple
office, and meditation chamber. The
circle of skulls is used in an arcane
manscorpion ritual dedicated to Skor-
pios and has no other significance. If the
PCs handle or disturb the skulls, they
hear something rattle in each. Each
DUNGEON 49
PRIDE OFTHE SKY
ever, the bones are unbroken and run
MANSCORPION
across the floor, ending with the entire
I
claw turning upward toward the ceiling.
18
TEMPLE
The four razor-sharp talons curl slightly
toward one another, and resting upon
these is a brazier of commanding fire
Level
elementals. The very nature of this
device allowed it to survive the fire and
Three
heat of the crash. In melee, the man-
scorpion clerics will use the brazier
1-1-17- -
immediately.
N
Nogush, Imneses, and Sigint (man-
I-i--
-.
scorpion clerics): AC 1; C8; hp 48, 36,
I-I--
30; MV 240'(80'); HAT 2 (l weapon/1
tail); Dmg 2-12 (mace)/1-10 +poison;
I-I--
Save C8; ML 12; AL C; large mace;
I-I--
spells:
I-I--
Nogush and Imneses: cause fear, cause
light wounds, darkness, blight, hold
-
,....- 1- -
I
person, silence 15' radius, curse, strik-
- c--
I
1-
-

ing, cause serious wounds.
I
Sigint: cause light wounds, darkness,
- ,....- 1-f-19
1-'--

I detect magic, find traps, hold person,

- '-- 1-'--
resist fire, continual darkness, cause I
1-
-
1- ,....-
16-
I--I--
disease, dispel magic.
I
1-,....-

1-
-

12. Storage. This room is hewn from

I the rough granite. It contains equip-
1-
-

ment and gear used in temple ceremo-
1--
1-
- nies. If the PCs search the room, they
1-
-
can find ceremonial knives and daggers,
1--
several whistles, a brass bell, a large
drum, six small bannerlike tapestries,
1-
- candles, incense, and a few objects of
--
-
unknown use. There are also several
- t--
-
-
I--
I large kegs and casks of the scented
I
lamp oil used by the manscorpions. All
20
r-,
items found here are nonmagical and of
15
1 ~
no particular value to anyone other
than a manscorpion.
~
13. Clerics' Quarters. This is a
Upto area 12
small, rather cramped room. The three
1 square=5' clerics in the meditation room (area 11)
and the cleric in third-level guardroom
(area 15) use this room as their personal
quarters. In the center of the room is a
skull contains a gem placed there by mace that, like most manscorpion weap-
small unlit brazier worth 25 gpo
Lysunts when he consecrated the circle. ons, is too unwieldy for human or demi-
14. Ramp Down.
The gems are worth 500 gp ( x 2), 100 gp human use. Lysunts carries a staffof
(X 12), and 10 gp (x 6). Ifthe floor is dispelling with 12 charges left; he will
broken up and removed, it is worth use the staff freely in defending himself.
This ramp has been tunneled
5,000 gpo through the rock. It circles down in
Lysunts: AC 1; C10; hp 45; MV 11. Meditation Room. This large
one great slow curve. The walls are
240'(80'); HAT 2 (1 weapon/1 tail); Dmg room is occupied by three manscorpion
rough hewn and damp. At first it
2-12 (mace)!1-10+poison; Save C10; ML clerics and is used primarily for medita-
isn't obvious, but as you descend, a
12; AL C; spells: cause fear, cause light tion and prayer. The walls, ceiling, and
red-geld light begins to play about
wounds ( x 2), darkness, blight, hold floor are rough scoria. This room has
the walls, ceiling, and floor. The
person, resist fire, silence 15' radius, been excavated around the dragon's left
source of this light is apparently at
continual darkness, locate object, strik- foreclaw. The horrendous impact ofthe
the end of the curving, descending
ing, cause serious wounds, dispel magic, airship hitting the ground dislocated
tunnel.
insect plague. He is armed with a large and twisted the dragon's foreleg. How-
50 Issue No. 20
If the PCs are carrying their own light
sources, the red-gold light is still visible
ahead of the party, just out of range of
their light sources. There is neither
treasure nor dragon bones visible any-
where along the course of the ramp.
Level Three
15. Guardroom.
Youstep out of the tunnel into a
room that seems to have been liter-
ally battered out of the rock and
scoria. And, unlike any other room in
the temple, it has a wooden floor, its
surface blackened and charred in
many places. This room is large and
well lit by a large copper brazier in
the center. The room seems to be
occupied.
This guardroom is the last remnant of
the Pride of the Sky. The floor is made of
the shattered and scorched keel of the
airship. The room contains six man-
scorpions (hp 41, 36 (x 4), 31), six gi-
ant scorpions (hp 25, 19 (X 5), and an
8th-level manscorpion cleric (hp 35,
see area 11 for complete statistics) with
the spells cause light wounds ( x 2),
darkness, hold person ( x 2), silence 15'
radius, curse, striking, and cause serious
wounds. The manscorpion cleric wears a
ring of fire resistance. The large copper
brazier is worth 50 gpo
16. High Priest's Quarters.
The walls, floors, and ceiling of this
large room are of the rough scoria
common throughout the temple.
Down the center of the room, run-
ning north to south, are stark white
pillars that seem to be made of
stacked, irregular-shaped rings.
Though misshapen, the rings are all
exactly alike and fit snugly one upon
the other. The pillars become gradu-
ally smaller from south to north. The
southernmost pillar is nearly 6' in
diameter, while the northernmost is
only 2' in diameter.
This is the lair of Sanxshun, high
priest of the Temple of Skorpios. Closer
inspection reveals the pillars are actu-
ally sections of the dragon's tail. Some
of the tail vertebrae were quarried from
the rock and rubble. Then, long sections
of the tail were separated and used as
supporting columns in Sanxshun's hall.
Sanxshun will defend the third level
and the treasure hoard (see areas 19
and 20). He absolutely detests all hu-
mans and demi-humans. He will, how-
ever, negotiate with the PCs, but only to
lure them into the open or to buy time
for his warriors to launch an attack. If
the PCs fight the guards in area 15,
Sanxshun hears the disturbance and
rushes to help his guards. If the fight is
going against Sanxshun, he retreats to
area 20 and attempts to guard the trea-
sure hoard of the temple.
Sanxshun: AC -1; C13; hp 59; MV
240'(80'); HAT 2 (1 weapon/1 tail); Dmg
2-12 (hammer)I1-10 +poison; Save C13;
ML 11; AL C; spells: cause fear, cause
light wounds, darkness, detect magic,
light, bless, blight, hold person, resist
fire, silence 15' radius, continual dark-
ness, continual light, cause disease,
curse, animate dead, cause serious
wounds, dispel magic, cause critical
wounds*, truesight*, animate objects,
barrier * (* =from the Companion Set).
Sanxshun uses a large war hammer,
wears a ring ofprotection +2, and car-
ries a staff of earth and fire with 16
charges left.
Sanxshun is getting old, and his beard
is turning gray, but this does not affect
his fighting ability. He has a bright blue
scorpion tattooed across his shaven
head. All manscorpion high priests have
such tattoos; the color of the tattoo
signifies the importance of the temple to
which the high priest belongs. The
darker the color, the more important the
temple. As a high priest moves up in
rank and takes command of more im-
portant temples, the darker colors are
tattooed over the lighter ones. If a high
priest falls from favor and is demoted,
he doesn't have to worry about being
tattooed again with a lighter color. His
tattoo is simply removed-at the neck.
17. Clerical Storage.
This room is nothing but a rough,
square chamber chiseled out of the
rock. Down the center of the room,
hanging from some sort of cloak
rack, are some unusual-looking items
of cloth.
The room contains robes, capes, caps,
phylacteries, stinger hoods, tail ribbons,
and other ritual and ceremonial vest-
ments used by manscorpion clerics. The
"cloak rack" from which all these vest-
ments hang is a narrow band of spiny
PRIDE OFTHE SKY
linked vertebrae that runs down the
center of the ceiling. These bones are
the very end of the dragon's tail, left
undisturbed when the room was exca-
vated. The PCs must remove some of
the garments from their bony hangers
to discover that this is actually part of
the dragon's skeleton.
18. Crypts.
This room is very strange in appear-
ance. The walls and floor are rough
scoria. The ceiling is 60' high and
slightly vaulted. Imbedded in the
ceiling are what appear to be dagger
blades of gold and silver. The room
also contains eight large slabs of
rough scoria. On five of these rest the
mummified remains of manscorpions.
This chamber is where dead manscor-
pion clerics are entombed. Three of the
mummies are Undead. In most respects,
manscorpion mummies are treated as
normal mummies. However, because
they are protecting a temple dedicated
to their Immortal, these mummies are
Turned as spirits on the Cleric Turning
Undead Tables. They also have a
greater number of Hit Dice than normal
mummies and save at a higher level.
Manscorpion mummies can sting with
their tails for 1-10 hp damage but are
no longer able to inject poison. However,
anyone stung by a manscorpion mum-
my is affiicted with the rotting disease
caused by the touch of a mummy. Once
disturbed, the mummies pursue the PCs
throughout the complex until either
they or the PCs are destroyed.
Manscorpion mummies (3): AC 3;
HD 8 + 1; hp 42,37,31; MV 60'(20');
HAT 2 (1 touch/1 tail); Dmg 1-12 (fists)/1-10
+disease; Save F8; ML 12; AL C; ER/54;
SD harmed only by spells, fire, or magi-
cal weapons (all of which do only half
damage); immune to sleep, charm, and
hold spells.
If levitating or flying PCs inspect the
ceiling, they can see that the dagger
blades are actually thin, twisted shafts
of gold and silver. This phenomenon was
caused when the gold and silver coins in
the wreck melted and ran down be-
tween the loose rocks like hot wax in a
mold. When the manscorpions exca-
vated this room, they carefully removed
the rock and left the bizarre stilettos of
precious metal. If removed from the
ceiling, the gold and silver blades are
worth 5,000 gp total. However, the
DUNGEON 51
PRIDE OF THE SKY
metal blades help support the ceiling,
and if they are removed, there is a 75%
chance that the roof will collapse, doing
6-36 hp damage to anyone in the room.
The PCs must support the ceiling in
some way (simple wooden beams work
nicely) before extracting the gold and
silver, or they risk being crushed and
buried alive by the collapsing roof.
19. Lesser Hold.
This room is carved from the fused
rock and scoria. Running across the
arched ceiling are four large white
buttresses. The room is unlit and
contains an unusual assortment of
treasure. In the northeast corner is a
pile of six partially melted silver
statues, while stacked neatly in the
northwest corner are five large
blocks of welded coins. Also in the
room are four dark, robed figures
that hold small glowing red spheres
in each hand. The figures are moving
toward you.
Soon after the airship crashed, evil
spirits possessed the bodies of several
elves. These evil spirits came from a
deserted plateau known as Natoka's
Grave, 20 miles east of the crash site.
Natoka's Grave is a sacred burial
ground of the red orcs. These evil spir-
its, known as wyrds, haunted the area
of the crash site until the coming of the
manscorpions. When the manscorpions
found the crash site, they negotiated
with the wyrds and made allies of them
rather than destroying them. Thus, the
manscorpions have excellent guards for
their treasure, and the wyrds can re-
main at the crash site. The wyrds are
rewarded for their service by being
given all the manscorpions' elven pris-
oners. In this treasure room are three
normal wyrds and one greater wyrd.
They immediately attack any nonman-
scorpion entering the room but will not
pursue the PCs beyond the temple area
(area 9).
Normal wyrds (3): AC 4; HD 4; hp 20
each; MV 120'(40'); HAT 2; Dmg 1-6/1-6;
Save E4; ML 12; AL C; CC/89. Each
wyrd attacks using two glowing spheres
for 1d6 hp damage per sphere (ld6 +3
hp damage vs. elves). Clerics Turn nor-
mal wyrds as wraiths.
Greater wyrd: AC 0; HD 8; hp 35;
MV 120'(40'), flying 240'(80'); HAT 2;
Dmg 1-1011-10+paralysis; Save E8; ML
12; AL C; CC/89. The greater wyrd
52 Issue No. 20
attacks by striking with or hurling two
glowing spheres. A hit by a sphere
causes 1-10 hp damage; the victim must
make a Saving Throw vs. Paralysis or
be paralyzed for 2-8 turns. Elves struck
by the spheres take 1d10 +5 hp damage
but are immune to the globes' paralyz-
ing effects. In addition, anyone viewing
these hideous creatures must make a
Saving Throw vs. Spells or attack with
a - 3 penalty to both hit and damage
rolls. Greater wyrds are Turned as
phantoms.
Both normal and greater wyrds can be
hit only by magical or silver weapons.
They are immune to sleep, charm, and
hold spells.
The buttresses in the ceiling are the
bones and talons of one of the great rear
claws of the dragon. The claw is arched
and spread, as if the dragon were stoop-
ing down on its prey.
The fires that melted the treasure
were not hot enough to melt all of it
thoroughly. Some chests of coins and
many statues were not melted com-
pletely and survived in disfigured form.
One of the statues in this room is possi-
bly a horse, though it is difficult to tell.
Another statue is definitely the repre-
sentation of a dancer, but the head of
the figure has been completely melted
away. The other four statues are hu-
manoid figures, badly melted. The
statues are worth 200 gp each.
In some parts of the burning Pride,
the heat generated was insufficient to
melt metal coins but was more than
enough to incinerate the wooden chests
holding them. The coins in such chests
were welded together into large, un-
gainly masses. The blocks of coin in the
northwest corner of the room still retain
the shape of the wooden chests that
once held them. One of the blocks con-
tains gold coins worth a total of 400 gpo
Three blocks are of silver coins, worth
200 gp and 100 gp ( x 2). The last block
is of mixed gold, silver, and copper
coins, worth a total of 150 gpo No usable
coins can be hammered loose or in any
way removed from the mass of welded
metal. The blocks must be melted down
before the metal can be used again.
20. Treasure Hold.
This is nothing but a rough, square-
shaped room that the manscorpions
cut out of the rock for holding their
treasure. A large rough stairway
runs from the entrance down to the
center of the room 40' below.
The floor of this room is cluttered
with all sorts of valuable objects. You
can see chunks of gold, silver, and
copper as well as many gems and
bejewelled items scattered about.
This is obviously the main treasury
of the temple.
Naturally, the room is well guarded,
containing two manscorpion mum-
mies (hp 40, 33; see area 18 for com-
plete statistics), two greater wyrds (hp
43, 36), and six normal wyrds (hp 20
each; see area 19 for complete wyrd
statistics). The mummies and the wyrds
work together to defend the room. These
creatures remain out of sight in alcoves
built under the stairs. They allow in-
truders to enter the room, then rush out
to defend the stairs and prevent their
foes' escape. If Sanxshun has chosen to
make his last stand in this room, he
cooperates with these tactics. Should
the PCs escape from the room, Sanx-
shun (if he is present and still alive) and
the mummies pursue them throughout
the complex. The wyrds will not pursue
past area 9.
On the floor of the treasury are the
following: 10 large chunks of copper
worth 10 gp each; eight large chunks of
silver worth 100 gp each; three chunks
of gold worth 500 gp each; two small
chunks of platinum worth 500 gp each;
and 10 large chunks of copper, silver,
and gold all melted together, worth 75
gp each. These chunks were apparently
knocked or hammered loose from the
walls, ceiling, and floors.
Scattered over the floor of the room
among the hunks and chunks of metal
are over 500 gems worth 500 gp, 400 gp
( x 2), 300 gp (X 2), 200 gp ( x 3), 100 gp
( x 5), 50 gp ( x 8), 25 gp ( x 25), 20 gp
(x 25), 10 gp (x 80), 5 gp (X 175), and 1
gp (X 200). Unfortunately, most of the
gems were cracked or scarred by the
heat of the crash, reducing their value.
Mixed with the gems and pieces of
precious metal are 35 damaged pieces of
jewelry and bejewelled items worth a
total of 5,000 gpo Because they were all
damaged in the crash and fire, these
items no longer have any worth beyond
the value of the gems and precious
metal that can be recovered from them.
(continued on page 72)
j
ANCIENT BLOOD
The dogs are huge winter wolves,
twice the size of regular ones. They are
truly dead and cannot attack. They
hunt with their master in Jotunheim
now.
The frescoes along the walls are simi-
lar to those found in area 7. The battle
in which Mok-Turoknin slew the white
dragon is detailed, and one of the white
dragon's horns is shown being made
into a large drinking vessel (which the
king is seen using often in other fres-
coes). Numerous battles with the hu-
man tribesmen are also recorded, all
suspiciously ending in the giants' favor.
The two chests are both locked and
trapped. If either trap is set off, the
sconce above dumps burning ice onto
anyone within 10' of the chest. This
inflicts 4-24 hp damage (save for half
damage) to the PC(s), and each combus-
tible and magical item must make its
own saving throw if the PC fails the
first save. Inside each chest are 2,500 gp
and 4,000 sp.
(continued from page 52)
There is also a small amount of magi-
cal treasure among the jumbled mass on
the floor. All of the magical items were
taken from victims of the manscorpions
and were not part of the airship's cargo.
By sorting through the clutter, the PCs
may find a ring ofplant control; a ring
ofprotection +2; an ivory and silver
scroll tube, worth 50 gp, containing a
scroll of protection from lycanthropes;
and a large silver flask, worth 25 gp,
containing a potion of clairvoyance.
ConclUding the Adventure
If the PCs defeat the manscorpions
and sack the temple, their only real
problem will be transporting the trea-
sure through the Broken Lands. The
DM can use the mass combat ("War
Machine") rules from the Companion
Set for large battles between the PCs
and hordes of orcs intent upon separat-
ing the adventurers from their hard-
won treasure.
72Issue No. 20
ConclUding the Adventure
If the PCs return to Drinidok and Ian's
dreams have ended, there will be a
great celebration for the heroes. The
recovery of the sword Thorgrim will
stamp the approval of the gods upon the
PCs, and songs will be sung of their
great deeds (the highest honor that can
be paid). Ian will declare them blood
brothers (or sisters), and perform the
appropriate rituals that night during
the feasting.
By the time the PCs return to the
village, the pass will have cleared and
they can return to Dagmalstad, where
all accounts can be settled. The PCs
should have an uneventful trip back to
the city, where sunshine, warm sea
breezes, and laughing children will
prove that they've returned from the
land of the dead at last.
If the PCs are unable to defeat the
manscorpions but are able to escape, the
manscorpions pursue the party for a
maximum of 10 miles from the temple.
The manscorpions will go no farther
because they fear that the intruders
may be only a diversion to lure out the
temple's defenders while another party
waits to sack the place.
If they escape, the PCs may hire mer-
cenaries or men-at-arms in a second
attempt to take the Temple of Skorpios.
The DM may wish to use this second
attempt as an opportunity to use the
"War Machine" rules. While the PCs
gather mercenaries, the manscorpions
also gather their strength. Thus, when
the PCs return, a great battle can be
fought in the narrow ravine.
The PCs may not wish to bother re-
smelting and refining the treasure and
may simply sell it in its present form.
They should be reminded that anyone
buying the chunks of gold and silver
will want to make a profit on the deal
Further Adventures
There are a number of variations made
possible by the nature of the encounters
in this adventure. You could provide a
higher-level party with a challenge by
using the keep intact and filled with
giants. Enough information has been
provided about defenses and occupants
to make this a viable alternative.
Another thing you can do to add a
more fantastic element is to arrange a
time travel gate in Battle Axe Pass. The
winds and low visibility could slowly
carry the party back in time to the days
just following Mok-Turoknin's death.
The party must then face the remaining
giants and keep Mok-Turoknin from
being laid to rest (eliminating the curse
altogether). Such a party should be of
5th-7th level to handle the remaining
giants and their pets.
If you wish to put a final dramatic cap
onto the adventure, arrange for another
earthquake to rock the area as the
party leaves. The keep is completely
destroyed, burying the giant king for-
ever. Fortunately, this time the earth-
quake fails to activate the curse of
Mok-Turoknin. Q
and will not pay full price. The PCs will
receive between 50% to 75% of the
stated values. In the role of a buyer of
the treasure, the DM should drive a
very hard bargain. The buyer doesn't
really know how much of the treasure is
solid silver or gold and how much might
be a thin layer of metal melted around a
large piece of worthless rock.
However, no matter how the PCs gain
the treasure, whether by themselves or
at the head of an army of mercenaries,
they will win renown. The tale of the
lost airship and its fabulous treasure
lost nothing in the telling over the
years. Those in the adventuring party
who find the wreck will be nicknamed
"the Pride Finders" and will be treated
with honor and respect by both ordinary
citizens and hard-bitten treasure
hunters alike. However, if manscorpions
elsewhere ever find out that the PCs
looted one of their most valued temples,
the PCs' troubles have only begun. Q
THE BANE OF
ELFSWOOD
8YST PHENJ . SMITH
Vengeance
denied in life is
reborn in death.
16Issue No. 21
Slrphl'Tl J. S mith alt ,.T1d$ classes at ,h..
U llIl't rtl l (Y of,\IlUtlor h u fit' lttll Hmcto f! . Jlt
has bf'f'T1 pla:vinR tne D&lr /lam" [or
about {""f'.vt'a r. and is a bl/<: fan of /hI'
Hr Ulfl ' hodl'Y learn. Stf'ph NI
would lIJu to thanJr Slrip William
DRA GO,"" .\!O{(CUi fll " " f1fl/lr ," {or an
IHn;,ri nll man." qUt' st iOf/lf and gi l,j"..: him
a greQtl'" opprecsonon of /hI' pou'u. of
the odsc.
"The Bane of Elfswood" ill 8 D&U Cern -
pa nion &-1 modul e for 45 pIa)",' " cha rac-
ters arlenllI 1518 (about 74 total
leveler The adventuring part y should
incl ude at lea st one magi e-use r or elf
a nd one or ''''0 cl..r i<'8
Aeeompa nyi ng t he PCII on t his quest
is Dr uid" Glana dyl . an elven adven-
turer, Dr uida can be used in two di lT, r
ent ..... aye: '"1an NI' C r un by tht'
Dungeon Mester or as a PC. if an ext ra
player is i nterfost Nl i n rol lpla yinK her.
lh ' r game IIt a tillt ics a nd background
informat ion a re provided in the "Adve n-
t ure Backgr ound" section of t he modu le .
This advent ure is -rtnen to be ro m,
panble with t he Nor old campaiKn
i nt roduced in module f.r th..
U'ar!orJ". bu t it can easily be insert ed
int o most othtr ca mpa ign Ilf.tt ings_The
act ion takes place durin!: au tumn. in
a nd a round the t iny elve n eertl e me nt of
Elfs.....ood. nne of t he ma ny "fore st-
hornell" sca t te red t hrou..: hout Nerwol d.
Before st urti n.: play, rhc should
place Elfswood in an isolated wcoded
a reu wit hin 100 mi lt's of the !It ronll: hold
or to..... n in which he willhell t he ed ve n-
t ure t o begin.
A ft>w of the monst ers in thill modul e
come from AC9 Crt'utun' Cutul"NUt'. M.I
the DM should heve II copy of t hat ec-
Cl'SlIOry handy. If t he dOl' 1I not o..... n
t his tome, he shoul d lIubllti t ut e ether
a ppr opriate monsters li S he 5t'f'!1 fit .
Adventure Backgr ound
Or uida Gla nadyl , II fema le elf adven-
t urer; seeks a id from t he PClI in aveng-
in.: t ht' mysterious dea th s of her family
mlmb.:rlO. She makes he r plea in II PC's
cou rt (if om! cont rolll a domi nion l or in II
t a ve rn that the part y members Ire-
quent. The should fill i n the det ai ls
concerning t he locati on of Elfllwood in
Or uida'lI "tory below.
Befort' you lItand !!lIn elf ma idt'n
wt>a ri nlC plate ma il. A sword hanK!!
in i u sca bbard lit her side. a nd a
Drulda's Reledvee
Hel a tl \' e Co nd ition l AK"liItlon
Myrdel or ' fat he r ) Undead fP't'a ter wyrdl Tra vele with odic
Cuami ra lmot her ) Undead fgreater wyrdl Tr....ele with odic
Gr t'nl yf lbrother) Undead fJfl'ea ter wyedl Travel. with odic:
Gylak (broth er) Alive Wanden Elfswood forest
Myrkal (brot he r ) Alive Wanden Elfswood forell
Sil vyr (brot her) Undead (vi. ion) EIf.wood seu jement
Roeeperyl fl i.U- r ) Undea d (vil ion) Elf.wood eet t beme m
Brandylor lunde) Undead (gn- ater wyrdj Tra vele with odic
Dewfyrn (a unt) Undead (normal wyrd ) ElfllWood sett lement
Amberlok (male cousi n) Undead (villion) Elfllwood IM' u lemen t
GalTbrook (ma le coullin) Undt'a d (vi_ionI EIf.wood roe uleme nt
Rf'dlyf lmalt' couli n) Undt' ad (vi, ion) EIf. wood lIeu lement
Snowbough (male ro u.i n) Undea d (villion) Elfl ....ood IM' u lemt' nt
Fadil (male roullin) Undt'ad (normal wyrdl Elfllwoodlleulement
G1ad ia ' female roullinl Undt'ad (normal wyrdl Elflwood IM'ttleme nt
o...::yl fmale roulin) Undt'ad (normal wyrd) Elflwood lIt'u lt' ment
Myr a (ft' malt' cous in) Undead (normal wynll Elfewood lIfIu lt' me nt
Chrye.ant ha (I illterinla w) Alive Wa nd",n Elf.wood fort'llt
It i. poMible to bring tome of Druida'lI rt'l at ive. back to life after deft'ating their
undead form . Whil e the ...Ivel of the vi. ion can be rt'turned to li ft' only by a ""ish
(t ht' ir bodies were bur nf'd a, a n ofTl" ri ng to th... Sp ht' re of Entropy), it il euier to
revive the elvel transformed into wyrd . Unlellt the \lo-yrd, a re utterly dest royed
(t hrough delltruction by derical Turning. di, int egrat ion, a raisl" dNJdlrrUIIl" d,ad
fully IIpell , etc.), t ht' adventurt'n will be It'ft with the corpllt's. In lIuch an inl tanee,
Druida will ellpt<'l the PCI to at leut help her bury her loved onell. [f a PC d eri c:
offen to railM' from t he dl"ad a ny of the elf ma iden '. famil y memberl, he may do
IIO-provided that the body to be railed ie present a nd relatively intact . ANume
that the Glanadyl wyrd. hav e been undead for 16 daYI when t he PCI nnt arrive
in Elfllwood.
A deric ..... ho brinlJ1l any oftht'le elvel back from the dt'ad will rK'eive generoUA
dona tions to hil ordt' r from the Gl anaydyl survi von for yean to come.
well -crafted long bow i . slung a Cf088
her shoulder. Obviously, she te e n
advent ure r or some kind. Th e el f
brulIh...1 back hf" r gulden.brown hair.
a nd her green eyes fix upon each of
you for a n iOllant . She deBf1I her
throat ne rve ualy and twKln!l her tal e.
her voice musical but her tone sad.
" My nam e ill Druid. Glanady l."
she a n DOUDet'I, " a nd I come to you
from my fa mily'. sma lllM"ttlt' menl of
El fswood Ithe OM should fill in th e
distance a nd direct ion from the do-
mini on or town], Last month l ien
my foreat horneo to viert some h uman
adve nt uri ng friends who were about
to embark on a long journey llOut h.
After my companion. departed. I
returned to my family-only to dill-
cover t hat a t.. rribl e tra Kl'dy had
occurred during my absence.
" Upon reaching my tree-berne, I
met IIOme of my family membere-c-my
aunt a nd four of my coulin&-<l nly
th ey weren't thetnflt'lvN . They were
cha nged_vil-undea d, I think. They
e pprceebcd me, grinning horribl y
the whole time, and I'hot epberea of
ener gy at me (rom their hand . 1
bare ly eeceped with my life."
Druida paul'lt's mome ntarily a nd
Klances a t each of you, trying to
register your eeect fcne to her story.
She lakH a deep breath, .igbs audi-
bly, a nd eenunues.
"I 88 W no si gns orthe rest of my
family-my parents, beot hera. . illters .
a nd th... rt' llt of my rt' lati\elJ-while I
WIU under at tac k, I don't know if
they'rt' dead or ali ve: I ca n only hope
t hl"Y rtICapt>d befort' , , ;'
Druida btogi nl' to tremblt' . a nd te an
well up in her eyes. Bravt'ly, she
hold. thl"m bac k.
" 1nl"t'd ht"lp to a \'t"ngt" w'h at e n 'r
cur1M' has ravagf'd my family'l
IIte ad." sht"lI8yll. a fai nt quiver in her
voice but a fierre look of determina,
ti on in her e)es. " I have hr ard Ito-
r iel of )'our kindneN a nd pro..... eN in
combat . Unfort unatel y, I ca nnot olTer
you much in ret urn for your help. I
ha ...e lI8"'f'd up 10,000 i o1d pit<'es,
and I would gladly exchange th em
for your aqiJltanCi!. I know thill
amount i. not much to lIuch t'ltpt' ri -
eneed ad... ..nturen lUI yourael ves, but
it is all I ha ve. Will you he lp me?"
If Druida makes this plea in the court
of a PC lord or lady. she al80 pledgell to
eerve that lord in return for his BMist
ence. The addition of a fair ly hlg h.le ....el
elf rdainer to a PC lord's IIlatTcould
ha ve a small effeet on hill dominion's
Confide nce Level . The lord ', refusa l to
ht' lp a poor elf maiden in dilltreN could
nl"gati vely affect the domin ion'. ConCi -
denee Level .
Drul da Glanad)' l: AC -3: E8: hp40:
"IV 90'(30' >; 'AT I weapo n or spell:
Omg by .....eapcn type; Se ve E8: ML las
NPC) 11: ALN; 8 9, 1 16, W9, 0 13. C
15, Ch 14; magical it eme: pIau mall +2.
. hirld +2, , u..ord +I , +2 l 'S. undead.
tonI( bou' +2, II orrou', +3, ,.It'r" boots,
ring of inl'uibi/ity, poti ons of ,,,..itation
lone an d suprrhl"aIinKuwe
normal items: silver dagger, four iron
ratione, 50' rope, spri g of wolfsbane, full
wate rllitin,
Dr uida has memorized the foUowin K"
spell. if ehe ia used as an NPC (i f an
exrre playt'r il running Dru ida'i eherec-
t ee, difTt'rent . pen. may !:It' memorized):
read mCJl(ie, prot l"C'tion from l"l'il, slHp
THE BANE OFELFSWOOD
( x 2), conti nual lig ht, dl"'l"C" l"t'j/ ( 1Il 2l,
li rl" ball. hold person, rce "0""1( 1Il 2>.
Druids'l llpell book contain. the ebcve
llpell. plu.: detec mCJl(ie. {loatinll du e.
liRht , ESP' inlJisi bi/i'.v, u. ,uard I.oclr,
duprl mOllie, u.'atl"r brrolhi flil . growth of
plants, and hallucinatory tnralfl.
Druids wal bor n into th e elven dan of
Whi. perinKGrove over 107 yun ago.
She wa. named a druid who lived
in the foreat near Whillperi ng Grove
a nd wal ..... el l liked by the elves for his
IIpr iteli kt' eenee of humor. She hu (or
had l four brothers and D sisi ee. Alto
Jjvi nK" wit h he r immedi ate family at
Elfe.....ood ..... ere her uncle and aunt. tht' ir
childre n, and her ei.ter.In-l ew ft he wif.
of Dru ida'i el des t brother). See the
chart of Druida'lI relat ives for the
names, current condit ions, a nd positions
of t hf'llot' el ves.
Some of the boxed text in thill module
describes Druids '. undead relati ves as
facl"l t' III, nemeleee monet ere. Dru ids
will be ab le to reeegniee t he idt' nti tiH of
OIJNGEON 17
THE BANE OFElFSWOOD
her dead ram ily members , ho.... ever, and
ca n convey l hUi informati on to the et ber
PC .
About 30 yfOB", ego, Druid. ', fami ly
decided to 1..-8\'(> the- Nlfet y of Whisper .
ing Grove to form iLll ewn IImallllt'ult
menl oThe Glanadyls were known all a n
edvent urcus lot , lIO the cla n If'adt'n at
Whisperi ng Grove WE're not too sur-
prieed when the family opted to _k itt!
fortune e lsewher e. Th.. ties bet ween th e
two groups of elves were never severed.
however; once t he Glanadyltl M'u led
into Elfllwood. t hey did their best to
kl,,(,p in touch with t hl.'ir old fr it'nds
back. home.
Druid. i. a true Glanlldyl in l h ll l ld lt'
il a lM!uonro adventurer. Over the palll
12 years, sh... hall traveled wit h many
different ecmpenione: other elvea, ha lf
li ngs, even It is wit h humans,
however,lhat Druid. has done most of
her advent uring. She never fail , to bto
a mazed at their many different moods-,
and how qui ckl y t hey cha nKe. Her aMO-
datio n wit h mankind has pr ovided he r
with knowledge of hu man eue toms a nd
politi cs but haa al so taujl:ht her how to
Nnw". drink fin.. win_ a nd al ...., a nd
occaaionally use t rick..,ry a nd deceit. In
ot her word Dru ide 'e exper-iences wit h
humanity have mad e he r 8 consummate
edventurer!
Nonetheless, Dr uid a is a ki nd.
friendly. fun-lovi ng perso n (a lt houjl:h the
C'ircumstanC'H of ht'r family',
t ion ..ilI do much to lIubdue thellE' char
acteri st ics durinjl: thi adve nt url' Jand ia
loyal to her fr iends . She tend!! to bea
bit foolhard y in ba tt le. a t r a it I he
picked up from one of her hu ma n com
panioll5 lthe late Renald o tht' Fearl elUl l.
but she has lellrned t hat Ihe ia bt.- tt e r lit
.,.-II-ca8ting than s\loordfight ing.
If Druid. i. ullt.'d IlIl a n NPC. t h.. OM
IIhould pull llOme punch" l to kl"t'p her
alive unti1t he fi na l confronta t ion ..it h
t he crea t ure re ponsible for her family's
demille. If Druida i8 a PC. htr player
. hould bewarned t hat Druida ill not to
be played as a front li ne fight ..r \lo'ho
boldly tahs on what e ver hOrTible mon
liter the OM t hrows at t he pa rty. She is
a n E.lpert .I..... el charllctt-r ca u!Cht in a
Companion,le\'el ad\'enture , Thi l is not
10lill y t hat Dru ida il uJl('le1IlI: lIhe hall a
di"'erllE' al"llt' na l of 1Ipl."1I11 and weaponll.
a nd ill qu ite capable of hel pinKt he otht"r
PCa overcome a tough foe, She lIhould
8AlIi st the ot her PC, in ba tt h.'. not lead
t hem,
18I"uo No. 2\
Th.. Li k.. ly Cul pri t
The Glanadyl fam ily-Druida relates-
haa on ly one t rue enemy, lin evil cle ric
namt'Ci Ir kt horn Ba li n. Thie c1l' ric \lo'U
once a kindly druid who ca red for t he
pla nts a nd a nimals of Elfllwood and the
surr ounding wilderness. When Druida's
fam ily t r it"d to build tht' ir tree- he me in
t he forest . however; t he druid became
enruge-d and ettempred to dri ve t he
el ves out wit h hi s ma,"cal abilitiell. The
elves won out. but the druid made them
hill enemies for life.
Irkt hor n then enlisted the ai d of a
sma ll arm)' of hobj{Obl ins to attack t he
Gla nad)'la. but t he 8.lll18Ult pro...edun-
eucceeeful . Afte r t hill hatt ie Irkthorn
Wil li ru pj.ured , a nd Druide'e Iat her put
him under II IltlJlJ t o never a gain come
wit hin a mile of the ('1... 1.". settlement all
10nK88 he lived. For the past 30 yean
the ex-druid has lived a life ofbroodinj{
i n a emall eheek about four miles sout h-
east of t he Glanadyl home st ead. never
bother ing t he el vee t he e nure time.
AlI8umi ng t ha t t he PCs ace..-pt her
olTer. Druida takes t he party to
wood seulement (area 1I, If the
want a to UIOe t his modul e's Wildemese
Encounter Thble during thia journey. he
should dillregard any dire roll re. ult ing
i n an encounter with elf surv i vors; t hi "
confronta t ion ca nnot occur un til after
t he PCa have visited El fawood. From
the een lemer u. Druide ca n ellsily I('ad
the pon y to Irkt horn' lhack.
Since the forellt of Elfswood hu no
cha r tra illl, and th e bla nkt"t of
fallen lea\e. ca n often hidt' II ma ll ani
ma l holes. lOO!It" rocks, and ot her !luch
pit flills. Dr uidll aska t hut t he PCs not
UllE' during t hi ll quellt. Even if t he
PCII refulle' ht' r requellt, IJruidll will
tra...e) on foot. The I hould kt"l:' p in
mind th a t t he pllrty mo...ell at t hl." ratt" of
itAII 10wl'lIt member.
For the Dungeon Moster
The hOrTor t hat hauntJI El fswood ca n
i ndl."t'd be a tt ributed to t he veng!;Oful
cleri c. Irk t horn Balin. Onre a rl' lI pe<'ted
dru id. Irkthorn ten dl."d the vallt t rAct of
woodlanda arou nd Elf, wood, a nd he did
a prau.eworthy job.
But Ir kt hom 'lI love of na t ure was
ba!ll.'Ci in pa rt on pride, Th e drui d had a
fa \'or ite section oft hl' forellt. a II ma ll
gro\'e of mal{niftrent t rt"t"s und t" r whotot'
ca nopy dart ed a dea n. frellh st rea m. At
t he foot oft hill grove lay a n open
meadow decorated wit h II myri ad of
fraKr ant flowers. Ir kt hor n t hought of
thi s place as hi s own private medi tat ion
aa nct uaf}'. and he took great pa inl! in
pr p!\t"rvi ng and enhandnj{ the a rva's
beauty.
w hen a fam ily of wander ing el ves
came upon Ir kt horn's llanct ua ry a nd
bega n const ructing t heir homes high in
t h(' boujl:hs of the druid', prized trees,
he demanded thllt t hey leave his Kr0\'('
immedia tely, TIl(' elves, fe't.'linKund er
no obligation to do t he bidd ing of a me re
human reven if he W IUI dru id). poli tel y
Informed Ir kt horn t ha t thry wou ld now
maintain the bt.a uty of t his Pllrt of the
forellt . Enra ged. t he druid t ri ed t o evict
t hl" int ruders u, inj{ hill ma iCical powers.
bu t in thi ll regard t he Gla nadyl ll had
him outd flll.lWd. and Ir kt horn wall
driven away.
Ma ny t imet' Ir kthorn tried to chase
the olvee from hi ll rneduanon gr ove, but
he never succeed ed . Th e dr ui d's linger
boiled un til it etea med wi th ha t red . One
Iateful night . Irk t hom'lI rage peaked,
a nd he cursed the for ellt and t he life of a
druid. Il l' t hen became a cleric dedi-
cered to t he wa y. of E... il a nd began
_ki ng t o u ncover t he m)' lIlerivlI oft hv
Sp he-re of Ent ropy. Not 10nKt herl."lIller.
he made a pact with a smal l a rmy of
hobgobl ins, a nd togethl'r they . _ultt.'d
t he Gla nadyl .....ulemenr. wh en the
battle wall over. t he hoh((oblinll had
bee n routed and Ir kt horn captured.
During hill cnptivi ty. the dt-ric utt ered
uch a IItri ng offr ijl: htful oathll t hat
Myrdt"i or GIlInadyl. t hl." pllt ria rch of t he
elven lK"ttlt' ment. reali u -d that t he once
kind druid had btocome dllngerousl y
evil. nlt' elf qu ickly rumma Ked t hrouKh
hill old ad ...t-nturinjl: gea r and pr oduct.'d a
maKi cal ll('fOlI. StandinK bt>fore t hO:'
captive cleric. Myrdelor dl"Cllired, Un
den ta nd ye. Ir kt horn Bali n. once re
spt."Cted druid oft hi. fort'8t . th at 1111 long
a5 ) 'e II hall li....e. nevl'r aga in lIha n ye
come ....; t hi n a mile of thi. gro \e. Now
10:0. and bother my fami ly no lonll:t'r !"
Thus W IUI Irkt horn Ba lin IlHuft1 ' to
ne\'er again entN hi ll- old meditat ion
The c1eric' lI hatrt"d for t he el ... ..s
grew. but th e Ht"WI kept hi m from llct ing
upon hi . emot iona. Throughout thrt"l:'
de<:ades of brooding. he ront inut"d to
plot aKllinst hill enemil."a. olTering hill
very lIOul to t he powers of Ent ropy if
only they w(luld help him to ga in his
revt"nll:e. But Irkt horn coul d not hurt
t he Glanad)' 11I III lonll: as he lived. and
event ull lly t ht' old cle r ic di..od.
Aftt'r hi, death. Ir kthorn '8 \'t"nKefu!
THE BANE OFELFSWOOD
ti on of t he elt mecue encounte r with t he
spir it are a ll provided at " Th e Fi nal
Confront atio n."
1
6
Odi (" mo.... orr
m.p. U:\ I
" IUrn.. it to
mllp lind mo.....
il lin y
r .. ma lnlnJl:
h.. n. in th..
lI:..n",.1
dirl't' ti on or Ih..
l h.. PIlr1).
>--< >--<
II I .
Od i<"
a h...dlf't t.
Exploring Ihe Elfswood Wilderness
When the PCs set out into the wilder -
nen i n search of whatever killed
Druide 's fam ily members. t hey a re
lik ely to run into some ofthe ot her
denizens of Elfswood-some of whom are
fri e ndly. bu t most of whom are not . Thi s
sect ion of the module pr ovides a Ran -
dom Wilderness Encounter Table, a
numbe r of Set Encount ers twbose loca-
t ions a re ma rked on t he ma p of
El fswcod ), a nd a special recurring
e ncounter with a wise a nd helpful pixie
known as Old Ma n Hood.
Here a re a few ot her thinga t o keep in
mind a9 the PCs explore th e wildern ess:
Mot'ement Ratt s. Remember that a
group of characters moves at the base
rate of ita slowest member. Since Oruida
refuses t o ride a heree t hrou gh the dan -
gerous. tra illess terra in of Elfswood,
this ra te may be 90 ' per t urn or 18
miles per day.
Th e te rrai n that th e PCs cross ca n
affect their movemen t rate.
Od ic-St arti nll
Pn int a nd
Dir.. ("t io n or
:\t o v.. m.. nl
0 :\1 rnll .. a 3.
Od ic- mo' f'.
..t n ight a hf' ad.

Odle pnw.
with in I hf'll ot
PC. It rollow.
thf'm a nd
an adu' t hat
nilht .
ibl e during t he day. t he odic follows the
advent ure rs un til they pit ch ca mp for
t he ni /{ht : t hen it settles into a t re-e
about a mi le away to begin its a ttack.
See t he diagr a m above for a n example
of the OdicMat ic in action.
Th e OM should use his own judgment
when using this random encounter
method. lf t he PCs cross paths with the
odic at the very start of t he ga me. be-
for e they've gai ned a ny clues to th e
identi t y of t he ra vager of Elfawood or
explored much of t he surroundi ng wil-
demeee. th e aura of mystery upon
which t his module depends will never
devel op. Conversely. the PCs mig ht
e xplore all of Elfswood. gai n every s in-
gle clue, a nd know for a fact th at a n
odic is responsibl e for the devasta t ion at
the Gl anadyl setllement, but du e to t he
luck of the di ce never meet up with t he
odic. In lihort, do not hesitate t o ignore II
r andom encounter wit h the odic if ita
t iming di srupts th e advent ure. Once t he
PCs ha ve explored some of th e Elfswood
wilderness and picked up a few clues.
however. the)' should be cons idered fair
game.
Th e odic's ga me stat isti cs. those of its
undead elven fo11owera, and a descrip-
Encou nteri ng t he Odi c
Since odica (li ke all spirits) are wander-
er s, the one responsibl e for th e desrruc-
t ion of Druids's family is no longer at
the scene or its crime. It constantly
patrols the whole of El fswood. movin g
in a random manner. In order to fight
the spir it . the PCs must first lind it-or
have it find them!
The PCa can encounter th e odic in one
of t.....o waya. The OMcan simply throw
the odic a t the party whenever he feels
they're ready for it . pr obably a fter the
adventurers have explored muc h of t he
Elfswood wildern ess and obta ined some
clues as to what ra vaged the Glanadyl
famil y. If. however. the OM would like
to add a dimension of unpr cdi ctabi lity
to the game. a random movement
system- t he OdicMa t ic-can be used to
determine the IIpi ri t's moves a nd when
it crosses paths wi t h the PCs.
The OdicMatil: is simple to use. When
the PCs fi nt rea ch Elfswood. the odic is
locat ed at t he X on the map. The spi rit
moves 24 mi les per day in four legs of
six mil es eac h. It moves one of t hese
legs every thre-e hours of dayli ght. st a rt -
ing a t dawn. It fi rst moves in t he direc-
t ion of the a rro w on the map. hut t he
0"1should roll Id 6 before each subse-
qu ent movement leg and eenault the
tabl e bel ow to det ermine t he odic's next
di recti on.
The Odic-Ma li c
Die roll
(ld6) Move me nt
12 Odic moves a headleft
3-4 Odic moves st ra ight ahea d (no
change in course}
5-6 Odic moves e heedrtght
If the odi c moves off the map. the OM
should return it t o the point where it
len the map a nd move it any rema ining
hex es ill the general direct ion of the
porty. Th e spirit det ect s t he PCs whe n it
passe s within one hex of the pa rty's
pos it ion. Since it is power less a nd lnvie-
spiri t lived on in the form of a n odic. In
thi s form. the ex-druid attacked Elfs-
wood. Since the Glanadyl homestead
was a settle ment and not 8 clan. the
el ves had no Tree of Lift" to help ward
off the undead spir it. The odic kill t'd
most of the Glanadyls a nd forced th em
to become his undead servants . Even
now,lrkthorn's spirit and his elven
recruits ti relessly pat rol t he fcrest .
DUNGEON 19
THE BANE OFELFSWOOD
Through c1eaf hexes a nd meadow. the
PC. move a t their nonnal In hill.
and roreau , they move at two-third. the
normal rate. Swamplanda reduce move.
ment to nne-half norma L
The two riven that run t hroug h
Elfswood are about 60-80' acroa in
most places, a nd deep enough to drown
a metel -e rmor ed adventurer. MOfll unar-
mcr ed characten with decent ewtm-
ming , kill. could probably swim 1ICTUll8
tht'lie riven wi th little difficulty. A PC
in heavy a rmor must build III small raft
t o noat 8CT'OlU1 or else hang onto a good-
. iu log and kick hi' way to the crber
side.
POll/ tion. Keep track of the PC. '
polIitions-and t he cdi e'e! It il important
to know where t he PC. an' located at
.u times.tr lhe il ulI.ing th e Od ic-
Malic random movement gener ator. he
will need to keep track of t he odi c'8
po.i tio n. too.
AI lonKas Druid. aceempa nie s the
PC" t here is no cha nce of t he edve nr ur-
t"rI bec:oming 1000t in her home forest.
Should the PC. wender off t he E'dgt' of
the map, heve Old Hood 1_ "Ran-
dom WildE-rne.. Encounter" ' ) a ppea r
a nd point t he party back i n t he r ight
direcncn.
Autumn in Elfsu.'OOd. Thi s edvenrure
lakt"11 place in tht" middlE- t o latter pan
of t he Ial l seeson. It ia vitally importa nt
t hat you convey this i nformatio n t o t he
pla)'pn for flC"vpral rt"aso nl .
Finlt , the t ime of yt"ar ca n great ly
enha nce t he a t mosphere oft his edven-
ture. Autumn is a lleallOn ofte n
Bted with d('ath or dying: trral8 t urfUI
brown, t rt"t"s 10tIt' tht" ir Ipa ves, bird.. fly
sout h, a nd a ni ma lI prt"pa rt" for th l" lr
winter hibernations . Since dt"at h a nd
undeath a rt" major t hpmt's in t his mod
ule, t he ca n cont ribute gr eatl y t o
the player!' enjoyment of thill adven
tur e by uling the tlt"a80n as a n addi
tional plotl"lpmpnt.
St-oond, th(' fall llt'ason mak ell the
odic' ll init ial atta ck for m (its C'harmirrll
leaVE-I ) much more ifUlidioUi a nd t"ffee'
t iY(' . While a gro up o( experienced a d
vent urers miltht wpll be l us picioul if l ilt
lea v" l w..tf' to flMt up to t h..m in
t he middle of a hot , breezt' ll' llS summer
night, who would noti ce s ilt dead It'av p.
. wirli ng into ca mp with a hOlit of ot hers
on a cold, windy fall evpninlt ?
So don't be afra id to l{t' ntly remind
t ht' PC. what t ime of yea r it is. During
lull a in t hp action as t he pa rty travplll
t hrough Elfswood, . how t he m the aquir-
20 Issue No. 21
rel e gat her ing nuts for t he coming
wi nt er, and the VlUltflocks of bird. fly,
ing lIOut h to warmer climes. Have a PC
sli p and fa ll on a bed of wet leaves or
come down with hay (ever or a mild
cold. A part jculaj-ly chi lhng breeze t hat
flC" nda ahivt"rs down t he PCs' apint'l
would a lllO be a n appropriate reminder.
Random Wildprneas Encou nt ers
Th e 0 :\1 Ilhoul d make four random
encounter checks each game day,three
during the daylight hOUri a nd one at
ni ght . An encounte r occurs on a roll of 1
on Id6. 1b det ermine which encounter
takt"s place, roll 2d8 du ri ng t he day rfcr
e ncou nte rs 2 161a nd Idl O+ l ltfor
encounters 12211 at night a nd cons ult
t he chart on page 21. :\Ionater deserip-
li on.. followed by a , are "Speetal
Encounters" an d are det ailed below,
Elf Sunh' or.
The OMahould not UflC" this encounter
t"ar ly in the adve nt ure unl eS!l th e PCs
have al ready deduced that a n odic is
responsible for t he t ragedy i n Elfllloood,
If avinlt t he eurvi ver elves te ll all a bout
that fat eful night before the PCII have
e xplored much or rhe count rysi de, i n
eeareh of c1 Ut' 1I woul d ruin t he etmos-
phere of myst t"ry upon which t hia mod-
ul e depend...
All yc ur gr oup makE- II its way
t hrough the wil der ne ss, )'OUe re
sudde nly confronted by two sword.
bearing el f warriors who eye you
with suspicion.
If Dru ida i. . hl.' immediate ly
f't"OO){niwlI her brotheTl Gylak an d
Myr ka l. A thi rd e lf, Dru ida 'lI ailltN in
la w Chryaant ha, hides htohind a nl'a rb)'
t ret' a nd will e mt' rgl"Ifthe PCa trrt"'t't
Gyl ak and :\t )' rk a l in a fr it"ndly manner.
If Druida ill not with th e PCII , t ht.' two
Gl anadyl br otheu approac h t he ad\t"n-
turen t a uti oufll)', warning t ht" m ahaut
the odic a nd telli ng tht" m about the
attack on El f"wood.
The8t' el\' t>lI a re the nnl)' survi\'ora of
the odic's 85.'lauh on t hl' Gla nadyl
Ilt"ttleme nt , Th ey ha\e wander E'd
t hrough t ht' forellt t"ver lince, trying to
a void t he odic while plAnning th('ir nl"xt
move. Th ey ha ve dt"Cidl'd t o r('tur n t o
t heir old d an of Wh isper ing Gro" e,
organize a powerful t u m of eh,t.'n
wiza rd!swordmll!lt t"r&, a nd rt't urn t o
Elfllwood to hu nt down And dt'lltro)' t hp
mon!lter that slew mOllt of their family.
The eurvivcre can recount t he events
of the tra gic night of t he odic's at tack,
Ea rly in the eve ning, a cry of a la rm
went up from the t ree -home {If Myrdelor
a nd hil fam ily. All t he elves raced (rom
their t ree-houses to battle what ever foe
t hre atened t hem, t hey were greeted b)'
a st r e nge and fr iltht ening aiKht , The
tree in whOllt' boughs rested M)' rdelor 'lI
home was e mi tl inKa bright purple
light , WorlM.' , the t ree Ilo ... 8wi nKi ng one
of its branches at a ny e lf who pB.IIW:'d
wit hin r unge . Some of t he Glanadyls
fought valia nt ly a gai Mt the relwllioul
t ree. but ot hers i nexplicably dro pped
t he ir weapons a nd a pproached the glow,
ing t ree. collHp!ting IIhort ly afte r ente r-
ing t he a rea of pu rple light lIurroundinte
it . entered the purple a ura t o
take a few hacks at t he t ree's trunk
wit h hi. magiea l eword. bu t he Iled
erter 8uffering a n energy dra in. When it
beca me a ppare nt th a t all W8. 8 1000t . Gy-
le k, M)rka l. a nd Chryaant ha rcluc-
tantl y ned for th l" ir lives. ThE'Y re turn__-d
to th e 8t'Ulement once but wer t> driven
a way by the vision and wyrd s t hat now
lrUard t ht' pl ace f __ area I I.
Gyla k: AC - 3; E9, hp 44; MV
90'(30' ); ' AT 1 swor d or spell: Dmg by
spell or weapon type: Save }o; 9; 10:
AL S ; S 14,1 14, W 10, 0 12, C 13, Ch
12; maKical items : II U'Qrd + I ln amt>a on
comma ndl, chai n mail +5, II hir ld +2,
boots of lrd tal ion, rlt '.." cloaJr; Il pell s:
hold portal. r..ad magic, rorrtmuolliKht,
Irl'ilalt', rl'mOI't' cu r lll' .
Myrka l: AC -I; zs . hp 31; :\tV 90'
130' ); 'AT 1 8word or lI pt'lI: Omit by lI pt.' 1I
or wea pon t)'pt' : Sa ve E8: :\IL 10; AL:-I :
S 13, 1 13, W I I , D 15, C 12, Ch 10;
ma Ki cal itemll: su'{)rd +2, platl' moil
+ I , II hirM + I , I'/ t ..." cloa. .. s p'-' III1: /iRht,
u'izard lor. , haJltt', htlltl pt'rl/on,
Ch r)'sant h a: AC 8; 4: hp 20;
120HO' l; ' AT I dal:)(t'r or spell; o mg by
IlpeUor Wt' apo n type; Sa ve E4: 9;
AL :oJ ; 59, I IS, W 13, IJ 13, C 10, Ch 14,
maKica l ite mll: dOIo!Jll' r +2, 1'1t'l'rr bootif ;
, pells : dl'trcl malli.-, li f{ht.
Since t hl' elvell had not t iml' t o pre,
pa re for thl' assault on t hpir homt' , t hl')'
had ft"w Il pt' ll.. mt' morizt"d a nd ha" e no
attt". to more Uhe ir 8pell book" wt"rt>
h,n behi nd), Th I'll(' ('h' l;"l could bt.' ust'd
all extra PCI , howeVt'r, I'II pt."Cillll y if
IIOml;" of t he playl;"r charactl'nl hllvl' bt-t'n
alai n in t he COU rtlt' of t he modulI'. In t hill
ca!'l', t he D:\f II hould providl' ('Ach plf
with a llpt' ll hook And pt:1!\!libly ra ill(' the
t'1\'e8' I'xper ience le\'e1s fe!lpt:-'cilil ly
Chl')'l\8nt ha'!II. Ift hl'!'l' Gla nad.vla a rt'
si mply NPCs, however; t he y wiII not
acco mpa ny the PClI. choos in.: instead to
travel on to the Whi flpl'ring Grove dan.
They do not II('t> how II smal l ba nd of
advent ure rs enn hope to destroy some.
thinKthat t he whole Glanadyl family
could not . They in vi t e Druida to join
them, but t he el f maiden should remain
loyal t o t he PC pa rt y until t he comple -
tion of their quest . This encounter can
occur only once .
Gartt:a n t u a n Ore
As you move quit'tly throUKh t he
forelli. a shadowy fij{Ure a full 12' t all
II t t' pl' from behind II. large , mossy
I r N' . The creature W8\' (' 11 a hUKl' tree
li mb at you menacingly a nd a n-
nou ncee, ", 'Teal Kl o....wort. king
of orcs. No, me not jUlIt kinK. II
Bow, worms, a nd me will kill
you quick . 'ca use me ill Klo", p\\ort .
graci ous kinK . . er, god of orcs,"
Kl ogwort garga ntuan a rc : AC 6; li n
8; hp 42; )of\, 240'180'); ' AT 1 club; Dmto:'
424; Sa v.... F8; )oIL 11; AL C; BUi35. CUi
32. Apparent ly, th e wcra hjpera of t he
"ore-god" have not been generoug with
t he ir donations, for Kl cgwcrt currtes a
sma ll sac k cont ai ninf{ only 24 KP an d
122 rp.
This e ncounte r can occur nnly onee.
unl e!lll t he PCs fail to dillpo!ll' of
Klogv.lort in their initial mt'(ti ng .
Dead Tree
Whene\'er the D)ol rol hl thill encou n
ter. t he PCI pan a trt"t" th at hag reo
cen1l)' m't'n PO!Ule!lllt.-d a nd killed by the
odi c. Si nce it ill a ut umn, thi s tree lookll
no dilTt"H'nt than t he many ot hers in the
fore!!t thnt a re 1000ing thl ir leon s. It is
dead, th ough, all are all ot he r lImall
plants within a 30' radiug of it Uha nkll
t o th e odi c's dead ly pr l" sence l, Decnu!\('
of the season. how('\'er, each adventurer
ha!lonl)' n l W cha nce of not icin g thi ll
lIt ra nge phenomenon (4O't chance for an
elf or drui dl.
Trader S prit e ll
Thi ll group of 22 spr iLes t rO\'el ll ront in
uously throul{hout Elfllwood a nd th e
lIurroundi n.: lands, They are oh!ll'lI!1l"d
with t rading; t>ve r)' time th e)' ml'et
ot her civilized beingg, they fl....1compel.
led to t rade somet hing with tht>m. Tht"ir
leader, a t alkat ive fell ow named Kiplt"r,
flie s forward and allks t h1 PCs wh at
thl"y would li ke t o t rade for. lIhowinK
THE BANE Of ElfSWOOD
w ilderness Encounte r Table f2d8day, Id lO+ II night )
2: t:1f IIu n 'hour- t
3- Gaq t:antua n a rc t
-I e (Wad
5: 0lCrt"a H -16 r. AC 5; tl O -I + I . hp 20 "l1eh; MV ' AT 1 bill d ub; Omll by weapon
ty pe +2 lduto ko gn>1I1 Sa ve f'4 . ML 10; AL C; BO'35 ,
6: Griffo nIl13 12 r. AC 5: HI) 7; hp 3O..ec h; " IV 120'140' 1, fly i nj( 360'(120' 1; ' AT 2 ete ...at
1 bitt"; Omll: 14 '1-4'2 16; Seve }o'-I: " IL 8; AL S ; ER 5t. Th t"1If' gTilfon tt . ck thf' PC.'
horM'!!rtrllt .
7: HIlI l{iHntll t28r. AC 4, HO 8; hp -1 0 eech; M\" 120-"' 0' 1; ' AT 1 cl ub; Omj( 2 16; Savt" F8;
"I I. 8; AL C; I:: R'50 _Each J{i ant c. rTi... 2-10gp and 1100 .p in mall Nick.
8: Tr-ade r- IIp ri Cell t
9: Iw.. f 12,8r. AC 7; no I ; hp 5 tofteh; " IV 240' 180' 1; ' AT I but t ; Omill -l , MVC' FI : ML 5;
AL S ; }O: R'46 The dt..r ...i11 fl.... a. IIOOn thtoybecome ewere of th e PC .
10: Old Hood t
11: AC 4. niH' ""; hp 47; " IV fl)' lnll IlW'(60' ); ' AT 2 d a w 3
htolld. , 1 bn'. th; Omll 13-'13 Id a...l. 28 !goat 'a he.dl. 110 Ihon'a h...di. 3- 12 plus 3-18
ldr.llon hto. d. bu.. plus brtoa th l; Sa\'f! F9; " IL 9 ; AL C; I:: W47. The dr.lIon htoad ca n
bro'lIlhto rtrtotheee timl"l per day i n a 50 ' " 10' eone Ill mj( 3-181,
12: Ga r Kantua n Ka r Ko)"It": AC I; HO 32 "; hp 160; "1\' IfIO'l60' I, flying 300'1100' 1; ' AT 2
el..... l bit../ Jhorn: Omj( -1 12 '412'4-24 '4-16: Sa ...1' }o"J 2; ML I I: AL C; SA - -1 10 h it .... .
mlln -liu or . m. lI..r opponto nlll; SO mllj(lc.1 ...to.pon 10 h It ; CO'32_Thi "j(.rj(oylto e. nnot
lIurpr iM' PCa,
13: l'bntl AC 4; 110 6 " I" ; hp 29 eech: M\' 120'440' 1. flYlnj( 180'160 '1;
' AT 2 el ...'1 bll .. or 6 "pik.. ; Om" 14 ' 1-1'28 or 1-6 t'II.ch; M\" F6: ML 9: AL C;
ER 52. I::.eh m.nti torto h." 2-1 t.i l "pi kl"!l .nd ca n lift" up to IIUl pt"r rou nd
1ra nll:'" 50' /100'1180' ,.
14: lJirt" '... AC 6; 11 0 4 + I; hp 16 tolleh: "IV ISO'I50' 1; ' AT I bi le ; Dmj( 28; Sa\'1'
F2; " IL 8; AL S; 80'39
15: Grizzl y AC 8; HO 5; hp 20 ..ach; "1\ ' 120H O' 1; ' AT 2 cl a....,'1 bue ; Omlll -8i
18.'1 10; SaVI' f4; " IL 10; AL S; 8D'26, !r both pa.... hIt thf' u mt" vict Im in onf! round ,
t h.. booar hUIlll for .n addItional 2, 16 hp dllmll j(lO.
16: AC 4; 110 6 " 3 "; hp 34 f'lIch; M\' ' AT 2 d ....1li 1 bue: Omll: 1-611 -61
110; Seve f 6; "II. 10 18 If . tI8Ckl'd "' lIh fir e or IIcid l; AL C; SO "'lIe ner. te. 3 hp pt"r
rou nd. ean bo tomplotel) d..llt ro)'O"d onl y by li n' or Ilcld; I::R'66 _
17; Va mplr. batll,lfi.nt 14-ISr. AC 6; no 2"; hp 10 ...eh; MV 30'110'1, flyi ng 180'160' 1; 'AT
I bi t..; Omlll-1 plua par.lYli. ; Save fI ; ML 8; AI. S; B[)'25_E. ch bat'. bit. c.u_
uncolUlCioUlln..N1 for 1 10 round.. ISa ... inKTh ro.. ' .... . Par.lyli " l a nd .utom.t lc. lly dr.i n.
1,-1 hp i n blood po'r round Th tort" ill II un ch. nn' t hlll Iht'Wtn.turn lin' . ccompanif'd
by II v. mpl rt" i n Kiant bal for m lAC 2; HD 9 " "; hp 44 ; MV 120'/40' ), flying 180'160' ); ' AT
I touch or j(8ZI' ; Dmj( 110 plu. douhlto to n..rtO' dr. in or rha, ...; San F9; ML II ; AL e ; SA
clln changto i nto hum.n, di tl' ...olf.lt'iant bat, or gA!ll'(lUli forma; lIummon AnimAla: g. u
Cll n charm 11III \'l"at - 21; SIl hit only by mllj(u:al ..-t"lIpon. , und..ad i mmunil i" , reil"t' n..r
Dltoll 3 hp pt"r round: t;ft.'57,
18: Wt"r t"" o l vt"JlI4 16 r. AC 5; HI) -I"; hp 16 toftth; " IV 180 '160' 1' AT I bi lt' ; Dmg 28; SaVf'
}o4. " IL 8; AL C; SA lIummon nor m. 1"' olvu , lyca nth ropy; SO hit only by . i1vtor or m.Ki
....I ...tollpon!l; 8 0 '33,
19; Skunk l{iant AC 6: HI) 3"; hp 12 f'lIeh; " IV 120'140' 1; ' AT I bIt.. plu. mu!!k
lI<juirt ; Dmlll -I plu pl"Cial ; Sa vt' F'2; "I L 7; AI. S . Th t'M' c",.tur... . pproach thto PC.
1If'\,,chin.: for food, If h. r.-d, Ihto.kunk. th..ir i nfllmoUII mu"k apr. y U5' " 15' x 5{) '
cloud r, _ thto Crt'fllUrt' pa j(" 20, for th.. t"lft'l"ta of thto mUllk,
20; Il n iJ AC HD9"; hp 40 f'lIch ; MV 180'160' ), human form 120'140' 1; ' AT
1 t:0rto or lIpt'Ci.l; Omj( 2 12 or by "'t'llpon tylW; Sa\'to }o'9 ; "IL 10; AL C; SA cha rm. Iyelln
t hropy; SO hIt on ly by Jl lln r or mllj(ical "'t"lIpon.; [R48. Th.. cr". lurll'l.re in . wi nto
form Il.'hil"n flrll l' nC'Ountl'rl"d, Eac h erl' at u..... tan UJI@ a IItrong t han n .pt'lI tSa\'1' at - 2)
thrt't' t imf'1 pt"r day,
21: Purplt" wormJlII ,2r. AC 6; lID 15" ; hp 75 toach; MV 60'120' ); ' AT 1 bite' 1 at inll; Omll
2 1&' 1-8 plu!! poiaon; Sa v.. f 8; 10; AL N: SA .....110... victi m. " 'holto on hit roll -I or
mOl? It"'lI ltor thlln nt't-dl"d10 m" poillOn t.il "t in,,; ER-55. Th...... ",or Il1ll burrow up
into Ihto re.' mld!!l. Jlurpri .i nll on II roll of I on lbut t ht' ...orm" takf' 25 round. to
squirm oul of Ihto ir hal " a nd c. nno t Ullot' Ihtoir t.il alt. ck. unt il rempitott' ly out .
t M d('!l('npli on of .. nro untl"r i n Int .
DUNGEON 21
THE BANEOFELFSWOOD
ELFSWOOD
1 hex e 1 mile
H
}'-<
H
H HH
)-<)-< )-<
- H-
,.,- . , . ~ - - .....
- ~
~ -
)-<
H
l ~
2
5
I
)-<
4
3
H
)-<
6
6
)-< -,
zr:(';
..
HH H
N
--
t hem three or four items from the
sprites ' inventory eac h t ime t hill
encounte r is rolled. Ir t he PCa are not
interested in t rading (a nd t he epr tt ee
ar e extremely persistent ! or if t hey
attack the little tr aders. the epr ttee
qu ickly cur!, one or more of the PCs
and then flee. Th e next ti m!" t he s prit es
and PCs cress pat hs, Kipler caut iously
uks t he ad ven t urers if t hey'r e i n II
bet te r mood before offeri nl{t o t rade
with them.
Sprite. 1221: AC 5; HD 1.'.1 - ; hp 3 each;
MV60'(20' ), flying 180'(60' ); IAT I
curu lper 5 11pritf"1l ); Save El : ML 7: At
N; 8DI38.
The Bprites' curees should take t he
form of magi ca l practi cal jokes te.g.,
vict im's n084" gro ws, bucket of wa ter
appe8n over victi m'" head and douses
him. victim's boots squeak with every
step, victim hiccup s (or one t urn each
time he dr inks a nythi ng . etc. I and ca n
beliftedwit h remove cu. ru s pell s.
The little cre at ures are n' t mali cious;
t hey're just nat ura l prank sters, but
t hey might get on t he PCs' ne rves. Th is
could become a n a lign me nt t est (or the
PC". A group of Compa nion-level edven-
turere could eas ily anni hilate the
s pri lt'8. bu t this wcul dn't he a very ni ce
t hinKto do. With a bit of role-playing
(a nd t rading), t he PCs should be a ble t o
a ppease t he sprites an d may even d ill'
COVE' r th e t raders' weeknese ieee bel ow).
The spr-ites' goods are ca rried in a baR
of holdin/( t hat cont a ins : a tinderbox; "
fla sk of oil: a blue dragon's (a nI{a nd a
(I' w 1IC1l1t>s; II silver dagger : a sli ghtl y
moldy cheese: a small mirror: a s prig o(
wolfsba ne: a bulb of ga r-lic; a to' pole; a
golden clasp in t he form of a !{TifTon
(value 100 gpoand t he s prites k now ill:
a 30 ' coil o( rope; a book (" How to Flat .
te r a Hungry DraROn" ); a bottl e o( Daro-
kini an wi ne (50 gp va lue ); a magic-use r
scroll with t he spe lls U' fOb a nd l"vitatl'; a
r in/( uf{Irf' rt si.!ltanO"(..... hi ch th e s peit ea
know ill ma gi ca l. a nd (or which they
demand t wo keg!!o( ale-no ot her deals);
and a shi ny platinum coi n- a Gla nt r ian
crown- t hat the s pr it es val ue above all
else .
The eprt tes wiII t rade any item in
t heir i nvento ry (or a nyt hing of rough ly
equal value, with t he except ions ofthe
ring of /i rf' rt'sistanO" a nd t he Glantr ian
coi n. The adventu rers might get 8 ber-
gain if they trade (or t he spe ll scroll .
which the spri tes t hink is just a piece o(
parchment with fu n ny scri bble s on it.
The Gla nt rian coin appe ars to he a
nor ma l plat in um piec e. but it flhinefl
with a n unusual luster. It det ects as
magi cal . (or the coin is t reated with
magi c to obta in its e xcept iona l glea m.
This pa rt icular coin Wil li mint ed in the
Pr inci pality of Bel ca die. a nd t he (ace o(
t he elven Princess Ca m el te de Belcadiz
graces the fro nt of the coin. The sprit es
look u pon the pr i nceea all the " Shini ng
GoddeHS" a nd would ne ver consi der
t rad ing th e coin (a lt hough th ey do lik e
to see what et hers will ofTer (or in The
coin is wort h 50 KP in Glant ri , or 5 gp if
its magica l shine is di spell..d.
Thill hall owe-d coin is th e s pri tes'
weakness (a nd offers a cha nce (or
annoyed PCs to get rid or the pesky
li tt lE' traders once a nd (or all. wit hout
resorti nRto violence ). I( t he I"-'Cs inform
them th at Pr incess Carneli a is " real,
Iivinl{ pe rso n. t he spri t es will immedi-
ate ly make a pilgrimage to t he " Holy
La nd of Gla ntri " (i ( onl y they knE'w! ) t o
meet th eir "Shini ng Goddess, " th us
(ree in Kt he PCs cf thei r bot hersome
pr ese nce . When Princess Ca rn eli a findJ'l
ou t who !Il' nt t he group o( lIpri t E' s to
meet he r (and she U' l ll fi nd ou t !l. t he
22 Issue No. 21
l'Cs will bemost un welcome in her
pr incipa lity.
Th e spr itt'8 kn ow nothing about t he
odic.
Ol d Man Hood
The l'Cs should e necunr...r Old Man
Hood, a pixie druid.ahaman, severa l
times during th e COUf1le of this adven-
t ure.lfthe PCs fail t o encou nt...r Ol d
Ma n 1I00d often t hrough t hl' use of t he
Wjlderm"1lS Encou nte r Table. the 0"1
should sprmkle e ncou nters wit h the
pillie t hrouKhout t he adventu re , for Old
Man Hood pr ovides the PCs wit h sev-
era l important clues re lated to t heir
quest.
As you r group ma kes its way
throuKh the Elfswood wi ldernellll,
you are suddenly confronted with a
!lt ranR'" sight : II smal l human oid
flgure, not more t han 2' tall and
wea r ing a pla in brown hooded robe,
appea rs before you r eyes, hover ing
about 4' off the ground, The robe' s
hood shrouds t he flgurt" s face in
darkness.
"Greeunga!" a creaky. squeaky
voice ca lls from within the hood M
t he figu re fl utt ers forward. propelled
by t wo delica te wings thai e merge
from sl its in thl' back of t he crea-
t ure's robe. "Wha t br inKSsuch a
ba nd of mt"rry ad ve nt urers to this
neck of the woods?"
The floati ng fiK\lre ill Ol d "ta n 1I00d,
a n aged pi xie druid-shaman reee t ht>
0&0 0 ,\1', RooJr, page 211. lie
mea ns no harm a nd will int roduce him-
I14.' lf and chct with the PCs, aa lcng as
they don 't attack hi m. Before long,
however, he turns to leave, lIIlyi nj( as he
gOl'tI, "Aye. st range thi ngs have been
goi ng on in t he forellt rl"Cently- thi nltS
st ra nger than lin ore ki ll8inlt a pixie.
Yuck! Don't worry, though. I'll keep ) 'OU
informed," Wit h t his Mid. Ihe old pixie
btocomes ifwi slblt' a nd flies a way.
Old Ma n It ood (6th le\el pi kie dr uid
shama nt: AC 3; 110 6 .. ..; hp 35:
9OC301. flying 1SO'IBO' 1; IAT 1 dagger
or 8pt>H: Dmg b)' f;pell or wea pon type;
Save 1':6; ML 7: AL N: SO can bt>come
int ,jsi bll' at 80135; II p..Jls: eurl'
liRht .., liRht, , proJr u'ith a"imals,
warp u'OOd. hold o"imo/.
Althou gh the old pi xie may Sf."t"m a bit
crazy, he'lI a val uable- lIOurcc of informa
tio n for t he- I'Cs. Each t ime- t he ad\'en
tu rers mee t him, Old Men fl ood giws
t he m anot her clue about the odic. if the
PClI try to deta in t he pi xie t o lea rn
mor e than t he li ttle ti dbi t of infcrma .
t ion he is will ing ta ha nd out . Old Ma n
Hood becomes qui te Irrneted a nd t r it"8
to lea ve. If ESP ill used on the a nnoyed
pixie. the only t hought i n hill mind ill:
" Boy. what a mean bunch of ogres.
picki na-on a litt le old pixi e not even
half th eir size!"
The a re t he cl ues Old
Hood Ki ves the PCs each ti me t hey
encounter him:
2nd encounter: " Ireebane! Treebane!
The Tr eebene ill loose in Elfawood!"
3rd e ncount er: " Elflllayt>r! Trt. 't.'bane!
You 'd do well to f...ar it! Th ese are t he
na mes of t he lC1"eat Fore st Spiri t!"
4th encoun ter: "Strong magic can
hurt it. t hough mere wcapons don't .
Destroy it you mia- ht . bu t kill it you
won 't : '
5t h encounter: "'St rong in the night .
wea k in t he day, The dawn of t he morn
ta kes itApowers a way!"
Final encounter: "Deeth by its pres-
e nce. dl'a th by its t ouch . death by illl
will -that's a little too much!"
An N pllullina- 8 mome nt for the Pell'
asse ssment of his poem. t he pixie eon-
t j nues:
" My Ir ien ds, I'm afrai d t hat my
poem" grow weak,
So listen and heed these last
werde that l spea k.
i n a nd wisdom your
t rue hOIX"1l will lie.
For if you eboul d fa il. a ll of
Elfswood will die ."
Use this entry jus.t before the PCs
encounte r t he odic, An er giving t his
clue. Old Ma n Hood pre pares to leave
Elfswood, just in es se the adventurers
fail to def"Hl t he odic lho wevt' r, see
"Concl uding t he Advent ure" if t he PCs
do faill. Th e adve nt urers wi ll not Moe
hi m again during t hi s adventure.
If (i n t he DM'll l:"lltimation l t he adven
t urel"S are not st ronK.. nough to dl' fea t
the odic. Old Hood offtors th{"m a
part inKg-ifi, II ri"Ro{ li{e pnl rt"ctj o" wit h
two remaining charges. Thill ring will
protl'ct ils wearer from t he errl'C1.ll oft wo
level s of ene rlO'-draining attacks. Ontor
which it becomell a r jnRo{protl'etion
+1, The old pixie gives thi s ring to a
fighter li f potl8iblel. telling him to " fight
the e\'il a t its source." The ri ng can
lC1"eatl y ai d t he rcs in fighting t he odic.
THEBANE OF ElFSWOOD
Set Wildl:" r ne lls EI1('o unt e n
Th e following a nd encou nte r areas are
marked on th e map of Elfllwood. Druida
firllt takell the PCf! to area 1, t he siteo of
the odic' s attack on her fam ily.
l. The lI a u nte ni of Elf8 wood.
Dr uida skill fully guides you through
t he wil derness towa rd her ferest
home. A blanket of fall en leaves
rovers t he eVl'rywhere.
crunching un derfoot with every step
you ta ke, The coming offall has
chased a way t he greenness of t ht'
fOTl"llt. splallhin.: t he Il'aveAwith
or a nge. red. ye llow. a nd brown,
Your part)' proceeds t hroug h a
br own meadow t oward a llta tely
gr ove of trees. Druida t urns a rou nd
and whispers tersely, home rest s
hi Rh in the trees before Ull. Beon
guard all we a pproach. and above all.
be qui et ,"
You sile nt ly p8llllfrom t he sunny
open meadow into the shadows of t he
t rees, closely following in Dr uida 's
footste ps. Towa rd t hl:" ce nter of the
.,'TO\e. the sunlight ill almost ent irely
blocked by a ser iell of llpruwli ng
wooden plat forms built upon th e t ree
limbs 3040 ' ove rhead. Sixty fee t
before you . a narrow rope ladder
hanp down from II wide circula r
opening in the platform above.
As ycur fellows hi p creeps forward
cautiously, you notice the eene, un-
nat ural qu iet of t he for est. No birds
si ng an d no gO!l8ipinJ( squirrels ehat -
ter at your a n-iva i. The only sounds
come from the gent le gu rg li ng of a
smal l brook t hat cuts throu gh th e
grove, and t he constant piuer-peuee
of falling leaves hitt ing t he ground.
A gasp of horror from Druida
breaks the silence. Thirty feet ahead,
gholltl)' figures are materializi ng on
t he ror eet floor! As t hese Willpy im-
age sllOlidif)'. five ot hf'r ereat ures-
sickl)' elvt'!I wit h glllZt'd eyes. whollE'
hllnds Klow wit h a st range cri mllOn
aura- llte p out from behind nearby
trees a cd move to attack!
Th e ghO!lt ly figures are a \' itlion com
pOlled of s ix of Dr uida '8 now-dl'Cf.'8Ht'<1
rel atives. The five " sickly elvell" are
normal wyrds. t he undea d Ilpirits of
Druida', famil )' member1l rt'lurned to
thei r dead bodies to j;tOrvt' t he evil will
of the odic.
DUNGEON 23
THE BANE OF ElfSWOOD
Vj llloo: ,\C 0; l ID 12 - . hp 72.
__ below; 'AT 6 plu s special:
Offill: ' 8 each ; S!l\"P C12; 12; AL C:
CD/35. Villinn.. l i n" immune to all
charm, hold, and fTl M '1r"'l\ lI and ca n ht
hit only b)' maKlnl weapons. In nddl '
li on. 8. " il ion ill Tl'lii lltant 10clenc Turn-
ing; A " 0 " Tt'II UIt i ll handl ed normally,
but a "T" result /{ivl'1l t hl' vision II S II\"
inKThro..... \ ' 11. Spdlll. If Ih i!!Sa\'IOlC
Throw ill IIUC(I Il. ...(UI. I h. Turn iii n '
n1.l:'d back upon ttlt' dNIC. ....hu mUl'l
t hen makt' hIli own S/t \'inK Thro.... \ ' 11.
Spt'lla or bt- pa ra l)'zt"d with fl' ltr ("r 2 12
rou ndt.
24 Issue No, 21
wyrd" 15 r. liD" "; hp
24 tFadal i. 23 IDe.... ryrn l. 20 ' Gllldial. 19
I [k' z)d l, 120"C-l O' 1; ' AT 2
.:]o....inlf 1I Ilh t'ft>!I; l )mlt 1-6 .. Itch CI d6 + 3
s-uch Il ltl ll n'l l e h'('1I1; Save f4 : 12; AI.
c; CC.R9 S llrmli l w)'rdll ar(' Turnt-d all
wflllth!'l Theu- two spheres ca n
1M;' used R!! melee .... tollpon!! or hurb-d a!!
rnissilee 30 60 '90 1, Whto nt" 'l' r a
sphe-re ill used up, II rl"pIIlCII"ml'nt imme-
diatt>ly a l' Jll'a rll in tht, W) ' rd' lI hand.
If t ht ' P'C!! imnwd iut('I)' atl/lrk or t ry
10 Turn t hl' .w.' undl'lId mon llh t8, Hllow
thtom t o do 110 for om' rou nd Ift hl')"
ht ',;itatt> or t o dl,"t ro)" or Tu rn th p
vision in t hill round, read aloud the
foll owin K((,,;t
A plaintive mea ning lind the !lOund!
of wt'('pin Krome from the si ,,; Khollt l)'
i muges, which be fore you r p)'p8
II10wly iake tht' form of elves. The ir
IlOrrolAful e)"1'S re flect confusion a nd
pa in as t hey gla nce upon th e liv inK
tll'fore them, ca usi nK8 II hi n' r of icy
fe ur to race throul{h your bodies.
Throujoih t he wt't'ping of a epec t rel
plf m8idpn who lea ns hell vii)' 8j{8lnllt
a trunk, a nd tht' moani ng and
KfOli ni nKof t ht, othl'rll, you beKin to
hear the word, of t ht'8t'
creatures.
" 'Iou have come too late to 118\"('
us!" criee one of th e KhO!ltly elves,
while a not hl' r grit-\'t'll. " All is 1000t ,
olluJ losr'" Still more ha unt inK
phrallt'll art' a i med a t Druids . A
handlWlml" lCholit elf t l' lI" her,
" ElfllV.,ood i ll no mor e, lI i li t t't, Our
family is d("!l t ro)'E'd ," a nd the II()bbi nl{
elf maiden cea!Ol'll her wl"t'plOK lanK
en ou gh to impl ore , " Muur n for U!l,
Druid e. u,lth UII ,"
Anyone _ ' in Kthe vision mu st Save
\ ' 11. Spt.,111 or run e we v in fea r, st ead.
fa!!tly h' fusin.:: to return to t he areu in
which the vis ion wall siKhtl"d AI!IO, t he
wa11101o: a nd mOlining of t h,' vision ca n
han' a ma gi caleffect on anyone within
90' who ht' a ts thl' M' ha unti nlO: sou nds .
Such indi vidual ll must ma ke a II UCCe8ll
ful Sa \-inlO: Throw \ ' 11 . Spt'lls eecb round
t hey remain wi thin nnKt' or be110 Illled
with sorrow lind sympa t hy that t hl;"y sit
down to cry for th t' vision for 1120
rounds.
Aftl' r 13 rounds of mU>lOing a nd cry ,
inW", Ihl" indi vidu al phantom l' l\'('1I ht' Kin
to urteck wit h their lIpt>Ct ral sword"
mllintalOinl{ their awful lA'lIili nKall the
while. They lirllt t> nKaW"I' ehe recte re
unaffect ed by thl ir mallieal moa ni ntl' _
Each phantom of t he vision must
remalO wuhin e 5QO'lIqua(efoot art'a on
t hl' fon'lIl floor be neat h t he fil anndyl
eettlement , wuhi n thi ll (l"lItrict E'd a n'a,
howeve r, the phant om elvea may move
at t he rate of 40' per roun d.
dcne aW"ai n!lt individ ual
phantnm.'l ill cou nted 8Kllinllt t he hu-
point tot a l of thl' enti re vision. ThUll,
whl'n a tot a l or 72 hp damajoit' ill in
flict E'd allainllt t ht' \'ari ou!!lIpt>Ctra l
( ' 1\' ( ' 11, t h( \' illion ill dl' llt rO)'t-d a nd
va nillhl' lI.
Should a PC cit-ric UI'I' a . /NoJt 1I' l t h
IRKTHORN'S HUT
P
C Area 2
I I'lqUHre S'
=
[9
0
1
N
vO
I
--
Q
~
[JJ
A
0
L-
I
B
I I [!]
morl6tt'rs spell on th.. vision or wyrd s,
ecme important inrormeuon may be
gained. Tohelp the ~ in ans.....ermg
any IlpeOIt. with monster spell questions,
t he following is what the now-undead
elv es experienced during their fat al
encounter with the odi c.
The st x el ves in the vision !Druids's
brother Stlvyr, sister Rcse pet yl , nnd
cousi ns Amberl ok. GlifIbrook. Redlyf
a nd Snowbough t were all killed b)' the
odic's energy drain. They ca n recal l that
a lIt ra nge purple light began to rad iat e
from the great tree in wh ich " Iyrdelor
Glanadyl's home was built . Myrdelor 1t'1
out 8 cry that the IW."UI ement was under
attack, and all t he Glanadyl s rushed t o
the alert. As the six elves (now of tbe
vision) prepared to do battle, they sud-
denly felt compel led to ente r t he area of
purple li ght lIurTOunding t he tree.
Therein they slowly per ished.
Usinll: a Itpt'Wt wi t h monsters spell on
the w)'rds (formerly Druids's aunt Dew-
fyrn, and cousins Fadil , Gladia . Deeyl .
and Myra l yields onl y va gue informa -
tion. Ea ch of these elves heard a com-
moti on in the se ttle ment . went cuts tde
to in... ..sugate, aaw some st ra nge lights,
and suddenly died (vict imized by the
odi c's {inRf'r of droth power ). In their
undead exi stence. these elves ca n re-
me mbe r bl'i ng ordered t o gua rd t he
se t t lement from the living, but t hey are
not certain wh o or what gave tni s
command.
If the wyrds are defeated in such a
wa)' that the eorpees of the el ves re-
mai n. a PCcler ic could use a ItproJc u'l,h
tI" dead spell to obt a in the above infor-
mation. This ia not a n option for the
elves of t he viaion, howe vee: t heir
bodies were bu rned by the odic's greeter
wyrd servants as a n olTerinK" to t he
powers of the Sphere of Entrop y, a nd
their allhes were spread out around the
se t t le ment . All a fi na l gin to t he llpir it
of Ir kt horn Balin, the Immort al s of
En tropy ret urn ed t he souls of t he elves
i n the for m of a viaion to guard the
loca t ion of the odi c's tri umph.
If t he Pes don' t use a , pt' olf u,ith mo,, '
sters, rommu" e. or contact outer pia"..
spell he re. 80 much the better, Thi ll
ad ve nture depende in part on t he mys-
tery a nd da nge r pr ese nted by a n un-
kn own ent it y ca pable of kill ing on such
a large scale. Whe n the edventurees
explore t he wilda of Elfawood, t hey a re
lik ely to find clues that poi nt to a n odic
88 t he culprit . Even if t he Pell don't
piece all the dues together, t hey'lI run
i nt o th e odic event ual ly, a nd ul l their
questions will he a ns wered.
The wyrds and the vision have no
t reasure. a lt hough the elven tree -homes
cont ai n about 5.000 KP in norma l house
hold it ems a nd 12.750 gp in wl' lI-
concealed coi n a nd je wel ry IIta8ht'll, Of
course. it would hein bad tallte for t he
Pes t o loot the esta te of Druids's re-
cent ly lliai n fa mily. However, th e t ree -
hornell do conta in food {bot h nor ma l a nd
iron rations I and other normal items
tsuch as rope. la nt erns. lima II mirrors ,
ete. t that Druida will all ow the edven-
tu rers to t ake. if needed.
2, Ir kt horn's If ut.
A large wooden shack st a nds be.
neath th e trees before you. A cold,
gust y breeze M'nd!l dozl;" ns of lea ves
fa llinK from t he br anches above. but
t hill is the only lli..m of mevement in
t he whole a rea; the place a ppea rs to
be deserted. A closer inspect ion re-
veale that the building has no win -
dew11 a nd only a si ngle door on it ll
weetem aide . A st one chi mney c1 imbll
th e outer wall and cont inUE' ll t o all-
THE BANEOFElFSWOQD
cend several fl"lt above the roonop,
Beh ind th e !Ihac k rune a spar kli ng
cle a r st re a m.
2A, Ma i n Room.
This room conta ins a cluttered :\11'
eonment of wooden cha ift' and t e -
blell, 0 bookcase with a few mUllty
\'ol umell. and a variety of wUULIt"u
ca n ' inKs, A st urdy stone hearth
ge pea a t you from th e nor t ht' allt
corner. Another door opens to the
sout heast .
The on ly thing of value here ill t he
dust -cover ed collect ion of tiny wcoden
forest a nima ls ar ranged on a shel f
a bove t he fireplace. Ir kt horn carved
these himself dur ing hill happy ear ly
years all a druid. The coiled ion is wort h
100 K"P.
28. Irkthorn's Bedroom.
The floor boards creek all ) 'OU enter
thill dark room. Against th e bllck
wall rt' lillI a dinlO' bed . a nd a n open
.....a rdrobe lIit8 in tht' northwest cor
DUNGEON 25
THE BANE OFELFSWOOD
ner, A filt hy bran kin ruK a t t h..
foot of thto bed. Th..r ..' not hinll: else
of int er t h..re, but a fa int, sieken-
ing of rot ean bedetected
The wardrobe ront a inll the remnants
oC l rkthom'. clot hing, mwtl)' mot h
eat en old robt-A a nd tbe liat>, If d t'a ntod.
t h.. bran kin ru l{ ill wort h 250 loW. It
concul. a trapdoor lea dinll' to t h.. cellar.
2C. Ct' lla r Shrinl;',
ThE' overwhel ming ste nch of dec ay-
ing flesh wafill up from th e dllrkm' !111
belew a ll you open t he trapd oor. Dt
IICt' ndinKa II ma ll ladder, you lin d
youf ll('l\'t'1l in II tiny lIhr int" probably
dedi cated to some evil t' nt it y-
judging from t he man)' II kullll, boOt' II,
and foot lall lll a lu t>S of monlliroull
brinp lIi tti hlit on a ma kf1lhin al tar to
the Wt'lIt. Lyi nJl: fare-dO'l,,'n brfnT" t hill
altar i. lh. huddlt"d (orm of. man
wr arinl{ . black robte- . Reyond t h('
rnotionl nll figu re. a !Ima ll wooden
chHt rHta i n t he IIh. do,It.. . .
blal"lr. rohPd li gurP on Ih.. ntvlT I"
t M body of Ir kt hor n Ba li n. CI()!i(' r t> .
amilUiti on of tht' dt"COmpollinl: C'OrpM'
l"t'W'al. t ha t t ht> c1t>ric hat! bc-c-n dt' Rd fOt'"
about a mont h: t ht' rt' fore. hi . dt' ath
prraodrd t he at tack upon Elr, ....ood by
fMOarly two ....t't"k8.
Should a PC dt' ric a ./WO"I(/, Ia
tla, dNd fl pt'll on t ht> col"p!W. t ht>rl" wi ll
beno N'lIult at all! Irkt horn 'll body ill
ml"rPly hi ll t'a rt hly rl"ma lns; his fl pid t
and pnst kn owltod/{t' (ellpt"Cia lly hi ll bit
te r mt'mori t'll oftht"Gianadyl lil havt>
hill mortal body a nd now rtsid. i n
t he odic.
All is obvi ou. from tht> a ppt' arll nct> of
the a ltar. Ir kthor n tum t"d a way from
th.. u-aching5 of tht> druidll a nd tom
bracN tht' way. of E,il.
Iklme foul . ho-Imow ....hat from t hf'
Spht'1"t' of Ent ropy. Tht>rP i.
markal or dolmgefOull on t h.. a ltar_
Tht' fl mall cht'st in t ht> corrtt>r i.
1000ked. a nd t h.. key is no.. ht>rt' to ht'
found. It contai ru a ma- a nd a book.
both of which dt'tl"ct u evil .
Tht' weapon i. a mlUY +2. +6
,.... Lou'flll d,rin. The mare f1hlJCk, for
1-6 hI' da ma gt' a ny La....f ul creat urP ....ho
\(!uch... it . l f he-Id by a La....f ul d f'ric.
howt' vt'r. it inn icts 2 12 hI' upon
ill wieldt' r eac h round. a nd the ofTt nd
ing c1,ric mu st mak .. a SavinI{ Throw
26 Issue No. 21
\ ' 11. Spelle t wuh a - .. pt'nal ty l at t he e nd
of t'ach round he ft' mairu in contact
....it h t he msce or be unable to N'11"B.<i;(' it
Ithull taking .till lTlOrP dama ltt> \.
The tome. e nurled Th, .'itTr" . of
ErI ,rop:r. is ....-rtn en in a fl t ra nl{t> rode
a nd ca nnot be deciphered. even wit h a
reed lariRullI(f'lI or read maR/' spell.
Those interested in dilOCO\'t'rinl{ suc h
secrete mu"t li MIt rl"lW.arch a fl pl.ocial
spel l enabl ing the m to read rhe book.
Such a volume ehould. of course. he
destroyed by a Lawful pa rt y.
Before It'a \'ing th is area , Or uida in-
sists on K"' inlC t ht ex-druid's body a
proper buria l.
3. SaR:t"hark'" Wood .
This particular lIre1I of Elf"wood
.."pecia lly btoa uuful a nd
cht't"ry dt'!lpit.. t h. comin" of ....inler.
The- bn-eae here lIl... me mort> j((' nt le
a nd 1t"Mcold. and t h.. dl'ad I..a \ell
!It'em t o neat. not fa ll. from t h... t rt't'-
t oP'!. A ft'_ birds chi rp out m..rril)
o\t>r h..ad .
" ExcuSt' me : ' plpt'1l a lIOn.
voi- from tht> mid!lot of your KroUp.
Afl )'ou gla net' about wildly to fi nd
th...spt'ak('r, the VOIet' "Oh, I' m
Suddt' nl y. a foot LaIl .....i nb't'd
cr t"a t ure- look inJO: IOm".' ha t like a n
('If- bli nks in\(! \il" .... btofort> you.
' 'I' m Gli tt t"r: ' th.. tTt'a t ur.. a n
noun"lI.. " Are )ou lIt ronj(. kind, and
\ ' l'ry roura':l"Oull? If 110. my wiM'
fri end Sa':t'ba rk would l ik.. to Ilpl.ok
wit h )ou. Follow m.,!"
Ift h.. pc. follow Glitt('r, th. pixi e
lelldll t h.. m t o Salll trnlrk , An old t r...a nt .
Th l" lIma ll crt'at urt' Ie-ad" you to a
la rge m-.4<unrt'd Ir ..... - a tr_ t hat
Iluddt' nl)' turnll around t o fRce you!
Certa inly. thi ll ca n only bto a fabled
t noant . All Ih.. t o..... er ing cnoatuno
t urns it." attention towa rd your
group. it emits a loud. rumbling
" Ah.. that Ilha kt"1l ita ..... holt> body.
ca u!!in" a few l..a\t'1l to fa ll . Gest ur
ing to. ard a ba rren on top of its
ot ht>rwi!lt" It'afy ht' ad. tht>tre-lint
comm... nt. in t ht' . Iow, dt' li bC'ra lt'
tonto common to illl kind . " I t(' nd to
bald a bit ' round th i, t im... of year.
But about m)!It.'If: Tht>
t reant points a branchli k... li njl;l" r
to....ard a fall en trunk n..ar b)'
a nd 118U. " PI" III1l. sIt do..... n. my
fri .. Wt' ha ve mu' h to dillCuu .'
Sa':t>bark ha " dwelt in the fOrt'St of
Elfsweed (or M'\t' ra l cent urjee a nd hall
It'arrwd much about illl inhabi ta nlll
durinl( this ume. Firet . tht' t reant ofTt'MI
hi . cnndolrflC('ll t o Druida for the IraJ{'
edy at he r homestead, fie abo ha" 100m..
good ne.... for t he ..If ma iden. fl i. forellt
anima l (nendll have recentfy IlC't'n he r
brot ht' ,. fi yl." a nd a nd ht'r
lIillhr-in-la w, Chryll8 nt ha. alive in t he
fore t.
Sal:t"hark ca nnot tell t h.,
PCl t' xHct ly ..... hat ill behi nd t he G1Hna
dyl t ro.:tody, he ca n provide IIOmt" helpful
eluea. Unullual thinl(1I have ht'!'n hilI"
pt'ninl: in lhl' for" lIt re('('nt l)', th. t r eant
cl a im!!. lI ill l:oud Iriend. the drynd
Sha ldll. lIimpl)' di sappea red ohout II
. '('(Ok a.:o_Upon furt her i n\e!lti .:ation.
Sa .:..tmrk discevered t ha t t ht> dryad 'M
t ree had died eve n thou lCh it .....a ' fa irl y
youn.: a nd eppeaeed to be hl'alth)'. Gli t
te r ca n lead t he PC. to the dl')ad '. tft"t"
lan.-a " ' If th..v !lO dM'ir ...
The' old all'O wa rns thto adnn
t u""" t hat hill fri ..ndll ha \'" rt>-
portPd Iil{ht.lhrou.:h t h.
tn at ni.: ht. a nd ot-.,t"!l a nd t roli ll ha \'e
bo. n mort" common in tht> art>a in th..
lallt ft'w )t'an. IAlt houl:h thl" odi CIII nol.
rt'tlpon iblt' for the' rt"C"t' nt infl ux of hu
manoid mon tel'll i nto t h... area. it ill
rt.,pon ible for tht> Ilt ranl:t>
Gli tter ha a plere of adVice for t he
ad \entu""MI. too. " Kl"t'p an .. .... out for
Old Hood: ' hl." Ilqut"akll. " 11"'11 a
pixit> li k( me. only h(,'fI a "'''t' ot ma.:ic
..... ho wea n a hoodPd roht. a nd t ra Y
('I. throu.:hout t h(' for(,!It . If a n)'om'
knowII " 'hllt 'fI /ol uing on in Elfflwood, It'll
Old Ma n The- prublem ill, you
don't fi nd Old Huod- he lindll )'ou!
\\ 'e hO\'(' n't !It'!' Ohim in o\t'r a mont h."
Gli tt .. r Ipixi.. ): AC 3; UO 1-": hI' 7;
M\' 90 '130' 1. fiyi n" 180'160 ' 1; 'AT 1
dlllt.:cr; Omj( 1-1: Snvt> t:J; 7: Al. :'oI :
8 0 '35.
SaR: ..h a rk It ",,a nt l: AC 2; 11 0 8- ; hI'
44: M\' 60 '120' 1; 'AT 2 branches; Omg
2 12.212; San F8; 9; AL L: SA
alllmat, trtv' . ; Eft'56. If tht> odic I;"\..r
IIt'ttl t'1l into t hill hn for t hl" it
and kill Sa/l:..ba rk.
.. . Th" I>ryad. Tomb. Unlt"M th..
PC. a no acco mpa nitod b)' GliUt' r u h..
pi xie from arpa 31. the)' will not flOd t he
dryad 'fI GIiUt'r. ho....e\er. ca n ..aflil)
point out t h.. dryad'. home .
Th t' dryad '" tn't" looks no difTtrtnl
from t ht' ol h..,s in thp furt"t . II ifl d('ad .
ho..... eY(" r. killed by t he odi c ..... h... n t h.'
spiri t it . The dryad Shalda
wall inside hf'f tree ..... hen t he odic
at ruck , and when her t ree died. she died
with it . Should II PC eleri e be80 imagi -
rU!lt i \' l" U te u ... a ,pnJ1t wilh tll r drill!
on t he t ree, he will be abl e to een-
tact the deeeaeed dryad'. Rpir it withi n
it . Unfort una tely. Shalda ca n gi "f' lt nfe
information about her deat h. She en-
u-red her t ree for the- night ; about a n
hour later, her tree l uddenly perished
a nd ehe died wit h it .
Dud TroIlIJ. Alt hough thi.
encounte r il marked in three places on
t he map. it mould occur only once.
A. t he PC, are t ra veli n" t hrough
EIr.wood. the)' come ftC'roM three huge.
u nmoving fiKUrell. ly in lC on the (on ' lIt
floor before them. These a re t he bodies
of three dead t roll. , the viclinu of II
lIurpriw encoun te r wit h lht' odic.
It i . unlikely that a ny of the PC. hall
ever see n II dead troll before. Adventur-
t>rll are usua lly in t he habit uf bur ni ng
t roll. to u hes whe ne"er t hey encounter
t hem. Inquir ing minds might want to
UM" 1l ' pnJJt. u'lth dead or
spell to learn how t he t rolls kill ed
i n such a clee n a nd II pparen t ly easy
manner,
Each t roll wu killed by a differen t
typE' of t he odic's at tack fornu. One wal
char mrd a nd died from t he odic's energy
drain. Anoth er was elein by t he spir it 'l
dead ly poisonous touch. The t hird fell
vict im to a fingrr of dfflth 1IpE' 1i. lf a
cleric UIIH a IPftJk u,ith ,hr drad spE'1I
on any of the t roll. , each monst E' r ca n
rE'l ate that, du ring the group's nightly
hunt inj{ tri p, th ey ee tne actoN a rree
thll t burnt>d wit h a fifOrce purple light .
Each troll ca n allO gi VE'. vague deacr ip'
t ion oft he ma nner i n whkh it died
short ly thE' reaftt' r.
6, Ogre L)'nchlng, Although marked
in t hrH' locations on t he map, this
E' ncounter ea n ottOr only once.
A st r a nge howli ng bellow cornea from
the woods ht' for e you. It sounds like
t he cry of lOme la rge cr E' a tu.... in
diat..... .
tr t he PCs invelltigate in a quiet , eau,
tious ma nner, they will be able to II py on
t he prO't'dinp detailed btolow wit hout
btoing sight.-d by t hE' ogrE'S, In this calle,
rE'ad both of the boxf'd palINg" below to
t he players . If t he PCa race in the ditf!'C-
ti on of the cr il'!1 wit h reck lul abandon,
however, reed only t he fintlJl."Ction of
boxed text- and let t he battle begi n!
Mill ing about in a Ima ll dE'ari ng
before you arE' about t ...-e dceen 9'
tall, ugly. hairy, bru ti sh huma noids .
One of their number has hi s ha ndl
bound behind his back wit h stout
vines. AI t his capti ve whines a nd
tri es in vain to break Iree, a not her
monst er cuua lly tosMos t he end of a
t hk lr. rope over a Itrong rreelimb 15'
above the (orest floor. ApparE'nt ly a n
execut ion il about to ta ke pl ace.
If t hE' party has not beee dE'tf'Ctf'd,
read t he following as well .
AI you watch, t he capt ive is draggf'd
before t he largest of t he KTOUp, a
huge, mE'llnlooking brute who il
apparent ly the leadE'r of t he ba nd.
This eree ture Ilpitl a It ri nRof harsh
grunts a nd enerl e a t t he prisoner,
who reepcnds ...it h a lIer ies of fright .
ened 'olohines . The lead er shakes hi s
head and eummona four of his burl y
(riends, who roughly gr l b t he whim-
peri ng ca pti ve a nd lead him toward
the waiti ng n<JOSe,
Any PC uncout h enouKh to ha ve bee n
llChoolrd in t he vulgar ogre tongue will
be able to undE'n1tand what has been
lIli d dur ing the preeeedinga. The la rge
ogre IKlamur) hall eeeueed t he prisoner
IMashtoe )o( havi ng ccmrmt ted a n /lct of
gr eat cow. rdice . Mu htoe's whining
response is t rBru la tf'd, ..It was the Pur-
ple Death ... no cha nce , , , had to nee .
Pl ease l pa rt' me:'
UnlE' lUI t he PCs intervene, MashtoE'
will be man::ht'd 1(1 t he noose a nd
promptly h. nged. OnC'e t he elleeution il
fini shed, the ogre band le.v.... If .t-
tackt'd , however. t hE' OKTE'S fight back
fif!n::ely.
Ogn' s (241: AC 5; HD 4 + I ; hp 29
(Klamor. the leaderl, 27 ( )( 21, 25 ( )(31,
24 1)(3). 22 1)(6 ). 20 ( )(5), 19 ()(2), 17.
l 5; 9O'{3O' r, 'AT 1 huge club; Dmg
by weapo n t ype +2; Save F4; 10;
AL C; BDf35. OKTl'8 g('t a +2 bonus to
all damage rolls due to t heir gr ea t
strengt h. Each ogr e carries II small lack
contai ni ng 20-80 gpo
Ma htoe (o({re): AC 9; hp 22; , AT 1
fillt ; Dmg 1-4 +2: ML 3; ot her statist ics
as abovf! .
If t hE' PCs inte rrupt t he nec:ution a nd
rt'tICue Muhtoe , t he ogn hf'p them 1(1
re le..... him. If Mal htoP ...; 11 not
THE BANE OFElFSWOOD
at tack the adven ture" : hi. only wi sh il
to get aWly. I ( qu estioned, Mashtoe can
relat e hi s story to t he PCI.
A few nighta all'O Mas htoe'. patrol,
whi eh ind udl"d Kla mor'lI son. u rne
a(TOM I tree ba t hed i n a bright purple
l ight . Suddenly, the t ree began Iwing,
i nKa bra nch at t he pat rol members, end
soon most of t he 0W"t'I li nd udine t he
leader 's eont were kill t"Ci. ran
(or hi . life. \\-'hen he eejci eed the main
ba nd a nd releted hi tory 1(1 the leader,
Kl amor did not belieVE! him. ..btoe
wall aecused of btoing a rowa rd and
Ihort ly t hereafter, Klamor . nnounced
t hat would be e xecuted.
If the PC. art' late in coming 1(1
re scue or si mply approach hia
hanginKbody aftil'r the ogre band haa
left , th ey ca n gai n the above informa
tion t hrough a ' /WfJ1r u,lth thr dnul
spell .
The Flnel Ocnucntcucn
Thf' d imax of t hill module comes whe n
t he PCs fina lly meet up with t heir elu.
eive foe, the odic. The ga me stati atica
for t his undead horror a nd a dellCript ion
of the PC'I encounter wit h it are pre-
vided below.
Odi e Ispirit of Ir kt hom Balinr. AC
- 4; HD 16....; hp 96; MV 0(_be-
lowl; 'AT I bra nch or spell 1_ below);
Dmg 112 plus poison; Sa ve FI6; ML 12;
AL C: CDf37.
An odic-also known as Treebane,
Elfslayer, Forest Sp iri t, Purple Death,
a nd Beacon of ne.th- is type of spi ri t ,
a n evil entit y that pouE'ues the body
lor body pa rt s ) of ot hers. An odic i.
difft'rE' nt from ot he r IIpir ita i n that it
poAM'$lIe's only pla nte a nd pla nt Hke
mOMt enl . It ia undead a nd u such is
immu ne to mind .afTm ing lpells (such
as ,/rrp, charm, and hoJd), as wf'1I .. all
poilOn. and normal ga!It'A.
The odic hal ma ny ot hE' r speci . 1de
fenM's . nd at tac k for mtl. It i. immu ne to
spE' lI. below 4t h le"el and ca nnot be
harmed by a ny weapon of lelll th.n
+2 E' nhance mf!nt. It can lIen8El a ny
invisible cre at ures that . pproach it ,
The odic'. mere prellot" nce il da ngt' rou. ,
alJ it ca n spoil all conl uma bl. itemll
within 30' (ind uding food, holy
watt' r, a nd magical pot ionlii. Such ite ms
are a utomat ically ru inf'd (no Saving
Throw) but not made poi50noua. The
odic'l allO paral)'U's allli ving
pla ntl and inM'rt8 with in t hi. " f'a,
kill ing t hf'm ifthe spiri t re mainll in one
DUNGEON 27
THE BANEOFELFSWOOD
place for mort' t han a n hour. A ff'IIU It
of this power, any form 01' plan t cont rol
01" iM1 llwarrn i. ineffecnve.
During t he dayli ght hounr.. t he-odiC i .
and i nvi.ible. lravelinl{ up to
24 mil" in Ilf'arch of new victim . At
nigbt.tht' odic lIeules into . plant. poll-
_ing it and kill ing it immediately.
Onee ""t1t'd for t he eveni ng . t he s pir it
u nnot move aga in until dawn.
Wht'n the odic a plant . it
radia"". a at range purp le lig ht i n a 20'
radiu. around itM'U. Any living erea-
t ure f'ntt' ri nR' thill light muat ma ke 8
SaviORTh row VI . Spel ls or lIuff.f Rone-
level e nergy drai n (a ll if !IIruck by II
wJghU. Demi-huma ns wit h an Att ack
Rank are afTmN difTt'rf"nt l)' by energy
dra ine.IOfIinK' 101,000 to 120,000 xp per
" level" drained. A new Sa ving Throw
muat bemade each round a n indi vidua l
i. within t he light.
The odic ca n &end out up to lIix sma ll
portions ol t M plant lusua lly lE' avH lto
,",II. out potE'ntial rictifJUl. Tbese Ieu"
can noat up to a mile from the odic at
t he' rat E' of 30' Pf>r round. atta cki n.: a n)'
Cl"t'lI tUre- tMy mt'e't u " UD monst e,..
and gai ninl( I Urpr1!lt' 9O'i ort hE' t imE' .
Anyone loUcht'd by a lraf tak" no dam
but mWlt ma kE' a Savi nI( Thro'" \ ' 1 .
SPf>UI or bf' cllarmHJ. CllormHJ \ict i m.
are- dr awn to t he odiCa nd l ufTE' r - 4
Pf>naltin to the'ir Savi ng Throwa when
t hey enlE' r Ih... purple light surroundi nK
thE' spirit . Such unfortunatt>lI al llO r...
main in t he light un t ilt h...y art' forci bly
removt'd from t he area , ha\... the odic'a
charm negated lby a dl llINI mOllu' lII pdl
or anot h... r charm!. or dip
from t he ",nt' rgy drain.
The odic ca n alllO use e it her a phyllica l
attack or a 1Pf>1I.li ke power lbut not
bot h) !Pilch round. Ita phylll ical a t tack ia
II blow from part oftht' pla nt.
Uluall y a branch or vine 1030' long.
Anyone hit takel ) 12 hp da mage a nd
mUit ma ke a Saving Throw va. PoillOn
or die immediately, st ruck down by t he
spiri t' l deadl y poilOnous touch.
IMt ead of attacking " 'it h itl po5N'Ul'd
body, the' odic ma y cbooM- to U!lt' a ny of
t he following 1Pf>1I. like t' fTt'd-a: dorlr
llna. 15' radius. C'Guu
Ollt l'rWt, d#'Od, or fing, r of droth . Th_
POW"" can bf' uM'd at " 'iII- up t o Oncf'
per round. requiri ng only t he odic'.
COrlC'entrat ion- and a..... t reat t'd a. if cast
by a )6thlev...1clrric ,
1beo ollimote drod powr r of t hE' pa rtic.
ular odic in t hi s advent ure- is un iqu... .
8aUllol! Ir kthorn Balin Mamc a n odi c
28I$$U9 No. 21
due to hitl i nt...n.... hatred of t hl.' Glana
dyls. his Olilmat.. dead abili ty afTt"ct.
only elve . The t wist ed po,,'en of t he
SpheN' of Entropy hu e' Kl'antll'd
Irkt horn'l t1 pirlt t hl' powt' r to ollimot..
the' d...ad bodies of ...lvee into wyrds 1_
t he Cff'at llTf' Cot aloR" t'. pa.::e 0.--
ceased elves or level 17 a r... t rans-
formed int o norma l W)rd. , " 'hi ll"t hOM'
of 11"\'l"118 10 beeome KJ'f'at...r wyrd ,
Four greeter wyrdll-fnrmt'rl y
Oru ida 'i fa l ht'r mothe r
lCall8mira l, uncle tBrandylor), a nd
brot her IGrenlyf\- attompnn) t he odic
1111 it moves th rou gh Elflwood. They fly
ai le nt ty in t he ahadewa oft he rrece
behind their i n\'ilibll" master.
ita t ...lepet hic commends . The se wyr ds
are tota lly under t he IIpiri t's cont rol.
Gn-at... r wyrd!t14t: AC 0; 11 0 8- - - ;
hp 50 IBra ndJ lor), 46
(Grenl)' O, 40 lCasa mirat: 120 '140' .,
nying 240'180' 1;. ' AT 2I1phereII; Omg 1
10;1 )0 plu!t pa ra lysis, Id l O+Seach
a gai nst r h'" t no pa ra lysil t; San F.8 ;
ML )2: AL C; CCJ89.
These " ')'rds are t he undeed spirits of
Dru ida's family ml"mlx-rs. rt't urnt'd t o
th.. ir dead badin to do the biddi ng of
t he odic. ThE'J ha\'1" lIuch a frilthtful
a ppea raRCf' t hat a nyonr vir" 'ing t hl"m
must mak l"a Sa \'i nlt Throw \'1. Spelll or
t1ufTl' r a - 3 pen alt y to hit a nd d8magl"
rolll " 'hill' fighl l nKIhe crt'at ur"'lI.
Thl"M" undt' ad horron a llack u in!<:
t wo glowi ng grt'C' n I phere" flf l"nf'rgy
Iha l a ppea r in t hl' ir ha ndll. ThC)' ca n
UM-' th t'St' Ilphert'll i n mt'll't"ur ca n throw
thl'm as miNilt' 1 (ra n!:l' 3060,'901. Whl' n
a t;phl' re IIt rikt>" a tarJiwt it I" xplodel!l,
inflict ing 110 hp damaj(l' an d pura lyz.
ing t he victim for 28 t urnll unll'S. 'I a
lluttl"lI.'1ful Saving Throw VI. ParalYl i!l is
mad.... Elvl"l hit by . uch a n a tt ack l ufT...r
a n additional 5 hp da ma ltl' but arl" im
munl' t o t he paral yzinKI"fTect . A new
IIphere automaticall)' a ppean i n t hl"
w)'rd 'l hand " 'hen onl" il ullt'd.
Great...r w)' rd ca n be truck onl)' by
I il vl"r or mai:lcal ,,'r a ponll. StoinK un
dr ad, the')' a N' immune' t o " ....p, r;J! arm,
a nd J!olJ al " ell atl poi!iOn!l a nd
!<:8Sf'5, Cleria, ca n Turn lO'ea ter " yrd
all phantomll.
ThE' Odi c'lI Att a c k
OIlCf' t he odi c fi nds t he' PC it followlI
t h... m t hrouKh t hl"forl"st . Wh... n t hl"
part ) set. up camp for t hl' niKht .l he
odi c po!lSt'lilleS a t not' withi n a mile of its
prey a nd lx-i:lnl its inliidioull attack . It
iO("nd out Ii. ani ma t.. d It' a \t' lIIAC - 4;
at tack all 4110 monsters; hp 1 eac h;
30' ; SA charm. t hat blow into t he PC"
ca mp wit h a hOOlt of nor ma l leevea. Each
Ieaf swir ls arou nd a PC, Kt'ltinl{ t wo
chance t o touch itll intended victi ms . A
cha ract er und('r a ttack hal only II 10'1
chanet' of nOllClnK that t he wlr hnlt
lee vee see rn to have minds of their own.
If tht' leaves fa il to touch anyone during
t hill a ttack, t he) blow out flf ca mp a nd
the odic trtes t he 88m", tact ic on t ht,
fflllowin/.: niKhl.
ThOM' who SUCCl"llSfull )' make th eir
Sa vi nI{ Throws a!<:a inllt t he lea ves'
rha rm pe ll s real ize t hai t hey hlut, j ust
been nuacke d by some IIOrt of mi nd.
afTt'Cti ng "pelJ, though t he y probab ly
\Io'on't know whe re it or iginatl'd.
E\'l"ntuall y, th e PCs l hou ld mf't"t t he
odic Iace-te-face . If one for more t ert he
rei is rharm,J b)' t he od le'l r re acher-
oua leaves. he wil! lead t he pa rty to the
pir it . Any PC who wal'! chtJrm,J but
ha ll had t ht' t'fTt"ct dispel led can still
poi nt hi . frif' ndll i n t he Itl"nl"ral direc-
t ion of thl" odic. In a ddi t ion. the lU"'atl' r
..yrd. ca n lure the PCs to"'a ni thl"final
confrontat ion by ca ll ing Druida 'i namt'
or fl"l5n11R1( er us of di t "-'N. Shoul d all
t hE'!lt' ml"thod fail , t hE' ca n limply
ha \'e' t he odic " 'hClOl' h into t hl" pc,,'
camp one nil't"ht IWlt h the /.:reatl"r \Io')'rdl
e101lt' bt' hindl. a tnoe. a nd haul...
t ht, ad\...nturer to the d...a l h.
Ro"('lluM" t he odic can IIl'n!O(" in\'illlb il"
objl"('tll. Iht' PCs will han 4 \ ' (O ry dim
eult t ime it . Bt'fort> killin.:
t hl' ad\'cntunou , t he odi c wa nUl t hl' m 10
know eltlletly whPl thl'y'n' up Ill{ a inllt :
Ihl' \t'n': l'ful spiri t of Ir kt hnrn Ha li n.
Th l" following boxt"d lex l dl"l'Crih!' !1 what
thl' PCI ' l' ncount... r with t he IIpi rit
mi.::ht ht' like , A. a lwa ys, t hl" ca n
modify thl"t nt dl"pendin!: nn thl"
actionl of t ht> PCs.
An !liKht !Itand" blforl"
you :./II maje!ltic oak t rff t o....I"f"S
n...arl) 100 ' into th... niltht IIky. it.
uppermost bra nches ri l lnKhilth
abovl" t hc t rl"'l' tops of it. ne iKhbon,
Thf' trt'l" ilN' lf, though i mprt'!WI i\e. i.
nOl " 'hat catches you r eyt'll a nd
dra " '" Ka. p!' from )'our mout hs . Th l"
01111. is ",markabll" for thc inte nN'
a ura of pu rpl l" l ight It rad iat t'll in a
20' rlldi ull. Th... Ilt ra ngl! light dOl'!l not
rcm ind you of t he cheery glow of a
bt ui n!: hea rth; inllt...ad, it Ilt'(' m,
THEBANEOFELFSWOOD
.o.OIb. QA1!VH.tWJ( __' SAlogo _It_ _ tIy ' SR.

_1_'SIl,ItlC: ... A'9"l" _

Thl. module I. des Igned 10 give beginning
Dungeon Masler. and players a chance to
learn Ihe AD&Dt game s ystem. But don't be
fooled by t he tillel
High level character. and plenty 01adventure
make th is module a t hrille r lor new a nd e xpe
rlenced player, a like.
Availabl e now a l your local toy. book. or
hobby , tore.
The IIpi rit then rellumt's its t irdl.' u
pa trol of Elfllwcod. kt'l' ping a sha rp
lookout for t he PCs.
Conc luding the Ad venture
Should t he Pes (a il to dest roy t he odic,
t he spirit simply ccnunues to patrol
Elfll.....cod . Eventual ly, it kill s t he rree m
Sagl' bark. Old :\!a n Hood. and countless
other forest creat ures. It s dead ly pres-
ence rema ins in t he (ort' llt until it is
deetrcyed.
If tb e PC, succeed in defpa t ing t he
odic. Dru ida immedi ately makes good
on any promises ehe'e made t o them.
Unlees ehe wIlll mist reated , the elf
IIta teli that she would Klltdly adventure
wit h th e PC!I in t he futu re,
As a potlSi ble further adventure,
Druid" and the ot her survivi ng elves
miKbt dec ide t o repopulate t he settle-
ment of Elfswood . and a ny PC elv es
could be invited to bu ild ne.. homes
there or move into ('xi!lt ing enee. Such a
scena rio mi gh t call for a jou rney to t he
Gla nadylll ' old clan o( Whilipering
Grove t o att ract new lM'u ltt!I. The l"Ca
may 81 110be asked 10 obta in a IIpr ig from
the clan '5 TrPt' of life t o help repel a ny
undead marauders that might trouble
the settlement in t he futu re and to
e nsure t hat II second lIuch tragedy never
OCCUrll in Elfswood. n
SOMe tlJiN(jS ane WORtlJ
tlJe wait . .. liI{e cnno's Pl ay
cont inu ous energy dra in to leisurely
stea l t he life out of such unfortunate
indiv iduals.
Anot her optio n available to t he odic is
itd epeeial dead a bility. If a ny
greate r .....yrds a re defeated in combat .
the odi c ca n animat,. t hem again (at
one-hal f t heir previ ous hi t -poin t lota lsl
if their corpses a re wi thi n 60' . Simi .
larly. i( Druida or any PCelves a re
slai n duri ng t his ha tt ie. t he spmt ca n
animal,. thei r dead bodies all wyrds and
send them aga inllt their for mer fr it'ndll!
Th e spir it is ca pable of a"imoli,,#: up to
16 Hi t Dice of undead elves uwo greater
wyrds! per rou nd.
The odic ha ll a notht' r trick up its
sl ee ve as ....('11. Whe n Ihl.' Il pir it's bu.
point tot a l begins to dwindle, it ca n
dir ect itll /i"gl'r of power against
it!lot' lf. t hull cur i flR itsel f of 330 hp darn-
aKe las per t he roi , .. drod llpell on PHI!:('
12 o( tht' 0 &0 P/o.... Companion. Thi ll
opt ion is usable once per rou nd instead
o(an auack.
If the odic ill Tu rned by a etene. it ill
immed ia te ly banished to a ra ndom
local ion }6 milt'll away. Once it reaches
its new locat ion, the spir-it possesses
a not her tree and t hen cures any dam-
age it ha!l suff('red at t he hands of the
PCI! . Th e foll owing evening it rl't urns t o
t he sit e of t he previous nigh t 'li ba tt le,
o"imati"R any e lf cor pses it finds t here,
more like t he cold helicon of a light .
hOUIIe.
Standi ng a round the KTt"8t oa k-
two within t he purpli!lh glow, t wo
without-are four more hideous elf
things like t he ones that gre-eted you
a t t he Gla nadyl een jeme nt . They
seem to ha ve been a wai ting your
group a nd are qui t e aware of your
arrival. As one of the undead elves
begins to walk Il lowly forward. a
sudden icy gu,t of wind R ods a
shower or leans llpirall ing to t he
gro und and carries to you t he fright.
ful voice of the ap proac hing creature .
Its words seem to be di rected toward
Druid a.
"Our family shoul d have ]ln
Elfawood when t he drui d told us to!"
t he rott ing elf-corpse calls in It raspy
voice. " Now we are cursed to walk
t hese woods for eternity! How foolish
we were to th ink we could steal
Ir kthorn'lI fOTt"lIt from him! But now
that Ir kthorn has ret urned to take
ba ck wha t is r ightfull y hill." the
undead elf hiseee, breaking into a
re pulsive dirt- a nd blood-arained gri n
as hIE' ges t ures toward the huge oak
a nd iu fierce purple glow. "we have
ken t he lig ht ."
Comb a t St r llt l"JOl"s
The finlt thing t he odic d0f.'5 when it
confronts t he PCs ill to onimat.. six more
charmi ng leevee a nd Ilt'nd them al{ai nllt
t he pa rt y. Whenever one of the leaves is
des t royed. th e IIpi rit createll a rl.' place.
ment in t ht' following round. It C8n U!le
t his power in addit ion to a regular at
tack (phyllica l blow or IlpelJ) each round
but can nl.'\'l.' r ha ve more than six leaves
onimotrd at one ti me.
As long all a t leallt one opponl.'nt ill
wit hin 30' of its polISot' lIllt'd tree. Ihl' odic
can a ttack with a branch COm!: 112
plull poillOn}a nd ..... iII do 110, lea ving out
of-ra nge PCII for t he greah'r wyrdll a nd
onimot..d leave. to engagt'. If all PCII
attack from a dist a nct'. howP\t'r, t ht'
odic will Ullt" its spell likl.' powt'n-
t'1Ipt'Cially {inRrr ofdrath-againllt t hl.'
IId'il.'nturerll . The spir it ignorell any
charmrd victims withi n t he arl.'aof
purplt' lig ht !lurrou nding it . all owing it!l
After the undead elf t ha t wall once
Dr uida's fat her '-t )-rdl."1or gi\'e ll hi s
speech, t he odi c an d illl greater wyrd
servants attack .
eontinued from 28
64Issue No. 21
RANK
AMATEURS
BYJOHNJ. TERRA
"Somewhere ogre
the rainbow...."
50 Issue No. 22
John Terra u: Q {,",,[aner /.l 'rl lr"
Ill,. u-ith hili u'l(r. 1-:11" . , and
d"ldfYfl . Ad,.il"lHu" om/ .}" h" /11. 80m"
of h,. past gam'nll prol'''f't nr/ud,. 1'".
t"n 111 U"Gi Castll' and
;\Ion st roull Ce mpe ndiums I and II . III' I II
('u, " " t/.'/( U-n,.ltlflR 0 " The Teen T i t an!!
Sourcebook far .\(0."(0' '' -' HEROES
/lamr, Jl u Rf'G /In.up pIQ.\ ,trJtN/ t h..
{nll,m'IrIIl adv enture, and th... pIQ) "". or..
nil r fTfIl 't'r1f1R meelv at a IONJI mf" nt al
" ..afth ((I(',II(Y,
"Rank Amateurs" ill /I O&D modu le
for h umnnord l"C's cnahod With GAZIO
The (Jrn fl { Thar Gall-ttl'N. It i ll In-
tended for 6-8 playe rs. prtf(rabl) us t hr-
st nrt of a n nil -huma noid cnmpaiRn,
any humanoid PC of I.\"(b 13
CIt O hi- used . It is prt'fl' rabl e t o i nclud('
llllt'8l'1t on!' " bi lo: gun'tsuc h 811 a n o",.,.r
or Iroll. one thief-er te nt ed ty p' osuch a"
a kobold. and a shaman or ..... rcca. Attl''''.
to GAZIOis requi red. Those ..... ho wanl
t o truly do rusnee to the Ieuer pa rt o(
t he advt'ntur.. should also have acCt."!l.'1
to GAZ3 Pr, nclpallt lCOll aI Gla" ,r"
The i . encec raged 10 reed t he
GAllO Player 's Guidl' I PGI
t'1ipt"CllIlI)' t he secuon dE-a ll nJe wnh th.
eenduron of Iolo ea pon!! a nd humanoid
kill, . -\11 rt'ft' rl' nCl' lIt o t hi!! book ere
listed h)' palo:t' nu mber. For t' xl ra fun.
the consult t ht weapon
n.:fl"ct. Chart eP{;. pll/ol t' 42 1(or "p'"('lfIC
..... t'a pon pr oblt'ms ,
For the Dungeon Master
FlooshpraHh is the nam.. of the new
, 'jllaJW t hat se r ves as t he horde ce nt er
for th e Rude Mon...,.t' III . II Iriht mude up
of the odd!! a nd ends uf "arIllU!; Io:uhl [,
noid ra ct'S, It is suueted in Upper
8 u/olburh ian rert-itory, but fert une tely,
Chil'( (a n O/olfl' ) i on "' '''t'111
t er ms Ith bugbear Tr iba l Chi t' f Ohr' r
a nd ill o ed a fever b)' t he le t te r. Of
course, a n)' bUJebtoa f'!l in rhe
rr rbe may \'t'ry ..... ell he lI pit'lI for Ohr'r.
In an)' case. the :'-lonlO"t' l. . due to t ht' ir
unqul'5tionlnlo: eeeeptenee of all ..... ho
..... i h to k nle with the m. ar.. ve ry popu-
la r With lont'11I a nd a np,,"t' Iolo'"ntin/o: a
(",,,h "tart in lift'.
Unfortuna tely. the nu mber of IIt ra /o:
glt'f11 recent ly has swelled the ranks to II
trul)' number, To makt'
meuere worse, a dOU'n o(Chit' (
Buh " mort' rl' lat iw nre
mo,' inll Int o t he hord e In a fortni..:ht.
Th... Chief ha ll 10rom,' up with a n idt' ll
RANKAMATEURS
Mission Impossible
Read or para phra se thl' following to thl'
players :
-
..
. -' , -:
to de royal, abominabl e. t errible, and
very unpleasant Al miKht ) Chief
MmmBuh! The bele..... -menrie ned
ga rbage is expected re report to His
Chiefnt' 1I1I on da doub le or yer
lungll' l! beripped out !" He roll s up
his scroll , lI pinll on his heel , a nd
jCl'8t url'JI. for t he group t o follow him.
The hut of Chief Mmm.Buh! ill
dark, dingy, and very 8mt"II)'. Th e
Chief ie per ched on a t hrone made of
a pile of rocks a nd dead wood ekitl-
full y arra nged t o look l ike a hea p of
stones and branches. The Chief is the
bi ggest ogre Ilny of you hove ever
M't'n, Behi nd him. ready to a tt a ck
any e nemy, rea l or imagined. ere nd
hi 8 f1i l troll bodygu ards. Seated here
al so are Ha rrideal ; Oaku Sepp, t he
hobgoblin 8ha ma n; Ilnd Scratch. th e
chit"f IICri he.
The Chief clears hill throat. a proc:,
ellS th a t ta kea t wo minutt' II , Rnd
8pea kll. " Okay. youllot' guy8! Lis.."l'n
up. cuz yet gonn a do sumpin' dat will
give )'a hea ps 0' glory! OoIlt' lItoopid
hoomin t ypes up in Glantri art' t ryin'
t o mUlICle in on our t urf, hr ingin' in
dt' r Kodlt'!lS ..... ita rds an' fat mt' r-
--
--
- I tu' x 8 miles , .
":. --
"
; :
__ ':., ',.,A. J . ',.,A.
":. ' J . J J .
You a ll a re hanKing a rou nd ant' of
the cookfires in your nat ive " ilIage of
FloollhpraKh, wa rdi ng orr t he ..... in-
ter's ch ill and di llC"u!Ul inKimport a nt
matters such as: 1I0w man)' evil
II pir it8 ca n dance on t he head of .
pin? and: If a n E' lf fa ll8 down a pit In
a quarry and no one is around to
hear it , does it make a noi8E'? These
philosophi cal a rgument s te nd to be
resolved by II fl'w IIt rat t".ncoll) placed
blows in cert ai n ap propriate areas,
a nd even now t he pu nches a re begi n-
ning to fl y. So a bsorbed is everyone
i n t hill intelll'Ct ua l dillCourr.e t ha t you
fail t o 1ll"Cthe Jlt"od Ga rba gt' Pickt'r,
Harr idl' al t hl' kobold. IIt r idini{ pu r
prn;efull)' t oward )'our con\'e rllat ion
pit . .
He st rikt' ll t ht' 8mall e8t onl' In )'our
group on t ht' head , unrolla a mouldy
scroll . a nd begi ns reading in a pom-
plUli bellow: "Be it known dat on dill
day, da following Ra rba gt' has bet' n
pickt'd to a duty of grl'ot importance
to deplete the renke of the lower eche-
lons. but i n a way that wiIl .n\'t' him
power lind pr ellt i!:'e.
The PCII a re low-level ..... hom the
Chi lf ha ll declared expendable. th ough
t hey do not kno..... t bts. fHllI
like a nnoyi ng hill neighbcre in t he Prin-
cipa litit'tI of Glant ri , The PCII a re It'd t o
bel ieve rhe t they ere envoys for t he
Chil{. dehver-ing A decl eeet ien of war t o
the Glant ri vil lage of Tri nta n,
Though at First !:, Iance t hill ad venture
see ms to be a t rash.the-player sce na rio .
it ill not . Th e PCs deserve a chance to
avoid the painful deetbe Awa it ing them.
Throughout this modul e there a re II Ub-
t ie clues shew t he PCf! that Not All
Is All It Seems. These clues should be
del ivered in a n crr.he nd way, wit hou t
unduly a lert ing t he PCslo tht>ir signil'i
ca nce. If the I'e ll a re amurt enouKh.
they ..... iIl real ize thl;" Iligni fica ncl' of
t hese hi nts, If they a re obtuse a nd
II I0ppy- well. it wall nice kn owing them.
Whilt" it ill t rue t hat humanoids art'
rt'iat ivd)' st upid . t he)' do know how t o
handle themsel ves in baule and oth er
dangeroulI llituat ionll. This skil l come
from sheer pa ranoia. a natura l gJfi for
violence, a nd a n ftlUtre8lliv(' nat ure. II
shoul d be e mphnsized. however; t hat
eve n thouRh humanoids art' t he "he
roes," there ill no reason for t he adven -
ture\o diaint egr ate into II mindl ess
me8ll of killi n". looti nR, buening , a nd
pill a Ring of NPCII. Some NPCa art'
indeed deserving or relat tvel y unple as-
an t trea t ment, but it will be obvious
..... ho t hey a rt', and even these ins tances
should be ha ndled with class lind good
test e. sure t o IIt rike a ba la nce
betwee n the h umcrous uapect (" Huma n-
oid heroes? Come on now!" ) a nd t he
!\ot'r ioull a spect (t helle PC8 are ht.>inR
cruelly l'l't up].
If a ny player ..... ho roll 8 up a bu gbea r ill
inte rest ed. hill PCca n be a IIpy for
Tribal Chit' f Ohr'r. There ca n be on ly
t ..... o such lIpit'1I in t he pa rt y, a nd the)'
ea ch "ta rt oITwilh one good weapon e nd
10 gp. Any PC who has a Knowlt'dgt'
skill lPG, pa i{t' 351Much lUI t r iba l cuI.
ture, homel and tl'rrain, etc, ca n makE' a
roll t o 1ll"Cif he kn owlI thl' RudE' Mon
grE'b ' hilltory a nd uni \'erl'la l a ppeal as
wt'll all t he 8ta t l' of a ITain betwl'l' n
Chil'f Ilnd Tri bal Chilf
Ohr'r. The a ni)' bits of informa ti on th at
he ca nnot know an' t hE' Chit'fs rea l
plans for th E' pRrt y a nd t he filet t ha t t he
Chief s rt' \'olt inKrt'l ati\t' li are dul' to
a rri \'e IIOOn .
DUNGEON 51
RANKAMATEURS

. ,
KiN'" t
I+tA1.'Z.

(jAY N"vJZ..J

chants to eenle on our Ircnti crs! We

ain't gonna take di e Iyin' down! It's
wa r, an ' ycuse gu ys are gonne be de
dips ... uh ... dn diplomats an'
deliver to dose guys in da vtlleee of
Trinlan a challe nge t o fight .
.. Jt>II' take a dipl omatic pouch to
der number one honcho an ' wait fer
der an a..... er. Don' worry. diplomats
get l umpin' called immooni ty. 80 dey
.....on kill ya. Dodot a n' come ba ck,
an' we'll gtve ) '8 all 80mI,' gold an'
st ufT like dot. In fact , go to Eb Neea,
our supply chi ef, a n' get de f1 pe<ial
equipment ya gonna need .
" Youse are ordered te take da
marked trail . Da ga in's ill ea sier a n'
you might me ke )'erlleh'ell uSt'ful ..
attackin ' any st oopld hoomin mer -
chant car avans. Da trip tak es a cou-
ple a days, 80 make sure ya st op a t
du Sign of de Lost Lunch. a neat inn .
Keep ye r ea rw ope n dere fer any geed
infermation. I' ll pay ya extra if ya
gets any use ful news. You hal' my
permissi on La do B bit 0 ' edvent ur tn'
an' esploei n' if da npportoonity
presents itllelf. lf yc use KUya do
everyting right, ya can keep a ny
52 Issue No. 22
neat IIt ulTya Now gid oun a
here before I cha nge my mi nd and
BlJlIil{ll ye some jevelin-ee rehin'
dooty!"
The Pes are escorted to Eb Nl"f>z the
Scroun ge, the gno ll supply chief, and
len alone with him. Eb is expecti ng
them a nd has th ei r equipment a nd
wea pon!! laid out for them to tak e. lt he
Weapons Defects Chart lPG, page 421ill
used. make a note of which PC get s
which weapon. The inventory includ es :
- 2 swords - 1 club
- I battle axe - 1 hammer
- I dagger - 1 bow
- 2 maces - 24 arrows
- 2 suit8 of leather a rmor (one kobol d
size, one ore aile )
- 2 lI uitll of chain mail (one orc size, one
ogre lI il el
- 1 sui t of plate mai l (ogre s iz.el lt falls
to pieces the first t ime th e rolls the
exact number needed to hit the wea rer.
Of course , th e group ca n sa lva ge th e
biu a nd use them as parti al armor,
- 2 shiel ds tone with the same dt eedven-
tege ae t he plate ar mor )
-8 backpacks (empt y; one has a n unno-
tice-d sma ll hcle!
- 2 coi ls of SO' of rope (one coil is defee-
nve end will break if used to support
the weitt ht of mor e than one orc-eiae or
two koboldsize cre at ures)
- a pouch with 10 gp, 20 lip, and 30 cp
- a map of the area to bet raveled t" Oa
" l ap'"
-a lett er of credi t entitling the group to
free room, food, a nd dri nks at the Sign
ofthe Lost Lunch, a humanoid-run inn
on the road to Trintan
-a dipl omati c pouch, sealed with a bloh
of green gocp, that supposedly holds
Chief "l mmBuh!'s declar ation of war (it
actually holds 2 lbs. of a vile, smelly,
unidentifia ble glop' . The PCs are in-
st r uct ed not to ope n thi s pouch on pain
of a rel atively unpl easant death.
If t hert> a re mor e Pes than weapcne,
a rmor, and eq ui pment , too bad! Onl y a
successful use of Int imidat ion or Bawl -
ing Ilkill i PG, pa ges 35 and 381will
sway Eb to gi ve ever one additi onal
item. Such tactics work onl y thrN'
times. If attempted a fourth time, a
half-dozen oJ.,. 'Te bodyguards come in a nd
beat up (but not kilh the PCs, then kick
th em OUl ofthe supply hut and ha stily
!lend t hem ofT.
Chief MmmBuh! (an unusually
large 010"1"1: AC 5; UO 5 +2; hp 39; MV
90'/30 ' ); ' AT 1; Omit by weapon type;
Save F5; '-IL 12; AL C; XP 150; B0/35.
Harrtde al l koboldr. AC 7; HO 112; hp
3; " IV 90'/30 ' ); ' AT I wea pon: OmKby
wea pon type -1: Sa ve Norma l Ma n:
" i L 8; AL C; XI' 5: B0 I32.
Oo k u-Sep (l st level hobgobl in aha -
man); AC 6; UO 1 + I ; hp 7; MV 90'(30' );
'AT I ; Omit by spell or weapo n type:
Save Fl ; xn, 10; AL C; XP 15; BO/31
and MO,'2 122. Ooku-Sep has no Ilpells .
SCr a tc h {goblin llCr ibe}; AC 6; HO
1-1; hp 5; MV 90'(30' ); ' AT 1; OmKby
weapon t ype ; Save Normal "fan: ML 9;
AL C; XI' 5: 80/31.
Troll bod)'gua rds f61: AC 4; HO
6 +3- ; hp 22 each: " IV 120'(40' ); ' AT2
d awal l bite; Omg 1611 61110; Save f'6;
" IL 10: AL C; XI' 650: ER/56.
Eb Nf't' z the Scrou nge (gnom: AC 6:
11 0 4: hp 22: " IV 90'(30' ); ' AT I
weapon; omg by weapon type I ; Save
F4: " IL 8; AL C; XP SO: BDI30. Eb is
very greedy a nd miserly, hat ing to part
with a ny of hi ll precious equipment.
Ogre bodygua rds (6): AC 5; HO
6 + 2; hp 40 each; MV 90'(30' ); ' AT I
club; Omg b)' weapo n t ype +2; Sa ve f' 6;
" IL II ; AL C; XP 160 ; BO/35.
lilt the Road, J ack!
As the sun set s. the PCs depart on their
hazard ous mission. Th e en ti re tribe
(which ha s been IE't i n on t he chier s
nE'at plan a nd sworn to secrecy) has
come out to give them a rOWling sendoff
The PCs ma y notice that their rete-
rivee are wea ring bla ck while wailing
and gnashing their teeth. A black cat
cr 0880eSt heir path al th ey walk bel ow 13
vult ures perched on a nearby tr ee. A
gong bongs 13 times, a nearby mirror
cra cks , a nd t he tribal nag is flying at
half mast . Percept ive PCs ma y feel t hat
IIOmet hing is wron g,
According to the 0&0 Expert
booA:, the party moves overland at the
rate of il8 I lowellt member. Thill move-
menr rate per turn, when divided by
five, gives the number of miles per day
that ca n becovered. When t ra veling ofT
the road, the party' s mileage is t wa.
t hi rds the normal rate, Roll for random
eeec uruere once in the morning, once at
noon, and once at night, An encounter
occurs on a I or 2 on Id6. If a n enccun-
te r is called for, roll idS a nd consul t t he
Random Encounter Tabl e.
ends of his arms and t urn the al e
8pigot with hls enout , w hen he eees
you, he gr ins a broken-toot hed emi le
and welcomes you, int roduci ng him-
sel f as th e proprietor and aski ng
what you wish to order,
The PCI will be sa fe here as long a8
they be have, which il unlikely to be
long. Even if the)' are on thei r good
behav ior, the refit of th e pat rons most
cert a inly will not be! Lookma is friendly
and properl)' subservient , as t he letter
of credit impresses him grea tly, If a ny,
one' buys him a drink, he may te Uhow
he 10l t his hands juggli ng BIt' 1 on a bet.
Everyone el se here is out for bl ood a nd
8 fe..... chea p laugh, a t IIOml'OnE' else'.
expense . For each PC. roll ld1O a nd
consu lt the following ta ble:
Inn l\UlIhap Tabfe
1: Si x yellow orcs from the YUP horde
rt'COlCfl ize th e armor and weapons of
their fall en comrades a nd attack, no
quest ions ask ed. Everyone else bets on
RANKAMATEURS
t he outco me of t he fight ,
If this misha p never happens , eight
YUPI will engage t he PCs in a tavern
brawl at th e end of thE' evening, since
their t ribe a nd t he Rude are
i ntense eivel e.
Y, lIow o r e s (6); AC 7 11t'a t he r r, HO 2;
hp 10 each; MV 120H O' ); IAT 1
weapo n; Omg by ..... eapon type (sword);
Save F'2; 11; AL C; XP 20; 80135.
Their equipment is in good sha pe, a nd
t hey eac h have 5 gpo
Note: if t he party did not pick up a ny
of the YUP equipment from the tiger
bee tle random e ncounter, use mishap 12
i nstead.
2: Balch, a n ogr e, ehelleneee the PC to
a drinking contest using the Constitu-
ti on skill (PG, page 3S>. He hall a Con-
sut uuo n of 17, The first person to fail
100000s one posseaai on. Balch 0 wn8 a large
club, a shi el d. and 23 lip,
Bal ch (ogr e); AC 5; HO 4 + I : hp 3O;
MV 90'(30' ); IAT I club; Dmg by
wea pon type +2; Sav e F4; ML 11; AL C;
XP 125; 8DI35.
3-4: A kobold t ril'lI to lIteal one item or
10 eoine from a PC victim. Th e t hief
At the Sign 01the lost l unch
Your jour ney finall y takes you to a
haven of rest , 8 sprawli ng
inn called the Si l{noft hE' Lost Lunch.
P08tE'd outside is a boa rd that reads:
SICO N Of tnE Lost LUNC!}-
Lo okMa No HaNbs, t mon.
No bean reat
S!}lntz Must be WORN
No owanva. EIV!., OR!}al fJiNtiS,
ON lEES!}
No !}ooMaNs encwec EXCEp1
r o n nic!} kaotlc t ypz
No sweant x ' eroue
BEWanE UV RaNboM v i olENCE
No pno zlE1yzlN'
Ope ning t he door reveals It smoky,
lI melly, dark, loud taproom wherE'
humanoids of all racel congr E' gate for
drinking , eati ng, dr inking, gaming,
dri nk ing, gambling, drinking, brawl
ing, a nd dr inking. Behind the bar il
a 8'0011 dru &ed in a greasy a pron.
The most unulual feature oft hill
fellow is his lack of hands. You are
imprefltled by his ability to mO\'e
mugs around with the hooks a t the
Handom [ m.' ou ntf'rll
1: Tilf' f bH- llf'lI, gi a nt (2): AC 3; HD 3 + I ; hp 13 eeeh; MV 150 'tM)'t; ' AT I bit e; Dmll:
212; Save f2; ML 9; AL N; XP 50; BDt26. Th ill pa ir of t iger bH-tiH a mbus hed an ore patrol
and il l' n)oyinll: a light I nack. Ir thl' party ignorH t he m, thl'Yeleee in to .al uire morr food.
Th" four df.ad On:ll tuve t wo suiu. of leatht' r armor, one IIUlt of f'halft mal l, on.. shl..ld, two
good IWOnD, one good lIpear, one da ll:Ker, 12 gp, 34 ep, 55 cp, a nd a pot ion of hNl lnlt . Th..
IIhi..ldl and armor are .. reblaeoned with a tri bai llymbo!. A Knowlf'dtl'f' roll (PG, 35) for
tribal eulture skill re veal l that thl' Iymbo! repff'llf'nu. th.. "..llew Ugly Pi gnOllH(YUPs), a
y..lloware hordt' lhat ill a fierce ri val of tb.. Monl(J'4!l . Th illl' nf'Ou ntl'r ha pppUlI only oaee .
23: AC 6: HD I; hp" f'ach; M\ ' 90 '(30' ); 'AT 1 weapen ; Omll by Wf'apon Iypp;
Sa vr Normal 7; AL N; XP l O; 8 0 ,34. Thr y arr eeccrted by f'ight 5;
fl ; hp 7 "'f'h; MV 9O'f3O'l; ' AT I wl'apon; Dmg by wr a pon tYJll!; Se ve fl ; ML 9; AL N; XP
25). Th ia r;arava n ia compost'd of four waKQlI8, each pulled by 1""0 hOf*.'8 and OCC'Up,,'d by one
trsder Ilnd tw<l fighte rs . The tn df'rt art" ar mf'd wi th short IW<:lrdl, the fighttors are armrd
witb long a"' orda, and bot h groups "" ear f'hain ma il- Loot f'O.lUI ll1U.of typr A tn uure , Thl'
c.aravan'a react ions art" rell ed with a - 2 pL'nalt y dur to baal f' hu ma n dLRtrust of hum. nolda.
In be n te, the tradrrl will not join thl' fray unlf'N four or more of thei r ellf'Orta are I la in.
4: Stu pid (' . ravan: A.'3 abo,l' , but thf'tl(' tradr n were too ehrap to hire an l'KOrt . They
a re vt'ty aru:ioua to a VOi d confl ict a nd will gh' l' the PCI up to of the Ir "" arel , .. well ..
ru mor ' 2 from thr ru mor chart on pagr fl./o . If Prt' lIIll"d for mort' , tht' y la unf'h a dHpprate
attack. Th i...nf'Ount.rr ha pppfUI only ono.
nUll b..., bulli f' . f!l): AC 5; lID 3 + I; hp 17 r ach; 90 '(30' ); 'AT 1 "" r apon; Dmg by
_apon tyPf' + I fbatt lr IlI.Hl; Sa Vl' f 3; 9; AL C; XP 76; B0 '27. ThptlC' bUllb...n are
mrmhco n of Tribal Chif'f Ohr ' r'lIclan a nd are hr re to .bab down paurl'llby for money. They
art' .. only aIl er t.aking of t he PCI ' coina c5O'\ from a ny PC bupa r). If a PC
bughcoar is S IPYfor Ohr'r a nd somehow lell th.. bulli... kno.... th is, no money ill tabn from
th at PC.
7: Troll:lod )tf' 1I (6): AC 6; UD 2; hp 10 l'af'h; MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 2 d . ...all bite; Dmll:
1-40
'1
.4; Sa vr 1"2; 9; AL C; XP 30; BD!38. All trog lodyt e enf'Ounll' n a rf' If'()ut mll pa rt lH ,
fro m lIubt.rrTllnl'a n la nds . Thl' Yha"e no I.reaaurt' . Duri ng bat t lr , howevrr, thry 8l"'Cff'te a n all
th at thf' PC. nnd rrally neat . Il lOOrt of remlnciat hem of home cooking.
8: Giant ahl"f"u (4): AC 4; HD 1; hp 3 ..ach: MV I AO'IM ' ); ' AT2 bLl"'; DIT1i 1.&'1 06; Save
f l ; )lL 10; AL S ; XP 13; 8D/36. Y;'h.. n thi s ..nt'l)llnte r i. rollf'd, Id4 - I PCa . t .. p on IOOmr
!DOlle rart h, c.aulling thl'm to fa ll '" into a t unnel full of bu ngry ahre wII. Unfortun.ate!y, the
Brokt'n landi art' infHt.t'dwit h l uch itf'OlOjt'ical flaw. !
DUNGEON 53
RANKAMATEURS
must roll hill Delter it )' 1171or leas on
Id20, On a roll of l or 20. the vict im
detects the attempt.
Kobold: AC 7; UD Ih: hp 4;
90'(30' 1: I I\T t ..... eapon; Dmg by ..... eapon
t ypo (llhor t sword ); Save Normal Man;
ML 6; AI. C: xr 5; 80132,
56: The PC ill chal lenged to a Bawl-
ing eonteet lPG, PUKe 38 1wit h Ikk y.
Nikky, II gnoll. The gnoll hall a
Cha risma of 16. 'The bawleea are a
group offOUt kobclds. The fiT'llt contest -
a nt t o fai l a skill chec k mUli l buy eve ry -
one a rou nd of drin ks (a t a COIIt 0(30 gpJ.
Jr th e loser will not or ca nnot buy, he ill
a t t ac ked by a ll 45 cus tome rs . who force
him to II IW>p outsi de for t he nig ht .
IkkyNi kky ' l{I\olll: AC 5; 110 2:
' AT I wea pon : DmKby wea pon
t ype (JonKaword k Save F'l ; "11. 8: AI. C;
XI' 20: a D/3D.
79: A br awl breaks out for 220 min-
ute!'! ' no mutt' t han (l ilt! braw1JWr hcur j.
Each PC figh ts one huma noid with the
ga me !ltatisticll all the PC. The ba ttle is
nonfatal, using the unarmed combat
rules on page 23 of the Expert Ru/",OOok.
If a ny PC goes looking for more vict ims ,
he get s one simila r to the fint oppo ne nt
but ..... ith one ext ra hit die.
54Issue No. 22
10: A PC is invit ed to join a di ce ga me
wit h five goblins, all of whom have
Ga mbli ng skill and Cha ri smas of 14_
They pia)' 3 12 (3d41Kamel!for a pot of
330 sp per Kame. The .....inner of each
gaml.' is t he one who rollll t he hig hl' lIt on
I d20. A succellllful rull a lCains t th e
Gambling skill lPG, page 381givee t he
roll er a -+ 2 bonus. If th e PCloses. he
must pay 6 sp per ga me.
While in t he taproom, eac h PC picks
up 1-1 rumors. Roll IdS and consult the
follOWing chart:
Itumor Cha rt
I : " You come from Chi ef MmmBuh!?
Wha t a guy ! He just 10\"('8 attac king hill
enemies ..... it hout givin g t hem a ny ..... ern-
in g!" (Tr ueI
2: " There be a smal l aba ndoned fort to
the nort hwest . They lilly that there be
lots of t reasur e a nd neat IIt uff t here , but
t he r isk be big, too!" (True)
3: "Dere is a sma ll fort nea rby, It iz
abandoned becuz sum stoopid 01' dragon
Btl' everyone dere and sti ll duz it today!
Stoopid dragon! Probably t inks da fort
is its 10ngIOlIt baby or eumpi nl Stoopid
dragon!" IFalJ>l' 1
4: "A whole lot of elves a nd wizards
from Glant ri ere pat rolli ng t he trail
that leads ROut h from Tri nt an." (False)
5 : "Hce I h 't, lire!! I hea rd da t 01' Chief
Mmm-Bub! is gonna play a neat pr een-
cal joke on dose Tr inla n wimpe! If it
wor ks. he'{l g'et l ow res pect an' pree-
rige from da et her chiefs," (True)
6: " Man, t hose hu ma ns i n Trintan
don't me811 ar ound! They hate goblin
r aces a nd are just achi ng for a reason to
bash a ny of our kind !" l1'ruel
7: "Chi ef Wha t a guy!
Sa lt of the ea rt h! Whe n th ey were dcfin-
i ng honor, t hey ha d him in mi nd!" ' Very
False)
8: " I hear dat da Rude are
gon na be gettin' in a whole lotta rela-
t ivee of da Chief s! Oat tribe is genin'
too big ta feed il8elf! Scme t hi n's gct ra
gi \'e!"l1'ruel
9: "T here 's a gr oup of real dumb half.
lings north of here, between us a nd
Tr intan. They ill so easy to fool." Walse )
10: " Ki ng Thar is work inKon a new
book called Ki flg Thor : .Uafl ual o( Gvod
Cotlcl ud: S ft"(md Edi t iotl," (false)
Th e eve ning e nds in t he usual drunk en
huma noid good fello.....ship it h most
argu ments and hatreds. la 8 ell lISdead
customeralswept esl de as every one joins
in II ..rrand old taproom lIi nKa long.
Among the featured BOngs; "I' m II Hu-
manoid and I' m Okay" "t raid all night
a nd all day" ), "Ninety-Nine
Dwerven Skull!! On the Wall ;' a nd the
poten tially fillal " If You're a nd
You Know It , Stab \ OUf Fri f."nd ," Afu>r
th is, everyone t ur ns in.
Th er e are ext ra toug h ir on locks on
the bedroom doors, and the beds are of
pas.s.able qual ity, Eac h room ha s a win -
dow th at ca n bebarred from the inside.
Th e rooms eac h accommodate four
medium-size guCll ts .
But the YUPs a re not fin ished wit h
t he PCs qui te yet. In th e hour before
dawn. four YUPs attack ea ch ofthe
PC's rooms. Th ie ill a hattie of life and
dea t h. tht:' YUPs beinR: faOfl tical about
th eir tribal rivalry. US(> the same ye llow
ore stati lltics provided in Tavern Misha p
II. Any PC wit h the att r ibute IIkills of
Inst inct . Ale rtneee. Hea r Noise. or Odor
Seent inl\' (PG, pages 37381automau.
call y gets a roll which, if
enahlea the PC to be a wa kened fgf.'tt ing
ini tiative) by the sounds of the 't'UPIl
coming into t he room (they stole t he
mast er key from Lookma l,
Sma ll Inconvenienc es
Lea vi ng beh ind t he wer mt h, eompe n-
iOMhip, and bloodshed of rhe Lost
Lunch, you r intrepid l tul e ba nd
IIt ri kes its .....ay do..... n the trail that
st re tches across t he .....asrelands.
Monotony sets i n a nd it see ms
pa infull y li ke ly that everyone is on
t he ver ge of havi ng a nother " philo-
sophical di!IC\1B.IIi on" when you see a
gr<lUp of eight amall figu res riding
ponies a nd leading thrt"l' pack a ni
mal a. Th ey are 200 ya rds ahea d, and
apparently they llt'f' you too. because
they a re wa vin g a nd calli nl\'.
The IIt ra ngers carry no visible weap
ons , Ask the PCs ifthey .....ould like to
c10M' in. If they r('fulle to get c1o.wr, t he
8t ranli'ers shou t out a n encouragin g,
rellpectful gTeetinl(. If even this faib to
sway the PCs. t he st rangers !lhru l\' and
ignore them aIM. Shoul d the party
indeed dose, conti nue the descripti on:
As you dra..... closer; the ide ntity of
t he riders becomes clea r. The)' are
ha lOings! The eigh t lit tle people, all
cla d in lea t her a nd wa rm clothinJC.
wave cheerfull y and shout out:
"Good lIi rs , let us trad e! We have
many geode to interest the li kes of
you!" The pr ese nce of ecveea l casks
of ale lashed to the pack horses Pf"O>
vidl.'ll a further te mptation.
The ha lOinlo:s l>et up ca mp and begi n
cooki ng some sa 'oT) st ew a nd roll ing
out ba rrel s of al l'. It is th e aim of t he
halOinJCII to drug the PCs and rob them
blind or, fail ing this, to 11(' 11 them defec-
uve a nd falll(> good". The "read ers"
carry the following ite ms, which t hey
offer for sale at t he prices listed:
- pot ion of 10 gp (sugar wete r }
- pot ion of giant Ift rrngth: 25 gp (aIM
lIuga r water ]
- " Iowing magi cal sword: 50 gp (a
phosphorous-coated, unbalanced blad e'
-50.... '1' dia mond : 50 ... '1' tnice KlaN. but
that's alll
-eeand of trap df'lection: i s gp (1\ var-
nished t .....ig l
- rinJlaf ll'ot f'r walking: 100 gp fa nice
brass ri ng)
- black wolf.fur ca pe: 50 gp tact uall y,
it's rat ha irl
- loaded dice: 10 gp ft hl'y' n" per ftl)'
normal dice)
- warm. wewrprccr bcote: 50 gp (t hey
leak profusely I
-c wood sculpture of a dragon: iO gp
uermite. ridde nt
- gu ide to speaking the language of
Glant r i: 5 gp (all the phrases are hope-
lesely wron g, being t he most insult ing
and ..usring in that lan guage I
Besides selli ng bad merchandise. t he
halOin gs tell t he PCs about the leKt'nd
Rry Fort Boastt a nd ho..... there is much
gold a nd ot he r treasure there . They ll8y
th a t t he old fort Hell to the nort h off t he
main t rail. Tht' hal ninKs gi"e t he party
t his infor mation. not out of t he goodn!."!.'!
of t hei r hearts. but out of the hope tha t
the poor sucken will buy the halnings'
deft'ct ive equi pment in orde r to go ad
venturing at the fort. The halOing, plan
to catch up to t h(' PCs a t t he fort a nd
sca venge from t he dl' ad .
The hal n inWl have three callks of al e.
They drin k from the first cas k. which ill
untai nted , a nd let the pa rty dr ink from
the ot her two, Roll a 8l'CTt't Constit ut ion
check for each PC for eac h hour llpent
dr inkinK. Any PC who has t he Drinking
RANKAMATEURS
Ilkill lPG, page 38 ) rolls aKai nst half his
Consnnnlon. Those who p8Bl'l t he ir roll,
are not aware of a nything " Tong unless
t hey Are suspicious of poise n. At tribute-
rel ated skills that ca n be used to det ect
somet hing a mres are: a n a ppropr ia te
Knowledge field of et udy, Instinct , an d
Odor Sce nting l PG, pagl"s JS381.
There is enough ale for eac h PC to
spend four hours drinkin g. At t he end of
the four-h our period. all who failed their
Constil ution checks fall i nto a deep
sleep for t he next eight heurs runlese
roused j. Dur ing that time. the halflings
take t he PCs' ar mor, weapcns, .. old. and
anyt hi ng eve n remot ely use ful . Anyone
who did not succu mb to the poison is
a tt acked by all t' ight ha ln inJ{8 wiel ding
dubs. The)' do not wish to kill . so dam.
age ill nonlethal .
Of course. the party rna)' very well
decid e to throw es tde a ny se mbl a nce of
civili t y a nd t hrash t he halfli ngll , taking
all t heir boot y. Th is is considered nppre-
pr iate beha"ior for humanoids.
All t he gaj.," items are labeled 81t if
t hey were t he renl rhing. Unfort unately,
ea ch horse 's pack holds a na sty-te mpered
ferret t hat ha s been tr ained to a ttack
a ny nonhllin ing who opens a pack .
" {'rre tlt (31: AC 5; l ID 1; hp 4 ea ch;
),IV 150'(50' ); AT I bi te ; Dmg 1-1; Seve
FI : ),11. 8; AI. N; XP 10; 8 0 :30.
The hal Oinlo:8' rce! treasure consisllI or
800 "1', 1.245 sp, 2.331 cp. lI ix rubies
wort h 100 gp each. fwo boule axe + I , a
(u'(l-hand..d su-ord + 1. a war hammer
+2. four pot ions of a [II uit of
man-s ize chain mail + I , and a wand of
magic det ecnan, all of which are cor-
rectI)' labeled- in the hal mng tongue!
The eil\'ht ponies a nd t hree packhorses
are a verserile pr-i ze a nd ca n he used all
mounts, beasts of burden. or rasry
snacks,
Balning", (8): AC 7: 110 2: hp 10 ellch;
),t V 90'(30' 1; I AT 1 weapon; Omg by
weapon t ype ; Save BalflinliC 2; ),tl. 9; AI.
C; XP 20; 80/31. Each halOing has a
dagger, short sword. and club. The half
l inl\'l1 are ta king th e trail bound for
Darokin. The) had al so hoped to run
into some not.!(bright humanoids a nd
lI .....ind le them. If t he)' surv ive thill
elll'UUlltt'r. tht' ha lninKlIltmtinue on
their ml'TT}' .....ay. However, if th e half
lings out number t he PCs, t hey will
foll ow the part y, lIt3)'i ng one hour be
hind them a t all times, .....aiting for the
hu man oidll to lIt rikl" it r ich 80 t hey ca n
8 ....00p do..... n a nd rob them. Nasty little
"Tl"tehes. aren' t t hey?
DUNGEON 55
RANKAMATEURS
Fort Boastt
I square e 10'
N
I
_
I
- -
- -
. I \ .
Not e : lf th e part y hee not ta ke n the
t rail a nd hall consequen t ly avoi ded t his
encount er, make it th ('ir next random
encou nter,
The Haunted Ruins 01Fort Boas"
Tower; Srd 1...., \,(,1

Thoul':'h the t ra il here t urns to t he
northwest, a second trail. a lmost
obl ite ra ted by agt', st ret ches north-
..... ard. Coul d t hill be the way to that
Il' lwndary ruin, Fort Boastt?
If t he PCII follow the northbound t rail ,
read t he following:
Tower; 2nd 1."' \'(,1 Ha t -r uc ks. 2nd 1.." ' \' ("

i=ru= i
L l ttJ
The sta r k, t umbled ru ins of Fort
Bt JlUIU, fOrllll'r1y It bUIolIMc'lIr out1'O"t,
are enough to sna p eve ryone's mind
back to Il(>ri OUll matters. The very
area rad iat es an ominous fN>l inlt of
disalltl' r, There is a si ngle wa tch-
tower sti ll sta nding, surrounded b)' a
few wall s tone of whi ch abuts t he
re mains of a ba rracksl and 1018of
rubble. The only veget a t ion in t he
area ill made up of wilting gra)' and
brown weeds a nd a few dead trees
t hat eril l cl ing to t he rocky soil.
There ore no si gns of a ni mal life
except for a IIOlitary vulture t hat
sta res balefully at you r part y,
Tbe room has been red uced to a
sha mbles. Ueaps of rubble a rc eve ry-
where. Each wall is pierced wit h
a rrow sli ts , One set of IItairs KOt'S up
a nd one set ':Ot's down .
Th ill place wall abandoned 75 yea rs
ngo aOer a gr oup of bugbea rs perfor med
a cowa rdly deed a nd enraged Berm.
luth, t he ir god of strengt h a nd bra very.
The Immor ta l cursed th e place, a nd all
proper bu gbears in Upper Bugbur bio
shun the arcs despite their belief t hat it
illa mi nor stor ehouse of treasure. Wha t
good ill wealth if you've bee n turned
into a piece of bl't"fjl'rky? Any PC bUK'
bear wit h the Knowltodge IIkill of Tribal
Lore l PG, page 35) automat ically knows
the story, Any PC of a nother race must
make hill roll in Tri bal Lore,
I. Ruined Baf f ack... Ftrat Le vel .
The door st icks, rl'quir ing a Strengt h
roll to open. An lnte flige nce roll shows
that thi ll was once a barracks .
.',;
, .
Ground 1.(.\"(. )
lftoA=7=T=;=;=r-:"' fl;ll[+ I

\ .7;: :.:.pW J-+-+.++-t- --t- ' -,-:.--r' ;1

. ;1 ,- fl- -: ,',' " ' . ' I. . . I I , .
", ," ' . , 6 ....,...... ' - ',-.; ... .
' - - I . "
.,
i:!o\'--'t-+4 - t-+-f-t-+-
:).;'t--1- +-+-1- +-+-+- f-+-'- 1+-t- -t-''' ''C-+-+-'1- t-+-'1- '-+- .. . I
",. J...:.

- ,;1-+- __-+-+-+-++ '01

..:.,,__... i:::J
.
- t-' H H--t-H-I- - 1-,,-t-++-1'-1-
Under a pile of rubble in t he north-
west corner of the room lie four i nhabit -
ants who are very much alive.
56Issue No. 22
Pit vlpera (4): AC 6: liD 2- ; hp 9
eac h: 9O'130' }; IAT 1 bi te: Om" 1-4
+ poiso n; Save FI ; ML 7: AL N; XP 25:
BDf37 Isnllke), The have no t reasu re.
2. Ruinl' d Bllr r uc ks , Up per Len' l.
On the outside or t he building, II
ramp made of rubble leads to t he
second floor. At the top. a boulde r
seals ofT a ge p in the wall fr om ca-
s ual visitors.
This is the lair of Jerk. a hill giant.
He lives in th e upper level of the bar -
f licks, usinK the ramp to get up here
and t he bou lde r 8 11 his front door (t he
origi na l door ill long gone ). Si nce t his is
a n a ll-huma noid adve nt ure, J erk will
not attack i mmedia tel y. In a perverse
manner of speakinA: . t he PCs a re like
long-lost " little cousins," a te rm that
Jer k will use if his reaction to t hem is
fa vor able. He has moved into this level ,
Ill'sling ofT the staircase leading down
a nd t he hole in t he wa ll by massive
boulders, each requiring a St rength roll
lat -2 pe nal ty ) to move.
Jerk lovea food and wi ne , a nd may be
bri bed by such. If he is give n large
a mounts of bot h pl us t he promise of
t reasure, a nd his Monst er Reacti on is
Immed ia tely Friendly, he will join the
PCs as a henchman, though if he is
verba lly or physically abused. he under-
gael! anot her reacti on roll . Note: If J erk
joi ns t he part y, add one more creature to
every mu lt iple-creat ure e ncounte r,
addi ng the e xt ra beast to the t ype of
monster that has the greatest number
already Ie.g. if the pa rty e ncounters 12
ruts a nd a wererat, add one ext ra rat.
not a n ext ra werer at j.
Jerk (hill gia nt ): AC 4 ; HO 8; hp 39;
MV 120'140' ); ' AT 1 clu b; Omg by
weapon type; Sa ve F8; ML 8; AL C; XP
650; ERl50. His t reasure consi sts of
2, 105 sp, 1,028 gp, 477 pp, a spear +2, a
suit of hu man-aire leather armor +2, U
pot ion of hrolin/l, a potion of ;m'isi bility,
a nd a rin,ll ofprot ection + 1. Thi s is all
hidden in a hole under the rock t hat
blocks the down stairway.
A trapd oor in t he northeast corner of
the ceilinl( leads to t he roof. Up t here.
J erk has a eteeh of24 boulders to hurl
a t his ene mies. There is no ladder. J erk
is big e nough to grab t he lip of the ope n-
ing and pull himself up.
3. Tower, Gro u nd Le ve l.
The door is st uck [requi r ing 11
St rength roll to ope n]. As you enter,
the odor offrellhly turned earth 8 S-
sa ils your noses . Ther e is al so t he
smell of bodies bot h l ivin g a nd dead.
The room looks bore save for the
arrowal ita in the walls, t he sta irs
heading ominously downward, a nd
t he ladder lending to a trapdoor in
th e ceiling.
There is not hin g of a ny conseq uence
in he re. The stair!! lead down to t he
area 8 in the underground complex.
4. Towt' r. Second Level .
The trapdoor is stuck, like the door
at area 3. As you push t he trapdoor
open, you not ice many st ra nds of
..... ebs crisscrossing t he room and
catching t he light st rea ming in from
the arrowellts. Th ere are some
\'a"..ue ly hu ma noid-sha ped lumps in
t he webs. The nort h wal l hall a 3'
wide hole in it . The ladder you
climbed conti nues up to anot her
t ra pdoor in t he ceiling of this room.
A giant bla ck widow spider rests a t
the X and scuttles to th e trapd oor as
soon as it is opened. t ry in" to surpr ise
t he first PC to pop up. The t hree lumps
are orcs, but the only salvagable items
are a dagger. 45 gpo83 ep, a nd a good
pai r of boots,
Spi der. gi unt: AC 6; HO 3- ; hp 12;
MV 60'120' ). in web 120'(40' ); ' AT 1
bile; Omg 212 + poi son; Save F'2: ML
8; AL N; XP50; 80138.
5. 'Iowe e Third Level.
Thi s level has the usual nrrowslita
and the ladd er conti nuing ever up-
ward to a nother t rapd oor. There
seems to be some nt' sting ma terial
jumbled in tht' r afters.
Scrawled on the east wall a re these
words in hobgoblin:
Bartziluth'lI curne{or our cowardiN'.
mdie but do not rest.
Away {rom sunliRht 10 the df'pths
below,
I{ you know what 's good {or .YOU,
.you better not ,IlO.
Hidden in the rafters are eight
stirges. Their neat contains a pot ion of
heolin,ll, a ring o{identi fy ,six ru bies
worth 500 gp each, a nd 23 IIp.
RANKAMATEURS
A rin,ll of ident i{y enabl es its wearer to
correct ly ide ntify, 95'1 of t he time. the
exact pr operties of a ny six items every
24 hours . The ite m must be gr asped in
order for t he ring to work . The ring
idcnufice itself to ita wearer 8 S soon as
it is put on. Note that a cursed item
a ppears to be a legi timate item of value.
St irgt' s (8): AC 7; HD 1- ; hp 3 each;
MV 30'00'), flyi ng 180 '(60' ); ' AT 1;
Dmg 13; Save F2: ML 9: AL N; XP 13:
8 0 /38. The surges fl)' out of t he a rrow
slits in order to hunt ,
6. Tower. To p Level.
It smell s bad up here, There is guano
all over the floor, and t witt e ri ng
sounds come from th e ral1.(' rs. The
ladder ccnnnuee upwa rd.
Four giant bats resi de her e, thouJ:h
shar p PCs will pick up on this.
Bllts. gi ant (oi l: AC 6 ; HO 2; hp 10;
MV 30nO' I, flying 180 '(60' ); ' AT 1 bit e;
OmJ: 14 : Save F I ; ML 8; AL N; XP 20;
80,'25. They have no t reasure.
The ladder leeds to a st uck t rapdoor
that opens out into th e fresh air of t he
ruur. There is much rubbl e up here, hut
this hi gh perch affords a n excellent
vie w of t he count rysi de. One ca n see a n
e nemy mi les a way. Ir the hal fli ngs are
foll owin g the PCs. secretl y roll for a ny
PC up on t he roof ugai nllt any II kill l hut
may alert him to t he
7. Covered Well.
This st one-ri mmed well has boards
coveri ng- its mout h. Some of the
hoards ha ... e been che.....ed throu g- h.
It takes five minutes to pry all the
hoa rds away. The air t ha t billows out is
mil dewy. a nd a dis/{Usti ng green growth
cli ngs to the well 's sides. Anyone at
te mpt ing to use Cli mbing skill l PG,
page 371to descend docs so at a - 2
penalty. The ..... ell shaft leads to area 20.
Fort Boesn-,The Undt' rgrou nd
8. IJurrll cks , Lower 1.A\t' 1.
Descending the statrwuy. you see two
dozen beds a nd footl ockers. What ill
more disconcerting is th at 10 beds
aril l have fiRUrell lying i n t hem. t he
covera drown over t heir faces.
DUNGEON 57
RANKAMATEURS
J>A

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Th e ligu rfil are the skeleloM of 10
bugbteoan that were cursed all
yean ago. Xew t hey do in death what
t hey faillod to do in life: be vi5{1la nt and
bra...e. IilChtinK and kiliinK all i nt rudt>rtI
without quarter.
Skt'l("lons 11 01: AC 7; 11 0 1: hp-l
each: 60'(20' ); 'AT I : Dmg by
weapon t ype; Save Fl : ML 12: At. c . XP
10; 80137. The II kelt"ton.!l a re a rmed
Il, ith short l lo\' ords but han ' no erhe r
r re esure.
9. Armof)'.
The ai r i. I t ill a nd quiet in htore.
There are four torch" M"t in 1lCOnct'Il,
ene in each wall. Running along the
wall. ere . heh es that hold. variety
of \ilo'eaporu. Quite. find!
This wee t he armory. and it I t ill holds
*lmil" good .'I:'apons. Tht'rt' an- two
swords lonil" long and onto short I, two
dalit jl:t' r'I, III maee. uwo spE'ars, two pole
a rm l , a ba ttle au, two quivers with 12
arrows each, a nd a t wo-ha nded ewerd. If
t he wishes, up to half of these weep-
OWl may be deft"C1i\'l"l PG, page
58 Issue No , 22
10. Tower; Ct' Ull r 1A'"t'I.
The a ir ill st al e here, a nd deat h
hanlit! all around you-literally,
There are skulls, partial . kelet on8,
a nd other gruescme trophiell nai led
t o t he wa lls, The noor is a CArpet of
bones a nd llkull. , Even more disturb-
ing, the bones look as If t hey have
been gnawed .
It gets wor se . Any PC who Invesri -
jl:Oh' ll t he bont'Sc10M'1)' and makes an
Inlltinct check l PG, pag.. 371notic- tha t
the gnawing has been done in pe ueres .
An intelligent ereeture did t his, not
some animal , The \!lo'ererat in area 22
was hen- I:'njoying a ",palIt and gnawf'd
t he patterns on t hl:' bon" as a way t o
alleviate the boredom while . aiting for
hi s nt'J:t meal ,
II . Chier. Uoom.
The hI:'8\')' 011'" door before you ill
locked and hall a halOing Ikull
mounted on it at eye level . A mes-
sage illllCTawled on the door l in t he
buglM.-ar language. of courlle t.
" Chl"l"fll Rume. Dont cumm i nn un-
It'll u r invitid :-':ok an tok into da
. ku11 ,"
The room beyond the door i. qui te
romfy, The floor ill COVI:'n-dwal l-to-
wa ll in rugs made from polar beer
skinll, A brazier hangs over t he pl ush
bed , pr esumably for warmth. A crude
writ ing dl:'ll k hl:lll been pla ced againllt
the l:'&I't wall a nd holds some parch-
ml'nta in eleer aight . The stat ue of a
bugbear i n battle armor llund. men-
acingly in front of the lIOuth wall.
This \!lo'all the bugbear chil:'f. room.
One perehment, written in bugbear,
u ya: " Okay, IlO \!lo'e messed up, Wt'
turned an' ran when a ttackt'd by dat
group of elves. d....erves and halnin'. ,
Ok.ay, IlO dey only out nummered u. t. o
ta one, Dt- a,... okay odds fM tough
filr:htun Iik.e us! But no. we ra n bac k to
our comfy fort . cuz we were all bleeding
too much, So, Baruiluth g1Vl"ll
us all d. double whammy curse, a n'
now . '1:" gotta wander aroun' an' guard
da pleee. livi n' but kinda deed too, ya
know? But hey, 01' Bart, hp'. a nice KUY
on ' tit>Z dat all enyene e KOna do i . t o
RANKAMATEURS
'''1111I1111
*
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Fort Boastt
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. "...
" .
kill dll di rt y f li t dat is gonna aumday
move inte our fort even dough we a re
suppoosedly guerdtn' it. 80 I guess
gonn a be fail ures ID deat h 8S we were In
life, huh? So. a nyways, if a ny fell ow
bugbear or udd er gobli noid type" ca n
kick out da dirty rat dat moved in. an'
ieee hi s body down de well. den we kin
rest in pieces and de neat types dat did
da fllvor will gpi lotaa valooahle ("flJlh
pt-izea! Good lu k, a n' I' m now a .
guard in my own fort , I m really lookin
forward to my dead body killin' ya real
good, real 8OOne . After a ll . I' m close r
den U l ink! Signed. Chief Hel t u"
The other parchment is II map of the
lower level of fort (" DII Baa' ment").
Anyone who tries to move t he etat ue
should mak e 8 Strengt h roll . If the PC
i8 successful, t he stat ue swings e way
a nd a secre t door open s.
12. Trt'8/1. U ", Room.
As t he at one secret door 8wings open
with 8 loud grati ng sound, you are
amazed to 8('(' a large pile of gold,
si lvt' r, gems, a nd ot her loot glisten.
inK und er the light of a half-dozen
torches burning with what is ebvi-
oualy magical light . There dot', see m
to be one thing barri ng your way
from all oft his treasu re, though : a
dead bugbea r who bea rs a n uncanny
resemblance to the st a t ue in t he
Chiefs room.
It 'll the Ch ief, all right . He'll 8 ecmbi e,
transformed by Bartzil uth. His hoard is
t here for the taking, ifthe PCs can
defea t hi m. Of course, they can al waY8
run a way and fiKht e not he r day.
cu-r He lt u (zombie ); AC 8; trn5; hp
38; 90'(30' ); ' AT 1 sword; Dmg by
.....eapon type +3; Save F5; MI. 12; AL C;
XP 50; Bo f39 lt his is a nonstandard
zombi e). Chief Hell u is usi ng a t u -o-
handed su-ord +3.
The treasure consists of 3,264 gp ,
3,933 Ip, 11 diamonds worth 300
eac h, t wo pot ions of healing, a poti on. of
h..roism, a a hlllflmg
s ize suit of leather armor +2, a dagger
+ J, a , hi, ld +2, a u:and offror, a {l.ving
carpet, a scroll of protection {rom magic.
and the tu-o-t umded su-ord +3 ..... iel ded
by the zombie chi ef.
If the lucky Pce een kill ofT Chi ef
Helt u, t he "dying" zombie says, "Nice
goi n' , guys! Nothin' per sonal , rig ht?
Now do me a favor a n' get de dirty ra t
dat hal' moved in . AllarrKghhh!" If t he
PC s have already slai n the .....ereret
(area 22', t he Chit'f says everything
except t he last se ntence .
A !IigTl on t hi 8 locked oaken door
reeds, "Sha ma n 'Ienc, Chid Priest of
Fort Boast t . No vi8ita wi thout an
appoi nt me nt . ConfeMions at 10:00,
a bsolut ions a t 1:00 , inquisi t ions
..... henever no one expecta the m."
There is a smal l slot in t he door for
donat ions to the poor box.
Inside, 8 bed even ri cher than th e
Chie f'e dominates this comfortable
room, Even afte r all these yea rs , th e
sme ll of incense still hangs in the a ir -a
smell Hke a backed-up se..... er at low t ide
(yep. that's the favored Incense of bug.
bee r sha ma ns, a ll ri Kht!). Various myllti
cal eymbole are dr awn on t he wall s, a nd
a locked cabi net stands agai nst the
sou t h wall.
DUNGEON 59
RANKAMATEURS
Any sha ma n in t he party will recog-
nize t he symbols 8 8 i nca ntati ons of
gr eat power beyond hill meager under-
st a nding. Th e only ot her interest ing
thinKill the ca bi net . l f the PCs ge t it
open, reed the following:
The hinges sq ueak 8 8 t he doors or the
cabi net creak ope n. Inside a re on ly
two thi ngs: something thal eppeers
to bea rattle decorated in odd colors.
a nd the gri nning head of a bugbear.
The head (OCU6e9 i t ll eyes on your
group and llpeaks:
" Greeti ngll. int ruders! You didn ' t
make a n a ppoint me nt . did you? 8 ..... 8
he-ha t Then di e, fools!" The head
ni cs ofT t he II hel f ond begi ns swoop-
ing around the party, cackli nK
menacingly.
Yes, t hi s is Shaman Thne. fi e was
t r uly cursed a nd now t'Xisl ll lUI 9Om {'
thing th at could becalled a " nyinK
head ." Il l' inte nds to peas hill bad for-
tune on to the PCs 8 11 best he ca n. Each
PC must ma ke a Sa ving Throw vs.
Death Ray or Fl eefrom t he room i n
giblx-ri ng fear for 1.6 t urns . Those PCs
whn ma k.. th"ir Throw" may
choose to a t tac k t he head.
Shaman Tanc tnying headr AC 3;
lID 3; hp 24; MV nying 120'(60' ); IAT 1
bite curse; Dmg 16; Sa ve F3; ML 10;
AL C; XP 395; new monster. The she .
man head can one PC per round
as well as bit ing a victim (t hey need not
bot h be the same PC). The curse mnn i-
fesls itself as eit ht'r a new physical
detail (55'1 cha nce; PG, pa ge 3 1) or a
new unfort una te legacy 145'1 cha nce;
PG, page 461.
If anyone e uempts to touch the 110-
ca lled rattle (it's a KTi gri; see GAZIO
" Dungeon Master's Booklet "
page 8; any PC sha ma n will recogni ze it
as such), the offender loses one poi nt
from a nyone a ttr ibute, randomly deter-
mined, befor e th e gri gri loses its power.
All cur,f'S and a m ict ions a re perma nen t .
14. Supply Roome.
You see a room that showl! clea r
si l{t\8 of ab use and looting. There art'
heap!' of rubble everywhere. a nd a n
occasiona l atarr led r at damou t from
t he piles.
These areas have been looted and
ru ined, but in eac h room there is a 15'1
cha nce per PC offi ndinKone of t he
60I$$UONo. 22
foll owin g: backpack, SO' rope, ti nderbox,
lantern. lar ge 118ck, small sac k, mall et ,
s ix iron "pikes , chal k, bla nket , bedroll,
four-men tent, ..... Ineekin.
IS. Guar d Room.
Obviously once used as a barracks,
t his large room has bee n reduced to a
place of j unk. Sphntered rots a nd
torn-up pill ows lie st rewn every,
where, with chicken feathers cover-
ing eve ry surface. The nort h wall has
an el aborately engr aved door made
of sol id iron.
The place emel le bad even by your
sta nda rds. The ei ght mou ldy-looki ng
bugbears who are ahum ing towa rd
you wit h siKhtlt'M eyes and slack
j a.....s may have IIOmet hi ng to do with
the aroma.
The PCs Ret t he first st rikE' agai nst
t hese bugbea r zombies, who are t he
corpeee of cursed garrison soldiers.
There is no t reasure here.
Bugbe Mr zomhi ..-" (81: AC 8; HD 2; hp
10; 90'(30' ); ' AT I claw or I
weapon; Dmg l oS (claw) or by wea pon
t )' PP(swordt, & \ ' 1' F I ; 12; AL C; XP
20; BD!39. The weapons are rusty, but
only PCs get penalti es for using t hem
Ieee PG, pag e 42).
16. Sh rine.
The iron door lea ding into this room
is locked . Engraved on the door's
surface a rt' sce nes oft he torture and
sacrif lee of hal ni ngs to a bugbearli ke
Immort al. It is a beautiful a nd ra re
wor k of a rt t hat warms your heart.
t he room, you lire amazed
lit t he reddish glo.. t hat lights up the
place . In t he northwest corn er, on a
three -tiered dais, is t he sta t ue of a
bugbear Immortal with a n altar of
black basa lt at his Ieer. The enti re
easte rn wall is decorated with a
plaster t reece showing hordes of
bugbea rs defeating an army of elves,
dwarve s, and halnings.
Pa)'ing homage to t he stat ue are
t wo bugbea rs , but they look ra t her
odd. Their fur i. falli ng out, a nd t he
Ileeh ben eurh is a sickly gr ay color,
The)' sport fangs t he likes of which
a rt' not see n duri ng a bugbear 's ncr-
mal life. Their eyes burn a feral red,
a nd their filt hy (even by huma noid
standa rds) li ngt' r na ils reach out
hungr-il y toward you. They do not
stand up st raight but lope hunched
over toward you.
The stat ue is of Bartziluth. Th e bug.
bean a re ghoul", cha nged to thi s state
by Bart himsell. Now they spend t hei r
days pleadinKto his image for mercy.
All t hese yean offru itleS8 pleading
have gotten them a bit angry, a nd t hey
would just love to take out t heir frustra
t lone on someone.
If t he plaste r fresco illchi pped away, a
secret door is revealed in the middle of
t he eastern wall. Furthermore, a ny PC
who pu ts a n offering of at least 10 gp on
t he altar will recei ve +1 to his hit and
da mage roll a for one hour. If BOrne wise-
gu y PC steals this offer ing when no
cne s looking, he is permanent ly
cha nged into a ghou l like the others.
Any PC who acti vely won hips Berta u-
l ut h and makes a sac r ifice gets 1,000
XP in addition to t he comba t bonus .
There is nothi ng of va lut' in the room.
Bugbea r gho uh, (21: AC 6; HD 2-; hp
10; MV90'(30'); IAT 2 c1awsl l bite;
Dmg 1-311311-3 special; Sa y!' F2; ML
9 ; AL C; XP 25; BDI3O.
17, Crypt.
The double doors leading into t his
room an" heavy stone. Ins ide, t he
place is unna t urally eeld - ec cold
t hat you ca n see you r breat h.
Twenty -seven stone coffins a re lined
up in rows . They're not t he ca rved
stone .....orks of art that th ose wimpy
huma ns use, but slabll of rock et uek
toget her i n rough sembla nces of
rectangles. 1\011 of t hem. unfortu-
netel y, ba ve bee n broken oppn- from
the inside. The place is qui et , like
crypts are euppceed to be.
Any PC a ttempt ing to open t he door
must ma ke a St rengt h check. Th er e are
10 bugbear skeletons lurking behi nd
t he intact earec phcgi , ready to spri ng
out at t he PCs once t hey enter t he room.
Th is is more of Bartzil ut h' s work .
nURbea r skeleton R{IOI: AC 7; Hl) I ;
hp 4; MV 6O'120' }; 'AT 1; Dmg by
wea pon t ype (sword); Sa ve FI ; ML 12;
AL C; XP 10; 8 D.' 37.
18. Gu a rd Room.
Th is gloomy room contai ns t hree
cots . two tablell, eight chairs. t wo
Oagons on each table. 8 11('1of dice on
one tabl e, nnd a key ring wit h n
Bingle iron key on it hanging from a
hook on the east wal l. Twoun lit
lanterns hang from ceili ng chai ns.
Th is room belonged to the guards who
kept an eye on the pr ison area to t he
north (area 19). The priecn door ill iron
a nd haAa big padl ock on it . The key on
the east wa ll opens th e door.
19. Prison.
A 8tale bla st of ai r R..'lNliis you as you
open the door. It smells like an elf
cr awled in h e ~ and died. You're stand-
illJ{ on a 8tone plateau. beyond which
is II 30' drop to II vaJd chamber ....-it h
damp walls. A 35' [adder lies 3crot18
the plateau. A small pool of wate r lit'S
below in the northe8llt comer, Dancing
around down there are two !lhort ekele-
tons and t w'o elf-eize skelt'tons. They
l(X)k up at you ....-ith their horri fic !lOCk
t'llI and open their mouths in a noise-
It'Il8 scream of defiance.
Pr isoners were tossed into the pi t , its
sli my wall s making esca pe impossible.
When t he pl ace wall cursed, six pr is-
onere (t hree elves, two dwarves, a nd a
ha lning) were left here to die- which
t hey did. They, too, were cursed a nd
became skeletons . 1\0,00 of them, a d..... arf
and a n elf skeleton. ha ve cl imbed up t he
plateau and lu rk j ust below the edge. If
anyone geta too close to t ht' brin k, th e
ske letons make a grab for ankles and
toea thei r vict ims into the pit . Each
ske leton must make a to-h it roll to
obtain a grip on a single PC, If a
grasped PC fails to roll his Strengt h or
less on Id20. he is dragged over t he
ledge a nd plummets screa ming ofT t he
plateau, taking 3d6 hp falling damage
as well as a utoma t ically losing inirie-
rive agai nst the skeletons a t t he bottom,
Skc )t"to ns (6): AC 7: 110 I ; hp 3 eac h;
MV 6O'(20'}; IAT 1claw; Omg 16; Save
FI ; ML 12; AL C: XP 10; B0/37, Deepue
t heir lizt' differences, all of the ekele-
tons have t he same stat istics.
The pool of wat er ill a .....el l filled with
green, slimy wat er. Anyone who drinks
or immerlles himsel in it standi a 75'l-
chance of gt' tti ng a di seallt' or the ~ f l
discrl'tion.
20. Rancid WeII,
The well shaft from t he surface opens
into t his room. A r ancid pool of weter
silAdirectl y under the I ha ft . That
leaves 10' of open ai r bet wee n the
end of t he II haft Ieet into t he ceili ng
of this rooml and t he well proper. The
water is a sickly green, but t hat is
not your worst probl em. The creat ure
walking on t he ceiling is.
This is a rha godessa that has taken to
hunt ing do..... n he re. There is not hing
else of eonseque nce here , except th at
t he water has t he same ni ce quali t ies as
t hat in room 19.
Uh agodelllul : AC 5; 11 0 .. + 2; hp 22;
MV l SO'(50'); 'AT lleg/l bi te; Omg 0 +
8uckl' r&!216; Save F2; ML 9; AL N; XP
125; ERi55. Use the same st rengt h
procedure outli ned in room 19 to deter-
mi ne the cha nce for a victim to free
himsel f from t he r hagcdeesa 's suckers.
21. Klt ehen.
Oh joy! Oh bli88! Coul d it be? Yes!
Sides of beer. Links of 8Du8Dge!
Whl'E' llI of cheese! All of it fresh and
reedy to eat! And could t hat be a
cask of ale lying in t he northwest
corner? Yes, it ill! Thi ll is a ki tchen,
which even someone ....it h t he brai ns
of a small see p dish could te ll. judg-
ing b)' t he ba t tered cookware, t he
t.....o bread-baking ovens. and t he t wo
firepite. There'll even 110mI.' cutlery
here, rust y but Mrv ica ble.
The food is bot h preserved a nd cursed
by Bartz iluth. Roll Id6 to det er mine t he
effect on anyone who i ngelltll food from
thi s room,
I : Emberraeeing gas noilles for t he
next 24 hours , 80 loud t ha t t he)' ca n be
heard -1 0' a way.
2: Si ngi ng off key for t he next t urn.
3: Weakness . All die rolls at - 1 for
t he next 12 hours.
-I: Peinter'e curse . Vict im pointe at
one object eve r)' five lIeCOnds. loudly
dt'Claring what it is (" Floor ! Sword'
Boot!"). Th is lusts for one hour.
S: Severe nausea. Failin" II Ccnemu.
tion check means the vict im ill wrac ked
by intense stomach pains, unable to do
anything for one hour,
6: Fall asl eep, snoring loudly, for the
next two houn, not waking up for
a nyt hing.
RANKAMATEURS
22. Greet u s n.
In ilAday, t hil'l muat have bee n II
truly .....ond rous feasti ng hall . The
tattered remains of bugbear banners
line the walls, a nd there are large
fir eplaces to t he eest a nd weer sides
orthe room. Several long oak tabl es
a nd dozens of chain He in splinters
on t he noor, Skulking a bout is II thin
hu man in ratty clothing. surrounded
by 12 giant rete . li e eneera a nd
point" a t you.
The you ng man, named Will Erd , is a
..... ereret. He commands t he gia nt rate to
attack t he pa rt y a nd takes t hat rou nd to
teansfor m into a ma n'lIize rat.
Will Erd twereret k AC 7 (9 in human
form); un 3- : hp 18; MV 120'(40' ); IAT
1 bite or weapon; OmJ{ 1-& or by weapo n
t ype: Save F3: ML 8; AL C; XP 50; BOI
33 (lycant hrope l.
Gi ant r ab (12): AC 7; Hl) 1.7; hp 2;
MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 1 bite; Dmg 13 +
disease; Save Normel Man; ML 8; AL
:-J; XP 10; B0/36.
Will Erd ill th e "dirty ra t" whom t he
perty must defea t in order to end the
curse on the fort. Ift he PCs ha ve made
exceeaive noillt' comi ng i n here (a loud
fe-edi nJ{ freoz)' in t he ki tchen. (or exa m.
pie), t he rats will be hiding, a nd Will
Erd will t ry to lull the PCs into lower-
ing their guard before he signals the
filt s to lea p out and a ttack,
Hidden in the- eest fireplace is e sac k
with 25 gems leach wort h 50 /{pI, a
potion of heal/fIR, II ring ofi nl'uibility,
a nd a d i ng +2,
Will F. rd is the "dirty rat" whom t he
part)' must defeat in order to e nd t he
curse on the fort . Ifthe PCs hav e made
excess ive noise coming in here fa loud
fl.'t'ding frenay i n the kitc hen, for exam-
pie), th e rat s will be hiding, a nd Will
Erd will t ry to lull the PCs into lower-
ing t he-ir guard before he llignalll t he
ra ts to lea p out a nd attack,
Hi dden in the east fireplace is a sack
wit h 25 gems (each wort h 50 gp). a
pot ion of hraling, a rin,r: of invisibility,
a nd a ding +2.
Condudin" the Fort
If the PCIIa re victortoue agains t Will
a nd to88 hi s re ma ins down t he .....ell ( lUI
they were tol d to do by Chief Helt u's
note), the ghOSlA of all -10 bugbears
a ppear and t hank th l' m. Furthl'rmor e,
Chief Heltu's spiri t appears a nd 88),8 ,
DUNGEON 61
RANKAMATEURS
"Thanks (or cleeri n' out my fort ! Great
Bartzilut h is 110 Impressed wit ya det he
se nt me to t ell ya de t your ehiefie pul-
li n' a ( 3.'11 one. Take det for what it 's
wort'!" He t hen disappears forever.
Shou ld th e PCI desir e to cont inue on
their mission to Trinlan in spite of Ba rt -
zil ut h'lI wa rning, don 't try too hard t o
dtseu ede them. In fact , a t rul y mean
DM can wonder aloud whet her a nyone
can tru st a dead bugbe ar to tell the
truth.
Of COUI"lM! . if the PCI ehooee to heed
t he gh08l1y warning. the question of
what to do next erteee. Th e Pea ca n KO
anywhere in the Broken Landa th at
they wish. There a re IIt'v('ral ot her
pl aCt"8 on tht' map that may provide
BOrne enterta inment (_ "Cont inuing
t he Adventure"), hut the DM should
make !lure that rbe PC. heve at least
been able to advance in level before
going ofT f" xploring on th eir ewn. Con
c1uding th e fort is 8 good stoppi ng point
to a llow PC level i ncr eases.
62 Issue No. 22
Welcome to Glantrl-Who's Your
Ne xt 01Kin?
If the PCs decide to cont inue on t heir
dipl omati c missi on to Trintan, read or
par aphra se th e foll owing:
It's sunset, a nd at long last your weary
bunch erri vee at the villal{l;' of Trintan.
Sit uated on a hill and sWT'Oundt. >d by a
wooden palisade, it looks well de-
fended. Th is opinion is reinforced
when two doz.t.' n guards drt'S.'llod in
chain mail and surcoa ls emblazoned
with Tnntan'e colon, all beari ng croAA-
bows and long 8V..Ord.'1, pour out of the
gate to challenge you. " Hal t, nasty
unw8.'1ht. od humanoids! What busi ness
do you ha ve among honesr folk?" t he
equad leader dema nds .
It will take IIOme heavy convincing to
persu ade t he guards to let the PCs into
town, Ment ioning t ha t they bea r t idings
from a powerful chief, and th at their
missi on is a diplomatic one, will most
Iikel)' sway the guards into being a t
least cooly court eous . A PC with Servn-
it y skill l PG, page 381may wheedle
permission for t he party to en ter, In a ny
C8 t1t.' , a React ion roll should be made,
a nd each PC ca n t ry hi s han d at it . If
th e guards relent la nd the)' should
evenrually-cjus t ma ke the PCBwork at
it ), they inai et t ha t the Pes nnt draw
weapons while in the vill aKe. lIf
J t' rk accompa nied the party. he must
rema in outs ide the palieades-eno ifs,
e nds, or butJl;!) They a re given direcr lona
to t he Dog and Bone, a low-elase inn on
the rh'er front , and told that t hey ha ve
a n appoint me nt wit h t he vill age lord for
the next morning at three hours after
euneiee (9:00 A 101 ).
If the party t r ies to fight the gat e
guards, a n alann sounds an d a not her 60
guards arri ve in 10 rounds to re inforce
t he first gToup.
Gate KUa rdll: AC 5; Fl ; hp 8;
60'(30' 1; 'AT 1 wea pon; DmRby weapon
type; Ml. 9; AL l. ; XP 10.
Un known t o the Pea, the guards IIt' nd
two human thi eves to tail the gro up
t hroujth the city.
Thl E"vE" 1I (2); AC 6; 1'2; hp 6, 5; MV
120'160' 1; 'AT 1 weapon: Dmg by
weapon ty pe; 8; AL:oJ; XP 15, They
are ar-med with ehoet ewords a nd ha ve
25 iCP each , The Pes ca n discover t he
t hieves only with a sueeessful roll on a
skill that can help them rea lize a re
bei ng followed , and if eit her thi ef fail s
hi s Hide in Shadows roll 115'1 eechr
AIIIO, a conrt ngent of 12 guards a rt"
never more t han two rounds' tron '!ing
ti me from t he part y. thouKh they re o
main unseen, relying on sil e nt sign a ls
from t he t wo t hieves . Theile gu llrd:l
have t he sa me !ItatistiC8as t he gate
guards.
Curi ous PCII may go shopping i n th e
village, buying common ite ms found in
t he Playt'r', liane/book a nd be injC as
eured of t he ir quality. They could buy
dot hinjC (t hough th is may be tou gh for
ogre,size Pes!) a nd perhaps even horse s.
They will be treat ed with fea r a nd sus-
picion at best , out riRht hostili ty at
worst, All pr ices have a 50ct ma rkup
due to t heir rac e. people nee i n
panic when th ey a ppea r, a nd mother s
hide their children.
Tri nlan Kf')'
l. MAi n Ga tf' . The only Kate into
Trintan ill open fro m dawn to dusk. It is
usua lly manned by aix guards. having
t he NAme stat ist ics It S t he Rate gunrda.
2. Siltn of the Dog An d Ho ne. This
lese-t ha n-r espect a ble i nn is three st ories
high. Food a nd drink of a verage qu a lit y
e re served here.
3. Ha oul's Ge nera l Goods. This is
probably t he only establis hmt' nt t ha t
will wa it on t he PC", Any common ite m
from the va rious D&D rul ebooks ca n be
bought here at 50'1 markup.
4, Isl a nd Fort rt"8!1 Caeele . Thill is th e
l'Cs' ult imate dest mut ion. It is jCarri
eoned by 200 fiKhters with the sa me
sta t ist ica as the ga te gua rds.
5, Conllt a bu la ry, This bui ldi ng is
ma nned by 24 guardll ha ving the sa me
IIta t illt icB all t he l(at.e gu a rds, Any PCs
who misbehave will be confi ned her e i n
cells with iron bars.
Thill ill Di p lo mACY?
Ift he Pes behave in Tri ntan (never
eseume ill, t here a re no inciden ts but
they remain under surveilla nce eve ry
minute th at t hey a re in town. The inn is
D nast y IIOrl of dive, but it ill opulent by
humanoid sta ndards. Thert" are 10
hor ses in t he in n's IIta bles, a fact t hat
the PCs may wa nt to file awa y for fu-
t ure reference. Th er e ma y be II ta vern
brawl or t wo a t the discrerlcn, a nd
if th e Cit y Guard ill summoned. th e PCR
a utomat ica lly Ket the bla me, They a re
Village of
Trintan
1- 150 yard.!
SlolM' To..... .
o
N
I
-.

,::
=
=
:c
=

""""7
ltiJI. l d.
RANKAMATEURS
I' " ,
fined 20 gp esch and thrown into jail
(a rea 51 oveenight . ni ght
pauetI without event .
The ne:lt morning, a group of guard.
equal 10twice the number of PCI AI>"
pt'an at the inn to escort the group to
the villagt' lord. Thefle guards have the
lame statistica .. the enea a t the ga le .
Th.. PC. are led 8CTtll'll1 the metal gatea
that I pa n t he Vel'l ubia. onto a n
ceet le-fortrese in the middle orthe n ver,
Aftt-r nurnereue seeurtty checks a nd
papt".-work. the party il It'd into the
great hall cr rhe lord .
Youstep onto a red carpet lind int o
vast hall of cleverly worked stone .
There a re 40 guanb in the pt eee.
t heir halberds. crossbows, a nd long
. wardl noncha lantly cradled in their
er ms . At the end of t he red carpe t
tand. a vast dais. and atop it .itA a
man in ('Iega nt eebee. He i. rather
chubby a nd hil neee i. red . Gray
t umbles down hi. shoulders, and hiS
gray beard reaches to his navel . He
is dressed in brocaded green robes
a nd wt'lln much jewel ry on his handa.
neck , ears. toes. a nd wai5t. A
IC'raggly ora nge ca t with a mwhap-
pen eye sitAperched unsteadily on
hi s shoulder.
Fl anking him are sevt'ral lords and
ledie .... the only ones whose curiOflity
ha s overcome thei r revul sion at t he
si ght of you. Many of them are .
squirting perfume about a nd fannang
the air in your direct ion. Sti fli ng a
burp, the lord addresse s you i n his
m08t officious voice:
" I a m the Lord Ivroigne [pro-
nounC't'd: Eee-vron-yahl, master wu-
a rd a nd Lord of Trintan. Th is Ilne
a ni mall t he cat, you auume) is my
familiar, Guill ame. You are huma n
oid swi ne and we spit upon you a nd
your efforts to becivil ized." In what
is obvie ualy a rehearsed action, ev-
eryone in court spita .
Ivrci gne, looking aat isfled . con-
tinuee. " I am told that you have
blUinelS with me. Very well , t hen!
Conduct your blUi neu and bedone
wi th it ! Your prese nee offend5 us
deeply and makes lU feel not at all
well !" He takes a deep beeerh a nd
sita back to a smatteri ng of a pplause .
Guill ame topples off his shoulder and
hits the floor, palling out. Eve ryone
pretends not to not ice.
At thi. point, t he PCs should ha nd
over t he dipl omatic pouch ifthey have
not al ready tampered with it (or if t hey
ha ve looked in it a nd decided to gi vt' it
to Lord Ivroigne anywayl. Fortuna tely.
the lord hlUl seen such pcuebee and
ecee pte it readily.
Ivroigne breaks the seal a nd opens
the pouch, t ipping it in t he pro'SlI.
whi ch C8 U.!lE'S a digustinglooking
mau to plop ratht'r unC'el"t' moniolUly
onto his lap. Everyone in the place
draws a sha rp bre at h in horror, with
so me of t he ladiHla nd yes, 8Omt' of
t he- men ) faint ing from the ste nch. If
it's a ny hel p, the smell revive. Guil
lame. The cat .ita up Ilnd looks a t
Ivroi gne. at the party. at the me" on
hi. malter 's lap. t hen curl. into a
fuuy orange ball and falls ulf't'p.
The- lord, hi . face turning a deeper
red than his ncee. ri .... out of his
chair. "Stri ke thf!m! Ruin their
day!" he snarl .
DUNGEON 63
RANKAMATEURS
Pl an to Attend the World's Largest
Gaming Co nven t ion.
Mark Your Calendars
Now!!
August 9th-12th, 1990
at the MECCA Convention Cent er
Milwaukee, WI
OEN CON.. . ,..ut<ohd ....... maril o(TSR. lroe.
Th ere an' clea r-ly(( ' 0 many ... nemit's to
lak... on a ll at once. ... \'t' n for t hl' PCRin
t h... ir new IIt a te of ri chl'lI. t o
say. th eir ad\... ntures have jol: ui nlod them
much prelltilo:t' in th e t ri bt' . a nd t hey
.....iII not be ki ckt'<! out to make room for
sleazy r...lat ivt''' . PCs who
ca nnollita nd t he Chit' f anymon' may
try to sta rt t heir own horde t PG,
32; UMB, pa jo(es 31351,
If J erk ill with the pa rt y. Chil'f
Buh! trit.' ll to s..... ay t hl' hill gl a nt to his
llot'r\"ice. Th t' Chilf a nd one PC lIhould
makt' Relicti on Rolls to lIt't' .....ho Jte18 II
bt-tlt'r r...acti on from J erk. a nd t herefor ...
l!:E'1tI his loya lty. Mmm Buh! has a Cha
r illma of 17.
Should J l'r k st ay ..... it h t h(' puTty. t ht'
Chief will get ... ... f). chummy wit h t h...
PCs, ca lli ng t hE'mhi s " good friE'nds ."
Th ey ..... ill ... njoy tht' pick of the !I poihl
a nd a re lat i,'el y Rood life, ind udinK
IlOrne trul y heroi c mi.'llii onll, For in
lIt a nce, thE' Chief ..... Rnlll t o fl{" nd lin (n
" 0 )' to Darok in . . . . 0
\ ou t rudKe back to t he fa mi liar lnnd s
of the Rude MonlfTt' llI. hol ding your
heads high despite the humiliat ion.
cold. suffE' r ing, inj ury, and a ll -around
inconvemenee you've bee n pu t
t hreugh. All of thl t r ibe looks
e mezed to IW't" you. A select few de-
ma nd payment of many coi ns from
an army of "'rumblers who glare lit
you. Bud 10000rs. you guess.
Ha rr ideal the kobold dropli hi s
IlCroll in amazement a nd IIni\"elll and
airnpers a t your ft't.'t, promising 10
t ake you t o perso nally if
only you do not kill him. You a rrive
at t he Chit"f " t ent , where all of t he
tribe members you M W during you r
init ial hrieflnKa re here uKain .
Mmm-Buh! lookll amazed t hat you
aurv ived . HiRrelicti on is evert more
pronoun ced if J t' rk ill with t ht"part y!.
The Chi l' f llhifts uncomfor t ably a nd
eleaes hill t hrou t . " Well, youse KUYS
made it , huh? WtlI. uh it Willi II
joke! J oke! Ok ay? So uh .. .
you cnn keep da neat 8t uff, but we
ca n' t pay yn a nyt hin' t' 11I(". Now git
ha ck to yer hutll or else!" The trolls
t ake a few IIt t' pSclose r lind snarl .
of outcas ts li ke t hemsel ves. Thi llcould
bet he start of a whole ne..... ca mpa ign!
If the Pes dec ide to re t urn to t heir
tribe a nd confront Chitf
read t he followin g:
We're Baoao-oaackl
It would serve Chief right if
the pe ll never ret ur ned . They could go
ofT on t heir own. wandering t he Broken
Landa and t ryi n!ol" to put wjo(t' t ht' r a tribe
is open. Smart PCs could II tea l one or
t .....o boats a nd sa il sout h do.....n the Vesu-
bi a Rive r.
The PCII could 811'0t ry t o flee t hrough
the ci ty gBte by which t hey originall y
ent ered Trinta n. Fort unately, t here are
onl y half a dozen gUllrdll at the galt'
during t he day. The hue and cry from
t he cas t le will spread t hroughout t he
village in II('Vl' n rounds. The PCII . if
t he)' run, ca n make the J:at e in six
roun ds. If the)' remember t he horses
sta bled at t he Dog and Bone, t hey ca n
hi" out in fou r rounds.
If J erk is still .....ai t ing oUl.!lidt' of town
for t he PCll, he runs alonKtht' banks of
th e rtver and event ua ll y swims toward
t he hna t if t ht' PClljol:O by wAtN lf t hey
leeve via t he gate. he lobe rockll as
ertillery support to cover their escape.
ThE' Lord of Tri nt a n ..... iIl not send a ny
guards out t o chase t he PCs. fear inKa n
t' laborat e ruse to draw out the vill age'lI
defen!ll"1I 11O that it ca n hi" saeked. The
PCs should hi" able t o ma ke a good es -
ca pt." ift ht'y t hink la nd act ) fast .
Hu n Awa y! Hun Away!
Th ere a re se vera l way' out of to....-n.
Five bea ts art' moored by t be lerd's
cast le, a nd t he sout h Kat e uf t he ci t adel
Ye s, IIOmt'thing is horri bly wrong. but
the PCs were warned, weren't they?
Fort un ately, t he guards a re 50 overcome
by t hiMdi!lgullting tu rn of events t hat
the PCa automatically il'ct a rou nd of
free action before making a n initi a t ive
chec k. Runn ing seems to be the beat
choice a nd should besuggest ed by the
eonecie nt ious
IvroiKne: AC 4; hp 12; MV
120'(40' ); 'AT 1: Dmg b)' spel l or
weapon t ype; Sev e ML 10; AL C:
S 5, 1 17, W 10, 0 16, C 5, e h 11; spells:
magic mi.ni ll", in t. 'isibi lity. U'f'b,
hold person; magical items; ri nll of pro-
t l.'f't jon +3.
In C8 !1oe of bartlecl vr oigne has calit
(m m #'(,il And pr(ltO"{'ti"n from
normal miu i/... spells upon himllt'lf.
Gu ill ame gi,' ,,!! him no not iceable
beneflte.
Ivrojgne has a dee p-rooted fear of
humanoids. He hall repeat edl y pleaded
t o Glant ri City for addit ional Iunda for
mort' t roops to llt n ' n/ott hen hill outer
defenses. If ut a ll poss ibl e. Ivroigne
shoul d not die in t hi ll advent ure .
64Issue No. 22
THE VINEYARD
VALES
BVRANDYMAXWtLL
The lizard men are
just pining for the
fjords.
6 I$$UO No. 23
" Writi ng a moe/ult' U a lot li_" balriflil a
roJu," Randl' ,,1L. 1.1 "Somt't imn if' a
lltt l, IIVmdi mf', lt', a
undrrdont'. cmJ no mot Ur hoU' you _PUy
II, ,t'_ 11(.>1 1<> t'('I"t"VII:'nf'" lcutf'. /low n .,,,,
rok,.. art' {ini.h.:..J by tht' ha/tl'r alld nol
b.vIhm ,. wh o ral Ihl'm. "'OOu lt' on till'
othl" hand, art' /i niaht'd b,v thou ....'ho
play th rm and 1Iat by th ou 11. '110 u'rit,
them. 1. i mply .upply til t' C'dl'. DM. mi d
plQyrrupply 11I l' fro, rinK."
"The Vineyard Va IH " i. 8 D&[)4 adven-
turf' for 4-6characters of levels 2-1
la bout 15 lola l hvel i l. The advent ure
lakt'" place in the Sod..rfJord der ldoma
and ia companble with GAZ 7 Til t'
Northl'r,. R, orA,.. Geaeu ee r. UnleM th e
hes a n t'lila bli.hed ca mpa ign mi.
lieu. the afoeementioned gazetteer i.
recommended for use with t hi. module.
While it is not req ui red for play. t he
gazettt'E'r informatio n adds dl;"ptha nd
fil ls in many minor dl' tai ls. allowi nKth..
OMto present playeTll with a more
complet e. poli llhtod. a nd "Iiving' worl d
than i. orherwbe possible. The OM
ulling his own campai gn world need
only set the module in a ny fron tier area
near a marsh,
Adventure Background
As the adveetur.. opens. the PCs should
al ready be i n the Soderfjord Jarldom .
They may be foll o.....ing a treasure ma p,
pall8inll' throUlCh in eeareh of a dventure,
or rr av..l ing to one of t he larger ci t ies of
t he northern ki nll'doTnll---Soderfjo rd,
NOlTVik. or uaburg-in hopes of IIt' lIinlC
their lI .....ords a nd se rvices to the hight' llt
bidder, Wha tt' \'(' r the reason , the PCs
are in t he area known lUI the Vineyard
V. lt'll (jWlt WHt of t he hex numbe red 16,
ebove t he " f-' J" in " Soderfjord" on the
map on pOKe 18 ofCAZ 71,
The Vineyard Va les in area of
green rolli ng feemleed bet wee n Great
:'ootarah and t h.. Otofjord River. The Va le"
are not undet- the control of . ny j arl or
jllrl dom and. for t he momen t . enjoy a n
i nde pe nde nt e xiste nce .
The most bount iful a nd re...... rd ing
crop beinlCgrown in the Valt'll ia gra pt'll.
The vi neyard" o( rhe Val f'lll are rapidly
becoming known for thl.' qualit y or their
win" . " Va le 8 urKUndy" and " Vale
Sauterne" art" renowned tabl", wines in
t he kingdomll o( VMltla nd a nd OIIt land
Th t'y al so have excellent reputationll all
(ar a way as Rockhome , Ylarua m, and
Keremei koe.
THE VINEYARD VALES
A secondary wi ne t hat t he Va lt'!Ipro-
duce is t he infamous Jarldom 2020 ,
,,180 known DR JD 2020 and usually
referred to si mply 8 S "dolly Dwarf."
Th ill ill 9 chea p and very Il wee r wine
that delive rs a powerful wallop. It alec
deli vers a hangover that ca n leave the
meet ha rdened a nd J'l toiclll of warrior s
blea t ing and pll' s dinl{ (or mere)', For all
its dr awbacks, the wine is extremel y
popul ar in t he ta verns of t he north. It is
prec isely because t he Vale vineyards
art' becoming kn own for t ht' ir wines
t hat t he eree has c(' II!K"d to be Moen 8S
aimple frontie r steads a nd iJ'l now con-
ei dered valuable pr operty.
For the Dungeon Master
Th e Va le fa rmerll realize the value of
t heir stea ds and hay!' ba nded tOKl'thl'r
in a 100M' confeder at ion known 8 8 the
Vineyard Vale Defense League. In add i-
tion. t hey have hired man)' mercenaries
from Whi tehea rt , a city llcrOKll t he
Ot ofjord Ri ver from t he Vales reee The
Vineyard Val es mapl. Thus. a nyone
wishing to move in and take over the
Vale s by force ill in for a fiKht , The Vale
far mers are from many different clans
a nd nati ons and do not wish to seek t he
protection of any jar]. They prefer to
re main independent of a ny jarldom la nd
any jarl'lI taxes),
Even wit h the defense leal{Ue a nd
mercenaries, all ill not well in the Valt's_
Giant locuste, norma lly subterra nea n
creeturee a nd of no problem to farmers,
have in t he last si x weeks rome i n great
numbers out of eaves to the !IOut h. The
hungry locusts he ve at tacked the vi ne-
yards, ea t ing the grapes, leaves, a nd
te nder new vines. They have st r ipped
the vineyerda t u such an extent t ha t
only t he tough, twisted Il ta lks of the
Kl'apevines re main.
The farmers have no idea what ha s
caused t he Kiant locust s to swar m. The
defense league ill current ly di!ICuMi nK
the ma tter and nrKUing over wha t's to
be done. In t he meanti me, eeveral
Iarmers ha ve 1000t hea rt . With their
vi neya rds ruined for t he season and no
solu tion to the probl em in sight . t hey
ha n ! abandoned t h(' ir II teKdll, III uddi.
tion, all if to add insult to injury, t he
lizard me n from Gr el:lt Mafllh have
at tac ked nnd deateoyed !If:\"t'ral steads.
RhunKol d a nd Hi MPh.nll
\ \' hllt the farmers don' t know ill that
t heir cu rrent probl ems wit h giant 10<
cuete and lizard men are pa rt of a well
orchest rated plot for ta king over t he
Vineyard Vales.
A mege known as Rhun gold the Tr ick-
ster Ieee area 5E for compl...te det ails).
once a membe r of th e Royal Household
of t he Court of Cnute of Zeaburg in the
Kingdom of Ostland, ha ll had his eyes
on the Vales for some time. Rbungcld
wall a minor counc ilor to t h.. king of
Ostland, ad\'isi ng on matt ers of magical
resea rch. He abused his position by
extorting mane)' from other wasrds for
advi sing in t heir favor. whet her t heir
resea rch was worthwhil.. or not , He also
duped many of the household into in -
vt'l'Iti nl( large sumll into fraudulent
magical research projt"Cta (a potion of
1mmortal ltv, a ring of ifllifl itf' U'i,h".
etc. ). Rhungold simply took t he money
a nd had a Roodt ime. If investors
pressed him on the subject. he would
tell them that progr ess wall being made
on a particular magical item, but "you
ca n' t rush magic: ' The Royal Household
l{Tew t ired of his endleSll web of t reach-
ery a nd deceit, they booted hi m out of
the ki ngdom and forba de his re turn.
Rhun gold illof a mi nd to [ltart hi ll own
jarldom, and t he Vineyard Valell. wit h
THEVINEYARD VALES
T hrnnd' s
Stt' lld
their excellent source of re venue, seem
8 good place to etert it . He ha.'! heard of
the Black Eagle Ba rony in Kerarnelkos
a nd would like to pa ttern hi llown
jar ldom aftl' r it, but fint hI' must " win"
hi ll ki ngdom. Rhungold ill an esture
poli tician. complet ely unscrupulous.
and lin excell ent tact icia n when it
comes to ma neu\t'ri ng other people to
. uit hi. pur po""", . For the la.king of th e
Valell. he ha ll I:l simple thrffstep plan.
Step 1: Rhungold pla ns to drive as
manJ' Isrmere 89 posaiblt: from the
Vtneyaed Vales using giant locusts end
lizard me n. He does rhis by poly-
morphine him!lt'lf int o a black dragon
and terror izin g t he liza rd me n of Great
into doing hill bidding.
St e p 2: Once the farmers have been
drive n from the Vales, Rhungold can
clai m t he len ds and ma ke them his own
c1anhold.
Step 3: Once he has cla imed t he Vall'll.
Rhu ngold will cease the attacks by
gillnt Iocuats a nd liza rd me n. Wit h t he
Vale' once again safe, he ca n en tice new
Iarmere to take eve r the abandoned
lltt'ad1l. lit' then need only sit back and
ta ke hi s "fai r eheee" of t he profits for
taxes a nd protec tio n,
DUNGEON 7
THE VINEYARDVALES
Thrond's Stead
\\n e n the PC. errwe in the V. les. m p
1 of Rhungold', plan L. well under ""ay,
Many I teadJ have been abandoned or
deltroytod.
Read or par.plu-aiIethe followi ng to

It I, neari ng the end of t he day, and
you looking for eoml"pla- to
c::amp-bfot tf' f yet, someplace t ha t will
put wan. bet ween you and th e- night.
You are riding leisurely down a ca rt
t rack. through II vineyard toward II
rather homely but It urdy.looki ng
stead. Suddenly there is a gTl'8t
whirring noise in the eir behind you.
You turn jult in t ime to eee I i.. giant
land among the
a nd begin . t ri ppi nR' the pl ant. of
I..vel and grapes.
Gian t 1000u l t a (61: AC " ; HD 2 ; hp 9
each: MV 60'120'). flying 180"60' ); ' AT
I ; Omg 12 or 1-1 or special: Sa ve F2;
ML 8; AL S ; 80133.
Ifawnered IN' auachd . the giut
lacu.u bite for ) 2 hp damaR'I!', Thl!'Ycan
.1.80 spit. foul brown l ubsta nCf'
up to 10'. The targr:t or t he I plttle i.
tnatf'd AI AC 9 a nd, if hi t . must maAr: a
Saving Throlllo' n . PoilOn or i nca paci
laud wit h nAWIf'a for t um due to
t he locusu at
te mpt t o fi N', t hr:re is a S()'l. chanCfO
locult that it will confu-t a nd
jump into the party inlt u d
of a w.y. Ifthis occurs, Ihould
chOOflE' . vict im r. ndomly and
w. hit roll. If a iCl ant IOCUllt hitl a char
acter. victim il battered for 1-4 hp
The roll for each
locult to how many
la nd a mong PC party_
I( PC. attack or . ttempt t o drin
gi. nt locuatl away. all l iJi locusu
. tand t hei r iTOund. are
ously hu ngry . fte r lonl{n ight a nd do
no!. want to a n of abund ant
food_8au_ of t hto-
10000tJ have mor . le of 8 r.ther t h.n 6.
I( alocuat faill a mor.le chKk. it imme
diately flies . way, The PC. will be un
to follow any Heaping locu"ta dlU'
to the .P-d of the flying ereatul'M and
intervf' ning grape-vineos.
Just at t he last locust it killed or
a gro up of people from t he
nurby ltead come running up.
hail PC. a nd thank them he art ily
for killi ng or dri ving ofT the locul u .
PCI arr: invitf'd to eat and the
8 I"ue No. 23
night . t t he eteed. [ft he PCI JUllt lookf'd
on as t he locullu r8Va gPd the crops. the
peoplf'-acol)tM, al la ter on-
lU"P upset at the 10811 but do not chide
PCs for their in. cti vit y. He....'ever.
the PCI will be eharged 16 gp eeeh for
room and board a t the Itead. and the)'
will betreated coolly at
Alt hough t hil particular farm il
known locally .. Thrand'l Stead, it il
act ually a monalltf'ry eostablillhed by and
for clerics of Frey and mon o
aste ry'l rea l ne me il the Cloister and
Peaceful Settleml;'nt of Br others e nd
Silten of Frey a nd Fr eyja. Xaturall y.
no one ever callI it that , The place Keta
ita name from the elder in charge ofth('
mcnestery, Thrand of \ '('atl a nd.
The monaatt' ry ia not a plan' of rel i -
giou. inet ructron, but a place where
new ecclytee are IIotnt to contt' mplate
their ehcice of a rf'liiCl oul vocati on. If.
. fte r a year of h.rd .....or k i n t he vi ne-
yerds, t hey are IItill of. mind to joi n t he
clergy, t ht'y .re eent on to v.r ious tern-
pleos and monuteriel t hroughout the
nort h for 8t"rious instruction in their
f.l th. Ho.....ever; if.t .ny time duri ng
t hat they find their f.ith i. not up
to the ta.k, the)' may leave t he clergy
....it hout pl!'nalty or dilhonor, At t he
moment. thf' monastery rontainl onl)'
Thr.nd . nd 14 lllrolytel .
Thra nd of V" IIUand: AC -4 ; C6; hp
22: 120HO' ); ' AT I; Dmj{ by
t ype; C6; 9; AL L: I 15,
W 17; ch. in war hammer.
. li ng. mffiallwn of ESP; CIH"t'
l ight ulOunru , pur ify food Qnd u'al..r,
bit'''. wi th animal. cont inual
light,
Th rtllRd i. a kindl y. intelligent. .....e!l
educated ma n ..... ho i. devott'd to hil
Immorta la . nd hi. acolytt' s . Ht' ca n tell
the PC. infor m.tion about local
jarl . , feudl . geognphy, hi l t ory. and
gener. l go&8ip. lie ca n .110ttoll thf'm a
good dt'al .bout t he kingdoffil of Veil-
tland . nd Ostla nd nd Sodf'rfjord. Hto il
(amiliar with tht' nam... of most of tht'
nobleos. j.rls. and ari,ltocracy of t he
three kingdoffil . including t he Court of
Cnute. Thr.nd 1"K'eivf'd hi s
a cleric in S orrvik. tht' c.pital cit) of
Vt'l tI . nd. \\n ile in that cit)', ht' took
many c1aues in hil tory. politics. and
rt' ligion a t t he coU" ge loc. ud tht're.
Al'Olyt"lI(14): AC 6; CI ; hp -4
MV 120'(40' ); ' AT 1; Omg by
t ype ; Sao"e CI : 8; AL L: lut ht' r
a rmor. ahield. mace.
The acolyt es . rf' r:quaUy divided
tween m. leos . nd ft' maIH_The)' ere
ro mpl..ttoly 10)' .1 t o Thrand. If tht' PC.
are in need of men-at -arms, be erere.
guard or messengers. the)' will han to
_II. them eleewbere. Und..r no ci rC'Um.
ll tancn .....i11 Thrend the acol )tH
t o go IIIdVt'nturinj{ with t he PC part y. In
11I11 in"tanCt' l . the acolyte. kn ow much
leu th.n Thrand about ..... hat il Koinl{ on
in t ht' V. IeI . Ifthe edventure ra qu t'lltion
them about .nything, the ecolv tes lOi
t her do not heve t he roo
quest ed or refer t he PCs to Thra nd.
When t he PC. ha ve bee n escorted
Indoors, t hey meet Thra nd in t he mon o
este ry'e Ierge common room. Read or
pa raphrue the foll owi nl{to thl' playe1l '
The leeder of t ht' !le people, a kindly
cleric named Thrend, grl"t't. you i n a
I. rl(t' . warm room lit by a hl al inl{
flre . " You are welcome t o IItay al
10nl{. 1I you l ike, We are in need o(
lItronl{a rffil e ed backll at th t' mo-
mt'nt . Th e lllool)t... te ll IDt' ) 'OU have
_ n the gia nt locu.tl . Wt>II.t ht' ir
presence ill very It r a nge indeed:
Giant locullla uaua lly lltay in thf' lr
ca "f'fI a nd don't vent ure forth except
in 'lOme greet need. For them t o
lean thei r C. " t'tI in the hili ll to rbe
llOut h ill uncanny trange. I My.
Wh. t with tht' locullt" t' at inl{ the
t ht' lizard mt'n attack
inl{ out of Gru t Man h. I' ll waj{lOr
that. thi rd to a hlll if of thlO 1ft-AdM
havf' ht-en abandonoo or bu rnt"<! .
" We've hirt"d a j{ood many mt'n at
a rml to prott'Ct t he lIteodlll and fit'ldli.
hut th ey ca n' t bee\"t'r)' whe re nnd ..... f'
nt"t'd tht" m ht"re in the Volt"lI . If Wt"
lIt'nd tht' m j{ullivant ing th rough
l'IOut hern hill l lookinl{ for locullt. and
troublt' , many IIteadlll .....ou ld two !t,n
un prott'Ctt'd, and onl)' Frt' y knowl
....hat would happen t hen. Wlo. that ia.
myllotlf a nd thf' ot her farmt' ra-we
call ou"""lveos the Vint'). rd Vlll lf'
Dt-fenlN! put a few
roppen in pot al re...... rd (or .n)'
who might ha"e a look into tht' ca "eos
a nd tell UI .....h.t't irred up tht'
loculttl ,"
Ihhf' PCI u k for more mformation
about hurd men, Thrlllnd c.n tell
t hem only t h. t t ht' ereatun-I h.ve bt-t'n
attacking rt'ntly-.ttacking with
mort' ff'rocity and frt"quenC)' than ullual.
Iftht' PC. acclOpt Thrand'" to go
and ha" t' a look in the ca'el. ht' _up-
plie. t hem wit h. ma p lt ht"
gin' t he pl aye rs a copy or The Vineyard
Vales ma p ..... it h the e ncou nte r numbers
dl' lehod l. The may use t he hill indt -
cared for t he locat ion of t he locust cave,
or he may UII(' any of the nearby hill s to
t he sou t h. TIlt' ..(t w eoppere" Thrand
mentjoned turn ou t t o be 200 KP in
asso rted coi ns, primari ly coppe r and
sil ver pit'Cl's .
Whe n the rell a re journ eying t hrough
the Valell. t he milk", enccun-
ter cht'Ckli twi rl;' per day due to t he
ma rauding liza rd men . A roll of 6 on
Id6 indicates an en counter : th e 0 11
should choose from t he Va le Random
Encounters t ha t helPn on PRill.' 17 or roll
Id8 for " random en counter.
The Cave
The can' and vaguely recte ngu -
ler, about 500' wide by 1,000' long . Its
entra nce ill on the north side of the hill .
Upon e nlNinl.: . the PCs immed iate ly
not ice t hat t he air ill very warm and
humid, heavil y t i ngl"d wi th t he odor of
bur-ning .....ood. Vari oull fungi , mosses.
a nd lichen gro w on the ..... all a a nd ceil -
in!:" but t he Ilcor i8 ba re except for nu-
merou s sa ndy pat cht>!I. The ge ne ral
a t mos phere of the CIWl' ill one of st uffy,
dump, di llmul decay,
A. Shril'kerM, At thill point. a long
lint" of giant mushrooms ext ends in a
wide a n: acrOS!! t he caver n, each about
2S' from t he next . These art> not normal
mush rooms but ere ehriekera t ha t react
to light and movement, If the PCs set
them olT, their pi('rc inJl: shrit> ks sta rt le
10 giant locusts t hp 9 each, full lltati s
tit'8 on pa loW8 1. t ilL' IlIlIl UIlt'S rema ini ng
in t he ca ve.
Shrie kt'rM1201: AC 7; nn3; hp 12
(ach; 9'(3' ); 'AT nil : OmKnil; Sa n '
F2: 12; AL N; 8 0 .'37.
The noise oftht' ehr iekere a nd t he
sounds of th e giant locuete llCuttli ng
about a tt r act t he attention crihree
giant crab IIpidel'l1 that Iive on the roof
of the ca ve. These ereet uree arrive in
2 12 roun ds and Itlt ack immedi ately,
Glltnt crJl b t;pi dt'rH (31: AC 7; 11 0 2-;
hp 1-1 , 8 ( )( 2); 120'(-10' 1, t'l() .....eb!!;
'AT 1 bi tt' : DmK 18 plu ll poison: SaVI'
FI : ML 7: AL :oJ ; 80138. Vict im8 bitt... n
by a crab II pider mU8t Save \' s. Poison a t
+2 or die in 1-4 t urnll. Crab IIpidl'n
ha\'1' a cha ml' lronlike ability to ble nd in
with t ht ir lI urroundingli and !Iurprise on
It roll of 1-4 on Id6. TheM' horrible crea
turell have ht.'t'n H\' ing off the giant
IOCU8t8. They are al way e hungry, ag o
greeetve. a nd more t ha n willi ng to vary
their diet by adding a n cceasicnal side
orde r of adventurer,
Th e ehrie ke re must be passed bot h
en tering and exiting th... ca ve. Thus, the
PCI ma y avoid t he sbr tekeee upon fira t
en te ring the eeve, on ly to IIoe t t hem off
on t he ir .... ay out , The PCl llhould reo
c...ive exper-i ence points for only those
ahr rekera Actually causi ng t rouble. lf
t he PCs pointleealy hunt down and
de st roy every II hr it' ker in t he ca ve, they
receive no pointe for such ectt ons .
8 , Pool. This murky pool of water is
about SO' in diameter a nd 4' ,6 ' dee p
t hroughout . There is a sma ll 10' Ie IS'
isla nd of rock in the center. The pool ill
occupied by a giant toad that attacks
anyone standing on t he ehc re or enter -
ing t he wa ter,
Giant t oad: AC 7; 110 2 +2; hp 12:
MV 90' (30' ); ' AT I bite; Dmg 2,S; Save
F l ; ML 6; AL N; ER/S6. UnleSll t he PCs
have already de st royed t he crab s piders
a t area A, t he II pl8llhing and neiee
ca use d by fighting the giant load will
attract th e spiders' att enti on, Th ey
arrive and attack in 212 rounds .
Anyone sta ndi ng on t he shore of the
pool wit h a tor ch or be uer l ight scuree
is able to see t ha t t here is IIOml' sort of
debrt e or rubbish eca uered about on the
tiny hiland. The PCs are unable to tell
e xacfly wha t the rubbiah is until they
cr08!l the murky water to e xa mine it ,
Any PC exami ning t he rubbish immedi-
at ely realizes that part of t he rema ins
are those of a giant locust, a nd h8ll a
cumulative 2()'l, chance per round of
lIE' a rching to di scover th at part of t he
remains are t hose of II lizard man (a
foot, part of t ht> tail , the skul l. etc.).
C, Alhl' II , In t he vel')' back of the cave
are the remai ns of II huge bonfi re . Th e
PCs ca n see a large pile of eebee a nd
se veral half.bur ned branches a nd logs.
It is obvious ly t he remains of a large
fi re , th e smoke of whi ch dro\'l' t he giant
locusts from thl' ir cave. Thl' bonfire Will
built on a large sand}' area of t hl' floor.
PCs exam ining t he sa ndy a rea for
t racks find t he foot prints of liza rd ml' n
in abundll nce. Oncl' t helloe t racks ha\'e
bet>n found, t he PCs should begi n to
wonder why lizard men lire using giant
locusu to attack t ht" vineyards.
If the Pes return to Thrand's stead
with th ill informltti on, Th ra nd pay s
THEVINEYARDVALES
THE CAVE
1 square e SO'
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I I
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I I I -"!1'
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II
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t he m th e 200 gp bounty a nd atlks the
party tc st lly on for a fl'w mor e daya
while he dilloCu88es mat ters wit h t he
dl' fenJM> league,
If t hl' PCI were unabl e to get fllr
enough into t he cave t o discover th e
t ra cks oft he lizard men , they may try
again. Neit her Thrand nor his acolytes
will aAlli st th e PCs, etnee they must
defend their own stead.
Into Greal Marsh
Thrand ca lls a meet ing of the defense
league for the following eveni ng. Either
Thrand or th e PCs can report t he ir
findings from the cave lit this m('('ti ng,
The defense league members agree thllt
th ere is IIOml' connKt ion bet .....('('n t hl'
lizard men and the gia nt locusts, bu t no
one will vent ure an opinion on what the
connKt ion might be, Thrllnd (or t hl'
PCs , iftht>y think of it ) poinu. out that
Hurd mt'n art' not intelliltent e nough to
think of delibe rat el y using t he giant
locusts to attack t he farmst eads. Thi ll
ope nll up t he poNibility t hat /lOme morl'
sinistE'r inte lli gf'flce is behind the giant
locus t and liza rd man attack8.
ThE' def('lue lea gue would li ke to "'Tap
DUNGEON 9
THEVINEYARDVALES
t hings up quickl y and wants to r('IIOI ve
the si t uati on il8elr. Under no circum-
slanC('s do t he farme rs wa nt to ca ll on
one of the local jarl e for protect ion. They
art' acute ly a ware of t he old Northma n
saying "J ar ls are qui ck to send t heir
men, but slow to take them hack agai n."
The old sayi ng re fer. to t he fact t hat
once a jarl haa used his me n to protect
an a rea. he usual ly conllid{'1"S t hat area
a nnext>d a nd part of hilljarldom. Th E'
league. therefore, poets a 1,000 gp re -
ward for t he deetructicn of t he lizard
men a nd a nother 500 gp (or i nfor mation
concerning who or what is be hind t he
attack.
If t he Pes offer to search for t he hurd
men. Thrand and ot her defense league
members advise t hem not to ta ke ofT
into the marsh looki ng (or t rouble. The
cler ic tell s t he PCs to take t he old aban-
doned spur road that once connect ed
Whiteheart with the Marsh Road i n t he
west . He ment ions tha t no one knows
the current condit ion of t he bridge (area
-I I and the shelter (a rea 5) marked on
the ma p. The PCs will have to di scover
for themselves whether t hese st ruct ures
st ill sta nd. The eler ie lea ves the PCs
with the comforti ng th ought that the
10 Issue No. 23
spur road a nd shelte r were a ba ndoned
because t hey proved too costly and de n-
lCerouII to ma intain.
I. The Ma nh Road Spu r. Eve ryone
know' where t he spur road sta m, for it
ill al most imJXWIible to miss. The road
ent rance is marked with 1w0 tall stone
colu mns. They bear no ma rks or earv .
i ngs ; they are lIimplt' , rough-hewn atone
pillars t ha t lea n toward one anothl'r
a nd a re covered with lichens .
This old t rail ..... as an attempt to build
a side road fr om the Man h Road to
Whi te beert. It heads due west i nto the
ma rsh unt il it e,'ent ua lly joins t he
Man h Road, The road proved too expen-
sive to defe nd a nd mai ntain a nd was
event ually a ba ndoned. The PCII will
dillCo"er and lose t his trail time a nd
ti me again all it disappears into bogs
and mi re s, then reappears on firme r
ground. If the ~ wish es to play thiS
out , give a 50'l chance per eight-mi le
hex r-eveled t hrough t hat t he road ill
lost , wit h anot her SO.. chance of find ing
it aj{ain per hour t hereafte r.
2. The U t tl E' Hill. Th ill hill ill t he only
true dry ground al ong t he route of t he
old mad. It ill crowned b)' a smel l circle
cr treee a nd is an easy la ndmark to spot
b)' t hose attempt ing to use t he old road.
Examinat ion of t he hill area reveal s old
charcoal rings of long-deed ca mpfi rell,
bit Aand pieces of roned lea t he r, sect ions
of old rope, a nd oth f'r rubbi sh den ot ing
one or two very old campsitell. Th e hill
ill no more t ha n a pleeee nr dry spot
surrou nded b)' the marsh.
The area a round t he hill ill t he hunt -
i ng ground of two gia nt leec hes that
will be att r acted to t he hill by the noise
of t he party a nd the ground vi brat ions
caused when the pa rty moves a bout .
The leeehea will not attack 110long a8
t he party rema lna on t he dry ground of
t he hil l. If a ny PC utt elllplt4 to leave t he
hill a nd reenter t he marsh, t he gia nt
leec hes a tt ack immedi a tely.
Gia nt 1t' (' cht'8 (2): AC 7; HD 6; hp 26,
21; MV 90"30' ); ' AT 1 bite; IJmg 16;
Seve F3; ~ L 10; AL N; ER/52. Once II
leech IICOres a hit , it attaches to itll vic.
t im and cont inues 10 l uck bl ood for 16
hp damage per round. Leeches are not
parti cular abo ut t heir meals, and t he
party's hor8eIl, mul es, or ot he r warm.
blooded pack a nimals (or NPClIl are jUlit
as like ly to be eneeked ae t he PCs .
3. Liza rd Man Ca mp. This 1le('tion of
th e road pallSt's Ihrou j{hdense, la ll
reeds . These large cattail s gro w heavily
alo ng eac h eide of what is left of the
road. The ..... eeds block the vie w of wha t
is beyo nd: II ca mp of 16 lizard men just
off the north .II ide of t he mad. Anyone
a ttE'mpti ng to paM down t he road or
near t he camp ill a mbushed b)' t he se
liza rd men. If the PCs state they ore
prepa red for a n a mbush or are al ert to
t he pD!'8ibility of a n a mbu sh in t hi8
area, tht'), a re surpr-ised by the lizard
men only on II 1 on Id6. If the PCfI make
no such prepe ra ticn e. t hey are surp ri sed
on 13 on Id6.
U zard men 0 6r. I\C 5; HD 2 + t ; hp
10 each; MV 60'(20' ), swimming
120"40' ); ' AT 1 wea pon; DmJ{ by
weapon t ype + I : Save F2; ML 12; AL
N; 80/33: l a r ~ e cl ubs, epeare .
The liz.ard men U8e the si mple attack
method of half thei r nu mber ru,hin g
directly at a party while t he ot her half
cornell up behind to cut off ret reat . If th e
PC.II run, t here is nowhe re to go but
d{'CJK'r into t he marsh, If the PCs ere
defea ted a nd a ny a re captured alive,
they are taken to t he lizard men's ca mp
to be t he "guests of honor" at a horrible
feast .
If the Pea defeat the lucrd men and
fi nd t he crea t ures' ca mp in t he tall
reeds, t hey fi nd evid ence t ha t at !t>1l81
one eucb feast has taken place recently,
In the camp are many well-gnawed
bones of cbvtoue humanoid ori gin. At
the edge of t he ca mp ill t he r ubbish hea p
of the lizard men. Th ill trash includes
old turtl e ehel le. snake heads, fish
bone ll, bird beakA. etc., all such t hinKIl
t ha t even luaed men fi nd inedible.
Mixed in wit h t his t rash a re t he belong-
ingll, clothing, a nd boots of th e vict ims.
By tw.'arching t hrough t he liza rd men's
garbage. t he PC's can li nd a euit of
leat her armor + 1..a jewel led ahearh for
a dagger (wort h 25 gp }; a Jl'lItht' f PUfM'
cont a ining 15 IW in esso rt ed copper,
sil vt' f. a nd el ect rum piece s; a nd Ii eilver
brooch (wort h 40 gp l. The jewel led
sheat h a nd t he si lver brooch are /10
encrusted with !{Time t hat the PCf! will
have to clean t hem be fore diecoveei ng
the ir value.
4. De ad Man's BridKe . Th is old
wooden bri dge i!l bu ill of lo)Cll an d roull: h.
hewn plankl'. Time a nd na ture ha ve not
bee n kind to t he st ructure: it hlUl a
weatherbeaten look but Ie st ill very
sturdy. The bridg(' th(' Wyden
deep. a swift. deep stream t hat ru ns
t hrough Gn'ltt MllJ'tIh. There is no ford
for many miles up- or downst ream. The
bridge is blocked at t"8ch end by a largt"
wagon a nd is guarded by 12 zombies.
In t he fi nal da ys of t he road. before it
was complete ly abandoned , bri Kand!l
too k cont rol of the bri dge. These br ig.
ande would eit her attack t ra vel ers UB-
in.: t he br idge, ext ract a toll from them,
or lea ve t hem a lone, depending on the
a ppea r-ance a nd number or wernore
prese nt . The ecmblee a re the remna nt of
t hat ba nd of brigand!I . A magi c-user
among the bri ga nds created t he zombies
from fa ll en comrades a nd vict ims to a id
in t he defense of t he br idge. The malCi c.
uller a nd t he remain ing li ve brigands
were eventual ly overwhelmed and ca p-
tund by t he liu rd me n of Great Marsh.
The li za rd men, preferr ing only live
ca pti ves for t he ir feasttl, left t he zombie"
where t hey WE' rE' a nd have never bot h-
ered with t hem.
The zombies are t her e st ill , following
t hei r las t orders to defend t he bridge. If
t he PCs attempt to search or move t he
wagons bl ocki nj{ t he bri dj:Wor attempt
to cross the bridge in a ny manner. th e
zombies immediate ly a tt ac k,
Zo mb i(' !!(12); AC 8; HD 2; hp 9 ea ch;
MV IAT I clew or weapon;
Omg 18 or by weapon t ype; MV
Se ve Fl ; ML 12; AL C; 80139.
Searc hi ng th... wa gon" reveal e that
t he)' once held some sort of foodllt u{f
t posaibly flour or corn mea l) in four
la rge casks per wagon, whate ver it waa,
it has long etnce spoiled to a put ri d
gree n-black mu ck. In additi on, t he PCs
ca n find sca t tered about in the wagons
six silver.t ipped a rrows, one or na tely
ca rved wooden scroll t ube rempty, worth
10 gpl, and one tooled.leat her scroll
t ube rwort h 15 k'P1cont a ining a scroll
with a hold portol spell. This loot ill all
that re mains a ft er t he 1a!!t ba ttl e oft ht"
brigands wit h t he Hurd men . Wea t ht'r
a nd rime hoyt' also ta ken their t oll on
the wagons. The)' a re worthless , bei ng
warped a nd ric ket y from t heir long da)' s
a nd night. in t he open.
S. The Sh...Iter- Co mpou nd . Th eSP old
bui ldings are t he remn a nt of a welt -
fort ified compound with a st rong ti mber
pal illade. Aft er bei ng aba ndoned a nd
unattended for years. the en ti re north.
t' rn side of t he palisade. including t he
ga te a nd gate tower. hu rollapl't"d into
th e- ma rsh, The- buildi nlol' s of t he com
THEVINEYARDVALES
N
--
pound have Moe n ransa cked t ime a nd
ag a in by va rious swa mp dwellers .
Rhungold the Trickst er hall recently
take n up residence here a nd usps t he
compound a8 his home.
5A. Tool llhed. This buil di ng wall th e
tcolshed for the shel t er, There ere eev-
eral e mpry shelves on th e sout he rn
wall , a nd t he ot he r wa ll s a nd even t he
back of t he door have pegs and hooks for
hangi ng tools and utensils. In the cen-
t er of t he room is a pile of junk and
reIuse . This rubbis h heep cont a ins bit e
a nd pieeee of met a l; broke n handles
from rakes, hoes, a nd et he r tools;
warped a nd broken boards; a nd rot ten
birs of rope. It else hide, a nest of giant
centiped es. Ift h(' PCs attack th e gi a nt
cent iped es , th e noi ll4' arrracta t he euen-
ti on of t he lizard men i n a rea 58 . If the
PCa have not previously encountered
t hese liza rd men . t he eree t uree arri ve i n
2d6 rounds t o i nvestigate .
Gi a nt ee n riped ea l1 l): AC 9; HD 11.1;
hp 2 eac h; 60 '(20' ); IAT 1 bit e; Dmg
poison; Save NM; 7; AL N; 80128.
Anyone bit te n by one oft he ce nri pedes
mUllt Save "S. Poison or becomt' vio-
le ntl ) ill for 10 days.
DUNGEON 11
THE VINEYARD VALES
58 . Barn. Thi ll Inr j; Whui ldinw: w'l. $
used to st a bile' hor ses and other draft
a nimal s and to st ore hey a nd foddef .
Lizard men Rhunl{old have
moved int o t nt' bui ldinlt and made it
t heir home , Th e horse st a lls se rve li S
separate Illl't'pinl{ an'us for the lizard
men. If the PCs enter the be rn.jhey a re
e ueeked immediatel y by 10 Iiaa r -d men
t hp 10 each, St'1" !lt a t i!'lt ics at a feR 3land
t heir shama n. ff t ht, PCII defeat t nt'
li za rd rnt'n and l4t.'arch th e barn. ttwy
cpn find II client' 0(20 ll pt"lI rll and 10
clubs, wh ich t he)' rna}' 1'(>11 at sta ndard
pr ices upo n th!' ir ret ur n t o t hl' va ll' .
12 Issue No. 23
Liza rd man " ha mli n: AC 5; Col; hp
16; :..tV 60'(20' 1, swimming 120'(40 ' 1:
'AT 1; Dmg b)' weapon t)'JM> "'1: Save
Col ; :-'1l 12; 8D:33, "fD'2 1; clu b,
spear'; epel le: rmu .. ligh t woufldll, dark .
1U'u . hold person. The lizard man sha-
mon should be treated like liny oth er
athleve1c:l eric . For more informa ti on
on nonhu ma n spell-castera, M;'(' the
[J.\t' s RoolI, paloies Zl ZZ.
5C. Small iloust' , This is a bart',
empt) buildi nPt: . An)' sl l"(' pinKbt'nche!l
that ..... ere in t he hu ilding hu\'(' ht-en
rt' mo\ed , and all that re ma iTUIlo dl' noh
that th is ..... as once slt't'pi njl" quarters is a
large fi re pit . lf t he pe s ca refullv exa m-
ine t he fir e pit , t hey may not ice 't ha l
t here is an unusual a mount of dirt
mixed in ..... ith t he eshes . !r th.,y dlloi
t hrough the a shes t hey fi ml nothing,
but if t hey dill" int o the fire pit itllt'l f,
they find a chest bur-ied in t he dirt un-
der th e Illlht' 8. Rhungold kee ps hill trea -
sure stor ed in thie chest. ..... hich i!l locked
and t ra pped ..... ith a poison needle. The
nPt'd!e's poi son it! not deadly, a8
Rhungold .....ant ll t o int l'froKat e a ny
person ..... ho tempers ..... ith hill t reasu re
befo re he kill s him. The poi son merel y
paral yu' " t he victim for 16 hours: It
SavinR Th row V8. Polson reduc.'" 1111
effect to 16 t ur ns . The tr..nsure i n t he
cheer ill 300 gp in vari ous coins (mollt l)"
lIiln r pil"Cell l: a ruby r ing lwort h 50 ,,">p I:
three Kerns (wort h 50!{p, 25!{p. and 10
,,">pI; 8 pot ion of trt'CUIUN' (i nd i n/l ; lind
Five quarrels + 1. Buried under thl'
coins in t he ches t ill H bone scrol l tube
inlaid wit h silver ' .....ort h 100 iWI. Thl'
tube eoruai ns a 8("r01l of prot /'C'tion f rom
f'/ f'mf'nta /./f .
51), Cotla psed Building, When the
pa lisa de fell , it ap pa rently took thi s
buil ding ..... it h It . The re is nothinR Il,n
here but a Jumbled pile of lumber thai
hides nothing of interest .
Four robbe r Il tes mah t hi !ljunk pil"
t heir horne and attack anvone disturb-
ing it . The noise of env wit h rhe
robber nies a urecte t he attent ion of the
li za rd men in urea 5R, if they have not
al ready been .. ncounte red by the PClI.
They tiff in>to i nvestiga te in 2dfi
rounds.
Hohhl'r ni t'li (41: AC 6, Hn 2, hp 9
each; 90 '130 ", nytnK 180 't60 ' I: ' I\T
I bite : Dmg 18: Save "' I ; ML 8; AI . N;
B1)'36.
5. :, Mnin Ho use. Thi Nbuilding WON
t hl' main hal l for rhe compound. There
ure 1Il"\"f' ral llll1.'pinK twncht'll al on.: thl'
western and eastern ..... a nd the floor
ill pa ved with largf' Oaglltonell.
RhunKold'1I lIpcll book is u nder t he
se ut bernmoat of t he eastern benches.
He has made a dry cuhbyhol..
under a broke n nfl)t!lt one and pla ced hill
s pe ll book in it . Elich PC searching t he
main house ha ll a l in6 chance of none.
in!: that t he Oa!:lItone ill llliKht ly aske w.
In addui on to t he !lpt'1111 Rhunj{old hus
m.. mor izl-d. t h.. book con tain!!tht, fol
lowi ng lI pellll: rf'(J'/ "1lIj(i(', 1'''lI l nlo-
qui J; m. u'f'b, w f r CJI 'i sioll .
Down the cente r of the room a re (our
s mall fin>pit s for eooking a nd he ating.
These are flanked by six larKl' ....-ooden
pillara. Rhungold has ma de this enti re
building his pr tvet e que rt era. fi e slH' ps
on the east ern be nches a nd stores blan-
ker a und c1othint: on t he west ern
benches al onK with a supply offood.
cooki nK utensil s, water, and wineski ns .
A la rge amount of wood, mostly old
lumber scavenged from the ot her bu ild.
inKS of the compound. is stacked und er
t he west er n benches.
RhunlCol d the Tyj CkHtt'r: AC 7;
:-.rU7; hp 19; MV 120'(40'); I AT 1; Dmg
by spel l or weapo n t ype ; Se ve ML
9; AL C; I 16; Ch 16; rin!:
+2, dCJl{Rf'r + I , pot ion of iIH'uibili(v:
spells: trlOj(ic miseile; ,hirld, lIlfi.>p. i nllu,
ibility. wizard ladl , hold person, light-
ning bolt. pol.vmorph Iif'/f
Rhungnld'e treachery and trickery
ca used hi m t o be exil l,.-d from the Court
ofCnute in Zt-ab urg. The Kingdom of
Osrland has no bounty for Rhungold;
th e noble" simply want him out of 0 6-
tland. What he does outside that king.
dom i8 of no conce rn to them. If t he PCs
ca pt ure Rhungold a nd attempt t o return
him to Ost lund , they will be told to t ake
him back to where they fou nd him. for
he is not welcome in Ost land a nd OI- i
t be r are the PCI' as long all t hey eccorn-
pany him.
RhunjoCold'8 doubl e.dealings (84' e
"Rhungold and His Pla na") are not
based on gr eed, but rather on the 8hl"t.' r
joy he gets from cheati ng a nd tri cking
people. He especially enjoys creating a
great deal of e motional dis t reee . Hew.
ever, hi ll high Charisma ofte n leads
people to give him t he benefit of the
doubt ; so far, no one has removed hi!!
head from his shoulde rs .
In an attempt to accomplish step one
of hi s plan. Rhungold used a pol,vmorph
1I.. lf 8pl'1I to change int o a black dragon.
In this for m he eonfrcnted a t r ibto of
lizard men in Great Marsh. killed some
of their ..... arriors. and claimed r uler ship
ove r t he tribe. The lizard men se rve
Rhungold out of fea r, bel iev ing him to
be a real dragon .
Rhungol d ti n bl ack dragon for m):
AC 7; 11 0 as hp 19; 90'130' 1,
nying 240 '(80 ' ); 'AT 3; Omg 25/25/2
20; Sa ve 9; AL C. Rhunj{old ill
unable to cast any IIpelJlI ..... hile in 8
pol:vmorpht'd form. The liza rd men ha ve
m'ver llt"t.'n Rhungold in a nyt hi ng ot her
th an dragon form; he al .....8JII po(v-
morphtJ while in the main houst" a nd out
oflli ght of the lizard men . !i l' ca n nit
and ente r the ma in house in average-
s ize dragon form through the great
double doors a t the northern end of the
build ing.
Under no circumsta nces .....iII
Rhungold help the liza rd men fil':ht t he
PCs. Rhungold's st ra tegy ill to remain
hidden i n the ma in house unti l one aide
or the ot her wins the hattie. If th e liza rd
men win. he ha s nothing to worry
about. Ift he PCs ..... in. Rhungold will
U8(' hi ll inl,illibi li ty spel l or pot ion of
int 'itJibi/l(Vto evade the adventurers as
long all pceeible. If the PCII do not dill
cover Rhungold 's spell book or th' tree .
sure buried in the smal l bou se CRrea
SCI. he ..... iIl not show hlmself at ell .
If the PCs dest roy the l izard men bu t
are unable to find Rhungold, he bogint!
to attack the Vales in dr agon form.
Lizard men are not the brightest crea-
t ures in the world a nd tend to take
things at face value. However, even
inex pe rienced adventurers kn ow dra g.
ens have a breat h ..... ee pcn. As Rhungold
does not gai n one when he polymorphtJ.
t he PCKshoul d re aliz e tha t th ere ill
somt-t hi ng odd about t he dragon .
If t he PCs do discove r a nd ta ke eit her
t he epel! book. the treasure, or both .
Rhungold attacks t hem from the best
cover po8lIible, probabl y around t he
corner of one of the buildings ( - 1 to the
PCI'I ' to-hit roll s ) but within spell range.
He qui ckl y callts maRie missile and
lightni nR bolt .llpelill at t he nearest PCs,
then immediat ely polymorphtJ himSot'lf
into II black dragon and auacks i n th at
form .
When Rhungold is in bla ck dragon
form. PCIl in combat with him should
not attempt to subdue him or st rike for
subdui ng da mage. As Rhungold ill not a
re al dragon. he cannot be subdued; the
PCII merel y waste t heir time and do no
damage to Rhungold. If the PCs can
red uce him to 8 hp or less . he will sur-
rl' nder. If Rhungold surrenders or is
ca pt ured, he rell e t he PCs not hing about
hill plans. He claims to bea simple
brigand who ill usinKthe lizard men a8
hi .ll henchmen . The PC" or the defenSot'
league can dbccver the truth through
e it her ESP or a charm JWrtJon spell .
Rhungold will a ttempt to fight in
draKon form until he n "COverti hi s t rea
lure, llpell book. or both. Once h' recov
l'rtI hi s propert), he i mmed ia telJ ni l' S
away. If Rhun gold ellCa pes . he will not
return. The hall the opt ion of using
him again in IlOme fut ur e adventure. In
THEVINEYARD VALES
suc h a case, he remembers the Pes and
certai nly holds a grudge aga inst them.
COncluding the Adventure
If the Pes succeed in destroying t he
threa t of Rhungold a nd t he lizard men.
t he defense league "" i11 pay t hem the
bounty in full , IfRhun gold is ca pt ured
or eurre ndere, Thrand. using hill m..dal-
l ion of ESP' i nt errogates him. If the PCs
destroy the liza rd me n but are unable t o
capt ure Rhungold, the defense league
payll them t he I ,OOO.gp bounty for the
lizard men but not t he 500 gp for t heir
leader.
If t he PCs a re unabl e to destroy
Rhungold and the liza rd men. t hl' ad-
vent ure rs may make a M'COnd a ttempt
usi ng a band of defense lea gue fighters
for he lp. The OM must dec ide on the
e xact number of fighters accompanyi ng
t he PCI and t heir ra nk (elite, typical, or
bot h; see " Va le Random Enoounters"
for complete defense lea gue fiKhter
deta ill ). If t he PCs use the defense
league for help, the bounty i8 red uced
by hal f, a nd the defense I' agu e claims
half of any rreesure found. In a ny event.
if Rhunguld ellCltpl'1I but the PCII delltruy
hillair or caulOt' him troubl e. they will
have made a n enemy in t he Northern
Kingdoms. Rh ungold will ne ither for-
give nor forget the PCI . If Rhungold has
been captured, he ie no longer of con-
cern to the PCs unl ' 88 he escapes.
Ifthl' PCs are unabl e to resolve any of
t he adventu re but st ill wi sh to re ma in
in the Va il'S. the)' may become leaders
in the Vineyard Va l' s Defense League.
They can help defe nd Thrend'e St ead or
ot hl' r vineya rdl againllt the lizard men.
They may act as escort for cara va nll or
help t ra in defense lea gue flgh ters. The
max imum a mount paid for such a id b)'
t he defense league ..... iIl be 100 gp per
party (not per PC) per month. However;
t he Pes may keep all a rms, ar mor.
equipment . magical items. a nd treasure
t hey ca n ca pt ure .
Vale Random Encounters
While there is no treasu re to be gained
in t he followi ng f" ncounten. the PCII
may IIt ri p pr isoners or fa llen liza rd men
of their ar ms and !leU t hese at sta ndard
pr ices (see th e EZJWrt Rul4' book. page
19). In add iti on. each lizard man has
ppr llOnal bolongi ngs. ooin.ll, or jl' welJ")'
worth approximately 05 gp (copper "'Til'lt
ba nds, decor ative tooled leather arm
bands, llma Usih' er neck chai ns . etd .
DUNGEON 13
THE VINEYARD VALES
When defense league. lizard men . or
Whiteheart mereenanee are enccun-
te red , use the foll owing I'It a t is t iclI and
details:
Viney ar d Val f' 1I DE' f E' hIIe League
The defense league is made up of ill -
t rained and poorly ar med farmers. It
has no lea der. a nd all decisions are
mad e by a committee orthe ste ad own.
era. Each owner or hill emissary may
voice his opinion or cast a vote on eny-
thing brou ght before t he committee.
The defense league ill nol a well-
organi zed mili tary mac hi ne hut ill a ble
to field sma ll bands of warrion from the
Bt(>a ds a nd (arma of t he Va lt'll.
Elite dE' fenae league fight er: AC 6;
Fl ; hp S each; MV 120'(40' : IAT 1
weapon; Dmg by weapon type; Save F l ;
ML 7; AL L; leat her armor. shield, short
sword. hand axe.
Typical defense lea gue fi ghte r: AC
8; zero-le vel human; hp 3 each; MV
120'(40' ); 'AT I weapon: Dmg by
weapo n type; Save NM; Ml. 7; Al. l. ;
shield, de gger, dub.
U zard Mf' n
Lizard man fht hten a re simple t ri bal
warriors and shamans. They have no
idea what Rhungold is up to; t hey are
simply doinJ( lUI they are told. The l izard
men figh ters do not greatly value et r at-
egy a nd taetics, prefe rmg hea dlong
chargee into t he enemy's ranks . In bat -
tle, t hey adopt a n "every lIiza rdl ma n
for himself" attit ude.
Uzard man s ha man: AC 5; C2; hp
12; MV 60'/20 '); 'AT 1 spell or wee pcn;
omg by weapon type ... 1 or spell: Save
C2; ML 12; AL N; 80133, Mo !21: dub;
spel l: N UU light wound..
Typical lizard man nghtt' r: AC 5;
HO 2 "'1 ; hp 10; MV 60'120', swi mming
120'(40'); 'AT 1 wea pon; Omg by
wea pon t ype "'1; Save F'2; 12; Al.
N; 80133; dub, spee r.
Whitehea rt Me rcena ri E' 1
ThE' Whit E'hE' art mercenar ies a re a
milled ba g of battle-wise veterans, bar-
room brawlers, and downri ght briga ndll.
The city of \\'hite hE' arl Iiell west of
Gnoat Man h a nd north of Gnollheim.
Canlltant Il ldrmishi ng wit h liza rd men
a nd gooll s hu honed t he battle skill ll of
the merc1lnari E' s and taught them the
value ofthinking about a battll.' bl.'fore
engagi ng in it . Like- all Northme-n, they
KTeatly valuE' perlKlnal st re ngt h a nd
courage, but t hey al80 have a much
bl.'tter KTall p of st rate-gy a nd tact iCll t ha n
14 1"U8 No. 23
the average Northma n. They use this
knowledge to best ad vantage and tend
to a void charging headlong into a n
enemy.
Eli te Whit E'hea rt me r ce n8l"y: AC 4;
F4; hp 18; 120'(40' ); ' AT 1 ..... eapon:
Omg by weapon type: Save F4: ML 10:
AL L: cha in ma il , shield, war hammer,
hand axe .
Typical Wh ltehea n me rce na ry: AC
6; F2; hp 9; MV 120'140'); 'AT 1 weapon ;
Omg by weapon type: Seve F2; Ml. 10:
AL L; leat her a rmor, shield, mace, hand
axe.
Ber8t' rk(" M1 loptional l
For ecme unex plained reason,
Nort hmen are particularl y susceptibl e
to t he berserk battle rage that ever-
comes some .....arriors i n combat. Some
sages Iluspt.'d. it hall somet hi ng to do
wit h the Nort hmen'e Immortals, Odin
a nd Thor, whil e ot he rs point to purely
raci al factors. Whate\'er th!" reason,
berserkt'r11 a re more common among t he
northern ki ngdoms than el sewhere .
WhE' n ueing t he foll owing en coun ters,
the may change 20'l {round all
fracti ons down l of the typ ical fighters to
bereerkera (see HoJ' l 7l once they are
engaged in a battle. For t his adventure ,
use t he- stat ist iCll I{ivE' n for a t ypical
defense league or w hiteheart merce-
nary but add +1 to hit points a nd ... 2
to hit roll s.
A bel'lM.' rker E' ngagl.'sonly enemy
fighters 80 long as there are enemies to
fight. Once all enemies have be-en va n-
qu iehed. however, t he berserker keeps
on fighti ng, turnin" on PCs, frit'nds ,
and alli ('8 in a blind battl e-rage. Once
the berserk fury ha s taken hold, it will
not pass aot long as t he fight er Is en -
gaged in combat (wit h either frie nd or
enemy). If t he berserk fighter t a n be
subdued (by using a or hold /HrlOn
8pell, by knocking him un conscious. or
by whatever mea ns the OM deems pee-
sjble), the berllerk fury pessee i n 14
turns, a!tl.'r which t hl.' fightE'r ret ur ns to
normal. though he wi ll go bertlerk again
the next time he is engaged in combat .
El ite figh ten do not go berlll" rk. due to
t hp _If.diJlCiplinp lind t raining tht'y
have atquired.
Battl e- Guldellnell
In large battles involving many war
r ion , t he fighti ng is often ro nfused a nd
chaoti c. Because of t hia confusion, the
PCs must be carl.'ful in using missil("
fire or spell s on jumbled and shifti ng
targeu. The OM should roll percentile
dice for a ny hit that a PC Morell by a
missile weapon (spells such all magic
mUfil e and hold person automatit:ally
sti kE' thl.'ir desired targl.' ts l. There ie a
50'1 chance o(hitting a n enemy or ally:
a roll of 1-50 mea ns t he hit was eccred
on a friendly figh ter or all ied cr eature.
while a roll of 51-00 hits a n enemy
fighter or mons ter. Spel l-caste rs must
also be ca re ful when using area-e ffect
spellil such as , /erp or blt'ss, as fri endll
may be accident ally harmed or en emies
accidentally. For conve nience, the OM
can use t he 5O'l- rul e: In any confused
j umble of people, 5O'l- are friendll a nd
50'l are ene mies. Thus, If a , IH p spell
is calCt and pultl four Ilghtere tv slt't' p,
t wo are frie ndly fightt'rlI and t wo are
ene mies. If an odd number ie effected,
the OM may choose or roll randomly to
determine If the one left over is a Iriend
or a n enemy.
The OMmay roll randomly for the
following encounte rs or choose an
encounte r u approprtat e. Ea ch encoun.
t er should be used only once, but if th e
wishes, encounters 1 a nd 6 ca n be
reworked and used over aga in.
1. He ne ga de Uzar d Ml.'n. Sixteen
lizard men lhp 10 each) are attacklnK
five de-fense league Iighre rs Iene elite,
hp 5: four typical , hp 3 each) on a 8OOut-
inKmissi on. The lizard men are nol
trying to kill t he 8OOU18but are attempt -
ing to drive them westward into the
mereh. The lizard men feel t hat the
marsh otTen much more opportunity for
s port with th e ecoute t han dry land. If
PCs attack th e reptiles. t hey stand a nd
fight to the last liza rd man. The lizard
men are renegades, dl'tlt.' rt ers from
Rhungold's foeeee i n Gr ea t Ma rs h Isee
" Into Gr eat Mareh"). They dese rted
several week s ago a nd hav e be-en living
in t he mareh ever since. If any are ca p-
tured a nd Interrogated, t hey attempt to
trade infor mat ion on t he location of
Rhungold'slair in Great Marsh for t heir
freedom. [f Rhungold'&lai r hee already
brtn found and a t tacked, the8t' lizard
men will not know of it .
2. DI.'(e-ndlng thl.' Dt-fe nlle IA" Rgue,
Read or para phrutle the following to t he
playeu :
As )ou approach a emaIl hill, you
hear the llOundll of battle: mE'n shout-
i ng, horses whinnyin!:, the d ash of
sword altaiRst shiel d. These sounds
r tee on the wind and com", from t he
(ar side of t he hil l. 1b 11('(' wh at ill
happe ning, )'OU mus t KO directl y ove r
the hill , 88 t he heavy brush on ei t her
side of it ill virtually impassable.
Once atop the hill. you see 10 defense
lea ", "Ul' fi.:h tt'TlI attempti ng to repel
t he onsl aug ht 0(20 lizard ma n war -
r iors. The lizard me n ha ve thei r
backs t o t he hill a nd ca nnot see you .
lf the Pell cha rge imme-diately, the 20
lizard men (one shaman. hp 12; 19 typi-
ca l, hp 10 each) a re eur pr tsed a nd disor-
ga nized . Th e PCs CRn a Uack once more
before t he recover enoug h to
defend t hemselves . In addition, the PCs
automat ically win ini t iative for t he
next t wo combat sequences. If the PCs
Issue a challenge before attacking, th e
l iza rd men will not negoti a te but will
s imply divide thei r foret' s a nd se nd half
aga inst the PCs and half agai nst the 10
defen se lea gue fighters (four eli te, hp 5
each: six t yp ical , hp 3 each ), In th is
case, in it iat ive ill rolled normally,
3. The Hu r ni ng Ste ud . For t his
encounter, tbE' may use the map
ebcve or the fold-out map a nd 3 0 card,
board buildings of Ot kel's stead eup-
plied with GAZ 7 The Nort hern
Hffi ch...lI . A OM who owns module OlO
NiRht ', Dark Terror can UJ' t he fold-out
map ofSukillkyn and the cou nters eup
plied with t hat module . In t he l att er
t wo eases, the OM need only not e t he
placement of fi rt' s in t hi s e ncounter to
use t he maps.
Read or pa ra phrase t he following to
t he players:
You ha ve stopped to relit you r hones
a nd eat a meal. The day is hazy, bu t
r isinKove r one hill in the dt stence is
wha t looks li ke smoke. As you watch,
it becomes thicker a nd stronger until
it ca n only be t he billowing smoke
from a large fire . As you ride toward
it to investigate, you begi n t o hear
t he sounds of ba ttle KJ"Q1l.inK louder.
You top a smel l rille a nd can clearly
see a burning at end. Th e Kittell a re
down and t he Rat(' tower, main
house, a nd a shed a re burning [u r-i -
cusly. A beute st ill ra gE'S a mong t he
Ilames.
The stead is defe nded by 12 dt.'fen!\e
league fighters (four eli te, hp 5 ('ach :
eight typica l, hp 3 eac h). Th e a ttackera
are 15 lizard me n (t wo shamans, hp 12
each: 13 typical . hp lO eac h), Th e PCs
will ha ve a difficult ti me reaching t he
battle because of t he blaz ing ga te tower,
the only entrance a nd exit to t he stead.
Th is else meena that t he oomba tanl.8
wit hin the walls arp unable to retrea t .
Any PCI attempti ng t o pu s t hrough
t he fire wit hout magica l protect ion,
such as a ruut fire epell or ri ng offi re
sutTer 28 hp damage from
t he Ilamesuhe 0:\1 may also i nclude
further penalties, such as clot hes ee tcb.
ing fire for addi tional damage, flCrolis
bur ni ng a nd becoming useless. or 10lllI of
Dext erity or Ch ar isma due to burns).
Th e easiest way for the PCs to enter
the burni ng compound is for a t hief
cha racter to climb t he wall (nonna l
chance of sucreu) a nd throw down a
rope for the et hers . One attempt can be
made for eech wa ll of t he st ead. Ift he
pa rt y dot's not cont ai n a thief, ot her
characten rna)' attempt to cli mb the
wa lls usi ng t he gu ideli nes supplied on
pa ge 22 oft he Expert Rult hook. As t he
defenders a nd e ueckere of the st ea d a re
busy hacking a nd ala,hing at eac h ot her
a mong t he bu rni ng bu ildings, no one
THE VINEYARDVALES
N

'/
- - ,... "'-
. I \ '
,
will notice t he PCs unt il they attack.
There is fighti ng t hroughout t he burn -
inlt stead, !IO t he O:\! may place encoun-
t ers a nywhere within illl wftllll.
4. Rt' Acuing Whlt e hea rt Me r ct'-
nari" A. Read or pa ra phrase th .. follow.
i ng to t he players:
You hear the eounde of battl e as you
foll ow a well-te nded wa gon road
through a sma ll tree-shrouded glen.
Around a bend in the t ra il you come
upon a Whit eheart wagon t rain un-
der a ttack by li za rd men ra ideu .
There a re seven wa gons stopped in a
li ne on the road, with the wagons
about 20' apart. A tot a l of 60 Whi t e-
heart merceneriee and li zard men
are locked in deadly han d-to-bend
combat in , on, under, lind a rou nd the
wagons. Fr om t ht' look of t he battle,
t he White ht'a rt wa gcneers are get -
t ing t he worst of it .
The wegons are defended by 23 White.
hea rt mereen eries (23 t ypica l. hp 9
each}a nd contai n foodst uffs and arms to
resu pply the meree nary ba nds defend-
ing the Va lell. They are being a ttacked
DUNGEON 15
THEVINEYARD VALES
by a force of 27 lizard men uwc she .
mane, hp 12 each; 25 t ypica l. hp 10
each>. If the PCa charg.. into beufe
immediately, t hey automat ically have
initi ati ve (Of their first attack. Ifthey
challenge t he lizard men, nothing hap-
pene or changH. The fightf.' n are too
preoccu pied with thE"ir combat t o dtsen-
gage or worry about the PC. If the PCs
issue a challenge. however, roll initi a-
tiv e norma lly.
5, Locuete lind Uzard Men. Read or
pa raphrase the ollowinR to the pl ayers;
You are rid ing down an old cart t rack
when you hear the llOunds orba ttl e.
AI. y ou round a t hick Aland of rreee.
you see a battle be t ween defense
lea gue tighten and Iiaerd men. Ap-
parently, the defense lea gue fighten
are trying to get into t he vineyard
just beyond. bu t the Hurd men have
formed a skir mi sh li ne and are pre-
ve nti ng a nyone from entering. Lock-
ing into t he vi neya rd, you eee that it
is being atta cked by several giant
IOCU818. The defenll4:' league members
are cuni ng t he lizard men and
screaming bloody murder, but they
are unable to get at t he locusts. If
you want to drive the locusts from
the vineyard. you are going to hav e
to deal with the lizard men your-
selve.
There are 12 defe nse league fighten
(t wo elite, hp 5 each ; 10t yp ical. hp 3
each! trying to break through a li ne of
25 liza rd men (t wo shama n., hp 14
each; 23 t ypical , hp 10 eech]. In the
vineya rd are 15 gi ant locusts Ihp 9
each). The loculltll a re very hungry and
figh t wit h a moral e of 8 r at hE'rthan
the ir usual 5.
If t he PC. ebellenge th e lizard men or
engage in combat wit h them, the rep-
ril es are forred to give up their gam e
with t he defense league Ilghte re and
allo w them to ente r t he vi neyard. If the
PCI attack the lizard men, several
t hings happen at once . The defense
league me n attack the giant locusts.
a nd the locusts begin jumping. There is
a 5O'l- cha nce per giant locust t hat it
become. confused and jumps into the
fight bet ween the PCa and the lizard
men. If 10, a victi m (eit her a PC or a
lizard man) te determined randoml y and
a hit roll is made, If the giant locust
hits. t he victim i. battered for 1-4 hp.
Any victim hit by a locust ca nnot at tack
16 1" uo No. 23
in that round beca use he Ie eurpr teed
and off bal ance.
It will ta ke the defense league fight.
ere 30 rounds to drive the tOCU'UI from
the vineyard. H the PCII defeat t he lie.
e rd men before thill, they may join help
the fightt>n . If t he PCa are st ill engaged
with t he liza rd men a fte r th e figh ten
have eit her killed or driven the locusts
away, the fighter. will help the PC.
fight th e lizard men. Ofthe NPC fight
en , 1-4 will hav e suffered 16 hp dem-
age in th e fight with the locusts.
6. Ambuah, Read or par aphrase the
following t o t he pla yers:
You a re follo..... ing a narrow track
through a heavily thicketed area a nd
are unable to see more t han 2'-3'
through t he heavy brush.
Sixteen Hurd me n (one shama n, hp
12; 15 t yp ical , hp 10 each) have been
lyinKin wa it for some unfort un ate
passers-by to enter this thicket . If th e
PCa attempt to p a ~ through, t hey are
ambushed immediately. lf the edvent ur-
era et ete t hey a re preparing for an ern-
bush in the t hicket , th e lizard men
surprise them on a roll of I on Id6 . If
the PCII make no such preparanene.
they are eurp ri eed on a 13 0n Id6 . The
lizard men wa it ing in a mbus h are out to
kill anyone en te ring the thicket . They
attack from both si des a nd attempt to
block t he track a head and behi nd the
party.
7. Ca pn vee. The PCs carne acfOl\ll 20
lizard men (20 typica l, hp 10 each I re-
t urning from a raid. The lizard men
have four human ce puvee a nd ere reo
t urning to the marsh for a feast. The
ca pt ives a rt' bound a nd ca nnot fight
until they are released . If the PCs at -
tack, t he liza rd men divide their forces ,
..... it h eigh t lizard men trying to escape
with the capt ives ..... hile the other 12 act
as a rear guard to prevent a nyone from
attempti ng a rescue. If t he rear guard is
destroyed, the first ei ght lizard men
aba ndon t he capt ives a nd high-t ai l it as
fallt as they ca n for Great Mars h.
Ca pt ln1I (4): AC 9; zero-level hu -
mans: hp 3 each: ,-t V 120'140' ); ' AT I;
Dmg by weapon type; Sa ve N ~ ML 5;
AL L: unarmored a nd unarmed. Iffreed .
the ca pt ives are grateful but ca n offer
no rewa rd to t he PCII beceuee thei r
stead was burned ..... hen they were
captured.
8. Re fu get' ll in Need . Read or pa ra -
ph rase th e foll owing to t he pla yers:
You are rid inKdo..... n a n old cart track
when yuu hear the lIUund of a !lUKe
number of peopl e weeping and .....a il-
i nK. Ah ead and ofT to the ri ght you
see a number of peasanl8 being bee-
essed and bull ied by a gr oup of fight.
en. The fightt>n are going through
the peaNl nt'1 gooda and po8sellllions
a nd ta ki ng ..... hat they please .
The pe asants a re 30 refugee s fleeing
t he fight ing in the Va lt' s. They are be-
ing robbed by 15 Whiteheart merce.
naries rt .....o elite , hp 18 each; 13 typ ica l,
hp 9 each) ..... ho have decided that there
is more money to be made in robbing
the Vales t han in pr otecting them. The
mercenaries a re 80 busy searchinK
t hrough and argu ing over the pe8lBnt's
pit iful be longi ngs that, if the PCs et -
tack immediately, t hey automati cally
surp rise the mercenaries a nd win iniria -
rive for the next t wo rounde. l f the PCs
challenge the mereeneriee before at-
tacking. the men from White heart eol-
lect rhemse lve e a nd prepare for battle.
In t hill case. normal tnittauve roll s are
made.
If a n)' of t ht'1lt' re negade mercenari es
a re ca pt ured, the)' ca n be t ur ned over to
the defense league. The renegedee will
be treated as common bri gandll. i.e.,
lashed, imprrsoned, used 88 forced labor,
etc, Once a gr oup of mercenaries turns
to robbery, the other Whitehea rt merce-
naries will hav e nothing t o do with
them a nd do not ca re what becomes of
suc h renegades . If a ny PCs are ca pt ured
by the brigands, they will be et eipped of
all equipme nt . a rms . a rmor, magi cal
items, end anyt hinKt'IIW of val ue, th en
rel eased along with t he peasants.
Ht' fu gel' lI (30): AC 9; zero-leve l hu-
mene: hp 3 each: MV 120'140' ); ' AT nil,
omg nil: Sa ve N!o.t ; ML 5; AL L; un-
ar med a nd unar mored . 0
h.
IN THE DREAD
OF NIGHT
BYANNDUPUIS
Things are darkest
before they go
totally black.
6IssueNo. 24
A nn first met her husband, Paul Dupuis,
10 yrorl ago when she wen t looking for a
goodDu ngron Master. Perhaps that's
why POIl I u willi ng to support her a. she
tur M to a full-time career design ing role-
playing aids. This is her first Bah to
DUNGEON- Adoenturee. With their
fiTd mortgagf' loomi ng in the near futu re,
A 1111 and Pau l hope it won't be her last
"In the Dread of Night" is a D&IY' ad-
ventu re for 5-8 PCs of mixed classes and
levels 1-3 (about 13 total levels). Lawful
characters woul d be best. as Chaotic
characters will find little or no reason to
help the villagers. The adventure is set
al ong the Westron Road in t he Grand
Duchy of Kara meik08(GAZl. which
covers this te rritory, would be ofhelp
hereI. Ifthe OM wi shes a short adven-
t ure, playable to its conclusion in three
to fi ve hours, the " Adventure Back-
ground" may be read to the players and
the adventure begun near the tower
itself Otherwise. the PCs' arrival and
activities in the village should be role-
played .
Adventure Background
The village ofSisak has been plagued by
some unknown terror for nearly a year.
It sta rt ed innocentl y enough: A few
animals disappeared from the fields and
were thought to have wandered ofT while
t he herdsman dozed. A while later.
farmer Bram Radescu'slivestock disap-
peared from his barn. Br am and his
oldest son followed the tra cks for a mile
into the woods. They found t hei r horse,
killed by some wild beast, but all the
ot her tracks had mysteriously vanished.
Since then , livestock has disappeared on
a regular basts, always a few nights
befor e the new moon.
Suspicion fell on Th addigren Dentiata,
a magic-user who had moved into the
area short ly before the first di sappear.
ances. He had constructed a tower in
less than three months. using many
imported workers and (it W Wl rumored)
great magic. Thaddigren Dentiata him-
self was hardly ever seen by any of t he
villagers. It was whi spered t hat Den -
tiata's magic was of the dark sort.
Grigore Mavrov. the village headman.
sent word to the local lord req uesting
help in the form of armed men to conduct
an investigat ion. None were immedi-
ately avai lable. however. as the lord was
having problems with goblins raidi ng
some ofhis more i mportant lands.
-
Sisak
and Vicinity
I square = 1/4 mile
\
"
,
",\

I.......
)-
f....
, Wcstron Road
f-T>o
I"

....tee Rh n-
t-....
I'
_

stsakX
and
Hnf'"trich

CrftII. \1....,..

r-,
........
t 'Dre'/i1
I'"
<,
r-,
Dieter Mavrov(Ori gcre'e gr endecn),
Miks l Ta ppe (t he tavern keeper), and a
few or t he fanners armed themselves
with pitchforks a nd a n old sword that
had belonged. to Dieter's father, then
marched out to the magic-user's tower to
confront him with t heir suspicions. They
were mel by a polite a nd cool Thaddi-
gren Dentieta, who gave them a guided
tour of his abode. The men found nothing
unusual except for the odd henchmen
Dent iata kept-balf a dozen OTC8-who
were also polite and cool. The men
returned to the village. stillsUBpecti ng
Dent iata hut unable to prove anything.
Parents began to keep their chil dren
indoors duri ng the week ofthe new moon
for fear t hat the evil would not besatis-
fied with livestock.
Two night.8ago, Dieter Mavrov a nd
Miks l Tappe, having had a bit too much
to drink at Miltsl'. tavern, staggered off
vowing to put a n e nd to the te rror.
Milta}'s body was found i n the woods the
next day, mangled al most beyond recog-
nit ion by some savage beast. There was
no sign of Dieter.
Last night, Grigore Mavrov gat he red
the menfolk ofthe vi llage together in the
tavern . "Somet hi ng must be done; ' they
all agreed. But t he two bra vest villagers,
Dieter and Mikal, who ha d led the
farmers to the tower before , were now
gone . Words a nd ale flowed freely
t hrough the lips ofthe men present. In
t he end Grigore left the tavern, shaking
his gray-haired head sadly.
A few mome nts later the vill agers
he ard a shout. Rushi ng out of the tavern,
they eawfour figures dragging the at rug-
glingold man into the woods . One of the
farmers who had gone to the towe r was
sure he recognized t he la rgest figure as
t he chief ore he nchman ofThaddigren
Dentiata. As a mob. t he men r an into the
woods, but the orcs had disappeared-
and Grigore Mavrov with t hem.
The PCs ma y come across t he vill age of
Sisak a nd its troubles while t raveli ng
the Westron Road on their way to some-
pt.oe else. Alter nati vely, the local lord
have hired the ad venturers to
IDft8tiCate the problem, una ware of the
MWdenolopments.
For the lMlgeon Master
"Jbaddicr'e- Dentiata is indeed responsi-
hi. r.. mysterious disappearances of
li..-oc:k aDd for the kidna pping of he ad-
maD Gripft MIIvrov. He intends to
S8C!"ifice Gricoft on the Stone ef Secri-
fice in area 11 of his tower, j ust moments
before dawn on the ni ght ofthe new
moon . Th is sacri fice, if performed cor -
rectly, will enable Dentiata to gain t
level of experience (becoming a 7th! vel
magic-user). It will also provide him
with his fir st fourth-level spell (see he
Sons of Night" under "Thaddigren Den-
tiata and Friends"). The spell revealed
by the sacrifice will beconfusi on, but the
DM may substitute a ny fourth-level
spell desired. Dentiata has chose n Gr i-
gore as the sac ri fice because of the head-
ma n'slang life of upholding the ideals of
La w. This makes him perfect for Den -
nate 's purposes .
The DM should allowthe PCs enough
time to rescue Gr igore befor e the eecri -
fice ; a t least one full ni ght will be
needed. If the party is sma ll or consists
of only first-level characters, a n extra
day may be necessary to allow for t he
capture, escape, a nd regrouping of t he
party. Plan t he timing of t he adventure
accord ingly. Ha ve the PCs arrive in
Sisak just before noon, eit her on the las t
day ofthe month or on the first, t he day
of t he new moon (see the calender of
Karamei kos on page 33 ofGAZI
GrandDuchy ofKarameiltlMJ.
INTHE DREAD OFNIGH'!
Before role-playi ng the PCs' actions in
Sisak, the DM should read all of the
information on the village households.
Interrelationships between villagers
should be especially noted. The villagers
are more than just a means of giving or
selling informa tion to the PCs; t hey
ha ve families, obligations, and personal-
ities. Some of the villagers are availabl e
as low-level NPCs to round out the party
if there are too few PCs.
Once the sit uati on is explained to the
PCs, they will need to come up with a
pl an of a ttack. If the PCs decide to
approach Dentrata'a tower after dark,
they can use the afternoon to gather
infonnati on, get any equi pment they
ca n, a nd make plans. Ift hey re member
t ha t orcs are nocturnal, the PCs may
decide to lea ve for t he tower ri ght a way.
In eit he r case, t hei r journey to the tower
should be uneventful, whether they
choose t he West ron Road or go through
the woods along the Clea rwate r River.
Keep i n mi nd that Dentiata is a power -
ful character -too powerful for the aver-
age t st-level PC to easily defeat. Bein g
higher tha n 4th level, be is immune to
s1p spells. He is also immune to charm
/Jf!rBOn spells (creatures witb six or more
DUNGEON 7
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
hi t dice are not affected by th is spell; see
the D&D Bas ic Set Dungeon Masters
Rulebook, page 14).
Dent iata is not invulnerable, however.
The PCs may defeat him if they surprise
him and cleverly dea l wit h him before he
can cast a spell . If Dent iata gets the
initiative in an encounter, his spells of
choice are sleep (for the ent ire party) or
charm person (if he meets up with one of
the adventurers alone ). He will not use
his darkning bolt (see page 14 for new
spell description) unless he is outside the
tower or on the roof. Dentiata uses his
wand ofparalyeation only after first
8 IssueNo. 24
,,\, Slime Walll
.... Propeny Line
Rock Wall
::::::::::: e nw palh/R""d
, Riveri'Creek
Upper
Cow
Pasture
Lower
Pasture
I
,
::[ill :
. [[] !
!
~
!
I
,
s
,
using his sleep spell.
IfDentiata does manage to capture
any of the PCs (wit h his sleep or charm
person spells, his wand ofparalY2ation,
or by force of arms), he puts them in cells
in hi s dungeon. This makes the cells a
bit crowded, as there are only two availa-
ble for the PCs (areas 22 and 23). If Den-
tiata or Warag, chief of Dentiata'e orcs,
is feeling particularly cr uel, one of the
PCs may be put in a cell (area 24) with
the now violently insane Dieter Mavrov.
The adventurers will be harmed or
killed by Dentiata and his minions onl y
ifthey don't manage to escape from the
cell s before the hour of sacrifice. Ifthey
do escape, return, and are capt ured
again, they will find themselves i n the
interrogation room (area 25) or on the
road to t he Black Eagle Barony in the
company of Iron Ring Slavers (see GAZl,
page 28).
SisakVillage
Sisak is a t iny village located along t he
Westron Road in the Gra nd Duchy of
Karameikos, about 25 mi les west of
Radlebb Keep. Sisak is home to 77 vil -
lagers, mostly far mers and their Iami-
lies. There is one tavern here that caters
to travelers on t he Westron Road.
M08t of the buildings are constructed
of wood, with thatched roofs and white-
washed or st uccoed walls. Some of the
barns have walls of bare wood. The tav-
ern is of stone and timber with a slate
roof. This is also the only building in t he
village with two complete stories,
although some ofthe residences and
barns ha ve o ~
BUildingssz.lled alphabet ically on
the map are e residences of t he vil -
lagers; unla led buildi ngs are outbuild-
ings , including barns, byres, and coops
for the villagers ' livestock. Not shown on
the map are the numerous pens and folds
for the livestock.
The fields are borde red by the
Clearwater Rive r and Creek Melnik.
These two waterways join one another
just southeast of the village. Each field is
labelled on the village ma p with the
letter corresponding to the family t hat
farms it. The inn's two fields are far med
by the villagers and by temporary hired
hands in return for ale and ot her sup-
plies available at the inn. Each field is
divided into three roughly equal parts:
the villagers rotate the crops in t heir
fields , leaving one part to lie fallow
each year .
The grasslands to the east ofthe
Clearwater River serve as pasture for
t he cows and sheep, and as hay fields.
Haying season each summer is a t ime of
cooperative work among the villagers
during the day, and feast ing and da ncin g
each eveni ng. As there is no mill in the
village, all grain harveste d by the vil -
lagers is taken to a larger village half a
day' s journey to the southeast.
A well locate d in the center of the
vil lage provides dr inking water for
everyone. The inn has it s own addit iona l
water supply. The villagers draw fr om
the river or from Creek Melnik for trri-
areaB
a rea D
areaG
areaH
a rea J
a rea 0
a rea 0
gating their fields and for washi ng clot h-
ing. The norther n ford is muddy a nd
clouded each morning and evening after
the livestock has been driven t hrough,
but it soon clears. The cow paths on t he
outski rts of t he village ha ve been beaten
down a lmost 3' bel ow the surface of t he
surrounding ground.
All villagers confor m to the following
st at ist ics except whe re noted othe rwise:
Villagers: AC 9; Normal Humans; hp
se lected according to age, health, and
pr ofession ; MV 120 ' (40'); (fAT 1 weapon;
THACO19; Dmgby weapon t ype ; Save
Nor mal Man ; ML 6; AL L or N; BD/34.
The villagers have very little wealt h of
any sort.
As the PCs approach t he village,
read or paraphrase the following to the
pl ayers:
As you travel a long the Westran
Road, a small r iver winds its way
a longside , someti mes t wist ing away
into t he woods for a while only to
ap proach the edge of the roa d once
more further on. Its quiet gurgli ng
provides a melodious cont rast to your
t rudgi ng through t he mud of t he road.
The sun shi nes strongly down upon
you, promising to t urn t he squelchi ng
muck left by last night's rains t o
choki ng dust before t he day is
through.
Just before noon you see a village
ahead. Its whitewashed buildings a re
nestled between the r iver a nd a n
a djoini ng creek. A few welcoming
curls of smoke rise up from chimneys.
The field s are well tended and neatly
laid out between stone wall s. To t he
east are hay fields a nd past ures.
Approaching the vill age , you begi n
to notic e that t here are no a nimals in
the pastures and no vill agers in the
fields. In fact , as ide from a few chick-
ens pecking about i n t he di rt ofthe
road, nothing seems to be moving in
the village except for one man, curs-
i ng loudly as he a nd his team of
horses st ruggle to pull a fully loaded
wagon out of t he mud of the ford .
The man is Bram Radescu, on hi s way
bac k from a supply run for t he Boun tiful
Tappe Tavern. Bram wa s the first vi l-
lager to lose hi s livestoc k. Since then, he
has mana ged to replace some of hi s stock
but not his horse. He agreed to take
Mi ka l Tappe's wa gon and horses to t he
nea rest me dium-eire town and there
purc hase supplies, in return for a pre-
vious use of the horses. The wa gon con-
tains two barrels of al e and many cr ates
and bags offoodst uffs, candles , lamp oil,
a nd the like. Bram and his second son ,
Igor , have been gone for three days and
are unaware of the latest happenings in
the vill age. Seeing the fields a nd pas-
tures empt y and mos t of t he a nimals st ill
shut in their barns, Bram is more than a
littl e concerned for his fellow villagers.
Just a few minutes ago he sent Igor
ahead to the tavern to fetch help and
find out what's wr ong.
Bram Radescu: AC 8; Normal Man;
hp 6; MV 120' (40 '); IAT 1; THACO19;
Dmg by weapon t ype (+1 due to
strength), Save N o r ~ a n ML 6;
AL L; BD/34j S 14, II W 9, D 13, C 12,
Ch 9. Bram is currentl med with a 10'
horsewhip t ha t does 12 hp dama ge, but
due to his inexperi ence in using the whip
as a weapon, he is unable to entangle
oppone nts wit h it .
If t he PCs stand by and watch Bram's
efforts, or simply wade across the ford
ignori ng him, he indi gn antly curses
them for t heir disco urtesy. If they offer
to hel p Bram, he accepts t heir assistance
with r eli ef. He knows about t he events
in Sisak duri ng the past year a nd was
one of t he farmers to confront Dentiata
but is un aware of Dieter's disappear-
ance, Mikal' s death, and the kidnapping
of Gr igore.
One t urn after the PCs firs t meet
Bram, Igor comes running back fr om the
tavern wit h t wo farmers to help his
father get the wa gon unstuck. He is full
of t he news of Dieter and Mikal and
Gri gore, and isn't much help with the
wagon until he bl urts out everything he
lear ned from t he ot her villagers . The
two fa rmers, Nefen Zbon and Vladislav
Kruschneh, are glad to see Bram and
shortly get the wagon and horses on
their way again, if the PCs haven't
already hel ped. Both farmers hope that
Bram will be abl e to put an end to the
bickering currently going on in t he tav-
ern. They insist that he come immedi-
ately to t he Bountiful Tappe, wit h the
advent urers as well, to hear what is
being said and perhaps to provide a
solutio n.
Each of the villagers that the PCs meet
is more tha n happy to babble on about
town's proble ms . Many of t he townspeo-
ple can suggest a nother vill ager whom
t he PCs may wis h to inter view: Odolf
Czelb, for instance, who claims to ha ve
seen Mik al killed; or Casimi r Zbon, the
INTHEDREAD OFNIGHT
cowher d, who knows the most about the
missing cattle. If the PCs ask about
garlic, wolfsbane, or magi cal potions,
Runa Kroza's hovel is pointed out to
them. The villagers a re proud of their
resident wisewoman, although they
pre fer to stay away from the crotchety
old woman unless in need of her wi sdom
or herbs.
Each PC who see ks out rumors will
encounter 13 of them per day. The DM
may sel ect wh ich rumors the PCs hear,
depending on whom t he PCs ask a nd on
the direction the DM wi shes the edven-
ture to take.
Rumors Everyone Knows
-Dentiata is a powerful, evil wizard.
(True) - Dentia ta is fr om the Black
Eagle Barony. (True. The villagers
picked up t his bit of information during
the cons t ructi on of the tower a year ago.)
- Wei rd lights ca n be seen dancing on
t he tower roof every ni ght of the fu ll
moon . (False . One of the villagers sa w
st range lights once, the result ofa magi -
ca l experi me nt Dentiata was eonducr-
in g. There wasn't a full moon at the
time, and t he lights haven't been seen
si nce, but the story grew in its retelling.)
Ru mo rs the Chi ldren Tell
-Dentiata has a big tiger that eats pe0-
pl e! (Fal se. This idea originated in a
bl end of imagination and the memory of
a circus with a caged tiger that stopped
overni ght in Sisak about a year ago.)
-If you' re bad, Dentiata will get you!
(Fal se )
-Skelly, the stableboy, went there all
alone! (True. See area A2.) He could beat
that mean old Dentiata ifhe wanted!
(False )
The following vill agers marched up to
the tower to confront Dentiata:
Name Residence
Mikal Tappe (deceased) area Al
Dieter Mavrov (cur rently
miss ing)
Nefen Zbon
HanPodsk
St a nisl a n Czelb
Burr Si lecz
Bram Radescu
Boris Radescu
Dentiata was forewa rned of the vil -
la gers' intentions through the use of hi s
crystal balL He ca refully insured that
his gu ard wolves were taken down to the
DUNGEON 9
-
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
AI. Tavern Keeper's Residence.
- Mika l Tappe, proprietor (deceased)
-Anya Ta ppe, Mikal 's wife
-Weena Tappe, Mikal 'a Ld-year-cld
da ughter (serves as barmaid)
- Anita Romov, Anya's unwed sister
(t he i nn's cook)
- Casta Bellas, a you ng wido w (lives
wi t h t he family and serves as ba r-mai d)
Rumor: Onl y t he " Rumors Everyone
Knows" are told by the taver n staff.
Anya Tappe is distraught wi th grief but
has managed to take up t he reinsof her
husband's business. The me nfolk of the
village a re sure the womenfol k of the
tavern wi ll soon beg for help. The men
are mistaken.
tl on. Bram Radescu is thought of as
being r ather courageous, and the vil-
lagers are glad that he's returned, but
t he strangers look like adve nt ure rs, and
a dvent urers are known to solve prob-
lema for people .
The following people (wit h their real -
dence areas) are currently i n the tavern:
Anys Tappe (AI), Anita Romov (AI),
Weens Tappe (AU, Cast a Bellaz (AU,
Nefen Zbon (Dl. Odolf Czelb(H), Vla-
disla v Kruschneh (I), Bram Radescu (0),
and Igor Radescu (OlITen to 15 ot her
vill agers are also pTer:nt. Ro11 2d8 fOT
each of t hem, refer to the indicated
household descript ion (2: residence B,
3= residence C, etc.I, and pick one of the
householders listed. Duplicate rolls
indicate that more than one person fr om
a particula r household is i n the tavern.
Choose adul t males fir st, then wives or
older children. Each household descrip-
ti on includes a rumor that can be heard
from any member of that fam ily.
lethe DM does not wish to hand pick
the current crowd at the tavern, the
followi ng vill agers may be used (in eddt-
t ion to those listed above): Casi mi r Zbon
(D), Radu Yorhini (E), Amber (F),
Sta nisl an Czelb (H), Danika Czelb (W,
OlafKruschneh, Burr Silecz (J), Valde-
mar Vlem (L), and Al vis Romczi eM).
A2. Stables. The stables have room for
up to 15 horses or mules and a few mis-
cellaneous ot her animals. The Tappes
own two horses, a pa ir of mul es, and a
large wa gon t hat the villager s may rent.
The horses are not for sale, a nd Anys
wou ld be reluctant to let such val uable
a nimals accompany t he adventurers to
the wizard's tower.
3 cp per half pint
2 tip per pint
3 cp per half pint
5 cp per pint
J gp per bottle
2 gp per bottle
Free with any meal
5 cp
zep
hp
hp
g sp
5,p
19p
19p
Ii ap
The Households
A. The Bountiful Tappe Tavern,
Inn, and General Store. Th is timber
and stone build ing is la id out like the
t ypical small tavern on pa ge 26 ofGAZl.
In normal times, the t avern serves as a
gat heri ng place for the townsfolk after
t he day's chores. It also caters to the
needs of tra velers on the Westron Roa d.
Right now the tavern is in turmoil.
Most ofthe adult ma le vill agers a re
gat hered here, argui ng among themsel-
ves as to what shoul d be done about
Thaddigren Dentiata . Many a re in favor
of once agai n sending someone t o the
local lord to dema nd that justice be done.
A few are insisti ng t hat Gri gor e
Mavrov's life is in obvi ous peril-if the
headman hasn ' t been done away with
a lready-and t hat somet hi ng must be
done immediately. No one is volunteer-
ing, however .
When the PCs enter the ta vern, they
immediately become the center of et te n-
Gor dog, Den t iata's i nterrogator, was
also on the lowest dungeon level , so none
of the villagers know about him.
Prices at the Bountiful Tappe
Ale (heavily watered downl
Ale imported from a neighhoring town
Beer
Home-brewed beer
House wine
Good wine (no more than 20 bottles available)
Black bread
Mess 0' greens (avail able summer only; contains
greens with vinegar and bacon dressing)
Squirrel stew
Trout
Brown bread and beans
Roast chicken
Beef atewe
Roast beef"
Roast pork'"
Roast goose''
Hedgehog pudding (no hedgehog, but It does have
raisins and nuts)
Spice cake
Apple tart (fresh apples in late summer and early fall ,
preserved apples i n other seasons ) 5 cp per slice
Sleeping room (for as many persons as will fit l 1 gp per room
Stabling (i ncl udes bedding and feed ) 5 sp per animal per night
'"Beef, pork, and goose require advance notice, as the animals need to be butch-
ered, dressed, and cooked. They are served with all the trimmings. Anita Romov is
an excellent cook. Beef will be available for 1-4 days following the original order;
pork will be available for one additional day; a goose will be consumed by the party
or the villagers on the day it is first served.
lowe st dungeon level, along with t heir
chains, leaving lit tl e si gn oftheir exist -
ence i n sight. He poli te ly greeted t he
angry vill agers when they arrived, and
offered to give them a tour of hi s tower.
There was very little at the tower to
make t he villagers suspicious (aside
from the orcs). A young woman was in
the kitchen preparing a me a l when the
vill agers went by. Dentiata then showed
them his workshop a nd even parted the
curta i ns hiding the Stone of Sacrifice
(see a rea 11), letting them see the illu-
sion of a n empty room. The villagers did
take not ice of Dentiata's magical light-
ing and innovative plumbing (wondrous
things to t he farmers), but the si gnjfi -
cance of t he communic atio n pipe in t he
wall escaped t hem.
The villagers were also brought down
t he stairs to the first level benea th the
tower, but as the door to the lower levels
wa s hidden, a ll t hey could see was a
recrea tion room a nd a st orage are a (see
areas 13 and 14). Two ofthe orcs were
down in the guard room (area 19), and
t he vil lagers were not observ a nt enough
to realize that t here were eight used
beds in the or c quarters rather than six.
10Issue No. 24
Skelly, the stableboy, is an orphan who
lives in the st ables. His sister, Amber,
lives wit h the village wisewoman at area
F. Skelly and Amber wandered into the
vill age two years ago; no one knows who
thei r parents were, a nd the two children
wouldn 't or couldn't say what had hap-
pened to them. Skelly takes care of the
horses, mules, and other animals belong-
ing to the Tappes. He also cares for the
animals of any overnight guests at the
inn. The 12-year-old redhead is strong
for hi s age and doesn't talk to people
very much. He ha s an uncanny way with
animals and ca n make fri ends with even
the least friendly mount. He talks to the
animals under hi s care when he doesn't
think a nyone is listening.
Ske lly has gone off more t han once to
prowl around Dentiata's tower and
barns. Although he ha s been inside the
barn, he doesn't know about the secret
tunnel to the tower. He has never been
inside the tower, but he knows that
Dentiata has two wolves, and he would
very much like to befriend them. He
isn 't likely to mention any of this unless
one of t he PCs takes the time to become
his fr iend (simply pumping Skelly for
i nfonnati on makes him less than cooper-
at ive). Once Dentiata is dealt with,
Skelly will actually be able to befriend
the wol ves, if they are still alive.
Rumor: Skelly won't say anything he
doesn't know by his own experience to
be true.
B. Headman's House.
-Grigore Mavrov, vill age headman
(currentl y Dentiata's prisoner)
- Savina Mavrov, Grigore's daughter
(Dieter's paternal aunt)
- Gytha Kavda, Grigore's son's wife 's
sist er (Dieter's maternal Bunt,
widowed years ago)
- Dieter Mavrov, Gri gor e's grandson
(vill age blacksmith, currently
missing)
- Kat ri na Mavrov, Dieter's wife
(pregnant with their fir st child)
Rumor: Kat ri na heard from her husband
that Dentiata is actually a werewolf and
roams t he forest as a great gray wolf
every night with a full moon. (False)
Katri na Mavrov is anxious to learn of
ber hus ba nd's fate and hopes that he 'll
return soon, because she is one month
away from childbirth. She mentions her
husband's sleepl ess nights and re stless
pacing in his bl acksmith shop before hi s
di sappearance. If the PCs invest igate
the shop, they find an incomplete sword
forged ofsilver hidden under a cloth in a
corner. Dieter was attempting to forge it
from hi s wife's silver jewelry and the
silver tea set that was an heirloom from
her mother. Katrina will be di straught
to discover the loss of t hese things.
C. Czi gany Residence.
- Bori s Cziga ny, fanner
- Nada Czigany, Boris's wife
(pregna nt with their sevent h child)
- Hall ie Markov, Neda's aged mother
(he lps with the chi ldren)
-Six children, ages 3, 5, 6, 7,10,11
Rumor: Bori s is too busy trying to feed
his large family to have paid attention to
a ny more than t he " Rumors Everyone
Kno ws."
D. Zhon Resid ence.
-Obert ZOOn , farmer
-Nefen ZOOn, Obert's eldest son (farmer)
- Welda Zbon , Nefen's wife
- Nefen and Welda's three chi ldren,
ages 3, 5, 6
- Casimir Zbon, Nefen's younger
brother (vill age cowher d)
Rumors: Casi mi r tells of sever al occe-
si ons when a mysterious sleep came over
him. When he awoke, more animals
were missing. <True; he was a victim of
Thaddigren'a sleep spel l.)
The Zhons own t he onl y bull in the vtl -
lage and receive extra payments from
the villagers each spring. Casimir Zbon
is a handsome and eligible bachelor. In
ret urn for tending the vill agers' cows
and sheep, he receives milk, meat, and
hides. There are between 20 a nd 25 cows
and oxen in hi s care, nearly 20 sheep,
and 10 or 12 goats.
Casimir tell s the PCs that t he vil
lagers have lost nearly a third of their
stoc k in the la st year, with most being
stolen in the last few months . What
Casimir won't mention is that a few of
the missing animals were taken away to
be sold in another vill age by an associate
of hi s . (This scam will stop as soon as
Dentiata is dealt with, as Casimir will
no longer have a convenient excuse for
the missing animals.)
E. Yorbini Re sidence .
- J a nos Yorbini, physician and fanner
- Wencesla va Yorbini , Janos's wife
-Three sons: Radu, age 15; Dmitri,
age 13; J akos, age 11
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
Rumor: Thaddigren Dentiata sometimes
entertains strange visitors from afar and
often hires messengers to take packages
to distant corners of the world. (Exegger-
ated trut h)
Wenceslava Yorbini is sure that Den-
tiata is plotting something against the
duke, that the mysterious st ra ngers are
co-conspirators, and that the messages
and packages sent to Specularum and
more di stant places all have to do with
this plot.
Janos Yorbini's skill as a physician
allows him to heal 1-2 hp for every 12
hours an injured person is in his care.
F. Runa 's Hovel.
-Runa Kroza, village wisewoman
- Amber , orp ha ned urchin
- Daimon, Rune's black cat.Isome say
he's as old as Runal
Rumors: Runa Kroza deals in mystical
truths. not in rumors. Amber, however,
proudly tells the PCs t hat , if they want
to know about the wizard, they should go
talk to her brother; he's been to the
mage's tower.
This tiny home is made of wattle and
daub: sticks and twigs woven into a
frame and covered with dried clay
from the river. Its thatched roofbears
many signs of patching. A gnarled old
woman in ragged clot hing stands by
the doorway, hunched over a bubbling
ca uldron. She mutters to herself as
she sti rs t he murky contents with a
large sti ck.
When t he PCs first meet Runa Kroza ,
she is doing her laundry in a cauldron
over a small fir e. She has information of
interest t o the party, all of it cryptic and
mysterious. Abandoning her laundry
when the PCs approach and ask to speak
with her , Runa bustles into her hovel,
waving the PCs before her . Despite its
run-down appearance, the hut is cozy
and fai rly weatherp roof. Inside are
many jars and sacks of dried herbs and
plants, all pa rt of Ru na 's craft as village
wisewoman.
Amber is in side the hove l sorting
herbs and packi ng t hem into jars. The
io-veer-cld is very precocious a nd has
flame-red hair. She is a bit of'a scamp,
fond of climbing trees a nd chasing the
Zbons' bull. Runa has taken her on as
an apprentice wisewcman, Amber's
brother, Skelly, lives in the inn's
stables.
DUNGEON 11
...
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
lfthe PCs come for garlic, HURa has
wreaths of it hanging here a nd there. If
they ask for wolfsbane. ahe tells them
how to get some. Her method requires a
full moon, a walk of some distance to
where the wolfsbane blooms, and an
elaborate ritual for retaining the plant's
potency in the gatheringofits leaves
and Ilowera, If asked whether she has
any wolfsbane handy, she impatiently
replies. "What-roe-an old lady, tramp-
ing about in the dark looking for a poi -
SODOUII plant?"
If the PCa rome for information or
advice. HURaKroza carefully removes
her deck offortunetelling cards from its
velvet wrappings and performs two
readings (or the adventurers. The first
reading reveals: " Beware the death from
above!" After the second set of cards is
dealt, she suddenly screeches in a high.
cackling voice: " When t he hidden door
opens not for thee, Dentiata's true name
will be your key." Runa then hustles the
PCsoutofher hovel and shuu the door ,
refusi ng to speak to them again. She
knows she has given a true prophecy and
wishes to meditate on the experie nce.
G. Podsk Residence.
-Han Podsk, farmer
-Gilda Podsk, his wife
- Maria Pods k, 10.year-old daughter
-Mi kal Podsk, lOyear-old sont na med
for his mater nal uncle, Mikal Tappe)
Rumor: There's a golde n vial contai ning
t he elixir of youth i n Dent iata's wor k-
shop. (False. Han , one of t he far mers
who took the tour of Dent tete'e tower,
noti ced a st ra nge golden-colored via l in
the wor kshop. He menti oned it to
another villager, who told a t hird vil -
lager th at Han had St'en a golden vial
wit h a mys te rious potion in it. That
villager the n added the idea that t he
poti on would restore vi tali ty to a man .
The next te ller of t he rumor tur ned t he
potio n of vitality into an elixir ofyouth.
The rumor has now gone full circle. Han
te lls the current version rat her tha n
what he actually saw,)
H, Cze lb Residence.
-Stanislan Czelb, farmer
-Danika Ceelb, Stanislan's wife
-c-Three children: one son age 15,
another son age 10, a daughter age 6
-OdolfCzelb, Stanislan's younger
brother (village drunkard)
121ss<Je No. 24
-Radinka Ceelb. Odolfs wife
(village midwife)
RUITWr: OdolfCzelbclaims to have seen
a werewolf maul Mikal, and to have
watched as Dieter disappeared in a puff
of black smoke. (False. This is a mixture
of what he actually saw the night Mikal
and Dieter foolishly went ofTthrough the
woods, combined with the large amount
ofalcohol Odolfhad consumed that eve-
ning, all made to seem more real to Odolf
by his numerous retellinga ofthe story.
Mikal was killed by one of Denttete'e
wolves. Dieter was subdued and dragged
away by Warag.l
I. Kruschneh Residence .
-Vladislav Kruschneh, farmer
-OIafKruschneh, farmer and butcher
(Vladislav's son )
-Cleva Kruschneh, Olafs wife
(pregnant with their first child,
due in two months)
Rumor: A pack of enormous wolves
guards the tower ofThaddigren Den-
tiata, but they won't eueck anyone who
tosses them meat. (False. There are only
two wolves, and they'll attack first and
eat later.I
Olaf keeps part of eac h animal he
slaughters as payment. He's excellent
with a butcher knife and enjoys showing
ofThis skill. He doesn't have any meat on
hand to give or sell to the PCs, although
he woul d be more than happy to butcher
an animal for them if t hey brought one
to hi m.
J , Silecz Residence,
- Bur r Si lecz, farmer and potter
-Sonya Silecz, Burr's wife
- Three children (all boys), ages 9, 10, 12
Rumor: There is a dreadful labyrint h
below the tower, where fearsome beasts
and man -eating plants devour any unfor-
tunate wr etches Thaddigren Dentiata
catches. (False)
K. Reh Residence.
-Armand Reh, farmer and sheep
shearer
-Milka Reh, Armand's wife (village
weaver, spinner, and dyer )
-Fourdaughters,ages7,9,ll,13
Rumor: Thaddigren Dentiata'slife was
once saved by a dwarl; because of that,
he will never harm any dwarf. (False.
The DM may substitute elf, or physician,
or anything else if desired.I
L. V1em Residence.
-Vladimir Vlem, farmer, woodcutter
and carpenter
-Velika Vlem, Vladimir's wife
-Valdemar, their 17.year-old son
RUITWr: Thaddigren Denriata has a
female slave who is really a vampire in
disguise. He lets her kill any unwelcome
guests. (False. Dentiats has a slave
named Ashira, but she isn't a vampire.)
lfthe PCs go to the V1emresidence, they
see a coffin and some wooden stakes, The
coffin is the one Vladimir just finished
building for Mikal; the stakes are for his
tomatoes. He gladly parts with a few of
them to any hopeful vampire hunters.
M. Ro mczi Residence ,
- Alvis Romczi, swineherd
-Zoru Romczi , Alvis's wife
Rumor: Thaddigren Dentiata practices
horrid rites involving the sacrifices of
black goats, black hens, and even people .
(An exaggerated rumor that is actually
true.j
Alvis takes the villagers' pigs into the
forest every day to forage, in return for
the ownership of one pig in five. (The
entire herd consists of between 20 and 30
pigs.) He supplements this with t hings
he forages for himself while in the woods
with the pigs: mushrooms, herbs, bee-
ries, fruits, and ot her wild foods.
N. Rogoz Residence ,
-Bellamy Rogoz, farmer-I miesi ng his
left ann)
-Zoru Rogoz, Bellamy's wife
-Two children (boys), ages 5, 6
-Zelda Patka, Zorn's mother (elderly
and bedridden!
Rumor: TheorcsofThaddigren Dentiata
have been conditioned to freeze when-
ever they hear t he words, "The Sun is
Rising." (False)
Bellamy lost his arm three years ago
when he fell from the central beam while
helping build Armand Reb's barn.
0, Radescu Residence.
- Bram Radescu, farmer (the first to
lose his livestock)
-Ida Radescu, hi s wife
-Boris Radeecu, Brant's eldest son,
age 19
-Three other boys: Igor, age 15; Barret,
age 14: Roald, age 13
.
Rumor: None of the Redescus know any
rumors other than those commonly
known by all the villagers. They all
suggest that the PCs speak to Bram. as
he has actually been inside the wizard's
tower.
If he was assisted by the PCs in getting
the wagon out of the mud, Bram will be
friendly and pass on as much helpful
information as he can. He remembers
quite a bit of what he saw on the guided
tour ofDentiata's tower.
P. Valerian Residence.
- Claudius Valerian, farmer
- Adr iana Valerian, Claudius's wife
Ru mor: Claudius discounts the wild
stories about werewolves and vampires
as Traladaran superstition. He thinks
it 's dangerous enough living near a
normal human wizard of unknown
power and doubtful motives.
Claudius was once a soldier in the duke's
army. He and his wife moved here onl y a
year and a half ago, building a new
house and barns on the spot of a house
that burned down and was abandoned
three years before. The villagers have
made little attempt to be friendly toward
Claudius and Adriana, as they are Thy-
atian and outsiders.
If the PCs look like they might actu-
ally have a chance to do something about
Dentiata, Claudius will join them if they
ask. He has a sword and some leather
armor he can use if necessary.
Claudi us Valerian: AC 7; Fl ; hp B;
MV 120'(40'); IAT I ;THACO 19; Dmg
by weapon type; Save Fl ; Mt 8; AL L;
BD/31.32,35; S 13, 110, W 9, D 10, C 14,
Ch 10. Claudius is +1 to hit and damage
with his normal sword, due to his
strength bonus.
Thaddlgren Dentlata and Friends
The Sons of Night
This group of evil wizards believes that
the worl d will one day be consumed by
the Dread Night, a lightless and lifeless
void. Before that happens, the wizards
wish to rule the world and prepare it for
its destruction. Many ofthe spells they
research have to do with darkness and
deat h. The Sons of Night believe that
sacrifices to the Dread Night will give
them personal power to further their
ends; such sacrifices also bring the time
of t he Dr ead Night closer.
M08t such sacr ifices are of animals,
but human sacrifice is performed in
special ceremonies where the celebrant
expects to gain great power in the form
of knowledge or spells. A Son of Night
who is ready to ascend to the next level
of experience prepares such a sacr ifice.
The sacrifice, following an hour-long
ritual. must be performed at the end of a
moonless night, with the symbolic intent
of extending the darkness i nt o eternity.
The bl ood of the victim is channeled
through grooves in the sacrificial altar
to drip onto a specially prepared parch-
ment (usually black). Magical writings
form on the paper. revealing to the cele-
brant a new spell.
The brotherhood believes that true
power is gained through individual
cunning and cleverness, but they realize
that by cooperation they can further
their desires. Their numbers are
unknown. Their purpose is to gain per-
sonal power and wealth whi le hastening
the oncoming of the Dread Night and the
end of the world . Most members have an
interest (rangi ng from fondness to obses-
sion) in puzzles and tricks. The Sons of
Night respect the qualities of cleverness
and ingenuity in all creatures, even
their adversaries. Thus, most ofthe
brotherhood will give particularly clever
opponents one chance to escape. The
Sons of Night can be recognized by their
fascination with puzzles, their sacrifices
of black animals, and their adoption of
anagrams for their names.
The Sons of Night, being a chaotic
or ganizat ion, has no real leadership. The
cult is organized into groups of seven
members, each group called a " frater-
nity" Individuals know the other memo
bers of their fraternity and occasionally
correspond with each other. The exist-
ence of other fraternities is known, but
communication between them is rare.
Each fraternity has an unofficial leader
called the " Dar ker," the most powerful
member of the group, who maintains ties
with Darkers in other fraternities. A
Darker has the authority to settle di s-
putes between fraternity members by
setting up a contest, usually involving
magic and trickery. The Darker is also
the one who decides upon the site of the
annual meeting of his fraternity. He
does not, however, actually command or
rule the other members.
Any mage who wishes to become a Son
of Night must find a member who will
agree to sponsor him. The initiation
process lasts a year before the new mem-
ber is allowed to join the fraternity of hi s
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
sponsor. It involves tests. ordeals, and
the teaching ofthe brotherhood's secret
language and doctrine. As part of the
final initiation ceremony, a Son of Night
takes a new name that is related to the
societ y in some way. Upon the induction
ofa new member, the Darker leaves the
fraternity, and, through a series of tests
set up by the departing Darker, a new
Darker is chosen. It is assumed that the
previous Darker goes to join anot her,
more powerful fraternity.
The Sons of Night may be as numerous
and powerful, or as few and weak, as the
OM would like. The organization may
consist of only a few fraternities residing
in Karameikos, or it could comprise
thousands of members spread across the
Known World. It may be as young (hav-
ing been started only a dozen years ago)
or as old (being founded by an exiled
wizard of Alphatia centuries ago ) as the
DM wants it to be.
If the DM uses the Sons of Night in
further adventures, he must design the
true leadership of the organization, a
fraternity of Grand Darkers who reall y
have the bringing of the Dread Night as
their goal. Most of the low-level memo
bers, of course, are more interested in
gai ning personal power than in the
destruction of the world . But those
Grand Darkers who really believe in the
Dread Night and wish to bring it about
as soon as possible long for immortality
and the creation of a new world, with
them as gods. It's their vision that only
the strongest and the most cunning will
be able to survive the destruction of the
world. As each Grand Darker believes
himself to be the strongest and most
cunning, each strives to bring about the
Dread Night.
Thad digren De ntiata (anagram of '
" Dre ad Night Attained"): AC 8; MUG;
'Z. E P"'1Q;. MV 120 ' (40'); 'AT 1; THACO 17i
Dmg by spell or weapon type; ~ MU3;
ML9jS9.I 17, W 12, D 13,C' h 10;
AL C; XP 500 killed, 750 broug t to
j ust ice; dagger +1; wand ofparalyzation
(t hree charges), 15-gp ring (nonmagi cal j
on finger, amuletofprotection from
charm, belt pouch containing 7 ap and 10
gp; spells: charm person, shield, sleep,
continual darkness, mirror image,
darkning bolt (see new spell description),
protectwttfrom normal missiles. 1,
Thaddigren Dentiata is evil as well as
Chaotic. He delights in other people's
sufferings, and hi s drivi ng ambition is to
become powerful enough to rule the
DUNGEON 13

INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT

world, even if he 's t he only one left alive
in it . He is not yet a Darker , although he
believes he will be the next Darker of hi s
fraternity.
His spell book is in a well-hi dden and
zealously guarded secret compartment
in the library. The PCs should find it
only if the DMs want a PC magic-user to
have access to newspe lls . In this case,
the DM can include any appropriate
spells oflevels one through t hree . The
spells listed above are the ones that
Dentiata normally memorizes. He has
had dealings wit h magic-users in Glan -
tri, and the Sons of Night sometimes
share arcane knowledge with one
another. so there is t he possibility of
hitherto unheard-of spe lls being written
in hi s book.
Denttata can speak Thyatian, Trala-
daran, and orcish as well 8S the secret
language of t he Sons of Night. He con-
siders himself highly intelligent and
clever, and respects such attributes in
others. His personal beliefs include the
attitude that anyone who is brave or
clever enough deserves a second chance,
which explains the secret doors in t he
cell s and the riddle room in the du ngeon.
No one stupid enough to fail twice
dese rves a third chance, however. The
secret doors in the cells can be magically
locked by Dentiata to prevent repeat
escapes .
Dentiata is from the Black Eagle Bar-
ony. He is worki ng for t he baron (while
such employment suits him), gathering
Dar kning Bolt
Third-Level Magic-user Spell
Range: 180 '
Duration: Instantaneous I
Effect : Bolt 60 ' long, 5' wide
This spell creates a bolt of " negati ve
lightning." This bolt is so black that
anyone seeing it has a 10%chance of
going blind for 14 turns. Black
sparks and tendrils of darkness play
about the bolt for the brief instant it
exi sts. The bolt starts up to 180 ' away
from the caster and extends 60' far-
ther. All creat ures within the area of
effect take 16 hp damage per level of
t he spell-caster. Each victim may
make a Saving Throw va. Spells; if
successful, onl y half damage is taken.
If the darkning bolt strikes a solid
surface (such as a wall), it bounces
back toward the caster until the total
length of the bolt is 60 '.
14 Issue No.24
information in Karameikos. He also has
t ies to t he Iron Ring; several people
wandering through this area in the past
year have found themselves bound for
Fort Doom i n chai ns. His tower was built
with the help of magic and fun ds from
t he Sons of Night (arranged for him by
the Darker of his fraternity) and the loan
of ma ny slaves from t he baron.
Roll percenti le dice or choose from t he
list below to deter mine Dent iata'sloca-
tion when the Pes arrive at his tower:
Thaddigren Dentiats's Location
01-10: Away ; will be back in 18 hours
114-0: Library (area 4)
41-50: Bed area (area 9)
51-80: Workshop (area 10)
8190: Stone of'Sacrifice Iarea 11)
91-00: Outside (50% chance on roof; 50%
chance in barn)
Orcs (8): AC 6; HD 1; hp see below;
MV 120' (40'); 'AT 1; THACO19; Dmg
by weapon t ype; Save F1; ML 8 (6 ifboth
Warag and Dentiata are killed or away);
AL C; XP 10 each; BD/3S.
Ore name Hit points Treasure
Warag (chief ore) 8 20 sp
Gorrake 7 15 sp
Gardak 6 11 sp
Caddark 6 12 sp
Ar lag 6 19 sp
Sor kak 6 5 sp
Thorag 5 12 sp
Duljak 5 13 sp
Dentiata employs a total of eight orcs,
who will fight to the death if Dentiata is
in the room with them. Each is armed
with a short swor d (his weapon of choice)
and a dagger. Warag and Gorrake can
each command the wolves t hat guard the
tower door ; the other orcs are in almost
as muc h danger from Gobbler and Biter
as the PCs are. (Denn ata, of course, can
also control the wolves. They leap and
cavort about his feet like puppies.)
Roll percentile dice or chose from the
lists below to determine t he orcs' loca-
tions when the PCs arrive at the tower:
Warag's Location
01-10: Away. Will be back in 16 hours
(75%chance) or 1-6 days (25% chance)
114-0: With Dentiata
4170: His quarters (area 2)
71-80: Game room (area 13)
81-90: Interrogation chamber (area 25)
91-00: Outside patrolling grounds (night
only; reroll if daytime)
The Orcs' Locations
Choose separately for each of the seven
orcs. At least one should be on guard in
area 19.
0110: Roof<area 12) at night onl y. Reroll
ifin daytime
11-30: Guard room (area 19)
3160: Ore bar racks (are a 3)
61-85: Game room (are a 13)
8690: With Dentiata
91-00: Outside (at night only ; rercll ifin
daytime)
As h ira (human female slave): AC 8;
Normal Human; hp 2; MV120 ' (40 ');
'AT nil (t oo frightened to defend her-
self); THACO nil ; Dmg nil ; Save Normal
Man; ML4; S7,I 13, W9, D 15,C 7, Ch
17; XP 5 if rescued; AL L; wears costume
jewelry of no real value.
Ashira is a 19year-old human femal e
from the Blac k Eagle Barony. As Den-
nata's slave, As hira does all the clean-
ing, cooking, and chores of the tower,
and entertains Denti ata some evenings
and nights. Contrary to rumors t hat the
Pes may have heard, she is not a vam-
pire. Although she is good and kind, she
has been thoroughly intimidated by
Dentiata and t he orcs, and lives in terror
oGordog, the mage's interrogator. She
serves Dentiata faithfully and without
complaint, for he is her r igh tful master
(by the laws ofthe Black Eagle Barony)
and she fears hi s wrath. Ashira will be
very sympathetic to the PCs, but not to
the point of betraying her master.
She knows about the hidden door (out -
side area t-n and the elevators (areas 16
18) as she is someti mes required to clean
the cells and empty the prisone rs' cham-
ber pots. She will not share thi s knowl-
edge with the PCs, however, unless '
Dentiats an d t he orcs are first dealt
with. At any sign of trouble or any sound
offighting, Ashira runs to the pantry
(are a 5) and hides behind a sack offlour .
lf she is outside, she hides in the hayloft
of the barn. Anyone glancing into the
pantry or hayloft will not notice her
without a more careful exploration.
Roll percentile dice or choose from th e
list below to determine Ashira's locat ion
at the beginning of the adventure:
As bir a's Locat io n
0110: With Denriata
1130: Kitchen (ar ea 6)
3160: Her room (room 8)
61-70: Dentiata'a bedroom(area 9)
71-80: Library (area 4)
81-00: Outside , tending the animals
(daytime only; reroll if nighttime)
The Tower and VIcinity
Thaddigren Dentiata'a tower is located
on a small hill in the midst of a forest .
The top of the hill was cut off and lev-
elled to make room for the tower. The
PCs may get to the tower by following
the Westran Road west, then a twisting
side path to the tower, or they may
attempt to go through the woods, follow-
ing t he Clearwater River from Sisak
village.
The tower itsel f is 60' square and made
of cut blocks of stone. The 5'thick walls
of the tower contain numerous pipes and
conduits for water, waste, and ventila -
tion of the wi ndowless tower. One spe-
cial pipe runs down the interior of the
north wall, with attached pipesjutting
out of the wall on each level. This
arrangement carries sounds between the
various levels of the tower, allowing
communication between Dentiata and
t he orcs. The floors of each tower level
are 5' t hick, with conduits imbedded in
them. The ceilings of rooms are nearly
lS'high.
There are two water storage chambers
beneath the tower. One is equipped with
a fire elemental restrained within a
magical boiler imported (at great cost)
from Glantri. Hot water may be piped up
from here for use in the shower or bath
tub, in t he kitchen, orto heat the tower
in cold weather.
There is only one apparent entrance to
the tower , a to'x 10' set of iron-bound
oak double doors intricately carved with
scenes of wizardry and war. The doors
are set in t he middle of the south wall.
They are locked and possibly barred on
the inside (50% chance or DM' s decision).
In the center of each door is a 1"square
shutter that may be opened from the
inside by anyone wishing to look out
without opening the doors themselves.
If t he front door is barred, the only
ways into t he tower are via the roof or
the secret tunnel from t he barn. The roof
might bethe preferred route for the PCs,
if t hey t hi nk ofit(at night, of course, the
roof is usually patrolled). It shouldn't be
too hard for a dexterous PC to swing a
grappling hook up to the crenellations
around t he roof. Make a Dexterity check,
applyi ng any Strength bonuses or penal.
ties to the roll. Each PC may try three
times. The OM should make sure to ask
the adventurers which side of the tower
they are trying to climb. lfit's the north
side, away from the wolves chained
outside the front door (see right), t he
PCs will climb over the wall onto a magi -
cally magnetized portion of the roof (see
area 12). Any metal object, such as a
grappling hook, that clears t he wall on
the north side will stick firmly to the
roof.
Two large wolves, Biter and Gobbler,
are chained by 20 '-long chains, one on
either side of the tower door . They wear
thick leather collars with 6
ff
_Iongiron
spikes (10% chance for spikes to hit for
1-4hp additional damage on each suc-
cessful attack by a wolf). They attack at
- 1 to hit when t hey are chai ned. There is
a 10%chance that any successful hit
with a sword or knife may cut a wolfs
collar, thus freeing the wolffor normal
attacks (if it 's still alive).
The wolves are trained to raise an
alann ifthey see anyone, and they
attack anyone venturing within their
reach. If the PCs carefully remai n out of
sight ofthe wolves, t here is a 10%
chance each turn the adventurers are
within 200' of the front door that the
wind wiJI carry their scent to t he wolves,
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
who t hen begi n barki ng and howling.
Any alarm fr om t he wolves bri ngs 1-4
orcs in two rounds. There are re lease
mechanisms inside t he tower, to either
side of the door, t hat t he orcs can use to
release the chains from t he outer wall
once they've determined the nature of
the disturbance. The wolves may then
attack anyo ne on t he grounds, but move
at two-thirds nor mal speed due to t he
chains still attached to their collars.
Wolves (2): AC 7; HD2+2; hp 12 each;
MV 180'(60')(l20'(40')while chai ned);
IAT 1 bite; THACO 17(18 while
chained); Dmg 1-6; Save F1; ML 6; AL N;
XP 25; BD/39.
lfthe PCs try a frontal assault on the
tower, t hey will have to deal with the
wolves first. While t hey're busy dis-
patching t he beasts, the orcs will come
out. Alternatively, t he orcs may bar the
door, release t he wolves, and inform
Dentiata of t he assault. Dentiata can
then go up to t he roof and cast a sleep
spell on t he PCs. He may also use his
darkning bolt from the rooftop , but only
if the PCs are not near the base of t he
tower. The bolt might make a hole in
front of his door or damage the tower
foundation. Both t he frontal assault and
DUNGEON 15
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INTHE DREADOFNIGHT
the sneak attack via the roof have a
chance ofsucceeding ifthe PCs are
clever and lucky.
Tothe northwest of the tower, on the
gentle back slope of the hill , is a live-
stock barn and a chi cken house. Tothe
westofthe tower is a covered well . The
chicken house is 20 ' x20' and one story
high. It contains five black roosters, 40
chickens, and a place for feed storage.
The chickens roam free on the lawn
during daylight (and can st ir up quite a
fuss if start led), and are shut into the
coop at night. The roosters are kept i n
cages in the coop.
The well is 100 ' deep and 5' in diame-
ter. It has a rope-and-bucket winch with
100' of rope. The bucket is large enough
and t he rope strong enough to hold 75
lbs. There is 40 ' of water in the well. If
the OMwishes, an underwater tunnel
large enough to be used by a PC may
lead into the conduit systems inside the
walls of t he tower. The OMshould then
prepare a map of the crawl spaces and
mark any potential entrances into the
tower rooms via this route. Bes ur e to
include the two water-storage chambers-
one hot , one cold-with one-way valves
that allow the clean water to flow into
the tower but not back out again.
16 Issue No. 24
The livestock barn is 50' x30' and one
and a half stories hi gh. It contains a
riding horse, a mule, eight large ponies,
one cow, and three black goats. All of the
animals are kept at ground level. Each
pony is tied in its sta ll with 5' of rope
attached from its halter to an iron ring
set into the feed rack mounted on the
barn wall. The loft contains hay, grain,
and st r aw for bedding, and some seldom-
used harness and tool s. A tack room at
ground level contains harness, gear, and
tools. Some of the animals may be cut -
side in a large pen during daylight. The
grass on the hill is lus h and green duri ng
spring and summer, but due to overgraz-
i ng, the pen encloses only dust or mud.
There is a cord of firewood st acked
against the east side ofthe barn.
Riding hors e: AC 7; HD 2; hp 11;
MV 240 ' (80 '); ' AT 2 hoove s; THACO 18;
Dmg 1-4/1-4; Save F1 ; ML 7; AL N;
ER/51 ; XP 20.
Mule: AC 7;HD 2; hp 11;MV 120 '
(40'); 'AT 1 kick or bite; THACO 18;
Dmg 1-4 or 1.3; Save Normal Man;
ML 8; AL N; BD/34; XP 20.
Ponies (8): as riding horse, but with
HD 2-2; hp 7 each.
Asecret tunnel leads from the barn to
the first dungeon level ofthe tower (area
14). The ent ra nce is i n the pony stall
closest to the horse stall. PCs ha ve twice
their normal chances to detect the secret
door ifthey exa mine the floor or feed
rack of this stall. A lever on the under-
side of the feed rack activates the
machinery tJrat lowers the stall floor
down a 20' shaft in the rock under the
barn.
Adventurers should take the pony out
of the stall before activating t he lever. If
the secret floor descends whi le the pony
is st ill ti ed to the ring, the animal
squeals in terror and does everything it
ca n to free itself. The ensuing whinnying
and kicking is sure to bring someone
from the tower to investigate. An observ-
ant character may have three rounds
from the activation of the lever to assess
the problem a nd unt ie t he pony before it
makes much fuss. If the PCs don 't untie
t he pony in time, there is a 25% chance
that the pony's neck will be broken, and
a 75%chance the rope or halter will
break first . Any PC attempting to ride
the floor down whil e the pony is strug-
gling suffers 2-8 hp damage from bei ng
kicked or cr ushed.
There is another lever st icking out
from the rock wall at the bottom of the
shaft . Th is lever will send t he stall floor
up or down. The tunnel proceeds south-
east fr om the bottom of t he shaft. It is
roughl y 7'wide, 250 ' long, and crudely
hewn through mostly solid rock beneath
. the hilL The ceiling averages 8' high,
though there are places it dips down to
6'. About halfway down its length, the
tunnel splits in two.
One branch continues east toward t he
tower; the other turns southeast and
leads 10 ' to t he lair ofa giant black
widow spider whose web is st retched
across the center of the natural ca ve at
the end of the short tunnel. The cave
floor is littered with bone s (mostl y those
of animals). Denti ata sends an occa-
sional goat or troublesome visitor down
the tunnel to feed his pet. A careful
search through the debris be neath t he
web reveals nine pieces of gold and 17 of
silver. Any PC with the ring ofarachnid
control from Dentiata's desk in t he
library (area 4)can keep the spider from
attacking (see page 19 for a descri pt ion
of the ring of arachnid controlJ.
Black widow spi de r : AC 6; HD 3 ;
hp 18; MV 60' (20,), in web 120 ' (40 ');
I AT 1 bite;THACO 16; Dmg 2-12 plus
poison; Save F2; ML 8; AL N; XP 50;
BD/38.
,
The Tower-c-Flrat F100r
1. Main HaU.
A soft white glow pervades the inside
of the tower . By its unwavering light,
you can see most of the interior of this
level. In the northwest and southeast
corners, the stone walls jut 10' into
the room; t here is a closed wooden
door in each wall. The northeast and
southwest portions of the room are
hidden by dark curtains hanging
from ceiling to floor . The ceiling itself
is 15'high. In the center of the room,
suspended from the ceiling, is a sil-
very globe that is apparently the
source ofthe glow.
On t he west wall is a rack of weapons
and armor belonging to t he orcs. There
are var-ious crates and barrels of food-
stuffs stacked in the lO'x 10' section
between the northeast curtain and the
southeast stairs. Levers to either side of
the double doors activate the release
mechanisms to the wolves' collars. The
gkJwgkJbe suspended from the center of
the ceiling is operated by touching a
silver plate on the north wall by the
northwest stairs or a similar plate to the
east of the entrance doors (see the side-
bar on page 18 for a description of the
gkJwglobe).
A 1 -diameter pipe juts out slightly
from the north wall next to the glow-
gkJbe plate. This is part of the sound
system running through t he tower walls .
Loud noises (such 88 combat) in any part
ofthe tower may be heard t hrough this
pipe. Normal conversation carries
faintly along the pipes and may be heard
by someone listening very carefully with
an ear pressed to the opening. The pipe
will be noticed by anyone examining the
silver plate or by a thief making a hea r-
ing r oll at the door to the northwest
stairs.
INTHE DREADOFNIGHT
The Tower
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2. Warag's Qu arlera.
This curtained-otTarea is someone's
bedroom. There is a large bed, a small
table with a silver globe attached to a
black base , and a trunk beneath the
bed. A strange stone construction juts
out of the southwest corner.
Warag is t he leader of the orcs. The
globe is a portable glowgkJbe. The trunk
is locked and contains 23 cp, 13 ep, 1 gp,
and some clothing. The key to the trunk
is in a pouch at Warag's belt. The
strange stone construction is a toilet-
sink.
The toi let-einka are constructed of
stone and are extensions ofthe wall
itself. They consist of a ha nd pump, a
basin, and a round hole to sit over.
Flushing is accomplished by pumping
water into the basin, which drains into
the toilet, which empties into pipes in
the wall.
3. Ba rracks .
This room is obviously used as sleep-
ing quarters. There are four bunk
beds in here. A table and three chairs
are set haphazardly about the center
of the room. Two chests lie under each
of the double bunk beds . Asilver
globe mounted on a black base is on
the table.
The seven other orcs working for Thad -
digren Dentiata sleep here. There is a
chest for each ore plus one empty chest.
The orcs' chests are unlocked and filled
with miscellaneous junk, such as extra
(dirty) clothing and worn-out boots. The
toilet-sink in the corner is identical to
that in Warag's quarters.
DUNGEON 17
...
INTHEDREAD OFNIGHT
The Tower-Second Floor
A communication pipe juts out slightly
fr om the north wa ll ofthe corridor , next
to the door to t he stairway. It will be
noticed by anyone examining the wall ,
or on a roll of 1or 2 on Id6 by anyone
who ha s previously not iced a communi-
cati on pipe.
4. The Library.
Th is room is lit by a firepl ace in t he
center ofthe east wall. Wood is
st acked in a rec ess to the r ight ofthe
fireplace; the rest of the walls are
li ned wit h bookshelves . There are
Glowglobes
The glowglobes found in Thaddigren
Denneta's tower are 1"diameter
silver spheres enchanted with modi -
fied continua/light spells. The spell is
triggered on and off by touching a 4
N

square silver plate that was created

at the same time as the glowglobe but
was installed elsewhere. Most of the
glowglobes are fixed in place and
impossi ble to remove without damag-
ing them. The portable glowglobes
are activated by touching a 1"-
diameter rubylike jewel on their
square bases. Hthejewel is pried
from its setting, it becomes worthless
and the glowglabe is rendered useless.
Any portable glowglobe removed
from the tower will require recharg-
ing after 1040 turns of use. A
recharged glowglabe will work for
100400 turns before needing to be
recharged once again. Recharging
requires a magic-user who knows , or
can successfully research, the modi-
fied spell. Dentiata has the third-level
recharge glowglobe spell written in
his spell hook. The spell will work
only on a previously prepared
glawglobe: manufacturing a
glowglobe from scratch is much more
difficul t .
The silver content of a spent or
damaged glowglobe is worth 20 gp;
normal glowglobes are worth 100 gp
each, and their encumbrance is 100
on each. The DM who doesn 't want
portable g/owgiobes running around
loose in his campaign should feel free
to replace them with oil lamps, or
have them work only within t he
tower.
18Issue No. 24
two ar mchairs and a small table by
the fire . A large desk in the sout hwest
corner of the room has papers and two
globes on it . Coveri ng the floor is a
plus h Ylari rug of geometric design
woven in a rich blood red on a pal e
backgro und, wit h a deep-black and
blood-red border.
The fir eplace in the east wall is always
lit. Ashira te nds the fire as part of her
normal duti es; she also keeps wood
stacked in the recess in the wall . The
glowglobe hanging from the ceiling is
act ivated by plates at either door. The
enor mous Orie ntal rug on the floor was
imported from Ylaruam. The desk holds
paper s, a glowglobe and a crys tal balL
The papers on the desk mostl y deal with
day-to-day matters, including a letter to
a merch ant in Specul ar um requesting
the immediate delivery of some unspeci -
fied supplies . It is signed "Thaddigren
Denttata, "
Another piece of paper, covered with
doodles and odd wri t ing, reveals Den-
ti ata's interes t in anagrams. An exam-
ple of one of the anagrams here is " Duke
I Take Arms Of Snake III," being the
rearranged let ters in the name Duke
Stefan Keremeikoe II. Another is "Big
Mouth Learn Safe; ' from "Bargle the
Infamous: ' court wizard ofthe Black
Eagle Barony. (These clues shoul d be
helpful in solvi ng the puzzle ofthe hid-
den door on t he firs t level of the dun-
geons.) A secret compartment in the
desk cont ai ns a small locked iron strong-
box holding 30 gp, 10 ep, and a ring or
arachnid controL
5. Pantry.
The walls of this small room are li ned
with shelves cont ai ni ng j ars of foods
and spices. Sacks of flour, dried fruits,
grai ns, and potat oes are heaped on
the floor. Ther e is no glowglobe here.
If Ashira was on this level at the start
oft he advent ure, and the PCs have made
enough noise, she may be hiding behind
one of the sacks on the floor.
6. Kitchen.
This room is obviously used for food
preparation. There is a small table
wit h two chai rs , and the wall s are
lined with cupboards over long tab les.
Sets of dr awers are built in under the
tables. Apump handle over a met al
sink juts out of the west walt. Along-
side the large iron stove that stands
next to the sink is a tall wooden cabi-
net . There is a glowglobe suspended
from the ceili ng, and another portable
one on the counter.
The wooden cabinet is a magical refrig-
er ator. The stove looks like a wood stove
but is actually heated by gas stored in a
glass cannister in its base . The glow-
globe is activated from a plate by the
door.
7. Storage Room.
This room also has a glowglobe eus-
pended from the ceili ng. It 's appar-
ently bein g used. as a storeroom.
There are some pieces of furniture,
clothing, and odds and ends such as a
broken portable glowglobe and some
extra dishes st acked in here.
8. Ashi ra's Room.
This room is sparsely furnished wit h
a st r aw pallet and a small chest that
has a portable glowglobe resting on it .
There appears to be a small closet in
the sout hwest corner , it s closed door
facing east.
The chest contains jewelry and cloth-
ing (mostl y worthless baubles except for
one 5.gp bracelet and a 10-gp necklace).
The closet is actually an enclosed t oilet,
si nk, and shower (hot and cold water).
9. Thaddigren Dentiata's Bedroom.
This must be the master bedroom. It
holds a large bed, a plush dark-red
rug, a dr esser, a small table, and one
chair. Agiowglobe hangs from the
center of the ceiling, and a portable
glowglobe is on th e dresser.
The central g lowglobe is act ivated by
plates at the doors and beside the bed.
The plush rug is made of woven wool; it
has an encumbrance of 750 en and is
worth 350 gpo
9A. Bathroom.
This 10' x 10 ' room wit h a til ed floor
holds a large bathtub, toil et , and
sink.
9B.Closet.
If this is Thaddigren Dentteta'e
closet, he exhi bits poor taste in clot h-
ing. Everything in here is bl ack: the
robes, the trouser s, t he shirts, t he
belts. Well , almost everyt hing. You
find one set of clothes cons isti ng of
t rouser s, shirt, and robe all the color
offreshly spilled blood.
A secret panel at the back of the closet
contains a 12" x 6" x 4" i nt r icately
carved silver box (worth 10 gp). The box
cont ains iron a nd clay chips that cli nk
when shaken, sounding much like coins.
The lid is locked and t rapped with a
poisoned needle (Save VB. Poison or be
too ill to do a nything for 3-8 t urns; will
feel very ill for 24 hours , with to hit and
Savi ng Thr ows all at - 2; save VB. poison
lessens the severity of the effect and cuts
the duration in half).
Behind the silver box, carefully con-
cealed in a mess of spider webs and dust,
is a n unobtrusive wooden box. A small
but deadly spider attacks a ny hand that
disturbs the webs. Ifthe spider is noti ced
(12 on Id6) before it attacks, it ca n be
easily killed; otherwise, it has two
at tacks per round (Save vs . Poison or die
i n 2-5 turns). Any PCwit h the ring of
arachnid control fr om Dentiata's desk
may cont rol the spider long enough to
get the box-ift he advent urer notices
the spider first.
Spi der: AC 10; HD 1-1; hp 1; MV 180 '
(60'); ' AT 2; THACO 19; Dmg poison ;
Save Nor mal Man; ML 12; AL N; XP 5;
unique monster .
The wooden box is locked but not
t rapped . There is a 5% penalty to a
thief's open-locks roll (Thaddigren Den-
tiata has the key). Inside is a pair of
exquisitely cut ma tching rubies (worth
1,000 gp as a pair , 400 gp each if sold
separately). A hidden compartment
beh ind the wooden box ca n be discovered
on a roll of 1-2 on Id6 if eomeone sear-
chies for it . Inside the compart ment is a
vial containing one dose of a nt idote to
the small but deadly spider's venom.
The To wer-Third Fl oor
10. Magi c Workshop.
This area looks like an alchemist's
workshop. Most of the shelves lining
t he walls are empty, though a few
hold bottles, boxes, a nd bags. A l arge
wooden tabl e is filled with various
containers, flas ks, tubes, and ot her
glassware. A staircase against the
sout h wall leads up to a trapdoor in
the ceiling. Near these stairs is a set
of bookshelves with a few old books. A
large portion of the room is curtained
offby blood-red curtains hanging
from ceiling to floor. A glowglobe is
suspended from the ceiling above t he
east end of the tabl e; a portable
glowglobe occupies t he other end.
The shel ves lining the walls contain
miscellaneous junk such as toads' eyes,
leopards' whiskers, spider web, etc.
There is also a scroll of black parchment
carefully rolled into an ivory tube. The
scroll itself is blank; it is t he parchment
Thaddigren De nti ata has prepared for
use during t he sacri fice ofGrigore
Mavrovtsee " The Sons of Night" on
page 13). One of the shelves contains a
golden vial, the one t hat Han Pcdsk
noticed (see village area G), but the vial
is now empty.
The bookshelves contain old volumes
oftreatises on magic. In the northwest
corner. mixed i n a pile of rags, is a brown
sack that appears to be empty. Onl y if
the sack is picked up or moved will any-
thing unusual about it benoticed. It is a
bag ofholding with 620 gp, 897 sp, and
four gems (two emeralds worth 200 gp
each, a 50-gp diamond, and a 25-gp
bloodstone).
The suspended glowglobe is activated
from a plate by the stairs . A communica -
tion pipe juts out of t he north wall just to
the left of the western curtain of area 11.
II. The St one of Sacrifice.
The cold, clinging, blood-red curtains
part to reveal nothing but a n empty
area.
Upon entrance, Lawful characters get
a st rong feel ing of evil and repulsion;
Chaot ic character s feel strong power a nd
delightful deeds. Neutral characters are
unaffected.
The area is not really empty. An illu-
sion created by a hallucinatory terrain
spell hi des t he Stone of Sacrifice from
prying eyes. but not from pryi ng fingers.
The illusion is di spe lled when touched or
blundered i nto by a ny character.
In the center ofthis room is a 15'-
dia meter ei ght-pointed dark-red stone
INTHE DREAD Of NIGHT
set on a 7'x7'x2' wooden platform.
Channels carved into the stone 's top
slope down to a slightly hollowed-out
center . A deeper groove slopes down the
sout h-faci ng point from the center. The
dark stai ns on the floor hint that the
blood of sacrificial victims pools here.
In front of t he st one is a pedestal wit h
a slanted top to hold a large book. A
mechanism set in the pedestal causes a
30 ' x 30' section of t he roof above to
r etract , and t he middle portion ofthe
north wall on t his level to split and slide
to either side, so t he roomcan be opened
to the night sky. Activation of this mech-
anism could prove uncomfortable to
anyone st uck on t he roof or climbing the
north wall . Dentiata will activate the
mechanism during his sacrificial cere-
mony , ifhe is n' t stopped first .
A secret compartment in t he pedestal
cont ains t he Book ofthe Sons of Night,
which details the history a nd beliefs of
the organization (see " The Sons of
Ni ght" on page 13). Failure to disarm
the trap on t he compartment causes
sleeping gas to spill into the room.
Everyone within the curtained area
when the gas is released falls asleep for
4-16 turns (no Saving Throws).
Ring of Arachnid Control
The ring ofarachnid control in Den-
tiata's desk is a specialized version of
a ringofanimal controL The wearer
ofthis ring may control one giant or
10-40 normal-sized arachnids of any
type. This includes spiders, scorpions,
mites, and ticks. The arachnids are
not allowed a Saving Throw.
The wearer must beable to see the
arachnids to control them. This con-
trol lasts as long 8S the wearer con-
centrates on the arachnids and does
not fight. (The wearer may move
slowly if doing so does not break the
line of aight.) When the wearer stops
concentrating, the arachnids are free
to run away or attack.
This ring can be used for a full turn,
once per hour. Properly used, it
allows safe passage through the
secret tunnel from the barn. and past
the small spider in Dentiata's closet.
It can also be used to rid adventurers
or their animals of mites or ticks.
DUNGEON 19
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
The Dungeons
I "'lua", .. ~ f,""l
L H-
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First Level
Seco nd
Level
The Tower -Rooftop
12. The Roof.
This is the roof of the tower, sur-
rounded by a 5 '-high crenellated wall.
A low wooden railing surrounds a
30 'x30' area against the north wall.
The portion of roofenclosed by the
rai ling is made ora st r ange-looking
metal. The rest of the roof is paved
with slate. The view from up here
shows forest st re tchi ng for miles; in
the distance to the east, the vill age of
Si eak can just barely be see n.
20 Issue No. 24
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Third Level
There is a trapdoor se t against the
sout h wall that opens to stairs leading
down to the third floor. The trapdoor
may be barred and locked (50% chance)
fr om the underside, but will not be SO if
there are are guards on the roof' (aa per
"Thaddigren Denttata a nd Friends" ).
The retract ing port ion of the rooffwithin
the railing) is magically magnetized to
attract a ny metal or jewelry (even gems).
Anyone leaning over the railing or step-
ping into this area is pulled down to the
floor when all the pieces of st ee l, iron,
coins, and gems he carri es become glued
to the st ra nge surface. A Strength of 18
or outside help is needed to get up if the
PC is wearing steel or iron armor or an
excessive amount of buckles, jewelry, or
st uds. Anyone attempting to throw a
grappling hook up from the ground finds
it remarkably easy to make t he hook
catch on the roof.
At night, the wi nd blows across the
roof with a moaning sigh that is eerily
transmitted into the rest of the tower via
the communication pipe. The pipe itself
juta up from the top of the north wall to
the west of the magnet ized portion of
the roof.
T he Dungeons-First Level
13. Game Room.
Here are a few old battered chairs, a
couch with ita stuffing coming out,
and a card table. There is one
glouiglobe i n the ceiling, and a set of
wel l-used cards a nd some knuckle-
bones on the table.
This is a recreati on room for the orcs.
There are 6 cp and lots of crumbs under
t he couch cushions. The communication
pipe turns past this room, jutting an
extension of itself out of the west wall
opposite the door. Acoustics are worse
here than usual , as the pipe has gone out
of its way from the north wall of area 14
to get here.
14. Stora ge Room.
Wine casks stacked a long t he south
wa ll , a nd the ot her half ofthe r oom is
filled with a cl uttered mess ofold
furnit ure, tools, boxes, an d cr at es of
odds and ends .
This room also has a glowglobe. but it
doesn't work (Dent iat a has not yet got-
ten around to recharging it). A communi-
cation pipe is located in the north wall
by the secret door. Beyond the secret
door is the tunnel that leads to t he barn.
All of the occupants of the tower know of
this secret door a nd may attempt to use
the escape tunnel if things are goi ng
badly for them. They are also aware of
the spider in the t unnel , so they'll have
to bedesperate to use thi s exit without
Dentiata's prot ect ion.
Dieter 's father's old sword has been
tossed in here. It is a short sword with a
-1 penalty to hit and damage due to its
poor quality. There is not hing else of
note here exce pt for a small wooden box
t hat will be found by the first person to
.
rummage through th e odds and ends.
The box aeems empty hut has a hidden
compartment containing two very old
pieces of si lver and an intricately carved
gold ring worth 10 gpo
There is a secret compartment in the
middle of the west wall (found with a
character's normal chance to search), It
is t r apped with itching gas (Save vs .
Poison at -l for everyone in the room to
avoid severe itching and incapacitation
for 2-5 turns). Insi de t he compartment is
an iron strongbox. locked and trapped
(acid burns hands of person opening for
14 hp damage unless disarmed). The
st rongbox contains a small pouch of 16
pp, a larger pouch of21 gp, and 11 pieces
of silver dropped on top. There is a false
bottom to t he strongbox, under which is
a small box of carved gold (75 gp value),
locked but not t rapped, holding a neck-
lace (worth 300 gp), a bracelet (worth 100
gp), and a ring (worth 50 gp ).
When the party exits area 14 through
the door in the east wall, read or para-
phrase t he following to the players:
Hangi ng on the north wall of the
corridor is a tapestry depict ing a dark
cloud rolling over the wor ld and
obscurin g the stars. Below, people flee
in panic as a wiza rd on a hilltop rai ses
hi s arms triumphantly.
Behind the tapestry is a black metal
door without hinges or handle. The door
cannot be opened unless the words
" Dread Ni ght Attained" are spoken
beside it . When the key words are spo-
ken, the door sli des silentl y into the east
wall ; it closes again when everyone in
the party ha s passed t hrough. The key
words must bespoken again to open the
door from the north side.
The DMshould remember that the
intelligence of the characters and that of
the players is not necessarily the same.
Let t he players try to come up with t he
key words themselves. but if t hey give
up, let their characters have a chance.
Make an Inte lli gence check for each PC
who is tryin g to solve the puzzle. Apply a
+1 penalty to the dice roll for each of the
following clues that the character ha s
not uncovered:
- Th addigren Dentiata is fond of ana-
grams (indicated by the notes on the
des k in the library)
- The Sons of Night change their names
to cont ain a hidden meaning (found in
the Book of t he Sons of Night hi dden i n
area 11 of the tower)
- The Sons of Night wish to bring the
Dread Night upon the world (found in
the Book of the Sons ofNightl
The PCs should already know that the
key to opening the door has something to
do with Dentiata's name; the DM may
wish to remind the players of Run a Kro-
za's mysterious rhyme about a hidden
door before resorting to Intell igence
checks.
The Dungeons-Second Level
15. Statue Room.
The stairs leading down to this room
are very long and st eep. In the center
of the room there is a statue ofa
young man dressed in a cloak, tunic
and boots, his right arm raised and
pointing to the middle of the north
wall. There is not hing else in t he
room.
An inscription on t he base of the st at ue
reads, " Whit her beye going? Let me
point the way." The stat ue' s magic is
activated by spoken words. If someone
asks how to get to t he dungeons (or
down, or something similar), it will point
to the door of one of the elevator rooms.
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
1
Roll Idf to determine which room it
points to: 1-2=area 16; 3-4=area 17;
5-6=a rea 18. After one minute of
pointing at a see mingly blank wall , t he
statue rotates to point back to the middle
ofthe north wall . The secret door in each
wall ca n be discovered normally; there is
twice t he chance of discoveri ng t he door
at whic h the statue is pointing.
ITone of t he tower's inhabi ta nts acti :
vates the identical statue in area 19
below, this sta t ue rotates as well. If the
PCs attempt to forcib ly move the statue,
they will beun successful . Dentiata put
thi s st at ue here as an extra measure to
prevent bumbling visitors from finding
anything suspicious. He has a low opin-
ion of the villagers and officials he
thought might t rouble him in hi s tower.
De ntiats also feels capable of handling
a ny persistent troublemakers who are
clever enough or sill y enough to talk to
statues.
The statue itself is Dent iat a's own
private joke; it is actually a you ng man
he turned to stone wit h a wand long
since used up. If the spell is broken,
either t hrough di spel magic or stone to
flesh, the entire framework of spells
involving t he statue and the elevators is
broken as wel l. The elevator s will then
DUNGEON 21
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
cease t o work proper ly. Anyone wis hing
to get from this level to the lower level
wi ll need to force open one of the secret
doors, break through t he floor ofthe
elevator , climb down the 30' shaft, and
force open the door at t he bot tom. Brea k-
i ng t hrough t he floor of an elevator will
take 510 t urns (ld6+4l. The young
man's statistics should becreated by the
DMwith an eye toward further adven-
t ur es for the PCs.
16-18. Elevators.
This is an empty lO'x 10' room.
These rooms are elevators t hat take
passengers to t he lower level. Each has
two doors: t he outer. secret door , and an
i nner door that swings ope n a nd shut
with the secret door. When the elevator
descends or ascends , on ly the inner door
travels wit h it. The outer doors remain
st at ionary. Anyone exami ning the open
door will not ice its peculiar construction.
Both doors must be closed for t he eleva-
tor to function.
Only the elevator to which t he statue
is point ing will work. The others, if
discovered and entered, will close and
22IssueNo. 24
""'-------- --- -
lock, trappi ng everyone insi de as t he
elevator descends to t he third dungeon
level. There it remains , locked, until the
PCs break out (in 2-5 turns) or Dentiata
or his henchmen open the door . Mean-
while, an alarm sounds from t he eleva-
tor's outer door (caused by the activation
ofa modified ventriloquism spe ll that
Dentiata's Darker placed on each of t he
three oute r elevator doors on t he lower
level). A very loud cry of " Int ruder
alert!" repeated for one t urn can be
heard in the tower above thanks to t he
communication pipe in area 15. If the
statue did not rotate to poi nt at one of
t he rooms, none of the elevators will
wor k; t hey all then func tio n as traps.
The Dungeons-Third Level
19. Guard Room.
In the center of t his room is a stat ue
ide ntical to the one in t he room above.
There are also two chairs, a small
table, and a portable gLowglobe. A
heavy oaken door is set in the middle
of t he north wall . Aset of keys hangs
on a hook on the wall beside t he door.
There are more wooden doors in the
centers of the ot her three walls.
The statue in t his room functions iden-
tically to the statue in area 15. It also
rotates any time the statue in area 15
rotates, thus alerti ng the occupants of
the guard room to t he impending use of
one of the elevator rooms. Unlike the
unfortunate young man in area 15, t hi s
really is a statue. Dentiata had it carved
in the likeness of the young man turned
to stone, reasoning t hat two identical
stat ues would likely quell any suspicions
that one was once alive.
There is always at least one a nd some-
times two ore guards here, as per The
Orcs' Locations table in " Th addigren
Dentiata and Friends" (one may have
been called upstairs to help repel
intruders). Gordog the Interrogator (a rea
25) will join any orcs in t he guard room if
he hears fighting on thi s level.
The door leadi ng to t he dungeo n corri-
dor is r einforced with iron. It is not
locked, though it can be. Just to its left is
t he final outlet of t he communication
pipe. A hook set in the wall to t he right
of t his door holds t he keys t hat unlock
all door s to the cell s (areas 21-24) and the
interrogation room (area 25). J ust under
t he keys is a bi t of discolored stone t hat
sticks out of the wall half an inch. (There
is a 2in6 cha nce of t his being noticed by
a PC taking t he keys. The orcs know of
it , of couree.I Pus hing t he stone knob
activates the sli ding ba rs that hold area
20's guard ian monster in its place.
20. Dungeon Corridor.
This lO'-wide, 20'-longcorridor has
four cell door s openi ng off its sides
and a large iron-rei nforced door at
eithe r end. Two oily torches sputter
on the walls, sending stingi ng smoke
into t he air.
Clinging to the ceiling is a death-from-
above (see sidebar at end of adventure). It
will drop onto anyone beneath it unless
the mechanism found on t he other side of
the door (in the guard room, area 19) is
activated to slide five iron bars horizon-
tally aCT06S the corridor two feet below
t he ceiling. There is a n identical mecha-
nism in t he interrogation chamber (area
25). Characters whose players specificall y
mention they are looki ng up will notice
somet hing strange on the ceili ng and
have a +2 bonus to their Saving Throws
VB. Paralyzation if attac ked.
21. Grigor e Mavrov's Cell.
This is a dank, dark cell. The only
light that penetrates here (or i nto any
other cell) comes from the two oily
torches set in the walls of the corri-
dor. The cell contai ns a st ra w pallet
on a wooden bench suspended by
chains from t he west wall. The dirty
straw strewn over t he floor almost
hides a chamber pot in the southwest
corner and a pitcher of water and a
bowl set by the door . An old man is
lying on the bench, apparently asleep.
The old ma n is Grigore Mavrov. He has
not been harmed but is hungry, angry,
and afraid. Thaddigren Dentieta has told
him about the sacrificial rite in gruesome
det ail. Grigore is also concerned for his
grandson, Dieter, in cell 24.
Grigore Mavrov: AC 9; Nor mal Man;
hp 6; MV120'(40'); IAT 1; TIlACO 20;
Dmg 12 (with bare hands); Save Normal
Man; ML 6; AL L; XP 10 ifrescued;
HD/34.
There is a secret door in the nort hwest
corner of the cell; it can be foun d only by
careful searching (nor mal chance to find
secret doors) and can beopened by fitting
a spoon ha ndle or similar object into a
slit in the door . The spoon may be found
--
by the pitcher of water and howl next to
the door. All of the secret doors are eas-
ily seen and opened from the other side.
22. Empty Cell.
This cell has no occupant, though it
does have the standard pallet. cham-
ber pot , and straw-strewn floor .
This cell 's secret door can also be dis -
cover ed only after a careful search.
There is a loose bolt fastening the bench
to the chain from the wall. Pressing that
bolt into an octagonal hole in the east
wall activates the door mechanism.
23. Empty Cell.
This cell contains a pallet, bench,
chamberpot, str aw, and water pitcher.
There is a concave human face carved
into the wall at the southwest corner.
Pressing one's nose into the depression
fonned by the face's nose activates this
cell's secret door .
24. Dieter Mavrov's Cell.
Thi s cell contains Dieter Mavrov, who
has obviously been tortured. His cell
contains the same fittings as the
others, but there are numerous blood-
stains on the floor , bench, and wooden
door.
Dieter Mavrov has been driven insane
as the result of a failed alchemical exper-
iment Dentiata performed on him, and
will attack anyone who enters the cell.
He is chained to the northeast corner of
the room by a 7' chain attached to a
heavy iron collar. He attacks at +2 due
to the ferocity of his attack, and does 2-5
hp damage with his str ong hands.
Dieter Mavrov: AC 9; Normal Man;
hp8; MV 120 ' (40')j IAT 1; mACO 18;
Dmg2-5 (wit h bare hands); Save F2; ML
12; AL L fcurrently insane); XP 10 if
rescued; 8D/34.
The secret door in this cell is visible
only as a keyhole in the stone. It may be
unlocked by a key found in a secret com.
partment in the northeast comer ofthe
ceili ng. The secret compartment , hidden
by cobwebs , is simply wood painted to
look like the stone of the ceiling. It can
be broken easily with a fist.
25. Interrogation Chamber.
Thi s room smells like blood. and there
are bloodstains everywhere. One
corner is taken up by a messy bed .
Only a few torture devices are
present, but they are well used.
Gordog, Dentiata's "int errogator," will
be here ifthere hasn't been fighting on
this level. He is either eating, sleeping,
sharpening knives, or (if the ore is here)
playing cards with Warag (OM's choice).
Two potions of healing and one potion of
extra healing are stored in a small chest
under the bed. Hidden in the straw of the
mattress are 50 gpoThere is a 25%
chance that a villager has been caught
wandering near the t ower and is being
interrogated by Gordog. (lf tbe PCs need
help in a fight on this level , the DM may
provide them with an NPC ally in this
manner.)
C' Gordog the Interrogator: AC 7; F,J.;
~ h p ~ V 120 ' (40'); IAT I ;THACO 18;
Dmg 2-7(hot iron poker plus st rengt h
bonus); ML 9; AL c, S IS, I 10, W 9, D 13,
CIS, Ch 5; xp 15; 5-gp gold ring in right
ear.
Gordog lives, eats, and sleeps in the
interrogation chamber, rarely lea ving
the room for any reason but to fetch
anot her "guest: ' He will join any fight
he hears.
26. Puzzle Room.
This room appears to be 20' long and
10' wide. Inscribed in black on the
south wall are the words:
I am that which htdee all Evil .
With me es ccver, vampires play.
I am all the blind envision.
In me will all men find their way.
This room is actually 30 ' long. The
southern 10' sect ion is hidden by the
illusion ofa wall, an illusion that feels
solid and isn't dispelled when touched.
Dentiata cast this spell from a powerful
scroll given to him by his fraternity
leader (the price of the "gift" was
unspecified at the time of the giving).
Denriata himself doesn't know whether
the wall is the product of a modified
illusion or hallucinatory terrain spell, or
if it is the result of some arcane magic
currentl y unknown to him.
The riddle refers to darkness. When
there is no light in the room, the wall is
not solid to the touch (it can be seen as a
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
st range shimmer of darkness by charac-
ters with infravision, but they won't be
able to see what is on the other side
without ste pping through the wall). If
th e advent urers produce light, the wall
becomes visible and solid to the touch
once more. Whenever anyone enters the
10'x 10' area beyond the illusory wall,
the sound of a gong reverberates
through the room.
The gong is an alarm set to alert Den-
ti ata that someone has solved the riddle.
The gong can be heard in the tower
above thanks to another outlet of the
tower's communication pipe system that
sticks out of the ceiling by the secret
door. The gong will sound if anyone,
Dentiata included, uses the room to
escape . Gordog and Warag also know of
the secret doors and the solution to the
riddle. They may, ifthings look really
bad , try to escape via this route. The rest
of the orcs and Ashira know nothing of
thi s escape route.
On the southern wall ofthe area
behind the illusion is slow stone plat-
form running the width of the room. It is
l ' high, 2 ' deep, and looks like the begin.
ning of a stairway that runs immedi-
ately into the wall . Above the platform
DUNGEON 23
INTHE DREAD OFNIGHT
are engraved the words: "You have
made it t his far; now but one step
remains." Anyone who steps up onto the
platfonn is teleported into a clearing in
the woods about half a mile from t he
tower . An adventurer who leaves t he
tower in t his manner must find his own
way back to the village.
Concluding the Adventure
Several outcomes are possible in t hi s
adventure. depending upon the clever-
ness and skill of the players.
Ift he PCs are successful in rescuing
the prisoners ofThaddigren Dentiata
and returning them to their homes, the
villagers will have proof of Dentiata's
villainy. They will once again request
aid from the local lord. and Dent is ts will
beforced to leave the vicinity and set up
his operation somewhere else. Dentiata
will not attempt to take on the whole
village because of sheer numbers, but
Death-From-Above
ARMOR CLASS: 6
HIT DICE: 3 (hp 20)
MOVE: 30' (10')
NUMBER OF ATTACKS; 1
THACO: Will hit any character failing
a Saving Throw vs. Paralyzation
DAMAGE: 1-4(initial dropping
att ack only)
SAVE AS: Fighter 1
MORALE: 12
TREASURE TYPE: None
ALIGNMENT; Neutral
XPVALUE:75
The death-from-above automatically
hits anyone who misses his Saving
Throw vs. Paralyzation. The initial
attack does 14 hp damage. Then th e
monster (resembli ng a tough rubber
mat, a'x 12' and a foot thi ck) smoth-
ers its victims in 1d10+10 rounds and
digests them in 10-40 turns unless it
is killed (a digested character may not
beresurrected). The death-from-above
has sucker pods on all it s surfaces
that it uses to grab prey. Once it has
digested its meal, it uses its suckers
to slowly crawl back up the wall and
again hang from the ceili ng. Any
adventurer in its gr asp can attack it
with a -4 penalty to hit, but only with
a short weapon (such as a dagger) and
only ifthat weapon was in hand at
t he t ime of the attack.
24Issue No. 24
neither will the villagers attempt to
storm his tower for fear of his magic .
The village will rejoice that Dieter and
Grigore Mavrov have been safely
returned. The effects of the vile potion
Dieter was forced to drink will wear off
in 2-8 days, and he will regain his sanity.
Eventually, Dieter will return to black-
smithing for the villsge.
The PCs will be held in high regard by
the village ofSisak and will bewelcome
guests any t ime they pass t hrough. For
several days after the adventure. they
will be catered to and offered free room
and board at the inn. If they wea r out
their welcome by staying too long, the
Bountiful Tappe will begin to charge the
adventurers, first for meals, then for
rooms, until they are normal paying
customers.
Ifthe PCs fail to rescue the prisoners
alive but defeat Dentiata, t hey will still
be welcomed by the villagers , but t he
mood in the village will be one of mourn-
ing as funerals are arranged for Mikal
Tappe and any other villagers or PCs
that died (including Dieter or Origcre).
Ifthe PCs capture Dentiata or any of
his minions and return them to the vil -
lage, the townspeople will hold a trial
(See GAZ1, pages 28-30)_The villagers
are mostly Lawful and will hold a fair
trial, even for the orcs. The PCs will be
asked to hear witness against (or for) any
prisoners. If Dentiata is a prisoner, he
will be kept bound and gagged at all
ti mes until allowed to speak on his own
behalf at the t rial. Villagers will stand
ready to subdue him ifhe tries to use
magic. If the Pes do not stay for the
trial, there is a 20%chance that Den-
tiata will escape. Ifthe PCs do st ay, their
testimony should be enough to convict
Dentiata and his henchmen (but not
Aehira).
The villagers, not sure they have the
authority to pass a death sentence, will
ask the PCs to escort Dentiata and any
other prisoners to the local lord for pun-
ishment . Thi s may lead to further mone-
tary reward from the local lord, but the
PCs shouldn't count on that.
lfDentiata and a majority of the orcs
are killed or captured and the prisoners
are rescued. any remaining orcs and
Gordog (if st ill alive) will take what they
can from the tower and flee. Ashira, not
knowing what to do, will remain in the
tower until told otherwise. If the PCs
take her back to the village, she will find
a place as maid wit h the women of the
Bountiful Tappe Tavern and Inn .
If Dentiata and his household are all
killed or have fled, the tower may be
occupied by the Pes for a while , but
eventually the local lord will award it to
some Lawful NPC magic-user who has
won favor in his court. The adventurers
will beas ked to leave, as they have no
legal claim on the tower.
Several other adventures may he built
from this one. Ifthe PCs are captured by
Dentiata and fail to escape, they may
find themselves on the way to the Black
Eagle Barony in the company of Iron
Ring slavers. This could lead to "The
Great Escape" (see module Bl-9 In
Search of Adventure, pages 24-29) or to
an adventure of the DM's own design.
IfDentiata survives, he will certainly
not forget the PCs' part in his troubles.
He may be cast out of the Sons of Night
for his lack of cleverness in allowing the
Pes to defeat him. Even ifhe is expelled
by the Sons, Denti ata is powerful and
influential enough to gain help in his
quest for revenge and reinstatement in
t he brotherhood.
The Sons of Night represent a group
that the PCs could encounter again in
the future. The Sons invested a lot of
effort in Dentiata's tower and will not
take kindly to it s loss. Sometime in the
future they may attempt to regain the
tower by trickery: a Son of Night , with or
without a doppelganger assistant, may
try to impersonate the local lord's favor -
ite mage . The Pes, visiting Sisak or once
again just on thei r way through, may
then have to deal with an even more
powerful menace in the tower.
Infonnation placed in the tower by the
DMcould lead to adventures involvi ng
ere st rongholds, the Iron Ring, the Black
Eagle Barony, or other mages who may
or may not be members of the Sons of
Night, but most certainly will be greedy
and power-hungry Cheotice or Neutrals.
Dentiata's library (or workroom) may
also contain maps, scrolls, or books lead-
ing to other adventures for treasure,
magical items, 108tcit ies, and the like. {l
HROTHGAR'S
RESTING PLACE
BY STEPHEN J. SMITH
He wanted a scabbard-but
got the shaft.
Artwork by Terry Dykstra
32 Issue No. 25
Stephen bought a new word processor
with his earnings from "The Bane of
Elfswood" [issue #21} and hopes to make
good use ofit writing more D&D@ m(}o
dules. He is currently in mourning for his
beloved Boston Bruins, who came up a bit
short in their quest for the Stanley Cup.
He'll probably use the money from
"Hrothgar's Resting Place" to buy tickets
for next season.
"Hrothgar's Resting Place" is a short
D&D@ Expert Set module for 4-6 player
characters oflevels 4-7 (about 27 total
levels). A mix of character types, includ-
ing at least one cleric and one magic-
user or elf, is strongly advised. This
adventure is introduced through a trea-
sure map to a combined treasure (see the
Expert Rulebook, page 61). The DMcan
slip this treasure map (which takes the
form of a wizard's diary) into an existing
treasure hoard in another adventure, or
even have the PCs find it lying in a gut-
ter in their hometown.
The adventure takes place in the
Grand Duchy of Karameikos from the
D&D Expert Set and GAZ 1 The Grand
Duchy ofKarameikos. Acopy of GAZ1
might prove helpful to the DM(as it
contains an outline map ofthe city of
Kelvin and a large, full-color map of the
duchy in its entirety), but this accessory
is not necessary.
Adventure Background
The treasure map in this adventure
takes the form of an old diary belonging
to a wizard named Aeloros Runolfsen.
Among other passages detailing several
splendid adventures is the following
entry, which hints at lost treasures: an
intelligent sword and a silver statuette
of a lion. The date of the entry is about
25 years in the past.
"Our expedition to the land of Kara-
meikos has come to an end, and we shall
begin our long journey home to Soder-
fjord in the morning. My bold friends
and I return home far wealthier than
when we left, yet we have paid a steep
price as well-our fearless comrade
Hrothgar has been lost to us forever.
"While staying in the town of Kelvin,
we heard stories that a marauding red
dragon had been terrorizing some of the
farms north of town, swooping in over
the moors to burn down a barn or devour
a cowor two. My companions and I,
knowing that where there's a dragon
there's bound to be treasure, immedi-
ately volunteered to hunt down the beast.
HROTHGAR'S RESTING PLACE
KELVIN AND VICINITY
"The townspeople eagerly accepted our
offer and told us they suspected the
creature's home was hidden in the mid-
dle of the moors. Fortunately, I knew
better than to believe that. No self-
respecting dragon-except a black one,
perhaps-would dwell in such a bleak,
open, forsaken tract ofland as the Kel-
vin moors. I had a hunch the dragon had
a cave in the hills north of the moors, so
that's where my friends and I started our
search.
"Our group took the trail leading
north out oftown, thus avoiding the
treacherous bogs and their dangerous
denizens. We then headed east, follow-
ing the edge of the moor where it meets
the hills. Eventually, we reached a
river-the Volaga, the Karameikans call
it-followed it north. Afew miles
upriver, we spied a large cave in the side
of a rocky hill. I knew we had found our
dragon.
"My friends and I climbed the rugged
hillside and cautiously crept into the
cave. Therein we found the dragon, and
fortune was on our side-the great beast
was asleep! We launched a very success-
ful surprise attack, slaying the wyrm
quickly with a minimum of damage to
ourselves. The dragon did catch
Hrothgar with a feeble blast of its flam-
ing breath, but the poor beast was nearly
dead so the barbarian wasn't hurt seri-
ously, although his beard was a bit
singed.
"Examining our vanquished foe, I
discovered that the dragon was fairly
young for its species. As a result, it had
not collected nearly as much treasure as
its larger, older counterparts might
have, but there was still enough gold
andjewels to keep our pouches full for
sometime.
"Near the back of the cavern,
Hrothgar found a splendid sword that
my spell detected as magical. He also
claimed a beautiful statuette of a lion-
wrought of silver and inlaid with an
assortment of gems-as his share of the
loot. While the barbarian admired his
new blade and statue, the rest of us
sifted through the remainder of the
treasure.
"Suddenly Hrothgar let out one of his
annoying grunt-laughs and claimed that
his new sword was talking to him. The
next thing we knew, he was scampering
around muttering, 'Scabbard, scabbard.
My sword needs a nice new scabbard!'
Not finding one in the dragon's main
treasure hoard, the barbarian disap-
peared down a side tunnel.
"That was the last we saw of our dear
friend Hrothgar. We heard his long cry
of terror and the muffled clang when he
hit bottom. The fool had gone off explor-
ing without a light and had fallen into a
deep shaft. My companions and I rushed
to help, but it was all in vain. We found
the pit that had claimed our friend and
called down into the darkness, but there
was no response from below. I dropped a
small stone into the shaft, and it finally
hit bottom after several long seconds of
silence. We could do no more, however,
because the stupid barbarian was carry-
ing our only length of rope when he took
his plunge.
"Since Hrothgar's fatal fall, I have
come to the conclusion that the blade he
found in the dragon's lair was an intelli-
gent sword. Such a sword, I have heard,
is capable of bending the will of its
wielder if that person is not mentally
strong enough to control it. Although
Hrothgar's sword arm was highly
respected by both friend and foe, intelli-
gence and wisdom are attributes the
barbarian did not possess in quantity.
"I fear that Hrothgar fell under the
sword's sway, and that is why he romped
off on his ill-fated scabbard hunt. What-
ever the reason for his demise, I will
miss that big, lovable ogre of a man. I
can honestly say that Hrothgar was a
true friend to all of us, and his brave
spirit and steadfast sword arm will be
sorely missed but never forgotten."
Although there are a few more entries
in Aeloros's diary following the above
one, none of the later passages suggest
that the wizard and his companions ever
made it back to their home city ofSoderf-
jord. If any PC uses a commune spell to
further investigate the diary, he may
learn (if he asks the right questions) that
Aeloros and his friends were ambushed
and killed during their returnjourney to
Soderfjord, and that Hrothgar's trea-
sures had never been recovered by them.
For the Dungeon Master
Since Aeloros's diary could be discovered
by the PCs' almost anywhere in the
Known World, it is impossible to include
an accurate random encounter table to
cover the party's journey to the treasure
cave. (For example, adventurers crossing
the Alasiyan Desert in Ylaruam would
be very unlikely to encounter any lizard
men, while a party slogging through the
great Malpheggi Swamp in Darokin
might cross paths with quite a few).
DUNGEON 33
The cave toads center their attacks on
paralyzed opponents if possible, gaining
a +4 bonus to hit. They have no trea-
sure.
The stony incline leading up to area 6
contains many loose rocks. Anyone who
attempts to climb this incline must roll
his Dexterity score or less on 3d6+1.
Anyone who fails this roll slips during
the climb, sending a small cascade of
loose stones clattering to the cavern
floor. No damage is taken by such a PC,
but the noise alerts the harpies on the
ledge above, and they immediately begin
to sing a little welcoming song.
6. Harpies' Ledge. Four adult harpies
call this ledge home. They will fight very
fiercely to defend their nests (ML 10
instead of 7). If these nests are searched,
the PCs will find some grungy but valu-
able jewelry: a pearl necklace (1,500 gp),
a small ruby pendant (1,000 gp), and a
thin gold bracelet (600 gp).
Upon discovering intruders, the har-
pies immediately begin to sing. Each PC
who hears this monstrous melody must
make a Saving Throw vs. Spells or be
charmed. Those who save will not be
affected by the harpies' singing for the
rest ofthe encounter.
Harpies (4): AC 7; HD 3*; hp 20,18,
15, 14; MV 60' (20'), Flying 150' (50'); N
AT2 claws/1 short sword plus charm;
Dmg 1-4/1-4/1-6;Save F6; ML 10; AL C;
XP 50; BD/31.
7. Hrothgar's Fall.
A deep chasm appears in the tunnel
floor before you-a chasm so deep that
you are unable to see its bottom.
Perhaps this is the dark pit that
claimed Hrothgar and the treasure
you seek!
This is indeed the spot where Hrothgar
took his fatal fall. Anyone falling the
120' to the bottomofthis shaft suffers
12d6 hp damage and is rendered uncon-
scious for 3-12 turns. Those who success-
fully listen for noises can hear a faint
grinding sound coming from below (the
caecilia in area 11).
Getting to the bottom of the shaft is
somewhat challenging but not overly
difficult. For those without the magical
powers of flying or levitation, there is a
small stalagmite near the edge of the pit
around which a rope can be fastened.
The stalagmite is thin, however, and
looks like it could safely support the
weight of only one or two characters at a
time. Ifmore than two people try to
climb down the rope at the same time,
there is a cumulative 15%chance per
additional person on the rope that the
stalagmite will give way, plunging
everyone on the rope to the bottom of the
pit. Should such a tragedy occur, the DM
should roll1d12 and multiply the result
by 10. This figure gives the PCs' height
in feet above the bottom of the chasm
when the stalagmite gives way. Falling
damage is 1-6 hp per 10' fallen.
Once the first group of PCs has begun
to descend into the shaft, roll for sur-
prise. Agiant black widow spider has
been hiding behind a stalactite over the
pit. Seeing the PCs in a vulnerable posi-
tion, it drops down on a single web
strand in pursuit of the descending
adventurers.
Ifthe PCs are surprised, the spider
drops past any persons standing at the
top of the pit before they can react. It
reaches those climbing down the rope in
the next round. Ifthe PCs are not sur-
prised, they may attack the arachnid as
it drops past. The spider will not bother
to fight adventurers at the top of the
shaft, preferring instead to attack those
on the rope.
When the giant black widow lowers
itself into the pit, it is far enough out
over the shaft to be out of range of the
melee attacks of PC on the ledge. It may
be attacked normally by missile weap-
ons and thrown ones, however. Ifand
when the spider reaches the descending
PCs, it attacks them immediately. Char-
acters on the rope can fight back, but at
-4 to hit and with a -2 penalty to all
damage rolls.
Should any PC aim a missile or thrown
weapon to sever the web strand from
which the spider hangs, treat the web as
AC -2. Any hit breaks the web and
plummets the spider to its death. An
adventurer who can reach the web
(through flying or levitation, for exam-
ple) can automatically cut it.
Giant black widowspider: AC6; HD
3*; hp 20; MV 60' (20'), in web 120' (40');
NAT1 bite; Dmg 2-12 plus poison; Save
F2; ML 8; AL N; XP 50; BD/38. Anyone
bitten by the spider must Save vs. Poison
or die in 1 turn.
HROTHGAR'S RESTING PLAC
Lower Level
8. Bottomofthe Pit.
Upon reaching the bottom of the pit,
you find yourselves in a vast empty
cavern. Yes, empty-there is no sign
of Hrothgar's skeletal remains or his
treasure. At the east end of the cham-
ber, however, are two dark passages,
and from them comes a strange grind-
ingsound.
The grinding sound is caused by the
burrowing of three caecilia (see area 11).
The noise comes from both tunnels but
sounds stronger at the entrance of the
northeast passage.
Hrothgar's remains and treasure are
not present because they were picked up
long ago by a gelatinous cube that scours
this level of the caves. The barbarian's
body was totally dissolved by the cube,
but his metal treasures were not. The
cube (and the valuables the PCs are
seeking) is currently in area 11.
Cave or Rock Toad
The cave (or rock) toad appears in the
D&DCompanion Set. For those who
do not own that set, the toad's descrip-
tion and statistics appear below.
ARMOR CLASS: 2
HIT DICE: 3+1*
MOVE: 60' (20'
ATTACKS: 1 bite plus paralysis
DAMAGE: 1-6
NO. APPEARING: 1-4 (1-4)
SAVE AS: Fighter 3
MORALE: 7
TREASURE TYPE: V
ALIGNMENT: Neutral
XPVALUE: 75
The cave or rock toad is about the size
of a large dog. It carries a hard shell
on its back, like a turtle, and has
large, multifaceted eyes that shine
with a hypnotic glow. Anyone gazing
into these eyes must make a Saving
Throw vs. Paralysis or be paralyzed
for 2-8rounds. Its normal attack is a
bite from its sharp, beaked mouth.
The strange eyes of this creature
continue to cast a feeble light in a 5I
radius for 1-3 hours after the creature
dies, but their hypnotic powers are
lost. Cave toads usually live in cold
regions.
DUNGEON 35
coins, and a few other items inside the
shimmering cube as it approaches them.
As you let out sighs of relief after
dealing with the huge gray worms,
the faint clatter ofloose stone alerts
you to another threat. A strange sight
emerges from an alcove in the west-
ern wall: A magnificent sword, a
silver statuette of a lion, and a few
other small items are floating toward
you, all contained within a shimmer-
ing, semitransparent cube.
Gelatinous cube: AC 8; HD 4*; hp 29;
MV 60' (20'); NAT 1; Dmg 2-8 plus paral-
ysis; Save F2; ML 12; AL N; XP 125; BDI
30. Anyone hit by the cube must make a
Saving Throw vs. Paralysis or be para-
lyzed for 2-8turns. Any attack by the
cube on a paralyzed victim automati-
cally hits. The creature is immune to
cold and lightning attacks.
The following is an inventory of the
many items the gelatinous cube has
picked up and been unable to digest
during its long years of patrolling the
lower caverns: 25 gp; 11 sp; 12 cp; a
dagger; a suit of chain mail armor
(minus the straps, which the cube dis-
solved); a few metal clasps and buckles
from Hrothgar's other equipment; the
barbarian's magical sword and silver
statuette.
The sword has quite a few nicks in it
but is still functional. It is indeed an
intelligent sword, as the wizard Aeloros
had speculated in his diary. Its name is
Seeker, and it is a Neutral sword +2
(Intelligence 9, Ego 12) with primary
powers to detect gems, detect metal; and
see invisible objects. It can communicate
these powers to its wielder through
empathy. Any Lawful or Chaotic individ-
ual who touches the sword suffers 1-6hp
shock damage for each round he is in
contact with the blade. The first thing
Seeker wants, of course, is a nice, new
scabbard.
The statuette is made of solid silver
and depicts a snarling lion on the prowl.
Its eyes are inlaid rubies; its teeth and
claws are ivory. Unfortunately, the
gelatinous cube, in its years of constant
HROTHGAR'S RESTING PLACE
scouring, has picked up and spit out the
statuette so often that the silver sculp-
ture has been badly scratched. In its
present condition, the statue would fetch
a price of 3,000 gp from the right buyer.
Ifthe ivory and rubies are removed and
the silver melted down, the precious
materials would be worth 1,000 gp and
the silver 100 gpo The party's best option
may be to have a skilled sculptor do
some repair work on the piece (which
would cost 100+10d10 gp), then resell it
for about 5,000 gpo
Concluding the Adventure
When the PCs recover Hrothgar's lost
treasure, the adventure is over. Ifthe
DMwould like to send the PCs right out
on another adventure, however, the
intelligent sword, Seeker, can supply a
rumor it learned from one of its previous
owners. The DMwill have to create the
details of this rumor and an appropriate
quest for the heroes. {}
_______MARVEL _
Continued from page 23
Before running an encounter with
Mastermind, review the rules for disbe-
lieving illusions on page 82 of the Play-
ers' Book. Heroes trying to disbelieve the
illusions must make an Intuition roll
against Mastermind's Unearthly-
intensity images. Note that blind heroes
or those with different sensory modes,
such as Daredevil, still sense Master-
mind's illusions (his mutant power
affects the brain, not the actual sense
organs). Androids and mechanical
devices are unaffected by Mastermind's
illusions.
Inner Circle treachery: Don't
neglect the dramatic possibilities of
forcing heroes to work with the White
Queen or other Hellfire Club villains.
Once Mastermind falls, an Inner Circle
member may try to ambush and defeat a
single hero. Treachery is their byword.
Ifthe heroes aren't aware of the Inner
Circle's secret powers, let the White
Queen use all her charmon them, offer
them honorary membership, and so on.
The club can then use the heroes as
dupes in a later scheme.
Aftermath
The police Special Weapons Force,
unsure of what to do with Mastermind,
locks him in a special invisibility-
nullifying harness designed by Stane
International. The harness has Remark-
able Nullifying Power (Players' Book,
page 76) with Feeble range and is made
of Good-strength material.
Heroes familiar with Mastermind
realize this equipment won't affect the
mutant illusionist. Ifthey aren't famil-
iar with him or don't notice this, and
don't accompany the police until the
villain is locked in a psionically shielded
prison cell, Mastermind easily escapes
within hours.
If circumstances force an Inner Circle
member to go public with his or her
superhuman powers, the rest of the
Inner Circle, pretending shock, expels
the member publicly-but only publicly.
The member will return to the Circle
covertly or in another identity.
Karma
Karma should be awarded according to
the Karma Summary Listing on page 37
ofthe Players' Book. Here are some
possible Karma awards:
Detecting Mastermind's illusions: +5
Karma.
Deducing his presence and locating him:
+10 Karma.
Defeating Mastermind: + 100 Karma.
Stopping a violent crime: +30 Karma.
Multiple rescues (more than five people):
+100 Karma.
Joining the Hellfire Club: + 1 Popular-
ity, -1 Karma.
Getting an Inner Circle member to
betray his or her powers: +20 Karma
per Circle member, to the hero who
manages it (and undying enmity from
that Circle member in the futurel), {}
MARVEL, MARVEL SUPER HEROES, MARVEL
UNIVERSE, and all Marvel characters, names, and
likenesses are trademarks of Marvel Entertainment
Group, Inc. Copyright 1990 Marvel Entertainment
Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
DUNGEON 37
CARAVAN
GUARDS
BY STEPHENJ. SMITH
The heroes get to kick
some bhut.
30 Issue No. 20
This is Stephen's third DUNGEO"'''
adventure. He has also written " The
Bane of Elfswovd" (iss ue 121) and
"Hrothgar's Resting Piau" tissue '251.
After u:reuking our collectiee brains {or
a Michier title for this module ("No
Bhuts About It ," "S hut M-'ait- There's
More!" etc.). ue decided to kuvt' /J'ell
enough alone (erttpt for the teaser lin").
"Caravan Guards" is a D&O Expert
Set adventure designed (or 6-8 player
characters of levels 6-8(about 50 total
levels). A variety of character classes,
including at least one magic-user or elf.
will be useful.
For fhe Dungeon Moster
This short adventure can be run while
the PCs are returning home (rom an-
ot her quest or are traveling to 8 distant
place. The scenario described in this
module shoul d take place along a me r-
chant trail through a dark and danger-
ous forest. If the ~ s campaign is set
in the Known Wor ld ofthe D&D Expert
Rulebook and Gazetteer series, a good
setting for thi s adventure is the Daro-
kin Road , in the great forest between
the cities of Darokin and Selenica.
As the PCs ride along the trail, they
overtake II small merchant ea ra va n
traveling in the same direction. The
PCsare greeted in a friendly but wary
manner by the merchant leader, who
introd uces himself as Sir Bryan Derba n.
Derba n then tries to hire t he adventur.
era to help guard his wago ns, explain.
ing t hat he is carryi ng a mysteri ous
item t hat his evil half-brot her; Malcolm ,
would dearl y love to get his hands on.
Mal col m, Sir Bryan conti nues, has
obtained the services of an accom-
plished wizard and a small force of
ogres. This evil alliance has already
claimed the lives of several of Bryan's
caravan guards. The merchant leader
offers a tid}' sum of gold to hire the Pes
as replacements.
If the PCs accept Sir Bryan's offer, they
get to know Bryan's other guards better
and are soon called upon to defend t he
wagons from two threats: a hungry chi-
mera and a band of bugbears.
Then, during their first night of guard
duty, the PCs get a big surpri se: Sir
Bryan and his seven or igi nal caravan
guards turn into wild-eyed . savage man-
eaters. The adventurers must fight for
their lives to avoid becoming their em-
ployer's dinner.
Meet t he Bhuts
Sir Bryan and hi s retinue are bhuts,
unusual humanoid monsters similar in
many ways to lycanthropea and undead.
During the day, bhuts look and act like
nonnal humans. But with the setting of
the sun, their skin becomes scaly, their
hands become claws, their hair grows
wild. and they transform into toothy,
savage man-eaters.
Like undead monsters, bhuts are
immune to sleep, charm. and hold spells
(as well as all poisons and gases), and
they make no noise while moving.
Bhute are not undead, however, and
cannot be Turned by clerics. They can
be hit by only magical weapons and
spells, and a single hit from a bussed
weapon will slay a bhut instantly.
In combat, bhuts attack with their
two claws and chilling bite. Anyone
bitten by a bhut must make a Saving
Throw vs. Paralysis or be numbed for
1-4 rounds. Numbed creatures always
lose initiative in battle and suffer a - 2
penalty to all to-hit roll s.
Bhuts radiate a potent aura that
makes them immune to the effects of
detect evil and know alignment spells. In
fact, all know alignment attempts are
distorted by t his aura, and the bhuts
register as Lawful. These scheming
creatures often live near human settle-
ments to obtain their meals . Thavoid
arousing suspicion, bhuts usually as-
sume some innocent guise such as
monks, gypsies . or even traveling
merchants.
All the bhuts in this adventure have
the following common statistics:
Bbut : HD 7 +2....; 'AT 2 claws/l bite
(in bhut form); Save F lO; ML 10; AL C;
CC/33.
Other statistics are variable and ac -
company the description of each mem-
ber of the caravan. These "NPC"
descriptions list the bhuts' monster
statistics as well as the statistics for
t heir human forms lin brackets]. The
bhuts fight as 7th-level fighters during
the day. with the exception of Sir Bryan,
who attacks as a 7t h-level magic-user.
Even while the bhuts are in human
for m, they still cannot be harmed by
nonmagical weapons or attacks.
When these creatures ass ume their
nonnal (monster) forms , they attack as
7HD monsters using their claws and
teeth. The only exceptions are "Ogre:'
who always attacks wit h his beloved
t wo-handed sword, and Sir Bryan, who
casts suitable spells before engaging the
PCs tooth and nail. Upon completing
their transformations. the bhuts' armor
classes drop to 4 (even lower for those
with Dexterity bonuses and Sir Bryan
with his ring ofprotection +1), as their
skin grows scaly and tough. The bhuts
should retain the bcnuees and penalties
from their human ability scores when in
monster form.
Si r Bry an Derban: AC 3 [8J; hp 33;
MV 120' 4 0 ~ 'AT 2 clews/I bite [1
weapon or epellk Dmg 1-4/1-4/1-6 plus
special [by spell or weapon typel; S 10,
I 16, W 11, 0 12, C 16, Ch 13; spells:
light, magic missile rx 2), detect invisi-
ble, ESP, dispel magic, hold person.
polymorph other; dagger
Sir Bryan is the leader of the bhuts,
and he acts as the leader of the mer-
chant caravan in this adventure. He is
of average build and is quite ha ndsome
and charming, having black hair and a
moustache, friendly blue eyes, and a
reassuring voice. In keeping with his
cover as a merchant, he tends to wear
colorful, expensive clothes.
Though he is also a 7th-level magic-
user, Sir Bryan hide s his abilities until
the bhuts attack the PCs. Sir Bryan
loses the memory of any unceat spells
once he changes into bhut form, so he
must rememorize spells every morning.
Hi s spell book is hidden in a secret
compartment in his wagon. In addition
to his memorized spells, Sir Bryan's
spell book contains the following spells:
read languages, read magic, ventrilo-
quism, knock, wizard lock, water breath-
ing, wall of fire. He also owns two
magical items that he wears on hi s
person. An amulet vs. crystal balls and
ESP hangs from his neck at all times,
and he wears a ring ofprotection +1 on
his right index finger.
Eric Tramble: AC 4 [7Jhp 36; MV
120' (40'); IAT 2 claws/l bite [1 weapon];
Dmg 1-4/1-4f16 plus special [by weapon
type]; S 12, I 13, W 13, 0 10, C 10, Ch
11; leather armor; sword.
Eric is second.in-comrnand to Sir
Bryan, and he acts as Bryan's close
friend and trusted advisor. He is
slightly shorter than Bryan and has
short, curly brown hair. His quiet per-
sonality does not mean that he is shy.
Gor d Dres tkilh AC 3 [41; hp 47; MV
90' (30'); 'AT 2 c1aws/l bite U weapcnl;
Dmg 2-512-5/1-6 plus special (by weapon
type]; S 14, I 10, W 8, 0 13, C 13, Ch 11;
chain mail armor, sword +1.
Becton Crestkifh AC 4 (51; hp 48; MV
CARAVAN GUARDS
9O'(30'); 'AT 2 c1awsl1 bite (1 weapon];
Dmg 2-512-5/1-6 plus special [by weapon
type]; S 13, I 11, W 13, D 10, C 15, Ch
11; chain mail armor, sword + I .
Gord and Becton both appear to be
capable fighters in their early twenties,
and they claim to bebrothers (Bect on
seems to be the older). Both have brown
hair (though Gord's is lighter ) and are
quiet but civil toward the PCs. The
brothers share an interest in weapons
and armor, and will gladly compare or
discuss arms with any PCfighters.
Si r Ri ckinsoD DeNorland: AC 4 15J;
hp 40; MV 90' (30'); 'AT U weapon];
Dmg 25125/16 plus special [by weapon
type]; S 13, I 9, W 9, D 12, C 13, Ch 15;
chain mail armor, sword.
This blonde-haired, blue-eyed fighter
is a ladies' man through and through.
He is always courteous to women and
will slavishl y cater to the desires of a
lady he finds particularly beautiful.
Because of his constant pursuit of memo
bers of the opposite BeX (and because he
tends to devour his lady-friends when
he meets them in bhut form), the other
caravan members have nicknamed him
"Wolf."
Lor nal Westhill: AC 4 (51; hp41; MV
90' (3D'); IAT (l weapon]; Dmg 2-512-51
1-6 plus special [by weapon type ]; S 13,
I 12. W 12, 0 10, C 14, Ch 6; chain mail
armor, sword .
Lornal is a bitter individual who
never has anything good to say about
anyone else . For the most part he ig-
nores the PCs , but he may make a
nasty, sarcastic comment if someone
makes a mistake in combat.
Petri: AC 1 [21; hp 34; MV 90' (30');
'AT [1 weapon]; Dmg 1-4fl-4fl 6 plus
special [by weapon type); S 11, 111, W
10,018, C 10, Ch 12; chain mail armor,
sword, three throwing daggers, short
bow, 12 arrows.
Petri is the clown of the group. He is
short 5 4 ~ ) and has a wild tuft of brown
hair atop his head . Petri is always smil -
ing or talking, and as a result he some-
times gets on the nerves of his fellow
travelers (Lorna! in particular). Quick,
energetic, and dexterous, Petri is an
accomplished juggler and has also been
known to play an occasional practical
joke. Petri is the caravan's lone archer,
but he is deadly accurate with his short
bow.
"Ogre" : AC 4 (51; hp 55; MV 90' (30');
'AT 1 weapon; Dmg by weapon type; S
18,13, W 7, 0 9, C 16, Ch 6; two-
handed sword +I, chain mail.
DUNGEON 31
CARAVAN GUARDS
Ogre is a giant of a man 320
lbs. I, as his name implies. He is also not
too bright and has trouble speaki ng
clearly, with the except ion of a few
words (" kill," " break," "smash ," and
"dinner"). Ogre is neither gentl e nor
refined. He can bequ ite dest ructive
with his magical two-handed sword +1
which he uses even in bhut form. '
The Bbuts' Caravan
Sir Bryan's caravan has t raveled
throughout the Known World for years,
seldom remaining in one area for more
t han a week or two. Typically, t he bhuts
ride into a town posing as merchants.
grab a quick bite to eat, and then qui-
etly slip away. They also obtain Quite a
few meals cons isting of the fellow t rav-
elers they meet on the road.
Occasionally, the bhuts set up an
extended ope ration in a larger city.
During these operations (most of which
are cont rived by Sir Bryan), the bhuts
pr esent themselves as gypsies, pilgrims,
a troupe of entertainers, or traveling
scholars (Ogre doesn't do very well at
this one). The cocky bhuts seem to dare
the loca l authorities to uncover their
gruesome misdeeds. Onl y once were the
bhut s tracked down, and th ey dined on
sheriff that ni ght.
The caravan itself consists of two
medium-size roofed wagons, each of
which is drawn by four sturdy draft
horses, and six war horses that the
caravan guards r ide. Under normal
conditions, Eric and another bhut (usu-
ally Sir Bryan or Petri ) drive t he wag-
ons while the remaining six bhuts serve
as mounted guards.
The two wagons serve different pur-
poses. One carries t he merchant bhuts'
trade goods, currently 40 bulky bu ndles
of common animal pelts and hides and
four bundles of precious fur s (fox and
giant weasel). Each bundle of common
furs has a value of 15 gp and an encum-
brance of 400 en. Each parcel of pre-
cious furs is worth 500 gp and ha s an
encumbrance of 500 en. This wagon also
contains four two-man tents and a dozen
warm blankets. At night, the bhuts who
are not on guard duty sleep in t he back
of this wagon.
The second wagon is Sir Bryan's pri-
va te pr operty, and the PCs will not be
allowed inside. It contains two comfort-
able down mattresses (one for Bryan
and one for his assistant, Eric); two
large chests (securely bolted to the
32Issue No. 26
wagon floor ); a large sack containing
Eri c's spare clot hes; a crate of iron ra -
tions (enough dried beef to feed eight
persons or bhuts for four weeks); a bar-
rel of drinking water ; and a variety of
other common items. The two chests
contain Sir Bryan's expensive wardrobe
(2,500 gp value) and the bhuts' di s-
guises: clerical robes and holy symbols,
down outfits, gypsy clot hing, and the
like. These di sguises have a value of
750 gp , but findi ng the proper buyer s
for t hese outfits should prove to be a
formi dable challenge for the PCs.
There is a secret compartment in the
floor of th e wagon be neath Sir Bryan's
mattress (t reat as a secret door). Hidden
t herein is the bhuts' t reasure: a large
sack containing 27 sp, 315 ep, and 89
pp; a second sack with 585 gp oa small
bag that holds four 500.gp pearls; and
Sir Bryan's spell book ( see his character
description for a list of the spells in thi s
book }.
Sir Bryan's wagon contains something
else of note . Hanging from the ceiling
are two large metal birdcages, and
perched inside one is a colorful bird. If
p:esented to the right buyer, this rare
bird could fetch a price of 100 gpoHow-
ever, this bird is actually a polymorphed
captive ofthe bhuts (see the "Conclud-
ing the Advent ure" for the identity of
this prisoner),
When the bhuts attack a group of
victims and there are too many to eat in
one sitting, Sir Bryan uses his poly-
rrwrph other spell to turn one of their
opponents into a turtle or some other
harmless, slow-moving creature. The
captive is then placed in a birdcage until
the following morning, when Bryan casts
a second polyrrwrph spell on the victim,
turning him into a bird, which the bhuts
keep well fed until t hey're hungry again.
At this time Sir Bryan casts a dispel
magic spell , and t he bhuts enjoy their
supper. Prisoners who resist the second
polyrrwrph spell into a bird are kept in a
cage until nightfall. Sir Bryan then
dispels the polyrrwrph spell and the other
bhuts dig in.
For the Ployer Characters
Having seen no one along the trail
for qui te some time, you almost feel a
sense of relief whe n you spy a small
merchant car avan t raveling i n the
same direct ion as yourselves on the
road ah ead. As your group draws
nearer, you see that the caravan
cons ists of two roofed wagons, each of
which is drawn by four draft horses.
Six men on horseback, most of whom
wear metal armor, encircle th e
wagons.
When the men spot you, they halt
the wagons and begin trott ing back
down t he road, either to greet or to
intercept you. The guards sto p about
10 yards away, their hands resting
on the hilts of their swords . One is a
black-haired man with a neat ly
trimmed moustache, wearing a flow.
ing blue shi rt t hat waves like a fla g
in the wind, clean brown pants and a
pair of shi ny black boot s; he appear s
to beth e leader, He edges his charger
forward a bit, hi li hand ra ised before
him in greet ing .
" Hello, my friends!" he calls out in
a pleasant tone. " I am Sir Bryan
Derban, owner and leader of t his
caravan. Who might you be, and
where might you be headed?"
Derban chats with th e PCs in a
friendly manner, t rying to learn where
they are headed. He then informs t he
group th at his caravan is al so traveling
In same direct ion, though probably
to a different destination [depending on
where th e DM decides to ru n thi s ad-
venture in hi s own game world}. Sir
Bryan's objective in thi s encounter is to
convince the adven turers to stay with
his caravan, even if only for t he ni ght.
At fir st . Derban si mply asks the PCs
if they would li ke to travel with hi s
caravan, stati ng t ha t he and hi s men
could use some compa nionshi p on this
lonel y trail . If t his straightforward
method fails, Sir Bryan makes the fol-
lowing plea to t he PCs. Should the PCs
still not wish to travel with the ea ra -
van, t here will beno adventure.
Sir Bryan's Plea
A troubled look d ouds up Sir Bryan's
handsome face. He sighs aloud, shako
ing hi s head, and then announces,
"My friends, I have not been entirely
truthful with you, and for this I am
most sorry. I would have endangered
your lives-and under the guise of
friendship! I am afraid that my recent
problems ha ve affected my judgment.
" You see , although your compan-
ionship would be a pleasure
during our t ravels, t hat was not the
only reason I asked you to join us.
You look like accomplis hed fighters,
something that I can sorely use at
t his ti me. Perh aps you would be
interes ted in staying on with us for a
while if I paid you? Well , first let me
tell you my story.
"In my wagon I am carrying
something-a family hei rloom-that
my half-broth er Malcolm decided
ought to belong to him. Malcolm
hired t he services of an evil wizard
and a small army of ogres. For the
past two weeks he has been pursuing
my caravan. I have lost several
guard.OJto the ogTe!l and the Spt>JJll of
the wizar d, hut fortunately my elite
guard corp" -he smiles and gestures
at his surrounding men- "is still
intact:'
Sir Bryan pauses momentarily, as
if weighing his words carefully. At
last he says, " I am not accustomed to
hiring strangers as mercenaries. hut
these are strange times and I feel I
can trust you. And." he adds with a
weak smile, "I'm afraid I may not
reach my destination without assist-
ance. Would you be interested in
selling your services to me?"
Der ban offers the PCs 1,000 gp each if
t hey agree to accompany him all t he
way to his desti nation (whatever lie he
told t he adventurers earlier) or 500 gp
each if th e)' travel only par t of t he way
with t he caravan. Since Sir Bryan
knows he won't be payi ng the PCs any-
way (one way or the other, the alliance
bet ween the caravan membe rs and t he
PCs will end that nightll, he can be
haggled into olTering the PCs an addi -
tional 500 gp for their services. This is
t he limi t, however, for the bhuts don't
want to ta.ngJe with 8 bunch of8th-en-
t urers who can behired only for an
astronomical amount of gold; such a
group's fighting skills might prove wor.
thy of the price they ask!
Sir Bryan says nothing more about
the mysterious "heir loom" that he is
carrying (there is no heirloom; it 's sim-
ply a part of Sir Bryan's false story),
and under no condition will he allow the
PCs inside his wagon . If the adventur-
ers seem suspicious of Sir Bryan', story
or his secret cargo, the merchant leader
shrugs and says that he cannot reveal
the object or its hiding place until
Malcolm is defeated and the PCs prove
themselves worthy of his trust.
Event s Minor and Ma jor
The OM should run the following events
in the order presented. Some of th ese
events require combat, while others
simply serve to further introduce the
other caravan guards to the PCa.
The Injured Guard
Shortly after hiring the PCs, Sir Bryan
asks if anyone in the party is a healer
(cleric). He explains that during the last
aetack on the caravan. an ogre managed
to stab one of his guards (Becton) in the
foot, nearly sever-ing his little toe. He
would appreciate it greatly if the cleric
could heal Becton (any cure light
wou.ndA spell will suffice). Although
Becton can still ride with the other
guards, his wound prevents him from
being quick and steady on his feet . If
healed, Becton thanks the cleric with a
25O-gponyx, saying, " I would like to
donate this to your merciful order. Holy
One." The PC cleric then bas a friend
DUNGEON 33
CARAVANGUARDS
for life (or at least until nightfalllj.
In truth, Becton recei ved his wound
from one of the bhuts' recent victims.
Ironically, he now wields the magical
sword that injured him.
The Wolf Stalks Hi s P rey
Shortly after Sir Bryan hires the adven-
turers, Sir Rickinson "t he Wolf '
DeNorland begins romancing the fe-
male PC with the highest Charisma
score. He begins with the introduction,
"Sir Rickinson at your service, my
lady," and constantly hounds his ad-
mired PC with more such chi valrous
nonsense. By mid-afternoon be will be
so forward as to say (pick one), "The
way you use that wand with such grace/
The way you daintily wield your crush-
ing macefThe way you finger that
dagger ofyourslIn your bulky metal
armor/ ... You really look good!"
Should the object of Sir Rickinson'a
desires not return his affection, the
chivalrous guard will direct his loving
attention to another female PC (if one is
present). Sir Rickinson doesn 't give up;
the DMshould make sure that Sir Rick-
inson picks out a particular female PC
to be the object of his affection during
the adventure (whether she wants to be
or notl). If there are no females in the
PC party, Sir Rickinson will sulk
throughout the adventure.
Chimer a Attack!
Rays of midday sun filter through the
treetops as the caravan cr awls slowly
along the trail. The guard named Petri
pulls three apples from a small sack and
begins tojuggle the fruit on horseback.
In the middle of hi s act, Petri tosses one
of the apples to Gord, who catches it
with a smile and lobs it back . Petri
takes Gord's return toss smoot hly and
keeps right on juggling. He proceeds to
flip an apple to Becton, Rickinson, and a
randomly determined PC, always catch-
ing the return throw in perfect synch
with his juggling.
With a mischievous twinkle in his
eyes, Petri turns his glance toward
Lornal, the dark-spirited guard, and
says, "Come on Lornal, join the fun!"
Lorna} raises one arm, motioning for
Petri to throw him an apple. Upon reo
ceiving Petri's toss , however, he chuck-
les meanly and promptly roll s the piece
of fruit in front of his mount. As his
horse halts to sniff the offering, a horri.
ble screech fills everyone's ears as a
34Issue No. 26
monstrous three-headed form swoops
down through the branches overhead
and attacks!
The swooping three-headed monster is
a chimera. It attacks a randomly deter-
mined PC the first round of combat and
anyone within range of its three heads
in subsequent rounds. Although bhuts
are normally immune to nonmagical
attacks, the chimera's dragon-head
attacks (bite and breath) are strong
enough to cause them damage (t hey
don't yet know this, believing that the y
are immune to its bite) . The bhuts avoid
frontal assaults in hopes that the PCs
will finish the monster off, which also
avoids the clumsy problem of having a
bhut be attacked but not bewounded.
Chimera: AC 4; HD 9....; hp 56; MV
120' (40'), flying 180' (60' ); IAT 2 claws!
3 heads plus breath; Dmg 1311-3/28/
1-10/3-12 plus 318; Save F9; ML 9; AL
C; ERJ47. There is a 50%chance each
round that this creature will use its
breath weapon, a cone of fire 50' long
and 10' wide. The chimera can breathe
fire up to three times per day.
Ogre Shows His Stuff
About an hour after the chimera attack,
Sir Bryan orde rs the caravan to bait
near the bank of a trailside stream.
This quick break allows the PCs and
the other guards to refill their water-
skins and st retch their legs a bit. As the
PCs mill about, a tremendous snapping
sound comes from the woods nearby.
Although the adventurers may th ink
otherwise, the caravan is not under
attack. After a few dramatic seconds,
Ogre emerges from the underbrush
dragging an enormous fallen tree limb
behind him. The huge man promptly
breaks t he thick branch across his knee
and then, noticing that everyone is
looking at him, mumbles, "Dub ... just
gettin' duh firewood."
Bugbea r Bandits
Late in the afternoon, the caravan
rounds a bend only to find the trail
blocked by a fallen tree trunk. Unless
the PCs immediately voice suspicions of
a possible ambush here, they will be
surprised by a volley of arrows fired by
10 bugbear archers, while another 10
bugbears burst from the surrounding
forest to engage both the Pes and the
bh uts in hand-to-hand combat. Among
the bugbear foot soldiers is their leader,
Lord Tangulwizkers , who fights with his
magical sword +1, +2 tis. speli-caeters,
Due to their gre at strength, bugbears
get a +1 bonu s to all hit and damage
roll s. It should be noted that Lord
Tangulwizkers (with his magi cal sword)
is the only bugbear capable of damaging
the bhuts. The other bugbears str ike
and shoot at the bhuts , but their blows
(t hough they tear at clothing and ar-
mor ) draw no blood from their foes.
Afterward, the bhuts tend to imaginary
cuts and bruises, blessing their marvel-
ous " luck."
Lord Tangulwizkers: AC 5; HD
3 + 1; hp 23: MV 90' (30'); I AT 1 (magi-
cal sword); Dmg by weapon type; Save
F3; ML 9; AL C; B0/27.
Bugbears noar chers, 9 foot soldiers):
hp 15 (foot soldier s), 11 (arche rs );'AT 1
sword or arrow; Dmg by weapon type;
other st at ist ics as per Lord 'langul -
wizkers. Each bugbear carr ies a sword.
The archers (who use long bower use
their swords only if forced into melee
combat.
Each bugbear carries a small pouch
containing 324 cp and 3-18 sp. In add i-
ti on to th is spare change, Lord Tangul-
wizkers's pouch also bolds a large topaz
worth 750 gpo
As the gr eat tree is being cleared from
the path, Sir Bryan sees a chance to
enhance the credibility of his st ory by
suggesting th at the bugbear raiders
may have attacked under the orders of
his brother Malcolm. By interrogating
any captives or by using a speak wi th
the dead spell on a vanquished foe, the
PCs should be able to learn t hat the
bugbears were not in league with Sir
Bryan's evil half-brother (who is a fic-
ti on, anyway' .
Man-Eaters in t he Moonlight
Shortly before sunset , Sir Bryan give s
the order to halt the wagons and set up
camp for the night. Once the hor ses are
safely secured, Ogre builds a fire and
Petri prepares a gener ous pot of rabbit
stew. Sir Bryan invites the PCs to join
the feast. and if the PCs accept the offer
they can enjoy a tasty meal in the jovial
company of the other guards. All the
caravan members partake of the rabbit
ste w (alt hough Lornal constantly com-
plains about Pet ri's choi ce of ingredi-
ents), so overl y suspicious PCs can lay
to rest their fears that the stew might
be drugged or poisoned. None of the
men eat too much, however. They are
saving their appetites for the evening's
real main course.
After the meal, Sir Bryan asks the
PCs if they would mind doing a shar e of
the night watch duty. Since he is the
caravan leader and is responsible for all
the important decision-making, Derben
adds with a roguish grin. he is excluded
from this duty. He also suggests that PC
spell-cast er s (who need their sleep to
regain spells) be exempt from guard
duty. Sir Bryan can offer the PCs a pair
of two-man tents and some blankets if
they need them.
Allow the PCs to organize the night
watch schedule 8 S they see fit; the seven
NPC guards will go along with any fair
system. Normally, the guards divide the
night into three four-hour shifts. with
two men working each shift. and the odd
man getting the night off. The PCs may
suggest four or more shorter shifts or
opt for more guards per shift. It doesn't
really matter what the PCs plan beyond
the fir st shift, however, for it is at th is
time that the bhuts will attack.
The caravan members can exercise a
limited amount of control over their
transformation into bhuts. The men can
delay their change into bhut form for up
to three hours after sunset. When the
three hours have passed, however, t hey
automatically transform into bhute.
They must t hen retain bhut form until
three hours before daybreak, at which
time they may change back to human
form if they so desire. At dawn , how-
ever, bhuta automatically resume their
human appearance.
The actual transformation from hu-
man to bhut (and vice ver sa) takes
about 30 seconds (34 rounds in game
terms). The bhuts have devel oped a
clever scheme to synchronize their
change into monster form and signal
the st art of their ambush.
All bhuts not picked for the first shift
of guard duty split up and pretend to
prepare for sleep: Sir Bryan climbs into
his wagon (accompanied by Eri c, if he is
not on guard duty) while the other
bhuts pitch a couple of tents. These
remaining bhuts spread themselves out
t hrough the camp as best they can ,
some crawling into the tents while
others hop into the back of th e second
wagon .
Shortly after everyone has settled in
for the night, Petri kicks off a series of
"Good nights," signalling the other
caravan members to begin the change
La bhut form. At the end of thi s humor-
ous exchange of pleasantries, Sir Bryan
unleashes a scream of terror. Once the
PCs rush to Bryan's wagon to see what's
wrong, the other bhuts emerge from
their quarters and attack. Sir Bryan
delays his transformation long enough
to ensure that he can cast a few spell s
at the PCs before he becomes a bhut.
The following boxed text gives an
account of the bhuts' ambush. Should
any of the bhuts with a speaking part in
this episode be on guard duty with the
PCs, he casually turns his back to them
while delivering his lines (and changing
into bhut Icrrnlj.
Darkness envelops the camp, and the
chirping and humming of hundreds
of insects fills the night air. Over this
soothing chorus you suddenly hear
Petri's voice call out, "Good night,
Gord!"
You hear a soft chuckle and then
Gerda voice answers, " Good night,
Petri. And good night to you, Ogre :'
A loud grunt, snort, and a contented
sigh are the only replies.
"G' night , Gord," comes Becton's
voice, " and good night Petri, Ogre,
Eri c, and to you, good Sir Rickinson."
Rickinson, in turn, rattles off his
own eloquent "Good nights" to ev-
eryone in the camp, his voice grow-
ing hoarse in the process. If he is
enamored of a PC female, he ends his
lengthy discourse by adding, in a
very raspy but poetic tone, "And
pleasant dreams to that very special
someone whose radiant smile is
brighter than the mid-day SUD,
whose lovely [blue, brown, or green]
eyes are deeper than [Lake Amsorak
or the Malpheggi Swamp; the DM
should use substitutes if his cam-
paign is not set in the D&D Known
World] and 10 million times more
beautiful, and whose voice is even
sweeter than that of a fair elven
princess who gargles honey . . ."
"Quiet, you fools," Lornal inter-
rupts with a gruff bark, "befor e you
draw every monster within 10 miles
to us like moths to a flame!"
An immediate silence falls over the
camp as the other guards grasp the
wisdom in Lornat's words. The quiet
is short lived, however, for suddenly
a piercing screech of terror erupts
from Sir Bryan's wagon, spooking
your horses and sending an icy chill
racing down your spines.
CARAVAN GUARDS
The following boxed text assumes that
the Pes immediately rush to invest]-
gate Sir Bryan's scream. Allow the PCs
to interrupt your reading of this text if
they ask questions or take some other
action. If any PC has witnessed a
guard's change into bhut form, this part
of the ambush will not take place; in-
stead, a wild free-for-all is likely to
ensue.
You and your friends find Sir Bryan
standing alone just outside his
wagon . His eyes are bugged out in
fear, and his beard and moustache
are badly disheveled. He looks
around wildly and shouts , "The wiz-
ard! The wizard! The wizard Malcolm
hired . , . was in there .. . in my
wagon .. . standing over me ...
standing over me, saying- " and
Bryan begins to mutter strange
words and phrases that sound like a
magic spell .
Sir Bryan has two rounds in which to
cast spells before he completely trans-
forma into a bhut. He begins with a hold
person spell cast against four random
PCs, then uses his polymorph other spell
against a PC spell-caster, if possible.
While Bryan is casting his spells, the
other bhuts engage the adventurers in
melee combat. Some bhuts attempt to
take on particular PCs: Gord and Bec-
ton battle any fighter who has a nice
sword or impressive armor (t hey get to
claim these spoils if the bhuts triumph).
Petri tries to match hi s speed against
the quickest PC (probably a thief), and
LornaI attacks any PC who has been
particularly cheery during the adven.
ture. Sir Rickinson, needless to say,
dir ects his attention toward the female
PC he has been courting. He leaps at
her, a wild look in his eyes and a toothy
grin on his face, and with a dramatic
gesture toward the moon overhead
growls, "Rr-r-romantic, isn' t it?" He
t hen begins stalking his beloved, adding
in a hungry tone, "You look good to-
night, my lady. Re-r-real good!"
Combat Notes
The bhuts' statistics appear in the
"Meet the Bhuts" section of the module.
The DM should adjust basic bhut statis-
tics for the special abilities of the indi-
vidual hhuts. For example. Gord gains
bonuses for his high Strength and Dex-
terity scores but suffers a penalty for
DUNGEON 35
CARAVAN GUARDS
low Wisdom. Ther efore. the OM should
add t he Strength bonus to Gord's claw
damage (St rength does not increase a
bhut 's bite damage) and apply a - 1
penalty to his Saving Throws V8 . magi-
cal spells. Dexterity bonuses are al -
Contmued from page 14
The ches t becomes visi ble when
touched. Inside it is a short sword +I ,
t hree arrows +3. fi ve darts +5 (usable
only by a wizard-class character ), a
potion of extra- luoalinB. a rinB of
protection +2, 500 pp, 850 gp, and live
gems (val ues 3,{)(X). l ,{)(X) ( )( 2 ). 500, and
3(0).
Concluding the Ad venture
ITthe a dventurers are unsuccessful in
dri ving t he hobgobli ns out in time, the
keep a nd its belongings _; 11 escheat to
t he Lords of weterdeep. The Lords se nd
out a full company of men-at-arms and
cavalry with siege engines to ret ake it,
and they succeed. The adventurers will
have to find riches and glory elsewhere.
lfthe PCs are sUCC8S8ful, Uncle's
nephew or niece receive t he ti tle
" Squire of South Krypt garden" along
36 Issue No. 26
ready figured into the ar mor class
statistice listed for each bbut.
Concluding the Adventure
If the PCs defeat the bhute, they may
rifle through the bhuts' wagons , claim-
ing any treasures they find. The wagons
themselves are valuable, should the
a dvent urers t hink of selling them. Si r
Bryan's wagon, complete with living
qu arters a nd a secret compartment , ill
worth 1,000 gpoThe second wagon is
wort h around 700 gp o
The bird hanging in the cage in Sir
Bryan's wagon opens several poeeibih-
ties for further advent ure . As explained
previously, this bird is act ually a poly-
m.t)rphed ca ptive of the bhuts. The iden -
tity of t his captive is left for the OM to
deci de. but three pcssibihtiea, based on
t he people and lands described in the
D&D Gazetteer series. follow.
FredriltJra of lJof.whold (9th-level Glan-
trian sorceress), This young lady re-
cently graduated from the Great School
of Magic in Glantri City and has since
been t raveling throughout the Known
World in search of adventure. Her par.
e nts rule the obscure barony of Dove-
hold in a wooded valley of the
Wendari an Ranges far to the north.
Returning Fredrikka to her home would
provide the PCs with a wea rying
amount of t ravel. but this would be t he
lea st of their prob lems. Clerics are out-
la wed in Glantri a nd are routinely
executed when di scovered. Dwarves and
halflinga t raveli ng t hrough these la nds
wit h a deed to the keep and la nd . This
relative is summoned before one of t he
Lords of Wat erdeep, who demands fealty
and explains to the PC t hat t here is a
condition to the deed: t he land's new
occupant must keep t he area clear of
monsters.
If the ~ feels that giving low-level
PCs a keep of their own is. too grand a
gesture. then the Lords of Waterdeep
might opt to put the keep in trust,
stationing armed IIOldiers there until the
inheritor has gained sufficient personal
power to warrant giving the keep back
(if the Lords of Waterdeep are 80
inclined).
Avenues for addi tional advent ures
and role-playing are endless. Some
ideas are as foll ows:
- Thirty days after t his. a dvent ure, t he
chief of t he Lostafinga tribe se nds
another t roop of hobgobli ns to relieve
t he one t hat was on duty, and the
might find themselves coveted for magi -
cal research by a mad wizard or two.
(See GAZ3 for more details about the
Principalities ofGlantril.
Ahmed AI-HUBsalTl of Kirlrulr (5t h
level fighter ). Ahmed is a handaome,
well -tanned warrior from the village of
Kir kuk in the Emirates of Ylaruam. He
is most thankful for being rescued by
the PCs a nd offers to throw a great
party in t heir honor if they accompany
hi m to his desert home. Such a celebre-
t ion could be used t o introduce the PCs
to t he Ylari customs of eoffee-drtnking
and st orytell i ng. Kir kuk is described in
detail in GAZ2 The Emirates of Yla-
ruam. which also includes a number of
adventures wit hi n the vtl lege'e wa lls.
Aldan Volstro.\e (5t hlevel figbter/Srd -
level merchant). Aldan is a fr iendly.
brown-haired man with an outgoing
personality and a silver tongue. Hia way
with words and ability to put peopl e at
ease with his pleasant speech is an es-
sential asset for someone in his. li ne of
work. A former adventurer. Aldan in-
vested his wealth into his own buaineee,
the Volstrake Mercant ile Trading Com-
pany based in the city of Selenica in the
Republic of Darokin. If the PCs enjoyed
their one-day st int as caravan guards for
Si r Bryan. Aldan can offer them similar
employment protecting some of his wag-
ona. See GAZll The Republic of Doro-
kin, for more information on the
merchant character class and hints for
running merchant- a nd caravan-based
adventures. n
adventurers may lind the keep
reoccupied when t hey get back.
-Thieves or other NPCs in Waterdeep
hear of the PCs' success and try to
secure t he keep for themselves.
- The Tree Ghost barbarian t ribe
decides t hat t heir ancestral totem is
hi dden in Kryptgarden Forest , and they
want to use the keep as a bese of
opera t ions for their search.
- The PCs decide to further fort ify and
inhabit the kee p; se ttlers and the means
to provision them must be found.
- The annual real estate tax bill arrives
and money must be raised to pay it .
Whate ver course the campaign takes,
t he advent urers will find the taking and
securing of Uncle's kee p a great
platfor m for taking off in to more
advent ures in t he savage northern
frontier of t he For got ten Rea lms. n
TARFII:S TOMB
BYCHARLESJ. NEVEROOWSKI
He died a good man.
He'd like to stay that way.
Artwot1t by 10m Be. a
8Issue No. 27
wrote "Tarfi l's Tamb" ill his
sport! time white studying electrical
engineeri ng. A recent graduate, he u
currently seekillg employment ill the reol
u:orltl. This module is dedicated to the
memory ofJeff BUrTIS, who introduced
Charles to the D&lY game ill 1981.
"Tarfil's Thmb" is a game edven-
t ure for Expert-level eharactees. It is
designed for a resourceful party of 5-7
characters of levels 10. 14 (around 70
total levels). This adventure is set in the
D&D Known Worl d. starting in the city
of Kelvi n and proceeding eastward onto
the Nameless in the Grand Duchy
of Karameikos. Several monsters in this
adventure, such as the beholder and t he
banshee, have been taken from the
D&D Companion Set. The D&D game
accessory GAZI The Grand Duchy of
Korameieoe may be useful in setting up
the background. but it is not required.
The adventure may easily be placed on
a moor or in a swamp nea rly any..... here
t he DM wishes.
For the Player Characters
Read or paraphrase t he following infer-
mation to the pl ayers at t he atart of the
ad venture:
It is ea rly aut umn, a nd you ha ve re-
cently a rrived in the city of Kelvin, a
stopover on your long and a rduous jour.
ney sout hwa rd. After a success ful sum-
me r advent uri ng: in the north, you have
decided to spend t he winter mont hs in /I
more hospitable climate.
Unfortunately, t he weather for t he
past 10 days has been poor. You entered
the mountains expecti ng a comfortable
cha nge from t he grueli ng late-summer
heat of the lowlands, but chilling ..... ind
a nd las hing rain made your trek over
t he Black Peaks ext remely unpleasant.
You entered the city longing for a hot
meal, a warm ba th, a nd a !lOft bed.
You ha ve been in Kel vin for several
days now. with t he weather showing
little sign of change. Wit h your su pplies
restocked a nd your mounts well rested.
you anxiously wait for the weather to
change so t hat you can cont inue your
journey. As comfortable as the Silver
Ladle Inn has been these days past, you
still find yourself ready to push on.
Your fourth evening in town finds you
all gathered around a heavily laden
trestle at the Ladle, gloomily a waiting a
break in the weather as you take long
pulls from your flagons of ale. As you
ponder a trip to the seedier section of
town for another night of city life ,
dreading the long tramp through the
muddy streets, you notice someone so
odd looking as to stand out from the
crowd in the expensive establishment of
the Ladle.
Your attention has been attracted by a
pale, bespectacled little man in a muddy
gray cloak and sandals. A small metal-
lic holy symbol that represents the
Church ofTraladara dangles around the
gangly man's neck.
Upon entering the common room, the
little man scuttles up to the proprietor,
who greets the odd looking man as
"Brother" and asks him howhe may be
of service. The muddy man replies by
taking the barman by his sleeve and
pulling him toward a quiet corner of the
room.
As the pair draws away, the small
man begins to speak furtively, gesturing
rapidly with his hands. The innkeeper
gives the man his full attention. When
the little man finishes, the owner gives
him a curt nod and motions toward your
table. The little man peers at you
through his spectacles for a second,
bows to the larger man, and inches
toward your table.
Clasping his hands in a most suppli-
ant manner, the small man introduces
himself as, " Iva n Sumanov, your hum-
ble servant."
" The gracious innkeeper," the
scrivenly looking man continues, " has
told me that you are adventurers of
some renown, and by appearances I do
believe that he spoke most truthfully of
you. It is to my extreme good fortune
that I have found you here, as I have
never before had need for the services of
the likes of yourselves." The small man
pauses for a brief second to allow him-
self a breath and then continues.
" I have a story that must be told and,
although I am but a lowly novice of the
Church of Traladara, I implore you to at
least hear my story before passing judg-
ment upon me : '
The man glances suspiciously around
the room and takes a seat. Then, push-
ing his spectacles up his nose , he begins
his tale.
"Three days ago I had a dream. Not
just an ordin ary dream, you see, but a
vis ion. I say 'vision' because it con-
cerned happenings t hat none of the wise
men of Karameikos are a wa re of, yet
these events are of great concern a nd
displeasure to the divine patrons ofthis
land. Even the foul weather oflate
stems from the displeasure of revered
Halav.
"I went to Bishop Pyotrevich. the
Prelate of the Church of Traladara here
in Kelvin. I spoke to him of my vi sion
and my firm belief of its validity. Hi s
Grace spurned me, saying I shouldn't
waste my time or his with such fantasy,
telling me that I was forbidden to pur-
sue the matter further at risk of being
excommunicated from the church for
my blasphemy. Although I did not un-
derstand hi s anger and denial , I still
fear acting against his word. Just to act
against his will is sin, so you must see
how imperative it is that you believe me
and help right the wrongs being done ,
as I dare not risk approaching anyone
with my story ever again.
" But I stray from my purpose. As I
said earlier, it has been two days since I
had this dream. In my vision I saw a
warrior-actually, the spirit of a long-
dead warrior. He was running toward
me across a wide , grassy plain. He wore
a breastplate of bronze, and upon his
head was a gilded helm with a horsetail
plume. He carried a long spear and held
a large round shield of embossed
leather.
"This warrior spoke to me in an ar-
chaic tongue, yet his voice was pure and
angelic, and I understood him clearly.
'Greetings, disciple of Halav ' the
gleaming warrior said. 'I require the aid
of a mortal, and my lord has bade that I
seek you, as you are destined for great-
ness in his service.
.. ' I am 'Iarfll, Warlord of Clan 'Iarvon,
vassal to King Halav. Two millennia
ago , I was slain upon this field.' As he
waved his arm out across the plain, I
could see two great armies locked in a
pitched battle. Bronze-armored men and
tall, jackal-headed beastmen chopped
and stabbed at one another in a chaotic,
churning melee.
.. 'We won the field that day long past ,
though I and many of my companions
never lived to see our victory,' the man in
my vision said. Again he waved. his arm.
and the scene changed. Now only men
moved about, picking out the wounded
from the dying and the dead. The warrior
continued, 'The men labored long, laying
their slain comrades in turf-covered
mounds and building huge pyres to burn
the carcasses of the beastmen.
" 'My own bones still lie within the
tallest of those barrows, a mound
marked only by seven pillars of granite.
TARFieS TOMB
The army marched ofTto join our lord in
the final battle, and the barrows now lie
forgotten upon a windswept moor.
.. 'A fortnight ago , evil entered my
resting place and now torments me in
the spirit world. Even now I am pursued
by fell beasts summoned by one who
chants binding spells over the dust that
was my body in life. He desires to en-
sna re my soul for some evil but un -
known purpose.'
"Suddenly, I heard an eerie baying
and, looking out across the plain, I
could make out four black shapes racing
like the wind across the swaying grass.
" 'They come,' the spir it said. ' I have
tarried far 100 long, for the beasts again
draw near.
"'Awake, disciple of Halav, for in
your dreams these fell creatures of
darkness may steal your BOUI. Awake
and aid me!'
" Tarfi l turned away, and with the
grace of the swiftest deer bounded
across the plain. leaving his pursuers
far behind. Even as he fled , I turned to
see more clearl y the beasts that pursued
him: great, fiercesome hounds. black as
jet, with gaping maws and glowing
yellow eyes.
" I awoke in my bed, with the vision of
those ghastly beast s etched in my memo
Dry. As I lay there pondering the events
of my sleep, I could fai ntl v hear th e
distant baying of hounds'-
"Since that night I ha ve slept ill . I
have labored ceaselessly. searchi ng
through ancient scrolls a nd forgotten
texts, looking for some clue to the loca-
tion of the spiri t-warr-ior 's tomb. Then,
last night, as I prayed for guidance, a
certain scroll I had missed was revealed
to me. Written upon it in a nearly inde-
cipherable text was a description of the
barrows I sought and their location. I
believe t he battlefield that Tarfil spoke
of is somewhere on the nameless moor
to the east, where the River Volaga
flows down from the Wulfwolde Hill s."
Brother Sumanov shows the adventur-
er s a rough map (see The Unnamed
Moor map).
" Why the Immortals would choose one
so unworthy as myself to betheir in-
st r ument, I cannot say. I know not what
e vil you may encounter, but I must beg
you to journey to Thrfil's tomb and free
him from his torment. I have neither
the ways nor means to do eo myself,
though I would give my life to save his
soul. Please, noble ones. go with all of
my prayers."
DUNGEON 9
TARfIL'STOMB
Ivan Sumanov: AC 10; C2; bp 8; IAT
1: Dmg by weapon type: MV 120' f40' );
Save C2; ML 7; AL L; W 18, Ch 14. Ivan
is unarmed and un ar mored at t he time
of this meeting, and has only a curt!
light spell memcrued.
For the Dungeon Moster
Iva n Sumanov is an adept in t he
Church of Tralada ra i n Kelvi n, and has
been contacted i n his dreams by a spirit
for r easons detailed later. Ivan was
chosen because he is desti ned to rise to
greatness in the service of the Three
Immortals. However. he has far to go to
meet his des tiny. Luck shoul d always be
with Ivan. and the OM should go to
great pains. short of divi ne i nterven-
t ion, to preven t Ivan's deat h. Anyone
who insists on harming him. however,
will be infl icted with a subtle but pow-
erful curse: All Tr al adarans comi ng into
contact wit h t he assaila nt will have a
feeli ng of uneasiness and distrust, even
if they have been lifelong friends. Th e
degr ee of this uneasi ness and di strust is
proportional to the Tral adaran's piet y.
Also, members of the Cult of Ha lav ca n
actually see the curse as an evil aur a
and will secretly t ry to ca use the cursed
person troubl e or harm at every turn.
Onl y the undertaking of a grand quest
(beyond t he scope or thi s advent ure) will
allow some redempti on in the eye s of
immortal Halav and undo the effect s of
the curse.
In spite or Bishop Pyot revi eh'e st rong
reprimand, t he prelate is simply ex-
tremely paranoid about his position in
th e churc h, as he obtained it more
through manipul at ion and politics than
by piousness. The suggestion that the
Immortals might se nd dreams to a nov-
ice ins tead of to himself causes t he
bishop to react rat her vehemently. After
all , he is only human.
All that Ivan told the PCs is true, but
there is a good dea l of information that
he does not possess.
The spirit warrior was a Tr aldar chief-
tai n sla in i n bat tl e against gnolls 2,000
years ago and lain in a barrow near the
Volaga River. Recentl y, however, an evil
patriarch by t he name of Annak arr
entered the barrow.
For t he past fort night, Annakarr and
his followers heve been chanti ng an evil
spell of binding. The knowledge to cast
such a spell was a gift, in th e for m or an
ancient tome of power, from the Chaotic
bei ngs they worship. The casting of the
10 Issue No. 27
spell requir es a gr eat amount or power
and energy but, if successful, will gi ve
Annakarr cont rol over the soul of t he
spirit warrior, bringin g t he warrior
back to life in a form similar to that of a
ghost. This wars-ior -ghoet would be
complete ly und er Annakarr's control ,
forced to do whatever evil deeds are
commanded of it.
Once Annakarr has control of the
warrior, he plans to raise an army of
undead and Chaotic monsters and put
the Tr aldar spiri t at their head. Anna-
karr feels that the Traladaran peasants
around Kelvi n would never have t he
cour age to resist one clai ming to be t he
spirit of th eir ancest or. Thus, Annakarr
could force them to accept him as t heir
leader, making Kelvin a new stronghold
for t he forces of Chaos.
Journey to the Barrows
After the PCs meet Ivan Sumanov and
accept his mission , t hey must decide on
a path to th e barrow grounds . If they
ask about the moor, people will tell
them th at it is indeed most t reacherous.
Danger, both natural and otherwise,
abounds. Marked paths are few, and
many of these lead nowhere or directly
i nto treacherous bogs. Seemingly solid
ground offering safe passa ge may t urn
out to be a sucki ng moran capable of
swallowing a rider and his mount in a
matter of minutes, leaving no trace of
their passage. As for the denizens of the
moor, the Traladaran peasants speak of
werewolves and trolls, flyin g dragons
come down from the Wulfwolde Hills to
hunt, and strange flickering lights t hat
lead the unwary into the fata l bogs.
Should the PCs seek a gui de. t hey ar e
directed to the ta verns near the eastern
gate of the city. Few people know the
windi ng paths of the moor, and fewer
still will ingly tread its paths.
Near the east ga te, the party is told
about a man named Serge i Mishev. a
Tr aladaran man known to wander the
moor at ti mes . " Look for Sergei at the
Grinnin' Bear; ' the party is told.
Wit hin the di m confi nes of the Inn of
the Grinning Werebear, the PCs find
Sergei Mishev speaking quietl y with
several Tralada ran miners . Sergei
seems a simple man, wit h weat hered
features and thick, grayi ng hai r.
Sergei l\.lisher. AC 2; F7; hp 36 ; IAT
1; Dmg by weapon t ype; MV 120' f40'l;
Save F7; ML 8; AL L: S 15, W 14, D 16.
Sergei wears scale mail +2 and carries
a long sword +1, + 2 us. lycanthropes, a
silver dagger. a long bow, and a quiver
with 11 silver arrows, eight arrow. + 1,
and an arrow of slaying.
When the party approaches Sergei
about guiding them across the moor, he
demands that they give him a full ex-
planati on of the purpose of their jour-
ney. He has no desire to lead a band of
t hrill-seekers on a foolish treasure hunt:
he has done t hat before and returned
alone.
If the PCs truthfully explain thei r
expedition. Serge i will quickly agree to
guide them. Serge i has a great deal of
common sense and is very capable of
gui di ng t he party Berres the moor to
Thrfil's tomb . He is a devout follower of
the Traladaran church and will gladly
serve revered Halav. All he asks in
payment is a magical item or t wo that
will make his fut ure journeys acrose the
moor a bi t safer, and a small port ion of
any treasure for provisions and dona-
tion to th e church.
Sergei was a sheepherder livi ng on
the easter n border of t he barony until
seven years ago when his farm was
burned and his family butchered by a
ravaging band of werewolves. He has
si nce labored upon the moor, hunti ng
creat ures of Chaos and trying to give
some protect ion to the farmers and peat
diggers who eke out a living on the edge
ofthe vast moor.
If the PCs do not seek a guide. they
will find it hard going on the moor. The
normally poor te rrai n is mad e even
worse by th e inclement weather of late.
If t he PCs consider traveli ng by ri ver,
they find that the many days of r ain
have turned the Volaga into a
torrent. No r iver captai n is will ing to
pilot a boat for t hem, and any small
craft they might buy would be of little
use agains t th e dangerous curr ent.
If the adventurers opt to travel by
horseback, they may skirt around the
moor to the nort h or south for a day, or
they may str ike di rectly east ward
across it . Eit her way, t he trip by horse-
back wilt take two full days. The same
trip on foot will ta ke four days. Travel
across the moor is slow going, and skirt-
i ng the moor takes the party well out of
its way. Thus, the rout es balance out,
with the trip taking t he same amount of
t ime no matter which route is chosen.
There are no pr act ica l shortcuts, as
even flying is made hazardous by t he
stor ms. If Sergei is leading the party. he
crosses the river at Kel vin and travels
TARFIl'S TOMB
THE UNNAMED MOOR ,....
wolves I10t. AC 7; HD 2 +2; hp 16,
14, 13x 3, 12 x 2,11.10.9; 'AT 1 bite;
Dmg 16; MY 180' (60'}; Save Fl ; su, 8
or 6; AL N; XP 25; BD/39.
Dire wolves (6); AC 6; HO 4 + 1; hp
30, 25 )( 2, 23, 20 x 2; IAT 1 bit e; Dmg
28; MY 150 ' (50'); Save F2; ML 8; AL
N; XP 125: BO/39 (WolO.
werewot ves tat AC 5 (9): HD 4* : hp
30,29,26)( 3, 24, 22 x 2.20; 'AT 1 bite ;
Omg 2.8; MY 180' (60' ); Save F4; ML 8;
AL C; XP 125; BO/33 H.yca nthrope).
The great she- wolf is viciously cun-
ning. directing the pack with snarls and
barks from a hillock or rock outcropping
near the edge of the campsite. Valeria
pits the wea ker wolves against horses
or sleeping characters. and sends the
werewolves against any points of strong
resistance. She avoids facing a strong
PC but will not hesitate to strike the
weak or to strike from behind.
If Seegei is with the party. he uses his
silver and magical BrTOWS to hel p any-
one hard pressed by the fanged
onslaught. If Sergei was not with the
PCs when they left Kelvin , he joins
them now. havi ng been hunting this
ba nd of werewolves for severa l nights .
He r uns howling into the e nca mpme nt,
- N
-"" I
~ ~
~ W
~
~
Wulfwolde Hill s
~
o
he quickly rouses t he Pes a nd tells
t hem to prepare for an attack.
Been t hereafter, more howls sound
from several directi ons around the en-
ca mpme nt. From the distance comes a
short yippi ng ba rk . In anot her direc-
tion, rustling noises emanate from a
thicket of heather only yards from the
ca mp. Suddenly. from yet a not her di rec-
ti on in t he darkness, a great dark sha pe
hurt les upon the ad venturers.
It is a huge wolf with gleaming fangs.
its sable coat glistening in t he damp
night. The wolf crouches in the center of
t he camp for a brief second. snarling
v-iciously, t hen leaps upon anyone stand-
ing (or b:ing) nearby. Wit hin seconds,
the campsite is overrun by wolves of all
sizes. The pack seems to be directed by
a huge she-wolf of unnatural proper-
tions, with a thick silver coat and enor-
mous fangs.
This werewolf pack consists of 10
nonnal wolves. six dire wel ves, and
ni ne werewolves. The werewolf wit h 30
hp is the pac k lea de r. who a ttacks as a
5HD monster a nd adds +2 to damage
rolls. This is Valeri a, Sergei's sister. It
was she who betrayed her kin a nd slew
the rest of Sergei's family.
along the southeast border of the moor
during the fIrst half of the trip.
Although the western t hird of t he
moor is claimed by Baron Kelvin all
part of hi s dominion, t he area clai med is
sparsely populated by he rdsmen a nd
peat di ggers dwelling in small, isol ated
villages of wattle a nd daub huts. Th is
area ill only sli ghtl y less dangerous
than the eastern portion of the moor.
Whil e the party travels acrose the moor,
the OM should try to play up the atmos-
phere crea ted by the foul weather and the
nature of the moor itself. Nights upon the
moor are cold and wet. The days are
miser ably humid when it isn't raining
and miserably chill when it is. Insects .
mud, mist , wind, and fog all affect travel
on the moor, working t hese into t he de-
scri ption of travel can add to the atmce-
phere. The Pes will see vel')' little
sunlight on their tri p to the barrow.
Tra vel on t he moor without a gui de is
ext remely hazardous. For every t wo
hours of dayli ght during which t he
party travels on the paths, there is a
lin2O cha nce t hat the lead PCs will
stumble into a well-disguised bog. This
chance takes into consideration t hose
that a wary party saw and bypassed
a long t heir route; a careless party
should bepe na l ized accordingly. The
rate a t which the trapped characters
si nk a nd subseque ntly drown is left to
t he DM's di scretion. If any of the PCa
wander a round or try to travel at ni ght.
th e cha nce offalling i nto a bog becomes
1 in 6. che cked every t urn.
Check for wander ing monsters every
four hours; a n e ncounter occurs on a J
on Id12. Three encounte r tables are
given; t he DM should choose the a ppro-
pr iate tabl e for t he path taken.
At the halfway point in t he journey
(the first night by horseback or the
seco nd nigh t by footl, whe n the party is
camped on the moor. only t he following
encounter occurs. U the party is on foot,
roll normally for wa nder ing encounters
during t he first and t hird nights.
We n-wol f Attack
At midnight on t he eve ning when the
PCa reached the halfway poi nt of t heir
journey, as a thick fog roll s across t he
sodden moor and the full moon glim-
me rs a deep orange in the southeastern
sky. a long howl breaks t he silence of
the night. If Sergei is with the party
and not on guard. he a wekens immedi.
ately and strings his bow. If on guard.
DUNGEON 11
TARfIL'STOMB
Bandit: AC 6: HD 1; 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon type; MV 90' (30' ); Save Tl ; ML 8;
AL C; XP 10; BDI25.
Bl ack widow spi der: AC 6; HD 3 ; IAT 1 bite; Dmg 2-12 plus poison; MV 60'
({20'), in web 120' (40'); Save F2: ML 8; AL N; XP 50 ; 8D /38(Spider, giant).
Bugbear: AC 5; HD 3 ... 1; 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon type ...1; MV 90 ' (30'); Save
F3; ML 9; AL C; XP 75; B0I27.
Caee Wedg('wood (druid); AC 9; 09; hp 31; 'AT 1; Omg by spell or .....eapon
type; MV 120' (40'); Save C9; ML 10; AL N: W 16, C 15: quarterstaff; O",fs choice
of spells. Wedgewood is a eleeic who has attained 9th level and is beginning hi s
training as a druid. He has been living and meditating in the forest for a month
now, but no high-level druid mentor ha s yet appeared to him.
Dryad: AC 5: HD 2*; IAT special: Omg nil : MV 120' (40'; Save E4; 6; AL N;
ERl48.
EJ(; AC 5; HD 1*; 'AT 1; Dmg by weepon type; 120' (40' ); Save E1; ML 8 or
10; AL N; B0I30. These elves are t raveling to the .....edding of a relative a nd have
no knowledge of Tarfi l's tomb.
Ghoul: AC 6; HD 2*: 'AT 2 claws/ I bite; Dmg 13JI 3I13 plus special; MV 90'
(30' ); Save F2; ML 9; AL C; XP 25; B0/30.
Gnome: AC 5; HO I ; IAT I : Omg by weapon type; MV 60' (20'); Save 01: ML 8
or 10; AL N; B0I30. This group of gnomes ha ve left t heir overcrowded village and
are scouting a site for a new town. They have no interest in a ncient human war-
riors a nd know nothi ng about to mbs on the moor.
Hill giant: AC 4; HO 8; NAT 1; Omg by weapon type; MV 120' (40'); Save F8;
ML8; AL C; XP 650; ERl50 (Giant).
Hip pogriff: AC 5; HD 3 + 1; tAT 2 claws/I bile; Dmg I SI1WHO; MV 180' 160');
flyi ng 360 ' H20' ); Save F2; 8; AL N; XP 50.
Ho rsema n: AC 7; F1; 'AT I ; Drng by weapon type: MV 120' (40'); Save F1 ; ML
8; AL L; leather armor. sword, dagger. Thi s patrol from Kelvin is investigating
reports of a bandit ga ng operating from a base i n the Wulfwol de Hill s.
Hone, riding: AC 7; HO 2; 'AT 2 hooves; Omg 1-4fl-4 ; MV 240 ' (SO'); Save F1;
ML 7; AL N; ER/51.
Mounta in lion: AC 6; HO 3 +2; 'AT 2 claws/I bile; Dmg 1-3/1-3/1-6; MV 150'
ISO' ); Save F2: ill 8; AL S ; XP 50: BO('17 ICat, greet ).
Ogre: AC 5; HO" + 1; 'AT 1 d ub; Omg by weapon type +2; MV 90' /30' ); SaVE"
F4; 10: AL C; XP 125: BO'35.
Spectre: AC 2; HD 6* ; 'AT I touc h: Dmg 1-8 plus double energy drain:
ISO' (SO'), flying 300' 000'); Save F6; 11; A.L C; XP 725; ER/56 .
Sprite: AC 5; HD Ih*; 'AT J spell: Dmg nil: 60' (20'), flying ISO' 160'); Save
El ; ML 7; BD/38.
Tn.-ant: AC 2; HO 8*; IAT 2 branches; Omg 2121212: MV 60' (20'); Save F8:
ML 9; AL L; ERl56.
Troll : AC 4: HD 6+3*; 'AT 2 clewe/r bi te; Omg 16/1611 10; 120' (40'y,
Save F6; ML 10 (8r, AL C; XP 650: ERlS6.
Wolf: AC 7; HD 2 +2; 'AT 1 bite; Omg 16; MV 180' (60' ); Save Fl ; ML 8 or 6;
AL N; XP 25: B0/39.
Encounters En Route to the Barrows
CRoll IdS)
Northern Route
(Hills)
1. Patrol; 3-18 horsemen
(pl us horses)
2. 14 moun tain lions
3. 330 bandi ts
4. 330 gnomes
5. 2-16 hi ppogriffs
6. 1-6 hill giants
Eastern Route
(Moor)
1. 5 20 bugbears
2.216 ghoul s
3. 18 troll s
4.3-18 wolves
5. 18 spectres
6. 2-12ogres
Sout hern Route

1. 224 elves
2. Caer Wed.gewood
3.3 18 sprites
4. 14 t reants
5.2-8 black widow spiders
6. 14 dryads
firi ng silve r arrows as he comes. If none
of the party members slay the pack's
lea der, Sergei saves his arrow of lyean -
thrope 6layi ng until he gets a clear shot
at his sister. Then he screams, " Valeri a.
I do this for you!" and looses his arrow.
The shaft: pierces t he grea t sil ver wolf
in the ribs, and it falls to the ground
with a shudderi ng howl.
After the Pes slay or drive off the rest
of the pack, t hey find Sergei holdin g a
beautiful woman in his arms, ca ress ing
her long hair and singing soft ly. Wiping
a tear from hi s eye as he looks up at
them, he says, " It was necessary, so she
wouldn't kill agai n." Then, taki ng his
dead sister in his arms, he wal ks II short
di stance from the campsite a nd qu ietl y
buries her. If an)' of t he party members
try to follow him. he i nsists t hat he be
left alo ne.
About an hour later, Sergei returns to
the camp. If Sergei .....as not previously
with the party, he joins them here, offer,
i ng to guide them on the same te rms as
if the party had met him in Kelvin.
If the party's horses were slain in the
werewolf attack, the tri p will take two
days from t his point. The party should
arrive at t he barrow grounds at dusk on
the last day of their journey.
The Barrows on the Moor
Read or paraphrase the followinK to t he
players as t he pa rty approaches the
barrows'
Ahead of you, ri sing from t he stea my
fens of the gray-green moorlike small
islands, are the mounds of which Ivan
spoke. Through the mist a nd foK, you
can make out four or five mounds,
some topped -ith great pillars of
stone, others -ith only t hick tufts of
gray-green grass. No trees or bushes
grow on the mounds. around
t heir 00- does the gor'9t' and heather
common on the moor grow thick. A
small stream meanders among the
grave-mounds; upon its bonks grow
short. stunted trees.
As you move closer, you can make
out more shapes looming in the mist.
perhaps 20 mounds in all.
As you near t he fir-st barrow,
mound you hear, not far otT, a long,
mournful wail. In t he dar ke ning
t wili ght ahead, Sergei freezes in mid -
step. Slowly he turns, a nd you see
that his eyes are .....ide and fil led wi t h
12 1ssuo No. 27
TARfIl'STOMB
fear. "Sasmirella , he mutters, and
collapses to his knees. sha king a nd
muttering prayers to t he Immortals.
After several moments of shaki ng and
praying, Sergei gradually regains his
wits. A remoce (fOOT spell will immedi-
ately banish t he fea r. As soon as he is
himself again. Sergei explain his terror :
" Two years ago, while I was out on
the moor alone. I encountered a ban-
shee ..... ho has wandered the moor for
years. I had never encountered any-
thing as fearsome as Sasmirella a nd
st ill haven't. She almost killed me!
That encounter aged me 10 years
and gave me this gray hair before my
time: '
No matter what t he advent urers try.
Sergei refu8t's to conti nue on with t he
pa rty. He' l l wait here, he says emphati-
ca lly. Bes ides. he led t he party to t he
burial mou nds . and someone must stay
behind to watch t he horses.
As Sergei lea ds t he horses toward
the shelter of a small copse of
stunted t rees, he t urns to gay, " Be-
wa re Basmirelle. She smells the
blood of living souls a nd knows you
draw near."
Lea ving Sergei Mishev behind, you
enter the area ofmounda under which,
you assume, are interred t he remains
of the ancient warriors killed in t he
battle with the beast-men.
Some of the mounds, however, are
marked by sq uat pillars of weathered
grani te, the size a nd number of
stones proport ional to the height and
gi rt h oft he mound on whic h they
st a nd. It is this observation that
brings you to t he tall est mound
a mong the bar rows, one marked by a
ri ng of seven huge pillars of lichen -
covered granite.
The mound a head of you is 15' high
at its flat, grasay top. The gr eat
stones stand 10' hi gh and form a r ing
approxi mately 25' in diameter, the
whole mound bei ng 75'-80' wide at
its base.
For an instant, you see what ap-
pears to be the pale figure of a
maiden in shimmeri ng white stand-
ing between t.....o of the pillars. But as
quick!)' as you noti ce it, the figure
disappears.
The ghostly figu re is the banshee
Sasmirella, who walked out from be-
hind one of t he stones and thence into
the Ethereal Pla ne.
Sasmirella (ba nshee): AC -3; HD
13.....; hp 57; ' AT 1 tou chll gaze; Dmg
age 10-10 )earsiparalysis; MY 60' (20');
Sa ve special; ML 9; AL C; XP 5,150;
CD/32 f Ha un t ).
The evil patriarch, Annakarr, talked
her into guarding the entrance to the
violated barrow from a ny other in-
truders. She wi l! not leave the ring of
stones to attack the party, as they have
no other way i nto the barrow than
through the hole made by Annakarr.
She waits on the Ethereal Pla ne as the
ad venturers advance up the mound.
If a nyone in the party walks up the
mound, or if the party splits up to go
around the mound, Sasmirella tries to
get t he attention of one ofthe male
characte rs . She materializes next to one
of t he stones near that character so that
only he not ices her. Then she ducks
behind a pill ar and re-enters t he Ethe-
real Plane. Th t he male character who
sees her, Sasmi rella a ppears as sh e did
in life, as a stunningly bea utiful elf
ma iden. However, any femal e charac-
ters who are close enough to see Sus-
mirella see her in her t rue form, as will
any helpless mal e character foolish
enough or bold enough to follow her into
the standing atones alone.
If any mal e character a ttempts to
follow Sasmirella into the stones, he
find s himself alone in the circle, with
Sesmirella nowhere to befound . Sud-
denly, Saemirella erupts out of t he
ground at the cha racter's feet in her
t rue form, a grotesque corpse with hol-
lowed eyes and a ga pi ng mouth! (Sea-
mirella is really coming " up" out of t he
Ethereal Plane.) Unless t he character is
in the Ethereal Pl ane as well , Sasmirel -
le's attack sur prises him on a roll of 15
on Id6. Sasmirella st rikes at t he charac-
ter and uses her gaze attack before
beginning to wea ve her ectoplasmic net .
I! the character's eompaniona rush to
his ai d, Sasmirella uses her second wail
attack (t he first was the wailing moan
the adventurers heard out on the moor l.
Everyone in range must ma ke a Saving
Throw VII. Spells or age 1040 years. See
the Dungeon Master. Companion. pages
32-33, for det ails on t he effect.s of a
haunt's aging at tack.
Sasmirella figh ts fiercely to defe nd
the entra nce to t he tomb, but if things
go badly against he r, she U8eA her final
wail attack and flees to t he Ethereal
Plane so that she may continue to
haunt t he moor.
Once the PCs defeat Sasmirelle lei -
ther dest royi ng he r or dr iving her om,
!five them the following informa t ion:
The top of the mound is relatively
flat , covered wit h t he t hick, coarse
grass common on t he moors. The
stone pillars are cracked a nd weet h-
ered, covered with brown and gray
lichen. None of them bear any di s-
ti ncti ve ma rk s.
If the PCs carefully search the area,
they ca n find a potion of ethereality and
a n emerald neck lace valued at 5,000 gp
cr aftily bidden in a clump of gr88S be-
aide one of t he standing stones. These
were gifts from Annakarr for Sasmirel-
la's service. The PCs may use the poti on
to send someone into the Ethereal Pla ne
to rescue a ny party me mbers ensnered
in Sasmirella's ectoplasmic net.
In the a pproximate center of t he bar-
row top. a gaping hole plunges down
into darkness. Thrchlight at the mouth
of this 4'-diameter bole reveals a rough
tunnel desce nding into the barrow at a
DUNGEON 13
TARFIL'S TOMB
SOOangle. The sides of the tunnel are of
loose. damp earth, making descent by
anyone without climbing ability sheer
(ally. The earth-walled tunnel see ms to
go down for 8' before passing through fi '
ofj agged rock . Past this point, the tun-
ne l a ppears to open into a cha mber of
indiscernible proport ions. Those peering
down into the darkness ca n make out
jumbled st one blocks 20'25' below.
Infr avision provides even less i nforme.
tion, showing only t hat all belo w is cold
and motionless. A light spell sho ws the
PCa little more . Dropping a torch Of
similar light source briefly illuminates
the layer of stone that forms the ceiling
and then the jumbled blocks on t he floor
before it is quickly extinguished in a
dark pool of water on the floor of the
chamber.
By attaching a rope to one of the
standing stones, the PCa should have
little trouble climbing down into the
cha mber bel ow.
I . Ent ry Chambe r. The followin g
description should be given to the play-
ers when their characters enter the
barrow:
You stand in a damp, domed chamber
approximately 20' in diameter a nd
12' high at its highest point . The
floor is earth, and a small pile of
jumbled stone blocks lie s in a shal-
low pool of water be neath the ga ping
hole in the ceiling. Small wooden
doors wit h ornate bronze hinges face
north and east. To the south, a 5'
wide by 5' high passage slants up-
ward. The northern door is locked
with a shiny metal padlock of unu-
sua l design, having two keyholes.
The western portion ofthe cha mber
is shrouded in impenetrable
darkness.
Deathly si lence commands t he
barrow, except for the occasional soft
tap of water falli ng into the pool
from the outside.
The darkness hid ing the western
quarter of t he chamber from view is
ca used by a conti nual da rkness spell .
Annakarr cast this spe ll to hide t hose
who guard the entry into the barrow.
Aft er the PCs ha ve had a moment to
glance around the room, Annakarr's
two guardia ns step out fro m t he
shadows of the spell. The two guardians
a re bone golems, each wi th four swords.
80n(' gole ms (2): AC 2; HO 6* ; hp 54,
14 Issue No. 27
50; IKf4; Omg by weapon type; MV
120' (40'); ML 12; AL N; XP 500; ERiSO
(Golem). These creatures may each
attack up to two opponents and are
immune to fir e. cold, and electrical
attacks.
If the PCs di spel the darkness. they
can see a small, wooden door identical
to the ones facing north and east. But
t he door in the western wall stands half
open. There is nothing of value in this
chamber.
Aft er t he pa rty defeats the bone go-
lems, the adventurers hear the faint
howl of a lone wolf out on t he moor.
Thoughts of Sergei out on the moor
alone may creep ecroee t heir minds.
2. Original Entrance/Dead End.
This short passage sla nts noticeably
upward and ends in a wall of rough rock
set with now-dusty mortar. If the PCs
spend a few min utes removing blocks
from the wall . they find a small metal
chest shoved into a narrow hole in the
eart he n wall behind the rock . If the PCs
show even the sli ghtest incenti ve in
st udying the chest, t hey real ize that it
does not show a ny si gns of age or decay.
It hardly seems possibl e that it could
have been placed here 2,000 years ago.
The space in which the chest is
crammed, however. is too small to open
the lid, so the cheKt must be removed to
open it.
Behi nd the chest , coiled in t he dark,
lie three pit vipers. Unless the PCs are
specifically watching (or something
behind t he chest , t hey are automati-
cally surprised by the serpents lashing
out as the chest is being lowered to the
ground.
Pi t vipt"rtil(31: AC 6; HO 2- ; hp 12, 10,
15; 'AT 1 bi te ; Omg I ..... plus poison ; MV
90' 130'); Save Fl ; ML 7; AL N; XP 25;
BD;37 (Snake).
The starving vi pers have bee n
crammed in t he hole for several days
now and want only to ma ke a ha st )'
escape. The snakes st rike out from the
hole at t he first opport uni ty, then t ry to
make a break for the ent ry chamber as
they cont inue to st ri ke at anyone t hey
pass. Serpents that are cornered will
continue to st ri ke unti l slai n.
Once the vi pers are dealt wit h, the
PCs can get on with exami ni ng the
chest, which was put here by Annakarr
to di stract and harm the unwary. It is
locked and t r apped with a poison needle
(Sa ve vs . Poison to avoid death in 25
rounds ).
The chest is filled with a dozen large
rocks and a batch of yellow mold that ,
after being jostled around as the PCs
lowered t he chest to the ground, bursts
forth a huge cloud of spores that fills
the ent rance.
Yellow mold: AC not applica ble; HD
2- ; hp 14; IKf spores ; Omg 1-6 plus
choking spores; MV 0' ; Save F2; ML not
applicable; AL N; XP 25; BD/39.
3. weeeern Tomb. This room a nd the
e ntire lengt h of passage leading to it ,
incl uding part of the ent ry chamber
(area l ], are under the effects of a con-
tinual darkneee spell . As the PCs battle
the bone golema in the ent ry chamber,
the creatures within this room a re eet -
ting up their trap.
lfthe PCs dispel the magical darkness
80 that they can vie w the contents of
t his chamber. they see the foll owing:
The narrow passage beyond the
small door is short a nd slcpee gently
downward. At its end is a domed
chambe r sli ghtly smaller t han the
cha mbe r t hrough which you e nter ed
t he barrow. In the center of the
cha mber are two stone slabs, each
about 6' long, 3' wide, and 2' high.
Upon each of these slabs lies the-
dusty re mains of a body dressed in
ta ttered clot h. The corpses wear
ancient-looking tar nished bronze
breastplates, and their heads a re
covered by great he lmets. warped
and decayed shields cover their feet.
and each clasps a short bronze sword
at hi s breast. All around t he cham-
be r lie huge vases a nd ur ns , rotting
chests, and several a ncient weapons .
Straddling the sto ne biers is a n
inky figure: a stunted, vicious-
looki ng man-thing wit h an evil grim-
ace a nd long bony c1aws. Th rough
t he creature, ) 'OU can vaguely make
ou t the far wall of t he room.
As you look upon this horrifying
s ight, a wispy. chilli ng mist begins to
swirl about t he room.
Th is room currently houses a motley
band of undead, followers of Annakarr.
The creature straddling the sto ne slabs
is a n apparit ion that , to Anna karr's
glee, had been hauntinl{ t he ba rrow for
several decades and was qui te willing to
join the pa triarch. Annakarr qui ckl y
put the appari tion in command of the
rest of hi s undead entourage. Hiding
behind and beneath the vari ous con-
TARFIl'S TOMB
TARFIL'S BARROW
o
6
tents of the tomb are the tortured souls
who were attracted to (or doomed within)
Annakarr's Temple of Chaos . These crea-
tures include eight wights and two
wraiths, one of which (hp 25) hides in a
huge wn near the doorway. putting him
behind the party if they enter the room.
The two figures lying on the slabs are
mummies, ready to rise to the attack.
Ap parition: AC 0; HD 10 " ; bp 53;
' AT 2 claws; Dmg 3-813-8; MV 180' (50 ';
Save ML 10: AL C: XP 3.000;
CD/35 (Ph a ntom).
Wigbts (8): AC 5; HD 3-; hp 20 ( x 2).
18.17,16,15,14 ( )(2); 'AT 1: Omg
energy drain; MV 90' (30'); Save F3; ML
12; ALC; XP 50; 6DI39.
Wrait h f2r. AC 3; HD 4; hp 30, 25;
' AT 1; Dmg 1-6 plus energy drain; MV
120' (40'), fiyi ng: 240' (BO'); Save F4; ML
12; AL C: XP 175; ERi57 .
Mummjes (2): AC 3; HD 5 + 1" ; hp
33,25; 'AT llouch; Dmg 1-12 plus
disease; MV 60' (20'); Save F5; ML 12;
AL C; XP 575; ERl54. Donot Iorger
thei r paral yzin g fea r effects.
As th e party ente rs t his room, the
apparition begins t he creation of its
deadly mi st, wh ich will fill t he chamber
and a good portion of the entry hall
within one round (maximum extent : 10'
hi gh , 20' radius) . Everyone wit hi n the
room or several feet into t he ent ry t un -
nel mu st mak e a Savi ng Throw va.
Spells or be entranced, standi ng he lp-
less before the swa r m of undead. Th ese
remai ni ng within the mist must save
each round until the mi st va nis hes in
12 rounds. As soon as at least one PC is
entranced, the apparition materializes
and a ttack the helpl ess adve nt urer.
When t he apparit ion materia lizes, t he
mummies sit up from t he slabs and t he
wights a nd wr a iths r ise up fro m the ir
hiding places amon g t he shadows and
debris.
The undead will not pursue t he party
beyond t he door of the chamber. Shoul d
t he PCs venture into the room under
the effect of t he magical darkness , t he
undead attack will come in much the
same fas hion bu t wit hout t he t heatrics
and the PC's knowledge of their fate!
The room is fil led with rotting chests
and large clay vessels , all filled wi th
long-decayed foodstuffs and molderi ng
garments. The remains of an ancient
chariot stand a mong the wrec kage.
Upon the wall hang six crossed battle
axes of a viciousl y hooked design, and
fro m one of these hangs a sil ver key on
a leather thong. This is one of the two
1 square" S'
Darkness s pell
Trap ped area
keys t hat are required to open t he spe-
cial padl ock to t he norther n tomb. On
t he floor beneath t he battle axes si ts a
chest that contains the skulls of eight of
t he gnol l.beastmen.
If a party member carefully searches
around the stone biers, he notices that
the earthen floor of the chamber has
bee n disturbed near the head end of the
southern slab. If the slab is pushed
aside or overturned (requir ing a com-
bi ned strength of 50 or more), the ad -
vent urers discover the monsters'
t r easure cached in a small hol e. The
following items are located there: a
2
N
j
---
Entry hole
I

I
sma ll elect rum wolfs-head brooch
(worth 1,000 gpr. a pla in platinum arm
band (worth 2.000 gpr. an ornate gold
a nd platinum crown, crafted in the for m
of intertwined oak leaves (worth 10,000
gp); a wand of magic (20
charges); a scroll of creation; and three
potions (green dragon control., undead
control , ant idote).
4. Eastern Tomb. ITsomeone in the
party successfully listens at the door to
this tomb. he hears faint, deep-throated
laughter. After the PCs open the door,
describe the following scene to them:
DUNGEON 15
TARFIL'STOMB
From the doorway, torchlight flickers
on the walls of the short passage that
slopes down into a chamber of indis-
cernible size. Harsh voices and vul -
gar laughter echo up from the room
below.
When the party has traveled the short
corridor, give the Pes the following
description;
Twc smolde ring torches illuminate a
chamber somewhat smaller than the
entry area. The center of the room
contains three stone slabs upon
which sit four brutish warriors with
shaggy hair and wild eyes . All the
warriors are clad in plaid kilts and
leather vests.
The center of attention seems to be
the largest of the warriors, every bit
of 7' tall. who is sitting on the cen -
tral slab, holding up a giant rat by
its tail . and teasing it with the point
of a dagger. Two warriors are sitting
on the northern slab, each with a
battl e axe in hand and a bastard
sword nearby. The fourth warrior sits
on the southern slab, toying with a
two-handed sword. A second sword is
strapped to his back.
If t he PCs draw any attention to
themselves when they look into this
room, t he la rgest warrior looks up fro m
his sport. " 1grow ti red of battling ro-
dents . Are t here any among ye wort hy
of a fight?" he challenges. With that he
hur ls t he r at at the PCs and grabs two
hefty maces from beside him on t he
stone bier. This is the signal for all four
warriors to leap to the attack with
bloodcurdli ng screams.
The four warriors are actually mujina
mercenaries hi red by Annakarr. The
mujina fight ferociously and will pursue
a weakened party to the ha rrow top if
the PCs leave them some means by
which to climb out.
Mujinll (4 ): AC 4; HD 8 ; hp 58, 50,
45,43; 'AT 2 weapons plus special;
Dmg by weapon type plus fear; MV 120'
140'); Save F8; ML 9; AL C; XP 1,750;
CD!34.
The only items of value in this room
are carried by the monsters. Of the two
armed with sword and axe, one wears a
jewell ed arm band valued at 3.000 gp,
a nd the other has a pouch containing
five gems O ,ooo gp ( )(21, 500 gp ( X 2),
100 gpl. The third mujina has a bag of
16Issue No. 27
holding that contains 5,000 gp in gold
coin , plate, and bars. The largest of the
group bears the second key required to
open the north door in area 1. This key
is gold and is strung on II leather thong
around his neck. Hi s dagger is a dQRjler
+2/ + 4 vs. undead.
5. Antechamber. As mentioned ear-
lier, the door to this chamber is locked
by a very powerful and quasi -magical
padlock. The lock was crafted by a long.
dead dwarflike race. and the knowledge
and power to make such II lock is now
lost .
This lock has two keyholes and can be
opened only with the two keys foundin
areas 3 and 4. Without theS(' keys. en-
trance to 'Iarfil's tomb is impossible.
Besides, if the PCs are too weak to de-
feat Annakarr's hencbcreeturee and
attain possession of the keys, how could
they possibly hope to overcome the
beings behind this door?
The lock is immune to any thief's
attempt to pick it. although trying to do
so has no ill effects. This special padlock
empowers whatever it locks (in this case
the door, hi nges, frame, and allJ with
the equivalent of 750 hp of resiliency.
This st rength is by no means perma-
nent. It is in effect only while the lock is
a ttached and properly fastened. In addi -
tion, t he lock is immune to the effects of
kfl(}('k spells and any other magics ex-
cept a unsh: As said before, only the two
keys may open t he lock. If someone
decides to take t he lock, it may he sold
for 5,000 gp or more if t he right buyer
can be found. Those interested in such a
lock include wealthy nobles and mer-
chants, dwar ven craftsme n of great
skill, and powerful mages. Of course,
the powers of t he lock are not reproduc -
ible , nor are copies of its keys. If not h-
ing else, it could provide an adventurer
with a very safe way of protecting hi s
valuables, providing that he doesn't
mis place t he keys.
Once the lock is open, the door swings
open easily. When the PCs enter the
chamber beyond, read the following to
the players:
The room beyond the padlocked door
is dimly illuminated by two lanterns
whose wicks have been trimmed very
low. Youstand on the landing of a
short flight of stairs that leeds down
to the floor 10' below. The oval -
shaped room is 15' wide and 20' long,
with a 20high ceiling. Hovering in
the center of the room near the fa r
end, about 10' off the floor, is a
scaled, sphere-shaped creat ur e ap-
proximately 4' in di ameter, with a
Raping maw, one huge eye, and a
multitude of short stalks sprouti ng
in a ring around its top.
The grinning monstrosity is a be-
holder who has allied itself with Anne-
karr to further its own twisted ends .
Annakarr placed it here to act as a final
defense against any intrusion in his
work.
Beholde r- AC 0I2f1; HD II ... ; hp
501'20112; 'AT 1 bite plus special ; Dmg
216 plus special; ~ 30' nO' ); Save
MUll ; ML 12; ALC; XP5.IOO; CD.'28.
The monster immediatel y attacks
anything that enters the room. The
monster tries to hold a position in the
center of the room, about 10' or 12' off
the floor, and uses as many of its eyes as
possible agains t the intruders. If the
beholder's safety appears severely
threatened, and if someone attempts to
parley, it may offer to allow the party to
pass in excha nge for 5,000 gp in gems or
two scrolls or potions. If the party ac-
cepts such terms, the beholder asks that
t he items be put in a pouch or sack. It
then takes up the parcel in its mouth
and leaves the tomb. The beholder cer -
tainly doesn't feel it owes Annakarr its
life .
This room is filled with chests, coffer s,
and urns, most of which are bri mming
over with copper and silver (30, 000 cp
and 19,000 sp ). There is also one large
urn contai ning 2,000 gpoA rack of
weapons, containing mostly rusted
spears, swords, and axes, stands against
the west wall. One spear, however, bears
no sign of its age except the ancient
carvings engraved in its haft. It is a
spear +3, returni ng.
6. Terftl' s 'Iomb. Beyond the ante-
chamber guarded by the "sphere of
many eyes" lies the final (?) rest ing
place of Tarfil. warlord of the ancient
1'raldar. Double doors covered with
bronze plate bar e nt ry to the chamber
in whi ch Annakarr and his minions
work the spe ll to bi nd Tarfil's soul to
their evi l will. Eu:hed into the hronze of
the doors are runes i n the tongue of
ancient Traldar t hat read: " Herei n lies
Thrfi l Thrfun's son, who fell glorious in
battle and rests i n everlast ing peace
amongst t he gods." Car ved in bas-relief
on ei t her aide of the portal are stone
figures. warr-iors in horse-tail-plumed
helmets. holding short swords a t atten-
tion before t heir breastplates. The bolt
to the door s is unfastened, but the doors
themselves have been enchanted with a
hold portal spell. cast at II th level.
If the PCs have no magical means to
pass beyond these doors. it "ill require
200 hp of damage to destroy the doors
by hammer and axe, though axes used
will be qu ickly blunted by t he bronze
plating a nd severe ly i mpa ired for use in
battle. If someone successfully listens at
the doers, he ca n hear a monotonous
cha nti ng. As the party member listens,
t he cbant begins to increase in intensity
and pitch. Shortly thereafter. the sound
becomes diecerneble by everyone in the
antechamber. The spell being cast
within is a pproachi ng its cl imax.
Even if the PCs must break down the
doors. the chanting will continue. Anna-
karr is too close to his goal to stop now.
When t he adventurers enter the room.
either by over power ing the magics on
the doors or by battering their way
through. give them the following
description:
The room beyond the bronze doors is
smoky and dimly lit by several lan-
terns and two large candelabra hold-
ing thick black candles. The oval
chamber is 30' long and 20' wide.
Five feet inside the doors. wide stone
steps lead down 3' to a lower level of
the floor. The ceiling height is a p-
proximately 12' where you stand and
15' on the main floor.
Standing at the top of the st airs are
three grossly fat. grim-faced men,
each bearing a huge pole axe raised
menacingly above his head. The fat
men are dressed in leather jerkins
and breeches, but are dirty and reek
of filth. On each of their faces you
can see an ev il leer. their teeth seem-
ing almost tusklike in the dim light.
Beyond these monsters, six bu.
mans stand chanting in a half circle
around an open sarcophagus, their
attention fixed upon a maroon-robed
man holding aloft a blood-red candle
in one hand and an ancient tome in
the ot her. Above the sareophagua, a
swir li ng. sickly green mist is rapidly
forming. Another man, dressed in
long robes covered in glyphs. is ges-
turing dramat ically. J ust as you
enter, a wall of translucent ice forms
at the foot of the stairs. shoot ing up
toward the ceiling and sealing off
most of the chamber.
Regardless of how long the PCs ha ve
spent elsewhere in the barrow. they
enter Tarfil 's tomb just as the spell of
binding nears success. The three crea-
tures at the door are dev il swi ne who
have been enl isted by Annakarr to fight
for Chaos.
De vil swine (3): AC 3 (9); HD 9"; hp
46,45.42; IAT 1 gore or weapon; Dmg
TARFIl'S TOMB
212 or by weapon type; MV ISO' (60' \.
human form 120' 140'); Save F9: ML 10;
AL C; XP 1,600; ER/48.
When the party enters the room, the
devil swi ne are in human form. but
each round thereafter one of the swi ne
drops to the floor and transforms into a
huge hog. Each devil swi ne may make
up to three speci al charm pertroll attacks
per day, with t he victim saving at -2.
The man in the glyph-embroidered
robes is Cargilon Darkbringer, a wizard
who has been watching the PC. through
a crystal ball since they entered the
barrow. Knowing that they were about
DUNGEON 17
TARfIl'STOMB
to enter t he chamber. he began casting
a wall of ice spell to prevent the party
from disrupting t he incantation.
Car gilon Darkbringf'r: AC 1 (with
r in g and shield); MU 11; hp30; 'AT 1;
Dmg by spell or wea pon t ype; MV 120'
(40'); Save MUll; ML 10; AL C; I 17;
XP 2,700. Cargilon possesses a dalUfer
+2, a crystal ball, a ring ofprotection
+3, and a potion of healing. He has just
finished imbibing a potion of sight and
casting shield and det ect invisible spells
on himself. as well as cas t ing the wall of
ice spell and a protec tive spell on Anna.
kar the Conquerer (see following ).
Cargilon has the following spells memo-
rized: charm fWrson. magic missile ( x 2),
i nvisibility, eominual dar/mess, web,
fireball. lightning bolt. confus ion, poly-
morph other; [eeblem ind, teleport.
Gathered. around the sarcophagus are
Anna karr a nd his followers . For nearly
a fort night t hey ha ve worked in shifts,
two or three a t a time, invo king the
powers of Chaos lo bind Thrfil's soul.
Wh ile not chant ing the incantation,
they prayed , ale, and slept , never Ieav-
ing the lomb. As Tarfll 's spirit began lo
weaken , t hey gradually increased the
intensity of t heir chant until all seven
of them joined in 20 hou rs ago, focus ing
their combi ned power agai nst the Tr a la-
dar wa rl ord. Now the five lesser clerics
are exhaust ed, not being powerful
enough t o sustai n t heir physi cal
st rengt h, a nd have a ga unt look about
t hem. Lodigris the Wicked, a Chaotic
lama converted to Ann akarr's bel iefs
long ago, has retai ned much of his
st rengt h due t o hi s fa ith. Still , only
Annakarr bears no sign of physica l
st r a in, having drawn a gr eat deal of his
power directl y from t he Thme of Bind-
ing Souls, a powerful reli c of Chaos.
Lesser cl erics ot Chaos (31: AC 3;
C3 ; hp 15, 12, 10; ' AT 1; Dmg by
wea pon type; 60' (20') fr om exheus-
tion a nd encumbrance; Save C3; 11;
AL C; XP 50 . These cle rics wear plate
mail beneat h t hei r robes, a nd each is
a rmed wit h a mace + 1. Although their
weakened condi t ion has no effect on
t hei r combat abilities due to their rel i-
gious fa naticism. none of them has the
power left lo cast spells. Each wea rs a
plati num chai n worth 200 gpo
Elders ot Ch a os (2): AC 2; C6 ; hp 32 ,
25; 'AT 1; Dmg by spell or weapon type;
l\.1V 60 ' (20 ') from exhaustion and en-
cumbra nce ; ML 11; AL C; W 16; XP
725. Tbeee men a re not quit e as drained
as their lesser bret hren. and they still
18Issue No. 27
have t he a bility lo cast BOrne spells . The
st ronger of t he pair wears plalemail + l
a nd bears a staff ofst riking wit h 20
charges. He has a cause light wounds
and a fear spell available. The other
wea rs plate mail a nd a ring ofprotection
+I , carries a snake staff and ca n cast
cause light uounds and hold person
spells. These men each wear large gold
holy symbols {Chaotic, valued at 1.000
gp apiece.
Lodigris the Wicked, lama of ChaOll:
AC 1; C8; hp 36 ; 'AT 1; Dmg b)' spell or
weapon type; MV 60' 120'); Sa ve C8 ;
11; AL C; S 16. W 17; XP 1,750. Lodi
+2, a rrJan' +3, a nd
a potion of giant strength. He also has
t he following spells at hi s disposal:
l ight. hold person. silenCE' 15' radius,
poison. finger ofdeath. Lodigr'ie has a
ruby nec klace valued at 900 gp and a
key to the iron chest near the back of
the chamber.
Annakarr the Conqueror. patri a rch
of Chscs: AC - 2; C13; hp 50; 'AT 1;
Dmg by spell or weapon type; MV 50'
120' ); Save C13; ML 12; AL C; t 17, W
18, C 16; XP 3,250. Annakarr wears
plate ma il o{gasoous form +3 and
wields a mace of slowi ng +3. He also
wea rs a ring o{ spell tu rning a nd is
under t he effect of a prot ection fro m
normal missiles spell recently cast upon
him by Cargi lon Darkbrtngen Anne.
karr ha s t he foll owing spells available:
cause {ear ( X 2), cure light ioounds ( X3),
hold person ( x 3), bl"ss, bliRht. continual
dark ness ( )( 2); curse ( x 2), poison, cure
serious WOUTl cls, cause serioue wounds,
cure critical wou nds r x 2), barrier r x2).
An nakarr wears a jewelled penda nt
worth 5,000 gp and four fi nger ri ngs
va lued at 1,200 gp, 500 gp, 250 gp, and
50 gpo ' The Conqueror' is Annakarr's
self-given (a nd somewhat pre ma ture)
ti tl e.
The r ound after t he PCsenter t he
chamber, the t hree lesser pr iest s br eak
off from the inca ntation, as it is in its
final stages and they are no longer
needed for its completion. As soon as
t he u'all of in' is dest royed. t hey rush
t he party. On the follo wing round. the
two Elders break off as well , a s does
Lodigrie on the round thereafter. Once
the PCs hue entered the chamber, the
only way to reverse the spell befor e its
complet ion is b)' slaying Annakarr, an
occurrence hi s foll owers are willi ng to
give their lives to prevent.
For the first three rounds, the PCs
rna)' not ice that the green mi st is t hick -
ening, swi rling with greater and
greater intensit y. On the fourth round it
takes t he form of a man, emanating a
lumi nous green lig ht that floods the
chamber with an unwholesome emerald
hue. Floating above the sarcophagus.
the spirit appears just as described by
Iva n Sumanov, with the presence and
bearing of a man who in life possessed
great strength and a powerful personal
aura.
As he takes sha pe, 'Iarfil looks a t the
PCs, a nd upon hi s face they may see a
look of tragic sorrow, as though t he
spir it already felt grea t remorse for the
"Tongs he must commit a gainst human-
ity. But as the advent u rers continue to
battle the minions of Annaka rr. a dre-
matic cha nge comes over t he counte-
nance of the spirit that WB.'1 'Iarfil
Thrfun's son. The look of SOITOW shi fts to
a menacing grimace, a nd evil seems to
permeate the a ir of the chamber, magni -
fied by t he sickening emerald glow.
Annakarr speaks words of great
power. On round five after the party's
entrance, the Traldar ghost ra ises his
spear and charges t he strongest looking
warrior in the party. running across the
a ir as though it were soft turf. From
t his point on (r ound six and beycndj,
Annaka rr is also free tojoi n t he melee.
Spirit or Tarfll, warlord of a ncie nt
Tral der: AC - 2; HD 14; hp 75; IAT 2;
Dmg 4141414; MV 120' (40'): Save F14 ;
ML 12; AL C; XP 3,500.
'Iarfil a ppears much as he di d i n life.
dressed in t he helmet , breas t pl ate , a nd
gr eaves of his ancient civili zat ion and
ca rry ing his gr eat spear a nd leathered
wa rboard. The fighter whom Tarfil 's
spi r-it has marked for single comba t
must make a Saving Throw vs. Spells
every round or be affected as if by a {par
spell. 'Iarfll ignore s all ot hers until th e
one he has challenge d lies sla in. (Ot her
Pes who attack Tarfil a t this time need
not make Saving Throwa.l
All t he agents of Chaos in this room
fight to t he best of t heir abili ties. using
spells aggressi..-ely and sparing no mag-
ica l items. Annakarr has come too far i n
his grand scheme a nd wi ll not see it
ruined now by a handful of would-be
heroes.
In order to cont rol 'Iarfil. Annakarr
must stay a live and retain possession of
t he Thmt' ofBinding 8014111. He fights
with the book grasped in one hand and
hi s mace in the other. Should anyone
manage to wrest the book from Anna -
karr. the spell is broken. Tr ea t such an
TOMB
a ttempt as a wrestling attack {Pw.vers
Companion. pages &71, giving Ann a-
ka rr t he initiative to strike first with
his mace each ti me (he has a wrestling
r ati ng of lOt Th take t he book a way
requires beating Anna karr by 10 or
more on a wrestling roll . lfthe PC beats
Annakarr by less than 10, however, he
needs best Annakarr by only 8 on his
next attempt. provided that Annakarr
does not hit the PC with hi s mace before
the PC attempts his next wrestling roll.
Should the tome betaken from Anna-
kerr, 18rfil's spir it howls with deli ght .
Tarfil immediately attacks Anna karr,
ignoring hi s previous opponent. Anna-
karr fight,., back desperately, but be no
longer ha s a ny magical power over the
spirit and is no match for Thrfil in bat-
tle. Upon the death of Annakarr,
whether by Thrfil's spear or at t he
hands orthe PCs. Tarfil's shade fades
away. looking extremely satisfied a nd
smiling at t he PCs, eve n if they are still
engaged with Annakarr's followers.
Should the spell be broken a nd all
The Tome of Bi ndi ng Souls
Bound in demon hide, this it em is a
small, thick book roughly hi gh,
wide, and thick, It st rongly radio
atee a pulsing a ur a of evil, noti ceable
even without magi cal detection. It s
worn pages of thin flesh a re covered
with st r a nge sigi ls a nd glyphs. Merely
looki ng at the tome's evil writings will
ca use a ny non -Chaotic being to take
3 18 hp electri cal damage and make a
Savi ng Throw vs. Spells or go insane.
The form that this insanity takes is
left for the OM to decide. but requir es
t he cas t ing of a cureail spell by a cleric
of 18th level or hi gher to dis pel. Any
non-Chaoti c be ing who retains the
book i n hi.s possession for mor e t han
t hree days will suffer from a vile rot -
ting di sease, as t hat ca used by a
mummy, wit h no save allowed. The
curi ng of this effect requi res t he cast-
ing of a cure disease spell, also by a
cleric of 18th or hi gher level.
The tome is a relic t hat contains the
knowledge and power to ensnare the
soul of a deceased bei ng a nd bind it to
one's will. The ca ptured soul manifests
itself in a form similar to that of a
ghost, except that its hit dice are equal
to that whi ch It possessed in life . This
spn-it -ghost is compl etel y under the
pcwer of the tome's user.
three ofthe higher.level cler ics slain,
Anna karr'a minions run for the surface,
hoping to esca pe with t heir lives. On ly
Lodigris will give no quarter, fighting to
the last. If, of the high-level clerics, only
Lodigris lives, he attempts to rally the
other human clerics . Cargilon will cast
a continual darkness spell and flee by
teleporting away should the battle look
hopeless.
HTarfil's spirit is banished and the
Chaotic priests are being soundly
beaten, Annakarr screams curses at the
PCs and vows to hunt them down along
with their families and friends to see
that they all die horrible deaths. Then,
screaming hysterically for his minions
to slay the PCs in the name of Chaos,
Annakarr t ransforms into a g asf'OUS
cloud and flees the barrow, determined
to someday be avenged.
Near the rear of the chamber is a small
locked iron chest, to which Lodigria has
the key. It is trapped with four poisoned
darts and contains a clerical 9CI'01I with
t hree spell s (raiM dead fully, T'E'1lWre,
The tome is wTi.tten in an arc ha ic
form of the Chaotic ali gn me nt lan-
guage and can be fully understood only
by a Chaotic cleric of at least 10t h
level, although such a cleric ma y then
pass on some of t hi s knowled ge to
others. These followers can then add
their power to t he cleric's own to in-
crease the st re ngt h of the incantation .
The cas ti ng of the inca nt ation re-
quires that the spell be cas t over the
remains of the soul's former body, a nd
that the cast er know t he spir it's na me.
Success of t he inca ntation begins at 8
base 1% chance, roll ed once ever) 12
hours of the incantation. This cha nce is
modified b)' t he followi ng: For every
level ofthe spirit, subt ract 2%, For
every level of the caster (and t hose of
any assistants chanting at t he sa me),
add 1'l. Lastl y, add 1% for each 12
hour period in which t he incantation
has been in pr ogress.
Should t he i nca ntation be inter-
ru pted or halted at any t ime, all prog
ress made to t ha t point is lost, and a ny
new attempts to ensnare the soul begin
at the base l 'l chance again. Also,
should a 99'l- or greater lunmodifiedl
chance be rolled in any ensnaring
attempt, the soul el udes his pursuers
tfell hounds from the Abyss) a nd
breaks the spell's hold. This has the
curroll) and 1,000 pp. This is Annakarr's
"traveling money." Also in the chamber
are several chests partially filled with
rations, and three casks, one containing
wine andtwo filled with water. All the
casks have been broached, but the food
and water are palatable andthe wine is
exceptionally good..
Leaving the Barrow
When the PCs finally exit the barrow,
they are greeted by a pale dawn, the
yellow sun just peeking ove r the eastern
mountains. ThthE' west, they see Sergei
leading their st ri ng of horses along th e
small brook. He stops at the base of the
mound, saying, I knew that ye
were successful, for the dark clouds that
have hung over the land for weeks sud-
denly boiled and churned and raced
away to the south, leaving behind thi s
beautiful dawn. I deem you ha ve done a
great thing for Traladara today."
ContJrtueo 0tI page 38
same effect as brea king off the
inca ntatio n.
Once ensnared, however, there is
little hope for t he spir it , as the power
ofthe tome quickly binds it to a mate-
rial form from which escape occurs
onl y when its new form is destroyed or
when t he caster loses cont rol of t he
tome . This doesn't mean tha t t he
caster must sleep with t he tome
clutched t o his brea st , but it does re-
quire t ha t t he book always be in a
place of t he caster's choosi ng and
accessible to hi m.
Should t he caster lose cont rol of t he
tome, t he spi rit becomes free to direct
all its energies toward the deat h of its
ca ptor, attacki ng unti l dest royed or the
caster is kill ed, at which poi nt the
spirit is allowed to return to its final
plane of existence.
The tome is immune to normal and
most magical destruction, such as
burni ng or ri pping. It must be de-
stroyed by some special means, such as
being thrown into a part ieular volcano,
perhaps on the Elemental Plane of
Fire, or by immersion in the acidic
blood of some huge a ncient black
dragon, The particular means of the
tome's destruction are left to the OM
and could provide an exciting and
dangerous quest.
DUNGEON 19
Continued from page 2
detail help you set an atmosphere, or
does it simply take up space?
Some other items on the garners' wish
lists were: mini adventures (we've
started a new section for this); guide-
lines for awarding experience points
(we've added XP as a statistic for eac h
"bad guy; ' but we coul d be doing more
to re ward good role-playing); solo adven-
t ur es (we' ve probably discuased this to
death); one-on-one ad ven tures (I' ll pri nt
them if you' ll write t hem); low-level a nd
high-level ad vent ures (mostly I get
modules for levels 3-8).
Did t he convention pa rt icipant s reo
Ilect your views . or are there other
items on your "wish list ,. for
DUNGEON Adventures? Write and let
me know.
This issue's quote was sent in by Dan-
iel B. Cordez of Little Neck. New 'ark.
n
Mail from the Gulf
Dear Dungeon,
I have a sa d story to tell you. A few of
my friends and I have been depl oyed
to Saudi Arabia, part of the I st Ma-
r ine Expeditionary Force. Unfortu.
nately, we didn't bring any gaming
materials with us . Would you please
(pretty please) print my address in
your magazine. wa nted' Any
garners interested in running a pen -
pal game for a few who a re in
Saudi Arabia, please write'
Semper Fi!
Cp . Don W. Petersen
Co. " A" 3rd AA
HQPLT
FPO San Fra ncisco, Cali fornia
96608-5522
Fm sure Don and his buddies wouW
like to near from any of our readers,
t'uen if you can 't help run a Rome by
mail. Eeen a postcard would surely be
ureieame.
38 Issue No. 27
Continued Irom page 19
Shortly thereaftt.r, as the mounted
PCs near the edge of the barrow
grounds, they see a lone figure standing
near a small t ree beside the bank of the
stream. Sunlight reflects otTthe war-
rior's bronze armor and the plumed
helmet he holds in the crook of his arm.
A great shield and spear lean against
the tree.
" Greeti ngs, heroes," the warrior says.
"I have been granted thi s bri ef st ay on
your world to give you my thanks."
Tartil then moves to each member of the
party and gently lays a hand upon hi s
shoulder. 1b the living, his touch has
the effect of a double st rengt h restore
spell, or a cureat t spell for anyone who
has lost no experience level s. If any
members of the party died in the bar-
row, Tarti!'s touch will raise dead fully.
After he ha s touched each party memo
ber, Thrfi l places his hand upon Sergei's
shoulder, saying, " Guide well, traveler,"
and gives Sergei a &Carob ofprotectio n.
Any other character who lost no levels
and needed no curi ng will also receive a
scarab of prot ection.
Ha ving said his thanks, Tarfi l bows to
the party, lakes up his spear and shield,
and says, " Farewell , adventurers. May
you all find high places a mongst the
gods!" With that, Thrfilleaps away,
running at fir st across the moor, then
gradually up into t he sky. Wit h a brief
flash of light, the ancient warrior disap-
pears from t he mortal world.
Concluding the Adventure
If the PCs destroy Annakarr and his
followers and obtain the Thme of Bind-
ing Sou ls , they must decide what to do
with th e book. Annakarr's other fol-
lowers (t hose he left behind at hi s
st ro nghold in the mountains ) will scat-
tered without his guidance. but t he
may decide to have some vengeful lieu-
tenant learn of his leader's demise and
plague the party at a later time. The
escape of Car gi lon Darkbringer wi ll
have little effect on the party, as he was
si mply a hired rogue mage and will not
consider the party members as enemies
should the)' meet again.
If Lodigris or the two elders esca pe
after t he party's success, they wil! even-
tually seek ret ributi on. But the esca pe
of Annakarr will be of most concern to
the party, as he meant every threat he
uttered when he fled the barrow. All
thoughts of conquest wi ll be set aside in
his desire for revenge, and Annakarr
will spare none of his diverse resources.
including several spies based in Kelvin.
If the PCs flee the barrow afttor failing
to defeat Annakarr, the)' ma y be asked
at a later time to help sta ve otTAnne-
karr'a undead army. Baron Kelvin may
as k them to lead a force of mercenaries
against Annakarr in battle on t he moor
or in the mou ntains. Or perhaps an
embarrassed Bishop Pyotrevich will
send them to Annakarr's mountai n
st ronghold to free Tartil at the request
of the Immortals.
If any of the PCs were captured by
Annakarr in the tomb, they are taken
back to the patriarch's stronghold for
sacrifice in the Templ e of Chaos as grato
itude for the mission's success. Thi s
leaves the defeated party some, albeit
bleak, hope of esca pe.
If the PCs successfully defeat Anna-
karr and return to Kel vin. there will be
no official recognition of their accom.
plishment un less they bring Annakarr
back in chai ns. However. should the
adventurers pass through Karameikos
again in tbe next year or two , they may
hear a Traladaran minstrel si ngi ng
a bout a noble band of heroes who
thwarted the aims of Chaos, deali ng
terrible justice upon an evil patriarch
named Annakarr the Despised. The
Karameikan nobility and prelacy may
have ignored the PCs achievements, but
with the help of a Traladaran com-
mone r named Sergei Mishev, word of
t he ir deeds has spread and been put to
song.
Many years later, Iva n Sumanov will
rise to wield much power in the Church
of Traladara, as he truly ha s been
marked for greatness by the Three
Immortals. Ivan will become a very
infl uential person in Kerameikce, a nd
thus a good person with whom to be on
fa vorable terms. Q
The Oops Pile
There is an error i n t he map of Caer
Thorne, Level Four, on page 58 of
issue 125. There shoul d be a sma ll
spiral stai rcase that gives access to
room 58. The placement oft hi s sta ir-
case ca n besee n i n room 47 on the
previous map (page 57).
".

' .
- v.
_ _____.J
A rest stop that's anything but
BYALLEN VARNEY
For this D&D'!: game mini-scenario, you need the Basic, Expert. and Companion
rules sets. It works best for 3-6 player characters of levels 46. This lighthearted,
low-threat encounte r can fill out a play session or lend color to an overland journey.
Though set on the border between Glaotri and th e Broken Lands in the D&D
Known World , it fit s easily int o any campaign.
For the Dungeon Master
Manden's Meathooks. a small band of 20 brigands (Expert Rulebook, page 53l,
scrounges a precar ious existence preying on goblins and human t raveler s at the
edges ofthe Broken Lands. Statistics for the brigands a ppear in the sidebar on the
opposite page.
Recently, J ask Manden and his fellow lowlifes happened to waylay a small band
of low-level adventurers . The br igands killed the party and stole t heir loot , then
saw an opportunit y in one of their new treasures: a hurricane lamp (Dungeon Mas-
ters Companion, page 53). For the last several days, they have worked an ambush
at rest stops along the Wizards' Road between Glantri City and the Broken Lands.
One evening, the PCs run afoul of that ambush.
Surprise and Theft
The PCs are traveling overland. As evening draws on, they encounter a st one shel-
ter in a clearing beside the road, an ordinary rest stop like many others on the
20 Issue No. 28
MAN
frontiers of Glantri . The ground around
the shelter is barren and choppy, sug-
gesting heavy traffic, but now the shel-
ter is vacant.
Try to avoid rousing th e players' sus-
picion s about th e shelter. Describe it as
a typical campsite, and stop there. Let
the PCs make camp. Then, as night
fall s, casually mention that there are
two shuttered lamps, neither lighted, on
pillars i n front of the shelter, one lamp
to either side.
Presumably the PCs light the lamps.
{If they don't, see "Tr oubleshooti ng.")
The first one they light is an ordinary
lamp. The second is the brigands' hurri-
cane lamp. Its assault should take t he
PCs by surprise: Sudden gust s blowout
the other lamp and the PCs' campfire,
jet s of water st ing li ke needles, and a
whirlwind of element al proportions
throws everyone within 30' to the
ground. Squinting against sheets of
dust and mud, the heroes realize why
t he dirt here looks so barren and
choppy!
Optional hurricane effects: In addi -
ti on to those listed in the Companion
rules, th e PCs may also experience the
following effect s. Even t hose who sue-
cessfull y Save vs. Spells are dizzy and
partly deafened by the lamp's wind.
Reduc e THACO and Dexter it y checks by
4 for three rounds.
On each of the three r ounds after t he
hurricane ends, each character's Dexter-
ity is reduced by 4. Also, characters who
want to act that round must make a
successful Dexterity check (t hat is, roll
their adjusted Dexterity scores or less
on Id20). Failure means t he victims fall
down and can do nothing that round.
The Theft
Three brigands wait in the bushes a
hundred yards from the re st stop. When
they hear the hurricane, they ru sh to
the clearing's edge and cr ouch low until
the wind stops. Then, whil e the vict ims
are disoriented as described above , the
brigands scoop up whatever supplies
they can find in the darkness, along
with the hurricane lamp. They make a
lot of noise, kick a few downed PCs in
the ribs, t hen run for it , laughing.
Each brigand, a [at-level fighter,
DEN'S MEATHOOKS
wears lea ther a rmor and carries a short
sword, a short bow, a qui ver of 16 ar-
rows, a nd a shield. Each also carries a
small iron hook, the emblem of t hei r
company (l hp damage). They fight
when cornered but prefer to run from
superior opposition. The brigands lead
pursuers t hrough the forest into an
ambush.
Troubleshooting: If the PCa don't
open the lamps, the brigands have a
second plan of (for them) remarkable
subtlety. One unarmed brigand ven-
tures out from the woods. calling, "Hey
there! I think I left eomethiu' hidden in
that shelter? Mind if I check?" The thug
develops this idea as necessary to either
get nea r the shelter and open the lamp,
or fool the PCs into doing it for him. If
t his rails, the bri gand t ur ns and runs,
hoping to lure t he PCs into t he a mbus h
below.
Pursuit into Ambush
In the trees, under excellent cover, wait
the Meat hook brigands: two I et-level
fighters for each PC, plus the three that
the PCs are following and one 2nd-level
lieutenant named 'Ibbias. The hidden
brigands attack from surprise, using
short bows. Because of their conceal,
ment, treat them as AC 2. Spell-c:asters
must succeed in an Intelli gence check to
spot t ar gets for t heir magic.
Tobias is a warty lout with bad breat h
and a worse atti t ude, but he's not dumb.
When he sees t ha t t he PCs will handily
defeat the brigands, he orders a retreat :
" Hey, you guys! These bums is too
tough! Rabbit hutch!"
At this code signal, the brigands flee
in all directions, to rendezvous later at
their encampment (see below). PCs who
follow them can spend half an hour in
pursuit before their quarry leads them
to the next encounter, or impatient PCs
can run one thug down and coerce him
to lead t he party t here at once.
If the PCs don't handi ly defeat t he
brigands, t he vicious thugs soon aban-
don their short bows and engage the
PCs hand to ha nd, fighting to subdue.
They loot fallen PCs but leave t he m
alive-so t he brigands can rob them
again later.
Wrapping It Up
By interrogating t he brigands or follow.
ing them by steal t h, the PCs should lind
their way to t he small Meathook en -
campment, a few milea away i n a dry
gorge clumsily concealed with dead
foliage. He re a family of giant weasels
once hollowed out a lair in the side of
the gorge. Adventurers long ago sought
out and slaughtered the weasels, leav-
ing the cavernous tunnel unoccupied
until Jask Ma nden arrived.
Manden, a vain and insecure man, is
currently hiding out in t he cave due to a
mishap with another of t he t reasur es
his band recently foun d. Ma nden t r ied a
creamy salve on his body, only to dia-
cover t hat it turned him bright orange
all over! (It was a n ointment of tanning;
see t he Dungeon Masters Companion,
page 54.lTh avoid public r idicul e, he
intends to remai n in t he weasel lair a
month or more. He's been drinking
heavily; being orange will do that to a
man.
There are 20 brigands in the encamp-
ment, plus any who escaped the PCs
after their ambush. Horses equal in
number to the original number of ban-
dits are tied to posts and tree branches
in t he area. When they spot the PCs,
half of t he bandits charge at once with
short bows or short swords, while the
others scramble onto t he ir horses to
attack with broad swords. All li ght at
li rst to subdue, t he n (as t he PCs mop
them up) t o kill , and finally jus t to get
out alive. Manden shouts dru nken cr.
dere from the lair, but he soon ret rea ts
via a rear exit tunnel some distance
away. Hi s horse waits there. If he ca n
get a five-round lead on the PCs, or get
a quarter mile ahead, he loses any
pursuit.
A well-dressed snob, Ma nden wears
one item that clashes with his outfit: a
ring of prolt'ction (Dungron
Companion, page 52) with four charges.
When fleeing, he carries a small strong-
box with 21 gp, 150 sp, and t hree infe-
rior, yellowish pear ls worth perhaps 200
gp a piece. The ointment of tanning is
us ed up, t hough its att ractive walnut
box might bring 10 gp.
All told, t he brigand's treasure is
hardly worth the trouble, ri ght? Man-
den's real stash is well-buried half a
mile down t he gorge (Treasur e Type A;
deter mi ne its contents, if necessary,
using t he standard charts). Only he and
his lieutenant, Thbias, know where the
t reasure is buried. However, an ESP
spell or other magic can't get the loca-
tion from Manden right now; he 's too
drunk to remember! It takes him 12
hours to sober up.
Manden's Meathooks
Brigands (20-35): AC 6 (7 for bow-
men not using shields); Fl ; 5 hp ; 'AT
1; Dmg by weapon type; MY
120'(40'); Save Fl ; ML 8; AL C; XP
10; leather armor, shield, iron hook ;
each ha s eit her a short sword and a
short bow with 16 arrows (50%) or a
broad sword (50'1.
1bo slovenly for the Glantrian
anny, too cowardly for the Broken
Lands, these brawny, unwashed men
prowl the borders between the t wo
lands looking for rich people to rob
and poor folk to beat up . They cr ave
the illusion of power and superiorit y
that Manden gi ves them.
Riding horses (one per brigand):
AC 7; HD 2; bp 9 each; 'AT 2 hooves;
Dmg 14/14; MV 240'/80' ; Save Fl ;
ML 7; AL N; XP 20; ElU51 Ihoree);
each has normal tack and 1-2 empty
sacks tied to the back of the saddle.
Jask Manden: AC 3; F4; 18 hp;
'AT 1; Dmg by weapon type; MV
120'(40' ); Save F4; ML 9; AL C; XP
75; pl ate mail, broad sword, t wo
daggers, ring of life protection. Re-
duce Manden'lIto-hit chances by 3 for
the durat ion of his drunkenness .
While working as a plowboy, J ask
Manden dreamed ofjoi ning the elite
of Gl antrian eceiety. While working
as a stableboy (after a petty theft got
him Fired from pl owing), Manden
decided that good clot hes and classy
speech were the keys to prosperity.
While in the Glantrian ar my (he
enlisted aft er the stable fired him for
DUNGEON 21
and begins their ascent. The players
may find it st range for t heir characters
to rise slowly above the world and still
be able to breath, but the Pes might not
even question this, since they have not
been educated in our physical sciences.
One strange phenomenon that FaUgon
may demonstrate is the plane of gravity
through the shi p. An object dropped
over the side will bob down and up
through the plane.
As the dwarven ship leaves the world
far below and approaches the moon,
Selune, and the asteroids known as the
Tears of Selune, they are met by huge
stone dwarven warships that escort
them to the citadel of Whitestone, a
huge city the size of a mountain, carved
from a single white stone to resemble a
long-bearded and helmed dwarven
warrior.
The ship flies into the " warrior's"
mouth and lands on a lake. There is a
great feast, and King Gundulph White-
beard VII is present. He is a very old
dwarf who enjoys hearing tales of ad-
Continued from p8g6 45
he is impersonating, claims that he was
attacked by a wandering monster before
reaching the trading post. "Such is an
adventurer's life."
Rudvarien will not relent until he has
substituted himself for Crellar. If the
PC barricades himself in a room with
everyone else, not hing happens unti l
dawn. Then Rudva rien and everyone
else go their separ ate ways. If Rudva-
rien is not one of the people barricaded
in the room, he will leisurely loot the
whole trading post, write insulting
graffiti on t he wall s, and leave before
daybreak.
If Rudvarien is kill ed, he reverts to
his true hideous form. Crellar offers a
generous reward to those who braved
the night. Breaking policy, Crellar will
pay 100% value for the doppleganger's
possessions as well as for the gear of
any dead guests! The money will be
split evenly among the survivi ng
guests. If the PC wants to keep a partic-
ular item (such as t he doppleganger's
magical long sword), the negotiations
must be role-played.
If Rudvarie n a nd the P C Sur-vi ve
The doppleganger would make a good
arch-enemy for the fledgling PC. Rudva-
venture and is very grateful for the help
the PCs ga ve his people.
At the cit adel, the king may give the
PCs a galleon space ship and aid them
in equipping it with a furnace helm. If
the PCs insist on the dwarves giving
them a minor helm, the dwarves will
refuse, explaining that they have only a
few. If the PCs persist , the dwarves
become insulted and ask the adventur-
er s to leav e.
The PCs should sta rt out with a fur -
nace helm to initi ally limit their range
of travel and to force them to use up
some of the magical items they have
acquired over the years.
If the DM does not wish to give the
PCs a galleon right away, the king will
simply give them some gifts and return
them to their worl d. Roll a random item
from the 2nd Edition DMG for each
character in the party, rerolling until a
suitable item for that character is
found. All items should be of approxi -
mat ely the same value.
If t he PCs rescued the human pr -i s-
oners, some of the former prisoners will
rien has other things to do, but as a non-
human adventurer of sorts, he may cross
paths with the PC again. He will bear a
grudge against anyone who thwarted his
plan to take over the trading post. How-
ever, th e PC shouldn't recognize Rudva-
rien in each of hi s new disguises.
The secret of sust aining a good arch-
enemy is t o a void over using him. The
PC should not encounter Rudvarten
more t han once at each level. Here are
some of the endless possibilities:
1. On the eve -if a particularly profit-
able adventure, Rudvarien joins t he
PC's party disguised as a n NPC adven-
turer. He fights like a good teammate
until t he treasure is won. Then he
seizes a good opportunity to betray the
party and steal the treasure.
2. The PC's party repeatedly encoun-
ters a tival party of NPC adventurers
whose leader is Rudvarien in disquise.
Even hi s own scruffy henchmen don't
know t ha t he's really a monster.
3. The PC enters a castle or town
where Rudvarien is impersonating a
local official , such as the mayor or
guard captain. Using his aut horit y,
Rudvar ien fine s, arrests, and otherwise
buJlies the PC's party. Will the PC rec-
ognize his old nemesis and finally ex-
pose him? Q
VISITORS FROM ABOVE
otTer to serve on the PCs' galleon (if the
adventurer s were given one). They will
serve the PCs for an indefinite period,
then will wish to be taken to their origi-
nal destination or to a world where t hey
may book passage to the colony. If the
DM has the SPELLJAMMER boxed set ,
the humans might wish to go to the
Rock of Bral.
Furnace Helm
For every 1,000 XP a magical item is
worth, the furnace will function for
one week at a SR of 2. The SR can be
boosted to 3 by sacrificing more than
one item simultaneously, but there is
a 25%chance that t hi s will cause the
furnace to explode, causing 10-100 hp
damage to all within 30' . As stated
earlier. a ship in t he atmosphere or
gravity well of a large body moves at
a rate of 600 yards per round for
every point of SR. However, all ships
can travel 100 million miles per day
in wildspace regardless of t he ir SR. 0
Continued from p8g6 21
stealing horses), Manden developed a
fine wardrobe and a snobbish, dandy
ma nner. Now enjoying t he "prest ige"
of leading the Meathooks (after the
army cas hiered him for stealing),
Manden puts on ai rs t hat conceal his
peasant backgr ound.
Tobias: AC 4; F2; 9 hp ; I AT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; MV 120' (40');
Save F2; ML 9; AL C; XP 20; chain
mail , shield, broad sword, short bow
with 16 arrows.
Thbias is Mandene Sancho Panza,
his loyal servant and silent worshiper.
Thbias is as brutal and ignorant as the
other brigands, but his status as lieu-
tenant and manservant to the "classy"
J ask Manden has made him arrogant
to the other men, who dislike him
intensely.
In addition to advent ures for TSR
games. Allen Varney has designed many
adventures and supplements for other
game companies. He also reviews role-
playing games for DRAGON!' Magazine.
This scenario is based on material cut
(for reasons ofspace) from module
HWAI Nightwail, the first adventure for
the HOLLOW WORLD'" campaign set. Q
DUNGEON 69
NIGHT OF
FEAR
BY MARK LUCAS
The deadliest enemy is
in plain sight.
Artwor1cby Jim Holloway
40 Issue No. 28
Mark Lucas is a reporter for a daily
newspaper; where he tilts at windmills
and champions the hopeless on a regular
basis. He is circulating three short sto-
ries and a screenplay for a high-action
military movie. He is also researching a
horror novel set in a modern New En-
gland mill town. Mark dedicates this
module to the heroic stand by the Slay-
ers ofDarkness against the bullywug
army at the Batt le of Creliar'e Trading
Post.
"Night of Fear" is a D&D'!i adventure
designed for one player and one DM to
play in a single session. The adventurer
may bea jet-level character of any
class. The player can chose to play one
of the prerolled guests at the inn (see
the Master Character List ) or substitute
any 1st-level character of his own.
This module is a cross between the
murder mystery and horror genres. The
situation emphasizes logic, observation,
and role-playing, with only one climac-
tic fight. The entire adventure takes
place between midnight and dawn in
Crellar's Trading Post. The trading post
must be in an isolated frontier area
where help is at least six hours away.
Before playing, the DM must familiar-
ize himself with the various characters
and the trading post. The contents of
each room will probably be searched
closely for clues.
For the Dungeon Master
Rudvarien, a doppleganger, has been
prowling the frontier between civiliza-
tion and the untamed wilderness. When
he came upon Crellar's Trading Post
today, he assumed the guise of a human
(or demihuman) and rented a room for
the night to enjoy the comforts of shel-
ter. When he noticed the prosperity of
the trading post , Rudvarien decided to
end his wanderings and take over the
establishment.
In the middle of the night, Rudvarien
crept downstairs to kill Crellar in his
sleep and substitute himself for the
trader. However, Crel lar's faithful dog
smelled that Rudvar ien was not human
and attacked the doppleganger. In the
loud fight that followed, the dog in-
flicted 4 hp damage on Rudvari en be-
fore the doppleganger killed it.
As the inhabitants of the inn awake
and come running, Rudvarien stuffs the
dead dog up the chimney and reverts to
his disguise as a guest. He easily joins
the cr owd to help search for the mysteei-
OUII intruder. The OM ca n in itially give
Rudvarien the ide nti ty of a ny guest
(ot her than th e player characterl).
A Call to Arms!
10 begin t he advent ure. read or para-
phrase t he following to the player:
You've bee n traveling th e front ier of
civilization for days in search of
adventure. At the end oHbis day.
you checked into an isolated. rust ic
inn ca lled Crellar'lITrading Post.
The Crellars are hardy, sel f-reliant
folks, and t he t r ad ing post is a st urdy
stone structure. When you a nd the
ot her guests r etire to your rooms and
settle in to slee p, you feel safe and
secure.
In the middle of t he night. you
awake to a horrific din of barking,
growling, and screaming from down-
stairs. Within seconds, you hear
running feet , poundi ng on doors, and
a call to arms: " Everyone up! Gear
for battle! The trading post is under
attack!"
The noise subsides quickly. By the
t ime the PC ex its hi s room, t he second
floor hallway is dark a nd deserted. The
DM may start the PC in a ny of t he
empty guest rooms (marked wit h Xsl on
the second floor. A glow of light and the
murmur of excited voices comes up t he
west staircase leading down to the bar-
room (area 11.
If the PC goes downstairs into area t ,
r ead t he following:
You find the five members of the
Crellar family and the other guest s
gat hered around a puddle of blood on
the barroom floor . Crellar addresses
the circle of worried faces by the
light of his lantern.
" It looks like we have an intruder,
folks. I can' t find my guard dog, Bone
Breaker, and t his looks li ke his fur in
the blood. We'd better split up and
search the place. My family will search
your rooms upstairs. You guests search
the first. floor and the bam. All t he
outside doors should belocked by my
key, and the window shutters should
be closed and bolted from the inside.
Let me know if you find t he intruder
or where he broke in.
" And be careful. Bone Breaker was
the toughest dog I ever had."
By questioning Crellar further, the
following infor mat ion can be learned:
Bone Breaker pat rols the fir-st floor at
night to protect the strongboxes from
thieves. Crellar was the first person to
arrive i n the empty bar. He saw nothing
but the puddle of blood.
Rudvarien is too arrogant to be chased
into the night at sword point by a bunch
of " inferi or" humans. He still intends to
kill Crellar and replace the jovi al
trader, but he will not purposely kill
Crellar's family, because they are to be
the doppleganger's free work for ce.
Using hi s shapechanging abilities,
Rudvarien will attempt to kill off t he
guests one at a time, when each is
alo ne. He always hides the bodies so he
can impersonate a wide r ange of people
without r aising suspicio n. He will sli p
in and out of the group of searchers
whe never it is to his adva ntage. Rudv a-
rien is telepathic and very bright ; the
OM should play him to the best of his
ability.
The rest is up to the PC. He a nd t he
NPC guests start their search in area I ,
the barroom.
Cr ellar's Trading Post, First Floor
1. Ba rroom. This area contains seven
sma ll tables, a bar to the east , and a
coat stand in the sout hwest comer. A
fir eplace on the west wall warmly lights
thi s room during business hours. Now,
the vast bar is dark and foreboding. A
staircase in the northwest com er leads
up to the second floor. It has a wooden
r aili ng but is not otherwise enclosed.
Brown fur floats in a puddle of fresh
blood near the center of the room .
A small pile of logs eue on the t '-high
granite hearth along with a set of brass
chi mney tools (poker, bellows, etc.: the
set is worth only 1 gp). Above, on t he
slate ma ntle is a tinder box. The stuffed
head of a green dragon (wort h 10 gp) is
mounted over the mantle. Anyone who
looks up t he chimney must make a
saving t hrow va. paralysi s or leap back
in fear. This shock causes embarrass -
ment but has no ot her effect aside from
drama and suspense. Closer exa mina-
ti on reveals that Crellar'a dead guard
dog, Bone Breaker, has bee n shoved up
the chi mney backward. Its forep aws a nd
head dangle down, so the dead dog ep-
pears to bediving fer ociousl y down the
chimney. Pulling down t he dog is as
difficult as forcing open a door (indica-
t ing that the 1SOlb. mas tiff was shoved
NIGHT OFFEAR
up the chimney with enormous
st rengt h). Close exami nat ion reveals
that the dog was clubbed to death (by
the doppleganger'a fist s). Thick ashes in
the fireplace hide any blood that
dripped from the corpse . A thief st ri p-
pedof armor and gear could climb the
chi mney a nd help work the dog loose.
Four baretool s are bolted to t he floor
on the west side of the bar. Hidden be-
hind the bar are a cl ub, a heavy cross-
bow, and a case containing 30 quarrels.
A strongbox <locked and bolted to t he
bar) contains 1-10 of each coin t ype .
Worthless glees mugs a nd towels are
a lso under the bar. On the wa ll behind
the bar, a shelf holds numerous kegs,
jugs, a nd bottles containing a wide
ra nge of beverages (total val ue 10-60
gpl. A large mirror hangs on the wall
above this shelf.
An empty coat r ack stands beside the
locked door at t he west end of t he din -
ing room, in the comer by t he fireplace.
A bulletin board, clut tered wit h busi -
ness a nd government notices, hangs on
the wall beside the rack . This is a good
source of informati on leading to future
employment and advent ures.
2. Privy. A small privy with a dirt
floor has been attached to the outside of
Crellar's Trading Post. The sturdy door
bol ts from t he inside only. The wall s are
shoddy, however, and someone could
bust through them as easily as a door to
get outside. The shack contains a
bucket of l ime and a few rags. Onl y a
halOing or dwarf could squirm thr ough
the hole in the wooden toilet seat. The
hol e leads down to a to' cubic pit whose
bottom holds 2' of refuse and garbage.
Two giant rats live in t he muck and
attack anyone who enters the pit. If the
muck is searched for one t urn, the PCs
can fi nd a leather pouch (dropped down
the t oilet by a drunken patron) contain-
ing a pi ece of onyx (value 50 gp l.
Giant r a ts : AC 7; HD lh ; hp 3,1; 'AT
1 bite; Omg 1-3 plus disease; MV
120 '(40'), swim 60'(20' 1; Save normal
man; ML 8; AL N; XP 6; BO/36 .
3, Ki tcben, This room contains a
large wooden table, a fireplace to the
sout heast , a sink to the north, a nd a
counte r to t he east. No food is stored in
this room.
Empt y iron pots and grills hang in the
firepl ace. Someone coul d squeeze
through here and emer ge from the ot her
side of the fir eplace into Creller'a bed-
DUNGEON 41
NIGHT OFFEAR
Master Character List
Kra c (dwarf): AC 3; Dl; hp 8; 'AT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; MV 60'(20');
Save D l ~ M L ALL; S 12, I 7, W 7, D
12, C 16, Ch 7; plate mail, battle axe ,
su. torches. Locked in Krae's room is a
50' rope and a leather bag holding 1
gpo Krae is brave and cooperative, but
also slow of thought and hesitant in
decisions. He will not attack anyone
unless he is IJUr'e it it the doppleganger.
HiA indecisivenesa may C8W1E' him and
others to die.
BrenHfighter): AC 2; Fl; hp 2; 'AT
1; Dmg by weapon type; MY 60120');
Save Fl; ML 10; AL C; S 16, I 9, W 9,
D 10, C 12, Ch 8; plate mail. shield,
long sword, dagger. lantern. In his
room. Brent baa an oil flask. a quart
bottle of wine, and ratione for seven
dayB. Brent ill a headstrong bully who
is almost as dangeroUB aa the dapple-
ganger. He is very insulting, but he
always provokes the other guy into
swinging flnt. Brent is determined to
kill the intruder, no matter how many
innocent people get hurt.
Galen (cleric): AC 3; Cl; hp 6; 'AT 1;
DIng by weapon type; MY 60'(20' );
Save C1; ML 11; AL L: S 12, t 7, W 14,
D 10, C 9, Ch 6; banded mail, shield,
club, lantern, holy symbol, sling, 30
sling stones. In Galen's room are two
vials of holy water, a water skin, a
large Back, and 2 gp wrapped in a scrap
oflinen. Galen is a bombastic old evan-
gelist. He ia fearless and encouraging
in the pursuit of the intruder. His in-
flexible convictions will not tolerate
surrender; capture, or retreat in this
"battle to the death with an agent of
Chaos!"
Goddle (haUling); AC 4; HI: hp 5:
'AT I : Dmg by weapon type; MY
90'(30'); Save HI : ML 8; AL N: S 12, I
8, W 9, D 11, C 9, Ch 6; chain mail,
shield, hammer, sling, 30 sling stones,
backpack, wolfsbane, mirror, iron re-
tiona (enough for a week), one vial of
holy water, 3 gpoGaddie is a boastful
wisecracker. Once he realizes the dan-
ger, he may panic.
Mirapesb (t hieO: AC 7; T1; hp 3:
'AT I : Dmg by weapon type; MY
120'(40' ); Save T1; ML 5; AL N; S 12,1
7, W 8, D 13, C 9, Ch 9; leather armor,
long sword, four silvered daggers.
42Issue No. 28
Locked in his room are thieves' tools, a
tinder box, a mirror, a week's worth of
rations, and 2 gpoMirapesh is cheerful
and light hearted but not brave. He
wants to get through the night with no
fuss and a whole skin.
Lyons (magic-use r): AC 9, M1: hp 3;
'AT 1; Dmg by spell or weapon type;
MY 120'(40'); Save M1: ML 8: AL N: S
8, I 13, W 7, D 10, C 10, Ch 7; silver
dagger, dagger, backpack, flask of oil,
holy symbol, one vial of holy water,
tinder box, wolfsbane, water skin,
lantern, quart or wine, 12 iron spikes
and a small hammer,S gpoLyone has
left nothing in her room. She used her
one spell yesterday and has not rested
enough to learn a new one tonight (a
magic-user who cannot cast a spell
might become the object of suspicion
before the night is over). Her spell book
contains mogic missile and light spells.
Lyons is smart, greedy, independent,
and suspicious of others.
W (elO: AC 4, El; hp 1; 'AT 1; Dmg
by weapon type; MY 60'(20'); Save El;
ML 8:ALL;S 15,1 14, W6, D 10,C
12, Ch 5; chain mail, shield. two hand
axes, short bow, quiver with 19 arrows
and one eilver-t tpped arrow. In his
room Lif keeps enough rettone for
seven days as well as an oil flask, sil:
torches, a tinder box, and 50' of rope .
Lif is logical, calm, and quiet. He cur-
rently has a detect magic spell memo-
rized. His spell book also contains a
shield spell. He is an invaluable re-
source, but he has no patience with
fools and falls silent in the face of stub-
born and pushy people.
Rudvarien (doppleganger): AC 5;
HD 4*; hp 21 (currently 17); 'AT I ;
Dmg 1.12: MY 90'(30' ); Save F8; ML 8;
AL C; XP 125; BDI28. A doppleganger
can assume the size and shape of any
humanoid creature from 4'7' tall .
Dopplegangers can also read the sur-
face thoughts of anyone creature up to
50' away. Rudvari en starts with the
shape, gear, and personality of one of
the guests previously listed. In his
room, he keeps 266 gp and a long
BWOrd +1, +3 VB. dragons locked in his
footlocke r. Rudvarien is smart and
deceitful.
CreUar (trader): AC 6; Fl; hp 8; 'AT
1; Dmg by weapon type: MY 120'(40');
Save Fl; ML 9; AL L; leather armor,
shield, club , crossbow, case with 30
quarrels, keys to all the locks in the
trading post. Crellar is a geed-natured,
heavyset man. He is quietly proud of
establishing a trading post and raising
a hardy family at the edge of the
wilderness.
Gertrude (Cre llar's wife): AC 6; Fl ;
hp 3: 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon type; MY
120'(40' ); Save F1; ML 9: AL L; leather
armor, shield, club, eroeebcw, case with
30 quarrels: keys to trading poet locks.
Gertrude is a heavy woman with a
loud and pushy disposition. Despite her
frequent complaints and eriticiBID.B, she
loves her family and is very generous
and helpful. She, like her family, has
acquired some fighting experience
from past ore raids on the outpost.
Kellogg <Crellar's older son): AC 6;
Fl ; hp 4; 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon type;
MY 120'(401; Save Fl; ML 8; AL L;
leather armor, shield, club, crossbow,
case with 30 quarrels, keys to front
door of trading poet and room shared.
with his brother. Kellogg is 24 years
old, a quiet young man who is subser-
vient to his father. Although he has
seen many barroom brawls and orc
raids, he still might panic if faced with
prolonged stress and danger,
Kel sey <Cre llar's younger son): AC 6;
F1; hp 4; IAT 1; Dmg by weapon type;
MV 120'(40'); Save Fl; ML 6; AL L;
leather armor, shield, club, crossbow,
30 quarrels, keys to front door and
room he shares with Kellogg. Kelsey is
17, energet ic, and enthusiastic. He
idolizes professional adventurers and
hopes to become one someday. How-
ever, he is likely to panic if faced with
st ress and danger.
Ma ry (Crell ar 's daughter): AC 6; Fl;
hp 3; 'AT 4; Dmg by weapon type; MY
120'(40'); Save Fl; ML 6; AL L; leather
armor, shield, club, crossbow, 30 quar-
rels, keys to front door and all interior
doors. Mary is 18, quiet, and pretty.
Like her brothers, she is likely to panic
in a real fight, though she has some
fighting skill.
room (area 6). A thief stripped of armor
a nd gear could climb up the chimney to
th e roof.
Over th e counter hang pans and large
utensil s such as kni ves and meat cleav-
er s. Under th e count er are large cabi -
nets for spices and wooden plates and
utensil s. A man-sized creature could
eas ily hide in some of these cabinets.
Dirty dishes and ut ensils soak in the
sudsy water of the sink. A cabinet un-
der the sink contains soap. rags, and
kegs of water.
4. Lobb y. An open staircase with a
bannister winds up to the second floor
here. A potted pl a nt sits at t he bottom
of the stairs. A cabi net hangs on the
west wa ll behind t he front counter.
A small worthless copper bell sits atop
the front counter. A quill , ink pot, and
regi ster book also rest on the counter.
The book lists everyone who has
checked in and out of the inn over the
past three months. All of the current
guests checked in today. If the book is
read for one t urn, it reveals that only
Coddle (see the Master Character List)
is a regular visitor. (This may remove
him from sus picion until the shapeebift .
ing nature of the intruder is diecovered.)
A loaded heavy crossbow is strapped
under the counter. If Crellar has serious
trouble with a visitor, he can reach
down and fire the weapon through the
flimsy front of the wooden counter ( + 2
to hit anyone in front of the counter
because of surprise). A locked st rongbox:
bolted under the counter contains 1-10
of every coin type.
The locked cabinet contains labeled
keys to each guest room on the second
floor. Cr ellar keeps his emergency
wealth buried in the soil ofthe potted
fern . It contains a small leather pouch
with 1-4 gems, each worth 50 gpo
5, Shop. Thi s locked room contains a
counter to the west, a large table in the
center, and shelves along the north and
south wall s. Thi s is t he trading post
where Crellar buys, sell s, and swaps
goods for a profit. He will offer to buy
almost anything for half its real value.
He then resells the item at full value .
Bolted beneath t he counter is another
locked strongbox, containi ng 1-20 of
each coin type. A list ofthe shop's in-
ventory and a club are also kept under
the counter.
The shelves and tables contain a mix
of items. At any time, the shop contains
NIGHT OFFEAR
NPC Actions and Suggestions
After each incident or clue found (or at least once per turn), some of t he NPCs
should have the followi ng reacti ons. The DM can choose reactions t hat are appro-
pri ate to t he circumstances or can roll I dS to select an NPC, then Id4 for t hat
character's react ion. Other reactions can be added, so long as they are in charac-
te r for each NPC. Always have the NPCs r eact appropri atel y to each other's theo-
ri es. Elaborate each suggestion and role-play debates wit h t he PC.
I , Krae
1. "Perhaps t he intruder is not hostile and killed only in self-defense."
2. "Could we be dealing with more than one intruder?"
3. "No matter what happens, we must al l stay together?'
4. "Wouldn't it be awful if one of us were really some sort of shapeshifter."
2. Brent
1. "I t hi nk one of us killed that mangy mutt and t here is no intruder."
2. "I think you're the killer]" Br ent accuses someone randomly.
3. Brent sneaks away from the group to get a free dr ink at t he bar.
4. Brent hears somet hi ng in an adjoini ng room and charges off alone.
3, Galen
1. "I t hink t he intruder has already fled the trading post."
2. "I hope we are still as leep and this is just a terrible nightmare: '
3. "Where are you? Cowardly monster! I challenge you to face me!"
4. "Perhaps one of us is a vampir e?'
4. GoddIe
1. "Hey, maybe the intruder isn't even human."
2. "We have only one chance! We should all barricade ourselves into one r oom
toget her and wait until more people arrive in the morning:' (See "Concluding the
Advent ure" for the results of this strategy.)
3. "We' re all doomed! Thi s creature is going to kill us one at a time, and there's
nothing we can do!" He goes hysterical until sla pped.
4. Coddle slips away from the gr oup and jumps out a window to flee the trading
post. After an hour alone in the dark woods, he t imidly knocks on the front door.
5. Mirapesh
1. "This search is futile. I say we set a trap to catch the int ruder."
2. Mirapesh slips away from the group to break into a etrcngbcx.
3. "Let's find out what the intruder wants and just give it to him!"
4. " U we surrender now, maybe t he monster will be merciful , "(He's wrong.)
6. Lyons
1. "For all we know, Crellar plays this hoax on all his guests . He's probabl y up-
stairs looting our rooms right now?'
2. "This place is too big. Let's split into smaller search parties."
3. "Perhaps the intruder is after one of us in particular. Are any of you being
followed by an old enemy with a grudge?"
4. "Per haps one of us is really a dopplegan ger."
7.lJf
1. "Maybe we're dealing with a winged creature that flew down a chimney."
2. "Per haps one of us is a lycanthrope, such as a wer ewolf."
3. "Maybe we can use a spell to determine which of us is the monster."
4. "I keep wondering why the intruder attacked the guard dog firs t?'
8. Rudvarien
1. Rudvarien comes to the group disguised as Crellar and says to an NPC, "Come
ups tairs with me. There is somethi ng in your room I'd like you to explain?'
2. The monster appears as Crellar's daughter, Mary, to seduce a male guest into a
pr ivate rendezvous/ambush.
3. Rudvarien impersonates an NPC who was separated from the group, clai mi ng
to have been struck from behind, robbed, and left unconscious. When the real
NPC returns later, the group will wrongly think he or she is the monster.
4. Rudvarien slips away from the guests and goes upstairs. Disguised as the PC,
he briefly attacks Crellar and flees back downstairs . Thi s will cast much suspi-
cion on the PC and lead to some interesting role-playing!
DUNGEON 43
NIGHT OF FEAR
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CRELLAR'S TRADING POST
().3 of any item listed on page 29 of the
Basic Set Handboolt.. The shop
never contains magical items. The total
value of the inventory is 1()()..6()() gp a t
any given time. There is enough space
beneath the table and on some of the
empty shelves to hide a man-sized
creature.
8. Crellar's Room. Thi s room con-
tains 8 double bed in the sout heast
comer. This is where Crellar a nd his
wife , Gertrude , sleep. There is also a
chest of drawers beside t he fireplace, a
closet in the northwest corner, and a
chair at the foot of the bed. Someone
could stoop through the fireplace and
enter the kitchen (area 3) from here.
The closet contains Cre llar's clothes.
A tinder box and an unlit lantern sit on
the chest of drawers. which contains
Gertrude's clot hing.
7, Ma ry's Room. The trader's sweet
daughter lives here, but the
room ill empty now. There is a bed al ong
the sout h wall. The room alsocontains a
chest of drawers and a chair.
On the bed is a book entitled Age-Old
Fairy Tale. , by Hussan Ogar. Ironically,
if one turn is spe nt skimmi ng t hrough
the book, a story about a doppleganger
can be found . The story contains a de-
tailed description of the doppleganger's
powers. However, one part is inaccurate.
The fairy tale states that, in all of its
sha pes, a doppleganger retains its gray
eyes. Of all the inn's occupants, onl y
Galen (see the Master Character List )
has gray eyes. From the placement of
her bookmark , Mary has not yet read
t he tale of t he deppleganger,
The following monsters are also de-
scr ibed in Age-Old Fairy Thies. These
descript ions can beused as " red her-
rings" to confuse t he PCif the investi-
gation is going too well: devil swi ne
(ERl48l, gargoyle (BDI3O>, medusa (BD!
34l. ogre (BOI35), werebear (BOI33),
vampire (ERl57 ).
An unlit lantern and a t inder box sit
on the chest of drawers, which contains
Mary's spare clothes.
8, Sons' Room. Crellar's two eons ,
Kellogg and Kel sey, live here. This
room contains a eloeet a nd t wo beds.
The closet holds only spare clot he s.
Crellar'sTrad ing Post,
Second Floor
9. Guest Rooms. Ea ch of these rooms
is the same; Crellar rents t he m to
guests for I gp per night. Each room
comes with a chest of drawers and a
bed. A pot tery pitch er full of water and
a pot tery basin sit on the chest of
drawer s. A footl ocker is under the bed.
In the footl ocker is the key, so that
guest s can lock their val uables inside.
Guests usually lock t heir doors when
they leave their rooms or when they are
asleep.
The empty rooms (marked with Xs)
are unlocked. Some of the guests' gear
ha s been len locked in their rooms. The
OM ca n randomly determine whi ch
rooms are occupied by the inn's paying
guests.
10. Bat broom. Th is small room holds
a primitive wooden bathtub. A make-
shift box with holes in the bottom is
rigged over the t ub. When filled wit h
wa ter, the box serves as a crude shower.
The room also contains j ars of soap,
ke gs of water, and towels. The room is
usually quite WanD. because it was built
bes ide the chimney.
44 Issue No. 28
NIGHT OF FEAR
CRELLAR' S TRADING POST
Second Floor 1 equere e S'
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The Barn
11. Stable. The double doors at each
end of the barn are barred fr om the
night. Read the following
description aloud the fir st time the PC
enters the barn:
The familiar smells of farm animals
and manure greet your nostrils as
you enter. The stables are fair ly
clean and sprinkled with straw. You
can hear the animals shuffling ner-
vously in their stalls.
The stone barn contains 12 stalls
along the east wall , a ladder to the loft.,
a horse-drawn cart, a coop conta ining 25
chickens against t he south wall, and
two st acks of sacks and kegs containing
100 gp worth of food. Two unlit lanterns
and several wooden buckets hang on the
wooden support beams. Tools a lso hang
on the eoutheaet wall . These farm im-
plements are equal tv a battle axe, a
hand axe, a war hammer, and three pole
arms. A large pen against the west wall
houses a bull that will attack anything
he can reach.
Bull: AC 7; HO 4; hp 22; 'AT 1; Omg
1-6; MV 240'(80'); Save F2' ML 5' AL N , , ,
XP 35; ER/46 (a nimal her d).
Each stall contains one animal. From
north to south, the stalls contain Crel-
lar's two draft horses, two pigs, three
sheep, and two goa ts. The three south-
ernmost stalls are empty. Any steeds or
pets brought by the customers may be
kept here overnight.
Each time the doppleganger enters the
barn, regardless of his shape, the farm
animals become highly agitated because
they can smell he is not a human or
typical demihuman. The animals will
snort, ki ck their stalls, and rear up in
alarm in Rudvarien's presence.
12. Hayl oft, The hayl oft extends only
two-thirds of the length of the barn. The
loft floor ends abruptly with no raili ng,
and it is a 10' drop to t he floor of the
barn from here. The loft contains sev-
eral stacks of hay, sacks of grain, water
barrels, and other animal food. These
st acks are large enough tv conceal a
man-sized creature. The only ot her
entrance tv the loft is an unlocked door
in the south wall that opens 10' above
the ground. A flying creature could
have entered this door without leaving
any damage.
Concludi ng the Adventur e
There are several ways tv defeat the
doppleganger. As smart as he is Rudva-
ri en still does not realize that dcmeeti-
cated animals can smell that he is not
human. He will figure thi s out only if he
reads it in the mind of an opponent. The
barn.contains many animals that can be
used as "dcpplegenger detectors"
The group may also find the body of
someone Rudvarien is currently imper-
sonating. Hthe doppleganger knows
this is about to happen, he slips to the
rear ofthe group and leaves before the
body is found. Only a very alert pl ayer
can this from happening.
Optwnal Rule: 1b be fair, the OM ca n
occasionally rearrange the miniatures
representing the search party. If the OM
can remove Rudvarien'e figure from the
board by sleight of hand without the
player noticing, the doppleganger has
sli pped away unnoticed by the PC.
Close inspection can revea l that the
doppleganger (in whatever form he
takes) has been wounded (by the guard
dog and perhaps by his later victims).
Rudvarien, in character as whomever
ConrJrlufld 00 pagB 69
DUNGEON 45
and begins their ascent. The players
may find it st range for t heir characters
to rise slowly above the world and still
be able to breath, but the Pes might not
even question this, since they have not
been educated in our physical sciences.
One strange phenomenon that FaUgon
may demonstrate is the plane of gravity
through the shi p. An object dropped
over the side will bob down and up
through the plane.
As the dwarven ship leaves the world
far below and approaches the moon,
Selune, and the asteroids known as the
Tears of Selune, they are met by huge
stone dwarven warships that escort
them to the citadel of Whitestone, a
huge city the size of a mountain, carved
from a single white stone to resemble a
long-bearded and helmed dwarven
warrior.
The ship flies into the " warrior's"
mouth and lands on a lake. There is a
great feast, and King Gundulph White-
beard VII is present. He is a very old
dwarf who enjoys hearing tales of ad-
Continued from p8g6 45
he is impersonating, claims that he was
attacked by a wandering monster before
reaching the trading post. "Such is an
adventurer's life."
Rudvarien will not relent until he has
substituted himself for Crellar. If the
PC barricades himself in a room with
everyone else, not hing happens unti l
dawn. Then Rudva rien and everyone
else go their separ ate ways. If Rudva-
rien is not one of the people barricaded
in the room, he will leisurely loot the
whole trading post, write insulting
graffiti on t he wall s, and leave before
daybreak.
If Rudvarien is kill ed, he reverts to
his true hideous form. Crellar offers a
generous reward to those who braved
the night. Breaking policy, Crellar will
pay 100% value for the doppleganger's
possessions as well as for the gear of
any dead guests! The money will be
split evenly among the survivi ng
guests. If the PC wants to keep a partic-
ular item (such as t he doppleganger's
magical long sword), the negotiations
must be role-played.
If Rudvarie n a nd the P C Sur-vi ve
The doppleganger would make a good
arch-enemy for the fledgling PC. Rudva-
venture and is very grateful for the help
the PCs ga ve his people.
At the cit adel, the king may give the
PCs a galleon space ship and aid them
in equipping it with a furnace helm. If
the PCs insist on the dwarves giving
them a minor helm, the dwarves will
refuse, explaining that they have only a
few. If the PCs persist , the dwarves
become insulted and ask the adventur-
er s to leav e.
The PCs should sta rt out with a fur -
nace helm to initi ally limit their range
of travel and to force them to use up
some of the magical items they have
acquired over the years.
If the DM does not wish to give the
PCs a galleon right away, the king will
simply give them some gifts and return
them to their worl d. Roll a random item
from the 2nd Edition DMG for each
character in the party, rerolling until a
suitable item for that character is
found. All items should be of approxi -
mat ely the same value.
If t he PCs rescued the human pr -i s-
oners, some of the former prisoners will
rien has other things to do, but as a non-
human adventurer of sorts, he may cross
paths with the PC again. He will bear a
grudge against anyone who thwarted his
plan to take over the trading post. How-
ever, th e PC shouldn't recognize Rudva-
rien in each of hi s new disguises.
The secret of sust aining a good arch-
enemy is t o a void over using him. The
PC should not encounter Rudvarten
more t han once at each level. Here are
some of the endless possibilities:
1. On the eve -if a particularly profit-
able adventure, Rudvarien joins t he
PC's party disguised as a n NPC adven-
turer. He fights like a good teammate
until t he treasure is won. Then he
seizes a good opportunity to betray the
party and steal the treasure.
2. The PC's party repeatedly encoun-
ters a tival party of NPC adventurers
whose leader is Rudvarien in disquise.
Even hi s own scruffy henchmen don't
know t ha t he's really a monster.
3. The PC enters a castle or town
where Rudvarien is impersonating a
local official , such as the mayor or
guard captain. Using his aut horit y,
Rudvar ien fine s, arrests, and otherwise
buJlies the PC's party. Will the PC rec-
ognize his old nemesis and finally ex-
pose him? Q
VISITORS FROM ABOVE
otTer to serve on the PCs' galleon (if the
adventurer s were given one). They will
serve the PCs for an indefinite period,
then will wish to be taken to their origi-
nal destination or to a world where t hey
may book passage to the colony. If the
DM has the SPELLJAMMER boxed set ,
the humans might wish to go to the
Rock of Bral.
Furnace Helm
For every 1,000 XP a magical item is
worth, the furnace will function for
one week at a SR of 2. The SR can be
boosted to 3 by sacrificing more than
one item simultaneously, but there is
a 25%chance that t hi s will cause the
furnace to explode, causing 10-100 hp
damage to all within 30' . As stated
earlier. a ship in t he atmosphere or
gravity well of a large body moves at
a rate of 600 yards per round for
every point of SR. However, all ships
can travel 100 million miles per day
in wildspace regardless of t he ir SR. 0
Continued from p8g6 21
stealing horses), Manden developed a
fine wardrobe and a snobbish, dandy
ma nner. Now enjoying t he "prest ige"
of leading the Meathooks (after the
army cas hiered him for stealing),
Manden puts on ai rs t hat conceal his
peasant backgr ound.
Tobias: AC 4; F2; 9 hp ; I AT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; MV 120' (40');
Save F2; ML 9; AL C; XP 20; chain
mail , shield, broad sword, short bow
with 16 arrows.
Thbias is Mandene Sancho Panza,
his loyal servant and silent worshiper.
Thbias is as brutal and ignorant as the
other brigands, but his status as lieu-
tenant and manservant to the "classy"
J ask Manden has made him arrogant
to the other men, who dislike him
intensely.
In addition to advent ures for TSR
games. Allen Varney has designed many
adventures and supplements for other
game companies. He also reviews role-
playing games for DRAGON!' Magazine.
This scenario is based on material cut
(for reasons ofspace) from module
HWAI Nightwail, the first adventure for
the HOLLOW WORLD'" campaign set. Q
DUNGEON 69
i t
~
--
,
,,,,
~
..-
...
\
, ,
"
ISLE OF THE
ABBEY
BV RANDV MAXWEll
Time to hit the beach.
ArtwQrIl by Pel el Clark e
26 Issue No. 34
", ,
, '
Randy wri tes: "My introduction to the
D&lJ& ga me was the old, now legendary,
blue book. From that introduction, I still
retain a nostalgic fondness for low-level
D&D adventures. The game has expand-
ed immensely fromthose early, si mple
days, and my modu les have expanded
accordi ngly. For this adventure, I urant-
ed to get back to basics (no pun intended)
ond do a module that required only the
rules, mons ters, and magical iteml:l from
t he Bas ic Set (either the old red boxed set
or the new black box-the ancient blue
book is not required).
" Isle of t he Abbey" is a D&D advent ure
for 4-6 player cha racters of level s 13
(about 12 totai levei sl. The adventuri ng
party should be basica lly Lawful in
alignme nt and of varied classes, with at
least one cleric of 3rd level or two or
more clerics of lower levels.
Although page references are gi ven
for the 0 &0 Rules Cyclopedia (abbrev i-
ated Re) , t his ad venture uses only t hose
rules, monsters, and t reasures in t he
New, Easy to Mast er D&D Game
("black box" ).
The exact location of t he advent ure is
relati vely unimport ant. OMs using the
0&0 Known World ca mpaign setting
can place the island in a ny remote area.
Adventure Backgr ound
In the past t hree months, t he evil cler-
ics of Abbey Isle a nd a large ba nd of
local pirate s have quarreled violen tly,
and thei r st r uggle may ha ve left the
island uninhabi ted. Th e pirates burned
t he abbey to t he ground, but they suf-
fered so ma ny casualties t hat t he y could
hardl y sustai n themsel ves and t hu s
were soon dest royed by the local ma ri-
ners. Now, t he mariners would l ike to
claim the small , st rategically located
island and build a li ghthouse there. So
far, they have not been able to la nd
safely on the island. Every attempt to
come ashore has been met by a horde of
undead.
The Pes are hired by t he local mari -
ne rs ' guild to exp lore and clear t he
island of any hazards to bu ilding a
lighthouse t he re. The guild is will ing to
pay 2,000 gp upon completion of the job,
whic h will be verified by guild me mbers
before pay me nt is mad e.
The mari ne rs' guild will supply the
adve nt uring party with transportation
to t he island. The party's j umping-off
point is a not her light house one day's
sail up the coset. This lighthouse is a
safe harbor where PCs may ret reat
when they wish to rest, re-equip, or
regroup.
The mariners ' guild can supply the
PCs wit h any of the equipment listed on
page 69 of the RC except for holy sym-
bols, holy water, thieves' tool s, and wolfs-
bane. The guild cannot supply PCs with
any wea pons or armor. The price of any
equipment used by PCs must be depos-
ited with t he guild and will berefunded
on the return of the equipment or suc-
cessful completi on of the adventure.
The guild supplies the adventuring
party wit h the boat and sailors needed
to r each the island. The eai lcra will not
come as hore or attempt to r escue the
PCs if they get into tro uble. The party
should devise 8 set of signals bet ween
t hemselves and t he sailors for drop-<llTs
and pick-ups, etc.
SailOnl (5): AC 9; O-Ievel human; hp 3
each; I AT 1; Dmg by weapon type; MY
120' (40'); Save NM; ML 7; AL L; dagger.
For the Dungeon Master
The lighthouse where PCs begin t he
adventure is manned by a ret ired mili-
tary officer named Maj or Ursa. The
Major, as he is called locally, is a huge,
barrel-chested ma n with a bri ght-red
beard, and a circlet of thin red-gray hair
on his balding head. He was once a
military man and served in glor ious
conquests and bit ter defeats . His usual
r aiment is a ga udy red and yellow kilt
with hi s war ham mer and dagger hang-
ing from a broad leather belt.
Major Ursa: AC 6; F5; hp 22; IAT 1;
Dmg by weapon type ; MV 120' (40');
Save F5; ML 10; AL N; S 18, I 17; scale
mail . wa r hammer, dagger.
The Major has long since given up his
fighting career and now lives the soli-
tary life of a lighthouse keeper. While
considered reclusi ve and eccentric by t he
locals, he is a respected member of the
communi ty and of the mariners ' guil d. If
the Major is attacked by the PCs, the
local citizenry rallies to his defense. The
mariners' guild quickly places a bounty
on the PCs, and the adventurers find
that they have become hunted cri minals.
The Major does not have the gu ild's
reward money or anything of value (oth-
er than food, drink, and na utical equip-
ment) at the lighthouse.
TIle Major gives the PCs the following
informati on concerni ng Abbey Isle:
"The only safe place to get ashore on
t he ree f-ringed, r ocky little isla nd is
a large sa ndy beach known as the
Skull Dunes. The dunes are full of
undead because t he clerics of the
abbey created an army of skeletons
to guard t he beac h. The skeletons lie
in wa it under the sa nd and at tack
anyone who comes near.
"Me and a few of the boys have
tried landing at different places on
t he dunes, but t he skeletons seem to
be everywher e. The poor lads I was
with had no stomach for the battle,
and I'm getti ng too old for such
fights . When t he skeletons started
lurching up out of t he sand and
swinging swords at our heads, we
legged it helte r -akelter back to the
boats .
"The pirates got ashore somehow.
There's probabl y a pat h through t he
undead, but finding it's t he problem.
We didn't catch up wit h the pirates
till after they ' d left th e island.
They' d apparently taken as good as
t hey gave. They were a miserable,
sorry lot when we attacked and rout-
ed what was left of th em. One ship-
load ma naged to sail to safety, but we
sa nk the others . The sea and the
shar ks got the survivors, so we never
got a firsthand account of wha t hap-
pened on the island or of how the
pirates got through t he dun es. May-
be there are no safe paths, but you
never know till you try.
"AJJ for the abbey, who knows for
sure? We never got anywhere near
th e place. Smoke rose from t he island
for days after t he pirates attacked .
Maybe th at means t he isl and's been
abandoned , or may be t he abbey
bur ned and the clerics are waiting to
rebuild. I don't know. Th at' s what
you have been hired to find out."
Major Ursa is not placed here as a
convenient mercenary and will not
automatically join the PC party. The
Major should accompany the party only
if it has made at least one attempt at
landing on the island, and th e isla nd's
defenders or defenses are obviously
beyond the PCs ' ca pabilities . He will go
along only to help clear t he isla nd for
the mariners' guild; he is not interested
in searching for t reasure.
If the Major accompa nies the party,
t he guild must find and pay a replace-
ment to man his lighthouse while he is
ISLE OF THE ABBEY
away. Ther efor e, t he PCs' r eward is
reduced to 1,000 gpoAlso, if the Major
accompanies the PCs. he r eceives one
full share of t he reward and one full
share of any treasure found on the
isla nd.
In game terms, Major Ursa's primary
purpose is to serve as an NPC conduit
when the OM wan ts to give information
to the player s. At t he OM's discr etion,
th e Major can also offer suggestions,
advice, and occasi onal helpful hints.
These hints should not be gi ven on
demand.
The Major 's suggesti ons concerning
the tactical situation on the isl and are
dependent on how much information
the PCs gi ve hi m about the isl and, its
inh abitants, and its traps and monsters .
Questi ons such as "How do we get
t hrough the tunnels underneath t he
rui ns?" ar e inappropr iate because th e
Maj or has no way of knowing t here are
tunnels under the abbey. The PCs must
fir st descr ibe t he t unnels (see "The
Winding Way") and t he si tuation there
before the Maj or can give advice . The
Major may not have advice on every
subject . Possible suggestions t he Major
might ma ke are included under t he
appropr iate headings. Th e PCs need not
follow any of the Major 's advice .
Tbe Island
Abbey Isle is a sma ll island about a
mi le wide and two miles long. It is little
more than a great slab of rock risi ng
from the ocean. The sea has battered its
cr umbling cl iffs so that almost the en-
ti re isla nd is surrounded by dangerous
rocky shoals. The waves crashing and
splashing over the jagged rocks make it
obvious, eve n to la ndlubbers, that any
attempt to navigate t he shoals can end
in only disaster.
In fact , t here is no reason to pass
t hrough the danger ous r ocks, for the
granite cliffs beyond them rise directl y
out of the water, offering no place to
land or come as hore . Only the dunes at
t he southernmost t ip of the isla nd ofTer
a safe place to land a boat (see "Th e
Skull Dunes").
The island has li ttle wildlife but is
covered in grass, small Flowering plants,
and a few gnarled, stunted t rees and
shrubs. What little wildlife there is on
t he island was imported by the clerics,
eit her deliberately or accidentally, when
they buil t t he abbey (see the "Abbey
Isle Wanderi ng Monsters" sidebar). The
DUNGEON 27
ISLE OFTHE ABBEY
t hrough t he undead a nd pushed on to
t he abbey.
If the PCs enter the dunes, the OM
must keep track of t he party's location
on the Skull Dunes map. Ass ume that
the PCs la nd at the sout her nmost t ip of
t he dunes unless t he players decide
ot herwise. The map shows the areas
guarded by undead a nd the wa ndering
path made by t he Chaotic pirate s.
Wh en the PCs fir-st. enter the dunes,
the hills of sa nd ar e unruffied and
t rackless. Travel through the loose sand
of t he dunes is difficult, a nd movement
rates are reduced by half
If a PC enters an unmarked square,
nothing happens. Anyone entering a
square marked with a number ia imme-
diately attacked by that nu mber of
skel etons. The nu mber of ekeletona
marked is t he maximum number of
skeletons in t hat area. For example:
The PCs enter a numbered square
marked "7." Th is means t hat seven
skeletons r ise and defend t hat particu-
lar square until t hey are dest royed. If
five of t he seven ske letons are de-
stroyed, only t wo skeletons rise and
attack on a PC's next ent ry into t hat
square. Once all the skeletons in a
square have been destroyed, that square
is cleared and safe to enter (t his does
not stop other ske letons from pursuing
PCs into that square).
If the PCs walk along t he line directly
between t wo guarded areas, they are
attacked by the akeletona from both
areas. If PCs pass over the junction
whe re four squares meet and form a
cross, they are attacked by t he skeletons
from all four areas (or from t hose of the
four areas th at are actua lly guarded).
When attacking, t he skeletons rise
from t he sand in a si ngle round. They
are encrusted wit h sa nd but unhinder ed
by it, 80 t hey retain t heir normal move-
ment rate while in t he dunes. Eac h
skeleton is armed wit h a rus t y short
sword or decr epit cutlass. The swords do
normal damage (16 hp eac h) but are too
r ust y and damaged to be salvaged or
BOld by PCs. Because Major Ursa has
alre ady warn ed the PCs about the ske l-
etons, t he PCs shoul d not be surprised
by them. In itia ti ve is ro lled normally.
Skeletons: AC 7; HD 1; hp 5 eac h;
' AT 1; Dmg by weapon t ype; MV 60'
(20') ; Save F1; ML 12; AL C; XP 10; RC
204.
The skeletons defend only t heir own
squares and will not pursue beyond 50'
of that square. Also, skeletons do not
1 square - 150'
special scepter that allowed safe pas-
sage through t he dunes, but this scepter
was destroyed in the fire that razed t he
abbey,
The skeletons now form an uncon-
trolled minefield of undead. When any-
one passes near, t he undead rush up out
of t he sand and attack. The skeletons
are impossible to avoid by stealth be-
cause they can detect intruders by
noise, ground vibrations ca used by
movement , and pressure on t he sand.
When the pirates attacked, t he akele-
tons made t he m pay dea rly, but the
pirates eve ntually cleared a pat h
o
14
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-, 18
THE SKULL DUNES

ABBEY ISLE
N
.-
1 squa re - 500'
The Skull Dunes
The Skull Dunes lie beyond a be ach of
coarse brown sand at t he southern end
of t he island . The dunes are desolate;
onl y an occasiona l bit of scraggly grass
grows here and t here i n the sandy hol -
lows. When t he abbey was built, t he
evil clerics populated t he dunes with
hundreds of skeletons brought from the
mainland for t he defense of t he isla nd.
Th e overlord of t he abbey carried a
island is two hours sail from the
mainland.
28 Issue No. 34
pursue into the water. Sea water does
t hem no harm-they ha ve si mply not
been ordered to defend that area. Thus,
coming ashore and then wadi ng around
the dunes is a clever way to avoid the
skeletons, although climbing the cliffs
may prove just 8 8 deadly. Donot drop
hlnta to the players about t his; let them
figure it out or fight through the dunes.
After driving int rude rs from their
square, the skeletons rebury t hemselves
in the sa nd. This gi ves PCa an edven-
tage because they can see where the
skeletons have hidden and can mark
these areas. However. the const ant sea
breezes over the loose sand of the Skull
Dunes will destroy all footprints and
ot her markings within 24 hours. If the
PCa mark the guarded areas, they must
use something permanent, such as
sticks. shells. etc.
Clerics may attempt to tum the un-
dead after the akeletona have risen from
the sand. All attempts to turn undead
before they ri se from the sand fail auto-
matically. If a cleric turns one or more of
the skeletons, the undead do not run
a way but immediatel y rebury them-
selves in the sand. Turning lasts idtn +4
rounds for all skeletons turned by a
turning attempt (not per skeleton). After
this time, the skeletons rise and attack
again if t he PCs are still in the area.
U t he PCs at tack buried skeletons,
they suffer a - 2 on to-hit and damage
rolls because they ca nnot see where to
strike and t he sand cushions the blow.
If a buried ske leton is attacked, it and
all ot her ske letons in that square ri se
a nd attack (even ske letons that have
just been turned l.
How the PCs map the dunes is their
own affair. However, the DM can suggest,
either 8B a mapping hint from M$r Ur-sa
or 88 a useful hint from DM to players
before the game starts, t hat a large grid
system for the dunes is helpful.
If the PCs are unable to force a path
through the dunes, they may ret urn to
the lighthouse a nd ask Major Ur sa for
advice. If asked what tactics might
work agains t the ske leto ns, he suggests
t he foll owing: "Clear out a spot or two
in the Sk ull Dunes to use as fighting
room and safe a reas, then explore and
test the dunes until a path is cleared." If
even more basic advi ce is needed, he
tell s the PCs: " Fighters and clerics are
va l ua ble aeseta here. Other party mem-
bers should attempt to draw the undead
out and allow the fighters to destroy
t he m or the clerics to turn them."
ISLE OFTHE ABBEY
Abbey Isl e Wandering Monsters
After t he PCs have passed t he Skull Dun es a nd a re on the main portion of the
island, the DM shoul d roll ld6 six ti mes per day: at sunrise, noon, sunset, mid-
night , and twice at t he DM's discretion. If the result is a I, an encounter occurs.
Outdoor encounters di ffer from normal dungeon encounters because t hey begin
at much longer di st ances. Dist ances depend on terrain a nd available light {Re,
page 931. 'Io determi ne encounter distance during t he day, roll 4d6 a nd multi ply
by 10 to produce a number between 40 a nd 240. This number is t he di stance in
yards at which the monster is first encountered. Night encounters are at a dis -
t ance of 2d6 x 10 yards, because t he creature must come into the lig ht or into
infravision ra nge to be see n (t hough it may be heard coming at a mu ch greater
di st ance).
If a n encounter is called for, roll 2d l0 and consult the following table:
2: Zombies (5): AC 8; HD 2; hp 9 each; IAT 1 claw or 1 weapon; Dmg 1-8 or by
weapon t ype; MV 90' (30'); Save Fl; ML 12; AL C; XP 20; RC 213. These creat ures
move about as a pack a nd are always encountered as a group rathe r than as indio
vid uals. If the PCs dest roy one or more zombies in a n encounter, reduce t he num-
ber appeari ng for any further encounters. Once all five zombies have bee n
des t royed, treat this option as no encounter.
34 : Stirges (l 4 ): AC 7; HD 1+; hp 4 each; 'AT 1; Dmg 13; MV 30' no, Ilying
180' (60'); Save F2; ML 9; AL N; XP 13; RC 208. TheBe creat ures feed pri mari ly
on the mul es, rats, and giant rats that populate the island. They are aggressive
and more than will ing to va ry t hei r diet by tasti ng adventurers. Once all four
stirges ha ve been dealt with, treat all no encounter.
57: Giant centi pede (16); AC 9; HD 112+; hp 2 each; 'AT 1 bite; Dmg Poillon;
MV 60' (20'); Save NM; ML 7; AL N; XP 6; RC 163. These creatures can be found
under rocks , in piles of t rash, a nd in a ny damp hollow on t he isl and.
8-11: Normal rats 5 2 4 ~ : AC 9; HD 1 hp eac h; tAT 1 bite per pack of 5-10; Dmg
1-6 plus di sease ; MV 60' (20' ), swi mming 30' fl O'); Save NM; ML 5; AL N; XP 2;
RC 201.
12-14: Giant rats (212): AC 7; HD Ik ; hp 3 eac h; 'AT 1 bite each; Dmg 13 plus
disease; MV 120' (40'), swi mmi ng 60' (20' ); Save NM; ML 8; AL N; XP 5; RC 201.
15-17 Mule (12): AC 7; HD 2; hp 9 each; IAT 1 kick or 1 bite; Dmg 14 or 1-3;
MV 120' (40'); Save NM; ML 8; AL N; XP 20; RC 195. The a bbey's mules have
gone wild and now roam t he entire island. The mules are inoffens ive and will not
attack unless provoked. The DM is st rongly advise d not to give experience points
for the pointl ess kill ing of mules and is well withi n his rights to deduct experi-
ence poi nts from a PC'1l total for such actions. If t he PCs ca pt ure the mules in
order to sell t hem or use t he m as pack ani mals, give full experience-point value
for each mul e capt ur ed. Capt ured mules may be sold for 30 gp each. The mules
suffer greatly from lack of wa ter, so Pes may capt ure t he m usi ng fres h water 85
bai t. There are only five mul es on t he island. Once all are ca ptured or killed, treat
as no encounter.
1819 : Skeletons 001: AC 7; HD 1; hp 5 each; 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon type; MV
60' (20'); Save F l ; Mt 12; At C; XP 10; RC 204 . Like t he zombies l isted previous-
ly, these creatures roa m in a pack and will always be encountered toge t her rather
t han indivi dua lly.
20: Giant black widow spider : AC 6; HD 3+; hp 15; , AT 1 bite; Dmg 212 pl us
poiso n; MY 60' (20'), in web 120' (40' ); Save F2; ML 8; AL N; XP 60; RC 206 . Th is
spi der was once a pet ofthe abbey's overlord. It escaped from its wooden cage
when t he abbey burned, and now it roams the island in search of prey. The spider
is always hungry and is a n aggressive hunter. If t he black widow spider is killed,
t reat thi s resul t as no encounter.
DUNGEON 29
ISLE OFTHE ABBEY
The Sur-vivors
Abbey Isle is not un inhabited. A few of
the abbey's clerics and guards managed
to survive the pirate attack and now
live a spartan life in th e ruins . They
have made rough accommodations for
themsel ves in the abbey's cellars. The
abbey's vegetabl e garden and a few
kegs of corned beef and salted pork al so
survived the pirate attack. The survi-
vors fish from the lower cliffs and raise
buckets of sea wa ter up the cliffs by
rope . By cast ing puri fy food and water
spells on the sea water, the abbey' s
cleri cs create enough water for their
drinking, cooking, washing, and garden-
ing needs.
Unfortunately for the survivors, they
have no boat and no means of building
one. The island's few stunted trees and
gnarled bushes are incapable of supply-
ing the woodfor even a crude canoe or
raft. The survi vors have no control over
the undead of the Skull Dunes and
would have to fight t heir way through
the skeletons to launch a boat (t hey are
unaware of t he path made by the pi-
rates). They are effectively trapped on
the island while everyone else is kept off.
The survivors keep a very low pr ofile.
They stay close to the ruins of th e abbey
and keep out of sight of paeaing boats.
They do not hail boats or shi ps or light
signal fir es. Trapped on the island since
the pi rate attack, they are unaware
that the pirate s have been destroyed.
They are therefore very hesitant to
make t hei r presence known for fear t he
pirates will return and finish t he m off.
While the survivors desperately want
to lea ve the island, their super iors
would not approve of their abandoning
the island to t he mariners. Both the
clerics and the survivi ng guards would
be severe ly punished (t he death penalty
or worse) if they left the property th ey
are re sponsible for. For this re ason, they
will attempt to capt ure or kill anyone
coming to t he island and take their boat
through treachery or force of arms. If
any PCs are capt ured, they are kept
alive onl y if they can be used in negoti a-
tions to ext ract a ransom. Ransom de-
mands are likel y to include a boat or at
least transportation to the mainl and.
The survivors ' main goal is to send
word to their supe riors wh ile still re-
t aining poeeession of the isl and. In this
way they hope to receive reinforce-
ments, laborers, and materi al for r e-
building the abbey. They keep watch on
30 Issue No. 34
the Skull Dunes during the day, but t he
giant spider and the roaming undead
(see the " Abbey Isle Wandering Mon-
sters" sidebar) often force the lookouts
to retreat to t he cellars below t he ru-
ined abbey. Therefor e, there is a 50%
chance of landing unseen at the Skull
Dunes during the day. The survi vors do
not keep watch at ni ght out of fear of
t he spider and undead. The PCs have a
100%chance oflandi ng unseen at
ni ght. The PCs can st ill be heard at
ni ght if they make a great deal of noise
fighting the skeletons in the dunes.
The survivors may be above ground
getting water, fishing, or gar deni ng
during the day, or they may be in area 2
of the ruins. At ni ght they stay in their
rooms. The survi vors are:
Ozymandias: AC 6; C4; hp 14; I AT 1;
Dmg by spell or weapon type; MV 120'
(40'); Save C4; ML 9; AL C; XP 175;
leather armor +1; war hammer; spells :
cure light wounds, light, hold person.
Ozymandias barely survived the bet-
tle with the pirates becau se he attempt.
ed to rescue important books and scrolls
from the burning ab bey, and a collepe-
ing hall closed a doorway behind hi m.
He was forced to abandon the written
works, and he escaped onl y after a wall
collapsed and freed him.
Technically, Ozymandias is now the
"High One" and the leader of t he survi-
vors . He is a capabl e administrator, but
he does not i nspire loyalty or trust in
those under him. Underlings obey him
because of the hier archical structur e of
the abbey's chain of command, not be-
ca use he shows any st rong leadership. If
attacked, he defends himself to the best
of his abil ities. If the PCs at tempt to
negotiate, Ozymandias is t reacherous
and unlikely to keep any agreement
(except at sword point). He wants to
send word of the abbey's destructi on to
the mainland, and he hopes to hold the
island until help arrives.
Ow mend tee wears a special medal-
lion that allows safe passage past the
undead guardians of th e Winding Way
(t he tunnels below the abbey ruin). The
medalli on is a gold di sk inscribed with
complex geometric designs worth 30 gpo
It is not magical, but und ead of the
Winding Way recognize it and allow
anyone pceseeeing the medallion to pass
safely (unless the undead are at tacked).
Only the undead guardians recognize
the medall ion, and it cannot be used for
safe passage past traps or ot her guard-
ians in the Winding Way or for protec-
t ion from any ot he r undead on or off the
island. The undead will not obey orders
from th e person wearing the medallion.
In addition, t he medalli on protects only
the person weari ng it .
As the highest -ranking cleric left on
the island, Ozymandias has inheri ted
the medall ion as a symbol of the faith,
but he doesn't know about its powers or
a bout the dangers of the Winding Way.
His supe rior s cons idered him too insig-
nifi cant to trust with such information.
Odi u m: AC 8; MU5; hp 12; IAT 1;
Dmg by spell or weapon t ype; MV 120'
(40'); Save MU5; ML 8; AL C; XP 550,
ring ofprotection +I, dagger'" 1..spells ;
magic missile, shie ld, mi rror image,
web, dispel magic.
Odium was visiting t he abbey on
business when the pirates attacked. He
is no coward and ga ve a good account of
himself duri ng the battle, though he
survived by sheer chance. He ran
t hrough t he bur ning building to save
his spell book and ot her valuables. As
t he flames mounted, Odium was forced
to retreat to t he cellars with his rescued
goode.
He is a grumbl er and annoys everyone
with hi s constant gripi ng. Odium and
Ozymandias dislike each other in-
tensely. If one gets into trouble, the
other will do absolutel y nothing to help.
Odium has business elsewhe re and
desperately wants to leave t he island
and get on wit h his life. If PCs do not
attack Odium i mmediately, they may be
able to strike a deal with him. His pr i-
mary demand is to get off the island. He
will dr aw the PCs a rough map of the
a bbey ruins for 200 gp and safe passage
off the isla nd. Ilf this occurs, t he DM
need only dr aw PCs a rough map of t he
cellars without incl udi ng th e Winding
Way.) Odium will refuse to j oin t he PCs
in a fight agai ns t t he other survivors .
Bayl eaf: AC 3; E3; hp 12; I AT 1; Dmg
by spell or weapon type; MV 120' (40' );
Save E3; ML9; AL N; 117, W 16; XP
80; chai n ma il, shield +1, sword, dag-
ger, eloen boots; spells: charm person,
sleep, phantasmal force.
Bayl eaf is a mercenary who wor ks for
t he hi ghest bidder. He was hired by t he
abbey as a training instructor for t he
guards . If PCs do not attack him i mme-
diately, negotiat ion is possible. Bayleaf
can be bought off for 500 gp and safe
passage off the island. He will not draw
a map for th e PCs or help them attack
hi s fonner employers, but he will tell
them t here are t reasure- filled tunnels
ISLE OFTHE ABBEY
I .. I
A
N
2
MY 120' (40')j Save F3. Fl ( x 2); ML 10;
AL N; XP 35, 10 ()( 2); chain mail, short
sword, dagger.
These disciplined wa rriors are the last
of t he abbey guard. All three were
dyi ng of thei r wounds when t hey were
found a nd healed by t he cle rics. Ozy-
mandias has ordered them to obey Bay-
leaf, but t hey prefer Ogmund as leader
because he is one of t he m and not a
hi red sword. They will figh t to t he
dea th to save t he clerics. If the cle rics
surrender, the guards' morale is lowered
to 5.
12
Up to area I

1 aquare 10'
ABBEY RUINS
riddled with small r at pass ages and
ventilation shafts t hat pulled air in
from t he outside, drawi ng t he heat a nd
smoke upward a nd permitting t he cler-
ics and t heir guards to survive t he
names.
Th e clerics perform t hose functions
needed for t he survival of the group.
They figh t only if a bsolutely necessary
and will surrender at t he first oppoetu-
nit y if a ny fight turns against t he m. If
questi oned, t hey kn ow very littl e about
t he island and t he abbey.
Guards (3): AC 5; F3, Fl ()( 2); hp 12.
5 ()( 2); tAT t : Dmg by weapon type;
beneat h t he abbey. If pressed, Bayleaf
admits only t hat the treasure is guard-
ed(true) and claims it is worth 10,000
gp (false).
Bayl eaf survived t he battle wit h the
pirates by making t hem t hi nk he had
jumped to his doom from t he cliffs. In
fact , he stood at t he edge of t he cliff a nd
ceet hi s phantasmal force spell to make
it appear he had jumped to hi s death. If
cornered by t he PCs, Bayleafwill use
t his ruse or somet hi ng simi lar agai n.
Bayleafis an excellent swordsman
a nd a n above-average tactician in small
skirmishes. Ozymandias has placed him
in charge of defending the cellars. If
Bayleaf i s captured, killed, or br ibed,
defense of t he cellars becomes a hectic,
haphazard affair.
Ogmund t h e Strong: AC 4; F3; hp
14; 'AT 1; Dmg by weapon type; MV
120' (40'); Save F3; ML 11; AL C; 17. S
17; XP 35; chain mai l. shield. swor d.
dagger.
Ogmund is a huge, st upid. mean-
spirited fighter. In battle he is awesome,
wie lding his sword unti ringly. Duri ng
t he battle with the pirates, a blow from
a wa r ha mmer knocked him uncon-
scious. He was left for dead and later
was dr agged to safety by clerics r etreat-
ing to the cellars. He is embarrassed
that he did not die in t he battle and wi ll
not make this mistake twice.
There is no negotiating with Ogmund.
His dema nds are simple: surrender or
fight. As a tactician. Ogmund is wholly
wanting. He is like ly to overlook t he
simplest of ambushes, and his only
offensive tactic is a headlong frontal
attack. Ogmund feels he should be in
charge of defense and resents the pres-
ence of Bayleaf. He will gladly lea ve the
elf in the lu rch should the chance arise.
Clerics (4): AC 6; C3. C2 ()( 2). Cl; hp
11. 7()(2). 4; IAT 1; Dmgby spell or
weapo n type; MV 120' (40')j Save C3, C2
()( 2), cr. ML 5; AL C; XP 50, 25 ()( 2).
10; leather armor, shield, mace; spells:
(C3) cure light uounds. light; (C2, I U
cure light wounds; fC2, 12) purify food
and water.
These re mnants of the a bbey's clerics
a re not a particularly spirited lot. After
t he devastati ng loss to the pirates, t hey
are not eager to join ba ttle with anyone.
These low-level clerks and hel pers sur-
vived the battle and burning of the
abbey by hiding i n the cellars. Alt hough
t he heat, smoke. and lack of fresh air
might have killed t he clerics in a well-
sealed room, the cellars of the abbey are
DUNGEON 31
ISLE OFTHE ABBEY
The Abbey Ruins
The pirate attack on the abbey came as
a complete surprise to the clerics, since
the pirates and clerics were in league
with each ot her. The pirates fenced
much of t hei r booty through the clerics,
who shipped the goods to distant tern-
pIes wher e they could besold wit hout
being recognized as stolen merchandise.
The Abbey Isl e cleri cs often cheated
the pirates on t hese clandestine deals.
The pirates grumbl ed and made threats
about the poor treat ment they received,
but t hey did little to alter the arrange-
ments. Thus, while t he two gr oups had
their differences, t he cleri cs did not
t hi nk t he pirates would attack. The
clerics were confident that , even if t he
pirates did attack. they could not cern-
mand enough force to break t hrough the
Skull Dunes defenses.
Unfort unately for the cleri cs, th e
pir ates did have enough manpower to
break through, barely. After th eir losses
in the Skull Dunes, the pira tes were in
such a vengeful mood that they immedi -
ately set fire to the abbey. The battle for
the lit tl e isla nd was fought in the glow
of t he burning bu ilding.
Because the structure was aflame, the
pirates never had a chance to loot the
building or find the cellars. The air
pulled up into the fire from the cellars
guaranteed a hot, steady burn, and as
the naming structure collapsed, it buri ed
the cellar entrance in smoking debris.
After the battle, the pirates gathered
wha t loot they could and abandoned th e
smoking ruins. unaware they were
leaving survivors behind. When t he
smolderi ng wreckage cooled, the eurvt-
vors forced their way out through the
rubble.
1. Rubble and Cell a r Entrance.
All t hat remains of the abbey is a
great square of stones filled with
burned and bl ackened rubble. How-
ever. as you approach t he 800ty
atones , it is obvious someone has
been sorting t hrough the debris.
Assorted oddment s are pil ed inside
t he scorched square of the foundation
stones. Rui ned cooking ute nsils,
crushed pots and pans, mangled
kettles, and less ident ifiable metal
objects lie in one pile. Broken crock-
ery, platte r s, plates, porcelain. and
potte ry are heaped in another. A
great deal of wood has been sorted
32 Issue No. 34
into one large mound of badly burned
scraps. In the center of t he ruins is
an opening, and as you move nearer.
you see a atone staircase leading
down into darkness.
If t he PCs investigate the piles of
rubbi sh. they find not hi ng of value. The
survi vors have sorted through t he r e-
mains of the abbey. and all valuable or
usabl e objects have been removed. The
pil e of charcoal is used as smokeless
fuel for cooking and heating. The stairs
are fir e-blackened and lead down to a
badl y charred door, which can be forced
as a stuck door (Re. page 9).
If PCs are unabl e to force a way into
the cell ars, they may return to the
lighthouse and as k the Major for help.
He gives t he following advice: " If there
are survivors who won' t come out of t he
rui ns. take a load of green wood to the
isla nd and smoke them out ." (Thi s won't
work beca use smoke r ises out of the
cellars). Ot her advice from the Major is:
"Negoti ate, and gi ve safe passage to
anyone who wants to leave the island."
Experi ence points should be awarded
for clearing t he island of survivors by
negoti at ion beca use this accomplishes
t he PCs' goal.
2. Main Area.
This appears to be a combi nation
di ning hall and recreation area. The
room reeks of greasy, soured food.
The main feature of the room is a
large makeshift table made of two
badly burned planks placed side by
si de and supported at either end by
up-ended. barrels. Beneat h the table
are several small empty kegs that
serve as chair s. The table is not very
clean; scra ps of food are strewn
across the planks and on th e floor
nearby. Scattered about t he room are
sma ller makeshift tables. Several
have dice, cards, or other gaming
tokens on them.
Th is is t he dining and recreation area
for the survivors . The re is a standing
argument between t he guards and eler -
ics over who should keep the area clean.
As a result , no one is willing to clea n
t he place . There is not hi ng of value in
t he room.
If t he PCs attack, th e pri ncipal fight.
ing will happen here. Ogmund seldom
sleeps in hi s quarters (area 4) and often
spe nds hi s ti me here. dicing wit h his
fellows. Ther e is a 75% chance offind-
ing Ogmund here at any t ime of t he day
or night gambli ng with one guard and
one cleri c. There is only a 25%chance
that each of t he following is her e: Ozy-
mandias, Odi um, Bayleaf, another
guard, another cleric. If an attack oc-
curs, Ogmund gives a tremendcue war
cry that rouses everyone in the cellars.
3. Kitchen.
Thi s seems to be th e survivor '.
kitchen. A large cauldron filled with
smolderi ng charcoal burns in the
center of the room. Plates, cutl ery,
cups, kettl es, pots, pans, and other
assorted cookware are stored on the
floor and on shelves. One shelf holds
several bottles of spices and eeeson-
ings, such as salt , pepper, and -re.
There is also an orn ate ecrcl! tube on
t he shelf. The room is fa ir ly clean ,
but t he air is humid and greasy. A
large tub of dirty water standa in the
cor ner, surrounded by a gr eat num-
ber of dirty dishes.
The large cauldron was or iginally
used in the abbey laundry. The eurvi.
vors rescued it from the rui ns and now
use it as a rue pit for cooki ng. Meals
prepared. her e consist primarily of
boiled vegetabl es and fried meats . If the
PCs search. they find little of value
except t hree large butcher kni ves (treat
as daggers). The scr oll tube on the spice
shelf is worth 10 gp but contaiIlAonly a
scroll of simple recipes.
4. Ogmund'8 Quarters.
This chamber ree ks of wine. Small
kegs are scattered everywhere. A
floor to ceiling wine rack fill ed with
bottles dominates t he sout hern wan.
A crudely made pallet of raga and
sacks covers t he cente r of t he room.
The old wine cellar serves as
Ogmund's private quarters . U the PC.
investigate. t hey find t hat all t he kega
and every single bottle in the wine rack
is empty. There is littl e for the surv ivors
to do, 80 t hey have slowly consumed the
wine. All the sma ller empty wine keg_
have been removed and now serve u
chairs in the main room (area 2). If the
PCs search Ogmund's pallet, t hey find a
pouch conta ini ng 25 gp and a g g ~ r
+I . A search of t he large wine cuk.
reveals one that contains a sui t of leat h-
er armor, a short sword , and a pair of
good quality boots . The wine r ack holds
nothi ng but empty bottles.
6. Barracks.
Three crude pallets lie on the floor.
and a large iron kettle st ands in the
center of the chamber. In the north-
east corner is a j umbled pile of bro-
ken lumber.
If PCs investi gate the pallets, they
find nothing but rags st uffed into flour
sac ks to make crude mattresse s. The
kettle contains only as h and charcoal
burned for heat. The lumber in the
corner fuels th e kettle. If the PCs searc h
t hrough the lumber. they find the
guards' weapon hoard hidden behind it :
five spears, a short bow and quiver of 20
arrows, two short swords, three daggers,
two shields, and one man-sized. suit of
leather armor. The PCs may use this
equipment or sell it for t he prices listed
on pages 62 and 67 of t he Re.
6. Meditation Room.
This room has been cleared of all
debris and scrubbed clean. Three
walls are heavily curtain ed with
dr aperies of t hick black velvet , and
the eastern wall is decorated wit h a
horri ble mural depict ing a red dr ag-
on devouring sheep. Near t he west-
ern wall is a stone table on which a
large iron br azi er burns. The tabl e
has been scrubbed and scour ed, but it
has many odd discolorations and
scorch mar ks. A half-melted stat ue
and two badl y damaged candlesticks
si t beside the br azier.
Thi s was a meditation and study room
before the abbey burned. The cler ics
st ill perform what few rites and cere mo-
nies they can given the circumstances-
the furnishings have all been salvaged
from t he rubble . The t abl e, which was
discolored by t he fire and heat, serves
as the ceremonial platform where in-
cense is burned and wher e larger sacri -
fices are made by burning rich, costly
items in t he brazier. The candlesticks
are gold but are 80 damaged that t hey
are now worth only 5 gp each. The
stat ue is vaguely humanoid but was
partially melted by the heat . It is solid
silver and worth 20 gpoUnfortunately,
the r ich, black velvet curtains are old,
mild ewed, and rotting. PCs may sew the
material into bags or sacks, but the
velvet is worthless and cannot be sold.
Hidden behind the curtains on the
southern wall is the door to the Wind-
ingWay.
7. Ozymandias's Quarters.
This room is full of kegs, bags, and
boxes. There is a rough cot in one
corner and a great deal of clutter
everywher e. Except for the cot, thi s
appears to be nothing more than a
disor ganized storage room.
The room is Ozymandias's bedroom,
office, and storeroom. If PCs search the
jumbled mess, th ey find a few kegs of
corned beef and pork; bags of beans,
rice, and flour ; and a couple of boxes of
fresh vegetables from the abbey's gar-
den. They also find gardeni ng tools; a
keg of nails; a box of carpentry tools
(saws, hammers, planes, etc.); three
lanterns; 10 flask s of oil; t wo 50' coils of
rope ; 20 torches; and two 10' wooden
poles. Under t he rusti c cot are two po-
ti ons of healing in crystal decan ters.
The decanters are worth 20 gp each.
ISLE OF THEABBEV
8. Bayleaf's Quarters.
This appears to have been an armory.
There are empty racks for holding
spears and swords, and several emp-
ty bins and shelves. On the floor is a
bedroll of three blankets next to a
pair of shiny leather boots.
The armory of the cleri cs and the
abbey guards is now devoid of arms and
armor. Weapons th at survived the battle
with the pirates are scattered among
th e survivors and hidden in a new ar-
mory (see ar ea 6). Bayleaf now uses the
old armory as his pri vate quarters.
If the PCs search the bedroll, t hey
find a small pouch containing 15 gpo
Hidden under some rags in an empty
arr ow bin is Bayleafs spell book. In
addition to the spells he has memorized,
th e book contains read languOBes, read
magi.c, and locate object. The boots are
Bayl eafs extra pair. Hidden in the toe
or t he right boot is a silver medallion
worth 20 gpo If the PCs make a deal
with Beyleaf he will ta ke the coin
pouch, spell book, boots , and silver
medalli on with him when he leaves t he
isla nd.
DUNGEON 33
ISLE OFTHEABBEY
9. Odium's Quarters.
This room contains small statues and
figurines. The re are statues of dogs
and horses, mon ks a nd pil grims,
footmen a nd knights on hor seback,
a nd several garde n gnomes. All the
statues are from 1' -3' t all . Standing
agains t the northern wall are t wo
life-size stat ues. One is a robed eke le-
ton holding a large scyt he, and the
ot he r is a medusa . On the floor di-
rectly i n fr ont of these st a t ues is a
pallet of several bl ankets.
Odi um now li ves in this storage area.
ICPCs inspect t he small stat ues a nd
figurines, they discover th at they are all
badly made of glazed cl ay. The two lar ge
statues are made of stone, and each
et a nda on a large square base. They
were used as scarec rows in t he garden.
However, the isla nd's birds were soon no
longer fri ghtened by t hem a nd began
roost ing on the figures, 80 they were
re moved to t he cellars. Bit s of old birds'
nests ca n st ill be found in the medusa's
snaky ha ir and between t he skeleton's
ribs. Th e PCs ma y remove t he statuary
they wish. The mariner's guild will
charge a sti ff fee for tra nsporting them,
and the PCs will soon di scover that no
one wa nts to buy a n ugly stat ue of
Death or a medus a.
IfPCs move the medusa stat ue, t hey
discover t hat the ba se is holl ow. Odium
has pl aced his spell book, a pouch con-
taining 40 gpoa nd a scroll with t he spell
ventriloquis m in t he empty space. In
additi on to the spells Odium ha s memo-
rized, t he spell book contains read mag-
ic. detect magic, a nd knock. Ift he PCs
make a deal with Odi um, he takes these
treasur es with him, and t he PCs find
nothing in t he statue's base .
Winding Way Tra ps
Trapped areas in the Winding Way (areas 11-14) are denoted by letters.
A. Trip Wire. Th is is a taut wire st retched across the corridor. When any PCs
are within 10' of the t rip wire. r oll Id20 for each PC; the PC sees the wire on a
roll of 19 or 20. Th e PCs can easily defeat t hese t raps by simply stepping over the
wire or by t ripping the wire from a safe dist ance with 1'1 pole or other object .
Trippi ng the wire or snaggi ng a foot in it immediately releases a large stone
directly overhead. doing 16 hp damage to anyone below who fails a sa ving throw
vs. wa nds. A successful saving t hrow means the PC has jumped or r oll ed out of
the wa y of the falling stone. Once a wire is tripped, that t rap is safe until reset.
B. Open pit a nd illusi on. This is an open 6' x 6' x 10' pit. Any PC falling into
the pit takes 1-6 hp damage. The pit is covered by an illusion (a permanent phan-
tasmal force spell! of sol id floor. PCs can di scover the illusion by a detect magic
spell , by probing ahead with a pole or ot her object, or by falling into the pit . A
detect magic spell will show only that a 6' x 6' area of the floor radiates magic. It
does not dispel the ill usion. A detect in visible spell is ineffective because the pit is
merely hidden, not invisible.
C. Pit traps . This 6' x 6' x 10' pit is covered by a trapdoor painted to look li ke
t he surrounding floor. The t rapdoor gives way when a weight greater than 50 Ibs .
is placed upo n it , dumping t he pc. object, or monster into the pit. The fall does 1-6
hp damage, and t he trapdoor swings shut automatically one round after opening.
These traps ca n be defeated by probing ahead with a pole or heavy object. If a
knock spell is used within range of t he se pit traps, the trapdoors open for one
round and reveal t he trap's location.
D. False door with over head block. This is a very simple trap. When a nyone
attempts to open the door by puahing or pulling on it even slightly, a stone bl ock
above the door falls and does 16 hp damage to a nyone beneath. The PC must
ma ke a saving t hrow va. wands to jump out of the way of t he fa lling block . Once
t he bl ock has fallen, t he trap is ueeleee until reset.
E. Door with Crossbow, This door is wired to a crossbow placed in a niche at
an angle to t he door (see the Wi nding Way map). When the door is opened to an
angle of 45 ' or more. the crossbow fir es into the opening. Anyone in t he line of
fire takes 1-6 hp da mage from t he quarrel. The crossbow is 4' otTt he ground and
may fire over the heads of halflings and dwarves. Anyone standing behind the
shorter folk will be st r uck. If the door is push ed open wit h a pole or other object.
the quarrel ricochets ha rmlessly off the wa ll. Once fired, the crossbow is ueeleea
until reset. The crossbow is permanently bolted in pl ace; a ny attempt to remove
one for sale or use by PCs may damage the bow and render it useless (DM's
di scretion).
341ssuo No. 34
10. Clerics' Qua rters.
The cold ai r in t his room ha s the dry,
papery smell of a library. Th er e are
sever al large bookcases agai ns t t he
walls a nd a high chair and scr ibes'
desk to t he r ight of the door. The
bookcases are loaded with books,
tomes, and scrolls. Four bedrolls are
stacked ne atly in the corner.
The four lower-level clerics ma ke this
room their home. Th ey do not heat t he
room for fear of setting the paper alight.
The bedroll s are made of bla nkets a nd
hold nothing of interest or val ue. If the
PCs search t he desk, t hey find two vials
of r are ink worth 25 gp each. A careful
search through the books and scro lls in
the bookcases will reveal t wo clerical
spel l scrolls; light and bless. The major i-
ty of the books a nd scrolls are merely
abbey bookkeepi ng and of no i nterest to
t he PCs. However, one set of five books
is of a more sinister nat ure.
These five tomes ha ve old, fragile
pages a nd are bound in t hick, cracked
bl ack leather trimmed in copper. If the
PCs exa mine them. t hey discover t he
a ncie nt books give procedures a nd de-
tai ls for a number of evil ri tes a nd cere-
monies. The books make gri m a nd
ha rrowin g readi ng for any PC not be nt
toward evi l.
If the PC party destroys t he books,
give each party member a 100 XP bo-
nus. If Lawful PCs keep and sell the
Chaotic books, each party member is
penalized 100 XP, and t he 50 gp sale
va lue of the books is deduct ed from t he
party' s total experience points.
The Windi ng Way
When t he abbey was constructed, these
meandering t unnels wer e dug beneath
it for treasure stor age. Only the abbot
wa s privy to a ll the Way's secreta, and
he died in the fire . The t unnels are well
made, with smoot h walls, floors, and
ceili ngs 10' overhead. The Winding Way
contains an abundance of traps and
guardians to pr otect the abbey's trea-
sure. Traps in t he Winding Way are
denoted by letters . When the PCs enter
a trapped area, cons ult the "Winding
Way Traps" sidebar.
The Winding Way contains only two
types of guardians: living statues and
undead (for ease of reference. those OMs
using the new D&D set may wish to
change the crystal and iron living
statues to wood and hone golems respec-
tivel y), Use the following statistics
when any of these guardians are
encounte red :
Living crystal statue: AC 4; HD 3;
IAT 2; Dmg 1-6/1-6; MV 90' (30'); Save
F3; ML 11; AL L; XP 35; RC 208.
Living iron statue: AC 2; HD 4 ;
I AT 2; Dmg 1811-8 pl us special; MV 30'
(10' ); Save F4; ML 11; AL N; XP 125;
RC 208.
Skeleton: AC 7; UD 1; I AT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; MV 60' (20'); Sa ve Fl ; ML
12; AL C; XP 10; RC 204. If turned,
these undead stay away from t he turn-
i ng cleric for 110 rounds.
Zombie: AC 8; UD 2; 'AT 1 claw or 1
weapon; Dmg 18 or by weapon type;
MV 90' (30'); Save Fl ; ML 12; AL C; XP
20; RC 213. If turned, the zombies stay
away for 110 rounds (as above).
If the PCs are unable to penetrate t he
maze of the Winding Way and ask the
Major 's advice, he states simply: "Seal
it off lads. No t reasure's worth your
life." If pr essed, he will continue:
"Magie-uaera and thieves are valuable
in such labyrinths. Use spellcr aft and
t hief abilities rather than pure force: '
The Maj or has no inkling that a medal-
lion exists that allows easy passage pas t
the undead.
11. Entrance Guardroom.
You have found a short tunnel be-
yond t he drapes, an ent rance to hid -
den passages, it seems. The tunnel
ai r is stale and stuffy, but not foul.
After 20', the t unne l widens i nto an
unfurni shed and undecorated
30' x 30' chamber. Standi ng across
the center of the room are five
ghostly white ske letons, each with a
short sword in its bony hand. Fi ve
corpeelike figures stand shoulder to
shoulder, guarding a door in the
easte rn wall. Their faces have been
painted in gruesome colors.
Unless a PC is wearing Ozymandias'
medallion (see "The Survivors" ), the
skeletona Ihp 5 each) and zombies fhp
9 each) move forward immediately to
attack anyone entering the area. The
undead attack until they are destroyed
or the i ntruders have been driven away.
They pursue intruders throughout the
tunnel s but do not leave the Winding
Way. Once intruders have been killed or
driven back through the door of the
room, the undead return to their origi-
nal positions.
The clerics pa inted the zombies' faces
to gi ve them a horrible and mor e fear -
some appearance, alt hough the result in
some cases is to make them look like
undead clowns. The paint jobs are sup-
posed to be death masks: the face is
painted stark white and the lips, nose,
and eyes are painted coal black.
12. Hallway Guardroom.
The hallway widens out suddenl y
into a bare SO' x 50' chamber. Stand.
ing close to the southern wall are two
ranks of undead, five skeletons i n the
front rank and five corpeeli ke figures
in the second. Standi ng directly in
the exit in the sout hern wall, effec-
tivel y blocking it, is a large crystal
statue of a minotaur.
The behavior and battle tact ics of the
skeletons (hp 5 each) and the zombies
(hp 9 each) are the same as for those in
area 11, The minotaur sta tue blocking
the southern exit is a Uving crystal
statue Ihp 14). It does not move until
the undead hav e been turned or have
joi ned battle with the intruders . The
statue then attacks the nearest tree-
passer. Like the undead, the sta t ue
attacks until all i ntruders ha ve been
killed or driven from the complex. The
statue does not pursue beyond area 11
and returns to its original position once
intruders have been dealt with. The
command words ("Thur us movere") used
to bypass the statue safely were lost i n
the destruction of the abbey.
13. False Treasure Room. After th e
twisting corridor, the PCs come to a
ISLEOF THE ABBEY
large ir on-bound wooden door t hat is
both locked and trapped. If the tr ap is
not removed, any attempt at opening
t he door causes a large vial of poisonous
gas to drop from the ceili ng and shatte r
on the floor directly before the doorway.
The gas immediatel y fill s a 10' x 10'
area for one full turn. When it dissi -
pates, it leaves an i ncred ible stench.
Anyone caught in the gas must save
ve. poison or take 2-8 hp damage from
the foul air. After the trap has been
removed or the gas cloud has dissipated,
the PCs may open the door by picking
the lock, by cas ting a knock spell , or by
battering the door open. The door is
treated as an AC 9 target with attack-
ers receiving a +2 bcnus on to-hit r olls.
The door takes 15 hp damage before
opening.
The large chamber before you is
unfurnished and undecorated .
Ches ts, urns, and a large strongbox
stand in al coves placed uniformly
along th e walls. Some chests are
open, and you Bee jewelry and coins
spill ing out. Colored flashes of light
sparkl e with the promise of gems and
jewels. In the very center of the room
is a crystalline statue of a beautiful
elf maiden.
The stat ue is a li vi ng crystal statue
(hp 14). If the PCs eit her attack t he
st atue or touch a chest , an urn, or the
st rongbox, it attacks and pursues them
ceaselessly until it is either destroyed or
the PCs are driven from the Winding
Way. It will not pursue beyond ar ea I I.
If the PCs investigate the treasure
chests and urns, they find the treasure
is worth less than it seemed. Gold-
painted wooden coins , ir on rings paint-
ed silver, and bits of colored glass fill
the chests and urns.
The st rongbox is trapped and locked.
Anyone attempti ng to pick t he lock
without first disanning the trap is
jabbed by a poisoned needl e. The poison
affects the nervous system and causes a
severe loss of muscular control. Any PC
j abbed must save vs. poison or his Dex-
terity is reduced by -5 (to a minimum
of 3) for 110 days. The strongbox con-
tains nothi ng but old r ags, bits of metal,
and a small piece of paper wit h the
message: " Dear t hief; A lot of work for
nothing, was n't it ." Directly behi nd t he
strongbox is the secret door to t he real
treasure room.
DUNGEON 35
ISLE OF THE ABBEY
14. 'J'noas ure Room.
This room i.I a large square whose
,ili og is held up by t wo massive
gray gr anite pill ars. The walla. floor.
and ceiling appear to be made of
shi ny bl a ck iron, a nd there are sev-
eral bags, ebeete. and urns scattered
about the room. As you look about.
you notice a shi mme ri ng in the a ir,
as if you are look ing through t he
heat ri sing from a campfire. Sudden-
ly, the shimmering passes between
you and one of the pill ars and you
can te ll wha t it is-a humanoid form
made of t he same iron 8S t he wal la.
The walla of t he chamber are cloaked
by a permanent phantasmal foree spell.
This illusion makes them appear to be
made of shi ny, black iron and also
mak es it difficult to see the room's
gu ardian. a li ving iron st a tue (hp 19 ),
which surprises on 1-3 on Id6. It i mme -
diately attacks anyone entering the
room who fail s to gi ve the proper pass-
words (" Mortem cbire ex mach ina" ).
The stat ue is of basic huma noid form
but bas been const ructed purely as a
fighting machine. The head is a smoot h,
featureless iron ball . The tono is short
a nd broad, while the legs are thick and
st umpy. The a rms of t he stat ue are its
weapons. The ri ght ann, from elbow to
t ip, is a razor-sharp sword blade U.s hp
damage). The len ann appears normal
from shoulder to wrist_However, t he
arm does not end in a hand but i n an
iron hall (1-8 hp damage).
lfthe PCs overcome the stat ue and
search the bags, chests, and urns , they
find a tota l of 1,500 gp in mixed coins
(pr ima ri ly silver pieces). Another 1,000
gp in gems and jewelry ca n be found in
the urns. A la rge ches t (locked but not
t rapped) in t he northwest corner con-
tains five bolts of rare silk worth 100 gp
each, two pot ions of healing, a scroll
containi ng the spell CUN' light WQunds ,
and a jeweled sheat h for a dagger
(wort h 50 gp).
Concludi ng the Adventure
Ifthe party is unable to find or make a
path through the Skull Dunes, they
receive nothing from the mariners other
than the return of de pceite on borrowed
equi pme nt . If t he PCs dear or find a
path through the Skull Dunes but a re
unable to dear the island of the eurviv-
ing deri cs, they receive a l OQ-gp reward
from the mariners' guild. PCs are give n
the full bounty if they dear a path
t hroug h the Skull Dunes and kill , de-
port, or ca pt ure the survi vors of the
abbey. Capt ured survi vors are held by
t he mariners' guild until construction of
the lighthouse is well underway before
they are released.
If the PCs complain about low pay,
Majo r Ursa can remind them they were
hired to perform a specific service, a nd
payment ca n and will be withheld until
the island has been cleared.
Once the mari ners take control of t he
island, it is unli ke ly t hat t he evil cult
that built the abbey will try to retake it .
1b do 80 wou ld require bringi ng troops
through host ile waters (the area a round
the island is cont rolled by the mariners)
to attack the island. This requires a
much larger force than they are capable
of musteri ng at present. However, the
cu lt will not forget about the is land or
t he PCa.. Thus, those OMs wishing to
place t his modu le in the context of a
larger ca mpaign can use the a rea and
cult 88 a source of future confli ct and
adventure. 0
OlllG
IPOl.
Before you take another bite, think about the fact that a diet high in cholesterol and fat can load
your blood wit h cholesterol. which raises your chance of heart attack. In fact. more Americans
may die by the fork than by any ot her weapon.

V AmerlcanHearl Association v.rnE FIGHTINGFal\ClUl UFE

36Issue No. 34
THE FOUNTAIN
OF HEALTH
BY ANN DUPUIS
By the time you find it,
you'll need it!
Artwork by Charles Dougherty
32 Issue No. 39
Ann has turned her love of role-playing
games into a full-time career as a
freelance writer. Her accomplishments to
date include the GURPS@ Old West
supplement for Steve Jackson Games
and PC4 Night Howlers for TSR, Inc.
(Anyone wanna be a werewolf?) She
borrows a lot of adventure ideas from
her husband, Paul, who is also her
number-one play tester. This is Ann's
second appearance in DUNGEON@
Adventures.
"The Fountain ofHealth" is dedicated
to the memory of John W Brown II
(a.k.a. Rambling, the halfling hero with
an attitude), who never got a chance to
playtest this one.
"The Fountain of Health" is a D&D@
adventure for 4-6 1st-level player char-
acters (about 5 total levels). It may take
place in any remote area where clerical
healing is scarce due to isolation, recent
death or indisposition of the local cleric,
or other reasons. A sparsely settled area
of the Principalities of Glantri, detailed
in GAZ3 The Principalities of Glantri,
would be ideal because local laws pro-
hibit clerical magic. The party should
include at least one thief and two fight-
ers. The PCs should be Lawful (or at
least good-hearted), as the primary
motivation for the adventure is to save
the life of a dying villager.
Some of the monsters encountered in
this adventure are taken from the D&D
Rules Cyclopedia, and page references
are given for the Re. The statistics and
important information for each monster
are reprinted here, so you need only the
Rule Book from the new D&D boxed set
("Black Box") for this adventure.
Counters for these monsters are availa-
ble in the Haunted Tower Adventure
Pack. At the start of play, the Dungeon
Master should write down the name,
armor class, and hit-point total of each
PC to help keep track of their injuries.
For the DUNGEON MASTERTM
This adventure takes place in the ruins
of a temple built around a magical
spring of healing waters. Dedicated to
the Immortal Ariana (a little-known
identity of the Immortal Alphatia), the
temple was a hospice run by the clerical
Order of the Golden Fountain. For 200
years, local people flocked to the temple
to benefit from the healing powers of
the magical spring. A single cup of the
water could heal wounds, cure disease,
or heal the blind and the lame. It was
even said the water could bring the
dead to life-if the recipient was worthy.
More than a century ago, a warlord
demanded that the Order of the Golden
Fountain reserve their healing waters
for his army. (If you sets this adventure
in the Principalities of Glantri, this
occurred in 861 AC, when all clerics
were expelled from Glantri.) The Su-
preme Waterbearer, head of the clerical
order, refused the warlord's order. The
Gift of Ariana was not meant to be a
tool for bloody warfare.
Enraged, the warlord tried to claim
the spring for himself and sent an en-
chanted monster-a stone golem in the
shape of a minotaur-to destroy the
temple and all within it. The priests
died as the creature knocked the temple
down around them, but the Supreme
Waterbearer laid a curse upon the heal-
ing waters with her dying breath: Until
the warlord no longer coveted the Gold-
en Fountain for his evil purposes, its
waters would be poisonous to all.
The death of the warlord lifted the
curse decades ago. Unfortunately, the
return of the healing waters remained
undiscovered. The few people who vis-
ited the temple ruins encountered dan-
gers they could not overcome. Since the
temple's destruction, various forms of
wildlife have made the ruins their
home. And the monster still remains,
following its orders to destroy all intelli-
gent life within the walls of the Temple
of Ariana.
Monsters, Ruins, and Rubble
Before beginning play in this adventure,
carefully open the staples at the center of
the magazine, remove the large color
map, and bend the staples back in place.
Lay the map out flat and cover it with
pieces of paper cut to the shape of each
room or hall. As the PCs peer into or
enter each room, remove the appropriate
piece of paper. This way, the players can-
not see areas of the temple map before
their PCs explore them. If a PC climbs a
wall or a nearby tree to get a look, re-
move all the papers except that covering
the Inner Sanctum (area 22, which is
hidden under a root). When the PCs can
no longer see the temple from above,
replace the papers over those areas the
party has not yet visited.
The Ruins: The walls of the temple
are made of cut blocks of stone mortared
together. The outer walls were original-
ly 2' thick. Inner walls are made of
smaller stones and are roughly I' thick.
Before the destruction of the temple,
these walls stood about 20' tall. They
now stand only 8' to 12' high, with
stone debris crumbled at their bases.
The temple's second story was demol-
ished by the warlord's stone golem. The
wooden floor and support beams, as well
as the timber-and-thatch roof that once
covered the temple, now block passages
with fallen timber and blanket the floor
as rotted debris. The main entrance and
sanctuary (areas 1 and 2) did not have a
second story; they were open to the roof.
If you wish to expand the adventure,
parts of the second story may still be
intact. Of course, exploring these areas
should be dangerous. Many traps, pit-
falls, and hungry scavengers lurk in the
shadows.
Climbing the Walls: The heroes may
attempt to climb the temple walls. You
should discourage this, as PCs could
conceivably avoid most ofthe dangers
and obstacles in the adventure. Tell the
PCs the walls look unstable and danger-
ous to clamber about on. If a PC tries
anyway, mention that the debris piled
at the base of the wall shifts alarmingly
when stepped on. If the PC continues,
have a stone suddenly loosen under his
hand as he pulls himself up. If none of
these warnings discourage the PC, roll
percentile dice. If the climber is a thief,
compare the result of the dice roll with
the PC's Climb Walls ability. Nonthief
adventurers have a 50% chance of
climbing to the top of a wall without
falling. If the roll is higher than the
thief's ability (50% for nonthief adven-
turers), the PC falls, taking 1-3 hp
damage.
If a PC climbs a wall or a nearby tree
to gain an overview of the ruins, let the
player see a glimpse of the map. (Cover
area 22, which is hidden under a slate
roof; see below.) Answer up to three of
the player's questions about what the
PC sees before the wall or branch the
PC is standing un suddenly gives way. If
the PC is a thief or halfling, the fall
inflicts 1 hp damage. Otherwise, the PC
suffers 2 hp damage from the fall. A
successful Dexterity check on Id20
reduces the damage by 1 hp.
Adventurers on top of a wall will meet
either a collapsing wall or a wandering
monster each turn they remain. Roll
Id4 and consult the following table to
determine the danger encountered.
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
1. Collapsing Wall. PCs on the wall
fall, taking 1-3 hp damage each. The
collapse creates a 10' wide gap in the
wall, filled to a height of 4' with stone
rubble. (If the PCs are on a wall of the
inner sanctum, ignore this result and
roll again. See "The Inner Sanctum;' )
PCs may clamber over the debris, but
this is dangerous. See "Rubble," below.
2. Wobbly Stone. One PC standing
on the wall must make a Dexterity
check on Id20 or fall, taking 1-2 hp
damage. Choose the party member
affected (rolling randomly if desired)
and the direction the PC falls.
3. Robber Fly. A robber fly attacks
the party. See "Wandering Monsters."
4. Stirges. 1-4 stirges attack the par-
ty. See "Wandering Monsters."
Rubble: Many areas within the tern-
ple are heaped with rubble from the
demolished walls and floor of the tem-
ple's second story (see map). This rubble
is typically 3' to 5' high, and very dan-
gerous to walk or climb on. Roll Id6 for
each PC who tries. On a roll of 1, the
rubble shifts and traps the PC's leg,
doing 1 hp damage and requiring one
turn to free the PC. You can apply other
results (the shifting causes the PC to
fall, or brings more stones or timbers
raining down from above, etc.) to vary
the consequences of climbing over rub-
ble. These results should not cause more
than 1 hp damage or delay the party
more than one turn, or both.
Two piles of rubble are especially
dangerous (area 2, southeast corner and
center of north wall). Any party mem-
ber climbing on one of these heaps auto-
matically causes the crushed stones to
shift and slide, bringing some precari-
ously balanced wooden timbers down as
well. Even if the party just walks by the
debris, the whole pile starts to slide on a
roll of 1 on Id6. Every PC within 20' of
the debris when it shifts must make a
Dexterity check on Id20 or take 2 hp
damage. Adventurers hit by falling and
sliding debris are trapped; it takes one
turn to extricate them. Feel free tu
make other piles of rubble equally
dangerous.
Doors: Most of the doors in the tem-
ple were wooden and now lie smashed
or rotting in the doorways. PCs have no
problems stepping over or on top of
them. A few doors were made of stone
and still remain more or less intact,
including the main doors in area 1, the
two concealed stone doors leading to
DUNGEON 33
THE FOUNTAIN OFHEALTH
areas 8 and 19, and the great white
marble doors leading to area 22.
The Inner Sanctum: This rectangu-
lar structure (area 22) was the original
temple. The order built the rest of the
building around it when they founded
the hospital. The inner sanctum's walls
are 3' thick, 12' tall, and made of
smoothly polished black marble. The
area has a flat slate roof, quite different
from the wooden second story (now
demolished) over the rest ofthe temple.
The minotaur stone golem was unable
to damage these walls, although it did
batter the mortared stone walls that
once extended up from the top of the
inner sanctum's walls to the timber
roof. Jagged remnants of these upper
stone walls remain, standing 2' to 3'
above the slate roof.
Light Sources: Most of the temple is
open to the sky, so PCs won't need any
light unless they go exploring at night.
This will not be the case if you expand
the adventure to include a partially
ruined second story. The corners of
rooms and any areas under collapsed
timbers remain in shadow. Adventurers
cannot see into these areas unless they
shine a lantern or torch into the
shadows. Standing in normal light
negates infravision when attempting to
peer into darkness. Any monsters hid-
den in shadows gain surprise on a roll of
1-2 on 1d6.
Weather: For simplicity, you may
decide that it's a nice sunny day with no
threat of rain or wind. But some inter-
esting things can happen with weather.
Strong gusts of wind may suddenly
cause dried leaves and other debris to
rustle and rise up in a small dust devil,
startling the PCs. ("Suddenly, you hear
crackling and see something moving out
34 Issue No. 39
of the corner of your eye. Oh, never
mind, it's just the wind kicking up some
leaves:') In cold seasons, ice or snow
may add to the dangers of the ruins.
(Increase the chances of the PCs losing
their footing or of walls collapsing.)
Rain, too, can make the walls slick and
slippery, and mire the heroes in muddy
spots. Even a light drizzle can make
PCs miserable, dampening all their
gear and making torches hard to light.
And even on a bright day, the sun may
disappear behind a cloud at an ominous
moment.
Wandering Monsters: Roll 1d6 every
other turn. A roll of 1 means the PCs
meet a wandering monster at the begin-
ning of the next turn. If the PCs are
badly injured (down to only 1 or 2 hp
each), you should not introduce any
wandering monster encounters, al-
though you can still roll dice to keep the
players on their toes.
Roll 1d6 and consult the following
table to determine which monsters the
PCs meet. None of these wandering
monsters have treasure with them.
1. Giant tiger beetle (1): AC 3; HD
3 +1; hp 10; MV 150'(50'); HAT1 bite;
THACO 16; Dmg 2d6; Save as F2; ML 9;
INT 0; AL N; XP 50; Rule Book/39 or
RC/160. Robber flies are their favorite
food.
2. Giant rats (2-8): AC 7; HD 1/2; hp 3
each; MV 120'(40'), swimming 60'(20');
HAT1 bite; THACO 19; Dmg 1d3 +
disease; Save as Normal Man; ML 8;
INT 2; AL N; XP 5; Rule Book/50 or RCI
201.
3. Giant centipedes (2-8): AC 9; HD
1/,,; hp 2 each; MV 60'(20'); #AT 1 bite;
THACO 19; Dmg poison; Save as Nor-
mal Man; ML 7; !NT 0; AL N; XP 6;
Rule Book/40 or RC/163.
4. Stirges (1-4); AC 7; HD 1"; hp 7, 5,
4, 3; MV 30'(10'), flying 180'(60'); HAT 1
beak; THACO 18j Dmg 1d3 + 1d3 per
round (sucking blood); Save as F2; ML
9; INT 1; AL N; XP 13; Rule Book/52 or
RC/208.
5. Bats (10-40): AC 6; HD 1/4 *; hp 1
each; MV 9'(3'), flying 120'(40'); HAT
confusion; THACO nil; Dmg nil; Save as
Normal Man; ML 6; INT 2; AL N; XP 5;
Rule Book/38 or RC/159.
The PCs have disturbed these normal
bats in their roosts among the fallen
timbers. The bats flap about erratically,
doing no damage but causing much
confusion. The PCs suffer a - 2 penalty
on attack rolls and saving throws, and
they cannot cast spells while the bats
are flying about. Roll for the bats' mo-
rale each round. The entire group flies
off when it misses a morale check.
6. Robber flies: AC 6; HD 2; hp 10, 9,
8,4; MV 90'(30'), flying 180'(60'); HAT1
bite; THACO 18; Dmg 1d8; Save as Fl;
ML 8; INT 0; AL N; XP 20; RC/202.
A robber fly is a 3' long giant fly with
black and yellow stripes. From a dis-
tance, a robber fly looks like a giant
bee. The robber fly is a patient hunter,
often hiding in shadows to surprise prey
(1-4 on 1d6). A robber fly can leap up to
30' and attack with its bite.
The THACO statistics noted above can
be used instead of the Monsters' Hit
Thble on page 37 of the D&D Rule Book.
THACO stands for "ToHit Armor Class
0" and is simply the number the mon-
ster needs to roll to hit armor class O. To
use THACO, you subtract the modified
attack roll (the number you rolled on
1d20 plus any bonuses) from the
THACO, and the result is the armor
class the monster hits. For example, the
stone minotaur in area 2 has a THACO
of 13. Its weapon is a battle axe +1. The
DM rolls 1d20 for its attack, adds 1 (for
the weapon's bonus), and subtracts the
result from the minotaur's THACO. A
result of 17, for instance, is compared to
the THACO like this; 13 -(17 + 1) = -5.
This is good enough to hit Armor Class
- 5 and will certainly hit a Ist-level PC!
IfTHACO involves too much figuring
for your taste, use the Monsters' Hit
Table instead.
Gargoyle Pendants: These holy
symbols of the Order of the Golden
Fountain are molded and engraved in
the shape of an ugly, winged creature.
These golden pendants are worth 100 gp
apiece, but their real function is to
protect their wearers from the gargoyle
guarding the Fountain of Health. The
gargoyle ignores anyone wearing one of
these pendants in plain view (not ob-
scured by clothing or armor). There are
three gargoyle pendants hidden within
the ruins of the temple, one each in
areas 5, 14, and 20.
For the Player Characters
Read or paraphrase the fullowing to the
players and start the adventure at the
entrance to the temple. If you wish, you
may role-play the events leading up to
the adventurers' arrival at the ruins,
including their stay in the village and
their trek through the wilderness to the
Temple of Ariana.
Your party is pretty new to the ad-
venturing business. So far, you ha-
ven't visited many distant lands,
rescued many princesses, battled
many fearsome magical beasts, or
done any of the hundreds of daring
deeds you envisioned when you set
off in search of adventure.
In fact, your latest "adventure"
barely qualifies for the term. A mer-
chant hired your party to deliver an
important package to a blacksmith
living in a distant village. Reports of
bandits in the area had him worried
that the package might not arrive
without a strong party of experienced
adventurers to transport and guard
it. But you came all this way-
through a forest reportedly teeming
with ferocious beasts and cruel
outlaws-without encountering any-
thing more dangerous than a fox.
When you arrived at Wood's Hollow,
the blacksmith, Hugh Grossman, was
relieved to see you. The package you
carried contained a potion of healing
for his daughter, who had suffered
grave wounds in a battle with orcs
who had raided the village a week
before. The village priest was slain in
the fight, and Alise Grossman's mju-
ries hadn't responded to normal treat-
ment. Hugh hoped the potion would
cure her.
But it failed. The ore who attacked
Alise apparently had a poisoned
blade, and the poison interfered with
all attempts to heal the young wom-
an. Bowing his careworn face in his
hands, Hugh told you there was only
one chance left for his daughter. A
ruined temple, half a day's walk from
Wood's Hollow, had once housed an
order of healing clerics. There were
tales of a golden fountain of miracu-
lous waters that could cure
anything-even death itself. If the
tales were true, and someone could
bring the healing waters to his
daughter, Alise would be saved.
But there were dangers, Hugh
went on. People stayed away from
the ruins, fearful of the shadowy
creatures and fearsome beasts that
visitors had caught glimpses of. Four
brave villagers had ventured to the
ruins three days before, afraid the
potion of healing would not arrive in
time and hoping to save Alise with
the fountain's waters. They had not
yet returned; the other villagers
were sure they had perished.
This is what you've been dreaming
of! A chance to explore ancient ruins,
brave unknown dangers, and save
someone's life! While the villagers
can't afford to pay you for this task,
there may be untold treasures within
the old temple. And who couldn't use
an endless supply of healing waters?
Without further ado, you set off for
the temple ruins. It wasn't far; only
about seven miles from the village,
along a rough and overgrown track.
You arrived without incident and
stand now at the main entrance to
the once-fine temple. A quick circuit
around the building showed it to be
roughly 100')( 150'. There is one
other entrance, in the middle of the
south wall. The surrounding forest
has encroached upon the temple's
clearing, and some small trees now
grow within 30' of the ruined walls.
The temple's outer walls still stand
to a height of 8' to 12', but the rubble
and debris at their base attest to the
fact they once were at least twice
that height.
Your chance to make a name for
yourself lies within those crumbled
walls.
The Temple
Each of the following descriptions cor-
responds to an area of the Temple of
Ariana marked on the map. When the
PCs first enter each area, or look in
through a doorway or around a corner,
read the appropriate boxed text. This
contains information the PCs can notice
with just a quick look. The rest of an
area's description contains information
for the DM, including monster inhabit-
ants, treasure, and other things of inter-
est. Pass this information on to the
players as the PCs discover it.
1. Main Entrance Hall.
This was once the main entrance to
the temple's sanctuary. One stone
door leans against a pile of rubble on
the north side; the other lies flat and
broken where it fell. The floor is
littered with leaves and other debris.
Ahead, you can see the sanctuary's
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
lovely marble columns lying in ruins.
There doesn't appear to be anything
of interest in the immediate area.
The debris on the floor includes many
years' worth of rotting leaves, dust, dirt,
and animal droppings, as well as small
chunks of stone that were once part of
the temple's walls. Beneath all this
debris are beautiful marble tiles. If a
PC carefully examines the floor (spend-
ing one turn in this room), he will find
the recent prints of two pairs of booted
feet. Adventurers who look into area 2
can see the top half of a stone statue of
a bull-headed human.
2. Sanctuary.
This once-beautiful sanctuary is now
a shambles. Marble columns that
once marched down its sides lie
strewn about the floor. Some of them
crashed into the walls as they fell,
and lie atop enormous piles of rubble.
'Ibward the far end of the room, in
the center of the only clear area,
stands a large stone statue of a bull-
headed man. A mighty stone battle
axe rests in its hands. Its head is
bowed as though weary.
The PCs cannot to see the statue bet-
ter until they go around or over the
fallen columns. The columns were origi-
nally 4' wide. Treat any attempt to
climb over a fallen column as climbing
over rubble (see "Monsters, Ruins, and
Rubble").
When the PCs get within 20' of the
statue, they can see a human form lying
at its feet. (This was one of the villagers
who came in search of the fountain of
healing.) When they are 10' from the
villager. the PCs can see he has a deep
chest wound and is obviously dead. One
hand clutches an old, broken sword; the
sword point is on the floor a few feet
away.
Any party member who gets within 5'
of the statue can see that the stone
battle axe is not actually part of the
statue itself; it has an ornately deco-
rated wooden shaft. There is blood on
the stone axe head. Just as the PC no-
tices this, he also notices that the axe is
swinging at him. Roll for surprise. The
PC is now under attack!
Minotaur statue (lesser stone golem):
AC 5; HD 6*; hp 8; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1
axe; THACO 13; Dmg 1d8"!" 1; Save as
DUNGEON 35
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
F6; ML 12; INT 4; AL N; XP 500; new
monster (see Golem, RC/180).
The warlord Bent t.his magical mon-
ster to destroy the Temple of Ariana.
Although it succeeded, it has been badly
damaged. Cracks now riddle its surface,
and it has only 8 hp left. It still attacks
as a 7-HD monster (because ofits spe-
cial bonus), so its attack rolls are three
levels better than the "3 + to 4" line on
the Monsters' Hit Table in the D&D
Rule Book (page 37). It also wields a
magical two-handed battle axe, which
adds +1 to its attack and damage rolls.
This is a dangerous monster-it can kill
a hero with one blow!
But it's not invincible. Unlike normal
golems, this minotaur statue is not
immune to all normal weapons. PCs can
harm it with any metal or stone weap-
ons that smash rather than cut: maces,
war hammers, and sling stones. Adven-
turers can even throw rocks at it, doing
1 hp damage each time a rock hits. If
the minotaur chases the party, it has
the same chance as they do of getting
stuck or damaged when it goes over
fallen columns or rubble (see "Monsters,
Ruins, and Rubble").
As soon 9>; the stone minntam- re-
ceives 8 or more hp damage, it stops in
its tracks. The small cracks riddling its
surface spread rapidly until it crumbles
into a pile of rubble. Nothing but the
stone head (encumbrance 500 en) and
the battle axe remain.
The battle axe is a magical two-
handed weapon, + 1 to hit and damage,
+2 vs. stone monsters (gargoyles, stone
golems, earth elementals, and the like).
It also has a special power. On a natural
attack roll of 20, it inflicts double dam-
age on any stone monster, or destroys a
10' x 10' section of stone. (If you think
this special power will cause problems
in future adventures if the PCs take the
axe, limit its use to 1-6 charges. After
that, the axe loses its special power but
retains its +1/ +2 vs. stone monsters
enchantment.)
The minotaur has no treasure, The
dead villager has a pack with two days'
standard rations (now spoiled), a wine-
skin with a quart of wine, and 30' of
rope. There is nothing else of value on
the body, but the villagers of Woods'
Hollow will wish to properly bury their
neighbor and return even worthless
possessions to the villager's kin.
Hidden behind one of the fallen
columns in the northeast corner of the
stone minotaur's room is a large nest of
six giant rats (see "Wandering Mon-
sters" for statistics). These rats attack
any PC entering their corner or climb-
ing over the rubble of the eastern wall.
They will not venture out to attack PCs
anywhere else in the sanctuary.
The nest is made of heaps of old rot-
ting clothing, dead leaves and grasses,
and other soft debris. Hidden in it are
various items the rats have collected
over the years. If the PCs search for one
turn, they will find one gem and three
pieces of jewelry: a large topaz (500 gp),
a gold bracelet studded with tiny rubies
(700 gp), a diamond necklace (1,100 gp),
and an emerald pendant on a gold chain
(1,300 gp). Searching for an additional
turn reveals two more gems (a garnet
worth 50 gp and a small pearI worth
100 gp), some miscellaneous coins (13
cp, 18 sp, 18 gp), and a rotting leather
pack with a bone scroll case amid now-
unidentifiable (and rather squishy)
contents. The scroll case contains a
piece of parchment with a well-worn
love letter. The bone case is worth 10
gp; the parchment itself has little mone-
tary value.
3. Infirmary.
This room is jumbled with thick wooden
timbers that must once have been part
of a roof or second story. A broken wood-
en stairway leads part way up the south
wall, only to end in a pile of debris. It's
difficult to tell what purpose this room
had, although beneath the fallen tim-
bers are vague shapes that may once
have been tables or beds. Accumulated
rocks, rotted wood, and other debris
raise the level of the floor nearly 2'
above that of the sanctuary.
This was the hospital's infirmary,
where clerics of the Order of the Golden
Fountain tended the sick and injured.
There are five giant centipedes (hp 4
(X 2), 3, 1 (x 2); see "Wandering Mon-
sters" for complete statistics) concealed
in the debris. AlS soon as a PC enters the
room, roll for surprise. The three centi-
pedes in the southern half of the room
attack immediately; the other two join
two rounds later.
Any PC bitten by a giant centipede
must save vs. poison or become ill for 10
days (half movement speed, can perform
no other physical actions). If the centi-
pedes fail their morale check, they flee
into the crevices in the debris, where
the PCs can't get to them. They will
venture back into the open one turn
after the party leaves.
Once the centipedes are out of the
way, the PCs can explore the room.
There were originally 12 beds in here,
arranged in two islands of six beds. If
the PCs poke about among the fallen
timbers and other debris. they will find
scattered bones and two mostly intact
skeletons, the remains of patients
slaughtered in their beds by the mino-
taur golem. There is also a 1-in-6 chance
that any PC poking about will move the
wrong piece of wood, toppling timbers
and debris onto everyone for 1-2 hp
damage. Spending an entire turn
searching the room reveals 12 cp, 5 sp,
and 1 gp, coins that once belonged to
the unfortunate patients.
The broken stairway will collapse
under the weight of anyone trying to
climb it, spilling the PC onto the floor
for 1-4 hp damage. If the adventure has
been expanded to include a second floor,
this stairway is intact and leads upward
with little blockage.
4, Hallway;
A pile of debris, including the broken
top of a column from the sanctuary,
partially blocks thiB hallway. E1Be-
where, fallen timbers lean haphaz-
ardly against the walls or are
wedged onto the top of the walls
overhead. The debr-is makes walking
down the hallway difficult.
The rubble in the middle of this hall-
way is particularly dangerous. PCs may
start a rock slide simply by walking by
(see "Monsters, Ruins, and Rubble").
As the PCs approach the eastern end
of the hallway, they can hear horren-
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
1 square =5'
THE FOUNTAIN OFHEALTH
DUNGEON 37
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
dous buzzing and crunching noises: a
battle between two giant tiger beetles
and a robber fly (see area 7).
pes at the eastern end of this hallway
will notice that the wall surrounding
the inner sanctum (area 22) is different
from all the other walls. This wall is
made of enormous blocks of black mar-
ble, and it seems to be undamaged, with
almost no debris at its base.
The eastern end of the hallway's north
wall has a concealed stone door leading
into area 8. The concealed door's color
and pattern of mortared stone is similar
to the surrounding wall, so the door is
not immediately noticeable. Any PC
examining the wall automatically finds
it. The door is hinged on the right and
opens away from the hallway simply by
pushing against its left side. This door
is stuck, however, and requires a roll of
5 or 6 on Id6 to open. (Remember to
modify this by the PC's Strength score
adjustment.) Each PC may try as many
times as desired, but each attempt takes
one turn.
A thief successfully examining the
door for traps (rolling his Find Traps
ability or less on percentile dice) will
realize that the door is stuck due to
rubble wedged near the top of the wall
on the other side. Forcing the door open
may cause this rubble to fall. A success-
ful Remove Traps roll allows the thief to
open the door without triggering the
collapsing ceiling in area 8.
If the PCs try to break the door down
with the minotaur's axe. it does 2 hp
damage with every successful hit
against AC 9. The door can take 20 hp
damage before breaking apart. It shat-
ters into rubble immediately if the
player rolls a natural 20 to hit.
If the party goes south to the large
pile of rubble between areas 2 and 22,
they may climb onto the slate roof
above area 22. Remember to check for
rubble shifting beneath their feet, and
for their chance to climb the wall with-
out getting hurt (see "Monsters. Ruins,
and Rubble").
5. Sick Room.
This room has the same jumble of
debris and fallen timbers as the rest
of the building. Part of the upper
floor remained pretty much intact as
its eastern half fell. The timbers and
floor boards now form a sloping wall
that blocks your view of the far cor-
ner of the room.
38 Issue No.39
This was a private sick room, for pa-
tients who needed more than one dose of
the fountain's healing waters. Behind
the wooden floor (now a wall dividing
the northwest corner from the rest of
the room) is a bed. Although its wooden
frame is partially rotted and riddled
with termite holes, it's relatively intact.
Lying on the bed is an old skeleton, still
clothed in rotting clothing.
Another skeleton lies crushed beneath
the eastern end of the fallen floor. Only
its sku11 and right arm and hand are
visible. The bony fingers clutch a gar-
goyle pendant (see "Gargoyle Pen-
dants"). The skeleton was one of the
temple's priests.
6. Sick ROOIn.
The wall separating this room from
the room to the east has a large gap,
filled with debris.
There was nothing in this room for
the minotaur to kill when it demolished
the temple, though it wrecked a bed
that now lies in flinders against the
north wall. If the PCs have not yet
fought the giant tiger beetles in area 7,
they can hear them now and see one of
them over the pile of debris in the gap
in the wall.
7. Sick Room.
You see two large, tiger-striped bee-
tles munching away on a giant bee.
One of them turns its attention to
you and races swiftly across the floor,
clacking its mandibles the way a
butcher might wield his knives!
Only one giant tiger beetle attacks
(hp 9; see "Wandering Monsters" for
complete statistics). The other beetle (hp
7) continues to eat the dead robber fly
(the "giant bee" the PCs noticed) unless
a PC gets within 5' of it. Then it, too,
attacks.
The beetles were slightly injured in
their battle with the robber fly, so they
have fewer hit points than normal for
monsters their size. They're still danger-
ous, however. One bite can easily kill a
Lst-level PC. Ifyou think the PCs will be
badly beaten in this encounter, you may
"fudge" the damage roll when a PC first
gets bitten by a beetle. If the actual dam-
age you roll would kill the PC, announce
enough damage to leave the PC with 1 hp
left instead. (For instance, if Thadeus the
Cleric gets bitten for 7 hp damage, but
has only 5 hp remaining, the DM may
announce "Thadeus takes four hit points
damage:' Of course, you should make
these rolls in secret.) This will give the
PCs a chance to retreat and think up a
better strategy.
After the battle, the PCs can examine
the room more thoroughly. The first
thing they notice is the half-eaten body
of another villager. Next to the body is
the carapace of a dead tiger beetle,
killed by the villager's stout club.
If the adventurers search the room for
one turn, they find a sack that appears
to be empty. If a PC sticks his hand
inside, he discovers the sack is actually
a bag of holding. It contains a large gold
buckle ornately carved in the shape of a
dragon's head (laO gp) and a plain silver
necklace (20 gp).
8. Secret Entrance Hallway.
This narrow room is nearly filled
with debris and fallen timbers.
If the PCs enter this room through the
concealed doorway, they walk into a
trap. Pushing open the stuck door dis-
turbs the rotted timbers wedged above
(unless a thief has successfully removed
the trap; see area 4). A portion of the
second story's old floor falls on the first
PC to walk through the concealed door,
inflicting Id6 hp damage and burying
the PC (Dexterity check on Id20 for half
damage). It takes one turn to extricate
the victim. If the PCs break the door
down with the minotaur's axe, the rub-
ble falls before they enter the room,
doing no harm.
The entire room is filled with rubble
and may trap others as well. Remember
to check for injuries sustained by PCs
crossing the rubble.
The concealed door cannot be opened
from the north side unless the PCs
spend one turn clearing the fallen tim-
bers and uther debris away from it.
9. Side Entrance Hall.
Just inside the doorway, a flight of
stairs leads halfway up the wall to
end in jagged, broken wood. Debris
heaped beneath the stairs reaches
nearly 5' high. More debris litters
the floor and piles up against the
base of the interior walls. In the
center of the hall liesthe broken top
of a once-beautiful marble column.
Ahead, the corridor is completely
blocked with stone rubble and debris.
The priests used this entrance to get
to their quarters, and these stairs once
led up to more rooms and storage areas.
These areas still exist if the adventure
has been expanded to include a partial-
ly intact second story.
A giant spitting spider watches the
PCs through the doorway from its hid-
ing place behind some debris in area 10.
If the party ent.ers its lair, the spider
attacks immediately. Otherwise, it
stalks the PCs as they leave area 9,
attacking without warning from behind
(surprise on 1-4 on 1d6) unless the play-
ers specifically state that one of their
PCs is guarding the rear. See area 10
for the spider's statistics.
The rubble spilling over from the
southeastern corner of the main sanctu-
ary (area 2) is particularly dangerous
(see "Monsters, Ruins, and Rubble").
10, Dormitory.
This room is filled with a jumble of
fallen timbers, crushed rock, and
rotted floorboards from the temple's
demolished second story. Piles of
wood that may once have been bunk
beds line what's left of the walls. The
jumble of debris makes it difficult to
make out many details. It also offers
plenty of hiding places for small
scurrying things-or perhaps even
large scurrying things.
If the PCs haven't already dealt with
the giant spitting spider (it may have
stalked them in area 9), the spider spits
at the first PC through the door. Roll for
surprise for the PCs. If they're sur-
prised, the leading PC does not get a
saving throw to avoid the web.
Giant spitting spider: AC 7; HD
2+1*; hp 11; MV 120'(40'); HAT 1 spit or
bite; THACO 17; Dmg poisonous web or
IdS; Save as F1; ML 7; INT 0; AL N; XP
35; new monster.
This 5'-long giant spider is yellow
with black spots, and spits a poisonous
webfor its main attack. The web has a
range of 10' and completely encases any
target it hits, gluing it to the floor and
toany object within 3'. The spider does
not need an attack roll to spray its web
accurately. The victim gets a Dexterity
check on 1d20 to avoid the web, but
only if he's not surprised by the attack.
Any PC caught in the web must save vs.
poison or become paralyzed. If the sav-
ing throw is successful, the PC can
break free of the web in 2-8 turns. The
spider can spit only once every 10
rounds. It uses its bite attack in any
round it can't spit.
This spider follows the PCs through
the ruins, attacking from behind when
the PCs least expect it, unless the PCs
dispatch it.
If the PCs kill the spider, they may
examine its body. The spider has six
pearl-white eyes and a tough fluid-filled
sac suspended from its thorax, just
behind its jaws. If the PCs carefully
remove the sac and the jaw, they can
use it to "spit" more poisonous web.
This involves holding the sac between
the PC's torso and one arm, aiming the
jaw with both hands, and squeezing
sharply on the sac. The player must roll
as if his PC were using a missile weap-
on. The sac contains enough fluid for
three complete web-spits.
Party members examining the spi-
der's lair find a fairly fresh web-covered
bundle in the northeast corner of the
room. The bundle contains Joseph
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
Bauer, one of the villagers who ven-
tured into the temple four days ago.
He's alive, but just barely (1 hp), Uncon-
scious, poisoned, and paralyzed, he
cannot recover without magical help.
Award the party 200 XP if they manage
to return Joseph to the village alive.
Finding the healing waters of the
Fountain of Health could help Joseph
tremendously.
Searching the lair for one turn uncov-
ers the remains of other victims, both
human and animal. The party members
also find 23 sp and 6 gpo
11. Main Hallway.
This hallway once ran the length of
the temple. Now, much of it is choked
with debris. At one point, the hallway
is entirely blocked by fallen stones and
wooden timbers piled 5' high.
Any PCs in the eastern end of this hall-
way will notice that the wall surrounding
the inner sanctum (area 22) is different
from all the other walls. It's made of
enormous blocks of black marble, and it
doesn't seem to be damaged. There's
much less debris at its base, as well.
DUNGEON 39
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
The rubble spilling over from the
southeast corner of area 2 is actually a
trap of sorts, and may turn into a rock
slide at any moment (see "Monsters,
Ruins, and Rubble").
If the PCs make it past the rock slide
to the large pile of rubble between areas
2 and 22, they may climb onto the slate
roof above area 22. Remember to check
for rubble shifting beneath their feet,
and for their chance to climb the wall
without getting hurt. See the descrip-
tion of area 22.
Adventurers climbing over other
rubble in this hallway have the normal
chances of getting hurt.
12. Pantry.
Wooden shelves that once lined this
room now add to the general mess of
rotten wood and other debris litter-
ing the floor. There doesn't seem to
be anything of interest here.
This was once a pantry with a trap-
door entrance to the root cellar below.
Now the dangerous hole is covered with
debris. The first PC to step on the indi-
cated area must make a Dexterity check
on 1d20 or fall into a pit trap, taking
1d4 hp damage and becoming partially
buried under the heaps of debris that
follow him in. It takes two turns to get
the PC out.
The fallen PC has a 50% chance of
landing squarely on a small locked chest.
This iron chest contains the cook's supply
fund: 600 gp and a piece of parchment
bearing a shopping list. The chest can
also be discovered by climbing down into
the root cellar and searching through the
debris and rubble for one turn.
If a thief successfully makes a Find
Traps check, this trap can be avoided. It
cannot easily be removed. If the PCs
haven't yet dealt with the spitting spi-
der (see area 10). it will take this oppor-
tunity to attack.
13. Kitchen.
This room contains the top half of a
column that fell over the north wall
of the main hallway. The south wall
has an enormous fireplace. partially
hidden behind a mound of demol-
ished chimney bricks. There seems to
be little else of interest here.
This was the temple kitchen, where
the cook prepared food for all the clerics
40 Issue No.39
of the order and their patients. PCs
investigating the fireplace find nothing
but soot (which promptly covers them
from head to toe) and an iron cauldron
(encumbrance 900 en).
14. Dining Hall.
This large room was once a dining
area. Large wooden tables and long
benches can still be seen beneath the
boards and timbers of the collapsed
upper floor. You hear a squeal as
something charges toward you from
the southwest corner of the room.
Roll to see if the PCs are surprised.
The party has stumbled into the territo-
ry of six giant rats (see "Wandering
Monsters" for statistics) who are now
defending their nest in the southwest
corner of the room.
The nest is made of heaps of old rotting
tablecloths, dead leaves and grasses, and
other soft debris. Hidden in it are various
items the rats have collected over the years.
If the PCs search for one turn, they will
find four gems: a turquoise (10 gp), a piece
of amber (100 gp), a second piece of amber
with a tiny flower preserved inside (500
gp), and a finely cut onyx (75 gp). There's
also an incomplete collection of silverware
(three forks, two knives, and seven
spoons, worth 50 gp) and a gargoyle pen-
dant (see "Gargoyle Pendants").
15. Dormitory.
Smashed and half-buried bunk beds
line the perimeter of this room. You
notice something metallic poking out
of the pile of rubble by the door.
A small chest that once belonged to a
temple cleric has survived a recent fall
of some heavy stones. The chest is not
locked, but a big dent has stuck the top
closed. If a PC tries to open the chest,
have the player roll 1d6 as though open-
ing a stuck door. Add any Strength
modifiers to the roll. On a roll of 5 or 6,
the PC opens the chest. It contains 27 sp
and a leather-bound book wrapped in
velvet. The book is a first-aid manual
carefully illustrated with many draw-
ings of common injuries and their treat-
ments. It would be very valuable to any
physician or healer (250 gp).
The only other thing of interest in this
room is a nest of normal rats in the
northeast corner. If the PCs approach
within 10' of their lair, the rats flee into
the cracks and crevices; a few even run
up and over the outside wall.
16. Dormitory.
This room was evidently a dormitory,
as broken bunks line the walls. Its
most interesting feature, however, is
the very large snake basking in the
sun on the top of the east wall.
This 6'-long giant racer snake re-
mains on the wall unless it feels threat-
ened. If the PCs approach within 10',
check morale for the snake. On a roll of
7 or less on 2d6, it attacks; otherwise, it
slithers down the outside of the wall.
Giant racer snake: AC 5; HD 2; hp
12; MV 120'(40'); HAT 1 bite; THACO 17;
Dmg 1d8; Save as Fl; ML 7; INT 2; AL
N; XP 20; Rule Book/51 or RC/204.
The snake has no treasure, and there
is nothing else of interest in the room.
17. Hall. This hall leads north to a
dead end. PCs walking along the hall
see that the west wall is a continuation
of the black marble wall they saw in the
main hall (area 11).
The northern end of the hallway has a
concealed stone door leading into area 19.
The door is the same color and pattern of
mortared stone as the surrounding wall,
so it's not immediately noticeable. Any
PC examining the wall automatically
finds the door (no secret door roll reo
quired), It's hinged on the left, and opens
away from the hallway simply by pushing
against its right side. Rubble on the other
side partially blocks the door, however,
requiring a roll on 1d6. On a 5 or 6 (modi-
fied by any Strength adjustment), the PC
shoves the debris out of the way. Each
party member may try as many times as
desired, but each attempt takes one turn.
18. Supreme Waterbearer's
Quarters.
This room contains a jumble of bro-
ken and rotted floor boards and tim-
bers, just like much of the rest of the
temple. There doesn't seem to be
anything moving in here.
If the PCs search through the rubble
and debris, they can find parts of a large
bed, a wooden dresser (its smashed
drawers still contain bits of frayed and
rotted cloth), a chair leg, and a few bro-
ken personal items. The only thing of
value here is a silver comb (5 gp),
19. Secret Entrance Room.
This room is almost entirely filled
with rubble and debris; it may be
difficult to get to the other door.
Check for each PC'5 chance of getting
trapped or injured by the rubble.
20. Vestment Room.
This large room still has a partially
intact ceiling over much of the north-
east corner. Youhear an ominous
buzzing sound from the shadows.
Two robber flies (hp 10 each; see
"Wandering Monsters" for complete
statistics) are lurking in the shadows
here, so roll for surprise for both the PCs
andthe monsters. The robber flies will
attack the PCs. They're hungry, and a
good meal just walked into their lair!
Robber flies can easily kill a 1st-level
PCwith one bite. If you think the PCs
willbe badly beaten in this encounter,
you may adjust the damage roll when a
PCfirst gets bitten by a robber fly (see
the tiger beetle example in area 7).
True to their names, these robber flies
havemindlessly collected some shiny
objects. Scattered about their lair arc
50sp, some smoothly polished pebbles,
and a gargoyle pendant (Bee "Gargoyle
Pendants").
Hanging in shreds against the east
wall, partially protected by the sagging
floor above, are three long robes of cloth-
of-gold. They are badly chewed and torn,
and nolonger have any monetary value.
The hooksthey hang on are made of gold-
plated brass (worth 2 gp apiece).
21. Antechamber.
Thefirst thing you notice in this
large area is the body of a woman,
lyingas though she fell while run-
ningacross the room. The next thing
younotice is a second body, now
nothing more than a skeleton,
stretched out in front of two huge
doors made of white marble.
Thewoman was one of the villagers.
Though strongly muscled, she was un-
able to overcome the gargoyle in the
inner sanctum (see area 22). The mon-
stermortally wounded her, but she
managed to run out into the antecham-
berbeforecollapsing. Terrible claw and
fang marks scar her face and back. The
waterskin clutched in her left hand is
uncapped and empty. Her right hand
grasps a battered sword, its once-fine
blade dented and dulled.
The ancient bones are all that is left
of the Supreme Waterbearer, who died
defending the entrance to the inner
sanctum. A battered and rusted mace
lies beneath the remains.
The doors to the inner sanctum (area
22) are fastened with golden hinges and
have huge, solid-gold handles on them.
They swing outward, into area 21. If left
to themselves, they slowly swing shut
again in six rounds.
22. Inner Sanctum. The sanctum's
flat slate roof is still intact and entirely
covers the room. The sanctum once had
mortared stone walls extending up to the
timber and thatch roof ofthe temple,
creating a sort of attic above the slate
roof. The bottom few rows of stones still
stand on top of one another. The upper
portions of the walls have collapsed onto
the roof, along with timbers and long-
decayed thatching material.
If the PCs climb onto the slate roof of
the inner sanctum, they're attacked by
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
1-4 stirges (see "Wandering Monsters"
for statistics). After that, the roof is
fairly safe to walk around on. Youmay
plague the party with more stirges or a
robber fly if you like, or have them
check for injuries caused by shifting
rubble, but they should first get a turn
or two of peace.
There are plenty of secure, protruding
stones the PCs can tie ropes to if they
wish to climb down into surr-ounding
areas.
When the PCs first enter the inner
sanctum itself, through the white marble
doors, read the following description.
Youcan't see much of the interior of
this structure. The sunlight shining
through the doorway doesn't carry
very far. The walls to either side of
the entry seem to be made of smooth-
ly polished black marble, with the
glint of a golden candle sconce here
and there. The floor is made of
square gray tiles. Though the room is
a bit dusty, there's no rubble or de-
bris in sight.
The party must provide illumination-
torches, lanterns, or the candles in the
DUNGEON 41
THE FOUNTAIN OF HEALTH
sconces-before they can see the south-
ern half of the room very well. Once the
heroes are close enough to see the
southern end (remember, torch and
lantern light carries only 30/), read or
paraphrase the following.
Before you, an ornate golden
tain, rises from the center of a circle
of marble steps leading down to a pool
at its base. A hideous creature carved
from black marble squats atop the far
side of the fountain's basin. Its horned
head juts out between shoulders that
sprout batlike wings, while the crea-
ture's clawed hands and feet grip the
golden rim. Although the statue's
mouth gapes open as though to spew
forth the fountain's waters, the pool is
nearly empty.
The ugly statue is actually a gargoyle
(an enchanted monster much like the
stone minotaur in area 2), placed here
centuries ago as the fountain's guard-
ian. It remains perfectly still (like a
statue) until a PC descends the first
step leading to the pool. Unless the PC
is wearing the holy symbol of the Order
of the Golden Fountain (a gargoyle
pendant), the gargoyle leaps to the
attack, gaining surprise on 1-4 on 1d6.
Once awakened this way, the gargoyle
attacks everyone within the room. Only
PCs visibly wearing a gargoyle pendant
are not attacked.
Gargoyle: AC 5; HD 4**; hp 16; MV
90/(30/), flying 120'(40/); HAT 2 claws/1
hite/1 horn; THACO 15; Dmg Id3/1d3/
1d6/1d4; Save as F8; ML 11; INT 5; AL
C' XP 175' Rule Book/43 or RC/178.
With attacks per round, this is a
nasty creature to fight! It can't fly at
top speed in this confined b:ut it's
still formidable. The gargoyle ISIm-
mune to sleep and charm spells, and
cannot be harmed by normal weapons.
The PCs should have at least one of
the following items to use against the
gargoyle: the minotaur's magical
battle axe, the web sac from the spitting
spider, or a gargoyle pendant (the gold-
en holy symbol of the Order of the Foun-
tain). If they don't have any of these,
and they have no magical weapons or
combat spells oftheir own, their best
bet is to flee!
The magical axe is very effective
against the gargoyle, especially with its
+2 bonus vs. stone monsters and its
special power. If the PCs use the web
42 Issue No. 39
sac successfully, the gargoyle will be-
come entangled in the web and glued to
the floor for 14 turns. After that, it
breaks free and continues to attack any
PCs within the room (except those visi-
bly wearing a gargoyle pendant).
At first glance, the fountain looks as
though water should spew from the
gargoyle's mouth into the fountain's
basin, and from there spill over into the
pool at the bottom of the circular steps.
In fact, the healing waters seep up from
the ground beneath. When the Or?-er of
the Golden Fountain was at its height,
the natural spring would fill the pool
with up to 30 doses of healing water
every day. Now, however, the pool at the
base of the fountain contains only
enough healing water for 10 doses. The
PCs undoubtedly have some injured
party members-perhaps dead
ones-and they may be escorting a very
bedraggled Joseph Bauer (see area 10).
One dose of the healing waters will do
one of the following: bring a person back
to life neutralize poison, heal 1d6 +1 hp
cure disease, remove paralysis.
Patients suffering from multiple effects
may take multiple doses; each dose
provides a cure for one of the previous
effects in the order indicated. A patient
can benefit from a specific type of heal-
ing only once in any 24-hour period.
Joseph Bauer, for example, can benefit
from up to three doses of the healing
waters. The first dose neutralizes the
poison; the second restores Id6 +I hp
damage; the third removes his paraly-
sis. Further doses taken within 24
hours have no effect. If he had suffered
from two types of poison, only one could
be cured the first day.
The healing waters can restore a
person to life only if death occurred
within 24 hours (it will not work on any
of the dead villagers found in the tem-
ple). It also cannot heal anyone who has
suffered 10 or more hp damage beyond 0
hp. PCs restored to life awaken with
only 1 hp and must complete their heal-
ing through rest; magical spells and
potions (even the bealing waters of the
Fountain of Health) will not restore any
more hit points.
The only treasures in the inner
sanctum-other than the healing wa-
ters, of course-are the golden candle
sconces set in the walls. There are 16 of
them, spaced every 10/. Each is worth
50 gp if pried out of the wall.
Concluding the Adventure
Once the PCs manage to get the healing
waters, the way out of the temple
should be fairly safe. They may meet
some of the remaining monsters or a
wandering monster. The PCs should not
take the time to explore areas they
haven't visited, unless they suspect one
of the villagers may still be alive. After
all, the blacksmith's daughter may die
if they don't return immediately. Of
course, the PCs can come back to the
temple later if they wish, to do any
further exploration or cleaning up.
Award the PCs 1,000 XP for getting
the healing waters and saving at least
one dose fur Alise. Award another 800
XP if they left the golden candle sconces
on the walls in the inner sanctum, out
of respect for the lost Order of the Gold-
en Fountain. Returning the bodies of
the dead villagers to Wood's Hollow
earns 300 XP; rescuing Joseph and
seeing him home earns another 500 XP.
If the PCs suggest re-establishing the
Temple of Ariana and its hospital to the
villagers, reward them with another
1,000 XP. They're not likely to stay to
do the work themselves (after all,
they're important adventurers now,
with other tasks to attend to), but if
they stay for a week while the villagers
feast and celebrate, making much of the
heroes, they can depart with three doses
of healing water collected from the
fountain by villagers.
The Golden Fountain of Ariana will
yield five healing doses each week. The
PCs can draw on this source for as long
as they're in the area. If the PCs abuse
this privilege, the villagers regretfully
inform the party that there is now too
much demand for the healing waters for
them to take any without recompense
(500 gp per dose, or volunteering for a
difficult and dangerous task on behalf of
the village or the temple). If the temple
is rebuilt and rededicated to the Immor-
tal Ariana, the clerics of the new Order
of the Golden Fountain will be able to
coax 25 doses out of the fountain each
week but the demand for the healing
of the fountain will as
well. The PCs can never receive more
than three doses at a time. Q
A WAY WITH
WORDS
BYTEEUWYNNWOODRUFF AND TI M BEACH
Brutish, yet historically
inclined and discreet,
a dventurers required.
Artwork by Terry Dykstra
28 Issue No. 41
Teeuwynn has just bought a house in a
pine forest in North Carolina. She
shares this home with a paratrooper!
lawyer and two cats named Aurora and
(aptlyl) Monster. She has recently com-
pleted the new D&lJ DM Screen and
module "Escape From Thunder Rift" for
TSR. She is currently hard at work on
new projects for both TSR and White
Wolf Games Studio.
Tim had a promising career in freelance
game design for nearly two months be-
fore the RPGA" Network hired him. He
worked as the Network's tournament
coordinator for eight months before
joining TSR's game design staff. Recent
projects include FR1.5Gold & Glory,
City of Delights for the AL-QADIM'"
game, and the AM4 MAGITECH" sup-
plement to the AMAZING ENGINE"
system. In renl life, Tim likes Star Trek,
reading, and rule-playing thri-kreen.
"A Way With Words" is a D&Dgame
adve nture designed for 3-6 player char-
acters of level s 1-3 (about 9 total levels).
The number and strength of t he mon-
sters may be adjusted to compensate for
a stronger or weaker party and provide
a more balanced adventure. This sce-
nari o is intended for beginning players
and Dungeon Masters but should be
enjoyable for more experienced i ndivid-
uals as wel l.
The adve nt ure takes place in and near
the ti ny village of Edgewat er, a small
town locat ed in Thunder Rift on the
norther n edge of Lake Ga nif, halfway
between t he city of Melinir and the East
Drake River's delta to t he Black
Swa mps. However, the DM may set the
adve nture in any small town near water
and a marshy area .
Although there are some combat en -
counters, the emphasis here is on role-
playing. When runni ng this adventure,
t he DM should play up the various
characters found in Edgewater and t he
surroundi ng wi lderness . This is an
es pecially good way to encourage begi n.
ning PCs t o interact with t he NPCs and
with each other, ins tead of j us t kill ing
everythi ng in sight. The wa nderi ng
monster table in t his advent ure should
be used at t he DM's discr eti on (for ex-
ample, if the PCs are having too easy a
t i me, or if t hey are maki ng quite a bi t of
noise).
Though t his is a self-contained adven-
ture, the D&D R ules Cyclopedia (RC)
would be quite helpful. The DM may
also use the stand-up monsters and
characters from t he D&D game boxed
set or the entry level D&D modules.
Two concepts from t he RC are used
throughout t his ad venture: THACOand
ahil ity checks . Though these are proha-
bly familiar to exper ienced garners, a
shor t explanation is offered here.
THACOstands for "Th Hit Armor
Class 0." To determine the roll a mon-
ster need s to hit a character with a
specific Armor Class, subt ra ct the AC
from th e monster's THACO number.
Thus, if a monster's THACOis 19 and
its target is AC 3, the monster needs to
roll a 16 or better to hit.
APC may be asked to make ability
checks in or der t o perfor m cer tain
actions. Ability checks are referred to
by t he na me of t he relevant ability, such
as Dexterity or Int elligence. When an
ab ili ty check is called for, t he player
rolls Id20 and comp ares t he resul t to
hi s character's abi lity score. If the num-
ber on t he di e is less than or equal t o
the ab ility score, t he check is successful.
For example, a PC with a Dext erity of
15 must make a Dext erity check to
walk a tightrope. The player rolls 1d20.
A roll of 15 or less indicates succes s.
Adventure Background
Th e famous (at least in hi s own mind)
gnome archaeologist Harfur Glu mtoes
has spent t he past year and more in an
attempt to document th e hi stor ic differ-
ences bet ween dwarven and gno mish
poetry, a nd how t he t wo poetic forms
diverged over t he course of centuries.
He had come far in tracing t he st r uct ur-
al and philosophical differences bet ween
t he t wo poetic syste ms, a nd t houg ht it
would be a re latively si mple matter to
fin ish his Very Important Treatise on
t his Hi ghly Rel evant Subject . Soon,
Harfur would be able t o document
where the dwarven syste m went wrong,
and thus why today's dwarven artistic
(and inte llectual) creati ons are not up to
gnomish standards.
Harfur ca me t o the t iny town of Edge-
wate r 18 months ago for two reasons.
He wanted peace a nd qui et, and he
needed to be near the library around
which the town was built . The li brary is
the sale known legacy of a group of
monks, the Kohl er- ian Brother hood, who
were dedicated to the pr eser vation of
knowledge. Neari ng t he end of his re-
search, Harfur needed only to copy
down a few illust rati ve verses of ear ly
gnomish poetry, and his impeccable
(and, i n his own opi nion, br ill iant) re-
search would be complete.
However. whe n Harfur went to the
shelf where he kept t he vol ume of poet-
ry, he found it was gon e! Harfur
searche d hi s entire house from top to
bottom but found no si gn of The Big
Book of Sappy, Dr ivelly Loue Poems.
Harfur even searched the town library,
in case someone had found hi s book and
brought it there. No such lu ck.
Harfur t hought long and hard about
where the book mi ght have gone. Finally,
he remembered a young bard who had
attended one of his poetry readings only
last month. He remembered the woman
for t hree reasons. She had as ked whet her
she could borrow or purchase the poetry
book, and she was very pretty. The third
reason he remembered her was that she
had been the only person to ever attend
one of his poetry readings.
Rhiannon the bard had begged, sobbed,
and wail ed in her efforts to gain the book.
Yet, despite her beauty, Harfur had re-
mained firm and adamantly refused to let
her borrow the important tome. After all ,
res earch is research. Rhi annon was the
only person Harfur could think of who
might want to ste al his book.
Wasting no time, Harfur easily
learned the location of Rhi annon's home
i n t he hill s just outside of town. Armed
with thi s infor matio n, Harfur intrepidly
set ofT to talk to t he young bard. How-
eve r, when he r eached Rhiannon's
home, he was in for a shock. The young
woma n was clad in a green gown and an
even greener snake, apparently her pet .
For most indi viduals , this woul d not
have been too di sconcerting, but Harfur
is terrified of snakes. Eyes bulging,
Harfur stammered an apology and
dashed pelI-mell back to the village.
In light of this new information, Har-
fur has decided that the best course of
action would be to hire some adve ntur-
ers t o deal with the bard and he r scaly
fri end. In order to attr act advent urer s,
Harfur has placed large, neat ly let tered
signs about the town:
Brutish , yet hi storically i ncl ined and
discreet, adventurers required for a
t ask of some del icacy. Must have at
least one literate member. If inter-
ested, contact Harfur Glumtoes,
Main Street. Second house from left.
The green one. Wi t h white trim. Or
just ask a nyone in town a nd th ey' ll
show you.
A WAY WITH WORDS
Wandering Monsters
Roll 1d4 once every six hours . On a
roll of I , the PCs encounter a wan-
dering monster. The DM may al so
pick an encounter from thi s table if
the party is being very noisy or doing
somet hing that might draw unwant-
ed attention.
If a wandering monster is indicated
or desired, roll 1d6 and consult the
table below.
1. Giant rats (4-6): AC7; HDIh; hp 2; MV
120'(40'), swim60'(20'); ' ATI bite; THACO 19;
Dmg Id3 plus disease; Save as Normal Man;
ML8: INT2; AL:<; XP 5; RCI20l.
Anyone bit ten by a rat has a l -in20 cha nce of
contracting a disease (a diseased rat is worth 6
XP). The victim may avoi d the disease by
making a successful saving throw vs. poison.
These rats attack as a group, swarming around
t he Pes.
2. Kobold, (3-5),AC 7; HD'&: hp 3; MY
90'(30';' ' AT I weapon;THACO 19; Dmg Id6- 1
(short sword); Save as Norma l Man ; ML 6; INT
9; AL C; XP 5: RC1187.
These kobolds are members of a different
tribe than the kobold "mages." They are look-
ing for treasure and will attempt to ambush the
party.
3. Giant centipedes (14): AC 9; HD 1/2*; hp
2; MY60'(20'); IAT I hite; THACO19; Dmg
poison; Save as Normal Man; ML7; INT 0; AL
N; XP 6: RC1163.
The victi m of a cent ipede's bite must make a
success ful saving t hrow VS. poisonor become
violently ill for the next 10 days (movement is
at half speed; t he PC is unable to perform any
other physical acti ons). The centipedes swarm
out of a decaying log or tr ee stump to attack the
party.
4. Giant ferret: AC5; HDI +I; hp 8; MY
150'(50';' 'AT I bite; THACO 18; Dmg Id8: Save
as Fl ; ML8: DlT 2; ALN; XP 15; RCII77.
This creat ure at ta cks one PCat t he rear of
th e par ty, hoping for a swift kill.
5. Goblins (2-5): AC6; HD1-1; hp 4; MY
90'(30'); IAT I weapon; THACO 18; Dmg 1-4
(club);Save as Normal Man; ML7; INT 9; AL
C; XP 5; RC1180.
These goblins are looking for gold and will
attack th e PCs in a fairly organized manner,
since theyhave st rong leader ship.
6. Brigands (2-41, AC7; HD 1; hp 5: ~
120'(40'); IAT I weapon;THACO 19: Dmg Id6
(short sword>;Save as Fl ; AlL8; INT 11; ALC;
XP 10; RCI193 (Men).
These brigands wear leather armor an d carry
short swords. They are simply robbers looking
for a quick payoff. If t he party appears to be
getting t he best of them. a ny bandits still on
t heir feet will nee, lea ving t he ir compatriots to
the Pe s. They have no loyalt y whatsoever.
DUNGEON 29
A WAY WITH WORDS
Lake Ganif
N

/
,II r,
vampire Moss \ 111 . 1/"
,
,
,
:
,
,
lfthe adventure starts in the PCs'
hometown, Harfur might also come
looking for them.
Harfur Glumtoes is devoted to the
study of history, language, and general
knowledge. An archaeologist, he is a
gnome with a penchant for moldy tomes
and a weakness for tall women (those
over 4
1
in height>, Harfur prides himself
on his intellectual prowess, but often
becomes absorbed in his projects to the
point where he notices nothing else. He
can be gruff, but he wants to be friendly
and tries to be patient with others.
When Harfur has developed sufficient
physical skills, he is determined to go
adventuring himself. He is currently
working with t he short sword and whip.
The DM may wish to use Harfur as an
NPC in later adventures, encouraging
the PCs to accompany him on quests to
"save history" (and Harfurl).
For The DUNGEON MASTER"
The bard, Rhiannon, did steal Harfur's
book from his house, as she had fallen
desperately in love with the verses of
poetry in the volume. However, just a
few hours ago, a group of kobolds stole
the book of poetry from her, believing it
30Issue No. 41
to be a spell book.
The thieving kobo Ids learned to read
and write Common this past winter. The
creatures captured a thief who was busy
escaping from a merchant caravan he
had just robbed. As the kobolds were
preparing to kill the thief, the clever
(and desperate) man told the band he
knew how to read magic and would
teach the kobolds if they would let him
go. After a short conference, the kobolds
decided to take the thief up on his offer.
The man proceeded to teach the ko-
balds Common, as he did not really
know how to read magic. Luckily for the
thief, the kobolds could not tell the
difference. The kobolds freed him once
they had lear ned to read and write, and
he hastily left the area.
The kobolds are currently taking the
stolen book of poetry back to their small
encampment where some of their fel-
lows wait, about a day's hard journey
from Rhianncn'e home. There they plan
on having a celebration and magic dem-
onstration before making a journey of
several more days back to their home
clan. The PCs should catch up to the
kobolds shortly after the little creatures
reach their temporary encampment.
Harfur's Offer
It is indeed a very simple matter to
locate Harfur's green house with white
trim. If the PCs ask any of the towns-
people, they will point the way to the
gnome's residence. This is a small town,
and most of the residents know each
other. If any of t he PCs are from the
town (and have been around during the
past 18 months), they will have heard of
Harfur and know where he lives.
Harfur's recently whitewashed door
has t wo door knobs set into it. The first
appears to be placed for the comfort of
humans, while the second has been
placed more appropriately for halflings
or gnomes.
When the PCs knock on the door, they
hear a high-pitched voice call out
"Egad!" This cry is followed by several
loud thumps.
Harfur was attempting to change the
candles in his chandelier. In order to
reach that high, Harfur climbed atop
one of the piles of books and papers
cluttering his home. Unfortunately for
Harfur, the pile slipped out from under
him, causing the loud thumps men-
tioned above. Harfur managed to avoid
falling with the pile of books, but is just
bar ely hanging on to hi s cha ndeli er.
If the PCs attempt to open t he door,
they find it is not locked. If they call out
to Harfur or do not open t he door within
a few seconds, t hey hear a va r iety of
noises from inside the dwell ing, such as
"Uhh . . . Aaack! ... Ooch! ... Gahh!"
etc. If this does not move t he PCs, t he
next round they hear a nother thump
(caused by Harfur falling to the floor ).
Harfur then opens t he door and regards
the PCs with host ility. It will take some
soothi ng before the aching gnome will
agree to offer the PCs the job.
If t he PCs open the door before Harfur
fall s, read or paraphrase the following
to the player s:
As the door opens, you behold piles of
documents, books, and scrolls of every
type scatte red in appare ntly random
fashi on about the large room. Some of
the piles stand 4' high, and a few seem
to be on the verge of collapse. In fact ,
the loud noises you just heard seem to
have been caused by the collapse of
one of th e larger stacks .
Even mor e unusual than the mate-
rials filling the dwelling is the small
gnome swingi ng back and forth from
a large chande lie r. He appears to be
losing hi s grip and may fall at any
second.
Harfur will ind eed fall short ly. The
PCs have only one round in which to
act . If they do not do some thi ng, Harfur
takes 13 hp falling damage. Any
human-si ze or larger character can grab
Harfur and help him down . If a PC
attempt s t o catch Harfur as he falls, the
PC must make a successful Dext erity
check or take 1-2 hp damage when Har-
fur lands on his rescuer.
As long as the PCs atte mpt to help
him, Harfur will be very happy to offer
them the job. This is especially true if
the PCs also aid him in rest or in g t he
fallen pil e of books and scrolls. Harfur
will be very fussy wh ile arranging the
pile, since he wants hi s or de r ly disorder
to be "j ust so."
Once "orde r " has bee n restor ed, Har-
fur leads t he PCs to a sma ll table. There
are enough chairs for all t he PCs, but
they are all sized for gnomes . Harfur
offers th e group lea , in tiny cups. The
gnome will be es pec ia lly ni ce t o any
"tall" female PCs in the party.
Once tea has been di stributed or
refused, Harfur expla ins the t ask he has
in mi nd for the party. Th e gnome has a
st odgy a nd scho lar ly manner, at odds
wit h hi s hi gh -pitched voi ce.
"The task I a m proposing for you is
one of great. per haps even monumen-
tal, hi stor ical signifi ca nce. For t he
past year and more, I have been
traci ng t he linguisti c root s of dwar-
ven and gnomish poetry sys te ms
back to t he t ime whe n they were one
an d t he same. I am on the ve rge of
compl et ing my research, but one
t hing pr events t he completion of this
important wor k.
"A volume entit led The Big Book of
Sappy, Drivelly Love Poems, an early
gnomish collect ion, was take n from
my home some ti me within the pa st
month. I beli eve t hat a young woman
by the name of Rhi annon stole the
compilat ion. You see , she came to my
poetry reading last month and
begged me t o lend her the volume .
She even cri ed! I was te mpted but
held firm. Even lovely, young, tall
women must not come between me
and my research.
"In any case, the young woman is a
bard who lives not far from town. Did
I mention she is very tall? Easily
5'2" . I am certain if you just r eason
with her, she will return the vol ume.
However, if sh e becomes obstreper-
ou s, you might have to resort to
for ce, di st asteful as that might be.
Try not to hurt her too much though,
if it should come to violence.
"If, by some chance , she should not
be in possessi on of the tome, you
must locate it as quickly as possible."
Harfur's eyes glitter as he leans
forward and whispers:
"This will probabl y be the single
most important mi ssi on you have
ever taken on. Nothi ng is more im-
portant t han knowledge!"
Harfur leans back and sips hi s tea
as he regard s you steadily from be-
hind wi re spectacles. " Well , what do
you say? Are you inte rested?"
Harfur will be happy to give the party
what little infor ma t ion he possesses on
Rhiannon. If they as k the gnome about
other people who attended his poetry
readings and might have stolen the tome.
Harfur squirms a bit before telling them
there were no other attendees. He hastily
explains the lack of attendees as due to
the "paucity of cultural values assimi-
lated by current audiences."
If the party as ks why Harfur doesn't
A WAYWITH WORDS
go to see Rhi annon himself, since her
home is so close, he goes a bit pale and
st ammers that he is " allergic to . . .
trees . .. and I don't go into the woods
much." Harfur does not wis h t o infor m
anyone of hi s cr ippli ng fear of snakes ,
and admits to it only if pressed .
If t he party expresses interest in t he
mi ssion, Harfur will be very happy and
will immediately offer t he m more tea. If
the PCs ask about payment , he appears
befuddled for a moment befor e excusing
himsel f. The gnome cli mbs a small
ladder that appare nt ly lead s t o an up-
per are a. The party hears clattering
noi ses and mumbled curses, and eventu-
ally gold pi eces and a few sma ll gar nets
begin to drop from above. Harfur pokes
his head through the trapdoor and asks
if "t hat will suffice?" He tell s the PCs
that they can keep a nyt hing else they
find white on their mi ssion. He is inter-
este d onl y in the book. All told , Harfur
offers the PCs the equivalent of 40 gp
each.
If the party gives Harfur a hard time
about the payment, he grudgingly offers
them a small pl atinum st at ue of a uni-
corn that can he sold for 75 gpoIf the
PCs did not a id Harfur when he was in
troubl e nor help him with t he fallen
stack of books and papers, he will not
offer them the stat ue .
Once the group ha s accepted the job,
Harfur expla ins how to get to Rhian-
non's home. The way is simple; just
follow t he old ca ravan route east out of
town. After they ha ve gone almost a
mil e, the PCs will see a sma1l trail
leading ofT to t he left. The bard's home
is a few hundred yards up the t ra i1.
Harfur G1umtoes: AC 5: HD 2; hp 6;
MV 60'(20'); NAT 1; THACO19; Dmg by
wea pon t ype; [ 16, W 8; Save as Dwarf
1: ML 8; AL L. Harfur has both a whip
(12 hpj and a shor t sword (16 hpj.
Rhiannon
Unless the DM wishes to add a wander-
ing mon ster encounter, the j ourney t o
Rhiannon's home is without incident .
Th e bard's home is circular and made of
wood. It see ms to hav e been built
around a large oak tree that ri ses grace-
full y from t he center of the dwelling.
If the PCs knock on the door or call
out, Rhiannon will a nswer. The bard is
a lovel y human woman wit h blonde
hair and gr een eyes. She wears a jade
green silk gown, and her pet snake,
Cassandra, is wrapped about her waist.
DUNGEON 31
A WAY WITH WORDS
Cassandra is a pit vi per approximately
5' long. The snake will attack onl y if
Rhiannon is harmed .
When t he PCs come upon Rh iannon,
she has been crying and sniffi ing into a
green silk handkerchief. This is not
uncommon for her because she enjoys
t ragedy. Rh iannon becomes teary eyed
at the slig ht est provoc ation, searching
out mi sery, or even the possibility of a
tragi c sit uat ion, whenever possible.
Oft en whil e cryi ng she will begin to
smile or laugh, a rather di sconcerting
habit .
This love of tra gedy has unfor t.u-
nat ely ca used Rh iannon to hav e a
rathe r li mi t ed a ud ie nce. Her songs
are j ust t oo depressin g for most peo-
pl e. She is particul ar ly ena mor ed of
doomed love affai rs.
Wh en Rhi annon answers the door she
looks hopeful, alt hough her face is tear
streake d. She immedi ately asks t he
gro up if they have her book . If t he PCs
do not respond or respond negatively,
Rhi annon bursts into sobs, and Ca ssan-
dr a hi sses at them. If any of the adven-
turers as k her about the book of poetry
or why she is crying, Rhi annon t ells the
PCs t hat one of her dearest possessions
has been st olen.
If th e PCs confront her wit h Harfur's
accusat ions about the stolen book,
Rhiannon begins sobbi ng even harder.
She runs ins ide her home wi thout both-
eri ng to shut the door a nd collapses onto
a pile of pill ows.
As long as the PCs are not too threat-
eni ng or mean, Rh iannon eventually
invit es t he m into her home. It is a cozy
dwell ing, with pillows strewn casu ally
about t he floor. Th e warm effect is
slightly marred by depressing paint-
ings, t he most prominent of which de-
pict s a woman weeping as her husband
is dragged to the gallows .
Once t hey are inside, Rhiannon will
answer the PCs' questions. Sh e readily
admits t o having " borrowed" the
gnome 's book of poetry. The bard de-
fends her acti ons by sayi ng she was
only " rescuing the book" from Harfur,
"who does not hav e the ar t ist ic sens itiv-
ity necessary to t r ul y appreciate such
deep works."
If the PCs ask Rhiannon for the book,
she te lls them about the t ragic t heft of
her new possession. It seems the prized
tome has been stolen by a gro up of ko-
bcld s. She is not sure why they wa nted
t he book, as " everyone knows kobolds
have no artistic sensi tivity whatsoever."
32 Issue No. 41
Rh iannon had set her book down on a
rock and gone inside to fetch her hand-
kerchief, since she had just come to a
parti cul arly sad sect ion of poems. By
t he time she returned, the kobolds were
r unning off with the book . She is sure
t hey could not have gone far, because
t his tragic incident occurred only a few
hours ago.
Th e young woman can point out the
trail along which the kob olds fled, and
she te arfully appeals to the party to
return t he book to her. Rhiannon even
offers t he group up to 10 gp each for t he
opportunity to copy a few of the poems.
If the PCs attack Rhi annon, both she
and her snake will fight . However,
Rh iannon snatches any opportuni ty to
flee or su rrender, throwing hersel f on
the par ty member she t hinks is most
likely to ai d her i n her time of need .
Rhiannon: AC 7; Nor mal Human; hp
4; MV 120'(40' ); NAT 1; THACO20; Dmg
by wea pon type; DEX 16; Save as Nor-
mal Human; ML 9; AL N.
Rh iannon has 60 gp and a shor t swor d
(1-6 hp). She wears no armor ; her low
ar mor class is due to her high Dexterity.
Pit viper: AC 6; HD 2*; hp 11; MV
90(30' ); NAT 1 bite; THACO 18; Dmg Id4
pl us poison; Save as Fl ; ML 7; INT 2;
AL N; XP 25; RC/204 (Sna ke) .
Pursuit
The par ty will have no trouble foll owing
t he kobolds' trail. The DM sho uld occa-
sionally tell th e PCs that t hey have
foun d something along t he path, such as
a poorly painted star or a few pieces of
glitter, In their haste and excitement,
the kobolds have dropped bit s and piec -
es of th e numerous strange it ems they
carry a nd wear, and which t hey beli eve
to be magical.
Wh en t he party reaches the northern
edge of the Black Swamp, read or para-
phrase the followin g to t he players:
Unt il this poi nt , your journey has
been rel atively easy. You have now
reached the edge of what appears to
be a very marshy area. Th e gr ound
here is ext re mely spongy. and your
feet sink an inch or t wo into t he
muck as you survey the land in front
of you. For a swa mp, there are quite
a few trees, mostly pines and small
oaks. Pale green moss, some speci-
me ns al most 3' long, hangs from
al most every branch. Small patches
of dark water, repl et e wit h old
logs and br anches, are scattered
throughout, and the stagnant odor of
rotting veget at ion fill s your lungs. A
faintly visible animal t rail snakes off
to t he south, marked by a brightly
painted feather t hat lies a few yards
down t he path.
Th e feather was dropped by one of the
kobolds. The only possib le way to cross
this swa mpy area is to stay on the ani-
mal path. The caravan trail that once
traversed t he swamp is no longer pass-
abl e. If the party attempts to cross t he
marsh anywhe re else, t he PCs will soon
become hope lessl y bogged down, taking
over an hour to t raverse even a quarter
of a mile. Even the ani mal trail is
t reacherous , and it t akes great concen-
trat ion to keep from tripping or wander-
ing off the narrow path. While on the
trail , the party must travel in single
fil e, a nd movement is at half t he normal
rate.
Thi s fet id marsh is home to many
creatures, most of which are quit e
har ml ess an d avoid intruders. As t he
PCs slowly cross the marsh, th e DM
should describe the for eboding environ-
ment. Strange noise s echo between the
trees, and birds burst from cover in
nearby bushes. The group mi ght cat ch a
gli mpse of a la rge alligator sile nt ly
swimming away, or see a gia nt python
basking in t he sun's wa r mth hi gh above
t he i r head s.
The real danger to t he party is not so
conspicuous . Four specimens of va mpi re
moss (see si debar) hang near t he path.
Th is vege t at ion senses th e PCs' pr es-
en ce and immediately begins an insidi-
ous attack. When the PCs have gone a
little more than hal fway through th e
marsh, read or paraphrase the following
t o th e players:
As you slowly make your way along
the marshy path, you are for ced to
concent rat e on every step , for vines
and branches are everywhere. Plod-
ding along, you begin to feel very
ti red, and the backs of your heads
t ingl e. Perhaps you have been exer t-
ing yourselves t oo hard, or maybe
you've bee n breathing swamp gas?
The tingling effect is from t he subt le
attack of t he vampire moss. Each of the
four mosses may at tack one PC. If t here
are five or more PCs in t he party, the
mosses attacks the fir st four PCs to
A WAY WITH WORDS
Monster Type: Lowlife (Rare).
Terrain: Swamp, Woods (tropical).
Vampire moss hangs fromtrees and
branches in marshy or tropical environ-
ments. It is normally pale green in color,
and from 1'-4' in length. The moss grows
in a netlike mass but is not as thick as
rock-dwelling moss.
Vampire moss lives offthe life energy of
other creat ures, although it prefers mam-
mals. The moss is an "air feeder, " requiring
nocontact with the creatures that it draws
energy from. However, victims must be
within 10yards ofthe moss. Avampire
moss feedson the lifeenergiesof nearby
trees only if it is starving to death.
When vampire moss attempts to feed on
a PC, the victimfeels a prickling sensa-
t ion at the back the neck and must make
a Constitution check. If the check suc-
ceeds, the moss conti nues to try to magi-
cally at tach itself until the intended
victim leaves its area ofeffect. If the
victim fails the Constit ution check, the
moss has "latched on" to the PCand
begins feeding at the rate of 1 hp per
round until the victimdies or leaves the
area. When the moss has consumed four
times its ownhit points in energy, it is
sated and releases its victim.
When a victim is reduced to half his
maximum number of hit points , he must
make another Constitution check or fall
unconscious. The victim must cont inue to
make checks each round until the drain-
ing stops or t he victimfalls unconscious.
The victimdies when reduced to 0 hp.
As the moss feeds, it turns a brighter
and brighter shade ofgreen. Afully sated
moss is a vivid emerald green.
The only ways to kill vampire moss are
by ripping it into tiny shreds or burning
it. The moss regenerate all other damage
at a rate of 2 hp per week.
come into range. If th ere are fewer t han
four PCs, two speci me ns of moss may
attack a single vict im. When the vam-
pire moss attacks , ask the fir st four PCs
to make Const it utio n checks. PCs who
fail their checks take 1 hp damage and
feel even dizzier because t he moss has
drained th eir life force .
Aft er the first Consti t ution check , the
OMshould ask t he player s what their
characters are doing. If t hey are exam-
ini ng the area close ly, infor m the PCs
that some of t he hanging moss appears
exceptionall y healthy and gree n, but
there seems to be nothing out of the
ordinary her e. If the party attempts to
travel at a pace fas le r than a slow wa lk,
t he PCs must make Dext erit y checks
every round or t r ip and fall into t he
sur rounding mire. In any case, it takes
the party three rounds to move out of
t he area of effect of t he va mpire moss.
For every round the PCs st ay in the
area of effect, unaffect ed PCs being
attacked must make Const it uti on
checks. All affecte d PCs lose 1 hp per
round. Once a PC has lost more than
half his maximum hi t point s, he must
ma ke a Constit ution check each round
to st ay conscious. Any PC reduced t o 0
hp by the moss will die.
For every round th e PCs st ay in the
vampire moss' s ar ea, the moss t urns a
bri ghter shade of green. If t he PCs do
not notice the moss by t he t hird rou nd,
they may not ice it wit h successful Intel-
ligence checks.
Dest roying t he moss is fa ir ly simple;
all the PCs need do is r ip it apa rt. This
does not permanent ly dest roy the moss.
as it can grow bac k, but it does pr event
t he moss from draini ng the adventur-
ers ' life forces. Tb permanently destroy
the moss , the party must burn it or r ip
it int o ti ny shreds.
Once th e PCs have either defeat ed t he
vampire moss or escaped the ar ea of its
effect. t hey will have no more pr oblems
in t he marsh.
By t he time the PCs make it t hrough
t he marsh, the sun is setting. Th er e are
several likely places to make camp in
the area . If t he PCs t ry to push on past
sundown, the OM shoul d warn them
that it is ext re mely difficult to track the
kobolds in the dark. If they insist on
conti nui ng, have the PCs meet a wan-
dering monster or two. In any case, t he
PCs should not catch up wit h t he ko-
bolds the first night .
Crocodile Crossing
The next morning, read or paraphrase
t he followi ng t o the players:
You have left the dangerous marsh
behind and see m to be making good
progr ess. The ground her e is far less
sodden t han wha t you covered yest er-
day. However, you now stand before a
la rge st re am, perhaps 15' across and
3' deep. Broadl eaft rees sha de the
tra il, providing relief from the day's
wa rmth. Several logs rest in the
riv er, alt hough none qu it e spans t he
cha nnel. Several cl umps of flour a nd
glitter are scattered on the far side of
the st ream, as if someone had been
hurling packet s of the st uff.
The kobolds used packets of " magic
glitter " (mica chips) and flour to attack
t he crocodile s t hat live in the river.
When, in spite of their "spe ll-cas t ing,"
two of their group became breakfast for
t he hungry rept iles, t he kobolds decided
t hat the crocodil es must have some
special magical protection. The rest of
the band promptly ned t he dangerous
"cr ocodil e mages."
If the PCs ask about t he logs, t he OM
should inform t hem that it ma y be pos-
sible to cross t he river by hopp ing from
log to log, since t hey are quite close
toget her. Clever PCs ma y attempt to
det er mine if the logs are crocodiles. If
t he player s state t hat the PCs exa mine
t he logs closely, the OMshould look
puzzled and as k which log they are
examining. The nearest log is just a log,
but t he t wo mi ddle "logs" are ind eed
crocodiles .
Roll Intell igence checks for the PCs,
no matter which log (or logs) t hey exam-
ine. If a PC is looking at one of the
crocodiles and makes his check, t he PC
not ices something odd about the log but
is unable to det er mine exac tly what is
wrong. If t he PC fai ls the check or is
looking at a real log, the OMshou ld tell
t he PC t hat it looks like an ordinary
log.
Any PC attempt ing to jump from log
t o log must make a Dext erity check or
land in the water. A successful check
carr ies the PC to t he second "log" (a
crocodile). Here the PC must make
a nothe r Dext erity check as the crocodile
rolls over to attack t he hapl ess adven-
t urer. If t he check succeeds, the PC may
attack normally; ot her wise, the PC is
surprised and may not attack unt il the
second round of combat.
Vampire Moss
Armor Cla ss:
Hi t Dice:
Move:
Att acks:
Damage:
No. Appearing:
Save as:
Morale:
Treasure Type:
Int elligence:
Alignment:
XP Value :
9
'12 (1-4 hpj
Nil
1 (special)
1 hp per round
1-6 (1-6)
Wizard 1
9
Ni l
o
Ne ut ral
7
DUNGEON 33
A WAY WITH WORDS
Th ese cr ocodiles are hungry and do
not appre ciate being disturbed. As soon
as the PCs attempt to ford the river, the
crocodiles attack, hoping for surprise.
Unless the party flies or levitates, or
moves a substant ial distance up- or
downstream (at least half a mile), the
crocodi les will drift behind and attack
whe n the party enters the water.
Any items t he PCs drop while in the
water will eithe r sink or float rapidly
downstream. Halfl ings a nd dwarves
fight at a - 2 penalty to attack rolls
while in t he water, due to it s depth and
t he ir short stature .
The number of crocodiles found in the
stream may be changed to compensate
for the relative stre ngth or weakness of
the adventuri ng party.
Crocodiles (2): AC 5; HD 2; hp 8; MV
90'(30'); #AT 1 bit e; THACO18; Dmg
1d8; Save as F1; ML 7; [NT 2; AL N; XP
20; RC/164.
Poetic License
By mid-afte r noon, t he PCs notice a
colu mn of smoke in the distance. If the
PCs ask about thi s, t he DM can say that
it looks as if it comes from a large chim-
ney or bonfire.
34Issue No. 41
It t akes the PCs the rest of the after-
noon to re ach the area near the column
of smoke. Shortly before sundown, t hey
should decide how they wish t o ap-
proach the spot .
Scouting is easy, since most of the
kobold s are busy pr eparing for tonight's
celebrat ion and magi c demonstration.
As long as the PCs take reasonable
precautions (sneaking qui etly, not wear-
in g bright colors), they are not spot ted
by the busy kobolds. If the kobolds spot
the adventure rs, the creatures fr antical-
ly mobilize and attack t he party as
discussed later.
If the PCs make a r easonabl e effort at
scouting t he small encampment , t he
DM may give them a rough version of
the "Kobold Camp" map, omitti ng t he
locations of speci fic koboIds. Instead,
the DM should tell t he PCs they see " at
least half a dozen" kobolds walking
about the ca mp. Th e positions of the
kobolds on the map show the DM where
the kobolds are when the PCs begin
their attack (or when the kobolds fir st
notice the party).
The smoke that dr ew the PCs bere
comes from a lar ge bonfire that the
kobolds have constr ucted in preparation
for the eveni ng's celebrat ion. The ko-
bolds are celebrat ing the discover y of a
mage' s spell book, which is act ually The
Big Book ofSappy, Drivelly Love Poems.
However, the kobold s beli eve t he ridicu-
lous verses are spells . After all , what
else could anyt hing t his st range be?
Curre ntly, the most intelligent and
cunning kobolds are working on memo-
rizin g "spells" from t he book. They plan
on demonst r ating their magical exper-
t ise t his eve ni ng.
As long as t he PCs have made an
attempt at being quiet and have a rea-
sonable plan for ap proac hing the ko-
bolds, the creatures will not notice the
intruders un til the party strikes. When
t he PCs have decided on a pl an and are
ready to move on t he kobolds ' enca mp-
ment , read or paraphrase the following
to the player s:
As you close on the camp, you hear
snort ing and hissing. One scrat chy
voice is reciting some sort of
poetry .. . if you want to call it t hat.
If the PCs move a bit closer, they can
see nine small re pti lian creat ures with
t iny horns and longish snouts. Th e little
monst ers look as though they are put -
A WAY WITH WORDS
K
K
Continuedonpage 71
The DM should feel free t o make up
any atrocious variant s of his own.
Kobolds (8): AC 7; HD 112; hp 3; MV
90'(30'); KAT 1 weapon or " spell";
THACO 19; Dmg Id6 -1 (short sword);
Save as Normal Man; ML 8; INT 9; AL
C; XP 5; RC/187.
The Great Whizzo: AC 6; HD I; hp 6;
ML 10; XP 10; ot her statist ics as for
kobolds, above .
In addition to t he book of poetry, th e
kobolds have 250 cp, 120 sp, and 6 gp
hidden under some blanket s in the
northernmost tent. Each kobold also
has two packs of gli tter dust . The PCs
may take any unused packet s, which
th ey may find useful for bli nding oppo-
nent s. The packets have the same
throwing range as a dagger.
The Great Whizzo wears three rings .
Two of these are made of colored twine
wrapped around thin twigs, but the
third ring is act ually a ring ofprotection
+1 (whi ch explains the Great Whi zzo's
armor class of 6). The ring is wrapped in
colored twine , so the PCs wi ll have to
unwrap it to discover the plain silver
band benea th.
w
K
K K
K
K
Kobold Camp 'N. ..... m . ~ ~
N ~ . .-< _

very powerful magi cal charms. Exam-

ples of t hese include " I before E except
after'C or when soundi ng like I A' as in
neighbor or weigh;' and "Kobold is
spelled with a ' K' just like kennel or
keg."
The kobolds r efuse to answer any
questi ons on how they learned "magi c"
(Common) and atte mpt to get into good
positions for attacking the PCs. As soon
as the kobolds believe t hey are in t he
best positions possible, they fall upon
t he PCs. The kobolds are armed with
short swords and usually att ack with
them. However, each kobold also has
t wo packets of "magic powder " (glit ter
dust made of mica and sand) that t hey
will also try t o hurl at the PCs while
shouting " spells :' If a kobold manages
to hit a PC wit h a packet of gli tte r dust ,
the PC must save VB. paralyzation or be
blinded for 13 rounds. A blinded PC
suffers a -4 penalty to all attack r olls.
Throughout the fight, the kobolds
shout " spells" at the PCs. For example:
" Homicide'? Foul, brutish beast ,"
" Feel my wrathlLike a scaldi ng bath; '
and
"Thine eyes weeplLike two rivers
deep."
There are nine kobolds standing about
t he small clear ing. They ar e all enrap-
tured by t he "spell book" they have
cleverly stolen, because the kobolds all
wish to have "'Ibngues like daggers/And
eyes of flame," as one of the poems
promi ses. The entire group is certai n
t his book is a powerful magical tome.
If th e PCs immediately at tack, the
koboIds launch a furious counterattack.
The creatures are certain that the party
is her e to t ake t he "spell book" from
them, and they are determined to keep
it . The kobalds' strategy is described
later.
If th e PCs appr oach t he kobolds more
cautious ly inste ad of leaping into battle,
the crafty creatures will atte mpt to talk
to the PCs. During t he conversation, the
koboIds t ry to cast spells on t he PCs by
spouti ng lines of poetry. Some examples
of thei r "spell select ion" are:
"Tempt me notJLest I drown thee
within mi ne eyes of blue, fair one:'
"If 1th ought t hat/The very eart h
should tremble about me:' and
"But one kiss/And thou art mine!"
(An enterprisi ng kobold might even
attempt to ki ss one of the PCs at this
point.)
The kobolds also chant certain mne-
monic tea chi ng devi ces used by the
thief, because they beli eve these to be
"Oh! Thou art as the light of dawn,
St irring my blood
Till t hou art gone.
Burning away the morni ng mist ,
Steal my bre ath,
With your sweetest kiss.
Cast your spell
[Here, the kobol ds all gasp and clap]
Till I am too weak t o stand.
A puppet , yours t o quell."
ting on a page ant . Several of the ko-
holds wear makeshift robes with
strange symbols sloppily painted on
them. Some wear feathers in their hair,
behind their ears, and on t heir fingers.
Two have small st icks that have appar-
entl y been dipped into paint. A kobold
reading from a large book wears a flop-
py baker's hat covered in golden glitter,
with large eyes painted all over it. This
kobold, who calls himself The Great
Whizzo, is th e leader of th e sma ll band.
The Great Whi zzo is currently readi ng
from The Big Book of Sappy, Drivelly
Love Poems. The PCs may list en for as
long as they wi sh (or as long 85 they can
stand it).
DUNGEON 35
DEADLY TREASURE
Continued from page 25
the pewter mug (10 gp). However, the
spoon beside t he mug is actually a
Murlynd's spoon. Both the spoon and
mug are encrusted with dried gruel
from Zathis's last meal.
The unicorn head is a trophy from
Zathis's younger years. He came upon
the beast in a forest and slew it before
he realized what it was. The wizard was
so impressed with the creature's beauty
that he brought its head here to adorn
his tomb.
The drapes on the north wall partially
conc ea l a 30' x 10' st or age area. In side
are numerous barrel s, bins, crates, and
containers of all sorts that st ore Zathis's
supply of material components. There
are enough components here to ca st any
given mage spell 1-3 times. The encum-
THE WELL OF LORD BARCUS
Continued from page 27
ser pent ine owl figurine of wondrous
power,. a rusty dagger, a bronze helm,
three silver rings wor t h 30 gp each, a
gold ring worth 200 gp, an ordinary
ring with " Ring of Warmth" written on
it in elvish scr ipt, and three glass mar-
bles. PCs will not be cursed if they take
these items. Only PCs who take items
from the well will be cursed.
Mar-linus uses his condition as a
haunt to try to fre e himself from his
curse by possessing a PC and returning
hi s loot to t he well . If Marlinus man-
ages to possess a body and return all the
loot to the well, or if somebody does it
for him, the curse is lifted. Marli nus
goes on to hi s r eward (what ever that
may be) with an audible sigh of relief.
Marlinus's survivi ng personal items
include belt buckles and some bits of
clot hing, a dagger +1/ +2 vs. sea
A WAYWITH WORDS
Continued from page 35
The Last Word
Once the PCs have retrieved the book of
poetry from the kobo lds, it should be
relatively simple for them to get back to
br ance of all t hese spell components is
200 lbs. Also stored here is a small pouch
hanging from a spi ke on t he wal l. Inside
is Zat his's store of emergency funds: 20
100-gp gems, 10 500-gp gems, and five
1,000-gp gems (base values). None of the
items in t his storeroom are magical.
Concludi ng th e Adve nt ure
Once the tomb has been cleared out ,
there may still be a few loose ends. Any
PCs lost on other planes should be given
a reasonable chance to escape, though
this is a process that could span several
adventures. The evil priest Dranloc will
certainly wish to run into the PCs
again, most li kely with a small army
behind him. And, with 30,000 gp worth
of gems, he can certainly afford to hire
whatever help he thinks he needs.
If the PCs restore Sir Ayvers, they
gain a 3,000 XP bonus. Sir Ayvers may
creatures sheathed in his belt, a neck -
lace ofadaptation around his skeletal
throat , a ring of sustenance on a bony
finger, and two 200-gp rubies hidden in
his rotted boots.
Marlinus (haunt): INT non ; AL CN; AC
Olas victim; MV 6/as victim; HD 5/as
victim; hp 30/as victim; THACO 15; HAT
1/1. as 5HD monster; Dmg Dexterity
drain/by weapon type; SA possession/as
victim; SD struck only by silver or mag-
ical weapons, or by fire; weapons cause
only 1 hp damage (pl us magical bo-
nuses, if any); normal fire causes 1 hp
damage per round/as vict im; SZ M; ML
16; XP 2,000; MC2.
After sunset, Marli nus approaches the
camp and attempts to possess the PC
with the lowest Dexterity. If hlocked, he
wi ll try the PC with the second lowest
Dexterity. If "killed" in his noncorpo-
real form, Marlinus fades away but will
re-form in one week. Marlinus must
stay within 60 yards of the shrine.
Rhianncn's home or to Edgewater.
If the PCs allow Rhiannon to copy
some of the poems, she will be so happy
that she begins crying. The bard also
gi ves the PCs the gold she promised
them.
Harfur will be exceptionally pleased if
the book is r et ur ned. He immediately
decide to r epay his rescuers by serving
the heroes for some time, improving
their moral fiber, and keeping them on
the path of righteousness.
If the PCs escape from Zarrp, the ar-
canaloth is still obligated to hunt t hem
down and destroy them before he is freed
of his debt. A particularly brave and
capable party may even wish to track
down Zarrp to his red-iron fortress in
Gehenna and recover Zathis's spell books .
The perils and rewards of such an under -
taking are left entirely to the DM.
If the PCs fail , the people of Green -
barrow are convinced the lomb is
haunted and continue to warn others
away. If they succeed in overcoming
the traps and creatures of the tomb,
the PCs should gain a 30,000 XP story
award, to be split among the party
members . The tomb itself remains,
abandoned until some monster decides
to make it a home. Q
Concluding the Adventure
If the PCs kill Marlinus's haunt without
returning the loot to the well, they will
have missed the main point of this adven-
ture. The experience award should be one-
half or one-quarter of the possibl e total. If
they return Marlinus's loot to the well ,
the full award is recommended.
If PCs st eal from the well, they will be
affected by the well's curse of ill luck
(penalty of 2 to all rolls). The DM could
drop hints like bad dreams, fortune
tellers, or omen readings to communi-
cate the cause of t he curse if necessary.
Further adventures could arise as the
party tries to remove the well 's curse
from one of their members, or to learn
to deal with the strange benefits be -
stowed by the well .
Roger Baker says he got the idea for this
encounter from a song he heard on the
radio. "It just proves that interesting
adventures can be found anywhere." Q
gives the PCs their gold and garnets,
and he invites them to a celebratory t ea
party and poetry reading. He will not be
too disappointed if the PCs decline hi s
offer, but the party will hear him mum-
ble something under hi s breath about
"the cultural bereavement of today's
adventurers." Q
DUNGEON 71
RANSOM
BY DAVID HOWERY
Blood is thicker than
water, but gold is thicker
than blood.
Artwork By Charles Dougherty
36Issue No. 42
David writes: "Currently, I live in Moun-
tain Home, Idaho. I've written over 20
articles for DUNGEON Adventures,
DRAGONMagazine, and The General
from Avalon Hill. This is my eighth
module for this magazine. I graduated
from Montana State University in 1983
and have been writing for TSR's maga-
zines since 1986."
This D&D adventure is for 4-7 lawful
player characters of levels 3-5 (about 22
total levels). Page numbers given here
refer to the D&D Rules Cyclopedia (RC).
Adventure Background
Banditry is a fact of life across the
Known World, wherever there are wild
lands or hostile borders. Karameikos,
with its vast wilderness areas, suffers
badly from such depredations. The most
infamous gang on the northern border
is that of Thoros the kidnapper.
The fief of Sir Reynald stands on the
northern border near Threshold. A
week ago, Reynald's oldest son,
Baldwin, was kidnapped by Thoros. The
bandit heard that Baldwin would be
traveling to Specularum with a small
escort, there to be trained as a squire by
his father's boyhood friend. The bandits
surprised the group, slew the two men-
at-arms, and captured the lO-year-old
boy. Thoros later sent a ransom note to
Reynald, asking for a huge sum of
money. Business as usual for Thoros,
but a new experience for Reynald.
Reynald plans to send a treasure chest
across the border, as instructed, but he
doesn't want to use his own troops. He
doesn't trust them to keep their cool
when facing the bandits. Thus, he decid-
ed to hire a group of adventurers for the
job. After a quick survey of available
personnel in the area, he has decided to
contact the PCs.
For the Player Characters
The PCs should start the adventure
near Threshold. The party receives an
invitation, by special courier, to visit
Reynald in his castle. It is common
knowledge that Reynald's son was re-
cently kidnapped, and that Reynald has
been interviewing adventurers. If the
PCs decide to accept Reynald's invita-
tion, they are escorted into Reynald's
office, where he is waiting for them.
Reynald is a tall, strong man with a
well-worn sword at his hip. However,
his eyes are bloodshot and sunken in
dark circles; the kidnapping has left
him haggard. After motioning you to
be seated, Reynald rises and speaks.
"Greetings, and many thanks for
answering my invitation. I am Rey-
nald, lord of this border castle. As
you may know, my son Baldwin was
recently kidnapped by the bandit
Thoros. He is being held somewhere
north of the border.
"I have decided to send the ransom
across the border, but I need someone
to take it there. I cannot send my
own troops. I fear my hot-headed
soldiers will risk my son's life by
doing something foolish when they
face the bandits. I need cool, experi-
enced adventurers for the job.
"I offer each of you 500 gp to take
the ransom to the designated spot
and recover Baldwin. Your reward is
payable upon my boy's safe return!'
If the PCs decline, Reynald asks them
to keep the meeting secret and shows
them out. If the PCs accept, Reynald
begins to make preparations for their
trip. Reynald can be bargained up to
650 gp each, but no higher. If asked how
much ransom has been demanded, Rey-
nald only smiles grimly and say that it
is of no relevance to the PCs.
Reynald: AC 2 [8]; hp 60; NAT1; Dmg
by weapon type; MV 90' (30') [120' (40')];
save FlO; ML 12; AL N; S 18, I 14, W
10, D 14, C 16, Ch 17; XP 1,100; plate
mail, shield, long sword, dagger. In his
castle, surrounded by his men, Reynald
does not wear armor and has the armor
class and movement noted in brackets.
For the DUNGEON MASTER'"
Reynald is less than sincere about his
concern for his son. Not only is he self-
ishly neutral in alignment, he is also
losing his mind, due to the interference
ofhis chief advisor.
The problem began years ago, when
Reynald married his wife, Belesa. Her
first husband, the former lord of this fief,
diedin a border skirmish. The young
widow was married to Reynald just days
later, a common practice in feudal lands.
Duke Karameikos likes strong border
fiefs and did not want this one to fall to
raiders from lack of leadership.
Baldwin was born exactly nine
months later, and there has always been
doubt as to his paternity. The boy re-
sembles his mother but doesn't look like
either of Belesa's husbands, so the ques-
tion is unanswered. Reynald claims
Baldwin as his son but has always had
his doubts. He treats his two younger
sons with much more affection.
Reynald is a selfish and paranoid man
who has ambitions to rule far more than
a single fief someday. He also thinks that
unknown persons are out to stop his de-
served rise to fame and power. In spite of
his paranoia, Reynald's strong personality
and his high Charisma let him present a
kind and caring mask to others.
Reynald's selfishness would have
amounted to little if not for the treach-
ery of his main advisor, Antar. This man
is actually an agent of wicked Baron
von Hendricks of Fort Doom. In order to
place his own agent in charge of the
border fief, Hendricks must get rid of
Reynald. Antar was inserted into Rey-
nald's service years ago, and has slowly
worked on Reynald's mind. He has used
Reynald's natural paranoia to convince
him that Baldwin is not his true son,
and has played on Reynald's greed to
make him extraordinarily miserly and
ambitious.
The kidnapping has given Antar a
golden opportunity. He tried to convince
Reynald to ignore the ransom demand
and let Baldwin perish. Why pay a
large sum for a son of questionable
heritage when he has two more sons
that are definitely his? Of course, Antar
knows that this despicable act would
cause Reynald's immediate removal by
Duke Karameikos. That is Antar's goal.
Antar was disappointed when Reynald
decided to pay the ransom.
However, Antar has succeeded better
than he knows. Reynald is indeed furi-
ous about paying a large ransom for a
questionable son. He has devised a plot
that he hopes will bring destruction
down upon Thoros and his men, without
implicating him as a heartless monster.
Antar: AC 9; M2; hp 6; MV 120' (40');
NAT1; Dmg by spell or weapon type;
Save M2; ML 8; AL C; S 10, I 17, W 10,
D 11, C 12, Ch 17; XP 35; dagger, 12 gpo
Spell book: analyze, charm person, read
magic (can memorize any two per day).
The Journey
The instructions on the ransom note are
clear. The ransom is to be taken to the
small village of Utica, 10 miles north of
the Duchy's border. There, the bandits
RANSOM
will contact the PCs and lead them to a
secret location where the exchange will
be made. Reynald provides a sturdy
mule to carry the treasure chest filled
with the ransom. The chest is 2' wide, 2'
high, 3' long, and weighs 150 lbs,
The chest is exceptional, an heirloom
of Belesa's family. Although it appears
to be made of iron, the chest is actually
an alloy of steel and adamantite, imper-
vious to weapons and cutting tools. The
lock is magical. If opened by magic or
picked by thieves, it automatically
relocks itself before the lid can be lifted.
Only members of Belesa's family, in-
cluding Reynald and Baldwin, can open
the chest. Thus, the PCs will not be able
to examine the ransom before deliver-
ing it to Thoros. Reynald is also depend-
ing on the PCs' lawful alignment to
keep them honest. Just before the PCs
leave, Reynald explains the magic of
the chest and his plan to have Baldwin
open it at the exchange site.
Reynald will provide rations, mounts,
weapons, and other common items as
needed. The road to Utica crosses moun-
tainous terrain. The DM may use the
Wilderness Encounters Table (RC, page
95) if desired.
Mule: AC 7; HD 2; hp 14; MV 120'
(40'); HAT1 kick or 1 bite; Dmg 1d4 or
1d3; Save Normal Man; ML 8; INT 2;
AL N; RC 195.
Utica
This small town survives by offering
services to bandits as they move along
the border. Few of the residents have
any morals. The town is always starved
for cash and supplies, and crime is a
way of life for many.
The party must wait in Utica for one
hour before they are contacted by the
bandits. The PCs may take any precau-
tions they wish, so long as they stay in
town. There is little of interest in Utica:
one inn, a smithy, a small adventurers'
shop, numerous shacks, and about 40
sullen residents. Most common items
and services are available, but not
mounts, weapons, or armor (see RC
pages 62-69 for prices).
In a town like this, the chest on the
mule will draw attention. Five bandits
(not connected with the ones who have
kidnapped Baldwin) desperate for
money will try to steal the chest. If the
PCs are in a building, the bandit leader
and the two fighters try to burst
through a door, while the two thieves
DUNGEON 37
RANSOM
sneak in through a window. If the PCs
are outside, the bandits surround them
and attack from all sides.
Althling (bandit leader): AC 5; F5; hp
22; MV 120' (40'); HAT 1; Dmg by weap-
on type; Save F5; ML 11; AL C; S 16, I
11, W 10, D 10, C 12, Ch 13; XP 175;
chain mail, bastard sword (used two
handed), dagger, 2 gpo
Fighters (2): AC 6; F3; hp 20; MV 120'
(40'); HAT 1; Dmg by weapon type; Save
F3; ML 9; AL C; S 14, I 11, W 12, D 1.0' C
14, Ch 10; XP 35; leather armor, medium
shield short sword, dagger, 3 sp.
(2): AC 5; T3; hp 10; MV 120'
(40'); HAT 2; Dmg by weapon type; Save
T3; ML 7; AL C; S 10, I 11, W 10, D 17,
C 14, Ch 12; OL 25, FT 20, RT 20, CW
89, MS 30, HS 20, PP 30, HN 40; XP 75;
leather armor, short sword, dagger, 3 sp.
The thieves use both their swords and
daggers in melee (-4 to hit on second
attack).
These bandits are desperate but not
especially brave. They hope to steal the
chest for fast and easy money. Ifthree
are slain, the others will flee. If they
have a chance to grab the chest or lead
away the mule that carries it, they will
do so.
One of Thoros's bandits rides into
Utica one hour after the attack to con-
tact the PCs. If the PCs have lost the
chest the bandit angrily rides away.
The PCs may try to follow him, but he
is skilled at losing pursuers.
Kerak (bandit): AC 3; F4; hp 24; MV
120' (40'); HAT 1; Dmg by weapon type;
Save F4; ML 11; AL C; S 15, I 10, W. 11,
D 15, C 14, Ch 10; XP 75; chain mall,
normal shield, long sword, dagger, long
bow, 20 arrows, 10 gp, riding horse
tack. Skills: horseback riding, tracking,
mountain stealth, quick draw.
The bandit's horse is an excellent
runner with extraordinary endurance,
giving him a +10% bonus for successful
evasion isc; page 99).
Kerak is a short, evil-tempered man
who is devoted to Thoros and helps to
plan the bandits' crimes. has habit
of interrupting a conversation to inter-
ject snide comments.
If the PCs still have the chest, Kerak
instructs them to follow him north to
the exchange site (about two miles). He
will not tell the party where he is going.
The bandit rides at least 50' ahead of
the party and objects strongly if they
crowd closer. If the PCs threaten Kerak,
he reminds them that Baldwin is in the
bandits' power and can be killed or sold
38 Issue No. 42
into slavery at any time.
The Exchange
The bandits have set up a secure site for
the exchange in an ancient ruined fort.
Two of the towers are rubble, one has
partially collapsed, and the fourth
intact. The building on the north SIde of
the courtyard has fallen down in several
places. The walls are riddled :with holes,
and a crumbling well stands In a
cleared space near the southeast
of the building. The PCs should arrive
near sunset, as long shadows fall across
the fort.
Kerak tells the PCs to stop at the gate,
then rides across the courtyard and teth-
ers his horse by the building. Two ofthe
bandits step through the door into the
open. One is Thoros, a tall blond man
with an obvious air of command. The
other is Ademar, a short and surly man
who is festooned with daggers. .
The three bandits feign disinterest m
the PCs and eye the chest greedily. .
Actually, they are sizing up th,e m
order to try an old kidnappers trrck on
them. Thoros calls on a random PC to
bring the chest to the center of the
courtyard, leave it there, and return to
the gate.
If the PCs comply, the bandits drag
the chest into the building, only to
sneak out through a hole in the back
wall, taking Baldwin with them and
leaving the PCs empty handed. The
bandits' horses are tied beside the hole,
and Baldwin is inside the building.
If the PCs refuse or ask to see the boy,
Thoros grins and stops the trickery".
Ademar steps back into the dark build-
ing and brings Baldwin out into the
open.
Thoros demands that one PC bring
the chest to the center of the courtyard
(area 1). The others must stay at the
gate. "A friend of mine is watching you
from a safe place," Thoros remarks,
pointing to the intact tower: "He'll be "
very angry if you try anything
The bandit leader takes a hard grip on
Baldwin's arm and marches him to the
designated spot. .. .
Thoros's threat is a subtle bit of misdi-
rection. The bandit Hattin is not in the
intact tower but is lying prone on the
ruins of the second floor of the partially
collapsed tower (area 2), 20' above the
ground. Hattin cannot be seen unless
the PCs are able to see in the dark at
that distance and say that they are
looking at the second floor of the correct
tower. There is a 25% chance to spot
Hattin ifthey do this. The fifth
Balian the thief, is crouched out of SIght
behind the well (area 3) listening for
signs of trouble.
Thoros: AC 2; F7; hp 42; MV 120'
(40'); HAT 1; Dmg by weapon type; Save
F7' ML 12' AL C; S 17, I 14, W 10, D 16,
C i5, Ch 13; XP 450; chain mail, shield,
long sword, dagger, 18 gpo
Thoros leads his band by force and
fear. A strong, tall, and greedy man, he
has always wanted to make his fortune
in one big strike. Success has eluded
him until now. Thoros hates to be
cheated and trickery drives him into a
rage. Most of the time he is a devious,
grinning but merciless mercenary.
AC 4; F4; hp 24; MV 120'
(40'); HAT 2; Dmg by weapon type; Save
F4' ML 11' AL C; S 16, 114, W 10, D 17,
C i4, Ch 10; XP 75; scale mail, short
sword, 16 daggers, 6 gpo
Ademar is a perpetually surly man
who is happy only when killing with his
prized daggers. He has no.fewer than 16
blades on his person (two m each boot,
two on each shoulder, and eight in a
bandolier across his chest). In melee, he
can use a dagger in his off hand ( - 4 to
hit on second attack) but prefers to
throw his blades from a distance ( +2 to
hit). Ademar is slow witted and rarely
helps devise any of the bandits' plans.
Hattin: AC 4; F4; hp 26; MV 120' (40');
HAT 1; Dmg by weapon type; Save F4; ML
10; AL N; S 13, I 13, W 10, D 18, C 13, Ch
8' XP 75' leather armor, light crossbow,
20 bolts, 'long sword, 9 gpo .
Hattin is a true mercenary, caring
little how his money is earned. How-
ever he does not go out of his way to
hurt people, unlike his chaotic-aligned
comrades. Hattin is nominally Thoros's
right-hand man, since he is fairly intel-
ligent. When not Hat-
tin is morose and taciturn. He ISvery
self centered, caring little who or
dies-including his fellow bandits.
Balian: AC 4; T5; hp 20; MV 120'
(40'); HAT 2; Dmgby weapon type; Save
T5; ML 8; AL C; S 12, I 12, W 10, D 18,
C 14, Ch 11; OL 35, FT 30, RT 30, CW
91, MS 40, HS 28, PP 40, HN 50; XP
275; leather armor, short sword, dagger,
6 gp; fights with both sword and dagger
( - 4 to hit on second attack).
Balian is a valued member of the
group because of his thieving skills. He
has no guilt in letting the others do the
bulk of the fighting; it isn't his job. His
RANSOM
1 square = 10'
4
,'.-
Ia#.
.'
.'Co
,
1
-.
.. ,
..__..
.. --
I
,-.
__
"
" ..

Ruins
..

tasksare spying and infiltration. Balian

isa quiet and diplomatic man, a result
ofliving among stronger and more
aggressive fighters.
Thoros has no plans to doublecross the
PCs, so long as they do not cheat him.
When the PC with the chest reaches the
center of the courtyard, Thoros releases
Baldwinand orders Balian to open the
chest. As Balian fumbles with the magi-
callock, Thoros grows angrier by the
minute. Sooner or later, the PC must
tell Thoros that only Baldwin can open
the chest. Thoros grins at that, appreci-
ating Reynald's caution. When Baldwin
grasps the lock, it automatically opens
at his touch and stays open.
Impatiently, Thoros pushes Baldwin
aside and grasps the lid. With pure
greed in his eyes, he pulls the lid open.
Suddenly, the greed is replaced by
puzzlement. Thoros stands abruptly,
anger in every plane of his face. Livid
with rage, Thoros kicks the chest over,
spillingthousands of coins on the
ground-sccins made of worthless lead
and iron! The treasure is fake! Reynald
seemsto have betrayed you and aban-
donedhis son. Thoros shouts at you,
"Where is the real money? What did
youdo with it? Thieves!!"
This was Reynald's plan from the
beginning. While Antar thought he had
failed to convince Reynald to abandon
Baldwin, he actually turned the
knight's mind to another plan. Reynald
loadedthe chest with phony coins, hop-
ing to provoke a fight in which the
bandits would be killed.
Regardless of what the PCs intend to
do, Thoros draws his sword and attacks
the nearest adventurer. Kerak rushes to
aid Thoros. Hattin fires his crossbow at
spell-casters, if he is able to identify
them. The PCs can make an Intelli-
gencecheck to see if they can determine
where the bolts are coming from. Balian
sneaks around the well to backstab a
PC, then retreats. Ademar attempts to
throw daggers from a distance until he
runs out of blades. None of the bandits
are stupid when it comes to combat.
Baldwin is in no immediate danger,
since the bandits are intent on killing
the PCs. However, the boy is frightened
bythe combat and flees out the gate to
hide by the wall (area 4). His fate de-
pends on who wins the fight.
The bandits are brave men. They fight
savagely until Thoros is slain. If this
happens, the rest fight only 2-5 rounds
further. Then they flee out the nearest
hole in the wall. Kerak, Balian, and
Ademar run swiftly away in random
directions. Hattin quietly exits the rear
of the tower, hoping to get his horse and
ride away. If cornered, he will fight
fiercely to the end. Thoros fights to the
death; rage and the need to stand tall in
front of his followers prevent him from
showing any weakness.
If any of the fleeing bandits pass
Baldwin's hiding place, they try to re-
capture him; he still has value in the
slave markets. The PCs may have to
chase down a bandit and rescue
Baldwin all over again.
Concluding the Adventure
If the PCs bring Baldwin back alive,
they will likely have a grudge against
Reynald. He is prepared for this. Al-
though mentally unstable, Reynald is
not stupid. He realizes the consequences
of placing the phony ransom in the
chest: The lords of Karameikos would
strip him of his title for such a wicked
act. Thus, he has prepared phony "evi-
dence" to implicate Antar for placing
the fake ransom-something Antar
definitely did not plan.
When he spots the returning PCs,
Reynald has Antar chained, gagged,
and thrown into the dungeon. Reynald
explains that he discovered the plot too
late to intercept the PCs, but that Antar
will soon be executed for his crime. The
PCs might still have their suspicions
but will have to solve the mystery on
their own.
If Baldwin is returned safely, the PCs
will have made a friend for life. He is still
a child, however, and won't believe that
his father is guilty unless the PCs prove
the truth to him. Because he never liked
Antar, Baldwin will be all too ready to
believe the advisor is guilty.
Reynald will not try to rid himself of
Baldwin again. He may, however, make
one of his younger sons his official heir.
This could lead to conflict when
Baldwin comes of age. As far as the PCs
are concerned, Baldwin is safe for the
time being. Q
DUNGEON 39
THE HAND OF
AL-DJAMAL
BY STEPHEN J. SMITH
The exhibition of Ylari
relics is temporarily
closed.
Artwork by SCcll RQMlmo
26 Issue No. 44
Stephen Smith has had odcenturee
publ ished many times in DUNGEON'
Advent ures. 80 he suggested we include
a briefprofik of 1M artist who illus-
trated this adoenture.
Scott Rosema started reading and
drawing comics at age 7. When he was
12, he read the Iliad and the Odyssey,
and these heroic myths captured his
imagination. After art college, he worked
13 years as a professional illUlJtrator.
Scott's current work includes comic and
gaming proj ects.
"The Hand of Al-Djamal' is a
Challenger-level DUNGEONS &
DRAGONS. game module designed for
a party of 4-6player characters. levels
9-12 (about 50 total level s). The PC
party should be well balanced. includ.
ing one or two magic-users or elves and
at least ODe cleri c. Because of this mod-
ule 's setting, dwarves and halflings may
choose to avoid this quest .
This adventure is set in t he Principal .
ities of Glantri in the D&W game's
Known World (see the Rules Cyclopedia,
pages 269-273. for an outline and maps
of this nat ion, or accessory GAZ3 for
full details).
This realm is a magocracy ruled. by a
council of wizar d-princes. PC dwarves
and halfl ings might hesitate to adven-
ture in thi s land. as it is rumored that
the wizards of Glantri sometimes ab-
duct such demihuman visitors for use in
magical experiments (the mages believe
that the short folk are naturally resi st -
ant to magic). Also. dwerven immi-
grants to Glantri were blamed for a
severe out break of t he plague about 200
years ago, and the short bearded folk
have not been welcome in the country
since.
Clerics, too, might be hesitant to ad-
venture in this setting. Glantri is infa
mous for its intol erance of foreign
religions, and clerics found within its
borders were once subjected to immedi -
ate executi on. Recent events have made
Glantri more hospitable to traveling
priests. however. In the midst of the
recently concluded war between Glantri
(with its ally Thyatis) and Alphatia (8
conflict detailed in the Wrath of the
Immortals boxed set ), a killer plague
swept through t he Principalit ies, forc-
ing t he r uli ng council to rescind the "no
clerics" ban and import some priests
from nearby Darokin to battle the dead-
ly epidemic. The rampaging plague has
since been halted. but the Glantrian
nobi lity ha s not yet reinstated its ban
on clerics, so PC priests may participate
in this advent ure without fear of
prompt executi on.
The DM should also be aware t hat
PCs who are nat ives of t he Emirates
of Yl aruam (RC/269, GAZ 2) pres ent a
potent ial problem for smoot hly run-
ning t hi s scenar io. While a par ty con-
taining a lone Ylari PC can under t ake
t his advent ure wi t h minimal damage
to the story li ne, part i es containi ng
mul ti ple Vlar i will not even be hired
for t he mission. Th e DM should con-
sult the "For t he Dungeon Mast er"
secti on of t he module for det ails of
t his " Vlari pr obl em" and possible
solutio ns to it .
This advent ure takes pla ce in t he
fa ll or winter of t he year AC 1010 and
is li nked t o an event det ailed in t he
Poor Wizard's Almanac: t he discover y
of t he tomb of th e ancient Nithi an
queen Nenn aya-Sher at (see the en-
t r ies on pages 165, 202, and 211-212).
OMs wh o don' t own t his accessory
needn't wor r y; the relevant details of
the Nennaya-Sherat story ar e pr ovid-
ed in t his module.
Glaundro Valkner
6th-level Magic-User
Glaundro Valkner: AC 4 (2 VB. mis-
sile att acks); M6; hp 24: THACO17 (15
with dagger +2); MV 120' (40'): fiAT I:
Dmg by spell or weapon type ; Save M6;
ML7; ALN; XP 725; S 10, I 17, W 15, D
13, C 13, Ch 12; dagger +2, wand of
teleporting (13 chargee), amulet of
shielding, bag ofholding, crystal ball
with clair audie nce.
Spells: analyze, detect magic; ESp,
invisibility; dispel magic, lightning bolt.
The wand ofteleporti ng and the amulet
ofshielding are new magical items
det ailed at the end of t his sidebar.
Valkner keeps his cryst al ball and
magi cal bag at his home in th e most
effluent section of Glann-i City's
Middle-Class Quarter.
Glaundr o Valkner, age 43, st ands 6'3
H
t all , weighs 175 lbe., and has black hair
and a moustache, both of which are
length y and streaked with gray. He
wears expensive, stylish clot hi ng (not
the robes typ ical of some magic-users)
complet e with shiny bla ck boots and a
wide-brimmed hat decorated wit h large,
colorful feathers. The curator's facia l
Adventure Background
The PCs should be gat hered in Glantri
City at t he start of play. They may be in
town to visit friends or family, or per-
haps they have been lured t o th e area
by rumors of rampaging monsters or
legendary t reasures (or whatever other
effective lead-In the OM can concoct).
Wherever the PCs are staying in the
city, they are approached early one
morni ng by a messenger sent by Gleun-
dro Valkner, curator and owner of
Valkner's Museum of Wor ldly Wonders.
This messenger, a man named J onas
Kettler, asks t he heroes to accompany
him to the museum for an ur gent meet-
ing with Mr. Valkner. Jonas refuses to
disclose t he subject of thi s meeting, hut
PCs who use an ESP spell or medalli on
ofESP to probe Kettl er 's mind may
learn th at Valkner wants to hi re the
PCs t o find out who murdered his muse-
um watchmen last night.
Jonas Kettler: AC 9; HD 1-1; hp 6;
THACO20; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1 dagger:
Dmg by weapon type (dagger 14 hpj;
Save NM; ML 6; AL L; RC/197.
Glantri City is a bit unusual in that
most of its thoroughfares are filled wit h
water. There are few streets; instead,
expression is usually pleasant, though
not exactly what one might term warm
or friendly.
Because he is a wealthy spell-caster
who has dealings with GIantri's highest
nobility, Glaundro has acquired an aristo-
cratic air (some would deem him snob-
bish). Nonetheless, the museum curator
treats most acquaintances with fairness
and respect (if not quite equality).
Valkner routinely hires adventurers
to accompany him on his various expe-
ditions in search of new artifacts for his
museum, so he knew who to hire when
confronted with his mummy problem.
He has become accustomed to hiring
others to do tasks he doesn't particular-
ly car e to do himself-dangerous ones
especially. Glaundro considers himself
pragmatic in this regard, but others
might label him cowardly.
Lastly, Valkner has a deep passion for
history and r elated sciences (such as
anthropology, archeology, etc.) and lives
only to collect rare and wondr ous items
for his museum. This fanatical devotion
to hi s museum sometimes clouds the
THE HAND OFALDJAMAL
the city boasts a network of beautiful
cana ls that link it s various neighbor-
hoods. Jonas has a large, comfortable
gondola waiting outside for the PCs and
can t ransport t hem to Valkner' s muse-
um whenever t hey' re ready. If the DM
is running t his adventure in the au-
t umn, J onas simply poles the PCs to
t heir desti nati on. If it 's winter, t he city
canals are frozen, so the gondola has
ski -like rails attached to its bottom and
is hitched to a team of sled dogs.
If the adventurers accept t he mysteri-
ous summons, Jonas pilots them into
the city 's Entert ainers' Quarter (see t he
accompanying map) and stops in front of
th e museum. Inside the st ately stone
building, the PCs ar e greeted by Glaun-
dro Valkner (see sidebar ). The curator
leads the PCs to a private room, closes
the door behind them, and prepar es to
briefthe heroe s on the mission. The OM
should be aware that Valkner 's tal e
contains a number of lies and half-
t ruths (see "For the Dungeon Master"
for t he real story).
Valkner begins by thanking th e PCs
for answering his summons. He claims
t o need adventur ers to perform an im-
portant task, and he flatters t he PCs by
mentioning that he has heard stories of
man's moral conduct, as witnessed by
Glaundro's theft of the Ylari artifacts
from the tomb of Nennaya-Sherat.
Amulet of Shielding
This amulet gives its wearer the same
protection afforded by the first-level
magic-user/elf spell shield. This protec -
tion is cont inuous and lasts as long as
the amulet is worn. It gives its wearer
an armor-class rating of 4 against melee
attacks and AC 2 against missile at-
tacks. The wearer of this magical item
is also entitled to a Saving Throw VB.
Spells to prevent damage from magic
missile attacks (as per the shield spell
description, RC/45). The amulet cannot
be used in conjunction with physical
armor or shields.
Wand of Teleporting
This wand creates the same effect as the
seventh-level magic-user/elf spell teleport
any object. The wand's teleporti ng effects
are subject to the same limitations as the
aforementioned spell (see RC/56).
THE HAND OF ALDJAMAL
Gla nt r i City
Entertainers' Quarter
N

22. Temple nr Had

27. watergute s
35. MetrolHllitnn Theatre
36. Ca me Lizards. Inc.
37. Tht' Waurt owt>r Inn
38. t' irewo rk", Arcane Hou se
39. The GOJdf' R Imp
40. Hostt' lry ofthe Unicor n
41. Shur9-v Orlovski' s Tenement
42 . Lou Gltrou'" Fries
43. Unit ed Anh,ts' Guild
44. Magt's' ilOI, t t'l r y
69. Gu ard POMt
o '50
Faet
500
v elknee's Muse um of
Worldy Wonde r s
..
See GAZ3 The Prineipalities ot Gtantri, pages 41-47, fo r de sc riptions of rhe se a reas.
t he PCs' prowess . He will not detail the
"important task; ' however, unless all
the PCs vow to keep secret what he is
about to tell them. Almost as a n aside,
he warns t he heroes that he has t he
resources at hi s di sposal to retali ate
forcefully if t he Pes breac h his confi-
dence. Indeed. several Glant rian
wizard-nobles finance Glaundro's di s-
pl ays and expediti ons, and would lend
their assistance to the curator should
t he PCs attempt to bl ackmail Va lkner.
One such benefactor is the pa ranoid,
murderous ex-Pr-ince Innocenti di Mal a-
pietra (see GAZ 3, page 26), whose pri n-
cipali ty was des t royed in a catastrophic
meteor strike during the Glantril
Alphatia war.
If the PCs take the oath, Glaundro
details t hei r mission:
" When I arrived at the museum t his
morni ng, I di scovered t he two night
watchmen dea d. St rangl ed. I ha ve
hesit ated to in form t he local cons tab-
ul ary of the murders because ...
well , it woul d never do to ha ve t he
public find out that my museum's
exhibits are r unning around kill ing
peopl e."
28 Issue No. 44
Seeing t he looks of confusion
brought on by his strange statement,
the curator qui ckly explains himself.
" Our newest exhibit here at
Va lkner's Museum of Worldly won-
ders is a collec tion of a mazing arti-
facts recovered from the tomb of an
ancient noble from the desert lands
of Yl arua m t o t he east. My expedi-
t ion brought back several gold urns,
jeweled scepters, and ot her rather
valuable trinkets, but the real gems
we recovered were a pa ir of or nately
decorated sarcophagi . Within these
ext ravagant coffins we discovered
t he mummified remains of two Yl ari
warri ors, and these fellows became
t he ce nte rpiece of my exhi bit.
" I beli eve , ladies and gentlemen,
t ha t t hese mummies are t he perpe-
trators of last nigh t's homicides. I
base t hi s conjecture on a discovery I
made this morning."
Holding up a thin strip of brownish-
white cloth, the curator announces, "I
found this snagged on the corner of B
table near t he Ylari exhibit ." As if
reading your mi nds , the man adds,
" Yes , it' s a piece of mummy wrapp ing: '
Curator Valkner offers the PCs 500 gp
each to dispose of the killer mummies.
If t he PC party i ncl udes one or more
cleri cs ca pable of casting raise dead
spells , Va lk ner offers a bonus of 2, 000
gp to bring his gu ards back from deat h.
Although the curator would like the
PCs to si mply accept his offer and de-
stroy the mummies-no questions
asked-the PCs mi ght wish to as k a few
questions fir st. A few like ly questions
and Valkner's answe r s are provided
below.
Where in Ylar uam did you find the
noble's tomb? Did you also recover the
noble's body and sarcophagus ?" My men
excavated a site in t he foothills nort h-
west of t be town of Deraan in north
cent ral Yl aruam, in the Emirate of
Al asiya I believe. The local emir
clai med the noble's body and
sarcophagus-and most of the golden
valuables we uncovered , for t hat
matter-but allowed us to bring t he
mummified warrior s, their sarcophagi ,
and a few less valuabl e arti facts ba ck to
my museum."
Why would you bring "live" mummies
into the city? " Before bringi ng t he mum-
mi es into t he city, I tested t hem wi t h a
barrage of detection spells: detect magic,
detect evil, and the like. Nothing regis-
tered. I'm sure these were typical
corpses:'
If the mummies were "dead," then how
could they kill the guards? "That's an-
other story:' The DM should tell the
players the story of the Ylari thief AI-
Djamal as presented in the following
section, omitting details such as the
actual origins of Valkner's artifacts. The
curator characterizes Al-Djamal as an
unreasonable, slightly crazed foreigner.
Valkner's theory regarding the mum-
mies can easily be verified or disproved
by using a speak with the dead spell on
either of the deceased guards or by
raising the men from the dead. In either
case, the guards claim to have heard a
disturbance in the vicinity of the Ylari
exhibit. Upon investigating, they found
the two sarcophagi standing open and
empty; immediately thereafter, the men
were attacked and eventually throttled
by the mummies.
For the Dungeon Master'
Glaundro is correct in his suspicion that
the Ylari mummies killed his guards.
Unfortunately for both the curator and
his hired heroes, however, the mummies
are merely the pawns of a greater un-
dead malevolence.
The source of Valkner's mummy prob-
lem can be traced to an expedition the
curator made to Ylaruam in the latter
months of the year AC 1009. The objec-
tive of this expedition was to excavate a
suspected tomb site in the foothills
northeast of the town ofCinsa-Men-Noo
in the Emirate of Nithia (not Deraan in
the Emirate of Alasiya, as Glaundro
told the PCs). After obtaining all the
necessary permits, Valkner's team of
archeological explorers, in conjunction
with a group of native Ylari cleric-
scholars, began excavating the site. The
two parties had made a prior agree-
ment: the Ylari scholars would keep all
major finds of historical or monetary
value while the curator would get a
selection of lesser artifacts for display in
his museum.
When the excavators broke into the
burial chamber of the Nithian queen
Nennaya-Sherat on the 3rd of Nuw-
mont, AC 1010, the terms of the origi-
nal agreement were instantly changed.
Agents from the Vouchery of the Prov-
ince (a department of the bureaucratic
Ylari government charged with oversee-
ing all activities in the wilderness re-
gions of Ylaruam, especially tomb
excavations) swiftly stepped in and
declared the find of such historical im-
portance that all of the tomb's artifacts
belonged exclusively to the local emir.
Valkner was rudely told to go back to
Glantri empty handed.
Although he found this treatment to
be grossly unfair, the curator ordered
his assistants to return to Glantri.
Valkner himself secretly remained at
the excavation site, using his spell-
casting ability to explore the queen's
tomb surreptitiously at night after the
Ylari had retired.
Following a week of this nightly re-
connaissance, Glaundro pilfered several
minor artifacts and placed them in a
bag ofholding he carried. Next he used
his most prized possession, a wand of
teleporting, to transport the mummy-
laden sarcophagi of two "unimportant"
Ylari warriors back to his museum.
With his work accomplished, he teleport-
edhome.
The curator made it a point not to
take anything that might have been of
great value to the Ylari people (like the
queen's jewels or scepter, for example)
and honestly believes that he took only
as many artifacts as he deserved under
the terms of the original deal. Valkner
does not consider his means of acquiring
the Ylari artifacts as theft, though he
realizes that the Ylari government is
most unlikely to agree with him on this
point. Still, once he got back to his be-
loved museum in Glantri City-over 400
miles northwest of Ylaruam-Glaundro
felt sufficiently safe from the Ylari
authorities.
Thus, six days ago when a Ylari na-
tive named AI-Djamal entered the mu-
seum and informed Valkner that he
could not be allowed to keep his Ylari
exhibit on display, the curator's heart
nearly stopped beating. He had been
discovered!
As AI-Djamal continued his rantings,
however, Valkner realized that the man
was talking in generalities about the
immorality of raiding graves for profit
and didn't know the origins of the cura-
tor's collection of relics. Much relieved,
Glaundro tried to point out the histori-
cal and anthropological value of the
excavated relics to mankind, but when
AI-Djamal threatened him with physi-
cal violence if he did not remove the
Ylari exhibit from public display,
Valkner had the desert man thrown out
THE HANDOF AL-DJAMAL
of the museum.
That night, Al-Djamal broke into the
museum and was caught by Valkner's
night watchmen in the act of stuffing
several of the smaller Ylari artifacts
into a sack. Under Glantrian law, theft
is punishable by the removal of one
finger per 100 gp of merchandise stolen,
and getting caught red-handed with a
bag full of priceless artifacts left Mr. AI-
Djamal in a rather unfavorable posi-
tion. The Ylari native certainly didn't
help his cause at the trial when he
began to shout out the virtues of AI-
Kalim (the patron Immortal of Yla-
ruam) while heaping derogatory
remarks upon Rad (Glantri's most re-
vered Immortal).
Three days after Al-Djamal's arrest,
the local magistrate's sentence was
handed down. In what he called a "ges-
ture of goodwill to our foreign guest:'
the magistrate generously decreed that
only five of the man's fingers were to be
severed for his misdeeds. Then with a
smile, he ordered the fingers to be re-
moved at the wrist.
AI-Djamal's sentence was carried out
the following morning. As he slowly
bled to death, the man hurled a final
curse in his own tongue at those present
at the grisly spectacle. The dying man's
curse of revenge against his killers was
heard by Thanatos, one of the most
powerful Immortals in the Sphere of
Entropy. Thanatos returned AI-Djamal's
raging spirit from death to inhabit the
severed hand of his old mortal body.
As a hand druj (see RC/207), the dark
side of Al-Djamal's spirit pursues revenge
against his murderers and the despoilers of
the Ylari noble's tomb while serving
Thanatos's ultimate purpose: the spreading
of death and destruction. The entropic
Immortal hasalsogranted Al-Djamal's
spirit special power to animate the two
mummies from Valkner's Ylari exhibit to
assist in its vengeance (see the "Hand
Druj" sidebar and "The Final Confronta-
tion" for additional details of this power).
The hand druj is a very powerful and
complex monster. The DM should read the
sidebar detailing this spirit and its abili-
ties before trying to run this adventure.
Problems: Ylari PCs and Valkner's
Morals
Because of the dubious manner in
which the curator obtained his Ylari
artifacts and the wild fiasco following
the visit of the unfortunate Mr. AI-
DUNGEON 29
THE HAND OF Al-DJAMAl
Djamal , Valkner is leery of hi ri ng PCs
who are obviously of Ylar i descent. If
the PC party includes a lone Ylari.
Valkner will still hire the group but
keeps tabs on t he Ylari PC using ESP
spells and a cryst al ball wit h cla i ra u
di en ct' that he keeps at his home. Par-
t ies incl udi ng multiple Ylari PCs are
too much of a t hre at to vetkner, and
the cur at or s imply won't hire t hem for
this mi ss ion .
With a little work , however, an enter-
prising DM could turn Va lk ner 's r,;fusa l
to hire t he PCs into an adventure Itself.
Such a scenario should run more or less
along the following guidelines, wit h
Valkne r as t he mai n a ntagonist:
1. The PCs receive and answer
Valkner's summons . Upon reachi ng the
muse um, the party is met by the cura-
to r who takes one look at them and,
spotti ng t he Ylari PCs, says "Oh, I'm
sorry. I've already hired someone else
for the job:' Valkner can even throw
dirty looks at the Ylari heroes if the OM.
80 desires.
2. If the heroes decide to investigate
the reason for Valkner's strange (or
downright rude) behavior, they
learn the particulars of the Al -Djamal
incide nt fr om any decent source of goe-
sip (a n innke-eper, taver n patron, or
ca na l-side entertainment troupe memo
ber). If t he PCs pay the entrance fe-e and
begin to examine the Ylari exhibit in
any detail, Valkner uses his ESP spe lls
and crystal ball with clairaudience to
spy an the party and learn the extent of
t heir inquisitiveness (or knowledge)
about t he or igin of hi s Yl ari artifact s.
3. If the Pes seem close to discoverin g
t hat his artifacts are i n fact st olen (or if
the Pes simply don't seem to be going
away), t he curator might hire assassins
from the Glantri City Thugs' Guild
(GAZ 3, page 37 ) to eliminate the
ing adventurers. The OM. should deci de
the number and hit dice of the thugs,
making t he encounter challenging but
not nece ssarily lethal for the Pes.
4. If the Pes survi ve the thug assaul t,
some kind of showdown with Valkner
should follow. When the PCs confront
Valkner, the curator tells them the
.....hole truth about how he acquir ed the
tomb artifacts. Glaundro wi ll afTer each
PC 1,000 gp to remain si lent . If the PCs
refuse to be bribed, t he curator is likely
to use hi s magic wand to teleport to the
Thugs' Guild and ask for a better set of
aseasaina to deal with t he persistent
pest s that hound him.
30Issue No. 44
Hand Druj
Armor Class: -4
Hit Dice: 14 ..
Hi t Points : 60
Move: 90' (30' )
THACO:8
Attacks: up to .I, see below
Damage: See below
Save As: F14
Mor al e: 11
Intell igence: 14
Ali gnment : Chaotic
XP Value: 5,500
Reference: RCf207
Moneter Type: Undead, Ench anted
(Very Rare).
The hand druj a ppears to be a human
hand severed a t t he wrist. It shrivels
a nd turns black as it slowly continues to
decay. The hand's primary means of
movement is magical flight, but it can
also crawl about on its fingertips in a
grotesque spi derlike manner at the rate
of 30' per t urn 00' per round).
A druj is a type of spirit, an undead
entity that inhabits the body (or body
part ) of another. Like all spiri ts, a druj
becomes invisible and nearly powerless
at dawn but regains its strength once
t he sun has set. This type of undead is
ext remely po.....erful and has a number
of special de fenses and attack forms . It
ca nnot behurt by wea pons of less t han
+2 encha nt me nt and is immune to all
first - to t hird-level spells. A druj ca n
automat ica lly se nse invisible creatures
(t reat as a permanent detect invisible
spell). .
A druj is highl y poisonous, and Its
very essence contaminates all cons um.
able items (including normal a nd iron
rations normal a nd holy water, a nd
even potions) brought wit hin
30' of t he spirit. Spoiled goods are ren o
dered useless but not poisonous. Simi-
larl v aU l iving plants and small insects
..... ithin 30' of a spirit are immediately
paralyzed by the being's unholy aura
and will perish if the spirit remains
stationary for more than an hour. As a
result, a is unaffected by plant
control and i nsect plague spe lls.
As one can plainly see, a druj is formi -
dable merely moving from place to
place. When it goes on the offensive, the
spirit becomes a truly
neut. A hand dr uj can attack Its victims
eit her physically or with a variety of
spell-like powe rs (or in both ways,
..... hen it splits its essence; see below).
A hand druj attacks by grabbing hold
of its intended victim (usually around
the throatl and squeezing the life out of
its prey. The ini ti al grab inflicts 1-4 hp
damage. In subsequent rounds. damage
is equal to the victim's armor class
(ignor ing Dexterity and shield bonusesl
plus 1-4 additional points. In the case of
a nega tive armor-class rating, the etran-
glehol d causes only 1-4 hp per
roun d, In t rut h, few i ndividuals die
from t he druj's strangling hold, they
per is h from the spi rit's deadly poisonous
touch. For each r ound spent in a hand
dr uj 'a death gri p, t he victim must make
a success ful Saving Throw vs. Poison or
die i nstantly. The OM may allow PCs to
make a Strength check eac h round to
break free from the druj's grasp (in
place of an Attack Roll or ot her actionI.
Instead ofa physical attack, a druj
can create any of the following clerical
spell effects at ..... ilI once per round (as if
a 16thlevel cleric>: darkness, si lence IS'
radius, cause disease, animate dead, and
finger ofdeath (the reversed form of
raise dead). This particular druj's ani
mate dead power is unique in that it can
be used only on mummified corpses; the
e nt ropic Immortal Thanatos .....anted the
spirit to have some special minions to
assist in it s destructive rampage, and
Valkner's mummies seemed to be the
perfect candidates for the job. Besides,
mu mmies are favored minions of Tha n-
atos, as the evil Immortal himself often
takes t he form of a wi nged mummy
wearing black robes and carryi ng a
wicked scythe, The druj ca n a ni ma te up
to two lifele ss mu mmies per round us -
ing this ability (see " The Final Confron-
tation" for more details regarding this
powerl. . . .
Once per nigh t the dr uj can split Itself
into four identical essences. Typically,
thre-e of t he hand spir its attack with
their deadly poisonous touch while the
fourth druj essence attacks from a di s-
tance with spells. Ifthe spell-cast ing
essence is slai n, one of the surviving
essences immediately inherits this
magical po.....er. Each of the four es-
sences has the full hit-point total of the
original druj. Because a druj can split
itself only once per night, a divided druj
usually refrains from re-uniting its
essences until the following dawn.
The hand druj may be Turned normal -
ly by a cleric if it has not yet split
essence. lf t he spi rit has already divided
itself, a successful Turning a t te mpt
reunucs the druj essences for lrl4 + 1
rounds; subsequent Turning attempts
and results are handled normally.
The dividing/reuniting aspect of a druj
creates some rules problems (especially
in regard to the epi rit.e hit-point total ).
Some practical rules are provi ded below
to address. these problems. Each rule is
followed by descriptive examples.
1. When a druJ spl its its essence, each
essence has the slime game st a t ist ics as
the origi nal druj, with the same hit -
point total as the original druj had at
the moment of splitt ing.
Example: The hand druj in th is edven-
tun:' bas 60 hp. When it splits, it creates
four identical essences with 60 hp each. If
this druj were hit for 10 hp damage prior
to spli tting, each of its essenoea would
have only 50 hp . The druj can use heal ing
magic 1.0 raise an essence's hp total to the
original 60 points, ho.....ever, N'(' "The
Final Confrontation" for more details on
the spirit's ability to heal itse lf.
2. If a divided druj 's essences are
forced to reunite through clerical Turn-
ing, add the hit-poi nt total s of all the
essences and divide by the number of
essences the PCs have been battling
(initially four, but possibly fewer if the
druj is forced to reunit e more t han once;
see the note at Rule 3). Round any frac-
tion to the nearest whole number. The
result is t he new hit-point total or t he
reunited druj ,
Emmnle: The 60.hp druj has spl it into
four essences with 60 hp each. One
essence is hit and reduced to 50 hp, the
second is down to 30 hp, the third has
20 hp, and the fourth is slain. The part)'
cler ic successfully Tu rns t he spir-it,
forcing i t to reunite its essences. Adding
t he four essences ' hit-point totals we get
100 (SO+30 +20 +0). Dividing this tolal
by four tt he number of essences t he PCs
were fighti ng pr ior to the druj's recom-
bining), we get 25. The reunited druj
now has 25 hp.
3. When the duration of the forced
reunion of a druj's essences expi res, t he
spir it wi ll agai n divide itself, Each
survi ving essence has the same number
of hp as the pre-spli t druj (as per Rule
1), Any essence previously reduced to 0
hp does not reappear t hat night,
Example: The druj in t he example
following Rul e 2 must r eunite for
Id4 + 1 rounds and has 25 hp. Let's
8SllU8\e that the PCs fai l to injure the
spirit further while its essences are
reunited. When the duration of the
forced rec ombining ends. the druj again
splits itsel f rin to t hree 25 hp essences;
the essence that t he PCs reduced to zero
hit points is temporarily eliminated).
4. Healing magic cast on one of a
druj 's essences affects that essence only.
Hea l ing magic cast on an "uns plit" or
forcibly reunited druj affects all rema in-
ing essences. Essences reduced to zero
hit points ca nnot be healed.
Example: Our hypothetical druj now
consists of three 25.hp essences. The
spir it cast!'! 25 hp of healing magic on
one of its essences. Now its three parts
now have 50 , 25, and 25 hp. Had the
spir-it cast the same cu rative spell on
it self before splitti ng, t he druj would
have 50 hp, and each of its post-split
essences would also have 50 hp. See
" The Final Confrontation" for det ail s
on t he spiri t 's abilit y to heal itself.
5. In order to kill a dr uj , t he si ngular,
united spiri t or all four of its essences
must be slai n in one ni ght. A druj t hat
survives until dawn regains all elimi-
nated essences when it regains its
powers t he following eveni ng.
Example: Our hypothetical druj cur-
rently has three essences (50, 25, and 25
hp J. The heroes eliminate both 25-hp
essences, hut the other one heal s itsel f
up to the original druj's 60-hp limi t. The
heroes have taken quite a bit of damage
themselves by this time, so they decide
to retreat and finish off the druj t he
next ni ght.
Just be fore da wn, the lone rema ining
essence " recombi nes" (even t hough
there aren't any other survivi ng ee-
sences, the DM should remember t hat
the 60hp survivor is merely an ClIllCnce
it self, a nd not the druj as a whole).
Using the formulas from Rule 2, we get
the following res ults; 60 +0 +0
(+0)=60; 6013=20 (three be ing the
number cr essences Lhe PCs wer e last
battling; one WM slain prior to the
dr uj 's forced recombin ingt,
The druj is down to 20 hp-badl y bat-
tered but not yet beaten. not by a long
shot ! A few healing spells lat er, t he
spi ri t is buck to 60 hp. When it goes
looki ng for the Pes a ga in the followi ng
night, t he revitalized druj will have a
full complement of four 60. hp essences,
and the ba ttl e can begin a new.
THEHAND OFALDJAMAL
The PCs need not be Ylari to take
exception to some of the curator 's
actions or opinions. Valkner 's morali ty
might prove objectionable to one or
more of the PCs and bring them into
conflict with the museum curat or. If his
hired hands di scover that t he artifa cts
a re st ole n and confront him, Valkner
will attempt to negotiate some equita-
ble resolut ion. lf hi s back is to the wall,
however, Valkner might very well tum
to the " t hug solut ion" detailed above.
Al t hou gh it is unlikely, t he PCs may
try to join forces with the hand druj to
bat tl e Val kner and recover the Yls ri
art ifacts. Al-Djarnal's spirit a pproves of
such a pl an, if t he heroe s ca n find a way
of conve rsing with the mouthle ea spirit.
A speok with monsters spell should
create a telepat hic link with t he druj .
Be ad vi sed . however, that a spirit is a
vengeful. unmerciful killing machine.
Once Va lkner a nd the ot her muse um
employees are sl ain, Thanatos's deadly
minion takes its appetite for destruction
into the streets of Glant r i Ci ty, cla iming
a horribl e toll ofi nnocent lives. PC
clerics could be pu nished by t heir Im-
mortal patrons for helpin g t he spi r it
(and Thana tos, indirectly), or mi ght
even be ordered to make rest itution by
hunti ng down t he hand druj and ending
it s deadly rampage.
Vol kner's Museum 01 Worldly
Wonders
Glaundro Vllikner's museum is a stately
four-story stone ed ifice located in the
Entertainer s' Quarter of Glantri City
(see the accompanying map). The muse-
um is not mapped out i n its entirety, as
most of the adve nture's action t a kes
place in only one or two areas of the
building. An outline of the museum's
sha pe and size is provided, however,
complete wit h detailed maps of the
Ylari ex.hibit (located on t he third fl oor)
a nd the Restoration Department (in t he
basement). Also, a few notes on the
museum and it s contents are prov ided
below for DMs who wi sh to el aborate on
this scenario or make Valk ner's Muse-
um of Worldly Wonders a permanent
fixture in their campa igns.
Admi ss ion to the mu seum costs 1 gp
for adulta, 3 sp for children und er 13,
and 5 ep for st udents of t he city's Great
School of Magic. Of course, G1aundro
will not charge the PCs admission when
they are in t he museum to investigate
DUNGEON 31
THE HANDOF AL-DJAMAL
Ylari Exhibit
(3rd Floor)
Valkner's Museum
of Worldly Wonders
the murders. If the heroes are successful
in defeating the hand druj and its mum-
my minions, the grateful curator will
allow the PCs free admission for all
future visits they make to his museum.
The building's first and second floors
are dedicated to local Glantrian ex-
hibits, including displays about magic.
The featured exhibit here is "The Ele-
mental Planes: Facts, Theories, and
Conjecture:'
The museum's third floor contains
several exhibits of artifacts from all
over the Known World. Current dis-
plays here include a collection of cer-
emonial costumes and weapons from the
tribes of the Atruaghin Clans, a breath-
taking model of the famous coral castle
of the Kingdom of Ierendi, and the Ylari
exhibit that plays a central role in this
adventure.
The top floor of the building is an art
gallery that contains a wide range of
paintings, sculptures, and other pieces
of artistic genius. The basement is di-
vided into a number of storage rooms
plus the Restoration Department, where
the museum's artifacts are cleaned,
touched up, and put back together.
Valkner has hired the services of a
32 Issue No. 44
1 square =10:
N
.-
magical security company to protect his
museum from theft. All items on dis-
play in the Museum of Worldly Wonders
have been treated with a special en-
chantment that allows the wizard-
president of the security firm to
pinpoint the location of any object re-
moved from the premises. This enchant-
ment may be negated, however, by a
successful dispel magic spell against
30th-level magic, so the system is far
from fail-safe.
None ofthe items in Valkner's muse-
um have been given a gp value. The
PCs are supposed to be helping the
curator solve his problem, not robbing
him blind. Even if the PCs do succeed in
stealing valuable pieces from the muse-
um, it should prove very difficult for
them to find a fence who deals in
museum-quality artifacts.
Day One: Valkner's Mummies
Valkner asks the PCs to examine the
mummies as soon as possible. He re-
quests that they refrain from using fire
or explosive spells (like fireball and
lightning bolt) against the mummies, as
he doesn't want other pieces of the Ylari
exhibit damaged (or his entire museum
burned to the groundl). The curator tags
along to watch his hired hands in
action, but does so from a safe distance.
The centerpieces of the Ylari display
are the two gold- and gem-inlaid sar-
cophagi propped against the northeast
wall, but a variety of valuable urns,
scepters, masks, and other trinkets are
featured in display cases and tables
nearby. Unless, by some amazing coinci-
dence, one of the PCs is an expert in
ancient Ylari artifacts, nothing short of
a lore spell should indicate that these
items are from the tomb of the Nithian
queen Nennaya-Sherat and not from
some other burial site, as Valkner has
suggested.
When the PCs open either sarcopha-
gus, they behold an ancient, ragged,
mummified figure with its arms crossed
before it. The mummy doesn't attack
until it is physically touched; then it
reaches out stiffly and tries to kill the
person who disturbed its rest.
Mummies (2): AC 3; HD 5 +1**; hp
40 each; THACO14; MV 60' (20'); HAT 1
touch; Dmg 1-12 plus disease; Save F5;
ML 12; INT 6; AL C; XP 575; RC/195.
Anyone viewing a mummy must
make a Saving Throw vs. Paralysis or
be paralyzed with fear until the mum-
my is out of sight (this effect is negated
by a remove fear spell). The touch of a
mummy infects its victim with a rotting
disease that prevents all magical heal-
ing and reduces normal healing to 10%
of the normal rate. This malady can be
treated with a cure disease spell.
These undead can be damaged only by
fire, holy water, spell attacks, and magi-
cal weapons, all of which do only half
damage. They are immune to all sleep,
charm, and hold spells, as well as poi-
sons and gases.
Clerical Turning attempts against the
mummies must initially be made
against the mummies' hand druj liege
(a spirit). If a cleric succeeds in this first
Turning attempt, he breaks the druj's
control over the mummies. The ban-
daged monsters hesitate for a moment
but then resume their attack. Further
attempts at Turning the monsters are
handled normally. See RC/217-218 for
full details on undead lieges and pawns.
Barring a horrendous streak of bad
luck, the PCs should have little difficulty
disposing of the mummies. Ifthe PCs
defeat the mummies in hack-and-slash
fashion (leaving behind the undead's
shattered corpses), Valkner praises their
efforts and tells them that he'll have
THEHAND OFAlDJAMAl
someone "clean up the mess." Unless the
PCs have reason to believe that a gr eater
threat st ill remains within t he museum
tperhape because of an unusual ly ineffec-
tive cler ical Turning attempt, for exam-
pie), the curator pays.out their reward
money and wishes the heroes good luck in
their fut ure endeavors.
If the adventurers ask for permission
t o inves t igate the museum fur t her,
Valkner grants t hem their wish hut
insists that t hey leave the premises at
closi ng time. The heroes will probabl y
find nothing of interest. The hand druj
is invisible and hiding in a mou se hole
in the Restor ati on Department in the
basement of t he museum. The following
morning, however, t he a dve nture wi ll
bei,ri n anew.
Day Two: Anot her Murder
At sunrise , the PCs are again summon.
ed to the museum by velkner 's se rvant
J onas . " Another murder," is all the man
will tell the heroes as he take s them to
t he muse um.
The cura tor, wearing a look of grim
shock a nd disbelief, greets the PCs at
the door. He leads t he group to a small
room in t he mu seum's basement. The
door to this chamber reads "Restoration
Department." In the middle of t he floor
l ies a moti onl ess body.
"Th at 's Ramos Tendlebur, t he he ad of
this dep artment; ' Valkner says. " He's
been st r angled, just like the t wo guards
t he ot her night. Ramos stayed late las t
ni ght , fixin g up some important arti-
facts so they coul d be put on di splay."
If the PCs completel y annihilated t he
two mummies during t heir bat tle with
t he undead on t he prev ious day (via
cleri cal Turning Destruct ion or t hrough
a di sint egrate spell . for example).
Valkner 's reference to important ert i-
fact s is inconsequential to thi s adven-
ture. If, howeve r, the party defe ated the
cr eat ures with physical attacks , t he
importa nt artifacts that the unfortunate
Mr. 'Iendlebur was restoring for exhibi.
t ion were the two mu mmies .
In such a case, Valkner tries to j ustify
the restorati on of t he mummi es as "im-
portant for the scienti fic and archeologi -
cal communit ies of the world ." He al ec
cl aims to have test ed the mummies
wi t h a barrage of detecti on spells before
or dering t hat t he battered corpses be
touched up and put back on display, If
the PCs conduct their own magi cal
testi ng of the corpses, all resul ts are
negative. Speak with the dead spells
also fail , as t he corpses ha ve bee n dead
for cen turies and have no memories of
t heir r ecent acti vities as undead crea-
tures. The hand druj itself, not ita mum-
my minions, kill ed Thndlebur.
If Valkner is aware t hat the PC party
includes 8 cleric , he offers the party a n
additi onal 1,000 gp if their cleric will
r aise his dear fr iend and associate from
t he dead.
Us ing a raise dead or speak wit h the
dead spell to get 'Iendlebur's version of
the incident provides vagu e detail s of
hi s death. The man claims to hav e been
working diligently on hi s proj ect when
he sensed 8 presence behind him. He
t urned around, only to he seized by the
throat in a viselike grip. He die d in -
sta ntl y a nd neve r saw his killer.
The PCs might r ightl y wonder how
the man could t urn to face his kill er a nd
then be strangl ed to deat h wi t hout even
catching a glimpse of the murderer. In
t r ut h, Tendlebur di ed from t he druj 's
poisonous touch; his thros t was cru shed
by t he hand of AI-Dja mal after the man
was al re ady dead.
Not knowing wha t else to do, a troubled
DUNGEON 33
THE HANDOF AL-DJAMAL
Curator Valkner asks the PCs to stay in
his museum overnight. Of course, he
offers to triple their reward money. Ifthe
mummies' corpses are still lying around
and the PCs demand that Valkner destroy
them once and for all, the curator reluc-
tantly agrees to have the ancient cadav-
ers incinerated immediately.
The Final Confrontation
The hand druj makes its move against
the PCs shortly after midnight. The
druj's attack strategy depends on how
completely the heroes dealt with its
mummy minions the previous day. An
assortment of possible tactics for the
spirit is provided below.
Mummy Minions
Ifthe bodies of the two mummies are still
in the building, the hand druj uses its
special animate dead power to revive
them. The spirit then orders the mum-
mies to seek and destroy the PCs, follow-
ing its minions at a distance as they move
to attack the heroes. If possible, the druj
remains hidden from sight while the
mummies battle the adventurers, re-
animating the undead creatures each
time one is vanquished (see belowfor full
details). If discovered, the druj splits its
essence (see sidebar) and attacks, using
the other tactics outlined here.
Because these mummies have taken a
previous battering at the hands of the
PCs, they have only half their original
hit-point totals (20 hp each). As before,
the mummies must initially be Turned
as spirits to break the druj's control
over them.
When a mummy is reduced to 0 hp, it
falls lifeless to the floor. The next round,
the druj uses its animate dead power to
revive the monster. The revitalized
mummy has half the number of hit
points with which it started the pre-
vious battle (round fractions up). Thus,
when a 20-hp mummy is slain, the druj
immediately re-animates it, creating a
10-hp monster. Each time a mummy is
re-animated, the druj regains control
over it, so PC clerics must again Turn
the bandaged undead as spirits. If the
druj remains undiscovered by the PCs,
it will re-animate its mummy pawns
twice before engaging the heroes itself.
Spirit-ual Healing
The spirit's finger of death power (the
reverse of a raise dead spell) can obvi-
34 Issue No. 44
ously be used to eliminate opponents.
What may not be so obvious, however, is
that this same power can be used by the
spirit to heal damage inflicted on it by
the heroes. Finger of death, when cast
on an undead being with 10 HD or
more, actually cures 3dlOhp damage
(see the spell's description, RC/38). Be-
cause mummies fall below the 10-HD
requirement, the druj cannot use this
power to heal its undead pawns.
It is to the druj's advantage to cast
healing magic on itself when its es-
sences are united, so the healing will
affect all its essences (see the examples
of Rule 4 in the "Hand Druj" sidebar).
It will also attempt to heal individual
essences that drop below 30 hp.
Silence is Golden
Because the druj doesn't need to speak to
utilize its spell-like powers, it is unaffect-
ed by silence 15' radius spells. As a result,
it is highly advantageous for the druj to
surround itself with silence spells (per-
haps even cast on the druj itself or its
separate essences). In such a scenario, the
druj will still be able to use its own spell
powers while PC spell-casters will be at a
decided disadvantage.
Fight or Flight
The battle with the druj should be a chal-
lenging struggle for the PCs. If the spirit
is holding its own in combat, it fights to
the death. If the PCs are beating it deci-
sively, however, the druj attempts to flee,
perhaps under the cover of magical dark-
ness. The spirit hides and licks its wounds
(probably in the mouse hole in the Resto-
ration Department). After healing itself,
the druj will engage the PCs again the
following night.
PCs Abandon Ship
The PCs may well find that they aren't
strong enough to defeat the druj during
their initial confrontation with the
spirit, especially if they've used up a
number of spells and other resources
battling the resilient mummies. In such
a case it would be wise to flee. The druj
(and its mummy pawns, if any remain)
will pursue the PCs throughout the
museum but will not leave the building.
The druj doesn't want to stray too far
from the Ylari artifacts that are the
very cause of its existence. If the heroes
escape from the museum, they can heal
themselves, rememorize spells, and
again challenge the spirit of Al-Djamal
the following night. Of course, the druj
will also heal itself and be at full power
for the rematch.
Concluding the Adventure
If the heroes eliminate the druj, Glaun-
dro Valkner pays their promised reward
and heaps praise and thanks on them.
He tells the PCs that they are welcome
to drop by his museum any time-free of
charge-and offers them an opportunity
for future employment (he's currently
organizing a dinosaur-hunting expedi-
tion to the Thanegioth Archipelago and
can use all the help he can get). An
inventive DM can create any number of
new adventures by having Valkner send
the PCs to the ends of the Known World
searching for museum-quality artifacts.
If the PCs fail to destroy the druj and
decide that the hand spirit is out of
their league, Valkner gives them half
the promised reward money (or less, at
the DM's discretion), but only after the
PCs have told him everything they've
learned about the spirit's attacks, de-
fenses, and strategies. The curator then
hires another party of adventurers that
succeeds in finally putting to rest the
vengeful spirit of Al-Djamal,
If the players enjoyed battling a mon-
ster as powerful and complex as the
hand druj featured in this adventure,
the DM is directed to the entry entitled
"Fyrmont 6: Even Mummies Stretch
Their Legs" on pages 211-212 of the
Poor Wizard's Almanac. It seems that
the tomb of Queen Nennaya-Sherat had
another mummified guardian in it-a
bandaged, lichlike creature called
Shma-Uai. This monstrosity has all the
abilities and spell-casting powers of a
21st-level clericallich plus the addition-
al asset of being able to polymorph itself
into the form of any typical human at
will.
Shma-Uai's sworn duty is to track
down and slay anyone who has either
entered the tomb of Nennaya-Sherat
(Valkner's on the list) or handled any of
her grave-goods (didn't some of the PCs
open the sarcophagi to get at the mum-
mies inside on day one of this adven-
ture?). If the DM feels up to the
challenge of role-playing another ultra-
complex monstrous foe, here's the per-
fect guy for the part, and he'll be
heading in the heroes' direction in the
not-too-distant future. Q
DOVEDALE
BYTED JAMES THOMASZUVICH
If the drought doesn't
get you, the goblins will.
Artwork bY Tony OiTerliui
10 Issue No. 46
Thdsays: "I got the idea {or thi s ndoenture
iohile hiking flew the real Dove Dale, in
England's Derbyshire Dales District. I
apologize for the liberties [ have taken with
the local geography and inhabitants."
"Dovedale" is a ~ adventure for 23
player characters of levels 1-3, or one
elven PC of levels 45, for a total of at
least 4 levels. The adventure demands
the use of stealth, so if there are multi-
ple PCs, at least one of them should be a
thief or a halOing. All t he PCs should
be either Lawful or Neutral.
"Dovedale" emphasizes role-playing,
humor, and creative negotiating. This
advent ure is short and relatively simple
to complete.
For the Player Characters
Read or paraphrase the following to the
players:
The Dovedal e district is one of the
many small farmi ng areas nestled in
the foothills of a long mountain
ran ge. The district takes its name
from the narrow wooded valley
known as Dovedale. The like-named
Dovedal e River flows out of t he dale
and provides water for the many
farms in the area. The Dalewold
forest skirts the northwest edge of
the valley.
The farmers of the Dovedale dis-
trict have a problem: It is midsum-
mer, and the river has suddenly dried
up. A small t rickle of water remains,
but not enough. Without water, most
of the farmers' crops (which rely on
irrigation) are doomed to fail. The
locals are convinced that the abrupt
drop i n t he river is yet another evil
plot of a tribe of wicked gohlins that
live in the steep, winding dale. It 's
only a matter of time, they say, be-
fore the goblins issue a long string of
unreasonable demands in return for
restoring the river.
The farmers spend much oftheir
time standing around and grousing
that someone should do something.
However, none of the farmers have
volunteered to go sort out t he goblins.
The local far mers' cooperative has
offered a lOO-gp reward to anyone
brave enough to go up the Dovedale
and force the goblins to restore the
ri ver. You have learned that interested
parties should apply to Mrs. Cogs, the
leader of the cooperative.
For the DUNGEONMASTER"
The farmers' complai nts are partially
correct; the goblins r ea lly are responsi-
ble for t he river drying up. However, t he
inconvenience to t he local far mers is
merely a side effect of the goblins'
scheme. The rea l reason why t he gob.
l ins sabotaged t he river has to do wi t h
the gobl in chiefs passion for fishing.
For t he last few years, Chief Gravel-
beak has been trying to catch the t r-ick-
iest fish in the Dovedale River : Salvel
t he Talk ing Trout. So far, t he quick-
witted Salvel has avoided ca pture.
Gravel beak's conti nual failure to
catch Salvel finally drove hi m t o con-
sider desperate measures. Gravel bea k
(using impeccable gobli n logic) reasoned
t hat it would he easier to catch Salve l if
t he r iver di d not have as much water in
it. So t he gobli n chief a nd hi s misfit
family laid t heir plans a nd captured t he
sou rce of the riv er: Unda t he River
Fairy. Normally, Unda (a ni xi e) main-
t ai ns the spring that is the source of t he
Dovedale River. When Unda was taken
away, t he spri ng dwindled and finally
died out. The mighty Dovedale River
quickly wi t hered to a slow, anemic
trickle.
Running the Adventur e
If "Dovedale" is being used as a first-
ti me advent ur e, the OM could give t he
PCs backgrounds as brave young per-
sons from t he sur rou ndi ng area. The
PCs could be inhabit ants of t he village
of Ashbourne, or one of the PCs coul d be
one of Mrs. Cogs 's numerous children
(see area 4). lf t he PCs hav e back-
gr ou nds as local s, each has heard 1-4
rumors associat ed wi t h Oovedale (see
sidebar, page 13). Mor e t han one PC
may know the same rumor.
If the PCs are wandere rs in search of
advent ure, start the adventure in
Ashhourne. The phrasing of the int ro-
ducti on should lea d t he PCs to cont act
Mrs . Cogs , the lea der of the farmer's
cooperati ve. She will su pply the PCs
wit h some information t ha t sho uld
spark the PCs' interest in talki ng to t he
locals about the Dovedale goblins . The
PCs sho uld spend some ti me tal king to
Ashbour ne 's citizens, aski ng the local
sheep farmers abo ut t heir experiences
with the gobl ins , and inquiring at t he
Inn-on-the-Pea k. Ferreti ng out these
bi ts of infor ma tion a nd scraps of old
legen ds will provide an abundance of
role-playing opportuni ties. PCs who
ski p t his chance to gather i nformation
on t heir foes will regret t heir mistake.
The adven ture begins in earnest once
t he PCs have finished gat her ing infor-
mation and finally venture int o goblin
terr itory : the t wistin g canyon of t he
Dovedale itself. The PCs have a chance
to gat her additi onal information whe n
t hey encounter Salvel the Talking
Trout. PCs who r ush righ t into t he
goblin lai r wi\l have difficult y complet-
ing t he advent ure.
Dovedal e District
1. Ash bourne. Ash bourn e is a small
fortified far ming village located a bout
t hree miles sout heast of Dovedale. Be-
ca use of its proximity, Ashbourne is
cons idered to be part of t he Oovedal e
ar ea. The Dovedale River flows past
Ashbourne. The vill age has a farmer 's
mar ket , a bakery, a dry goods store, a
brewery, a church, several passable
inns, a nd a couple of boa rding hou ses.
Some of the vill agers ma y have old
family ar rnur a nd wea pons for sal e, but
such it ems will cost at least t wi ce t he
pr ices listed in the Rules Cyclopedia
(pages 62 and 67 ).
The DM ca n use t he descript ion of any
small vill age to flesh out Ashbourne.
The vi llage of Gr inley Crossi ng, de-
tail ed i n " Pearl man's Curiosity "
(DUNGEON!' Magazine .f32), woul d
serve admirably. In thi s case, " Dove-
dale" can be used as a logical precursor
to " Pearl man's Curiosity."
The text below outlines t .....o NPCs who
live in Ashbourne. The DM should pre-
pare several additional NPCs for t he PCs
to question while they are in Ashbourne,
along with a listi ng of which rumors each
NPC has heard. lfthe PCs ask around for
informati on in Ashbourne, they can hear
1-4 rumors per day.
If the PCs spend more t han a few
hours in Ashbourne, a bum accosts
them in t he village square. The bum is
Ian McNeill , the town drunk, who begs
for money to buy a drin k. If t he PCs
tal k wit h Ian, he tell s them about his
encounters wit h Salvel t he Talking
Trout (see r umor n ). Ia n hints to t he
PCs t hat he knows a great deal about
t he Dovedale gobli ns (he does not , but
that will not st op him from making up a
few stories), hoping to get t hem to buy
him a dri nk . The i nhabit ants of
Ashbourne ri b Ian fiercely about his
"speaking fish" stories.
I an Mc Neill , town drunk: AC 10: HD
DOVEDAl E
1-1 (MJ: hp 3; MV 120'(40'); .fAT 1;
Dmg by weapon t ype; Save NM; ML 4;
AL N; 5 7, 110, W6, D 8, C 9, Ch 12;
XP 10; dagger.
Ian's one great talent is hi s ability t o
make up who ppi ng great fibs wit hout
foret hought or prepar ation. His stor ies
a re sufficientl y entert ai nin g that t he
townsfolk prov ide him wit h enough
money to mai ntai n his self-dest r uct ive
habit . Ia n's wi dely ren owned t al ent for
ma king up stor ies is the main reason
why nobody believes his tales a bout
Salve! t he Talking Trout.
Fio n na of Ashbourne, Mayor: AC
10; HD 1 (M); hp 7; MV 120'(40' ); KAT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; Sa ve Fl ; ML 9;
AL L; 5 12, I 13, W 13, 0 9, C 12, Ch 14:
dagger, short sword, spea r, long bow.
Mayor Fionna is a strong, dyna mic,
red-hair ed, 40.ye ar-old woma n who
doesn't take lip from anybody. She is
apt t o thump t roublema ker s on t he
head first a nd sort out the det ails later.
Besides being the mayor of Ashbourne,
F ionn a is an officer in the local milit ia.
She can provide clear direct ions to Mrs.
Cogs's farm, and the PCs will hear ru-
mol' .f8 from he r.
2. Inn-on-the-Peak. The Inn-on-t he-
Peak is a quaint count ry inn , catering
pr imar ily to the local sheepher der s and
fa rme rs. The inn sits on t he top of a
small hill amid a small st and of oak
t r ees. A narrow country la ne bordered
by 3'tall stone wall s wi nds it s way
through the t rees to t he top of t he hil l.
The Inn-on-t he-Peak is fam ous for t wo
thin gs. Th e first is the r ich, da rk,
mu sty-smelli ng bee r that Hal t he inn-
keeper bre ws in his cell ar. Th is beer is
kno wn t hroughout t he region as " Hal's
Old Singular." Second, the inn's exteu.
si ve rose gardens are reput ed to be t he
most beaut iful gardens for hundreds of
mi les. In t he summer, t he Inn-on-t he-
Pea k a t tracts a number of ri ch visitors
from Ashhourne, who come out to sa m-
ple t he rust ic life, get pa mpered and
well fed by Hal' s excellent cook, and
spend a few eve nings walking in t he
in n's beautiful rose ga rdens.
But t he rose gardens are suffer i ng
t hi s summer. The in n's well is fed by t he
Dovedale River. Now t hat the river is
dry, the well has also petered out .
The Inn-on-t he-Peak has a tot al of 12
wa rm and comfortabl e r ooms . At a ny
time, 3-12 (l dl 0 +2) of t he rooms are
filled. A room rents for 10 sp per ni ght
(including meals). Ea ch room is fitted
DUNGEON 11
DOVEDALE
weapon type; Save NM; ML 8; AL L; S
8, I 10, W 12, D 10, C 10, Ch 10; dagger.
Krimble is a stoo ped a nd weathered
old graybeard, conv er sant with most of
t he lore a bout the local area. He is a
regular feature in t he inn's t ap room. If
t he players are beginners and need a
l it tle prodding in t he right di rection,
Krimble ca n suggest t hat the PCs inter-
view some of the local far mers a bout the
gobli ns . This wi ll provi de the PCs with
t he opportunity to lear n more of t he
info rmat ion contai ned in the " Rumors
and Infor mat ion" sidebar.
Hal the Innke epe r : AC 10; F2 (M);
hp 10; MV 120'(40' ); NAT 1; Dmg by
wea pon type; Save F2; ML 9; AL L ; S
12, I 11, W 11, D 9, C 13, Ch 14; short
sword, club.
Ha l is a t hi n, wiry, hard-working
mi ddle-aged man. He is a n officer in the
loca l militia and a we ll-respected busi-
nessman in the Dovedale area.
Shep, old sheep dog: AC 7; HD 1 (S); hp
7; MV 60'(20'); NAT 1 bite; Dmg 1-3; Save
FI ; ML 7; lNT 4; AL N; CC/30 IDog),
Shep is a ret ir ed sheep dog. He is very
old and suffers from art hritis, so he
moves quite slowly. He spends most of
his time lying in front of t he fire in the
common room. From his position by the
fire, She p keeps up with loca l events
and happen in gs.
If the PCI' have a with animals
spell, they can talk with Shep, who will
rela te t he ta le of how he a nd his fello w
sheep dogs tangled with a pa ir of dire
wolves that live i n t he Dal ewold forest.
Shep also knows t hat the goblin chief is
named Gravelbeak, and t hat Sti nkfoot
is the only other gobl in who can ri de the
dire wolves. At t he OM's discretion,
Shep may know a few further details.
Anyt hi ng that the PCs learn from Shep
is in addition to the rumors related by
the other patrons at the inn.
Yea rs ago, Gravel bee k's great-
grandfat her bullied hi s family into
buildi ng a secret t unnel leadi ng into the
Inn-on-the-Peak's bee r cell ar. It t ook the
gobli ns several years to finish building
t he tunnel, but the resul t was worth it.
The Oovedal e gobli ns have been pinc h-
ing beer from the cellar for generations
now, They are very ca reful to control
their greed; t hey steal only from kegs
t hat are already open and take only a
ga llon or so at a time. The losses a re
barely not iceable, sma ll enough t hat
Hal would never t hi nk t o mention them
in casual conversatio n. Ha l has attrib-
uted t he losses t o spillage, and perhaps
N
--
Tor's Clou d
P eak
lh. mile between points
t
....
-- I"'
_ /
13
1,367'
ION

--
. ,
" , ,
,
,
, 1
"
To Ashbourne
3 mi les
Dovedale Area
duck. Over stuffed wing-back chai rs and
couches are spread throughout t he
room, along wit h t ab les for chess, back-
ga mmon, and checkers. During the
eveni ng, 11-30 (l d20 +10) loca ls gather
in the common room.
The PCs can he ar 1-4 of t he rumors
and legends about Doveda le per evening
spent goss ipi ng in the inn's pub . The
pub patr ons repeatedly ment ion the
100gp reward i n a pat heti ca lly trans-
parent effort to encourage t he PCs t o
exp lore t he dale.
Ol d Man Krimble: AC 10; HD 1 - 1
(M); hp 4; MV 90 '(30 ' ); NAT 1; Dmg by
250'
Dalewold
5
,-.
.....
...
4
Miles
with two la rge beds wit h straw-stuffed
mattresses and goose down comforters,
a small hearth for a peat fi re, a dresser,
a mi r ror, a closet, a wr it ing desk , and
several comfortable chairs. Hot baths
are available at an addit ional cost of 1
ep. Boarding for horses or simila r
mount s costs 4 sp per ni ght.
The inn' s la rge common room serves
a s a pub. A warm, fragrant peat fire
heat s t he room. The pub has a low ceil-
ing, which create s a dim inter ior where
pale blue pipe smoke wafts among the
hand-carved rafters. Anyone who st ands
t aller t han 5'6" had better learn t o
12Issue No. 46
a little bit to the cook and t he stable
hands sneaking a few pin ts on the side,
wh ich he does not mind.
If the PCs as k Hal if they can search
his cellar (per ha ps after they find the
beer kegs in t he Gobl in Beer Cell a r,
area 9), Hal will let t hem in. The PCs
have norma l chances to fi nd the secret
door, which is carefully blended int o the
br ick wall behi nd one of the many wine
racks in the cellar. The t unnel exit is
hidden under a large stump i n a copse
of trees on the north side of the hill .
3. Tor's Cloud Peak. Thr's Cloud peak,
elevation 1,370' , serves as a local la nd-
mark. The peak is one mile northwest of
the Inn-on-t he-Peak. Dozens of sheep
graze on the lower reaches of its grassy
slopes. Tour ists often climb to t he su mmit
duri ng the warm summe r mont hs, dodg-
ing the sheep as they go. From t he top of
t he peak, the view of the surrounding
countryside is spectacul ar.
There is a l -in-lO chance per day of a
fr ea k storm striking the top of 'Ice's
Cloud. Roll ld12 t o de t ermine t he hour
of the day when t he st orm strikes. Each
storm la st s ld6 +1 t ur ns. The storm
delivers a deluge of hail st ones, rain,
a nd fie rcely howl i ng wind. Anyone
caught in the storm t akes 1-3 hp dam-
age per turn. There is no shelter on t he
peak, and getting down t o safety t akes
four turns. Someone wi t h cli mbing skill
can get off the peak in t hree t urns .
If a ny of t he PCs has danger se nse
skill or mountain survival skill (see Re,
pages 83 and 85), t he OM should secret-
ly make a check before t he PCs go up
t he mountain. If the skill check sue-
ceeds, and a storm is going to strike the
peak that day, tell the player that hi s
PC feels ap prehensive about climbi ng
the mountai n.
4. Mrs. Cogs's Farm. Mrs. Cogs owns
a large, prosperous farm on a hilltop to
the west of Oovedale. She is a hard
worker, an excellent cook (her pies al-
ways win blue ribbons at t he annual
fair), and the lead er of t he loca l far me rs'
coope rat ive. Her farm boasts a lar ge
house, several barns, many acres of
grazing land, and several hundred
sheep. Mrs . Cogs has six children, who
help he r run t he farm: Ben (6), Bridgett
(7), Kat hy uoi Kevin (12), Parsiva l (16),
and Petra (6).
Mrs. Cogs: AC 10; HD 1 -1 (M); hp 6;
MV 120'(40' ); NAT 1; Dmg by weapon
t ype ; Save NM; ML 9; AL L; S 9, I 9,
Rumors and Information
The PCs can hear the following rumors
in t he Dovedale area. In some cases, only
a particular NPC will know th e infor ma-
tion, as noted below. Each NPC will
repeat rumor II and also knows one
other rumor from the list.
1. " A tribe of nasty goblins lives in the
Dovedele. That's why everyone avoids
the place. There are at lea st {30/50190j of
the monsters." (Partially true; there are
only nine goblins.)
2. "If you find the goblin's chimney,
you're right near their front door. I heard
that from my gr andpappy, who used to go
play checkers with the goblin chief."
<True. Old Man Krimbl e (ar ea 2) makes
this claim. He has t old this story many
times over the years. The other locals
t htnk he is merely hragging.)
3. "A good fairy maintains the Dovedal e
River. Without her, t he river would cease
to flow. She lives near a beautiful spri ng
that 's the source of the river." tTrue)
4. "The gobli ns have a secret lair in
Oovedale." <True)
5. "Without water, our farms will wither
and die. Without traffic on the river,
Ashbourne will become much poorer, and
the Inn-on-the-Peak will be unable to
maintain its famous rose gardens." (True r
6. "A big, hairy spider shout ed at me
while I was gathering mushrooms i n the
Dalewold. It leap t out fr om behind a tr ee
and yelled, ' Put that down!" IFalge. Mrs .
Cogs's youngest daughter, Br idgett,
makes this claim. but she ha s an ex-
tremely act ive imaginaticn.}
7. "Speaking-Fish Weir is located ri ght at
the mouth of Dovedale. It's called that
because Ian McNeill swear s that a ta lking
fish lives there. Of course, everyone knows
that Ian is utterly daft." (True. No one in
t he Dovedale area believes Ian, but he's
telli ng the truth. Ian has talked with
Salve! the Thlking Trout severa l ttmes.I
8. "Ben Cogs is a quiet child, but he's a
troublemaker. He's always filching things,
lying, and pulling mean tricks on the other
children. Just last week he pushed Susi e
into a mud puddle and stole her lunch.
Whenever Ben does somet hing bad, the
shameless lad refuses to take respcns lbili-
ty." (False. Ben Cogs is a well-behaved and
truthful young man. Ben gets in trouble
because Grabbe the gobli n disguises him-
self as Ben and pulls pranks on the locals.)
9. "I ca me across t he gobli n chieftain
fishing on the river one evening. We
kicked back for a whil e, swapped some
fish st ori es. That gobli n chief. he 's quite
a skilled and knowledgeable fisherman ."
(Tr ue. A far mer t ell s this story at the
Inn-cn.the-Peak .)
DOVEDALE
10. "The goblins have a secret entrance
to their home, on top of'Ibr's Cloud
Peak." (False)
11. "Freak storms someti mes hit the top
ofThr 's Cloud Peak. It can be sunny and
clear one moment, then the next minute
the wind starts whipping ice and rai n
down on your head. The storms have killed
quite a few people over the years, mostly
foolish tourists." (True. Uthe Pes grow up
in the Dovedale area, they automatically
know thi s piece of information.)
12. "The stor ms on Tbr'sCloud Peak
are caused by an insane air-elemental
trapped in a rune circle on top of the
mountain ," (Fa lse, unless the OM wants
thi s rumor to be true.)
13. "Them goblins, they's fai rly slug-
gis h during the day. Gets up to most of
their mischief in the evenings and at
ni ght," (True.j
14. "Once or twice a year, a goblin rides
out of the Dalewcld on a great slavering
wolf and steal s one of my sheep. And it
seems like every time I turn around. those
na sty goblins are stealing my fresh-baked
pies and cookies otrthe windowsill ," (True,
Mrs. Cogs tell s this tale.)
15. "There are three large stone columns
in the midst of t he Dalewold. They've been
called The Three Giants for as long as I
can remember, but I don't recall why."
(True. Mrs. Cogs or any other sheep fanner
within three miles of the Dcvedale can
impart t his information.)
16. "Long ago, in the t ime of my gr eat-
great -gr andfat her; a powerful druid lived
in the Dalewcld. She's gone now, but her
influence on the land remains. If she
wer e st ill here, she'd sort those gobl ins
out in short order," (Tr ue)
17. "The Oal ewold is a dangerous
place, wit h wolves and spiders and pan-
t hers a nd bears running through the
woods. I'd avoid it, ifI were you, espe -
ciall y after dark." (Pa rtially true; there
are wolves and spiders in the Dal ewold.j
18. "1heard t hat the gobli ns are goi ng
to demand a payment of 1,000 gp and 40
shee p in order to rest ore t he river.
Greedy little bastards." (Fa lse)
19. "The goblins must have a new
chief. The old chief, he never did any-
t hing like this before." (False)
20. "There are wolves in t he Dalewold.
t hat's true. But I doubt that they have
anything to do with the goblins. That Mrs.
Cogs, she's a silly old woman and probably
just imagined the whole t hing. Or maybe
she's just making excuses for that rotten
little kid of hers. !'False. The PCs hear this
rumor from one of Mrs . Cogs's poorer
neighbors: a bitter, lazy old farmerJ
DUNGEON 13
DOVEDALE
W 13, 0 9, C 12, Ch 13.
Mr s. Cogs is a large, busi nesslike
woman with a no-nonsense attit ude
about runni ng her farm.
Pa r sival and Pet ra: AC 7; HD 1 (M);
hp 6 each; MV 120'(40' ); 'AT 1; Dmg by
weapon t ype; Save Fl; ML 8; AL L; S
12, C 13.
Mrs. Cogs's oldest children are members
of the local militia. The twins have leat h-
er armor and are proficient with the short
sword, dagger, spear, and long bow. If this
advent ure is being conducted as a solo
adventure, t he DM ma y all ow the PC to
recrui t Pereivel and Petra.
The PCs can get direct ions to Mrs.
Cogs's farm from any NPC in Ashbourne,
al t hough Ian McNeill 's directions might
bea bit incoherent. If the PCs climb to
the top of t he hill to talk with Mrs. Cogs,
she invites them in for a chat and gives
them herbal tea and lemon cookies. Mrs .
Cogstalks wit h t he PCs for a maximum
of three turns, after which she must get
back to work.
Mr s. Cogs's farm is t he closest far m to
Dovedale, so she is used to th e gobli ns
and their conni vi ng t r icks . Mr s. Cogs
confi r ms that the farmers' cooper ative
has put up a lOO.gp reward for re storing
t he ri ver. She emphasizes th at the PCs'
mission is to re store the river, not neces-
sar ily kill t he gobli ns. The gobl ins have
a long history of coexisti ng with t he
Doveda le local s, and i n some sit uat ions
being friendly (see rumors 112 and 69).
The farmers don' t want to start a blood-
feud wit h th e gobli ns .
Mr s. Cogs also tells t he PCs rumors
1114 and 1115. At the end of their conver-
sati on, Mrs. Cogs informs the PCs that
some of the local farmers ga ther i n t he
evenings at the Inn -on-the-Peak; th e
party might be abl e to get some more
information there.
If given a chance, six-year -old Ben sol-
emnly swears to the PCs that he is not
t he one who keeps doing bad things. Ben
explains that one ofthe goblins living in
t he Dovedale looks exact ly like hi m. The
goblin does bad t hi ngs (such as steali ng
pies from windowsill s and pushing
small er children into mud-puddles) and
t hen Ben gets blamed for it. Ben clai ms
that he has spoken with this goblin sev-
eral ti mes and tried to get him to stop,
but the goblin just laughs and runs away
to pull yet anot her prank. Ben has tried
to explai n this to othe rs, but no one be-
lieves him. If Mrs. Cogs catches Ben
telling this story to the PCs, she scolds
him for fibbing and sends him to clean
14 Issue No. 46
out the cow barns.
Mrs. Cogs's farm is si milar to t he
other farms in the area, which are
spaced several miles apart i n an arc to
the south and west of Dovedate. None of
the other farms are quit e as well off as
Mr s. Cogs's farm. The local farms in-
clu de: Hanson, Bist ern , Llam, Shar-
plowe, Thor p, Baley Hill, Raven's 'Ibr,
St. Bertram's Well , Hill end, Blore Hall ,
and St andlew.
5. The Dalewold. The Dalewold is a
forest located on t he nort hwest edge of
t he Dovedale. This stand of oaks, elms ,
maples, and poplars covers sever al
square miles. Sparse und er growt h fills
t he open areas beneath t he fore st cano-
py. The Dalewold teems wit h animal
life , especi ally sparrows, robins, grouse,
qua il, and rabbits . The fore st also has a
bountiful supply of be rr ies and mush-
rooms, incl uding truffles, tu ffets (la rge
toadstools), and chant erelles.
For every hour that t he PCs spend
wandering in t he Dalewold, an encount-
er t akes place on a roll of 1 on l d6.
Cons ul t the "Dalewold Random En -
counters" sideba r on page 15, but use
discretion. Some of t hese encounters can
be ext r emely deadly and are unsuitabl e
for beginnin g PCs. The PCs have a 10%
chance per encounter to st umble i nto a
monster 's lair, in which case the "num-
ber appeari ng" in t he encount er shoul d
be ma xi mum. Lairs are not assi gned
any specific location i n t he Dalewold.
Low-level PCs should not stumble
across a monster lair.
6. Speaking-Fish Wei r. When t he
Pes re ach t his point, r ead or para-
phrase t he following to t he player s'
A wei r of large, loosely piled boul-
ders stretches across the Dovedale
River. It looks as ifit might be possi-
ble to cross t he river by ste pping on
t he to ps of t he moss-covered stones.
A 50'-diameter pool has formed be-
hi nd t he weir. In nor mal ti mes , the
pool would be much larger an d
deeper, but t he water has retreat ed
to show cracked mud along t he
banks . Now that t he ri ver has been
reduced to a trickl e, t he pool is onl y
2' deep at its deepest poin t. Colorful
gravel li nes th e bottom of t he pool.
Rushes and will ows, many of t he m
drooping in t he artifici al drought ,
grow along t he banks. Two 6' t all , 2'
diameter stone pillars stand at t he
top of the pool, one on either side of
th e river. A na rrow foot path winds
its way t hrough the grass and reeds
up the side of t he pool and al ong t he
east side of the river. The footpath
goes right by one of t he st one pillars.
The stone pillars are carved with
pictographs and symbol s indicati ng that
the Dovedale is t he territ ory of Gravel-
beak t he Gobli n Chief. When a PC get s
within 10' of the pool or one of the st one
columns, Salvel t he trout st icks hi s
snout out of t he water and squi rts a
nonblinding st ream of water at one of
t he PCs . This is Salver s way of attract-
in g attention.
Once Sal vel has t he PCs' attention, he
int roduces himself, apologi zes for get-
ting t he PC wet , and asks who th e PCs
are. By the ti me he talks to the PCs,
Sal vel will have used hi s detect evil
abil ity; if t he PCs are evil. he will not
speak to t hem. Salvel th en asks t he PCs
wha t t hey are doing in the Dovedale. If
t he PCs tell Salve! that t hey are going
to seek t he goblins, re store the river, or
si milar comme nts, read or paraphra se
t he following to t he players. This mate-
r ial is presented as a monologue by
Salvel, hut it 's more likely to be a con-
versation bet ween him and t he PCs.
Your comment about the awful state
ofthe r iver appears to have piqued
Salvel's inte rest. Hi s shimmering
scales gli nt i n t he dim sunlight as he
swi ms closer.
"The ri ver is low because the goblins
ha ve capt ur ed Unda t he River Fairy:'
says the fish. "If you want to restore
the river, you' ll have to rescue her
from their secret lai r. The goblins
capt ured Unda about a week ago.
They've kept her ali ve; I would have
felt it if she died. They're trying to
catch me, too, but I' ve managed to
avoid them so far. I've been tryi ng to
find someone to go into the goblin lair
and rescue Unda, but you're t he first
likely prospects that I've encountered.
" If you go up t he r iver, past the
three stone giants, you' ll find a tall
weeping willow that the goblins have
chewed on. The entrance to t heir
t unnel s is in a shall ow ca ve near
that tree. I' ve ma naged to find out
t hat much, over t he years , by watch-
ing t he m from t he river."
Any PC with fish ing (hunt ing) skill
can identify Salvel as a rainbow trout.
alt hough he is an unusual ly large speci -
men. If the PCs ask Salve! more ques-
tions. he knows a few things that may
make the PCs ' task somewhat easier.
For instance, Salvel knows the names of
some of the gobli ns [DM's discrerien],
which may beof some use to the PCs .
Selvel'e information is accurate, for the
most part. although he does not know
that t he real reason t he gobli ns kid-
napped Unda was to make it easier to
catch h im. If the PCs ask why t he gob-
lins chew on t he t ree, Salvel responds
that he t hinks it has somet hi ng to do
wit h cle aning their teet h.
Over t he years, Salvel has teased
Gravelbeak fiercely. Sa.lvel's favorite trick
is to wait until Gravelbeak gets in an
awkward position as he wades along the
river. For example, Salvel may wait until
Gravelbeak has both his feet on sli ppery
rocks. Salvel then swims up , leaps out of
the water, slaps Gravelbeak on the face
with his wide silver tail, and then swims
away while Gravelbeak splutters and
desperately windmills his arms in an
attempt to maintain his precarious bal .
ance. Salve! takes great deli ght in teasing
Gravelbeak and his family.
Salvel the Talking Trout: AC 6; HD
2 + 2* (S, 3' long); hp 12; ~ swim
180'(60' ); 'AT 1; Dmg 1 2; Save F4; ML
9; INT 13; AL L; XP 35; New Monst er.
Salvel can detect evil in a SO' radius .
He can a lso spit a stream of water up to
30' that hit s as a 4 HD monster. Anyon e
struck by t he jet of water is bli nded for
13 t ur ns. Salvel speaks fish, Common,
and goblin.
In t his regi on of t he world, some ani-
ma ls ca n speak a nd understa nd speech.
The long-depart ed druid mentioned in
r umor 116 granted some of t he animals
in t he area t he power t o speak. The
power has manifested itself i n at least
one fi sh in every generation ever since
t hat time. The talking animals in the
area tend to be the leaders of the ncr-
mal animals.
7. Small Ca ve. Small caves riddle t he
Dovedale's 200'talilimestone walls.
This cave is only one example. Caves
are located 30'-40' up the side of the
cliff-face. The narrow and twisting
caves go back about 30' . but huma ns
can go in only about 20' before the st one
walls close in . The caves are empty
except for some ra t her bar baric goblin
graffiti (written in Common; goblins do
not have t heir own wri tten language).
Dalewold Random Encounters
0120 Jumping spi ders. la rge (120):
AC 8; HD 1 + 1* (2' diamett>r); hp 4 each;
MV60'(20' ), web 120' (40'); 'AT 1 bite;
Dmg 1 plus poison; Sav e Yl ; ML 7; ll'.'T
0; AL N; XP 25; RC 206 (modi fied Giant
Crab Spider).
The spiders normally lICtlttle along in
the trees and drop on their prey, trailing
a safety-l ine of webbing behind them.
The spider's poison does 4d4 hp damage.
at a rate of Id4 hp per round. A saving
throw ve. poison ( + 2 bonus) for half
damage is allowed. The spiders have
sca ttered their treasure in t he bushes
near t heir lair. The t reasure consists of:
two suits of chain mail (20 gp), two short
swords (5 gp), t wo daggers (2 gpl, a Ian-
te rn {S gpl, 4 gp o10 ep, 27 ep. a white
cotton bonnet. a pai r of children's shoes,
a silver spoon (2 gp). and a small wooden
bowl (2 epj.
2135 Ba ron Ieonbeak, talking owl:
AC 6; HD 1/1-(8); hp 3; MY 9'(3' ), fly
120'(40' ); I AT 1; Dmg 1; Save NM; ML 8;
INT 10; AL X; XP 6; New.
Baron Ironbeak may trail t he PCs if
th e)' enter t he Dalewold at night. As
long as the PCs do not make any bostile
moves, he re mains friendly. If t he Pes
bribe him with a mouse or ot her t idbit ,
Baron Ironbeak t ell s t he PCs t hat one of
the goblins flies around at night on a
giant bat.
35-40 Greet the Spring's Wann Wind,
treant : AC 2; HDS* (1.); hp 49; MY
60'(20'); IAT 2 branches; Dmg 2d&2d6:
Save FS; xn, 9; !NT 11; AL L; RC 209.
The treant of t he Dal ewold is an IS'
tall maple. All encounters with the
t reant occur at a distance of 30 yards or
less. Because t he treant closely resem-
bles a normal tree, it surprises on a roll
of 13 on Id6. Blunt weapons infl ict only
1 hp damage per hit (plus magic and
st rengt h bonuses). The treant ca n eni-
mate any two trees wit hi n 60' to move at
3OUO') and fight ali t reant.s.
The treat a pproac hes t he PCs ifthey do
not light a fire while t hey are in the
Dalewold. The- t rea nt knows about t he
dire wolves but is not bothe red by their
presence because the wolves behave
themselves while they are in t he Dal e-
wold and never kill more t han t hey can
eat. If the PC!!talk with t he treant . it
can confirm t ha t a powerful druid used
to dwell in t he Dalewcld (if the Pes ha ve
heard rumor IIBl.
40-55 Sti rges (1 10): AC 7; HD 1* (S);
MY 30UO'). fly 1BO'IBO'}; I AT 1; Dmg
DOVEDAlE
Id3 ; Save F2; ML 9; txr i. AL N; XP 13;
RC 208.
A successful hit means the etirge has
attached. it.&elf to its vict im, sucking for
Id3 hp damage until the victim is dead.
A flying stirge gains a bonus of +2 on ita
first attack roll against any one oppo-
nent due to ita speedy attack. The sti rges
have a lair in a smal l cave deep in t he
Dovedale. The PCs can find the la ir if
t hey spend Id6 +2 days searchi ng for it.
The stirges have t wo crystals in thei r
lair, which they picked up because t hey
glittered. The crystals are gar nets, a nd
woul d be wort h 100 gp ea ch ifcut and
poli shed.
55 70 Hor lleOies, giant UO3Q): AC 6;
HD Ii. (8); hp 1 each; MV fly 120'(40');
'AT 1 (per 10 horseflies); Dmg 12 plus
confusion (per 10 horseflies); Save NM;
ML 10; tNT 1; AL N; XP 6; New.
These giant flies weigh abo ut two
ounces each. They attack men. cattle,
horses, sheep, and just about anything
else that moves. The horseflies swirl
a round in a great cloud, causing eonfu -
. io" in their victims. There must be at
least 10 horseflies to confuse or da mage
one charact er. Characters who become
confused suffer a - 2 penalty on their
attack rolls and saving throws, and
cannot cast spells (sa ve vs. spells for no
effect).
For example. if13 horseflies attack a
group of3 PCs. the horseflies can confuse
and attack only one of the PCs per
round. As soon as the PCs kill 4 of t he
horse flies. t he remaining ni ne cannot
attack effectively. Do not use more than
20 horseflies when r unni ng t his encouat-
er unless you are confident t ha t the PCs
ca n t hi nk orsome clever way to escape.
The horsefli es do not have a lair.
7180 Boar. wild (1-6): AC 7; HD 3-
(M); hp 21, 17.14. 13.11.9; MV 90'(30');
'AT I tusk; Dmg 2d4; Save F2; ML 9;
tNT 2; AL N; XP 50; RC 162.
Wil d pigs hide in the brush and charge
out at their victims. A pig that has 20
yards to charge before reaching its prey
can infl ict double damage. If the PCs
come across just one wild pig , it is 8 bed-
tempered boar (hp 21) that attacks i mme-
diately, chargi ng from ambush.
8100 Sparrows Ud20 +20>. robins
(1d20 +201, grouse (ldl0 +5 1. quail
Ud10 +51. and rabbits (ld6). One of these
creatures pope out of the undergrowth.
startled by the PCs' passage. The creature
may in turn startle the PCs.
DUNGEON 15
DOVEDALE
~ ~
For example, "Fishbelly wuz heer:' "Hu-
mum tak baths:' "Reel goblins ride Wolfs,"
and"Elfs taste grate/lea filing:' The ~ t is
encouraged to think up other examples.
8. The Three Giants. Halfway up the
dale. the PCs come across three 25' tall,
10' diameter granite columns. The rough.
surfaced granite columns are quite out of
place in the normal limestone formations
of t he Dovedal e. The columns are lined up
all in a row, and all of them seem to be
leaning slightly forward.
The three columns are really giants
transformed to stone . The columns look
exactly like natural stone columns;
there are no visual clues to their real
nature. If anyone uses a know align -
ment spell here, the columns radiate
Chaos. A detect evil spell reveal s that
the columns are also evil. Unda the
River Fairy knows what the statues
really are and will try to stop anyone
who is so foolish as to try to return
them to flesh.
The columns originated over a hun-
dred years ago , when three evil hill
giants rampaged through the Oovedale
region. The greedy giants wreaked
enormous havoc on t he ecology of the
16 Issue No. 46
area and used the Oovedale goblin tribe
as slaves. Finally, the giants' excesses
i ncurred the wrath of the legendary
druid of t he Dal ewold. With the cooper-
ation of the enslaved goblin t ribe, she
lured the giants out into t he open and
wor ked a mighty enchantment t hat
turned t he terri ble giants into stone.
Th e Doved ale goblins know t his st ory
and have passed t he t al e of their libera-
tio n down t hroug h generations. The
Dovedale gobli ns ha ve great status with
other goblin t ri bes because t hey man-
aged to throw off the yoke of the evil
giants, even t hough they did have help.
Chief Gravelbeak and his family will do
everything in their power to prevent the
columns from being tampered with or
restored to life .
The T hree Gi ants: AC 4j HD 8; hp 56
each; MV 120 '(40' ); 'AT 1 weapon; Dmg
2d8; Save F8; ML 8; tNT 7; AL C; Size L
(12' tall); XP 650 each, RC 179.
The giants throw rocks (r ange 30/601
100) for 3d6 hp damage. Each hill giant
wears clothing made of uncured animal
skins. Each giant has a huge club, a
spear, and a bag contai ning 2d6 )( 100
gpo These items were turned to stone
along with their owners. One of the

giants can speak goblin, and another

can speak Common. If their enchant-
ment is ended, the giants are apt to
attack anything in sight.
9, Goblin Beer Cellar. This small
stone buildi ng shaded by tall elms lies
mos tl y underground. Onl y it s peaked
shale r oof sticks out above ground. A
well -worn foot pat h leads from t he main
trail up to t he building, where 3' wide
stairs lead down to a stout oak door. A
huge iron padlock (made by Grevelbeekt
holds the door shut. No matter what t he
weather, the inter ior of the beer cellar is
a lways cool a nd dark.
The cella r contains four 30.gall on beer
barrels and three five-gallon wine bar-
rels. Two of the oldest beer barrel s have
marks indicating that they are the
property of the Inn-on-the-Peak; the rest
of the barrels are unmarked. The gob-
lins stole the two marked barrels fr om
the cellars of the inn when they first
completed their secret tunnel, years
ago. One of the marked barrels is emp-
ty, and the other is half-full of Ha l's Old
Si ngular (value 40 gp). The three un -
marked barrels are full of incredibly
vile goblin-brewed beer. Only one of the
wine barrels is full (value 8 gp), 'Iechni-
cally, the half-barrel of Hal 's Old Singu-
lar beer should be returned to the
in nkeeper. si nce it is stolen property. If
the Pes ret urn t he barrel to Hal , he
gives t hem a reward of 10 gpo Less am.
bitious PCs could just tell Hal where
the ba rrel is and let him r etrieve it.
Note that a full bee r barrel weighs
about 275 lba. and a full wine barrel
weighs about 45 Ibs.
Gravelbeak has t he only legit imate
key to t he beer cellar. St rongarm.
Grav elbeak'e son and t he gobli n smi th.
has a crude copy of t he key, which he
made wh ile Gra velbeak was out fish ing
one eveni ng. St ronga rm's key has an
80% chance of opening the lock. If the
key fai ls to open the door, it bends in
the lock and Strongarm must spend 14
days repairing the key before he ca n
make another attempt.
Strongarm and his brothers sneak into
the beer cellar from time to time and
have a few pints of'beer when they thi nk
Grevelbeak is not watching t hem. Gravel -
beak is well aware that his sons foray
into t he beer cellar, but he feels that their
sneaky beha vior is appropriate for young
goblins. Gravelbea k will nol complai n as
long as his sons do not overindulge.
10, Gobli n Lai r. The Dovedale gob.
lins are a very clever and talented clan.
Th ey have in habited the Dovedale for
as long as Ash bourne has existed, so all
the gobli ns a re famili ar wit h t he a rea.
The gobli ns really l ike t heir home a nd
will do their best to defend it, i ncluding
killing int ruders if they have to.
However; ift he goblins are in cont rol of
t he sit uation, t hey will attempt to take
pri soners to be held for ransom, especially
if the Pes have backgro unds as Dovedale
locals. The gobli ns have ma naged to
coexist with their neighbors for many
years, a nd they know that peace (a nd
relative prosperity) will not last long if
they start killi ng lots of people.
As another option. if the goblins capture
t he Pes. they could try to make the PCs
into !IOUp. Everyone knows that leeks are
an essent ial ingredient in any proper
haUling lor human. or elf, etc.I stew. Un-
fortu nately, the goblin pantry is fresh out
of leeks at the moment, so Chief Gravel.
beak will have to send his son Grabbo out
to steal some from one of'the surrounding
farms. Whl le the goblins are gathering
ingredients for t heir soup, the PCs could
get a cha nce to escape.
Remember tha t goblins are noct ur nal.
This tribe normally sleeps from 8:00 A-M.
to 4:00 ex, alt hough they always post a
guard. The adventure ass umes that the
PCs enter t he caverns sometime during
the goblins' sleep cycle. If t he PCs enter
the gobli n lair during t he waki ng cycle.
adjust goblin responses accordi ngly.
l OA. Willow Tree.Jf the PCs have
spoken to Sal vel. read or paraphrase the
following information to t he players when
the PCs reach this part of Dovedale. If the
Pes have not spoken wit h Sal vel, roll to
detect secret doors for each PC. If the PCs
have heard rumor 12, they each get a +1
on the roll . If the check succeeds, leave
out any mention of Salvel when reading
the following to the players.
A large weeping willow on the bank of
the r iver spreads its branches over the
dry riverbed. The t ree is visibly droop-
ing from t he lack of water. Scars and
cuts mark the trunk and branches of
t he tree where the goblins have
chewed on the bark. The goblins have
also decorated the tree trunk with all
sorts of horrible graffiti and carvings.
A rope swing hangs list lessly from one
of t he bra nches.
Salvel's words about t he gobli n
doorway appear to have been correct.
On the eastern wall of t he dal e.
about 20' up, you ca n see t he opening
to a cave. The trail leading up to t he
ca ve shows signs of hea vy use.
The swi ng will support anyone who
weighs less t han 100 Ibs. lf any greater
weight is placed on it, t he swing breaks as
it swings out over the dry riverbed, send-
ing whoever was on it plummeting to the
ground. The fall causes 1-6 hp damage.
PCs who take time to read t he graffiti
carved into the willow tree can determine
t hat several generations of goblins have
carved their initials into the tree.
lOB, Front Door. When t he PCs
enter this cave, read or paraphrase the
following to t he players:
Gob lin footprints go right up to t he
back wall of the eave and just stop.
When you stand st ill for a moment,
you c.. n hear someone snori ng. The
sound seems to be comi ng from be-
hind the wall.
The gobli ns have grown complacent
over the years; clearly t he re is much
traffic i n t he vici ni ty of t heir "secr et "
DOVEDAlE
doorway. The goblins take turns guard-
in g the front door. If t he PCs approach
dur i ng t he day, a goblin named Fi shbel-
ly is asleep at the guard pos t. As long as
the PCs do not make noises louder t han
normal speech inside the cave, Fi shbel-
Iy wi ll not wake up. even if the PCs
open the front door. If the PCs nab the
sleeping guard, they can negotiate with
Gr ave lbeak to trade Fishbelly for Unda
the nixie. Gr avelbeak will grind his
teeth, throw a terrible tantrum, and
cur se for several min utes, bu t in the
end he will agr ee to the t rade.
If the PCs make a loud noise, Piehbel-
Iy wa kes up (one r ound), looks out
through a cr ack in t he rock to make
sure he was not dreaming (one round),
and sou nds the alarm (t hird round after
the noise). Fi shbelly t hen runs into the
maze (area IOD),
Anyone searching for secret doors in
t he cave has a + I bonus to find a sma ll
stone knob set i n a recess that only
human-sized (or smaller) hands can
reach into. Twist ing the knob causes a
wide stone door to quietly swi ng open. A
small crack in the rock near the knob
goes all the way through to the interior
of the cave a nd allows the guard to look
i nto t he outside portion of the ca ve
wi t hout be ing see n. The snoring sound
is much louder nea r the cr ack i n t he
stone. If t he Pes ma nage to get the door
open wit hout making a loud noise a nd
wa king Fi shbelly, rea d or paraphrase
t he followin g to the players:
The false stone wall swings away on
si lent hinges to reveal a semici rcu lar
interior chamber. This narrow room
is warmed by a fireplace at one end,
beside which lies a ne at pile of peat
br icks. Three small woode n chairs
are drawn up to the hearth, i n which
a low peat fir e bu rns. A goblin clad
in scale mail is asleep in one of the
chair s. A foot-long metal mallet is
slowly slipping out of his fingers. A
large iron tri angle hangs from a
chain fastened to the ceili ng.
l OCoChimney. The goblins have con-
verted t his l SO'tall rock spire into a vent
for their cavern system. It is possible to
climb to the top of the spire; thieves ma y
add 10% to their chance to climb wal ls,
si nce there are many handholds. Even
people wit hout skill in climbing walls can
climb the spire, if they are not wearing
armor and they make a Dexterity check
with a - 4 penalty.
DUNGEON 17
DOVEDAl E
At t he top of t he spire, thin smoke
from the peat fir es below wafts out of a
2'-diameter ve nt hole. A halOing could
cli mb i nto t he hole, but no one larger.
The passage goes st raight down for
100' , t he n branches. The right branch
leads to t he fireplace in t he fr ont door
guardroom (area lOB), and the left
branch leads to Bigdome Cavern (area
to EI. Small shafts also lea d to Haggy
the herbalist's room (area 10L), the
smi t hy (area 10K), and various ot her
places t hroughout the goblin lai r. The
smaller shafts are too const ri cted to
permit pa ssa ge .
From t he top of the spire, it takes
t hree turna t o climb down inside the
shaft to the front door, and four turns to
reach Bigdome Cavern. Anyone who
cli mbs down t he ch imney takes 12 hp
da mage per t urn from the detrimental
effects of smoke inhalation.
This chimney is mostly a vent ilation
shaft. The va rious fires in t he gobli n
lai r ve nt t heir smoke t hrough separate
chimneys wit h better draft. Th e gobli ns
use this chimney to promote ai rflow in
t he lair, and divert some smoke into it
to discourage unwanted visi tors.
100 . Ma ze. When t he PCs enter the
mare, read or paraphrase the following
to the players:
The Dovedal e Goblins
Un less noted, each gobli n ha s the
following statistics: AC 6; HD 1 - I ;
MV 90'(30'): NAT 1 weapon; Dmg by
weapon t ype; Sa ve NM; ML 7 (9 wit h
chieO; INT 9; AL C; SZ Small (4'
t am; XP 5; - I penalt y to at tack
rolls in br ig ht li ght; HC 180.
Eac h of t he gob li ns has the follo w-
ing eq ui pme nt: scale mail , shor t
sword, dagger, light crossbow, four
crossbow hol ts, spear. All t he gobl ins
speak Common and goblin.
Chief Gravelbeak : HD 2--; hp 12;
Save F2 ; ML 9; I 12, W 13; XP 30;
keys to beer cellar and Unda's cage.
Skills: fishing, weaponsmithing, ride
dire wolf, leadership.
Gravelbeak has spent enough time
above ground that he no longer has
the -I penalty to attack roll s in
bright light. In the late evening a nd
early morning, he ca n often be found
near the Dovedale River.
18 Issue No. 46
The dark tunnel ahead of you divides
into smaller tunnels going in a dozen
different directions. The crisscrossing
tunnels form a amfusing maze, with
no sign of which .....ay to proceed. The
tunnels vary in size from full-sized
passages to ~ -diameter holes. In the
sha dows at t he limit of your torchlight,
you catch fleeting glimpses of the
scurrying shapes of large rodents.
The floor of the maze of t unnels is
riddled with pit s to fall in and loose
rocks to twist an ankle on. If the PCs
have a light source, they are in no dan-
ger offall ing into a pit or otherwise
har mi ng themselves. For each t urn
spent wandering in t he dark, roIl l d6. A
result of 1-2 indicates t hat t he lead PC
has fall en into a pit 160% chance, 16 hp
damage) or t wisted a n ankle on a loose
rock (40% chance, 1 hp damage). Pa rties
using infr avision ha ve half t he chance
ofinjuring themsel ves in the dark.
The t wist ing intersections ofthe
t unnel s forms a confusing labyr-inth.
The maze of t unnels is nea rl y impos-
sible to navigate for those who do not
know the ..... ay, and it is impossible to
map. The gobli ns know thei r way
around t he tunnels very well, sot hey
have no problems navigati ng the
maze. PCs ..... ho ve nt ure into the maze
l\Ierekoo: AC 10; HD 1 +3 - - (Sha-
man 4); hp 9; Dmg by spell or weapon
type; Save C4; Size S (3' 6" talll; W 14;
XP 23; gold ring (worth 15 gp) . Skills:
ceremony, heali ng. Spells: cure light
wounds, ligh t, bless.
Merekoo is Orevelbeek'e wife . She
dresses in the black hooded garments
of t he goblin clergy.
Bi gnose: hp 7. Skills: tracking ( +2),
hunting.
Bignose earned his name because his
nose is at least 8 ~ long and ~ wide .
He tracks bis prey by sniffing out
trails, much as a dog does.
Fishbell y: hp S. Skills: fishing,
swi mming, acrobat ics.
Fishbelly is very pale a nd is the onl y
goblin that can swi m, hence hi s name.
Grabbo: bp 4. Skills as 1'2: OL 2W ,
IT 15':I- , RT 15%, CW 88%, l1S 25Ci-,
HS 15%, PP 25%, HN 35'10, double
damage wit h beckstab, di sguise k raft l.
Ha gg)' : hp 4: XP 7. Skills: read and
without a guide have an 8011chance
of' becoming lost. Any PC who has
caving skill (Re, page 83 ) can make a
skill check with a - 4 penalty to avoid
becoming lost. The chance of becoming
lost applies whet her the PCs are going
i nto or coming out of t he gobli n lair.
If the PCs become lost in the maze,
the goblins have a 40'k chance (l-4 on
I dI O) per hour to di scover that someone
has i nvaded their home. If someone
stumbles around in t heir maze for
hours, t he goblins wiIl certainly notice.
Two to eight hours after t he PCs be-
come lost, a gi ant bl ack rat slowly ap-
proaches the PCs, carryi ng a piece of
white clot h clenched in its teeth, The
rat's name is Greasyfur, and it can
speak Common. Greasyfur offers to
guide t he PCs t hrough the maze, for a
fee. The creat ure ini tially asks for suffi-
cient food to feed a giant r at for a week
(about one day 's worth of human ra-
tions), but he will settle for a sandwich
and some shiny baubles. Greasyfur will
also lead the PCs out ofthe goblin tun-
nels for t he same fee. If the Pes make-
any hostile moves toward him, Greasy-
fur turns and disappears into one of the
small t unnels of the maze.
GreB!Syfur (giant rat): AC 7; HD Ih (St.
hp 2; xrv 120'(40' ). swim 6{)'(2O'); ' AT1
bite; Dmg 1-3 plus disease: Save NM; ~ I L
8: UIT 10; AL N; XP 6; HC 201.
....-rite Common and gobli n, deception,
herbalism t poisonsl.
Haggy uses poisoned cr ossbow bolt s.
The poison causes an ext ra 16 hp
damage (sa ve vs. poison at +2 for half
damage, minimum 1 hp j.
Stinkfoot: hp 5. Sk ill s: ride di re
wolf, cheating.
Stinkfoot has big smelly feet . and he
never ta kes off his socks or boots. The
OMmay wish to ru le that Stinkfoot
ca nnot surprise opponents, because of
his unusually potent a nd offensive
body odor.
Stronga rm: HD 1 + 1- ; hp 9: Dmg
by weapon type + 1; L'I;T8; Su e ~ f (S'
tall); XP 19; hammer, key (copy) to
beer cellar. Skills: a rmor-ma ki ng,
blacksmithing, mining.
Swoop : hp 3; INT 13; Size S (2' tall);
XP 15. Skills: animal training, aerial
rid ing (giant bat ).
Swoop is not a member of the tmme-
diate family. He is Merek oo's ne phew.
Any lone PC who strays from th e
paths normally used by t he goblins will
be attacked by Greasyfur's cousin giant
rats (lNT 2, XP 5). The r at s will not
attack groups of t hree or more people
under any circumstances . Th ese giant
rats do not speak and cannot help the
PCs leave the maze.
If the PCs get luc ky and do not be -
come lost , they stumb le into Bigdome
Cavern (area E) after 4-6 (l d3 + 3) turns.
If the PCs force Fi shbelly or bribe
Greasyfur t o gui de them, passage
through the maze t akes only one t urn.
toE. Bigdome Cav ern. When the
PCs enter t hi s cavern, read or pa r a-
phrase t he following to the players:
Youare in a cavern t hat is at least 50'
high and 120' in diameter. Flickering
shadows caused by the dim fire burn-
ing in the central fire pit cloak the
upper reaches of the cavern. Several
tunnels lead off to other are as . A few
ledges perch high on the cavern's
walls. Off to the side of the central fire
pit , a large iron birdcage is sus pended
about 10' off t he floor by a chain t hat
disappears into the dark shadows
cloaking t he ceiling. A small, blue-
skinned humanoid huddles miserably
on the floor ofthe iron cage.
This la rge nat ur al caver n serves as
the main gobli n living qua rters. If
Fishbell y sounded the alar m successful -
Iy, the goblins are waiting to ambush
the PCs here. The goblins keep Unda,
the river spir it, in the iron cage, t o lure
the Pes into rush in g into the caver n.
The goblins wait until t he first two PCs
e nter the cave, t he n rel ease a rock on a
wire. The rock swings down l ike a pen-
dulum and strikes a nyone st ill in the
entryway for 3d6 hp da mage (attacks as
4 HD monster). All PCs in t he path of
the rock a re considered to ha ve AC 10
for t his attack, unless t hey have Dext er-
ity bonuses. A sav ing t hrow vs. paraly-
zation for hal f damage is all owed.
Haggy, t he tribe's herbalist, occupies
the lower ledge (area 10F). Swoop, t he bat
trainer, and one of his bats sit on t he
upper ledge (are a lOG). The remai ning
goblins (and t heir two dire wolves ) hide in
t he side passages. Gravelbeak's wife,
Mere koo, stays out of hand-to-hand corn-
bat and uses her spells to t he goblin's best
advantage. A st raight fight bet ween the
Pes and the goblins should be short and
brutal, and it should end with most of the
Pes either dead or capt ured.
If the PCs ha ve not alerted t he gobli ns
to t heir presence, Bignose is t he only
goblin in Bigdome cavern. Bignose sits
in a comfortable chair by t he fire pit ,
nomi nally guarding Unda. In t his case ,
Unda will have been si ngi ng to Bigncse.
Unda's slow, liquid song has made
Bignose dream of being asl eep on the
banks of a pea ceful ri ver, so t he PCs
will ha ve a +2 bonus t o surprise t he
gobli n. If Bi gno se ma nages to shout an
alarm, t he ot her goblins arrive in 14
r ounds. Gravel beak comma nds t hem.
Unda's cage hangs from t he ceiling by
a stout iron chain. Th e cage is about 4'
high and 3' in diamet er. Gravelbeak
and hi s son Strongarm forged the cage,
then Merekoo engraved t he heavy
met al bars with mystical runes to ke ep
Unda from escapin g and to prevent he r
from us ing he r magi c. A winch, located
near t he passage to area lOG, raises
a nd lowers the iron birdcage. A large
padlock fastened to t he winch keeps it
in its current positi on. A similar pad -
lock holds the cage door shut.
Strongarm made these padlocks, which
are so well made t hat they are worth 50
gp each. Gravelbeak has t he only keys
to the two padlocks.
If a fight occurs in Bigdome Cavern,
Unda helps the PCs in a ny way t hat she
can, eve n if all she ca n do is shout ad -
vice a nd e ncourage ment. Unda knows
t hat Gravel beak has the keys to t he
winc h and the cage, and she tells t his to
t he PCs at t he earlie st opportunit y.
Unda is weakened fr om t he st ress of her
ca ptivity, so she cannot help t he PCs by
cas ting spells or using her innate mag-
ic. Wh en rel eased fr om the cage, Unda
will be too weak to walk, so one of t he
PCs will have to carry he r. For t una tely,
Unda is very small and light (20 lbe.,
200 en). Unda will beg the PCs to r et urn
her to he r spring as quickly as possibl e,
so that she can regai n her strength and
restore t he r iver.
Unda t he r iver fairy (ni xie); AC 7;
HD 1* (S, 2' tall ); hp 11; MV 120' (40' ),
swim 120'(40'); I/AT 1; Dmg 1-4 (swor d)
or 1-3 (arrow); Save E1 or C4; ML 6;
INT 13; AL N; RC 197; Spell s as 5th-
level druid: detect danger, cure light
wounds; speak wi th animals, obscure.
Unda appears as a small, beauti ful
woman with light blue ski n, fins, and
webbing between her toes and fingers.
Unda is invisible while she is in t he wa-
ter ( - 6 to armor class ). She can cast a
water breathing spell on a humanoid once
DOVEDAlE
per day. This form of t he spell lasts 24
hours. Because of her duties as a river
fairy, Unda also has the innate ability to
detect evil in a 50-yard radius. She speaks
Common, elven, fish, and nixie.
Unda uses a small tride nt in hand-to-
hand combat, although she also has a
small short bow. Any creature struck by
one of Unda'e arrows must make a sav-
ing throw vs. poison or fall asleep for
16 hours.
Nor mally, a ni xie may summon a
gi ant bass for aid i n times of danger.
Unda uses this power t o summon
Salvel, t he talking t rout , when she
needs help. Unda has never used her
cha rm abil ity because five more nixies
are r equ ired and t he re are no ot her
ni xies in the Dovedale Ri ver.
Unda has more powers t ha n a nor mal
nix ie because she looks afte r a large
area alo ne. Her ext ra power s were
gr a nted to the Dovedale River ni xie
many years ago by t he long-departed
dr uid, a nd have been passed down from
mot he r to da ughter through several
nixie generat ions.
10F. Lowe r Le dge. The gobli ns have
dropped a rope ladder from t his ledge ,
which is 30' above the main floor. If the
alar m has been sounded, Haggy perc hes
on t he ledge (t he rope ladder pulled up),
waitin g for an opportuni t y to use her
poisoned crossbow bolts. While she is on
t he ledge, Haggy has a -6 adjustment
t o her ar mor class vs . missil e a ttacks
from the cav ern floor (AC 0).
lOG. Upper Le dge. A small tunnel
openi ng on the main floor of Bigdome
Ca vern provides access to this high
ledge, which is 60' above the floor. Only
a halfl ing or goblin can get through this
sma ll t unnel. Ifthe alarm has been
sounded, Swoop a nd one of his bat s wait
on t he ledge for a chance to "swoop"
down and wreak ha voc. As long as they
remain on t he ledge, Swoop a nd his bat
have a - 6 adjustme nt to t hei r ar mor
class (AC 0). See area 101 for more infor-
ma ti on on Swoop and the bat s.
l OR, Wolf De n. Gra velbe ak's family
supports two dire wolves. The dire
wolves spe nd most of t heir ti me in t he
Dalewold preyin g on r abbits, quai l, and
Mrs. Cogs's sheep, but t hey have also
been known to attack the occasional
unwary sheephe rder. The wolves spend
most of their ti me (90%) outside in the
Dalewold; t hey sit in the cave only if
DUNGEON 19
DOVEDAlE
\
' .. mil..
to"";1
the weather is extreme ly foul, or
Gr avelbea k or Stinkfoot has called
them in (lo%). If the wolves are outside
when the alarm is sounded, t hey return
in one turn. The wolves get in and out
of the cave by way of a narrow tunnel.
which runs a half mile nort h and comes
out in a pile of boulders and brush.
Di re wolves (2r. AC 6: HD 4 + 1 (M);
hp 23; MV 150'(50 ' ); 'AT 1 bite: Dmg
2d4; Save F2; ML 8; I NT 4; AL N; XP
125; He 212.
Grabbo someti mes disguises t he wolves
as sheep 80 t hey can sneak in with MI"lI.
Cogs's flock. The sheep disgui ses are
20 Issue No. 46
Goblin Lair
Area 10
1 square = 10'
N
-.
... mi l.. to
_ ..., . l OS
K
100 Feet bet ween points
hanging on pegs in the back of the cave.
Unless t he a larm has been sounded,
Stinkfoot is here cleaning out the cave,
which is also his bedroom. He sleeps on
a pile of twigs and grass against the
west wall . A nearby footlocker contains
eight brand-new pairs of socks (never
used), t hree bars of soap (never used,
alt hough one has a bite taken out of itj,
four cloves of garlic, a deck of ma rked
cards, three pairs of loaded dice, 6 gp, 8
sp, and 3 ep.
101, Bat Ca v-e. Th is dark cave is t he
headquarters for the gobli n ai r force ,
current membership: one . The cave is
40' above the level of the corridor belc..... .
A ladder located behind the secret door
provides access. The ca ve has a secret
door to the outside as .....ell , .....hich is
disguised as part of the cliff-Ieee. The
10.....ide by 6'-high opening is 60' up the
side of the cliff. A winch located in the
cave opens the secret door.
The cave has to be high up on the cliff
.....all so t hat the bats can get up airspeed
when they are carrying Swoop. The
most serious limitation to the goblin air
force is that it can operate only at night.
However, t he ai r force has one major
advantage: all of it s flie rs a re "stealth"
un it s. Swoop has n-ained two bat s so
t hat he has a bac ku p if one of t he bats is
inj ured or not feeling well.
Gi ant hat s (2): AC 6; HD 2 (M); hp 15,
9; MV 30'(10 '). fly 180'(60' ); 'AT 1 bite;
Dmg I d4; Save Fl ; Size M (5' long, 25'
wingspan); ML 8; INT 5; AL N: XP 20:
RC 159.
Alt hough the bats are blood drinkers.
they are well fed and will not attack on
eight. The bats love to eat fruit and can
he bribed not to sound the alarm by
throwing an apple or pear to each. The
giant bats will attack if Swoop is threat-
ened. in any way.
Swoop sleeps here with hi s furry,
flying charges. His wooden cot is cov-
ered. with several dirtv blankets. His
gear consists of a leather flying jacket
(li ned with lambs' wool), a leather fly-
ing helmet, a spare set of goggles, sad-
die s, flight lines, sa fety li nes. several
spare sets of metal fittings, a signal
horn. flight bag, 25 gp, 30 sp. 45 cp, a
si lver lucky cha r m (for flyi ng) wor t h 5
gp, flig ht boots, and t wo white silk
sca rves (3 gp eac h).
IOJ. Slee ping Quarter s . Grabbo.
Fishbell y, and Bignose have t heir quar-
ters in this cavern. There are two spare
beds, in case the goblins have visitors
from other goblin clans. Each bed has B
large footlocker beside it . A 3')( S' plank
table occupies the middle of the room.
The floor is covered by a 6- -deep layer
of dirt, shredded paper, dirty clothes.
discarded bits of food. and other un sani-
tary debris.
Grabbo's footlocker contains 4 gp, 13
sp. 21 cp, and an assortment of wigs,
makeup, clothes, and accessories. The
footlocker also contains a mask that
looks exactly like Ben, Mrs. Cogs's
youngest boy. Grabbo often disguises
himsel f as Ben and performs all sorts of
mischi ef around Mrs. Cogs's fa rm and
in Ashbourne. Grabbo knows t hat Ben
gets blamed for t he trouble he causes,
and that is at least half the Cun.
Bignoee'e footlocker contains an as-
sortment of animal paws and feathers.
fOUT mink pelts (10 gp each), 14 gpo27
sp, and 30 cp.
Fishbelly's footlocker contai ns 15 gp
worth of fishing lures. a pair of hip-
waders, and a jar of rotten trout eggs.
Anyone wh o opens the jar must make a
savi ng throw va. poison or gag and retch
for the next turn, during which time the
unfortunate person has a -2 penalty to
all attack rolls. A lOgp opal is hi dden
among the eggs.
10K. Workshop and Smithy. Gravel.
beak's oldest son, Strongarm, spends
most of his time in the smi t hy. The
room is very hot and lit only by the
ever-present ruddy glow of the forge.
Strongarm keeps the workshop neat
and tidy, which is unusual for a goblin.
All the tool s are carefull y arranged on
the walls. and the metal stock is sorted
according to type and grade. Strongarm
has quite a re putation in gobli n circles
as a fine smit h. He is a la rge goblin,
and hi s constant wor k at the forge has
made him abnormally st rong.
In a corner of t he smit hy, Gravelbea k
has a workbench devoted to his fishing
hobby. The surface a nd the drawers are
filled wi t h fishi ng gear: lures, shi ny
spi nners, lead si nkers, floa ting lines,
sinking lines, bobbers, flies, knives,
tools, vises, worm hooks, egg hook s,
multi -color ed feat hers for fly-t ying,
t hread, a nd wax. Th e accumulated
fishing gear is wort h a total of 200 gpo
Gravelbeak still has not had any luck
catching Salvel; t he fish is just too wi ly
and clever. However, Gravelbeak has a
backup plan that, when coupled wit h the
lowered river, just might succeed. In one
comer of the bench, a delicate fly-t ying
vise holds an exquisite fly fash ioned wit h
a razor-sharp hook of the finest steel. The
hook is hidden beneath golden thread.
gold-dust impregnated wax, eyes made of
ruby chips, and t he softest, rarest, most
delicate golden-colored peacock feathers
available. The fly is 80 beautiful that it
will tempt Salvel. In nonnal times. even
without the lowered river, Gravelbeak
would have a l in-20 chance per day of
catching Selvel with this fly. With the
lowered river, Gravelbeak has a 1-in-8
chance per day of catching Salvel, be-
cause food is scarce in the drought-
stricken river. Gravelbeak has spent t he
last several days work ing on the fly, and
it will be ready to use in one more day,
after the wax sets. The gorgeous fly could
fetch as much as 150 gp from a collector:
Gravelbeak does most of his fishing
duri ng the early morning and late eve-
ning hours. This is the best time to go
fishi ng, and he does n't mind getting up
a little early, or staying up a little late,
in order to indulge in his beloved hobby.
Gravelbeak sometimes gets up in the
mi ddle of t he day to go fishi ng, if it is
cloudy outside .
10L. Haggy's Room. Haggy the herb-
alist is t he only daughter in the goblin
family. Her parents are quite proud of
her talents. Haggy developed an i nter-
est in he rbalism at the tender age of
seven, when she baked her first batch of
poisoned cookies for her brothers. Lucki-
ly, none of he r brot hers died, but to t his
day not one of t hem will eat anything
that Haggy has prepared.
The tools of her t rade fill Haggy's
room from corner to corner: knives,
mortar a nd pestle, poundi ng blocks,
hammers, stone mixi ng pots containing
poisons in various states of production,
glass stor age jars containi ng noxious
subst ances . pots and pa ns , a small
stove, and a kitchen grater, Haggy di s-
t ills most of her poisons from mu sh-
rooms that she gathers in the Dalewold.
The Dovedale gobli ns t rade Haggy's
poi sons and Strongarm's smit h work to
ot her goblin tribes for things t hat t hey
need and want. Th ere are four via ls of
fmis hed poison (3d6 hp damage; save va.
poison for half da mage) in Haggy's
workshop , whi ch could be sold to an
unscru pulous person for 50 gp each.
A woolen sock hidden under t he pillow
on Haggy's bed contains 20 gp, 17 sp, 34
cp, and a poisoned needle. The needle will
pri ck anyone who reaches into the sock,
causing the unfortunate trespasser to
t urn purple, qui ver, frot h at the mouth,
and finally fal l into a deep sleep for 1-4
hours (save vs. poison for no eITect ). Hag-
gy put the needle in her sock as a trap for
her pryi ng brothers.
10M. Gr a velbeak and Me r e koo's
Room. The northern part of this room
is given over to sleepi ng quarters for
Gravelbeak and his wi fe, Merekoo. The
spacious room has obviously had a con-
siderable amount of wor k put i nto its
finishing. All the stone walls a re
smooth and polished. The floor has bee n
DOVEDALE
leveled a nd t iled with heavy, red-vei ned
granite. All the chinks and cracks t hat
would normally make a cave subject to
drafts have been sealed, making the
room a cozy place.
The chief goblin and his wife sleep in
a large, comfortable, fur-covered bed in
one corner of the room. A bearskin rug
(worth 80 gp) lies on t he floor near the
bed. Gravelbeak's great-great grandfa-
t her killed the bear. and the rug has
been keeping bare goblin toes off the
chilly stone floor ever since.
Beneath the bed, a secret trapdoor is
carefully disguised to fit into the pat-
tern of the floor ; a PC must roll to de-
tect secret doors. The trapdoor opens to
reveal a 3' x 3' x 3' cubbyhole that con-
tains a potion of healing, a bag contain-
ing 100 gp worth of gold flakes and
nuggets (t he fruits of Strongarm's min-
ing skills), two golden cups (religious
items worth 25 gp each), 80 gp, 140 sp,
and 43 cp.
When Merekoo left her fami ly to be-
come Gravelbeak's wife, she promptly
appropriated the southern alcove of this
room as a shrine to the goblin deities.
Merekoo decorated the shrine in the
traditional gobli n fashion: floor-lengt h
black drapes, black granite altar, black
wax candles, and several paintings of t he
goblin deities, most ly done in different
shades of black . Mer ekoo was tr ained by
her mot her to bea shaman, and now she
serves as the fami ly shaman for the Dove-
dale gobli ns . Merekoo spends most of her
free ti me in the shri ne, kneeling in pray-
er to the various gobli n gods that have so
blessed her fa mi ly.
ION, Back Door. The goblins' back
door is hidden under a 3'-tall boulder in
the middle of a cow pasture hal f a mile
east of Dcvedale. The boulder requires
an open-doors roll to move (a 5 or 6 on
Id6 for most characters, 46 for
St rongar m t he gobli n). Only gobli n-
si zed or sma ller creatures can wr iggle
down this narrow. muddy t unnel. A
hal fli ng coul d fit in the tunne l, or possi-
bl y a small elf with a min imum of cloth-
ing. It takes at least an hour to
negotiate the narrow, twisting tunnel
from the cow pasture to where it eon-
nects to t he main goblin tunnels. The
goblins use t heir back door for emergen-
cies only.
11. The P ainted Bridge. A small
bridge arches across the Dovedale River.
The footbri dge is I ' wide and 30' long. A
Contjnu9d on page 49
DUNGEON 21
Continued from page 21
3'-wide section i n t he middle of the
bridge supports a well-worn sitting
bench. The bridge is painted a flery
shade of red, with small pa inted water-
flowers dotted all over its surface. De-
spite it s light construction, the bridge is
st urdy enough to support even an ogre,
if one should attempt to cross. The
bridge's beauty is marred only by a few
gobli n chew-marks on the east side, a nd
a number of half-hearted attempts at
graffiti, including, "Ha h hah stupid
fairy, we cot you," and " Th is bridge
tastes terrible."
Unda built this bridge many years
ago. for three reasons. It's pretty, and it
aid s foot tralTic in case a nyone wa nts to
come see her. Unda'a original theory
was that the bridge would also kee p the
goblins from wading in the stream
when they wanted to cross the river.
Every time the goblins waded across the
river, it wa s a minor catastrophe, espe-
cially when Stinkfoot cr ossed, because
he never took a bat h. The gobl ins
stirred up the mud at t he bottom and
fouled the water. The fish complained to
Unda about the stench, and various
sensitive water- plants would just curl
up and di e. However, much to Unda's
di smay, t he goblins wade across t he
river anyway. Th ey refuse to use the
br idge because " It's an ugly little fairy
bridge for wimpy girlie-men."
12. Spri ng Roc k. This spring is the
only remaining water source for the
Dovedale Rive r. Wit hout the ti ny
spr ing, the Dovedale River would be
utterly dry. The water from t his spri ng
comes out of a 6" -diameter hole on t he
top of a roughly spherical Hr-diameter
boulder. The resulting stream is 3' wide
and 6" 8" deep, a mere trickle compared
to the normal flow of the Dovedale Riv-
er. Above this point the riverbed con-
tinues on, dry as a bone.
If the PCs have rescued Unda a nd try
to put her in this spring, she tells t hem
that this is the wrong pl ace. Her spring
is much larger, and it is farther up the
dal e.
The walls of the Dovedale a re not as
steep here as they are in t he rest of t he
dale. The walls are climbable, although
the muddy slope is still quite steep. The
ascent takes about four turns. Anyone
with climbing skill s can make the as-
cent in half this time. Anyone who
climbs the walls of the Dovedale is
coated in mud and slime by the t ime he
reaches t he top.
13. Unds 's Spring. When t he PCs
reach t his area, read or paraphrase t he
followi ng to t he players'
You have reached what must be the
source of the Dovedale River, at least
in normal times. The high walls of t he
dale close about you, steep and gray.
The walls surround a 30'-diameter pool
shaded by taU willows and lithe ma-
pies. The pool is evidentl y quite deep,
but the water level has visibly
drop ped. Vou can see where wate r
normally flows out of the pool and into
the riverbed of the Dovedale River, but
now t hat channel is dry. Nestled
among the trees on t he east side of the
pool is a tiny two-story cottage of white
stucco, complete with a rai led porch
and a brick chimney. The cottage ap-
pears to be built for someone who is no
more than 2' tall.
The pool is indeed the source of t he
r iver. Although the pool appears to be
small and shallow, it extends down
more t ha n 200' t hrough tortuously
win ding caves to a deep, pure under-
gr ound aquifer. Unda has t o per for m
daily maintenance on the spring or it
becomes choked and clogged, cutting off
t he water supply.
The house beside t he pool is Unde's
home: too small for a human or an elf,
although a very sho rt and very slim
hal fling might be able to squeeze in.
Th e cottage is outfi tted with everything
t hat a well-to -do human might ha ve in
an expensive home. The furnit ur e is
made from expensive woods, t he plates
and cups ar e made of fine bone china,
the dwarven-made silverwa r e is re al
silver, t he floor-ha rp in t he corner is
beautifull y made a nd well t uned, t he
decor ations are tasteful and subdued.
Th e layout of t he cot tage is left to the
DM's imaginatio n.
Concl Uding the Adventure
When the PCs rescue Unda from
Gravelbeak's iron cage, sh e is too wea k
to walk or cast spells. Unda tells t he
PCs t hat they must return her to her
pool, at the far end of the Dovedale
(area 13). lf the gobli ns a re ch asing t he
PCs, they conti nue t he chase as t he PCs
carry Unda up t he pat h to t he pool. The
PCs can simply lower Unda into t he
water once t hey reach the pool.
Once Unda is in the pool, t he surface
of the pool begi ns to bubble a nd frot h.
Th e water level quickl y r ises, and with-
DOVEDAlE
in mi nutes after Unde's return, wat er
begins boiling down the dry channel of
the Dovedale River. The river will be
restored to its normal flow wit hin hours
after Unda retur ns to the spring. Five
rounds after she ret urns to her pool ,
Unda will be restored enough to join
a ny combat between the PCs and the
gobli ns . Unda stays in t he water and
shoots t he goblins wit h her specially
made bow. She cannot cas t spells until
she has r ested in her pool for at least
eight hour s.
After the PCs return Unda to her
pool, t he river fairy urges them to stay
by the pool for a day. At t he end of t his
ti me, Unda gives t he PCs sever al magi.
cal berries as a r eward for resc uing her
from t he wicked gobli ns. Llnda cast her
cure light wounds spe ll on the blackber-
ry vines t hat grow near her home . The
spell caused Id6 + 1 bl ackberries to
become magical. Each berry cures 1 hp
when eaten. Unda cast the spell twice,
so t he PCs wil l get 2d6 +2 berries. Each
berry lasts one month, after which time
it becomes nonmagical. Unda also gives
eac h PC a kiss on t he fore head, instill
ing t hem wit h "the luck of t he fairies."
Each PC gets a +I bon us on all saves
for t he next month.
If t he PCs restore the Dovede te to its
normal healt hy flow, the local farmers
give the PCs the 100-gp reward. The
OM should award a bonus of 150 XP to
each PC. If the PCs also get the golden
flyaway from Gr avelbeak, thus ensur-
ing Salvel's safety, the OM should
award an ad ditional lOOXP bonus to
eac h PC. If the PCs di scover Grabbe's
impersonation of Ben Cogs and manage
to clear Ben's reputation, eac h PC
should get an additional 25 XP.
This module provides hooks for sev-
eral further adventures. It is possible to
develop a running feud between the PCs
and the Dovedale goblin t ribe. Will t he
goblins attempt to retaliate against the
PCs for rescuing Un da and thwarting
their carefully laid scheme to capture
Salvel? Adventur es could also be based
on the Th ree Stone Giants (Where was
their lair? What happens if someone
turns t he m back into flesh? ], t he dan-
ger ous wolves in the Dalewold, and the
secret goblin t unnel leading into the
In n-on-t he-Pea k's beer cellar. n
DUNGEON 49
THEM APPLES
BYCHRISTOPHERPERKINS
It takes just one to spoil
them a ll.
32 Issue No. 48
Chris writes: "This is my sixth appear-
ance in Adltent ures and
my first attempt at a D&D" adve ntu re.
In a way, uiritiru; " Them Apples" was
lik e walking down the lees-treoeied road.
I felt like an adventurer explori ng neur
ground. I'm just thankful! di dn 't en-
counter any hill gi ants along the way."
"Them Apples" is a D&D adventure
de signed for 4--8 player cha racters of
levels 13 (about 12 total levels ). Most of
the PCs should be Lawful in ali gnment .
though a vari et y of classes a nd races is
recommended. To run thi s adventure,
t he OM needs only the D&D Rules
Cyclopedia (Re).
Alt hough t he possibilit y for combat
exists, t he party's succes s will re ly more
on ingenuit y than swordsma nship . The
antagonists in thi s module ca n easily
devasta te a lew-level party. For this
reason. suggestions for awarding non-
combat experience points are gi ven at
t he conclusion of the adventure.
Th is ad venture is designed for a ge-
neric 0 &0 set t mg, but it ca n be easily
inserted into t he Known Wor ld or a ny
other wilderness campaign with few
adjustments. (The OM running a
Known World ca mpai gn might consi der
using t he Fi ve Shires town of Weeeska-
lot as t he start ing point for the adven-
ture.) With a few statistical conversions,
this adventure can even be used by 0:\15
running low-level AD&O' campaigns.
Ad venture Background
The village of\"listil is known for only
two t hings: amiable halflings and tast y
red apples. The 10 or so haUl ing fami-
lies who occupy Wistil tend their or -
chards with proud diligence, nurturing
t he fine st soil in the count ry to grow t he
best apples t hey can. Visi tors who fre-
quent Wist il never leave without pur-
chasing basket fuls ofthe delicious fr uit .
often by the eartload.
Although the halflings of Wi!ltil work
very hard to maintain their reputation as
the finest apple growers in the kingdom,
this does create some problems for t he
idyllic halfling community. Various ot her
apple growers in the region (including
neighboring halfhng shi res) ha ve become
envious cr Wisti l's reputation. Despite
elTortsto mimic Wist i1's met hods for
planting and nurturing, these competing
orchard o....-ners often find themsel ves
producing fruit t hat pales by comparison.
Their apples lack the plumpness. taste,
and overall luster of Wistil apples. Some
of the more determined rivals have actu-
ally stolen earth from Wistil, believing it
possesses some magical secret, only to
discover that the earth alone does not
guarantee a fine crop.
The halflings of Wistil are quite will-
ing to reveal their "secrets" to growing
splendid apples: techniques that include
planting posies at the base of each tree
in the spring, singing to the apples as
they begin to ripen, and allowing joyful
children to climb and frolic among the
boughs. For most other orchard owners,
however, such techniques have proven
both arduous and (if you'll pardon the
pun) fruitless.
One rival in particular has become so
incensed with the halflings over the last
several years that he is willing to destroy
Wistil's entire crop just to ruin the half-
ling village's fine reputation. This rival is
a disgruntled human orchard-keeper
named Yulin Nell. Yulin's small orchard,
located several miles from Wistil (near a
human town called Keswig), has steadily
been losing business because its apples
are smaller, duller, and less tasty than the
ones found in Wistil. Customers would
rather pay 1 gp for a basket ofWistil's
apples than 1 sp for two baskets of Yulin's
apples.
Yulin realized long ago that he was
neither brave enough nor ingenious
enough to engineer a plot against the
halflings of Wistil by himself. His devo-
tion to apple-growing didn't win him
many clever friends, either. All he could
do was spend his evenings complaining
over a mug of ale at his favorite tavern
in Keswig.
A Friend In Need
Two months ago (while drowning his
sorrows in a tankard of ale), Yulin en-
countered a young elf who fancied him-
self an adventurer. After Yulin
explained his problem, the elf promised
to help the discouraged orchard-keeper
get back at the halflings who ruined his
business. A fortuitous happenstance?
Yulin seemed to think so.
Yulin does not know that his elven
ally is actually a polymorphed wood-
drake: a green-scaled, man-sized dragon
capable of assuming demihuman form
(elf or halfling only). The wooddrake is
extremely Chaotic, causing trouble
wherever it goes. It sees Yulin's thirst
for vengeance as a way to get the poor
orchard-keeper in trouble, and an ex-
cuse to wreak havoc among the half-
lings of Wistil.
The wooddrake, in its elf disguise,
promised Yulin its services for a hefty fee
of 20 gpo Yulin, though far from wealthy,
reluctantly parted with the money (which
would otherwise have been usedto drink
himself into oblivion).
Combining Yulin's coins with its own
assortment of pickpocketed funds, the
wooddrake visited Keswig's local
thieves' guild and bought a decorative
flask of poison. The wooddrake then set
out for Wistil, altering its appearance to
resemble a cheerful halfling. The poly-
morphed wooddrake had no trouble
securing a job tending the apple trees.
After several days of careful village
surveillance, the drake crept out into
the orchard one night and doused the
roots of six apple trees with the poison.
It then discarded the empty flask before
returning to its room in the house of a
local family.
Wistil's Blight
The halflings ofWistil became suspi-
cious of sabotage one month ago, when
six of their apple trees began displaying
symptoms of a mysterious ailment. The
nature of the ailment is still unknown
to the halflings, although they suspect
poison. This theory was all but con-
firmed when the village sheriff discov-
ered an unusual-looking flask lying in
the bushes near the poisoned orchard
only days after the initial poison symp-
toms were detected. The flask was care-
fully crafted into the likeness of a green
dragon (ironically, much like the wood-
drake in appearance), but its former
contents could not be identified.
Even in the vastness of the orchard,
the poisoned trees are readily visible.
The apples (not yet ripened or edible)
have fallen off, the leaves have turned
dull black, and the bark has faded to a
pale ivory hue. The halflings have ap-
plied all their nurturing skills to no
avail. The poisoning, though limited to
only six trees, has the entire village up
in arms. The very sight of such wretch-
ed trees could damage Wistil's fine
reputation or, by sheer presence, make
the other trees in the orchard "unhap-
py" (or so the halfling farmers profess).
Some concerned villagers suspect that
the poisoned trees are actually an omen
forecasting an end to their way of life.
Believing their trees (and reputation)
to be in jeopardy and lacking the skills
THEM APPLES
to nurse the afflicted trees back to
health, the villagers organized a party
of six halflings to consult with the
druids of Gelwen Grove, a small and
reclusive coven situated in the depths of
Thistlewood (a forest some 25 miles east
of Wistil). The leader of the halfling
band, Roland, was given two money
purses (each containing 75 gp) in the
event the druids requested payment for
their assistance. The halflings, of
course, were unaware that treasure
holds little importance among druids.
The Druids and the Giant
The halflings arrived in Gelwen Grove
without incident. The druids listened
patiently to the halflings' plight and
were quick to identify the nature of the
malady. They gave the friendly half-
lings six small wooden flasks of antidote
to treat the ailing trees (one potion per
tree). When the druids declined to ac-
cept the halflings' money, Roland and
his friends happily departed for home.
On the way back to Wistil, the halflings
had the misfortune of meeting a hill giant
on a hunting foray. Awedby the giant's
immensity, the halflings quickly fled, but
the giant easily outran them. The giant,
Brufnu by name, hurled a heavy net over
the fleeing wee folk, snaring five of them,
including Erol, who was carrying the
potions. Only Roland managed to avoid
capture. He tried to hold the giant at bay
with his sling, but Brufnu was undaunt-
ed. The giant hoisted up his netful of
halflings, slung the catch over his shoul-
der, and sauntered back to his house in
the hills.
Roland pursued the hill giant, pepper-
ing Brufnu with sling stones. The giant,
irked by Roland's tenacity, grabbed the
bold halfling and hurled him 60'
through the air. (Five halflings make a
fine meal; six is a stomach cramp wait-
ing to happen.) Roland was seriously
injured and could not pursue the giant
any farther. He limped back to Wistil,
struggling with the loss of not only his
friends but also the druids' potions.
Roland's Return
With bleary eyes, Roland described his
encounter with the giant to the assem-
bled halflings. When one of the vil-
lagers asked Roland why he didn't bribe
the giant with the 150 gp he carried,
Roland burst into tears; the idea simply
hadn't occurred to him.
The Chaotic wooddrake revelled in
DUNGEON 33

THEM APPLES
this une xpected turn of events and
immediately suggested t hat a ne w party
be eent to re trieve the stolen potions
and missing halfl ings, knowing full well
the carnage that would result. The
ot he r villagers viewed t he sit uat ion
wit h no less urgency, unaware or t he
wooddrak e's wish to foster more chaos.
They did not . however, wi sh to endanger
any more halOing lives. When it was
proposed t hat t he village hire a band of
profe ssionals t o locate and penetrate the
giant 's lair. t he woodd rake sa w yet
a nother opport unit y to increase chaos
a nd confusion.
34Issue No. 48
The wooddr ake, in its hal lling disguise,
intends to follow the bold adventurers to
the gi an t's lai r, where it hopes to sti r up
more trouble (and prevent anyone from
re tri eving t he druids' poti ons).
The drake is a pract iced thief. adept
at making thin gs difficult for t hose
a round it . Th e wooddrake does not like
combat and surrenders irnmsdiataly if
cor nered a nd attacked. Like most good
pra nksters, t he wooddrake lik es t o take
credit for its mi sdemea nor a a nd eventu-
ally wants to be captured. What better
time to tell everyone that it 's actually a
fr eela nce t hief who was hired by a spite.
fulund "ext remely dangerous " apple
gr ower named Yuli n Nell t o poison
w tst tl's apple orc hards. Foster ing enmi-
ty is, after all , t he wooddrake'a favor ite
pa stime.
Beginning the Adventure
This adventure dea ls primarily wit h the
part y's att empt to penet rate the hill
gia nt's la ir. Lucki ly for th e part y, Br uf;
nu is not home whe n t he Pes first ar-
rive. (See " The House on t he Hill" for
det a ila.) Th e wooddrake is an added
complicatio n t hat t he PCs must event u-
a lly contend with. Ho..... ever. before t he
advent ure can begin. the PCs mu st be
in t he vici nity of Wisti l. Maybe the PCs
lire j ust pa ssing t hrough. or perhaps th e
loca ls have posted notices requesting
thei r services.
If the OM ..... ishes, the PCs could st roll
int o Wistil j ust as poor Roland ret urns
wit h news of the hi ll giant's ambush.
The PCs .....ould then overhear the vil-
la ger s (and the wooddrake) wre st li ng
wit h th e noti on of an organized rescue.
The villagers would be most grateful if
t he Pes volunteered to hel p them. Sre-
ti stics for t he vill a gers a nd the wood-
dra ke are given in aren A. (See "Wisti l
a nd the Wilderness." )
The villagers do not know where the
marauding giant lives tthey presume he
dwells in t he hills). but Roland can de-
scri be the place where he and the ot her
halfllngs wer e attacked: a gully filled
wit h statues. (Seearea B.) Brufnu's dwell-
ing is, in fact, located at area G.
Un like the deceitful wooddra ke, t he
halfiings of Wisti l are Lawful. If t he
Pes succeed in rescui ng the five mi ss-
ing halflfnga. the village will gladly pay
them t he 150 gp previously set aside for
t he druids . For each drui dic pot ion
retur ned intact. t he village will pay
a nother 50 gp (hence if all six fla sk s are
ret r ieved. t he paymen t is a whopping
300 gpJ. The troublesome wooddea ke
will t ry de sperat ely to keep these p0-
ticns from reaching the vill age.
WistU and the Wilderness
For every six hours t he party spen ds in
the wilderness. t he DM should roll for a
random encounter. There is a l -in6
chance of a n encounter occurri ng;
consult t he " Random Wilderness En-
counters" ta ble if a 1 is rolled. Random
encounters should be nonlet hal; t he DM
is encouraged to modify encounters that
might prove too difficult for weak parties.
A. Village of wist tl .
Nl'slled among t he gI'Hi'I8Y hills is t he
vi llaJ.,te of Wistil , a halfli ng community
well known for its cozy hlbipitality and
it" wondrous apple orch ards. The vil-
lage proper is nothing more than u
collection of burrows with small doors.
hand-woven wel come mats, a nd brick
chimneys. The orchards, ....-it h thei r
perfect rows of apple trees , st retch
across the hillsides and valleys as far
as the eye can see. Several stout folk
CRn be seen in the orchards. carefully
tending t he earth and t rees with van-
ous implements.
The vill age consists of 10 burrows, one
per family (t he typical halfling family
consists of I d6 +4 individual s. plus guests
and hoarders). Most of the halfli ngs, in-
eluding the children. spend their days
tending the orchar ds. Only the bouse-
wives and village elders remain near the
burrows. At night, most nf the halflings
retire to thei r homes (except Id4 + I mem-
bers of t he vi l lage militia assigned to
guard t he orchards agai nst t he depreda-
tions of wil d dflb'8, raccoons, and ot her
mischievous ani rnalat
The S heriff of Wist il is a rotund, fort h-
right halOing named Gneegin Furfoot.
Gneegin's j ob is t o prot ect. Wistil' s faml-
li es and orc hards, in t ha t order. He
commands the vi llage guard, cur re nt ly
composed of seven male halfl ings in-
cl uding Roland, his sergea nt. Gneegin
deeply regret s not sendi ng a fu ll militia
esc ort with t he hal flings to Ge lwen
Grove , but he feared further a t tempts t o
poison the orchards a nd want ed hi s
mili ti a close by.
If t he PCs ask to see t he poisone d
tree s for themselves, Sheriff Gneegin is
more than happy to lead them i nt o the
orcha rd where t he six aili ng t rees a re
located, Unfort u nately, onl y a dr uid
posse sses the k nowled ge to fashion a n
antidot e for the poison, tl n the D&D
syst em. a druid is a s pecial ized cleric of
9th level or high er.)
Gnt'4;'",rin Furinot , hatning sheriff; AC
7 (5 ag-ainst large creatu res); H4 ; hp 18;
MV 90'130'); ' AT 1 weepon: Dmg by
weapon type; SA + 1 to a ttack rolls wit h
missiles. +1 init iati ve bonus; Save H4;
l\.lL 10; AL L; SZ S; S 12, Ill, W 12, D
12, C 13, Ch 14; RC/182; leat her armor,
small wooden shie ld (usually kept in
burrow), short sword, sli ng (30 stones),
dragon-shaped (found in the (lrchard;
t his container once held t he poison).
Rol a nd Wic kthi cket . ha lfling ser-
gean t: AC 5 (3 agai ns t large-sized err-a-
tureo; 113; hp 3 112 at full l; SA + 2 to
at tac k rolls wit h missiles; Save H3;
10 (8 if Gneegin is sla in); S 13, 19, W 10,
D 13, C 11, Ch 12; ot he r st at e and eq uip-
ment same as Gm"t'gin.
Roland sustai ned da mage from t he
hill giant and greatly a ppreciates any
he aling the Pes offer.
lI alnin R" mili ti a (6): AC 6 (4 aga inst
large cre at u res); H2: hp 8 each: Save
H2; ML 10 (8 if Gneegi n is slain); ot he r
st a te same a s Gneegin ; leat her a rmor,
small woode n shield, short sword, da g-
ge r. tili ng (20 stones).
No r mal halOi ngs (671: liD 1-1; hp -l
(ad ults), 3 (adoles cents) , 2 (childre n);
Save HI ; ML 8; ot her et a ta sa me as
Gn eegtn: t ypica lly unar med (251'f carry
da ggers or knives),
B. Stat ues i n t he Gull )'.
A shallow st ream flows along
bottom of a roc ky ravine ahead of you.
A few shade trees grow alo ng the top
of t h... gully, and severa l rocky outcrop-
pings can be seen in th e area , hut your
atte nt ion is lmrnedia tely drawn to the
dozen or more stat ues in t he vici nity,
Some of t he stat ues are humanoid ;
others are carved in the likenesses of
wild animal s.
The stat ues are not carved; th ey a re
peo ple and a nima ls turned to stone by a
pair of cockat rices t hat once lai red here.
The cockatrices have si nce departed,
leaving be hi nd 13 stat ues: four humans,
two hobgoblin!!, t wo halflings. om'
dwarf. and t he rest a nimal s (a dee r; t wo
wolves, a nd a mu le). Th ere is no trea-
sure t o be found around the stat ues.
Th is is where the halnings encoun-
tered t he giant. PCs searchi ng the area
have a l -i n-6 chance of finding 1-2 pol .
ished el ing stones belonging t o the half-
li ng Roland. The gi ant is nowhere to be
found, but PCs wit h tra cking skills may
attempt to follo w t he giant's foot prints
to area F. A skill check is re quired each
hour to locate a nd con tinue to follow t he
hill gia nt 's t rai l.
C. Tbtstlewoud.
You ha ve entered a de nse forest of
mi xed decid uous t rees. Th e woods
are teeming wit h all ma n ner of wi ld-
li fe, from small ga me t o a nnoyi ng
clouds of iIl&'Cts, The trees create a
THEM APPLES
Random w ilde r nes s Encou nters
mul!I (8)
I Oil heet le : AC4; HD2; hp 8; MY
120'(40'1; -'AT 1 brtre plus special; Dmg
Id1i plus special; SA oil spray; Save FI ;
ML8; INT 0; AI. N; SZ M; XI' 25; RC1160.
This black beet It' up from the
earth and squirts its blist t'"r Lng oil at one
of the PC". (Victi meu eeks III -2 until II
cure lisht spell ill or 24 hours
have p,ulsed _J
2. Gn" Us u-seAC 5: HD 2; hp II each :
xt v 9O'c3O' ); ' AT I ; Dmg by weapon type
+ 1; Save F2; ML 8; AI. C; SZ L;
XI' 20; Rei180; spear; 2dlO cp each. These
hunters a re tak i ng II sla in deer back 10
their lair in the t ulle. They attack only jf
they outnumber the pCs; otherwise, they
steer ch-ar,
3. Harpy: AC7; HD 3; hp 13; MY
60'120' ), ny 150'(50' ); 'AT 2 elawsl J weep-
on plua specia l: Dmg ld-lild4/1d6; SA
singing charm; Save F6; ML 7; INT 7; AL
C; SZ XI' 50; RCJ182. The harpy hall a
nest somewhere i ll th e hills. She attllch
WIth her claws and a wooden club.
4. AC6; un I + I; hp
6 each: MV 90 '130"); _AT J; Dmg by wealJ'"
on tyJ>t!; &!\e fol ; ML 8; L'iIO; AL c: SZ
XI' 15; RCIIl'!5; long sword, short oow,
six arrows, 2Asp. There's n 30't chance
that these !lohgoblin:; are resting among a
cluster of boulders and an.' not immedi-
atel }- visible. The s" hunters attack the
Pes on lIight .
5. Hobher fIi {' !i (161; AC 6; HD 2; hp i
each; 90'(30' 1, n} 18{l' tOO'); #AT 1
bite; Dmg IdS; Save F1 ; ML8; 0; AL
N; SZ S; XP 20; RC1202. These devious
insect e nre hi ding in the shady boughs of
a tree. They descend and attac k the part y
when t h.. PC8 come within 10'.
6. AC7; 110 I; hp 4 t' Rch;
MV 30'110'), l1y 180'(60'); 'AT 1; Dmg
Id3; SA blood dra in, +2 to lit ta ck roll ll on
mitral attack; Save f2; "IL 9; I; AI.
x. SZ s . XP 13; RCI2D8. Tht,,,,, ravenous
hunters attack th, PCs on sight. These
sti rges are black and resemble ravens
from II distance
7. ThnuL AC 6; HD 3; hp 16; MV
120'140"); 'AT 2 claws or 1 wea p on: Dmll"
Id3/ l d3 or by weapon type; SA touch
causes paral )'sill; SD regenerates 1 hp.
round; Save F:i; ML 10; 6; AI. C; SZ
M; XI' 65; RC1209; long sword, Then ,'ll ll
50"" chance tha t thi s vile crea t ure is
accompanied by 1-6 hobgoblins. ISe e 1-1.)
The thoul has orders from II distant hob-
Robli n chief to kidnap som.. worthy slaves
and bring them hack to the hobgoblin lair.
8 . ,""ni H' S12-8\: AC 7: HD2 +2; hp 9
each; 180'(60' 1; 'AT 1 tJlt... ; Dmg IdS;
Sav FI; ML8 i6 if half ar,' slaini; INT 2;
AL )/ : XP :.!5; aczna. These rna-
raudt' r.l will not attack unl{'$ th ey out
numl...r the PC party.
DUNGEON 35
THEM APPLES
thick canopy overhead, all owing only
thin ribbons of light t o sli p t hrough.
Sever al paths can be seen wending
their way through the forest.
The druids of Gelwen Grove are respon-
sible for safeguarding t hese woods. They
do not. object to periodic hunting or care-
fully tended campfires, but they react
strongly to trespassers who de liberately
or recklessly endanger t he local fauna
and flora. Adventurers who hack down
trees or set parts of t he forest ablaze will
be visited by an incensed coven member.
(See area 0 for statistics .) The druid de-
mands t he party's immedi ate departure;
if t he PCs inci te a confrontati on, the
druid will ret ali ate. seeking aid from
other coven members or nearby forest
denizens (such as a treanu,
Anyone capable of communica ti ng
with t he nat ive wildlife ca n easily obain
dir ect ions to Gelwen Grove, the home of
the dr uids, It' s possible that t he PCs
may try t o ac quire more a ntidote fr om
t he druids rather than steal back the
flask s t aken by the giant,
The Wooddrake
The wocddrake has been in Wistil for
several weeks and boards with one of
t he smaller halfling families. To t he
other villagers, the wooddrake is known
by the name Ha ppy Summers. Hap py is
a brazen little ha lfling with blond hair,
blond chin whi skers, a nd a mischievous
gleam in hi s dark, beady eyes . He usu-
all y walks around with a green cloak
over his shoulde rs and somet imes wears
a wreat h of twigs and thistles on his
he ad (not a popular custom in Wist.il).
Even when disguised, the wooddrakc
cannot resist playin g pr ank>! on ot hers.
These pranks are usually benign,
though its penchant for pickpocketing
can be irksome. The ot her half'lings
consider Happy a live ly addition to
their communi ty ; no one suspect s him of
pois oni ng the apple trees.
The wooddrake t ra i ls the party all the
way from Wist.ll to Brufnu's house,
hoping to foil their pla ns at some point.
At first, the drake tries to remain de-
tached from the PCs, using it s keen
senses to follow t he party's tracks, Once
outside the village, it ca n pulymorph
it self int o an elf t o better keep up. In
this form, the wooddrake appears as a
sli m male elf named Ket h, with blond
36 Issue No. 48
D. Gel wen Grove.
Through the trees. you spot a st range
ci rcular cleari ng about 20 ya rds
ahead of you. As you draw closer to
the si t e, you notice the cl earing is
cover ed with gr ass of a n even height .
The t all trees t hat surround the 90 '
wide clearing form a dome-sh aped
ceili ng of leaves overhead. The clear-
in g' s perimet er is marked wit h a
se ri es of woode n stakes jutti ng out of
the ea rth. The 4'-high st akes are
wrapped in ivy a nd t ied ofTwith
sprigs of mistletoe. Not hing seems t o
occupy the cleari ng at this time.
This is wh ere Thi arl ewood's dr uidic
coven meets. If t he PCs enter t he cl ear-
in g, t he dr uids a rrive in 14 rounds,
having been al ert ed. by t he nearby wi ld-
li fe to the pr esence of t respassers. Each
of the six druids in t he coven li ves in a
small hovel or cabi n deeper in t he
woods. These NPCs are far too powerful
for the part y to defeat. They are very
wise and always prepare their defen sive
spells pri or to meet ing strangers.
The ring of ivy-....Tapped st akes radiates
as magical if a detect magic spell is emit.
hair, piercing green eyes . and a Y<Ty grin.
If t he PCs take notice of t he wood-
drake prior to finding the giant 's lair,
the wooddr-a ke confronts the part y as
either a sk illed elf tracker or a curious
halfl ing villager eager to help his cap-
tured friends .
When the PCf! finally arrive at the
hill giant's la ir, t he wooddt ake asks t o
join them. The cr ea ture does everyt hing
it ca n to instigate a confrontatio n be-
tween the house's occupa nts and t he PC
party. For instance, t he wooddr a ke
might shout some lewd comment just as
the PCs attempt t o qui etly enter the
house. If the PCs are especially t oter-
ant, the wooddrake might. try some-
t hing blatant, like "accidentally"
t r ipping a heavily armored adventure r.
(The sou nd of clattering armor would
certainly attract somcune's attention. '
The Dr-.l is encouraged to bea s insi dious
and t roublesome as possible when play.
ing t his chaotic creature.
If attacked, t he polymorphed wooddrake
quickly surrenders. If threatened or inter-
rogated, the wooddrake admits to poison.
ing the orchard and claims that it was
given a poison flask by Yulin Nell with
the purpose of ruining Wist il's good repu-
Any al ign ed creature t hat ent ers the
clearing is surrounded by a faint aura
(ill umi nat es a 5' radi us). Lawful creat ures
radiat e a bl ue aura, Neutral creatures a
white aura. an d Chaot ic creat ures a green
aura. The drui ds use th ese auras to deter-
mine a trespasser's likely behavior. All
common forest denizens (including in-
sect s) remain outs ide the ring unless t he
druids deem ot herwise.
When t he cove n of dr uids fin a lly as-
semble s, the leader, Lief, ask s t he part y
its reason for coming. If the PCs cla im
t o need more ant idote for Wi stil 's si ck
trees, Lief fla tly declines to provide it
for them. The ever-neut ral druids ha ve
already performed a helpful service to
the halfl ing village and a re not bound
by et hics or moral s to pr ovide cont inued
assistance. If t he PCs revea l th at the
fir st batch of pot ions wa s stolen by a
giant, Lief si mply shakes his head and
gi ves th e PCs rough direct ions t o the
giant's la ir. The druids know very li ttle
about t he gia nt except t hat he used to
hunt in t he woods (unt il the dr uids
drove him oun. He got his re venge by
building his home out of logs from the
druid's woods, so t he druids don't mind
se nd ing trouble hi s way
tation for a pple growi ng. The wood.
drake tells all sorts of con vincing lies to
paint Yuli n as a r ut hless villain. when
in t rut h he's quite harmless.
The wooddr ake tries to keep its poly-
morpiung ability secret but may change
its shape to loosen bonds or reappear as
ot her >J PCs. If the part y continues to
attack it, the wooddrake flees, changing
to its natural form and using its winga tn
get away if necessary. (Wooddrakes can-
not remain ai rborne for long.I The dr ake
reappears in 3d4 turns, pursued by 2d4
hobgobli n hunt ers whom it has purposely
annoyed and led toward the Pes' location.
See the Rand om Wilderness Encounters
table for hobgoblin statistics.
wooddrake : AC 0 f6 in demihuman
form); lID 4; hp 22; MV 120'(40'), fly
30'( 10' ); fiAT 2 clews/J bit e; Dmg Id2/
1d2!1d8; SA thief abilities (as Stb-level
Lhiefl; SO immune t o first- to fourt h-
level spells, ptJlymorph at will (elf lind
hal fl ing forms only); Save :\18; ~ 8;
INT 10; AL C; SZ 1\1; XP 225; RC/I 73.
The wcod drake carries no wea pons
and cannot fly in demihuman form. A
protection (rom evil spell will keep the
wooddrake at bay.
THEM APPLES
F, Ne aring the House.
At op a dist ant hill. you see a large
building with smoke issui ng from its
tall chi mneys. A footpat h edged wi th
.~
N
I
--
Miles
,J:;.. 0X;
~ .
tici ty a nd fortitude) in cherub-sha ped
ceramic j ars. Other furnishings in t he
hovel i ncl ude a n B'cdiameter fire pit
with a n iron spi t: pri mitive cooki ng
implements; and a basket of wil d let-
tuce. beets and carrots.
If the Pes are foolish enough to try to
search the hovel. use Brufnu's and
Meveg's statistics as provided on page 43.
Wistil and the Wilderness
Meveg is t rying to bea good hostess for
her admirer. She gets reaII)' irked when
human and demihuman vermin enter
her la ir. and she beats them with her
huge wooden spoon until t hey leave.
Any intruders who dare rema in are
clubbed senseless and then discarded
outside li ke garbage. If Brufnu is
present, he will assist.
:\Ie\-eg's hovel is 40 ' i n diameter a nd
25 ' high. A large pile of dusty furs
serves as the giantess's bed. Under t he
furs is a 5' x 3' x 2' wooden t runk con-
ta ini ng 2.052 cp, 1,322 ep, 258 gp, three
gems (50 gp each), and t wo poti ons Ie/as-
Built atop an otherwise desolate hlll is
II large but primi t ive dome made of
rocks and boulders mortared together.
The hemispherical buil ding has one
apparent entrance, a 12'-high open
portal. Smoke belches forth from a
smaller hole in t he domed ceiling.
E. Hill Giant's Hovel.
lfthe PCs are foolish enough to attack
the coven, the druids reply wit h clubs
and spe lls. The druids can also call on a
resident t rea nt to lend assistance.
LifO!: AC 6: 01 2: hp 45: MV 120HO' r,
IAT 1; Dmg by spell or weapon type:
Save 01 2; ML 11; AL N; S 9. I 13. W 18.
n 15. C 13, Ch 14: leather armor, cl ub.
Spells: cure light wounds, detect dan -
ger, locat e. predict weather; heat ml'tal,
hold person , obscure, warp wood; growth
ofanimal. hold an imal, protect ion from
poison, strikinR; ronirol temperature 10'
radius, plant door, summon animals;
insect plague. tru es ight; curealt.
Druids (5): AC 7: 01 1 (Roset hcrn),
010 IErthmor and Ivy), 0 9 (El wood and
Acacia ); hp 40, 33, 32, 29, 23; Sav e 09
11; W 17; XP 2,700, 2,500 r x 2),2,300
( x 2 ); ot her state similar t o Lief.
Spells: cure light wou nds, detect dan-
ger, locate, predict u-eather s; hold per-
ron, resist (ire , snake charm, warp
wood: growth ofanimal, protection from
poison , striking; speak with plants,
sti cks to snakes , summon animals:
insect plague s, pass plant". Only
Roset bor n. Erthmor, and IV)- can cast
spells with one asterisk. Roset horn is
t he only druid who can cast spells
marked with two asterisks.
Treant : AC 2; HD8; hp 36 ; ~ l V
60'(20' ); I AT 2 branches; Dmg 2d6/2d6;
SA a ni mat e t rees; SD blunt weapons
infl ict 1 hp only (plus magic and
Strength bonuses); Save F8; ML 9 (11
when defending druids); INT 11; AL L;
5Z L; RCI209.
This r emot e site is where Br ufnu t he
hill gia nt spe nds most of this adven-
t ure. Thi s. hovel is not his home, how-
ever. A female hill giant named
Meveg dwe ll s here. Her ma te, J ail .
was slain by advent ur ers years ago, so
~ e v e g lives alone. Brufnu despe r at el y
wants to win xt eves'e affec tions . His
reasons for courting t he ug ly widow-
gia ntess are give n in " The House on
t he Hill" section.
Me veg is roasting an or e for Br ufnu.
Alt hough she follows a vegetarian diet,
DUNGEON 37
THEM APPLES
pretty white stones starts here and
meanders up the hillside to the mam-
moth building ahead of you.
The pretty white stones that decorate
the path to Brufnu's house were placed
there by Reynid and Veiga, Brufnu's
twin daughters.
G. Brufnu's House.
This immense house is obviously
proportioned for a giant, although
it's certainly large enough to house
more than one. The building has no
apparent windows and is made of
horizontal wooden logs expertly
plastered together. The path of white
stones ends in front of a 14'-high
iron-bound wooden door set into one
corner of the house. The door handle
is 7' off the ground. Except for the
house and a few patches of wild
grass, the hilltop is bare.
One hour after the party arrives at
the giant's house, Brufnu leaves area E
and makes his way home. For reasons
described in "The House on the Hill:'
Brufnu is joined by the giantess Meveg.
Ordinarily, it would take Brufnu no
more than two hours to make the return
trip home. However, he's just gorged
himself on roasted ore and has been
conscripted to lug Meveg's hefty trea-
sure trunk. As a result, the return time
is lengthened by one hour. Hence, the
PCs have only four hours to rescue the
halflings and obtain the druids' potions
before the two adult giants arrive.
Brufnu, a naturally gifted carpenter,
built this large house for himself and
his family years ago. He's very proud of
his achievement and considers himself
far smarter than the average hill giant
(as indeed he is). The front door is not
locked. Like all doors in the house,
however, it requires an Open Doors roll
to open (PCs with exceptional Strength
get a bonus to this roll). Normally, a
door can be opened on a roll of 5 or 6 (on
Id6). All doors are made of 1'-thick, 14'-
high solid oak.
PCs can also enter Brufnu's house by
climbing down the chimneys into areas
3, 4, 6, or 7. Those of human size or
smaller can be lowered down the chim-
neys without getting stuck. However,
all the chimneys except the one leading
to Brufnu's bedroom (area 4) have fires
burning at the bottom. A thief can
38Issue No. 48
climb up and down the chimneys with-
out the aid of ropes, grapples, or other
apparatus if he makes a successful
Climb Walls check.
The walls of Brufnu's house are made
of solid 2'-thick wood logs. Scaling the
outside walls of the house requires
thieving skills or climbing equipment.
The height of the house (not including
the gently sloped, slate-tiled roof) is 20'.
Moving across the weatherworn roof
tiles requires a Dexterity check at +2.
Anyone falling off the roof and hitting
the ground (the result of a failed Dexter-
ity check) suffers 2d6 hp damage.
Innovative PCs can enter the house by
digging a tunnel under the log walls.
The ground upon which the house sits is
rocky and hard. Digging a narrow, one-
person tunnel to the building's interior
requires a minimum of nine hours of
work for one person. Only three PCs can
work on the tunnel at one time. (Hence,
three people can excavate a narrow
tunnel in three hours.)
The House on the Hill
Most hill giants are brutish, stupid,
uncivilized barbarians. Brufnu, how-
ever, is an exception. Although he's
huge and ugly, he's not as crude, unre-
fined, or ill-tempered as one might ex-
pect. He understands the meaning of
words like courtesy, diplomacy, and
restraint.
Brufnu wasn't born this way; Uthag,
his mate of 13 years, worked very hard
to domesticate him, transforming Bruf-
nu into a veritable "model of decency:'
Brufnu worshiped Uthag and built his
hilltop house to her exact specifications.
Unfortunately, as it often happens,
Uthag left Brufnu two years ago for
another hill giant. (Barbarism does
have its appeal, after all.) Left behind
were the house, the laundry, and two
daughters named Reynid and Veiga.
For his daughters' sake, Brufnu tried
very hard to retain his domestic life-
style. He endeavored to stay clean, for
one thing. While the other hill giants
engaged in bloody raids, Brufnu limited
himself to big-game hunting. Yes, he
raided the occasional merchant cara-
van, but only when he needed more ale
or other supplies. Nevertheless, getting
by without Uthag has proven quite
difficult, and Brufnu is slowly becoming
more inclined to let old habits resurface.
Only Brufnu's ogre-sized daughters
(15-year-old twins) prevent their father
from reverting to his savage ways. They
are spitting images of their mother,
similar to Uthag in many ways except
one. Neither Reynid nor Veiga can cook.
Although they have tried desperately to
please their father using Uthag's old
recipes, their meals always taste like
dirt. After several bouts of indigestion,
Brufnu decided it was time to pursue
another mate. Meveg, a recently wid-
owed giantess, seemed an ideal choice.
Had Brufnu not been "domesticated:'
he would have taken his heavy club,
clobbered Meveg on the head, and
dragged the unconscious giantess back
to the house to become his mate. How-
ever, Brufnu was too civilized for such
behavior. Over the last several months,
he's been trying to woo Meveg into
becoming his wife (and he's been getting
a few decent meals in the process).
Having been married once herself,
Meveg understood what marriage
meant to most female giants: virtual
slavery. Naturally, she had many reser-
vations. Despite her aloofness, however,
she became enamored with Brufnu's
gentle manner. (Her previous mate was
intolerably primitive.) Swayed by Bruf-
nu's ardent courtship, Meveg decided
she would consider his proposal.
In truth, Brufnu doesn't love Meveg at
all. In fact, he finds Meveg rather slow-
witted and dull, not to mention repulsive.
She is, however, an excellent cook. AI
though she is not desperate for a mate,
Meveg has agreed to accompany Brufnu
to his house for an extended visit. She is
looking forward to getting to know Bruf-
nu and his family better, but all Brufnu is
looking forward to is Meveg's cooking,
particularly Halfling Ii la Meveg, one of
Brufnu's favorite dishes.
The Halflings
Brufnu was out hunting when he stum-
bled on the halflings of Wistil. Despite
his initial inclination to leave the half-
lings alone, the malnourished Brufnu
finally decided to seize them. (Uthag's
lessons in civility and compassion were
no match for Brufnu's grumbling stom-
ach.) The five captured halflings have
been confined to the kitchen (area 7)
pending Brufnu's return with Meveg.
The Druids' Flasks
The six wooden flasks containing the
druids' antidote have been placed on a
shelf in Brufnu's bedroom (area 4). The
halflings were gracious enough to
THEM APPLES
Brufnu's House
AreaG
7
1. Entra nce lI all.
N
I

' \ -
-
\ ,
Beyond the gia nt-sized door lies a
smoky L shaped hall . The floor is
t iled wit h flat chu nks of slate, the
wooden walls a t e bare, a nd th e a rea
is ill uminated by t hree la rge tor che s
placed along t he sout hern wall , 12'
01T the floor. An openi ng in the west-
ern wall is bl ocked by a heavy cur -
tain of sewn a nimal hides.
1
remark de....-n eac h of t he chi mneys.
C'Hey, you st upid giants! There 's in-
t.ruders in yer honsel")
i::::.. ,,,,",?

s-,-
/' f
":i ," ". "
'.' ....
4
2

1 square - 5'
If the PCs are joined by the wooddr ake,
their intrusion will probab ly be detected.
The weoddrake is not afraid to enter the
house. Once it does something to at tract
t he giants' attent ion ("Hmm, what does
/.h is the wood-
drake wi\l either hide, flee, or revert to its
true form an d seek refuge in t he rafters.
If the PCs refuse to allow the troublesome
creature insi de Brufnu's house , the wood-
drake has ot her clever met hods of wreak-
ing havoc. It might wait until all the PCs
have ente red the building before revert-
ing to its t rue fonn, flying up to the roof,
and shouti ng some playfull y dangerous
The Co lor Map
Included wit h t his adventure is a ful l.
color map of Brufnu's house . The map is
mea nt to beused in conjunction ....-ith
D&D miniatures or paper cut-outs. Wit h
the map laid out flat, cover each room of
the house with a piece of pape r cut to t he
proper site. As the PCs peer into or enter
each room, remove t he appropri ate piece
of pa per. Nat urally, anyone wit hout a
light source or infrevision should not be
allowed to see a room's interior unless the
chamber is lit .
The House Inte r ior
Brufnu'a house has no windows, render-
i ng it s cha mbers pitch bl ack wit hou t
ill uminat ion. Fortuna t ely, sev er al t orch
holders have been cur ved into t he walls.
12' above t he floor. Some of t he tor ches
a re lit . (See text a nd mep.) The ent ire
house is filled wit h th e odor of torch
smoke. and rooms cont aining lit torches
tend to be ra ther hazy (although not
hazy enough to impair vis ion),
Everything in Brufnu'a house is tailored
to the giant'a aize. Brufuu stands 12' tall .
twice the height of an average human
male. Hence, most of t he house's furnish-
ings (wit h s ome notable excepti ons, like
the bearskin rugs) are at leas t t....i ce the
" nonnal" site (double t he height, width,
etc.), Some items found inside t he house
(ale barrels and t reas ure chests, for exam-
pie) wer e stolen from human or demi-
human merchant caravans a nd are sized
appropri ately.
Most of t he r ooms hav e shelves nea tly
carved into t he walls. These shelves,
like the torch holders , are 12' above t he
floor. Th e ceili ng rafters a re 20 ' above
t he floor. The floor itself is dirt covered
wit h uneven sla te ti les (that ca n easily
be pried out or lift ed a way).
divulge the cont ents of the flas ks. giv.
ing Brufnu no exc use to taste t hem. PCs
who try t o retrieve the flask s will un-
doubtedly have to deal wit h Kit t y, Rey-
nid and Veiga's pet pussy cat fact ually a
la rge mount ain Iionl. Kitty usually
sleeps in Br ufnu's bedcha mber,
Inside Brulnu's House
1b free the halfl ings a nd retr ieve t he
druidic pot ions, the PCs must overcome
or outsmart Reynid a nd Veiga. AI
t hough t he you ng giantesse s are adoles-
cents, t hey are not afraid of st ra ngers
a nd are brutal towa rd intruders.

DUNGEON 39
THEM APPLES
Beyond the western curtain is Bruf-
nu's cloakroom (area 2). Heavy wood
doors lead to the giant's trophy room
(area 3) and bedroom (area 4). See area
G for details on interior doors.
The torches that illuminate this hall
will continue to burn for two hours
before they must be replaced. (Extra
torches are stored in area 5.)
2. Cloakroom. PCs without infra-
vision will require a light source to see
the contents of this chamber.
The curtain conceals an unlit chamber
filled with a variety of odors, most of
them attributable to torch smoke or
unwashed clothing. Three large iron
hooks are nailed to the north wall 12'
off the floor. Hanging from one of these
hooks is a large huntsman's cloak made
of goat hide. Fastened to the south wall
at a height of only 9' are three more
hooks, with a smaller cloak made of
wolf fur hanging from the nearest one.
At the far end of the room are two pairs
of deerskin boots designed for larger-
than-man-sized individuals.
The huntsman's cloak (belonging to
Brufnu) reeks of blood and sweat. The
smaller wolf-fur cloak is used by Rey-
nid and Veiga. The boots belong to the
ogre-sized sisters as well. An unlit
torch juts out of the east wall near the
entrance. There is nothing else of
value or interest here.
3. Trophy Room.
A large fire crackles in the hearth of
this huge chamber. Other than the
fire, there are no lights, although
two unlit torches jut out of the east
wall. Your attention is immediately
drawn to the various animal heads
mounted on wooden plaques on the
walls, 12'-15' above the floor. Two
large bearskins lie on the floor under
a pair of cluttered, l'-deep shelves
carved into the thick log walls. Care-
fully cut logs have been stacked next
to the southern door, and two cracked
stone chairs of huge size and an
equally giant table occupy the mid-
dle of the chamber. A large ale stein
of beaten copper sits atop the table.
Between the fireplace and a curtain-
covered doorway, a barrel of large
spears stands in front of a heavy rope
net that hangs on the wall.
40 Issue No. 48
Any audible noise in this chamber
(including normal speaking voices and
clanking armor) has a 40% chance of
attracting Kitty's attention. (See area
4.) If the wooddrake is present, it makes
enough noise on its own to alert the
giants' pet. (The wooddrake then hides
or retreats.) The mountain lion enters
through the curtain in the west wall
and attacks any intruders she sees. The
lion's roar, not to mention the sound of
battle, is 75% likely to attract Reynid's
attention (area 7). Reynid alerts her
sister in area 6 before investigating the
disturbance.
The mounted animal heads are some of
Brufnu's trophies. Starting with the north
wall and moving clockwise, the animals
are: mountain lion, moose, ogre, bugbear,
mountain goat, giant lizard, thoul, stag
and grizzly bear. There is nothing unusu-
al about the heads.
The bearskins are in poor condition
and cannot be sold. The items on the
shelves are more of Brufnu's trophies.
Various skulls (belonging to humanoids
and demihumans) sit beside animal
teeth and antlers. Several items were
taken from terrified merchants: a small
ebony centaur statuette (worth 2 gp); a
silver-studded leather gauntlet (worth
10 gp); a dagger with a 75-gp gem set in
its pommel; an electrum-plated tinder-
box (worth 25 gp); a l' x l' x l' wooden
box with a protruding crank and a
spring-loaded puppet stuffed inside
(worth 35 gp to an interested buyer);
and a 3" -diameter glass orb that
changes color at the holder's whim and
explodes for 2d6 hp damage if shattered
(10' blast radius; save vs. death ray for
half damage). The magical orb is worth
100 gp intact.
Brufnu's five-gallon ale mug (worth 2
gp) is empty. The barrel next to the
fireplace holds six large spears (usable
by giant-sized beings only) and four
human-sized spears. One of these is a
spear +1 taken from a slain caravan
guard. The net hanging on the wall is
the same one Brufnu used to snare the
halflings and is weighted with 16 fist-
sized rocks. (It weighs 250 lbs.) When
used by a giant, this 16' x 16' net can be
thrown up to 60' away, ensnaring 1-3
human-sized targets or double the num-
ber of smaller-sized creatures. Treat all
targets as AC 9, then apply Dexterity
modifiers. Victims are entitled to a
saving throw vs. death ray at - 3 to
escape the net.
4. Brufnu's Bedroom. PCs without
infravision require a light source to see
the contents of this chamber.
This huge, unlit bedchamber contains
several items of interest. The only piece
of furniture is a monstrous bed of chis-
elled stone nearly 15' long and at least
10' wide, heaped with layers of animal
skins and furs. Carved into the wall
above the bed is a long shelf cluttered
with mugs and other containers. Four
unlit torches sit in holders on the north
and west walls. A bearskin rug lies on
the floor between the bed and the fire-
place. A pile of animal skins is heaped
in disarray on the floor at the foot of the
bed. Near this pile there is a large (7'-
long, 5'-high) woodentrunk. Against
the north wall are four normal-sized
trunks of various design. Curtains sewn
from animal skins cover the exits in the
north and east walls.
If the adventurers haven't roused
Kitty, the mountain lion is sleeping
atop the heap of skins at the foot of
Brufnu's bed. PCs who enter this room
without first rendering themselves
silent or invisible have an 80% chance
of waking the lion. (Kitty's a light
sleeper.) If the wooddrake is present,
it deliberately does something to
awaken the lion: coughing, scuffing
its feet, or dropping something. Any
loud noises in this area have a 75%
chance of alerting Reynid in area 7.
After Reynid warns Veiga in area 6,
they both come to investigate.
The 7' x 3
1
/2' X 5' trunk near Kitty's
bed is locked, and Brufnu carries the
only key (around his neck). Thieves
attempting to pick the lock receive a
+10%bonus. (The mechanism is quite
simple.) Inside are six wolf furs (worth
10 gp each). Beneath the furs are sev-
eral of Brufnu's more valuable acquisi-
tions: a medium-sized shield +1, a large
sack of 566 gp, another large sack hold-
ing 15 chunks of purple quartz (worth
10 gp per chunk), a silver-horned hel-
met (45 gp), and two solid silver dryad
statuettes (worth 70 gp each).
The smaller wooden trunks are un-
locked and weigh 40-50 lbs, each. Trunk
#1 holds 2,195 cp; trunk #2 contains
1,486 sp; trunk #3 holds 1,113 ep; and
trunk #4 contains 45 pieces of fake
jewelry (worth 1-4 gp each).
Brufnu's bed is 5' high and made of
several poorly fitted blocks of solid
stone. The 12' high shelf above the bed
,
THEM APPLES
holds Brufnu's collection of al e mugs (15
in all. sized for humans; none of them
are particularly valuable). Also on t he
shelf are t he six wooden flasks contai n-
ing the druidic anti dote to the poison
a ffec t ing Wist il's apple t re es. Each flask
is plugged wi t h a cor k, a nd all are qu ite
durabl e. The flasks are tied togethe r
wit h a 5'!ength or rope. (The rope is
t ied i n a knot around the neck of each
fl ask.) Human-sized char acters can
ba rely reach t he shelf by standing on
t he bed. Th e pes receive experi ence
points for recove ring t hese potions in-
tact. (See "Concl uding t he Advent ure ." )
Kitt y, moun tain lion: AC 6: HD 3 +2;
hp 24; MV 150'{SO' ); ' AT 2 clawe/I bite;
Dmg Id3!ld3/1d6: Save F2; ML 9 (in
lai r); I!\'T 2; AL N; SZ 11; XP 50 or spe-
cial (see "Concluding t he Adve nture" );
RC1163.
If Kit ty fails a morale check, she im-
medi ately withdraws to t he kitchen
(a rea 7).
5. Storage Room. PCs without infra-
visi on will need a li ght source t o see the
contents of t his r oom.
Tv.o curtai ns made of sewn a nimal
skins cover the exits of this dark
stor age room. In t he corner between
the two curt ained doorways rests a
pair of normal-si zed wooden barrels.
J utti ng out of the wall to the west of
t he barrels is an unlit torch. The
rema inder of the wall space is taken
up by I5 '-hi gh wooden shel ves loaded
with common supplies a nd foodst uffs.
Need less to say, various aromas-
both pleasa nt and unpleasa nt-till
t hi s cha mbe r.
If Reynid has not been alerted to In-
truders, the PCs can hear he r cleani ng
up the kitchen (area 1). She has a 75'1
chance of hearing a ny loud noises inside
the storeroom. If she sus pects intruders,
Reynid fetches her sister and t hey bot h
explor e the room.
The follovvi ng items are stored on the
lowest shelves (l' .s' above the floor): t hree
10' x 12' wool blankets, t hree normal -
sized lanterns (wit hout oil), a 2'/;(\uare
wooden box cont aining 175 nails, six
large sacks (empty a nd folded), and three
pairs of giant-sized leather boots.
The following items are kept on t he
mi ddle shelves (6'-10' above the floor ):
t hree sacks of grain; two sacks of flour:
32 clay pots containi ng herbs, grasses,
garlic, and other seasonings rsome mild -
I)' poisonous); two heavy clay jugs (emp-
ty}; and three kegs of potent -smelli ng
apple cider.
Finally, here a re t he items st or ed on
t he hi ghest shelves (11' 15' above the
floor ); t wo normal-sized flasks of oil
(bot h half-ful l), 15 large torches, a giant-
sized mallet with an iron head, t hree
human-sized long swords, and a sack of
20 iron spikes.
The t wo barrels sit ting on the floor
contai n all' . Brufnu acqui red them from
a generous mercha nt whom he encoun-
tered during a hunting expedition.
6. Daughte r s' Be droom. If alerted to
int ruders, Veiga is hi ding behi nd t he
chamber door, hoping to su rprise a ny
Pes who e nter wi t hout an invitat ion.
Opening the door reveals a spacious
firelit chamber containi ng two 10'-long
wooden beds covered wit h a nimal
skins and furs . The beds Ila nk a large
blazing hearth. Thanks to the fireplace
DUNGEON 41
THEM APPLES
and the single burning torch set into
the north wall, this chamber is un-
pleasantly warm and smoky.
Shelves have been carved into the
wall above each bed, and stacked on
these shelves are a number of odd
items. Other furnishings include a
large table, a proportionately sized
chair, and twin wooden trunks with
the letters "V" and "R" (one initial per
chest) etched into their sides and front.
Unless she is summoned by the thun-
derous voice of her sister, Veiga is sit-
ting on the southernmost bed with her
legs outstretched, sewing a tunic out of
strips of cowhide and using sheep's wool
for thread. If the PCs confront her in
this room, she either fights with the
torch (ld6 +2 hp damage, plus 1d6 hp
fire damage each round) or punches
them with her fist (ld6 +2 hp damage).
She would prefer to arm herself with a
blunt instrument taken from the
kitchen. (A rolling pin would be her
first choice, since it inflicts 2d4 +2 hp
damage.)
Like her sister, Veiga is waiting for
the return of her father. She just fin-
ished tidying up her room, as well as
her father's bedroom and trophy room,
in anticipation of Meveg's arrival.
When not working around the house,
Veiga dreams about long, romantic
liaisons with young male hill giants.
The shelves above the girls' beds are
stacked with dolls (many of them home-
made), small mirrors, bottles of perfume
(obtained from merchant caravans by
their father), and items of jewelry made
from teeth and bone (worthless). A large
mistreated teddy bear lies sl umped
under the furs of Reynid's bed.
Neither of the trunks (4
1
/2' x 3' X3
1
/2' )
is locked. Aside from the usual articles
of primitive clothing, the trunks contain
a few items of value. Inside Veiga's
trunk, the PCs can find a jewelled comb
(human-sized, worth 145 gp), an
amethyst-studded silver tiara <Veiga
uses it as a bracelet, worth 450 gp), and
a large sack of 593 sp. Reynid's trunk
contains a small hourglass on a fine
electrum chain (worth 150 gp), a pouch
holding three cut garnets (worth 100 gp
each), and a small sack of 180 ep.
Veiga, young hill giantess: AC 5; HD
4 +1; hp 24; MV 90'(30'); HM 1; Dmg by
weapon type +2; Save F4; ML 10; !NT 6;
AL C; SZ L; XP 125 or special (see "Con-
cluding the Adventure"); RC/198 (Ogre).
42 Issue No. 48
Veiga has the same red hair and toothy
grin as her sister, but she is more even-
tempered and contemplative than Reynid.
Nevertheless, she doesn't like humans
and demihumans, and will crush them
like she would a pesky spider.
7. Kitchen. If Reynid has not been
warned of intruders, PCs listening at
the door have a 1-in-6 chance of hearing
the young giantess as she hurriedly
tidies up the kitchen (before her father
returns with Meveg). Thieves may use
their Hear Noise ability instead.
The air in the kitchen is stale,
smoky, and warm. Various unpleas-
ant cooking odors fill your nostrils as
you survey the room's contents. The
room is lit by three torches and a
dwindling fire in the hearth. Occupy-
ing the middle ofthe room is a high
table with three large chairs (one
slightly bigger than the other two). A
fourth chair rests between two 7'-
high work tables. One table has been
cleaned off, but the other is cluttered
with dirty dishes. Each work table
has storage space below, closed off
with a pair of large wooden doors. A
broomstick has been shoved through
the iron door handles of the doors
below the northwest table.
Neatly carved into the walls are
four long shelves lined with jars,
dishes, and common kitchen utensils.
A 4' -deep barrel sits on its side in the
southeast corner.
If she hasn't been alerted, Reynid is
standing on the northernmost chair,
organizing the jars on the overhead
shelf. <Reynidstands 9' tall, and the
shelves are 12' high.) PCs who have not
been detected can take advantage of
Reynid's preoccupation. The young
giantess is humming a nursery rhyme
to herself, although she periodically
shouts some disparaging remark about
"young male giants" to her sister in
area 7. (The sisters have reached a very
fickle age.)
If she detects the PCs, Reynid shouts
to her sister and seizes the nearest pot
or rolling pin (2d4 +2 hp damage). She
then attempts to club the PCs into sub-
mission or drive them from the house.
She will not negotiate for the halflings'
release. If Reynid fails her morale
check, she retreats to area 6 and barri-
cades the door.
The five captured halflings are
trapped inside the barred storage area
beneath the western work table. If they
hear intruders, the halflings pound on
the doors, alerting the PCs to their
whereabouts. The halflings are very
grateful to any PC who releases them,
and they show their gratitude by leav-
ing the house as fast as their little feet
can take them. They are not skilled
fighters, although they will defend
themselves if cornered.
The work table positioned next to the
hearth holds a variety of iron and clay
pots, numerous rags, and a wooden
washtub (a 3' diameter bucket) with a
slate scrubbing board.
The shelves are cluttered with clay
jars of spices, mushrooms, herbs and
various natural preservatives. The
kitchen is filled with utensils that can
be used as makeshift weapons. The
barrel lying in the southeast corner has
a primitive wooden spigot sticking out
of it; the barrel holds cheap ale (10
gallons remaining).
Reynid, young hill giantess: hp 25;
other stats identical to Veiga in area 6.
Reynid inherited her mother's flame-red
hair and morbid sense of humor. Her
narrow build, toothy smile, and inso-
lence come from her father.
Terry, Tod, Erol, Valerie, and
Walter, halflings: AC 7; HD 1-1; hp 5,
4 (X 2),3,2; MV 90'(30'); HAT1; Dmg by
weapon type; SA +1 to attack rolls with
missiles; SD +1 initiative modifier;
Save HI; ML 4 (8 normally); INT 11; AL
L; SZ S; XP see "Concluding the Adven-
ture"; RC/182.
The Bigger They Are ...
The following text may be read or para-
phrased to the players when Brufnu and
Meveg arrive (four hours after the PCs
reach the house).
The ground shudders underfoot as
two huge giants come into view. The
giants both stand about 12' tall, but
the female is much heavier. She
studies the house carefully, like a
concerned investor rather than a
guest, trying to determine whether it
suits her needs. The male giant is
panting heavily. With one hand he
grasps the handle of a large and
weighty trunk. In his other hand he
holds a club. His round potbelly
protrudes from the rest of his body,
and his mouth is packed with yellow
teeth.
Brufnu, hill giant: AC 4; HD 8; hp 51;
MV 120'(40'); NAT 1 weapon; Dmg 2d8
(club); SA hurl boulders for 3d6 hp dam-
age; Save F8; ML 8 (10 if angered; see
below); INT 9 (above average); AL C; SZ
L; XP 650; RC/179; club, key to trunk
(area 4) worn around neck.
Meveg, hill giantess: hp 40; ML 8;
INT 7; other statistics as for Brufnu.
Unlike most giants, Meveg doesn't
like to throw boulders and will not use
this form of attack.
If the PCs inflicted damage on Bruf-
nu's daughters or their cat, the giant
grabs his hunter's net from area 3 and
tracks the party down. (He's a skilled
huntsman and possesses tracking skill.)
If Brufnu has not yet offended his
would-be mate, Meveg remains at the
house to protect Brufnu's family from
further harm (at least until Brufnu
returns). PCs who are captured by Bruf-
nu are clubbed to death.
If the PCs were careful not to harm
Brufnu's family, the giant will not pur-
sue them, nor does he consider the theft
of his halfling captives or the druids'
potions cause enough to instigate a
confrontation. If, however, the PCs
made off with a sizable amount of Bruf-
nu's treasure, the giant will track them
down and demand the return of his
possessions. (He is civilized and tolerant
to a degree.)
If Brufnu returns home to find the
adventurers in his house, he commands
them to surrender their valuables and
depart, assuming they haven't ravaged
his home and harmed his family. "Valu-
ables" include the captured halflings,
though Brufnu can be lulled into letting
the PCs keep the druids' potions if the
adventurers behave cooperatively.
Once the PCs have been dealt with,
Brufnu turns his attention to Meveg.
After introducing the giantess to his
daughters (and showing off his many
hunting trophies), Brufnu escorts
Meveg into the kitchen. He points to the
halflings and says, "Now you cook deez
for me!" Meveg, incensed by Brufnu's
sheer gall, delivers a solid right hook to
his jaw and storms out of the house,
vowing never to return. The dazed Bruf-
nu casts off his civilized veneer and
retaliates by clobbering Meveg with his
club. Irked by Brufnu's display of barba-
rism, Meveg delivers a well-placed kick
that stops Brufnu in his tracks.
With her treasure chest in tow, it
takes the injured Meveg 3
1
/2 hours to
reach her hovel (barring any interfer-
ence from the PCs or the wooddrake).
Brufnu, hunkered over and massaging a
swollen jaw, follows Meveg as far as the
outside door before retiring to his bed-
room to contemplate a means of redeem-
ing himself.
While Brufnu rests, Reynid and Veiga
attempt to prepare Halfling Mignon for
their father's dinner. Unless the PCs act
quickly, the halflings will be cooked
(poorly seasoned and charred to a crisp)
and devoured!
Concluding the Adventure
Once the PCs leave Brufnu's house
(with or without the halflings and anti-
dote flasks), they must still contend
with the antagonistic wooddrake. If the
PCs recovered the druids' potions, the
wooddrake uses its thieving abilities to
relieve the party of these items and hide
them. If the PCs take suitable precau-
tions, the wooddrake will simply leave.
It returns in 1-4 hours, having lured
wandering monsters in the party's di-
rection (roll once on the Random Wil-
derness Encounter table).
Whether or not the wooddrake is still
with the party, the DM should check for
random encounters as the PCs make
their way back to Wistil. (See "Wistil
and the Wilderness:') If the adventurers
injured or killed members of Brufnu's
family, they may have to face the"out-
raged hill giant. For the sake of game
balance, the DM has the option of sav-
ing any encounter with Brufnu until
the PCs are better equipped to defend
themselves (unless the DM likes a good
slaughterfest).
PCs who return to Wistil with the
halflings and potions will be named
guests of honor at a great picnic feast.
An impromptu ceremony is later con-
ducted in the poisoned orchard. Six
village children are selected to pour the
flasks of antidote onto the roots of the
sickly trees. The others watch as the
trees slowly begin to regain their
health. Within hours, the trees are
completely cured of their affliction.
If the wooddrake has been taken cap-
tive by the PCs, it confesses to poison-
ing the apple trees. The creature claims
to work for Yulin Nell, a ruthless com-
petitor. The halflings are too gentle and
forgiving to retaliate against Yulin
themselves, but they wouldn't mind if
the PCs paid Yulin a visit and asked
him (nicely) to stop poisoning their
orchards.
THEM APPLES
If the PCs decide to visit Yulin Nell,
.they find him at his home near Keswig,
tending his meager orchard. Yulin is a
self-pitying middle-aged man with a
sour outlook on life. He is not, however,
a threat to the party or the halflings.
He admits to giving an elf 20 gp to
cause some trouble in Wistil, but he has
yet to hear any news from the elf. (In
fact, Yulin thinks he was cheated by the
elf.) When asked to justify his behavior,
Yulin claims he was drunk at the time.
If the PCs intimidate him, Yulin prom-
ises to leave the halflings ofWistil
alone.
Yulin Nell, human: AC 9; HD 1-1;
hp 5; MV 120'(40'); NAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; Save Normal Man; ML 6;
AL N; S 10, 19, W 7, D 12, C 10, Ch 6;
XP 5; RC/197; knife.
If the wooddrake survives this adven-
ture, it continues to cause trouble in the
future. If necessary, it will use all its
guile and natural thieving skills to
escape the party, only to return at a
later time. The DM can use this chaotic
creature as a frequent antagonist in an
ongoing campaign.
Awarding Experience
Players who rely entirely on swordplay
to complete this adventure are likely to
see their characters squashed like bugs.
Brufnu and his clan are worthy oppo-
nents for mid-level PCs, let alone a
whimpering bunch of 1st-3rd level ones.
The PCs are encouraged to be resource-
ful and should be rewarded for their
good ideas.
Here are the suggested party
experience-point awards for completing
story objectives:
-Identifying the wooddrake as the
culprit responsible for poisoning the
apple trees: 200 XP (only if the PCs
figure this out by themselves).
-Each druidic potion recovered in-
tact: 100 XP.
-Each halfling returned alive to
Wistil: 150 XP.
-Overcoming or subduing Reynid,
Veiga, or Kitty without killing or criti-
cally wounding them: double their XP
value. n
DUNGEON 43
THE OBJECT
OF DESIRE
BYGARY O'CONNEll AND lUCYA SZACHNOWSKI
Who has won the heart
of a beholder?
Al'fWorlr.by David ocv
26 Issue No. 50
Gary and Lu era both live in London,
where Lucya is the assist ant edi ror of
Games and Puz zles , a Br itish magazi ne
coveri ng all areas of gami ng from chess
to role-playing. Tn 1993 , Luera was the
European AD&lY' champion and won a
trip to the 1994 GEN CON!; game (ai r in
the USA. Gary is a computer games
designer for Argonaut Software. the
creators ofSta rfox for the Su per Ni ruen-
do Entertain ment System. He is current-
ly working on a major advent ure game
for Microsoft due for release in late 1995.
TM origi nal draft of th is advent ure was
the European Open Competition at Euro
GEN CON game fair in 1992.
"The Object of Desire" is a D&D!' edven-
ture wTitten in the t radition of the Ara-
bian Nights. Thi s adventure is intended
for a party of 4.6 predominantly good-
aligned PCs of levels 5-8(about 35 total
levels), including at least one cleric
(whom the DM should try to keep ali ve, if
possible, for much of the advent ur e).
Th e scenario be gins wit h a sea voyage
between two caliphates. The PCs should
be on good terms with one ofthe ruling
caliphs or ha ve been recommended by a
former patron of high status. Within
this modu le, the cal ipha tes are called
Susan and Samarkand, but t he OM may
substi t ute different cities a nd ot her
pat rons to sui t the campaign .
Many of the NPCs i n t his scenario use
Arabic-st yle weapons such as t he scimi-
ta r (a medium-length curved sword ) and
the j ambiya (a curved double-edged
da gger). The OM should use st atist ics
for a normal sword and a normal dagger
respecti vely. Most hu ma ns wear light
armor or no armor due to the intensit y
of the heat in th is region. Anyt hing
heavier than leat her a rmor incurs an
attack penalt y of -1 per point of armor
class lower than AC 7. Shiel ds do not
add to the penalty.
Several of the creat ures encountered
in t his adven ture are more full y de-
scr ibed in the Creature Catalog, but
enough information is gi ven he re t o r un
the adventure.
For the Player Characters
The PCs begin the ad vent ure in the
Caliphate of Sasa n, whe re t hey a re
asked to underta ke a most deli cate
mission for Caliph Farouk . If' the PCs
are not yet acquainted wit h the caliph,
they have been recommended to him by
a for mer patron.

You have been commissioned by

Caliph Farouk of Sasan to escort his
niece, the lovely Princess Yasmin,
and her dowry west to Samarkand.
There she will marry her beloved
Prince Harith, to whom she has been
betrothed for several years. As the
caliph cannot attend the wedding,
due to many pressing matters of
state, he wishes to entrust Yasmin's
safety to people he can rely on. Yas-
min will be accompanied by her
maid, Fatima, and the caliph's own
cousin and vizier, Mustafa al-Wazah.
The voyage will take about five
days and nights along the coast of
the Algarin, an inhospitable stretch
of burning deserts that only the
foolish or the desperate would travel
across by land. You have been grant-
ed the use of the caliph's own dhow
and must be vigilant for pirates and
hostile sea monsters that are known
to trouble this region.
The Caliph's Dhow
The caliph's dhow is a 70/-1ong, 20/-wide
ship with two masts and a crow's nest.
The prow is decorated with a magical
figurehead that can run up the sails on
command. With this assistance, the ship
needs only a small crew: only four on
this voyage, plus the captain. The dhow
carries a six-man skiff for going ashore.
The captain's cabin (the only cabin on
the ship) has been prepared for the
princess, and the captain will rest with
his men. A cot has been brought in for
Yasmin's maid. Hammocks for the PCs
and crew are strung in the hold, above
the ship's stores: two weeks' firewood,
food and water to last 14 people a
month, a chest with the captain's navi-
gation instruments and charts, a spare
sail, and plenty of hemp rope. On deck,
a 4/ x 6/ fish locker holds nets and three
barrels of fish.
Jamil, captain: AC 5; F4; hp 20; MV
120' (40/); /fAT1; Dmg by weapon type;
S 16, I 11, W 9, D 15, C 14, Ch 12; Save
F4; ML 9; AL L; leather armor, shield,
scimitar.
Rachim, first mate: AC 8; F1; hp 7; MV
120/ (40'); /fAT 1; Dmg by weapon type;
D 14; Save Fl; ML 8; AL L; scimitar.
Kassim, sailor: AC 9; hp 5; other
statistics and equipment as Rachim.
Omm; cook: AC 9; O-level human; hp 4;
MV 120/ (40/); /fAT 1; Dmg by weapon
type; Save Normal Man; ML 8; AL L; club.
Ali, cabin boy: AC 8; hp 2; D 14; ML 6;
AL N; jambiya; other statistics as Omar.
For the Dungeon Master
Once upon a time, the handsome Sultan
Firouz al-Algarin had a wondrous magi-
cal mirror that could show him his
heart's desire and, on command, trans-
port him to the place where it lay. Gaz-
ing into the mirror, he saw Aurelia, the
daughter of a powerful mage. Such was
her beauty that he fell in love with her
at first sight. He used the mirror to visit
her, and she reciprocated his love.
Unfortunately her father, Nazir al-
Azrad, was as evil as he was powerful.
When Firouz convinced Aurelia to elope
with him, Nazir followed the couple to
the sultan's court. There he found the
two lovers about to be wed and flew into
a dreadful rage. He slew the cleric
about to marry the lovers, and used his
potent magic to transform Firouz into a
beholder. Finally, he turned on his
daughter and in his rage transformed
her into a crystal statue, which he tele-
ported to his hidden fortress.
Firouz was unable to cope with the
shock of seeing his beloved so badly
used, on top of his own transformation
into such an abhorrent creature. He lost
all memory of what he once was and
became, in truth, a fearful monster. He
used his terrible gaze against all who
came near him. Soon his magnificent
and thronging court was but an empty
reflection of what it had once been, with
the beholder as lord of nothing.
Following some unconscious yearning,
the beholder turned his eyes to his mag-
nificent mirror, but his heart had grown
mean and shallow with his madness,
thus limiting the range of his vision.
For many weeks he saw nothing, until
at last a beautiful nomad woman was
revealed to him. Responding to some
deep feeling of loss, the beholder cap-
tured and charmed her and kept her as
a beautiful object to gaze upon. Years
passed and the woman's looks began to
fade. The beholder again used his mir-
ror to seek out the fairest in the land;
once another woman was secured, he
petrified his former love to preserve her
remaining beauty forever. Many years
went by, and the beholder's halls filled
with statues as his heart grew lonelier.
The caliph's dhow passes the coastline
of the desert of Algarin, where the be-
holder's palace lies, just as Firouz gazes
once more into his mirror to seek a new
and beautiful companion.
THE OBJECT OFDESIRE
Setting Out to Sea
The PCs are awaiting the arrival of
the princess at the caliph's dhow.
Read or paraphrase the following to
the players when they are ready to
begin the adventure:
It's a fine morning and many ships
are in the harbor, which bustles with
noise and activity. Swaggering sailors
and hunch-shouldered porters, sun-
bronzed travelers and street-grimed
urchins, fat-bellied traders and thin-
ribbed beggars, all go about their
business amid the throng. The air is
filled with the sounds of haggling, the
cries of sea gulls, and the creaking of
rope. Supplies are being loaded
aboard your ship: barrels of salted
fish, meat, and dried fruit together
with skins of water and wine.
You are waiting on the quayside
when Princess Yasmin arrives with
much pomp and ceremony, carried on
a veiled litter borne on the shoulders
of four strong men. The litter is ac-
companied by a haughty man
dressed in the robes of a vizier, a
plump maid, and four guards carry-
ing a large chest containing the
princess's dowry. The litter and chest
are set down in front of the ship.
One of the bearers parts the cur-
tains of the litter, revealing the beau-
tiful Princess Yasmin. Her clothes are
finest silk and her face is obscured by
a veil of shimmering gold that empha-
sizes her deep-brown eyes.
Princess Yasmin is 17 years old, beau-
tiful, demure, and faithful to her true
love. She has had a very sheltered up-
bringing and is the perfect princess.
During the voyage, she will spend much
of the time in her cabin with her maid.
She does not feel it is appropriate to
talk more than necessary with those of
low station such as the crew-perhaps
even the PCs. As soon as Yasmin has
boarded the ship, the guards bring her
dowry aboard, then return to the palace
along with the bearers who carry her
empty litter.
The haughty man introduces himself
as Mustafa al-Wazah, vizier and cousin
of the caliph. Mustafa announces that
he will accompany the PCs to chaperon
Princess Yasmin. He asks where the
princess's cabin is situated and orders
the PCs to place the large chest there.
Mustafa then demands to be shown his
own cabin and is most offended that he
DUNGEON 27
THE OBJECT OFDESIRE
has not been allocated one. It would not
be appropriate for him to share Yas-
min's cabin, but the PCs could rig up a
tent on the deck if Mustafa insists on
separate quarters.
The vizier is an arrogant and pompous
fool of high authority but little actual
ability. He is a diplomatic envoy to
Samarkand as well as the princess's
chaperon. The PCs will probably learn
to despise him.
The large chest containing Yasmin's
dowry is gold-plated, weighs 75 lbs., and
has two carrying handles set with fire
opals (total value 5,400 gp), The chest
has three steel locks of fine quality
( -15% to thieves' open-locks rolls), and
Mustafa holds the keys. Each of the
three locks was made by a different
craftsman and requires a separate open-
locks rolls to unlock.
The chest holds two pouches, each
containing 150 pp; a third bag contain-
ing 42 gems (100 gp ( x 15), 250 gp
(x 15), 500 gp (x 10), 1,000 gp, 1,200 gp);
and 13 loose pieces of jewelry (total
value 8,810 gp). PCs who dare open the
chest without Yasmin's permission will
be dealt with harshly.
Princess Yasmin: AC 8; O-level hu-
man; hp 4; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg
by weapon type; Save Normal Man; S 9,
112, W 15, D 15, C 11, Ch 17; ML 9; AL
L; unarmed.
Fatima: AC 9; hp 3; ML 7; jambiya;
other statistics as Yasmin.
Mustafa aI-Wazsh: AC 8; M2; hp 7;
MY 120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg by spell or
weapon type; S 9, I 16, W 11, D 13, C 10,
Ch 10; Save M2; ML 3; AL L; jambiya.
Spells: charm person, floating disc.
Litter bearers (4): AC 9; hp 6 each;
S 14 ( +1/ +1); AL N; jambiya; other
statistics as Yasmin.
Guards (4): AC 6; F2; hp 12 each; MV
120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg by weapon type;
D 14; Save F2; ML 10; AL L; leather
armor, scimitar.
Many people have gathered for the
spectacle of Yasmin's departure, among
them a filthy beggar who steps forward
and persistently entreats the PCs for
money. The beggar is of indeterminate
age, wears only a loincloth and sandals,
and carries a small wooden bowl. The
vizier takes the man's mere presence as
an insult and demands that the beggar
be flogged for his impudence. Yasmin's
departing guards move in to seize the
beggar, but the PCs can persuade Mus-
tafa not to carry out his threat.
The beggar is Mahmoud, a local mys-
28 Issue No. 50
tic. He offers the PCs a cryptic prophecy,
as either thanks or reproach depending
on his treatment. The ragged man
closes his eyes and intones, "Do not let
your eyes deceive you. Much evil is but
madness or folly, and desire but a prison
for the soul."
The mystic then limps off and is lost
in the crowd. PCs trying to catch up to
the beggar are unable to distinguish
him from the myriad of other faces in
the horde of spectators.
Mahmoud: AC 6; Mys4; hp 20; MV
150' (50'); NAT 1; Dmg Id6 +1; SA heal
self, awareness; Save Mystic 4; ML 11;
AL L; unarmed.
The Voyage
While the ship is under way, someone
must always man the tiller, which is
situated over the cabin. Close maneu-
vers such as docking must be handled
by an experienced sailor. All the crew
except Ali are sufficiently skilled. Wind
and weather conditions will be favor-
able for the entire journey, allowing the
ship to make good headway. Read the
following to the players to set the scene:
With good wind in her sails the dhow
heads south, skimming the coast as
gulls followher wake. The sky is clear,
and there is a light swell in the sea.
Vizier Trouble
The passage would be smooth were it
not for Mustafa. Almost as soon as the
ship leaves port, Mustafa claims that he
is feeling seasick. Although he looks
perfectly healthy, he groans and com-
plains incessantly about the motion of
the ship and demands that a cleric in
the party cure him. He insists that the
PCs do something to stop the vessel's
rocking. If the party's cleric has not
received a cure disease spell, the vizier
berates him loudly, shouting, "You self-
ish priest! Youonly thought to look
after yourself, while I writhe in agony
with a djinni in my belly!"
The princess does not feel it is her place
to involve herself in the affairs of an older
member of her family. She keeps out of
any arguments. If a PC asks her to inter-
vene, she says, "It is not my place to
reprimand my father's vizier:'
After a couple of hours, Mustafa re-
covers naturally as he gets his sea legs,
by which time he has found something
else to complain about. Now he is un-
able to find his best silk slippers and
accuses a thief PC of stealing them.
Mustafa claims that:
"While I was dying on deck, that
felonious dog was rifling through my
belongings and stealing my best silk
slippers! My best, mind you! They
were a present from the Queen of
Shebal-a ruler who knew my worth.
I demand justice!"
It will take a lot to convince Mustafa
that the PC he has accused is innocent.
The slippers are misplaced inside Mus-
tafa's luggage, but he will not readily
allow anyone to search his possessions
unless the PCs are very diplomatic.
A supper of spiced meats and bread is
served on deck at sunset (although the
princess eats in her cabin). Mustafa
objects to the quality ofthe food, al-
though everyone else finds it excellent.
There are no other planned events until
the following afternoon. At that time,
read or paraphrase the following to the
players:
The journey continues uneventfully
the next morning. Ththe west, you
can make out the inhospitable cliffs
of Algarin. The princess takes a
stroll around deck in the morning,
often glancing toward Samarkand
and her true love.
Snakes Alive!
During the late afternoon, a 20'-long
giant sea snake approaches the ship
(2-in-6 chance of spotting it from the
crow's nest). The snake slithers up the
ship's figurehead and onto the deck. The
princess screams and flees to her cabin
as soon as the snake rears its head.
After the snake takes 40 hp damage, it
slips back into the sea and swims away.
Giant sea snake (1): AC 6; HD 10*
(L); hp 55; MV 90' (30'); NAT 1 bite; Dmg
2d4 plus poison (death in Id4 +2 turns
unless save is successful); Save F5; ML
7; INT 2; AL N; XP 1,750; RC/204
(modified).
The mere sight of the snake sends the
princess to her cabin for the rest of the
day. She will allow no one inside except
Fatima and female PCs of high station.
Bird of III Omen
Soon after the sea snake incident, a
raven approaches the ship and makes a
nuisance of itself. Read or paraphrase
the following to the players:
A black bird with shiny feathers and
a sharp black beak swoops across the
deck from the starboard bow. It caws
loudly and insistently, circling the
mast. After a while, it perches high
in the rigging and continues to caw.
The raven lands out of reach but only
a few feet away from the crow's nest. It
is possible to climb the rigging to the
bird's location, but it hops from perch to
perch at the PCs' approach. The raven
remains for half an hour or until caught
or scared off. If offered food, the bird
lands on someone's shoulder and stays
with that person for the rest of the day.
This is an ordinary raven and is inter-
ested only in fish. Feel free to encourage
whatever misinterpretation the players
want to put on the creature: odd behav-
ior, listening to conversations, etc.
Raven: AC 8; HD 1/4 (S); hp 2; MV fly
330' (110'); NAT 1 (peck); Dmg 1; Save
Normal Man; ML 5; INT 2; AL N; XP 5;
CC/86.
Kldnappedl
Throughout the day, the ship continues
to hug the coastline, carefully avoiding
the cliffs and offshore reefs that make
the coast of Algarin hazardous. Hidden
from view behind the cliffs lies the
palace of Firouz the beholder. As the
party's dhow continues its westward
trek, the beholder gazes into his mirror
of desire (see sidebar) and sees Princess
Yasmin in her cabin. Entranced by her
beauty, the beholder sends three of his
gargoyles to cause a diversion while he
uses the powers of his mirror to kidnap
Yasminhimsel(
Firouz's gargoyles approach under-
water from the cliffs several miles away.
Having no need to breathe, and using
their wings for propulsion, they may
remain undetected until they surface
beside the boat. The setting sun's reflec-
tion on the water partially blinds the
lookout, giving anyone in the crow's
nest only a 1-in-8 chance to spot the
gargoyles before they emerge. Read or
paraphrase the following to the players:
A gray-winged creature with stony
skin erupts from the foam in front of
the prow, and two more burst out of
the sea on either side. Flicking their
wings, they swoop toward the deck,
claws outstretched to attack.
The gargoyles' sudden appearance has a
2-in-6 chance to surprise those on deck.
Neither Captain Jamil nor his crew can
hurt the gargoyles; the seamen have no
magical weapons. Mustafa wastes the
first round. His mouth falls open but he
utters nothing; he merely points ineffectu-
ally at the ugly monsters. When he comes
to his senses, the vizier tries to charm a
PC to protect him.
Gargoyles (3): AC 5; HD 4** (L); hp
26, 23, 19; MV 90' (30'), fly 150' (50');
NAT 2 claws/1 bite/1 horn; Dmg 1d3/1d3/
1d6/1d4; Save F8; ML 11; INT 5; AL C;
XP 175; RC/178. Spells or magical
weapons are required to hit gargoyles.
They are not affected by sleep or charm
spells.
This attack is intended to keep the
party distracted while the beholder
makes his bid to kidnap the princess
from her cabin. Seconds later (but in the
same round), a brilliant flash of light
surrounds the princess and blinds any-
one watching her (save vs. spells or go
blind for 1-10 rounds; blindness for only
one round on successful save). Princess
Yasmin screams and immediately van-
ishes, replaced by a ball of scintillating
light that flies out of the ship ignoring
all physical impediments. Only those
not blinded by the flash see the sphere
shooting toward the northern cliffs like
a comet.
The beholder appears in the flash but
cannot be seen through the intense
light. (See sidebar on page 34 for de-
tails.) Though a few PCs may be able to
see the course of Firouz's ball of light,
no one can catch up with it-it moves at
incredible speed. The gargoyles remain
behind for three rounds or until one of
them is destroyed. Then they flap off
toward the northern cliffs following the
same course as the ball of light. If the
PCs were blinded or too distracted to
notice the radiant sphere, the party can
easily follow the gargoyles. If the PCs
pursue by magical flight, they can fol-
low the gargoyles all the way to Firouz's
palace and avoid the perils of the "Sea
Caves:' Proceed directly to "The Qal'at
of Firouz al-Algarin,"
If the PCs follow the ball of light or
the gargoyles by boat, read or para-
phrase the following to the players:
You sail on as the sun sinks beneath
the horizon. Ththe north lies a jag-
ged, rocky coastline. In the last eve-
ning light you can see waves
crashing over hidden reefs just below
the surface. From the pattern of the
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
waves, you can make out extensive
coral beds that will be hazardous to
navigate in the failing light.
The coast is very rocky; approaching at
night with no light but the stars would be
perilous. Jamil is very reluctant to con-
tinue. He insists on dropping anchor here
until dawn. If the PCs insist that the ship
press on, they soon hear the dhow's hull
scrape the rocks and feel the ship shudder
as it runs aground on a reef. It will take
several hours' work to free the boat,
which must be done before the tide goes
out or the dhow will capsize as the water
level lowers.
If the PCs decide to use the skiff, they
can inch through the reefs to the lagoon
beyond, provided they have at least one
skilled seaman on board. (Jamil and
Rachim will volunteer.) Once they reach
the lagoon, the PCs can use intense
light sources (such as a hooded lantern
or continual light spell) to see the black
shingle beach (area 1).
Jamil will insist that at least two able
seamen remain on board the dhow.
Mustafa will not accompany the party
to the shore. He generously offers to
guard the dhow, saying, "This sort of
exploration is best left to professionals.
Nevertheless, I am willing to let you go,
since it is your fault the princess was
kidnapped:'
Sea Caves
1. Shingle Beach. Beyond the reef, a
clear lagoon with a narrow, black-
pebbled beach lies hemmed in by high
cliffs. In better times, Sultan Firouz
moored his boats here. The cave com-
plex that extends into the cliff was
excavated for easy access to the beach.
Read or paraphrase the following as the
PCs approach the beach:
A thin strip of black shingle beach
slopes from the looming cliffs to the
clear water of the lagoon. Youcan see
the gaping mouths of five dark caves
in the cliff face. Half a dozen rotten
wooden posts stand in two lines from
one of the cave entrances to the sea,
and a few rusted metal rings have
been driven into the cliff wall.
The beach runs along the shoreline for
67 yards, and is 17 yards wide from the
sea to the cliff. As the PCs pull up their
skiff, eight giant crabs scuttle out of the
caves to attack.
DUNGEON 29
THE OBJECTOF DESIRE

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1 square" 10'
Sea Caves
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Slumps
Giant cr abs (8): AC 2; HD 3 (Ll; hp
20, 17 ( x 2), 16. 15, 12,10,9; MV 60'
(20 ' ); ' AT 2 pincers; Dmg 2d612d6; Save
F2; ML 7; INT 2; AL N; XP 35; RC/ l64.
After t he cr abs are dispensed wit h,
the PCs can examine t he cl ifT or the
caves. Thieves or mystics can dete rmine
t hat the 400'-high d iffface is sheer;
only t hose with the ability to climb
wall s wou ld have a chance of ascending
safely. (PCs with mountaineering skill
an d the prope r equipment may also
scale t he cliffs.) Anyo ne who climbs to
t he top of t he cliff sees a fissure about
85 yards fr om t he cli ff face. A r ough-
hewn staircase r ises up from t he sea
ca ves t hrough t hi s natural fissure. Also
visible from the cl iff top is a t win-
towered structure located several mil es
to t he nort h.
2. Fi ve Cave Mouths. The cave en -
trances are slippery and lead downward
into a dank, water-filled cavern (area 3).
The passage that the posts lea d to has
been artificially straightened.
The dank, seaweed-clogged tunnel
slopes down for some di stance. Salt
water trickles down t he wall s and
ga t hers in pools on the slippery,
uneven Fl oor. At first you are ankle
deep, but it seems you will soon be
up to your wai st in dank, foul -
smelli ng br ine.
3. Ghoul Cav e. After 60' the tunnels
converge in one large chamber where
three ghouls lurk . The ghouls are t he
remai ns of pirates who died in a st orm,
which washed their dying bodies and
the treasure che st they clu ng to into the
cave. They were turned into ghouls by
t heir greed and now feed on any carrion
th at is swept into the caves or left by
t he cra bs, which they tolerate as food
providers. As the PCs enter t he ghouls '
abode with a light source, read or para-
phrase t he following to the players:
The tunnel opens abrupt ly into a
vast, echoing, part ially submerged
cavern. Despite t he presen ce of a
light source, t he roof is lost in gloom
and you cannot see below the sur face
of t he wai st -deep murky water. At
the far end of the cave, you can j ust
make out stone ste ps rising from the
water into darkness.
Suddenly, three hideous humanoid
figures lunge out of the water. The
dim li ght barely reveals thei r r otten
and disfigured flesh. Tatters of clot h-
ing hang on their twisted bodies.
Th ei r leering mouths reveal horribly
sharp teeth as their taloned fingers
claw the air.
Fighting waist-dee p in water on slip-
pery stone penali zes each PC's attack
roll s by -1. The ghouls' greed is so
st rong that th ey will break free of any
cler ical tur ning as soon as someone
approaches with in 5' of the t reasure
chest. The chest lies unde rwater on the
bottom step leadi ng to area 4.
Ghouls (3): AC 6; HD 2* (M); hp 14,
12, 11; MV 90' (30' ); ' AT 2 cle wezt bite;
Dmg Id3/l d3/I d3 plus paralysis ; Save
F2; ML 9; INT 3; AL C; XP 25; RC/178.
The iron-bound sea chest is made of
har dwood; its lock has r uste d solid.
Because it is full of br ine and treasure,
the chest is ver y heavy, weighing 500
lbs. out of the water. It contains 512 gp
fr om var ious count r ies; 40 assorted
semiprecious stones (30 gp each); a gold
ring of truth; t wo clea r, odorless, sweet-
30Issue No, SO
tasting potions of super-healing; a dag-
ger +]; and a waterproof case contain-
ing a magical scroll with the spells
detect magic, locate object, and protec-
tion from evil]0' radius.
4. Eyes in the Dark. If the PCs climb
the stairs toward area 5, read or para-
phrase the following to the players:
The carved steps lead upward out of the
water. Fifty feet ahead, you see a rust-
encrusted metal gate through which
you glimpse a pair of red glowing eyes.
The gate is locked and cannot be
picked due to centuries of corrosion. The
lock can be forced open with a combined
total of 30 Strength points. The glowing
eyes are actually a trick set in area 5.
5. Disused Guardroom. This large
room was once used by Sultan Firouz's
guards. It contains a stone bench and a
few rusted hooks on the walls. None of
this is immediately visible, because the
room is pitch dark. The glowing eyes
disappear the instant any light is
brought to the metal gate. The eyes are
just magical paint and were put on the
wall to deter unwelcome visitors. The
eyes have no effect apart from the glow.
If the PCs want to rest in this room,
they will not be disturbed. The only exit
from the room is a stone door set into
the west wall. Beyond the stone door, a
set of rough-hewn stairs zigzag up
through a natural fissure to the top of
the cliff (area 6).
6. Cliff Top. When the PCs reach the
cliff top, either through the fissure from
area 5 or up the cliff from the beach,
read or paraphrase the following to the
players:
Looking back toward the water, you
can see your dhow moored safely in
the lagoon. Youcan just barely see
Mustafa supervising Ali, who is mov-
ing the vizier's largest trunk into the
princess's cabin. Inland, as far as the
eye can see, lies the parched desert.
The only feature breaking the monot-
ony of the wasteland is a twin-towered
building several miles farther north.
The Qal'af of Flrouz ai-Algarin
There is nothing but barren desert for
many days' walk in any other direction
except toward the distant towers. This
must be the destination to which the
princess was carried. As the party ap-
proaches Firouz's qal'at, read or para-
phrase the following to the players:
The building is surrounded by a high
white wall over which you spot a
green, domed roof flanked by two dull
white towers. As you draw nearer, you
can see that the whole structure is
rather dilapidated. Shards have fallen
from the marble walls, and the green
roof seems to bebadly tarnished cop-
per. Younotice that you are walking
over the vestiges of a small village
worn down to its foundations by the
ravages of time. As you cross the
parched ground, winged creatures rise
up from the tops of the towers and flap
toward you.
These are two gargoyles (hp 20, 17)
plus any that survived the attack on the
ship. They take two rounds to enter
melee range, and approach from differ-
ent sides to avoid area-effect spells. The
gargoyles attack until destroyed.
The Story Unfolds
The PCs arrive at the palace hoping to
rescue Princess Yasmin, only to find her
trapped in the company of the beholder
sultan, Firouz al-Algarin. Although the
party could confront the beholder and
attempt to wrest the princess from his
clutches, there is a way to save Yasmin
without harming the cursed Firouz.
A benevolent ghost will offer to help
the PCs rescue the princess. (See area 5
of the qal'at.) The ghost, a former ser-
vant of Firouz, believes it knows the
secret to restoring the sultan's humani-
ty. Contained within the palace's east-
ern tower are notes detailing the
process for preparing a potion that will
restore the sultan's sanity. The ghost
wrongly believes that the potion will
also transform Firouz back into a hu-
man being, when in truth the potion
will restore only his human mind.
Once the PCs have found the neces-
sary ingredients (see area 12 of the
qal'at) and concocted the potion, they
must find some way to administer it to
Firouz (preferably without his knowl-
edge). Years of existence as an eye ty-
rant have made Firouz a dangerous and
unbalanced creature. The beholder
dislikes the presence of outsiders-
except, of course, the women he brings
through his mirror ofdesire.
The company of Yasmin has distracted
Firouz and made him unusually pleas-
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
ant. He does not anticipate any retalia-
tion for the princess's abduction and has
made no effort to post guards, other
than his gargoyles. The PCs should be
able to enter and explore Firouz's palace
without the beholder being aware of
their presence.
The PCs must act quickly, however,
for the cursed sultan has already made
plans to wed Princess Yasmin. If the
PCs restore Firouz's sanity, the sultan
will call off the wedding and seek to
make amends. He also asks that the
PCs help restore the life of his beloved
Aurelia. Yasmin, feeling pity for the
beholder, will ask that the PCs help to
undo Firouz's curse by tracking down
the villain responsible. (See "The For-
tress of Nazir al-Azrad" for details.)
Qal'at Grounds
1. Entrance. An open archway leads
into the courtyard surrounding the
twin-towered palace. Above the arch-
way, a chiseled message reads:
"Let it be known that this qal'at and
the court of Sultan Firouz al-Algarin
are cursed by the wizard Nazir al-
Azrad, whose anger is mighty and
whose vengeance is eternal:'
PCs who make a successful Intelli-
gence check at -10 may have heard
something about Nazir. However, all
they know is that he was a mage of
awesome power and evil reputation who
was rumored to live in the remote inte-
rior of Algarin about five centuries ago.
In contrast, the legacy of the sultan's
rule is common knowledge to those who
live in this part of the world. Firouz and
his ancestors ruled Algarin for hun-
dreds of years. Centuries ago, Algarin
was a vast, seemingly endless stretch of
land that incorporated the territories
now referred to as Sasan and Samar-
kand. Its vastness has diminished with
the passage of time.
2. Courtyard.
Youfind yourselves in a courtyard of
baked earth that, unlike the land
outside, is streaked with sand.
Ahead, double doors of tarnished
copper stand ajar. Between the arch-
way and the doors is a dried-up foun-
tain. A stone sculpture of thrashing,
open-mouthed water elementals
forms its centerpiece. Barren gardens
DUNGEON 31
THEOBJECTOFDESIRE
victim makes the saving t hrow). On a roU
of 19 or 20, the desert ghost blinds its
victim (-4 to hit ; +4 AC penalty; save
ve. dragon breath indicates the PCavoid-
ed the blinding dust). The victim remai ns
blinded until t he send is washed out .
Desert ghosts are immune to sleep,
charm, and !wid spells. They are harmed
by only metal weapons, although PCs
attacking with metal melee weapons
suffer 13 hp electrical damage per sue-
cessful attack. Metal-tipped missile weap-
ons infl ict only half damage on the desert
ghosts, but cause no electrical damage to
t he user. The creatures are impervious to
normal fire, suffer minimum damage
from magical fire (l hpldie), but suffer Id8
hp damage per flask of water. Electrical
attacks actually increase their hit points
by the amount of damage that the attack
would have inflicted , but regardl ess of the
electrical " intensity:' they cannot exceed
their maximum allotted hit points.
Dese rt ghosts (3): AC 3; HD 5" (L);
hp 28, 25. 23; MV 120' (40'); 'AT 1
tou ch; Dmg 5d8 (IdS per HD; ha lf if
save va. spells is successful); Save F5 ;
ML 10; TNT 5; AL N; XP 425 ; Ce128.
uthe party can remove t he gem that
curses t he spring, the desert ghosts disai-
pate. The gem (worth 500 gp) can easil y
beseen down any of the sculpture's
mouths. It can be dislodged with a sue-
cessful remove-traps roll, a remcoe curse,
or a knock spell. The gem has no magical
properties if removed from the fountain.
Destroying the fountain by smashi ng it
with magical weapons will also end the
curse. Purewater bubbles up from the
spring as soon as the curse is lifted.
Qal ' at I nterior
4. Ent rance.
The tarnished copper doors open onto
an unli t passage, at the end of which
you can see a white glow diffused by
a fil igree screen of geomet ri c pat-
terns woven in fine sil ver wi re . The
de licate screen appears to be un -
touched by the decay that pervades
the exterior ofthe structure.
As you approach, you see that t he
screen curves to the left and right ,
with a dim corridor running along the
perimeter. Arched doors are set into
the scree n just opposite the entrance
passage. By peering through the fine
lacelike wire pattern, you can see that
the screen encloses a richly appointed
circular room.
2
1 I
,
, I
AB you cross the courtyard, sand ex-
plodes from the mouths of the strange
creatures that make up its centerpiece.
The sand billows into the air and cov-
ers the courtyard instantly, Before the
grit has settled, three humanoid-
shaped mounds of sand with crude
features rise up to attack.
These are desert ghosts. Despite their
name, these elemental creatures are not
undead and cannot beturned by a cleric.
Although t hey inflict 5d8 hp electrical
damage per successful attack, desert
ghosts also lose I d4 hp every time they
successful ly strike a target (12 hp if t he
was trying to cli mb over the wall when
the beholder caught him.
3. Cursed Fountain. Th is fountain
was once the site of a spring t hat trrt-
gated the palace and the surrounding
lands. However, Nazir wedged a magi -
cal black gem (marked with the sigtl of
a glowing white flame) into t he neck of
the fountain to curse the spring. The
fountain is now a magical trap. If any-
one comes within 30' of it , read or para-
phrase the following to the players:
,
.J"
-,
,
, "
,
,
_
,, '
", ,
I"
2
,t
r
(.
2 "
~ ~ _ ... _ J.
..
The stat ues are the petrified remains
of adventurers who ca me here many
years ago and encountered the beholder.
The stone has been eroded by the ele-
ments, and the victims cannot be re-
stor ed by any means short of a wi8h.
The three fighters wore studded lea th-
er armor, tunics, baggy pants, and tur-
bans. They bore sh ields and brandished
sci mit ars. (One of the weapons has
snapped off at the hilt.) The kneeling
figure was a cleric. petrified in the act
of call ing for divine i ntervent ion that
never came. By his side. halfburied in
the sand. is a wooden staffof str iking
(21 charges). The cleric dropped the staff
before he was petrified. Because of its
magical nature, the staff ha s not de-
cayed over the years. The broken man
in the southeast corn er was a thief who
1 square 20'
Qal'at Gr ou nds
fill the open areas inside the walls.
Inside the wall , at the southwest
comer, st ands a group of worn stone
sta t ues: three men in fighting st a nce
and one who has fall en to hi s knee s
in prayer. 'Ib the right. near the base
of the wall , lies the broken st at ue of
a man with hi s left arm out stretched.
32Issue No, 50
THE OBJECT OFDESIRE
10
Fourth
Level
Second
Level
N
.-
9
by his side. "Princess Yasmin, look
upon my devoted wife, who has been
faithful to me these past five years.
Now, unhappily, she has betrayed me: '
The woman servi ng him frowns in
bewilderment and asks, "How have I
offended you, my beloved?"
Without hesitati on, the st alk over
hi s centra l eye gazes toward her.
"You ar e no longer the fairest in t he
la nd." With that, a violet beam
shoots forth from t he small eye and
she is t urned t o stone. The beast
Basement
The Qal'at of
Firouz al-Algarin
Gr ound
Level
The monster speaks to Pr incess Yaa-
mi n while glancing mournfully to-
war d t he woman standi ng dutifully
Third
Level
1 square "" 10'
20 people a day. The glowi ng crystal
(l00 gp :--alue) has a continual ligh t spell
cast on It . The golden key hanging from
the crystal opens Yasmin's gilded cage.
The silver key opens t he filigree door t o
the room. The goblet resting on th e
sul tan's ta ble iewortb 2,500 gp o
Before the PCs declare the ir actions
for t he round, read or paraphrase the
following to the player s:
Except for the double doors, the be-
hol der's t hrone room (ar ea 5) is com-
pletely enclosed by the filigree screen.
This ornamental mes h of intertwined
silver wire blocks visi on except when
peered through from close up; the
scree n cannot be parted or lifted with-
out excessive force, and not wit hout
damagi ng it. The corridor that encircles
t he central cha mber allows access to the
t win t owers. The bronze door s leading
to the towers are unlocked.
If t he party makes noise in the circu-
lar hallway, the occupant ofthe center
room will dismiss the disturbance as
being caused by the gremlins in the
kitchen . (See ar ea 7 of the qal'at.) If the
noise is excess ive , t he annoyed sultan
may investigate (50% chance),
Your eyes are immediately drawn to
the huge spherical monster currently
resting on an enormous pillow near
the center ofthe room. A beautiful
woman whom you've never seen before
gently pats its brow with a damp cloth
and feeds it figs from a large seashell.
The monster's central eye is closed
tightly. It appears to be rapt in plea-
sure as rivulets of water trickle down
ita bulbous hide. Its other 10 eyes,
each affixed to a rubbery stalk, stare
toward a gilded cage in which Pr incess
Yasmin languishes.
The floor of the room is covered
with sil k cushions and pillows. Near
t he easte rn wall , a huge golden gob-
let sits atop a small circular ta ble. A
large glowing crystal suspended on a
chain from the ceili ng illuminates
~ room, two keys-one gold, one
Silver- hang from this crystal. A
5' -diameter circular hole is visi ble in
the ceiling, 30' above. A lar ge gilt -
framed mirror is fixed to t he far wall .
The monst er is Sultan Firouz aI-
Algari n, the behol der. His mirror of
desire han gs on the north wall behind
hi m. (Only the sultan can use this magi -
cal ite m; see the sidebar for details.)
Th e seashell is a horn ofplenty from
which Ftrouz and his wives feed. It is
capable of producing food and dr ink for
5, Throne Room, Behind t he door
and screen lies the sul tan's throne
room. The door in t he scree n has a fancy
sil ver lock that is currently secured. As
soon as the PCs get close enough to see
t hrough t he filigree, read or para phrase
the following to the players:
DUNGEON 33
stalks); HD 11***** (M); hp 50 (body),
20 (central eye), 12 (eye stalk); MV 30'
(10'); NAT 1 bite plus special; Dmg 2d8
plus special; Save M11; ML 12; INT 16;
AL C; XP 5,100; RC/160.
6. Connecting Corridors. These two
short corridors are set off with doors at
either end. A door in the east wall of
each corridor leads to spiral stairs going
down and up. Khalid's ghost leads the
party up to the library on the second
floor of the east tower (area 12 of the
qal'at), As PCs approach the stairs,
they hear VOIces from below.
7. Kitchen. A pack of 10 gremlins
took up residence in the basement many
years ago, and the beholder tolerates
them as servants. Their leader is a
shaman (a clerical spellcaster) but is not
expecting combat and has not memo-
rized any offensive spells. The gremlins
usually live off scraps from the horn of
plenty (see area 5 ofthe qal'at) but
sometimes forage outside. At the mo-
ment, they are trying to make a wed-
ding c?,ke. The shaman, who is the only
who can read even slightly, is
reCItIng the recipe from a large book.
As you near the bottom of the steps,
you can hear a scratchy voice speak-
ing very slowly in faltering Common.
"Add dah mel-ted ingrudants... dah
dates ... eggs ... jin-jur ... an' beat
well." This is followed by a series of
dull thuds and ill-tempered snarls,
then, "No! Cake! Cake!"
Youpeer around the bottom of the
stairs and see a scene of utter chaos.
Ten small green-skinned humanoids
are milling around a large kitchen.
One of them is standing on a stool in
the middle of the room, reading from
a large open book and waving a ladle
around like a wand. Several more of
the creatures are stirring a large pot
on a table while others are whacking
each other with wooden spoons. A fat
one sits in a corner, stuffing his face
with figs from a bowl, a bottle of red
wine by his side. All of the creatures
are plastered in sticky brown goo.
"Not dee wine!" screeches the one on
the stool as he hurls his ladle, hitting
the fat one between the eyes and mak-
ing him spit out a shower of figs.
"Dat's fur dah Eye-ball's weddin'!"
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
sighs deeply and rotates to face Yas-
min, opening his large central eye
and saying, "Tomorrow at sunrise
you shall be my new bride:' A mo-
later, another eye nonchalantly
emits a blue beam that levitates the
statue of the beholder's former be-
loved through the hole in the ceiling.
If the PCs seem prepared to charge to
Yasmin's rescue, insert the following
encounter just before the party does
something rash:
The Mirror of Desire
This 15
/-tall,
10
'-wide
silver mirror
set in a gilt frame radiates strong
alteration and divination magic.
Only the mirror's rightful owner can
activate its magical properties; any-
one else looking into the mirror sees
a normal reflection. Ownership can-
not be stolen, it must granted. If the
previous owner dies without be-
queathing the mirror to another, it
loses all enchantment.
The mirror was originally created
by a djinni pasha as a wedding gift
for of Sultan Firouz's ancestors,
and It has been passed down through
the family ever since. Even when he
is restored to his true form, Firouz
will not give away the mirror of
desire. It is an heirloom he holds in
trust for his children and his chil-
dren's children.
Once per day the mirror allows its
owner to view his heart's desire. This
cannot be just a whim but the one
particular thing he wants for himself
more than anything else in the
world. Depending on the individual
this could be anything from fabulou's
riches to true love. By stepping into
the mirror, the owner and up to 10
others, if he so wishes, will be trans-
ported as a ball of light at incredible
speed (MV 540
')
to the object of de-
sire. The mirror will also transport
them back, but only if they success-
fully obtain their goal. Thus, there is
some risk involved as the travelers
will not necessarily know where they
are, what guards the object, or how
to attain it. Merely being in the
presence of your heart's desire does
not guarantee getting it, as Firouz
well knows.
34 Issue No. 50
Suddenly, an apparition of a thin,
stoop-shouldered man steps out of the
wall in front of you, barring your path
into the beholder's chamber. The ghost
beckons soundlessly with ink-stained
fingers and backs along the east corri-
dor, motioning for you to follow.
This is the ghost of the sultan's scribe,
Khalid bin Varzakh. Khalid is mute and
can beckon and signal with his hands
only. Being Lawful, the ghost does not
attack but tries to lure the party to the
library (area 12 of the qal'at) to show
them how they can save his master. If
the PCs try to attack the beholder Kha-
lid's ghost appears right in front of
them and shouts a soundless "NO!"
while waving its arms. If the PCs per-
sist in their combative actions or refuse
to follow him, Khalid attempts to pos-
sess a PC and force the party to the
library. The ghost will not attempt to
age anyone but might paralyze PCs who
behave aggressively.
When he thinks the party will follow
enters the east tower, disappea;-
mg through the doorway down the corri-
dor. He ascends the stairs to the library
and leads the PCs to the book on the
desk, which he points at until they
decipher its contents.
Khalid bin Vanakh, ghost: AC -2;
HD 14**** 00; hp 70; MY90' (30'); NM
1 touch/1 gaze; Dmg age 1d4 x 10 years!
paralysis (paralysis lasts 2-8rounds);
Save M14; ML 10; !NT 14; AL L; XP
?,500; RC/182(Haunt, ghost). The ghost is
immune to attack from +1 or lesser
weapons and is immune to all spells.
Ifthe PCs ignore the ghost and attack
the beholder, Firouz retaliates with what
in beholder terms, is some restraint. '
Firouz initially tries to slow them all
telekinesing any PCs who are not
He flies out of melee range and uses his
flesh to stone rayon the first person to
hurt him seriously. Firouz is feeling gen-
erous because he is to be married and
wishes to have guests. If all else fails, he
attempts to charm the PCs to prevent
them from attacking him again.
Firouz has already charmed Princess
Yasmin. If the PCs try to rescue her, she
rushes to the beholder and wraps her
arms around the sultan, claiming that
she loves him. The beholder's charm and
other eye effects are cast at 20th level.
Sultan Firouz al-Algarin (beholder):
AC 0 (body), 2 (central eye), 7 (eye
Basement

The gremli ns will not attack 8 well-

armed party, preferring to back away
from a fight unless they outnumber the
PCs by three to one. They are rather
irritable and insolent, and are not above
hurling cake batter at PCs who provoke
them. If chased from the kitchen, they
cover their escape by throwing lumps of
batter and cooking ute nsil s.
The gremlins can eas ily be bribed
with food or treasure, or fooled into
thinking the PCs are guests of the be-
holder. Speaking in stil ted Common. the
shaman can provide accurate informa-
tion about what lies in the west tower
and the main building. The gremlins
have never been in the sultan's bedroom
(area 18 of the qal'at } because of " da b
metal man" (iron living statue), Nor
have they entered t he east tower, be-
cau se t hey are scared of "dab eee-thru
man" (Khalid' s ghosl).
The only exits from the kitchen a re
the eaet and west stairwe lls. a door in
t he south wall that leads to t he eer-
vants' quarters (area 8 of t he qel'et),
and a door in the north wall that leads
to the larder (area 9).
Abu. gremlin s bama n: AC 7; HD
It. t t (5); Shaman4; hp 11; MV 120'
(40'); 'AT special; DIng special or by
spell type ; SA chaot ic aura; Save E1;
ML 12; !NT 9; AL C; XP 275; RCJ18l.
Spells: CUrt! light woundl, light, hold
person.
Gremli ns (9): HD It t (5 ); hp 4 each;
IAT special; Dmg speci al ; Save EI ; XP
16; other statistics as for Abu. None of
these gremlins can cast spells.
8. Servants' Quarters. The gremlins
sleep here on old sacking and broken
cote that are poorly mended with bite of
old rope. The narrow rect angular room
is very untidy, but th e gre mli ns clea n it
out regularly-on the " Eye-ba ll 's"
orden-IIO it does not smell too bad.
There is nothing of value here.
9. Larder:. This small pantry is lined
wit h shelves. most of whi ch are bare.
The lowest shelf holds a few sacks of
stale flour. dried fruit, salt, and coffee.
10. Refuse Pit. Continuing down the
east stairwell from the kitchen, the PCs
find the stairwell blocked by an unlocked
wooden door barred from thi s side. Be-
yond the door. the stairs cont inue spiral-
ling downward for 20', ending at a
4'-diameter, 10'-deep circular pit. The pit
oontains a green slime, the qal'at'a waste
disposal system. At one time the slime
was kept in check by regular burning, but
the gremlins have been less than diligent
in this task and the pit is no..... full of
slime. The stairs below the door are slip-
pery with kitchen refuse thrown down by
the gremlins, who are not keen on getting
near the slime.
Anyone not taking precautions (such
as moving slowly or securing a rope)
must make a Dexter ity check to avoid
sli pping down th e stairs into the gree n
sli me. A rope handrail once made t he
stairs safer and easier, but the gremlins
removed it long ago to mend their cots.
Green slime: AC can always be hit ;
HD 2" 0..); hp 14; MY 3' II '); ' ATI ; Dmg
special; Save F1; W. 7; INT 0; AL N; XP
30; RC/18l. Green slime cannot be
harmed by any aUackA except fire or cold.
East Tower
The party will be safe here as none of
th e qal' at's current inhabita nts ever
enter. The gr emlins are afraid ofthe
ghost, and the beholder is too big and
needs nothing from here anyway.
II. Chapel.
Within this disused chapel are sev-
eral vases of deied-up flowers. The
wall s are decorated with faded. holy
writing. and on th e far side of the
room two gold rings rest on a cushion
atop an altar. Dust and cobwebs are
everywhere.
The holy wri ting r adiates a faint
magical aura . This is the blessing re-
quired to mak e t he magical potion that
will restore the beholder's sanity. (See
"The Story Unfolds," "Pre pari ng the
Potion;' and area 12 of the qal' at for
details.) The chapel st ill holds the t wo
gold wedding r ings (500 gp each) intend-
ed for the sultan and Aurel ia. PCclerics
may suspect that the room was set up
for a wedding service, although no one
has entered here for a very long t ime.
12. Library.
As you enter this room lined with
bookshelves, your attenti on focuses
on a seated human skeleton col-
lapsed over a book on a large desk in
the middle of th e library. Next to th e
skull, the skeleton' s bony hand rests
on an overt urned glass ink bottle. A
wide patch of indigo has spr ead from
THE OBJECT OFDESIRE
DUNGEON 35
THE OBJECT OFDESIRE
The cure requires the following
ingredients:
The pearl from the sultan's chain
of office. I believe this is still in his
bedchamber, where it is guarded by
the iron statue.
Pure water. The evil wizard Nazir
al-Azrad has cursed the fountain in
the courtyard so it now produces only
sand. I do not know how to repair the
fountain and have to collect dew in a
copper dish for myself.
A golden goblet in which the
water and pearl must be placed.
The blessing on the walls of the
chapel must be read over the goblet
and ingredients by a holy cleric. If
this is done correctly, the pearl
should dissolve completely into the
water.
The potion must be administered to
the sultan. Although I do not know
how he can be persuaded to drink it,
the elixir may be removed from the
goblet and placed in some less obvi-
ous container without affecting its
potency.
blessing written on the chapel walls
(area 11 of the qal'at) to complete the
ceremony.
Because Khalid was not a cleric, he
could not complete the ceremony him-
self, which is why he recorded the correct
procedure in his ledger. Unfortunately,
he died of old age just as he completed
his task, spilling an ink bottle over the
last page as he collapsed on his desk. In
his anguish at this final blunder, he
refused to pass on and has haunted the
qal'at ever since.
The DM should photocopy the page of
Khalid's book reproduced here, and
hand it to the players when the PCs
examine the tome.
The drawer in the desk is locked. If
the PCs manage to open it, they find
some blank, yellowed vellum; a small
box of sand; another box containing a
fine white powder (chalk); a stylus; a
magnifying glass with an ivory handle
(worth 100 gp); and a silver skull cap.
The skull cap is a magical helm of read-
ing (Re, page 240).
If the PCs spread chalk over the ink-
stained page, then blow the excess
away, some of the chalk will remain in
the stylus indentations, allowing the
PCs to read the ruined script. The ob-
scured text reads as follows:
realize that the potion would restore
only the sultan's mind and not his form.
From Khalid's notes, the PCs may make
the same mistake.
The potion is made by placing the
pearl from Firouz's chain of office (lo-
cated in the sultan's bedroom, area 18 of
the qal'at) in a golden goblet like the
one found in the scribe's bedroom (area
14). The goblet must be filled with wa-
ter taken directly from its source (like
the water from the cursed courtyard
fountain in area 3 of the qal'at), Once
the goblet has been filled and the pearl
added, a cleric must recite the holy
In sorrow I must relate herein the tale oj my master, Sultan 'Firouz al-7llgarin. flhis tale
began the night my master peereJ through his magical mirror anJ behelJ a woman oj such exqui-
site beauty that his heart 10ngeJ to be with her. flhrough the suiface oj the mirror he was trans-
porteJ to her presence, traveling across the Vast, moonlit Jesert like a shooting star.
flhefair laJy :Jlurelia returneJ with 'Firouz that Very night. Her arrival brought much happi-
ness anJ reverie to the sultan sqal'at. 'Few were surpriseJ at the haste with which their marriage
was arrangeJ. HoweVer, the next Jay Juring their weJJing, all revetie was shattereJ with the
suJJen arrival oJ:Jlurelia sfather, Nazir al-:JlzraJ, who curseJ :Jlurelia for betraying him anJ
JamneJ 'Firouz for stealing his Jaughter. In his rage, Nazir useJ his magical stqf{ to tran.{[orm
the sultan into an eleven-eyeJ monster anJ slew the holy cleric about to marry the couple. 'Fi-
nally he turneJ upon his Jaughter anJ changeJ her into a statue oj purest unliving crystal. With
blinJing Jury he vanisheJ, taking his Jaughter from the sultan ssight forever.
My master was Jriven maJ by the shock oj his own tran.{[ormation anJ beholJing that oj his
beloveJ. His memories were jarreJ from him, anJ he useJ the fearsome powers oj his eyes to
Jestroy all who stooJ before him. flhe court became an empty reflection oj its former self, leaving
'Firouz as 10rJ oj nothing.
When the Jestruction enJeJ, he turneJ his eyes to the magnificent mirror, anJ a beautiful
woman from a nomaJic tribe was shown to him. :Jl prisoner oj his own feelings oj loss anJ regret,
he useJ his mirror to capture her anJ charmeJ her with his power. He kept her as his wife until
her looks were surpasseJ by another, at which time he immortalizeJ the nomaJ woman sremaining
beauty in stone.
flhus I fear the centuries will pass as the sultan tires oj his concubines, petrifies them, anJ
takes new ones. 'But as his hall fills with statues, his heart will grow lonelier. Now, oj all his
true frjenJs, only I, his scribe, remain. I hiJe in my library where the sultan never Ventures anJ
have spent my time searching for some remeJy for his curse nchantment. I believe a cure is
possible, though I myself am unable t ect it, . e the pone s re be
the ceremony be y abilities.
flhe cure re
flhe e
this i
the vial over the right-hand page of
the tome. The ghostly man who con-
fronted you earlier stands over the
desk and points to the book.
The ghost is Khalid, and the book
contains the scribe's account of the
events involving Sultan Firouz's trans-
formation. The scribe managed to re-
main at the court covertly, as the
beholder rarely left his throne room.
Through his researches in the library,
Khalid managed to discover the recipe
for a magical potion that might undo
the sultan's curse. However, he did not
36Issue No. 50
Once the PCs have read the complete
text, Khalid's ghost fades away.
There are no magical tomes anywhere
on the shelves. The books are all ac-
counts of court proceedings, inventories,
and tax returns. However, one of the
early entries in a red volume labeled
Royal Acquisitions states that the foun-
tain in the courtyard was erected above
an underground spring of pure water. A
later entry contains a description of the
iron living statue constructed to guard
the sultan's quarters (see area 17 of the
qal'at), as well as the procedure for
building others of its kind. Such infor-
mation may be worth something to a
wizard or sage in Sasan or Samarkand.
PCs searching Khalid's skeleton will
find a key that opens both of the chests
in area 14 of the qal'at.
13. Guest Bedroom.
You enter what was obviously a bed-
room. It contains a canopied bed, an
ornate dresser, and a large wardrobe.
The once-fine silk draperies are faded
and decayed. Dust covers the floor.
Aurelia stayed here for a few hours
before her ill-fated wedding to Firouz.
The wardrobe contains a dusty but
unfaded purple silk dress studded with
amethysts and moonstones (worth 8,000
gp), which Aurelia had been wearing
the night she eloped with Firouz.
14. Bedroom.
A room crowded with furniture lies at
the top of the spiral stairs. There
doesn't seem to be enough room for the
two low beds, two padlocked chests, a
worn desk, two chairs, and shelves
cluttered with dusty bottles, a chess
set, vases, and a tarnished silver oil
lamp. Everything is dusty and faded.
This is the chamber shared centuries
ago by Khalid the scribe and Abdallah,
the sultan's cleric (who was killed by
Nazir during Firouz and Aurelia's wed-
ding ceremony). Two of the bottles still
contain oil for the lamp, but the rest are
empty. The key to both chests can be
found in area 12 of the qal'at.
The scribe's chest holds a robe, paper,
quills, and a small brass key that opens
the desk drawer in area 12. The cleric's
chest contains vestments, candles, flint
and steel, a golden goblet (worth 1,000
gp; one of the items needed to prepare
the beholder's sanity potion), and a
bottle with a 2"-long metal crescent tied
to its stopper with string. (See area 17
of the qal'at for details.) The bottle
contains a potion of super-healing.
West Tower
15. Reception Room.
This room looks as though it has
been looted. The dozen tattered and
broken chairs that are left are faded
and covered in cobwebs and dust.
There is nothing of value in this room.
The gremlins have taken (and probably
broken) everything else.
16. Bedroom. This room also shows
signs of looting. There is a bare bedstead
and an unlocked, empty chest. Every-
thing is strewn with cobwebs and dust.
17. Firouz's Living Quarters. The
spiral stairs do not reach the top of the
west tower but stop at the third floor.
Read or paraphrase the following to the
players:
The spiral stairs end here, opening
onto the small foyer of a once lav-
ishly appointed living room. Another
doorway can be seen at the far side of
the room, but in front of it stands an
8'-tall iron statue, its arms crossed
menacingly.
The thick dust that covers every-
thing suggests that the room has not
been used for years. A dining table is
flanked by two ornate wooden chairs
with faded cushions. A fine carpet
covers the floor beneath the table
and a divan whose original color can
no longer be determined.
The statue is an iron living statue. If
the PCs approach the statue, it puts out
a hand to stop them. PCs standing with-
in 10' of the statue can notice a 2" -long
crescent-shaped indentation in its fore-
head, the only mark on its otherwise
perfectly smooth body. A PC who ob-
tained the metal crescent from area 14
of the qal'at can approach the statue
and place the crescent into the statue's
forehead. This causes the statue to step
aside and allow that person (and no one
else) to pass through the doorway safely.
The statue attacks only if someone
comes within 5' (except any PC in pos-
session of the metal crescent). Deter-
mined adventurers can reach the next
level by scaling the outside of the tower,
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
although they must circumvent the bars
on the bedroom window to enter area 18
of the qal'at. The statue's only task is to
guard the doorway.
The doorway opens onto a narrow flight
of stairs that curls up to a locked door.
Iron living statue: AC 2; HD 4* (L);
hp 28; MV 30' (10'); NAT 2; Dmg Id8/
Id8; Save F4; ML 11; INT 7; AL N; XP
125; RC/208.
18. Royal Bedroom. The lock on the
door leading to the sultan's bedroom
may be picked with normal chance of
success. A knock spell will also permit
entry. If the PCs manage to see inside
the room, read or paraphrase the follow-
ing to the players:
Although this room is also covered in
dust, you can tell that it was once the
master bedroom. A wardrobe of dark
mahogany stands beside a large bed
draped with a faded but fine-quality
silk cover. A small table with a chair
beside it stands beneath a barred
window overlooking the parched
gardens. Lying on the table are a
jeweled short sword and a golden
chain from which hangs a crescent
amulet inset with a pearl.
The amulet is Sultan Firouz's chain of
office. The pearl is needed to make the
potion to restore the sultan's mind. The
sword is a short sword +2. PCs search-
ing the wardrobe find nothing but faded
and fragile silk robes, baggy pants, and
long strips of cloth (turbans).
Attic
19. Harem. The old harem occupies the
top floor of the main building. The behold-
er now uses this area to store the statues
of his former wives. A hole in the floor
(disintegrated by the beholder) drops 30'
to the throne room below. A locked secret
door gives access to the harem from the
sultan's living quarters on the third floor
of the west tower (area 17 of the qal'atr If
the PCs enter, read or paraphrase the
following to the players:
You see a large, unlit, circular room
with no windows. The floor and
walls are decorated with striking
geometric mosaics. There is no fur-
niture, just rows of statues of beau-
tiful women. In the southeast corner
of the floor, a gaping hole opens to
the throne room below.
DUNGEON 37
I
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
If the PCs look through the hole, they
see the beholder Firouz gazing lovingly
at Princess Yasmin,
There are 15 statues in this chamber.
Stone to flesh spells may be used to
restore these women to life. If such
magic is beyond the party's ability, the
only way to restore the women is to
undo Nazir's magic and reunite the
sultan and his betrothed. (See "Conclud-
ing the Adventure" for details.)
Preparing the Potion
Firouz's transformation was accomplished
using Nazir's staff and is treated as a
36th-level spell. The potion is specifically
tailored to cure Firouz's curse and is far
more potent than a generic dispel magic
spell. The potion is guaranteed to restore
the sultan's sanity if correctly prepared
and administered.
Once the PCs have collected the
proper ingredients, they must prepare
the potion. First they must put fresh
water into the golden goblet, then add
the pearl from the sultan's chain of
office. A cleric must then read the bless-
ing from the chapel while holding the
cup. As the cleric intones the blessing,
the pearl will dissolve. The ritual takes
one turn to complete.
Once the ritual is concluded, the party
must find a way to get the beholder to
drink the potion. He must swallow at
least half the elixir for it to be effective.
This can be achieved by diluting the
bottle of wine in the kitchen with the
potion. The gremlins can easily be dis-
tracted while this is done; they will not
place a guard in the kitchen while they
are asleep unless the party has been
persistently aggressive toward them.
The Wedding
The beholder never sleeps. He spends
the entire night gazing at Princess
Yasmin. The gremlins wake up just
before dawn and carry their sorry-
looking cake upstairs, along with the
bottle of wine. When the gremlins reach
the throne room, they shuffle in and
place the cake and wine down before the
beholder. If the sultan was previously
aware of the PCs, he expects them to
attend as guests.
Abu, the gremlin shaman, is to con-
duct the wedding ceremony. He thinks
it would be better to give the "Eye-
ball" a drink of wine first to keep him
in a good mood and make him more
likely to forgive Abu for mistakes.
38 Issue No. 50
The shaman commands one of the
other gremlins to pour the wine. As
the PCs watch, read or paraphrase the
following to the players:
One of the beholder's servants shaki-
ly pours the bottle of wine into the
huge golden goblet on the table. The
beholder turns to Yasmin as a beam
of bluish light shoots from one eye
and strikes the gold key hanging
from the light crystal. She gazes at
him adoringly as he levitates the
gold key from the crystal and un-
locks her cage. Yasmin steps out and
rushes to him, throwing her arms
around him lovingly.
"A toast to us:' he proclaims, levi-
tating the golden goblet to his mon-
strous lips and drinking deeply. The
beholder blinks rapidly, wobbles up
and down, and whirls uncontrollably
before landing heavily on a large
cushion.
When he comes to rest, the sultan's
mind has been restored to sanity but his
body remains unchanged. The effect of
the potion lasts long enough to cushion
his mind against the shock of realizing
what he has become and done. He feels
extreme remorse for his actions and is
now quite embarrassed by the atten-
tions of Princess Yasmin, who still
clings to him adoringly.
Firouz thanks the party for restoring
his mind but confesses that he cannot
free Princess Yasmin from his charm,
nor can he transform his petrified wives
to flesh. He has forgotten how to use his
eye-beams, and his ability to fly is errat-
ic. Firouz could never bring himself to
strike Yasmin (which would dispel the
charm), but for the moment her affec-
tions are far from troublesome. Firouz is
more concerned about the fate of his
beloved Aurelia.
The party can try to free Yasmin from
the effects of the beholder's 20th-level
charm using a dispel magic spell. If
they succeed, Princess Yasmin realizes
what has happened but feels sad for the
cursed sultan. An incurable romantic,
she is eager to see Firouz restored to
human form and reunited with his long-
lost love. If the PCs are unable to free
Yasmin and suggest that the beholder
attack the princess to break the charm,
Firouz opens his mouth widely, reveal-
ing massive teeth, and points out that a
single bite could kill her.
Ending the Curse
Firouz asks the PCs to help him save
Princess Aurelia from her evil father
and to find some way to undo Nazir's
curse. The beholder can elaborate on
the information that the PCs gained
from the scribe's notes and tell them a
little more about Nazir al-Azrad. He
knows nothing of Nazir's past except
that Aurelia feared him, and that he
lived in a rock fortress deep in the des-
ert of Algarin. He insists that Aurelia is
not evil like her father. Any hope of
rescuing her hinges on the PCs' explora-
tion of Nazir's lair. Firouz does not
know whether or not Nazir is still alive,
but he suspects that the evil sorcerer
has found some way to prolong his life.
Firouz can transport himself and the
PCs to Nazir's lair using his mirror of
desire, although the PCs cannot use the
mirror without him. He cautions the
party that the mirror will return them
only if he attains his heart's desire (the
fair Aurelia). He is anxious to set out
but does not mind waiting until the PCs
are fully prepared before they embark.
He will permit them to borrow what-
ever items they might find useful from
his qal'at.
When the PCs are ready and Firouz
looks through his mirror, they see only
a vast rock surrounded by sand. Firouz
tells them that the fortress lies within
the rock and presumes that Nazir must
have hidden the interior from scrying
since the elopement.
The Fortress of Nazir ol-Azrod
Centuries ago, the sorcerer Nazir al-
Azrad was a philosopher seeking wisdom
in the desert. There he found a colossal
rock of unnatural stone. While sheltering
in a deep cave in the rock, he discovered a
mass of magical crystals formed around a
single brilliant white flame. He studied
the White Flame for many days until he
determined that, although it radiated no
heat, it was kept burning by the power of
the crystals.
It was this strange relationship be-
tween the crystals and the White Flame
that became the basis of his power. (For
more information on this relationship,
see area 17 of the fortress.) Nazir found
that if he entered the Flame and bathed
in its brilliant light, any cut or bruise
he had taken was cured. Indeed, the
White Flame seemed to cure even the
ravages of time. After a while the
Flame grew dim, and Nazir had to find
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
.
some way to replenish the crystals. He unsure of his powers to risk carrying chimera attacks for the duration of the
had learned that the crystals contained anyone with him. If the PCs insist, spell (three turns) or until it is killed. It
the essence of life itself. If he found a Firouz will try to lift someone, but he is will not leave the room and does not

way to renew that essence, he would be not strong enough to fly with a passen- have enough room to fly.
immortal. Thus Nazir began his descent ger. If the PCs ask the beholder to use The chimera cannot strike PCs pro'
into evil and the mysteries of the his eye-beams, Firouz makes an earnest tected by anti-magic shells or protection
Flame. In time, he came to view all life attempt, but the results are less than from evil spells, although PCs protected
t
as less important than his own, and he successful. He accidentally slows people by the latter are still subject to its
-
began to think of innocents as mere and disintegrates nonliving objects (not ranged attack (breath weapon). The
receptacles of life essence to be fed to peoplel), Now that Firouz has been chimera reappears each time the PCs
the Flame. restored to his human mind, he has reenter this room, but it does not regain
Later, he invited a few evil outlaws to truly forgotten how his beholder powers lost hit points automatically. Once the
become his personal guard and share operate. The PCs must either scale the chimera is slain, Nazir must recast his
the benefits of the Flame as a reward. rock themselves (with a 50% penalty to spell to prepare another guardian for
He promised them a chance to get reo their climb-walls and mountaineering this chamber.
venge against a society that had reject- checks due to the rock's smoothness) or The copper door on the far side of the
ed them. They willingly murdered, venture into the tunnel. room is unlocked and opens onto a set of
abducted, and stole, secure in the steps that rises to area 3.
knowledge that as long as they returned 1. Rock Entrance. Chimera: AC 4; HD 9** (L); hp 50;
to bathe in the Flame, they would be
The passage is narrow, dark, echo-
MV 120' (40'); NAT 6 (2 claws/3 heads!
immortal. Thensure the outlaws' loyal- breath); Dmg Id3/1d3/2d4/1dlO/3d4/3d6;
ty, Nazir planted a magical peach tree
ing, and cramped. Although it seems
Save F9; ML 9; INT 6; AL C; XP 2,300;
that bore addictive fruit and made sure
to be hewn from a natural fissure,
RC/164. The chimera can breathe fire
his guards ate their fill. (See area 3 of
the floor is suspiciously smooth and
only three times per day (50%chance
the fortress for details.)
straight. Several feet into the crev-
per round of combat).
ice, the path is interrupted by a deep
Arrival at Nazir's Fortress
pit.
3. The Poison Garden. The steps
You step through the mirror and At the rock face, the crevice is 18"
lead up 100' through a rough-hewn
tunnel and out into a huge garden con-
!II.
emerge into searing desert heat. wide. Fourteen feet into the tunnel, the
cealed from above by a hallucinatory
Directly in front of you is a vast and floor drops away abruptly to a 15'-deep
terrain spell. Read or paraphrase the
strangely smooth black rock about pit. The pit replaces 25' of the tunnel
following to the players:
one mile across and half a mile high. floor in a wide arc, preventing the party
e
In every other direction, sand dunes from jumping across. The PCs can brace Youstep out of the tunnel and into a
stretch to mountains on the distant themselves between the walls, edging huge, flourishing garden open to the
horizon. their way across the pit with a success- sky but surrounded on all sides by
ful Dexterity check. The pit was dug rock. Exotic black flowers cling to
Embedded in the rock directly in front here to prevent animals from wander- the arched entrance and fill the air
of the party is a narrow opening dis- ing into the fortress, as evidenced by with spicy perfume. In the center of
guised as solid rock by a hallucinatory the carcass of a lizard lying at the the garden, a beautiful woman reo
terrain spell. Firouz remembers that bottom. clines at the base of a tall peach tree
there used to be an entrance through a Nazir has not sealed off this tunnel in laden with fruit. A path leads from
crevice in the rock, but he cannot see it case he needs an emergency exit. Be- the stairway entrance to the tree,
now or remember exactly where it was. yond the pit, the tunnel widens to 5'. It and three other paths lead from the
If they walk directly up to the rock twists and turns, sloping gently upward tree to doors in the rock face.
and examine it by touch, the PCs can for about half a mile to end at a locked The garden is alive with colors: red
find the passage easily. The rock is over doorway. poppies, purple foxflowers, dark blue
three miles around, but the party will nightshade, and white hemlock.
find no other entrance at ground level 2. Guardian Room. Exotic scents with the underlying
and no tracks but their own. If the PCs
Beyond the door is a 40' x 30' room
tang of mold fill your nostrils. As you
are really stuck, Firouz might acciden- look around, you spot the slithering
tally focus his anti-magic rayon the
with a copper door on the far side.
forms ofsmall snakes amid the folio
area concealed by the hallucinatory
The floor is a mosaic of red and yel-
age. Two human gardeners stand on
!/
terrain spell while practicing with his
low geometric patterns, and the bare
the paths and lethargically tend the
eyes.
rock walls are as smooth as marble.
plants using long hoes.
The passage through the rock is far
The floor is a magical trap. When
too narrow for the beholder to enter. The woman is a lamara named 'Iama-
Firouz chooses instead to levitate over
anyone not wearing one of Nazir's rings
rind who is using her powers of illusion
the rock. He recalls that Nazir has an
of returning (see the sidebar on page 45)
to make her snakelike lower body look
observatory at the top of his fortress
steps into the room, he or she triggers a
like a pair of human legs. She has
and believes that he will be able to
create any monster spell that conjures a
charmed the gardeners and serves Na-
enter there. However, he is still too
chimera in the center of the room. The
zir because he has promised her immor-
DUNGEON 39
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
tality. Any male PC looking at Tama-
rind must save vs. spells at - 2 or be
completely charmed. She commands
charmed PCs to stay with her and rest
while their compatriots continue to
explore. The lamara will attack the
party only in self-defense, if they dam-
age her garden or snakes, or if they try
to take away anyone she has charmed.
If necessary, she directs her victims to
fight for her.
Tamarind speaks in a low, melodious
voice, asking the PCs why they have
come. She graciously offers them peach-
es from the tree, assuring the PCs that
the fruit is wholesome and thirst
quenching. She allays their suspicions
by taking a big bite out of one of the
peaches, knowing that she is immune to
the peaches' magical effect.
The peaches look inviting but are
dangerous. They taste delicious, but just
one bite requires a save vs. poison.
Failure to save slows the victim for 1-3
hours, after which the victim must
make a Wisdom check or desire more of
the fruit. Tamarind takes advantage of
this addiction, hoping the PCs will
return so she may attempt to charm
them again.
The exits from the garden lie at the
cardinal points of the compass. If the
PCs resist Tamarind's attempts to
charm them, she will try to trick them
by sending them through the north door
(on Nazir's instructions), hoping that
they will fall for the traps in area 14 of
the fortress.
Tamarind (lamara): AC 4; HD 8* (L);
hp 35; MV 120' (40'); IIAT 1 tail/illusion;
Dmg 3d8 (constriction damage each
round); Save M8; ML 9; INT 14; AL C;
XP 1,200; CC/67. Tamarind is immune
to normal weapons and to hold and
charm spells.
Adnan and Rashid (gardeners): AC
9; O-level humans; hp 4 each; MV 120'
(40'); IIAT 1 hoe; Dmg 1d4; Save Normal
Man; ML 6 (12 while charmed); INT 8;
ALN.
The gardeners were both captured by
Nazir's men and have been charmed by
Tamarind to tend her garden. They
know nothing important but will attack
the party if Tamarind orders them to.
The snakes of the garden also obey
Tamarind's commands, but Nazir has
enchanted the paths so that the cobras
do not stray onto them.
Each snake can spit a stream of ven-
om up to 6' away; the victim must save
vs. poison or be blinded. Blindness is
40 Issue No. 50
permanent until a cure blindness spell
is cast or the venom is thoroughly wash-
ed out (with a successful healing skill
roll). Any PC who stumbles off the path
may be bitten (Dmg 1d3); the victim
must save vs. poison or die in 1-10
turns.
Spitting cobras (40): AC 7; HD 1*
(S); hp 3 each; MV 90' (30'); IIAT1 bite
or 1 spit; Dmg 1d3 plus poison; Save F1;
ML 7; INT 2; AL N; XP 13; RC/204
(Snake).
4. Training Hall. Four stone steps
lead down to a large training hall. Posi-
tioned around the room are targets,
dummies, and a quintain (a crosspiece
on a post used for weapons training).
Stacked on one side of the room is a pile
of blunt wooden practice weapons. All of
the equipment is in good repair but
bears the marks of years of use.
Four doors lead out of this area, three
in the north wall and one in the south.
5. Armory. The door to this room is
locked. If the PCs enter, read or para-
phrase the following to the players:
Yousee a small arsenal stacked with
weapons of all descriptions, and
various other pieces of equipment,
most of which look like training gear.
The weapons in the armory are short
swords, scimitars, jambiyas, and several
black blowpipes each inscribed with a
white flame. None of the equipment is
magical, although all of it is of good
quality. A pair of large padded metal
clamps lies atop a wheeled cart. This
equipment is used for moving the frag-
ile crystals between areas 14 and 17 of
the fortress.
6. Laboratory. The door from the hall
is locked. If the PCs enter, read or para-
phrase the following to the players:
A large stone slab occupies the cen-
ter of this laboratory, the walls of
which are lined with shelves contain-
ing ingots of copper, iron, and lead as
well as various bottles, vials, tools,
and instruments. Upon the slab lies
the disassembled components of a
large metal monster.
The materials on the shelves can be
identified as equipment used for alche-
my, metalworking, and stonecutting.
One of the bottles contains a potion of
invisibility. The rest hold various al-
chemical ingredients including corro-
sive acid (the exact effects of which are
left up to the DM).
The partially disassembled construct
on the slab is a mek that Nazir pur-
chased from a contact who deals in
exotic goods. The wizard has been slow-
ly disassembling the creature while
making notes on its construction. He
hopes to someday be able to create more
such monsters. In its current condition,
the mek is merely a 7' torso with arms.
Its chest lies open, revealing numerous
gears and wires connected to a piece of
clear crystal about the size of a hen's
egg.
Although it appears inert, the mek
tries to clutch at anyone who gets with-
in arm's reach. Its breath weapon has
been deactivated, and it cannot move
faster than it can drag itself by its
arms. The mek can use only one arm to
attack, as it needs the other to balance
itself.
Incomplete mek: AC -4 (shell), 0
(exposed components); HD 6 (M); hp 30;
MV 12' (4'); IIAT 1; Dmg 1d6 x 10; Save
F13; ML 12; INT not ratable; AL L; XP
275; RC/192 (modified).
7. Forge. The door from the hall is
locked, but the door leading from area 6
is unlocked. Both doors are warm to the
touch. When the PCs open either door,
read or paraphrase the following to the
players:
Waves of heat assail you as you open
the door to a forge. Your attention is
drawn to a 10'-wide pit in the middle
of the floor, a pit that radiates a red-
hot glow. The pit is ringed with a
brass chain spiked to the floor. Above
the pit, a small crucible for metal
ingots is suspended from a winch.
The room is hot but bearable. The
temperature inside the pit, however, is
scorching. Anyone climbing into the pit
without protection from fire sustains
1d8 hp damage each round.
An efreeti named Myrage is magically
bound into the 20'-deep hole. He has
been forced by Nazir to serve as a forge
and is extremely angry about it. He sees
the party as a means of escape and will
offer information in exchange for his
freedom. Myrage knows the following:
Nazir imprisoned him here many
years ago and forces him to heat his
forge. The sorcerer is currently using
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
the forge to construct replacement parts
for a strange machine. Nazir's disassem-
bled mek is in the laboratory next door.
Nazir's power comes from a magical
white flame charged by crystals.
A band of ruthless men serves the
sorcerer. They all wear black rings with
white crystals that give them safe pas-
sage through Nazir's defenses.
'Ib free the efreeti, the PCs must
break the brass chain that binds him to
the pit. He cannot do this himself. A
descent sword blow is sufficient to cut
the chain.
Myrage will not fight Nazir directly,
because the mage has threatened to
trap him in a bottle and make him
serve for eternity. If the PCs try to bar-
gain further with the efreeti (demand-
ing wishes, for example), he pretends to
agree but breaks his word the instant
he is free. Myrage tells the PCs they are
lucky he does not incinerate them and
promptly returns to the elemental plane
of Fire.
Myrage, lesser efreeti: AC 3; HD
10* (L); hp 58; MV 90' (30'), fly 240'
(80'); NAT 1 fist; Dmg 2d8; Save F15;
ML 12; INT 14; AL C; XP 1,750; RCI
174. The efreeti's spell-like powers are
described fully in the Rules Cyclopedia.
8. Connecting Corridor. This corri-
dor is lit by continual light stones em-
bedded in the walls and has four
unlocked doors leading from it. The hall
is otherwise empty.
9. Dormitory. This room is lit by a
continual light stone in a wall bracket.
The large area contains several bunk
beds and chests filled with the personal
belongings of Nazir's men. Four men lie
on the bunks, having just eaten from a
bowl of peaches on a small table. A few
pits from consumed fruit lie on the floor.
The men are all addicted to the peach-
es and, having just eaten some, are
slowed. (See area 3 of the fortress for
details.) They ask the PCs who they are
and offer to share the peaches with
them. However, if they perceive that the
PCs are a threat to themselves or Nazir,
they will attack. Nazir's men are armed
with short swords and are each wearing
a magical black ring inset with a white
flame-shaped crystal.
Nazir's followers (4): AC 9; T7; hp 28
(Shakim), 26 (Elan), 25 (Pachi), 22 (Sa-
hid); MV 120' (40') or 60' (20') while
slowed; NAT 1; Dmg by weapon type;
Save T7; ML 11; INT 9; AL C; XP 1,250;
42 Issue No. 50
ring of returning, short sword, blowgun,
10 poisoned needles (save vs. poison or
be paralyzed for 3d4 turns).
Thanks to frequent bathing in the
White Flame, these men are immune to
attacks with nonmagical weapons.
10. Mess Hall. The door opposite the
dormitory opens into a large room with
a long wooden table and 14 wooden
chairs. The symbol of a white flame
decorates the north wall.
11. Kitchen.
A young but haggard woman is
kneading bread. The room also con-
tains a selection of dried and fresh
food, some cutlery and plates. The
woman looks up at you and screams,
running into a corner to cower.
The woman is a nomad called Sahra.
She was captured by Nazir's men last
year and works out of fear. Her scream,
though audible, does not attract the
attention of Nazir's men across the hall.
If the PCs calm her down, Sahra can
relate the following information:
Four of Nazir's followers are resting
in the dormitory. Nazir himself is in his
observatory. (Sahra can describe the
layout of Nazir's private quarters and
those of his men.)
Nazir and his followers are inde-
structible.
The crystal disk in the Chamber of
the Flame is used for magical transpor-
tation, but only Nazir can make it work.
Nazir himself insisted that she wear
a black ring set with a white crystal
flame at all times on pain of death. (She
does not know what it does but will
refuse to remove it for fear of Nazir's
retribution.)
Sahra's ring is one of Nazir's rings of
returning and allows her to get past the
crystal living statues (area 16 of the
fortress) to serve Nazir his meals. She is
too frightened to help the party actively
but can be coerced into making an es-
cape from the complex.
Sahra al-Arazani: AC 9; O-level hu-
man; hp 2; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg
by weapon type; Save Normal Man; ML
4; AL N; unarmed.
12. Bathroom. An unlocked door
leads to a rough-hewn stone chamber
with a wooden stool and a basin of clear
water. Two doors lead off to a tiled sau-
na and privy. Nothing here is valuable.
13. North Corridor. The doors from
the garden open into an unlit 20' -wide
corridor that leads to a stone door. Two
invisible stalkers are bound to this
corridor, stationed here to prevent pris-
oners from escaping. The stalkers have
been instructed to attack anyone not
wearing a ring of returning (see the
sidebar on page 45) who tries to leave
area 14 and return to the garden.
Invisible stalkers (2): AC 3; HD 8*
(M); hp 30, 27; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1
blow; Dmg 4d4; Save F8; ML 12; INT
11; AL N; XP 1,200; RC/187.lfthe PCs
cannot detect invisible things, the stalk-
ers surprise them on a roll of 1-5 on Id6.
14. Trap Chamber. The door leading
back into area 13 is not visible from
inside this room; it is chiseled to blend
into the surrounding stone. Springs
built into the stonework close the door
automatically in one round unless the
portal is held open. Locating and open-
ing the door again requires a successful
roll to detect secret doors.
Nazir has cast several illusions in this
chamber to fool intruders and lure them
into traps. When the PCs enter this
area for the first time, read the follow-
ing to the players:
This 40' -square chamber is lit by
many small, brightly glowing crystal
shards suspended from the ceiling by
silver chains. Four arched doorways
stand in the east wall. One is ajar,
and through it you can see shelves of
books. Another door is covered by a
curtain of beads, the third has heavy
metal studs on it, and the fourth is
open to reveal a long tunnel with
light at the far end. A passage of
plain, unmarked stone leads down
several steps in the west wall.
The four arched doorways along the
east wall are illusions hiding four deep
alcoves. The illusions are:
Illusory room A: The half-open door
leads to a vast library with bookshelves
as high as the ceiling.
Illusory room B: This door is sturdy,
studded, and not locked. Beyond the
door, a 10' x 30' room holds a choice
selection of armor and weapons.
Illusory room C: In the 20'xl0' room
beyond the bead curtain, two women
can be seen: a swaying belly dancer
with her back to the door, and a woman
sitting cross-legged while playing a
stringed instrument.
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
In the center of the 15'-deep, 50'-
diameter pit burns a bright white
flame. Outcrops of natural crystal jut
unevenly from the floor and walls
around it. In front of the flame stands
a badly wounded man in torn, blood-
stained desert robes. As he steps into
the flame, ecstasy dances across his
face, and all his wounds are healed. He
steps out refreshed. Twoother men in
white desert robes and armed with
bows stand beside the flame.
All three men are more of Nazir's
guards, armed with short swords and
short bows. They recently returned from
a raid and were using the Flame to heal
their wounds. If the PCs made a lot of
noise before entering the room, such as
engaging the crystal living statues in
combat, the guards are vigilantly scan-
ning the edge of the pit with raised
bows, ready to shoot. If the party en-
tered quietly, the PCs might be able to
surprise the guards.
The guards are immune to non-
magical weapons after years of exposure
to the White Flame (see below) and will
try to heal any wounds during combat
by reentering the Flame. If the fight
becomes desperate, one of them will
stand in the Flame to negate any dam-
age he takes instantly. (Only one person
at a time can enter the Flame.)
If captured, Nazir's men refuse to be
helpful because they do not believe
that Nazir can be defeated. They boast
about their master's power and say
that the party cannot offer them more
than he does.
The spiral ramp descends into the pit
and ascends to the mage's living quar-
ters above. If the PCs approach the pit,
read or paraphrase the following to the
players:
The metal ramp spirals upward to a
height of 100', going past nine levels of
crystal prisons (40 prisons per level,
except the first level, which has 35).
About two-thirds of the crystals are
occupied; the remainder are waiting to
be moved to area 14 of the fortress.
The crystal prisons contain people and
creatures captured by Nazir's followers.
While they are trapped, their life en-
ergy is gradually fed to the White
Flame. The prisoners are all in stasis
but exhibit the effects of hideous dis-
eases and deformities. Any victim not
rescued within a day of imprisonment is
permanently linked to the Flame and is
beyond recovery by any means short of
a wish. If any of the crystals here are
smashed, the bodies inside disintegrate
into a vile, odorous sludge.
Youstand just inside a huge, 100'-
wide octagonal room. The walls are
lined with row upon row of tall crys-
tals, most of which seem to have
people trapped inside. Coiling around
the middle of the room, a spiral
metal ramp disappears up into dark-
ness and down into a circular pit.
White light flickers from below and
is refracted around the chamber by a
10'-wide crystal disk suspended di-
rectly over the pit between four stone
walkways.
17. Chamber of the Flame.
Area 17
Side View
anyone in the corridor who is not wear-
ing one of Nazir's rings of returning or
who is not escorted by at least two oth-
ers wearing these rings.
Crystal living statues (4): AC 4; HD
3 (M); hp 15 each; MV 90' (30'); NAT 2;
Dmg 1d6/1d6 (fists) or 1d8/1d8 (crystal
scimitars); Save F3; ML 11; INT 7; AL
L; XP 35; RC/208.
16. Guarded Corridor.
15. Cell Block. This passage runs for
80' and is lined with narrow prison
cells. These are all empty unless the
DM wishes to detail occupants relevant
to further adventures. Nazir places
captives within these cells, where he
questions them until they outlive their
usefulness. He then unlocks their cell
doors and allows them to escape to the
trap chamber. There, the different illu-
sions entice the former prisoners to trap
themselves within the crystal prisons,
which links their life force to the White
Flame. (See area 17 of the fortress.)
The doors open onto a 40'-long corri-
dor with two pairs of crystal statues
facing each other along the walls.
The figures are finely depicted war-
riors with their arms folded across
their chests. Each hand holds a sharp
crystal scimitar. At the far end of the
corridor, an eerily lit vaulted cham-
ber can be seen.
These four crystal living statues
guard the Chamber of the Flame (area
17). They have instructions to attack
Illusory room D: Beyond the open
doorway lies a tunnel to the outside.
Light is visible at the far end.
None of the rooms beyond the arched
doorways actually exist. Only the pas-
sage that leads to area 15 is real.
When a PC enters an illusory room
the door disappears, trapping the adven-
turer within a hollow crystal. (The PC
passes through the outer shell of the
crystal via a special one-way passwall
spell created by Nazir.) Everyone out-
side the alcove can see the illusion drop,
replaced by another illusion of a solid
stone wall. PCs who successfully disbe-
lieve the illusory stone wall can see
their comrade trapped within a 9'-high,
5'-wide crystal prison. Nauseating blue
gas fills the crystal in three rounds,
freezing the occupant in stasis. The
crystal prison (AC 5) can be broken by
10 hp damage from a single attack.
Each alcove contains its own crystal
prison. These are identical to the crystal
prisons found in area 17 of the fortress.
The crystal shards that illuminate
this chamber are real and have contin-
uallight spells cast on them. There are
12 crystals, each worth 100 gpo The
silver chains from which these crystals
hang are worth 125 gp each.
DUNGEON 43
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
Nazir's followers (3): AC 9; T7; hp 26
(Faran), 25 (Kharaj), 21 (Mahib); MV
120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg by weapon type
(ld6); Save T7; ML 11; INT 9; AL C; XP
1,250; ring of returning, short sword,
short bow, 10 arrows each, empty poison
bottle, 150 gp in pouch (Faran only).
18. Connecting Corridon The ramp
curves through a hole in the roof and
enters a long corridor that is softly lit by
glowing crystals. Four copper-bound doors
lead off, and at the far end of the corridor
a flight of stone stairs leads upward.
19. Nazir's Private Chambers.
This magically lit chamber is fur-
nished with a large desk, a cupboard, a
woven rug on the floor, and a pat-
terned tapestry on one wall. On the far
wall, to the left of a plain door, a nar-
row shelf holds a pair of silver goblets
and a wine bottle. A small monkey is
sprawled asleep on a comfortable
stuffed chair. An empty bottle lies on
the floor beneath the chair.
The monkey is Salim, Nazir's appren-
tice until the mage polymorphed him 20
44 Issue No. 50
years ago as punishment for breaking a
crystal prison. Salim was instructed to
guard the wizard's private rooms but was
tempted by a bottle of potent wine and is
now drunk. He can speak if the PCs wake
him. Ifthe PCs can convince Salim that
they are powerful enough to defeat Nazir,
he will be helpful. Depending on his treat-
ment (threats will gain little, promises to
turn him human again will be better
received), he will reveal some or all of the
following information:
He is not a familiar, so it will not
benefit the party to kill him.
Nazir's power comes from the white
flame that is fed by the crystals.
Nazir gets very angry if any crystals
get broken.
Under the rug, there is a safe with a
horrible trap on it. (He does not know
the exact nature of the trap but will
make lurid guesses.)
Nazir is currently in his observatory
at the top of the stairs.
Nazir keeps a crystal statue, the
likeness of his daughter Aurelia, in the
observatory. Salim does not know what
became of Aurelia, although he suspects
she died many years ago.
The command phrase to open the
observatory door is "tahrik min qad"
(meaning "moving through flame").
The desk contains an ink well, a quill
pen, a small bowl of sand, and a ledger
bound in black leather with a white
flame embossed on the cover. This book
holds Nazir's accounts, commissions,
and payments for the last four or five
centuries.
The cupboard is locked and holds half
a dozen robes, a cheese-wire garrotte, a
vial of cobra venom (see area 3 of the
fortress), a blow pipe with six needle
darts +1, and a jambiya +1. All the
items have a white flame emblazoned
on them.
Under the rug, a hidden compartment
contains a wizard locked safe protected
by an explosive trap (5d4 hp damage to
all within 5'; save vs. breath weapon for
half damage). The safe contains Nazir's
spell books, a small box containing 300
pp, and an essay (written by Nazir)
explaining the relationship between the
White Flame and the crystal prisons. If
the PCs can read the essay (which takes
two hours), they can learn all the infor-
mation about the White Flame in the
sidebar on this page. The DM must
decide whether the PCs are disturbed in
the course of their reading.
The spell books contain all of Nazir's
memorized spells plus 3-30 (3dl0) levels
of spells chosen by the DM. If anyone
other than Nazir opens one of these
books, it magically teleports away cour-
tesy of a programmed teleport any object
spell.
Salim (polymorphed monkey): AC 7;
M2; hp 7; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg
1-2; Save M2; ML 6; INT 13; AL C; XP
25. Spells: light, ventriloquism. Salim is
presently too drunk to cast spells but
will sober up in two hours.
20. Nazir's Bedchamber, This
20' x 30' room contains a luxurious
canopied bed. On a low table by the bed
stands an oil lamp and an incense burn-
er. There is nothing here of value, and
the bed is too cumbersome to be worth
carrying down the ramp and out of the
fortress.
21. Aurelia's Chambers. Behind the
locked door is a blank stone wall. Be-
hind the wall lie the dusty private quar-
ters of Nazir's daughter, which the
wizard sealed off with a 5'-thick wall of
stone in his rage at her elopement.
Aurelia's chambers contain lavish
furnishings covered with dust and cob-

'"
,
.
'"
!
webs. None of the rooms' contents are
magical or particularly valuable.
22. Dining Hall. An unlocked door
leads to an impressive dining room with
a polished wooden table and elaborately
carved chairs. An expensive rug (worth
5,000 gp) lies on the floor, and four tap-
estries (500 gp each) hang on the walls.
The room is otherwise empty.
23. Bathroom. An unlocked door
leads to a tiled chamber with a sunken
bath. The two doors in the south wall
lead to a sauna and a privy.
24. Odd Stairs. From the bottom,
these stairs appear to be normal (albeit
long). As the PCs ascend, it seems that
either the stairs are getting bigger or
the PCs are getting smaller! This is
merely an architectural optical illusion,
for the steps do increase in size (width
and height). Any PC who makes a suc-
cessful Intelligence check should realize
the true situation.
A pressure pad on the middle stair
activates a silent alarm that can be
heard only in Nazir's quarters (areas 19
and 20) and the observatory (area 25).
The alarm warns Nazir of visitors and
alerts him to scry on this location and
prepare appropriate spells.
At the top of the stairs, 30' -tall double
doors open on a command phrase
("tahrik min qad") but can also be
forced open by a knock spell or three
successful open-doors rolls in the same
round.
25. Observatory. Unless he has been
drawn elsewhere, Nazir is indeed in his
observatory. The course of the final
encounter will vary depending on the
party's prior actions. Here are the
possibilities:
If the PCs snuffed out the Flame,
Nazir is weakened (possibly stunned if
the PCs come here directly).
If Nazir has been alerted to the PCs'
presence by the alarm on the stairs or
some other means, and has a few rounds
to prepare, he will cast the following
spells by the time the PCs arrive: ESp,
mirror image, fly.
If the PCs have been so discreet that
opening the observatory doors is the
first indication Nazir has of their pres-
ence, he has time to cast only a mirror
image spell as the doors open.
In any case, Nazir is unaware of the
beholder's location. He does not know
the sultan is coming unless the party
inadvertently reveals his presence, and
Nazir cannot visualize the beholder well
enough to scry him. (He saw the behold-
er only once, briefly, when he poly-
morphed him centuries ago.) However,
the observatory is obscured by a halluci-
natory terrain spell from the outside,
making it difficult for the sultan to find.
In addition to the powers afforded to
him by the White Flame, Nazir also
used a powerful ritual to place his own
heart within his daughter's statue. This
renders his body indestructible unless
his heart is returned to his body or the
statue is destroyed. In game terms,
Nazir takes damage normally, although
the White Flame has rendered him
immune to nonmagical weapons. How-
ever, he cannot die and functions nor-
mally at negative hit points despite
showing all the wounds inflicted on
him. Based on the situation, read or
paraphrase the following to the players:
The White Flame
The White Flame gives out no heat, but
bathing in it cures wounds, disease, and
poisoning by passing these effects on to
the occupants of the crystal prisons.
Years of exposure to the Flame attunes
a person to it, arresting the effects of
aging and conferring invulnerability to
nonmagical weapons. Centuries of con-
tinued action by the Flame creates the
crystal outcrops around the pit. These
eventually grow big enough to act as
crystal prisons, such as the ones in area
14 of the fortress, and are then moved to
the recesses in the walls of this chamber
or other rooms as Nazir requires.
Since Nazir relies on the power of the
Flame for his continued existence, he
can be weakened by extinguishing the
Flame. Since the Flame is fed by the life
energy stolen by the crystal prisons,
putting a crystal prison into the Flame
effectively creates a magical "feedback"
as the Flame tries to restore energy and
drain it at the same time. This stress
causes the crystal prison to explode
after 1-3 rounds of exposure and snuffs
out the Flame for 1-4 hours. As soon as
the Flame goes out, Nazir immediately
loses four levels and is stunned for 1-4
turns. When he recovers his senses, he
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
Yousee a vast observatory with a
domed ceiling of clear crystal panels.
Facing you from behind a large mar-
ble table are five identical bearded
men in black robes with golden sash-
es. Each of them holds a crystal-
headed staff in one hand, while the
other hand rests on the hilt of a jam-
biya tucked at his waist. A black
ring with a white flame adorns the
right forefinger of each man. Directly
behind the quintet of wizards is a
clear pink statue of a beautiful
young woman in a bridal gown.
Within her chest beats a heart-
shaped red light.
A giant spyglass on a tripod points
upward at a cloudless sky. A low,
glass-fronted bookcase sits against
the opposite wall, and a crystal ball,
star charts, maps and gauges lie on
the table. On the floor are several
silk cushions and a fine rug, an in-
cense burner and a bowl of fruit.
will use his crystal ball to see what has
happened. When he realizes that in-
truders are in his fortress, he will quick-
ly prepare to meet them. Smashing all
of the crystals will permanently extin-
guish the Flame, but such a project
would take 1-4 hours, make tremendous
noise, and bring Nazir down on the PCs
with a vengeance.
The Crystal Disk and the
Rings of Returning
The crystal disk suspended above the
Flame is a teleportation device con-
structed by Nazir. It is unaffected by
nonmagical weapons and can withstand
40 hp of magical damage before being
destroyed. Only Nazir himself can acti-
vate it and command the disk to teleport
anyone standing on it to any location he
can see or scry. He has fashioned sev-
eral rings of returning that he and his
followers wear. The rings are black with
a white flame-shaped crystal. By rotat-
ing this small crystal, teleportees wear-
ing a ring can return to the disk from
anywhere they have been sent. In addi-
tion, many of the magical defenses in
the fortress (areas 2, 13, and 16) are
designed to allow free passage to any-
one wearing a ring of returning.
DUNGEON 45
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
The statue is Firouz's beloved Aurelia.
Five centuries ago, Nazir cast a flesh to
stone spell on her, changing her to a
rose quartz statue. Her fragile form (AC
10; hp 10) has been tightly enclosed in a
permanent force field. She is wearing a
ring of wishes on the ring finger of her
left hand. (The ring belongs to Nazir,
who keeps it safe on her finger while he
wears his other two rings. There is only
one wish left in the ring.) The red light
within Aurelia's chest is her father's
heart. If she is shattered, the wizard
will die instantly, but the DM should
discourage this because the beholder
will go mad if he sees his love in frag-
ments. If Firouz is present, he will pro-
tect Aurelia as best as he can using his
eye-beams, whether or not he has con-
trol of them.
The bookcase is wizard locked. The
books cover a variety of subjects includ-
ing astrology, history, fabulous beasts,
and so; the collection is worth as much
as 2,500 gp to an interested sage. The
crystal ball is the magical item of the
same name, the rug is a flying carpet,
and the spyglass is nonmagical (worth
1,000 gp). A lever on the wall behind
the statue opens a section of the dome
and creates an opening in the perma-
nent force field that protects the
structure.
The bearded man is, of course, Nazir
al-Azrad (seen in the company of his
mirror images). Although he could prob-
ably kill the party outright, he would
rather recruit them to his service or
feed them to his crystals. Unless the
PCs have weakened him, he behaves
reasonably and points out their inabili-
ty to harm him. He readily lies and
makes false promises to get the party on
his side. If the PCs insist that he restore
Aurelia, he claims that he regrets
Heart's Desire
If Firouz fires his anti-magic ray before
Nazir escapes, read or paraphrase the
following to the players:
Eye, the Jury
The DM should arrange for the beholder
to arrive at a suitable time, either when
Nazir is trussed and bound or if the PCs
are about to be defeated. It has taken
Firouz some time to find the observato-
ry, as it is hidden by illusion. (Whether
he finds it deliberately or accidentally is
up to the DM.) On the way, he has been
practicing his gaze abilities, especially
his anti-magic ray.
If the PCs have defeated Nazir, Firouz
appears outside the dome and calls to
the adventurers to let him in. Once
inside, he instantly recognizes Aurelia
and begs the party to do something to
help her. While his heart is protected
inside Aurelia's statue, Nazir cannot be
intimidated into revealing how Aurelia
can be freed. Allow the party time to
come up with the idea that the behold-
er's anti-magic ray can remove the
spell. If the PCs are stumped, Firouz
threatens to disintegrate Nazir unless
he cooperates. When Nazir claims that
his death will only insure Aurelia's
destruction (a lie), Firouz changes his
mind and cannot be convinced to harm
the wizard. Even if he did want to harm
the wizard, Firouz has spent so much
time practicing his anti-magic ray that
he has not yet mastered his other eye-
beams.
If Nazir has incapacitated most of the
party and it looks as if the PCs will lose,
Firouz appears outside the dome, di-
rectly behind Nazir, and fires his anti-
magic ray through the glass, dispelling
the protective force field around the
structure. The beholder's rays are re-
fracted by the crystal dome, hitting
random targets but missing Nazir. If the
PCs have been magically incapacitated,
the rays will free them. If the PCs let
the beholder in, Firouz floods the ob-
servatory with his anti-magic ray to
prevent Nazir's escape. Otherwise, the
beholder must first use his disintegra-
tion ray to make a hole in the dome
(which may take some time), giving
Nazir time to use his dimension door
spell or magical ring to escape. After
healing himself in the White Flame,
Nazir returns to destroy the intruders,
taking out the beholder first.
21
what he did in anger and has spent
years trying to turn her back. This is a
lie, for he still resents his daughter's
betrayal. If Nazir cannot persuade the
PCs to join him, he wants to capture
them to power his crystals.
Nazir al-Azrad: AC -1; M19; hp 50;
MV 120' (40/); 11M 1; Dmg by spell or
weapon type; S 13, I 18, W 17, D 16, C 15,
Ch 14; Save M19; ML 11; AL C;
XP 19,425; staffofpower (34 charges),
jambiya +2, bracersofdefense AC4, ring
ofprotection +3, ring ofreturning, efreeti
bottle (currently empty; see area 7).
Spells: charm person ( x 2), light, mag-
ic missile ( x 2), ventriloquism; detect
invisible, ESP, invisibility, mirror im-
age, web; dispel magic, fly, haste, hold
person, slow; confusion, dimension door,
polymorph other (x 2), polymorph self;
feeblemind, hold monster, magic jar,
telekinesis; disintegrate, flesh to stone,
geas; power word stun, teleport any
object; force field, polymorph any object.
In combat, Nazir tries to incapacitate
rather than kill. He uses spells to keep
the PCs from reaching him while he
bombards them with spells to immobi-
lize them. If hard pressed, he will use
his ring of returning to retreat to area
17 and cure his wounds in the White
Flame. He will not leave his fortress or
allow the PCs to remain in his observa-
tory for long.
Ifthe White Flame has been snuffed
out, Nazir's statistics change as follows:
Nazir al-Azrad (if weakened): M15;
hp 35; S 8, C 11; Save M15; ML 8.
Spells: charm person, light, magic
missile ( x 2), ventriloquism; detect invis-
ible, ESp, invisibility, web; dispel magic,
fly, haste, hold person; confusion, dimen-
sion door, polymorph other, polymorph
self; hold monster, magic jar, telekinesis;
flesh to stone, geas; teleport any object.
22
20
N
.-
1 square =10/
Nazir's Fortress
Areas 18-25
46 Issue No. 50
...
As the strange light from the behold-
er's central eye touches the statue,
the red heart-shaped light within it
winks out. The figure shimmers as it
is transformed into a beautiful
raven-haired woman. At the same
instant she swoons, Nazir shudders,
clutching his chest.
Nazir is now vulnerable and will feel
any damage he has taken. If he has
already been reduced to negative hit
points, he collapses to the floor and dies
immediately. If he survives his daugh-
ter's "awakening:' he realizes the dan-
ger he is in and begs for mercy. He warn
the group that Aurelia will revert to
crystal as soon as the beholder's anti-
magic ray ceases to fall on her-which is
true. Nazir is vengeful and untrust-
worthy. The DM must decide if he keeps
any promises he makes to the PCs,
based on how well the players role-play.
Both Aurelia and Firouz can be per-
manently restored to their true forms
using the ring of wishes on her finger.
The one wish remaining must be prop-
erly phrased, something like, "I wish
the enchantments Nazir al-Azrad placed
upon Aurelia and Firouz were forever
revoked:'
Alternative Ending
Some DMs might prefer the following
ending to using the ring of wishes as a
solution. Although unorthodox, this
ending fits the style of the Arabian
Nights:
The beholder deactivates his central
eye-beam, and his beloved instantly
recrystallizes. Firouz hovers over the
statue of his beloved, a tear welling
in his huge eye. The tear rolls down
his monstrous face and falls onto the
crystal. From where the tear fell, the
statue begins to revert to flesh, and
in a moment the beautiful Aurelia
steps down from the statue's base. A
look of surprise crosses her face for
an instant. Then she looks into the
wide eye of the beholder, whispers
"Firouz," and kisses him gently. In a
flash of light he is transformed into a
handsome young man.
Concluding the Adventure
As soon as Firouz's heart's desire has
been obtained, the room starts to spin
and the PCs, Firouz, and Aurelia are
transported back to the sultan's palace.
They appear in the throne room, in
front of the mirror of desire, to the as-
tonishment of Mustafa who is reclining
on the pile of cushions while being
fanned by a pair of gremlins as a third
feeds him grapes. Mustafa recently
plucked up enough courage to follow the
party, and somehow managed to im-
press the gremlins after charming their
shaman. They have decided that he is a
powerful sorcerer and, since the "Eye-
ball" has gone away, have become his
servants. With his new band of faithful
followers, Mustafa is now even more
puffed up with pride. He admonishes
the party for leaving Princess Yasmin at
the sultan's palace alone. The PCs will
have to deal with this situation as they
see fit, but Firouz will do his best to
appease the presumptuous vizier.
Princess Yasmin is now free of the
sultan's charm, and Firouz suggests a
double wedding for himself and Aurelia
and Princess Yasmin and her beloved
Prince Harith. The ex-brides of the
beholder are also restored when the
curse is lifted. They are most grateful to
the PCs for freeing them and beg to be
escorted back to their homes.
If Nazir survives and escapes the
party's clutches, he may return to trou-
ble the PCs in the future. But that is
another tale.
The Rewards of Chivalry
If the PCs succeed in undoing Nazir's
curse and reuniting the lovers Firouz
and Aurelia, the DM should give the
party a story award of 10,000 XP. How-
ever, if the PCs defeat Nazir by destroy-
ing Aurelia, they should get only half
this amount. The destruction of his
beloved drives Firouz mad (again), and
the PCs should receive no experience for
the ensuing fight with the beholder. For
the rescue of Princess Yasmin, the party
should receive 5,000 XP. Lastly, for
escorting the beholder's brides safely
back to their homes, an additional 1,000
XP may be awarded (more if the DM
decides to turn this into a full-blown
adventure).
The PCs will encounter nothing else
on their trip to Samarkand, where
Prince Harith eagerly awaits the arriv-
al of his beloved Yasmin. If the PCs tell
Harith about their ordeal, he rewards
the party with the princess's dowry once
the wedding has taken place. Firouz is
also eager to reward the PCs, although
THE OBJECT OF DESIRE
he has little to offer them at this time.
With his former sultanate in ruins, he
is happy to spend his days with Aurelia
in Sasan or Samarkand, far from the
desolation and dark memories of his
former palace (although he will not
leave his mirror of desire behind). This
leaves the qal'at open to a variety of
monsters seeking sanctuary from the
scorching desert of Algarin. The PCs
may wish to explore the qal'at again at
a later date.
If the PCs obtained one or more of
Nazir's rings of returning, they may be
able to teleport to Nazir's fortress and
use the White Flame as a source of
healing or rejuvenation. However, the
rings immediately lose their power
when Nazir dies. If he survives the
adventure, Nazir may destroy the crys-
tal disk in area 17 of the fortress, just to
keep the PCs from returning to his
lair. Q
BACKTO THE BEACH
Continued from page 24
Beach of White Sand:
The antiquarians may be glad the
matter of the crabmen has been settled,
but they may still require an escort or
guards for their second visit. When they
arrive, newer finds may present them-
selves, perhaps buildings not yet uncov-
ered from the sand dunes. (What
became of the goldsmiths and silver-
smiths that attracted the pirates to the
monastery?) Or the PCs may find the
hull of a beached ship buried by wind
and waves years before. (Weren't winter
visits by pirates dangerous in uncertain
weather conditions?)
The visitors may also be menaced by
sahuagin who land here in a large
underwater craft to hunt crabmen.
Apart from aiding the Tribe against
their enemies, and protecting the king's
men, the adventurers might need to
rescue slaves held in the craft before the
poor unfortunates are carried to their
deaths in the sahuagins' home far be-
neath the waves. Q
DUNGEON 47
BY STEPHEN J . SMITH
"The Witch of Windcrag" ill a D&W' SideTrek designed for a party of 4-6 player
characters, levels 23 (about 12 total levels). The OM will need onl y the Classic
DUNGEONS & Rules and Adventures Book <DO) from the boxed game
or the 0&0 Rules Cyclopedia (RC) to run this short encounter. The OM can detail
the sett ing for any game world or campaign.
High on a hilltop, a mountain
of trouble
THE
At t he start of play, provide eac h PC
with one randomly determined rumor
by rolling IdlO and cons ul ti ng the " Ru-
mors" sidebar. Each PC should have
heard a different rumor. If the heroes
express an interest in learning even
more about the Witch of Windcrag be-
fore embarking on their expedition, the
DM may allow them to hear one or two
additional r umors from a typi cal NPC
source (an i nnkeeper, vill age elder, or
traveling merchant).
For the Dungeon Master
Of all the rumors presented in th e side-
bar, 17 comes closest t o t he t ru t h. The
Witch of Wind crag is actually a harpy
named Kyrrak. Most of the other ru-
mors are the wild speculations of i magi -
native local s, but some of t he rumors
hint at the t rue nature of t he Witch of
Wi ndcrag. The references to a "giant
eagle:' for example, probably came from
ind ividuals who ca ught a qui ck glimpse
of Kyrrak flying near the mountain a nd
mi stook her for a great bird of prey.
Kyrrak is not a t ypical harpy; she is a
Srd-level woken {a monster spellcaster
capabl e of usi ng magtc-userrelf spellsl.
She is else quite shrewd and knows
better than to prey heavily on humans
in the Windcrag area. Kyrrak ha s heard
horror st ories about those part icul arly
na st y and aggr essive humans called
"adventurers" and wants not hing to do
with them. She feeds mainly on the
fauna that inhabit a forested valley
north ofthe mountain. Still. she ha s an
occasi onal cra vin g for human fles h a nd
someti mes attacks and kill s lone trav-
elers, hiding their remains when she
has finished feast ing.
1 square '" lO'
Kyrrak's Lair
N
,

For the Player Characters
Since you were a child , you've heard stor ies about the Witch of Windcrag. Your
parents mu st have warned you a thousand times. "St ay in t he yard or the witch
will swoop down out of the clouds and carry you otTfor her dinner," or "If you
don't go to bed right now the witch will come and turn you into a bat. Then you
can stay up all night-every night!" You've gro wn up hearing a wide array of
tales about the mysterious old spellcaster rumored to dwell in a cliffside cave on
Windcrag Mountain. The only consiste nt detail in these stories is the location of
t he witch's abode, 80 you and your friends are mounting an expedi ti on to
investigate her lair and discover the truth about this legendary figure.
42Issue No. 51
'WITCH OF WINDCRAG
approach their goal, read or para-
phrase the following to the players:
A narrow ledge crawls up the sheer,
100'-high cliff face and ends at the
dark mouth of a cave. After negotiat-
ing this climb, you find yourselves at
the entrance to the witch's dwelling.
The overwhelming stench of offal and
carrion comes from the pitch-black
cave, and over the howling of the wind
you hear a faint tinkling sound.
1. Kyrrak's Security System. The
strange tinkling noise the PCs hear at
the cave entrance becomes louder as
they proceed deeper into the cave. The
sound comes from a line of wind chimes
strung just inside the entrance to Kyr-
rak's lair as a crude alarm. The string
of chimes-hanging 1
1
/2' off the
ground-stretches across the entry pas-
sage and has been treated with an invis-
ibility spell. Unless the chimes are
detected, the first rank of PCs to enter
the lair walks right into them, and their
jangling reverberates throughout the
cave. Each PC must roll a Dexterity
ability check or trip over the line of
chimes and sprawl to the floor. Those
who fall must then make Strength
checks or drop any weapon, torch, lan-
tern or other items they are holding.
If the PCs blunder into the harpy's
alarm, the jangling chimes and falling
bodies will alert Kyrrak to the in-
truders. She serenades visitors with her
charming song. If claimed and cleaned
by the adventurers, the fine porcelain
chimes are worth 100 gp (the harpy got
them from a merchant she attacked
near her mountain).
2. The Chamber of Bones.
The stench that assails your nostrils
as you enter this vast, dark chamber
is nauseating. The entire floor is
covered with bones, dung, and other
refuse. Two passages opposite the
entry tunnel lead deeper into the
mountain. The northern passage,
however, is located atop a rocky shelf
20' above the cavern floor.
The bones are the remains of small
forest animals, although a few human
and demihuman bones can be found
intermingled with the others. There is
nothing of value on the cavern floor.
This chamber does contain a cunning
trap set by the harpy. The southern,
ground-level tunnel leading to area 3
seems passable but is blocked by a huge
spider web rendered invisible by one of
Kyrrak's spells. (The spider that spun
this web dwells elsewhere on the moun-
tain and is not present. See "Kyrrak's
Tactics" for details.) If this hazard is not
discovered (with a detect invisible spell
or by probing with a 10' pole, for exam-
ple), the first rank of PCs taking this
path blunders into the web and is
trapped (treat as a web spell).
If the party circumvented the chime
Rumors (Roll 1d10)
1. The witch dwells on Windcrag Moun-
tain because she specializes in air-based
spells. She doesn't like to be disturbed
and sometimes hurls intruders off the
mountainside with magical gusts of wind.
2. The witch is an evil, sadistic, canni-
balistic savage. She devours children and
waylays lone travelers to obtain their
blood for vile rituals and experiments.
3. The witch is actually a learned sage
and will research any question posed to
her-for a price. Some say that this
price is monetary (ranging from a single
silver piece to a thousand gold coins).
Others maintain that the price is more
sinister (from an ounce of the inquirer's
blood to his very soul).
4. The witch was once a beautiful and
talented bard in a distant land. The
queen of that realm, envious of the
bard's radiant face and melodious sing-
ing voice, ordered her court wizard to
place a curse on the woman. This curse
transformed the bard into an ugly old
hag with a hoarse, croaking voice. Now
this cursed lady dwells alone in a cave
on Windcrag Mountain, learning the
secrets of spellcasting in the hope that
she can one day undo the spell of the
evil queen's sorcerer.
5. The witch is actually part sorceress
and part brigand. She attacks lone
travelers and even small caravans for
loot to pay for the strange magical reo
search and experiments that she con-
alarm at area 1, Kyrrak (who sits in her
nest at area 3) becomes aware of the
PCs if anyone speaks above a whisper
in area 2 or if someone stumbles into
the web trap. Intruders are promptly
greeted with a welcoming song. The
crooning harpy uses her mesmerizing
song to lure charmed victims down the
ground-level tunnel into the waiting
web. When at least one PC is snared in
the web, Kyrrak flies through the ele-
vated northern passage to engage the
remaining intruders.
The PCs may reach the passage atop
the ledge by using magical flight or
levitation. A thief who makes a success-
ful Climb Walls roll may also scale the
rough, dry cliff. A stout stalagmite sits
ducts in her mountainside lair. The
witch is also said to kill some victims
for their blood.
6. The witch is actually a shapeshifter-
a lycanthrope-and can turn into a giant
eagle. This explains why she dwells in
her aerie atop Windcrag Mountain. When
encountered in human form, the witch is
a kindly old woman. When in her eagle
form, however, the witch's demeanor is
unpredictable and she sometimes attacks
innocent humans.
7. The witch isn't even human. She's a
hideous, evil, man-eating monster with
wings and razor-sharp teeth and claws.
8. The ugly old witch is actually a beau-
tiful young sorceress who used her magi-
cal powers to rob a king's treasury in
some distant land. She uses spells of
illusion to give herself the appearance of
an old woman and sometimes creates
huge phantasmal eagles to drive away
intruders. Much of her plundered wealth
still lies stashed in her mountain cave.
9. The witch has a pet giant eagle that
guards her cave and does her bidding. A
few folks claim that this eagle does good
deeds (such as warning travelers of
impending thunderstorms), but most
people state that the bird attacks and
devours anything it meets.
10. Ding-dong, the witch is dead! Her
ghost and pet giant eagle still haunt her
mountain roost, however, guarding the
deceased spellcaster's magical treasures.
DUNGEON 43
THE WITCH OFWINDCRAG
on the ledge, ~ n a rope may be tied to
the rock formation and lowered to those
below.
3. Kyrrak's Roost.
The floor of this cavern is littered
with bones and dung, but not nearly
as profusely as in the previous cham-
ber. At the eastern side of the room-
on a rocky shelf 15' above the
floor-rests a huge bird's nest built
from straw, grass, and small tree
branches.
Kyrrak is resting here in her nest, if
the PCs successfully bypassed the invis-
ible chimes at area 1 and then climbed
the 20' cliff at area 2, using the north-
ern passage to reach area 3. She imme-
diately notices the PCs when they enter
the cavern and attacks (See "Kyrrak's
Tactics:') Human and elven PCs can
easily make the 10' leap from the north-
ern ledge to the cavern floor, but
dwarves and halflings must roll a Dex-
terity check or suffer 1-4 hp damage
from the jump.
Kyrrak (Srd-level harpy wokan): AC
7; HD 3** (M); hp 18; MV 60' (20'), fly
150' (50'); THACO 17; NAT 2 talons/1
arrow or dagger plus special; Dmg 1-4/1-
4 (claws)/16 (arrow) or 1-4 (dagger) plus
charm; Save F6; ML 7; INT 7; AL C; XP
65; DD/83, RC/182. Spells: sleep ( x 2),
invisibility. The song of a harpy charms
all listeners who fail a Saving Throw vs.
Spells.
Kyrrak is armed with a dagger
(strapped to one of her birdlike legs) and
a short bow with 20 arrows. She also
wears a ring of animal control on her
right index finger and an amulet of
protection from sleep spells around her
neck. This latter item protects its wear-
er from up to three sleep spells per day.
Kyrrak's Tactics
The harpy's first action when confront-
ed by intruders is to sing her charming
song. She then either lures her en-
thralled victims into the web trap at
area 2 or orders them to protect her
from the attacks of their "deluded"
friends (those who resisted her song).
Charmed PCs may be freed from the
44 Issue No. 51
harpy's influence by a dispel magic spell
(treat the harpy's song as 3rd-level mag-
ic), the use of another charm person
spell on the victim, or through the
death of the controlling monster.
Next, Kyrrak tries to cast her s l ~ p
spells at the party in the hope of gam-
ing a quick victory. Regardless of the
outcome of this spell, she then attacks
the party from a distance with her bow
and arrows. The harpy is shrewd
enough to target unarmored magic-
users. If she remains in her nest, PC
missile attacks against her suffer a - 2
penalty to hit because the nest provides
her with some cover. The harpy may
also choose to attack with her bow while
hovering near the cavern ceiling (out of
the range of melee attacks) but cannot
cast spells while hovering. If melee
combat is unavoidable, Kyrrak attacks
with her dagger and rear talons. She
saves her invisibility spell for a quick
escape.
If the harpy fails a morale check, she
flies from her lair and heads straight for
a small nearby cavern. Kyrrak returns
home six turns later leading a giant
black widow spider held in thrall by her
ring ofanimal control. After directing
the spider to attack, the harpy joins the
fray herself. If she fails a second morale
check, Kyrrak decides to fly north and
search for a safer lair.
Spider, giant black widow: AC 6;
HD 3* (M); hp 15; MV 60' (20'), web 120'
(40'); THACO17; NAT 1 bite; Dmg 2-12
plus poison; Save F2; ML 8; INT 0; AL
N; XP 50; DD/93, RC/206. Anyone bit-
ten by this arachnid must make a Sav-
ing Throw vs. Poison or die in one turn.
Concluding the Adventure
Once Kyrrak has been slain or driven
off, the victorious PCs may search her
lair for hidden treasure. The harpy
keeps all her wealth stashed in her nest
in area 3. Her treasure trove consists of
three large sacks filled with coins. One
sack contains 587 cp; another holds 336
sp and 210 ep. The last is filled with 357
gp and 125 pp, a pair of silver bracelets
engraved with elven runes (worth 50 gp
each), and a thick gold chain with a
dragon's head pendant inlaid with pearl
eyes (value 1,500 gp). Q
THE CENTER-OF-THE-WORLD
Continued from pege 21
gem of insight (worth at least 5,000 gp),
When the adventurers encounter
Tundra, she has only days or perhaps
hours to live. This great wyrm is at less
than peak physical and psychological
condition. Being at death's door halves
her regular +12 damage bonus with
physical attacks. She also suffers from a
skin disease that causes her scales to
fall off. This disease, and generalleth-
argy caused by the hot environment,
invokes a +5 penalty to her armor class
and renders her vulnerable to normal
missiles. Lung problems make Tundra
cough uncontrollably when she exerts
herself, making her breath weapon
erratic. Each round presents a 10%
chance for Tundra to accidentally spew
her breath weapon in whichever direc-
tion she faces. Because she can breathe
frost only once every three rounds, the
result in any other round is merely dry
hacking. Senility and loss of concentra-
tion result in a 20% chance of failure
during spellcasting. In her weakness,
Tundra can no longer fly, but may make
wing-assisted jumps up to 30'. She
speaks the language of evil dragons and
can communicate with intelligent crea-
tures via telepathy.
Concluding the Adventure
If the party slays Tundra, she utters a
dying curse: "Know ... that you have
slain ... a daughter of Fulverm. The
curse of my kin ... upon you...." The
DM may decide whether this threat is
real or a twisted wyrm's final lie.
Though the PCs find no elephant
ivory, they do gain the remains of many
dragons. These could be sold to a wizard
or kept for magical research. Jenkin-
son's contract ensures that he has no
legal right to anything the PCs find
that is not connected with elephants,
although he may try to insist otherwise
when he finds out about what is really
inside the volcano.
Nowthat the PCs have learned the
location of a dragons' graveyard, they
might stake out the area. How long will
it be before another Progeny of Fulverm
nears natural death and comes to the
Center-of-the-Worldfor final rest? Q
ELEXA'S
ENDEAVOR
BY CHRISTOPHER PERKINS '
"Have fun storming the
castle"
Artwork by cnc rne Porker
Poster mop by Mich ael Scali
38Issue No. 53
Chris writes: "Michael Scott designed an
amazing poster map for my adventure
"Them Apples" in issue 1148. When I
heard that DUNGEONl' Magazine had
another one of Michael's maps in
inventory-but no adventure to accompany
it-Ijumped at the chance to write a mod-
ule around the map. The task proved far
more challengi ng than I imagined . . . and
I have a pretty good imagination.'"
"Elexa's Endeavor" is a D D ~ adven-
t ure designed for 4-6 pl ayer characters
of level s 4-7 (about 30 tot al levels). At
least one thief and one magic-user (or
elf) is requir ed, and t he party should be
predominantl y Lawful in alignment.
The number of magical items in t he
party should be relati vely low(about 6-8
items total, pr efer ably minor ite ms or
wea pons). The Dungeon Master will
need a copy ofthe D&D R ules Cyclope-
dia (RC) and t he Creature Catalog (CC).
DMs wishing to adapt this adventure for
their D ~ campaigns are encour aged
to read the KarameiJros: Kingdom ofAd-
uenJureboxed set. Most of the monsters in
the D&D Creature Ca1alog now appear in
the AD&D MYSTARAsetting; the re-
visedstatistics for these monsters are
given in the MYsrARA MONS'IROUS
COMPENDIUMappendix.
Although this module is desi gned for
a generic D&D setting, t he DM shoul d
change t he names of people and places
to conform to hi s own campaign.
Adventure Synopsis
While stayi ng in t he quaint rural town
of Keswig, the PCs are approached by a
t roubled young woma n named Elexa
J ustheart. Elexa has just returned from
t he Gal hanor Crusades-a war fought
against gia nts and humanoids in the
distant Gal hanor Mountains. After
serving six mont hs as a cleric in a seri es
of major batt les, she recently arrived
home to find her uncle's castle occupied
by evil br igands.
El exa's Uncle Harkon owns t he ti tl e
to most of the land south of Keswig. His
small, lakeside keep was, until rec ently,
maintained and garrisoned by four
demos magen. These bei ngs wer e idea l
protectors, requiring neither sleep nor
sust enance. Unfortuna tely, their lack of
per sonalit y made t hem poor compan-
ions, a nd when Elexa left for the war,
Har kon felt lonely in hi s small castle.
His wife , Kate, died many years ago,
and Harkon had no chil dren to keep
-,
,
hi m company. In his isolati on, he and
t he magen were unprepared to deal
with t he br iga nds.
Five adve ntures-tur ned-bri gands
currently occupy Harken's keep. They
hav e decided to make t he castle t heir
headquarters for future exploits in t he
region while waiting for t he rest of their
hand to arrive. The ot her brigands are
en route from a distant city, where t hey
successfully helped one of their leaders
escape imprisonment.
Elexa suspects her uncle is held in t he
castle dungeon, but she is ill -equipped to
deal with t he brigands alone. She does
not know how ma ny bri gands hold the
keep, or about t he reinforcements on the
way. The brigands within the castle have
agreed to release Harkon in exchange for
a ransom of 5,000 gp (money Elexa does
not have). Even if Elexa could pay the
ransom, t he treacher ous brigands have no
inte ntion of honor ing any agreement wit h
her.
The PCs must sneak into the castle
and rescue Elexa'a uncle befor e the
brigands harm him. The keep i s built on
t he edge of a lake and has only one
prominent entrance. Moreover, t he
brigands have used a scroll ofdefense (a
uni que ma gical it em they found in t he
castle) to create a magical shield around
t he structure, effectively barring int r u-
sion. J arrow, the wizard who created
t he scroll and the castle's magical
guardia ns, never imagi ned t hat it
might fall int o evil hands .
Elexa t hinks J arrow might be in-
clined to lend assistance and provide a
way to negate the scroll 's effect . At the
very least , he may offer to help t he PCs
enter the castle unnoticed and rescue
Harkon from the br iga nds' clutches .
Unfortunately, J a rrow the wizard is
no longer alive. His tower is in tact, but
its content s are guarded by magical
constructs. If the PCs overcome t he
guardians, they can retri eve several
useful items fr om Jarrow's tower, in-
cluding his crystal ball, several potions,
and a rod of cancellat ion (t he only de-
vice capab le of negating t he magical
shield around Har ken's keep).
The brigands have enough food and
drink to sustain t hem for a week, but
Ele xa ha s no desire to let them hold t he
castle that long, for fear t hey may harm
her uncle. Though the keep is filled
wit h books and items of senti mental
val ue to Harkon and his niece, Elexa
has little t o offer the PCs as a reward
except a few family heirl ooms.
For the Plover s
The adven t ure begins when Elexa J ust-
heart approaches t he PCs. Rea d the
following t ext:
Wh ile vis iti ng the r ur al town of
Keswig, you are me t by a young
woman wearing chain ma il and a
white t aba rd. Emblazoned on her
tabard is a green wr eath, t he symbol
of a clerical order. The woman is
young but haggard, a nd her sunken
eyes are dark with mystery. As she
ap proaches, you noti ce a sl ight limp
in her st ri de . From t he flecks of gr it
on her armor and clothin g you as-
sume she has seen battle.
"Sorry to tro uble you," she says. " I
was told that 1 might find advent urers
her e. My name is Elexa J ust heart. 1
am a cleric of t he Healing Order."
" I have returned from t he Cru-
sades at Gulhanor onl y to learn t hat
brigands have seized my uncle's
castle a nd t ake n him captive. J have
neit her t he money nor t he desire to
pay t heir ransom. I need someone to
help rescue my uncle and his castl e
from t he invaders' clutches. I wa s
told you might be i nte res ted "
If the PCs express no interest in helping
Elexa, she apologizes for dist urbing them
and leaves. far as she is concerned.
they were her best hope for success.
A retired mason named Ha ldred ap-
proaches t he PCs and , having overheard
t he ir conversa t ion, repri ma nds t he
party for turning away a cleric of the
Hea ling Order. All t hree of t he ma son's
sons are fighters in t he Crusades, and
all owe t heir lives to t he clerics of that
order. Ha ldred offers t he pa rty 750 gp to
hel p Elexa J ustheart. If t hey st ill refuse
to help, Hald r ed leaves in disgust .
If t he PCs agree to help Elexa save
her uncle and his castl e, a look of r elief
crosses her face . Rea d or paraphrase the
following:
" Alt hough I have no money to pay
you, my uncle's castl e cont ains many
family heirl ooms, and I would part
wit h a few of t he m. Your will ingness
to hel p is most appreciated. I will not
forget t his show of generosity, nor
will my uncle."
Elexa was raised by her uncle after
her parents died. She began preparing
for t he cler gy at Uncle Har ken's behest ,
after Elexa's a unt, a lso a cleric , died.
ELEXA'SENDEAVOR
Ele xa joi ned the Crusades six months
ago. Aft er three months of tending the
king's armies, she was free to r eturn
home . Inste ad, she el ect ed t o r emain on
t he march. Thre e months later, El exa
was injured at t he hands of a fire giant
and was dismissed by t he king's gen-
eral, who did not wish to see her
har med further.
Elexa J u stheart (huma n cleric ): AC
3; C5; hp 24; MV 90' (30' ); THACO 17;
#AT 1; Dmg by weapon t ype; S 11, I 13,
W 17, D 14, C IS, Ch 15; ML lO;AL L;
chain mail +1, mace +2, holy symbol,
clerical scroll (cure light wou.nds x 3).
Sk ills: bravery (W), ceremony (W), heal -
ing (I + 1) , nature lor e (I).
Spells: cure light wounds ( x 2), bless,
know alignment.
Elexa is 20 years old with fair skin and
dar k hair. She stands 5' 10" tall, wit h a
slight build, a kind face, and gentle man-
ner. Her limp is a constant reminder of
t he fir e giant's brutal ass ault.
Elexa will accompany t he party for
the remainder of the adventure. Her
heali ng skills may prove inval uable,
especially if the advent ur ing party
lacks a cleric .
To the Castle
Harken's castl e is 20 miles south of
Keswig, almost a day 's journey by foot .
The PCs must t raverse t he hills and
wil d pastures but ha ve no dange rous
enc ounters along t he way.
As the PCs r each t he t op of a grassy
knoll. they see the castle for t he firs t
time. Rea d t he followi ng:
El exa guides you to t he top of a grassy
knoll. "I used to pla y here as a child,"
she says. "From here, you can see t he
whole of my uncle's land."
The knoll is surrounded on t hree
sides by t rees and pastures. To t he
south you see a small lake nestled in
a valley. A castle of moss-covered
st one sits on the edge of t he misty
lake . " There it is;' says Elexa. " My
uncle has lived t here all his life."
The castle looks several hundred
years old. A single tower rises in its
southern corner, and the roof is covered
by a weather-worn battlement. On
closer inspection, you notice that t he
castle sits atop a crag, about 20' from
the lake shore. The castle's drawbridge
has been pulled up, and thin plumes of
smoke are rising from the roof.
" I' m not sure how many brigands
DUNGEON 39
ElEXA:SENDEAVOR
are inside:' says Elexa. "but one is a
woman. She promised t o release my
uncle if I pay a 5, 000 gp ransom, but
I doubt she will honor he r word.
Assuming my uncle still lives, the
brigands are prob ab ly hol ding him in
t he cellar. There's an old dungeon
down there-a vest ige from the cas-
tle's prior owners."
Five brigands are holed up in t he
castle, led by a ruthles s thief named
Malvir a Dalant. They are awaiting the
arri val of t he rest of their band- t he
reinforcements led by Malvira's consort,
who recently br oke out ofj ail.
PCs may take this opportunit y to study
the castle. Elexa can describe the interior
in detail and will even draw floor plans in
the dirt if t he PCs ask. Included with t his
advent ure is a poster map of Herkon's
castle, whi ch the DM may unfold and use
as a players' aid when the PCs are ready
to make their attack.
The drawbridge and t he t win pcetcul-
lises (in area 1) can be r aised and low-
ered only from t he armory (area 8).
Eve n if those obstacles a re overcome,
enter ing t he cast le may be more diffi -
cult t han expected, as El exa hast ily
points out:
"Years ago, a wiza rd named J arrow
cre ated four magen to he lp maintain
t he keep and protect it agains t int ru-
sion. These magical guards required
nei t her food nor sleep, and t he ir
loyalt y was absolute. As a fur ther
precaution, Jarrow gave my uncle a
magical scr oll. Th is scroll, when
read, creates an impenetrable sh ield
around the castle, completely barring
entry. Only t hose inside the cas tle
when the scr oll is in voked may pass
through the inv isible sh ell wit hout
harm; others cannot.
"Somehow the brigands managed
t o enter t he castl e wit hout alerting
t he magen. I suspect the bri gands
later found Jarrow's scroll and acti -
vated it . So far as I know, t her e is no
way t o enter the castle while t he
shield protect s it ."
Give t he player s a few moments to
st udy the poster map or a roughly drawn
sketch ofthe castle interior (Elexa's
sketch). If the Pes perfann a closer recon-
naissance ofthe buil ding's exterior, de-
scribe it in detail. The bri gands are
expecti ng El exa to return , with or wit h-
40 Issue No. 53
out the ransom money, but they are not
keeping a careful watch. They are con-
vinced the castle is impregnable.
PCs intent on explor ing t he castle
closely should be warned t hat t he quiet,
secl uded past ure and t he la ke t end to
amplify sounds. PCs hoping t o sneak up
t o t he castle mi ght provoke a flock of
egrets to flutter up fr om the lakeshore.
The bir ds' noise is enough to al ert t he
bri ga nds, as are t he sounds of clanking
armor and hushed voices. Thieves who
make a successful Move Silentl y roll
may approach t he cas tl e undet ected.
The Invisible Shield
The invisible shield enclosing th e keep
becomes a shimmering force field when a
detect invisible spell is cast. The force field
protects only against t he incursions and
attacks of outs iders. Creatures inside th e
keep when the scroll is first invoked can
move and hurl things through t he barrier.
They can even leave the castle and reo
t urn, passing through the barrier as if it
were not there.
The t hin, invisible sh iel d fits Ca st le
Justheart like a sheath; the gap be-
tween t he shield and the castle walls is
less t han an inch t hick. The shield does
not cover t he roof (so rain can fill t he
castle's reservoir du ring a seigel, but it
does enclose the south tower a nd t he
door leadi ng t o the roof. PCs can l and
on t he roof wi t hout touching t he shield.
Unfort una t ely, t he roof provides no
entrance to the keep (un less the PCs
smash their way t hrough t he stone-
work ). Of cour se, advent ur er s in gas-
eous form can fly up t o t he r oof an d
enter t he castle t hrough the tiny gap
between t he shield a nd t he castle wall s,
but t hey are subject t o several limi ta-
ti ons (not t he least of which is t he in-
abili ty t o carry equipment) .
The shield is a vari ation of the 8t h-
level force field spell (see t he RC, page
57), although J arr ow has modified t he
spell so that it mol ds itsel f around t he
t arget structure. Spells, missiles, weap-
on attacks, and most other attacks sim-
ply bounce off-even dispel magic has
no effect on the shield. Two sorts of
spells ar e effective: teleport and di men-
eion. door spells can bypass the shi eld,
and disintegrate spells can destroy aec-
ti ona of t he force field.
The shield cannot be turned on and off
at t he cas ter's leisure. Once in pl ace, it
remains until t he actua l scroll from
which t he spell was cast is torn or
dest royed. (Whe n t he other br iga nds
finally arrive at Castle J ust heart , t he
brigands inside t he castle will be for ced
to dispel t he shield, but PCs may not
want t o wait that long.)
To the Wizard's Tower
Befor e attempting an assault on t he
castle, Elexa suggest s t hat t he PCs visit
J anow, t he wizar d who lives in t he hill s
to t he west . Read t he following text :
"The wizard J arrow invented the
magical barrier, and he was a good
friend who used to visit us oft en . I
r emember he and Uncle Harkon
always played chess together. The
games would last for days, a nd when
my uncle won he would parade
around t he castle like a squire who' d
just won a joust ing contest."
"Uncle Harkon knew J arrow be-
fore I was born. From what I know,
t he wiza rd was indebted to my uncle
for some service, t hough they ne ver
spoke of it . I believe Jarrow will he lp
us rescue my uncle from the br ig-
ands' clutches. At the very l east , he
may lend us magi cal aid for our
quest. His crysta l ball, for instance,
would let us see t he bri gands' every
move. J anow might also know a way
t o negate t he barr ier surrounding my
uncle's keep."
"J arrow lives about five miles west
of here. I'm sure I can still find my
way to his tower; but t he terrain is a
little treacherous, so we'd best be
careful."
The journey to Jarrow's remote tower is
mor e perilous than the trip to Harkon's
castle. Use some or all of the following
encounter s as the party makes its way
through the woods and brambles.
The Chevall
When the party reaches the woods west
ofthe castle, r ead the following:
You come to the edge of a dense wood-
land. Just as you prepare to enter the
forest, you glimpse a strange shape
partially hidden among the trees. The
creature realizes it has been seen and
steps forward. Alt hough it appe ars to
be a man, its lower torso is that of a
horse. The creature has an arrow
nocked in its bow but does not make
any t hreatening gest ures. "A chevall, "
whispers El exa in awe.
ELEXP:S ENDEAVOR
The Wood s
1 Inch =1 Mile
.... ..... .. .. .. ... - - - .. . Elexa's Path
Koomdawr's Pa th
N N Werewolves' Path
.. . . .. .... . . . . , . . . . . , Gluindil's Path
:
.

Killer Trees
.....
Werewolf
. L air.
.. N ..
.-, ,." .,." .
...... __ ... , ....0' ... " 0
.. .. . .... .. .
, . ".' \ .
.........
"'-- "': \ .....
. " '.
...... ... .............
... .. .. ... ..
0.5
I
Miles
o
I
N
The half-horse cr eature is indeed a
chevall, and although chevalls resemble
centaurs, they can assume the form of a
normal horse at will . This particular
chevall, Koomdawr by name, prefers hi s
centaur form while in the wilderness.
Like all chevalls, Koorndawr despises
wolves and other predators. He recently
chased a werewolf out of the forest, injur-
ing t he creat ure with three magical ar-
rows. Koomdawr is scouting the forest's
edge for signs of the wer ewolf or hi s ar-
rows. The cheval! can tell whether the PCs
are werewolves once they come within 60' .
(His sense of smell is extraordinary.)
The chevall does not attack unless
provoked. He knows the exact location
of Jarrow's tower but hasn't seen t he
wizard in a long time. Koomd awr will
gladly guide t he PCs to Jarrow's tower
in exchange for a gift of arrows, sweet
foodstuffs (such as fresh fruit ), or just
pl ain courtesy. He will be especially
pleased by any gift of magical arrows.
If the PCs accept Koomd awr's offer, he
will guide them t hrough t he woods
usi ng t he quickest a nd safest route he
knows. If t he PCs continue their trek
alone, Koomdawr will respect their
wishes and ask that they gr eet Jarrow
on his behalf.
Koomdawr, cheval1: AC 5; HD 7*;
hp 39; MV 180'(60'); /IAT 2 hoovesll
weapon; Dmg 1d6/1d6/by weapon; Save
F7; SZ L; ML 9; INT 12; AL N; XP 850;
CC/21. Short bow, 15 arrows +1. The
statistics given are for Koomdawr's
centaur form.
The Hunted
As t he party member s continue their
t r ek through t he woods, t hey happen on
some stra ngers Read t he following text:
Up ahead, you see four green-robed,
dru idlike figures walking single-file
through the brush. The leader is lean-
ing heavi ly with the aid of a rough-
shod cudgel. The druid at the back of
the line looks much younger than the
others and is eating a ri pe apple.
The approaching figu res are not
druids but werewolves wearing druids'
robes. They are looking for one of their
comr ades who was chased away by the
chevall. If Koomdawr is with the party,
he will recognize the werewolves by
t heir smell; he will unleash a small
flu rry of arrows without warning and
chase the "druids" into the depths of
t he forest. Neither the fleeing were-
wolves nor the chevall return.
If Koomdawr is not present, the were-
wolves greet the PCs warmly and offer
to guide them t hrough the woods, to
keep the party fr om straying into dan-
ger. If they are accepted as guides, t he
werewolves will lead the PCs directly to
their hidden lair (a r iver side cave)
where t hree more werewolves wait.
Neither the PCs nor Elexa should notice
the slight change in r oute, since t he
riverside cave is close to the beaten
path. If the PCs seem distrustful, the
werewolves try to allay t heir suspi cions
wit h pleasant chatter. Failing that, t hey
attack and attempt t o gain sur pr ise.
Werewolves (4 or 7}: AC 5 (9); HD 4*;
hp 30, 27, 23, 24, 20, 19, 17; MV 180' (60');
NAT 1 bite; Dmg 2d4; Save F4; SZ M;:ML
8; !NT 10; AL C; XP 125; RC/l90. The 30-
hp werewolf, Rachdar, attacks as a 5-HD
monster and adds +2 to his damage rolls.
In animal form, the werewolves can be
harmed only by magical or silver weapons.
The werewol ves' cave is filled with the
bones of slain prey, which hides t heir
treasure: a sack of 112 gp, an antidote
potion of the weakest type (RG, page 232),
DUNGEON 41
a potion of guseous form, and a snort
sword +2. Neither potion is labeled.
The Copse of Evil Trees
If Koomdawr guides t he PCs, this en-
counter will not occur. Otherwise, read
t he foll owing as the party enters a
dense section of woodland:
An old footpath meanders through this
section of the woods. The trees look
much older with their knotted limbs
and faded leaves, and you see no signs
42 Issue No. 53
of wildlife. Even the flowers refuse to
bloom in this part ofthe forest.
The forest west of Harken's castle is
home to many strange creatures, but
perhaps the strangest is a shargugh
named Gluindil. Gluindil is magically
tied to the forest, and he lends his
strength to the woods. Shargugh are 3'
tall humanoids with wild, mat ted-brown
hair and tangled beards. They can trans--
port themselves up to 600 yards through
trees five t imes/day. When hidden among
the trees, Gluindil is 90% undetectable.
At one time, the woods were home to a
mated pair of shargugh, but Gluindil's
mate was kill ed when she wandered
into a copse of carnivorous, killer t rees.
As a result, the surrounding woodland
has lost its vitality. The plants and t r ees
still grow but bear no fruit or flowers .
Nothing new will grow here for another
six years unless a druid casts a remove
curse on the.land to r estor e it s fertility.
The mischievous Gluindil approaches
the party unseen, using his ability to
inst antaneously transport himself
through the trees. Using his Pi ck Pocket s
(85%) and Move Silently (85%) abilities,
Gluindil tries to steal something valuable
from the PCs, such as a magical dagger or
a purse. He transports a safe distance
away with the stolen item, laughing at
the PCs while hidden in the shrubbery.
The shargugh leads t he PCs to the killer
trees, hoping that the party will dispatch
the arboreal antagonist s. Gluindil does
not speak any language ot her than his
own and has difficulty communicating by
any other means. If the PCs slay the
killer t rees, Gluind il will happily guide
them to Jarrow's tower by the safest
route.
Gluindil, sh a r gugh: AC 7; HD 3*; hp
15; MV 150'(50'); NAT 1 bite or weapon;
Dmg Id4 or by weapon; Save E6; SZ S;
ML 7; INT 10; AL N; XP 50; CC/92.
The kill er trees are indist inguishable
from normal trees. If the PCs stumble
into the copse , the trees lash out with
their branchlike t ent acles. They are
relentless and fight until des troyed.
Each of the killer trees' limbs attacks
as a 6-HD monste r, and any hit inflict-
ing 5 hp damage or mor e against a limb
will sever it . Victims who cannot cut
free are dragged into the t r ee's mouth
the following round and bitten for 3d6
hp damage.
Ki ller t rees (4): AC 5; HD 6; hp 43,
38,35,31; MV 0' ; NAT 4 li mbsll mouth;
Dmg 0 each/3d6; Save F3; SZ L; ML 12;
INT 1; AL N; XP 275; CC/64.
Jarrow's Tower
Read or paraphrase t he foll owing when
the PCs reach Jarrow's t ower:
Further ahead, t hrough t he t r ees,
you can see a peculi ar st ructure built
atop a r ocky knoll. The tower widens
at t he top, and t he walls are encrust-
ed with gr een moss, giving t he struc-
ture a passing resembla nce to a large
mushroom.
However, the t ower 's peculiar
appeara nce is not what astounds a nd
fr ight ens you. Perched on the tower's
flat r oof is a fearsome, three-headed
dragon with wicked horns and blue-
bl ack scales!
Elexa t akes a moment to point out
that Jarrow was known for his skill at
casting illusions. Although feywings
(three-headed dr agons) once hunted in
the near by wilderness, t hey are just a
legend now. It is not unlike J ar row to
cast such an ill usion to deter other
monsters from approaching the tower.
Unfortunately, t he feywi ng atop J ar-
row's tower is r eal. When the PCs ap-
proach t he castle, it will spot t hem a nd
hiss loudly before glidi ng to at tack. The
creature is t oo stupid a nd aggressive to
ret reat; it figh ts to t he deat h.
The feywing was responsible for J a r-
row's demise. It swooped down on him
while he was surveyi ng the count rys ide
from hi s tower roof. Jarrow's remai ns
can be found on the rooftop (area 10).
Fcywing: AC 4; HD 7 +1; hp 44; MV
60' (20'), fly 180' (60'); NAT 3 bites or 3
horns (or combina ti on); Dmg 2d4 (bites)
or Id10 (horns); Save F7; SZ L; ML 9;
INT4; AL C; XP 450; CC/39.
1. Ent r ance. The door to J errow's
tower Is made of stu rdy iron-bound oak
and has been wizard rocked at th e 17th
level of ability. PCs may use knock
spells to gai n entry to the tower, hut
only a auocessful dillpel magic will per -
manently undo .Iarrow'a wizard lock.
Beyond the doorway is an unlit, 20'
long corri dor with another oak en door
set into the far wall. Neatly burned into
the surface of the door is a pecu liar sigit
shaped vaguely like a "J." In the ceil ing
above the door are several sma ll mur der
holes.
The PCs may pass beneath the mur-
der holes safely, but one of J errow'e
guardian constructs is watchi ng t he
adventurers through the murder holes
(see area 4 for it s statistics). The con-
etruct does nothing but watch the in-
truding party.
The door leading to Jarrow's parlor
(area 2) is unlocked. The aigt l on t he
door is Jarrow's insignia.
2. Wizard's Pawns.
Two padded couches face each other
in the middl e of t his rectangu lar
room, and bet ween t hem sits an
octagonal wooden table with a finely
cr aft ed chess set placed upon it. A
delicate glass globe suspended above
t he table glows br ightl y, illuminat-
ing th e entire chamber. A well-worn
ar mchai r with matching footstool
rests in one cor ner, nestled between a
shapely wooden cloak r ack and brass
pipe holder. The pipe holder is an
ash-filled ur n secur ed to a br ass
t ripod. Six pipes of various sizes
hang from t iny brass rings around
t he holder 's circumference.
J ar row's chess set is carved from wood
and is not part icularl y valuable (30 gp
for the complete set). The pipe urn and
t ri pod are worth 100 gp collecti vely;
more importantly, a spare key to Jar-
row's bedroom (area 6) is buried in the
urn 's ashes. Two fine cloaks hang on t he
cloak rack, though neit her are magical.
The parlor is lit by a continual light
spell cast inside the globe ha nging
above the table. PCs casua lly searching
t he room will discover four chess pieces
(pawns) lying on the floor near the t ao
ble. Ca rcful inspection of the chess board
reveals that all 32 pieces are in play.
The four fall en pawns are extra pieces.
If any of th e fallen pawns are touched,
all four immediately transfor m int o
demos magen. Magen resembl e sexless,
hair leaa humans wit h skin the color and
text ure of hardened candle wax. Each of
the demos magen has darrow's magical
insignia paint ed on its forehead, and all
of them wield swords. Jarrow created
similar beings to guard Har kon's castl e,
but they were sla in by the bri gands.
The magen have orders to attac k all
intr uders and will constr ue t he party's
una nnounced ent rance as an int rusion.
If t he PCs flee Jarrow's tower, the ma-
gen will not pursue. They simply re-
main in this cha mber, standing idle
with their swords in hand. When magen
are slai n, they explode in a dazzling
pyrotechni c display, leaving nothing
behind but colored smoke .
Demos magen (4): AC 7; HD 3+2; hp
22, 19, 16, 15; MV 120'(40'); IIAT 1
weapon; Dmg ld8 or by weapon; Save
F4; SZ M; ML 12; INT 9; AL N; XP 50;
CC/73. All magen , including those in
areas 4, 7, and 8, ar e immune t o charm
and fear spell s.
3. Secret Ladder. Beyond t he secr et
door, a wooden ladder has been affixed
to one wall. The ladder climbs up t o
ELEX,o;SENDEAVOR
Jarrow's Tower
1 Square '" to'
-t+t-
0 -,
I 3
- --
-
I %
First Floor
[1-j+
.- .. -

Ff-

_...
5
I
Second Floor
+++
-
1--

*
1

- -

_o-
J

I I
19
Third Floor
-H-j-t
- 00 --j- -

1=
10
--
I r-
Roof
DUNGEON 43
El EXA'S ENDEAVOR
Jarrow's bedroom (area 6) a nd was in-
tended for use as an escape route in an
emergency.
4. Kitchen. At one en d of this ki tchen
stands a circula r wooden t able sur-
rounded by t hr ee chai r s. A few clay
di shes a nd a bask et of stale muffins si t
on the tabletop. At t he ot her end of t he
kit chen stands a r ect angular work table
covered with pots, dishes, and other
culinary items. Severa l cooking imple-
ments hang in the blackened hearth
behi nd the work t able, and a pair of
unlit la nt erns dangle from t he kitchen's
ceili ng. Light filters in t hrough two
sle nder windows.
Hidden in t he shadows of the north-
east niche (above area 1) is a galvan
magen. It discharges a bolt of stat ic
electricity at the first intr uder it sees; it
can use this method of attack only three
times/da y. The magen is ar med with a
swor d for melee attacks.
Galvan magen: AC 3; HD 5*; hp 24;
MV 120' (40'); NAT1 weapon or light .
ning bolt; Dmg 3d6 (save vs. dragon
breath fur half damage) or 1d8 (sword);
Save F5 ; SZ M; ML 12; TNT 9; AL N; XP
300; CCn3. See ar ea 2 for immunities.
5. Pant ry. The walls of this 10' x 10'
pant ry ar e lined with wooden shelves ,
st acked with various foodst uffs, jar s,
and kitchen suppl ies. On the floor rest
four small casks , and an old broom
leans against one wall.
PCs sear chi ng the shelves find a sack
of flour, a bowl of eggs, thr ee stale pas-
t ry cr ust s, a small sack of dried apples,
a half-filled j ar of raspberry jelly, a jar
of dr y but edible mushrooms, a bag of
roots, eight jars of spices, six oil flasks,
22 wax candles, a rolli ng pin, an d sev-
era l recipes scra wled on scrolls.
Hidden among the jars of spices is a
potion of bug repellent (RC/232), whil e
mixe d in with t he re cipe scroll s is a
scroll of equipment (capable of creating
a wizard's hat , a sprig of wolfsbane, a
pai r of boots , a 10' ladder, a torch, and a
50' rope wit h a grapple). The r agged
broom is actually a dancing broom, a
unique magical item that J arrow cre-
ated to sweep by itself. The br oom can-
not fly but will clean the floor of an
entire room whenever th e command
word "Bereaul" (et ched on t he broom-
st ick) is uttered.
6. -Iarrow's Bedroom. The door to
this room is locked. A spare key is htd .
44 Issue No. 53
den in the parlor (area 2), but t he door
may be opened by a thief making a
successful Open Locks roll . A knock
spell will also open the portal.
Tiny motes of dust dr ift slowly about
t his unlit chamber. A comfortable bed
r ests bet ween two windows against t he
west wall. Under the south window
st ands a desk wit h a matching wooden
chair, and crouched atop the desk is a
large stuffed r at wit h glassy eyes . Next
to the rat is a small wooden puzzle-cube
and a sil ver tr ipod with a crystal ball
nestled in it.
A dusty lant er n hangs from the ceil-
i ng, and a throw rug made from bug-
bear hide covers the mi ddle of t he floor.
A wooden t ru nk with Jarrow's eigil
burned into its lid sits in t he far corner.
The st uffed rat on J arrow's desk is
harmless, and the puzzle cube is no
more than an interesting diversion. The
desk drawer contains a pair of birch-
wood spectacles (75 gp), 89 gp in a pouch
of security, a velvet bag containing six
prisms (15 gp each) , a scroll of protection
from lycanthropes, and a quill of copy-
ing. The crystal ball on the desk is genu-
ine and can be used to spy on the
brigands in Harkon's castl e. The crystal
ball's silver tripod is worth 150 gpo The
candlestick is nonmagical.
The lantern hanging from the ceiling
is actually a lamp of long burning. Jar-
row's trunk is wizard locked shut (at
17t h level) and conta ins his nonmagical,
neatl y folded apparel. Hidden in a se-
cret compartment in the trunk's lid is
J arrow's rod of cancellation. The PCs
will need t he r od t o dispel the invisible
shield around Cast le J ust hcart.
7. Lib r ary. Hanging between the win-
dows on the south wall is an exquisite
tapestry of a uni corn sta nding on a rocky
mountain bluff. Opposite the ta pestry,
against the nort h wall , stands a tall,
sculpted bookcase packed with lar ge
tomes. A handsome green carpet lies on
the floor in front ofthe bookshelf.
The library's collect ion covers archi -
t ect ure, alchemy, engi neering, law,
mathematics, and speUcraft. Among the
books is a tome titled The Text ofth e
Magenmaker; which det ails the expen-
sive and exhausti ng process of fabr-icat-
ing magen of all types . Only a wizard of
10th level or higher can understand this
text, and only those of 12th level or
higher can apply its formulas . Opening
the book summons two scales magen,
which immediately attack all i ntruders
pr esent . When a scalos magen touches
it s vict im, the target creature is tele-
ported 1d20 x 100 yards in a r andom
di rection (no save) . The magen inflict no
damage with t his attack and will not
teleport anyone holding the magical
t ome or one of J arrow's epellbcoks (see
below), preferring to use t heir short
swords instead.
Scalos magen (2): AC 7; HD 4 +2*;
hp 19, 18; MV 120' (40'); HAT 1; Dmg
special or 1d6 (short swor d); Save F5 ; SZ
M; ML 12; INT 9; AL N; XP 200; CC173
(magen, var iant). See area 2 for special
immunities.
The Text ofthe Magenmaker is worth
5,000 gp to an interested buyer. On
an other shelf ar e darrow's three
spellbooks, each one bound and locked.
The keys were lost when the feywi ng
devoured J arrow, so th e locks must be
either picked or magically opened . The
books may be trapped with feeblemind
or polymorph other spells at t he DM's
di scretion.
Spellbook 1 contains all Ist - and 2nd-
level spells listed in t he RC. Spellbook 2
contains all Srd- and 4th- level spells
listed in the RC. Spellbook 3 contains
the 5th and Sth -level spells animate
dead, cloudkill, contact other plane,
dissolve. feeblem ind, hold monster; mag-
icjar; passwall, teleport, wall of stone,
woodform; anti-magic shell, disinte-
grate, projected image, etoneform, wall
of iron, and weather control.
8. Laboratory. Two unlit lanterns hang
from the ceiling of this 20' x 40' chamber.
A large rectangular table occupies much of
the floor space: its entire surface is clut-
tered with beakers, clay pots, retorts, and
other alchemical equipment. A mahogany
cabinet with two doors stands against the
east wall, between a pair of curtai ned
windows. The cabinet's doors ar e both
engraved with J arrow's insignia. A fire-
place is built into the south wall , with a
stack of wood beside it.
Waiting in the room are t wo caldron
magen and a hypnos magen, created
and r endere d inv isible by J an-ow. All
three look ident ical and have Jarrow's
sigil pai nted on their fore hea ds. When
the PCs enter the room, each magen
dr inks a poti on of invulnerability given
to them by Jarrow (impr oving their AC
and saving t hrows by 2). On the second
round, t hey become visible and attack.
The party must make a Sur prise roll
with a - 2 penalty.
Caldron magen (2): AC 5 (3 wit h
poti on); HD 4* ; hp 22,17; MV 120' (40' );
HAT 1; Dmg iaio. Save F4; 5Z M; ML
12; INT 9; AL N; XP 125; Ce/73. Cal-
dron magen have el ast ic limbs that
wrap around t heir victims and secrete
aci d for Idl 0 hp dama ge each round.
Hypnos magen : AC 7 (5 with potion);
HD 2* ; hp 13; MV 120' (40' ); NAT1;
Dmg special (charm person once per
round); Save M2; SZ M; ML 12; INT 9;
AL N; XP 25; Ce/7 3.
Hypnos magen have no physical at-
tacks but can cas t charm person once
per round. PCs charmed by t his parti cu-
lar magen are or dered to drop t heir
weapons and leave the castle immedi-
ately (assuming t hey haven' t been
sei zed by t he other magan). The charm
is permanent unt il the hypnos magen is
kill ed or t he magic is dispelled.
The st or a ge cabinet is wizard locked
at the 17th leve l of ability. If it is
opened, the PCs find its she lves lined
with bot t les and jars of color ed liquids.
Many ar e ine rt herbal concoct ions or
salves. However, several magical po-
tions are hidden among the harmless
liquids; t he pot ions are l abel ed in a
scri pt famili ar to all wizards as animal
control, antidote (t wo of each type, see
Re, page 232), climbing ( x2), diminu-
tion ( x 3), elasticity, flying ( x 2), gaseous
form ( x 2), healing (x 5), human control,
invisibil ity, luck, poison ( x 2), poly-
morph self, and water breathing ( x 2).
J arrow never wrot e down the r eci pes for
his concoctions, so no not ebooks are
stored in the cabi net.
The wor kt abl e apparatus is fairly
ordinary. Scattered among t he beakers
and utensils are r oots and herbs t hat
serve as basi c ingredient s for many
poti ons . I' Cs searching the table find a
slate of identification t hat magic-users
can use to ident ify magic items , inc lud-
ing t he items in J arrow's t ower (see Re,
page 241 for specifics ).
9. Secr et Corridor. Th is bent, dusty
corr idor is illuminated by li ght filtering
in t hrough the wi ndows along t he outer
walls. At t he western end of the hall a
wooden ladder leads to a t r ap door in
the ceiling. The unlocked t rap door
la a da up to t he r-oof (a f p.R 10).
10. Rooft op . The r oof of Jar row's
tower is wide, fiat , a nd covered wit h
pebble-sized st ones. A 3' .high stone
chi mney pokes out from the r ooft op, a nd
a 4'.high crenelated wall encloses t he
peri meter. The view of t he surrounding
woods is quite astoundi ng.
Assuming the PCs ki lled the feywing,
the only thing they find on t he roof are
t he grisly remains of Jarrow t he wizard.
Only his right hand and right boot were
not devoured . I n.rrow's ring ofmemory is
still on t he third finger of the severed
hand (t he ri ng lets a spellcaster recall one
memorized spell/day). Elexa has seen this
ri ng before and recognizes it immediately
as J arrow's. His boots were magical boots
of eluenkind, but the left boot has long
since dissolved in the feywin g's gut. The
right boot is useless alone.
Ret urni ng to the Castle
Wit h the horrifying discovery of Jar-
row's half-eaten corpse, Elexa is justi fi-
ably withdrawn on the t ri p back to
Castl e J usthea rt . Luckily, t he jou rney is
without i ncident, provided t he PCs
ret ur n to Harkon's castl e before the
bri gands' reinforcements. The briga nds
are not scheduled tc a rrive for a week,
but t his could cha nge depending on how
t he party handled t he perils of J arrow's
tower. If t he PCs spend sever al days
r ecuperating, t heir return to Ca stle
Justheart could he ser iously del ayed.
Statistics for t he a pproaching- br ig-
ands are given in " The Brigands Ar
rive " section. Allow t he PCs to stage at
least one assault on t he castle befor e
t he reinforcements arrive.
If t he PCs ha d a rela ti vely easy time
a t Jarrow's tower, insert t he following
encounter on t he ret ur n t rip to Castle
J ust heart. Th is encounter is opt ional
and shoul d not be used if hal f t he party
was kill ed or seri ously wou nded
figh tin g darrow's guardians.
The Wild Archers
As the adventurers ma ke t heir way
t hrough the woods, t hey are attacked by
six archer bus hes t hat have uprooted
themselves and stand wit hin 10' of t he
party's path. Watching t he archer bush-
es from the t rees are t hree vicious wood
i mps. The i mps have learned t hat t hey
can steal t reas ur e from wanderer s once
t he arche r bushes finish devouring
t hem. The imps have al so learned t hat
Rndine t.h p. i r own roi!'.On.('oRt.p.d r r w ~
helps t he archer bushes dispatch t heir
prey more quickly.
The ret urn trip to Castl e J ustheart
has been uneventful so far, al though
you cautiously retrace your steps
t hrough t he woods t o avo id meet ing
ELEXIl;SENDEAVOR
any more monsters. Suddenly, you
are in the midst of a flurry of thorny
darts shooting out of the nearb y
shru bbery.
The party is surpr ised on a roll of 14
on Id6. Th e archer bushes remain et a-
ti onary until one or more of t he PCs
fall , at which point t hey close in for t he
feast . As soon as the archer bushes
unleash t heir thorns, the wood imps fire
thei r small poisoned arrows . PCs st ruck
by the wood imps' arrows mu st make
saving throws vs. poison at +2. PCs
fai ling the saving thr ow take a n addi-
t ional l dBhp dama ge and become alug-
gish for 2d4 rounds. Sl uggish PCs suffer
a - 2 in it iative penalty and move at
half speed until the poison wears off.
If the wood imps are di scovered. t hey
flee into the woods. If pursue d, t he crea-
tures will whistle for their mounts, a
trio of huge wood spiders. The wood
i mps flee ifthey fail a Mor al e check;
t hey command t he spiders to attack if
thei r Mor ale holds.
Archer bushes (6): AC 7; HD 2*; hp
14, 12, 11. 9, 7, 4; MV 3' (1 '); NAT 1
thorn spray; Dmg Id4 per spray (hit s
mu ltiple tar gets, ma ximum 3 !:iprlJ. Ys/
day); Save F l ; SZ S; ML 12; INT 0; AL
C; XP 20; CC/lI .
Wood imps (3): AC 6; HD 3/4 (l d6 hpj ;
hp 5, 3, 2; MV 90 ' (30'); NAT 1 bite or 1
arrow; Dmg 1d3 (bit e) or Id4 (arrow);
Sav e Nor mal Ma n; SZ S; ML 7; INT 10;
AL C; XP 6; CC/1I2. Each wood imp
carries t wo poisoned arrows and six
normal arrows.
Hu ge wood spiders (3l: AC 6; HD
1 + 3*; hp 9, 8, 8; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1
bite; Dmg Id6 + poison; Save Fl ; SZ S;
ML 8; INT 2; AL N; XP 19; CC/101.
Justheart Castle
J ustheart Castl e is r ough ly 90' squa re
a nd 75' high . The poster map included
wit h t his module shows all six level s.
Starti ng in t he lower center of t he
poster ma p a nd moving clockwi se, the
levels are t he cellar, ground floor, znd-
4th floors, and rooftop. The cardinal
points of the compass appear on the
r ooftop as ornaments.
The castle wa s built over 150 years
ago by a barbarian huntsman na med
Deremon. During a night of drunken-
ness, Deremon stagger ed off the rooft op,
struck his he ad on a rock, and drowned
i n t he lake. Deremon's mantle was
inherited by his son Calder, a ruthless
DUNGEON 45
ElEXA' SENDEAVOR
and power-hungry man who built a
dungeon in the cell ar and used its gri sly
i nstr uments on t respassers.
Ca ldor was slain by barbaria ns. and
when he died his la nds were for feited to
the crown. The king chose to gi ve t he
l and a nd castle to t he J ustheart fam ily
in exchange for loyal service, and t he
fiefdom has remained t he irs eve r si nce.
The dun geon in the cellar is nothing
more than a memory of darker days.
The castle's chapel is a fairly recent
construction. It was built by Harken's
father for t he women in t he fa mily, all
of whom were pr act icing clerics of t he
Or der of Yar el1a, an Immortal dedicated
to hunters and lost souls. Harkon en-
couraged hi s ni ece Elexa to conti nue t he
tradit ion. In fact , he initially opposed
ber joining the ki ng's Heali ng Ord er.
However, Elexa's dedication to duty
quickly won Harkon over, and he never
again questioned her calling.
Eleaa'a departure for the Crusades
left Harkon alone in t he castle. He
never had much use for town life, a nd
only hi s fr iendshi p wit h Jarrow kept
him from going mad during t he mont hs
of Elexa'e abse nce.
Brigand Ba ne
About t wo weeks ago , Harkon rose one
morning to t he sound of human voices
outside his castle. When he peered out
his wi ndow, he saw five poorl y dressed
people approachi ng t he drawbri dge.
One of them, a young woman resem-
bl ing Ele xa , a ppeared seri ousl y wound-
ed, a nd the other four appealed to him
for aid. The brigands claimed they were
shepherds who had been a mbushed by
orcs whil e tending their flock.
Harkon or dere d his demos magen to
lower the cast le's drawbridge and raise
the portcullises. He could not bear to let
t he young woman die a t his doorstep,
and he knew Elexa kept some healing
pot ions in the kitchen. Once they were
invited i nsi de, the br iga nds quickl y
seized contr ol of the castle. Th ey bran.
dished the weapons t hey had hidden
under t heir shepher ds' robes, and
Harkon found himself at swordpoint.
Jarrow's megen r ushed out to defend
Harkon but were defeated and vanished
into smoke. The br igand leader (t he
woman feigninR: i njury) ordered Harkon
be taken to t he castle dungeon, whe re
he has remai ned ever since. The brig.
ands feed him and keep him healthy
because he is worth more to t he m ali ve
46Issue No. 53
t han dead. They have no compuncti ons
about killing him, however, if t hey are
threatened.
Several days after t he keep was se-
cured, Emistil (an el f brigand) found
J arrow's scroll of defens e in Ha rkon's
desk. After determining the scroll's
power, the elf used it to create t he invi s-
ible shield that now encloses the castle.
With t he shield in plac e, t he brigands
ha ve become l ax in their efforts to
guard against intrus ion.
Malvira Dalant (human thieD: AC 4;
17; hp 27;),IV 120' (40'); IAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type ( x 2 damage with successful
backstab); S 9, I 16, W 10, D 18, C 14, Ch
14; Save 17;),fi. 8; AL C; XP 850; Thief
skills: OL 45%, IT 40%, RT 38'1:, CW
93%, MS 48%-, HS 35%, PP 50%, liN 58%;
black leather armor, ring of seeing, dagger
+2, poti on of invisibi lity.
A life of hardshi p and ill treatment
has turned t his once starry-eyed gi rl
into a ruthless , serpent-hearted villei n-
ess. Mal vira Dalant is t reacherous, foul-
tempered, and sadistic (perfect qual it ies
for a brigand leader ). She is actually
second-in-command of the brigand gang,
but her superior (a nd consort) has not
yet arrived at t he castl e. She intends to
dispose of him eventually a nd take
control of the band, but for now she is
biding her ti me.
Mal vira's ring, taken from a slain
merch ant , enables her to see t hrough
illusions (similar to a cleric's truesigtu
spell), For example, the r ing allows her
to see invisible PCs and discern t r ue
targets from mirror i mages. Her potion
of invisibil ity is reserved for escapes or
backsta b attempts.
Emistil Darkeyes (elf): AC 4; E4 (see
below); hp 24 ; MV 120 ' (40 '); NAT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; S 14 ( + I ), I 18, W
9, D 16, C 17, Ch 11; Save M9 (see be-
low); ML 7; AL C (for merly N); XP 725;
scale armor, short sword, short bow, 16
arrows, three arrows ofpenetrating. t wo
arrows ofstunning, spe llbook (contains
all the spells below plus read magic a nd
detect magic).
Spell s (as sth-level magic-user): charm
person, magic missile, shield; invisibi li-
ty, mirror image, wizard lock; haste,
lightning bolt , protect ion from normal
missiles; ice storm, polymorph self; rere-
port: Emistil saves his teleport spell for
escapes, taking Malvira wit h him if
possible. He rarely casts his higher-
level spells for fear of drawi ng suspicion
from his fellow bri gands (see below).
Emistil is the most mysterious of the
bri gands. His manner can best be de-
scri bed as cheerful, even when he's shoot-
ing an arrow through someone's skull.
The elf has not always been like this;
when he first joined the brigands, he was
sinister and rather disquieting. But sev-
eral months ago, during a botched at-
tempt to plunder a wizard's lair, Emistil
was possessed by the wizard's lifeforce
(thanks to a magicjar spell), The wizard,
seeking a new life, made transition per-
manent by destroying the receptacle
holding Emistil's lifeforce. The wizard,
Feyram, thus trapped himself inside the
elfs body.
FeyramlEmistil t horoughly enjoys his
new li fe as a br igand. He's quite content
to take orders r ather t han give t hem,
and he admires Malvir a for her sheer
ca priciousne ss.
Oceertc Marca de (human figh ter ):
AC 4; F5; bp 36; ),tV 120' (40' ); I AT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; S 16 ( +2), 1 12, W
8, D 12, C 14, Ch 9; Save F5; ML 9; AL
C; XP 400; chain mail + I , bastard
sword (wi t h a 25(}'gp gem set into its
dr agon-shaped pommel), light crossbow
+I , 25 quarrels, pouch containing four
cut gems 0 00 gp each).
Octario was second in line to a great
inheritance, but was disowned after he
tri ed and fail ed to murder his older broth-
er. 'Ib avoid paying for his crime, Octario
stole hi s father's sword and set out on his
own, and he has been hunted by his
brother ever since. Octario joined the
bri gands for protection and has risen
through the ranks quickly. His swor ds-
manship and arrogance ar e legendary,
and he genuinely believes he ill dest ined
to lead t he bri gands some day. His onl y
fear is facing hi s brother again.
Octario's pouch of gems was taken
from Harkon's desk . For all his noble
conceit , Oct ario is nothing more t han a
scoundrel a nd petty t hief.
Yank Kelve (human thieO: AC 5; T4;
hp 15; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type ( x 2 damage with back-
stab); S 12, 1 10, W 11, D 16, C 10, Ch 6;
Save T4; ML 5; AL C; XP 125; Thief
skill s: OL 30%, IT 25%, RT 25%, CW
90%, MS 35%, HS 24%, PP 35%, HN
45%; leat her armor, short sword, light
crossbow, 18 quarrels, pouch holdin g 5
pieces of stol en jewelry (50 gp each), t wo
vial s of poison (see below).
Yarik is a lazy and cowardly villain
with little regard for the welfare of cch-
ers. His only ambition is to become rich
and live like the fat. gold-to uting mer-
chants he seeson city streets. Yarik has a
morbid sense of humor and little sense of
personal hygiene. His thin bui ld and oily
black hair give him a distinct ive. ratlike
appearance. He dips his quarrels in lethal
poison (Rave va, death). Each vial is good
for five applications.
Bald Bol amy (human fighter ): AC 3;
F3j hp 17 (24); ' AT 1; Dmg by wea pon
type;S 18 (+3), 15. W9, D 10, C 12. Ch
9; Sa ve F3; ML 8; AL C; XP 50; pl at e
mail, sword, dagger.
Bald Bolarny is so named because of
his lack of hair. Although not particu-
larly bri gh t , he has proven himsel f
reli able in combat , whic h is what the
brigands need. Bolarny discover ed a
suit of plate mail in the castle armory
that fit him perfectly and now wears the
suit despit e the fact that it has t he
Justheart family crest (a red griffi n on
an amber background) emblazoned on
its chest plate .
Bolarny fea rs Malvira a nd follows her
orders to the best of his ability. He is
not evil but lacks the selt- wil ! and deter.
minati on to t hink for himself. Although
he maintai ns a rough-and-tumbl e exte-
rior, Bol arny enjoys musi c a nd taking
care of small domestic animals. He
speaks ofte n about the puppies he
raised as hunti ng dogs in his youth. His
current hi t points reflect wounds he
suffered in the fight wit h Harken's
demos magen.
Where t he Brigands Are
The briga nds are not confined to any
one area of t he kee p. J ust heart Castle is
relatively small. and the brigands are
accustomed to moving fr om room to
room whe nev er it suits them. The brig.
ands do not necessarily sleep at night;
t heir sleeping patterns are errat ic a nd
difficult to predict , depending on their
mood, t heir gambli ng, and t he ir bicker-
ing. They never re st at t he sa me time.
The PCs may meet t he bri gands j ust
about a nywhere, al though t hey are
sel dom gathered in one place. (Bei ng
cooped up in t he castle has made t hem
irritable.) Below a re the areas where
t hey are most likely to be encountered if
no alarm has been sounded:
Malvi ra habitually paces around the
fourth floor balconies (areas 14 and 15 ).
When she wa nta privacy, she withdraws
to Elexa's former be-droom (area 16),
whi ch she has declared off l imits to all
t he ot her bri ga nds. Some times she
checks on t he elf, because she knows
about his preoccupat ion wit h reading
N
Jarrow's
Tower
o 200
I I
Feel
(somet hi ng she abhors). Sh e also checks
on Harkon from ti me to ti me.
Emistil ca n usually be found in
Harkon'a bedroom (area 10) reading his
spellbook or one of t he volu mes from
Harken's privat e collection.
Oct ario and Bola rny like to play
checke rs (using cbeee pieces) in the
common r oom (ar ea 9). They al so en-
gage in mock battles, usually in the
commom room or the meet i ng hall (ar-
eas 9 or 13). Occasionally t hey exp lore
t he armory (ar ea 8), and t hey have been
gi ven t he task of operati ng the winches
for t he portculli ses a nd dra wbridge.
Yarik spe nds most of hi s t ime in the
cellar, taunting poor Ha rkon in t he
dungeon (area 7) or sa mpling t he vert-
ous ales and wi nes in t he cellar (area 6).
Occasiona lly he lounges in t he meeti ng
hall (area L3), pick ing a t his di rty nai ls
wit h a kitchen knife. He r arely sleeps.
J arrow's Ma gi c Items
If t he PCs were successful at J arrow's
tower, they shoul d ha ve found at least
one magical item to use against
Harken's captors. The slate of identifica-
tion i n J arrow's labora tory will hel p
PCs identify items that are not l abeled
ELEXA:SENDEAVOR
Party X
Arrives
Bere
or ot herwise familiar. A few of t hese
magical items and t heir possibl e uses
are revealed below:
Rodofc:ant:llalron: Thken from J ar-
row's bedchamber, the rod can be used to
dispel the invisible shield surrounding
Castle J ustheart. Thuching the rod to th e
shield dissolves the barrier instantly but
permanently dr ai ns t he rod of magic. The
effect is very discreet , so the brigands
may not know t he shield has collapsed
until t he PCs are upon them. The tricky
part is get ting close enough to t he shield
to touch it wit h t he rod.
Crysta l ball: This item has obvious
uses if the party contains a magic-user
or elf who ca n eery with it. El exa can
describe three of the brigands (Malvira
Dalant, Octario Ma rcade, a nd Emist il
Darkeyes) in sufficient detail to permit
successful scry ing.
Antidote potions: These pot ions help
the PCs counter t he let hal poison on
Yari k' s cr ossbow quarrels. They may
also beused with t he poison pot ion i n a
scheme to poll ute t he castle's water
reservoir (see below).
Entrance and escape potions: Pes ca n
use t he potion of climbing to scale t he
castle wal ls. the di minution potion to fit
DUNGEON 47
ELEXASENDEAVOR
through the 8lTOW slits, the elastU:ity
potion to squeeze under the drawbri dge
and through the portcullises bars or
through the 8lTOW slits, the potion of
polymorph self to assume the form of a
bird or spider. or the potions of water
brrothing to walk along on the bottom of
the lake and approach the castle unseen.
Detennined PCs could fly up to the roof.
drink water breathing potions, and swim
t hrough t he plumbi ng with the aid of
diminution pot ions . (The " Mult iple Po.
tions" rule in t he Re. page 232, prevents
PCa from imbibing more t han one potion
at a time, but t he DM may overlook the
rul e in favor of lett ing t he players explore
an interesting opt icn.)
Potions for special pu rposes: Clever
PCs might pour the poison poti ons into
t he r eserv oir on the roof and later ad-
minister antidote to the polluted wa ter
supply. This is a slow a nd uncertai n
way of dea li ng with t he brigands;
t hough useful in a long-ter m siege. t he
poison may i na dvertently harm
Harken. Once Harken is found, t he Pes
could ensure his safe departure by giv-
ing him t he pot ion of gaseous form. The
potion of animal control can be used on
t he egrets to either command their
silence during a preempt ive strike or
create a disturba nce whi le the Pes
sneak into t he castle. A PC who drinks
t he potio n of human control can com.
mand one or more of t he brigands to
leave t he castle, t urn against his fel-
lows, or lower t he drawbr idge.
'Ih :t oft he Magenmnker: Th is magical
tome from J a rrow's library (area 7) is of
special interest to FeyramlEmist il,
because he has heard of Jan ow a nd his
magen const ructs. The elf may ask
Malvira to accept the tome as r a nsom
payment for Harkon, claiming it can be
sold for at least 5,000 gp o(Malvir a, who
dislikes books, will be tough to per-
sua de.) Of course, Emistil woul d con-
sider selli ng the tome only after careful
st udy. Fortuna te ly, he lacks the level
and experi ence to full y understand Oet
alone use ) the tome.
Ground Floor
1. Castle Drawbridge. The brigands
plan to keep the drawbridge raised until
their cohorts arrive, but clever Pes may
trick them into lowering the drawbri dge
premat urely. Fooling the brigands is a
difficult task, however, since they are
natural ly paranoid and wary of deception.
The drawbridge is not hel d shut by
48 Issue No. 53
the invisible shield surrounding t he
castle and may be 10weM (regardless of
whe ther the shield is in place). How-
ever, the shield cover-s the entrance into
the castle, barring entry.
The 20' -long dra wbridge is j ust the
right length to span t he water separat-
ing the castle fr om the shoreline. Be-
yond the drawbridge are two
portcullises, and beyond them are a pair
of he avy oaken doors that are barred
from the inside. The doors can wit h-
stand 100 hp damage before sundering,
and the portcullises can be raised wit h a
combined strength of64 . However, t he
murder holes in t he ceiling abov e t he
portcullises and the t wo guard stations
on eit her side of the ent r ance make
such feats ri sky at best.
If the bri gands are alerted to invaders,
one of the archers will position himself
inside the guard station closest to the
tower. PCs who approach the drawbridge
or force their way into the area between
the two portcullises will be shot .
2. Entrance Foyer. This dark cham-
ber is tiled wi th polished slabs of red
marble. Suspended from the ceiling is
a n iron chandelier wit h several unlit
candles in its holders. Directly across
from the castle entrance are three al-
coves , each containing a su it of armor.
The empty suits clutch swords and
maintain a constant watch over t he
chamber. Two archways lead to a larger
chamber beyond, and a narrow passage
to the south l eads to t he tower staircase.
The three suits of armor have been
welded at t he joints to keep them erect,
so the armor ca nnot be wor n. The
swords may be r emoved a nd used as
weapons but are not magical.
3. Dining Hall. Two huge tables and
two iron chandeliers dominate this
75' x 35' chamber. The ropes suspending
t he chandeli ers are t ied to hooks along
the northeast wall . A raised white marble
platform at one end of the chamber holds
a cloth-covered table and eight comfort-
able chairs. Unlit torc hes are mounted in
the walls above the platform.
The J u.stheart family onceheld banquets
in this hall Beforehis wife died. Harkon
held great feasts and invi ted the families
of all the farmers and shepherds who lived
on his land. He also hosted hunters' ban-
quets, although it has been yean sincehe
filled the room with merrymakers,
4. Ki tc hen a nd Pant ry. A large table
occupies most of the kitchen floorspace.
Items set on the table include several
loaves of baked bread, an oven stick for
removing the bread, an unlit candle in a
clay candle holder, a cleaver, and a few
knives. Along t he walls are several
jugs, a few Ilour- sacks, t wo fir eplaces ,
and a water basin with a faucet embed.
ded in the wall above it. Right near the
entrance to t he dining room is a simple
hoisting a pparatus placed atop a hole
t hat drops down into t he cellar.
The hoist is used for bringin g barr els
up from t he cellar (area 6). Fir st , an
indi vidual must go into t he cellar a nd
t ie a r ope around a barrel, which must
t hen be haul ed up by someone pull ing
on the rope in the ki tchen.
The faucet above the wa te r basi n has
a handle r at her t han a pump , a luxury
not all PCs may immediately under-
stand. The faucet sometimes needs
t ightening, which explains t he wrench-
es and pliers on the kitchen table. Turn-
ing t he handle spills wa ter into the
basin. The water piped is t hrou gh t he
castle's interior walls from the rooftop
reservoir. The basin is used for both
preparing food and washi ng di shes.
The jugs near the wa ter basin are all
empty, but t he one ne xt to t he nour
sacks contains brine (used fOTcooking
and preserving).
An iron-bound door leads to a small
pa ntry. The she lves are clut tered with
jars of spices a nd pr eserved foodstuffs,
as well as eat ing utens ils and dis hes
(enough settings for several dozen
guests) . There is nothing of part icular
value here.
Cellar
5. Castle WeD. The only feature in this
dark, dirt-floor chamber is a mess-covered
well in the north corner. A rickety wooden
door is set in the nearby wall.
When the rooftop reservoir is empty, thi s
well serves as the castle's water supply.
The water is not as fresh or clean as the
rainwater in the reservoir, so it is used
only during droughts and sieges.
6. Storage Cellar. This cold, da rk
room is filled with barrels and food
sacks. A circular stone platform occu-
pies t he north cor ner of the room, and
two barrels, both moist wi t h condensa-
tion, stand on t he platform.
The two barrels on the platfor m a re
filled with ale, t he other s wit h wine,
vinegar, and an emergency supply of
water. The sacks contain flour, sugar,
and spices.
Directl y above t he circular platform is
the apparatus for the kitchen hoist (see
urea 4). A rope with hooks attached to it
dangles thro ugh t he hole in the cei ling.
7. Castl e Dungeon. Harken
,Justhe art will cull out for hel p the mo-
ment th e PCs enter this room.
Beyond a nar row archway iRa da mp
and filt hy chamber fil led with tools
frnm u dar ker era . From the ent ra nce
you can see a ramshackle tor ture
rack in the cen ter of the room an d a
spiked iron cage hangi ng from th e
ceiling' by r usted chai ns. Other de-
vices from stone daggers to thu mb-
screws, vises to hummers, are strewn
about as well . Half buried in the dir t
are the akele tons of t wo individuals
who met thei r end here years ago.
The dungeon is ill uminated by fiery
embers burni ng' in a pair of cyli ndr ical
stone tubs. Hot pokers ar c buried in the
embers, and the light is br ight enough
to revea l th e four cells ut the far end of
the room. Rusted ir on bars seal each
cell, t hough only unu nppears occupied.
Locked i nsi de t he sout hern cell is
Uncle Bar kan . He is frightened and
fatigued becuuee t he bri ga nds (pnrt.icu-
larlv Yar ik) have been th reatening to
tort ure him with burni ng emhers and
red-hot pokers. So fa r they have done no
more th an t hreate n th e old ma n.
Hu rkon J ust he nr t (retired human
fighter) : AC 9; F3; hp 11 (18 at fum;
MV 90' (30'); #AT 1; Dmg by weapon
type; S 12. Ill, W 12, D 9, C 9, Ch 11;
Sa ve F3; ML 6; AL L; XP 1,000 (for
rescue); unarmed.
Harken's cell door is locked with a
rusty by stur dy padl ock t hat is difficult
t o pick ( -lO'};, to thi eves' Open Locks
rolls) but easy to smash wit h a hea vy
weapon. Emistil has cast a pr o-
spell on the lock so t hat touching
it cau ses a shr ill voice to scream "The
prisoner is escaping!" three ti mes. The
sound is loud enough to be heard by
anyone in the cellar or on the gr ound
floor. The spell , similar to the AD&D'"
game's magic mout h spell , is one of
Emistil's own devising.
The i nst rument s of tort ure should not
Lawful PCs too much. Nothing
In the r oom is magical or valuable.
Secon d Floor
8. Armory. Th is open area is filled
with ite ms of particular interest to
fighters. Disassembled suits of armor
have been neatl y arran ged in racks and
in alcoves. The three tables along one
wall are cluttered wit h gauntl ets,
breastplates, helmets, and weapons.
Among the weapons and pieces of ar mor
are 15 iron-bound ches ts, four stools,
and a light ballista. Also visi ble are the
,,:inch mechanisms for both the portcul-
Hees and castle dr awbridge.
Harkon Justheart is, among other
things , a skilled ar morer. Although he
outfitted his magen guar ds, he usually
fashions ar mor just to alleviate boredom.
Although he is self taught and unable to
magical armor, his work is imprea-
sive. The armo ry contains enough piece-
meal armor to complete four suits of plat e
mail, 12suits of chnin mail, and five suits
of mail. The only things missing
ar e shields. All suits of armor are sized
for male humans, and many of the chest
plates have the J uatheart family crest
painted on them.
Of the 15 trunks in the armory, two ar e
opened and empty, plundered by Octaric
and Bolarny; the twochests tucked under
the tables were empty to hewn with .
Thr ee of the closed trunks conta in several
hundred light crossbow quarrels; three
more contain heavy crossbow bolts by the
dozens. Of the remaining five chest s, one
holds 12 short swords; another contains
eight pair of gauntlets; another holds 24
daggers; a fourth contains torches; and
the fifth holds chain mail mesh and loose
armor plates .
Apart from th e li ght ballist a, the
other weapons stored in this room in-
clude a hea vy crossbow, a light cross-
bow, a broad sword, 16 normal swords
and two spears. A keg near t he narrow
western door (leading to ar ea 10) con-
t ai ns a fine black powder. This is gun-
powder, alt hough the br igand s haven' t
figu red this out yet. Harkon bought the
keg from a passing traveler who needed
to li ghten his horse's load. If ignite d,
the keg explode s for 12d6 hp da mage
(60' blast radius, save vs. dragon breath
for half damage).
. 9. Common Room. This large room
I S mostly emp ty. 'Ibrch ea placed in
brackets along the walls illuminate t he
chamber well enough to see a pair of
t ables at one end. The lar ger table has a
game board and dagger lying atop it .
ELEX,6;SENDEAVOR
Perhaps the r oom's most notable fea-
ture, however, is it s stone forge. Nex t to
the forge is another t able made of et ur
dy oak, and this table suppor ts an anvil
and ironworki ng tools. Addit ional tools
lean against the wall behind the t able.
A pail of water sit s nearby.
This I S where Ha rkon fas hions his
ar mor. In fact , an unfinished chest plate
and backplate st ill lie atop t he northern
corner t able . The forge is used t o heat
t he metal, and the pail of water is used
for cooling.
This room is large enough to house a
castle garrison, but Harkon never saw
much use for gua rds. (J an ow's demos
mugen seemed edequate.) The ga me
board on t he lar ge t able is act ua lly part
of a chess set. When J arr ow the wizard
paid a visit , Bar kan would cha llenge
hi m to a game of chess. Lat ely, however
Octari o and Bolarny have been using ,
t he chessboa rd to play checker s. The
dagger atop the table wall taken from
t he armory (Area 8) by Oct ario. It is not
magical, and neit her are any of
Harkon's tools. The ba rr el in th e west -
ern corner (by the lar ge table) cont ains
several gallons of dri nking wuter.
10. Harkon's Quarters. Red marbl e
til es cover t he 000 1' of thi s comfortable
room. The only furni shi ngs arc a lar ge
desk with several items on it , a comfort -
abl e chai r, a four -post er bcd, and a book-
The room is lit by t orches placed
m sconces.
The items atop Ha rken's desk include
a map of the realm, a navigator's com-
pass, a quill pen, a candle stic k, a bottle
affine wine, and a furled scroll. The
furl ed scroll , formerly t he scroll of de-
fense , is now blank. By reuding the
scr oll, Emistil knowingly activated the
invisible barrier designed to protect
Har kon'a castle from invasion. Tearing
the scroll in half or destroying it com-
plet ely di spels t he bar rier permanently.
The desk drawer conta ins several
of paper, a few quills, a jar of sepia
ink, and the J usth earl seal. The seal is
shaped like the .Iustheart family crest
(depicted on the 0001' of ar ea 13). Emistil
keeps his epellbook stashed in the drawer.
Harken's private collection of books
includes volumes on such di verse sub-
jects as history, law, astronomy, ar chi-
t ecture, and heraldry. None of the
volumes ar e magical or especially velu-
a pouch conta ini ng 50 pp
18 hidden Inside a hollowed-out book
ti tl ed The Root of Evil.
DUNGEON 49
ElEXA:SENDEAVOR
Castle Justheart
Fourth Floor Rooftop
17
I'
'Ihtrd Floor
11
o 0
12
..

o
o
I."
7
Cellar
I
1

9
Second Floor
50 Issue No. 53
10
o 0

Ground Floor
Thi r d Floor
11. Bathing Ch a mber. This nicely
adorned chamber fea t ures a raised bath
made of tar-seuled wood. The pool is
fill ed wit h water t hat flows from a
spigot on t he nearby wall . A barrel
under t he spigot catches the water.
Between the ba rrel a nd the pool is a 3'
tall candlest ick of e ngraved gold.
Cabinets have been built into the
room's three alcoves. and a handsome rug
covers part of the 1100r. A huge fireplace
spans the southern wall, a nd a padded
leather chair sits in front ofthe hearth.
The spacious bathroom is joi ned to the
chapel (area 12) for reasons unknown.
(One may speculate that worshipers of
Yarella are not known for their mod .
esty) Water for t he bat h cornea from the
interior walls of t he castle. which in
turn are filled by water from the rooftop
reservoi r. (See area 17 for det ails.)
The cabinets in the alcoves contai n
towels and soap. The green ru g is a
family heirloom a nd is worth 500 gpo
The golden candlest ick, another he ir -
loom, is wort h 1,200 gpo
12. Chapel. This regally appointed
chapel is in pristine condition. The
room's If-sha ped balcony is supported
by eight marble pill ars. Comfortable,
padded benches in t he center of t he
room face a dais of bl uish marble, upon
whic h rests a n altar of poli shed wood
draped in whit e sa ti n clot h. A ceremoni -
al goblet (75 gp) and bowl of bea ten
bronze (50 gp) rest on t he al tar. Th e
ba lcony 12' over head is enclosed by a n
iron railing (see a rea 15).
13. Gat he ring Hall. Thi s room's most
pro minent featur e is the great cres t
painted on the floor. It boldly depicts t he
Justheart family emblem: a red griffin
rampant, painted on a n amber back-
ground and topped by t he great helm of
the kingdom. A soari ng wooden balcony
encloses the great hall on three sides,
supported by four sculpted pill ars. An
iron cha ndelier hangs in the middle of
t he room, but its candles a re melted
stumps and cannot belit.
The chamber itself is furnished wit h
an assortme nt of tabl es and comfortable
chairs, and a large fire burns brightl y
in the hearth. Hanging on t he walls are
several animal heads a nd banners
sporting the J ust hea rt fami ly colors.
For all its grandeur, there is little of
val ue in thi s great hall. During t he
cas tle 's heyday, guests spent their
nights cha tting or sleepi ng here.
Two staircases lead up to the balconies
that surround the chamber (see area 14).
Fourth Floor
14. Bal coni es.
Cluttered bookshelves span t he walls
of this great balcony, whi ch al most
circles the ent ire fourth floor of the
castle.
A collector of books, Harkon has fil led
his castle wi th more volumes t ha n he
can possibly read in a life time. Many of
t he volumes were loaned to him by
Jarrow and deal with topics suc h as
herbalism, botany, literature, mathe-
matics, symbology, anthropology, a nd
mythology. 10 the latter subject,
scholars can find ample material on t he
feywing dragon the PCs met at Janow's
tower, plus facts on a host of other mon-
sters indigenous to the r egion.
Buried among t he volumes in t he
northern bookcase is one of J a rrow's old
spellbooks, tucked in he re for safekeep-
ing. The tome has no ti tl e but bears
J arrow's dist inctive ".T' insignia. IPCs
who visited J arrow's tower recognize it
immedi ately]
The book contains the following spells
plus any others t he DM wishes to add:
analyze, detect magic, /wid portal, light,
read languages. sleep; detect invisible,
ESp, kTWCk, leuitate, web; clairvoyance, f1y,
infravision, inuisibility 10' radi us, protec-
tion from normal missiles; contusion;
dimension door, massmorph; polymnrph
other; contact outer plane, and passwalL
15. Chapel Balcony. This red-r iled,
Uvahaped balcony enclos es t he chapel. A
pai nted iron railing guards agai nst
accide ntal falls.
16. Elexa's Bedch amber. Alt hough
it is Dot indica ted on t he poster map,
the door to t his chamber is trapped to
deter unwa nte d i ntr uders, includi ng
other br igands . Malvi ra strung a wi re
inside the door; opening t he door more
than I ' Gust enough room for Mal vira to
squeeze t hrough) tri ps the wire, which
fires a crossbow rigged near t he bed .
The crossbow bolt strikes the interloper
for 2d4 hp damage. The trap is difficult
to detect and disarm from outside the
r oom ( - 25% to a t hieves' Fi nd and
Remove Traps rolls).
This chamber is lit by a pair of le n-
ELEXA'S ENDEAVOR
terns sus pended from t he ceiling. The
room contai ns a comfortable bed with a
wooden ca ndlest ick beside it , a clutter ed
t able, a padded leather chair, a nd t wo
chests. A golden bal ance has been
knocked from the table and lies on t he
floor by t he chair.
For merly Elexa's bedchamber, t his
room now serves Malvira's needs. The
items on the tabl e include an open jew-
el ry box , a cler ical scroll (wit h t he spells
rerrww curse and speak with the dead,
each cast at 6th level], let ters from
Harkon to Elexa, a n engraved coppe r
plate with matchi ng mug (worth 45 gp
for t he pair ), and a book t itled Tales
from the Faerie Realm (one of El exa's
favo rite bedti me books). The balance
t hat Malvi ra accidentally knocked to
the floor is worth 300 gp o
The chests contain some of Elexa'a
clothing, much of it messed up during
Malvira's thorough searc h of the contents.
One chest holds a sack containing 110 gp
and 10 pieces of jewelry taken from
Elexa's jewelry box (total value 1,450 gp).
Many of these items were passed down
through the J ustheart family. Malvira
has stored them here until she plans to
leave. Elexa will be heartbroken if her
jewelry is lost , because so much of it has
great senti mental value.
Rooft op
17. Reservoir.
The roof of Castle J ust heart is flat
stone, bleached by t ime and enclosed
by a low crenelated wall. Looking out
over the edge you see a fine mist
covering t he l ake and a thick fog
rolling in from t he dis tant vall eys.
The roof it self has several unique
features, not the l ea st of which is t he
circular water reservoir in its cent er.
The 5'-deep reser voir is half-filled wit h
rainwater, and its inner ring has two
valves designed t o let the r ainwater
flow down int o the castl e. Another in-
terest ing feature is t he set of four ruet-
ed metal symbols sec ured to t he castle's
corners , each i ndicat ing a cardinal point
of t he compass.
The reservoir is actually part of t he
roof, a nd t he compass symbol s are bolt-
ed and cannot be removed easily. The
two valves in t he reservoir's inner r ing
are opened and closed by turning t he
faucets in the kitchen (area 4) and the
bat hroom (area 11). Water collected here
pours into special holdi ng cells
DUNGEON 51
ELEXA'S ENDEAVOR
wit hi n t he cas tl e's interior walls, and
from there is carried t o its int ended
dest ination . Alt hough clever, t he plumb-
ing syst em is not wit hout its drawbacks.
PCs may not ice irregular dampness on
t he interior walls where water is stored,
and occasionally small debris finds its
way int o t he reservoir and filters down
into the plumbing. Thin wire mesh in
t he pipel ine he lps filt er out some of the
debris, but cannot eli mi nat e t he finest
sediment.
The invisibl e shield encapsulates the
ent ire sout h tower, preventing outsiders
from openi ng t he door to the stairs.
However, t he door can be opened by
t hose inside t he castle when the scroll of
defense was acti vated.
The Brigands Arrive
The PCs have one week t o oust Malvira
and he r fell ow brigands from Castle
Justheart before t he others arrive. If
t he PCs are successful, t hey can fort ify
t he keep before Mandrake Oskellos and
his cohorts appear (see below). Man-
drake, unwill ing to bes iege the cas tle,
will withdraw aft er vowi ng revenge.
If the party fails to breach the castle's
invis ible shield before t he brigands
52 Issue No. 53
arr ive, Malvira and her cohorts will be
forced to di.spel t he shield to allow Man -
drake a nd t he ot hers insi de. Either
Malvira or Emist il tears t he scroll of
defense in ha lffsee area 10), a nd t he
shield dissipates instantly.
The arri ving bri ga nds r ide on st olen
horses. If t he PCs are near t he castl e
when t hey arri ve, read or paraphrase
t he following ted:
Several figures on horseback appear
on the top of a nearby knoll. Number-
ing at least t wo dozen, they survey t he
surroundings for a moment before
galloping down t he hill side to t he
castle. As the riders dr aw near, you
can tell they are not soldiers. Most are
dressed in dirty leat her armor and
look ill-kept and unshaven.
The brigand leader is a brawny, beard-
ed man named Mandrake Oskellos. He
is Malvir a's consor t , alt hough t heir
rel ations hip is based more on respect
t han love. Mandrake was to be hanged
for st abbi ng a mil iti a sergeant , but his
men broke him out of j ail. Mandrake
rides his gr eat black mare all the way
to t he castl e drawbridge.
Mandr ake Oskellos (human fighter);
AC 6; F8; hp 54; MV 120' (40'); NAT 1;
Dmg by weapon type; S 18 ( + 3), I 11, W
10, D14, C 13, Ch 15; Save F8; ML 10;
AL C; XP 725; leather armor, bastard
swor d, short sword, 62 gp in pouch .
Mandr ak e's armor and weapons were
confiscated by the city aut hor it ies, so he
is wearing simple leather armor and
carries a borrowed sword. Mandrake
didn't t ake his imprisonment lightly; he
plans to exact revenge on the aut hori-
ties who imprisoned him by dis rupting
trade routes around that particul ar city.
He has come to Castle J ust heart t o
make plans with Malvira and seek
sanctuary from bounty hunters. He
intends to remain until his food supplies
run out or the authorities track him
down.
Vackra Dargoth (dwarf); AC 5; F5;
hp 39; MV 60' (20'); NAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; S 17 ( +2), I 8, W 7, D 11,
CIS, Ch 9; Sav e F5; ML 12; AL N; XP
175; chain mail, battle axe.
Vackra is a fea rless dwarf who follows
Mandrake's orders with delight . He is
not afraid t o die in battle, and many of
hi s evil cohorts believe he has a death
wish. For all his bluster, Vackra is not
DUNGEON 53
comfortable wi th hor ses and pr efer s t o
ride on t he back of Mandr ake's steed.
Elubith (gnoH woken); AC 5; HD
2d6 +12; hp 19; #AT 1; Dmg by spell or
weapon type; Save M4; SZ M (7' t al l); L
B; tNT 12; AL C; XP 125; Re/180; wand
offear(l2 char ges), club, bone necklace.
Spells: magic missile, slueld; entangle,
web.
Elubith betr ayed her t ribe by sh owi ng
the brigands a secret way into the gnoll
lair. The brigands deci ma t ed t he gnolIs
and stole all of t heir t reasures, except
the wan d afrear t hat Elubit h was al-
lowed to keep as her reward. El ubit h's
loyalty is to her sel f. If t he brigands are
on the verge of defeat, she will betray
them as well .
Parast Shargul (human cleric); AC 9;
C3j hp 12; IIAT 1; Dmg by weapon ty pe;
S 10, 19, W 14, D 11, C 9, Ch 10; Save
C3; ML 6; AL L; XP 50; holy symbol,
mace, wolfsbane. No spells memorized.
Parast was ca ptured by t he bri ga nds
and forced to use his healing spells to
help them. His deity has since taken
away a ll of Parast'a spells, but the cleric
continues to help t he br igands with hi s
healing skill. He is afraid of dying a nd
is too cowa rdly t o flee unless he is cer-
tain the brigands ca nnot follow him. He
will fight in self-defense. If t he br igands
are all slai n or dri ven off, Parast will
thank his saviors and join them as a
healer.
Parast does not have his own hor se
but rides with the gnoll wokan Elubit h .
Human brigands (20): AC 7; HD 1;
hp 6 each; MV 120 ' (40'); #AT 1 weapon ;
Dmg by weapon; Save F1; ML 8; INT
11; AL C; XP 13; RC/193; leather armor,
sword, short bow, 18 arrows, dagger,
2d6 sp each.
These brigands are the real wor kers
in Mandrake 's band. They are generally
considered "cannon fodder" by their
leaders and are easily replaced .
Riding horses (22); AC 7; HD 2; hp 9
each; #AT 2 hooves; Dmg Id4/1d4; Save
Fl; SZ L; ML 7; INT 2; AL N; XP 20;
RC1185. These animals wer e st olen from
a ranch and are bra nded. PCs who take
t he t rouble to retur n the steeds recei ve
a 50 gp reward per horse.
Concluding the Adventure
Once Castle Justheart is restored t o it s
rightfu l owners and t he brigand t hreat
is allayed, the adventure is over. How-
ever, any brigands who escaped death or
capture will return to exact revenge .
ElEXA'S ENDEAVOR
Malvira a nd Emist iJ are likely ca ndi-
dates, particular ly if Emist il cast his
teleport spell . Harkon and El exa Jus-
theart may need protectors for some
t ime to come.
Harken will be distraught by the
news of J arrow's deat h and upset by
any t heft of items from t he dead wiz-
ar d' s t ower. Howev er, he will let the
pilfering pass if one or more PCs are
spellcasters who might benefit fr om
J arrow's knowledge. Harken can offer
the PCs a 50 pp reward for ridding his
castle of brigands, as suming the money
has not al ready bee n t aken (see area
10). He can also provide the PCs with
several sui ts of fi ne-quality armor (see
area 8 of t he castl e). Harkon al so invites
the PCs to consider the castle t heir
" second home." His onl y real t r easure is
his ni ece, whom he is overjoyed to see
alive and well . (If El exa wa s killed in
t he course of t his adventure , Harkon
will be devastated and t oo heartbroken
for words.)
Harkon is more t han willing to repair
t he PCs' armor befor e t hey set out on
their next adventure. The PCs must
spend several weeks at Castle Justheart
while Hark en does hi s wor k, just long
enough to hear several of Harken's t all
tales, anyone of whi ch could lead t o
further adventures. El exa will r ecount
her exper ience as a cler ic in the Cr u-
sades, after which noble PCs may wish
t o join t he King's Legion and take up
arms against t he giants and humanoids
of the Gulhanor Mount ains. Elexa will
not join t he PCs on t he ir quest, electi ng
inste ad to rema in by her uncle's side. n
EDCAP'S
AMPAGE
BYCHRISTOPHER PERKINS
The invisible enemy
Artwork by Mic hael SCott
34IssueNo. 54
Chri s's most recent offering is the t hird
in a tri logy of D&Ir' scenarios. He tells
us that his own players are convin ced
that Dyrk the Redcap is evil incarnate.
"Redcap's Rampage" is a D&I}'! edven -
ture designed for 2-5 player characters of
levels 1-3 (about 8 totallevelsl. The party
should contain a variety of character
classes, incl uding at least one magic-user
and one cleric. Spells like protection from
evil and iktect invisible, a nd religious
items such as holy water a nd holy sym-
bols will be particularly useful.
The OM should have a copy of the D&D
Rules Cyclopedia (Re). The major antago-
nist featured in this modu le is fully de-
scribed in t he Creat ure Catalog (CC).
Adventure Background
Six months ago, the residents of
Luskwald heard rumors from passing
merchants of a possible goblin incursion
into t he region. News from th e nearest
city confirmed speculat ions that goblin
tribes were massing in the distant hill s.
Worried about the future of hi s small
community, th e Laird of Lusk weld com-
missioned a stonemason and severa l
ca rpenters to rebuild a damaged keep
two miles nor t h of the village. The old
keep, neglected si nce the last gobli n
invasion 10 years ago, could be rebuilt
and defended at min imal expense.
When the villagers got news of a gobli n
adv ance, t hey could retreat to th e secu-
rity of t he keep's th ick stone wall s.
The repair cre w worked for weeks
restori ng t he keep's fallen wall s, while
wa iting nervously for t he fir st goblin to
show its ugly head. For t he fir st several
days the restoration proceeded accord-
ing to schedule, but i n t he weeks that
followed severa l "accidents" led many
to believe the keep was cursed or haunt-
ed. The firs t incident was di smissed as a
mere mishap: a secti on of Fl oor colla psed
beneath t he stone mason, seriously in-
juring him. Unable to continue his
work, the mason left an ap prentice in
charge of rest oring the outer wall s.
Most of t he workers blamed the acci-
dent on rotten floorboards, while a
ha ndful beli eved somet hing more sinis-
ter was respon sible .
But the colla psed floor was j ust t he
first of many unfortunate incidents.
Over a period of several days, fall ing
blocks of stone st ruck cre wmen, na ils
pierced their boot s, and unsteady scaf
folding se nt more than one worker t um -
bling to the wound. At the same time,
rumor s t ha t t he keep wa s haunted be-
ga n circ ula ti ng am ong' the cr ew. The
keep's re storat ion was t ermi nat ed alto-
get her when, just four weeks int o t he
re pair schedul e, a n entire secti on ofthe
scaffold collapsed, killing one wor kman
and inj ur ing t hree others . A st udy of
the wreckage r evea led t hat t he scaffold
had been sabot aged; someone or some-
th ing had deliberate ly sawed t hrough
three support beams.
The Laird of Luskwald tried to convince
the workers that the keep was an impor-
tant bast ion aga inst t he gobli n hordes,
but the crewmen were adamant about
staying away from th e haunted ruing,
cla iming t he site had "a life of its own."
Fortunately, several bands of brave ad -
venturers rsent from the distant cit ies)
put a quick end to the gro wing gobli n
threat , a nd with t he village of Luskwald
spared, the laird aba ndoned his effort to
rebuild t he fallen keep. However, the
hau nt ing did not end.
In t he pa st week three of Luskwa ld's
villagers have di ed, each t he vi ct im of a
gr isly assassi n whose identity remai ns
a mystery. Several citizens ha ve heard
or seen pec uliar t hings over t he la st
several days, lead ing t hem t o believe
that Luskwa ld has been cursed, or
worse , rava ged by angry spirits-
per haps sent by a greater evil that
dwells wit hin t he r uined keep! The laird
doesn't bel ieve such nonse nse , although
he isn't getting much sleep at ni ght .
Beyond a ny doubt , some t hing is stalk-
ing t he peopl e of Luskwal d .. . a nd
everyone is afraid.
For the Dungeon Master
In a se nse, t he wor kers were correct
whe n they sa id the ruined keep had " a
life of its own. " For yea rs, the keep has
been home to a maligna nt little crea-
ture ca lled a redcap, a hateful a nd r eo
elusive cousin of t he brownie. Redcap s
despise huma ns and their like, infl ict -
ing harm for no ap par ent reason other
t han contempt . (See sidebar for detaifs.)
Thi s particular redca p, Dyrk by name,
was once the obedi ent servant of a schem-
ing shadow elf named Eneivan. Th e das-
tardly Eneivan, a nnoyed by one of Dyrk's
snide comments, carved out the redcap's
tongue and used it to ma ke a pot ion of
inuisibility; The agoni zed Dyr k fled
Enei va n's cave and nursed his terrible
wound and his even more terrible anger.
After months of wai t ing for Enei van to
lower his defenses, Dyrk ret urned and
sliced off Eneiven's nose with one of the
wizard's own daggers. Dyrk caught
Eneivan's blood in his cap, stai ning it
cr imson, and fled t he scene, seeki ng ref-
uge in the ruined keep outside Luskwald,
mile>; from Eneivan's abode.
The ill -tempered redcap was a ngry
when the workmen from Luskwald
arrived to upset it s t r anquil home . Us-
ing his power of inoisibility to move
about unnoti ced, Dyrk wea kened t he
floorbo ards beneath the ca reless stone-
ma son , push ed heavy sto nes ont o un-
wa ry passer s-by, drove a r ust ed dagger
t hrough a poor wor kman's boot , and
sawed t hrough t he beams of the scaf-
folding. As pla nned, t he workmen left ,
convi nced the keep wa c; haunted.
The red cap's ra mpage mi ght have
en ded right t hen if nothing els e had
agitated him further. As t he last of the
wor kmen prepared t o leave, t he evi l
brownie not iced tha t his hat was mi ss-
ing. Dyrk fra nti ca lly sea rched t he keep
for the mi ssing hat. Unable t o find his
t rea sured belon gin g, the ir ate redcap
concluded t hat one of the workmen
must have stolen it .
The redcap foll owed t he workers back
to the vill age, where he took up reei -
de nce in one of Luskwa ld's cotta ges .
That ni ght , out of sheer malice, he
killed t he cotta ge's lone occupa nt (the
village glazier) then t or e t he place apart
looking for his hat. Und a unted by his
fai lure to find t he cap, Dyrk moved to
t he next cottage to conti nue hi s evi l
ra mpage, leaving chaos and ca rnage in
his wa ke.
Unknown to the redcap, the mi ssing
hat is st ill in the keep. The evi l brown-
ie, dist ract ed by the presence of the
workme n from Luskwa ld, threw it on
t he ground during one of hi s temper
tantrums and for got a bout it . The blood -
soaked cap was later taken by one of the
rats t hat infests t he ru ins.
Th e mi schievous rats in habi t ing the
keep are under t he cont rol of two were-
rats nam ed Anton and Kr ist of. The
wererats ar rived one wee k ago un der
the cloa k of night a nd entered t he ruins
unnot iced in t he ir a nimal form. The
wererat s ordered the keep's reside nt
ra ts t o scour t he rui ns for treasure. The
rats gathered a few t ri nkets of questio n-
able va lue (i ncl uding t he cr imso n ca p,
which they mistook for a sma ll pouch).
The werer ats are unaware that the cap
belongs t o Dyrk; in fact , they a re un-
REDCAP'S RAMPAGE
a wa re of the redcap's ex istence. AI
though Dyrk has kill ed many of t he rat s
for food, he has never bot hered t o make
himself visi ble to them. (The rats know
the redcap only by his pun gent smell.)
The werer ats prefer t heir natural roo
de nt forms a nd li kewise rema in incon-
spicuous. Dyrk has been too preocc upied
lat ely to imagi ne Anton and Kr istof as
a nything other than l arge r ats . The
vengeful brownie, in his une ndi ng
search for t he cap, cont i nues to slay
in nocen t villager s as he scours
Luskwald for hi s " st olen" possession.
The laird has concluded t hat outsid e
help is needed to stop t he sinister and
mysterious menace that has beset his
peaceful village.
Arrival in l uskwal d
The PCs arri ve in Luskwa ld two nights
after Dyrk commit s hi s second murder.
Rea d or paraphrase the foll owing when
t he adventurers fi rst approach the
vill age:
Dar k clouds loom menacingly over
the grim, r ai n-drenched hamlet of
Luskwald. The set tl ement is li ttl e
more than a cluster of weather -wor n
cottages surrounded on all sides by
solemn, densely wooded hill s. Rivers
of mud flow between t he wood-fra me
houses. The houses seem unfriendly,
as if they were unwilling t o relin-
qui sh some dreadful secret. They also
share one other odd similar it y. El ick-
ering in the window of each tene-
me nt is a scowling pumpkin , it s
in na rds carved out and filled with
candlel ight.
The villagers of Luskwal d are supersti-
ti ous and wary of st rangers by nature.
The frightful jack-o'dantems are intended
to scare away the "evil spirits" that have
beset the community. The villager s do not
open th eir doors to st rangers (especially
the heavily-armed PCs).
The PCs ca n seek shelter in two places:
the local inn (area I) or th e home of
Donovan Vanek, t he laird (area 4). The
PCs meet Vanek regardless. If he is not
hiding in his house, the laird is at th e inn
enjoying t he compa ny (a nd protection) of
t he local innkeeper. Whe n he spots t he
adventurers t hrough a window, Vanek
quickly races to the front door, unbolts it ,
a nd ushers the party in.
" Our vill age is cursed!" exclai ms
Vanek on meet ing the adventurers. If
the Pes ask the la ird what he mea ns,
DUNGEON 35
REDCAP'SRAMPAGE
Vanek ment ions somet hi ng about "the
murders" and immedi ately as ks t he PCs
insi de, locking the door behind them.
The Laird's Tale
If the PCs seem willing to listen, Vanek
recounts t he following tale of events in
Luskwald:
"Lus kwal d is beset by a menace ... a
terribl e and mysterious menace. Ezner
Mourne. t he village glazier, was found
dead in his cottage t wo mornings past,
lying in a pool of blood a nd broken
glass. Two others have died since: a
pair of local woodsmen named Karn
Ironstar and Bryn Bellowforge. Both
wer e murdered in their sleep, and all
t hree victims had t hei r t hroats slit.
Words were scrawled in blood in each
of the victims' homes, but we could not
decipher t heir meaning. I believe the
message warns of more deaths to
come. Onl y you can help us stop the
evil -before it is too late. Please , you
must help us!"
If the PCs agree to hel p Vanek and hi s
vill age, the laird offers them whatever
he ca n afford. If the PCs reque st mone-
tary paymen t , Vanek promises to give
t he m up to five 100 gp garnets once the
Dyrk t he Redcap
Dyrk, like most redcaps, appears as a
gnarled old browni e with sharp, protrud-
ing teeth. tangled gray hair, and bloodshot
eyes filled with hatred and malice. He is
equipped with a blood-caked pikestaff
(Omg Id6), a sharp knife (Dmg Id4), a
wand of trap detection (10 charges), and a
ring of safety (negates two failed saving
throws). The latter t wo items were taken
from the lair of Eneivan, Dyrk's fonner
master. Hanging from a string around
Dyrk's neck is another "gift" from
Eneivam the shadow elfs shrivelled nose.
Dyrk's brief service to Eneivan yiel ded
an additional reward: the redcap learned
how to write. However, hi s writing skills
are very limited. and Dyrk is a poor
speller. He occasionally leaves blood-
scrawled messages and warnings near
the remains of slain victims. The mes-
sages left in Luskwald reflect Dyrk's
desire for the safe return of his cap.
Whether the PCs understand Dyrk's
messages is a nother matter.
The redcap is mute and thus remains
silent for most of the adventur e. Hew-
36 Issue No. 54
evi l in Luskwald is overcome. (Vanek
keeps the gems hidden in his house .)
Otherwise, Vanek pays them with horses
(from area 2) or supplies (from area 3).
Vanek believes that t he murders in
Luskwald are somehow rel ated to the
peculiar eve nts i n t he old keep north of
the vill age. The vill age has bee n
fr aught with ill luck ever since repairs
to t he old keep began. If t he Pes choose
to save Luskwald from its "curse,"
Vanek relates t he information i n t he
Adventure Back ground concer ni ng
t hose events. He suggests that the Pes
begin their quest i n t he village itself.
where clues concer ni ng t he nature of
the "c ur se" may be re vealed wi th ca re-
ful explorat ion of the vict ims ' homes.
If the PCs want to question the indi-
viduals directly invol ved in the r e-
building of the ke ep, Vanek says he
h ir ed out -of-t own st onemasons (si nce
Luskwald has none), but the remain-
ing crewmen a re all Luskwaldians:
Hans Bellinek (a rea 7). Gu sta v a nd
Justin Orlesky (ar ea 10), Erne a nd
Homm Shyndl e (a rea 11). Karn Iron-
star a nd Bryn Bell owforge (area 17;
both now dead), Ezekiel Devek (area
19), Dol and Mirkl a r and hi s t wo a p-
prentices (area 20).
ever, Dyrk has perfected a aeries of
unca nny noises (ghastly howl s, child-
like screams. crea king door s and
squeaky floorboards) designed to terror-
ize a nd confound pot ential victims.
Dyrk will use these noi ses to lure un-
suspect ing vict ims into specially ri gged
traps. On other occasions, Dyrk mi ght
use the sound of a screaming woman or
crying child to lure victims out of their
homes. or at the very lea st trick them
into opening a lock ed door or window
(allowing the inv isibl e redcap t o enter).
If the Pes destroy Dyrk's cap (and
Dyrk learns of their actions), the red-
cap will not rest until every member of
t he party is dead. If the Pes prove too
tough or evasive , the redc ap will un-
leash his fury on the poor villagers of
Luskwald instead.
Capturing the redca p will prove espe-
cially difficult given the magical items in
Dyr k's possession. The redcap uses these
items to detect and circumvent booby
traps if he suspects an area is unsafe. As
a precaution. the redcap usually employs
his wand when he enters a building for
the first time. Dyrk can also render
The foll owing sections describe t he
village of Luskwald and t he ruined
keep. Th e Pes a re free to travel back
and forth bet ween the vill age a nd the
r ui ns. If the PCs ret rieve Dyrk 's miss-
ing cap, they ca n coax t he r edca p into
leaving t he vill age a nd r eturning to t he
ruins (once t hey identify t he redcap as
the murderer ). If the PCs cannot locate
the redcap's ha t (or are oblivious t o its
importance). they must find some way
to sna re or slay the mena cing brownie
before he kill s more innocent vill agers.
Exploring the Vil lage
Luskwald is a small communi ty of20
buildings, most of them re sidences . In
their search for Luskwald's elusive
assa ssin. t he Pes will undoubtedly
want to explore ma ny of t hese houses
for signs of t he redcap or clues to his
whereabouts. The buildings and their
occupants are described below in more
detail. Two basic floor pl ans are also
included, enabling the DM to stage
multipl e confront at ions wit h t he mu r-
derous yet evasive villain.
Three of Luskwa ld's buildings have
unique floor plans: the local inn (area
I), t he trad ers' hall (a rea 2) a nd t he
general store (area 3). All other buil d-
ings are described only in the text.
himself invisible at will , even when
attacking. He remains invisi ble most of
the t ime, unless he wants to terrorize
his victim(s) with a momentary appear-
ance. Thdate, only one person i n
Luskwald has seen t he redc ap (see area
14.) Attacks made agai nst t he invisible
brownie are -4 to hit.
Dyrk isn't invincible, of course. He is
vul nerable to several items, including
proper ly employed holy symbols, water,
and certain spells. Cl erics can hold the
redcap "at bay" with a holy symbol;
the chance of success is lO%/Ievel of the
cleri c: holding the symbol. Similarly,
Dyrk will not attack the recipient of a
protection from evil spell . Holy water
inflicts 2d4 +I hp damage to the redcap
per vial, and Dyrk has never encoun-
tered holy water before (though holy
water smells repugnant to hi m, and he
won't touch it voluntarily).
Dyrk (redcap): AC 7; HD 2; hp 14;
MV 120' (40' ); IAT I weapon or 2
scratcheall bite; Dmg by weapon type
or 1d2l1d2l1; SD inv isibil ity; Save H2;
ML 8j INT 12; AL C; SZ s, XP 250
(story awa rd) ; CC/17 (brownie).
Most of Lusk wal d's residents are O
level humans with the following st atis-
t ics; AC 9, hp 1- 6; MV 120' (40'); IIAT 1;
Dmg by weapon t ype; Save Normal
Man; ML 6; INT var ies; AL L. Excep-
tio ns are noted in the text.
Finding Dyrk
Todetermi ne where in Lusk wald t he
r edcap is hiding at a ny given time, roll
I d20. (For example, a roll of 11 means
Dyrk is currently occupying area 11.)
The redcap changes location at least
once eac h night (someti mes more) i n his
sea rch for hi s cap. killing some occu-
pants while merely terrorizing others.
As a general rule , the redcap attacks
only t hose who seem unabl e or ill-
equipped to defend themselves; Dyrk is
not foolish enough to risk inj ury in a
direct confrontation.
Most of Lusk wald's residences provide
ma ny hi ding places for t he r edcap. Dyrk
ca n conceal hi mself beneath loose floor-
boards, within hollow wa lls, among
ceiling rafte rs , under tabl es, in wa rd-
robe s, and behin d furnit ure. The r edcap
can also take advantage of se veral
means of entrance and egress (holes i n
thatch or t ile rooftops, ope n chimneys,
narrow cracks in walls, unlocked win-
dows) but is carefu l t o scope out all
possibili t ies before staying in a given
area for a ny length of ti me. If a house
Rumors in Luskwald (Rollldl OO)
affor ds no easy escape, Dyrk somet imes
cre ates one by carvi ng a "mouse hole"
in an outside wall using his pikestaff.
The Cat Brigade
While exploring Luekwald , the PCs
notice some peculiar behavior from t he
vill age cats (six i n all). The cats are
searchi ng for the redcap and, at t imes,
can be seen in small packs, skulking
around bui ldings or conferring silentl y.
Their odd behavior ca n be attributed to
Hazel Glaghorn (area 14), who is us ing
the cats' keen feline sens es to t rack
down t he "evil" t ha t has pl agued
Luakwald.
A cleric or dru id may communicate
wi th the cats using a speak with ani-
mals spell . The cats clai m they are
hu nting t he "bad smell." (They have
nev er act ually seen the redcap.) So far,
Dyrk has managed to elude them.
Village Rumors
Many of the NPCs in Luskwald are pri vy
to rumors regarding the "evil spirit"
inhabi ti ng their community. (See "Ru-
mors in Luskwald" sidebar.) However,
most residents are hesitant to speak open-
ly about the "evil" in Luskwald, fearing
reprisal. Players will need all t heir role-
playing skills to coax informat ion out of
these terrified townsfolk.
REDCAP'S RAMPAGE
Encounter Areas
1. The Dragon's Flagon,
The village inn is a rain-drenched
single-story st ru cture with few win-
dows, adjoining stables, and a large
weather-worn crest painted. on t he
front wal l. The crest depicts a green
dr agon, its wings unfolded, clutching
an ale tankard with two fearsome
claws.
Luskwald's in n is run by a retired
dwarf adventurer named Coryston
Dalnor, and his human wife , Penelope
(hp 4). Like many dwarves, Coryston is
ra ther set i n hi s ways, often scoldi ng
Penel ope for bei ng "invent ive" and
doing t hi ngs di fferentl y. It 's du ring
these arguments t hat Pene lope's shar p
wit eme rges, us ually putting Coryston
i n his place.
Penel ope's pets are a domesticated. pair
of blink dogs named Wink in and Blinki n.
(Those who have never seen a blink dog
usually mistake them for normal dogs.)
She also owns a black cat named Nod.
The animals have keen senses and can
find the redcap by scent or sound.
The Dal nors usually charge 1 sp per
person for a meal at t heir inn. One tan-
kard of ale costs 3 cp, or two tankards for
5 cp. A bed for the night costs another 2
sp, whi le stable rentals are 5 sp per night.
01- 07 The ru ined keep is ha unted by 40-47 Someone or somet hi ng del iber- 72-79 The laird knows more about
the ghosts of slain goblins. ately sabotaged our effort to t he keep's history than he's
<False) rebuild the fallen keep. What- telli ng. He knows the na t ure of
08-15 I have heard the sound of ba- ever dwells there does not like t he fiend t hat prowls
bi es cryi ng in the night, some- intruders. (True) Luskwald! (False)
t imes ri ght outside my door! 48-55 Gobli ns are hiding in the 80-87 Beware the shadows! Assassins
(True; see " Dyr k the Redcap" dungeons of the keep! They're are stalking Luskwald, usi ng
sidebar) stalking t he vill agers one by t he village as a training
16-23 It was a mist ake to r ebuild tha t one , unt il no one in Luskwald ground to hone their evil skills.
old keep! Anyone who sets foot remains to stand agains t them. (Fal se)
wit hin the ruins is cursed for (False) 88-95 Luskwald is beset by a mad-
life. (False) 56-63 There was treasure hidden in man. He makes strange noi ses
24- 31 Eerie li ghts ha ve been seen that old keep. Someone in in the night, trying to lure
floating around the old keep at Luskwald took something that uns uspecti ng victi ms out of
night ! (False, but see "Conclud- didn't belong to them, a nd all t heir homes. (False)
in g the Adventure") of us a re suffer ing for it! (False) 96-00 Several of the villagers have
32-39 Hazel Glaghorn is a witch, and 64-71 Karn and Bryn (area 17) found been possessed by evil spirits
her " House of Spir its" is pre- something terr ible wh ile hunt- from t he r ui ned keep. They are
cisely that! She is responsible for ing in t he woods . and it fol- the ones haunt ing Luskwald.
the evil t hat plagues Luskwald! lowed t hem back here to (False)
(False, but Bee area 14) Luskwald. (Fal se)
DUNGEON 37
REDCAP'S RAMPAGE
Coryston Dalnor (dwarf); AC 8 (7 with
shield>; Dw3: hp 22; MV 50' (20' ); /lAT 1;
Dmg by weapon type +2; S 16 ( +21+2), I
9, W 11, 0 15, C 17, Ch 12; SO infra-
vision; Save Dw3 ; ML 10; AL L; war
ha mmer, shield, knife, key to st rongbox in
area lb, the private bedroom.
Winkin and Blinkin (bli nk dogs): AC
5; HD 4 '"; hp 16, 13; MV 120' (40' ); IIAT
1 bite; Dmg Id6; SO bli nk ing; Save F4;
ML 6; l NT 9; AL L; SZ S; RC1162.
Nod (domestic cat): AC 7; HD Ih ; hp 3;
MV 150' (50 '); 'AT 3; Dmg 11111-2; SD
r ake with rea r claws for 1/1; Save Nor-
mal Ma n; ML 5; INT 4; AL N; SZ S; new
monster.
a. Dining Room. This cozy chamber
is lit by lanterns suspended from the
rafters. Four circular tables occupy the
floor space, and a large ale barrel
stands in one cor ner. Dinner guests may
refill their tank ards here, si mply by
twisting the barrel's brass spigot. Corys-
ton keeps me ntal t rack of how much ale
hi s guests consume and keeps extra
barrels i n the kitchen.
b. Private Bedroom. This is where
Coryston and Pene lope sleep. Th eir bed
is hea ped with furs and rests next to a
corner fireplace. A three-drawer cedar
dresse r st uffed with clothing stands
next to the door. The bottom dr awer has
a secret compartment cont aining a
locked ir on st rongbox. The box contains
Coryston's wealth (145 gp , 462 sp, and
608 cp).
c. Ki tchen. Cluttered cupboards and
shelves line t he kitchen walls. A table
occupies t he mi ddle of the floor, a wash
basin stands near the outside door, and
a large stew pot hangs above t he ern-
bere of a corner fireplace. Next to t he
dining r oom door st and two unopened
ba rrels of ale. Unknown to Coryston
a nd Penelope, Dyrk has carved a large
ra t hole (large enough to squeeze
through, a nyway) in t he back wall of
the inn, leading to t he interior of one of
Penelope's cupboards.
d. Guest Rooms. Each of these r ooms
contains two comfortable beds and two
wooden storage trunks (both un locked ).
e. Storage Closet. Thi s 5' x 5' r oom
contains cleaning supplies a nd dini ng
utensils.
38 Issue No. 54
f. Stable. This adj oining st r uct ure
houses the in n's stables. No horses a re
currently kept here, and all five stalls
are clean. Se veral bales of hay ar e
stor ed i n the loft above the stalls. and a
ladder hangs on the wall near the st able
doors. The PCs can use the ladder to
climb up to t he loft if t hey wish to ex-
plore t he area, but nothing unusual
lurks among t he hay.
g. Outhouse. This r amshack le bui ld-
in g contains two separ ate stalls con-
cealed behind ragged curtains. Th ere is
lit tl e else of in terest.
2. Traders' Hall.
The walls of this bui lding are in
desperate need of paint, yet the
structure itself seems to have weath-
ered t he passage of time. Above t he
main door ha ngs a sign that reads
"Luskwald Traders ' Guild." The
guild actually cons ists of two build-
ings: t he trade-hall and an adjoining
stable sealed by a pair of heavy
wooden doors .
Housed within t his structure are t he
offices of Luskwald's " t raders' guil d: '
wh ich has two me mbers, Skaldar a nd
Vaxal t Larimi l. Skaldar acquires items
from local craftsmen and trades them
on t heir behalf (for a modest profit ),
while Vaxalt specializes in t he acquiei-
ti on of items t hat would interest his
fellow Luskwaldians.
Skaldar is a large. friendly man with
a serious mind for business. His shorter
but heftier brother, Vaxalt, has little
pat ience for customers who di cker over
price. Bot h ar e prepa red to defend t hem-
sel ves against any menace, from irat e
customers to mur derous misc reants like
Dyrk t he redcap.
Skaldar Larimil (huma n male): AC
8; F2; hp 12; MV 120' (40'); tAT 1; Dmg
by weapon t ype + 2; S 17 ( + 2). I 13. D
13, Ch 13; Save F2; ML 9; AL L; short
sword , pouch containing t wo gems (50
gp each) and 36 gp o
Vaxalt Larimil (human male): AC
7; M2 ; hp 6; MV 120' (40' ); tAT 1; Dmg
by spell or weapon t ype; I 16, W 14. D
16; Save M2; ML 6; AL N; dagger.
wand of magic detection (21 charges).
ring of memory (stor es one extra magic
missile spe ll). key ri ng. Spell s: ana-
lyze, magi c mi ssile.
a. Trading Chamber. The walls of
t his chamber are decorated with ban-
ners representing towns hips a nd cities
in t he vicini ty of Lusk wald. The decor is
a ppropriate given the room's function:
this is where travel ing merchants come
to exchange t heir wares. The space is
taken up by a large oaken table and six
impressive chairs. three positioned on
ei t he r side .
b . Sleeping Quarters. Though
Skaldar and Vaxalt sleep her e, the
chamber al so ser ves as a ma keshift
kitchen. Clues to t he room's dual role
are provided by the two t r unk s of food-
stuffs against one wall , t hEt keg of wine
in the corn er, and the array of pot s and
pans hanging on the walls near t he
fireplace. Two beds are pushed against
t he walls, one for each brother.
c. Vaxalt's Office. This room is wel l-
kept and ni cely appoi nted. Vaxalt's desk
is bare, al t hough the top dra wer is filled
with ink jars and parchment (used for
dr awing up cont r act s). The bottom
drawer is locked a nd contains a sack of
250 sp and a pouch of 12 assorted gems
(6 x 10 gp, 3 x 50 gp, 3 x 100 gp). Along
one wall of t he office are t hree glass
cabinets t hat Vaxalt normally keeps
locked. Displayed wit hin the cabinets
a re items of curi ous but nonmagi cal
na ture: elegant carpets. ad venturing
gear (including a fair selection of well
crafted wea pons). bolts of silk and sa tin,
stacks of paper, fine leat her clothing.
exotic la mps. jars of rare spices and
herbs, a nd ot her curiositi es.
d. Skaldar's Offi ce. This office is
messy and cluttered. The walls are cov-
ered wit h shelves and pegs used to dis-
play various sample items acquired from
the village craftsmen: wood carvings from
t he local woodcarver, horseshoes from the
local blacksmith, barrels from the local
cooper, bird houses and boxes from the
local carpenter, shoes and boots from the
local cobbler. and the like.
e. Stable. The Larimils are also horse
traders and keep t heir stables well-
stocked with fine mount s: five healthy
draft hor ses , two r iding horses . and one
pony. The ani ma ls are restl ess dur ing
rainstorms a nd are in need of exercise.
With t he current threat to Lusk wald,
Skaldar has been reluctant to let t he
horses out .
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REDCAP'S RAMPAGE
Skaldar keeps a smal l wagon in the
stable. A wooden ladder leads up to a hay.
filled loft bui lt atop the stables. If Dyrk
uses either t he loft or the wagon as a hid-
ing place, he causes the horses some dis-
tress (and draws the brothers' attention),
Draft horses (5): AC 7; HD 3; hp 18
each; MV 90' (30'); NAT1 bi te; Dmg Id3;
Save F2j ML 6; INT 2; AL N; SZ L; ReI
185.
Riding horses (2): AC 7; HD 2; hp 13
each; MV 240' (80' ); /IAT 2 hooves; Dmg
Id4l1d4 ; Save F l; ML 7; INT 2; AL N;
SZ L; Re /I S5.
Pony: same as riding horse except; hp
10; MV 210' (70' ),
3. Dalagae's Provisions.
The village store is a dark and fore-
boding st ructure , even though lan-
terns hang on either side of the
entrance. A sign that reads "Dala-
gar's Provisions" swings gently
above the portal.
BrynzolfDalagar (hp 5) is t he proprie-
tor of t his establishment a nd lives here
wi th hi s wife Lorel (hp 4) and their
t hree daughters (hp 2 each). The doors
to t he store are barred shut, the window
shutters are locked, and t he family ha s
confined itself to the kitchen (a rea c). If
t he redcap finds his way i nsi de , Bryn-
zolf unlocks the back door and r ushes
his fam ily off to the neighboring inn.
Brynzol f sells common foodstuffs a nd
dry goods, i ncluding farming imple-
me nts, wine, and clothing. He buys
some of his supplies from the Larimil
brothers (ar ea 2), while other suppli es
are acquired fro m visiting caravans .
a . Store. Shelves line d with sacks and
jars of foodstuffs occupy most of this
a rea, although t here is room enough for
a long counter along t he south wall
(near the st or age room).
b . Storage Chamber. The walls of
t hi s locked room a re li ned wit h shelves
and cabine ts, eac h packed with non-
perishable farming and household sup-
plies. Several of the tools (pitchfor ks,
shovels, hoes, etc.) can beused as make-
shift weapons if the need arises.
c. Kitchen. Th is kitche n is furnished
appropriately. Brynzolf and his family
are often found here, slee ping on a pad
of furs and bl ankets t aken from their
bedrooms or keeping each ot her
44Issue No. 54
company around t he kitchen table.
Brynzolf keeps the back door locked for
protection.
d . Outhouse. A pool of mud sur-
rounds this weather-beaten shack.
There is nothing of interest her e, un less
t he redcap uses the out house as a hi d-
ing place.
e. Master Bedroom. Th is is where
Bry nzolf a nd Lor el usu ally sleep. Their
bed, st ripped of bl a nkets, rests agai nst
the far wall .
f. Girls' Bed room. Thr ee small cots
occupy t his cha mber. There is also a
4' x 2' x2' toy chest resti ng against one
wall . The chest, fashi oned by a local
carpenter, is filled to the br im wit h
doll s. If t he redcap is sea rching for a
place to hide, he may bury hi mself
a mong t he dolls in the toy box, perhaps
passin g hi mself off as a doll if he
chooses to become visible.
4. Vanek Residence.
Three steps lead up to the front door
ofthis well-kept house. Mounted on
the door is a brass plaque etched
with the word s " Donova n Ya nek,
Laird of Luskwald." A sinis ter pump-
kin scowls through the front window
of t he residence with siniste r, candle.
lit eyes.
The door to Donovan Yanek's house is
always locked. If t he PCs have already
met t he laird at t he local inn (area D,
he is not he re . Otherwise, Donovan is
hiding in his st udy (area b). If the PCs
knock at the front door, Donovan (hp 4)
answe rs only after arming hi mself with
a fir eplace poke r and spying on t he PCs
through the front window.
The laird ha s an ill -tempered cat
na med Ir ksome (hp 4; see area 1 for
statistics). If it senses Dyrk's presence,
it hisses and growls.
a. Parlor. It ems of intere st in t his
r oom include a cedar wi ne cabinet (fully
stocke d), a pair of leather ar mchairs, a
cushioned sofa, a wooden coat rack
(posit ioned near t he front door ), and a
pil e of wood by the fir eplace. A portrait
of Laird Yane k hangs above t he mantle.
b . Study. A large oak de sk r est s be-
neath the window of thi s room. A tall
yet sl ender chair has been tucked under
the desk, it s back facing the door. Two
tall bookcases (filled with hi stor ical
indexes, legal doctrines, and volumes
pertaining to nat ural phil osophy and
music) stand against t he north wall.
c. Co nservat ory. An exquisite ly
cr afted harpsichord rest s in one cor ner
of the room, while in a nother corner
stands a n iron cookin g st ove (seldom
used , si nce Yanek prefers to eat hi s
meal s at t he local inn). The bust of a
famous bard rests on a marbl e pedestal
near t he wi ndow, almost as if the bust
were enjoyi ng t he view. If t he bu st is
removed from t he pedest al, a hollow
compartment is re vealed. Th is is where
Yane k stores his wealth: a pouch of five
100 gp gar nets (whic h Yanek offers to
t he PCs as payment for their ser vices)
a nd another pouch hold ing 162 gp o
d. Bedroom. A large bed occupies
most of this 15' square room. Other
furni shings include a ceda r wardrobe
and matching dresser, bot h filled with
t he laird's clothing.
5. Grinstaff Residence.
The sign hanging above the door of
t his house is sha ped like a loaf of
bread. Evidently, t his is t he resi-
dence of Luskwald's baker.
Th e vill age baker, Nadi a Gri nstaff (hp
3) li ves here wit h her nephew, his wife,
a nd thei r two children. Nadia is a n
elderly but spirited woman who bakes
t he most wondrous a nd tasty rhubarb
pies to be found a nywhere. She con-
tinues to run her business despi te re-
cent events in Luskwald.
Nadia 's nephew, Peter (hp 5), has held
many jobs. He worked eight years as a
scr ivener a nd is now composi ng hi s own
book of poetry. His wife Anabelle (hp 4)
full y endorses hi s artistic pursuits.
Th eir childr en, Johann a nd Cara (hp 2,
1), are restl ess a nd eager to be allowed
outside .
6. Talbut Residence.
This weather -worn residence sits in a
quagmire of mud a nd r ainwa ter. You
can see t he fli cke ring eye s of a .lack-
a-lantern t hrough the front window.
Th e village weaver, Tristan Talbut (hp
5), lives here with hi s wi fe Meg (hp 4)
a nd I fi-year-old son Tri stan J r. (hp 6).
Tristan's SOh does not share his parents'
belief that restl ess spirits have de-
scended on Luskwald . He beli eves
Luskwald has been overrun by thieves
and assassins and would like nothing
better t han to take on the culprits him-
self. Not surpr is ingly, the young Tristan
wants to be an advent urer when he gets
older; his fat her ha s quashed young
Tristan' s ambit ions. maintaining that
his SOD will learn the trade of weaving
and continue t he family business. PCs
who encourage Tristan's adventuring
ambitions may find themselves saddled
with an additional follower when they
leave town; Tristan has been waiting
for an opportunity to run away and
prove his mettle to the world.
7. Bellinek Residence.
This house seems especi ally grim,
perhaps the r esult of its dark wood
frame. A boot-shaped sign swings
listl ess ly above t he front door.
Luskwald's cobbler, Otto Bellinek Ihp
5), lives he re with this two sons, Hans
and Karl (hp 4 each). Despite his Hm-
ited material s, Otto creates some of the
finest footwear found a ny where in t he
rea lm. Hi s shoes are tailored to fit their
wearers, yet the price for hi s handiwork
is moderately affor dable.
Karl , Ott o's younger boy, intends to
follow in his father's footsteps. Ha ns, on
t he other hand, has no interes t in cob-
bling; for the l ast t hree years, he's been
an apprent ice of the local carpenter
(area 20). Several weeks ago, Hans was
injured while working at the ruined
keep. Someone or some t hi ng drove a
rusted dagger through hi s len foot , and
he st ill walks with t he aid of a cr utch.
8. Kerwig Resi d e nce.
Hanging on t he fr ont door of this
well-tended re sidence are several
sprigs of ga rlic and wolfsbane tied
together in a bundle. Wind chi mes
dangle from t he house's eaves , tin-
klin g and wh istl ing in the wi nd. A
gr imaci ng pumpkin with firelit eyes
sits in t he window.
The local herbalist, Molly Ke rwig (hp
4), lives here with her tomcat Mortimer
Ihp 3; see area 1 for statist ics) and her
brother Winston (hp 5). Winston wa s
born wit hout a rms and uses a special
set of mouth tongs that enable him to
grasp relatively light items by biti ng
down on a clamp. All the door handles
in Molly's house were fashioned by the
loca l carpenter so Winsto n could open
t hem wit h his feet.
Molly is a n expert herbalist. Her
natural pot ions heal Id4 + 1 hp dama ge
each and ar e relatively inexpensive to
prepare (10 gp each). Her persona l eth-
ics forbid her from ma king poisons a nd
other detrimenta l concoctio ns. Winston
is caut ious around st rangers a nd pro-
tective of Molly. In his spare t ime, he
paints pictures (holding the brushes in
his teeth).
The presence of " evi l spir its" in
Luskwald has t roubled Molly and win-
ston deeply, and they remain confined t o
their house.
9. Dalcus Reside nce.
The sound of barking dogs- large
ones- echoes from this re sidence. A
ca ndlelit pumpkin lights every win-
dow of t he house .
The village chandler, Emily Dal cus
(hp 3), lives here wit h t wo la rge dogs.
Emily makes ca ndles for all occasions
REDCAP'S RAMPAGE
and has no troubl e keeping her many
jack-ot-lanterns lit (six pumpkins in all).
She fears for her safet y, and even t he
presence of the hounds ca nnot quel l her
dread. If t he redcap decides to pay a
visit to Emily's home, the presence of
her t emperamenta l hounds keeps Dyr k
at bay.
Dogs (2): AC 7; HD 1 + 1; hp 7 each ;
MV 150' (50' ); KAT 1 bite; Dmg Id6;
Save F l ; ML 8; INT 3; AL N; SZ M; new
monster.
10. Or lesky Resi denc e.
This simple house is one of t he few
residences in Luskwal d wi th a porch.
Thi s wel l-made addi t ion gives the
house a di stinct appearance , desp ite
t he fact tha t the house itself is as
dark and dreary as t he build ings on
eit her side of it.
Aj ack-ot-lantern grima ces menacingly
t hrough one of the fr ont windows of t hi s
residen ce. The house is occupie d by t he
village woodcarver Gusta v Orlesky (hp
7), his wife Brigit (hp 5), and their son
Justin (hp 5). Gust av t akes pr ide in all
DUNGEON 45
REDCAP'SRAMPAGE
of Justin's accompli shments and full y
endorses Just in 's apprenticeship to the
local carpent er (area 20).
Gust av and hi s son wer e among those
commiss ioned to rebuild t he ruined
keep north of Luskwa ld. Gusta v was
injured when a block of stone fell on his
shoulder. but hi s wounds were minor.
Justin barely a voided injury (he was
within a hai r of having an entire scaf-
fold fall on top of hi m).
11. Shyndle Residence.
Mounted above the door of thi s house
is a halfke g, beneat h whi ch are
pa inted the wor ds " Shy ndle's Bar-
rei works: ' The residence itself ap-
pears well -lit and occupied.
This house belon gs to the ha lfling
cooper BargHn Shy ndle a nd his two
nephews, Erne and Hcmrn , both of
whom are serving 8 S appr entices . Al -
though their house is si zed for humans,
the fur nit ure is built for halfl ings.
Both of Barglin'a nephews wor ked on
the ruined keep, but neither were hurt
i n the events t hat took place during the
keep's reconstruct ion. If Oyrk en ters the
house, Bargl in uses his short swor d to
hold the " fiend" a t bay whil e hi s neph-
ews bolt toward the inn.
Bargli n , Erne, and Homm Shyndle
(male halflings): AC 7 (5 ve. large oppo-
nents); HI; hp 5, 3 ( )(2); MV 90' (30' );
IAT 1; Dmg by weapon t ype; SA +1 to
hit with miss iles; Save HI ; ML 8; AL L;
SZ S; short sword (Barglin only).
12. Morgyr Res idence.
Pounded i nto t he front la wn of this
property is a handsomely carved
wooden sign wi t h t he word s " Vill age
Mender-Open All Hours" painted
on it. The house is missing a few
shingles and shu tters.
Ylandra Mor gyr, t he vill a ge " mend-
er; ' is a young woman li ving a lone a nd
the proverbial a pple of many a ge ntle.
man's eye. She i s skept ica l of r umors
concerning " evil spi rits" in Luskwald
and fears that her village is beset by a
cr azed lunatic . She is suspicious of
st r a ngers and casts her detect evil spell
on PCs who approach her house.
Ylandra Morgyr (fe male human): AC
8; C3; hp 13; MV 120' (40'); I AT 1; Omg
by spell or by we apon ty pe +1; S 15
( + I ), I 12, W 16, 0 14, C 9, Ch 15; Save
46Issue No. 54
C3; ML 8; AL L; ma ce, holy symbol,
t hree vials of hol y wa ter, cleri ca l scroll
(cure light wounds )( 2). Spells: cur e
light wounds, detect evil.
One of t he smaller rooms in Ylandra's
house has been converted i nto a "hospi -
t al ," complete wi th a patient's bed a nd
locked medi cine cabi net . In side t he
medicine cabinet a re ni ne pot ion s; t hree
he ali ng pot ions made by Moll y Kerwig
(see area 8), t hree magical heali ng po-
t ions, and t hree antidote potions (one
each of fir st t hree ty pes, see Re, page
232).
13, KarseU Residence,
This simple hou se, it s windows shut -
tered tight , stands alone a mid a
t angle of weeds. A pumpki n patch
gr ows on t he sout h side, but most of
the la rger pumpkins are gone .
The pumpkin patch gr owi ng next to
the house is wild a nd the townsfolk
have t aken most of it s crop, leavi ng
only the sma lles t pumpkins behin d. The
occupants of the house don 't mind; Fre-
deri ck a nd Osten Karsell are hun t ers,
not pu mpkin growers. Prior to t he red -
cap' s r ampa ge, t he burly Ka rsell brot h-
ers (hp 6 ea ch) spent a lmost every
waking moment hunting in the woods
or dr inking a t t he local t avern. Lately,
ho wever, they've been shut up toget her
in t he house, a nd prolonged enclosu re
has made them unea sy and qui te mi ser-
able.
The interior chambe r s of the house
a re a dor ned with a ll ki nds of hunt ing
t rophies . Behi nd the house i s a s ma ll
shack t hat serves as a n out ho use. If
the redcap deci des to sur prise the
hunters, it hides i nside the shac k and
a mbushes the hunters when they a re
most vulnerable.
14. Glaghorn Resi dence,
A curi ous si gn hangs above the door-
way of t his modest residence. It reads
" House of Spir it s ." Gi ven t he mys-
t iqu e of t his eer ie little vill a ge, you
can only imagine what kind of "spir-
its" lurk within.
A wacky mi ddl e-aged woman na med
Hazel Glaghorn lives in t his house, a nd
the spir its she sells are not of the un-
dead va riety. On t he cont r ary, locked in
her st or eroom are several va riet ies of
wine, numerous kegs of ale, and an
ampl e supply of more e xotic elixirs
(none of t hem magica l). She a lso owns a
huge st ill , a clattering, cacophonous,
contrapt ion easily mista ken for a gi ant
meta l monster.
Ha zel Glaghorn: AC 9; M5; hp 12;
MV 120' (40') ; tAT 1; Dmg by spell or
weapon t ype; Save M5; ML 6; INT 17;
AL N; dagger, ring of animal control.
Spe lls: charm person , detect magic, ESp,
invisib ility; clairvoyance. Hazel's
spell book conta ins t hese spells plus
analyze, read lanf(ua!!l's, read magic,
sleep, ventriloquism,' detect invisible,
locate object, wizard lock; and light ning
bolt.
If the PCs spea k to Hazel, t hey ca n
acquire some useful infor ma t ion rega rd -
ing the "evi l" in Luskwa ld. Ha zel owns
a pa ir of orange cats named Ra pscall ion
a nd Ragamuffin (hp 3 each; see a rea I
for st atistics) a nd uses clairvoyance
spells to peer t hrough t heir eyes . Using
t his scry ing tec hnique, Hazel has
peeked inside he r nei ghbor s' hou ses,
including t he nearby homes of Dyrk's
recent victims. By cha nce, she ca ug ht a
glimpse of a sneeri ng: " leprec haun" t wo
nights ago (in area 17). She sa w t he
lepr ech aun searching: t he workmen 's
house wi th a knife in it s hand. Hazel
lost t rack of the mysterious miscreant
when, quite unexpectedly, it t urned
invisible. Using: her ring of animal con-
trol, Hazel has been using t he vill age's
feli ne population to scour Luskwa ld for
signs of t he wretched redca p.
Hazel is greedy, and PCs hoping t o get
infor mati on from her must pay for it .
During payment negot ia t ions, Hazel
uses her ESP spell to determine wha t
valuables each PC possesse s. In t he end,
she set tles for a monetary paymen t of
100 gp but would much rather obtain a
minor ma gical item (pot ion, scro ll, or
r ing).
15. Ruldar Reside nce and Smithy,
The roof of t his mode st hou se seems
to have been repl aced recentl y, as
evidenced by its weather-worthy
appearance. The house itsel f is cov-
ered with creepers a nd ivy. Standi ng
t o one side of t he r esi dence is a
smaller ston e building wit h a large
stone chi mn ey.
Gharon Ruldar, the vill age blacksmith
(hp 5), lives here with hi s daughter
Ma ldra and his son Br am Ihp 4 each),
and all three are accomplished black -
smiths. Gharon seldom wor ks in t he
smit hy any more, preferri ng to spend
his time chatting at t he local inn.
Maldra and Bram a re t he ones usually
seen poundi ng iron and steel- maki ng
horseshoes, nai ls, iron ri ngs, and eel-
trops. Their pr ices are very reasonabl e,
but t hey do not fas hion wea pons and
ar mor.
Tn light of recent events, the Ruldars
shut down the smithy and locked them-
selves inside t heir house. Gharon has
t he flu and spends most of his days in
bed, tended by his car ing children.
The floors around the front and back
doors of t he house a re covered with
caltrops (8 useless defense against the
vigilant redca p).
16. Glarier's Residence and Shop.
Ezner Mourne, the village glazier, was
Dyrk's fir st victim. The invisi ble redcap
knocked on the front door, waited for
Ezner to ope n t he portal , t he n slipped in
unnoticed. Dyr k terroriz ed. t he old man
for several hours before finally doing
him in. Ezner was found pinned be-
neat h a falle n shelf, covered in splin-
tered glass. He has since bee n buried.
(along with t he victims from area 17) i n
a nearby woodland plot , but the wreck-
age inside his house re mai ns.
a. Kitchen and Living Area. Every
piece of furnit ure in t his room has been
knocked over, pu lled down or smashed
to bits. At t he DM's di scretion, observ-
ant PCs might notice tiny footpr ints
next to a spill ed bag of flour.
b. Display Room. The floor of this
room is covered wi th broken glass. Th e
walls are li ned wi th wooden di spl ay
shelves , sev eral of wh ich have been
knocked over. Only a few glasses and
dishes remain unbroken a mi dst the
thous ands of sha t tered pieces.
c. Gla ssworks, In one corner of t hi s
room sta nds a met al stove used for
heating and molding glass. The redcap
left th e house by climbing up the etove-
pipe to t he roof with t he ai d of his pike-
staff. Anyone st udying the stove
interior has a l in6 cha nce of not ici ng
lit tle footpr ints in t he ashes of the
furnace.
d. Bedroom. This room's conte nts are
in utter disarray. Many of Eener 's person-
al belongings He scattered on t he floor,
including a spilled pouch of 112 sp.
Writ ten in blood on the side of Ezner 's
dr esser is t he following warning:
GIVHAT MINE KEEP OUT
Dyrk meant to wr it e, " Give me my
hat. It's mi ne. Stay out of my keep." but
because of hi s li mi ted writing skills, his
warning is much more myster ious t ha n
intended.
17, Workmen's Home. This is t he
home of Dyrk 's second and t hird vic-
tims , and has t he sa me layout as t he
Vanek residence . Ka r n Ironst ar a nd
Bry n Bellowforge wer e commissioned to
help rebuild the ruined kee p, and both
were fou nd in bed with their throats
cut . Their bodies were buried t he mor-n-
ing afte r they died in the sa me wood-
land cemetery where the vill age glazier
now rests.
The redcap entered the house by pry ing
hack a loose wallboard in t he den (area a).
After searc hi ng t he den for hi s missi ng
cap (and not finding it), Dyrk crept into
the bedrooms (using his pikestaff to pull
down t he door handles), kill ed the two
hunters , and thoroughly searc hed each
chamber (again, finding not hi ng).
REDCAP'SRAMPAGE
a. Den . The walls of this room a re
covered with hunti ng t rophies. Scat-
t ered across the floor are a deck of
cards, 12 sp a nd 42 cp, a nd ot he r mis-
cellaneous it e ms belongi ng to the
hunte rs . PCs who ca refull y sear ch the
room may not ice t he loosened wall-
board thr ough wh ich the r edcap e n-
t ered (a nd left ) t he house.
b . Kitchen. A broken table lies in t he
center of this room. Various jars a nd
food sacks lie broken and empty on the
floor, their contents cr eat ing a multi-
colored car pet.
c. Karn's Bedroom. This room con-
t ains a blood -soaked bed, a n overt urn ed
t runk, a nd a bea rskin rug. Th e st r aw
st uffing inside t he mattress has been
st rewn acros s the floor alo ng with the
contents of Karn's trunk: pi eces of hi de
armor, t wo wooden ca ndlesticks, a
pouch contai ning t wo 20gp gems and
16 sp. a heavy crossbow a nd several
broken bolts. Pes who search t hese
items ca refully have a l in6 chance of
noticing two very small bl oody
ha nd pri nts on one of t he candlesticks.
DUNGEON 47
REDCAP'S RAMPAGE
c. Br yn's Bed room. A blood-soaked.
dwarf-sized bed rests against one wall of
this room. Next to t he bed l ies an over -
turned wooden chest , its cont ents scat -
t er ed across the floor: pieces of leather
armor, a torn hunter 's cap, an emptied
wineskin, a pair of bearskin gloves, six
iron spearhea ds, and a spilled sack of
125 cp. A small t able has also been
overtur ned, along wit h the lanter n that
once stood atop i t . (The lantern is
smashed and useless , and the la ntern's
spill ed oil is a fire hazard.)
After killi ng poor Bryn and searching
his belongings, the frust rated Dyrk
cl imbed onto t he he adboard a nd scr awl-
ed a message on the wall above t he bed.
The warning, written in t he dwarfs
blood. is as foll ows:
GlVHAT ORKIL
Dyrk's act ual intent was to write
" Give me my hat. or die." Instead, a
corrupt ion of "Give hat or kill " is what
the message conveys.
18. Eregauld Residence.
A rain-Filled birdbath stands on the
front lawn of t his well -tended resi-
dence . A sign suspended above t he
door reads "Er egauld's Pottery &
Clayworks." A clay, candlelit pump-
kin peers through every glass pane.
The vill age clayworker, Lorna Ere-
gauld (hp 4), li ves here wit h her six
young chi ldre n (t hr ee boys and three
girls, hp 2 (x 3), 1 rx 3) and her cat,
Ichabod (hp 4, see area 1 for st atis t ics).
Lorna has taken precautions to ensure
her family's safety and refuses to an-
swer her front door. She constantly
carries a li ght crossbow but is under-
sta ndably hesit ant to use it. Besides,
she has only one bolt .
19. Devek Residence.
An old horse-drawn cart sits in the
front yard ofthis residence, its wheels
mired in mud. The house itself is a
proud testament to its builder, stand-
ing against the elements wit hout the
slightest sign of wear. A candlelit jack-
c'dantern sneers through one cur-
tained window.
Ezeki el Devek (hp 5), a carpenter and
wagon maker, lives here wit h his wife,
Jezebel (hp 3), and t heir youngest son,
48IssueNo. 54
Zandor (hp 2). Ezekiel's elder son,
Voltan, was cr ushed beneath a collapsed
scaffold while helpi ng to repai r the
ruined keep north of the villa ge. The
Devek family has spent the last several
weeks mourning Voltan's death and are
terrified by current events in Luskwal d.
Ezekiel wants to leave the village but
cannot afford to buy horses from t he
local traders to pull t he cart th at sits in
hi s front ya rd.
Ezekiel is an expert wagon builder
(part icular ly wagon wheels, which he
sells whenever mer chants visit
Lus kwald ). He also collabor ates with
Doland Mirklar (area 20) on a variety of
building project s that require more than
one carpenter, including doomed pro-
j ects like the ruined keep.
20. Mirklar Residence.
A soli d, well-kept porch embellishes
the front of thi s house. The windows
have all been shuttered, giving this
otherwise quaint r esidence an unwel-
come appea rance.
Doland Mirkl ar, a carpenter and roof-
er (and lately the town's coffin builder
and gravedigger), occupies this house. A
fru gal busine ssman, Doland (hp 5) can
afford to bechoosy about his jobs; hi s
name st ands for quality just about any-
where in the realm. Although he has no
family, Doland shares the house with
two orphaned apprentices, Angus (hp 6)
and Timmel (hp 3). He has two other
apprenti ces, Hans Bellinek and Justin
Orlesky, who live wit h their famil ies in
the village. (See areas 7 and 10.)
Both of Doland's resident apprentices
sustained slight injuries while working at
the keep: Angus put his foot through a
na il jutting out of the floor, and Timmel
had a chunk of rock dropped on his head.
The Ruined Keep
The road between Luskwald and the
rui ns is muddy and r ar ely traveled.
Read or paraphrase t he following as the
party approaches the ruined keep for
the first ti me:
Two miles north of Luskwald lie the
rui ns of a falle n keep. The ivy.
covered st ructure is partiall y ob-
scured behind the skeletons of dead
trees . Both the gate house and t he
keep itself show signs of collapse,
and one of the courtyard wall s has
completely crumbled. The roofs t iles
have peel ed away from the rooftops,
leaving plent y of holes for the rain to
trickle through .
PCs explori ng the ruins encounter a
few unpl easant surprise s: Anton and
Kri stof (th e werer ats) and thei r rodent
minions. The wererats know nothing of
the redcap's existence; they have
clai med t he keep for t hemselves with no
knowledge of its prior inhabit an t. The
lycanthropes are currently in the plan-
ning sta ges of a scheme to terrorize poor
Luskwald . For now, t hey are enjoying
sanctuary within t he ruins.
The Wererats' Wiles
The wererats are devi ous and cowardl y,
preferring to avoid direct confrontations
when they are outnumbered. They have
no such qua lms about attacki ng a soli .
tary victim. If more t han a si ngle PC
arrives at the keep, the wererats try to
frighten t hem away or dispatch them
one at a t ime.
Ant on and Kr istof usually remain in
r at for m, so they ca n mingle wit h
t hei r fellow roden t s and move about
the ruins mor e ea sily. The PCs may
suspect the pre sence of wererat s given
t he sheer nu mber of common rats
within the ruins. The DM should not
allay these suspicions, since t he pr es.
ence of eve n one lycanthrope is usu-
ally enough to instill fear in a
low-level party.
The werer ats ar e virtua lly impossi ble
to surprise. As soon as the PCs are
detected by t he keep's ordinary rats, t he
wererate are warned of t he party's pres-
ence. In many respects , t he werer at' s
tactics are si milar to t he redcap's. Bot h
Anton and Kristof are masters of sabo-
tage, using their weapons and skills to
weaken floors, set up trip wires, and
stage several untimely "accidents."
They are completely familiar with the
layout of the rui ns and ret reat to a safer
locat ion if injured.
Dyrk's cr imson cap is kept with the
wererats' ot her " t r easur es" in area
15. The PCs need t o r ecover t his item
and r et urn safely to Luskwald wit h it.
If Anton a nd Kr istof are captured or
cornered, the werer at s gladly ex-
change the cap (and t heir t r easur e) for
their li ves.
Anton and Kri stof (wererats): AC 7 (9
in human form); HD 3*; hp 16, 11; MV
120' (40'); tAT 1; Dmg Id4 (bite) or by
weapon; SAsurprise, lycanthropy; SO
silver or magical weapons to hit (animal
formonly); Save F3; ML 8; INT 10; AL C;
XP 50; He /1oo (lycant hrope); short sword.
Anton and Kristof are not harmed by
wolfsbane but are repelled by the sight
of a dead rat. (They must make a mo-
rale check or retreat in fear.) When in
animal form, the wererats store their
weapons in easy-to-access hiding places,
such as the dining hall (area 5), the
kitchen (area 8), or t he bedroom (area
12).
PCs who can speak with animals may
question one or more of the keep's r esi -
dent rats. The r at s are not exactl y
friend ly, but t hey speak with PCs
grudgingly and cautiously, sus pect ing a
t rap. Alt hough nominally under the
wererats' comma nd, t hese vicious little
heath ens gladly r eveal the loca t ion of
the cap in excha nge for food. They do
not, however, assi st the Pes in the safe
recovery of t he cap.
The rats, like t hei r master s, have
never seen Dyr k. However, they 've
smelled the redcap (and fallen prey to
him on several occasions whe n Dyrk
was hungry). The rodents associate
Dyrk's blood-soaked cap wit h " t he t hing
that kill s ra ts; ' but t hey have no idea
what th e " t hing" is.
Normal r ats (36 total): AC 9; HD I
hpj MV 60' (20' ), swim 30' 0 0' ); fiAT I
bite/pack; Dmg Id6/pack; SA disease;
Save Normal Man; ML 5; INT 2; AL N;
XP 2; RC120l. These r avenous creatures
roam in packs of six.
Gia nt r ats 02 tot al ). AC 7; HD 'h; hp
4 ( x 4), 3 r x 4), 2 ( x 4); MV 120' (40'),
swim 60' (20' ); KAT 1 bite; Dmg Id3; SA
disease; Save Normal Man; ML 8; INT
2; AL N; XP 5; RC/20l. These gi ant
specimens usually hu nt i n fours.
Ground Floor
1. Entrance Doors .
A muddy pat h leads to an arched
ent rance in which two wooden doors
sta nd splintered and agape. Although
ruined by the ravages of war and time ,
the doors are still affixed to their
rusted iron hinges.
The doors tear free of their hinges if
moved, ca usi ng Id4 hp damage to a ny
nearby PCs. A successful Dexterity
check at + 2 negates damage.
2. Cr u mbled Guar d house.
Most of thi s sect ion st ill lies i n ru in s,
a nd the t hic k walls t hat once r eo
pelled the gobli n hordes have been
reduced to piles of rubble by the
passage of time. A broken door lies
amidst t he crumbled stonework,
wh ile the collapsed remain s of an
upper level ca n be seen above.
The repair crew from Luskwald never
reached this fallen section of the keep,
though plans a nd materials to rebuild
this a rea ha d bee n a rranged . The PCs
can climb up to t he second floor of t he
gate house by sta nding on t he r ubbl e or
using ropes. Climbing up t o the second
floor in eit her manner has a 2-in-6
chance of further colla psi ng t he floor
above. If t he floor does coll apse , anyone
underneath must make a Dexterity
check to a void Id6 hp damage from
falling floorboards a nd debris.
3. Rebuilt Guar d house.
Several of this chamber 's wa lls show
signs of recent repair. Huge holes
have been replac ed with solid br ick-
work , and piece s of wood that have
fallen from the ceili ng lie neatl y
stacked on t he floor. Through a hole
in the ceiling, you ca n see the upper
level of the gate house.
Many of t he floorboards in the second
story of t he gate house are too weak to
support much weight. Over t he years,
steady rains pouring through the holes
in the gate house roof have cont r ibuted
to the slow rot of the floorboards. PCs
attempting to climb through the hole in
the ceili ng pull more of the floor down ;
t hose who fail a Dexterity check t umble
down with it.
4. Courtyard.
The keep and its crumbling gate house
are joined toget her by sto ne walls,
forming a courtyard about 35' wide.
The sout h wall has almost ent irely
collapsed, leavi ng not hing but scat-
tered piles of ru bble. The north wall ,
still intact but crumbling, has a bro-
ken scaffold leaning against it. A set of
iron-bound doors lead into the keep,
and a stone st ai rcase leads up to the
second floor of the gate house.
The door s leadi ng into the keep are
barred shut from the i nside. PCs must
REDCAP'SRAMPAGE
inflict 40 hp damage to break down the
doors.
The wr eck ed sca ffold was left behind
by Luskwald's re pai r crew afte r Dyrk
sabotaged it , collapsing the western-
most sect ion. Th e crew never began
work on the crumbled sout h wall, whic h
fell during t he last goblin incur sion.
Thi s area is well -traversed by rats . The
rodents creep along the tops of walls and
around piles of rubble, waiting for a sig-
nal from the were rats to attack.
5. Main Hall.
Littering the floor of t hi s dark, un-
decorated hall are the bones of sev-
er al humanoid creatures who died
here many years ago. Tothe south, a
wooden door hangs loosely on its
hinges. Tothe north you see an as-
cendin g staircase.
The bones are all tha t's left of t he
keep's human defenders a nd goblin
assailants. Although there are no va l u-
abi es hidden a mong t he remai ns, the
wererats sometimes hide t heir short
swords under piles of bone s before as-
suming rat form. If Anton and Kri stof
a re currently in rat form, there is a 30%
chance their swords a re here.
6. Dining Room.
Standing i n t he mi ddl e of this dreary
chamber is a large oa k din ing tabl e
t hat has barely withstood the pas-
sage oft ime . A wrought .iron chande-
lier still hangs above t he t able, and
three chair s have also endured. Th e
others cha irs lie in spli nters on t he
floor. Pa rt of the ceiling has collapsed
near the outer wall , leaving a lar ge
pile of debris .
Dyr k deliberately weakened t he ceil -
ing near t he outer wall . The stonemas-
on who fell t hrough surv ived t he
unexpect ed plunge, but he was too in-
jured to conti nue r epairs. The floor-
boards t hat Dyrk weakened ha ve all
been broken; PCs can climb up t hrough
the hole without fear of furt her collapse .
7. Ba r r acks .
The shattered remains of several cots
lie st rewn on the floor ofthi s damp,
unlit chamber. Holes t hat once pene-
t rat ed t he outer wall have si nce bee n
repaired.
DUNGEON 49
REDCAP'SRAMPAGE
Grou nd Floor
Second Floor
10. Upper Hallway
Tattered tapestries hang from t he
walls of t his corr idor, but t heir de-
signs a re faded from yea rs of ne glect
and decay. The floor ha s collapsed
nea r t he outer wall , leavin g a jagged
opening to the cha mber bel ow.
Despite t he gaping hole, the floor in
t his hallway is safe to walk on. Th e
t apest r ies a re worthless but quite heavy
(500 cn each).
The re maining floorboa rds above
areas 2 a nd 3 a re weak a nd onl y t he
bridging sect ion di rectl y above a rea 1 is
not at ri sk of sudden coll apse. PCs who
st ay close to t he walls are safe; t hose
who vent ure close to the collapsed sec-
t ions of floor have a base 10% cha nce of
fall ing t hrough (sustaining Id6 hp dam-
age). This chance increases by 1% for
every 10 Ibs. of weight a pplied.
The roof of t his buildi ng is riddl ed
wit h holes, all t r ickl ing water. Years
of exposure to t he elements have all
but dest royed the interi or of t hi s
upper st ory. There are no
furnishin gs- j ust pool s of water,
wa rped floorboards, broken weapons,
and more holes.
9. Gate House, Up p e r Leve l. An-
ton a nd Kr istof have r igged a cross-
bow tra p in this area. The hea vy
crossbow is positioned to fire at t he
first person t o wa lk through t he door.
The bolt (THACO18) in fli cts 2d4 hp
da mage. Th e trap can be detected and
disa r med normally, a nd the crossbow
may be used as a weapon.
Second Ffoor
-
12
7
15
11
e
Cellar
One squa re = 5'
9 .L
J ~ =
N
--
Ruined Keep
t t . Bedch a mber.
This room is a favorite gathering place
for the keep's rats; t he dampness suits
them. Several rat-sized holes in the base
of the eastern wall lead to the kitc hen .
B. Kitchen.
The floor of this chamber is littered
with t he remains of several broken
shelves and tables. Strewn along t he
base of a repaired section of wall are
the sundered remna nts of an old
fireplace. A hea vy iron cauldron
rests in t he corner behind t he door.
This room is guarded by six normal and
four giant rats. The rats swarm any PCs
who open the concealed trap door in the
floor (see below). If Anton and Kristof have
assumed rat form, there's a 50% chance
that the ir swords are hidden inside the
cauldron behind the door. If forced to re-
treat to the cellar, t hey seize these weep-
OM.
The trap door to the cellar is concealed
WIder a pile of rubble. The wooden door
can beopened easily with its iron pull-ring
and is neither locked nor trapped. Openi ng
the door reveals a wood ladder descending
20' into the ground .
A large bed frame stands aga inst the
sout h wall of t his room. Hangi ng on
the wall next to t he fireplace is a
torn t apest ry depicting a n armored
knight . Beneath the tapestry sits a
heavy oak trunk with talonli ke feet.
The t r unk measures 4' x 2' x 2' a nd
weighs 220 lbs. It is not locked but is
la rge enou gh for a werera t to hide in , if
t he need a rises; ot he rwise it's empty.
The tapestry ha nging above t he t runk
is worthless.
A PC sea rching the fireplace has a 1
in6 cha nce of finding a secret compart-
50Issue No. 54
ment beneath the mantle. Hidden in-
side the compartment is a sword +1.
This encha nted weapon was once the
property of Lord Manxom, the last cas-
tellan of t he keep. Manxom died defend-
ing the keep, and his loya l squire
ret urned t he swor d to it s hiding place,
fearing the weapon migh t fall in to hu-
manoid hands. The PCs can use t his
weapon to harm the wer er ats.
A secret door in the south wall opens
into a dark cor ridor; t he door may be
foundat t he usual odds. If the wererats
wereforced to retreat to the secret room
(area 13), at least one of t hem is lurki ng
behind t his sec ret door, wait ing to
strike.
12. Bedchamber. This room contai ns
an opened (nor ma lly secret) door lead-
ing to the secret room (area 13). If t he
wererat s are forced to retreat to t he
secret room, they close t he secret door
behind them.
Piles of kindling are al l t ha t 's left of
the bed a nd desk t ha t once fur nished
this chamber. Carved into the bed 's
broken head board are some barely
legible wor ds. A bronze shield shaped
like a dragon's head hangs above t he
room's blacke ned fireplace.
The words carved into t he he adboa rd
are a warni ng fr om t he redcap to all
intruders who would dare enter his lai r;
KEEP MINE BWARE lKILL
The wererats are ill it erate, so they are
unable to grasp t he significa nce of
Dyrk's warning.
The shield above t he fireplace is magi.
cal and bestows a constant resist {ire
spell on its bearer. However, t he shield
is fastened to the wall by a hi dde n latch
that can be opene d only by a thief mak-
ing a success ful find t raps a nd open
locks roll .
If Anton and Kristof hav e assumed
rat form, t her e is a 20% chance t hey
have hidden t heir swords inside t he
fireplace for safekeepi ng. They seize
these weapons before retreating to area
13. Other than t he swords a nd shield,
the re's lit tl e worth t a king fr om t his
chamber.
13. Secret Room. Two secret doors
lead into t his chamber. The r epair cre w
from Luskwald found t hem only after
an hour of close scrutiny. The wererats
were lucky and a rrived to find one of
the secret doors left open.
If t he PCs pursue them through the
keep, the werera ta hide behind the
secret doors, hoping to gai n sur prise. On
a roll of 1-4, their opponent is sur-
prised .
This room shows signs of recent
repair. Sturdy wooden beams support
t he damaged r oof, a nd most of the old
floor boards have been replaced.
Chun ks of rubble t hat once cons ti -
t uted a fireplace have been pil ed
agai nst a r ebuilt sect ion of wall. The
room is unfurnished.
Ant on a nd Kr istof keep a pair of
li ght crossbows in this chamber. Both
weapons are loaded a nd ready to fi re.
Twel ve cr oss bow bolts lie strewn i n
one cor ner, if the were rats requi re
more ammuni t ion.
Cellar
14. Storage Room,
Th e walls of t his cold. dark cha mber
a re lined with broken shelves. A few
empty kegs a nd smashed crates litter
t he floor, alo ng with small heaps of
r at droppin gs and loose ti mber.
This area is a gathering pl ace for ra ts
(bot h normal and giant var iet ies) , and is
strewn wi th odd bits of bone, cloth, a nd
other items t hat the rats have bro ught
here. The chamber smells like a gar-
bage pail.
The r ats have orders t o attack a ny
creature other t han a werera t who t r ies
to cross t his room (to a rea 15). The r ats
swarm a single target , deli ver ing rela-
tively massive amounts of damage wi th
repeated bit es (ld6 hp per pa ck of six) .
Anyone bitten by a rat has a 5% chance
of contracting a disease t hat takes hold
in 2d6 t urns. Th e victi m is allowed a
Saving Throw vs. Poison; if t he savi ng
t hrow fails, t he vict i m may die in 1-4
days (l-in-4 chance) or be bedridde n for
one month, un able to adventure . A cure
di sease immediately rid s t he victim of
t he afflict ion. Attacks directed at t he
swarmi ng r ats have a 50% chance of
ha rming t he r ats' victi m as well. (Da m-
age is split equally betwee n t he victi m
a nd t he rodent s.)
If Anton and Kr istof were for ced to
retrea t to the cellar, they are also
presen t (in t he ir na tural r at for ms). If
REDCAP'S RAMPAGE
the fig ht goes poorly, t hey ret r ea t to t he
well (area 15), assume human form, and
bolt t he door behind t hem.
15. We r e r ats ' Wel l. The door to this
room is usu ally left open so t he wer e-
rats can enter it in ra t for m. The portal
can be close d and locked from the in-
side, alt hough thieves have normal
chances to pick t he lock.
A 5' diameter well descends t hrough
t he floor of t his da mp chamber. The
stone ledge surrou ndi ng t he well is
covered with phosphorescent green
moss tha t casts a dull li ght on t he
room's glistening walls. At t ached to
the well is a rusted iron winch. A
r ope, no doubt attached to a bucket,
plunges through the well's dark
ori fice.
The wererat s keep a pair of daggers
hidden behi nd t he edge of t he well, just
in case t hey lose their short swords. The
moss tha t grows on t he sides and top of
the well is a natural phenomenon and
does not radi ate magic when a detect
magic spell is cast.
If forced into this cha mber, the were-
rats prepare to make thei r fi nal stand
(in human or r a t for m, wh ichever is
most advantageous). If they fa il a
morale check, t he we rerats eit he r
sur rende r or try t o escape. They will
not di e to protect their t reasure (see
below).
The well is 40' deep but fill ed with 10'
of mildly poisonous wa ter. Anyone who
swallows water from the well mu st
make a Saving Throw vs . Poison or
suffer a - 2 penalty on all attack rolls,
abili ty chec ks, a nd saving t hrows for
2d6 turns. A wooden bucket is indeed
attached to t he end of t he rope , suspend-
ed a few feet above t he wa ter level. The
buc ket contai ns t he wererats' accumu-
lated t reasure, and lower ing t he bucket
into t he well soa ks the t reasure but
ot herwise does it no har m. Th e were-
rats' t reasure in cludes 39 gpo 92 sp, 245
cp, an electrum dragon's head medall ion
(worth 150 gp), a gold earr ing set with
three small agates (45 gp), a silver -
pl ated bel t buckle (7 sp), a silver spear
tip (5 gpl, a magi cal earri ng (see Re.
page 238), a steel cloak pin (5 sp), three
pieces of goblin bone je wel ry (2 sp eac h),
a nd a plati num signet ring beari ng t he
dragon-crest of Lord Manxom (50 gp)
wrapped in a tiny, blood-soaked " bag"
(actually the redcap's hat ).
DUNGEON 51
REDCAP'S RAMPAGE
Anyone who t akes Dyrk's tooth is the
reci pient of a curse that persists as long
as t he t ooth remains in t he PC's posses-
sio n. The PC is regarded unfavorably by
all Lawful creatures in his presence.
La wful NPCs neither t rust nor associ -
ate with the affected i ndi vidual until
t he t ooth is discarded. Ancien t fol klore
says t hat redcap's teeth may be used to
make poti ons; whether such stories
have any shred of t ruth is for the DM to
deci de.
Donova n Vanek and the surviving
citizens of Lus kwald rejoice if the PCs
successfully deal with the redcap. Tri-
umphant PCs are given their promised
reward, and Lusk wald re turns to its
prior, peaceful state. If Dyrk or t he
wererats survive, t he DM can use t hese
chaot ic NPCs as recurri ng villains in
fut ure adve ntures set near Luskwald.
The ru ined keep ca n be t he setting for
countless more adventures. Th e r uins
could become a la ir for roving bands of
goblins, a ha unt for evil wyrds (Ce,
pages 115-116) or the sinister sanctuary
of a n evil , t raveli ng cleric a nd hi s un-
dead servants. The PCs find the keep
and nearby Luskwald bountiful sources
offurther adve nture-once they've put
an end to t he redcap's rampage. n

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sidebar.) The longer t he PCs hol d Dyrk's
cap, t he more fr ustrated and dangerous
Dyrk becomes. No matter how incensed
he becomes, the redcap never charges
headlong into a battle with t he PCs, but
he may t hreaten to kill more villagers if
the PCs withhold hi s prized possession.
If t he PCs found t he redcap 's hat but
failed to grasp its importance, t hey may
ha ve left it in the keep. If t he redcap
learns that hi s cap is st ill in the keep,
he returns to the ruins to confi r m t his,
but returns to Luskwald in anger if he
fails to find it . Whether or not he finds
hi s cap depends on where t he PCs tell
him to look; ifthe PCs provide its exact
location, Dyrk finds t he cap without
much diffic ulty. If t he PCs do not give
Dyrk its exact loca tion, the redcap has a
10% cumulative cha nce per hour of
finding it . However, if he has not found
it wit hin t hree hou rs, Dyrk becomes
fr ustrated a nd returns to the vill age
see king revenge.
If the PCs manage to kill Dyrk, t he
hideou s little brownie explodes like a
firec racke r, leaving nothi ng behind but
a few shr eds of clot h, two small ir on
boots, and a burnt (but i ntact) wand of
trap detection. Amid t he r edcap's mate-
r ial remains lies a single split toot h.
Lord Ma nxom (the keep's knight-
protector) died during the last gobli n
incursion, but his family lives on in
some distant city of the DM's choosing.
They pay well (up to 250 gp) for the safe
return of Manxom's fami ly ri ng. A PC
who intends to return t he heir loom may
consult wi t h NPCs in Lusk wald (pe r-
haps Laird Vanek) regar ding the loca-
tion of t he Ma nxom family estate.
Concludi ng the Adventure
lf th e PCs recover Dyr k's missing cap,
they must ret urn with it to Luskwal d.
Tracking down the redcap shoul dn't be
too difficul t ifthe PCs openly decl are
they have the cap in t heir possession.
For ever cautious, Dyrk continues
t hreateni ng t he people of Luskwal d
until his cap is left in an unguarded
place where Dyrk feels he can snatch i t
wit hout fea r of reprisal. The redca p can
remain invisible and, on seizi ng his hat,
render it invisible as well . Once he
regains hi s cap, Dyrk a bandons
Luskwald and returns t o the keep.
The PCs may deci de to use Dyrk's cap
as bait to snare t he evil redcap. Dyrk
has several items t hat make such a feat
problemati c. (See "Dyrk t he Redcap"
52 Issue No. 54

VOYAGE
OFTHE
CRIMPSHRINE
BYTONYROSS
Up the river
A.rtwofk by C.H. &.men
58 Issue No. 59
7bny writes: -After abandoning tJu:
AD&lJ'f game for wargames and atblet-
ia. I W(U rei ntroduced to it by my col-
lege roommate, Chris Quinn. Thi$
oownlure is dedicated to ChrU, my
woIUkrful girlfriend Meg, and our dcg.
fuel. Please wnu me with any rom-
ments about Iht! adventure at 2745 29th
Street NW UOO. Washington, DC 20008.
-Voyage of the CrimpsJr.rine- is intended
for a party of 4-6 PCs oflevels 3-6
(about 20 total levels ). The adventure is
set in the Kingdom of Karameik08 in
the MYSTAlL\ campaign world and
refers to places from the
J(j1llldom ofAdwntU1l! box eet, Whi le
that set is useful. it is not necessary to
run this adventure. The ecenarjc can
easily be adapted to any land with nav-
iga ble ri vera, and if 80 desired, gnomes
can be replaced by another race.
As much of the action takes place in
and around a river. the DM should
carefully review the rul es on pages
120--122 of the PHB on swimming,
holding one's breath. diving, and surfac-
ing. The rules on page 79 of the DMG
concerning underwater movement,
visi on. light, combat, and magi c are cru -
cial. The UBe of the optional rules on
specific eneum.brance on pages of
the PHS is strongly recommended. as
are the optional non-weapon proficiency
rules. PCs will benefit by having the
swimming nonweapon proficiency and
magical items such as a ring of tree
action or helm of underwater action.
Adventure Background
Since the independence of Kerameikoa
was declared in AC 1006, the gnomes of
Clan Fiddleswithsticks in Highforge
have been laboring, with the aid of sev-
eral powerful members of the School of
Magecr aft in Kra katos, to build a vessel
capable of navigating the rive rs of
Karameikos. The craft was intended to
supplement and perhaps replace the
annual Gnome Caravan as the way for
the gnomi sh clans (and eventually all
merchants) to distribute their raw and
finished goods across the kingdom.
After many discarded blueprints and
prototypes, a viable design finally
emerged . With financial backing from
Clan Hilltopper and the Merchant's
Guild of MirToa, a mighty riverboat
named the Crimpshrine was built and
put to the test. Over the last several
months, the mighty behemoth has gone
up and down the riverways of
Karameikoa.. carrying cargo and paasen-
gera with previously unthinkabl e speed.
Adventure setup
The PCB, even if new to Karameikce,
should be aware of the CrimpshriM, as
news of it has spread througbout the
Kingdom and even beyond. The
CrimpshriM has rapidly become the
tran8portation of choice for those who
canafford to cin:umvent the rigors of
road travel. and the carrier of choice for
merchants who find it cheaper than
caravana in many caaes. At some point
in thei r adventuring, the PCs will
doubtless desire to travel aboard this
vessel, if they haven't already, at which
point this adve nture begins.
It is beat that the PCBhave been
aboard the CrimpShriM several times
already and are accustomed to it as a
part of the larger campaign setting.
With minimal revision, OMs can eet
"The Sea WoW WUNGEON" .4clwnturrs
.55) on board the CrimpshriM as an
introduction to the craft. If the PCs
don't express a desire to try out the
CrimpshriM, they can be lured aboard
by any number of means: free passage,
the need to get somewhere fast , as
bodyguards for some important person-
age, etc. If the PCs resist all th e OM's
attempts to bri ng them aboard, then
they aren't worthy of being called
adventurers! The PCs should be on
board the CrimpshriM as it embarks on
a two-day trip to Seragrad, a small for-
tified frontier town situated where the
Castellan River and Highreach River
branch off from each other. Seregrad is
often used as a ba se of operations for
those seeking adventure in the wild,
unmapped foothi l1s of t he region.
TheTrip
On the first day the CrimpshriM
departs Kelvin at exactly dawn ( 6 A.M.)
and moves swiftly (aver aging 4 mph )
south down the Hillfollow River (which
is known to the Traldar as the River
Shutturgal), which is between 500 and
7SO' 8CJ'Osa. The tin t hour of the voy-
age takes them past the well-tended
lands of the Barony of Kelvin to the
east and the rolling Highforge foothills
to the west . After another hour, the
CrimpshriM slows to p888 under the
drawbridge of the massive bridge link-
ing the northern and southern seg-
ments of the King's Road. Half an hour
later, the Windrush River (e. k.e. th e
Foamfire River ) can be seen joining the
HilIfollow directly to the West . At
roughly 9 A.M. the Crimpshrine ehud-
den and squeals as the ship's captain
maneuven the craft for the sharp tum
to the northeast t hat will take the
CrimpshriM up the Castellan River
(a.k.a. River Volaga) to Seragrad. Until
this point, the lands are cultivated and
small settlements can be seen scat-
tered along the shores. In these morn-
ing hours, many passengers have col-
lapsed in their cabins to get some sleep
or to get used to the riverboat's motion.
Some people will be out on the decks
enjoyi ng the trip and PCs may be able
to gossi p about the latest news and
rumors if they wish.
After turning into the current of the
lesser Castellan River, the CrimpslariM'l
progress is slowed. to 3 mph. The well-
tended woods of the Barony are to the
south. and there are several smaUIOS'-
ging camps that are currently uninhabit-
ed on the banks there. On the northern
banka, there are no settlements or culti-
vati on of any kind. There are no bridges
connecting the shores of the Castellan
river, which is roughly 350 ' acrose in
meet places. The CrimpsMM travels
some 30 miles upriver over the course of
the day, during which the PCs can
explore the ship, gamble, fish, or do
whatever they desire.
Note that the mot ion of the rive r dis-
rupts any attempt to st udy or memo-
ri ze spells unless the PC has the sea-
manship non- weapon profi cien cy.
Normal reading requires a success ful
Constitution check each hour to avoid
motion sickness. Any prosperous (or
gullible) looking PCs are approached
by Marsatlus, who at tempts to engage
them in conversation about their past
deed s. His goal is to learn enough
about the PC to deci de if he or she is
worth pursuing as a mark for one of
his cons at some point . These idl e
hours are ideal for t he DM who wishes
to introduce new rumors or NPCs to
the campaign. The OM should be sure
to establish what all the PCs are doing
(as nonchalantly as pcesiblel ) because
as dusk is falli ng at around 7 P.M. , a
catastrophe occurs.
The Wreck
A sawyer (a drifti ng log, bobbing verti-
cally up and down in the water) pierces
through the hull of the CrimpshriM
THEWRECKOFTHECRIMPSHRINE
directly below the juggernaut's track in
area A. The construct is jarred off its
track and smashes through the side of
the hold with its harness still attached,
destroying much of the intricate gear-
wor ks. The massive gas h in the hold
causes the boat to take water and begin
to sink rapidly. The eailors on duty in
the "engine"'room quicltly sound the
alarm, alerting all passengers (except
for those in the deepest slumber). When
the CrimpshriM starts to sink, the PCs
have 5 rounds to act before the boat is
completely under the cold, dark water.
In that time they may wish to rescue
thei r possessions, get off the ship, or
help with the evacuation.
Unless they have an inordinate
amount of poeeeeetens, assume that
each PC can gather up all of their cloth-
ing and gear and get off the boat before
it sinks. Remember that books (includ-
ing spellbooks), maps, and any other
paper items will be ruined by submer-
gence in water unless somehow water-
proofed. Other items such as armor,
composite bows, bowstrings, musical
ins truments and deli cate equi pment,
will be damaged to varying degrees by
the exposure to the water.
Getting off the boat is relatively sim-
ple; the PCs need only race to a raili ng
and dive into the ri ver to avoid being
trapped inside the boat as it sinks.
Some PCs, however, may wish to try to
get in one of the few li feboats. Two
lifeboats are lowered to the bow and
two to the aft. Due to the chaos on th e
deck of the boat, any PC trying to
reach a lifeboat winhave to spend 2
rounds gett ing there. At that point the
OM should pa ss the player a note read-
ing: "A.8 the mighty Crimpshri M ehud-
ders beneath your feet, you rapidly
realize that not everyone is going to
make it off before it si nks . The rails an!
crowded with women , children and
elderly pa ssengen trying to make it to
the lifeboats next to you."'The PC
should reali ze at this point that there
are many who need the lifeboats far
more than he. Any lawful or good
aligned. PC who elbows his way onto
one of the lifeboats at this point should
receive a severe experie nce point
penalty for this acti on. Good and/or
lawful PCs who help passengen into
the lifeboats shoul d receive 50 XP for
every passenger they save. Up to four
passengen can be transferred to each
lifeboat each round. PCs who elect to
aid paesengera escape must make 8
DUNGEON 59
THE WRECK OFTHE CRIMPSHRINE
Dexterity check each round or they are
knocked overboard by the surging
crowd. Barring magical escape (flying,
leoitating, etc.), the PCs will likely end
up in the river.
+ PCs without the swimming non-
weapon proficiency cannot swim to
shore, but can only dog paddle in place
and hope to be rescued. If any of these
PCs are carrying enough weight (clot h.
ing, gear, etc.I to reduce their move-
ment rate (See Tabl e 48 on page 78 of
the PHB) they will start sinki ng un til
they divest themselves of enough gear
to become unencumbered (rules for
shedding armor are on page 76 of the
PHB, specific weights of various pieces
of armor can be found on page 128 of
PLAYER'S OPTIoN": Combat and
7hctk.). PCBcan mai ntain themselves
above water for a number of hours
equal to their Constitution ( 88 per
page 121 of the PHB ), however, the
leisure ly current will carry t hem down
river at 1.5 mph.
60 Issue No. 59
+ PCs with the swi mming non-
weapon proficiency can easil y make it to
shore, which is only 100 yards away. It
is possible for proficient swimmers to
rescue non-proficient swimmers by
locating them in the water and ewim-
ming to shore dragging them at 113
their normal swimming rate.
Any PC who does not make it ofT the
Crimpshri ne when it slips un der is in
serious jeopardy. PCs still on the
Crimps hrine should roll for surprise, if
unsurprised they can gulp enough air
to hold their breath up to Kthei r
Constitution in rounds. If surprised,
they can only gulp enough air to last a
number of rounds equal to Y. their
Constitution. The CrimpshriM sinks at
a rate of 40' per round before coming to
rest some 150' underwater. PCs on the
deck must make a Dexteri ty check to
get free from the ship each round, once
free., they can surface 88 per the rules
on page 122 of the PHB Pea unfortu-
nate enough to still be in a room may
move at K thei r normal movement rate
to get out to the decks, then must make
a Dexterity check, as above. If a PC can
no longer hold hi s breath and starts to
inhale water, he passes out and must
make a successful system shock check
each round or die. Any PC with the
healing nonweapon proficiency who can
tend to a drowned PC within 6 rounds
of death can revive the drowned PC to
one hit point by making a proficiency
check at a -6 penalty.
The DM can add an excellent hook
for a future advent ure by having an
unknown, drowning passenger hand
over a key/tokenljeweVscroll case or
gurgles a message, asking a PC to
deliver it to someone before slipping
under the water to his death. A sub-
sequent adventure can involve the PCs'
invest igation of t his mysterious pas-
senger and the item or message, then
their attempt to deliver it to the person
specified for a reward. The rest is up to
the DM. Few adventurers, however, will
pass up an opportunity to deliver a
simple message for great reward.
The Aftermath
Assuming the PCs all escape the
Crimpshrine's demise more or less
intact and manage to locate each other,
they will find themselves amongst a
group of shivering survivors some-
where in the middl e of the feared,
unnamed moor east of Kelvin. Of the
43 passengers and crew headed to
Seragrad, 17 have survived the wreck.
The DM should flesh out the survivors
before running the adventure, includ-
ing deciding which of the notable NPCs
(see sidebar) survived. Table 70 of the
DMGcan be used to quicltJy generate
some of the basic traits of the sur-
vivors. As might be expected, Captain
Prominentus and much of the crew
went down with the Crimpshrine try-
ing to help pagsengers escape to safety
and are missing. Thus, there are no
-Ieaders- among the survivors... except
the PCs. As hardy adventurers, the
PCs are the natural candidates to lead
the survivors to the safety of eiviliea-
tion. Depending on the range of their
exploits in Karameikos, the PCs may
even be known as heroes to some of the
passengers. The survivors of the wreck
aremostl y a dispiri ted lot , most having
lost friends or family in the devastat-
ing wreck, as well as valued posses-
sions. Bonus experience points should
be given to any priest or paladin PC
who spends time comforti ng and con-
soling the survi vors. The PCBshould
realize that wit hout someone to take
charge, many of these people might not
reach safety before dying of exposure
or despair. Thus the PCs are faced with
the tas k of escorting a large grou p of
defenseless civilians across the moor
and to the safety of Kelvin. PCs who
wish to travel on thei r own should be
msde aware of the helpl ess state of th e
survivors. Good-aligned PCs should
have moral qualms about leaving the
survivors to fend for themsel ves.
The wreck site is 30 miles eas t of
Kelvin in the middle of the great
unnam'ed moor. There is only one obvi-
ous route back to Kelvin: due west
aC1'088 t he moor. This route takes a
minimum of eight days (moving at
roughly four miles a day) as the group
is slowed down by the few surviving
gnomish crewmen as well as the young
and elderly who are not used to or
healthy enough, for prolonged march-
es. The riverbank cannot be followed
with any safety due to the numerous
sinkholes, bogs, and quicksand pits in
the area within a mile of the rive r. If
the PCs aren't aware of t his, one of t he
survivors can tell them of these haz-
ards. OMs should be prepared to
improvise any other routes the PCs
wish to follow.
A major difficulty the PCa face is get-
ting lost. The OM should make a secret
check once per day to see if the PCs
become lost . The base chance for this is
50% due to the featureleeenese of the
moot'. This chance is modified by -51lo if
one of the PCs has the direction sense
nonweapon proficiency. If there is a PC
who can levitate or ny, the group gets a
10% bonus for being able to spy distant
landmarks and mark their positi on.
Chances are good that the PCs will
become lost, so the OM should be pre-
pared to calculate how much longer the
trek will be prolonged by such an error.
Enough food and provisions wash
ashore from the wreck to feed the
entire group of survivors and the PCs
for five days, if rationed. PCs with the
hunti ng proficiency should be allowed
to spe nd a good portion of each day try-
ing to supplement the rati ons. Each day
without food lowers Strength,
Constitution, and Dexterity by 1 point,
to a mi nimum value of 3.
Starting on the second night, the
group of survivors is followed by a
werewolf. He stays far behind the
group, catching up to them each night,
attempti ng to sneak into the camp to
kill and drag away one of t he small sur-
vivors (preferably a gnome or child). He
continues th is attempt once each night
until he is seriously wounded or kill ed,
or unti l the grou p is within t wo days of
Kelvin. Thi s pred ator may prove very
difficult to thwart, depending on what
gear the PCs lost in the wreck.
Wer ewolf: INT 9; AL CE; AC 6; MY
15; HO 4+3, hp 24; THACO 15; _AT 1;
Dmg 2-8; SA surprise; SO +1 or silver
weapon to hit; MR nil; SZ M; ML 12; XP
420; MMI240. The werewolf has been
roaming the moors for several years
since his fannstead was overrun by
were wolves. In human form he is a
surly, rugged Traldar hunts man named
Pytor with no notable possessions.
On the sixth day, when the group has
probably run out of food and stomachs
are rumbling, they encounter a giant
badger. This huge, furry fellow is one of
the many oddities who wander the vast
moor. If killed and properly dressed, he
can provide enough meat to feed the
entire group for two more days.
THE WRECK OF THE CRIMPSHRINE
Giant Badger: INT non; AL N; AC
4; MY 12, Burrow 6; HO 6+6, hp 45;
THACO14; _AT 3; Dmg 1--611-612- 12;
MR nil; SZ L (12' long); ML 9; XP 420;
MM1241 (modified).
If these encounters aren't challenging
enough, the PCs could run into a small
band of Iron Ring Slavers who have
secret camp in the middle of the moor.
Alternatively, if the PCs are too weak,
the DM may wish to have one of the
survivors be an NPC adventurer who
was meeting up with some companions
in Seragrad. If the PCs are totally 100t
and starving, they should be "reeeaed"
by Cemmendur, a patrolling ranger who
will lead them back to Kelvin and feed
them from his food caches (after all , it
isn't vel')' heroic to die in the middle of
a moor, wandering around in circles).
Kelvi n
When the PCs and survivors reach the
safety of Kelvin, the PCs are hailed as
heroes by the townspeople (less so if
they were led to the gate by a helpful
ranger ). The Church of Traladara offers
to shelter and feed the survivors.
That evening, as they are relaxing in
front of a wann fireplace, The PCs are
approached by one of the survivors, an
elderly Traldar woman named Fiona
who lives in Kelvin. She says t hat she
is a sorceress whose traveling spell-
books were locked in a warded trunk
t hat went down in the wreck of the
Crimpshrine. She offers the PCs a
reward of 500 gold royals for recover-
ing her trunk from the depths, and
offers to outfit then with poti ons of
water breathing to facilitate this (a old
friend of hers who is an alchemist lives
in Kelvin). She is too wea k to travel or
lead a recovery effort herself, as she is
still sufferi ng after her familiar
drowned in th e wreck.
Regardless of the PCs' repl y to her,
Fiona spreads rumors among the other
survivors that the PCs are going back to
salvage ite ms from the wreck. The next
day the PCs are besieged by survivors of
the wreck who beg them to retrieve per-
sonal items from the wreck and to
search for signs of their loved ones. Clan
Fiddleswithsticks joins in, offering to
pay the PCs 250 gold royals to survey
the wreck and ascertain what might
have caused the accident With all these
entreaties and incentives, the PCs
should feel compelled to return (cau-
tious OMs will have made sure that one
DUNGEON 61
THE WRECK OF THE CRIMPSHRINE
of the PCs lost a prized po8lle88ion in
the wreck). Fiona sti ll otTers them the
potions, and, if the PCs have no means
of producing magical light , she also otTer
to lend each of them a one-inch diame-
ter silver ball that h8ll been enchanted
with a continual light spell.
Kelvin is a relatively large city (pop-
ulation 20,000), and the PCs should be
able to find any equipment they desire
at reasonable prices (including more
magical potions at the DM's discretion).
Fi ona: AL NG; AC 10; MY 12; M6;
hp 17;THACO19; . AT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; S 8, D II, C 11, I 15, W
13, Cb 12; ML 12; Spells : currently
none; N\\'P: pottery 11, readlwri te
Thyatisn IS, readlwrite Traldar 15,
religion (Traldar ) 13, spellcraft 15.
Fiona suffered a great shock and
etrese when her familia r drowned in
the wreck, 118a result she currently has
no spells memorized. She won't be able
to memorize any until she can get her
traveling spellbooks back or returns to
her home in Mirros where her master
epellbooks are.
The J ourney Back
The trip back to the site of the wreck
should take considerably less time, as
the PCs aren't slowed by t he survivors.
The OM may wish to place several
encounters for the PCs 8S they cross
the moor, which is well known as a
home to strange and terri ble creatures.
Predators who might have steered
clear of the large group of survivors
might be more willing to test a small
group, such as the PCs. If the PCs
killed the werewolf who stalked them
earlier, his pack, having found his
remains, may wish to take revenge on
the next group of humans who come
through. The moor is a strange area,
and encounter possibilities are only
limited to t he OM's imagination.
It may be that the PCs wish to hi re
a sailboat to return to the wreck site,
in which case they can hire Grygor the
Boatman to ferry them to site and
bri ng t hem back. This journey will take
ten days there and seven back, coating
five gold royals per day (it is a haz-
ardous journey for small craft ). There
is a 15%each day of the journey of
linding a corpse from the wreck.
Priests who recover bodies and see
the m buried wit h an appropriate
prayer should receive 150 XP per body.
Good or lawful PCs (except for thieves)
62 Issue No. 59
who loot the dead should be penali zed
250 XP per body.
Whichever route the PCa ta ke, they
will be followed by Kristos, an age nt of
the Kelvin Thieves Guild . Unless the
PCa stop and actively search for some-
one following them, they do not spot
him (whichever route they use). If the
PCs do spot him and atte mpt to capt ure
him, he claims to be the nephew of one
of the wreck victims on his way to
recover his uncle's silver medallion, a
famil y hei rloom. If the PCs search him
he claims that anythi ng they find (like
his poison) is to protect himself against
the foul denizens of the moor. Generally,
he tries to bluff his way out of whatever
the Pes accuse him of. He has been
instructed by his superiors to follow the
PCs to the site and pilfer t he mOllt valu-
able object8 they recover, He starts a
day's journey behind the PCs and
begins spying on their activities a day
after they arri ve at the wreck site. He
waits and watches as the Pell go under-
water once and return. If it looks like
they've recovered some valuables, he
wai ts for t hem to descend again before
sneaking into their camp and rifli ng
through everything. If the PCllleave a
guard or two, he tri es to ambus h them
using his light crossbow and poisoned
bolts. If that fail s he likely must fight
them, although he'd prefer not to. His
instructions are to remain until he's
gathered at least 500 gold royal s worth
of treasure before leaving. How long he
stays depends on what the PCs bring
up from below and leave at camp. If
captured, Kristos reveals nothing about
hi s guild and goes peacefully to Kelvin
to face justice (he knows he11be bribed
out of jail within a few mont hs).
Kristos: AL NE; AC 6; MV 12; T6; hp
27; THACO 18; t#AT 1; Dmg by weapon
type ; SA backstab; SO Hide In
Shadows; S 9, DIS, C 12, 1 14, W 11, Ch
13; ML 12; PP 55%, OL 25%, FIRT 35%,
MS 70%, HiS 70%, DN 15%, CW 60%,
RL 0%; studded. leather armor, light
crossbow, short sword +1. NWP: alert-
ness II, appraising 14, boating 12, rid-
ing (land) 11, tattooing 15, tracking 9.
In addition to the above, Kristos has
been outfitted with a bag of holding, a
fWsk ofessence of darkness, and five
doses of contact poison that instantly
causes sleep unless a eucceeeful save
vs. poison is made.
The terrain around the crash site is
fairly level and covered in heath, with
trees being few and far between. The
damp soil descends slightly as it nears
the river, wher eupon it gets quite
muddy. The riverbanks are covered in
reeds, driftwood, frogs, and debris from
the wreck.
The r i m p h r i ~
The Crimpshrine is a three-decked
riverboat powered by a jugge rna ut
(MMII 71) in its hold. The construct
rotates endlessly around a small,
banked track whi le attached to a mas-
sive steel harness, The juggernaut's
motion provides power to the elaborate
system of gears and pulleys that rotate
the giant paddl es mounted on the sides.,
propelling the boat through the water.
The gears and paddl es. as well as the
boat's desi gn, are all of gnomish origin,
while the notion of using a magical con-
st ruct to provide the power was the
School of Magecraft's contribution. The
design of t he CrimpshrineiJ propulsion
is a secret closely guarded by a select
few Clan Fiddl eswithst icks members
and high-ranking wizards in the School
of Magecraft. The blueprints are in a
very stout safe in the Clan'll headquar-
ters in Highforge. As one might suspect.
however, such an ambitious design is
inherently dangerous.
The Crimpetuine runs from dawn to
dusk (usually around 13-15 hours per
day) at a rate of 3 mph. (plus or minus
current, which is generally Ya mph on
the rivers of the Kingdom). In the
ear ly eveni ng hours, the anchor is
dropped. Then the gearworks and
machinery in the engine room are
inspected for damage, and any neces-
sary repairs are made.
Captain Proboscis Prominentus
(a.k.a. Big Nose) is a middle-aged
gnome who was one of the principal
designers of the Crimpshrine. He
rarely mingles with the passengers,
preferring to stand watch in the wheel-
house to keep an eye on things. He is
somewhat in awe of his creation and
can someti mes hardly believe hi s for-
tune at being able to rule the rivers. In
public and on duty he dresses in a
cris p white cotton uniform, with the
Clan Fiddleswithsticks devi ce embroi-
dered in gold thread. He is rarely with-
out a corncob pipe overflowing wit h
Five Shires tobacco clenched between
his tee th. His crew consi sts of 10
gnomis h crewmen, along with his offi-
cers, First Mate Dribblears, Purser
Gastronom, and Steward Pepe.
The areas of the CrimpshriM are
described 88 they appear both before
and after the wreck. Before the wreck,
the riverboat is in generally excellent
repair, with polished wood, gleaming
brass fitti ngs and trim, and imported
glass windows everywhere. Text in gray
boxes descri bes the ship after the
wreck. Note that the areas below decks
are always totally unlit , as only the
gnome crewmen are supposed. to be
down there.
There is always one merrow (hp 28)
patrolling the waters around the
sunken boat. Unless the PCs have
some way of approaching wit hout
using light, he spots the m 85%of the
time and swims up to area L to warn
the rest of the tribe. If he can warn the
tribe, the merrow from areas B. C, and
G swim out within 1d4 rounds to
engage the PCs. The merrow in area L
join those in area J and wait one tum.
Uno merrow have returned to report
victory, the chief leads the tribe out of
area J to search the area.
A. *Engi ne" room. The doors leading
into this area are always locked with
twosuperior locka; each one is -40% to
pies. This massive area is crammed full
ofmachinery that is beyond the compre-
hension of the PCa. (PCs with the engi -
neering non-weapon proficiency who
study the machinery for one week can
attempt a proficiency check to under -
stand the basi cs of how it works ). Gears,
levers, pulleys, and all manner of con-
trapti ons make the room impenet ra ble
to larger than a gnome (gnome,
halflmg, and dwarf PCs under 200 lbs.
can manage to move around). There are
always two crewmen on duty in here
while the ship is moving.
This roomis a mess of broken machin-
ery that would take a great deal of
time to clear before the PCs could
move through it. However, if the PCs
approach this part of the CrimpshriM
fromthe exterior, they see a large hole
in the side and ean see the path
caused by the juggernaut smashing
through the gearworks. If they follow
this path, they can find a log jammed
through the bottom of the hold, jutting
through the juggernaut'a track. The
juggernaut has lodged itself in the
riverbank some 40 yards away from
the sunken Crimpshrine.. It is undam-
aged by the wreck, and it continues to
spin futilely in the mud .
Notable NPC Passengers
Lucretius of Inirros is a well-known
gambler whose presence dominates the
gaming tables of the Crimpshrine. As
far as Captain Prominent us is con-
cerned, he is free to run the gami ng
hall, as long as the gnomes get their
cut. He is conversant with all the
known games of chance of the area. His
particular favorite is the Glantrian
game of spottle (see "At the Spottle
Parlor,"DUNGEON Adventures 1H2 for
rul;s),.which has been gaining in pcpu-
lanty m recent years. He ean arrange
for any game the PCs wish to ind ulge in
and can round up prospective players
for eve n the most high-stakes games.
He will not allow any kin d of game
which involves inju ry to man or beast,
alt hough arm wrestling is tolerated.
Lucretius: AL NG; AC 8; MY 12; 0-
level; hp 7; THACO20; 'AT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; 1 17, W 13, Ch 15; ML 13;
ring of protection +2, hand crossbow
in boot . NWP: appraising 17:
gammg 19.
Marsallus Atbenos is the alias of an
earnest, well-dressed young man of
:rhyatian origin. He has found t hat the
rich who typically buy paaaage on the
Crimpshrine often make good marks for
his various cons. Depending on how
prosperous the Pes look, he may try to
.or more of them into investing
m a mmmg venture in the Cruth moun-
tains, cropland development in the
of Lul n, or in a timber operation
m the Dymr ak Forest. He carries a
wide array of imp ressive looking (and
fake) documents and contra cts. He will
not t ry immediatel y to wheedle any
gold out of his ma r ks, preferri ng to
schedule meetings with them in the
larger cities, where he ean properly
divest them of their royal s.
B, Cargo bold. This is where all
commercial cargo and mounts are held
during the journey. A large hatch
allows access to the deck , and a gear-
and-pulley elevator facilitates the load-
ing and unloading of cargo. It is cur-
rently filled with 23 hones and 17
mules, most of which are tagged for
sa le in Seragrad. Other eargo includes :
20 easks of ale (each worth 20 royals,
or gp ), 18 crates of Volori red wine (150
gp each) , two crates of Shire tobacco
(500 gp each). four bolts of fine doth
THE WRECK OFTHE CRIMPSHRINE
Marsallua: AL NE; AC 8' MV 12 83
hp 15; THACO 19; .AT 1; Thng by' ,
weapon type; S 9, 0 14, C 8, I 16, W II ,
Ch 17; 1.0; Spells: jump, wall of fog;
NWP: disguise 18, forgery 18, infcrma-
tion gatheri ng 17. If the
Bard's Handbook is used, Marsallus is a
with all the related special
abilities.
Yuri the Magnificent is an entertainer
whom the eaptain allows to perform on
the decks of the Crimpshrine in
for a portion of his earnings.
He ISa youthful-looking Tral dar man
who dresses in colorful , embroidered
TJ:aIdar vests and hats , and baggy pants .
HIS performances tend to feature tum-
bling, as well as Tr aldar dancing, sign-
mg, and storytelling. In inclement
weather, he stays inside and dons the
costume of a gypsy fortune teller
Yurl: AL CG; AC 6; MY 12; o-ieveI; hp
8; THACO20; tAT 1; Orng by weapon
type;S 13,.D 16, C 13,1 8, W 9,Ch 11;
ML 12; kmfe. NWP: dancing 16 fortune
telling II , singi ng II, 13,
tumbling 16.
Ol eaginous Mi chelangelo ta. k.a.
Fat Mike) is the earnest gnomish bar-
keeper who keeps the mugs of the pas-
sengers well stocked. The large gnome
the long bar all day
servmg drinks. He usually is too busy
to and swap rumors, except very
early IR the evening. His prices tend to
be considerably higher than dry lan d
taverns, but th ere are no other options
for 30 passengers . In addi ti on to alco-
hol, he is ,:",ell -sto<:ked in root beer, gin-
milk, and grape juice.
Mic helangelo: AL LG AC 9 MV6'
o-Ievel; hp 5; THACO20; itAT 1; Dmg by
weapon type; S 10,0 14, C 10, I 9, W 9,
Ch 11; ML 11; cutlass under bar.
(175 gp each). two crates of arms and
armor (400 gp each), 10 crates of fresh
fruits and vegetables (25 gp each), one
ease of fine leather goods ( 600 gp), and
other.mundane eargo of the
choosing. To the aft t here is an
unlocked tool and supply closet
crammed full of gears, s prings, and
other equi pme nt needed to make
repairs. The doors to the crewmen's
are usually kept unlocked,
while the doors to t he engine room are
al ways kept locked (see area A ).
DUNGEON 63
THE WRECK OFTHE CRIMPSHRINE
neglected to put in windows of any
The close quarters and the smoky
011 lamps make the rooms quite stuffy,
regardless of the season. Also, the
rooms are too small for most non-
gnomes. Each room contains a bed, a
foots tool, and a stout foot locker. The
doors have poor quality locks (+15% to
Open Locks ). The purser and ste ward
each have master keys t hat unl ock any
footlocker or door on the ship. The room
marked with an X contains Fiona's
waterproofed t runk, whi ch is locked
with an excellent lock (-20% to Open
Locks) and t rapped with a needle coat-
ed with Type D poison.
If the PCs open the chest and search
through Fiona's belongings, they find a
sma ll sa mpling of spell components
(vials of sulfur, mercury, sa nd, feathers,
dead spiders , etc.) and the spellbook..
Unfort uns tely, if the PCs open the
spellbook, it vanishes in a puff of smoke
that obscures vision in a 5' radius but
causes no damage. The book has been
ins tantly klepomd to Fiona's borne in
Mirroa (by means of a contingency spell
cast by a powerful wizard friend of
Fiona). Obviousl y, if the chest is opened
underwater, the spellbook is ruined.
This room bas been ransacked and
cleared out . The crewmen's personal
t reasure has been added to the tribe's
hoard in area 1.. There is a lone mer-
row (hp 26) in here trying to fash ion
the hammocks into nets . He atte mpts
to trap t he first three PCs with th e
three nets he has fini shed, then
at tac ks the remai ning PCs.
D. L UIUry s taterooms. These two
rooms look out over t he aft of the
Crimpshri ne. The four-poster doubl e
beds and furnishings are to human
scale and are quite comfortable com-
pared to the regula r rooms.
The wind ows to these rooms have
been smashed by th e merrow. The
rooms have been ransacked and all
furni shings destroyed. A small purse
containing 16 Thyatian emperors (pp)
lies overlooked amidst the mess . A
silver-and-j ade cameo worth 100 gp is
also among the debri s.
E. Regular rooms. The gnomi sh
designers forgot that the large races
don't enjoy being cooped up, 80 they
designed everything facing inward and
. j .. j ,j ..j ... , j,.j...
t j tf +f++: ,
.. .
-:'11'' '-'r:rU
"l!!II"''''
. t ' ! ':
_ I ;. I ..
:
-l-t-t-i-!:.... t.

One square - 5 fed
The merrow have ransacked t he
cargo hold. The ale, wine, clot h,
leather, tobacco, and foodstuffs are all
dissipated or destroye d. The merrow
have been feasting on t he t rapped
hor ses, and bit s and pieces of rotting
horseflesh float gruesomely through
t he hold along wit h pieces of clot h
and leather.
There are three merrow (hp 27, 28,
29) in th e cargo hold wre stling over a
particul arly succulent piece of meat ,
they have a 4in-10 chance of being
surpri sed by the PCs (unless previ-
ously alerted). The fir st Merrow
woun ded below hal f his hit points
tries to swim out to ar ea I or L to
warn the chief or pri est. If that route
isn't open , he tries to make his way to
area C to summon rei nforcements.
.. SP!:- - Forward
C. Crew q uarters. Thi s common
room is strung willy-nilly with ham-
mocks. There are a few small personal
footlockers and tables strewn about. At
any given ti me, four off-duty gnome
crewmen are in here playing cards, eat-
ing, or slee ping.
64 Issue No. 59
Three-quarters of the rooms have
been left alone. ot her than havi ng t he
doors smas hed in. The merrow found
these rooms too sma ll to search eas ily.
Any gear the PCs left behind rema ins
where they left it . In the untouched
rooms, the footlockers remai n mostl y
unopened. If searched, each room
yields 1-1 0 royals and 5-50 crown s
(Bp ). In addition, each room has a 15%
of having some minor piece of je welry
(worth no more t han 35 gp).
F. Heads. These tiny privies are
washed out four times a day. They dis-
charge into the river through small
ehutee.
G. Trencherman's HaIl. Thi ll large
room is named after the Ye88el"s cook,
Horatio Trencherman, who considers it
his pereenal fief. He becomes extremely
angry at any disturbances in the dining
ball, charging out of the kitchen with a
heavy rolling pin. demandi ng to know
who is shewing such disrespect for his
cooking. Breakfast, lunch. and dinner
are all included in the fare .
This room is a mesa of noating furni-
ture, too large to drift out of the doors.
Broken diahware and discarded table-
ware litter the floor; One merrow (hp
3 1) searches the floor for valuables.
Unless the PCs are using no light and
remain totally silent, he cannot be
surprised and tries to swim behind
the PCs to attack.
H. Galley. The gall ey is rul ed by the
cook (see area G) who chases anyone
out who does not belong. In addition to
the sta ndard fare, the kitchen serves
small, simple meals to those who prefer
to eat in the Floating Anchor.
The galley has been completely looted .
All foodstuffs have either been eaten
or ruined by the merrow. Most of the
cooking gear still lies on the floor,
except the knives. which have been
salvaged by the marrow,
L Foredeck. Passengen are free to
roamaround on the decks as they like.
The decks are kept freeof ~ tools
and gear. The hatches to the cargo hold
are kept secure during the trip. Here is a
small, unlocked. brass-fitted trapdoor
that leads to the crew quarters.
----- .
,
)
I;.
ii
,
.'.
J . The Floating Anchor, This large
space looks out over the aft of the
Crimpshrine . Tabl es line t he windows as
many passengers like to sit and drink.
watching the countrys ide drift by. In
addition to drinking. a great deal of
gambling takes place here. Michelangelo
works the bar 16 hours a day. as t wo
servers scuttle between the various
tables, keeping tankards full . Lucretius
oversees the gaming tables. which run
from noon to 2:00 A.M. Marsall us is
often in here trolling for marks.
This area has been cleared of furni-
ture and most of the windows have
been smashed. The merrow have
stashed their sacks of treasure under
a large mass of kelp they ha ve piled
behind the bar. It totals 1,653 sil ver
pieces (mostl y crone, hut also some
Thyatian eeteriue and Darokinian
tendrid), 1.217 gold pieces (mostly
royals, hut Iucina and traders as
well) , two elegant gold candlesticks
studded with star rose quartz (worth
250 gold royals each), an elegant
engraved waterproof scroll case con-
taining old Traldar religious writings
(worth 300 royals to the Church of
Traladara) and any other documents
the OM wishes to use as hooks for
future adventures. The hook could
THE WRECK OFTHE CRIMPSHRINE

bea treasure map ( Bee "Ttie Moor

Tomb Map in D UNGEONAdventures
t13) or a j oum al leading to a magical
~ W r d (see MHrothgar's Resting Place"
tn Issue *25 ). The merrow chief (hp
46) is here with four attending mer-
row Ihp 27, 32, 34, 34). They attack
the PCs on sight and do not make any
morale checks until the chief is slain.
The Merrow in area L arrive in two
rounds once fighting breaks out.
K. Padd le wheels. These wheel s,
powered by the juggernaut, are what
propels the Crimpshrine through the
water. They have been covered with
wood sidi ng to prevent any curious or
careless passengers from getti ng
ma ngled in them.
The two large wheels nave been oevu-
tated by the wreck. ABthe riverboat
hit the bottom, one was wrenched com-
pletely off its axle and now lies off to
the side while the other has bent back
into the shi p 88 it rests on a boulder.
Note: The doors leading to the wheel-
house and officer quarters are al waYI
locked.
DUNGEON 65
THE WRECK OF THE CRIMPSHRINE
Upper Deck
One tqUUII - 5 reel
The merrcw have broken tHe locM on
these doors .
1.. Wheelhouse. This area houses
the controls used by the captain to reg-
ulate the j uggernaut's efforts and to
steer the boat. Various maps and
charta of the ri verways of Karameikos
line the wall s.
:rhe merrow priest nas installed tlie
tri be's crude stone idol of Panzuriel
on the platform where the captai n
used to stand. The wheel has been
torn off by t he merrow, who believe it
to be some type of idol. The merrow
priest (hp 33) is her e with an atten-
dant merrow (hp 25), going through
some minor rituals. If the PCs are
stealthy (i.e. no light or sound) , the
merrow can be surprised; otherwise
they swim through t he windows,
br eaking them (and getting cut for
2d4 damage) and make for area J to
gather rei nforcements. The maps and
charta are ruined and illegible.
M. Officer's Quarters. These r ~ s
are the private quarters for the captain,
purser, and stewar d. They are qui te
small for human standards, and the
doors are only four feet high. The rooms
are comfortably appointed with rugs,
and furniture.
~ s rooms liave also been ransacked
for valuables, and several beds of kelp
are scattered about.
66 Issue No. 59
lUi Ii eo- Forward
Salvage Operations
The potions of waur breathing that the
PCs have been equipped wit h each con-
tain three doses and allow the PC to
oper ate underwater for at lea st one
hour plus 1- 10 rounds per dose. PCs
with the swimming nonweapon profi-
ciency may swim as per the rules, non-
swimmers will have to sink and walk
along the riverbed. All non-swimming
moveme nt is halved as per the slow
spell due to the resi stance of the water.
Whil e descending may be very easy,
ascending will be difficult if t he PCs are
trying to carry items. If thei r moveme nt
r ate would be reduced as per Tabl e 48
of the PHB, th ey cannot simply float to
the top. Unless ropes or some other
apparatus is used, the PC will have to
leave enough weight behind so that
they are unencumbered. Accurate ti me
keeping is ess ent ial due to th e limited
dur ati on of the potions. Remember to
give t he PCs only imprecise es timates
of how long they've been underwate r
since they won't have any method for
keeping time.
The deep, dark waters make nonnal
vis ion impossi ble at the bottom. In
addition to the murky waters, the PCs
will be di sturbing the sil t that has set -
tled in and around the wr eck, creating
clouds of silt which further limit vision.
The enchanted silver balls Fiona
offered the PCs will ill umi nate a 15'
radius, any enchantments the PCs pro-
duce will only light half the area t hey
normally do. Light sources are visible
up to three times from the distance
they illuminate, making surprise diffi -
cult to achieve (e.g. a PC holding an
enchanted silver ball can see 15' , but
his light can be seen by a merrow 45'
awa y). Infravisi on is also limited to
half its normal effectiveness. There will
be many odd shadows and dark forms
created by the unusual interaction of
light, water, silt and the wreckage, the
DM should make ample use of th e lack
of vision to make the wreck eerie and
disturbing. Obviously normal mapping
will not be possi ble for t he PCs, and it
is possible that t hey may get confused
and t urned around in the darkness.
Clever PCs will trail a lengthy rope in
order to be able to quickly trace their
way out ofthe wreck.
Sound carries abou t four times far-
ther underwater t han in open air. Any
talk among the PCs carries much far-
ther than they intend. Simply walking
around the wreck causes noises that an
be heard throughout the area , although
they may not necessaril y be pin-point-
ed. If the PCs talk within 50' of the
wreck, the merrow are alerted and stop
whatever t hey are doing to listen and
prepare for intruders. Thus the descrip-
ti ons of th e various areas on the wreck
given in the sidebar may be different
depending on the PCs stealt h.
All PCs suffer a +4 penal ty to initia-
tive and a -4 attack penalty when
engaged in underwater melee. Only
piercing weapons are effective in under-
water combat, weapons that inflict
slashing or bludgeoning are useless in
underwater combat. If the PCs don't
already know this, the DM should have
an NPC mention it in passing before ,
they leave Kelvin. The lack of visibility
makes the PCs particularly vulnerable
to the merrows' charge attack.
Merrow (13): INT 9; AL CE; AC 4;
MY 6, Swim 12; HD 4+4, THACO16 ;
#AT 3; Dmg 0-510--510-7 ; SA surprise,
swimming charge; SD camouflage; MR
nil ; SZ L; ML 11; XP 420; MM1272.
Grak-Ch u, Merrow Priest of
Panzuriel: As normal merrow, but also
has the following spell s on hand: cause
fear, cause serious wounds, da rkness;
hold person, spiritual spear (as per spir-
itual hammer, only substitute spear).
ML 13; XP 650; MM1272.
Truk.Pa. Merrow Chief: As normal
merrow, only HD 6+6; ML 13; XP 975;
MMI272.
This tribe of merrow has been
attracted by the corpses floating down
another salvage attempt. If the PCa
discovered a treasure map or a myste-
rious journal (see page 62) or received
the cryptic message (as suggested on
page 64), a future adventure is already
in the works! n
river. They have been busy feasting and
searching the wreck for shiny treasure
for their grumpy chief who has
declared the Crimpshrine thei r new
home. He is feeling somewhat surly, as
the tribal priest has claimed the most
interesting area (L) to house the shri ne
to Paneuriel (see page 90 of Monster
MytJwlogy). Naturally the Merrow will
not take kindly to any interlopers who
try and invade their newfound home
and will fight to the death until the
chief and priest are kill ed. Once the
chief and priest are kill ed, the merrow
must make mora le checks or they flee.
The merr ow have overeaten in t he last
several days and are r ather lethargic;
thus, they all suffer a - 1 to their
THACO and damage (this is reflected in
the statistics above). In seve ral days,
three of the warriors will swim down
river 10 miles to gather up all the
females and children and bring th em to
their new lair.
Concluding the Adventure
Obviously if the PCs are aueceasful in
their salvage, they will have made a
number of friends. In addition to the
survivors, the gnomes of Clan
Fiddleswithsticb and the School of
Magecraft: will be very pleased with the
PCs for their help in surveying the
THE WRECK OFTHE CRIMPSHRI NE
wreck, They may wish to hire the PCs
in the future to clean up after ot her
disasters of their making.
If they've recovered her chest, Fiona
may be amenable to teaching a PC wiz-
ard a spell or two. However, if they've
opened her chest and her spellbook has
telepcrted away, she refuses to pay ,.c.. fi""'/
and treats them with great _ "
picicn. -'-/( '
Depending on what happe ned .' , .
with Kri stos, the PCs might be on J, ' ;;:;
the blackli st of the Kelvin Thi eves IiF"v .
Guild. Alternati vely, if Kri stos is ... , I .
t
.:
successful, the PCs may wish to . ...;;;
investigate the mat ter and take on
thieves gui ld, which would be the start
of a long campaign of intrigue.
If the PCa had to be rescued by the
ranger Cemmendu r on their way to
Kelvin, he may call upon them in the
future to aid him in some task.
Despite the wreck, the gnomes will
not bedeterred. Wit hi n a year they
launch a second riverboat, TM LooJroat
(featuri ng a reinforced hull), for which
the PCs receive lifetime free passes if
they are still in the area and proved
helpful. If the PCa are initially unsuc-
cessful. the OM may wish to have the
Clan Fiddleswithstick.s gnomes sum-
mon Clanbrother Kilinin with his div-
ing bell (see "Whitelake Mine- in
DUNGEON Adventures _18) to aid in

November 1981
Dragon
The CREATURE of RHYL
A Basic D&D adventure by Kevin Knuth
Background for players
The country of Rhyl has been beset
nearly every night for many years by a
large, terrible creature that flies out from
the mountains near the city of Asereht.
The creature soars over farmland, pick-
ing up livestock or an occasional unfor-
tunate farmer and carrying the victim
back into the mountains. After the crea-
ture appears, the early-morning air in
Asereht is unusually cold and misty.
Nearly a year ago the creature broke
through the wall of King Namrehs castle
and carried off the kings son, Prince
Laechim, along with a large amount of
the royal treasure. Since that incident,
which did not seem like the act of an
unthinking creature interested only in
food, King Namreh has suspected that
the creature is somehow under the influ-
ence of the mad magician Astylis, who is
believed to reside in the mountains in a
vast complex at least two days away on
foot from Asereht.
After the creatures raid on the castle,
King Namreh ordered his army to search
the mountains and discover Astylis com-
plex. The soldiers made two forays into
the mountain wilderness, but each time
were harassed and eventually driven
back by goblin raiders. Since the failure
of the second assault, the king has taken
to commissioning small parties of mer-
cenaries and adventurers, sending them
into the mountains with promises of
great reward upon the completion of the
rescue mission, and hoping that a small
body of searchers will be less likely to
attract the goblins attention along the
way.
For reasons which the king has never
found out, none of these rescue parties
has ever returned to Asereht. Your party
is now attempting to be the first.
The trek through the wilderness has
been, amazingly enough, uneventful. No
goblins, and little else of note except for
some harmless wildlife. Some members
37
of the party are beginning to wonder
what did cause the other missions to fail
if it wasnt the goblins and the wilder-
ness. Finding Astylis residence was a
simple matter; the skeletons and pos-
sessions of some of those who had gone
before were littered through the moun-
tain passes like a trail. And Astylis, if he
was inside, was making no attempt to
discourage intruders. The entry to the
complex, as well as the stairway leading
up to it, is found to be free of traps and
unlocked.
Your mission, as prescribed by the
king, is to go to Astylis complex (so far,
so good), rescue Prince Laechim plus
the royal sceptre and crown and the Rod
of Cancellation and Medallion of ESP
that were also taken, and kill the fear-
some creature that seems to be under
the wizards control. After taking one last
look around at the outside and hoping
you will see it again soon you turn
toward the entrance and step inside.
Dragon Vol. VI, No. 5
The CREATURE of RHYL
Notes for the Dungeon Master
This adventure, designed for use with
the D&D Basic Set rules, can be played
by as few as two or three characters or as
many as half a dozen. Some of the res-
cuers can be first-level characters, but a
strong party would probably include at
least one third-level spell-caster or a pair
of non-spell-casters (fighter types) of at
least second level.
The structure of this module provides
an opportunity for the Dungeon Master
to embellish the environment with more
detailed descriptions of empty areas,
and perhaps introduce a few new chal-
lenges for a formidable party. (For in-
stance, the trip through the mountains
doesnt have to be uneventful....) In some
places, it may actually be necessary for
the DM to fill in particulars at the players
request. For this reason, anyone intend-
ing to DM this adventure for a party of
player characters should read the text
thoroughly to develop a feel for the
places where imagination and ingenuity
might be needed.
Standard dungeon features
All doors in this complex are eight feet
in height, four feet wide, and one foot
thick. All doors are made of oak. All walls
are two feet thick unless otherwise indi-
cated on the map. The corridor ceilings
are 10 feet high.
Wandering monsters
In the upper level, roll for wandering
monsters every three turns. An encoun-
ter occurs on a 1 in 12. Then roll d4,
treating a roll of 1-2 as 1 and 3-4 as 2:
1) 1-3 goblins (HD:1-1; #AT:1;
D:1-6; AC:6; SA:None).
2) 1-3 giant rats (HP:1-4; #AT:1;
D:1-3; AC:7; SA:Anyone bit has a
5% chance of contracting a serious
disease).
In the lower level roll for wandering
monsters every two turns. An encounter
occurs on a 1 in 6. Then roll d4:
1) 1-7 goblins (HD:1-1; #AT:1;
D:1-6; AC:6; SA:None).
2) 1-5 giant rats (HP:1-4; #AT:1;
D:1-3; AC:7; SA:Anyone bit has a
5% chance of contracting a serious
disease).
3) 1 shrieker (HD:3; #AT:0; D:O;
AC:7; SA:Emits a piercing screech
which has a 50% chance of attract-
ing other wandering monsters).
4) 1-3 giant ants (HD:2; #AT:1;
D:1-6; AC:3; SA:None).
ASTYLIS COMPLEX
Upper level
Area A: Before you is a door. Painted
on the
circle.
floor in front of the door is a green
Area B: Ahead of you is a large fire pit.
You cannot see what is beyond it. (The
fire pit is an illusion and when anything
touches it, it will disappear.) Painted on
the floor is a red circle.
Area C: Painted on the
the wall is a blue circle.
floor in front of
Area D: You see a long corridor lead-
ing into the darkness. (The corridor is an
illusion. After the party advances 10 feet
east into the corridor, they will fall into a
pit. When they fall into the pit, the illu-
sion disappears and each member will
suffer 1-4 HP damage from the fall.)
Painted at the bottom of the pit is a large
yellow circle. The pit is 30 feet deep, 20
feet long and 10 feet wide.
1. Entry Hall: As you enter this room
you see a doorway in the center of the
north wall. To the right of the door is a
passageway that seems to angle off to-
ward the northeast. Lining the east and
west walls are sconces which hold the
remains of burnt-out torches. On the
east and west walls are hung shields
bearing the image of a dragon. Above
the doorway on the north wall is a pair of
crossed swords. Against the west wall is
a wooden bench.
2. Storage Room: This is a small room
containing four chairs, a bench and a
round table. On the table, covered with a
thick layer of dust, is a wooden box of
nails, a hammer, 30 feet of rope and a
lantern. Next to the table is a large box
filled with scrap wood.
3. Guest Room: Against the northwest
wall are two beds, their canopies yel-
lowed with age and laced with spider
webs. Next to each bed is a nightstand.
On one of the nightstands is a lantern
and an hourglass. There is nothing on
the other nightstand. Against the south-
west wall is an empty chest of drawers.
There are two doors on the southeast
wall.
4. Guest Room Closet: Except for a
shelf and some pegs in the wall, the
closet is empty.
5. Guest Room Closet: In this closet is
a chest which is empty, a shelf and some
pegs in the wall.
6. Privy: This room is empty. Along the
east wall is a trench which slopes from
either side toward the center. In the cen-
ter is a hole in the floor about one foot in
diameter.
7. Stairway: A stairway descends 30
feet into darkness. Lurking at the bottom
of the stairs are two goblins (HP:6,6;
#AT:1; D:1-6; AC:6; SA:One has a +1 war
hammer).
8. Guard Room: This is a small, irregu-
larly shaped room. There are beds a-
gainst the north and southwest walls,
each with a blanket, a mattress and a
pillow. There is a chest of drawers, which
is empty, located against the northeast
wall. There is a lantern on one a night-
stand next to the bed on the north wall.
There is a door on the south wall.
9. Guard Room Closet: In this closet
there is a shelf lying on the floor. There
are pegs in the wall, from which are hung
38
November 1981 Dragon
a blue robe and a leather pouch. (In the
leather pouch is a Giant Strength Potion.)
10. Guard Room: This is a small, irreg-
ularly shaped room. There are beds on
the north and southeast walls. Next to
one bed is a nightstand with an hour-
glass on it. (Concealed in the sand at the
bottom of the hourglass is a +1 Ring of
Protection.) In the middle of the room is
a large round table and four chairs.
There is a small chest of drawers against
the south wall, which contains trousers,
a cap, underclothing and a robe.
11. Guard Room Closet: In this closet
is an empty shelf and a suit of leather
armor hanging on a peg. On the floor is a
locked chest. (The chest contains a gold
medallion worth 50 gp, a gold ring worth
5 gp, and in a secret compartment
which must be searched for 5 plati-
num pieces.)
12. Guard Room: This is an irregularly
shaped room. Against the south wall is a
bed with a pillow, a blanket and a straw
mattress. Next to the bed is a nightstand.
Against the southeast wall is an empty
chest of drawers. On top of the chest of
drawers is a lantern and an hourglass. In
the middle of the room is a round table
with six chairs. (Under the mattress on
the bed is a +3 Sword vs. Dragons.)
13. Guard Room Closet: In this closet
is a single chest on the floor and a leather
pouch hanging on a peg. The pouch is
empty. (In the locked chest are two gold
medallions worth 50 gp each, a jewelled
armband worth 20 gp, and in a secret
compartment 20 platinum pieces.)
14. Guard Room: This is an irregularly
shaped room with beds on the northeast
and south walls. Each bed has a mattress
and a blanket. (Under the bed on the
floor along the south wall is a +1 Shield.)
15. Guard Room Closet: Besides an
empty shelf and some empty pegs in the
wall, the only thing of note in this closet
is a large locked wooden box on the
floor. It is also empty.
39
18. Diamond Room: This is an octago-
nal room, 30 feet from side to side. The
walls, ceiling and floor are constructed
of shining white marble. There are four
identical doors to the room, including
the one through which you entered. In
the center of the room, facing the way
you entered, is a gold-colored statue of a
human fighter holding a sword raised
above his head in his right hand. Its eyes
are of clear crystal and there is a bright
green light emanating from them.
Shortly after entering the room, you
notice that the green light in the eyes of
the statue fades and turns to red. A few
seconds later the red light fades and
turns to blue, then to yellow, then to
green and red and so on.
After the players enter this room, the
entire diamond-shaped section, which
includes Rooms 8 through 16, begins to
slowly rotate. As the section rotates, the
doorway at Area A rotates as well, con-
tacting in sequence corridor B, then C,
then D, then A again, and so on. The eyes
change color according to the corridor
the doorway is facing out onto, matching
the colors of the circles in each of those
corridors. The rotation will be noticeable
to the players, but since they are near the
center of the rotation, their ability to
move about will not be greatly ham-
pered. They will be unable to stop the
rotation, except by the method described
below, but it will not be harmful to them.
Note: The statue does not rotate.
The rotation will stop as soon as one of
the party members succeeds in opening
one of the four doors. (How to accomp-
lish this is described below.) The door-
way which started out being at the end of
corridor A will end up in front of one of
the four corridors, and the statues eyes
will glow with the color of the circle in
that corridor. The stopping point of the
doorway is determined randomly by rol-
ling d4: 1 is A; 2 is B; 3 is C; and 4 is D.
(Note: The only access to the diamond-
shaped section is the single doorway. If
the party reaches the lower level of the
complex by a means other than the ele-
vator in this room, the chamber below
will be empty and there will be no way of
causing the elevator to operate from the
lower level.)
If party members examine the statue
closely, they will notice a small groove-
like separation around its neck. The
statues head can be turned to face any
door in Room 16. (All doors in the room
are locked from the inside after the party
enters and cannot be opened by any
means unless the head of the statue is
turned to face the desired door. Howev-
er, any of the four doors to Room 16 can
be opened from the outside.)
A similar groove-like separation can
be seen around the statues right shoul-
der. The right arm of the statue can be
pulled downward by one character with
a strength of 17 or more, or by two char-
Dragon
Upper Level
Door
Secret door
Stairs up
Stairs down
Vol. VI, No. 5
40
November 1981
Dragon
41
Dragon Vol. VI, No. 5
acters with a combined strength of 25 or
more pulling together. Accomplishing
this action is the last step in the process
that turns Room 16 into an elevator
which goes down to the lower level of the
complex.
To begin the operation of the elevator,
the doorway of the diamond-shaped sec-
tion must be facing corridor B, and must
be held in that position by keeping the
door to Room 16 which points in that
direction open. (To accomplish this, play-
ers must stop the rotation at the right
time, open the proper door, and devise a
means of keeping that door open. The
passage will shut and lock if the door is
not secured in an open position. After
that preparation, pulling down the right
arm of the statue will cause the elevator
to descend. The arm will move down at
any other time when sufficient strength
is applied to it, but nothing else will
happen if the elevator has not been
activated.)
17. Menservants Quarters: Against the
south wall are two beds, each with a pil-
low, mattress and blanket. Next to each
bed is a nightstand. On one of the night-
stands is an hourglass, and on the other
is a lantern. In the middle of the room is a
large round table with four chairs. On the
table are two small leather pouches. In
one of the pouches is a gold ring worth 5
gp, and a small vial filled to the top with a
clear liquid. This is a Haste Potion. The
other pouch, which is empty, is a Bag of
Devouring.
18. Menservants Closet: On the wall is
a small shelf. Hanging on pegs on the
wall are three robes and a black cloak.
19. Maidservants Quarters: There are
two beds against the south wall and
another against the east wall. Each bed
has a blanket, a pillow and a straw mat-
tress. There is an empty chest of drawers
against the west wall. On top of the chest
of drawers is a comb, a silver mirror
worth 15 gp, and a lantern. Hidden under
the chest of drawers is a small wooden
chest (with a simple lock) containing two
gold earrings worth 5 gp, a necklace
worth 20 gp, and a bracelet worth 25 gp.
20. Maidservants Closet: On the east
wall of the closet is a shelf on which there
is a metal comb. Hanging on the south
wall on pegs are two coats and a robe.
21. Cooks Quarters: Against the east
wall are two beds. Each bed has only a
mattress. In the middle of the room is a
table and four chairs.
22. Cooks Closet: This room is empty.
23. Kitchen: In the southwest corner is
a firepit over which hangs a large iron
cauldron. Along the north wall is a long
table with a drawer. In the drawer are
spoons, forks, and knives. On top of the
table is a tray, a plate, some moldy food
and a butcher knife. Above the table are
cupboards which contain plates, bowls,
mugs and two trays. There is a lo-foot-
long table in the middle of the room. On
the table are some bones, dried bread
and an empty jar.
42
In the southeast corner of the room are
the remains of a goblin. Around its waist
is a wide leather belt with a small leather
pouch. In the pouch is a ring worth 5 gp.
24. Pantry: On the west wall is a shelf.
In the southeast corner of the room are
four sacks of flour.
25. Banquet Room: Against the north
wall is a throne. In the middle of the room
is a 40-foot-long table with 30 chairs.
26. Worshiping Room: Located against
the south wall on a stone pedestal is a
gold-colored statue of a demon god. In
front of the statue is a prayer rug. En-
graved in the walls are unholy symbols
and writings. Behind the prayer rug is a
kneeling bench. In the northwest corner
is a sacrificial altar. Hanging on the wall
above the altar is a golden, jeweled
dagger worth 100 gp. Against the east
wall is a table on which there is an in-
cense burner and a candelabra with 13
candles.
27. Astylis Storage Room: This is a
triangular room. Along the east wall is a
30-foot-long table. On the north wall is a
shelf. Below the shelf are three large
boxes. The first box is empty. In the se-
cond box are some candles, a tinderbox,
two flasks of oil, a torch, and some scrap
wood. In the third box is a crucible, a pair
of tongs, a ladle, a funnel, two bowls, an
empty flask, and a brazier. In the north-
west corner is a large iron cauldron. On
the table is a balance with weights, two
beakers, three empty scroll tubes, and a
November 1981
pair of tweezers. On the shelf is an empty
jar, a roll of wire, a measuring spoon, and
a humanoid skull.
28. Astylis Laboratory: There is a 40-
foot-long table against the west wall. In
the northwest corner of the room is a
large iron cauldron hanging from the
ceiling over a firepit which is 10 feet in
diameter. The pit contains a large amount
of ashes. There is a small shelf on the
east wall. Standing on a small pedestal in
the southeast corner is a large stuffed
griffon. Scattered about on the table are
an alembic, a small burner, some glass
tubing, a measuring spoon, a wooden
stirring rod and a waterclock. Next to the
burner is a candle stub and a mortar and
pestle.
A shelf on the east wall holds seven
bottles. One contains a clear liquid which
is pure ethyl alcohol. A slight taste of this
will intoxicate anyone with a constitu-
tion of 10 or less for 1-10 turns. Anyone
with a constitution of 11 or more will
have a 50% chance of intoxication for 1-6
turns. Anyone who drinks the entire con-
tents of the bottle will fall unconscious
and will have a base 50% chance of dying
from alcohol poisoning. The chance of
surviving increases by 5% for every point
of constitution above 10, but a character
who survives will still be incapacitated
for 5-10 turns.
Another of the bottles contains a thick,
red liquid (human blood). Another bottle
is filled with a clear, odorless liquid (wa-
ter). Another contains a yellow powder
(sulfur). The other three bottles on the
shelf are a Gaseous Potion and two Heal-
ing Potions.
29. Astylis Study: Against the north
wall is a bookshelf. On the bookshelf is
an old, faded book and an onyx idol. The
book contains notes and sketches which
appear to be plans for some sort of eleva-
tor system. In the southwest corner is a
three-drawer desk with a chair behind it.
On the desk is a lantern with scented oil,
a pile of papers, an hourglass, a quill,
and a bottle of ink. Partially concealed in
the pile of papers is a Ray of Enfeeble-
ment Scroll. In the top drawer of the desk
is a quill, some papers and a Wand of
Fireballs (3 charges). In the middle draw-
er is a piece of chalk, a quartz crystal, a
scroll tube, and a vial filled with a grayish
liquid. If the vial is opened the liquid
vaporizes, filling the room with sleeping
gas. The characters must each make a
saving throw vs. poison or fall asleep for
1-6 turns. The bottom drawer is empty.
In the southeast corner of this room is
a fireplace. lmbedded in the wall next to
the fireplace is a golden lions head with
a silver tongue. If the tongue of the lion is
pulled away from the wall, the fireplace
will pivot and face the desk, exposing a
secret passageway.
Hanging on the east wall is a vast ta-
pestry depicting a magician and a large
white dragon.
30. Astylis Bedroom: There is a bed in
the southeast corner of this room with a
straw mattress, a pillow, and a blanket.
Next to the bed is a nightstand on which
stand an empty mug, a spoon, and a ker-
chief. Leaning against the nightstand is a
wooden cane. Against the north wall is a
chest of drawers containing kerchiefs,
two cloaks, underclothing, a cape and a
hat. In the middle of this room is a round
table with two chairs. On the table is a
lantern, a quill, a bottle of ink, and a
parchment showing what appears to be
a map or floor plan:
31. Astylis Closet: In the closet is a
large unlocked wooden box on the floor
and pegs in the wall. Hung on one of the
pegs is a spacious leather pouch. In the
box is a stuffed owl, a humanoid skull,
Dragon
and a small cage. Inside the stuffed owl
is a +2 Dagger vs. Goblins and Kobolds.
In the pouch is a flask of oil, 50 feet of
rope, a bud of garlic and one iron spike.
LOWER LEVEL
32. Corridor: Walking toward you are
three goblins (HP:3 each; #AT:1; D:1-6;
AC:6; SA:None).
33. Corridor: On the west wall of this
corridor is what appears to be a portion
of some strange rune-like writings:
(DM: These are fragments of the words,
Beware Dragon.
34. Torture Chamber: In this room are
five goblins (HP:6,6,5,2,2; #AT:1; D:1-6;
AC:6; SA:None). They are torturing two
dwarven fighters, one in a stock in the
center of the room. and the other on a
rack in the southwest corner. In the sou-
theast corner is a firepit. Next to the fire-
pit is a brazier in which two branding
irons are being heated. In the northeast
corner is a table. On the table is a knife, a
4 3
Dragon
whip, a pair of thumbscrews and a vise. If
the stock is examined closely, the shape
of an octagon can be seen engraved into
its front surface.
35. Dungeon: Fastened into the north
wall are five pairs of chains. Chained by
the wrists in the northeast corner is the
corpse of a man wearing a royal robe.
(This is Prince Laechim.) Beneath the
body, lying on the floor, is a gold-colored
ring which is a +1 Ring of Protection.
Roughly engraved on the floor next to
the body is a symbol of a human figure
with a raised arm holding a sword. Be-
neath the arm is an arrow pointing down-
ward. In front of the man-figure is a circle
drawn in blood. There are four 10x10-
foot cells along the south wall, all empty
and open.
36. Under construction: This is a room
that appears to have been recently dug
out of rock. Standing between the en-
trance and the exit is a goblin (HP:7;
#AT:1; D:1-6; AC:6; SA:None). In the
southeast corner are two wooden boxes
filled with food, two pickaxes, a hammer,
50 feet of rope, a tinderbox, three flasks
of oil, six torches, and a leather pouch.
Inside the leather pouch are 150 gold
pieces.
37. Stream: Ahead of you is a swiftly
moving stream 15 feet across and ap-
pearing to be about 10 feet deep. (A
character with strength of 16 or more
can swim across, if unencumbered, with-
out coming to harm. A character with
strength of 15 or less, or any character
who attempts to swim across while wear-
ing armor and gear, will have a chance of
being swept downstream and, unless
rescued in time, will end up in Area G.
The chance of successfully swimming
across the stream for such a character is
equal to his strength x 5 expressed as a
percentage; i.e., a 50% chance for a
character of 10 strength.) The stream
runs through a tunnel in the wall of the
corridor and out another tunnel in the
opposite wall.
38. Dead-end Chamber: A minotaur,
having heard the approach of footsteps
in the section of the maze near this
chamber, has retreated to this area and
is lying in ambush. The minotaur (HP:20;
#AT:3; D:1-6; AC:6; SA:None) will attack
immediately as soon as a party member
rounds the last turn before the dead end.
39. Dead-end Chamber: At the end of
this twisting corridor is a nest of 5 giant
rants (HP:4,3,3,2,1; #AT:1; D:1-3; AC:7;
SA:5% chance of contracting serious
disease).
40. Creatures Lair: This is an enor-
mous chamber that has been carved or
blasted out of the surrounding rock.
Area E: Lying here is a sleeping white
Vol. VI, No. 5
dragon (HD:6; HP:24; #AT:2 claws and 1
bite; D:1-6 claw, 4-24 bite; AC:3; SA:
Cold breath weapon which does 4-24 HP
damage if saving throw not made, 2-12
HP damage if saving throw is made). Be-
neath the dragon, visible if it is awakened
and rises from its resting place, is the
body of a man in sorcerors garb pre-
sumably the magician Astylis himself.
Around the dragons sleeping place, in-
termingled with the bones of cattle and
humanoid figures, is a great amount of
treasure. The horde consists of 500 pp,
350 gp, 4 gems worth 100 gp each, =@
all four of the items the king wants re-
turned: a sceptre worth 180 gp, a crown
worth 150 gp, a Rod of Cancellation, and
a Medallion of ESP.
Area F: This is a large tunnel in the
ceiling of the cavern. It goes up 350 feet
and comes out on the side of a very steep
cliff. The dragon uses this tunnel for its
exit and entrance into the cavern.
Area G: This is the stream that passes
through the corridors of the northern
portion of the lower level. The dragon
uses this for drinking water, and occa-
sionally fishes an easy meal from the
rushing waters.
Area H: These are large columns of
rock which were not completely cleared
away when the chamber was excavated.
Many of the barriers are large enough to
provide one or more characters with a
place of refuge from the dragons breath
weapon.
44
Auvonfurors sook nn oIusIvo oIf who hoIus
The SWORD of JUSTICE
&

gnmo nuvonfuro uosIgnou by Jon Mnffson

The Sword of Justice is an advenlure
noduIe for use vilh lhe DUNCLNS &
DRACNS

gane. AIlhough il specifies

lhe nanes of cerlain lovns, areas, and
peopIe, lhe DM can easiIy nodify lhese lo
suil a parlicuIar canpaign. The Basic and
Lxperl ruIelooks for lhe D&D

gane viII
le required for lhe advenlure.
This advenlure has ideaIIy leen designed
for a laIanced parly of 4-6 characlers, each
of 1sl or 2nd IeveI. The fever lhe characlers
avaiIalIe, lhe higher lheir IeveIs shouId le.
AIlhough lhese characlers need nol le of
any parlicuIar cIasses, il is suggesled lhal
lhe parly le IavfuI in aIignnenl (for rea-
sons vhich viII lecone olvious in lhe
advenlure lackground). Having al Ieasl one
dvarf or eIf in lhe group couId aIso prove
very heIpfuI.
The Dungeon Masler is advised lo read
lhe enlire noduIe lhoroughIy lefore al-
lenpling lo run lhe advenlure, as lhe evenls
have leen Iaid oul in lhe approxinale order
lhal lhey vouId naluraIIy occur. Il is essen-
liaI lhal lhe referee have a good grasp of lhe
slory Iine so lhal lhe advenlure viII fIov
snoolhIy and IogicaIIy.
INTRODUCTION FOR PLAYER5
Ralher lhan sinpIy reading lhe foIIoving
infornalion aIoud lo lhe pIayers, lhe
Dungeon Masler is advised lo pIay oul lhe
silualion, laking lhe parls of lhe nayor and
olher non-pIayer characlers as lhey are
encounlered. In lhis vay, he can aIso add,
deIele, or nodify any infornalion he deens
necessary, lased on his ovn canpaign and
lhe characlers aclions.
ur lrave advenlurers have leen seeking
enpIoynenl and nissions vorlhy of lheir
groving repulalions for sone line nov.
Their lraveIs have lroughl lhen IillIe for
severaI veeks. IinaIIy, upon enlering lhe
lhriving viIIage of Iarslead, lhey see a
curious posler pIaslered over severaI of lhe
vaIIs of lhe IocaI shops and inns:
46 DECEMBER 1984
The }udges Inn is ovned and operaled
ly lhe nayor and judge of Iarslead, CIay-
lon MiIes. He is a Iarge, lurIy, niddIe-aged
nan, laId excepl for lufls of gray hair over
his ears. His heavy dravI reveaIs his peas-
anl uplringing, lul he has a keen nind in
nallers reIaled lo juslice, and his visdon in
such nallers is veII knovn lhroughoul lhe
area.
}udge CIaylon is a 4lh-IeveI fighler, AC
9, HI 23, STR 11, INT 16, WIS 18, DLX
1O, CN 12, CHA 16. He carries a dagger
oul of halil, and rareIy uses any olher
veapon. He is IavfuI, as are nosl of lhe
inhalilanls of Iarslead.
nce lhe characlers expIain vhy lhey are
here and CIaylon is salisfied vilh lheir
credenliaIs, he viII leII lhen lhe foIIoving
slory. Three veeks ago, lhe viIIage nagi-
cian, LorI IIan, vas found dead in his
hone, olviousIy a viclin of fouI pIay. The
onIy suspecl vas IaIrik Moondance, a
recIusive, eccenlric eIf vho Iived al lhe edge
of lovn and vho had a running rivaIry vilh
LorI. IaIrik vas quickIy arresled and
lroughl lo lriaI lo delernine his innocence
or guiIl.
Mere hours inlo lhe lriaI, il lecane
apparenl lhal no decision couId le quickIy
reached, lased on lhe neager evidence
againsl lhe eIf. WhiIe IaIrik nighl have
connilled lhe crine (he vas a fair svords-
nan and LorI vas sIain ly a svord or sini-
Iar veapon), lhis possiliIily cIashed vilh
IaIriks knovn personaIily and lendencies.
}udge MiIes vanled lo find oul lhe lrulh of
lhe naller. He decided lhal lhe silualion
varranled lhe use of lhe viIIages nosl
prized lreasure: Annacon, lhe Iegendary
Svord of }uslice ~ a nagicaI veapon said
lo le alIe lo delernine lhe lrulh of any
nans vords. If a Iie vas loId in lhe
svords presence, il vouId shine vilh a lIue
gI ov.
The judge had insliluled lhe use of Anna-
con sone years ago, lefore lhen, lhe
veapon had leen kepl Iocked in lhe viIIage
lreasury (nagicaI veaponry vas scarce in
lhis area). Annacon ensured lhal juslice
prevaiIed, and oflen jusl lhe knovIedge lhal
il vouId le used vas enough lo lring oul a
crininaIs innediale confession.
}udge MiIes lhoughl lhal IaIrik vouId le
pIeased vilh lhis decision, he leIieved in lhe
eIfs innocence and lhoughl lhe svord vouId
prove il. SurprisingIy, lhis decision had
quile lhe opposile effecl. IaIrik lecane
nervous and panicky al lhe idea, and nany
peopIe assuned lhal lhis reaclion proved his
guiIl.
CIaylon MiIes refused lo junp lo concIu-
sions, hovever, and insisled lhal lhe lesl le
perforned in his courlroon lhe nexl day as
decreed. His decision did nol sil veII vilh
nany of lhe viIIagers, lhough lhey did nol
care nuch for LorI IIan personaIIy, lhey
respecled hin for his pover and for lhe
proleclion lhal his presence gave lhe viIIage.
The alnosphere in lhe viIIage grev increas-
ingIy lense and angry lhroughoul lhe resl of
lhe day and lhe nighl lhal foIIoved.
When courl vas caIIed inlo session lhe
nexl day, IaIrik seened lo le conposed and
look his seal vilhoul resislance or oulvard
nervousness. Speclalors legan nullering
anong lhenseIves lhal perhaps lhe eIf vas
innocenl afler aII, and everyone seened lo
reIax a lil nov lhal lhe lhreal of IaIrik
leconing vioIenl vas nol in evidence. Then
lhe judge appeared fron vilhin his privale
roons, hoIding lhe svord (in ils scallard)
lefore hin. Afler a shorl cerenony, he
handed lhe svord over lo lhe laiIiff, vho
legan lo nove cIoser lo IaIrik. SuddenIy,
lhe eIf junped fron his seal vilh lhe Iook of
a cornered aninaI, spoke lhe vords of an
arcane speII, and vanished inlo lhin air. A
nonenl Ialer, as lhe courlroon vas expIod-
ing in shouls and screans, lhe Svord of
}uslice Ieaped fron ils shealh as if of ils ovn
accord and fIev lovard lhe courlroon exil,
shining vilh a lrighl lIue Iighl. In lhe
ensuing confusion, lhe invisilIe IaIrik
escaped vilh lhe svord and fIed fron lhe
nol of enraged viIIagers.
Iosses vere forned vilhin lhe hour lo
hunl dovn lhe fugilive eIf. The furious
lovnspeopIe nov leIieved lhal IaIrik had
nol onIy sloIen lheir nosl prized possession,
lul had aIso cerlainIy kiIIed LorI, perhaps
jusl so lhal he nighl gel a chance lo gel his
hands on lhe svord. The vhoIe episode
lecane a devious pIol vhich grev no Iess
dialoIicaI in lhe re-leIIing. NeverlheIess, for
aII lheir furor, lhe viIIagers vere unalIe lo
find lhe eIf. nIy one parly of hired lounly
hunlers spolled hin and shol arrovs use-
IessIy afler hin lefore he escaped lhen.
CIaylon MiIes suspecled lhal lhere vas
nore lo lhe eIfs aclions lhan lhe lovnspeo-
pIe had guessed. The nosl incongruous facl
vas lhal IaIrik had leen alIe lo hoId and
carry lhe svord: nany Iegends aloul Anna-
con said lhal il couId onIy le heId ly lhose
vho vere pure of hearl. If IaIrik vas in-
deed guiIly of nurder, lhe svord vasnl
Iiving up lo ils Iegends. Yel if he vas inno-
cenl, vhy had he run avay vhen lhe svord
couId have proven lhis leyond a shadov of
a doull`
These and olher queslions veighed heav-
iIy on lhe judges nind. He legan lo ques-
lion viIIagers and coIIecl evidence lo soIve
lhe case on his ovn (such procedures having
gone oul of fashion vilh lhe advenl of An-
naccn's use). LvenluaIIy he discovered lhal
IaIrik had nol kiIIed LorI. The cuIpril vas
found lo le lhe lravny IocaI valch caplain,
vho confessed lo lhe crine vhen he vas
confronled vilh CIaylons suspicions. Ap-
parenlIy, LorI had chealed lhe caplain ly
purposefuIIy naking hin a fauIly Iove po-
lion vilh vhich lhe caplain had hoped
allracl lhe affeclions of a IocaI leauly.
l o
The
vonan
vas lhe
vas repeIIed ly lhe caplain, and il
nagician (vho had aIso had his eye
on lhe young girI) and nol lhe caplain vho
lecane lhe largel of her adniralion. The
valchnan slorned over lo LorIs house in a
fil of rage, in lhe ensuing lravI, he drev his
svord and kiIIed lhe crooked conjurer.
WhiIe lhis expIained one nyslery and
alsoIved IaIrik of lIane, il did nol expIain
IaIriks lhefl of Annaccn and his disappear-
ance. A peddIer friend of }udge MiIes loId
of seeing an eIf nalching IaIriks descrip-
lion in lhe vicinily of an oId nansion a
days journey fron lovn. }udge MiIes has
svorn lhe peddIer lo siIence on lhe naller,
and no one eIse has heard lhe runor.
}udge MiIes vishes lhe characlers lo go lo
lhe nansion, find IaIrik, and lring hin
lack aIive if possilIe, since his innocence is
nov cerlain. LquaIIy inporlanl, lhey nusl
lring lack lhe svord Annaccn. He is aIso
curious as lo vhy IaIrik ran off vilh lhe
svord and vouId Iike lhis infornalion if
possilIe. He varns lhal lringing IaIrik
lack unharned nighl prove lo le very
difficuIl, since lhe eIf has aIready leen shol
al once ly lounly hunlers. ShouId lhe
characlers find IaIrik, lhey are lo presenl
hin vilh an officiaI pardon signed ly }udge
MiIes, alsoIving lhe eIf of guiIl in lhe viz-
ards nurder.
CIaylon has dug inlo lhe viIIage lreasury
and cone up vilh a revard of 2OO gp if
IaIrik is lroughl lack aIive and lasicaIIy
unharned, pIus 3OO gp nore if lhe svord is
lroughl vilh hin. Infornalion as lo
IaIriks exacl vherealouls or vhy he ran off
is vorlh 25 lo 5O gp (depending on lhe
quaIily of lhe infornalion) if lhe parly of
advenlurers can do nolhing
or lhe svord lack lo lovn.
lo lring lhe eIf
If lhe characlers agree lo lhis, CIaylon
viII descrile lhe Iocalion of lhe nansion,
noling lhal IaIrik has prolalIy had line lo
forlify lhe pIace lo sone exlenl. He viII le
hesilanl lo say nuch nore, nol vanling lo
deler characlers fron lhe quesl. If pressed,
he viII nenlion lhal lhe nansion once
leIonged lo a nyslerious nagic-user naned
Kanos and lhal peopIe nov avoid lhe pIace
lecause il is runored lo le haunled. Wilh
lhal, he viII send lhe characlers off and
vish lhen good Iuck.
FALRIK AND ANNACON
IaIrik Moondance is a ralher eccenlric
eIf. WhiIe he is quile lrighl and good-
nalured, he is aIso ralher inpuIsive. His
appearance is youlhfuI, lul he gives lhe
inpression lhal he is nuch oIder and viser
lhan he seens al firsl gIance. He is fairIy
suspicious, aInosl paranoid, and he panics
easiIy. flen he does lhings vhich seen
quile cIever (in a lvisled sorl of vay) lul
are lound lo le nisinlerpreled ly olhers al
lhe nonenl he acls. His inpuIsiveness and
shorl-sighledness do nol nake his deeds
IogicaI in a convenlionaI (lhal is, IavfuI)
sense, lul he is very cunning and has an
inluilive grasp of lhe snarlesl lhing lo do
in nosl silualions.
IaIrik does nol Iike leing a fugilive, lul
he Iikes lhe idea of leing execuled even Iess.
He has cerlain knovIedge aloul Annaccn
vhich nighl heIp lo save hin (see leIov),
lul he doesnl lhink lhal lhe viIIagers viII
leIieve hin. He is slullorn as veII as cau-
lious and suspicious, so il viII prove quile
difficuIl lo gel hin lo leIieve lhal his par-
don is nol sone sorl of lrap.
BasicaIIy a peacealIe sorl, IaIrik viII
avoid conlal as nuch as possilIe. He viII
nol allenpl lo physicaIIy harn anyone vho
is nol allacking hin, preferring lo harass,
confuse, and fruslrale lhen inlo Ieaving
hin aIone. The DM shouId carefuIIy con-
sider vhal speIIs he and lhe svord have
avaiIalIe vhen deciding on IaIriks laclics
inside lhe nansion. Cnarning characlers
vilh lhe svord, for inslance, is one possiliI-
ily, as is going intisio|c and hiding if in
danger of leing found oul.
IaIrik Moondance is a IavfuI 3rd-IeveI eIf
(9,642 xp) vilh siIvery hair and goId-
coIored eyes. He slands 5' 4" laII and
veighs 1O4 Ils., he is 263 years oId. His
slalislics are: STR 15, INT 17, WIS 7,
DLX 17, CN 15, CHA 14, HI 18. He
has AC 2 fron arnor, dexlerily, and nagi-
caI lonuses, has a +1 lo hil and danage in
conlal, and has a +2 lonus vilh nissiIes.
IaIrik speaks connon, lhe IavfuI longue,
eIf, orc, holgolIin, gnoII, haIfIing, and
pixie. He carries lhree speIIs al aII lines:
nc| pcr|a|, tcn|ri|cquisn, and intisioi|i|q
His currenl possessions incIude: Annaccn
(see leIov), a ocu +1, a chainnaiI suil, a
ring cf prc|cc|icn +1, a quiver vilh 2O ar-
rovs (4 of lhen vilh siIver arrovheads), a
pack vilh his ralions, valer, speIIlook, and
linderlox, and his prize, a uan cf i||usicn
vilh 12 charges.
Annaccn is a |cngsucr +2 vilh cnarn
pcrscn aliIily. Il has an inleIIigence of 8 and
an ego of 6 (lolaI WiII Iover: 14), and
possesses lvo prinary povers: il viII c|cc|
|ics spoken vilhin 1O of lhe person hoIding
il, and (unknovn lo lhe viIIagers) il viII
c|cc| c|tcs vilhin a 1O radius.
UnforlunaleIy, lolh aliIilies cause lhe
svord lIade lo gIov vilh lhe sane lIue
coIor as lrighlIy as a |ign| speII, and lherein
Iies lhe prolIen: IaIrik, knoving fron laIes
loId anong lhe eIves in lhis region aloul
lhe Ialler aliIily of lhe veapon, reaIized lhal
lhe svord vouId gIov in his presence le-
cause he is an eIf. He feared lhal lhe viI-
Iagers, nol knoving lhis, vouId prolalIy
assune lhal he vas Iying or lhal lhe svord
vas indicaling lhal he vas lhe kiIIer.
The duralion of lhe lIue gIov of lhe
svord varies fron a nere 3 seconds (in lhe
case of lhe c|cc| |ics pover) lo polenliaIIy
infinile (for as Iong as an eIf renains in
deleclion range). The viIIagers are nol
avare of lhe Ialler facl, since Annaccn has
never leen used as a Iie-deleclor againsl
an eIf.
Annaccn is IavfuI in aIignnenl and so
viII danage non-IavfuI vieIders. IaIrik, in
his inluilive vay, hoped lhal his aliIily lo
carry lhe svord unharned vouId prove his
innocence, or al Ieasl pIanl a seed of suspi-
cion aloul his guiIl.
The eIven Iegends aloul Annaccn say il
vas forged ly a dvarven veaponsnilh and
a hunan vizard aIIy aloul lhree cenluries
ago. Al lhal line, lhe eIves and dvarves of
lhis region vere fighling a var againsl each
olher over lhe danage lhal dvarven surface
nines vere doing lo IocaI foresls and viId-
Iife. The lallIes vere sellIed Iong ago,
lhough sone sIighl
races sliII exisls.
hosliIily lelveen lhe lvo
Any pIayer characler eIf or dvarf vho
haiIs fron lhis area of lhe canpaign Iands
viII have a 5 chance per poinl of inleIIi-
gence of knoving aloul Annaccns eIf-
delecling povers fron oId Iegends, and he
nay nake lhe sane deduclions lhal IaIrik
did. Afler aII, lhe svord can delernine lhe
lrulh of any nans vords, incIuding
dvarves and lhe Iike, lul lhe eIf-delecling
pover nakes
Iying or nol.
il useIess for leIIing if an eIf is
THE MANSION OF KANOS
Iorly years ago, a poverfuI nagic-user
knovn as Kanos lhe Wizard luiIl a Iarge
nansion severaI niIes fron Iarslead. WhiIe
he vas friendIy enough in his ovn vay, he
vas a suspicious nan vilh an odd sense of
hunor, and he pIanled severaI unusuaI
lricks and lraps his hone for uninviled
inlruders Iike lhieves and curio-seekers.
In line, lhe rich and unusuaI hone le-
cane veII knovn lhroughoul lhe surround-
ing counlryside ~ perhaps loo veII knovn,
for il evenluaIIy allracled visilors of a nosl
unfriendIy sorl. A land of lrigands lroke
inlo lhe nansion one nighl, lrying lo nake
Kanos parl vilh sone of his veaIlh. They
nel inslead his vralh. No one knovs ex-
aclIy vhal happened in lhe ensuing lallIe,
onIy a singIe landil escaped, crying lo his
caplors lhal Kanos had used nighly nagic
lhal consuned hinseIf as veII as lhe lri-
gands. Neilher lhe vizard nor his uninviled
guesls vere ever seen or heard fron again,
and no hunan dared enler lhe house for
fear of ils lraps.
Since lhal line, severaI naIicious crea-
lures have laken up residence in and
around lhe alandoned slruclure and occa-
sionaIIy raid lhe scallered farns in lhe area
for food and pelly anounls of Iool. The
nansion is sIovIy faIIing inlo ruin fron Iack
of upkeep, aII of lhe vindovs are lroken
oul, lhough lhe vaIIs and fIoor are sliII
slurdy.
IopuIar leIief aIso has il lhal lhe pIace is
haunled. The IocaI peopIe fear il, and lhe
D R A G O N 4 7
nansion is jusl far enough fron lovn lo le
conforlalIy avoided ly lhe IocaI valch
palroIs and niIilia (vho donl vish lo le-
cone invoIved in a siege of a haunled
luiIding).
IaIrik, nol leIieving lhe haunled
house slories, decided lo use lhis inforna-
lion lo his advanlage. Using various de-
vices, skiIIs, and povers of his ovn, he
sIipped inlo lhe nansion and pasl ils deni-
zens lo find his ovn IillIe niche lhere. In lhe
days afler he arrived, he sel up severaI lraps
and spy posls lo prolecl hinseIf.
The nonslers vho Iive in lhe nansion
have grudgingIy accepled IaIriks presence,
prinariIy lecause he Ieaves everyone aIone
and lecause none of lhe inleIIigenl nonslers
feeI confidenl enough lo lry lo kick hin oul,
lhe fev lhal did nel vilh Annacons vralh
or IaIriks sorcery. IaIriks wand of illusion
has leen parlicuIarIy usefuI in scaring off
nonslers and vouId-le expIorers. Though
lhe wands charges have sleadiIy decreased
vilh no vay lo repIace lhen, lhe eIf feeIs
reIaliveIy secure in his slronghoId.
The nansion is a lrisk one-day narch
fron Iarslead (2O niIes), lhrough lerrain
ranging fron cuIlivaled fieIds lo Iighl foresl.
The area vilhin a haIf-niIe radius around
lhe nansion is covered vilh dense foresl,
and lhe vegelalion has legun lo encroach
on lhe seIdon-used road and properly.
SnaII groups of golIins, koloIds, and ni-
nor nonslers have leen spolled ly hunlers
severaI lines in lhe area, parlicuIarIy dur-
ing lhe nighl hours.
If characlers expIore lhe lerrain around
lhe nansion, lhey have a chance of encoun-
lering sone of lhe IocaI viIdIife and
residenls of lhe area. RoII a d6 lhree lines
per gane day, al nid-norning, sundovn,
and nidnighl, a roII of 5 or 6 on lhe die
indicales an encounler has occurred, and
lhe specific encounler is referenced on lhe
foIIoving charl ly a d8 roII:
Die roll encounter
1 1-3 koloIds (associaled vilh
ThuIins land in lhe nansion
(see area 26 leIov)
2 1-2 voIves
3 1-2 viId loars
4 AninaI herd (deer)
5 1-2 golIins (nol associaled
vilh any olher land)
6 Insecl svarn
7 1-2 slirges
8 2-5 hunan hunlers fron Iar-
slead (fighlers of IeveIs 1-4,
heaviIy arned, vearing Iealher
arnor and riding Iighl horses)
The koloIds and golIins viII usuaIIy
allack any parlies lhey neel unIess seriousIy
oulnunlered, even lhen, lhey nay allenpl
an anlush or lry lo pick off slraggIers. The
hunlers viII le reIaliveIy friendIy lul cau-
lious, sharing sone generaI infornalion on
lhe region vilh advenlurers lul reveaIing
IillIe aloul lhenseIves or any veaIlh lhey
nay carry. None of lhen viII join an expe-
dilion inlo lhe nansion, as lhey care IillIe
48 DECEMBER 1984
for advenluring (hunling, lheyII say, is
safer).
The nansion slands alop a snaII hiII
surrounded ly lrees groving viId fron Iack
of care. }usl lo lhe easl, a snaII river lor-
dered ly lrees and deep lanks fIovs sviflIy
ly lovard lhe soulh. The house ilseIf has a
larren Iook aloul il, and il Ioons Iike a
dark senlineI lefore lhe characlers as lhey
approach ils ruined gale.
Nole lhal lhere shouId le no chance of
lhe pIayer characlers discovering lhe sec-
ondary enlrances (areas 26 and 3O). Bolh
are veII hidden and difficuIl lo reach.
A descriplion of lhe nansion foIIovs,
keyed lo lhe naps on pp. 49, 51, and 52.
1. Wc!!
This ancienl veII is unexceplionaI, lul a
lrick nagicaI speII (siniIar lo lhe
AD&D

ganes magic mouth) has leen

pIaced on il. When anyone cones vilhin
1O of lhe veII, a voice viII le heard fron
inside il shouling, HeIp ne! HeIp! In
drovning! The voice viII repeal lhis
phrase every line soneone cones near lhe
veII again. The veII drops lhirly feel dovn
lo an eighl-fool deep pooI of very coId va-
ler, anyone dunked in il for nore lhan a
ninule viII Iose 1 slrenglh poinl and 1-3
dexlerily poinls per lurn for 1-3 nornaI
lurns, slrenglh and dexlerily scores viII nol
drop leIov 3 in any evenl. Svinning and
drovning ruIes are on p. 27 of lhe D&D

Lxperl ruIelook. Al lhe lollon of lhe veII

Iie 14 sp, lul nolhing eIse is of inleresl here.
2. C!nakrnnm and cntrancc ha!!
This area is lasicaIIy uninleresling (see
roon 15, adjacenl lo il, hovever). Racks
for hanging cIoaks Iine lhe vaIIs on eilher
side, lul lhey are aII enply. ne hook is
liIled lo one side and revoIves freeIy, lul il
viII do nolhing if nanipuIaled (il isnl a
lrap or a secrel-door spring).
IaIrik viII legin his surveiIIance of lhe
parly al lhis poinl, using lhe peephoIes fron
area 15. Due lo lhe snaII size of lhe hoIes,
onIy a 1 chance exisls of any characler
nolicing one, and lhis nay onIy le roIIed
for if lhe characler is acliveIy searching lhe
area for lraps or secrel doors.
3. 5crvants' rnnm
This area is acluaIIy lvo roons, divided
ly parliaI vaIIs and a noIdering curlain.
A. Cooks roon: This roon conlains a
lallered led, a dresser vilh lhree dravers,
a snaII lalIe, and lvo chairs. n lhe norlh
vaII hangs a painling of a counlry fair vilh
a Iarge gray caslIe in lhe lackground. The
piclure is vorlh aloul 5O gp, lul is quile
heavy lo carry around (3OO cn). A cral
spider Iurks on lhe easl vaII alove lhe
curlain. Il viII nol usuaIIy allack unIess il
can gain surprise (on a 1-4 due lo ils
chaneIeon-Iike povers if lhe group enlers
lhrough lhe vesl door, or on a 1-5 if lhey
enler lhrough lhe curlain). The dresser
conlains sone oId cIolhing and odds and
ends. The lollon draver has a purse vhich
conlains 12 sp and 3 gp. A carefuI search of
lhe roon viII reveaI a snaII piIe of golIin
lones (a viclin of lhe spider) in lhe soulh-
easl corner, hidden anong lhen are 6 sp
and 1 gp.
Cral spider: AC 7, HD 2, HI 8,
THACO 18, DAM 1-8 pIus poison (save al
+2 or die in 1d4 lurns), MR 7, LXI 25.
B. BulIers roon: This roon is siniIar lo
A, (alove), il conlains a sunken led, a
snaII dresser, a lalIe, a snaII desk, and lvo
chairs. Il is unexceplionaI excepl for one
Iocked draver of lhe desk, vhich conlains
sone yeIIoved papers (records, invenlories,
elc.) and a snaII lox vilh 8 sp and 4 gp.
4. FIrst gucst rnnm
This is lhe Iargesl guesl roon, lhe chan-
ler of Kanoss nosl favored visilors. Nol
surprisingIy, il has nov Iosl nuch of ils
finery, lhe led is sunken and sIashed, and
lhe renainder of lhe furnilure ~ a snaII
lalIe, a lhree-dravered dresser, a calinel,
and lvo chairs ~ is in IillIe leller shape.
Searching lhe roon viII reveaI nolhing
excepl snashed ornanenls, dusl, colvels,
and siniIar rullish. The dravers of lhe
dresser have Iong ago leen Iooled of any-
lhing lhey nighl have heId.
ne lurn afler lhe roon is enlered, an
eerie vaiIing sound viII le heard enanaling
fron lhe calinel. The sound is parl of a
nagicaI lrap Kanos sel in lhe calinel lo
discourage inlruders vhen he had no cur-
renl guesls. ShouId anyone open lhe calinel
(lefore or afler lhe vaiIing slarls), a lriI-
Iianl fIash of Iighl viII lursl fron il, anyone
vieving il nusl save versus speIIs (lhe
opener saving al -2) or le lIinded for 2-8
lurns. This viII vork any nunler of lines
lhal lhe calinel is opened.
5. 5tatuc
In lhe cenler of lhe haIIvay inlerseclion
slands a slalue of a gargoyIe facing area 2.
WhiIe lhe slalue is nol unusuaI in nosl
vays, ils eyes are of nole: due lo lheir
craflsnanship, lhey viII appear lo foIIov
any viever as he noves in fronl of lhe
slalue. In addilion, if IaIrik is valching lhe
characlers fron area 15 lhe firsl line lhey
encounler lhe slalue (see leIov), he viII use
his wand of illusion lo nake lhe slalue
appear lo aninale and allack lhe group.
Allacks on lhe iIIusion do nol, of course,
affecl lhe slalue, and il viII reappear
undanaged vhen lhe iIIusion is dispeIIed.
The DM shouId decrease lhe charges Iefl in
IaIriks wand if lhis laclic is used.
6. 5ccnnd gucst rnnm
This guesl roon is occupied ly four
holgolIins, vho are silling around, gnav-
ing on lhe renains of a slirge and IoudIy
discussing pIans lo lraveI on lo lhe vesl
vilhin a day or so. Increase lhe parlys
chances of Iislening and surprise ly +1.
Lach holgolIin has 2-8 gp and 31-5O sp,
shoved in shouIder pouches vilh lrilaI
synloIs on lhen (vilhered lrees enguIfed
ly fIanes). The Iargesl holgolIin aIso has a
goId ring (55O gp vaIue) vilh lhe sane
synloI engraved on il. The roon is siniIar
lo lhe firsl guesl roon (area 4 alove): il
conlains a ruined led, a snashed dresser, a
lalIe, and lvo conforlalIe, if ralher oId,
chairs, as veII as a Iol of rullish (lones,
vels, slicks, dusl, elc.).
HolgolIins: AC 6, HD 1+1, HI 9, 6, 7,
6, THACO 18, DAM 1-8 vilh Iongsvords,
MR 9 (8 if lhe Ieader dies), LXI 15 each.
7. KItchcn
This roon does nol appear al aII unusuaI
al firsl gIance. Il conlain lalIes, counlers,
and cuploards. A neal cIeaver is Iying on
one lalIe, and lvo chipped pIales sil on
anolher. The cuploards are noslIy open
and have leen lhoroughIy Iooled ~ aII lhal
renains are a fev scraps of very inedilIe
food and sone lroken cooking ulensiIs
(incIuding a Iarge iron pol on lhe fIoor in
lhe norlhvesl corner). The one lhing of
nole is in lhe cenler of lhe roon vhere a
Iarge slone lalIe sils vilh a seeningIy vel
surface. The noislure is, in facl, a grey
ooze, as anyone vho gels loo cIose viII
quickIy reaIize. AII olher inhalilanls of lhe
find lhal he is insulslanliaI and cannol le
harned. He is a ninor phanlon and cannol
le dispeIIed in any vay, even ly a cIeric.
ShouId lhe parly lake lhe pIale and ulensiIs,
lhe phanlon viII sinpIy sniIe and vanish,
his olIigalion lo vail for his naslers dinner
no Ionger-linding.
9. LIbrary and study
This roon olviousIy once housed a nag-
nificenl coIIeclion of lones, scroIIs, jour-
naIs, and siniIar vrillen vorks, as allesled
ly lhe nany lookracks presenl, parlicuIarIy
in lhe veslern haIf of lhe roon. Hovever,
virluaIIy aII of lhese lreasures have leen
sloIen, ripped lo shreds and casl aloul,
lurned, or olhervise nuliIaled. The look-
cases in lhe norlhvesl corner shov signs of
exlensive lurning. A carefuI search of lhe,
delris scallered lhere viII reveaI a lhin lone
scroII lule, sonevhal charred, vhich con-
lains an inlacl scroII of sleep, continual
light, and dispel magic speIIs. The furnilure
in lhe easlern haIf of lhe roon has fared
sonevhal leller. A snaII lalIe is here, as
Crey ooze: AC 8, HD 3, HI 22,
nansion slriclIy avoid lhis roon.
THACO 17, DAM 2-16, MR 12, Hil
onIy ly veapons and Iighlning, LXI 5O.
8. DInIng rnnm
This Iarge haII conlains a very Iong lalIe,
surrounded ly eighl chairs and an espe-
ciaIIy Iarge lhroneIike seal al lhe head of lhe
lalIe. AII are in very good condilion, aI-
lhough sonevhal dusly. CIoser inspeclion
viII reveaI lhal lhe pIace al lhe head of lhe
lalIe is sel vilh a goId pIale (1OO gp), ealing
ulensiIs (8O gp lolaI), as veII as a cryslaI
golIel (2OO gp), aIso covered vilh dusl.
The reason no Ioolers have had lhe nerve
lo lake lhese viII quickIy lecone apparenl.
Afler haIf a ninule, a speclraI nan dressed
in fornaI cIolhing viII cone in lhrough lhe
norlh door and vaIk over lo sland leside
lhe head of lhe lalIe. The sighl of lhe nan
causes fear (as per lhe cIeric speII) in aII
vievers. No anounl of laIking or yeIIing
viII gel lhe nans allenlion, and anyone
vho allenpls lo louch or allack hin viII
DRAGON 49
veII as a desk and lhree chairs (loppIed
over, lul in good shape). The desk has lvo
dravers, one has leen snashed open, lul
lhe olher is nol Iocked and opens freeIy.
Wilhin il is anolher scroII lule vilh a Iarge
I on il. This is anolher lrap Iefl ly
IaIrik, inside lhe lule is a cursed scroII lhal
IaIrik loughl fron a vizard Iong ago.
Lxanining lhe scroII viII paraIyze lhe
reader for 2-12 hours (or unliI a dispel
magic is used on lhe individuaI), vilh no
saving lhrov.
10. LIvIng rnnm
This roon is unexceplionaI in nosl re-
specls, excepl for ils occupanls ~ five
slirges, vhich have a nesl conceaIed in lhe
shadovy soulheasl corner of lhe roon. The
slirges roosl here during lhe day, fIying oul
of one of lhe lroken vindovs lo go hunling
al nighl.
The roon conlains sone ruined furnilure
(a sofa, chairs, and a snaII lalIe), severaI
chipped and lroken slaluelles (a Iion, a
naiden riding a unicorn, a voIf, and Iols of
unrecognizalIe rullIe, aII vorlhIess), and a
dried-up founlain vilh onIy a coupIe of
inches of scunny valer pooIed al lhe lol-
lon. The founlain is lhe Ianding spol of
anyone vho faIIs lhrough lhe pil lrap in
roon 17 (easl), il conlains lhe renains of a
previous hunan viclin, conpIele vilh rusly
chainnaiI and Iongsvord. A pouch hangs
on lhe skeIelons leIl and conlains 12 gp,
26 sp, and 3 pp.
The slirges nesl in lhe soulheasl corner
conlains lhe renains of previous viclins
(noslIy rals, koloIds, and lhe Iike), incIud-
ing a hunan skeIelon in Iealher arnor. This
one has a leIl pouch vhich hoIds 16 gp and
a snaII ruly (8O gp vaIue), and has a quiver
fuII of arrovs. Mosl arrovs are varped vilh
noislure and age (incIuding lvo siIver-
lipped ones), lul four of lhen are in perfecl
condilion (each is an arrow +1). The skeIe-
lons lov is novhere lo le found.
Slirges: AC 7, HD 1, HI 7, 6, 5, 5, 3,
THACO 19 (17 on firsl roII), DAM 1-3
pIus aulonalic 1-3/round lhereafler, MR
9, LXI 13 each.
11. Lavatnry
This roon acls as lhe Iavalory for lhe
nansion and conlains severaI loiIels and
vash lasins, a Iarge valer-lank and a huge-
lalhlul sland in one corner. The lank is
nearIy dry, hoIding onIy a fev inches of
slagnanl valer vilh a greenish sIine fIoal-
ing on il. The sIine is harnIess.
12. ThIrd gucst rnnm
Like lhe olher gueslroons, lhis one con-
lains a ruined led, a lroken lalIe, a
dresser, and lvo lorn and lallered chairs. A
skeIelon is propped up againsl lhe easl vaII,
allached lo lhe door ly a Iong slring. pen-
ing lhe door viII cause lhe skeIelon lo nove
forvard and shake nenacingIy, aIlhough il
is nol, of course, lruIy aninaled ~ anolher
lrick of IaIriks.
UnforlunaleIy, lhe prank is a doulIe-
edged one. Hiding in lhe roon is a Iarge
50 DECEMBER 1984
pack of 13 gianl rals. They viII allack in-
lruders vho enler lhe roon lo exanine lhe
easlern skeIelon, gaining +2 lo surprise if no
precaulions have leen laken. The dresser,
leing unusuaIIy slurdy and heavy, is sliII
inlacl and Iocked. Il conlains lhe forner
occupanls possessions, incIuding a leIl
pouch vilh 12 sp, 7 gp, and a liger eye gen
(vorlh aloul 4O gp).
Cianl rals: AC 7, HD 1/2, HI 2 each,
THACO 19, DAM 1-3, MR 6, LXI 6
each. Nole lhe 5 chance of calching a
disease fron a lile if lhe viclins save ver-
sus poison isnl nade.
13. Trnphy rnnm
This Iarge roon conlains a nunler of
souvenirs fron Kanoss days as an adven-
lurer, aII in good, if sonevhal dusly, condi-
lion. The reason for lhis roons orderIiness
viII soon lecone apparenl lo vouId-le
Ioolers: a ninule or so afler lhe roon is
enlered, a siIver dagger enchanled Iong ago
ly Kanos viII delach ilseIf fron one vaII
and legin allacking inlruders of ils ovn
voIilion! Any hil scored upon lhe dagger
viII cause il lo drop lo lhe ground and slay
lhere for lvo fuII ninules, if lhe inlruders
are sliII presenl al lhe end of lhis line (or if
lhey lry lo pick up lhe dagger al any line),
lhe lIade viII rise and lake up lhe allack
again. nIy Ieaving lhe roon viII cause il
lo cease allacking and relurn lo ils vaII
posilion, a dispel magic viII cause il lo faII
lo lhe ground for one ninule for each IeveI
of lhe casler.
The olher souvenirs incIude a lIack
dragons head, a pair of gargoyIe vings, a
veII-crafled (and non-nagicaI) slaff, a huge
ogres cIul, lhe skuII of a cave lear, lhe
skeIelons of a koloId, a golIin, an orc, a
holgolIin, and a gnoII Iined up side-ly-
side, a snaII lIack lox on a pedeslaI, and
lhe lallIeaxe, chainnaiI, and shield +1 of a
poverfuI eviI fighler vhon Kanos defealed.
The snaII lIack lox is of parlicuIar
inleresl. Kanos kepl il as a curio, having
recovered il fron an oId lonl, apparenlIy il
vas enchanled vilh randon speII effecls for
sone unknovn reason ly an ancienl viz-
ard. Il is nade of a gIassy, nicaIike sul-
slance, lul cannol le chipped or renoved
fron lhe pedeslaI, aIlhough il does nol seen
lo le parl of lhe pedeslaI or connecled lo il
in any vay. Anyone vho louches il viII
experience sone unusuaI effecl. RoII a d6
and check lhe foIIoving lalIe:
1-2: The person feeIs a slrong chiII and
suddenIy keeIs over, paraIyzed for 1-4 nin-
ules. Hovever, for each ninule spenl para-
Iyzed, lhe characler viII le heaIed of 2 hil
poinls of danage.
3-4: The characler feeIs a varn sensalion
fIov lhrough his or her lody and gels a IillIe
dizzy. The characler nusl save versus speIIs
or faII asIeep for 1-3 ninules.
5: The characler Ioses lhe use of one
sense (roII 1d6: 1-2 is sighl, 3 is hearing, 5
is sneII, and 6 is louch). This effecl Iasls for
3-3O ninules.
6: No effecl.
MuIlipIe allenpls lo louch lhe lox are
possilIe, hovever, add 1 lo lhe die roII for
each addilionaI allenpl ly lhe sane person
afler lhe firsl lry, and aIvays consider a
nodified score of 6 or nore as 6.
Dagger: AC 4, HD n/a, HI n/a,
THACO 14, DAM 1-4, MR n/a, LXI O.
14. 5tnrc rnnm
This roon conlains a Iarge nunler of
crales, casks, larreIs, and so on (in vhich
are slored various rolled, decayed, or dried-
oul foodsluffs), as veII as a fev pieces of oId
furnilure, sone lroken and sone aInosl as
good as nev, lul very IillIe in lelveen.
ne larreI has conlenls vhich have nol
spoiIed lul are very veII aged: a very po-
lenl, nagicaI vine, vhich viII reduce lhe
drinkers visdon score lo 3 for 21-4O
rounds lhereafler (no saving lhrov). The
drinker viII lehave in lhe nosl fooIish and
irresponsilIe nanner possilIe during lhis
line, discharging any of his nagic speIIs
and casling lreasure avay al a vhin. AII
advice viII le disregarded.
IaIrik viII le valching any characlers
here fron his peephoIe in roon 16 on a
75 chance ~ olhervise, assune lhal he is
aIready in lhe ceIIar (see leIov). If he is
presenl in roon 16, he viII use his speIIs,
lhe charm pover of Annacon, and his wand
of illusion as appropriale in an allenpl lo
vard off inlruders. If lhis is unsuccessfuI
and lhe parly allenpls lo enler any of lhe
secrel doors in lhe roon, he viII fIee inlo
lhe ceIIar. Mark off any charges used fron
IaIriks wand.
15. 5ccrct cnrrIdnr
Il is uncerlain vhy Kanos had lhis corri-
dor luiIl, lul il is enlireIy IikeIy lhal he
used il for lhe sane lhing lhal IaIrik is nov
doing, lhal is, spying on guesls or in-
lruders. The vaIIs of lhis area are Iined vilh
liny peephoIes lo aIIov sighl inlo areas 2
and 5, as veII as lhe corridor oulside roons
1O, 11, 12, and 13. Area 15 is lhickIy car-
peled, so IaIriks novenenls vilhin here
viII le conpIeleIy siIenl.
IaIrik viII le vailing in lhis roon near
area 2 vhen lhe advenlurers arrive, he has
leen anlicipaling pursuil since his escape
fron lhe viIIage. Any noises in lhe areas
surrounding roon 15 viII drav his allen-
lion. He viII keep lhe group in sighl for as
Iong as possilIe, allenpling lo hinder lheir
progress vilh his hold portal or ventrilo-
quism speIIs or, nore oflen, his wand of
illusion. He has a speciaI lrick for area 5
(see nunler 5 alove), lul in nosl olher
cases he viII creale an iIIusion of a nonsler
lo allack lhe parly, lhe nonsler lype is up
lo lhe referee, and need nol le a IogicaI
one (i.e., a snaII dragon or chinera nay le
crealed). f course, iIIusions of very Iarge
or unIikeIy crealures nay aIIov lhe viclin a
lonus of +1 lo +3 vhen saving againsl lhen.
ShouId anyone enler area 15, IaIrik viII fIee
inlo lhe ceIIar if he has nol aIready done so
(see leIov).
16. 5ccrct staIrwc!!
This roon is essenliaIIy enply: IaIrik
viII IikeIy have fIed inlo lhe ceIIar ly lhe
line lhe parly reaches il, and no nonslers
or lreasure are here. The slairs Iead dovn
lo lhe ceIIar (areas 21 lo 29). A pil lrap 1O
deep is aIso presenl, doing 1d6 poinls of
danage lo anyone faIIing lhrough il. IaIrik
is avare of lhe lrap. The onIy olher oljecl
presenl is an oId chair in lhe soulheasl
corner leside lhe peephoIe.
THE TOWER5
Areas 17 lhrough 2O conprise lhe easlern
and veslern lovers of lhe nansion and can
onIy le reached via lhe appropriale slair-
cases, as indicaled on lhe nap.
17. Obscrvatnry staIrwc!!s
These lvo roons conlain slairvays Iead-
ing fron lhe ground fIoor up lo lheir respec-
live lovers, as veII as severaI Iarge lroken
vindovs vhich give an exceIIenl, if nov
sonevhal disnaI, viev of lhe eslale. The
roons are olhervise enply. The roon in
lhe easlern lover has a pil lrap covered ly a
rug, vhich Kanos sel Iong ago (see nap for
Iocalion). The lrap enplies inlo lhe foun-
lain in roon 1O. Al one line, lhe valer
vouId have cushioned sone of lhe faII,
hovever, lhe founlain has nov dried up, so
lhe danage suslained is lhe usuaI 1d6.
18. Labnratnry
This roon is in fairIy good shape, lhough
il is olvious lhal sone expIorers have en-
lered lhe roon in lhe pasl. The onIy signs
of currenl occupalion are a fev alandoned
slirge nesls and droppings: lhe norlhern-
nosl vindov has leen snashed open,
aIIoving lhe enlrance of lhese lenanls peri-
odicaIIy. The roon conlains furnilure and
equipnenl lypicaI of a Ial, incIuding lvo
Iarge lalIes (one vilh a Iarge green slain on
il), lhree chairs, a desk for vriling (vilh
parchnenl, a quiII, and a dried-up inkveII),
racks of gIassvare (lesl lules, leakers, and
fIasks), a snaII ovenIike conlraplion, nu-
nerous candIes and sluls, lvo calinels
fiIIed vilh various jars of ingredienls (lIood,
lone povder, vood chips, nelaI fiIings,
chenicaIs, elc.), and a Iarge enply cage.
ne of lhe calinels is Iocked and appears
lo le nade of gIass, hovever, il cannol le
snashed open even ly svord or nace
lIovs. The Iock is so conpIicaled lhal lvo
successfuI Iockpicking roIIs nusl le nade in
succession ly a lhief in order lo open il.
The calinel conlains four viaIs of coIored
Iiquid conlaining lvo doses each: hoIy valer
(cIear), acid (paIe green), a potion of heal-
ing (paIe lIue), and poison (lrighl red).
The acid viII do 1d6 danage per round lo
exposed fIesh, or 3d6 danage if svaIIoved,
lhe drinker nusl aIso save vs. poison or
die). The poison is ralher veak, so saving
lhrovs nade againsl il (if il is svaIIoved)
are al a +2 lonus, faiIure indicaling dealh in
Id6 rounds.
19. B!astcd chambcr
This roon vas originaIIy Kanoss Iiving
chanler and sludy. Il vas aIso his Iasl
lallIefieId, as lhe appearance of lhe chan-
6DA JMAHI
ScaIe: 1 square = 5 feel
ler viII leslify. Il is aInosl lolaIIy enply
and devoid of delaiI nov, save for a nunler
of charred lones and lvo lIackened slunps
of vood (perhaps lhe lroken renains of a
slaff). AII of lhe norlhveslern corner, in
parlicuIar, is laken up ly a dark lIasl
craler. Kanoss finaI nagic olviousIy look
nol onIy hinseIf and lhe lrigands vilh il,
lul nuch of lhe resl of lhe area as veII. Any
connolion here has a 3O chance per
round of allracling lhe occupanl of lhe
adjacenl ledroon (area 2O).
Mosl crealures in lhe nansion avoid lhis
area, since roon 19 (alove) gives lhen an
eerie feeIing, hovever, one crealure, loo
slupid lo le lolhered ly il, has proven lo le
lhe exceplion and has gone so far as lo
nake lhis roon ils Iair. A gianl Iizard,
siniIar lo a gianl gecko lul sIighlIy Iarger
(six feel Iong), slays here and viII allack
anylhing lhal dares lo inlrude inlo lhis
roon (or lhe adjacenl Iiving chanler, as
noled alove).
20. Kanns's bcdrnnm
The roon ilseIf is a lypicaI ledchanler,
aIlhough sonevhal richer lhan lhe guesl-
roons found dovnslairs: il conlains a Iarge
led (in fairIy good condilion), a snaII
nighlsland, a dresser, and a foolIocker. The
dresser conlains onIy oId cIolhing and vas
rifIed lhrough sone years ago, lhe Iocker
has leen lroken open and has suffered a
siniIar fale ~ il conlains onIy a fev nore
pieces of oId cIolhing, an enply purse, and
a snaII lrass key.
The Ioolers vere nol especiaIIy lhorough
in lheir search, hovever, and nissed lhe
lrap door vhich lhe key opens on lhe fIoor
in lhe norlhvesl corner of lhe roon. Char-
aclers viII nolice lhe snaII keyhoIe in lhe
fIoor on a 1 in 6 chance, 2 in 6 for eIves (+1
lo chance if acliveIy searching). The lrap
door opens inlo a Iong, lhin conparlnenl,
hovever, opening lhe conparlnenl viII
reIease a cIoud of gas in a five-fool radius.
AII vilhin lhe cIoud nusl save versus poison
or faII asIeep for 2-8 nornaI lurns.
Inside lhe conparlnenl is a Iocked lox
conlaining 15O gp, a goId lrooch (vorlh
aloul 7OO gp, lecause of ils exceIIenl crafls-
nanship), and a staff of striking vilh 1O
charges renaining.
The onIy olher oljecls in lhe roon are
lhe scallered renains of sone of lhe Iizards
previous viclins (noslIy gianl rals and
advenlurers).
Cianl Iizard: AC 5, HD 4, HI 26,
THACO 16, DAM 1-8, MR 9, LXI 75.
THE CELLAR5
Areas 21 lhrough 29 conprise lhe ceIIars
lenealh lhe nansion and can onIy le
reached via lhe slaircase in roon 16 or lhe
hidden lunneI al area 3O.
21. Ccntra! chambcr
This Iarge roon is unexceplionaI in nosl
respecls, leing nore of a connecling haII-
vay for lhe surrounding corridors lhan
anylhing eIse. Il conlains onIy rullIe and
sone oId hunan, golIin, and aninaI lones
~ lhe Ialler accunuIale nore nolicealIy
lhe furlher vesl one gazes. }usl as lhe char-
aclers enler lhe roon, lhey viII see an eIf
(IaIrik) fIee lhrough lhe vesl corridor over
lhe rullIe.
This is, in facl, an iIIusion, and il is saved
againsl al a -2 penaIly due lo ils IogicaI
appearance (unIess lhe silualion does nol
aIIov lhis). A save againsl lhe iIIusion
neans lhe characlers in queslion nolice lhal
IaIrik nakes no noise al aII vhen cross-
ing lhe rough delris, and his fooling is
alnornaIIy sure and sleady ~ as if vhal
lhe characler vas seeing vas sonehov
unreaI.
The referee shouId nake lhe saving
lhrovs for lhe characlers lo avoid arousing
suspicion. The reaI IaIrik viII le hiding in
lhe easl exil (assuning he hasnl leen
caughl and is sliII leing pursued) and viII
fIee lo area 29 if lhe group enlers lhe chan-
ler for any reason.
22. UnfInIshcd crypt
Kanos originaIIy pIanned for lhis chan-
ler lo le a luriaI crypl, lul il vas nol
finished lefore Kanoss dealh. No coffins
are presenl, lhough lvo Iarge liers have
leen conslrucled and an assorlnenl of
slone-culling and finishing looIs Iie aloul
on lhe dusly fIoor. The door lo lhis chanler
is parliaIIy open, and lveIve gianl rals have
nade lheir nesl here.
ne of lhe liers conlains a secrel con-
parlnenl, vhich nay le delecled ly sone-
one checking for lraps or secrel doors. The
conparlnenl conlains a lhin voIune of
Iegends and laIes, sone of lhe passages have
leen narked ly Kanos as possilIy indica-
ling lhe presence of sizalIe lreasure hoards.
The Dungeon Masler nay deveIop severaI
advenlures lased upon lhe Iegends in lhis
look if characlers shov an incIinalion lo
expIore lhis naller furlher. The Iegends
nay invoIve Iosl dragon Iairs, landil hide-
ouls, shipvrecks, and so forlh. Sone adven-
lures deveIoping fron lhis nay have lo vail
DRAGON 51
6DA ?A=HI
ScaIe: 1 square = 5 feel
unliI lhe pIayer characlers are of higher
IeveI, lul lhis gives lhe group sonelhing lo
Iook forvard lo.
Cianl rals: AC 7, HD 1/2, HI 2 each,
THACO 19, DAM 1-3, MR 6, LXI 6
each. Nole lhe 5 chance of calching a
disease fron a lile if lhe viclins save ver-
sus poison isnl nade.
23. Fnnd stnragc rnnm
This roon once conlained Kanoss nore
exlravaganl slores: vaIualIe vines, rich
neals and deIicacies, rare inloxicanls, aged
spices, and olher deIeclalIe ilens. Very
IillIe nov renains, nosl having leen
spoiIed or Iooled Iong ago ly nen and
nonslers. The roons onIy furnishings are
lroken larreIs and crales, nany vilh enlic-
ing IaleIs on lhen. Iour gianl rals are
sniffing aloul here al lhe nonenl. UnIess
lhe pIayer characlers reaclion is parlicu-
IarIy hosliIe, lhe rals viII nol allack unIess
provoked or cornered.
Cianl rals: AC 7, HD 1/2, HI 3 each,
THACO 19, DAM 1-3, MR 6, LXI 6
each. Nole lhe 5 chance of calching a
disease fron a lile if lhe viclins save ver-
sus poison isnl nade.
24. Tnn! rnnm
This roon conlains severaI pieces of
equipnenl and a Iarge nunler of looIs,
noslIy for nining, excavalion, and con-
slruclion (picks, shoveIs, hanners, elc.).
These are noslIy inlacl and in good condi-
lion, lul are covered vilh a lhick Iayer of
dusl. Any parlicuIar ilen lhal lhe advenlur-
ers nighl Iook for is 8O IikeIy lo le
presenl, if reasonalIe. (Hanners are rea-
sonalIe, lul Iances are nol, and no nagicaI
ilens are presenl.)
52 DECEMBER 1984
25. LaIr nf thc ngrc
Irior lo IaIriks arrivaI, VorIagh lhe ogre
vas lhe undispuled nasler of lhe Iover
chanlers. Nov lhe lvo have an uneasy
lruce, neilher vishing lo lesl lhe olhers
slrenglh in norlaI conlal. VorIagh is nol al
aII pIeased vilh lhe arrangenenl, and he
viII le unfavoralIy disposed lovard olher
inlruding up-vorIders ~ i.e., -2 on
reaclion checks. ShouId he le queslioned
sonehov, he knovs lhal lhe slinkin eIf
Iives lo lhe easl. He has aIso gained sone
knovIedge of lhe nansions conlenls and
environnenl, since he has Iived here for
nany years, lul nighl nol offer such infor-
nalion viIIingIy.
The roon has furnishings lefilling ils
occupanl: a crude paIIel-led of slrav, an
oId foolIocker, sone scraps of unidenlifialIe
ogre-food, and a Iol of rullish and oId
lones. The foolIocker is Iocked and has a
poison needIe lrap on il. A 5O chance
exisls of hilling il if a snaII calch isnl re-
Ieased vhen lhe Iock is opened (save versus
poison or die in 1 round). Il conlains 8OO
sp, 2OO gp, and lvo pieces of jeveIry, a
siIver ring (35O gp) and a pIalinun lraceIel
(8OO gp), vrapped in a dirly cloak of the
elvenkind.
VorIagh prefers lo enler and Ieave his
chanler using lhe lunneI lo area 26, he is
avare of lhe exil al area 3O and has delaled
aloul lrying lo sel a lrap for IaIrik lhere,
lul hasnl gollen around lo il yel. He viII
onIy divuIge lhis infornalion if charmed.
A pil lrap lhal VorIagh easiIy avoids sils
in lhe enlryvay lo lhe roon, and characlers
have lhe nornaI chances lo delecl il as any
olher lrap. The 1O deep pil (1d6 danage)
conlains a fev ninor pieces of rusled arnor,
sone snaII lroken veapons, and a Iol of
dirl and delris. A pouch nay le found
under sone of lhe dirl vhich conlains 35
gp, a sapphire (5OO gp), and a ring of pro-
tection +1.
VorIagh: AC 6, HD 4+1, HI 26,
THACO 15, DAM 1-1O, MR 1O, LXI
125.
26. Ogrc's cscapc tunnc!
Kanos had severaI escape lunneIs fron
his nansion pIanned, lul onIy lvo vere
fuIIy excavaled ly hired niners prior lo his
dealh. This lunneI exlends for 12OO feel lo
lhe norlhvesl of lhe nansion, exiling in a
denseIy foresled region. No chance exisls of
lhe advenluring parly finding lhe lunneI
exil vilhoul firsl having gone lhrough lhe
lunneI ilseIf. The lunneI is Iillered vilh
lrash and delris, and is al nosl 1O vide
and 12 high.
A snaII chanler al lhe end of lhe lunneI
forns lhe Iair of a snaII group of landils
vho vork for VorIagh: a Iarge golIin and
Iive koloIds. ThuIin lhe golIin is Iarge and
exceplionaIIy cunning, under his direclion,
lhe IillIe group of raiders has prospered,
Iooling and piIIaging nearly honesleads
and passersly. VorIagh Iels lhe landils slay
here unnoIesled and lacks lhen up on
ligger raids, and lhey give hin a fev choice
ilens of lhe looly. The landils are 25
IikeIy lo le avay on a raid if anyone checks
lhe end of lhe lunneI. If presenl, lvo of lhe
koloIds viII aIvays le on guard vhiIe lhe
olhers resl. The snaII chanler conlains
sone slrav paIIels, lvo chairs, a snaII
lalIe, and a Iocked chesl conlaining lhe
group lreasure of 176 sp, 33 ep, and 1 gp.
In addilion, each koloId has 7-1O cp, and
ThuIin has 5 sp and 1 gp.
ThuIin viII use sone of his Iool lo lar-
gain for his Iife if il cones lo lhal, lul he
viII aIvays lry lo save sone and gain lhe
upper hand.
ThuIin: AC 6, HD 1-1, HI 7, THACO
19, DAM 1-6 vilh shorlsvord, MR 9,
LXI 1O.
KoloIds: AC 7, HD 1/2, HI 4,2,4,3,3,
THACO 19, DAM 1-4 vilh daggers, MR
7 (or 9 vhiIe ThuIin Ieads), LXI 5 each.
27. 5tnragc rnnm
Kanos deposiled nuch of his unvanled
furnilure and lhe Iess speclacuIar of his
accunuIaled souvenirs in lhis roon. Be-
cause lhe door is parlicuIarIy lhick and is
Iocked in lhree pIaces, lhis area has vilh-
slood even lhe ogres heavy lanperings.
The DM nay drav up a Iong Iisl of Iarge
ilens lhal fiII lhis roon, naking sone of
lhen nundane (an oversluffed sofa lhal
needs nending) and sone lizarre (a Ianp
nade fron a sluffed conslriclor snake) and
sone lolh nagicaI and lizarre (a vyverns
skuII lhal quoles eIven poelry, or a cursed
svord lhal causes lhe user lo see iIIusions
conslanlIy afler a cerlain period of line).
Keep in nind lhal Kanos, as noled alove,
had an odd sense of hunor and Iiked coI-
Iecling slrange and unusuaI arlifacls.
28. Thc cagc rnnm
This roon is IaIriks Iasl Iine of defense
lefore fIeeing lo his Iair. Il is lasicaIIy
enply, conlaining onIy a lil of rullIe and a
chain connecled lo lhe norlh vaII vilh a
Ioop on il, ralher Iike a Ieash. Il is possilIe
lhal Kanos nay have used il lo keep vicious
aninaIs as guards, pels, or specinens.
When characlers enler lhe roon, lhey viII
see IaIrik slanding on lhe easlern side vilh
Annacon in hand, ready lo defend hinseIf.
This is anolher of IaIriks iIIusions. The eIf
is peeking lhrough a peephoIe fron area 29
inlo area 28. The DM nay roII lhe charac-
lers saving lhrovs versus lhe iIIusion lo
avoid arousing suspicion.
Unleknovnsl lo lhe pIayer characlers, a
huge cage hangs over lhe area lo lhe easl (as
indicaled on lhe nap), vhich IaIrik viII
drop on lhen if lhe characlers advance
lovard lhe iIIusion or inlo lhe correcl area.
The cage viII aIIov a 3 vide space around
il vhen il faIIs, so anyone nol caughl in il
nay nove around il lovard area 29. A
characler near lhe edges of lhe cage vhen il
faIIs is aIIoved a saving lhrov versus vands
lo avoid leing slruck ly lhe cage, faiIure lo
save indicales lhe characler lakes 2-12
poinls of danage. Lach characler vho nusl
save aIso has a 5O chance of ending up
lrapped inside lhe cage ilseIf. The group has
a coIIeclive 1 in 6 chance of nolicing lhe
cage in ils hiding spol on lhe roof lefore il
is dropped.
If lhe group is caughl, IaIrik viII lhen
vaIk oul fron his hiding pIace in area 29,
apoIogize lo lhe characlers (In lruIy
sorry, lul I viII nol face lhe execulioner jusl
lo save a nolIey group of lounly hunlers),
and lhen go lack lo his roon in lhe norlh
and prepare lo Ieave lhe nansion for good.
ShouId sone of lhe characlers nanage lo
gel pasl lhe lrap, he viII fIee inlo area 29
casling hold portal on lhe door lehind hin
if he sliII has lhe speII nenorized. ShouId
lhe characlers le lrapped, lhey viII legin lo
slarve one day afler lheir ralions run oul,
Iosing 1 hil poinl per day unliI dead, unIess
lhe DM lrings in soneone or sonelhing lo
rescue lhen. IaIrik viII have fIed lhe area
ly lhen, and lhe nission viII le a vrile-off.
The characlers nay allenpl lo Iifl lhe
cage or lend ils lars enough lo gel oul. The
chance of success, roIIed on 1d6, is equaI lo
lhe conlined slrenglh scores of aII charac-
lers naking lhe allenpl divided ly 18
(round fraclions off lo lhe Iovesl vhoIe
nunler) ~ i.e. a conlined slrenglh lolaI of
65 vouId aIIov a 3 in 6 chance of success.
29. Fa!rIk's havcn
This roon has leen IaIriks hone for lhe
pasl fev veeks and conlains a rough slrav
led, a snaII lalIe, a chair, and a snaII sack
vilh cIolhing, ralions, and valer. A purse
nay le found under lhe led vilh 3 pp and
5 gp. When lhe group enlers lhe roon,
IaIrik viII have heard lhen coning and viII
have casl invisibility (if avaiIalIe) on hin-
seIf. He viII lhen fIee oul lhe easlern door.
The door Ieads lo a lunneI vhich lraveIs
soulh and a IillIe easl lo area 3O (leIov). If
lhe group has sone neans lo calch hin
quickIy, lhey nay do so here, lul IaIrik viII
nol Iislen lo reason or pronises of freedon.
lhervise, lhe parly viII have lo foIIov hin
lo area 3O.
30. Thc hIddcn tunnc!
The lunneI fron roon 29 evenluaIIy
cones up and oul of a huge, hoIIoved-oul
louIder surrounded ly dense foreslalion (as
noled on lhe nap), lhe rock resls 1O over
lhe river leIov. The exil is covered ly a
pernanenl iIIusion pIaced lhere ly Kanos.
If nol leing chased, IaIrik viII le carefuI
lo renove his chainnaiI suil and aII heavy
ilens and Iover lhen lo lhe riverlank fron
lhe rock vilh his rope lefore he hinseIf
dives inlo lhe valer. He viII lhen aulonali-
caIIy le alIe lo escape lhe nansion, a pro-
cess vhich shouId lake onIy 2O ninules.
If hard pressed and desperale, IaIrik viII
overIook lhe facl lhal he is vearing chain-
naiI vhen he junps inlo lhe river. Because
of his arnor and his generaI panic, he viII
quickIy legin lo fIaiI aloul in lhe valer,
lrying lo slay afIoal vhiIe he is carried
dovnslrean lo lhe soulh.
IaIrik viII lhen le vashed ashore aloul a
hundred feel dovnslrean and viII survive
lhe ordeaI, lhough he viII le exhausled and
unalIe lo escape furlher unliI he has resled
for 1-4 hours. If lhe parly calches hin al
lhis line, he viII finaIIy le suldued (ralher
Iike a drovned ral) and viII go vilh lhen
lack lo Iarslead, resigned lo his fale. The
pardon viII nol Iifl his spirils, he viII sliII le
suspicious and suspecl lhal he is leing Ied
lo his doon.
EpI!nguc
ShouId lhe characlers gel IaIrik and
Annacon lack lo Iarslead safeIy, lhe nayor
viII officiaIIy apoIogize lo lhe eIf and al-
soIve hin of aII lIane in LorI IIans nur-
der. IaIrik viII finaIIy accepl lhe lrulh of his
pardon, and he viII haIlingIy expIain his
reasons for laking Annacon, denonslraling
lhe svords eIf-deleclion and Iie-deleclion
povers lo everyones salisfaclion. Though il
viII le a vhiIe lefore lhe IocaI peopIe fuIIy
lrusl hin, he viII grudgingIy le laken lack
inlo lhe connunily.
IinaIIy, of course, lhe pIayer characlers
viII receive lheir revards. A lonus of 5OO
gp viII le given lo lhe parly if lhey nan-
aged lo sIay lhe ogre and his landils al lhe
nansion and offer proof of lhis, lhe revard
viII le devaIued accordingIy if sone landils
or lhe ogre sliII Iive. AddilionaI offers for
lhe characlers lo renain in lovn, join lhe
IocaI niIilia or valch, or even for a slrong
fighler-lype lo repIace lhe valch caplain
(nov safeIy jaiIed in anolher cily). lher
revards or offers nay le nade as lhe
Dungeon Masler desires.
AII characlers shouId gel nornaI experi-
ence for lhis advenlure, pIus experience for
lhe revard noney, if appIicalIe. In addi-
lion, each surviving pIayer characler shouId
receive lhe foIIoving lonuses:
Lnlering ceIIar area: +5O xp.
Relurning IaIrik aIive: +15O xp.
Relurning Annacon lo viIIagers: +1OO xp.
DRAGON 53